REPLAY | Donor-Conceived, Lesbian-Raised & Born Again | Guest: Ross Johnston

0:00Ross Johnston was conceived via artificial insemination in 1994 was raised in a lesbian secular household. And then at the age of 16, he became a Christian and everything changed. Now he's on a mission to share the gospel with as many people as possible, not just in the country, but specifically in the state of California. Today he's here to tell us his story, how God finally satisfied the longing that he had for a dad and why he cares so much about saving California through the power of the Holy Spirit. Ross, thanks so much for joining us. But first, can you tell us who you are and what you do? Yeah, so my name is Ross Johnston. I'm currently living in SoCal. Everybody's favorite place to be.

1:01And what I do right now is actually co-lead a ministry called California will be saved. And so what we do is you can imagine the most influential cities in California. We take a full sound system. We do live worship, live music, preach the gospel. And then we baptize people right there in the ocean, implode them into local churches. So that's what I'm doing full time at the moment. Okay, we got a backup then. We got a backup to hear how you came to do what you do now. Tell us about the household that you are raised in. Were you raised in this kind of revivalist Christian home? Yeah, it honestly starts from day one because I was born by artificial insemination. And the reason why I was born that way is my mom was and is living in a lesbian lifestyle. And so I grew up in a two mom household. That was quote unquote normal for me. And so my whole life as I was from zero to 16 years old every time we had a friend over or we had a party or birthday party, whatever the case may be, it was typically somebody from that community. And so it's a very interesting backdrop because I definitely was not raised in a revival

2:03or Christian atmosphere. Yeah. Yet God pursued me. He found me. He saved me. And so here I am today. Okay, let's dig into the details of that. We talk about that a lot on this show. Just the formation of the family, but also the reproductive industries, something like sperm donation. What was the first moment that you realized, oh, my family is a little different that I've got two moms and my friends seem to have a dad. Hmm, that's a little odd. Yeah, well, honestly, it wasn't too different to me because it was how I was raised. But then as I got older and started thinking, started asking questions and came to the Lord at 16 years old, I was like, okay, I actually have to figure out like, what is different about my life? Why do I have two moms as opposed to most people who I see have one mom, one father? And so I would say, it really wasn't until you were about 16 that you started really even thinking about that because you said that a lot of people that came to your house weren't they were homosexual themselves. Yes. So it was just kind of normal for you.

3:04Yeah, it was kind of normal. Like there wasn't really any questions to be asked because I didn't even know what questions to ask, right? But then when you give your life to Jesus and you start learning about him and the Holy Spirit enters into your heart and you're like, wow, this is not the language I like to say. This is not the design of God. This is not how God created the family to operate. And so when I started having that revelation, I was like, wow, there is something different about my upbringing than many other people. And so that's what led me to start asking questions like, well, mom, like tell me more about our family, you know, tell me more about, do you know my dad, you know, and as those questions start to kind of come to the surface, you start figuring out really quickly, okay, this is a much different story than maybe I even knew was possible or existed. So you don't remember when you're five or six years old ever having those questions or ever aching for a dad or was it just like, this is just what my life is and you never even questioned it into your teenager. So that's a really great question because though it was normal for me or what was normal

4:07to me inside of me was a different story, right? Because on the outside, it's like, okay, this is where I'm growing up. I have my two moms. This is the household. But inside, I'm like, I didn't know what the language was or what the expression was, but I was longing like you said for a father. I was longing for somebody who would provide, who would protect. And my mom did many of those things. But once again, when the woman's role is trying to step into the man's role, there's going to be differences there. There's going to be what I would say, almost really challenging areas that my mom couldn't fulfill, even though she tried her best. And so deep down in my heart, as I got older, especially when I came to the Lord, I was like, wow, that's why I felt lonely. That's why I felt anxious. That's why I felt hopeless because I never had a true father who actually was able to father me as I was being raised up. And tell us then, well, first before I actually ask about your conversion or your coming to the Lord, what kind of religious environment were you raised in with two moms? So I actually had never been to church my entire life.

5:09Never heard a worship song. I never heard a sermon. I mean, I had to say like this, I had zero grid for Jesus. I had zero grid for the Bible. I never opened up a Bible. So when I first went to church, like, everything was completely brand new to me. So it was a zero. Okay. So no, no religious background at all. Do you remember your moms having any like animosity towards religion or Christianity or no? You know, it's honestly a really interesting story because when I was, so from time I was zero to 16 years old, my mom was with a certain partner. Yeah. And in that timeframe, that partner of hers would actually, she would say the name of Jesus or, you know, mention church or things like that, but there was no, what I would say, personal engagement of our hearts towards the Lord, right? And then at 16, they actually split. And so it's almost like I had this like little voice, tiny, small voice of somebody who wasn't necessarily walking with the Lord, but still using his name. And so then when I came to the Lord, it like shifted my whole perspective because I said,

6:11whoa, this Jesus that I at least heard the name of now, I actually know who he is. And that's what really shifted everything in my life. So I noticed that you say, mom, you don't say moms, the two women that you were raised by zero to 16, do you consider the woman who laughed at 16 your, your mom too? Yeah, great. Yeah. So I've never called her mom really. And you know, even before I was a Christian, and the reason why I use this specific language is because it's so important for people to understand. We're not just talking about like one person's life, especially when we see our culture now and how there's, this is running through our entire nation. Yeah. And I like to say, hey, if you don't walk in the design of God, you can't walk in the blessing of God. You can't walk in the blessing of God. And I think I'm going to do with the moms. Well, we're only created to have one mom when we're here on the earth, right? And so I never called her mom, even before I knew the Lord, because that's not the design of God. So it's not going to naturally come out. Now maybe I can force it, maybe I can try to make it into something it's not. But for me, my whole experience, I've always called my biological mom mom.

7:15And she never pushed you to call her partner, mom too. Yeah, I never recall my mom ever trying to, you know, and I've actually had that somebody asking that question recently. And I was like, man, I can't remember a time when my mom was like, hey, you must call her mom. But I do know that my mom, she was really gracious to me growing up. And she really cared for me well. And so I think she was like, hey, I'm not going to force my son to do something if he doesn't want to do it. And I'm honestly really grateful that my mom, at least had the ability to like say, hey, I want to give you grace. I'm going to make you're going to, you're allowed to kind of choose what you want to do in this situation, even though she was living in a specific lifestyle. Yeah. It's interesting kind of what you said about God writing his design on all of our hearts naturally that even your mom, even though she was living outside of God's design, it's like she knew that the natural and right thing was for a child to have one mom. Yes. And I think I want, I don't know if it's rare, but I do think as you said, it's good

8:16that she didn't force that on you. She didn't force at least that confusion on you to say no, you have two moms, even though that's a biological impossibility. Yeah. Yeah. I wonder if that kind of allowed you or set you up for greater clarity later on because she didn't force that confusion on you early. That's really interesting. Yeah. Well, one thing that I've really found, you know, especially if we look in the last 10 or 20 years of our culture, it seems like this LGBTQ agenda, it's really coming to the surface. Like it's always been there, right? There's always people that have lived that lifestyle, but it seems to be more prevalent. Whereas with my mom, she never actually forced it upon me, which is really like she never forced me in the sense of like, Hey, you must believe this. You must follow this. Now obviously when I became a Christian, there's some conversations we had to have. And I was so new in the faith that I really didn't know what to say. I just, I was like, Hey, I love Jesus. You know, his word says that this is not the lifestyle of a believer. And so we had to have some real conversations. But the amazing thing is is even till this day, my mom and I, we engage in conversation.

9:18And I'm really honest with her. I say, Mom, you know, I love you. I'm so grateful for everything you did for me, but I'm believing that you would personally engage with Jesus in your heart, right? And so that's where our relationship is today. And when her partner left, when you were 16, so I'm, this is around the time that you became a Christian. Same week. Same week. So was that destabilizing for you, even though you didn't consider her a mom, I, I imagine that that was a hurtful shift in your life when they were no longer together. Yeah. It was a really challenging week because in that, in that week, when they were splitting up, obviously before any relationship splits up, there's going to be tension and there's going to be just strife in the house. And as a kid, you can discern that whether you know it or not, then add on top of that, it's my first time ever going to church. I walk into the church building. And for the first time in my life, I'm actually sensing the presence of God. And so I go home, I have this tension kind of happening at the house, which seems for a 15, 16 year old, it's really challenging, right? And I also have a younger brother.

10:19And then I go to church. It's like the world is completely different. I'm full of hope. I'm full of peace. There's grace. I'm filling the presence of God. And so it's like these two worlds, these two tensions kind of colliding in that week. So it was a really challenging moment because as much as I love my mom, there's tension happening in the household, right? So yeah, it was really challenging. So tell me how you were invited to church. How did you become a Christian? It's actually a funny story. A friend of mine from my high school says, Hey, do you want to come to church with me? My grandma, I say, sure, why not? I show up typical story. I'm sitting in the back row of the church. I wasn't mad. I was actually genuinely curious, but I was sitting back there and the worship was playing. Like I said, this is the first time I had ever heard live worship music. So as soon as I heard live worship music and I, and like I said at the time, I didn't know what this was, but it was the presence of God. I was an easy one. I said presence of God. I feel great. I'm full of hope. I'm full of joy. Jesus, here's my life, you know, and I even remember going home that night. And the first time you went to church, yeah, that was kind of, that was like my original

11:19reaction. And as my friend actually asked me, she said, how did you like the service? I said, I'm not really sure what I think, but I know what I feel. Yeah. And I feel full of hope. I, I feel excited. I feel something's going on, right? So I go home that night and, you know, anytime you go to the Sunday service for the most part, the pastor gives what we would call an alter call. And the pastor says, Hey, you know, do you want to give your life to Jesus? So I go home that night. I'm thinking, if I'm going to give my life to something, this needs to be like the real deal. You know, I don't want to just be a good person who reads a good book and goes to a good church like God. If you really are real like this pastor said, Jesus, if you are the Messiah, I want to know you. I want to know you. And sure enough, day after day in my room, I would just sense the presence of God over and over. And I said, here's my life. So do you remember in those first church services, hearing the gospel? Like do you have like tangible memories of that? I have tangible memories of different pieces. Like I can't remember like, you know, some people they have these crazy encounters

12:20of what they would say. They have these moments that are like, whoa, like I really, I heard my name or this or something. For me, it wasn't like that. It was more so like my whole life, I belonged for this piece in my heart. Yeah. And for the first time, I actually felt that I had language for that through the gospel. And so the gospel was the language for what my heart was longing for my entire life. And so when I heard it, when I sensed it, when I felt it, I was like, this is it right here. This is Jesus. He's not just some man. He's not just a book. He's not just a building. No, he's actually a relationship. And so that shifted everything for me. So it was an affirmation of what you already knew that you needed, but you couldn't yet put it into words. Yeah. So the message that you were a sinner bound for hell, that I think sometimes is an impediment for people. Yeah. Don't think that they need a savior or who think that they're generally a good person. For someone like you who didn't have that kind of theological background,

13:21I imagine that you weren't taught, hey, you're a sinner in need of a savior growing up. What was that aspect of the gospel like? Or was that also just affirmation where you kind of like, yeah, I already know I messed up. Well, like I said, growing up, I always felt this sense of like nobody actually knew me, right? Or nobody actually cared. Even though my mom was care, she cared for me and she took care of me in my soul and my heart. It felt like nobody actually cared for Ross. It was what I would like to call like an orphan spirit, right? Where I always saw me against the world. Or I remember specifically when I would go to friends houses, we had enough food on the table. We had a house, we had everything we needed, but I'd always try to eat as much as I could, right? Or I'd always try to make sure that I took care of Ross first, get as much as I could for Ross, right? And so when I heard the gospel, it confronted that orphan spirit. And no, you're not alone. You do have a father. And only do you have a father. He cares about you. He wants to provide for you and he wants to protect you. So it was almost like the gospel though sin is obviously a critical component of the gospel and understanding

14:23that we are separated from God. It was like, I was so overjoyed to know that there's actually a God and I have a father that for me, I was like, yeah, I'm a sinner like whatever you need to do. Lord, here I am. I repent. Like I was just all in because for the first time in my life, I actually had that heart connection. Yeah. Isn't it interesting that you lacked a sense of belonging, even though you did have a home, you were not an orphan. You had a mother who loved you. And yet you still kind of felt like you were just waiting through the world, right? Without any direction and without someone who was really intently watching over you. Yeah. I even remember this is going to sound funny, but it'll make sense. The first person, like the first girlfriend I ever had in high school, when we broke up, I like had to force myself to cry. So I'd listen to specific songs, right? And I know most of you have had that story, but there was like second hand serenade or something. Like I don't know where the same age, but that's what we would have listened to. Even songs like that. Yeah. But I remember the reason why that story comes to mind is because I was trying so hard to feel something.

15:24I was trying so hard to connect with like an emotion. Right. Like somebody cared for me. The somebody seemed my heart. It wasn't even the girl, you know? It was the fact that I was longing for a deep heart connection. And so it's a funny story, but it proves the fact of like, Hey, when we don't walk once again in that design of God, when we don't know our Father and we don't have a natural Father in our life who's there for us, our hearts ache. Yeah. We long, we hurt. And until we find the language of Jesus of the gospel, man, we're just going to kind of be on this like, we're going to live this life with such a tainted view. And we're just going to make decisions that just lead us deeper and deeper into that whole. Yeah. You know? So for every Christian who is converted from unbelief to believe, there is a sanctification process. So we don't understand everything that God has for us or everything that God reveals in his word right away. We have a longing now. We have a hatred for sin. We become new. But there's a lot of things that we still have to work out.

16:25I imagine just knowing your background that one of the most difficult things was God's design for marriage. Now you had that inherent sense of, okay, something's off. I need a Father, a sense of belonging. But for these people, this mother that you've loved to hear, this is not God's design, what was that like for you working that out? Yeah. Well, when I first got saved, I really didn't even have that language. Of course. Everything was so new to me. Of course. So I didn't even remember what I told my mom to be honest. I don't remember fully. But as I've got an older, you know, she sees my content. I'm very upfront in my content. And I honor my mom, right? I'm like, mom, I love you. I'm so grateful and thankful for everything you've done for me. However, when you only have a mom, you can't do everything that God designed because you have one role and the Father has another role. And I've had this conversation multiple times. And so for me, where I'm at right now is I'm like, Lord, you, in our culture, we have these prevailing narratives, right? And the thing that I really struggled with the most was actually not the marriage component.

17:28It was a component of sexual confusion and even addiction. Because when you're around that spirit, there's different expressions. Right? We see the gender confusion. We see pornography. We see all these different expressions. But it's the same spirit behind it all. And so for me, that was actually my biggest struggle. Was I was like, okay, I'm not struggling personally with being attracted to men. But I am struggling in this area with lust. And so for me, that was the challenge that I really had to overcome when I became a believer. Now that you are able to look back in retrospect, you're able to kind of put words to the longing and the orphan spirit that you said that you had. Do you now see some examples of the consequences of not having a Father growing up before you were even able to put words into it? Like the lack of even just like a masculine presence. Like what are some of those things that you see now looking back? Yeah, I mean, it's going to sound funny, but it's just the reality.

18:29I didn't know how to pursue a woman. Like I in high school, I had no clue how to approach a woman. Like I thought I was interested in. Like I had no clue because I never had a Father to say, hey, this is how you respect women. Hey, if you're feeling this, there's one way to do it. You know, I had zero of that. So for so long in my life, I listened to culture. Whatever music said, whatever the movie said, oh, that's what I have to do to be a man. Oh, that is what it actually means to pursue a woman. Oh, that's what it actually means to be successful, right? And then once again, when you come to the Lord and the Holy Spirit comes in you, you're confronted because everything you thought was truth is no longer truth. It's actually a lie and a facade. And so that was one of the biggest things I remember. Like I had a light bulb moment like, whoa, everything that I put my hope, my trust, my faith in, is actually not the truth. It's a lie. And so that's been one of those things where I was like, wow, this is truly what God has called me into. It's a stand and confront these issues of our day and say, hey,

19:30you might be feeling a certain way. You might have a certain experience, but here's the truth that God has for you. And not only is it the truth, but it's better. Yeah. What's your response to the prevailing message of the day? There'll even be some YouTube comments saying, you know what, you shouldn't try to change your mom, or it's totally, it's totally acceptable to be a so-called gay Christian. God doesn't have a particular design. You understand where that person is coming from and why it's very personal for a lot of people. But how do you approach that? Yeah, I mean, on a practical level, if we look at thousands of years of the church, we know deep down, right? We know deep down like, God, this is what your word says. And this is what's been practiced for thousands of years by the church. So anytime there's a Christian or somebody who would profess being a believer who is okay with gay marriage or living in a lesbian lifestyle, it's like, I want to actually have a real conversation with you because that expression is probably not the root issue.

20:31There's something deep down in your heart. There's an experience, there's a moment, something that somebody has said, whatever the case may be. So my heart is like, do you actually want to have a real conversation with me? Or do you just want to toss names and words back and forth? I'm not interested in getting an emotional debate with you. I'm interested in like, who are you? What's your heart? Were you at with Jesus? Because when you have the real conversations and the real questions, you can't lie. Or you just walk away. And so any person that's in one of those boats, I'm like, let's have a real conversation. Let's see, what were you coming from? Let me share my experience. Let's talk about the word of God. Let's see what Holy Spirit wants to reveal to us. And let's have a real conversation. That's where I love to tell people. Yeah, that's really good. Because it does come back to like a very fundamental understanding of who God is and what His word is. When we have the conversations about like, you know, proper sexuality, holy sexuality, and gender, things like that that have turned into these political topics, which are really

21:31fundamentally biblical, I do. I agree. I think it's important to go back to what does that person believe about God? Yes. Because before we can talk about homosexuality, before we can talk about Romans 1, 1 Corinthians 6, all Genesis 1, all these passages, do you believe that God is good? Do you believe that He's trustworthy? Do you believe that He's authoritative? Do you believe that He made all of this? And therefore like, can define things, how He wants to define them? Do you believe that He knows what is best for you? And then do you believe that He has revealed those things through His word? Because that's really what we are debating. Rather than debating these other issues, we're really debating, who do you think is in charge? Is it you or God? That makes all the difference, right? Yeah, well because Paul said, if you don't have the Holy Spirit, you can't understand spiritual truths, right? So that doesn't mean we don't quote the word of God, of course not. But what it means is we need to actually talk about life experiences. We need to talk about what do you believe about creation? We need to actually talk about these things because it's so easy to just

22:34to throw your opinion or whatever you may believe in one box and you never actually have to engage on the heart level. Right? So many people are engaging up here. I want to engage right here. I want to engage on the heart level. I want to engage where, what do you believe? What was your experience with the child growing up? How were your parents? Why do you believe this? Right? Because when we actually talk about your actual life, it goes from me just saying, this is my opinion to, uh-oh, I have to actually confront what's in my actual heart and what I believe about God. Yeah. And once you've established with someone, if someone says, yes, I believe God is good, loving, authoritative, and not his word is an error, then you can go from there. And then you can say, great. Like here's what the word says. And God is so gracious. I think to give us the privilege of clarity, that the world doesn't have. The world is waiting in chaos and confusion. And God is not a God of confusion or chaos. He's a God of peace. He's a God of truth. He's a God of clarity. And he's made these very contentious and hot button topics. So clear for the Christian. Absolutely.

23:34That it's actually a privilege that we get to look at Genesis 1, 27, that we are made male and female and say, awesome. Yeah. Like I don't, I don't have to wait into all of these very confusing thought exercises about gender bending and things like that because God has given us the gift of clarity in his word. I think sometimes people see God's word as like a burden that they have to carry, that they have to apologize for or take God off the hook for the culture. Really, it's such a privilege that we get that clarity. Yeah. And I even want to call the church higher too, right? Like there's two sides to this coin. It's like, yeah, we're the church of Jesus Christ. We are supposed to be the most loving, but at the same time share the truth. And so many times we want to settle for one or the other. Like all truth, all truth, all truth. And then we actually never love the person. If you don't feel loved by somebody, you're probably not going to have a conversation with them. Right? But at the same time, we have the other camp. It's all about love. It's all about what you feel. It's like, yeah, God is love, right? But at the same time, we have to share truth.

24:34And so that's what I want to see take place. It's like, hey, we can have our beliefs and our thoughts, but are we willing to actually come together, have conversation, love one another, but actually share the truth with one another? Because that is an absolute game changer. Absolute game changer. Yeah, first John 4, 8, God is love. But I like to say, but you cannot out love God. And so I think a lot of people by apologizing for God's word or pretending that God didn't have anything to say about sexuality or about gender, they actually think that they are more loving or more compassionate or more empathetic thing God is. Because if God is love and he said what he said in Romans 1, he said what he said in 1 Corinthians 6, he said what he said in Genesis 1. Therefore, all of those things are loving. He can't say something that is not loving or do something that is not loving because he is love. We're not told that we are love, but he is love. Therefore, the most loving thing we can always do is agree with him. And that's hard for all of us.

25:35That's difficult for all of us, in relationships in different ways or even just confronting this in in our own heart. It can be difficult, but it's also a comfort to know, if God says something that it is the most loving thing that I can say to him. Well, if we're Christians and we say we believe what we believe and there's a really eternity, if I actually say I love you, but I don't even give you an opportunity to enter into eternity with God, do I actually love you? Like if I say, oh, you know what? I want the best for you. I care about your life, but then I'm scared to go into these hard topics because I'm afraid of a relational dynamic or whatever the case may be. It's like, no, no, no. I have to do what Paul said. I have to accept my sight on heavenly realities. I can't be so focused on what's in front of me. Paul said what we see now won't last forever, or we don't see will last forever. So if I truly love you and I truly care about you, I have to share the truth with you. Not because I want to hit you on the head and make you feel horrible. No, no, no. I want to give you an opportunity to say, listen, here is the real Jesus,

26:37the real Jesus, not only will he do X, Y, and Z for you because he's good, but he wants you to know him. You know, God's greatest desire is not what we can do for him. It's being with him. And so many people, they come from this perspective. Well, if I come to God, I got to do this. Like, well, yes, if you love somebody, you do something for them, but it's greatest desire is in what you do. He wants to know you. He wants your heart to be filled with his love. He wants you to walk in peace, walk in joy, walk in hope. But if nobody, aka the church, if we don't give people an opportunity and explain that to them, how will they ever know? Yeah. Roman's 10, unless somebody goes, how are they going to know? Unless somebody speaks, how are they going to hear? So that's our privilege, like you said, and our opportunity as a church. And obviously you feel a love in multiple different ways for your mom that you don't feel for every person. You love her as a Christian. You love her as someone who wants her to be saved, just as you love everyone that you encounter. But also, this is your mother. Absolutely. This is a special connection there. And so tell us a little bit more.

27:37You've referenced it a couple times about the conversations that you've had with her. But tell us what that's like. It sounds like you still have a good relationship, even though you believe the things that you do, not just about God, but about her state and about who she believes that she is on a fundamental level. What has that been like? Yeah. So it's really funny because just over a year ago, before I got into full-time ministry, I was working for a social media marketing agency, making really good money, right? And the Lord said, hey, if you want to pioneer a movement, you're going to have to resign. So I resigned. So when you go from pretty good money to zero, it's a big situation. And the reason why I'm sharing this is because my mom was one of the first people to say, you know what, I'll be one of your monthly financial donors. And she knows what I do. Travel America full-time, share the gospel, we equip the church. Like she knows what I do. It's not like I'm just like, yeah, mom, I'm just kind of like speaking here and there. Like she knows, right? Number two, she'll call me from time to time and she'll say, and I watch one of your videos on social media, whatever it is. It's like, I sent something. I feel something. You need to keep doing that.

28:39Right? So she knows that the Lord is working on her heart. And she knows that's why she won't come to one of my gatherings because she knows she'll get saved. Yeah. But our relationship is like scared of what the Holy Spirit is. Already starting to stir in her. Yeah. So our relationship is actually really good, which I know unfortunately is not the case for many people. Maybe they're in my situation or my bow. But I think that's what happens when you're genuine with somebody. Even if they disagree with you, if you're genuine, you share the truth in love. How can I mean, sure, there will always be the, what I like to call the crazy people who just say, I'm not going to accept that. I'm out. Don't talk to me again. That's a small percentage. Most people don't have a conversation with you. So my mom and I, I've kept it real with her. I love her. She sees my life. But not only does she see my life, she sees the fruit of my life. Right? Because if I'm going to call somebody into the reality of who Jesus is, but I'm not bearing fruit in my life, it's going to be a little challenging. It's a little iffy. And so I think all those components together have really allowed my mom and I's relationship to be on a healthy level while we shit,

29:40while I share truth with her. Yeah. Right. And you said that you had a brother. I know you can't speak for your brother. But is he kind of in the same position that you are? Like, has he realized a lot of the same things that you have? So I'm actually the only Christian in my family. It's a really unique story because my mom, my mom never knew her father, my grandma, right? My grandma never knew her father, right? And so all the only family that I have is literally my mom, my brother. My mom has a few siblings, but I've only seen him once or twice. Now I share all this because I think really what we're getting into is the even bigger picture, which is like I said earlier, we have a fatherlessness crisis. Yeah. We have a lack of fathers. And there's three ways to look at this, right? Number one, you actually didn't have a natural father. Number two, you did have a father, but he didn't know the Lord or didn't represent the Lord well. Or three, you have a misrepresentation of the father. So if you have any of those happening in your life, it's really easy to end up in a situation like I did. Praise God that I met the Lord and now how the Holy Spirit.

30:42But all those things I believe are the bigger issue. And we're seeing it confronted on a cultural level. Do you still long to know who your biological father is? Hmm. I've actually no. It's surprising. I know, most people go, don't you want to meet him and see him? And I don't. And I think one of the reasons why is this is going to sound like a really cheesy line, but I'm learning that the cheesy lines are usually the most true lines, right? When I met the father, he became my father. And he fathered me from 16 years old till now. He's now taught me how to be a man. He's taught me how to pursue a woman. He's taught me what it means one day to lead a family, right? So as soon as you meet the father, all the sudden, you actually get to learn from the true is source. You get to meet, you get to learn from God himself. Yeah. And so in regards to the question, I've never really had this longing. Like, if it was to happen or if he's somehow watching this, of course, I'd meet him. I'd say, hey, like, who are you? Because I don't know. I don't know anything about him. I just know his height.

31:43And I think like eye color, right? Yeah. That's all I know. So I'd be curious. But there's nothing in me that's like, man, I absolutely. This is like a life mission in my life. I must do this. Yeah. I don't really have a desire in that regard. Did you have mentors when you became a Christian and afterward in the church of older men who kind of took you under their wing and helped support you? I remember when I first got saved. Because keep, like I said, it was such a different world for me. Like, it was going from, you know, literally darkness into light. And so there was a guy by the name of Chris. And he became such a spiritual father to me in that season of my life. I remember him sometimes taking me home to church, you know, grabbing food for me. Let me let me spend the night at his house once or twice a week or whatever the case may be. And even now in my life, I actually have two or three men who are much older than me who I always go to for life things and spiritual matters. Because it's so important to have people in your life who you allow to speak in. But especially when you come from a background like me where you don't, you never had a natural father. There still is that craving and that desire to say,

32:46man, I wish I could just sometimes, you know, lay on my father's chest, right? Or I wish sometimes I can just, he can just hug me. Or I wish sometimes he could just listen to me, right? Now I have that in the father, right? In God, but we're natural beings. We want someone in right here next to us to be able to comfort us in different moments of our life. So there is a desire for that, but it's not, it's not the desire for like the guy who actually, you know, donated his sperm and my mom was disseminated by, right? Yeah. And you will, you know, by the grace of God, and according to the will of God, be a father one day. If that's what's in store for you, you're not, you're not married. No, right now. So as you think about the future of fatherhood and knowing that you didn't have a natural example for that, like what are your thoughts surrounding that? Is that intimidating for you? Does it scare you a little bit? Are you just super excited to be able to, I mean, you would be breaking a generational experience that your predecessors had by providing a father for your child.

33:49So what are your thoughts? There's moments where I think about it. I'm like, I don't know what to do, you know? And then I, I talked to other men, they're like, I don't know what to do, right? Yeah. So there's parts to me that kind of go like, wow, like how, how am I going to handle that? Like will I be a good father? But then there's the reality and the truth of, well, I have the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit is going to teach me how to lead, how to guide. I have the word of God. I can see practically what to do, things how to lead my wife, how to love my children. So there's been moments where I was like, man, this is kind of scary and this is going to be really challenging. But I think where I'm at right now is it's actually something I'm looking forward to. I'm like, man, it's an honor and a blessing to be called a father. It's an honor and a blessing to build and to lead a legacy. And more importantly, to be a man of God and a culture that is just so anti-men. And you know, that's the whole other conversation. But yeah, I'm really looking forward to it. And I'm really excited to have children one day and to lead a family and to have a wife. Okay, tell us a little bit more before we end

34:49about what you do. California will be saved. I think you mentioned it at the beginning, but tell us a little bit more about it. Yeah, well, when we look at California, it's really easy to say, it's so dark and it's so crazy. Like, is God there in that state, right? But when we look at history, we see so much revival history and so many things, so many moves of God that have happened in the state. So I like to say like this, California has a DNA of revival. It has a DNA of God doing spectacular things there. And so we know though that what happens in California gets exported to the whole world. Whether that's exactly what that's the kingdom of darkness with the kingdom of life, it's going to get exported. So what we decided to do is in 2020, there's this guy by the name of Gavin Newsom, who is the governor of California. And he tried shutting the church down, which will never happen. But in that moment, I remember looking on the TV screen, and if we go back to 2020 for a second, because we like to easily forget, it was crazy, but especially in California.

35:50And so in that moment, I remember I met a friend of mine by the name of Joel and we're just having, we're just becoming friends. He leads worship he sings and we're like, we got to do something in California. Something has to be done. We can't, we know the answer is not just to sit in our house, watch a TV screen like we have to do something. We show up at Huntington Beach in August of 2021. Huntington Beach is an iconic beach in SoCal, thousands of people there. We bring a full sound system. We do live worship. We preach the gospel. And I'm not kidding you, salvation broke out. I mean, people are walking on the boardwalk, coming up to us saying, I heard what's happening here. What do I do to get saved? Like, book of acts, type of encounters, right? We have people get delivered of drug addictions. We baptize people in the ocean. And so after that night happened, we weren't trying to create a movement or a ministry, but we kind of looked at each other and we said, I think God is doing something. And so we decided to name it California, we'll be saved because we believe that whatever happens in California is gonna happen all throughout the nation and the nations of the earth. And so if the narrative is flipped in California,

36:52what does that look like for the rest of the nation? I mean, that's true. California exports its values, its policies to the rest of the country, America, then turns around and does the same thing to the rest of the world. So I think that is really interesting to look at it from that perspective. And we talk a lot about how dangerous and difficult it can be to raise your children in a place that you know is diametrically opposed to your values. And there is discernment that parents need to have there. Their parents who say, you know what, I, we cannot live in a place like this. But at the same time, we don't want all Christians to flee the darkness in the same way that they talk about, okay, it's still important for Christian teachers if they can, if they're convicted to do so to stay in government schools, even if you take your children out. And so there's a time in a place and people that God calls to particular places. And we are to be light and darkness, not just like a little diffuse night light,

37:53but one that shines really, really brightly. So I'm thankful, I'm thankful that you're doing that. And where can people learn more about it? Yeah, our social media, if you just type in California will be saved or you type in my name, Ross Johnston, on Facebook, Instagram, wherever you're at, you'll definitely be able to find us and see us. But one thing I want to share really quick, yeah. In the last three years, I've only had maybe one or two people out of, I can't even give you a number of those who have preached the gospel to, only one or two have actually said no. So I want to encourage us as the body. And people who maybe are looking at California, like it's crazy there. It's like, if we would just actually share the gospel in love and truth, you'll be surprised at what happens. Yeah, yeah. And you know what, I'm sure that, I don't know, we haven't even worked it all out. I'm sure that there are theological differences. Maybe that you and I have, you're, I would probably describe you as more charismatic than what my church would be, but we share in the ultimate goal of seeing people change by Jesus. Christ. And knowing that nothing is too dark, nothing is too far off,

38:53nothing is too depraved or too desperate that God cannot save it and redeem it and turn it into something beautiful. Absolutely. And so in that, we're, we're co-laboration. Yes. And I appreciate that so much. Thank you. So people can, people can find out online about California will be saved. There's been some articles written about it. Can they follow you? Do you have social media? Yes, definitely. Yeah. You can just type in my name, Ross Johnston, ROSS, J-O-H-N-S-T-O. You have to put two ends because somebody took my original name. Really? So I know. That's so rude. How can that happen? I would never think that anyone else would be named. I never thought that either. So yeah, have you just gone social media, Instagram's the main place you can find me, but I'd love to connect, love to hear your story, you have questions, whatever the case may be. We're all in this, like you said, for Jesus. And when the church comes together, like we just talked about, man, there's such a beautiful blessing that God has. Yeah, thank you so much. Thank you, Ali.