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Send us Fan Mail Pain has a way of shrinking your world down to one brutal question: why would God allow this? We wrestle with that question head-on through the image of the refiner’s fire, where heat does not exist to destroy what’s precious, but to separate what doesn’t belong. That doesn’t make suffering “good,” and we’re careful about that line, but it does open the door to growth that can’t be faked when life gets hard.  We revisit Liberty Jail and the Lord’s words in Doctrine and Covenants 122, including the piercing phrase “All these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.” I talk about how injustice stays injustice, even when God can still teach and heal through it. The refiner’s fire is not permission to excuse cruelty or accept abuse, and faith is not pretending everything is fine. The real work is asking what hardship is revealing about where we place our trust, what kind of person we’re becoming, and whether we’ll let Jesus Christ work in us without demanding full explanations first.  Then we take a surprising turn into the cockpit. As a pilot, I’ve learned turbulence feels scary even when the aircraft is safe, and that same principle applies to spiritual turbulence, anxiety, and doubt. Feelings are real, but they are not always reliable, so we talk about “spiritual instruments” like scripture, prayer, the Holy Ghost, personal revelation, and trusted wisdom that help you see clearly when life shakes. We close with “Art Thou Greater Than He” as an invitation to covenant faith, Christlike character, and righteous influence rather than bitterness or control. Subscribe, share with a friend who’s hurting, and leave a review to help more people find hope through the fire. The link to my recent Fantasy novel on Amazon: https://a.co/d/02tGXN9I Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail You can do everything you believe God asked you to do and still end up in the middle of a storm. That’s the gut-punch question I’m sitting with today: when you’ve prayed, tried to be obedient, and made sacrifices, why does life still break in ways you didn’t see coming, and where is God when it does? I walk through Joseph Smith’s experience in Liberty Jail and the revelations that became Doctrine and Covenants 121 through 123, where a dungeon-like prison turns into a classroom and even a temple. Joseph’s honest cry, “O God, where art thou?” matters because it shows this question isn’t a weakness, it’s a real prayer. We talk about why faithfulness doesn’t guarantee an easy path, and I connect Liberty Jail to the broader scriptural pattern seen in Job, Joseph of Egypt, the Apostle Paul, and ultimately Jesus Christ, who was perfectly obedient and still suffered beyond what we can comprehend. We also get practical about what trials are and aren’t. Not every painful circumstance is a divinely designed test. Agency, injustice, mortality, and a fallen world are real, and other people’s choices can hurt us. Even then, the gospel of Jesus Christ teaches that God can work with us in suffering, offering peace before explanations and helping us grow into something stronger. The line that stays with me is the call to “endure it well” and the idea that enduring well means refusing to let pain have the final word about who we become. If this helped you, subscribe, share it with someone in a hard season, and leave a review so more people can find Todd Talk, Spirit by Design. What helps you keep turning toward God when the storm doesn’t move? Link to my new fantasy novel on Amazon. https://a.co/d/0c8Ghnu0 Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail Right and wrong didn’t disappear. We just started treating them like opinions, and that shift is costing us more than we realize. We dig into why a moral code matters more in 2026 than it did for previous generations, because today we have more technology, more anonymity, more influence, and more ways to do something wrong while convincing ourselves it’s fine. We connect the dots between freedom and character through the lens of America’s Founders, including the blunt warning from John Adams that the Constitution depends on a moral and religious people. Laws can punish theft, but they can’t manufacture honesty, generosity, or self-control. When personal morality fades, we keep stacking rules and enforcement to compensate, and we still end up asking the same uncomfortable question: what happens when we expect government to replace self-government? From a Christian perspective, we turn to scripture and the Book of Mormon to argue that agency is always taking us somewhere liberty or captivity, life or death. We challenge the “if it feels right, it must be right” mindset, talk about discernment in a world of deepfakes and information overload, and lay out seven modern moral battlegrounds from integrity and sexual purity to words, money, power, and self-control. We also share “Ten Commandments for modern life” as practical, grounded commitments to help you govern yourself before something else governs you. If you found this meaningful, subscribe, share it with someone who’s been wrestling with moral confusion, and leave a five-star review so more people can find the show. Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail “The pursuit of happiness” doesn’t mean chasing whatever feels good. We dig into a deeper definition that’s rooted in virtue, character, self-government, and a life aligned with God, and we draw a bold line between short-term pleasure and lasting joy. We connect the Founding Fathers’ moral framework to the gospel of Jesus Christ and the Book of Mormon’s teachings on agency. In 2 Nephi 2, agency isn’t framed as unlimited permission. It’s the power to choose between outcomes, liberty and eternal life through Christ or captivity and spiritual decline. That context makes “men are that they might have joy” feel practical, not poetic: God’s plan is designed to shape what we become, not just deliver quick comfort. We also get honest about what steals freedom in real life. If you can’t govern appetites, emotions, and impulses, you may have choices, but you aren’t truly free. Romans 6:16 warns that what you repeatedly obey becomes your master, whether that’s food, money, sex, entertainment, approval, anger, or even comfort. From there we reframe commandments as a “happiness system” (D&C 130:20–21), explain why “wickedness never was happiness” (Alma 41:10) still allows for sin to be pleasurable, and show how temptation hides consequences by compressing reward. If you’re tired of the “I want, I consume, repeat” loop, this is a better map: choose, become, receive. Subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review with the biggest idea you’re taking into your week. Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail A single sentence in a dorm Bible study can crack a worldview wide open and sometimes it takes years to understand what just happened. We sit down with Laura Ruth Stewart and her daughter, Hope, to talk through a long, honest path from spiritual seeking to a life centered on Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. We get into the real-life details people actually wrestle with: confusion from mixed religious exposure, the pull of yoga and “Christ consciousness,” the role of science questions, and the humbling moments that reveal how much we build walls against God. Laura shares how a series of seemingly small interventions, a Spirit-filled mentor, a chiropractor’s office, Christian music, and opening the Gospel of John, became turning points in her born again Christian testimony. Then we go practical with Christian prayer. We talk about using scripture-based prayer to stand on God’s promises, and the surprisingly hard discipline of slowing down to listen so intimacy with God becomes real. Hope adds her own voice, including what she loves about Queen Esther and how she prays quietly in daily life. If you’re hungry for spiritual growth, a deeper relationship with the Holy Spirit, or a clearer way to pray when you don’t know what to say, this conversation will meet you right where you are. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs hope, and leave a review so more people can find it. Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail You might be waiting for “bigger” faith before you try again, pray again, repent again, or hope again. We challenge that assumption head-on with the Savior’s promise: faith like a grain of a mustard seed can move mountains. Not because the seed is impressive, but because it is alive, planted, and willing to grow. We lean on teachings from President Russell M. Nelson and the scriptures to show why the Lord does not require perfect faith before we can access His perfect power, and why the next step matters more than a dramatic feeling. We also take a surprising detour into aviation. When a pilot flies in clouds, feelings can mislead, panic can spike, and the only safe move is to trust the instruments. Spiritually, life has IMC moments too: fear gets loud, answers feel delayed, and the horizon disappears. We talk about what it looks like to “fly by instruments” with prayer, scripture study, the temple, covenants, personal revelation, prophetic counsel, and the Holy Ghost, plus why holding the ground you have already won can keep you steady. Finally, we get practical about “moving mountains.” Sometimes the Lord removes obstacles, and sometimes He hands you a shovel and the strength to dig through addiction, grief, resentment, self-doubt, financial stress, or uncertainty. You’ll leave with a simple seven-day faith practice to plant, act, and nurture that seed until it becomes spiritual strength. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs steadier faith, and leave a review with the one next step you are going to take. Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail The fastest way to drain your faith is to bury it under extra rules, endless debates, and spiritual overthinking. We keep returning to a simple claim: Jesus Christ made the gospel clear, and the power is in living it, not endlessly complicating it with opinions, comparison, or checklists.  I connect discipleship to a pilot’s instinct during an emergency. When the cockpit gets chaotic, you do not invent new principles, you simplify and go back to fundamentals: aviate, navigate, communicate. That same pattern can steady your spiritual life when stress hits, relationships strain, or your mind starts spinning. We talk about why “profound” does not mean “complicated,” and why adding complexity often creates distraction, perfectionism, and burnout instead of real growth.  Then we get practical and scriptural. We walk through the doctrine of Christ and the primary answers that keep you moving forward: love God, love your neighbor, follow Christ, repent, forgive, serve, pray, keep covenants, and endure faithfully. We also name the pressures that try to hijack your focus, from social media to church culture to political arguments, and offer simple questions to test whether something is essential or merely interesting.  If you want Christian discipleship that actually leads to transformation, start with small daily steps and repeat them with steadiness and cheer. Subscribe, share this with a friend who feels spiritually overloaded, and leave a review so more people can find the simple path back to Christ. Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail Commandments can feel like fences until you notice what they’re actually doing for you. I’m digging into a question that changes everything: what if God’s commandments aren’t restrictions on your happiness, but instructions for accessing God’s blessings and becoming the kind of person who can hold more peace, strength, and joy? We talk honestly about what following Jesus does and does not promise. Christ never said we’d avoid sickness, heartbreak, financial pressure, or adversity. He did promise His presence, His power, and His peace. I connect that promise to the idea of universal law: just like your body adapts to exercise and your mind responds to what you feed it, your spirit adapts to prayer, gratitude, repentance, and covenant keeping. Sometimes the blessing is not that God removes the problem, but that Christ changes what the problem can do to you. From physical health and the Word of Wisdom to mental and emotional steadiness, money stress, tithing, debt, and marriage, I walk through practical gospel principles that build real-world resilience. If you want less chaos inside your head and more stability in your life, this is about consistent discipleship, not perfection. I close with a clear 30-day challenge: don’t just believe in Christ, follow Him and watch for the miracle happening inside you. If this helps, subscribe, share the show with a friend, and leave a five-star rating and review so more people can find it. Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail A scholarship offer can feel like a lifeline until it forces the real question: what does God want me to do? Todd sits down with his friend Spencer Kimball, a stake president in Destin, Florida, to talk about building faith when the road ahead looks murky and you are tempted to take the easiest exit. Spencer shares the moment he had to choose between a basketball dream and serving a mission, and how one act of prayer changed the entire trajectory of his life. We get honest about what faith looks like when it is tested: financial stress, family pressure, chronic pain, and the kind of uncertainty that takes you to your knees. We connect personal stories to scripture, including the idea that the storm you fear may be the very wind carrying you to where you are meant to go. Along the way, we dig into spiritual promptings, how to act when you do not know the full plan, and why hindsight so often reveals God’s steady hand. We also explore “looking forward with an eye of faith” as a practical, gospel-centered form of visualization, plus the power of language and mindset in dark seasons. Spencer explains how he helps people rewrite the story they are telling themselves, return to the habits that once made them feel close to the Lord, and choose a healthier circle of influence. If you want Christian encouragement, faith-building tools, and a grounded approach to spiritual resilience, you will find it here. Subscribe, share with a friend who needs hope, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway. To work with Spencer, visit his website: Xpansion.com Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail Fear sells fast right now. Headlines stay hot, social feeds stay loud, and it’s easy to confuse constant тревога with “being aware.” We take a different approach: we look at what Jesus Christ actually taught about the last days and why His repeated counsel is not panic, but steadiness. The world may be in commotion, but discipleship does not have to be. We talk through why prophecy is meant to produce preparation, not obsession. Using the story of Christ calming the storm, we ask the uncomfortable but freeing question: do we see the waves more clearly than we see the Savior? Faith is not pretending everything is fine; it is recognizing the storm and still trusting who is in the boat. We also unpack the promise “if ye are prepared, ye shall not fear” from the Doctrine and Covenants and what that preparation looks like beyond food storage and finances. From President Russell M. Nelson’s invitations to become still and hear Christ, to the call to stand in holy places and stay on the covenant path, the focus stays practical. We break down three kinds of spiritual preparation: strengthening testimony, refining character, and deepening a real relationship with Christ. We also challenge the habits that feed fear, like doomscrolling and timeline obsession, and replace them with daily practices that invite personal revelation through prayer, scripture study, the temple, and quiet listening. If you want a clearer, calmer way to think about the second coming, the latter days, and faith over fear, press play. Subscribe, share this with a friend who feels overwhelmed, and leave a review with one takeaway you want to live this week. Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail You can feel inspired in a single day, but you don’t rebuild a life that way. Real transformation comes from the quiet work you repeat when nobody is clapping for you and when progress feels slow. We dig into the power of consistency and why the small choices you make daily are the choices that eventually shape your body, your mindset, your relationships, and your discipleship of Jesus Christ. We start with a simple truth from lived experience: inconsistency brings inconsistent results, while steady effort compounds. That’s true with exercise, better eating, and mental toughness, and it’s just as true with spiritual habits like daily prayer, scripture study, gratitude, and listening for promptings. We connect practical habit building to scripture and teachings such as “be not weary in well doing” and “by small and simple things are great things brought to pass,” plus the idea that spiritual growth works like compounding interest. Then we get practical and honest about the part most people miss: consistency is not perfection, it’s persistence. Missing a day isn’t the end, quitting is. We talk about why intensity burns people out, how simple routines and accountability make change sustainable, and how repeated actions become identity over time. If you want a clear next step, we invite you to pick one spiritual habit and one life habit and commit to them for 30 days. Subscribe for new episodes every Tuesday and Friday, share this with a friend who needs momentum, and leave a review so more people can find it. What two habits are you choosing for the next 30 days? Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail If you’ve ever wondered why someone can look impressive and still feel hollow, this conversation gets straight to the point: goodness is not a brand, a bank balance, or a perfectly curated life. We start with a simple idea that came out of real-world talks with pilots about judgment and character, then move into the question that actually matters for Christian living: what makes a good man or a good woman?  We pull from Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus, and Aristotle to explore virtue, self-mastery, and the power of repeated habits, then place those insights next to scripture and modern prophetic counsel. President D. Todd Christofferson’s teaching that Christlike character grows out of a Christlike heart reframes the whole project. Behavior is the fruit, but the heart is the tree. That leads to a practical self-audit: if God could change one thing about your heart, what would you ask Him to change?  From there, we get concrete. Goodness shows up when it costs something, when strength is paired with restraint, and when integrity holds in private. We talk about meekness as real power under control, the danger of “curated character” in a social media age, and why honesty is more than not lying. We also connect President Russell M. Nelson’s call to be peacemakers with the daily chain that builds character: thoughts, words, actions.  Finally, we name what philosophy can’t supply on its own: grace. The hope isn’t manufacturing perfection through willpower, but coming to Christ and being changed from the inside out, “even as I am” (3 Nephi 27:27). If this helps you, subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review, then tell us what daily habit you’re choosing to practice this week. Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail The fastest way to feel righteous is to find someone else’s weakness, but it’s also one of the quickest ways to lose the Spirit. We dig into a trap that shows up in real Christian life: spotting “obvious” sins in others while missing the quieter sins in ourselves like pride, sarcasm, gossip, and the need to feel superior.  Matthew 7 doesn’t let us stay comfortable. Jesus teaches that the judgment we use will come back to us, then gives the sharp picture of the mote and the beam. We talk about what righteous judgment actually means and what it doesn’t. Standards still matter. Truth still matters. Repentance still matters. The challenge is learning to judge righteously without condemning identities, without pretending we know someone’s heart, and without using another person’s failure as evidence of our own goodness.  Modern prophetic guidance brings this down to street level. We explore the difference between intermediate judgments and final judgments, why it changes everything to “judge situations rather than people,” and how Christ models uncompromising truth with remarkable compassion. You’ll also get a practical self-check: five questions to ask before you criticize, plus a Golden Rule reset for how you want others to treat you when you fall short.  If you want stronger relationships, cleaner discipleship, and a more Christlike way to talk about sin and grace, press play. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs more mercy in their feed, and leave a review to help more people find the show. Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail Some prayers are peaceful. Some are honest enough to sound like a fight. Todd sits down with his close friend Lila Willardson for a real conversation about spiritual discipline, hearing the Spirit, and what it looks like to keep turning toward God even when you don’t feel confident, energized, or certain. We start with the Old Testament and the reminder it keeps repeating: God consistently works through imperfect people, which means He can work through us too.  We dig into the daily habits that actually change a life, including morning scripture study, conference talks, and building a routine that makes it easier to recognize and act on spiritual promptings. Lila shares what it means to put God first through prayer and covenant keeping, and why a covenant is more than a promise. Then we go somewhere many people avoid: frustration, doubt, and the “what if God isn’t real?” questions. Instead of treating doubt as failure, we talk about bringing it into the relationship and letting God meet you in it.  Joy shows up in a surprising place: service. We explore why helping others can be a steady source of meaning, especially in seasons when you can’t name a single “passion.” We also reflect on family, love through hard times, and the kinds of small, quiet choices that shape who we become. Lila closes with a mission insight from Mexico: even brief spiritual moments can create eternal ripples you may never see.  If you want practical faith, honest prayer, and a stronger ability to hear and follow personal revelation, press play. Subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review with the habit that helps you put God first. Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig

Send us Fan Mail Covenants can feel intimidating until you realize what they’re designed to do: connect you to Jesus Christ so His power can change you. We talk about why spiritual strength isn’t accidental and why simply learning more isn’t the same as becoming more. Using the analogy of physical fitness, we break down how repeated, faithful “training” builds endurance, capacity, and resilience over time, especially when life gets hard and you feel spiritually tired. We define what a covenant is: a two-way agreement where God sets the terms and then binds Himself to bless, sustain, sanctify, and transform us as we choose Him. From there, we walk through the Abrahamic covenant as a bigger purpose for blessings, not just personal comfort but being strengthened to bless others. We also connect the baptismal covenant in Mosiah 18 to real daily discipleship: bearing burdens, mourning, comforting, and standing as a witness of God. We explore the sacrament as weekly spiritual recovery through repentance and the Atonement of Jesus Christ, then discuss temple covenants with care for what is sacred while still teaching the principles: ordinances, commitment, consecration, and deeper access to the power of godliness. You’ll also hear five practical outcomes of covenant keeping, including stronger resistance to temptation and an anchored identity in a chaotic world. If you want a stronger marriage, a stronger family, and a steadier soul, this is a clear roadmap for covenant living as spiritual fitness. Subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a five-star review so more people can find it. Support the show You can reach me anytime at  email: [email protected] Instagram @toddtalks_ig