November 18, 2024 • 14 mins
Hi, I’m Rev. Dr. Thor Challgren, and this is the first episode of "All Revved Up", a podcast for New Thought ministers and spiritual seekers looking to explore meaningful conversations and find purpose in their work and everyday lives. In this episode, we dig deep into the question: Why are you here?
Originally recorded on Election Day, November 5, 2024, this episode takes a reflective turn as I share my journey of launching this podcast and the unexpected realizations that shaped its direction.
From personal stories to universal truths, I discuss how we can live with purpose and create ripples in the world—even if we don’t always see the impact.
---
In This Episode:
- The Question at the Heart of It All: Why are we here, and what is ours to do?
- A Defining Moment: The story of my 1990 near-death experience and how it shaped my belief that “I’m here for a reason.”
- Living with Purpose: How everyday actions—big or small—can create ripples of positive impact.
- The Catalyst for "All Revved Up": How Election Day and a pivotal conversation with Rev. Amy Steinberg influenced my decision to move forward with this podcast sooner than planned.
- The Power of Putting the Ball in Play: Inspired by Mookie Betts and the 2024 Dodgers, this guiding principle serves as a metaphor for taking action without needing everything perfectly planned.
---
Key Takeaways:
- You don’t need a near-death experience to wake up to your purpose. Purpose is in the everyday moments.
- Life isn’t about one grand purpose—it’s about creating ripples that extend beyond what we can see.
- Sometimes, you just have to “put the ball in play” and see what happens, even if it’s uncomfortable.
---
What’s Next?
Be sure to listen to Episode 2, where I sit down with Rev. Amy Steinberg for an open, real, and heartfelt conversation about purpose, spirituality, and showing up authentically—no matter the moment.
---
Thanks for Listening!
If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe to *All Revved Up* and join me each week as we explore the intersection of spirituality, purpose, and creating a positive impact in the world. Let’s create ripples together!
Follow the Podcast:
- Website: AllRevvedUpPodcast.com
- Social Media: @ThorChallgren
Namaste.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Thor Challgren (00:00):
Hi, I'm Rev Dr Thor Chalgren and welcome to All
Revved Up.
This is a show for New Thoughtministers and spiritual seekers
looking to dig deeper, exploremeaningful conversations and
find purpose in their work andeveryday lives.
It's a space for real talk onhow we can show up authentically
(00:21):
and make a positive impact.
Originally, I had planned toopen the show in a completely
different way.
I actually recorded this firstepisode.
Why Am I here on November 5th,2024.
If that date rings a bell yes,that was election day in the US.
You're about to hear thatentire original recording in a
(00:46):
moment.
Like I said, it was meant to becalled why Am I here?
My original plan was to launchthis new series on December 29,
kicking off 2025 with All RevvedUp.
I'd even scheduled my firstinterview with Reverend Amy
Steinberg, set to be recorded onNovember 7, just two days after
(01:06):
the election.
Then November 5th happened.
The next morning I woke up witha completely new perspective.
I realized that the interviewsI'd be recording with people
couldn't ignore the currentmoment.
Now, this is not a currentevents show.
That's not its focus.
(01:27):
But at the same time, I knew Ihad to be willing to open up the
conversations to whatever theyneeded to be.
It had to be real.
So I called Reverend Amy andsaid hey, would you be open to
talking about anything andeverything?
And she said absolutely.
(01:48):
And so we did.
That conversation with ReverendAmy is episode two, and it's
coming out the same day as thisone.
So I wanted you to have thislittle preamble to the original
version of episode one, becausehere's the thing Tuesday morning
, november 5th, I spoke thewords why am I here?
(02:09):
Out loud, and within 12 hours Ibegan to get the answer.
And no, my place isn't inpolitics, but it is here in the
present moment.
In this moment, I realized Icouldn't just sit on these
interviews until 2025.
I had to move forward, eventhough it's really uncomfortable
(02:31):
for me.
I'm taking action withoutknowing how it'll all play out.
Now the old me, maybe thepre-reverent version of me would
have needed everything planned,mapped out, neatly calendared.
That old version would sayeverything's unfolding perfectly
, no matter what.
But would I have reallybelieved it?
(02:53):
If I'm not willing to let mylife prove that everything is
unfolding perfectly, no matterwhat, then they're just words.
I have to be the one to makethem real.
So one guiding principle I'mholding for 2025 is to put the
ball in play.
(03:13):
I'll share more about thisbefore the year ends, but here's
the quick version.
After the 2024 World Series, Iheard Los Angeles Dodgers player
Mookie Betts say that when theteam stepped up to bat against
the Yankees, the Dodgershitters' goal was just to put
the ball in play, not to worryabout where it goes, how far it
(03:37):
goes, whether it's a singledouble, triple or even a home
run and, by the way, the Dodgersin 2024 were really good at
hitting home runs.
So it would have been easy toget to the plate and say I've
got to hit a home run, I got toknock it out.
Instead, it was put the ball inplay and see what happens.
(03:58):
You never know what will happenuntil you put the ball in play.
So this is me standing at theplate sooner than I expected,
putting the ball in play.
So, with that said, here now isthe original episode one.
Why Am I here?
Why are you here?
(04:30):
Yes, I mean right now, thisexact moment.
I don't mean why are youlistening to the show, though I
thank you for that.
But why are you here in life?
If you're a spiritual leader,you're here for a reason,
probably lots of reasons Goinginto the office, writing your
Sunday talks, prepping the classyou're teaching, posting on
social media, doing a counselingsession, writing a fundraising
(04:50):
letter.
Those are all the relativereasons we're here.
Right, the things we show upfor, but are they the reason
we're here?
Is there something more, abigger reason?
Let's talk about that today.
Let's ask the question why areyou here?
(05:11):
This is All Revved Up and I'mRev Dr Thor Chalgren.
Why are you here?
That's the question I asked atthe top of the show.
So, first off, this is a brandnew podcast and you found it.
So you're here because you'recurious.
You have an intention for whatyou hope to get from this.
(05:34):
Right, I'll talk more about theshow itself later, but for now,
I come back to the question ofwhy I mentioned there are things
we do in our lives commitments,obligations, and hopefully
those are things we'repassionate about.
But besides those worldlythings, is there something more?
(05:57):
To quote the Peggy Lee song, isthat all there is?
Instinctively, most of us wouldsay, yes, there's more.
Absolutely, we feel this pull,this sense there's a larger
purpose, but what is it?
What's ours to do specifically?
(06:18):
You ever had a moment where youjust know okay, I'm here for a
reason.
Those moments can come after abrush with death.
People often have thesenear-death experiences that
shake them awake to a sense ofpurpose.
Could be a serious illness, anaccident, something that
(06:39):
dramatically jars you out ofyour daily routine.
You know, you're just goingalong coasting through life and
suddenly, oh, this thing happens.
It's like life holds up aticket and says hey, this ticket
is your entry to the lifeyou're meant for, but you have
to take the ticket.
For me, that moment came inSeptember 1990.
(07:01):
I was in a serious car crash,and by serious I mean I was run
over by a semi-truck, and by runover I mean crushed by the
semi-truck.
The roof of our car was smasheddown to the level of the seat
tops.
It was one of those.
No way they survived that kindof accidents, but I did survive.
(07:24):
I crawled out of that car.
My passenger window was now asunroof above me.
I got out.
I helped my then girlfriend,now my wife, get out.
Both of us walked away.
We had some cuts, scrapes, afew broken bones, but we were
alive.
The ambulance took us to the ER.
(07:46):
The doctor who treated us saidsomething I'll never forget he
had seen our crash on his way towork and he said there's no way
those people survived.
But we did.
But we did.
So that night, lying in bed, Iremember thinking why am I here?
In the days, weeks, years ahead, that question stayed with me.
(08:17):
Why am I here?
Why am I here?
Every time I thought about it,all I could think was you're
here for a reason.
I mean that had to be it rightTo survive an accident like that
, when other people don't feltlike a second chance, a gift.
Imagine someone gave you a gift,a wrapped box.
Let's say they know you reallywell, they know what you're good
(08:37):
at, what you can use in life.
So they hand you this perfectgift.
You unwrap it, lift the lid andthere it is the exact thing you
need in life and you knowprecisely how to use it.
When I think back to thatsecond chance, I wonder did I
(08:59):
use that gift?
I mean, I received it that day,sure, but I don't know if I
ever understood why.
Maybe that's true for all of us.
We have these moments where weknow, oh yeah, I'm here for a
reason, but we're not exactlysure what the reason is, and
that leads to a big questionWill we ever know, will we get
(09:21):
some kind of burning bush moment, a sign that tells us we've
done the thing we're meant to do?
Some people might say, yes,they'll tell you they felt a
clear message, something justclicked into place.
But for most of us, life isn'talways like that.
We're conditioned by movies andTV shows.
(09:44):
They tell us you're here forone specific reason.
You know I'm here for onereason.
The characters will say and inthese stories often everything
just lines up just right for thehero they save the day, change
life.
We see that and we think well,maybe that's true for me.
Maybe I'll have one reason why.
(10:05):
I have one reason for beinghere.
For example, I think about myrole as a father.
Was I put here just to raise mydaughter so she could grow up
and do something incredible?
It's like the father of thepresident notion.
What if my role in life was toraise a child who would go on to
become president, or give an Ihave a dream speech, or find a
(10:27):
cure for cancer?
Sometimes I think about purposethat way that maybe I'm here to
influence, inspire or upliftone person and they're the ones
that are meant to do somethingextraordinary.
Truth is, we may never know ifthere's a reason.
It's not like the movies Inreal life you might have a brief
(10:47):
connection with someone,Changes everything for them, but
you'll never see the result.
You won't know if you'vealready done the thing or if
it's still to come, and maybeyour part is just a spark that
starts a fire in someone else.
So I don't think we'll everhave that crystal clear moment,
that burning bush signal.
(11:08):
But that's okay, right.
Maybe we're here for multiplereasons, not just one grand
purpose.
Every day we have a chance toinspire someone, to create a
ripple.
What if you left your houseeach day thinking my presence
today is could make someone'slife better?
(11:29):
You wouldn't know who or whenor how, but you'd trust, you'd
have faith that you matter.
Like dropping a small stoneinto water you won't see every
ripple, but you'd know.
The ripples are there, movingoutward, touching lives beyond
what you can see.
So that brings me back to thispodcast.
(11:52):
Initially I thought aboutcalling it here for a Reason.
Can you tell why this show isan evolution from my previous
podcast, every Day a New Thought, which is still out there.
I recorded 150 episodes of thatshow.
Then it went on hiatus inSeptember of 23.
I got busy with the second yearof my ministerial classes,
(12:15):
which ultimately led to meearning my doctorate of
consciousness.
During that time, I keptthinking I'd go back to that
podcast, but as time went on, Ihad a change of heart.
In April of 24, my fatherpassed away.
A month later, I became aminister.
Another month after that, Iearned my doctorate.
(12:38):
After those events, I really satwith that question why am I
here?
What is mine to do?
I want this new podcast to be aplace to talk about what
inspires me, what gets meexcited, what I feel passionate
about, what revs me up.
That's the title.
I wanted to have conversationswith people who are on a similar
(12:59):
journey, people who are findingtheir purpose, who feel driven
to make an impact.
Together, we could explorethose questions.
What lifts us up?
What's ours to do?
I'm still asking myself why amI here?
My hope is that through theseconversations, we find some
(13:19):
answers, and maybe these answerswill rev others up as they
discover their own answers.
I'll circle back to that story Ishared about the car crash.
Do we need a near-deathexperience to wake us up?
Do we need somethingextraordinary to motivate us to
live with purpose?
I don't think so I mean, Icertainly hope not right, but I
(13:42):
think we can choose to feel thatmotivation in every moment of
every day.
We're here for a reason, evenif we don't know exactly what it
is.
Our lives can be that ripple.
Think about dropping that smallstone into the water.
If you're looking directly overit, you won't see all the
(14:03):
ripples, but they're there.
Maybe it's enough to know thatyour ripples keep moving, even
if you can't see them.
Maybe that's why I'm here.
Maybe it's why you're here tocreate ripples in the world that
go beyond what we'll ever see.
So yeah, maybe I'm here.
(14:25):
You're here to create ripplesin life.
I look forward to being in thiswater with you.
Thanks for being here.
Thanks for listening, namaste.
Hi, I'm Rev Dr Thor Chalgren and welcome to All
Revved Up.
This is a show for New Thoughtministers and spiritual seekers
looking to dig deeper, exploremeaningful conversations and
find purpose in their work andeveryday lives.
It's a space for real talk onhow we can show up authentically
(00:21):
and make a positive impact.
Originally, I had planned toopen the show in a completely
different way.
I actually recorded this firstepisode.
Why Am I here on November 5th,2024.
If that date rings a bell yes,that was election day in the US.
You're about to hear thatentire original recording in a
(00:46):
moment.
Like I said, it was meant to becalled why Am I here?
My original plan was to launchthis new series on December 29,
kicking off 2025 with All RevvedUp.
I'd even scheduled my firstinterview with Reverend Amy
Steinberg, set to be recorded onNovember 7, just two days after
(01:06):
the election.
Then November 5th happened.
The next morning I woke up witha completely new perspective.
I realized that the interviewsI'd be recording with people
couldn't ignore the currentmoment.
Now, this is not a currentevents show.
That's not its focus.
(01:27):
But at the same time, I knew Ihad to be willing to open up the
conversations to whatever theyneeded to be.
It had to be real.
So I called Reverend Amy andsaid hey, would you be open to
talking about anything andeverything?
And she said absolutely.
(01:48):
And so we did.
That conversation with ReverendAmy is episode two, and it's
coming out the same day as thisone.
So I wanted you to have thislittle preamble to the original
version of episode one, becausehere's the thing Tuesday morning
, november 5th, I spoke thewords why am I here?
(02:09):
Out loud, and within 12 hours Ibegan to get the answer.
And no, my place isn't inpolitics, but it is here in the
present moment.
In this moment, I realized Icouldn't just sit on these
interviews until 2025.
I had to move forward, eventhough it's really uncomfortable
(02:31):
for me.
I'm taking action withoutknowing how it'll all play out.
Now the old me, maybe thepre-reverent version of me would
have needed everything planned,mapped out, neatly calendared.
That old version would sayeverything's unfolding perfectly
, no matter what.
But would I have reallybelieved it?
(02:53):
If I'm not willing to let mylife prove that everything is
unfolding perfectly, no matterwhat, then they're just words.
I have to be the one to makethem real.
So one guiding principle I'mholding for 2025 is to put the
ball in play.
(03:13):
I'll share more about thisbefore the year ends, but here's
the quick version.
After the 2024 World Series, Iheard Los Angeles Dodgers player
Mookie Betts say that when theteam stepped up to bat against
the Yankees, the Dodgershitters' goal was just to put
the ball in play, not to worryabout where it goes, how far it
(03:37):
goes, whether it's a singledouble, triple or even a home
run and, by the way, the Dodgersin 2024 were really good at
hitting home runs.
So it would have been easy toget to the plate and say I've
got to hit a home run, I got toknock it out.
Instead, it was put the ball inplay and see what happens.
(03:58):
You never know what will happenuntil you put the ball in play.
So this is me standing at theplate sooner than I expected,
putting the ball in play.
So, with that said, here now isthe original episode one.
Why Am I here?
Why are you here?
(04:30):
Yes, I mean right now, thisexact moment.
I don't mean why are youlistening to the show, though I
thank you for that.
But why are you here in life?
If you're a spiritual leader,you're here for a reason,
probably lots of reasons Goinginto the office, writing your
Sunday talks, prepping the classyou're teaching, posting on
social media, doing a counselingsession, writing a fundraising
(04:50):
letter.
Those are all the relativereasons we're here.
Right, the things we show upfor, but are they the reason
we're here?
Is there something more, abigger reason?
Let's talk about that today.
Let's ask the question why areyou here?
(05:11):
This is All Revved Up and I'mRev Dr Thor Chalgren.
Why are you here?
That's the question I asked atthe top of the show.
So, first off, this is a brandnew podcast and you found it.
So you're here because you'recurious.
You have an intention for whatyou hope to get from this.
(05:34):
Right, I'll talk more about theshow itself later, but for now,
I come back to the question ofwhy I mentioned there are things
we do in our lives commitments,obligations, and hopefully
those are things we'repassionate about.
But besides those worldlythings, is there something more?
(05:57):
To quote the Peggy Lee song, isthat all there is?
Instinctively, most of us wouldsay, yes, there's more.
Absolutely, we feel this pull,this sense there's a larger
purpose, but what is it?
What's ours to do specifically?
(06:18):
You ever had a moment where youjust know okay, I'm here for a
reason.
Those moments can come after abrush with death.
People often have thesenear-death experiences that
shake them awake to a sense ofpurpose.
Could be a serious illness, anaccident, something that
(06:39):
dramatically jars you out ofyour daily routine.
You know, you're just goingalong coasting through life and
suddenly, oh, this thing happens.
It's like life holds up aticket and says hey, this ticket
is your entry to the lifeyou're meant for, but you have
to take the ticket.
For me, that moment came inSeptember 1990.
(07:01):
I was in a serious car crash,and by serious I mean I was run
over by a semi-truck, and by runover I mean crushed by the
semi-truck.
The roof of our car was smasheddown to the level of the seat
tops.
It was one of those.
No way they survived that kindof accidents, but I did survive.
(07:24):
I crawled out of that car.
My passenger window was now asunroof above me.
I got out.
I helped my then girlfriend,now my wife, get out.
Both of us walked away.
We had some cuts, scrapes, afew broken bones, but we were
alive.
The ambulance took us to the ER.
(07:46):
The doctor who treated us saidsomething I'll never forget he
had seen our crash on his way towork and he said there's no way
those people survived.
But we did.
But we did.
So that night, lying in bed, Iremember thinking why am I here?
In the days, weeks, years ahead, that question stayed with me.
(08:17):
Why am I here?
Why am I here?
Every time I thought about it,all I could think was you're
here for a reason.
I mean that had to be it rightTo survive an accident like that
, when other people don't feltlike a second chance, a gift.
Imagine someone gave you a gift,a wrapped box.
Let's say they know you reallywell, they know what you're good
(08:37):
at, what you can use in life.
So they hand you this perfectgift.
You unwrap it, lift the lid andthere it is the exact thing you
need in life and you knowprecisely how to use it.
When I think back to thatsecond chance, I wonder did I
(08:59):
use that gift?
I mean, I received it that day,sure, but I don't know if I
ever understood why.
Maybe that's true for all of us.
We have these moments where weknow, oh yeah, I'm here for a
reason, but we're not exactlysure what the reason is, and
that leads to a big questionWill we ever know, will we get
(09:21):
some kind of burning bush moment, a sign that tells us we've
done the thing we're meant to do?
Some people might say, yes,they'll tell you they felt a
clear message, something justclicked into place.
But for most of us, life isn'talways like that.
We're conditioned by movies andTV shows.
(09:44):
They tell us you're here forone specific reason.
You know I'm here for onereason.
The characters will say and inthese stories often everything
just lines up just right for thehero they save the day, change
life.
We see that and we think well,maybe that's true for me.
Maybe I'll have one reason why.
(10:05):
I have one reason for beinghere.
For example, I think about myrole as a father.
Was I put here just to raise mydaughter so she could grow up
and do something incredible?
It's like the father of thepresident notion.
What if my role in life was toraise a child who would go on to
become president, or give an Ihave a dream speech, or find a
(10:27):
cure for cancer?
Sometimes I think about purposethat way that maybe I'm here to
influence, inspire or upliftone person and they're the ones
that are meant to do somethingextraordinary.
Truth is, we may never know ifthere's a reason.
It's not like the movies Inreal life you might have a brief
(10:47):
connection with someone,Changes everything for them, but
you'll never see the result.
You won't know if you'vealready done the thing or if
it's still to come, and maybeyour part is just a spark that
starts a fire in someone else.
So I don't think we'll everhave that crystal clear moment,
that burning bush signal.
(11:08):
But that's okay, right.
Maybe we're here for multiplereasons, not just one grand
purpose.
Every day we have a chance toinspire someone, to create a
ripple.
What if you left your houseeach day thinking my presence
today is could make someone'slife better?
(11:29):
You wouldn't know who or whenor how, but you'd trust, you'd
have faith that you matter.
Like dropping a small stoneinto water you won't see every
ripple, but you'd know.
The ripples are there, movingoutward, touching lives beyond
what you can see.
So that brings me back to thispodcast.
(11:52):
Initially I thought aboutcalling it here for a Reason.
Can you tell why this show isan evolution from my previous
podcast, every Day a New Thought, which is still out there.
I recorded 150 episodes of thatshow.
Then it went on hiatus inSeptember of 23.
I got busy with the second yearof my ministerial classes,
(12:15):
which ultimately led to meearning my doctorate of
consciousness.
During that time, I keptthinking I'd go back to that
podcast, but as time went on, Ihad a change of heart.
In April of 24, my fatherpassed away.
A month later, I became aminister.
Another month after that, Iearned my doctorate.
(12:38):
After those events, I really satwith that question why am I
here?
What is mine to do?
I want this new podcast to be aplace to talk about what
inspires me, what gets meexcited, what I feel passionate
about, what revs me up.
That's the title.
I wanted to have conversationswith people who are on a similar
(12:59):
journey, people who are findingtheir purpose, who feel driven
to make an impact.
Together, we could explorethose questions.
What lifts us up?
What's ours to do?
I'm still asking myself why amI here?
My hope is that through theseconversations, we find some
(13:19):
answers, and maybe these answerswill rev others up as they
discover their own answers.
I'll circle back to that story Ishared about the car crash.
Do we need a near-deathexperience to wake us up?
Do we need somethingextraordinary to motivate us to
live with purpose?
I don't think so I mean, Icertainly hope not right, but I
(13:42):
think we can choose to feel thatmotivation in every moment of
every day.
We're here for a reason, evenif we don't know exactly what it
is.
Our lives can be that ripple.
Think about dropping that smallstone into the water.
If you're looking directly overit, you won't see all the
(14:03):
ripples, but they're there.
Maybe it's enough to know thatyour ripples keep moving, even
if you can't see them.
Maybe that's why I'm here.
Maybe it's why you're here tocreate ripples in the world that
go beyond what we'll ever see.
So yeah, maybe I'm here.
(14:25):
You're here to create ripplesin life.
I look forward to being in thiswater with you.
Thanks for being here.
Thanks for listening, namaste.
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