THE ROAD FORWARD - MARCH 8th, 2026

Summary

Real America’s Voice – "The Road Forward" (March 8, 2026)

Overview

This episode aired amidst a watershed moment in global politics: one week after the U.S.-Israeli Operation Epic Fury resulted in the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei. The program is framed around the rapidly escalating Middle East conflict and America’s role, with host Ryan Helfenbein (filling in for Dr. Tim Clinton) guiding discussions with conservative leaders Ralph Reed, Lucas Miles, and Heidi St. John. The episode also touches on issues of American identity, faith in public life, education policy, and Christian unity in the wake of Charlie Kirk's death—all through the lens of current political and cultural developments.

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Key Segments & Timestamps

• Operation Epic Fury & Middle East Crisis (02:34–21:38)
• Faith, Denominations, and the Legacy of Charlie Kirk (26:32–36:57)
• Conservatism, Trump’s Leadership, and Midterm Prospects (41:53–56:33)
• Education Policy & Parental Rights (50:20–56:33)
• Closing Reflections and Call to Prayer (57:02–End)

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1. Operation Epic Fury: Analysis and Historical Context

(02:34–21:38)

Main Points:

• The episode opens with Ryan Helfenbein setting the stakes: the largest American military operation in the Middle East since Iraq 2003. Iran retaliates with missile strikes across the region; the stated U.S. goal is to end Iran's status as a nuclear-armed terrorist sponsor ([02:34]).
• Ralph Reed delivers a historical deep-dive, tracing the roots of the Iranian regime to the 1979 revolution and its enduring effect on global terrorism and U.S. foreign policy:

  “This is the bloodiest and the most dangerous regime in the bloodiest and most dangerous region in the world… They are the leading state sponsor of terrorism. They have killed thousands of Americans.” ([07:34])

• Reed stresses the inevitability of confrontation and the burden on the presidency:

  “The only issue here…is when was this going to happen? And which president was going to have the guts and the courage to do what was necessary to get rid of this regime.” ([09:06])

• Ryan and Reed reflect on the Iraq War, how it was universally supported at the time, and how Iran’s proxy militias were a major threat to U.S. forces ([08:33]).
• Reed links Iran’s activities to global instability, including ties to China, the BRICS nations, and venues such as Venezuela:

  “Every single one of those [global threats] could be traced back to Iran. Every single one.” ([13:37])

• Reed is notably supportive of President Trump’s resolve and the joint U.S.-Israeli military intelligence that enabled the strike. He highlights the quick elimination of Khamenei:

  “It took nine months to find Saddam Hussein. It took nine years to find Osama bin Laden. It took nine minutes to find the Ayatollah… This is the most lethal, the most effective military we have ever had.” ([16:34])

Memorable Quotes:

• “Peace is never the absence of conflict. It is the presence of real and lasting justice and total resolve.” – Ryan Helfenbein ([03:16])
• “If you want to protect Israel, you want to protect our national security interests… then these guys have to go.” – Ralph Reed ([10:25])

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2. Faith, Denominations, and Charlie Kirk's Legacy

(26:32–36:57)

Main Points:

• Lucas Miles joins to address rumors regarding Charlie Kirk’s faith and denominational identity after his death:

  “Charlie loved the church, period… that included any facet… that were actually true followers of Jesus Christ… He was always a seeker of wisdom.” ([27:30])

• Miles clarifies that Kirk remained evangelical, did not secretly convert to Catholicism, and cared deeply about Christian unity:

  “Charlie, on the day that he died, he called himself an evangelical Christian.” ([29:31])

• The conversation draws a dividing line between theological differences and shared Christian mission:

  “The most important thing… is that we introduce people to Jesus Christ, not necessarily to a particular denomination.” – Ryan Helfenbein ([31:20])

• TPUSA Faith is preparing a national “Make Heaven Crowded” tour, inspired by the spiritual revival following Charlie Kirk’s memorial:

  “We started off in California. We had 5,500 people at the first one, 300 salvations… We want to see people come to Jesus… for the testimony of the gospel to go around, not only this nation, but around the globe.” – Lucas Miles ([34:16])

Memorable Quotes:

• “At the end of the day, there’s not going to be denominations in heaven… The question that matters most: Do you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?” – Lucas Miles ([32:32])
• “If pastors are not… helping people to think biblically in the boardroom, in the bedroom, and at the ballot box… might be worth considering looking for a new church.” – Lucas Miles ([35:52])

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3. Conservatism, Trump’s Leadership, & the 2026 Midterms

(41:53–56:33)

Main Points:

• Heidi St. John, author and conservative activist, reacts as a mother and grandmother to U.S. actions in Iran:

  “If you don’t know President Trump… there are videos of him from 20 years ago talking about this and how we can’t be pushed around by Iran. He campaigned on change in the Middle East… making a change from the regime in Iran, which has brutalized its own people now for generations.” ([43:06])

• St. John argues that “America First” must include global leadership:

  “All these people that say they’re America first, but they don’t want us to participate in anything that happens in the Middle East, do not understand that we do not exist in a vacuum.” ([43:45])

• Both Helfenbein and St. John recount failures of previous administrations, emphasizing that Trump is enacting overdue regime change.
• On political consequences, St. John warns of conservative division:

  “We’ve got a lot of people in the so called America first movement who… are dividing the conservative movement. Democrats are going to throw everything they have at President Trump to make sure he loses… The main thing right now is that we are not divided.” ([47:23], [49:13])

• Appeals to Christian voter turnout and unity, referencing past electoral losses due to Christian disengagement.

Notable Quotes:

• “We do not need uniformity, but we do need unity. You can’t win elections without unity.” – Heidi St. John ([49:26])
• “If Christians would just show up, we wouldn’t just win, we’d win in a landslide.” – Heidi St. John ([47:58])

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4. Education Policy & Parental Rights

(50:20–56:33)

Main Points:

• Discussion shifts to the domestic front and the ongoing fight over education in left-leaning states.
• St. John describes a recent legislative battle in Washington state:

  “[Chris Reichdahl] wanted to roll back compulsory education [to six years old] and then hold parents in contempt for truancy…if by the age of six…they did not submit a scope and sequence to the state.” ([51:25])

• St. John testifies before the state legislature, helping to defeat the bill in committee:

  “Everything in Washington state is broken right now. You’re taxing us into oblivion. Our schools are a mess. Our kids don’t know what a woman is… The one thing that’s working is homeschooling. And you guys want to break it. Leave it alone.” ([55:23])

• St. John argues that education is the “five-alarm fire” that may ultimately determine the nation’s ideological trajectory:

  “We are turning out… kids who have been radically indoctrinated into leftist ideology… At this point, it is simply a math game and we will be outnumbered if parents don’t wake up.” ([56:09])

Memorable Moment:

• “The public education system in our nation… is a five alarm fire. It will not matter if… we have another decent election…if parents don’t wake up…and take their kids out of the system.” – Heidi St. John ([56:09])

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5. Closing Reflections: Faith and Leadership in Uncertain Times

(57:02–End)

Main Points:

• Ryan Helfenbein closes with a quote from Martin Luther on surrendering control and exhorting listeners to prayer in the midst of war:

  “Panic gives into fear while pretending avoids reality altogether. Luther reminds us…the things we try to control always slip from our grasps. But what we entrust to God always, always remains secure.” ([57:02])

• Helfenbein urges prayer for President Trump, administration leaders, service members, Israeli partners, and the Iranian people.

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Noteworthy Quotes & Speaker Attribution

• Ralph Reed on Iran:
  “This is the bloodiest and most dangerous regime in the bloodiest and most dangerous region in the world.” ([07:34])
• Lucas Miles on Christian unity:
  “At the end of the day, there’s not going to be denominations in heaven… The question that matters most: Do you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?” ([32:32])
• Heidi St. John on education battles:
  “The public education system in our nation… is a five alarm fire… At this point, it is simply a math game and we will be outnumbered if parents don’t wake up.” ([56:09])
• Ryan Helfenbein’s guiding principle:
  “Peace is never the absence of conflict. It is the presence of real and lasting justice and total resolve.” ([03:16])
• Heidi St. John on political engagement:
  “If Christians would just show up, we wouldn’t just win, we’d win in a landslide.” ([47:58])

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The Road Forward: Key Takeaways

• The episode interprets 2026’s Middle East crisis as both a historic inflection point and the consequence of decades-long U.S. foreign policy stances.
• There is strong consensus among all speakers that President Trump’s direct action against Iran, while risky, was necessary, overdue, and foundational for any hope of lasting justice and regional peace.
• The show treats Christian unity and the mobilization of Christian voters as existential issues—both theologically (as with Charlie Kirk’s legacy) and politically (in anticipation of the midterms).
• Domestic “culture war” battles—especially about education and parental rights—are depicted as crucial fronts that will determine America’s ideological future.
• In all matters, the show returns to faith as the source of resolve, direction, and hope amid uncertainty.

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For listeners unable to tune in, this episode of Real America’s Voice offers a highly charged, faith-centered, and unapologetically conservative analysis of world events, the challenge of unity in turbulent times, and a call to engagement both in prayer and public life.

Transcript

[Heidi St. John]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[Podcast Announcer]

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[Kristen Davis]

hi, it's Kristen Davis from Are you a Charlotte podcast? I just had the most epic girls day cruising around LA with my friend Heather Graham and thanks to Hyundai we even recorded a special episode for you. Sex and the City got me into

[Heidi St. John]

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[Kristen Davis]

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[Ralph Reed]

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[Ryan Helfenbein]

It's Sunday, March 8, 2026. Welcome to Real America's Voice News. This is Sunday, the road forward. One week ago, the world woke up to the news that Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei was dead, killed in a coordinated US Israeli strike that President Trump called Operation Epic Fury. It is the largest American military operation in the Middle east since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. And in the days since, we've watched this conflict spiral across the region. Iranian missiles have struck American bases from Jordan to Kuwait to Bahrain. Civilian airports in the Gulf states have been hit. British bases in Cyprus are also under attack. And American service members are in harm's way across the Middle East. The stated goal is to end the threat of the nuclear armed Islamic Republic and to eliminate their terror network, fundamentally changing the threat Iran has posed in the Middle east for nearly 50 years. The costs are great. No one denies that, and so are the risks. So we must pray for our troops and pray for the Trump administration to have wisdom throughout this conflict. We want to see peace in that region. But peace is never the absence of conflict. It is the presence of real and lasting justice and, and total resolve. Iran has never been confronted like they are right now. Our scripture reading today comes from Proverbs 21:31. The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory belongs to the Lord. As always, we want to be an encouragement to our viewers to trust in the word of God even in the midst of global conflict, and to pray earnestly for our leaders, our troops, and for peace. I'm Ryan Helfenbein filling in for Dr. Tim Clinton. I'll be your host today.

[Podcast Announcer]

For more encouragement and to stay connected, follow Dr. Tim Clinton on Facebook, Instagram and X. We love being a part of your life.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Joining us now is conservative political activist Ralph Reed. He's the founder and chairman of the Faith and Freedom Coalition. He's authored several best selling books and his columns have appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and National Review and many more. Ralph, thank you for joining us. Great to see you.

[Ralph Reed]

You bet. Ryan, good to be with you.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Well, I'm, I'm looking at Operation Epic Fury. I was, I was surprised. I shouldn't have been to be woken on Saturday morning, the 11th day of the ninth month in the Islamic calendar, that is Ramadan at 9 11, literally 9 11. And U.S. forces in partnership with Israel struck sites in Iran, nine cities, hundreds of targets Strategic military targets, ballistic missile manufacturing, uranium enrichment. There were a lot of different sites that were hit. Explain, get us up to speed, what has happened this week.

[Ralph Reed]

Well, I think this has been a long time in coming. This goes all the way back to 1979, before a lot of your viewers were born, when one of the most epochal moments in recent history, in the last hundred years occurred, and that was the Islamic revolution in Iran. The Shah was deposed and Ayatollah Khomeini established a radical Islamic dictatorship with an objective of exporting his version of radical Islamic, anti Semitic, anti Christian, anti American notion of a caliphate throughout the Middle east, which he intended to accomplish by exporting terrorism. Not just throughout the Middle east, but let's be clear, throughout the entire world. Has threatened the entire global economy by using one of their terrorist proxies, the Houthis, to fire missiles on the US Navy and on commercial vessels in the Mediterranean. I don't know if most people know this, but Iran has fired more missiles at US Navy vessels, and US Naval vessels have come under more fire in the last roughly year and a half than they have since World War II. We know what they did through Hamas on October 7, 2023, the worst attack on Israel in its history, essentially their 9 11. They were seeking to build a nuclear weapon. After the attacks of last June, they were actively reconstituting that nuclear program, and they were actively building a ballistic missile program that already reached to every major capital in Europe and would have eventually reached the United States. This is the bloodiest and the most dangerous regime in the bloodiest and most dangerous region in the world. They are the leading state sponsor of terrorism. They have killed thousands of Americans. And just to remind your viewers of the history here, Ryan, when we went into Iraq in 2003, and I know that's not a popular war today, and I get it, but just to be clear, everybody was for it at the time.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

That's right.

[Ralph Reed]

Bush did everything that they're criticizing Trump for not doing. He went to Congress, he asked for authorization, he got it. John Kerry voted for it. John Edwards voted for it. Dick Gephardt, the Democratic leader in the House, co sponsored it. Hillary Clinton voted for it. Everybody was for it. But we went in. When we went into Iraq, we thought we were deposing Saddam Hussein. And once he was deposed, we found out we were at war with Iran.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

That's right.

[Ralph Reed]

And most of the American soldiers who were maimed and killed were maimed and killed by Shiite militias and by IEDs, essentially roadside bombs. That were built, manufactured, and imported into Iraq by Iran. And the only issue here, Ryan, there's only one issue in this conflict, and that is when was this going to happen? And which president was going to have the guts and the courage to do what was necessary to get rid of this regime. It was only going to be a question of if it was on our timing or on their timing or if it was before or after they had even more ballistic missiles. You know, the total number of ballistic missiles that they have is, Is somewhat under debate, but it's roughly around 20,000. They fired thousands at Israel. And if you don't believe that our partnership with Israel, the Abraham Accords, and a possibility of peace and stability in the Middle east don't matter, then you shouldn't support this conflict. But if you want to protect Israel, you want to protect our national security interests, not only in that region, but, but throughout the world, and you want to have peace in the Middle east and have the Abraham Accords expanded, and you don't want to have a regime like this that chants death to America and calls Israel the little Satan and us the big Satan, then these guys have to go. And I have never been prouder of President Trump. This was not an easy decision, but to be perfectly honest with you, Ryan, it was a decision that was forced upon them. And, and I want to say one last thing, and forgive me for going on so long, but you know, these people who say this was a war of choice. It was only a war of choice. If you don't believe that the oath that you swore on January 20th of last year, when he put his hand on the Bible and swore to uphold the Constitution and protect this nation and protect the American people, if you don't believe that oath matters, then, yeah, this was a war of choice. But if that oath means something to you, then you really didn't have any choice. It was only going to be a question of when and how this regime had to go.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Well said. I think it's really important that people understand the breakdown of this history. Look, the, the Shia population in the Islamic world, it's very radical. It's about 10 to 15% of that pop living in Persia there was in leading up to the revolution of 1979. And I had to go back and read this history because I wasn't alive then. But reading the history of the, the Green Red alliance, this, you know, communist agitators there. There were those students in colleges and universities that were begging for the Ayatollah to come in and take over to depose the Shah of Iran. And as soon as that happened, all hell broke loose. They got their Islamic Republic, they got the very thing that they begged for. And as a result, we've had 47 years of terror and it's being exported around the world. Tell us just a little bit, though, also about how strategic Iran is to the BRICS nations and even what was happening in, in Venezuela. There are reports that Hezbollah was being trained in facilities there.

[Ralph Reed]

Yeah.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Maduro's government there in Venezuela. How important is, is it for us to recognize not only Iran's danger, direct danger, but indirectly in its partnership with other nations?

[Ralph Reed]

Well, let me answer that this way by relating an anecdote. I can't place when it was, but it would have been in the first two years of the first Trump administration. I happened to be at the White House. I can't remember the context, but I was in the Oval Office and I was talking to the President. There were a group of us, and I will never forget him saying this. I've never forgotten him. He said when I went in after I became president for my first full dress national security briefing. So this is in the Situation room. He has just become president and his entire national security team is gathered around the table and they have screens around the room. And they are literally going around the world and covering every hotspot, every conflict, every exposure, every risk, every bad actor. And he said after they got done, every single one of those threats could be traced back to Iran. Every single one. That's the answer. And it doesn't matter whether it's China, which is threatening Taiwan and will ultimately threaten Japan. It doesn't matter whether it's Kim Jong Un in North Korea who's sponsored by China. China was getting 15 to 20% of its oil from Iran at a discount, sanctioned oil, oil that we were trying to cut off in order to collapse that regime. And China, arguably, I mean, it doesn't really matter because it kind of depends on which day it is, whether it's Russia, China, North Korea or Iran. But these are the four main bad actors and they were all working in concert. And if you can rob China of that oil, you put a tremendous amount of stress on, on China. And this sends a very, I'm not saying this is why you do it. You do it for the reasons I've already indicated.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Right.

[Ralph Reed]

This was a regime that, if it was allowed to persist, was going to have long range ballistic missiles and was willing to fire them on Israel, on capitals in Europe. Look at what they're doing. Right now, Ryan, they're firing missiles into moderate Arab states.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

That's right.

[Ralph Reed]

That have made peace with us, our allies with us, or they've made peace with Israel and eventually they would have been able to threaten us. We simply cannot allow that to happen. You cannot have nutjobs who are radical Islamists who have an insane. Their philosophy is literally insanity. And they believe that they are going to establish an Islamic caliphate. They believe they're going to destroy Israel and wipe it off the map. They wanted to go to war with us and they wanted to do it with nuclear weapons.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Yeah.

[Ralph Reed]

That is not a world that we can live in. And, and I will just say that when you contrast the President having the courage to take this step and do so with our Israeli partners, you look at the extraordinary intelligence that I assume Mossad, but I don't know who had it, that we knew there was a high level meeting in the Ayatollah Khameneis compound and took him out in the opening hour of this conflict. There was a meme going around on Instagram, you know, that said it took nine months to find Saddam Hussein. It took nine years to find Osama bin Laden. It took nine minutes to find the Ayatollah, this Commander in Chief, this Department of War under Pete Hegseth, the Joint Chiefs under General Raisin Cain. This is the most lethal, the most effective military we have ever had. And I hope and pray, and I believe the country will rally behind the President because now that we're in, whether you thought we should have gone in or not, our troops are in harm's way and we have to finish this job. I hope and pray the Iranian people will rise up. I don't know if you know this or not, Ryan, but my. My wife Joanne actually grew up in Iran.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Oh, wow.

[Ralph Reed]

Yes. She lived in isfahan for about four years, I think from the ages of eight to 12. Her father was a former army helicopter pilot who was in Isfahan, that's the largest air force base in Iran. Was then, still is. And he was training the Shah's helicopter pilots. And my wife's family had to be emergency evacuated out of Iran when the Shah fell. But what my wife has told me, because they went to school in Isfahan, they had friends, obviously they socialized with Iranians. She said they love America. The people of Iran love America. They love Americans. They hate this regime. This will be as big a game changer if we can, by God's grace, pull it off as anything that has happened since the fall of the Berlin Wall. And the collapse of the Soviet Union.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Wow. Incredible. And what a legacy. And I think it's important, as our viewers are watching this, you know, I would. I would just want to urge people to pray for the president, pray for the leadership in Israel. What, what an opportunity that our administration has right now that America has to flex its leadership once again. I just was. You didn't, you didn't cover this part. But I'll just remind everyone. Obama tried to, with cash money, unbelievable. Billions of dollars, pallets of money to Khomeini, to the, to the Islamic leadership. They were able to use that money to develop further their ballistic missile program to further enrich uranium. And they had no, they had no end in sight in terms of their nuclear ambitions. They. They were only accelerating these programs.

[Ralph Reed]

Right.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

And Obama's nuclear deal kicked the can down the road.

[Ralph Reed]

Right.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Only gave a temporary moratorium. And so I think that's important for people to recognize.

[Ralph Reed]

And they were gaming that system anyway, Ryan. They were kicking out inspectors. The inspections were a joke. They were not allowing them unfettered access to the nuclear facilities. And you're right about all that. And not only that, but Biden released over $100 billion in cash and other assets that had been seized by the United States when the hostages were taken in 1979. I don't remember the value of those funds when they were taken by the United States and held in escrow after the hostages were taken, but they had reached a value of $100 billion. And Joe Biden released all of it to them to fund all their terrorist proxies. He paid $6 billion to get out one American prisoner. It is a disgrace what Obama and Biden did. And I thank God for President Trump and for his team. And I think this is a historic moment. It's a great opportunity for the United States and for the west, and it's a great opportunity for Israel. And it is an opportunity, the greatest opportunity, Ryan, in your lifetime or my lifetime, to have peace and stability in the Middle east at last. That would be an extraordinary development for the entire world.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Amen. We'll leave it there. Ralph Reed, thank you so much. No one could have said it better this morning. Thank you for breaking all of this down for our viewers. God bless you and your work at Faith and Freedom Coalition.

[Ralph Reed]

Thank you, my friend. You, too.

[Dr. Tim Clinton]

Do people ever come to you asking for help? Maybe hope?

[Ralph Reed]

How about prayer?

[Dr. Tim Clinton]

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[Podcast Announcer]

For more encouragement and to stay connected, follow Dr. Tim Clinton on Facebook and Instagram and X. We love being a part of your life. Support for the show comes from Public, the investing platform for those who take it seriously. On Public you can build a multi asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, crypto and now generated assets which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index with AI. It all starts with your prompt. From renewable energy companies with high free cash flow to semiconductor suppliers growing revenue over 20% year over year. You can literally type any prompt and put the AI to work. It screens thousands of stocks, builds a one of a kind index and lets you back test it against the S&P 500. Then you can invest in a few clicks. Generated assets are like ETFs with infinite possibilities, completely customizable and based on your thesis, not someone else's. Go to public.com podcast and earn an uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com podcast paid for by Public Investing Brokerage Services by Open to the Public Investing Inc. Member FINRA and SIPC Advisory Services by Public Advisors llc SEC Registered Advisor Generated Assets is an interactive analysis tool. Output is for informational purposes only and is not an investment recommendation or advice. Complete Disclosures [e-mail] Disclosures hi, it's Kristen

[Kristen Davis]

Davis from Are youe a Charlotte Podcast. I just had the most epic girls day cruising around LA with my friend Heather Graham and thanks to Hyundai, we even recorded a special episode for you. Yes, I have a good 90s story of Fred Siegel.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

What?

[Kristen Davis]

I saw Alanis Morissette there one time.

[Heidi St. John]

It was so exciting.

[Kristen Davis]

I was with my girlfriend.

[Ralph Reed]

She saw you, so that's like good.

[Kristen Davis]

She was very. It was like the height of Alanis time and she was with this beautiful man and I had a golden retriever puppy and the beautiful man wanted to say hi to the golden retriever puppy. We were eating at that little cafe there at the Santa Monica one and and Alanis hung back in a way that made me wonder what was happening. Like, who wouldn't want to pet this beautiful puppy. I was like, oh my God, it's Alanis. And then I was like, try to breathe, try to breathe, try to breathe because I love her so much. My new episode is out now presented by the all new Hyundai Palisade hybrid. Make every day epic.

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[Ryan Helfenbein]

Visit rkbeverages.com joining us now is Lucas Miles. He is a trusted voice in the American church on challenging topics in theology, politics and culture. He is also the lead pastor of Influence Church in Granger, Indiana, President of the Influence Network and senior director of Turning Point USA's faith division. Lucas, thanks for joining us. Great to see you.

[Lucas Miles]

Always good to see you, Ryan.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Hey, I, you know, this week I, I've, I've noticed that you posted something on X regarding kind of rumors swirling around Charlie and this has been kind of swirling around for a while. What did Charlie really think about Roman Catholicism? And and so you dispelled some of the Myths. And I know some people are peddling these ideas that maybe Charlie was a secret Catholic or he had somehow joined the church. Can you talk a little bit about that?

[Lucas Miles]

Yeah, absolutely. So first off, Charlie loved the church, period. And that include any facet or corner of the church that was actually true followers of Jesus Christ that had been transformed by the word of God, that were Bible believing and that were living obediently to Christ. And I think that we can find Christians in a lot, you know, true Christians in a lot of different sects and, and denominations around the globe. And, and Charlie was always grateful for that. Charlie also loved pastors. He loved, you know, he had really close relationships with leading pastoral figures that he would often text, ask questions to. Many of those were Protestant. In fact, I would say a vast majority of those were Protestant. But he had a favorite, you know, a few favorite Catholic priests that he leaned on as well, that he would ask questions to. That was just Charlie. He was always a seeker of wisdom. And look, at the end of the day, you know, I want to be clear, this is not about trying to attack Catholics. It's not trying to attack a particular, you know, denomination or anything like that. It's really about bringing clarity to Charlie's faith and, and really not allowing people to annex him or co opt him for their own agenda. I had the opportunity to work with Charlie closely for about a year and a half as the senior director of TPUSA Faith. That makes me sort of the chief faith, you know, executive at Turning Point. And I had spent a lot of time talking theology with Charlie and I can, you know, verify a couple things. I also spoke with Erica, his wife, about this. I also spoke with Father Klein, kind of the priest in question of Charlie's, you know, that was kind of around a lot of these rumors surrounding Charlie. Father Klein confirmed to me that Charlie had not expressed any interest in starting OCIA classes, which are the adult conversion classes. He was not enrolled in any of those classes. He had not taken any of those classes. He also, you know, you know, confirmed that, you know, Charlie had never expressed to him a, a, you know, desire to convert to Catholicism, nor did he convert to Catholicism. There would be record of that had he done so. The Catholic Church keeps, you know, very, very detailed records of those sorts of things. And so, you know, we just want to provide some clarity here. Charlie, on the day that he died, he called himself an evangelical Christian. And I think it's important to remember people, how they express themselves in that way. Did Charlie love, you know, some Catholic Theology. Did he love reading Catholic saints like Augustine and Aquinas like you or I would enjoy? Yes, absolutely. He was a seeker of wisdom and truth, but there was no secret conversion. There was no, you know, backroom confession of faith, you know, that he wasn't going to make known to the world or anything like that. That's all a myth.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

You know, it's interesting and I appreciate so much going back even into church history, because I know Charlie cared about that. He understood that we're not this disembodied Christianity, that Christianity wasn't invented in Kansas. Right. And that it's just not. It's not like suddenly in the contemporary we came, came up with this faith or these ideas that they're all connected, going all the way back to the first, second and third centuries. And so Charlie cared about that stuff. I love how you, you mentioned, you know, St. Augustine or even Aquinas, you know, great many evangelicals who would say, hey, I claim them as well.

[Lucas Miles]

Absolutely. I personally would cite that. Yes, for sure.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Yeah, absolutely. And so I think it's important that we recognize that the most critical thing this is a Sunday morning, people who might be watching. The most critical thing is that you know, and you follow Jesus. And I. I'll never forget this was some, an event you guys were hosting. Uh, Michael Knowles, who's a friend of mine, was on a podcast with Charlie and it was in front of a live group. And one of the things he said with respect to Michael and he respected him greatly. Michael is a Catholic. Michael attends Latin mass. He loves the traditions. He, he loves the oratories, he loves the liturgies. But one of the things he said is that the most important thing Charlie said this to Michael, is that we introduce people to Jesus Christ, not necessarily to a particular denomination. That's the most important thing. I. My church is a part of a campaign this month that we're going around the city of Lynchburg and we're being handing out Bibles, praying with people, inviting them to come to church if they don't attend worship anywhere in, in the city, but also just encouraging them to be a member of a local church somewhere, a Bible believing church. This is also what Erica expressed the week after Charlie's death, that people join a Bible believing church. You're a pastor. I think it's so great that you get to have this role, not only in the local church, but then nationally, a platform by which you can then share the gospel to so many people. Jesus Christ saves sinners. It is by grace alone, through Faith alone and Christ alone. And the good news is that anyone who calls upon the name of the Lord can be saved.

[Lucas Miles]

Absolutely true. And at TPSA Faith, we have the opportunity to work with now over 11,000 churches that are part of our network. Charlie was always very excited every time a new church was added to that. And we work with churches across a wide denominational spectrum within the Protestant evangelical movement. And we have a few Catholic churches that will stand alongside of us at times, and we always appreciate that. And look, at the end of the day, there's not going to be denominations in heaven. There's going to be really this one question, do you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? And I think that that is the question that matters most. And so I think it's important that we just don't look for opportunities, especially in somebody's passing, to, you know, hijack their name or their reputation, some way to leverage an agenda or to push some sort of idea. And there's people, obviously, that are out there that are doing that. And I think that, you know, look, the facts speak for themselves. Erica has. Has confirmed this. Father Klein has confirmed that Charlie was not Catholic. Charlie's own words confirm that he was not Catholic. And again, that's not that there's anything, you know. You know, it's. It's not that the detail matters, even as much as we don't want to see people try to twist somebody's words, to use them in a way, you know, after their passing. And so Charlie Kirk was a great man. He was a follower of Jesus Christ. He was a martyr. And I believe that's something that Catholics and Protestants can celebrate alike, you know, as we seek to find unity in the faith.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Amen. I. I want just a plug. Put a plug in for this, because I think it's really important to recognize what Turning Point Faith is doing right now in 2026. It's a midterm election year. A lot of people are thinking about what's happening over the next nine months. You guys are going city to city, coast to coast, make heaven crowded. You want to talk a little bit about that?

[Lucas Miles]

Yeah. This is a tour that. That arose out of the. Really, the. The groundswell of revivalistic activity and awakening that happened after Charlie's memorial. And. And we originally were going to do just a single, one big event for TPC faith in 2026. And after the memorial, we realized that we were thinking too small and that we really needed to look for opportunities to kind of take the spirit of what happened at the memorial across the country. And so out of that was born this Make Heaven Crowded tour. And we started off in California. We had 5,500 people at the first one, 300 salvations. We have, I think, three or four of these now under our belt. We're going to be. Our next big one is at our mutual friend Pastor Jack Graham's church, Prestonwood Baptist. That's gonna be April 29th there in the Dallas Fort Worth area. And we just cannot wait to be down there. It's going to be an absolutely incredible time. We're expecting upwards of 10,000 plus people at this. Erica is going to be there, myself, Pastor Jack Graham, Ellie Beth Stuckey, and a few other surprise guests as well, still to be added. And this can be a big event and just an opportunity just to share this message, the good news of Jesus Christ to help steward this moment that we're in. We don't want Charlie's death to be in vain. We want to see people come to Jesus and for just the testimony of the gospel to go around, not only this nation, but around the globe, just

[Ryan Helfenbein]

in the final moments. Pastor, I know that you, you know, you pastor locally, you have a church there in Indiana. How are you counseling them how to think more biblically about politics? How do you do that?

[Lucas Miles]

Yeah. So first off, I believe it's every pastor's job to preach the full counsel of the word of God and to help people to think biblically in the boardroom, in the bedroom, and at the ballot box. And if pastors are not doing that or the church you're attending is not providing you that kind of bold information about these issues of, you know, sexuality and marriage and sanctity of life and how to think through, you know, different policies and moral, you know, ethical issues, then I believe that, you know, it might be worth considering looking for a new church or at least talking to your pastor about why they're not being more expressive and bold about these things. We have a whole bunch of churches [e-mail] you can find a map there of a church near you that might be a good fit for you in this process. Or you can ask your church why they're not on the map, and we'd love to add them if they're willing to be bold from the pulpit for Jesus Christ and the full message of the faith. We have a lot of people at our church that have come in, they're seeking the Lord and they, you know, if we're calling Jesus Christ the Lord of our life, then we should be, you know, with that, submissive in every single area of our life and that includes our politic. How we read the Bible should shape how we vote at the ballot box.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Amen. The one and only Lucas Miles, pastor at Influence Church in Granger, Indiana, and of course, senior director at Turning Point Faith. Thank you so much for joining Sunday, the Road Forward. God bless you.

[Lucas Miles]

Thanks, Ryan.

[Dr. Tim Clinton]

Hi everyone. I'm Dr. Tim Clinton. And you know how important this is. It's my phone, it's my lifeline. It connects me with loved ones and business throughout the day, keeps me informed about the world around us. And that's why my cell service and data, they're so important to me. They have to be reliable, safe, secure. And that's why I use Patriot Mobile. Patriot Mobile is leading the way as America's only Christian conservative wireless provider. And you can enjoy nationwide coverage with access to all three major US Networks. That's right. Most importantly, when you switch to Patriot Mobile, you'll be supporting faith, family and freedom. That's right. The folks at Patriot, they've got four core values centered on defending God and country and supporting our military and the sanctity of life. I appreciate that switching. It's easy. Keep your number and phone. Or you can upgrade, make the move and defend your values without sacrificing quality or service. All you have to do is visit patriotmobile.com Again, that's patriotmobile.com Road Forward. Or you can call 9772-972-972-PIOT. That's 972 Patriot. You get a free month with the promo code Road Forward. Let me repeat that. If you use the code Road Forward, you're going to receive a free month of service. Hey, everybody can use that. The information is right there on your screen. Visit again patriotmobile.com forward/road forward or call 972 Patriot to get a free month of cellular service with the promo code Road Forward. Patriot Mobile's prices are very competitive with plans starting as low as $26. That's $26. A terrific offer from a great company that shares our values and standing with us for such a time as this.

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[Kristen Davis]

Davis from Are youe A Charlotte Podcast. I just had the most epic girls day cruising around LA with my friend Heather Graham and thanks to Hyundai we even recorded a special episode for you. Yes, I have a good 90s story of Fred Siegel. What I saw Alanis Morris at the one time.

[Heidi St. John]

It was so exciting.

[Kristen Davis]

I was with my girlfriend Melanie.

[Ralph Reed]

She saw you so that's like she

[Kristen Davis]

was very it was like the height of Alanis time and she was with this beautiful man and I had a golden retriever puppy and the beautiful man wanted to say hi to the golden retriever puppy. We were eating at that little cafe there at the Santa Monica one and Alanis hung back in a way that made me wonder what was happening. Like who wouldn't want to pet this beautiful puppy. I was like oh my God, it's Alanis. And then I was like try to breathe, try to breathe, try to breathe because I love her so much. My new episode is out now presented by the all new Hyundai Palisade Hybrid make every Day Epic.

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[Ryan Helfenbein]

Joining us now is Heidi St. John. She is a best selling author, podcaster, speaker and mom to seven children and many more grandchildren. She's a strong and fearless voice for the family and righteousness in culture. Heidi, thank you so much for joining us.

[Heidi St. John]

Hey, it's great to be here Good morning.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Good morning. Well, I just. First of all, all eyes on this in this nation right now on Operation Epic Fury. The president made an announcement this week, and. And certainly we're getting briefings and news briefings from Secretary Marco Rubio, from Secretary Pete Hegseth.

[Ralph Reed]

We.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

We already have some service members that have been killed in action. But just your overview how you're taking this in. As a. As a mother, as a grandmother, there are some people certainly calling into question. Wow, I didn't really think that the president would involve the United States in a war on this epic kind of scale. How are you assessing this, you know, in taking it all in?

[Heidi St. John]

Well, I think it's funny when people say, I just can't believe that President Trump would do that. Well, then you don't know President Trump. There are videos of him from 20 years ago talking about this and talking about the ayatollahs and how we can't be pushed around by Iran. He campaigned on change in the Middle East. He campaigned on making a change from the regime in Iran, which has brutalized its own people now for generations. And President Trump is the only president in the last 50 years who's had the guts to actually do what needs to be done. We desperately need regime change in the Middle east. And it matters, it should matter to Americans. All these people that say that they're America first, but they don't want us to participate in anything that happens in the Middle east do not understand that we do not exist in a vacuum. And what happens in the Middle east affects what happens here at home. And to me, it's a lack of understanding. I'm old enough to remember. I'm sure you are, too. The Iran hostage crisis. You know, we remember all this stuff. And I remember when being America first meant that we cared about what was going on in other parts of the country, and we were a shining city on a hill. And President Trump, God bless him, is bringing that back. He's doing what Obama didn't have the courage to do. Obama paid off the Iranians. Everybody seems to forget that Obama paid them off. Biden slept through the whole thing, and Clinton was a disaster. Carter started this. Reagan tried to help, but really didn't do what needed to be done. And now, all these years later, President Trump is actually on. I see it as a rescue mission over there. I thank God for what he's doing.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

You know, I think it's important you go back in history, and you're absolutely right. You look at the weak, the weakness of President Jimmy Carter that was on display back in the late 70s, a hostage crisis that lasted 444 days ended the moment that President Reagan took the oath of office. The same day hostages were finally released. Over 50 host the United States was shamed, was embarrassed by the Ayatollah. There was no resolve for what to do. Carter had no idea how to actually lead diplomatically. You fast forward, you know when in 2003 the United States and it was pretty much a unanimous vote in the Senate, Democrats and Republicans supported Operation Iraqi Freedom. Everybody in the rear view of course second guesses that but we had intel and the United nations even believed that weapons of mass destruction were in Iraq. But we were always fighting a proxy war with Iran. Even when we were in Iraq, we were engaged with a military paramilitary force, many of them trained and funded by the Iranian government. And so we've never actually done directly confronted them until now. And it's, it's fascinating to see this, but President Trump is the only one who had the courage to do it. Obama tried to pay them off with pallets of cash. Biden released over $150 billion and Iran was able to accelerate their nuclear ambitions building more, trying to develop ballistic missiles. And it, this is something Heidi, that many people don't recognize that it was not until 2025 that the Iran nuclear deal that was brokered with the Obama administration, that basically that deal was null and void in 2025, had a sunset and the sunset expired in 2025. Most Americans and the American media didn't do their job in reporting on this. But Obama never had a permanent measure in place. It was only ever temporary and he and he spent a American money on that project and it totally failed. Now we have a president leading. How do you see President Trump, you know, in terms of, and I think this is important going into the midterm elections. What consequence do you think this will bear out when it comes to the electorate?

[Heidi St. John]

Well, I think, I think it's, it's up for grabs right now. We need to wait and see what happens. I think it's too soon to say how this is going to affect the midterms. Americans apparently have a really short memory. We've got a lot of people in the so called America first movement who I think are doing a very good job of dividing the conservative movement. This is the thing that worries me the most. The Democrats are going to throw everything they have at President Trump to make sure that he loses. At the very least the House. I think he's got a good shot at Losing the House right now, less of a shot at losing the Senate, that seems a little bit more significant. But the House is up for grabs for sure. And really the Democrats only need to get one of those right now. President Trump has a trifecta, right, because he's got the executive branch and really the judiciary is mostly conservative, although cowardly conservative, but mostly conservative. And then he's got the House and the Senate. It's very, very important that Christians especially, that God's people show up for the midterms. You can't say it strong enough. We lost the last election here in Washington State because 1.2 million self identified Christians did not vote. We didn't lose by 1.2 million. We lost by about 10 to 15,000 in some of these issues. And if Christians would just show up, we wouldn't just win, we'd win in a landslide. And that is true virtually everywhere in the country right now. People need to turn out. And I think part of what you're seeing happening right now, especially with Operation Epic Fury and some of the things that are happening, the Democrats are using it and the, the isolationists like Tucker Carlson and now apparently Matt Walsh is turning into an isolationist. These people are actually splitting the conservative movement ahead of the midterms. I saw a really shocking statement from Will Witt the other day. Some of these people that I have, you know, been watching kind of changing their opinions based on influencers on X. These guys are not in the Situation Room. And a lot of them have no idea what foreign policy actually means and how it affects the United States. And yet these influencers are influencing people to not show up to vote, to be more angry about the Epstein files than they are about what's happening in the Middle East. And, you know, we can walk and chew gum at the same time. We can still be angry about Epstein island and all the things that have happened there and still care about what's going on in the Middle East. And so I think we need to be really careful that the main thing to me right now is that we are not divided as a conservative movement. We need to need unity. We do not need uniformity, but we do need unity. You can't win elections without unity. We've got to be united. That's why I think it really matters how this thing plays out on the world stage. But I mean, we just saw a parade on the streets of Los Angeles the other day, thousands and thousands and thousands of people turning out in support of President Trump, people who have been praying for the peace and security and safety in Iran for generations are praising him. I think you're going to see more and more of that if the mainstream media will allow it. And I think that will also shape public opinion.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

I want to turn, I agree with you. I want to turn to some of the domestic issues here in the United States, especially when it comes to education, which I know is near and dear to your heart. It looks like many of the failed policies. Of course, you know, President Trump had several executive orders when he came into office just a year ago eliminating CRT and DEI and much of the trans policy when it comes to government. But we have several states, California, your home state in Washington, Colorado, Minnesota, who have foisted this nightmare of woke ideology and trans ideology on Christian parents and on, on unsuspecting children who are not at a place in life where they can make life altering decisions when it comes to their body. Tell us a little bit about the front that you have right now in Washington, some of the bills that you have been raising public awareness on.

[Heidi St. John]

Yeah, I think it's really important for people who are listening who live in leftist run states like Oregon, Washington, California, Virginia, sadly now comes to mind if you guys see bills being brought to the front by the radical left because they see an opportunity to pass these, these, these bills into law. If you see that happening, the only way to kill a bill in a leftist run state is to kill it in committee. We had a bill come up here recently that was being pushed by Chris Reichdahl, who's the head of the Department of Education here. He wanted to roll back the age, the compulsory education here. Right now it's the age of 8. So in other words, we don't have to register our children for school until they're eight years old. He wanted to roll that back to six years old and then hold parents in contempt for truancy if by the age of six and they planned to homeschool, they did not submit a scope and sequence to the state of Washington for its approval. Well, I got news for you. Most people are having a hard time getting their six year old out of bed to brush his teeth in the morning. The last thing they're thinking about is a scope and sequence. And the last scope people they should have to report to are the public school officials in Washington state. So we raised the alarm about this. I drove up very early in the morning to Olympia to testify about it. The other thing is about these bills is typically they'll only give you between 24 and 72 hours notice. So you'll hear about it, and you'll have very little time to respond. I think that the reason that they do that is. Well, there's lots of reasons, but one of them is just to wear people out. You know, those of us that are driving up to our state capitols and testifying. We got jobs, dude. We got lives. We're trying to do things. And now I gotta call into work. I can't go in and record my show at the studio. I've got to grab people to go up there with me, take my assistant out of her normal job and drag her up to Olympia. My husband's coming up there. And they do this over and over and over again. And we just can't give up because the left will not sleep on this issue. They will not stop. We have to look at it like a wartime mentality, and by the grace of God. My friend TJ Schmidt, who flew in from Virginia, he is an attorney with hslda, TJ Schmidt and I were the last two people called to testify. So the last voice these crazy, lunatic lawmakers had in their heads was Heidi St. John's voice that day. And I told him very plainly, everything in Washington state is broken right now. You're taxing us into oblivion. Our schools are a mess. Our kids don't know what a woman is. We're paying to stage walkouts against ice at our public schools. And the one thing that's working is homeschooling. And you guys want to break it. Leave it alone. Leave it alone. And they killed the bill and committee by the grace of God. If that had gone to the floor, I guarantee you, we would have lost. I also went down with my friend Pastor Jack Hibbs to Sacramento to protest a bill that ultimately they did pass down there because, you know, Gavin Newsom doesn't give a wit about what Californians actually think. That, I think is going to be contested. I just heard from you in the Supreme Court, which is absolutely news, but it's a really good reminder to conservatives, you cannot stay home. We have gotten into this position because conservatives, I think, is a general rule. The Republican Party, they want to go to work, they want to raise their families. They want to just live their lives. And that is not what the left wants us to be able to do. And so we have to adopt a mentality of being engaged and being involved and being willing to have our lives interrupted for the sake of our freedom. That's what needs to happen. We see these wins very infrequently in places like Washington state. So it was encouraging to see that we've lost our rights here. We passed a parental bill of Rights in Washington State two years ago, worked very hard to get that on the ballot. Overwhelming numbers turned out to get that on the ballot. And as soon as the legislation was in session, they gutted the bill. They absolutely gutted it. Took out every provision that would protect children against trans ideology here in the Pacific Northwest. The public education system in our nation, Ryan, is a five alarm fire. It is a five alarm fire. It will not matter if in a few years from now we have another decent election or let's say JD Vance succeeds President Trump as the President of the United States. And let me tell you why. We are turning out by the hundreds of thousands every June, every May and June, out of our public school system, out of our high schools, kids who have been radically indoctrinated into leftist ideology. They think we're living on stolen land. They don't understand what a woman is. They would, they would absolutely march for the rights of men to invade women's spaces and locker rooms and sports because they've been indoctrinated into this ideology from the time they're 5 years old until the time they're 18 years old and graduate into the voting pool. At this point, it is simply a math game and we will be outnumbered if parents don't wake up to what's happening and take their kids out of the public education system. You can't change what's happening in the public school system. It is baked into the cake. The NEA pushes this radical ideology and until parents wake up and take their kids out of the system, either homeschool them or find alternative forms of education, I think our country ultimately will be lost to leftist ideology because of what's happening in our school system.

[Ryan Helfenbein]

Heidi, thank you so much for joining us and I appreciate so much. A Faith that Speaks, folks. Stick around. We'll be back after this. Commercial break with final thoughts.

[Podcast Announcer]

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[Ryan Helfenbein]

As we close today, I want to leave you with these words from Martin Luther. I've held many things in my hands and I have lost them all. But whatever I have placed in God's hands, that I still possess. We are one week into a war whose end is uncertain. American troops and American ships are deployed to a war zone. Missiles are flying across the Middle east and the stakes couldn't be higher. And the temptation is to either panic or to pretend. Panic gives into fear while pretending avoids reality altogether. Luther reminds us the things we try to control always slip from our grasps. But what we entrust to God always, always remains secure. So let's be a people committed to prayer. Pray for Trump. Pray for Secretary Pete Hegseth, Vice President Vance and Secretary Marco Rubio and all our service members in harm's way. Pray for the Israelis who are enduring rocket fire along with our advanced military bases in neighboring countries. Pray for the Iranian people and pray for peace that only the Prince of Peace can bring. Until next time. God bless you.