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Trump Walked Into His Church. He Lost Half His Congregation
August 3, 2026 · 35 min
A Detroit pastor tells how an unplanned phone call and steadfast faith transformed his ministry and lifted the marginalized into God's spotlight.
Series The Tyler Feller Show August 3, 2026 · 35 min · The Tyler Feller Show
A Detroit pastor tells how an unplanned phone call and steadfast faith transformed his ministry and lifted the marginalized into God's spotlight. ...more Show the full description Show less A Detroit pastor tells how an unplanned phone call and steadfast faith transformed his ministry and lifted the marginalized into God's spotlight.
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Tyler Feller is a pastor, author, and founder of Encounter Night, equipping believers to pursue their God-given purpose through teaching, worship, and transformative ministry experiences.
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Unexpected Call: Trump Visits Detroit Church 0:00 Sometimes the most important conversations are never scheduled. This is the story of a pastor from inner city Detroit whose life0:12 changed after 1 unexpected phone call from Donald Trump. Pastor Lorenzo Sula grew up surrounded by violence, was shot at as a child, watched his father0:24 go to prison, and ultimately found his life transformed by Jesus. Years later, president Trump came to his church, a decision that cost Lorenzo nearly 0.5 his congregation and0:35 placed him at the center of a national conversation. That unlikely journey would eventually lead him to Washington, DC, where he prayed at the presidential inauguration before the0:47 entire world. In this conversation, Lorenzo shares what happened behind the scenes, why he believes God placed him in this moment, and why Christians can no longer afford to0:59 remain silent as America's future is being decided. Lorenzo, thank you for1:11 taking time. You know, it's so funny today. You were in line in front of us during security to get into the into this capitol building. Actually, went to dinner last night with somebody, and they said, hey. We know1:20 you're interviewing a lot of congresspeople. Would you ever interview a civilian?1:24 And1:25 I said, I would love to and, it depends on who it is. And he said, I'm friends with Lorenzo.1:30 Wow.1:30 I think I could ask him. He might say yes. His name is Frank. Wow. And then you just happen to be in in line and security in front1:36 of us. Look at that. Yeah.1:37 And I told Andrew, I said,1:39 Frank's1:39 told us that we needed to talk1:40 to him. Here he is in1:41 in security line. So thank you for taking time.1:44 That's awesome. I'm I'm definitely honored. Holy ghost happy to be with you.1:47 Yeah. Come on, man. You know, you took a stand with the president, and it was like crate it was he he cold called you1:55 Yeah.1:55 And you answered it, and then your life's never been the same. Walk me through that. What happened?2:00 Yeah. Jesus, he hears the cries of the poor. We know this in the book of Exodus. Right? The Bible says it was because of the reason of their bondage. They cried out and God remembered2:10 Yeah.2:10 His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And we know God doesn't forget. Right? You know, those are terms that the Bible uses in order for us to understand, like, what was in God's heart. Well,2:22 his people became the forefront of his agenda again Yeah. Because of their prayers. And so it is. In my community, 80 percent of the kids cannot read. Tyler, can you imagine that?2:30 That's crazy.2:31 As of today, right now, we have a young man who was murdered 2 years ago. 4 people were caught and never charged. Today, his mom reached out. Can you imagine a place where people know2:43 more about Fentanyl than faith?2:45 Wow.2:45 I mean, literally, where you can hear Islam yelling Yeah. And you can't even hear a church bell ringing. I mean, that that's my context. That's why that's why I am. I'm in the hood hood, as you would say. Right?2:57 And human trafficking, open human trafficking, and the president said he would come. Can you imagine that? Yeah. Can you imagine? A Republican hadn't been there since Reagan. So when he came Were3:07 you a supporter of Trump at that point, or were you just ambiguous?3:09 That's a good question. I always voted Republican, always been conservative, but I've always served in context, The least of these that is enfranchised, marginalized, push aside, typically people that vote Democrat. I3:21 mean, as the saying goes, I vote Democrat because I'm black. That's what people have always said. Mhmm. I've always voted Republican because I believe the Bible, literally. Mhmm. So I wasn't a Trump guy or not for Trump,3:31 it's just that he's the president. I mean, what do you do, right? You pray for him and you keep it moving, right? I didn't understand that politics is righteously regulating resources. I didn't understand that Jesus, he3:41 makes it very clear that his ekklesia, we are a government entity that ought to bind, loose, forbid, allow. I had no idea. I had no idea Yeah. That God wants his church to be in the forefront3:53 of politics. No clue. So when he said he was coming, I was like, I can't give him money out of me. You know, we're we're black poor church on the west side of Detroit. Like, what does he wanna come from? I'll never4:03 forget this. And this is how I knew it was God. 1 of his assistants said, it was Mickey clearly. Mickey said this to me. I'll never forget it. We were out, we were like out in the area, they were just security, his4:13 advanced team.4:13 Yeah.4:14 So we're kinda out looking at everything. And he says, we want you to know that we don't want any people of influence to come, we want your people to come. Wow. And when he said said that, I knew 100 percent was God4:25 because we know what the scripture says. Right? When you throw a party, when you do something like that, bring the least of these, let them have the front row. We we know what the Bible says about that. So I was like,4:32 this is wild. Right? But I still thought, me. Come on, doctor. He isn't gonna come. So I'll never forget it was a Monday. I'll never forget. So when this whole team pulled up, it was, like, maybe4:44 4 or 5 black guys that jumped out of the car, and they and they were college age. So I thought, why are you all here? And I walked right up to them, and they told me they wanted to be involved in politics. That's why I4:54 was like, you know what? There's something different about this president. Perhaps God could be using him. I mean, it's far in the back of my mind. But, you know, it's it's it's like God kinda nudging you saying maybe5:04 this is me because I'm still trying to see. Is this God? Right? I mean, like, I'm I'm in Detroit. I didn't know how much people hated Trump. I had no idea. No clue. Only thing I knew is I'm a pastor. My job is to pray5:15 for our leaders. That's what Timothy told that's what Paul told Timothy. That's simple. That's all I know. So his team says to me on Monday, they said, you know what? We we can't tell you for sure yet, but we'll call you5:25 and let you know probably Wednesday. That's what they said. Mhmm. So Tuesday comes. My name is on the front page of the Detroit dudes. Cannot make this up. People are calling me. President Trump's coming to your church,5:37 and these are members who I know work for the union.5:41 I don't like Trump.5:43 They're big givers too. Yeah. There's our state. There's the stability of our church calling me. Yeah. They let president Trump come. So my I'm I'm God is my witness. I was so afraid. Mhmm. I thought they were gonna stay5:53 take my church because Detroit with our municipalities, they do something called illegal drainage fees. They can just tell you, oh, 10000 dollars on your church and take your church. Yes.6:03 Wow.6:03 There's a real thing in Detroit. I'm serious. It's called water drainage fees. I'm not joking. So the 1st thought I went through my mind is I'm gonna lose my church. Like, even though we don't have a mortgage and we've6:12 been there forever, but it's just the point, you know, I was afraid. So I'm like, God, what do I do? He said, go to city council. So I go to city council. You have to fill out something public comments. So you have to6:21 fill out the little form out. So I fill the form out. I give it to the girl. She looks at my name. She says, Trump's coming to your church. I'm like, oh my gosh. So I'm sitting in front of the city council. Nobody even6:30 looks at me. They all put their head down. And I'm like, well, you know, like my my, hat my hair kind of thing. Like, I'm here, you know, President Donald Trump's coming to my church. If you like to come, come. I'm6:41 trying to like make amends, I'll never forget this. There's a gentleman by the name of Ramon Jackson. I've never seen this in my life and this is why I know God allowed the president to come. He stands in front of city6:52 council. He says, if any of you can prove to me that you weren't cheated in the elections, arrest me right now. So now, somebody you got to think about this, we're in the hood now, all black people. Only people that I7:04 heard say the election were stolen were white people, and I Yeah. And it was, like, not a thing in our community. Like, what the hell? How could you steal an election type of thing, right? President Trump comes the day7:13 be day after his birthday, which was, which is June 14th. By the way, I was at the UFC event. Just wanna put that out there. Come on. That was funny. Yeah. That's crazy. That's7:20 something that I'm jealous about.7:22 I was I was really good. I'll bring my belt next time. I think he got a belt too. I gotta help me about I'll bring next time we connect. But anyway, so he I hear that he wants me to be on his his like, the panel. Yeah.7:33 So I'm7:33 like, what what do I say? What what do you want me to ask? I prayed about it. And I printed a shirt that said, make black America great again. And he loved it. It was pretty cool. But while before I go in because, you7:45 know, the they have to sweep the building, they have to, you know, seek a service, I don't think. The guy comes up to me, Ramon. He taps me on my shoulder. He said, I have proof they sold the elections. And I'm7:57 thinking, this is the same guy. And, you know, we don't do that. In our community, you don't you would never insinuate something like that. You just wouldn't do it. You won't come up to somebody and say anything like8:07 that. It's just it's just what happened in our community. I said, how can you prove that? He said, I moved out of Detroit. I moved to Ohio. The secretary of state reregistered8:19 me back to my old address and cast absentee ballot for me without my knowledge. He said the reason why I know that is because I sued them, and they said that I got registered through a8:31 driver's license transaction. He said I wasn't there. I was in Ohio. How how can you register me? And I was in Ohio. They said it was through the driver's license transaction. So the secretary of state admitted8:43 that they are voting for people through driver's license transactions when people move away. So he sues. It goes all the way to the Supreme Court. Last year, the Supreme Court said, no. The reason why you don't have8:54 standing, because you said the entire electric was stolen. So he said, okay. What about all these other people that I have right here? So they were voting for people in my church and switching their vote. Wow. Can youUnveiling Election Integrity Issues 9:06 imagine that?9:07 That's wow.9:08 So that's how we got to the place that we're at today, and the president is gonna talk about what tonight?9:12 Yeah. That's what I was gonna ask you about.9:13 He's gonna talk about that. So I know the RNC, the inauguration. Jesus, with everything inside of me, I know he selected me to be the election integrity evangelist.9:25 Not because I'm some guy that chases ambulances or I'm looking for an election integrity type of thing.9:31 Just put it in front of you.9:32 Totally. Literally put people in front of me. Yeah. Not ballots, not machines, physical people that had their vote cast for them. They were registered without their knowledge and also their votes were switched. Now think9:43 about this for a 2nd.9:43 How do you know their vote was switched?9:44 Well, because you can when you pull your voter history.9:46 Okay.9:47 So you went in you went in to the valley to the, to vote, and then you pull your history, and you look and you say, hold on. I never voted absentee.9:55 Yeah.9:56 I was physically there. Yeah. So this isn't a And I9:58 didn't vote for comma.9:59 Totally. Yeah. It's not a democrat. It's not a republican thing. This is the fact that how are we gonna preserve our country? Right. How are we gonna have the right to do this? Right. To be able to talk about Jesus, be10:10 able to lift up his name, and we know that the people that are being voted in and making the laws are not the people that we actually selected. So that's why I believe God put me in this position.10:19 Wow. That's absolutely wild. That's well, so that's what's going on today and how you kinda got there. Did you ever believe that you would be saying the prayer at the inauguration?10:29 I I'm telling you. He promised me. I'll give you I'll text you the the pictures where he promised me at my church. And it's it's crazy because he asked me to pray for him when we were at the round table at my church.10:38 Yeah. And I'm kinda like, okay. This is great, you know. And he was like, I want you to be my pastor. I think this is really cool. You know? So I prayed for him. And then when I prayed for him, pray for his protection.10:47 We know what happened with Butler. You know, that was a God thing. The Holy Spirit shows us what to pray for. We don't know what we should pray for as we all. And then he was leaving. And as he was leaving, he's like,10:57 where's the pastor at? Come here. Where's the pastor? So he and I start talking. He's like, nobody's ever prayed for me like that before. By the way, at the inauguration, you'll be there. So so you, like, you gotta think11:06 about that. Like, come on.11:07 Yeah. You're like, you say that to everybody.11:09 And and and also, it's like the same likelihood of him coming. Yeah. What's the likelihood of me? You know? And that at that point, you know, senators, Joe Biden president Biden was in the race at that time.11:21 So it was like, okay. Maybe he could win. Right? So now, obviously, he wins. I was on my way to go to go be with Charlie. Can you imagine it? And actually, the11:33 same day that I heard Charlie's name was the same day I heard about the elections and I met the president. It was all on the same day. I didn't even know Charlie Kirk was. No idea. He did his believer summit in Detroit.11:43 Yeah. But I11:44 didn't know who he was. So I was on my way to his event, my son and I, because my son didn't believe I knew Charlie Kirk. Like, my son was following Charlie Kirk before I was. He's like, you don't know Charlie Kirk. I11:52 said, I just was with him. Like, I'm just on the show. Like, that was the reason why I was sitting in the corner on my phone. I was with him. He's like, yeah. Right. So I was like, well, how about you go with me to to,12:02 his believer summit? So we were there. So so we pull up, and it was so we're on the airplane. I turned my phone on and all these missed calls from the White House and for president Trump's campaign. And I'm thinking12:13 like, you know, who are these people? And they said, what are you doing on January 20th? I said, let me check my schedule. Nothing. Right. Right. Right. Right. So what was cool about it was that12:25 day is the same day that we celebrate doctor King's Yeah. Birthday. Celebrate his birthday. And I'm like, okay, god. What am I I think what what do you want me to pray type of thing. Right? And12:37 I don't know. Like, do I am I supposed to lead the nation in a salvation prayer? I mean, there's so many things going on in your mind. And I felt like the lord was like, I want you to pray the dream. I said, pray the12:44 dream. Yeah. What do what do you mean pray the dream? Pray doctor King's dream.12:48 Let us pray for our 47th president. Heavenly father, we're so grateful that you gave our 45th and now our 47th president a millimeter miracle.13:00 We are grateful that you are the 1 that have called him for such a time as this13:07 that13:08 America would begin to dream again. We pray that we would fulfill the true meaning of our creed, that we hold these truths to13:19 be self evident, that all men are created equal. We pray that you use our president, That we will live in a nation where we will13:31 not be judged by the color of our skin, but by the content of our character. Heavenly father, in the name of Jesus, we are so grateful today13:44 that you will use our 47th president so we would sing with new meaning, my country13:57 Yasin. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrims pride from every mountainside. Let freedom ring and because AmericaPraying King's Dream at Inauguration 14:08 is called to be a great nation, we believe that you will make this come true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.14:21 Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Allegrettes of Pennsylvania. Let freedom14:33 ring from the snow capped Rockies of Colorado. Let freedom ring from the curvaceous hilltops of California. But god, we're asking you not14:45 only that. Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain, Georgia. Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee. Let freedom ring from every hill and14:57 every molehill in Mississippi, from every state, every city, every village, and every hamlet. And when we let freedom ring, we will be able to speed up that15:09 day. All of your children, black men and white men, protestant and catholic, jew and gentile will be able to sing in the meaning of that old15:20 negro spiritual. Free at last. Free at last. Thank you, God almighty. We are free at last. If you believe where the spirit of the Lord is, there15:32 is liberty. Come on. Put your hands together and give your great god great glory.15:56 And it's really connected to after doctor King's assassination, something called HUD passed that legislation. And once that legislation was passed, it was passed to give poor people a16:07 hand up and out of handout. Mhmm. So that prayer was connected prophetically to those that are in my community that are disenfranchised, marginalized, and pushed aside, who typically look16:19 for the government to give them a handout Yeah. Through section 8, through paying for their rent. Yeah. When HUD was actually meant to give them a hand up through section 3 by contracting with you so you can be able to16:31 get off of welfare. So that was a little bit I've never been able to tell that story, but that was a little bit of the way. So so it's funny. You know it's the day of right? Elon Musk is there. Everyone in the world.16:40 It's it's just wild. It is freezing cold. Totally.16:42 They move it indoors. Unbelievable.16:44 It was so Sound16:44 system breaks. You get to hear Carrie just sing a cappella.16:48 Well, the guy didn't put on he didn't turn his microphone on. I'm standing right next to him. He didn't turn his microphone on. And then when she started singing, she look he looked, he said, I didn't turn my microphone16:56 on. So now, you know, you're standing there. And and I mean, come on. How do you how do you pray authentically? And I and I think this is17:04 When you know the whole world's watching. Totally. Yeah. And17:07 and then you see everybody. I mean, Zuckerberg, Bezos. I mean, Google, everybody, the TikTok guy, everybody's there. Joe Rogan, you're talking to Joe. Right? It's cool. So you're talking to everybody. And I feel like the17:18 Holy Spirit said this to me when I was looking.17:19 Every former president. Everybody.17:21 And literally, it was father man's in me, like, right next to and I was and then Mike was, like, up on this speak Johnson, I should say, was up on the podium, but but he had been to my church. I knew of him, his wife,17:31 Kelly. He'd come to our church, and we did some stuff with him on a campaign trail. So I knew I had a relationship with with speaker Johnson. But anyway, I'm sitting there and I'm looking at Elon. I'm looking at the17:41 everybody. You know what I mean? Billionaire world, so to speak. Bezos, everybody. And the Holy Spirit said, everything that you think they have, they really want from you.17:54 You got what they want. You're looking at what they have and you're admiring them, but they really want what you have. Wow. I said, wow. That's wild. So that was the way I kinda my heart was getting prepared. So, you18:05 know, you go up and, you know, you're walking through all the Trump every all his family and you're walking through and and then, you know, you're standing there. So watch this. The way it was set up was there was18:14 supposed to be Jewish guy, an imam, and me, and that's what I was concerned about. Mhmm. I was concerned because I felt like 1st of all, I don't believe in ecumenical prayer. No. No. You know, I I just personally don't18:24 don't think that that's the thing. I don't believe in that. You know, people pray pray the way they pray in front of whatever, and I I'm not necessarily condemning them. But for me, when I in Jesus name. Totally. When I18:34 look at ecumenical prayer in the Bible, it didn't end well for18:37 the false prophets.18:38 Yeah. It didn't end well for that. Right? So that's only ecumenical prayer meeting I see. Right? So the imam gets removed. He gets removed. He's not dead. Wow. So the Jew is there. It18:49 was a, rabbi, Berman, which is out of the, he's out of a school. He teaches the big school in New York. Which we become friends? So so I'm like, I can agree with this.19:01 Yeah.19:02 So I'm praying. So he's praying, but I'm praying too. And and so I'm like, alright. I'm praying, you know, my lord just give me, you know, and I wanted to say thank you to president Trump. That was the thought in my19:13 mind, and I'll never forget what I believe god said to me. He said, it's not a time to talk to man. It's a time to talk to me. Wow. I said, wow. So now,19:25 I'm I get let's thank God. Just saying where I would pray if I was in my prayer closet, you know, I would say I would start thanking God. And I knew I knew that there will be a point that the Lord would take over. I knew19:35 100 percent, but I was kinda kinda waiting for that point. I'm like, okay, God. Holy Spirit. You know, like, I'm19:40 like My feet are in19:40 the water. Come on, park the sea. I'm like, yeah. Like, let's go on. And I remember just thanking him, thanking him for our 45th president. I'm thanking him, you know, for you protecting him. And I'm kind of waiting for19:50 that moment. But I'm just thanking God like how we would do if we were praying, enter his guest with thanksgiving, enter his course with praise. So I'm kinda thanking him waiting for that moment where I'm like, okay. Now19:58 you told me to pray this dream. You gotta hit this. How's this gonna work? And this is how the transition happened. You can see it if you watch the tape real closely. I said, thank you that he can make America20:10 dream again. When when Because remember, when you're up there, you're thinking, who do you pray for? Do you pray for Vance? You know, what do you do? You got 3 minutes. What do you how do how does this work? And you20:22 know, you're wrestling with all that. But I feel like the Holy Spirit said, pray for him. This is what you this is who you're here for. Pray for him. I want you to intercede for him. Thank you, Lord, that he will make20:33 America dream again. Mhmm. So we can live in a nation where we're not judged by the color of our skin.20:40 Yes.20:40 But by now, I'm not thinking that God's using doctor King's to essentially, we could say the greatest speech written, you know, in English, some people say. There's20:51 a brick with his name on it from where he gave it. So you know Here's a statue. There's a holiday for forgiveness.20:57 A statue and a rotunda, literally. I'm not thinking that as I'm praying that it's connecting with what we're dealing with in our culture. None of that's going through my mind. But, you know, you listen to it so manyShow more In this video 0:00 Unexpected Call: Trump Visits Detroit Church9:00 Unveiling Election Integrity Issues14:00 Praying King's Dream at Inauguration21:00 Reactions and New Levels of Influence28:00 Call to Political Action for Pastors
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