You Still Have Time To Choose Christ

Fear has a way of making everything feel slippery, so we go back to something solid: Scripture. We start with Psalm 71 and its blunt, human plea for protection, then we pray the Lord’s Prayer and ask God to guard our hearts, guide our words, and steady our families. Along the way, I reference real-world stories of violence and exploitation that are hard to hear, not to dwell on shock, but to name the reality of evil and the responsibility we carry to protect the vulnerable and seek what is right.

From there we turn to the Bible’s practical wisdom and hope. Proverbs speaks plainly about conflict in the home, and Luke 8 brings us face-to-face with Jesus’ power and compassion as He heals a woman who can’t be hidden in the crowd and tells a grieving father not to be afraid. These Gospel moments aren’t abstract theology, they’re a call to persistent faith when your situation looks final.

I also share my conviction that salvation is a choice and that every person decides what they will trust: money, government, cultural narratives, or Jesus Christ. We close with Psalm 71 again, a Medal of Honor account of courage, and a Woodrow Wilson quote about the Bible’s role in shaping a nation, ending in prayer and blessing.

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Transcript

Psalm 71 Opens With Refuge

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Psalm 71, beginning with verse 1. O Lord, I have come to you for protection. Don't let me be disgraced. Save me and rescue me, for you do what is right. Turn your ear to listen to me and set me free. Be my rock of safety where I can always hide. Give the order to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress. Fifteen-year-old girl, May the 10th, 2025, Lemington Spa, UK, raped by two Afghan asylum seekers, both 17 at the time of the attack. Also, another eight-year-old girl between September 2024 and July 2025 repeatedly raped and groomed by a Muslim 44-year-old from Pakistan, an asylum seeker who threatened to kill her if she told anyone. That is mainstream Islam. Hey folks, this is Jesse Cope back with another episode of the American Soul Podcast. Hope y'all are doing well wherever y'all are, whatever part of the day you're in. Sure to appreciate you giving me a little bit of your time and attention. I will try and use it wisely. For those of y'all who continue to share the podcast with others and tell others about it, thank you. For those of y'all who continue to pray for me and for the podcast, thank you very much. Very, very grateful for your prayers. Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not to temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom of the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen. I guess maybe I needed to say that twice on the podcast today. Father, thank you for the people that listen to the podcast. Please be with them, be with their families.

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Guide my words here, be with our nation. Forgive us our sins. Be a light and a lamp under our path. Guide our feet. Guide our thoughts and our words and our actions. Help us to guard our hearts. Protect us from evil.

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Be with those who are alone Those whose burdens are so heavy. Help us to turn to you and to your son for peace and comfort and joy.

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Be with us, Lord, please.

Luke’s Stories Of Healing Faith

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Marriage verses for today. Proverbs 21, 9, 25, 24. Better to live on the edge of a roof than with a contentious woman in a large house. Better to live on the edge of a roof than to share a house with a contentious woman. Maybe, just maybe, folks. If God says it twice, we should pay a little bit of attention to it. Luke 8, 40 through 9.6. On the other side of the lake, the crowds welcomed Jesus because they had been waiting for him. Then a man named Jarius, a leader of the local synagogue, came and fell at Jesus' feet, pleading with him to come home with him. His only daughter, who was about twelve years old, was dying. As Jesus went with him, he was surrounded by the crowds. A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding, and she could find no cure. Coming up behind Jesus, she touched the fringe of his robe. Immediately the bleeding stopped. Who touched me? Jesus asked. Everyone denied it, and Peter said, Master, this whole crowd is pressing up against you. But Jesus said, Someone deliberately touched me, for I felt healing power go out from me. When the woman realized that she could not stay hidden, she began to tremble and fell to her knees in front of him. The whole crowd heard her explain why she had touched him, and that she had been immediately healed. Daughter, he said to her, your faith has made you well. Go in peace. While he was still speaking to her, a messenger arrived from the house of Jarius, the leader of the synagogue. He told him, Your daughter is dead. There's no use troubling the teacher now. But when Jesus heard what had happened, he said to Jarius, Don't be afraid, just have faith, and she will be healed. When they arrived at the house, Jesus wouldn't let anyone go in with him except Peter, John, James, and the little girl's father and mother. The house was filled with people weeping and wailing, but he said, Stop the weeping.

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She isn't dead, she's only asleep. But the crowd laughed at him because they all knew she had died.

Choosing Jesus Before Time Runs Out

Psalm 71 Read In Full

Proverbs On Words That Save

Book Series Plug And Support

Honor Killing Case Recounted

Medal Of Honor Story

Woodrow Wilson On The Bible

Gospel Call And Final Prayer

SPEAKER_01 5:25

Then Jesus took her by the hand and said in a loud voice, My child, get up. And at that moment, her life returned, and she immediately stood up. Then Jesus told them to give her something to eat. Her parents were overwhelmed. But Jesus insisted that they not tell anyone what had happened. One day Jesus called together his twelve disciples and gave them power and authority to cast out all demons and to heal all diseases. Then he sent them out to tell everyone about the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. Take nothing for your journey, he instructed them. Don't take a walking stick, a traveler's bag, food, money, or even a change of clothes. Wherever you go, stay in the same house until you leave town. And if a town refuses to welcome you, shake its dust from your feet as you leave to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate. So they began their circuit of the villages, preaching the good news and healing the sick. Folks, there's gonna come a day where there aren't any more chances, where there's no more choice to choose God and Jesus Christ. And we're not gonna have any excuse. Choose him today, right now. Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior. He's the Son of God. I acknowledge that. He died for my sins. God raised him from the dead. I believe that it's a choice, folks. It's a choice. We all get to choose what to believe in. We can choose in evolution, we can choose in creationism, we can choose in God, we can choose in government, we can choose in money. We get to choose what we put our faith in. I choose to believe that God raised his only son from the dead, and that he is my Lord and Savior. And because of that, I have eternal life, salvation and eternal life. That's it. I don't have to have a church, a particular denomination. I don't have to have a particular pope or pastor or priest or bishop or cardinal or celebrity or politician. Jesus Christ, He is the mediator between me and God. Regardless of my sins, folks, and I fail often. You have not failed too much. O Lord, I have come to you for protection. Don't let me be disgraced. Save me and rescue me, for you do what is right. Turn your ear to listen to me and set me free. Be my rock of safety where I can always hide. Give the order to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress, my God. Rescue me from the power of the wicked, from the clutches of cruel oppressors. O Lord, you alone are my hope. I've trusted you, O Lord, from childhood. Yes, you have been with me from birth. From my mother's womb you have cared for me. No wonder I am always praising you. My life is an example to many, because you have been my strength and protection. That is why I can never stop praising you. I declare your glory all day long, and now in my old age, don't set me aside. Don't abandon me when my strength is failing. For my enemies are whispering against me. They are plotting together to kill me. They say God has abandoned him, let's go and get him, for no one will help him now. O God, don't stay away. My God, please hurry to help me. Bring disgrace and destruction on my accusers, humiliate and shame those who want to harm me. But I will keep on hoping for your help. I will praise you more and more. I will tell everyone about your righteousness. All day long I will proclaim your saving power, though I am not skilled with words. I will praise your mighty deeds, O sovereign Lord, I will tell everyone that you alone are just. O God, you have taught me from my earliest childhood, and I constantly tell others about the wonderful things you do. Now that I am old and gray, do not abandon me, O God. Let me proclaim your power to this new generation, your mighty miracles to all who come after me. Your righteousness, O God, reaches to the highest heavens. You have done such wonderful things. Who can compare with you, O God? You have allowed me to suffer much hardship, but you will restore me to life again and lift me up from the depths of the earth. You will restore me to even greater honor and comfort me once again. Then I will praise you with music on the harp because you are faithful to your promises, O my God. I will sing praises to you with a lyre, O holy one of Israel. I will shout for joy and sing your praises, for you have ransomed me. I will tell about your righteous deeds all day long, for everyone who tried to hurt me has been shamed and humiliated. The plans of the godly are just. The advice of the wicked is treacherous. The words of the wicked are like a murderous ambush, but the words of the godly save lives. This is Proverbs 12, 5 through 7, by the way. The wicked die and disappear. But the family of the godly stand. Countryside. If you're looking for a family-friendly middle grade read, if you would check out the Countryside series, I would appreciate it. This is the first book in the series. And here's some reviews on the back. There's quite a few more online if you want to check it out. And here's the second book in the series. Reviews on the back again. And if you enjoy them, if you'd leave a review somewhere, I would appreciate that. Also for the podcast, the same thing. And if you have five or ten dollars you can spare each month, there's a link in the show notes where you can set up that monthly donation, and I would be very grateful for that as well. Raniya Aliad, if I said that right, I probably didn't. June 7th, 2013, Salford, Greater Manchester, UK. 25-year-old mother of three was murdered by her husband, Ahmed Al Khatib, a Muslim from Syria, in a pre-planned honor killing because she had left him, sought independence, and was becoming, quote unquote, too westernized. Again. Medal of Honor for today. George Washington Brush, second lieutenant, highest rank captain, U.S. Civil War, Bravo Company, 34th U.S. Colored Infantry, U.S. Army, May 24th, 1864, Ashapo River, South Carolina, USA. Voluntarily commanded a boat crew, which went to the rescue of a large number of Union soldiers on board the stranded steamer Boston, and with great gallantry succeeded in conveying them to shore, being exposed during the entire time to heavy fire from a Confederate battery. Accredited to Huntington, Suffolk County, New York, not awarded posthumously, presented January twenty first, eighteen ninety-seven, born October fourth, eighteen forty two, West Hills, Suffolk County, New York, died November 18, 1927, Brooklyn, New York. Buried Huntington Rural Cemetery 1 Tac 8 Tac 9, Huntington, New York. George Washington Brush. American Heritage quote for today is one we've read, may have read pretty recently actually, but we're going to read it again. It's a great quote. It's from Woodrow Wilson. There's a couple places you can find it, the public papers of Woodrow Wilson, Volume 2, and Congressional Record 62nd Congress Appendix. And it was also printed as a standalone pamphlet at the time. The Bible is the one supreme source of revelation of the meaning of life, the nature of God and spiritual nature and needs of men. It is the only guide of life which really leads the spirit in the way of peace and salvation. America was born a Christian nation. America was born to exemplify that devotion to the elements of righteousness which are derived from the revelations of holy scripture. Ladies and gentlemen, I have a very simple thing to ask of you. I ask of every man and woman in this audience that from this night on they will realize that part of the destiny of America lies in their daily pursual of this great book of revelations. That if they would see America free and pure, they will make their own spirits free and pure by this baptism of the Holy Scripture. I think I have the date here. Yeah, this is from May 7, 1911, when Wilson was actually a governor of New Jersey at that particular time. And it's a speech titled The Bible and Progress Given in Denver, Colorado, celebrating the 300th anniversary of the King James Bible translation into English. We are a Christian nation, folks, and if you really want to save America today, there's nothing you can do that will help the nation more than spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. One more time, even though we did at the beginning, Lord's Prayer, our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not to temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen. God bless y'all. God bless your families, your marriages if you're married. God bless your nation, wherever you are around the world listening. God bless America. We'll talk to you all again real soon, folks. Looking forward to it.