Today, Craig and LaDonna focus their attention on Going Young as they introduce listeners to an amazing and effective Native youth ministry called On Eagles Wing' (OEW). This was a ministry Craig and LaDonna were privileged to help lead from 2003 to 2008 along with co-founders, Ron and Karen Hutchcraft. This ministry has recruited, trained, and equipped many Native Christian youth to share the gospel among their peers over a thirty year period and they have traveled to well over 100 Native communities in both he U.S. and Canada, seen countless Native youth respond to the gospel, and saw team members become Christian leaders for their generation in an unprecedented way. In this three part series, you will meet two of the OEW team members who now help lead OEW's continued ministry, Nick Lieu (Apache) and Weston (Wes) Francis (Navajo). In today's episode, you'll begin to hear the hope story of these two leaders. You'll be amazed at how God has intervened in their lives, bringing them through great trials and tribulations and turning them into powerhouses of the gospel. Throughout the series, you'll see how God is using this youth focused ministry to bring hope to many communities in desperate need of hope. We trust you'll be blessed as Craig and LaDonna bring to you the amazing story of On Eagles' Wings, and the lives they continue to impact for God's glory!

In today's episode, Craig, Ryan, and Paul continue to provide information on the development of the newly formed National Association of Native Evangelicals. Its stated purpose, mission statement, and how interested folks can learn more about it through their new website is all included in today's finale. The trio ends the conversation with how listeners can become involved, through prayer, financial support, and other practical ways as NANE hits its stride. New initiatives not considered before are brewing in the minds of the original Board of Directors, and Craig, Ryan, and Paul bring you into the conversation so you know how to pray and become a supporter and promoter of NANE. Craig and LaDonna believe what you'll come away with from this three part series is these men are committed to seeing this organization up, running, and flourishing. You'll also see the heart these men share for the Word of God, prayer, and biblical leadership from their deep devotion to Christ and His Word. To learn more about NANE, you can go to TheNANE.org. Help us spread the word about this new fellowship of likeminded leaders serving across the Native American landscape!

In part two of this three part series, Craig Smith continues his interesting discussion with colleagues, Paul Straubel (director for the Center for Indian Ministries in Bemidji, MN), and Dr. Ryan O'Leary (Ojibwe), the newly appointed president of the National Association of Native Evangelicals, as they discuss this newly formed organization, its goals, purpose, and vision. In today's episode, both Ryan and Paul share their perspectives on why they have sensed the time is now for such an organization to be established to help serve the growing Native evangelical ministries reaching American Indians with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Ryan opens a window into his new relationship with the larger and nationally influential National Association of Evangelicals as its most recently elected leader to its Board of Directors. Craig, Ryan, and Paul have been applying the model of the larger NAE organization to the structure in which they are setting up the new NANE organization. The partnership with the larger NAE organization is already opening new doors of communication and much needed dialogue with ministry leaders who could help move cross-cultural ministry right here in the United States forward as they become more aware of the needs and opportunities across Native America. Craig and LaDonna trust this series will be informational and inspirational to you, our dear listeners, as you, too, become aware of this new effort to advance the gospel forward to the many tribes within the borders of the United States of America.

In today's episode of Indigenous Faith, Craig begins a three part visit with dear friends Paul Straubel and Dr. Ryan O'Leary (Ojibwe), as they introduce a new emerging organization called the National Association of Native Evangelicals (NANE). Along with several other leaders, Craig, Paul, and Ryan have been developing this new organization, designed to serve all Native evangelical ministries and their leaders with training, equipping, and mentoring of next generation Native Christian leadership and new and innovative ways of working together in a Kingdom of God unified way. Also, this organization will serve as a voice to the larger evangelical leadership through Dr. O'Leary's election to the larger and influential body of leadership called the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE). Native American ministries has never had an official voice on this board, which is comprised of denominational, academic, and missional leadership throughout the evangelical Body of Christ, until now. Ryan has been selected by the initial Board of Directors for NANE as the first President, and he has in turn been elected to serve on the nationally recognized NAE Board as a representative of NANE and all Native evangelical ministries who choose to partner with NANE. It's exciting to see these developments happen in the early days of this new organization, and its founding leaders hope it will be a model for other Indigenous leaders worldwide to do the same. Tribal Rescue Ministries, which is the organization Craig and LaDonna Smith lead, is the sponsor of this Indigenous Faith broadcasting ministry, and are pleased to use its growing presence worldwide to promote and encourage involvement in the National Association of Native Evangelicals! We pray you'll be encouraged by the vision these leaders share in for NANE's future and impact. Remember to pray for the continuing growth and establishment of this new representative body for God's glory!

Today's episode of Indigenous Faith is the finale in the series on not just King Josiah, but on the Smith's review of some of the kings of Israel and Judah. Have you enjoyed this series as much as the Smiths enjoyed sharing it with you? They trust and pray that it has not only been an enjoyable journey but enlightening as well. There's so much to learn from God's Word in both the older and newer Testaments. To wrap it all up, the Smiths would remind you that there's nothing new under the sun, and all the things the current culture is embracing and promoting is nothing short than a revisit to the Old Testament pagan gods who are messengers of Satan and not the God of the Bible! We must never compromise by syncretizing our Christian faith and practice with that of what we discovered is the Unholy Trinity of demonic empowered gods of Baal, Asherah, and Molech. They are alive and well in modern American culture and find their ways into our Indigenous communities as well as the gods of our ancestors. Christian life and practice are completely opposite of the false gods who've been around since the creation of the world. May we all have our faces intently facing towards the finished work of Christ on Calvary's cross, His atoning death, his sacrificial burial, and his remarkable resurrection from the dead, proving to all mankind that He was God, Himself, come to earth to pay the penalty for the sin of all mankind. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me! So, let's live our lives in alignment with Him and His Holy Word! There's no other way to live in order to please the One who is the Giver of Life and the Grantor of Eternal Life! Join the Smiths again next week as they launch a new area of study, all intended to help build biblically healthy lives in the context of our Indigenous cultures and communities! We'll see you then!

In today's episode, Craig and LaDonna continue to let God's Word tell the powerful story of King Josiah, who became known as one of the most godly and righteous leaders over God's Chosen People, the Children of Israel. As the king tore down the idols and sacrificial places to the demonic Baal, Asherah, and Molech, he also turned the hearts of his people back to the Lord after the discovery of the Books of Moses, which were hidden away in the back corners of the Temple of God. Once the content of those books were read to Josiah, he wept bitterly for the condition his people were in through compromise and syncretism, all from Josiah's wicked father and grandfather's leadership. But this brave young leader stood tall and called his nation to repentance, and to turn back to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. One of the huge changes Josiah instituted was to return to the celebration of the Passover, which hadn't been celebrated for such a long, long time! Scripture so wonderfully explains the joy and celebratory attitude that swept throughout the land as God's people returned to God honoring worship! All thanks to a king who's most impactful decisions were made before his thirtieth birthday! Yes, we can learn so much from this king on how we, too, must live as we're surrounded by many voices that want to take us away from God honoring worship and living. May we learn well from the lessons of this young, energetic, and God honoring leader. Oh that our tribes and nations were led by similar leaders who's primary purpose is to obey the God of heaven and earth and lead their people in the ways of the Lord!

In today's third installment on the life of King Josiah, we begin to see that how he ruled gained him the blessing and favor of God. The Lord had favor on not only this king, but the people he ruled over, the Children of Israel. He did several important things as he turned the hearts of the people away from embracing the pagan gods of the nations around them and towards the One True Living God! He began by removing the places of worship that were dedicated over to the pagan gods they were compromising with. He also put time and effort, resources and people, into the repairing of the Temple of God, which had gone through much dismantling and destruction. While doing all this, one of the most significant things happened as the leaders were cleaning the Temple of God out. They discovered stashed away the book of the Law given originally through Moses. As it eventually made it's way into the King's throne room, and they began to read its contents to the king, Josiah wept bitterly when he realized how compromised Israel had become through his father and grandfather's influence and leadership. Josiah makes a covenant with God to restore true worship among God's people, including the commemoration of the Passover and all its celebratory parts. The death angel who passed over those Israeli slaves in Egypt while destroying all the firstborn of the Egyptian people because of the blood on the doorposts was one of the most powerful deliverances God gave to His people before they were released from their slavery by Pharaoh. Bringing that celebration back to Israel was a powerful expression, filled with joy, celebration, and feasting that spread throughout the land. What a contrast this one celebration had on a people who for over four hundred years knew only slavery in a foreign land. No wonder why God's blessing and favor was on Josiah. But all that goodness seems to be tempered a bit by what the last part of 2 Chronicles 35 tells us about Josiah's death. We all will die, of course, but some deaths are more painful than others. Josiah's demise ended on the battlefield, as his body was filled with arrows shot from the enemy forces. In next week's study, Pastor Craig tries to answer the difficult question of why does God allow so much suffering, especially among those who are considered righteous and godly? You won't want to miss that session, dear friend. But first, join hosts Craig and LaDonna Smith as they unpackage what God's Word has to say about this righteous and just king...King Josiah!

In part two of the Smith's study on King Josiah, Craig and LaDonna continue to unpackage the reasons why this study into the lives of the kings of Israel and Judah. Along with the obvious of their leading God's people into syncretism if they were described by God as evil, or away from syncretistic behaviors when they were described by God as righteous, the Smiths also present the need for Indigenous believers today to be engaged in the political affairs of not just their tribes, but for the larger nations to whom we are citizens of as well. It's an important part of discipleship to engage in our civic duties. But in order to do so, we need to be knowledgable about the candidates and platforms on which they stand before casting a vote their way. Do the exhibit godliness or embrace evil by the platforms their party stands on? We can't respond in the old way we did before coming to Christ. We now must let God's Word guide us in whom we are to cast our votes towards. But also, the prophetic Scriptures (almost 1/3 of the whole Bible is prophetic), give us clues into when Jesus will come again, this time to rule and reign on earth. But most people, tribal or not, do not possess a biblical understanding of the times and seasons we are now in. So all these reasons help us as Indigenous people to have the right view on the role of human leaders God establishes to lead us and guide us. That's why this study into the kings of the Old Testament is so relevant to us today. May God use these dives into the Scriptures to equip us appropriately until Jesus comes again!