00:00:57.020We're going to be going to Texas where I was born and raised to plant, Lord willing, a new church and and try to experience more freedom, more protection of our rights and ultimately try to produce more for the Lord Jesus Christ and soil that we think might be a little bit more fertile and might yield a better crop.
00:01:17.860And so Doug's done a lot of work on this. He was actually influential for me personally in a conversation that I got to have with him over breakfast in Moscow earlier this year.
00:01:27.020and he was urging me to go to leave California, and that was before COVID-19 even was on the
00:01:33.320scene. So I assume that his opinion has probably only increased. So without further ado,
00:01:38.700Pastor Doug Wilson, could you tell us just a little bit about yourself,
00:01:41.660introduce yourself, and we'll go ahead and get started.
00:01:45.020Sure. My name is Douglas Wilson. I'm the senior minister at Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho.
00:01:51.400Those of you who know what Idaho looks like, it doesn't look like Iowa. It's not Iowa.
00:01:56.280Idaho has a panhandle up north, and that's where we live.
00:02:01.740We live up in the chimney of Idaho, and I've been the pastor here for 40 years plus, so
00:02:09.980I've been here for a long time, and I write, and I blog, and do other stuff, so that's
00:03:35.220We are dealing with fire in California, just not fire from heaven.
00:03:38.940I might change my mind about some of that at some point.
00:03:42.260But when God sent the angels to Sodom, he wanted Lot and his family, everybody was supposed to get out, down to the last person.
00:03:53.300Or in C.S. Lewis's great book, That Hideous Strength, where everybody who was favored by the Lord got out of Edgstow, you know, every last person.
00:04:07.500Jesus tells us, when you're persecuted in one city, flee to the next.
00:04:11.620but that doesn't mean that absolutely everybody has to, right? There are some times where a
00:04:18.240person should stay and go into harm's way, like the Apostle Paul did when he went to Jerusalem.
00:04:26.060So Agabus was giving, gave him a prophecy that you're going to be arrested, and Paul goes to
00:04:33.000Jerusalem anyway. So the first thing I would say is that this is a decision that every servant of
00:04:41.320the Lord has to make with regard to his own guidance, his own family, his own circumstances,
00:04:48.620his own history, what he believes God is calling him to do. So if God tells everybody to get out
00:04:55.140of Sodom, the person who hangs back is disobeying. But when you're leaving California, you might be
00:05:02.880leaving California in obedience and someone else is remaining in obedience. So I wouldn't turn it
00:05:11.200into, uh, uh, you're disobeying God if you're not coming with me. But I would say as a general
00:05:19.860rule, um, people know how to get in, come in out of the rain. So, um, you, the refugee,
00:05:28.940the refugee columns generally know which way to go. Right. All right. So, uh, just, just for
00:05:36.180example, here in Idaho, if you look up U-Haul rates, what it costs to rent a U-Haul to go from
00:05:47.660Portland to Boise, as compared to Boise to Portland, it's $90 one way and $900 the other way.
00:05:59.620Right. Okay. And that's because U-Haul doesn't want
00:06:02.980trucks driving back empty that's right they don't so they've got to adjust the costs and and and so
00:06:10.420on um but that tells you what direction the traffic flow is you you you mentioned uh 600 000 annually
00:06:18.640and then with your governor doing insane things like right outlawing gasoline-powered automobiles
00:06:26.4802035 yeah by 2035 crazy yeah yeah yeah you say man um are are you trying to chase people out
00:06:36.500yeah because that's what you're doing that's what you're doing uh so um basically what i would say
00:06:44.840is that people are going to make decisions that have to do with their primary responsibilities
00:06:51.300So your primary responsibility is as a would be as a husband and a father. Another primary responsibility would be as a pastor. Those are primary responsibilities. Secondary or tertiary responsibilities would be things like I've got a great job with this company and I like the benefits.
00:07:12.820Right. Well, that's something to take into account. Well, if I move if I move my family, we'd have to start over. And I'm not sure I'm not sure how much of a challenge that would be. I think I can run the risk of staying here. It's only five more years till I retire.
00:07:28.520Those are the sorts of cost-benefit analyses that individuals can undertake, but everybody should undertake that decision-making process, understanding that the blue states are under a heavy governmental mismanagement and a God-hating approach to life.
00:07:53.740So if you remain, you need to remain with your eyes open.
00:07:57.920If you go, you need to go with your eyes open.
00:08:02.960So part of my thinking with this is, you know, we always have, I remember one of your blogs,
00:08:09.220you said, like, it's permissible, it's fine to leave a state like this, provided that you have reasons.
00:08:17.700And so in terms of reasons, one of the reasons for me is, you know, we should always as Christians have a theological framework, some kind of theological conviction should be driving us.
00:08:27.940And so for me, some of the convictions that I've come into because of ministers such as yourself that have really challenged me to think more deeply on certain topics.
00:08:37.480So one thing for me is kind of coming into more of a Kyperian persuasion versus a two kingdom idea.
00:08:45.460And then, um, and then, you know, I'm, I'm probably optimistic all mill, but, but, um,
00:08:51.660a, I, I, I'm, I'm a, I'm a guy who probably be a, give me five years and I'll probably be post
00:08:57.540mill. So just give me a little bit more time, Doug, but I'll probably be there. Um, definitely,
00:09:01.260definitely, uh, think more highly of all the, all the post mill guys is just their position.
00:09:05.480Like, yeah, I want, I want that position. I'm just trying to get there exegetically. But
00:09:08.800that said, um, if you're more Kuyperian, if you're more post mill, optimistic all mill,
00:09:13.840So I guess what I'm getting at is this, when I thought, when I was 23 years old and thought,
00:09:19.520I want to plant a church and go to California, I really wish some people would have stopped me.
00:09:25.680But God was, you know, sovereign as he always is.
00:18:19.300So what do you think about that, though?
00:18:20.700What would you say to a Christian in terms of choosing a place?
00:18:25.520Should Christians prioritize purple over let's flee all the way to red in the sense of like strengthen that which remains and is about to die?
00:18:49.080Correct. So you've got other factors that that that apply to this.
00:18:55.620But if everything else is equal and you feel called to engage, you want to go to the part of the battle where the the consequences of the results of the battle are still up in the air.
00:19:13.820California is lost. South Dakota is not yet being contested.
00:19:19.080Okay. Yep. Houston. Houston is a battle zone. Right. Right. Yep. Austin is lost, but places, Houston, Dallas. Yeah, that's helpful. So that being said, it just kind of sparking a thought. I mean, so all things being equal. So, of course, there are reasons to just to live in any state. And I think family being a big one.
00:19:45.320Um, so, so for me, the biggest thing that you really challenged me with, uh, when we
00:19:49.260had breakfast back in, I think it was February together was just, um, being a four generation
00:19:54.020man, like what biblical masculinity, what does it mean to be a man?
00:19:57.880He takes responsibility for others, uh, provision, protection, those kinds of things.
00:20:02.320And thinking four generations deep, uh, the, the command to obey your father and mother,
00:20:06.660um, maybe temporary, but the command to honor thy father and mother is, um, lifelong.
00:20:11.460And so I'm thinking about my parents, grandma and grandpa now to my children.
00:20:18.600And then a good man, and I strive to be a good man, lays up an inheritance for his children's children.
00:20:24.560So I'm thinking parents, wife, kids, grandkids, four generations deep.
00:20:29.480And it's like, well, the Bible's not about money.
00:20:32.340It's not about, you know, but when you just draw out the practical implications of all the commands that Christ gives to us through his word,
00:20:39.660it's a lot of work being a man I mean you're gonna have to do a lot of work I got to provide for my
00:20:45.080wife I want to care for my aging parents I want to I want to provide for my children and their
00:20:49.460children all these kind of things and so I was just thinking I don't know how to do that in
00:20:52.560California California penalizes hard work and rewards laziness and so it's going to be really
00:20:58.680hard to be the Christian man that I feel like Christ calls me to be all that being said
00:21:03.500And I think the biggest thing for me to let go of that was so hard was just this missionary
00:21:15.960COVID-19 helped and just the Lord providentially, you know, from the time that you and I talked,
00:21:20.660it wasn't that long ago, but, you know, a lot has happened since.
00:21:23.300And so part of me is, okay, retreating back to a place where we'll have deeper wells,
00:21:28.660deeper reserves, and I can actually maybe do more for California than I can as I'm presently
00:21:32.540hear that you said that. That's really helpful for me. I agree with that. But here's my question.
00:21:38.840Do you think there's a way, like the broad way I can ask the question is, what do you think is
00:21:44.020the best strategy for Christians to win California to Christ? And I'll just show my hand here. I feel
00:21:49.160like I think of the prodigal son. I think like one of the worst things that could have happened for
00:21:53.380the prodigal is, because he came to his senses at the end of the bottom of the barrel, the end of
00:21:58.980the rope. And I'm thinking, man, it almost seems like one of the worst things that could have
00:22:02.780happened for the prodigal when right before he starts longing to eat the pods that, you know,
00:22:06.620that were being used to feed the pigs in a far distant land. And it seems like one of the worst
00:22:11.240things that could have happened is a member of his father's household coming and finding him
00:22:15.400and giving him a handout. And so part of me, and maybe this is just too general, too blanket
00:22:21.340statement, maybe not sympathetic enough, but part of me just feels like one of the best things that
00:22:25.940christians could do for california is stop propping it up and like the prodigal son exit
00:22:32.120california and then send our grandchildren back in once it's imploded and take over the land what
00:22:38.060is am i being harsh am i what do you think i think that you're thinking like a general there
00:22:44.280and i think that that's i think that that's reasonable so i would back up to one of the
00:22:49.600first comments i made let's say um let's say you've got friends that don't go with you back to
00:22:56.260texas and they're faith they're faithful christians they're fighting the good fight
00:23:01.020i wouldn't hesitate to get them resources at all because they're not the prodigal son
00:23:07.360that's right that's good right they're they're on a mission and yeah get them send them help
00:23:15.000It's a frontier mission. If you've got acquaintances that use more than half suspect, didn't leave California because like Demas, they were in love with the world.
00:23:26.620Yeah, they're they're still dazzled by the bright lights that I would just let it let it crash.
00:23:32.680Right. Let them get to the point of the prodigal son, because that person is the prodigal son.
00:23:37.960But there might be a faithful Christian who remains, who needs all your prayers and all your support and everything you can muster to send to them.