Unashamed with the Robertson Family - Ep 1396 | Jase Finds an Unexpected Gospel Movement ‘Behind Enemy Lines’

Episode Date: August 11, 2026

Jase heads into deep-blue territory expecting one thing and finds thousands of people who don’t fit the political stereotype, sparking a conversation about Christianity’s tendency to thrive under pressure. Kyle Thompson, host of “Undaunted Life” and “The Daily Blade,” joins the guys to confront the male loneliness crisis that leaves too many men surrounded by buddies but without anyone they can truly call when life falls apart. The guys also look at why real brotherhood requires accountability, investment, and the willingness to be known rather than simply appearing strong. In this episode: Genesis 1, verse 28; Genesis 2, verse 18; Genesis 2–3; Isaiah 64, verse 6; Mark 2, verses 1–12; Mark 6, verse 7; John 11, verse 16; John 11, verses 33–35; John 14, verse 6; John 21, verses 1–14; Acts 17, verses 26–27; Romans 8, verse 26 Want to watch the Lost Episodes of Unashamed, only on EKKL? Get 20% off with code UNASHAMED (all caps), and watch faith- and family-friendly movies, podcasts, and more: https://ekkl.com/ “Unashamed” Episode 1396 is sponsored by: https://fastgrowingtrees.com — Get 20% your first purchase when using the code UNASHAMED at checkout. Get 15% off OneSkin with the code UNASHAMED at https://www.oneskin.co/unashamed #oneskinpod Taking care of your health just got easier – start here with Zocdoc: https://zocdoc.com/UNASHAMED #sponsored http://unashamedforhillsdale.com/ — Sign up now for free, and join the Unashamed hosts every Friday for Unashamed Academy Powered by Hillsdale College Check out At Home with Phil Robertson, nearly 800 episodes of Phil's unfiltered wisdom, humor, and biblical truth, available for free for the first time! Get it on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, and anywhere you listen to podcasts! https://open.spotify.com/show/3LY8eJ4ZBZHmsImGoDNK2l Listen to Not Yet Now with Zach Dasher on Apple, Spotify, iHeart, or anywhere you get podcasts. Chapters 00:00 Dr. Pimple Popper 04:48 Phil’s Extreme Version of “Gentle Parenting” 08:07 Jase Heads to an Unlikely Gathering 14:35 Deer Crash Jase’s Outdoor Gospel Message 18:13 Christians Living “Behind Enemy Lines” 26:38 Gen Z, Atheism & the New Hunger for Faith 32:40 Why Men Need More Than Just “Dudes” 39:03 Building Your Foxhole Before Life Falls Apart 42:15 What Churches Get Wrong About Men 49:19 Even Jesus Had an Inner Circle — Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I am Unashamed. What about you? Welcome back to Unashamed. I think it's disgusting. Anyone that likes to pop pimples, I think that's gross. And Jill, my wife likes it. We're trying to start the podcast.

We're not starting off with pimple pop. We already started. I just had two sis cut out of my back. Does that count? I mean... I had one cut out of my leg. Oh, that's right. Yeah.

So, but there's entire television shows where it's like Pimple Doctor or Pimple Pop. pro doctor or something like that and that's their entire thing does it gross you out though does it doesn't it grosses you out that the people want to get i'm like i'm like i don't like i think it graces me out more that there are people that like to watch it as opposed to like me watching it's a little bit like you know voyeuristic but like my nurse practitioner who cut mine out she she said she said well i kind of liked it because you know they go and cut the whole sack out and but asa her nurse he's like oh you know it's it's his job so he has to do it he's gonna stop watching tv 10 12 years ago The very point you're making.

I can just send you clips if you were. You know what paid the way for that kind of content was Duck Dynasty, and from there, and they started to. They said once we made TV crass, that was it. That was you, Jay. You started it.

Easy. We made good, wholesome TV. That is true. The spirit of Andy Griffith. That's what I agree. Because they had the son and the Aunt B. Well, you got Aunt B, Ms. Kay.

You got Andy and you got Dad, and then you got Barney and you got Cy. So all the main characters Check, check, check. I'm saying, Wholesome TV. You got Mount Man and Otis the drunk. It comes along ever, you know, a couple of decades.

It's a generational show, yeah. But I'm saying. So we got Kyle Thompson with us today of Undaunted Life and Daily Blade. Welcome back, Kyle. And by the way, before we get too deep into the weeds on this podcast, I just want to remind everybody that if you don't like the ads here, remember we have the ad-free version of this podcast. at Echall.com. That's EKK.com. It's more than just a streaming service. This is something that

Willie and Corey and I started because we were just really convicted that we wanted to create a platform where you could have content that was, you know, faith and family friendly. We got movies, series, podcast, daily devotionals, kids content, member perks, a lot more coming soon. And it's the only place that you can get every new episode of the Unashamed podcast, ad free. We also have something really special for you guys, have been telling you about the first 12 episodes ever recorded of Unashamed that Phil recorded by himself on the first week. I think, Al, you're on it. Jace is a part of one of those.

We've never released these publicly, and we're sharing them all on ECHL. So go to ECHL.com and check it out. You get 20% off a one-year subscription with Code Unashamed. That's EKK.com. Code Unashamed, get 20% off a year subscription. Tell us what you think about these lost episodes, the original family origin story of the Unashamed podcast. So you guys check it out.

It's always good to be here every summer. We should probably pick a time when it's not a billion degrees because I go from a billion degrees in Oklahoma to like swampy billion degrees. Yeah, because it's not an improvement. Your temps are higher up there. But once you come into the humidity, it's a whole not. And you went to Baton Rouge on this little run as well. Yeah, and I'd never been down there. But, yeah, I was speaking there the day before I spoke with you in an event in Monroe yesterday.

And I had someone to say something interesting that I didn't really think about Baton Rouge. This guy, he goes, Baton Rouge has the best food in the world. And I was like, okay, well, explain. He goes, well, because you have this convergence of all the rednecks from northern Louisiana that know how to cook stuff. Yeah. And then you got the Asian people coming from this area and the Creole people coming from this area. And there's one area of overlap, right? And it's right there in Baton Rouge.

And like I say, everything I had while I was there, I think he might be on to something because it was a convergence of stuff that we don't really get a whole lot in Oklahoma. I've said what you just said hundreds of times. Yeah. He probably stole it from you then. This is the place where cuisine just melded together into the ultimate experience. Yeah, I thought it was tremendous and then came up here and now we're doing this again. Yeah. And so every other reason in Louisiana is a reason to leave.

Yeah. But that one will see you through. Because you may be pouring sweat. There's things attacking you from everything conceivable. But you think, if I survive, we fixed to eat good. This is like the outback of America. Because like if you go to the outback in Australia, it's like nothing wants you to be alive out there.

No, everything wants to hurt you. But my wife, I told her, I'm like, I got three, three and a half hour drive from Baton Rouge to, you know, northeastern Louisiana. She's like, that doesn't seem like it's going to be a very scenic drive. And I was like, yeah, it's not, it was not terribly scenic. At one point, I saw a sign from Mississippi, and I thought I was heading the wrong direction.

But no, it was a, you had to go through Mississippi to get to the main. Even our criminals operate different. You don't have to have a dead body and then go hide it. You just take them out there alive. and drop them off and take up. They'll never survive. Our prison, our prison, the only wall is when you drive into it, but all the back end of it, there's no walls.

You're talking about Angola? Yeah, Angola, because it's totally protected by the swamp. And so about every 20 years, a couple of them will try it, and it's the worst thing they ever tried. It just never worked. You can't get through that swamp. Look, my dad dropped me off when I was a kid one time, and it was eight, he wanted me to meet him eight miles somewhere.

through the woods i mean it wasn't that little but i was a kid i mean and he's like if you survive and we meet up you will officially be a man capable of living in louisiana i just thought because he wanted me to meet him eight miles through the woods that was his version of throwing somebody out of the boat and saying i hope you can swim i thought so so this he wasn't a gentle parent her. He didn't do gentle parenting. I was telling you what happened. And he's like, you don't talk about this later? Like at some point, like when you were an adult, like, hey, did you, did you know that was like the easiest track? I could have gone down because it could have gone south pretty quick. It was an unresolved issue because I was scared. I never brought

it up again, but I made it. It took longer than it should. He's like, where are you been? I mean, it began in a wonder. But yeah, that happened. So I'm thankful. So I'm thankful. for it now. What's the worst thing that can happen to you? Well, you could not, which is good motivation for following Jesus.

It does tend to make you be a little more independent when you start out that way. I'll give him that. He probably just did his little sneering laugh and then that was it. That's what's usually

happens. Well, I had a top five most interesting events yesterday. And look, it was, we talk about heaven and earth coming together a lot on this podcast.

Because where I was yesterday, the high was 65. But since I spoke at 7 o'clock in the morning, I would say it was more like 60. 60 degrees. That had to feel like heaven for us right now. With a little light breeze.

And I was outside. You're speaking outside. I spoke outside. I saw the picture. I showed you a picture because I didn't want to embellish how many people were there. But when I walked out from a little building that I was in, I was stunned because it was 7 o'clock on the nose

that there was not one seat in that pavilion. It was like an outside pavilion. If you look at it, y'all's first response when he looks at pictures, it looks like, where'd you go at NASCAR race? It's just imagined. It's like a dirt track or something. Is this just woods and fields as far as you can see in every direction, but real beautiful, a lot of vegetation and real green.

So this was southern Illinois? I was in a town called Sparta, Illinois, population about 4,000. And I met half of, pretty sure. And this guy, because I don't know where I'm going. We make these events and I'm talking it over with Aunt Bonnie on the way, trying to figure out now where are we going? Now what is this?

And she said, this is unusual. This will be very unusual. there's a guy he's an older gentleman she said i think he's older he talks older and i'm like what if he's like 25 but he talks that way we talked about coming up with a te that'd be a tv show yeah if you're talking to a guy on the phone and you think he's 80 but he's 26 i was like that's good tv but anyway no he was elder elderly gentleman and i'm soft-spoken and uh he had he had had been a uh trap shooter or is and he had gone around to these kind of circuits where people,

this is something that happens in America, you know. Oh, my own neighbor in Gold Shores is one of those guys. He goes and shoots. He's a professional shooter. Well, this is the world's largest, what are we going to call this, area designated for trap shooting. What's fascinating is it's in a state that has the most... Strict gun laws.

Strait gun laws. And it's named Sparta. You know, I was thinking I was going to see statues of, Leonidas, you know, and spears and 300. What's the maneuver they do, the 300? The phalanx, man, you know? Yeah, that big turtle shell thing that moves along. Yeah, with the phalanx way you're out there.

This was one red light, one hotel that we got the last two rooms in. And, because I walked in the hotel. They liked the video poker up there. They have that in your hotel. No, I don't think so. But anyway, this guy basically had been doing this for years. and he's like these people the salt of the earth and what this competition was was like for the kids and teenagers division it was a competition but they had this goes on for weeks and this was the preliminary

week and he said you know i've been a believer in jesus since i was young and i just i missed because when you kind of get on this circuit where you're doing this on the weekends and he's like i always wanted like a we need to have a a church service of some way i mean because it's beautiful the the backdrop and you got kids here and all these families and they're good people and but he said you know the way it's so rigorously planned you'd have to do it real early in the morning that's why i said it was from seven to eight and uh he thought but i don't want to embarrass myself and try to do this if they don't show up because a lot of these people are in r vs and they're just traveling he's like i got to have a draw and so somebody

recommended me. And so he went with it. And of course, this thing is kind of the government's involved in that, because they own this property. And so he's like, what are we going to have security? This was just a dream of his. But the average temperature is not unlike Louisiana in the summertime. It's usually 90 to 100 degrees.

But there's a little front come through because it cooled out here a little bit. Yeah. 60 degrees. Yeah. Cool weather. So I'm kind of proud of this, but I have taken on. the most ambitious landscape project of my lifetime. I'm telling you, fast-growing trees is a place to go. You guys also did some pretty big projects. I did. I did three trees. And Missy was all giddy about it and bragging on my, you know, my skill set. So thank you fast-growing trees for making me look like an expert.

We had three we were placed in our flower bed, which was really great. And I still got down here at the southern layer of my lime tree from like two years ago that's producing lime. So it's been a great thing for us to. Fast-creen trees is America's largest and most trusted online nursery with thousands of trees and plants and over 2 million happy customers. All you've got to do is just click, order, and you're good to grow. Plus, everything is backed by their alive and thrive guarantee. So everything arrives happy, healthy, and ready to plant. And if you get stuck, well, their plant experts can help you with planting, planning, and caring for your trees seven days a week. Like we said, it's super easy to do it.

It's a lot cheaper than hiring a landscaper. And right now they have great deals on planting essentials up to half off on some. elect plants. And listeners to our show get 20% off their first purchase when using the code Unashamed at checkout. That's an additional 20% off better plants and better growing at fast growing trees.com using the code Unashamed at checkout. Fastgrowing trees.com code Unashamed. Now's the perfect time to plant. Let's grow together. Use Unashamed to save today. Offer is valid for a limited time. Terms and conditions may apply. I get out there at 7 o'clock. I don't know where all these people came from because it's like

It's 7 o'clock in the morning. The competition doesn't start until like 9. And I know a lot of people from the town. I'm just one of the locals, yeah. And even... I mean, Jace, you're kind of a big deal. Multiple people came up to me after because we did a meet and greet. And they said, did you realize that about five minutes in your speech,

there were herds of deer coming up behind you? And I said, you didn't hear that voice? And they were looking, because so many people asked me about the deer in the meat and greet. And you were just talking, you never looked back. I said, you didn't have the voice? And they're like, what voice? I said, God said, cue the deer. Somebody had gotten a picture of that.

I had, I was like, somebody had to be taking pictures of it. It was one of, it was so weird because it was July, and I was almost cold. And all these people were just, when I walked up, they were just motionless. So my first line was, I said, Now, isn't it something? Here we are in Illinois. Sparta. I said it like that because it has that connotation.

And I said, we're living in a country where we have the right to bear arms. That place erupted. You got to know your audience. That's right. And then I told my joke. I said, well, let me get something straight. If you shoot at me, you better not miss. They all laugh.

I don't know why that was funny. because they don't miss. They understand, yep. They don't miss. And I had clarity yesterday. I felt like that I usually don't have because I don't have notes and you couldn't have notes. I was just standing there in the backdrop of the wilderness in God's creation and all these people. Where they came from, I don't know.

If you build it, they'll come. And I just shared Jesus. And it was one of the best crowds I've ever seen just as far as engaging, laughing. getting teared up, moving, and just it was powerful. And this guy that put all this together, I mean, I realized in the course of this event, this was a dream of his, that in his life, he wanted to, he wanted to have this as an opportunity at one of these events. A crowd of people, he thought Jesus needs to be brought up.

And he said, some of you, he told me, said, some of this was a result of a guilty conscience, because a lot of times I'd be out doing this, and I was thinking, what am I doing? I'm missing worshiping together with God's people. I'm missing my kids and my wife. And he said, and he got kind of choked up about it. And he thought, I just think we need to motivate these people, because this is a good thing, and these are good people, and we're doing something noble.

He said, but I think just we need to take a time out and make sure we have what this is all about. Yeah. And that's why I want you to be. I just thought it was incredible, and the guy pulled it off. Well, I told you, before we came on air, I told you that there must be something going on in Illinois because I look back. I kept finding myself there. And so I looked back all over our schedule.

I was like, how many times have been? And we're averaging three times a year in Illinois, including this year. And I got one coming up. And, of course, I'm like, you guys, you get an audience pretty quickly. And the last time I was there was at a church called the pasture, and it's literally out in the middle of a pasture. They started meeting there during COVID, 12 people. because, you know, they were told they can't meet. So they said, we're going out in the middle of a pasture of meat.

Now there were 1,200 at this place. And this was just six years later. And so just salt to the earth people. So I'd been there the whole day before, at least I'd do in a marriage thing. And then I spoke the next morning. And so I was like, Jace, you learn your audience pretty quickly. So I said, I'm here to make, as I started in my sermon, I'm here to make a declaration today. I said, look, I'm from Louisiana.

I could be wrong about this declaration. but I'm going to say it anyway. I am declaring that Illinois is a red state with just a blue dot sitting on top of it. But you are red state people. And when I said that, it was just like there's a response you got. Because that's the way they feel.

They're like under the tyranny of Chicago and Springfield, but like the rest of the state is like just like you were being an Oklahoma or Louisiana. When I was talking to, I've got somebody, so Victor Marx is a buddy of mine. He's running for governor in the state of Colorado. and, you know, if you look at any of the markets or any of the people that are like, you know, taking bets on something like that, it doesn't look like he has a tremendous odds to win,

but he was dead in the water when he announced his campaign to even represent the Republican Party. But when you talk to the people of Colorado, they're like, look, we understand what happens in Denver and Boulder basically controls the rest of the state. But then these other people, you have to have a mentality of somebody that's going to come in and kind of kick the door in a little bit, in a polite way. Yeah. But it's like, look, people in these areas don't understand what's happening with the rest of the folks and the rest of the state. But then you are dealing with the population and equity when it comes to voting. Right. So that one dot in Illinois, it does have such a, it casts such a tremendous shadow that it's hard for other people to do what they need to do. But then you get to operate as somebody that's like behind enemy lines. It's like when Christians live in New York or New Jersey or California or near Portland, Seattle, those types of areas. And, you know, other people will ask pastors or preachers or church planners in those areas. I just talk to a church planner that has a church in Boulder where, like, you know, it's where

churches go to die, essentially. It's like you have to operate thinking differently because you're not surrounded by people that are at least tangentially Christian. Because in Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, like I talk about country music theology. It's like, okay, well, mom and dad were good Christians. I went to church every now and then. I got baptized. You know, I vote Republican.

I have an American flag outside my house. And every time I listen to music, it's 90s country. and God likes all that stuff so I get to go to heaven when I die. It's like, well, no, you're a depraved, blackhearted center regardless of what soil you were born into. But it kind of takes away the veneer of Christianity when you're in a place that seems to just hate God with anything and everything they do

all the way down to the type of legislation that they allow to come through. And so in a lot of ways, you know, my buddy Matt Chandler says this. Being a pastor in Dallas is way harder than being a pastor in, you know, Portland, because everyone down here already thinks they're saved because they're from Texas. And so it's like, it's kind of that, that same ideology.

So, I mean, so that's where it becomes an opportunity. So some people are there lamenting their circumstances. I was like, no, you have a tremendously ripe opportunity to spread the gospel. Oh, yeah. And I like what you said about the behind-in-mey lines. That's the way I feel about it. That's why I always go, because I feel like you're like aiding the resistance. You know, back during World War II, and you knew there were people working under occupation,

and you want to help those folks as much as you can. It just feel like that even by showing up, it just they feel bad. better about it. I had something happen on the way to this trip that you made me think this. I probably should have lived with this, but about where you're at in the country. And, you know, I think about that verse which I read in my speech, in Acts 17, that God determines the times and the set places where we should live so that we would reach out for him and seek him. But I had something real interesting. This has never happened to me before. And I'm getting the older in years. So this was quite profound.

found. So when I'm going first flight from Monroe to Dallas, so I went Monroe, Dallas, St. Louis, and then we drove the Sparta. Monroe to Dallas, there's guys sitting behind me in the plane. We never spoke. I'm sitting there doing my thing. He's doing here. And I was on the little. It's a little plane. You know, when you leave Monroe, you only have, there's one seat on one side. So we're in a single seat. He's behind me. And it's early. So nobody's making much conversation because usually, you know, I'm talking to somebody. And as soon as we landed, I, no, as soon as I was getting it, so we landed, we pulled in, I took my seatbelt off and, you know, I'm ready to get up.

He says, I know who you are. And so I turned around. Great introduction. First line, I know who you are. And he said, he got a little choked up. We have had no conversation. I have not made eye contact. Got a little choked up.

He said, I've been sitting here thinking that whole flight, what are the odds that I married a girl from West Monroe? I'm from Lafayette. He had a little accent. And he said, I've been wrestling with a lot of things and about my faith and different things, what are the odds that I'm sitting right behind you? I did not know what to say.

He said, I mean, we could write a book over the circumstances that have happened in my life the last year to get me right here. This is at the end of the flight. This is at the end of the flight. Look, we're now leap. We're walking. I'm walking. We're out of the plane now.

convert he's doing most of the talking yeah so we walk out to the dallas airport y'all been to the dallas airport yeah yeah we're not we just got engulfed and do hundreds of people you're right in the flow crowded than normal yeah and so we're still walking i'll look up see aunt bonnie because she's meeting me and she's looking because this guy's just just breathing down my neck and i think she thought in the moment he needs rescue yeah it's kind of interesting that most men They like to take care of things, right? We talk about taking care of our yards, taking care of our vehicles, looking after our kids. But, you know, we don't talk a lot about taking care of ourselves.

We just kind of figure where we're men. But we should. One Skin was created by four skin longevity scientists who wanted to address aging at its source. This team spent year studying more than 900 peptides before developing OS1, a proprietary peptide that's the foundation of every one-skin product designed to address visible skin aging. With regular use, it can help skin look smoother, more even, and visibly reduce fine lines. I've been using this product now since probably for about three months. I used to do it, you know, once in the morning and at night, and they've got some for under the, I get the bags under the eyes and my sinuses, you know, this is constant expansion. And so

it's really made a difference. I can definitely tell it's worked. It's born from over 10 years of longevity research, OneSkin is helping you unlock your healthiest skin now and as you age. For a limited time, try one skin with 15% off using code unashamed at OneSkin.com slash unashamed. That's 15% off OneSkin.com with the code Unashamed. After you purchase, I ask you where you heard about them, please support our show and tell them that we sent you. And he said, Mr. Jace, which he looked at my age, but he said, I need to give him a lot to Jesus, and I want to start that right now.

Let's go. And I'm asking you, you know, I need you to pray for me. Where do I, where are we going from here? Because I'm looking around like, I'm headed to Spartan, Illinois. Unless you want to go with me. I just took my hat off. He took his hat off, and I grabbed a hotel and we had a prayer. With just people literally bumping into us coming up.

It's like a salmon going upstream. Both sides of us. And man, it was moving. Of course, he was moved. Yeah. And so I looked around, I saw a buddy that he used to play cards with who's come to the Lord. He's looking at me wild-eyed. And I'm like, I'll tell you later.

But, and then I got with Bonnie. She's like, what was all that about? I was like, it was basically a guy coming to Jesus, and I never said a word. Yeah. He just, he had heard the story of Jesus. You know, what he took it was, Chase. He's been battling this. He's obviously heard the message of Jesus.

The sign he was looking for was sitting by and you. I mean, for whatever reason, we would look at that and say it doesn't make any sense. But for him, because he was coming in the middle of a conversation to you that he was having in here. Exactly. That's what it was. So he's having this thing. He's like, all this stuff had happened and it leaves him here and he looks up. He knows, I guess, your reputation or he's heard you or whatever.

And he's like, okay, God, it's time for me. So I think that's ultimately the point, which is, the Robertson family now has a gospel legacy. You said this last night in your speech, he showed the picture from the last night of filming of Duck Dynasty, what, 2017, so four generations of family all in one picture. And then you go back to the picture

of your dad and Ms. Kay holding you. Me and Jays. Yeah, you two. And it's like that, if you had told that family then, when your dad's running a bar, you know, rabble-rousing, you know, causing, you know, mayhem, was going to lead to the photo in 2017.

Like, nobody's taking that. bet, but just the fact that he knew that y'all had a gospel legacy, that he knew he could come to you and he didn't have to explain the circumstances as to why he felt like you were put there because the number of people I've talked to you guys that think there's something happening that we can't explain. And we don't know if we can call a revival. You don't really know it's a revival while you're experiencing it. You can only kind of look back and say, okay, that was clearly what was happening. But Robbie Gallagher, who spoke with us last night, pastor out of Nashville, he said the same thing. And it's, we're only,

the heels of what everyone tried to do in the early 2000s when everything was dominated by the four horsemen of new atheism so sam harris daniel dennett richard okins uh the fourth guy i can't remember and everyone tried to christopher hitchins thank you everyone tried to make that their worldview so they tried to live some sort of like pseudo morality yeah but with no nothing to undergird that morality so it's like having your feet planted firmly in midair that's what it kind of felt like so people tried to work that out in their marriages, how they treated their employees, how they treated random people on the street. And they're like, oh, wait, there's no there there. And then now you have this confluence of two really interesting things. There's never been a more conservative

religious cohort of people studied in the United States than Gen Z males, young boys. There's also never been a more liberal, less religious cohort than Gen Z females. So what's, what's that going to do to the replacement rate and the birth rate here in this country? What's that going to do whenever these gals, the lowest two priorities they have on the list are family and marriage. And the top two priorities for these young men is family and marriage. But the voracious appetite that people have for the Bible now is so substantial because they tried the other stuff. They went, you know, the chemical route.

They went the, you know, your truth is your truth. Mine's my truth. And we'll just figure out morality later on. And they just realized, oh, this isn't a workable worldview. And so that's how somebody can get to a. place where they've tried the things. I don't know this guy's story, but he probably tried drinking, he probably tried, you know, stepping outside his marriage. He probably tried gambling. He probably tried all the stuff to fill whatever gap he had in his life. And then he realized

there's nothing there that I can do in a carnal way to fix what's wrong with me, finds out he's to some sort of idea. And then you sit down there and in that exact moment, he was probably imputed with the righteousness to Christ in that moment. You know what I mean? Like, there's not a magical prayer. At 36,000 feet. There's the, I've heard this term, Kyle, called nihilism-induced conversion. And we're seeing it here in the area. I live in the area that is a lot like Portland. Asheville's very liberal.

And there's a large new age community here. A lot of mystics, energy healers, like go down the list of however you want to define them. And what we've seen here, you just identified it, a lot of these guys came out. out of the new atheist movement from 20 years ago. They did that whole thing. They got to the end of it. Then they went into the new age spiritualism because the nihilism of just pure naturalism

that all that exists is the material world. No, God. There was no there there. They leave that. They go into the spiritualism, and they can't find it there either. But they're at least open to the spiritual, and we have seen countless people in our church

that have come to our church out of this community that have come to Christ, and it's because they got to the end of the secular promise that you're going to find wholeness here, and it did not deliver. Well, and the same thing. Like, look at what people were doing in the first century in Rome when they're sharing Christ with people. And again, some of these people were eyewitnesses to the resurrection, right? Some of these people are sharing Christ.

Well, a lot of the Roman people are like, oh, sure, we can add another God. Yeah, we got a bunch of them already, so let's just add Jesus. And then when you talk about the exclusivity of Jesus' truth claim, like, no, I'm not a way, a truth and a life. I am the way, the truth in the life. And Matt Chandler, again, he was saying something similar to that recently where he was talking. I think it was somebody in his church. And I'm trying to remember the story. But he said, hey, man, I'm going to pray for you.

And that guy goes, hey, I'm going to pray to. But hey, just so you know, like in our household, you know, we pray to, and then he names some Celtic goddess, right? Some pagan demon goddess or whatever. and he goes, my wife's actually a witch, but don't worry, don't worry, she's a white witch, she's not a black witch. And so, but we just, we pray to this deity. And so, like, you know, you pray to yours, I'll pray to mine, and we'll try to converge somewhere in the middle.

And so it's just kind of like, you're right, we have such a longing for the ethereal, for the otherworldly. And so we tried the nihilist part, which is like, everything is nothing. We're just highly evolved chimps. I figured out language pants and fire. And here we are in these communities doing our thing. So now they're like, okay, we have to attach to the spiritual in some, way. And you know who loves that plan? Satan. He's like, great. I got some spiritual stuff for you.

Here's some crystals. Do some say on stuff. Do some soft witchcraft. Like, you know, just pretend like it's no big deal because people have this overwhelming desire to serve a deity. And Lucifer knows exactly what that looks like and feels like because at some point when he was in, you know, the heavenly host, he was a worship leader of the heavenly host. He got tired of, as Jobi said, he got tired of being looked through and wanted to be looked to. And it was his pride that led to his downfall. But Now he's like, whatever I can do to confuse the brethren. Like, that's what I'm here for. Oh, yeah.

Yeah, it's very real. So last night, we spoke at a men's thing here. It wound up being, you know, it always works out this way, Kyle. So Kyle went first, and they had worship interspersed, and they had some testimonies. They were calling them Buck God testimonies, a little three or four minute testimonies. But it was a gathering about a thousand men. And then I did my testimony. And then there was, and then the last judge.

gentleman that you mentioned, which is name? Yeah, Robbie Gallag. He went last and he was great. But it was really interesting in the way it just kind of built into that, you know, challenge for the men at the end of it. It was funny, Jay's because when I came out, I didn't really notice because with Kyle was speaking, I'm standing up to the side. So when I come out, because I knew there was a lot of CR guys there because there were a lot

of groups of people that were there. I look right in front of this. I mean, literally five foot in front of me is all our CR guys, including Kurt Laidley, sitting right in the middle of it. Really? Yeah. And I was like, Kurt Laidlin, who's the Lord of Your Life? And he stood up and gave the big resounding Jesus, you know, so great. So Kyle talked about, I want you to talk about that a little bit today on the podcast. He talked about this idea of brotherhood, which I thought was really good, because you're speaking to men. And he went into the idea that you have to have

the pack. You know, you have to have the idea of people in your life. And so tell a little bit about that, because I want you to do that. you're on the podcast. Yeah, sometimes, you know, when you do these men's events, because I think we've all spoken at events where there's multiple speakers, sometimes there can be a little bit of a kind of an unspoken contest between people because they're like, well, I'm going to cover that verse and I'm going to cover this thing. And I was like, that's going to be dumb. I'm going to make sure I don't step on y'all's toes. So I called you and Robbie that week just to kind of get a feel like, and you're like, okay, I'm going to share my testimony, you know, share some stuff

from the film that you did about you and Lisa's life. Robbie told me he was going to be focusing on, you know, Genesis 2 and 3, really focusing on what a man is, what is, what is, you know, the things that God gave to man, the guy's responsibility. And I knew he was going to do an explicit gospel call. And so it's like one of my things that I do that's my bread and butter is talking about how men need a foxhole. Because I get some interesting DMs and emails, but one of the most heartbreaking ones is when I get guys that will reach out to me when they're having their dark night of the

soul moment, these could be believers, non-believers. So I got to determine is this an evangelistic conversation or is this a, you know, sanctification conversation. And then it hits me. The reason they're reaching out to some random podcasters are on the internet is because they don't have a local shepherd or group of elders that they're submitted to their authority. And they don't have guys that are like, and I describe it a million different ways, you know, foxhole guys, Matt Chandler says Kings table, Joby says Matt Carriers, guys, it'll pick up the corner of your mat, mat, a mark two, and the paralytic to get you to the feet of Jesus. So I'm at that age.

guys where it's it's time to get my first colonoscopy. I'm really excited about it. Yikes. Jace, you hadn't had, have you ever had one? Oh yeah, I did it once. Yeah. And wow. So, hey, it's that time of year. So I've got to get the first one and I'm excited about it because I get to use Zockdok-Bak, which today's episode is sponsored by Zock. Zok-Doc makes it easy to find and book an appointment with a doctor that you'll love. Zok-Docs. That's you search and compare local in-network doctors. They have more than 150,000 providers across the country that you can choose from. So whether you need a dermatologist, a dentist, primary care, eye doctor, you can search for what you need and find the right fit for you. Zocdoc's website has tons of reviews with real patients

and detailed doctor profiles to help you choose the right one for you. You can see real-time availability and you can book instantly no calls necessary, which was what I'm excited about, no waiting on hold, which I hate. And most appointments can be booked within 20. 24 to 72 hours and sometimes even same day. Plus, Zock Doc is free to use. Your health matters and taking care of yourself shouldn't be complicated. So find and book the right doctor with Zock Doc. Head on over to Zock.com slash Unashamed to get started

and check that appointment off your to-do list. That's ZOCDOC.com slash Unashamed. The ultimate concept is, is do you have men in your life that, you know, just love you enough to correct you, to make you uncomfortable, to yank you back onto the right path, to just be there and sit with you, like Godwin, you know, whenever you just need to vent and get the stuff out, they're just going to sit there and be in your presence. Because what guys settle for are fellas. They settle for dudes. They got dudes. They got dudes that they can duck hunt with. They got dudes that they can watch the fights with. They got dudes that they can play poker with. They got

dudes that they can do a golf trip with. They got dudes, right? But these aren't the people that are going to be there for you when the chips are down. They're with you because you're fun. They're with you because you got, you know, a nice truck. They're with you because, you know, sometimes you pick up the tab for dinner. These are not the people that are going to be there whenever things are going poorly for you. That 3 a.m., where the prayers you're putting out there, it's like, what you see in Romans where it's like it's the spirits having to intercede and pray for you because you have a groaning that's you know that words can't even describe and you know so many men they just lament that they don't have you know a guy or two that they can rely on and I don't do

well with lament I'm allergic to excuses and so when these guys say that I'm like well this is a you problem that you've created and so guess what there's a you solution right you can start to become one of these guys for other people, and you can start to attract some of these guys that are going to be that type of a person, a foxhole kind of a person. And that doesn't always mean it's going to be an even relationship or things like that. But the way I really end this talk is I talk about deposits and withdrawals. And I use an easy example. Like if you wait until you're 64 and a half and you run up to a financial advisor and say, hey, I'm ready to start saving for retirement. That financial advisor would do well to laugh at you and tell you to get on out of his office because you're

going to work until the day that you die you will never be able to retire because you didn't make the deposits along the way to where the withdraws would be possible the same exact thing happens when men and it could be any number of things your wife cheats on you you get you know your business partner kicks you out of your own business your one of your kids goes prodigal you get a bad diagnosis from the doctor pick your dark night of the soul right and when you have no one to call well some men get creative. So they're going to get creative and go to the bottle. They're going to get creative and, you know, take the pills.

They're going to get creative and they're going to try their favorite flavor of sin. And so I just really tell guys, I was like, you have to be depositing into other men's lives. You have to allow them to deposit into your life because you never know which one of you is going to have to take the withdrawal. And when you have a good enough or large enough group of people, any of those things that I said that could befall a human being or could happen? It's going to happen. it's going to happen to somebody and do you want to be the guy doing the the lone wolf American stiff upper lip thing that's going to be you like i just i can't stand it when guys do the lone wolf personality because it's like watch animal planet lone wolves always die alone even if they used to be the alpha they're going to starve to death frees to death or be killed by another animal and it's like and you've assumed that as part of your identity right part of your personality it's like it's foolish yeah i think that's funny you say that because we jason and i are part of a kind of a i don't know what you'd call it like a cohort of a group of men. It's a men's group that one of our friends invited us into. He's put together kind of this coaching thing. He's actually working with your guy, Victor Marks. So there's a

connection there. And I would say most people in that group are high functioning. Like they're doing a lot of stuff. And I know a lot of these guys and have known them for years. And I know them well. But it's kind of funny we got on our first meeting. And the vacuum of what you just said is real. A lot of those guys, even myself included, like there's, it's hard to find that and you have to, but you have to seek that out. And I was a little bit taken back by the fact that in that first meeting that we had, almost every guy in there was like, I need to connect with some men. I need to be known. I need some, I need, they didn't use the term foxhole, but that's essentially what they described. Well, you've built your entire life being insulated and you've built this persona where people have to rely on.

you because you signed the front of the checks, right? Yeah. You walk in the room and automatically people defer to you, right? And so you've built this environment of, hey, I don't need anybody, and then you lament that you don't have anybody. It's like, time out. Did you hear what you just described? Like, you set this up in this way because you wanted to seem more important than you are.

And what you've done is you've cut off any person that could potentially help you and save you. and the other thing about this is there are guys that will kind of dip their toe in the water of this thing, right? Zach, they'll kind of, oh, I'll join a group, I'll do this kind of thing, and then they might even deputize a guy or two to hold them accountable. And then the first time a man tries to hold him accountable,

they react an ego. Oh, you don't know the stress I've been under. You don't know my situation. You don't know my kids. You don't know my boss. You don't know all that. And what you've guaranteed is that that man will never do this again. Because if you deputize someone to correct you, whenever they risk those relational chips and put them in the center of the table because hey if a guy corrects another guy this could come to blows and that that's just something that you have to be okay

with when you push those chips into the center of the table and so when they go ahead and do that and you respond in ego you respond in flesh you respond in adam and not in christ well man like what are you doing you said you wanted this and then it was brought to your table and the first thing you did was resist and fight against it and so just for a lot of men out there again The way I describe it to people is if you build it, they might come. Right? So I kind of remix the field of dreams things. If you build it, they might come.

Because the church men's ministry model is do an event, hire some guy to come in to either make them laugh or yell at them or both. And then our number one thing is we're going to put you in a men's group. So we're going to assign you a number, your table number 11. There's a bunch of strangers that you've never done anything with. Y'all sit in a circle and pour your hearts out. It's like, well, that's how women's ministry works. So if we're going to do men's ministry, let's try to do it in a way that men do things.

So what I've started telling people now, you know, guys, is I've told churches, I've told pastors, men can't even be eligible for your men's ministry until they do X, Y, Z. Maybe it's a local mission trip. Maybe they're serving the widows and orphans of the community or the single moms. Maybe it's a discipleship class, like it's a six-week, eight-week thing that your church teaches where they show you, hey here's what we believe here's why we believe it here's how to read the bible here's how to you know apply that as the head of your household then you are eligible for a men's group then you are eligible for the men's retreat because now what you're doing is you're calling a man up to

something yeah you're not just saying hey come one come all because we're desperate like we need you to fill up these tables so that we can substantiate having a budget line item for men's ministry no focus on making your church man friendly and then focus on challenging them in because there's something in the heart of the man when it says, hey, you're not welcome here until you prove your metal, right? And we're going to do everything we can to get you to that table. But we just need you to have a little bit of buy-in. We need you to show up. We need you to, and then now you're shoulder to shoulder with other men, which is how men initially connect before they can earn the opportunity to be eyeball to eyeball. Yeah. And Zach, it was interesting because Robbie in his

lesson, because he was in Genesis, it sounded so much like what we, because we go to Genesis a lot on this podcast because that's the archetype, you know, that's the beginning. And he talked about man being put in that garden to work, man, the importance of work. And he spent a whole segment talking about that. I love what you just described because that's the idea of doing some, being productive is what men want to do. That's what we're built to do. And then he went into the whole idea of protection as well, because he said, you know, you got a talking snake. You got a talking snake in your house. We need to do something about this. You know, he was talking about the idea that Adam wasn't there to protect us. It was just really good. He was apathetic. I mean, Adam, if you look at Adam's role in that he was

he was the one that God gave the command, you can eat from any tree in the garden except for that one. And when Satan brings the lie to Eve, Eve wasn't the one that God even told that to. Adam was the one that advocated his responsibility. Right. You know, I think that goes back to that Genesis 128, that the, the purpose, the vocation of humanity is to be fruitful, multiply, you know, have dominion over the earth, cultivate it. And I think that That's why the devil attacks there. But that stat that you brought up at the beginning, Kyle, I find it encouraging. I mean, even though I know there's a tremendous gap between Gen Z males and females, I just believe if men are healthy in a society, then women will follow as well.

I think it starts with men not abdicating responsibility of what they've been called to do. So that's actually encouraging to me to even know that Gen Z is like, No, we're, Gen C. Males's right, we're going. It's a challenge to the women's ministries out there that the point of your ministry is not to tell women how beautiful they are. The point of your women's ministry is not to, you know, tell women it'll be okay and, you know, how big of a fan Jesus is of yours and like all these different things. It's to point out their depravity. That's why I get so annoyed when pastors will castigate men on Father's Day, right? call them out when the next 364 days of the year they're doing nothing to help with the discipleship or sanctification of these men but they love to castigate them on Father's Day and you know the women and everyone else yeah you get them and then on Mother's Day they float the women float out of church feeling like I've never sinned ever I am the best take me to lunch right and so it's that kind of idea is the way that you combine these young men that have such fervor for the Lord and such a desire for what's

happening in the scriptures and what they can glean from it is not to tell these women that you are perfect the way that you are you're perfect the way that god made you it's you're you're a depraved black-hearted sinner just like the rest of us you just have a slightly different presentation and so and your your your your flavor and chosen sins are going to be different than somebody else's but the sooner we can get women to deal with their own depravity and sin because it it manifests in a different ways guys because you know you you had the people stand up yesterday that you know that had anything to do with the school system from bus drivers to principals but you also had the homeschool mom stand up well one of my best buddies his wife has a gal that she's been trying to

share jesus with that lives in the neighborhood she's a homeschool mom this girl's never done anything wrong she was a straight a student she sat in the front of class she never drank she never smoked she didn't have sex until she got married like she she doesn't speed like she she is a model citizen right she's also a wretched depraved blackhearted sinner right who without the saving grace and the imputation of christ's righteousness has no hope of spending eternity near the father and so she's trying to help someone who doesn't believe that they're depraved that they are and it's a very difficult thing and the way to that woman's heart is not hey you're so pretty and hey you're good enough it's like no none of us are good enough and all of the good things you've done in your life

but filthy rags, which they would understand better than we would. But it's like, these are all fifthly rags before a holy and just Father God, and you have a sin debt that can only be paid in one way. And it's by you pastuowing, transferring your faith from yourself for your righteousness onto the finished work of Christ on the cross of Golgotha. And so I think that that's a very important thing for people to hear. Again, I'm kind of a get-to-the-point guy, but it's like the more we kind of pick around the edges, the less effective we're going to be.

because that's one thing I've heard y'all present the gospel a million different ways you don't present it by meandering your way and tiptoeing through the tulips eventually you just kind of have to get right at and say without Jesus you have nothing you have no hope right well it's like that event I did and I mean I have lone wolf tendencies when you brought that up but even in Genesis you know he said it's not good for a man to be alone which so when I first came to Christ I was like that means something you know and I know it was in the context of of Eve coming. Marriage. But when you think about Jesus choosing 12 disciples, that would ultimately be the mouthpiece, he goes to the right hand, and you see the fire lit from 11 of those 12 that would carry the gospel.

But there was a forging that happened. Remember you sent them two by two? So you know all that's important, which made me reach out and find Jesus-loving men. and pursue those relationships to become a part of that inner circle. Even the guy that pulled this event off, there was two other guys with him. And none of these three guys were dynamic personalities. But I just looked at what they pulled off in the spirit of trying to make a difference.

And I thought, this is pretty impressive. They get this many people to show up as little families. And so I wanted to share this because I looked at all these families because all these kids were in the competition. Well, they have their family there. And I thought, the reason they're doing this, they love this. It's the outdoors. It was beautiful. It was cool.

They're doing a competition. They're together in an RV. This is all beautiful as far as a family. And so the theme of my gospel presentation, which is obviously Jesus. and our sin problem and death. But I wanted to zero in on this experience that we were having that was awesome and joyful, just being out here. And so I read in chapter 21 when, you know,

Jesus' first thing he does, or one of the things he does, post-resurrection, is he gathered that group of men. After having this awesome experience catching 153 fish, not a messes broken. And I'm like, they're having, breakfast with a guy who was dead three days before. What do you think that did to them? What are they sitting there thinking?

Well, we know Peter was guilt-ridden, you know, because he had denied him. That's right. But that experience, and so I zeroed in on that. And I'm like, I know why y'all are here. This experience that you're having with your family is awesome. This is one of the things that makes America great. You're enjoying yourself.

You love your people. I said, but you're isolated from the big family. that Jesus came to rescue and desert. You want to do this forever? You want to have that breakfast experience? It's going to be done through Jesus. I just even highlighted on the event that we're experiencing and why they're here.

And I think that's why there was so many people there and God called them to be there. And it came from a little group of men who just thought, let's make this about the Lord Jesus instead of this awesome experience. A little group of faithful men that, I mean, so I want to double tap on something because you have lone wolf tendencies, so do I. I'm going to assume a lot of people in the audience, a lot of men in the audience kind of feel the same way.

But one of the ways I start out in my presentation is I say, the reason why I'm going to be talking about godly brotherhood tonight is because some of y'all think you're special. And you think that what I'm going to say tonight does not apply to you. and I intend to disabuse you of that notion, and I keep revisiting that same ideology throughout the presentation to remind you, hey, you don't think this applies to you. You don't think you need anybody. And then I use the example of Jesus at the Tomb of Lazarus,

where it gets to, you know, or Jesus wet, when you look at the language, he was snorting with anger. He was angry crying, right? You know, just tears, snot, like he was angry. He wasn't angry because he was confused. He knew what he was there to do. He knew what he was about to do.

But he was sorry. so angry at sin and death. And so he's in the darkest part of the valley of the shadow of death, right? He's in the darkest of the dark night of the soul in that moment, and his 12 were there with him, right? 11 of them who were, I guess, fervent followers and one that was just a hanger on. But in that exact moment, he had his guys with him. That's why I can't stand that. People call him doubting Thomas, because before they even go, Thomas is like, let us go with Jesus that we may die with him. That dude, you want to talk about Spartan?

That's a Spartan attitude for that kind of a guy. We call him Doubting Thomas. Well, I think he gets lost in even translation. Because you're like, we just take for granted. Jesus comes back and everybody's like, oh, I would be the guy that's like, I'm going to have to see. I need to see that. Show me the evidence.

And he's like, show me your hands. I don't think that's anything about doubting more than just this is, God does the impossible. you're right, Thomas has already showed his medal. Yeah. What he's saying is, I was ready to go to death with him, but now if he's come back, that's a whole other story. I've got to know about that. Yeah, it's kind of the Reagan was, a trust but verify kind of a thing.

That's kind of what he wanted to do. So that always struck me odd that that was his moniker, but it's like that just shows you, if you're a guy, you will get the nickname based on your worst day and your most embarrassing experience. I think we've all got that. But back to the main point of if Jesus needed 12 guys who go along, and even within his circle a guy's he had an inner circle yeah right that's right yeah three yeah three guys that it's like hey come come to the guard and pray with me right it's just please stay awake you dummies and so like you still have it's okay to have a larger group of guys because i've got a larger group of foxhole guys

a few dozen different guys that i can really rely on and then you've got those few guys where it's like you know more than you know that no matter what the circumstances are and we've had a few of those things come up in our relationship where you never thought you were going to have to to ask a guy to do this, but you already knew what the answer was. Because it's basically, they've already put their yes on the table. The only thing left is what's the question. And so even if you have that lone guy tendency and all that, just remember, animal planet, that zebra off by itself, that will be soft by itself. That's the one that's getting picked off. That's right. And you see that. Well, we're out of time. Kyle, it's always a pleasure having your own.

Undaunted life, daily blade is where you can find, and you and Joe, we do that together. Anything else you want to tell our audience? Anything else you got going on? No, I'm just, I try to mention it every time I come out here. The impact that y'all's legacy as a family has had on our ministry. So we do the forging table. It's a group of four guys around table going through the Bible. None of us are professional Christians unless we have a pastor come and help us do it.

You know, I got, you know, the gospel symbols Bible, and I make these for all my inner circle guys, and I give this to them. I make sure it's small enough to where it's easy to carry around. and it's like, oh, you have trouble sharing the gospel. All right, here you go. It's right there and a few like easy symbols. And so even if you don't have the whole thing memorized, but there is no undone it, honestly,

without the legacy of Phil Robertson and what he passed down to his sons and what y'all have continued to do in his absence from this world. And so I'm just truly grateful and indebted to all you guys. Thank you, brother. That means a lot. And we talked about, I'm probably going to do a guest stint on Dave Blade at some point

this next year, so we're excited about that. So thank you, Kyle. Safe travels. Thanks, guys. Thanks for listening to the Unashamed podcast. Help us out by leaving a rating and review on Apple Podcast. And don't miss an episode by subscribing on YouTube. And be sure to click the little bell and choose all notifications to watch every episode.