We Lift Up

After a two-week break, The We Lift Up Podcast returns with a crucial conversation about what's happening in the world right now. With the U.S. and Israel engaged in military operations in Iran, the death toll rising, and political leadership facing crisis at home, Rev. TJ Frederick tackles the hard questions: What is our responsibility as Christians when war breaks out? How do we pray when we don't understand the politics? And what does faithful leadership look like in moments of crisis?

• In this episode, we cover: The current war in Iran: what's happening and why it matters
• The death of Iran's Supreme Leader and the escalating conflict
• U.S. service members killed and the human cost of war
• The firing of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and leadership accountability

This episode is for you if you:

• Feel overwhelmed by what's happening in the world
• Don't know how to pray about war and conflict
• Are tired of partisan politics and want biblical clarity
• Wonder if your prayers even matter
• Need hope in the midst of global chaos
• Want to understand how to be faithful when you can't control outcomes

NEXT WEEK: We return to our Ministry Series with the first episode: "Before You Say Yes to the Call: What Nobody Tells You About Ministry."

We've talked about loving yourself, loving your neighbor, and loving romantically. But what about the greatest commandment of all—loving God? In the final week of our Love Series, Rev. TJ Frederick explores what it means to love a God you can't physically see and why that love is the foundation for every other kind of love.

In this episode, we cover: the greatest commandment and why it comes first, how to love God when you don't "feel" it, and worship beyond Sunday: what it looks like to love God in the mundane.

This episode is for you if you:

• Feel distant from God and don't know how to reconnect
• Want to move beyond religious performance to real relationship
• Struggle to love a God you can't physically experience
• Are tired of going through the motions in your faith
• Want to understand what "loving God with all your heart" actually means
• Need a reminder that intimacy with God is possible—and worth it

This is the finale of our Love Series. We've built the foundation—self-love, neighbor love, romantic love. Now we're talking about the love that makes all the others possible: loving the God who loved us first.

Next month: We're diving into a brand new series for everyone in ministry, considering ministry, or navigating church leadership. "What I Wish Someone Told Me About Ministry" will cover the realities of ministry life—the calling, the cost, the conflict, and the joy no one prepares you for. You won't want to miss it.

The internet is full of relationship gurus telling you how to date, who to marry, and what love should look like. But most of it is toxic, manipulative, or just flat-out unbiblical. In Week 3 of our Love Series, Rev. TJ Frederick cuts through the noise and offers real, grounded wisdom for singles, couples, and married people navigating romantic love.

In this episode, we cover: Why toxic relationship gurus are destroying genuine connection, the difference between dating, courting, and intentional pursuit, and the red flags you shouldn't ignore (and green flags you should look for)

This episode is for you if you:

• Are single and tired of bad dating advice
• Are in a relationship and want to build something real
• Are married and need a reminder of what you're fighting for
• Feel pressure to perform in relationships instead of being yourself
• Want biblical wisdom without purity culture shame
• Believe love is a choice, not just a feeling
• Are done with the games and ready for something genuine

This is Week 3 of our Love Series. We've talked about loving yourself and loving your neighbor. Now we're talking about romantic love—the kind that requires intentionality, devotion, and the willingness to choose someone even when it's hard.

"Love your neighbor" sounds simple until your neighbor is someone you profoundly disagree with. In Week 2 of our Love Series, Rev. TJ Frederick tackles what it means to love people beyond your bubble—across political lines, cultural differences, and theological divides.

In this episode, we cover: The parable of the Good Samaritan and why it's more radical than we think, loving your neighbor in a politically divided America, and community care vs. individual charity: what actually helps.

This episode is for you if you:

• Struggle to love people who see the world differently than you do
• Want to move beyond performative allyship to actual relationship
• Feel overwhelmed by the world's problems and don't know where to start
• Are tired of culture war Christianity that treats people like enemies
• Believe love is supposed to be practical, not just theoretical
• Want to build the kind of community Jesus actually talked about

This is Week 2 of our Love Series. Last week, we talked about loving yourself. This week, we're expanding the circle. Because love that stays internal isn't love—it's just self-improvement.

Valentine's month isn't just about romantic love—it starts with the hardest love of all: loving yourself. In this first episode of our love series, Rev. TJ Frederick explores what it means to embrace yourself as God's creation without falling into narcissism, self-obsession, or the toxic positivity that dominates self-help culture.

In this episode, we cover: The difference between biblical self-love and worldly selfishness, why "love your neighbor as yourself" requires you to actually love yourself, Body image, identity, and the lies we believe about our worthothers

This episode is for you if you:

• Struggle with self-worth and don't know where it comes from
• Feel guilty about prioritizing your own needs
• Are tired of performing for approval
• Want to love yourself without becoming self-absorbed
• Are you preparing your heart to love others well
• Need to hear that you are enough—not because of what you do, but because of whose you are

This is Week 1 of our Love Series. We're building a foundation. Because you can't pour from an empty cup, and you can't love others well if you don't know how to receive love yourself.

What does it look like to hold traditional biblical convictions about sexuality while refusing to dehumanize people who disagree? In Episode 4 of The We Lift Up Podcast, Rev. TJ Frederick steps into one of the hardest conversations the church is facing—and does it with honesty, humility, and love.

In this episode, we cover: A traditional view of sexuality rooted in Scripture, rather than culture wars, the difference between conviction and condemnation, and the cost of intimacy online and the illusion of relationships created by technology. Parasocial relationships and the illusion of intimacy. When the church gets it wrong by weaponizing theology.

This episode is for you if you:

• Hold traditional beliefs but are tired of hateful rhetoric
• Want to love people without compromising your convictions
• Feel caught between your faith community and your LGBTQ+ loved ones
• Believe kindness and truth can coexist
• Are searching for a way forward that honors both Scripture and humanity

This is not a culture war episode. This is a conversation about how we love people well—even when we don't agree. Let's talk about it.

How many more shootings before we admit thoughts and prayers aren't cutting it? In Episode 3 of The We Lift Up Podcast, Rev. TJ Frederick confronts one of the hardest questions facing the American church: what is our responsibility when gun violence continues to tear communities apart?

In this episode, we cover: The reality of gun violence in America, what Scripture actually says about protecting life, the NFL's grip on our attention, what we are sacrificing to stay entertained, burnout culture, why rest is a spiritual discipline rather than a luxury, mental health funding cuts, the church's failure to respond, and what it looks like to move from grief to action without losing hope.

This episode is for you if you:

• Are tired of watching the church offer prayers without policy
• Believe loving your neighbor means protecting their right to live
• Feel caught between faith convictions and political division
• Want to honor victims without becoming numb to the violence
• Are ready to have the hard conversation about what faithful action looks like

We can grieve AND act. We can pray AND advocate. We can love God AND demand better. Let's talk about it.

What happens when the faith you inherited doesn't fit the life you're living? In Episode 2 of The We Lift Up Podcast, Rev. TJ Frederick tackles the tension between staying rooted in Christ and navigating a church culture that often demands conformity over authenticity.

In this episode, we cover: Spotify wrapped and what our consumption habits reveal about us, AI-generated art and the question of human creativity vs. efficiency, immigration policy and why "love your neighbor" isn't just a nice idea, The church's response to political violence and threats in local communities, deconstruction culture: Are we deconstructing faith or just bad theology?

This episode is for you if you:

• Feel like your faith is evolving but you're afraid to say it out loud
• Are tired of performative Christianity that avoids the hard stuff
• Want to follow Jesus without checking your brain at the door
• Care about justice, compassion, and Scripture in equal measure
• Are you navigating belief in a world that demands you pick a side

We don't have to deconstruct our faith. But we do have to be honest about what we believe and why. Let's talk about it.

Welcome to The We Lift Up Podcast with Rev. TJ Frederick—a faith-driven show for the next generation of believers who refuse to choose between being thoughtful and being faithful.

In this premiere episode, we're diving into: The Kendrick Lamar vs. Drake fallout and what we're allowing to disciple us, the "deinfluencing" movement and why honesty is the new currency, healthcare access as a moral issue Christians can't ignore, the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Sudan and our responsibility to act, real talk for anyone caught between faith and the world

This is for you if you:

• Love God but have honest questions about the church
• Care about justice, mental health, culture, and Scripture
• Want faith conversations that don't feel preachy or performative
• Are leading, searching, or just trying to make sense of it all

We lift up truth. We lift up faith. We lift up one another.

We Lift Up is a Christian podcast led by Rev. Terrance “TJ” Frederick, created to cultivate prayer, inspire revival, and strengthen faith for the next generation. This trailer introduces the heart behind the podcast — a space where Scripture meets real life, spiritual formation is nurtured, and prayer becomes a consistent practice rather than a last resort.

Launching in 2026, We Lift Up will feature prayer calls, biblical teaching, faith-based encouragement, and Spirit-led conversations designed to support youth, young adults, and believers seeking renewal. Each episode is rooted in Christian education, intercessory prayer, and practical discipleship, helping listeners grow spiritually and remain grounded in their faith.

Whether you’re searching for revival, clarity, encouragement, or a deeper prayer life, We Lift Up is a place to pause, reflect, and lift your heart toward God.

Subscribe now and be part of a community committed to faith, prayer, and transformation.