Lighthouse Faith

It’s one of the most mysterious books in the Bible… Revelation, the last and final book of the Holy Scriptures. It’s believed to be written by the Apostle John while in exile on the Greek Island of Patmos. There the resurrected Jesus appeared to him and brought to him the words of the book. Filled with prophecy and cryptic predictions about the end times and the coming apocalypse, Revelation is often misunderstood or misinterpreted. But in its opening salvo, are Christ’s words to Seven Churches, seven Christian communities residing in towns in what today is Turkey. The churches are Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. Filmmaker Tim Mahoney and his Patterns of Evidence company, takes a look at the messages to the seven churches to see what secrets they hold. On this episode of Lighthouse Faith podcast, Mahoney talks about his recently released documentary., The Seven Churches of Revelation: Times of Fire. It’s a deep dive into the warnings and words of hope to the early Christians living in a culture that has yet to accept them. They are struggling against the dominant political winds and it’s meant to help them stand strong, but also admonish them for their falling away. Mahoney says in that way Revelation is not just for the early Church, but for CHRISTIANs today, living under a dominant worldview of secular and pagan forces which they must strive to resist. What was true them is true today. And Revelation makes that clear.

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Without a body, and without direct DNA evidence, J. Warner Wallace has solved cold case murder cases that were decades old. His expertise in cracking some of the most baffling crimes, made him one of the most sought-after detectives. But then this one-time atheist turned his skills to investigating Jesus Christ. And what he found turned his life around. The result was his first book Cold Case Christianity, and an entire teaching ministry and website devoted to helping others discover what he was able to untangle about the most influential man in the history. On this episode of Lighthouse Faith podcast, Wallace talks about his new book Person of Interest: Why Jesus Still Matters in a World that Rejects the Bible. Once again, Wallace used his skills to discover how Jesus' appearance at a certain time in history, seems likely to be some part of a divine grand historical narrative, that even without leaning on the New Testament, any researcher could piece together the gospel using only today's art, music, literature, buildings, science and more. Wallace views each murder as an explosion. And just like every explosion there is a fuse of clues leading up to the blast. In the book, he weaves the investigation of a real, unsolved cold-case murder, with the investigation into the death of Jesus Christ. And for podcast listeners Wallace also turned his attention to the most talked about case today, the Gabby Petito murder. What should or shouldn't have investigators done in the case? Is there any other scenario by which Brian Laundrie is not the prime suspect? What are the clues in the fuse leading up to the moment when Gabby lost her life? Whether a crime is two thousand years old, or a few weeks old, there are always clues. And Wallace can find them

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They started out as two pastors who just wanted to make movies about faith in Jesus Christ, because the greatest story ever told, needed to reach more people. Alex and Stephen Kendrick now are well-established filmmakers whose movies have made millions of dollars and their message of the Gospel has transformed millions of lives. And they did it all without compromising their belief that Jesus "is the way the Truth and the life...". All that experience has helped them present their first documentary with all the pathos, passion, and power of seasoned professionals. Show Me the Father, takes a look at true stories of fatherhood that will leave audiences in gasped surprise. These stories have all the twists and turns of any fictional narrative, perhaps even more so. On this episode of Lighthouse Faith podcast, Alex and Stephen talk about the making of documentary as well as the tenth-year anniversary of their film Courageous, which is also about fatherhood. The re-release of the film features a re-edit that includes updates of the stories in the film; sort of a 'where are they now', addition. The importance of fathers and fatherhood is foundational to the Kendrick's lives, and, as they see it, to all our lives. Good fathers make a child's life happy, while bad fathers can make a child's life a living hell. But both films highlight that only God the Heavenly Father, offers the perfection and unconditional love that all hearts crave.

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Even two podcasts with scientist Dr. Michael Guillen isn't enough to explain the vastness of his discoveries involving Science and Christianity. Yes, science and Christianity. Not science and any other faith, but science and the religion founded by Jesus of Nazareth. When last I interviewed Guillen, who is a physicist, astronomer, and mathematician, he talked about how he came to faith in Jesus, and how the words of Jesus sounded a great deal like the uniqueness of quantum physics. His investigation into Christianity over a period of years forced him to shed his atheism and embrace the Risen Savior. On this episode of Lighthouse Faith podcast, Guillen takes a deeper dive into his new book "Believing is Seeing" to explain how when he compared essential features of science, Christianity and Atheism, Science and Christianity lined up almost as one; Atheism nothing. For example, Guillen asked, "Does absolute truth exist?" Science says "Yes." Christianity says, "Yes." Atheism says, "No." The scientific mind needs to know facts, yes. But then there are ways to understand those facts that require an SQ, a Spiritual Quotient. It's the difference between knowing honey is sweet, and actually having tasted honey. Experience completes the knowledge. If God is the behind the entire created order, we can certainly know about his creation through science. However, there's a wide chasm between knowing about God, and having an experience of His presence. Guillen takes us on that journey of discovery of God through science.

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A brush with death nearly a decade ago convinced Chrisitan author Lee Strobel that he needed to find out about this thing called Heaven that his faith promised he would go to once life left his body. The one-time atheist journalist- turned Christian, is known for his investigative skills in researching Christian beliefs. It was because of his skeptical approach to ferreting out the facts of the faith that he became a believer in Jesus Christ. His book, "The Case for Christ," is a best seller. Since then, he's written several books on the same theme to explore Christianity's claims. "The Case for a Creator," and "The Case for Miracles" are a couple more. But now his latest offering is, "The Case for Heaven." Strobel takes a hard look at this ethereal place asking, What is Heaven? Where is Heaven? Is Heaven a place or a state of mind? And what about Hell? The Bible talks about it being a place of fire and darkness where the Satan and his minions will suffer eternal damnation.  However, many theologians believe this 'fire and darkness' is only metaphor for the inner turmoil of being separated from God. On this episode of Lighthouse Faith podcast, Strobel talks about what he has uncovered in his interviews with experts. Plus, he searches for answers through science about the nature of the soul. What is the soul? Can it be separated from your body? What about reincarnation and cremation? Are they consistent with Jesus's teachings or opposed to them. And finally, could Near Death Experiences (NDR's) be the clue to telling us about heaven... and hell? Strobel explores how this heavily researched and documented phenomenon shows convincing proof that Heaven exists, and so does Hell.

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Romans 8:28 says "all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." Twenty years after the 9/11 terror attacks that murdered nearly three thousand people we are beginning to see 'the good' that God brought on that day. That someone like Christina Stanton, a regular New Yorker who ran for her life after the second plane came within 500 feet of her apartment balcony... would find a deeper, more real faith in Jesus Christ. That Peter Johansen, the director of Ferry Operations, would become God's agents in helping to rescue a half million people through a massive boat evacuation and how the two people who were strangers before 9/11, became friends. It was New York's version of Dunkirk, the mass evacuation of people stranded in what became a war zone on 9-11. The Coast Guard estimates 500 thousand people were taken off the Island in Lower Manhattan. The only way to New Jersey, or Staten Island or the closest ports of land, was by boat. It was the largest marine evacuation in history, surpassing Dunkirk, the rescue of Allied soldiers from the coast of France during World War II.  Sightseeing boats, catamarans, small boats, large boats, private boats. Johansen was the Senior Director of Ferry Operations for New York Waterway, when the attacks happened. The ferry boats normally handle 33,000 people a day. It wasn't enough on 9/11. The Coast Guard sent out a plea, "All available boats!" And they responded. The tugboats in Staten Island, Fishing boats in Sheepshead Bay, every boat was full, every run. People waited in line three or four hours. Stanton, her husband, and dog were also rescued. As she writes in her story, "We collapsed onto a bench... It felt so good to sit down. A wave of relief washed over me as we chugged away from the shore. After three hours of terror, we were off the island. We were alive." On this episode of Lighthouse Faith podcast, Stanton and Johansen talk about NYC's boat evacuation, and their part in the testament to the power of the 'good' that is in our hearts. That evil will fail, that good will prevail.

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There are about twelve thousand Christians in Afghanistan and most, if not all, fear for their safety now that U.S Forces have officially pulled out. But even though they’re a small minority, they are a brave lot, who even in the face if an impending Taliban takeover, changed the religion on their national identity cards to read, Christian, in a country where Islam is the only official religion. World Magazine’s Senior Editor Mindy Belz said it was because “They wanted something to pass on to their children and to other generations, they wanted not to just be secret people who disappeared when they died.” On this episode of Lighthouse Faith podcast, Belz talks about the dangers now faced by the Christians and religious minorities in Afghanistan. She has been in constant contact with the Afghan Church, whose members are mostly Muslim converts… some had even embraced Islamic extremist ideology. But now their standing up for Jesus could cost them dearly. Many tried and did escape before U.S. Forces left, but many did not. And now their act of fealty to their faith could prove tragic. Because now those government cards are in the hands of the Taliban, who’ve been systematically going door to door hunting down American allies… and Christians. Find out how these Christians may hold the key to a better Afghanistan. They are the seed of the Gospel, which Jesus said even the gates of hell could not destroy. 

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Historians agree, there was a dark side to Karl Marx, the German born founding father of Communism and Socialism. But did he actually worship the devil? Was he possessed? He wrote in a poem, “Thus Heaven I've forfeited, I know it full well… my soul, once true to God, is chosen for Hell." On this episode of Lighthouse Faith podcast, best-selling author Dr. Paul Kengor talks about his book, "The Devil and Karl Marx". In it he uncovers the sinister soul of the man whose writings and economic philosophies, have helped formed totalitarian, atheist governments like Soviet Russia, Communist China and others... murderous regimes that are responsible for the deaths of over a 100 million people in the 20th century alone. And what should disturb us, is that Marxism is behind the philosophies of our modern-day cultural movements like Critical Race Theory, Critical Social Justice, and Black Lives Matter. Kengor quotes Marx's biographer Robert Payne who wrote, "There were times when Marx seemed to be possessed by demons. He had the devil's view of the world and the devil's malignity. Sometimes Marx seemed to know that he was accomplishing works of evil."  Marx was certainly no angel, but Kengor says it's odd that movements like BLM should look to a man who was a racist and misogynist for guidance; a man who wanted to destroy all norms like the family and personal property. He believes that if the founders of these movements understood Marx, they would really see how, "the Devil is in the details."

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Today, the city of Hebron in the Middle East is rife with modern day political conflicts between Arabs and Jews. But its ancient history should give us all pause to remember that we are brothers and sisters,  one race... the human race. Nearly four thousand years ago the patriarch Abraham purchased a plot of land there to bury his beloved wife Sarah. Years later, his two sons, Isaac and Ishmael, who had once been estranged, buried their father in that same cave. The Bible tells us that Jews and Christians are descended from Isaac, while Arabs from Ishmael. Two thousand years ago, King Herod built over the burial cave a magnificent structure known as The Tomb of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs. It is still there today and holds many secrets and mysteries of kinship of all peoples. The Jewish mystical writings of Kabbalah, says the cave under the tomb is also the burial site of Adam and Eve, the parents of all humanity. On this episode of Lighthouse Faith podcast, Yishai Fleisher, spokesperson for the Jewish Community in Hebron, unearths some of the secrets of the Tomb.... and why it is an important site for unity, in a city that has seen so much strife.

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Those who serve our country protecting its freedoms, oftentimes sacrifice more than just their lives. They come home physically and emotionally wounded. Though heroics are often the battle cry of warfare, the hurting of the soul in the aftermath is a reality they face alone. Enter Chad Robichaux. He almost became a statistic of the high suicide rate among veterans suffering from Post Traumatic Stress. As a Force Recon Marine, he served eight deployments in Afghanistan. Although trained to take on the enemy using advanced battle tactics and brute strength, he was ill prepared to face an adversary he could not see, hear, or touch. His strength as a Martial Arts Champion and a black belt in Jui Jitsu, could not defeat the enemy that lie within: depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts. He alienated his family, suffered depression, and nearly destroyed every relationship he had because he didn't have the arsenal for spiritual warfare. But then he had hope. And that hope came not from strength but from weakness... from submitting himself to God's power to heal. And that is the victory he shares with other veterans through his Mighty Oaks Foundation. On this episode of Lighthouse Faith podcast, Robichaux talks about this journey with God and his book An Unfair Advantage: Victory in the Midst of Battle, soon to be made into a movie.. He's dedicated the book to men, to "challenge and inspire them to rise up and be the warriors God created them to be." Spiritual warriors, able to claim victory over the enemy within.

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