Polk County’s Sheriff Grady Judd, known by many as “America’s Sheriff,” delivered a stirring message at Victory Church North Campus calling on Christians to reclaim America’s spiritual foundation. His words went beyond law enforcement and became a plea for revival.
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“It is truly my honor to be your sheriff and to be with you,” Judd said, thanking the community that has helped make Polk County’s crime rate the lowest it’s been in 53 years. But even as he celebrated local safety, he warned that “peace is fragile every place in the United States.”
The Decline of Faith
Judd spoke bluntly about America’s moral decay. “We are up against the evil spirits of the world,” he said, noting that Christian identity in the U.S. dropped from 78% to 68% in just a decade. “What happened to the 10%? We need to have the Holy Spirit working in us. We’ve got to push harder to bring people to understand we must have faith and belief in God or things will continue to go the wrong way.”
A Culture of Chaos
The sheriff warned of a growing culture of violence and hostility, citing recent national attacks including the “Charlie Kirk massacre,” the stabbing of a 23-year-old woman on a subway and a shooting at a Michigan church.
“These attacks aren’t isolated,” he said. “There’s a culture of hostility that’s occurring because you have the 24-hour news cycle.”
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He blamed both mainstream and social media for spreading negativity and fueling division. “Dirty laundry sells,” he said. “Social media is a breeding ground for conflict. No one seems to be able to have civil discourse anymore.”
The Drug Epidemic and a Moral Crisis
Having served in law enforcement for five decades, Judd tied America’s drug crisis to a deeper spiritual problem. “The overdose deaths go up and up and up. The suicides go up and up and up. The mental health issues go up and up and up,” he said.
He warned of the deadly spread of fentanyl which he said has killed 250,000 Americans in four years. “Why when you’re flipping through your social media isn’t there ‘Fentanyl kills you’?” he asked.
Fighting the Devil Where He Is
Rather than retreat from technology, Judd urged Christians to take the fight to the digital front lines. “We’ve got to fight the devil where he is, not where we want him to be,” he said to applause.
He challenged churches and believers to flood social media with light instead of darkness. “What if every church, every synagogue, every person of faith set up a Facebook or Instagram profile and pumped positive out to the kids like the negative they’re seeing now?”
The Roots of Decline
Judd shared lessons from his late father, a minister of music, who warned that America’s downfall began when it removed prayer from schools, discipline from classrooms and patriotism from the nation’s youth.
- The loss of prayer weakened the moral foundation of students and removed a daily reminder of faith from their lives.
- The end of classroom discipline shifted respect away from authority and encouraged disobedience in children.
- The decline of patriotism led young people to lose pride in their country and the sense of duty once instilled through national service.
Judd said his father’s warnings have come true. “He lived long enough to see the beginning of it.”
A Call to Revival
Quoting 2 Chronicles 7:14, Judd reminded believers that healing begins with humility and prayer. “The communication media that people are on today is not the evening news. It’s social media news,” he said. “We’ve got to make sure that we sell what’s really right, what’s really good, what’s really positive.”
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Closing his remarks, the sheriff challenged Christians to rise up. “Far too long we’ve sat quiet. If Christians do not speak up, if we do not stand up, if we do not become loud and positive, we’re going to continue to slip in our numbers. As leaders in the community, we can do better. God bless you all.”
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a background in journalism from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine.
