Participants:
Series Code: CW
Program Code: CW000042S
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00:00 (gentle music)
00:01 (footsteps thudding) 00:03 - Welcome everyone. 00:05 We're excited to share some country wisdom with you. 00:07 - King Solomon had a thing or two to say about 00:10 the path to wisdom. 00:11 In Proverbs four, he wrote, 00:13 let your eyes look directly forward 00:16 and your gaze be straight before you. 00:19 Keep straight the path of your feet, 00:21 and all your ways will be sure. 00:23 - Join us now for "Country Wisdom." 00:26 (gentle music) 00:35 I've been talking with Marty Miller on the phone 00:37 for a couple months now, perhaps. 00:40 Really begin enjoying our conversation. 00:42 I could tell he's a man that, you know, 00:44 wants to stick to a plan. 00:45 Well, his plan perhaps used to be a little bit different. 00:48 We're gonna talk to him about that today. 00:50 He loves men's ministry. 00:52 He loves to point men toward Christ 00:54 and working for Christ in a godly manner. 00:57 So Marty, thank you for being with us today. 00:59 Appreciate it. 01:00 - Well, thanks for having me. 01:01 You bet ya-- 01:02 Now. - In my own garage. 01:03 - I was gonna say, you know, it's like 01:05 Tim the Tool Time here, you know, where he would watch. 01:05 - I feel a little out of place. 01:07 Like I've been invited into the man cave. 01:10 - Woo woo woo 01:11 (All laugh) 01:13 - You're welcome though. 01:14 - Why did we end up in your garage? 01:15 I mean, maybe we can get to that in a 01:17 roundabout way - Sure 01:19 - But yeah, let's hold that up. 01:21 Let's keep people in suspense for a little bit. 01:23 - Sure. 01:24 - Tell me about your personal life. 01:25 I understand you have kind of an interesting testimony. 01:28 - Yeah, I think everybody's got a story and I think 01:30 that really, as I've gotten older, it's become clear. 01:35 When you're young, you're trying to figure things out, 01:37 trying to find your way, trying to discover who you are. 01:41 And there's a lot of wasted effort. 01:45 There's a lot of, you know, misguided efforts. 01:51 And anyway, my story really starts out in Nebraska 01:54 of all things. 01:56 I was born out in the corn fields in Nebraska 01:58 and moved to Florida when I was a little guy 02:01 and right away my mom, she was very intuitive. 02:05 She was a teacher and my dad he was a teacher as well. 02:09 And we moved to the Orlando area. 02:11 This is Pre-Disney. 02:12 And so what ended up happening when we moved there, 02:15 it was pretty much orange groves, swamps, sand roads. 02:19 - Gators. 02:21 - Exactly. 02:21 - I was just thinking that. 02:22 - And so I would go out in the backyard 02:25 and out into the back woods and I'd come back with turtles, 02:31 lizards, snakes. 02:32 And my mom was very tolerant of that 02:35 and actually encouraged it. 02:37 And so right away, they realized that I had this, 02:41 what Howard Gardner calls the nature intelligence. 02:45 And I just had this love of nature. 02:48 And so that really was kind of my heart with God 02:54 in a very early way, connecting with the creator 02:57 of all that there is on this earth. 02:59 And I just found my connection and my identity 03:03 in the outdoors and in nature. 03:06 And that really has defined much of my life. 03:09 - You really did find that God's second book is nature. 03:12 - Oh yeah, exactly. 03:14 I've actually been a, you know, college professor 03:19 and high school science teacher for many years 03:21 and put a lot of lectures together 03:25 and one of my presentations, I say, you know, 03:27 "God created nature and that's his book of pictures." 03:32 And there's so many lessons there 03:34 that it's just really profound. 03:36 And that's been one of my joys as well is just 03:39 seeing what God has to say, looking at scripture. 03:42 But it's playing out in a real physical way in nature. 03:46 - We may take him on a rabbit trail here, 03:47 but I've gotta ask as a teacher who's seen 03:50 all these things and loves all these things. 03:52 So many people don't believe at all that there's a creator. 03:55 - Yeah. 03:57 - And that this all this just happened. 03:58 What would you say to those people? 04:00 - Well, I would just invite them to take a second look, 04:04 especially looking deeply. 04:07 I think the deep questions of life are really important 04:09 to wrestle with. 04:11 I think today's world people are so distracted 04:13 that they don't even contemplate some 04:15 of the deeper questions and the meaning of life, you know, 04:17 why am I here? 04:18 Where am I going? 04:20 And that's part of the problem. 04:22 But also I think that the popular educational systems 04:27 of the day, all of the science publications, 04:31 I mean, evolution is the only thing there is. 04:33 And so it's really been an indoctrination 04:37 that has given no other options. 04:38 And a lot of times when I talk to somebody, I just say, 04:42 "Have you really considered the cell?" 04:45 Let's just look at the cell and how can you get one cell? 04:50 The more time has gone on the more we know about the cell 04:54 and the inner workings, 04:56 (throat clears) 04:57 and most of them have had such a glossed over presentation. 05:02 They don't even question it. 05:03 So anyway, there's no way to convince somebody 05:06 of something that they want to believe. 05:08 And so in the end I find that arguments are very 05:14 non-productive. 05:15 It's mainly sharing your story and sharing 05:19 something you've learned from nature. 05:22 They will come to the end of themselves someday. 05:24 - So let's continue with your story and I appreciate you 05:27 going out there. 05:28 Because I think it's so important. 05:29 - Yeah. 05:30 Yeah. 05:31 So anyway, yeah, as a child, I... 05:34 Again, a lot of your identity as I've mentored 05:37 a lot of young men over the years. 05:41 I have discovered that most people don't really know 05:43 themselves and they have to go back to their childhood 05:46 to really extract who they really are. 05:48 'Cause it's been covered up. 05:49 So when I go back to my childhood, I happened 05:52 to go to a school that was very special in Orlando. 05:57 It was called The Open Air School. 05:59 And it was actually started by a woman 06:02 that came out of Germany before Hitler and everything. 06:06 And she came over and started a kindergarten program, 06:09 which was new in America. 06:11 And she was all about the outdoors, you know, 06:14 and just embracing nature. 06:16 So her daughter actually was my teacher, 06:18 her name was Mrs Achenbach. 06:20 And Mrs. Achenbach would take us out every day. 06:24 And during that time she would have us stop, 06:29 close our eyes, listen, 06:33 look, not talk 06:35 to learn to be still. 06:37 And she called me eagle eyes because I would see things 06:39 that most kids didn't. 06:42 And so that became my affirmation. 06:45 And that's kind of what I've discovered 06:47 as one of my love languages was affirmation. 06:49 You know, it's like when I'm told 06:51 that I'm doing something well, I want that, you know. 06:55 And so she would tell me, you know, you're eagle eyes, 06:57 you can see things, nobody else can. 07:00 And so early on that became a joy to me 07:03 in a way that really propelled me 07:05 through the rest of my life. 07:08 - Kind of amazing, isn't it? 07:10 Don't you wish you could be there sometimes, 07:11 you know, in some of that as a bird watcher 07:13 the way you are a little bit. 07:15 - I'm far too myopic for anyone to call me eagle eyes. 07:17 (All laugh) 07:21 - There's a... 07:22 One of my favorite authors kind of looking 07:24 at that time of creation of Adam and Eve makes a statement. 07:29 It's kind of interesting to me said, 07:31 "Adam and Eve withdrew from plant and animal 07:33 "the secrets of their existence." 07:35 And I think in a way you were kind of doing that. 07:37 - Yeah, probably a little bit. 07:39 And in a very simple way, I just love nature. 07:43 And so basically during those early years, 07:47 that was really an imprint on me. 07:49 And then we happened to move back to Lincoln Nebraska, 07:55 and my dad took a year out of his teaching. 07:56 He was a physical education teacher 07:58 and he worked on a masters degree 07:59 at the University of Nebraska. 08:02 And during that time was when I had my first exposure 08:06 to something that a young boy should not 08:08 and that was pornography. 08:10 And so my cousin who happened to be pretty much my age, 08:14 who was out in the back, my grandfather's back 40. 08:17 He was a guy, my grandfather was 08:20 that would take down these old army barracks, 08:23 military base that was going down. 08:25 He contracted to salvage all the materials 08:28 and he had this wood all stacked up in the back. 08:30 And anyway, my cousin, found this stack of pornography. 08:35 And I was 10 years old, very, very young. 08:38 And of course, "You gotta see this." 08:41 And so I go back there and of course, 08:44 I'd never seen anything like that. 08:46 And I was in shock, of course, and yet we being boys, 08:52 it was like, you feel something and you go, 08:54 "I know this is bad but this is interesting." 08:57 You know, this really attracts me. 09:00 And here's the interesting thing. 09:02 I think that God created for us to enjoy beauty. 09:08 And yet Satan takes everything that is good and perverts it. 09:13 Whether it's food, whether it's sex, 09:16 some of these core things of life and his plan 09:19 is to pervert them and hijack them. 09:22 So the earlier he can plant seeds, the better off it is. 09:29 And so long story short, that was my first exposure to it. 09:31 Of course, that was back in the day 09:33 that there wasn't much access, but the seeds were planted. 09:38 And as any man knows, 'cause I counsel with many, many men. 09:43 This is, and you read in the Bible. 09:45 I mean, this is the stumbling block 09:46 of all stumbling blocks for men. 09:49 And so that was the seed that was planted 09:53 early on pre-puberty. 09:56 - There's a, and I won't mention, 09:58 but an international men's group that Barna, 10:02 I think did a study on not too long ago. 10:04 And these are all the high quality top men, you know, 10:07 that are professing God out there. 10:09 And at that time, this is an older study, 10:11 I'm sure it's more now. 10:12 - Yeah. 10:13 - 40% of those men were hooked on pornography. 10:16 - Yeah. 10:17 - It is probably the worst thing that's happened 10:19 in the world. 10:20 - Yeah. 10:21 - At this point in time and so-- 10:22 - And it used to be that you had to go looking for it. 10:24 - Right. 10:26 - And now it comes right to you, right into your home. 10:27 It's there in your hand, on your phone. 10:29 - Exactly. 10:30 - So, so many people who would never 10:33 have gone out seeking that kind of thing, 10:36 it comes to them and gets them in a... 10:39 It's just much easier to snag people. 10:42 - Right. 10:43 Right. 10:44 It's the perfect thing for addiction 10:46 because you're in isolation, 10:48 it's anonymous and it costs nothing. 10:52 All of these doors just open wide to our young men 10:56 and women. 10:58 It's both in today's world. 11:00 - Well, I wanna get into what happened to you, 11:04 how you got away from that but you told me 11:06 you have an office that's air conditioned. 11:08 Do you mind if we head down there 11:09 and we'll talk down there about it? 11:11 - Sure. 11:12 - All right, sounds good. 11:13 Yep. 11:15 - I felt like Satan was constantly nipping 11:18 at my heels and I just couldn't catch my breath. 11:20 I was grieving. 11:22 I felt scared, confused, anxious, and depressed. 11:26 My life was literally turned upside down and falling apart. 11:31 I didn't know what to do, but I knew who had the answers. 11:35 Can you relate? 11:37 This amazing study guide changed my life. 11:41 Are you ready for a dramatic change in your life? 11:44 This 12 week study guide, will guide you on your journey 11:48 of transformation. 11:50 This study is packed with powerful content 11:53 to lead you on an encounter with Jesus. 11:56 Jesus will use this study as a tool to change your life. 12:00 As he did mine. 12:02 Order your copy today, to experience your transformation. 12:06 Log on to talkingdonkeyinternational.org. 12:12 - Marty I'm so glad you had the idea actually 12:14 of the man cave down here. 12:16 It's really great, it's cooler. 12:18 - And I have to admit that I was actually wrong 12:21 about something. 12:22 I know, 12:23 - Would you kind of restate - You've never heard 12:24 that before, right. 12:26 (All laugh) 12:27 Because up in the garage with all those tools, 12:28 I thought I was in the man cave. 12:30 This is the man cave. 12:32 - It's true Axes and knives, and well, 12:34 I don't see the knives. 12:35 He's probably got those outta the desk. 12:36 - Yeah. 12:39 - But Marty kind of, you know, we don't wanna leave people 12:41 hanging you had a problem and you're gonna tell us 12:44 how on earth you got out of that? 12:46 - Well, you know, like I was saying, 12:48 this is something that seeds are planted early, 12:51 they germinate, they sometimes go dormant, 12:55 but the roots are still there. 12:57 And you know, when you start having to face yourself, 13:00 you come... 13:01 For me, work was an addiction, kind of the workaholic. 13:07 I kind of came to the end of myself in that career path 13:10 of education after about 30 years. 13:13 And at the same time I was struggling through 13:15 this issue in my life. 13:18 And what I was also dealing with was having young men 13:21 coming to me saying, "I need help." 13:24 And so it was like, let's do this, you know, 13:27 I need to address this in my life. 13:29 And I hear these young men needing 13:31 to address it in their life. 13:33 And so you in a naive way, think, you know, 13:36 let's just deal with this. 13:37 But it's a long journey that God uses to heal. 13:42 I've heard it said this way. 13:44 "God heals rarely through a lightning bolt. 13:47 "It's mostly more like a river, it's over time 13:50 "and it's more gentle." 13:52 He wants a relationship with us. 13:54 And so I have learned to actually appreciate that, 13:58 'cause it makes me depend on him. 14:01 And so that's the beauty of it is ultimately 14:04 he wants our heart. 14:06 - You are a Christian. 14:08 - [Marty] Oh yeah. 14:09 - 30 years you had this problem. 14:11 You're teaching, you're instructing others 14:14 in the ways of God. 14:15 - [Marty] Yeah. 14:16 - But how does that work? 14:18 - Well, it's a very common situation actually 14:24 in the American landscape about half the pastors 14:27 are struggling in some way with sexual sin. 14:30 - [Jim] One half. 14:31 - Yeah. 14:32 And of course surveys are all over the place, 14:34 but that's what I've seen pretty consistently. 14:37 And much higher than that for the guys in the pew. 14:40 And there's a lot of pressure for those of us 14:44 that are in Christian leadership, 14:47 pastors and teachers to do things that are right. 14:50 So we can't be real. 14:51 We can't actually talk about it, but that is a trap. 14:58 - You're supposed to be an example. 14:58 - Exactly. 14:59 - So you can't admit, "Oh, by the way, 15:00 "I've got the same problems you do. 15:01 "I struggle with the same thing." 15:02 - I'll pray for you. 15:03 - Yes. 15:04 - But it takes-- - And I also think, 15:06 as I was saying upstairs, that it used to be you had 15:10 to more actively go and seek, 15:12 - [Marty] Right. 15:13 - Sexual sin. 15:14 - [Marty] Right. 15:15 - And now it's just the whole culture. 15:16 - [Marty] Exactly. 15:17 - You're just steeped in it. 15:18 You can't turn on your computer, your phone, 15:19 your television. 15:21 - [Marty] Right. 15:22 - When you said 50% of pastors are dealing with this, 15:26 my first thought was yeah, and the other 50% 15:28 don't have computers. 15:31 - Well, you know, we don't meddle too much, 15:34 but you know, it's... 15:36 Surveys are only good as the responses, you know, 15:38 and it could be higher, but we know it's a problem. 15:41 And that's what really matters. 15:43 Now, I wanna just do a real interesting jump 15:47 into the axes behind me here, okay? 15:50 They're not there for just-- 15:51 - [Janice] Oh oh. 15:52 - They're not just there for no reason, okay? 15:55 One of my favorite texts is from Proverbs 27:17. 15:59 And everybody's probably heard of this text 16:02 and it's, as iron sharpens iron, 16:05 so does one man sharpen the countenance of his friends. 16:09 That's one translation, the Old King James, 16:11 but basically the idea of we need a brotherhood. 16:16 We need others in our lives to bring us 16:19 to a better sharper place. 16:22 Now with me, it was these young men coming to me saying, 16:26 "I need help and I'm going"... 16:28 So it can work both directions. 16:29 A young man can come to an older man and say 16:33 that they need help. 16:34 But in an a roundabout way, it's a way for an older man 16:37 to say, "You know what, I need to step it up here too." 16:41 And as I've thought about my name, my birth name, 16:45 Marty 16:46 Miller, 16:48 and I've dissected what the meaning of the name is 16:51 any name that starts with M-A-R is Mars, 16:54 which is warrior. 16:56 So I'm a warrior, Mars, Marty 16:59 and Miller is a grain grinder. 17:01 So I'm a warrior grain grinder. 17:02 And I thought to myself, "How strange is that?" 17:05 You know. 17:06 But immediately my mind went to the Bible character. 17:09 That was a warrior grain grinder. 17:10 And who's that? 17:11 - Gideon. 17:12 - Gideon. 17:13 And so Gideon, the age the Lord came to him and said, 17:16 "You mighty man of valor," and he's hiding out grinding. 17:18 - I was thinking, how much of a warrior? 17:20 He was not a warrior grain grinder at that moment. 17:22 - No, he was very scared, basically. 17:27 He was living in fear and in isolation 17:32 and God calls him up. 17:33 And so the first thing that he asked him to do 17:36 after he did the fleece thing, we know the story. 17:38 But the first thing he did was he went 17:40 to the grove of trees where the altar of Baal was. 17:45 And he took down those idols and all-- 17:48 - At night when nobody could see. 17:50 - Yes, at night when nobody... 17:52 But here's the key thing is that all of the idolatry 17:56 of the day, it was always laced with sexual imorality. 18:01 And so I believe that that is the lesson for me 18:04 and every other man, is that if he is going 18:07 to use you as a mighty man, as a warrior, 18:12 you're gonna have to deal with your stuff. 18:14 And it's not a matter of, you know, 18:16 if you're going to, it's when. 18:19 And it's better now than later, 18:21 because I've had so many men in this office 18:24 that have marriages that have been destroyed 18:26 because of this. 18:27 And so when I have unpacked a name Gideon, 18:31 it's fascinating to know that his name 18:34 actually means hewer and destroyer and woodsman. 18:40 And the axes to me are a reminder 18:43 that every man needs to destroy whatever altar, 18:48 excuse me, idol that's in his life 18:50 and without doing that, he's not going to be effective. 18:54 And so that was my story about saying, 18:58 "I'm taking ownership of this." 19:01 And I'm transitioning from being a grain grinder, 19:03 which is somebody that's, you know, 19:06 teaching, words, basically. 19:09 You think about words like grain, like seed 19:11 and grinding it up and I'm giving to my students 19:13 and saying, "Go do something with this." 19:16 But he says, "No, in your later years, 19:19 "you're gonna be a warrior." 19:22 And so that's been a really huge transition, 19:27 but it's a... 19:31 I can't say enough for those of us that are older. 19:34 It's like, it's not time to lay down. 19:37 It just fade into the sunset. 19:40 It's time to take up your sword. 19:43 We've gotta go into the promised land. 19:46 And just like the Israelites of old, 19:48 they fell into sexual sin at the front end 19:50 and at the back end. 19:52 The enemy is after this church with every man and woman. 19:57 And we can't take it lightly. 20:00 - And there's a lot of viewers that, you know, 20:02 they're not in your classes, they're not 20:03 in your men's group. 20:04 - [Marty] Right. 20:06 - What would you say to them? 20:07 How does that actually work? 20:08 Give us some, if you would, give us some really solid 20:11 basics for the folks out there to grab onto. 20:14 - Right. 20:15 Well, most men from what I understand, 20:17 what I not understand, what I've observed 20:20 over and over in my own life is that guys go 20:23 from a experience in life where they're with a bunch 20:26 of friends and going through school, 20:29 they get married to the love of their life, 20:31 many of them, they have a family, 20:33 the career crush is going on and whatever issues 20:38 are in the background, because now they're in isolation, 20:43 start blowing up. 20:44 Whether it's alcohol, sex, you name it. 20:47 You pick your flavor. 20:48 Whatever's there is gonna blow up on him. 20:51 And so most of the time, every, almost every man I know 20:57 that gets into a deep, rock solid 21:01 relationship with God has had to come 21:03 to the end of themselves. 21:05 They have to come to a point of brokenness 21:07 to really understand the love of God. 21:11 'Cause as long as you play the game 21:13 that I'm doing good. 21:15 And I'm fine. 21:17 And just putting masks up, God will never get through. 21:23 - I've never seen... 21:24 I want you to keep going on that trail. 21:26 I just wanna say, I've ever seen 21:27 the devil give us something that actually is good 21:31 for any length of time. 21:32 - No, no, no. 21:34 It always comes back to bite you. 21:36 - Big time. 21:37 - [Marty] Yeah. 21:38 - I've seen so many, so many guys 21:39 destroys the family, destroys the church, 21:42 destroys everything. 21:43 - [Marty] Right. 21:44 - Their whole life. 21:45 - Whether it's gambling, drinking, pornography, 21:47 it's always a lot of fun at the beginning. 21:49 - Yeah. 21:50 You know, in some ways you can't drink everywhere, 21:52 you know, but pornography, you can hide it everywhere, 21:54 you know, and that's easy. 21:56 - And what I'll say to women sometimes 21:58 that are trying to understand their husband 22:01 is that, you know, if you like chocolate, right. 22:04 And most women-- 22:05 - Oh. 22:06 (Jim laughs) 22:07 - Boy, he has me pegged out. 22:08 - He got you really good. 22:08 (Janice laughs) 22:09 - And what if you had chocolate in your purse, 22:10 on your nightstand, in your glove box, 22:14 everywhere was chocolate. 22:16 You might have a snack once in a while. 22:19 And I'm not making any excuses, 22:21 but that's the kind of world most men 22:23 are facing in today's world. 22:26 - Well, that's what I meant about, 22:27 it's harder nowadays than it was for my father 22:30 or certainly my grandfather. 22:32 - [Marty] Absolutely. 22:33 - Because you are surrounded with the temptation. 22:35 - [Marty] Right. 22:36 Right. 22:37 - Yeah. 22:38 - So I really just kind of wrapping things up 22:42 is to just say that, you know, 22:44 I know that, back to the small group experience 22:48 this is many men, how they come. 22:52 This is an axe head, 22:53 I found this in the woods. 22:55 - [Jim] It's pretty rusty. 22:56 - Very rusty, very dull, it has no handle. 23:00 And yet this has the potential of being restored, 23:03 doesn't it? 23:04 I can take this, I can Polish it up. 23:06 I can sharpen it. 23:07 I can put a handle on it. 23:09 And it will be just as good as ever, right? 23:12 And that's what God wants to do in every one of our lives. 23:14 But we cannot have that happen in isolation. 23:17 God created us to be in community. 23:20 And you look at the nature in the animal kingdom, 23:23 males alone, 23:26 most men, alone, 23:27 even the guys that might go golfing together, 23:29 and do things together. 23:32 Shallow, shallow relationships. 23:35 We need honest conversations. 23:37 We need allies that are fighting the same battle with us 23:40 in a small group. 23:42 Where we're real, where hard questions are being asked. 23:45 But one of the first questions I ask guys 23:47 is if it's iron sharpens iron, you don't add anything 23:53 until you've removed. 23:54 So if I'm gonna wanna sharpen this blade, 23:57 it's all about, I gotta get rid of the dull. 24:00 And so God's design is, that he wants to remove the dull. 24:06 All of the stuff that's sticking to us, 24:09 making us ineffective. 24:12 - I felt like Satan was constantly nipping at my heels 24:15 and I just couldn't catch my breath. 24:18 I was grieving. 24:19 I felt scared, confused, anxious and depressed. 24:23 My life was literally turned upside down and falling apart. 24:28 I didn't know what to do, but I knew who had the answers. 24:32 Can you relate? 24:34 This amazing study guide changed my life. 24:37 In 12 weeks, I caught my breath. 24:40 My faith grew stronger. 24:41 My confusion turned to clarity, my anxiety lessened, 24:46 my depression eased. 24:48 I let myself be held in the arms of Jesus 24:51 and he calmed my aching heart. 24:55 Are you ready for a dramatic change in your life? 24:58 This 12 week study guide will guide you on your journey 25:02 of transformation. 25:04 This study is packed with powerful content 25:07 to lead you on an encounter with Jesus. 25:10 Jesus will use this study as a tool to change your life. 25:15 As he did mine. 25:16 Order your copy today to experience your transformation. 25:21 log onto talkingdonkeyinternational.org. 25:27 - I used to be a drug dealer, an alcoholic, 25:29 and a thief along with far too many other things to mention. 25:33 You know, I kidded myself that I was great. 25:35 Life was great. 25:36 But knowing there was a massive void in my life. 25:40 I'd like to offer you a pamphlet called breaking addictions. 25:43 You know, addictions come in all types shapes and sizes, 25:46 but you don't need to be chained to them any longer. 25:50 Go to talkingdonkeyinternational.org 25:52 and order your free copy today. 25:54 Request offer 101, breaking addictions. 25:58 Remember it's completely free. 26:01 Marty, we've only got a minute or so left, 26:03 but we started out in the man cave. 26:05 And I don't wanna leave that because we said 26:07 we'd explain it. 26:08 - Yep. 26:09 Well, one of the first times that I had a young men's group 26:12 was actually in my garage up there. 26:14 We sat in, you know, camp chairs 26:17 and we went through 12 weeks of two hours 26:22 every once a week in the evening. 26:25 - [Janice] What made you pick the garage rather 26:26 than the living room with comfy couches? 26:28 - Well, it's just, I felt led to be in that environment. 26:33 I think guys get that. 26:34 It's a place where-- 26:36 - [Janice] They're more comfortable? 26:37 - It represents what's really going on. 26:40 We did a retreat a few years ago. 26:42 We call it broken beauty. 26:43 It's because God is all about taking brokenness 26:47 and making it into something beautiful. 26:49 In fact, better than what it would've been. 26:53 You've ever seen a car that's been restored better than new. 26:56 That's what he wants to do with us. 26:59 - You came up, I asked you for a title for this episode, 27:01 you came up with a title that I thought was brilliant. 27:04 Would you tell us what that title was as we wrap? 27:06 - Yeah. 27:07 Well, it's just, The End of Myself. 27:09 And I really believe, and I've already alluded to this, 27:12 that God and his love for us, he allows us freedom 27:18 to do as we choose. 27:19 But in the end we discover 27:22 that all the freedom in the world without him 27:25 leads to destruction. 27:26 And you come to the end of yourself, 27:28 you're able to face yourself in a way 27:31 that you wouldn't if you were kept on a short leash 27:34 and controlled. 27:36 And so men to come 27:39 to the end of themselves is actually the beginning 27:45 of coming to know God. 27:46 - And the coming of happiness too. 27:48 - Yes. 27:49 - Marty, thank you so much, man. 27:50 Appreciate it. 27:51 - You're welcome. 27:52 Glad to be here. 27:53 - Thanks for allowing me in the man cave. 27:54 - Yeah. 27:55 (gentle music) 28:01 - Thank you for watching. 28:02 Join us again for another exciting, "Country Wisdom." 28:04 - See you next time. 28:06 (gentle music) |
Revised 2022-04-08