Ministering to Post-abortive Men and Women

WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.600 --> 00:00:06.440 I Am Yours, I am yours, I am yours and me, Lord, 2 00:00:06.919 --> 00:00:10.949 I am yours. Welcome to the Gospel Center pro life podcast. This 3 00:00:11.070 --> 00:00:13.710 episode we're going to speak with a friend of mine, Pastor Brian Audinger, 4 00:00:13.830 --> 00:00:17.829 of convergence church, about how to reach post aboard of men and women with 5 00:00:17.989 --> 00:00:29.100 the Gospel. Stay tuned, Lord, I felt show passis touch your heart. 6 00:00:34.020 --> 00:00:37.170 All right, we welcome to the Gospel Center pro life podcast. I 7 00:00:37.250 --> 00:00:40.210 appreciate all those who join us today. I have with me a friend of 8 00:00:40.289 --> 00:00:44.130 mine, Pastor Brian Ottinger. He's a pastor of convergence church and he has 9 00:00:44.170 --> 00:00:48.570 a real heart to Minister The Gospel, of course, to anybody, anybody 10 00:00:48.649 --> 00:00:52.920 that that's breathing. He's willing to Minister Gospel to him but also to reach 11 00:00:53.280 --> 00:00:55.880 post aboard of men and women. So we're going to talk a little bit 12 00:00:55.920 --> 00:00:58.439 about that. We're going to talk a little bit about his testimony. So 13 00:00:58.600 --> 00:01:00.840 introduce yourself and kind of introduce some of your heart, Pastor Brian. Yeah, 14 00:01:00.880 --> 00:01:04.790 thanks for having me on the show. Encouraged by you. Yeah, 15 00:01:06.109 --> 00:01:08.109 probably spend the whole hour talking about what what you guys have been doing. 16 00:01:08.230 --> 00:01:12.909 Man's just grateful for you guys, it is by God's grace, and thank 17 00:01:14.189 --> 00:01:15.670 him for connecting us. And allow me to share a little bit of my 18 00:01:15.790 --> 00:01:21.819 story. I'm forty two years old now. I got saved. Excuse me, 19 00:01:21.900 --> 00:01:23.219 I'm forty one years old. Wow, I before you said Yeah, 20 00:01:23.260 --> 00:01:26.459 to use let's you get past forty. It's kind of lose count. So 21 00:01:26.620 --> 00:01:30.019 turning forty two in January, but forty one now. The Lord Save me 22 00:01:30.060 --> 00:01:37.530 when I was thirty two, prior to Christ as savior and Lord of my 23 00:01:37.609 --> 00:01:42.930 life, my sin was and Satan really was the Lord of my life. 24 00:01:42.010 --> 00:01:46.650 Yeah, I mean just in the form of doing whatever I wanted to do, 25 00:01:46.890 --> 00:01:49.319 with whoever wanted to do it with whenever I wanted to do it. 26 00:01:49.439 --> 00:01:52.879 So I was really good at it, and I don't boast in that, 27 00:01:53.000 --> 00:01:55.560 but just to give you a perspective, man, I was. I was 28 00:01:55.599 --> 00:02:00.079 in the world pretty hard and chasing, you know, sex, drugs, 29 00:02:00.120 --> 00:02:05.790 entertainment, yeah, and everything that is involved with those things. And so 30 00:02:06.349 --> 00:02:08.909 the Lord at thirty two and his kindness, he sent one of my old 31 00:02:08.949 --> 00:02:13.949 friends and he shared the good news that that that God is good and His 32 00:02:14.110 --> 00:02:21.860 grace is being poured out on people and the form of Jesus Christ, that 33 00:02:21.979 --> 00:02:24.620 I'm a sinner who needed to be saved from my own sin, the condemnation 34 00:02:24.699 --> 00:02:28.900 that I deserve, rightfully, so place called Hell was reserved for me. 35 00:02:29.060 --> 00:02:32.569 Yeah, if I didn't repent. And in God's kindness, man, Holy 36 00:02:32.610 --> 00:02:37.530 Spirit broke through my heart and heart and I found myself, at thirty two 37 00:02:37.569 --> 00:02:39.449 years old, hitting my knees. Didn't grow up in the church, really 38 00:02:39.490 --> 00:02:44.210 didn't know what to do. Yeah, long backstory to that, but man, 39 00:02:44.250 --> 00:02:49.240 I'm just third story of a town house, wasn't in a church service 40 00:02:49.280 --> 00:02:53.120 or anything. Holy Spirit got a hold of me and I believed in Jesus 41 00:02:53.680 --> 00:03:00.270 and the next couple weeks and months were very interesting. And terms of adding 42 00:03:00.550 --> 00:03:06.469 theology to what that yeah, the Lord was kind to send me men to 43 00:03:06.590 --> 00:03:12.069 lead me to disciple me, men who are passionate about the Gospel, about 44 00:03:12.069 --> 00:03:17.819 the Scriptures, about evangelism, and they told me that's what Christian life looks 45 00:03:17.819 --> 00:03:21.580 like. Now that you're saved. It's our goal to help go save others. 46 00:03:21.620 --> 00:03:25.180 Yeah, through the power of the spirit. And it was only till 47 00:03:25.180 --> 00:03:28.530 I got involved with some church folks. They told me, hey, you 48 00:03:28.650 --> 00:03:30.330 need to chill out, like that's not what you're supposed to do a little 49 00:03:30.330 --> 00:03:34.530 bit. Yeah, just real being a little bit. But Man, by 50 00:03:34.610 --> 00:03:38.050 the Lord's grace, friend of ours, Adam Tenant, we just got done 51 00:03:38.090 --> 00:03:42.280 talking about. Yeah, he told me, Hey, now that you're a 52 00:03:42.280 --> 00:03:45.039 Christian, it's time for stand up for the things that God cares about, 53 00:03:45.639 --> 00:03:49.599 and he brought me out here to the trope. Probably been a Christian that 54 00:03:49.680 --> 00:03:53.319 point for six months and there you right out in the yeah, I've always 55 00:03:53.319 --> 00:03:55.270 been all in. Right, whenever I was doing I was all in. 56 00:03:55.469 --> 00:03:59.310 So I was up for it. I didn't know what I was getting myself 57 00:03:59.349 --> 00:04:01.909 into. I never forget the day we came down here. We were living 58 00:04:01.909 --> 00:04:04.389 in Hunter's bill at the time and it was probably it felt like it was 59 00:04:04.469 --> 00:04:08.990 seventy degrees. I think I had shorts on. Brought the wife and my 60 00:04:09.030 --> 00:04:11.099 kids. Autam said it's a great place to bring your kids, you know. 61 00:04:11.780 --> 00:04:14.740 So I brought the wife. My wife was probably six months pregnant the 62 00:04:14.819 --> 00:04:19.139 time. Okay, brought her and and the kids out and got down here 63 00:04:19.259 --> 00:04:24.970 and it was like we entered into a different world. Yeah, I felt 64 00:04:25.009 --> 00:04:28.290 like it was thirty degrees colder. You could just feel the presence of evil 65 00:04:28.329 --> 00:04:30.810 man in a way. Yeah, and not experience that point. And at 66 00:04:30.850 --> 00:04:33.730 that point I was already doing street evangelism and so on and so forth, 67 00:04:33.810 --> 00:04:38.680 and just a cool you know stories that my wife She's from Columbia, South 68 00:04:38.720 --> 00:04:42.160 America, okay, and South Carolina, said, yeah, everyone always said 69 00:04:42.160 --> 00:04:44.839 South Carolina. She's from South America. She's beautiful, by the way. 70 00:04:44.920 --> 00:04:46.560 She ever watches or listens to this. I love my wife. Grateful for 71 00:04:46.800 --> 00:04:49.600 but the Lord used her in away that day, which rock my world because 72 00:04:49.600 --> 00:04:53.589 at that point I was kind of the mouthpiece. I was sharing the Gospel 73 00:04:53.670 --> 00:04:57.069 everybody, just in my zeal and, because she spoke Spanish. I think 74 00:04:57.069 --> 00:04:59.629 page said Hey, would you mind getting on the MIC? It's Adam's wife. 75 00:04:59.790 --> 00:05:01.149 Adam's wife said, hey, would you come in, and they put 76 00:05:01.149 --> 00:05:03.310 my wife on the mic and they just were telling her what to say and 77 00:05:03.389 --> 00:05:08.300 she was translating in Spanish to a Spanish family that went in hate. Come 78 00:05:08.300 --> 00:05:10.980 out. There's hope for you. There's yeah, there's there's another option and 79 00:05:12.300 --> 00:05:17.579 man, by God's grace, he used my wife that day to for this 80 00:05:17.660 --> 00:05:20.529 family to choose life. Yeah, that's powerful, and I'm over here looking 81 00:05:20.569 --> 00:05:28.529 like like beaux. That point my wife was very let's say immature, but 82 00:05:28.649 --> 00:05:30.769 she was very reserved. Maybe she was very rich, she still reserved, 83 00:05:30.810 --> 00:05:33.689 but she was just very young in the faith and she she wasn't outspoken at 84 00:05:33.689 --> 00:05:36.199 all for the Gospel at that point. So to see the Lord use her 85 00:05:36.240 --> 00:05:41.800 and lay maybe timid. Yeah, it's timid, just I don't know. 86 00:05:41.839 --> 00:05:44.639 Yeah, yeah, timid's good word. So, anyways, the Lord Jesus. 87 00:05:44.720 --> 00:05:48.160 Yeah, the Lord used it. I'm I'M A, I'm a blended 88 00:05:48.240 --> 00:05:50.269 we part of a blended family. So what I met my wife, I 89 00:05:50.670 --> 00:05:55.589 had one son and she had to and a few years actually, what she 90 00:05:55.670 --> 00:06:00.149 was pregnant at that point. And and so I remember when she got pregnant, 91 00:06:00.670 --> 00:06:03.819 you know, I started to realize the weight of what I had done. 92 00:06:03.860 --> 00:06:06.980 Yeah, in my past I was a post excume me, I was 93 00:06:06.980 --> 00:06:10.620 a I'm a post to board, a father. But at that point I 94 00:06:11.500 --> 00:06:16.060 started realizing man like it almost felt like the unforgivable sin. Yeah, to 95 00:06:16.180 --> 00:06:20.089 me was because I realized when I was in the world and I wasn't a 96 00:06:20.089 --> 00:06:25.009 Christian, I didn't give two thoughts about if it was a life. I 97 00:06:25.050 --> 00:06:28.930 could care less. Yeah, I didn't even consider the arguments of is it 98 00:06:29.050 --> 00:06:31.410 life, is it a Glob of cells. All I do is that a 99 00:06:31.490 --> 00:06:33.720 girl got pregnant, came to me, she told me she's pregnant, and 100 00:06:33.959 --> 00:06:38.319 my only response was to go get rid of the problem. Yeah, that 101 00:06:38.600 --> 00:06:43.160 was my mindset, and that happened at least twice, if not a few 102 00:06:43.199 --> 00:06:46.680 more times. Some of it's a little blurry and foggy. I mean that's 103 00:06:46.800 --> 00:06:50.470 that's how out there I was. But as a Christian who had a pregnant 104 00:06:50.509 --> 00:06:57.949 wife, now, I thought that God was going to punish me. MMM, 105 00:06:59.350 --> 00:07:02.060 I thought that I didn't the baby was going to maybe die in the 106 00:07:02.100 --> 00:07:06.699 womb or come out maybe defective. Yes, yeah, sure, probably weird 107 00:07:06.699 --> 00:07:11.660 word for it, but I just felt like, because of my past sin, 108 00:07:11.819 --> 00:07:14.540 like this was something that God was going to hold against me. Yeah, 109 00:07:15.220 --> 00:07:17.810 and I'm up until the point of Lucas, who's now seven years old, 110 00:07:17.850 --> 00:07:21.529 up until the point of his birth. And so when he came out 111 00:07:23.769 --> 00:07:27.290 the womb, I don't know if you've seen kids who are like gasping for 112 00:07:27.410 --> 00:07:30.720 air, their bodies are purple. Yeah, like when he came out the 113 00:07:30.759 --> 00:07:34.920 womb and I was I was I felt like something's wrong with him. M 114 00:07:35.360 --> 00:07:38.480 and at that moment I was like, man, this is just what I 115 00:07:38.600 --> 00:07:41.600 was going to bear. Yeah, and then, and then a few seconds 116 00:07:41.600 --> 00:07:45.870 later, he turned to deep read or pig or whatever, started crying and 117 00:07:46.310 --> 00:07:48.269 doctors like you have a healthy baby boy, and I was like Whoa. 118 00:07:48.550 --> 00:07:51.389 Yeah, you know, but you know one sense, I mean that mentality 119 00:07:53.310 --> 00:07:57.350 and I want to say it's a it's a fully biblical mentality. But we, 120 00:07:57.790 --> 00:08:01.939 we are all undeserving of the good gifts that God absolutely, because all 121 00:08:01.980 --> 00:08:07.899 of our past are tainted with sin and rebellion against God. Man, but 122 00:08:07.060 --> 00:08:09.620 part of you, know, I just know, part of your heart is 123 00:08:11.259 --> 00:08:15.889 sort of ministering from the way the Lord has done a work in your life 124 00:08:16.129 --> 00:08:20.490 and where he's brought you from and minister into other guys and even even ladies 125 00:08:20.930 --> 00:08:24.610 in you know, a pastoral capacity. You get all kinds of stuff that's 126 00:08:24.689 --> 00:08:28.800 throwing your way and you get these opportunities really bring people from a place of 127 00:08:28.959 --> 00:08:33.879 brokenness and a place of just mistrusting God and mistrust him whatever to a place 128 00:08:33.960 --> 00:08:37.600 of healing. Yeah, man, so talk a little bit about sort of 129 00:08:37.639 --> 00:08:41.309 the springboard of your past and how that sort of sprung you into, you 130 00:08:41.389 --> 00:08:46.789 know, bringing people to a place of healing and reaching people with the Gospel 131 00:08:46.990 --> 00:08:50.309 and with, you know, with God's ability to heal. Yeah, it's 132 00:08:50.389 --> 00:08:54.149 great question. I'm glad I got to share some of the earlier stuff because 133 00:08:54.149 --> 00:08:58.179 it really had some contact to yeah, the next part. But I've always 134 00:08:58.620 --> 00:09:01.980 firmly believed, I mean, scriptures true and God's words infallible, right. 135 00:09:03.019 --> 00:09:07.019 But said Corinthians, one says the God of All Comfort Comfort you to comfort 136 00:09:07.059 --> 00:09:11.929 others in their suffering. Yeah, and so I remember about about a year 137 00:09:11.970 --> 00:09:13.169 after I got saved. I remember I was on fire for the Lord the 138 00:09:13.250 --> 00:09:20.289 first year and I remember one day hit me up started become a little depressed 139 00:09:20.889 --> 00:09:24.360 because I started thinking back to my past. was rugged. Yeah, I 140 00:09:24.399 --> 00:09:28.559 had suicidal thoughts. I was many broken relationship, heard a lot of people. 141 00:09:28.559 --> 00:09:31.440 I was hurt along the way, and so I started in my mind 142 00:09:31.480 --> 00:09:35.559 questioning the goodness of God. Yeah, you know, why would a good 143 00:09:35.600 --> 00:09:37.990 God allow me to go through these things for thirty two years? I mean, 144 00:09:37.990 --> 00:09:41.230 yes, I'm glad I'm saved and having a brand new heart and new 145 00:09:41.269 --> 00:09:45.149 eternity and all that stuff great, but man, there's some real pain I 146 00:09:45.230 --> 00:09:48.549 experience. And Yeah, brother Actually Justin Edwards for years. Yeah, he 147 00:09:48.629 --> 00:09:52.470 shared Seton Corinthians one with me and it changed my outlook. Is like, 148 00:09:52.509 --> 00:09:56.580 man, God's given me a testimony, and so I started having an understanding 149 00:09:56.659 --> 00:10:01.860 of that. But it wasn't until week forty and I've been coming out to 150 00:10:01.860 --> 00:10:05.539 the abortion milling and doing some some ministry with cities for life and the tenants 151 00:10:05.580 --> 00:10:09.129 and others. But likely going through some pictures some months ago, I think 152 00:10:09.129 --> 00:10:13.090 I sent you the picture, but it's like, I don't remember. It 153 00:10:13.330 --> 00:10:16.970 was back in two thousand and I mean it was probably shortly after you got 154 00:10:16.049 --> 00:10:18.129 saved, maybe the first couple of times you've come out. I was like 155 00:10:18.529 --> 00:10:22.559 that's that's passed a yeah, it was us a lot thunder back then. 156 00:10:22.600 --> 00:10:24.200 You're a lot of thanner. Yeah, I was too. Well, I 157 00:10:24.399 --> 00:10:26.919 was a lot more baby faced. I guess it was. You probably had 158 00:10:26.960 --> 00:10:30.600 less gray hair. I had less gray hairs. You had gray hair back 159 00:10:30.639 --> 00:10:31.960 then. To them it was kind of a block where you one of Tho 160 00:10:33.000 --> 00:10:35.710 guys who started getting gray hair in high school? Yeah, pretty much, 161 00:10:35.230 --> 00:10:37.789 but anyway, yes, so you say, yeah, yeah, better have 162 00:10:37.870 --> 00:10:41.669 gray hair than though here. Yeah, so, man. Yeah, so 163 00:10:41.750 --> 00:10:48.070 I've been coming out and I understood and in my theological background, in my 164 00:10:48.190 --> 00:10:54.659 denomination, real heavy emphasis on good hermoneutics, but good biblical Hermoneutics. Yeah, 165 00:10:54.700 --> 00:10:58.980 we want to understand the context of scripture. We want to understand that 166 00:10:58.059 --> 00:11:01.419 we're saved by grace alone, through faithfulone in Christ alone, for God's glory 167 00:11:01.419 --> 00:11:07.450 alone. We know it through the scripture alone. And I would say well, 168 00:11:07.490 --> 00:11:11.649 well intended, but under emphasis on healing. Yeah, and deliverance. 169 00:11:13.250 --> 00:11:16.210 And so at week forty, the first year they did it, I was 170 00:11:16.250 --> 00:11:18.799 actually step life. Yeah, so love life, Super Skeptical of the ministry 171 00:11:20.200 --> 00:11:22.480 in general. Who are these goodlooking guys? And, yeah, and these 172 00:11:22.559 --> 00:11:26.559 hipsters and yeah, hipsters, and and these soft colored shirts, even though 173 00:11:26.559 --> 00:11:31.600 I think we both have on like soft colored shirts today. Maybe, maybe 174 00:11:31.679 --> 00:11:33.070 not, but it is a strong colored sure. Isn't what you're talking about? 175 00:11:33.070 --> 00:11:35.070 Yeah, is this? Yeah, I don't know. Blue. I 176 00:11:35.149 --> 00:11:37.750 like T tario. So we're good. There's a baby blue baby shower right 177 00:11:37.789 --> 00:11:41.230 there. But yeah, man, just seeing these guys are being skeptical, 178 00:11:41.389 --> 00:11:46.179 skeptical of their ministry, not primarily because of their good looks and they're soft 179 00:11:46.220 --> 00:11:52.500 blue shirts, but because they weren't preaching the Gospel explicitly. Yeah, they 180 00:11:52.539 --> 00:11:58.220 were praying and worshiping. I'm like, what's up with that and somebody connected 181 00:11:58.259 --> 00:12:01.419 me with Andre. went out for lunch and I think it was me. 182 00:12:01.610 --> 00:12:03.490 Man, was it you? Was it feather? You definitely was like the 183 00:12:03.529 --> 00:12:07.210 Holy Spirit just connected you, just getting active. So so somebody connected me 184 00:12:07.370 --> 00:12:11.250 Andre. Okay, excuse me, Daniel, you connect me with Andre. 185 00:12:11.090 --> 00:12:15.960 And I wasn't, I wasn't not going to come out, but I wasn't 186 00:12:15.960 --> 00:12:18.840 like excited about it, for say, because I knew the good work the 187 00:12:18.919 --> 00:12:22.639 cities for life was doing, knew the good work that other ministries were doing. 188 00:12:22.720 --> 00:12:26.840 And remember talking Andrea said all y'all doing is just praying. MM. 189 00:12:28.799 --> 00:12:31.870 And he said what do you mean, brother? He said don't you believe 190 00:12:31.909 --> 00:12:37.110 in the power of prayer? And it hit me. I've been a Christian 191 00:12:37.149 --> 00:12:41.269 this point for five years, maybe six, and when you asked me that 192 00:12:41.309 --> 00:12:45.580 question I realized that I didn't. I didn't believe in the Po of prayer. 193 00:12:45.620 --> 00:12:48.980 Yeah, that if I thought that that prayer was some sort of, 194 00:12:52.740 --> 00:12:54.860 you know, unpowerful tool that God had given the church, that was something 195 00:12:56.059 --> 00:12:58.500 or for me was I we could do that in a prayer closet. So 196 00:12:58.570 --> 00:13:00.330 we're going to go out. That about the thing. I was like, 197 00:13:00.330 --> 00:13:01.090 we're going to go out there. We need to preach the Gospel. That's 198 00:13:01.090 --> 00:13:05.889 the way of salvation, like and just really undermining the work of the spirit 199 00:13:05.970 --> 00:13:09.529 through prayer. And so that challenged me and so I came out on week 200 00:13:09.570 --> 00:13:13.320 forty, brought a couple guys from our church and brought a few of my 201 00:13:13.440 --> 00:13:18.399 sons. I five boys and my oldest son during week forty. Either you 202 00:13:18.440 --> 00:13:22.960 know, this great experience or praising, worshiping. You're they're talking about words 203 00:13:24.000 --> 00:13:26.720 of healing and deliverance. Some oldest son looked at me that day and he 204 00:13:26.799 --> 00:13:30.669 said that have you ever had an abortion? Now, I don't remember if 205 00:13:30.669 --> 00:13:33.309 we ever had the conversation before, but I've never been as clear as it 206 00:13:33.470 --> 00:13:37.230 was that day that I looked at him with tears of my eyes and told 207 00:13:37.269 --> 00:13:41.110 him yes, I had, and I'm start crying and he started crying with 208 00:13:41.230 --> 00:13:43.500 me. Yeah, and next thing I know he's hugging me, my oldest 209 00:13:43.539 --> 00:13:46.779 son. I start thinking about, you know, my children in heaven that 210 00:13:46.860 --> 00:13:50.100 I, you know, sent to the slaughter yeah, and man, I 211 00:13:50.259 --> 00:13:54.539 just broke down and started crying and so crying with him. Other son comes 212 00:13:54.580 --> 00:13:58.409 over, we start crying. Dues from the church come over and I don't 213 00:13:58.409 --> 00:14:01.769 even know if they knew why. They start crying with us weep and yeah, 214 00:14:01.809 --> 00:14:05.889 man, and so the Lord really that day, I believe he initiated 215 00:14:05.970 --> 00:14:13.120 a major movement of healing in my life. And soon after, you know, 216 00:14:13.320 --> 00:14:15.799 meet with Andrea and Justin, who are now good friends of mine and 217 00:14:15.960 --> 00:14:18.799 yours as well. I told them my story about how the Lord healed me 218 00:14:18.919 --> 00:14:24.470 and just uniquely, I don't think there's probably a lot of pastors who have 219 00:14:24.549 --> 00:14:28.549 that testimony. Yeah, and you know, what we can look at is 220 00:14:28.669 --> 00:14:33.750 a painful, you know, post Christian life the Lord will use to glorify 221 00:14:33.830 --> 00:14:37.110 himself and help bring healing to others. And so they were really adamant about 222 00:14:37.110 --> 00:14:41.500 me sharing that story and they and I was really adamant to share that story 223 00:14:41.500 --> 00:14:45.259 as well. I've never been quick to turn out opportunity to declare the glory 224 00:14:45.299 --> 00:14:48.019 of God. Yeah, and so I think the next year at love life, 225 00:14:48.019 --> 00:14:52.049 I begin sharing that testimony on Saturday mornings and I got to go into 226 00:14:52.090 --> 00:14:56.370 some churches and talk about it and then really just begin to personally heal. 227 00:14:56.730 --> 00:15:00.370 And then to realize, man, as I looked at the landscape of, 228 00:15:01.570 --> 00:15:03.250 you know, my wife and other Christians, that there was a lot of 229 00:15:03.330 --> 00:15:09.159 Christians who had had abortions. Yeah, and so you know, we're a 230 00:15:09.279 --> 00:15:11.799 messed up bunch man, apart from the grace of God, you know, 231 00:15:11.879 --> 00:15:16.399 we're kind of like, you know, with David in the in the men 232 00:15:16.480 --> 00:15:20.840 who come to stand with David when he was running away from saw, it 233 00:15:20.879 --> 00:15:24.309 says they were basically that the indebted, the the rejects of society. That's 234 00:15:24.389 --> 00:15:30.070 that's the Church of Jesus Christ. Now, yeah, we're rejects of society, 235 00:15:30.190 --> 00:15:31.950 but we're embraced by by the Lord and we're changed by the power of 236 00:15:33.029 --> 00:15:35.779 a spirit. And those men became what David's mighty men. Ye, right, 237 00:15:35.899 --> 00:15:39.019 yeah, and that cool. Well, the Lord David Himself, I 238 00:15:39.100 --> 00:15:41.419 mean, yeah, he's like a man after God's own heart and he was 239 00:15:41.460 --> 00:15:45.700 a adulters murder like you missed us, so h so, yeah, man, 240 00:15:45.779 --> 00:15:48.659 that the Bible is quite I want to touch him one point you just 241 00:15:48.700 --> 00:15:50.490 came to mind, which I think is pretty cool and it's maybe a rabbit 242 00:15:50.529 --> 00:15:54.490 trail, but I think this will help others. When you said your son 243 00:15:54.210 --> 00:15:56.690 just turned to you and howld you, how would your sign that time? 244 00:15:56.889 --> 00:16:00.929 That point he was probably thirteen or fourteen yeah, so I remember. Do 245 00:16:00.970 --> 00:16:03.649 you remember how long love life's been in existence? So it was two thousand 246 00:16:03.690 --> 00:16:04.720 and sixteen, I think, was our first prayer walk. Okay, so 247 00:16:06.039 --> 00:16:08.600 he was was that three years ago? He's sixteen, Thirteen. Yeah, 248 00:16:10.159 --> 00:16:14.360 so I'm thinking how would this young man know the turn to his dad and 249 00:16:14.440 --> 00:16:17.039 ask him that question. Dad, if you ever had an abortion? Obviously 250 00:16:17.080 --> 00:16:19.029 the implications. You ever taken someone to have an abortion or paid for an 251 00:16:19.070 --> 00:16:23.029 abortion? And I think it's this is important for us as dad's that, 252 00:16:23.230 --> 00:16:27.029 you know, we don't have to share every golry gruesome detail of our lives 253 00:16:27.070 --> 00:16:30.710 and our past, but we need to be sharing on a regular basis with 254 00:16:30.830 --> 00:16:33.340 our kids a testimony what we were. Yeah, and I'll bet you you 255 00:16:33.820 --> 00:16:37.299 cheered with him kind of what you were, where you came from, and 256 00:16:37.340 --> 00:16:38.259 it was sort of to him as like well, my dad's done this, 257 00:16:38.460 --> 00:16:41.179 he's done that. Yeah, but I bet this might be in his past 258 00:16:41.299 --> 00:16:45.259 to that kind of how that how that played out? Well, you know, 259 00:16:45.500 --> 00:16:48.409 so thirty two years of of and I'm but I wasn't just like a 260 00:16:51.090 --> 00:16:53.289 kind of halfway center, like I was full on, like we're all full 261 00:16:53.409 --> 00:16:56.529 on. But I know what you mean. But everyone that knew me knew 262 00:16:56.529 --> 00:16:59.129 what I was about. I was about drinking, drugging, you know, 263 00:16:59.850 --> 00:17:02.159 pouring around part whatever it was, man, that's what I was about. 264 00:17:02.279 --> 00:17:06.039 Yeah, and so because I had thirty two years of that, it's I've 265 00:17:06.079 --> 00:17:08.079 only been living less than ten years under the blood of Christ. Yeah, 266 00:17:08.119 --> 00:17:11.359 and so I can't forget my testimony. Yeah, like, whether it's through, 267 00:17:12.960 --> 00:17:17.349 you know, seeing things or hearing things or smelling things, like, 268 00:17:17.470 --> 00:17:19.829 I'm reminded constantly of who I used to be. Yeah, and and so, 269 00:17:21.269 --> 00:17:23.869 by the grace of God, when Satan reminds me who I used to 270 00:17:23.869 --> 00:17:26.789 be, I remind him of who I am now, and he reminds me 271 00:17:26.829 --> 00:17:30.220 of my past, I remind him of my future a man. And so, 272 00:17:30.140 --> 00:17:33.660 yeah, we've never skirted away from from sharing with our kids, and 273 00:17:33.740 --> 00:17:37.859 even as a Christian now, who who? Maybe I'm not like doing a 274 00:17:37.980 --> 00:17:41.900 cocaine and sewing and so forth, but man, I still mess up around 275 00:17:41.900 --> 00:17:45.490 my kids. Yeah, and there's Times where dad gets angry, or there's 276 00:17:45.529 --> 00:17:52.970 Times where dad maybe was passive, or there was times where dad has chose 277 00:17:52.210 --> 00:17:56.730 himself over his children. Yeah, and so I use those opportunities to go 278 00:17:56.730 --> 00:17:57.839 to my kids and say I'm sorry. Yeah, this, I didn't. 279 00:17:57.839 --> 00:18:00.480 I didn't. I wasn't being Christ like. Yeah, and so, yeah, 280 00:18:00.519 --> 00:18:07.160 we don't hesitate to ask for forgiveness and to share our sinfulness, because 281 00:18:07.240 --> 00:18:11.359 it only leads us to basking the glory of God even so much more so. 282 00:18:11.519 --> 00:18:15.549 Another rabbit trail on how long you got on this podcast, but thirty 283 00:18:15.589 --> 00:18:21.230 four. Yeah, yes, to two nights ago my two youngest came to 284 00:18:21.309 --> 00:18:26.349 my room and they were arguing about something. And there's five years old and 285 00:18:26.390 --> 00:18:30.059 seven years old, Moses and Lucas, and I've got a Moses. I 286 00:18:30.180 --> 00:18:33.220 got a Moses Bro Yeah, yeah, we'll see how he lives out that 287 00:18:33.259 --> 00:18:37.539 name. said. Doesn't have the staff yet, but he's working on it. 288 00:18:37.660 --> 00:18:41.049 So but men that they got to come in my room and I forget 289 00:18:41.049 --> 00:18:45.890 what happened specifically, but there was some sins, some tension between those two. 290 00:18:45.529 --> 00:18:48.769 I just said Hey, come sit down beside me and I walked him 291 00:18:48.809 --> 00:18:49.690 through what it meant to be a man and what it meant to be a 292 00:18:49.730 --> 00:18:53.049 leader. I pointed back to Adam and said if Adam would have been doing 293 00:18:53.130 --> 00:18:56.359 his job and leading as a man like we wouldn't even had this in the 294 00:18:56.400 --> 00:19:00.240 first place. Yeah, like Adam drop the ball, and that's why eve 295 00:19:00.279 --> 00:19:07.440 ate of the fruit, and and so through that I'm trying to remember why 296 00:19:07.440 --> 00:19:10.910 I got rabbit trailed. Well, you're talking about but ring board. Yeah, 297 00:19:11.230 --> 00:19:12.430 and so then I got to tell them back, you know, because 298 00:19:12.430 --> 00:19:15.349 we just got off week forty last weekend, and I got to share with 299 00:19:15.470 --> 00:19:18.390 them. I said, listen, if it wasn't for the grace of God, 300 00:19:18.470 --> 00:19:21.430 we're all sinners, but if it wasn't for the grace of God that 301 00:19:21.509 --> 00:19:25.619 genesis is three fifteen. Promise you two wouldn't be here. Yeah, like 302 00:19:25.779 --> 00:19:29.579 Moma and I wouldn't even be together. And so I don't want them to 303 00:19:30.059 --> 00:19:32.700 wallow in their sin, but to say, Hey, because of God we 304 00:19:32.859 --> 00:19:36.339 are, yeah, because of God we can and because of God we will. 305 00:19:36.339 --> 00:19:38.690 Yeah. And so yes, we sometimes we need to meditate on our 306 00:19:38.690 --> 00:19:42.410 sinfulness and not just think we're God's gift to the world, we've done nothing 307 00:19:42.490 --> 00:19:45.250 wrong, that we don't deserve this grace. But he's given it his grace 308 00:19:45.329 --> 00:19:48.970 and he's given us and empowered us to live and empowered life now and then 309 00:19:48.970 --> 00:19:55.440 for the future. And because of God's grace I now have Moses and Lucas. 310 00:19:55.480 --> 00:19:57.599 Yeah, yeah, and they've they're seeing a mother and father who love 311 00:19:57.720 --> 00:20:03.920 each other IM perfectly, who mess up as parents frequently but quick to say 312 00:20:03.960 --> 00:20:07.150 hey, I'm wrong, we you forgive me and God's graces sufficient. So, 313 00:20:07.230 --> 00:20:10.670 yeah, yeah, and so you know, you just in the realm 314 00:20:10.710 --> 00:20:15.710 of ministry as a pastor and then sort of the Lord using your past, 315 00:20:15.910 --> 00:20:18.869 you know, minister your kids, also to minister to others and ministering in 316 00:20:18.950 --> 00:20:22.339 particular to post aboard of father. Yeah, men share some of those stories 317 00:20:22.460 --> 00:20:26.220 or share some of your heart as far as minister and the post aboard of 318 00:20:26.299 --> 00:20:30.180 men. Because, you know, people think that it's just women that are 319 00:20:30.180 --> 00:20:33.500 affected by abortion, it's just women in the church that have had abortions, 320 00:20:33.819 --> 00:20:37.089 which, you know, the statistics are one third of all women in United 321 00:20:37.130 --> 00:20:40.730 States of America have had an abortion. Probably even higher within the church. 322 00:20:40.809 --> 00:20:44.089 I don't know exactly, but at least one third of the women that you're 323 00:20:44.130 --> 00:20:45.769 preaching to, yeah, have been affected by abortion. Yeah, but we 324 00:20:45.890 --> 00:20:51.200 often do affect forget about the men. They're affected by abortion. That's thing 325 00:20:51.519 --> 00:20:55.119 is like. You know, it's like a snake, slither's where ever you 326 00:20:55.200 --> 00:20:57.400 can go and just devours whatever it can. You know, to talk about 327 00:20:57.400 --> 00:21:00.400 the ministry to post able to fathers. Yeah, man, I mean it's 328 00:21:00.440 --> 00:21:07.750 messy. It's messy because if you're plowing a field, you know, when 329 00:21:07.750 --> 00:21:10.470 you start plowing the field, and I'm not a farmer at all. I 330 00:21:10.630 --> 00:21:12.589 don't know if you are, I'm not, but tried, I've been if 331 00:21:12.630 --> 00:21:15.710 dad when I tried to cultivate it, and because it's hard. It's hard 332 00:21:15.750 --> 00:21:18.549 work, right, hard work. Yeah, and got to stick with it. 333 00:21:18.579 --> 00:21:27.339 So the women, they're usually it's usually it's not hard to maybe get 334 00:21:27.380 --> 00:21:30.460 them to tap back into that moment because they were in the room. Yeah, 335 00:21:30.660 --> 00:21:34.170 they physically had things done to them and the men was absent from that. 336 00:21:34.369 --> 00:21:38.250 Yeah, and I think just in our society in general, the way 337 00:21:38.329 --> 00:21:41.970 God's design the family is that the man is supposed to lead. In our 338 00:21:41.089 --> 00:21:45.049 society says, Hey, who, do whatever you want to do. Yeah, 339 00:21:45.410 --> 00:21:48.240 women can lead and men. Just saw a picture yesterday of a woman 340 00:21:49.200 --> 00:21:52.359 proposing to a man and she was on one knee and he stand there getting 341 00:21:52.359 --> 00:21:56.000 the ring, and I that's a and so we live in a society that 342 00:21:56.480 --> 00:22:00.470 that calls meat vegetables and cause vegetables meat and women can be men if they 343 00:22:00.509 --> 00:22:03.509 want to. And identifies whatever they want, down and down as up. 344 00:22:03.549 --> 00:22:07.990 It's just so yeah, it's so scattered. And so when you start getting 345 00:22:07.990 --> 00:22:11.269 back to the biblical rolls of men and women, we have to we have 346 00:22:11.349 --> 00:22:14.789 to drudge through all that. We got to plow those fields and say we 347 00:22:15.069 --> 00:22:18.019 don't care what culture says. Right, because cultures say man, be strong, 348 00:22:18.539 --> 00:22:22.460 pull, pull yourself up by the bootstraps and move on and not deal 349 00:22:22.579 --> 00:22:25.539 with, yeah, the pain of your heart. And so, going back 350 00:22:25.579 --> 00:22:27.619 to your question is, what has it been like? Well, I've ministered 351 00:22:27.700 --> 00:22:33.130 to several men and some of these men have abortions from thirty years ago. 352 00:22:33.250 --> 00:22:36.690 Yeah, and so the hard part is to get them to go back, 353 00:22:36.730 --> 00:22:42.690 yeah, right, to get them to go back and and and see the 354 00:22:42.849 --> 00:22:52.240 reality of that moment and the reality of their failed responsibility. They're failed action 355 00:22:53.359 --> 00:22:57.630 or even there, whether it's their complacency or they're pushing the woman to do 356 00:22:57.710 --> 00:23:02.150 it. Yeah, and then dealing with it at that moment, because you 357 00:23:02.190 --> 00:23:04.190 can't deal with you can't move on till you've done with the past. You 358 00:23:04.269 --> 00:23:07.549 want to live in the past, but you got to deal with that moment. 359 00:23:07.670 --> 00:23:11.390 Yeah, and so the hard part for for you know, post aboard 360 00:23:11.430 --> 00:23:14.339 of fathers that we've been taught all our life is that we need to be 361 00:23:14.420 --> 00:23:18.299 tough and just keep moving on. And so this thing extends past abortion. 362 00:23:18.339 --> 00:23:21.380 I know that's the purpose of this, but but men in general have been 363 00:23:21.380 --> 00:23:26.180 abused sexually, physically mentally at early ages. Yeah, and we just been 364 00:23:26.220 --> 00:23:27.529 taught, Hey, we got to keep it moving. But until we go 365 00:23:27.730 --> 00:23:32.450 back to those moments and see our failure and action, whether it's, you 366 00:23:32.529 --> 00:23:37.170 know again for against apathy or pushing, until we get back to that moment, 367 00:23:37.210 --> 00:23:40.089 we're not going to we're not going to move on. So that's the 368 00:23:40.170 --> 00:23:42.160 hard part. Yeah, for men because, like again we just been talking. 369 00:23:42.359 --> 00:23:45.240 Do you find that? Because you know, just in my experience at 370 00:23:45.240 --> 00:23:48.200 the abortion clanking up, talk to men and you've been there and you've talked 371 00:23:48.200 --> 00:23:52.400 to man. We've probably even ministered together some men at the abortion clinic. 372 00:23:52.440 --> 00:23:56.630 There you find a lot of apathy, but you also find a lot of 373 00:23:56.670 --> 00:23:59.470 brokenness even within the men. I mean some of them are coercing her to 374 00:23:59.549 --> 00:24:03.029 having a passionate but but the majority of men that I've talked to have taken 375 00:24:03.029 --> 00:24:06.349 the attitude of well, if it was up to me, she wouldn't have 376 00:24:06.390 --> 00:24:07.710 the abortion, but it's her body, her choice, and of course the 377 00:24:07.750 --> 00:24:11.819 implication was that her body, her choice, her fault, her problem, 378 00:24:11.940 --> 00:24:15.140 she bears the weight of it. Yeah, but they're still feeling some guilt 379 00:24:15.180 --> 00:24:18.859 there. But do you find that that maybe they some men, in order 380 00:24:18.859 --> 00:24:22.059 to make themselves feel less guilty or feel sort of like they weren't a part 381 00:24:22.059 --> 00:24:25.809 of it, do sort of push that off on the woman, like, 382 00:24:25.930 --> 00:24:27.210 you know, I didn't really want her to do it, but she did 383 00:24:27.289 --> 00:24:30.809 it, and so they're trying to shirk the guilt that they actually feel, 384 00:24:30.930 --> 00:24:33.410 yeah, by blaming it on her. Do you find that to be the 385 00:24:33.490 --> 00:24:37.049 case's go back to scripture. Right, Huh, kind of. What is 386 00:24:37.089 --> 00:24:41.119 that? Amy And hey, this is the woman you gave me. Yeah, 387 00:24:41.279 --> 00:24:42.799 it's like no, dude, you had a responsibility. Yeah, and 388 00:24:44.000 --> 00:24:48.519 so, whether it's abortion or whatever, since we're dealing with it's the man's 389 00:24:48.559 --> 00:24:52.829 responsibility, right, doesn't it doesn't usurp that or negate that the woman has 390 00:24:52.869 --> 00:24:56.829 a responsibility as well, or the children. Absolute the man's been called to 391 00:24:56.869 --> 00:25:00.470 lead. Yeah, and so I've been out there on the sidewalks and it 392 00:25:00.789 --> 00:25:06.630 sounds harsh to say hey, hey, brother or hey fella, yeah, 393 00:25:06.750 --> 00:25:08.700 like if you don't go stand up, you're being a coward. Yeah, 394 00:25:10.140 --> 00:25:12.619 and man, that sounds harsh, but it's true. It is, it's 395 00:25:12.700 --> 00:25:19.819 true, and the reality is as the as the abortive father. Years ago, 396 00:25:21.809 --> 00:25:23.490 I was being a coward, like I was. I had to deal 397 00:25:23.569 --> 00:25:29.809 with my cowardlessness. I want. I preferred comfort over responsibility. My responsibility 398 00:25:29.890 --> 00:25:33.089 to myself was having fun. Yeah, and this is just an accident that 399 00:25:33.170 --> 00:25:37.119 happened and a problem. You got a problem I got to take care of. 400 00:25:37.200 --> 00:25:40.039 It's going to get in the way of, you know, her life 401 00:25:40.039 --> 00:25:41.480 or my life, because I don't plan on being with her anyways. Yeah, 402 00:25:41.839 --> 00:25:45.880 yeah, just, yeah, man, in general, man, we 403 00:25:47.759 --> 00:25:52.390 we like to blame shift and people who don't have the Holy Spirit. You 404 00:25:52.470 --> 00:25:56.109 can't fault them for that because they don't know any better. In a sense, 405 00:25:56.109 --> 00:26:00.190 I mean the stull the responsibility to take responsibility, but it's just the 406 00:26:00.269 --> 00:26:03.630 it's the default, yeah, for our society, is to blame others. 407 00:26:03.829 --> 00:26:04.779 Yeah, you know, we don't like the way society goes. Blame the 408 00:26:04.819 --> 00:26:10.539 president. Yeah, we don't like the way the sandwich tasted. Blame who, 409 00:26:10.700 --> 00:26:12.539 like you, probably blame the chef for that. But but you know, 410 00:26:12.619 --> 00:26:15.500 I'm saying, like we lame the mayonnaise company. Yeah, we can 411 00:26:15.539 --> 00:26:17.539 blame everybody. Yeah, it's like you don't want to cook it, Bro 412 00:26:17.740 --> 00:26:22.650 Yeah, yeah, yeah, just so, how don't you go away? 413 00:26:22.809 --> 00:26:25.529 Yeah, well, and less. Yeah, unless the Holy Spirit comes in 414 00:26:25.650 --> 00:26:26.450 and does his work, which is sort of that. You know, that 415 00:26:26.690 --> 00:26:30.609 is the focus of this podcast. You're talking about pro life stuff and talk 416 00:26:30.650 --> 00:26:32.880 about, you know, abortion, but it is always in light of the 417 00:26:32.960 --> 00:26:37.519 Gospel and what God has done, obviously in our hearts, what God has 418 00:26:37.559 --> 00:26:40.359 done in your heart. We minister out of that. You know, I 419 00:26:40.440 --> 00:26:44.160 have a story. I've shared it in a previous podcast, my my past 420 00:26:44.279 --> 00:26:47.869 and how the Lord took me from a father at seventeen years old. My 421 00:26:47.990 --> 00:26:51.069 wife got pretty if you know, my wife was pregnant in high school, 422 00:26:51.269 --> 00:26:55.230 sixteen, I was seventeen. Our baby was born when I turned eighteen and 423 00:26:56.910 --> 00:26:59.150 then, you know, we have a twenty one year old daughter now and 424 00:26:59.349 --> 00:27:02.740 God has really done a work in our lives through that. That's actually what 425 00:27:02.859 --> 00:27:06.500 the Lord used to bring me to himself, is that unwanted pregnancy situation. 426 00:27:07.180 --> 00:27:08.460 So I minister out of that. I minister out of what the Lord has 427 00:27:08.500 --> 00:27:11.619 done in my heart. You know, freely you have received, so freely 428 00:27:11.700 --> 00:27:15.460 give, Jesus said, and you men are shadow that same thing. So 429 00:27:15.660 --> 00:27:18.890 talked then, if you can, about the healing you. So you talked 430 00:27:18.930 --> 00:27:21.569 a little bit about it. Love Life, yeah, and how the Lord, 431 00:27:21.849 --> 00:27:25.769 I guess, confronted you in that sin but also brought you know, 432 00:27:26.049 --> 00:27:29.130 a brokenness. You know, we don't we don't begin with God until we 433 00:27:29.170 --> 00:27:30.400 end up with ourselves. Right, we got to be done with ourselves and 434 00:27:32.000 --> 00:27:33.680 even in our Christian lives. So we've got to lay it down right, 435 00:27:33.720 --> 00:27:37.559 we've got to lay down and we go from glory to glory by laying stuff 436 00:27:37.599 --> 00:27:41.440 down good and and it seems like that week forty and two thousand and sixteen 437 00:27:41.599 --> 00:27:45.589 when the Lord did that for you. As far as the abortions in the 438 00:27:45.630 --> 00:27:48.430 past, yeah, so talk about how the Lord has brought you from that 439 00:27:48.549 --> 00:27:51.430 point of brokenness to healing. And then, you know, you've already talked 440 00:27:51.430 --> 00:27:53.269 a little bit about ministering to others. Maybe you share a story of a 441 00:27:53.309 --> 00:28:02.380 guy that you've ministered to, if you can. Yeah. Well, so 442 00:28:02.819 --> 00:28:06.859 I've been a pastor church planter for three years and probably my favorite thing that 443 00:28:06.900 --> 00:28:08.380 I've learned that I quote myself on is you don't know what you don't know. 444 00:28:08.660 --> 00:28:12.289 Yeah, so I think I might have got that from you, because 445 00:28:12.289 --> 00:28:15.329 I say I say that a lot. I mean I'm sure about the first 446 00:28:15.329 --> 00:28:17.609 guy to ever said but if I was writing a book, that might be 447 00:28:17.650 --> 00:28:22.690 the title. And what that does it allows you some freedom from you know, 448 00:28:22.769 --> 00:28:27.279 the Lord's sanctifying us. Right. So sometimes we you know, like 449 00:28:27.359 --> 00:28:32.200 that week forty moment happened. Yeah, instead of feeling condemnation, I felt 450 00:28:32.240 --> 00:28:36.240 release. Yeah, but, but, but sometimes in the Christian walk, 451 00:28:36.279 --> 00:28:40.240 when we realize the weight of our sin or something, sometimes it can cause 452 00:28:40.279 --> 00:28:42.829 us to look back and even drudge or put our heads down. And so 453 00:28:42.990 --> 00:28:47.470 God's not in the business of having US walk through life with our heads down. 454 00:28:47.509 --> 00:28:49.589 He wants us to look up and see him and push on. Fhlippings, 455 00:28:49.589 --> 00:28:53.109 three hundred and thirteen fourteen, the upward call. Yeah, not looking 456 00:28:53.150 --> 00:29:00.019 back, but looking forward. And so again, the first five six years 457 00:29:00.059 --> 00:29:06.660 of being a Christian we just didn't hear about healing another's it's kind of implied, 458 00:29:06.779 --> 00:29:08.019 right, when you need to the Gospels, and I mean the way 459 00:29:08.019 --> 00:29:11.609 the Holy Spirit works, you're going to you're going to receive healing. Yeah, 460 00:29:11.769 --> 00:29:12.970 but for someone to shine a light and say, man, brother, 461 00:29:14.089 --> 00:29:18.410 you need to be healed. Like I just hadn't heard that kind of language 462 00:29:18.410 --> 00:29:21.089 until week forty and it happened and I don't even it was the Holy Spirit. 463 00:29:21.170 --> 00:29:23.559 Yeah, the clearly was was doing the healing. But so for me 464 00:29:23.720 --> 00:29:30.599 even lately, it's just being around you know, my you know my pentecostal 465 00:29:30.680 --> 00:29:37.519 brothers, and and it just being around different denominations where people are focused on, 466 00:29:37.599 --> 00:29:40.789 Hey, let's let's tend to the wounds of your heart. Our Church 467 00:29:40.910 --> 00:29:45.269 plant is where, in the adoption process of a church planning network, really 468 00:29:45.390 --> 00:29:48.309 not network of family, of church is called Soma, okay, and some 469 00:29:48.509 --> 00:29:52.859 of the Greek word for body. And there they've been really instructive about getting 470 00:29:52.859 --> 00:29:56.539 on the front end of soul care. Yeah, and ways I've never really 471 00:29:56.660 --> 00:30:00.660 heard and comprehensive ways, which has been so refreshing to me, because as 472 00:30:00.700 --> 00:30:04.019 ministers of the Gospel, we all are going to struggle, yeah, as 473 00:30:04.099 --> 00:30:07.210 fathers were all going to every Christian is going to struggle. Yeah, as 474 00:30:07.250 --> 00:30:11.210 we battle our sin, and so some moons are going to come up. 475 00:30:11.210 --> 00:30:15.890 So if we don't have our identity rooted in Christ, if we're not trusting 476 00:30:15.930 --> 00:30:19.049 and depending on the spirit of God and realizing that we've been adopted into a 477 00:30:19.089 --> 00:30:22.240 family that we can't get out of. And so God loves us and he 478 00:30:22.319 --> 00:30:26.440 cares for us and he wants us to to be healed. If we don't 479 00:30:26.640 --> 00:30:33.000 walk in that kind of light, then we're never going to progress or to 480 00:30:33.119 --> 00:30:37.150 be sanctified in the ways Romans Twenty eight says. We're being conformed to the 481 00:30:37.190 --> 00:30:41.230 image of Christ. The body of Christ has a lot of things need to 482 00:30:41.309 --> 00:30:44.269 be healed of. Yeah, and so when God shine that light on me, 483 00:30:44.309 --> 00:30:48.029 and he's been shining this light of healing, I've just been exposing it 484 00:30:48.069 --> 00:30:52.140 from the pulpit. Okay, when I meet with brothers, it's not hey 485 00:30:52.220 --> 00:30:56.539 man, did you get the right context for every scripture? Say Hey man, 486 00:30:56.619 --> 00:31:00.059 how is what is God trying to do here? What do you sense 487 00:31:00.099 --> 00:31:02.859 in the spirit moving is? Is there is an are your life that's not 488 00:31:02.940 --> 00:31:04.490 been submitted to Lordship of Christ? Is there an area of your life that 489 00:31:04.529 --> 00:31:08.210 the Holy Spirit is is revealing that needs to be needs to be healed, 490 00:31:08.210 --> 00:31:11.369 or is there something in your life that you need to be delivered from? 491 00:31:11.410 --> 00:31:14.730 Yeah, so just new language and I'm still learning. Man. So I 492 00:31:15.089 --> 00:31:18.400 mean later in our brothers like you and other brothers to help me through this. 493 00:31:18.559 --> 00:31:22.920 But specific stories, man, I mean, you know, there's so 494 00:31:23.000 --> 00:31:30.519 many and I'm not sure like confidentiality. I mean I'm one of those real 495 00:31:30.599 --> 00:31:33.150 transparent guys, don't give any names, like, but that like I don't 496 00:31:33.150 --> 00:31:38.430 even know how to not be transparent. Yeah, but yeah, yeah, 497 00:31:38.430 --> 00:31:47.900 another brother. Just talking to about I'm trying to love and forgive. I 498 00:31:47.940 --> 00:31:49.539 guess I'd be okay if my mom heard this, but I've I've had an 499 00:31:49.579 --> 00:31:52.660 a strange relationship with my mother. Yeah, and it's one that I'm, 500 00:31:53.180 --> 00:31:56.980 you know, actively praying and and seeking. How do we how do we 501 00:31:57.059 --> 00:32:00.529 reconcile? I don't think she knows the Lord yet and there's there's some areas 502 00:32:00.569 --> 00:32:04.849 of betterment her heart. But what I realized one day was that, man, 503 00:32:04.890 --> 00:32:07.730 I've been really bitter towards her. Yeah, you know, I can 504 00:32:07.730 --> 00:32:10.369 label, mislabel it really all kinds of other things and Oh, I've tried 505 00:32:10.490 --> 00:32:14.130 and I've kicked your dust off and move it and all that, but it's 506 00:32:14.170 --> 00:32:15.119 like, at the end of the day, it's like there's a part of 507 00:32:15.200 --> 00:32:19.480 my heart that it needs to be healed and needs to love her. I'm 508 00:32:19.519 --> 00:32:23.599 yeah, unconditionally. And so this is not necessarily on the issue of abortion, 509 00:32:24.559 --> 00:32:28.440 but I was just sharing that with another brother and he confessed to me. 510 00:32:28.519 --> 00:32:32.230 Man, he had a stepmom. They got introduced from at five years 511 00:32:32.230 --> 00:32:37.910 old and and about eight years old he started hating her, yeah, and 512 00:32:37.430 --> 00:32:42.950 his brothers in his s now, and just through that conversation of seeking the 513 00:32:43.069 --> 00:32:45.500 deeper areas of our heart, I think you know, he reached out to 514 00:32:45.539 --> 00:32:50.660 her and he sought to make amends and just to love her unconditionally. Yeah, 515 00:32:50.740 --> 00:32:52.819 with no agenda. And so that's one story. I mean, I've 516 00:32:52.819 --> 00:32:55.299 got countless stories my own home, but I just want to protect my over 517 00:32:55.380 --> 00:32:58.890 yet and no, wife's like you always talked about us from the pulpit. 518 00:32:58.930 --> 00:33:04.250 I tried only like use great stories. Yeah, and then I've got tons 519 00:33:04.250 --> 00:33:07.450 of personal stories, but but yeah, man, it's just well God does 520 00:33:07.529 --> 00:33:09.730 to you, he'll do through you, and so it's hard for it's hard 521 00:33:09.769 --> 00:33:15.519 for you to go and talk about healing if you haven't been healed. Yeah, 522 00:33:15.599 --> 00:33:19.640 it's hard for you to forgive others if, if you excuse me, 523 00:33:19.960 --> 00:33:22.880 it's hard for you to talk about forgiving others if you haven't personally forget. 524 00:33:22.920 --> 00:33:27.390 Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know there's a first John. First John's 525 00:33:27.390 --> 00:33:30.069 like one of my favorite books of the Bible. Tough one, it's tough. 526 00:33:30.150 --> 00:33:31.829 But well, that's weird. That's one of your favorites, it's one 527 00:33:31.869 --> 00:33:35.869 of my favor so what are your so holy? Yeah, exactly. That's 528 00:33:35.950 --> 00:33:38.349 right. But the first part of that actually memorize this first couple of verses 529 00:33:38.390 --> 00:33:40.940 and it talks about walking in the LICES is. This is the message which 530 00:33:40.980 --> 00:33:44.859 we had heard from him, talking about Jesus, and we declare to you 531 00:33:44.940 --> 00:33:47.819 that God is light and in him is no darkness at all. If we 532 00:33:47.940 --> 00:33:52.019 say we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness, we lie and do 533 00:33:52.140 --> 00:33:54.420 not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he 534 00:33:54.539 --> 00:33:58.009 is in the light, we have fellowship with one another. In the blood 535 00:33:58.009 --> 00:34:00.450 of Jesus, Christis son, cleanses us from all sin. And the Lord, 536 00:34:00.609 --> 00:34:02.849 you know, really showed me because I was just praying, because he 537 00:34:02.930 --> 00:34:06.529 actually goes on to say that those that have the seat of God in them 538 00:34:06.569 --> 00:34:10.559 they do not sin. But he also says that when you send so obviously 539 00:34:10.599 --> 00:34:15.079 he's not saying that we never sin. Yeah, and so I was sort 540 00:34:15.079 --> 00:34:16.079 of meditating on that. Walking in the light. What does that mean? 541 00:34:16.199 --> 00:34:20.079 Walking His light? Is God talking about sinless perfection, like we need to 542 00:34:20.119 --> 00:34:22.159 walk in sinless perfection? It's like, no, he's not talking about that. 543 00:34:23.039 --> 00:34:27.989 Talking to walking in the light is actually holding your failings, in your 544 00:34:28.030 --> 00:34:30.510 sin before God and saying Yes, God, this was wrong and confessing it, 545 00:34:31.269 --> 00:34:35.869 bringing it into the light. It's not sinless perfection. It's being honest 546 00:34:36.309 --> 00:34:38.219 with where you've gone, where you what you've done and bringing it to the 547 00:34:38.300 --> 00:34:43.219 light. And even says in that scripture is it's curious there that says that 548 00:34:43.420 --> 00:34:45.380 if we walk in the light, we have fellowship with one another. Yeah, 549 00:34:45.619 --> 00:34:49.619 so our fellowship often times, and you've probably experienced this, to you 550 00:34:49.739 --> 00:34:52.380 that when somebody's holding on to a sin, yeah, when they're holding on 551 00:34:52.500 --> 00:34:54.969 to something in their past or they're holding on maybe justifying an attitude that they 552 00:34:55.050 --> 00:34:59.610 have, unforgiveness or whatever. Yeah, it actually even B breaks fellowship with 553 00:34:59.849 --> 00:35:02.130 other brothers. MMM, because there's a sort of a mistrust thing that goes 554 00:35:02.170 --> 00:35:06.050 on. Like the reason why people don't bring stuff to the light is because 555 00:35:06.050 --> 00:35:08.239 they don't trust other people to not do the same thing that was done to 556 00:35:08.360 --> 00:35:12.840 them. And it can break fellowship, it can mess things up and even 557 00:35:12.880 --> 00:35:15.159 though a church, you know. Yeah, so just speaking on that a 558 00:35:15.199 --> 00:35:16.320 little bit, and that's good. I'm at to get you can preach our 559 00:35:16.320 --> 00:35:21.989 church on that some time, but you can't do that apart from relationships. 560 00:35:22.030 --> 00:35:23.989 Yeah, and so that's why we started our church. I'm not trying to 561 00:35:23.989 --> 00:35:27.269 plug our church, but that's probably yeah, man, that's why we start 562 00:35:27.269 --> 00:35:30.389 urgents. Yeah, because there's converted church, converted church in CCOM all right, 563 00:35:31.309 --> 00:35:36.099 but down the on the note. Yeah, I mean. Yeah. 564 00:35:36.219 --> 00:35:38.179 So, yeah, men, think about what I need to tell about the 565 00:35:38.219 --> 00:35:42.420 church. No, man, that's why we started the church the way we 566 00:35:42.500 --> 00:35:45.539 did, and we do these, we call him great commission groups, because 567 00:35:45.539 --> 00:35:47.179 the great commissions to make disciples. It's not just an evangelist that called. 568 00:35:47.300 --> 00:35:51.650 Yeah, we're disciples, right. So we want to make good disciples, 569 00:35:51.690 --> 00:35:53.130 because we're all discipling somebody, whether we know it or not. Yeah, 570 00:35:53.570 --> 00:35:58.409 and so we want to be these kinds of disciples who can walk in the 571 00:35:58.449 --> 00:36:00.409 light and can share those things. But you can't do that part from relationship, 572 00:36:00.409 --> 00:36:06.440 right. Yeah, absolutely. If if you're fellowship with other Christians is 573 00:36:07.639 --> 00:36:10.360 segmented to one hour on a Sunday, like that's just not adequate. Yeah, 574 00:36:10.679 --> 00:36:15.079 like, that's not if I only knew you for one hour and Sunday 575 00:36:15.079 --> 00:36:16.440 and you came to me and start talking about your sin, like I don't 576 00:36:16.440 --> 00:36:21.670 really have the capacity to minister to you. Yeah, and or even really 577 00:36:21.670 --> 00:36:22.949 a capacity to care. It's like, yeah, that's kind of what I 578 00:36:23.070 --> 00:36:25.269 meant. Yes, yeah, yeah, it's just like, man, I 579 00:36:25.309 --> 00:36:28.349 don't know you and hey, man, I'll be praying. I'll pray for 580 00:36:28.429 --> 00:36:31.860 you. Brother, I might earnestly pray for you, but yeah, man. 581 00:36:31.900 --> 00:36:35.820 So that's why I love about cities for life. It's what I love 582 00:36:35.860 --> 00:36:42.059 about love life is they're not just transactionally preaching a message on the street corner, 583 00:36:42.980 --> 00:36:45.619 like if that's all it was. And that would be good in its 584 00:36:45.619 --> 00:36:50.489 sense, because you're going to, you know, a place of death and 585 00:36:50.650 --> 00:36:57.769 calling out to save and bring life. But you guys are invested relationally. 586 00:36:58.050 --> 00:37:00.090 We got pictures on the wall. We know some of these mothers. Yeah, 587 00:37:00.599 --> 00:37:06.159 is mothers have come up to our church and begin some relationship, and 588 00:37:07.679 --> 00:37:12.480 that's where in communities, where the light shines on the things. You know, 589 00:37:12.559 --> 00:37:15.590 we all always look at Matthew Eighteen when Jesus talk about church discipline. 590 00:37:15.670 --> 00:37:20.389 We look at that, that last portion. We're going to put them before 591 00:37:20.389 --> 00:37:22.269 the church, we're going to send them out. Basically, we're going to 592 00:37:22.269 --> 00:37:24.230 kick them out. Yeah, and Church discipline, if it's done rightly, 593 00:37:25.070 --> 00:37:28.829 the first step is going to your brother one on one. Yeah, and 594 00:37:28.949 --> 00:37:32.340 so that's a relational thing. And so going back to this whole conversation is 595 00:37:32.380 --> 00:37:37.139 that if you're going to be a post aboard of father seek to Minister to 596 00:37:37.219 --> 00:37:39.099 post the board of fathers or be a post of board of father who seeking 597 00:37:39.179 --> 00:37:43.500 to be ministered to, you got to be plugged into a local church. 598 00:37:43.659 --> 00:37:46.210 Yeah, and not just one where you're showing up on Sunday, you're sitting 599 00:37:46.250 --> 00:37:50.329 the back row, you don't know anybody and you've kind of checked the box 600 00:37:50.409 --> 00:37:53.090 like you'll you'll be healed or delivered that way. Holy Spirit can work in 601 00:37:53.170 --> 00:37:57.409 spite of that. But the way Holy Spirit works is through scripture, through 602 00:37:57.449 --> 00:38:00.280 prayer and through community. Yeah, and and what better place to be around 603 00:38:00.280 --> 00:38:06.960 other broken people that can love you and encourage you and equip you? Pastor's 604 00:38:06.960 --> 00:38:09.639 jobs to equip the work of the ministry. So so this is the way 605 00:38:09.719 --> 00:38:15.190 God's taught me about healing now equipping the body right. So I'm limited in 606 00:38:15.429 --> 00:38:19.469 the amount of men I can reach or women with the post aboard of healing. 607 00:38:19.670 --> 00:38:22.349 Yeah, but as I equip our church for this, we've got a 608 00:38:22.389 --> 00:38:24.750 hundred men and women who are gathering regularly throughout the week, not just on 609 00:38:24.829 --> 00:38:30.300 Sunday but in their communities, and they're going out and children our churches, 610 00:38:30.820 --> 00:38:35.420 hundred people strong praise God. Seventy five of things or children. Man, 611 00:38:35.539 --> 00:38:37.579 it feels like it's about fifty. Fifty five, I mean. And so 612 00:38:37.739 --> 00:38:42.170 our kids are now. I mean I probably saw ten of them volunteer and 613 00:38:42.250 --> 00:38:45.050 Love Life Week. Forty. Yeah, I our kids are the next generation 614 00:38:45.210 --> 00:38:47.570 who are standing in the gap now for the children, but also standing in 615 00:38:47.610 --> 00:38:52.929 the gap for people who might make that decision. I have kids at a 616 00:38:52.969 --> 00:38:58.039 Christian school in the city and the principle told me that, man, probably 617 00:38:58.079 --> 00:39:01.559 a quarter of those kids are Christians. And so they're there and I brought 618 00:39:01.639 --> 00:39:07.480 love life to to the school and their school participated as part of their mission 619 00:39:07.480 --> 00:39:13.550 week the past two years and man, it caused the stir amongst the parents. 620 00:39:13.590 --> 00:39:15.949 Why are you sending our kids out there? Yeah, and even my 621 00:39:15.989 --> 00:39:20.869 own kids had to become apologists for why life is got as God's thing. 622 00:39:20.989 --> 00:39:23.860 It's we love life because because God does. Yeah, and so my kids 623 00:39:23.900 --> 00:39:27.940 now are speaking up and my even my own, one of my sons, 624 00:39:28.019 --> 00:39:31.420 was ministering to one of our relatives who saw some of our postings, like 625 00:39:31.460 --> 00:39:35.099 why would yall go out there and some my fifteen year old son is now 626 00:39:35.500 --> 00:39:38.929 studying the scriptures and he's he wants to become more sharpened and equipped so that 627 00:39:39.050 --> 00:39:44.090 he can speak on behalf. Yeah, God through this issue of abortion. 628 00:39:44.170 --> 00:39:47.969 So it's very it's very apologetic issue. Yeah, it's life and death issue, 629 00:39:49.610 --> 00:39:52.809 but it's a glory of God issue. Yeah, I mean God loves 630 00:39:52.849 --> 00:39:54.119 life. So why I create us? We're create as image. Yeah, 631 00:39:54.280 --> 00:39:57.519 you know what I mean. So, yeah, I know. One of 632 00:39:57.559 --> 00:40:02.320 the is a post I read from John Piper some months ago that he put 633 00:40:02.360 --> 00:40:07.909 out. You basically, like some prolaborate person, had said, you know, 634 00:40:07.070 --> 00:40:12.869 if if all these babies are going to heaven and you know, hey, 635 00:40:13.989 --> 00:40:15.190 why is it a bad thing? Why is abortion of bad things just 636 00:40:15.230 --> 00:40:19.949 sending them straight to heaven? John Piper's response was, with the Devil's content 637 00:40:20.110 --> 00:40:22.699 to send, you know, a thousand babies to heaven as long as he 638 00:40:22.820 --> 00:40:27.940 can put a thousand women in Bondage to the sin of abortion. And it's 639 00:40:27.980 --> 00:40:30.059 like it's true, because it does bring bondage to women. And again the 640 00:40:30.099 --> 00:40:34.260 focus a lot of times it's on women, but it's also men in bondage, 641 00:40:34.820 --> 00:40:39.969 and the bondage is in still even some believers in the churches. Yeah, 642 00:40:40.090 --> 00:40:44.730 you know that. We are associated with probably my church, probably something 643 00:40:44.849 --> 00:40:47.170 even your church, that are hanging onto that sand or in that bondage, 644 00:40:47.170 --> 00:40:52.000 even though they're set free by the blood of Jesus and when God from pronounces 645 00:40:52.039 --> 00:40:57.519 them justified, justified by grace through faith, yet there's still a bondage in 646 00:40:57.559 --> 00:41:00.119 their mind and like a holding back from all that the Lord could, could, 647 00:41:00.320 --> 00:41:05.630 could use them to do, because they're not they're not allowing the Lord 648 00:41:05.710 --> 00:41:08.989 to release them in the sense from that Sind. Man, have you experienced 649 00:41:09.070 --> 00:41:14.630 that in your congregation, some people getting set free from not maybe even not 650 00:41:14.789 --> 00:41:20.940 just passed abortions but other other things and seeing the Lord's sort of propel people 651 00:41:21.619 --> 00:41:28.699 in that way? Yeah, man, I mean that's essentially that's the process 652 00:41:28.780 --> 00:41:35.090 of sanctification. Yeah, is God setting you free from your past. Yeah, 653 00:41:35.289 --> 00:41:37.090 it's hard for me to get specific examples, because in our in our 654 00:41:37.289 --> 00:41:39.369 in my lot of work, it happens every day. Yes, sure, 655 00:41:40.050 --> 00:41:45.250 whether I mean some people are, they're in bondage to their their doctrine. 656 00:41:45.250 --> 00:41:49.079 Yeah, you know, I'm a part of this camp and I can't fellowship 657 00:41:49.079 --> 00:41:51.880 with anybody else. I was like, man, man, God wants to 658 00:41:51.920 --> 00:41:53.440 free them from that. There's a unified body Christ. Going up to New 659 00:41:53.440 --> 00:41:55.960 York was powerful for me. I went. I went up to New York 660 00:41:57.000 --> 00:42:00.800 with love life. Okay, yeah, and this was their first year in 661 00:42:00.280 --> 00:42:02.869 New York City and they asked me to come up and share some of my 662 00:42:02.989 --> 00:42:07.909 story and I was quick to say yes and and got up there and we 663 00:42:07.989 --> 00:42:13.429 worshiped with some assemblies of God churches M and I don't even know if I've 664 00:42:13.429 --> 00:42:16.659 ever visited. Like when I got saved, I was like in the Baptist 665 00:42:16.699 --> 00:42:21.099 World in Charlotte, baptist, probably the majority of yeah, I'm sure people 666 00:42:21.099 --> 00:42:24.260 so laying the Badya just get, just get good Bible teaching churches. That's 667 00:42:24.300 --> 00:42:28.019 what I needed and, praise God, I'm I'm not ashamed of that at 668 00:42:28.019 --> 00:42:30.690 all. Yeah, I love my Baptist brethren. I am baptist, but 669 00:42:30.409 --> 00:42:34.170 but that's not the banner that I'm like Hey, I'm a baptist. Yeah 670 00:42:34.170 --> 00:42:37.849 Right. So going up to New York and see in the assemblies of God 671 00:42:37.889 --> 00:42:43.530 folks in the way they worshiped, like the Lord started setting me free. 672 00:42:43.610 --> 00:42:46.320 Yeah right, you don't know what you don't know. Yeah, I don't 673 00:42:46.320 --> 00:42:50.880 want to go to rabbit trailed on the Kanye West thing, but his his 674 00:42:51.039 --> 00:42:57.360 Sunday service choir and seeing the expression of a black choir. I mean it 675 00:42:57.480 --> 00:43:00.429 moved me to tears and I'd never experienced that. And so I think, 676 00:43:00.630 --> 00:43:04.429 you know, what God wants to do is he unifies us through the scripture. 677 00:43:04.510 --> 00:43:07.230 He says, as we fellowship with light, fellowship in the light, 678 00:43:07.909 --> 00:43:12.510 we have fellowship with one another. The darkness wants to hide us and divide 679 00:43:12.510 --> 00:43:15.500 us. Yeah, and partition us. And so that's another thing I just 680 00:43:15.659 --> 00:43:21.980 love about, I guess abolition, or however you want to describe what do 681 00:43:22.019 --> 00:43:24.940 you call this movement? I mean, I had denify myself as pro life. 682 00:43:25.059 --> 00:43:28.730 Okay, as people know what you're saying, but there's some we actually 683 00:43:28.730 --> 00:43:31.489 did some podcasts about pro life and abolition. Know that. But you know, 684 00:43:31.570 --> 00:43:35.570 one of the things this, this is powerful and actually so I think 685 00:43:35.809 --> 00:43:37.929 is podcast before last we put out, you know, flip flip. been 686 00:43:37.969 --> 00:43:42.800 them and I was talking to him a little bit about the the whole incrementalism 687 00:43:42.960 --> 00:43:45.920 and mediatism sort of debate. Actually listening to some of that. Okay, 688 00:43:45.920 --> 00:43:46.679 yeah, just a little bit. So. But one of the things he 689 00:43:46.800 --> 00:43:50.320 said to me, and he said this as we were preparing for the podcast, 690 00:43:50.400 --> 00:43:52.320 he said, you know what, because I asked me about abolition and 691 00:43:52.360 --> 00:43:54.159 what do you think about this and Prolife, when you think about the tag 692 00:43:54.280 --> 00:43:58.389 pro life, because I just say I'm pro life, because everybody knows what 693 00:43:58.469 --> 00:44:00.349 you're talking about. So I mean, I'm contend to be called anti abortion. 694 00:44:00.389 --> 00:44:04.190 Right people are killing babies. I'm anti that. It's like a anti 695 00:44:04.269 --> 00:44:07.869 slavery and all you know. So, but anyway, he said, you 696 00:44:07.909 --> 00:44:08.829 know what, we don't come out here. We were standing in front the 697 00:44:08.829 --> 00:44:13.659 abortion clinning when he said this. So we don't come out here as abolitionist 698 00:44:13.940 --> 00:44:16.900 or as prolife or as we don't come out here as a mediatist or incrementalist. 699 00:44:17.099 --> 00:44:21.460 Come out here as Christians. We are here because we are followers of 700 00:44:21.579 --> 00:44:24.289 Jesus, Yep, and so that being that, that was a powerful statement 701 00:44:24.329 --> 00:44:28.409 to me. And and so he talked a little bit, a little bit 702 00:44:28.449 --> 00:44:31.409 in depth about that in that podcast, but it's just that is the mentality. 703 00:44:31.409 --> 00:44:34.610 I think this is about geese. So again, so this so. 704 00:44:34.889 --> 00:44:37.369 So. The reality of this issue is I look at this heart on your 705 00:44:37.409 --> 00:44:42.239 shirt as his baby, right, is that? And I understand why there's 706 00:44:42.239 --> 00:44:45.400 denominations. There's some stuff that's like, but they're just some disagreements. And 707 00:44:45.440 --> 00:44:49.239 Yeah, but this issue we all agree on. Yeah, right, this 708 00:44:49.360 --> 00:44:51.960 is a gospel issue, this is a Bible issue, this is a glory 709 00:44:52.000 --> 00:44:54.190 of God issue, this is a Imago day issue. Yeah, and if 710 00:44:54.230 --> 00:45:00.230 you don't, if you if you think this is okay, I got a 711 00:45:00.309 --> 00:45:04.150 question, if you have the Holy Spirit and have a firm understanding of scripture, 712 00:45:04.309 --> 00:45:07.340 if you think it's okay to convert the babies, and maybe some people 713 00:45:07.420 --> 00:45:09.260 just in mature and we can help them walk through that. But the beauty 714 00:45:09.300 --> 00:45:15.219 of this issue and this this problem is that it's uniting the church. Yeah, 715 00:45:15.900 --> 00:45:19.460 and so I praise God for the faithfulness of cities, for life and 716 00:45:19.980 --> 00:45:22.690 the Benhams and people who have just faithfully the hill drifts, I mean the 717 00:45:22.730 --> 00:45:27.210 Wilson's is the ten I get named his on and on. People just faithful. 718 00:45:28.010 --> 00:45:31.170 You know, you and Vicki. Yeah, twenty degrees outside, freezing, 719 00:45:31.650 --> 00:45:35.449 and you're still out there right, and you probably were like, man, 720 00:45:36.000 --> 00:45:37.719 when's the church going to show up? Yeah, and then the past 721 00:45:37.760 --> 00:45:40.280 couple of years the church has shown up. Yeah, and so the things 722 00:45:40.320 --> 00:45:45.480 spreading. But but it's beautiful, as I as I minister next to different 723 00:45:45.519 --> 00:45:51.190 denominations and skin colors and age groups and whatever the background is. Yeah, 724 00:45:51.710 --> 00:45:52.829 so, man, yeah, just next time you're in New York, just 725 00:45:52.949 --> 00:45:57.550 suggestion. If anybody he's listening to good at Time Square church, you bet 726 00:45:57.550 --> 00:46:00.670 it there. Powerful. Well, we were speaking at a church on Sunday. 727 00:46:00.710 --> 00:46:01.989 Okay, you have the option. You go back. Go, because 728 00:46:01.989 --> 00:46:07.019 I mean you talking about different people from different background and you're looking at Africans, 729 00:46:07.099 --> 00:46:09.780 people from vision places in Asia. Like the choir itself is just an 730 00:46:09.820 --> 00:46:14.539 array of the entire world, because, you know, New York's a Melton 731 00:46:14.579 --> 00:46:16.539 Cot anyway. Yeah, and it's just like when I last time I was 732 00:46:16.619 --> 00:46:20.610 there, which is some years ago, with the choir just worshiping God and 733 00:46:20.650 --> 00:46:23.570 seeing everybody from every tribe and tongue and nation worshiping together. Just I think 734 00:46:23.570 --> 00:46:27.809 they're the ones, they're the ones that kind of champion the movement. And 735 00:46:27.969 --> 00:46:30.170 Yeah, I said, yeah, yeah, I'm mistaken. Yeah, well, 736 00:46:30.250 --> 00:46:34.000 brother, I think if you're if you're good to go, unless you 737 00:46:34.039 --> 00:46:36.599 have my off to say you copies about done. So we're going to wrap 738 00:46:36.639 --> 00:46:37.840 this thing up. Man, I appreciate you coming and Chare and brother. 739 00:46:37.920 --> 00:46:42.960 Appreciate your heart, man, and I'll maybe have you back on sometime in 740 00:46:43.079 --> 00:46:45.679 the future. We'll talk some more about some whatever the Lord brings to us. 741 00:46:45.760 --> 00:46:50.309 God to mind. But I appreciate all those who listen, who joined 742 00:46:50.349 --> 00:46:53.190 us and just you know, check out pastor Bryan's church if you're in the 743 00:46:53.230 --> 00:46:58.269 Charlotte area and you're looking for a church home. These guys are disciplers there. 744 00:46:58.389 --> 00:47:01.579 They're not just there for the Sunday morning surface. They're there long haul, 745 00:47:01.699 --> 00:47:07.059 connecting people and Evangelistic Church. They're want to see people come to God's 746 00:47:07.099 --> 00:47:09.659 kingdom, which is awesome to disciple those people. So check it out. 747 00:47:09.900 --> 00:47:15.619 Convergence in see is it versions church inccom okay, we meet in the Plasan 748 00:47:15.699 --> 00:47:19.969 Midwood area on Sunday, but we have a six, probably potentially seven, 749 00:47:20.530 --> 00:47:24.010 missional communities that meet throughout the city to have a missional directive wherever they are. 750 00:47:24.090 --> 00:47:27.969 So, yeah, we're not just the church gathered but scattered. Okay, 751 00:47:28.289 --> 00:47:30.639 and I sound horrible with this man. Can You? Can you edit 752 00:47:30.679 --> 00:47:32.920 my voice somehow? I can't. I can't make it sound better. That's 753 00:47:32.960 --> 00:47:37.480 your people know. I normally I can hear myself. Do I sound funny 754 00:47:37.480 --> 00:47:38.920 to you now? Sounds okay, cool. Yeah, well, so he 755 00:47:39.159 --> 00:47:42.320 who? You know? He preaches a lot of Sundays and he doesn't sound 756 00:47:42.320 --> 00:47:45.909 funny. He sounds sounds fantastic. You know, the Lord uses him. 757 00:47:45.869 --> 00:47:49.230 But yeah, yeah, so check those guys out, check us out. 758 00:47:49.269 --> 00:47:52.150 You can connect with me at D Park's cities for lifecom. That's my email 759 00:47:52.190 --> 00:47:55.829 address, Charlotte dot cities for Life Dot Org is our website, and then 760 00:47:55.909 --> 00:48:00.059 our sidewalks for life site that we always mentioned, sidewalks, and number four 761 00:48:00.300 --> 00:48:04.500 Lifecom, which is a Gospel centered sidewalk counseling website, just to encourage you 762 00:48:04.500 --> 00:48:07.579 guys and put out articles on regular basis. And maybe we'll have pastor Brian 763 00:48:07.619 --> 00:48:12.059 and I'll show you something on that. Yeah, I think it was yesterday 764 00:48:12.619 --> 00:48:15.969 a friend of mine who's an organ. Okay, he shared a sidewalks for 765 00:48:15.010 --> 00:48:20.130 life video. Okay, because I saw what's Corey's money us? Why? 766 00:48:20.170 --> 00:48:22.170 Yes, Sarah, Sarah. Saw Her on the I was like, I 767 00:48:22.289 --> 00:48:23.969 know her. Yeah, he's from Oregon. So people across the guys, 768 00:48:23.969 --> 00:48:27.480 yes, or base guys. So yeah, you guys can be blessed to 769 00:48:27.639 --> 00:48:30.360 just get that website and let us know what you think about the podcast. 770 00:48:30.400 --> 00:48:32.679 If you had suggestions, maybe episodes, we can do subjects, we can 771 00:48:32.719 --> 00:48:36.519 cover it. I'd love to hear them, but until next time, God 772 00:48:36.559 --> 00:49:00.139 bless, use, use, give me, give me, cost me my 773 00:49:00.420 --> 00:49:06.219 life, but these two precious