Participants:
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC202115S
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00:01 >> Hello and thank you for
00:02 joining us on It Is Written 00:03 Canada. 00:05 When our daughters were much 00:06 younger, I used to let them 00:07 sit on my lap while I was 00:10 driving our car along an old 00:11 dirt road near our house in 00:13 the country or they would also 00:15 sit on my lap while I was 00:16 working on the skid steer 00:18 moving dirt in our yard. 00:20 [RENÉ] And they would come 00:21 into the house so excited, 00:23 announcing, "Daddy taught me" 00:25 "how to drive!" 00:26 "Now I can drive by myself!" 00:28 >> They thought they were able 00:30 to drive by themselves, but 00:31 the truth was that I was 00:33 controlling the speed and the 00:34 direction of the vehicle. 00:37 >> I learned a spiritual truth 00:39 from how my daughters thought 00:41 they could drive 00:42 by themselves. 00:43 I often think that because I 00:46 can't see God, I'm on my own 00:48 driving my own course and 00:50 controlling the steering 00:51 wheel, but in fact I'm sitting 00:54 on His lap, His arms are 00:57 around me, guiding my hands 00:59 and letting me know that I 01:01 have nothing to fear. 01:03 >> In the Bible, King David 01:05 declared his faith in God 01:07 while others were telling him 01:08 to panic. 01:09 He avowed, "In the Lord I" 01:18 David knew that God was in the 01:20 drivers seat and his faith in 01:21 the Lord kept him from 01:23 panicking; calm, confident, 01:25 and composed. 01:27 >> Our special guest on It Is 01:29 Written Canada today is 01:30 Nwamiko Madden whose friends, 01:33 family, fellow actors, and 01:35 even his acting agent thought 01:37 he was completely senseless 01:39 when he decided to put his 01:41 trust in the Lord and let 01:43 Jesus take the wheel. 01:45 In a moment you will hear 01:47 Nwamiko's story. 01:50 ♪♪ 02:25 [film reel clicking] 02:33 >> Hello and welcome again to 02:35 It Is Written Canada. 02:37 Our guest today is Nwamiko 02:39 Madden who saw one door after 02:42 another opening for him to 02:44 progress higher and higher in 02:46 his acting career. 02:48 However, he knew that he had 02:51 to make a decision about the 02:52 direction that his life would 02:54 take and we're gonna talk to 02:55 him about that today. 02:57 >> Welcome to It Is Written, 02:59 Nwamiko. 03:00 >> Hey, thanks so much for 03:01 having me, guys, I really 03:02 appreciate being here. 03:03 [MIKE] Yeah, we really are 03:04 happy that you're here. 03:05 Nwamiko, you-- we're gonna 03:07 talk about your acting career, 03:08 but before we go there, let's 03:09 go all the way back to your 03:10 childhood, I know you were 03:12 born in Quebec and we want you 03:15 to talk about your childhood, 03:16 but there's a really cool 03:18 story about how your 03:19 parents met. 03:20 >> Yeah, yeah. 03:21 I'm a product of persistence. 03:24 The legend has it that on the 03:27 Island of Montreal where I'm 03:29 from, my father was driving 03:31 down the street and he saw 03:32 this really beautiful lady 03:34 walking down the street and he 03:35 was from Jamaica, she was from 03:37 Grenada so they're both from 03:38 the Caribbean and so they 03:39 kinda noticed each other from, 03:40 you know, being from out of 03:41 town and so he drove by and he 03:44 thought, "Maybe I could just" 03:45 "ask her out," and so he pulled 03:46 over and asked her if she 03:47 wanted a ride, she said, "No." 03:49 He drove away and then he 03:51 said, "Nah, she was just too 03:52 beautiful, I gotta go back 03:53 around," and so she-- he 03:55 actually literally on the 03:56 highway the Décarie 03:57 Expressway, came back around, 03:58 said, "Hey, listen, I mean," 03:59 "what could it hurt?" 04:00 "Just a ride, you know," 04:01 "I just wanna give you a ride" 04:02 "a couple blocks," and she's 04:03 like, "No, I just live a" 04:04 "couple blocks away, I'm fine." 04:06 And he literally drove around 04:07 after being rejected, I think 04:08 it was, like, six times 04:10 and the walls of the emotional 04:11 Jericho came down and she 04:14 finally said, "Yes, I'll take" 04:15 "the ride for like one block." 04:16 And then he got her number and 04:18 the rest is history, I'm here. 04:20 But the interesting thing 04:22 though was that my father, he 04:24 was raised in the Seventh-day 04:26 Adventist Church, my mom was 04:28 raised Catholic and so what 04:30 happened was he didn't want to 04:32 marry her immediately without 04:33 her being exposed to the 04:34 Adventist message so he 04:36 brought her to my grandmother 04:37 and she kind of said, "Hey," 04:38 "you need to hear this" 04:40 "message," and taught her the 04:41 Bible, taught her, you know, 04:42 all about spiritual things and 04:44 the gospel and she became a 04:45 Seventh-day Adventist before 04:46 my father married her. 04:47 But my mom, she had her own 04:49 interesting spiritual 04:51 experience which was when she 04:53 was about 17 years old, 04:55 she had what they call a 04:57 "charismatic experience." 04:58 And she, like, just at one 05:01 point felt like she had to 05:02 become a nun. 05:04 This deeply spiritual, like, 05:06 she was crying, and it was 05:07 like a pivotal moment in her 05:08 life and she's like, "But I" 05:10 "don't wanna become a nun." 05:11 And so she kinda said, "No," 05:13 "I'm just gonna live my life," 05:14 and she kind of suppressed 05:15 that feeling, as, you know, 05:17 deep as it was. 05:18 And then what happened was 05:20 when she was pregnant with me, 05:22 about four months in, she 05:23 found out that she was gonna 05:25 have a boy and for some reason 05:26 it triggered that experience 05:28 again because she thought she 05:29 was gonna have a girl, she 05:30 just was convinced she was 05:31 gonna have a girl and then she 05:33 found out she was gonna have a 05:34 boy then that charismatic 05:35 experience happened again, she 05:36 was crying, but she's like, 05:37 "Well, I can't dedicate my" 05:38 "life to-- I can't become a" 05:39 "nun now, I'm Adventist and," 05:40 "you know, I'm about to have" 05:41 "this child." 05:42 "What I'm gonna do is I'm" 05:43 "gonna dedicate this child" 05:45 "to You." 05:45 And so she got down on her 05:47 knees, she put her hands on 05:48 her stomach and she said, 05:49 "This child is dedicated to" 05:51 "Your service, Lord." 05:52 And she didn't tell me 'til 05:54 like 21 years later, so 05:56 disclaimer to all the parents 05:57 out there, you know, if you 05:58 dedicate your children to God, 05:59 let 'em know! 06:00 So they don't, you know, have 06:01 an experience before that, but 06:02 anyway, that's what happened 06:04 and then I remember ever since 06:05 childhood, I came out of the 06:07 womb and God was real, like I 06:08 believed in God from the 06:10 get-go, I never doubted Him 06:11 and His existence. 06:12 I felt like if I turned around 06:13 quick enough, I would see God, 06:14 you know, or my guardian 06:15 angel, you know what I mean? 06:17 It was always very real to me 06:18 ever since childhood, so... 06:20 >> So you've always had this 06:22 very deep faith in God. 06:24 What was that like growing up? 06:27 >> So in theory it would be 06:29 good, but sometimes it didn't 06:31 work out as well because I 06:33 went into elementary school, 06:36 you know, with kinda my whole 06:38 ideology of like, "I need to" 06:39 "spread faith, I need to" 06:41 "spread God," but it turned 06:42 out I was not spreading that 06:44 so much because, you know, as 06:46 Adventist we have certain 06:48 guidelines for life that we 06:50 live by. 06:51 So I don't eat pork so the 06:52 kids would be trading, you 06:53 know, sandwiches in class and 06:54 be like, "Hey, Nwamiko, want" 06:55 "my pork sandwich?" 06:56 I'd be, "I will eat no" 06:57 "such thing!" 06:58 [laughs] 06:59 And they would just be like, 07:00 "OK..." you know. 07:01 And they're like, "Nwamiko," 07:02 "are you gonna come to the" 07:03 "Halloween party?" 07:04 And I'd be like, "I don't" 07:05 "celebrate the Devil's" 07:06 "holiday," you know what 07:07 I mean? 07:07 And, you know, and I had the 07:08 whole Sabbath thing and so 07:10 going to public school and 07:11 having my firm convictions was 07:14 always a little bit of an 07:15 awkward thing, you know, and 07:16 sometimes we would sit down in 07:17 class and they would be like, 07:18 "Hey, what religion are you?" 07:20 And they'd be like, you know, 07:21 "Sikh, Hindu, Buddhist," 07:22 "Baptist," and they'd be like, 07:23 "What about you, Nwamiko?" 07:25 "Oh, I'm Seventh-day" 07:26 "Adventist." 07:27 They're like, "What?" 07:28 "Every day a dentist?" 07:28 "What is that?" 07:30 You know, and I'm like, "No," 07:32 "I'm a Seventh-day Adventist," 07:33 "it's protestant," you know, 07:34 and they'd just be like, 07:35 "What?" 07:36 "What are you talking about?" 07:37 "We don't know-- we've never" 07:38 "heard of that," you know. 07:39 And so I was like, "OK," 07:40 "that's a problem, that's a" 07:41 "problem, Lord, because the" 07:42 "more I try to share my" 07:44 "faith," kind of in the, 07:46 you know, young Pharisaical 07:47 way that I had it at that 07:48 time, I realized people 07:50 weren't catching on and so I 07:51 was like, "There's a problem." 07:53 "Adventism needs" 07:55 "some star power." 07:56 And I thought about, you know, 07:58 how like Ronald McDonald is a 07:59 mascot for McDonalds, 08:01 Tom Cruise is a mascot for 08:02 Scientology. 08:03 I'm like, "I'm going to be" 08:05 "the Adventist Will Smith." 08:06 "That's what I'm gonna do." 08:07 "I'm gonna be the first" 08:09 "well-known Adventist actor" 08:10 "to promote my faith." 08:12 That was my idea. 08:14 >> So, Nwamiko, how did you get 08:16 into acting? 08:18 >> Sure, that was a pretty 08:20 circuitous route because as a 08:23 child, like, I guess I had to 08:25 realize what my gift was, 08:26 right, and the way I realized 08:28 it was, you know, Saturday 08:29 mornings when the preacher's 08:30 preaching, what do kids like 08:31 to do? 08:32 Everything else but listen. 08:33 [laughs] Sometimes. 08:35 And so for me and my cousins 08:36 it would be sitting down and 08:37 drawing and doing artwork and 08:38 then they would all look at my 08:39 art and make fun of it. 08:41 Or Friday nights instead of, 08:43 you know, just doing the 08:44 regular thing that we did on 08:45 Friday nights, we would have, 08:46 like, "Adventist Idol" and 08:48 have singing competitions and 08:49 they would all be like, "Oh," 08:51 "Nwamiko, you can't sing," 08:52 "hahaha," you know, just make 08:53 fun of me and I was like, you 08:54 know what? Enough of that, I'm 08:56 gonna go hang out by myself. 08:58 And so I started to spend a 08:59 lot more time in isolation and 09:01 when you do that, what you 09:02 play with is not people, but 09:04 your imagination. 09:05 And the Bible says, "As a man" 09:06 "thinks, so is he." 09:08 And so I was able to cultivate 09:10 my imagination to the degree 09:11 that I really could believe 09:13 and create worlds in my mind 09:15 and it actually started to 09:16 impact those things that I 09:18 did, so like I got into the 09:19 arts, started getting awards 09:21 in, you know, mathematics and 09:22 arts and performance and stuff 09:24 like that later on and so I 09:25 realized that yeah, like, my 09:27 imagination was my 09:28 best friend. 09:29 So basically what happens is, 09:31 I go to high school and 09:33 there's high school drama and 09:35 I end up going into drama 09:36 class and it just starts 09:38 working out, you know. 09:40 People really like the scenes 09:41 that I start creating, I start 09:43 imagining scenes and the 09:45 teacher loves them, I start 09:46 getting high grades in high 09:47 school drama. 09:49 And it just kept going really 09:50 well until, like, grade 9. 09:51 Some of my friends said, 09:53 "Hey, I heard," like that 09:54 weren't in my class, a friend 09:55 outside of my class, said, 09:56 "I heard that you were really" 09:57 "good at drama, my sister is" 09:58 "part of a modelling agency" 10:00 "that also does acting." 10:01 "Why don't you join?" 10:02 So I was like, "What do I" 10:03 "have to lose," right? 10:04 So I make the call, I talk to 10:06 the lady and she's like, "Oh," 10:07 "Nwamiko, you can join my" 10:09 "agency, it's just $500." 10:11 And I was like, "OK, $500..." 10:13 I was like, "Mom, can I" 10:15 "borrow $500?" 10:16 "Don't worry, I'm good for" 10:17 "it, you know where I live." 10:19 And so I borrowed the 500 10:20 bucks from her and, you know, 10:23 she took some photos and gave 10:24 some acting classes and any 10:26 time an agent does that, watch 10:27 out, you know what I mean, 10:28 but-- 'cause they're supposed 10:29 to make money off of you not 10:30 make money from you. 10:31 But anyway, I paid the money 10:33 and I waited about six months 10:35 and did not hear a single 10:37 thing, no auditions, no sign 10:38 of any films or anything like 10:40 that until one day the phone 10:42 finally rings, "Ring!" 10:43 "Hello?" 10:44 "Nwamiko, guess what!" 10:45 "I have an audition for you!" 10:47 And I'm like, "Finally!" 10:48 She's like, "Yes, it's for" 10:50 "this white TV show called" 10:51 "Are You Afraid of the Dark." 10:52 "It's for this Friday." 10:54 "I think you can get it," 10:55 "you're amazing actor," 10:57 "go get it." 10:58 "It's Friday at 6:30." 10:59 "OK, bye." 11:00 I was like, "Ah! This is" 11:01 "awesome!" 11:02 I'm like, "Man, I finally--" 11:03 You know, this is great, got 11:04 the script and I'm like, 11:05 "Hold on a second." 11:07 And I was like, "Friday at" 11:08 "6:30," check the calendar and 11:09 I'm like, "6:30 in November" 11:12 "in Montreal, that's sunset." 11:15 And so I'm like, "Lord," 11:17 "have mercy." 11:18 How in the world is it that my 11:20 first audition is on a 11:22 Sabbath, you know? 11:24 And I'm like wanting to get 11:25 into acting for God, right? 11:26 So you can see the whole 11:27 dilemma's just like... 11:29 And so I'm wondering whether I 11:30 should go, I start asking my 11:31 brother, I start asking 11:32 friends, and, you know, just 11:34 thinking about it and like, my 11:35 mom's like, "Are you sure" 11:36 "you're gonna go?" 11:37 "Are you sure you're not" 11:38 "gonna go?" 11:39 "Are you sure," you know. 11:40 She's going through a 11:41 dilemma herself. 11:42 So we're just like, "OK," 11:43 "what's gonna happen?" 11:44 I remember one night I was 11:45 just kinda reflecting on the 11:46 whole thing and then, like, 11:47 God gave me this imaginative 11:49 thought where it's like 20 11:50 years in the future and it's 11:52 the Academy Awards, "And the" 11:53 "Best Actor goes to..." 11:56 "Mwamiko Madden!" 11:57 "Da-da, da-da-da-da-da." 12:00 You do the kiss and you're 12:01 like, you know. 12:03 And it's like, tap the mic and 12:04 it's like, "The first person" 12:06 "I'd like to thank, I'd like" 12:08 "to thank--" 12:08 Stop. 12:10 Who do they usually thank? 12:11 [MIKE] God. 12:12 >> And for me, He was like, 12:14 "Don't thank Me 'cause you" 12:15 "broke the Sabbath on your" 12:16 "very first step." 12:18 And I was like, "Mercy." 12:20 And I was like, "It's true." 12:21 If I thought about it, if my 12:23 first career step is breaching 12:25 God's commandments, how in the 12:27 world could I expect that it 12:28 was His success the rest of 12:29 the way, you know. 12:31 And that momentum would just 12:32 be me falling so I said, 12:34 "You know what, I can't do" 12:35 "it, I can't do it." 12:36 And my family's like, "What?" 12:37 "Yeah," and I was like, 12:38 "I just-- I can't 'cause this" 12:39 "is why I wanna do this." 12:41 "I'm doing this for God," 12:41 you know. 12:43 And so they thought I was 12:44 crazy and I remember sitting 12:45 on the steps of my church at 12:47 6:00, 6:30, right when that 12:48 time passed, you know, I'm 12:49 looking at my watch like, 12:51 "Boom, there goes my first" 12:52 "shot and maybe my only shot." 12:54 And literally it felt like my 12:55 only shot because months and 12:57 weeks after there was never 12:58 another phone call. 13:00 And literally it felt like my 13:02 only shot because months 13:03 afterward she didn't call me 13:05 again. 13:06 And so it just took so long 13:08 that I was like, "Man, this" 13:09 "lady is not working for me." 13:10 "Let me just call her up and" 13:11 "see what's going on." 13:12 And I called her once again. 13:14 "This number is no longer in" 13:15 "service, please hang up and" 13:16 "try your call again." 13:17 "This is a recording." 13:18 I was like, "Wha??" 13:20 "Mom, go to the office!" 13:22 We drive down to the agent's 13:24 office, we see she's left 13:26 town, "For Rent," "A Louer" on 13:27 the front porch. 13:29 I was like, "No," this lady 13:30 skipped town with the $500 and 13:32 never did a single thing with 13:34 it and I was just like-- 13:35 And it was raining so no one 13:37 could see you cry in that 13:38 moment and I was just like one 13:39 of those sad, you know, like I 13:41 thought everything was over at 13:42 this point, you know. 13:43 There goes the career, so... 13:45 >> So, Nwamiko, was that the 13:47 end of your acting career then? 13:50 >> I thought so, I thought so, 13:52 but there were other plans 13:53 because in high school at that 13:55 time there was a school play 13:57 that happened at the end of 13:58 the year and I had my own 13:59 monologue in there. 14:01 And there was a possibility 14:02 that some important people 14:03 might come to the monologue 14:05 and that actually did end up 14:06 happening. 14:07 And so I did the monologue and 14:09 then after I did the monologue 14:11 this tall guy with a high- 14:12 pitched voice came up to me, 14:14 he's like, "Hey, I really" 14:15 "like what you did and I'd" 14:17 "like to represent you," and 14:18 he pulls out this card and the 14:20 card, I can tell just from the 14:21 way the light hit the gold 14:23 lines in the card, this is 14:24 money in this card, you know. 14:26 And I was like, "OK." 14:28 And then I was about to grab 14:29 the card and was like, "Wait." 14:30 "Wait, wait, wait, wait." 14:31 I said, "The first thing I" 14:32 "gotta tell you, the very" 14:34 "first thing up front, I" 14:35 "don't work Saturdays, K." 14:38 "So if you have a problem" 14:39 "with that, you need to let" 14:40 "me know now." 14:41 "I don't work Saturdays." 14:42 And he's like, "Oh, that's" 14:43 "OK, I'm Jewish." 14:44 And I'm like, "Yes, yes!" 14:45 "Thank you, God!" 14:46 And I start hugging him, almost 14:47 kissing him, you know, jumping 14:48 up and down like I'd won the 14:50 lottery and it literally felt 14:51 like I won the lottery because 14:53 literally the next week, he 14:55 had me in auditions and come 14:56 to find out, they're one of 14:57 the biggest agencies in 14:59 Canada, they have offices in 15:01 Los Angeles, they run the Just 15:02 For Laughs in Canada, awesome 15:04 people and I'm just like, "OK!" 15:07 "OK, this is what was supposed" 15:08 "to happen," you know. 15:09 And so from right there, 15:10 things start picking up. 15:12 I had auditions right away and 15:14 within a short time I got my 15:16 first role, my first speaking 15:17 role on camera and it was with 15:19 Vanessa Williams. 15:20 I played her brother in a 15:21 Christmas film and my family 15:23 got together at Christmas and 15:24 we all watched the movie and 15:25 they're all like, "Nwamiko," 15:26 "you're wealthy!" 15:27 Like, I think they all thought 15:28 they were gonna get rich, you 15:29 know what I mean, 'cause like, 15:30 you know, things started for 15:31 me but I was like, "Oh, it's" 15:32 "not that much, but, I mean," 15:34 "it is something, so..." 15:36 It was really exciting to see 15:37 that beginning and I felt like 15:38 God had brought me full 15:40 circle, like, hey you took 15:41 that first step and now things 15:43 were advancing. 15:45 >> So things are advancing and 15:47 your dreams is coming true, 15:48 you're becoming a star, but 15:49 you're doing this all for the 15:50 glory of God. 15:51 Did you know at this stage, 15:53 did your mother tell you that 15:54 before you were born she had 15:56 dedicated you to God? 15:58 >> She did not. 15:59 She did not at this time. 16:01 But it's weird because it was 16:03 like the calling came in the 16:05 packaging, you know what I mean? 16:06 I knew for some reason that I 16:08 was supposed to do something 16:09 for God and I just kept 16:10 pushing forward and in fact, 16:12 you know, you hear that as a 16:13 young child, like, you know, 16:14 be careful of the 16:15 entertainment industry, you 16:16 know, if you're a watcher of 16:17 the entertainment industry, 16:19 but like to be a participator 16:20 in the industry is a whole 16:21 nother thing and so I prayed 16:23 and prayed and I said, "OK," 16:25 "Lord, I'm doing this for" 16:26 "real," and so we started 16:27 pursuing and things started 16:29 opening up. 16:30 >> Did you get clarity from 16:32 reading the Bible, praying, 16:34 to answer that question: 16:35 should I go into this or not? 16:37 >> I did. 16:38 I did and I was digging and I 16:40 was reading and I was studying 16:41 and there was a, like I said, 16:43 there was nothing that really 16:44 told me "stop," you know, and 16:46 so I felt like, "OK, I'm" 16:47 "doing this for God so I can" 16:48 "keep going," and I kept going. 16:50 But what happened was there 16:52 was a moment where I started 16:53 to question everything. 16:54 As success started to come in, 16:56 I got to the point where I 16:57 didn't have to audition for 16:58 certain roles anymore, they're 17:00 just being offered for me and 17:02 then-- and, like, I would, you 17:03 know, sometimes the role would 17:05 be like, "OK, Nwamiko, you're" 17:06 "gonna be the cheating" 17:07 "boyfriend, you're gonna be" 17:08 "doing this with a person in" 17:09 "bed and then when the" 17:10 "husband walks in you're" 17:11 "gonna get up and run into" 17:12 "the closet or something and" 17:14 "we're gonna see your ha-ha" 17:15 "for a couple seconds," and I 17:16 was like, "Yeah, no, I'm not" 17:17 "doing those roles, I'm doing" 17:18 "this for God 'cause I wanna" 17:19 "do stuff that my kids can" 17:20 "watch 20 years later." 17:21 "I don't want the scam videos 17:22 to show me, you know what I 17:24 mean, feeling bad about what I 17:25 did earlier on, so... 17:27 So I was feeling like this is 17:29 the direction I should be 17:30 going and then one day as 17:31 success started to come, I 17:33 felt like something was wrong. 17:35 I had just gotten the first 17:38 season of this show completed 17:40 and then there was a second 17:41 season offered and I was like, 17:44 something felt wrong like I 17:45 was getting away with murder. 17:47 And the rich young ruler story 17:49 in the Bible where He comes up 17:50 to Jesus and he's like, "Hey," 17:51 "I've done everything right," 17:52 "like, what's missing?" 17:53 "What's wrong?" 17:54 "Why do I feel like" 17:55 "something's missing?" 17:56 And Jesus tells him, He's 17:57 like, you know, "Sell" 17:58 "everything you have," 17:59 "give it to the poor" 18:01 "and come follow Me." 18:02 And I was like, "I don't think 18:03 God is asking me to do that, 18:04 but I just can't figure out 18:06 what is the sense that I have 18:07 that I know the truth, it's 18:09 the last days, and yet I'm 18:11 about to be this big 18:12 successful actor at the same 18:13 time, it's like these, you 18:15 know, two different 18:16 contrasting ideas. 18:17 And so I was just trying to 18:18 figure myself out and my life 18:19 out at that point and... 18:22 and it was hard. 18:23 >> You've got this inner 18:24 conflict happening. 18:25 >> Exactly. 18:26 Deep inner conflict. 18:28 >> So, Nwamiko, how did you 18:31 manage to resolve this 18:32 inner conflict? 18:34 >> Great question, yeah. 18:36 So at this point, I'm, you 18:38 know, pursuing, pressing 18:39 forward with this career hard 18:40 and what's interesting is 18:42 that, like, I feel like my 18:43 spiritual side of my 18:45 conscience is with me, like, 18:46 things are working, you know. 18:48 In fact the last role I got, 18:49 it was like an international 18:51 production, a leading role, 18:53 and I told them, "Listen," 18:54 "I'll take this role, but" 18:55 "I'm not working Saturdays," 18:56 on a three month shoot. 18:58 And they're like, "What?" 18:59 "Are you Jewish?" 18:59 And I'm like, "No." 19:00 And they literally changed the 19:02 entire schedule so I never had 19:02 to work a single Saturday or 19:03 Friday night. 19:04 They changed the entire 19:05 schedule, you know. 19:06 And so I was like, "OK, this" 19:08 "is God leading," and so I'm 19:09 pressing in that direction and 19:10 what started to become clear 19:12 was that the end of the second 19:13 season of that show that I was 19:15 working on, he started saying, 19:16 "OK, Nwamiko," 19:17 "it's time for a decision." 19:19 Because right at that period, 19:21 L.A. started calling. 19:22 I started doing auditions for 19:23 L.A., I had gotten another 19:25 show where I was a teen lead 19:26 and stuff like that and the 19:28 vice president of casting at 19:29 Fox had come to see me and 19:31 interviewed me in Montreal and 19:32 he's like, "We want to see" 19:33 "you working," I'm like, 19:34 "I wanna see me working," 19:35 "I love you guys," you know. 19:36 And everything's building up 19:37 so it's like, "OK, well we" 19:38 "just need you to come down" 19:39 "to L.A., you know, 'cause" 19:40 "you already have a portfolio" 19:41 "of things and then pilot" 19:42 "season's gonna be great" 19:43 "for you." 19:44 So I was super excited about 19:45 that and then right at that 19:47 time I was also the youth 19:49 leader at our church and I 19:50 organized a youth week of 19:52 prayer and at the end, 19:54 instead of having a speaker, 19:55 we listened to some tapes, 19:56 I know, it's kinda random, 19:57 'cause we couldn't get a 19:58 speaker, and at the end of 19:59 the youth week of prayer, 20:00 we all go to the front of the 20:02 church and I said, "Everybody" 20:03 "pray and you listen to what" 20:05 "God says to you." 20:06 "You do whatever the appeal" 20:08 "is the Holy Spirit." 20:09 And so I get down and kneel 20:11 and the Holy Spirit says to 20:12 me, "You're not going to L.A." 20:14 And I'm like, "I think I'm" 20:15 "getting bad reception" 20:16 "on my prayer." [laughs] 20:18 Let me go over here and try 20:19 that reception, "Lord, what" 20:21 "would you have me do?" 20:22 And He's like, "You're not" 20:23 "going to Los Angeles." 20:24 And I'm like, "What??" 20:26 You know, like, yeah, that 20:28 can't be real. 20:29 And-- because I'd been 20:31 building this up for the last 20:32 five years of my life, you 20:33 know, and so God is saying, 20:35 "Yeah, you're not going to" 20:36 "Los Angeles," and I can't 20:37 shake this feeling, talk to my 20:39 agent and I'm like, "OK," 20:40 "I'm ready to go," and 20:41 he's like, "Yeah, you should" 20:42 "be ready to go." 20:43 And basically what happens is 20:44 I get some auditions from L.A. 20:46 that were not really good 20:47 material and at that point-- 20:49 like cursing and swearing and 20:50 drinking-- and I said, 20:51 "You know what?" 20:52 "Maybe I shouldn't go." 20:53 And I made that decision to go 20:54 right at that point. 20:55 And this is where things kinda 20:57 really got interesting. 20:58 >> So that was your 20:59 resolution, it's off the 21:01 table, you're not going to L.A. 21:02 >> I, yeah, I was literally 21:04 getting ready for the biggest 21:05 decision of my life, I knew I 21:06 was gonna book something in 21:07 L.A., you know, 'cause they 21:08 were already waiting for me. 21:09 My agent literally said he 21:10 went to the offices at Fox and 21:12 he's like, "There's three" 21:13 "people on the wall: Elisha" 21:14 "Cuthbert, a Hispanic guy," 21:16 "and you at their offices." 21:17 "They wanna see you working," 21:18 "Nwamiko, so it's time to" 21:19 "go to L.A." 21:20 I was like, "OK, let's do this." 21:21 But then God is like, "It is" 21:22 "not the time, it is time to" 21:24 "step away." 21:25 ♪♪ 21:36 ♪It may not be 21:40 ♪on the mountain's height 21:43 ♪Or over the stormy sea 21:51 ♪It may not be 21:54 ♪at the battle's front 22:00 ♪My Lord will have 22:03 ♪need of me 22:09 ♪But if, by a still, small 22:13 ♪voice He calls 22:17 ♪To paths I do not know 22:25 ♪I'll answer, dear Lord 22:28 ♪with my hand in Thine 22:34 ♪I'll go where You 22:38 ♪want me to go 22:43 ♪I'll go where you want me 22:47 ♪to go, dear Lord 22:51 ♪O'er mountain or plain 22:55 ♪or sea 22:59 ♪I'll say what You want 23:03 ♪me to say, dear Lord 23:10 ♪I'll be what You 23:13 ♪want me to be 23:20 ♪So trusting my all 23:24 ♪unto Thy care 23:29 ♪I know Thou lovest me 23:37 ♪I'll do Thy will 23:41 ♪with a heart sincere 23:48 ♪I'll be what You 23:51 ♪want me to be 23:57 ♪I'll go where You 24:00 ♪want me to go, dear Lord 24:05 ♪O'er mountain or plain 24:09 ♪or sea 24:13 ♪I'll say what You 24:16 ♪want me to say, dear Lord 24:24 ♪I'll be what You 24:27 ♪want me to be 24:40 >> So there's a lot of 24:42 pressure on you now, Nwamiko. 24:43 You know that the Holy Spirit 24:45 is talking to you saying, 24:47 "Hey, you're not going to L.A.," 24:48 and there's pressure in terms 24:49 of time for our program so 24:51 you're gonna have to come back 24:52 next time, but just tell us a 24:54 little bit about what 24:55 happened next. 24:56 >> So at this point it's like, 24:58 the first time I really hear 25:00 the voice of God because it's 25:01 telling me to do the exactly 25:03 opposite of what I wanna do, 25:04 right. 25:05 And so I'm like, "OK, maybe" 25:06 "this is God speaking to me," 25:08 you know. 25:09 And so I decide, because I see 25:10 the material, some of the 25:11 auditions I was getting from 25:12 L.A. had, like, alcohol 25:14 and drugs and cursing, 25:15 I was like, "You know what," 25:16 "maybe this is not the best" 25:17 "thing for me right now," 25:18 you know. 25:19 And so I decided not to go. 25:22 Well, about ten days later, 25:25 I get a phone call from a 25:27 childhood friend, haven't 25:28 talked to him in months 25:29 if not years. 25:30 This guy calls me and he's like, 25:32 "Dude, we have to have a" 25:33 "conversation, something" 25:34 "crazy has happened." 25:35 I'm like, "Yeah, man." 25:36 "What's up?" 25:37 And he's like, "No, I gotta" 25:38 "come to your house." 25:39 I'm like, "Sure." 25:40 I give him my address, he's 25:41 never been there, he drives 25:42 over an hour, gets to my 25:43 place, I open the door, I'm 25:44 like, "Hey, Dude!" 25:45 "How's it going?" 25:46 He walks past me, he's like, 25:47 "Is anybody else" 25:48 "in the house?" 25:49 I'm like, "Dude," 25:49 "is everything OK?" 25:50 He's like, "Let's going into" 25:51 "the basement." 25:52 And he literally takes me and 25:54 sits me down on my couch and 25:55 he's pacing back and forth, 25:56 sweat beads on his forehead 25:58 and he's like, "Listen, man," 25:59 he's like, "I'm gonna tell" 26:00 "you something you cannot" 26:01 "tell another soul on this" 26:02 "planet, do you understand me?" 26:03 And I'm like, "Dude," 26:04 "what's going on?" 26:07 [MIKE] So, unfortunately we've 26:09 run out of time. 26:10 I hate to cut the story right 26:12 now, but we're gonna have to 26:14 continue next time and you're 26:17 gonna continue with your story. 26:19 You wouldn't have received 26:20 that telephone call if you'd 26:22 gone to L.A. though. 26:23 >> Exactly. 26:24 >> And so God was working 26:25 there and so that's enough to 26:27 be known for now and then next 26:28 week we will continue. 26:30 So we're going end with a word 26:32 of prayer, I wonder if you can 26:33 close with a word of prayer 26:34 for us, can you do that for us? 26:35 >> For sure, yeah, gladly. 26:36 Let's do it. 26:38 Father in heaven we thank You 26:39 so much for the fact that 26:41 every single test we have can 26:43 be turned into a testimony. 26:45 And that's my life experience. 26:46 I pray the everybody that 26:48 heard some of what we talked 26:49 about today today, more than 26:50 anything else, they saw Your 26:51 hand leading and they saw that 26:53 Jesus wants to be the star of 26:54 everybody's movie here, 26:56 dear God. 26:57 So I thank You so much 26:58 for Your love, for Your 26:59 goodness, and Your guidance. 27:00 In Jesus' name we pray, amen. 27:02 [MIKE & RENÉ] Amen. 27:03 >> Nwamiko, you have to come 27:04 back next week and this is 27:07 real-- a cliff-hanger, sorry 27:08 to cut you off there... 27:09 >> No worries. 27:10 >> ...but we're ready to go 27:11 next time. 27:12 >> Thanks a lot. 27:13 Yeah, I totally get it. 27:13 No problem. 27:14 >> Thank you for joining us 27:15 and we'll see you next week. 27:16 >> Awesome. 27:18 >> Friends, Nwamiko decided 27:21 that the number one influence 27:22 in his life is the word of God 27:26 and that's a good decision so 27:28 we want to help you to also 27:30 understand God's word, the 27:31 Bible, for yourself. 27:33 So our free offer for you today 27:34 is our Bible study guides. 27:37 [RENÉ] Whether you want to 27:38 learn the major teachings of 27:40 God's word or Bible prophecy, 27:42 we can assist you to find 27:44 answers for how to face the 27:46 issues and challenges you deal 27:48 with every day. 27:51 >> Friends, we want you to 27:52 experience the truth that is 27:54 found in the words of Jesus 27:56 when He said, "It is written," 27:58 "man shall not live by bread" 28:00 "alone, but by every word" 28:02 "that proceeds out of the" 28:04 "mouth of God." 28:06 ♪♪ |
Revised 2022-01-07