Newsmakers

A massive gathering of Christians across California this weekend reportedly broke a record when participants collectively held what could be the nation's largest-ever baptism. Baptize California, an event that unfolded Saturday and Sunday at various locations throughout the Golden State, saw a historic number of people immersed at individual churches and during a main-stage event at Huntington Beach.

The two-day extravaganza, showcasing countless examples of life change and spiritual renewal, featured speakers, worship music from leaders like Sean Feucht, and more. According to preliminary numbers, there were over 6,000 people baptized at the Huntington Beach location, alone, with an additional 6,000 people immersed in churches across the state. "You can smell another Great Awakening in the air like rain before it hits," Pastor Mark Francey, who founded the event, told CBN News. "God lit a match yesterday! If God can do this in the church in California, it can — and it will — happen in the rest of America!"

He's been planning Baptize California, a follow-up event that would rally the entire state in hopes of seeing God work in an incredible way — and, based on the initial projections, his efforts paid off. "My wife, Rachelle, and I could hardly sleep thinking about how God could be so kind to let us be a part of the largest baptism in the history of America," Francey said, expressing his elation over how the event took form. "We are proof that God really can use anybody."

The pastor said this year's event was massive, crediting God for bringing it all together. "It was a surreal and extraordinary day!" Francey told CBN News. "[It] felt like we were living in the pages of the books of Acts!" And the individual stories coming from Baptize California are truly incredible. Francey shared just one such story, telling CBN News how a Satanist accepted Jesus and "immediately got water baptized." "You could see the change immediately," he said.

The preacher said 1,000 people accepted Jesus at Huntington Beach, with thousands coming to watch the event unfold. "[The] crowd steadily swelled to — at one point — as much as 14,000," Francey said. "Hundreds of churches linked arms to accomplish what happened." 

Rachel Goldberg is on a non-stop mission to bring her son home from captivity, spending the past seven months in a valiant, heart-wrenching, and inspiring quest to rescue him from the grips of terror. Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, was captured by Hamas Oct. 7, while attending the Nova music festival. And since that day, his mother has fiercely fought for his safe return, with her courageous advocacy landing her a place on Time's "100 Most Influential People of 2024" list.

Most recently, Goldberg has spoken out about Hamas' decision to release an April 24 video of her son — footage that shows him alive at the time of its recording. The video was the first visible sign since the Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel that Hersh was still alive. "It was a very surreal experience," Goldberg-Polin told CBN News of the clip. "After 201 days, to suddenly hear Hersh's voice was just unbelievable, indescribable, and to see him moving."

However, she also described the difficulty in seeing the obvious health impact of Hersh's capture and captivity. Seeing her vibrant son before Oct. 7 juxtaposed against the video was tough. "It was very hard to see he's clearly in a very fragile medical and compromised medical state," she said. "It was the first time that we're seeing him with the stump of what used to be his left forearm and hand." Despite Hersh losing his arm, having signs of bruising, and being without proper medical treatment for months, Goldberg-Polin said she was elated to have "proof of life" and to be able to celebrate that fact.

"We were extremely grateful, even though it was hard," she said. When Goldberg-Polin was asked what has kept her so vocal and persistent in recent months, as she's commanded audiences with politicians, religious leaders, and others, she said it's really a "reflexive" response on the part of any parent in her position. "A lot of it is, I think, simply the natural response that a mother or a father has when their child is in danger," she said.

Goldberg-Polin also credited prayer as a centering act and something she does "throughout the day" in addition to reciting Psalms. "That is of great comfort to us," she said, expressing gratitude to the people all over the world who have reached out to pray. Our Christian friends and neighbors have been above and beyond exemplary in terms of their outpouring of love, support, and prayer for Hersh and the other hostages."

Amid all of the noise and debate surrounding Israel, Gaza, and the war that followed Hamas' terror, Goldberg-Polin encouraged people to remember the plight of those captured. 

Taya Kyle lived a nightmare on February 2, 2013, when her husband, Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, and his friend, Chad Littlefield, were murdered at a Texas gun range by a former marine they were trying to help. The loving wife and mom of two has bravely shared her family's story and has worked diligently over the years to inspire others to process through and navigate their pain. Her latest project, "Prayers for Bears: Bailey the Grateful Bear" is a children's book that reflects her family's story.

"We're about 11 years out of Chris's murder — just over 11 years," Kyle told CBN News, explaining how she has had to focus on gratitude over the years to navigate such profound loss. "When he first was killed, I remember talking to a friend of mine, saying, 'I don't know how I'm going to afford our house.'" But her friend assured her she would always have a roof over her head and food to eat. That encouraging friend reminded Kyle there are people who love and care about the family.

In the end, this advice was proven true despite the difficulties the family faced. That reminder has helped Kyle and her children, Colton, 19, and McKenna, 18, refocus on thankfulness. "My kids and I pick that up and we pray that, even to this day of," Kyle said. "Just, 'Thank you, God, for the roof over our head and the food to eat it.'" She continued, "Those are blessings. And even if it doesn't negate that bad things are happening when you're grateful, I think that's an important point."

Remembering that the good and bad can coexist — that difficulties and times of gratitude can coalesce — is something Kyle now seeks to instill in readers and fans. She, of course, knows a great deal about finding hope amid struggles, as she and her children had to deal with the very public loss of her husband, a revered sniper known for his incredible skills. The process of journeying through loss was "messy," Kyle admitted.

"The great news is that I believe God prepares us for the things that are going to happen to us later," she said. "He just does it really lovingly and really gently, so we can't predict the bad thing that's coming." Kyle said she now sees how the Lord equipped her and her family well before Chris was killed. She recalled how she began clinging deeper to her faith while Chris was still in the military and deployed, relying on God to navigate fear, find joy, and cope with loss. Hear her tell the harrowing story.

Actors Carlos and Alexa PenaVega have long been Hollywood staples, with the couple appearing in movies, TV shows, and other entertainment endeavors. But in addition to entertaining the masses, the married couple routinely shares their Christian faith. In the process, their story has inspired millions of people to connect more deeply with God. The two co-star in the new Great American Pure Flix film "Mr. Manhattan," which starts streaming May 23. The movie offers a "heartwarming story about what it means to find joy after grief and give God control over every aspect of our lives."

The couple recently talked about the themes in "Mr. Manhattan" and the very real-life issues they've been contending with after the loss of their fourth child, Indy, who was stillborn. The PenaVegas revealed the heartbreaking news last month, expressing a deep reliance upon God amid such a tragic circumstance. Carlos and Alexa already have three children — Ocean, 7, Kingston, 4, and Rio, 2. In reflecting on "Mr. Manhattan, Alexa said "the Christian walk isn't pretty" and that some people sell a false premise that believers will have it easy when they accept Jesus. The reality, she said, is quite different.

"It's really ... hard, and you are going to be wrestling with God a lot throughout your journey," she said. "It is the most fulfilling walk you'll ever take, and it's also the most peaceful walk that you'll ever take." Alexa then reflected on her own experience with Indy to share how the family has been tested in this way. "We're walking through grief right now after losing our daughter," she said. "And that was the hardest thing we have ever had to experience — ever. But, what's awesome about our God is He [has] truly met us between this place of pain and peace, and He really spoke to us."

Alexa continued, "We've been saying ... the slogan for this season really feels like 'pain with purpose,' and it's interesting how God will make any painful experience that you have gone through ... He brings purpose to all the painful things in your life and He turns them into testimonies." Despite facing such a horrific situation with the loss of Indy, Alexa said she believes she and Carlos have been able to get to "know God on a level that we didn't even know we were capable of." Despite the pain, she said the season has been "very fruitful," spiritually speaking.

In addition to sharing these themes more generally, the couple also discussed the spiritual perspectives they believe audiences will take away from "Mr. Manhattan." Carlos said he believes too many people see God as "transactional instead of relational." "I think that's the biggest takeaway for sure," he said. "I feel like everybody deals with that in life. It's like, 'Well, God, I did this. Why did you do this to me?' [or] 'I did this, you know, but why this?' And that's not how God works." Hear him explain.

The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has brought with it lively conversations not only about new technological possibilities but also warnings and concerns over potential abuses and misuses. Dr. John Plake, chief program officer at American Bible Society, told CBN News his organization set out in its annual "State of the Bible" survey to "look at this unique angle on the Bible and technology."

The American Bible Society frequently asks specific questions about the intersections of faith and technology, but with the AI discussion rapidly expanding in recent months, researchers decided to ask people a series of positive and negative questions about the burgeoning tool. "We looked at things like, 'Can AI be relied on for moral reasoning?' or, 'Would you be against AI helping your pastor to prepare his sermon or perhaps preparing the sermon and your pastor just delivering it?' — things like that," Plake said. "We asked, 'Do you believe that AI goes against biblical teaching?'"

The "State of the Bible" report then broke down the results by generation and level of Scripture engagement, and the survey yielded some fascinating findings. "People who are more engaged with Scripture tend to be more skeptical of artificial intelligence," Plake said. "And I think part of that is that they're tuned into moral hazards that come about when we think about machines doing our thinking for us."

Scripture-engaged respondents were less optimistic about the future benefits of AI, less likely to believe it aids in moral reasoning, and less likely to see it as enriching spiritual practices or promoting "spiritual health." It's not just Christians who are cautious, though. The general public seems overwhelmingly unsure of what the future holds and appears to be more driven by fear than excitement over what's to come. The results found 68% of the public disagreed with the idea AI could "promote spiritual health" and 58% also disagreed when asked if it could "aid in moral reasoning."

Back on the faith front, the so-called Moveable Middle — people willing to give the Bible a chance but not necessarily engaged — had a bit of a different take. "The Movable Middle, however, are more likely to believe AI might enhance their spiritual practices and health, possibly indicating a desire to connect with God and Scripture with the right tool," a press release read. Listen to find out more about what's to come in the 2024 "State of the Bible."

Randy Kay's "afterlife" experience still leaves him visibly emotional as he recounts details of visiting heaven, meeting Jesus, and returning to share his harrowing journey. Kay, author of the book, "Heaven Stormed: A Heavenly Encounter Reveals Your Assignment in the End Time Outpouring and Tribulation," told CBN News he was once a denier of near-death experience claims — until he faced his own purported heaven journey.

He recalled his own afterlife experience, which began with a sore calf. At first, he thought he had strained a muscle, but while working out and going on a bike ride, his calf began to swell. "I was able to make it back home and then went to the doctor to get an anti-inflammatory prescription, and lo and behold, when I pressed my heel into the floor as the doctor had suggested, I collapsed," Kay said. "And I was rushed to the emergency room."

It turns out, the pain and swelling were due to seven blood clots that had formed. He then contracted Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a drug-resistant bacteria.  "The doctor said I was a walking dead man," Kay said. "And then the septic shock which entered into my body caused a traffic jam in my vessels, my vascular system." The chaos landed Kay in a dire situation — one that he believes sent him to heaven.

"Everything went dark initially and the next moment of recall, I was looking down on my body," he said. "I was being pulled by this light. I know that sounds cliche, almost, but it's absolutely true." Kay continued, "I was in a kind of very vague, ethereal space initially where I saw these figures in front of me, and they were warring against each other. There's no other way of putting it." After his return from his after-death experience, Kay discerned he was watching spiritual warfare play out. Regardless of what people choose to believe, Kay's physical body was dead at this point, making these memories and claims quite fascinating.

"My heart had stopped," he said, noting that hospital records indicate he was clinically dead for 30 minutes and 49 seconds. During that time, Kay believes he was experiencing heaven, noting he was aware that her was himself but suddenly was seeing and visualizing the world quite differently. "I was seeing things, hearing things beyond which I would be able to do otherwise in my body," he said.

A feature film that imagines a dystopian America where Bibles are banned, Christianity is vanquished, and believers are forced into underground churches is set to release in theaters nationwide this summer. "Disciples in the Moonlight," starring Brett Varvel, will have a minimum five-day run in more than 1,000 movie theaters starting July 24.

The film's chilling yet captivating subject matter is certain to attract attention, particularly in a beleaguered culture in which religious liberty is a top concern for many. "Disciples in the Moonlight,' takes place in the not-too-distant future after the government has banned the Bible for its 'offensiveness' and replaced it with a government-approved version," a description of the film reads. "A small group of Christians are recruited to smuggle God’s Word to underground churches throughout the Midwest. With a ruthless federal agent in hot pursuit, the believers must choose between following the law or honoring and trusting God."

Varvel, who also directs the film, said the concept came to him 10 years ago, with he and his team working on the project over the past decade to help make it come to fruition. He calls the movie his "love letter to the church of Jesus Christ." "I believe this movie could be the start of a movement in our culture — to awaken people to treasure the Word of God and boldly proclaim the name of Jesus, no matter the cost," the actor said. "The time has now come to share this powerful story delivered by the most incredible cast and crew."

Varvel told CBN News "Disciples in the Moonlight" has long been a dream and passion project. His hope is that the focus remains on Jesus as people come to be entertained and inspired. “From the beginning, I wanted to lift high the Word of God as absolute authority, and something that we should hold highly as absolute truth." he said. "But, then also, the name of Jesus Christ, which is the only name under heaven given to mankind whereby we might be saved." Hear him explain.

A pastor whose church just baptized 1,614 people on a Florida beach called the incredible mass immersion an "amazing" testament to people's newfound faith. Pastor Joby Martin, founder and lead pastor of The Church of Eleven22, told CBN News his church hosts a large baptism every year, with 1,100 people taking part in the 2023 event. But Martin said this year was bigger than ever, with 50-60 people helping conduct the baptisms.

"God saved a lot of people and those people were obedient to take the next step — to go public with their faith and declare Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior," he said. "And just as amazing as the 1,614 people that got baptized are the ... maybe 10,000 people from our church [who] showed up to celebrate it on the beach." Martin said the event was "like a big family reunion" and celebration for the church. He said it has been "a bit overwhelming" to see so much spiritual fruit and to take part in so much transformation.

"I had no idea when I got into ministry that I would get to be a part of anything like this," Martin said. "And, obviously, [I] can't take any credit whatsoever. We planted our church in 2012. Lots of people have come to Christ. The church has grown pretty exponentially." The preacher believes the stunning mass baptism is part of a bigger pattern of faith professions and baptisms that are being observed across America right now. "It just seems like God is doing a thing amongst his church," Martin said. "It was super neat for us to be able to celebrate what He's doing here with what He's doing all over the place."

He continued, "[We are] just overwhelmed with the goodness of God — that God decided to flex and God loves saving people. And it was a pretty surreal moment." While some people continue to debate whether America is at the start — or even in the middle — of a revival, Martin said one thing is for certain: "it was revival in those 1,614 individuals' hearts." He said time will tell if it's a national phenomenon, but he knows God has been "glorified in every individual" who professed faith through baptism.

Martin encouraged Christians to pray for church leaders and for each of the 1,614 people who showed up to get baptized. "I would always covet the prayers of people for me, and my family, and our elders, and our pastors, and our staff, because the enemy is not pleased," he said. "We have an enemy who's a thief. He wants to steal, kill, and destroy, and he is going to try to attack these people that have just come to Christ." Martin said the church will help these individuals take the next steps of obedience and get involved in Bible studies, disciple groups, and other efforts to help their spiritual formation.

Rebecca St. James, who has long dominated Christian music, believes there's a powerful "momentum in the arts" right now when it comes to transformational Christian content. "[There is a] kind of ground that's being regained, I would say, when it comes to faith ... leading in culture," St. James told CBN News, going on to reference the success of films like "Jesus Revolution," "I Can Only Imagine," and "Unsung Hero," a movie in theaters now that tells her family's story.

More specifically, "Unsung Hero" recounts the rags-to-riches story surrounding St. James and her family, the Smallbones, (brothers Joel and Luke Smallbone are members of KING & COUNTRY), showcasing the tough, overcomer events in their lives preceding the artists' meteoric rise to fame. "Unsung Hero" pays homage to the incredible ways God worked in the family's life after they came to America with nothing, worked hard cleaning homes and doing yard work, and eventually landed record deals. The film has thus far been widely well-received.

St. James believes faith-based movies like "Unsung Hero" are attracting big audiences for a reason. "People are hungry for these messages," the singer said. "And when we show up in the theater, we say to Hollywood, 'We need more of this. We need more family content. We need more clean content. We need more God-honoring content.'" St. James said she's proud of the impact "Unsung Hero" is having, and reiterated her belief Christians need to show up and support projects like it.

"Where there's a call to action with us is, we have to vote, go on these weekends to the theater, bring your family, celebrate your moms," she said. "It's this moment in time where we can kind of say to Hollywood with our vote, with our movie ticket, 'We want more of this.'" The performer believes this is just the beginning of faith surging in Hollywood. "I feel this sense of anticipation of what God's doing and about to do, because I think there's this wave that we're going to ride," she said. "And that's very exciting to me."

Duane Chapman, more commonly known as Dog the Bounty Hunter, is known for chasing down criminals. But he's also on a mission to help people connect with the Gospel. Chapman, author of the new book "Nine Lives and Counting: A Bounty Hunter’s Journey to Faith, Hope, and Redemption," told CBN News he was brought up in a Christian home by a praying mom. "I knew more than most people did, right from wrong, miracles of God — I knew all that," he said, noting, though, that he got a bit off track at one point. "I went to prison in the 70s."

Chapman and three accomplices reportedly broke into a man's home on a search for marijuana. One of his accomplices shot and killed the man during a struggle. Chapman was sentenced to five years and served 18 months. After his jail time experience, Chapman was released and righted his wrongs, becoming a bounty hunter and launching on his path to a career that inevitably landed him with the show "Dog the Bounty Hunter," which aired new episodes from 2003 to 2012. Chapman, who has certainly had a plethora of success, has also had his share of heartbreak.

His wife, Beth, who joined him on his TV adventure died in 2019 after a cancer battle. He's since remarried and he's been on a journey of strengthening his faith alongside new wife, Francie. "I know God is absolutely real," Chapman said. "I know that God told me years ago ... 'I'm going to show you miracles beyond [anything] that you could imagine, think, or want.'" He continued, "My faith has grown ever since Beth passed away about five years ago and I met Francie."

Chapman said he and his wife walk "hand-in-hand" in faith. The two also evangelize and speak to audiences together, sharing their Christian beliefs. As for Chapman's new book, Nine Lives and Counting: A Bounty Hunter’s Journey to Faith, Hope, and Redemption," he's hoping to see the text reach hearts and minds. Hear him discuss the book, his experiences seeing real-life demonic evil, and more.