Participants:
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC202223S
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00:45 >> Hello and welcome to It Is 00:46 Written Canada. 00:47 Thank you for joining us. 00:48 Rémy Ballais is the face of the 00:50 It Is Written Canada French 00:52 program, Il Et Écrit with its 00:54 broadcasting studios located 00:56 right here in Montreal, Quebec. 00:59 [RENÉ] Today we are so excited 01:01 to be meeting Rémy who has 01:02 agreed to share some of his 01:04 story of how God has led in 01:07 his life. 01:08 Rémy, welcome to It Is Written 01:11 Canada. 01:12 >> Thank you for having me with 01:13 you in this show. 01:15 >> And thank you for welcoming 01:16 us into your studio here in 01:19 Montreal. 01:21 >> So, Rémy, you have a family, 01:25 tell us a little bit about your 01:26 family and then we can talk 01:27 about your background. 01:28 [RÉMY] Yes. 01:29 I'm from France, I was born and 01:31 raised in a Christian family, 01:33 an Adventist family, I have one 01:35 brother and, yes, I enjoyed 01:40 living close to Paris that time. 01:42 I lived in the suburb around 01:46 Paris for 18 years. 01:49 My parents were very much 01:52 involved, committed Christian, 01:54 involved in the church. 01:55 My dad was an elder in church, 01:58 my mom was, she was a musician, 02:01 she was a choir director. 02:04 So music is a part of my-- has 02:08 been a part of my life 02:09 for many years. 02:11 [MIKE] So the music rubbed off 02:12 on you, you are a singer... 02:15 [RÉMY] Yes, I'm not a soloist, 02:17 but I love to sing, sing in 02:22 choir, sing with group... 02:25 So right now I sing with a 02:27 group of five and I enjoy it. 02:30 I met my wife in France, she's 02:31 from Denmark. 02:33 She came to France to study 02:34 French, French language and we 02:37 met there in Collonges for 02:39 those who may know, close to 02:42 Geneva. 02:44 And so, yeah, we met there, we 02:48 fell in love and were married. 02:50 >> And now you have children, 02:52 grandchildren? 02:53 >> Two daughters and now three 02:56 grandchildren. 02:59 [RENÉ] Because you grew up as 03:01 an Adventist, did you feel like 03:04 it became-- it was your faith 03:07 or your parents' faith? 03:10 >> At that time I thought it 03:11 was my faith, but when I look 03:15 back at the real story, I'd say 03:18 no, I was just in a Christian 03:20 family and I went to church. 03:24 But when I was 11, 12 the 03:28 reality was that I had kind of a 03:30 double life, double personality. 03:33 At church, the nice little boy, 03:36 I knew my Bible, I could answer 03:38 the questions, but during the 03:40 week, it was something 03:42 completely different. 03:44 I started smoking, read 03:47 magazines that I shouldn't have 03:48 read that age or even later. 03:52 I begin to steal money... 03:58 ...my parents' money actually, 04:01 not proud of that, but was part 04:04 of my life at that time. 04:05 And so two different lives. 04:09 >> Were your parents aware 04:10 of this? 04:11 [RÉMY] Not really. 04:12 I was good at pretending to be 04:15 a good Christian, they didn't 04:17 know, they know now, but at 04:20 that time they thought I was a 04:22 good boy. 04:24 And so what happened that-- is 04:28 that when I turned 13, we went 04:32 to, not a camp meeting, kind of 04:34 a spiritual gathering. 04:37 I went with my parents because 04:39 at that age I would follow them 04:42 everywhere and God was about to 04:46 surprise me at that meeting. 04:48 >> So there was a big influence 04:50 at that gathering... 04:51 >> Oh, yes. 04:52 >> ...that helped you to find 04:55 who you really were, like, you 04:57 were obviously struggling 04:59 'cause you were trying to be 05:00 one person at church and 05:02 another person, really, in your 05:04 private life. 05:05 >> I didn't realize that I was 05:07 lying to myself and to my 05:09 parents and to everybody, see? 05:12 But, yes, at that gathering 05:14 something happened that changed 05:16 my life. 05:16 It was a five-day gathering. 05:19 One day I saw my dad speaking 05:23 with a man, I was around, and 05:27 what caught my attention is 05:29 that this man was stuttering. 05:33 So I listened to him and I 05:34 thought, "Oh, poor man, life 05:37 must be hard for him." 05:40 And then I left. 05:43 The day after, came the same 05:48 place, there was a meeting, a 05:50 devotional in the morning, I 05:52 looked at the platform and on 05:54 the platform I saw three 05:56 people, three men. 05:59 One of the three men was the 06:01 guy I had heard stuttering the 06:03 previous day and I thought, 06:06 "No, no way, he's not going to 06:09 speak to-- it's not possible." 06:12 Then I thought, "Well, maybe 06:14 he's gonna announce a song or 06:16 something like that." 06:18 There was a song, there was a 06:20 prayer, the man was still 06:22 sitting there on the platform. 06:24 Then they presented the speaker 06:27 for the devotion that day. 06:31 The man stood up, came to the 06:33 microphone. 06:35 So I was there looking at him 06:38 and my ears wide open. 06:41 He started speaking, one, two 06:44 sentence was a bit hard and all 06:47 of a sudden he spoke just like 06:49 you and me and he preached for 06:52 20 minutes without stuttering. 06:56 For me it was...it was-- 06:58 I was stunned. 07:00 What's going on? 07:03 I was witnessing a miracle. 07:05 Maybe I should just tell you 07:07 the story of this man 'cause 07:09 it's very amazing. 07:11 This man was a pastor, in fact. 07:13 He was a pastor, his name was 07:15 Andrew, André in French, and 07:18 Andrew was born and raised in a 07:22 Christian family. 07:23 At age 15, he felt called to 07:28 pastoral ministry. 07:30 So he decided to go to the 07:33 university to study theology. 07:36 He studied for one year and 07:37 after the first year, the 07:39 professor said, "We need to 07:42 have a meeting with you." 07:43 So they met. 07:45 They told him, "Andrew, you're 07:47 such a wonderful Christian and 07:50 you're a good student, but, 07:52 Andrew, you've got to know that 07:54 it will be hard for you to be a 07:55 pastor," 'cause, you know, 07:58 Michael, being a pastor is 07:59 about speaking, it's about 08:01 telling the Word, it's about 08:02 giving Bible studies, preaching. 08:06 They told him, "Maybe God wants 08:09 you to be a good church member, 08:12 maybe an elder, but it will be 08:13 hard for you to be a pastor. 08:16 If you want to continue 08:17 studying theology, you're more 08:18 than welcome, but we had to 08:21 tell you that." 08:24 Was heartbreaking for him. 08:27 He went to his room, knelt down 08:29 and prayed and said to the 08:31 Lord, "Lord, they are 08:33 absolutely right, I can't be a 08:36 pastor with the problem I have. 08:39 So, Lord, if You want me to be 08:42 a good church member, it's 08:44 okay, I will serve You with all 08:46 my heart, but if You want me to 08:48 be a pastor, You've got to do 08:50 something for me." 08:53 From that day, every time he 08:56 had to preach or give a Bible 08:59 study, he wouldn't stutter. 09:03 He would stutter in the daily 09:05 life, but never when he 09:07 preached. 09:08 And I witnessed this miracle on 09:10 that day when I was 13, but 09:12 not only on that day, many 09:13 times later. 09:16 So that's the story of Andrew. 09:18 >> So he would only stutter 09:20 when he was, like, living his 09:22 normal life, but, you know, 09:24 like, day-to-day, with his 09:26 family and with other people... 09:28 [RÉMY] Yes. 09:28 >> ...but when he stood up to 09:29 preach or when he was giving a 09:31 Bible study, no stuttering. 09:32 >> No stuttering. 09:33 >> That's incredible! 09:34 God performed a miracle for 09:36 this man. 09:37 >> Yeah, and miracle, you know, 09:39 during his whole life, I didn't 09:44 know at that time when I was 13, 09:46 it was the first time I met him. 09:49 >> Pastor Rémy, God really 09:51 performed a miracle for 09:53 that man. 09:54 >> For sure. 09:55 [RENÉ] I know what it's like 09:56 because one of my sisters 09:58 stuttered as a little child 10:01 when she was younger and there 10:05 was so much work that went into 10:07 it and yet, this man just was 10:11 healed by God, it's almost like 10:14 God touched his tongue every 10:16 time he had to speak and God 10:19 was speaking through him and so 10:21 it's just a miracle... 10:23 >> It's a miracle, I'm sure. 10:24 >> ...seeing how God worked. 10:26 >> And no other explanation. 10:29 >> So, Rémy, the sermon that 10:31 that pastor preached that day 10:32 when you were 13 years old, 10:34 tell us about the content of 10:35 that sermon. 10:36 [RÉMY] Yes, 'cause that was the 10:38 most important part. 10:40 He preached a very simple 10:42 sermon, but, you know, it was 10:44 all about Jesus, it was about 10:46 the love of Jesus, the integrity 10:48 of Jesus and His sacrifice. 10:54 And while he was speaking, I 10:56 heard, in my mind, my heart, 10:59 the voice of God telling me, 11:02 "You see this man here? 11:04 He knows Me. 11:05 He's a true Christian. 11:08 He loves Me, he serves Me. 11:10 What about you?" 11:13 It was that simple. 11:15 I heard this voice and it was a 11:18 life-changing moment. 11:21 After the-- this gathering, 11:24 went home, started praying, 11:28 reading the Bible, went to 11:31 church, and I was listening to 11:33 the sermons because previously 11:34 I was just pretending to listen. 11:37 And, yes, I believe that I 11:40 experienced what Jesus tells us 11:44 when He says that no one can 11:47 enter the kingdom of God unless 11:50 he's born again. 11:52 I was born in a Christian 11:54 family and now I was born again, 11:57 I was a Christian myself. 11:59 >> Pastor Rémy, did God take 12:01 away your desire to smoke and 12:04 to steal, too? 12:05 Did that leave you? 12:07 >> Well...yeah. 12:08 There was struggle, I must be 12:11 honest, but by God's grace, 12:15 it took a few weeks and it 12:17 was gone. 12:18 It was gone. 12:19 And so I was baptized one year 12:23 later, I was 14 when I was 12:25 baptized. 12:27 I didn't know that time I would 12:28 be a pastor, but I knew that I 12:31 wanted to serve God. 12:33 My parents were Christian, my 12:35 brother was a Christian, all 12:37 my-- the larger family, you 12:39 know, relatives, nobody was 12:42 Christian. 12:44 So I didn't want to be a pastor. 12:47 I didn't want it for two 12:48 reasons, the first reason was 12:50 that my brother said when he 12:52 was 12 that he wanted to be a 12:55 pastor. 12:56 So I didn't want do the same as 12:59 my brother, you understand that. 13:02 That's the first reason. 13:03 The second reason was that we 13:07 were the weird family, you 13:10 know, strange people among the 13:13 larger family. 13:15 So I wanted to prove them I 13:18 could be a good Christian, a 13:21 committed Christian, at the 13:22 same time have success in life, 13:26 you know, and do something like 13:29 any other man in society. 13:33 So I wanted to be a teacher, 13:35 maybe a professor or something 13:37 like that. 13:38 I liked French so I wanted to 13:42 be a French teacher and I told 13:45 my parents and I told my 13:46 brother and I told the whole 13:47 family, "I'm gonna be a French 13:48 teacher." 13:50 And I started studying to be a 13:53 French teacher, went to 13:55 university... 13:58 ...but while studying 14:01 French, there was something... 14:05 ...in my inner being that was 14:08 dry, see? 14:11 I'm not doing something 14:13 essential. 14:15 So I prayed, I said, "Lord, You 14:17 want me to do something else?" 14:20 And what I-- the answer I got 14:22 was, "I want you to serve Me 14:25 full time." 14:27 I didn't know more than that. 14:30 So I decided that I would 14:32 study theology. 14:35 When I told my parents, they 14:39 were really, really happy 14:42 with that. 14:43 I went to the university 14:46 and there, I didn't know I would 14:49 be a pastor at that time... 14:52 ...I thought maybe I would teach 14:56 theology, something like that, 14:58 but while studying, I was 15:00 convinced that God called me to 15:02 pastoral ministry. 15:04 So I became a pastor and I'm 15:06 happy to be a pastor. 15:09 >> And what about your brother? 15:11 Did he go into the ministry, 15:12 too? 15:13 [RÉMY] Yes, yes, he became a 15:14 pastor, too, yes. 15:15 We were in the same conference 15:16 for many years, yeah. 15:19 >> So, Rémy, I wanna talk about 15:20 some of the experiences you've 15:22 had in France and the ministry 15:24 here in Canada, but before we 15:25 do that, I know that music was 15:27 a big part of that and I'd like 15:29 you to share with us at least 15:31 one song. 15:33 >> I love singing with a group 15:35 and, especially right now, with 15:36 a group, the name is 15:38 "InterVocal," that's the name of 15:40 the group, and we sing, so we 15:42 sing in French, sometimes in 15:43 English and other languages, we 15:45 sing at church, we sing 15:47 everywhere so... 15:50 Yeah, let's have one song for 15:52 you or... 15:53 >> Good, let's take a look 15:54 at it. 15:57 [vocalists singing a cappella] 16:01 ♪♪ 18:30 >> Pastor Rémy, thank you so 18:31 much for sharing that beautiful 18:33 song with us. 18:34 >> You're very welcome. 18:36 [MIKE] So, Rémy, you were 18:38 telling us about how you had a 18:40 struggle to decide to go into 18:41 the ministry, you made that 18:43 decision, did you have any 18:45 special experiences while you 18:46 were a student studying. 18:48 >> Well, those years were 18:51 probably the best years of my 18:53 life except that I wasn't 18:54 married yet, but really, really 18:57 good years. 18:58 Not only theology itself, I 19:00 loved studying, but... 19:04 ...sing in a choir... 19:07 ...going door-to-door, 19:09 knocking the doors and speaking 19:11 with people, I learned a lot, I 19:13 learned a lot with this 19:15 experience. 19:16 And probably one of the most 19:19 important experiences I had at 19:20 that time was with my aunt. 19:24 I told you nobody was Christian 19:26 in my family. 19:28 Yeah, so my aunt became 19:30 involved into occult practices. 19:34 She would, for example, do what 19:37 we call "telekinesis," you 19:40 know, you just put, for 19:42 example, a glass on the table 19:44 and you focus on this glass and 19:47 with the power of your mind, 19:48 that's at least what people 19:50 believe, the power of your mind, 19:52 you make it move on the table. 19:55 And then she would be involved 19:57 in telepathy and premonition 20:02 and even what we call, I think, 20:04 "dowsing," which is, you know, 20:06 use a pendulum and with the 20:08 movements of the pendulum, you 20:10 can find an object that is lost 20:12 or person is missing. 20:15 So it was something incredible 20:18 for her and she was so happy 20:20 that she talked to us and 20:23 explained what she was doing. 20:26 And we told her, "You know, you 20:28 know what you're doing is very, 20:31 very amazing, but it's 20:33 dangerous. 20:34 You're playing with energies 20:36 that you believe you're 20:38 mastering, but... 20:41 ...you're not. 20:43 You're not controlling those 20:46 forces. 20:47 At some point they will 20:48 control you." 20:51 So it went for a few years and 20:55 one point I remember, that's a 20:58 vivid memory in my brain... 21:03 ...one night the phone rang. 21:06 My dad picked up the phone and 21:09 it was my aunt. 21:11 And she almost screamed in the 21:13 phone, "I can see him! 21:16 He's here! 21:18 I see him, he's looking at me!" 21:20 [ominous music playing] 21:22 So we understood that there was 21:23 something with the demons 21:26 that was happening. 21:28 So I remember I begin to pray 21:31 and my dad talked to her, "Tell 21:33 me, what are you seeing? 21:36 Who's in your room?" 21:38 And she said that she saw, 21:40 like, an ugly face... 21:44 ...looking at her. 21:46 So we prayed. 21:48 We prayed for at least ten 21:49 minutes. 21:51 And after ten minutes 21:52 she said, "Okay, now I am 21:55 relieved, he disappeared." 21:58 So she was scared, she was 21:59 terrified and she decided that 22:02 she would stop practising those 22:05 things for a few months. 22:09 But the Devil is clever. 22:12 So for one year she had no 22:15 problem, no strange phenomenons, 22:18 so after one year she said, 22:20 "Oh, I'll try again, I'm fine." 22:24 She tried again and she had 22:28 a lot of other experiences 22:30 like that. 22:33 The good news is that 20 years 22:36 later, my aunt called us again 22:41 and said, "I'm not happy, I 22:44 don't want to continue with 22:46 those practises, I want to know 22:50 God, I want to study the Bible." 22:54 We had prayed for her for 22:55 20 years... 22:58 ...and finally God could 23:02 just touch her and she studied 23:05 the Bible. 23:06 I must say that she started 23:09 studying the Bible on the phone 23:11 'cause we're not living in the 23:12 same region, on the phone... 23:15 ...and we had Bible study almost 23:18 every week. 23:21 But during those Bible studies, 23:24 we experienced some strange 23:26 phenomena. 23:28 Like, for example, during a 23:29 Bible study we'd hear "Pom! 23:31 Pom! Pom!" 23:34 So we would ask her, "What's 23:36 happening?" and she said, "Oh, 23:39 have you heard that?" 23:40 "Of course we've heard." 23:41 "Oh, you know, the enemy is 23:43 not-- is angry at me." 23:45 And there was a plate on the 23:47 table, it flew through the room 23:51 and crashed against the wall. 23:55 It happened several times. 23:57 Would hear-- in the phone we 23:59 would hear, like, a laugh, 24:02 sarcastic laugh, you know, and 24:05 we knew that it was the Devil. 24:07 But my aunt continued, she kept 24:11 on praying, studying the Bible, 24:14 and finally a year later she 24:15 was baptized. 24:17 It was a tremendous victory. 24:19 >> So while you were doing 24:20 those studies, you were 24:21 mentioning that this strange 24:23 phenomena was going on and it's 24:26 amazing because God must have 24:29 been protecting her because did 24:30 any of those flying objects 24:32 ever hit her or hurt her? 24:34 >> Never, never, never. 24:35 She was protected. 24:36 You're absolutely right, 24:38 absolutely right. 24:40 >> Rémy, I'm really enjoying 24:41 our time together and we're 24:42 going to have to have you back 24:44 again next week. 24:45 I hope that's okay. 24:46 >> It's good for me! 24:47 [MIKE] Good! 24:48 One last question, tell us a 24:50 little bit about your ministry 24:51 in France and we can continue 24:53 that again next week as well. 24:54 >> Well, in France I was a 24:56 pastor for almost 14 years, 24:59 worked a lot with the youth and 25:02 especially during-- I love the 25:05 summer camps, we had special 25:07 experiences with the young 25:09 people there, evangelism, it 25:12 was a really good experience. 25:15 I would say that, for me, the 25:17 most rewarding activity was 25:21 giving Bible studies, I really 25:23 liked it and I still really 25:24 like it. 25:25 >> Do you have a favourite 25:26 Bible verse before we close? 25:28 >> Yes, yes, I'd like to share 25:30 with you from the book of... 25:34 ...Isaiah... 25:38 ...chapter 26... 25:40 ...and verse 3... 25:44 ...and 4. 26:03 >> That's a beautiful Bible 26:04 verse. 26:05 So, Rémy, we have come to the 26:07 end of our program and so I 26:09 wonder if you could please pray 26:11 for our viewers. 26:13 There might be some viewers who 26:15 need to find that perfect peace 26:19 from God, there might be 26:20 someone who's struggling to be 26:22 their authentic self and 26:24 someone who might be struggling 26:26 to believe in God, so I wonder 26:28 if you could please pray for 26:30 them right now. 26:31 >> Absolutely. 26:34 Heavenly Father, I thank You 26:35 for the opportunity You give me 26:37 today to share a few 26:39 experiences with Michael and 26:42 René and all our viewers. 26:44 Please be with every one of 26:47 them and if someone is just 26:52 struggling to find this peace 26:55 that You promise us, someone is 26:57 doubting that You're really a 26:59 God that cares, please reveal 27:02 Yourself to this person. 27:05 Be with us as we want to serve 27:08 You and to love You even more 27:11 every day. 27:12 >> Amen. 27:13 Thank you so much, Rémy, and we 27:17 look forward to being with you 27:18 again next week. 27:20 >> Will be my pleasure. 27:23 >> Friends, you, too, can 27:24 experience the kind of 27:26 transformation that only God's 27:28 Word offers. 27:30 Our free offer today is our 27:33 Bible Study Guides. 27:34 >> Whether you want to learn 27:35 the major teachings of God's 27:36 Word or Bible prophecy, we can 27:38 assist you to find the answers 27:41 for how to face the issues and 27:43 challenges that you may be 27:45 dealing with right now. 27:48 >> Before you go, we would also 27:50 like to invite you to follow us 27:51 on Instagram and Facebook 27:54 and subscribe to our YouTube 27:56 channel and also listen to our 27:59 Podcasts. 28:00 And if you go to our website, 28:02 you can see our latest 28:04 programs. 28:05 >> You, too, can experience the 28:07 fullness of life that is found 28:08 in the words of Jesus when He 28:10 said, "It is written, 'Man shall 28:12 not live by bread alone, but by 28:15 every word that proceeds out of 28:17 the mouth of God.'" 28:19 ♪♪ |
Revised 2023-04-10