What's up, guys, Welcome back to the podcast, this time live again. Second time in a row we've done a live podcast. So part of you will listen to it right now, and then part of y'all will listen to it when it comes out on Monday. I got a bunch of people in the studio today, a whole bunch of people. Ant Man producing the show, and I got Chris Lee, the Mighty Chris with the big arms. Yeah, he doesn't have a mind, he's got the wide mic, but he's here just to make sure things. You know,
no intruders come in here, and that's with us. That's why he has big guns. And then we're coming this. We're gonna answer your questions, and if you have a question, you could do it in a couple of ways. You could email podcast at grangersmith dot com. We're gonna answer those, and you could also comment just like this, you can comment right here on the program. If you're watching on YouTube. What about what if they're watching right now on Instagram?
Yeah, uh yeah, you could leave a comment on Instagram just like and what if they're watching on Twitter and the same deal a Twitter, it'll pop up right here for.
Us okay, so we'll get to see all of those. So you could either comment in real time on any of these programs you might be watching on or you can just email podcast at grangersmith dot com. We are also going to talk about ee E Day, which, as we are recording this live, is Manyana. It's gonna be a really fun day. We've got a mud bog, two mud bogs in fact, a dot track which is street legal trucks and UTVs, and then a big boy track for the unlimited class I E. Monster trucks.
Wasn't there going to be a third one?
Well, there's three categories, two tracks. What were you thinking?
Kids track?
Oh yeah, yeah, and then we will have kids. If you're listening, We're going to do a called power Wheel Race in between the two tracks. That's awesome. Maverick will be entering in that. I'm gonna be racing you, racing Chris. I'm not.
I'm staying far far away.
Is your truck your truck four will drive? It? Is not? Oh? Is your truck four will drive in?
No?
Both of y'all got the white trucks.
I know, okay, the don't give me some This has been a topic in our house all the way up to yesterday. Literally, I have gone to the dealership to trade in my truck because I wanted a four by four. When I bought it in twenty twenty, none were available. Remember, everything was short. But I needed a new car, okay, and so I bought the one I have, And now they're three times as much just for four wheel drive.
Yea.
I bought that truck for maybe thirty thousand a four by four right now? Brand new?
Yeah, okay, sixty grand? Okay, Well maybe y'all could use the old seventy seven i've got Okay, Okay, you trust us with that? Yes, I don't trust myself with it. So could we go see the guys at Ege Apparel? We can assume we should be able to go. Oh, there they are right there. What's up, fellas? Y'all getting ready?
Why?
So?
My question is to Chris and everybody else that doesn't have a four by four truck, what's the point of having a truck if it's not four by four?
Is that a dumb question?
Man?
Tyler, don't get this. This podcast is about answering questions for the fans, not for me explaining why I don't have a four by more.
All right, city city boys. It's for city boys. Yeah, Tyler, you're gonna get your your red Ford wet.
I mean I pulled you out yesterday.
He did, so we didn't have the hubs walked in. So do we do? We have Justin there with you guys. Is he out working on the truck. He's working on his on his truck he just bought. Yeah, he's out here. So we have Justin Hildebrant, who is a big time YouTuber and he does this stuff. He actually told us the other day a couple of weeks ago, he said he's been doing this most of his life. Didn't he say something like that, I've been doing this most of my life. So I think that qualifies him as knowing
what he's talking about. Yee Day is open to the public for the first time ever, And I'll be totally honest with everyone listening right now. This is really a trial year for us. Opening it up to the public
is a trial year. We're gonna see how it goes and really shoot for you know, I hope decades, Lord Willing, decades of ye Day where you could bring you can come and bring your kids and bring your power wheels and bring a pickup truck that's four wheel drive and put it in the mud and celebrate with us.
I'll park over there with Chris. I guess.
I don't understand, Like I know, it's cool to have a four wheel drive pickup truck. That's like the cool thing to have, right, it makes you more manly and everything.
It's no, no, no, no, Chris, you don't understand.
Aside from hold up, Chris, don't have headphones on.
Chris speaking over you Smith boys again, how does it feel you do it to me? You do it to me all the time?
Nothing over here.
Let me explain what Tyler saying. Go ahead to the.
City boy, and he's never been in the mud, so he doesn't need a pit.
He said, you're a city boy, and you don't. You've never been in the mud, so you don't need a four wheel drive.
It's right, Okay, I never claimed to be a country boy by any means. But if I'm not, if my daily life isn't getting stuck possibly getting stuck in the mud, like I'm not getting stuck in the mud taking my son to baseball practice, right, So what's the point of having the four wheel drive? I don't live up north where there's snow during the winter. So unless you live on a farm, what's the purpose. Or you're doing this mud bogging thing, what's the purpose of having it?
Yeah, it's a good argument. You have to love you have to love the fun of mudding, I guess. Or you have to be going to the deer blind that's very difficult to get to or there. I mean, that's not the only two reasons. But but if you're taking your kid to baseball practice and you just like a pickup truck, then get a two wheel drive. Like Ant said, you're gonna save a lot of money.
What if it's a wet day at the baseball park? See, that's what I always think of. What is Yeah, what if it's.
Been raining, like it's about to this weekend and it's probably gonna get rained out. But what I don't get. What I don't get is the and I really get it from these Smith brothers. Here is the condescending tone, the let down when you when you state that you don't have And I get this not just from you guys, but from other people. It's like, oh, you don't have a four wheel drive. Oh, I guess we see who's running that family, right.
Parker doesn't have a four wheel drive either. Parker's driving Dad's old truck, not not the old the seventy four old truck, but the other old truck, the uh, the one that was sitting at at Moms forever. And Parker's like, I'm want to save some money and drive that.
I was gonna say, he's the smartest of everyone here.
Yeah, the only.
Reason to have four wheel drive is so you can tell people you have four wheel drive.
Oh, come on, be fair again.
I just pulled Granger out yesterday.
I literally pulled out the forklift that somebody drove in the grass that's not supposed to be in the grass and pulled them.
Out three days ago.
So it's like, we like to Chris's point, Yeah, Chris, the condescending thing, Like I get it, Like if you're never if you're always on the pavement, two will droves fine. But being out on the farm, living on a farm, at the ranch, going hunting on Granger, so you just have to have a four by four.
Yeah, So you guys could join in on this conversation. Anyone could comment and give us a good reason why you need a four wheel drive I think there's I think they're personally are There are many and I think Parker has a point as well. So Crystal says, my husband's dream truck was a ninety five to two thousand and Ford F three fifty super duty Diesel four by four and w R was I mean bought one, and we bought one. Okay, we bought one without the four
by four. And as much as he loves our truck with a Texas flag on the tailgate, he still complains about not having four wheel drive.
Oh yeah, I have no need for one, and I complain every day too.
Yeah, you know what it came in Andy was the ice storm in Texas.
Truck the ice the ice storm was huge, and we have you know, usually once a year in Texas you're going to need a four wheel drive. I spent a couple of years ago. I spent a couple of days just pulling, pulling people out of the ditch with that when I had that Ford. Adam says, let's hear what
Earl Dibblis Junior would say about all this. Yeah, I think I think Adam Earl would say, if you're going to drive a truck, I mean, why are you even gonna get no two wheel drive and doesn't even make no sense, just going tire spinning, spinning, spinning, like yet, I don't even like them too. Will drive bowler drives the only way to go for a country boys, That's what I think. That's what he would say. Probably he said that before, right, Yeah, so guys, uh, before we
let you go, what we know about tomorrow? I'm gonna head up there just a little bit to get you guys, or to to see if we can get some water from the big track to the little track. But what else should we know about ye day tomorrow?
Don't show up if you don't have a ticket. I think we still have tickets available today. But it's a pretty pretty uh. You won't let you won't be let in at the gate if you don't have a ticket. So go get a ticket now.
We still have some available. There's gonna be a lot of fun. Next year, we'll probably do a Saturday. I think the only reason we did Friday this year was because Granger, you're leaving the some other country or state or something again to go speak.
That's what I do. Okay, we got.
Trucks, we got beer, we got the mud, bogs being worked on right now. This is the most insane mud bog I've ever seen.
They're like four or five feet deep.
There's literally like half a million dollar machinery like digging into the mud making sure that it's like the perfect the perfect amount of mud to be able to let certain trucks get far enough but then get stuck at certain points. We have like redneck scientists out there perfecting it. It's gonna be like one of the greatest days in Yee history, honestly, and we're super exciting, and we got we got a.
Bunch of friends and guests like Neil Brisbee, Hannah Baron. I think Weston Champlain's coming is coming. A bunch of people like that, a bunch of friends over the years. They're gonna be hanging out, so it's gonna be a fun time.
I agree. I agree with Parker. I think it's going to be It's gonna be one of the coolest days we've had at Ee Farm since Holler, and it may even be better than Holler, since the Holler music video shows.
It'll be better because everybody who's seen this place for years is finally gonna be able to be here and like be and when a helicopter comes roaring in right over their heads, like.
Don't give away all the surprises, Parker. Yeah, that's cool. All right, guys. Well, I'll see you in a few hours and everyone else you'll all see the EUEI farm tomorrow.
See you guys.
Yep. All right. So let's get to what we do on this podcast, and that's answer some questions. And thankfully it's not just my brain working on this. We got Chris and ant Man. This question comes in from We'll see who. This is from Garrett, and Garrett wants to argue about some stuff here. Just kidding, he says this, Hey Granger, longtime music follower, new to the podcast, but really love it. I don't remember the episode number, but you had a Mennonite gentleman on there, and you guys
were discussing using firearms for protection. I'll preface my question by stating that I am a firm believer in the right to bear arms, as I believe it is necessary for the protection of innocent life here on earth. I feel like your conversation with that gentleman ended too soon, and basically what I gather from his perspective is that he believes you don't need a gun for protection if you trust God. I'm curious to hear your thoughts about
that stance. Personally, I don't agree, because by that logic, nobody who has faith in God should ever wear a seat belt on a fighter fire extinguisher, or wear a harness and a tree stand, et cetera. I just don't see how being cautious and prepared could mean you are lacking faith. Just curious about your further thoughts on this topic. Thank you, Garrett. Yeah, man, I appreciate you.
Garrett.
You're talking about my buddy Marv, and love Marv to death. He's we met on this podcast. We met as he was a listener to it, and then we became friends. He's a dear brother in Christ. And then eventually he was a guest on the podcast. And one of the questions, you know, Mennonites believe in gosh ly, what is that? What is that doctrine? It is the non aggression, the doctrine of non aggression. And I think there's a I've heard that, Yeah, it's you didn't know that. So it's basically,
I don't want to say the word pacifist. The people they just they believe they lean more on the turn your cheek side of Jesus and.
Less on the less on the turn over the tables.
Yeah. Yeah, And it's it's actually funny you say that because those are the two extremes, and I believe if you lean on either extreme, you can't be correct. You can't pin Jesus on the flipping the table guy or the we only turn the other cheek guy. Because you know, it's interesting when when the when the Jews and it came to arrest him in the Romans, they came to arrest him in the garden, he spoke a word and they fell to the ground. You know, he he defended
the disciples in a way with just his voice. Just his voice knocked him to the ground. So it's interesting to look at it in that perspective. I think, I think here's where I land on this. And Garrett, I hope you hear my heart on this. I have nothing wrong with the second second Amendment, and neither does Marv. You first want to say that like the guy loves to hunt, and I don't think there's anything I don't think there's anything wrong with desiring to protect you innocent
life in your family. I think that is something that's God given. I think that's something that's inside of God has given that to all men, a desire to protect and and so there is a nuance to this that we have to dive into. And so I want to we should test our hearts to see are we approaching this with the Clint Eastwood mentality, come on, punk, make my day, or are we saying my last resort in life is to use deadly force. It's a last thing
I want to do. I will protect my family from from someone, just just as I would protect to my immediate family from a sibling that comes home drunk and starts beating on his mom, like I'm gonna stop him with force. Marv. Part of Marv's argument on this was, and I think it's right. It's like, look, if I'm carrying a gun with me all the time, then I could be tempted to lean to the side of me
that says, come on, punk, make my day. I could be tempted to use it out of anger, which is a sin of ours, to be aggressive to a point of I want to fight you because I want to prove that I'm right, or prove that I'm stronger a prove that I'm a better protector. Jesus would have never done that. Jesus was perfect and sinless, and so he
would have never used it in that way. But I think, Garrett, there's a nuance to this, and I think it's a category error to say, well, then we shouldn't wear a seatbelt, or we shouldn't carry a fire extinguisher, or we shouldn't wear a harness and a tree stand. I think that's a category error because killing someone has way more consequences than putting out a fire with a fire extinguisher, or you know what I mean. So you don't want to
be wrong about that. You don't you don't want to be shoot somebody between the eyes because they're on your front lawn and you did it at a mistake, or or they were somebody's son that was having a bad day with alcohol and you just shot them between the eyes and killed them to prove a point that you're gonna protect your family. I think there's a danger in that and the other thing we have to bring up before then I'll let you guys talk. We have to
bring up. We're talking about something that is so rare. The instance you have to pull the trigger on a gun to protect your family. I've never met anyone that's had to do that. I'm sure it happens, but it is the far extreme case. It's a it's a one in a million chance. And so do we do we base all of our thinking on a one and a million chants or do we want to actually think through it and go, Look, I'm not the flip the tables Jesus. I'm not only to flip the table, Jesus. I'm not
only to turn your other cheek Jesus. In fact, I'm not Jesus at all. And I have a tendency to sin, and part of that sin is aggression. So I want to do all I can to protect that aggression. Let me let you guys dive in, and then you guys, I want to see some comments on here too, because this is a this is a very nuanced question.
Well, I tell you, I just firmly believe Jesus wants me to have an ar fifteen brother. I just don't see any way around it.
Right, That's the best I can get you in the camera too, right here. So it's just the only adswer.
You know.
I'm kind of in between in some of that and and the fact I carry, but I've never I also did all the training to actually I've done training twice. That is, you know, never pull. It was the whole never point at anything that you don't intend to kill. Never pull your gun if you don't intend to use it. So that's always been it's there in the in the extreme that that I haven't and I wasn't in a situation that I wish I would have, you know, I
think it's it's very different for every person. If you are a person who does lean into Okay, I lose control when I get angry, or I you know, I jump to an extreme when I get upset. Yeah, it's just like being that person owning a gun. You should be a responsible gun owner. It's the ones who are irresponsible are the ones who make all the responsible ones look bad, right, and and and lead to the conversation of well, you know, nobody should or we should have a band on X, Y and Z, And that's not
what this podcast is about. But what my point is is that you need to be real and judge yourself very honestly. If you are an extreme. It doesn't have to be with a gun it could be with something broke, you knock something over broke. Did you get very upset when you stub your toe? What do you do? You know, are you are the one who cusses everybody that you see, or are you sit down and pray over it and and hope that you didn't break your toe? Where do
you land? That kind of that kind of should help you maybe a little bit dictate what you should do about carrying every day.
What you got on is, Chris, you know, it's a I've done training and as ant Man mentioned, it's you know, you pull that gun up and you pointed at someone. Through my training. Anyway, you're pulling the trigger. You're not pulling it up and pointing it to scare or anything like that, and you're shooting to kill. You're you're shooting for center mass, right between the chest bone. So, man, my prayer every morning, not that I live the streets or anything like that. Sounds really dangerous.
Thanks in your two wheel drive.
You gotta get out of that neighborhood, pow uh. But my prayer every morning is I don't have to use that weapon. That's the last thing. I mean. There's all kinds of you know, first and foremost, you don't want to take another life, right, you don't want to kill somebody. But second, you know there's so many legal consequences that come along with that, and you're probably going to court, and there's a good possibility you're going.
To be sitting at night. So the idea of.
Almost kind of welcoming that challenge of somebody coming into your house. And I know there's a lot of a lot of people out there that have that sentiment, people I know closely. I don't get it. I don't get it, and I think it's a it's kind of a dangerous mindset.
Yeah.
So so that's where that's where I agree with Marv. I mean, granted, I love mar like I would I would rather I think what you're saying is, I'd rather follow on that side. I'd rather follow on the mind in Night's side going because you know what Marv says is he's like, I don't know what I would do in that situation. And I think what he's what he's kind of implying is I don't really trust myself with what I would do. And and I think, Garrett, Man, I love you too, Man, I don't I don't know yet.
I'm glad you emailed, but but it sounds like you're It sounds like the sentiment of Clint Eastwood. Here. This sounds like I carry because I want to say, come on, punk, make my day. You want to step on the threshold of my house, I will blow your brains out. And I think if you have that, I that idea, I think that I think that's a sin and I think it's Yeah, for sure, I think it's a lot of
trouble you could be in. Yeah, we'll continue on. But if but if someone has a comment about this, is anybody comment about this in or are they stay in silent because I don't blame them if they are and.
Know there are some comments? Can we take a break?
REQUI yeah, let's take are.
All right?
You said you have some comments on here?
Yes, we have. So, uh, there's a couple of I plan on Okay.
Brandon says, I'm twenty. I plan to get my concealed carry permit after college. I strongly believe in self defense, and I know that I'd only use it if I am in a life or death situation. Yeah, it's good, Michelle says, thank you for speaking on this today. Love the podcast. Y'all are great, God bless, Michelle says, and I'm not I'm not offering my opinion. I don't blame me at all. Bruce says, I don't know how this begins something we should be prepared to give up if the government bans guns.
Sorry, there's the beginning.
Okay, Okay. One way I thought about it is it's a privilege that is Christians we can use. I think he believes guns. However, can you go back one more time yet? However, I think it would be something we should be prepared to give up if the government bans guns, seeking to be subject to government, as Romans thirteen talks about. Oh that's interesting. So that's not where I thought he was going. I thought he was going to say, we need to be ready when the government comes, so we
keep them. But he's saying, yeah, we could use them. It's a privilege we have if the government comes, we should be ready to give him up. Yeah, that's interesting. Andrea says, I teach CPO classes, and we always teach our students that it is a tool of last resort. We always go through the pyramid of the escalation.
Yeah.
Amen, I've done that class. As well. And then here's Bruce again in the New Testament.
Believe, I believe it's one of the apostles.
I believe it's one of the apostles that commands a congregation for joyfully accepting the seizure of their property, realizing that everything on earth is temporal. You have to remember, Bruce, I mean these apostles the time that early church, the first century, what was constant oppression. And Jesus think about this, y'all. Jesus never rebuked a soldier for being a soldier. So you could look at that a couple of different ways. But he never when the Roman soldiers came in different instances
and said what should we do to be saved? Jesus never said stop being a soldier. Put down your guns, which would would have been swords, obviously, put down your weapons, and don't be a soldier anymore. And John the Baptist same when he encountered these centurions. He never once said, stop being a soldier. That is a sin. Don't be a soldier. Put down your swords, you infidels. You never
said that. You brought up another one. Brian says, I am a former l e O and marine and I understand a gun as a tool, and like any other tool, it requires training for proper use. I don't want to have to take another life, but I do want to protect life. Yeah, amen, Brian, Yeah, we are here to UH as men. Part of part of what we do is we want to protect and make.
Prosper you know, and.
I don't. I don't think anyone disagrees that at the hands of life and death, especially with a child or a and someone that's can't defend themselves as much, you will step in between the aggressor and the victim. You will step in between it and stop whatever's happening.
Again, I think the gray area that's so interesting to me, and I think about this often very circumstantial. So someone comes into your house, they're wielding a weapon, that's.
Pretty cut and dry.
It's like they got to be done with, you got to get rid of, or a school. Okay, but someone breaks into your house. Let's just say a teenager, one hundred and one hundred and seventy five pound teenager comes in unarmed.
What do you do at that point?
You know?
Is it do I use my martial arts stuff on them? Do I start shooting? Do I point try to get.
Him to leave. You know, what's the how do you react.
In that gray area there? And that's it.
Yeah, And like what I told Marv when he was on the podcast, I said, I've told Amber before, I'm shooting all the knee caps out and then I'm taking my belt off as a tourniquet and preaching the gospel to him and Marv Marv laughed, and he's like, I think I would do the same thing. He's like, but I don't know what I would do. I don't know if I would trust myself. So that I think that's what it comes down to, is that teenager comes in and he doesn't have any kind of deadly weapon, but
say he's on drugs and he's wanting to hurt. He's wanting to rape your daughter, you know. And so I don't know if my first reaction isn't I want to I want to throw a grenade into his mouth, you know, Like I don't know if that's my first reaction, because it's impossible to know how we react. But whenever you have accessible to you, you will use right. These are
all quotquestions. I don't think there's a right or wrong answer, but These are questions we need to really think about, and we need to think about why we're asking the question once again? Is it a come on punk, make my day. Let me show you who I am. I protect my family at all ends. Or is it I want to love and protect and preserve life and I want as many people saved as possible. Is that your desire? Or is it you step on my grass I blow your brains out? This is interesting? Are we chewing up
too much time on one topic? Thanks a lot more.
There is a there's a comment from on instagram from from Costa sixty three. You should never carry just to go out to find a situation to put yourself in. It should only be pulled off a threat. Is there pulled off a threat? Is there better to retreat than running to unless you truly needed?
Okay, see it's hard. It's hard reading questions like that, is right? Yeah, that's a good point. Are you wearing a red bandana and going into the crips neighborhood?
You know?
Is that you? We need to test ourselves in these kind of ways. Are what are we getting ourselves in? Yeah?
You want some other comments? People ask a few things?
We should I mean yeah, another question.
Well, there are just other comments that have come in, not about the comic.
Marian says, Hey, Granger, We're in London, Ontario, and Amber just spoke and our Amber has spoke at would love to see her, only ninety minutes from me. And I'm and what is she saying? Winds around Ontario, Canada? Uh? Is Amber? I don't know? Is Amber gone? I don't think Amber's gone there yet. I think she's has she got she's going there tomorrow. Actually really think she's going in there tomorrow. Okay, yeah, and then I.
Think she's downstairs.
Now she's down there.
I think I saw.
Katie says, are you planning to see George Draydon June? I am, I'm not Katie, I'm not Amana says Granger. How's your family doing?
Uh?
Lovey all? So they're all great, busy, busy, busy. We've got ee day tomorrow, so everybody's kind of prepping for that. Plus Amber's going somewhere Canada, I think obviously. Anna says, I really love that your episodes every Monday. Thanks for sharing them. Yeah, thank you. Anna. Caleb says, Hey Grange, been dating my girlfriend for three and a half years. I'm eighteen. My parents are super overprotective even with my everyday life. It's to the point where it makes me
put up a wall from them. Any advice, Yeah, Caleb, that means you've been dating this girl since you're in your you know, fourteen and a half years old, and your your parents. I think all of us either have a fourteen year old or or have had one, or almost have a fourteen year old in this room right now. And so when you say your parents are putting you know they're over protective. Great, great, Like shouldn't parents want
at all costs to protect now? The thing is you're right at the end of their jurisdiction over your life. You're most likely going to leave here pretty soon, and you could do whatever you want. But while you're still under their roof, as the old saying goes, I would say, just honoring them, loving them, understanding that they truly want what's best for you. They don't want to overpower you and overprotect you because of they have some kind of
motive for theirselves, some selfish motive. They probably see something in this girl. Since you've been dating since you're fourteen and a half years old, they probably see something that it's a little scary to them, and it may be just as simple as they are. They think she's moving a little too fast, and they might like her, but they're wondering if you're going to give up all of your teenage years for her and not just be a teenage boy for once, because you haven't been able to
do that. Maybe the worry is as simple as that. And so that comes across as overprotective guys.
What do you all got to go.
In a world full of parents that I believe do not care enough and do not put enough restrictions on their kids. Keep in mind, I grew up very very old school raised by my biological grandparents, and they knew exactly what I was doing, when I was doing it, where I was doing it. So in this world, I think having parents like that is a real blessing. It's not going to make sense to you at eighteen right now, because you're at that age where you want to be free,
you want to have no chains attached to you. But it's going to make sense one of these days, I promise you. I was questioning those parental decisions when I was your age, and now having a couple of teenagers. I'm telling them the same thing. Believe me, this is going to make sense to you one of these days. We're trying to shape you into being a good human. And hang in there. It sounds like you got some good folks. And as long as they're not beating you too much, you know you're you're okay.
Yeah. The cool thing about this live podcast is Chris We're we're we're not speaking to an email. We're speaking to him. He's listening right now, exactly.
It's really cool, right. I love that aspect.
Of this live, this live answering questions. Should we go back to the email speaking of or You've got.
More in a couple more comments here, uh this yee day tomorrow.
Fine wife bought me a ticket to celebrate my birthday. Ee y day, Marcus my man, I will I will see you tomorrow, buddy awesome And Nora six three six says saying hello from Fort Worth, Texas. Love genuine you are in your podcast. Thank you, no, thank you, Susan says Granger. How could we best pray for you and
your family and this season of life. That's a great question, and it you know, it changes, I would say right now I'm in a a little bit of a busy season, just coming back from Honduras and going heading into EED Day tomorrow preaching in uh Costa, Mesa, CALIFORNI yes Sunday, delivering a message on Wednesday in Albuquerque, and then another message on Friday in Bismarck, North Dakota. So all of those messages require time, research, reading, writing seminary on top
of that. So if you just pray for endurance through the season. And I'm trying to be better about saying no to things, I just I thought I was getting better at saying no to things, and even now I'm still struggling a little bit because then another message will come in and somebody invites me to their thing, and I just go, oh, I really like this person, I respect them, or I would love to be part of this, and I say yes, and then it just fills up, you.
Know, the saying. And we probably said it before, but is that you do say no to things when you say yes to things?
Yeah, so when you.
Say yes to something, you say no to something else. Just pick which one you want to say no to.
Oh, that's good. I needed to hear that in I needed to hear that. Yeah, like right out, I'm doing an interview. It's ten thirty six, yeah, Central time. Right now as we recorded, I'm doing an interview at eleven.
You jumping from this into an interview.
Yeah, what's one great memory from your recent mission? Be grateful? Says you know. This is a second time in just a few months I've done some kind of mission in Central America, and I want to say I've seen or Latin America. I should say, I have seen a joy in these people, and it is it shouldn't be thought of as Americans that we need to go and help them because their life is struggling in some way, you know, like, oh, they they don't have what we have, we should help them.
Trust me, I've spent a significant amount of time recently with these with people from these different countries, and they're not hurting for Joel, our happiness, our peace or rest like we are in the United States. And they don't have what we have material wise, but they don't need it. And so I think I learned those lessons.
Let's say it's probably a bigger learning lesson for you. On those trips. You don't have Instagram at the time. They don't either and there's more joy. There's no emails flying in and they have joy.
And one of the countries I've been to recently is all communists, and so they definitely don't have anything material that we have, especially food and medicine things like that. But really they're happy. They don't need what we think we need. But I'm not going. The reason I go to these places is to share the gospel. That's what we all need collectively, is all of us image bearers of God need the gospel, and we need leaders to
teach the gospel. And so we go to support the leaders and provide the leaders with the resources or information or just encouragement that they might need, so that these leaders in these different regions can help teach each other. That's really the what it comes down to.
Hit an email.
Yeah, this email here, how we doing on time? Good on cameras? From anonymous? It says, Hey, Granger, I want to remain anonymous. I'm a teenager who lives in Tennessee. I'm homeschooled, and at the moment, I'm doing homeschool most of the time. I've been struggling with friendship issues in my past. I hung out with a really bad crew who drank, smoked, et cetera. I want friends who love Jesus. But at the church I attend with my family, there
seems to be a bunch of surface level people. I've been putting myself out there, only to seemingly get rejected or get left in a month's time. I don't want to act high and mighty, but I also want those iron sharpens iron friends. In the past, I've been taken advantage of and drained, and I'm going through a really hard time and I just want to be poured into. What would you do to make more friends that are solid?
Thank you for time of your podcast. Oh boy, this is a great question, but it's very difficult because of the information I'm lacking. I don't know how old you are. I don't know what town you're in. I don't know if it's a rural town with fifty people or if you're in a city. I don't know if you're going to the only church in town. I just don't know a lot of things. This was one of these questions. It just requires more. But I do want to say
that you're right in needing those those core relationships. I appreciate Daniel one recently, and something that's so evident in Daniel as he was about, we believe, about fourteen years old, fourteen or fifteen, when he was exiled to Babylon, and he had three godly friends with him, and to collectively those four boys their faithfulness changed the entire kingdom and
rout the Bible. We see continually this idea that you shouldn't be alone, you should do it together, you should do it in community, you should do it with your fellow brothers and sisters. In fact, it's like you can't do it alone. Do not do it alone. These are the commands given for us. And so Anonymous, you're right in thinking, man, I need that iron sharpens iron kind of friend. And without me knowing exactly the situation, it's hard for me just to tell you how to find
a friend. But I would say that there could be other churches. Either there's a couple of things going on here. Either you really are at a bad church with a bunch of service level people, or you're also just not seeing yourself as that same hypocrite. The church is full of hypocrites. But technically the Christians are the only ones in the world that should be able to admit wholeheartedly that they are in fact a hypocrite themselves. Every human's hypocrite.
So maybe maybe that's part of this, as you're just not seeing yourself for who you are, anonymous that you are service level, you are a hypocrite, and go into it with more humility. Or I might be totally wrong and you might actually be at a bad church and there is another church down the road that you could find these iron sharp and iron iron sharpend's iron friends a lot of times too. I I say, follow your hobbies.
So if you if you love, if you love chess, find a chess team you know and and meet those core people in the chess group.
Or if you love baseball, do that.
If you love bowling, go to the bowling league and you'll find these people that love what you love. Once again, I don't know if that's exactly what he's asking. I don't know if he's saying that I need someone from the church, and so I would say, there might be other churches out there. What do you guys got.
I think, first and foremost good for you for holding your standards of what a what you looking for in a friend. I think that's that's really awesome you could. It sounds like you're easily able to identify the wolves in the herd of sheep. Second, I would encourage you to maybe shrink your focus a little bit to finding one good friend that's good, one good friend that you can that you can rely on, and you know, iron sharpens iron, make each other, you know, accountable to being
better believers is so important. I'll take one good friend over five flaky friends that could possibly be in a bad influence any day of the week.
Yeah, that's good. He's he's talking about, Hey, I've been with this bad crew who drank and smoked. So I don't want to leave that part out in my in my answer that this guy actually is looking for, yeah, possibly one good friend to help sharpen him a bit. So that's a good question. I'm going to tell you guys about Songfinch. Have you heard about this same man?
I have you sent me some info about it the other day? And Mother's Day is coming up now.
So there is this company called Songfinch and they sponsored this podcast and they will make a song for you. They'll write a song for you and whatever situation that you're in, and it's really cool. Could you could do it for Mother's Day, like you said, you could do it for a birthday. You could probably do it for your wife. Do you have any idea who you will do it for? Because you're gonna do.
This, I am, yeah, for Mother's Day and I'm trying to probably for my wife from the girls.
So song Fins let you create an original, radio quality song inspired by your own life and people you love, and it's completely unique, personal and last forever. Songfinch walks you through a simple process to create your original song. You just tell them who the song is for, what the style you want for the song, and then you share it with some you share some personal details about your relationship, and then actual song Finch musician of your choice,
so you get to pick. We'll write, record, and produce your original song in just four to seven days. And then once you get that, you could you could change it and kind of tweak it how you want. You could even get a vinyl record of your song. In that part, Yeah, and you could put it just on Spotify, which is cool. They've done this over three hundred and fifty thousand times with a bunch of happy customers. They are the number one custom music company in the world.
So with all you know, graduation coming up, Father's Day, Mother's Day, a wedding, it's a great way to show some love. They asked me if they could do it for me, and I said, no, it doesn't mean anything to anyone in my life to have a song, because that's just what I've always done. Why, I said, you're gonna have to find someone else, and so that's why I went to you. Yeah, because we're gonna We're gonna let you experience this and have someone write a custom
song for you for whoever. In fact, don't give it away who it's gonna be.
Okay, Well, what I want to I want to ask you to though, is what genre should I do it?
Oh?
Yeah, I got yeah pop Mother's Day song is there?
In sync in sync style.
Man Go Go nineties, East Coast, West Coast, Gangster Right.
So, for a limited time, song Finch is letting our listeners upload their song to Spotify for free, so you and your lucky person that you gifted to can listen to it anywhere anytime. Go to song finch dot com slash granger and start your song. After your purchase, you'll be prompted to add Spotify streaming to your original song for free. That's a fifty dollars value. Again, my U url is songfinch dot com slash Granger. Don't forget to share your song with us too, song finch dot com slash Granger.
Okay, I can't wait to come back. Hopefully on the next live we do perfect and I'll bring it in on that. We've got a few more before we have to uh, before we have to run. But there is here's a couple that.
All right, Catherine, says head granger. I'm curious if you have plans to visit SLC. That is the good old Salt Lake City. I'd love for you to attend one of our sermons. But also I love to attend one of your sermons. But also missed your meet and greet at Salt Lake City last year. Yeah, absolutely, Catherine. I I don't have any immediate plans to go to Salt Lake, but but I do love that city.
So place people can book if they wanted to book you.
Please don't Okay, sorry, I just need to say no more. I'm kidding. It's okay, Yeah, grangersmith dot com. There is a there's a contact, there's a way to book me.
Yes.
Uh, Francisca Francesca, how do you say that?
Probably Francesca.
Francesca says, do you think X's can be friends or possibly do business together in the future relationship was kind of toxic? No, I mean, do I think you can't?
Yes?
But do I advise it?
No?
Not if it was a toxic relationship, you don't want to do business together. I'm currently sixteen. New comment, currently sixteen. I'm personally glad with the restrictions. Oh this is the right is the same guy?
I think it's just a.
Yeah, I'm personally glad that the restrictions I had as a kid. Seeing people are in high school and it's just crazy here. Yeah, you're gonna look back, y'all teenagers that are watching right now, You're gonna look back in life, and you're gonna be You're gonna be thankful for the parents that had restrictions on you, for the restrictions they put on you, as as opposed to being thankful that they let you do whatever you want. It's always the
other way. People always respect their parents for the discipline they gave them and not for the freedom they gave them. As a kid. Hey, Graingeer. This is conservative American, conserve American. Hey, Grangeer, there are a lot of questions I would love to pick your brain on, but the one I would love your perspective on is the current state of the church in America right now. Yeah, I mean, that's it's a it's it's a broad question. God God preserves his church,
so we got to start there. The gates of hell will not prevail against it. So he has built his church. He will preserve his church, he will preserve his word, he will preserve his people. What changes as the pendulum swings is the way that church is carried out in its polity, which means church government, and the amount of nominal Christians that attach themselves to it or fall away
from it. So at certain points in our history there's going to be times when culture aligns with the church and a bunch of people pile on and it might look like from a distance, church is really good in America. Right now it's huge. There's a bunch of people that look at the buildings are amazing, and then it's the
pendulum swings and culture now is against the church. Whenever that might happen, or if it does, I don't know, not making a comment for it or against it, but when it switches and the church shrinks down, an that's not a message that God has given up on the Church or that America has turned in the Christians in America have turned against God and they need to be punished,
like some people would preach. Instead, I think that's more of an indication that nominal Christianity is now falling off and the church is slimming down in those slimming moments, which I think we're kind of in a slimming era right now. It's really cool because it's as the fat goes away, you start to reveal the muscle of the actual church and you see people that are actually gravitating towards good, sound doctrine, and I think that's a beautiful thing.
So what's my opinion on the state of the church. It's probably the same opinion that it's been in the last two thousand years that ebbs and flows, God will preserve it. We need to preach a sound gospel, we
need to preach good doctrine. We need to tell people about hell and sin that is a direct ticket to hell, and we need to tell them about Jesus who is the redemption to close the gap of separation between us and God and what He did on the cross so that He could reconcile those same sinners away from Hell back to himself. We need to teach the full Gospel and that we need to believe that repent, turn away from our sin, turn to Him. Anything more, it's just
fluff and anything less. It's not Christianity.
It's about all the time we have.
Oh is that it already? I got that interview at eleven. Okay, love you guys. Comment Please help us know if you want Chris to be back here, because I'm kind of thinking he shouldn't be back here.
If he is, we got to get him a camera. That's the thing.
I'm just kidding.
Some headphones, right, some people aren't meant to be seen.
Common If y'all like the Live Edgy podcast with all of us in the room, I personally love it, even though it just take it. It takes a long time to set up. Hopefully we're getting better at the setup. But I love this and I hope that we can continue to do this at least once a month, maybe even more and answer your questions.
So I will say from what was happening two minutes before we went live to have it go as well as it has today. It's great. It's true.
We won't even tell them the panic we were having right it live.
Love you guys.
If you have a question, even podcast at grangersmith dot com and we'll see you next Monday like always.
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