A New Focus

This may be old news if you follow me on other platforms (like Instagram for example) but some people — especially in the political camp — may have noticed that I’ve been relatively quiet lately. That’s because I’ve decided to shift focus over at least the next year to evangelism instead of politics. There are multiple reasons why, and every single one of them took months of critical thinking and months of constant prayer to sort out.

First and foremost, the fact that the evangelical demographic is the one that delivers the most overwhelming vote in the favor of the right by far every single election year is no accident — it’s because when what is written in Scripture shapes the way people vote, it results in a vote against the anti-family agenda that the left supports and also a vote in favor of staying true to Scripture and holding the Word to be objectively — not just subjectively — right about morality. Like other evangelicals, I know that it’s objective and not subjective because I have the explanations of the available cosmological, historical-legal, and archaeological evidence that I wrote down in Fairytale?: Why Christianity Isn’t One to back it up. This strict focus on the absolute moral authority of Scripture has resulted in a demographic that votes, on a regular basis, between 75% and 86% red.

It’s against this backdrop that Harvest’s “2020 Vision” — the next reason why I’m doing this — is such a big deal. That Reagan’s election happened immediately after the biggest Christian revival in American history — the one that Greg Laurie was saved by, for the record — is no accident. Massive awakenings — like the aforementioned one, which the new Jesus Revolution movie (which I am honored to be participating in) is about — have the effect of broadening the evangelical demographic to the point where it begins to represent a supermajority of voters. When more people believe, more people become inclined to vote to please the self-existent Great “I Am” (that right there is an unambiguous claim to be the Unmoved Mover — a claim that is entirely unique to the Bible) and not be influenced by the whims of mere emotions.

It’s also for this reason that I have become more busy making music — my new album, Reflections (which I have already published the title track to), was released on SoundCloud on February 26 and on other platforms March 7. The message of this album is clear: If we are made in the image of God, then how we answer the question that Jesus asked Peter 3 times in John 21:15-17 is by reflecting His image in everything that we do. That means not being proud of disobeying Scripture but rather repentant when mistakes are made. That means hanging out with the right people — people who can fulfill Proverbs 27:17 and sharpen each other as opposed to dragging each other down. It also means applying Ephesians 5:21-28 to all romantic relationships, realizing that only by both partners being completely selfless towards one another is keeping the Matthew 5:31-32 command possible. I sing about all of this in the songs on that album, which is now available on Apple Music, Amazon Music, Spotify, Google Play, YouTube Music, and everywhere else.

Politics may be a great way to vent, but only evangelism has the power to convict people, only evangelism has the power to change the course of lives, and only evangelism has the power to change the country for the better on a demographic level. Therefore, I’ve made a fundamental change in approach — as 1 Peter 3:15-16 explains, we are to speak truth without getting too heated, “so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.” The reason why I deleted my YouTube channel (and subsequently recreated it as an artist channel) is because although what I was saying there was absolutely true, it wasn’t articulated in the manner in which Peter commanded us to articulate it — sure what I was saying was true, but was I saying it “with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience?” No I was not.

That’s because at the time I was *so* passionate about politics that it resulted in missed worship services, missed Christian concerts, and even missed Harvest crusades (Laguna Beach). Any passion — any hobby — that becomes such a priority that it interferes with worship is an idol, and the fact that many of the rallies I attended were indeed on Sundays definitely didn’t help with this. Granted, speaking truth — especially to power — is still very important, but no, it’s no replacement for worship and definitely no replacement for fellowship. As Christians, our number 1 priority by far is to be gathered in His name, and if something we’re doing interferes with our ability to do so, then it must be treated like an idol and casted away.

Ever since becoming a full-time Harvest OC attendee (effective January 5, 2020) and ever since completing the Life Track course to become an official member (which was the case on February 2), I have learned how to speak the Truth with much better precision and with a much better approach than my previous attempts. I mean, Greg Laurie has a lot of experience speaking truth to power to say the least — and now that he’s my pastor, I’m learning a lot from him on how to do so. I’m also learning from his son Jonathan — who is in charge of the young adult ministry there that I have been active in since late August 2019, long before becoming active at Harvest by any other means — that tone matters and that people are more open to hearing the truth when Peter’s advice in Paragraph 5 is taken at face value. I also learned from Jack Hibbs of Calvary Chapel Chino Hills — who spoke at the SoCal Kickoff conference at the Grove this past Tuesday — of the importance of treating even the most vitriolic of opponents with the same degree of respect as all other image bearers, for bystanders will be more receptive to the calmer messenger. Receptiveness to the Word is the key to changing lives — and the key to changing the country for the better by extension.

As I enter this new chapter in my life, I thank all of you for your support and I thank He who created this universe from absolute nothingness for creating all of you, even if you may hate me for making this announcement. As I remain active in everything Harvest has to offer and continue to serve in more ministries, I am quickly realizing that He who has placed me here has better plans for me than I ever had for myself — even the plans that I initially thought were good ones last May to move across the country within a year pale in comparison to these divinely sanctioned ones that I had to jettison the former because of. Thank you, God Bless America, and may He who used the name “I Am” to draw attention to the fact that He is the Unmoved Mover continue to live in all of us.