560. Remembering John Barros w/Marcus Pittman

Summary

Apologia Radio Ep. 560: Remembering John Barros w/ Marcus Pittman

Date: February 20, 2026
Host: Luke the Bear (filling in for Jeff Durbin)
Guest: Marcus Pittman
Theme: A heartfelt tribute and reflection on the life, ministry, and legacy of John Barros, a dedicated pro-life sidewalk counselor and evangelist, whose faithfulness impacted thousands.

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Episode Overview

This episode is a moving memorial for John Barros, who passed away two years prior. Host Luke the Bear and guest Marcus Pittman recount stories, lessons, and the enduring impact John had on the pro-life movement, especially through sidewalk ministry at abortion clinics. The conversation highlights how John’s ordinary faithfulness sparked extraordinary influence, inspiring ministries like End Abortion Now and documentaries such as “Babies Are Murdered Here.”

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Origins of End Abortion Now and Apologia’s Pro-Life Ministry

• Genesis of the Ministry (04:48):
  • The beginnings of End Abortion Now were catalyzed by Marcus Pittman’s documentary Babies Are Murdered Here, featuring John Barros and Rusty Thomas.
  • Spontaneous brainstorming, domain name purchase, and a shared desire to engage more deeply in abortion mill ministry.
    Quote:
    *“One of us…goes, ‘How about End Abortion Now?’ and I remember you said you typed it in, ‘It’s available.’…Jeff gets off the interview and we’re like, ‘We just started End Abortion Now!’” – Luke (06:12)

2. John Barros’ Introduction & Influence

• First Encounter with John (13:27):

  • Marcus shares how he was introduced to John via friends, leading to a transformative meeting.
  • Marcus’s impression: John wasn’t polished, but “the most real dude I’ve ever seen”—genuine, relationally bold, and deeply committed.
  • John welcomed Marcus into his home, and their friendship grew from there.

  Quote:
  "He wasn't this Gospel Coalition style, political sort of face…he was just a man, smoking a Toro Fuente cigar at the cigar lounge. I was like, dude, this is my dude." – Marcus (16:48)

3. Babies Are Murdered Here Documentary Impact

• Revelation that using the word "murder" was controversial in pro-life circles at the time.

• The film’s grassroots momentum: inspired a wave of street preachers to create their own signs and emboldened a new language in the movement.

• John's hospitality and open-heartedness made a deep impression on Marcus and became a catalyst for broader ministry.

  Quote:
  “We learned you can’t say murder. Like, we had no idea. But we’re just like, yeah, it’s murder…and now they use it all the time [in pro-life work].” – Marcus (15:48)

4. Stories of Divine Providence

• God's Unscripted Plans (21:12):

  • The unplanned, serendipitous way God used ordinary faithfulness (John’s sidewalk counseling, Marcus’s filming) to create far-reaching influence. Quote:
    "Sometimes [organizations] with millions of dollars don't affect anything significant for Christ…but here, you’re just doing your thing, and Marcus shows up, and God uses that." – Gabe (22:16)

• RC Sproul’s Advice (23:53):

  • “You just stay on your 50ft of sidewalk, and God will bring the world to you.” – RC Sproul, recounted by John

5. John’s Ministry at the Clinic

• Tireless commitment: Often out on the sidewalk 7 days a week from 2008 until failing health.
• Stories of babies saved—sometimes directly witnessing families returning to thank him.
• Example: A saved baby and mother showed up unplanned during filming, providing a poignant ending to Marcus’s documentary.
  • Quote:
    “I remember…the baby's mother just shows up…And I said, ‘I found the end of the film, John.’” – Marcus (29:33)

6. Miraculous Encounter: The Gift of Tongues

• John tells a story (30:35–34:56) about a Spanish-speaking man who heard the Gospel in his own language, though John was preaching in English—an event that John humbly describes as God making up for all deficiencies.
  • Quote:
    “How in the world did you understand the preaching? Because I don't preach in Spanish…He said, ‘I heard every word that you preached in my own language, and I'll never forget that.’” – John (34:07)

7. Church Support & RC Sproul’s Involvement

• John recounts how the elders at St. Andrews Chapel, led by RC Sproul, fully embraced and backed his sidewalk ministry.
• The community provided tangible support: baby showers, mentorship, even a van to transport women and children.
  • Quote:
    “It’s a beautiful thing when you have a church behind you…when I say ‘we’ll help you’ it’s literally hundreds of people at my church that stand there with me and back that promise up.” – John (39:59)

8. Opposition, Perseverance, and Unusual Relationships

• Hostility from “the carnies”—a group of aggressive pro-abortion protestors; even playing “cancer songs” to taunt John as he battled illness (47:18).
• Paradoxically, these antagonists also showed him a strange affection, once anxiously searching for him when he missed a day.
• Remarkable: John was once invited to Thanksgiving dinner by abortion clinic staff—becoming a fixture even among those on the “other side.”
  • Quote:
    “It was crazy…as much as they hated him, they wanted him there.” – Marcus (59:33)

9. John’s Heart & Motivation: On Heaven and Sin

• Poignant Moment (49:57–50:48):
  • When asked what he was most looking forward to in heaven:
  • Quote:
    “I just don’t want to sin anymore. I hate my sin. To not have that problem anymore has to be the most uplifting thing…other than actually seeing Jesus face to face.” – John (49:57)
  • Demonstrates his humility and focus on personal holiness, even as thousands credit him for changed lives.

10. Male Leadership in Ministry

• John took principled, protective leadership at the clinics, ensuring men were held accountable and directing male-female interactions for safety and focus.
  • Quote:
    “You really need a man out there. He would tell me, ‘this is my abortion clinic’…he made sure the women out there followed his rules or they would be banned.” – Marcus (51:45)

11. Legacy: Storytelling and Sacrificial Love

• John wished to be remembered as a “storyteller for God.”
• His storytelling “put flesh” on biblical texts and challenged others by example.
  • Quote:
    “Just as just being a storyteller for God, that’s all. There’s no good thing in me, but every kind of goodness there is, is in Him.” – John (58:30)
• Story about eating inside the abortion clinic with staff, seeing the twisted attempts to comfort women with angel wings and “your baby’s in heaven now” messages.
• Push to have a bronze statue or even the physical sidewalk he wore through as a memorial.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• The importance of ordinary faithfulness:
  “God will bring the world to you…Just stay on your 50ft of sidewalk.” – RC Sproul (23:53)
• On social and pro-life activism:
  “Desperate times call for faithful men and not for careful men. The careful men come later and write the biographies of the faithful men, lauding them for their courage.” – John Barros (01:54)
• Heart for lost and hurting people:
  “Anything good down there is from Him. It’s certainly not from me or anyone else on that sidewalk.” – John (34:56)
• Impactful legacy:
  “Almost a thousand churches, we’ve been able to translate. Thousands upon thousands of babies…legislation…even just in us.” – Gabe (21:56)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [04:48] – The story of how End Abortion Now began and John’s influence
• [12:11] – First introduction to John Barros via Babies Are Murdered Here
• [16:48] – Marcus describes John's raw authenticity and approach
• [23:53] – RC Sproul’s advice: "Stay on your 50ft of sidewalk"
• [30:35]–[34:56] – John’s miraculous “gift of tongues”/Spanish preaching story
• [37:05] – Church support and RC Sproul’s commissioning of John’s sidewalk ministry
• [47:18] – Opposition from pro-abortion activists (“the carnies”)
• [49:57]–[50:48] – What John most looked forward to in Heaven
• [58:30] – John’s wish to be remembered as a “storyteller for God”
• [59:33] – Thanksgiving dinner with abortion clinic staff

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Reflections on John’s Character, Approach, & Legacy

• Endurance amid adversity: Despite hostility, cancer, and even organized attempts to demoralize him, John took joy in the Gospel’s work and remained sensitive to the leading of the Spirit.
• Authenticity & Masculine Leadership: He challenged men headed into the clinic, acting as a calm but powerful presence and mentor for all involved in pro-life ministry.
• Humble Impact: He never sought celebrity, but inspired thousands by “just being there” and letting God do the work, as highlighted by stories of international gratitude and unexpected moments of grace.
• Inspiration for future generations: John’s life became a template for Gospel-centered activism, storytelling, and persistence—inspiring not only colleagues, but also documentary filmmakers, pastors, and ordinary Christians.

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Final Thoughts

This episode is a fitting tribute not only to John Barros’s legacy but to the power of quiet faithfulness, storytelling, and living convictionally in the public square. His memory challenges listeners to step out in obedience, to love sacrificially, and to trust that God can use even the most ordinary acts for extraordinary ends.

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For more information or to support End Abortion Now and related ministries, visit Apologia Studios, or check out Marcus Pittman's LoreTV and adoption fundraiser.

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“I would have given up being President of the United States…to just do what God called me to do.”
— John Barros (24:00)

Transcript

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[John Barrows]

Non Rockabotus must stop.

[Marcus Pittman]

I don't want to rock the boat.

[John Barrows]

I want to sink it. Are you gonna bark all day, little doggy?

[Luke the Bear]

Or are you gonna bite? Delusional.

[Ion Layer Sponsor]

Yeah, delusional is okay. In your worldview, I'm an animal. You don't chastise chickens for being delusional. You don't chastise pigs for being so. You calling me delusional Using your worldview is perfectly okay. It doesn't really hurt.

[Marcus Pittman]

She hung up on me.

[Luke the Bear]

What? What?

[Marcus Pittman]

Desperate times call for faithful men and not for careful men. The careful men come later and write

[John Barrows]

the biographies of the faithful men lauding them for their courage.

[Luke the Bear]

Go into all the world and make disciples. Not go into the world and make buddies. Not to make corrosives.

[Ion Layer Sponsor]

Right.

[Luke the Bear]

Don't go in the world. Make homies. Right. Disciples.

[Ion Layer Sponsor]

I got a bit of a jiggle neck.

[Marcus Pittman]

That's a joke, Pastor.

[Luke the Bear]

When we have the real message of truth, we cannot let somebody say they're

[Marcus Pittman]

speaking truth when they're not.

[Luke the Bear]

Take an amazing journey to a place that will blow your mind and move your mind so you will never be the same again. If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small. Rescue. Those are being taken away to death. Hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter. If you say, behold, we did not know this, does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who keeps watch over your soul know it and will he not repay man according to his work. Of course. That's Proverbs 24:1012, y'.

[John Barrows]

All.

[Luke the Bear]

Welcome to another episode of Apology Radio. Luke the Bear hosting today. Pastor Jeff is in Georgia, which I'll talk about in a second. Got a lot going on on right now with our equal protection bills. I. I'm very excited for the show, and I'm excited to have my longtime friend. And I'll bring him in here in a second, but I'm just gonna get this out of the way before we go any further. Yes, I am wearing an arm sling. Yes, I partially tore my bicep. No, it was not a good. A glorious story. So I wasn't being heroic. I wasn't trying to do a new max on bench press, nothing like that. Trying to fix some bent metal stairs, and my bicep popped. And so getting MRI tomorrow. Hopefully I don't need surgery, but let's just get that out of the way because everyone. I'm sure people are going to be like, why are you wearing an arm sling? So it's not as bad as it looks. It just hurts bad. Anyways, moving on. I'm very excited, like I said, to talk about my dear friend and hero, John Barrows, who passed away two years ago now on February 15, 2014. And the go. I'll go ahead and bring my friend in here. Marcus Pittman.

[Marcus Pittman]

Hey, what is up, man? It is so good to be back. I'm so excited.

[Luke the Bear]

What's up, King Ginger? How.

[Marcus Pittman]

How are you?

[Luke the Bear]

Other than my arm being torn, I'm good.

[Marcus Pittman]

You should, you know, you didn't have to say. You didn't do anything.

[Luke the Bear]

I know. My. My wife. Go ahead.

[Marcus Pittman]

You could have said, you know, you were just, you know, I don't know. You could have come up with something.

[Luke the Bear]

I got nothing. My wife's like, you need a better story than that. I'm like, I know some.

[Marcus Pittman]

Just now I'm more curious about the real story.

[Luke the Bear]

Is that. That's it, man. That was on my. On my 45th birthday. I did. I was like, well, I guess it's just a reminder that I'm. But we're good. Yeah. So I. This. I just. There's so much. I just want to tie the room together. Right. So, like, I'm gonna talk about what we're doing with an abortion now here in a second. But, like, I need everyone to know if you're new to us or if you're new to an abortion now. Like, none of this. There's. There's three people that are in the background. Low key. There I go. Using my kids terminology, responsible for us starting an abortion now. One of them's Marcus Pitman. What? The other one's Rusty Thomas and the other one's John Barrows. And a of this started with Marcus's film Babies are murdered here, which we'll play a clip of. He actually. And those two, John and. And Rusty were both in that. And that kind of was what inspired us to get involved in abortion mill ministry. And then shortly after that, Marcus actually moved out here from Virginia and helped us start up Apologia Studios and. And Abortion Now. And it's funny, Marcus, I always tell the story. I can't. Maybe you remember it was Jeff was doing an interview with Tony Loinger from the national. Right. About the bill in Oklahoma. And I remember you were sitting in the office and you and I were like, we need to do something else. We need to start something else. And one of us. I don't remember if it was you or me. One of us goes, how about end abortion now? And I remember you said that you like typed it in. You're like, it's available. And I'm like, buy it. And so like Jeff gets off the interview and we're like, we just started an abortion now. Like, I don't remember which one of us suggested. I always say we did together because I can't remember which one it was.

[Marcus Pittman]

I don't even remember. I remember. I remember the Tony Loringer interview.

[Luke the Bear]

That's funny.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, it was one of the craziest interviews.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah, it was crazy.

[Marcus Pittman]

I think it was like a shock for us that there's people in pro life leadership at this high level that is as delusional as that.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah.

[Marcus Pittman]

And. But it wasn't the last time.

[Luke the Bear]

No, that was just the beginning.

[Marcus Pittman]

We, we, we, we. We discovered a lot.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah, yeah, we did. And we keep discovering it just keeps getting worse. But so, yeah, that's kind of like. That's kind of how we got into this. And I'm gonna have Marcus, he's gonna tell some stories about John and stuff. But Marcus, what are you up to these days? Europe and up in Moscow now. And I know you just open a cigar shop and.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, I'm a co owner of a cigar lounge up here in Moscow, Idaho. I'm still running Lore tv, which is a streaming platform for indie artists to be able to raise money and stream their platforms. It's like Netflix and Kickstarter together, but like a more punk rock MTV sort of vibe to it. And then we Just brought on our CEO, Sean Tomlin, who built Fuel TV for Fox Sports. Oh, nice Cable network. And he's worked with Red Bull and, you know, he's a legend. And so, yeah, we're just raising capital there. And then I've been. I've been live streaming like a madman. I've noticed I'm on Kick. Yeah, I'm on kick and YouTube. And so if you, you know, letter I, letter M, King Ginger. I'm king ginger on YouTube and. And kick. I've just been really putting the work in there and building that up because it's. It's such a great. It's such a great medium. I love it.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah. So how are you liking substack? I mean, obviously, I know you and I have interacted.

[Marcus Pittman]

Oh, yeah, I've been doing them. Subsect's been great. Uh, but somebody told. So. So I've been like, in the mornings, I've been writing substacks and stuff. Really. Because really what I've been trying to do is just the conservative worldview when it comes to art and entertainment and movies and pop. Cult pop culture specifically is so gone. Like, there's no, there's no category for it. You know, it's why, you know, you don't go into a hot topic and see, you know, Matt Walsh, what is a woman T shirt? Like, because all the stuff we do is documentaries. We don't understand pop culture and multi generational cartoons. Like, none of that. And so I've. That's really been the biggest challenge of building lore is finding one capital. Capital is the main problem.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah, sure.

[Marcus Pittman]

And then. And then the. The talent is out there. They just don't have anywhere to go. So that's why we built lore. So. So yeah, so I started doing substacks and then realized that instead of doing sub stacks and reaching the same, you know, conservative Christian base, I could do live streaming and reach a much broader audience who actually cares more about pop culture.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah.

[Marcus Pittman]

Which is what a live streaming is. And so, you know, I say I'm just. I'm just a guy that sees an AI video with Power Rangers fighting the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and I just get super excited. So I'm a simple man. And, you know, and. And we can debate and we can argue over pop culture and movies and stories, but if we're not building anything and investing capital into, like, building institutions that last for 100 years, like Disney, we're just wasting our time.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah.

[Marcus Pittman]

So. And that's all we do. And that's what subsect was is kind of for people who like to read and debate and I wanted to get to get in in with people that want to build. So subscribe to me on I'm King Ginger. And then, and then, and then one more thing. I think my wife would be mad if I didn't mention me and my wife are raising money for adoption.

[Luke the Bear]

Yes.

[Marcus Pittman]

So it's relevant to the show.

[Luke the Bear]

Yes. Yes, it is. Yes. Please go support them there. And yeah, subject's been fun, man. I, I, it's funny because Virgil talked me into doing it and Knox talked Virgil into doing it and, and it's been fun being on there. So you can check me out on soaps act if you're on there. Just look me up. I love it. It's been fun. Anyways, so real quick, I just want to mention again, Pastor Jeff's in Georgia. He was in Illinois earlier this week for our equal protection bill in Illinois. Had a press conference there. I think it was Tuesday. He's in Georgia. They're having a big rally, I think tomorrow or Saturday. Tomorrow, I think. And he's been all over and we've got bills popping all over. It's been. And a lot of new bills, which has been encouraging. So I've talked about. We've had South Dakota this year. We're working on Idaho right now. We just got dual bills in Tennessee. We're working on in the House and Senate and, and so a lot going on. We're super grateful for that. But again, none of that would ever be ha. Would would be happening if it wasn't for the man we're going to talk about today. So I'm just gonna. Marcus, I'm gon the first clip from Babies Are Murdered here, the first part where you just kind of introduced John to the thing. So this was, this would have been our introduction to John Barrows. So I'm just gonna play. It's just a couple minutes here. Gabe, you got that? Oh, sorry. My volume's done.

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

You know, the Bible tells us that God hates the shedding of innocent blood. Tells us to be not deceived, that God is not mocked, that whatever we sow, we're going to reap. And that's my fear for you today. We can help you. My pastor, Jim Fitzgerald, took me down to there almost nine years ago to Orlando Women's center and then ended up two and a half years ago just sitting on the wall there because I really felt a call to be there constantly. I asked God if that's what he wanted me to do for him to take care of my family supply. And he's been faithful for 28 months now. We've been at the end of every month, the bills are paid. So he is faithful. He's called me to that place and that's that. I don't know what else to say. He's just been truly faithful.

[Luke the Bear]

Okay, Marcus, so tell us, tell us about meeting John.

[Marcus Pittman]

I haven't seen that in a long time, by the way. So I, I think it was Patti Smith that told me I needed to meet John. So I did street preaching with Scott and Patty and a bunch of people and then we were in. I was, I believe I want to say I was in Georgia at the time. Pretty sure I was in Georgia at the time. And they were like, you got to meet John Barrows. Like, if you're gonna interview filmmaker abortion. Abortion clinic workers, you need to go interview John. And I didn't know who he was. He didn't know who I was. And he, he said, see? So he told, he said I could come. I think I called him on the phone. I was like, hey, I'm doing a film. I'm. I do street evangelism. I'm making a film on abortion clinic workers. And uh, he was like, well, you can come. Yeah, you know. And so, so I, I think because, because remember when we made Babies of Murder here? I think I only raised like $5,000 total on the film. So I, I like. And like every penny I use just on transportation to go. And when we did the film, I should give some background on how the film got made because it's kind of important. So John Speed invited me up to do a document, like a three minute promo video on his church. But he made the mistake of getting the ticket to return on 8am Sunday instead of 8pm on Sunday. So I couldn't go to church. And so I was like, well, what's the, what's the point of being here? And he's like, well, I'm going to the abortion clinic on Saturday. Why don't you just film the work we do at the abortion clinic? So Robert Gray went to the dollar store and made this sign that said babies are murdered here, which is on the. I don't know if you guys get a shot of it.

[Luke the Bear]

It's behind me, to my right.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, it's. So it's. That's the original sign that Robert Gray made. And I made a trailer from that moment, just from the time we were with John. And it blew up and went viral. And then all Of a sudden, all these street preachers were going to abortion clinic, making their own babies are murdered here signed. And I realized that was the film. That was the film. That was the.

[John Barrows]

The.

[Marcus Pittman]

The film was about the babies are murdered here sign. And then through that, we learned that you can't call. You can't say murder. Like, you know, we had no idea. But we're just like, yeah, it's murder. And then it just caused all this controversy among the pro life establishment. You can't use the word murder now. They use it all the time. But they didn't until this movie came out. And then. So I. So I. I was traveling the country. I didn't have much money left, so I got a Greyhound ticket from Atlanta to. To Orlando and I rode the Greyhound bus and I think John picked me up. And then I stayed at his house and he didn't know who I was, but let me into his house and I stayed at his house and I just got to meet him. And I was like, this is. This is the most real dude I've ever seen. Yeah, he wasn't, he wasn't. This, uh, I want to say. How do you say. Like this. He wasn't this Gospel coalition style, political sort of face sort of guy.

[Luke the Bear]

Right?

[Marcus Pittman]

It was just like a. I mean, here he is like, you know, smoking a Toro Fuentes. And you know, while he's out there at the cigar lounge smoking cigars, I'm like, dude, this is, this is my dude. And, uh, and I. He didn't want me to put any of the smoking on the.

[Luke the Bear]

Oh, that's funny.

[Marcus Pittman]

In the, in the documentary, I didn't. But I. But. But since then, we became really good friends. And you know, actually if. I'll see if my wife can bring it to me, I was gonna have. But he gave me a padrone 45 year cigar that he bought and he got me two. I smoked one with him and then the second one I never smoked. I kept it in my humidor and then found out that he did have cancer. And I saved it until the day he died. And then I smoked it. I still have the label from that.

[Luke the Bear]

Oh, wow.

[Marcus Pittman]

So I'll see if my wife can grab. I'll show it.

[Luke the Bear]

But yeah, so I actually, I'm gonna. I got. I got a little treat for Marcus here. So we did an interview with John in August of 23, so this was the last time I saw him. We went out and made sure we. We knew. We knew he had. He had cancer for like the hundredth time. This Guy just kept beating cancer and. And I need to. I need to mention too, like, John was so faithful. What year did you make Babies are murdered here?

[Marcus Pittman]

I think we released it in 2013, 2012. I. I feel like. Okay, that. That's it.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah. So he. He was. John was out at the mill some days, seven days a week. Like, never missed a day for all those years until I think he started going in 2008, if I remember correctly. But it was a lot of years. And then, you know, obviously passed away two years ago. But we went out and saw John. We knew he was not doing well and was going through chemo and, you know, knew we needed to see him while he was still with us. And so we were able to sit down and we. We got an. Actually, it's like an hour and 15 minutes interview we got with him, but we. We haven't released any of yet. We're gonna do something special at some point. But I have a little clip I'm going to play for Marcus here. We asked him about. About when you came and saw him. So you. I don't know. Yeah. This is funny. Okay.

[Marcus Pittman]

I've never heard this, right?

[Luke the Bear]

I. No, no, you. No one's seen this. I actually. I actually just saw this yesterday. Today for the first time. But I was rolling through it, so. I mean, I was there, but yeah, I didn't see the footage till tonight.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

So years ago, Marcus came out.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

And you were doing your normal thing at the Orlando Women's Center. He set up a little camera. Did you know Marcus very well then?

[John Barrows]

I didn't know him at all.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

He just showed up.

[John Barrows]

Just showed up. Thought it was another nut. I didn't mean that, Marcus.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

So Martin, this guy with the camera shows up. You don't know what's really going on. No filming what you're doing. And that got put into the film. Babies are murdered here.

[John Barrows]

Yeah.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

And so for us at Apologia, this very young new church plant filled with a lot of brand new baby believers. Very zealous, passionate. God used really. There was two parts of that film that really wrecked us as a church. It was Rusty Thomas preaching convicted us deeply. But it was also what Marcus filmed of you that day or period of days.

[John Barrows]

Yeah.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

Filmed you doing that. That challenged our church because it put flesh on it. Rusty saying, here's what God's word says. And it was very convicting. And then you were the flesh put on the story. It was. And now look, here's somebody that's not superstar.

[John Barrows]

No, not.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

You're not A. You're not a John MacArthur, R.C. sproul, George Whitfield, John Edwards. You're just someone who loves Jesus that's been faithful and you were saving. God was using you to save babies. So that's what God used in us.

[John Barrows]

That's beautiful. I'm so thankful.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

And it's funny because you didn't. You didn't have this big plot or

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

plan I didn't plan to do.

[Luke the Bear]

Sorry.

[John Barrows]

Yeah. I don't know. I don't. I don't think he's. I don't think he's. He does that much.

[Marcus Pittman]

It's true.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

What's interesting about it is that you. Nobody had a big plotting, scheming, no grand idea to turn that into what God's done. That's led to like, just in us. This is not just. We're not the. The whole own thing. Just in our experience, almost a thousand churches, we've been able to translate.

[John Barrows]

That's amazing. That's amazing.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

Thousands upon thousands of babies. The legislation that we ourselves have been able to be involved in and to write. But it's. It is interesting because it's like that car that breaks down.

[John Barrows]

Yeah.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

You don't plan that. No, it's just that God orders the universe.

[Marcus Pittman]

Right. And that.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

But I think that's kind of what I. I love so much about what's happened is that, you know, you've got major organizations that have professionals that plan, market and try to create a vision and a narrative, and they build and build and build and millions of dollars go into it. And sometimes they don't affect really much of anything significantly for Christ and the glory of Christ. But here you just doing your thing and Marcus shows up and then God uses that.

[John Barrows]

Yeah.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

Challenge us and lose any other churches.

[John Barrows]

Yeah. It's been an amazing road. Again, none of it planned. I'm not a marketer. I'm not a. You know, I don't know how to do anything other than get in my truck and drive down to the abortion clinic and talk to people. But, yeah, I mean, I remember R.C. told me, he said, john, you just stay on your 50ft of sidewalk. And he said, and God will bring the world to you. And I thought he was right. He was right. But I didn't think so. I think he was going to be. Who in the world's going to. You know. But it is so strange. I mean, I've got people, especially now that I've got sick. I'm getting emails from people from Ireland and England, all these different places, thanking me that They've followed different things and they've learned how to do different things and all of that. But.

[Luke the Bear]

But

[John Barrows]

it's truly been like an international kind of a thing that I haven't had to go anywhere. The only places I've ever gone is to your conferences that you have. And, man, I go there. I'm just like a spoiled little kid with all the awesome people that do what we do. I mean, the people that do what we do are so special. They really are. It's so incredible. I wouldn't have traded this for the world. I would have gave up being the President of the United States, anything to just do what God called me to do.

[Luke the Bear]

All right, we'll stop right there. I thought you'd appreciate that.

[Marcus Pittman]

Marcus, that's fantastic.

[Luke the Bear]

It's like a little message to you from beyond the grave.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, it's great, man. Man. Yeah, it's awesome. Yeah, I. I had no idea who he was. I didn't know anything about him, but I didn't know anything when we. When I was making that movie, you know, that's why I'm so passionate about independent filmmakers. It's like, you don't need a $100 million budget.

[Luke the Bear]

Sure. Right.

[Marcus Pittman]

You know, it's crazy. You just don't need it. You just need skill and talent and, and, uh, and. And. And. And you gotta. You gotta just be flexible to let the story kind of take place on it. Especially with documentary, you just like. Documentary was like. There was no story until I began editing it.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah.

[Marcus Pittman]

You know?

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah. Yeah. That's one thing. Yeah. That has been cool to kind of learn. As you know, you were here for a while, and I think we got that. You got that from Darren. Don't. It's just let the story tell itself. But.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, yeah, that's right.

[Luke the Bear]

But awesome, man. Well, let's. Let's go to a quick break and hear from Ion Layer, one of our big sponsors. And then we come back, we'll pick the conversation back up.

[Ion Layer Sponsor]

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[Luke the Bear]

Welcome back everybody. I'm just going to continue the conversation here. So just a couple things. There he was, Marcus, you know, he mentioned RC. He went to St. Andrew's Chapel in, in Florida. And RC Sproul was his pastor and a good friend of his. RC used to come and sit out, sit on the wall with him with his oxygen tank and help preach the gospel and save babies. And I miss that guy all the time. He was just the sweetest man. And like I said, he went through cancer so many times. And I remember one time he called me just to chat and like, hey, what's going on? And he's like, oh, I finally got a brain aneurysm. I might, I'm probably just gonna drop dead at the mill someday. And I'm like, he just kept going like fully expecting to just drop dead at the mill one day. From brain.

[Marcus Pittman]

He always told me he was on, he was at the end. So like first time I met him.

[Luke the Bear]

But he's the type of guy, you know, he'd have that and then you'd be like, well, let's, you know, you'd like try to encourage him and he's here trying to encourage you and just, you know, just. I miss, I miss those calls and in the, in his voice, you know, so it's good to see stuff like this and just think about them and. But I mean, who knows? Only the Lord knows. Well, he, he probably knows now, but how many babies that man saved is in the thousands. Yeah, it's. I mean, the amount of. Just to be there every day for that long and the amount of people.

[Marcus Pittman]

I mean, there was a. There was a baby saved when I was. Like, when I was. No, no. I don't know if it was when I was. I don't think it was when I was there, but there was a baby, say a baby that he saved came to visit. That's in the movie. It's crazy. Like, that wasn't planned.

[Luke the Bear]

Wow.

[Marcus Pittman]

None of that was. None of that was planned. Like, these. These people just show up on a straw in a. With a stroller and a baby in it. And John's like, oh, you got to come and, like, interview these people. And like. Yeah, it was like, such as. They just showed up that day just when I was out there and I was like. And I remember

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

he.

[Marcus Pittman]

They were walking away and I said, I found the end of the film. John.

[Luke the Bear]

Dude, that's funny. I. I didn't know because, like, I was flipping through there again today watching that, and I had no idea that. I thought that maybe he had him come or something. So that's funny.

[Marcus Pittman]

No. Showed up. Yeah.

[Luke the Bear]

And that would happen all the time. That. And I actually have a clip of my. So, I mean, we have a bunch of stories from him that we've been able to film over the years, and. But here I'll go ahead. This a perfect transition to this. I. I have my favorite story from him. It's like a real life gift of tongue story. I think Marcus knows the story, but this is my favorite story from John. I'm gonna go ahead and play right now because it'll be perfect timing for it. Here you go, Gabe.

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

Yeah.

[John Barrows]

A few months ago I was out preaching, and I don't like to stop preaching once I get started. And, you know, we always have people behind us on the road that are, as I'm sure everybody that does this kind of ministry has. They all run by and roll their windows down, have such pleasantries for you to help you on your day. But somebody was behind me as I was preaching, and they were, you know, I couldn't understand a word they were saying, and they were getting very loud and everything. And my dear friend Yoli said, john, you need to come talk to this guy. I said, yoli, not now. I don't have time. I said. She goes, no, really? So I said, okay. So I turn around and I look out and here's this gentleman sitting in his car. He's driving a transportation car that Delivers patients to doctors. So he's got this patient in the back of his car, but he stopped there, literally crying his eyes out. So I go over there to talk to him. I said, are you okay? You know what's going on? And he's going on and on and on in Spanish, and Yoli's translating, and he's saying, thank you. Thank you for preaching. You were here. We were here almost a year ago, and we heard your preaching, and we were sitting in that room, and we got in our cars and we left, and we just want to thank you. And then the passenger, the poor passenger, he. He was happy for the driver, but he just went ahead and got out of the car and walked to his. To his appointment. And then the guy gets his wife

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

on the phone on FaceTime.

[John Barrows]

And so I'm looking at his wife, beautiful wife, on his phone on FaceTime with a little baby. She's bawling her eyes out, crying and crying, talking in Spanish, bouncing her baby around. And I'm just going, wow, this is pretty cool. And when they were done and they said, thank you. I said, well, hey, why don't you come to St. Andrews and we'll go after church? We'll go get some lunch or something and have a talk. Just have a great afternoon. Oh, yeah, yeah, we'll do that. And I said, well, that's great. That's wonderful. And I think I had a time of prayer for him, and then I said, well, I gotta go back. I gotta finish preaching here. There's a bunch more people in here that were just like you were on the day you were here. And so he said, okay, thank you. And I turned around to walk away. And then something hit me.

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

Like, what?

[John Barrows]

And I couldn't figure it out. It was like, what is. What am I missing? I felt like I was missing something. People watching this probably already figured it out. You're a lot smarter than me. But I. I didn't get it. And I got back over to where I preach, and then it hit me. I said, yoli, stop that car. And she goes, why? I said, stop that car. And she yelled for him, and he stopped. We went walking over there, and I said, I think his name's Alejandro. I said, alejandro, how? I have to ask you a question. How in the world did you understand the preaching?

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

Because I don't preach in Spanish.

[John Barrows]

And he said, I heard every word that you preached in my own language, and I'll never forget that. I could not believe that.

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

And again, that's.

[John Barrows]

It doesn't happen. All the time. It doesn't happen to everybody, so you don't have to.

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

It's.

[John Barrows]

It's not all about you. It's. You just have to be willing to go. And God makes up for the deficits. God makes up for the things. I can't tell you how many people don't speak a language that God pulls out of that place. I don't know. It's just. It's just beautiful. He is the one that does all the things down. Anything good down there is from him. It's certainly not from me or anyone else on that sidewalk.

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

We.

[John Barrows]

We don't have that kind of power and never will.

[Luke the Bear]

Oh, I love that story so much.

[John Barrows]

I was.

[Marcus Pittman]

I was just telling that story to somebody the other day. They were asking me about tongues.

[Luke the Bear]

Oh, really?

[Marcus Pittman]

And I just recounted that story as the example of what tongues is.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah, exactly.

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

Yeah.

[Luke the Bear]

Here I have a real life example. I'm glad you asked. Yeah, man. John just had story after story after story like that, where it's just unbelievable. I mean, there's so many more I could play today. We just don't have time. But that guy, he. He's still there. There's a piece of sidewalk in front of Orlando Women's center that's worn down from him for being there all those years. And he was on crutches there at the end for a while, and it's literally just wore out where he would stand and preach. And I still want that chunk of concrete.

[Marcus Pittman]

I know. I know.

[Luke the Bear]

We started that process. I went down that road, and it started to get real. There's a lot of, like, red tape and a pain in the rear end stuff to do. I think we can do it, but you literally have to, like, go through the city. You have to get a permit to have it replaced. Like, it was just, like, a nightmare. And Zach, Morgan and I were there when we went to his. His funeral, and we had some time to kill. We actually went down to the city hall and talked to some people, and we're like, how do we get this? You know, I'm explaining to them, and they're like, oh, blah, blah, blah. And it just. It's a pain. So I still want it. It's still a goal of mine to have that piece of concrete, but worth it. Yeah, it's worth every dime. Yeah, for sure. But. Well, here I got time to end the segment. Oh, we had time. Okay. Barca just sent me a clip he wanted me to play. So I'm gonna pull this up here. Is this so Bring Bring me into this clip here?

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, I think so. This was. I. I went. I went to go film him. I don't. I don't know if this was from filming Babies are murdered here or not, or it might have been, but this was two years after. And this is him explaining to me the story of how the elders.

[Luke the Bear]

Oh, yeah.

[Marcus Pittman]

At New St. Andrews commissioned him into pro life work. And. And it's R.C. r.C. Sproul is. Plays a big part. It's incredible.

[Luke the Bear]

Yes, that's a good story. We actually, in the interview I have with him, he told this story again, but we'll go ahead and play this. This is perfect.

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

We should love the church. I mean, that's the. That's the place that God has designed for us to be fed, cared for, comforted and taught, just like a mother raising a child. I remember last time I saw you, I had just gone to see the elders at St. Andrews, and they had wanted me to put what my ministry was on one sheet of paper, and I couldn't because there's way too much going on here to be able to put on one sheet of paper. So I put nine pictures on a sheet of paper.

[John Barrows]

Paper.

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

And I passed them out. When I went in front of the elders at St. Andrews and they asked, what is this? And I said, well, I couldn't write it on paper, so I thought maybe you would point to a picture and I could tell you that story of what God did in there. They went through it and we did a few of them, and I knew I was bearing in on their time because they were very busy there. And I said, you know, I realize you guys are busy and. And, you know, I'll leave now and let you get about your business. And R.C. sproul said, John, I want to hear all of them. So I went through all the pictures with them, and they were blown away. And, you know, not blown away at me because I've never talked to anybody out of an abortion, but blown away at what God does down here at the very gates of hell. Ever since then, St Andrew's Chapel has been just a hundred percent behind the ministry here. The girls that choose life, they bring them in. The ladies in the church just surround them with love. Our church now has a midweek Bible study that some of the ladies do down here at Panera Bread. Like I said before, there's women that mentor them there. They have baby showers for them. They take care of all their needs, both physical and spiritual. And some have become members of St. Andrews now. And it's just a beautiful, beautiful thing when you have a church that is behind you, that when I stand here on that sidewalk and I say, we can help you and we can. We will help you, that it's not just me saying that. That it's literally hundreds of people at my church that stand there with me and back that promise up. There is a

[John Barrows]

much bigger

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

conviction and a much bigger confidence when you stand here and you know that your church is behind you. You know, R.C. sproul was teaching one Sunday morning on the disciples going out when he sent them out, and that they went out in the power and authority of him. And that me, through the church, also stands here in the power and authority of Jesus Christ. You know, St. Andrews, they're all behind us. They're all supportive, they're all encouraging people to go out. They equip us on Sunday morning at all the Bible studies to have weapons, to be able to go out and fight this fight. And I would encourage every pastor to equip the people in your church that they might go out and do this same thing and see just what God will do. It's just absolutely amazing what he will do if we just trust him.

[Luke the Bear]

Was that the actual sheet of paper, Marcus, or did you do that for the film?

[Marcus Pittman]

Nah, I made that in After Effects. Man. It's not that sheet of paper.

[Luke the Bear]

You never know.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, I don't. I don't think he had that. I just. I just. I faked it. So. But. But no, I. I think too, like, later on, New St. Andrews actually bought him like a cargo van because he had so many women coming to the church on Sundays. Pick them all up at once. And so. So I. I just love that clip of him explaining his time with RC Sproul. They were good friends, actually. They were, him and rc.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah.

[Marcus Pittman]

And so not. Not ju. They didn't have just relationship. They were actually really close. Rcs come out on that sidewalk a few times and they had. They had a really strong friendship and relationship. So I never got to witness that, though. I would have loved it. Yeah, I would have loved to sing, to see those two hang out.

[Luke the Bear]

You know that he's good friend or was good friends with John Frame, too. He actually went to. He was in John Frame's small group.

[Marcus Pittman]

I went there the first time I went to John Barrows's house. He's like, I gotta go to Bible study and do you want to come to Bible study with me? I was like, yeah, I'll come to. I'll come to Bible study with you. And I was like. The whole time I was sitting there, I was like, that guy looks so familiar. Why is that guy so familiar? And I realized it was John Frame. And I was in John Frame's house. That was just where he did his Bible study. Yeah, it was crazy.

[Luke the Bear]

I actually, I met John Frame at John's funeral. He was out sitting on a bench outside the church talking to some guy. And I was like, oh my gosh, that's John Frame. And I went up and there, used myself. Super gracious guy, you know. It's funny, I'll tell you that when we went visit him that last time, we ended up going to get a tour of the church in the college and all that. And Vesta was there and they introduced us to her and then we told them who we were. And she was like, oh yeah, John talks so highly about you guys. And she was the sweetest. She took us in, gave us a. Took us in the RC's office and was telling us some stories and stuff. It was cool. Anyways, I don't know if you knew this. It's not. This is no longer a thing. But for a while, at least. At least for a year after John passed, you could do like the Google Earth or like on your iPhone. The, like if you put in the Apple Maps, you could do the street view of Orlando. Orlando Women's Center. And John was still there preaching. Oh, yeah, for a while. And I just recently looked. Just a few weeks ago I looked and it's updated and he's no longer there. But for a while, it was the coolest thing you could. You put in. You look at the street view and there's John preaching still.

[Marcus Pittman]

Like, oh, man, it was cool, man.

[Luke the Bear]

You can go.

[Marcus Pittman]

You can go back in time. You can go back. Hold on.

[Luke the Bear]

Oh, can you?

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, yeah. Orlando Women's Center.

[Luke the Bear]

It was like. I was like. It was just like a ghost of John standing there preaching to those women. Oh, man, what a faithful man. He was just, you know, I called him Uncle Johnny. He was like, like an uncle. And just. He'd give you the shirt off his back and he. Like I said he'd call on you just to check on you. And even though he was dying and going through cancer and but. Well, let's. Let's go. That's a good place to take a break. So we'll go to our next sponsor and then we come back. I will.

[Marcus Pittman]

I have another February 2020. If you go back on Google Maps,

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

you can see it.

[Luke the Bear]

That's funny. Isn't that Cool.

[Marcus Pittman]

Oh, that's amazing.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah, that's so cool. February 2020. All right. All right, we'll go to the next break and then like I said, we come back, I got some more clips to play and we'll close out the show from there. So, Gabe, you want to go ahead and play that next sponsor? This video is brought to you by amtech Blades. We are very excited to be partnering with amtech. Bill Rapier, long time Navy seal, Dev group operator, amazing brother and friend looking for a battle ax to carry on your person to chop some wood. They've got you covered. Looking for a blade to carry on you every day. Also got you covered. Look at this. I got to check my mail. What do we got going on here? Oh, look how sharp that is. What is this? Oh, 5% off. You can go to amtac blades.com, put apology in the coupon code, get 5% off your order, and he will match that and give 5% to end abortion. Now, again, amtech blades.com. we're grateful for them. Check them out. Welcome back, everybody. So thankful for y' all joining us today to remember our good friend John. So I'm gonna bring us into this other clip here. This again was from the interview we got with him before he passed. So I got just a little background. You know, we went, like I said, went and saw him. And at this point, he was going through chemo and was losing a lot of weight, wasn't really eaten much. And so I, we joked because we. We took him out to eat about three times in two days, four days. We're like, you need. We're helping him eat. And he was like, oh, I'm not hungry. When he was eating and eating and think he gained some weight back that. That time with us. But so this clip here. Well, let me say this. I. We went out to the. To the mill one day. We actually visited him twice while we were there, but we went out to the mill and joined him one day. And I'll tell you, he calls those people down there, the carnies. They are some of the most vile, evil women you have ever encountered in your entire life. And I don't know, Marcus, when you filmed him, they weren't really there then, were they?

[Marcus Pittman]

No.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah. So they came later.

[Marcus Pittman]

I think they might be in. Babies are still murdered here.

[Luke the Bear]

Yes, I think you're right. I think they are on that.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah. So.

[Luke the Bear]

So you did encounter them, though, later?

[Marcus Pittman]

I. I didn't. I did encounter them, yeah, later. But they. They had the rainbow umbrellas and you know, like, they're. Yeah, they. They. And they were. And they were. You know, they were playing audio of how you die when you have cancer and stuff while he was out there. It's disgusting, but.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, they're just gross.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah, they were playing, like, cancer songs. I don't even know how that. I've never even heard a cancer song. But, yeah, just. Just awful. I mean, just disgusting. Like, they have a whole coalition, though, and stuff. And the weird thing about those ladies is they, like, is awful as they were to John. They had a weird love for him. I don't know if you saw that. Yeah, it was like. Like, the day we went. He. Funny enough, his cancer doctor was literally next door. And so we got there before them, and they were freaking out. Where's John at? Where's John at? They thought he had died because he wasn't there. And they were, like, starting to panic because they thought he had died. And we're like, he's just had an appointment. Then, like, no, half an hour later, he comes walking over, and it was just strange. But I. We left that day because there was. There was a point where, you know, I had to have some, like, legit holy spirit restraint. And here. This guy. This guy dealt with that for years, every day, you know, And I'm there for an hour, and I was like. And we walked away, and I said. I told. I was with Jeff and Zach, and I said. I said, now I understand Peter cutting off that dude's ear.

[Marcus Pittman]

Like, I. I get it.

[Luke the Bear]

I. I got it. Because I'm. I. I literally, like, if they would have laid hands on John, I would have gone to jail that day. Like, I mean, they. They did everything but lay hands on John. Like, it was. They are just something else. But here's what's crazy. So I think it was easy. That same day or the next day, we went to lunch with John, and it was his favorite barbecue place. And we're just eating and asking him questions, and. And Jeff asks him, so, like, what are you most looking forward to in heaven? And his answer was just astonishing. And. And so we. We asked him again in this interview. It's. It's like the very end of the interview, we asked him, and it actually ends with us. Oh. So I'm gonna play this real quick again, so in case you can't hear the question being repeated is, you know, you're. We all know you're not gonna be around much longer. What are you most looking forward to? So here, I'll play this.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

I know Jeff asked you yesterday, but what are you most excited about?

[John Barrows]

Oh, about heaven. Yeah. I just don't want to sin anymore. That's the biggest. I hate my sin. I hate how easily my heart can

[Luke the Bear]

turn.

[John Barrows]

And to not have that problem anymore has to be the most uplifting thing there could be, other than actually seeing Jesus face to face. I mean, in paradise. But my goodness, I long for it, actually. Yeah, I just don't want to sin anymore.

[Luke the Bear]

Those are the last words you got from John.

[Marcus Pittman]

That's, that's, that, that, that, that, that's amazing, man. Because he, he, he was such a real, yeah, authentic guy. I remember, I think the first time I went out to go film him. And, you know, for the most part, you know, you see or, like, your thoughts of abortion clinics if you don't, if you haven't been out there. Like, you think the people out there are either crazy or weird, or they're just standing there praying and not doing anything. And so when I went out there, I know there, there was this guy that was at the door and he was like, escorting this woman in to murder her, her child. And he, he said to the guy, you don't got two balls between you. I never, I've never heard that sort of raw authenticity at an abortion clinic.

[Luke the Bear]

Oh, my goodness.

[Marcus Pittman]

And I was laughing so hard, and I, I, I, I asked him about it. I said, like, how did you, like, why? Like, that was kind of like an aggressive sort of way. I haven't seen it before. And he goes, he goes, I talk to men like that all the time out here. And most, some of the times they'll come out and they'll give me a hug and say, nobody ever spoke to me like a man before. And then they'll go in there and protect their, they'll go and grab their child and take them out of there. And I was like, man. And like, that really kind of like, opened my eyes. Like, you know, we think abortion clinic ministry is the thing women do, but you really need a man out there. And he was like, really good at, like, he would tell me, he's like, this is my abortion clinic. You know, he's like, I don't mind other people being here, but they all follow my rules. And he took leadership of that place. And he had a rule that women were not allowed to talk to men when they were, when they were doing the evangelism. That was his job, was to address the men, and they were only to address the women. And, like, he made sure that the women out there followed his rules or, or they would be banned. Like, he told me about women who just not that he would call the elders and the elders would make sure they don't come out there anymore. I mean, he took control of that place, you know, and it just made me really realize, man, it's so important to have, like, male leadership outside of the abortion clinics. Like that. I've never, never seen that happen before.

[Luke the Bear]

Man, that's cool. Yeah, he just, I mean, I knew, knew the man for a lot of years and obviously he wasn't perfect, but I don't. I never heard that Manson. I never saw that Manson. Like, you know, like, that's the honest truth.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, yeah.

[Luke the Bear]

You know, and for the amount of abuse he took and, you know, you'd think someone like him, his answer to that question would be, well, there'll be no more abortion, you know.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah.

[Luke the Bear]

You know, or I'll be in heaven with Jesus. You know, it's like, no, I don't want to sin anymore. It's like, who says I.

[Marcus Pittman]

But, but by the way, here's a cigar label I got.

[John Barrows (Interview Clips)]

Oh, nice.

[Luke the Bear]

That pictures from the interview that, that picture you have is from this interview we did on them, so.

[Marcus Pittman]

Oh, yeah, all right.

[Luke the Bear]

Yep.

[Marcus Pittman]

So. So. But yeah, that's the last cigar of his he bought me. I kind of kept it.

[Luke the Bear]

That's awesome. Yeah, it's just like, you know, I came away from that, just so convicted because here I spent one hour at the mill with him and I definitely at least send in my heart, you know?

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, yeah.

[Luke the Bear]

You know, it's just like, man, how does, you know, how does someone endure that and not be. I'm sure there was times where he was sinful, but, man, just. What an amazing. What an amazing man. And that story, I love that story so much. Here, I got one more clip here. This would be a perfect one to end it on. So it's actually shortly before. Oh, you know what? Before I play this. Talk about. Because I was gonna play the clip, but I don't have time in. Babies are Murdered here. You were there, actually, where he bout got assaulted by a man. You know, I'm talking about.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Luke the Bear]

So, so talk about that because you saw that. I mean, that guy was. I, I, it's funny because I haven't watched the film in a lot of years and I was watching again this morning. I was like, oh, man, is he gonna hit him?

[Marcus Pittman]

Like, yeah, that happened. Like, that happened every time I was out there. There was always some guy that would. I remember him making fun of a guy who. Who. Who was. Was saying that he was in the military and you're not a real man because you never served in the military or whatever. And. And he said, well, you're not a real man because you're gonna kill a child. Oh, my goodness. And that guy got so mad. But yeah, there was. I mean, like, he would. He was. Like, he was constantly. I think God gave him a lot of protection out there, too, because, sure, there are some vile people that. That. That he had to deal with. You know, there was. There was one other thing I wanted to mention really quick, which was. Oh, I left my. It left my head. But yeah, so just.

[Luke the Bear]

You'll remember, I'm sure.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, so many great stories.

[Luke the Bear]

But. Yeah, but he even had, like, the, like, police. He talked about that. And that last interview we got with him, he. There were. There was a police officer assigned to just that clinic that would just sit out there. And. And they. So he said he have cops that would, like, volunteer for that because they hated him so much. And what he's doing, he's telling stories about the cops coming out there and harassing him. And, you know, and even that day we were out there, there was a cop sitting out there and just giving us a hard time about something. I don't remember what it was, but, I mean, goodness gracious. Just the evilness of. Of that. But. Okay, so if you remember what you're gonna say, just let me know.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah.

[Luke the Bear]

So this. This other clip I'm gonna play here, we asked him, what do you want to be remembered for? Or how do you want to be remembered? And hopefully I have this queued up in the right place here because I was doing it on the fly.

[John Barrows]

It's really a struggle. It might be, if I can't be there for. So it's a straw. It's like. It's such.

[Luke the Bear]

Okay, hold on. So actually, this was. I'm glad I played this here. The question here was Pastor Zach asked him, like. He's like, I bet there's days you didn't want to go to the mill. And his answer was like, no, actually, it was harder for me not to go to the mill when there was days that I knew I wasn't going to be there. Like, I hated it because I knew I needed to be there. There's babies that need to be saved. I'm like, again, like, who. Who is this man? Because I wouldn't be me anyways. And I think the question I was gonna play is right after this, just

[John Barrows]

Struggle, like, Friday, I'm not gonna be there. I have to get chemo. And it's such a struggle. It's such. I mean, I can't tell you.

[Gabe (Audio/Video Technician)]

And the struggle is because babies are gonna die.

[John Barrows]

Yeah. And it's then that I have to think to myself also that it's not you, John. I mean, God can do what. What he's gonna do. I don't know. Well, Just as just being a storyteller

[Marcus Pittman]

for God,

[John Barrows]

that's all. I mean, there's no good thing in me, but every kind of goodness there is is in him. And that's what we get to see. That's why there's no ministry. Like,

[Luke the Bear]

So I wanted to play that because I figured the best way to honor him would be to tell stories. And he wanted to be remembered as a storyteller. And, boy, was he good at telling stories. We'd have him come out to end abortion now conferences, like he was saying. And, you know, we'd have guys speaking landliners or speakers lined up to give powerful talks, encourage people to go out and do, you know, do this work and challenge. Challenge everyone. And then John would just come and tell stories, and everyone was just glued to every word, you know, just to hear the stories he had to tell. And so that's the best way I feel like I can honor the man is to tell his story and. And encourage. Encourage people to keep doing the hard work and. And honor him in that way. Yeah.

[Marcus Pittman]

The one. One last thing I remembered, what I wanted to say is, is you were talking about how the abortion clinic workers actually had a love for him that they did. But there was a time where he was actually invited to have Thanksgiving dinner in the back of the abortion clinic by the abortion doctor. And so the abortion doctors. It was the day before Thanksgiving. The abortion doctor says, hey, we're gonna have a staff Thanksgiving dinner. Do you want to come and eat with us? And he was like, did you poison it? Like, why would I do this? But he went and he got to go into the. They invited him into the abortion clinic, and he had dinner with the nursing staff and everybody. And that's when he told me that they had, like, angel wings above the. The abortion table. And they would tell people that, you know, I had some weird Bible verse above the abortion table.

[Luke the Bear]

Oh, really?

[Marcus Pittman]

Tell me your baby's in heaven now. Or something like that. Like, you know. But yeah, so he actually got to go in there. They invited him in there. It was a weird thing. It was like he was just part of the culture of that clinic so much that even though it was kind of like a love to hate sort of thing, more than it was like a. It was kind of like the. The. The nastiness that they had was them just doing their job, but, like, deep inside, they really cared for him. It's crazy. I never seen anything like it before.

[Luke the Bear]

That is crazy. I know his. The guys that still go, they tried to put a. Like a bronze statue of him on that wall as a memorial, but it didn't work out. I forget. I forget why it didn't work out, but they tried. But, yeah, I mean, Marcus, you're a storyteller. You're good at telling stories. And, you know, you told his story, and we heard it, and now there's countless stories being told, and we'll be told, you know, for who knows how long, about babies being saved because of that. And. And so, you know, this man's a hero.

[Marcus Pittman]

That's also. Me and my wife, like, specifically pray that we get to adopt a baby rescued from.

[Luke the Bear]

Oh, man.

[Marcus Pittman]

Like, that's our. Like, that's our, like, top. We'll take any baby, but, like, that's kind of like, wouldn't it be awesome if we could adopt a baby from Orlando's Women's Center? So we, like, we're. He's still on our mind, and it's just. It's. It's great to be able to share stories of him.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah. Yeah, man. He just had the. His voice is just so calming, you know, like, just watching his. You know, I have a. I have an audio recording of the last time I FaceTimed him before he died, which is the week or two before he. He could still talk. And, you know, I have the audio recording every once in a while. I just want to hear his voice. I'll go and play that just to hear him, but. Yeah. Well, any. Any closing thoughts, memories you want to share? Marcus?

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah. I remember when I heard he died, we. Me and my wife were in Walmart and I got the Facebook message, just started crying. In Walmart.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah.

[Marcus Pittman]

You know, it was. Very few people affected me that much with. With their passing. My grandma was one of them, but. And, you know, so I. I remember just being really upset about that. It was pretty. Pretty tremendous. You know, the other thing, too, I remember how he shifted. Like, he would be the kindest, most gentle person, and then he would turn it on in a minute and just be insanely aggressive in the right ways. But just like, his. His tone would change, like, you know, as they get Closer to that abortion clinic. His tone just would just ramp up for. At first. You'd be very kind. Let me help you. Then. It's just pure, like, do not go in. I mean, it was unbelievable. I never. I've never seen anything like it before.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah, that's so awesome, dude. We were. We were recording when I got the text from his wife. There's a show two years ago. We were doing it now, and we knew it was any minute. And it's funny because I actually. I thought for sure he was gonna pass on my birthday, which was the 13th. He passed on the 15th. And I. I was like, it's gonna be my birthday for sure. Because that's also R.C. sproul's birthday. And I thought for sure. I'm like, it's gonna be like, he'll go on. On RC's birthday, guaranteed, you know? And then. Yeah, but so we knew it was coming. And, yeah, we were recording, and I got the text and I just, like, he's gone. And Jeff's like, what? And, like, in the middle of the show, and we just, like, sat there for, like, five minutes, just silent. But, yeah, I miss that, man. Rebecca told me if. Rebecca, I'm sure you'll see this. We love you. Hopefully you don't mind me telling the story. She. She called me. We had, like, just got done recording. She called me, like, half an hour later, and she's like, I gotta tell you this crazy thing. And I'm like. She said that, like, they're in the hospice room, and it was all dark and quiet, and like, all of a sudden, like, this. Like this above him, this beam. It's just like a beam of light came and, like, settled on him. And then, like, he stopped breathing and it was gone.

[Marcus Pittman]

Wow.

[Luke the Bear]

And she. Believe it. I do, too.

[John Barrows]

And she was.

[Luke the Bear]

She called me. I love you, Rebecca. She called me. She's like, I haven't even called my elder yet. I'm calling you. I was like, wait, what? And. And she's, like, just freaking out. And I was like, oh, my gosh, that's incredible. And she's like. She's like. I asked the. She's like, there was another lady with her. There was a Christian. She saw. She asked the nurse that was there, did you see that? And the nurse was like, yeah, actually, I see that quite often. And that lady was a Christian, but there was family members in there that weren't Christians, I guess, and they didn't see it. Crazy. Just crazy, man.

[Marcus Pittman]

I believe it, man. You know, hopefully Mike Winger doesn't call me out, but I believe it.

[Luke the Bear]

That's hilarious. Oh man. All right, well, hey, can you stick around for an after show? You got time? Okay, we'll just take a quick 15 minute after show so we can just, I may play some more clips or talk, tell more stories. But anyway, so we'll just go ahead and end there. So grateful for everyone, all you all accessors and your support and again for everyone that supports end abortion now and the work you're supporting for these bills and for saving these babies. Again is John's partially responsible for that and we're grateful for him and his life and ministry. And of course I want to mention Dominion wealth plus all the at the beginning you can go to Reform money to check them out and they're fantastic dudes and grateful for their partnership. And you can go to shop.apacheStudios.com to get any of these tracks. I mean we got the abortion tracks in English and Spanish and you get some coffee, some swag and support us there. And then of course, speaking of our equal protection bills, Bradley Pierce, who writes all of our bills, who Marcus also knows, great dude and he also runs Heritage Defense. You can go to heritagedefense.org if you homeschool your children, sign up with them, it's super affordable. Put apology in the coupon code to get your first month free. And they're there 24 7. If you have a three letter agency show up at your door, you just call them hotline number and your phone and they'll make sure you're protected for any of that hot garbage. So on that note, we'll go ahead and wrap up the show and we'll be back next week. And if you're not access subscriber, please stick around for the after show and we'll chop it up some more with Marcus. Hey dude, it's good to have you on man. It's been a minute and.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah, yeah, thanks, thanks, thanks for having me on and maybe I can come back and talk about some more happy stuff.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah, Marcus basically lived here at the studio for like five years. Literally sleep on the couch.

[Marcus Pittman]

Yeah.

[Luke the Bear]

So there's probably still ginger beard hair somewhere around here.

[Marcus Pittman]

I'm sure, I'm sure there is.

[Luke the Bear]

Yeah, man, that's good. I know the last few times you've been around, like I haven't, we haven't been able to catch up. So anyways, thanks for being on, dude. And we'll, we'll see you all next week. Thank you.