Transcript

Hamilton: God has called us to be ambassadors even in this dark moment

>> Joseph Parker: Darkness is not an affirmative force.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: It simply reoccupies the space vacated by the light.

>> Greg Rolls: This is the, Hamilton Corner on American family Radio.

>> Joseph Parker: It should be uncomfortable for a believer

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: to live as a hypocrite, delivering people

>> Greg Rolls: out of the bondage of mainstream media and the philosophies of this world. God has called you and me to

>> Joseph Parker: be his ambassadors, even in this dark moment. Let's not miss our moment.

Alex McFarland welcomes Greg Rolls to the Hamilton Corner

>> Greg Rolls: And now, the Hamilton Corner.

>> Alex McFarland: Blessed is the nation whose God is the lord. That's Psalm 33:12. And with that wonderful verse of scripture, I welcome you to this edition of, the Hamilton Corner. Alex McFarland here, sitting in for attorney pastor broadcaster Abe Hamilton III. Very, very honored to be on the Hamilton Corner. We've got a great show tonight. We really do. And, you know, with our Nation Celebrating our 250th birthday, think about that. A quarter millennia the United States of America has existed, and what a blessing. And we're gonna talk about something that is just uplifting to a lot of people. I've got a dear friend I want you to meet in just a few moments. But, let me say this. Many of you know that for 27 years, our ministry, we've done biblical worldview events all around the country, and it's been my joy. You know, I was a youth pastor in Greensboro, North Carolina, and I just wanted my kids to be able to, not lose their faith when they'd go away to college. I would have, you know, kids from my youth group, some of the best and the brightest that I had, and they'd go away to, you know, Duke or Chapel Hill, and they would hear a lot of things that would challenge not only their Christian faith, but even their loyalty to America. So in the 1990s, we began to book a lot of speakers and bring them to Greensboro. And I began to rent the Greensboro Coliseum, like, three times. You know, looking back, I don't know how God gave me the vision and maybe the courage to do that, but we would go and we would rent the Greensboro Coliseum and bring in speakers. One time, we brought in coach Thom Landry of the Dallas Cowboys, had 8,000 teenagers come out to hear coach Landry. And little did I know that, I would be renting lots of theaters over the course of my adult life. And so God's been really good to us. We've done 51 citywide events over the. The years all over America. Thousands of, speaker. Well, thousands of attendees, several hundred speakers we've booked. And a couple of years ago, we begin to set our sights on Myrtle beach, the Grand Strand. And you know, last year we brought in speakers like Dinesh d', Souza, Gary Chapman, who wrote the Five Love Languages, Charlie, Kirk just two and a half weeks before he got killed. And I want to tell you folks, I've never had a better experience anywhere through throughout the USA then the experience of renting the Greg Rolls Legacy Theater in North Myrtle beach. Now, 22 million people a year go to the Myrtle beach area from all 50 states. And part of the reason that we love to minister down here, and we've, we've brought Abe Hamilton down before, Jenna Ellis, a lot of great people. But if you've never been to the Grand Strand, I mean, it's fantastic. The restaurants, the golf, the ocean. But you need to know about the Greg Rowles Legacy Theater. For one thing, we're doing several of our Conversations that Matter events there this year and we'll be bringing in incredible speakers like Eric Metaxas, one of the biggest selling Christian authors of our lifetime. And, the Greg Rolls Legacy Theater is named for a man named Greg Rolls. He's a singer, he's a musician. I'm proud to say he's a friend. And he is with us now. And it's a great privilege to talk with the namesake of the theater, Greg Rolls himself. Greg, welcome to the American Family Radio Network. Thanks for being with us, Alex.

>> Greg Rolls: You're so welcome. What an incredible introduction. Wow. I kept looking over my shoulder like, who's he talking about? That's incredible. Thank you for that. You're gonna be here June, June 20, your first appearance here this year.

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah, that's true. That is true. One of our, we're starting a tour across America called Revive Us. And yes, at the Greg Rolls Legacy Theater, June 20, we're going to have a revival meeting. And, we'll. Believe me, folks, we're going to, as we get a little bit closer, tell you more and more about that.

Alex: How did God bring you to where you are in your career

But for those that may, not know, I want to hear your story, Greg. How did God bring you to where you are in your life and career, brother?

>> Greg Rolls: Thanks, Alex, for, you know, I love listening to people's story and people always ask me about, you know, point A to Z. I'm not sure if I got the Z yet, but anyway, I, I grew up in a family band back in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Literally, falling asleep on dance hall tables at the age of four, watching my dad play music. And, those were, incredibly incredible, impressionable years when it came to music, just because I wanted to be like my dad. He was my hero. And he sang and played guitar, and I thought, well, man, if it's good enough for him, it's good enough for me. And dad, was a civil engineer by trade, but he played on the weekends. so we formed a family band. and at 13, that's. That was my first professional performance, for the Jerry Lewis Telethon, the Washington D.C. leg of that.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Oh.

>> Greg Rolls: And, we had a family band, was my mom, my dad, my brother, my cousin, my aunt. We were called the Nashville Connection. And, so all. All those years, Friday and Saturday nights, we were playing, I tell everybody, we played the animal circuit. We played the Elks Lodge, Eagles Lodge and Moose Lodge and. Right. And had a lot of fun doing it, but grew up on stage, literally, with mom and dad and. And dad originally did this to get us in the kitchen. Just kind of keep the family close together, keep them tight, keep us, you know, talking and, and visiting with each other. We never, I don't think he ever thought that we would take it that seriously, that we wanted to go out and play for a living and make. Make money doing this. And when we did, and. And I did that through my middle school year, through my high school years, through those college, and then moved to Nashville.

>> Alex McFarland: Now what was your set list? I mean, what. What were the types of songs that you did?

>> Greg Rolls: So anything, Alex, then that played on the, on the country radio at the time, in the late 70s, early 80s, all the way through the, you know, late 80s, we tried to play those songs, but we also. Dad grew up playing the old 50s and 60s rock and roll, so we played a lot of those standards also. Anything with a good beat, we found that people love. People love things that they could dance to. but what I found out early on was that, people came back to see people. Mom and dad would have us go visit the tables between sets and thank everybody for coming. And so just like everything else, it's all. Everything's relational. So people came back to see people. They. We gave them a good beat, but they liked us as people, so they would follow us around and became really family. And I do that every single night here at the theater. I thank people for coming. You know, there's, so many places to go, be entertained. I want to make sure that they know how much we appreciate them being here, taking time, their hard earned money to come and allowing us to entertain them.

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah, well, and I appreciate you.

Greg Rolls founded the Greg Rolls Legacy Theater in North Myrtle Beach

And folks, if you're just tuning in. We're, having a conversation with Greg Rolls, well known of the Greg Rolls Legacy Theater in North Myrtle Beach. give your website then. I want to point something out to folks. But Greg, what's your website?

>> Greg Rolls: Yeah, it's gregrollslegacytheater.com or grl. t. NMB nmbnorth myrtlebeach.com. you can find it either way if you Google it'll pop right up for you.

>> Alex McFarland: Sure. And Rolls, your, ah, last name as well. R O W L E S. Right.

>> Greg Rolls: Yeah. Thanks, Alex.

>> Alex McFarland: I appreciate. Well, I want to say thank you. in your shows, I mean, you honor God and country. it's great patriotic. it's world class. I mean, it's comparable to anything you would hear, you know, in NewSong York, Las Vegas. I mean, it's top drawer. But you've got the gospel, you've got the patriotic, and you've got something for everybody. And thank, you for doing that, Greg.

>> Greg Rolls: Alex, you're welcome. You know, it hasn't always been that way. I didn't find the Lord till I was 37, and I'm. I'll be 61. And, I, was, I will tell you. I was playing across the country at fairs and festivals, all these casinos. And when I, When I. The after start, I won Ed McMahon Star Search. But after that, the. The start faded quickly and my gigs became fewer and far between. So I was. I found myself working for a temp agency in Nashville. And I was parking cars off the Autobahn for Nissan, Xterras and Altimas. And I put them up on trail, you know, train cars. And I went across this gravel parking lot one day and, in these raggedy old jeans and T shirt and steel toe shoes. And the week before, I was headlining Harrah's and, you know, flashbulbs going off and. Anyway, I walked across this, this parking lot and I got down on my knees and I said, I said, God, I'm lost. Can you help me? I said, I don't know what I'm doing, but I, I sure don't enjoy doing this. Can you help me? And two, weeks later, Opryland USA had called me, the folks that I worked for in Nashville, at the show park there at Aqualand usa before I won Star Search, they called and said, hey, there's an MC gig we'd like you to consider in Myrtle beach at the Alabama Theater. Would you consider doing it? And I said, no, I've been to Myrtle beach. And it's awful. I came here for 96 and camped, but I was camping in the middle of a hurricane and didn't even know it. So my impressions of Myrtle beach were not, you know, they were not fond ones. So, they, I went back and talked to them again and, and lo and behold, we found ourselves here in Myrtle Beach. And a couple years later, Brandy, my bride, who you've met also and know, wanted, she grew up Christian and wanted to get back into church. And I grew up the CEO. I was Kristin. Ah, Christmas Eastern, occasionally, you know, at church. That's the only time you found me there. You know, if somebody died or somebody got married, I was singing for him. And so we, we started going to church and we, we were baptized together on easter Sunday in 2002. but I remember coming out of that water thinking, okay, God, I'm good. You're good with me, I'm good with you. And Brandy came home the next, you know, the next week. She said, okay, let's get up, go to church. I said, well, Sundays are my day off. I, I, I deserve to sleep in on Sunday. That's my day, not the Lord's day. It's my day. Anyway, she started reading her Bible and I, I get up at 5:00 in the morning, Alex. And she was in the kitchen reading her her Bible. And I thought, oh my gosh, I've married this Jesus freak. You know? And, the closer she got to Jesus, the more I think I resented her because I was no longer number one in the family. And so I just, despite her, I started to sleep on the couch. And despite me, she let me sleep on the couch. And right. That went on for a couple months. And I came home one night and she said, you know, you're not the, you're not the guy that, that's here to lead our family. I, I think I want you to leave. And that was very sobering for me to hear. And I remember, begging to stay, to stay at the house. And I slept on the, slept on the couch. A couple nights later I came home from a show and as I did every night, I, I kissed my kids good night. And I, I got under this rickety old ceiling fan in the middle of the living room, just off of that couch, and I, and I had the same conversation that I had two years earlier in that, gravel parking lot, parking those Nissans. And I said, God, I'm lost. Can you help me? And I got back up on that couch. And a couple days later, she came home with a book by Max Locato called, a book, a Love Worth Giving, based on the, you know, Corinthians 1, the love chapter. And I wasn't a big reader, but she asked me to read this book with her. So over the course of a month, she'd read a little bit every night. I'd read a little bit every night. After about two weeks, she invited me into the bedroom. and I remember a few. A couple weeks after that, we kissed again for the very first time. And it's been baby steps ever since then.

But, you know, I never thought I would have been involved in ministry

But, you know, I never thought I would have been involved in ministry. I was part of a praise team. And, then, I ended up planning a church and becoming a music pastor for seven and a half years. And that's been a while ago. One of the most rewarding jobs and the toughest jobs I've ever had in my life.

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah.

>> Greg Rolls: ah. but again, such a magical time.

Greg Rolls: I truly believe that we're wanderers

So everybody's walking is different. And I, I think. I truly believe that we're wanderers. You know, we're, you know, God said he went after the one sheep. You know, he left the other 99, and he went after the one. And there's so many of those ones out there that I've met just like me that, that, you know, they. They stray away from the, shepherd, they strayed away from God. And God is so patient and so loving that he cares so much that he would go and get you. Amen. That he needs you that much. He wants you that much. Not that he needs you, you need him, but he wants you that much.

>> Alex McFarland: Amen.

>> Greg Rolls: He did that, and I think he's done that with me several times. You know, to, be honest, Alex, Greg thought,

>> Alex McFarland: Forgive me. We've got a break coming up here. Alex McFarland here. We're talking with Greg Rolls of the Greg Rolls Legacy Theater in North Myrtle beach, where we'll be on June 20th and else, other times this year as well. Stay tuned. More with Greg Rolls on this edition of the Hamilton Corner on the American Family Radio Network. We've got a brief break and we'll be back.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: A discipleship minute with Joseph Parker.

Abe Hamilton: True love isn't a love that asks for things

>> Joseph Parker: Love gives. Love seeks to bless. Love seeks to carry out the work and the will of God. That's an important truth to understand. You know, the world often will say, I love you because you're pretty. I love you because you give me money or all sorts of things, but genuine love isn't a love that says I love you because someone says they love you, but they're always asking you for this and that and they say I love you, so you should do this for me. Again, that doesn't sound like love. Based on what the word of God teaches us. Jon 3:16 tells us, For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes on him should not perish but have everlasting life. You know, when we're evangelizing and doing the work of disciple making, we're loving people. Remember the word of God and the spirit of God teach us to live a lifestyle of ministry, reaching out to a world that desperately needs to be touched by the love of God.

>> Greg Rolls: Shining light into the darkness. This is the Hamilton corner on American Family Radio.

>> Alex McFarland: Welcome back to the program. It's a great honor to be sitting in for Abe Hamilton. If you, recognize my voice, it's probably from a show called Exploring the Word that we've done now for 16 years. And exploring the Word is heard Monday through Friday, three to four Central, four to five eastern. And in the time zone of your choice, it's always a great honor to be sitting in for Abe Hamilton and a great honor to be talking to my friend and colleague Greg Rolls of the Greg Rolls Legacy Theater.

Greg Rolls' theater in North Myrtle Beach opened in 89

I want to get back to his testimony, but let me just say if you're traveling this summer, hey look, you need to come to the Grand Strand for one thing. You'll eat some great seafood. Probably, you might come to one of our conversations that matter events. But the show there music and memories at the Greg Rolls Legacy Theater. what I've heard of your band and the music I know you do sometimes. You do some Elvis, don't you, Greg?

>> Greg Rolls: Yes, Alex, and thank you. We do a little bit of everything. You know, I think our theater is different in this day and age because we are 100% live. There are no vocal tracks in the show. There are no instrument tracks in the show. We have incredible, musicians, world class, a world class cast. You know, if you, to put the, put the years together of this entire troupe, you're Talking about over 420 years of professionalism on stage and the resumes are a mile long from all these folks and I'm humbled to share the stage with them. but you know, we're right there, we're right here on Main street in North Myrtle beach, as you know, which is, is iconic, the, the the birthplace of Vanna White, you know, she's like the, our hometown girl. And, the home of the shag, the state dance of South Carolina, and so much history up and down Main Street. And here we are, now, honored to be such a big presence on Main Street. You can't miss our building. It started out as a theater in 89, and it was a church, I think, as you know, for years before the church built the larger sanctuary. And we took it from a church back to a theater setting. And basically my partner Brad, who you're friends with also Brad Alexander, gutted it and redesigned it. And state of the art sound and lights and comfortable seating. It's just. And it's a 793 seat venue now, and I call it our living room. and that's the way I want everybody to feel as if they're in our living room to be entertained every night.

>> Alex McFarland: Well, you know, and something else that, maybe we'll talk about this another day, but this area, Highway 17, which is also called Kings highway, that goes, you know, pretty much from the North Carolina state line, you know, down the seaboard. Historians call this the cradle of American evangelism, that, missionaries from Europe, were coming here almost for the last 400 years. And the gospel, the message of Jesus Christ was really seeded into this region. There's a very famous evangelist, George Whitefield. Greg.

>> Joseph Parker: He.

>> Alex McFarland: And this is the guy that led Benjamin Franklin to Christ. Whitefield would do outdoor preaching, you know, probably right where your theater sits. So, I mean, there's so much history here. and folks, if you're coming, you will not be disappointed, I promise you. But

>> Greg Rolls: after you kind of gave me that little tidbit and I did, I found a lot of that same information. I had no idea that this area was known to be so, rich in history with the teaching of the gospel.

>> Alex McFarland: Exactly.

Alex Farland: Greg, you talked about being at a crossroads

Hey, we're almost out of time for this segment, but, Greg, I want to circle back before the break. You were talking about how you were kind of at a, at a crossroads and you cried out the Lord and Jesus was there for you. What do you give a word to somebody listening and they might be right at that same juncture and they're just wondering, you know, what's my purpose? What am I here for? Does God have something for me? What do you say to that person, Greg?

>> Greg Rolls: I think. Well, first of all, there's hope, for me. Jesus gave me hope, and I found that he was, he was truly listening to me. I. And looking back, I Found out he was listening all along. but I. I think a lot of people, and maybe even me, you know, people don't. They make religion, ah, complicated. And I. I kind of equate it to my wife, my kids. The more I talk to them, the better I get to know. The more I trust them, M. The better they get to know me. and I find that same thing with God. I talk to him throughout the day.

>> Alex McFarland: Amen.

>> Greg Rolls: and I'm. And it's not just the foxhole Christian. You know, I used to be the foxhole Christian. Yeah. Just get mad at this God, and I'll. I'll never do it again. You know, those conversations. I promise you I'll never. Whatever that. That circumstance happens to be now, it's just. It's conversational and just ride down the road, and I just. I just talk. And I truly believe there are those quiet places where he speaks to you. He speaks to you in different ways. And. And sometimes there are those earthly angels that come alongside you. Like Brandy that gave me that book, my Max Lucado. That was a God wing for me, that the folks pulling me into their office back years ago after I'd asked God for help. That was a God win. So now I'm looking for him. I'm. I'm waiting for him to speak. And I would say for. For somebody that is just, maybe completely just downtrodden for whatever circumstances are going in their lives, and sometimes it takes that, Alex, you have to be sometimes in a. Some. Maybe a lonely place, a dark place where you're receptive, you're. You're. You're open to listen to those things. And. And I know that God loves intercessor prayer. So I'll be praying, I pray every day for people that have not received that gift of salvation yet. And I know there may be somebody listening tonight that was just like me going, man, I am lost. I'm lost. M. My only words of advice would to just say, God, can you help me? Can you help me? I've made so many mistakes in my life. I'm not perfect, but I need. I need help, and I need your help.

>> Alex McFarland: You know, Greg, one of my favorite verses. That's beautiful. Thank you, greg. Jon 6, verse 37. the gospel of Jon, Jesus said this. And so this will be in red ink in your Bible, folks. This is the words of Jesus. He said, the one who comes to me, I will in no way reject. So, listeners, I mean, that's. That's. That was Greg Rolls, that. That Was me. That, that might be you right this minute. If you turn to Christ, his arms are open. well, Greg, we gotta pull away right now, brother. But I look forward to hearing, your shows this year. you're fantastic musicians and as you said, no lip syncing. If you want to hear live music and hear it done well, a show that will lift you up. The Greg Rolls Legacy Theater in North Myrtle Beach. That's the place.

>> Greg Rolls: And praying for your ministries, buddy. Looking forward to seeing you.

>> Alex McFarland: Right on. Thanks, brother. Alex McFarland here, folks. This is the American Family Radio Network, and we're going to kind of segue now.

Damon Friedman is helping build a network of free medical care for veterans

And, another thing, very near and dear to my heart, our veterans. my dad was a, decorated World War II vet. My dad was in a plane crash in World War II. One survivor. It was my dad. And that's pretty, key to me being here. but, whenever I hear of somebody that's ministering to our servicemen and women, my, respect for them is just off the charts. And we're going to talk to Damon Friedman. he's a decorated US Marine Core officer. He transferred to the Air Force as a special warfare officer. He retired, served our country more than 20 years. He retired as a lieutenant colonel. And he's doing some very, very unique, things to, give, ah, purpose and health to our veterans. And he established SOF missions. We're going to hear about that. But doctor, Friedman, thanks for holding and welcome to the American Family Radio Network.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Yeah, thank you for having me. I really appreciate it. I'm actually a fan of the great work in broadcasting. So, it's a pleasure to be here, my friend.

>> Alex McFarland: Well, God bless you. Thank you very much. And listen, I'm impressed because, you're currently working on a master's of Public Administration, at Harvard. am I right about that?

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Yeah, I was honored. Ah, Harvard University recruited me, to take this, degree. But it's a focus on the expansion of the work that we're doing. They're going to help develop a strategic plan, that will make us the largest nonprofit, greatest network of providing free medical care to veterans across the nation. And they were so brilliant and kind that they made me the American Service fellow. So, so it's, it's going to be wonderful.

>> Alex McFarland: Oh, that, that is great. That, that is great. I, did a doctoral course there, Cambridge, Massachusetts. And so, you know, it's a school with a lot of history and, man, major, major street cred going There.

Over 20 veterans take their lives every day, Damon Friedman says

But, I want to talk about your work with veterans, and, begin, to tell us about that, if you would. Dr. Friedman.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Absolutely. I'd like to just kind of share with all the listeners and viewers out there that I served 20 years in the military, as you mentioned in my bio, predominantly in special operations, multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. And I served predominantly throughout the entire time of the post nine, 11, those 20 years. I started in 2000, finished in 2020. And the reality is that with all the combat deployments I experienced, and that's a part of war. It's processing the trauma. And what does that look like? You're dealing with ptsd, you're dealing with mild traumatic brain injury, you're dealing with insomnia, chronic pain, you're dealing with moral injury, all those things. And the fact is, is that everything kind of, accumulates. And for me, I started struggling. And many Americans do not know that over 20 veterans take their lives every single day. I'm very, very passionate about trying to find a solution. Yeah, 20. So by the time that we get done with this radio show, one veteran will have taken their lives, and that's just a catastrophe. And it's an epidemic among our veteran community. And so this is a driving force. It's one thing to, fight an enemy, a terrorist enemy. Ah, an enemy that has to be stopped. it's another win. and one of my brothers, pays the ultimate price, dying on that battlefield for the sake of American freedom and fighting for other people that can't fight for themselves against oppression. But it's another thing when they come back home and they bring the war home, and they end up using the freedom that they're fighting for. They use their own freedom to take their freedom, and they take that act, out of desperation and they take their lives. So that's what SOF Missions is about. We're here to combat the suicide epidemic, and we're doing it by force. And, it's something that must, be done.

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah, I'm trying to get my mind around that, statistic. 20 veterans a day. That is so tragic. I would warrant that 99% of Americans don't know that. by the way, folks, we're talking with Dr. Damon Friedman. you have a very renowned, podcast yourself where, ah, can people, people, learn about you and, hear, hear what you do, sir.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Yeah, so it's the Damon Friedman show, the Real Life Network kind, of spearheaded by Pastor Jack Hibbs. Started this incredible real life network. Dwight Thompson, kind of the executive director of that.

>> Alex McFarland: They we've had Jack Hibbs on this program by the way, in times past.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Yeah, he, he's a great friend, great mentor. He's just a force to be reckoned with. And he just felt that the team just felt like my voice needed to be heard. And so I, I, I podcast things that are very important, specifically symptoms that a lot of these veterans are dealing with. But it's about empowering leaders to be the best version of themselves. So for me, I travel around the country, I'm a premier speakers bureau speaker, shout out to premier. They put me on stage and give me a platform, especially even with Fortune 500 companies, not just faith based events, to be able to share my story, which really revolves around how God radically changed and transformed my life and how he's using me as an unstoppable force for good. And, and how I'm doing it is through this organization, SOF Missions, where we provide free medical care to veterans. But I challenge leaders, I challenge leaders to be a force in this ugly world. We need hope and we need purpose. And so that's really my jam in the Damon Friedman show, talks to leaders across the nation on what they're doing and how they are making an atomic impact.

From coming out of a deployment to transitioning is a different process

>> Alex McFarland: indeed, indeed. and let me ask you this. From coming out of a deployment to transitioning, what's the difference between the veterans that make a healthy transition back into civilian life and those that really hit a rough patch that could be potentially a disastrous rough patch?

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: So I think that there's two kinds of veterans. And I always have to be very careful because I don't want a certain population of veterans to feel marginalized because at the end of the day I want to make this point really clear. If you sign on the bottom line, you put on that un, you took that oath and you defend your country, you did a great act and you are part of a 1% of Americans that will never ever do, joining the military. It's one thing to serve in the United States military, it's another to deploy into combat. It's just a different process. Again, it's not marginalizing a community or population. A sacrifice is a sacrifice. It's just that when you start seeing and experiencing war, it changes a human being. We're talking about experiencing psychological trauma, physical trauma, spiritual trauma, just things that just change the makeup of who we are. And you ask the question, what's the difference between a successful transition and an unsuccessful transition. I will tell you right now, I thought that I was set up for success, my friend. I had a nonprofit waiting for me doing SOF missions, doing a great purposeful act. I mean, meaningful impact. Right? and the reality is that I was not prepared. And the way that you prepare properly is by having psychological, physical, social and spiritual care so that we can kind of figure out where is this trauma being processed when we experience a traumatic experience, it's being processed in multiple domains. Humans, ah, have that psychological domain, that physical, that social, that's spiritual. And so there's just these issues that lie in between and we think we could just talk it through. It's not that way at all. We've got to be able to unpack things. And so it's about really addressing the challenges, that we have been struggling with and finding solutions instead of hiding. A lot of veterans will just say, I'm good, I'm good, I'm resilient. And then we get out and then you can see how we don't transition well. And it's, and it's quite obvious.

>> Alex McFarland: Wow. The, voice you're hearing is Dr. Damon Friedman. doing great work, for God and country. Hey, we've got to take a brief break. can you hang on for another segment, Dr. Friedman?

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Yeah, absolutely. I'm standing by, my friend.

>> Alex McFarland: Right on. Hey, what's your website?

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: just go, please. It's damonfreedman.com and you learn everything about me and the work that I'm doing.

>> Alex McFarland: Doing Friedman is spelled F R I E D M A N. Hey, Alex McFarland here, the American Family Radio Network. We've got a brief break. Stay with us. We're going to be back with more after this on, the Hamilton Corner.

The God who speaks hits the doubt head on with evidence God is real

As we watch world events unfold and fulfill scripture, it's hard to believe anyone could doubt God and his word are real. And yet there are so many who either question or completely refuse to believe it. The God who speaks is a 90 minute documentary that hits the doubt head on with evidence that proves God is real and his word is the ultimate authority. Watch it anytime and invite others to watch with you. Just visit stream.afa.net that's stream.aca.net hi, I'm

>> Joseph Parker: Tim Moore, senior evangelist on Christ in Prophecy. Can you see the signs of the times multiplying all around? Jesus is coming back and he doesn't want his people to be unprepared to stay up to date about unfolding events and get A Biblical perspective on the signs of the times. Listen to Christ in Prophecy here on American Family Radio. Join us Sundays at 11am Central as we reveal the prophetic hope for those who believe in Jesus Christ as well as the Bible's warning about God's coming wrath to those who don't yet know him. Caring for elderly parents this is David Wheaton, host of the Christian Worldview. Caring for elderly parents can be tiring, inconvenient and at times feel hopeless. But as you humble yourself before the Lord and His perfect will and ways, he will give you the grace, the supernatural power and perspective to do what he calls you to. Let's remember to follow the example of the Lord Jesus Christ, who said the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many. Hear a most recent Mother's Day program with my 92 year old mother, my siblings and two of my mom's caregivers at thechristianworldview.org and then join us this weekend as Christian scholar Carl Truman joins us to discuss how the rejection of God degrades our humanity. Listen to the Christian Worldview with David

>> Greg Rolls: Wheaton Saturday mornings at 8 Central on American Family Radio. The Hamilton Corner podcast and one minute commentaries are available at afr.net back to the Hamilton Corner on American Family Radio.

American Family Association president Tim Wildman speaking about biblical worldview this summer

>> Alex McFarland: Welcome back to the program. We're going to resume our conversation with Dr. Damon Friedman in just a moment. But over the break, you might have heard the president of American Family Association, Tim Wildmon, talking about biblical worldview. And one of the things that I really love and we give God the glory. As I travel the country, everywhere I go, literally everywhere I go, people talk about what American Family Radio means to them and the programming and, I mean, if I go through like the Atlanta Airport or DFW in Dallas, almost always somebody will stop me and they'll say, alex, you know, we love afr. there's a conference this summer called Activate. And let me encourage you Google, ah, American Family association. The Activate Summit. It's July 16 through 18. Some of the speakers are Dr. Jessica Peck, Bert Harper, Pastor Jeff Schrieve. Lot of great speakers. I was one of the keynote speakers last summer. I'm not there this summer, I'm on the road. But, it is a fantastic seminar on worldview because really, I mean, America is not going to be a vacuum. There will be some predominant worldview. And, it needs to be, the biblically informed worldview. And so the Activate Summit is fantastic. I Would encourage you to consider. And, the time to sign up. The window is closing, I believe. So that's going to be in July. You'll love Tupelo. Also, by the way, the other thing I want to say, our youth camps are starting. For 27 years, we've done summer youth camps. We talk about God and country, talk about the Christian faith, but we also talk to middle school, high school kids about being a citizen. What does it mean to be a good citizen in our United States of America? And the website for our camps is equipretreat.org albeit all these camps. We start out in Montana, in just a few weeks. So please be in prayer. And, we have one camp, a new camp in, western North Carolina. Beautiful Brevard, North Carolina. And, if you're in this part of the world, look at, look at the cities. Most of the camps are sold out, but we've got some space in Brevard. And I tell parents and youth leaders, hey, invest a week. That will count for a lifetime. And what a joy to see God working in the lives of thousands and thousands of young people. Keep us in prayer.

Dr. Damon Friedman focuses on helping America's veterans

Well, somebody else God is using to touch many lives is Dr. Damon Friedman. And I so appreciate the work he does for our veterans. Because whenever I'm out, you know, very often you'll see, like, a man with a hat on. And maybe they were a marine in, you know, some conflict. And I always, I'll walk up to these people and say, hey, thank you for serving our country. And sometimes people almost get emotional and a tear might come to their eye. And I've had men say to me, because they'll say, hey, I see your, your insignia there. Thank you for serving America. And I've had a few guys, they'll say, you're the first person who's ever said that. And so I think that we can't do enough for those who put their lives on the line to keep America free. And somebody who's doing that, and I just have all the respect in the world for. Dr. Damon Friedman. Welcome, back. Thanks for being on the program tonight, Dr. Friedman, but, let me say with the utmost sincerity, thank you for ministering to our veterans 100%.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: every American veteran deserves the absolute best. When they go out and they serve our country, they make a sacrifice that all Americans get to reap the rewards. We're the greatest country in all of the world because of the American veteran. And we want the American veteran to find peace. We want them to find Hope. We want them to find purpose. And that's what we're here to do. We're here to take care of them. Approximately 20 veterans, 20 million veterans are in the United States, and there's just not enough resources out there. What happens when, especially all of my brothers and sisters who come back from the war post 9, 11, it's 20 years worth of war, the longest war in history. And right now we have an epidemic of over 20 veterans take their lives every single day. There's not enough resources. There's not enough programs. There's not enough. Do you think that this, pains God 100 billion percent? It does. God wants us to find peace. God wants us to find joy. And you know what? That American veteran that made that sacrifice, and some of them paid the ultimate sacrifice, which is laying their life on the line, paying the ultimate sacrifice of giving their lives, there's just. The implications are so, so huge. We got to take care of the men and women who put on that uniform, sir. You know what I mean?

>> Alex McFarland: Indeed. Indeed.

Do you have any advice for churches on outreach to our veterans

do you have any advice for churches, how churches could, do outreach to our veterans?

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Yeah, absolutely. You know, it's interesting that you're asking me this question right now. If you go to churches and they look and you look at their missions field, rarely do you ever find the veteran community. And so I think that right now on amr, I'm going to say this, Alex. If you're a church right now and that you're listening to this right now, ask yourself, are you providing the level of support? Is the veteran community part of your mission field? And if they're not, ask yourself, why shouldn't they be? We take care of homelessness. We take care of children who have no homes. We take care of addiction. We take care of, women in shelters. We take care of all of these people. But what about the American veteran? Why not? Do we. Why can't we just have this focus on them? Especially with, states that lots of veterans are in. Texas, California, North Carolina, Virginia, Florida, those kind of things. We should definitely make the veteran community a mission field because they're part of the unreached people group, very much like the 1040 window, if you just think about it. And they're right here in America, right outside your front door.

>> Alex McFarland: Wow. Powerful. Powerful.

I got to ask you about the war in Iran right now

and, I got to ask you about the war in Iran right now. you know, during the break, you and I were talking about some, things that, probably a little bit classified, but, you know, first of all, how many of Our fighting men and women are in Iran at this point. Do you know?

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: So I can't, I cannot verify exactly how many men and women are there, but, I will tell you that, there's a lot of conflict surrounding the actual war. And, we know that Iran, 100%, 100%, they're an enemy of the United States. They're the enemy of the free world, period. The real question is how much involvement should the American, you know, should America be involved in? At the end of the day, we fought these wars here in Afghanistan, we fought it in Iraq, all these wars in the Middle East. There's got to be a point in time when the people fight for themselves. It's one of the reasons why we empower Israel to fight, within the Middle East. And so, I'm just sharing my two cents on this one. I, as an American, don't want to get involved in any more wars. This is just my personal opinion. Do we need to. Do we need to do. Do we need to take Iran out? Do the leaders deserve to die? 100 billion percent they deserve to die. They do. They are the capital. They're the head of tyranny throughout the world, and somebody has to take them out. I just, I think for a veteran who served 20 years predominantly in the war, I just think that we need a little bit of breathing room. Now, I'm not saying I'm not going against what the President of the United States is doing. I think that his actions are reasonable and, the actions taken, are justified. I just ask myself, does America have to be as involved the way that we're doing? There's many ways that we can accomplish this. and as a special operator, I always navigate the battlefield in a very different way than conventional forces. And that's what I like to share about that.

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah, well, thank you very much. with all the technology, it's definitely a different world. Yes.

Alex Friedman: How is national security today different from 25 years ago

And, let's just talk about national security. In your opinion, how is national security today different than, say, it would have been 20, 25 years ago?

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: So I'm going to tell you right now, okay? And this is very important for all of our listeners. There is a, there is a 911 attack being planned every single day. Every single day. The reality is, when Pearl, Harbor, when we were attacked in the beginning of World War II and we got involved, and then you Fast forward into 9 11, September 11, 2001, these things are being planned all the time by terrorists. All the Time by our enemy. So when it comes to national security, when it comes to protecting our borders, we have to be more diligent today than ever. Because now the space is no longer just the ocean. It's not just the water, it's not just the land, it's not just the air. It's space, brother. And we're living in a time when it's becoming more dangerous than ever. That's why Space Force stood up. A lot of people kind of laughed, right? Air Force, you know, in space, like Space Force. But the fact is, is that Star Trek is coming, my friend. It's already here. Star wars is already present. So we have to protect our borders all the way out throughout space.

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah. And securing the borders, my goodness. I'll just put it this way. I've spoken in many, many towns of like, Southwest Texas, Nevada, Arizona, like the lower southwest. And I've met with a, lot, ah, of people in positions of leadership that were very, very concerned, I mean, almost panic level concerned with the amount of illegals coming across our southern. And yeah, this is.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Yeah, yeah, this is dangerous, Alex. And I know that, there are a lot of different opinions. And the fact is, is that the previous administration, there are more terrorists, people who are so dangerous criminals have crossed over the border. Now listen, I'm not like, I'm not being a MAGA guy. I'm not. I'm an individual that loves my country, believes in protecting my country. And whether you're a Democrat or Republican, whether you are a, a strong hardcore believer or an atheist, you should, living in America, you should have pride in making sure that our country remains free for the people that live here. So our borders right now are more protected than ever. And I'm grateful for what the president's doing. And yes, we've got a lot of illegals in our country right now. And I think that we're more vulnerable than we've ever been because the previous administration allowed these people to come on in. And, we have to be more vigilant than we ever have. And I support a lot of the deportation that's going on right now. And it's unfortunate that it's occurring the way it is because I do believe that, our countries should, be receiving immigrants because that's how our America became great. But there should be a process.

>> Alex McFarland: Exactly.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: A process that protects our country. There should be a process, very much like all of our forefathers did. We establish a process, and we did it in order to protect our American way of life and the people that live here.

>> Alex McFarland: Yeah, Exactly. You know, Dr. Friedman, one of the things that I've done over the last 20 years, I've, taught and one of the subjects is political science. And you know, political theorists going back to, you know, Plato at 200 B.C. the first responsibility of a just government is to look after the welfare of the citizens. Now there can be benevolence and immigration, but you, know, whether it be we're going back to ancient Israel, ancient Greece, ancient Rome, certainly Europe, I mean, a just government looks after the welfare of the citizens. And suffice it to say the previous administration and similar ones, that was not the number one priority. So let me ask you this. besides terrorists with schemes and plans, I was distraught over the amount of illegal drugs crossing borders, northern and Southern.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Yeah, I mean, it's, it's ridiculous. And I don't understand how the previous administration could not identify that, to. And how destructive it is. I mean, oh, let's, let's just let everybody in because we're America, we're the greatest country. We're just going to let everybody in and everything come in. It blows my mind because that's not the way that I love you quoting Plato, because what he said was absolutely true. We have to look over our first and foremost priorities to take care of our citizens of this great nation. Yeah, you're on point, brother. You are on point.

>> Alex McFarland: Well, I love America. I do. You know, my home is heaven. But, I'm a Christian first, but I'm certainly a patriot and I appreciate you so much. we're running out of time.

Dr. Friedman's new book, Special Warfare CEO, available on Amazon

I want you to your social media platforms, website, digital, content working.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Absolutely. You know. Yeah. I would just like to say I got this book coming out right now the 2nd of June, available on Amazon, and it's called the Special Warfare CEO.

>> Alex McFarland: Okay.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: right here, this is my life's work and it directly reflects and supports, my initiatives of being a veteran advocate and providing that free medical care to veterans. This right here is all my lessons learned as a, as a special operations, leader, as a commander, as a nonprofit leader, and in corporate and government leadership. And it empowers individuals to be the best version of themselves. Right here from the trenches, my friend. Special Warfare CEO on Amazon today. It launches 2 June, but you can order and it supports our work and I greatly appreciate it, my friend.

>> Alex McFarland: Congratulations on the book release. thank you. Did you publish that with broad Street.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: I did Broad street and I gotta. Yeah, I'm.

>> Alex McFarland: They're fantastic.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Yeah.

>> Alex McFarland: Ah, our other show, exploring the Word. Bert Harper and I have done three books with Broad street on Bible questions. You know, that, you know, thousands of listeners call in and they are top drawer. We love the folks at Broad Street Publishing, Fantastic Christian organization. So give, give your website, Dr. Ah. Friedman, please.

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: Yeah, so you just go to damonfreedman.com and you'll learn everything about me and the work and the initiatives that I'm, I'm having. And I'm just grateful for being a patriot and being a voice, empowering leaders to be an unstoppable force for good. That's what I do. there's a, a dark and broken world and I'm about empowering leaders. So they're, they're problem solvers because we need more people that love God, love our country and, and actually action. Something out there so that they can be an unstoppable force for good. And I appreciate this time, Alex. I'm a big fan of amr. You're doing some great work and I hope to be back on your show again, man. I really am.

>> Alex McFarland: God bless you. Thanks very much. And folks, we're free because of the protection of God, but the investment of our veterans as well. So thank a veteran. Pray for America. Blessings to you all. The views and opinions expressed in this

>> Dr. Damon Friedman: broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of

>> Alex McFarland: the American Family association or American Family Radio.