Nate Bargatze Speaks Out on Seeing God’s Hand in His Comedy Career
Grammy-nominated comedian Nate Bargatze recently told his friend, fellow comedian, and sister in Christ, Anjelah Johnson-Reyes, about how God was watching over him and guiding him in his career.
"God has a path, and I'm just here to follow the path, so I just kind of wait and see where the doors open," Bargatze said on the "Funjelah" podcast, Church Leaders reports.
"I mean, I get nervous with ideas that pop in my head," Bargatze said, but he trusts that God will "open the doors that need to be open, and you just point me where you want to go. So I'm grateful to get to be the one that was chosen to be this vessel."
Bargatze, who's latest comedy special "Your Friend, Nate Bargatze" is now available on Netflix, previously hosted Saturday Night Live twice playing the role of George Washington in two different skits that each went viral. Earlier in his career, he was the opening act for Johnson-Reyes when touring together.
In recent years, Bartgatze has grown in popularity in the comedy space and is known for his clean sense of humor. Despite professing as a Christian, he does mention his faith in his comedy shows, although he jokes about growing up in a Christian home in the 1980s and '90s in one of his segments.
"Is there something that stands out to you that you're like, I am grateful for?" Johnson-Reyes asked Bargatze.
"Yeah, I'm grateful to be a vessel for what I'm doing…the one thing I try to remind myself right before I go on stage every time is this is not about me," the comedian responded. "So when I go out there, it has nothing to do with me. This night's not about me, even though it looks like it's only about me."
"It can't be about me," Bargatze said, "because if it was about me, I wouldn't be able to handle it. That's why I can handle it, because it's not about me…what I believe, it's on God."
He recalled one pivotal moment when he performed at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena in April 2023, selling out the show and breaking the attendance record. Despite his success, Bargatze attributed the moment to God instead of his own efforts.
"You pray a lot about it, and you just kinda go, this day has nothing to do with me," he said regarding that day.
Bargatze also expressed gratitude to the Lord, protecting him from mistakes and poor decisions made throughout his career.
"There's so many dumb little things where you're like, I should have been kicked out there…all these stupid things I did," he said.
Later in the interview, Bargatze thanked Johnson-Reyes for their long-standing friendship, which he believes is a sign of God's hand in his life.
"I could have went out with so many other comics that do not have God in their life [and are] you know, just dudes that are going to be dumb and whatever," he said.
"We were together so long that could have spiraled me into a whole [other] realm, but he put me with you, someone that was like-minded with me," said Bargatze. "You know you openly, you've always talked about your faith. And so that was even just nice for me to see, even at that time, just to, you know… you're always grateful for your time with people."
He also noted that Johnson-Reyes is someone who gives people her time and her full attention, adding that his father pointed that out to him once when Johnson-Reyes visited their home.
"So I do that because of you," Bargatze said.
WATCH: Nate Bargatze Is Grateful to Be a Vessel | Funjelah Ep 16 | Anjelah Johnson-Reyes
Photo Credit: ©YouTube/Anjelah Johnson-Reyes
Originally published February 20, 2025.
