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00:04:51.000And it was about Jesus being captured by the Roman Guard at the height of the height of the BLM riots.
00:04:56.000And Peter lunges forward and cuts off the guy's ear.
00:04:59.000And Jesus says, if you live by the sword, you'll die by the sword.
00:05:01.000And one of the things that my pastor said was, if we continue to act in the same way that we've acted in the past in terms of white and black relations, then we'll get the same result.
00:05:11.000And so if we could step into this moment with love, there could be a real change.
00:07:13.000And I just remember just thinking in my mind and even leading up to standing in the line, just praying under my breath, just saying, like, God, you know, let this truly be about you.
00:08:35.000And so, and for me, I understood how sensitive the time was.
00:08:42.000Like, you know, I wasn't trying, I was trying my best to go about it humbly and to just speak what I feel and not, you know, not trying to force anything on anybody.
00:08:51.000So I understood my teammates' frustration.
00:08:54.000One, because there were a couple guys that were very involved in the movement, like going to the protests, going to the marches, everything like that.
00:09:00.000And so we had practice the next day after the game and we're headed back to the hotel.
00:09:04.000And I get a text to my phone, players-only meeting when we get back.
00:09:08.000And I'm getting off the bus, and one of my teammates, you know, nudges me, hey, just a heads up, this meeting is about you.
00:10:15.000So in that struggle session, were there any teammates that stood up for you or that you, or was it just kind of one on 15?
00:10:25.000Yeah, no, there were a few in terms of, you know, they knew my character, you know, throughout the year in terms of, you know, they had enough respect to be like, okay, we know that Jonathan isn't in this to be malicious.
00:10:39.000And they knew me to be, you know, Christian on the team.
00:10:42.000And so there were a few guys that were like, you know, this is a little overboard and we should just let him be who he is and we'll be who we are.
00:10:56.000And the faith, your faith is obviously super important to you and instructs every decision that you make.
00:11:01.000And, you know, being in the National Basketball Association, I can imagine it is, I don't want to say difficult, but it's unusual to be a dedicated Christian.
00:11:27.000And for me, I know that I wouldn't be one sitting next to you or, you know, in the position that I am today if it wasn't for the people around me and not just me.
00:11:36.000If it was just me on my own, you know, who are those people?
00:11:41.000My wife, my personal family, my mom, my brothers and sisters, but also my church family as well that continue to pray for me and cover me and work my tables when I come to these different places.
00:11:52.000They're doing a great job, by the way.
00:11:55.000So, I got a lot of great people around me that keep me encouraged and keep me on the right path.
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00:13:39.000What do you have to share to the audience of how you navigate that?
00:13:42.000Because it's almost every single day the flesh or the institution of the NBA is almost at odds with how you know you're supposed to live as a Christian.
00:13:53.000Yeah, I say, I just, you know, trying your best to keep your head down as much as you can.
00:13:59.000You know, I don't necessarily participate in a lot of extracurricular activities in terms of, you know, if we're going to a city or anything like that.
00:14:05.000So I just, I just, you know, try my best to lay low.
00:14:08.000And again, you know, keeping the well, this is important, though, because some people say, but let's just say, take one of our college kids, but I can't coexist on a team if I don't do the extracurricular.
00:14:20.000I know you're being nice, extracurricular activities.
00:16:08.000And again, I've been hit with so many things from injuries, setbacks, things that you're believing God for, and you have these setbacks.
00:16:16.000And it's difficult times when I want to run away and just... continue not to stay on the right path even.
00:16:24.000And again, I got to give all credit to the people around me that hit you over the head and help you to stay right and are strong for you when you're not strong.
00:16:32.000And so it has been a continued battle.
00:16:37.000And as I've continued to, I've been able to see that it gets bigger and bigger and bigger and bigger and on a bigger stage than the next time I turn around.
00:16:45.000And so just trying my best to stay faithful.
00:16:49.000What story or verse in the last year, year and a half has really moved you or popped out to you?
00:17:23.000Like, you know, I've learned so much about, you know, God, not just being a God of the hills, but a God of the valleys as well, and getting to know him in that space.
00:17:42.000And it's probably one of the most difficult.
00:17:44.000I think it would be if some people wish it wasn't there because it basically says that your suffering has meaning.
00:17:50.000And it's a very, very, very, very, it's infinitely challenging.
00:17:54.000So you, you know, we as Christians are always trying to grow and trying to develop in the faith, including bringing other people to the Lord.
00:18:03.000How do you mix evangelism in you and what you do?
00:18:08.000Yeah, in terms of being a basketball player, both your teammates, but also, obviously, you do a beautiful job to the millions of people that follow you.
00:18:15.000I would say on the outside of what's not basketball, it's just, you know, trying my best to use my platform.
00:18:20.000And so the book for me is such an amazing tool.
00:18:25.000One, because, you know, most people see it as this, you know, this courageous moment of standing, but it really is so much more than that.
00:18:31.000It really is a story of God ordering the footsteps of this young man who struggled in so many different ways from anxiety, self-insecurity, and using the people in his life to mold him into a man and a better version.
00:18:46.000And so it speaks to the transformation power of a relationship with Christ.
00:18:50.000And so I, you know, use my platform, use the book, use, you know, speaking engagements and stuff to evangelize.
00:18:55.000And I think when it comes to basketball, it's just trying my best to be a light and loving guys where they're at and letting them know that you're there for them no matter what.
00:19:04.000And when that moment does come of, you know, life getting the better of them, which gets the better of all of us, they'll know who and when to turn.
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00:21:08.000I went to IMG for my fifth year of high school.
00:21:11.000And so, so yeah, so basketball started to get me everything that I thought I wanted, but it came with this anxiety of if I played really well, everybody loved me.
00:21:19.000And if I didn't, I would lose everything that I thought.
00:21:21.000So your purpose was anchored into basketball.
00:21:44.000And so it got to a point where I was having like anxiety attacks and like pass out episodes to where I had to go on some anxiety medication just to practice and play.
00:21:54.000But again, it was unbeknownst to my family, unbeknownst to myself.
00:22:21.000But I talk about my pastor again, like having somebody to speak into my life to teach me about, one, speaking back to the lies of the enemy and the unconditional true love of God.
00:22:31.000So when I talk about playing for the love of people, you know, learning about the love of God that loves us in spite of making a shot, in spite of missing a shot, something that I'm still continuing to learn today.
00:22:43.000But yeah, the learning about the true love of God for, you know, that is for us.
00:22:48.000He knows that the hairs on our head, all the things like that.
00:22:50.000And then transferring my identity from basketball to my identity in Christ has been the agent that has gotten me to where I am.
00:22:59.000It was the agent that allowed me to be bold enough to stand.
00:23:02.000Talk about what you mentioned there, rejecting the lies of the enemy, because I'm sure the enemy comes after you, comes after all of us.
00:23:10.000Like take the, you know, take, you know, standing in the standing in the boat or take COVID even for that matter, just the lies of, you know, you're going to lose your career, or if you do this, you know, this thing is going to happen.
00:23:21.000You're going to get hurt again, all these different things, or you're no good, you're worthless.
00:23:26.000All these different things are things that I had to continue to every day, like speak against, use the word of God to speak against.
00:23:32.000The Bible says that we're more than conquerors, that the righteous are as bold as lions, using things like that to say, you know what, I'm not going to, even though I do have something in front of me that is terrifying, I'm not going to succumb to it.
00:23:44.000And I'm going to choose courage and boldness to stand because my stance is needed.
00:24:04.000You know, we were in church all the time.
00:24:05.000My dad was having us memorize psalms and recite them in church, all that stuff.
00:24:09.000But it was always something that was just kind of in my back pocket.
00:24:11.000And it ebbed and flowed of, oh, you know what?
00:24:13.000I'm going to take this really, really seriously.
00:24:15.000And then once things started to get good, it's like, okay, I'm good now.
00:24:19.000And so, but it wasn't until I actually got to the NBA to where I had a real encounter and moment of saying, you know what, I want Jesus to be Lord and Savior of my life.
00:24:28.000And I understood what that meant again to the leading and the teaching of my pastor.
00:24:35.000So I'm just curious, kind of, as growing up, when did you consciously realize that you were better at basketball than just like a normal person?
00:27:55.000It started with a Zoom call with Dr. Ashley Lucas, and we had an amazing call, and I asked her all the tough questions.
00:28:00.000She has a PhD in chronic disease and sports nutrition.
00:28:04.000Her program is based on years of research and is science-based.
00:28:08.000And secondly, the PhD program starts with nutrition, but it's so much more.
00:28:12.000They know that 90% of permanent change comes from the mind, and they work on eliminating the reason you gained this weight in the first place.
00:30:02.000I lost 30 pounds and it has benefited my life.
00:30:05.000In fact, this last year, the numbers are just amazing.
00:30:07.000If you look at what we've been able to do, it's largely because I lost weight.
00:30:10.000295 days of radio, 1,200 plus hours of radio, 550 plus speeches and interviews, 230 days on the road, and well over 400 people on staff at Turning Point USA and Turning Point Action.
00:30:22.000And I wouldn't have been able to do it if I did not have the energy, the spirit, the mental clarity that I got from my PhD weight loss.
00:30:28.000So check it out right now, myphdweightloss.com.
00:31:14.000And so if somebody has never needed God to be faithful in their lives, when they do go through something, they won't know him to be faithful.
00:32:34.000Unitas is a values-based sports and apparel company that I started.
00:32:39.000And for me, the idea behind it is creating a community and ecosystem for people who don't look like each other but share the same values to be able to come together around, you know, stylist, really cool merch, but again, standing for the values that we all hold to.
00:32:55.000And so, you know, it's not easy to be here.
00:32:59.000And you talked about at the beginning about one, it being an NBA season, but the fact of the matter of who I am, right?
00:33:18.000But I say that because I still feel like it's, I feel like it's necessary for one, for me to be seen.
00:33:24.000One, because I share in the same values as understanding the necessity and value of Christ and traditional values and principles that have made this country what it is and continue to want to see it prosper.
00:33:40.000But I also understand that there are tons of people that look like me who may share the same values, but don't have either someone to look to or feel as comfortable entering the movement.
00:33:52.000And so Unitas for me is a way to say, hey, there's an opportunity for us to all come together no matter what you look like, no matter what your background is.
00:33:59.000Neither slave nor Greek nor Drew, we're all one in Christ Jesus.
00:34:03.000And we can all come together around this brand.
00:34:05.000And even, again, being here today is that same thing of saying, hey, there are people that look like me that if they have the opportunity to see something like this, then they want to be a part as well.
00:34:15.000And kind of bring some people along with me.
00:35:57.000Yeah, I don't know if we're going to be able to solve that because that's just the world at the end of the day.
00:36:05.000But I think we can have a godly obsession for that.
00:36:09.000So, yeah, I'm excited to see where it goes.
00:36:12.000We're working on really like expanding it and growing and working on new stuff now that I'm really excited about.
00:36:18.000But again, just the mindset for me is I want to look back in 10 years and see different people from different backgrounds rallying around values and principles that we all hold to.
00:36:29.000I want to isolate something else you said, which I really love, which you keep on giving generous praise to the people around you.
00:36:36.000Your pastor, a coach who finally started to work with you.
00:36:40.000Politics aside, because I think that's kind of honestly a silly thing to talk about in this regard, which is, wouldn't it be better if we focused more national attention on giving young men mentors?
00:36:52.000Giving, I mean, a coach for you might have changed your life, right?
00:37:53.000I think the answer is for us to be the change we want to see.
00:37:58.000I think more, I think part of the issue is a lot of men see the issue and just sit on it and think that I can't make a difference in this.
00:38:09.000But it is going to take each of us making a decision to say, I'm going to be the difference.
00:38:14.000And one person, one young man seeing you or you becoming a mentor to one person can ultimately change the direction of everything that's happening.
00:38:23.000Are you now enjoying becoming a mentor to rookies in the league?
00:38:26.000Because as much as you are receiving mentorship, are you starting to now be able to become a mentor yourself?
00:40:11.00082 games plus playoffs, preseason practice.
00:40:14.000I mean, you are on your feet, moving, burning thousands of calories, easily 1500 days a year in an official Orlando magic environment, and then probably another 75 informally.
00:40:26.000And then you got to add working on building Unitas.
00:40:30.000Writing a book that's a national bestseller coming to speak to all of us and being a husband, being a father.
00:40:37.000I try my best to figure out how to balance it, but I just kind of take it one day at a time and try my best to attack what's in front of me.
00:40:42.000Yeah, so you say you're not a big sleep guy?
00:41:50.000Any closing thoughts, Jonathan, for our audience?
00:41:52.000Advice for young people, stuff, just to kind of cap it all together.
00:41:57.000I would say just never necessarily advice, but just for everybody.
00:42:02.000It's like, you know, there is this craze about, you know, saving our country, protecting our country, and doing all these things.
00:42:09.000But for me, it's like at the end of the day, it doesn't matter who you vote for, you know, if you're Republican or Democrat, at the end of the day, eternity matters.
00:42:17.000And I think a part of where we can find peace in what's happening and all the craziness that's going on is in the fact that, you know, Christ did overcome the world at the end of the day.
00:42:28.000So if our faith is there, then we're going to be okay regardless of what happens in the next year or the next election or anything that happens.
00:42:36.000Well, Jonathan, I know I speak for so many.
00:42:38.000Your courage these last couple years has been inspiring.
00:42:41.000And you very well could have just done the new coolest thing, but you inspired a lot of people.
00:42:47.000And God blessed you tremendously for that.
00:42:49.000And it really means a lot to me because I do not know what an NBA schedule is like.
00:42:56.000But when I heard you were coming, I was so unbelievably impressed.
00:42:58.000And I said, whatever we have to do to repay you to help to do this because it shows that you really care about this message and you want to get it out.
00:43:08.000We can't wait to see you speak on stage.
00:43:10.000And we're honored that you're here, man.