Spiritual Warfare w/ Jonathan Pokluda | Girls Gone Bible

Speaker 1 Hi, I'm Man. And I'm Ari.

Speaker 2 And this is Girls Gone Bible. And today we have a two-time GGB all-star.
We have Jonathan Faputa.

Speaker 3 Let's go. And we're so excited.
I was driving from San Diego to LA, driving up the one,

Speaker 3 and I'm going to Santa Monica, and that's where I was supposed to stay. And I'm talking to a pastor friend.
I'm like, hey, he's like, where are you? I was like, I'm headed to Santa Monica.

Speaker 3 He's like, no, you're not. It's on fire.
I was like, what? And so it's devastating. I talked to another pastor friend who lives over there.

Speaker 3 They couldn't, they didn't stay at their house last night and they're like congregation and everything. I'm just like praying for the city, man.

Speaker 2 It's really bad.

Speaker 3 It's talking about spiritual warfare.

Speaker 2 I know. It is really, really sad.

Speaker 2 I woke up this morning and I'm driving on sunset and the whole sky is dark at 8 a.m and i'm like this is actually the end times like this is what the bible talks about do you agree is that too much for an end time

Speaker 3 we're talking about end times we are absolutely end times and here's what i'm certain of is today we're closer to it than we were yesterday jonathan thank you so much for that's a joy guys thank you i'm so proud of y'all so proud of y'all it's amazing just

Speaker 3 it's uh the favor that god has poured out on your lives and your love for him and you're like you're discipling people and i love the way that you guys have been so honest transparent struggled out loud you you hold his you hold his word in high regard and uh I mean it's it's he's using you it's incredible to watch thank you so much that is really kind thank you that's true I know we really do struggle out loud don't we

Speaker 3 and that's what people need

Speaker 3 this with the whole next generation it's just like they want they don't want like this facade you know polished version of Christianity.

Speaker 3 It's like they want something real.

Speaker 2 Well, we just talked about, because you just spoke at Passion this year. And the first time I ever saw you or heard about you was at Passion 2024.

Speaker 2 And I remember it's like this weekend of conference, of

Speaker 2 you know, talks and pastors and preachers speaking.

Speaker 2 And the one that stood out to me the most was yours, your talk, and your message that you gave because you literally out the gate, you were like, I've struggled with this, this, this, and this.

Speaker 2 It's a long list. It was the most,

Speaker 2 it was the most relatable. Like, that's what breaks chains, honesty and authenticity and just like being like, I went through what you went through.
This is not just a cakewalk for any of us.

Speaker 2 It was life-changing.

Speaker 3 Well, there's a verse in Revelation that says, we trample over the enemy by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony. And you read that and you're like, wow,

Speaker 3 the way that we defeat the enemy. So the blood of the lamb, that's the work of Jesus, his death and resurrection for the forgiveness of our sins.
But then the word of our testimony.

Speaker 3 And I think about it like this. It's like, it's like you're in a cage.

Speaker 3 And so whether it's a cage of alcoholism, a cage of sexual addiction cage of pornography you're cutting yourself you're you look in the mirror you hate what you see you're starving yourself satan loves all of that and so it's like you're in a cage and jesus comes and he unlocks that cage and he pulls the door open right and he says come out like come out my child like come out my dear like come out and as you walk out he hands you the key and he says here you go this you can set people free and that key is your story and you look up and there's all these people in cages all these people in jail cells.

Speaker 3 And you realize like what they need is for me to share my story of the way that Jesus delivered me, the way that Jesus saved me, the way that he set me free.

Speaker 3 And then as I share my story with them, they go, wow, me too. Like, I thought I could never say that out loud.
I thought I could never talk about that.

Speaker 3 But as you talk about it, it emboldens me, it encourages me. And now I walk in freedom.
And then they share their story, and that's where it spreads.

Speaker 1 Makes the hard times worth it, huh?

Speaker 3 Yeah. I mean, well, it redeems them.
Right. And that's what in Genesis 50, 20, you know, Joseph, he says, what, what the enemies meant for evil, God uses for my good.
Romans 8, 28,

Speaker 3 all things work together for the good of those who love him who've been called according to his purpose.

Speaker 3 God is working all things together for those who love him who've been called according to his purpose. And so

Speaker 3 if we take our mess and we bring it to the Lord, he makes it our message and even our ministry. You know, it's like, hey, God, here's what I have.
Like, he doesn't need anything, right? He's nothing.

Speaker 3 We have nothing to offer him. But you're like, here's my mess, God.
He goes, I'll work with that.

Speaker 2 That's my favorite thing about him. My favorite thing about him is that he doesn't need any of us.
He could literally snap his fingers and heal everybody, do all that he needs to do.

Speaker 2 But from the beginning of time, he wants to do it with us. Like he purposefully uses us to get to each other.

Speaker 2 When you pray a prayer, usually he doesn't, sometimes he'll just answer it and fix the situation. Usually he sends you somebody that has an answered prayer.

Speaker 1 Like I love that he works through us and with us for everything ggb we are on the girls gone bible live tour it is so exciting to be with you guys go to girlsgonebible.com slash tour to get your tickets we cannot wait to be with you in person so as you guys know we have ggb plus it is been one of the biggest blessings this year starting GGB plus because it gives us a chance to really just go so intimate and deep with you guys, talk about things that we typically can't really share on this platform.

Speaker 1 So it is just, it's so, this is exactly what we wanted. We wanted something where we can really go deep and really talk about the nitty-gritty stuff.
You can sign up at girlsgonebible.com slash plus.

Speaker 2 And let's talk about this book. We love talking about spiritual warfare on this.

Speaker 3 Oh, yeah, guys. That's what it felt like

Speaker 3 driving on the freeway. I'm like, oh, man.
Because I was supposed to do 12 podcasts tomorrow, all canceled. And I'm like,

Speaker 3 and and listen that's so that's silly for me to talk about a you know podcast canceled because there's people lost their homes

Speaker 2 who knows you know what else but I saw one video of somebody trapped inside their house I'm just like praying for them last night it's crazy town man no but I mean he definitely gets many birds with one stone that's true like a hundred percent yeah anytime any you I wish we could call you and tell you all the things actually we're gonna call you and Monica um sometimes and talk to you guys and get prayer from you guys and tell you every time we get on a plane to go on tour.

Speaker 3 Oh man. It's rough air.
I'm telling you, man. You got to bind.
I'm like, and I pray different. After that book, I pray different.

Speaker 3 Because like, so Jenny and I, Jenny Allen and I have been going around to universities with our friend Tanya Pruitt.

Speaker 3 And

Speaker 3 it's like, we get on that plane. And we know that we're going to share the gospel to thousands and thousands of college students.
We're like, Lord, we know the enemy doesn't want us to to get there.

Speaker 3 And it's, it's crazy. And so, can he, you know, what can he do? That's one of the things as I was thinking about the book is like, what are the limitations of Satan?

Speaker 3 Because I was thinking, like, if you, if you're going to go to church, like, let's just say you're getting your life, you're at that transition where you're like, all right, I'm going to get my life in order.

Speaker 3 You know, we've all been there where you're like, all right, I'm doing it.

Speaker 3 I'm going to, I'm going to find a church. I'm going to go there.

Speaker 3 You know, I'm going to get sober. I'm going to do the thing.
And you go and you wake up and you get dressed. You're like, all right, I'm really doing it.

Speaker 3 And you get in your car and you turn the key and it goes click, click, click, click, click, like battery's dead, right? And you're like, oh man, hashtag spiritual warfare.

Speaker 3 Well, I'm like, what can Satan do? Like, did he, like, did he take out your battery, take out your alternator, like, leave your light on? Did he have to pop the hood to do it?

Speaker 3 Like, can they actually do that?

Speaker 2 Yeah, what?

Speaker 3 And so that, that question really sent me on the journey of writing this book, Your Story Has a Villain, which is

Speaker 3 the answer. I mean, is Job is a textbook case study of what Satan can do.
He can start fires. He can steal, kill, and destroy John 10, 10.
He can make you sick.

Speaker 3 He can,

Speaker 3 you know,

Speaker 3 do anything, anything.

Speaker 3 And so that kind of stirs up fear. 2 Corinthians chapter 4, verse 4 says he is, like, if you ask a bunch of Christians, who's the God of this world?

Speaker 3 Like, if I asked an arena, like Passion or, you know, Unite, who's the God of this world? You know, they're going to say, Father, Son, Holy Spirit, Yahweh, Jehovah, Jesus. You know,

Speaker 3 2 Corinthians 4, verse 4 says the God of this world is Satan. That's what the Bible says, Satan, that he has authority here.

Speaker 3 And so the answer to the question, what can he do is anything God allows him to do, which then begs another question. It's like, why would God allow him to do anything?

Speaker 3 There's a testing nature of our faith in this broken world where things are not as they're supposed to be.

Speaker 3 And so one day we're going to be in a place where there's no anxiety, there's no flu, there's no cancer, there's no breakups, there's no heartbreak, there's no sadness, there's no depression.

Speaker 3 And, but today, in this broken world, all of those things exist and they're opportunities for us to use our faith. And in fact, Jesus says to Peter, Satan has asked me to sift you like wheat.

Speaker 3 He goes, so I, because I'd be like, Jesus, just tell him no.

Speaker 3 Just say no. Like, if he asked you, just say no.
You can't mess with Peter or JP.

Speaker 3 But he he said, so I'm going to pray for you that your faith would increase. Yeah.

Speaker 3 And so I think that's like, what does it look like for us to live with faith? And fires and cold and

Speaker 3 sickness and heartbreak and all, you know, grief, all those things are opportunities to exercise our faith.

Speaker 2 One of my favorite things that you write, I think it was in the, it was before you even started. What is this, those things called in the book? The prelog?

Speaker 3 The

Speaker 3 letters. The instruction.

Speaker 3 Yeah.

Speaker 2 You said something along the lines of like,

Speaker 2 you are not, you don't have letters next to your name. You don't have a PhD, but you do have,

Speaker 2 you know, many years of experience being a pastor. And what you've noticed is patterns.
Like the enemy, he's clever, he's witty, he schemes, but he has patterns.

Speaker 2 And so when you're aware of his patterns, there's power in that.

Speaker 3 Yeah. Yeah.
Yeah. So much of ministry is pattern recognition.
Yeah. And it's, I've got like four

Speaker 3 guys right now being morons. You know, I mean, just, and it's, it's interesting.
Some on one phone call, the next, you know, somebody else is calling me and they're,

Speaker 3 they've been unfaithful. There's addiction, adultery, and,

Speaker 3 and it, it's, you just see the same pattern. And I'm like, bro,

Speaker 3 they're like, well, you know, you don't understand how I feel.

Speaker 3 I'm like, I understand exactly how you feel because it's like this, as soon as I hang out with you, I'm going to call, you know, John back, and he's going to tell me that I don't understand how he feels.

Speaker 3 And then I'm going to call Mark back.

Speaker 3 I'm making up these names, Mark back, and then he's going to tell me that I don't understand how he feels when you all understand, you all feel the same way, which is, hey, I think this is worth it.

Speaker 3 And I'm telling you, it's not worth it. It's going to feel really great for about six months.
And then six months, reality is going to settle in. The shame's going to overwhelm you.

Speaker 3 You're going to see the death and destruction. And so, yeah,

Speaker 3 the pattern is the same in Genesis chapter 3, the Garden of Eden. It's like, look at the fruit.
It appeals to the eye. It tastes good.
And it offers you everything.

Speaker 3 And it's the same pattern that Lucifer who fell from heaven, Satan, who was an angel created by God. So the question is, you know, did God create evil?

Speaker 3 No, God created Satan good as an angel for his glory.

Speaker 3 And he fell. And he said, hey, I don't want to worship you as God.
I want to be God. And God said, okay, well, we're going to send you to earth.
Let's see what kind of God you can be.

Speaker 3 And so here he is with authority over this world. But that same spirit, we call it pride, is a satanic spirit, a spirit of selfishness, a spirit of vanity, a spirit of, hey, I want to get mine.

Speaker 3 I want to live for me. And when we operate that, in that, we're operating by a satanic spirit.
In fact, the mantra of the satanic church is do as thy will.

Speaker 3 I don't know if you knew that. It's like, do whatever you want.
That's the mantra of the satanic church. And so it's like, that's what Satan receives as worship is selfishness.

Speaker 1 That's wild. I love love how you simplified heaven and hell.
Can you talk about that? Because when I actually read that, I was like, wow, if that doesn't make somebody act right.

Speaker 3 Yeah.

Speaker 1 Because we think of hell as just this burning flames with a devil with horns. You know, can you just talk about what you wrote in there? Because I loved it.

Speaker 3 For sure.

Speaker 3 Thanks for saying that. And I think...

Speaker 3 What I've learned is different people think of hell in different ways. Like some, especially here, you'll hear a lot of like, oh, it's a party.
Like, oh, I'm going to hell.

Speaker 3 You you know drug sex and rock and roll exactly

Speaker 3 no it's there's no drugs in hell there's nothing to numb your pain in hell there there's it is a place and you're like well why why would God create hell God created hell for Satan it's a place created for Satan he's gonna be thrown into the lake of fire that's where he's gonna be forever and And it is just a place of suffering.

Speaker 3 And in fact, there's only one thing that you can do is you pull out your to-do list. You know, it's like, these are the things I have to do today.
I need to go to the grocery store.

Speaker 3 I've got to go pick that up. I've got to record that podcast.
Like you have your to-do list. There's only one to-do item in hell, to suffer for your sins forever.

Speaker 3 Not a hundred years, not a hundred thousand years, not a hundred billion years, not,

Speaker 3 you know,

Speaker 3 forever and ever and ever. And so the only person who doesn't have to go to hell is the person whose sins have been paid for.

Speaker 3 It's not like good person. It's not like good people go to heaven and bad people go to hell.

Speaker 3 The scripture tells us there is no one good, not even one. And so the only person who doesn't go to hell is the one whose sins have been paid for.
You can think about it like this.

Speaker 3 Every sin will be paid for either in hell or on the cross. And you get to choose.
You can say, I want to pay for my sins, or you can say, I believe that Jesus Christ paid for my sins on the cross.

Speaker 3 And so, yeah, there's a story in there about being in the Grand Caymans and there's a place there called hell. And they're like, hey, welcome to hell.
How the hell are you?

Speaker 3 And I was just like, man, what a mockery of what it actually is. That is the most devastating, like the worst things that you can think about here on earth.
It's that amplified. Yeah.

Speaker 2 It just, it's so...

Speaker 2 interesting the way that Satan is able to pervert things in a way that seems so subtle. Like nothing,

Speaker 2 so much of what he does doesn't even seem inherently evil.

Speaker 2 Like he has a way to twist things to be like, we're joking about the most, the con, like the worst thing that will ever happen to you going to hell. And then we're going to put like a fun twist on it.

Speaker 3 That's what he does. Well, he just like I talk about it in there, like switching price tags.
I was a misdirected youth, you know, and my friends would steal things.

Speaker 3 And I couldn't steal in the traditional way. But I would switch price tags.
I would take something that was cheap and I'd put the price tag on something that was expensive.

Speaker 3 And I would go through the checkout line and I would pay something for it, but it's still stealing very much so. And Satan does that.
He takes things that are cheap and he makes them look expensive.

Speaker 3 And he takes things of infinite value and glory and worth and he makes them look cheap.

Speaker 3 And so it's, you know, we pursue the fleeting pleasures of this world. We seek the shortcuts of masturbation and one-night stands and those kinds of things when

Speaker 3 he's offering us, when God is offering us eternal glory and joy forevermore with him. And yet we're like, no, we want this.

Speaker 3 We don't want the, you know, the filet mignon dinner with, you know, paired with the perfect glass of wine or whatever that is. We want, you know, the nerd's gummy clusters, you know, the sugaries.

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Speaker 2 I just really quickly wanted to read this from your introduction. It says, if the devil were going to take you out, how would he do it?

Speaker 2 Would it be lust leading to an affair? Would it be greed leading you to cut corners to get ahead? Would it be pride so you become so self-reliant that you push away those who love you most?

Speaker 2 Or maybe the enemy would play head games with you. Maybe he would get you thinking about all that you don't have while comparing yourself to others.

Speaker 2 Maybe he would send you into a deep, dark depression or cause you to be an anxious, over-controlling mess. How would the evil one rule you?

Speaker 2 which I think is so interesting because it's so specific and particular to every person.

Speaker 2 How would the evil one ruin you? I find it interesting that we believe there is a world full of dark opposition and we're content knowing very little about it or how it works.

Speaker 2 So take a minute to answer this question. I'd be curious to know how your answer changes by the time you finish this book.

Speaker 2 And one thing that I'm so passionate about is encouraging people to recognize their own weaknesses and their own issues because like we said, there's patterns and there's nothing new under the sun.

Speaker 2 He's going to hit you with the same thing every single time. So like becoming aware of where is your your area that the devil like it's his playground.

Speaker 3 Yeah. Right.
Yeah. What do you think it is for you guys?

Speaker 1 Mine has always been my thoughts, my self-worth. Never thinking I'm good enough.
I'm always dwelling and self-blaming. So that's been my biggest battle in my journey.

Speaker 3 Yeah. Yeah.

Speaker 3 Which is crazy because I mean,

Speaker 3 I don't mean to invalidate your struggles when I say it's crazy.

Speaker 3 But I think there's people watching that are going to be like, wow, if I could only be like Ari, you know, then I would just have so much self-worth.

Speaker 3 And if I could only look like Ari and talk like Ari and have the, you know, one of the biggest podcasts in the world, then I would be so content. And it's just, it's not there.

Speaker 3 And you know, Brad Pitt said that, Russell Brand said that. Tim Carrey said that.
Tom Brady said that. I mean, the people at the very height of everything said, there has to be something more.

Speaker 3 Like, there has to be something more. And we all have this eternity-sized hole in our heart.
He says in Ecclesiastes, I've set eternity in your heart.

Speaker 3 Where we're at right now. I mean, we're recording this.

Speaker 3 Some of the most, the richest, most famous, most beautiful people with the nicest cars in the biggest houses on the on the

Speaker 3 nicest property in the United States of America are like a nine iron from us, a stone's throw from us.

Speaker 3 And it's one of the

Speaker 3 most

Speaker 3 like highest sales of antidepressants in anywhere in the country.

Speaker 3 And if that doesn't say, hey, that's not it,

Speaker 3 you know, do not love the world or things of the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
I mean, we are, there's walking dead people all around us right now

Speaker 3 who are just the shells of people desperate for the Holy Spirit to fill them.

Speaker 2 So true. If they had any idea.
They had any idea.

Speaker 3 Yeah.

Speaker 3 Yeah.

Speaker 3 Oh, sorry. She's like oh i was i thought i got to skip you know she's like oh i didn't no you're not gonna make me say it i didn't know me no look at anything so i was just like yeah

Speaker 3 she's like um let me let me read some more

Speaker 2 mine is definitely probably definitely probably mine is gonna be fear and anxiety and just probably how i relate to

Speaker 2 other people like it's usually relationally i think i have a major fear of abandonment that shows up in every area of my life. And it results in like my issues like result in the opposite symptom.

Speaker 2 Like my fear, like all of my fears result in me being like overly strong, overly courageous, but really there's like a deep rooted sense of just fear and probably a little bit of self-worth. And

Speaker 2 relationally, that's where I find my biggest issues.

Speaker 2 Just a lot of anxiety, fear of abandonment, stuff like that. Yeah.

Speaker 3 And so, and for me, it would be,

Speaker 3 I mean, there's, you know, lots of things. Totally.
Lust, materialism, greed. But I think the one that I'm probably most susceptible to is revenge.
Like vengeance.

Speaker 3 Like, it's like, if I did, if I hurt somebody and they're mad at me, like,

Speaker 3 that's on me. And I want to make that right.
But sometimes I feel like people will do things that are unjust, like unfair, or say something about my child or something like that.

Speaker 3 And I just feel this like,

Speaker 3 that's not of the Spirit of God.

Speaker 3 And

Speaker 3 I just think about, you know, if I didn't get a good night's sleep that night and things aren't going my way, and then somebody, you know, says something dumb or mean or whatever that is, just being provoked to anger.

Speaker 3 And so if we go back around, like yours was,

Speaker 3 how would you say it again?

Speaker 1 I get attacked in the mind a lot with my self-worth. And

Speaker 1 yeah, just not feeling good enough.

Speaker 3 So if we run the offense of Ephesians 6, which, you know,

Speaker 3 it says

Speaker 3 uh,

Speaker 3 put on the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the feet fitted with the gospel, the shield of faith,

Speaker 3 the helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And so that sword being the offensive weapon, and then it says he says to pray, like pray constantly.

Speaker 3 And so if we go to that formula and we start to combat, you know, some of those things, you know, I could say to you, well, Genesis 2 says that you've been created in the image of God.

Speaker 3 The reason my iPhone has worth is because it's an Apple iPhone. It's not generic.
It has a brand. It was created by someone intentionally, and so have you.

Speaker 3 He says, the things that he started in you in Philippians, he says he's going to carry out to completion.

Speaker 3 And he says, do not conform, Romans 12 now, do not conform any longer to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Speaker 3 And then Colossians, he says, to set your mind on the things above. And so there's a, all wars and battles are fought over real estate.

Speaker 3 And there's a spiritual war being fought over the real estate of your mind because your thoughts feed your heart and your heart takes you places.

Speaker 3 Proverbs 4, 23, above all else, guard your heart, for it's the wellspring of life. Everything you do flows from it.
And so he's trying to, the enemy is trying to get you to think

Speaker 3 lowly of yourself rather than the truth that you are loved by the most high God, who has numbered your days and has a plan and a purpose for your life. and he's using you in spite of you.

Speaker 3 He says in 1 Corinthians 12, his grace is sufficient. His power is made perfect in your weakness.

Speaker 3 And so

Speaker 3 where you are weak, he is strong, and he's using you in those ways. And so how did you say yours?

Speaker 2 Just like a deep-rooted sense of fear, fear of abandonment. It's like a lot of childhood stuff.

Speaker 3 Jesus in Matthew 4 is tempted by Satan himself. I'll say this right here.
We always say Satan, like Satan's after me. Satan's never been anywhere near us, probably.
He's not omnipresent.

Speaker 3 And so it's kind of like if I said Vladimir Putin is

Speaker 3 invading Ukraine. Well, it's not.
It's not Vladimir Putin.

Speaker 3 It's a war. It's soldiers.
He's never fired a gun or fired a missile. He's sitting safely in an office protected, right?

Speaker 3 Satan is probably somewhere where wars are being fought and people of great power. And so we probably have some snaggle-toothed demon attached to us, our family, an area, right?

Speaker 3 Yeah, a lower-level soldier, if you will.

Speaker 3 And so, you know,

Speaker 3 as we think about that, so say it again, I want to hear your words. Fear of abandonment of childhood wounds.

Speaker 3 And so when Jesus is tempted by Satan himself, it's actually Satan this time, he responds four times with memory verses from Deuteronomy.

Speaker 3 Like that's like Satan gives him a lie and he goes, no, here's the truth. Satan gives him another lie and he goes, no, here's another truth from Deuteronomy.
Satan gives him another lie.

Speaker 3 He goes, no, here's another truth from Deuteronomy. Like what if the only, our only hope of overcoming the enemy today is a memory verse from Deuteronomy?

Speaker 3 You know, I'm like, but for you, I might go Deuteronomy 31, 6. He says, he will never leave you nor forsake you.
So you're never alone.

Speaker 3 Like your entire life, because you have God, because you are now his adopted child, his daughter, that wherever you go, he's going to be with you. And he loves you, right?

Speaker 3 For while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. For God so loved the world, for God so loved Angela that he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish.

Speaker 3 And so he says that perfect love casts out fear. And whenever we're afraid, we can look at the situation and we can say, all right, is what I am fearful of sin? Like,

Speaker 3 is there something here that I would be choosing to do that's sin? And if it's not sin, then Romans 8 tells us, if God is for us, who can be against us?

Speaker 3 And so if it's not sin, then I'm charging forward. And it doesn't matter how it ends up because I don't have to determine obedience by the outcome.

Speaker 3 I just want to walk in that faithfulness. And so there's not a minute, there's not a second of your life that you will ever be afraid.

Speaker 3 And that's just renewing our hearts and our minds around the truth of God, which is spiritual warfare.

Speaker 3 Like that's how you defeat the enemy, according to Ephesians 6 and according to Jesus in Matthew 4.

Speaker 3 I think I really needed that.

Speaker 2 Thank you so much. It's true.
That ministered to my heart.

Speaker 3 It's the promises of God. Yeah.

Speaker 1 I feel like since starting ministry, I'm just going to be honest,

Speaker 1 I do good with combating with the word of God. I've been doing really good with that, but I feel like there's been a severe attack on my joy.
Like, I feel so numb.

Speaker 1 I feel like I have no joy. Yeah.
And I don't want to play, be a victim, but I, because I, I, I have such a good life. I'm healthy.
And so I, I think that, but I'm like, I, why?

Speaker 1 I can't even talk about it, but I do. I feel a lack of joy and numbness.
Yeah.

Speaker 3 Yeah. No, it's kind of a weird place to go on the air, but um,

Speaker 3 when I prayed beforehand, you know, I, I sensed that. And I don't know if you heard, but I was like, Lord, I just, I pray for a spirit of joy to overwhelm them.
And

Speaker 3 I was literally thinking about that. And I'm not trying to, it's the Lord, right? That's not a person.
It's not me. I'm not trying to be a, I'm a prophet kind of thing.

Speaker 3 It's just like sometimes the Lord, in his kindness, will do that, you know, for the encouragement of people. When the scripture talks about joy,

Speaker 3 it's a really strange thing in that the only joy that we know pre-salvation is tied to our circumstance. So it's like Christmas morning,

Speaker 3 you might open presents and so you experience joy.

Speaker 3 Hey, tomorrow we're going to go to the beach. You know, you experience joy.

Speaker 3 Hey, you know, we're going to do something that you want to do. And so you experience joy and your joy is tied to the circumstance.

Speaker 3 But then the scripture says, you know, be joyful in all circumstances. You know, pray without ceasing.
It says, even find joy in suffering. It's like, how can we do that?

Speaker 3 Have you ever, what's your favorite? If you could go anywhere, where would you want to go? Either back to somewhere or somewhere. So Hawaii, what island?

Speaker 3 maui okay maui and so if i told you right now ari if i said hey tomorrow um we've cleared your calendar for a week and um

Speaker 3 you're you we've put your best friends are going to be on a plane and we're sending you to maui we it's the it's the grand wallea it's where you're going to the nicest you're going to a nice place right there on the beach the weather there is perfect by the way all your responsibilities here are covered and um you're just going to have you know um a week vacation with some of your closest friends and in Hawaii.

Speaker 3 Have a blast.

Speaker 3 Would you experience joy in that? Like, would that feel

Speaker 3 like, oh man, that's exciting?

Speaker 1 I think for a fleeting moment. Yeah.

Speaker 3 So

Speaker 3 because

Speaker 3 it's like

Speaker 3 because

Speaker 3 of that reality, right? I think what the scripture is telling us is Hawaii, but something

Speaker 3 it's hard to even quantify, but like infinitely better than Hawaii is right in front of you forever and ever and ever and ever.

Speaker 3 And so when you see the homeless man on the street, when you get overwhelmed by your schedule, when you feel like you're just going through the motions, when God feels far, you kind of lift your head up and you're like, oh, I'm going to Hawaii.

Speaker 3 Because for me, I was in the corporate world and before,

Speaker 3 you know, if I was going on vacation, it's like nothing could get me down because I'm going on vacation. I'd be like, oh, hey, the coffee machine's on fire.
It's like, I I am going on vacation.

Speaker 3 You know, hey, that deal fell through. It's like, yeah, so what? Going on vacation tomorrow.
Like, don't bother me. I'm going, I'm going on vacation.

Speaker 3 And for the follower of Jesus, like, we're all about to go on an eternal vacation.

Speaker 3 And all these problems here, like problems with parents, problems with relationships, problems with roommates, problems with neighbors,

Speaker 3 you know, bills, all those things, all of those are squared, like the cold, right? All of those are going to get squared away.

Speaker 3 And forever and ever and ever and ever. And we have to renew our mind around that reality.
It's the only way I know how to

Speaker 3 endure the sufferings of this world because, man, there's, it's, the world's hard. It'll kick you in the face.

Speaker 3 I don't care how much money you have in the bank. I don't care how much influence you have, how popular you are.
I mean,

Speaker 3 you know, with all that stuff comes haters and their voices are loud, you know, and they will come after you. And Christians are the worst Christians.

Speaker 3 I'm saying in air quotes because I'm not so sure you're saved. Are the worst.

Speaker 3 And I mean it. And take that to the bank.
Don't email me, email these girls, ggb at yeah,

Speaker 1 take it to us.

Speaker 3 So, um,

Speaker 3 but yeah, Ian, I would just say

Speaker 3 we, God made us emotional beings, yeah, and like sometimes we have seasons of being down.

Speaker 3 It's some theologians call it the dark night of the soul, where it's just like that's our opportunity, it's not a literal fire, it's not cancer, it's not circumstantial, it's just like, hey, God, when I open this book, you just feel far,

Speaker 3 you know, and I just, I'm, I'm grasping, I want to laugh, but I'm just not feeling it. And in that, in those seasons, you just get your friends around you, you have them pray for you.

Speaker 3 I mean, sometimes it's therapy, sometimes it's medication.

Speaker 3 I'm not anti-medication or therapy, I'm pro-therapy, but you, you gather the believers and you say, hey, pray for me, get your favorite ice cream, you know, go, you

Speaker 2 get, watch your favorite show, you know, just begin to do the things that you love, yeah, and uh, to the glory of God, yeah, yeah, I think that there's a level of, you know, Ari and I didn't even grow up in church, so I think that there's a cost to ministry that we may not have been prepared for, especially we're in a much better position now because we were going like our first four months of tour, our first year of the podcast, first four months of tour, we had no intercessors, we had nobody that prayed for us, we had nobody that covered us, um, and that was really, really hard.

Speaker 2 And we didn't even understand, like, we didn't know. We didn't know.
We thought it was like us, like, we're good. And then we have learned a lot since then.

Speaker 2 And it's been really helpful having so many people cover us in prayer. And we, you know, what I saw you do that I loved? And that's, I started doing it.

Speaker 2 You posted on your Instagram story and you asked people to pray for you.

Speaker 3 Yeah.

Speaker 2 And I was like, we have GGB gang. Like, why are we asking them to pray for us?

Speaker 3 Well, I pray for y'all. I know, yeah.
I mean, thank you.

Speaker 3 There's a battle. This is, it's weird.
This is weird. But there's a battle of like demons and angels around us all the time.

Speaker 3 And so you're protected by angels. I don't think it's necessarily like a guardian angel.
Like we're taught, like, there's like one angel.

Speaker 3 And in fact, sometimes I'm like, God, send your strongest angels, especially on those airplanes,

Speaker 3 rough air. I'm like, Lord, send your strongest angels, carry this plane safely.

Speaker 3 But

Speaker 3 yeah, I mean, you definitely like prayer. So in Ephesians 6, that all culminates in prayer.
And I think we think about prayer, and this is in the book, like room service.

Speaker 3 I heard Pastor John Piper say something like this once. It's like we're in an all-inclusive resort, like in Hawaii, and we're dialing up chocolate cake.
Like, hey,

Speaker 3 can you guys please send up a new pillow or like,

Speaker 3 you know, I forgot my toothpaste. And we're just like, we use prayer like that.
But we're in a war. Like there's a war being fought.

Speaker 3 When you go into that city and you step in and people come into that arena, like the enemy is there. He's going to say, you're not real.
Like, no, that's, you're not true. You don't really love Jesus.

Speaker 3 You're doing this for fame. You're doing this for the glory, you know, for this and that, whatever.

Speaker 3 And you say,

Speaker 3 hey, man,

Speaker 3 like when he comes at me with that stuff, I'm like, man, you're probably right. Yeah.
You're probably right. I'm sure some of that's there, but I got an amazing Savior.
Yeah.

Speaker 3 Because Satan's not afraid of us.

Speaker 3 He's terrified of Jesus.

Speaker 3 Like he, like me, you know, he's like 6'7, 250, no problem. Right?

Speaker 3 But Jesus,

Speaker 3 like, I don't want to, I don't want anything. He doesn't want anything to do with Jesus.
And so I think that whole section in Ephesians 6 culminates in don't stop praying. Don't stop praying.

Speaker 3 And Lord, Lord, protect us. And he does.
I mean, I like, I will sense that like the whole room will change. Sometimes I'm preaching and they're like,

Speaker 3 you know, and it feels like nobody's listening. I'll just stop.
I'm like, Lord, would you, would your Holy Spirit speak through these words to change hearts, to change lives?

Speaker 3 And you just feel the whole room shift.

Speaker 3 Oh, yeah.

Speaker 1 We always wonder these things.

Speaker 3 In my mind, or sometimes I lie. I've done both.
Okay. Yeah.

Speaker 2 No, this is so exciting because obviously we're on tour. So we have like learned.
We've we're 16, you know, nights down and we've learned so much just in those 16 nights. And you don't understand.

Speaker 2 Like I'll be on there. You don't know how we get attacked while we're on stage.

Speaker 2 There are times and I fight through it, and I've made a decision that if this happens again, because I have the ability to fight through it, I have the ability to keep going and just do what I need to do, even though I'm feeling oppression.

Speaker 2 I'm feeling there, are times where I'll be on stage, and all of a sudden, out of nowhere, and I'll feel it before I'll go.

Speaker 2 I'll feel the darkness, like in the venue, we're in these theaters, these old theaters.

Speaker 2 Um, and I'll feel like this blanket of

Speaker 2 sadness or just like fog, like I just so heavy. And I'll be like, What is going on right now? Like, I legitimately feel something sitting on my chest.
Like, I feel, it's so crazy.

Speaker 2 And so, I've decided now, GGV, if you're at one of our shows, I'm going to stand up and I'm going to say, I am not like, I'm not doing this. And I'm going to call it out on the spot.

Speaker 2 And I'm going to be like, we're breaking this off right now.

Speaker 3 Oh, yeah. Just be like, hey, hey, guys, man, I just, I sense a heaviness in the room.
You'll sound like a, you know,

Speaker 3 I love it. But just be like, I sense a heaviness in the room.

Speaker 3 So let's just all pray for a second before we go further, just that, that there would be no evil here, that that would be bound in Jesus' name, that this would just be holy ground.

Speaker 3 Sometimes, like, I did a tour once, and, you know, sometimes you walk around the place and just like, Lord, protect this place, make it holy ground. I pray over every sea.

Speaker 3 Yeah, all of those kinds of things. But yeah, when it happens, here's what I'm like,

Speaker 3 and I don't talk to the devil. I'm like, other than scripture.
Like, that's, that's, some people do

Speaker 3 you take it out of here more power to you for me i just i just say scripture to them yeah

Speaker 3 and and it's like hey if you're gonna attack me i'm gonna pray harder just know that it's a wartime prayer so we're not calling up room service it's like we're on walkie-talkies and it's like hey i'm going into this coffee shop and there's lost people all around me who do you want me to share with what do you want me to do what what's going on with that guy there lord would you give me supernatural wisdom to to love and support him i walk in here i'm like hey ari's ari's struggling with joy man like let's let's pray that away like let's let's get the Lord moving in our heart, you know, whatever.

Speaker 3 And so you just begin to, like, just like, we're almost home, man. You know, we're about to go to Hawaii forever and ever and ever and ever and ever.
And there's like all these people around us.

Speaker 3 Like, this place is on fire. Like,

Speaker 3 it's burning down. And people everywhere are going to hell.
And so I'm like, all right, Lord, let me try to make heaven as crowded as we possibly can.

Speaker 3 And so, yeah, when you feel that heaviness on stage, I wouldn't sweat it. I mean, I think it even, I'd just be like, hey, just, hey, let's all pray right now.
Totally. And that's, it can't stay.
Yeah.

Speaker 3 Prayer is so powerful. When the, when the apostles came up against,

Speaker 3 you know, a demon-possessed person and they say, why, why couldn't we get that one out? Like, why couldn't we call it out? Jesus says, this one only comes out with prayer.

Speaker 3 And so it's like, where is that in some of our deliverance ministries? You know, these guys that get really animated and it's really theatrical and whatnot.

Speaker 3 And I'm not saying that's necessarily wrong because I can't see their heart, but sometimes we got to look at somebody and say, you know what? I'm just going to pray for you.

Speaker 3 And I'm not going to eat this week, or I'm going to go a couple of days without food, or I'm just going to, you know, I'm going to limit. I'm going to fast in some kind of way and just pray for you.

Speaker 3 Because he says in the way it's represented in another gospel is this kind of only comes out with prayer and fasting. And so, yeah, I,

Speaker 3 you know, I've had friends preaching and like a demon manifests in the room. And that happened to a friend of mine.

Speaker 3 And sometimes they just like start yelling from the audience. And so that can get in your head.
You know, know, it's like, I don't want that to happen.

Speaker 3 But if it does, it's just like you don't understand how much more power. Like, we don't believe in a theologians called dualism.
It's like equal opposing forces.

Speaker 3 It's like God and Satan, and they're really struggling. No, it's like God, it's like Satan can't even do anything without God's permission.

Speaker 3 You know, it's like he's so much more authority, so much more powerful than him.

Speaker 2 That is so, I am so fired up right now. And you know what? I like, even when that happens on stage, I have learned to get so excited because I'm like, God has something so special for this moment.

Speaker 2 And Satan is so intimidated that he's like trying to make us all confused and sad and insecure.

Speaker 2 So I just, we always try to encourage people that like, if you're being attacked, not you don't have to rejoice in being attacked, but you can also have a little bit of confidence that like you've got something that's intimidating.

Speaker 2 There's something special in you that God placed in you and Satan is like, I gotta attack that so it doesn't come to fruition.

Speaker 3 Yeah. Have you ever seen like in a movie, it's like Lion King.
It's been kind of played out, the plot, where it's like,

Speaker 3 there's like a, I'll just go with Lion King.

Speaker 3 There's like a little cub, you know, and he's coming up against all of these hyenas or the wolves or something bad, you know, that we're going to devour him. And he's like,

Speaker 3 he tries to roar, but it's like comes out as like a squeaky, like, like the, like the big, scary lion walks up behind him. And then all they get scared and he thinks it's him.

Speaker 3 You know, he thinks, oh, they're scared of me, little lion cub, but really they see the dad behind him he doesn't know his dad's behind him that's what i think about i've got i mean i i could tell you a story i don't know if we have time yeah yeah go ahead

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Speaker 3 Okay, so when i when i become a christian like i don't have christian friends you know so i'm still hanging with my old boys and we're at a at a bar and um and everybody's had too much to drink and so like i'm like brand new i'm like brand new to jesus and uh and so i'm sober and i'm there and you know one of my friends like the smallest one of us is is really intoxicated and so he does you know the dumb thing guys do is he finds the smallest guy in the bar and he goes what are are you looking at?

Speaker 3 And they're like, oh, we're about to throw down. And so I go over there, you know, sober and I separate them.
And I'm like, hey, guys,

Speaker 3 hey, I'm going to take him home. He's had too much to drink.
And I separate him like this. Well, this little guy here, he slaps my hand.
He goes, don't you touch me?

Speaker 3 And I was like, oh man, no, hey, listen,

Speaker 3 we're going to go. You know, it's cool.
Like, hey, you go your way. He's going to go his way.
And they get back together and I separate him again. He goes, I told you, don't you effing touch me.

Speaker 3 And I'm like, hey, man, like I kind of like bend down. I'm like, hey, buddy, wait, don't, don't do that.
And, and now all our buddies circle around him.

Speaker 3 So eight guys are around him, you know, and they might like, dude, these, they're, they're taking the creatine and stuff. Like they're, you know, they're working.
Like they're big dudes.

Speaker 3 And, and so they're all around him. And so there's, there's 10 of us because my buddy and me and then eight other guys and then this little guy in the bar.

Speaker 3 And I was like, hey, man, that's not going to go well for you. Like, don't do that.
And he pulls out his phone. He looks at me.
He goes, oh, yeah. He pulls out his phone.

Speaker 3 He touches a name and he goes, hey, you here? Okay, I got someone I want you to take care of. And then he hangs up and he goes, we'll see.
And I'm like, wait, what? I was like, what a move, man.

Speaker 3 What is this? And I'm like, I was like, you call Batman?

Speaker 3 So I'm like, hey, guys, we got to go. Like, let's go.
And we go out in the parking lot and I'm talking Dwayne Johnson, the rock. I mean, like, the biggest dude you've ever seen in your life.

Speaker 3 There's two of them, like two dudes. He has a chain around his neck, like a chain you pull a car with, with a padlock, like walking up.
Like, these are the guys. I was like, nah, they left, man.

Speaker 3 I think about the courage that guy had. What you see in Ephesians 6, it says the word stand multiple, like five times.
Stand, stand.

Speaker 3 1 Peter 5, clothe yourself in humility for God. Oppose the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
Humble yourselves, thereafter, under the mighty hand of God, so that in due time he may lift you up.

Speaker 3 Your enemy, the devil, prowse around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith.
faith.

Speaker 3 So I think about that guy, just the way he looked at me, he's like,

Speaker 3 dude,

Speaker 3 you see 10 men.

Speaker 3 You don't know who I know.

Speaker 3 You know, you don't know who's with me. You can't see who's with me.
And he's just like, and so, and he just stood there like with so much confidence. Honestly, it intimidated me.

Speaker 3 Like his confidence, I'm like, dude, I don't know who you called, but I don't want to know. And I think that's what it looks like to walk in faith.

Speaker 3 It's like, you don't know who who i know i know you're not afraid of me

Speaker 3 but daddy god you know like the creator of the heavens

Speaker 3 the creator of the heavens and the earth has my back so don't daddy god

Speaker 3 yeah i know just got to edit that out i'm kidding but um

Speaker 3 but yeah it's like it's wild because i uh you know i've been in haiti i've been in africa uh I've been in Mexico. I've been in the Amazon jungle,

Speaker 3 all of those places multiple times.

Speaker 3 Stories of like coming across demons like you know and i just have never seen it people on my team you know they'll come back with those stories i've just never seen it until i was in a country club in utah

Speaker 3 like one of the nicest country clubs and the dude just came off the golf course with his visor and i pray over him and a demon manifests and and it's like the cra and i i'm like i'd love to tell you i was like i'm not afraid but i was like please don't jump on me

Speaker 3 was he huge was who huge the demon oh I never saw the demon. I just saw the dude.
It's just like,

Speaker 3 no, so I'm like praying over him. Yeah, he's like, so I'm crazy.

Speaker 3 She's like, what'd the demon look like? No, I just like pray over this guy. He's telling me he struggled to pray.
Like he would like,

Speaker 3 he would, like his throat would close and stuff. And I was like, man, that sounds demonic.
And he was like, oh, it's not demonic. You Christians, y'all are crazy.

Speaker 3 And I was like, well, can I pray for you? And I pray over him. And I was like, Lord, I just pray, you know, that you'd heal him, that he'd be able to pray, that he would know Jesus.

Speaker 3 and if there's any evil here would you just bind it in Jesus name

Speaker 3 all this stuff started

Speaker 3 not throwing up like just like these noises started coming from him and his arm like flies up in the air and he starts convulsing and I was like what is happening right now like what is going on right now so and I've again I've never I'm like Lord in Jesus name I start calling my charismatic friends and and I'm I just started writing this book all my charismatic friends and they're like man you're gonna see more and more of that yeah it's everywhere like I mean they're just they're they're not hiding anymore.

Speaker 3 Wow. And they aren't.
And so I think as you go into places,

Speaker 3 I think, you know, Jesus, he's coming back.

Speaker 3 I think we're, like I said, I know we're closer today than we were yesterday.

Speaker 3 I don't know how close we are, but I've got a feeling that, you know, and it's, we always see things through the lens of America, but the reality, there's a whole big world out there, lots of countries.

Speaker 3 And

Speaker 3 I think as America gets further and further away from God, you know, they feel a freedom to show their faith. But I think we're seeing a revival.
I think we're seeing hearts turn toward God right now.

Speaker 3 Part of it's what you guys are doing on tour. When are y'all in Texas?

Speaker 2 April 25th.

Speaker 3 Let's go. April 25th is Dallas.

Speaker 2 And 7th. Yes.

Speaker 2 25th and 27th.

Speaker 3 And 27th is San Antonio. I think so.
Yeah, I think that's right.

Speaker 3 Hey,

Speaker 3 Texas people.

Speaker 2 Go see my friends. April 25th in Dallas, April 27th in San Antonio.

Speaker 3 Make sure you guys. I'm going to go.
Okay. So we can hang out.
Y'all go.

Speaker 2 He's going to do deliverance at the end of the end.

Speaker 3 Y'all turn.

Speaker 3 I love it. I love it.

Speaker 3 Thank you all so much for that.

Speaker 1 That would be cool.

Speaker 3 Just for the combos, man.

Speaker 2 So you split the book up into three different parts. You did who the villain is, what the villain does, and how to fight back.

Speaker 3 Yeah, yeah. And so who the villain is? Satan, Lucifer, the devil, lots of Prince of Darkness, the God of this world, the lowercase G God of this world.
He's the villain.

Speaker 3 Uh, Revelation 12 tells us that he took one-third of the angelic realm with him, so one-third of the angels fell. Encouraging thing there is, God still has two-thirds of the angels, right?

Speaker 3 So they're outnumbered right out the gate.

Speaker 3 And then there's still God, the creator, and Jesus, you know, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And so, you know, they, they, he, he has access to the word.
Like, he's read Revelation. He understands

Speaker 3 his destiny is that he gets thrown in the lake of fire. So he's running a scorched earth strategy, meaning that he's just trying to hurt everyone.

Speaker 3 If he can't keep you from God, then he's going to try to discourage you. John 10 says

Speaker 3 he tries to steal, kill, and destroy. So that's what he's up to is he's trying to prevent conversions and he's trying to discourage Christians.
So when you say, hey, joy feels far,

Speaker 3 that's spiritual warfare. Like that is for sure the enemy whispering lies to you.
Like you want to not believe those lies and replace those lies with the truth. But that's what he's doing.

Speaker 3 And so when you go into a city like Dallas or San Antonio to share the gospel, he's like, we've got to try to stop this, discourage them, put a heaviness in this place.

Speaker 3 Sometimes to me, it feels like brain fog. Like I'll be in a place where I'll just like, oh, like, what is, man, my, my.

Speaker 3 My thoughts feel cloudy right now, almost like the room feels smoky

Speaker 3 kind of situation, the heaviness people describe it as. And so he's wanting to do that so you feel, at least feel ineffective.
Exactly. But that's where I go.
You know, his grace is sufficient.

Speaker 3 His power is made perfect in our weakness. My favorite line, not in the scripture, that's as close as it gets is, if dependence is the goal, weakness is our advantage.

Speaker 3 So it's like, when we're weak, he's strong. And then how do we defeat him?

Speaker 3 You know, I, you know, people will say, if they grew up in Sunday school, like, put on the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, you know, the helmet of salvation.

Speaker 3 I'm like, I don't really know what that, like, what do you mean, put it on like like

Speaker 3 okay helmet of salvation

Speaker 3 every morning before tour all right yeah and so i'm like i don't know so i think what's happening there paul is in prison in rome he's he's on house arrest i believe he's chained to a roman soldier like that's how they would do that there is they would like chain you to a roman soldier they would

Speaker 3 they would be walking by guarding the place

Speaker 3 And I think he's looking at them and using that as an illustration. And it's not necessarily the articles.

Speaker 3 Like Like, you can't put on a helmet of salvation and not have the breastplate of righteousness. You know, you're unarmed.

Speaker 3 So you have to have all of those things.

Speaker 3 It's the way that it says in the Greek, it's like put on the full armor of God. So as we put that on, it's that we're positioned in truth.

Speaker 3 Because right now, everybody's like, oh, it's your truth and their truth and his truth and her truth. No, no, there's absolute truth.
Yeah. You know,

Speaker 3 if you're like, my truth is I can fly and I'm going to jump off this building, the truth of gravity is going to overwhelm your lie that you believed and you're going to see that as a lie.

Speaker 3 And so there is absolute truth. There's a God.
That's so good. You know, he created everything.
He sent his son Jesus to die for your sins. So we're positioned in truth.

Speaker 3 We are aligned with righteousness, which is just like we're walking in right. We're doing the right thing.
And if we don't, we don't hide it. We're like, I really messed up there.

Speaker 3 You know, I drank too much or I hit the vape or man, we went too far in our relationship. I messed up and I'm not going to hide it.
I'm going to bring it. It's right here.

Speaker 3 I'm going to put a giant spotlight on it. See that right there? I did that.
I'm so sorry. Will you guys pray for me? Wow.
And so we're aligned in righteousness. We're sharing the gospel.

Speaker 3 It's not just for professional Christians. Like, it's every follower of Jesus should share the gospel with people.
Tell people how they can live forever.

Speaker 3 That Jesus died for their sins and God raised him from the dead.

Speaker 3 We have this, we're standing in faith. And I think this is huge.
Like, we have to grow our belief in God. Like, doubt will kick your tail.
You know, It's like I've got to grow in my faith in God.

Speaker 3 Shield of faith.

Speaker 3 Oh, the helmet of salvation.

Speaker 3 I think that's the setting your mind on the things above, the internalizing salvation, like understanding that I'm going to be with God forever and ever and ever and ever and ever.

Speaker 3 And that I operate, the sword of the Spirit, I operate in the Word. Like we said earlier, like I know what it says.
I do what it says. I'm writing it on my heart.

Speaker 3 When he comes at me with a lie, I'm responding with the truth. And then never stop praying.

Speaker 3 If all of your armor is in a box, like a trunk, you know, the key to that trunk is prayer. So as you talk to the commander-in-chief, you open the trunk, you're able to put on the armor.

Speaker 3 And so that is how we find the abundant life that Christ came to give us.

Speaker 1 So good.

Speaker 1 That's what we needed.

Speaker 2 That's all we needed, everybody.

Speaker 3 That's it.

Speaker 2 Come on.

Speaker 1 This book. It's an incredible book.

Speaker 2 are a Christian, you should be reading this book. Everybody has to have an understanding of the spirit realm, of spiritual warfare, of the enemy.

Speaker 2 Jesus is so much bigger than the devil, he's so much bigger than his army of demons. However, we still have to have an awareness.
Knowledge is power when it comes to our faith. Like, we need this.

Speaker 2 Thank you, Jesus, that you wrote this book. And thank you, Jesus, that you're somebody.
You're not just a theologian that learned all of this. Like, you experienced it.

Speaker 2 I love there's so much power in teaching that is from experience, like your lived experience, because it's real. And that's who you are, honestly, JP.
Likewise.

Speaker 2 Not to honor circle you really quick, but like who you are to the people of our generation and younger, there's not many people like you. There aren't that many teachers like you.

Speaker 2 You make such a big difference. You have such an incredible impact because you live it, you breathe it.
This is your life. You are a man that knows Jesus.

Speaker 2 You walk in this room and you carry the glory of God.

Speaker 2 You minister to me for 20 seconds and I start crying because you carry Jesus with you everywhere you go.

Speaker 3 Likewise, y'all are doing it too. And so, GGB gang, pray for these ladies, pray for your boy too.
Yes, please be praying for JP.

Speaker 3 Let's be prayed up, but man, just so proud of y'all. It's so honored to be here.
This is

Speaker 3 really fun. This is, I was really looking forward to this time and conversation.
So it's good to just check in with y'all too.

Speaker 3 And just because I'm cheering y'all in for awake, I'm like, I know you're my friends. Hear them.
I'm so glad

Speaker 1 for you. Thank you so much.

Speaker 1 We love you. Love you.

Speaker 2 And we love you guys. Love you, GGB.

Speaker 3 Come on.

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