Ep 1288 | Life-Saving Gospel with Bryce Crawford; Riley Gaines' Perspective Changed After Motherhood

Summary

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Relatable with Allie Beth Stuckey

Episode 1288 | Life-Saving Gospel with Bryce Crawford; Riley Gaines' Perspective Changed After Motherhood
Date: January 14, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Allie Beth Stuckey sits down at America Fest with two guests: evangelist Bryce Crawford and women's sports advocate Riley Gaines. The episode explores Bryce’s remarkable gospel-sharing journey, including the supernatural encounter that led him to Christ and his thoughts on modern evangelism. Riley discusses how becoming a mother has radically changed her view of advocacy, fairness in women's sports, and even her approach to skepticism around childhood vaccinations. Both interviews focus on practical faith, courage, and countercultural truth-telling from a distinctly Christian, conservative perspective.

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Interview 1: Bryce Crawford – Street Evangelist and Gospel Communicator

Introductions & Bryce’s Mission (01:37-01:58)

• Allie introduces Bryce, noting his millions of followers and his street evangelism.
• Bryce: “I'm Bryce and I... I talk about Jesus for a living.” (01:45)

Bryce’s Testimony: Encounter with Jesus (02:00-03:56)

• Bryce details his struggle with depression and anxiety, despite a Christian upbringing.
• Shares a powerful moment on Christmas Day 2020 at Waffle House, planning to end his life. A stranger’s comment about love in relationships triggers an epiphany.
  • “For the first time, I thought to myself, maybe... God loves me because I haven't given myself a chance to love him back.” (03:11)
• He prays: “Jesus, if you're real, take away my anxiety and depression...” He says his anxiety and depression vanished that day.

Learning & Sharing the Real Gospel (04:00-05:09)

• Early attempts at evangelism were just telling people "Jesus loves you," but he realized that’s not the full gospel.
  • Bryce: “Jesus talked about hell a lot and talked about that people are going to go to hell and be separated from God for an eternity because of their sin. ... But because of His love displayed on the cross... we are justified and made right in God’s eyes.” (04:09-05:04)

Deepening Faith and Theological Roots (05:09-05:59)

• Immersed himself in scripture and classic theological works at 17.
  • Quote: “I locked myself in my bedroom... with my Bible and this book called Systematic Theology by Wayne Grudem.” (05:20)
• Emphasizes researching historic church fathers, not limiting oneself to denomination.

Evangelism in Practice & First Experiences (06:03-06:37)

• Started sharing gospel "the next day" after conversion. Discipled a former bully who was in crisis.

Key Lessons from Five Years of Evangelism (06:37-07:16)

• Bryce: “I think listening is the greatest tool of evangelism... not love bombing. It's just caring about people.” (06:49)
• Emphasizes that it’s not about saving people himself, but planting and watering seeds.

Gen Z & Revival Today (07:30-08:19)

• Bryce observes real spiritual hunger and revival among Gen Z, particularly in LA.
• Critiques previous generations for writing Gen Z off: “Why?... That is not hopeful for my generation...” (07:38)
• Calls for older Christians to be “fathers and mothers” to the young.

Overcoming the Fear of Evangelism (09:22-10:16)

• Bryce: “I still get nervous to this day. Every time.” (09:33)
• Advocates for daily prayer for boldness, citing scripture: “The fear of man is like a snare... if I want to be a fool for anyone, I want to be a fool for Jesus.” (09:35-10:03)

Explaining the Gospel Simply (10:16-11:10)

• Uses the analogy of a murderer deserving jail to illustrate justice, sin, and atonement.
  • “Forgiveness is canceling the debt someone owes you, and God has canceled the debt... with His life.” (11:03)

Hard Questions & Apologetics (11:48-13:19)

• Discusses encounters that stumped him; in particular, debated with Hebrew Israelites.
• Advice on apologetics: read C.S. Lewis, Sproul, Spurgeon, and modern apologists like Frank Turek.
  • “Don’t be the smartest guy in the room... always want to learn.” (12:41)

Personal Updates: Engagement & Advice for Singles (13:20-14:48)

• Shares story of reconnecting with his now-fiancée through a Bible study.
• Advice: “If you don't love Jesus, you're not worthy of being trusted with His daughter.” (14:16)

30-Second Gospel Presentation (14:59-15:36)

• Bryce gives a succinct Gospel summary, emphasizing God’s justice, Christ’s sacrifice, and the offer of true life.
  • Quote: “He who knew no sin became sin so that you and I could become the righteousness of God. And that gift is on the table for anyone, anywhere, at all times.” (15:30)

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Interview 2: Riley Gaines – Motherhood, Advocacy & Women’s Sports

Riley’s Courage and Public Backlash (17:02-18:59)

• Riley details initial struggles with public criticism after speaking out about fairness in women’s sports.
  • “I merely just wanted to compete fairly... For saying that, you're vilified.” (17:49)
• Processed hurtful, powerful words aimed at her for stating basic truths about biological sex.

Changing Perspective: Eternal Focus (18:59-19:05)

• Attributes courage and stabilization to her faith:
  • “I put all of my confidence... in the fact that I'm fighting for the... promise of eternal life. Once you do that... nothing of this world matters.” (18:59)

Dealing with High-Profile Criticism (19:05-20:46)

• Shares how it felt to be publicly criticized by Simone Biles, someone she admired.
  • “It was more so the devastation... that this is little girls’ role models...” (20:10)
• Support from her sister reinforces her commitment.

Shifting Public Tide on Women’s Sports & Political Impact (20:49-24:42)

• Sees increased public and legislative support for women’s sports:
  • “I do believe courage begets courage.” (21:13)
• Notes recent executive orders solidifying definitions of sex and restricting male participation in women’s sports.
• Predicts near-future Supreme Court clarification of Title IX.

Democrats & the “Absurdity” of Radical Policies (24:42-25:21)

• Riley’s take: Democrats are doubling down on extreme positions, which she sees as opening for Christian conservatives to step up.

Motherhood’s Effect on Perspective (27:01-28:05)

• Becoming a mom “changes my perspective on literally everything.” (27:01)
• The main focus becomes her daughter’s future, not her own legacy as an athlete.
  • “All of the pushback and backlash... when you have something so precious... that's the priority here.” (28:05)

Positive Postpartum Experience & Advice to Moms (28:16-30:34)

• Riley describes her pregnancy and postpartum as “easy...a dream.” (28:16)
• Both she and Allie stress that every pregnancy is different—and even when it’s hard, hard is not bad.
  • “Hard is not the same thing as bad. Hard is good. Trials are good. They shape you.” – Allie (30:32)
• Reflects on advice from Rachel Campos-Duffy: "Think 20 years from now when you're sitting around the Thanksgiving table..." (30:34)

On Childhood Vaccines & Medical Skepticism (32:33-36:30)

• Riley explains her decision to forgo vaccines for her baby—cites concerns about ingredients (aluminum, mercury), system incentives, and ties to recent government findings.
  • “...praise God we have an administration who’s making this a priority in tackling the childhood vaccine schedule.” (34:41)
• Discusses the difficulty in finding pediatricians who’ll accept vaccine-free children due to incentive structures.

The Medicalization of Gender and Advocacy (36:31-37:09)

• Riley and Allie share grave concerns about “the biggest medical scandal…cutting off the healthy body parts and sterilizing young children in the name of inclusion.” (36:31-37:03)

Next Steps: Riley’s Show & Ongoing Advocacy (38:09-40:03)

• Riley is launching “The Riley Gaines Show” via Fox and Outkick, aimed especially at young women.
  • “I'm so inspired even being here and seeing so many young women…talking all things motherhood and fitness and... cultural and political takes.” (38:37)
• Plans to keep touring campuses and is excited for a growing family.
  • “Hopefully more babies one day.” (40:03)

Closing Words: Courage, Generational Support, & Truth (40:03-41:04)

• Allie thanks Riley for her leadership; Riley returns the encouragement, highlighting Allie’s example in confronting falsehoods publicly.
  • “Courage is contagious, and you’ve shown us that…” – Allie (41:04)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Bryce Crawford:

  • “If I want to be a fool for anyone, I want to be a fool for Jesus because I don’t want to get to heaven and people say, ‘Why didn’t you tell me this was true?’” (09:56)
  • “God’s not trying to do mental gymnastics with anyone…he wants a relationship with you.” (11:20)
  • “If you don’t love Jesus, you’re not worthy of being trusted with His daughter.” (14:16)
  • “He who knew no sin became sin so that you and I could become the righteousness of God. And that gift is on the table for anyone, anywhere, at all times.” (15:30)

• Riley Gaines:

  • “For saying that [there are two sexes and you can’t change your sex] you’re vilified and it was hard to see the things they would call you.” (17:49)
  • “I find myself being pretty stabilized...I put all of my... confidence in... the hope and the promise of eternal life.” (18:59)
  • “Now I approach that conversation [on women’s sports]...for the world that I want my daughter to inherit.” (27:01)
  • “[Motherhood] intensifies the fight, the need for it, the timeliness of it.” (27:48)
  • “Courage begets courage.” (21:13)

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Major Timestamps

• 01:37: Bryce begins interview
• 02:00 - 03:56: Bryce’s conversion story
• 04:09 - 05:09: What is the gospel? Bryce’s perspective
• 06:37 - 07:16: Lessons learned from evangelism
• 07:38: Gen Z and revival
• 09:33: Overcoming nerves in evangelism
• 10:16: Explaining the gospel simply
• 13:20: Bryce’s engagement and advice for singles
• 14:59: 30-second gospel summary
• 17:02: Riley Gaines joins the show
• 17:49: Handling public criticism
• 19:05: Faith as source of courage
• 20:10: Simone Biles incident
• 21:13: Shifting public tide and political context
• 27:01: Motherhood’s impact
• 28:16: Positive postpartum and advice to women
• 32:33: Childhood vaccines and medical skepticism
• 38:09: Riley’s upcoming show & future plans

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Themes & Tone

• Faith & Courage: Both guests point to a deeply personal faith as their root for courage and hope.
• Countercultural Conviction: Both challenge prevailing cultural narratives—on gender, sports, mental health, and medical authority.
• Warmth & Solidarity: Conversations are upbeat and supportive; Allie acts as a grounding, encouraging presence throughout.

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This summary captures the heart of thoughtful, faith-filled cultural analysis central to Relatable, making it easy for new listeners to grasp the essential messages and practical takeaways from both guests.

Transcript

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[Ali]

Go to your happy price Price line.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

The head of the kkk furries. Politicians, homeless people. What do all of these groups have in common? They need Jesus. They need to hear the gospel. Bryce Crawford knows that. That's why he goes to everyone, everywhere and preaches the good news of Jesus Christ.

[Ali]

But how did he get started?

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

What inspired him to not only believe and follow Jesus, but to share that with other people? We are talking to our new friend Bryce Crawford today about his test, how he gets over the nerves of talking to people about Jesus. We're also talking to Riley Gaines. She just became a mom. How has this changed her advocacy and what she thinks about fairness in women's sports? We're talking about all of these things with our two friends today and much more in these conversations from America Fest.

[Ali]

This episode is brought to you by.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Our friends at Good ranchers. Go to good ranchers.com you use code Allie at checkout. That's goodranchers.com, code Ally.

[Ali]

Bryce, thanks so much for taking the time to join us.

[Bryce Crawford]

Absolutely. Thanks for having me on.

[Ali]

Okay, for the few people who may not know, can you tell us who you are and what you do?

[Bryce Crawford]

I'm Bryce and I. I talk about Jesus for a living.

[Ali]

You really do. And you've amassed millions and millions by the grace of God, of followers, because you evangelize. You just go on the streets and you tell people the gospel.

[Bryce Crawford]

Yes, ma'.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Am.

[Ali]

How did that start?

[Bryce Crawford]

Well, I became a Christian when I was 17. I had depression and anxiety for years. Grew up in Christian environment, went to a Christian school. But I had a supernatural encounter with Jesus when I was 17. Stopped me from taking my life. And that was my intro to Christianity. And from that moment, I started sharing my faith. And it started just, Jesus loves you. And then I'd run away before people could respond because I didn't have the answer to their questions. And then I slowly started standing up because I realized Jesus loves you isn't the gospel. And so I had to learn the gospel and answer questions and been doing it for almost five years.

[Ali]

Okay, I have two questions based on what you just said. Number one, the supernatural encounter with Jesus that stopped you from taking your life, can you tell us what that moment was?

[Bryce Crawford]

Absolutely. I went to Waffle House as my last meal. Death row meal, you can call it.

[Ali]

So you had a plan?

[Bryce Crawford]

I had a plan. I was going to take my life. When I got home, it was on Christmas Day of 2020, and I went to Waffle House and I was at this table. No one preached to me. No. No one shared the gospel with me. The total opposite happened, actually. This grown man dumped his life issues on me, and he said, I'm losing my wife. She's divorcing me and taking my kids. And then he said, there's no love in a relationship if the. There's no growth in a relationship if the love isn't mutual. And when he said that, time stopped. And I had learned about Jesus all my life. Grew up in church, Christian school, but the brain, knowledge connected to my heart. And for the first time, I thought to myself, maybe, I don't know, God loves me because I haven't given myself a chance to love him back. Like us spending time to know each other. And really, it was just supernatural revelation. Kind of like in Matthew 16, when Peter realizes that Jesus is the Christ and Jesus says, well, it's not by your own willpower, you did that. It's a gift from. From God. It's a grace of God that you're able to understand that. And so I prayed a crazy prayer. I said, jesus, if you're real, take away my anxiety and depression, because this is the reason why I want to take my life. And I haven't had that crippling anxiety or depression since that day. It's been almost five years.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Wow.

[Ali]

And so you said that that led you to go tell people that Jesus loved them?

[Bryce Crawford]

Yes, ma'.

[Ali]

Am. But at some point, you realized that's not the gospel. There are some people listening that don't know that that's not the gospel. So what do you mean by that?

[Bryce Crawford]

Yeah, I think we say Jesus loves you, you know, and there was that. That's the gospel. It's not the gospel. I mean, yes, Jesus displayed his love on the cross, but Jesus talked about hell a lot and talked about that people are going to go to hell and be separated from God for an eternity because of their sin. And that's the thing. You and I deserve the wrath and justice of God because we've done wrong in God's face. We slap him in the face every day. But because of God's love, because of his love displayed on the cross, Jesus's death and resurrection. Because there has to be justice. There has to be a payment for wrong. We have an eternal debt for God. That means an eternal payment has to be paid either with your life or his life. And Jesus laid his life down and defeated sin and death, the only thing you and I can't defeat. And if we put our faith that the blood of Jesus cleanses us from our sin, we are justified and made right in God's eyes, and we get to spend an eternity with him. But if we decide we don't want Jesus, it breaks his heart all the more.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

But.

[Bryce Crawford]

But we spend an eternity separate from him and he grants that wish. And so that. That's the gospel.

[Ali]

Yeah. You said that you had to take some time to really learn that, to dig into what the Bible says, the message that Jesus actually preached. What did that look like for you to get serious about studying God's word?

[Bryce Crawford]

Well, when I became a Christian, I locked myself in my bedroom. Don't suggest that. But with my Bible and this book called Systematic Theology by Wayne grudem.

[Ali]

It's from 1996, one of my favorites.

[Bryce Crawford]

It's great. It's a thick textbook, so that's where I kind of got like, this level foundation.

[Ali]

And you're 17 at this point?

[Bryce Crawford]

I'm 17.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Wow.

[Bryce Crawford]

And then. And then from there, it was just reading the word of God and. And looking at history, church fathers looking at theologians like C.S. lewis, Sproul, everyone. Now, don't limit yourself to a denomination like I'm talking. Just look at the church fathers, like, look at what they say. And that's kind of where I built a lot of my. My perspective, theology and things like that. Just from doing research.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Yeah.

[Ali]

And when did you start actually going out and preaching that gospel?

[Bryce Crawford]

The next day. The next day? I mean, yeah, it started with Jesus loves you, but I would say about a month. It took me about a month, and then it was everywhere. I remember having an old bully from school who left my school and joined a gang and was living this crazy life. And he was my first guy and he threatened to kill me. And we met up at lunch and he fell in my arms crying and needed Jesus. And so I spent about six months really hammering him with Jesus and discipleship. And so I would say about a month after I became a Christian, I really felt like I had a decent grade grasp on the gospel and. And started taking it with me.

[Ali]

Yeah. What have you learned these five years of evangelism. You've put a lot into practice. And I imagine that things have gotten better or easier, maybe harder in some ways. What does that look like?

[Bryce Crawford]

I think listening is the greatest tool of evangelism. We always try to talk so much. Oh, maybe if I say this phrase or if I say this one thing right, it's really going to hit home. And the Bible says we plant seeds. Seeds and water seeds. It's not my job to save anyone. It's not your job to save anyone. And so I found listening and being intentional with people is the greatest tool of evangelism. It's not love bombing. It's just caring about people. It's just you care about people. And in there, I think God gives you leverage.

[Ali]

Have you been surprised at the number of people who follow you to watch you share the gospel with people?

[Bryce Crawford]

Absolutely. I don't know why people listen to me.

[Ali]

Yeah, I don't know why I can imagine. What do you see in your generation? You're still Gen Z, considered Gen Z, right?

[Bryce Crawford]

Gen Z, Gen Z.

[Ali]

Okay. And your generation, people talk a lot about revival and like a renewed hunger for truth. Would you say that's true?

[Bryce Crawford]

I'd say absolutely. I mean, I moved to LA three years ago and Christianity was the minority, but now Christianity is slowly becoming a majority in la, which that sounds shocking, but it's true. You know, we're on the ground in there and, you know, you're on the ground in your school and in your city. I just remember hearing so much when I first became a Christian. Oh, Gen Z, so lost. Oh, they're a lost cause. This, this and that. And it's like, why that. That is not hopeful for my generation to go, wow, I really want to turn to Jesus. You really, you really believe in me, don't you? You know, and then I've just found we need fathers and mothers who care about our generation to believe in us instead of speak death over us. And. And I, I see a generation really turning to Jesus. People are stepping up.

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[Ali]

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[Ali]

For people who admire your boldness but are nervous, they think, oh well, you're just a good public speaker. You're just a good communicator. I could never do something like that. What do you tell them?

[Bryce Crawford]

Oh man, I still get nervous to this day.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

You do?

[Bryce Crawford]

Every time. Every time? Yeah, absolutely. I think it's the human nature, right? Because what are they going to think? What are they going to say? I don't think you have to beat yourself up because you feel that way. But I, I have to pray for boldness. God give me boldness. That's what the, the disciples after the 3,000 got saved with Peter, they got baptized, received the Holy Spirit. They go, all right, Peter, what do we do? And he's like, pray for boldness. And every day we have to pray for bonus. Because praise Proverbs would say the fear of man is like a snare. You know, fear of man creates passivity and we know passivity is sinful. And so I, I don't want to live passive. And if I want to be a fool for anyone, I want to be a fool for Jesus because I don't want to get to heaven. And people say, man, why didn't you tell me this this was true? Oh, because I was afraid of what you thought. That's a poor, it's a poor way to go out.

[Ali]

How do you explain the gospel to someone who has no Christian context? They don't know anything about what you're talking about.

[Bryce Crawford]

Yeah, I kind of explain it like a murderer, like a criminal, you know, a murder. A murderer commits a crime and if the police officer arrested them and then took them to donuts and coffee, you'd be like, that's a little weird. No, the murderer deserves jail. And in the same way a murderer deserves jail and deserves to be punished is the same way you and I deserve to be punished. Because you don't have to teach a four year old to be selfish and not share and pitch fits and hit the mom or hit the dad, when they're upset, it doesn't matter how good of a parent you are. It's in their nature. But it's a gift from God that God substitutes his wrath on us with his grace. And I think the ultimate thing for me is explaining forgiveness. You know, forgiveness is canceling the debt someone owes you, and God has canceled the debt that we owe him with his life. And I think that's beautiful.

[Ali]

Has it surprised you how quickly or easily someone who doesn't have the same background that we do, raised in the church, can understand the concept that you just accept, explained.

[Bryce Crawford]

Yeah, it doesn't surprise me. I think there's complexities about God that when you dive deeper, it's hard. But God's not trying to do mental gymnastics with anyone to understand just him. Know that he wants a relationship with you. God's not a dictator. In every religion he is, but not in Christianity. Christianity is the only religion of compassion. And I think it's, it's every human heart longs for compassion. So I think that's why it's easier for people to understand that.

[Ali]

Yeah. Have you ever gotten a question from someone that you're evangelizing to that really stumped you in the moment?

[Bryce Crawford]

Absolutely.

[Ali]

Can you think of one?

[Bryce Crawford]

Oh, man. When I talk to the Hebrew Israelites.

[Ali]

A lot, you know those guys, the black Hebrew Israelites.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Yeah, yeah.

[Ali]

Who believe that they're the real chosen people.

[Bryce Crawford]

Yes. If you're not black, you're going to hell, basically. And you know, I, I, you know, it's hard, it's hard to talk with people that are, that are prideful and that, that take scripture out of context, you know what I mean? And so I just say, okay, thank you, or, oh, I don't know. But this is what I do know. We are the Holy Spirit, can take over and give you words, but, but we can't let false doctrine sway us aside. Those guys can be a little iffy.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Yeah.

[Ali]

For someone who wants to get serious about apologetics, being able to answer the questions that they can about the character of God, the word of God, where do you recommend they start?

[Bryce Crawford]

Say, find guys like C.S. lewis, R.C. sproul, Charles Spurgeon. Look at these guys. Even modern day guys like Frank Turek, Cliff Connectley, all these guys just don't be the smartest guy in the room and don't think that you know it all. Because the second you think you know it all, that's when you find someone that knows more than you do.

[Ali]

And then, so true.

[Bryce Crawford]

And then you, you know, always live in this state of humility and always, always want to learn.

[Ali]

Yeah. I think you should underestimate yourself and what you know, especially if you're, you're not really going into debates per se, but I go into debates and stuff, and I always try to overestimate the intellect of the person that I'm talking to and underestimate my own. When you switch those, that's when you get in those really sticky situations.

[Bryce Crawford]

Absolutely.

[Ali]

Okay. You just got engaged.

[Bryce Crawford]

I did.

[Ali]

That's really exciting. Congratulations.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Thank you.

[Ali]

How did you meet your fiance?

[Bryce Crawford]

Well, I knew her in high school. She didn't know me. She was very beautiful and popular at a public school, and I was very nerdy and not cool cool at a private school. So I had a crush from afar. We both didn't know Jesus at the time and moved to la. Never would think about her. Occasionally I'd be, man, she was so beautiful, you know, reminiscing on the good old days or whatever. And then one day I was at my roommate holds a Bible study, and she walked into the Bible study and I, I, I almost, I, I lost it. I was like, there's no way this is happening. And that's where we met and we have been dating ever since.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Yeah.

[Ali]

And you're getting married soon.

[Bryce Crawford]

January 10th.

[Ali]

Amazing. Short engagement. That's the way to go.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Congrats.

[Ali]

Okay, There's a lot of people out there, your age, younger, older, who are like, I just want God to bring me the right person. What's your advice for them?

[Bryce Crawford]

Well, I think, you know, you can, it's interesting, like soulmates. I don't, I don't think God makes soulmates. I think you can enjoy, you can find, you can, you can find yourself to fall in love with anyone. But the reality is, is like, if you don't love Jesus, you're not worthy of being trusted with his daughter. And so every, every time I started dating Maddie, I would just ask God, can I take your daughter out on a date? Because it's God's daughter he's trusting you with. It's his joy to trust you with her. But, but work on yourself. Make sure you're right with Jesus and, and God will bring you someone he can trust you with when the time is right.

[Ali]

That's awesome. Okay, final parting words. You kind of already did this, but I like to ask some of my guests, guests who do this well, to just share the gospel in 30 seconds.

[Bryce Crawford]

Absolutely. You and I deserve to be punished for our wrongdoing because that's Just and everyone wants justice. We cry out for justice until it comes to God. But we deserve to be punished and separated from God. But because God loves us so desperately, he desired to become so close to us in the form of skin. Living a perfect life. Not just telling us how to live it, but showing us how to live it. Dying the death that you and I deserve to die. And defeating the only thing that we can't defeat. Sin and death. So that you and I can have true life with him. He who knew no sin became sin so that you and I could become the righteousness of God. And that gift is on the table for anyone, anywhere, at all times.

[Ali]

Awesome. Amen. Thank you so much, Bryce.

[Bryce Crawford]

Thanks for having me on.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

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[Ali]

We love seven Weeks.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

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[Ali]

It keeps us high energy so that.

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[Ali]

Riley, thanks so much for taking the time to join us.

[Riley Gaines]

Oh my gosh, please. I am so excited. I know I just told you before we were where we were recording, but honestly, you and how you lead with your faith first on on virtually every topic, culture, political, social. I admire and I look up to so much.

[Ali]

So thank you for saying that. Likewise. I look up to you even though you're a lot younger than me. Please just your courage has really, I feel like grown even more over the past few years. Obviously it took a lot of bravery to stand up and do what you did when you were in college, but I've just seen you grow so much and your clarity and your Lack of care about what people think it seems like has really grown over the past few years. Would you agree with that? And what do you attribute that to?

[Riley Gaines]

110%. I think back to, you know, three years ago. I mean this was in 2022. It was a totally different climate that we were living in. It was really hard to read some of the things that are being said about you. I mean, bear in mind I'm a 21 year old college student who, who merely just wanted to compete fairly. Right. Seems like the bare minimum. But for, for saying the things that I said, such as there are two sexes and you can't change your sex and each sex is deserving of equal opportunity, of privacy and of safety. For saying that you're vilified and it was hard to see the things they would call you. I mean, everything under the sun. So so far, I mean even racist and misogynist, all these, these hurtful things, words with, with real power and weight behind them which have now totally lost their meaning. But I will say now, flash forward three years. That's like water off the duck's back reading those things. And, and I. What I attribute that to a couple things. Of course. I put all of my. The confidence in the security that I have in the fact that I'm fighting for the hope and the promise of eternal life. And once you do that, it makes sense. It shifts your perspective to, to understand that nothing of this world matters.

[Ali]

Yeah.

[Riley Gaines]

And of course there's ebbs and flows and there's hard days, but I find myself being pretty stabilized and not truthfully.

[Ali]

And even when someone like Simone Bile, someone that I'm sure that you looked up to at some point, because all young athletes do, she says something completely wrong, inaccurate, rude about you. How do you handle that at home?

[Riley Gaines]

It's so funny because when I got this notification from Simone Biles, which it was this big Twitter X altercation and so I get this notification on my phone, it's a Friday evening and I just see Simone Biles tag you in a comment. I'm like over the moon excited because you're right. This is someone who I have admired and looked up to for so long as an athlete. Like she is the best in her sport, bar none. And so I get this notification, I'm smiling ear to ear Friday afternoon. I'm about to try turn my phone off for, for Saturday. I click on it and it said something to the effect of, you know, you're disgusting, bully Riley. Why don't you pick on someone your own Size, which would ironically be a man. And reading that, the words that she said, I think in the way that she intended to, to use them didn't hurt me in that way. It was more so the devastation of understanding that this is little girls role models.

[Ali]

Right.

[Riley Gaines]

And she, in the name of including inclusion and being progressive, decided to come after me. And again, for what? For saying that women's sports are only for women. So it's hard to read those things, not to again the words or how she's intending them to be used, but just more so an understanding. Like little girls look up to her. My little sister, she's a gymnast. She's 17 years old. She's an elite level gymnast. She will go on to do incredible things in college and beyond. That's my little sister's role model. And so my little sister approaches me and she's like, look, if I have to take sides, I'm Team Riley.

[Ali]

Yeah.

[Riley Gaines]

And so, of course, yeah, okay.

[Ali]

I feel like the tide is turning in a really good way when it comes to female sports, but also just people's courage and their willingness to say, yeah, sorry, a man can't become a woman. It's not possible for a child to be born in the wrong body. But you're really in the thick of it. Like, you see the activist attacks, you're seeing what's really going on on college campuses. Do you feel like the tide is turning 110%?

[Riley Gaines]

Again, you compare now to even, I mean, a year ago, it's very different. I think we're seeing more people with the willingness and the boldness to say that men can't become women, men can't get pregnant, women don't need prostate exams, tampons don't belong in boys bathrooms. And I think there's a lot of things to accredit that to. Obviously, it sounds pretty cliche, but I do believe courage begets courage. And so when you have people like yourself or you have President Trump in the Oval Office, that gives people a lot of COVID Right. They see him doing it or you doing it, and they think, I can do that. I can utilize my circle of influence to say the exact same thing. And so I see that we've seen lots of victories, of course, within what's going on at the national level with President Trump signing executive orders. I mean, day one declaring there are only two sexes, male and female. Executive order barring men from participating in women's sports. Within any educational program that receives federal funds, we will see in just a few weeks at the Supreme Court, I believe the date is January 13th. This will be the oral arguments surrounding a Title 9 case. And so hopefully once and for all it will be clarified what exactly is meant when Title IX implemented back in 1973. Very brief piece of legislation. What it meant when it, it defines the word. Well, I guess it didn't define the word sex because we never knew we had to. Hopefully we have some clarity on that. And I imagine my prediction here is we will either see a 5, 4 ruling or 6, 3 with a pretty scathing liberal dissent.

[Ali]

Yeah, yeah. I'm so interested to see how Democrats will play it since this is becoming one of those 80, 20 issues. So you've got 80% of the country that at least can acknowledge women's sports need to be protected. You have someone like Gavin Newsom who's obviously gunning for 2028 and he's out there on a podcast trying so hard to play it in the middle. On the one hand he says I'm the most pro trans governor, but also we need to protect women's spaces, which doesn't make any logical sense.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Sense.

[Ali]

So, like, what is your thought about how this is going to play out politically? Do you think Democrats are going to have to just relent and say, okay, this is not going to be our winning issue?

[Riley Gaines]

Well, do I think that's what they need to do? Absolutely. Truthfully, I thought that's what they were going to do following President Trump's really this, this red wave that we saw in November of 2024. I've said it before and I will say it again. I think people turn out to the polls then to support President Trump, of course, and to support his America first agenda and to support his cabinet. But more so, I think people turned out to the polls to reject absurdity and that's what the Democratic Party has become, entirely and thorough, thoroughly top to bottom, local, state, federal, is just absurd.

[Ali]

Yeah.

[Riley Gaines]

And so I thought we would see them slowly start to recant or distance themselves from their voting record. But that's not what we've seen at all really. They have leaned in to the extremism and the radicalism, obviously. Look at what just happened in New York City, which really doesn't come as too much of a surprise. We're a self described Muslim socialist, just one mayor, but I think more, more of a condemnation of humanity is what we just saw in Virginia in their Attorney General race. I believe this to be one of the most, actually probably the most violent and extreme rhetoric we have seen from any major level race. Of any candidate again at any level. And that top the state's top law enforcement officer, that being the attorney general, saying that he wishes to watch the children of his political opponents die in their parents arm.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Yeah.

[Riley Gaines]

And he won. So they're leaning in to the radicalism. It's a pretty terrifying thought. But again, it just proves that it's up to us, all of the people here, you, myself, to not become complacent. I think so often we see obviously President Trump in the Oval Office and we think these things can't happen to us. You know, you live in Texas, I live in Tennessee. We don't have to worry about that. Any of this woke stuff, that's when you're most susceptible, I believe. So we as, as Christians, I think most importantly, we cannot become comfortable or complacent.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

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[Ali]

I mean, I don't know, maybe you.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

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[Ali]

How has becoming a mom, having little baby girl helped shape or solidify or even change how you see the world?

[Riley Gaines]

It changes my perspective on literally everything. I think I approach naturally. I approach the conversations that I find myself talking about with my own personal experience. Yeah, I don't think about me anymore. I think about my daughter. Right. Even the issue of men and women's sports, I came at it. At the forefront of my mind is. Is what the impact and the negative direct experience we had. Now I approach that conversation of the world that I want my daughter to inherit. A fair and righteous and just and moral and safe world for her. That has shifted my worldview entirely on every single topic. It intensifies the fight, the need for it, the timeliness of it.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

It's.

[Riley Gaines]

It makes it all worth it, too, I think all of the pushback and the backlash when you have something so precious and innocent and vulnerable and defenseless. At this point, she's 10 weeks, or I guess 11 weeks now, defenseless that you're fighting for.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Who cares?

[Riley Gaines]

You can't say anything about me because that. That's the priority here.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

Okay.

[Ali]

On a personal level, what has it been like since she's been born? What's it been like in this postpartum period?

[Riley Gaines]

Honestly, I think a lot of women are going to get mad, but easy.

[Ali]

Peasy, yeah, I am mad. I am mad. And we're all mad. We're mad at you.

[Riley Gaines]

It's been a dream. Like, I'm not saying what I'm about to say to discount any of the women who have hard experiences, because, you know, they certainly exist. But I do think we need to hear the good stories.

[Ali]

Yeah.

[Riley Gaines]

My pregnancy was a breeze. A breeze. I had no morning sickness, no tire, no fatigue, no aversions, nothing. Was able to lift and run and exercise all the way throughout. I was at Charlie's memorial service on my due date, 40 weeks pregnant.

[Ali]

Oh, my gosh. I remember that. That is crazy.

[Riley Gaines]

Yes, crazy. My doctor thought so, too.

[Ali]

But the Lord's timing was perfect, 100%.

[Riley Gaines]

The labor and delivery process, I loved every single second of it. It was like the most magical thing ever. And now even post postpartum, you know, you hear. And I get kind of tired of the just wait. Well, I heard it all the time during pregnancy. Well, you just wait until the last few weeks or during the labor process, you just wait. Or now, being postpartum, you just wait until you don't get any sleep. My child, I think we maybe just birthed the perfect human. But she has slept fully through the night since day one. So I don't say that again to discount the other stories, but I think it's important for especially young women to. To hear there are good stories. It has been a dream, every part of it.

[Ali]

Yeah. I love motherhood so much, and every child is so different and Every pregnancy is so different. And I think it's so important to hear that it's not always this nightmare. And also, even when it is really hard, because it might be hard, you might have a hard pregnancy or you might have a really difficult postpartum. And not only is it very worth it, but it also is a season. Like everything is a season. And now I've got three kids and my oldest is six. And I look back and everything that someone told me that it goes by fast. It never seems like it in the moment, but it. It really does. And I'm like, I did survive that. I was sanctified through that. It is completely worth it. But sometimes you just have to hear that too. That even when it is hard, because sometimes it is hard, that it's good. And hard is not the same thing as bad. That's the title of a book of a friend that I really love. Hard is not the same thing as bad. Hard is good. Trials are good.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

They shape you.

[Ali]

So, yeah, just keep that in mind with the.

[Riley Gaines]

I was talking to Rachel Campus Duffy yesterday after I'd interviewed them on stage, her and Secretary Duffy. And one of the things she told me is she said, look, you know, I know you could potentially be in the motherhood trenches right now. I want you to think 20 years from now when you're sitting around the Thanksgiving table. Yeah. That that's ultimately the end goal. That that's. Think of that in these hard moments.

[Ali]

Totally.

[Riley Gaines]

It makes it all worth it. And that's coming from someone who has nine children.

[Sponsor/Host Voice]

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[Riley Gaines]

Oh, my gosh.

[Ali]

Amazing.

[Riley Gaines]

Yes. Yes.

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[Ali]

Okay, you've talked about the childhood vaccine schedule a little bit, right? You've talked about that publicly?

[Riley Gaines]

Yes, yes, yes.

[Ali]

Okay. What are your thoughts about that now that you're a mom?

[Riley Gaines]

First of all, I think it's so cool to see so many young couples now beginning to question the system. I think for so long and understandably because you want to trust health care professionals, right? They are the ones who are supposed to be professionals. I think there's a bit of naivety there, but. But you want to trust them and you believe that they have the best intentions for you and for your child. We are now seeing people question this. I think Covid, of course, had a large part in that and the vaccines that were pushed on us then my husband and I, there were a couple things that just didn't really make sense to me. I read several books, one of those being the vax facts, one of those being the vaccine friendly plan. I highly recommend the vax facts. By the way. One of the things that didn't make sense to me initially was when I was told as a pregnant woman I couldn't have high levels of mercury. Meaning don't eat raw fish. Yeah, that didn't make sense considering these vaccines that they're putting in my baby in day one have high levels of mercury. Same thing with deodorant. They say, you know, there's a big push to use deodorant that doesn't have aluminum in it. But you're going to give my child on day one vaccines that have like 30 times over. The FDA recommended amount of aluminum in a baby like virtually moments after she's born. It just Red flag. Right. And so started reading, started doing some research and I feel so encouraged in our decision to not vaccinate our baby at this point, especially with the recent news coming out from HHS surrounding the Hep B vaccine and seeing how the correlation between the Hep B vaccine and allergies and different allergens and things of that nature. So praise God we have an administration who's making this a priority in tackling the childhood vaccine schedule. There's a really powerful graphic that's out there that I think in the 1980s, your baby received like three vaccines, and now it's upwards of 70 or 80 by the time you're 12 years old.

[Ali]

Yeah.

[Riley Gaines]

There's just no need.

[Ali]

This was a conversation that almost couldn't be had five years ago, not publicly. We would have had to put this behind the paywall and we would have had to be very cryptic and hush hush about it. I think Covid changed so much because I had our first in 2019, and I just never thought about it. Because you trust the cdc. What is the cdc? What does that even stand for? You don't think about these things being designated by the government and not trusting the government. You just do what your pediatrician tells you. And then Covid happens. And my pediatrician was such a bully about her vaccines, about us getting the COVID vaccine that I just started. I don't know if it's just my personality, but I just started to say, like. Like I just, I'm not sure about that. And so what I love now is that people do feel like they have the freedom to ask and that they really want the information and that you can't bully moms anymore because they actually know. I mean, make the choice that you think is best based on the facts. Based on, but base it on the facts, not on peer pressure or the pressure of your pediatrician.

[Riley Gaines]

And I had no idea just how hard it was to find a pediatrician, even in the very red state of Tennessee that I live in, find a pediatrician that was willing to see your child if they didn't get the full vaccine schedule. And so we were turned away for some places because they said, look, we basically, we can't see you because that hinders our performance rating. I'm like, what do you mean, your performance? They say, well, if we have 80% of children who come in that get the full childhood vaccine schedule, then we get bonuses. So the ratio doesn't make sense. We just can't see you. And so we found a fantastic pediatrician.

[Ali]

That's crazy, by the way.

[Riley Gaines]

I know, isn't it? But it shows you too. And I think Covid exposed a lot of this. Money drives virtually everything, even the medicalization side of, of all of the. The trans. The trans nonsense. Totally. Oh, my gosh. It is the most. The biggest medical scandal I believe that we have ever seen in our. In any point in history is cutting off the healthy body parts and sterilizing young children in the name of. Of inclusion and affirmation or whatever other Buzzwords they want. Totally, totally sinister.

[Ali]

Yeah, very sinister.

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[Ali]

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[Ali]

Tell me about your show that you're about to launch, right?

[Riley Gaines]

Yes.

[Ali]

What is your hope for it?

[Riley Gaines]

I'm super duper excited. So we're launching the Riley Gaines Show. This is through Fox and Outkick. It will come out two times a week on Wednesdays and Fridays. I'm just very excited because I think there's a. As you know and as you tend to, there's a need to reach a specific demographic. And the demographic that I feel very passionately about is young women.

[Ali]

Yeah.

[Riley Gaines]

I'm so inspired even being here and seeing so many young women, by the way. It's so cool. And so talking all things motherhood and fitness and of course, continuing to deliver on the cultural and political takes that I may have. But beyond that, I think there's a real opportunity and so I'm excited to do what I can to help fill that.

[Ali]

Yeah.

[Riley Gaines]

So just eternally thankful. Yeah, it is.

[Ali]

Okay. What else is coming down the pipeline for Riley and your family and your life?

[Riley Gaines]

So we're still continuing on with getting on campuses. Obviously. That feels pertinent to say given that we are here at Amfest. So this past semester, following the birth of my child, which is crazy, we were on 10 different campuses, both high schools.

[Ali]

My goodness.

[Riley Gaines]

Crazy. Yeah. She's already been to 15 states.

[Ali]

So many states.

[Riley Gaines]

Oh, my gosh. Knocking them off the list.

[Ali]

Yeah.

[Riley Gaines]

Continuing to get on campuses, high schools and colleges. So going to certainly continue doing that in the new year. As I said this, what's going on at the Supreme Court in January is a really big deal for the cause and so excited to see. We won't have any sort of ruling until I would imagine, June or July, but nonetheless, important day for the family. Look, I'm I told it was funny, you know, you deliver the baby and you graphic, but I mean, my legs are still up in the stir up. So I'm like, whoa, I'm ready for another one. Let's begin.

[Ali]

Oh, my God.

[Riley Gaines]

So hopefully more babies one day.

[Ali]

More babies. That is awesome. Well, Riley, thank you so much just for everything you do for the example that you set for courage. I am no longer in the generation that's in college and after college. And so when I'm looking behind to see, okay, do we have people that are coming up behind us? Because we don't just want to be the millennials or the Gen Xers that are saying what's true. We want every generation to have those people. And I'm just so thankful for you and for other people that are in your circle that are, unapologetically speaking, the truth. We always have your back. We always will. You do such a good job, and I'm so grateful.

[Riley Gaines]

Well, thank you, Ali, for your boldness, Truthfully, on a variety of issues, I think even recently, how quick you were to call out lies that we saw being spread by Candace, me seeing that it gave me courage, which I felt like already a courageous person. Right. Like, I could take the attacks, but I still found myself hesitating on weighing in on this. But you, I get that doing it gave me courage, so thank you.

[Ali]

Well, courage is contagious, and you've shown us that, so thank you.