Thinking Celestial - A ”Follow The Prophet” Series Podcast · SLCC Institute of Religion

Ep 178 S7 Matt, Blake and Kirk ‘Forsake Not Your Own Mercy’ Matthew S. Holland

February 9, 2026·33 min·2 clips

"There is always dry ground for hope, healing and happiness" becomes the episode’s central claim.

Kirk Burbage opens the conversation with Blake Dalton and Matt Merrill, both fellow Institute teachers at Taylorsville Institute. The three sound like they have just come out of a faculty meeting, which is exactly the point. Kirk says nothing is being edited out. That gives the episode a raw, relaxed feel. They start with a little classroom talk before settling into the conference talk. The discussion centers on the idea that Heavenly Father’s plan is real, mortal life matters, and the Savior’s atonement makes that plan possible. The hosts keep coming back to conversion as the hinge. They ask what it looks like when a heart has actually changed. Jonah becomes a major touchstone. The conversation treats Nineveh as the kind of place you would not naturally want to go preach to. They joke about rival teams and impossible missions to capture how rough the assignment feels. That humor gives way to a more serious point about the mercy and charity God expects people to extend. The Sons of Mosiah and Alma come in as a sharper contrast. Their willingness to teach the Lamanites becomes an example of charity that has already been changed by God. The hosts also bring in Peter’s charge to strengthen the brethren. That lets them move from inward repentance to outward responsibility. They keep circling back to the idea that love of God changes what a person wants to do next. The episode does not stay in abstraction for long. It keeps turning doctrine into the language of teaching, family life, and daily discipleship. The closing stretch leans into testimony. It urges listeners to turn to Christ, serve, and trust that healing is found in him. The result is warm, conversational, and direct.

As heard by us

A loose classroom conversation that keeps bringing mercy back to conversion and action.

Three Institute teachers spend a Friday talking through a conference talk, and it feels like a classroom table after the bell: jokes, scripture references, and a steady pull toward repentance and charity.

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Why you'd press play

Need a warm, unpolished take on conversion, the Savior's atonement, and everyday gospel application?

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