Culture & Christianity: The Allen Jackson Podcast - Faith, Football & the Fight for Freedom [Featuring Joe Kennedy]

Episode Date: March 28, 2025

In today’s world, where beliefs are often challenged, standing firm in your faith requires courage, resilience, and a deep conviction to do what is right, no matter the cost. Joe Kennedy’s story is an inspiring example of this kind of perseverance. A former high school football coach, Kennedy was placed on administrative leave for praying on the field after games, a practice he started as a personal expression of faith. For nearly a decade, he fought for religious freedom, facing legal battles all the way to the Supreme Court, where the final ruling set a precedent on public expressions of faith.More Information:Supreme Court Case: https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/21-418_i425.pdfKennedy v. Bremerton School District Summary: https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/supreme-court-case-library/kennedy-v-bremerton-school-district__ It’s up to us to bring God’s truth back into our culture. It may feel like an impossible assignment, but there’s much we can do. Join Pastor Allen Jackson as he discusses today’s issues from a biblical perspective. Find thought-provoking insight from Pastor Allen and his guests, equipping you to lead with your faith in your home, your school, your community, and wherever God takes you. Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3JsyO6ysUVGOIV70xAjtcm?si=6805fe488cf64a6d Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/culture-christianity-the-allen-jackson-podcast/id1729435597

What do you do as a Christian? We don't teach Christians what to do when we come into conflict. I was very torn between the two, but as that American, red-blooded fighter, I was like, no, this is the right thing to do. And I'm going to put my flag on this 50-yard line. I'm going to die on this hill. And it did end up costing me everything, but it was the absolute right thing to do. And I set the example for all my players, for all the years that I coached that this is the right thing to do. And even if it costs you everything, you still do it. Welcome to culture and Christianity. We are intent on learning to lead with our faith.

We don't want to sit in church and collect attendance badges or just check the box on being polite. We actually want to learn how to honor God in our lives in the real world beyond the walls of the church. Thus, this podcast and the many new friends I'm making, I'm excited about today. Coach Joe Kennedy, welcome to the podcast. Thank you for ever.

is awesome. What a great place. There may be one person in America that doesn't know your story. So I want to start with like a three-minute summary, but then I want to go back and walk forward to that outcome again. So I'll give the highlights, and if I mess it up, you straighten it out. Yeah, go for it. High school football coach, you had the audacity to pray with the team at the end of the game in a quiet, unassuming way. School board objected to that. You lost your job. the attorneys got involved, went all the way to the Supreme Court, and you got your job back? Or is that the high-level view? High-level view, yeah.

We went to the Supreme Court twice, and we lost seven times over eight years. So it was a long, drawn-out struggle. Okay. So there's movies, and there's a new book called Average Joe that tells that story. Is that right? Yes, sir. You nailed it, yeah. And where can we get this book?

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, anywhere, book is sold. you could absolutely find one. Okay. Now, I live in, I'm a people person. I'm a pastor, so I live in the middle of people. And we hear a story like yours, and I think, oh, well, I'd like a movie and a book. But I've read a bit of your book, and I don't want a movie in a book. I didn't want a movie in a book to tell you the truth.

So I want to go back. You didn't have the perfect childhood. Right. You had to overcome some things as a pretty young person. Can you tell us a little just about that beginning? I want to walk all the way forward. Yeah, absolutely. I was an unwanted pregnancy, and instead of, by the grace of God, I was not aborted.

So we wouldn't even be sitting here today, and they chose life instead, put me up for adoption. I was adopted into a family that couldn't have kids. And then God and Miracle Science, they started having kids left and right, and they didn't really need me anymore. I became an angry kid. got kicked out of every school, in and out of group homes, foster homes, boys' homes, kind of found my calling in the Marine Corps for a while because that was a great place that I could get paid to fight and spent 20 years in the Marine Corps serving my country and really being in love with the First Amendment and in our Constitution.

And God kind of called me after that, and that's when everything kind of went, according to me, went really sideways in my life because it was not the plan that I, I originally saw myself living. Well, thank you for your service. Absolutely. Where'd you serve? Just about everywhere. Over 20 years, I started on the East Coast, West Coast, overseas.

I've got to do a tour over in the Gulf War. So got to serve in the best of times and in the worst of times during combat. That's amazing. So you came to faith really later in life with a life full of pain and heartache. I don't want to highlight that, but I don't want to skip past it. Yeah. Because we both interact with enough people, and I think the devil tells us this lie that if your life isn't perfect or your family situation isn't perfect,

or if you've made a mistake, that you're doomed to the scrap heap. And as I read your story, I mean, it was emotional for me because it took a lot of determination to keep overcoming the things and the rejection that got put in front of you. Well, the little did I know that that was God and in his master plan, And all those little broken pieces of your life are just puzzle pieces. And you don't know what the picture looks like until you let God set them all together. And then boom, it was like, oh, they all make sense now. That's why I went through all of this.

And it's a beautiful picture when you turn it over to God and let him be the designer. And we talked a little bit before we started. You came to faith a little later in life, really in a crisis point in your life again. Right. I just got out of the Marine Corps. I thought I was very successful in life. had a great career in the Marine Corps. And I married my childhood sweetheart.

We were both come from broken families. And I didn't know what I was doing. She was a good Christian girl. And we weren't evenly yoked. And really, I had to throw myself on the altar to save my marriage. I said, God, if you give me my wife, I'll give you my life. And little did I know what that meant at the time. But I'm a man of my word.

And I know how to serve. And God just called me right there. and boom, put me on this other track. And your coaching career followed that. Right after, it was not even two weeks after I was on the altar and I was approached by the athletic director of the school. I was out on a run one day, just like in the movie, I was out on a run and this guy pulls up alongside me.

And I'm thinking, you know, here I am going to have to fight this guy. And he's offering me a job. So God spoke to this man's complete stranger who listened to the word or listen to the word of God and was obedient and just pulled over his car and asked me and started pursuing me from there. And it took a while for me to get there almost a year to start coaching. But I saw facing the Giants and it was like God put the pieces together and said, hey, I am calling you. And it was the first time I've heard God's calling in my life. And it was to serve these young men. So you're coaching high school football and you have

that because of your conversion experience and the way the Lord put all that together, you pray at the end of the game? Right. So when I, because I don't know anything about football. The X's and O's is still beyond me. It was, but I knew about leadership and discipline and team building. And that's why they hired me. And I think that's why God called me is for these young men to help them be better young men.

And when he had me there, I, I threw myself onto the living room floor crying after watching the movie, you facing the Giants, just like in the movie, God, I would give you glory after every game. And that's the way it started. Just very simple, a simple prayer, 15 seconds on the field after the battle. So you weren't doing it to make a show or draw attention to yourself. No. It was really more of a response to God's goodness in your life. Yep, just being thankful. A thankful prayer. That's all it was from the beginning until the very last one. And there was I did a parent object what what what sent the flag up that got the whole thing started and if you really believe this and this is only you know the spiritual battle that goes on. I mean you can't make this stuff up. We had an administrator in another school district saw one of our football games and saw the two teams come together after this great battle. I mean it was a great fight and I mean there were fist bites on the on the field and afterwards we all got together.

and had that moment of peace. And they saw this, and he felt compelled to call our principal and said, I just got to tell you what your football program is doing is awesome. So this all started from a compliment. And they wanted to know, well, what was so awesome? And then their lawyers got involved. And it got out of control, went viral overnight. So the enemy meant something to destroy, and God turned it into something incredible.

But that battle lasted seven years? Eight years, nine years to give me back on the football field, nine football seasons. That's how I count time, football seasons, of course. But so you had, this is the part that captured my attention. I had to smile. It was as if God prepared you and put you in the right place. I know lots of Christians who have a little bit of, I call it like greenhouse Christianity. We're like orchids.

If you put us in the perfect environment, we can hold it together for a little bit. but God recruited somebody that had to overcome a lot of pain and rejection in childhood, 20 years in a Marine Corps, put you at the 50-yard line of a football field, and some knucklehead of Jacks. Now, some people might have wilted and gone home, but I'm reading your story before I ever get to the rest. I'm thinking, oh, this man's not going anywhere. And so I had to laugh.

I mean, it's like Moses at the burning bush. God put you at that 50-yard line. Oh, and there was no other explanation for it. And he gives us the choice, that whole free will thing. And to be an example for my guys, I always tell my kids, every one of my players, you do what's right, even if it's not popular. Now, here's a perfect example for me to show them what that practice looks like. Even if this is not popular, if this is going to cost me everything, it was the right thing to do.

And I was an American and I was a Marine before I became a Christian. So the Constitution really meant something to me. And there was a battle. There was a huge struggle between the two. Because what do you do as a Christian? We don't teach Christians what to do when we come into conflict. I was very torn between the two. But as that American, red-blooded fighter, I was like, no, this is the right thing to do.

And I'm going to put my flag on this 50-yard line. I'm going to die on this hill. And it did end up costing me everything. But it was the absolute right thing to do. And I set the example for all my players, for all the years that I coached that this is the right thing to do. And even if it costs you everything, you still do it. Hey, I've written a new book, Angels, Demons, and You. I believe. I believe in angels. I believe in demons.

And I believe they impact you and me. We better have a plan for that. You know, I meet Christians all the time. He says, well, I just don't believe in that, Pastor. I don't like to talk about that. That's a novel approach. You know, I like to eat chocolate. Suppose I said, I just don't believe chocolate will make you fat.

I don't believe that. It wouldn't make me thin. Denying the truth of Scripture will not make us safer, happier, are our lives more fruitful. We need to take counsel from the word of God so we can live victorious lives. Angels and demons are real. The demons oppose the purposes of God for you. The angels will help with the purposes of God for you. We need a plan for how we can engage in a meaningful way.

This book is taken from Scripture intended to help you flourish in your journey through time. You can get a copy at allanjaxon.com slash warfare. It's a little more convoluted because you work for the school, but your wife works for the school district? Yeah. Tell me he doesn't have a sense of humor. She's the head of HR? The head of HR.

She is the director of HR for the school district. So you can imagine over these years, and she stayed on the whole entire time we were going through this. She was on the payroll and in that position for another five years while we were going through this battle. And so we were at odds. I'm talking, it wasn't just a spiritual battle, We had a battle in our house every single day.

And we almost got divorced over this because we did not see eye to eye in so many ways. Well, you shared with me a bit that, I mean, you really got through a crisis point. And you had one of those coincidences. Coincidences, yeah. Can you tell us about that? Right. So when I got offered the job, I watched Facing the Giants. And it was, I heard my calling.

Well, over this time, we're going through this battle, or we just got up to the Supreme Court, and the court turned us down, and my wife thought, oh, we're over. It's done. There's no way forward anymore. It's finally done. Well, God just opened another door so we could go through all of it again, and she couldn't do it.

And we got this huge fight, and this was like the monumental of all fights. we were at our breaking point and she looked at me and she said you got to you got to decide what's more important this fight or our marriage and i had to tell her that this fight was more important because god has called me to fight this battle and so we were at we broke right there and i was walking out out of out of the house i packed a bag and i was headed out and i get a of all the times the coincidence i get a call and it's a video and it's the kendrick brothers standing on the 50-yard line where they filmed facing the Giants. And he said, coach, I know you and your wife are going through some battles right now. I'm here to encourage you and to pray for you. And I lost it. I fell down

the stairs. Broke her banister off. She comes running out. I hand her the phone. She's thinking, I'm going to call 911 or something. And we sat there and we just cried in each other's arms. And it was like the scales were removed from her eyes. She just instantly understood for the first time. And this is years into this. And at our breaking point, she finally understood that this was God. And God intervened at the 11th hour, 59 minute, and 59 seconds. So I always tell everybody, God doesn't show up when you want him to. But he sure as heck will show up when you need them to.

It's such a powerful, and it's more typical than not. You know, my biggest complaint with God is about his timing. God is faithful. I mean, he's always been faithful in my life. I will not yield that. It's an absolute truth. But his timing. Oh, yeah.

We're going to talk about that when I get up there. Don't you know he's intimidated? We're coming to question him. I know he's just sitting there with that big smile thinking, yeah, you'll see all. The rest of the puzzle pieces will all make sense then. But for the people listening, I think it's really important. I don't want to hurry past this. You did the right thing for the right reason.

and it all blows up. Your wife has to fire you. It's her job. Her husband is putting enormous pressure on her professional life. You pursue it the legal route, which adds to all the pressure. I'm sure your friends

were just thrilled. No. It turned the community upside down. Everything. Every aspect of my life was turned completely upside down over it. And it's hard to explain that this was the right thing to do,

especially after you live, seven times and going to the Supreme Court twice. You think maybe I am, this isn't right, maybe this is not the right thing to do. But I just knew that God was calling me and he showed up every single time I was at those little where I felt like I was about to break. So I was at those hard bends and he would come through and explain everything to me. But it was just being faithful. Sometimes I had nothing but my faith and I was hanging on, felt like by my fingernails. And I would sit there and be like, God, you've got to help me with this because I don't know what I'm doing. And everything seemed like it was a mess that whole entire time.

And I didn't see the big picture until the end. Right. So you got to the grand reveal. Yeah. I heard Corey Tin Boom speak one time. And she walked out on stage with a piece of fabric. And she held it up and it was just a tangle. I mean, it made no sense.

And she said, this is how my life looks in time. And she flipped it over and it was a piece of needlework. Oh, yeah. And it was this beautiful piece of artwork, but you had to be on the right side of it to see it. And I never forgot. I mean, with the horrors of her life and all the things she suffered. And I think when we walk through these seasons, when you're in the midst of the battle, it doesn't feel like a God thing.

No. You know, even if the Lord is intervening to give you the strength you need to continue to stand today, it still, it's unpleasant, it's uncomfortable. It doesn't feel like a God's story. And when I read your story, I mean, it resonated with me. It's a seven, eight year window you all walked through. And yeah, now you've got a movie and books and you're speaking, but you wouldn't have volunteered for that assignment, I'm pretty sure.

And I didn't want to go through it the whole entire time. There was a battle every day. I did not want to go through this. One of the inspiring things was in the Bible is when Jesus was in the Garden of Gizmany. And he's like, you know, father, if this cup could pass, I said that every day, I was like, God, I don't want to do this. I just want to coach high school football. I don't want to put my family through this. I don't want to fight with my wife. I don't want to fight with my community. The school district are my friends that the, not the principal, or the principal is a friend of mine,

but the superintendent, he goes to the same church as I do. We're friends. This is a small community, and this was just crazy to go through. And I couldn't understand why. It was a 15-second prayer. Nowhere in America should anybody be in trouble for doing a 15-second prayer in public. But I'm sure that's expensive. Costs the school district money?

$6.98 million is what the legal fees was. I don't have that kind of money. Not my checking count for sure. Green court didn't pay that? No. No, no, I'm still waiting on that check. Let me tell you. Yeah, First Liberty Institute, which is a great.

They're like ADF and a bunch of other ones that are out there. There's great groups out there that will represent people free. And thank God that God paid for that because who could pay for that. And God just wants somebody that's faithful that will stand up. And I felt like I was the schmuck that did it and said, yeah, I'll stand here for all these years. And that's what I did. stand firm in my faith and trusting in God. So when you heard the verdict in your favor, what's that feel like?

To me, it wasn't joyous. It was a relief. And the only reason I say that is because I was, you know, it is a negative world. We have a lot of negative things happen. The way that the lower courts ruled was that any display of faith in the public square could get you terminated. If I lost at the Supreme Court and they ruled against me,

that would have been set in stone for the rest of the time. I would have screwed up religious freedom for every single American from this time on. That was the weight on my shoulders. It wasn't about winning it. My biggest worry was,

what happens if I lose? What does this implicate? And what does this do for Christians and people of faith, not even just Christian, people of faith, the United States. I would have messed it up for everybody. So then you win the case. Then there's a lot of publicity that comes with that. Yeah, I didn't like that part. I didn't like any

of that part. That's a whole other kind of stress. Yeah. I would rather have been, that's why we named the movie in the book, Average Joe, and there's nothing special about me. There's nothing incredible. This was just some guy who did a 15-second prayer and God just happened to you. God can use somebody like me. Imagine what he could do with everybody else. So I didn't, I still don't like the big limelight and all that kind of stuff. I, I just want to live my life and enjoy living with my family, my dogs, my house. And yeah, simple guy, man. Somebody told me you just got a new dog. Oh, man, don't get me into that story. That's another God story. Yeah, he's got a sense of humor for sure. So what are you and your wife doing these days? Because you're speaking to groups.

Yeah, we are. So I've been speaking to anybody who would listen about the First Amendment and the rights as an American. And God has really put my wife and I on a track that if we can make it through these kind of battles together, everybody can make it through. So we've been speaking men's conferences, women's conferences, marriage conferences. I've been speaking at some of the House bills and and Senate bills that have been going on and getting prayer back in school and chaplains and stuff like that. So really, I will go wherever God calls us.

And it's really cool how God is just taking both of us and it's just been slowly bringing us together. And now we're speaking together. And let me tell you, we're so polar opposites that it's a lot of fun to see us both out there. I can't imagine. Well, our nation is in a struggle. Yes. You know, the military had been turned into a social experiment

more than a group of men and women to fight our wars and defeat our enemies. Apparently, they've been looting the coffers in Washington for a long time of hundreds of billions of dollars. If not trillions, yes. We're terminating the lives of our children. I mean, we all know the litany of things that are happening. I don't think that's going to be turned around in a big hurry. It's not going to happen in 100 days.

I don't think it even happens in a single election. You're better an expert on standing than I am. I'm a preacher. You're the Marine. But it feels like it's going to take a determination from the people of faith. If we're going to see this walk back to the place it needs to be for the sake of our children. Absolutely. What do you say to the people that are tired of the bickering and they're tired of the stress and the confusion?

Should we just surrender and quit? Well, that's always the option. and then we end up like Canada and a mess like Venezuela. That's not what Americans are about. And I tell everybody I got it even on my arm, Second Timothy 4-7, you fight the good fight, you finish the race, and you remain faithful. And that's all we have to do.

We have to do our part. And as I was walking in here today, I saw a mug and it said, spoiler, God wins. And I was like, that is the perfect way to put a bow on it. We don't have to win the battle. We just have to fight the battle. God's already got that victory. But I mean, I think my kids are worth fighting for.

I think my relationship is worth fighting for. I think America is absolutely worth fighting for. And that's what we have been stood on, was being in people of faith and standing up for what is right in our beliefs. That's why we came to this country. And I see this huge turning point right now in our society, where you see even at the Olympics where they started out where they started out word that, you know, Satan came in and he was like, I'm going to make this a joke and

tried to make it evil and boom. What do you see? All these people on the stands, giving the glory to God. So we are at an incredible part of our life in our society, especially in America where people are tired of being knocked around and sitting in their couch and it's gone, well, that didn't bother me. That doesn't affect me, this LBG, D-E-I, L-M-N-O-P, all of this stuff that didn't affect us, has affected us. us and we have no other place to go. So now we have a choice. We can either continue to sit down and get run over and our tax money and everything else go to where it's going or we can stand up and we can be bold in our faith and stand up for what is right and true. Amen. So what kind of

response are you getting when you take that message? I think it's been pretty good that people are just tired of being in, you know, getting kicked around. People want. to be able to stand up and be proud. And that's what's great thing about the book and the movie is that and when we get it explained things like this, that it's everyday people. This isn't, we can't expect the, you know, Trump to fix this or our Senate or anybody else. This comes down to each individual person. And it starts with their life in their own home, getting their house in order, doing the prayers, especially with men, I tell them, you get on your knees first, then you take care of your family.

Then you take care of your community. And it just keeps growing from there. And you just broaden it out as it goes. So what do you say to the men that would say, okay, I'm born again, and I'm going to watch over my home, but the rest of that's not my responsibility. Then they're just, I went through that for so long.

I really did. That's the only thing I want to do. Now that I'm a Christian, I'm over here protecting my family and what's mine. And I realized that they are being bombarded all the way around. and they're going to, you only have this influence for so long. You send your kids out into this world.

If guys are sitting there thinking that they're going to be able to escape that, they're fooling themselves. And I don't want to know those guys. I want to know the guys that I'm going to be able to go into battle with and that will fight and protect their families no matter what it costs them. Get outside of your house and start protecting what is ours in our community and in our country. So we have to go back and pay attention to the schools. and what's happening in the schools.

Absolutely. Schools, local, you think about all the things that are being passed. I know in Washington State, they passed the marijuana bill, and only like 6,000 people voted on it because everybody stayed home. People need to be involved in every aspect of our life. It's not just in your homes and on Sundays in church. It's you live, live out your faith, live according to the way that God has made you, even just to be a man and being a person in a person,

America. That's what you need to do. If you want to throw God away and not even be a person of faith, you still need to be an American and stand up for yourself. Joe, you are a refreshing breath of air. I thank you for your courage. Thank you, brother. I want to meet your wife. Oh, she's, that'll be interesting for sure. This is a podcast. We got a minute. I want to tell you thought you were coming to do an interview with your good friend, Dr. E.W. Jackson. That's who I thought. I mean, how many Reverend Jackson's are there after? I mean, there can't be that many of them. And I was expecting you to be a black man all this time. And then yesterday I find out, nope, you're completely, but you're all right. So I walk in. And once again, I'm a disappointment. I'm not your good friend. I'm a new stranger.

Now I got another new friend. This is really good. I really love it. Well, I very much appreciate you coming to Middle Tennessee and for the courage and the boldness. The idea that God would take a young man with a broken childhood and use him to impact a nation for the purposes of the kingdom of God, it seems to eliminate any excuse

I could drag forward for why I don't want to or I shouldn't. If I could do it, anybody could do it. That's for darn sure. Thank you for leading with your faith. Okay? Absolutely. I can't improve on the story that Joe has told you. His book is Average Joe. If you don't like to read, read this one. You can see the movie, but you need to read the book. There's a tone in this that was impactful, and I believe will make a difference in your life. We've got to lead with our faith, folks. We can't sit in our churches and do polite Bible studies and accumulate facts. We've got to be willing to lead and live out what we say we believe. It's not because we're It's not because we can quote more verses than somebody else. It's because we're willing to stand for the truth that we believe and do what we know to be right. If we'll do that, I believe God makes up the difference.

It may take seven or eight years, but God makes up the difference. Culture and Christianity, if we can get our Christianity further into the culture, it'll be a better world for our children and our grandchildren. Thank you very much, sir. Bless you, brother. Hey, thanks for joining me today. Before you go, please like the podcast. and leave a comment so more people can hear about this topic too.

If you haven't yet, be sure to subscribe to Alan Jackson Ministries YouTube channel and follow the Culture and Christianity podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. Together, let's learn how to lead with our faith and change our culture. I'll see you next time.