You're listening to Clearview Today with Dr. Abadan Shah, the daily show that engages mind and heart for the gospel of Jesus Christ. I'm Ryan Hill. I'm John Galantis and welcome to another great conversation here in the Clearview Today studio. Got a great, great talk for you guys today.
I got to say, we are looking spiffy, my man. You are looking really smart for yourself with that purple tie. Thank you, man. I didn't know that we were going to wear the same gray pants for every dress-up event that we have to be together. They are nice pants.
And just like we were talking about the other day, Dr. Shah, the jeans are immaculate, my man. Thank you. Thank you. Really, really great.
But you know whose jeans are better looking? As our guest today. Those are some nice looking brand. And you always, I gotta say, every time I see you, you are rocking the pink, you're rocking the purple. I wish, I wish I could pull it off.
So to introduce our guest, we have David Lane here with us and he is with the American Renewal Project. We were introduced by a mutual friend a couple years ago and I've heard about him over the years. But then just the opportunity to sit down with him, I was... I was just amazed. Oh, yes.
He truly loves the Lord Jesus Christ, loves our nation. And through the years, him and his wife, Cindy, and their family have. done so much. For our nation, for the world. I'm grateful to have you here in the studio today.
Amen. Welcome to the studio. And this is not the first time you've been here before. About a year ago, so that's right. Yes, sir.
I think we were in our downstairs studio. We were. We were talking about that on the way over here. He was like, Dave and I were talking, I don't think this is where we recorded last time. I was like, No, this studio probably wasn't finished last time we recorded this video.
I think this building wasn't here, right? It was probably under construction.
Okay, okay. This is a little nicer here. Yes, it's nice. Yeah, we got a little nice little corner. They finally gave us the little corner we could set up, make nice, put our little lights and our stuff.
But it's very, very good to have you in the studio. Do you want to tell us a little bit about American Renewal Project? Yes, I probably should start off. I probably did the last time that I was one of the wildest men that ever lived 45 years ago. Wow.
Drugs, wine, women and song, and I got mercy. I came to Christ and then the Lord cleaned me up. for about three years, and then he brought Cindy in, who came from a Christian home, And so we have four kids. We've been blessed. All of our kids have been in politics, worked in Washington, D.C.
And so what we're doing is spiritual. The byproduct is political. And what and I'm a I'm a people I write a weekly opinion piece to 70,000 pastors. People, some people think I'm a pastor. I'm actually I've been an elder at a Calvary Chapel Church, but I'm actually a political operative, a mechanic.
And so, what that means is that, using North Carolina specifically, is that in October of 2019, we took then Lieutenant Governor Dan Forrest and his wife to Israel with 40 North Carolina pastors and spiritual leaders. And our theme of the trip, the week, was Matthew 16:18. Jesus said to Peter, Upon this rock I will build my Ecclesia, and the gates of hell won't stand against it. Um The term ecclesia, I'm going to read this. This is from Ed Savoso in his book.
Ecclesia He said, Could it be that we have confined to the four walls? Once a week, what was designed to be a 24-7 people movement out into the marketplace, transforming our cities and nations. And that became sort of our theme in Israel. that if Proverbs 8, chapter 8, talks about the rough and tumble of the public square. And we believe that's where we're supposed to be located in the everyday life, just in that process.
So that's what we're we've um After October 19, In 2021, we did 13 pastors' luncheons across the state of North Carolina. Wow. And in 2020 2022, we did nine. and from that effort fifty pastors, North Carolina pastors and spiritual leaders ran For city council, county commissioners, school board across the state, 25 won the primary, and then 10 won the general election. There were 13 newly elected state house members.
In North Carolina in 2022, three of the 13 are pastors. And so that began the movement. We've now had We've just finished at the end of last year, 2024. We've done 42 pastors' events, North Carolina. Pastor's events across the state.
And so it was after the election in November last year I got to thinking about it, which was we had 50 pastors in 2022, 50 pastors and spiritual leaders that ran. And so I hope this is the Lord because if it's my idea, it won't work. Right. But I was praying about it and. I got to thinking through it.
We've we've we've uh deposited this Matthew 16, 18. into North Carolina pastors and spiritual leaders if we could get them to take charge Of the process where they're leading their congregants, parishioners, into the public square. And if so, in 2026, 2028, what if 500 North Carolina parishioners? We were to run for city council, county commissioner, school board across the state. That's right.
If the Lord did that, it'd be a paradigm shift. And then it would go to state after state after state. That's the point of trying to restore America to our Judeo-Christian heritage and reestablish a biblically based culture that the founders established.
Somebody said about the founders, the American founders in the 17th, 18th century, if they wanted a Christian nation, why didn't they say so? Though they did. Just read the 13 original colonies, charters, and constitutions.
So that's what we're up to. What we're doing is spiritual, the byproduct is political.
Somebody's values are going to reign supreme. And so. Uh If we stay home as evangelicals and pro-life Catholic Christians, if we stay home and we do. Estimated 65 to 80 million evangelicals have not registered to vote. In a presidential year, half of those votes are 25% vote.
In an off-year election, uh 12 to 18 percent vote So, if we stay home and we do, then the other side puts their candidates in who get elected, who then draft and pass legislation. and codify in their into law their values. That the culture of America is nothing but a public manifestation of the false religion that we gave away. It started in the late 1700s with the French Renaissance coming over here into the universities, and then it culminated really in the mid-60s where. In 1962, they say that the Warren Court from 53 to 1969 was the most liberal court in American history.
And so in 1962, after 300 years, they took prayer out of schools. 1963, they took the Bible out of schools. In 1980, they decided that Ten Commandments could not be posted in public buildings and in public education.
So, and then in 2015, they found the right in the Constitution to homosexual marriage. And so, if we're going to turn the country back for our kids and theirs, we're going to have to move into the public square. And that's what we're up to. That's us. Short of what we're doing here.
I love that. You know, the two things David mentioned: one is ecclesia. You know, when the church. Came together, they did not call themselves a temple, they didn't call themselves a synagogue, they called themselves Ecclesia because this is a very different kind of movement that was supposed to be out there. And Ecclesia was that kind of a coming together, gathering to make an impact.
In the community for whatever they were doing, right? The church. Embrace that as their motto because Jesus said, Be the salt and the light. And that's what Ecclesia means.
Well, we just took a trip to Greece, and one of the big themes that we were exploring is that through Paul's missionary journeys, he was in the public square. Like, yes, he went to the synagogues, but a lot of these agoras, a lot of these marketplaces were where the public was. That's right. And a lot of these places, like you said, Dr. Shah, they were just Greek people.
They were just Greek Gentiles who had no clue what he was talking about. But he went boldly into the public square to try to win them for Christ. That's right. I mean, that's what we're. What I see in David's vision is that we have to once again go back into the marketplace, go back into the political world, because our nation was founded on Judeo-Christian values.
And I grew up in a nation which wasn't. And I can see a big difference coming to America: is that. This nation works as long as we maintain the foundation we have. That's right. We have been given.
That's right. It's so important for us to have conversations like this that kind of. Dispel the, I guess, the discomfort that people have about talking about Christians and politics.
So many times people kind of bristle at that. They're like, oh, separation of church and state. But Dr. Shaw, you talked before about how that is really a misnomer in our understanding of what that means. Do you want to talk for a little bit about the American Renewal Project and how you got connected with David Lane?
Well, Very simple. I mean, a couple of years ago, I think it was 2023, I believe, that I got a phone call about the possibility of hosting. The American Real Project right here at Clearview. And I said, absolutely. I know who David Lane is.
I've never met him, but I know he's doing great work. I would love to do that. Just let me know. And the next thing you know, we were We were here, yeah. It's really cool to see.
One of the things that I've noticed that you say a lot when you speak, that I've really kind of fallen in love with the way you say this is: somebody's values are going to reign supreme. You say that a lot, and the reason I like it is because it's really made me think, it's made me sort of rethink. How the world works. And what I mean by that is, I think a lot of times when you're young and you're naive, you think that just leaders have good ideas and they're good ideas or they're bad ideas, they're going to win it out. But they're not really ideas, they're values.
And I think that. Maturing is learning the difference between those. The values that kind of make up your identity. Those are what's going to reign supreme. Not just my policies or my ideas or my character or my personality.
It's your values. And I think that's really helped me. kind of mature in my understanding of how the nation and how the world works. And the reason we started with pastors, and we've been doing this a long time. is that um I was an elder at a Calvary Chapel church in California.
And in 2014, my pastor ran for the State Assembly. Um he had in the in the primary It's a jungle primary in California, which means everybody runs together and the top two vote getters get into the general election.
So in the primary, he had two hundred and fifty volunteers that knocked on every door in the district and called every home. He had a policeman in his uh In his congregation, that knocked on 12,000 doors. Wow. He had a businessman that called like 15 or 20,000 made calls. My pastor then he did 150 coffees in homes.
That would never darken the door of the church. And so now he's in the public square. He got beat, by the way. You know, Newt Gingrich, who I've known for 30 years and prayed for him by name seven days a week. Since 93, he ran three times before he won.
Uh, John Ashcroft, former governor, U.S. Senator, Attorney General Ashcroft, he ran three times before he won. This is not a one-time deal. This is you getting into the marketplace. My pastor, I think he lost out of.
A hundred and 30 or 40,000 votes, he lost by 3,000. But the next year, he became the mayor of Thousand Oaks, California. And so that's what we're up to. We're trying to push people into the public square. With leadership.
Fear of the Lord is the beginning not only of wisdom, but of knowledge. The principal component of. of knowledge is the fear of the Lord. And so people that who believe like we believe That have a biblical worldview are the people that we want to put in. Charge of the process and let them With integrity, operate.
Amen. So that's what we're doing. Amen. Yeah, sometimes people think that, as you were saying, that leaders are just um Neutral. They just want the best for everybody, and that's not the case.
That's right. They're always pushing their value system. And again, just like David said, you know, either it's your value prevails or somebody else's.
So, yeah, it's so vital that we do that. Yeah, you don't want to, you never want to, I think, especially like when I was young, you never want to think of it as a battle that has to be won. But I think that really is the nature of it, right? It's a, if you really in your heart believe that your values are right, and we know as Christians that the Judeo-Christian values are what our nation is founded on, then you have to be willing to fight for it and you have to be willing to win. And what I like a lot about American Renewal Project is that you're very clear on the why, but you're also very clear on the how.
How are we going to do this? We're very clear. We want pastors to run for public office. All right, so how do we do that? And a lot of that gets talked about in these dinners and in these luncheons.
But for people who are listening, do you have like maybe a peek behind the screen of what you tell people at these dinners? Like how would you actually do that?
Well, to that, to your point there, our sort of mantra is every church in America. Has to have a pastor? An elder, a deacon, a congregant. Running for local office, city council, county commission, school board in 2026, 2028. 2030.
And thereafter, if we're going to save the country for our kids and theirs. And so there's mechanics to this process like there is in anything that you do.
So a key A part of uh twenty twenty six. This is uh October the eighth. Um 2025, December the 19th, North Carolina, December the 19th is the filing deadline.
So if you're going to run for office in North Carolina in 2026, you have to file by December the 19th.
So that's the reason we're in these states now or in this state now and these events going is that our goal is to get people that feel called. Everybody doesn't need to run for office. Every pastor doesn't need to run for office. But those called need to run for office and move into the public square.
So those are the mechanics of it.
So December the 19th is a real key thing, which is you can, and it's like voter registration. You can be mad about it. Upset about what's happening to the country and the direction, but if you're not registered to vote, that means that you've never voted. Exactly. And you're not going to be a part of the process.
So it's civics 101. We have to get everybody in the churches, everybody registered, and everybody voting in every election if we're going to have our values represented in the public square. That's exactly right. It's so important to register to vote.
Some years ago, I was talking to this gentleman. I mean, we were out in the public. I think coming out of a restaurant. And he was talking about how terrible things are going. And, you know, I was like, yeah, I'll tell you what.
I mean, we really need to vote this coming election and this is going to happen. I said, have you all voted yet? It's always the same. We had such a great conversation. You ruined it at the last minute.
At the last minute to hear that. This person hadn't even voted. that boggles my brain to think about people who are just so upset about the state of the world and the state of our community and we need to we need to take things back.
Well, how are you gonna do that if you're not registered to vote? Right. You're not in the game. I've got people in my own family in their sixties never have registered, never voted in their life. They just don't They don't have that conviction.
And it's a negative idea they have: it's like, oh, it's all bad. Yep. Until it begins to impact them, the value system or the finances, or you name it, until it comes to their doorstep, that's when they go, oh, it's terrible. Yeah, I wish I'd have done something with my voice. The voice that God gave me, the voice that America has given me.
Well, I love the terminology, feeling called to run for office. We talk about calling in terms of ministry a lot, or if there's a missionary that's going overseas or somebody stepping into the pastorate, but talking about calling, running for local office and even, you know, state, the national government, that changes things because it reminds us that our values and our biblical worldview impact the way that we see the world around us and impacts the way that we operate as both pastors and politicians. And that's so important. I think the Lord will be, if you're called to run, I think God will call you to run. I think you'll know, like you, I've not been called to the ministry, but for those that are called into the ministry, I think the Lord will call those he's wanting to run and move into the public square.
And it'll be so obvious, so clear that, and that's the ones that should run, the ones that are just upset about it or don't, you know, that's not, that's not what the. Those that really are called need to move into the public square.
So we're excited about it. That we had our, this is our second. Um of uh multiple events. Last Monday we were in Statesville And 16 people after the event was over with signed up their running. Wow.
And that's incredible. That's amazing. That's incredible. That's unbelievable.
So I'm hoping tonight at Clearview Baptist. We're going to have 20 tonight. Yeah. There you go. Absolutely.
There you go. I know there are people in this community who feel called and who feel led. Tell me if I'm, I want to summarize your organization and your projects. And tell me if I'm off base here, but the American Renewal Project is pretty much your, this is your overarching ministry or your overarching. uh organization which is getting Pastors back into the public square.
But the Nehemiah Project is a specific initiative to try and get. A pastor, deacon. local uh how did you say it, pastors, deacons, church leaders to run for office specifically in 2026. Right. That's the Nehemiah project.
Yes, that's the yeah, it's the beginning of it. We we began mobilizing pastors really in 94, and we were in Harris County, which is Houston, Texas. And we came up with the idea: what if we get pastors to engage? And uh so That cycle, there was uh the uh all the uh the sixty judges in that county uh conser b became conservative. We've been doing this for a long time and the the goal again is spiritual The byproduct is political, but we're engaged, and you know, for 15 years, it's been a miracle, really, in a sense.
Like a calling, we just talked about in my case, which is. We began mobile. We came out of Texas with Governor Perry in 2005. And then we did big events: 300 to 500 pastors plus their spouses overnight. Fed him three meals, the lunch, dinner, and the breakfast the next morning, and never ask him for a penny.
And we went across 20 states under the radar. I've never done it, still today, I've never done a press conference or a press release. And it's really unusual I do these because I just don't, I just stay under the radar. Sure, sure. Because.
Anyway, so we did that from 05 to 20 in 20 states, and the Lord gave me. $48 million from less than 10 people. Wow. Wow. Wow.
And I think now we're at about. Uh nearly 55 or 60 million. From listening to, it's just been a miracle of God. And the thing is, is you know, and I don't make phone calls all day long. God's work, done God's way, never wants for money.
That's right. Amen. And so the main thing, as you know, is keeping in his stride. Keeping your life clean, which is a hard deal for me, but keeping your life clean and being honorable in the process and letting Him do His deal. Amen.
And so that's been the, it's just been a real miracle in my life that the Lord's letting me participate in His deal. It's really not my deal. And. You know, generally speaking, 15 years, I never spoke at one event. I stayed in the back on the wall.
And it It's just been a real blessing to be a person. Participant in what we're doing. Amen. You know, the events that I've been to, people have all kinds of expectations until they get there. It's really.
Worship. It's really about Jesus. It's really about coming together and praying. For each other and for the nation. And so the first event itself, I was like, this seems like a Worship service.
That's exactly a gathering of people who just want to glorify God. Absolutely. And you're 100% right. The byproduct is political, but. The first purpose is to lift up Jesus.
Our last event, not a dinner, but the last big overnight event, John was there. Danny Galki was the music. That's right. And he was unbelievable. And it was worship.
And uh he's he'll be by the way, our next Meg event, overnight event is Monday, December the 1st, and Tuesday, December the 2nd. In Charlotte.
Okay. And so for your audience, and now here's the criteria. is that If you want to run for office, Pastors who get two or three of their congregants to file before December the 19th. Are invited to go with us. We're going to Israel.
January the 6th to the 14th, 2026, and we're taking North Carolina pastors. Uh who have who are engaged in the process. And if they get two or three It doesn't have to be congregants. It could be people in the community that filed by December the 19th. Then you're invited to go to Israel with us for free.
Wow. And so my wife and I were over there a couple of uh weeks ago and went to the uh embassy with uh Ambassador Mike Huckabee. By the way, I've known Huckabee. Since 199 When he's lieutenant governor in 1994 or 92, and stayed at La Quinto Hotels with him. And so I've known Huckabee a long time.
And so he's having dinner with us in Jerusalem. On January the 11th.
So, to the listening audience, or to the pastor specifically, Get some congregants or people in the community to file by December the 19th and either let me or Dr. Shaw know, and we'll take you to Israel with us. That's exactly right. Pretty powerful motivation.
Well, we had a governor at the time, Mike Huckabee, but now ambassador with us on the show. Yes. Because he was here at Clearview. Yeah. And it was so inspiring and so humble a man.
And God put the right person in Israel right now. Amen. Right person. You know, one of the things I want to ask you is: over the years, you've been. You've been a Spectator and an involved spectator, I should say, in the process in America, the political process, all of that.
Are you hopeful about where we are headed as a nation? I am hopeful that this is the rough and tumble of the public square. Right. And so I think the law, you know, when we began mobilizing pastors. In 94, I don't wanna say we're the only game in town because we weren't, but we were one of the few people And um sometimes, you know, and the Lord has so blessed us.
And sometimes when I get pity and I do a lot. Is that then all the people that used to be, you know, that are doing the deal now, and then John Murphy does all of our technical stuff, our techie, and he reminds me that the Lord let us participate in a movement that's now everybody and their brother is mobilizing pastors. And then the Lord gave me, I think in North Carolina in 2021 and then 2022, when 50 pastors and spiritual leaders ran, I think the Lord gave me the new paradigm shift. And if that's the Lord, then in 2020, 10 years from now, everybody and their brother are going to be moving people, congregants, into the public square. Then it's going to take off.
It's going to be a paradigm shift. That's right. When we move into the public square because of the promises of the living God. Then it's going to change the nation. And so that's what our hope and prayer is, really, that we.
As yours is. We pray about it every day that the Lord will do his deal. And so I'm excited about it, though.
Something's going on for sure. Oh, absolutely. Amen. Absolutely. We prayed for this for years and years for God to revive us.
We didn't know at the time when we began those prayers that you were doing your work until then time began to hear. And now. God is answering some of those prayers and many more to come. Absolutely. In the last few minutes that we have, David Lane and Dr.
Shah, will you give some encouragement to the people who are listening? Pastors, ministry leaders, lay people who are listening, who have a heart for seeing our culture, our communities, our nation changed and brought back to being one nation under God. What action steps should they take? I would say don't be a spectator. Don't sit back.
Get involved. Encourage your people. If you're a pastor, you have a God-given calling and obligation to educate your people on issues. Uh, don't be afraid when people say, Oh, separation church and state, or you're being too political. They will always say that, there will always be some people who will say those things.
Listen to What the Holy Spirit is telling you. Listen to the Word of God and challenge your people to step into the public square. Jesus called us to be the salt and light. He called us to go into all the world and make disciples. And getting involved in the political square is so that the gospel can keep going in America, can keep spreading in the world, so biblical Christian values can be there for our children, our grandchildren.
If Christ doesn't return soon, we want this nation to continue. That's right. And that's. That's my challenge. Amen.
Amen. So this is the battle between God Jehovah and the false God of secularism.
So that came in, we talked about, into the United States in the 1790s and really culminated in 1960. And so Now, we just said that the culture, the American culture, is nothing but the public manifestation. of the false religion that's controlling the nation.
So therefore this The God who said to Lazarus, four days dead in the grave, Lazarus, come forth has the ability to say to America America, come forth. Return to your spiritual heritage. And that's what our prayer is: and I believe it's going to happen. I think the living God is going to step in and help us. as we attempt to turn the nation back to him.
And that's where we are. Amen. I love it.
So encouraging. What a wonderful episode for us. If you have questions about the American Renewal Project, the Nehemiah Project specifically, or how you can be involved, write into the show and let us know: 252-582-5028. We'd love to connect you with Mr. David Lane and the work that he and his team are doing.
Thank you so much for being on the show today. Always such an encouragement to talk to you and hear about the work that the American Renewal Project is doing. That's right. We're going to put all of the links that David Lane talked about today in the show notes here.
So you can go right down. If you're in your phone, you can just scroll down right now and you can get that registration for your event in Charlotte. We're also praying, just you can pray with us about it, is that. There's 43. Uh house seats, they say, will control Who controls Congress in 2026?
That's really important, depending on. Because somebody's value is gonna reign supreme. That's right. And so, if the Lord gives us the money, we're going into those. I think that's about eight or ten states.
So we're trying to lay this model. The good thing about this model is that once you lay it, You don't just a new voter registration and get out to vote to the churches, which is important. You're leaving something in place, which is now you have pastors and now congregants who are moving into the public schools. That's right. So this is 20 or 30 years from now when this culminates, when this, you know, because Pastor Neil Jackson, as you know, ran from the state representative in 2022 and 201.
And so I have no idea where that guy goes, but it wouldn't surprise me that he runs, either ends up in DC or ends up running statewide as a statewide office owner. I mean, he's a gifted guy.
So that's what this starts, it's a 20 or 30 year run. Amen. I love it.
Guys, make sure you join us tomorrow, same time, same station. We're going to be diving into another great topic here on the Clearview Today Show. Thanks again to our sponsors for making today's episode possible. And don't forget that you can support us by subscribing to the show on iTunes, Spotify, Prey.com, wherever you get your podcasts from. You can also support us financially at Abadanshah.com forward slash give.
John, anything you want to close with? Just definitely want to direct you guys to Pray Radio, especially at 8. We've been saying 8.30. It's actually 8 a.m. all through the month of October.
Dr. Shah is going to be going live every single morning, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. on Pray Radio, only through the month of October.
So make sure you listen in. When you listen in, you're basically telling Pray that we want to hear more of this content, and we want to thank you for supporting us. Thank you for supporting us financially on Pray as well. We love you. We'll see you next time.
That's right. We love you guys. We'll see you tomorrow and clearly today.
