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You have one life, will you drift about and see where it leads, or will you create clear vision, laser focus, and pull the trigger to live a Target Focused Life?
President Trump is a millimeter from being assassinated. A young woman is stabbed to death on a train in a random act of violence. There's countless school shootings that are happening every year, and mass shootings seem to be almost a weekly occurrence. And then we saw Charlie Kirk assassinated in front of the world with video footage circulating the Internet. Something's not right.
Steve:America, I believe, is sick and has been getting sicker for a while. But what is the actual remedy? Is there any hope of recovery? That's what we're diving into today. So let's go.
Steve:Hello, everyone, and welcome to the Target Focus Life podcast. It's been a while, but we're back at it. And I'm here with a special guest. We have pastor Trinity Op. Head pastor, senior pastor?
Trinity:Well, they call me lead pastor, because when they call me senior pastor, it makes me feel old older than I am.
Steve:Well, the way you limped in here this morning, that might be fitting. I don't know, I'm just saying.
Trinity:It might be fitting.
Steve:So Pastor Trinity is actually the pastor at Alexandria Covenant Church located in the beautiful Alexandria, Minnesota.
Trinity:Yes, it is. It's a great community, a great church, and it's an honor to be here with you, Steve.
Steve:Yeah, this is gonna be an interesting topic because there has been a lot going on in the world. I mean, I think anyone that is not living under a rock sees it. There's these I mentioned a few in the opening, the mass shootings, the school violence, the public stabbings, and obviously violent crime has been around forever.
Trinity:Yeah. We're witnessing a moral decline within our society, and people are responding in very different ways to current events, some with violence, some with protests, some with wanting to dialogue. You know, I think Charlie Kirk is a great example of somebody who was trying to really set a precedence within American society to bring back debate rather than violence to be the way forward to find unity within our society. And ultimately he was assassinated for it.
Steve:That debate is a good thing, but it's so aggravating for some people. It just gets them so emotionally hot that people have a different standpoint. And then where it's leading, I think, is the troubling thing. Because if we look at actually homicides in The United States, from 1980 to now, they're actually down. So we're seeing less murder committed in our country.
Steve:But the way that some of these violent crimes are taking place has changed. When you're talking 1980s, school shootings, mass shootings weren't a I mean, they were a thing, but we didn't see them the same way. Correct. Right. Assassinations, that was a better round for a long time too.
Steve:I mean, but nothing like this has happened with Trump and Kirk, I mean, since probably like the JFK and Martin Luther King era.
Trinity:Right. I think one of the things we're seeing too is we've lost the ability within society to have civil discourse and learn how to be at odds or at different with each other. And there are just some who are responding very wrong to that discourse, to the difference and their response is with violence. And we know that that will never win bringing a society together. It just doesn't work.
Steve:Yeah, what's so interesting is there was a I think of the recent event with Charlie Kirk. The shooter mentioned that Charlie is full of so much hate and he had to end it. And so I think sometimes these people even believe that they have a moral high ground, that Charlie Kirk's full of hate, therefore I'm going to commit an act of violence and take someone else's liberty, their life, from them. Yeah. Where does that come from?
Trinity:Well, think, you know, right now what we're seeing is within our society there's such a difference and polarizing difference between views, whether it be the left or the right, whether it be political views, whether it be social or cultural views and what's happening is generally, I think, people are not seeing people as people anymore. We're seeing them as the other. If you're different than me in terms of my beliefs, my views, my perspective, it's easier for me to categorize you as the other and the villain in my life rather than see you as a real person who is made in the image of God, who has worth and value even if we are different than one another. And when we begin to see people as other rather than as people, we will tend to treat them that way. And I think we're seeing the effect of that within our society today, how we are treating one another.
Trinity:And there's a sickness to that for sure.
Steve:How do you think that's changed with everyone being online? Not everyone. A lot of our population being online.
Trinity:Yeah, I think a couple things. One, we live in an influencer culture and people love the momentary fame that comes with that. Sometimes just a simple tweet or response to a current event will captivate an audience and make it go viral. I think there are some people who are looking for that. I also think that there's been an influence within, I think, some of the activity we're seeing in society through media and video games particularly.
Trinity:You know, a lot of games that are being played today, especially by young people, war games, things of that nature, they come with a reset button. And so acts of violence can be done and with a reset, everything's back to normal, back to life. That's just not real life. And I do think that there's an impact or an influence that that is having within how we view others, how violence is happening within our society. And so much of what's going on, not only can we not make sense of, it truly is unreasonable.
Steve:Yeah, I think my thoughts on online activity is it's multifaceted. Honestly, I think people are in search of significance, And you can have your moment of significance. Not in a good way, but they will be remembered. We could go down a whole rabbit trail of this. I don't want to get long winded on the online aspect, but I do think it is a piece of the disconnect from reality that people have.
Steve:There's a common saying that some people use right now, it's get outside and touch grass.
Trinity:Yeah, sure, right.
Steve:Right? And there is something to just this reality of being outside in God's creation.
Trinity:Right, totally.
Steve:In fact, there's a verse in the Bible that says God makes Himself known through creation. That's a paraphrase. You are more connected to reality when you do get outdoors, when you touch grass, when and you actually talk to people. We are so connected right now online, but people are as lonely as they've ever been. Are you seeing that?
Trinity:Well, absolutely I'm seeing that. I'm seeing that with an influx of just mental health issues, parent child relationship issues, marriage issues. The fact is God made us for relationship. First and foremost, relationship with Him, but secondly, relationship with one another. And I think that's one of the challenges that the media world has provided for us or an online community is that we've not only lost touch with the grass, if you wanna say, going outside and being a part of creation, but we've lost touch with one another.
Trinity:And we can create our own little reality groups, if you wanna say, online to just fit a mold that we feel comfortable in rather than being in relationship with one another and working through the challenges that relationship brings to life. And this is one of the things that I see as truly affecting when you talk about cultural sickness within American society. This is a huge part of our sickness. Families are broken, relationships are challenged. There is an isolation factor to people's lives that are certainly making relationship challenging.
Trinity:I'll give you just an example, devices, whether it be a phone, a tablet, a computer, whatever, they're becoming one of the great challenges for family life today within the family structure. And not just between parent and child, but also within the context of a marriage, between a husband and a wife. It's not comical, but there's an opportunity to kind of have a relational laugh with a couple who is having issues with communication. And I ask them questions like, Give me an example of when communication really breaks down. And they'll just say, Well, you know, we'll be on a date night, and we'll be driving somewhere, and my husband will be driving, and I'm on my phone.
Trinity:And it really frustrates him that I'm in the passenger seat on my phone.
Steve:Were you talking to my wife? Was she in your office? Tell me more.
Trinity:No, but this is why we can have a good laugh relationally because so many of us can relate to this. I can relate to this even within my relationship with my spouse. But at the end of the day, you know, we tend to not listen well to each other. The idea of having contact and truly listening, engaging in conversation, there is this adulterer that has entered into relationships that I call a tablet or a phone or a handheld device because it's a disruptor. And what happens is, you know, as I'm talking to my wife, maybe I'll just use myself as an example, and she's, even if she's on her phone trying to find directions for navigating to go to the restaurant we're having a date night with, and I'm trying to tell her something, and she's, Uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh, and I feel like I'm being dismissed or unheard, and I ask her what I say, and she can repeat word for word, that's fine, but it doesn't mean she was listening to me.
Trinity:You know, listening really allows us the opportunity to express what we meant by what we said, not by the words that were just spoken. And this becomes a real challenge, and it's a real challenge with parent and child relationship, and even parents feeling like they don't have the ability to discipline their children or to take the device away because the device belongs to the child. Well, I'm sorry, but in my home, the device belongs to me.
Steve:That's right.
Trinity:And I have to be the one to discipline and to create a healthy structure
Steve:for you. Oh, man, I think we could create a whole second episode just about that whole topic. Sure. About screens with kids in marriage relationships. I know that I get frustrated.
Steve:I know my wife gets frustrated with me at times. It goes both ways. But I think at the end of the day, you said we are meant for relationship.
Trinity:We are.
Steve:And what's happening in relationships, just in that marriage context, is we want to be seen and we want to be heard.
Trinity:Yes, we do.
Steve:And when we feel like we're second fiddle, that everything else is always coming first, I know my wife gets a little frustrated when I say things about, we're in the car and she's on her phone and she's ordering groceries, she's doing all this because she takes care of everything in the house, so I got to give her more grace than I do. But at the end of the day, my feeling is, do you really see me? Do you really hear me? Are we together in this? And I think we could keep on going.
Steve:Last thing I want to say about online, and then we're going to get into some data of what we're seeing in our culture, is that people will say things online that they would never say to your face. And now I run a YouTube channel and do a lot of social media stuff, so I see that. I see that. In fact, there was a comment. This is a minor one, but it was just the other day.
Steve:Sure. Someone posted me shooting somebody's gun at an event where I shot it upside down over the head on a sporting clays course. It wasn't my gun. It had a suppressor. Like, odds were stacked against me, but I'm there for a good time and I'm having fun with people.
Steve:So I shoot over the head. First comment. Well, he's no Tom Knapp. Right? It's like, well, first, do you even know me?
Steve:I don't need to be Tom Knapp personally, but do you even know me? Like, why would you why would your first comment be a negative? Basically saying, you're not as good as this guy. And I've got a lot worse over the years, many, many worse comments. But I think when you get in person, those people would never say that.
Trinity:Well, it's because I think when we're in person, we see that we're real people. Oh, We can see each other, we can relate to each other. We're no longer maybe a virtual reality on the other end of a livestream or of a video game or something of that nature that sometimes I think it provides that opportunity for us to see each other that way. When we're in person, I can touch you, I can see you, I can look you in the eyes. I'm also going to have a little more compassion for you because I'm just going to befriend you more than I'm going to become your enemy just because you missed your shot upside down shooting with something I could never do anyway.
Steve:I hit it on the second shot. Sweet, good was boom. And then boom, I hit it.
Trinity:Perfect. I felt pretty good about it. Well, you should.
Steve:But I think the application here is don't say something to somebody online that you wouldn't say to their face. And then now there are some people that will say whatever to your face too, but realize that we are all people.
Trinity:Yeah, I think, you know, with that too, Steve, something that we all must keep in mind is that living our lives with a posture of compassion, mercy and grace towards the other is what a life of humility actually looks like. And I think that one of the things that we would all be better for within the circles of our relationships and even to increase the health of our society, if you want to say it that way, the health to the sickness that we find within America is really acting with love and humility towards the other, even the other who is different than us, that we really see them as a person that is valued and that is to be treated with love and compassion. And so, you know, oftentimes, you know, as a pastor, I'm subject to a lot of criticism as well, both in person and online. One of the things that I've learned that has been really beneficial to me responding and living in these tension points is the value of having a soft heart with thick skin. And so there's just things that we have to be willing to watershed yet, with a heart of compassion, step into those difficult conversations and to show and to be gracious, to lead somebody in another direction and help them maybe if needed.
Steve:For most people, that's not natural. I don't think that's natural. I think that's an inside out change, and we're going to get into that Yeah,
Trinity:I agree with you.
Steve:In a little bit more detail here. But I wanted to go some quick data snapshots. I love looking at data, and I like AI because I can reference this data as I'm driving these days. I think it's super cool. My brain's always I have a wonder brain.
Steve:Do you know what a wonder brain is?
Trinity:Tell me about it. I wonder.
Steve:I imagined you This is constantly going through my head. I wonder. So when I hear something happens in our society, I say, I wonder. I wonder how marriage has changed over the years. I wonder how divorce has changed or kids growing up in two parent homes or church membership.
Steve:And if we look at some of that information, I think it points in a certain direction. Let's look at marriage. In 1950, eighty percent of I believe it's age 25 or older were married. Today, it's sixty percent. Now, that's not necessarily saying anything in itself.
Steve:It's just a piece of information.
Trinity:Sure.
Steve:Less people that are 25 and older are married today than they used to be. Something that's shifted. Now, we could go down a whole rabbit trail of what that actually means, but let's just look at all these pieces, and then we'll start to put some of them together. Divorce, nineteen fifty, twenty percent to twenty five percent of marriages. Today, it's thirty five percent to forty percent.
Steve:But I would say it's probably actually higher than that.
Trinity:Yeah, some statistics will put on the north side of fifty percent.
Steve:Well, you know, it depends where you're grabbing the data from and whatnot, but I also think less people are getting married. That's true. But they are living together in a de facto And the data doesn't account for those people when they split. Correct. Children with two parents, how do you think that's changed from 1960s to today?
Steve:Oh, significantly, I imagine. Eighty eight percent of children in 1960 timeframe had two parents. Yep. Today, it's less than 70. Yeah.
Steve:So that's changing. Church membership, this is right up your alley.
Trinity:Yeah.
Steve:How do you think church membership from 1950s era to today has changed? Oh, a significant decline.
Trinity:Probably close to 50%.
Steve:Yeah, the numbers that I got, and I know Barna does a lot of research on I didn't necessarily reference Barna, but church membership in the 50s was like 70%. I think even the 80s it was close to 70%. Now it's 45. Yeah. No.
Steve:Does that surprise you?
Trinity:Doesn't surprise me at all. I see it. However, there is what you would say a maybe a TikTok trend today in the past couple of weeks that we're seeing and it's go back to church culture. And so that's becoming a thing that, you know, we're seeing you get all these trends that come through social media and other things of that nature. The last couple weeks, we actually have seen, I think across the board, a general surge in church attendance.
Trinity:People are reevaluating their lives in light of what's going on in our culture and considering going back to church. But, you know, these statistics you bring up, certainly I think we see the symptoms of a morally declining society within all of these factors, whether it be marriage, family life, children not having two parents in the home, church attendance, things like that. Things that have generally built a moral compass and a framework within family life and just American society that has been healthy in the past is being challenged today in a significant way.
Steve:Yeah, and I think that's the part of the sickness that I alluded to in the opening. A couple points came to my mind. You said this TikTok trend, get back to church, go back to church, whatever it was. I heard a story. I don't know if this is true.
Steve:You hear a lot of stories, but I guess Charlie Kirk, no matter where he was in the country, would fly back home to go to church with his family on Sunday. You know, at a great inconvenience. Sure. Thought that was super cool. Christian identity in The United States.
Steve:In 1950, it was about 90%. Sure. Today, any guesses?
Trinity:I'm gonna guess, put it around 65, 70%.
Steve:Yeah, the number I have is 62%.
Trinity:Sure, yeah.
Steve:Here's an interesting one, teen mental health. Yeah. Forty percent of teens report being sad or hopeless.
Trinity:Yeah.
Steve:Twenty percent have considered suicide. Yeah. And ten percent have attempted. Right. That's alarming.
Steve:It is alarming.
Trinity:We're both parents. Yeah, we are. And we have to take these statistics seriously and recognize that in a society that is on the decline, that is symptomatic of being sick, people all around us, including our kids are looking for hope. They're looking for something that will help them see that there really is a purpose or reason for living other than the moral decay that's happening all around us and the sickness that's gonna take us down and take us out. And I think this, you know, as you bring up all these statistics, several things come to my mind, but one of them is the damaging effect that divorce rates are having right now, even on the lives of our children.
Trinity:When you think of children who are now in homes where there are not two parents, that's the direct effect or result of divorce. How people view marriage today is also an interesting thing.
Steve:How do you think that's changed?
Trinity:Well, you know, I think we've, at least certainly I have seen as a pastor who sits with a lot of people, a shift in the last probably twenty five, thirty years from recognizing marriage that has often been taught within the church or should be taught in the church that it's a covenant relationship to where now people are just recognizing marriage as a contract based type of relationship. And here's the fundamental difference between the two. In a covenant relationship, I'm in it for what I have to offer you and recognizing that the two of us will be better together. In a contract based relationship, I'm really in the relationship for what I can get out of it, not what I have to give to it. And that is how people are treating marriage today.
Trinity:They're in it until they've been fulfilled with all of their dreams, desires, and aspirations, and then when the other isn't contributing to what I desire, they tend to cut the contract and split, find someone else to do life with again. And this is the difference between being committed to a person and being committed to the marriage. To be committed to the person in the marriage is to say, I'm in it for all the reasons that a covenant would bring to our lives, that I'm in it for what I have to give to you. But a contract is all about me, and when it's all about me, my commitment is to me more than it is to us or to you. And when I feel like you've done all you can do for me, then I'm out.
Trinity:And that's significant.
Steve:It's kind of a self serving.
Trinity:It's very self serving, you know. And our kids are witnessing this in the world today. Parents, I'm sitting with too many parents who are married twenty, twenty five years, thirty years, and are choosing divorce. And I think it's symptomatic to them being committed to the marriage more than the person, and I'll give you an example of this. A lot of them are sitting around saying, Hey, we've learned how to do life together up to this point.
Trinity:We've stayed married for the kids. We've stayed married because we own a business. We stayed married because of the house, the finances, the reputation, all the things, but now that the kids are grown and gone, we're entering retirement, have the next twenty five years ahead of us, we're looking at each other and we're saying, I'm not sure I know you, I'm not sure I like you, and I'm not sure I want to do the rest of my life with you. And they're choosing divorce, sadly. But our children are being witnesses of this.
Trinity:These are the examples. And one of the things that it's caused me to recognize and realize is that in that situation, these two individuals actually never invested in their marriage. They just invested in maybe family life or the rest of their life, but they forgot about their marriage. And at the end of it, it ended because they really didn't build the relationship that God intended them to have within the context of their marriage.
Steve:Yeah, and when you look at the cascading effect of that, I know a lot of people, they think they put their kids first. Yeah. And we do want to, I mean, we have an obligation to our kids
Trinity:We do.
Steve:To love for them, nurture them, care for them, Absolutely. Lead Right. But if we don't put our marriage above our kids Right. Then the cascading effect when that falls apart damages. Absolutely.
Steve:Or maybe damages isn't the right word, but it has a negative impact. It hurts the kids.
Trinity:Well, absolutely does. You know, just like God has placed for us structure within society in order for us to have order and civility together, he's created that for the family as well. And so in our lives, the order that God has designed our relationships to happen is our relationship with God first, if we're married, our relationship with our spouse second, and then our children third, and so on and so forth. And that's where a lot of marriages, and I think family lives are crumbling today, is that parents are putting their children before their spouse and the marriages are falling apart, therefore then the family falls apart. Then we have a society who begins to crumble because the structure that is going to hold society together that begins with the family is all of a sudden broken and falling apart.
Steve:There are so many topics here that we're just touching the surface on that I think we could go really deep on, but there seems to be this disconnect. When these atrocities happen in the media, you know, people are shouting for answers. Rightfully so. Yeah. Some go straight to the guns, hey, we need to remove guns.
Steve:There's an argument to be made for that. I'm not here to talk about guns. You all know that I make my living shooting guns, so I'm probably pretty opinionated on that. But at the end of the day, we have people and we have tools and items, right? The tools and items, gun is an item, a knife is an item, a car is an item, a bomb is an item, whatever a bat is an item, we can harm people in a lot of different ways.
Steve:In fact, the first recorded murder that we have according to the Bible is Cain and Abel, Right. And Cain murders Abel. I got that right? Yeah. I was second guessing myself.
Steve:Was it with a rock?
Trinity:Yeah. Well, murdered him. It was an offensive act against God, absolutely.
Steve:He didn't have an AR-fifteen. I know that No, So items aren't necessarily the issue. Not saying we can't regulate items in our society, but I think if we really want to look at true lasting change and solutions, it goes much deeper than items. I think it comes down to the heart. Yeah.
Steve:And why is somebody willing to hurt somebody else?
Trinity:Yeah. There's a lot of reasons for that and I agree with you, Steve, that it is a heart issue. And I think one of the things that we all need to be mindful of is that there's two things going on in our world that we're a part of but we don't necessarily always see. And you know, is God who's actively pursuing humanity to reconcile them back to Himself. The sickness that we all have that we share is really called sin.
Trinity:And that is at the core of the problem within humanity and leads to the biggest problem within society and why we would even choose to take the life of another. That is a sin issue. But also there is another mission going on in this world that Satan is leading and that is ultimately to kill, steal, and destroy all that God is intending to do for good. And the Bible tells us that, you know, the battle between us in this world is not against flesh and blood, but it's against the spirits and the principalities and the powers of this world. We just happen to be a part of this battle that rages within the spirit realm that we are placed, and that might sound kind of like far out to some people who are listening to this, but at the end of the day, one of the things that we must recognize is that when God created this world, he created it good, and he created humanity very good, and he actually enjoyed relationship with people on this earth.
Trinity:And out of an act of disobedience, sin has entered the world which has affected all of us, which has led to the decline within our own civil society that we see, which is the real issue that America is sick. We all have a sickness we share, it's called sin.
Steve:So now there's probably a lot of people, obviously you're a pastor, they may be tuned out right away. Sure. There are people that just, you know, church, religion, Christianity, whatever it is, they, nope, don't need any of that, don't want any of that. But if they are still with us, I thought of this analogy as I was driving. Because when I was young, I thought of church, Christianity as a bunch of rules that kept me from living my best life and having fun.
Steve:But then now as a parent and as a believer in Jesus, I look at it much differently. As a parent, we set guidelines and rules for our kids. Why? It's not because we don't want them to have fun. I have to remind my kids of that.
Steve:Absolutely. It's like the rule that I have put in place for
Trinity:you is for your good. And because I love you.
Steve:Yes. They don't always like to hear that. No, it doesn't make sense. And I remember being that age and none of that made sense. It takes a while sometimes.
Steve:And even as adults, it might take a while to realize that the God, the creator of the universe, has put boundaries and rules in place.
Trinity:Right.
Steve:Not because he says, I don't want you to have fun. I don't want you to enjoy this life. But because he says, I know what's best for you.
Trinity:That's
Steve:right. And these rules and these boundaries, I have created them so you could have life and have it abundantly.
Trinity:That's right.
Steve:I believe that's somewhere in John. John ten ten. Yeah. Yeah. And God gave us a way of redemption.
Steve:You talked about that sin issue. Yeah. And I said it sounds hopeless. Yeah. But He didn't leave us hanging there without a way to resolve that sin issue.
Trinity:No, He really didn't. And this is the thing that, Steve, I think in the world that we live right now, people are asking questions and they're wanting answers. And the most fascinating reality that we have to accept and live with is that there is a book that has the answers that we're looking for.
Steve:New York Times bestseller?
Trinity:You know, it's the number one seller of all time.
Steve:I think I know that one.
Trinity:The Bible, right? But here's the thing is if we want answers and we're willing to listen, God has provided them to us. And as you ask the question, you know, what is the solution that God has given to the sin problem in the world? The solution really is Jesus Christ. It is all about Jesus, and I know that that's something that Charlie Kirk has put out on social media that has been repeated by other athletes and that has created a firestorm and a loss of followers, and you may lose followers because we're here talking about the fact that it is all about Jesus, but it really is.
Trinity:You know, John three sixteen, we know the Bible verse so well, For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. The next verse though is fascinating too because it says that God didn't send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but actually to save the world through him. And this is a message of love for all of humanity, and this is a message that we must proclaim because it is the solution to the problem that we have in our world today, and it always has been the solution. God's solution for the sin problem that has created sickness within all of humanity is Jesus. He is the only hope that we have in this world.
Steve:Yeah. It says he is the way, the truth, and the life.
Trinity:That's
Steve:right. And I think maybe an issue that people have is they look at Charlie Kirk. Yeah. And they say, well, he's didn't live it out perfectly. Like, he's what do they call that?
Steve:A hypocrite. I think that's a common criticism of Christians. He was a hypocrite, and they probably look at me and say the same thing, because guess what? I far from live out the Christian faith perfectly. Yeah, so do I.
Steve:But there's growth in that. Like, when I gave my heart to Jesus, so much changed right off the bat. It was amazing, and it wasn't just an act of the will of I'm gonna be a better person. I'm gonna stop caring about this, I'm gonna start caring about family and all these It different was kind of a miraculous change, but there's also areas in my life that have been a lot slower to change. And when I reach perfection, well, it won't be here in this life Right.
Steve:Because I still fall short of God's perfect standard. But he does have a standard, and he has gave us a way. And as we were talking before this podcast, it really comes down to the heart. And our society's sickness is a heart sickness. It is.
Steve:Not one that can be fixed with statins.
Trinity:That's right. Absolutely.
Steve:So where do we go from here?
Trinity:Well, I think recognize that we all have the same heart issue. You know, earlier I talked about living with humility towards one another, that as a pastor, especially in difficult situations, I've learned the value of having a soft heart with thick skin, and you said, That's not natural. No. You're right about that. That's one of the heart changes that God does in our lives when we recognize our need for Jesus Christ and we submit our lives to him.
Trinity:And where we go from here is realizing that with Jesus being the only solution and the only hope in this world is, you know, there's a lot of ways we can point fingers and look to the other, but I think we begin by looking in the mirror and doing some self analysis about who am I and how am I going to respond to what's going on in the world today. And if I'm going to have any hope based on living a life that is going to be bringing positive contribution to society so that we can become a better place together, it starts from the inside of And for all of us who are listening today, this is true for all of us. You know, I think taking some honest reflection of, you know, what is it in my heart that is making a contribution to the sickness in America today and to the world that we live in? It is my sin. But here's the cool thing, God has said, I have a solution to actually forgive that sin and to make a heart change in you and in me that will allow for us to live the life that God intended for us in this world.
Trinity:And that's simply just acknowledging that we need Jesus calling on Him. He will do the heart change, and as that heart changes within all of us, that effect and that impact will be felt by those around us.
Steve:Oh, that's very well said. So we've talked about a lot of things today. We've talked about symptoms and stats and what's going on in our world. And at the end of the day, I think some practical application is number one, be careful what you consume.
Trinity:Yeah.
Steve:There's a verse that says, do not be conformed to the patterns of this world, but be transformed through the renewing of your mind. I believe that's Romans twelve:two. Renewing our mind. Now, obviously, that has in the Bible has a certain context, but I think there's just a general wisdom in that of what we're consuming and binging in our lives has an impact to our hearts and minds. It does.
Steve:Number two, be careful how much you consume. And I think we can all easily fall prey to this because our human nature, our tendency is we want to be comfortable, we want to be entertained, we want to be stimulated, and our tablets, our phones, our TVs can do that with minimal effort. Number three, I would say people need to get outside. Yeah. I think you need to get outside with other people too.
Trinity:That's right.
Steve:Not just by yourself. That's good too. Think we need some isolation periodically to just calm our minds. But we're meant to be in relationship, and one thing we didn't talk about is the year 2020. Do you remember that?
Steve:I do remember that very well. Wasn't it fantastically No,
Trinity:was great.
Steve:But there's some data from 2020 that homicide surged nearly 30%. Think about that. All locked down, we're all home.
Trinity:Right.
Steve:How are we even hurting people? We're at home.
Trinity:But
Steve:people were isolated, they were alone, and their hearts were sick. I mean, I don't know if that's the right term, but it's what I titled podcast.
Trinity:Yeah, well isolation does create a certain impact on our lives. Talked about what we think and importance of what we think. And I think during that time of isolation for many people, it mental was strain on life, on the brain, on mental health, but also on relationship. And one of the things that we have to recognize and realize is what we think impacts how we feel, which directly impacts how we act, which then directly impacts those around us. And to really your point, what we think about really does matter.
Trinity:How we live our life, whether we choose it, see, 2020 brought about a forced isolation for many people. Today, people are often choosing isolation. And I think one of the things you're trying to emphasize is we would all be better if we lived our life together, not alone, in a virtual reality. So let's get outside. Let's enjoy God's creation.
Trinity:Let's get into community groups. Let's enjoy each other. Let's go back to church.
Steve:How about that? You know,
Trinity:so that we can find community
Steve:Honestly, make a I've said this to your face. I've never said it on a podcast to One the of the biggest reasons I go to church, yes, I want to hear God's Word. Yes, I want to worship with a body. But that's all part of community and getting to know the people in the church and being connected. I can listen to the best speakers in the world online.
Steve:Yeah. I can listen to the best worship music in the world online, but what I can't get is real relationships and real community online. Now online might be the only option for some people. Sure. I get that, but I am a strong proponent of physically going to church because of the connection with people.
Steve:Yep. And I don't mean that as a diss to you. No. I think we have a great church, and I appreciate you as a pastor and as a leader.
Trinity:Right.
Steve:But it's really the people that come together that make the church. And guess what? Because there's always critics, it's full of imperfect people that will make mistakes, that will let you down periodically, but you're still better off because you have them.
Trinity:Absolutely, and community matters, you know, and this is one of the things that I appreciate you even inviting me on for this podcast is just recognizing how important this conversation is. This can have both positive and negative effect on your viewership, course, and those who are listening. But at the end of the day, we need to continue to have the conversation around moral decline, the sickness around us, and what we can do to be an active participant in making the world that we live in a better place. And that's one of the things that I hope those who are listening are going to be able to walk away with is asking the question, what can I do to make the world that I live in a better place? Not just for me, we all want that of course, but let's look outside ourself and see the other and consider the other before we consider our own needs, own wants, our own desires, and ask the question, what can I do to make the world a better place for you?
Trinity:And I think when we're willing to be honest about seeing the other as being more important than ourselves, living a life of humility and love and compassion and care for people will become something that is true of our lives. Now, that's not something we're going to get there on our own, but it is something that God can help us get there to do. And I think that's an important piece that our world needs today, more people who are willing to see other people before they're willing to see themselves.
Steve:Yeah, and you said we can't get there on our own. So as we close this out, if someone's to the point, I've tried it this way, what I'm doing's not working, I need something different, and they realize a need for Jesus, What step do they take from there?
Trinity:I like how you phrase that because when we do it on our own, that's called religion, and that can lead to behavior modification. That's not what we're talking about. We're talking about genuine heart change, finding spiritual life that leads to a life God intended for us in this world. The only way we get that is by looking to Jesus Christ, asking Him to forgive us of our sin, asking Him to bring life to us, to lead us, to guide us, and then to actually follow Him by faith, which is a relationship that is based on God's grace, not based on our works. So none of us get to boast about it or brag about it.
Trinity:Paul says that in the book of Ephesians chapter two, and find a faith community that you can be a part of so that you can grow up in Jesus. We're not meant to do life alone. We're meant to do life in community and in relationship, with relationship with God first, in community, and fellowship with others second.
Steve:Well said, Trinity. I appreciate you joining for this podcast this morning. And
Trinity:Glad to be here.
Steve:We got a whole lot more we could talk about, but we're gonna cut it there. Appreciate you guys tuning in. Remember, whether you're in the field or in life, you're only gonna hit those shots you're laser focused on. So live target focused. See you.
Steve:See you.