Hamilton: God has called us to be ambassadors even in this dark moment
>> Abraham Hamilton III: Darkness is not an affirmative force. It simply reoccupies the space vacated by the light.
>> Abraham Hamilton III: This is the, Hamilton Corner on American Family Radio.
>> Abraham Hamilton III: It should be uncomfortable for a believer to live as a hypocrite, delivering people
>> Abraham Hamilton III: out of the bondage of mainstream media and the philosophies of this world.
>> Abraham Hamilton III: God has called you and me to be his ambassadors, even in this dark moment. Let's not miss our moment.
America reads the Bible, and it's really a historic time
>> Abraham Hamilton III: And now, the Hamilton Corner.
>> Alex McFarland: Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord and the people he has chosen for his inheritance. That's Psalm, 33:12. And with that very famous verse, we welcome you to this program. Alex McFarland here, coming to you from the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C. this is very exciting. No doubt you've seen in the news America reads the Bible, and it's really a historic time. And I got to the Bible Museum earlier this morning. I've got the privilege of reading tomorrow. And the building is full of people, just beloved Christian leaders. the organizer, the visionary behind this Bunni Pounds is nearby. And, there's a lot we can say. it's going to be very exciting because tonight, and this is Tuesday, April 21st, President Donald Trump is going to read from 2nd Chronicles 7:14. Very, very historic. And at any given moment, there are hundreds of thousands of people watching the livestream, hearing the word of God. But without further ado, I was in the media suite and I saw a longtime friend and colleague, really a hero of mine. when I was a youth pastor, he came to Greensboro in the 1990s. And from the moment I heard this man speak, I just wanted to read every book he wrote. I wanted to follow his ministry. He and his son Tim are here to read the Bible, but it's David Barton of Wall Builders graciously giving us a few moments on the mic here. But, David Barton, welcome to the program.
>> David Barton: Thanks, Alex. Great to be with you. Appreciate all you do, brother.
>> Alex McFarland: Well, you know, we got a lot to be excited about. God is at work. But, you're here. have you read your scripture portion yet?
>> David Barton: No, I get to read tomorrow. So, that will be tomorrow after President Trump tonight, which is going to be really fun.
>> Alex McFarland: Amen. Well, what does this mean to you? For one thing, the Dead Sea Scrolls are here. This is amazing. The artifacts, the manuscripts, the. This testament to the holy word of God. And now the world is listening as the Bible is read in its entirety. David Barton, what does this mean to you, brother?
>> David Barton: You know, historically, it means several Important things, because you don't understand American history if you don't understand the Bible. political scientists documented that among the founding fathers, the single most cited source in the founding era was the Bible. About 34 to 40% of all political quotes came out of the Bible. So if you don't know the Bible, you do not understand American history. But the other thing I think is so significant is that at a time when a nation was trying to get its act together, Israel under King Josiah, they rediscovered the Scriptures and they read the scriptures and it led to a national revival. And so I think that that time of reading the scriptures is where we are now that we're on the verge. And I think we're already in a revival and that's not necessarily a good thing. the last 150 years of revivals haven't changed the nation. It takes an awakening to change the nation. And that means discipleship. So making converts isn't what changes the nation. Making disciples is. And that's where we are now. We've got a lot of converts, a lot of young people. It's cool now that in church, the largest demographic attending church is no longer white haired people, it's young people, it's Gen Y, Gen Z. But unless they get discipled, that won't change anything because they've gone through an educational system and a culture that is very non biblical. And the fact that they've accepted Jesus, if you just wrap what you do around Jesus instead of changing the way you think, it won't make a difference. And that's why going back to the Word is so important and getting back in the Word. So what's happening this week with America Reads the Bible, with that being broadcast across the world, but across the nation with it being in major media outlets, that's all good stuff for helping us get back to the discipleship concept. That will turn this into a great awakening, which is really what we need, not just a revival.
David Barton: Hopefully we're going to recover some American history and heroes
>> Alex McFarland: David Barton, what did the role of not only God's Word, but preachers and the proclamation of the Gospel? What role did that play? during the time of the American Revolution?
>> David Barton: You know, our view of preachers back then is very different from what it is now. because preachers are kind of an outside group outside the system in many areas, outside the educational system, outside the political system, outside the economic system. And that's not the way it was back in the founding. President Trump is in the middle of. And this will happen in the next four to six weeks. There will be a lot of statues that will be erected on the National Mall that have never been there before. Some of these statues were authorized back in 1926. they're going to put a national memorial arch up, which will be half the size, half the height of the Washington Monument, twice as big as the Lincoln Memorial. And with that will be a number of statues. And among those statues are going to be a number of ministers of the gospel. And they're there because they were great military heroes, they were great educational heroes, they were great political heroes. and that's not what we would have. If we chose ministers today. They wouldn't be in that vein. So as you look back in the American founding, there were 12 military heroes going up and three of them were clergymen who led their congregations out to fight for their rights. That's rare today. It would be very rare. Even to get ministers engaged in something as simple as talking about voting or government is very rare. So I think that one of the things that's happening is with the recovering of our history and heritage and these new statues coming out. And by the way, half of those statues will be of black heroes that most Americans never heard about. You go through this DEI stuff about how racist America is, you go, wait a minute. America had 1,000 black elected officials by 1876. Great Britain didn't have their first elected official until 1987.
>> Alex McFarland: Repeat that again. That's, that's mind boggling. Say again, please.
>> David Barton: By 18, America had its first black elected official in 1641. Matthias D' Souza in Maryland. A black man, a white community elected. You have founding fathers, black, founding fathers elected office. Wentworth Cheswold served 49 years. So you have, by the time you get to 1876, you have a thousand black elected officials in America. And Great Britain had their first one in 1987. Russia had their first one in 2010. Italy had their first in 2013. And we're being taught that we're the racist nation in the world. And we had. Now we weren't perfect, for sure, but we're way ahead of everybody else. And that never gets taught. And so that's what's so cool about. Even these new statues are coming out. Half of them are black heroes that people never heard about. And I mean special forces, black heroes in the revolution like Jack Sisson, who led such an awesome military operation. We used to know these guys. And so our education system is so bad now that we believe we are what we never were because we don't know who we Are. And that's what I hope, really comes out of this revival that we're seeing. And let me say it differently. I don't mean a spiritual revival, this revival of patriotism that we're seeing in America right now around the 250th. Hopefully we're going to recover a bunch of our history and heroes.
>> Alex McFarland: You know, last summer, Charlie Kirk was at Charis Bible College, well, right before the election, fall of 24. And then he and I did a couple of events in 25. And two weeks after he spoke for us, tragically, he was shot in Utah. And then instantly we just began to see hundreds and hundreds of youth. We had a citywide crusade, turned away people every night. 1200 salvation decisions, mostly teenagers. just four days after Charlie Kirk was shot, I'm seeing a real spiritual hunger among all age groups, especially young people. But how do we maximize on this or with God's help make sure it's not a momentary, just emotional response, but really something strong, substantive and lasting, really for the salvation of our nation.
>> David Barton: This is where discipleship becomes so important. one of the things that I do a lot of now is speak at ministers conferences. So I'll probably speak at 100, 150 ministers conferences a year. And what I do now is I generally just pull and let me back up. We own about 160,000 items from American history, things from Columbus all the way through the Bible landed on the moon of Apollo 14. So among that we have thousands of sermons from the American founding era. And what I will do is I'll pull out sermons of the first, second and third Great Awakenings, and I will cover those sermons. And they're sermons that deal with economics, they deal with government, education and policy and etc. And as you look, the thing about, an awakening was it shaped the way you think about every aspect of life. there are very few preachers today who could tell me from the Bible whether property tax is a biblical or an anti biblical tax. very few could point me to Jesus Parables where he clearly teaches that the progressive income tax is wrong. Capitation, taxes is what is right. But the Bible lays out systems of taxation. The Bible lays out economic systems, the Bible lays out governmental systems. And that's what we have to know today. We have only 4% of Christians who have a biblical worldview. So whether. And even going further, one of the favorite things I like to point to right now is out of Matthew 19, actually Matthew 28, where Jesus says Go teach them everything I've taught you. The Great Commission. Well, in Matthew 19, in the first 15 verses, he spent a long time talking about the definition of marriage, how many genders there were, but also no fault divorce. And when he raised the issue of no fault divorce is absolutely wrong, they said, wait a minute, Moses allowed us no fault divorce. He said, but that wasn't the way the father wanted it. And I have not until the last year. I've gone my entire life of 72 years and never heard a sermon on no fault divorce. Now, if Jesus taught on that, why aren't we teaching on that? And see, that's what I think is missing now is the discipleship aspect, of how to do it. But I will tell you, in the last 12 months, I've seen two major national preachers hit head on no fault divorce and how wrong it is. And that to me is a really good sign that we're becoming more biblical than we've been in a long time.
>> Alex McFarland: Amen. Amen.
David Barton: When there's a true move of God's Holy Spirit
Well, when there's a true move of God's Holy Spirit, I mean, there is a return to biblical authority, isn't there? And I've often said, and I believe it, you'll know it's a true awakening when Christians, families, churches, denominations get serious about the authority of God's holy word.
>> David Barton: Yeah, and I totally agree. And that's something that's interesting right now, because I got to be careful how I say this, but in the first three Great Awakenings, like with George Whitefield, Whitefield preached 3,32,000 sermons in 34 years. That is three sermons a day for 34 years. The dude birthed America. Founding fathers, particularly three founding fathers, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin, pointed to Whitefield as the reason that they were able to cooperate in the first Congress, because they didn't. The different states didn't like each other. Whitefield, the Great Awakening preacher, knew, never knew he was in a revival. Never knew it at all. He died not knowing he had started a revival. And that's because it was so, hard and so difficult, and he got so much opposition. We have records that evangelical preachers of the day told their people to go attend Whitefield's sermons and get in a tree over him and pee on him and defecate on him and throw rocks at him and throw cabbages and potatoes and onions at him. He had so much opposition from the Christian community. And that's a characteristic. The First Great Awakening, the Second Great Awakening, the Third Great Awakening. It is a. It's not a unifying time. It's a dividing time where you separate the sheep from the goats. And so, as a result, biblical authority rose, and eventually, in the last four to five years, the Great Awakening, all those who were fighting Whitefield said, hey, isn't it great that we're all united with Whitefield? Wait a minute. You fought him for three fourths of the time, but they finally got on board. And that's what I hope happens now is all the opposition, all the craziness where we've had so many evangelicals attacking others for being involved in politics or government or whatever, that's going to turn around, and eventually they're going to say, no, this is what we should be doing. And again, if this is a revival or an awakening, it takes decades, decades to manifest itself. But I think we're in one Amen,
>> Alex McFarland: and we can all pray for that. Hey, if, I may, I want to tell you something about a church in my home state of North Carolina, Buffalo Presbyterian Church on the Buffalo Creek. It's 272 years old. My family's been in that church for two centuries. Although, I'm the black sheep of the family. I became Baptist, but, I was interim pastor there. Okay. During the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. And I've been to the Capitol when you show the Trumbull Pictures and Cornwallis, right off of Cornwallis Boulevard in Greensboro. Buffalo Prez. The British took over the sanctuary momentarily during the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, but the pastor's house was burned down. Pastor David Caldwell. Eli Carruthers. One sermon survived that fire, and it was an abolitionist sermon from the 1770s. Isn't that amazing?
>> David Barton: It is.
>> Alex McFarland: well, so we're not the racist nation the woke people would like us to believe. We got to take a break. David Barton of Wall Builders, thank you, sir.
>> David Barton: My pleasure, brother.
>> Alex McFarland: Stay tuned, folks. A brief break, and we're back after this.
>> Jeff King: When dad passed away, in 07, he left an inheritance, and they had saved and saved through the years. I was just wondering what I could do with that money invested or whatever. I knew that I would like to help the Lord somehow in his. And then I kept hearing about the charitable gift annuity, and I thought, well, that really sounds good. And I knew that AFR would just be the best because they're in my home all day, all day long. And I kind of wanted to partner with the Lord through AFR and AFA and give back. And I just felt like I knew that's what I wanted to do. Like I say there's, it's just so easy. I would just highly recommend the foundation.
>> Abraham Hamilton III: Shining light into the darkness. This is the Hamilton corner on American Family Radio.
>> Alex McFarland: Welcome back. the ambient noise you might hear in the background is the sound of the media suite in the Museum of the Bible at this historic gathering called America Reads the Bible. Alex McFarland here. And with me the voice you just heard in that first segment, by the way, is David Barton of Wall Builders. And by the way, this will air, it'll be [email protected] as in American family Radio. so you might want to share this with people but one of the real sponsors or partners in America Reads the Bible is Pureflix. And with me from Pureflix is Bill Abbott. And I want to say Mr. Abbott, thanks for being with us on American Family Radio. But even more importantly, thanks for helping make this possible for millions and millions to hear and experience. Thank you.
>> Bunni Pounds: It ah, is a privilege to be here and to be doing this and broadcasting it live every day from 9 am to 9pm through Saturday.
>> Alex McFarland: Indeed, indeed.
Pure Flix is a streaming platform focused on faith, family and country
Hey, for those that may be unaware, tell us about Pure Flix and all that you do with them.
>> Bunni Pounds: So pureflix is part of Great American Media. we are a streaming platform that is focused on faith, family, country and being uplifting for three categories that quite frankly in the overall entertainment and media landscape are mostly degraded whenever you see somebody that's dad or portrayed as a person of faith generally they are not treated all that fairly. So we are all about telling positive stories that are always family friendly, always have elements where faith and country are uplifted and everything from rom coms to mysteries to dramas to kids programming, in the non work world.
>> Alex McFarland: How long has Peer Flix existed?
>> Bunni Pounds: So purefolix has gone through a few iterations. it was founded in 2015 and was one of the first streaming services. Those guys are way ahead of the game in terms of understanding what the ecosystem would look like. in 2021 Sony purchased Pure Flix and in 2023 Sony invested in Great American Media and roll Pure Flix up underneath Great American Media.
>> Alex McFarland: and what is your title and your role there Bill?
>> Bunni Pounds: so I'm president and CEO and it's a privilege to bring family friendly faith content into the marketplace and to the ecosystem and we believe contributing in a positive way that's very different than anything you get anywhere else because of our really relentless focus on not only that type of content that you can feel comfortable watching with their family, but also that is high quality, has a lot of talent attached and is very, very enjoyable.
>> Alex McFarland: Well I commend you and you know I wish Hollywood would get the message that family friendly, faith affirming content succeeds. it was my privilege to work for James Dobson, a focus on the family. And for quite a number of years I wrote for Plugged in magazine which was there, you know, helping parents make God, honoring entertainment choices and really the more graphic, the more negative, the more explicit films and products were, they would lose money. about a year ago this time I was doing reviews for the very woke Snow White movie which Disney, ah, worldwide lost over $400 million. And so for one thing, on behalf of millions and millions of families throughout the Western hemisphere, I want to say thank you. Thank you for providing not just an alternative but a very excellent one. Much appreciation.
>> Bunni Pounds: Well that's why we're here, because of you know, the vast majority of content out there goes in that direction. And I think it's not that they don't know that the content won't make money, won't be successful, but it's just a lack of desire to produce content that way. And then second, because you're not going to be cool at the cocktail party if you do. And then secondly, you are. most of Hollywood has their own agenda and their own opinion and they believe that agenda is one that they're going to convert others within what I believe is the vast majority of Americans and convert them into thinking their way. So it's a challenging dynamic where family and faith content don't get created at the same level as so much of the other noise that's out there. And that's why it's so important that our ecosystem and business continues to grow and be successful.
>> Alex McFarland: Yeah, ah, I was at a writers conference and I heard someone say I love this quote. Somebody said if you want a person to know the truth, tell them the truth. But if you want a person to love the truth, tell them a story and good stories and just compelling films. there's always worldview present and a message. But when that message is positive and done with excellence and artistry, it really, it lands and it sticks. Doesn't.
>> Bunni Pounds: Sure does. And the more we can create of that and the more we can populate the environment with those types of stories, we believe the better the world is I think unfortunately the opposite is true. That entertainment does influence culture and entertainment is a big piece of what people do and consume. And when they consume dark stories that have the enemy left and right through route and root for the enemy, it becomes certainly a very challenging world for most people to navigate. And you know, that I think is one of the unfortunate things that so many people in the faith area, the family area, have given up on finding content that they're going to be able to enjoy with their families. And it's our mission to bring them back into the entertainment world and to show them that you can enjoy great content without assaulting the senses or using any one of the different devices that are so prevalent in entertainment today.
>> Alex McFarland: And give us the website please.
>> Bunni Pounds: So it's www.PureFlix.com and not only will you be able to enjoy a lot of great content when you subscribe, but you can watch America Reads the Bible which we're here to talk about.
>> Alex McFarland: indeed, indeed. And let me say to churches everywhere, you can stream this@um, pureflix.com right, America Reads the Bible. I've got the privilege. On Wednesday, April 22nd I'll be reading. We were just with David Barton, he's reading tomorrow as well. Today as you're Hearing this on April 21, President Donald Trump will be on screen. This really is historic. And Bill, I've got to ask, how did you get involved in this project?
>> Bunni Pounds: Well, our chairman Doug Deason, is very involved with Christians Engaged and a woman, Bunni, Pounds who runs Christians Engaged is a force to be reckoned with. She has developed this incredible seven day, 12 hour a day experience of reading the Bible and having 475 different people from all walks of life come in and read scripture. And it's done as I mentioned, over a 12 hour period. I didn't believe that she could keep those times in the manner in which she has. It's really remarkable what she's not only bringing all these people to together but then doing it in a way where things don't run over. And it's managed meticulously and just beautifully orchestrated.
>> Alex McFarland: And in addition to the countless numbers of people here in the building, we are in the Museum of the Bible in Washington D.C. many M, many people. You know Bill, I was going around and I've met people already from all over America and internationally. But streaming, do you know how many churches or entities or homes we'll Be watching online.
>> Bunni Pounds: Well, we'll find out soon enough. it's impossible to project. We know that so many people are deeply engaged. But we don't have the figures certainly from the whole seven days or even from, accurate from three, but we know it will be millions at the end of this week that have been enjoying and exposed to scripture in a very different way. The Bible, when you read it cover to cover, is an experience that is like no other. When you talk to people who have done it, it really changes their lives. And so we're excited about playing a small part in that.
How is the grid handling all this traffic? Yeah, we've taken
>> Alex McFarland: So, did you have any bandwidth issues? You know, that's one thing I was thinking about. How is the grid handling all this traffic?
>> Bunni Pounds: Yeah, we've taken a lot of precaution and left no stone unturned in terms of making sure our technology and that the bandwidth would be able to handle whatever volume came in. So certainly tonight will be a pressure point. but, we believe that we are, well equipped.
>> Alex McFarland: indeed, indeed. Well, if we're going to max out the servers, what better topic than this? This is the best one.
Great American Media produces high quality content that honors, um, and uplifts
Well, I want to say thank you. do we have with us here also Mr. Deason? Is he trying to work his schedule? Also from Great American Media and if you're just tuning in, Alex McFarland m here from the Museum of the Bible. America reads the Bible. let me just encourage people. very historic. As if this weren't historic enough, the Dead Sea Scrolls are here folks. and I saw them in Jerusalem about a decade ago. Ah, probably folks, the last opportunity in our lifetime that the Dead Sea Scrolls will be in America. They're here at the Bible along with just countless artifacts, not the least of which is historical documentation about the role that the Bible has played in America in our founding and how the concept of human rights comes from the Bible and equal representation before the law and just so many of the cornerstones of our constitutional Republic. Mr. Abbott, I want to say thank you for making people aware of this. but also tell us what's next for pure flicks? I know you're on a growth track. pure Flix is a growth industry, thank God. But what's in the future for your company?
>> Bunni Pounds: So we will just, continue to produce high quality content that is, distinguished by the talent involved, by the storytelling, by everything from the wardrobe to the set and the way movie or series are constructed and the quality of the content is just the most important part because it needs to be entertaining, it needs to be positive, it needs to be uplifting. All the things that you don't find that in common in entertainment is what we are all about. So it is our, first mission is to produce content that honors, and uplifts. And that is, ah, always top of our agenda.
Has the enthusiasm and response really surprised you for this event
>> Alex McFarland: has the, response surprised you? I know you all, you anticipated success and certainly God has given that, but has the enthusiasm and response really surprised you for this?
>> Bunni Pounds: Oh, yeah, yeah. well, it hasn't actually. We knew that there is a deep desire for this, type of event, and so, you know, it really doesn't. I think it's surprised a lot in the media and surprised a lot of people in this town. But I, think for us, we know that, again, I think it's a vast majority of people really enjoy and want and deeply desire this type of content. And so, it really hasn't.
>> Alex McFarland: Now, are you reading or just. Are you. I know you're broadcasting, but are you one of the readers as well?
>> Bunni Pounds: yes. this evening as well. Yes.
>> Alex McFarland: Well, congratulations. That's great.
Has Hollywood dominance over the arts shifted and if it has, will that shift be permanent
You mentioned our mutual friend Bunni Pounds of Christians Engaged. We've interviewed her a number of times and she's been. You mentioned she's a force of nature. And folks, you need to look at her, impact. Because you might be listening to this and you say, gee, that's good. But, you know, what can I do? I'm just one person. Well, you know, the Bible, one of the verses, 1 Corinthians 15:58, says that our labor in the Lord is not in vain. And I just want to say to everybody listening, your influence and the role model that you are for God and country and family and your prayers and just your influence, on people. It makes a difference. And, when I think of an individual being used by God to the maximal degree, I think of Bunni Pounds. I'm curious to know, how did you, meet Bunni? And Christians Engaged.
>> Bunni Pounds: Yeah. So that association was, through Doug Deason, who's a very good friend of, Bunni's and has been a big sponsor of this entire event. And really, his life led a path here on, a lot of different cultural items from prison reform to really, focused on great American media and art, pillars of faith, family, country. And Doug is a patriot who's changed the country in many ways just by being relentlessly focused on what is good, in the environment. And he's done just a terrific job of helping Bonnie really establish this and make this the event that it is today.
>> Alex McFarland: Indeed. M. Let me ask you this because, our ministry interacts with thousands of teenagers a year who are very spiritually hungry. Many that they write stories, they're very, very creative as every parent would know. has Hollywood's dominance over the arts shifted and if it has, will that shift be permanent?
>> Bunni Pounds: you know there have been groups that have made inroads, which is great to see. I think it's in my view anyway, I think it's hard to imagine a world where Hollywood shifts its focus and changes substantially. So you know I'm not, I don't think I'm being a pessimist. I think I'm being a realistic and just looking at the way it's controlled and I think it's very hard to see how that changes. But the one off companies that are working very hard to make a difference are critical to the overall sanity of where we are as a culture.
Bill Abbott of Pure Flix promotes America Reads the Bible
>> Alex McFarland: Well, Bill Abbott of Pure Flix, I want to say thanks. We've got a break coming up. one more time. Give your website please.
>> Bunni Pounds: Sure. Www.PureFlix.com and you can go there for all the family friendly faith based entertainment as well as America Reads the Bible and have a great experience with high quality content, with talent and storytelling that really is positive and uplifting and will move you.
>> Alex McFarland: God bless you. Thank you for what you're doing folks. You have time to show this at your church, you can go to pureflix.com and I was upstairs where they're reading the Bible even as we speak and they're in the first half of the Old Testament so there's a lot of scripture left to go and very familiar passages. And so tell people, spread the word, put it on your social media and let people know about America Reads the Bible. Brought to you in part by purpose. Stay tuned folks. American Family Radio Network is back after this. God bless you.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Presenting AFA Stream, an online platform that hosts all AFA produced video content including documentaries, church curriculum, American family radio shows and our cultural Institute series.
>> Jenna Ellis: I would submit that we are a Christian nation and the proof, proof of that is in our founding documents and in the US Constitution itself. Because our founders recognized for the first time in world history that our rights come from God our Creator, not our government.
>> Ed Vitagliano: AFA Stream is a vital step that we are taking to fulfill our vision to be a leading organization in biblical worldview training for cultural transformation. You'll find top notch resources that address the issues of our day related to marriage, family, the sanctity of life and many others. Start streaming today. Stream.aca.net.
>> Abraham Hamilton III: The Hamilton Quarter podcast and one minute commentaries are available at afr.
Alex McFarland asks for prayer for America Reads the Bible
Back to the Hamilton corner on American Family Radio.
>> Alex McFarland: Welcome back to the program. Alex McFarland here we've got a great guest as we come to you from our nation's capital, the Museum of the Bible. It's America Reads the Bible. And we're going to talk to the visionary founder of this in just a moment. But I want to ask people to keep us in prayer. AlexMcFarland.com I'm traveling the country preaching the revive us citywide campaigns. We're gonna be in Colorado, in Texas, in Florida. A lot going on because our nation needs a move of God's holy spirit. We're committed to that. And also our summer camps are coming up. If you go to the website equipretreat.org we're in Montana, Iowa, upstate NewSong Jersey, the Hudson River Valley. Last year I give God the glory. We had 624four teenagers make a salvation decision for Christ and then over a thousand that are multiple years coming back to our camps. So this is the hope of America, the gospel and young lives being built on Jesus Christ and his word.
Alex McFarland: Museum of the Bible is read in its entirety
Well, hey, let me segue to the guest before me now. over the last few years, whether I was on American Family Radio, the Hamilton Corner Truth and Liberty, when I needed a really good guest, frequently I would call an individual named Bunni Pounds of Christians Engaged. And she was getting people registered to vote, informing churches and voters, and really commenting on law and culture. I came to respect Bunni Pounds so much. She's a fantastic guest, always at the ready to talk about the issues that matter. And some time ago she shared a vision that she had that in our nation's capital the Bible would be read in its entirety. And that sounded rather ambitious, but, you know, I knew she's going to do it. God is with this woman. And yet here we are and in the middle of America reads the Bible. She's with us now. And without further ado, Bunni Pounds, welcome and congratulations for a vision realized.
>> Bunni Pounds: it's really by the grace of God, Alex. I mean it's been amazing to see this come together. Our team started working on it about 14 months ago. About two years ago, I had this idea here at the Museum of the Bible that we needed an Ezra moment. We needed to realize who we really were as American citizens M. But specifically the body of Christ. Kind of an awakening, a return to the word of God in simplicity. And I'm telling you, Alex, we're at, ah, almost 500 readers, 122 ministries, reading the entire Bible, the whole counsel of God. I, I have. I'm just blown away by the power of God in this museum and the presence of God and the unity that we're feeling and the effects that it's having to people around the country. Really amazing.
>> Alex McFarland: Well, you know, it really is historic. For one thing, the Dead Sea Scrolls are here. That in itself is just monumental, what they signify. And by the way, on Exploring the Word, Bert Harper and I are going to be talking about the Dead Sea Scrolls and just how monumental that is. I was going through some of the exhibits. The role of the Bible in American history, the American Revolution, even the civil rights movement. And, as has been said, this book is the rock on which our republic rests. So I want to say thank you. Thank you for having the vision that God's holy word would be read Genesis to Revelation. And you have gotten just the. A list of people to read. Tell us about it. How did you. Including our president. it's a God moment, isn't it?
>> Bunni Pounds: Yeah, a lot of sweat equity. I think I counted. I did 200 Zoom meetings last year just to recruit, national ministries onto it. But a lot of yeses, Alex. I just, I want to say thank you to all of these ministries, whether it's Andrew Wommack or CBN or, Dr. Jack Graham or, Samaritan's Purse or Prison Fellowship Colson Center. You, guys, Alex McFarland Ministries. I mean everybody that said yes to this, to not only help us financially get here, but also to market it, to push it out, to be a part, send, readers. we had so many of our family policy councils around the country that put up readers from Iowa and Florida and Pennsylvania and Idaho and Alabama. I think We've got almost 50 states represented. We have some young people from Hawaii, we have people flying in from Alaska, to read the Bible. Really a monumental moment. Yeah, very, very difficult, if you can imagine. If you can imagine hosting a conference with 500 leaders that don't read their emails and, you know, don't follow instructions. you followed instructions.
>> Alex McFarland: Now m. I'm under conviction now.
>> Bunni Pounds: You followed instructions. but yeah, I just want to say thank you to our team at Christians Engaged and Family Policy alliance for championing this, our contractors that have come alongside to work 60, 80 hours a week. My director of America Reads the Bible, Jamie Thompson, and her entire family that's been working as a volunteer. it's really been an unbelievable thing, but it's worth it because the seed of the Word of God is spreading across this country. We're seeing hundreds of thousands of. Of people on the livestream at any one time. people coming, just really getting wrecked by God in the auditorium. And 16 worship leaders that flew here on their own dime. You know, we're not paying anybody anything, and they're just coming and sitting in a green room. Kim Walker Smith Leland Danny Gokey, M. Meredith Andrews. All of these worship leaders just coming to fill in, like prayer and worship. One song at the end of each hour just so we can have a kind of a pause break and reflect on what we've just read. And the humility, Alex, the humility is blowing me away of whether it's ministry leaders or these worship leaders. and the expert readers. Let me just say thank you to our 50, 60 expert readers, which you are one of those. These passages that humanly is impossible to read except for you beautiful people that can read them. it's really amazing. And God anoints his whole word. His whole word speaks. And that's what I've been blown away with. Even the genealogies and even the hard passages and the Tamar passage that Nathan Winters read from Wyoming, all of it speaks.
>> Alex McFarland: It really does. You know, Isaiah 55 says, God's word does not return void, but it accomplishes the purpose to which God sent it. And, Bunni, I was upstairs in the auditorium and a gentleman was reading from the, 1st Kings 15. And I was looking around the room and no kidding, I mean, the room was thick with the presence of the Holy Spirit. And there were people weeping and folks, we need the Lord to touch our nation. And it's happening. It was so powerful and everybody was just listening. I was watching people wipe tears away. Ah, myself included. But in my heart, I was rejoicing. And I want to say, folks, just if you could step back from the noise of life and the unrelenting barrage of headlines, I want to say this. Jesus Christ is king. Jesus Christ is still the name above all names. Acts 4:12. Jesus is still the one and only name given under heaven among men, whereby we must be saved. Perhaps you're listening to this and you need to call out to the name of Jesus. We always say this. listen, folks, if you need to come to Christ, or maybe you need to come back To Jesus Christ. He's as close by as a prayer. Jesus loves you, folks. If I could put it on a billboard at every intersection, on every street corner, Jesus loves you. He's not mad at you. His arms are open.
Bunny says people of all strata are reading the Bible
And Bunni, I just think, yes, the Bible is being read. Yes, people of all strata, ministers, actors, musicians, elected officials, educators, just farmers like myself from North Carolina, people are reading the Bible. But here is the message that Jesus arms are open. And to this world Jesus says, whosoever will may come. That's the good news, isn't it?
>> Bunni Pounds: It is. I said, Saturday night at our opening celebration, I got to preach the gospel. It was one of the greatest moments of my life. why would our team spend 14 months, you know, trying to create something that is just looks like humanly impossible? And the reason is, Alex, God is calling people. He's reaching into, this nation, and he's calling us to a himself. And, I preached out of John 17:24. I get to read John 17 on Saturday morning. Father, I desire that those who you've given me would be with me where I am, that they would behold my glory. And the call of Jesus before he went to the cross was that he would have you, he would have your heart, that he would have your life. And the beauty of this, I, was just wrecked today in the green room. I've been praying over every single one of our readers. And you, know, it's kind of like the Acts Church we have. The basicness of Christianity is three worship, prayer and meditation on the Word. That's really what it looks like to just walk with God, right? And we are literally sitting in an auditorium listening to the word of God being read. We are having worship leaders just open up 90 seconds or 3 minutes or 6 minutes, minutes of worship for us to just say, God, we love you. You know, we magnify your name. And then we're just having a constant prayer room and prayer meeting in the back of this with leaders that are just literally just going, God, I want to hunger and thirst after righteousness. I want to be dependent on you as a leader. Sometimes, Alex, we just try to survive. We, you know, we're all multifaceted and talented. but our talents and our gifts alone is not going to save anybody. Our words by themselves are not going to save anybody. The only thing that saves people is the word of God. And so it is incumbent upon us as leaders to say, God, I'm going to show up every day and I'm going to open your Word and you're going to speak to me and I'm going to hear your voice, and then I'm going to take what you've given me and I'm going to invest it in other people and I'm going to speak through that out. And that's what changes people and that's what raises up disciples. And I think we lose sight. I'm just kind of getting this revelation again this week. We lose sight that the ultimate goal of our lives and the ultimate goal of the church is for us to be Christlike, you know, and that means we've got to be simpler. We've got to kind of be almost minimalistic in a sense, you know, cut out everything else that doesn't exalt Christ. And I think we're seeing the power of that as people just watch the Word just being read, nothing else.
>> Alex McFarland: You know, I've been really meditating on First John, chapter three. And it says, everyone who has this hope in themselves purifies themselves even as they now are pure. And I was thinking about is and are present tense reality. When you're a born again believer, folks, you've put your faith in Jesus. You are a son or daughter of the King now. It's not like, you know, decades from now I'll die and go to heaven. That's true if you're a believer. But now we are sanctified. We want to walk with the Lord. We want to be more and more like Jesus. Because that's our true identity now, isn't it, Bunni?
>> Bunni Pounds: yeah, it is. And he is literally calling us every day for a closer relationship. Right? And, I just hope what our prayer has been Alex, for. This is a couple things. We're praying for the body of Christ, for complacency and apathy to be broken off our hearts. You know, so often in the modern American church, we're depending on a 20 minute message from our local pastor to make it every week. And we're, I mean, we're literally trying to survive with no water, no food, right? And then we wonder why our families are falling apart and why we're addicted to, you know, gaming or TV or pornography or whatever it is. It's like we're not really feeding our souls. So we're praying for awakening, we're praying for revival. when it comes to the simplicity of walking with God in the body of Christ in America, just like, Saturday night, we held our Bibles and knelt down on the ground and I said, let's think about the Chinese church. Let's think about the Iranian church. Let's think about the gift that we get to own a Bible, that we get to download a Bible app, that we get to read the Bible in this country. What an amazing gift. but we're praying for the American people overall, that as they see these news stories, as they see these social media clips, as they see the President of the United States do a historic thing of reading two and a half minutes of scripture, that they maybe wake up and go, maybe there's some wisdom in there. Maybe there's something that can heal my marriage. Maybe there's something that can break depression off my life. Maybe there's something I should look into. And there's this curiosity that's formed that we know, because Romans 10:17 says, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word, that if you start digging into that, something's going to happen. And it's a miracle that we can't even describe because John1 talks about the word became flesh and dwelt among us. We beheld his glory, right, that we have this opportunity to receive him. And we have the right to become the child of God. because he called us. And what he's doing right now, Alex, is calling people through the simple words. Whether it's the story of David, whether it's the story of Ruth, whether it's Esther, whether it's Job. I love the turning point Faith read Job. I love, when Marty Gretz is going to read Romans 9, 10, and 11. when the speaker of the House, Mike Johnson read Genesis 24. I mean, how powerful is that?
>> Alex McFarland: You're listing a lot of great friends. We're almost out of time. Bunni pounds. On behalf of millions of Americans, thank you. For America Reads the Bible.
>> Bunni Pounds: Thank you, Alex. We love you guys so much.
>> Alex McFarland: God is good. Hey, folks, thanks for listening. Share this program with somebody afr.net and tell people about americareadsthebible. Com. Blessings to you all.
>> Bunni Pounds: The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio.
