1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:12,320 Welcome to the God's Goodness podcast, where our mission is to encourage as well as highlight 2 00:00:12,320 --> 00:00:14,560 God's goodness and modern-day miracles. 3 00:00:14,560 --> 00:00:17,520 We are your hosts, Josh and Shelly Hankins. 4 00:00:17,520 --> 00:00:19,760 Today we have with us a very special guest. 5 00:00:19,760 --> 00:00:26,480 The Holy Spirit has led him to us, and you're going to be blown away by what he has to say. 6 00:00:26,480 --> 00:00:31,360 And with that, we welcome Jim Sid to the show, and we're going to ask him to open up with 7 00:00:31,360 --> 00:00:33,840 a little prayer and then we'll get things rolling. 8 00:00:33,840 --> 00:00:38,400 Shelly and Josh, thank you so much for having me and giving me this opportunity. 9 00:00:38,400 --> 00:00:42,720 We will open with Dear Lord, thank you for your opportunity to witness to your powerful 10 00:00:42,720 --> 00:00:44,160 grace and mercy. 11 00:00:44,160 --> 00:00:50,360 You tell us, Dear Lord, we know in Luke the Holy Spirit will give us the words at the 12 00:00:50,360 --> 00:00:52,400 time that we need. 13 00:00:52,400 --> 00:00:58,040 We ask today that this testimony and this conversation land softly on the ears of the 14 00:00:58,040 --> 00:01:05,640 listeners in an effort to provide hope and salvation to those who are seeking it. 15 00:01:05,640 --> 00:01:08,440 We ask this, Dear Lord, in the name of Jesus. 16 00:01:08,440 --> 00:01:09,440 Amen. 17 00:01:09,440 --> 00:01:10,440 Amen. 18 00:01:10,440 --> 00:01:12,240 So where would you like to start, Jim? 19 00:01:12,240 --> 00:01:18,400 Well, I guess I'll start just to get myself a little momentum with where I come from. 20 00:01:18,400 --> 00:01:25,840 So I'm a Western Pennsylvania small steel town valley, born and raised about an hour 21 00:01:25,840 --> 00:01:32,360 north of here, Shenangle Valley, Sharon Farrell, Hermitage area, led a, had a wonderful, wonderful 22 00:01:32,360 --> 00:01:33,680 childhood. 23 00:01:33,680 --> 00:01:36,080 My father worked for Westinghouse. 24 00:01:36,080 --> 00:01:42,480 My mother was a nurse and we lived in one of those communities where it was just one 25 00:01:42,480 --> 00:01:45,800 matchbox house after another, after another, after another. 26 00:01:45,800 --> 00:01:51,960 The neighborhood was filled with children and it was just a wonderful, wonderful childhood 27 00:01:51,960 --> 00:01:52,960 for me. 28 00:01:52,960 --> 00:01:59,240 I have two sisters, Mary Kay and Beth, and we were typical siblings, two sisters against 29 00:01:59,240 --> 00:02:03,320 one brother growing up, but we are so tight and connected right now. 30 00:02:03,320 --> 00:02:04,640 I just love them dearly. 31 00:02:04,640 --> 00:02:13,760 So my childhood was essentially full of love and activity, uneventful with regards to darkness 32 00:02:13,760 --> 00:02:15,560 or damages or anything like that. 33 00:02:15,560 --> 00:02:17,680 I had a very wonderful childhood. 34 00:02:17,680 --> 00:02:25,320 So okay, high school, my issue became socially using drugs and alcohol, which is such a common 35 00:02:25,320 --> 00:02:27,880 story, but it was social use. 36 00:02:27,880 --> 00:02:29,680 I went through high school. 37 00:02:29,680 --> 00:02:34,080 I actually went to a small school in the middle of West Pennsylvania, law came in state to 38 00:02:34,080 --> 00:02:35,320 play football. 39 00:02:35,320 --> 00:02:37,640 I got very discouraged with my studies. 40 00:02:37,640 --> 00:02:40,000 Didn't feel like doing it after a year. 41 00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:43,080 So I enlisted in the United States Navy. 42 00:02:43,080 --> 00:02:47,040 I was a Navy corpsman stationed with the Marines in Camp Lejeune. 43 00:02:47,040 --> 00:02:52,360 So a Navy corpsman is essentially the same as an Army medic, medic stationed with the 44 00:02:52,360 --> 00:02:53,360 Marines. 45 00:02:53,360 --> 00:02:57,640 I did a lot of traveling, you know, Mediterranean cruises, carib cruises. 46 00:02:57,640 --> 00:03:04,240 All the while though, experimenting with drugs and really getting to the point where my drug 47 00:03:04,240 --> 00:03:07,360 use was damaging to my life. 48 00:03:07,360 --> 00:03:11,080 And I would go through periods of times when I had it in check and then go through periods 49 00:03:11,080 --> 00:03:13,920 of times where I was just simply out of control. 50 00:03:13,920 --> 00:03:17,720 But this was a time pre-drug testing in the military. 51 00:03:17,720 --> 00:03:20,720 So I was able to skate through without having to worry. 52 00:03:20,720 --> 00:03:25,640 Matter of fact, the day that I was discharged, I was walking out on the compound and it was 53 00:03:25,640 --> 00:03:31,560 the first muster ever for compound drug testing the day I left. 54 00:03:31,560 --> 00:03:32,560 So lucky. 55 00:03:32,560 --> 00:03:33,560 Or blessed. 56 00:03:33,560 --> 00:03:36,120 Oh, blessed for sure. 57 00:03:36,120 --> 00:03:39,640 And that's going to become evident as I get further along into this story here. 58 00:03:39,640 --> 00:03:44,840 The Lord has been very, very gracious with me in my life. 59 00:03:44,840 --> 00:03:51,720 I have done and experienced so many things that should have brought my life to an early 60 00:03:51,720 --> 00:03:54,000 end and work could have. 61 00:03:54,000 --> 00:03:58,320 At any rate, I've been in business my entire life. 62 00:03:58,320 --> 00:03:59,320 Okay. 63 00:03:59,320 --> 00:04:01,080 So I led this double lifestyle. 64 00:04:01,080 --> 00:04:03,080 I had a dual life. 65 00:04:03,080 --> 00:04:08,120 I went through some surgeries and things in my younger years, like in my early 20s, back 66 00:04:08,120 --> 00:04:14,120 surgery, knee surgery, et cetera, and started taking painkillers to manage the pain. 67 00:04:14,120 --> 00:04:23,120 And it became something that transitioned from pain relief to I kind of like this, right? 68 00:04:23,120 --> 00:04:24,760 I like how this makes me feel. 69 00:04:24,760 --> 00:04:30,560 I like how it kind of relieves some of the pressures that I was feeling in my life. 70 00:04:30,560 --> 00:04:39,840 And over the years, and I mean for a solid 20 years, I was an opiate addict and not 71 00:04:39,840 --> 00:04:41,960 just taking a couple of pills here and there. 72 00:04:41,960 --> 00:04:48,760 I was heavily into the Oxycontin and fentanyl taking doses because of my tolerance at the 73 00:04:48,760 --> 00:04:52,160 time that would kill three, four people. 74 00:04:52,160 --> 00:04:53,480 That's a long time too. 75 00:04:53,480 --> 00:04:54,840 It's a long time. 76 00:04:54,840 --> 00:05:03,440 I functioned in business for a period of time and it just got to the point where my decision-making 77 00:05:03,440 --> 00:05:05,760 became very skewed. 78 00:05:05,760 --> 00:05:07,920 My priorities changed. 79 00:05:07,920 --> 00:05:14,760 I also have to tell you that not only was I not walking with God, but I denied him. 80 00:05:14,760 --> 00:05:19,520 He continued to embrace me throughout this and my denial. 81 00:05:19,520 --> 00:05:26,920 At some point in time in the 2000s, that was it, I got into criminality. 82 00:05:26,920 --> 00:05:31,040 And I began trafficking in narcotics. 83 00:05:31,040 --> 00:05:33,240 I left my job. 84 00:05:33,240 --> 00:05:38,360 I took a little consulting job here and there so that I can be really where I wanted to 85 00:05:38,360 --> 00:05:40,840 be, which was in the darkness. 86 00:05:40,840 --> 00:05:41,960 That's where I wanted to be. 87 00:05:41,960 --> 00:05:44,280 I thought that's where you thrive. 88 00:05:44,280 --> 00:05:45,480 Like dirt. 89 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:46,920 Like dirt. 90 00:05:46,920 --> 00:05:48,640 And I was feeling a lot of shame. 91 00:05:48,640 --> 00:05:50,360 I was experiencing a lot of guilt. 92 00:05:50,360 --> 00:05:56,720 I had a son and I was feeling separation, but it didn't seem to stop me. 93 00:05:56,720 --> 00:06:02,520 Matter of fact, not only did it not seem to stop me, it did not stop me from just discontinued 94 00:06:02,520 --> 00:06:03,520 behavior. 95 00:06:03,520 --> 00:06:06,040 So I was set up. 96 00:06:06,040 --> 00:06:08,360 I'll use those words. 97 00:06:08,360 --> 00:06:14,320 Thankfully, thankfully now I say this by a confidential informant and the Pennsylvania 98 00:06:14,320 --> 00:06:19,720 State Police Drug Task Force arrested me trafficking in cocaine. 99 00:06:19,720 --> 00:06:26,040 And because there were some jurisdictional issues with the arrest, I was thinking I'm 100 00:06:26,040 --> 00:06:27,040 getting off. 101 00:06:27,040 --> 00:06:28,040 Right? 102 00:06:28,040 --> 00:06:29,040 That's how I lived my life. 103 00:06:29,040 --> 00:06:30,040 I'll get away with this. 104 00:06:30,040 --> 00:06:31,040 I'll get away with that. 105 00:06:31,040 --> 00:06:32,400 I'll get away with this. 106 00:06:32,400 --> 00:06:34,800 But it became a federal case. 107 00:06:34,800 --> 00:06:36,960 So they turned it over to the feds. 108 00:06:36,960 --> 00:06:40,960 And at the time they were saying, listen, all you have to do is give us a name, give us 109 00:06:40,960 --> 00:06:47,760 an activity, give us this, give us that, someone we can go after with your testimony behind 110 00:06:47,760 --> 00:06:49,400 it. 111 00:06:49,400 --> 00:06:51,640 And I did not do that. 112 00:06:51,640 --> 00:06:53,080 I just refused to do that. 113 00:06:53,080 --> 00:06:55,040 I did offer, honestly. 114 00:06:55,040 --> 00:07:02,160 And this is just an example of how really fragmented this war on drugs has been for so many years. 115 00:07:02,160 --> 00:07:07,960 I said, listen, I drove back and forth to Nogales, Mexico and brought drugs across the 116 00:07:07,960 --> 00:07:08,960 border. 117 00:07:08,960 --> 00:07:10,680 I know the network. 118 00:07:10,680 --> 00:07:14,280 I can teach you and tell you how that is. 119 00:07:14,280 --> 00:07:17,120 And they said, no, that's not in our jurisdiction. 120 00:07:17,120 --> 00:07:24,400 So I went to trial and I wound up with a 130 months federal prison sentence. 121 00:07:24,400 --> 00:07:27,800 So that's 10 years, 10 months. 122 00:07:27,800 --> 00:07:31,960 Here's where my God story takes off. 123 00:07:31,960 --> 00:07:34,680 It's always been there, but here's where it takes off. 124 00:07:34,680 --> 00:07:37,320 I was in Allegheny County jail. 125 00:07:37,320 --> 00:07:42,800 They took me out of the federal courtroom in handcuffs and a suit and I was in the holding 126 00:07:42,800 --> 00:07:44,920 cell in Allegheny County jail. 127 00:07:44,920 --> 00:07:46,400 It was surreal. 128 00:07:46,400 --> 00:07:52,600 They took me upstairs to an observation pod to make sure that there were no suicidal tendencies 129 00:07:52,600 --> 00:07:54,680 or anything like that. 130 00:07:54,680 --> 00:08:00,160 When I went through intake and they asked me about my drug use, was there any drug use? 131 00:08:00,160 --> 00:08:03,920 Is there anything we should be concerned about with regards to withdrawal, et cetera, et 132 00:08:03,920 --> 00:08:04,920 cetera? 133 00:08:04,920 --> 00:08:08,440 I said, no, don't worry about me. 134 00:08:08,440 --> 00:08:10,720 I'm going to be fine. 135 00:08:10,720 --> 00:08:16,520 So for those of us who have been through withdrawal before from an opiate, especially the massive 136 00:08:16,520 --> 00:08:23,560 amounts that I was taking, it is you would rather be, I would have rather been dead than 137 00:08:23,560 --> 00:08:24,680 to go through it. 138 00:08:24,680 --> 00:08:33,000 So I was sitting on the floor in severe withdrawal in a jail cell in Allegheny County, just not 139 00:08:33,000 --> 00:08:34,920 knowing what was going to happen. 140 00:08:34,920 --> 00:08:37,240 My head felt like it was going to split open. 141 00:08:37,240 --> 00:08:40,680 I was eternally sick to my stomach. 142 00:08:40,680 --> 00:08:45,400 I couldn't get, first of all, the bed's only four feet away from the toilet anyways in 143 00:08:45,400 --> 00:08:47,560 these cells, but I couldn't get any more two feet away. 144 00:08:47,560 --> 00:08:49,240 I stayed on the floor. 145 00:08:49,240 --> 00:08:50,800 It was that bad. 146 00:08:50,800 --> 00:08:57,840 And one day I was in the cell by myself and all of a sudden they assigned me a cellmate. 147 00:08:57,840 --> 00:09:03,920 So this fella came walking in and he took one look at me and he says, brother, you're 148 00:09:03,920 --> 00:09:04,920 in a bad way. 149 00:09:04,920 --> 00:09:05,920 So I'm here. 150 00:09:05,920 --> 00:09:06,920 I'm here for you. 151 00:09:06,920 --> 00:09:11,480 You want to talk about, I've been there, right? 152 00:09:11,480 --> 00:09:15,040 And at the time, to be honest with you, I was just wishing he would disappear. 153 00:09:15,040 --> 00:09:18,400 I mean, I didn't want, I didn't even want to speak a word. 154 00:09:18,400 --> 00:09:19,680 I didn't want to hear anything. 155 00:09:19,680 --> 00:09:21,080 I didn't want to speak anything. 156 00:09:21,080 --> 00:09:24,000 Now how long was it until he came in? 157 00:09:24,000 --> 00:09:27,320 I was in there by myself for two days. 158 00:09:27,320 --> 00:09:32,440 On the third day, Jasper was his name and I had to sell. 159 00:09:32,440 --> 00:09:36,560 And it was literally a matter of minutes before he sat down and pulled out the little Gideon's 160 00:09:36,560 --> 00:09:43,240 Bible that they issued to us when we were assigned to sell and just started reading, 161 00:09:43,240 --> 00:09:44,920 reading scripture. 162 00:09:44,920 --> 00:09:53,280 And once again, I was really in no condition to interact with anyone at this time, but 163 00:09:53,280 --> 00:10:01,080 Jasper continued to read scripture and then he began to interpret scripture as it pertained 164 00:10:01,080 --> 00:10:05,440 to his life, which mimics mine very closely. 165 00:10:05,440 --> 00:10:10,240 And at some point in time, I finally got up in my bunk and I would look over and he would 166 00:10:10,240 --> 00:10:16,880 be at the little metal table we have in the jail cell reading and lifting his head and 167 00:10:16,880 --> 00:10:19,600 then reading and lifting his head. 168 00:10:19,600 --> 00:10:25,920 And I never knew how to get into a relationship with God through scripture or any other means, 169 00:10:25,920 --> 00:10:29,520 but he was reading and meditating on the word. 170 00:10:29,520 --> 00:10:34,960 And I started feeling like I needed to, what does he have? 171 00:10:34,960 --> 00:10:36,960 Where is this coming from? 172 00:10:36,960 --> 00:10:38,880 He's here with me in a prison cell. 173 00:10:38,880 --> 00:10:41,200 He came from the Badlands in Philadelphia. 174 00:10:41,200 --> 00:10:45,280 For anyone who knows what that is, it's North Philly and it's a nasty, rough place. 175 00:10:45,280 --> 00:10:50,160 He had a father who was serving life term for homicidal, two brothers who were killed. 176 00:10:50,160 --> 00:10:53,920 So he lived that life. 177 00:10:53,920 --> 00:10:55,720 And I started talking to him. 178 00:10:55,720 --> 00:10:58,880 I started asking him, tell me what you're doing. 179 00:10:58,880 --> 00:10:59,880 Tell me what you're doing. 180 00:10:59,880 --> 00:11:00,880 I was born Catholic. 181 00:11:00,880 --> 00:11:04,040 I believed in God, but I'd never had a relationship. 182 00:11:04,040 --> 00:11:05,040 I never knew that. 183 00:11:05,040 --> 00:11:06,040 That's key. 184 00:11:06,040 --> 00:11:07,040 It's key. 185 00:11:07,040 --> 00:11:09,640 And I was not walking with the Lord, obviously. 186 00:11:09,640 --> 00:11:11,880 You heard my beginning of the story. 187 00:11:11,880 --> 00:11:14,040 So we begin reading scripture together. 188 00:11:14,040 --> 00:11:21,200 And listen, I start feeling better, just feeling of calm and peace came over me. 189 00:11:21,200 --> 00:11:23,480 And we continued to talk. 190 00:11:23,480 --> 00:11:28,320 And you know, after another couple of days, I said, Jasper, I want this. 191 00:11:28,320 --> 00:11:30,280 Like I want, I want what you have. 192 00:11:30,280 --> 00:11:33,120 I want this relationship. 193 00:11:33,120 --> 00:11:40,000 And we prayed together and I accepted the Lord at that moment as my savior. 194 00:11:40,000 --> 00:11:49,040 And the beauty of this is I was in a place of turmoil, a very dark place in this jail 195 00:11:49,040 --> 00:11:50,640 cell. 196 00:11:50,640 --> 00:11:56,400 And I felt a peace that I had never felt before. 197 00:11:56,400 --> 00:11:58,240 It was overwhelming. 198 00:11:58,240 --> 00:12:06,480 And I began to pray in the way that Jasper prayed, how he taught me to build relationship 199 00:12:06,480 --> 00:12:08,680 with God. 200 00:12:08,680 --> 00:12:10,720 And I prayed for restoration. 201 00:12:10,720 --> 00:12:12,600 I prayed for redemption. 202 00:12:12,600 --> 00:12:18,600 I prayed for reconnection to all the people who I've damaged in their lives with my actions. 203 00:12:18,600 --> 00:12:20,520 I prayed for new connection. 204 00:12:20,520 --> 00:12:25,080 And I began to pray for others, which was very strange to me. 205 00:12:25,080 --> 00:12:30,280 You know, it just was something new, but it was something that I knew I'm supposed to 206 00:12:30,280 --> 00:12:31,760 do. 207 00:12:31,760 --> 00:12:38,360 And slowly in this place, now I was transferred at some point after my sentencing hearing to 208 00:12:38,360 --> 00:12:42,440 a federal institution over in Ohio Elkton. 209 00:12:42,440 --> 00:12:44,920 And it was a higher security level. 210 00:12:44,920 --> 00:12:48,320 I had a long time, so they can't put you at a lower security level. 211 00:12:48,320 --> 00:12:55,400 I continued to experience this peace and this restoration and the redemption was coming. 212 00:12:55,400 --> 00:13:05,720 And I began to develop a new connection with my son, who by the way, my son, Nate, is 30 213 00:13:05,720 --> 00:13:06,720 years old. 214 00:13:06,720 --> 00:13:10,040 And we adopted him and brought him home when he was one day old. 215 00:13:10,040 --> 00:13:12,360 And we had always been so close. 216 00:13:12,360 --> 00:13:16,080 And I was feeling so much guilt over what I had done. 217 00:13:16,080 --> 00:13:17,080 And we reconnected. 218 00:13:17,080 --> 00:13:21,760 And he was so merciful to me, this little guy. 219 00:13:21,760 --> 00:13:25,320 But I left him at his very formidable time. 220 00:13:25,320 --> 00:13:27,320 He was 15 years old. 221 00:13:27,320 --> 00:13:29,440 You need a father in your life. 222 00:13:29,440 --> 00:13:32,360 And I was gone until he was 23 almost. 223 00:13:32,360 --> 00:13:36,320 But we stayed close and we visited and we did all these things. 224 00:13:36,320 --> 00:13:42,200 Then I relate my time in prison to a, I often say if I ever wrote a book, the title would 225 00:13:42,200 --> 00:13:46,440 be razor wire and rainbows, because that's what it was. 226 00:13:46,440 --> 00:13:48,200 It was beauty. 227 00:13:48,200 --> 00:13:51,000 It was peace in my relationship with the Lord. 228 00:13:51,000 --> 00:13:55,560 It's a lot of really difficult things taking place around me. 229 00:13:55,560 --> 00:13:57,920 It is what you think it is. 230 00:13:57,920 --> 00:13:59,120 Okay. 231 00:13:59,120 --> 00:14:02,880 But you don't have to live there while you're there. 232 00:14:02,880 --> 00:14:10,200 And I became connected to so many good men who were walking with Christ like I was. 233 00:14:10,200 --> 00:14:17,760 And it became a loving, spiritually fulfilled place to be. 234 00:14:17,760 --> 00:14:22,800 So fast forward to 26. 235 00:14:22,800 --> 00:14:25,640 I went in in 28 in 2008. 236 00:14:25,640 --> 00:14:26,960 I came home in 2016. 237 00:14:26,960 --> 00:14:31,640 The end of the year was the end of my sentence. 238 00:14:31,640 --> 00:14:34,120 And my prayer began to change. 239 00:14:34,120 --> 00:14:38,320 I said, I said, dear Lord, I only pray for one thing. 240 00:14:38,320 --> 00:14:42,480 I pray that your will be done in my life. 241 00:14:42,480 --> 00:14:44,280 That's what I want now. 242 00:14:44,280 --> 00:14:46,000 Use me. 243 00:14:46,000 --> 00:14:54,240 And I can only imagine, you know, that it was then that he sat back and said, now I'm 244 00:14:54,240 --> 00:14:58,320 going to show you what I can do. 245 00:14:58,320 --> 00:15:09,200 And slowly and deliberately, I felt this tapestry was being woven in my life from so many different 246 00:15:09,200 --> 00:15:16,320 places, prayers, things were, he was answering prayers that I wasn't praying. 247 00:15:16,320 --> 00:15:17,800 Does that make sense? 248 00:15:17,800 --> 00:15:18,800 Yes. 249 00:15:18,800 --> 00:15:19,800 Okay. 250 00:15:19,800 --> 00:15:20,800 100%. 251 00:15:20,800 --> 00:15:21,800 Yeah. 252 00:15:21,800 --> 00:15:24,320 So the Lord was answering prayers that I never prayed. 253 00:15:24,320 --> 00:15:31,080 When I came home, I went to work for an reentry initiative down on the South side in Pittsburgh 254 00:15:31,080 --> 00:15:33,320 in a warehouse. 255 00:15:33,320 --> 00:15:40,080 And we helped men and women coming home from incarceration, find employment, get some stability, 256 00:15:40,080 --> 00:15:43,240 connect with some folks who can really help them, stuff like that. 257 00:15:43,240 --> 00:15:48,520 So here's a prayer that I never prayed that God answered for me. 258 00:15:48,520 --> 00:15:57,040 I was in the warehouse one day and this woman came in with two council people from Clareton, 259 00:15:57,040 --> 00:15:58,040 Pennsylvania. 260 00:15:58,040 --> 00:16:03,440 And the fellow I was working with, Dan, came over and introduced her to me, said, hey, 261 00:16:03,440 --> 00:16:04,800 this is Joyce. 262 00:16:04,800 --> 00:16:10,440 She is trying to put something together to help people. 263 00:16:10,440 --> 00:16:14,840 Some type of a halfway house, a reentry home, a three-quarter home, whatever the case may 264 00:16:14,840 --> 00:16:15,840 be. 265 00:16:15,840 --> 00:16:20,080 And I was in the council people who are in support of that and the community of Clareton. 266 00:16:20,080 --> 00:16:24,320 So I said, hey, I want to be involved. 267 00:16:24,320 --> 00:16:25,320 Let me help with this. 268 00:16:25,320 --> 00:16:31,600 I could recall some of my business acumen and maybe make some things happen for her. 269 00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:34,120 So we connected. 270 00:16:34,120 --> 00:16:35,120 We had a few meetings. 271 00:16:35,120 --> 00:16:37,120 We would meet and have coffee. 272 00:16:37,120 --> 00:16:45,000 Joyce is a retired state parole agent, 25 and a half years, 22 of which were spent in 273 00:16:45,000 --> 00:16:46,640 Clareton. 274 00:16:46,640 --> 00:16:51,160 And Joyce would become my wife. 275 00:16:51,160 --> 00:16:54,720 So God's sense of humor, right? 276 00:16:54,720 --> 00:16:57,520 The ex-con and retired state parole agent. 277 00:16:57,520 --> 00:17:01,120 I mean, that's how he works. 278 00:17:01,120 --> 00:17:08,200 He put us together and we began this journey and in overtime fell in love. 279 00:17:08,200 --> 00:17:13,040 But all the while we began working on what eventually become the cornerstone residence 280 00:17:13,040 --> 00:17:19,600 for veterans in Clareton, Pennsylvania, which we spent five years in court trying to get 281 00:17:19,600 --> 00:17:21,560 an occupancy permit. 282 00:17:21,560 --> 00:17:24,200 And all the way to the state supreme court. 283 00:17:24,200 --> 00:17:30,040 Here's God's unanswered prayer that turns out to be perfect timing. 284 00:17:30,040 --> 00:17:35,240 We prayed all the way through that, can we please have resolution for this? 285 00:17:35,240 --> 00:17:40,360 And God said, yeah, but not till I'm ready. 286 00:17:40,360 --> 00:17:44,160 So for five years we fought and in the meantime, we had a fire that burnt right up through 287 00:17:44,160 --> 00:17:46,760 the middle of it just after we had renovated it. 288 00:17:46,760 --> 00:17:49,760 So we had to start all over again and we did this on our own dime. 289 00:17:49,760 --> 00:17:55,240 It was just really a God mission that we knew we were going to be provided for. 290 00:17:55,240 --> 00:18:00,200 Finally, the state supreme court just less than a year ago ruled in our favor and that 291 00:18:00,200 --> 00:18:01,440 was the end of it. 292 00:18:01,440 --> 00:18:05,000 And we also have the had the place completely renovated. 293 00:18:05,000 --> 00:18:09,600 And I'm happy to say that we have veterans in there now who we are helping and I'll be 294 00:18:09,600 --> 00:18:13,560 going to visit them this afternoon when I leave here. 295 00:18:13,560 --> 00:18:16,280 Here's a retired state parole agent Joyce. 296 00:18:16,280 --> 00:18:21,320 Now, I know folks who have come from service like that. 297 00:18:21,320 --> 00:18:27,680 And unfortunately dealing with that damage in the population like that, they're jaded 298 00:18:27,680 --> 00:18:29,440 or it's very, they're very tainted. 299 00:18:29,440 --> 00:18:31,080 They just want nothing to do with it. 300 00:18:31,080 --> 00:18:32,080 She came home. 301 00:18:32,080 --> 00:18:37,780 She came out of that wanting to, I have more to do. 302 00:18:37,780 --> 00:18:42,520 So we give all the glory to God for where we are right now with regards to cornerstone 303 00:18:42,520 --> 00:18:43,520 residents. 304 00:18:43,520 --> 00:18:49,200 So when we were going through this, I thought, well, I should probably pray for some provision 305 00:18:49,200 --> 00:18:52,440 here because this is kind of taxing. 306 00:18:52,440 --> 00:18:55,280 And so my prayer changed. 307 00:18:55,280 --> 00:18:58,240 I said, dear Lord, you have us on a mission. 308 00:18:58,240 --> 00:19:02,720 We need provision so that we can sustain this. 309 00:19:02,720 --> 00:19:07,120 And he told me, you got to get back in a business. 310 00:19:07,120 --> 00:19:09,280 This is your responsibility. 311 00:19:09,280 --> 00:19:12,080 You are responsible for this. 312 00:19:12,080 --> 00:19:15,000 And so at 60, I went back into business. 313 00:19:15,000 --> 00:19:22,720 So we have a local roofing company tri-link and he has been so merciful and so provisional 314 00:19:22,720 --> 00:19:24,120 in our lives. 315 00:19:24,120 --> 00:19:28,720 We want for nothing because of the Lord's intervention. 316 00:19:28,720 --> 00:19:31,440 We don't have a lot, but we want for nothing. 317 00:19:31,440 --> 00:19:32,440 And that's beautiful. 318 00:19:32,440 --> 00:19:37,520 So we're very encouraged with where things are going with cornerstone. 319 00:19:37,520 --> 00:19:46,360 Another episode in my life that could only be explained by God or by God's intervention 320 00:19:46,360 --> 00:19:52,960 is I told you I adopted Nate and brought him home when he was a day old. 321 00:19:52,960 --> 00:19:58,240 So when I came home from my incarceration, I said, hey, Nate came down and lived with 322 00:19:58,240 --> 00:19:59,240 us. 323 00:19:59,240 --> 00:20:04,320 I said, let's do this 23 and me. 324 00:20:04,320 --> 00:20:08,000 Let's find out what your lineage is. 325 00:20:08,000 --> 00:20:09,120 So we did it. 326 00:20:09,120 --> 00:20:12,640 And ironically enough, his mimics mine very closely. 327 00:20:12,640 --> 00:20:15,400 So fast forward a couple years down the road, Joyce calls me. 328 00:20:15,400 --> 00:20:17,360 She was visiting her sister up in Canada. 329 00:20:17,360 --> 00:20:22,280 And she told me a couple stories about people who connected the family and relatives through 330 00:20:22,280 --> 00:20:24,120 23 and me. 331 00:20:24,120 --> 00:20:28,800 And I said, well, that's crazy because I got Lebanese on one side of my family. 332 00:20:28,800 --> 00:20:30,560 We have Italian and Irish on the other side. 333 00:20:30,560 --> 00:20:32,480 We have huge. 334 00:20:32,480 --> 00:20:35,520 But I don't have any relatives on this thing. 335 00:20:35,520 --> 00:20:38,280 So she walked me through how to make it public. 336 00:20:38,280 --> 00:20:39,280 So I did. 337 00:20:39,280 --> 00:20:40,560 I hit the button. 338 00:20:40,560 --> 00:20:44,280 The next morning when I got up and looked at it, I had 1900-some relatives across the 339 00:20:44,280 --> 00:20:45,280 country. 340 00:20:45,280 --> 00:20:47,800 First, second, third cousins. 341 00:20:47,800 --> 00:20:54,680 At the top of the list, I have a son, biological son, who I never knew about. 342 00:20:54,680 --> 00:21:00,040 I dated a girl when I first came over from the Navy, she got pregnant and she never 343 00:21:00,040 --> 00:21:02,240 told anyone. 344 00:21:02,240 --> 00:21:07,040 She went and gave birth and put him up for adoption. 345 00:21:07,040 --> 00:21:11,480 So he was adopted by a family in Cleveland. 346 00:21:11,480 --> 00:21:15,440 And we almost immediately began to communicate. 347 00:21:15,440 --> 00:21:19,160 His message was, I'm looking for my biological parents. 348 00:21:19,160 --> 00:21:21,520 So we connected. 349 00:21:21,520 --> 00:21:26,560 We met four years now, downtown Pittsburgh. 350 00:21:26,560 --> 00:21:27,760 He came in town. 351 00:21:27,760 --> 00:21:31,000 I met his parents, wonderful people. 352 00:21:31,000 --> 00:21:33,840 His name is Nate. 353 00:21:33,840 --> 00:21:42,800 Both parents, myself and my first wife and his parents, named our children Nathan because 354 00:21:42,800 --> 00:21:46,640 it means gift from God. 355 00:21:46,640 --> 00:21:51,320 So I got to tell you, I have my two Nates. 356 00:21:51,320 --> 00:21:53,280 So we call them Nate PA and Nate Ohio. 357 00:21:53,280 --> 00:21:56,840 So Nate PA just got married. 358 00:21:56,840 --> 00:22:00,160 Nate Ohio is getting married in May. 359 00:22:00,160 --> 00:22:03,920 They are best men at each other's wedding. 360 00:22:03,920 --> 00:22:04,920 Far out. 361 00:22:04,920 --> 00:22:05,920 Awesome. 362 00:22:05,920 --> 00:22:07,640 So come on now. 363 00:22:07,640 --> 00:22:09,480 Everybody just loves on everybody. 364 00:22:09,480 --> 00:22:15,160 And my stepdaughter, Megan, we had a little conversation about back and forth. 365 00:22:15,160 --> 00:22:16,880 I adore her. 366 00:22:16,880 --> 00:22:22,320 And then Nate PA cascaded his wife and Nate Ohio, Lisa, his future wife. 367 00:22:22,320 --> 00:22:23,320 I just adore her. 368 00:22:23,320 --> 00:22:25,320 So we play golf together. 369 00:22:25,320 --> 00:22:26,440 We go out together. 370 00:22:26,440 --> 00:22:27,720 We eat dinner. 371 00:22:27,720 --> 00:22:32,000 We just have, it's just a wonderful, wonderful event in my life. 372 00:22:32,000 --> 00:22:36,280 So you know, for a second, I thought you were going to say that the biological kid was the 373 00:22:36,280 --> 00:22:38,480 one you adopted and had no idea. 374 00:22:38,480 --> 00:22:42,160 That would really be the only other twist that you could add to this story. 375 00:22:42,160 --> 00:22:44,920 That's for sure where he's going with that. 376 00:22:44,920 --> 00:22:46,520 So that's my story. 377 00:22:46,520 --> 00:22:50,640 All the way through my life, God has been such an all the way through from the, from 378 00:22:50,640 --> 00:22:52,360 the very beginning. 379 00:22:52,360 --> 00:22:58,080 He's been instrumental in the fact that when I was turning from him, he was chasing me 380 00:22:58,080 --> 00:22:59,080 down. 381 00:22:59,080 --> 00:23:02,600 And when I was in that prison cell, he attacked me. 382 00:23:02,600 --> 00:23:04,800 It's like you're not going anywhere. 383 00:23:04,800 --> 00:23:06,720 I got you down. 384 00:23:06,720 --> 00:23:07,720 That's it. 385 00:23:07,720 --> 00:23:08,720 I've had enough. 386 00:23:08,720 --> 00:23:09,720 I'm putting you here. 387 00:23:09,720 --> 00:23:10,720 See your run now. 388 00:23:10,720 --> 00:23:16,240 Pay attention, you know, and he said to me, he said, look, you know, you're a bullheaded, 389 00:23:16,240 --> 00:23:18,160 you're stubborn, you're thick-skulled. 390 00:23:18,160 --> 00:23:19,720 You don't recognize these blessings. 391 00:23:19,720 --> 00:23:21,000 I keep putting in your life. 392 00:23:21,000 --> 00:23:22,920 So now you're going to trip over them. 393 00:23:22,920 --> 00:23:26,120 And that's what he, and he put them right at my feet. 394 00:23:26,120 --> 00:23:31,600 And you know, my connection now with men of God in my life, I will give locking arms, 395 00:23:31,600 --> 00:23:35,600 men a plug, Leo Wisniewski, very instrumental in my life. 396 00:23:35,600 --> 00:23:41,320 It's just a group of Christian men who gather and worship and glorify God. 397 00:23:41,320 --> 00:23:43,720 That's about all we do. 398 00:23:43,720 --> 00:23:44,720 Is there something wrong with that? 399 00:23:44,720 --> 00:23:46,200 No, there's nothing wrong with that. 400 00:23:46,200 --> 00:23:47,200 We live for it. 401 00:23:47,200 --> 00:23:48,200 So there you have it. 402 00:23:48,200 --> 00:23:53,800 You know, going back to when you said you were in a dark place and you had bandaged your 403 00:23:53,800 --> 00:23:58,600 son essentially to be in this dark place because you thrived in the darkness, you know, the 404 00:23:58,600 --> 00:24:00,320 mushroom treatment. 405 00:24:00,320 --> 00:24:05,000 And you said you really, you didn't want to do that, but at the same time, the addiction 406 00:24:05,000 --> 00:24:06,000 was so prevalent. 407 00:24:06,000 --> 00:24:09,520 And I think that's important to note because I've heard so many people that don't know 408 00:24:09,520 --> 00:24:13,160 the grip of addiction say things like, well, you've got a kid. 409 00:24:13,160 --> 00:24:15,000 Why can't you just do this for your kid? 410 00:24:15,000 --> 00:24:16,000 Why don't you know better? 411 00:24:16,000 --> 00:24:18,800 You know, you've got somebody who's been Narcan in front of their kid three times, right? 412 00:24:18,800 --> 00:24:22,920 And so one of these times it's not going to work, you know, and that's not motivation 413 00:24:22,920 --> 00:24:25,600 enough to stop the addiction. 414 00:24:25,600 --> 00:24:29,760 And I don't think people understand just the grip that addiction has. 415 00:24:29,760 --> 00:24:34,720 And the last guest that we had, we talked about addiction and recovery and how difficult 416 00:24:34,720 --> 00:24:39,680 it is to find recovery from addiction without Jesus. 417 00:24:39,680 --> 00:24:46,560 To me, it's impossible, not just difficult because I didn't feel like I abandoned my 418 00:24:46,560 --> 00:24:50,380 son, but I did, but I didn't feel like it. 419 00:24:50,380 --> 00:24:53,200 So as addicts, we justify everything that we do. 420 00:24:53,200 --> 00:24:54,400 We justify our behavior. 421 00:24:54,400 --> 00:24:55,640 We justify our druggies. 422 00:24:55,640 --> 00:24:57,040 We justify our criminality. 423 00:24:57,040 --> 00:24:58,400 We justify everything. 424 00:24:58,400 --> 00:25:00,840 We justify pain towards others. 425 00:25:00,840 --> 00:25:03,640 There's no accountability when you're active in addiction. 426 00:25:03,640 --> 00:25:04,640 There's absolutely none. 427 00:25:04,640 --> 00:25:05,640 Yeah. 428 00:25:05,640 --> 00:25:07,520 Because then you have to admit that you have a problem. 429 00:25:07,520 --> 00:25:08,520 Of course you do. 430 00:25:08,520 --> 00:25:15,440 And I've seen guys admit that they have a problem over and over and over again. 431 00:25:15,440 --> 00:25:16,720 It's that powerful. 432 00:25:16,720 --> 00:25:18,800 So they admit, I have a problem. 433 00:25:18,800 --> 00:25:19,800 Let's get you to treatment. 434 00:25:19,800 --> 00:25:23,720 Let's take care of this and see if we can help you restore yourself and get back into 435 00:25:23,720 --> 00:25:25,280 some pro-social living. 436 00:25:25,280 --> 00:25:30,720 And two months later, I get a phone call from the same guy. 437 00:25:30,720 --> 00:25:31,720 I have a problem. 438 00:25:31,720 --> 00:25:34,240 Yes, you do. 439 00:25:34,240 --> 00:25:35,760 Let's try to get you into it. 440 00:25:35,760 --> 00:25:36,760 It's that. 441 00:25:36,760 --> 00:25:39,360 I used to think that I could do it myself. 442 00:25:39,360 --> 00:25:45,360 I would go and rent a hotel room for four or five days in the hopes that I could detox 443 00:25:45,360 --> 00:25:50,640 myself, white knuckle detox, and it never worked. 444 00:25:50,640 --> 00:25:52,640 Third day in, I'm on the phone. 445 00:25:52,640 --> 00:25:54,840 I got to get something for this illness. 446 00:25:54,840 --> 00:25:57,120 Yeah, addiction is a powerful, powerful thing. 447 00:25:57,120 --> 00:25:58,200 It destroys families. 448 00:25:58,200 --> 00:25:59,720 It destroys lives. 449 00:25:59,720 --> 00:26:01,800 Oh, thank you so much for sharing. 450 00:26:01,800 --> 00:26:06,000 I thank you for the courage it takes to share that story because I know that the Emmy likes 451 00:26:06,000 --> 00:26:11,200 to use shame and guilt and fear to keep us from telling the things that need said. 452 00:26:11,200 --> 00:26:15,200 And I know that when our sin is brought into the light, that the enemy has no place to 453 00:26:15,200 --> 00:26:17,360 hide because he loves his shadows. 454 00:26:17,360 --> 00:26:19,280 He loves the dark places. 455 00:26:19,280 --> 00:26:24,960 And I appreciate that you were willing to say this on a podcast where potentially many 456 00:26:24,960 --> 00:26:28,760 people can hear this and know about resources. 457 00:26:28,760 --> 00:26:34,160 And I hope that they feel uplifted that they know that they're not alone, right? 458 00:26:34,160 --> 00:26:39,680 Or if they have a family member, they have a better idea of how to approach this situation 459 00:26:39,680 --> 00:26:44,520 for that family member because, you know, I'm an EMT and I work with all of addiction. 460 00:26:44,520 --> 00:26:46,640 And it is an ugly thing. 461 00:26:46,640 --> 00:26:50,760 And you would be surprised how many people can keep it a secret from their family. 462 00:26:50,760 --> 00:26:51,880 Well, you might not be so. 463 00:26:51,880 --> 00:26:52,880 I really wouldn't. 464 00:26:52,880 --> 00:26:57,880 But I, but you and the listeners might be surprised to know how easy they can keep some 465 00:26:57,880 --> 00:26:59,880 of the stuff hidden from their family. 466 00:26:59,880 --> 00:27:00,880 Yes. 467 00:27:00,880 --> 00:27:01,880 Yes. 468 00:27:01,880 --> 00:27:02,880 It lurks in dark corners. 469 00:27:02,880 --> 00:27:10,440 The funny thing that you mentioned that, Josh, is I thought I was fooling everybody, but 470 00:27:10,440 --> 00:27:14,440 the only one I was fooling was myself. 471 00:27:14,440 --> 00:27:19,000 Because once you get to a certain point, once I got to a certain point with my addiction 472 00:27:19,000 --> 00:27:24,680 and with my behavior, it was evident to all those around me. 473 00:27:24,680 --> 00:27:27,000 I just lived in denial. 474 00:27:27,000 --> 00:27:29,320 So and that's a denial. 475 00:27:29,320 --> 00:27:35,160 It leads to isolation, which leads to really that's where the damage starts is when you're 476 00:27:35,160 --> 00:27:36,160 isolating. 477 00:27:36,160 --> 00:27:41,640 And did you serve the entirety of your sentence or did you have my original sentence was 130 478 00:27:41,640 --> 00:27:42,640 months. 479 00:27:42,640 --> 00:27:47,440 The mandatory minimum in my category with the federal system is 120 months, which is 480 00:27:47,440 --> 00:27:48,440 10 years. 481 00:27:48,440 --> 00:27:53,960 At one point, the Congress enacted something that says you can't sentence over mandatory 482 00:27:53,960 --> 00:27:55,960 minimums for certain offenses. 483 00:27:55,960 --> 00:27:56,960 And mine was one. 484 00:27:56,960 --> 00:28:01,200 They dropped it down all the way down to 120 months. 485 00:28:01,200 --> 00:28:11,160 So of that 120 months, I did an intensive community drug treatment for a year. 486 00:28:11,160 --> 00:28:15,720 And I actually served as a mentor to the community while I did that time there. 487 00:28:15,720 --> 00:28:19,160 And I received a year off my sentence. 488 00:28:19,160 --> 00:28:25,200 So essentially what was a 10 year, 10 month sentence reduced to 120 months. 489 00:28:25,200 --> 00:28:30,320 I got down to eight and a half years with good time and then another year off for my 490 00:28:30,320 --> 00:28:31,320 drug treatment. 491 00:28:31,320 --> 00:28:35,080 So seven and a half years, actually closer to eight is what I ended up serving. 492 00:28:35,080 --> 00:28:38,200 It's still a long time, but better than it's a long time. 493 00:28:38,200 --> 00:28:45,320 And I'll tell you, when you spend that amount of time incarcerated, and this is something 494 00:28:45,320 --> 00:28:51,520 that is really important to understand, when men and women come home from lengthy incarcerations, 495 00:28:51,520 --> 00:28:54,560 they I'll speak for myself. 496 00:28:54,560 --> 00:28:57,840 I felt like I had the scar letter. 497 00:28:57,840 --> 00:29:04,960 Even though people did not know me or for those who did not know me, I felt in some way less 498 00:29:04,960 --> 00:29:13,280 substantial than society, even though I was trying to be pro-social in my actions and in 499 00:29:13,280 --> 00:29:15,640 my and what I what I had done. 500 00:29:15,640 --> 00:29:19,440 And that's a very, very common thing for folks coming home from incarceration. 501 00:29:19,440 --> 00:29:24,400 And it's actually one of the things that creates this high rate of recidivism, which is reoffending 502 00:29:24,400 --> 00:29:28,200 is self worth. 503 00:29:28,200 --> 00:29:33,680 Where's my value to anyone who would want to put me to work or where's my value? 504 00:29:33,680 --> 00:29:40,880 So they revert back into criminal behavior and 60 some percent 60 some percent reoffenders, 505 00:29:40,880 --> 00:29:42,880 recidivism, that's high. 506 00:29:42,880 --> 00:29:43,880 It's really high. 507 00:29:43,880 --> 00:29:44,880 Yeah, that's high. 508 00:29:44,880 --> 00:29:46,160 And it's the national average. 509 00:29:46,160 --> 00:29:50,840 How far in your sentence before you fully embraced God? 510 00:29:50,840 --> 00:29:52,280 Two weeks, two weeks. 511 00:29:52,280 --> 00:29:53,280 Yes. 512 00:29:53,280 --> 00:29:56,720 So you spent essentially almost eight years in prison. 513 00:29:56,720 --> 00:29:57,720 Yes. 514 00:29:57,720 --> 00:29:58,720 Like Peter. 515 00:29:58,720 --> 00:29:59,720 Yes. 516 00:29:59,720 --> 00:30:04,400 Learning about Jesus, loving on Jesus and sharing Jesus with others. 517 00:30:04,400 --> 00:30:08,160 Here's my God story from Scripture. 518 00:30:08,160 --> 00:30:13,320 I know how to be brought low and I know how to abound. 519 00:30:13,320 --> 00:30:18,840 And in every circumstance, I've learned a secret of plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 520 00:30:18,840 --> 00:30:22,360 I can do all things to him who strengthens me. 521 00:30:22,360 --> 00:30:23,880 That's my life. 522 00:30:23,880 --> 00:30:24,880 Philippians. 523 00:30:24,880 --> 00:30:25,880 Philippians. 524 00:30:25,880 --> 00:30:26,880 Yeah. 525 00:30:26,880 --> 00:30:28,400 That's my life. 526 00:30:28,400 --> 00:30:29,400 Yes. 527 00:30:29,400 --> 00:30:34,280 And we shared, oh my gosh, when you're in there in such close proximity to so many men who 528 00:30:34,280 --> 00:30:39,520 have experienced the same thing that you're experiencing and worse, the relationship. 529 00:30:39,520 --> 00:30:42,400 I'm still in touch with a lot of these men. 530 00:30:42,400 --> 00:30:43,400 Lots of them. 531 00:30:43,400 --> 00:30:47,840 Just like we're old military buddies, my old veteran, but it's that type of a camaraderie 532 00:30:47,840 --> 00:30:51,400 when you find the right, when God's in the center of it. 533 00:30:51,400 --> 00:30:53,440 So yes, that's what we did the whole time. 534 00:30:53,440 --> 00:30:54,440 That's awesome. 535 00:30:54,440 --> 00:30:55,440 I'm glad that you do that. 536 00:30:55,440 --> 00:30:57,040 We did a lot of push-ups too. 537 00:30:57,040 --> 00:30:58,040 And pull-ups. 538 00:30:58,040 --> 00:30:59,200 What else are you going to do? 539 00:30:59,200 --> 00:31:00,200 Not much. 540 00:31:00,200 --> 00:31:04,320 Played softball, basketball, you know, anything to keep you occupied. 541 00:31:04,320 --> 00:31:06,080 Yeah, they don't give you a whole lot of stuff. 542 00:31:06,080 --> 00:31:09,800 No, but they do want you to stay occupied in there just to keep you, you know, idle 543 00:31:09,800 --> 00:31:10,800 hands. 544 00:31:10,800 --> 00:31:11,800 Yeah. 545 00:31:11,800 --> 00:31:12,800 Oh yeah. 546 00:31:12,800 --> 00:31:13,800 Yeah. 547 00:31:13,800 --> 00:31:14,800 I've heard that phrase, idle hands are the devil's workshop. 548 00:31:14,800 --> 00:31:15,800 Yes. 549 00:31:15,800 --> 00:31:16,800 Yes. 550 00:31:16,800 --> 00:31:17,800 And they cause problems in prison. 551 00:31:17,800 --> 00:31:18,800 Idle hands. 552 00:31:18,800 --> 00:31:19,800 The guys look for other things to do. 553 00:31:19,800 --> 00:31:22,160 You can find out just how creative people can be. 554 00:31:22,160 --> 00:31:23,160 Amen. 555 00:31:23,160 --> 00:31:27,200 Thank you so much for being on the podcast. 556 00:31:27,200 --> 00:31:28,640 We really appreciate your story. 557 00:31:28,640 --> 00:31:30,400 We really appreciate your testimony. 558 00:31:30,400 --> 00:31:31,680 I love to hear about Jesus. 559 00:31:31,680 --> 00:31:34,640 I'd love to hear about Jesus reaching people and lowest points. 560 00:31:34,640 --> 00:31:39,200 And I hope that it encourages other people that have similar experiences or, you know, 561 00:31:39,200 --> 00:31:43,520 maybe not identical, but somewhere along the lines where they feel like the least of 562 00:31:43,520 --> 00:31:44,800 these, right? 563 00:31:44,800 --> 00:31:48,000 And I've said this before and I'll say it again, but I feel that you can only love 564 00:31:48,000 --> 00:31:51,280 Jesus as much as you love the least of these. 565 00:31:51,280 --> 00:31:55,640 And so I think we need to really lean into the people that feel marginalized, whether 566 00:31:55,640 --> 00:31:57,440 they are or not, is irrelevant, right? 567 00:31:57,440 --> 00:32:03,000 What if they feel it and help spread the love of Jesus to not be ashamed of the gospel, 568 00:32:03,000 --> 00:32:08,160 to lift people up, to encourage people and let them know that there is a better way and 569 00:32:08,160 --> 00:32:10,720 that way is through the life of Jesus Christ. 570 00:32:10,720 --> 00:32:11,720 Amen. 571 00:32:11,720 --> 00:32:12,720 So I really appreciate your story. 572 00:32:12,720 --> 00:32:13,720 I really appreciate being on here. 573 00:32:13,720 --> 00:32:17,960 I appreciate your bravery through it all, despite the fact that it wasn't bravery. 574 00:32:17,960 --> 00:32:18,960 Did it put you in it? 575 00:32:18,960 --> 00:32:19,960 No, it was not. 576 00:32:19,960 --> 00:32:22,920 No, but it's definitely, it's definitely helps. 577 00:32:22,920 --> 00:32:23,920 I believe in your story. 578 00:32:23,920 --> 00:32:27,320 I believe that the courage that God has put you, you don't give you a spirit of timidness, 579 00:32:27,320 --> 00:32:28,920 but a boldness, right? 580 00:32:28,920 --> 00:32:32,840 And here you are boldly proclaiming what he's done for you, despite what you tried to sabotage 581 00:32:32,840 --> 00:32:33,840 him in doing. 582 00:32:33,840 --> 00:32:34,840 Did I ever? 583 00:32:34,840 --> 00:32:35,840 Oh boy, I'll say. 584 00:32:35,840 --> 00:32:39,240 Well, it's been such a pleasure. 585 00:32:39,240 --> 00:32:40,240 Thank you. 586 00:32:40,240 --> 00:32:43,000 When you think you're down and out, God's not done with you yet. 587 00:32:43,000 --> 00:32:44,000 Yes. 588 00:32:44,000 --> 00:32:49,600 I was, yeah, please, anyone who's in the type of situation that we're talking about with 589 00:32:49,600 --> 00:32:55,000 regards to addiction or damage or any type of physical abuse, whatever the case may be, 590 00:32:55,000 --> 00:32:58,640 seek help, seek God. 591 00:32:58,640 --> 00:32:59,840 And there is hope. 592 00:32:59,840 --> 00:33:04,320 There is, I'm living proof that he will work in your life. 593 00:33:04,320 --> 00:33:05,320 Amen. 594 00:33:05,320 --> 00:33:06,320 It's so good. 595 00:33:06,320 --> 00:33:08,680 And then you have greater relationships because of Jesus. 596 00:33:08,680 --> 00:33:09,680 Yes. 597 00:33:09,680 --> 00:33:10,680 Amen, you do. 598 00:33:10,680 --> 00:33:11,680 So good. 599 00:33:11,680 --> 00:33:13,720 Thank you for coming on and sharing that with us. 600 00:33:13,720 --> 00:33:14,720 It was my pleasure. 601 00:33:14,720 --> 00:33:15,720 Thank you. 602 00:33:15,720 --> 00:33:19,200 If this episode has been a blessing to you, we ask that you share it with somebody so 603 00:33:19,200 --> 00:33:21,720 it can be an encouragement to others. 604 00:33:21,720 --> 00:33:27,520 And also, we have a fundraising campaign to help us with the audio editing expenses, and 605 00:33:27,520 --> 00:33:33,000 that's on gifsango.com, and we look out God's goodness podcast, and you can make your donation 606 00:33:33,000 --> 00:33:34,000 there. 607 00:33:34,000 --> 00:33:43,960 And thanks for listening, and we'll talk to you next time.