Video summary
Dr. David Stein challenges the modern cultural obsession with speed, ease, and constant growth, arguing that a life of lasting impact is not built on these principles but rather on choosing the difficult path of obedience. He shares his personal testimony of surviving terminal leukemia at age fifteen after his grandfather interpreted a dream as a sign of healing, an experience that transformed his understanding of God from a distant figure to one intimately involved in his life. This early miracle set the stage for his broader message: that trials are not punishments but divine processes designed to build faith and character, often requiring believers to embrace challenges rather than flee from them.
Stein illustrates this concept through the remarkable example of the muskox, an animal that faces Arctic blizzards by turning its head directly into the storm rather than running away. He explains that while other animals might freeze or perish in such conditions, the muskox grows a thick, valuable undercoat called qiviut specifically because it endures the cold and wind. This biological reality serves as a powerful metaphor for spiritual growth; just as the animal cannot develop its protective layer without facing the harsh elements, believers often cannot mature their faith, hope, relationships, prayer life, or passion without walking through difficult seasons. The storm is not an obstacle to be avoided but a necessary environment where God builds resilience and value in the believer's life.
The core argument of his book, *The Way of the Ox*, is that Christians must cultivate "faith-filled grit" by refusing to give up when immediate answers do not appear. Stein warns against the bitterness that can arise when believers expect instant miracles every time, noting that while God has performed supernatural healings in his life, many other battles are won through a process of endurance and trust. He encourages listeners to advance in their faith even when they cannot see God's hand at work, emphasizing that giving up prematurely prevents the "silver lining" from emerging. Ultimately, he concludes that the most valuable things in life, much like the muskox's coat, are only acquired by standing firm against the wind and trusting that God is using the struggle to make us greater than gold.
Read the full video transcript
We've been sold the idea that bigger,
faster, and easier is always better. But
what if that's exactly what's making us
weak? Dr. David Stein says a life of
lasting impact isn't built on speed.
Praise Jesus, but on choosing the hard,
often gritty path of obedience. David,
welcome to Unscripted Faith.
>> Angela, thank you so much for having me.
It's such a delight to be on your show.
It is an honor to have you and I cannot
wait to get into this talking about the
grittiness of life because we all have
certainly endured it but sometimes we
felt bad about having to endure it. Um
but before we go there share with me
your God story and how you came to faith
in Christ.
>> Well I I started out life uh in the
Catholic faith. Did the alter boy thing
did all the way through. I I never
really had a closeness to the Lord. Um
but was going through the motions and um
and then uh at 15 I was actually
diagnosed with terminal cancer and um it
it really shook my world. You know, as a
as a young man, you just feel invincible
to a certain point in time. And then I
was uh essentially given uh six weeks uh
left to live. And um my grandparents
were visiting me. Of course, my parents
were with me. I was at Ashner Clinic in
New Orleans. And uh doctors couldn't
really figure out what was going on and
ended up concluding that I had leukemia.
And there was really nothing that they
could do for me at the time. It was a
rare form of it that they had not had
any success with. And um I I'll never
forget when they told my parents uh I
was in the room and they said, "Yeah, we
we just going to plan on sending you
guys home after a few more tests." And
uh I was essentially going to go home to
die. And uh as a 15-year-old, I was not
framing this well. Of course, I was
super bummed out, as anyone would be.
And then I got a phone call from my
grandfather uh the night before I was to
have my last test the next morning and
then I was gonna they were going to
discharge me to go home. And my
grandfather called. He was a man of
faith and um he said uh he he got on the
phone. I'm laying in the bed in the
hospital room and he said, he said,
"David, I had a dream last night and in
the dream you were in the hospital bed
and the hospital bed went up into the
clouds and I remember he paused for a
moment and I just thought, "Oh my god, I
my grandfather's telling me I'm going to
die." Um, but he said, "No, no, no. You
came back down out of the clouds dressed
like a normal 15-year-old young man."
And he said, "David, I believe this
means that you're going to be healed."
And in that moment, I I mean, it it it
it felt like the word of of God, even
though I didn't know what that was in
the moment. And sure enough, the next
day, I had one more test. It was a bone
marrow test. And the doctors did the
classic thing come. They all came in the
room and basically said, "We we can't
explain this, but there is no more
cancer in your son's body." As they were
talking to my parents.
>> Thank you. And um oddly enough, they
kept me for a couple more days, but I
was discharged to go and live instead of
to [laughter] go home and die. And uh it
it it changed my life, of course. I I
went from knowing that there was a God
to all of a sudden knowing that there
was a God who was actually intimately
interested in me.
>> And uh it was still a few years, you
know, how our faith journey is, uh
before I I fully accepted Jesus as Lord
and Savior. Um but um yeah, that's my
faith story.
>> Wow. I mean, Dr. David, you are truly
David. I mean, you shall not die, but
live to declare the works of the Lord.
What a powerful powerful testimony at
just 15 years old. So, you went through
difficulties. I mean that's the most
difficult thing literally facing death
at a young age of 15 and still had more
trials and things that you went through
in life but you've learned that those
trials are not actually uh you know
punishment but maybe gifts share with
me.
>> Yeah. Well I I can I can point you to
the book the the way of the ox that I
wrote. Um, you know, I uh I I feel like
there's this there there's so much in
the natural that speaks to the
spiritual.
>> Yes.
>> And uh uh Angela, you just went through
a conversation with an amazing couple
about marriage. And I was doing the good
husbandly thing one day with my wife and
we were walking through HomeGoods. Come
on, this is important. Husbands, YOU GOT
TO CATCH THIS. Bottle along behind her.
And uh my wife pointed over to this
picture in HomeGoods and she said, "We
need that picture in our living room."
And I remember looking at it and it was
of an animal that I had never seen
before. And I was like, "Babe, I don't
even know what that is." And and so of
course we ended up with the picture in
our living room. And um I looked it up
whenever I got home and it was a picture
of a muskox. And again, a very uh fair
fairly unknown animal, at least to me.
uh the muskox. As I began to do research
though, I began to get so inspired and
uh this animal, the one thing that stood
out most to me, it was in blizzards and
in the winter time, instead of running
away from the storm, they're in the
Arctic Circle, so it's already
completely frigid, but instead of going
away from the storm, they actually turn
their shoulder and head into the
blizzard. They go into the storm. And
there's some amazing benefits to why
they do this. But I thought uh in my own
life, you know, the times where I resist
challenges, the challenges get harder
and harder. But whenever I trust that
God has got me in the challenge and just
turn my shoulder and say, "I'm going to
walk through this with you, Lord." Then
I see breakthrough after breakthrough
happening. It's almost uh embracing what
message does God want to teach to me in
this season of my life.
>> I love that it all started with a trip
to HomeGoods. Okay, so we're fixing some
marriages today. [laughter]
>> Yes, that's a marriage tip.
>> That's right. That's exactly right. I do
love that story of the ox that it goes
into the blizzard. It's not like just
trying to run away from it and to your
point, not living an easy life, but it
shapes us. What are some of these things
that when we face it headon that we can
walk away from after that storm has
passed? Hey friends, if this
conversation is encouraging you,
consider donating to Cornerstone TV
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You can do that at ctvn.org/donate.
you know, there's a lot we could walk
away from and every storm is going to
have different challenges in it. And um
I I think really that's why I wrote this
book is I I find oftenimes there can be
discouragement that comes into the
Christian life, definitely my own.
whenever we're not framing what God is
up to. And that that even going into a
storm has not caught him off guard, but
he really wants to build our faith. As
scripture tells us, Angela, as you know,
he wants to make it as great of greater
worth even than gold. And last I
checked, especially recently, gold is
off the charts. [laughter]
So if he wants to make it of greater
worth than gold, there there's process
he needs to take us through. And you're
right, it's never as punishment. It's
never as correction, but he allows us to
learn and grow and really mature even as
a seasoned believer in ways that we
would not mature without him taking us
on a journey of faith. So, some of the
things that that we learn on the other
side is is how to trust him in a bigger
way in our life. And I I think, you
know, as someone who's been through
cancer, I've been through other health
issues, and God has dealt with each one
in a different way. I I'd love to say
that he did the miraculous, like the
leukemia healing story every time, but
truth be told, I've had two others that
were completely different process. And
yet I am here disease-free, cancer free,
healthy uh in this season of life. And
and now I've lived to tell that God will
get you through no matter what you're
going through today.
>> Wow. I'm so thankful you shared that
you've had other battles that didn't
look like that supernatural
instantaneous healing so to speak, but
it was more of a process or a journey
because many of us go through that.
That's that's what it looks like. It's a
process, a journey. What kept you during
those moments when that blizzard the ox
is facing is barreling down and really
I'm sure even the ox thinks get out of
here. I'm running the opposite
direction. What kept you that head down
and kept pushing through instead of just
giving up?
>> You know, I've got uh five areas that I
cover in the book, Angela. And I I feel
like the book is really um you know
years a years years ago uh a woman named
Angela Duckworth wrote a book that you
remember called Grit. And uh I remember
reading that book I think it was 2012
2013 uh don't quote me on that. And uh I
after reading that book, I just remember
thinking, man, somebody needs to write a
book about have having Christian grit,
faithfilled grit in life. Because
scripture tells us, you know, do not
weary and welloing for in due season you
will reap if you don't give up. And I
see too many believers really if God
doesn't come through there can be a
bitterness that kind of comes out in
their faith and kind of contaminates
their attitude, their faith even. And
really the idea is that God has not come
through yet, but he will come through.
And so for me, this this book has been
uh somewhat of a testimony of come of
how God's come through over and over,
but also a playbook in how he does. And
I believe there's there's five areas
that we all need to advance in. And and
that means move forward into in my mind.
And that is that we advance in our
faith. We advance in our hope. We
advance even in our relationships, those
individuals around us. And then we
advance in our prayer life. I know that
these aren't rocket science, but these
are so key in digging back into the
basics of how to get through even the
most difficult challenges. And then the
last one is really advancing our
passion. What is that thing God's put in
our heart? Uh that's really an aspect of
where God gives fulfillment in our life.
Even in the challenging seasons, we
should be pursuing a passion in our life
and not just set it aside until this
challenge passes.
>> I love that grittiness really does
matter. And as believers, we must be
Revelation says over and over, those who
endure to the end. Not those who endure
until it gets tough and then they give
up. No, those who endure to the end. And
you have certainly produced through this
book and through your life a living
testimony of what it looks like to
endure to the end to see his hand to
trust him when you can't trace him. And
we're so thankful for you, Dr. David.
You have made us all better by sharing.
>> Thank you. You know, I I mentioned that
the muskox turns its shoulder and goes
into the storm. It does this for a
reason, Angela. It's it's hardwired to
know that it must uh endure this
challenge, this storm, because on the
other side of the storm, get this, the
muskox, while it goes into the storm, it
has this amazing ability to grow this
under layer called quivivet. And that
under layer grows out only whenever it
gets colder outside. And it is the most
valuable wool on planet Earth. It's
called quivet. And it only grows through
the muskox. It's the silver lining of
what God's doing in your life. Angela,
>> that's it. You can only get some things
by going through the hard. Dr. David,
thank you for being with us today.
>> God bless you. Thank you so much for
having me on, Angela.