“I Was a Militant Atheist”: The Terrifying Moment That Forced Dave Smith to Reject Atheism

In the 11-minute video, comedian and podcaster Dave Smith shares his powerful testimony with Tucker Carlson about how his daughter’s birth shattered his atheism. Once a staunch nonbeliever, Smith recalls a moment of fear and vulnerability in the hospital hallway that led him to pray — and immediately feel the presence God. That emotional turning point marked the beginning of his faith journey rooted not in argument, but in undeniable experience. He now prays daily, expressing gratitude and seeking only the health and safety of his family. Watch and share his inspirational transformation story.

Editor’s Note: The transcript that follows was automatically generated and lightly edited, so please be aware there could be typos or other small errors. The Stream is working toward a transcription service that does fast, accurate, and reliable work; thank you in advance for your patience!

(00:00) Do you find in your life, this is a quiz I give a lot of people, more people you know personally talking about God than you did say 10 years ago? Yes. Um and I am that person. I mean I was an atheist 10 years ago. I had my daughter. Yeah. Um that’s you know is I found God the day my wife delivered our first uh child and um which is a fairly common experience.

(00:26) Uh I know other people who have had the same thing were atheists until that moment. And um what what can what changed in you? So all right so it was uh basically so I met my so you know it’s a fairly normal story but I met my wife and we got engaged and then um we got married. Um so my wife’s like the most amazing check. She’s just great.

(00:48) And I know this is it’s always a thing to say it’s like my wife’s better than your wife type thing but everybody who knows my wife and I don’t mean you I’ve never met your wife but but she is better. And I’m just kidding. Uh, I don’t I don’t hear people compliment their spouses enough actually. I don’t think everyone always says that.

(01:04) I wish people that more often. Well, I do, you know, it’s not me. She’s really just the best. Everyone who knows her would agree. I mean, like, it’s just like she’s like the most amazing woman. She’s just gorgeous and she’s really super smart and she’s really sweet and kind. Um, and she’s just like she she puts everyone above herself.

(01:22) She’s like I really hit the lottery with her. And I was never, you know, I was like habitually single. I was never a relationship guy and I never really wanted to get married. I kind of always had this view of like, you know, women are trying to change you or trying to control you. Every girl that I ever dated always wanted a relationship and then they always wanted me to not do this or not do that.

(01:44) And my wife was just she just had my back. She just always like wanted to make my life better and she did. And I just I fell in love with her and I was like I’m going to spend the rest of my life with this woman. And so then we uh when she got pregnant, I just I was just very excited. It was like, you know, we just got married. I got a a baby on the way.

(02:03) Um I was just like, “This is going to be this is the best. Like I’m really excited to to do this.” And um and I was right. It was the best thing I’ve ever done. And so the uh the day that uh was um well, she was over her due date. So then they they scheduled to come in to induce pregnancy cuz they don’t let you go too long these days.

(02:23) Um which I guess is maybe they’re right about that. I don’t know. But anyway, so we go to the hospital. They get the pitocin out. Yes, that’s right. So, we’re at uh Lennox Hill Hospital in the Upper East Side of Manhattan. And um by the way, I should I should add just leading into the story over the I had been like a militant atheist when I was younger.

(02:42) I had started to open up my mind a little bit to being like I was seeing some of the holes in the atheist arguments, but I still was not like a believer in God. And so, we were at Lennox Hill Hospital and this is how this was the first one. This is how it started was um the uh the anesthesiologist came in to give my wife an epidural and at Lennox Hill or at least this guy they asked me to leave the room.

(03:06) Um they said they ask the fathers to leave the room when they do it, you know, cuz they’re they’re putting a spinal thing in and they have to be very very precise. Yeah. Right. So like and and they don’t want I guess they don’t want you there to react cuz then she might react and so they don’t want to so I go at she can’t see what’s happening. Right.

(03:22) she can’t see, but she could see you seeing. And so they want people with a straight poker face who have seen this a lot of times and are not watching it happen to their wife and baby, you know, so it’s a reasonable ask. But so I go I go out and I’m in the the hallway in the maternity ward at Lennox Hill Hospital and I’m just and it just hit me.

(03:40) It was like for the first time I guess I had not really thought about this. I was just so excited to get my family started. But for the first time, it hit me that like something could go wrong and that I could leave here alone, you know, like something could go wrong that I could lose the baby, I could lose my wife and it’s totally out of my control.

(03:58) And like as this started hitting me, I started like really getting emotional and um it’s like I’m out there and I’m like I’m crying in the hallway of this maternity ward and immediately I just started talking to God. Um, and I just started uh not just talking to God, but like negotiating with God. And I was just like, you know, like like, dear Lord, if you if you make sure that they’re okay, I’m going to do like I’m going to be the best husband and the best father and I will do this and you know, like all the different things in your life. Have you ever

(04:27) prayed before? No. Never once in my life. Um, and it all, you know, like all the things that, you know, you’re supposed to be doing that you’re not doing that well, you know, like I was like, “Okay, I’ll clean this up. You know, I’ll call my mom more often. I’ll do this thing. I’ll do. And so anyway, so I just started like praying to God and not just praying, but like negotiating.

(04:45) So anyway, everything was fine with that, but my my wife, this was the first of many times. She had a very there were a bunch of complications in the pregnancy. Everyone came out okay, thank God. Um but so I ended up talking to God a lot that day. And then just like as the days went on, it’s so interesting.

(05:02) It’s just organic lifetime of not believing and then you just start. So this is almost like what intellectually, you know, converted me later was I was like, “Hey, what the h**l was that?” I mean, I could I can’t look back and just ignore that.

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(6:09)And um and there was one, you know, like again, I’m I’m almost a little uncomfortable talking about these things because I like talking about things where I have like a real tight argument that I can prove is irrefutable. Profound argument actually.

(06:20) It was something where I was like, look, so in the moment when it was really all on the line and out of my control, I wasn’t thinking maybe God exists. I knew for a 100% certainty unlike nothing I’ve ever known in my life. That not only did I know that God existed, but I knew what he wanted from me.

(06:40) Like I knew what my negotiating power in this was. Is that I could pro, you know what I’m saying? Like I could promise I’ll be a good person. and all do. So, not only did I know God existed, I knew that God wanted me to be a good person and there was and look, this is something that people who have found God know and people who don’t believe in God maybe will not accept.

(06:58) But there is something to when you open yourself up like that to God like you find out that he’s real. And I it’s not like he speaks to you or he hallucinates. I don’t like see a fiery bush and the words of God started talking. But like he fills you like you when you open yourself like that to it, you get filled by it and there’s no there’s no more debate in your mind over whether that’s a real phenomenon or not.

(07:25) You’re like any more than like if I were to leave here and someone were to be like, “Do you believe in Tucker Carlson?” And like I’d be like, “No, I know for certain like I know for a certainty that Tucker Carlson exists. I was just with him.” It’s it’s like that. And so it was um and it’s never it’s it changed my life and ever since I’m I regularly pray to God.

(07:44) It’s something I’m conscious of every single day. No way. Um every day. Every day. And I always I don’t even pray exactly. Um I don’t ask for things ever. I ask for one thing ever from God. Um which is that my my wife and my kids are healthy and safe. It’s the only thing I ever pray for. I don’t ask for anything.

(08:02) The only other thing that I do is I um I express gratitude. got like I just say thank you for everything I have. So that’s but that’s the extent of it. But I think that I cannot overstate how much I think that’s made me a better person. Really? Yeah. Just it’s it’s very very good for you to constantly remind yourself how lucky you are that you have all the things that you have.

(08:24) It’s it’s very easy to get away from that. And that’s where that’s where you you ruin your inner happiness, your inner joy is if you start you start taking the things you have for granted because once you like, you know, once you when you think you could lose everything you already have and then you don’t, that’s when you really appreciate it.

(08:43) You know, you really appreciate what how lucky we all are. Well, not to be like too blunt or too personal, but you’re on the cusp of like change in your life on the basis of what’s happened in the last month in your life. I’ve just seen this story so many times. Yeah. So, to be vulgar, your income in this year will be higher than last year.

(09:01) I’m just telling you that because you’re way more famous and you’re also on the right side of history, I think. Yeah, I hope so. And uh and certainly on the right side of popular opinion. So, like that. Do you think I mean the danger in life is getting what you want and finding yourself unhappier? Are you worried about that? No, I’m really not.

(09:24) Um, and I do just think that it’s because again, if this was happening to me at 25 or at 30, I would be very concerned about that danger. Literally, like what I just told you is kind of already happened in my life. I know who I am as a person. I kind of know what money actually means. It’s like there’s lots of nice things.

(09:40) I’m not downplaying money. It’s it’s very important, particularly in my position. It’s very important for me to be able to protect my wife and kids that we have some money, you know what I mean? So that I can do that. Um, but no, I’m not I’m really not worried about that at this point. I think I’ve kind of like my wife herself is a very grounding force for me.

(10:00) She’s the person whose approval I seek. Yes. She’s the person whose opinion I really care about, you know, and so like that’s and and she keeps me very grounded. Also, just as you know, you know, having these little kids just keeps you grounded because they’re uh they’re they just don’t care at all at all. Like literally at all.

(10:15) To my my six-year-old the other day, we were out to dinner. Um and so we’re out to dinner. We’re sitting down. my wife, my my six-year-old girl, and my three-year-old boy. And the uh the owner of the restaurant is like a fan of mine. So, he comes over to the table. He goes, “Oh, thank you guys so much for coming.

(10:28) I just wanted to shake your hand. I really appreciate everything you’re doing.” And I was like, “Oh, thank you so much. I appreciate that.” So, he leaves. And then my daughter, my six-year-old, who’s kind of 17, but she’s six. She turns over at me and she goes, “Why’d he come over and say hi to you, Dad?” “Cuz you’re famous.

(10:42) ” And just looks and then just turned right back to her menu. I mean, it was like she could not have just undercut me more than that. I was like, “Oh, I guess I’m not really that cool.” All right, I will. But but that that stuff helps. I’m really lucky that I didn’t have this moment 15 years ago that I had it now. So, I think I think I’ll be good.

(11:03) But then, you know, you cut back to me in a year, I come back here, I got like the shades on or something. It’s totally ruined me. Pellegrino not Perrier. Thanks for watching our YouTube channel. We hope you’ll subscribe to it. And by the way, you can hit the little bell on there and get notifications every time we produce a video.