Yeah, but what about the Epstein files?

The other day I wrote a post about prioritizing the responsibilities closest to you instead of being consumed with online controversies. A couple people pushed back and acted like that was the same as me telling folks to ignore the Epstein files because the Dow is at 50,000. That’s a dumb accusation from emotional people who didn’t read carefully.

But what about the Epstein files?

They’re as disturbing as many of us expected. A sick, godless network of freaks tied to other sick, godless freaks across the political and economic spectrum doing horrific things to underage girls, and in many cases little children. It’s natural for disgust to turn into rage. Anger is the right response. If you want to know where I’m at emotionally, Shawn Ryan’s recent comments are pretty close. I’ve kept up with the reporting and I will continue to.

Here’s why it’s not a constant refrain in my conversations, especially the written ones online.

Because the whole thing demonstrates just how corrupt our system is, how anti-God it is, and how rough of a situation we’re in as a nation. We hoped a president might drain the swamp. Now we know with certainty the swamp is full of monsters and nothing meaningful has happened. So yes, pressure your lawmakers. And yes, as the kids say, chimp out online to create pressure. Good.

But we have to make sure this isn’t distracting us from getting into a relatively defensible position in our own communities, protecting our loved ones and draining our little corner of the swamp however we can. That’s what I’m pushing for. I’m not saying stick your head in the sand. I am saying keep your eye on the ball.

I like to ask people: what are you going to do about it? Most recently the answer has been, what can I do other than talk? Well, we can build what I’ve been calling sanctuary communities for over a decade.

I’m very aware of communities that are becoming little cultural fortresses or, as I’ve called them elsewhere, beachheads of sanity. They’re building businesses, starting schools, planting churches, creating deep family friendships within the community and gaining influence while being appreciated by neighbors who don’t share their Christian convictions. They’re not talking about it online, because that just makes you more of a target.

I’m not against media companies or media ministries. But they benefit from controversy because they benefit from attention and clicks. If they stir up detractors, it doesn’t disrupt them the same way it does those trying to build tangible, real-world assets. For them it often means more attention, which is good for business. But building strong things, especially at scale, takes a lot of focused attention. I’m pushing back on divided attention.

Whatever our disappointments with Trump may be, there’s no doubt his election gave local people a slight reprieve from some of the chaos. I don’t know how long that lasts. So I intend to use it and partner with people to build the sort of things that can’t be easily “canceled” by some entry-level employee at YouTube or X.

Seven years ago, I wrote…

It’s my hope that East River will become a ‘sanctuary church.’

This concept came to me when I first studied the early days of the Reformation in Europe. The entire continent was in political and religious upheaval. This was due to many factors, but chief among them was the people being fed up with a corrupt Roman Catholic Church. Like all corrupt institutions, the Roman Church opposed internal reform efforts. It expelled the reformers from the church and sought to squash the growing movement through political persecution. This resulted in a great migration. The faithful were exiles and refugees looking for both political and ecclesiastical shelter.

Sound familiar?

Many of these people found shelter in cities like Strasbourg, Zurich, and Geneva. These cities had become sanctuaries for Protestants largely through the pastoral leadership of men like Martin Bucer, Ulrich Zwingli, and John Calvin. These sanctuary cities became centers of reformational fire for generations. You can trace the spread of capitalism, democratic republics, and many of the key principles that gave birth to a free Christian society from these sanctuary cities.

We are once again in need of such sanctuary cities. And I believe they begin with establishing sanctuary churches. These are churches that are aggressively committed to the central doctrines of the Scripture, liberally minded towards secondary matters, and willing to speak directly to the issues of our day. Moreover, they equip and embolden believers to be godly agents of reformation in all sectors of society.

That’s my vision and hope for East River. This is the work I intend to dedicate the rest of my life to establishing in heart of Clermont County, OH.”

And that is exactly what is happening here. As Frances Hodgson Burnett said:

“At first people refuse to believe that a strange new thing can be done, then they begin to hope it can be done, then they see it can be done--then it is done and all the world wonders why it was not done centuries ago.

That’s still the plan. There are unspeakable evils in high places, and I’m trying to carve out shelter for my own. My hope is that this grows into a movement of men who, by putting county before country, end up taking back their country.