Participants:
Series Code: CW
Program Code: CW000013S
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00:00 (serene instrumental music)
00:05 - Oh yes, stay right there. 00:08 Stay right there I'll be right back. 00:13 Hey, welcome everybody to Talking Donkey International 00:16 and our new television series, Country Wisdom. 00:18 - Let's set the tone for this new series of ours. 00:21 It's found in Proverbs 4, 00:24 "Let your eyes look directly forward 00:27 "and your gaze be straight before you. 00:30 "Ponder the path of your feet 00:33 "and then all your ways will be sure." 00:36 - Join us now for Country Wisdom. 00:38 (instrumental music) 00:43 (sheep bleats) (Dr. Randell laughs) 00:44 - They say ma. 00:46 - Ma huh, it's a ma. 00:47 - Ma. 00:50 - You know, I knew that you raise sheep 00:51 but I didn't know how sweet they were. 00:54 - Well, these are Jacob's sheep and they're really special. 00:56 I used to eat them Jim, 00:58 but I don't eat them anymore. (laughs) 00:59 - Praise the Lord. 00:59 - Yeah. (both laughs) 01:01 Hey, I got to ask you I know... 01:02 What, what happened? 01:03 Look like somebody hit you or something. 01:05 - Well I, ate a lot of candy when I was a kid 01:08 and wrecked my teeth 01:11 and they did a lateral sinus lift 01:14 and put two implants in, 01:15 they had to raise the the bone height 01:17 so that I could... 01:18 And a little swollen, but it's getting better. 01:19 - Oh, you're looking pretty good. 01:20 (Dr. Randell laughs) 01:21 - Hey, I want to introduce you to somebody here. 01:22 - Sure. 01:23 - Janice. 01:24 I know you're probably going to pay attention 01:25 to the baby and not to, - Oh my goodness. 01:26 - this is Dr. Elloway, - (laughs) Hi. 01:27 - Janice Nelson. - Hi. (laughs) 01:29 - Nice to meet you. 01:30 - Ain't this a sweetheart? 01:30 - Oh, I want to take 'em home. 01:32 - They can see how Jesus made so many references to sheep, 01:35 you know, they're just so sweet and they cuddle. 01:37 - Yeah. And my sheep know my voice. 01:39 I can call him from the other end of the field. 01:41 - Really? - Yeah. 01:42 - Wow. - And they'll come around 01:44 - They'll come. Yeah. Yeah. - to you? 01:45 - My Pups don't even obey like that. 01:47 (Dr. Randell laughs) 01:48 - Well, I'm well, I could spend all day 01:49 with this little guy. 01:50 Matter of fact, I'd take one home 01:51 but I want to hear the rest of your story. 01:52 I'm sure Janice does too. 01:53 - Right, he's been.. - So let's go find the. 01:55 - He's told me a little bit, but not nearly enough. 01:57 I want to hear it all. 01:58 - Let's find a shady place. - Let's go. 01:59 Let's do it. 02:00 (serene instrumental music) 02:04 I love this place. 02:05 The views and everything they're beautiful. 02:07 - Yeah. This place is just green 02:09 and there's birds and flowers and-- 02:13 - I am really struggling 02:14 to not be breaking one of the commandments about coveting. 02:18 What I wouldn't give for this deck, 02:20 especially all this trees. 02:21 It's just, I wouldn't get anything done, 02:23 I'd be sitting on a bench all day. 02:25 - But you know, 02:27 we could probably be looking at this all day long 02:28 but you've got an incredible story to tell them, 02:30 we want to get right to it. 02:31 Share with, take a big breath and share with us. (laughs) 02:34 - Well, it all started when I was younger, 02:38 my dad was interested in thoroughbred horses and as a hobby. 02:44 He was a dentist, but on a hobby, 02:45 he wanted some, I guess some action in his life 02:48 and he invested in the thoroughbred horses. 02:51 And of course he liked to race them. 02:53 And we had some winners and at a young age, 02:58 I learned... - That's an expensive hobby. 02:59 - Expensive hobby, there's jockeys, there's trainers. 03:02 And, and so we would go to this Vancouver 03:06 extubation racetrack in British Columbia, Canada, 03:09 that's where I grew up. 03:11 And I can remember 03:14 at a very young age eating in the clubhouse. 03:17 And then of course he'd want to place a bet on your, 03:21 your horse. - How young were you? 03:22 - Oh my goodness, I. 03:23 At 12 years old, they would allow gambling. 03:26 (Janice laughs) You could, you could, 03:27 you could place a bet for your dad 03:29 at 12 years old. 03:30 - So you always told him it was for your dad, was it? 03:33 - Well at first, at first it was. 03:36 And then I realized, you know what? 03:37 I could, I could, maybe I could do this, 03:39 because you watch the horses go around the track 03:42 and all you gotta do is pick a winner. 03:44 And it only had to come in first, second or third. 03:46 And for $2 bet, you could end up with three or four or $5. 03:49 And that was enough to buy a hamburger, a hot dog, 03:52 a milkshake and two chocolate bars, you know, in those days. 03:55 And so it was, it was a hook at a very young age 04:00 that got, that. 04:04 - Now you were, you were a Christian family at that time or? 04:08 - Yes, we were a Christian family. 04:09 We attended church, you know, 04:10 my dad would, would attend periodically. 04:13 My mom was faithful, very faithful 04:15 but this was my dad, you know, he wanted 04:18 he had this little side thing going on and it was-- 04:24 - And did he have any idea that you were gambling? 04:28 - Well, he gambled. 04:29 - Okay, so. 04:30 - He would bet on his horse as well, you know, so. 04:34 It was, you know, some of these things maybe aren't... 04:38 As you're growing up, 04:40 aren't weighed in different homes 04:44 as much as other homes but-- 04:45 - And I'm sure he never thought it would be a problem. 04:48 - It was just something that was fun, 04:50 - Yeah. Right - for an afternoon. 04:51 - Correct. 04:53 And they revolved around outside of, outside of the home 04:58 and an event, exciting event, you know, 05:01 seeing if your horse could win whatnot. 05:03 - So where's this a little bit of a gambling addiction go? 05:07 - So, yeah, so it started there. 05:09 And then I had another friend who introduced me to roulette 05:13 and blackjack. 05:14 And Vancouver being a port city, they brought in, 05:18 you know, some gambling. 05:19 And so we would go to these places 05:22 where you could play cards and-- 05:25 - How old were you by this time? 05:26 - I'm at, I'm a teenager high school. 05:30 - How'd you get into that? 05:31 - I know, I was just thinking, - Yeah. 05:33 you could go in and play roulette? 05:35 - So, so at 18, I think 18, 19, 18, 19. 05:39 You could, you could, you could, you could play. (laughs) 05:42 - But were you playing before that? 05:45 - While you, I... 05:46 (Janice laughs) - I don't think-- 05:47 - That's a yes-- 05:48 - Don't go - No, No, I-- (laughs) 05:49 - too much on this one. (all laughs) 05:51 - So mostly it was the racetrack. 05:52 Until, until I got, I got a little bit older and in college. 05:54 - So you play the racetrack all the time kind of through? 05:57 - Yeah. When I could, I mean, 05:59 I didn't have it when I go with my dad. 06:00 And then when I got my driver's license 06:01 I found myself, (instrumental music) 06:03 going there. 06:05 - Now you skipped through this part a little bit 06:06 but what was your quote Christian experience 06:09 during this time? 06:12 - (coughs) Well, my Christian experience was... 06:19 You know it's difficult to answer because you know 06:20 you've got one foot in the world and, 06:22 and one foot doing that, but you know, I, I love the Lord. 06:27 I, I would read my Bible 06:29 and I would have family worship and things like that. 06:32 So the outsider wouldn't, 06:34 wouldn't had a clue that, you know, 06:36 that this was going on. 06:38 And for probably most of the family, I mean, 06:42 I'm sure there's a lot of people that go to church 06:43 and they do things. 06:44 They come on Sabbath morning (birds chirping) 06:47 and have no idea what's going on in their life. 06:50 - That's really what you're, why you decided to 06:52 share your testimony today, right? 06:53 Is because, you can be sitting in the church pew 06:57 and you can look nice and you, 06:59 you know, you're a doctor. 07:00 You've got an upstanding business in the community 07:02 and everything. 07:03 Christian, but there's other things going on. 07:06 Um, let's just kind of continue. 07:10 What happened after the teenage years? 07:14 - So attended college 07:16 and of course in college you're pretty busy 07:18 but I was still make, 07:20 you know, expeditions to go and find a time to do that. 07:23 And in fact, right up until, right into dental school, 07:29 I was, would go to, cause went to Loma Linda 07:31 and I would take a little time to go to Las Vegas. 07:35 - Christian dental school? 07:36 - Yup, Christian dental school, and, 07:38 and what was exciting, well, 07:40 I didn't have much money to lose at that time. 07:41 I had barely anything, but I made friends 07:44 with the pit boss and, 07:46 and he would put me in a room for free 07:49 and, and get me a free meal. 07:51 And, and I would stay there for the weekend and, 07:53 and have a good time and wouldn't lose much money, 07:56 I might make a little money. 07:57 It just, it was, it was a horrible-- 08:00 - You said we would stay - I'd stay up-- 08:01 So you had friends who'd go with you there? 08:02 - Yes, it does, I'd have friends. 08:03 Yeah, it would. That would come. 08:07 - I can imagine that part of the allure is 08:09 that hit of adrenaline because you might, 08:13 you know, you might win and I'm sure when you do win... 08:17 I'm talking from imagination here. 08:19 - Right? Okay. 08:20 - It just hasn't been something 08:21 I'm tempted to spend money on, 08:22 but you take me to a shoe store, a bookstore, 08:25 and all bets are off. 08:27 But, was that part of it? 08:29 It's like, every time you're thinking I, I might win. 08:33 - Yeah. So of course the gambler 08:34 always thinks he's gonna win, 08:35 and when you win, it's exciting. 08:36 But you find yourself, it's actually slavery. 08:39 You're staying up all night, all hours. 08:41 You don't even want to go to the bathroom, 08:43 when you're winning, because-- 08:45 - But you still managed to get through dental school? 08:46 (both laughs) 08:49 - It's a, it's, it's an addiction. 08:51 And, it's a, it's a cherished, 08:54 as a cherish sin that some people might have that, 08:57 that I'd like to reach out to you today. 08:58 Because, they don't understand that, that, 09:02 you know just like there's a Holy spirit, 09:03 there's an unholy spirit. 09:05 And when you start realizing that Satan controls, 09:07 that's his playground and he can control the cards. 09:10 He can make you win, he can make you lose. 09:12 It's not a nice game to be in. 09:14 - You use the word slavery. - Yes. 09:16 - Would you unpack that? Just a little bit more? 09:19 - Slavery? (sighs) 09:20 Well. You know, the children of Israel. (chuckles) 09:23 They were in slavery 09:24 and Moses went in there to get them out 09:27 so they could start keeping Sabbath 09:28 and start living the abundant life that Jesus promises. 09:32 And I probably missed out on the abundant life 09:34 when I was in that sort of situation. 09:35 I'm sure I did. - But you thought 09:36 you were having a good life? 09:37 - I thought I was. Right. 09:38 It's a big lie. 09:39 - But you weren't really in control? 09:41 - Well, no, I mean. 09:42 When you're, when you're feeling like, 09:44 you're gonna win all the time 09:46 and that you have to take your own money, 09:47 and then you end up losing it 09:48 and then sometimes you win, 09:49 and most of the time you lose. 09:52 If, if Las Vegas made 10 cents on every person 09:55 that went in there, they would go bankrupt. 09:56 So obviously everybody's losing. Um (sighs) 10:00 - No, you uh. you're in college. 10:03 I understand, some point in time, 10:05 I know you got married, I've met your wonderful wife. 10:07 - Yeah, she's a blessing to me. 10:09 - Did she know what was going on? 10:11 - Yeah, she is aware of it, but I, I, 10:14 I, what's the word, won her heart? 10:18 (all laughs) 10:19 - Okay. Why, she had a good catch. 10:20 (all laughs) 10:21 - She recognized your potential? 10:23 - Maybe, yeah. 10:24 And it come from a really good family. 10:27 That her father, a man of God, 10:31 who prayed for us and our future and, 10:34 and thankful for that. 10:37 I, you know married into a good family 10:38 makes a big difference. 10:41 - So this continued on, 10:43 you didn't stop put the brakes on when you got married? 10:47 - Yeah but it, significantly slowed down and, 10:49 and my wife Nora had never really 10:52 wanted anything to do with it. 10:54 You know, she'd always be hesitant to, 10:57 to allow me to do it. 10:59 But then I would do it occasionally, secretly. 11:00 And so I'd get a call, "Where are you?" 11:02 And I go, "Well..." 11:04 You know, I didn't want to lie to her 11:05 and so I'd say, "Well, I, you know, 11:07 "just finished playing hockey." 11:08 And then I would end up stopping off 11:11 at the little card shop where nobody knew I would, 11:13 was there. 11:15 (acoustic music) 11:16 - I used to be a drug dealer and alcoholic and a thief, 11:19 along with far too many other things to mention. 11:22 You know I kidded myself that, I was great. 11:24 Life was great. 11:26 But, knowing there was a massive void in my life. 11:29 I'd like to offer you a pamphlet called breaking addictions. 11:33 You know addictions come in all types, shapes and sizes, 11:35 but you don't need to be chained to them any longer. 11:39 Go to talkingdonkeyinternational.org 11:41 and order your free copy today. 11:44 Request, offer one-on-one, breaking addictions. 11:47 Remember it's completely free. 11:55 - Introducing, (instrumental music) 11:56 Talking Donkey International. 11:57 God once used a donkey to spread his word 12:00 but he'd rather use all of us. 12:03 It's time to prepare quality programming created to attract 12:07 and reach viewers of the world, 12:08 not just those of our denomination. 12:11 Together, we can carry the final advent message 12:14 to the individuals of planet earth 12:16 and hasten the return of our Lord. 12:18 Please pray for and support the successful mission 12:21 of Talking Donkey International. 12:25 - I've had the opportunity to know you for many years. 12:27 Of course, I guess I didn't totally know you 12:29 because you're spraying this on me more recently. 12:32 (Dr. Randell laughs) 12:33 But, I can remember finding you one time and said, 12:36 "Randell you need to come with me on a mission trip." 12:39 And you said, "Oh, Jim, I, I just can't afford to do that." 12:43 Just can't afford to do that and I remember saying, 12:45 "Well, why don't you pray about it?" 12:47 And you know, kind of, how do you refuse as a church member, 12:50 "How'd, no, I'm not gonna pray about it?" 12:52 But you did and, and-- 12:53 - He roped me in on my first mission trip, same way. 12:56 (all laughs) 12:57 - Would you kind of pick up on that story 12:58 and what God did through there for you? 13:00 - Yeah there was a time where we were coming to your church 13:02 and it wasn't just one time. 13:03 Jim you invited me, I think you invited me, 13:05 you were very persistent. 13:06 I think he invited me three or four times and, 13:08 and the big deal was 13:10 I couldn't leave my practice for three weeks. 13:11 Because, you can't just shut things down for the rest... 13:14 There's no way if I, financially could do that and... 13:16 But finally with your persistence, and I did say I would go. 13:21 And it's funny, that minute I said, I, I would go, 13:25 I started getting these big cases, bridge cases 13:28 and implant cases and, and my office is so busy. 13:32 And the day before I left, I looked at the bottom line 13:35 and I had, I had enough money 13:37 to pay for three weeks of vacation/mission work. 13:42 And uh, and God provided 13:44 and so that was evidence to me 13:45 that he really wanted me to go. 13:47 And that was life changing not only for me, 13:49 but for my, my daughter, Natasha. 13:51 Who's now in dental school, by the way. 13:52 (all laughs) Doesn't gamble. 13:54 (all laughs) 13:56 - I'll remember, I remember you called me up 13:58 and said, "Jim you'll never guess 13:59 "what happened to me in my practice." 14:01 I remember saying, "Yes, I would, 14:02 but go ahead and tell me anyway. 14:04 (Janice laughs) 14:05 And, and you shared this story. 14:06 - Yeah. 14:07 - But you went on the mission trip. 14:08 Tell us a little bit about that trip. 14:09 - That was a great trip. 14:11 We ministered to the people there 14:12 and saw so many needy cases. 14:15 And what I remember the most is 14:18 I'm really happy that my youngest went, 14:20 she like eight years old at the time 14:22 and she was sterilizing and changes, life changing for her. 14:25 But, you know, probably I, I, I... 14:31 There's so many things Jim, 14:33 I could talk about that trip, but it was, it was... 14:36 But at this time, you know, 14:37 I don't remember if I was gambling. 14:39 I was closer to the Lord then, but, you know, 14:41 things like this can kind of creep up on you. 14:43 They go away for a while and they creep up on you. (sighs) 14:46 But uh, uh-- 14:49 - You know, correct me if wrong, 14:50 but it seems like you were having this real conflict 14:53 in your heart and in your mind that, 14:56 "I want to go gamble, but now I'm doing mission trips 14:59 "and God's speaking to my heart." 15:00 I mean, what was going on? 15:02 - Boy, that's a lukewarm state, isn't it? 15:04 Not a place, almost like, you know it's frightful when you, 15:08 when described, it describes people today. 15:11 You know, one foot in the church 15:13 and one foot out of the church. 15:14 So, you know, I came across this, caught this... 15:19 My one of my favorite authors says that, 15:21 "One cherish sin, can, if you don't overcome it..." 15:26 Let me get the right exact context of that. 15:28 It says here, "Even one wrong trait of character, 15:33 "one sinful desire, persistently cherished, 15:38 "will eventually neutralize all the power of the gospel." 15:42 So-- 15:43 - It's like a couple cells of a cancer 15:45 that gets into the body and just keeps growing. 15:47 - Yeah and then all God's love and mercy 15:49 and him being a savior, 15:51 understanding all of that, is neutralized. 15:54 If you cherish, you're not willing to, to give it up. 15:57 So there's this battle, 15:58 there's great controversy going on in my own life and-- 16:01 - So what was the turning point? 16:03 - Well, it's, it's, it's, it's interesting. 16:06 The turning point was, I showed up to church one... 16:09 Well, I, I went to a dental meeting in, in Redding 16:12 and went to the casino 16:14 and played for about an hour after the meeting. 16:15 Didn't think anybody saw me 16:17 and went to church that Sabbath. 16:19 This was a Friday and the next day was Sabbath 16:21 and went to church. 16:23 And I found a note on my car. (chuckles) 16:25 And the note said, "We saw you, 16:28 "and we don't think this is appropriate for an elder." 16:30 I was an elder. 16:32 This was quite a few years ago, 16:33 - Which is (mumbles) - maybe nine, nine or 16:36 nine years ago or something like that. 16:38 - You keep the Sabbath. 16:39 So you're a Seventh-day Adventist 16:40 (Dr. Randell laughs) and now you're, you're, 16:41 you're one of the local leaders of the church. 16:43 - Yeah. That's very, very bad almost. 16:49 So, I see this note and it says, 16:50 "We saw you and we don't think that's appropriate." 16:53 And, and I, I said, "Okay, you know, who wrote this note?" 16:57 There's no sign, no. 16:59 Nobody came up to me, nobody approached me. 17:00 And for all I know an angel put that there, okay? 17:03 I really, to this day I don't know who put that note there, 17:05 so this started the wheels turning. 17:06 You know what? I've got a double life. 17:10 And even though I'm not doing this all the time, 17:11 it's still something that... 17:13 Somebody recognized as, as something that's not proper 17:18 for an elder, a church, to be doing. 17:20 And none of us are perfect, Jim. 17:22 And, but, but you know, this, these open sins. 17:25 You know, the gambler, the drunkards often despised, 17:29 the gambler's despised but pride, 17:33 cowardliness and selfishness go on rebuked. (sighs) 17:37 This was an open sin that I felt a lot of shame. 17:40 - If I can take you back to that moment, 17:43 again when you picked up that note and read that. 17:45 - Yeah. 17:46 - What went through your mind? 17:48 - I was found out, like, somebody knows. 17:51 You know, I can't hide this anymore. 17:52 This is my church, someone at my church knows. 17:54 So this is like, this is not good. 17:57 You know, I can't-- 17:58 - I I've, I've got to tell you, I can't help but think about 18:01 in some of the African nations. 18:03 You know, the witch doctors and things, 18:04 people go to the witch doctor and they... 18:06 The witch doctor tells him, go do this, you know? 18:08 And it's in the secret of the night, but then 18:10 the witch doctor tells somebody else. 18:12 That's the way the devil is. 18:14 You know, he, he wants to make the life of everybody 18:16 absolutely miserable. 18:18 So he gets you to do something, 18:19 then he tells somebody else that you're doing it. 18:21 (Dr. Randell chuckles) 18:22 And, and that was, it was making your life miserable really. 18:25 - Well. It was, actually, I'm thankful for that note 18:29 because it was, it was, I think the icing on the cake. 18:33 That turning point, the realized that I, 18:36 I needed to do something about this. 18:38 I can't let this go on. 18:39 So, 18:41 I went to camp meeting 18:43 and they were talking about getting anointed for sickness. 18:49 And, you know, I, James talks about this. 18:52 If any of you are sick and you know, 18:55 sickness doesn't necessarily have to be cancer or, 18:58 or heart disease or, you know, AIDS or whatever. 19:02 And in my mind, gambling can be is, 19:04 is a sickness and it was a cherish sin. 19:08 And so I wanted to be anointed and... 19:11 I didn't want to do it at Camp meeting, 19:12 so I came back and I explained to my pastors 19:15 that I trusted - Uh-oh. 19:16 and I sat them down. 19:18 I had two pastors that I trusted and I sat them down. 19:20 And I explained to them about the note. 19:23 I explained to them about that, 19:24 that I wanted to be anointed 19:26 and I wanted to be done with this. 19:27 So-- 19:28 - And their response was? 19:30 - Oh, they were happy. 19:31 - Had they ever been asked to anoint someone, 19:33 for something like that? 19:34 - I don't think so. 19:35 I don't think so. 19:37 And there's power in anointing. 19:38 And, so, if anybody out there is doing 19:41 you know, something now, this is, this is key. 19:43 I think, the Holy spirit. 19:45 So they, you know, we knelled down and, and I swore... 19:48 I'd and they, I asked for a double portion. (laughs) 19:51 And the, and, the true test was just actually, 19:56 I think six months ago, we had another dental meeting. 20:00 You know, I hadn't been to Las Vegas in years 20:02 and this anointing took place maybe eight years ago. 20:05 And I haven't gambled since. 20:08 - Amen. - Praise God, you know-- 20:09 - What do you tribute that to? 20:11 - Oh, it's a... 20:12 There's only one thing it could be attributed to 20:13 and that's the power of God. 20:14 There's no question about it, it's his mercy. 20:16 - Because you couldn't have just 20:17 stopped on your own. - No, no I, I, 20:18 I don't think so, because it... 20:21 The truth, you know, the true test again 20:23 was going to Las Vegas and, 20:26 and, and being in that situation, I said, 20:28 "Okay, I went there, I purposed in my heart." 20:29 You know, Daniel purposed... 20:31 I purposed in my heart before I went 20:32 because we didn't really want to go there 20:34 but there's a meeting we had to go to, this implant meeting. 20:37 And, and so we went because that was where it was offered. 20:39 And, I hate the place, you know. 20:41 I don't even want to be there, but the meeting was there. 20:45 So that's why we were there. 20:46 And, the first day was no problem, you know. 20:49 Second day, I think we were there three nights. 20:52 And the second day was, you know the little, 20:53 the little voice I started to say, 20:56 "You know, just go play a little bit." 20:57 And I went downstairs, 20:58 I kind of looked and, "Ah, that's okay." 21:00 And on the third, the third day, 21:02 the day we were leaving, that was the day. 21:05 That morning I got up and said, 21:06 I told my wife, "You know, I really want to play. 21:08 "I, I just want to, just try a little bit." 21:11 - Devil really poured it on him. 21:12 - He did. 21:13 He just, just, and, and so she says, "No." 21:15 You know, I thank God for a good, good wife. 21:18 And I, and I said, "Yeah, I don't want to, but I want to." 21:21 You know, I'm having that, that, "We're here, you know 21:23 "and we're leaving today, you know, how, you know." 21:27 Trying to justify it. 21:28 - Put a few quarters of-- (laughs) 21:29 - Yeah, you know. (sighs) 21:30 Whatever. 21:32 And I went outside the hotel we were staying at, 21:34 and it was Bellagio, or was it the Bla-- 21:37 I think it was Bellagio Hotel. 21:38 Outside they have this statue, 21:41 and it's this awful-looking dragon and its name was Karin. 21:45 And I looked up what Karin was 21:47 and it said, God of money or, or, or luck 21:51 or something like that, I can't remember. 21:53 And I was like, this is not, this is not good. 21:55 And, and, and at that point again, 21:57 I just said, "Thank you Lord, for deliverance of this." 21:59 And, when I got on the plane, it wasn't till I got... 22:02 'Cause at the airport, they got slot machines and gambling. 22:04 - Oh, they have everywhere, 22:05 - Everywhere! - The restroom. 22:06 And so I got on the plane 22:08 and it wasn't until I was on the plane, 22:09 I looked out the window 22:10 and I looked at let's call it Sodom and Gomorrah. 22:13 And I looked at it and I were taken off 22:15 and I just started crying. 22:16 I said, "Thank you, Jesus. 22:18 "Thank you for giving me the victory over this." 22:19 Not one penny, not one nickel was spent there. 22:22 And, it's because his power and his love. 22:26 - Describe for me, if you would, 22:28 Dr. Elloway's life now versus Dr. Elloway's life then 22:32 and how it's affected your family 22:33 and your church and practice everything. 22:37 - Well, there's more, there's more power in 22:40 and more validity and, 22:43 and what I, I say, 22:44 because now I, I, (hopeful music) 22:45 I know that that... 22:47 I mean, I'm hanging out. 22:49 I'm talking all day long about God now. 22:51 I mean, I did before. 22:53 But I can, I can feel... 22:55 I, you know, when you, when you have been this way 22:59 and then that way. 23:03 I guess the best way to say it is you have a more of a, 23:07 you have a walk. 23:08 You know, how Enoch walked with God? 23:11 I wasn't walking all the time. 23:14 I would walk and then I would fall and walk and I'd fall. 23:17 You know, I'd still go to, I'd probably still fall. 23:19 And that, in a minute you overcome something. 23:21 There's, the Holy spirit reveals more things in your life. 23:24 (Janice laughs) 23:25 So it's like, now I got to work on this, 23:26 this, this and this. (Jim laughs) 23:27 And so it's, it's an ongoing, 23:29 ongoing sanctification is work of a lifetime 23:31 and I haven't arrived. 23:33 I just overcome something that was nagging me 23:36 and eating away at me like a cancer, like you said. 23:38 And to get victory over that is huge. 23:41 For my family, you know, 23:43 they really, they really didn't know too much. 23:45 I kept it from them. 23:46 My wife knew, but my kids, 23:48 you want to set a good example for them, 23:49 so they didn't really know. 23:50 But I, you can talk about these things, 23:53 when you know that God's given you victory over them 23:55 and we try to hide. 23:57 We try to hide her, try to hide our problems from, 24:01 from, from people and, 24:03 and you know, says, "Confess your sins one to another." 24:06 And there's power in that. 24:07 That doesn't mean that people are going to forgive you, 24:08 only God can forgive sins. 24:10 But when you confess, trust with, you know, 24:14 confessors some power in that. 24:15 Because people can pray for you, the righteous prayer. 24:17 I mean the prayer of a righteous man avail it much. 24:20 And, so keep praying for me, Jim. 24:23 God's not done with me yet. (laughs) 24:25 - With any of us. 24:26 - I think though, when you are forced 24:29 and you finally recognize just how weak you are 24:33 and it makes you much more empathetic to people. 24:37 Whether they have the same problem you do 24:39 or something different, 24:40 because it is literally there, 24:43 but for the grace of God. 24:44 You know, I've, I've been down to, 24:47 maybe it was a different problem 24:49 but we all have those issues. 24:51 And I found that being more honest about them 24:54 rather than pretending. 24:55 - Yeah. 24:56 - You know, Oh, I, I'm fairly perfect. 24:59 (group laughs) Well, first of all, 25:00 my family wouldn't believe it. 25:02 But you find that other people then have the courage to come 25:07 and say, "You know, I've struggled with that same thing." 25:10 People who would never have opened up 25:12 would never have found, 25:14 you know, the strength in numbers, 25:16 the Christian fellowship when you're not being honest. 25:20 But when you recognize, "Oh, I'm not the only one that, 25:25 "that has this hidden, this secret, you know, 25:28 "somebody else has overcome." 25:29 It gives you courage. 25:31 - Which brings me to a point. 25:32 We probably only got a minute or two left 25:34 but what would you tell viewers? 25:36 A lot of the same things are going through their minds. 25:38 They might be in that whole position right now. 25:40 What would you tell them? 25:43 - Go on a mission trip. 25:44 (Janice laughs) 25:46 You know, it really boils down to being honest with yourself 25:50 and with other people. 25:52 It's a slavery to live two lives, It's a lie. 25:56 And you're not going to be happy 25:58 and you're not going to be fully effective 25:59 or fully used by the Holy spirit 26:01 until you can have that victory of that cherished sin. 26:07 We all sin, but there's still cherished ones. 26:10 Those loved ones, those, 26:11 those ones that you just don't want to let go of. 26:13 And this was one of 'em. 26:14 This is not something that I did every day 26:15 but it was that one I really liked, just a game. 26:18 You know as, you know, I, I'm going to win some money. 26:21 The excitement you look around, you know, 26:23 flashing and dress up, devil's playground. 26:29 And, and so for those 26:32 that perhaps might be having this struggle, 26:36 if you really want, you know my... 26:40 Jesus says, "My sheep hear my voice and they know my voice." 26:43 And Jesus, I could recognize his voice, calling me and, 26:48 and he wants, he promises the abundant life. 26:53 And that certainly wasn't it, Jim. 26:55 The abundant life is, is, is, is, is a life with Jesus 26:59 and that's... 27:00 And I can't wait to see what he's got planned 27:04 - Amen. - for us 27:05 - Amen. - and a new heaven 27:06 and a new earth. 27:07 - Randell, I want to thank you brother 27:08 for a wonderful testimony. 27:10 And folks, I want to talk to you just for a second here. 27:14 You heard what God has done in this young man's life. 27:17 Changed his life, changed his family. 27:19 Changed the direction of eternity for him. 27:22 Because as he said, he didn't have eternity at the moment 27:25 because the sin was dragging him 27:27 and eating at him down and down and down. 27:29 So please give your life to Jesus Christ. 27:32 Celebrate victory in Jesus Christ. 27:34 It's yours for the asking and for the taking. 27:38 (acoustic music) 27:39 - I used to be a drug dealer and alcoholic and a thief, 27:42 along with far too many other things to mention. 27:45 You know I kidded myself that, I was great. 27:48 Life was great. 27:49 But, knowing there was a massive void in my life. 27:52 I'd like to offer you a pamphlet called breaking addictions. 27:56 You know addictions come in all types, shapes and sizes, 27:58 but you don't need to be chained to them any longer. 28:02 Go to talkingdonkeyinternational.org 28:04 and order your free copy today. 28:06 Request, offer one-on-one, Breaking Addictions. 28:10 Remember, it's completely free. 28:13 (instrumental music) 28:16 Hey, thanks for joining us for Country Wisdom. 28:18 - See you next time. |
Revised 2021-03-31