Relatable with Allie Beth Stuckey - Ep 1299 ｜ Matthew West Isn’t Afraid of the Online Mob. Here’s What Changed Him

00:00:00.920 Matthew West is feeling a renewed boldness after the death of Charlie Kirk.

00:00:05.740 And y'all, his testimony, especially over the last few months, is just so encouraging

00:00:10.680 to me.

00:00:11.180 I know it will be for you as well, especially to parents out there.

00:00:14.880 He's got so much wisdom for us today.

00:00:17.300 We've got so much good stuff for you on today's episode of Relatable.

00:00:30.000 Hey guys, welcome to Relatable.

00:00:31.880 Happy Friday.

00:00:33.060 Hope everyone is having a wonderful week.

00:00:34.920 I am so thrilled for you to hear this backstage conversation that I got to have with my friend

00:00:40.320 and Christian, singer extraordinaire Matthew West at his concert on Sunday.

00:00:46.620 I had the honor of talking to him, meeting his sweet daughters, and just hearing his testimony

00:00:52.980 of courage.

00:00:53.900 I really think throughout his life and career, but he says this has accelerated in the last

00:00:58.760 few months, or God has just increased his clarity and bravery since Charlie Kirk was murdered.

00:01:04.560 And so we talk a lot about that, but I just wanted to bring you backstage before we got

00:01:09.380 started with that conversation and show you a little bit of what was happening.

00:01:14.120 Chief Relatable got some behind the scenes looks at what it was like backstage.

00:01:19.440 So we're playing those for you.

00:01:21.080 We got a picture with Matthew West.

00:01:22.660 And then also, little surprise at the end of this, after I talked to Matthew West,

00:01:28.760 they asked me, his sweet manager said, hey, do you want to go on stage before he goes out

00:01:34.480 to sing and introduce him?

00:01:35.980 And y'all, I go on stage a lot.

00:01:38.180 I give a lot of speeches.

00:01:39.700 I talk to a camera multiple times a week.

00:01:42.880 And I was nervous about this.

00:01:44.740 I was like, what am I going to say?

00:01:46.360 I'm going to go out and it's going to be crickets.

00:01:49.440 Because everyone's going to be like, who is Allie Beth Stuckey?

00:01:52.140 I came to hear Chris Tomlin and Matthew West.

00:01:56.540 But it was really sweet.

00:01:57.800 Everyone was so excited.

00:01:59.060 Not for me.

00:01:59.760 They probably were wondering who the heck I am.

00:02:01.840 But they were excited about Matthew West.

00:02:04.000 And all I had to do was go out there and hype him up and talk about how awesome he is, which

00:02:08.500 is easy to do.

00:02:10.100 And then you'll hear that at the end of this conversation, going out on stage and doing

00:02:15.660 that.

00:02:15.860 And by the way, if you have the opportunity to see Matthew West in concert, you need to

00:02:22.620 go do that. 0.52

00:02:23.360 I had the privilege of being able to watch his session, his set, after I introduced him.

00:02:29.820 And he is such an incredible performer.

00:02:32.060 But really, what I love and what you'll see in this conversation is his heart for the gospel.

00:02:37.240 And it is going to be such an encouragement for you.

00:02:40.840 Before we get into that conversation, I do want to remind you of a couple things.

00:02:44.420 We've got Share the Arrows tickets that are going live February 11th on Wednesday.

00:02:49.500 And those are going to be our early bird tickets.

00:02:51.480 So $99.

00:02:52.480 That's the cheapest that they will be.

00:02:54.640 You want to snag those tickets because it's just a limited time that we have that discount

00:02:59.020 available.

00:03:00.280 All the seats in the house are good, but you want to get that $99.

00:03:03.620 Make sure that you and your friends, your sisters, female members of your family are all

00:03:09.060 ready to go.

00:03:09.920 Share the Arrows is on October 10th, 2026 in Dallas, Texas.

00:03:15.880 And let's see, any other housekeeping?

00:03:18.060 Oh yeah, we've got that debate.

00:03:19.460 A Texas Attorney General's, February 17th.

00:03:22.200 Watch it, Blaze TV, YouTube, or X.

00:03:25.440 And that's at 8 p.m. Eastern Time, 7 p.m. Central Time.

00:03:29.380 Yours truly will be moderating, which again is another thing that's making me nervous.

00:03:34.540 You can pray for me because I've never done something like that before.

00:03:36.960 Lots of new experiences, but I'm so excited for you to hear this conversation and be so

00:03:43.460 edified by our good friend, Matthew West.

00:03:51.860 The interview that you did where the people were sitting around you, what's that called?

00:03:58.440 Jubilee.

00:03:59.460 Yes.

00:03:59.860 Like, you were on fire, but like, was that pressure?

00:04:03.680 It was really intense.

00:04:05.620 Super intense.

00:04:06.320 And that was the day before Charlie's memorial.

00:04:08.520 Right.

00:04:09.080 And that was like the craziest weekend, travel-wise and stuff.

00:04:13.520 And I was so tired.

00:04:15.840 And I was like, this is not how I want to feel.

00:04:17.960 I was tired.

00:04:18.600 I was sad.

00:04:19.240 It was only like 10 days maybe after Charlie was murdered.

00:04:22.860 And we really thought about canceling because I was like, I don't want to be surrounded by

00:04:27.340 a bunch of liberals right now.

00:04:28.280 That's like the last thing that I want to do.

00:04:30.660 But that was one of the last conversations that Charlie and I had over text about Jubilee

00:04:35.600 because he had done Jubilee and he crushed it, obviously.

00:04:39.240 And he had all this advice for me and sent me all this text.

00:04:41.820 He was like, I'm praying about this for you.

00:04:44.100 And I just knew, like, if he had been there, he would have been like, you cannot cancel

00:04:48.340 this.

00:04:48.620 Are you kidding me?

00:04:50.160 And honestly, like, when I walked in, it's very tense.

00:04:53.560 Some of it is scripted.

00:04:54.740 Like, they're told not to smile at me when I walk in the room.

00:04:58.380 But as soon as I sat down and the first person came up, he reached out his hand.

00:05:02.560 He said, I'm so sorry about your friend Charlie.

00:05:05.020 And that really did.

00:05:06.740 Like, I wish I could take all the credit.

00:05:08.100 It was all me.

00:05:08.880 But really, like, the Holy Spirit was there.

00:05:11.900 That was evident.

00:05:12.500 I think even the producers felt that because they were like, this is different.

00:05:16.940 But I honestly think Charlie's death actually softened the whole thing.

00:05:21.380 Oh, interesting.

00:05:21.880 Maybe they didn't want to upset me or something.

00:05:24.160 But everyone was pretty nice.

00:05:26.300 At least they're in person.

00:05:27.820 Yeah.

00:05:28.080 Now, after on social media, they had their things to say.

00:05:31.700 But yeah, it was kind of cool.

00:05:33.160 I mean, talk about, like, walking into the lion's den.

00:05:35.320 Like, it just, I was like, that is just some bravery there.

00:05:39.080 Yeah.

00:05:39.740 Well, it was fun.

00:05:40.620 And to be that, but you're, I mean, there's only a few that could be as well-equipped

00:05:45.260 to step in and field those questions and slash attacks where there, it's all gotcha stuff.

00:05:52.080 Like, the, like, so I just was like, wow.

00:05:55.140 But, you know, you'd be, if you were in that situation too, you would be surprised at, like,

00:05:59.540 how much you've heard everything that they're saying.

00:06:02.560 Right.

00:06:02.920 Because as conservatives, it's like, we see this stuff on TikTok and everything all day.

00:06:06.440 Yeah.

00:06:06.720 They've never heard my position, but I'm like, I've heard this.

00:06:09.060 I've heard this, like, 10 times.

00:06:10.220 Yeah.

00:06:10.840 So.

00:06:11.380 And it is, like, the Lord giving us the words to speak.

00:06:14.940 100%.

00:06:15.100 And scripture returning to us.

00:06:16.520 And, like, so it's just.

00:06:17.840 Oh, the Holy Spirit was totally there.

00:06:20.540 Well, I'm just.

00:06:21.440 It was fun.

00:06:21.580 We're thankful for what you do.

00:06:22.920 Well, thank you.

00:06:23.740 You reached out to me a few months ago and you sent me an audio file of a song that you

00:06:30.460 wrote after Charlie was murdered, Be Close.

00:06:34.820 And thankfully, by the grace of God, that kind of made it through the grapevine to the

00:06:39.100 people closest to Charlie.

00:06:41.160 And you even got to play that at the CBS Town Hall.

00:06:44.480 I did.

00:06:44.960 Before Erica took the stage. 0.99

00:06:46.680 Let's play a clip of that.

00:06:49.440 Jesus, be close.

00:06:51.580 To the broken hearted, save those who are crushed in spirit.

00:06:57.540 We know that you've always been our only hope.

00:07:03.860 Be near when our minds are flooded with fear.

00:07:09.200 Be the hand that's wiping our tears and the voice that whispers weary.

00:07:15.420 So be still and know that I'll always be close.

00:07:25.120 Okay, tell me about writing that song.

00:07:33.880 What inspired you?

00:07:35.000 How did the lyrics come to you?

00:07:36.960 Well, like millions of people around the country and the world, we were our family, the West

00:07:42.020 House.

00:07:42.680 It was heavy.

00:07:43.560 Like we were grieving with what we witnessed with Charlie Kirk being assassinated with his

00:07:50.440 murder.

00:07:50.720 Like our family was just like, you know, freaking out.

00:07:54.860 And as a parent, you're trying to like, you know, walk through that with your kids and

00:07:59.520 just like the fear and the anger and all the emotions.

00:08:02.520 And then also just like, you know, you're wrestling with your faith of like, Lord, where are you?

00:08:07.060 You know, I think there's, it feels like so many moments in my life right now where I'm

00:08:11.340 seeing things take place in our world and I'm asking that question.

00:08:14.280 But then I can turn to scripture and be reminded of the promise of God's proximity, the closeness

00:08:19.580 of God.

00:08:20.500 You know, the Lord is close to the broken hearted.

00:08:22.420 He saves those who are crushed in spirit.

00:08:23.860 And so to be honest, that whole day of watching what was happening on the news, I was so angry

00:08:31.140 and I wanted to go to social media and just like, you know, really enter into that.

00:08:37.420 And the next morning, I just, I couldn't sleep.

00:08:40.040 And I woke up early that morning, not to like sound like I'm romanticizing or anything.

00:08:45.780 I just woke up singing, Jesus be close to the broken hearted, save those who are crushed

00:08:51.880 in spirit.

00:08:52.360 And so I did what I do when I don't know what else to do, which was go to my studio, pick

00:08:58.160 up my guitar.

00:08:59.000 And I just started writing.

00:09:00.040 The first line says, I can't unsee what I've just seen.

00:09:03.280 And of course that was inspired by, you know, what took over social media, like, and I wished

00:09:09.460 I could have protected my kids from seeing what we saw.

00:09:12.360 You know what I mean?

00:09:13.020 And just going like, Lord, where are you?

00:09:14.820 Okay.

00:09:15.120 I got to remember, even though I, I'm wondering where he is, I have to believe in the promises

00:09:19.180 of scripture.

00:09:19.740 And I sent that to you because you've been such an incredible voice of truth in the midst

00:09:24.640 of this chaotic world.

00:09:25.760 And, and you've been bold and courageous.

00:09:28.140 And I felt a stirring in my life in the last couple of years, even though I've spent half

00:09:32.080 of my life singing about Jesus.

00:09:33.500 Like, I feel like I'm feeling a stirring like never before to be bold and realize that standing

00:09:40.040 up for Jesus and for truth is going to come at a cost sometimes.

00:09:43.780 So what does that look like?

00:09:44.820 So I just wanted to share that song with you.

00:09:47.060 And then you shared it with, I think, Andrew and Andrew.

00:09:50.120 Yeah.

00:09:50.680 Well, just that first line.

00:09:52.320 I mean, it just punched me right in the gut because you sent it to me in that crazy weekend

00:09:56.220 that we were just talking about everything was happening.

00:09:58.720 I think maybe even right before the memorial and that first line, everyone that watched

00:10:04.860 the same thing could relate to that.

00:10:06.560 And in that moment, we all knew, yeah, that's what you're talking about.

00:10:10.720 And for a lot of us, like it just ends right there.

00:10:13.120 I can't unsee what I just saw and I don't know what to do with that.

00:10:17.660 Right.

00:10:17.900 And the wrestling that you just described is very relatable that you felt angry.

00:10:23.200 And, you know, scripture tells us, don't let the sun go down on your anger.

00:10:26.780 In your anger, don't sin.

00:10:28.660 And so you did something with that anger and you allowed the Lord to redeem it.

00:10:33.380 Well, I feel like one of my jobs as a songwriter is to look at seemingly hopeless situations

00:10:41.460 and dare to believe that there can still be some hope extracted from that.

00:10:46.140 And then there's something about music.

00:10:49.160 I've seen God work through three-minute songs, one three-minute song at a time.

00:10:53.540 I've talked with your mom about songwriting.

00:10:55.140 She knows that.

00:10:55.960 But like the hope that can be conveyed through a three-minute song, it's not about the song

00:11:01.520 itself.

00:11:01.920 It's about God at work in it.

00:11:03.420 And I've gotten to see that over and over again.

00:11:05.560 So I do feel like that's like one of my jobs in life.

00:11:08.540 One of my callings is to like find the hope in hopeless situations and sing about it and try

00:11:14.920 to tell anybody who will listen that there is still hope that God is still real, that

00:11:19.280 He's still on the throne, and that even in these ugly situations in our world, we have

00:11:24.380 a beautiful God who is still at work and He can redeem it all.

00:11:27.860 You know, one of the lines in the song says, another light put out by dark.

00:11:31.180 Yeah.

00:11:31.440 And like, that's how I felt like, of going like, Charlie, what a bright light, like speaking

00:11:37.220 truth and doing it in a respectful way and showing us what healthy discourse can look

00:11:42.720 like when you're talking to people who don't look like you or don't agree with you, but

00:11:46.680 yet He was giving them a platform and evil hates what Charlie was about and tried to take

00:11:53.520 out his light.

00:11:54.200 And what happened?

00:11:55.220 The light just got brighter.

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00:13:16.040 Okay.

00:13:16.560 You also, another opportunity that you got was to sing at the White House recently for

00:13:21.980 their Christmas celebration.

00:13:23.260 Okay.

00:13:23.400 Tell me about getting that phone call or hearing, hey, you're going to go to the White House

00:13:27.480 and sing about Jesus.

00:13:28.620 Well, so have you been to the White House?

00:13:30.800 I haven't.

00:13:31.700 Are you kidding?

00:13:32.260 You went to the White House before me.

00:13:34.060 Oh my gosh.

00:13:34.800 That's wrong.

00:13:35.580 First of all.

00:13:36.300 No, no.

00:13:36.800 I'm excited for you.

00:13:38.200 No, I'm happy for you.

00:13:39.660 I was asked to host the annual White House Christmas tree lighting, but I have to tell

00:13:43.940 you a funny story though.

00:13:44.880 Okay.

00:13:45.080 Tell me.

00:13:45.400 So I jumped at the chance, of course.

00:13:48.080 But they had a reception that afternoon at the White House before the Christmas tree

00:13:52.760 lighting, and we were going to take a picture with the President and the First Lady.

00:13:56.280 So I brought my wife and my daughters, and we go through all the Secret Service.

00:13:59.800 We're all dressed up.

00:14:01.020 We go into the White House.

00:14:02.220 There's an orchestra playing.

00:14:03.940 They had this incredible buffet of the best-looking food I've ever seen, right?

00:14:09.460 And so a little bit about me.

00:14:11.760 When I see a buffet, I'm like, I'm going to town on this, especially this White House

00:14:16.140 food has got to be the best, right?

00:14:17.160 Yes.

00:14:17.640 So they had this big bowls of shrimp cocktail.

00:14:19.780 This is not why you asked this question.

00:14:21.700 No, I want to hear all the details, please.

00:14:23.860 I'm like, I'm going to eat this buffet, this amazing White House food.

00:14:26.840 Yeah.

00:14:27.120 But we had a picture with the President.

00:14:28.920 I thought, I'm going to show restraint.

00:14:30.920 I'm going to skip the buffet until after we take a picture because I don't want to spill

00:14:34.460 anything.

00:14:34.740 Well, definitely the shrimp cocktail.

00:14:35.500 Right.

00:14:36.360 Can't camouflage that.

00:14:37.340 So we go in, we take the picture, and we get to spend a few moments with the President

00:14:41.300 and the First Lady, which was incredible. 1.00

00:14:42.840 Yeah.

00:14:43.100 And then right after, I go, it's buffet time.

00:14:45.920 Yeah.

00:14:46.420 But before I realized it, Secret Service handed me my coat, and I was standing outside the

00:14:51.760 White House looking in.

00:14:52.740 They're like, you got to go get hair and makeup on for the White House.

00:14:55.880 And all I could think about for two days after was, I never got the shrimp cocktail.

00:15:00.340 So there's a lesson in that, that life is short.

00:15:02.640 And when you get a chance to eat the White House shrimp cocktail, just do it.

00:15:06.080 You just got to do it, even if you spill a little bit.

00:15:09.480 It's okay.

00:15:10.240 Okay.

00:15:10.560 So tell me what it was like to meet the President.

00:15:13.300 Yeah.

00:15:13.580 What was that experience like?

00:15:14.620 And then I'll ask about actually doing the performance.

00:15:16.900 Well, first of all, it was incredible.

00:15:18.840 Yeah.

00:15:19.220 He and the First Lady were so kind.

00:15:21.220 I don't know how they fit everything they fit into.

00:15:24.500 It's a mystery to me because they were saying hello to all of the artists that were performing

00:15:30.060 and probably 200 people that day.

00:15:31.740 And then, so we got to spend a few moments talking and, you know, in those moments, you're

00:15:36.460 like, what am I going to say?

00:15:37.920 Right.

00:15:38.200 And the one thing I could think to say was just to say, hey, we pray, I want you, I didn't

00:15:42.360 say, hey, but I said, Mr. President, I want you to know that the West family prays for

00:15:47.260 you and we continue to lift you and your leadership up.

00:15:50.360 And so that was, if you had one minute, that's what I wanted to say.

00:15:53.660 And it was just an incredible honor.

00:15:55.120 And then that evening we're, you know, I get to host the Christmas tree lighting and they

00:16:00.300 told me, they said, okay, read what's on the teleprompter.

00:16:02.520 And it was me who was going to be introducing the president and the first lady on stage.

00:16:07.260 And then they said, after that, you're going to go stand next to him.

00:16:09.860 I was like, what?

00:16:11.140 And I'm behind that bulletproof glass.

00:16:13.780 And we did the countdown and said, let's light this big, beautiful tree.

00:16:17.680 Yeah.

00:16:17.920 But it was just an incredible experience.

00:16:19.860 And the coolest part was that there were no rules about what you could speak about or,

00:16:27.020 you know, in terms of like, oh, let's make this more of a holiday celebration.

00:16:30.900 No, this was like the message of Christmas and the greatest gift and the greatest story

00:16:36.260 ever told about the birth of Jesus.

00:16:38.240 It rang out loud and clear that night.

00:16:40.600 And in fact, they asked me to sing the song that I wrote for Charlie that night, which wasn't

00:16:44.840 even a Christmas song.

00:16:46.080 So it was a really, it was just a real honor.

00:16:48.920 I'll tell you, I was surprised, Allie Beth, and you probably wouldn't be surprised by this,

00:16:52.360 but I posted, you know, a picture of my family with the president and the first lady.

00:16:56.760 And like, boy, I lost so many followers on social media.

00:17:00.980 Just people upset that I would even accept that invitation.

00:17:04.500 And, uh, and to that, I just, you know, I shake my head and I go, it was an honor to

00:17:09.140 be there.

00:17:09.660 And, uh, it was just an incredible thing to ring in the Christmas season in our nation's

00:17:14.140 capital.

00:17:14.780 You know, I was about to ask about that with speaking out after Charlie and then performing

00:17:20.180 at the White House, I see both of those things as nonpartisan because in both of those circumstances,

00:17:25.660 you just did what you always do, which is share the gospel through song.

00:17:29.000 And you described that so beautifully, bringing people hope in a really dark place through

00:17:33.020 the gift that God has given you.

00:17:35.080 Some of the pushback that you got, what, what was it like?

00:17:39.320 What was the criticism and what was your response to that?

00:17:42.560 Well, much of it is just a hatred for one man, right?

00:17:45.840 Like there's a, there's a, that's a very real thing that they can't see past their hatred

00:17:50.880 for our current president.

00:17:52.580 So that like, if you, there's just no objectivity.

00:17:56.240 And so you see that for what it is.

00:17:58.260 And it's like, to that, I would say like, I would have accepted the invitation to visit

00:18:03.460 the White House, regardless who was in office.

00:18:06.500 And to be honest, for me as a singer and a, I've never felt like that I'm just a singer.

00:18:11.800 Like I'm, I feel like I have a calling to be a light in a dark world and share the message

00:18:16.600 of the hope of Jesus, wherever I get the opportunity.

00:18:20.000 I want to go into the darkness and be a bright light wherever I go.

00:18:24.120 And so I accept those opportunities and I want to go and speak truth and speak hope.

00:18:29.800 And, you know, not long after that, I was invited back to the Pentagon to do a Christmas

00:18:35.400 concert with secretary, with a secretary of war, Pete Hegseth.

00:18:40.960 And, um, and I gladly accepted that invitation because how incredible is that?

00:18:46.440 And again, more hatred, more anger.

00:18:49.220 Uh, they're upset that I would, uh, support war and violence and because they don't like

00:18:55.180 the name change of, uh, the department of war, right.

00:18:59.040 And not understanding that that historically was what it was called.

00:19:02.400 So I, I think it's just a lot of it.

00:19:04.500 It, it's just anger and hatred towards one man and one party.

00:19:09.980 And to that, I've just have been like, you know what?

00:19:12.840 I, I support our president and I am praying for our leadership and I'm going to continue

00:19:20.600 to sing about Jesus everywhere I go.

00:19:22.360 And I, I've learned that there's going to come criticism, but I do think even in Christian

00:19:26.840 music, it's like this, almost this fear of like speaking up for what is right and good

00:19:32.200 and true because you're going to get criticized or you're going to lose followers or there,

00:19:36.220 a lot of it's like, stay out of politics, just sing your songs.

00:19:39.380 It's like, I don't know that that's what I'm called to do either.

00:19:43.220 Like I want to speak out about what I believe is truth.

00:19:47.080 And I want to be a bright light in a dark world.

00:19:49.520 I'm not perfect.

00:19:50.340 I'm far from it.

00:19:51.680 But there is that you sense like, I'll have a wrestling match sometimes.

00:19:55.040 Cause like, well, if I post this, I'm going to get hammered.

00:19:57.760 I'm going to lose followers.

00:19:58.760 And it's like, you know what?

00:20:00.560 I got a song called unashamed that I'm singing every single night.

00:20:03.300 And it's my personal anthem of going, I'm not going to be afraid because standing up for

00:20:07.840 Jesus, the Bible never said it wasn't going to come at a cost.

00:20:10.920 So, so be it.

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00:21:25.640 You're also not a stranger to some online outrage campaigns.

00:21:35.540 That's what we talked about a few years ago.

00:21:37.200 That's right.

00:21:37.560 You wrote that really sweet, lighthearted song about raising daughters to understand modesty

00:21:42.640 and just dignity of the self that God calls us to.

00:21:46.340 And you had a bunch of people, I don't even know, calling you a fundamentalist, trying to

00:21:49.560 control your daughters, all of that stuff. 0.87

00:21:51.200 A cult.

00:21:51.540 Which was crazy.

00:21:53.820 And we talked about it at the time.

00:21:55.300 That was how many years ago?

00:21:56.380 Four or five, maybe?

00:21:57.740 Yeah.

00:21:58.040 I mean, I've tried to block it out of my memory, but it's like PTSD.

00:22:01.260 Yeah.

00:22:01.500 Yeah.

00:22:01.760 But you came on my podcast.

00:22:04.320 Yes.

00:22:04.760 And you were so helpful in that.

00:22:06.720 Because to be able to turn to voices like yours that you're unafraid.

00:22:12.740 And I need examples of that.

00:22:14.960 We all do.

00:22:15.680 As followers of Christ, we need to see people who are showing us what it looks like to,

00:22:20.840 one, to educate ourselves too, right? 1.00

00:22:22.660 It's one thing to be loud and bold, but if you're stupid, it's not good either. 1.00

00:22:28.280 That's not a good representation of the gospel either. 0.99

00:22:30.500 So to educate myself and just even having a desire to better understand everything that's

00:22:35.660 going on.

00:22:36.420 Yeah.

00:22:36.580 But yeah, that was a few years ago.

00:22:39.260 Just here's a dad making up a goofy song, trying to convince his daughters, you know.

00:22:44.400 But it was the message, the heart of the song was, you are who God says you are.

00:22:49.740 You don't have to flaunt yourself to win the approval of a guy, right?

00:22:55.340 Yeah.

00:22:55.500 And who would have thought that was a controversial message?

00:22:58.080 And, you know, people came out of the woodwork to attack me and just talk about, you know,

00:23:05.040 how they thought I was a man trying to tell women what to do with their bodies, which is

00:23:09.100 like, as a father of daughters who, you know, I love my daughters so much.

00:23:13.200 I just want to always remind them that they're made in the image of God and that they don't 0.89

00:23:17.020 have to dress a certain way to, it was like, it was the craziest.

00:23:21.260 I think there was a line that said, you know, it was something about Cardi B.

00:23:24.400 And, you know, people were all up in arms about that.

00:23:28.700 Because you're criticizing.

00:23:29.760 Yeah, it's crazy.

00:23:30.840 But it sounds like now, a few years later, you're even more resolved as you stand against

00:23:36.560 the online outrage.

00:23:37.820 What would you say you've learned in the past few years of now seeing the, you know, various

00:23:42.700 waves of people mad at you about different things?

00:23:46.900 I feel like I'm still learning so much.

00:23:49.060 I think, you know, what's interesting is when that, when I released, it was a song called

00:23:52.340 Modest is Hottest.

00:23:53.180 And it was, you know, I think I just naively didn't expect any pushback from that.

00:23:59.500 But then my response to it was I freaked out.

00:24:02.480 And I was like, and I took the song down.

00:24:05.280 Yeah.

00:24:05.820 And then I like, I realized that then when I took the song down, Christians got mad at

00:24:11.240 me because they thought I was being a coward.

00:24:13.540 Now, my decision to take that song down was because people started coming after my then

00:24:18.960 young children.

00:24:19.960 And it was I had reasons for doing that.

00:24:23.180 But I think looking back on that now, like it was like 48 hours and the world moved on

00:24:28.100 to the next outrage.

00:24:29.520 That's what I started to realize was like, OK, this is like it feels so coordinated.

00:24:35.580 And so I've just kind of learned like this too shall pass.

00:24:39.520 Yeah.

00:24:39.780 And that I'm going to continue to stand up for what is right.

00:24:44.000 But this is not the first.

00:24:45.060 I mean, I wrote a song for a movie that exposed Planned Parenthood.

00:24:48.940 I wrote a song called Unplanned.

00:24:51.140 And yes, I mean, that was like my first brush with like and I realized when they gave me the

00:24:55.840 script to that movie and said, would you write a song about this?

00:24:58.040 First of all, I was like, absolutely.

00:24:59.420 I'm going to write about that because I believe in the sanctity of life and I believe that

00:25:03.200 every life matters.

00:25:03.940 But I also knew that there's a whole lot of people who vehemently will come at me.

00:25:09.700 And so I think I'm learning.

00:25:11.540 I think maybe you've experienced this.

00:25:13.480 You can tell me your experience, too.

00:25:14.860 The more brushes you have with opposition and people coming at you or haters, as my kids

00:25:21.580 would say, I don't know.

00:25:23.740 I think it builds a little bit of a tougher skin while also wanting to have a heart of

00:25:29.760 compassion for people, too.

00:25:31.860 Totally.

00:25:32.480 Yeah.

00:25:32.720 I think the more you experience it, the more you realize that it's going to be OK.

00:25:38.060 That lesson that you learned is so important to highlight that people move on.

00:25:43.220 They're moving on to the next thing.

00:25:45.260 In the moment, it feels like, oh, my gosh, this is going to last forever and everyone's

00:25:49.040 going to be mad at me.

00:25:49.920 And you start feeling that tug inside.

00:25:52.120 And I'm not saying you should never listen to criticism or you should never ask yourself,

00:25:56.820 oh, are they right?

00:25:57.880 And should I kind of reassess my position?

00:25:59.560 That may be a healthy thing to do.

00:26:01.480 Yes.

00:26:01.820 When the person is wise and biblical and coming from that place, it might be good to assess

00:26:07.160 critiques.

00:26:08.160 But when it's people who hate you, who hate Christianity, they're telling you,

00:26:13.220 you're wrong, you probably don't really need to reassess.

00:26:17.380 You just need to stand firm.

00:26:19.180 And it is hard.

00:26:20.300 Like, it is hard.

00:26:21.120 I mean, I get a ton of unfair criticism for things.

00:26:24.860 Some of it, of course, is completely fair because none of us is perfect.

00:26:28.720 And it, you know, it never feels good.

00:26:31.040 I think that's part of being human.

00:26:32.880 Yeah.

00:26:33.140 It's tough to not let the comments and social media posts get to you.

00:26:37.140 But to realize, like, and I think I'm learning, too, of just going, I don't want to be above

00:26:43.360 reproach.

00:26:44.300 Like, I always want to be teachable and coachable.

00:26:46.420 But like you said, like, at the end of the day, like, my relationship with the Lord is

00:26:50.900 the driving, my faith is the driving force of my life.

00:26:54.120 Let it guide everything that I do.

00:26:55.780 And I'm not always going to be perfect, but help me, like, somehow be bold in my faith

00:27:00.720 and also in a loving way.

00:27:02.400 Like, I'm not going to pick a fight.

00:27:04.920 That's not my mission in life.

00:27:06.920 And my mission is to tell people about Jesus with my music and stand up for what I believe

00:27:12.540 is right.

00:27:13.120 And at the end of the day, I want to hear the Lord say, well done.

00:27:16.320 Totally.

00:27:16.440 But I know that it's not going to, I know now that it's not going to come without criticism

00:27:20.620 or opposition.

00:27:21.420 And I can't let social media, if I lose followers, so be it.

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00:28:29.960 Okay, tell me about this song, Unashamed, because it seems like you are kind of in a

00:28:39.680 moment right now where you're like, okay, I'm going to double down on whatever boldness

00:28:43.000 I had.

00:28:43.880 I want to be even bolder now.

00:28:45.640 So tell me about the song, why you wrote it, what it means.

00:28:48.260 Yeah, I think it's been a collective like of these experiences that we just talked about,

00:28:53.220 which is funny because even before sitting down with you, I hadn't really thought much

00:28:56.580 lately about that modestest, hottest moment or some of these moments where I have kind

00:29:00.460 of faced criticism.

00:29:01.480 And most recently, just even a post of a picture with my family and the president and the first

00:29:06.300 lady.

00:29:06.580 It's like, I think that song has come out of like just this series of events over the

00:29:12.060 last few years where I'm like, okay, have I kind of been living?

00:29:16.760 It's like I'm a Christian singer and a lot of my concerts are in churches in front of Christian

00:29:21.520 audiences and things like that.

00:29:22.760 It's almost like I spent so long in this almost like a little bit of a bubble.

00:29:28.580 And I'm like, well, what does it look like for me to like become more emboldened in my

00:29:33.720 faith?

00:29:33.940 And people have looked at me like, that's weird.

00:29:35.340 Like you spent half your life.

00:29:36.540 I'm a preacher's kid.

00:29:37.440 I grew up in church.

00:29:38.520 But I think there's a time in your life where the longer you've been a Christian, you can

00:29:43.200 like start to wade into what the Bible warns about lukewarm waters.

00:29:47.540 And I've written a lot of songs about that.

00:29:50.360 And because they're like, my songwriting is a way of like jolting me, of waking me up.

00:29:55.800 There was one of my songs that was on the radio years ago said, I don't want to go through

00:29:58.940 the motions, right?

00:29:59.940 There's another song that said, I'm going all in like these, these sort of anthems that

00:30:05.000 I needed to be singing because I needed to be hearing them.

00:30:08.440 Another song, this is, I want to know, I got no what ifs, right?

00:30:11.960 It's like, you can hear that common refrain in a lot of my songs, like, what does it look

00:30:16.080 like to like, make sure that I'm running my race with perseverance, right?

00:30:21.280 And so unashamed, I feel like is just kind of hitting the nail on the head with what I've

00:30:26.640 gone through in my life and going like, what does it look like to really have a desire for

00:30:31.520 lost people to come to know Jesus?

00:30:33.860 Like, am I, am I singing a song just because I want to have a successful career?

00:30:38.620 Or am I getting on stage tonight in the hopes that literally that heaven will become more

00:30:43.300 crowded as a result, right?

00:30:45.120 And so I want that.

00:30:46.320 I want my kids to see that in me.

00:30:48.240 And I'll tell you, my oldest daughter, like she's showing me what it looks like.

00:30:53.860 Like she went and did a six month missions trip, just left college and said, I feel like

00:30:58.780 God's calling me to go do something and went on this missions trip.

00:31:02.740 And, and she's not on stage in an arena.

00:31:05.300 She's not selling merch.

00:31:06.360 She was literally just telling people about Jesus one person at a time.

00:31:10.360 And that like, that hits me.

00:31:13.220 Like when my kids start showing me what it looks like to be unashamed of the gospel and

00:31:18.240 just have a desire, like I'm going to do this because I literally have a heart for somebody

00:31:23.100 who doesn't know Jesus to come to know Jesus.

00:31:25.540 Like that's what I want my, my why to be.

00:31:28.600 That's what I want my mission to be.

00:31:29.840 And I get off track all the time, like everybody else does.

00:31:32.260 But that song unashamed was like, okay, what happened when Daniel obeyed God?

00:31:37.500 Like when they told him not to pray, he went up, the Bible says he went upstairs where the

00:31:42.060 windows were open towards Jerusalem.

00:31:43.960 Right.

00:31:44.420 In other words, he was like, listen to this.

00:31:46.660 Like he did it even.

00:31:47.760 He could have prayed silently.

00:31:48.900 Exactly.

00:31:49.460 He did it even more boldly.

00:31:50.820 But I love these stories in scripture.

00:31:53.060 When someone like that stood up, what happened?

00:31:55.740 The mouth of the lion was shut.

00:31:57.500 Like God showed up in that moment.

00:31:59.700 And, uh, and so I, I, I love those reminders.

00:32:02.160 I need those reminders.

00:32:03.380 And therefore I think that's why God has me write those songs because when I'm on stage,

00:32:08.020 a lot of times I'm singing songs like unashamed and I'm like, this song is not for the audience

00:32:11.800 as much as it is for me tonight.

00:32:13.520 It ministers to you too.

00:32:15.000 Um, I love this lyric talking about just staying on track to me.

00:32:20.020 Like when I read this, this is the reminder that I need.

00:32:22.600 I'm not going to sing it for anyone.

00:32:24.600 Um, I don't answer to the crowd.

00:32:26.200 I answer to a King.

00:32:27.120 So the louder they shout, the louder I sing.

00:32:30.140 I mean, that's exactly what you're talking about.

00:32:32.780 Remembering every single day, sometimes every single moment, depending on what the day is.

00:32:37.540 Do I answer to this person?

00:32:39.120 Do I answer to the person in my messages?

00:32:41.160 Do I answer to the person on X?

00:32:42.460 Do I answer even in some cases to your boss?

00:32:45.260 Ultimately, you answer to the authority that is bigger than all of this.

00:32:50.480 That's right.

00:32:51.000 And that's really what changes your mentality about criticism, I would think.

00:32:54.700 Yeah.

00:32:54.940 An audience of one.

00:32:56.260 Yeah.

00:32:56.480 And that is.

00:32:57.080 And I think that line was directly inspired by the experiences I've had over the last few years.

00:33:02.080 And a desire to give somebody else who's listening the words to express, like, their desire.

00:33:09.000 Because I do feel like in the Christian community, it's like, I think people, and like, you know, I'm about to do a concert tonight after we talk.

00:33:17.920 And when I sing that song, it's like it, you can feel it strike a chord with the audience.

00:33:24.200 And I feel like Charlie's death, like, stirred something within me.

00:33:29.260 I know it stirred something within so many other people.

00:33:31.820 But then they don't maybe feel equipped to do that.

00:33:35.220 I think that's one of the reasons why platforms like yours are so important.

00:33:38.000 Because you're helping equip people in how to, what does boldness look like?

00:33:43.060 And I want to be one of those people that can maybe, you know, one of the best compliments when somebody comes up to me is, I feel like your songs have given me the words I didn't know how to communicate.

00:33:52.180 Yeah.

00:33:52.840 And hopefully a song like Unashamed is one that equips a kid out here who's at this concert to realize when they walk into their school Monday morning, they're on a mission.

00:34:04.020 To help a mom who's still praying for her prodigal to realize that God has her in that prodigal's life for a reason and to walk into that with a purpose and a mission, whatever it might be, to be bold in your faith.

00:34:16.980 So that's my hope, is that as the Lord's stirring in me, I'm going to pour that out into the world and hopefully give them an anthem to go, yep, me too.

00:34:25.260 Let's be unashamed.

00:34:26.600 Let's stand strong.

00:34:27.840 And let's show people what it looks like to stand for Jesus.

00:34:31.280 And let it be an attractive thing where people are like, I want that.

00:34:35.180 You're different.

00:34:35.880 You're bold.

00:34:36.360 Everybody else is standing up for something right now.

00:34:38.440 Yeah.

00:34:38.800 Right?

00:34:39.340 So I feel like, why not?

00:34:41.860 Why not me?

00:34:42.980 Why am I not going to stand up for what I believe in?

00:34:46.020 Especially in a time where I think a lot of Christians really do feel afraid.

00:34:50.100 Like they watched what happened in St. Paul to that church.

00:34:52.680 You've got these congregants praying and then you've got these agitators coming in, harassing.

00:34:58.020 You've got the little children crying.

00:34:59.720 Crying in the church.

00:35:01.280 The old lady who fell and she broke her arm.

00:35:04.740 And some Christians look at that and it's tempting to say, do I even want to go in person to church?

00:35:09.820 Or am I just going to now watch online?

00:35:11.940 Because I don't want that to happen to me.

00:35:13.760 Or am I going to be bold about my faith?

00:35:16.440 Because clearly there's a lot of people that hate us.

00:35:20.020 More than they hate people of other faiths, we're the target.

00:35:23.620 Yeah.

00:35:23.840 And it's really, really tempting to say, well, maybe I will just dial it back.

00:35:28.980 I'll still be nice to people and kind of hope maybe they know I'm Christian, but I don't want to say it.

00:35:33.440 And I don't want to show it.

00:35:34.680 And I don't want to gather with the saints because I'm afraid of what's going to happen.

00:35:38.520 And so in a moment like that, hearing someone say, actually, we're still called to be unashamed, just as Christians were 2,000 years ago.

00:35:47.740 So it's a hard message, but man, it is like the message that all of us need to be reminded of.

00:35:53.460 Well, and if you're on like, I mean, you see a lot of pastors wanting to be quiet or maybe like I was watching, you know, as a preacher's kid myself and as somebody who's, you know, I haven't fallen too far from the tree, right?

00:36:06.500 Getting up on stage every night, but watching how pastors were handling it and just the fear of approaching the topic of Charlie Kirk's death and for fear of being political versus like right and wrong.

00:36:20.640 You know what I'm saying?

00:36:21.480 Like, but I thought the way that pastor handled Don Lemon, I always want to say Lamont.

00:36:28.300 I know.

00:36:29.440 Because I think that's what Tucker calls him, Don Lemon.

00:36:31.360 But the way that pastor handled that moment, I thought he handled that really well, didn't you?

00:36:37.680 Graciously, firmly.

00:36:39.260 He said, this is a disgrace.

00:36:40.760 Yes, totally.

00:36:42.080 But I mean, those are real.

00:36:44.020 Listen, it's understandable for people to be afraid.

00:36:47.340 And I mean, I'd like to think I would handle that in the right way.

00:36:51.520 You know what I mean?

00:36:52.840 As I watched that video, I could sense like my own anger rise.

00:36:56.280 I'm like, would I have been a little angrier in that moment?

00:36:59.480 How would I have handled that?

00:37:00.480 But it breaks your heart to see like them walking into people's place of, to a place of worship like that.

00:37:06.340 Yeah.

00:37:06.660 It does feel like it's, you know, push comes to shove in a way where like Christians are really having to consider the fact that, hey, me believing in Jesus is literally offending people.

00:37:18.220 And it's, and it, it might come at a cost.

00:37:21.520 What does that look like?

00:37:22.520 Right.

00:37:22.840 And I pray that pastors will be, will continue to be bold and that Christians can look to their leadership and go, okay, I see what it looks like to stand strong.

00:37:32.740 Yeah.

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00:38:33.580 And obviously, you know, after Charlie was murdered, and I don't have the same platform

00:38:42.720 that Charlie did, he was reaching tens of millions of people every day.

00:38:46.060 But, you know, we did have to take a moment to be like, okay, I do say some of the same

00:38:50.620 things that Charlie does, did, and I believe those same things.

00:38:54.680 And ultimately, I believe that he was killed for preaching the gospel and for saying things

00:38:58.920 that were biblically true, not just politically true.

00:39:01.720 And there's been a couple of things that I'm reminded of.

00:39:04.680 Like when I look to moments like the one you noticed, that pastor, like he was so firm,

00:39:08.720 but he was gracious and gentle.

00:39:09.980 And we wonder, would we do the same thing?

00:39:12.260 I remember there's some quote by C.S. Lewis, and I'm going to butcher it, so I won't even

00:39:15.720 try to do it verbatim.

00:39:16.980 But he says, when you worry about the future, whether it's a future moment where you're met

00:39:20.860 with some kind of confrontation or your faith is tested, when you worry about the future,

00:39:25.480 you are picturing the future without the presence of God in it.

00:39:28.580 Because the presence of God is only ever in the present.

00:39:31.860 He is suspended in the eternal now.

00:39:34.340 And so we might think, oh, what's going to happen in my life if this happens, if I lose

00:39:37.760 that or whatever?

00:39:39.080 But we're imagining it without the grace of God there in that moment.

00:39:43.160 We were talking about that Jubilee debate.

00:39:45.240 I was so worried about that.

00:39:46.760 The grace of God met me.

00:39:48.540 You, I'm sure, were worried about a variety of things in your career.

00:39:52.240 The grace of God met you.

00:39:53.520 So that's helped me.

00:39:55.500 And then also this quote by this 19th century missionary, and he led this tribal remote island

00:40:04.860 to Christ in the 1800s.

00:40:06.960 And he said, I had to realize that I was immortal until God called me home.

00:40:11.260 And I think of that every day, that you are bulletproof until God calls you home.

00:40:16.620 That's awesome.

00:40:17.460 You are invincible until God calls you home.

00:40:19.480 He ordained that day before he created the earth.

00:40:21.980 Yeah.

00:40:22.840 Therefore, go boldly.

00:40:25.020 With confidence.

00:40:25.800 Yeah.

00:40:26.180 And it's also, you know, I mean, Jesus encourages us in the gospels, do not worry about tomorrow.

00:40:31.800 Tomorrow will take care of itself.

00:40:33.260 Each day has enough troubles of its own.

00:40:34.880 So I think about like the encouragement not to worry about the future for the same reasons

00:40:40.400 that you just said, but then also the faith that we find and the confidence that we find

00:40:44.780 when we look over our shoulder.

00:40:46.280 Yeah.

00:40:46.540 And I think about it.

00:40:47.380 It's like, how many times have we said these are unprecedented times?

00:40:51.640 Yeah.

00:40:51.820 You know what I mean?

00:40:52.320 I feel like ever since COVID, if I heard that term one more time, like, but I was saying

00:40:57.040 it's like, these are unprecedented times.

00:40:58.900 These have always been unprecedented times.

00:41:01.060 These have always been troubled times.

00:41:02.420 These have always been difficult times.

00:41:04.200 And there's always been darkness in the world.

00:41:05.920 But even in our own lifetimes, like I can look over my shoulder when I'm fearful of the

00:41:10.580 future and be reminded of how God has shown up for me time and time again with his protection,

00:41:16.080 with his provision, with his strength, with his courage, with the words when I didn't know

00:41:21.500 it to speak.

00:41:22.400 And so let me, and all of it comes down to, again, is a total and complete dependence

00:41:28.500 on a source of strength greater than our own.

00:41:31.020 Yeah.

00:41:31.300 And that at the end of the day is like, even when I'm sitting here talking to you, I'm

00:41:34.000 like, oh, I hope I have the right words to say to Allie Beth today.

00:41:37.180 I hope, you know what I mean?

00:41:38.520 But it's like, I don't.

00:41:40.300 Yeah.

00:41:40.600 I need to rely on God.

00:41:42.340 When I go on stage tonight, like I don't want to rely on my own ability because I'm not

00:41:46.560 going to change anybody's life.

00:41:47.880 But I've seen what God can do.

00:41:49.540 Yeah.

00:41:49.820 And I want to be nothing but a megaphone that sends his word into the world.

00:41:55.000 So I'm thankful for the courage.

00:41:57.080 I'm thankful for this work that he's doing in my life.

00:41:59.640 Yeah.

00:41:59.980 And I don't know how to do it perfectly.

00:42:02.020 None of us do.

00:42:02.820 But I'm thankful for examples like yours.

00:42:04.500 That's one of the reasons I was so excited to chat with you again, because you encouraged our

00:42:09.240 entire family.

00:42:10.200 I was looking at one of your posts today and I was looking at one of your posts on Instagram

00:42:14.140 and I saw liked by Emily West, which is my wife.

00:42:17.480 Oh, I love it.

00:42:18.460 So she's following you too.

00:42:20.260 So we're just grateful for that.

00:42:26.460 Last sponsor for the day is Every Life.

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00:43:13.700 Go to everylife.com.

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00:43:20.440 Okay, I could talk to you for three more hours.

00:43:27.720 You are so easy to talk to, and we have so much to chat about, but you're about to go

00:43:31.800 on stage in just a little bit.

00:43:33.100 I want to get you out on time, but I've got to ask you about your book, which is just

00:43:37.580 released, or no, it's about to release in just a few days, and it's called Don't Stop

00:43:41.960 Praying.

00:43:42.100 Don't Stop Praying.

00:43:42.840 So tell us about it.

00:43:43.660 Yeah, so Don't Stop Praying started as a song, kind of turned into a little bit of a movement

00:43:48.280 to where during the election season, we thought, how cool would it be to go old school?

00:43:53.280 And we started printing these yard signs that just said, it was no political message.

00:43:57.740 It just said, don't stop praying.

00:43:59.660 Thousands of people started putting them in their yards, and people would send me pictures,

00:44:04.140 and there would be just hundreds of them all down the streets in these towns.

00:44:08.340 It's such a cool way for people to share their faith during a highly divisive time, but a

00:44:15.540 lot of times I'll write a song, and then I'll feel like there's more to unpack there, and

00:44:20.160 I want to say more, and that was one of those songs.

00:44:22.920 And to be honest with you, I'm somebody who I started to feel convicted going, I've spent

00:44:27.740 a lot of time talking about Jesus.

00:44:30.220 Have I gotten better at talking about Him than actually talking to Him?

00:44:34.160 And so this book was an exploration of me just kind of going, God, forgive me.

00:44:39.040 I want to go deeper in the most important conversation that I'm going to have today.

00:44:43.120 And no offense to you, but you and I, this isn't our most important conversation.

00:44:47.360 We know that, right?

00:44:48.280 We have to spend time with Jesus.

00:44:49.860 And so I wound up just kind of diving into that.

00:44:52.640 And I got to tell you, the book opens with the experience.

00:44:56.720 I took my daughter to this camp.

00:44:58.260 It was like a bonding daddy-daughter thing.

00:45:01.260 And they would have all these different activities.

00:45:03.360 But one day, they took the dads and the daughters deep into the woods, and we were going to

00:45:08.660 do this exercise.

00:45:09.640 And they blindfolded the daughters. 0.51

00:45:11.620 And then they told the dads, all right, you're going to go and guide your daughter blindfolded

00:45:16.060 through the woods.

00:45:16.760 Oh, my goodness.

00:45:17.600 I'll never forget this, Allie, but it was, they said, now you're going to give your daughter

00:45:21.240 three instructions and repeat them as many times as you can before the walk begins.

00:45:25.960 And the instructions were, I will never leave you, you can ask me anything, and you should

00:45:32.240 only listen for the sound of my voice.

00:45:33.940 And I would make her repeat those back to me.

00:45:36.140 And I said, are we good?

00:45:37.180 She said, I'm good.

00:45:38.240 And then we were instructed to begin our hike through the woods.

00:45:41.560 And it was easy to guide her in the beginning because I could have a hand on her shoulder

00:45:45.220 and we could walk and talk with each other.

00:45:47.040 And I'd say, okay, there's a rock coming up, turn to your right, this kind of thing.

00:45:50.620 And then with a silent signal from a camp counselor, they would tell me I had to remove my hand

00:45:56.020 and I could only guide her with the sound of my voice.

00:45:59.120 And it got a little more challenging to navigate the path.

00:46:02.520 Then with another silent signal from the camp counselor, I could no longer speak unless she

00:46:07.820 remembered the instructions that she could ask me anything.

00:46:11.160 So as you can imagine, we started to get off track in our hike.

00:46:14.940 Well, it's becoming more and more challenging.

00:46:18.480 Counselor comes up as like a voice of deception and my daughter's feeling lost and wondering

00:46:24.440 where I am because she's not hearing my voice and she's not remembering to ask me any questions.

00:46:29.660 Counselor comes up and says, hey, Lulu, it looks like you've gotten separated from your

00:46:33.880 dad in the group.

00:46:35.520 And she said, yeah, I'm not sure where he is.

00:46:37.860 And she said, well, the counselor said, well, how about you follow me and I'll get you caught

00:46:42.240 up with the group.

00:46:43.000 And of course, as a dad, I'm overanalyzing my entire job as a parent, fraying that she

00:46:48.220 says, no, I'm only supposed to follow my dad.

00:46:50.760 And all of a sudden I heard, okay, she follows the camp counselor.

00:46:55.120 Well, what does the counselor do? 0.70

00:46:56.280 Doesn't catch her up with the group.

00:46:57.920 The counselor walks her into a ditch and she doesn't realize it, but she's blindfolded

00:47:02.360 in a ditch standing in front of a tree.

00:47:04.340 And I'm standing there helpless, waiting and hoping that she remembers the instructions.

00:47:09.480 After several minutes, I'm just standing there.

00:47:12.340 The counselor comes over to Lulu and says, hey, Lulu, I don't think you're where you're 0.99

00:47:16.720 supposed to be.

00:47:17.440 Do you?

00:47:17.760 She said, no.

00:47:18.660 The voices had all quieted.

00:47:20.240 The group had gone away.

00:47:21.480 And she said, well, do you remember the instructions that you were given?

00:47:24.920 She's like, I think so.

00:47:26.340 And she thought for a couple of minutes and I'm standing there waiting.

00:47:29.240 And all of a sudden I hear four words, dad, are you there?

00:47:32.720 And I stood there in the woods just crying.

00:47:36.900 And I'm like, yeah, I'm here.

00:47:39.140 And she said, can you help me?

00:47:41.040 I said, yeah.

00:47:42.040 And we got back on track and we walked back and we had this incredible moment.

00:47:46.240 And that was a moment that shaped the writing of this book because I thought about those

00:47:50.860 three instructions and how many times I've forgotten them in my life that he will never

00:47:55.780 leave me.

00:47:56.720 I can ask him anything and I should only listen to the sound of his voice.

00:48:01.280 And so that was the heart of this book of me coming back to those three principles and

00:48:06.300 remembering that I have a God who's always with me, that he loves to hear the sound of

00:48:09.900 his children's voice, and that he is the only source of strength and guidance in my

00:48:15.360 life that I should really trust, right?

00:48:17.240 Not a social media influencer, not anything else that tries to vie for my time or attention.

00:48:23.040 And so I just felt like I needed this book.

00:48:25.840 And a lot of times if it's a song or a book, when I'm writing something, I'm like, I need

00:48:29.400 this.

00:48:29.700 I think there's a chance maybe somebody else does too.

00:48:32.980 Oh, I'm so excited.

00:48:34.020 It comes out February 8th.

00:48:36.240 I don't even know.

00:48:37.700 It's soon.

00:48:39.220 So maybe by the time people watch this, they can go on Amazon.

00:48:42.320 Yeah.

00:48:42.940 Yeah.

00:48:43.180 February 3rd.

00:48:43.900 Yeah.

00:48:44.240 Okay.

00:48:44.900 Really soon.

00:48:45.400 First week of February.

00:48:45.840 Really soon.

00:48:46.300 By the time they listen to this, it will be out.

00:48:48.400 Everyone should get it.

00:48:49.960 Okay.

00:48:50.380 Thank you so much.

00:48:51.360 It's an honor.

00:48:51.780 Thank you so much.

00:48:52.420 Okay.

00:48:52.640 Give us just a last bit of encouragement.

00:48:55.220 There's someone out there and they're like, okay, all of this sounds good, but I'm really down

00:48:58.780 and out.

00:48:59.220 I don't even know if I can hold on to my faith right now.

00:49:02.540 You have 30 seconds to try to pull that person out of the ditch.

00:49:06.560 Can I look at this camera?

00:49:08.140 Go for it.

00:49:08.740 I know some people are just listening too, but hey, I would just want to encourage you

00:49:12.420 that God made you.

00:49:14.440 You were his idea.

00:49:15.760 He knows you and he has plans for you.

00:49:18.180 And the Bible says that you will seek him and find him when you seek him with all of

00:49:22.320 your heart.

00:49:22.760 And another powerful promise in James says that if you draw near to him or if you come

00:49:28.340 close to him, he will come close to you.

00:49:31.220 Not he might, or he might squeeze you into his busy schedule.

00:49:34.520 He leans into you because he loves you that much.

00:49:38.200 He'll give you the strength you need to face whatever is going on in your life.

00:49:42.140 The things that are bigger than you, they are, but they're never bigger than the God

00:49:46.140 who's holding on to you.

00:49:47.120 He's going to give you the strength and the courage to stand up for what is right and

00:49:51.500 good and true.

00:49:52.420 And you can be a bright light in a dark world, just like Charlie was.

00:49:56.840 Amen.

00:49:57.360 Matthew West, thank you so much.

00:49:59.060 Thank you.

00:50:17.120 I got to see Matthew West just a few years ago.

00:50:21.500 And over the years, I have been so grateful for his willingness and for his courage and for

00:50:29.040 his clarity in a culture that is very often chaotic and confused.

00:50:34.500 He ministers to us through songs.

00:50:36.980 He's such an incredible gift.

00:50:38.980 He's a master of his word.

00:50:41.280 And he would like to learn this.

00:50:43.360 Thank you so much for watching me do this and how much you can do that.

00:50:47.580 Here is now.

00:50:49.020 Thank you.

00:50:49.660 Thank you.

00:51:02.220 Thank you.

00:51:02.460 You

Relatable with Allie Beth Stuckey - February 06, 2026

Ep 1299 ｜ Matthew West Isn’t Afraid of the Online Mob. Here’s What Changed Him

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