Yeshua Radio is an international station broadcasting my sermons 24/7 to hundreds of thousands of listeners around the world. You could tune in right now, but first could I tell you the story behind these 'Messianic Messages' and why they're so close to my heart?Β
Remember back at the beginning of these stories how I got started teaching Hebrew across my home province up in Canada? And how I wondered if there were people out there asking for help, similar to Paul's vision of the man from Macedonia? I was right. I started driving out to the three biggest cities in northern Saskatchewan every week, teaching and reaching out every way I could, and they started coming to me. People were waking up to these things but they didn't know anyone else, and then I came along. In some cases I'd even say it was supernatural how we found each other. There were so many people like this in the city of Prince Albert that I asked if they wanted me to start coming in on Saturday mornings to preach, and they said yes.
Thus began a journey that lasted roughly three and a half years. In the autumn of 2009 we began making the 1.5 hour drive out to 'P.A.' where I preached my heart out for an hour straight every Saturday morning. Over the next two years I taught through the entire Torah and New Testament, giving a sweeping overview of what's been lost in translation after two thousand years. It just struck me how P.A. is short for 'Prince Albert', but it's also short for 'Public Address', which is exactly what this city became: a platform for these prophetic messages which have now been broadcasted thousands of times over.Β Β
In the summer of 2011 I sensed it was time to move to Prince Albert and was given a literal sign: there in the middle of the countryside next to the road was a big plywood sign with the words GOY WEDDING spraypainted on it. It was probably for the wedding of a local couple with the last name of Goy, but as you may know, goy is also the Hebrew word for the nations, and in that moment I knew it was a sign: I was about to be caught up in a mission to prepare the bride of Christ, made up of many nations, for the return of her Jewish bridegroom and Messiah. We ended up moving on August 2, which happened to be my 30th birthday. And our new neighbourhood used to be a separate village called Goshen.Β
The next year and a half changed my life forever. I had already been bringing these fiery messages for a couple years, and while we had a massive audience online, our local congregation wasn't growing. I ached for my neighbours and training partners from my MMA gym to encounter Yeshua, but it wasn't happening. What were we doing wrong? I spent the winter scouring piles of books about how to live as missionaries in our culture and actually make disciples. When I wasn't reading I was doing crazy things like walking through the bars and casinos of my city, praying for everybody there and asking God how he felt about them and what he wanted to do.Β
Then, in the spring of 2012, I blew up my congregation. We went from Saturday morning services to getting together in each other's homes and at the park where I preached open air. We ate together, had conversations around the stories of Scripture, and just hung out as friends. As our style became simpler and more relatable, non-religious people started showing up and beautiful things began to happen. I'll tell you more about that when I get to the story of Yeshua Groups, but to really understand that journey you need to hear my talks from those years. I'll tell you in a second how to do that, so hang in there for one more minute!
I'm debating whether to share these last two things with you because they're especially close to my heart. One is that my grandfather was a preacher and actually ran a radio station back in the 1950s called "News For The Nation". He also bought a portable movie projector when they first came out and travelled across our province to towns that had never seen a screen before. There he'd set it up on main street, play a movie and draw a crowd, and then preach to them! I'm proud to be following in his footsteps and using new technology to tell the old, old story.Β
The other thing especially close to my heart is the "why" behind these messages. Yeshua's blood was shed so that all people could be drawn to him and so that he could inherit the nations. I know I've painted a rosy picture of the backstory to these messages, but those years were brutally hard, too. What carried me through was my passion to see the Lamb receive the reward of his sufferings. So please pray with me, that Yeshua Radio will continue to be used to draw many people to follow Yeshua and love him. And I hope this happens in your life too. Because he is worthy.
Now that you know the story behind Yeshua Radio, tune in for yourself to these 'Messianic Messages'. And feel free to share!