Speaking to Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) News about his faith and his new book, Gospeler: Turning Darkness into Light One Conversation at a Time, Duck Dynasty’s Willie Robertson said that he is on a mission to help Christians realize the importance of sharing their faith in Jesus with others rather than keeping it hidden and out of the public eye.
He said, speaking to the outlet about why he decided to write the book, that he thinks God had a message He wanted to convey through him, saying, “[I] felt like God had a message right now … and that’s always been on my heart.” He continued, explaining how his father’s faith helped him see things that way, “And, obviously, that was impacted by my father [Phil Robertson] sharing his faith a lot.”
Continuing, he commented on how Phil’s finding faith and escaping the dark path alcohol had drawn him down changed their trajectory for the better, saying, “Had that not happened — had mom and dad not found their faith — I would have grown up a completely different person. I don’t even know that I would have faith.” He added, “There would have been no company Duck Commander, there would have been no ‘Duck Dynasty.’”
Then, using Phil’s finding faith to explain how God works through people, Robertson said, “One couple in Arkansas … found their faith, kept their family together, ended up 50 years later, in some way, spreading the Gospel message, whether through the prayer at the end of the show, the movie, the podcast.” Noting how that legacy carries on through members of the family, Willie said, “It’s pretty amazing if you think about it. It just lets me know … you never know what God has in store.”
Building on that, Willie said that faith changes people because if forces them to think about others as well rather than remaining self-centered and focused only on what’s in front of them. He said, “You can’t care about just about yourself, because you’re having to think about someone else.”
Continuing, he explained how that leads to more interaction with one’s community and more connections being made with others, something that, in turn, leads to the opportunity to teach more people about the Christian faith. Explaining that, Willie said, “You’ll naturally be perhaps hospitable because you invite people around you in your circle, in your community, because you want to share with them. You will study the word of God because people ask you questions and you don’t want to have to call or get ahold of some pastor at 8 o’clock at night on a Friday night.”
He also noted that all Christians have the call to try to explain their faith to others in whatever way or ways that they can do so, telling CBN News, “The Great Commission was a call to everyone. In whatever way that you can do it.”
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