First Love Ep. 90 - A Spring or a Swamp, The Right Kind of Tears
Podcasts > First Love
Tuesday, October 13, 2026
Show Notes: In this episode, Dr. Robyn Kassas and Dr. Nathan Kassas continue through the Valley of Tears, pointing out that Baca, pain and joy each carry the numerical value 23 in Hebrew, tying it to Nehemiah 8:10 and Psalm 23. They explain that tears are not automatic transformation and contrast a spring with a swamp of self-pity, using the amygdala and prefrontal cortex to show how grief loops. They distinguish rumination from emotional processing, which brings new insight and memory reconsolidation, and mention Pilgrim's Progress. They say healing grief acknowledges pain without claiming it as identity, tears should lead to communication rather than isolation, and over-salty tears can wound the body. They add that crying relieves and brings closure, and that remembering why we cry opens the way for new insight from the Spirit.
Hosts: Dr. Robyn Kassas and Dr. Nathan Kassas
Topics Covered: Valley of Baca, Number 23 in Hebrew, Joy of the Lord, Spring Versus Swamp, Self-Pity Tears, Rumination vs. Emotional Processing, Memory Reconsolidation, Pain Without Identity, Tears and Isolation
Visit the church: https://www.torcc.org/
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About the program: “First Love” with Dr. Robyn and Dr. Nathan Kassas is a life-transforming broadcast that helps believers and seekers reclaim God’s story through healing, truth, and restoration. Each episode unpacks why it works, how it works, and the process to walk it out—making Him real, relevant, and relational, and returning hearts to Jesus as their First Love.
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