Plays On Word Radio
An in-depth look at the Word of God, the Plays On Word community, and the Plays - with original music - we perform, that are based on the Word of God. New episodes drop Fridays at 7AM EST! To find out how Plays On Word Theater can perform 'LIVE on YOUR STAGE' and to support this missionary & podcast visit: https://playsonword.org/
Plays On Word Radio
Ep 142: Who Shapes Whom: Church or Culture?
"What if the generation everyone called distracted is actually laser-focused? Today we sit down with family pastor, Marc Crabtree to trace a hopeful shift among 18–27-year-olds who are done with hype and hungry for truth."
From frank conversations on sexuality, suicide, and same‑sex relationships to the thorny overlap of faith and politics, Marc shares how a young adult community can hold the line on Scripture while learning to love people with courage and care. The surprise isn’t their outrage—it’s their appetite for depth and their refusal to be patronized. That appetite is changing how they’re taught. Instead of gimmicks, Marc walks them through hermeneutics—how to read the Bible with confidence—so discernment grows and fear fades. We talk about moving from milk to solid food, why disagreement isn’t hate, and how transparency from leaders builds real trust in a post‑COVID world of media mistrust and shifting definitions. The aim isn’t to win arguments but to shape resilient disciples who can navigate culture without being shaped by it.
We also step outside the classroom into the community. Marc's church, GraceWay Bible Church, converted a former 7‑Eleven into an outreach center offering ESL classes, GED prep, and a relationship‑based food pantry that prays with every guest. Even in “affluent” suburbs, many families live one emergency away from crisis. Meeting practical needs with presence opens doors for the gospel and restores the church to its historic role: caring for neighbors, strengthening families, and forming character at home rather than outsourcing it to institutions.
Anchored by stories of calling and vocational joy, this conversation invites you to rethink church as both a classroom for truth and a workshop for love. Subscribe, share with a friend who cares about the next generation, and leave a review with one takeaway that challenged you—what “solid food” are YOU ready to pursue this week?
Marc Crabtree - Assistant Pastor, Young Adults & Families, GraceWay Bible Church: https://gracewaybc.org/who-we-are/our-team/
Listen to Pastor Marc's Powerful Testimony (click underlined links below):
Ep 106: Awakening the Soul - Embracing Redemption (Part 1)
Ep 107: Awakening the Soul - Embracing Redemption (Part 2)
Any of today's podcast resonate? Tell us here: https://playsonword.dm.networkforgood.com/forms/podcast-reviews
To Support Plays On Word Radio & Plays On Word Theater, visit:
https://playsonword.networkforgood.com/
Plays On Word website
Plays On Word YouTube
Plays On Word Facebook
Plays On Word Instagram
Email us: team@playsonword.org
Can you hear me? Awesome.
SPEAKER_00:No, you're interrupting chicken, but that's okay.
SPEAKER_01:Oh man. Get your protein on. That's good.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, pounded chicken's hard, man.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. And there's no way around it. You just gotta No, it's it's just a struggle. Yeah, you just gotta do it, man. Oh man. Well I I we we won't we won't be too long, man. I just wanted to uh to welcome Mark Crabtree back to plays on Word Radio. Thank you, sir, for uh for for joining us here. And uh the last time we spoke, I forget I didn't look up the episode that it was, but it was earlier this year. And I I don't know if you were in the new position that you are in now at that time or you were when we spoke. I think you might have just started or about to start.
SPEAKER_00:It was um I guess it was last Christmas around that time.
SPEAKER_01:No, it was after that, wasn't it?
SPEAKER_00:I thought it was my movie after that. So yeah, I was in the position for maybe a month.
SPEAKER_01:Okay, you had just started.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, just started.
SPEAKER_01:And this is this is at uh Graceway Bible Church.
SPEAKER_00:Grace Way Bible Church in Hamilton.
SPEAKER_01:In Hamilton, New Jersey. And uh tell us about this new position, man. What's going on? What's happening?
SPEAKER_00:Man, it has been a wild and divine ride. It really has. Um, you know, I'm in this position, young families and young adults. Um, I mainly work with young adults a lot. You know, teach I teach a young adult class, and we get into some pretty uh controversial topics and some topics that are you know taboo to the church, right? Um, we talk about things like sexual immorality and premarital sex and suicide and um what is same-sex marriage and you know, same-sex relationships in church, and how do we cross those bridges? We opened up uh you know the discussion about Charlie Kirk when all of that happened, and um you know, how do we connect our faith with our politics? Should we connect our faith with our politics, right? Um, what did Jesus say about faith and politics? And you know, some of the uncomfortable conversations that a lot of Christians don't want to have because it may flip their paradigm upside down. And a lot of times, honestly, I don't think any of us really know how to deal with that effectively when our everything that we think and feel should be the right way or the the way to do something, and we're clearly met with Christ's word that says, Hey, you need to you need to rethink this, you need to pray about this, right? So we get into those discussions. Um I mentor them. I uh they're an amazing group of people, they really are. They're so on fire, they're so hungry.
SPEAKER_01:Uh it looks like the age group that you're dealing with.
SPEAKER_00:Sure. So our young adult group is ages 18 to 27, is like the hard cutoff. Uh after that.
SPEAKER_01:That's an interesting uh that's an interesting group there. I'm curious, just what are what are their thoughts? Because this is a generation that's been basically bamboozled and brainwashed by social media and TV, uh, to a lesser extent, because most of them don't really watch that much TV. It's mostly stuff online. But um, you know, there's there has been an an active push to set a narrative that same-sex marriage is norm and the Bible needs to be adjusted to the culture and uh a lot of these topics that you just mentioned. So I'm just curious, what what are you what is your feedback? Let me hear some of this, man. What what are you running?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, so I will say they're not stupid. They um they have been, you're right, there has been a huge push to pull the wool over their eyes and treat them as dumb kids. And you know what? For a while that may have been working, but they're they're not they're not on that anymore. They realize there's something missing, there's something not right. You know, it it's almost when you look, uh, I I think about you know, I think about the Wizard of Oz, right? Where they're getting to be at um the Emerald City and they're going through this field of beautiful flowers, and all of a sudden they all pass out. And that's what I think the young adults are waking up to. They say, Man, this looks beautiful, this sounds wonderful, but my life experience is telling me that this is not the wondrous Shangri-La that I was sold. Um, you know, we see that not just in a practical sense with me, but we see that statistically too, right? Um, there's a 13% growth in the evangelical church here in America, and it is pushed by young adult men. That's where that growth is coming from. And so I get that same feedback in class. There's a lot of them that are standing firm saying, no, this there's not something's not right here. This is what scripture says. Scripture has never failed, right? Even if I don't agree with it, it still has never failed. Some of them, you know, with the way really with the same sex thing, I think it is this. A lot of them have loved ones and friends and people they care about that are in those communities, right? And so they struggle with it's not right, I know it's not right, but I don't wanna I don't wanna condemn them, I don't want to judge them, so to speak, right? I think one of the things that has to come with our education to young adults is what true discernment is, what is true discernment, yeah. Um, and when we can when they can understand that you can discern good and evil without condemning your friend, and you can come alongside them and love them and still give them the truth of the word of Christ, I I think that'll set them up in a better position. And I think we're getting there, at least in our group. Um, they're very attentive, they're very open to discussion, they freely share what they feel and think, which tells me that we have created a space where they feel they can share those things. So, but that's the feedback as far as that goes. Um, the feedback's positive, though. They really enjoy learning. Uh, we did a whole lesson on hermeneutics, they loved it. Many of them came away, and I wasn't sure. I thought maybe I'm getting a little too academic for them. And a lot of them came away and said, Hey, I go home now and I want to read my Bible because I'm not intimidated to read it anymore. And so these are things that I think we have refused to teach because they're controversial, or they'll be boring, or how do we rope the young adults in with fun and excitement? And yeah, it's great, but they want more, they don't want to be on milk the rest of their lives, right? Like scripture, but like Paul tells us, right? You need to eat that solid food, and it's so important because in that same scripture scripture, he says that it's when you're eating the solid food that you can have proper discernment. So the reason why I think their discernment lacks is because we're so busy trying to feed them milk when we should be feeding them food. Yeah, and so we're actually, I think, you know, doing a disservice. But you know, I'll get off my soapbox. But no, the feedback is they're open, they they realize there's something going on. There is a there is a definite turn of the corner here spiritually with the young adult generation. There really truly is.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I think a uh a lot of folks are, especially that age group, I think they're um they're even even ones that were, let me say, were on the left side of the political spectrum. After this Charlie Kirk assassination, uh, I have seen a lot of them scratching their heads saying, wait a minute, um, is this my side? That's right. This is this is the side I'm I'm I'm I'm going to battle with on the hill. I'm gonna die on this hill. Uh I don't I don't know if this is right, man. And I think um I mean we saw that in the on on the political right with say the neocons. You know, yeah, there's a lot of people scratching their heads saying, wait a second, man, am I really for am I really for endless wars without any kind of end or anything like that? Am I am I for that? And we've seen a lot of people on the on the right re-examine their position. Not that they moved left, but they just re-examine the position they were in. And I've uh we've seen a lot of people um on the left re-examining their position. Like, am I for murdering somebody who's stirring up crowds? And they're you know, at some point you have to look and say, what all right, what is this guy saying? And you know, he was basically just uh having conversations with people, taking uh a disagreeing position from them, and a disagreement does not mean hate. That's where the problem is. The media, the media promotes it as if I disagree with you or you disagree with me, therefore you hate me. That's the logic. That's right. One plus one is equaling two. You disagree with me, therefore you hate me, therefore, what I do to you is justified, and that's and I think uh I'm I'm praying that God gave the this younger generation some sense to see through that because and I think a lot of them are they're like, wait a minute, hold on, you know, and I think COVID really uh in in a weird way actually helped because they a lot of this generation they're seeing they were bamboozled with the with the vaccine, with covet, the whole nine. They're saying they were bamboozled, they were sold a bill of goods, they were lied to by the authorities. Oh, it's safe and effective. Yeah, right. You know, there's a lot all the and a lot of young people, you know, they were like, wait a minute, man. Wait, what? It uh it's not a vaccine, or it's not, it's not this. I don't want to make the show about a vaccine, but a lot of people have been a lot of people have been duped in the last five years, particularly by people in authority. So they don't they they the this generation doesn't seem to be ready to believe anything.
SPEAKER_00:That's right. So the biggest, you know, the big biggest things, and so I I really think in my head, how do I combat that as you know, it's hard to think of myself as an authority figure, but you know. Um, we have a we have a a joke in the young adults because I relate to them so much that you know there comes a point in your life when you go, I need an adult, and you realize you were the adult that everyone needs, right? And uh I was just meeting with one of them last night, and uh that person said, you know, after I texted you that I wanted to talk to you, I just realized I put you in a position where you had to be the adult. I'm so sorry, right? But um, I think I think for us where we stand in a position of I I don't like to use the authority, but maybe wise counsel, right? Which is is authority in a sense. But when we stand in those positions, it is so important, especially with this young generation, this this young adult generation, that we are transparent, that we are honest, yeah, and that when we don't know, we tell them we don't know. Yep, you're right. Um, and that's what I try my hardest to do with every one of them. And I will be honest with them, even if it doesn't paint the best picture. Um, I give them the whole truth, I give them transparency, and I think they appreciate that. I think they realize that I'm not gonna hide things from them. And um, you know, I I think for a long time, like you said, they were they were bamboozled completely, right? I mean, you you take that vaccine, and it's not about vaccines, but the that's such a good one because the vaccine, the covet vaccine, ended up being so little of what they said it was that now they changed all the shots' names. Now it's the flu vaccine. Yeah, and now they just saw a new one this year. Now they have the pneumonia vaccine.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:These aren't like, and then they go into the dictionary, and in real time they change the definition of what a vaccine is so it meets and so when they do that and go, move and go to the group. Yep, but unfortunately, what they didn't think of is that you know, you change the rules of the game, but you gave the young adults access to the rule book. So when you change it, they can see you doing it. Yeah, and I think I think a lot of times they think the younger generation is a lot more ignorant than they are, they are smart and they are hungry and they want truth. And yeah, yeah, they are they are an amazing group of young people that I don't think the greater culture gives them enough credit for. They try and take advantage of them and and don't realize that they are they are innovative and they are smart and they're courageous and they're just I I'll be honest. Um, before I was I was in this family position, I thought family pastor was one of the most ridiculous things I'd ever heard of. Um, in fact, when me and Jennifer were looking to move to North Carolina and I was looking for positions, all I found was family pastor positions. And I said to her, you know, what is this family pastor thing? I just want an assistant pastor position. What family pastor? I don't want to be a family pastor. Yeah. A year later, not only am I in the position of a family type pastor, but you know, um want to go get my master's for family ministry. And I have fallen in love with family ministry. It is so vital, it's so important, but it's so rewarding and it's so exciting to watch families grow. Yeah, um, specifically to watch these young adults mature because that's what you're doing. You're watching them literally cross that bridge from not childhood, but unsure, I think I know it all, I'm figuring it all out to confident and standing firm. And you know, you walk through crisis crises with them and you watch them figure it out, and it's it's it's so awesome, it's amazing. So, you know, what's this position like? It's awesome. It is just it, I've never felt so fulfilled in a in a role.
SPEAKER_01:Hey, well, that's isn't that it that's answer to prayer right there, bro. It really is, it really is that the Lord has uh he's he's locked you in, and you're you know, you wake up excited to go to work.
SPEAKER_00:Nothing like that. And you know what? Yeah, it's a long time ago, and I'm sure you heard it. You know, if you like what you do, you never work a day in your life. Yeah, and I chased that for so long, not understanding what it meant. But I feel so funny calling what I do work because it's not my job, it's my life, it's what I do, it's what God designed and made me for. And so when you fit into the plan God has for you, it's just so natural, right?
SPEAKER_01:There's nothing like it. It's like the engine just runs right. It's like cylinders are firing, and uh, you know, you don't you don't need a tune-up because it's it's that's that me you're running right, and I can relate to that, man, with doing the plays and pastor in the church, the two those two things. I told I said, I I feel like I should I feel like I should pay for this, you know. Yeah, exactly. It's it's not a job. I think I you know, I should I should I think feel like I should pay God. I I need to pay him for uh for this privilege of being able to serve serve people with uh with the gifts and desires he's put on my heart and the abilities, you know, it's it doesn't feel like work.
SPEAKER_00:That's right.
SPEAKER_01:Even when I'm tired after a play, we just did a play and I was I was fatigued and tired after, but the fatigue is so different than like when I worked for Comcast. Yeah, that was oh I'm beat up mentally, physically, spiritually, and uh I need a break. I can't, I I'm I'm I'm worn out. Whereas when I do a play or you know, nothing like a Sunday afternoon nap after after preaching, but uh you know it's never I'm never worn out. You know, there's there's a fatigue, okay. I'm gonna I'm gonna chill now, but for the most part, man, it's like nah man, it's uh you know, I it there's nothing like doing what God designed you to do. And he I'm sure if you look back when you were a kid, you can probably see where the Lord was planting seeds uh back as a kid. I know I can look back and say, wow, he was he was leading me on this path when I was five, six, seven, eight. He was dropping me and showing me little things. You know, little things. I mean, I'd see it, I'd see Charles Stanley or some TV preacher on TV, and I was looking and just something was drawing me to to what they were doing and saying, and I don't know, man. It's just uh I actually got in trouble as a little kid because uh my mom brought me to this one church, and then after after the service, I think we went into the back of where the fellowship hall was, and there was a stage there, and I got up on the stage and started preaching to everybody. And the pastor, the pastor came out and he was like, get him off of there. No, no, no, no. I know he didn't like that one bit. But I was up there, I was up there preaching, didn't know what I was preaching, but I was preaching, and if I and I'm like, wow, this feels right in a weird way. As a as a five-year six-year-old kid, I like knew, wait a second, something like I have that same feeling now when I go out on stage or when I'm when I'm bringing the word, uh, it's the same type of feeling that that little six-year-old kid had. So, you know, anyway.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I hear you, brother. It is that's the way it goes, right? It's yeah, you know, bringing back to what you said about you know, throwing the people throwing hate, right? And uh it was what I was thinking when you were saying, like, you know, there's Charlie just giving people truth and and challenging their paradigms, and they you know, hate him. And you know, not that Charlie Kirk is Jesus by any means, but what happened to Jesus when he went out into the crowds and spoke truth and challenged paradigms and they threw him on a cross, right? I mean, that's really why they threw him on there, is because they didn't like what he had to say, right? They didn't like the way they felt when he spoke to them, right? Um, and I think we all experience, you know, Jesus says, you know, take up your cross and follow me, and you'll go through the same things that I went through, and you'll experience that too. And and we do, right? Whether it's the obviously not as extreme as being put on a cross, but you know, those things happen. And you know, whether you're extreme left or extreme right, uh now anymore, you know, I was just thinking about it this morning. I really don't, I'm not a Republican, I'm not a Democrat, I'm a conservative, I have conservative ideas, I'm a Christian. Christian because that's that's what I am, right? Um, and it just so happens that the Republican Party lines up more with conservatism than the Democrat Party right now. And you know what? Maybe in 57 years, maybe that'll be different. Maybe they'll flip-flop or something, who knows? But whatever label you give the political party, it's really not about that. It's about how is what who's doing lining up with my life in Christ.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, right.
SPEAKER_00:And that's all that matters. And so, you know, we get in that discussion in class with the young adults is you know, don't look at it as am I on the right or left, am I blue or red, am I purple? Am I no? Is is what you believe in to be true? Does what whoever you're voting for, do they push the truth? Do they land on that? Or are they compromising to culture? And so who do you want to be in a position of power? Right?
SPEAKER_01:That is such a big problem. The the the culture, the church used to conform the culture, and now in many areas the culture is conforming the church, absolutely, and that's where you have um just massive problems where and it usually starts with well, we believe this part of the Bible, but we don't we don't really want to deal with this part of the Bible, or we're gonna overlook this part of what Jesus said, right. Um, and that's how you end up with the the whole doctrine of uh it's just the gospel, it's just the gospel of love. It has you know, the cross isn't there, the death, or resurrection of Christ isn't there. It's just love your neighbor. Just and if you love your neighbor, you won't offend them. And that that well what wait a minute. That's not what the gospel's that's not what any of the the Bible, any of the Bible characters, they were some offensive guys. That's right. They offended everybody, they offended everybody, man. And it's like, I mean, so I just see this, I see this problem in culture, in our culture, where uh uh the culture feels like they have they even have a seat at the table as far as what biblical doctrine should be. That's right. The culture does not have a seat at the table.
SPEAKER_00:The church is to conform, is to change the culture, the church is to live out the life that Christ lived through them and impact impact this rotten culture, but we've seen it go the other way in so many areas, and that's a I think the universal Christian church, whether it's pride or it's feeling bad or it's being embarrassed, generally general universal Christian church, we need to admit where we've gone wrong, and we need to admit that there's certain areas that we as Christians and as the church have failed, and one of those glaring is just what you said that the culture impacts the church. The biggest part is how do we do Sunday is Sunday school?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, right.
SPEAKER_00:The biggest way that that that the uh government impacted education was with the department of education, right? And they come in, oh, it's gonna be great, this department's gonna do it. Well, test scores and education has dropped, it's plummeted since that went. They spent a trillion bucks too. That's right. And so what they did was they say, Well, we'll teach your kids, so you send your kids to us and we'll teach them at school, and you don't have to worry about teaching them at home. So the paradigm got flipped, and it was no longer the education system and the community supporting the family. Now it became the family supporting the school. Yeah, but we've done the same thing with church, yeah, right. It used to be the church supported the family at home, yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Right.
SPEAKER_00:And now it's the church, the family comes to church to support the church. Johnny goes to Sunday school for an hour on Sunday, and I'm good for the rest of the week. I don't have to worry about teaching him verses, and I'm not a theologian, and I don't know Hebrew, and I don't know. Well, you know, we need to take our excuses and throw them out the window and step up and say, No, you need to be doing it at home, and we will supplement what you're doing at home at the church and we'll provide Sunday school. Yeah, but we are supporting the family, the family should not be supporting the church, and so that's the one way that culture took that whole framework, what they did with school, and infected some Sunday school and in the church.
SPEAKER_01:And yeah, and you know, I've given the example uh over and over. I I I tell the congreg different congregations, I told them, I said, listen, what would happen if I ate for you?
SPEAKER_02:That's right.
SPEAKER_01:Right? Like, first of all, you guys would be all malnourished and I'd be uh uh two 700 pounds or dead because of overeating. Um I can't I can't eat the word of God for you. All I can do is I can help you and and and and uh maybe shed some light on some areas, uh, encourage you in the word, but if you're not eat if you're not getting your own diet, and how many Christians are Sunday, you know, so they they get their their dietary uh supplement on Sunday, that's it. And then the rest of the week, there's there's no you know, and so that goes along with what you're saying as far as um you know the the the church is should be helping the family, not the family helping the church, because that's how people malnourished. Oh, let me take it to my pastor, I want to share the gospel with you. I want let me take it to my pastor. Like, what? Wait a second. The pastor's job is not to share the gospel with somebody that you have run into. That's right, although he should be able to, but that's not his job. That's your job to share the hope that you have within you with gentleness and kindness, but you are the one that's supposed to share the hope. The pastor is just to help equip you to do the work of ministry. That's why he gave some to be pastors, some to be teachers, you know, that whole uh uh Ephesians thing there, right there. You know the those gifts. So um I just I feel passionate about that because uh in in our in the world it has really flipped where it's uh you know the church is supposed to do the but then if you look at it though, there are a bunch of things that the church used to do that the government is now expected to do instead of and we've lost a sense of community because the church no longer is caring for unwed mothers and stuff like that in in a lot of areas, not every area. There are many churches that are doing like you guys are are doing some stuff like that. You have your outreach center coming up to uh or tell us about it.
SPEAKER_00:We are so sure. So we um purchased the 7-Eleven building that was next to our church, and uh we have converted it and we're in the process of finishing up the remodel, and we are offering English as a second language classes, we're offering GED prep classes, we have a food pantry that we serve. I believe we're up to 100 registered families we serve out of that food pantry now. And the idea behind it is, and it's exactly what you know, Pastor Scott Transky said. You know, he stood up there one day and explaining our outreach center, and it's when you and it it goes right in line. We have given the job of welfare assistance, whatever that looks like, to the government. They're really, really bad at it. That should be the church's job, and so we as a church are taking that responsibility on to say, you need food, we'll help. You need to learn English, we'll help. You need to go get your GED, we'll help. You need, you know, we're gonna have classrooms in there as well where there's some expanding um things we're gonna be doing. Um, I can't share those things yet because they're still in the um brainstorming phase.
SPEAKER_01:We'll have you back on we'll have you back on another episode so you can explain you and Scott Taransky.
SPEAKER_00:What's that? You and Scott Taransky come come on. Oh, that would be wonderful. I'm sure Scott would love to. But um, yeah, there's a program that we have that we've realized, and I guess and I can't really speak much publicly about it right now, but it's a program that we're coming up with that you don't see churches engaged in enough. And I think the statistics is one in four families are affected with this. And the church does not take that opportunity to minister to these people, and so we are working in a way in how can we do that for our community. And so you also said another thing is I think the church has gotten lazy, yeah, right, because the government's willing to do so much, just like parents get lazy because the government's willing to do it, and so teaching hermeneutics, teaching Christian terms such as redemption and reconciliation. And uh, you know, all of those things, consecration. And so when we when we allow when we allow that to happen, right, you know, I asked most of my young adults, and even some adults, I say hermeneutics and they look at me cross-eyed and they have no idea what I'm talking about. Every Christian should know what a hermeneutic is and have one.
SPEAKER_02:Right, right.
SPEAKER_00:And that's what allows you to read scripture, that's what allows you to do it at home. That's what allows you to teach your children, because then you're confident in teaching them. So I think, you know, again, I think the church we have to be bold and mature enough to say, hey, this is where we've done wrong, and we need to change it. Right. And so getting into the community and giving food pantries. It's easy to give food, but we don't just give food, we give food, but we have every person, it's not like a drive-by where you pull up, we put the food in your car, and you drive away.
SPEAKER_01:Nice.
SPEAKER_00:You come into the pantry, we pray with you, we talk with you, we get to know you. Right. And that's what kind of makes our pantry different. Is we we spend time getting to know in these families and praying for them and drawing them in. We've had some of these families come from our food pantry to now coming on Sunday, you know, and so you know, it's not about growing numbers of the church, but it's about introducing them to Jesus Christ and giving them a place to form a relationship with him.
SPEAKER_01:Have you uh you you the church is in a fairly affluent area. Uh, I'm surprised. Is there a need for for food? Uh uh and have you been surprised by I'm always surprised because we were in Tom's River and there was a food pantry next door to the church we were in uh that I uh was serving in and um in New Jersey, Tom's River, New Jersey, and uh I couldn't bel I was shocked, man, at the lines of people and these these were how do I say this? These were just uh your neighbor looking type people getting getting food not trying to get over. You know, I'm sure there's some characters that are trying to get over, but these were free pantry jumpers. Yeah, but these there were also folks there that were like I gotta feed my kids and I can't, I I either gotta pay my mortgage or I gotta buy food. I you know, I can't do both, and or medicine, you know that that kind of stuff. And it's like yo, here in in uh you the United States of America, it's like that, it's like 19 1929 all over again.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, really?
SPEAKER_00:Well, I think a lot of it has to do with a couple things. One, there's obviously those that are needed that don't have what they what they need and they only have so much, and but I think a lot more people live paycheck to paycheck than we realize. Yeah, and so if you're living paycheck to paycheck, one emergency sinks you, right? One emergency will do it. Yeah, and um, you know, when I worked at a psych unit, we always said one moment, one one moment would put any one of us on the other side of the desk as a patient. And so the same thing applies, right? And people when you're living paycheck to paycheck or you don't have much of a cushion, any one moment, one event will push you all the way backwards, right? So we all we are also right near Trent in New Jersey, which has a huge need. Yeah, and so you know, we do service families in Trenton, but we do serve a lot of families right in Hamilton. And so where we are in Hamilton, it is, I mean, I guess you could say affluent, so to speak, but uh there's probably another half of Hamilton that is not like that. So, you know, we're right in the center of town, right where the municipal building is. So, you know, we are where the church is located in that general area, um, it is. But I would say, you know, probably half of Hamilton definitely has deep needs, whether it be food or some type of assistance, um, you know, whatever whatever that assistance may look like. Okay, man.
SPEAKER_01:Well, uh just my last question. Uh in closing our interview, so you can get back to your chicken. Um and thank you. You know, uh uh maybe we'll do another one soon so we can talk about you know just the play and the impact of the play at the church. Uh if you got any feedback or anything like that. Um, so or you'll probably get it this week coming up because there's people I have some feedback, but I'm sure I'll get more. Yeah, man. So, you know, we'll we'll talk about that, but I want to know how entrenched are you there and uh at that church, uh, and how hard is it gonna be for you to move down to Leland to come down to Calvary Southport? That's what I want to know. That's what I want to know.
SPEAKER_02:Oh man, you gotta put that question on me.
SPEAKER_00:Can we get a date locked in, man? Oh no, there's no date. The Lord has not given me a date, so I will say you need to talk to my boss about that one. My boss being uh the Lord up the Lord. Yep, yep. No, it's you know, we are we are so blessed to be where we are, and um, we are where we are at the time we need to be here. Yeah, um, however long that season is, we don't know. We hope it's it's a good season. Um, there's so many good people, but you know, it's hard when your heart is split, like our heart is, because you know, our heart is with you guys down there in Calvary Chapel, and you know, kind of watching you guys from afar plant that place and it's growing and they hear how you guys are flourishing. Um, it's hard to not, you know, to not be down there, but I definitely have a split heart and uh I definitely want to be down there more to visit with you guys.
SPEAKER_01:I think he's gonna he's gonna bring you down, you know, right when we have a vibrant young adult uh uh community, young family community that's that's ready to rock and roll, and you're already trained up and ready to rock and roll with it, man.
SPEAKER_00:Oh man. See, yeah, no, God is so so good. And uh, you know, Annabelle being in school, you know, we uh I'm sure when everything lines up the way the Lord needs it to, is when we'll be ready to move. Right now, we're just we're being Abraham. That's what we're being.
SPEAKER_01:So if if I could persuade the Lego company to put a Lego store in Southport, would that help uh sway you, man? I'm gonna do everything I can to sway you. It wouldn't hurt.
SPEAKER_00:I mean, Legos, tacos, you know, if you can get those two things, we might we might be on to something.
SPEAKER_01:There's a taco place and a taco truck, you gotta try. Uh, I'm working on the Legos. Oh man. Uh and I'm gonna open up a planet fitness if I have to, just to get you to come down. I'll do whatever I can. Uh we'll get a GNC or something, some supplements. You know what I mean? I'll give you a discount on supplements.
SPEAKER_00:Protein and creatine, man.
SPEAKER_01:There we go. And see, uh, you fellow Christians that are listening right now, yes, the pastor is bribing the other pastor here. Yes, I will re I will repent in dust and ashes of this, but I'm trying to persuade this guy. Hey, you know what? You notice this the the story in the old testament where the the prophet goes up to the other prophet, and he's like, Yeah, I'm a prophet too. Uh the Lord said, come to my house, and the Lord didn't say none of that.
SPEAKER_00:That's right. You better be careful and make sure the Lord saw you.
SPEAKER_01:Yikes! Oh man, I'll leave a link in the just in the show notes for you uh biblically uh illiterate folks where it is, so you'll be able to laugh along with us. Well, Mark Brabtree, thank you so much, brother.
unknown:Thank you.
SPEAKER_00:Hey, it was so good to see you guys. I'm so glad we had a chance to go out and get a meal together and spend some family time. You know, I know we are pastor pastors and colleagues, but we are friends first and brothers, and it was good just to spend time with you guys. Amen. Yes, no doubt.
SPEAKER_01:And we'll uh we'll we'll definitely be getting together, God willing, soon. And I'll be calling you anyway. Just uh I still want to rap to you about some just some uh some church stuff and all we look forward to it, all that kind of stuff. So do me a favor, tell everybody we said hello there.
SPEAKER_00:We will, we will. They're already talking, uh looking to hope uh looking forward to having you guys back with uh one of the other plays. So all right, and uh yeah, pray for me because I'm I'm I really want to launch Dan soon. I really want to see Dan soon. So I've been on the edge of my seat.
SPEAKER_01:Yes, sir, yes, sir. Yeah, well, you've seen Genesis Joe now three times, I think.
SPEAKER_00:I think it's three, yeah. Yeah, at least two. I've seen Pete, I've seen Christmas Joe, and I've seen Genesis Genesis Joe at least multiple times.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:So uh and it's I'll tell you, no matter how many times I see it, it it it's the same. It like it doesn't lose anything, it really doesn't.
SPEAKER_01:It's like it's like reading scripture.
SPEAKER_00:That's right.
SPEAKER_01:That that that's why that's why what I'm doing, I'm kind of cheating, man, because my the stuff I'm using is alive, you know. My yeah, somebody already wrote it for you. The subject matter is living, so I'm I'm kind of cheating, man. People are like, oh, you're such a great actor, oh it's such such a great story, and I'm like, Yeah, I had nothing to do with that.
SPEAKER_00:It's nice when God writes the script for you, too, right? You can't beat that, you know what I mean?
SPEAKER_01:Like, really, think about that. Like, God wrote the script, even the humor.
SPEAKER_00:That's right. Yeah, even the human, even the humor. That's what I that's what I love about God is his human, like the human not that we see humanness in him, but we see him in us.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:When we see him be sarcastic or humorous with us or the other people in the in the old testament. So, brother, will you guys be safe traveling? Let us let us keep in touch, let us know how you're doing. All right, man.
SPEAKER_01:God bless you.
SPEAKER_00:Love you much, man. God bless. All right. Uh love you both. Bye.
