The 36’30 Line (January 17, 2022) This is the very first episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American history known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). It’s a season oddly similar to the season we now find ourselves in as a nation. We may not be Abe Lincoln, and we may never get the assignment of President of the United States, but that doesn’t mean we can’t find a similitude. Like Lincoln, we need to navigate a tumultuous age with wisdom and dexterity — learning to remain unspotted by the world and yet reach that world for Jesus Christ simultaneously. To do this, Lincoln learned to not draw hard lines but loving lines — a lesson of which each of us ought to take note. The 36’30 line was a hard line drawn by northern politicians that led to the Civil War. Meanwhile, the Cross was a loving line that, still to this day, leads to abundant life. Let’s draw our lines well.

The Feud (January 21, 2022) This is the second episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American history known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). Surprising to most Americans is that the division between the North and the South that led to the Civil War in 1861, was a 250 year feud that started back in 1604 with the rise of King James I to the seat of power in England. And it was a fight between “Christians” of two differing vantage points. This feud fueled the formation of two distinct factions known as the Puritans (North) and the Cavaliers (South). And the only similarity that these two shared over those 250 years was hate for one another. The ironic thing is that “feuding” isn’t in the Christian Dictionary of Godly Behavior. It doesn’t fit the Christ-pattern of love, forgiveness, and mercy. Our world today is attempting to stick us all into a two-party system. Instead, we must choose to be above that . . . and be simply Christians.

Antebellum Woke (January 24, 2022) This is the third episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American History known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). In this particular episode Eric explores the unique parallel between the period right before the Civil War and the period we are all living in right now. Today we have the Woke crowd, but back in 1861, they had the Wide Awakes. And, ironically, both the Woke and the Wide Awakes had the foundational motivation of racial redress. But, the Woke crowd of 2022 would be benefited from a few lessons in approach, courtesy, and consideration from the 1861 Wide Awakes.

Listening to the Cranks (January 28, 2022) This is the fourth episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American history known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). In the pre Civil War era, the North and the South struggled with the inability to hear one another — they suffered from a strange deafness that emerged from endemic stereotyping. And it is a problem that we too are struggling with today in modern America. But, there is a solution. And the solution is something the Holy Spirit is very good at cultivating in the hearts and minds of believers in Jesus Christ. It’s called, “listening to the cranks”.

The Southern Blindspot (January 31, 2022) This is the fifth episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American history known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). This particular message dives into the unique and profound blindspots that the South sported leading up to the Civil War and throughout it. But, in looking at the blindspots in South, it’s important that we allow the Holy Spirit to unveil to each of us our own blindspots. We are headed quickly toward another Civil War in this country, but if we correct the mistakes of our forefathers, we can certainly turn this ship in a different direction.

The Clapham Dynamic (February 4, 2022) This is the sixth episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American history known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). This particular message unpacks the unique group in history known as the Clapham Saints. This profound troop of believers didn’t just change the history of England back in the early 1800s, but they impacted the course of the United States and its aggressive movement toward abolition in the 1860s.

Predefined a Slave (February 7, 2022) This is the seventh episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American history known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). This particular message explores the very unique medical mindset at the time of the Civil War that spurred on a supposed “Christian” nation in their strange and bizarre mistreatment of African Americans. This proves that “science” isn’t always the best lead instrument in cultural development.

The Science of Stupid (February 11, 2022) This is the eighth episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American history known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). This particular message touches on a phenomenon that many of us are witnessing right now in the world (and even in the Church), that we are struggling to understand and explain. It would appear that people’s brains are being turned off and individual thought is being replaced with culturally-correct slogans and catchwords that seem mindless and counter-factual. This is not a new phenomenon. But it is critically important that we as believers know what the Biblical response is to it.

Cancel Culture? (February 14, 2022) This is the ninth episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American history known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). This particular message addresses the complex and challenging issue of a Christian and the World — a point of intense debate and division for thousands of years in the Church. Is a Christian supposed to avoid the World and shun it completely? Is a Christian supposed to become like the World in order to reach it? Or is there a better way for the Christian to engage this thing called “The World”?

The Art of Frontier Survival (February 18, 2022) This is the tenth episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American history known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). This particular message explores the unique cultural demands of the American Frontier. If you wanted to survive and be free on the frontier of America, you needed to stand your ground when the bullies tested your mettle. How similar that is to our spiritual lives. When the Bully, known as the Devil, tests our mettle, what does he find?

A Twist on Trench Warfare (February 21, 2022) This is the eleventh episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American history known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). This particular message dives into the fierce challenge of overcoming a two-party system and effectively expressing love and care to the other side in the battle. After all, battle is . . . um . . . battle, and expressions of love and kindness really don’t seem to fit very well amidst a melee.

The Power of the Backwoods Preacher (February 25, 2022) This is the twelfth episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American history known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). This particular message investigates the unusual and even hypnotic power that creative, entertaining, and extreme forms of communication had upon the culture during this period. Whereas, the powers of darkness undoubtedly utilized this cultural propensity for their gain, it is interesting to note how God used this same unique magnetic pull to accomplish His ends in America.

Balancing Over Niagara Falls (February 28, 2022) This is the thirteenth episode in Eric Ludy’s winter Daily Thunder series that dives into the unstable season of American history known as the Antebellum period (1815-1861). This particular message unpacks the unique challenge a leader faces in having personal convictions, but leading people with opposing viewpoints. The great showman of the late 1850s, Charles Blondin, walked a tightrope across Niagara Falls. And in a sense, every great leader must learn to stay balanced and in the center in order to pull off a similar feat over their own waterfall challenges.