WEBVTT 00:00:03.339 --> 00:00:05.320 Hello everyone and welcome to this week's episode 00:00:05.320 --> 00:00:08.939 of Trinity Talks. My name is Kyla and I am excited 00:00:08.939 --> 00:00:11.640 to sit down here with Donald and we're going 00:00:11.640 --> 00:00:14.240 to chat a little bit about your experience of 00:00:14.240 --> 00:00:16.440 faith and your family's experience of faith. 00:00:16.899 --> 00:00:20.160 Yeah, what brought you to Trinity and how you've 00:00:20.160 --> 00:00:22.280 sort of seen your faith grow over this time. 00:00:22.420 --> 00:00:24.559 So thank you so much for joining me today, Donald. 00:00:24.820 --> 00:00:27.940 You're welcome. Yeah, so maybe we'll start out 00:00:27.940 --> 00:00:31.960 sort of at the beginning. How did you first hear 00:00:31.960 --> 00:00:38.479 about Trinity? Well, we, me and my wife, sometimes 00:00:38.479 --> 00:00:41.240 we went over a table. There's a table across 00:00:41.240 --> 00:00:44.420 the street from Presco's. Yeah. And you put food 00:00:44.420 --> 00:00:46.640 on for people who are less fortunate and everything. 00:00:46.780 --> 00:00:48.960 Yeah. And we go to the food bank and everything. 00:00:49.119 --> 00:00:53.240 And so what extra we have, we went and put on 00:00:53.240 --> 00:00:56.840 the table and everything. And then we saw a sign 00:00:56.840 --> 00:01:01.039 saying community meal. Yeah. So I asked my wife, 00:01:01.119 --> 00:01:03.020 well, do you want to go and try it? So we went 00:01:03.020 --> 00:01:07.719 and tried the community meal. And all the community 00:01:07.719 --> 00:01:13.060 people were very friendly. And then we met Bill. 00:01:13.099 --> 00:01:16.780 And Bill was this amazing person. Yeah. And he 00:01:16.780 --> 00:01:19.739 said, well, why don't you come to church and 00:01:19.739 --> 00:01:22.439 try it out? Yeah. So we came to church and everything, 00:01:22.540 --> 00:01:24.239 and we just fell in love with it and everything. 00:01:24.519 --> 00:01:31.359 Yeah. Now for almost two years, and I really 00:01:31.359 --> 00:01:33.920 love it. Yeah, yeah, that's awesome. So you started, 00:01:34.099 --> 00:01:38.719 you came to the community meal first, and you've 00:01:38.719 --> 00:01:41.000 kept coming to the community meal, right? Yes. 00:01:41.140 --> 00:01:44.420 Yeah, so what do you like about that? I like 00:01:44.420 --> 00:01:46.700 it because I meet new people and everything, 00:01:46.939 --> 00:01:50.319 and I still get to talk to the staff and everything, 00:01:50.459 --> 00:01:53.280 and they're all very friendly. They're like a 00:01:53.280 --> 00:01:56.219 family. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So you get to meet 00:01:56.219 --> 00:01:58.840 lots of people. People really care about you 00:01:58.840 --> 00:02:01.260 and you get to. Yeah. And you get to meet new 00:02:01.260 --> 00:02:03.840 people, which is good. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. 00:02:03.840 --> 00:02:06.260 So you've come. You made this connection with 00:02:06.260 --> 00:02:09.639 Bill and Bill invited you to come to church. 00:02:09.699 --> 00:02:12.379 So why? Why did you decide that you wanted to 00:02:12.379 --> 00:02:15.669 go to church? Well. I was curious because we 00:02:15.669 --> 00:02:18.409 were looking for a church anyways. We wanted 00:02:18.409 --> 00:02:20.810 to go back to church and everything. And so I 00:02:20.810 --> 00:02:22.050 asked Dwight, Dwight, do you want to try the 00:02:22.050 --> 00:02:24.650 straight church? He said, yeah. So we came and 00:02:24.650 --> 00:02:28.430 everything and we fell in love with it. Okay. 00:02:28.830 --> 00:02:33.449 So I was encouraged and everything. I was very 00:02:33.449 --> 00:02:41.189 pleased to meet Rob, you know, and the way he... 00:02:42.060 --> 00:02:44.280 teaches the scriptures and everything. You know, 00:02:44.300 --> 00:02:45.800 it's totally different from what I used to do. 00:02:45.879 --> 00:02:48.620 Okay. Because when I was a kid, I always went 00:02:48.620 --> 00:02:50.419 to church. My parents always told me to go to 00:02:50.419 --> 00:02:52.259 church and everything. Yep. And I got baptized 00:02:52.259 --> 00:02:56.379 as a kid. Okay. So that's the reason why we choose 00:02:56.379 --> 00:02:58.500 this church because we thought it would be a 00:02:58.500 --> 00:03:01.500 wonderful family home. Sure. Yeah. So what are 00:03:01.500 --> 00:03:03.900 some of the things that you liked about Trinity 00:03:03.900 --> 00:03:07.379 when you started coming here? Well, I liked the 00:03:07.379 --> 00:03:10.819 congregation. Mm -hmm. I liked the lovely music 00:03:10.819 --> 00:03:13.139 that Libby, Libby, you know, provides in our 00:03:13.139 --> 00:03:15.919 service and everything. And I loved all the people. 00:03:16.120 --> 00:03:18.759 Yeah. You know, you talk to people and everything, 00:03:18.840 --> 00:03:20.419 you know, come in the auditorium, you talk to 00:03:20.419 --> 00:03:23.080 them and everything. Mm -hmm. So it's... Just 00:03:23.080 --> 00:03:24.860 the love that I have for all the people, and 00:03:24.860 --> 00:03:27.520 I love talking to people. Yeah, yeah, you're 00:03:27.520 --> 00:03:31.120 a real people person. Yeah, I like to, you know, 00:03:31.120 --> 00:03:33.219 share a little bit of your story, get to hear 00:03:33.219 --> 00:03:36.439 from other people. Yeah, yeah, so I think that's 00:03:36.439 --> 00:03:38.520 really good, you know, that you get that sense 00:03:38.520 --> 00:03:41.560 of community and that sense of family. Yeah, 00:03:41.719 --> 00:03:45.710 yeah, for sure, for sure. So you said that you 00:03:45.710 --> 00:03:48.830 went to church when you were a kid, and then 00:03:48.830 --> 00:03:51.129 maybe you stopped going to church for a little 00:03:51.129 --> 00:03:53.069 while and then sort of came back to Trinity. 00:03:53.889 --> 00:04:00.370 So what do you think helped you to have an interest 00:04:00.370 --> 00:04:06.330 in faith again? Well, I kind of had dreams, okay, 00:04:06.449 --> 00:04:09.530 when I was young again and going to church and 00:04:09.530 --> 00:04:11.389 everything, and I was an altar boy and everything, 00:04:11.509 --> 00:04:15.550 and I kind of missed it. Sure. So that kind of 00:04:15.550 --> 00:04:17.949 made me, me and my wife say, look, we want to 00:04:17.949 --> 00:04:20.350 find a church that's really good and everything, 00:04:20.529 --> 00:04:23.149 you know, and so that's why we choose Trinity. 00:04:23.329 --> 00:04:25.970 Yeah. Okay. It makes us feel at home. Yeah, for 00:04:25.970 --> 00:04:30.269 sure. And so then once you were here at Trinity, 00:04:30.529 --> 00:04:34.649 you decided to go and do Alpha, right? Yeah, 00:04:34.689 --> 00:04:37.649 so Alpha is an eight -week course where people 00:04:37.649 --> 00:04:40.970 can ask some questions and learn more about some 00:04:40.970 --> 00:04:43.629 of the basics of Christianity, about who Jesus 00:04:43.629 --> 00:04:46.709 is and what the Bible is and all of those sorts 00:04:46.709 --> 00:04:49.670 of things. So what was your experience like with 00:04:49.670 --> 00:04:56.069 Alpha? Well, I talked to Rob and said that we 00:04:56.069 --> 00:04:58.470 like to get baptized. Okay. So Alpha was one 00:04:58.470 --> 00:05:01.750 of the courses we had to take. Yeah. But it was... 00:05:02.160 --> 00:05:05.819 Just going there and seeing how many people really 00:05:05.819 --> 00:05:08.360 came there and everything. And the wonderful 00:05:08.360 --> 00:05:13.540 staff there and everything. And the words that 00:05:13.540 --> 00:05:15.740 we watched, we watched the videos and everything. 00:05:15.879 --> 00:05:19.459 It was just so powerful. And I got to learn more 00:05:19.459 --> 00:05:22.180 about what God really, really does for us. Okay, 00:05:22.259 --> 00:05:26.810 yeah. So it was really, really. And I think it 00:05:26.810 --> 00:05:29.490 got me a little more understanding of why God 00:05:29.490 --> 00:05:32.230 died on the cross for us and everything. Sure. 00:05:32.529 --> 00:05:37.290 And then I said, yes, this is what I want to 00:05:37.290 --> 00:05:41.649 do. Sure. Okay. Is there one thing that you learned 00:05:41.649 --> 00:05:44.250 in Alpha or one moment that really stands out 00:05:44.250 --> 00:05:48.569 to you? Well, the small groups. Yeah? Small groups. 00:05:49.160 --> 00:05:51.899 We all got to learn about everybody else. Sure. 00:05:52.279 --> 00:05:54.620 Testimony and everything. So that was one thing 00:05:54.620 --> 00:05:58.660 that was really, really. Yeah, that was just 00:05:58.660 --> 00:06:00.959 really important for you. Yeah. Yeah. To get 00:06:00.959 --> 00:06:03.540 to ask your questions and hear other people's 00:06:03.540 --> 00:06:06.680 questions and stories. Yes. Yeah. Yeah, for sure. 00:06:07.120 --> 00:06:10.060 So you said before Alpha, you had decided that 00:06:10.060 --> 00:06:12.759 you wanted to get baptized. So what made you 00:06:12.759 --> 00:06:16.199 decide that you wanted to get baptized? Well, 00:06:16.199 --> 00:06:19.139 it was a lot of thinking and everything. Sure. 00:06:20.379 --> 00:06:24.139 And then I said to my wife, do you want to get 00:06:24.139 --> 00:06:28.160 baptized? And she said, yeah. So we talked to 00:06:28.160 --> 00:06:29.899 Rob and everything. He planned the dating. But 00:06:29.899 --> 00:06:32.459 the first one, unfortunately, the first time 00:06:32.459 --> 00:06:35.920 that he booked it, we got sick. Right, yeah. 00:06:35.980 --> 00:06:39.759 So we couldn't come and everything. And it was 00:06:39.759 --> 00:06:43.519 also... A journey that I'm on to be closer to 00:06:43.519 --> 00:06:48.279 God and being baptized is another step in being 00:06:48.279 --> 00:06:51.819 closer to God. Yeah. So that's one of the reasons 00:06:51.819 --> 00:06:54.259 why we got baptized, because we wanted to be 00:06:54.259 --> 00:06:57.660 part of the congregation and be closer to God. 00:06:57.860 --> 00:07:02.500 Sure. Sure. So what do you think started that 00:07:02.500 --> 00:07:05.100 journey for you? Like what what made you want 00:07:05.100 --> 00:07:09.579 to be closer to God? Well, going to Alpha and 00:07:09.579 --> 00:07:11.339 learning more about God, what he does and everything 00:07:11.339 --> 00:07:14.899 and miracles that he does and everything. So 00:07:14.899 --> 00:07:19.680 I said, wow, I was amazed. Sure. And I said, 00:07:19.779 --> 00:07:24.279 yes, I want to get baptized. Yeah. And when you 00:07:24.279 --> 00:07:27.939 think about like your own life and faith, like 00:07:27.939 --> 00:07:30.759 are there things, ways that you have seen God 00:07:30.759 --> 00:07:36.579 help you in your life? Yes. God has helped us 00:07:36.579 --> 00:07:41.079 basically through, okay, when we've been financially, 00:07:41.240 --> 00:07:44.819 you know, we need help and everything. He has 00:07:44.819 --> 00:07:48.139 provided the financial stuff to help us to go 00:07:48.139 --> 00:07:50.899 and have a roof over our head. You know, he's 00:07:50.899 --> 00:07:54.000 helped us at Christmastime and everything. And 00:07:54.000 --> 00:07:56.220 he's helped me with my pain and suffering that 00:07:56.220 --> 00:07:59.379 I'm going through. I have rheumatoid arthritis. 00:08:01.760 --> 00:08:04.939 I thank God, and I thank God for the doctor that's 00:08:04.939 --> 00:08:07.720 provided me the medication and everything to 00:08:07.720 --> 00:08:10.259 help me to deal with these pain and sufferings 00:08:10.259 --> 00:08:11.779 that I'm going to go through for the rest of 00:08:11.779 --> 00:08:16.040 my life. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I think, you know, 00:08:16.079 --> 00:08:18.100 we've talked a few times before, and, you know, 00:08:18.180 --> 00:08:20.000 you'll come to the church and you'll ask people 00:08:20.000 --> 00:08:22.000 to be praying for you, and I think to sort of 00:08:22.000 --> 00:08:26.160 see that faith, right, and to know, you know, 00:08:26.180 --> 00:08:29.529 that... God is listening to our prayers, right? 00:08:29.730 --> 00:08:32.669 And that I think often God uses other people 00:08:32.669 --> 00:08:36.330 to help answer our prayers, right? That God uses 00:08:36.330 --> 00:08:39.549 the church or the community meal or your doctor 00:08:39.549 --> 00:08:42.769 or whoever, right? That when you pray, God answers 00:08:42.769 --> 00:08:45.529 those prayers, but God uses other people to help. 00:08:45.690 --> 00:08:49.610 Yes. Yeah. It's everything. Yeah. Yeah, for sure. 00:08:49.889 --> 00:08:54.490 For sure. And when you think about like following 00:08:54.490 --> 00:09:00.789 Jesus, what does that mean to you? Well, that's 00:09:00.789 --> 00:09:05.309 a hard question, really. Yeah. But I think it 00:09:05.309 --> 00:09:10.610 means that just listen to what he does, reading 00:09:10.610 --> 00:09:13.409 the Bible, learning more scriptures about the 00:09:13.409 --> 00:09:17.610 miracles he does and everything, following his 00:09:17.610 --> 00:09:21.970 word. Yeah. You know, and just. trying to do 00:09:21.970 --> 00:09:25.429 every day what he wants you to do. Yeah. Yeah. 00:09:25.509 --> 00:09:27.830 Yeah, for sure. For sure. Yeah. And so being 00:09:27.830 --> 00:09:29.769 part of the church helps you to do that, right? 00:09:29.950 --> 00:09:33.250 Yes. And yeah, going to Alpha and being part 00:09:33.250 --> 00:09:35.470 of the community and all of those things, for 00:09:35.470 --> 00:09:39.509 sure. Yeah. And when you think about you were 00:09:39.509 --> 00:09:42.029 baptized, has it been a year since you were baptized? 00:09:42.490 --> 00:09:44.629 Last year. Last year. Yeah, that's what I thought. 00:09:44.730 --> 00:09:48.980 So have you seen how... Any changes in your faith 00:09:48.980 --> 00:09:51.919 or anything like that since you were baptized? 00:09:52.519 --> 00:09:55.000 Oh, it's gotten a lot stronger. Yeah? Yeah, and 00:09:55.000 --> 00:10:00.059 I would be scared to pray, but now I love to 00:10:00.059 --> 00:10:04.100 pray now. Yeah? Yeah. My biggest problem is I'm 00:10:04.100 --> 00:10:06.580 not reading the Bible because I... I misplaced 00:10:06.580 --> 00:10:09.740 my Bible, and I can't find it. Oh, okay. We'll 00:10:09.740 --> 00:10:12.440 need to find you a new one. Right. But you can 00:10:12.440 --> 00:10:14.960 still pray. Yes. Yeah, yeah. I pray all the time. 00:10:15.080 --> 00:10:17.860 I pray for my wife. I pray for her. I got to 00:10:17.860 --> 00:10:22.659 pray for another friend, okay? He's got mental 00:10:22.659 --> 00:10:26.980 illness and everything. And Lauren, she goes 00:10:26.980 --> 00:10:29.539 through rough times. So when people come to me 00:10:29.539 --> 00:10:31.860 and say they're having a rough time, then I pray 00:10:31.860 --> 00:10:35.019 for them. Yeah. And I say, God, just help me. 00:10:35.759 --> 00:10:38.299 You know, show me how I can help these people. 00:10:38.480 --> 00:10:41.740 Yeah, for sure, for sure. So my faith in God 00:10:41.740 --> 00:10:45.200 has gotten a lot stronger. Yeah, and I think 00:10:45.200 --> 00:10:48.500 even just that confidence to pray, right? Yes. 00:10:48.559 --> 00:10:52.659 And to know that God is listening. And I think, 00:10:52.659 --> 00:10:55.269 you know, to hear the stories of... You know, 00:10:55.289 --> 00:10:57.750 you prayed and you asked God for help with the 00:10:57.750 --> 00:11:00.009 pain that you were dealing with. And there was 00:11:00.009 --> 00:11:02.370 an answer to that. There was people to sort of 00:11:02.370 --> 00:11:04.850 support you. And, you know, you pray when you're 00:11:04.850 --> 00:11:07.429 struggling financially and then God provides 00:11:07.429 --> 00:11:10.330 for you, right? All of that strengthens your 00:11:10.330 --> 00:11:13.669 faith, I think. And it also has calmed me down 00:11:13.669 --> 00:11:16.389 a lot. Sure. When I feel like I'm going to get 00:11:16.389 --> 00:11:20.080 upset now, I pray to God and say, go. God, please 00:11:20.080 --> 00:11:23.120 don't let me start yelling and screaming and 00:11:23.120 --> 00:11:25.620 everything and getting out of control. I don't 00:11:25.620 --> 00:11:27.740 want to, I don't want to go back the way I was. 00:11:27.840 --> 00:11:31.820 Sure. Yeah. It gives you like to pray. It gives 00:11:31.820 --> 00:11:34.259 you a time to breathe and time to sort of center 00:11:34.259 --> 00:11:38.399 yourself and to say, it's okay. God, God is with 00:11:38.399 --> 00:11:41.340 me and all of this. And maybe to even ask God 00:11:41.340 --> 00:11:44.299 for patience and peace and all of those things, 00:11:44.320 --> 00:11:47.570 which is hard when you got to. A challenged child. 00:11:47.750 --> 00:11:50.870 Yeah, for sure. Be patient, you know. You're 00:11:50.870 --> 00:11:54.090 trying everything, but sometimes it doesn't work 00:11:54.090 --> 00:11:56.990 out. You still lose your temper. Like you say, 00:11:57.129 --> 00:11:59.529 like Rob says, we're only normal people. We make 00:11:59.529 --> 00:12:04.850 mistakes and everything. So I just pray to him 00:12:04.850 --> 00:12:07.129 when I'm getting upset and say, please help me 00:12:07.129 --> 00:12:10.210 to just understand that she's, yes, she's 29. 00:12:11.039 --> 00:12:13.039 But her mind is of an eight -year -old. Right. 00:12:13.139 --> 00:12:15.919 So she's like a kid. Yeah. And it's kind of hard 00:12:15.919 --> 00:12:21.419 for me because now I'm 62 going on 63. And it's 00:12:21.419 --> 00:12:26.059 hard for me to go back to that way when you start 00:12:26.059 --> 00:12:27.899 taking care of eight -year -olds again. Yeah. 00:12:27.899 --> 00:12:31.399 I'm kind of older now than what I used to be. 00:12:31.440 --> 00:12:35.720 So it's very hard to switch back. Yeah. But you've 00:12:35.720 --> 00:12:38.659 seen God help you through that and give you that 00:12:38.659 --> 00:12:41.529 patience and that peace. All those things that 00:12:41.529 --> 00:12:45.190 you need. Yeah. I thank God. Yes. For sure. Yeah. 00:12:45.289 --> 00:12:47.610 And I think also the reminder, you know, like 00:12:47.610 --> 00:12:50.570 you said, we all mess up sometimes, but the reminder 00:12:50.570 --> 00:12:53.730 that there's still forgiveness. Yes. Right. And 00:12:53.730 --> 00:12:56.970 that God gives us love. God gives us the ability 00:12:56.970 --> 00:13:01.570 to get through and to. God forgives us and asks, 00:13:01.750 --> 00:13:04.450 like gives us the ability to ask other people 00:13:04.450 --> 00:13:07.389 to forgive us as well. Right. So we can keep 00:13:07.389 --> 00:13:10.470 rebuilding those relationships or fixing things 00:13:10.470 --> 00:13:13.450 when we mess up. Right. Yeah. Yeah, for sure. 00:13:13.610 --> 00:13:18.429 For sure. Yeah. So when you think about the Bible 00:13:18.429 --> 00:13:20.409 and like some of the things that you've been 00:13:20.409 --> 00:13:22.690 learning about or hearing about in church, are 00:13:22.690 --> 00:13:25.690 there any Bible stories or Bible verses that 00:13:25.690 --> 00:13:30.000 are really important to you? Well, The one about 00:13:30.000 --> 00:13:33.700 the seed. Okay. I think it was three or four 00:13:33.700 --> 00:13:39.039 different ways that the seed was put down. Right, 00:13:39.179 --> 00:13:41.240 that it grows in the good soil or in the rocky 00:13:41.240 --> 00:13:43.840 soil with the weeds. Yeah. And the one where 00:13:43.840 --> 00:13:47.580 the seed was choked and everything. Yeah. So 00:13:47.580 --> 00:13:49.659 that was one that was really, really good to 00:13:49.659 --> 00:13:52.519 me. Another one that I really, really enjoyed 00:13:52.519 --> 00:13:56.740 was... When I did read the Bible, like I said, 00:13:56.840 --> 00:13:58.980 I constantly read the Bible, it was the Last 00:13:58.980 --> 00:14:01.980 Supper. Okay. What Jesus did for the Last Supper 00:14:01.980 --> 00:14:08.539 and fed 12 disciples and everything. And the 00:14:08.539 --> 00:14:10.700 one that really, really touched me was when God 00:14:10.700 --> 00:14:13.480 took four loaves of bread and I'm not sure how 00:14:13.480 --> 00:14:16.139 many fish. Yeah, five loaves of bread and two 00:14:16.139 --> 00:14:18.500 fish, I think. Yeah, something like that. And 00:14:18.500 --> 00:14:23.860 he fed all those people. And then he had extra. 00:14:25.000 --> 00:14:27.559 So it just showed the kind of miracles that he 00:14:27.559 --> 00:14:30.720 can do and everything. And who wouldn't want 00:14:30.720 --> 00:14:33.019 to have a person like that in their life? For 00:14:33.019 --> 00:14:36.720 sure. Yeah, for sure. So when you think about 00:14:36.720 --> 00:14:39.600 that story of the seeds, like what was it that 00:14:39.600 --> 00:14:43.840 stood out to you about that? Was there something 00:14:43.840 --> 00:14:46.460 that seemed really powerful or really important? 00:14:48.240 --> 00:14:51.360 Well, I guess the seed that was on the rock that 00:14:51.360 --> 00:14:55.389 grew. Yeah. That was, I say, on a rock and it 00:14:55.389 --> 00:14:59.549 grew. Yeah. How could that be? Yeah. How could 00:14:59.549 --> 00:15:01.629 that happen? Yeah. Because normally you put a 00:15:01.629 --> 00:15:03.970 seed, you put it in the ground and in the soil 00:15:03.970 --> 00:15:07.450 and everything. Yeah. So I was kind of amazed 00:15:07.450 --> 00:15:11.570 how that grew. Sure. Yeah. And the seeds in the 00:15:11.570 --> 00:15:14.330 rocks, they grew, but they didn't have very strong 00:15:14.330 --> 00:15:16.870 roots. Yes. Right. So it didn't live for very 00:15:16.870 --> 00:15:19.730 long. Yes. Right. But then, yeah, that reminder 00:15:19.730 --> 00:15:23.840 that. Yeah, we need to make sure that we root 00:15:23.840 --> 00:15:26.200 ourselves in our faith. It's not something we 00:15:26.200 --> 00:15:29.659 just do every once in a while. It's showing up 00:15:29.659 --> 00:15:31.960 all the time and being part of community and 00:15:31.960 --> 00:15:36.539 praying and those sorts of things. Yes. And then 00:15:36.539 --> 00:15:39.019 you said the Last Supper. So what do you like 00:15:39.019 --> 00:15:43.379 about the story of the Last Supper? It was the 00:15:43.379 --> 00:15:47.059 way that Jesus talked to the disciples and everything 00:15:47.059 --> 00:15:52.320 and told them about it and everything. the disciples 00:15:52.320 --> 00:15:56.559 accepted and everything and listened to him very 00:15:56.559 --> 00:16:01.000 carefully and everything. And I guess what I 00:16:01.000 --> 00:16:04.559 really liked about the Last Supper was that Jesus 00:16:04.559 --> 00:16:09.940 said this was the Last Supper, so he knew he 00:16:09.940 --> 00:16:14.409 was going to die. Yeah. And taking that time 00:16:14.409 --> 00:16:17.570 to be with the disciples and to, I think what's 00:16:17.570 --> 00:16:19.470 really important, one of the things I really 00:16:19.470 --> 00:16:21.769 like about Trinity is that most weeks we do communion, 00:16:21.970 --> 00:16:25.250 right? And it's that reminder that this is bread 00:16:25.250 --> 00:16:27.710 and this is wine or this is juice, whatever it 00:16:27.710 --> 00:16:31.389 is, and that these are things that we can tangibly 00:16:31.389 --> 00:16:35.889 see and hold. But remind us of who Jesus is and 00:16:35.889 --> 00:16:40.370 how big his love and his grace is. Right. And 00:16:40.370 --> 00:16:43.009 there's one movie that is on every year that 00:16:43.009 --> 00:16:45.669 I love to watch. It's the Ten Commandments. Okay. 00:16:46.070 --> 00:16:51.169 It shows Moses, you know, and all the hard work 00:16:51.169 --> 00:16:55.990 he had to do and everything. So. That was another 00:16:55.990 --> 00:16:58.090 reason why I said, well, Moses can do this. So 00:16:58.090 --> 00:17:01.269 can I. Yeah. Right. Yeah. So it influenced you 00:17:01.269 --> 00:17:04.170 to want to do more. Yeah. I think it's really 00:17:04.170 --> 00:17:06.970 good that we have those examples in the Bible 00:17:06.970 --> 00:17:10.069 and then examples in real life, too, of people 00:17:10.069 --> 00:17:13.410 who are following God or even when they mess 00:17:13.410 --> 00:17:15.849 up. Right. Yeah. That they're doing their best 00:17:15.849 --> 00:17:19.089 to live like a life of faith. Right. And they 00:17:19.089 --> 00:17:22.069 they encourage us, I think. And it also shows 00:17:22.069 --> 00:17:28.170 Jesus does get angry. Just like when Moses went 00:17:28.170 --> 00:17:32.049 up to the flaming bush and he got the Ten Commandments 00:17:32.049 --> 00:17:35.789 and took it down and the people were blessing 00:17:35.789 --> 00:17:39.130 the golden calf, I think it was. And he was very 00:17:39.130 --> 00:17:42.930 upset. And he said to the people, if you want 00:17:42.930 --> 00:17:45.190 to come with God, come with me, come up here. 00:17:45.829 --> 00:17:48.769 And other people didn't do it. God just got mad 00:17:48.769 --> 00:17:53.079 and just, whoops. It's okay. and took took took 00:17:53.079 --> 00:17:55.720 it and just threw in the ground and it just yeah 00:17:55.720 --> 00:18:00.240 smashed in half so it shows that god does get 00:18:00.240 --> 00:18:03.660 angry and then so it's hey he gets angry that 00:18:03.660 --> 00:18:06.559 it's kind of shocking he gets angry sure you 00:18:06.559 --> 00:18:09.619 know because uh it does say in the well i don't 00:18:09.619 --> 00:18:12.299 think it says in the bible he's perfect okay 00:18:12.299 --> 00:18:16.799 so Yeah. Yeah. And to think that, you know, our 00:18:16.799 --> 00:18:20.200 our anger is different than God's anger. Yes. 00:18:20.299 --> 00:18:23.839 But but that sometimes anger is OK. Yeah. Right. 00:18:23.960 --> 00:18:26.319 That when things are really when there's injustice 00:18:26.319 --> 00:18:28.779 and when things are really going wrong and people 00:18:28.779 --> 00:18:32.720 are hurting other people, that anger is OK. Yes. 00:18:32.799 --> 00:18:35.859 Right. What we do with the anger is is is an 00:18:35.859 --> 00:18:37.940 important thing to consider. Right. We shouldn't 00:18:37.940 --> 00:18:40.299 use that anger to then hurt other people. Yes. 00:18:40.839 --> 00:18:44.460 But the emotion itself is it's OK. Yeah. Yeah, 00:18:44.559 --> 00:18:49.720 for sure. Are there examples of people that you 00:18:49.720 --> 00:18:52.400 know who have been really encouraging to you 00:18:52.400 --> 00:18:57.519 in your faith? Well, like I said, there's Rob. 00:18:57.759 --> 00:19:02.220 Yep. There's Libby. Yep. There's Bill. Yep. There's 00:19:02.220 --> 00:19:05.720 Dave. Mm -hmm. There's Wally. And what I like 00:19:05.720 --> 00:19:11.430 with Dave and Wally is that they have a... life 00:19:11.430 --> 00:19:14.650 group. Yep. Every Tuesday, the first thing in 00:19:14.650 --> 00:19:16.009 the morning, about 7 o 'clock in the morning. 00:19:16.109 --> 00:19:19.230 Yep. And I'm an early person. Yep, so that works 00:19:19.230 --> 00:19:23.130 for you. And I love going in. We talk about what 00:19:23.130 --> 00:19:25.329 Rob said and everything, and we answer the questions 00:19:25.329 --> 00:19:27.890 and everything. But it's not just that. It's 00:19:27.890 --> 00:19:32.390 also, we meet people from other worlds. Like, 00:19:32.470 --> 00:19:35.009 I mean, other countries. You know, out of Canada, 00:19:35.109 --> 00:19:37.490 stuff like that, you know. And it's great to 00:19:37.490 --> 00:19:41.259 hear. what their challenges and everything, and 00:19:41.259 --> 00:19:45.200 what we can do to help them. And one of the best 00:19:45.200 --> 00:19:48.420 ways to do it is pray. Of course, yeah. Pray, 00:19:48.440 --> 00:19:50.740 you know, because we can't just go next door 00:19:50.740 --> 00:19:54.519 and say, hey, how are you doing? They're farther 00:19:54.519 --> 00:19:57.099 away and everything. And they have their problems 00:19:57.099 --> 00:20:00.380 and everything. So we like to pray for the problems 00:20:00.380 --> 00:20:03.200 that they have and tell God, please help them, 00:20:03.299 --> 00:20:06.299 you know. They need help and everything. For 00:20:06.299 --> 00:20:12.220 sure, for sure. And that's why these are the 00:20:12.220 --> 00:20:14.339 most important. And the congregation. I can't 00:20:14.339 --> 00:20:17.980 have kids in the congregation. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. 00:20:18.039 --> 00:20:20.140 You're a real people person, right? You like 00:20:20.140 --> 00:20:22.200 to be in the community and getting to know everybody. 00:20:22.460 --> 00:20:25.420 And there's something about just being with other 00:20:25.420 --> 00:20:28.140 people who are following Jesus that I think strengthens 00:20:28.140 --> 00:20:30.640 our faith and helps us grow, right? Yes. Yeah. 00:20:30.779 --> 00:20:33.539 Yeah, for sure. And I would love to participate 00:20:33.539 --> 00:20:36.700 in the stuff where you guys go out. They said 00:20:36.700 --> 00:20:38.319 they're going to have one where they go out and 00:20:38.319 --> 00:20:40.480 meet people on the streets and everything. Sure. 00:20:40.740 --> 00:20:42.579 But unfortunately, I've got a wife who's a diabetic 00:20:42.579 --> 00:20:45.819 and her sugars don't cooperate. Sure. And I don't 00:20:45.819 --> 00:20:48.160 have anybody to take care of her. Sure. So I 00:20:48.160 --> 00:20:50.680 can do these things. Yep. So I want to do more 00:20:50.680 --> 00:20:54.460 for the church. Sure. Yeah. Yeah. So I came in 00:20:54.460 --> 00:20:57.920 one morning early. And Dave picked me up and 00:20:57.920 --> 00:21:00.680 everything, and I came in, and I sat at the table. 00:21:01.099 --> 00:21:03.660 So that was one good thing I did and everything. 00:21:04.000 --> 00:21:06.099 And I want to do more stuff like that. Yeah, 00:21:06.099 --> 00:21:09.299 sure. Yeah, just finding new ways to get involved, 00:21:09.500 --> 00:21:12.579 to serve the community, and to meet new people 00:21:12.579 --> 00:21:16.059 again. Yeah. Yeah, for sure. Yeah, I think that's 00:21:16.059 --> 00:21:18.599 also a really important step in growing our faith, 00:21:18.720 --> 00:21:22.099 right, is getting more involved. And also, I 00:21:22.099 --> 00:21:25.890 told Rob, I would like to... Give out to Holy 00:21:25.890 --> 00:21:28.569 Communion. Sure. Help out. Help out and everything. 00:21:29.369 --> 00:21:31.130 Yeah. Yeah. There's lots of lots of different 00:21:31.130 --> 00:21:33.549 ways to serve. For sure. For sure. Yeah. I used 00:21:33.549 --> 00:21:36.049 to be a singer, but my voice is gone now. Sure. 00:21:36.150 --> 00:21:38.789 I'd be kind of embarrassed to get up and sing 00:21:38.789 --> 00:21:41.549 with Libby's group. Sure. But there's lots of 00:21:41.549 --> 00:21:43.990 other ways to serve. Yeah. Yeah. I would love 00:21:43.990 --> 00:21:45.869 to get up there and do it, but I don't think 00:21:45.869 --> 00:21:49.930 I could. Sure. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. But I think 00:21:49.930 --> 00:21:53.289 this it's really encouraging to hear how you've 00:21:53.289 --> 00:21:56.240 sort of. come back to faith and you've really 00:21:56.240 --> 00:21:59.440 seen it grow, right? You've really sort of seen 00:21:59.440 --> 00:22:03.000 God present in all of the ups and the downs. 00:22:03.019 --> 00:22:06.440 And even when you're struggling, even when you're 00:22:06.440 --> 00:22:09.880 not sure, you know, just keep taking each next 00:22:09.880 --> 00:22:14.339 step, right? And keep... ask and pray and keep 00:22:14.339 --> 00:22:17.140 you know coming back for to learn and to be part 00:22:17.140 --> 00:22:20.579 of community all of that i think is is what grows 00:22:20.579 --> 00:22:23.440 our faith even if it doesn't feel like it right 00:22:23.440 --> 00:22:26.779 sometimes it's it's really small and so we don't 00:22:26.779 --> 00:22:28.779 always see it when it's happening but you can 00:22:28.779 --> 00:22:31.440 look back now and say a year ago i was i was 00:22:31.440 --> 00:22:33.720 different i wasn't as confident in my faith but 00:22:33.720 --> 00:22:37.400 now this is what it feels like right yeah so 00:22:37.400 --> 00:22:39.900 my journey to god is getting closer and closer 00:22:39.900 --> 00:22:46.289 you know and uh When I was a counselor at a camp 00:22:46.289 --> 00:22:49.750 and everything, a Christian camp, it's called 00:22:49.750 --> 00:22:51.410 Camp Cheerio. I don't know if you've heard of 00:22:51.410 --> 00:22:53.789 it. I haven't, no. But I was a counselor and 00:22:53.789 --> 00:22:57.869 everything, and I was teaching the kids and everything 00:22:57.869 --> 00:23:01.130 about God and everything. And one night, the 00:23:01.130 --> 00:23:03.950 Holy Spirit came over our tent, and it was amazing. 00:23:04.750 --> 00:23:08.670 And I never heard of it before, but we all got 00:23:08.670 --> 00:23:13.430 drunk in the Holy Spirit. I challenged any of 00:23:13.430 --> 00:23:15.450 the kids to get up and get up, get up on the 00:23:15.450 --> 00:23:17.990 top of the tent and get the taco bar. And here 00:23:17.990 --> 00:23:20.710 the kids are trying to climb up and they're just 00:23:20.710 --> 00:23:24.569 falling. Sure. Yeah. So a little bit of silly 00:23:24.569 --> 00:23:27.089 maybe. But yeah, also just the sense of being 00:23:27.089 --> 00:23:30.329 full of the Holy Spirit and being able to to 00:23:30.329 --> 00:23:32.809 pray and to encourage one another and to feel 00:23:32.809 --> 00:23:35.250 stronger in your faith. Yeah. And I kind of miss 00:23:35.250 --> 00:23:37.690 that. I really miss that. Going to church and 00:23:37.690 --> 00:23:40.920 talking about God. Sure. Yeah. So now. Sort of 00:23:40.920 --> 00:23:43.359 being reconnected at Trinity, you can get little 00:23:43.359 --> 00:23:46.900 tastes of that. Yeah, for sure. Yeah, well, thank 00:23:46.900 --> 00:23:49.180 you so much, Donald, for sitting down to chat 00:23:49.180 --> 00:23:52.720 and to share a little bit of your story. I think 00:23:52.720 --> 00:23:55.579 that folks will feel really encouraged to know 00:23:55.579 --> 00:24:00.059 that wherever people are at in their faith, that 00:24:00.059 --> 00:24:03.500 God can be there with us, right? And God keeps 00:24:03.500 --> 00:24:08.000 asking us, just keep taking the next step. And 00:24:08.000 --> 00:24:10.519 I think, yeah, your story of community, of people 00:24:10.519 --> 00:24:13.200 showing up and being part of that and people 00:24:13.200 --> 00:24:15.980 who become the answers to your prayers and your 00:24:15.980 --> 00:24:18.079 encouragement to pray for other people. Like, 00:24:18.079 --> 00:24:20.359 I think all of that is a really strong encouragement 00:24:20.359 --> 00:24:22.940 for me and for the whole church to sort of think 00:24:22.940 --> 00:24:26.319 about how do we serve one another well and how 00:24:26.319 --> 00:24:30.400 do we, yeah, just really show our faith and keep 00:24:30.400 --> 00:24:33.390 growing in our faith even when it's hard. Well, 00:24:33.490 --> 00:24:35.670 thank you very much. I'm very glad to do it. 00:24:35.730 --> 00:24:38.630 Yeah. Yeah. And thank you for tuning in to this 00:24:38.630 --> 00:24:41.529 week's episode of Trinity Talks. I pray that 00:24:41.529 --> 00:24:44.390 wherever your faith is at, whether it's just 00:24:44.390 --> 00:24:46.990 at the beginning stages or if it's coming later. 00:24:48.069 --> 00:24:51.390 Yeah. Would you continue to take each next step? 00:24:51.509 --> 00:24:55.230 Would you continue to find ways for God to pour 00:24:55.230 --> 00:24:57.730 into you, for you to connect with God, whether 00:24:57.730 --> 00:25:00.150 that's through prayer, through community, through 00:25:00.150 --> 00:25:04.160 scripture? Yeah. May you. Grow in your faith 00:25:04.160 --> 00:25:07.779 this week, even in the small ways. And we will 00:25:07.779 --> 00:25:08.720 see you again next week.