Interview with Ann Paulk

TNG Radio, where today's culture and timeless truths come together. It's reasoned relevant content apologetics, worldview, and answers to the questions that you need to know. From Alex McFarland Ministries, this is Truth for a New Generation Radio.

And now the man who preached in 50 states in 50 days, speaker, writer, and advocate for Christian apologetics, Dr. Alex McFarland. Certainly one of the most publicized issues of our time, certainly one of the most volatile issues of our time. You read about it in the news every day, you see it in the media, everywhere you look. Issues related to human sexuality, and specifically, homosexuality. And now we're to the point that not only is the homosexual question in the minds even of some Christians settled in a non-biblical way, but now we're looking at transgenderism. And is gender fluid?

And can gender be changed? And so, it behooves us to take up this topic, and on today's edition of Truth for a New Generation we do that. I'm so thrilled to have with me a guest that is not only an expert voice on this subject, a dynamic Christian leader, but also a personal friend, Anne Palk, of the Restored Hope Network. And as we record this edition of the show, we're in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the Minneapolis St. Paul.

We're at a major national conference called HOPE 2019. And Anne, I want to say thanks. I know you're super busy, but thanks not only for taking time to be on TNG radio, but thanks for what you do for the Kingdom of God, and welcome to the program. It's such a privilege to be with you, Alex. It's always a delight. Tell people about what Restored Hope is, and all the various things you do.

Yeah, you bet. Restored Hope is actually a network of ministries. It's a coalition of ministries around the country, and we have relationships around the world that we refer people who are struggling with same-sex attraction to people who walk alongside of them. Each ministry also may have multiple satellites, which is delightful.

So we may have something in your area around the country if you're looking for help. We also minister to family and friends. We equip pastors, as I mentioned before, and counselors as well, to adequately help that. Many of us have left the gay or transgender life ourselves.

Not all, but many have. And so we have life stories of change. We have surrendered to the Most High God and actually been equipped to live right in accordance with His will, which is delightful. And you know, we hear about the banning of conversion therapy around the world, and as I understand it, that says no people can't change, should not be encouraged to change. As a leader and a speaker and a thinker, and by your own testimony, God brought you out of the gay lifestyle, what's your response to the banning of conversion therapy?

And speak to, if you would also, what does this mean for the proclamation of the gospel that includes the message, repent? Conversion therapy, first and foremost, is a term that's an ideological term. There is no counseling method called conversion therapy.

There is no such thing. It's been created by a gay ideology in order to put every bad practice into and then condemn. It's a straw man argument if people know what that is.

You create an argument and then you tear down the false argument or the mischaracterization. What we really do is we provide pastoral care, we provide good Christian counseling, we provide lay care all around the country, and walk alongside people who are grappling with their gender identity or sexual orientation and want to align with God's plan. They want to surrender themselves to embrace what God has intended that's clear in scripture. Now I understand that most people will say, oh, wait a minute, is it really clear in scripture these days? There have been a lot of gay apologists who promote gay theology and it's become commonplace to question some of the things that we never used to question.

Those are good questions to answer. There are plenty of resources that actually bring forth an argument for orthodox Christianity that's historical, that's existed for 2,000 years plus of Judeo-Christian philosophy and belief and practice. Homosexuality was forbidden completely in Judeo and Jewish culture prior to the New Testament being written.

It was just a no-brainer that that was a no. Leviticus forbade that and the Jews did not practice homosexuality. The surrounding cultures had that in place. The Greek culture, for example, it was commonplace, but it was never elevated to the place of gay marriage like it is today.

So we're in a whole different ballgame. It's a different cultural mindset, different situation these days. We think, I believe, as a culture that if two people love each other, they have erotic feelings towards each other.

In other words, they should be able to marry. We don't any longer regard what Ephesians says about how human marriage between a man and a wife actually reflects the heart of God. It is a generational picture of God's heart for his people, his desire to win his bride, the bridegroom for the bride. The two differences between God's desire for us and our being pursued, it's just a beautiful picture.

It's an eternal picture. Messing with that is something much greater than messing with, it's not simply two individuals coming together that appear to have some form of erotic intention or love or even emotional love. Love in scripture also can be defined in different ways. One is friendship love. One is erotic love or sexual love. One is agape, which is unconditional love, like the Father heart of God towards us. There are a whole bunch of different forms of love. We use one word to mean many things.

I would say a few words are as misused as the word love today. Hey, stay tuned, folks. We've got a brief break. We're going to come back with Ann Palk of the Restored Hope Network.

TNG radio is back after this. From I Am a Watchman Ministries, here's today's I Am a Watchman Minute. Song 23 begins with the familiar phrase, the Lord is my shepherd. The shepherd leads his sheep to good things, symbolized by green pastures, still waters, and a banquet feast. Verse four reads, he restores or refreshes my soul.

How great is that? However, these promises and blessings can only be received when God is our shepherd, when we are in relationship with him through his son, Jesus. For it is the shepherd that leads us to good things.

We live in perilous and stressful times. However, there is a good shepherd who wants to guide and help us in our daily walk. The I Am a Watchman Ministry does too. Visit iamawatchman.com for free resources designed to equip and encourage. Be bold, be faithful, be a watchman.

iamawatchman.com. First Peter 3.15 tells us to be ready always to give an answer for the hope we have. We're instructed to be prepared to defend our faith. This is Alex McFarland for the Life Answers Teams, students we train at North Greenville University, a leading Christian college in South Carolina. The Life Answers Teams are made up of students who will inspire and equip your congregation. These apologetics teams we train speak in churches to youth groups and train Christians of all ages to address key issues of our times from a biblical perspective. Like is there a God?

Is the Bible true? What about gender and moral issues? Call me at 864-977-2008 and we will arrange for the Life Answers Team to come to your church and give a presentation that will benefit your people for years to come.

864-977-2008 and always be ready. You know Romans 1 16, it says, for I'm not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes. That's what your kids need before they go to college. And that's the theme for the 2019 TNG Christian Apologetics Youth Camp, July 29th through August 2nd at Camp Cale, North Carolina. Speakers include, of course, Alex McFarland, along with Daniel Ritchie, Andy Laurenson, and Miki Addison. Exciting worship every night and rock solid teaching every day.

And yes, it's a summer camp with all the summer camp activities your kids would expect. The TNG Christian Apologetics Youth Camp, July 29th through August 2nd at Camp Cale. To learn more and to register, call 800-YES-GOD-1, 800-YES-GOD and the number one, or email info at truthforanewgeneration.com. For apologetics resources, books by Alex McFarland, and to find out where Alex is speaking, visit alexmcfarland.com. Welcome back to TNG Radio, our conversation with Ann Palk of the Restored Hope Network.

So honored to be on with you, Ann. And again, we applaud what you do for the kingdom. Before the break, you were talking about our culture basically gives a pass to any person or persons that legitimize whatever they're doing by saying, we love each other, we feel it, it's right. Who are you to impose your morality on somebody else? How do you begin to respond to defenders of homosexuality that would say, you nor anybody else has the right to impose your views on me? You've got your views, we've got ours. And you can't enforce what you believe on me.

How do you begin to respond to that? Well, that's a relativistic mindset, right? And that presumes that there's no absolute truth.

There's no external reality that points to a certain outcome. If we think about the evidence-based, what were we created for? Even biologically, what leads towards what is flourishing? What brings the next generation? Common understandings of the past just need to be reexamined.

Do these really hold water or do they not? Our bodies, if you look at them objectively, it's obvious that male and female parts were meant to function together. And when it does happen, especially within a committed relationship, you set up a consistent relationship where kids thrive, where two adults of the opposite gender are committed to one another, and they grow up in a secure and confident setting. That's the best setting for kids being raised up. Social research shows this without a doubt.

And kids that are missing that, particularly those who have a promiscuous parent or have a missing parent where there's violence or abuse or something that's not secure as well, those kids tend to grow up and be very insecure and act out in different ways, including criminal ways. And so we have bodies of research that we're putting aside. There are some external realities we can research that point towards one man, one woman, committed to each other. It's the best environment for kids to be raised in. And there's other research that says the people who are in those relationships tend to be the most happy, the most confident, the most secure. So it's beyond biology. There's an emotional component. Sociology points to that.

There's a whole bunch of positives that point towards that being the best setting for not only the kids, but the adults. Let me ask you this, Anne. There are those, we read them, I've encountered them at universities that would say, well, Christians that say this is not God's design, heterosexual monogamy is God's ideal, and when you Christians say otherwise, that's hate speech, you're hurting people. And to be fair, I will admit, I've heard Christian ministers address this subject in ways that were hurtful, but we still have to stand on the truth, even though we don't always articulate the truth as effectively as we would like.

But here's the question. When you were in the gay lifestyle, or if you've dialogued with those that are promoting it, what about the issue of procreation? I mean, really, if you want children, you have to have a male and a female. And in the gay coupling, I mean, you can't have children. You have to co-opt heterosexuality for children. What would they say, because, I mean, every person supporting gay marriage has at least one line item in their roster where they've got to throw a bone to heterosexuality that is procreation. I mean, how would they respond to that? I mean, clearly, homosexuality can't reproduce itself. So, what would they say about this, what I believe is an ideological elephant in the room? Well, I've heard some people say, from the gay side anyway, that homosexuality is a way to get rid of abortion.

You can't even have children, therefore. Abortion, it's their argument for pro-life. So it's an interesting thing there. And robbing banks is a way to get rid of poverty.

Yeah, that's right. So the truth of the matter is that God's ordained plan is that we are open to life. There's another argument that they use that says, well, what about an infertile couple?

That extraordinary event or that fairly, you know, that happens. So those individuals can't have children, then why is it not a problem for, why is it a problem for us who cannot naturally have children? Well, a male and female body together generally do produce children. So that orientation towards a secure environment for kids to be raised and also to be created within that, that's an incredible dynamic. As a parent who went through that, I can't believe how amazing, I would not have believed how amazing that experience is to be a mom and for my ex, John, to be a dad. I mean, that is amazing. You're participating in the creative process, just like God created man in the Garden of Eden.

That's amazing that he allows us to partner in that way with the next generation. And you know what, I've often said this, even the most ardent abortionist is glad that at least one human in the world was pro-life, i.e. their mother. Even the most ardent homosexual is thankful that at least two humans in history were heterosexual, i.e.

the dad that sired them and the mother that carried them. And so at least in that regard, it's not a worldview that can be consistently held, is it? No, it really isn't. And when people think about it, if honestly, if everyone was gay, there would be no next generation, humanity would be extinct. So that's one thing. People also need to know that although they may feel like it's very, very common, like 40% of the people in the US are gay, it's not true.

It's one to 3% who are exclusively homosexual in orientation and practice. And so just keep in mind that the actual studies all around the world in different cultures, even though you see it all the time, every day, and it seems like it's everywhere, the truth of the matter is it's just loud. And it's repeated on media.

And so it's not as common as it seems. Give your website again. RestoredHopeNetwork.org. Restored with a D. HopeNetwork.org.

With New Generation Radio with Ann Park, we'll be back right after this. At Liberty University, you'll earn more than a degree. You'll earn the satisfaction of seeing what you can accomplish and what God can accomplish through you.

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EngageMagazine.net. The TNG Unashamed Conference is coming to Richmond, Virginia, October 11th and 12th. Experience core truths that make for an unshakable faith with Tina Marie Griffin, Todd Starnes, Jamal Shalim, Miki Addison, Chuck Chrismeyer and William Federer.

Romans 1 16 says, I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone who believes. Come to the Truth for a New Generation Conference and get equipped, empowered and inspired to confidently share the gospel of Jesus Christ. TNG is committed to impacting our nation for Christ and the future and equipping you to be a difference maker. Register now by calling 877-YES-GOD-1. That's 877-YES-GOD and the number one or visit the TNG website at truthforanewgeneration.com. The TNG Unashamed Conference, Richmond, Virginia, October 11th and 12th.

Dive deeper into your faith. In the midst of a culture obsessed with relativism, Alex McFarland is a voice you can trust to speak the timeless truths of Christianity in a timely way. You're listening to Truth for a New Generation Radio. Welcome back to TNG Radio.

Alex McFarland here. Before we resume our conversation with Ann Palk, I do want to remind you, Truth for a New Generation has two more national conferences this year. In October, we're going to be in Richmond, Virginia. October 11th and 12th, here in Richmond, Mount Vernon Baptist Church.

We're so excited about all the people in Richmond, Glen Allen, Virginia, Mechanicsville, all around that region, Doswell, Northern Virginia. And listen, you don't want to miss it. We're going to have incredible speakers like Todd Starnes from Fox News. I'll be there.

There's going to be music. There's going to be sessions on the Bible. Can we trust that the Bible is God's Word? God, how do we know that God exists? The resurrection of Christ.

Can we be sure Jesus really rose from the dead? And then what about the issues of the day related to worldview? And yes, moral, sexual issues, gender.

So Richmond in October. Then in November, we'll be in Cincinnati, Ohio, the historic landmark Baptist Church, Pastor Matt Holman, Ryan Baumberger of the Radiance Foundation. Maybe the best, most powerful pro-life speaker you will ever hear in your life, Daniel Ritchie, my dear friend who's one of the best speakers you'll ever hear.

Listen, on and on. Go to the website truthforanewgeneration.com. And let me just say, this is for young people, of course. We want to equip young people to stand strong for their faith, not fall away when they go to college or once they graduate from high school. We don't want them to graduate away from God.

But this is for all ages. There are seminars, there are elective choices. It is biblical worldview, not only how to understand and defend it, but how each of us can flourish and thrive for Christ, even in a world of hostile ideologies. So go to truthforanewgeneration.com, and we hope to see you either in Richmond, Ohio, or coming soon to a city near you. Well, also out there on the speaking circuit is Ann Palk. And organizing and mobilizing the body of Christ and equipping people, myself included.

Ann, thanks for being willing to share some time in the midst of a busy conference here in Minnesota. So I want to ask you a question. On the plane ride out here I'm reading about the Stonewall Riots and the 50th anniversary. And I will say this, and correct me if I'm wrong on this, but it seems like there's, in addition to gay theology, in addition to what I would call pseudoscience to support this, there's even been gay history that's reported, if not manufactured, to support this. And really, the Stonewall Riots, which I think many of our listeners may not be informed about, is, for the gay movement, kind of a civil rights watermark.

So explain what this is, the legitimacy or lack thereof about this, but speak to this, because I know people are probably more and more seeing it in the media. Well, the Stonewall Riots were, the gay people were about to be arrested by police, and they stood up to the police and drove them out of the gay bar where they were about to be arrested. The police had circled around many times and arrested people at them, but only on occasion, and the gay community stood up, they walked the streets, they rioted, and at that point, people began to take notice of the gay community and things began to change for them. Their rights began to be developed during those times. But recently, on the West Coast in particular, which is where I'm from, prior to Colorado Springs, they began to enshrine homosexuality and homosexual figures only allowed to be portrayed in a positive manner. Even Harvey Milk, who had sex with a teen, he, you know, he was a predator, essentially, right? But that's absolutely whitewashed.

He's an icon, Rhodes are named after him, you name it, and he's only shown in positive light in textbooks in the state of California. They were pretty liberal when I was a teacher back in the 19, yeah, we don't need to say it's been a long time. It was already pretty liberal, but it's become so much more now that they are actually teaching various techniques to children who are, they're, they're enshrining that in classroom books for pre middle school kids. Literally teaching graphics, sex ed, the legislators were embarrassed to have it read to them during meetings. It was embarrassing to read and this is being taught to children.

Yes, yes. And it's been only three or four of the books have been removed, but there's a whole bunch more that they're including now in textbooks in the state of California. And of course, whatever starts in California moves on.

The state of Washington is a bit more liberal as well. And they were trying to teach kindergartners pretty wild things. And other parts of the state are having contests with how quickly a child can put a condom on a banana and things like that. It's just terrible. That's the life that we're in now. So where does this stop? It stops when parents say absolutely not. This is, this is truly gone too far. We don't accept this.

And if you feel embarrassed with me reading this childhood material in front of you, you should not be applying this. And voting differently and applying, you know, Christians need to run for offices. They need to run for school boards.

They need to show up in various settings along with sharing their faith with others. All of those things need to happen at one time. We've only got about a minute left.

Let me ask you this. As a Christian and as a citizen, here we hope that there could be a turn back to a more morally grounded culture. Yes, I believe we can. I always believe we can. First of all, we should be in prayer for awakening within the church and revival in the land. Okay, so those two things are in place, need to be in place. The other thing is that there tends to be a swing.

Like the 1960s, who would have guessed that the 70s would be more conservative, right? There's a swing to the left, swing to the right. It tends to happen over and over again. Let's use that for the benefit of the kingdom of God and pray, pray, pray and ask God for revival. We need to see that. The whole land needs to see it. The land groans under the authority of the wicked, the scripture says, and it's true. We need help in that and we can't do it alone. We need the help of the Lord. And with everything we've got prayerfully, consistently, we need to impart a biblical worldview to our children, our young people.

And we've got to go. We'll visit with you again, I'm sure, but God bless what you're doing for the kingdom and through your Restored Hope Network. And folks, this is one of the most cutting edge, frontline ministries I know anything about. I would encourage you to pray for Ann Palk and her staff, familiarize yourself with her ministries and her network, support as God leads you and pray for them because they are doing some very vital work for the gospel in our times. Hey, this is Truth For New Generation Radio, Alex McFarland here saying God bless you and please take a stand, a bold stand for Christ.

TNG radio is made possible by the friends of Alex McFarland Ministries, P.O. Box 10231, Greensboro, North Carolina 27404. That's P.O. Box 10231, Greensboro, North Carolina 27404. Call us at 877-Yes-God-1.

That's 877-Yes-God and the number 1. Or give online at AlexMcFarland.com. While you're there, listen to Program Archives, read Alex's blog, invite Alex to speak at your event or contact Alex with a question or comment, AlexMcFarland.com. Thanks for listening today and join us again next time as we bring you more truth for a new generation on TNG radio.