Lately I’ve been thinking about how faith, finance, and freedom intersect - and how easily we lose ourselves in the systems we build. When my friend and collaborator Wyatt O’Rourke came on, I knew our talk would go deep. Wyatt’s journey from traditional finance to founding a Bitcoin wealth management firm isn’t just a story about money - it’s about waking up. We explored how broken incentives shape academia and economics, why self-custody may be the last form of sovereignty left, and how spiritual renewal might be the missing piece in rebuilding trust and morality in a post-fiat world. Beyond Bitcoin, we talked fatherhood, moral courage, and finding God again. Wyatt’s reflections on faith and stewardship remind me that the real revolution is not a digital or financial one, but a spiritual one. Chapters: (00:00:00) - Introduction and opening monologue (00:02:40) - Wyatt O’Rourke joins the conversation (00:04:00) - Founding Basilic Financial and discovering Bitcoin (00:06:30) - Lessons from traditional finance and academic brainwashing (00:10:10) - COVID, disillusionment, and the awakening of critical thought (00:16:30) - The moral decay of academia and rise of socialism (00:23:30) - Why socialism fails and the spiritual void it creates (00:25:30) - The Bitcoinization of finance and the flaws of fiat systems (00:33:00) - Treasury companies, ETFs, and the illusion of paper Bitcoin (00:45:00) - Self-custody, corruption, and the importance of moral ownership (00:55:00) - BlackRock, power consolidation, and the new digital hierarchy (01:07:00) - The “Core vs. Knots” debate and the state of the Bitcoin protocol (01:08:00) - Faith, fatherhood, and the rediscovery of purpose (01:15:00) - Moral responsibility, stewardship, and strong men in hard times (01:25:00) - The return to faith and rejection of secular nihilism (01:37:00) - Christianity, sacrifice, and understanding spiritual warfare (01:41:00) - The family as the foundation of freedom (01:44:00) - Building honest communities and closing reflections Please help to share out the episode! Share the episode release post on X: (Link: https://x.com/jonnyhodl/status/1978576897815580746) Share the episode release post on nostr: (Link: https://tinyurl.com/ywa9fuxu) References from the episode: Simon Dixon on Bitcoin Archive w Archie [P1]: (Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8iQmr80HPM) Simon Dixon on Bitcoin Archive w Archie [P2]: (Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2djIe7Edh6I) Guest Links Website (Link: https://wyattorourke.com/) Basilic (Link: https://richardthefourth.substack.com/) Twitter (Link: https://x.com/wyattorourke_) The Space Denver (Link: https://denver.space/) Affiliate Links Surfshark: VPN / Antivirus / Incogni Fountain: https://fountain.fm/jonnyhodl?code=3a917f606b Podcast Website: http://www.stayingfreepod.com/ Links to all platforms: https://linktr.ee/stayi