Participants:
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY220007A
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00:01 As you're well aware,
00:02 we're living in unprecedented times. 00:05 Join us now for Today special program. 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:18 Mending broken people 00:23 I want to spend my life 00:29 Removing pain 00:34 Lord, let my words 00:39 Heal a heart that hurts 00:44 I want to spend my life 00:50 Mending broken people 00:55 I want to spend my life 01:00 Mending broken people 01:14 Hello, friends, and welcome to 3ABN Today. 01:17 My name is Ryan Day, 01:19 and we are happy that you are joining us today. 01:22 That's a lot of todays in there in days. 01:24 Praise the Lord, it's good to have you. 01:26 And we're excited 01:28 because today we have a special, special interview 01:30 with Pastor Matthew Haire 01:32 from the Mountain View Conference 01:34 of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 01:36 Brother, how are you doing? I'm good. 01:37 How're you doing, Brother? Amen. 01:39 I am blessed, excited. 01:40 This brother's got a powerful testimony 01:42 and a story that you're not going 01:43 to want to miss. 01:44 Some of you may be able to relate to some of the things 01:46 he's going to be talking about. 01:48 But I promise you at the end of the day, 01:49 this is a powerful story of redemption, 01:51 and how the gospel of Jesus Christ 01:54 can transform and change a person. 01:55 So, that being said, though, 01:57 we're going to have a special number, 01:59 a musical number brought to us by Pastor John Lomacang 02:02 and Stephanie Dawn at this point, 02:04 and they're going to be singing for us 02:05 a special song entitled, 02:07 Gentle Healer. 02:16 The gentle Healer came 02:19 Into our town today 02:23 He touched blind eyes 02:25 And the darkness left to stay 02:29 But more than the blindness 02:33 He took their sins away 02:36 The gentle Healer came 02:39 Into our town today 02:47 The gentle Healer came 02:49 Into our town today 02:54 He spoke one word 02:56 That was all He had to say 03:00 And the one who had died 03:03 Just rose up straight away 03:08 The gentle Healer came 03:11 Into our town today 03:26 Oh, He seems like just 03:29 An ordinary man 03:34 With dirty feet 03:36 And rough but gentle hands 03:41 But the words He says 03:43 Are hard to understand 03:47 And yet, He seems like just 03:50 An ordinary man 03:54 The Gentle Healer 03:57 He left our town today 04:02 I just looked around 04:04 And found He'd gone away 04:08 Some folks from town 04:10 Who followed Him, they say 04:16 The gentle Healer is 04:19 The Truth, the Light, the Way 04:23 The gentle Healer is 04:27 The Truth, the Light, the Way 04:41 Amen. 04:42 Praise the Lord. 04:43 I love, always loved to hear those two sing. 04:45 They sound very good together and two of my favorite people. 04:48 Thank you guys so much for that beautiful song. 04:50 All right, Pastor Matthew Haire. 04:52 Yes, Sir. 04:54 It's a blessing as your first time here 04:55 at 3ABN. 04:56 First time at 3ABN. 04:58 It's a blessing to have you here, man. 04:59 Thank you, Sir. 05:00 And just had a little bit of time just to sit here 05:02 and chat with you today before this program, 05:04 and I got to know you a little bit 05:05 and hear a little bit about your story. 05:06 And now we're going to take what you shared with me, 05:08 which was a juiced version, 05:10 and you're going to amplify this for us. 05:12 Because you know what the Bible teaches us 05:14 that we, every single one of us, 05:16 we have a message, we have a testimony, 05:17 we may not be theologians, we may not be able to, 05:20 you know, break down the Scripture theologically 05:23 and hermeneutically, deep, deep, deep 05:25 like some teachers and preachers do, 05:26 but each and every one of us have a story 05:28 to tell a testimony. 05:30 And in this case, I'm sure you could give us 05:32 a deep theological breakdown of some biblical passage. 05:35 But today, you're here to tell us 05:37 what the Lord has done in your life 05:38 and why you are here today. 05:40 And so, tell us a little bit about yourself? 05:42 There's somebody at home that don't know 05:43 who Pastor Matthew Haire. 05:44 By the way, he told me to call him Pastor Matt. 05:46 So I guess we'll call you Pastor Matt. 05:48 That's fine. Yeah. 05:49 Tell us a little bit about who Pastor Matt is, 05:51 where you're from? 05:52 So originally, I'm from South Georgia 05:54 and I kind of bounced around everywhere after that, 05:58 but South Georgia is the place I call home. 06:01 It's where I had my roots, probably the longest, 06:04 put some concrete on my feet 06:05 and stayed there for a little while 06:07 and then have been everywhere else since then. 06:10 And right now I'm up in the Maryland area, 06:14 but the western part of Maryland, 06:15 right on the West Virginia border 06:17 and part of the Mountain View Conference 06:20 and it's awesome up there. 06:21 Where we're at in Oakland, Maryland, 06:23 we get about, I think it's about 06:24 150 inches of snow yearly. 06:27 That's about the average. 06:28 So, we're sitting on about 13 inches right now at home. 06:31 So, yes. Wow, that's amazing. 06:33 That's a lot of fun there. Praise the Lord. 06:34 Sounds exciting. Sounds exciting. 06:36 So, you were telling me a little bit about your story. 06:39 I'm excited to hear this, my friend. 06:40 By the way, I just want to let you know 06:42 if you have friends, family, 06:43 anyone always like to say this is the moment, 06:45 this is the prime moment to go get them 06:47 and gather them around the television, 06:49 the computer screen, 06:50 whatever you're watching this from, 06:51 because you're not going to want to miss this story. 06:53 I've been able to, 06:55 you know, just hear a little bit from you. 06:56 And it's just amazing, powerful, 06:58 what God is doing in your life. 06:59 So let's start at the beginning. 07:00 I'm a beginning kind of guy. 07:02 Let's go back to the grass roots, 07:04 the beginning and let's kind of bring this thing forward. 07:06 So, childhood, 07:08 tell us a little bit about your childhood 07:09 and what it was like being brought up? 07:11 Yeah, so again, South Georgia, 07:13 it was a lot of fun from what I remember. 07:17 And I think at about the age of seven, 07:21 so times got a little bit rough. 07:23 My dad got arrested for armed robbery 07:26 when I was seven. 07:27 And so it was just my mom and I, 07:28 but my mom was a complete lioness 07:31 and you just didn't mess with her, 07:33 and you didn't mess with her cubs. 07:36 So, it was her and I for a little bit and, 07:39 and then we moved up to Louisville, Kentucky 07:41 and that's where my grandparents were. 07:43 So we moved there just to get close to them. 07:46 And then a couple years later, so I was 10 years old, 07:49 she got cancer and ended up passing away from cancer. 07:52 But at that point, 07:54 my grandparents really stepped in 07:56 and they took custody of me 07:58 and that was really my introduction 08:00 to the Seventh-day Adventist World 08:02 which is a very strange world. 08:04 Even as a young boy, it's just, 08:06 there's some distinct differences 08:09 inside the Adventist Church, 08:10 but it was very exciting. 08:12 So I got introduced 08:13 to the Adventist educational system 08:15 in Louisville, Kentucky, went to Peewee Valley, 08:18 a junior academy and had a lot of a fun, 08:21 met a lot of great people. 08:22 In fact, my best friend even to today, 08:24 he's pastor down in San Antonio, 08:26 Austin Sharp. 08:27 He and I connected 08:29 and we've been pretty much inseparable 08:31 since then. 08:33 But from there went to Louisville Junior Academy 08:36 and had a lot of fun there 08:38 and then went to Highland Academy 08:40 in Portland, Tennessee. 08:41 And so, it was, yeah, Highland was a great school. 08:45 For some reason, just Adventist, 08:47 I loved the people 08:48 but the Adventist message, 08:50 I didn't really know anything about, 08:51 and didn't really jive with it too well 08:54 even in high school 08:55 and but I ended up 08:57 going to Southern Adventist University, 09:00 my very first semester of college 09:02 and got into quite a bit of trouble there 09:06 and kind of made an escape up to Rutland, Vermont, 09:11 and came back to Southern 09:13 and got in a lot of trouble again there. 09:15 So that was pretty much 09:17 the end of my Adventist education at that point, 09:19 I kind of got wings and just spread them 09:21 and in flew away as far as I could. 09:24 From that point, I moved out to California 09:29 and there I entered into a new chapter of my life 09:33 in which I joined the United States 09:34 Marine Corps. 09:36 Okay, so I got to just rewind this back a little bit 09:38 because I can imagine, 09:40 you know, before your, you know, your grandparents, 09:42 your Adventist education, 09:43 you were obviously probably going to school 09:45 but public school, 09:46 I suppose, it was a public school. 09:48 And then going from public school 09:49 into an Adventist education system, 09:51 a Christian education system, 09:54 it had to been a little bit of a shock 09:56 or had been some adjustment there 09:57 that was difficult. 09:59 Tell us a little bit about that? 10:00 Yeah, it was much different going from a public school 10:02 even though I was young and it was, 10:04 you know, early on in grade school 10:06 that I was exposed with public school. 10:08 It was still going from a school down in Georgia 10:11 that had thousands of people 10:13 to just a small school in Louisville. 10:16 It was a big change. Right. 10:18 But the aspect of people welcoming you in, 10:22 a lot of people knew kind of 10:23 what I had been through up until that point. 10:25 And so that was the one thing that did stick with me 10:28 is just the open arms of Adventist 10:30 and just accepting you 10:32 and bringing you in as family so. 10:34 So I'm sure 10:35 there were some challenges there 10:36 with you adjusting also to the way of life 10:38 of your grandparents. 10:40 I'm sure your grandparents had challenges with you 10:41 as well as a kid. 10:43 Yeah, I tell you what, 10:45 I have respect for grandparents. 10:47 My grandmother is just a straight prayer warrior. 10:52 She was the rock or the glue of the family. 10:54 Wow. Praise the Lord. 10:55 And, yeah, through all my rebellion, 10:58 she prayed my way 10:59 pretty much back into the church, 11:01 which we'll get into well. 11:02 Yeah, absolutely. 11:03 So before we get right into your time in the Marines, 11:05 I got to ask about your experience 11:06 in Adventist education, 11:08 that maybe even as you got older there, 11:12 you know, what were some challenges there? 11:14 Did you, as a somebody who at this point, 11:16 I guess wasn't really converted to Christ, 11:18 was it a struggle for you? 11:20 Is there a challenge of, "Man, 11:21 I wish I could just go to a normal school, 11:23 I wish I could just have a normal experience." 11:25 Because when you're in those type of schools, 11:26 obviously, a Christian school, 11:28 you're being exposed to Bible curriculum, 11:31 you're being exposed to a different way of life, 11:34 people encouraging you to live for Christ, 11:36 give your heart to the Lord 11:37 but maybe you weren't there yet. 11:38 Was that a challenge or difficult for you? 11:40 So, it was but I blocked out so much. 11:43 I didn't really see this, you know, till later, 11:45 but I blocked out so much 11:46 through the Adventist education system 11:48 as far as teaching the Bible. 11:50 Okay. 11:51 I even after going to Southern, 11:53 I don't think I could tell you 11:55 the difference between Noah or Moses. 11:57 Right. 11:58 So like, kind of embarrassing on my half, 12:01 but it just showed I was completely 12:03 defiant against the Adventist system 12:05 when it came to theological things. 12:06 Okay. 12:08 So then godly, at this point, 12:10 we almost say God led you 12:11 because God probably did lead you, right? 12:12 We believe that sometimes God changes His plan for you 12:16 because sometimes we change the plan. 12:18 God has a plan B, a Plan C, in this case, 12:20 now you're out in California, you're joining the Marine. 12:23 So how did that come about? 12:25 Yeah, so, I had mentioned my friend Austin. 12:29 He and I through high school, we just, we read Sniper, 12:33 a Carlos Hathcock book about Marine Corps sniper, 12:36 that, yeah, one shot one kill. 12:39 And it was just, it planted seeds 12:41 that we were for sure 12:42 we were joining the Marine Corps 12:44 as soon as we got out of high school. 12:46 And, or we joined the Navy and become Navy SEALs. 12:49 We were just military minded at that point. 12:52 And after I graduated high school, 12:54 went to Southern, 12:55 we didn't join the military. 12:58 But as I got out to California, 12:59 got into a lot of trouble out there, 13:01 and it just the hamster wheel started turning in my head. 13:04 And it was just like, you know what, this was a dream 13:06 that I wanted to make happen at one point, 13:08 so let's make it happen now. 13:10 So, at that point, in April of 2001, 13:13 I joined the Marine Corps. 13:15 Wow. Wow. 13:16 That was, and I'm so... 13:18 Wow, that's around the time when the war on terrorism 13:20 and all that was starting. 13:21 So I'm sure you weren't here very long, probably. 13:24 Yes. 13:25 So that was very interesting as well. 13:26 So, I joined before everything kicked off. 13:29 So I joined in April. 13:30 But after going through boot camp, 13:32 and after going through my job training, 13:35 right in the middle of the job training, 13:37 that's when September 11 happened. 13:39 So they stopped all training for the day, 13:41 they brought in TVs 13:43 and we saw the second tower getting hit on TV. 13:47 And at that point, they just told us like, 13:49 "Look, boys, we're ramping up your training. 13:51 And we'll double it up 13:52 and we'll get you out to your unit so you can deploy." 13:55 And so, I was super amped at that point 13:57 thinking this is what we signed up for man, 13:59 let's do this. 14:01 Finally some action. Yeah, finally. 14:02 Military mindset, right... Yeah. 14:03 And, but that didn't happen. 14:06 That wasn't the case. 14:08 So we sat waiting and waiting, and for the rest of 2001, 14:12 all of 2002, and then finally in 2003, 14:17 they amped us up and we deployed over to Kuwait, 14:20 and then pushed north for the invasion. 14:22 So... Wow, that's amazing. 14:24 So how was that experience over there for you? 14:26 You don't have to go into too many details, 14:28 but just your mindset of while you're over there, 14:31 was there anything that kind of, 14:32 you know, maybe prepared you 14:33 for what was coming next? 14:35 Yes. 14:36 So, it was very interesting when you train for something 14:40 and now you can finally go do what you've been training for. 14:43 It's very exciting. 14:45 So, my head was way outside of Christianity at that point 14:49 and completely entrenched in Marine Corps thinking. 14:51 Right. 14:53 And so I was very excited 14:54 for the deployment and for the war, 14:56 and it was just, you know, you bleed red, white and blue. 15:00 And for Marines, 15:01 you bleed green and it was just, 15:03 this, again, this is what we trained for. 15:04 Let's do it. Yeah. 15:06 So it was very exciting, 15:07 it was very fun for me to be doing 15:10 what I dreamed of doing. 15:13 But there's also elements that you see the other side 15:15 of the story sometimes, you know... 15:17 Absolutely. 15:18 We are, why I think we sometimes like 15:20 to think that we're superman, 15:21 and we'll just rip open that cape and the whole world 15:23 will see us as this big superhero, 15:26 but, you know, when you see behind the scenes 15:27 a little bit... 15:28 Yeah, I got you. 15:30 And you realize 15:31 what some of the other people are going through 15:33 on the other end, 15:34 and that could be you and your family, 15:35 then it changes your perspective. 15:37 And it planted a few seeds, just like, 15:39 "Okay, open up your eyes to the bigger picture 15:41 of kind of the war machine." 15:42 And, it didn't slow me down too much. 15:45 I was still excited and spent the rest of the time 15:49 there through the deployment 15:50 and then finally got sent back home. 15:52 And we got a little bit of a break and then, 15:56 then we ramped up the training again. 15:58 Sure. Sure. 15:59 And in 2006, we deployed back over to Iraq, 16:03 we deployed to Fallujah and Ramadi, 16:06 and so that was a whole another world 16:08 of excitement. 16:10 And at this point, though, it was, 16:13 you know, you start reading some books, 16:15 you start doing your history checks, 16:17 you start questioning, 16:18 "You know, what, what are we here for? 16:20 What's our purpose?" 16:22 And so at this point, 16:23 I was in more of a leadership position. 16:25 Sure. 16:26 So I had people under me and you're really vulnerable 16:29 at that point not to wear your emotions 16:30 on your sleeves, 16:32 not for them to see any type of doubt 16:34 that you have in your mind. 16:35 So, yeah, I just put my nose to the grind 16:39 and went through that deployment. 16:40 It was a lot of fun. 16:41 There was a lot more action 16:43 during that deployment 16:44 than there was even during the invasion part. 16:46 Wow. 16:48 So, that was an interesting experience. 16:50 For the first deployment, I was a tank driver. 16:54 And then for the second deployment, 16:55 though, I was a machine gunner. 16:57 So, it was that other element, 17:01 though, is like this is what we've trained for. 17:03 So, it was a lot of fun at that point in my life. 17:06 Yeah. That's amazing. 17:08 Well, first, I just want to take this moment 17:09 just to say thank you for your service, Brother. 17:13 That's a big sacrifice 17:15 that you gave for your country, for our country. 17:17 And, man, I just come with somewhat speechless, 17:21 because I can't imagine what you've seen, 17:22 what you've been through, 17:24 but we just thank you for your service 17:26 and what happened during that time 17:28 of you given your time, 17:29 your effort and putting your life 17:31 on the line for the country. 17:32 So thank you so much. Well, thank you. 17:33 And, you know, so, you were deployed 17:35 how many times? 17:36 Twice to Iraq. 17:38 Twice to Iraq. Okay. 17:39 So then, now after that last deployment, 17:42 something happens or change, 17:44 something occurs as you've now just come back to the States. 17:47 So now take us from there 17:48 what happens in your life from there? 17:50 So there was actually, right before we get to that, 17:53 there was actually one incident that was a, 17:56 you know, it was a reality check that 17:58 that you know this type of stuff will happen, 17:59 but we were on a middle of the night operation 18:03 with a Navy SEAL group 18:05 and we got lit up by friendly fire. 18:08 Oh, wow. 18:09 And I caught a bullet right to the chest. 18:11 But I had my, you know, I had my protective plate on. 18:13 Okay. 18:15 And it gave me a nice little bruise 18:16 but you don't get any award for getting shot by friendlies. 18:20 And, but that was, you know, we had a lot, that night, 18:23 we had just a lot of close calls. 18:25 You know, bullets that literally 18:26 just skimmed right next to people's heads and bodies. 18:30 And it was just, yeah, it was incredible. 18:32 We at the very end of it, we were just like, "All right. 18:35 Everything good? All right, cool. 18:37 We're still here, let's keep going." 18:40 So that was the first encounter really, 18:44 you know you're in the presence 18:46 of walking a thin line between life and death. 18:48 But when you have those moments, 18:50 you're just like, "All right. 18:51 Well, this is as real as it gets, you know." 18:53 So that was the first case. 18:55 And then what you were getting at 18:57 is after getting back. 18:59 So the high intensity 19:01 of just being in combat environments, 19:03 your adrenaline is piqued non-stop. 19:05 Right. 19:07 What do you do to be able to satisfy 19:08 that itch when you come home? 19:10 The transition back home is a very interesting one. 19:14 It's pretty hard. 19:15 They try their best in the Marines. 19:17 So right before we came home, they sent us to Kuwait, 19:22 they put us in this air-conditioned tent, 19:24 and they made us watch The Notebook. 19:26 And, you know, you turn all your ammo in, 19:30 you can't do anything. 19:32 The movie, The Notebook. 19:33 The Notebook. Okay. All right. 19:34 And I'm sorry that we're caught off guard 19:36 and it's not expected. 19:37 It was hilarious to all of us as well that it was just like, 19:39 "What are we doing?" 19:40 But they're trying, you know, realizing how desensitized 19:44 we are to everything to add an element of sensitivity 19:48 into your life again. 19:49 Okay. 19:50 And so for like two weeks, we just didn't do anything. 19:53 We just watched movies, 19:54 we chilled, we worked out, we ran. 19:56 It was just, you don't do anything 19:58 but you try to decompress 19:59 out of that war mentality and back 20:01 into maybe I can blend back into civilization. 20:05 And even when we got back home, you can't. 20:07 Because in your head, 20:09 you're going a thousand miles an hour 20:10 in your head all the time 20:12 and you need that adrenaline fixed. 20:13 Right. 20:14 So that was, you know, that was what I was in search of. 20:17 So I had a motorcycle at the time 20:19 and I was on leave, taking vacation, 20:24 and right when we got back from the deployment, 20:27 and yeah, had a little fun with the motorcycle, 20:30 maybe too much fun. 20:32 And was riding a wheelie and smashed into a car. 20:38 And I was out cold for a little bit 20:41 and then was able to crawl to the living room 20:45 and I had a friend call me 20:48 just out of the blue, Brittany Davis. 20:49 She had called me and was just like, 20:51 "Hey, what are you doing?" 20:52 And I was like, "Right now I'm, I think I'm on the floor, 20:54 and I'm not doing so well." 20:56 Oh, wow. 20:57 She was like, "Well, what happened?" 20:58 I was like, "I just wrecked my motorcycle." 21:00 And she was like, "Well, 21:02 do you want me to call the ambulance or are you okay?" 21:05 And I was like, "You know, I have to go right now." 21:07 And I hung up. 21:08 She called 911, I called 911, and then I just, 21:11 I crawled to the couch and then just passed out. 21:13 Wow. 21:14 And the next thing I know, 21:16 the firefighters had come into the house, 21:19 they had put me on a gurney, 21:20 they were ripping my clothes off 21:22 and taking me to the hospital. 21:25 So, I ended up, through that accident, 21:29 I ended up breaking L2, 3, 4 and 5 21:32 of the lower vertebrae. 21:33 And I had a lacerated spleen and my, 21:38 like a third of my kidney was left 21:40 but the other two thirds basically like exploded. 21:44 And yeah, I was in rough shape. 21:48 I was in a drug induced coma for about two and a half days, 21:52 and then spent about four and a half, 21:54 five weeks in ICU after that. 21:57 And then for the next nine months, 21:58 basically was relearning how to walk 22:01 and adjust back to normal to get back up to health. 22:04 So it was a way, I didn't know at the time, 22:07 but it was a way of the Lord 22:09 really stopping my flow of momentum and saying, 22:13 "Look, if you can't chill, then I'll make you chill. 22:15 You need to slow down." 22:17 And... 22:18 So it was a big wake-up call for you, I guess. 22:20 It was a huge wake-up call. 22:21 Now something happened while I was in coma. 22:24 I didn't know it. 22:27 But the elders and the pastor of the Berkeley Springs 22:31 Seventh-day Adventist Church out in West Virginia, 22:34 which is where my grandparents were, 22:36 they came out, 22:38 my grandparents had let everybody know 22:39 what had happened. 22:41 And a crew came out of elders and the pastor 22:46 and they came out and while I was in coma, 22:48 they anointed me. 22:49 Wow. 22:50 You know, they were at the bedside 22:52 and they anointed me. 22:53 Praise the Lord. I had no clue about this. 22:55 And at this point, no interest in the church 22:56 or God or anything. 22:57 So, that came into factor later, 23:00 realizing that that had happened. 23:02 But yeah, came out of coma 23:05 and started getting a little bit better 23:07 and then was the road to recovery and rehabilitation, 23:11 learning how to walk again and readjust to life and... 23:14 Sure. 23:15 After about a year of recovering, 23:18 I finally got to the point 23:19 where I got a clean bill of health 23:21 and got out of the Marines. 23:23 Wow. So... 23:24 So while you're, 23:25 you know, in this I can't imagine the pain, 23:28 the discomfort and all of the rehabilitation, 23:30 you've got to do, 23:31 what's going through your mind 23:33 through all of this very difficult 23:34 because you can't just get up and walk out, 23:36 go do what you want to do or go here, go there? 23:39 Yeah, I mean, it's got to be tough 23:41 on the mind during that time. 23:42 So what was going through your mind 23:43 during this rehab process? 23:46 Yeah, so there was another element, 23:48 humbling element there 23:49 because I was at a hospital 23:51 where, I was at the National Naval Medical Center 23:53 in Bethesda, Maryland. 23:55 And I was in an area that had people 23:58 that had their legs blown off and had gotten shot. 24:02 And so here I am, an idiot 24:04 that had gotten into a motorcycle accident, 24:06 a self-inflicted wound, pretty much. 24:08 I have no way to be able to moan and groan 24:11 about my situation 24:13 because in the next room beside me, 24:15 there's people that you know, 24:16 that were going through something a lot worse, 24:18 you know, than I was. 24:19 So, that helped. 24:21 I also had, I wish I knew her name, 24:22 I should have tried to get a hold of her. 24:24 I had a Jamaican nurse 24:25 that just wouldn't let me be a wuss. 24:28 Like she just, you know, "You should toughen up. 24:30 Boy, you're Marine, right?" 24:32 Yeah, so every day it was like, "Get out of bed." 24:34 And I'm like, "Yo, I got a broke back. 24:36 I'm not getting out of bed." 24:37 And she's like, "Son, get out of bed. 24:39 Let's go. You got to move." 24:40 And I'm like, "All right, all right, let's do this." 24:42 Oh, man. That's cool. 24:43 That's cool. Praise the Lord. 24:45 So now you're out of rehab, you're walking again. 24:48 So now what happens? 24:50 Because all of this big wake-up call in your life, 24:53 this is now a new, 24:55 it's a new you to a certain extent, right? 24:57 Now, you're seeing things maybe a little clearer. 24:59 What happens next? 25:00 So, I had an encounter. 25:02 I decided to go out to West Virginia at this point, 25:04 when I got out of the Marines, 25:06 I started working construction in Baltimore. 25:08 And I went out to Berkeley Springs 25:12 and I went to go visit my grandparents. 25:15 And, you know, my grandma being a prayer warrior, 25:18 but she slipped too. 25:20 She, when my mom had passed away, 25:22 some friends of the family had given me 25:24 a copy of Early Writings. 25:27 And at the bottom, they had just said, 25:28 you know, there was a little engraved 25:30 writing in there that was dedicated to me 25:33 and a handwritten portion 25:36 that was included into the book. 25:38 And my grandmother, I knew the book, 25:40 like I knew that someone had given it to me, 25:42 but it was early on and I hadn't seen it for years. 25:44 Sure. 25:45 So in the room that I was staying, 25:47 in the guest room 25:48 that I was staying in at my grandparents, 25:49 my grandma, 25:51 she didn't put it right on top of everything, 25:52 but the nightstand right by the bed, 25:54 she kind of put it underneath a book, 25:57 but where I could see the gold encrypt letterings. 26:00 And so she was slick and I picked up the book, 26:04 and I was like, "Oh, that's right. 26:05 I do remember being given this." 26:07 And I read started reading the book. 26:12 And you know, I, there's probably 26:13 maybe a little over a handful of times 26:16 in my life where I've, 26:18 my eyes have leaked. 26:20 Sure. And, but that's about it. 26:22 And it was just this mastery over your emotions 26:25 and being able to control and compose yourself, 26:28 I was very proud of. 26:30 But I started reading this book, 26:31 and it did just my eyes started tearing up, 26:34 you know, I started leaking. 26:36 And then all of a sudden, it was just buckets of tears. 26:38 And I chucked the book across the room, 26:40 I was so mad that this little book 26:42 had the power to over me. 26:44 Yeah, I'm a man, I'm a man. 26:46 I ain't going to cry. 26:47 I couldn't control my emotions. 26:49 For like the first time in my life 26:50 I just really couldn't control my emotions. 26:52 And, so I didn't finish the book. 26:56 I read most of it 26:58 and then I just thought was like, 26:59 "Yeah, this isn't, 27:00 you know, I don't want to be part of this." 27:02 So, fast forward, just like about a year, 27:05 I joined, I got on with one of my good friends 27:08 in the Marines, 27:09 his dad started this company called On Target Challenge. 27:12 And they ran a firefighter competition 27:14 and a SWAT competition. 27:15 And I got to be a referee for a year 27:18 and travel on tour with him doing these competitions. 27:22 And after that year had passed, you know, I... 27:26 It was a transition into construction. 27:27 Sure. 27:28 And I joined a company, a drywall and painting company 27:31 that was doing well 27:33 but was starting to slowly, 27:35 you know, go under. 27:36 And so it was like, "Okay, 27:38 I can be a part of trying to build this thing back up." 27:39 Well, that didn't really happen. 27:41 I stayed there but just financially, 27:44 emotionally a lot of the PTSD was really kicking in. 27:47 I was just getting bombarded. 27:49 I don't know why, but just, I know why now, 27:51 but then I didn't know why. 27:53 And, you know, just got heavy into drinking 27:56 and a whole lot of things that I won't glorify, 27:58 but it was just, you know, hitting rock bottom. 28:00 Right. Right. 28:01 And with that, I started 28:03 also hitting rock bottom financially, 28:04 and ended up getting kicked out of the place 28:08 that I was living. 28:10 I started sleeping in my car 28:12 and that ended up getting repoed 28:14 and I finally asked my boss, I was like, 28:16 "Hey, you know, can I just stay here 28:17 at the shop?" 28:19 So I just got my Marine sleeping bag 28:20 and laid it, he had a pool table 28:22 at the drywall shop. 28:23 That became my home, 28:25 was just, was a pool table and there was a little sink 28:30 and a little bathroom in the shop, 28:32 took bird baths in the morning, you know and that, 28:34 nobody knew that I was living there 28:35 except for my boss. 28:37 And so, yeah, it was a... 28:39 That began a process of hitting rock bottom. 28:42 Sure, sure. 28:44 So I decided at that point 28:45 I was going to make another trip out 28:47 to see my grandparents. 28:48 Right. 28:50 And so I did and my grandma she's on the slick again. 28:51 She made sure. She's persistent. 28:54 I think she picked that book up off the ground 28:56 and knew something had happened. 28:58 Okay. 28:59 So she slipped it underneath another book again 29:01 and had it by the bedside and I did, 29:04 I read it again and this time all the way through. 29:06 And it crushed me. 29:08 I mean it just completely crushed me 29:09 but it filled me with a hope that I hadn't had before. 29:11 Sure. 29:13 And that was the necessary seed that was planted. 29:16 That's amazing. 29:17 Of all the books, 29:18 I'm just thinking to myself, 29:20 Early Writings, 'cause that's really not, 29:22 I mean, it's a powerful book 29:23 and I've read much of Early Writings 29:24 but it's not one of those books that's, 29:27 you know, you're like, "Hey, you know, go share." 29:29 It's usually, you know, Steps to Christ 29:31 or Great Controversy or Desire of Ages 29:33 or, you know, one of those 29:34 you know, Conflict of the Ages type things. 29:37 But Early Writings, Bro, let me say something. 29:40 That's, it's a powerful book 29:41 and so that was the one the Lord used to get you, Bro. 29:45 That's amazing. 29:46 After the second time of just like, 29:47 you know, of losing buckets of tears, 29:50 I was like, "All right, this is it, 29:52 like I think my heart is ready to just, 29:55 to surrender completely." 29:56 I was broken, you know completely 29:58 in every aspect, spiritually, physically, 30:01 mentally, financially, emotionally, 30:03 just everything was broken. 30:05 And it was like the Lord was like, "Finally, 30:07 you know, you knucklehead, finally, 30:09 I've got you, 30:10 where I needed you the whole time. 30:11 And that was just, you know, at a place 30:13 where you'll acknowledge me." 30:14 And, He was right. 30:16 He was right. That's amazing. 30:18 So, you read this book, now you're hooked, you're... 30:24 So now what happens now? 30:25 So now you got, there's got to be a response, right? 30:28 Because now you know God's got your heart, right? 30:30 You know, He's been knocking on the door, 30:32 you're finally ready to open it. 30:34 And so now where does He take you from here? 30:36 On fire, He lit me on fire. Praise the Lord. 30:39 So I started attending the Berkeley Springs 30:42 Seventh-day Adventist Church and that was 30:44 while I was still living out in Baltimore, 30:47 that was an hour and a half commute one way. 30:49 So I was driving out to Berkeley Springs on Sabbath 30:53 and just being as active as I could 30:55 and the church just embraced me. 30:57 They saw, you know, the fire 30:59 and they embraced me, accepted me. 31:01 What I didn't know, what I learned 31:03 was they had embraced me long 31:04 before when I was on the hospital bed, 31:06 they embraced me. 31:07 That's amazing. 31:09 They've been shooting prayers, 31:10 you know, eras of prayer up to the throne for years, 31:12 without me knowing. 31:13 And it was finally like paying off. 31:15 And so, I came in to the... 31:16 I just got a pause here just to make this point 31:18 because this is powerful. 31:19 Don't stop praying. Okay, that's it. 31:22 That's the most important point here. 31:23 I just want to make here. 31:24 You never know, if you think of the, 31:27 that family member that you're thinking 31:28 of right now, that child, 31:30 you maybe it's a father, a mother, 31:31 a child, a sister, a brother, an aunt, an uncle, 31:34 a friend, a coworker, this is proof, my friends, 31:37 I just want to just take this moment. 31:39 Never stop praying, be persistent in prayer. 31:42 I'm thinking of Matthew 7, where Jesus says, 31:44 you know, "Ask and it shall be given to you, 31:46 knock and it shall be open, 31:47 seek and you shall find." 31:49 In the original language there it says, 31:50 "Keep asking, keep knocking, 31:52 keep praying, keep seeking Him." 31:54 Because in this case, 31:55 you know, they had been praying for you for years. 31:57 And a lot of times I hear people say that 31:59 parents, family, well, 32:00 "You know, I'm praying and I'm praying and praying, 32:02 and they're just not, 32:03 you know, God just isn't able to reach them." 32:05 But you don't know, you don't know what event 32:07 or what occurrence may happen, 32:09 that God is able to finally penetrate that heart 32:13 because of your prayers. 32:14 So, I just want to just take that moment 32:16 just to say that to our viewers at home, 32:18 that you're sitting here today 32:20 because of a bunch of people, your grandparents, 32:23 a church full of people 32:24 who are persistently praying for him. 32:26 And this hardcore military man, 32:29 gentleman, God was able to break you 32:31 and take that heart of stone 32:32 and turn it into a soft heart receptive of the gospel. 32:35 And so praise the Lord for that. 32:36 Keep praying, never stop praying 32:38 because God can work miracles. 32:39 Yeah. Okay, let's continue on. 32:40 I'm sorry. 32:42 So, the church is now, you're involved in the church, 32:44 now what happens from here? 32:45 They allowed me to start teaching Sabbath School 32:47 and to preach and yeah, 32:51 it was just, they just said, "Have at it." 32:54 Now I had a lot of questions, obviously, 32:56 as most people coming in do is, 32:59 I had a lot of questions, so many questions. 33:01 Some people just were like, "Dude, 33:04 there's somebody you need to see to answer 33:05 some of these questions." 33:07 A lot of the questions had to revolve around 33:09 Ellen White and her writings. 33:10 Yeah. 33:12 And so they were like, "You need to go see Roger." 33:14 And I was like, "Okay, well, who's Roger? 33:16 And how can I get a hold of him?" 33:18 And they gave me his address. 33:19 And one Sabbath, I went to go visit Roger. 33:23 Roger, his name is Roger Kuhn. 33:26 And he was the, I didn't know it at the time, 33:29 but he was, you know, he was responsible for starting 33:32 that what's now Babcock University 33:34 out in Africa. 33:35 He worked as a pastor, as a missionary, 33:37 but also as the Associate Director 33:40 of the whitest states for 12 years. 33:41 Okay. 33:42 And so they were like, "Yeah, go see Roger." 33:44 So I went and visited him at his home 33:47 and we just, we hit it off. 33:49 He had lost, his hearing had just, 33:51 he had been losing his hearing for years and years 33:53 and finally got to a point 33:54 where he'd go to church 33:56 and people would ask them questions, 33:57 and he would start answering 33:59 but he'd be answering a question 34:00 they didn't ask. 34:01 And it was just the embarrassment 34:03 kind of got a hold of him 34:05 and he slowly stopped going to church 34:06 and started kind of becoming more of a recluse. 34:09 And so I come knocking on his door, 34:11 and I'm like, "Hey, I heard you're the guy 34:12 with the answers, and I got a lot of questions." 34:15 So for the next nine months, 34:17 he and I, every Sabbath, studied on his couch, 34:21 just he went through his life 34:23 and teachings of Ellen White class 34:24 that he taught up at seminary. 34:25 Sure. 34:27 He went through just his whole life experience. 34:28 He answered every question. 34:30 If I asked a question he'd be like, 34:31 "I'll give you the cliff note version 34:32 right now but next Sabbath, 34:34 I'll have something for you." 34:35 And I'd show up next Sabbath 34:36 and he had a folder with like 20 pieces of paper, 34:38 just of everything to answer the question. 34:41 And just it was awesome. 34:43 The dynamics were awesome 34:44 because I was someone hungering for knowledge... 34:47 Yes. 34:48 And he was a lifelong teacher 34:50 that no longer had a student and wasn't going to church. 34:53 And the Lord just crossed our paths 34:55 at the right time. 34:57 And, yeah, for nine months, we studied together 34:59 before he finally took his last breath. 35:01 So basically, God put this guy in your life at a time 35:05 when you've got all these questions 35:07 and to make sense of this whole Christianity 35:09 Christian experience that the Lord 35:11 is bringing you through. 35:12 This guy had the answers 35:13 that you needed to make all this make sense. 35:15 He had all the answers. 35:16 Everything that I could ever ask for, 35:18 he was there to provide. 35:19 And I was a student eager for a teacher 35:22 and God provided and a teacher eager 35:23 for a student. 35:25 And, yeah, nine months, I get to spend with him 35:28 until he finally took his last breath. 35:30 And it was just, it was beautiful. 35:31 That connection was beautiful. 35:32 I got you, man. That's so powerful. 35:34 That's a beautiful thing. 35:36 And sometimes that has to happen. 35:37 You know, we're going through this experience, 35:40 trying to just make sense of the Bible, 35:42 trying to make sense of things 35:44 that doesn't quite make sense to us. 35:45 But, you know, God will send the right person along. 35:47 And in this case, you know, Roger was that guy for you. 35:49 So, praise the Lord for that. 35:52 So now, take us into the next. 35:54 So now, you know, Rogers kind of no longer there, 35:57 but now you've been equipped with enough to know that, 36:00 "Okay, something's happening in my life. 36:01 God's doing something mighty in my heart and mind." 36:04 So what happens next, 36:05 that really launches you forward? 36:07 Yeah. So it wasn't just Roger. 36:08 So there was a couple others, Don and Wayne Robinson, 36:12 descendant of Mrs. White 36:14 that was in the church. 36:15 Okay. And Ken and Ruth Wright. 36:17 And they were just masters of teaching 36:19 how to be good stewards. 36:21 And it was just all these valuable assets 36:22 bundled up in this church 36:24 that I was just coming into. 36:25 There was also another key individual 36:27 that was at that church. 36:29 His name's Luther Robertson. 36:34 And he's very determined 36:37 when he has something in his mind. 36:38 Amen. 36:39 And he has a granddaughter, 36:41 and he was very determined that her and I should meet. 36:43 And... Okay. 36:45 He was determined. 36:46 So, at potluck, he go, hey, 36:48 I want to introduce you to my granddaughter 36:50 when she gets here. 36:51 And I'm like, "You know, no, thank you. 36:53 Like, I'm on a path right now. 36:55 No Delilahs in my life, please. 36:57 I'm just like, I'm going forward, 36:58 you know, and I've got a mission, 37:00 and I'm not going to be detoured." 37:02 And so I was at work one day, 37:05 I was like 25 feet up on a ladder, 37:07 and I get this phone call, 37:09 and I pick it up, and it was Luther. 37:11 And he was like, "Hey, you got a piece of paper 37:14 and a pencil or a pen? 37:15 I'm like, "Well, no, I'm on the ladder." 37:17 And he's like, "Well get down and get it." 37:18 And so I did. 37:19 And I'm like, "All right, what do you need, Luther?" 37:21 And he said, "Write down this number." 37:23 And he gave me his granddaughter's number. 37:25 And I'm like, "Are you kidding me? 37:26 I'm at work right now. 37:28 I just climbed down a ladder for this?" 37:30 And I didn't call her, and so he, 37:34 next time I saw him, he actually, 37:36 she showed up at church to come visit, 37:38 and so we formally got introduced 37:40 then and things really kicked off. 37:44 I had never really had a... 37:46 I had never really been dumped 37:49 or experienced hardship 37:51 in a relationship before like that. 37:52 Right. 37:53 So, our first date, she stood me up. 37:56 Oh, okay. 37:57 Yeah, we were supposed to go to a Braves game and she... 37:59 Braves and Orioles game 38:00 and she stood me up and I was like, "Oh..." 38:02 She's not having any interviews call. 38:03 Yeah. 38:05 I was like, "Okay, well, 38:06 this is why I shouldn't have any, 38:07 you know, Delilahs in my life." 38:09 So... All right. 38:10 Get on the path and keep going forward. 38:11 And we ended up kind of hashing things out 38:16 and then and we were complete opposites 38:18 of each other. 38:19 And, but I put her through a couple of tests. 38:22 I, you know, I took her skydiving, 38:24 not just once, I took her twice and like a champ... 38:27 Wow. 38:29 She went and I've taken her paragliding. 38:32 And just like we've had all types of fun, 38:34 but she met all the tests that it's like, "Okay, 38:36 I need to know..." 38:37 You can jump out of a plane then you could be my wife. 38:39 That's right. I got you. All right. 38:41 You have to understand the element of crazy 38:42 that exists within my, 38:44 you know, in between my ears. 38:45 And if you're cool with that, then awesome. 38:49 So, yeah and... It's amazing. 38:51 So at that point, you know, it's been fun 38:54 since then just she's been with me 38:56 and we've been supporting each other. 38:58 And at this point now we got married 39:01 and we've now got two beautiful children. 39:03 I think actually, 39:04 you guys have a couple pictures... 39:05 Yeah, let's pulls those pictures up. 39:07 On that. So this is my little man. 39:08 This is Silas. 39:10 He's three and a half years old. 39:11 We've got a just a... 39:14 We do a lot of composting and worm vermicasting 39:18 and so that's a little man with all the worms. 39:20 That's him just taking the mic 39:22 and doing this thing up on up near the pulpit. 39:26 And this is my wife, Keri, and my son, Silas, 39:29 my daughter, Gabriela. 39:31 Oh, that's cool. Praise the Lord. 39:32 This little Gabriela, she's a handful. 39:34 She's a spitfire, 39:35 strawberry blonde and every bit of attitude. 39:38 Wow. 39:39 You got a beautiful family brother. 39:41 The Lord has blessed you. 39:42 They're awesome. They're awesome. 39:44 Amen. 39:45 Little man helps me with raised beds. 39:47 Yep, he can operate drills. 39:48 He loves everything that has a motor. 39:51 He loves it. All right. All right. 39:52 Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. 39:54 So you marry your wife, 39:56 okay, you start, I guess, start a family. 39:59 But what happens post marriage now? 40:01 Yeah. 40:03 'Cause you was telling me a little bit about 40:04 where God led you from there. 40:05 So tell us a little bit about that? 40:07 So I didn't want to do drywall obviously 40:08 for the rest of my life, 40:10 and so I was going to take advantage 40:12 of the GI Bill 40:14 and let the government pay for my schooling. 40:16 And I qualified for another program, 40:18 the VocRehab Program, 40:20 which within if you choose the job, 40:22 they will get the education you need to have that job. 40:25 So I, you know, said well, 40:27 I want to be a university professor. 40:29 Right. 40:30 And you need a PhD for that. 40:32 So it was like, "You know, this is what I want to do. 40:34 So, you guys going to pay for it?" 40:37 And it was sure thing. 40:38 So I went down back down 40:39 to Southern Adventist University, 40:41 coming full circle after so many years. 40:43 Right. 40:45 And starting with a handicap 40:48 'cause I think my GPA was like 1.6 coming in. 40:51 So I was on academic probation coming back in this school. 40:55 And, yeah, but coming back to school... 40:57 You can imagine someone was like, 40:59 "Oh, this guy, right, oh, I remember you." 41:01 Luckily, nobody remembered me. 41:02 But... Oh, they didn't, okay. 41:04 Luckily. 41:05 But there, I started school there, 41:09 I was doing religious education, 41:11 because that was what I was going to, 41:12 you know, pursue. 41:14 Right. 41:15 But I really wanted the whole experience 41:16 when it came to religion classes. 41:18 I wanted all of the theology, all of the religion classes, 41:19 I wanted to know the Greek and Hebrew at least enough to, 41:22 to kind of trudge my way through 41:24 those two languages, 41:26 and the only degree that 41:28 that you could get all the classes is theology. 41:30 So, I switched my degree over to theology 41:33 to try to work the system a little bit. 41:34 Sure. 41:36 And what I didn't know, though, was your senior year, 41:39 you have to do pastoral interviews. 41:41 My wife did not, 41:43 you know, did not date and marry a pastor, 41:46 I did not go to school to be a pastor, 41:48 never had a desire to whatsoever. 41:50 Right. 41:51 I was not about that pastor life. 41:54 And so, so but I tried to work the system a little bit. 41:58 And then my senior year, they do, 42:01 you know, I was, I had to do the pastoral interviews 42:03 with the Southern Union. 42:04 So I did, you know, 42:06 and I wasn't trying to sabotage things, 42:07 but I went there on my motorcycle 42:10 and had steel toed boots and jeans 42:12 and a polo shirt on, 42:14 and just took my helmet off 42:15 and went straight into the interview. 42:17 And none of the Southern Union 42:19 wanted to have anything to do with me. 42:20 So it was, to me it was like, "Thank You, Lord. 42:22 Like, that's confirmation..." 42:24 Got that of way now. 42:25 "That's not my calling, I've got a path and I'm on it. 42:28 So let's do it." 42:29 But my wife went into the hospital 42:32 and to deliver our son, 42:35 and so we were in the hospital 42:36 and during that time, bless her heart, 42:39 the most wonderful woman in the world, 42:40 Star Stevens, she was like, 42:43 "Well, Matt," she texts me and she's like, "Matt, 42:46 you know, I signed you up for the interviews 42:48 for Wisconsin 42:49 and for Mountain View Conference 42:50 because, you know, I know you couldn't sign up 42:52 'cause you're there in the hospital." 42:53 And in my head I was just like, 42:55 "Star, no, I've got my calling..." 42:57 What did you do? "Yeah. Why? 42:59 Why did you do that?" 43:00 But you can't, like if you know, Star Stevens, 43:03 you can't do anything to break that woman's heart. 43:04 That's right. 43:05 She's so sincere and genuine. 43:07 She's awesome. 43:08 So I went to the interview, 43:10 same way, I went to the other interviews. 43:11 Got off my motorcycle went right in, 43:12 and Elder Mike Hewitt, 43:16 and Pastor Walter Cardinia said, 43:18 they were both interviewing me 43:20 and they were just, you know, they asked the questions, 43:22 and they're like, "All right, sounds good. 43:25 I think we're done." 43:27 And I'm like, "All right, you gentlemen, like, 43:28 have a good day." 43:29 And later they called me back and they're like, 43:31 "Yeah, we want you to come to the conference 43:32 and be a pastor." 43:34 And at that point, like the bricks really just, 43:37 you know, we came to a screeching halt. 43:39 My wife and I spent the night 43:41 you know, praying and literally shedding a few tears 43:44 because it's like, well, 43:46 we can't deny a calling like this is, 43:48 there's no way to deny this calling 43:51 that it is from God. 43:52 And so we, you know, tightened up our boots 43:55 and went forward and accepted that call. 43:57 That's amazing. 43:59 So how long have you been there now 44:00 with the Mountain View? 44:01 So we've been in the Mountain View Conference 44:03 now for two and a half years, 44:04 and it's been awesome. 44:06 It's been awesome. Praise the Lord. 44:08 The pastoral life is everything that we feared it would be. 44:12 But at the same time, it is so much of a blessing. 44:16 And the people, our district is just great. 44:19 In my district, I've got the Kingwood 44:21 Seventh-day Adventist Church, 44:23 the Morgantown Seventh-day Adventist Church, 44:24 both in West Virginia, 44:26 and then the Mountaintop Seventh-day Adventist Church 44:28 in Oakland, Maryland. 44:29 And it's just all three churches, 44:30 they got such good crew, 44:32 so I'm just constantly inspired by their faith, 44:35 their determination and their support is, 44:38 they'll fight tooth and nail for me 44:40 and I'll do it for them. 44:41 And it's just, we're doing the best we can 44:43 and that's all that we can do. 44:44 So... That's amazing. 44:46 It's been very, very exciting. 44:47 So... Praise the Lord. 44:49 You know, I don't know 44:50 why this question came into my mind, 44:51 but I was just curious more than anything, 44:54 you know, being having the military background, 44:56 that kind of hardcore mentality and lifestyle 44:59 and now into pastoral work. 45:02 How did, how has that in any way 45:04 maybe prepared you? 45:05 Or maybe it's posted some challenges 45:07 and now the transition to pastoral work? 45:09 What does that like having that past 45:11 and now you're serving, 45:13 you go from one army now you're in a different army, 45:15 you're serving in the army of the Lord. 45:17 Tell us a little bit about that? 45:18 What's been the challenges 45:19 or maybe there's not been any challenges for you? 45:22 Yeah, definitely some benefits. 45:24 Okay. 45:25 'Cause there are similarities 45:27 between physical and spiritual combat. 45:30 First thing I did when I came into the church, 45:32 though, I sold all of my guns and that was like, 45:36 that was a weird experience 45:37 to get rid of all of my weapons. 45:38 Sure. 45:40 And it was just like, "All right, Lord, I know, 45:41 I only know one way to use these 45:42 and according to Your Word 45:45 that's not how I should be using these, 45:48 I can't shoot for fun." 45:49 It's just. 45:50 So I gave up those weapons, and He gave me the sword. 45:53 And it was like, "Okay, 45:54 that's the only weapon I'll need, 45:57 offensive weapon that I'll need." 45:58 Wow. 45:59 And then we have defensive armor as well. 46:01 And it's just... That's right. 46:03 It's... 46:05 There's a one up on my end 46:07 as far as we talk a lot as Adventists 46:10 that Jesus Christ is coming soon. 46:12 But sometimes it's just language, I think. 46:14 Right. 46:15 And it's like, "Do you really believe 46:17 that He's coming soon?" 46:18 Right. 46:19 There was, we used to do missions in Ramadi, 46:21 and there was an area 46:23 that we call the shark's fin in which, 46:25 you know, the route of travel channelizes. 46:28 And then there's a big curve. Right. 46:30 And almost every time we would go that route, 46:32 we would get ambushed. 46:34 Wow. 46:35 And so you knew, going that direction 46:36 you knew like, 46:38 "Let's get ready, get ready, 46:40 because it's going to be hot when we get there." 46:41 Right. 46:42 And we'd have people jump on our missions with us. 46:44 And we tell them, "Hey, when we get to this point, 46:46 like, get ready, because it's on." 46:48 "Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah." 46:49 And it was, they would say, yeah, 46:51 but they wouldn't prepare. 46:52 Yeah, And when we get to that point, 46:54 and bullets started flying, 46:55 then you'd see how unprepared they were. 46:57 And there's an element, you know, just in the church, 46:59 that it's like we say Jesus Christ is coming, 47:02 we believe that we're in The Great Controversy, 47:04 but do we really believe it? 47:05 And are we suiting up for this battle? 47:08 And so there are similarities to it 47:10 that are both advantageous, 47:13 and also, yeah, 47:16 it's, the similarities are pretty crazy. 47:19 That's amazing, man. 47:20 Praise the Lord. 47:22 It's just, this has been an awesome time together. 47:24 We have about four minutes here. 47:25 And I have to just kind of make a transition now 47:28 into giving you an opportunity, 47:30 as a minister, as a pastor, 47:33 there's someone watching right now at home 47:35 who might have a similar experience to you. 47:38 Maybe they military background, maybe they don't, 47:41 maybe they're just dealing with some stuff in their life, 47:44 but they're struggling with coming to grips with 47:46 who God is, what their purpose is, 47:48 why they're here, why they're going through 47:50 the things that they're going through. 47:52 I just want to ask you personally, 47:53 and you can, you know, just kind of expand on 47:57 what the gospel means to you, 47:59 personally, as a pastor, 48:00 as a new transformed individual, 48:02 having been through all the what you've been through, 48:05 but now we're seeing where God has brought you. 48:08 What is the gospel to you? 48:09 What does it mean to you? 48:11 And maybe just encouraging words 48:14 for somebody at home. 48:15 Yeah, yeah. 48:17 So one of my favorite texts, Romans 1:16, and 7, 48:19 "For I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ, 48:23 for it is the power of God unto salvation 48:25 to everyone that believes, 48:26 you know, to the Jew first and then to the Greek. 48:29 For therein is the righteousness of God 48:30 revealed from faith to faith." 48:32 That aspect right there from faith to faith, 48:35 that every step that we take, the gospel can be revealed. 48:39 And the power that word it's dunamis, 48:42 that's always described as like dynamite. 48:45 Look, I've worked with C4 and dynamite. 48:47 Dynamite explodes and then it goes away. 48:49 Right. 48:50 This is, the gospel is not that type of power. 48:52 It's dynamic. 48:54 It's just as powerful at the end 48:55 as it was in the beginning. 48:56 One of my favorite Bible stories 48:58 is the story of the paralytic 49:00 lowered through the roof. 49:02 And Christ not only saying, 49:04 "You know, your sins are forgiven," 49:06 but also, "Take up your bedding and get to walk." 49:08 And it's just like, "But I can't walk. 49:10 And it was like, "No, no, no, you don't understand 49:13 the impossible is possible with Jesus Christ." 49:15 It's not just, 49:17 the gospel is not just the forgiveness of sin. 49:19 Sure. 49:20 It's also to do the impossible. 49:22 So everything that always tripped us up, 49:24 the shackles of sin that have always bound us, 49:26 Christ is like, "Yeah, I can break those. 49:28 That's what the gospel, that's the power of the gospel 49:30 is all the things that have had control over you 49:32 can no longer have control over you 49:34 if you just let me lead your life. 49:36 And that is the gospel to me, is that don't one sided, 49:41 show both elements, 49:42 that it gives us the power to live from faith to faith 49:46 and every step and every decision 49:47 that we make in life, 49:48 we can honor and glorify God. 49:50 Roger Kuhn told me one thing, he was like, "Matt, 49:55 picture this, one day, 49:57 you'll be sitting underneath the tree of life 49:59 right next to the river of life. 50:01 And you're going to see like Noah or Moses, 50:03 and you'll be like, "Dude, I cannot believe this." 50:06 Like, "Oh, tell me the story, tell my story." 50:08 And he goes, "You know what's incredible, 50:10 is they'll stop you short of what you're saying. 50:12 And they'll say, "Look, you lived in a time 50:15 where we desired to live to do the work 50:17 that we desired to do. 50:19 I want to hear your story." Wow. 50:20 Which means each one of us has a powerful story 50:23 just waiting to be told. 50:24 And the Bible tells us, 50:26 Revelation tells us 50:27 that we overcome by the blood of the Lamb, 50:29 and by the word of our testimony, 50:30 and it's just, 50:31 that's what we're doing here today. 50:33 Each one of us has a story and it's powerful. 50:35 Everybody at home has a story 50:36 and you have a sphere of influence that's like, 50:38 "Look, you got friends, 50:39 you got people to tell about Jesus, 50:41 you got neighbors, 50:43 you have to go knock on some doors 50:44 and introduce them to Jesus. 50:45 You got coworkers, you know, are you in class with people? 50:48 We have an area of influence in our lives 50:51 that God has placed us. 50:52 Not more, surely are the plans made for, 50:55 is the mansion made for us in heaven 50:56 than the work here that God has for us on earth." 50:58 Absolutely. It's beautiful. 51:00 And I love the Mountain View Conference 51:02 like tell somebody about Jesus. 51:03 That's the big initiative. That's right. 51:05 It's like, "Look, we need to be telling people about Jesus. 51:07 Right. Fulfilling our mission. 51:09 That's right. Amen. Praise the Lord. 51:10 Brother, this has been such a... 51:12 Such an awesome time just to hear your story 51:14 and to hear what God has done in your life. 51:16 And I can honestly say 51:18 after spending the time with you, 51:19 the Mountain View Conference has a powerful man of God 51:23 as a pastor in their conference. 51:24 Well, my friends, we're not quite finished yet, 51:27 because you may have, you live near the area 51:29 where he's pastoring in one of the churches, 51:31 you may live near 51:33 the Mountain View Conference area, 51:34 or maybe you just want to know some more information 51:36 about this wonderful conference and the work 51:39 that pastor has been doing, 51:40 this initiative to tell people more about Jesus. 51:43 We want to show you how you can do that right now. 51:45 So at this moment, there's some information 51:47 that will come up on your screen pertaining 51:48 to the Mountain View Conference. 51:51 If you would like to contact or know more about 51:53 Mountain View Conference of SDA, 51:55 you can do so in the following ways. 51:57 You can write to them at 1400, Liberty Street, 52:01 Parkersburg, 52:03 West Virginia 26101-4121. 52:08 You can call them at 403-422-4581. 52:13 That's 403-422-4581. 52:18 You can visit their website at mountainviewconference.org 52:22 That's mountainviewconference.org 52:25 You can also send them an email 52:27 at matthewh@mvcsda.org |
Revised 2022-02-24