Blogs

The Kingdom Hero Show – Episode 76

-Begin Transcript –

Welcome to The Kingdom Hero Show, where CHRIST is KING and the TRUTH matters! Our mission: To advance the Kingdom of God by shining the Kingdom Light everywhere we go!

On this episode, we’re gonna look at God’s nature – His true character – which is to say, His amazing love. We’ll talk about how we can put our priorities in check by lining up our hearts with His, and we’ll also get into some of the current events and see how we can apply what we’ve learned to that.

Those of you watching the video version of the podcast may have noticed I often wear shirts that are patriotic or that support our veterans. The one I’m wearing today is one of those. This is something that’s very important to me personally.

Every day, about 22 veterans take their own lives. Many come home to civilian life and can’t adjust after things they’ve seen in combat. Whatever the reason, too many of them resort to suicide to escape the nightmares and chaos. Guys, there’s help. Write down this number: 1-800-273-8255, that’s 800-273-8255. The Veterans Crisis Line is available right now to those who need it. If you are a veteran, or if you know a veteran who’s going through a rough time, don’t hesititate to use that number. A confidential crisis chat is also available at VeteransCrisisLine.net, that’s VeteransCrisisLine.net, or you can send a text to 838255, again that’s 838255. Let’s end veteran suicide, folks. Help is just a phone call, chat, or text away. Share this information with others, and help us put a stop to veteran suicide today. Thank you.

Alright, lots to talk about, so let’s get into it…

– Open Tag: Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to Let the KINGDOM HEROICS Begin! –

The Things We Do for Love

I wanna brag on my neighbors for a minute here. We have some truly amazing neighbors. They’re almost like family to us. They have helped us out with things on numerous occasions. When I moved back to Tennessee last year, they were right there to help unload everything – boxes, furniture, appliances, everything.

The couple next door has even mowed our lawn on many occasions, just because they enjoy doing it. Just a couple of weeks ago, the lady was like, “Do you mind if we mow your yard?” They’d just finished their own lawn and wanted to go ahead and do ours, too, so they did. They’ve brought us food a lot of times, as well – not because we were starving, but just because they had more than they needed and wanted to share. Very kind and caring people, and we’re so very blessed to have them as neighbors. I love them.

But now, some people DO things in the hope that others will love them for it. The motivation is skewed. They want to be liked or admired, perhaps they just want to be SEEN doing something that’s considered nice or whatever. There are also those who will consent to do certain things when they’re dating people because they think that’s what they have to do to be loved. And that’s a big mistake. Some Christians even act like they believe doing things for God will make Him love them. But that’s not how love works.

Whether you’re doing something for God or for others, understand that the important thing isn’t the DOING. What’s important is the reason behind the action. What’s your motivation? This is where we separate the wheat from the chaff, so to speak. Go ahead and do the kind and helpful things to bless others or to bless God, but do them with the right motives in your heart. Your reason should be love – genuine, unconditional, agape love.

What results from you DOING something for someone else is not love. It might be gratitude or appreciation. But that’s not the same as love. In fact, DOING to receive love is backwards. My dad would say, “that’s putting the cart before the horse.” Even worse, it’s often not only backwards, but it can also in reality be manipulative. And that’s a whole other level of bad news. Manipulation is biblically considered a form of witchcraft. Do you realize that? It’s a terrible thing to practice. That definitely won’t fly with God. But my point here is that God loves us already, and He DOES things for us BECAUSE HE LOVES US. We should be DOING things for Him BECAUSE WE LOVE HIM.

What Does God Want from Us?

Hosea 6:6 says…

For I desire steadfast love (mercy) and not sacrifice,
    the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

Let’s break that down. Mercy, or steadfast love, is a divine quality that we can only learn how to emulate by studying closely the character of God. He desires for us to continually seek after more and more knowledge of Him, learn His ways, and act accordingly. He sees that as way better than anything we could sacrifice to Him, such as offerings of money or goods. We can do those things, as long as it’s done out of love, but learning to demonstrate mercy toward people is much better.

You wanna please the heart of God? Learn to care for people the way He does. Out of a heart full of love, give to the poor, help the needy, mow your neighbor’s grass, bake them some cookies, (laughter) – you know? Seek after the nature of God, and train yourself to treat others in a way He wants you to – with love.

But here’s the thing God deserves most from us: Praise. He tells us that our praises are worth more than any other offerings. You may give Him a sacrifice of money (above the tithe that already belongs to Him), you may donate clothing or canned food to a local shelter, and these are good things to do, but we should also make it a practice to give God the praise He deserves.

Keep in mind, we praise God because He is worthy of it. It’s not because we want Him to love us – He already does! It’s not just because He’s been good to you – there’s a much more important reason for praising God. Yes, He sent Jesus to save us from our sins. Yes, He never leaves nor forsakes us. Yes, He is faithful to us even when we are not faithful to Him. But the number one reason why we praise God is because His holiness demands it! He’s worthy!

Whats more, there are some pretty fantastic benefits for us when we praise Him like we should. I’ll get into that in just a second.

Folks, subscribe to my Rumble channel. If you haven’t done that yet, you really should. Not just for this program, which is hosted there of course, but there are lots of other videos we share there that you won’t wanna miss out on. Funny stuff, serious stuff, encouraging stuff. Trust me, subscribe. Just go to our website and get access to everything. The link for Rumble, all our social media links, are at TheKingdomLight.com/links, that’s TheKingdomLight.com/links.

Praise Benefits

Alright, let’s look at what happens when we praise God. The Bible says He INHABITS the praises of His people. What does that mean? His very Spirit falls on us and dwells in our midst when we praise Him. The benefit of this is enormous for us! This is when miracles can happen. Sickness can be healed. Finances can be blessed. All kinds of glorious things can take place in the presence of God.

Praise is an elevator. When we lift God up, when we lift up our praises to Him, He doesn’t leave us down here on the basement floor in our mess. He lifts us up to the penthouse suite where He is, man! Isn’t that cool? He said if I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto me. So when you praise God, dude, that’s like gettin’ on the special private elevator. You bypass all the other floors and head straight up to the top where all the goodness of God lives. Yeah!

Praise is our escape. You don’t have to depend on drugs or alcohol to help temporarily escape your pain, your frustrations, your circumstances. No, no. Offer up praise to God, and watch what He does for you. Watch your problems fade away into irrelevance. Praise Him any time and all the time, and your escape can be permanent! No unpleasant side effects, either. So in the midst of blessings, and in the midst of troubles, PRAISE GOD!

Let me tell you something, folks. If you seriously want to get to know the heart of God, spend as much time with Him as you possibly can. Take him everywhere you go. On the drive to work, praise Him. During the day, keep praising Him. Remember that old song that says, “I will bless the Lord at all times, I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise shall continually be on my lips.” That’s taken right from scripture. Live THAT, man. Discipline yourself to always be uttering praises to God for all He’s done, His faithfulness, His goodness. Your whole outlook on life will change! You’ll be amazed at the difference it’ll make.

Your attitude on the job, around friends and coworkers, will get a much-needed renovation. People will probably start to notice a difference in you, and that can lead to a witnessing opportunity. Others will see the positive transformation in you and think, “Man, I want whatever it is that HE’S got! (or SHE’S got)” Spending time with God will change your life. And let me say this, conversely… If your life hasn’t been changed for the better, or you at least haven’t felt that change, or it hasn’t been a deep and lasting change, then you aren’t spending enough time with your Creator. It really IS just that simple.

We can’t get in touch with that love that exists at the center of God’s character without spending time with Him. There is so much depth and length and breadth and height to that love. It is unlike anything else in the history of, EVER. And we need it. Man, do we need it! That’s the stuff that gets you through the toughest days and the longest nights. It’s what makes life worth living. And yeah, it’s what changes us in all the ways we need changing. And it’s only found in the heart of God, y’all. You gotta SEEK IT!

[excerpt from Zach Williams – “Heart of God”]

Yes, indeed. There’s only love in the heart of God. Love that song there by Zach Williams. And speaking of the heart of God, it’s almost time to apply what we’ve learned. We’re gonna look at a couple or so current events and figure out how we can use that Godly attitude of love as the rudder that steers our ship. We’ll do that right after I mention this…

Tune in to Kingdom Radio and hear encouraging Christian music 24/7 wherever you are. No annoying commercials or obnoxious radio announcers, just awesome Christian music! Fire it up from TheKingdomLight.com/radio, again that’s TheKingdomLight.com/radio. You can also get Kingdom Radio on your phone or tablet using the Listen2MyRadio app. You’ll find it in the Google Play store and the Apple app store. Download the Listen2MyRadio app to your wireless device, open it up, hit the search button, punch in the keyword “Kingdom” – BOOM! You can take Kingdom Radio everywhere. Bookmark it, save it as a favorite station, and share it with your friends!

Okay, this is what’s tough a lot of times. When we look at the way things are going today, all the corruption and evil around us, let’s be honest – love isn’t always in the forefront of our minds. But as we talked about in the last episode, we are called to love even our enemies. Those people we disagree with socially, politically, whatever – we gotta love ’em because God does, and He tells us to.

So, I hope you’re ready. Here’s our first challenge…

Recent reports say that the US Navy has enlisted the help of an active-duty squadron administrator, who also identifies as a “non-binary” drag queen by the name Harpy Daniels, in hopes of attracting new recruits. Daniels will serve as the Navy’s “Digital Ambassador” for inspiring more civilians to join up. This is part of the woke-ification of our military, and another effort to normalize abhorrent behavior.

But hold on now, we can’t just write this guy off as simply a delusional cross-dresser. He’s also a person who desperately needs Jesus. God created this man and loves him, even though he’s currently in denial of his male gender. Too often, we look at people like this and act like they can’t be saved. We view the person with disdain because all we see is the sin. I certainly am thankful that’s not how God looks at me. He sees me through the purifying blood of Jesus, and I’m clean and forgiven in His eyes.

I’m not saying we should condone sin by any means. But I AM saying that we need to learn to look at those who are lost with a heart of love. Pray for them to have an encounter with God and come into His saving grace. The truth is, we are living in a time when there are many people who are confused and struggling with their identity. Satan has capitalized on this and actively leads those people down a road that seems to give them an identity to grab hold to – but it’s a false identity that serves to lead them away from God’s truth.

God wants people like this to learn who they are truly meant to be, and that can only happen in the pursuit of Him. Instead, the fleshly nature wants to pursue self and seek after worldly acceptance. The trans-delusion is an attractive escape for many, but it doesn’t deal with the real source of emptiness and loneliness they are trying to cure with whatever the current social trend is. Like anyone else, they want to feel accepted. So we have to be ready to reach out to them with God’s love when the opportunity arises.

Let’s move on to the next story…

Kash Patel, former chief of staff at the Pentagon and former deputy director of national intelligence, is suing the Department of Defense for “obstructing and infringing” on his right to publish unclassified information in his upcoming book. That book, which reveals secrets about the deep state, is titled, Government Gangsters: The Deep State, the Truth, and the Battle for Our Democracy. In it, Patel provides firsthand knowledge and pulls back “the curtain on the Deep State, revealing the major players and tactics within the permanent government bureaucracy.” He is suing the DOD for unreasonably delaying his book’s publication.

Obviously, there are forces at work to keep hidden things hidden. As with many other examples of corruption within government, we have to be prepared to look on these things as God does. Evil definitely has an agenda, which is at odds with God’s Kingdom. While we must stand firm for what is right and just, we also need wisdom to know which hills to fight on. Every war has casualties. Prayer and careful seeking of God’s will is crucial in times like these.

Not only this, but the stuff that breaks God’s heart ought to break ours…

Here’s a recent tweet from Abby Johnson, who once worked for Planned Parenthood until her heart was forever changed by the brutality she saw.

The overturning of Roe v. Wade was a step in the right direction, but the travesty of abortion is still a blight on human existence. God’s heart surely weeps over this, and so should ours. This in turn ought to embolden us to speak out for those who can’t speak for themselves. We must bravely continue to expose the awful truth of abortion regardless of the blowback. Don’t let the fear of what someone may think of you mute your witness on behalf of the unborn.

And pray. Yes, definitely pray that we as a nation will turn from this wickedness and invoke the healing power of God’s hand. Pray fervently for this abominable evil to be swept from our land completely. Pray for eyes to be opened, and for hearts to be changed. Abby’s was. When people are made to see abortion for what it really is, it will turn their stomachs. It is a sick and barbaric practice, and we cannot allow the evil narrative that it’s merely a medical procedure keep people blind to its horror.

Perhaps the most challenging task for us is to show love toward those we see as enemies within our own government. We’ll get there in just a moment…

Let me ask you a question. Have you been to the Kingdom Storehouse yet? It’s the ONLY place where you can get Kingdom Gear. What’s that, you ask? I’ll tell you. T-shirts, coffee mugs, coasters, drinking glasses, tumblers, and more. Cool stuff for gifts or for yourself, so check it out. Just go to our website, TheKingdomLight.com, and hit that image you see on your screen. Grab some swag right there from the Kingdom Storehouse, and help support this program. Thank you so much for that.

What about all those corrupt politicians?

While we need to call out evil when we see it and boldly stand against it, we often tend to see many politicians in a jaded light out of contempt for their questionable actions. Yeah, we should definitely desire for the corrupt to be exposed so that their ability to mislead masses of people would be curtailed. But we need to resist the temptation to lump every dirty bureaucrat into one big pile of unsalvageable souls.

Admittedly, in most cases, we are limited in what we can do to sway these people. This is where fervent prayer for even the most corrupted politicians is part of our duty as Christians. The Holy Spirit is capable of changing hearts and minds, and God can also free them from demonic influence. Calling out bad behavior doesn’t mean we don’t still love them enough to pray for them.

The other side of that is this: When it’s your family or friends who are headed down the wrong path, shouldn’t you love them enough to tell them the truth, even if it may hurt their feelings? Sometimes love is blunt, and it may seem harsh, but truth shared in love is always in line with the heart of God, isn’t it?

Conclusion…

When we see evil forces coming for our children through things like drag queen shows and the trans movement, oh we’d better be ready to fight them off. When we see injustices, wrong called right, the deep state fostering division with racial tension and social anarchy, and when we learn to recognize all the other many tools of our REAL enemy – yeah, we have to be prepared to face them head on with truth and righteous indignation. But we also need to be motivated by a hunger for holiness and allow the love of God to flow through us so that people can see there really IS a better way.

As much as people need to see corruption exposed and have their eyes opened to the atrocities that ought to be stopped, they also need to see the love of God’s people exhibited in the midst of all the insanity going on. People need hope. And we have access to that hope. So let’s press into a deeper understanding of God and his character so that we can demonstrate it to the world.

See, we can’t effectively lead others somewhere we aren’t familiar with ourselves. So perhaps the biggest take away here is this: If you really wanna be a positive influence of change for those around you, getting back to the heart of God has to start first within you. I’m just sayin’.

-End Transcript –

The Kingdom Hero Show – Episode 75

-Begin Transcript –

Welcome to The Kingdom Hero Show, where CHRIST is KING and the TRUTH matters! Our mission: To advance the Kingdom of God by shining the Kingdom Light everywhere we go!

On today’s program, we look at why God chooses to forgive and save, even when it seems some people REALLY don’t deserve it. Plus, how can we ever hope to show that kind of grace to people we see as enemies?

Before that, let me remind you to subscribe to my Rumble channel. You’ll find that, all our social media links and more, at TheKingdomLight.com/links, that’s TheKingdomLight.com/links. While you’re there, remember to visit our Kingdom Storehouse – the ONLY place where you can get yourself some Kingdom Gear. Great stuff there for gifts or for yourself, so check it out. And don’t forget about Kingdom Radio! Listen to encouraging Christian music 24/7 wherever you are. Fire it up at TheKingdomLight.com/radio, and tell your friends about it, too. That’s TheKingdomLight.com/radio!

Okay, let’s get started…

– Open Tag: Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to Let the KINGDOM HEROICS Begin! –

My friend, evangelist Anthony Sluzas, recently said:

“I challenge you to prayerfully read the following passage and not be struck by the similarities to our nation (and the world) today…”

Psalm 106:37-48
They offered their own sons and daughters
    as sacrifices to the idols of Canaan.
They killed those innocent children,
    and the land was defiled by those murders.
They made themselves impure by their actions
    and were unfaithful to God.
So the Lord was angry with his people;
    he was disgusted with them.
He abandoned them to the power of the heathen,
    and their enemies ruled over them.
They were oppressed by their enemies
    and were in complete subjection to them.
Many times the Lord rescued his people,
    but they chose to rebel against him
    and sank deeper into sin.
Yet the Lord heard them when they cried out,
    and he took notice of their distress.
For their sake he remembered his covenant,
    and because of his great love he relented.
He made all their oppressors
    feel sorry for them.
Save us, O Lord our God,
    and bring us back from among the nations,
so that we may be thankful
    and praise your holy name.
Praise the Lord, the God of Israel;
    praise him now and forever!

So much of our modern society can be seen in this passage. The corruption, the indecency, the blatant disregard for God’s commands… Hundreds of millions of innocent unborn children have been horribly butchered in the name of convenience. It seems a new vile and destructive form of abhorrent behavior is being embraced every other day. Sexual perversion, mutilation of the flesh, and rejection of God’s established ways are being encouraged and even taught today. So, one might look at our current situation and ask the question, “Why should God deliver us?”

I submit that there are TWO REASONS:

The first is God’s covenant.

In the scripture we just read, the people failed, God rescued them, and they’d mess up again, falling deeper into sin. But why did He continue to take notice of their distress? It says that He always heard them when they cried out to Him. He is faithful to His people even when they are not. Why? Why would He stay true to us when we seem to fail so easily? The answer is simple – God’s nature is unaffected by our nature. He will always remain true to His own character.

The passage reads, “For their sake he remembered his covenant.” See, when God makes a promise, He keeps it. There is perhaps nothing more sacred than a solemn covenant which God makes with His people. Among the many things He has promised us, He said he would never leave or forsake us. He has the unconditional love of a Father toward His children. We fall, we stumble, we make mistakes, and He is faithful to correct and forgive us.

The ultimate covenant to this effect was that which He made when sacrificing His Son on the cross. There had to be a blood sacrifice, a payment for our sins, and Jesus was the only One who could provide that. Through Christ, we are made holy and justified in the sight of God. There is no other way. None. Only Jesus. This is why those who reject God’s gift of salvation are sentencing themselves to an eternity in hell. God doesn’t want anyone to die in sin. He doesn’t want to send anyone to hell. His nature is to forgive. But forgiveness is only bought with the blood of Jesus, which is why we must accept Him as Savior. Jesus is the One Way to heaven. Period.

The second is “the reason behind the reason,” and that’s God’s love.

Why would God even make that covenant with us? Given that we’re a fallen people, why did He choose mankind with which to make such an amazingly forgiving covenant? No doubt, all of God’s creation is special to Him. But we are the crowning jewel of that creation. He made us in His own image, in His very likeness, and this makes Him our Father, and we, His children. As such, God cannot help but love us with the love of a Father.

As the passage we read earlier states, “because of his great love he relented.” As our Father, He loves us enough to rescue us, even from the messes of our own making. As we know, the Bible says that “while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” This was the love of the Father shown through the sacrifice of the Son. The more we dive into scripture, the more we begin to see that God’s amazing love is His reason for doing pretty much EVERYTHING He does for us!

This is reason for us to take heart when we look around and see the awful state of our world today. Yes, things have gotten really bad. Yes, there is more evil prevalent now than ever before, it would seem. But God’s love is as big and as effective as it has ever been. Our job is to do everything we can to share that love with those around us. To forgive as God forgives. To be the light on the hill for all to see, and to show the world there is a better way.

We’ll talk more about how to do this, in just a moment.

-Break Transcript –

So, how do we show the love of God to those around us who may be living in the depths of despair? How do we demonstrate to those currently rejecting the gift of salvation that they’ve been sold a lie? They may think all kinds of inaccurate things about Christianity, so how do we show them what it’s truly about?

We have to lay aside our carnal tendencies to write them off, thinking to ourselves, “Why bother? Why should God save them?” Instead, we must emulate the characteristics of God. Jesus set the example, we have the Word, God’s instructions are right there, so we just have to do what He says. Let’s start with forgiveness.

Forgiveness Is…

1. Acceptance in spite of flaws.
2. Showing favor and loving unconditionally without regard for failures or shortcomings.
3. Keeping no record of wrongs.
4. Divine, so the only way to do it RIGHT is to forgive like God does.

This may seem like a tall order for us, but it’s how we should treat others. Not just family and friends, but also those people we’d often rather not show any grace to. Yeah, those who get on our nerves, who make us angry, and who we many times consider as enemies. Jesus said we’re supposed to love even our enemies and those who persecute us. Ouch.

In order to gain some perspective, we need to try seeing people the way God sees them. They are His children, too. Sure, they may have lost their way and gotten off course, but we were once lost to sin as well. God wants them to be saved as much as He wants you to be saved. We need to see them through the lens of God’s incredible love.

Love: the Key Ingredient

The power of sin is strong. Too often, we downplay that. True enough, in the light of the power of God and His love, the power of sin pales in comparison. But for those who are so embedded in the ways of the world, the power of sin can be far stronger than we tend to recognize.

Think about this. Have you ever read an account from the Bible where Jesus performed miracles in full view of the Pharisees, and many of them continued to rail against Him? Did you ever wonder why? How can anyone stand in the face of what would seem like irrefutable proof that God is real and Jesus is the only way to the Father, and STILL resist that evidence and deny the truth in front of us? That’s the power of sin, and our addiction to it, which acts like giant hooks that prevent us from rising above it. In turn, that will keep our minds in denial of truth.

Sin is easy. When people are accustomed to the dark, they don’t like the light. It seems harsh, even painful. People prefer lies that tell them what they want to hear, instead of truth that can cut like a samurai sword. It hurts. Sin is addictive, comfortable, and preferable to those who don’t fully grasp where that road leads. But it’s a trap.

So again, how do we reach people for Christ? How can we show them that there’s a BETTER way? How do we convince them serving God is truly preferable to serving themselves by continuing in sin?

As always, Jesus is our example. He taught people the ways of the Father while simultaneously showing them the love of the Father. Love is the key ingredient in the recipe for reaching people’s hearts. Multitudes flocked to hear Jesus teach about love. It has to be central in our witness as well.

Once those seeds are planted, we should follow up with constant care. Reaffirm your own love for those you minister to regularly. Ask the Holy Spirit to water those seeds so they will grow. Pray that God will create within them a desire to change. We must not only realize that sin’s power over us is like heavy chains, but we must also WANT to leave those chains behind us. The desire to change comes from cultivating a closer relationship with God.

Conclusion:

The next time you find yourself struggling to witness to people, thinking “That person is too far gone. Why should God save them?” – WHOA, you were once an enemy of God! Why should He have rescued YOU from your sins? His covenant, and His love – that’s why. Remember the love He has shown to you. He loves them, too. And now He needs you to show that love to them.

Remember this scripture…

For their sake he remembered his covenant,
    and because of his great love he relented.

Use the lens of love to see past their faults, just as God did for you, and make a lasting difference in their lives! Why? Because you weren’t born to be a Kingdom Zero – no, you were born to be a Kingdom Hero! Today’s a great day to grab hold of God’s purpose for your life and become what He made you to be. I’m. Just. Saying.

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The Kingdom Hero Show – Episode 74

-Begin Transcript –

Welcome to The Kingdom Hero Show, where CHRIST is KING and the TRUTH matters! Our mission: To advance the Kingdom of God by shining the Kingdom Light everywhere we go!

On today’s program, I wanna talk about lifting our vision higher so we can get a 30,000-foot view of the bigger picture. Often, we are so zoomed in on our current circumstances or trials that we are blinded to anything else. Such an inward focus causes tunnel vision. It not only keeps us from seeing the needs of others, but it can also damage or limit our own faith and prevent us from gaining a more Godly perspective.

But before we get into that, subscribe to my Rumble channel. You’ll find all our social media links and more by typing TheKingdomLight.com/links into your address bar – that’s TheKingdomLight.com/links.

Now you may notice on that Links page that the link for my Parler feed is no longer there. That’s because the account is kaput. Unfortunately, a company called Starboard acquired Parler earlier this month and, in their magnanimous wisdom, decided that it was simply an unsustainable “Twitter clone for conservatives only” – which is of course a lie – so they promptly shut it down. Truthfully, Parler was a free speech platform for everyone, and now it’s gone. So, thank you to the commie geniuses at Starboard for dealing yet another blow to our American liberty.

Moving on… While you’re on our website, visit the Kingdom Storehouse and get yourself some Kingdom Gear. Lots of great stuff for gifts or for yourself, so check it out.

Ready? Let’s go…

– Open Tag: Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to Let the KINGDOM HEROICS Begin! –

You know, I recall going to the store to get a few things one day. And as I went down my shopping list, I came to an item my brother wanted me to pick up, but I had no idea where it was. I went down aisle after aisle, searching for this thing, but couldn’t find it. I’m frustrated and getting more so by the minute. So, I call him on the phone. I say, “Dude, I don’t see this thing anywhere!” Right?

Then he proceeds to tell me, okay it’s on such-and-such aisle where the so-and-so is. I’m like, “yeah okay, I’m there now and I don’t see it.” He says, well do you see the so-and-so? I scan the shelf again and spot the thing and say, “Yeah.” So he says, good, now look up above that. I look at the next shelf up, but I still don’t see the item he wants. I go, “Man, I’m telling you it ain’t here!” He’s like, well what do you see? By this time, I am reaching for my anxiety meds ’cause I am tired of looking for this thing that is OBVIOUSLY not there, right?

He asks what do you see, so I start naming things – “I see the such-and-such, the so-and-so, and a few thing-a-ma-jigs.” And he says, no no, look a little higher up. My face is probably red, and people near me likely think I’m about to explode right there in the grocery store – my head’s just gonna pop off and it’ll be like, “Clean up on aisle seven,” you know? But right then, I look up a little higher and I see that very item I just KNEW wasn’t there. And so I grab it, take a breath, and I say very calmly into the phone… “Found it.” *click*

Now I know I’m not alone in this, right? I was in a hurry, and this one thing was holding me up. That was my attitude. I got impatient, angry, and all spun up with anxiety. Looking, but not seeing. When all I really needed to do was lift my vision just a little higher. I know you’ve been there.

See, a lot of times, we get so distracted by our own little bubble of circumstances that we can no longer see anything outside of it. We get tunnel vision. We look, but we don’t really see because our minds are still focused on ourselves. This is my challenge, my frustration, my time being wasted while this genius in front of me doesn’t seem to realize that the light is GREEN – hello? Come on, I can’t be the only one.

Even as believers, we do this. We get in that mindset that says, it’s all about me, when the truth is – as Christians – it’s NOT about us. Our lives are not our own, but we have been bought with a price! Amen? If we call ourselves Christians, we’d better be at least trying to live as though we represent Christ to those around us. Am I right?

Okay, man, okay. We’re only human. You hear that excuse a lot, don’t you? We’re only human. But you see, we’ve allowed sinfulness and selfishness and our own carnal nature to take a truth – we’re human – and twist it into a lie that we’re ONLY human. No, that’s not true. We’re not only human, but we are instead called – let me repeat that – we are called to be more than conquerors through Christ! I know I’ve read that somewhere in the Bible. OH! Here it is…

37 …in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

Romans 8

Now keep your finger there in Romans chapter 8 because it’s chock-full of good stuff, and we’re gonna refer to it in more depth as we go. But let me get back to my point regarding this “only human” nonsense. You see, saying you’re only human plays to your feelings. It makes you feel better about a wrong you committed. Well, I’m only human.

Even worse, saying that you are only human is a self-declaration of your state of imperfection with the misguided understanding that you are incapable of change. I’m only human becomes a go-to excuse for every time you fail to live according to God’s will for your life. You are effectively telling God, “I can’t help it. I’m only human.” This transfers the blame onto Him, do you realize that?

How many of you would ever dare to tell God that all your imperfections and shortcomings are His fault? He made you. Right? Yeah, He made you. But He doesn’t make junk. He doesn’t specialize in second-rate goods. The Bible says that we were fearfully and wonderfully made. God specializes in masterpieces. He made humanity in His own likeness, and He is a holy God who calls us to holiness as well.

So while we are human, and we were born in sin due to the curse of Adam, God didn’t leave us there. He broke that curse through the blood of Jesus, and we have access to power through the Holy Spirit to live free from the power of sin. Yeah, we’re flesh, but we’re also spirit, and our flesh should not rule our lives, but instead be subject to the spirit living within us.

Oh, we love to quote scripture and proclaim these truths. Some of you may have even said “Amen” during that little sermonette there. You might feel Holy Ghost chills running up and down your spine when that kind of truth is spoken, but how do you feel when it comes to living out these things we say we believe? We can shout it until Jesus comes back, but are we putting those truths into practical application? There’s a word for people who agree with the Word on Sunday but don’t live it on Monday, and it’s not a nice word…hypocrite.

-Break Transcript –

Those of you who are still around, I appreciate it. You may be saying, “Man, you’re being kinda rough on us today. What’s gotten into you? You ticked off about that whole Parler thing?” Well, maybe a little, but that’s not it. I’ll tell you what’s gotten into me: conviction. I hear the truth preached on Sunday morning and I claim to believe it, but I still feel a righteous conviction of the Holy Spirit.

You see, God is faithful to let us know when we mess up. He’s not rude about it. He’s kind and loving. The Holy Spirit comes like a gentleman and says in a kind but firm way, “My child, you’re falling short. You aren’t being all I created you to be. And worse yet, there are lots of times when you’re not even trying.”

God loves us enough to be real with us and correct us. If you really listen, you’ll hear His correction. You’ll hear it and know it in your heart that you aren’t living up to your potential – and let me assure you, that ain’t God’s fault. So let’s work for a bit on making some corrections ourselves.

We have to CHOOSE to be better. How can we do that? How do we maintain a Kingdom frame of mind when it comes to lifting our vision to a more Godly perspective? Well, I hope you held your place there in Romans 8 because we’re about to take a deep dive into it.

I’ve got five steps for us here…

I. Submit to the Spirit, Not the Flesh.

This is hard because we make it hard. In our minds, we find it easier to let our fleshly desires run things. I want that new smartphone, or that big screen TV, or that car, or whatever. So my focus is on the material. But then we beat ourselves up when we can’t afford what we want. Men especially, we think that if we can’t seem to provide or obtain certain things that we aren’t real men, or not good enough. But look at it from a spiritual standpoint. When we fall short as Christians, the enemy may throw it in our faces and make us feel like failures, but that’s not what God does when He corrects us. In fact, Romans 8 starts off by saying…

1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

Romans 8

While it may be true that our flesh is weak, we cannot allow ourselves to fall on the lie that we’re only human. We’re not just flesh. We are also spirit, and in the spirit is where we are made strong. This passage continues…

5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

Romans 8

When we are living according to the flesh, all we can see or think about is what the flesh wants. And as we see here, not only is it preferable to live by the spirit, but it’s also actually deadly to live according to the flesh. In the flesh, we can’t find peace. In the flesh, we don’t submit to God’s law. And so, in our flesh, we can’t be pleasing to God.

II. Trust That Our Troubles Won’t Last.

When in the midst of our present trials and hardships, it’s really hard to see the big picture. Imagine you’re in one of those giant corn mazes. From your current ground-level position, you can’t see the solution to escape. But imagine that you are in that maze and have an overhead shot of the maze to guide you – like a map. It’s that big-picture perspective of your situation that gives you peace and confidence. Again, it’s our flesh that can’t grasp the 30,000-foot view. Only by the spirit can we do this.

¹⁴ For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. ¹⁵ For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” ¹⁶ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, ¹⁷ and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

Romans 8

This puts our current troubles in a whole different light. Seen through the lens of this scripture, anything and everything we’re facing now starts to seem small in comparison to the fact that God has adopted us as His own children, making us fellow heirs with Christ. What we’re suffering through cannot compare to that which Jesus suffered for us on the cross, and we now have the promise of being glorified with Him one day. That’s HUGE! And it brings us to…

III. Know That We Have a Glorious Future.

18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

Romans 8

The day is soon coming when glory beyond our imagination is going to be revealed. It will indeed make all of the things that have caused us great heartache in this life seem so insignificant as to be unworthy of mention. Yes, even the oppressive and corrupt governance that we often complain about will be swept away, and we’ll finally experience the true freedom and glory that comes from being God’s children.

IV. Realize God’s Love Is Bigger.

No matter what you’re going through – whether it’s pain, sickness, depression, poverty, or even an oppressive government – none of it is bigger than God or His love for you. Call on Him, and He won’t disappoint. Nothing can keep Him from lavishing His great love on you.

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written,“For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8

I really can’t add much here. That’s as clear as it gets. Nothing can keep us from God’s amazing love, aside from us outright rejecting it. That’s it.

V. Praise God Always.

Even in the tough times? Especially in the tough times! No matter what the situation, God is ALWAYS worthy of praise. You feeling sick? Praise Him anyway. Just lost your job? Praise God and trust His plan. Afraid you’re not gonna make this month’s rent? Give your fear over to the Lord and praise Him knowing that He still knows what He’s doing.

You may say, “Well that’s just not normal behavior.” And you’re right. It isn’t normal for your flesh, but it IS exactly what your spirit needs. When you praise God in the midst of trials, hell doesn’t know what to do. It confuses and confounds the enemy. It also fortifies your faith as you commune with the presence of God – He inhabits our praises!

So look up, my friends. Lift your vision higher and see the mighty hand of God move in your life! I’m just sayin’.

-End Transcript –

The Kingdom Hero Show – Episode 73

The following transcript contains only host dialog. Click one of the buttons above to watch or listen to the full show. For best experience, click “WATCH.”

-Begin Transcript –

Welcome to The Kingdom Hero Show, where CHRIST is KING and the TRUTH matters! Our mission: To advance the Kingdom of God by shining the Kingdom Light everywhere we go!

On today’s program, how to spot the phonies and liars that want to dupe you into giving them full control of your thinking. How can we know who is really trustworthy and who isn’t? Over the last few years, we’ve heard a lot of empty promises and seen a lot of shady people get away with hoodwinking the public. But even during all of this, there were those who tried to warn us about what was really happening. Unfortunately, those voices of truth were greatly drowned out by violence, censorship, and distraction. How did some see the truth when others failed to? We’ll talk about this today and look at some ways to train ourselves to see through the lies being thrown at us every day.

But first, subscribe to my Rumble channel. You’ll find the link on our official website – TheKingdomLight.com, that’s TheKingdomLight.com. While you’re there, click the link to visit the Kingdom Storehouse and get yourself some Kingdom Gear. Great items for gifts or for yourself, so check it out.

Ready? Let’s do this…

– Open Tag: Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to Let the KINGDOM HEROICS Begin! –

Alright, as we begin the show, I’m often reminded of a scene from Tim Burton’s Batman movie in 1989. Jack Nicholson is playing a famous comic book villain called the Joker, and he’s on the streets of Gotham City with giant balloons and music and fanfare during Gotham’s 200th anniversary parade. He’s trying to portray himself as one of the good guys, instead of the evil character that he is. As he dances around and gets everyone’s attention, he and his crew begin tossing fistfuls of cash into the crowds of onlookers. Of course, they’re grabbing it up as fast as they can, right? Who doesn’t like free money? Soon after, he grabs a microphone and says this – here, listen…

[clip1]

To put this scene in proper perspective, this is what’s known as “the carrot and the stick” – the carrot being the offer of so-called “free money.” And for those who are fully aware that the Joker is indeed a BAD GUY, they would automatically suspect that he’s up to no good. But to the greedy and unsuspecting masses, he’s a savior. Now, we’ve seen the carrot – but soon, we would see the stick…

[clip2]

This is when the Joker and his cronies release a toxic gas on the city which would have killed everyone. Of course, Batman swoops down in his Bat-plane and tows the balloons carrying the poison gas safely away from the citizens of Gotham City. But, are you following me here? Don’t we see the exact same kinds of villainous antics as the Joker uses, used by our own corrupt politicians, to appear good when their motives are actually bad? Frankly, I think this scene is a perfect analogy.

Along with many of you, I grew up being taught that “there’s no such thing as a free lunch.” But we now have a couple or so generations of people who weren’t given that insight, so when they see someone in DC handing out free money, they don’t realize that it’s a scam. They see the carrot, but they don’t suspect the stick. And by the time it hits them, it’s too late. No, Batman isn’t gonna swoop down and save you.

Over the last few years, we saw many good companies get shut down to the point that they went out of business completely. I know, I lost a good job during the pandemic for this very reason. And during that time, people got depressed, many committed suicide, the general populous fell on hard times and became more dependent upon government subsidies and the like. While some thought the government was their savior for giving them “relief checks” to help them get by, most of us found that those checks helped very little in the short term and hardly at all in the long run because prices went up on necessities.

The corrupt politicians claimed the price increases were nothing more than “big corporations gouging” us and taking advantage of a bad situation. But the truth is that, whenever government – which produces nothing – “gives” currency away, it’s actually returning a teeny tiny portion of money it took from you in taxes. Usually, in order to offset the money it distributes, government will simply print more cash. After all, THEY aren’t going to take the loss. But by introducing more money into the economy without producing anything, inflation is the result. This is simple economics, and those who understand it and speak out about it get immediately silenced.

Whether it’s an offer of relief checks, free healthcare, or even student loan forgiveness, it’s all a sham. A government which produces nothing cannot give you anything for free. Period. Somewhere, somehow, the carrot is always followed by the stick. But after decades of what Rush Limbaugh used to call “the dumbing down of America,” the fundamental basics that we used to learn in high school economics is completely alien to the masses who keep electing these crooks and never questioning the fact that they’re always blaming others for the messes they keep making.

So the question is, how do we put a spotlight on these con artists from the start? How can we not only know who to trust but who’s just blowing smoke? Well, I’m glad you asked. Let’s get into that. And since I’m approaching this from a Christian perspective, I’d say the first step is to…

1. Pray for Discernment.

Once again, prayer should never be just a last resort. It should be the first thing we do. In this case, we need to ask God to give us the ability to discern whether someone is being truthful or attempting to mislead us. Ask Him to help us to see the clues – the telltale signs – that indicate when a person is being less than honest. This may often come simply as a tug within our spirit, an intuition or divine knowledge that something isn’t right. But it’s also important to…

2. Read the Bible Daily.

What does reading God’s Word have to do with knowing who to trust or not? Regular intake of scripture feeds our spirit with the truth. Whether it’s a biblical account of one person trying to put a fast one over on someone else, or even just some affirmation of Christ as lord of our lives, this discipline is very beneficial in strengthening our minds with Godly knowledge. The more you do it, the better it will help build up your ability to live and think more heavenly minded.

3. Arm Yourself with Knowledge.

Similar to step 2, this involves pouring into yourself an accumulation of facts. For this, don’t just use one or two sources of news. Be careful of simply taking what one source tells you as truth. Most media outlets nowadays have their own agenda, so be aware of when they are giving you a specific take or side of a situation or story rather than an unbiased offering of facts. If they seem to be telling you what conclusions to make, they could be misleading you. Gather enough unadulterated facts to form your own opinion. Which leads us to…

4. Think for Yourself.

As stated in the last step, don’t take any one source as the God’s honest truth, unless it’s the Bible itself. Too often today, what sells itself as journalism is really one side’s opinion. Any news outlet that tells you what to think isn’t doing the job it’s supposed to do. Likewise, any politician who says it’s the government’s job to stop misinformation IS LYING TO YOU. That’s not the job of government, and it never has been. That person is effectively telling you that you’re not intelligent enough to think for yourself and determine when information is true or false. You have the capability, you just need to develop it, and only a corrupt individual would say otherwise.

When you practice these things, you will cultivate a keen insight within yourself and find it easier and easier to spot lies as soon as you hear them. In fact, I would submit to you that with the kind of spiritual discernment you can gain by doing these four things – when you are so close to God and filled with His Holy Spirit, armed with knowledge and facts – you can often spot liars before any words leave their lips. There are some people that, when you look at them, you just KNOW they can’t be trusted. I’m not talking about prejudging someone, but about having discernment and knowing that you know that you know.

⁹ And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, ¹⁰ so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ…

Philippians 1:9-10

We are to seek out this kind of knowledge and discernment for our benefit and to remain pure and blameless. If you’re satisfied with simply feasting on whatever someone spoon-feeds you, then you’re not exercising wisdom. Such thinking is childish and immature.

¹³ for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. ¹⁴ But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.

Hebrews 5:13-14

Without the meat of God’s Word and constant practice and training in how to tell good from evil, we cannot grow into adulthood as people of God. Furthermore, we will be easy prey for anyone who wants to lead us astray. Those who mislead aren’t the only ones to blame in that case, but also we who fail to move from milk to solid food – from the narrative that comes so easily to the real knowledge that must be attained through effort. In other words, we can’t afford to be intellectually lazy and let someone else do our thinking for us.

Stick around, folks. We’re gonna take a quick break and come right back with some truly fantastic video clips right after this…

-Break Transcript –

Okay, keeping with the theme of who should we trust and how do we spot those who can’t be trusted – I wanna share just a few video clips with you. Let me preface this first one by saying, when a government official frames everyone who disagrees with him as a “threat to America,” you really shouldn’t trust him. Watch this…

[Biden speech: “MAGA Republicans are a threat to democracy!”]

First, I have to point out the obvious evil overtones present in the optics of this speech. An American president in front of a dark backdrop with glowing red lighting just shouts fascism, communism, evil overlord, you name it. And believe me, those who put this event together are fully aware of how it would look and the psychological impact of it. Optics do matter, so don’t dismiss it.

Second, he clearly states here that all of us who believe in Making America Great Again – MAGA people who supported Trump – he says we’re a “threat” to the country. Uh, no. We may be a threat to the leftist narrative and the deep state, but we’re not a threat to America. That’s absurd. So absurd, in fact, that Biden later backtracked on this ridiculous assertion. Watch…

[Biden: people who voted for Trump aren’t a threat…]

Blah, blah, no, what I was REALLY saying was – Right, whatever. I don’t think I can trust what this man says for a number of reasons. Not the least of which is that he backtracked on what he had clearly asserted previously. This was a very divisive speech in which a sitting president called half the country a threat. So, let’s look at this reaction from Florida Governor Ron DeSantis…

[DeSantis: calls Biden a modern-day Nero]

He brings up a great point. Who do you think those 87,000 new IRS agents are going to target? Clearly, they represent yet another extension of the deep state’s power over the people. Especially when they want these 87,000 IRS agents to be ARMED. Why do you think an IRS agent needs to be armed?

And how about the FBI? This government agency has become like the Nazi Gestapo, being utilized by the deep state to go after Donald Trump himself, as well as anyone and everyone who supported him. The latest being Mike Lindell of My Pillow…

[Lindell: FBI surrounded me at Hardee’s and took my phone.]

We hear you, Mike. And don’t worry, we won’t tell anyone either. It’s crazy what’s going on in this country, which is supposed to be a beacon of freedom for the world. So, if you don’t support the efforts of the current regime, if you disagree with the approved narrative, you’re the enemy. You’re the bad guy. Does this sound like it’s coming from people you can trust?

A reporter tried – and failed – to trip up Kari Lake, a former journalist herself who is currently running for Governor of Arizona. The question posed was an attempt to compare Biden’s dividing the nation with Trump doing the same. But Kari wasn’t buying it, and her response was golden…

[Lake: What’s divisive about asking questions about an election that obviously had some real problems and concerns?]

Nailed it. Now, this next clip is just insane. In it, Georgia congressman Hank Johnson first spouts a bunch of the false narrative regarding what happened on January 6th of 2021. They still claim it was an “insurrection” by a hoard of MAGA republicans converging on the capitol, when we’ve already seen video evidence of Antifa members dressed as Trump supporters organizing and executing the fake raid on the capitol.

But here is Hank, regurgitating the same old J6 lies – and THEN he speaks of the concerned parents who showed up at school board meetings to voice their concerns about CRT and other divisive garbage being taught to their kids, likening them to the J6 hoard, as though those parents were a bunch of MAGA insurrectionists themselves. It’s unreal…

[Johnson: likens concerned parents to J6 insurrectionists]

Okay, I just have to say that, if you believe anything that comes out of this man’s mouth, you truly need to exercise the 4 steps I spoke of earlier. Let us not forget that this is the same man who once expressed his fears that the island of Guam might tip over and capsize due to overpopulation. I mean, how is this guy even still holding public office?

I’m serious. He actually said Guam could flip upside down. Like the island is just floating out there like a ship or something. He said it. I’m not gonna just breeze by this because I know that there are still some people out there who are NOT armed with the facts and don’t believe me when I say that Hank Johnson made such an incredibly stupid assertion. Here’s the proof, see for yourself…

[Johnson: Guam capsize clip]

I know, it’s unbelievable that anyone so lacking in intelligence could make it into public office, let alone stay there for years and years. But back to my point. I’m sure I had one. Though I’m still distracted by the sheer idiocy on display there. Anyway, yes, my point. Pay attention to these people who try to deceive you. They quite often will show you very quickly how untrustworthy they are. And yes, sometimes they show you how unintelligent they are.

Once again, how can you know who to trust and who not to?

• 1. Pray for Discernment. Ask God to equip you with spiritual insight.
• 2. Read the Bible Daily. Consume truth from God’s Word to build up heavenly knowledge and wisdom, which will contribute to your own powers of discernment.
• 3. Arm Yourself with Knowledge. Seek out multiple sources of facts rather than simply the spoon-fed narrative echoed by the mainstream media.
• 4. Think for Yourself. Don’t let others do your thinking for you or tell you how you should think or what you should believe. Gather enough facts and biblical insight to make your own sound decisions. Anyone who treats you like you’re incapable of doing your own thinking is trying to deceive you.

And remember, once you realize you’re being lied to, you also must realize that those who do this are agents of evil. The Bible says that satan is the father of lies, and the truth is not in him. When he speaks lies, he is speaking his native tongue. So learn to discern. And always seek truth. I’m just sayin’.

-End Transcript –

The Kingdom Hero Show – Episode 72

-Begin Transcript –

Welcome to The Kingdom Hero Show, where CHRIST is KING and the TRUTH matters! Our mission: To advance the Kingdom of God by shining the Kingdom Light everywhere we go!

On today’s program… Do miracles still happen? Well YES, of course they do. But you may wonder how you can see miracles happen in your life. What’s the secret to getting the most out of your walk with God? Well in truth, it’s not a secret. The answer is found in the Word, and we’re gonna talk about it on this special uninterrupted episode. Lots of scriptures to cover in the process, so I hope you’re ready to take some notes.

But first, subscribe to my Rumble channel. You’ll find the link on our official website – TheKingdomLight.com, that’s TheKingdomLight.com. You’ll also see that the right-hand column of the website features our Twitter feed. Whatever we tweet or re-tweet shows up in that right side panel. While you’re on our website, click the link to visit the Kingdom Storehouse and get yourself some Kingdom Gear. Lots of great stuff for gifts or for yourself, so check it out.

Alright, here we go, folks…

– Open Tag: Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to Let the KINGDOM HEROICS Begin! –

Let me preface this by saying, we’re not dealing with any kind of get rich quick schemes. This isn’t some crazy prosperity doctrine, but I do believe God desires for His people to prosper – and there are varying aspects to being prosperous. It’s not always about wealth, but there’s nothing wrong with wealth. How we look at it is important. The more God blesses us, the more we can bless others, and that should be our attitude.

So how do we attain God’s blessings? The first thing we need to realize as His people is that…

1) God wants to bless us.

Just like a good parent, it isn’t His wish to withhold any good thing from His children. Look at how much He doted over Adam and Eve in Genesis 1:

28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 29 And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.

Genesis 11:28-29

Here we see that God blessed them out of His abundance of kindness and generosity. He provided everything they needed and more. Not only did He give them food to sustain them, but He gave them dominion – power and authority – over all of creation. They had it all.

True enough though, they listened to bad advice from the serpent and sinned, for which God cut them off from the abundance of His blessings in the Garden. But that curse of sin was broken when Jesus died for our sins. Because of this, we have full access to all of the blessings God has for us. And yes, He enjoys granting us gifts and favor.

Second…

2) God reciprocates when we exalt Him.

If our priorities are in order, we will be putting the Lord first in our lives. When we honor Him in this way, He opens the floodgates of heaven and pours His blessings down on us. But we tend to be overly concerned with the things of this world, things we need or want, rather than giving God the glory He deserves. We worry about stuff rather than trusting Him to supply our needs.

31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 …your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Matthew 6:31-33

18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

So regardless of our situation, we ought to prioritize time to exalt God and give Him praise and thanks first, rather than worrying about our physical or worldly concerns. Keep in mind that He loves you and wants to bless you. And He inhabits our praises, His presence falls on us, and that’s what we need more than anything else – His presence in our daily lives.

Third…

3) Ask God for what you need.

Rather than merely chasing after things we want, which makes us focused on the wrong things, we need to go to the Lord with our needs.

2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.

James 4:2

When our focus is on the things we don’t have, or on wishing we had what someone else has, we’re not in a good place to receive from God. It’s that type of carnal desire that leads us into sin and frustration. When people focus so heavily on attaining things they don’t have and have no means of getting them honestly, that’s when they will lie, cheat, steal, and even kill for those things.

And the latter part of that verse says that we don’t have what we need because we’re not asking God for it. Why don’t we ask God for what we need? It could be pride – the idea that I should be able to get necessities on my own. Or it might even be that we don’t really believe that God will help us. Which brings us to…

4) Trust Him for providence.

Do you really believe that God can and will provide your every need? Again, it helps to think of Him as your Heavenly Father – because THAT’S WHO HE IS!

8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent?

Matthew 7:8-10

Sometimes, we can be guilty of praying without believing. Do you realize that? Sure, we go to God in prayer – either as a ritual or even as a desperate last measure – but we aren’t really trusting Him with our whole heart to come through for us. I’ve heard people say, “When all else fails, pray.” Why do we fall into this mentality that prayer is the last ditch effort after you’ve done everything else? Prayer should be our first instinct, not our last! Think about it: If you truly believe God will provide, why not go to Him first? We have to really trust that He will make a way when there seems to be no way.

5) Invest in the Kingdom.

There are certain concepts that God designed intentionally and specifically for our benefit. Not the least of which is sowing and reaping. When a farmer sows seed into the ground, he expects to later reap in abundance what he’s sown. He has made an investment, and he does so expecting a large return.

12 And Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. The Lord blessed him, 13 and the man became rich, and gained more and more until he became very wealthy.

Genesis 26:12-13

We all should understand by now how sowing and reaping works in the natural, but how often do you sow spiritual seeds? Are you investing in the Kingdom of God? Are you investing your time in the Kingdom by studying the Word and seeking the Lord’s will? Do you give into the work of the church? Do you tithe as the Bible instructs? Are you helping the church by serving in some way? If you want to reap good things from God’s Kingdom, you need to sow into it. If you expect a bountiful return, you must first make an investment.

6) Obey God.

Find out what God wants you to do, and do it. For this, you have to seek the Lord in prayer, through meditation on the Word, and let Him speak to you. Open your heart and listen intently for God’s direction. However long it takes, earnestly pray for Him to show you or lead you to whatever it is He wants you to do. And remember, if it’s from God, it will line up with scripture. Though it may not happen the way you imagine, obedience is key.

9 So Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stood at the door of Elisha’s house. 10 And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored, and you shall be clean.” 11 But Naaman was angry and went away, saying, “Behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper. 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage. 13 But his servants came near and said to him, “My father, it is a great word the prophet has spoken to you; will you not do it? Has he actually said to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” 14 So he went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God, and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.

2 Kings 5:9-14

See, Naaman actually got mad when the miracle he needed didn’t come like he thought it would. And he almost missed out on the blessing because of it. How many times have you gotten upset because things didn’t happen the way you wanted? Did you give up on your blessing before you could receive it? Fortunately for Naaman, he finally yielded to the encouragement of his servants, washed as he was told and was healed.

Maybe you try and try to make something happen your way, and when it doesn’t, you get discouraged instead of doing things God’s way from the start. Look at what happened with Peter and six other disciples when they went fishing in the Sea of Tiberias. After toiling all night and catching nothing, we read the following…

4 Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 5 Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any fish?” They answered him, “No.” 6 He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish.

John 21:4-6

Now this was one of several times that Jesus appeared to His disciples after His death, burial, and resurrection. But what I want you to notice here is that, after fishing all night and catching nothing, He tells them to cast their nets on the right side of the boat. These guys were no strangers to the art of fishing, and they hadn’t caught any fish at all that night. Morning comes, they are undoubtedly tired and discouraged. But when they heard the instruction to make one more attempt – “and you will find some,” Jesus says – they decided to obey rather than question it. And it was then, in their obedience, that their miracle happened.

And finally…

7) Remind yourself of His faithfulness.

I don’t know about you, but God has come through for me on countless occasions. It does me a huge amount of good to think back on all the times He rescued me from circumstances I had gotten myself into, or when he has healed me physically, or when He touched me through the prayer of a loved one to the point it felt like fire was gonna shoot out of my fingertips, or the time He sent an angel to nudge my car back onto the road when I had lost control, or how about every time He has filled me with His Holy Spirit, or when He often came through for me financially, and perhaps the many times He saved me or protected me when I didn’t even know it.

When you are troubled or going through a trying situation, just remind yourself of all those times when God did amazing things for you in the past. When the devil throws your shortcomings in your face, throw God’s many kindnesses to you in his face. Remembering those things gives you encouragement in times of despair, builds up and fortifies your faith, and helps you to press forward when life tries to push you backwards. God is good, and that’s worth remembering.

Conclusion:

So if we want to be in a position to receive all that God has for us, whether it’s blessings such as financial needs, basic provisions, or even something totally miraculous, remember…

1. God wants to bless us. He’s our Father, and He loves us.
2. God reciprocates when we exalt Him. In every situation, praise Him.
3. Ask God for what you need. We too often have not because we ask not.
4. Trust Him for providence. Believe with your whole heart that God will come through for you.
5. Invest in the Kingdom. Sow expecting a bountiful harvest. Tithe to your local church. Volunteer to serve in the church, and help fill a need.
6. Obey God. Your obedience to God’s instruction is paramount to receiving your miracle. Seek His voice and do what He says to do, faithfully believing, and He will be faithful to hold up His end of the bargain.
7. Remind yourself of His faithfulness. Never forget what God has done for you. That will help you to know beyond any doubt that He’s gonna do it again!

I’m. Just. Saying.

-End Transcript –

The Kingdom Hero Show – Episode 71

-Begin Transcript –

Welcome to The Kingdom Hero Show, where CHRIST is KING and the TRUTH matters! Our mission: To advance the Kingdom of God by shining the Kingdom Light everywhere we go!

Now you’re probably sayin’, “Hold up there, chief. That’s not quite the same mission statement I remember from the last show.” Yeah, you are absolutely 100% correct. The wording has changed slightly, but the meaning is still there. It happens, folks. Things change, and that isn’t the last of it either.

For you who don’t already know, our website address has changed again as well. KingdomHero.net still works through the end of the year, but the new site name better reflects the direction of this ministry. That new web address is (insert fanfare and drum roll here) TheKingdomLight.com!

Some of you are rolling your eyes at me. Don’t roll your eyes at me. You’re sayin’, “Dude, WHY all the changes? The website already changed less than a year ago. Why you doin’ it again? What’s up with all these changes?” Okay, fair enough. But guess what? My military friends will understand what I’m about to say next. Sometimes, the mission shifts. It’s true, ask anyone who’s ever served in the armed forces. That’s right up there with the expression hurry up and wait. We did a lot of that in the Army, let me tell ya. If there’s one constant in the universe – besides God – it’s CHANGE.

Now, the message of Christ never changes, but the methods for presenting that message are in a constant state of flux. So if today God is telling me to do a podcast, but tomorrow He says to start a radio station, or whatever, it behooves me to obey – shift the mission, change the website, whatever the case may be. Capiche? Okay, good. Let’s move on.

What? I’m just sayin’.

On today’s program, I wanna talk about the importance of the process. More specifically, reasons why we need to endure the process even when we think we’re beyond that. If you have no idea what I mean by this, stick around, it will all become clear very soon, I promise you. But first…

Yep, you know the drill: Subscribe to my Rumble channel. THAT has NOT changed. I still want you to do that. You’ll find the link on our official website – TheKingdomLight.com, that’s TheKingdomLight.com. You’ll also notice that the right-hand column of the website now features our Twitter feed. Everything we tweet out from our GCM Twitter account shows up in that right side panel. And while you’re there, go ahead and visit the Kingdom Storehouse and get yourself some swag to show your faith and support for the program. There are t-shirts, coffee mugs, keychains, all kinds of great stuff. Get some as gifts, some for yourself, just do it. Sound good? Good, let’s go…

– Open Tag: Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to Let the KINGDOM HEROICS Begin! –

Yes, indeed. We had a bit of a hiatus there, took a little time off from the podcast, but now we’re back. Before we jump into today’s topic, I wanna go ahead and feature just a couple of Twitter responses from this past week.

This first one is directed as a response to some who seem to think that my political criticisms are all against one party – the democrats. Now, I stand by my critique of many democrats, mainly the far lefties, but I will once again clarify my stance. See I don’t see people as republican or democrat, or anything that is merely a surface layer self-assigned label. I try to see what is morally RIGHT or WRONG instead. And to be completely clear, I want to deal in the realm of GOOD and EVIL more than anything else. So here’s my tweet addressing that…

Next, I responded to a tweet from Lauren Chen over the weekend in which she asks what I’m sure is a rhetorical question…

Again, these are from my personal Twitter account rather than the GCM account. You can follow either through the website. Just go to TheKingdomLight.com, and hit the Social Media link in the menu near the top of the page.

Now… It’s time to talk about Respecting the Process. Well, WHAT process? What am I really saying here? I’m glad you asked that question. Here’s the story…and it’s a true story…

Before moving back to Tennessee this year, I lived in Georgia for about 30 years. During that time, I served in varying capacities within church ministry. I sang, played drums, even led worship. I also served as director of the audio-visual department. I helped write and direct church dramas, and I acted in them as well. At one point, I even handled the church finances. Yeah, I did almost everything but preach.

See, now I have relocated and I’m attending church HERE. And when I heard God telling me that my rest period was over, and it was time to get back to being involved with the local church, I knew He was right. He’s always right. So I approached a member of the church leadership after service one Sunday. I told him I had been heavily involved in leadership for many years at my previous church and felt God calling me back to serve.

Here’s the thing: While I have years of valuable experience in church leadership, it does not automatically follow that I just jump into a spot at my new church. I was invited to attend what they call “Next Steps” classes which familiarize people with that particular church, what they believe, and guides people through discovering they’re gifts and learning where they can be of service on the church’s iServe teams. Awesome.

Now imagine if I’d been prideful and taken a hard line saying something like, “Didn’t you hear what I just said? I’ve been in church leadership for decades already. I don’t need to take classes.”

Well, I can promise you this: If that was my response, I would definitely need an attitude adjustment before being ready to serve effectively. In fact, it was through my many years in leadership that I came to learn how important it is to undergo a process before taking on a leadership role of any kind.

Maybe that’s not how it’s done in some places, but I definitely believe it is wise to have such an onboarding process if you want dedicated and effective leaders in your church. So I welcomed the opportunity to learn more about the church I’m so interested in serving at, and I DO respect the process. I believe this idea applies to any leadership position – even a pastor.

Some years ago, the church I attended had the challenge of finding a new pastor when our sitting pastor retired. The church formed a committee of members charged with the task of seeking out a replacement. There was a process. They took several applications from men who had been preaching and serving as pastors for years. They listened to sermons. They discussed which candidates would best fit the body and fellowship of believers. Then they had to narrow it down until there was one stand-out among them. They prayed about it and sought God’s direction. In the end, God honored that process and brought His chosen leader to pastor the church.

It quickly became obvious to everyone that they had done the right thing. The process was crucial, and no one doubted that the right person – the man hand-picked by God Himself – was who became the next pastor. Let me offer this to you: If the process is important when choosing a pastor, it’s also vital when placing other workers in positions of leadership in the church.

-Break Transcript –

We’re talking today about respecting the process. There are so many applications to this concept. If you are trying for a new job somewhere, and you go to an interview, and you tell them about all your experience – and you may be completely qualified for the position – it’s not a lock that you’re gonna get the job. And even if they DO choose to hire you, there’s likely to be a training process required before you can start. Such a process is necessary to find out people’s skills, evaluate strengths and areas that need work, and so on. It’s no different in service to the Kingdom.

I mentioned earlier all that experience I’ve had in church leadership, but when starting over at a new church, I still have to respect the process they have in place if I want to serve there. And I wanna get to why this is so important.

Years ago, while serving on a worship team, a man approached our worship leader after a service and said he wanted to join the team. Great, right? We can always use more workers in the Kingdom. So then, the worship leader told him she wanted to have him audition. His response? “Oh no, I don’t need to audition. I already KNOW I can sing.” Uhm, okay. Someone is missing the point here. It’s not just about whether you can sing. It’s also about whether or not you are willing to submit to authority. This guy showed really fast that he wasn’t one for submitting to authority, let alone a process.

Needless to say, that gentleman never did join the praise team – nor the church for that matter. And yes, I do believe church membership should be a prerequisite for entering church leadership – kind of a no-brainer. Instead, he soon took his pride and left our church, never to return. I mention this because that pridefulness and lack of willingness to submit to the process is indicative of someone who is NOT ready for the kind of commitment and dedication which is necessary to effectively serve in the Kingdom. When it’s about me, or my talent, or my experience, then I have the wrong attitude.

Over the years, I have served alongside some wonderful people. But I have also seen a few people on stage who were just there to be seen. That was during a time when we lacked a good onboarding process. But see, it’s during the process that you learn how committed someone is gonna really be. Are they gonna show up for practice on time? Will they be dependable? Or do they just wanna be part of a show? Do they just want to be seen and heard? The fundamental truth that every person who serves should grasp is that, in fact, you are SERVING God. And it’s not about you or your grand abilities to play an instrument or sing or whatever – no, it’s about your obedience and willingness to give your all for Jesus. It’s all about Him!

Let’s do the military analogy. When I joined the Army, they didn’t just automatically hand me a weapon on the day I enlisted and send me into combat. And I’m very grateful they didn’t! I’d have been dead in no time. No, they sent me to basic training. And some people wash out during basic. After I passed basic training, I still wasn’t ready for combat. There was still more training. They sent me on to AIT, which is Advanced Individual Training. See, basic training is just that – basic. I often joke that we learned just enough hand-to-hand combat in basic to get in trouble. During the advanced training, we learned other specific skills to prepare us for specific duties within the Army.

I could go on and on about this process, but the point is – THE PROCESS IS IMPORTANT. People who aren’t willing to endure the process aren’t going to accomplish a lot. Think about this: You will never reach a single goal in life without first submitting yourself to a process. It’s true in every aspect of life. No one within the sound of my voice right now played on a school sports team without going through a process. Not a one of you has ever received a diploma without going through a process. No one has gotten a degree, become a doctor or lawyer, or even had a successful relationship without first surrendering to a process. That’s just how life is. So get used to it.

As for this necessary process I’m currently engaged in, to become a part of my new church’s servant leadership, I am committed to that process. I have to be. And I should submit to it willingly, and without prideful hesitation, and without any silly resentment – ’cause that’s pride, too – but with patience and respect for the process. Because it’s through that process that God shapes me and trains me and forms me into something useful to the Kingdom.

Jesus chose His Disciples carefully. He told them what was expected of them. He taught them, trained them, and when His time of ministry on Earth was done, He gave them a job to do – the Great Commission – the most important job ever. Now, that’s our job, too. Not just to reach the world with the Gospel, but to live it, to be examples for the world as Christ was for us. You can’t teach others what you haven’t first learned for yourself, and you don’t learn anything of value… without… a process.

We read in the Bible where early leaders in the church had to train others. There has to be someone else to carry on the Great Commission when we pass away. This is a process that doesn’t end until Jesus returns. And my prayer today is that each and every one of you will surrender yourself to the process God has laid out before you. Maybe it’s in your relationship, your marriage, or perhaps it’s within your commitment to some task that He has for you to do. Whatever it is, let go of your pride. Let go of anything that hinders you from submitting yourself to that process. Obey. And trust God to bring you through it. Because, on the other side of the process, God has a great reward awaiting you.

Before wrapping up today’s show, I wanna mention something that might seem a little off topic. But it’s more of an example of the importance of honoring God’s process for Christian living. It is vital that we stay rooted in the Word in order to guard ourselves from false teachings. Let me read to you an excerpt from the book, Without Rival, by Lisa Bevere:

Okay, there are a few things to unpack from this – and I want you to realize why the type of experiment being taught here is NOT part of our process of growth as believers. In fact, this line of thinking is very dangerous!

Can God speak to us? Absolutely. But He doesn’t speak out of both sides of His mouth. He’s not going to speak anything to your spirit that doesn’t line up with what He has spoken in His holy Word. People unfamiliar with the scriptures can imagine almost anything being “whispered” to them. It’s the not knowing what He’s already said in the Bible that makes this practice dangerous.

If you want to seek out what God is telling you, don’t close your eyes and let your imagination (or worse, a demonic presence) speak to you. OPEN your eyes, read His Word, and seek His will in prayer. Measure everything alongside the scriptures and don’t let yourself be deceived!

Speaking of the Bible, the author’s awful advice takes a passage out of context. “Be still and know.” Period, she says. The way that line is presented implies that you can be still and know that whatever words pop into your mind are actually from God. This should be a huge warning flag. That’s not what the passage of scripture states. Here’s what the Bible actually says:

“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”

Psalm 46:10

THAT’s what God’s Word says. The passage has nothing at all to do with this grossly misguided experiment.

Also, the mentioned exercise is already directing you to “hear” positive words. Look again at what she says: “Don’t be afraid that you are making up words of love and value.” Uhm, you’d better be concerned about this!

What if God has some corrective instructions for you? Instead, you’ll just imagine happy fluffy things that you want to hear. That’s deception. This practice is evil, and it will delude your thinking. In other words, we need to be wise regarding mysticism and subjective experiences, such as what is being promoted here. God said His Word is sufficient, and it is. The practice offered in Lisa Bevere’s book is part of process to deceive you, not part a Biblical process for spiritual growth. God’s process involves knowing what His Word really says. Wanna know how God sees you? All you gotta do is read the scriptures. He states it clearly right there.

And speaking of scripture, I’ll leave you with this one:

⁴ So you will find favor and good success in the sight of God and man. ⁵ Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. ⁶ In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

Proverbs 3:4-6

Remember: None of us were born as fully grown adults. We went through a process of childhood and growing up. It’s the process that matures us and prepares us to become more than we are. Without it, we stagnate, never changing, never growing. We are not yet what we are becoming, and it’s the process that gets us there. So humble yourself. Study the Word. Trust God, lean on Him, and He will lead you through the process – HIS PROCESS – into favor and success! I’m just sayin’.

-End Transcript –

Do you believe in the power of the Holy Spirit? Do you want to be able to effectively witness to people and plant seeds in faith that can change people’s lives? It’s the power of the Holy Spirit that enables us to do this.

Now you might say, “that’s just not my gift.” Fair enough, but would you like it to be? Do you believe God’s Word? REALLY BELIEVE it?!? If so, then you already know that we have access to this power. It’s not about us. It’s about Jesus. And it’s about the strength of our own relationship with Him and our willingness to let Him work through us.

Check out this powerful video. Then pray. Talk to God about what He would have you do for Him. Seek His guidance in the Bible. And lean not on your own understanding, but trust His will and ask Him to make you more sensitive to the moving of His Holy Spirit on a daily basis!

Episode 70

Below contains video clips which are not transcribed.

-Begin Transcript –

Welcome to The Kingdom Hero Show, where CHRIST is KING and the TRUTH matters! Our mission: To advance the Kingdom of God by studying the Word and making real-world application of Kingdom-mindedness.

On today’s program: Truth, Truth, and MORE TRUTH. It’s what the vast majority of the people really want, believe it or not. Those few in the minority who like being spoon-fed the lies that help them sleep at night notwithstanding, most people would prefer you be honest with them even if the truth is uncomfortable. This episode will expose more lies and bring focus to the truth. And that includes big news from Truth Social, coming up.

Alright you know the drill, subscribe to my Rumble channel. You’ll find links to that and all our social media outlets on our official website – KingdomHero.net, that’s KingdomHero.net. Check out our preferred platforms – Locals, Truth, Parler, GETTR, MeWe – all these links are available at KingdomHero.net. And while you’re there, visit the Kingdom Storehouse and get yourself some swag to show your faith and support the program. Sound good? Good, let’s do it…

Yeah, you heard correctly – we are now on Truth Social, and I for one am absolutely LOVING IT! For a few months now since the launch of Trump’s “big-tent” free speech social platform, it has only been available for iPhone users through the App Store. After weeks of beta-testing, the platform just this week made itself available to millions more people. Everyone can now access Truth Social through your favorite web browser. The addition of the web app prompted such an influx of new accounts that Truth’s web servers went down several times during the last couple of days.

In fact, I have a good friend who is somewhat involved with the platform, and she has been passing me occasional tidbits of news and progress reports regarding the beta-testing and so on. She was the one who let me know when the web version of the platform was ready for new users. But she also said that there were over 2 million people trying to create new accounts during a 2-hour period, which caused some server issues, so they had to slow things down a bit for a time. This thing is really catching fire quickly.

I encourage you to jump aboard the Truth train and see for yourself how much better things are without all the algorithms keeping you from being seen and heard. I noticed a difference right away. Almost as soon as I’d opened my account and posted my first “truth,” I started gaining followers. It really is a wide open and free exchange of ideas platform. Don’t take my word for it, though. Head over to TruthSocial.com and see for yourself. And be sure to follow me there @StaceMassengill.

So, here’s the first lie I want to quickly debunk. The mainstream media on the left keep trying to downplay the popularity of Truth Social. Is it really all that it’s hyped up to be? Uh, YEAH, it really is. They actually say that it’s not as popular as Trump says, even though it has been the number one downloaded app from the iPhone App Store practically ever since the platform launched earlier this year. It’s like, are they trying to fool their own viewership, or are they just trying to convince themselves? In truth, the actual demand for access to Truth Social has been overwhelming, just as I’ve said.

Unfortunately, for people like me who use Android phones, the app hasn’t been available like it has on iPhone. This is, of course, because Google owns Android and has done everything in its power to keep Truth Social out of the Google Play Store. As we know, Google is evil. I’m still making efforts to separate myself from the company, but its tentacles are many and far-reaching. Thank goodness for Truth’s new web app! I honestly can’t say enough good things about it. So let’s move on.

It is my view that more and more people are waking up the realization that they have been lied to for a very long time now, and what those people crave most of all today is the truth. It’s happening across the political spectrum, as we’re seeing more of those who had been left-leaning their entire lives are now moving to the right of center. Life-long democrats are making the jump to voting republican because they’re seeing the dire results of the failed policies of the Democrat Party. And as more truth comes out about the corruption that has infected the majority of the left, more people are joining us on the right.

Just this week, Elon Musk announced that he intends to vote Republican for the first time ever. He’s already become a thorn in the side of the dems, but he still isn’t a conservative. He has always leaned more left of center. But yes, he does believe in free speech – which the left hates. It is the left’s staunch opposition to free speech and desire to censor all who disagree with them, more than anything else, which has pushed Musk and many others away from them and toward the right.

We’ve seen the cancer of cancel-culture devour many on the left as well as on the right. A great many people who had always been left-leaning took exception to being cancelled and maligned for holding certain more traditional views, and some of them have had about enough of the insanity and divisiveness and sheer hatred of the left. Entertainers and comedians who have taken flack for not following the far left crowd are sick of it. While some of these are mere baby steps in the right direction, it’s good to see people starting to come to their senses about this cult of leftist extremism.

Actor/Comedian Dave Chappelle has been harangued by the left in recent months simply for being a little too honest in his stand-up bits. They now call him misogynistic, anti-trans, and even socially irresponsible. All this because his comedy isn’t “sensitive” to the woke nonsense narrative. He was recently attacked on stage by someone in the audience wielding a knife. Chappelle was not seriously harmed, but the attack was no doubt the result of his being demonized by the left to the extent that some mentally unstable person deemed it necessary to go after him.

Isaiah Lee, the man who attacked Chappelle, had brought a lethal weapon with him to the event – a switchblade knife. That speaks to likely premeditation. The act of charging at Chappelle with the deadly weapon speaks to intent – that intent would be murder. So, premeditated attempted murder, right? Not according to the LA District Attorney. This thwarted assault with a weapon was no felony, but merely a misdemeanor. A misdemeanor? Really? What, because Lee failed to kill Chappelle? But then, that’s what we’ve come to expect from those left-leaners in the “justice” system.

Actor Chris Pratt has been attacked a number of times in the Twitterverse by people who despise him for his Christian faith. Famous for his roles in several MCU films and the Jurassic World franchise, Pratt has come to expect hatred from those who have a skewed view of Christianity. They have simply decided unfairly that he is an enemy of the LGBTQ+ community. While the Bible does teach of sexual immorality being sin, these people equate that with being hateful and intolerant toward their lifestyle. They totally ignore the genuinely decent person that Pratt actually is, and that he has never disrespected anyone else for their beliefs. No, what matters is that he disagrees with us, and we view that as hate, and so we’re right and he’s wrong!

Several movie-going fans of the Marvel films have even tweeted out that Pratt should be replaced, wanting his role of “Star-Lord” to be recast with an actor who isn’t …well, ya know…Christian. Thankfully, Director James Gunn has come out in defense of him. Gunn flat out stated, “Chris Pratt would never be replaced as Star-Lord but, if he ever was, we would all be going with him.” This was another refreshing thing to see happen in an environment like the entertainment industry, which so often bows down to the woke crowds of the left.

As people get an opportunity to see what’s really going on and what freedoms are being trampled on, they are opening their eyes and ears to the truth. Even popstar Katy Perry has stated that her recent move from Hollywood to Kentucky has been a very positive and eye-opening experience. The singer has relocated to Kentucky while her fiancé, Orlando Bloom, is filming a movie outside of Louisville. She said that moving out of Hollywood has helped her gain some perspective. Perry went on to say that she has come to realize that Hollywood is not America. No kidding!

There are other examples, but what I’m saying is that people have been feeling the restrictiveness and fascism long enough to realize that they don’t like it. I really think that we’re going to see more and more of this wake-up from woke-ism in the coming months and years. People are tired of being told what they can and can’t say, or what they can and can’t think. They’re fed up with the censorship and the arrogance of one group of people thinking they know what’s best for everyone else. And yes, they’re tired of being lied to at every turn. There is a growing hunger arising. A hunger for the old days of more freedom, lower gas prices, unmatched job-growth, a booming economy, and an honest media. That’s right, a hunger for truth. And they’re learning that, hey, a few mean tweets…that’s not really so bad.

-Break Transcript –

Are you hungry for more truth? Let’s look at what really happened at Disney – once a fairly wholesome and family friendly entertainment company, but now just another corrupted corporation that panders to the left and their depraved ideals. This story from Blaze News shines a light on some current and former Disney employees who are tired of watching a once great company go down this dark road. And they aren’t afraid now to be vocal about it. Here’s the article…

Here’s what some of them had to say…

Christian conservative values are no longer welcome at Disney. Why do you suppose that is? Perhaps because the company has embraced the dark side.

[Darth Vader clip: “You underestimate the power of the dark side.”]

Yeah well, don’t underestimate the power of God and His people as we continue to fight back against the evil leftist agenda. As I said, more people are seeing the light and coming to know the truth about this oppressive authoritarian menace that has taken over and corrupted our government and many companies within our country. The more we expose them, the more desperate they get and the more they say the quiet parts out loud. We can’t let up now, either. We’re on the verge of a major victory, but we’re not quite there yet.

Look at these two exchanges. In the first, congressman Jamie Raskin gets the tables turned on him as he’s attempting to grill Ms. Catherine Glenn Foster about a proposed bill to ban abortion entirely. This is priceless.

Oh, of course. He’s not about to answer that question. No way! She puts him on the spot, knowing he’ll never support any bill that restricts – much less bans – killing these babies for any reason, period. She exposed him right there, and all he could do was try to deflect.

The truth is that Raskin knows full well that rape and incest only account for about half of one percent of the abortions conducted. Meaning more than 99% of abortions have nothing to do with rape or incest and everything to do with convenience and shirking responsibility for creating a life. But he and others like him keep singing that same old song.

The second clip I wanna show you demonstrates the sheer lack of a valid explanation when one of these pro-abortionists is confronted with the truly perfect question about the immorality of killing babies. This is representative Mike Johnson asking Ms. Aimee Arrambide about the difference between a child who is 2 years old and one who is still in the womb. Check this out…

WOW is right. Notice how she stammered and paused because the truth was smacking her in the face? Then she finally falls back to her original talking point of trusting people to decide what to do with their own bodies. But the unborn humans are NOT their bodies! They fall back to this lie of a cliche, it’s my body and my choice. No, it’s NOT your body. It’s someone else’s body, and you’re fighting for the “right” to KILL IT. Every argument they have just falls apart when the truth comes into the picture. And they have no response to the truth, none – it baffles them – and all they know to do is go back and try to regroup and deflect the issue with the same old lies they use as talking points. Truth wins, folks. And it’s winning a lot more right now than it has in quite a while.

And is it just possible that Elon Musk has set about NOT to simply purchase Twitter but instead to expose its many secrets? So much has come out now while the buyout is on hold. Fake accounts, blatant biases, and so on. Musk is shaking up the company to its core. For all his flaws, the man is clearly a genius. I don’t know what his endgame is for sure, but I don’t think we’ve seen it yet. I really am starting to think that his goal might not be to buy Twitter after all. He may, but what he’s uncovering in the mean time is so much more interesting than a mere takeover of Twitter.

It was discovered this week that about half of President Biden’s followers on Twitter were actually spam bots or fake accounts. I think the rest are probably sheep, but that’s beside the point. If half his followers on social media aren’t real, just imagine how many of those supposed 81 million votes for him in 2020 weren’t real either! Ya know? Truth is coming out because people are starving for it. Dinesh D’Souza’s film, 2000 Mules, is gaining in popularity – and the demand is so great that it’s about to be re-released in theaters. God is moving. He’s orchestrating things in His timing and equipping His people to uncover and reveal all of hell’s deep dark secrets to the world.

Again, this isn’t a time to sit back and brag on how we’re kicking the enemy’s butt. No, this is the moment when we must keep pushing and keep exposing the lies until the enemy is completely and irrevocably defeated once and for all. Your team doesn’t stop playing just because they scored a few points in the first quarter. At least, they’d better not if they expect to win. Keep playing until that last whistle, or buzzer. Keep pushing forward and fighting until that final trumpet sounds, my friends! The world is starving for the truth and for Jesus, and it’s our job to deliver. We have to finish the race set before us, and we must be in it to win it. I’m just saying.

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Episode 69

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Welcome to The Kingdom Hero Show, where CHRIST is KING and the TRUTH matters! Our mission: To advance the Kingdom of God by studying the Word and making real-world application of Kingdom-mindedness.

On today’s program, we’ll look at some of the latest news stories and examine the continued assault on our most basic freedoms. From the right to bear arms to the very right to life itself. All this, coming up momentarily.

We said goodbye to YouTube and the censorship of Google this year, and we’ve been very happy with the move to Rumble, where we no longer have to worry about being canceled or shadowbanned. So, yes, subscribe to my Rumble channel now, please. Thank you! You’ll find links to that and all our social media outlets on our official website – KingdomHero.net, that’s KingdomHero.net. Check out our preferred platforms – Locals, Parler, GETTR, MeWe – all these links are available at KingdomHero.net. And don’t forget to check out the Kingdom Storehouse for all your Kingdom Gear. Okay? Sweet…

Our first story comes from Breitbart. And it’s actually encouraging that this has occurred in the state of California. We’ll put this on the screen for you as I read it.

YES! This is fantastic! American liberty, protected in the Constitution, is being acknowledged and reaffirmed by the courts. And in California, of all places. The article goes on to say…

Now seriously, the fact that this unconstitutional law was successfully struck down in California is fantastic. But this is yet another result of Trump’s positive impact as president. The 2nd Amendment has been under attack for decades, and we’re finally seeing this basic right being upheld – yes, EVEN in California.

Okay, next story. This one brings us into the battle for the soul of America, beginning with our youth. Here’s a piece from the Post Millennial, and it highlights how the evil forces on the left are continuing to make a play for the minds of our kids.

Yeah, a female who wants to appear male can go to Target and buy a “packer” to make it look like she has a penis. I know, right? I mean, this is absolutely insane what’s going on here. The article goes on, however, to elaborate on some of the dangers of these products.

I can’t even. If this stuff doesn’t bother you, then you’re as deceived as these people who suffer from gender dysphoria. To prey upon young minds like this is disgusting, it’s despicable, and it’s downright evil. And Target, like so many other companies, is culpable in this effort to groom our kids by normalizing abhorrent behavior. And the public screwls are even worse. Check out this article from Fox News…

Hang on, let’s unpack this one because there’s SO MUCH going on here that is incredibly wrong.

1) This is a middle school – roughly around the ages of puberty for these kids whose bodies are going through all these normal biological changes. What a great time to warp these young malleable minds into believing all kinds of garbage, right?

2) Students were invited to this brainwashing session and told to keep it secret – don’t tell mom & dad. Evil loves the dark. And when evil grooms your kids, it doesn’t want you to know about it. It wants its vile corruption to take place in the dark, in secret.

3) This pubescent girl who has probably gotten or soon will get her first period – an understandably unsettling and uncomfortable time in her life – she’s being told that if she’s not 100% comfortable in her body that means she is transgender. Wow. I’d imagine most girls that age aren’t 100% comfortable with their bodies. They are literally using a natural moment of biological changes to FOOL kids into thinking they are something they are not. That’s blatantly evil.

4) And this is a huge problem. Students are then told that their parents are not safe! Can you imagine being a preteen or early teenager and being told that your parents aren’t safe? How absurd! In other words, you can’t talk to your parents about the things going on in your body and in your life. No, that’s not safe. Your parents won’t understand – but these people lying to your kids are supposed to be trusted as the safe ones?

Finally, 5) we see lying actually isn’t so bad, huh? They tell the kids that lying to your awful unsafe parents about being in these meetings is perfectly fine. See how the parents are made to be the enemy of these middle schoolers, while these brainwashers who are targeting the kids are deemed to be the enlightened truth tellers and the only ones they should trust.

Dear God in heaven, we need a revival for our youth. And some of these teachers need a real come to Jesus, too.

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In our next news item of the day, well THIS is no surprise. If you want to know who’s funding a majority of the bad ideas that have taken over the Democrat party, look no further than George Soros. From Fox News…

Of course not. Let’s don’t acknowledge where our money is coming from. Soros is dirty. Everyone knows he’s dirty. And the democrats who are more than happy to accept his funding know that most people would frown on it.

As for Stacey Abrams, doesn’t she still believe she actually won that last race in Georgia? Pretty sure she thinks she IS Governor already. Anyway, she’s bad for the state. She has no original ideas, just falls in lock-step with the ideology of the left woke mob and the destructive BLM agenda – which ironically has done ZERO to help the black lives they so adamantly say matter. If Abrams believes black lives really matter, why do she and others on the left support the abortion of black babies? We all know that black babies are the primary target of Planned Parenthood. Margaret Sanger established it to eradicate the black populous.

Which brings us to this article from the Daily Caller…

Isn’t that just loaded with irony? I saw a video where they were chanting “mothers will die” during their protest. As “woke” as these people claim to be, I’m kinda shocked that they even use the term “mothers” rather than “birthing individuals.” But I found it interesting lately that the abortion crowd is chanting things like “mothers will die” – of course, alluding to the idea that mothers desperate to kill their babies will seek out dangerous back-alley abortions if it’s made illegal. This is a recycled theme they’ve used before. It’s not based in reality, however.

Seriously, think about it. If – God willing – abortion were to become completely illegal, it does not necessarily follow that all those women who have been convinced that murdering the unborn child is an answer to their problems would then seek out some dangerous and illegal procedure that could threaten their own lives. People don’t normally rush to do things that are both illegal AND life-threatening. Instead, they tend to give more consideration to safer and better options.

Hello? Saving lives is the goal of the whole pro-life stance. But abortionists push the idea that it’s okay to kill babies and anyone who disagrees should just shut up them and let them keep doing it. All their arguments all flawed. And the bottom line is that they are deceived by the evil forces that are determined to destroy the human race.

As for their efforts to bully these Supreme Court Justices, we saw that coming. That’s what the leak was designed to do – quickly organize radical opposition to pressure and manipulate the outcome of court ruling. It’s a dirty tactic, and it’s typical of the leftist playbook. Justices have said however that they will not be intimidated, which is a good thing.

Thankfully, these tactics have been falling short recently, as we also see in our final news story. This is from The Washington Free Beacon…

Now look, folks. We’re seeing some wins. This is a really important one. These people are so incredibly overcome by the influence of pure evil that they’re willing to green-light killing babies all the way up to birth and beyond. As unbelievable as it sounds, that’s how twisted and demented they are now. It’s completely sick. And we have to keep pressing forward in our efforts purge our government of this evil.

I’ve said it often on this show, and it’s true. As Christians, we need to pray, pray, pray. Pray every day. Make time in the morning when you get up, make time during the day as you go about your daily life, and make time at night before bed. I’m serious about this. Pray without ceasing, because our prayers really do work. This is especially true if we are seeking God’s truth and righteousness.

The Bible says in Matthew 21:22, “And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.” We’re talking about casting demonic influences out of our country’s government, and when the disciples had trouble driving out a demon in Mark 9, Jesus told them in verse 29, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.” We have a powerful ally when we pray.

Why do you think Paul said in Acts 6:4 “we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the Word“? It’s because prayer has the power to roll back the waters of the sea. Prayer has the power to open blind eyes and deaf ears, power to heal the sick and deliver people from addiction. It can even raise the dead, y’all. Prayer has the very power of God Almighty because He loves His children, and He wants to come to our rescue. But you see, He’s not going to force Himself on anyone, and He’s not going to go against His own Word.

We read in James 5:16 that “The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” So we need to seek first the Kingdom, seek out His righteousness, and that power of prayer will be given to each and every one of us to effect real change in our world. And even the gates of hell won’t be able to stand against us. I’m. Just. Saying.

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Episode 68

-Begin Transcript –

Welcome to The Kingdom Hero Show, where CHRIST is KING and the TRUTH matters! Our mission: To advance the Kingdom of God through study of the Word and making real-world application of Godly character and Kingdom-mindedness.

On today’s program, how do we handle that brick wall we all hit from time to time during our walk with God – especially as leaders of the faith. Preachers, teachers, other spiritual leaders, and anyone who God has given a ministry to – at some point, we all get worn down and fatigued. We’ll talk about some ways to combat this feeling of burn-out in just a moment.

Right now, I wanna invite you to visit the all-new Kingdom Storehouse! Check this out, folks…

If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it repeatedly: subscribe to my Rumble channel, subscribe to my Rumble channel, subscribe to my Rumble channel. Thank you! Links to that and all our social media outlets are located on our official website – KingdomHero.net, that’s KingdomHero.net. Lovers of free speech – check out our preferred platforms – Locals, Parler, GETTR, Gab, MeWe – all these links are right there at KingdomHero.net. Cool? Cool. Let’s do this.

Show of hands – who here has ever felt spiritually drained? You haven’t lost your faith, but you’re losing your fire. Maybe you’ve been serving faithfully in the church for a long time, and you’re just tired and feel like you’re enthusiasm has waned. Perhaps you are even thinking of hanging it up. I have an important message for you – that feeling is completely NORMAL.

A friend of mine recently posted a request for prayer for this same reason. He’s a pastor and an evangelist, heavily involved in ministry, and he also does a podcast. Lately, all the responsibilities have been weighing on him and he’s feeling a bit drained. I immediately felt the Holy Spirit prodding me to reach out to this brother in Christ with some encouragement. That was greatly the reason I decided to focus on burnout during today’s show.

We all want to be Kingdom Heroes and giants of the faith, but as human beings, we have to remember that we do get tired occasionally. It’s perfectly natural to feel that way, so don’t be ashamed of it. The guilt that creeps in is NOT from God. That’s the devil trying to bring you down. He’s also the one who tells you to just quit. The thing is, simply forcing yourself to keep going when you’re burning out is just as bad an idea as quitting altogether. Because the end result will be the same, you’ll eventually hit that wall and give out.

So what’s the answer? If you can’t quit and you can’t keep going, what’s left? Simple. You need a break. I’m not talking about giving yourself an excuse to quit completely, but rather a well planned and purposeful time off. It’s just like when our bodies get physically and emotionally and mentally tired by the end of the day, and we have to sleep. As we get older, an occasional midday nap helps, too. But you get the point – rest is every bit as important as work. God ordained this concept in Genesis.

Genesis 2:2 plainly states that “He rested on the seventh day from all His work that He had done.” Now why does it say that? Why did God bother to inspire Moses to put that into the account of creation? Yes, it leads to the whole idea of the sabbath and keeping a holy day each week set aside especially for honoring God. But the sabbath idea also includes doing no work on that day. See, God didn’t need to rest because making the universe made Him tired and sleepy. Instead, He was setting an example for us because He knew that we couldn’t always be about even our Father’s work 24/7/365. We have to rest.

And I think the book of Hebrews drives this point home. Hebrews 4:10 says this, “for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from His.” Now this can refer to a number of things. Some will say entering into God’s rest is what we do when we die. But to me, that’s almost like when people who work too much comically say, “I’ll sleep when I’m dead.” We better take some time to rest before then.

No, I believe this scripture could be saying to us that we who are about the Father’s business had better learn to enter an occasional period of rest, just like the Father did. Why? Because otherwise, we won’t be able to carry on with the Father’s work. See, rest is more than just good advice, it’s a command from God and it was exemplified BY God.

Think about this. The same root word that gives us the term sabbath also gives us the word sabbatical. What’s a sabbatical? Well, that’s when a person takes some time away from their normal business or duties of life. Oh, you mean like a vacation? Not exactly, no. See, a vacation is something most people do with family. You go somewhere like a beach or whatever with the kids and enjoy some family time. Vacations are great, but that’s not a sabbatical.

The whole reason for taking a sabbatical is to do more than just relax and unwind. You also have to put aside all your obligations for a while so that you can recharge your batteries. You need to rejuvenate. Completely shut down for a time, just like when we sleep and our bodies get a chance to reset everything and refuel or take care of the areas that need attention. For a sabbatical, you usually need to be alone. And in our case, we need an extended period of time alone with God.

Are there other examples of rest being biblical? Yes, of course. In Matthew 11:28-29, Jesus proclaims, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Even Jesus Himself took a period of time alone with the Father on occasion. In fact, we read of Him doing just that on the night He would be betrayed. He urged his Disciples to be on watch as He went alone into the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. This account is found in Matthew 26, and it was a time when Jesus was literally taking the weight of the world’s sin on His shoulders.

For us, facing times of weakness or dryness in our spiritual lives can be quite the challenge. If you’re in a position of leadership, your responsibilities can weigh heavily on you. The need for a refreshing from heaven is real, and it’s critical that we recognize it and act accordingly. There’s no shame in taking some time to recharge, but we often tend to think that it’s just not possible to step away for any length of time. While we resist the enemy’s attempts to tell us to just give up, we often fear that taking time off might lead to quitting altogether. Or we fear that things may fall apart in our absence. Or perhaps people will think less of us if we take a break for a while. All these fears are irrelevant, but the devil will use them to stress us out even more.

But those times don’t have to break us. Remember, in 2nd Corinthians 13:9, it says, “For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. Your restoration is what we pray for.” It is in our times of weakness that the strength of the Lord proves to be more than sufficient. We only need to allow ourselves the time to be alone with God and let Him rejuvenate us with resurrection power. So, yeah, a sabbatical to rest and recharge might just be the perfect answer.

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I’ve shared this before, but it’s appropriate for our topic. I’ve been in church all my life. I was a preacher’s son, and I have been involved in the church to some degree or another for decades. But in May of 2011, I was what you might call “at the end of my rope” spiritually. I was wearing a lot of “hats” and some of my duties were a drain on me. Being in charge of the church’s finances, for example, was particularly wearisome. I hated it. Keeping the books, writing checks, paying bills – yuck.

On top of this, the church itself was going through a time of turmoil. After a gut-wrenching leadership dispute, all but about 4 people had left our fellowship. I remember coming to church one Sunday morning and looking across the vacant sanctuary and feeling as empty as all those chairs. It seemed apparent to me that my time at that church was simply over. So I left.

After 40 years, I was without a church home for the first time in my life. I visited some other local churches, but I wasn’t feeling that sense of belonging. No matter where I went, I never felt like I quite fit in. I felt inside that I needed to immerse myself in God’s work somewhere, but I had become so spiritually fatigued that I couldn’t seem to plug myself in anywhere. It was so frustrating.

But I DID find that, by not having the time-consuming duties I’d had in the church previously, I finally had the free time to pursue some personal interests. Understand though, these were interests that God had planted within me. In June of 2011, I began my own online ministry by launching a series of Bible-based videos. That was the beginning of Great Commission Ministries and my first foray into hosting a web-series called “The GC.” Little did I know that God was up to something.

Without realizing it, I was entering an 8-month sabbatical. During that time, God was training me to do new things. He’d birthed in me an interest in producing videos, while also keeping me plugged into His Word. I began to study the scriptures like never before, and God just poured Himself into me. Even as I was deeply immersed in this new ministry, I didn’t yet realize the significance it would have. But I was ALL IN.

Another thing God had orchestrated during this time of my life was a connection to The Church at Chapel Hill. I was given the opportunity to attend an event there called “The Blue Experience,” which was a kind of seminar for people in leadership. There was a time of praise and worship at the start of the event, and my spirit desperately needed that. Because of this, and the fact that I hadn’t found another church home yet, I’d begun watching the Chapel Hill services online every Sunday morning. It was too far to drive there every week, so I’d plug my laptop into the big-screen TV and have church right there in my own living room. It was great!

Early in 2012, I was invited to a men’s breakfast by the new men’s group at my old church. Yes, they had managed to grow in my absence. On a Saturday morning, I went to the breakfast and listened as many of them voiced their excitement about all the things that were happening after the re-launch of the church. While I had been growing an online ministry, making videos and so forth, these guys had been rebuilding the ministry of a place I had left some 8 months prior. Good for them, I thought.

Then they began talking about some new things they were trying to get started. Someone mentioned something about a church bulletin. And in that moment, something clicked in my brain. All these months I had been making videos, and all these months I’d been streaming in the services from Chapel Hill. I’d seen how they had created announcement videos and played them prior to the Sunday morning service, and I began to think, Hey, I could do that. Before I knew it, I found myself pitching the idea of a video bulletin to these men. And they LOVED it! Next thing I know, I’m offering to head up this project for a church that I wasn’t even a part of anymore! WHAT?!

I go home afterwards, and I’m thinking about what had just happened. What did it mean? I wasn’t sure I was ready to go back to the same place I’d left, but it was also obvious that it wasn’t really the same place anymore. New people, new ideas, but was this the right move? I really had my doubts about it, and I needed God to give me some clear direction. As usual, God was WAY ahead of me.

The next morning, it’s Sunday, so I’m doing what had become my usual thing. I make a little breakfast and get settled in to watch the 9am service from The Church at Chapel Hill online. As always, it’s fantastic. The praise and worship starts, and there I am singing along and having a good ol’ time in my living room. Then Pastor Dave Devine steps up and begins preaching. I’m listening intently, as I always seem to get good stuff out of it. And then, something kinda peculiar happens. Pastor Dave stops right in the middle of the sermon, and he says, “You know, it’s great that we have the ability to stream these services online for those who maybe can’t be with us in person.” Then, looking right into the camera, he says, “But sometimes, you JUST NEED TO BE HERE.”

Honestly, I don’t remember anything he said after that. God had been working on me for 8 months, training me and teaching me, and He had orchestrated that little breakfast meeting the day before. Now, He had prepared my heart to hear a specific message. It was a message I heard loud and clear. As Pastor Dave spoke those words directly into the camera, what I heard was, “Stace, it’s time for you to get up out of that comfy chair and go back to church.” So I did. Yeah, I had church twice that morning. I returned to the church I’d left 8 months before, and I stayed there for another 10 years.

But here’s the real kicker. After going back, I ended up wearing more hats than I ever had before. The difference? I was loving every single thing that I did. God had taken me from burnout to boss-level servanthood. You may say, that’s contradictory. You can’t be a boss and a servant at the same time. Oh, but you can. It’s called servant leadership, and Jesus lived it out for us. But my point is that God led me from my emptiness into a time of refreshing and retraining. And when I came out on the other side of it, I discovered that He’d given me desires and abilities to serve Him in ways that I had previously not even imagined.

Now I’m facing a similar time in my life. After all those years serving in various capacities at that church, I recently reached yet another turning point. Feeling compelled to make a rather huge move from Georgia to Tennessee, here I am again staring at a future that is unknown to me. But knowing God’s stellar record of always being there to guide my steps when I faithfully pursue Him, I’m confident that He will again lead me into the next phase of my service to Him. And I couldn’t be more excited to learn what He has in store.

So if you’re hitting a wall in your spiritual walk, take comfort in knowing that God has a plan for you. That plan may include a needed respite – a sabbatical – a time of temporarily shedding the duties that bog you down and entering into God’s rest. Let Him guide you. Let Him teach you. And trust that whatever He has lined up next for you – it’s gonna be amazing! I’m just saying.

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