It's doubtful we have a lot of young 20-something men listening to this podcast, but for those who are out there, listen to this show. For those of you who aren't 20-something males, you probably have a 20-something male in your life that you love, and you need to listen to this podcast too.

It's beautiful to see someone tell the story of how the church wasn't always kind to them and how people weren’t always kind to them. But Jesus was always kind to them. The church and the people are just a building and humans who can be frail and faulty. In spite of this, this Cavanaugh James turned around and served people in the church. I found this refreshing and beautiful. All of this depth came from a millennial.

Cavanaugh James is the author of the book Higher Power Has a Name. He is a writer and renaissance Millennial who loves to communicate truth through vulnerability and humor. He is equal parts writer, singer, and joke-teller; utilizing all three loves on social media, in the local church, and whenever given an opportunity. He loves people and believes his greatest call is to walk hand-in-hand with them, free from judgment and full of tangible love, love that moves the mark.

In this episode, Cavanaugh gets vulnerable and talks about god given purpose and identity. He talks about his life, family, and friends. He also talks about how having a personal relationship with god helped him find his god given purpose and identity. This is an episode that will inspire and surprise you as Melissa chats with Cavanaugh and even discovers that they have similar stories.

Show Notes:

• [02:37] Melissa's assistant found Cavanaugh on Instagram.
• [04:23] Cavanaugh is from Dallas, Texas and is primarily a writer.
• [04:40] He grew up in the church and didn't really have a faith of his own until he was eighteen.
• [04:55] He left musical theater school to go to Bible College. He got involved in the church world, but his crew have church have musical theater.
• [05:29] Cavanaugh's day-to-day is writing and using social media as a tool. He's also very close to his family.
• [07:21] He serves at Gateway Church with Pastor Robert Morris.
• [08:32] Cavanaugh and Melissa have similar stories.
• [11:15] Cavanaugh gets vulnerable and talks about god given purpose and identity. He grew up not knowing who he was outside of family.
• [13:37] At church, he heard people preach about the love of Christ and yet they weren't living it, because of the way they were treating him.
• [15:20] It was crucial for Cavanaugh to know who he was in Christ before anything else.
• [18:54] He would always go back to the Lord and see who he was supposed to be.
• [22:48] The church is waiting for people to be straight, and the world is waiting for people to be gay. He's focusing on working on his relationship with the Lord and not worrying about anything else.
• [24:52] The enemy wants us to believe that our struggles keep us from moving towards our purpose.
• [29:21] Cavanaugh was living in L.A. and noticed that when they talked about faith, people's language would change. Instead of saying God, people would say a higher power.
• [30:39] He got frustrated and said that a higher power has a name.
• [32:25] Cavanaugh is excited about who God is and his character. He's willing to talk to anyone about it.
• [34:28] Darkness doesn't diminish light. It's his job to bring in the light.
• [37:14] A lot of people are looking at the church based on their parents or someone else's faith not their own.
• [39:16] Millennials respond to authenticity and sometimes don't feel like they've been told the truth.
• [40:41] Community is hard to find unless you're plugged into a healthy group or church.
• [46:38] Cav answers the rapid fire questions. We talk friendship, chicken fried steak, and actors.

Thanks for joining us on Ordinary People Ordinary Things. Be sure to subscribe to our podcast on iTunes and leave a nice review. Just like your mother taught you.

Links and Resources:

• Podcast Web Page
• Facebook Page
• @MsMelissaRadke on Instagram
• @msmelissaradke on Twitter
• Autographed Copy of Eat Cake. Be Brave.
• Eat Cake. Be Brave. Extended Book Trailer
• Sign Up for Insider Access
• INK Replacing What Stained You With What Can Change You
• Cavanaugh James
• Higher Power Has a Name
• Cavanaugh James on Instagram
• Cavanaugh James on Twitter
• Cavanaugh James on Facebook
• Gateway Church
• Audible Get a free 30-day trial and free audiobook
• Babe’s Chicken