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Russia, We Have a Problem · The Stan R. Mitchell Show

• 0:00
  [music]
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_00: What is going on, everyone?
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to The Stan R. Mitchell Show.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_00: My name is Stan,
• 0:17
  SPEAKER_00: and this week,
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_00: I'm taking a look at some of the biggest stories and headlines,
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: and giving you my take on what matters and why.
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_00: We will start with a brief story of motivation,
• 0:30
  SPEAKER_00: then we're going to speed through three little news briefs,
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_00: and then we're going to talk about the big story of the week, which is Russia...
• 0:39
  SPEAKER_00: Finally, we'll end with a story of courage and the faith section.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: As always,
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: I will have time stamps in the episode in case you want to jump to one section
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_00: or another.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_00: But either way, I appreciate you being here.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_00: So I want to start with just a little bit of motivation because I know the economy is tough.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: I know it's hard to get into a house.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: I know especially young people and fears of AI.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: There's lots of Younger folks especially just concerned about the future.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: But here is proof that anyone can make it.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: This was something that was making the rounds on social media.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: But for those who say it's hard to make it,
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_00: or worse,
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_00: you can't make it these days,
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: there is the resume of a lady named Ann Marie Campbell going around on social media.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: Ann Marie Campbell started at Home Depot as a cashier back in 1985.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not sure what they paid a cashier back then,
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_00: but I think we can all agree it probably wasn't much.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: And Ann Marie Campbell,
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_00: by the way I fact checked all this even with SEC filings to confirm this story.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: Ann Marie Campbell started from nothing as a cashier.
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_00: She's been at Home Depot for more than 40 years.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_00: Ann Marie Campbell started as a cashier in 1985,
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: worked as a cashier for three years,
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: a sales associate for two years,
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_00: then by 1989 she was a department supervisor, did that for two years.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_00: They promoted her to assistant store manager, she did that for three years, 1991 to 1994.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_00: Then she got promoted to store manager, 1994-1996.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: From there, district manager, 1996-1999.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: Then promoted to regional vice president of Pacific Operations, from 1999-2001.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_00: Then vice president of store operations, 2001-2002.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_00: And then I'll just race through the rest of these titles, but regional.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: Regional Vice President of Mid-South Operations,
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_00: Merchandising Vice President Special Orders,
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: Vice President of Retail Marketing and Sales,
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: Merchandising Vice President of Vendor Services,
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_00: President of the Southern Division,
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: Executive Vice President of U.S.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_00: Stores and International Operations, and finally, Senior Executive Vice President.
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_00: She's one of the top three people in the company of Home Depot now,
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: and as almost everyone on social media says,
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_00: although it's Not public what she makes, she's almost certainly a multi-millionaire.
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_00: And currently the CEO's out and her and one other person is running Home Depot right now.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_00: And so the reason for that very long list of positions is a reminder
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: that you can start at the bottom,
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_00: you can work hard,
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: and you can climb your way up by just being a little better than those around you,
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: by not making excuses,
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_00: by not being negative, by just doing what you should be doing.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_00: It is proof that anyone can make it because Anne Marie Campbell went from cashier to
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_00: a multi-millionaire and you can find plenty of stories about her out there
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_00: because it is a pretty remarkable story.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_00: So no matter what your excuse is, flush it.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_00: We're not taking any excuses.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_00: Work hard and claw your way to the top if that's what you desire.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_00: I did that for a lot of my life and the more wise answer
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_00: in my opinion is spend more time with God because we're not promised tomorrow.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_00: But I know pushing God is not exactly the most popular thing to do
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_00: so I'm just putting out there some motivation that
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_00: if you are seeking worldly riches it's possible.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_00: It's not going to be easy but it's possible.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_00: And don't let anyone ever tell you it's not.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_00: In fact,
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_00: there's even a biblical proverb that says,
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_00: A wise servant will rule over a disgraceful son and will share the inheritance
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_00: as one of the family.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_00: So even if you're working for a rich entrepreneur and they have a son or a daughter
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_00: that on paper will probably run the company,
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: There is no guarantee of that, especially if they're a spoiled little brat.
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_00: Proverbs chapter 17 says,
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_00: A wise servant will rule over a disgraceful son and will share the inheritance
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_00: as one of the family.
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_00: Alright,
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_00: so on the first news topic,
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_00: we gotta talk about,
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_00: just for a moment, the Iran War and how it has managed to get far worse.
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_00: Now,
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_00: I did put out a special edition free little newsletter supplement late last week
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_00: when this news broke.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_00: So if you haven't signed up for the newsletter list, it is free to do so.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_00: All you gotta do is just go to the episode notes,
• 6:02
  SPEAKER_00: in Substack, just put your email, totally free, So that you can get any updates.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_00: So I don't want to cover all that again since I covered it in detail
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_00: and there haven't been much changes since then.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_00: But I'll give you like the 22nd version.
• 6:16
  SPEAKER_00: The 22nd version is that the Houthis down in Yemen.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: They have just exploded in a new aggressive campaign that's captured a lot of territory.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_00: And they now control a strait near the Red Sea and a couple of islands there.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_00: There's a strait that you'll start to hear of more and more now called the Bab al-Mandaab.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_00: So, Bab al-Mandaab.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: And they now...
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_00: It appears at least control that straight and so this is going to really affect
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_00: the price of oil.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_00: So there's the Strait of Hormuz on the other side and now in the Red Sea.
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_00: They control that straight as well.
• 7:01
  SPEAKER_00: Saudi Arabia is working with the government of Yemen to try to fight the Houthis.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_00: And there is some talk that the U.S.
• 7:17
  SPEAKER_00: is providing some guidance,
• 7:19
  SPEAKER_00: but for the moment, President Trump said he is not sending troops back.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_00: And just a historical reminder,
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_00: under both President Biden and President Trump,
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_00: we have already tangled with the Houthis before,
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_00: and I'm not sure that we did that well.
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_00: They are great at digging in.
• 7:56
  SPEAKER_00: They don't have a lot of targets that are easy to bomb.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_00: We've hit most of them,
• 8:02
  SPEAKER_00: and by the time we stopped, they were good at shooting down some of our drones.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_00: So they've been fighting for a long time, and they're a very capable enemy.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_00: So, the Iran War, it's in a much worse situation.
• 8:16
  SPEAKER_00: That's the bottom line, and there are no easy answers out there.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_00: Alright, moving along.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_00: So, as you probably heard,
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_00: although it has been a little buried by other news,
• 8:27
  SPEAKER_00: but the Federal Reserve raised interest rates today.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_00: It is increased by a quarter of a percentage point, or 0.25.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_00: It's the first time rates have been raised in three years.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_00: And the simple reason for why they're doing it is because of inflation.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_00: So basically prices are still going up faster than the Fed wants.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_00: And while the economy has remained fairly strong, the Fed is basically tapping the brakes.
• 8:58
  SPEAKER_00: Now, higher interest rates means that borrowing is going to be more expensive,
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_00: such as car loans, credit cards, business loans.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_00: Any type of borrowing cost is going to go up.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_00: Now, the idea for why they did this is that if it's more expensive to borrow,
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_00: people and businesses will spend less.
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_00: That will cool down the economy a bit, and when that happens, inflation should come down.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_00: There's obviously a downside to that,
• 9:29
  SPEAKER_00: which is that we're already dealing with high prices,
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_00: and now borrowing money is about to get more expensive,
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_00: including things like mortgages and car loans.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_00: So, at any rate.
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_00: I'm sure President Trump is going to be furious because he got rid of
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_00: the last Fed chair because the guy wouldn't lower rates and then puts
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_00: in this new guy, Kevin Warsh, and they have actually increased the rate.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_00: And they've not only increased it,
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_00: they are signaling that there will be another rate hike before the end of the year.
• 10:03
  SPEAKER_00: So bottom line is inflation is still high enough that the Federal Reserve thinks
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_00: the economy needs some brakes put on it.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_00: So unfortunately for us, most Americans are going to feel some of this braking as well.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_00: Now let's talk about dividend checks and Congress just briefly.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_00: As you probably heard last week,
• 10:27
  SPEAKER_00: the President was proposing a $5,000 dividend because he said
• 10:31
  SPEAKER_00: the American economy is doing incredible.
• 10:35
  SPEAKER_00: This landed with pretty much a complete thud, partly because it's going to be so expensive.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_00: In fact,
• 10:44
  SPEAKER_00: some folks ran the numbers and it would cost $1.2 trillion if they make
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_00: a $5,000 payment to every adult U.S. citizen.
• 10:56
  SPEAKER_00: Basic math is there's about $240 to $240.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_00: 145 million adult citizens, so that times 5,000 is 1.225 trillion.
• 11:04
  SPEAKER_00: Of course,
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_00: we already have a deficit every year,
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_00: plus the annual debt is already at 40 trillion dollars.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_00: So this was not a very popular thing.
• 11:20
  SPEAKER_00: There was some polling done afterward.
• 11:22
  SPEAKER_00: 63% of voters say it is inappropriate.
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_00: Only 17% say it's appropriate.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_00: Even among Republicans,
• 11:31
  SPEAKER_00: and thank goodness Republicans oppose this,
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_00: 37% call it inappropriate compared with 33% who say it's appropriate.
• 11:39
  SPEAKER_00: So not good polling numbers on that.
• 11:46
  SPEAKER_00: And then just briefly on Congress,
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_00: Congressman Thomas Massey,
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_00: whose president has done his best to crush,
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_00: he's a Republican,
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_00: Congressman Thomas Massey called to impeach the Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_00: That didn't seem real popular, and so they decided to cancel the rest of the session.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_00: So, almost, it happened within 24 hours.
• 12:16
  SPEAKER_00: Because I think they were a little worried about how many votes there might be on this.
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_00: So Thomas Massey was working on a discharge petition for the Epstein list and also
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_00: on impeaching the Secretary of War.
• 12:30
  SPEAKER_00: And just like that,
• 12:32
  SPEAKER_00: the GOP decided to send the House home early,
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_00: which will push off this impeachment vote of,
• 12:40
  SPEAKER_00: again, the Secretary of War, Pete Hegsett.
• 12:46
  SPEAKER_00: On the one hand I think this is shameful,
• 12:48
  SPEAKER_00: especially given how little Congress works and has worked the past two years.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_00: On the other,
• 12:54
  SPEAKER_00: Congress has barely done a thing to check the numerous norms, rules,
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_00: and laws that the President and his administration have regularly trampled
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_00: and darted past.
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_00: So, hey, they weren't doing much anyway, right?
• 13:13
  SPEAKER_00: Let them go home and hear from the public just what we think of them and
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_00: the work they are doing or not doing, I should say.
• 13:25
  SPEAKER_00: Now, let's talk about the main story for the week that hasn't gotten enough attention.
• 13:33
  SPEAKER_00: And it's a broader topic that involves several things I want to get into.
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_00: But overall, I would just say, Russia, we've got a problem.
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_00: I'm referring to several things that managed to break through this week.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_00: I want to start by talking about a pretty wild story that did not get enough attention.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_00: The Justice Department from the Southern District of New York announced charges
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_00: on some Russians.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_00: They say that Russian intelligence was behind an international network
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_00: that was trying to kill Russian dissidents or people who have been speaking out
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_00: against Russia, including folks that are here in the United States.
• 14:19
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's pretty crazy.
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_00: So according to federal prosecutors,
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_00: people connected to this network recruited a man in America to follow and watch
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_00: a prominent Russian dissident march.
• 14:33
  SPEAKER_00: Who's living around the Washington D.C. area.
• 14:37
  SPEAKER_00: And then they allegedly offered this guy as much as $40,000 to kill
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_00: the man he was supposed to watch.
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_00: And he refused.
• 14:49
  SPEAKER_00: So the FBI eventually gets involved and the plot was stopped.
• 14:53
  SPEAKER_00: But apparently this wasn't just one crazy operation.
• 14:56
  SPEAKER_00: The Justice Department says this network has been operating since at least 2024,
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_00: and there was another alleged plot to pay $25,000 to kill a Russian dissident
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_00: in Lithuania.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_00: And of course,
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_00: members of this network allegedly discussed attacks on military
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_00: and civilian infrastructure in NATO countries that were helping Ukraine,
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_00: which is something I've been saying for the past couple of years
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_00: that there have been a lot of suspicious fires and odd things happening.
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_00: So currently five men have been charged.
• 15:31
  SPEAKER_00: None of them are in U.S. custody when the charges were announced.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_00: But these are charges.
• 15:39
  SPEAKER_00: They haven't been convicted yet.
• 15:40
  SPEAKER_00: But again,
• 15:41
  SPEAKER_00: the just blaring headline is
• 15:45
  SPEAKER_00: that Russian intelligence allegedly had people hunting down dissidents around
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_00: the world.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_00: And they were willing to pay someone to murder a Russian dissident in America,
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_00: in Washington, D.C., That's not happening somewhere halfway around the world.
• 16:01
  SPEAKER_00: That's happening here.
• 16:04
  SPEAKER_00: Now, at the same time this happened,
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_00: over in Ukraine,
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_00: there was a strike on a Ukrainian train station near Poland, which,
• 16:15
  SPEAKER_00: as crazy as this sounds,
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_00: there were foreign dignitaries on the train that were narrowly missed.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_00: And then the third thing I wanted to mention involving Russia
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_00: in this episode is there's reporting out now that says
• 16:35
  SPEAKER_00: that there were Russian satellites.
• 16:37
  SPEAKER_00: This is a CNN report, but you can find a few other places.
• 16:41
  SPEAKER_00: That 14 Russian spy satellites moved over a U.S.
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_00: military base in Saudi Arabia two days before a devastating attack by Iran.
• 16:53
  SPEAKER_00: And the timing and sequencing of the spacecraft gave them access to a large spectrum
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_00: of data which,
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_00: according to U.S.
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_00: officials and international intelligence sources,
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_00: helped Iran conduct some of its most precise attacks against American assets.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_00: Now, will the president say or do anything about this or much of anything about this?
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_00: I kind of doubt it.
• 17:23
  SPEAKER_00: And I doubt most of you all think he will either.
• 17:26
  SPEAKER_00: But I think it's safe to say that the Russia story is starting to become a bigger story.
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_00: And by the way, again, if you haven't yet signed up for the free email list, make sure you do.
• 17:38
  SPEAKER_00: Because I will be dropping a more in-depth piece about Russia.
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_00: Again, it will be for free.
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_00: So all you gotta do is put your email list in.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_00: It won't be a podcast.
• 17:47
  SPEAKER_00: I've already got it about half written.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_00: I'll probably try to get that out Thursday or Friday.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_00: But make sure you sign up for that list.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_00: I think you're going to want to see this story because it's an important one.
• 18:00
  SPEAKER_00: Before we get to the faith section, I want to leave you with something good.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_00: Because for all the ugliness we talk about on this show,
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_00: there are still people who step forward when everyone else steps back.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_00: People who do the hard thing.
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_00: The dangerous thing.
• 18:17
  SPEAKER_00: The right thing.
• 18:19
  SPEAKER_00: And those stories are worth remembering.
• 18:22
  SPEAKER_00: This week's story of courage starts with
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_00: a 25-year-old pizza delivery driver named Nicholas Bostick.
• 18:31
  SPEAKER_00: It was just after midnight on July 11, 2022 in Lafayette, Indiana.
• 18:40
  SPEAKER_00: Bostick was driving down the road when he saw a house on fire.
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_00: Not smoking, on fire.
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_00: Bostick pulled over.
• 18:49
  SPEAKER_00: He didn't have his phone with him so he couldn't call 911.
• 18:53
  SPEAKER_00: He didn't know who lived there.
• 18:55
  SPEAKER_00: He didn't even know if anyone was inside.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_00: And he certainly didn't have any firefighting equipment.
• 19:01
  SPEAKER_00: So he did something that most reasonable people would probably tell you not to do.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_00: He ran into the house.
• 19:09
  SPEAKER_00: Bostick went in through the back door and started yelling,
• 19:12
  SPEAKER_00: trying to find out if anybody was inside.
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_00: He went upstairs and found an 18-year-old with a toddler and two 13-year-old girls.
• 19:22
  SPEAKER_00: Bostick led all four of them downstairs and out of the burning house.
• 19:27
  SPEAKER_00: Now at this point,
• 19:29
  SPEAKER_00: Nicholas Bostick had already done more than anybody could reasonably ask of him.
• 19:33
  SPEAKER_00: He was safe.
• 19:35
  SPEAKER_00: Four kids were safe.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_00: The house was still burning.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_00: And then he found out that another child was missing.
• 19:43
  SPEAKER_00: A six-year-old girl who was still inside.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_00: So Bostick turned around and went back in.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_00: By now the fire was worse.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_00: The smoke was thick.
• 19:54
  SPEAKER_00: He searched the upstairs bedrooms but couldn't find her.
• 19:58
  SPEAKER_00: At one point things were getting so bad that Bostick was considering jumping out of
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_00: a second story window just to save himself.
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_00: Then he heard something.
• 20:09
  SPEAKER_00: A child crying.
• 20:11
  SPEAKER_00: And it wasn't coming from somewhere closer to safety.
• 20:14
  SPEAKER_00: It was coming from downstairs, back where the fire was the worst and burning the hottest.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_00: Bostick went toward it anyway.
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_00: He went back downstairs into thick black smoke and brutal heat and he found
• 20:30
  SPEAKER_00: the little girl near the living room.
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_00: He picked her up and tried to get them out,
• 20:35
  SPEAKER_00: but the smoke was so thick that he couldn't get back out the way he'd come,
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_00: so Bostick carried that six-year-old girl back upstairs.
• 20:43
  SPEAKER_00: He went into a bedroom,
• 20:45
  SPEAKER_00: he punched out a second-story window with his bare hand,
• 20:49
  SPEAKER_00: and then he jumped, with the little girl in his arms.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_00: Bostick wrapped her around his left side and jumped from the second story,
• 20:58
  SPEAKER_00: landing on his right side so that his body took the impact instead of hers.
• 21:03
  SPEAKER_00: And it worked.
• 21:05
  SPEAKER_00: The little girl survived with a relatively minor injury from the broken glass.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_00: So did Bostic.
• 21:12
  SPEAKER_00: But he paid for it.
• 21:14
  SPEAKER_00: Severe smoke inhalation,
• 21:16
  SPEAKER_00: first and second degree burns, and a deep, serious cut to his right arm.
• 21:22
  SPEAKER_00: He was taken to the hospital in critical condition and spent three days there.
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_00: But all five kids survived.
• 21:30
  SPEAKER_00: And when Bostick finally made it outside with that little girl in his arms,
• 21:34
  SPEAKER_00: police body camera footage captured him carrying her toward the first responders.
• 21:40
  SPEAKER_00: He was hurt,
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_00: he was struggling to breathe,
• 21:43
  SPEAKER_00: and one of the first things he wanted to know was whether the child was okay.
• 21:47
  SPEAKER_00: Is the baby okay?
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_00: Please tell me the baby's okay, he said.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_00: And here's the part of the story that sticks with me.
• 21:56
  SPEAKER_00: Nicholas Bostick wasn't a firefighter.
• 21:59
  SPEAKER_00: He wasn't a police officer.
• 22:02
  SPEAKER_00: He wasn't a soldier.
• 22:04
  SPEAKER_00: Nobody ordered him into that house.
• 22:07
  SPEAKER_00: Those weren't his kids.
• 22:10
  SPEAKER_00: He was a 25-year-old pizza delivery driver who happened to be driving down
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_00: the right street at the right time.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_00: He saw a house burning and he stopped.
• 22:21
  SPEAKER_00: Then he went inside.
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_00: Then he helped four kids get out.
• 22:26
  SPEAKER_00: And when he learned there was still a six-year-old girl somewhere inside
• 22:29
  SPEAKER_00: that burning house, he went back.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know how many people would do that.
• 22:36
  SPEAKER_00: I'd like to think I would.
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_00: I'd like to think most of us would.
• 22:40
  SPEAKER_00: But there's a pretty big difference between imagining what you do
• 22:44
  SPEAKER_00: while you're sitting safely at home and standing outside a burning house
• 22:48
  SPEAKER_00: and actually doing it.
• 22:50
  SPEAKER_00: Nicholas Bostic did it.
• 22:53
  SPEAKER_00: Five kids were inside that house that night.
• 22:55
  SPEAKER_00: Five kids came out,
• 22:57
  SPEAKER_00: because a pizza delivery driver happened to drive by,
• 23:02
  SPEAKER_00: and instead of continuing down the road, he stopped.
• 23:06
  SPEAKER_00: That's Nicholas Bostic, and that's your story of courage for this week.
• 23:12
  SPEAKER_00: Before we wrap up,
• 23:14
  SPEAKER_00: let's step away from the news for a minute and talk about something
• 23:16
  SPEAKER_00: that matters even more.
• 23:20
  SPEAKER_00: I just want to cover a few things I came across this week that I hope will help you
• 23:24
  SPEAKER_00: and help you grow some in your faith journey.
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_00: Alright, the first one is a quote from the Creation Museum.
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_00: And the quote is, We are not a higher form of pond scum.
• 23:38
  SPEAKER_00: We are not animals.
• 23:40
  SPEAKER_00: We are made in the image of the Creator.
• 23:45
  SPEAKER_00: Wanted to start with that one since I think our world and our culture likes to blur
• 23:50
  SPEAKER_00: the lines quite a bit these days.
• 23:53
  SPEAKER_00: But there's a reason we want eternal life.
• 23:57
  SPEAKER_00: There's a reason we're not comfortable walking around naked.
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_00: We feel shame.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_00: Unlike animals, we know the difference between right and wrong.
• 24:09
  SPEAKER_00: We have a conscience.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_00: So a lot of people will try to blur the lines in the coming days and weeks and months ahead.
• 24:18
  SPEAKER_00: But remember that we are different.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_00: We are not just animals.
• 24:23
  SPEAKER_00: We have souls.
• 24:25
  SPEAKER_00: Our souls matter.
• 24:28
  SPEAKER_00: And our souls long for God,
• 24:32
  SPEAKER_00: although Satan will do a great job of distracting us with everything from sports
• 24:38
  SPEAKER_00: to alcohol to work and ambition.
• 24:42
  SPEAKER_00: We will chase those things,
• 24:45
  SPEAKER_00: but ultimately they are slave drivers and they are things that will eventually lead
• 24:51
  SPEAKER_00: to death.
• 24:53
  SPEAKER_00: Slowly but surely, a little bit at a time, And then a little bit more at a time.
• 24:59
  SPEAKER_00: And then before long you realize you don't have much to live for.
• 25:04
  SPEAKER_00: And that's because you long for something more.
• 25:08
  SPEAKER_00: You long for a relationship with the creator of the universe.
• 25:13
  SPEAKER_00: With the God who made you.
• 25:16
  SPEAKER_00: The God who has been chasing you this entire time while you have been distracted
• 25:22
  SPEAKER_00: with everything else.
• 25:25
  SPEAKER_00: Do not wait too late to find the true purpose of your life.
• 25:30
  SPEAKER_00: Alright,
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_00: next one is a quote from a famous pastor from
• 25:34
  SPEAKER_00: a couple hundred years ago named George Whitefield.
• 25:37
  SPEAKER_00: And the quote is,
• 25:39
  SPEAKER_00: Unless your hearts are free from worldly hopes and worldly fears,
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_00: you will never speak boldly as you ought to speak.
• 25:52
  SPEAKER_00: Again, the quote is,
• 25:52
  SPEAKER_00: Unless your hearts are free from worldly hopes and worldly fears,
• 25:57
  SPEAKER_00: you will never speak boldly as you ought to speak.
• 26:01
  SPEAKER_00: This reminded me of the verses in 1 John 2, starting at verse 15.
• 26:09
  SPEAKER_00: It reads, Do not love this world nor the things it offers you.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_00: For when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you.
• 26:19
  SPEAKER_00: For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure,
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_00: a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions.
• 26:30
  SPEAKER_00: These are not from the Father, but are from the world.
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_00: And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave.
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_00: But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.
• 26:45
  SPEAKER_00: Again, that's from 1 John 2, verses 15-17.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_00: Now next I thought I'd just share a quote I saw from a pastor named John Dixon.
• 26:56
  SPEAKER_00: The quote reads,
• 26:58
  SPEAKER_00: We want to win the world to Christ,
• 27:01
  SPEAKER_00: but you can't win the world to Christ when you don't look like Christ.
• 27:09
  SPEAKER_00: I'll just read it again.
• 27:10
  SPEAKER_00: We want to win the world to Christ,
• 27:11
  SPEAKER_00: but you can't win the world to Christ when you don't look like Christ.
• 27:15
  SPEAKER_00: This is just something that happens after you give your life to God.
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_00: You start to realize things of the world don't matter that much,
• 27:22
  SPEAKER_00: and you start to go through an increasingly...
• 27:26
  SPEAKER_00: Purifying process that if you're in the church you call sanctification,
• 27:31
  SPEAKER_00: but that's just a big word that says you feel guilty for things.
• 27:35
  SPEAKER_00: Like you thought when you come to God that you're a good person and then you start
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_00: to see all the things you do where you fall short.
• 27:43
  SPEAKER_00: And as you start to clean your life up and be so much different and then be at peace
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_00: in the world, the world starts to realize, hey, you're not like everyone else.
• 27:52
  SPEAKER_00: Like what is going on?
• 27:53
  SPEAKER_00: But Again,
• 27:54
  SPEAKER_00: the quote is,
• 27:55
  SPEAKER_00: We want to win the world to Christ,
• 27:56
  SPEAKER_00: but you can't win the world to Christ when you don't look like Christ.
• 28:00
  SPEAKER_00: Alright, let's do two more.
• 28:03
  SPEAKER_00: Next one is just a quote I saw.
• 28:06
  SPEAKER_00: The quote is,
• 28:14
  SPEAKER_00: That's when you know you're on the right path, and it's a narrow one.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_00: Again, if people talk about you,
• 28:20
  SPEAKER_00: say you take Jesus in the Bible way too seriously,
• 28:22
  SPEAKER_00: just know you are on the right path, and it is a narrow one.
• 28:27
  SPEAKER_00: Then finally, one more quote I came across.
• 28:32
  SPEAKER_00: The quote is, In the Bible, when Job had everything, he prayed.
• 28:38
  SPEAKER_00: When he had nothing, he still prayed.
• 28:42
  SPEAKER_00: Prayer isn't about your circumstance.
• 28:45
  SPEAKER_00: It's about who God is.
• 28:48
  SPEAKER_00: Again, prayer isn't about your circumstance.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_00: It's about who God is.
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_00: Prayer is one of the most important parts of the Christian life.
• 28:59
  SPEAKER_00: It's how we talk to God.
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_00: Not with perfect words, but with honesty.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_00: Prayer reminds us that we're not carrying everything alone.
• 29:09
  SPEAKER_00: We bring God our fears, our failures, our gratitude, the things we don't know how to handle.
• 29:19
  SPEAKER_00: And prayer isn't only about asking God to change our circumstances.
• 29:25
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes the greatest thing prayer changes is us,
• 29:29
  SPEAKER_00: our hearts, our priorities, and even our willingness to trust Him.
• 29:37
  SPEAKER_00: If it's nonsense, you'll figure that out.
• 30:04
  SPEAKER_00: But if it really is the Word of God, that changes everything.
• 30:10
  SPEAKER_00: So don't be afraid to open the book and see for yourself.
• 30:14
  SPEAKER_00: If it starts to speak to you,
• 30:16
  SPEAKER_00: or if you're someone who used to go to church but no longer does,
• 30:19
  SPEAKER_00: make sure you find a good local church.
• 30:23
  SPEAKER_00: One that believes that the Bible is the Word of God, that Scripture is true.
• 30:29
  SPEAKER_00: Trustworthy and without error.
• 30:31
  SPEAKER_00: Find the people that you need to surround yourself with to get through life.
• 30:37
  SPEAKER_00: Because life is hard and scripture is clear that we should go through it
• 30:42
  SPEAKER_00: with community and that community should include people who believe in
• 30:47
  SPEAKER_00: a higher power.
• 30:50
  SPEAKER_00: And one last thing.
• 30:51
  SPEAKER_00: If you're a veteran struggling with PTSD,
• 30:54
  SPEAKER_00: depression,
• 30:55
  SPEAKER_00: or thoughts of suicide, please use the resources I've linked in the episode notes.
• 31:02
  SPEAKER_00: You've made it through hard things before.
• 31:04
  SPEAKER_00: Don't try to fight this one alone.
• 31:07
  SPEAKER_00: We need you here.
• 31:09
  SPEAKER_00: Your life matters.
• 31:11
  SPEAKER_00: Don't give up.
• 31:16
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for joining me this week.
• 31:19
  SPEAKER_00: As you head into the coming days, try to be a little kinder, online and out in the world.
• 31:24
  SPEAKER_00: Remember that most Americans are good people, even if they vote differently than you do.
• 31:29
  SPEAKER_00: And keep working on yourself, mentally, physically, and spiritually.
• 31:35
  SPEAKER_00: Try to be a little better this week than you were last week.
• 31:39
  SPEAKER_00: You don't have to be perfect, just keep moving forward.
• 31:44
  SPEAKER_00: When the news gets discouraging, and you know it will, Don't give up on this country.
• 31:51
  SPEAKER_00: I'm betting when you finish this podcast,
• 31:54
  SPEAKER_00: you're going to hear a lot of angry rhetoric,
• 31:56
  SPEAKER_00: either in your neighborhood or maybe from your news source.
• 32:01
  SPEAKER_00: But remember these truths.
• 32:04
  SPEAKER_00: Division weakens us.
• 32:08
  SPEAKER_00: Unity strengthens us.
• 32:11
  SPEAKER_00: So be careful what you feed your mind and your spirit.
• 32:16
  SPEAKER_00: If you're a person of faith,
• 32:18
  SPEAKER_00: Spend some time in your Bible this week,
• 32:21
  SPEAKER_00: and if you're not, maybe pick one up and give it a try.
• 32:25
  SPEAKER_00: Finally,
• 32:25
  SPEAKER_00: if you'd like to support what I'm doing here,
• 32:27
  SPEAKER_00: or check out any of my books, you'll find links in the episode notes.
• 32:33
  SPEAKER_00: Until next time,
• 32:34
  SPEAKER_00: stay hopeful,
• 32:36
  SPEAKER_00: stay humble, and keep working to be the light in your corner of the world.
• 32:42
  SPEAKER_00: You've been listening to The Stan R. Mitchell Show.