Participants:
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC201929S
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00:02 one of those reality TV shows
00:04 where the experts come in and 00:05 they renovate the family house 00:07 and they change the wardrobe and 00:08 they change the hairstyles and 00:10 they even change the menu. 00:12 >> Most people think this is 00:14 what Christianity is like. It's 00:16 a home improvement project. 00:18 >> I used to think that becoming 00:20 a Christian is becoming the best 00:23 version of me. I really didn't 00:25 understand what happens when God 00:28 comes into my life. I thought 00:30 that it was this home 00:32 improvement plan, kind of like a 00:33 renovation. 00:34 >> Well, that's not what it's 00:36 like at all. When you become a 00:39 Christian, you don't become a 00:40 new version of yourself. 00:42 II Corinthians 5:17 says, 00:45 "Therefore, if anyone is in 00:47 Christ, he is a new creation. 00:50 Old things have passed away; 00:52 behold all things have become 00:54 new." 00:56 >> So how does that work? Well, 00:58 Galations chapter 2 verse 20 01:00 puts it this way: "I am 01:02 crucified with Christ." That 01:04 means I die. "Nevertheless I 01:06 live." What? I die, but I live? 01:12 Well, the verse goes on: "Yet 01:14 not I, but Christ liveth in me: 01:17 and the life which I now live in 01:19 the flesh I live by the faith of 01:21 the Son of God, who loved me, 01:23 and gave Himself for me." 01:26 >> You see, I, the old "I", the 01:29 sin-loving "I" must die. The old 01:32 selfish and self-centered me 01:34 must be crucified. 01:36 >> And once the old "I" dies, 01:39 then the true "I" is born. "Yet 01:41 not I, but Christ lives in me." 01:45 God is saying your old house has 01:47 to be burned to the ground, 01:49 bulldozed, and the remains 01:50 dumped into a land fill and 01:52 buried. This is definitely not a 01:55 home renovation. 01:57 >> The new house where God lives 01:59 is called a temple for His Holy 02:01 Spirit. The old, dirty shack is 02:04 reduced to ashes and now I 02:07 become a sacred temple. 02:09 >> So the old you is now gone 02:12 and Paul says that you must die 02:14 daily. And you are willing to do 02:16 that because once you have 02:18 tasted and seen what happens 02:20 when God comes into your life, 02:22 you never want to go back to 02:24 living a life without Him. 02:27 >> That is exactly what happened 02:28 to our guest who we will be 02:30 talking to today. His name is Dr. 02:33 David Sloan and we will be right 02:35 back to let him share his 02:37 amazing story of what happened 02:40 when God came into his life. 02:43 ♪♪ 03:05 >> So, Dr. Sloan, thank you so 03:07 much for joining us on It Is 03:08 Written Canada and you're going 03:10 to share your story with us. 03:12 >> I look forward to that. Thank 03:13 you. 03:14 >> So, Dr. Sloan, let's go back 03:16 to the beginning. Where were you 03:18 born and what was your 03:19 upbringing like? 03:21 >> Well, I was actually born out 03:23 west in Saskatchewan. I was the 03:27 eldest son of a United Church 03:29 minister so I was a preacher's 03:31 kid. I was the eldest of four 03:34 boys. We lived there just for a 03:37 few months and moved to Toronto 03:39 and for many years of my life 03:41 I've lived in the Greater 03:42 Toronto Area. 03:46 >> So pastors; they move quite a 03:48 bit and you had other interests, 03:50 I believe, that you had a great 03:51 interest in music and that was a 03:53 part of your growing up. 03:54 >> Absolutely. My parents 03:57 "forced" me to take piano 04:00 lessons, but I'm very glad that 04:02 they did, you know, I'd rather 04:04 be out playing sports and so on, 04:06 but thankfully they persevered 04:09 with me. Might have seen 04:11 something, you know, that might 04:14 have led them to believe that 04:15 there was something there, 04:16 musically. But in time, you 04:20 know, church choirs and school 04:22 bands and things like that 04:25 developed a real interest. I 04:30 remember seeing the Beatles on 04:31 Ed Sullivan, that kind of caught 04:34 my imagination so in time I met 04:38 a fellow at the University of 04:40 Toronto when I was attending 04:42 there who -- we had both 04:44 responded to an audition for a 04:46 band. And we got together 04:50 ourselves and thought, well, I 04:51 think maybe we could actually 04:53 start our own band. So we did. 04:56 And in time we graduated from 05:00 the garage or the basement and 05:03 found a manager and we were, 05:06 before we knew it, touring all 05:09 over pretty much all of Canada. 05:11 >> Wow. That was pretty 05:12 successful? 05:13 >> Yes, it was. And it was an 05:17 interesting experience. I would 05:21 say that, you know, from my 05:24 Christian experience, you know, 05:27 growing up in a Christian home, 05:28 that I had drifted away from my 05:32 spiritual roots to the point 05:36 where I really didn't think of 05:38 God anymore. It was actually 05:41 just completely out of my mind. 05:45 I was just so wrapped up in what 05:47 I was doing. 05:49 >> So, Dr. Sloan, you mentioned 05:51 that you got so absorbed in the 05:54 music industry that you had 05:56 almost forgotten about God and 05:58 put Him on the backburner, but 06:01 we know that God doesn't forget 06:02 about us. 06:03 >> Yes, that's very 06:04 true, Rene. The band was getting 06:08 rave reviews, we were -- the 06:10 crowds were going crazy. We had 06:14 the oportunity to audition for a 06:18 recording contract. And so all 06:21 of these things were happening 06:23 and so, you know, as I think 06:26 back, my mind was just so 06:29 involved with these things I 06:30 didn't even think about God. 06:33 >> So, you're immersed in what 06:35 seems to be, like, great 06:37 success, right? And something -- 06:40 I believe you had an encounter 06:42 in the midst of this and that's 06:44 what really spoke to me when you 06:45 were sharing that. So do you 06:46 want to share this? 06:47 >> Yes, it was just a surreal 06:50 experience. We were touring out 06:52 west, we were in Edmonton at the 06:55 time at the Riviera Hotel. I 06:56 still remember everything very 06:58 clearly. And it was a weeknight 07:02 and so there were very few 07:04 people in the audience. There 07:06 was just the -- typically the 07:08 people that would be heavy 07:09 drinkers, they would come 07:11 through the week and so in 07:13 between our sets we would just 07:15 basically not want to go into 07:17 the audience and talk to anybody 07:20 because they weren't really -- 07:21 they didn't have much to talk 07:22 about. And so we would make a 07:25 bee-line to our rooms and come 07:28 back and do the next set. But on 07:30 this particular night, there was 07:32 a fellow sitting there and he 07:34 was just paying rapt attention 07:36 to us. He was -- and so when we 07:39 finished our set he says, "Come 07:42 on over and sit down, I want to 07:43 talk to you guys." So, Bob and 07:45 I, my close friend and the 07:47 fellow that co-founded the band 07:49 with me, we sat down with him, 07:52 introduced himself to us and 07:54 said, "You know, you guys are 07:57 terrific! And I can say that 08:01 with, you know, some credibility 08:03 because I used to be in a rock 08:06 band. I was a drummer." And so 08:08 we kind of took to him. He was 08:10 very, you know, complimentary. 08:13 And so in a few minutes we kind 08:17 of got towards asking him, 08:20 "Well, why did you come here 08:22 tonight, on a weeknight?", you 08:28 know, "You don't go to bars." He 08:30 had told us he didn't really go 08:32 to bars anymore. 08:34 >> And he's not a drinker, he's 08:36 just conscious, he's like 08:37 completely clear and sober... 08:39 >> So, it was just, you know, I 08:41 just kind of just felt I needed 08:42 to, you know, find out a little 08:44 bit more about why this guy was 08:45 here. 08:46 >> Pretty intriguing! 08:47 >> So, he said, "Well, God told 08:53 me to be here tonight." And, you 08:55 know, Bob and I are just sitting 08:57 there, we're just thinking, "Oh, 08:58 boy, this guy is...", you know. 09:02 And so I said, "You say that God 09:06 told you to come here tonight?" 09:08 "Yes, in fact, He did." And I 09:12 said, "How can that happen? How 09:15 did that..?" You know. So, he 09:17 said, "Well, I had a clear voice 09:20 in my mind telling me that I 09:23 needed to go to the Riviera 09:24 Tavern tonight. And I had gotten 09:31 away from rock music, I had had 09:33 a spiritual rebirth, so I just 09:36 didn't do those things. I didn't 09:37 go to bars, I didn't drink, I 09:38 didn't do the rock music 09:40 anymore." And so I questioned 09:44 whether this was God speaking to 09:46 me or whether it was the Devil. 09:47 >> So this is what he's saying 09:48 to you. 09:49 >> This is what he's saying to 09:49 me and to Bob. And we were all 09:52 kind of just a little bit, you 09:54 know, uncomfortable about this 09:56 discussion. And so he said, "I 09:59 put it out of my mind and it 10:02 came back again and this time it 10:06 was even more forceful. And so I 10:10 went to my wife and I said to 10:13 her, you know, 'I have this 10:14 voice that's telling me to go to 10:15 this Riviera Tavern in downtown 10:18 Edmonton and I don't know what 10:22 to think of it.'" So she said, 10:26 "Well, if it's persistent and 10:29 you really feel that you need to 10:31 do that, well, maybe you should. 10:33 Maybe it is God telling you to 10:34 do that." So they prayed about 10:36 it. And he said, "And I came 10:40 here and now I know why I'm 10:42 here." And I looked at him and I 10:45 said, "And why is that?" Without 10:49 hesitation he pointed his finger 10:51 at Bob and myself and he said, 10:52 "Because God wants you." Well, 10:58 at that point, Bob was very 11:00 uncomfortable and he kind of 11:02 made his exit, but I was riveted 11:06 and I just could not -- 11:10 >> Couldn't shake it. 11:11 >> Yes, I was really torn, you 11:13 know. I said, "Well, what makes 11:17 you say that?" "Well, because 11:20 now I know that God has sent me 11:24 here on this particular night, 11:26 this particular bar, on this 11:29 particular occasion to come and 11:34 make my case for Jesus to you." 11:42 And so, rather shaken, it was 11:46 time for us to get up and play 11:47 our next set. So we played the 11:49 next set, he still was there. 11:51 And through this whole exchange 11:55 I was just, "Should I sit down 11:56 with him? Should I not? 11:57 Should I -- " 11:58 But I was so intrigued with 11:59 this. How could this happen, 12:01 that out of nowhere this guy 12:03 doesn't know me, I've never seen 12:06 him before in my life, I just, 12:10 you know. So I sat down with him 12:12 again and we talked, but he'd 12:14 always come back to this: 12:16 "David, you need to give your 12:18 heart to Jesus." And I said, 12:21 "Really?" And I said, "I grew up 12:24 in a Christian home and I've 12:28 gone to church all my life, 12:30 we're doing this thing with the 12:32 band and I don't feel I really 12:35 need God. I haven't really felt 12:38 that...", you know. But he said, 12:40 "But you do need God, you do 12:42 need the Lord, I can tell 12:44 you -- " (chuckles) 12:45 So we finished out 12:48 our night and he said, "I still 12:51 want to talk to you." And I 12:54 said, "Well, we can go back to 12:56 my room and we can talk a little 12:59 bit more." So we talked and 13:06 talked and talked and it wasn't 13:08 always about this, but he kept 13:10 coming back to it: "David, you 13:12 need to give your heart to the 13:13 Lord." "But I grew up in a home 13:15 -- it's already done." He says, 13:17 "No, it's not done. You haven't 13:18 given your heart to Jesus." So 13:23 he said, "I'll tell you what. I 13:25 want yo think about this 13:27 tonight and I'm going to come 13:29 back tomorrow and I want to take 13:31 you around Edmonton and show you 13:33 the sights of the city, my 13:35 favourite parts of the city. And 13:38 then my wife wants you to come 13:41 back and we're going to have a 13:44 nice home-cooked meal for you." 13:45 Now, being in the band and 13:48 traveling on the road, getting a 13:50 home-cooked meal is extremely 13:54 tempting. And I just, you know, 13:58 I thought about that. I said, 14:01 "OK, alright. I'll be here." We 14:03 arranged a time for him to come 14:05 back. But what I want to share 14:07 with you is that that night, 14:09 that I tried to sleep and I 14:12 didn't sleep the entire night, 14:14 it was -- there was a war in my 14:16 soul because -- and as I look 14:18 back on it, I was being pulled. 14:21 So Jesus was pulling me this 14:23 way, Satan was pulling me this 14:25 way and I was just absolutely -- 14:28 when I woke up I felt that I had 14:30 been beaten up a hundred times. 14:33 I just was so distressed in my 14:35 mind and I just knew that there 14:39 was a battle going on for my 14:41 soul. So Lance came by and -- 14:45 his name's Lance, still remember 14:47 his name -- and he came by, 14:50 picked me up, took me around as 14:51 I said. One of the last places I 14:55 want to take you through this 14:57 park area. And as I recall, the 15:00 weather was kind of cloudy and 15:02 overcast and it was kind of 15:04 spitting, you know, light rain. 15:06 And -- but we got out. And he 15:08 says, "I want to take you 15:09 through these trails." And I 15:11 thought, "What has he got up his 15:13 sleeve now?" (laughter) And so 15:16 as we started walking, he said, 15:18 "David, it's time. You must give 15:22 your heart to the Lord. And, 15:24 really, what is it that's 15:27 holding you back?" And I said, 15:29 "Well, I don't think I'm worthy. 15:32 I've done so much in my life 15:35 that I don't think Jesus could 15:37 accept me." And he said, "Well, 15:39 I've got news for you..." And he 15:42 explained to me that Jesus would 15:43 accept me just as I am, that 15:46 there's no way that I can be 15:49 good enough to come to Jesus. He 15:52 wants us to come as we are; 15:54 broken, sinful. And so I said, 15:58 "OK..." But he said, "There's 16:00 something that's holding you 16:02 back. I think I know what it 16:03 is." I said, "What is it, 16:05 Lance?" He says, "You think that 16:08 if you accept Jesus that He is 16:09 going to take you away from what 16:11 you're doing, that He's going to 16:13 force you out of this band and 16:16 this experience that you're 16:17 going through." And I said, 16:19 "Well, yes, I would say that's 16:21 pretty much a pretty big 16:24 question right now." And he 16:26 said, "Well, I'll tell you what 16:29 my experience was, is that Jesus 16:31 does not force us to do 16:33 anything. It's our choice. But 16:37 what I will say is that if you 16:39 accept Jesus into your heart, it 16:42 will be the best decision that 16:43 you will have ever made in your 16:45 entire life." And he was so 16:47 emphatic that, you know, because 16:50 I, well, you know -- no, you 16:52 know, he just would not let go. 16:54 And as I look back on it, I just 16:58 see how the Lord loves us so 17:01 much that He would not give up 17:06 on us even though we put all 17:08 kinds of obstacles in His way. 17:12 That doesn't stop Him. Thank 17:14 God. And so I said, "OK, so what 17:19 is the next step?" He said, 17:21 "Well, we're going to have a 17:23 prayer." And so he said -- we 17:26 stopped here. In my mind I was 17:28 thinking, "Lord Jesus, if you 17:30 want to accept me and if this is 17:33 what you want for me, I would 17:36 like a sign." And I thought that 17:40 was a little bit audacious at 17:41 the time, but that's what I was 17:44 praying in my heart. I said, 17:45 "Lord show me if this is really 17:47 what you want me to do..." 17:50 >> Because your faith wasn't 17:50 strong at that point. 17:51 >> No, not at all. 17:52 >> So you're looking for a sign, 17:53 give me a sign. 17:54 >> Absolutely. And so, as I say, 17:56 it was cloudy, it was overcast 17:58 and after I prayed that prayer, 18:00 the rain stopped, the sun came 18:02 out and I thought, 18:06 "OK...alright. OK, Lance." We 18:11 knelt down and we prayed. And we 18:13 prayed the sinner's prayer and I 18:16 invited Jesus -- first forgiving 18:18 me for my sins. And he said the 18:21 prayer and had me repeat it 18:22 after him and invited Jesus to 18:26 truly come into my heart. After 18:30 that prayer was over, the clouds 18:34 closed in and it started to rain 18:36 again. I felt certain that Jesus 18:40 was calling me. So true to His 18:46 word, God did not force me out 18:50 of the music business. But it 18:54 was an experience that basically 18:57 pulled the cover, or the 18:59 curtain, so that I could really 19:01 see what I was doing and slowly 19:05 but surely I was realizing that 19:07 I was in the Devil's playground 19:10 and that the music that we were 19:13 playing and the people that 19:15 were, you know, in the bar, you 19:19 know, with the alcohol and the 19:21 mind-numbing affects of that, 19:23 and drugs, and the violence, and 19:27 the car accidents, and the, you 19:29 know, pregnancies, and all of 19:32 the things that just -- it just 19:34 kind of all opened up to me. I 19:37 never ever thought of it before. 19:39 I never even thought about the 19:40 words I was singing. I never 19:41 thought about any of that until 19:44 this experience where God just 19:46 opened my mind to this. It's 19:50 just amazing. 19:52 >> It's sometimes like a veil is 19:54 between us and the spiritual 19:56 world, but when we invite the 19:58 Lord in it's like He lifts that 20:00 veil and we start seeing things. 20:02 And we start seeing the 20:04 spiritual world and we start 20:05 realizing we are not just in 20:08 what we see physically, but 20:10 there's something happening 20:11 behind the scenes and that there 20:13 are principalities and powers, 20:16 as the Scripture says, that we 20:19 are really battling against and 20:20 we need divine guidance. We need 20:23 the Lord to be with us and 20:25 that's why Jesus is our Saviour. 20:27 And you prayed that prayer, He 20:28 came into your life, now He's 20:30 opening your eyes. And He's not 20:32 forcing you, but through His 20:34 Holy Spirit, He's convicting 20:36 you. 20:38 >> And what is so beautiful, 20:39 too, is the way that you 20:40 mentioned God really loves us so 20:43 much. Like he sent Lance and 20:46 Lance listened to His voice and 20:49 He reaches us through other 20:51 people that can work through, 20:54 you know, with Jesus working 20:56 through them and was just 20:58 miraculous that Lance listened, 21:00 and then He gave you those signs 21:03 with the sunshine coming and 21:04 the, you know, and the rain. 21:07 It's just such a beautiful 21:09 testimony, so... 21:10 >> Absolutely. So, Lance didn't 21:15 give up. God didn't give up, and 21:17 He continued working in your 21:18 life. 21:20 >> Yes, it was a gradual thing. 21:21 I stayed with the band some time 21:23 after that. We didn't get the 21:27 recording contract. It was for 21:29 over a million dollars in 21:32 today's money and we were 21:34 excited about it, but the Lord 21:36 did not allow that to happen. 21:38 And our band personnel changed 21:41 and our direction changed 21:43 because of that and as we became 21:46 more, sort of, moving towards 21:50 heavier rock music, that was the 21:52 direction that we had sort of 21:54 felt we should do. I began to 21:58 feel more and more uncomfortable 21:59 about that. Again, when you take 22:06 on Christ, you become a new 22:07 creature as it says in the 22:09 Bible. And so I left the band, I 22:16 went out on my own for a while, 22:17 I found that was very lonely. My 22:21 old manager found a show band 22:24 that I could join and this was 22:29 sort of how I was being led to 22:32 the point where I would leave 22:35 the music industry and the music 22:38 business, in that sense, for 22:40 good. 22:41 >> So God was working graciously 22:44 in your life. And we have a 22:47 song, "Amazing Grace", and it's 22:50 a beautiful song and want to cut 22:51 to that song right now. Listen 22:53 to that song and listen to these 22:54 words, they're so beautiful. 22:57 ♪♪ Amazing grace! How sweet 23:06 ♪♪ the sound 23:08 ♪♪ That saved a wretch like me! 23:19 ♪♪ I once was lost, 23:25 ♪♪ but now am found 23:30 ♪♪ Was blind, but now I see 23:41 ♪♪ 'Twas grace that taught 23:46 ♪♪ my heart to fear 23:52 ♪♪ And grace my fears relieved 24:02 ♪♪ How precious did 24:07 ♪♪ that grace appear 24:13 ♪♪ The hour I first believed 24:25 ♪♪ The Lord has promised 24:31 ♪♪ good to me 24:35 ♪♪ His word my hope secures 24:45 ♪♪ He will my shield 24:51 ♪♪ and portion be 24:56 ♪♪ As long as life endures 25:07 ♪♪ Through many dangers, 25:12 ♪♪ toils, and snares 25:16 ♪♪ I have already come 25:25 ♪♪ 'Tis grace hath brought 25:30 ♪♪ me safe thus far 25:35 ♪♪ And grace will lead me home 25:44 ♪♪ When we've been there 25:50 ♪♪ ten thousand years 25:54 ♪♪ Bright shining as the sun 26:04 ♪♪ We've no less days 26:09 ♪♪ to sing God's praise 26:14 ♪♪ Than when we'd first begun 26:25 ♪♪♪ 26:55 >> "Amazing grace", what 26:57 beautiful words, "that saved a 26:59 wretch like me." And, Dr. Sloan, 27:01 you felt that you were a wretch, 27:04 that you weren't good enough, 27:05 but God saved you because you 27:07 trusted and believed fully in 27:09 Him. 27:10 >> And thank you very much for 27:11 coming in and sharing your 27:13 testimony with us, but we have 27:15 run out of time and you still 27:16 have the second part of your 27:17 testimony and I hope you can 27:19 come back next week. 27:20 >> Yes, I look forward to that. 27:22 >> So, thank you very much, and, Dr. 27:25 Sloan, and also, friends, if you 27:28 have been blessed by this 27:29 testimony we want to just offer 27:30 you this offer. And this is a 27:32 beautiful book, Steps to Christ, 27:33 and it has blessed me so much. 27:35 And so the information is on the 27:37 screen and we also want to 27:38 invite you to follow us on 27:40 Instagram at 27:42 is_it_written_canada, underscore 27:43 between each word. And so let's 27:46 just close with a word of 27:48 prayer, let's just bow our 27:49 heads. Father in heaven, we 27:51 thank You so much for the 27:55 persistence with which You come 27:56 after us as You did through 27:59 Lance with Dr. Sloan, how You 28:02 worked through him and how the 28:05 Holy Spirit did not give up in 28:06 convicting Dr. Slaon. And I 28:08 thank You, Lord, that You do 28:10 that for each one of us. And I 28:11 pray, Lord, that if there is 28:13 anyone listening to my voice 28:14 right now who is in any way 28:16 resistant, that You will give 28:17 them strength to overcome and 28:19 that they will surrender their 28:20 lives to You. I thank You for 28:21 hearing and answering our 28:23 prayer. In Jesus' name, amen. 28:27 So, friends, we thank you so 28:28 much for joining us on It Is 28:31 Written Canada. And I just want 28:32 to remind you of the words of 28:33 Jesus where He said, "It is 28:35 written, man shall not live by 28:36 bread alone, but by every word 28:38 that proceeds out of the mouth 28:40 of God." |
Revised 2020-04-17