Culture doesn’t drift toward truth by accident. It’s shaped by whoever shows up with conviction, skill, and staying power and that’s exactly why we’re talking about faith beyond church walls. We dig into what it means to live as “biblical citizens” who bring the gospel into every calling, from politics and education to media, medicine, and the fine arts. If you’ve ever wondered whether your work really matters to God, this conversation makes the case that your profession can be a mission field when you practice excellence and refuse to compartmentalize your beliefs.

Elizabeth Carlisle joins us to share her new book, “Americans Who Pray: Uniting a Nation in Faith and Freedom,” a collection that blends her own prayers with prayers from 80 inspiring Americans. We talk about the power of prayer in American history, why George Washington’s dependence on God still speaks to the moment we’re in, and how humility changes leadership. Elizabeth also describes the story behind First Freedom Art and the legacy of Arnold Freeberg, the artist behind “The Prayer at Valley Forge,” now seen by hundreds of thousands at the Museum of the Bible.

We also tackle the “Seven Mountains of influence” idea in a grounded way: don’t get stuck on labels, just engage every sphere of culture instead of surrendering institutions by default. Along the way, we point you to practical resources, including historic prayer proclamations and examples you can bring back into public life. If you care about faith and culture, Christian leadership, prayer for America, and restoring beauty and truth in the arts, this one’s for you.

Subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review with one area of culture you’re ready to step into next.

Support the show

A lot of political coverage trains us to expect the worst, so when real momentum shows up it can feel almost unbelievable. We zoom out on the good news we’re seeing at the intersection of faith and culture, where religious liberty and state-level leadership are producing wins that many people never hear about in their day-to-day “bubble.”

From Washington, DC, we unpack Senator Josh Hawley’s press conference on mifepristone, often called the abortion pill, and why he’s making a medical safety case instead of a partisan pitch. We talk through the claims about adverse event rates, how FDA standards have treated other drugs with far smaller risk ratios, and why distribution channels and oversight matter. Even if you’re tired of culture-war framing, this part of the conversation is about patient safety, informed consent, and whether our institutions are applying consistent rules.

Then we’re joined by Idaho House Majority Leader Jason Monks to discuss a statewide call for prayer and fasting. He explains why humility and self-reflection are the point, how leaders need divine guidance, and why the “separation of church and state” line is often used without knowing the history. We also dig into what “answered prayer” would actually look like: lower rhetoric, more patience, and the ability to disagree without turning each other into enemies.

If you want more hopeful stories grounded in biblical Christianity, American history, and constitutional principles, subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review so more people can find the show.

Support the show

5,700 ISIS terrorists moved out of a shaky Syrian prison system and into Iraq. Sponsors walk away from a long-running Disney event. States start ending lifetime tenure for professors. And an NFL coach gives every player a Bible with a clear message about identity and purpose. That’s the kind of Good News Friday we’re bringing you, because the most important shifts often happen quietly, then all at once.

We start with a Middle East security update that surprised even us: the reported US move to relocate thousands of ISIS detainees from Syria to Iraq, lowering the risk of escape and keeping dangerous actors off the field. From there we pivot to a piece of parenting research that keeps confirming what many families already know, children do better when a mom and a dad are both present, bringing different strengths that balance the home. If you care about child development, family structure, and what the data actually says, you’ll want to hear this part.

Then we hit education accountability and higher education reform: student debt, weak job alignment, and a growing movement in multiple states to reform or eliminate tenure in favor of performance reviews and renewable contracts. We also talk culture and corporate pressure with news that Gay Days Orlando is being paused after losing sponsorship and hotel support. We wrap with two worldview-level stories: growing pushback on costly climate accords and a Seattle Seahawks coaching staff that’s unashamed to put faith front and center.

Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs some hope, and leave a review. Which story landed most for you, and why?

Support the show

You can care about principles and still care about strategy, because the rules of the system decide whether your voice gets heard. We start with a listener stuck in a closed-primary state as an independent and walk through the hard tradeoff: stay unaffiliated and lose primary access, or register with a party so you get two meaningful chances to influence the outcome. Along the way, we explain open primaries vs closed primaries, why crossover voting happens, and how to think about party registration without turning your conscience over to a party label. 

From there, we zoom out to a values-first approach to voting, including Benjamin Rush’s blunt line that he’s neither an aristocrat nor a democrat but a “Christocrat.” That idea frames the whole conversation: judge candidates by the values they defend and the policies they will implement, not by team identity. If you’ve felt politically homeless, this gives you a clear way to stay grounded while still being effective. 

We also tackle two rapid-fire but important civics issues. First, the constitutional question about whether President Trump could ever serve as vice president, using the 12th Amendment and the 22nd Amendment to show why eligibility rules matter. Second, we respond to concerns about DEI in schools by correcting common “Founders” misinformation, including what really happened on July 4 versus August 2 with the Declaration of Independence, then lay out practical steps to challenge questionable curriculum and classroom materials at the local level. 

Wrap it up with a thoughtful look at gerrymandering reform and why simple fixes like “rectangular districts” run into geography, population, and politics. If you want more constitutional literacy, better history, and actionable ways to engage, subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave us a review.

Support the show

Power doesn’t just shape policy; it decides who gets to decide. We sit down with Tennessee State Representative Gino Bulso to unpack a bold two-bill strategy aimed at narrowing federal court rulings on marriage and civil rights while reclaiming state authority and protecting private conscience. If you’ve wondered how a state can push back without breaking the rules, this is a masterclass in targeted, constitutional maneuvering.

We start by grounding the conversation in first principles—why the Declaration’s moral claims and the Constitution’s structure are not value neutral, and how drifting from a fixed moral baseline has confused public standards. From there, Rep. Bulso breaks down HB 1473, which clarifies that Obergefell binds public actors but not private citizens or businesses, and HB 1472, which directs Tennessee not to adopt the Supreme Court’s Bostock reading of “sex” into state anti-discrimination law. Together, the bills seek to secure space for conscience, particularly for private businesses not covered by federal Title VII, without inviting direct conflict with federal supremacy.

Along the way, we tackle the question at the heart of civic life: who decides? Courts, Congress, or communities. We explore the separation of powers, the original meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment, and the role of state constitutions defining marriage. Rep. Bulso explains why changing national policy should go through elected lawmakers or amendment—not judicial legislation—and how Tennessee’s approach respects process while reshaping outcomes. The stakes are high: family, faith, and the social order all hinge on whether law stays tethered to coherent standards.

If you care about federalism, religious liberty, and the future of marriage policy, this conversation offers a rare blend of constitutional depth and practical tactics. Listen, share with a friend who follows the courts, and then tell us what you think: who should draw the lines—judges, legislators, or the people in their states? Subscribe, leave a review, and join the debate.

Support the show

What if the way we define marriage is quietly reshaping childhood—for worse? We open the conversation with a child-first lens and ask the question most debates avoid: does public policy exist to validate adult desires, or to protect a child’s right to both mother and father? Katie Faust, founder of Them Before Us, joins us to explain how the 2015 redefinition of marriage flattened biological reality and turned parenthood into a credential adults acquire, often without the adoption safeguards designed to protect kids. From IVF mandates to loosened parentage rules, she traces how systems now subsidize motherless or fatherless homes by design, measuring success by adult fulfillment rather than child well-being.

We dig into the data and the vibe shift. Approval among conservatives has dropped as people connect the dots: if sex differences matter on the field and in the clinic, they matter even more at home. Pastors are finding their voice, too—teaching clearly that marriage is a child-serving institution rooted in the complementary gifts of men and women. Katie charts a three-part plan: reframe the public conversation around children’s rights, mobilize the church into a child-centered force, and pursue a legal strategy that changes the court’s question from “Do adults have dignity?”—yes—to “Do children need their own mother and father?” That pivot anchors policy in biology, safeguards adoption as child protection, and resists pathways that bypass rigorous screening.

Together we spotlight a growing coalition of scholars, faith leaders, and policy groups aligned on one message: don’t touch the kids. We share practical ways to get involved, equip your church, and speak with clarity at home, online, and in your community. If you’re ready to move beyond slogans and defend the smallest stakeholders with facts, conviction, and compassion, this is your roadmap. Subscribe, share with a friend who cares about family and child safety, and leave a review to help more listeners find the show.

Support the show

Liberty didn’t start with a vote. It started with a voice. We sit down with Josh Enck of Sight & Sound to explore A Great Awakening, a feature film that puts George Whitfield back in the pulpit and Benjamin Franklin at his press to show how revival prepared the ground for revolution. Rather than retell battlefield moments, we follow an unlikely friendship that helped shape the American mind—pairing Whitfield’s electrifying sermons with Franklin’s genius for print and persuasion—to reveal why cultural change must precede political change.

Josh shares how a ministry known for epic, immersive stage productions stepped into cinema without losing its soul. The COVID shutdown became a catalyst: a filmed stage show reached more people in a long weekend than two years of sold-out theaters, pushing the team to bring stories to audiences wherever they are. That shift comes with a promise—no shortcuts, no sentimentality—just careful acting, tight scripting, and historically grounded scenes that honor the intelligence of the audience. The result is a throwback to classic, story-first filmmaking that still feels urgent and new.

We also dig into the film’s core idea of liberty. Not a slogan, not a partisan badge, but a conviction with biblical roots and civic consequences. By tracing Whitfield’s influence across the colonies and Franklin’s role in amplifying it, we connect the Great Awakening to the habits of self-government that made the American experiment possible. Along the way, we talk about reviving the voices of past pastors, the power of print, and why opening-week support matters if we want more films that meet faith and history with excellence.

Grab tickets at agreatawakening.com and share the trailer with someone who loves bold, character-driven stories about America’s origins. If this conversation moves you, subscribe, leave a review, and tell a friend—let’s put these voices back in the public square.

Support the show

A surge of spiritual interest is sweeping the country, but will it last long enough to change anything? We dig into the hard truth: revivals inspire; awakenings transform. That transformation only happens when people are discipled to live out Jesus’ full teaching, the kind that speaks plainly about marriage, gender, and the purpose of covenant—without losing sight of grace, redemption, and the path back.

We share encouraging shifts from the pulpit as national voices tackle no-fault divorce and explain why God’s commands are for our flourishing. Then we zoom out to culture and policy. Scouting America announces a slate of reforms—dropping DEI mandates, restoring membership by biological sex, and honoring military families—after high-level pressure to reclaim clarity and standards. Across the Atlantic, Marco Rubio earns applause in Europe by calling leaders back to the shared roots of Western civilization, Christian identity, and actionable security. At home, a key court win in Vermont protects foster families’ religious freedom and common-sense boundaries in a system that desperately needs willing parents.

Finally, we confront the education paradox: nearly a million more students have left public schools for private, Christian, and homeschool options, even as districts add staff and pass higher costs to taxpayers. We break down what this means for families, classrooms, and local budgets—and how citizens can act. If you’ve been asking how faith can move from Sunday morning to everyday life, this conversation offers a roadmap: discipleship that forms character, engagement that shapes policy, and courage that tells the truth in love.

If this resonated, share the show with a friend, subscribe for more Good News Fridays, and leave a review to help others find the conversation.

Support the show

A courtroom drama played out in a committee room, and we got a front‑row seat. We break down why Tennessee’s push to post the Ten Commandments in public schools is framed as restoration, not invention, and how a single Supreme Court ruling—Coach Kennedy—quietly dismantled the decades‑old Lemon test that kept faith at arm’s length in public institutions. From Moses carved into the Supreme Court frieze to McGuffey’s Readers in the classroom, we connect the historical dots most civics courses skip.

Then we pivot to the modern spectacle of the State of the Union and ask a simple question: if the rebuttals are live, why do they feel prerecorded? The answer runs through shrinking sound bites, risk‑averse scripting, and a media environment that punishes context. We dig into the surprisingly short history of formal SOTU responses, the experiments that worked (including conversational formats), and what it would take to make these moments useful again.

Finally, we explore why members of Congress split by party inside the chamber without any rule requiring it. Human nature, scarce face time, and caucus culture drive the seating map more than procedure does. Drawing on statehouse experience, we look at how mixed seating, mentorship, and daily contact can lower the temperature and raise the quality of debate.

If you care about constitutional history, religious liberty, legislative culture, and how media incentives shape public life, this is your guide to the moving pieces. Listen, share with a friend who loves policy as much as history, and leave a review so we can keep building smarter conversations together.

Support the show

Headlines about Iran can feel like a blur of missiles, ministers, and moving targets—until you connect the dots between what leaders believe and what nations do. We dive into how Shiite end-times theology influences Iran’s pursuit of power, why “the great Satan” rhetoric matters for strategy, and how surgical strikes against military and clerical leadership could open a narrow window for change. When ideology prizes escalation, containment looks different—and so do the choices free nations face.

Back home, we unpack a Texas primary night that says a lot about where voters want guardrails. Prop 10’s blowout against Sharia law becomes a pivot point to discuss the deeper role of worldview in public life. We then break down key races across Arkansas, North Carolina, and Texas, contrasting a steady voting record with a lack of fight, and a fighter’s zeal with heavy baggage. Add a polished progressive pastor with strong media chops, and you get a masterclass in electability: narrative, competence, and character colliding in real time.

The throughline is power you can use today. Primaries are where leverage lives, with lower turnout and higher impact per vote. We share practical ways to research candidates, compare records, and build simple voter guides for your church and neighborhood. If you want better choices in November, start months earlier—clarify your values, study the field, and bring two friends with you to the polls. Subscribe, share this episode with someone who needs a nudge to vote in the primary, and leave a review telling us which race you’ll track most closely this year.

Support the show