God’s Unexpected Call That Changed Everything—Faith, Politics & Purpose with Dr. Linda Lee Tarver

In this powerful episode of Hope Unlocked, host Kristin Kurtz welcomes Dr. Linda Lee Tarver, a leader, author, and ministry voice with a remarkable journey of faith, politics, and education reform. She shares her upbringing as the youngest of ten, her family’s history of resilience, and her call from God into the political arena. From serving as an election integrity expert, to prison and jail ministry, to writing Dyed in the Wool, she reveals how righteousness, education, and faith can shape generations. Tune in for an inspiring conversation on courage, calling, and God’s hand in public service.

Dr. Linda's Contact Info:

Website - https://nationalcenter.org/ncppr/staff/linda-lee-tarver/

Books:

Dyed in the Wool 

Jesus, Who is Christmas, is Born

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Chapters

• 0:16 Introduction to Hope Unlocked
• 1:22 Dr. Tarver's Powerful Family History
• 5:48 Called to Politics: Answering God's Call
• 11:36 The Biblical Foundation of Government
• 19:43 Education Crisis and School Choice
• 34:25 The 2019 Political Shift
• 47:01 How to Get Involved in Politics
• 1:00:38 The Church's Role in Government
• 1:12:55 Encouragement and Closing Prayer

Transcript

Speaker 2: 0:16

Welcome to the Hope Unlocked podcast. I'm your host, kristen Kurtz, and I'm also the founder of New Wings Coaching. I help and empower wildhearted and adventurous women of faith feeling caged and stuck, unlock their true purpose and potential, break free from limitations and thrive with confidence, courage and hope. If you're curious to learn more about coaching with me, head to newwingscoachingnet and be sure to explore the show notes for ways to connect with me further. Get ready to dive in as we uncover empowering keys and insights in this episode. So tune in and let's unlock hope together. Welcome to the Hope Unlocked podcast. I'm Kristen Kurtz, your host. I pray this episode is like a holy IV of hope for your soul. Please help me.

Speaker 2: 0:55

Welcome Dr Linda Lee Tarver to the show. I am so thrilled to have her on today. She is a mutual connection of Julie Nowaczki on today. She is a mutual connection of Julie Nowaczki and you know it's honestly one of the most exciting things for me is to have people on that I don't know very well because I get to know them better usually through the interview. So would you be open to sharing a little bit more about yourself before we get started? Absolutely.

Speaker 3: 1:22

Thank you so much, Kristen, for having me. The Lord bless you and keep you for it. So my name is Linda Lee Tarver. I have an interesting background and upbringing. I'm the youngest of 10 children. My parents moved here, moved to Michigan. Here where I live is in Michigan. They moved to Michigan from Evergreen, alabama.

Speaker 3: 1:49

My father was born in 1923 and my mother was born in 1924 and I list those years because it was, you know, the early 1900s. It's a lot racism. I happened to be hailing from a black family and there was a lot of significant challenges going on at the time that my parents were younger. Two children one each from previous marriages, and at one time my father's brother, my uncle, was hung by the Ku Klux Klan, so he was lynched in Alabama. My father immediately left his home, the rest of his family and I packed up my mother and my two oldest siblings and they drove to South Bend, indiana, where they got married, and then they drove to Lansing, michigan, where they settled and raised their family. Oh wow, so that was the start for my family. I've lived in Michigan all my life. I worked in Michigan in various capacities, but I spent most of affairs director for the Secretary of State here. I served as a gubernatorial appointee for the Michigan Civil Rights Commission and I have.

Speaker 3: 3:35

I'm married, I have two adult children and two perfect grandchildren. I have two degrees, doctorate degrees one in theology and the second degree is in education. So my desire to pursue education in it and to ensure that we have quality education and usher in quality education in the state of Michigan in particular is vitally essential. I spent some time serving in community forums for the Lansing Promise Zone offering scholarship to children, but I've served in ministry for most of my adult life, serving the Lord, trying to serve in various capacities. I served in prison ministry and I'm in a jail ministry at my new church and served as a Sunday school teacher. So that's who I am, with various other roles going on there.

Speaker 2: 4:37

Wow. So I love sounds like you're kind of similar to me in some ways where it's like that multi-passionate right it's not, you're on just one track. I think a lot of times people can get kind of pigeonholed into one track, but he's called you to be multifaceted, right. Yes absolutely so. In these roles that you've been in, I just feel led to ask, like what has been the most fulfilling, but also the most challenging?

Speaker 3: 5:08

So I'm the youngest of 10. And from a predominantly, you know, a black family and I, my parents, were politically conservative, I will go with that. So both of them were politically conservative. My siblings did not take on that conservatism, but I did, so I was considered the only Republican in my family. Yeah, that was. I was kind of a different, an odd duck in that respect.

Speaker 3: 5:49

And and the Lord called me into politics. He called me to the field of politics and I did not want to go. I felt like Jonah not wanting to go to Nineveh, and I knew that it was 30 years ago. I participated, I started getting involved in politics, republican Party politics Knew nothing about it, knew nothing about what was going on, but I did hear the voice of the Lord very clearly. When I attempted to ignore him, he spoke to me and yeah, yeah, I'm like, okay, I'm not trying to do the whale action, um, so I will obey.

Speaker 3: 6:37

And so I looked up Republican party in my city. I couldn't find a city and a Republican party. And then I looked up in my county and so I found the county party. Who knew that they were by counties, right. So I found out where they were meeting and I anticipated seeing rich white guys smoking cigars. I really did, and you know, no one that looked like me. I would be an odd duck and, um, they wouldn't want me, but I, the Lord, told me to go. So I found out where they were.

Speaker 3: 7:16

I used the old school GPS, which was a map, to find out where they were. This is paper. Everybody Paper maps. Yes, the old school GPS. Yes, I needed to find out where they were meeting. And I found out and I didn't know how to get there. So I read my little map and plotted my course, gave myself ample time to park and to get in and to try to sit in the back and be anonymous, and so I I drove there and, um, I thought, wow, okay, there's a lot of people here for this meeting. I, you know, I thought maybe there was another meeting going on, but there cannot be that many Republicans here. But it was full and I walked in and I saw people who looked like me Not a lot, but they looked like me and I saw all shapes and sizes and professions, and farmers and receptionists, businessmen, stay-at-home moms. I saw the slice of America, every walk of life, different backgrounds, coming together to sit down to talk about our government and policies and different things like that and I thought I have met my people.

Speaker 3: 8:54

I said I've met my people and they welcomed me and they asked questions about me because they were we've never seen you before and they wanted to get to know me and I was somewhat of an extrovert, so I didn't mind sharing. And I saw a gentleman that I met through theater I participated in community theater and he was there and I thought, wow, I didn't know he was a Republican. So, um, you know, I just I thought, wow, this was interesting yeah and I joined, I said you know what?

Speaker 3: 9:33

I care about my city, I care about my county, I care about my state, I care about my country, and I don't know what more to do than to yell at a TV set. And you know what can I do, lord? So he said get engaged. And I'm not saying that the Republican Party is the end answer. It was where the Lord sent me.

Speaker 2: 9:57

Yes.

Speaker 3: 9:58

And so it is not necessarily the answer for all Christians or believers, and this is the party of Jesus, and I'm not saying that at all. What I'm saying is that this is what the Lord, the path of the Lord, set me on. Yeah.

Speaker 3: 10:13

And I um. A few years after that, I became the vice chair of the County and then, a year after that, I became the chair of the county. Wow, I did quite well as chair of the county, winning elections for our county, commissioners and different things like that and then I became vice chair of the michigan republican party oh, wow and then I became uh president of the republican women's Federation of Michigan. Wow.

Speaker 2: 10:46

Yeah, I'm not interested to God elevating you.

Speaker 3: 10:51

Yeah, so, but it was. It was not necessarily for me. He still wanted me to preach and proclaim that righteousness availeth a nation, and so that scripture righteousness availeth the nation, and sin is a reproach. How do we elevate our nation? And the Lord said righteousness. And so that's what I've been talking to do right, to do right things, to have right policies and to be about his business and to be in a place where you can say these policies are right and these are policies that are wicked. And so there are right policies and there are right things that are right to the Lord and pleasing to the Lord.

Speaker 3: 11:42

And so I wrote a book called Died in the Wool. It's a biblical guide for Republican women, so I wrote that as a part of a desire for my dissertation in theology. I wrote it for that purpose, but I published it and it is so blessed because it allows me to express my heart for the Lord and what he's trying to do in this nation and for us, in addition to his love for his daughters and how he's used them over the centuries to to do his work and his will. And it doesn't have to be traditional. You know, I my Sunday school classroom at one point was a hundred thousand people on the mall of the Washington DC mall preaching Jesus from a podium, and you know, that's that's kind of where he's led me to do to just preach Jesus and and the policies that are righteous before him.

Speaker 2: 13:02

Yes, wow. So can I have you go back a little bit? To you said 30 years ago you were let in, correct for 30 years, 30 years ago, um. So at that time do you recall, like was there something stirring? Um, because I can't remember back that far, I was 17, I wasn't paying attention to what was going on and a lot of people were is there something that was stirring at that time, that really got your attention and you're like I need to.

Speaker 3: 14:10

I started listening to Rush Limbaugh at work, okay, and there were things going on 30 years ago Dealing with our culture. There, years ago, dealing with our culture, there was a shift in our culture and a shift in our moral values as well. That would that at the time, you know, seemed like a terrible shift in our values, values, but, um, especially in the black community, we were not seeing the results of education and the quality of education. Again. The lord placed education as on my heart and the monies that was being invested was not reaping the benefits of that investment and as a taxpayer, I felt like we were being robbed of our tax dollars and not getting the quality education that we needed.

Speaker 3: 15:13

I saw nieces and nephews and this is before my children were born but this was an assault, in my opinion. Well, no, actually after my children were forced to either go to a school that were going to fail them or or do schools of choice. That was the bigger issue of education under Trump 45. But years before that, she was an advocate for education and these people ushered in, these Republicans ushered in schools of choice, and I lived in the city, an urban community here. Um, it was not as urban as it is now, but, um, the quality of education was non-existent. I saw this as a nephews who were graduating without being able to read and write seriously. Oh, yeah, yeah, that's that's to death.

Speaker 2: 16:50

Like how is that even possible? Like I'm just curious, like how is that even possible?

Speaker 3: 16:55

so they, my nephew, stayed with me. Um, so my niece and nephew, they lived with me for a short period and I went to a parent-teacher conference with him and I said you know, his grades are atrocious. What can we do to help? This teacher told me if he does not bring a gun to school or kill anybody, he's going to graduate. Stop it. I kid you not. And he did. I cried. I didn't even want him to see me cry, but I cried tears. My children came on the scene. I decided that I was not going to allow my children to die on the vine.

Speaker 3: 17:49

In the Lansing public schools. So they had just passed schools of choice. I was supporting that initiative through the County Republican Party and the state GOP to get people to vote for it and support it. Um, but it was. And the lawmakers? I started lobbying lawmakers to support school of choice and they did um, through this governor and through Betsy DeVos. I really don't care what people say about her. I love that woman because I she allowed me to send my children to a school district where they thrive, where they had the ability to thrive.

Speaker 3: 18:37

Yeah, and otherwise I would have had to try to move to a district and what have you. And a lot of parents are trapped where they live and cannot easily move their lives. But at the time that was the bigger issue with school of choice. 30 years ago, 30 plus years ago, that really got, got me out of the out of the couch. It wasn't even just for my children, it was for everybody's children and anyone's children that was stuck there. So I drove my children to a different county every day. Um, I got up at four o'clock in the morning. Wow, four, four am two. But consider michigan.

Speaker 3: 19:23

I know that you're in a uh state, but consider yeah um, getting up, getting kids together with the snow boots, snow this, everything, lunch pack, bail, uh, backpacks, signing homework make sure it's in the bag. I had to be at my office at 745, in my desk at my seat at 745 am and I had to get my children to the daycare not daycare, basically, it was to my mother's house so that they could go to the school. She lived in that county and I drove them to my mother's house. I dropped them off, I drove to my parking spot, you know, three blocks from my office. I parked and trekked in the rain, sleep, rain, sunshine and winter weather and I was at my desk at 745 every morning. So that was worth it because my kids were able to graduate with full honors and full scholarship.

Speaker 3: 20:38

And other children who their age in the Lansing public schools did not fare that well and their children you know some of them were in trouble, some of them went to jail, some of them didn't graduate, graduate, and so it is. That was the thing that really stuck with me was that I could not let my children die like that. You know they build prisons in Michigan based on third grade reading levels. So they determine, based on your third grade whether you can read at third grade how many prisons they will beds they need. Yes, that is a factor in prison beds. Projecting prison beds is third grade reading level, I kid you not. Yes, because they know if you can't read you will likely not graduate. And if you don't graduate and you don't have a father in the home, then you're likely to commit some crimes and then the state will have to care for you.

Speaker 2: 21:56

Yeah. So I love how like he led you into that realm of education, not only for your own children, but obviously this is it's generational too, right? Yes, it has, like our yes has generational implications, is what he keeps showing me. To be obedient when it's uncomfortable, when it's you know you woke up early, I'm sure you sacrifice sleep, but knowing the long game for your kids and the kids around, right, Because was there other parents that kind of followed suit with you then?

Speaker 3: 22:25

Absolutely. There was several parents that you know. We didn't have transportation, so you know, if you started schools of choice, it was very hostile. It's still hostile.

Speaker 3: 22:36

Subject at the time public schools and those who support the public schools. Subject at the time public schools and those who support the public schools. My children went to a public school but it was such a quality public school that I needed to take them to a different county. I needed to drive them outside of my city into a different city to go to school, into a different county to go to school, and it was just that important. I would have driven a hundred miles if that was the case to do that, and it was. It was not that far for me but it was necessary for me to do that.

Speaker 3: 23:17

But it was difficult to to persuade and that's where politics came into play. The Lord wanted me to understand policy and politics and lobbying and persuasion in order to just petition you know this is a petition I petitioned the government government I've interviewed, you know I was interviewed before subcommittees in our state legislature and our Senate and our House to persuade them to vote a certain way and I learned that through politics, through my Republican Party activism. He used that as a tool to amplify righteousness that availeth the nation and not necessarily a political party. But I love my party. I really do love my Republican party.

Speaker 3: 24:13

I really do, but I know that he has used this time in the party to advance what he desires.

Speaker 2: 24:24

Yeah, well, I'm just thinking of so. You know, hope Unlocked reaches other countries, and we know that governments are set up differently in other countries. Would you be open to just sharing maybe some of the differences here in the US, kind of on a you know low level of what Republican means Absolutely. So even those who maybe live here, who really aren't super involved, would have a little bit more knowledge as to what that means, because we are in a time that some of these words are very weaponized. Yes, so I'll just leave it at that. Maybe you can go down that rabbit trail a little bit.

Speaker 3: 25:04

Absolutely so. The United States was basically. Let's go back to July 2nd 1776. July 2nd 1776 is when July 2nd 1776 is when July 2nd. July 2nd 1776 is when the our lawmakers at the time, the Continental Congress, approved the Declaration of Independence and they approved it on July 2nd and they signed it July 4th 1776. And they started with the Declaration of Independence from England, from Great Britain. I go back that far because it's necessary to understand the politics at the time. There was no political parties at the time. It was those who called themselves part of the 13 colonies. They were colonists that came in to set up a freedom of religion, not from religion, freedom of religion here in the Americas. They started off with 13 colonies and we were under British control. The King of England was a tyrant and so during the time we went to war to fight, before July 2nd, we were already at war with Great Britain, fighting skirmishes of injustices, and so they organized a government, the Continental Congress, and they decided to declare independence. And they declared independence on July 4th. We had the signers who signed it, and that was the document.

Speaker 3: 27:08

The beginning of the document is pretty much standard. People hear it and they read it and it says you know, in the second paragraph we hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights like liberty and the pursuit of happiness. But in the middle of the Declaration of Independence that people do not read, it says let facts be submitted to prove this. Let facts be submitted to a candid world be submitted to prove this. Let facts be submitted to a candid world. And they, they did what I call the martin luther protestant um thesis. These 95, theses. They listed all of the things, the tyrannical things that were occurring to the citizens of these amer. They listed things that were horrific treatment by the king to these 13 colonies. And people need to read those things. Those are the things that our nation has decided that it would never go back to, it would never allow happen, and that these things were worth dying for.

Speaker 3: 28:26

So we fought a war, the War of Independence. We won, and in Paris they decided to acknowledge the Americas. Fast forward, we get the Constitution of the United States. It's a more formal document. We declared our independence, july 4th 1776, which on Friday we will be celebrating and so we are excited about what the Lord is doing for this very young country.

Speaker 3: 29:03

But we have the Constitution of the United States and that's when political parties started to form. The Democrat Party is one of the oldest parties. Party uh was formed and um, they were looking at at the time. The democratic party focused in on um what they considered a states and they were wooed by basically those Southern states and the cotton farmers and other agricultural elites. They were looking at them. Then we had other parties called the Whigs, the Freedmen's Party and other groups that were there, that represented in our Congress. But in 1865, the Republican Party was founded. It was in Wisconsin that it was created, conceived and then it was birthed in Jackson Michigan. Their first convention of the Republican Party was in Jackson Michigan. It had three tenants. Three tenants, that was the platform of the Republican Party had just three tenants to perpetuate the union, to abolish slavery, perpetuate the union. And I can't remember the third one. Uh, I can't remember the third one, but the um, the founding beliefs, was uh, july 6th 1854. Wow.

Speaker 3: 31:16

Um, and that was. It was in Rippon, wisconsin. It was conceived and birthed in um, rippon, Wisconsin. It was conceived and birthed in Jackson, michigan, under the Oaks. And so those were the three tenets of the Republican Party and it was the party that started Abraham Lincoln. So our first nominee for president was Abraham Lincoln, was the first Republican from our convention here in Jackson, michigan, heavily involved into the Underground Railroad and heavily involved into freedom and liberty. That is why it was started.

Speaker 3: 32:22

Foundation, the foundation of the Republican Party was to abolish slavery, vindicate democracy and perpetuate the union. Those were the three. There you go. So that was the purpose of its founding and those were the three things. We need to keep the nation together. We want to vindicate democracy, because we felt that it was.

Speaker 3: 32:51

It was not existent for those who are, who were enslaved, and and we wanted to abolish slavery. That was it. Those were the three founding from that liberty. Freedom and all men are created equal. That founding resonated with me and the platforms of the Republican Party since the time for the last I want to say 33 years, over 34 years that I've been involved have always been God-honoring in my opinion, and always look to liberate the marginalized, and that is what I've looked at. So these two major political parties, the Democrat Party and the Republican Party, have been coexisting for the century, you know the couple of hundred years, basically that they've been enacted and they have had various ways of looking at our nation and forming our nation and, depending on the votes of the people and depending on the votes of the people.

Speaker 3: 34:09

The views of these particular political party have been prevalent in some states and not so much in other states. And so we do have a democracy, a democratic approach to elections, but we are a constitutional republic and because we are a constitutional republic, the democracy which is the majority wins is not necessarily the case in our nation. Years, ours, are going over, you know, hundreds of years now with their constitution. But we are our two major political parties. One is the Democrat Party we are basically a primarily two party system and the Republican Party. Our platforms, our positions are what unify these voters and these groups of people and the attempt to say align with us and vote with us so that we may advance these principles, these, this platform, this is what we want done. And the other party, the democratic party, say align with us and line with this and this is what we'll advance. And so you know, that's kind of the for the other nations. There are some here that we select one person to be president of the United States. We have three branches of government. We have the executive branch, which is led by our president, article one of our nation, and article three is our judicial branch, which is the establishment of the Supreme Court. So we have nine members of the United States Supreme Court, established by the legislature, by Congress, and they have the authority for the, for the judicial branch of government, and they are the law of the land, so to speak, for all things judicial. The functions of each are listed out, but the Lord established three equal branches of government. I believe our forefathers did in Isaiah 33 and 22. Isaiah 33 and 22 says that the Lord is my lawmaker, the Lord is my judge, the Lord is my king and it is he who will save us. Those are the three equal branches of government listed in our constitution. Wow, the judicial branch, the legislative branch, and the King, which is the executive branch. Wow, but it is God who will save us. Parallel. That is where I believe that they received the.

Speaker 3: 37:47

I believe that our constitution is God inspired, holy Spirit inspired. I do believe that our laws, many of our laws that we see today, are lifted definitely from the word of God. Concerning the laws, especially crime and punishment and civil suits, civil cases, restitution is in the Bible. Mostly everything that you can imagine in terms of our laws and how we govern in the United States of America comes from the written word of God, the Holy Scriptures, and I can point them to you.

Speaker 3: 38:26

I do a civics course, I teach, and it is um definitely lifted from the word of God. But I know that our three equal branches of government, our three unequal branches of government, come from Isaiah 33 and 22, that there is no place found. Three and 22,. That there is no place found, that I have found written before the constitution was enacted, that those three equal branches or branches of government in reference to God himself God is our judge, god is our lawmaker and God is our king Three equal branches of government, those three things are listed in that one scripture and I do believe that our forefathers looked at that and said that these three branches should occur.

Speaker 2: 39:22

Branches should occur. That's amazing, you know. It's interesting. I'm thinking back to was it a few weeks ago, when there was protests happening around the nation like the no Kings protests, and I just feel free to share on what you're thinking on that. I would love for you to kind of go deeper on. You know, what are we seeing in these? I would say, especially the last five years. I'm similar to you, I, you know, back 30 years ago for you, I, I honestly I don't feel called to politics, but I've actually been, you know, looking into things more in the last five years. It was kind like I woke up a little bit. It was like, okay, well, things are are a little uh, off off kilter here, right?

Speaker 2: 40:10

yeah, I I agree a little.

Speaker 3: 40:20

You know I'm saying yes, I thought my unction for politics that the Lord took me to was not going to last. Okay. I honestly felt that it would be like a little thing a little time. Go and take care of school of choice. That was it. Then I can wash my hands of politics and go back and enjoy my life, because I don't want to get any deeper to anything and you know, what I don't know won't hurt me, I thought.

Speaker 3: 40:49

But the Lord said everything. He is in the public square. He's in the public square and everything that is going on matters to the Lord. He is our judge, he is our lawmaker and he is our king. And it is he who saves us. And he says righteousness availeth the nation, and sin is a reproach. He has placed leaders to do righteous ruling and not wicked ruling.

Speaker 3: 41:22

There's so many scriptures that when the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people mourn. There's another scripture that says when the wicked are in authority, good people hide, and when they lose their power, the righteous rule again. And you know Proverbs 28 and 28,. That is one of the things that I looked at in the word of God. Concerning politics, I have followed the political parties and and I don't worship at the well of political parties yeah, I, I, even though I've been told that I do, but I, I don't, I, I enjoy now, uh, proverbs 28, 28 when the wicked rise to power, people go into hiding, but when, when the wicked perish, the righteous thrive. You know, I believe that the word of God is true.

Speaker 3: 42:30

The Lord does not hate government. He says the king's heart is in his hand, and that is the truth. He decides what they will do and what they won't do, and how well they will do. He sets in authority who he chooses, and some is to get our attention and some is to allow us to thrive. And so I didn't really realize that, how important it is for us to engage and bring the Holy Spirit, bring Jesus, in the public square, and so I started getting engaged into politics. People have no idea how important it is for you to care about your nation and about your neighbors, and one of the things that you are allowed to do, if you are qualified, is to vote. But just voting is not enough, and I found that out 34 years ago, kristen that voting is just not enough. You must engage in your society and you must go out of your four walls of your home and know what is happening to the people, know what is going on with your government, and to speak out and to not stop speaking. Stop speaking.

Speaker 3: 44:13

So the Lord looked at I followed the Democrat politics in August of 2019. And people can do a simple Google search the Democrat party met with the DNC Democrat National Committee, and these are representatives from all 50 states Committee, and these are representatives from all 50 states and they at least three representatives from all 50 states and they meet at a location and they decide the Democrat National Committee activities for the National Democrat Party. Well, they met in August of 2019. And I really want people to really follow this and to just do the search to find out that what I'm saying is accurate. Yeah, the Democrat Party met in August August 24th, I believe, of 2019. And they decided this governing body of the Democrat Party nationally decided to embrace and to highlight and to amplify the voice of unbelievers, non-believers. They formally put together a resolution that says the values of non-believers, non-religious people, religiously unaffiliated folks and the like represent the Democrat Party. Wow, they did that. I didn't know that. A formal resolution Wow, the Lord allowed me to see it, find it. Resolution the Lord allowed me to see it, find it. And I had been alerting people that if you see the devil reign inside the Democrat party, it is because of that one resolution that they agreed on that unbelievers represent the values of the Democrat party. I can't even make this up. Wow, democrat party. I can't even make this up, kristen, I can't. Yeah, I cannot. It was August of 2019.

Speaker 3: 46:11

The DNC, the atheist, friendly atheist group. They hailed it as a win. The non-believing, non-religious groups hailed it as a win. Religious groups hailed it as a win. They thought that Christians and religious people Muslims, Christians, buddhists, you name it went for Republicans, were more for the Republican Party and they did not want to compete with them. They said that the growing number of people that they are seeing right now voters were religiously unaffiliated, non-believers. Wow, and so, because of that, their policies since 2019 have favored the, those who are religiously unaffiliated.

Speaker 3: 47:05

Revelation 21 and 8. Revelation 21 and 8 is the scripture that I pulled up that day that they passed that resolution. It says the fearful, the unbelieving and the abominable, and murderers and whoremong, sorcerers and idolaters and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone. That is what Revelation 21 and 8 says the fearful and the unbelieving. And when a political party says that we want unbelievers, we are a party of unbelievers. That is who they say that they are. Wow, then you must believe them, and spiritually, for me, the Democratic Party has walked in that resolution that they passed.

Speaker 3: 48:20

Women and women transgenders opening private spaces, bathrooms and locker rooms to men, with women and young girls exposing themselves the the nakedness at pride festivities. These things come from a party that are advancing the hatred of the Jews. Yes, the Antifata thing from the guy in New York who is now the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York. These things are not surprising when you go back to August of 2019. When you invite nonbelievers in and say they represent our values, then you do the open borders, the destruction, stealing, killing and destroying general mutilation for children, embracing pornography in schools things that we would not even imagine. But the source of all that Kristen is the August of 2019 resolution by a political party to embrace non-believers Wow.

Speaker 2: 50:10

That's the source of that. A massive shift, at least I'm sure. If you didn't see a massive shift, 2019 is when it occurred.

Speaker 3: 50:19

Wow, 2019 is when it occurred. It was there before, but they formalized it like the Tower of Babel, like the people with the Tower of Babel, like the wicked, and conspire and highlight their agenda that places at risk and that does no good deed. Then you have to believe them and that is the source for it. And so everything that comes out of that party is not surprising to me. It is surprising to many and to many who belong to the party. It becomes now unrecognizable only because they have invited the devil. In my opinion, they invited the devil into their political, political tent and he is reigning.

Speaker 3: 51:27

They, the satanists of texas, joined with the democrats of texas, the democrat party of texas, to come against the texas law that banned abortion, and the Democrats and the Satanists joined in to come against because they said the Satanists said that their frequency practice, their religion, was there and that, because abortion is part of their worship, that they would not be able to have abortions in Texas. That would violate their religious beliefs. And so this is where you see who the allies of the Democrat Party are, when sickness and the masses are joining forces with the Democrat Party. You know that they were invited in and their values, according to their resolution, the unbelievers values represent the Democrat Party, and so I share that with you, because now I have to know how to pray yes, and then know how to operate when I'm speaking with people who want to belong to a political entity, but they are aligning with, especially, christians Christians but they are aligning with people who have, who have placed non-believers and replaced those who were the saints of.

Speaker 3: 53:09

God from that particular political party.

Speaker 3: 53:11

Their values don't align with God, their vision does not align with God and and righteousness.

Speaker 3: 53:21

And so I say that because I'm so glad that the Lord told me to move on a political entity, the Republican Party, 34 years ago, to give voice to that party and to those who would listen about Jesus and that he is, the government is on his shoulders and that righteousness availeth the nation and to pursue the righteous running for office and to encourage and support children of the most high God to run for office and to do good and no harm.

Speaker 3: 54:05

To run for office and to do good and no harm. And so that's kind of where I have been and to kind of walk through that it is okay to engage in politics because the Lord does not back down from politics. He instituted it and I believe our nation, which says in God, we trust our currency, says in God, we trust that. That is where we are Founders founded this nation. We are endowed by our creator there is a creator that they acknowledged for the Fourth of July, that they signed that we are endowed by our creator with certain inalienable rights life, liberty, and to pursue our happiness. And so I try to encourage and strengthen the saints to engage in this political discourse in the name of Jesus and not in our own name, but to align with those who, and only a party who, honors God. And so that's kind of where I'm at politically.

Speaker 2: 55:15

So this is so rich, like I'm sure there's people listening in that are like, wow, this is incredible. So if somebody is listening in and they're like you know, I'm sure there's people listening in that are like, wow, this is incredible. So if somebody is listening in and they're like you know, I'm really being stirred. Um, what would you suggest being maybe a first step into, um, like step into politics, whether it's, you know, is it local in your own city, is it county? Like, what are you? What are you sensing for somebody who's like yeah, I feel like I need to get involved somehow?

Speaker 3: 55:46

So I would pray First of all. I would pray and find out what the Lord is telling you to do. There are so many now groups now that you can join. There's Moms for America and Moms for Liberty. They weren't there 30 years ago. The Tea Party showed up after the fact. I joined the Republican Party because there was. There was no Tea Party. There was. There's a Christian coalition. There are faith and freedom. Coalitions are so many different groups that operate in the political realm without having to choose a political party.

Speaker 3: 56:25

If you are not ready to, you know, go to bed if the Lord says you know, I want you to engage in this political discourse. I want you to care about those things and be an advocate and speak up for those who cannot speak up for themselves. And you can do this. Everyone should do this to do what is right and to understand, to get a baseline understanding that God is in the government. He is the government, god is our judge, god is our lawmaker and God is our king Isaiah 33 and 22. And it is he who will save us. We're not looking for an elected official. I love President Trump, but I'm not looking for President Trump to save me. Jesus saved me. I'm looking for President Trump to be used as a clay in the hands of God to mold him, to give him and fill him with his spirit, and to make good decisions that will advance righteousness in this nation, and to do what is right, to set what is crooked straight. When President Trump announced that, as of today, this was his opening speech, you know, once he was inaugurated, there are only two genders in America. We went from 71 on July, january 19th 2025, to two. I was having a party at my house who knew. So again, the Lord goes before us to set what is crooked straight. We need to yield to that, in whatever capacity that we might be elected to, we might be selected or appointed to any type of board, but to do the right thing for the right reasons. And we found some mothers again for people looking to say my heart is stirred now toward politics. I want them to pray and I want them to find a group of and I'm talking just to Christians. That's what I believe, that I am called to speak to the saints, the siblings, my siblings Pray and find other saints and Christians that are in politics, that are doing good and no harm, that are honoring God where they're at. It may not be a political party at the time. It may not be a political party at the time. It may be a group that comes alongside a political party, a conservative group.

Speaker 3: 59:09

For me, lots of women fighting for America love the leader. For that. She is phenomenal. She is on the border, she went to the border, she does national security. There was women who are supporting her efforts moms for America. I did. I worked alongside with them, did some commercials for them, traveled with them, spoke on their behalf, spoke in DC um to encourage other moms to come alongside Um. They groups. Moms for Liberty is a conservative group.

Speaker 3: 59:51

The Faith and Freedom. The Mordecai Mission I'm a part of the Mordecai Mission. We are Esther's and our men are Mordecai's, and these are groups of people, faith leaders, coming together to advance, lawmakers, to put in authority. Because Mordecai and Esther they ruled, they had the. They were lawmakers, they made decrees and laws and they implemented them. The. She leads America. These are women, christian women. She leads Michigan. She leads America. There's a few chapters across the nation.

Speaker 3: 1:00:33

I'm part of this group of women who are change makers in our spheres of influence in government, in law enforcement, in health care, in ministry, in media and various spheres of influence, the mountains of influence that we have, and we are asking women to advance the kingdom in their sphere of influence.

Speaker 3: 1:01:00

Wherever you are at, lift up Jesus and advance the kingdom of God.

Speaker 3: 1:01:05

To do good and no harm, um, and to be a righteous, make righteous decisions in your sphere of influence. Uh, there are a slew of other organizations that I joined and belong to, in addition to the Republican Party, that I thought have value, that advance the kingdom. But the Republican Party for me has been the training ground for me in policy. So I became a Project 21 ambassador. If you look under Project 21, linda Lee Tarver, project 21, linda Lee Tarver, you'll see the National Center for Public Policy, and I am an ambassador for Project 21, representing Black community and especially issues of policy concerning that. That is a fairly new venture that I have the Lord has been calling me toward to look at policies that will impact particularly, in particular, black people and to lift up this community. It's a marginalized community. We're not victims, but we are definitely not doing ourselves any favor, and I believe that the policies that are good and godly will help us get out of those, and that is the cause for which I engage and advance and avail myself to politics.

Speaker 2: 1:02:46

Wow, you're incredible. I did want to touch really quickly before we'll wrap up soon. Maybe we'll have to have you back on again in the future. But what is your? What would you say to the churches? Because I've heard whether it's different social media things or you know, just even in the pulpit, like we don't get involved in politics. What would you say to the church?

Speaker 3: 1:03:11

So the churches have been told that there is a separation of church and state. That is not true. That is not true, it's not true and it's never been true.

Speaker 3: 1:03:34

The church has been sidelined intentionally by the devil, not necessarily by a political party, but by the devil himself. Lie perpetrated that the men and women of God cannot engage in politics, should not be in politics and should not participate, and that is just a lie. The one thing that I would say to the churches is to read the word of God yourself and look at what the Lord has done and has said, and look at the totality of the word of God and pray that the Holy Spirit will open up eyes to see that the kingdoms that were established, that the governmental structure, the governors and the likes, and the kings and the likes, the Lord dealt with them. There were righteous rulers and wicked rulers throughout the scriptures, but they were rulers and they were governments, and the Lord allowed us to see his word and to read it for ourselves. And I would start with like the Heritage Foundation is a good start. There's Hillsdale College here in Michigan that has a great government and God series that people, that the church and that the leadership of the church needs to recognize and adhere to themselves. Because you know, if you believe that the church, attending services is all that it is to it for our stewardship of this earth, then we are not reading the same Bible and some people might have to read it again. The Lord wants us to govern. He wants us to govern, but he never wanted us to get a king. He wanted him to be the king. He wanted us to have rulers. He gave us judges, you know. He gave us rulers, but he never wanted us to have a king. We that is the difference between having an elected president and having a king. The king does everything for you. You rely on the king and you obey the king, and everything the king says must be obeyed. He is our king of kings and lord of l, and so he gave us rulers. He showed us good rulers and good leaders and leaders that repented, leaders that set order and for the pastors and the churches and the leaders and the parishioners of the churches, having a good foundation. There's a group called Salt and Light Global here in Lansing Michigan, Salt and Light Global. They have great webinars and seminars to understand the role of the saints with government and government with people and with the Lord. And once you have a good foundation for your authority in your community, your country, and serving God from that authority and serving the Lord within the government, instead of being angry at the government, become a righteous ruler within yourself and get others to support the Lord, and your candidacy, or support others who are righteous, is important. I think that you should care about your water prices. I think that you should care about it.

Speaker 3: 1:07:24

My book Died in the Wool. The first chapter of my book in Died in the Wool. For the pastors and the preachers and the Sunday school teachers because I'm a Sunday school teacher. The first chapter is of the five daughters of Zephyr Head. It is out of Numbers 27. There were five daughters of Zephyr Head in Numbers 27. They had no brothers and their father died. They were getting no property and it was going to go to their male relatives. They went to the tent of meeting and petitioned their government. They petitioned Moses and said our father died for his own sins, but we demand something from our father's inheritance. And so Moses rightly so, a righteous ruler said let me inquire of God. Moses went to the Lord and said you know, these five daughters of Zephyr are coming to me and I need to know what to do. And the word of God said God told them that the five daughters, what Zelophehad's daughters are saying, is right. You must certainly give them property as an inheritance amongst their father's relatives and give their father's inheritance to them After God commanded this case law for property rights was established in Israel.

Speaker 3: 1:09:01

I can't make this up. Case law for property rights was established in Israel. I can't make this up. Case for property rights. Are you hearing me?

Speaker 3: 1:09:08

So the Lord cares about property rights for women and dictated property rights for women who had no brothers, and so I share that with you. He cares about water rights too. He cares about you get what I'm saying and he cares about women too. I'm telling you he cares about women and property rights when they were mere chattel, and that is what the Lord dictated, like the Ten Commandments. He dictated property rights for women in Numbers, chapter 27.

Speaker 3: 1:09:51

And so that is government. To all of your listeners, that is government. The Lord cares about it, and there is nothing that we care about now that the Lord has not addressed in his word. We just need to find it. It is there, I promise you. The Lord cares about education. He cares about your homes and homestead and lifestyles and how we treat each other and living next to each other and how we should handle things that go awry with respect to our property and infringement of our property, encroachment of our property rights, and lawsuits and contracts. And you know he cares about that, and so that is what the enemy has been attempting to say that the Lord does not care. But it's government and it's politics, and the Lord cares about it, and so do I.

Speaker 2: 1:10:53

Yes, dr Landelli Tarver. Yes, ma'am, you are a wealth of like, you're just a treasure. I just have to say that you are a wealth of like, you're just a treasure. I just have to say that you are a wealth of wisdom and I know that you've been with the Lord, like you're with him, a lot. So, bringing the fire here today, and just so much, you know. I'm imagining that somebody is just wowed by everything you've shared today. I'm imagining that somebody is just wowed by everything you've shared today. There's so much that you know, as we are on this process and this journey with the Lord, that we're learning every day, right. So, as we close out our episode today, as you know, when we got started, before we got started, I really do this for the one, and I would love for you to just kind of get in mind somebody listening in today, if you have word of knowledge for them, if you have maybe some encouragement, and then would you pray us out today as well.

Speaker 3: 1:11:51

Amen, I would. I just wanted to share. I, the youngest of 10, probably the only Republican in my family, entered into an arena that that, for the most part, people who look like me do not engage with, and I've been engaged in a lot of different groups and entities that that have been different and weird, but it is okay. Okay, I, I, I want to just tell you you are okay to be odd and to be different and to stand alone sometimes, but stand with the Lord. I have lost friends and family because of my voting and political activism. It's the wrong party or the wrong, you know, the elephant versus the donkey, or just my political views that align with the word of God. I'm pro-life and not pro-death and I've had experiences that I've repented from that. I share my personal testimony, but I will tell you that the Lord is good and he will give you new friendships and new relationships and he will make your oddity as a peculiar people. It is OK. It is OK to be odd and different and unique. He does not want the same clay. He takes this clay and he molds us into his hands what he wants us to be. The word of God says that you are fearfully and wonderfully made. Know that you don't have to be a cookie cutter for anybody else and your voice doesn't have to sound like anybody else, and you don't have to go the same places that the other people go. The Lord will lead you to what he has placed you, where he has inspired you and where he wants you to go, and you just need to trust him, even if you can't trace him. There's times where I had to trust the Lord when I couldn't trace him, but he was always there and he said I'll never leave nor forsake you. He loves us so much that he gave us Jesus and that if we trust and believe in Jesus and trust that he is who he says he is, that we can have everlasting life with him, that we can be with him. Know this that the Lord loves you, loves you more than you can even imagine, loves you more than you love yourself, and so it took me a while to understand that, but I needed to trust him, and so today I just pray for you, father, I just thank you and pray for those who are listening. I lift up right now to you your daughter, my new friend and my sister in Christ, kristen. She is a treasure, father. She is a royal diadem in your hand. So, father, I thank you for those who are listening and I pray, father, that those who are listening would hear my heart and hear your heart as well, that, though we walk from different backgrounds and our testimonies are different, you are the same, you're the same God, and you love them, regardless of what country that they are in. You love them regardless of what country that they are in. You love them.

Speaker 3: 1:15:26

Father, your word said in Revelation that there will be a number that no man can count, from every nation, every tribe and every tongue. So, Father, your word says that we're not going to be known by our denomination, but by our nation. Father, your word says that there will be a number that no man can count and our nation. We will be known by our nation. So we'll be known by the saints from the United States of America and the saints from Uganda and the saints from France and the saints from Ukraine and the saints from the Philippines, father, the saints from Australia and saints from South Africa. We will be known by our nation and our tribe.

Speaker 3: 1:16:10

Father, we just thank you that we will be speaking our language and praising you. That's what your word says. So we look forward to that day, but until then, father, we give you glory right now. We give you glory and praise and honor right now for your tender mercies and love toward us. Thank you for Jesus, and thank you for giving us your Holy Spirit that we might hear from your voice, that we might be emboldened and gifted to do your work and your will. You did not leave us, father, without your presence, and so we thank you for it In Jesus' name, amen.

Speaker 2: 1:16:47

Amen, ooh, bringing the fire. I feel it over here. So, dr Linda, would you share with us the best way that people can get ahold of you if they're led to?

Speaker 3: 1:17:02

Yes, I have two websites. I have lindaleetarvercom lindaleetarvercom, but the best website to get me at if you just Google project 21, linda Lee Tarver. You just search on project 21, linda Lee Tarver. You will see the nationalcenterorg. Linda Lee Tarver, project 21 ambassador. That is one of the ways to reach out to me that I do travel, to preach, pray, speak, to talk on various topics, and so project 21, linda Lee Tarver uh, you'll be able to see some of the topics that I um will engage with and will hopefully bring honor to God by and to um a little bit about my expertise and things that the Lord has equipped me to um to speak on on his behalf.

Speaker 2: 1:18:00

Amen and you have three books. Could you just share your books?

Speaker 3: 1:18:05

Yes, my first book is called Died in the Wool D-Y-E-D in the Wool Died in the Wool. And that book is sold on Amazon and Barnes and Noblecom and across the internet. You can just search on Linda Lee Tarver, dr Linda Lee Tarver and Died in the Wool. My second book is a children's book. It's called Jesus who Is Christmas Is Born. Jesus who Is Christmas Is Born. And that is a children's book. It's an amazing story of Jesus being born. He is the reason we celebrate Christmas, he's the reason for the season. And the third book that I have, it's a collaboration with the Mordecai Mission. It's called the Scepter of Our Times, empowering and Transforming Christian Leaders, the Scepter S-C-E-P-T-E-R of our times, empowering and transforming Christian leaders. It's by the Mordecai mission. And so these are the three books that I've written and contributed to, so I'm excited about that. Are you writing more? I have two books that I need to finish on the trilogy for the children's trilogy. It's the Jesus as the as Christmas, jesus is our Easter and Jesus returns. That is the third book in our trilogy for the children's book. And then I have another book about the 2024 election that I'm in the process of finishing and it is it's hoped to be fantastic reading Just kind of my experience in politics.

Speaker 3: 1:19:48

I wanted to give honor to God in that book in terms of the prayers and the challenges you know since 2016,. I will tell you it's been a roller coaster in politics and it is not for the faint of heart. But I have a word for the people of God, especially for this that the Lord does not fail us or does he forget us. But I've never prayed as much in the last four years since the Biden administration. I've never prayed as much as I have. But I know that the Lord wants to get us in a posture of relying on him and not who's in the White House.

Speaker 2: 1:20:32

So, amen, wow, I can't wait to hear more about your books. Well, I am going to close with our anchoring verse over Hope, unlocked it's. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace and believing so that, by the power of the Holy Spirit, you may abound in hope. And that's Romans 15, 13. And as Dr Linda Lee shared all of her websites, her contact information, I'll be sure to put that in the show notes, so go there if you needed the links. But otherwise, thank you so much for being on today and thank you for being a brave voice. Who's setting so many free?

Speaker 2: 1:21:08

I will be, back with another episode next week. Thanks, listeners.

Speaker 3: 1:21:12

God bless you, thank you.