The Eric Metaxas Show - John Strand

Episode Date: January 7, 2025

Eric is joined by John Strand at AmFest 2024

Ladies and gentlemen, are you ready to listen to a man of grace, sophistication, integrity, and whimsy? Well, so are we. But until such a man shows up, please welcome Eric Mat, Texas. Hey there, folks. I'm excited to get Todd Chapman back on the program. He's with Christian Solidarity International. As you know, we're doing a campaign this month, as we do every year at this time to free people. from slavery, literally. Now, I know we probably have atheist, Marxists that really don't care about slavery. And you're listening to this program, we don't expect you to reach into your pocket. If you don't think that people are made in the image of God and shouldn't be enslaved, we don't expect you to give. But if you're some kind of Christian, obviously you do care about this.

And obviously, if we give you an opportunity to help people get out of slavery, literally, we know you're interested, which is why CSI comes to us every year and says, Eric, talk to your audience. These are wonderful human beings. They actually care about this. There are very few pro-slavery people who listen to the program. So if you're a pro-slavery person, hey, we're not judging you for being evil. God is judging you, but we're not judging you. But if you're not a pro-slavery person, I know you're interested. Todd Chapman, welcome back. Thanks, Eric. Great to be here. And thank you. if you've participated already in this year's campaign to free slaves, we just had a tremendous last couple of days.

Yesterday alone, nearly 50 slaves freed by Eric Metaxus listeners. So that's great. We're gaining speed, but we still have a lot of slaves that we're hoping that your listeners can free. And so we invite everyone to be as generous as you can. $250 gift frees one slave, provides them a new start in life in South Sudan. And hopefully the opportunity for us to reunite them with their family, who they have haven't seen in decades many times. And yeah, it's a beautiful opportunity to literally save and

transform someone's life through CSI. Well, I want to be clear with my audience. As of today, we have had 65 gifts. Now, I know that a lot of people listen to this program. So we've only had 65 gifts thus far. So yesterday we had a bump. But our goal, it's a modest goal, is to free 676 slaves. $250 is the price to free one slave and to set them up in a life of freedom. You could give $25 a month. That's more than $250 a year. So if you want to do it that way, the website is metaxis talk.com.

We've saved or freed 120 slaves, thus far. But the goal is 676. So in fact, we're not doing that well in this campaign. And so we need you to step up if you're, again, unless you're pro-slavery, if you're a Marxist atheist that doesn't believe in the dignity of human beings, you get a pass. But if you're not a Marxist atheist who actually is not pro-slavery, we're talking to you. The website is Metaxis Mataxis talk.com. You can see there's a banner there. When you click on it, it'll take you through whatever you want to give, however you

want to give. And I always say, it doesn't matter what you give as long as you participate, but this is an amazing opportunity. It's amazing opportunity. I'll give you a phone number in a minute to do this in someone's name as a Christmas gift. There are people who really, you know, they don't need another whatever. So if you say to them on Christmas morning and when you see them, we did this in your name and you can show them the piece of paper that says we freed a slave in your name.

What a way to share your faith to say this is real. We care about this. So this is, Todd, it's an amazing thing. How many years have you been working with Christian Solidarity International? Because you've got a close up view. Yeah, I've been working with them for about. four years now. And honestly, before I started working with CSI, I didn't even know about the slavery issue in South Sudan, even though it's been going on, you know, for decades now. And I think a lot of

people find themselves, yeah, I think a lot of people find themselves in that situation, never heard about this, didn't know that, you know, over 100,000 people were taken into slavery back in the 90s and have lived that way ever since, much less that there's a Christian organization that is working every day to free them and is being very successful. I mean, since 1995, thanks to generous listeners like yours, we've been able to free over 100,000 people, and we're estimating there's probably still another 30 or 40,000 still enslaved, and so we're going to keep doing this. And with your generosity, we're able to free more and more slaves every year.

But, you know, Eric, it's easy to get lost in numbers. I like to talk about the stories of individuals, because I think that's really what we need to focus on. you can give a gift and free a human being right now in the name of Jesus. And it's insane. I mean, folks, are you listening to this, how amazing this is, that you are able to participate with us? I say this all the time, like that there's this satanic evil, human beings enslaved. Like, it's unbelievable.

And then you think, oh, oh, I could do something about it. I mean, I just see this as an amazing opportunity, and that's why I push it so hard. Folks, this is a beautiful thing you get to do. This is unadulterated, wonderful goodness that you get to free somebody. And think about what we're asking. We're not saying it's $2,000. We're saying it's $250 to free a slave. That's like a dinner for two here in New York.

It's crazy. And you can free a slave forever. This is not you buy their freedom for a month. This is forever to free someone. And to set them up in a life of freedom, the website is metaxistalk.com. Again, metaxis talk.com. And the phone number, some people prefer to call. I will give the phone number 888-253-3522.

888-253-3522. 888-253-3522. I can't imagine people don't want to do this. I cannot imagine that people wouldn't say, we can do this. Our family will do maybe we'll just do $250 through the year. So we'll give $25 a month. Folks, this is an amazing, beautiful thing.

You can get your kids involved and explain to your children. Hey, we're Christians. We believe every human being is made in the image of God and is sacred to God. And we have to do what we can. Historically, it has been Christians that led the abolitionist movement in the 18th century under the leadership of my hero, William Wilberforce. In the 19th century, it has been Christians that led the battle for abolition. Why?

Because Christians are different. They believe that every single human being is made in God's image. They don't have an evolutionist Darwinian view that says some people are worth less than others. And we believe in the free market. We don't believe in what the Bible says. No. It's an amazing opportunity in our own day. to participate in an abolitionist movement and to free slaves because we believe that the God

who made us made them. And so the website is metaxis talk.com. You'll see the banner there. And I say this again, folks, you know, some of you maybe can't give $250, you can give something. Some of you can give multiples of that. Some of you can give $1,000 to free for human beings. and set them up in a life of freedom. And I say anybody out there that can give $15,000, this is tax deductible. I will have dinner with you, we'll figure it out in your town or our town or whatever. We do this every year somebody steps up. And it's my privilege to take my valuable time.

It's become insanely valuable. But it's my privilege to take my time and to spend it with people because you care. And you've expressed your caring in this way. We've just got a minute left, Todd. Talk a little bit just for 40 seconds about how we set them up in a life of freedom once they are free. Yeah, so four or five times a year we have negotiated the freedom of these slaves and we marched them en masse, you know, two, three hundred at a time into South Sudan where we have a camp where we gather them together. We document their story. A lot of times some of these people don't even know what their original name is, much less who their parents were, where they're from.

We try to reunite them with their family if we can. And then we set them up with grains and a she-goat and supplies to start a new life because they've got to have something to go to. We can't just get them out and say, okay, you're on your own. We don't do that. We try to get them back with their family, with their community. And if we can't, we've got communities of slaves who have all been freed and they form their own communities. It's a new start in life. Many of them now, women bringing children with them into freedom.

That's a new thing we've been able to do in the last couple of years. So we can't do it without you, so thanks for giving. Please go to metaxisstalk.com, metaxistock.com, metaxistock.com. Okay, every new year, we all spend a few days seriously thinking about what we can do to improve our lives. And usually it revolves around better health, right? Well, I want to strongly encourage you to do what I do, take responsibility for your health by taking balance of nature's whole food ingredient supplements. Seriously, they're packed with 31 varieties of fruit and vegetable ingredients

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I'm at Amfest, and I'm sitting here with, I don't want to embarrass him, but who cares? An American hero, somebody who's been through hell, and he's a friend, John Strand. It's just, it's such a joy, such a joy to see you. I was just trying to remember, have we seen each other since you've been through your hellish experience? I mean, I've seen you on Zoom, I guess, but not in person. Yeah, a lot of digital exposure, but it's good to see you.

Now, many people in my audience will not be familiar with you, so give us the short version, and then we'll get into it. Sure. So, John Strand, the creative director at America's Frontline Doctors, a nonprofit civil liberties organization that some people are familiar with. Some are still not because of the overwhelming suppression and censorship of this era. But my background is as an artist. I'm a career model and actor out of Hollywood in California. Yeah, yep. And I felt the call of God to step forward to the front lines of the cultural battle during the lockdown era.

Yeah. And because of that work, I was in Washington, D.C. on January 6th. Yeah. As part of my job, I was actually doing my job that day. Yeah, yeah. Which is an interesting, interesting take. With our friend Simone Gold, you were there. And I, look, I met you way before this happened in the middle of the, you know, lunatic COVID pandemic insanity of our time.

I met you, and then of course, January 6th, you go there with Simone, and you were there, she was going to give a speech or whatever, so you're just there to help out. I know you, you're a good man, you weren't there to cause any trouble, and the evil, evil, evil people in our government, they're utterly evil, they are anti-American, wicked, wicked human beings and trapped all kinds of people. I think of you, you're at the top of the list. You were entrapped. You did absolutely nothing.

I mean, I know you did nothing. I know you. I know the whole story. We don't need to get into it. But you refuse to take a plea deal because you're an honorable man. And because of that, they threw the book at you and put you in prison. Yep. Sentenced to almost three years for the crime of doing my job.

But really for the crime of daring to criticize the government. That's right. Yeah. Such a fascinating moment at sentencing when the judge acknowledged from the bench that he was deeply offended. That for half a year between my trial and my sentencing, I had been actively speaking publicly to expose the fraud of January 6th. Can we believe, I mean, again, I'm never, ever, ever going to stop talking about the fact that if you are not disgusting, by what the government did. If you are not disgusted by judges like this,

if you don't know that they are despicable human beings, now, by the grace of God, they could repent, but until they do that, these are people that are genuinely evil. I don't use these words lightly. They have done the kind of stuff that doesn't happen in America. It should never happen in America. It's happened in places like communist China and the Soviet Union where they humiliate people,

because you don't say the right thing or believe the right thing. You experience that, and it just, it rips my heart out, John, because I know you, you're a sensitive soul. But you are one of innumerable human beings in the United States of America have been through this hell. It's just stunning. Yeah, the scripture says that we, you know, God knows the heart, but we as humans can't know the hearts of people. But scripture tells us that we would judge men by their fruits, the fruit of their actions. Yeah. So if you observe the fruit of these judges in the D.C. district, they are diametrically opposed to God's will and his values. So they are actively working for the forces of satanic evil. So it's not hyperbole to say that.

Well, no, I mean, this is the shock. I think the reason there's so many, there are many people probably even listening to this program that they don't really care about what happened to the. the January 6 people because they have bought the narrative that, you know, people did bad stuff and they went to jail, so it's on them. We know that that's not just untrue, but it's a foul lie. It's a wicked lie. It's one thing for people to get something wrong. It's another thing for people to actively do something despicable and foul. And that's really what happened.

And so it's going to take years for most Americans. for history books to be written that tell the truth about this, because we're still living through it right now, and you have this reigning narrative, including on places like Fox News, they don't know the truth. And so we have to keep talking about it,

and it's why I'm just so proud of you because you've been so bold. So, but let's just, let's talk about the fact that, I mean, at one point you were in, solitary. I mean, this really rips my heart out. Just because you did something that they didn't like in prison.

That's right. So at sentencing, the judge essentially acknowledged he was sentencing me extra harshly because he was offended that I was criticizing the government. The textbook definition of fascism. Then they send me to the wrong

jail, a much more harsh prison than I was properly rated. for. Then once I was there and doing my best to abide by all rules, they entrap me in the prison for a pretext to disappear me. And I was vanished from all contact with the world, including my family and attorneys. And again, it's because I refused to be silent. And I continued to appropriately exercise my First Amendment rights, which I retain even in prison.

But, yeah, I was thrown in solitary under truly demonic conditions. This is one of the worst solitary units in the BOP, in the country. You're not just isolated 23 and a half hours a day or more. There is truly demonic screaming, reverberating throughout this unit. You can't see them, but you can not stop hearing. them at a point I hyperventilated just from the physicality of being overwhelmed and unable to do anything about the excruciating pain of the environment I was in and the suffering that I was enduring.

And God allows us to experience suffering. Scripture talks about this a lot as well, and he has a plan and a purpose for that, but we should never make light of the pain. that innocent people are experiencing because other ostensibly innocent people have remained silent about evil for far too long. I mean, again, I want to underscore, this is the Biden administration, this is the left in America. If you don't understand that they're the enemies of what is good and right and true, you're a fool. And there are many, many fools in America, people that are complicit. They're just drifting along.

many conservatives, many Christians, that they don't care about this grave injustice. It is such a grave injustice. It's really like saying, well, I don't care about slavery. It doesn't concern me. If you don't care about it, there's something very wrong with you.

There's something, if you don't care about this kind of stuff, but there are many people that they just don't want to deal with it. And frankly, it's very painful to acknowledge this. I understand on some level how people just want to say, well, maybe there's something there, but they don't want to look at it because it's too. horrible. And because it implicates them, their complicity

is, it would be painful to acknowledge. So, but I mean, again, it's why I talk about it. It's why I talk about the election fraud. And I will never stop talking about it because it's true. Now, if I could be proven to me that I was wrong, I would be thrilled. Sure. But, you know, I've

seen too much. Yeah. So you I mean, by the grace of God, you were able finally to get out. Yes, by the grace of God, and by the strength of my convictions, because I put my faith and trust in God, in his word, in his calling and his purpose, that if I walked in obedience,

that he would be faithful to protect me, to direct me, and to shield me. Yeah. So it was that understanding, and that spiritual confidence that allowed me to refuse a plea without any hesitation and walk directly into three years of prison and then isolation and horrific abuse. But because I refused that plea, I appealed the charges

and through the grace of God was granted cert at the United States Supreme Court bypassing the corrupt D.C. district entirely. And I was vindicated at the United States Supreme Court beat the charge. beat the felony charge, was released from prison, and still have a live appeal of the remaining charges, which, God willing, I will have vacated by the incoming closer to righteous DOJ. Yeah.

And if God allows that to proceed as it seems that it will, I will have been completely legally exonerated within our own jurisdiction. I'm going to go to a break here. We'll be right back. Folks, I'm talking to my friend, John Strand. We'll be right back. So you're putting money away, saving for the future, for retirement, for your family. You're doing what you're supposed to do, right?

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let's show Wall Street what investing with biblical principles can do. Inspire advisors, Biblically responsible investing, visit inspireadvisors.com slash Eric. That's inspireadvisors.com slash Eric. Hey, folks, listeners to my show know I'm passionate about the work of Christian Solidarity International because they protect and free those who are being persecuted and enslaved for their faith. Thanks to you to date, CSI has freed more than 100,000 people from slavery in Sudan, but the work is not done yet. It's estimated that there are still tens of thousands more still in bondage. and CSI is preparing right now for their final slave liberation of this year.

I'm hoping you'll join me and help them liberate another 300 women and children. Your gift of just $250 will free a woman in Sudan who has been enslaved for years and provide her with food and other supplies necessary to start her new life. Call 888-253-3522. 888-253-3522 Christian Solidarity International, freeing and healing captives in Jesus' name. go to metaxistock.com, metaxistock.com, click on the Christian Solidarity banner, metaxistock.com or 888-2533522. God bless you. Once there's a way.

Folks, welcome back. We're at Amfest, which is why it's noisy. Maybe you can hear the noise I can hear, but it's good noise. I'm talking to John Strand. We are, well, when you talk about, when you talk about, about being exonerated and so on and so forth. To me, you know, the famous scripture, Romans 828, all things work together for good for those that love the Lord and are called according to his purposes. So every horrible thing, what man intended for evil, God can intend for good. So the fact that you've been through this and the fact that so many people have been through this and are still going through this right now, I believe that what it has done, mostly to those

of you who were imprisoned, but to those of us on the outside as well who have witnessed this, it has radicalized us and has made us say we are at war with a deep state. We're at war with evil actors within our own government, and we're not going to let this stand. So it's not enough simply that, oh, you got out. No, no, no, no, no. We're going to take them down. We're not going to allow ourselves to be ruled by monsters, you know. And so what I hope is that folks like you and other J6 prisoners will run for office, will run for any kind of office, including Congress, to help save this nation from what we've suffered.

I agree. I feel the burning call that you're describing. We are at war with monsters, but there's a monster within all of us. So we're not just at war with the deep state and a corrupt government, obviously we are, but we are at war with apathy and complicity. Yeah. Within ourselves. That's right. The famous line you just mentioned, what some men intended for evil, God intended for good, that was Joseph.

Yes. One of my greatest biblical heroes. I described this parallel in the book that I wrote in prison about Joseph, but he was talking to his brothers who had previously, had previously. betrayed him when he said what some meant for evil God intended and has used for good. Yeah. So I think we can all recognize that the January 6th Patriots, in a sense, were betrayed by their brethren in large.

Oh, absolutely. Betrayed by their government. That's very good. And we can step forward as a J6 community and understand that what men intended for evil, God will use for good, that we can extend. God's grace and his vindication and his fiery justice to say it is time for us to unite and deal with the evil amongst us, acknowledge it, expose it, and determine that we're going to proceed forward in a path, in a pursuit of God's divine order in the universe. Yeah. Well, I mean, you know, you and I both know that America was created by God for God's purposes. So it's certainly not a perfect country, but it's the greatest country in the history of the world, literally. It's an extraordinary thing to say that and to know that that's true. And that God's purposes have been realized through this country and will continue to be realized through this country. It's an amazing time to be alive right now. I think that there's so many people, you know, we talk about people who are apathetic and.

complicit. There were people just like that during the revolution who either sided with tyranny or didn't care. Couldn't be bothered. Couldn't be bothered. There were people like that in the Civil War who they didn't care about the issue of slavery. They didn't care that their fellow human beings made in God's image were enslaved. They didn't care. And there were many Christians who didn't care who went to their happy little churches to pray to their little Jesus. and didn't care about those for whom Jesus died, didn't care. So I think we're seeing that right now, that there are many people who don't care.

And I have to say, we don't need everybody to agree with us. We just need more people. Every day, there are more people. And I keep thinking that what happened in Germany in the 30s, when you think of Bonhoeffer, it's not like Bonhofer needed to get every Christian in Germany to agree with him. He just needed to get a few more. But they didn't get enough.

But I think in America, by the grace of God, we have enough and we're getting more. We wouldn't have won this election if enough Christians hadn't been involved, enough Christians hadn't been praying. So I'm actually hopeful. What's going on over there? I don't know. I hope my audience can't hear this screaming. Steve Bannon. It's positive screaming.

It's good screaming. Leading the charge. But I agree with you, Eric. It's the revolution was fought and won to establish. America by 3%. There you go. Only 3% actually stood up to participate in that war.

We are in a war. It's one of the reasons I'm so excited that you have done me the honor to write the forward for my book, Patriot Plee. And I ask... And by the way, that's available now. It's available for pre-order.

So coming very soon. Okay. But I was so encouraging. and inspired by the message of your book, Letter to the American Church. And I've done the best that I can do through the vehicle of the story that I've lived through the last few years, and particularly this last season with the prison and the January 6th issue, to champion a call to the church and to Christians to understand,

you don't separate religion and politics, that's not a thing. you don't claim to be a Christian and abdicate your duty to participate in your country. That's not a thing. America is a Judeo-Christian nation, and it will crumble without Christians understanding, accepting, and exercising their duty, their responsibility.

Oh, listen, there's no doubt about this. And, of course, I've talked about it at infinitum. I will continue to talk about it because it's God's calling on my life to talk about this. We'll be right back, folks. talking to John Strand. Don't go away. Folks, welcome back. I'm at Amfest, so it's noisy. I'm sick, so I'm stuffed up. But praise God, I'm sitting here with my friend John Strand.

John, if people want to pre-order your book, what's the name of it again? The book is called Patriot Plee, and you can pre-order it at john strand.com. John Strand.com. That sounds like a made-up name. Is that your real name? Is that your stage name? That is my real name. I am an actor, but, uh, I got blessed with a great name. It's the kind of a name they'd say like, I think Kevin Kowalski. We need to.

How about John Strand? He's got a nice ring to it. And you go like, yeah, I can live with that. It's very nice, very nice. So John Strand, what are your plans from here on in? What's going on in your life? A lot's going on. I am actively seeking the Lord for guidance on the plan that he has for me in this coming year

and season. I do feel a strong call to engage more aggressively and more specifically in the political process. We'll see what that brings. Right now I'm currently working full-time as the creative director for America's Frontline Doctors and for Goldcare.com, which is an incredibly exciting and important health freedom platform, which we clearly see the need for following the COVID chaos and medical Marxism. Well, Simone Gold, of course, she's a friend of mine, and I don't think I've had around the program yet to talk about Gold Care, but it is exciting to me that the horror that we have all been

through has led to the beginning of so many great things, the waking up of so many Americans. And by the way, did anybody dream that RFK Jr. would be tapped to play a significant role in uncovering the evil we've seen in the medical community at the Food and Drug Administration? I mean, it's really... And that a Kennedy would be standing on stage with the greatest Republican figure in modern history. and just opening the floodgates of this political realignment and this opportunity to really reimagine and rediscover what unity, one nation under God, indivisible, what that means and now we can pursue that again. Now, it is just an amazing moment. You have to wonder, yesterday I was talking to Dr. Judy Micahubitz, and she,

A lot of what she's saying just kept flying right over my head because she's so deep into this and she's this medical genius. But the idea that people like Dr. Simone Gold and Naomi Wolf and Dr. Judy and so many others who have been warriors for the truth in this thing that finally they're getting a hearing, finally America is going to hear from them. It's exciting to me. It is, but there's so much work to be done. The censorship and suppression is still a major problem. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. The enemy is still fighting very fiercely to hold us back and to suppress the truth.

So, Eric, I'm so grateful and proud of you for refusing to be tired of spotlighting what you know are the key and important issues. Oh, yeah. and speaking truth boldly without apology. It's setting an example for the nation. That's an example I hope to continue to set as well, wherever God leaves me, that as I write on the back of my book, now is the time for uncomfortable courage.

So it's not good enough to know what you believe and have the right opinions. It's not good enough to say, oh yeah, I'm going to put on the MAGA hat and go to a rally, even though I'm a Christian, or even though I'm, you know, a church, I mean, we really need to bring accountability to our pastors in churches. We really need to start recognizing the conversations that need to be taking place and the actions that need to be following them from the pulpit and in our church communities and in our local communities as we all engage in, you know, what General Flynn is always saying local action that will make a national impact.

Yeah. Well, this is an awakening. I mean, I think that for decades many Americans have been encouraged to kind of float along, you know, like dead fish. And God has a different plan. God wants us in order to, I mean, I wrote a book called If You Can Keep It. And it's Franklin's statement to Mrs. Powell outside of the Constitutional Convention in 1787. You know, would have given us, Dr. Franklin, a monarchy or a republic, a republic, madam, if you can keep it. Keeping the Republic is the duty, the privilege of every American, to do something.

And we've been sold this bill of goods over time. I remember George Bush telling people to go shopping to deal with terrorism. Basically, you know what, we'll handle it. You don't need to do anything. And that's a lie. Every American has a part to play, a role to play in keeping the Republic. It's a pathway to slavery, actually. Yes, to do nothing is a pathway to slavery, as we've seen very recently.

Yeah. These forces are anti-human liberty. So everything they do to entice you with ease and convenience and safety, you know, we begin to worship safety during the COVID chaos. There you go. There you go. Instead of worshiping God and what God has called us to. So these things, these enticements, they look and sound and feel good in the moment, but they are distracting and deceiving us from the divine. design God has created us to have and to be, and they are misdirecting us from our purpose and leading us into apathy and a reliance on state power, and that leads inevitably to relinquishing your rights, relinquishing your cognitive liberty and your human essence, and it's a very scary direction that Satan wants us to go, so we must be vigilant against them. And we've finally seen enough of that evil. In other words, I think we've seen the fruit of the inaction so that many, many, many Americans are finally awake. And that's, I keep saying this. It's like

all this evil has, by the grace of God, awakened more and more and more Americans. Every day, it's kind of extraordinary, mainstream voices, you know, people that you would know in the public eye, but they're suddenly talking about this kind of stuff. Justine Bateman has been talking about this stuff. I want to get her on the program. There are so many people that they've just said, I've had enough. I'm going to speak about it. And, you know, that's health. That's health in the body politics. So we're going to go to a break. Folks, I want to remind you, if you want to reach me or find out where I'm going to be or anything, go to ericmetaxis.com. Sign up for our newsletter. It goes out about once a week. Lots of important stuff in there, including

this interview on video. So, ericmataxis.com, we'll be right back. Folks, welcome back. A couple of minutes left with John Strand. John, we've been talking about all the serious stuff. I have to talk about something lighthearted and kooky. I don't know if you are able to do it, but at some point, I keep talking every day on this program

about a cruise to the Greek islands that we're doing June 6th through 16th. If people want information about that, they can go to ericmetaxis.com slash cruise, ericmetaxis.com slash cruise, all the information's there. But I'm trying to get all my friends to come. I know most people can't. It's like a big thing. But are you open to the possibility of this? It would be an honor.

I love the idea. You, you know, I say to all my friends, like it's a big thing to ask people to like, you know, to go on. But I just think it would be a blast. So I'm pushing all my friends. friends because I feel like, you know, it's like being here at Amfest. You bump into friends and you make new friends and there's something very healthy about that. We need the community of, you know, like-minded people. And so on these kind of events, we did a Socrates and the city thing in Oxford, England, um, this past summer. And you make new friends and they, people come who didn't know

anybody and they make friends and there's just something very healthy about it. Absolutely. It's, it's God's design that we live in community. that we develop relationship and that we pursue the purpose that God has given each one of us, but we are inextricably linked in those purposes with each other. And it's amazing that being here at Amfest, I love coming here to this particular event every year. But many of these classic conservative, constitutional, value-driven community events are, so healthy and so energizing and man especially this year following november 5th and god's mercy and granting us a new chance to to have our land healed as we turn our face towards god away from

our wickedness um and pray and seek his face and and pursue righteousness and integrity so i i love it amen and at the heart of it of course is revival is i mean how many people here are profound Christians. Now, there are many that aren't. But if you do not have a quorum of serious God-seeking Christians, you cannot have liberty. So a lot of people that don't get that, they talk about liberty and they talk about, but you cannot really have it unless you have enough people that in their heart of hearts know that it comes from God. It's a gift from God. God is the only one who can give us the strength to fight for what is right, to fight against tyranny and enslavement.

So I'm convinced that we are now on the verge of, you know, what some have called the golden era in America, that we have the possibility of restoring the nation to its biblical roots. And for me, it's about the culture. I mean, we're doing all kinds of TV programs and all kinds of stuff because you have to take back the culture. It's not enough just to win, you know, congressional seats or the presidency. You have to take back.

And you get that. Yeah. And we've talked about that. We have to create programming and so on and so forth. So I am excited. Our Lord and Messiah, Jesus, didn't come and try to hijack the government politically. He spoke to the people in fields and fed them and shared stories and parables to reach their heart. So that was the example that he said.

Now, that should not be misconstrued or twisted into saying, oh, as a Christian, I don't have to get into politics. Yes. No, no, no, everybody needs to be involved at some level in politics. But I always say to add to that, we've got to be involved in the culture, in the culture, and what's on TV, what we're watching, what we're taking in. And, you know, the books that I write and the TV programs we're creating, including Socrates and the city and all this different stuff, is aimed at redeeming the culture, because unless you redeem the culture,

you'll never have people who are going to understand all those other stuff. We're out of time. John Strand, thank you. for being my guest. Thank you for everything you're doing. Folks, go to john strand.com. It's not difficult to spell. John strand.com. John, thank you.

Eric, thank you so much.