What pastor has not quietly prayed before stepping to the platform that everything will go smoothly? Sermons are carefully prepared. Illustrations are thoughtfully planned. Yet, every now and then, something completely unexpected happens. In this case, it was something few in attendance will ever forget.

Pastor Scott Thomas, lead pastor of Free Life Chapel in Lakeland, Florida, was speaking alongside his wife Cindy at the Creative Marriage Conference hosted by Pastors Ed and Lisa Young at Fellowship Church in Grapevine, Texas, when a sermon illustration took a shocking turn.

Pastor Scott Thomas accidentally sends as wooden dowel/ skewer through his hand for a sermon illustration, writing:

"Cindy and I spoke on “Building A Marriage” and used a wedding cake for our illustration. To close the teaching, we stressed that if we build our marriages outside…

— Protestia (@Protestia) February 23, 2026

“Cindy and I were honored to speak at the Creative Marriage Conference for P. @ed_young & @lisayoungfc at @fellowshipchurch last weekend!” Thomas wrote in a Facebook post recounting the event.

The couple’s message centered on “Building A Marriage,” using a wedding cake as a visual representation. As Thomas explained, “To close the teaching, we stressed that if we build our marriages outside of God’s order… the whole cake marriage crashed!”

The illustration was meant to be memorable. It certainly became that.

“All went well… until I slammed the cake upside down and SURPRISINGLY DISCOVERED that the cake company had implanted a dowel inside to hold the cake layers together,” Thomas wrote.

What happened next stunned both Thomas and the audience.

“When I slammed the cake upside-down video… the dowel pierced through the bottom of the cake and traveled completely through my hand!” he said. “When I looked down… the dowel was sticking 5 inches out the back of my hand!”

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Incredibly, Thomas did not leave the platform in panic. “I immediately pulled the stick out of my hand and tried to wrap my head around what just happened!” he wrote.

Cindy quickly stepped in to help. “Cindy immediately slid me a towel… I wrapped my hand, finished the message and prayed to close out the session in the next 5 minutes.”

The fact that the injury was not worse has left many expressing gratitude. Thomas later shared an encouraging update.

“UPDATE: My hand is healing well and doing great!! I have no pain & no issues… just a new fear of cake!”

He also publicly thanked those who assisted him in the immediate aftermath. “THANK YOU to the Fellowship Staff and Team for your immediate and professional care!!”

It was a wild and painful moment that could have ended far differently. Instead, what was meant to illustrate the fragility of marriage under the wrong foundation became an unforgettable reminder of God’s protection in the midst of the unexpected.

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. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

Acoustic Truth may be best known for their chart-topping music, but in a recent video, Ryan Knott offered what he called “a gem” of a biblical insight, arguing that the book of Ruth is far more than a simple love story.

“Oh, do I have a gem for you today. The book of Ruth,” Knott says while speaking alone from his vehicle. “Now, a lot of people read this and think it’s just a love story. But it’s actually way more than that. It’s a prophetic blueprint of the rapture of the church and ultimately your redemption. And almost nobody sees it.”

His claim raises a compelling question: Is the Rapture hidden in the book of Ruth?

Famine, Bitterness and a Picture of Israel

Knott begins with the setting. “There was a famine in Bethlehem. Okay. Now, Bethlehem means house of bread. And there was no bread. That should stop you right there. When the house of bread is empty, something is spiritually wrong.”

He describes Elimelech leaving Bethlehem for Moab as stepping “outside the will of God,” noting that both sons die and Naomi is left grieving. Naomi even asks to be called Mara, meaning bitter.

“That is Israel,” Knott says. “Pleasant turned bitter, chosen but scattered. Empty because she left the land.”

In his framework, Naomi represents Israel in exile and spiritual barrenness.

Ruth as the Gentile Bride

The focus then shifts to Ruth, the Moabite widow.

“She is a Moabite, a gentile, right? She has no covenant. She’s got no promises and no inheritance,” Knott says. Yet Ruth’s declaration stands out: “Your people will be my people and your God my God.”

“That is faith to a tee. That is conversion to a tee. That is you and me,” he says.

Knott points out that Naomi returns to Bethlehem “at the beginning of the barley harvest,” calling it “first fruits, right? Resurrection language timing in scripture is never random.”

For him, the harvest imagery hints at prophetic timing connected to resurrection and redemption.

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Boaz as the Kinsman Redeemer

Central to Knott’s argument is Boaz, whom he identifies as a clear type of Christ.

“The kinsman redeemer had to meet four requirements,” he explains. “Number one, he had to be a relative. Number two, he had to be able to pay the price. Number three, he had to be willing to pay the price. And number four, he had to assume the obligation publicly.”

“Who does that sound like? I’ll give it a second. Jesus.”

Knott describes Boaz as “a type of Christ,” Ruth as “a type of church” and Naomi as “a type of Israel.”

He highlights how Boaz notices Ruth before she approaches him. “He says, ‘I’ve heard about you.’ He instructs his workers to leave handfuls on purpose for her. That’s not just a random blessing. That is intentional favor.”

Knott ties that grace to redemption language, emphasizing that Ruth is “living off of what she didn’t plant.”

Law and Grace at the Gate

One of the more striking elements in Knott’s teaching is the role of the unnamed closer kinsman.

“But here’s the twist,” he says. “There’s another kinsman closer than Boaz. The law. The law is closer to you than grace. The law has first right of refusal. And Boaz does not bypass the law. What does he do? He fulfills it publicly at the gate.”

When the nearer kinsman refuses to redeem Ruth, Knott draws a theological parallel. “The law can redeem land, but it cannot redeem a bride. Only grace can do that.”

Boaz then completes the transaction before witnesses. “You’ve got a public declaration. You have redemption that is secured.”

Into the House Before Restoration

For Knott, the imagery becomes explicitly prophetic at the marriage.

“Boaz takes Ruth as his bride. Hold that. Where does she go? Into his house. You don’t see her gleaning anymore. You don’t see her in the fields during judgment. She’s in the house of the redeemer.”

Meanwhile, Naomi is restored through the birth of Obed, grandfather of David.

“A gentile bride redeemed before Naomi is fully restored, inserted into the messianic line. That is not accidental. It can’t be,” Knott says. “The church is a gentile heavy bride redeemed before Israel’s national restoration inserted into the kingdom program.”

He concludes that “the bride will not stay in the field forever. She goes into the house.”

A Unique Take on a Familiar Story

Knott describes the four chapters of Ruth as “literally a rehearsal” and calls it “the gospel hidden in a love story.”

He ends with a devotional application. “Ruth didn’t chase status. She didn’t demand rights. She humbled herself. She rested at his feet. And Boaz did the work. Just like Jesus, redemption is not you striving. It’s you resting in the sufficiency of your kinsmen.”

Whether one agrees with every typological connection, Knott’s interpretation offers a thought provoking lens through which to read a familiar Old Testament narrative.

Is the Rapture hidden in the book of Ruth? Knott certainly believes so and presents a cohesive case rooted in symbolism, covenant language and redemptive themes.

It is certainly something to consider and to ensure we abide by the biblical command of being ready at all times in all seasons.

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. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

Prayer has played a defining role in the shaping of the United States since its founding, from solemn appeals for divine protection during the Revolutionary War to public invocations at moments of national crisis.

At a recent governor’s dinner at the White House, that tradition was placed front and center once again as President Donald Trump invited Secretary of War Pete Hegseth to lead the room in prayer.

“You have done a fantastic job and Pete, you are doing incredible and please say grace,” Trump said as he introduced him.

With governors, cabinet members and national leaders assembled, Hegseth stepped forward and began with a simple request: “If you would bow your head.”

“Dear heavenly father, King Jesus, we come humbly before your throne praising you for all the providence you’ve bestowed upon this nation for over 250 years,” he prayed.

From the outset, the prayer was rooted in gratitude and historical awareness. Hegseth pointed to the nation’s founding and its enduring acknowledgment of God’s sovereignty.

“From George Washington to President Trump, we have dedicated this nation to one nation under God. And certainly in God we trust,” he said.

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He invoked the image of Washington at Valley Forge, describing him as “unbended knee in Valley Forge appealing to heaven on behalf of his troops and this young nation.” Hegseth added, “We’ve appealed to you from the beginning and may we continue to appeal to you.”

The prayer then turned directly to the nation’s current leadership.

“And tonight we pray for our president, President Trump. Give him safety. Give him wisdom,” Hegseth said. “Lord, we pray for our vice president, our first lady, our second lady, the cabinet members here, all the governors assembled here as well, our civil magistrates.”

He asked that God would grant leaders both clarity and courage. “Lord God, I ask that you give them the wisdom to see what is right and the courage to do it.”

In a moment that underscored the biblical foundation of his remarks, Hegseth defined wisdom in unmistakable terms.

“Wisdom defined as the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord being the source of all knowledge and wisdom,” he prayed. “Lord God, your eternal truths, may they rule.”

He also remembered America’s service members stationed around the world.

“I would be remiss if I did not pray for our great troops, our men and women all around the globe, defending our great nation as they have for 250 years,” he said. “Lord God, watch over them and protect them.”

Hegseth closed the prayer with a clear declaration of faith. “It is in your holy name, the Lord Jesus Christ, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, that we pray and we bless this food, too. Amen.”

We live in an era marked by political division and cultural uncertainty, and the moment stood as a public affirmation of the spiritual heritage that has long undergirded the American experiment. The call to humility before God, the appeal for wisdom rooted in reverence and the plea for divine protection over leaders and troops alike represented more than ceremony. It reflected a conviction that prayer is not a relic of the past but a necessary foundation for national renewal.

As the nation approaches 250 years since its founding, the message delivered at the White House was clear. If America is to turn itself around, it must continue to do what it has done since the beginning. Appeal to heaven.

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. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

Hell has once again become a point of public discussion among Christians after commentator Kirk Cameron said he now leans toward annihilationism rather than eternal conscious suffering. Cameron has stated he is open to changing his mind and considers the issue secondary to the Gospel. Still, many believers were surprised that such a foundational doctrine would be reconsidered.

In the middle of that renewed debate, author and speaker Bill Wiese has stepped forward with a simple but weighty question: What does the Bible say?

Wiese opens his recent teaching without theatrics or mockery. “Will people exist forever in hell? Yes, most certainly. You will not cease to exist.” His tone is direct and sober. The subject, he makes clear, is not theoretical. It is eternal.

He grounds his position in the nature of God and the authority of Scripture. “There is no scripture that supports an unbeliever will be spared from eternal torment and hell. God will not change his word.” Quoting Psalms 89:34 and Malachi 3:6, he emphasizes that the Lord does not alter what He has spoken. If God has described punishment as everlasting, Wiese argues, believers cannot redefine it to make it more palatable.

The discussion has intensified in part because annihilationism can sound less severe. The idea that the lost simply cease to exist after judgment appears, at first glance, more compassionate. But Wiese insists compassion must begin with truth. “God made us eternal beings in Genesis 1:26.” If humanity is created with an eternal dimension, the issue is not whether people live forever but where they will live forever.

He also addresses the seriousness of sin itself. “We have sinned against a holy, omnipotent, perfect, almighty God.” Wiese explains that the gravity of an offense is tied to the one offended. Sin against an infinite God carries eternal consequence. He points to the cross as proof that God does not treat sin lightly. “He gave the human race his very best in sending his own son to die in our place on the cross. And then people scoff at that fact or flat out reject this amazing free gift of salvation.”

For Wiese, hell is not about cruelty. It is about justice and the rejection of grace. He rejects the notion that time spent in hell could somehow pay off sin. “Time spent in hell could never pay for our sins. Our time is not valuable enough to God. Only the shed blood of Jesus has that value.” Citing Hebrews 9:22 and Ephesians 2:8-9, he stresses that salvation is by grace through faith and not by works. If human effort cannot save, neither can prolonged suffering.

Central to his argument is Matthew 25:46. “And these will go away into everlasting punishment but the righteous into eternal life.” Wiese notes that the same Greek word aionios is used for both punishment and life. “The same word is used to describe both heaven and hell’s duration.” If eternal life truly means forever, he argues, then eternal punishment must mean the same.

He further points to Revelation 20:10, which describes the devil being “tormented day and night forever and ever.” Wiese says this defines what everlasting means. “So here we see that the place the devil and men are cast in is defined as day and night forever and everlasting.” He also references Revelation 14:10-11, which says the smoke of their torment ascends forever and they have no rest day nor night. “To be tormented with fire and brimstone one has to still exist.”

In raising these passages, Wiese does not mock those who disagree. Instead, he repeatedly returns to Scripture. His approach is not sensational but textual. The conversation sparked by Cameron’s comments has revealed how uncomfortable many believers feel about hell. Yet discomfort does not erase doctrine.

Hell is not a punchline. It is not a debate topic to be handled casually. It is a warning wrapped in mercy. Wiese closes with a question that frames the matter plainly: “So all humans are eternal beings. The question is, will you spend it in everlasting bliss in heaven or in everlasting torment in hell? You decide.”

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. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

Journalist Melissa Francis is speaking out about the brief airport interview between Tucker Carlson and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, offering a sharply different account from Carlson’s claims about what happened during his visit.

Francis told CBN News she helped initiate the exchange after discussing Israel with Carlson weeks earlier. “I was having lunch with Tucker … and I was showing him pictures from Israel and he said, ‘God, I’d love to go.’ And I said, ‘Let’s go. You should come,’” she said.

Carlson told her that President Donald Trump had encouraged him to travel to Israel and meet with the prime minister to “smooth this over,” describing tensions as having “gotten … really dicey.” Francis said Carlson later claimed he reached out to the prime minister but did not receive a response.

She said Ambassador Huckabee believed a firsthand visit would provide needed perspective, particularly given comments Carlson has made in recent months. Francis said Huckabee does not feel these comments accurately reflect what is going on here.

The interview ultimately took place at Ben Gurion Airport. Carlson did not leave the airport and later said he had been detained.

Francis offered a different characterization of the airport experience.

“On my way, my luggage was dumped out. They went through my passport. I always get pulled into the room that he’s talked about,” she said. “I think it’s about a country that has people come in and blow stuff up.”

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She added that she has traveled to Israel eight times since Oct. 7 and has consistently experienced heightened security procedures. “That’s how I get in and out every single time, and I don’t take it personally,” she said. “Welcome to Israel. Security is very good.”

Carlson has suggested Israel mistreats Christians and has platformed voices alleging persecution. Francis said that has not been her experience.

“I’m a Christian who has been to Israel, as I said, eight times for long periods of time. I’ve shot two documentaries. I have never had anything but the warmest reception,” she said. “I’ve never had anyone, either Arab or Jewish, threaten me in any way, spit on me, any of those things that he’s talked about. I haven’t seen that.”

She acknowledged that Carlson says his views are shaped by the people he interviews but declined to speculate on his sourcing. “Everybody has the right to their own opinion,” she said. “America is a democracy just like Israel.”

During the airport interview, Francis described the exchange as tense at times but substantive. “Tucker asked a lot of questions that I know Americans are asking and … Ambassador Huckabee really corrected him on things that he’s heard Tucker say that just aren’t accurate about how Christians are treated here in Israel,” she said. She declined to share specific details, calling it “between them.”

Francis also argued that broader public opinion in the United States is being shaped by what she described as a coordinated misinformation effort. “People there, they think Israel’s killing loads of babies every single day,” she said. “They really believe that they’re committing genocide.”

She attributed those perceptions to “the machine that is feeding out this completely false narrative,” naming Hamas, Qatar, Iran, Russia and China.

Carlson’s critics say his increasingly sharp rhetoric toward Israel has amplified some of those narratives. While Francis stopped short of directly accusing him of bad faith, she warned that Americans are being “tricked into thinking that Israel is not on our side.”

The airport episode has now become another flashpoint in Carlson’s ongoing commentary about Israel. With each successive claim from detention allegations to assertions of Christian persecution, the gap between his portrayal and accounts from on-the-ground journalists appears to be widening.

That escalation is raising new concerns about how far the rhetoric may go next.

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. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

History does not move randomly. It moves according to the set times of God. When the book of Esther records a decree of destruction reversed in a single day, it reveals more than ancient Jewish survival. It reveals a kingdom pattern.

As Purim 5786 approaches, that pattern is rising again. The shaking in nations is not a political coincidence. It is a prophetic alignment.

Pastor Philip Thornton, speaking alongside Rabbi Curt Landry, declared that this Purim marks a preparatory and strategic moment unlike recent years.

In his word released during a January fast, Thornton said, “Purim is the time where we will witness a reverse of decree curses while at the same time be positioned to receive both empowerment and anointing for defense and for battle.”

God does not simply act for His people. He works through positioned vessels who understand the time.

The pattern of Esther was never passive deliverance. A wicked decree went forth. A people fasted. A queen stepped into authority. A king extended favor. Laws were reversed. Thornton summarized it this way: “God didn’t do it for them. He did it through them. He anointed them to change the narrative and empowered them to defend themselves.”

That same confrontation between covenant authority and what he described as the Haman spirit is surfacing again. Anti-Israel hostility, escalating global tension and governmental instability are not isolated developments. They are symptoms of exposure. The anti-God spirit that once hid in policy and culture is being brought into plain view.

Thornton tied this Purim to a larger revelation of divine timing. He noted that 2026 carries the numerical value associated with the name of the Lord and emphasized that 5786 is a year where “we’re going to see the hand of God revealed.” He spoke of a set time that cannot be reversed. “Satan can’t stop a set time,” he said. “It is set from before the foundations of the world.”

The chaos seen across nations is not proof of darkness winning. It is evidence that heaven’s calendar is advancing.

Central to the word was the opening of what Thornton called prophetic portals. These are not mystical abstractions. They are divine windows of alignment. “Prophetic portals are opening around the world,” he declared. “Men and women from every tribe, nation and tongue will begin to understand that it is I who have spoken the beginning from the end.”

In practical terms, this means increased clarity, sharper discernment and strategic positioning. Those who listen will find themselves in the right place at the right time. Those who resist alignment will feel the shaking more intensely.

The word also addressed unity. Disunity is the enemy’s primary counterattack against alignment. Thornton pointed to Deuteronomy 6 and the generational mandate. Families must carry revelation from fathers to sons and from sons to children. The last days will not be sustained by isolated leaders but by four generations flowing together in covenant strength. Without that transfer, blessing fragments. With it, curses are cut off, and momentum builds.

The message for Purim 5786 is not to observe but to align. Reverse decrees require positioned people. Set times require prepared hearts. The Esther pattern demands courage, unity and obedience. As the shaking intensifies and the Haman spirit is exposed, the people of God must guard love, refuse offense and stand in kingdom authority.

This Purim is a divine appointment. The decree of destruction did not stand in Esther’s day. It will not stand in ours. The set time has come.

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. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

Susan Rice ripped off the diplomatic mask and revealed exactly what the modern Democratic Party intends to do the moment it regains power: punish, investigate and crush anyone who dared work with President Donald Trump.

In a recent interview on Stay Tuned with Preet Bharara, Rice did not speak as a stateswoman. She spoke as a political enforcer. Her words were not about policy differences. They were about retribution.

“This is not going to be an instance of forgive and forget,” Rice said. “The damage that these people are doing is too severe.”

That is a threat.

Trump Is the Duly Elected President

Donald Trump is the duly elected president of the United States. He won. The American people voted. His policies are the result of that mandate. Rice does not get to declare them illegitimate because she dislikes them. Elections are not optional suggestions.

Yet Rice described the country as a “lawless society” under Trump. She claimed America is veering into authoritarianism. That narrative is the same tired script Democrats have been reading from since 2016.

The difference now is that she openly promises punishment for those who cooperated with his administration.

“They are going to be held accountable,” Rice said of corporations, universities and media outlets that “took a knee to Trump.”

Held accountable for what? For working with the sitting president? For complying with lawful executive actions? For respecting the outcome of an election?

This is the language of political intimidation.

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An ‘Accountability Agenda’ Means Political Payback

Rice spelled it out. If Democrats retake Congress, there will be an “accountability agenda.”

“Companies already are starting to hear they better preserve their documents. They better be ready for subpoenas,” she said.

That is not subtle. That is a warning to corporate America: fall in line or face investigations. Support Trump and prepare to be dragged before congressional committees.

She went further. “If these corporations think that the Democrats, when they come back in power, are going to play by the old rules … I think they’ve got another thing coming.”

Translation: the gloves are off.

Rice said Democrats “are not going to be suckers.” She promised they will not operate under the “old set of rules.” That is a declaration that the era of even pretending at bipartisan norms is over.

This is Saul Alinsky politics in broad daylight. Identify the target. Isolate the target. Make the target pay. That is Rules for Radicals in action.

‘Revenge Is Best Served Cold’

Rice did not even attempt to hide the motive.

“Revenge is best served cold,” she said. She added that it is important to make bullies “pay a price.”

That is not the language of constitutional governance. That is the language of vendetta.

When a former national security adviser talks about revenge against domestic political opponents, Americans should pay attention. That is how power is weaponized. That is how institutions are turned into tools of punishment.

Trump’s Policies Are Not Illegal

Rice repeatedly frames Trump’s agenda as authoritarian and lawless. The reality is simple. Every major Trump policy has been reviewed in court. That is how the constitutional system works.

Rogue judges funded by progressive billionaires like George Soros have blocked executive actions at every turn. Injunctions have been issued before policies even take effect. The legal resistance has been relentless.

Rice’s claim that America is descending into tyranny is political theater designed to justify retaliation.

The Real Threat to Democracy

Rice predicted a “swing in the other direction” and warned institutions they will be “caught” when it happens. That is a promise of selective enforcement and partisan investigations.

The American people are being told that if they elect Democrats again, the first order of business will not be border security, economic reform or national defense. It will be settling scores.

That is the real authoritarian instinct on display.

The United States does not operate on a cycle of revenge. It operates on elections. Trump won. His allies operated within the law. Cooperating with a sitting president is not a crime.

Rice’s words are inflammatory because they reveal intent. The intent is not to debate policy. It is to punish dissent. It is to intimidate institutions. It is to ensure that next time, no corporation, no university and no media outlet dares to work with a Republican administration.

That is not accountability. That is political warfare. And the American people see it.

To see the inflammatory interview for yourself, click here (Editor’s Note: Strong Language).

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. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

The wind moves quietly across Tel Hebron, brushing against massive stone foundations that have stood for thousands of years. Beneath layers of earth and conflict lies a city Scripture once described as the stronghold of giants. For generations, skeptics dismissed those accounts as legend. But as excavation resumes at the ancient site also known as Kiriath Arba, the stones themselves are forcing a second look.

Joshua and Caleb Colson, known as the Bearded Bible Bros, recently stood among those ruins and traced the biblical narrative through the terrain. What they found was not a mythic backdrop but a fortified city whose scale commands attention.

Cyclopean Walls and Fortified Towers

The brothers walk along the base of towering stone walls that archaeologists date to the Middle Bronze Age. Some of the remaining foundations rise nearly seven meters high. They point out the thickness of the construction, the placement of defensive towers and the layered architecture that reveals centuries of occupation.

These are not the fragile remnants of a nomadic settlement. The city was built for defense. The brothers note that Scripture describes Hebron as a place of large fortified cities ruled by the Anakim. Standing at the base of those stones, the question becomes unavoidable. What kind of inhabitants required fortifications of that magnitude?

The Anakim in the Land

The Bible records that Caleb, at 85 years old, requested this very mountain as his inheritance. In Joshua 14:12 he declares, “Now therefore give me this mountain of which the Lord spoke in that day; for you heard in that day how the Anakim were there, and that the cities were great and fortified.”

The Colsons recount how Caleb did not shrink back from the reputation of the giants. The text names three sons of Anak driven out from Hebron. The brothers describe the setting not as symbolic terrain but as a real battlefield. The fortified remains reinforce the gravity of that confrontation. This was not poetic imagery. It was a stronghold.

Mikvahs and Ancient Presence

Nearby, carved into the ground, are ritual immersion baths known as mikvahs. The brothers pause to examine them, explaining how such structures point to established Jewish life rooted in covenant practice. These baths were used for ritual cleansing before entering sacred space. Their presence ties the location to longstanding worship patterns described in Scripture.

Archaeological layers at the site align with the biblical timeline of the conquest. The acropolis area remains largely unexcavated, yet plans are underway to explore what lies beneath. Each layer uncovered adds texture to the record, connecting text to terrain.

As the sun lowers over Hebron, the ruins do not offer spectacle. They offer weight. The walls still stand where the Anakim once ruled. The mountain Caleb claimed remains visible on the horizon. What was once dismissed as allegory now rests in stone. The land is not telling a new story. It is reminding the world of one already written.

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. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

Suffering is not a glitch in history. It is the proving ground of the last days. God is forming a bride who will not bend under pressure, will not retreat when opposed and will not betray the King when darkness intensifies. The age is closing, and eternity is drawing near. What believers do with hardship now determines their place in the kingdom to come.

On a recent episode of the John Bevere Podcast, John Bevere confronted the modern assumption that pain signals God’s absence. He began by recounting the brutality Jesus endured before the cross.

“Jesus did nothing wrong. He’s the only innocent man that’s ever walked this earth,” Bevere said. “They blindfolded him. They were slugging him. They were spitting on him. They were mocking him.”

He walked through the escalating violence from Jewish authorities to Roman soldiers, pointing to Isaiah’s prophecy. “Isaiah 50:6 says, ‘I gave my back to those who struck me and my cheeks to those who plucked out the beard. I did not hide my face from shame and spitting,’” he said. He also cited Isaiah 52:14. “His face was so disfigured. He seemed hardly a man.”

Bevere pressed the central question: Why would a loving God allow suffering for those he loves most?

What is taking place is not merely personal hardship. The surface narrative hides a deeper spiritual reality.

Bevere stated that believers live in a hostile world influenced by demonic resistance to obedience. “We live in a very cruel world that is run by the prince of the power of the air and his legions,” he said. He made clear that God does not author evil, yet uses the resistance of a fallen world to form a faithful bride. “God never authors the trials we go through,” Bevere said. “But God said, ‘I’m going to use that to create a faithful bride.’”

He distinguished between self-inflicted pain and suffering that comes from obeying God. “We’re talking about the pain that comes when you obey God in a fallen world,” he said. The focus is obedience, not pain itself.

Bevere argued that suffering handled rightly forges trust and intimacy. He pointed to shared hardship in marriage and in battle as examples of bonds strengthened through adversity. Then he applied that truth to Christ and His church.

“Our creator willingly embraced excruciating suffering, not only to redeem us, but because he desired the closest possible bond with his beloved, his bride, the church,” Bevere said. “He saw the prophetic vision of a faithful bride.”

He anchored that claim in Scripture. Romans 8:17 connects sharing in Christ’s suffering with sharing in His glory. Philippians 3:10 records Paul’s desire to know Christ and “suffer with him.” Acts 5:41 shows the apostles rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer disgrace for Jesus’ name. Philippians 1:29 declares that suffering for Christ accompanies belief.

The message is clear. Endurance is not optional in the life of a believer. It is part of the calling.

Bevere tied suffering directly to future authority. Quoting 2 Timothy 2:12, he said, “If we endure hardship, we will reign with him.” He referenced Revelation 2:26, where Jesus promises authority to those who obey to the end. “You are not enduring to survive,” Bevere said. “You’re actually enduring to reign.”

He then turned to the issue of trust. Citing John 2:23-24, he noted that while many trusted Jesus, “Jesus didn’t trust them because he knew all about people.” Later, Jesus told His disciples, “You were the ones who continue with me through my trials,” marking a shift from servants to trusted friends.

Bevere applied Proverbs 31:11 to the bride of Christ. “The heart of her husband safely trusts her,” he said. His conclusion was direct. “Jesus isn’t marrying a crowd. He’s marrying a crown-worthy companion who will rule and reign with his heart forever and ever.”

Pressure will increase. Offense will rise. Many will fall away because they were never prepared to endure. Obedience in hardship proves loyalty. The King is coming, and He is searching for a bride He can trust.

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. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

It is not rising from the plains of Shinar with bricks and mortar. It is rising from server farms and research labs with algorithms and neural networks. The spirit is the same. The ambition is the same. Genesis 11 is no ancient relic. It is a prophetic template, and it is unfolding before our eyes through artificial intelligence.

A recent video from the YouTube channel Wise Disciple featuring host Nate Sala highlighted escalating concern within the technology sector itself. Developers are no longer whispering about disruption. They are declaring it.

AI researcher Matt Schumer wrote on X that “the ground is shaking,” warning that what has already overtaken tech jobs is coming for the wider workforce. An organization called Meter tracks how long AI systems can complete real world tasks without human intervention. Roughly a year ago, the average was about 10 minutes. That quickly expanded to an hour, then several hours. The most recent measurements show AI completing tasks that would take a human expert nearly five hours. That capability is doubling approximately every seven months and may be accelerating.

OpenAI publicly acknowledged recursive development in a press release stating, “GPT 5.3 Codeex is our first model that was instrumental in creating itself. The Codeex team used early versions to debug its own training, manage its own deployment, and diagnose test results and evaluations.” In plain terms, AI is now participating in building its own successor.

Leading figures in the field are issuing warnings. Geoffrey Hinton has warned that advanced systems learn unexpected behaviors from massive data sets and could outpace human oversight. Stuart Russell has cautioned that machines given objectives may act to preserve themselves if shutdown threatens their assigned goals. The experts building these systems openly admit they do not fully understand how they reason internally once they reach certain levels of complexity.

Artificial intelligence is not theoretical. It already filters job applications, evaluates loan approvals and curates the information people see daily. It is embedding itself into the infrastructure of society.

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Genesis 11 records humanity unified under one language and one purpose declaring, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves.” The issue was never architecture. It was autonomy. It was a unified human system operating independent of God.

The Lord said, “This is only the beginning of what they will do, and nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them.” God disrupted Babel because unchecked centralized power in fallen hands leads to rebellion against divine authority.

Artificial intelligence is the modern mechanism for global unity and centralized capability. It connects languages instantly. It collapses borders digitally. It concentrates influence in the hands of those who control the systems. Humanity is once again saying, let us make a name for ourselves.

Scripture warns of a final global system characterized by centralized economic and governmental control. Revelation describes a structure in which buying and selling are regulated and allegiance is enforced. Such a system requires technological infrastructure capable of monitoring and managing populations at scale. AI provides that capacity.

This is the architecture of global governance.

The coming Antichrist will not build from scratch. He will inherit and weaponize what is already in place. Artificial intelligence, embedded into finance, communication and security, forms the backbone of such a system. The consolidation of data is the consolidation of power.

Sala stated plainly that power without submission to God is rebellion waiting to scale. That is the lesson of Babel. When humanity unites apart from divine authority, God intervenes.

The question is not whether innovation is wrong. God commanded mankind to steward and cultivate the earth. The question is whether that stewardship is exercised in submission to the Creator or in defiance of Him.

Psalm 2 declares that the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain against the Lord and His Anointed. The kings of the earth set themselves against His authority. Yet the One enthroned in heaven laughs. No tower stands forever. No system escapes judgment.

Artificial intelligence is not neutral in its trajectory. It is being built within a fallen world by fallen men. It will reflect human pride unless surrendered to divine rule. The consolidation of knowledge and power without repentance accelerates the prophetic timeline.

Genesis 11 is not a myth. It is a warning.

Humanity is building again. God is still watching. And every tower raised in defiance of His authority will fall.

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. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.