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Country Star Granger Smith Reveals Bold Reason He’s So Open About His Faith in Jesus

Published

1 year ago

September 17, 2023

In today’s increasingly secular culture, speaking out about one’s faith can be intimidating. But there’s a simple truth — one that, admittedly, might make some people uncomfortable — that has led country singer Granger Smith to take that risk, regardless of the cost.

Appearing recently on CBN’s “Quick Start” podcast, Smith said he is confident to speak out about his Christian beliefs because “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” a reference to Proverbs 9:10.

“My quickest answer to that is probably the answer that would make other people shudder; it would make other people a little wary of it,” Smith said when asked what motivates his boldness. “But here’s my answer: the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”

He continued, “When I say, ‘The fear of the Lord,’ it’s not like a Halloween scary. It’s not like a man with a mask popping out from the bushes. It’s not that kind of fear. It’s understanding Who is sovereign, Who is providential, Who has, as the old Sunday school song says, ‘the whole world in His hands.’ When you trust that and you believe that, and there is a certain aspect of that that says, ‘If I believe in this, why would I fear what anyone else says? Why would I fear anything from man when I have the fear of the Lord?’”

Smith, who recently announced his decision to retire from the music industry to pursue full-time ministry, is unabashed in his willingness to share his convictions and discuss theological topics, both on his social media feeds and when he is out performing shows.

His openness to discuss Gospel themes comes as American society is shifting away from faith.

While a majority of U.S. adults still self-identify as Christians (63%), according to a recent study by the Pew Research Center, those numbers are in steady decline. Now, about three-in-10 American adults describe themselves as religiously unaffiliated — a noteworthy drop from the 78% who called themselves Christians in 2007, when Pew began surveying Americans on their religious identities.

At the same time, Americans are feeling progressively hopeless.

In the summer of 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released data showing one-in-four adults ages 18 to 24 had considered suicide. Simultaneously, a Harvard Youth Poll of Americans ages 18 and 29 found 51% of respondents admitted that, over the course of the previous two weeks, they felt depressed and hopeless.

Smith’s Gospel-centered message is certainly timely. But, for him, it was born out of necessity.

In 2019, the “Backroad Song” singer lost his 3-year-old son River in a drowning accident. At the time, Smith told TODAY, the horror of losing a child revealed he “didn’t have a good faith” in the Lord.

He told CBN’s “Quick Start” he was relying too much on self-help tactics and not enough on God.

“As you feel physical and, really, emotional benefits from those things — because there’s a lot of good things in self-help [behaviors] — as you feel the benefits, you go, ‘What more can I do? This is great. Let’s just keep adding,’” Smith said. “And what you’re doing is you’re really developing a dependence on yourself — that’s kind of the whole point. … You’re helping yourself and, as you add to that, you’re increasing that dependence and relying more on yourself.”

“It took [the death of my son] for me to to go, ‘There are some things in life that self-help cannot fix or make better,’” he added. “That was the catalyst that happened in 2019, when I lost my son River.”

Smith has written a book, “Like a River: Finding the Faith and Strength to Move Forward after Loss and Heartache,” a memoir chronicling his faith journey through grief and sorrow.

“The book’s called ‘Like a River,’ and so it starts with losing my son to drowning in my backyard when I was there with him,” the singer-songwriter said. “A lot of times, when I was talking about writing the book and people would say, ‘You’re writing a book? What’s it about?’ And I would say, ‘Well, it’s about losing my son.’ … And as I continued to write, I learned, ‘Well, that’s not really what this book is about.’ It’s really not. That’s how it opens and the catalyst to it — that’s how the curtain opens — but really, it’s about me dying and me being reborn and the new path that followed.”

“One of the things that opened up in that rebirth was my son Maverick who was born and Maverick really takes over as the star of the show,” he continued. “By the end of the book, you realize that River got the title and he gets the credit of the cover but, really, Maverick is the star of that book. So it is so much more than, ‘This is a book about losing my son,’ which is what I used to say.”
Sources:faithwire

http://theendtimeradio.com

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നടൻ മേഘനാഥൻ അന്തരിച്ചു

Published

2 days ago

November 21, 2024

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കോഴിക്കോട്: മലയാള സിനിമ നടൻ മേഘനാഥൻ(60) അന്തരിച്ചു. ശ്വാസകോശ സംബന്ധമായ രോഗത്തെ തുടർന്നാണ് അന്ത്യം. കോഴിക്കോട് ബേബി മെമ്മോറിയൽ ആശുപത്രിയിൽ ചികിത്സയിൽ ആയിരുന്നു. നടൻ ബാലൻ കെ നായരുടെ മകനാണ്. ഒട്ടേറെ സിനിമകളിലഭിനയിച്ച മേഘനാഥൻ്റെ 1983 ൽ ഇറങ്ങിയ അസ്ത്രമാണ് ആദ്യചിത്രം. ചെങ്കോൽ, ഈ പുഴയും കടന്ന്, ഉത്തമൻ തുടങ്ങി 50ഓളം ചിത്രങ്ങളിൽ അഭിനയിച്ചിട്ടുണ്ട്.

സംസ്കാരം ഷൊർണ്ണൂരിലുള്ള വീട്ടിൽ വെച്ച് നടക്കും. ഭാര്യ സുസ്മിത, മകൾ പാർവതി.
Sources:nerkazhcha

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For KING + COUNTRY Stars’ Big Plan to Bring Message of Jesus, ‘Redemption of Humanity’ to People Across America

Published

7 days ago

November 16, 2024

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For KING + COUNTRY, one of the most popular Christian and inspirational bands around, is gearing up for the Christmas season in a big way.

Just months after singers Joel and Luke Smallbone brought their family’s story to the big screen in biopic “Unsung Hero,” the duo are heading back to theaters with a new project, “A Drummer Boy Christmas Live.“

The cinematic experience, which will run from Dec. 5-9, will make For KING + COUNTRY’s popular Christmas show accessible to people across the nation.

And the brothers promise to deliver a “sonic journey that blends the sights and sounds of the season with the musical mastery, heartwarming storytelling, and dazzling production.” Joel Smallbone told CBN News he’s elated to bring the show to audiences:

“One of the things that we love is Christmas tours,” he told CBN News. “And we’ve done one almost every year since the beginning of the band.”

But with the Christmas season so short, he said they came up with another option: bringing the Christmas show to movie theaters so even more people can see it. The band performed a show at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, rallied 12,000 fans — and created “A Drummer Boy Christmas Live.”

“It’s really beautiful,” Smallbone said. “This year, more than ever, I feel like we desperately just need to kind of keep the main thing the main thing, and these great hallmarks of humanity that are love, and joy, and peace, patience, kindness, goodness — let’s put them back in the driver’s seat this Christmas.”

Ultimately, Smallbone said “A Drummer Boy Christmas Live” is all about honoring the true meaning of Christmas.

“This is singing about baby Jesus, and this is singing about the redemption of humanity, and this is singing about BC to AD,” he said.

As for upcoming plans after the theatrical experience, Smallbone said For KING + COUNTRY is, for the first time since the beginning of the band, spending a year away from touring.

“We’re … going away to write and record … and we’re also going away to work on our next feature film that is going to production next fall,” he said, explaining that the band will come back to perform after these upcoming projects.

Sources:faithwire

http://theendtimeradio.com

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Bible Prophecy Playing Out in Israel: New ‘Patterns of Evidence’ Film Seeks to Unpack the Truth

Published

1 week ago

November 13, 2024

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A documentary filmmaker is on a mission to explore the authenticity of ancient Bible prophecies.

Tim Mahoney, whose new film, “Patterns Of Evidence: The Israel Dilemma – Ancient Prophecies,” hits theaters Nov. 13, 14, and 17, told CBN News the events unfolding in the Middle East today are intricately tied to what we see happening in the Old and New Testaments.

Mahoney said the roots of his new movie were set in 2007 when he was working on another project surrounding the Israelites’ fleeing Egypt to head for the Promised Land.

As he navigated that story, he realized a great deal about God’s promises to Abraham had been misunderstood or had gone unknown to some.

“When we look at what happened last October with the attack in Israel, and then, shockingly, what happened with the campuses around the United States with the anti-Semitism, I realized that a lot of people don’t have any understanding of biblical prophecy,” Mahoney said. “The land of Israel was promised to Abraham’s descendants, and, so, that’s what this film is about — what are these ancient prophecies and how should we understand them?”

He said “Patterns Of Evidence: The Israel Dilemma – Ancient Prophecies” explores God’s covenant with Abraham and its establishment at Mount Sinai. Mahoney said he looks in the film for evidence of what’s discussed throughout the Old Testament.

“[Moses] wrote that in the future, these people would have a kingdom,” he said. “So, I’m looking for the kingdom. And secondly, he says that, if you have this kingdom … you need to obey God. And that’s part of the prerequisite — you’ve got to obey God. He says, if you obey God, there’s blessings, and, if you disobey God, there’s curses.”

Mahoney said the Bible also discusses what happens if God is disobeyed — that the people will be scattered and persecuted. And that’s not all.

“Then it says, ‘But God will be merciful to a small group of you, and you will return to the land,’” he said. “So, we’re looking for those five events.”

Ultimately, Mahoney said he wants people to understand the impact and importance of prophecy.

“What I want people to realize is that there are words that have been written down in the past, and, as time has gone on, these events that were foretold are happening,” he said. “And what I want people to see is that God is true to His word, and these prophecies that were given.”
Sources:faithwire

http://theendtimeradio.com