Episode 1: In the beginning...

What would make an 18-year-old walk away from eleven Division I baseball scholarship offers? What happens when an NFL prospect loses everything to injury and addiction? The debut episode of Unashamed brings together two unlikely spiritual brothers from different generations, united by radical surrender.

Markus shares his journey from football stardom to rock bottom. With Division I scholarships and NFL combine success, his future seemed set until a devastating shoulder injury ended his career. The subsequent spiral into prescription drug addiction, failed marriage, and jail time created the perfect storm for a divine encounter. Through raw vulnerability, Markus reveals how daily declarations of scripture—particularly Ephesians 1:6—transformed his identity from an athlete to a son of God. His powerful testimony demonstrates that "tension, by very definition, produces growth."

Meanwhile, Nehemiah's story flips the script entirely. Blessed with baseball talent that attracted college recruiters nationwide, he faced his own burning bush moment at 18. Despite confusion from his principal, counselors, friends, and even his pastor father, Nehemiah walked away from sports glory to pursue ministry. "What is it to gain the world and lose your soul?" became his guiding question. His decision cost him relationships, followers, and understanding—yet brought unexpected peace.

Their paths crossed when Markus walked into Dick's Sporting Goods with an expired coupon and met Nehemiah behind the counter. What seemed like chance was actually divine appointment—Markus had been praying for zealous young people to mentor, while Nehemiah had been seeking spiritual fathers who understood his unconventional calling.

Whether you're facing painful losses or questioning prosperity, this conversation challenges conventional success narratives with a powerful alternative: complete surrender to divine purpose. As they put it, "When you can grab a mop before you grab a mic, God will provide the platform."

Subscribe now to join this intergenerational journey of being boldly, unapologetically unashamed of living for something greater than ourselves.

Chapters

• 0:00 Episode Introduction
• 1:29 Markus's Journey: Sports to Prison Cell
• 7:05 Mental Health Struggles and Renewal
• 10:42 Nehemiah's Story: Prosperity to Purpose
• 21:44 Bible Studies and Finding Mentorship
• 34:47 Living Unashamed: The Podcast Mission
• 42:56 Closing Thoughts and Call to Action

Transcript

Markus: 0:00

Welcome to Unashamed with your hosts, markus and Nehemiah, we're finally doing it.

Nehemiah: 0:05

Bro, we're doing it.

Markus: 0:06

It's happening.

Nehemiah: 0:06

We talked about it, but we're actually doing it Come on.

Markus: 0:08

We're about that life.

Nehemiah: 0:09

We on it. Come on, let's go. Excited episode one man, episode one.

Markus: 0:13

One of the best ways, I think, really starting off any episode man is for us, for the viewers, the listeners bit about us, hear our journeys, our stories like, hear how we met, how we're multiple, different, we're from two different generations.

Nehemiah: 0:28

But we're able to connect and and do life and ministry together. Marcus, tell me, bro, walk me through your story what brought you to jesus yeah, man, um, pain and brokenness.

Markus: 0:37

Honestly, grew up in california. Situation of brokenness had no idea who I was. You know, I grew up in an environment where sports were everything and so I played football at a high level in high school. You know a lot of division one scholarships, but I was a knucklehead when it came to class. I did not like class. I was allergic to class. Bro Did not like school. So I don't graduate from high school, play junior college football. Ended up getting a scholarship to come out to Ohio all the way from California, and to Ohio all the way from California and as I'm out here in Ohio, have this encounter with God. Didn't really understand what it was, but I just knew that he had plans for my life. But my foundation was rooted in a game that could be taken away, which was football. So go to the NFL Combine. Everything's going great there. You know, dallas Cowboys moved to fullback. Listen, my dreams were coming true bro, I was locked in.

Markus: 1:29

I was ready boys, super, super, but, uh, you know, didn't get drafted that year but performed really well at the combine, played in the afl for four years, met my wife in college. Everything is just kind of going according to plan. Unfortunately, in 2014, while working out for an nfl team, blew my shoulder out in the workout into my football career. I was an injured reserve for a couple years just trying to get back to playing the game at a high level. But my this is the first time I start struggling with drug addiction now. Prior to that, never done drugs just wasn't the thing for me. But I could take the pain meds that's prescribed by the doctor, but then it's kept taking them more and more. This whole time.

Markus: 2:02

I have this idea of who God is and I had experienced his power. I'd and I had experienced his power. I had experienced healing. I had experienced some incredible things and what's crazy is I was so zealous for the Lord. I helped plant houses of prayers and fellowship with Christian athletes, things that I had never done before.

Markus: 2:17

And you know you would think on the outside looking in, I was this sold out. You know, for Jesus kind of follower, but sold out, you know, for Jesus kind of follower, but I wasn't. On the inside, I was hollow and broken. My foundation was rooted in God and I really encountered Jesus man at the lowest of lows. So when I got hurt, I was working out for a team and, you know, as I became a drug addict, I moved back to Ohio and still struggled with addiction. My wife ends up leaving me. Long story short, I find myself sitting inside of a jail cell for the first time in my life and, uh, I called on jesus man man, you know, I sought the lord and he hurts any answer like for real I really, but marcus can actually sing I mean, hey, I can hold a tune in the bucket.

Markus: 2:54

Yeah, come on, can you?

Nehemiah: 2:55

tell me, like, what were you thinking when you had? You had did that to your shoulder, you thought you had that opportunity and it was taken away from you in a moment like when you went back to your hotel room or the hospital. I'd assume that night yeah um what was going through your mind denial.

Markus: 3:09

You know, like anybody that is told news that they don't want to hear um.

Markus: 3:13

I couldn't believe what the doctor said because all my life up to that point I was 26 years old at the time there were so many people that told me I wouldn't be able to do something. They told me I I would never go to college. They told me that I would never play professional sports. They told me that I would never overcome being a high school dropout. And I continued to defy statistics. So the doctor's telling me hey, son, you'll probably never play again. That didn't mean anything to me For sure.

Markus: 3:49

But once I woke up from that surgery and I felt like I just wasn't living up to the potential that I had, and one of the things my coach would always tell me is marcus, potential is like a slap in the face if you don't do something with it and I just felt like I was worthless bro were you frustrated with god? I don't think I really knew how to be frustrated with God in that moment, because I didn't fully understand his character and nature. I really kind of approached God as a genie.

Markus: 4:09

I'm like, okay, god, like you're gonna do things for me because you quote-unquote love me yeah and I had these prophetic words about me and my football, you know all these different things that I was going to do athletically and so I had to wrestle with God because I I didn't see the fulfillment of those quote-unquote prophecies, and so I don't really understand his character and nature, so I really don't know how to process accordingly with him, and so the only thing I continued to do was just turn my pain inward and start taking it out on myself Now, bro, that mountaintop moment of being at the NFL Combine and then going to the valley, of doing that to your shoulder doctor, telling you your career is done.

Nehemiah: 4:43

I mean, what did that feel like at the mountaintop because I know you talk about the valley a lot, but like when you, when you're at the nfl combine, you feel like you had made it. Yeah, um, just walking through like how how your friends were treating you people are probably coming out being friends that you probably never known before.

Markus: 4:56

Talk to me about that when you're on the mountaintop, you got more friends than you. Everybody's there man everybody all when the coaches are calling, everybody's calling.

Nehemiah: 5:03

Man.

Markus: 5:04

I mean it was, and I was feeling myself too because I was believing the hype man. I thought that I was like God's gift to football and I didn't know that. I just didn't understand that people would leave once football left, because all my life remember up to this point, I was a good athlete consistently for years, so people were always around. Remember, up to this point, I was a good athlete consistently for years, so people were always around. Well, when I didn't get drafted, you know it's almost like they scattered they scattered away. And you know I was dating a girl at the time and you know she's my first ever girlfriend right, I told myself I was going to marry this girl.

Markus: 5:37

Gave this girl everything, bro. And when I didn't get drafted, lo and behold she ended up breaking up with me.

Nehemiah: 5:47

I was hot. Yeah, I ain't saying she a gold digger, but you know the song. Like I was hot, I'm like are you kidding me?

Markus: 5:49

I would be too, and so I. I just didn't understand, like why people? You know, the love of people was so conditional, yeah, but it was a reality that I lived nonetheless.

Nehemiah: 5:57

It's crazy man, how many of those people stayed around, the, the friends that you made in those times, um, how many, how many stayed around that you can probably think of right now right now I'm my best friend, one of my best friends, ursula mowens, like one.

Markus: 6:12

He was with me at the combine and, you know, walk with me like he was my boy. He's been my boy since 2010 and he was one of the only people that stayed around. I can't think of even my teammates. I don't really have any friends from from that season of life. Yeah, and I know things change and life changes, but you know there are a lot of people that will say they're with you until the end yeah but then when things aren't going that well, man, they're gonna go and find somebody else where they can hitch their wagon to what's going on.

Markus: 6:35

And you know, it was a hard thing I had to wrestle with, because I struggle with people pleasing a lot. It was all about what I could do to produce, you know, for people to make people like me and I think a lot of people struggle with that but I didn't know what else to do, man. And you know, then I find myself in a jail cell, completely broken, lost, and it was the lowest moment, but I felt the most seen by the Lord, and that's for somebody.

Markus: 6:56

Today, man, in my lowest moments, god reminded me that there was so much more for my life than I ever thought possible me that there was so much more for my life than I ever thought possible and I was able to start living as a son bro man, I really want to stay on that like that mental health of it yeah, you were.

Nehemiah: 7:09

You hit through a lot of lows. I mean you hit through most men's like lowest moments of yeah, I mean I lost my girl. I mean I lost my sport, I lost my coping, I lost my comfort, I lost everything. In it like, talk to me how. What was the biggest um and and strongest helpers? Obviously the lord, but in the lord, like, what was the biggest help for you to get through that mental, that mental drought?

Markus: 7:33

I realized that my brain was dirty and it needed some washing.

Markus: 7:36

And so many times I washed my brain with the, with the wrong thing, I washed it with drugs, I washed it with you know, success and on the football field.

Markus: 7:44

But the bible says in romans 12 1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of god, do not present your you know, we have to present our body as a living sacrifice.

Markus: 7:51

Do not be conformed to the ways of the world, but be transformed by the renewing of our mind. I had to renew the way that I that I thought, because my thought processes leading up to that were so faulty and so wrong and so ulterior to god, and and so when the mental health thing is running rampant in my mind depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, like at an all-time high I had plans of how I was going to take my life, how I was going to do it on my first Father's Day, and so I realized that if my brain was dirty, I had to wash it with the truth that was higher than the truth that I was believing. And so I grabbed ahold of the lie of the enemy lie of the enemy then I replaced it with the truth of what God said, and I had to anchor my faith and it wasn't like just one moment, all of a sudden things change.

Markus: 8:27

Repetition, like we go to the gym today and if I go to the gym and I work out and have a great workout, man, I'm not going to be in the best shape ever. But if I keep going back and I consistently do it, it is going to produce fruit in my life. Because tension, by very definition, produces growth. And so as I devour the word of God and I would read it and I would read it and I would read it and I would look at it and I would meditate on it, it began to change the way that I saw myself. And then I found scriptures that I can anchor myself to, mainly Ephesians 1.6.

Markus: 8:53

This is what completely changed my whole mental health journey. Ephesians 1.6 says to the praise of the glory of his grace, but which I've made you accepted in the beloved, I could not believe that I was loved and accepted by God. In that moment it was like the lights were turned on and I realized wait a minute, god sees me, he's for me, he loves me. I cannot believe that a God who is so great and so big sees somebody who's so small and so finite. And it changed the way I saw myself and so I started walking different.

Markus: 9:21

I'm 29 at the time.

Markus: 9:22

I'm in rehab, separated from my family. But I realized, man, that the Bible says life and death is in the power of the tongue, and those who love it eat of its fruits. So am I speaking life or am I speaking death? We create atmospheres with what we say, and so I began to speak, even when I didn't feel it, though that's where we get caught up at. We want to speak life when we feel good.

Markus: 9:39

I don't always feel good. Does that change the character and nature of god? Because of how I feel? Right, god is always good, so my feelings are a great servant, but a terrible master. So I began to, even when I did not feel like it. Every single day, nehemiah, I would wake up, I would go and look in my mirror in rehab and I would tell myself who I was in the lord. Every single day, wow. I will quote job, chapter 22, verse 28, and it says I would declare and decree a thing and it will be established for me and light will shine upon my ways today and I will walk and I will say, man, it's time to give hell a hard time today yeah, every day that's fire.

Nehemiah: 10:12

Every day that's how fire come on, man, so you found your identity in Jesus come on.

Markus: 10:16

You're like your whole life, up till 29 years old oh yeah, you had to find identity in drugs in football and what other people said about me, what other people said about you like I struggle with the people pleasing stuff as well.

Nehemiah: 10:26

Um, what was that like of every single day for 13 months in rehab? Yeah, your, your identity is getting molded and shaped to the man of god. Yeah, that god wanted you to be. What was that like?

Markus: 10:36

yeah. So it starts off with justification, right. So justification is just. As if I'd never say so.

Markus: 10:40

I believe that I was actually changed day one when I went to rehab. He took my heart of stone and gave me a heart of flesh. But I wasn't in rehab to get off drugs. I was there to get a completely new life, for God to rewire the way that I thought. So, as I continue to devour the word of God, I set these rhythms in my life that would produce a certain result. It was like the same principles that I could apply in sports If you put the work in, it is going to produce.

Markus: 11:04

If you put the work in in the spirit, it is going to produce in the flesh. But what happens is we just want things to happen by osmosis. That's not the world we live in. But I put the work in every single day and as I began to just, I started looking in the mirror. I used to struggle so much with how I looked. I would see somebody that was overweight. I would see somebody with cricket teeth, little ears so you just realize how small my ears are. You shot, I did look, bro. I did look at an AirPods. I got jammed in there.

Markus: 11:32

But then I began to look at myself and said, man, this is for me to not like who I am, is for me to slap God in the face and say what he made isn't good enough. How disrespectful is that to a God who loves me and sees me? He calls me infinitely valuable. You see, the word God set the standard for who I am. And as I began to understand who I was according to the word, I began to live like it. And then when you start living and speaking and talking, it's like with football, bro, or baseball or any sport self-talk is everything. Having a short memory is everything. I can't remember. When I fumbled, I got another play, I got to get back on the field, I got to keep going, and I think a lot of people struggle with that, man. But if you could just remember to have a short memory and you can't go in the past and change a thing, but CS Lewis says you can make any decision at any moment that'll change your future.

Nehemiah: 12:16

And I did that in rehab. Talk to me the mental in your mind during sports how they had helped you in ministry and helped you in your personal walk with God.

Markus: 12:25

Big time man? That's a great question. The mental struggles and the mental barriers that I had in sports is one I learned. I can't take myself too serious.

Nehemiah: 12:32

Yeah, yeah, man, that's baseball right there. Bro, you can't take yourself too serious.

Markus: 12:39

Listen, mark, you ain't that sweet. Wow, you're fast, you're big, you're strong, but listen, you're not the best. After, there's always somebody bigger, always somebody faster, always somebody stronger. But one thing I always would tell myself, and I would tell my coaches and any of my coaches that ever hear this Coach, I only know one speed Go Full speed, all in Balls to the wall. That was my mentality every single day and I started setting using.

Markus: 13:01

Some of the things I learned in sports is don't take yourself too serious, have a short memory, because if you make a mistake, man just like the bible says, a righteous man falls down seven times. That's a promise for anybody that is a son or a daughter of the king. You are going to fall down, but what makes you righteous is you get back up and the same thing. In my football career I had one fumble, my entire career one. Well, I was hot too, but I couldn't dwell on that. Just like in ministry, you can't dwell on the mistakes. You have to just get better and keep going, man yeah yeah, hold on hold on all these questions.

Markus: 13:32

Hold on hold on, bro, because, yeah, you got some oil inside of you too, man. Come on, so do you bro man yeah you're, you're 18. Right now, bro, like on fire for jesus, like how do you get to where you're at at 18 years old, um, flowing and doing the things which you're doing?

Nehemiah: 13:48

man. Great question, bro. It's so funny that that you said that pain and brokenness shaped you into who you are today. For me, it was prosperity, and prosperity wasn't enough. So for me, I had had everything I'd looked for, everything I'd worked for, grew up in sports, um, grew up in the church as well yeah, in the church, but the church wasn't in me come on and so I was.

Nehemiah: 14:07

I was going throughout life and I was training, I was doing my thing. Um, I ended up getting a lot of Division. I offers, going showcases, doing great things, yep, um, and then I ended up playing in front of this really, really good team yeah. I mean a really good team it was put it on oh.

Markus: 14:22

I put it on. It was crazy I mean it?

Nehemiah: 14:24

was 80 D1 scouts behind me. Dang yeah, yeah, that's crazy it was the number one pitcher in Georgia lefty going to Tennessee.

Markus: 14:30

Dang.

Nehemiah: 14:31

He was like 92, 93 from the left, dang.

Markus: 14:34

Kind of like me. This dude, marcus thinks he can hop on a baseball gas in his arm, bro. Come on, bro, but keep going yeah and uh.

Nehemiah: 14:44

I remember I get to this point and my approach that whole summer was lord, let your will be done. Yeah, for the first time I had been like I had got away from that comparison. How do?

Markus: 14:53

you get to that place though yeah like you're a young man yeah right, bro, you're still a teenager right now yeah so how do you get to a place where you say, lord, your will be done. Yeah, like was that part of your upbringing. Have that level of like, awareness and to follow through with that Like, talk to us a little bit about that, yeah, man.

Nehemiah: 15:09

So even in that moment I was saying, let your will be done, but I wasn't really committed to that in my heart. Because in that moment I knew that.

Nehemiah: 15:20

Lip service. I knew it was lip service because I knew I wasn let your will be done, and I was. I was content with whatever outcome was in that box, whether it was a strikeout or it was a home run. I didn't care what happened. I really didn't, and that's what allowed me to have success, because I got away from comparison and so I had struggled with comparison my whole life. Being the younger brother. I didn't get attention from my parents. I didn't get the attention I wanted from my coaches. It had always been oh, you're so-and-so's little brother, you're never your own identity.

Nehemiah: 15:44

Living in that shadow, so I was working and grinding and it put a fire in me to work and train really hard. But it also put this comparison and this identity crisis in me from a really young age, gotcha. And so I got to a point I was like 15 or 16 years old. I was struggling deep hard with depression and anxiety. I had anxiety even coming to school, going to high school, walking in like shaking, didn't know why. I had anxiety, I just really attacked. I felt so different. I feel like I couldn't fit into my culture. I feel like I couldn't fit into my age. And I found this place called the church. I found this person called Jesus and I ran to him and I remember just crying out, just angry at God. I was frustrated because I was like Lord, I know you love me, but why do I feel like this? I had this thing like I have faith but I don't feel like how?

Markus: 16:31

I want to feel right now.

Nehemiah: 16:33

So as I just continue to just give my life to Christ, he just molds and shapes my heart and I surrender young and I'm just like Lord. I keep hearing from my dad that he wished he would have did this young. I don't want to live in regret. I don't want to live looking back that knowing I did a little bit more. So I'm training and as I'm finally trained, I'm starting to put baseball in sports yeah everything outside of God in its place in priority priorities, such a big thing.

Nehemiah: 16:57

In my life I had always put everything over God relationships, sports, yeah, then it was god, and then school was always last. But I feel that, so I I got to this point and, um, I do really well, I play, I have a really good summer this is actually this past summer and I end up getting 11 division offers and I any school that I I could have wanted to go to. I even had liberty, like I could have went to liberty and did both right.

Nehemiah: 17:23

When I was about to commit to liberty, man, the entire coaching staff left and went to the tar heels. Wow, man, it was a crazy it. It hurt me. I was like lord, yeah, I'm about to give my life to you, right?

Markus: 17:33

here like I'm giving you how to plan. You saw it and he's like.

Nehemiah: 17:35

He's like you're giving me half, I want your first. And so I finally get to this point. I go to um, this summer camp, this, this Christian summer camp, and I'm just really just like man. I'm broken, because I know what I got to do. I got to tell my coaches, I got to tell my friends, I got to tell my dad and these are all like three big relationships in my life.

Markus: 17:55

So in this moment, you said you knew what to do and you had to break the news to other people. What is it that you knew that you had to do? I, other people, what is it that you knew that you had to do? I, I knew that I had to quit baseball and I had to go. Wait a minute, we gotta unpack that, all right. All right, we all buckle up for this one, 17 years old, prime of his life, incredible shape, future's bright. Yeah, I mean, he had it all together. I just remember when I was 17, I had it all together but I didn't have the grades, so like I didn't have a choice. Yeah, you had a choice and you still have a choice. What's crazy? You hear from god. You feel like you're done with baseball. How do you get to that place when all of your life you trained for this moment? There are people that are going to listen to this. Their entire lives you're training and building for this particular moment. How can you walk away from that?

Nehemiah: 18:45

Yeah, man, I mean just how we started the conversation. We talked about how prosperity brought me to Jesus. So I think about this Everybody always puts peace and prosperity in one sentence, but my peace wasn't with my prosperity. It was in my death of my old me, and so I had to die. I had to give it all up to the Lord.

Markus: 19:02

Everything you want.

Nehemiah: 19:02

I changed it. I just said Lord, I give you my life. Lord, let your will be done seriously this time. And there was nothing there, there was no opportunities. I hadn't met you yet, I hadn't, I hadn't started the, I started the bible studies, but there was 25 people coming to him. I just knew that this was my burning bush moment and I knew I still had my sandals on and my sandals was baseball and I had something in between me and god and me I had to take it off I had to take them off.

Nehemiah: 19:27

That's holy ground and it was hard, though. It was hard because we talked. That's why I asked about relationships, man, because I had all these people in my corner when I was a draft prospect 11 d1 offers. I'm feeling it. I'm going viral on tiktok for for my get ready with me bro and and then, in a moment, everyone leaves and I'm like lord, what is going on? So so I posted on Instagram, I posted on Twitter. Twitter post blows up.

Nehemiah: 19:59

I said breaking news recruitment closed. I decided to go and fool in. The ministry Post gets 2.3 million views. It's all over Twitter. People are going in on me for it Dang Baking, you Baking me. There was one guy who was like what an idiot. That's all he said that was a hard time because even my dad was coming hard with it and he's a pastor he invested a lot years practice baseball bats, gloves, cleats, calling off work, all the things and you decided to walk away.

Markus: 20:33

So how did dad process that when you decided to just leave everything? So how did dad process that when, yeah, you decided to just leave everything?

Nehemiah: 20:37

yeah, so pops has a relationship with dad, I mean with, uh, with god too so like he. He said he worded it like I was. I was like super honored yeah, I was super frustrated too like and I got there.

Nehemiah: 20:48

I was there with god too. We were all there with god, because I, my whole thing, was like I, I want to play baseball, for sure, sure, but I know what I got to do For sure. So I'm frustrated at God, just as much as you're frustrated at God, but I need to listen to him. Like we all say this, like we all say like oh, if God told me to do anything right now man, if I heard his voice right now, I'd listen to him.

Nehemiah: 21:07

It's so easy to say that, man, it's so easy to say. The truth of the matter is I didn't listen to it immediately, I didn't, and God brought glory through it. He did, and he saw my heart developing through it.

Markus: 21:19

It's beautiful. God's the best translator ever, man. Come on.

Nehemiah: 21:23

Yeah, but that was a hard transition from going my whole life. I'm fully into baseball. I have God there. He's just honorable mention. Yeah, and he's like he's not honorable mention.

Markus: 21:32

Yeah.

Nehemiah: 21:32

And and he's like he's not first team.

Markus: 21:35

No, he's not first team.

Nehemiah: 21:36

And it like just as frustrated as I would be if I got honorable mention and I I know I'm shit I should be on first team.

Markus: 21:42

For sure I can. You ever got honorable mention? I did yeah.

Nehemiah: 21:49

I didn't, but we'll talk.

Markus: 21:51

I mean, you know you chose not to go D1, like I was forced not to, so you know you win. So. But yeah, so you're in this position where you've told everybody they're processing it with you and now you're just ready to go all in with Jesus. How has that looked since that moment? Because at the time of this recording, you are still currently in high school. It's baseball season right now and you're not playing and you're still in shape yeah and I'm sure you can probably get out there.

Markus: 22:22

And still, you know, do you for? Sure do your thing for sure.

Nehemiah: 22:28

Just so y'all know I can come back. He's about to be an intramural beast. Every, every league we could join on april, on April 1st, I almost said hey, y'all, I'm back.

Markus: 22:39

Hey, that would have been funny, but like it would have been really sad, college coaches would have started texting me yeah that probably would have been really bad too. That would have been bad.

Nehemiah: 22:46

Yeah, so for me right now, I mean as soon as I entered school, like I made all these decisions in the summer.

Markus: 22:52

Okay.

Nehemiah: 22:52

So I enter school and I get pulled out of the office immediately. Principal 30 minutes talks to me You're making a big mistake and I'm just. I'm not saying nothing, I'm like okay.

Markus: 23:01

He's not going to understand.

Nehemiah: 23:02

I'm going to cast my pearls amongst one.

Markus: 23:03

For sure. Come on, bro, talk that talk.

Nehemiah: 23:06

So then I walk out of the office. I'm just like Twitter. A week goes by, he pulls me down again. I thought we had a great conversation.

Markus: 23:14

No, we did not have a great conversation.

Nehemiah: 23:16

You talk for 30 minutes. How is this a big mistake? That goes off wrong. And then a week goes by, I get pulled onto the counselor's office. They think there's something wrong with my mental health. Wow, man, and it just really brings me back to that. Ezra 4-4.

Markus: 23:29

Yeah.

Nehemiah: 23:29

And it says that the people of the land were trying to discourage and frustrate the plans of God's. People Like the people of this world would never understand purposes beyond this world.

Markus: 23:38

Come on bro.

Nehemiah: 23:38

They won't, and so I was like, why would I just try to explain this? So they always told me to do both.

Markus: 23:43

Wow.

Nehemiah: 23:44

And I was like, man, I don't want to be halfway in. Yeah, like I'm not a halfway in guy, I wasn't halfway in with God.

Markus: 23:50

For sure.

Nehemiah: 23:51

So I'm going fully in with God. And so in this moment, I'm frustrated because I'm losing friends. Yeah, I'm losing followers on Instagram and TikTok, they're all leaving. They're all leaving because the name Jesus is offensive to a lot of people.

Markus: 24:04

Mass exodus.

Nehemiah: 24:05

Man. And so I just get to this point and people are like man, you had money waiting for you after high school, you'd been set, your future would have been good. Why'd you give it up? And it comes back to this verse. He said what is it to gain the world and lose your soul? I didn't want to gain everything and then I gave before God and he's like you're not mine.

Nehemiah: 24:27

Imagine hearing that man, and so that's where I was at and that's where I'm at now. I'm just on fire for the Lord. I love Jesus. I feel like the Lord has called me young. I keep reading about how Jeremiah was called at 17. A lot of people were called at 17. Young man.

Markus: 24:43

Joseph was sold into slavery at 17.

Nehemiah: 24:45

And then that's when I started my Bible study. David was anointed at 17. Man crazy, I mean we can keep the line.

Markus: 24:49

It goes on and on.

Nehemiah: 24:50

But what I?

Markus: 24:50

love about the anointing of God is anointing doesn't mean appointing. Anointing means hey, I recognize like, hey, the oil, the smearing, it's on you. But then you go through this process and I talked earlier about like I was justified. But then there's this thing called sanctification. God is like preparing you for something great and I think I'm watching you just in real time, having gotten a chance to really get to know you in your heart. I'm watching you process things with God and I'm watching you be willing to sacrifice what most won't sacrifice and I just believe God will honor that because you're not taking the easy road.

Markus: 25:24

There's definitely some easy roads in ministry that you could take. There's a lot of easy roads If you got oil in your life, if you're articulate, if you're a good-looking kid man, people will put you on this fast track. But I'm seeing you go low and go slow and I believe that's what's going to sustain you long-term. But how has it been in ministry? You know, obviously you talk about the Bible studies. Tell us a little bit about that, because some people might have, you know, not heard about that and they might want to get tapped into something like that man.

Nehemiah: 25:49

I appreciate you recognizing that, though I've been really trying to just really go in with the lord and take my time. I don't want to go out there fast and then burn out really fast.

Markus: 25:57

I know what african proverb says if you want to go far, uh, if you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, go together. And so you know, you're going slow and you're going together. You're not just trying to outrun everybody you're like you know what this is the long game you're finding the pace of grace and and I just really admire you for that, bro, for real, I really appreciate that, yeah.

Nehemiah: 26:15

So like we had these bible studies, right um, when I was in and I was playing baseball and I had to put the bible studies on my back burner but, how the bible studies really started was with five guys okay and we had all had five guys burgers.

Markus: 26:27

Oh man, we had all had struggles with women. Yeah, so we started with proverbs 31 come on young young men getting in the word man we had struggles in the.

Nehemiah: 26:37

The scary thing is is that I'm I'm only in contact with one of those guys now, and it's really sad how things get proven out of your life, for sure. But fast forward. Um, that five goes to three, I mean, the five goes to eight guys, um, and then the eight guys goes to stays at eight for another week and then we're like let's just post this, let's just post this on on a snapchat. See what's the pull up. So, bro, it's my, it's my first time really speaking in front of anybody. Um, I'm planning to do a bible study. I'm not expecting 25 people to show up yeah and so I I have this.

Nehemiah: 27:05

I have this outline of, like, how I'm gonna lead the conversation, bro. It just turned into 30 minutes of me stuttering trying to break down genesis like one through five but, I was. I was struggling, yeah, and, and after everybody left I had realized, dang, I just got thrown into the fire. I felt like a freshman on varsity again, but it was in ministry yeah and so I was like lord, thank you, I like that I like that struggle, yeah, so what I did?

Nehemiah: 27:29

is I? I went on youtube, I start, I start watching how pastors delivered the word I start listening and how they would just deliver, how they would deliver scriptures a revelation.

Nehemiah: 27:40

I didn't really understand that. I had my dad's a pastor, so he'd help me with that too. And as I really just, I just kept studying, kept studying. So every other week we just kept doing these Bible studies. They kept growing 25 went to 35. 35 went to 45. 45 went to 50. Um, and I'm preaching and and then eventually it gets shut down. Um, they, it was shut down by by leaders and you honored it.

Nehemiah: 28:05

Yep, and I had to honor it and I and I took a step back and I went into baseball again um and then we started it up again and, man, we picked it back up and it was eight again. I was like, okay, but it wasn't about numbers for me, because I just love people.

Markus: 28:21

Well, and that's the kingdom man. God looks at numbers way differently than us in the world that we live in. Yes, he wants his house to be full, but he also put the weight of humanity on eight people. With Noah and his sons, he flooded the world and he's like all right, I'm gonna use these eight to do some incredible things, and so I think he uses numbers differently and he sees the value yeah in the individual and he took 12 disciples and turned the world upside down.

Markus: 28:43

So I mean honestly, really, we just need 12. Come on, bro, we need 12. We can do some crazy things with 12. That's real talk.

Nehemiah: 28:50

Yeah, bro, yeah and then after that we had, we had like growing on my basement. So recently it's been like um 50 to 60, 65 actually came to one man yeah, it was nuts. He came out, man it was.

Markus: 29:01

It was a pleasure having you it was really cool to see what god is doing in this generation, and anybody that's older that might tap into this, you know, find the young people that are going in the direction of god, that are following the wind of the spirit come come alongside them, because, you know, john Tyson says it like this older men want legacy, younger men want destiny.

Markus: 29:20

When you can marry the two, it's really what Malachi 4.6 is all about. But it's on the fathers and mothers to turn back to sons and daughters first and be willing the Lord gave me this word at the beginning of this year is a phrase be willing to pass the baton. You guys are going to take it way further, way faster, way longer, and so anybody that listens to this like, find young people that are serious about Jesus and come alongside them, build relationship with them. Revival is not going to happen in these services. Revival is going to happen oftentimes around a dinner table, and let's just talk a little bit about how even you and I met.

Nehemiah: 29:49

Yeah, bro Dude, so it was really a prayer.

Markus: 29:53

He was the answer to prayer for me. So was he.

Nehemiah: 29:55

It was crazy Young people we are so zealous to talk about Jesus, to go out and preach about Jesus, but I encourage you, find a leader, find somebody to sit under, find someone to bring you up, because we don't know what we're doing. We can be spirit-led, but we can still be foolish. There was a lot of things I did that was foolish out of zealousness. I was praying, I was praying, I was praying. I really wanted a leader in my life. I wanted somebody like me, who had my similar call. I'm going to church and I feel like I'm called to lead people, but it doesn't look like the pastor role. I didn't know what that meant. I'm begging leaders to be my leader, but they're not being my leader. So I'm praying to God out of frustration. I'm like Lord, send somebody. Like send somebody, or I'm going to do it alone. Like it's going to be me, and you, I'm going to do it alone.

Nehemiah: 30:45

And then I'm working at Dick's at this time. I'm fresh out of like just quitting baseball and this dude comes in the line with his expired $10 coupon.

Markus: 30:56

Hey, listen, dick's Sporting Goods. I see how y'all do it, man. You guys send people these coupons, you bring them in the store and then you tell them they're excited at the line. I thought I had a $50 gift card. I'm like, oh, I bet I'm about to get me some more on clouds. I was excited. And then he's like, hey, bro, this is expired. Bro, this is expired. I'm like, what well, I'm already up here, let me go ahead and buy it.

Nehemiah: 31:16

That's how they get you man. That's a good marketing strategy. It is a good market. And then talk about how your side was, because that's when you had said something to me yeah, I was really just I.

Markus: 31:22

I had been praying really, uh, for the last three or four years. You know that god would send me young people that were serious about him. And I had met one person before and shout out to bryce craw Crawford, really getting a chance to walk and mentor him. But I said, okay, god, I want someone locally that I can, you know, pour into and like I feel like you've given me a lot. And what I've learned from the leaders in my life is, if you want to keep what you have, you got to give it away.

Markus: 31:46

And I would just find people that just really weren't serious and they would, you know, say they were serious with their words but they weren't serious with their actions. And so then I walk in the dicks, I buy these shoes and I look at this dude and I just feel the holy spirit all over him. And we were just recently doing one of our reach one nights and I was bringing my friend g scott from ohio state to come and speak and first thing I asked him I was like, hey, man, you like football and um, I don't remember what you said. I'm like, hey, man, we're doing a reach one I would love to have you, have you pop out and follow him on Instagram. And I was like, wait a minute. I just started looking through his Instagram. I'm like, huh, wait a minute. There's something on this young man's life.

Markus: 32:20

And then what stood out to me the most, more than even your ability to communicate or the anointing, is when you came to that reach one night. The first thing you asked when you walked in and it wasn't like lip service you said, hey, minister, anything I can do, you guys can help with anything. How can I serve? And well, when I tell you that is rare in the next generation, that servant heart, like the people that just want to be available, like I call it fat, faithful, available and teachable. I saw that you're a faithful, you made yourself available and I just saw you put your hands to the plow and I'm like, man, this, these are the kinds of people that I want to run with these hands to the plow.

Markus: 32:54

And I'm like man this, these are the kinds of people that I want to run with. Yeah, these are the kinds of people I want to take with me when I travel, because in in speaking and evangelism. For those of you that may not know what I do, I travel around the country and preach the gospel. Yeah, speaking a lot of public schools and just allow God to to get the glory from whatever he wants me to do. But we can teach people how to get booked, that's actually not hard, right, um?

Markus: 33:19

but what you can't teach is the oil that all comes from crushing, and a lot of people want to walk with resurrection power, but nobody wants to go through the crushing. And I met an 18 year old kid that has gone through crushing and is continuing to go through crushing on a consistent basis, and I told myself god, thank you for answering my prayer, thank you for bringing me a young man that I can run with, that I can travel with, that I can pour into, that I can even learn from Because, listen, this is a two-way street, it's not just me pouring, I learn things from you as well. Man, it's been a wild ride. We've gotten a chance to do some traveling together over the last couple months First.

Markus: 33:56

last couple months first time any of mine I get on a plane together. Uh, he forgets his id. Yes, y'all, he forgot, listen. We're going to south carolina. I'm speaking at a conference down there in some schools we're talk about crushing bro we're on our way to the airport. Halfway there I'm like, bro, you got your, I d right I was like Marcus is about to see me ticked off.

Nehemiah: 34:16

Yeah, bro, I was heated, oh, and I got.

Markus: 34:19

my girlfriend was driving us up to the airport so she's watching me get all angry.

Nehemiah: 34:24

I'm just like is this real?

Markus: 34:26

Is this real life? I'm like Lord, I asked to run with Gen Z. I did not know all of this came with it. But what's crazy is we get to the airport and like, listen, y'all, I'm going to this event with or without about this, I'm going with or without him. I'm like, hey, hopefully he can get in. If not, hey, god bless you, bro, I'll see you when I get back. And so he has to go through this rigorous process with the fbi so they to make sure he is who he says he is, they thought I stole so yeah it crazy.

Markus: 34:55

So they asked you a bunch of questions. I'm on the other side. I go through pre-check. I go through, you know, I get inside. I'm looking at the Cleveland Hopkins Airport. I can see him through this little cage. I'm trying to communicate with him. He doesn't have a cell phone Like he. Yeah, his. I'm like. Okay, I need this dude to calm down. I don't know if he flies a lot. He was erratic.

Nehemiah: 35:14

Yeah.

Markus: 35:14

It did not look good from my perspective. I'm like I hope they don't arrest this dude. I called his girlfriend. I'm like, hey, just keep circling around. I don't know if he's going to complain or not. I don't know if he's going to make it, and finally, I see you just do this big hand motion.

Nehemiah: 35:34

Yes, I thought you failed.

Markus: 35:35

I'm like, oh, I gotta tell this, and I hadn't met mom and dad yet. Yeah, terrible, horrible. I hadn't even met his parents yet. Right, so I'm traveling with him and and, uh, he ends up passing the test which was it took. It's a. He had a one percent chance of passing. He had a one percent chance of passing. Most 18 year olds get this test wrong. Yeah, but that's how you knew.

Nehemiah: 35:53

The guy wanted him on that trip oh, when she said it cause she was like listen, no, the dude was like listen, you're probably not gonna pass this test. He was like how old was I? 18? I was like he's like 1% of 18 year olds pass. He's like 99 fail.

Markus: 36:06

I was like she, I'm like that, I was like reach one, Come on.

Nehemiah: 36:11

And I was like I'll take my chances. That's what I said, went up to the phone. I start looking at everything I can. The woman's so kind. She was like maybe I shouldn't say it, but she was like they're going to ask you this, this and this. I hope you know these questions. I knew my mom's birthday, dad's birthday, where I lived closest school to me. They was asking everything and I'm freaking out because I'm like they said if you get this wrong, you can't fly today.

Markus: 36:35

You can't fly today. You had to wait.

Nehemiah: 36:36

I had to wait and I was like dang, that means I missed my trip. I was like so I can either fly tonight and go with him right down the lane.

Markus: 36:43

Meet me in South Carolina or.

Nehemiah: 36:45

I can go right now and fly with him, I? So I was like I'm doing this right now. They're asking me all these questions, man, and I get them all right. I'm hyped. Oh, but my dad texted you, yeah that was hot.

Markus: 36:59

This is my first time talking to his dad and I'm like you know what's up, pops man, I'm trying to be super nice and kind and he's just like he's frustrated, and rightfully so, because I think, more than anything, parents want their children to be responsible and it was a great learning lesson. Ever since then we've traveled again. He has not forgotten his id once. But I think that's what life is all about. Man is we have grace for people in their journeys and give them a space to figure it out. But uh, it's just been cool running with you. We went to that event. We went down to tennessee, um, we got a lot of cool stuff coming up. Obviously we do our reach one night. So I mean, we've been. I feel like we've done a lot of cool stuff coming up. Obviously we do our Reach One Night stuff. I mean we've been. I feel like we've done a lot in a little bit of time.

Nehemiah: 37:33

We've known each other for like three or four months. What?

Markus: 37:36

December, January, February, March, April.

Nehemiah: 37:38

Wait, we're not even in May yet, huh.

Markus: 37:39

December, january, february, march, april five months, wow Feels like five years bro, honestly.

Nehemiah: 37:45

I'm telling you, we clicked. I knew you were supposed to be my leader, my spiritual father, because, man, when I asked to come in, I asked to serve. I genuinely just wanted to serve. That's all I knew, sure, and that's still all I do know is like just coming in there and serving you, like we texted that night and I was like, bro, there's no coincidence, man.

Markus: 38:05

Yeah, bro.

Nehemiah: 38:05

And you wanted to like go hands in. It wasn't just like oh, I want to text, you call you like check up and it was like I want to bring you with me yeah and show you what I'm doing for sure um and you, you like, gave me a chance bro yeah, bro, I really appreciate that.

Markus: 38:18

You know, I just think back when I first started speaking um, I didn't have anybody to take me with them and I'm like man and I love my spiritual pops, and he had pastored for years and so he wasn't really in the evangelist lane, so i'm'm like all right, lord, I know you've called me. I don't know what I'm doing, but, god, I trust you. And it was almost like an Abraham-type moment go to a land you know not of. And so, as I just journeyed and figured things out and had a lot of trials along the way and just trusted in the voice of God, trusted that he called me to this and he created a space for the journey, and keep going, because I think, more than anything, if we live our lives that way, they're all of us are gonna win, like so many people are so scared of losing out here, like Like no, we're all going to win, bro. There is, my mentality is, when I eat, the whole team eats, bro. Yeah, and I just have seen you've done a lot of different things, a lot of different things to show your faithfulness, even times when it was inconvenient to you, even times when you had to wake up early. Even times you had to come to events and literally you're just at the event, just there, serving, kicking it, being present. Those kinds of things speak volumes to someone like me, because it shows that your heart is in the right place. You're not just looking for a microphone. When I got home from rehab, I didn't just start speaking, I grabbed mops before I grabbed mics. When you can grab a mop before you grab a mic, man, god will provide the space and the platform, and I and a platform, and I'm just excited to see what God is going to do in and through you.

Markus: 39:56

And you know, even with us starting this podcast, this is episode one. You know, romans 116 says For I am unashamed of the gospel. It is the power of God unto salvation, for first it's you and then the Greek. We're unashamed of the gospel. We are unashamed of the gospel. This podcast is about being unashamed to live for Jesus in whatever space he's called you in, not just on social media, not just from a pulpit, but to let our lives reflect who God is through everything he's called us to do. The Bible says they will see your good works. So they're going to see something. They will see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven, and if we're living our lives unashamed, god will always get the glory.

Nehemiah: 40:34

Man. I love how Paul said to be unashamed of the gospel.

Markus: 40:38

Come on.

Nehemiah: 40:38

So it didn't matter what my coaches, my teachers, even what my parents said Come on bro. I knew what God had said. Come on, and I feel like if you trust and you have faith in what God is telling you to do, you're going to be unashamed of it. Boldness comes with the spirit. And I feel that when I walk in the call of my life, I'm bold in it, I'm unashamed of it. I just keep thinking about this man who was not unashamed.

Markus: 41:06

And he comes up to God and it's the parable of the rich man.

Nehemiah: 41:07

It wasn't even a parable, actually, it was an actual story. He comes up to Jesus and he says I've done all these things. I've done them since I was a youth. Blah, blah, blah. And Jesus said then sell all your stuff, Follow me. Can you imagine this day before the Lord, like Lord, I have a lot of stuff, I have a lot of nice things. I really have a good opportunity here. No, I would rather give it all up and I kept seeing myself as that rich man holding on to baseball, holding on to this worldly prosperity, and my soul was dying.

Nehemiah: 41:41

My soul was dying. So I just think about me being unashamed as giving up everything for the Lord, everything Because I just trust him. I'd rather stand for the Lord and have treasures in heaven.

Markus: 41:50

Come on bro.

Nehemiah: 41:51

Than these passing things on earth.

Markus: 41:53

Because most of the things that we're building and sowing for are the eternal reward we're only here for like a vapor. It's not a long life that we're going to be here. I mean at best 70. I mean, honestly, I'm 36, 37. I don't know how old I am, but I could potentially be halfway there. Like this, life is going by fast, but we're storing up treasures in heaven and if we live our lives with an eternal perspective, then we will find ourselves walking in the call of God on our lives and we're not chasing these trivial things, sure do. I wish I would have made it into the NFL.

Markus: 42:28

Yes, because I would have had a lot of money for kingdom purposes, but God knew that my process needed to be different to get to where I'm at today for sure, and I would not change a single thing in the world yeah yeah, I would love um, as we, as we close this episode, bro, for you just to leave, you know, just one, one last parting um comment to anybody that maybe this is the first time them hearing us talk on the unashamed podcast like what? What's one thing that you would encourage them with?

Nehemiah: 42:52

to close out, man, I just encourage, with any young viewer, any college student, anybody Marcus' age, I encourage you to fully accept the will of God. And that's going to look different for everybody, that might mean playing baseball for somebody, that might be me playing football for somebody else but truly accepting the will of God and understanding it's not always going to feel good, but we don't walk by feeling. You walk by faith. So understanding that your feelings are not a good measure of where god is calling you to be, because it's not always going to be great in the moment, it's not always going to feel peaceful in the moment, but when you're walking in the call of God, you'll always be fulfilled and you're always going to have this sense of peace. So there was never, always, there still isn't a full, 100% peace around me, but I have so much peace within me knowing that I trusted.

Markus: 43:44

God.

Nehemiah: 43:45

So I just challenge you guys, for that Is just fully embrace the will of God.

Markus: 43:51

That is so good man. And the last thing I would say is don't take yourself too serious. God is for you, he loves you, he has a plan for your life, and oftentimes that plan is different than the plans we have for ourselves. But if you would trust his process, if you would trust his plans, you will find yourself in a place that you never in a million years thought that you could be. And just keep going, soldier. You got this unashamed, unashamed. All right, fam, that's it for this episode of the unashamed podcast. If it hit, if it challenged you or it made you say yo same, go ahead and follow, drop a review and send it to your group chat. You know the drill. We're here for the real ones, the bold, the honest, the ones who refuse to play small. So keep showing up, keep speaking truth and stay loudly unashamed. Catch y'all next week. So then, be real, be bold and be you peace.