It was a blessing to host Coach Joe Kennedy and Attorney Jeremy Dys on our campus last month as special guests at Spiritual Leadership Conference. For those who were at the conference, the evening we thanked Coach Kennedy for his stand will not be one to soon forget. (A video of this time in that service is available here.)
You may remember Coach Kennedy from the media coverage of his decision to pray at the 50-yard line after every football game he coached. He was ultimately fired for this decision in 2015.
At the time, it was a significant story in the media. But the battle he fought for the right to pray in public lasted seven years, ultimately reaching the Supreme Court where he was awarded a victory this past summer.
Before Spiritual Leadership Conference began, I had the opportunity to sit down with Coach Kennedy and his attorney, Jeremy Dys from First Liberty Institute, to discuss Coach Kennedy’s story and the significance of this case for religious liberty in America. I think you’ll be blessed by hearing Joe’s testimony—why he took on this fight and why it mattered to him to stay in it. Jeremy also shares in a concise and understandable way the legal basis for this case and specifically its significance to the future of freedom.
In a day when so many Christians are equivocating and compromising their convictions over fear of being canceled or discriminated against, it’s refreshing to hear from two Christians who were bold to stand for their convictions.
An additional reason it was a blessing to me to introduce Coach Kennedy and Jeremy Dys to our delegates at Spiritual Leadership Conference is that I shared Coach Kennedy’s story in The Resilient Life, a new book releasing this fall. This story opens chapter 9 which is titled “Stand for God on Your Knees.”
Indeed, we can’t stand for God in our own strength. All truly resilient Christians are prayerful Christians.
We have been blessed in America with a constitutional right to religious freedom. Those freedoms are under attack today, and I’m grateful for people like Joe and Jeremy who are willing to stand and defend them. (Jeremy made a comment in the interview that while he understands why people don’t want to go to court when their free exercise of faith is taken, “freedom dies a little in that decision.”)
But the strength to stand under any oppression or assault on our faith can only come through prayer. Like Daniel in the Old Testament, the courage to stand comes from time on our knees.
I hope this special episode of the Spiritual Leadership Podcast is an encouragement to you. If you would like more information about The Resilient Life or would like to order your copy, visit strivingtogether.com or Amazon.com.
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