Faith in the Storm

Welcome to Truth Talk Live. All right, let's talk. A daily program powered by the Truth Network.

This is kind of a great thing and I'll tell you why. Where pop culture, current events, and theology all come together. And now, here's today's Truth Talk Live host. Joey Hudson in today. Glad to have you on this Friday.

866-34-TRUTH, 866-348-7884 is how you can join this Friday edition of Truth Talk Live. Authorities in Washington, D.C. are continuing the investigation of the tragic accident involving an American Airlines regional jet and the Army Black Hawk helicopter on Wednesday night. What a horrific, horrific week we've had in watching this unfold. 64 people aboard the flight along with three soldiers on the Black Hawk were killed. American Airlines announced that the flight number of the flight involved in this deadly collision will be retired. In a statement earlier this afternoon, American Airlines said service between Wichita, Kansas and Washington, D.C. is currently scheduled to operate tonight as AA-5677. Flight AA-5342 will not be used for any future American Airlines flights. And this is typical of airlines when a tragedy like this has happened.

They'll retire the flight number following these serious incidents. As emergency response teams continue to work to recover people involved, we're beginning to learn about who was on board that American Airlines flight. For example, a Connecticut youth soccer coach who is presumed dead is being hailed for enriching the lives of children in his community. Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont said that Casey Crafton of Salem was a dedicated father, husband and community member. The Montville Youth Soccer Club said in a post on Facebook, our coach Casey was a valued volunteer with Montville Youth Soccer who helped to enrich the lives of all those he came in contact with. Our deepest condolences go out to his family during this tragic time. Crafton leaves behind his wife, Rachel, and three sons, Grayson, Easton and Knox, according to a local newspaper. Cedarville University student Grace Maxwell is one of the passengers that has been identified.

The university is located outside of Columbus, Ohio, and 10TV WBNS says that Maxwell was a junior majoring in mechanical engineering. An advisor to the school, Tim Norman, told the station Grace was a quiet person with a keen interest in helping others through engineering. Cedarville University President Thomas White said earlier today, we grieve and we're sad. We don't know why a young, bright, shining star was taking from us way too soon, but we know there's a God that will make things new. So we grieve, but not as ones without hope, he said. And that's what we all have to think about today. And maybe that could be our theme word for today is hope, hope.

And that's what we have in Jesus Christ. The newspaper reported that Ms. Maxwell was traveling back to the school. And listen to this. After attending her grandfather's funeral in Wichita, this poor family just buried a grandfather and now this happened.

It just makes you pause and ask the question, why doesn't it? Everly and Elidia Livingston were two young skaters known as the ice skating sisters on social media. You can see videos and photos showing these two young sisters skating together, doing their own routines at various competitions. And unfortunately, their mom and dad also died in the same crash.

Donna and Peter Livingston, the Livingston's friend, Scott Maloney, wrote, I knew Donna in college. She was a wonderful, positive and sweet person. I watched her life and family grow and evolve through social media, including the two beautiful, talented daughters she shared with her husband. They were clearly proud, loving, supportive parents devoted to their daughter's love of ice skating.

Wow. An entire family lost just like that. And that's what we have to think about when we get up every morning, right?

We never know what we're going to be faced with and how our life is going to change. Tim Lilly is identified by his, I'm sorry, Sam Lilly, 28-year-old and the first officer on the American Airlines flight, 5342, was identified by his father, Tim Lilly, who's been very open about the fact that his son was one of the pilots. A flight attendant on board the flight has been identified as Ian Epstein, someone who was very involved in his local community. And as we get names and as we put faces to these victims, it really brings this to life, doesn't it?

These are average people who are just going about their day that day, who, in the case of Sam Lilly, this young 28-year-old pilot, was doing what he loves. And that quickly, it changed. Fox News Digital has learned that the identity of another victim on board the flight, a mother of two young children, was Wendy Schaefer. And Wendy's husband, Nate, said, I'm still waiting to wake up from this nightmare, but I fear this is the truth.

Wendy was not just beautiful on the outside, but was truly an amazing woman through and through. Another story of someone taken just too soon. And as we've watched this week, these families who have come forward, who've been public more, and all we can do is pray. That's what we can do for these families from a distance. We can pray. Pray that every single soul aboard the two aircraft, involved the Black Hawk helicopter and this American Airlines regional jet, pray that everyone on board those two aircraft knew Jesus Christ as their savior.

Pray for these families that they will seek comfort through their relationship with Christ. And as we've watched this, as hundreds of first responders have answered the call to assist with this horrible plane crash on Wednesday night, emergency response teams are still there and will be at the scene probably for weeks to come. So today I want to spend some time and maybe we can call today First Responders Appreciation Day on the Truth Network. If you're a first responder or you have a family member who is a first responder, I invite you to join the conversation. 866-34-TRUTH, 866-348-7884. We're going to talk about the life of a first responder and think about the hundreds who responded.

The first thought that comes to my mind when I learned about this on Wednesday night was as we saw those wide shots across the river, the hundreds and hundreds of flashing lights and what those men and women have gone through. We're going to talk with a chaplain coming up next. Continuing this Friday edition of Truth Talk Live, Joey Hudson in with you today. If you are a first responder, I'd love for you to join the conversation today. 866-34-TRUTH, 866-348-7884. You can email me as well, joey at joeyhudson.com. And let me invite you to join me on my daily podcast as well. Just the Truth.

Just search for Joey Hudson, Just the Truth, wherever you listen to podcasts. Imagine a burning house, a car accident or maybe a medical emergency. Most people just freeze, but not first responders. They move into action.

They don't ask, is this going to be hard or do I have time for this? They just go. They respond. The constant stress of the job that the horrible images that they sometimes probably can't get out of their minds is a constant reminder of what first responders have to endure. And this is why it's so important that we encourage them to seek the comfort that only the love of Jesus Christ can provide. This is why I spend time working on a very special ministry that provides free Bibles to first responders all around the country. The First Responder Bible Program, you can find out about it at firstrespondersbible.org. Because first responders need to learn to study and rely on God's Word. And that's what we try to do with the Bibles that we send all across the country. If you'd like to participate, again, let me invite you to visit the website firstrespondersbible.org. If you are a first responder who would like a free Bible, just complete the form. If you're someone who has a first responder in your life and you'd like a Bible for them, just make the request. If you're someone who would like to support this, we need your support as well.

Because we purchase these Bibles, we print them, and we distribute them just based on the generous support from people all around the country. Joining me today is a guy who recognizes the importance of God's Word every day. He works with the Greenville County Sheriff's Office. Deputy Chaplain Austin Fowler is with us today. Welcome, how are you? Hey, Joey, I'm doing good. How are you, sir?

I am wonderful. I appreciate your time today, and I'm so happy to have you join us. Let's just start, Austin, if we would, with your personal journey. When and how did you know that in addition to being a law enforcement officer, that you also wanted to share God's Word with your fellow deputies?

Wow. So, first and foremost, it's just been a process of God receiving the glory. I see him in every step of my journey. I started at the Sheriff's Office in 2018 after my wife and I came back from overseas doing missions and wanted to do law enforcement.

And, yeah, my faith has been a big part of my life for quite some time. So I knew that, you know, being a Christian, going into this line of work after coming from overseas, one of my favorite stories is, when you get, you know, you're new, they ask you where you're coming from. And if you can imagine, we work with a lot of people coming from overseas, military-wise. And they found out, you know, where are you coming from? And I said overseas, and they're saying, oh, what branch? And I'm like, I guess the Salvation Army, I don't know.

And so they got a kick out of that because it was just kind of a unique situation. But being a Christian in this line of work, my faith was something that I pressed into daily. And about three years, four years into my career, my sergeant, Benny Durham, the lead chaplain at the Sheriff's Office, you know, him and I have been getting to know each other, and they knew I was interested in the position.

And unfortunately, he's going to be retiring in August this year. And so about a year or so ago, they went ahead and pulled me over and said, you know, we'd love for you to, you know, kind of learn the ways of the chaplain program. And, you know, whenever Benny decides to call it quits, you know, you'll be in there. And so I'm incredibly honored and humbled to be in the position I am. But even before this, you know, it was it's always important to be doing the work despite the title. And so for me, it was always important, regardless of being the chaplain, to still implement my faith and rely on my faith on a daily basis in this line of work.

Yeah. With me today, Deputy Chaplain Austin Fowler with the Greenville County Sheriff's Office in my hometown of Greenville, South Carolina. You know, we have watched this week first responders responding to this horrible tragedy in Washington where this American Airlines regional jet collided with an Army Blackhawk. And, you know, the first thing that crossed my mind that night, Austin, as this started to unfold, were the hundreds and hundreds of flashing lights that we saw in the visuals.

All the networks showed them. And this represented literally hundreds and hundreds of first responders, law enforcement officers, EMTs, firefighters who literally rushed to this scene to try to help. And they're going to see some things, particularly those who are on the dive teams, who are working to recover this airplane and to to find the souls who were in that airplane. They're they're going to see things that no one should ever really see. And I would imagine things that they can't get out of their mind. Let's talk for a minute about why it's important for first responders to study the Bible and really develop that deep relationship with God. Absolutely.

And I was listening a bit before I joined in. And I'm it's such a testament to the Lord just knowing he's over this conversation because you mentioned it. And I completely agree that hope is one of the biggest factors when it comes to this, because in this line of work, you don't know what you're going to experience in a 12 hour shift. You know, it could be a traffic stop. It could be neighbors arguing or it could be a critical incident, you know, or it could be a medical emergency involving a child or a car wreck or anything like that. But for me and just the importance of relying on your faith, because a lot of these questions are a lot of these situations bring up the question of why, like, why is this stuff happening? Like these tragedies.

And for us in the faith, we know that this was not God's original design, but sin entered into the world and it created brokenness and sin and sin leads to these tragedies and death. And so it's so important to understand that when you're experiencing these situations, there is hope. You know, the scriptures that stood out to me throughout my career is John 16, 33, when Jesus is telling us you're going to experience trials and sorrows and tough times, but take heart because he's overcome the world. And so relying on him and then Psalm 34, 18, that the Lord is close to the broken hearted and crushed in spirit. And so, yeah, these tragedies will affect you in a lot of different ways. But, you know, it's it's hard at times to see people who aren't really pressing into it. And you see them go to different things to try and get answers or comfort. And they're not going to satisfy you the way that having that relationship to the Lord will ultimately.

Yeah. With me today, Deputy Chaplain Austin Fowler with the Greenville County Sheriff's Office. And you're so right. I mean, and I've worked with a ministry who has helped the families of fallen officers over the years.

And every single one of them, they got up that day not realizing that that routine traffic stop was going to be their last. Deputy Austin Fowler, do you have a few minutes? Can you stay over with us? There's a lot more I'd like to talk to you about.

Absolutely. I'd be happy to. OK, we'll return in just a moment with Deputy Chaplain Austin Fowler. This is Joey Hudson in for Stu Epperson today on Truth Talk Live. Truth Talk Live! You're listening to the Truth Network and Truth Network dot com. As we continue this Friday edition of Truth Talk Live, I'm Joey Hudson in for Stu Epperson today. Love for you to join the conversation. 866-34-TRUTH, 866-348-7884.

You can email me directly. Joey at joeyhudson.com as well as we have watched the emergency response teams working to recover the American Airlines flight that crashed into the Potomac River this week. Taking with it along with the Black Hawk helicopter, 67 souls. It reminds me of just what our first responders are faced with every day and how we need to pray for them and support them. If you're a first responder, you have a first responder in your life, I'd love for you to join the conversation today.

Again, 866-34-TRUTH, 866-348-7884 with me on our guest line, Deputy Chaplain Austin Fowler with the Greenville County Sheriff's Office from Greenville, South Carolina, my hometown. Again, Austin, I appreciate your time today and being with us. I happen to be on your email list. A while back, I asked you to add me to your list and I got to tell you, Austin, your weekly messages are always spot on.

I love them. You bless me every week when I read that. This week, you wrote about Psalm 65, 10.

I'm going to read it. You drenched the plowed ground with rain, melting the clods and leveling the ridges. You softened the earth with showers and blessed abundant crops. Talk with us about why you found this passage so special. Yeah, so I go through a devotional just weekly and that one stood out to me. That's one of those verses that you can read the Bible through and every single time something stands out to you different because the Word is alive. And yeah, that one was one that I know that I've read before, but for some reason, just in this season, in this time, the idea of the Lord uses rain to soften the ground.

It's up to me just because, you know, the things that we experience in life can sometimes harden us. We can, you know, be affected by certain things. And for me, it was just such a gracious reminder that the Lord sends the rain to soften us, soften the ground or soften our hearts at times. And it's just so important to be mindful of that. And again, it's just such a testament to how much God loves us. And we know, you know, that the rain does a lot of things.

It's starting to rain now in Greenville. And yeah, it nourishes the earth, but it also can soften the hard ground so that new things can grow. And so it was just a different perspective. Every time I send those out, you know, I try and implement something new and something that might apply to people. And so it means a lot that it spoke to you as well.

Yeah. Well, again, I enjoy every week when I receive those emails, you know, from a law enforcement perspective and a first responder perspective, talk with us about what the emergency response teams are thinking and what they're experiencing in Washington, D.C. this week. I mean, it'd be it would be hard to describe that seems like such a large scale operation. I'm also part of the search and rescue team at the sheriff's office and just imagining some of the stuff that we've been called up to, but nothing to that magnitude. So I can't imagine, like you were saying earlier, just the long hours that are going to be put in the fatigue, the exhaustion. I mean, I can just imagine, you know, and I forgot the number that you said that have been recovered, but there's still others that need to be and there's no telling. But even you were mentioning, like just specifically like the dive team, those people that are on that specific team, you know, just imagining them going into the water and not knowing what they're going to come across.

I know the Greenville County Sheriff's Office has a dive team and I respect those guys as they go down there and they can't see inches in front of their face. But you don't know what they're going to come across, but they got a job to do. And so I think for me, just being mindful of in those situations, your training, your experience kicks in. You kind of go into autopilot in a way and you realize that you have a job to do no matter how long it's going to take.

You want to do the best of your ability to bring closure to some families or those that have lost loved ones. And yeah, I just I mean, just imagining the long hours ahead of them and stuff. So like you said, just praying for them and man, making sure they all get the job done safely. As you're talking with your fellow deputies, what kind of resistance do you receive, if any? I mean, I would imagine that law enforcement officers, you know, you guys are tough and you put into hard situations. Are your colleagues more likely to think that they can do this alone, that they don't need God?

That's a good question. And it's it's one that I've been incredibly humbled and encouraged to be a part of just over the past year or two. I believe that there's been a culture that, you know, this line of work, you do experience things within a 12 hour shift or daily that, you know, some people might not experience in their entire lifetime. But when you go to work here in this line of work as a first responder, you can experience things in a day shift or 12 hours or whatever you're working that some people aren't going to experience in a lifetime. And so just the idea of how that stuff can affect you and not know what's going to happen, stuff you'll experience it. And you're thinking on scene and, you know, what do I need to get done job wise that you don't really have time to process it. And then by the time you get to a point where you might be able to process it, you don't want to because you're tired.

And so it can kind of get put on the back burner. And so the culture shift has been it's OK to talk about it. You know, Benny, the lead sergeant and lead chaplain, he's got the phrase, it's OK to not be OK, but it's not OK to stay that way.

And so we've seen a shift that some people can experience a situation and might not be as affected, but somebody could be right beside them and they could be affected in a different way. And just making sure it's important to talk, to process. And we have any of the lead chaplain.

I'm another chaplain. We have a full time mental health clinician. We have the sheriff's office just implemented the new wellness program that we fall under. And so we we have resources that are available to deputies to promote and to encourage communication. And we've been seeing a really good shift in that. And so resistance wise, I think there may have been that in the past, but people are starting to see how unhealthy that can be to bottle it up. And it's starting to shift into it's it's a beneficial thing to talk about it. And it's not weak. It's actually a pretty strong characteristic to be able to be vulnerable and talk about it and share. And so that's been really encouraging to see.

Yeah. With me today, Deputy Chaplain Austin Fowler with Greenville County Sheriff's Office. And I got to say, you're blessed from the standpoint that you have a sheriff in Hobart Lewis, who is also a believer.

And Sheriff Lewis has never wanted to shy away from talking about his faith. Is this what you find around other areas? I mean, what about other chaplains from other agencies around? I know you guys talk among yourselves or others seeing the same shift that you're seeing. We have we've had other agencies reach out to us in the state and also a few outside of the state as they get wind of this wellness program that we've started. And I mean, it makes sense if you think about some of the stuff that we experience.

It's it's not normal for a human to experience those things on a consistent basis, but you understand it's part of this line of work. And so I think there's other agencies seeing the effects of this wellness program. And I completely agree with you. We're incredibly blessed to have leadership and Sheriff Lewis and Major Miller.

She's the one over the wellness unit. We're incredibly blessed to have the backing because there's a lot of agencies that don't. But yeah. And one thing that stands up to us, too, is having chaplains who are full time deputies.

So that's rare as well. But we've seen the benefit of that. That's huge that the sheriff is supportive of that as well. So myself and my Sergeant Benny Durham, we're both full time deputies as well. But we're also the chaplains. And so that makes a huge difference in being able to bridge that gap to relate to first responders. But we also have great volunteer chaplains. I know a lot of agencies have volunteer chaplains as well. But you can think that they have full time jobs outside of the volunteering and everything. But, yeah, our agency is it's an incredible blessing and honor to be able to do both sides of it as a deputy and a chaplain. And to see how that has really helped to bridge the gap when these situations come up.

Yeah. Well, Austin, just let me say applaud what you guys are doing, what chaplain Benny Durham. He's a fine man as well. And I applaud what you guys are doing. You know, I read the other day that the Center for Disease Control says that law enforcement officers and firefighters are more likely to die from suicide than in the line of duty. And, you know, this just kind of shows you the pressure and the stress that you guys are under on a daily basis. I pray for you.

Pray for your safety. I appreciate what you're doing and thank you for your time today. And thanks for what you do with your fellow officers. Yes, sir. Joey, it's been an honor. I'm humbled and I really appreciate your time and the opportunity.

Sure thing. Joey Hudson in for Stu Epperson today on Truth Talk Live. You're listening to the Truth Network and Truth Network dot com. Continuing this Friday edition of Truth Talk Live, Joey Hudson in for Stu Epperson today, I'd love for you to join the conversation.

Eight six six thirty four Truth eight six six three four eight seventy eight eighty four. If you've been following our conversation today and particularly wasn't it just refreshing to hear someone like Deputy Chaplain Austin Fowler and the work that he's doing in law enforcement and with other first responders. And, you know, as someone who gets a chance to interact with first responders quite a bit, really almost on a daily basis, as I get a I get request for the first responder Bible that we through the Mike Gallagher Show Charitable Foundation that we publish and distribute. I get requests.

I mean, I've gotten requests since the show started just a few minutes ago. You can go to first responders Bible dot org, first responders Bible dot org and find out about our ministry. If you're a first responder and you need a Bible for yourself, for a colleague, I'm happy to send you one.

If you are a church and you'd like to do a first responders appreciation breakfast or lunch or dinner, just something to say, hey, we see what you're doing. And as I mentioned earlier, rather than being the first to respond. They're the first to offer hope. I read the story the other day about a car accident. And the person it was a gentleman who was trapped in his car. And you can imagine what that might feel like and the people who had stopped to try to help.

They were just frantic trying to see how they could get him out of this car. And the first person to arrive was a paramedic. And the guy told a story to a local news outlet later that he just knew that the presence of God was there, because the first thing the paramedic did was to hold his hand and to say, you're not alone.

God's with you and I'm with you. And he said that that in itself just made him want to live and want to fight. And fortunately, with God's grace, they were able to free him from the car.

And he had some surgeries, but is fine today, according to the story. But this is the type of thing that first responders deal with every day. And so, you know, we just have to pray for them daily and support them, because as Chaplain Fowler told us, they see things that no human should ever have to see, but they do. And they chose to do this. They're not paid a lot of money.

They're not doing it for the money, for sure. So, I hope you'll check out our First Responders Bible program, firstrespondersbible.org. Check it out and we'd love to send you a Bible.

As I was saying, though, if you're a church group or you're a civic organization and you need a larger quantity, if you want 100, 200, put them in a gift bag or whatever, we're happy to send those to you as well. And I just can't imagine what those first responders who are having to search for, go through the debris of that airplane in the river and searching for those bodies and what they have to see and experience. And again, all we can do is pray for them and pray for those families. You know, one of the big issues this week in the news has been President Donald Trump's deportation of some of just the hardest criminals who have come to our country and come into our country illegally. A Rasmussen poll that was just released yesterday shows that overall most U.S. voters approve of the immigration enforcement raids that we have witnessed primarily in some of the larger cities around the country, that most people support them. In fact, Rasmussen says 57 percent of people who voted in the election last year approve of the raids to catch and deport these illegal immigrants who also are guilty of much worse crimes, murder, rape, human trafficking, the list goes on. But it raises a big question for all of us as we see some churches, for example, who are objecting to the idea that our country is going to take someone and send them back to another country. We have church leaders who are opposed to this. We saw the bishop of the National Cathedral literally lecture President Trump at the national prayer breakfast the day after the inauguration, saying that immigrants are frightened, that they fear for their safety.

And, you know, as someone who's in talk radio and interested in the news, I've followed the whole issue of illegal immigration for years now. And my first response is, my first thought is, well, they broke our laws by coming into our country illegally to begin with. But as Christians, what should our response be? As Christians, how do we respond to this massive deportation program?

Is it the right thing to do? Now, you know, again, I justify it by the fact that the people who are being returned to their countries who are being deported are people who are just really bad people. I mean, we saw this young nursing student in Georgia, Lake and Riley, who was killed by an illegal.

He's a bad person. Homeland Security Chief Kristi Noem has halted government funding for some of the non-government agencies, the more progressive groups that assist the immigrants by using taxpayer dollars for food, for housing, for transportation. And the argument, of course, is, well, you know, they're coming from a bad place. They're coming from from a country that is full of crime, that a country that's full of poverty.

They don't have jobs, they don't have housing, they don't have food. But where does that stop? Where, and again, from a Christian viewpoint, what are the limits here?

What should we be doing? What should our response be as Christians when we see people being rounded up and deported, sent back to a country that we know they're not going to be able to probably have a job, that we know is probably going to be tough housing wise? It's a tough one to reconcile with for me, because deep down, I know that it's the right thing to do. Deep down, I know that we at some point, we can't save the world.

But it is hard, too, when you read some of the stories of some of the people and their families who are innocent in some ways. Love to get your comments. 866-34-TRUTH, 866-348-7884. Hey, I love your emails, too. Email me, Joey at joeyhudson.com. And let me invite you to join me on my daily podcast as well, Just the Truth. We dive into a lot of issues of the day, the top news stories of the day. And we also, of course, talk about our faith. But just search for Joey Hudson, Just the Truth, wherever you listen to podcasts, as I'd love to have you join me.

You go to my website to joeyhudson.com and subscribe to my newsletter, because I'd love to stay in touch with you. But, you know, we live in times that I think and I pray that we're seeing a change in our country and to the better. As Austin Fowler was saying, that he sees a cultural change within first responders, within law enforcement, that, yes, they realize that they need to rely on God, that they need to to study the word more. Are we seeing that same change within our country? Do you think that the November the 5th with Donald Trump going back into the White House with people with Christians standing up and saying that, yes, there is a difference between a man and a woman? They're two. God made two sexes, two genders, man, woman into sentence.

There's nothing in between. Are we seeing that shift within our country that, hey, people are waking up and realizing we've got to get back to God. We've got to put God back in in the center of everything that our country does. Because if we don't. God is not going to favor our country and he's given us lots of second chances. You agree?

He has given us lots of second chances. This this could be our last if we don't respond. We don't respond the way that we should. So I'd love to get your comments again. Email me, Joey Joey Hudson dot com about the how we should be responding when we hear these stories about. Our government literally rounding people up and deporting them, sending them back to the country that they came came to illegally into our country.

Where, you know, what are the limits on that? I guess I guess I'm asking you think great being with you on this Friday afternoon. Joey Hudson in for Stu Epperson on this Friday edition of Truth Talk live again, emails are welcome. Joey at Joey Hudson dot com. Have a blessed day and a great weekend.