Relatable with Allie Beth Stuckey - Ep 738 ｜ My Response to 'Christian' Pro-Choice Congresswomen ｜ Guest： Ericka Andersen

00:00:00.000 Democrats oppose yet again a bill that would protect babies who survive abortions as well

00:00:07.700 as a resolution passed in the House condemning the violent attacks on pro-life pregnancy

00:00:14.580 centers.

00:00:15.060 It's not a surprise at this point, but I've got a response to all of that.

00:00:18.480 And then we've got a very encouraging conversation with author Erica Anderson about the church,

00:00:23.820 why the local church is necessary and why the church in particular needs women and why

00:00:29.200 women need the local church. 1.00

00:00:31.260 You'll love that conversation.

00:00:33.340 Thanks so much for joining and happy Thursday.

00:00:46.240 Okay, y'all, you've almost made it through the week.

00:00:49.600 This is like the first week that the year really started.

00:00:52.580 All your resolutions, all your goals, all that stuff.

00:00:57.380 If it really started this week or if it didn't start for you this week, it can always start

00:01:03.060 next week or it can start tomorrow.

00:01:05.840 God's mercies are new every morning like we talked about on Monday.

00:01:09.700 All right, to close this week, we're going to have a very encouraging interview, as I

00:01:14.360 said in the intro at the end of this with Erica Anderson about the importance of going

00:01:19.100 to church.

00:01:19.480 Maybe that's a resolution that you have.

00:01:20.800 Maybe you're like this year is the year that I go back to church, that I start tithing, that

00:01:24.640 I become a member of a local gospel preaching church.

00:01:28.580 We're going to talk about that, how to do that, what that looks like, and why it is so

00:01:33.400 important, especially for you moms out there, to make sure that you are plugged into a local

00:01:37.500 church.

00:01:37.960 But first, I want to talk about this abortion stuff that happened this week on the House

00:01:43.740 floor.

00:01:44.420 There was an abortion bill that was voted on and passed in the House yesterday on Wednesday.

00:01:51.240 It's H.R. 26, the Born Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.

00:01:55.080 This is not the first time that this that this bill has been voted on.

00:02:00.120 We've talked about this several times in the past.

00:02:02.380 There was a Senate bill that was put forth by Ben Sasse.

00:02:05.720 I believe it was maybe 2019 that said the same thing, basically, that doctors have to exercise

00:02:11.840 the same degree of care as would, this is what the bill says, reasonably be provided

00:02:16.540 to any other child born alive at the same gestational age and ensure the child is immediately 0.98

00:02:22.940 admitted to a hospital.

00:02:25.120 Additionally, a health care practitioner or other employee who has knowledge of a failure

00:02:28.440 to comply with the degree of care requirements must immediately report such failure to law

00:02:34.540 enforcement, a health care provider, a practitioner who fails to provide the required degree of

00:02:39.260 care or a health care practitioner or other employee who fails to report such failure is

00:02:43.220 subject to criminal penalties, a fine up to five years in prison or both.

00:02:46.600 An individual who intentionally kills or attempts to kill a child born alive is subject to prosecution

00:02:51.680 for murder.

00:02:52.600 The bill bars the criminal prosecution of a mother of a child born alive under this bill

00:02:57.440 and allows her to bring a civil action against a health care practitioner or other employee

00:03:04.280 for violation.

00:03:04.980 So here we are talking about a child who survives an abortion saying that, hey, this abortionist,

00:03:10.740 these so-called health care providers that are involved in this abortion, if that child

00:03:15.200 survives your attempt to murder him or her, you must provide that child health care.

00:03:21.980 And you might say, well, isn't a bill like this unnecessary?

00:03:24.800 Isn't that already required?

00:03:26.440 No, it's not already required.

00:03:27.960 When I was giving my testimony for the pro-life side on the House floor in 2019, I read story

00:03:35.920 after story of women who went to get an abortion, usually a pretty late term abortion, where the

00:03:42.660 child survived.

00:03:43.720 The child was struggling for breath, was writhing in pain, was wiggling and taking its dying breaths.

00:03:52.380 And the mothers, seeing their child alive, begged the doctors, please save my child, please do

00:03:59.760 something.

00:04:00.260 And they did nothing.

00:04:02.220 Those doctors, those providers did nothing.

00:04:04.480 In some cases, the child was literally put in a waste bucket and thrown away like trash.

00:04:10.360 There was a terrible story of a nurse who used to help abortion.

00:04:15.280 She went into a closet, like a janitor's closet, where there were babies, some as old as 24 weeks

00:04:21.560 old, who had survived abortions and were literally put in there to die.

00:04:28.760 There was a little child that she held in her hands who was aborted because he had Down syndrome

00:04:32.820 and he took his dying, shaking breaths in her arms.

00:04:36.200 These are not exaggerations.

00:04:37.840 These are not fables.

00:04:39.380 These are not tactics for emotional manipulation.

00:04:41.720 This happens every year in this country where babies are born alive.

00:04:46.660 Kermit Gosnell, you don't know who he is.

00:04:49.480 Look him up.

00:04:49.920 Look up Leroy Carhartt.

00:04:52.440 Again, these are not just tales that we pro-lifers tell you to try to guilt you into being pro-life.

00:04:58.800 I'm telling you the reality of abortion.

00:05:00.540 And even when that is not the case, when the baby doesn't survive outside the womb, the

00:05:04.780 only difference between the baby outside of the womb and the baby inside the womb is time

00:05:08.660 and location.

00:05:10.280 There's no difference.

00:05:11.420 And so even if the baby is only alive inside the womb, that baby is still being poisoned

00:05:16.060 or dismembered, brutally, violently murdered in some way.

00:05:20.660 And so Republicans are not even in this bill to restrict an abortion in any way.

00:05:26.700 They are simply saying, hey, if that baby survives and is outside the womb, you got to do something

00:05:33.280 about it to help that child.

00:05:34.460 And Democrats said no.

00:05:36.180 Every Democrat, except for two, said no.

00:05:40.800 Doctors should not be required to provide a living, breathing child outside the womb with help.

00:05:48.480 Remember the Democrat governor of Virginia, Ralph Northam, how he said on a radio show that it

00:05:55.600 should be up to the doctor and the parents, if a baby survives an abortion, what to do with that

00:05:59.840 child, that you make that child comfortable as you decide what to do.

00:06:02.940 That's murder.

00:06:05.400 That's murder.

00:06:07.160 All right.

00:06:07.660 And so if you are supporting the side who is vehemently and totally unabashedly, unapologetically

00:06:14.460 supporting the murder of unborn children and the murder and the negligence toward born children,

00:06:23.140 what are you doing?

00:06:24.880 What are you doing?

00:06:25.780 There's no excuse for that.

00:06:27.660 I'm going to play you a couple clips in just a second of Democrats defending this, calling

00:06:32.200 this an extremist bill.

00:06:34.060 And then I've got some criticism for Republicans as well.

00:06:36.380 Here is Sheila Jackson Lee.

00:06:49.740 Sheila Jackson Lee is a Democrat representative from Houston. 0.98

00:06:53.100 She has represented Houston for a very long time, who I guess is very glad about the disproportionate

00:06:59.400 rate of black babies who are aborted every year.

00:07:03.880 Instead of doing anything to make it easier for these women to keep their children, she 1.00

00:07:08.240 is ensuring that these women have access to the murder of their children. 0.99

00:07:14.420 And here she is defending that when it comes to the debate on this bill.

00:07:18.720 I know that this is a most personal decision and one that families do not want to make.

00:07:24.600 But as a person of faith, I believe it should be that woman, that family, that God, and that

00:07:33.180 doctor.

00:07:34.960 As a person of faith, what faith is it?

00:07:38.860 What faith is it?

00:07:39.980 I'm guessing she believes that she is a Christian.

00:07:41.820 What faith is it in, if it is supposedly Christian faith that informs your view that killing the

00:07:51.440 life of an innocent person, taking the life of an innocent person is a personal choice.

00:07:57.380 Is taking the life of an innocent person outside the womb just a personal choice between those

00:08:02.220 two people and God?

00:08:03.660 No, we think that the law should be involved there.

00:08:05.980 We tend to believe that human beings have human rights, right?

00:08:09.080 I mean, and these rights exist to protect everyone, but in particular, the most vulnerable.

00:08:14.640 And when those rights are infringed upon, most fundamentally, the right to life, we believe that the law

00:08:19.820 should step in and then punish the person who is taking the life of that person.

00:08:24.880 So why does that not apply to human beings who just happen to be inside of the womb?

00:08:28.940 And certainly human beings who are outside of the womb by a few seconds.

00:08:33.860 I promise you that the Christian faith does not defend that. 0.99

00:08:37.720 You are deluding yourself, just like Hakeem Jeffries yesterday was deluding himself.

00:08:42.400 And God will not be mocked.

00:08:45.140 As Galatians 6 says, I promise you that one day there will be vengeance for the blood of the infants

00:08:52.000 that have been murdered by abortion.

00:08:54.260 Do not be on the wrong side of that, Christian.

00:08:57.300 Here is another pro-choice Christian, she says, a Democrat, let's see, from the state of Michigan.

00:09:09.780 Now, pro-choice Christian is an oxymoron.

00:09:13.160 You can be wrong about many things as a Christian.

00:09:15.860 I've been wrong about many things as a Christian.

00:09:18.340 That doesn't necessarily mean that you're not a Christian, but it does mean that you will eventually,

00:09:22.500 if you are a true Christian, be sanctified out of your support for legal abortion. 0.78

00:09:28.280 Hillary Scholten, if she is a true Christian from Michigan, she has not yet reached that point in her sanctification.

00:09:34.960 I pray that she does.

00:09:35.960 But here is her convoluted justification of supporting legal abortion as a Christian.

00:09:41.400 As a pro-choice Christian who chose life, this issue is so personal to me.

00:09:47.220 My faith informs my actions, but it doesn't dictate the policy of an entire nation.

00:09:54.180 And further, when I read the scripture, I turn to passages and I'm guided by passages like Jeremiah 1,

00:10:01.220 verses 5, which states, I knew you before I formed you and I placed you in your mother's womb.

00:10:08.440 Doesn't say the government's womb or the speaker's womb.

00:10:11.780 It says the mother's. 0.74

00:10:13.780 Am I allowed to say, am I allowed to say that she's an idiot?

00:10:18.700 I mean, okay, let me say that that is idiotic.

00:10:21.060 She's probably not an idiot.

00:10:22.420 Like, she's probably actually very smart.

00:10:24.380 But, I mean, I don't know, if I were a so-called pro-choice Christian,

00:10:29.780 I think I would just be avoiding Jeremiah 1, 5 and pretending like it doesn't exist.

00:10:34.560 But she actually uses this verse, which categorically shows that God cares

00:10:39.340 and purposely ordains life inside the womb to then justify the legalization of the dismemberment of that child.

00:10:46.080 Girl, remember, do not be on the wrong side of God who will come in vengeance for the blood of the infants

00:10:57.480 who have been slaughtered in this country and everywhere.

00:11:01.160 It makes me shudder to think of that.

00:11:03.740 I'm so glad that we have a God who is storing up wrath.

00:11:08.580 I am so glad that we have a God who, according to Psalm 37,

00:11:12.980 will do something about the evil and the wickedness of this world.

00:11:16.900 And only by grace through faith can any of us be on the right side.

00:11:20.560 It's not our politics.

00:11:21.740 It's not our ideological stances.

00:11:23.900 It's not our opinions that puts us on the right side.

00:11:25.960 It's only Christ who puts us on the right side.

00:11:29.200 But Christ sanctifies our heart and our mind so that we are in alignment with God's truth.

00:11:34.680 You are either not a Christian or you are not in the point of your sanctification yet 1.00

00:11:40.200 where you have been able to see the truth of the wickedness that you are supporting that has an eternal impact.

00:11:46.760 All right.

00:11:47.440 We don't have very much time.

00:11:48.860 I also wanted to point out this clip by Ayanna Pressley,

00:11:53.560 who is also a Democratic representative,

00:11:55.660 because there was this other bill or resolution that was passed in the House,

00:12:00.280 and it was titled Expressing the Sense of Congress Condemning the Recent Attacks on Pro-Life Facilities Groups and Churches.

00:12:09.320 Is that really what it's called?

00:12:10.460 That's interesting.

00:12:11.600 So the resolution detailed 35 attacks on pro-life facilities groups and churches since May 2, 2022.

00:12:18.940 The Dobbs leak.

00:12:19.720 By the way, who leaked the Dobbs decision?

00:12:22.140 Interesting that we still don't know that.

00:12:24.520 It says, whereas the Biden administration has failed to take action to respond to the radical attacks on pro-life facilities groups and churches

00:12:30.740 or to protect the rights of these organizations,

00:12:32.600 and whereas these attacks on pro-life facilities groups and churches have included vandalism,

00:12:37.180 and so it's asking the Biden administration to do something about that.

00:12:41.040 Interesting that they've done nothing.

00:12:42.460 That's because our DOJ is completely ideological, completely political.

00:12:46.100 The same people who say that they care about fascism apparently have nothing to say about the fascistic methods of our so-called justice department.

00:12:56.840 You guys know how much these pro-life facilities do to actually give women a choice

00:13:01.280 and to provide them the safety and security and the resources to choose life for their children.

00:13:05.880 The most loving and supportive and incredible and God-glorifying places, I think, in this country.

00:13:12.740 And here's what Democrat Ayanna Pressley has to say about them.

00:13:17.340 Let me make it plain.

00:13:18.900 Crisis pregnancy centers are no place to go to for reproductive health care.

00:13:23.220 They are sham clinics that coerce folks seeking to terminate a pregnancy or to access the full range of reproductive health services. 1.00

00:13:31.580 Ayanna, have you ever been in one?

00:13:33.920 Serious question.

00:13:35.580 Have you ever been in a pro-life pregnancy center?

00:13:37.620 Have you ever talked to a woman in crisis who was served by a pro-life pregnancy center?

00:13:42.940 Have you ever talked to someone whose life was saved because their mother walked into a pro-life pregnancy center?

00:13:50.560 Have you ever talked to a woman who was given refuge, who was given a home, a safe place to stay as she was running from domestic violence because of a pro-life pregnancy center?

00:14:00.660 Have you ever talked to a woman who got everything that she needed for her child, formula, parenting classes, clothes, diapers, cribs, strollers from a pro-life pregnancy center?

00:14:13.680 Have you ever talked to a woman who only found hope and good news and love and acceptance for the first time through a pro-life pregnancy center?

00:14:21.840 Has any woman ever gotten hope and resources and protection and parenting classes from a Planned Parenthood? 0.93

00:14:29.820 Tell me.

00:14:31.460 No, of course, Ayanna Pressley is on the side of wickedness and evil. 1.00

00:14:36.280 And so she has exchanged the truth of God for a lie and believes things that are the exact opposite of the truth.

00:14:44.300 And if you out there, if you have not been convinced yet about the evil of abortion and that we all need to be doing something as Christians to fight against it and to serve and help the families who find themselves with surprise pregnancies or find themselves in crisis situations, you go to your pro-life pregnancy center close by.

00:15:01.420 I promise you, I promise you, the work that you say needs to be done is probably already being done in your community by the faithfulness of Christians who are up against lies like the ones that Ayanna Pressley is promulgating.

00:15:19.820 The work is already being done by faithful Christians and it's time for all of us to join in and do something about it.

00:15:26.740 God is moving in spite of the stupidity and the corruption and the wickedness and the bloodlust of people in Congress.

00:15:35.380 Now, the one criticism that I've got of Republicans before we close this segment out in all of this is that I wonder why maybe someone can tell me like maybe I'm missing something.

00:15:45.720 But Republicans had the White House, the House and the Senate was the the why didn't the Born Alive Act pass then?

00:15:55.440 And I genuinely wonder about that.

00:15:59.700 Why, when we were in control of everything, could we not get the votes for that to pass?

00:16:05.280 That seems like something that's important.

00:16:07.800 But even if it is just to make a point about the wickedness and the depravity of where Democrats are and the extremism of where Democrats are when it comes to abortion.

00:16:17.780 I think I think I think that is worth it.

00:16:21.440 Remember, the two sides are not the same.

00:16:23.920 One literally stands for murder.

00:16:26.140 Keep that in mind.

00:16:27.180 All right.

00:16:27.980 We're going to get into a little bit of a lighter conversation, an encouraging conversation with our friend Erica Anderson.

00:16:33.420 Well, Erica, thank you so much for joining Relatable.

00:16:47.320 This feels like it's been a long time coming.

00:16:49.460 Can you tell everyone who may not know who you are and what you do?

00:16:52.820 Sure.

00:16:53.280 My name is Erica Anderson, and I live in Indianapolis, Indiana with my two kids that are four and seven.

00:16:58.840 I'm a freelance writer.

00:16:59.880 I write for World Magazine, just like you do, Allie, and also Christianity Today.

00:17:06.180 And I've written a couple books and one of which we're going to talk about today.

00:17:09.760 Yes.

00:17:10.140 So reason to return why women need the church and the church needs women. 1.00

00:17:16.280 This comes at an interesting time when we seem to see a lot of people, the ex-vangelical kind of group, the deconstructing crowd.

00:17:29.480 And then you've also got the whole, like, leave loud movement over kind of social and racial justice issues.

00:17:37.220 So there are a lot of movements right now kind of saying, you know what, I'm going to leave the church because of how they believe the church has treated women or kind of denigrated certain groups of people.

00:17:47.960 But that's the opposite of what you're calling for.

00:17:49.940 Yeah, absolutely.

00:18:19.920 So I definitely think that leaving church is not the way.

00:18:24.260 And I dig into a lot of data about why that is, some of which you talked about on your show a couple of weeks ago in terms of, like, the generosity factor and the mental health factor.

00:18:34.120 So, yeah.

00:18:35.240 Yeah.

00:18:35.740 So tell us a little bit more about those reasons that you found in your research.

00:18:39.340 I know you just said kind of lack of time and people simply not prioritizing going to church on Sunday mornings.

00:18:46.460 Why is that?

00:18:47.360 It obviously used to be more of a priority in American life, but it's not now.

00:18:50.960 So why the shift?

00:18:51.860 Yeah, I mean, I think what's interesting is one of the most fascinating statistics I found was a Barna statistic that said that the number one way that women want to improve their life, that they want to see movement, is in their faith lives and spiritual lives.

00:19:07.720 And yet, in the same survey, it said that it is actually the last thing that they're prioritizing.

00:19:14.320 And so there's a disconnect between what women say they want and what they're doing to actually get that. 1.00

00:19:19.620 And going to church would be a component of that.

00:19:21.760 But also, I would say that, as you know, church has just become, we are becoming a post-Christian culture. 0.95

00:19:30.280 And so it's no longer an expected thing.

00:19:32.900 It's no longer something that as many people do.

00:19:35.760 It seems irrelevant to some.

00:19:37.480 And so we're seeing the shifts there and some of the outcomes of that part of America affecting the exodus.

00:19:46.440 Yes. And for those who say, OK, well, you know, it's not really my spiritual life that I think needs help.

00:19:53.900 I actually think that I'm good with God because I have kind of a personal connection to him.

00:19:59.100 Why do I need to go to church every Sunday when, you know, God is everywhere?

00:20:04.640 How do you respond to something like that?

00:20:07.660 Well, God is everywhere.

00:20:08.980 And, you know, the classic question is, I don't need church to be a Christian or, you know, I have God.

00:20:14.920 I don't need to go to church to have this relationship with God.

00:20:18.160 And that's true.

00:20:18.900 You don't technically have to go to church to be a Christian.

00:20:22.060 I mean, if you want to get technical about it.

00:20:24.300 But if you're a Christian, hopefully you take the Bible seriously.

00:20:27.540 And what the Bible says is that we shouldn't give up meeting together.

00:20:30.760 We should spur one another on with good deeds.

00:20:33.680 And Jesus says, I will build my church.

00:20:36.640 He doesn't say I will build you individual person, which, of course, we do grow in our own individual lives.

00:20:43.220 But there is a strong emphasis on the church body coming directly from Jesus.

00:20:48.120 And, you know, one of the verses that I was just reading the other day, it says, you know, be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.

00:20:55.680 And so to sort of disassociate or reject this church that Jesus bought with his own blood, I mean, that doesn't seem like a great idea.

00:21:06.840 But at the same time, I understand that sometimes people have been through things.

00:21:10.680 Sometimes people have had bad experiences.

00:21:13.400 And so I want to ask people, can you open your heart and mind to envision another experience of church?

00:21:20.380 Maybe one that's different than the one you've had in the past.

00:21:22.960 I live in the Bible Belt, and a lot of my listeners do, too, which means there are a lot of options for churches.

00:21:29.940 They are not struggling with a lack of opportunity to go to church, but it can be really overwhelming.

00:21:36.840 They know, especially if they listen to the show, they've heard me say a million times,

00:21:40.580 you need to find a church that is preaching God's word, the whole word, unapologetically.

00:21:45.440 But that's not always easy to find.

00:21:48.420 And sometimes you go to a church that makes you feel good or it has good classes or resources or mission trips,

00:21:55.120 but you're not really sure about what's coming from the pulpit.

00:21:58.180 And you don't know really how to weigh all the different aspects of the church to say,

00:22:02.680 OK, this is what's most important or this is important, too.

00:22:06.360 So how do you recommend a woman look for the right local church in her area?

00:22:13.360 What should she be thinking about?

00:22:16.080 Yeah, I mean, I actually created this little free course thing called How to Find a New Church 101.

00:22:21.740 So I go into that.

00:22:23.000 If you buy the book, you can just get that course for free on my website.

00:22:27.040 But some of the things I talk about is, first of all, you just start with the basics.

00:22:30.440 You start on a website.

00:22:32.120 Most churches have their doctrinal statements listed on their website,

00:22:35.160 and you can find a whole lot about what they believe there.

00:22:38.060 And you can immediately cross out some of the options that you may be thinking of.

00:22:42.780 And yes, there are so many churches and places where I live, like Indiana and where you live.

00:22:47.460 And so it's not necessarily easy.

00:22:50.160 But I have seen, like, for example, I found my church, my home church that I've been at for almost seven years,

00:22:55.180 honestly, through just a local mom's Facebook board.

00:22:58.680 And people are always very helpful in providing links.

00:23:03.020 And so I got tons and tons of suggestions.

00:23:05.780 And I was able to look through those.

00:23:07.420 And you can start to filter out the ones that you don't think are going to be aligned with you.

00:23:11.420 And, of course, I think that the number one thing is that you go to a church that preaches directly from the Bible,

00:23:18.580 that your doctrinal statements on that website are lined up,

00:23:22.660 that the church is involved with the community, that they're discipling members.

00:23:26.920 There's a lot of different factors.

00:23:28.660 Some of the things are you need to have this.

00:23:31.420 Some of the things are you want to have this.

00:23:33.620 And sometimes that's a personal give and take, especially if you have kids and you might be looking for a church that has opportunities for them as well.

00:23:42.880 But it takes time.

00:23:43.880 It takes intention.

00:23:44.940 You're not going to just pick one on the map and find it.

00:23:48.560 It's an important decision.

00:23:49.780 And so it's worth taking the time to find the right church family.

00:23:52.420 Yes, and there's no perfect church.

00:23:55.520 And so at some point you do kind of have to say, you know what, maybe I don't like this.

00:24:00.540 I don't know.

00:24:01.260 This is not true for me, but just giving an example, like a kind of not important example,

00:24:05.940 like I don't like this soloist voice who sings every Sunday or I didn't necessarily agree with what my Sunday school teacher said or different aspects like that.

00:24:14.600 Like there is going to be a level of compromise, but there are things on which you don't want to compromise, like the doctrinal statements, like the theology, like the exegesis.

00:24:28.000 Yes, like involvement in community and what they offer for community as well.

00:24:32.260 And so it can be, it can take some time, but I do think it's important to, after a period of trying to figure out prayerfully, wisely, which local church to belong to, to pick one.

00:24:46.140 Because I do think something that we see, especially among young people, my husband and I did this for a period of time too when we moved, is we just kind of dated a bunch of churches.

00:24:54.600 And for a year, we went to church after church, after church, and after every church service, we would have some kind of complaint or some kind of way that the church wasn't perfect.

00:25:04.540 And we finally just had to grow up and say, you know what, there's not going to be a perfect church that is meant for serving me in every way that I think I need to be served.

00:25:12.880 I need to plug into a gospel preaching church and serve others and serve the church, as you said.

00:25:18.960 And so I think that that's also something for people to consider.

00:25:21.920 Even if you're going to a church every Sunday, you need to be plugged into a church and tithing to a church.

00:25:27.480 Yeah.

00:25:27.960 And I would also say, you know, there's this sort of a stereotype or myth out in culture, you know, as we've seen, you know, stuff about church too and all of that out there.

00:25:36.640 Like there's this pervasive myth that, you know, every church has this unhealthy aspect.

00:25:41.020 And the truth is that there are unhealthy churches.

00:25:43.120 There 100% are.

00:25:44.840 And I don't want anyone to go to a church where there is some kind of abuse happening or there's no accountability.

00:25:49.860 But there are far more healthy churches out there that aren't being talked about.

00:25:54.480 Because the thing is that good stories don't get told because they're just good things happening.

00:25:58.500 They're just people there being obedient to God and loving the people that walk through their doors.

00:26:02.760 And that's not a scandal.

00:26:04.240 And so I would say just be wary of some of the things you hear.

00:26:07.600 Like I'm not saying those things aren't true.

00:26:09.000 They certainly have happened.

00:26:10.920 But understand that the news picks up on the negative and not the positive.

00:26:14.780 And there's so much more light than there is darkness when it comes to the church.

00:26:18.880 Yeah, there are so many reasons to be plugged into a local church community, whether it's accountability or encouragement or you never know.

00:26:28.840 Also, this is an aspect of the church that I've certainly seen recently in moments of crisis or acute loneliness or some kind of chaos where you find yourself reaching out for help and for support and for guidance and for wisdom.

00:26:45.640 Like you have a whole pool of godly people to choose from whose job it is as members of your church to help you and to spur you on and to make sure that you're supported and taken care of.

00:26:58.180 I don't know any other kind of community like that except for the local church.

00:27:04.460 Yeah, I kind of look at it.

00:27:06.080 I have this vision in my mind of, you know, the more people that we have surrounding us in our lives, it's almost like this this huge safety net that just gets bigger and bigger.

00:27:13.640 And it becomes this buffer and this encouragement and this comfort within this world, which is hard.

00:27:18.480 Life is hard.

00:27:19.540 And so the more people that we have around us caring about us, encouraging us, especially, you know, in the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit inside the church, like that is only going to be good for us.

00:27:28.920 And then the second part of that that I love about the church is for my kids, because the more, you know, trustworthy, honorable Christian men and women that are surrounding them, the better for them.

00:27:41.000 They're going to grow up surrounded by that, having lots of people they can trust.

00:27:44.440 Kids do better when they have more adults, loving adults around them that they can trust.

00:27:49.560 And so my kids have been a huge motivator in how I think about this.

00:27:54.800 And considering that studies show a lot of people kind of rethink what they're doing with their faith when they have kids, because they are thinking, well, I want my kids to have faith.

00:28:05.160 This is this is the time to be thinking about that, because people do make those decisions really before the age of 14, what they're going to end up believing for the rest of their lives.

00:28:19.560 One obstacle that I know some of my friends have in going to church is that they don't have a supportive husband.

00:28:32.340 Their husband doesn't want to go to church.

00:28:33.900 They do want to send their kids to church.

00:28:35.360 But I mean, trying to get all of their kids dressed by themselves, take them to church, and then you've got the whole issue of like, I'm going to this new church.

00:28:44.460 Do I send them to Sunday school?

00:28:46.280 Is my is my two year old going to sit still with me?

00:28:48.700 There's a lot of that.

00:28:49.820 Like, what encouragement or advice do you have for moms who are kind of doing this alone when it comes to trying to raise their kids in the church in a godly way?

00:29:02.560 Yeah.

00:29:03.220 So, I mean, whether you're talking about a mom whose husband won't go or you're talking about a single mom, which a single single moms are like the highest demographic of women leaving or that don't go.

00:29:12.200 I think there's an encouragement kind of built into my book because I talk about how my entire life, my mom took us to church every week without my dad.

00:29:23.160 You know, I always caveat to say I have a wonderful father, so it's nothing against him, but he just didn't go.

00:29:28.260 And my mom just made it this priority to take us. 0.78

00:29:31.780 And I really believe that so much of the foundation of my life was built on her commitment and decision to do that.

00:29:38.680 I mean, it certainly led me to where I am today to write this book.

00:29:41.940 And looking back, I can just see how that habit, that practice of just going and faithfully being obedient to God by being at church made a huge impact in my life.

00:29:53.380 But on the other side of things, I mean, I think it's thinking of your kids.

00:29:58.620 It's thinking about how important this is for them and what they're going to get out of it.

00:30:03.900 I mean, I think that you should go for yourself as well, but I think thinking about them is an extra motivator.

00:30:09.560 And then lastly, I would just say that God created all of us Christians.

00:30:12.640 We each have a spiritual gift that is meant to serve the church.

00:30:16.340 And as the Bible says, the body is not complete unless we are all there.

00:30:19.980 And so when you aren't in church, your gift is not being used.

00:30:25.580 The body is not complete without you.

00:30:28.280 You are missing out on the beautiful things that God does in the midst of his body.

00:30:33.260 And so there's so much to be missed when you don't go.

00:30:37.360 And I really believe it's that whole priority thing.

00:30:40.200 It's worth making this a priority, especially as women are saying they want to enhance their faith lives. 0.69

00:30:47.380 Yeah.

00:30:47.620 And I just want to encourage those women, too, that God is not impressed by how quiet or still your kids are in church or whether you are early or late or whether your kids keep their shirt tucked in the whole time.

00:31:00.360 He is pleased by your obedience and your faithfulness, like even when it is difficult.

00:31:07.260 And as you were saying, like your kids also benefit from that.

00:31:10.720 My husband got me like a really sweet gift for Christmas.

00:31:13.340 He got me this hymn book.

00:31:15.180 And it's really just a binder with all of these Southern Baptist hymns that I grew up singing and that I sing to my kids at night.

00:31:23.400 And I posted on Instagram that I remember the tunes or the tunes and all of the lyrics to all of these songs.

00:31:32.100 And it's not because I've studied them as an adult, but it's because my mom every night would sing to me from this Baptist hymnal.

00:31:39.700 And I did not realize it at the time when I was growing up that those words were sticking in my heart and mind, that they would come to mind 30 years, you know, 20 years down the line, and that I would then from memory be singing them to my kids.

00:31:56.620 And my mom was doing that because she was raised singing those Southern Baptist hymns, and she was doing that really just kind of out of habit.

00:32:06.140 So something that she probably thought or maybe she just didn't know would make an impact on me would really stick because I probably wasn't sitting still.

00:32:13.760 I probably wasn't paying attention.

00:32:15.100 There were probably nights that I said, I don't want to sing those hymns.

00:32:18.100 That made an impact on me for the rest of my life.

00:32:20.820 It is now being passed down to my kids.

00:32:23.040 And I just want to encourage you moms, especially those who are trying to do this by yourself, you taking your kids to church, you sharing the gospel with your kids, you reading the Bible to your kids,

00:32:33.060 you're singing those hymns to your kids or letting them listen to hymns on Spotify, whatever it is, even if that doesn't seem like it's making a difference right now, because your kids aren't paying attention.

00:32:44.380 And right after you told them about the fruit of the spirit, they slapped their sister or something like that.

00:32:48.580 It is.

00:32:49.280 It is.

00:32:50.060 You never know how God is going to water and grow those seeds that you are faithfully planting now.

00:32:57.320 And the local church can play a huge part in that, right?

00:33:00.680 Yeah, my kids are definitely the most rowdy at our church.

00:33:05.240 It's they're just like known for, oh, it's the Sylvester kids.

00:33:07.980 Well, my last name is Sylvester with my husband, but my author name is Anderson.

00:33:12.000 But anyway, they are just known as like, those are the kids.

00:33:15.540 And I've even I even had my pastor call me one time and he said, hey, I just want to let you know that we love your kids and they are not a disruption.

00:33:23.720 And they make other people feel welcome to bring their kids.

00:33:26.560 And so I am, you know, definitely the kind of person that knows what it feels like when your kids are like making noises and all of that.

00:33:34.080 And then also what you were saying, Allie, it's you know, I've learned this so much of a seven year old and a four year old.

00:33:39.080 And I take time to teach them theology.

00:33:42.120 I take time to talk with them at home.

00:33:43.560 And there is so much fighting that goes on.

00:33:45.620 Sometimes it feels like it's in vain.

00:33:47.620 But the next week, maybe one of them will say something that we talked about.

00:33:51.000 And I'm like, oh, my gosh, you were actually listening.

00:33:53.580 And those things do matter.

00:33:55.340 I interviewed recently the Christian singer.

00:33:58.220 Her name is Ann Wilson, and she has this song called Sunday Sermons.

00:34:01.900 And it's all about how she went to church as a kid and she felt like it didn't matter and she walked away from God.

00:34:07.100 But when she really became a Christian later in life, she looked back at all those Sundays that she went to church and she saw all those seeds that were planted begin to bloom and to grow.

00:34:16.540 And so doing this for your kids is literally the most invaluable thing that you can do.

00:34:21.880 It could have an eternal impact on their lives.

00:34:24.400 And so I just don't think there's anything more important.

00:34:27.480 What can we do as women who are in church to make it easier for the women, especially the single moms, but all kinds of women who have left the church to return?

00:34:40.240 How can we get those obstacles out of the way and just make it more accessible?

00:34:45.300 Yeah, well, you know, the number one way people go to a new church is through a friend inviting them, which sounds so simple.

00:34:53.000 But I think we neglect to do that sometimes because we feel like people will be annoyed, especially in this day and age.

00:34:58.200 We feel like people might be even offended.

00:35:00.340 But I think that's a good thing to keep in mind if that opportunity or the right time arises.

00:35:05.460 I think also when someone does take a step into church or even a church event, another way that a lot of people get to church is through community events that the church sponsors.

00:35:15.360 And so being involved in community events is a really big, big thing to do.

00:35:19.380 But I think just ensuring that when someone walks through that door, that they are seen, that they are heard, that they are followed up with.

00:35:26.500 One of the reasons that we stuck with the church that we did, we had been church dating, like you said.

00:35:31.840 And after we left church the first time we went there, I was like, that was the most friendly church I've ever been to.

00:35:38.240 It takes intention, but I think we have to really see people and be real and be vulnerable.

00:35:44.480 I mean, one of the things that I did last year was I spoke in front of my church about my decision to quit drinking alcohol and how I had a drinking problem.

00:35:54.220 I shared that with the whole church.

00:35:56.040 And because of that, I had people come to me later and say, like, wow, I had no idea.

00:36:00.600 And I think that vulnerability is something that we can have more of so people can realize you can walk in the door with all of your crap and we want you to be here.

00:36:09.160 And we accept you as you are, where you are, and we just want to love you and bring you closer to God.

00:36:15.660 Yeah. And, you know, I'm guilty of just kind of letting people go by the wayside that maybe God intentionally put in my path.

00:36:23.440 Like I'm thinking of women who have come through our Sunday school class.

00:36:27.000 And, of course, everyone's nice to them in the moment, but I never, you know, never really followed up.

00:36:31.940 You kind of get busy, you kind of focus on your own things.

00:36:34.560 And, you know, I look back sometimes with regret and I'm like, oh, that person, you know, doesn't come to our church anymore.

00:36:39.880 And I wonder if we had just tried a little bit harder.

00:36:42.540 And so it's not that we are responsible for every single person who comes to our church, but maybe there's one person.

00:36:49.840 Maybe there's one person that you should text.

00:36:52.360 Maybe there's one person that you should ask to go on a play date or one person that you should follow up with.

00:36:58.340 Because we can all do that.

00:36:59.760 We don't have the capacity to reach out to every single person and to follow up with everyone, but we all have the capacity to help one person.

00:37:07.500 So maybe that's maybe that's a goal that that we can all have in the local church.

00:37:11.240 Is there one person that we saw that was alone or new or stressed that we can follow up with?

00:37:17.100 Yeah, I mean, I think one one thing that has really stood out to me and I need to do a better job of myself is like being a Christian means being inconvenienced.

00:37:26.100 It means you have to have space in your life for the moments that God creates those divine moments.

00:37:31.420 And if we're so busy that we don't even have time to notice them or don't have time to participate in those divine moments, we're missing out on the whole big story.

00:37:39.660 We're missing out on the whole reason we're here.

00:37:41.820 And so I would say make that space in your life to be inconvenienced and it doesn't have to feel like an inconvenience, but just like if you're so busy that you can't reach out to someone, maybe something needs to be eliminated.

00:37:53.080 We have to be thinking intentionally about how we're shaping and forming our lives.

00:37:57.620 My last question is you talk about that the church needs women. 0.99

00:38:14.820 And I know you mentioned a few minutes ago that when any individual is not going to a church, any Christian is not going to a church.

00:38:21.080 The church is missing out on the spiritual gifts that God has purposely given that person.

00:38:28.220 What do women specifically contribute to the church that is so necessary and could be missing if women are not attending? 0.85

00:38:37.200 Yeah, well, I think women, like many times, not in all circumstances, but I do think God has given women certain spiritual gifts, oftentimes that he doesn't give men.

00:38:45.960 And, you know, men, God sees men and women as equal, of course.

00:38:49.880 And so when women are not represented there in his church, it is not complete.

00:38:55.340 And so those unique things that he is putting in them and it could, you know, it's a it's a whole variety of things, whether that, you know, be teaching or whether it be hospitality or whatever that gift is.

00:39:06.940 We need each and every person, including women.

00:39:09.520 And I also think that I'd like to see the perspective of women, just, you know, more input in what the church is doing, not because not not not a conversation about women pastors.

00:39:20.440 I'm not going there in this book by any means, but just to say getting getting more women's perspective on what the church is doing on various programs and all of that, because actually more women than men go to church right now.

00:39:32.840 And so it's just kind of interesting to see those numbers.

00:39:36.740 But I just think there's so much we're missing when people are leaving, when women are leaving specifically, we're missing that component of the church.

00:39:45.020 And I just lost my train of thought.

00:39:47.400 But that's yeah, that's interesting to be interesting also.

00:39:50.300 And maybe someone has written a book specifically on why men don't attend church because, you know, my wheels are turning.

00:39:57.940 There's, I think, a whole host of of reasons for that.

00:40:00.660 But I appreciate you addressing women, women and men are equal in dignity, but different when it comes to the things that we bring to the table.

00:40:08.060 And so the nurturing and the nourishing and the beautifying that women are so innately good at, of course, that contributes to the health and the well-being of the church in a way that it wouldn't if it were only men.

00:40:20.860 And of course, the opposite is true to the the building and the initiating and the conquering and the fighting and all the things that come so innately to men are also necessary for the health of the church.

00:40:31.820 So thank you so much for writing this book.

00:40:34.160 It's called A Reason to Return.

00:40:36.220 You can get it, I'm guessing, wherever books are sold, correct?

00:40:40.420 Yep.

00:40:40.600 Okay, awesome.

00:40:41.940 And then where can they find you if they want to follow you?

00:40:45.060 Yeah, my name is spelled E-R-I-C-K-A-A-N-D-E-R-S-E-N, as you can see on the screen.

00:40:51.080 So you can find me on Instagram, Twitter, EricaAnderson.com, all the things.

00:40:56.620 My name, you should find me if you Google it.

00:40:58.620 And I would love to hear from you and also get you that How to Find a New Church 101 course on my website if you purchase the book.

00:41:05.780 Yeah, and I will include in the description of this episode, I share this link.

00:41:10.160 Now, it's only for Baptist churches, and I know there are a lot of awesome, like, you know, Presbyterians, et cetera, out there listening, too.

00:41:16.080 But founders.org slash church dash search, I will put that in the description of this episode.

00:41:22.840 I actually just had a friend text me yesterday and said that she found her Bible-believing gospel-preaching church through that link,

00:41:31.500 and that it's been so formative and game-changing for her family.

00:41:35.180 And that, of course, is the power of the local church.

00:41:37.720 It can be game-changing for your family.

00:41:39.900 So thank you so much, Erica.

00:41:41.280 I really appreciate you taking the time to join us.

00:41:44.160 Thank you, Allie.

00:41:44.720 Thank you.

Relatable with Allie Beth Stuckey - January 12, 2023

Ep 738 ｜ My Response to 'Christian' Pro-Choice Congresswomen ｜ Guest： Ericka Andersen

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