Can I ask you something? When was the last time you felt fully alive? Not entertained, not distracted, not busy, but alive. The kind of alive where you lose all track of time, where you're fully present, where your heart feels awake, where you're doing what you were created to do. Can you remember it? You know, for some of you, it's been a while. Not because you're lazy, not because you've failed, just because life has a way of piling things on top of us. Responsibilities, deadlines, bills, disappointments, heartbreak, regret, fear. You know, before long, we stop living, and we start surviving. We wake up, we go to work, we come home, watch a little television, scroll through our phones, go to bed, and repeat. Weeks become months, months then become years, and one day you catch yourself asking, "Is this really all there is?" You know, I don't think that's a selfish question. I actually think it's a sacred one. Because maybe that question isn't coming from your frustration. Maybe it's coming from the part of you that actually remembers that you were created for more than survival. Maybe your pilot light has never gone out. Maybe it's just buried. And that's what I wanna talk to you about today Welcome to Pilot Light. I am your host, Josh. You know, most people are not looking for another self-help podcast. They are looking for a reminder, a reminder of who they are, a reminder of what truly matters, a reminder that their story is not over. So wherever you are listening from, whether you're driving home or you're trying to figure out why every Amazon package you ordered somehow arrived all on the same day, or you're sitting on your back porch watching the sun go down and wondering where this year went, I am so glad you're here. Let's light the pilot light Well, guess what, friends? This is episode 12. That means it's the end of season number one, and if you've listened to the last 11 episodes, you have probably noticed something. We have talked about performance. We've talked about identity and fear and comparison. We've talked about calling and habits and truth and legacy and formation, and underneath every one of those conversations, there has been one bigger question. Who are you becoming? You know, I've been asking myself that question for years, and honestly, there have been seasons where I was not becoming. I was just coping. In fact, I look back to my 30s in my life, and I call it the Dark Ages because it's a period of time I don't really remember because all I was doing was coping during that time. It was a dark season of life. I was doing what needed to be done. I was taking care of my people. I was being responsible. I was showing up. I was getting through the week, and from the outside, everything probably looked just fine. But inside, something felt quiet. Not broken, just dim. And I think a lot of responsible people live there. They're dependable, successful, faithful, but somewhere along the way, they traded wonder for routine, calling for comfort, living for surviving. And if I'm honest, okay, Pilot Light was born out of that realization. This podcast isn't about me having all the answers. It's about refusing to stay asleep. That's me. I do not want to be asleep any longer. It's about choosing to come alive again. See, there was one day where something clicked, and I realized that God had never asked me to become someone impressive. He had asked me to become someone faithful, someone authentic, someone fully alive. The goal was never to create a better image. It was to uncover the person He had been shaping all along. I didn't need a different life. I just needed to start living the one that I had been given. So here's what I've learned. Most people don't need reinvention. They need restoration. Think about that. The world tells us that we need to reinvent ourselves. We need to create a new identity. We need to build a better image or become someone completely different. But throughout Scripture, God rarely works through reinvention He works through restoration. He restores hope. He restores joy. He restores purpose. He restores relationships. He restores people. Maybe because the masterpiece was never destroyed, it was just simply covered, covered by disappointment, covered by fear, covered by shame, covered by responsibility, covered by years of believing the wrong story. Restoration isn't pretending that the past never happened, but it's allowing God to uncover who He created you to be. So here's my first point in this. First of all, survival is a terrible place to live. But you know what? Survival is necessary. There are seasons when we simply have to get through. Maybe it's loss or illness or financial hardship, or it's heartbreak or trauma. God understands that. But survival was never meant to become your permanent address. Some people have been surviving for so long that they have forgotten what living actually feels like. Joy feels then irresponsible. Rest feels lazy. Dreaming feels dangerous. Hope feels risky. Maybe today is permission, permission for you to stop merely surviving. Here's my second point. Uh, here's what I want you to understand, that the real you is still there. One of my favorite thoughts is this: the person God created you to become has not disappeared. That dream, that compassion, that creativity, that courage, that calling, it's still there. It may be quieter than it used to be. Maybe it's buried under years of responsibility, but buried things aren't always dead things. Sometimes they simply need to be uncovered. And maybe you've spent years trying to find yourself. What if God has been patiently restoring you all along? Here's my third point in that. Here's what I want you to understand, that Jesus came to bring life. Jesus didn't simply come to make people behave better, okay? He said, "I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly." Think about that. Life, not existence, not survival. Life, a full heart, a renewed mind, a restored purpose, an awakened soul. That's the invitation. Not to become someone you're not, but to become fully who God designed you to be from the beginning. You know, one of my favorite stories in scripture is the story of the prodigal son. Most people focus on the son's return, but I wanna focus on the father's response. The father wasn't interested in making him earn his way back. He restored him. He gave him a robe, a ring, a celebration. Why? Because sons don't stop being sons when they wander. Maybe you've wandered. Maybe you've settled. Maybe you've just gone quiet. Maybe you have forgotten who you are. But you know what? The Father hasn't forgotten. He still knows your name. He still knows your purpose, and He is still inviting you home. So can I ask you a few questions? When was the last time you felt fully alive? What activity makes your soul wake up? Think about that for a second. What activity makes your soul wake up? Where have you settled for surviving? What part of yourself have you slowly abandoned? If fear wasn't making the decisions, what would you begin again? Sit with those questions because they might be the beginning of restoration. Here's my challenge to you this week. I want you to do one thing that makes you come alive, not because it's productive, but because it's life-giving. Take a walk. Write. Paint. Build something. Call a friend. Spend time with your family. Sit quietly with God. Hey, maybe laugh. Dream. Begin again. Don't wait until everything's perfect. Come back to life today, one small step at a time So to close this out today, before we finish, I want you to hear something from me today, and I want you to never forget this. You are not behind. You are not disqualified. You are not too old. You are not too late. Your story is not over. If there is one thing I hope you've heard throughout this first season is this: You were never created to simply exist. You were created to become, to see farther, to live deeper, to become who you were created to be, and then to pass a flame to somebody else. Because the world doesn't need just more successful people. It needs more people who are fully alive. And maybe that's why you're here. Maybe that's why Pilot Light exists, not to give you another list of things to do, but to remind you that the fire is still there, and with God's help, it can burn brighter than ever. So let's think about this in a legacy minute here. Before we go, I want you to picture yourself years from now. You're sitting on a porch. Your hair is a little grayer. I don't know how that would get seen grayer for me. It is pretty gray at this point. Life has moved faster than you imagine, which is so true. But someone asks you, "Was it worth it?" And I hope your answer isn't about money or titles or accomplishments. I hope your answer is this: "I became who God created me to be, and I helped a few other people do the same." That's a life well-lived. Pass the flame. You know what? As we leave, thank you. Seriously, thank you. Thank you for spending this season with me. Whether you've listened to one episode or maybe you have listened to all 12, thank you. I hope you've been reminded of something, that your story matters, your life has purpose, your flame still burns. And if these conversations have encouraged you, please share them with someone who needs hope. Let's keep passing the flame. And remember, I want you to see farther, live deeper, become who you were created to be because you were created to be a fire, not just a flicker. So keep the pilot light on, and I will see you next season. Before we go, I wanna ask you for two quick things. First, if Pilot Light has encouraged you, would you take a moment to follow the podcast and leave a review on either Apple Podcasts or Spotify? It may seem like a small thing, but it really does help this message reach more people who might need a little light in their life. And secondly, I wanna hear from you because Pilot Light was never meant to be just a podcast. It was meant to be a conversation. So go to the website, mypilotlight.com, and go to the fan page portion and send me a message or leave me a voicemail. Tell me your story. What challenged you? What encouraged you? What did you do differently? Or maybe most importantly, who did you pass the flame to? Maybe you shared an episode with a friend. Maybe you encouraged someone who needed it. Maybe you had a conversation you had been putting off. Maybe you chose to show up differently. I wanna hear those stories. Some of them may be even shared on our website or included in a future episode because you never know how your story might light the way for someone else. So remember, a flame was never meant to be kept. It was meant to be passed, so keep passing the flame. And as always, see farther, live deeper, become who you were created to be. You were created to be a fire, not just a flicker. Keep the pilot light on, and I will see you next time