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#NoDespair2020
All right, well, hope you had a good Tuesday. Is it Wednesday today? Yeah, it's Wednesday today. Hope you had a good Tuesday yesterday. I really had a good time making those two videos. I thought they were pretty funny, and if you missed them, go ahead and watch them.
I did one about David Platt and comparing him to an alleged internet scammer, and uh... That was a good one, that was a good one. But then I also did a video about... What was the first one about? I forget.
Oh right, it was about Amin Hudson and how code switching is like the oppression that he feels every day. It's like the experience of being black in America, where you have to consider your audience when you decide how to speak to somebody.
And so many people reached out to me and just were in disbelief that this is the extreme oppression that the woke church is talking about, code switching. Everyone else just thought this was just good communication skills, where, you know, you change your diction, your dialect, your tone, based on your audience to get the desired result.
Like, I agree, it's very common. Everybody does it. Everybody does it, in fact. If you've ever had a sales job, there's a technique called mirroring and matching that people use. Now I think mirroring and matching can go really wrong, so you gotta use that technique effectively, of course.
Code switching is not oppression, right? Like code switching is not an example of white supremacy or anything like that. That's insane to think that way. And so I hope you enjoyed those two videos. I had a really good time making them.
Now, today I wanted to do a very positive video because everyone's, you know, wringing their hands about how hard 2020 was. And let's just be honest, it was very difficult for many, many people. And I did a video about how 2020 exposed liars and slaves and charlatans and cowards in the church all over the place.
And it certainly did. We had so many articles being written about how it's okay to close down your church because the government says so. It's okay to require unbiblical pieces of clothing in order to invite someone to the table of Christ.
Like, we had so many liars. That's lies. Cowards who are just too scared to say no to the government. And slaves who treat the government as if it's massa. Right? Like, they'll do whatever the government says that they should do.
Here's an example. This is Jamar Tisby, and he, on the 27th of December, he tweeted out this. I try not to think of it often because it infuriates me, but it would have been so easy for the President of the United States to simply say, quote, wear a mask.
If he did nothing else and just got out of the way, what misery we could have avoided. And I thought this was hysterical because, like, no, we don't just do whatever massa says we do. Like, that's not how we treat the government.
The state is not our master. God is our master. And so, if Trump were to say, guys, wear a mask, which, by the way, he did say many times, those of us who don't have a slave mentality would have been like, no thanks, Trump.
I like you. I think you're hilarious, but we're not going to do this because we don't have to do it. Plus, it makes no sense. Plus, it doesn't help. Plus, it's just a lie. And we're not doing it. Right?
It's the same thing we're saying to him about the vaccine. He wants us to all get the vaccine. He's very proud of his accomplishment with the vaccine. And we're just like, nah, I don't think so. Thanks for the offer, Trump, but we're not going to do that because we don't have this mentality where we're the state's subjects.
We're the state's slaves. We're state worshippers. We're not like that. And Jamar Tisby is like that. He's a slave of the state. He's a sheep. He's a subject. He is a worshipper of the state. The state makes the law according to Tisby, and you, just because you're a loyal subject, you follow it.
That's not how it works. We're free men here. This is a free man's zone. You know what I mean? So I decide what I do. If Trump tells me something lawful, like don't kill, well, I submit to that because that's authority that comes from God.
I recognize that. And so when I submit to Trump in that regard, I'm submitting to God because God has empowered Trump with certain authorities, with certain responsibilities. And the authority to tell me not to murder is one of those authorities.
But guess what's not one of those authorities? Sticking my arm with chemicals, experimental chemicals. Guess what's not one of those authorities? Forcing me to wear a certain article of clothing that actually probably will hurt me more than it helps me.
And so because I don't have a slave mindset, you know, I'm not going to do it just because Trump says so. Just because I happen to like Trump doesn't mean that he gets to be my master. That's not how it works for us.
But for state worshipers like Jim Martisby, that is how it works. But this is not supposed to be a negative video because it's not all slaves out there. It's not all state worshipers and cowards and liars out there.
There's actually a lot of good people. And I think that 2020 was a breakout year for a lot of Christians that really seem to be coming into their own. And I wanted to just highlight a couple of them that I find particularly helpful.
So it's good to be a man. This is a ministry from Michael Foster and Non Tenet. And Michael Foster and Non Tenet are sharp guys. I'm not going to lie and say I just like discovered them this year or something like that.
They actually, you know, I think Michael found me first and he's had me on his podcast. And so I might be a little bit biased here, but I think he's very sharp. And what I love about this ministry, well, let me just read what it is if you don't know it.
And we can kind of take it from there. So it says a ministry of Michael Foster and Non Tenet to extend God's house and father rule by helping men to establish their own houses in strength, workmanship, and wisdom.
So this is a ministry for men, men to establish households, men to rule their households well. And to establish it and to develop it and to have a mission, a plan, a goal, and that kind of thing. And what I love about this ministry is that it's so practical.
I'll never forget when I was on their podcast, we were talking about a few things and some theoretical type things. But then after we were done, there was a Q &A session. And the answers that you got from the Q &A session were so practical, so helpful.
They were specific, no weasel words with these guys, none. So often when you hear ministries that do Q &As, you get the non-answer answer. And you get the impression that the questions were pre-planted kind of thing.
And I happen to know that often with mainstream evangelical ministries, they pre-plan the questions but make it seem like they're impromptu. And that's not what I got from these guys. It didn't seem like that had happened at all.
And the answers were so specific and so helpful. I'll never forget when I first became a Christian, I struggled with anger big time. And I knew I had to destroy the anger within me, at least the sinful anger within me.
And so I was going to Tim Keller's church at the time. And they have a lot of classes that they offer for like $10. You can join a class. And I joined one about anger and becoming a less angry person.
I believe the book was by Paul Tripp. I can't be sure about that. But I went to one session and I never went back. Because it was so unhelpful. It was so vague. I read through the book too. The book was just like theoretical.
And I couldn't apply it to my—. Just speak to me like a man. Speak to me directly. Give me specifics that I can use. Things that I can use. And so much of this was like—. Some of it was true. But I was like, it's true but it's like, okay, so now what?
It's like when somebody says, well, Jesus is the answer. It's like, yes, Jesus is the answer. That's right. But I have a specific problem. Can you help me specifically? It's like, well, yeah, but just look to Christ.
I'm like, okay, I get it. Look to Christ. Okay, sure. But what does that mean for my problem? Like my specific issue? How do I apply that to this situation? Here's the details. Can you help me? And it's like so often with our evangelical leaders, we don't ever get that extra help.
We don't actually get that stuff that's practical that you can use. It's not the wrong answer. Yes, you look to Christ. That's the right answer. But so often we need specifics. And so what I love about it's good to be a man.
And honestly, these guys seem to really be coming into their own. I mean, they're getting a lot of traction with the things that they're doing, with the plans that they're making. I think Michael just recently planted a church and all that kind of stuff.
And it's just good stuff all around. So I pray for these guys. I appreciate these guys. And if you're a man and you have a family or if you're hoping to have a family at some point in the future, I'd say get on that because that's the plan of attack, baby.
That's how you do this kind of thing. Why did God bring man and woman together? Well, he did it. He made them one flesh so that he could have godly offspring, right? We're going to have godly offspring.
This is the plan of attack, baby. So this is the kind of ministry that you can get a lot of benefit from. I highly recommend. It's good to be a man. Now, next, I want to highlight these guys. Founders Ministries.
So SBC, guys, I have a lot of people that watch this channel that are in the Southern Baptist Convention. I'm not a Baptist, right? I'm not a Baptist. But these are Southern Baptists with backbone. And they have the connections to be movers and shakers as well.
Now, I know some people see that as a detriment to the ministry. Like they're almost too connected. Like they're too cozy with a lot of the people that are on the other side of this woke church movement.
And I understand that criticism. However, I think it can be a strength. I'll never forget Kevin DeYoung. He's definitely in Big Eva. Don't get me wrong. He's in the guild. Kevin DeYoung. He's a Presbyterian in the mainstream evangelical guild.
But because of his position, he actually was able to impact a very important vote in the Presbyterian Church in America about homosexuality and LGBT for the side of good. He was in the position. He had the authority.
He had the connections. He gave a great speech and killed this very liberal movement that was coming to the PCA. Now, does he have the wherewithal to withstand the next attack? I don't know. But I think that we need some of these guys that are like kind of connected to the guild but willing to shake the boat a little bit.
And Founders Ministry strikes me as that group. I mean they're not I'll never get invited to like the guild table ever. I mean I'll be the guy that they call security to kick me out kind of thing. But Founders will potentially get invited to those guild tables, and I don't think that's a bad thing.
As long as they're not compromising, that's actually a good thing. I think we need people like that that still have the respect, still have the platform, still have the connections to speak into the guild and do it with integrity, do it with boldness.
And I appreciate the Founders Ministries for that. Now, I can't recommend all their theology, obviously, because I'm not a Baptist. But I do think that these guys are very knowledgeable. They really care.
I had a chance to meet Jared Longshore at the Fight, Laugh, Feast conference. What I appreciated about Jared I don't know if I told you this, brother, and I don't know if you'll ever hear this. But so many of our side conversations, your shepherding heart, let's just say, for lack of a better term, to use some big Eva Buggs words, your pastor's heart, man, it was so clear in the way that you engage in these conversations.
And even the conflicts and the way that we were talking about it, you kind of brought you snapped me back into reality a couple times during some of those conversations. And I don't think I told you that.
And I do appreciate that, man, because I need brothers like you in my life to be like, dude, maybe you overstepped there. Maybe you shouldn't say this. Maybe you shouldn't go down that road, you know, that kind of thing.
And I'm not going to always agree with Jared Longshore on that, but his heart to honor God in his speech and in our tactics and in all of that kind of stuff, it's so clear. It's so clear. So I recommend Founders Ministry.
I know they've been at it for a long time, right? But I just discovered how awesome they were in 2020. I knew about some of the stuff before 2020, but this year, brothers, they came into their own. They're starting like a seminary type thing.
It's not quite a seminary, but the Institute of Public Theology. I'm super interested in that. Even for myself, guys, like I didn't go to seminary, and I don't think that seminary is in the cards for me.
But the Institute of Public Theology, that's something I'm actually very interested in. And I reached out to these guys, so we'll see. We'll see how that goes. But these guys, man, they're making moves.
They're thinking about their future long term, and I love that, man. I highly recommend Founders Ministry. One more. One more, and I'm biased because I do a show with this guy, but I have to say, I was just going to say Fight, Laugh, Feast Network, which of course I recommend the Fight, Laugh, Feast Network.
But I wanted to be a little bit more specific this time around. And I have to say that Matt Williams, I find him to be so helpful. I don't watch his show as much as I'd like because he does one every day, and I know I do too.
But I find it hard to find the time to watch too much other content, although I do watch Matt's content way more than anybody else's besides making my own. But it's the same kind of thing with the How to Build a Tent guys.
It's practical advice. It's practical advice that you can use to improve your economic situation, to be successful in life. We should not be afraid of being successful. I think that there's an undercurrent sometimes with evangelicals that it's not quite a vow of poverty, but it's like sort of a vow of poverty.
And I don't think that's what the Bible presents as what we should be looking for. You know what I mean? To take that vow of poverty and never be successful, never build a business, never get that side hustle, never become wealthy.
And there's nothing wrong with striving to become wealthy. The Bible says that a righteous man leaves an inheritance to his children's children. And yes, it is talking about the heritage and the inheritance of the faith, but it's also talking about monetary inheritance.
In fact, that's the primary meaning. And so if you don't have any wealth, how are you going to leave an inheritance to your children's children? How are you going to be a righteous man in that way? And his channel is so good.
Now, he's a little bit more of a conspiracy theorist than even I am. I was telling you those Pluto pictures were fake, but I don't know. I think Matt's kind of surpassing me in that regard a little bit.
But no, I really appreciate Matt's content, man. I don't watch a ton of other Christian content online, but How to Build a Tent and It's Good to Be a Man, I'd watch a lot of their content. Not as much as I'd like, but a lot.
And I find it helpful, and I find it helpful there in different contexts, but for the same reason. It's not going to be those high-minded things where you don't know how it actually applies to a situation.
You will actually know how it applies to a situation. So I highly recommend How to Build a Tent. I think that this 2020 was a great year for How to Build a Tent. Maybe that's just my perception, but it seems that way.
I think we've seen that Matt has backbone and plan, and despite all the insanity that's gone on, he's been somebody that's been consistently helpful and consistently someone that I'm glad to partner with and join in this fight.
So I recommend him, guys. It's been good stuff. So 2020 did not just reveal liars, slaves, and cowards. It also revealed a lot of men who are very clearly in this fight. If there were ever a situation where I needed help, I would obviously go to my church first.
But if it had to go beyond that, there are men that I found online, on YouTube, on Twitter, on social media that I've met in real life that I would go to for that help. Matt would be one of them. Foster would be another one.
Nontenant would be another one. The Founders guys would be another one. There's others that I haven't mentioned here, but I just wanted to keep this short. So God bless, guys. God bless. I hope you guys have a great 2021.
I feel like you guys have had a good 2020. Maybe I'm just the impression that I get on social media, but I'm very glad for you. I'm grateful for you. I'm happy to be in the fight with you, and I hope God blesses you in the time to come.
So God bless you guys, and I hope you found this video helpful. So what was so funny about this tweet is that people said that it was a racist tweet. And these people don't know me. They don't know that I'm just a white person to them.
They don't know that I have Nigerian blood in the veins. They don't know that my ancestors were brought over in the slave trade. So they're like, how dare you say that? That's racist. That's racist. Now, if you notice, and I wrote this tweet in a very careful way, like I do all my tweets.
Well, maybe not all of them. Anyway, if you notice, I didn't mention anything about black skin here. And so what's amazing about this tweet is that the people that said it was racist, it was mostly white people.
They actually, when they see the word slave in their own minds, connect it to black skin. So maybe you're the racist because I wasn't talking about black skin. I was talking about being a state worshiper, a status, someone who thinks that if the governor says so, I guess I just have to do it.
They're my master. Like, that's not what I was talking about. I wasn't talking about black skin. I was talking about that. But for some reason, there's a lot of anti-racists out there that they see the word slave and they instantly think black person.
This ain't it, bro. This ain't it.