Kent Chevalier: Chaplain for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Keynote Speaker Discusses Passion to Encourage the Community

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Welcome to Disability Matters with your host Joyce Bender. All comments, views, and opinions expressed on the show are solely those of the host, guest, and callers. Now the host of Disability Matters, here's Joyce Bender.

Hello everyone, this is Joyce Bender on Disability Matters. Welcome, welcome to our show today. And thank you as always. I so appreciate your support. 22 years I've been on the air, 22 years. And last year I had my 1,000th episode and couldn't do it without you. So thank you all so much. You know, you should call me. I'm lining up people that listen to the show. I'm going to have one of them on the show. Joyce Bender at joycebender@benderconsult.com. You know how to reach me. So you also know I'm a woman living with epilepsy. And I own a national company that focuses on the competitive employment of people with disabilities in fields like AI, engineering, computers, math, finance, procurement, but a lot in healthcare, a lot of clinical positions in healthcare. And guess what? I started the company— ready?— 31 years ago. So 31 years ago, we are a for-profit company that focuses on the employment of people with disabilities, and I also have As you know, the not-for-profit that is a standalone, the Bender Leadership Academy, training high school students with disabilities about the world of work and dealing with bullying. And I cannot forget all 131 countries around the world listening to the show. Number 2, still is after United States, Singapore, largest listening audience in Singapore. And every show that we have, I mention a company, a country that's been listening. And I know you're going to be surprised when I tell you Saudi Arabia. Now, Saudi Arabia only has a few listeners, but I don't care, one listener, one can make the difference. So they're our country of the day today that we talk about. And Yoshiko Dart, a special shout out to you. Yoshiko, I hope you are having a great day. And of course, thank you, Highmark, the sponsor of this radio show. So today is a special treat for me. Why? Because a friend a pastor from Northway when he was at Northway. Um, he went to the best college in the United States, Geneva College, and yes, I did go there also. Um, and he now, he's Mr. Celebrity. He's with the Steelers, but he's also an author. Um, I saw him a few months ago. I said, Are you even talking to me now? Now that you're a big shot, now that you're a celebrity status. But guess what? I was able to get him on the show today. So Pastor Kent Chevalier, Chaplain Kent Chevalier, author Kent Chevalier, welcome to the show.

Oh, Joyce Bender, thank you so much for having me. It is an absolute privilege. And as you are pumping me up there, I'm like, oh my goodness, this feels wild. I'm looking at you And going, oh my goodness, so much respect for 31 years of incredible work that you've done. So much respect for— man, you said 131 countries. That is amazing to me. So now I'm really nervous that there's 131 countries who are listening to this kid from Beaver County.

So yeah, it's a good way to get your book known.

That's right. Well, I appreciate you having me on. It is so good to see you. And I've always just loved you and respect you and especially your work.

The feeling is mutual. We miss you at Northway. I will go on record, I've said this, you're one of the best speakers, pastors, and every so often you come back.

That's right. And I'll be, I'll be coming back this summer to Northway, so I'm excited to be back with everybody. And, uh, where Erica and I and our family were a part of Northway Northwest Sewickley Valley campus. So we're still linked at the heart, just a different location.

You're with the great pastor Amanda Beggs.

That's right. Yeah, she and Brad, um, we, we have the privilege of sitting under their leadership at Sewickley Valley. So yeah, she is a phenomenal communicator. Oh my goodness.

Yes, she is. She is. Well, as you heard, we have listeners throughout the Americas but also throughout the world. So here's what happens. I'll meet someone and they'll say, remember when you had this person on? I wish I knew more about them. And people started saying that years ago. So now, for the past several years, every time I have someone on, at the beginning, I let them talk about their journey. You know, like where they grew up, where they went to school, about their family. So go ahead. Let's hear about your journey.

Yeah, thank you. So Erica and I, we met at Geneva College, and that's where you also were a part of. And my mom, so graciously, she, she realized that as a kid growing up in Beaver County, which is in, you know, the Greater Pittsburgh region, that my sister and I were probably not going to have much of an education if she didn't sacrifice and, um, work at Geneva College. We'll talk about that. But I grew up in Beaver County, very close to Geneva College. It was in my backyard. Um, and I grew up in the church, but very quickly I began to realize, like, you know what, I'm not sure I actually like this. Um, and I started to drift, uh, so to speak, away from the church. But I loved in sports. I played football, baseball, basketball throughout my entire upbringing, and I fell in love with sports very early on. I learned so much from being a part of sports, and so I was deeply involved with everything that I could play to keep myself out of trouble. But I ended up getting in some trouble as a result of being in the locker room, and I know we're going to talk about that in a little bit. But, uh, yeah, grew up Beaver County, met my wife at college, um, and so, man, I just love the Pittsburgh region. Feel like God has called me to the Pittsburgh region to make an impact and an influence, and I can't believe that I get to do what I get to do right now and still being a part of an incredible church that we're a part of.

Well, when you were at Geneva, you played a lot of sports, but would you also say that the classes, even if it right then it wasn't hitting hard, would you not say that the classes and she learned and all the chapel and all of that, did that have an impact on, can you look back now and say, you know what, that had an impact on my success? Do you, can you see that?

Absolutely. I, I loved, so I didn't really want to go to Geneva and here's why. It has nothing to do with the school. At all, because it's a wonderful college. But I just wanted to get out of Pittsburgh. I really wanted to get out of my parents' home, get out of town kind of thing, and explore on my own. And so when I realized that I would have to go to Geneva, I was a little bit bitter, to be honest with you. But the summer after I graduated from high school, because I had made some stupid decisions in high school, and I was rebelling pretty good against my parents' church and the way that they were upbringing me. I, I really didn't want anything to do with God, the church, Christianity. But the summer in between when I graduated from high school and when I started freshman year at Geneva College, God really got a hold of me. Like, he, he really shook me up and I surrendered my life to following Jesus. And, and it was a few weeks later that I started my freshman year at Geneva College. And I, I was really hungry to learn about the things of God and the education at Geneva. So every, you know, person has to take like the main Bible course. And I started to learn things because of Geneva's education that I just didn't know, even though I grew up in church my whole life. I didn't know certain things that I was learning because of Geneva's and there was one professor in particular who took me under his wing and actually walked me through week by week. Like, this is the kind of professors that are at Geneva where they— where he took the time, spending time with me, realizing I had a ton of questions. I was bringing in a ton of baggage, and he was very patient with me, very gracious with me. He even gave me leadership opportunities that I probably I wasn't ready for, but he saw potential in me. And so, he quickly put me in leadership. And he helped me kind of fail forward when he would then, you know, he'd give me that position of leadership, he'd let me fail. And then he came alongside of me and he said, "Hey, what would you do different next time?" And this was the type of professor that was at Geneva College. And so, I'm forever grateful for the education, even though I went in not really wanting to go, but God definitely had it designed that I would be educated at Geneva, receive a call into ministry as a result of this professor who was leading me. And so I'm just incredibly grateful for my time at Geneva College.

Yeah, I— one teacher that stands out, I think she's like 90 today, in my life was Dr. Peyton. And I took Dickens and Shakespeare, two different classes. And I tell this story, I've told the last two presidents at Geneva. I told Calvin, you know what, to this day, Dickens is my favorite author. And even as I'm saying this, this morning when I got up, on the treadmill, I was reading David Copperfield. Well, listening.

Yeah.

But she, she gave me not only a love of literature, but she was joyful and just a great mentor, just like how you described the professor that you knew. So, it definitely had an impact on me. And, uh, so when you left Northway, I was very sad. I was very sad.

And so was I, to be honest.

It was for a good, uh, reason. So tell everyone— I want you to tell them though how it happened before you tell them now, here I am today doing this show.

Yeah, so I— after Geneva College, Erica and I got married and we did student ministry for 10 years. Um, and at the end of those 10 years, we actually came back to Pittsburgh area to plant a church. And I like to say it this way: it failed wonderfully. We learned so much. And then Pastor Scott Stevens from Northway Christian Community, he reached out to me to come on staff at Northway. And Erica and I, we were a part of Northway there, I think it was for 13 years I served as the Wexford campus pastor there and loved it. But probably a decade into that, I began to feel God shift something in me. Like, I knew something was coming. I wasn't looking for anything because I love Northway. In fact, it's still our home church. But I knew something was coming, and I was starting to get frustrated with my role. I started to real— like, huh, I wonder about these things over here. But I still loved Northway. And so it was about 2 years into that frustration and into that waiting, the first time that I felt that nudge from God, that Vance McDonald, who was a Steelers player— he was a tight end for the Steelers, he's now retired— but Vance attended Northway. And he came up to me after a service and he said, "Hey, could you grab a cup of coffee with me because I just moved here?" He had just gotten traded from the San Francisco 49ers to be with the Steelers. And he said, "I'm new to the city. I don't have anybody who can help me spiritually. The Steelers don't have a chaplain right now. And so, I need somebody to help me grow spiritually." And I was like, "Wow, man, fire up. Let's go." I'd be honored to walk alongside with you. And it was during that time that he and I started to get to know each other, that he shared more about the fact that the Steelers didn't have a chaplain. And I knew that the Steelers had had a long line of chaplains, like since the '70s. And so I just kind of wondered, like, huh, what does a chaplain do for an NFL team? Like, What does that even mean? So when I was starting to talk to him about that, he told me that, you know, that position that, you know, ran, you know, that guy would lead Bible studies for the players, would lead Bible studies for the coaches. He would speak at chapel. He would speak at, you know, different settings during the week. And it was essentially to be a pastor to the coaches and the players of the Steelers organization. And I just sat there, Joyce, and I was like, Oh my, I think, I think I would love to do that. Like, how does somebody become an NFL chaplain? But I was chicken. I didn't, I didn't say anything to him. I was just internally going, I wonder if this is the new thing that God's telling me to get ready to jump into. And so after some time had passed and I was getting to know Vance on a personal level, he finally said, hey, Coach Tomlin is really getting serious about filling this chaplain position. Would you know of anybody who might be interested? And so I said to Vance, I was like, well, well, do you think that I could do that? Like, would he consider me? And Vance said, well, I didn't think you'd be interested. You're a pastor at Northway. Like, you love the church. You're doing a great job. And so I said, and I explained how God had kind of been messing with me about my role. And this, this now had been kind of 3 years building up to in this waiting period. And he said, well, if you're serious, then why don't I introduce you to Coach Tomlin? And Joyce, you know Coach Tomlin. He, I mean, he is one of the most prestigious leaders in the National Football League, really in the country. He is a master at leadership. And so I was just excited meet him. And I could tell that he was vetting me at that lunch that Vance invited me to with him. And eventually, Coach Tomlin, long story short, he invited me to become the Steelers chaplain. But when he offered me the job, I actually didn't know that it was a 100% volunteer job. Like, I would have to raise my entire salary to be able to do this, all of my benefits, all of my ministry budget to become the chaplain. And he said that the Steelers, we don't pay you for this. So I'd like for you to join the staff of Athletes in Action, which is a missions organization. It's a sports ministry of the missions organization Cru. And so as soon as he said that, I was like, um, I don't think— like, I'm thinking this while he's talking— I don't think this is wise for me as a dad who has 3 teenage daughters at the time. I'm married to Erica. Like, I don't think this would be a good move for me to leave Northway and to jump into a missionary, full-time missionary. And I basically— God, like, I can't believe that this is you know what it is. But in that moment, here's what I realized: I was actually putting my trust in a paycheck from the church. I was, I was putting my trust in the position of pastor at Northway Christian Community, and God was putting his finger on the thing that I wouldn't relinquish. And that was really the comfort of that role. Like, I really loved that role. I was comfortable. It was a great paying job. I loved it. Um, and, and God basically, long story short, He said, "I want you to do this. I'm not asking you, I'm telling you to do this." And so Erica and I, long story short, we, we laid it all down and we jumped and we joined the staff of Athletes in Action and we became full-time missionaries, uh, to join the staff of Athletes in Action. To serve the Pittsburgh Steelers. And we've been doing that now for 7 seasons, and we're about to go into our 8th under a new head coach, Coach McCarthy.

Now, this Athletes in Action, then what are they? What do they do? Yeah, so they're separate from the Steelers, right?

Correct. And so as an outside organization, we are— we serve the Steelers at the invitation of then head coach Mike Tomlin. That he would allow us to be in. So Erica, she serves all the coaches' wives, all the players' wives and girlfriends. I serve all the players and the coaches. And, um, and so we— the Athletes in Action is the sports ministry of the what is formerly known as Campus Crusade for Christ, the missions organization. Now we are what's called CRU, um, CRU, and Athletes in Action is their sports ministry arm., and they are on a ton of college campuses across the country and across the world. There is also— I serve in the pro division of Athletes in Action, and we serve in, in, in soccer, we serve in Major League Baseball, we serve in hockey. And so I happen to serve in the National Football League.

Okay, and so that's who pays you then?

Athletes in Action. So Erica and I, we raise, we raise all of our own support. So all of our, you know, salary, all of our benefits, all of our, you know, ministry budget that we do with the Steelers, the programming that we do with them, we raise it all through different churches, different missions organizations who support us as Athletes in Action missionaries. And we do that really to simply serve the Steelers because we'll never ask them for anything. Because as soon as you start asking, you know, professional athletes, coaches, it breaks that trust. So we're never going to ask them for anything. In fact, all of, well, a lot of them do not know that we don't get paid by the Steelers and we'll never say a thing. Shh, right? Because the current The currency in the NFL is not actually money. It's actually trust. And so I want to keep that trust with those players, with those coaches, and serve them no strings attached. Because as soon as they start smelling that there's strings attached, they question your motives. And I just want to be one of the very few people in their lives who's saying, listen, I don't need anything from you. I'm here to simply serve you. And Erica, the same way with their wives, with their girlfriends.

You know, talk about full circle. What would be the odds that Paula Balog, who you know extremely well, and everyone, you probably have talked many times about her, but Paula is executive vice president at this national company I own. And she's worked for me for like 38 years. When she went to Monhall, that's how she knows Pastor Scott. They're both Monhall. Let's go! Monhall, PA. When she lived there and went to high school, she was like guts, you know, all everything, basketball, softball. And so she was named All-American. That same year with Mike McCarthy. How about that? What are the odds of that? Yes.

Oh, I love it.

She knows him, you know, well from then. But when the Steelers were in the Super Bowl against Green Bay, I'm there, I'm watching ESPN and there's Paula's face and it's showing Paula and Mike. All American.

I love it.

Yeah, I know. I'm really glad, but I can see why your book is called what it is called, because that was quite a leap of faith. And we'll talk more about that when we talk about your book. But, you know, when you were saying, and then I'm thinking, what? Oh, I'd love to do that. So now what is it like? What's it like to work side by side with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Yeah, I mean, as a kid who grew up in Beaver County in Pittsburgh, this is a really wild role that I get to fulfill because here God has taken my passion for the gospel of Jesus and he has also taken my love and my hobby of the Pittsburgh Steelers and he has mashed it into my God-given purpose. And so I sometimes, Joyce, will pinch myself going, "I can't believe that I get to pastor the team like that I grew up watching." And so very quickly, as I began in this role as chaplain, I realized that these young men, the players, they are just regular men who happen to be extremely good. At football. They are the 1% of the 1% of the 1% who has made it to the NFL. So they're really good at what they do. But as men, they're just like me. They put their pants on just like I do. And so they struggle with the same things that I struggle with. And so to have the opportunity to realize that the men that we watch on Sundays on our screens while they are entertainers and they are gladiators and they are extremely good at what they do, very quickly I realized, wow, these young men are just looking for the same things that a young man who's a lawyer, who's a business leader, who is trying to find a job. Because a lot of these guys, you know, they're sitting on the sidelines and they want to be out on the field. And what do I have to do to earn that spot to be able to— So a lot of similarities that when I was doing ministry within the church context and people coming into my office and sharing the, you know, things that they were discouraged by or struggling with, you know, it was the actual same thing when I was talking to guys on the sideline. It was the same stuff. And so I've come to realize that even in the NFL, people are people. They just happen to be really good and they happen to entertain us on Sundays. But I do love, like, pinch me, that I get to be on the sidelines with the black and gold and to be able to talk to them about, hey, how's your relationship with your wife? You know, honestly, man, like, how are you doing with the pressure of performing day in and day out? Because I think we forget that these men, they are under a microscope of every day. Their practices are filmed. The way that they lift weights are filmed and monitored. Their speed, how much they've run for the day is monitored. And so the pressure of performance for these young men is absolutely brutal. And so to have the privilege to walk alongside of them and say, "Hey, listen, man, did you know?" that there's a God who— he's not about how well you perform for him. He loves you anyway, regardless of how you perform today. And to be able to do what it is that I've been doing for 23 years, and then to have 7 years of doing the exact same thing with guys who are in pads and they're, you know, sitting on the sidelines. So it's incredible to be at those games, to be down close, hear all that's going on, and to use those things as teachable moments. That can help guys see, you know what, I'm— one of the largest lessons, Joyce, that I have not only tried to teach these young men and these coaches, but I've been teaching the same lesson when, when I was pastor at Northway, and it's this: you are not what you do. Your identity is not your job. You are a son— in this case, when I'm talking to men, you are a son of the Most High God, and He loves you. That's your identity. Your job is football. That's your work. It's football, but it's not your identity. And if you're building your foundation on a football, someday it's gonna be gone. The paycheck's gonna be gone. All the things that come with it, it's all gonna be gone. And you have to know who you are without the ball in your hand. And so, So that's kind of some of the things that I get to, you know, work alongside these young men and talk about their identity in Christ instead of identity in performance, because you'll never be able to live up to the performance standard that is always required of you. And that's, you know, that's a little bit about my role that I get to do with these guys.

You know, a lot of people, when I talk to them, if I tell them, oh yes, you know, my friend Kat, he is the chaplain. I've seen you on the field, by the way. I'll be watching. Oh, there he is. I see him. There he is. But they'll say to me, well, why do they, these athletes, why? I mean, do they even want to talk about God? I mean, I see them with all their gold and everything on. And I mean, do they really want to go to a Bible study? So I want you to answer that question, especially for all the young people listening to the show?

Yeah, I think, um, you know, the fact that Coach Tomlin wanted me and invited me to come in was because there was a desire. So there are guys like Vance who are on that team, and when you think about it, none of these guys can ever make it to our church services because they work on the weekends. They, they play on Sundays. So typically, you know, churches are meeting on Sundays. And so Coach Tomlin wanted this because the players were saying, hey, we can never get to church. We would like to have Bible studies. And so while there are guys on the team who want that, there's also guys on the team who don't want anything to do with it. And so my role in that setting, when somebody really doesn't want anything to do with the God guy, you know, everybody knows me as the God guy. And my job isn't to try to come into the Steelers organization and beat the Bible over their heads. No, Erica and I, we just simply see ourselves, hey, we're here to serve. And if you're new to the city, like all these rookies that just got drafted into the NFL this past weekend, you know, or the end of April, that there's this sense of they're new to the city. They don't know. This is their first job outside of college. They're trying to figure out a new town. And Erica and I simply want to say, hey, we're just here to help. Born and raised in Pittsburgh, we know the area. If you need anything, we're here to serve you. Things like, man, we have trusted babysitters, and if you have little ones, we'd love to help you with, you know, babysitters who are vetted. They are, you know, they have their clearances, things like that. And we want to serve you in that way. Things like, man, if you are trying to figure out the best place to take your dog, to board your dog, hey, we, we do, and we do this with our dog. And so we see ourselves really as serving people, even if they're not interested in God. Like, I'm not here to thump you over the head, but then I am, like, my role is designed so that if guys are interested, and they want to participate in Bible studies and the chapels, non-denominational chapels that I provide, then everybody, anybody is welcome to do those things. But it's volunteer. Like, it's not like everybody has to do this. It's for those who want to be a part of it. And then for those who don't want to be a part of it, sweet, we'll hang out, we'll have conversation, we'll serve you in any way that you need. And we're not here to bash you with the Bible.

But there are athletes that are Christians.

Oh, for sure.

Absolutely. That's why I mean, sometimes young people can't envision that. And really, well, let me tell you, Cam Hayward came to our church. Mm-hmm. Andrew McCutcheon.

That's right.

Gow goes to the kids gig. So I mean, there are, I mean, Clint Hurdle, oh my goodness, men and women of God, including in the world, the entertainment world of—

Yeah. And Joyce, you should, you should check this out because, and your listeners should check out this page. So my good friend, he is a He was a former ESPN producer. And he does a phenomenal job now because he felt God calling him into the sports space in a very unique and different way. So he joined forces with a group called Professional Athletes Outreach. And they have something called Sports Spectrum. So Sports Spectrum is the name of it. They're all over social media, YouTube, YouTube, Instagram, all of this. And what they do is they absolutely share athletes across collegiate and professional spaces who are very passionate about sharing their faith on and off the field. And so you have guys, Steelers, who have been highlighted on Sports Spectrum sharing their faith and telling them why God is my audience of I play for the audience of one. And I love how they share their story. And they say essentially, like, my platform of professional sports is not about me. It's not about me getting paid. It's actually about lifting up the name of God. And so I love that Sports Spectrum does a fantastic job. And so anybody who's listening, and they want to know more athletes who are following the Bible, that are trying to figure out what it means to be a Christian in today's sports space. These— man, look up Sports Spectrum and what Jason is doing with Matt.

Sports Spectrum, that's good. Okay, thank you for sharing that. Well, now for the part I have been looking forward to. There you are, you're wearing it. Do it afraid.

That's right.

Let's hear, let's hear about it. First of all, what made you decide to write this book?

Yeah, so this is the, the impetus of this book actually started probably about 2 and some years ago. It was as a result of my dad had entered hospice. And I had realized that as he began to fade, that basically, I didn't have his faith history written down. Like, I don't have the faith history of my grandparents. I don't have the faith history of my parents. I actually didn't write anything for my faith history. And so this started as a project for my 3 daughters, and I wanted them to know how Erica and I, in the last 30 years, what it has meant for our faith to impact our decisions and how we have followed Jesus in the different callings and the different purposes that He's had for us. And so I started writing this for my daughters. But then I had a mentor who I was telling about this project that he said, "You know what, Kent, I don't think this is just for your 3 girls. I think this is for a larger audience. And I challenge you to think about your platform as a chaplain in the NFL and to think about the people that you could impact with, with your story. And so that's when I began to think larger. And I was taking like our faith history. So when I think, when I say it that way, I say faith, his story. So God's story through our lives in the last 30 years that Erica and I have been married. And we've made some big leadership decisions of things like, at one point, we moved from Pittsburgh to the Detroit area because we felt like God was calling us to do that. And, and I wanted to show how we made that decision, like what, what went into it to make that kind of decision. I wanted my girls to know that, but I also wanted younger leaders to know, like, man, sometimes Sometimes God is going to call you from a place of comfort where you've grown up your whole life and you've done ministry for 6 years. And all of a sudden, he's going to say, you know what, I want to see you over in Detroit. You have a, you have an assignment over in Detroit, so go. And I had a choice to make. Would I be obedient to that or not? So Erica and I, we decided to go. But when we got there, man, we learned some major lessons. And so I wrote those lessons down that we learned. And that's, you know, in our journey of 30 years of following Jesus to these different God assignments, there's some major lessons that we've learned along the way. Sometimes when we actually, we didn't make it, like it was like the decision that we made was not a good decision. And I wanted to be really authentic about, Sometimes you miss it. Sometimes you mess up. And here's what we learned as a result of messing up. And so, that first half of the book is really our journey. And then it culminates with the story of us then making the decision to leave Northway and to jump into the NFL by serving with Athletes in Action. And that line, "Do it afraid," was because when Coach Tomlin told us, told me that I would have to raise our salaries, I'd have to raise our benefits, I'd have to raise the ministry budget. I was afraid to step out like that, and I basically started to shut it down and say, like, this is not wise. But then God said, no, you have to do this. And so we decided to do it, afraid, even though we were afraid, um, to do it. And God has been so faithful in that decision to trust him And I wouldn't be honest if I would say that there are moments still, as Erica and I are raising our salary still, that there's moments where, okay, God, okay, are you gonna, are you gonna come through here? And but it's stretching our faith. And our faith, it needed to be stretched and brought new places. And so that was like the beginning part of the book, part one. And then part 2 of the book is a framework that I began to realize as I wrote these things down, these lessons, that before Erika and I started to make these decisions, there was a framework. It was a grid almost that we were making our decisions through. And so, as I began to realize and write these things down, they sort of naturally fell into this framework. That I've now called LEAP before you jump. So L-E-A-P, and then P turns into P-R-A-Y. So LEAP before you jump into a major decision. And you've got to work this process. And so the question that I ask younger leaders, and really leaders of any age, is do you have a process for how you make big decisions in your life? Or do you just do whatever the heck you want to do? Man, it'll figure itself out. But I've noticed in my life, I've learned my lesson that sometimes I fell flat on my face when I rushed through the process. And so, the second half of the book is really my encouragement to leaders, to people who are trying to make decisions in life to work this framework before you jump into that decision. And so, the LEAP framework. Framework has been something that Erika and I, we wanted to teach our daughters that. And we also wanted to teach anybody that we could influence this framework.

And that's the second half of the book.

That's right. Leap before you jump.

Second part. And so I guess you came up with that title, Do It Afraid, just based on what you did afraid.

Yeah, but it wasn't just— so the first time that I ever heard that phrase, Joyce, was actually at Northway. So when I was a pastor, I was sitting, um, and listening to a sermon. I think it was Pastor Scott Stephens, and we were talking about people getting into small groups and to study the Bible together in small groups. And that can be very intimidating for people, right? It's— it can be a scary thing for people to jump into a Bible study with people that they might not know. And I remember this precious woman. I, I I don't know her name. She was a part of a different campus, and in a video she actually said, if you are scared to jump into a small group, do it scared. And I was like, wow, that's, that's faith in action. Like, I— anything worth doing that is going to grow you, that's going to stretch you, is going to involve natural fear. Like you're going to be scared to do certain things that you've never done before. And that's natural. Like, I don't think, like, fear can be a healthy thing. But when she said, do it scared, I was like, huh? And that just stuck with me. So that when I began to walk this journey for myself, that do it afraid line, because my wife, she has something in our bathroom that a little sign that says faith over fear. And so even like the— when I— if I look at the title, you know, here of the book, you see how do it is above afraid. And so this to me is faith. Do it over fear. Afraid. Do it afraid. And so it was this imagery of faith over fear, hearing this woman say, do it scared, join a small group even if you're scared. That when Erica and I were faced with this really big, I mean, massive decision to leave our, our really comfortable, good-paying jobs and to jump to become full-time missionaries, that line kept coming to my heart and to my mind. Just do it afraid. Trust God even though you're afraid. Jump. Embrace the fear of the unknown and jump into your God-given purpose that he is telling you to do. Like, he's got it, but you got to trust Jesus in the face of your fear and take that first step. Do it afraid. And so that's where the title of the book really came from. And I've just, I've been speaking this out to people because I think that there's a misconception about having faith, taking leaps of faith, that you have to have it all together that, that faith means that you don't have any fear, and that if you do have fear, that you're not really a faith-filled person. And when I look at the Bible, Joyce, like when I read the stories, the historical accounts, people like Mary— you think about Mary, and, and she was a teenage girl when she became pregnant with Jesus. Right, and all the things that were around that. And God sent an angel to her, and what was the first thing that he said to her? Don't fear, don't be afraid, because God is with you, right? And, and if you look, why did he have to say that to her? Because she was afraid. You know, when, when you look at, uh, different accounts historically in the Bible that capture when, when an angel, or when, when Jesus himself says, 'Do not fear,' it's because the person is filled with fear. But he says, 'Trust me, trust me with your fear.' So it's this idea of an exchange. I give my natural fear into the hands of a supernatural God, and in exchange, he gives me courage. To do it. It doesn't mean that I don't have fear. It just means I'm gonna— God, I'm gonna give you my fear as I do this, and you're gonna give me courage as I take that next right step, and you're going to provide for me along the way. You're good. Your presence is going to be with me as I go into the very thing that I, I've been fearful of, that I'm anxious over, but I trust you more than I trust my fear. And so I'm not going to let my fear hold me back, even though, like, even when I make the decision to jump into the NFL as a full-time missionary, Joyce, I don't know how God's going to provide, like, money. Like, I got to figure that out. God help, you know. I'm still fearful of that, but that doesn't mean that I don't have faith that God's going to pull through. It's, it's me constantly surrendering that fear into the hands of an Almighty God who says that, Kent, I am your family's provider. I'm Jehovah Jireh, the provider, and I will provide for you, your wife, for your kids. Why? Because I'm their provider as well. That job description of provider is already taken. I'm Jehovah Jireh. And so it doesn't mean that I still don't have have that hesitancy. But as I make these bold steps and these leaps of faith, he gives me the courage to take the next step and the next step. So that, that's Do It Afraid. That's what the book is all about. That's what I've been trying to inspire people, encourage people to unleash that within them, because I believe there's a whole bunch of people who are being held back by whatever it is comfort, you know, the familiar, you know, fear itself that, you know what, I'm going to get hurt. Or— and, and trying to encourage people, listen, step out, trust God, don't trust your fear.

Yeah. And so that we get this for our listeners, Kat Chevalier, C-H-E-V-A-L-I-E-R, That's right. C-H-E-V-A-L-I-E-R. Kent, Do It Afraid. Okay, where do they buy it?

That's right.

So they can— where do our listeners go to buy it?

Yeah, so you can go to my website, kentchevalier.com. You can go straight to Amazon. You can go to, you know, Barnes Noble online, and it's available in all of the those spaces. If you just Google Kent Chevalier, Do It Afraid, the book will probably come up. And so, yeah, the first place I would send people though to is right to my website. And then I've got links right from there that people can go to.

Is this like certain age level for reading?

Well, I wrote it primarily for leaders who are younger than me in the sense of for young adults who are trying to make big decisions. But here's what I know is that I'm already receiving testimonies from people who are 60s, 65, 70, who are saying, wow, did I need this book. Because as I'm retiring, as I'm transitioning to retirement and thinking about what's next, this was so helpful for me as a person who's trying to figure out those next steps. And so really, it's hitting all ages. Ages, even though I wrote it with an audience of a young man in mind who's trying to make decisions post-college, trying to get into a new career, that kind of thing.

Yeah, uh, Do It Afraid. Now I would recommend you buy this book. Yes, I will endorse Kent Chevalier, and you know I don't say that all the time on air, but I will him. And like him, do it afraid. Wow. I mean, that was my life after my accident. You know, finding out I had epilepsy back then, 31 years ago, I would never have believed ever. I didn't even know anything about disability, that this would all happen. I would— I never believed it. But God had a plan. And when it happens, You have to say, okay, I'm it, I'm it, I'm doing it. And you know what? It's amazing how things happen.

That's right. And that's what I love about you, Joyce Bender, is you, you are the example of faith over fear. You, you are the person who has shown so many people who look up to you that you can, even though you're afraid, even though you're hesitant, even though you question yourself, I'm gonna go forward with it anyway. Why? Because God has given me an assignment. And that's what I love about you, Joyce Bender. That's what I respect about you so much. You are the poster child of Do It Afraid. So God bless you.

Oh, thank you. Well, I am honored because I want all of you to buy this book, Do It Afraid. Listen, truthfully, when I think of my life and what happened, This is what matters. This do it afraid. When Pastor Kent was talking, Chaplain Kent, author Kent, friend Kent, I was thinking to myself, how ironic that just last night I was reading the book of Judges. And who did I read about? Gideon. And here he goes out to battle. And he has his 25,000 troops. And God said, no, uh-uh. He said, okay, I'll cut it back. He cuts it back to 15,000. No, even more. He gets down to like 300. And he said, how do you think we can beat the Midianites or whoever it was with 300 people? What did you say? It's not you.

That's right. It's God going before you.

Not trusting the paycheck. That's right. And of course, yes, he did go to battle afraid. You could have him, Gideon, do it afraid.

That's right.

There you go. And he did do it afraid. Well, Kent, um, what message do you have for our listeners today?

Yeah, I would say this, Joyce, as we close here, um, there's probably something that people know that's holding them back from fulfilling God's purpose that they know they're supposed to be doing. But there's something that they are hesitating on, a dream that they allowed to die because somebody told them that it doesn't make sense or it's too risky. My, my encouragement to those people is to bring that back up to the surface. And to ask God, hey, it's not too late, is it? You know, is there something that you want me to do with this? And to bring that dream back to the surface and ask God, hey, should I reopen this up? Because I believe that there's a lot of things that God will fuss us up on the inside until we step into that thing that he's told us to do. And until we do it, we won't experience the true life that we're supposed to be living. And so my encouragement is for folks to just simply really examine the things that they're fearful of, name it, and say, you know what, not today. I'm not going to be fearful today, and I'm going to move forward ahead of it anyway and do it afraid. So thanks, Joyce, for having me on. Appreciate you so much. God bless you.

Well, the feeling is mutual. I just want to say, if you're right now, you're listening to this show and you're thinking, You know what? Oh, I wish I could have shared this with this one person. But you can. Yes, you can. You can go to YouTube and you can share this show, post it on your Facebook, post it anywhere, but also send it to people. Share this with people because you will be helping someone. And may I say, how many people with disabilities are there that are afraid. They're afraid because they've been discriminated against, stigma, made fun of, and they're afraid. Share this show. And oh, before I go, Pastor Kent, I forgot to tell you one thing. I've been telling them, I've been telling them, telling them at Northway, come on, people with disabilities need to be included. Why don't we have captioning? Tell me why we don't have captioning. And I pounded this and poor Pastor Dave and Pastor Scott and Ryan, they heard me talk about this all the time and they never told me that they did anything.

Yeah.

And there I am, I'm sitting in church, I look up at the screen and it is captioned. That's right. I started crying right there. Right on. I love it. Yeah. And so by the way, Northway Christian Community, if you are deaf, or as I always told them, you don't have to be deaf to need captioning. You can be hard of hearing. You can be older. And you don't want to miss the message.

So that's right.

Northway Christian Community, so many locations as Pastor Kent said, go. You will be included. And we have autism ministry. We're all about inclusion at Northway. Well, Pastor Kent, thank you so much for being with us. I love you. We're proud of you. We're rooting for you. And we're going to get that book. Only one thing. I want you to send me a copy signed.

I would love to do that, Joyce Bender.

I want to be able to say I knew him.

That's awesome. That's great.

I knew him. Now that he's traveling and you are traveling. Oh, by the way, if anyone wants to hear a speaking engagement, they can reach him through his Facebook page. Correct?

That's right. I'm on all social media, my website, kenchivalier.com. Anybody can reach out anytime.

Okay. Well, we end every show with a quote and you know, It had to be C.S.

Lewis. Oh, of course. I love it.

You're gonna love his quote. Ready? You can make anything by writing.

Oh, wow. Yeah, that's a good one.

Yeah, you can make anything by writing, just as he made that Chronicles of Narnia. But you can make anything by writing. And when I read that, I said, oh, this is for Kent Chavalaire when Do it afraid. And in the words of Mary Brooker, when you get up tomorrow morning, remember, choose joy. You won't be disappointed. Talk to everyone next week.

Voice America would like to thank you for tuning in. Please join us next Tuesday at 11 AM Pacific time and 2 PM Eastern time for another installment of Disability Matters, right here on the Voice America Variety Channel. We are the leader in live internet talk radio. VoiceAmerica.com.