I’ve been podcasting a while now. It started with Live Uncaged where I singlehandedly shared about Jesus and living set free. I grew tired of hearing myself talk, and I also ran out of money. (It costs to produce a show).

But as the concept of Restory came to me a couple years ago, the idea for the Restory Show also emerged. I wanted to hear people’s stories. Why? I am just FASCINATED by people. And I wanted to share the stories I’d had the privilege of hearing with you.

Who Are the Storytellers? People like You

I get approached by publicists, yes. And occasionally (rarely), I book someone based on that. But the majority of stories you hear on the podcast are people I know, who I have a personal connection with. They aren’t famous folks. They’re everyday people in the trenches of life. Their stories aren’t splashed across social media (in fact, I believe they’d be horrified if they were). These are faithful people following a faithful God. And their stories are heartbreaking, encouraging, unusual, inspiring, and unique. My prayer is that when you reach the end of an episode, you no longer feel alone, and you have hope to walk through another day with renewed joy.

I’ve done my best to offer a wide variety of stories from people of all colors, sexes, demographics and geographical locations. You may notice that I lean heavily on missionaries, having been one myself in France. I’m a sucker for honest missionary stories. I also feel that the body of Christ greatly benefits when we listen to global Christians, learning from each other and hearing each other’s daily battles in different cultures.

So when I decided I needed some financial help to fund this endeavor (production costs, time costs), I initially thought of advertising. Not that advertising is wrong; often, it’s necessary. But I know that my own user experience of podcasts is hampered when a story is interrupted by a commercial. So, instead, I’ve decided to go to the folks who actually listen to the show, who have spiritually benefited from all these well told, surprising stories.

This is not easy to do. In fact, I often cringe at asking for help, for selling. It’s not in my nature. I constantly fear I’ll become this:

But those of you who know me, know this isn’t my heart. Yes, I’ll risk being misunderstood, but I so believe in the message of the Restory Show that I’m willing to do something highly uncomfortable.

ASIDE: If you haven’t yet listened to the show, I would highly recommend you start at episode one with Bethany Kaczmarek. It’s an amazing story! Listen on itunes here. (If you like the podcast, one way you can absolutely support it is to write a quick 2-3 sentence review on itunes. And I often read those reviews on the show, so you get double mileage from it!) Find the Restory Show on Stitcher here. And here is a listing of all the podcasts.

How You Can Help

Enter Patreon. Think of it as the postmodern-day Patron of the Arts. In the Days of Yore, artists were funded by patrons so they could concentrate on their art and not have to muck stalls to earn their way in the world. (I have mucked stalls. My back is too old for that now).

Offering patronage is a way for folks who believe in the podcast to help it continue on, one month at a time–a consistent form of crowdfunding for creative people. You can support it as little as a $1 a month. If you choose to support $5, you’ll receive an original, never-released painting (in a jpg file) every month as my thank you. Here are a few of my pieces to give you an idea:

This is my way to combine my love of sharing other people’s stories, and chasing after a little-known artistic dream I have. So if this resonates with you, click the image below to become a patron of the Restory Show! I would so appreciate it. And if you feel like I’m not providing value, you can cancel your monthly patronage at any time.

Just looking at this Restory graphic humbles me. Look how many people’s stories have been brought into the world and shared! What an amazing journey this has been, and I’m so thankful for your role in it.