- [Announcer] The followingprogram is sponsored by CBN.

- [Wendy] Coming up, ateenage drug dealer --

- I brought it to my mom's doorstep.

- [Wendy] Who went from the streets --

- [Man] I'm getting out of this life.

- [Wendy] To the SEALs.

- [Remi] The most elite military program

on the face of this planet.

- [Wendy] To the silver screen.

- Wow, this is crazybecause this is the guy

who's first two filmsinspired me to be a Seal.

- [Wendy] On today's 700 Club.

(upbeat music)

- Well welcome, folks.

If you heard the President'sspeech last night

it was masterful.

It was amazing the array of guests who,

there was a team effort we understand,

but to pick people like Buzz Aldrin

and then the woman who had beenlocked up for so many years

for a little bit ofmarijuana use, and so forth,

it was a brilliant tour de force.

CBS News -- polls 76% ofthose that watched approved.

CNN, 59% said very positive.

CBS, 72% approved of hisimmigration proposals.

It was an amazing, did you watch?

- I watched it and enjoyedevery single bit of it.

I thought it was truly one ofthe best State of the Unions

I have ever seen in my lifetime.

- Well he took away all of the issues

that the Democrats have.

(laughing)

- They were cheering at times.

- He had them cheering.

How could they not cheerveterans of World War II?

How could they not cheera Holocaust survivor?

How could they not cheer Buzz Aldrin?

During the speech it waspeppered with these people

and he had to force theDemocrats to get up.

They can't sit on their handswhen a Holocaust survivor

and the man who's liberated him from --

is on the same platform.

- Maybe they're regretting giving him

more time to prepare for the speech now.

(laughing)

- But it was brilliant.

- Well the President covered a wide range

of topic in the State of the Union,

from illegal immigration to the economy.

And speaking to a House of Representatives

led by Democrats who havepushed for late-term abortions,

he called on Congressto protect the unborn.

We have two reports now beginning

with our White Housecorrespondent, Ben Kennedy.

- President Trump pushedback against abortion

saying we need to worktogether to build a culture

that cherishes innocent life.

A strong message he hiton during his speech,

which was delayed a week

due to the partial government shutdown.

- We meet tonight at a momentof unlimited potential.

- [Ben] President Trump took advantage

of the pulpit Tuesday night to call

for unity and bipartisanship.

- There is a new opportunityin American politics

if only we have the couragetogether to seize it.

- [Ben] Trump also tookadvantage of recent headlines

to fight for the unborncalling on Congress

to pass legislation toprohibit late-term abortions.

- There could be no greatercontrast to the beautiful image

of a mother holding her infant child

than the chilling displays ournations saw in recent days.

Lawmakers in New York cheered with delight

upon the passage of legislationthat would allow a baby

to be ripped from the mother'swomb moments from birth.

These are living,feeling, beautiful babies

who will never get the chance to share

their love and theirdreams with the world.

And then we had the caseof the Governor of Virginia

where he stated he wouldexecute a baby after birth.

- [Ben] The Commander in Chiefthen broke down his vision

for safe and legal immigrationdemanding a border wall.

He illustrated his pointby hosting family members

of an elderly couple murderedin their home just last month

by an undocumented immigrant.

- I will never forget and I will fight

for the memory of Gerald and Sharon

that it should never happen again.

Not one more American life should be lost

because our nation failed to control

it's very dangerous border.

- [Ben] Trump said, simplyput, walls save lives.

- In the past most ofthe people in this room

voted for a wall, but theproper wall never got built.

I will get it built.

- [Ben] The future of thewall still remains in question

as congressional negotiatorscontinue to work on a deal

to prevent another government shutdown.

In the Democrat's response

former Georgia governorcandidate, Stacey Abrams,

place blame for the recentclosings of the government

directly on the President.

- The shutdown was a stunt engineered

by the President of the United States.

One that defied every tenantof fairness and abandoned,

not just our people, but our values.

- [Ben] Trump struck a bipartisan tone

when talking about rebuilding America,

fighting cancer, eradicating HIV,

lowering the cost of healthcare,and a positive economy.

- An economic miracle is takingplace in the United States

and the only thing that canstop it are foolish wars,

politics, or ridiculouspartisan investigations.

- [Ben] He got a standingovation from both sides

after stating women have filled

more than 50% of new jobscreated in the last year.

- We also have morewomen serving in Congress

then at any time before.

(cheering and applauding)

- [Ben] Trump thenreaffirmed determination

to protect American interestand end foreign wars.

- If I had not been electedPresident of the United States

we would right now, in my opinion,

be in a major war with North Korea.

- Now President Trumpconfirmed his second summit

with North Korean dictator, Kim Jong-un,

for February 27th and 28th in Vietnam.

As for lawmakers' reactionto the President's Address,

here's Capitol Hillcorrespondent, Abigail Robertson.

- This year markedPresident Trump's first time

speaking before a divided Congress.

And while Republicans praisedthe President's remarks --

- It was very inspirational.

- He did a great job.

- The President did an outstanding job.

He, to me, knocked it out of the park.

- [Abigail] Democrats disagreed

with the Senate Minority Leader

hitting the President's call for unity,

even before the speech.

- In the past he's called for unity

and he's forgotten aboutit by the next morning.

- [Abigail] And whilePresident Trump told the crowd

if there is going to be legislation

there cannot be investigation.

A Democrat on the HouseOversight Committee told CBN News

their intent on keeping their foot

on the investigation pedal.

- That's my constitutionallyprescribed duty,

to conduct oversight.

The American people hiredus to be in the majority

to serve as a check and balanceon the Trump Administration.

- [Abigail] Still, Democrats acknowledged

they supported some ofthe President's remarks

and unity might just be possible

even in the most divisive area.

- First of all I have to sayone thing that really stuck out

was the President neversaid, I gonna have a shutdown

if I don't get my $5.7billion for a fence.

He never said that.

I think that's a message tomy Republican colleagues,

that we can sit down,negotiate on border security.

Now we are gonna put billions of dollars

but it's not gonna be billionsof dollars on a fence.

- [Abigail] Congressman Cuellar sits

on the Bipartisan ConferenceCommittee currently negotiating

the compromise bill for border security.

- We have to find a balance between

our neighbor to the southand at the same time,

not only to our neighbor to the south,

the trade and tourism, but have security.

And I feel very confidentthat if we put the technology,

the personnel, find, andI'll say this as a Democrat,

find ways to do someenhanced physical barriers,

we can get there.

- [Abigail] And he's one ofjust a handful of Democrats

pleased to hear the Presidentreaffirm his commitment

to protecting the unborn.

- I'm one of four, five,six Democrats in Pro-life.

I'll do whatever I can to makesure that we protect life,

but I do know the makeup of the House,

I do know you have to getto 60 votes over there

and so to get to wherethe President wants to get

might be difficult at this time.

- [Abigail] Many Republicans supported

the President's strong statements as well.

- He talked about the unborn.

I was very appreciativeof that moment too.

To recognize that life is precious

and that it should be protected,

unlike what's going onin New York and Virginia.

So, those were all very inspiring moments.

- The high from this year's Address

will be short lived forRepublicans if lawmakers

fail to reach a compromiseby the end of next week

to prevent another government shutdown.

Reporting from Capitol Hill,Abigail Robertson, CBN News.

- Well I hope they can listen

to what the President hadto say and get together.

We can't have another shutdown.

That last thing cost about $11billion, we can't afford it.

It hurts too many peopleand it's not just something

that you do on accountof some border wall.

You can't risk the jobs of people

and all the other ancillary problems.

We cannot have a governmentshutdown, we just can't do it.

Well in other news, theSenate has passed a bill

that takes a stand againstthe movement to boycott,

that -- boycott and to -- and so forth.

Well John Jessup has thisstory from our CBN News Bureau.

- Thanks, Pat.

The measure is aimed against those working

with the BDS Movement, BDS stands for

Boycott, Divestment,Sanctions against Israel.

The bill allows stateand local governments

to refuse to work with businesses

that are part of the BDS Movement.

Although the measure,

sponsored by Florida Senator Marco Rubio,

was approved by theSenate, it isn't expected

to pass the Democratic-controlled House.

So far 27 states have adopted laws

that discourage boycotts against Israel.

Well America's obesity epidemiccould take a terrible toll

as a number of cancer caseslinked to being overweight

are on the rise among people under 50,

with the biggest increasein younger people.

That's in a report byReuters citing a study

in the Lancet Public Health.

The increases come in colo-rectal,

kidney, and pancreaticcancers, among others.

Higher rates among younger Americans

now could lead to an explosion of cancers

in the years ahead as they grow older

and that would mean, Pat,even more healthcare costs

in both the privatesector and in government.

- Well we've been talkingabout the gut flora

and the other thing is inflammation

and we had Dr. Perle thereother day on the show

talking about inflammation.

That is the major healthproblem we're dealing with

and the cancers come from inflammation,

and the inflammation comes from ingesting

too much sugars, too much white flour,

and keeping the insulinhigh in our bodies.

And so, not only do weget the Parkinson's,

and we get Alzheimer's, and weget other types of dementia,

but now we're getting aserious epidemic of cancer

and I urge you, thepeople of this audience,

don't let your kids stuff up on junk food.

You read the labels of the cereals,

they're loaded with sugar

and the breakfast thatwe eat is sugar-loaded,

and then the snacks theyeat are sugar-loaded,

the soft drinks theydrink are sugar-loaded

and we're stressing our bodies

and we're building up inflammation

and the inflammation causes cancer.

So we've got an epidemic of cancer

just because we're eating the wrong stuff.

And parents, do you think you're doing

your children a favor?

You're not, you're killing them

when you stuff that stuff to them.

Read the labels on these cereals,

Sugar Puffs and that kind of stuff.

- It's frightening.

- It is frightening.

- And it's so sad whenyou see those young kids

and they're already obese and you think,

what kind of future are they gonna have?

- Well I've talked abouthigh fructose corn syrup,

which is a big deal, butyou've got sugar in everything.

They start off in the early days

with the food they give to little infants,

they think they've gottaload it with salt and sugar

and the little kids don't need that.

They want natural food.

And unfortunately there are steroids

being put into the beef, intothe pork, into the chickens.

They not only are steroidsto make them fatter,

but there are alsoantibiotics to kill bugs

but those antibiotics go through to people

and they in turn kill our gut flora.

It's a vicious cycle and I'm telling you

you look at free-rangechicken, and grass-fed beef

but you don't get that very often

especially if you go out to eat.

- Read the labels, right?

- How many people read labels?

I used to talk to my wife,

did you read the label what this is?

No, I didn't read the label.

Well you gotta read the labels

and it says the percentage of sugar,

and it'll tell ya what's in the food.

But, folks, this is an epidemic.

Talk about opioid, wegot the opioid problem,

well this other thing is there too.

Okay, Wendy.

- Well up next, the bottomline from the top woman

in charge of Medicare and Medicaid.

- Status quo isn't working forso many different Americans.

And so the idea here is tobe bold and make changes

that are gonna have a lasting impact

to improve healthcare for our country.

- [Wendy] Seema Verma talksabout implementing changes

that could affect yourhealthcare, right after this.

(upbeat music)

(upbeat music)

- As lawmakers in Washington

debate the future of healthcare,

the woman in charge ofMedicare and Medicaid

is trying to improve the services

under the law still in place.

Abigail Robertson brings us more.

- After President Trumpnominated Seema Verma

as the Administrator forMedicare and Medicaid Services

she knew moving from the private

to the public sector would be a challenge.

Yet she wanted to help her country

and even made the decisionto commute each week

between Indiana and D.C. to oversee

multi billion dollar programs

utilized by 130 million Americans.

- Saw some of the things thatwere going on in healthcare

and realized that our country was going

in the wrong direction on healthcare.

- [Abigail] One of the firstthings she wanted to tackle,

patient confusion.

- You don't have theinformation that you need

in terms of how much arethings going to cost,

you don't know about the quality,

and you don't have your medical records.

I think there's a lot of confusion.

- [Abigail] Verma wants to give patients

the necessary information to make

the best decisions about their healthcare.

Through an initiativecalled the Blue Button 2.0,

or My Healthy Data.

- The Federal Governmentspent some $36 billion

on investing in doctors and hospitals

having electronic medical records

and I think that's exciting,

but what happened in that is that

all of the information is siloed,

it sort of stayed in your doctor's office.

So before it was filingcabinet and right now

it's an electronic siloright inside the computer.

- [Abigail] Verma told CBNNews how a personal emergency

brought her face to face with this issue.

- I get on the phone withthe paramedics and they said,

your husband's not breathing,is he on any medication?

What's his healthcare background?

- [Abigail] Information Verma didn't have.

- It was a very difficultmoment, there's so much going on,

the panic of not being with my kids

and wondering what was going on with him.

For the medical professionalsthat were treating them,

they didn't have theinformation that they needed

to be able to diagnose him.

- [Abigail] While her husband recovered,

they still had to jump throughhoops to get his information.

- When I left the hospital they gave me

essentially a CD-ROM and they said,

here's his healthcare information.

- [Abigail] In today'stech world, however,

many computers won't evenread CD-ROMs anymore.

- I think the big issue isthat a lot of the information

wasn't even on what they gave me.

And so there's all ofthis information about him

that's sort of trapped at the hospital.

- [Abigail] Verma says this lack of access

is especially difficultfor patients who move

or see multiple healthcare providers.

- We're working on aninitiative to make it

very clear to providers thatthat data and that information

belongs to the patient, it is theirs.

And we wanna make sure thatwhen they leave the providers

they have that information.

- [Abigail] Under Verma,the Centers for Medicare

and Medicaid Services, or CMS,

is requiring providersto share this information

with patients or face penalties.

Verma believes that will notonly save time and money,

but could lead researchersto find breakthroughs.

- Because it's really going to give rise

to the type of innovation that we've seen

in the American healthcare system,

but I think it's going to bringit to a much higher level.

- What has the response been from

some of the patients who are trying this?

- Well I think peopleare excited about it,

we hear stories all the time.

I remember talking tosome of our staff saying,

I'm going to a new doctorand the doctor asked

for all of my healthcareinformation and she said,

I don't have time for this,to go around to every doctor,

asking for information.

And with this type oftool she should be able

to aggregate all of that information.

- [Abigail] Verma tells CBN News they have

more than 1,000 app developers working

to make this data moreuser-friendly for patients.

And she believes thisprogram will continue

no matter which partycontrols the White House.

- I think this is somethingthat we have heard

from both sides of the aisle,about how important this is,

and it's important on somany different dimensions.

- [Abigail] Althoughhealthcare negotiations

are moving slow on Capitol Hill,

Verma is trying to make thebest of her current authority.

- From my perspective I'm gonnafocus on what I can control.

That's one of life's lessons,

to focus on the things that you can do.

We always stand readyto work with Congress

if they wanna make changesand to provide them

with the support as they consider changes.

But in the meantime Idon't wanna stand still

and I wanna do everything that I can

to make sure that healthcareis working for every American.

- [Abigail] That means workingtoward the constant goal

of lowering healthcare costs

and making sure Medicare andMedicaid are sustainable.

- And what is your experience been like

working in the Trump Administration?

- For me it's exciting to be here

because we are with anadministration and a president

that isn't afraid ofdisrupting the status quo

on behalf of the American people.

And that's what I likeabout the Administration,

is that it's okay to be disruptive.

The status quo isn't workingfor so many different Americans

and so the idea here is tobe bold and make changes

that are gonna have a lasting impact

to improve healthcare for our country.

- Verma believes thechanges happening at CMS

can have an impact felt throughout

the entire healthcare system.

Reporting from Washington,Abigail Robertson, CBN News.

- Very interesting, isn't it?

- Well really amazing, yeah.

I wasn't familiar with that lady

but she's doing amazing work.

- She's doing a great job,I didn't know who she was.

Now we know.

- Now we know.

Well up next, you can't make this up.

From drug dealer, to NavySEAL, to actor in a movie

directed by Michael Bay.

- I was like, wow, this is crazy

because this is the guywho's first two films

inspired me to be a SEAL.

- [Wendy] Remi Adeleke shares

his supernaturaltransformation after this.

(upbeat music)

(upbeat music)

- Remi Adeleke was a19 year old drug dealer

when he heard a voice tellinghim to join the military.

Incredibly he followed that voice

and fulfilled a long forgotten dream

to become, of all things, a Navy SEAL.

But the greatesttransformation of Remi's life

was yet to come as he answered a call

to the Alaskan wilderness.

- I would see these musicvideos of these young

African American men who looked like me

and they had the cars,and they had the girls,

and they had the gold chains,and they had the money.

I'm like, that's what I want.

- [Reporter] Remi Adelekewas born to a wealthy

Nigerian entrepreneurand his American wife.

Up to the age of five Remilived in lap of luxury.

But when his father died unexpectedly

his mom moved Remi and his older brother

to the Bronx and a life of poverty.

But money wasn't the only thing he missed.

- For me to not havea father to affirm me,

to guide me, and providefor me and my brother,

I began to search out father figures.

- [Reporter] His mom was a Christian

who took them to church andtaught them to follow Jesus.

Instead, Remi looked tostreet hustlers and rappers

as his role models andhis way out of poverty.

- I just wanted my life,and my brother's life,

and my mother's life tobe better than it was.

- [Reporter] As a young teen

he went from petty theft to selling drugs.

During this time he also saw two films

by director Michael Bay that showed him

he could aspire to something better.

- The first one was Bad Boys,

and the second one was The Rock.

That was the first time Isaw two African American men

in Bad Boys who looked likeme but they were still cool

and they were heroes.

After I watched The Rock Ifiled away deep down within me

this idea that I wouldbe a Navy SEAL one day.

- [Reporter] But for a teenage dealer

and scam artists making thousands,

that dream seemed far out of reach.

- Chances of that happeningis absolutely slim to none.

And as time passed that idea faded away.

- [Reporter] That is until a drug dealer

came into their homethreatening to kill Remi.

Remi paid him off but it wasthe wake up call he needed.

- All of these years I'm doing this dirt,

and not only did I bringthis dirt into my life,

but I brought it to my mom's doorstep.

I made the decisions I'mgetting out of this life.

- [Reporter] But now 19, Remihad no idea what to do next.

Until one morning in bed

he heard a voice he didn't recognize.

- And this voice said to me,

"You need to join the military."

And I was like, "What?

Heck no, I'm not joining themilitary, absolutely not."

And I popped up and I lookedaround and I said to myself,

Remi, what else to you have?

- [Reporter] Remi joined the Navy

and signed up to be a Navy SEAL.

He passed the grueling trainingand earned his Trident.

- Especially coming fromthe background I came from

and now achieving what I'd achieved

and graduated from SEAL training,

probably the most elite military program

on the face of this planet,

I was just very, very prideful,

especially because Ihad achieved greatness.

- [Reporter] But Remistill had an emptiness

that needed to be filled.

- I was in the clubs every weekend,

sleepin' around, partying.

I was vulgar, combative,I was out of control

and I had a girlfriend atthe time, I cheated on her.

I was just a bad dude towardsher and she wouldn't leave me,

she stayed with me and shewould take me to church.

- [Reporter] During their relationship

Remi's team was sent tothe Alaska wilderness

for a cold weather survival training.

Alone on a hike he again heard a voice,

but this time he knew who it was.

- I remember just walkingthrough the wilderness

and just mesmerized by thenature, the beauty, the silence.

But in the midst of that silence

God began to reveal himself to me.

God showed me what I had become.

And I just remember feelingdisgusted with what I saw.

And I decided I'm gonna fixmyself, I'm gonna change myself.

- [Reporter] Once back onbase, he called his girlfriend.

- I just want you toknow that when I get back

I wanna marry you, I'mma be a better man,

I'm working on myself to change myself,

but I'm gonna be better.

And she said, "I'mleaving you, it's over."

I fell into a deep depression

and I remember my brother told me,

when you it rock bottom,'cause it's gonna happen,

cry out to Jesus.

When you've tried everythingand nothing's worked,

cry out to Jesus.

I finally said, Jesus, I need your help.

- [Reporter] But he was stillreeling from the breakup

and called his ex when he got home.

- 'Cause in my naive, crazymind I felt like the answer

to fixing my problemswas her taking me back.

So I said, please take me back,

she said, no I won't take you back.

And I said, okay, ifyou won't take me back,

can you at least take me to church?

And then she paused and then she said,

okay, I won't take you back,but I'll take you to church.

I just got up and I said, Ineed something greater than me

and if this Jesus is greaterthan and if he's real,

then that's gonna be my solution.

And so I went to altar and Isurrendered my life to Jesus.

Instantaneously my life changed.

- [Reporter] Over thenext three months Remi let

his heavenly Father bringhealing to his mind and soul.

- His presence was so tangible to me

that I looked to Him, this is my father

teaching me how to treat women.

This is my father teachingme how to be a man now

and what real manhood is.

- [Reporter] In 2016Remi left the military

and started a consulting business.

One day he got an unusual call.

They were filming a new Transformers movie

and needed someone with hisexpertise for a small role.

The director was Michael Bay.

- I was like, wow, this is crazy

because this is the guywho's first two films

inspired me to be a SEAL.

- [Reporter] Today Remi isstill in the film industry

as an actor and screenwriter.

And he's enjoying hisgreatest role yet as a husband

to his wife, Jessica,and father to three sons.

In his book, Transformed,he shares how God

has guided his life evenwhen he didn't realize it.

- I can go to my heavenlyFather to get direction,

whether it's through prayer,

through fellowship, orthrough the Scriptures.

I have a Father.

- I have a Father.

Most of us look for afather, men and women,

they want a father figure.

Girls need a father,boys need a role model,

they need a father and God is the father.

There are many peoplethat have broken homes,

they come from perhapsthe father has died,

maybe he's abandoned thefamily, who knows what,

but there's so many whogrow up without fathers.

And God says, I will be a father to you,

I will be your father,you can be my child.

And the Lord God of --, thecreator of the universe,

will look down and He'llsmile upon you, and say,

come, my child, be mine.

You are my child, you aremy son, you are my daughter,

you're part of my family.

And the Bible says all thefamilies are named after Him

and whatever familythere is it's God's idea,

it's God's idea to put people in families

and he wants you to have Him as a father.

And if you would likethat He says I be it.

When Jesus was prayinghe said, Abba Father,

which is sort of animateway of almost like Daddy

and Abba Father, the Lordhimself, recognized the Father

and he talked about the Father,

and He is a father toeveryone who wants Him.

And I thank God that He is my Father.

I had a very distinguished father

but my heavenly Father isgreater than all human fathers

and you can have that Fatherif you just call upon Him

and say, Lord, I'm a sinner,I haven't lived for You.

You know I've gone my ownway but I wanna come home

like the prodigal son,

I wanna come back to my father's house.

Would you like to do that today?

Just bow your head and pray with me.

Pray these simple words,but mean them in your heart.

Father, I come to younow, I repent of my sins.

I have broken Your laws,

I have gone far awayfrom Your Commandments.

You know what I've done and I come to You

without one plea but that Your life

and Your blood was shed for me.

So I know, Lord Father,that You sent Your son,

Your precious son, Jesus, to die for me

so right now I receive him as my savior

and I acknowledge that You are my Father.

I take You, Lord, and thank You.

Thank You, Lord, in Jesus' name.

Now if you prayed withme, the Lord has heard you

and He's accepted you andyou're part of His family.

And I want you to dosomething, the Bible says,

if you confess with yourmouth the Lord Jesus

and believe in your heart that God

has raised you from thedead, you'll be saved.

I want you to confessit, just tell somebody.

And how do you do it?

We've got people on the phones right now,

I want you to call up and say,

look, I just prayed that prayer with Pat,

I gave my heart to the Lordand God almighty is my Father.

The toll free number is 1-800-700-7000,

it's easy to remember, 700-7000.

There are people on thephones right now who love you

and the angels of Heaven are rejoicing

because you've come to the Father's house.

So pick up the phone, call right now,

and somebody's there who loves you.

And I wanna send you something,by the way, to help you.

Some time ago I did a CD,

it's out 72 or 73 minutes,

and you can play it oncompact disk, and it's got

what do you do now thatyou've come to the Lord.

What does it mean?

What does it mean to have a changed life?

What does it mean to be born again

and to be accepted into the family of God?

And what if you fall away and you sin,

how do you get rid of that?

It's all in here and Iwill give this to you free

if you just call.

Again, the number is 1-800-700-7000.

Toll free, no money, nocharge, nothing, it's all free,

but I want you to call right now and say,

I just prayed and I haveaccepted Jesus as savior

and God almighty is my Father.

Wendy.

- Amen.

Well still ahead, she has25 million books in print

and millions of fans worldwide.

Now her Karen Kingburyturns her amazing talents

to writing a children's book series

along with her son, Tyler Russell.

That's coming up later.

Plus we've got your email.

Katrina asked,

Your questions, Honest Answers, coming up.

(upbeat music)

(upbeat music)

- Welcome back to Washingtonfor this CBN Newsbreak.

More and more people arechoosing to settle down

in Israeli settlement in the West Bank.

According to population data obtained

from the Israeli Interior Ministry

the number of people living in settlements

grew at a much faster rate than

the overall Israeli population last year.

And more growth is predicted.

The Director of West BankJewish Population Stats

credits the Trump Administrationsaying the White House

has created a much friendlierenvironment for settlers.

Well a pastor in Myanmar is dead

after being kidnapped atgunpoint by a rebel army.

Several other people were taken as well.

Pastor Tun Nu was missingfor newly two weeks

before his death was confirmed.

Gospel for Asia says he was afield partner of the ministry.

Married with three young children,

Pastor Tun Nu led a congregationin Myanmar's Rakhine State.

During 20 years as pastorhe shared the love of Christ

with many and started several fellowships.

The ministry has asked for prayers

for his family and the church.

Well you can always getthe latest from CBN News

by visiting our website at CBNNews.com.

Pat and Wendy will be back with more

of the 700 Club right after this.

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- Well Mom was right, your best friends

are the ones around thedinner table every night.

That's a quote from KarenKingsbury's latest novel

about the childhood stories

of the fictional Baxter siblings.

It's the first in her newBaxter Family children's series

and also the first co-writtenwith her son, Tyler Russell.

Take a look.

- [Reporter] Karen Kingsburyis a New York Times

best selling novelistand America's favorite

inspirational storyteller.

She has over 25 million copies of

her award winning books in print

and millions of fans around the world.

She continues to inspireand entertain readers

with her latest novel, Best Family Ever.

Karen teams up with her son, Tyler,

in the first book in theBaxter Family children's series

to tell the childhood stories

of the beloved Baxter children.

- And please welcome to the 700 Club,

welcome back to the 700Club, Karen Kingsbury,

and for the very first timeyour oldest son, Tyler Russell.

Great to have you here.

- Thank you so much, thank you.

- Well first of all, Karen,

again you have 25 million books in print,

why did you decide tostart a children's series?

- Well the publisheractually had the idea.

They said, what about thesekids when they were young,

like when they were 11and 12, nine years old?

What would that look like if we did a book

for eight to 12 year olds.

So I know adults are gonna love this

'cause they wanna seewhat the kids were like.

But it's really written for kids

and my first responsewas, I don't have time.

I'm doing two novels a year,

and that's when I thought of Tyler

because he has time andhe's a great writer.

So I said, what if Tylerwrites them and I edit them

so that they come across with my voice

but he's written them?

And they were like, we can do that.

- Tyler, what is this like for you?

- It's been amazing just working with her,

learning from her, it's areally collaborative process.

We get to come together and dream,

and outline, and plan together,and then just to go away.

And I've watched her mywhole life just write,

she finds a room andshe writes a whole book.

So to be able to have that practice

and to grow up under that,

it's such an honor to do this together

and I don't think there'sa better teacher than her.

- That creative process is so much fun,

and you're brainstorming,and you're dreaming,

well what about this.

Do you ever get something that you think,

this is so great, andyou're mom's like, well.

(laughing)

- Well there definitely is thesmoothing out some wrinkles.

- I think sometimes you did that for me.

Ashley is like a favoritecharacter as they get older,

so Ashley's like 11 yearsold and she is so funny,

she is a funny--

I find myself like laughingout loud when I read

the first draft that he's done

and we have her making some mistakes,

like she's really aboutParis and she wants

to go there one day and see the paintings.

- Aww, so many little girlsdo that just love Paris.

- I know, exactly, and she's says,

"I can't wait to see the Awful Tower."

(laughing)

- The Awful Tower.

Oh, it is funny!

- Her dad says, "No, no,Honey, it's the Eiffel Tower."

And she says, "Well I thinkit's a Awful Tower, look at it.

It's crooked, it goes at an angle."

So I added a couple moreof those in and Tyler said,

"No Mom, you did toomany, that's too much."

And he was right, so weended up going with is way.

But it's a lot fun, there'sheartwarming pieces,

the kids are really just precious.

So you're laughing,and then you're crying.

- And are these characterscompletely fictional,

or do you think about someone you knew

or a neighbor, or a siblingwhen you write, Tyler?

- I think experiences thatI went through growing up

definitely come into play in these books,

but it's fictional and I think it's fun

to take different pieces ofpeople that we knew growing up,

or different people that we know now.

- But then they become so real

and they take on this life, don't they?

- [Karen] They really do.

- And especially after having had

more than 20 books about them as adults,

that we know so much aboutthem from when the were older

and now it's fun to explorewhere they came from.

- Well what do you it is aboutthis fictional Baxter family

that readers just can't get enough of?

- I think you can see yourself

in any one of the members of the family.

I think in some way you can relate,

and especially with these kids' books.

Everyone can relate to moving,

starting over, making new friends,

trying to be true toyourself, and be honest.

And so I think this book, especially,

will resonate withfamilies just to be able

to teach life lessons that we hope

that God can continue touse to build people up.

- So technically this wouldbe called a prequel, right?

- A really early, early prequel, yeah,

'cause they're so much younger.

- And this was thepublisher's idea, right?

- The publisher's ideathat if we could go back

to a simpler time, this is before Netflix,

before cell phones.

These kids are just finding their way,

they have a tree house,

and they love to explore in their yard,

but they also are veryclose to each other.

I was one of five, andthen Tyler is one of six,

and so that idea of yourfamily being your best friends,

that people will comeand go from your life,

but even we tell our kids,long after me and Dad are gone

you'll have each other.

So that is something thatpours through the pages

of Best Family Ever, and wethink it's gonna be a classic.

The publisher is going to print

twice as many copies as my adult books.

I'm just really thankful that Tyler

was willing to do this and step in,

he's such a strong writerand he knew the backstory.

- Wow, that's a greatcompliment from Karen Kingsbury.

- He knew the characterswell enough as adults

to do some really fun foreshadowing,

like seeing Ashley sketch when we know

she's gonna grow up to be an artist.

Just those kinds ofdetails that no one else

would have understood aswell, I don't think, as Tyler.

So this is heartwarming,

people will definitely laugh and cry,

and they're gonna wanna readit out loud to their kids.

And librarians at schoolsare already saying,

we want a lot of copies because this is

the kind of story that kids need.

It's encouraging, it builds them up,

and it shows them family can be strong

even when people areflawed and make mistakes.

- Yeah.

Karen, you always knew that you wanted

to be a writer, is that right?

- Yes, I was five years oldwhen I wrote my first book.

Every word was spelled wrong, but yeah.

- What about you, Tyler,

did you know you wanted to be a writer?

- I think there was alwayspart of me that enjoyed it,

whether I was writing short stories.

I think in second grade Isubmitted a writing contest

and won a prize in our county,so I always enjoyed writing.

- [Wendy] How old were youwhen you got the bug though,

the writing bug?

I don't know, I think Ialways had it in some way

and I think after collegethe idea really became real

and God opened up so manyopportunities to work with her.

We also work on screenwriting together

so we've adapted some ofher books into screenplays.

- And a funny story about Tyler,

so when he was probably eight years old

we were driving arounddoing errands and he said,

"You know, Mom, I been thinkingI think I wanna be a singer,

or I might be an actor when I'm older,

but I think I'm gonna write books

in my spare time like you do.

I think it was the greatest compliment

that any child could ever give me is that

it felt like I was writing books

in my spare time while I raised them.

And yet you could seethat bug was there for him

but it was side timething, part time thing,

'cause that's how it came across

to the kids as I was writing.

So thank God that I could write quickly

and that they felt like they were first.

- Well the book iscalled Best Family Ever,

I've got a copy right here,

it's available wherever books are sold

and we will be right back with more

of the 700 Club after this.

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- You are watching the 700Club and we're delighted

to have you with us and we look forward

to your questions and some honest answers

coming up in a few minutes.

But right now I wannaintroduce you to Travis.

When he lost his jobjust before the holidays

he and his wife, Cara, could've panicked.

Instead they relied onGod's promise to provide

for their family, and that'sexactly what happened.

- [Reporter] Travis and Cara cherish

spending time with theirtwo young daughters.

But just a few years agofamily time was rare.

Travis was working long hours

away from home as a plant manager.

- I saw my kids usuallyfour days every two weeks.

- [Reporter] After 12years with the same company

Travis expected a promotion but in 2016,

just before Thanksgiving, he was laid off.

Cara was a stay-at-home mom

so it was a blow to their family's income,

but not to their faith.

- God provides, it's not the job,

it's not the things that we do,

but He will take care of all of our needs.

And living that out isreally hard sometimes.

- [Reporter] Travis and Cara prayed

strategically about their needs.

As home schoolers with two young children

they felt the pressure,

but they never stoppedtithing or giving to CBN.

Less than two monthslater Travis was offered

a new job making more money,

plus he wasn't traveling as much.

- So I see my kids twiceas much as what I used to.

- And to see that workedout, it strengthened

our relationship and our marriage as well.

- [Reporter] Travis andCara were so grateful

they decided to increasetheir giving to CBN.

For them it's all about faith and trust.

- CBN honors the money thatyou give and it's at work

in the lives of other peopleand that's one of the reasons

that I'm most excited about CBN.

There's a heart for Christ,

a heart for shining God'slove out into the world,

and for caring for people andthat's really the mission,

the Great Commission, sothat's why we love CBN.

- I think CBN ends up touching many

of the areas of the world that you,

as an individual, cannot touch.

- God will return muchmore than what you've given

because whatever you releaseto Him, He will return to you.

- Well we appreciate people like them.

They're what make upthe bulk of the people

who support this ministry.

Couples who love God,people who love the Lord

and who believe in God regardless

of the difficulties they face in life.

Travis and his lovely wife,I wanna give this to them

and to each one of youwho join the 700 Club.

It's called the I Wills of God

and if you read the 91st Psalm

there's a section in there where God says,

"Because he has placed his loveupon me, therefore I will."

And then He goes on to say what He will do

when you place your love uponHim, and it's so thrilling.

So anyhow, this is a teachingon the I Wills of God

and you have some comments.

- People love it, Pat, I loved it.

It is so powerful becauseit's so much Scripture.

And this is from Jackiefrom Windham, New Hampshire.

She says,

Jackie, thanks so muchfor letting us know.

- Praise God.

Well, folks, I wanna send this to you.

Join the 700 Club, 65cents day, it's real easy

and you can be a member.

So, time for some questions.

- Yes, sir, let's start with this one.

Katrina, she writes in,

- Well there's one religionand I think it's right

and it's called Christianity.

Jehovah's Witness is a branchof Orthodox Christianity.

They're off into some areathat is not exactly on target

but the big thing is, do they honor Jesus,

do they confess Jesus is Lord,

and number one, do they believe the Bible.

And if they believe theBible, and teach the Bible,

and they teach it according

to the meaning of the word of God,

you say what's the right religion,

well the right religionis to worship Jesus.

Jesus is the son of God.

The Bible says he wasconceived to a virgin,

and suffered under Pontius Pilate,

and he was crucified, dead and buried,

and on the third day he rose again.

That's the Creed and we believe that.

That is the heart of Christianity.

And Paul said, I'm not ashamed

of the Gospel of Jesus Christ,

it's the power of God under salvation

to all those who believe

and I'm the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Alright.

- Here's one, Pat, from Jessie.

She says,

- I think that's the most confused

mess I've ever heard about.

The guy is married, he's got kids,

but you call him your boyfriendso he has a child with you

and your daughter, sheisn't sure who her father is

and so she's calling yourboyfriend quote "Dad."

And then he says that'lltake away his love

from his other children?

This is sin, sin will lead

to incredible confusion and problems.

For this cause the Bible says,

a man shall leave his mother and father

and cleave unto his wife andthe twain shall be one flesh.

That's the whole idea of a marriage,

is between two people who are committed

to each other in holy wedlock.

And what do you do about that,

what do you tell your daughter?

You try to get your life straightened out

and you go back to firstthings, where should you start,

and maybe you can get godlycounsel from some pastor

who believes the Bibleand see if he can give you

some guidance as to howto straighten things out.

- That's a mess.

Alright, Dee says,

- The Bible says, have nothingto do with an angry man.

I really think that he's an angry man

and you don't have to putup with that kind of stuff.

But that's biblical, havenothing to do with an angry man.

That brother has got a mental problem,

he's got emotional problem.

He hates himself andbecause he hates himself

he hates everybody else.

So I don't know what you do with him.

- Alright, Joan says,

- That's what I told-- when I met with him

and he was a Premier of China.

I said, these Christianpeople will be good citizens

and they believed that at the time.

But look, a dictatorwants absolute obedience

and if they don't get absolute obedience

they want to persecute thosewho will not be obedient.

Christians have an allegiance

to God almighty a to Jesus Christ

and they cannot have absoluteobedience to some dictator.

That's why dictatorsdon't like Christians.

- Alright, Mitchell writes in,

- Well the Bible says,perfect love casts out fear

for fear has torment.

Here's the deal, thereason she is so afraid

is because she is concerned about herself.

This is self-love and she's worried

about what's gonna happen to her.

When she puts her attention onsomebody else, perfect love,

she loves the Lord then she isn't worried

about her own safety and thatwill set her free from this.

But perfect love, sheneeds to love the Lord

and then she'll be free.

Well today's PowerMinute is from Psalm 34.

This is the last day that Wendy

will be a single lady on this program.

She's gonna get married this weekend

and we're so happy for her.

God bless.

See you later.

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