Participants:
Series Code: LTBW
Program Code: LTBW000011A
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00:35 Hi, I'm Dr. Kim and welcome to Live to be Well.
00:39 I am so excited because 00:41 we're going to be talking about "No looking back" 00:43 and what that means 00:45 but I have a very special guest 00:46 he's the Assistant to the General Manager... 00:49 our very own Dr. Yvonne Lewis 00:51 but... her son... her youngest son, Jason Bradley, 00:54 he's agreed to be here today and I'm just excited 00:57 so, let's talk with Jason Bradley. 01:00 Welcome Jason. 01:01 Thank you, thank you, it's a pleasure to be here. 01:03 How are you doing? 01:04 I'm doing well... I guess it depends on what you ask. 01:07 Laughter. 01:10 Listen, I am excited that you're here 01:13 we're doing Live to be Well... 01:16 a new program for Dare to Dream. 01:18 Yes. 01:19 But I want to talk about you, 01:20 I had an opportunity to really be blessed 01:23 by your testimony on Dare to Dream 01:25 and on Urban Report 01:27 and then I was able to read about it 01:31 in the 3ABN Magazine 01:33 and it was just... I couldn't put it down... 01:36 and you see people 01:38 but you never know what they're going through 01:42 so, let's talk about your humble beginnings, 01:44 you're born and raised Seventh-day Adventist. 01:46 Jason: Yes. 01:48 Kim: Where were you born? Jason: New York... 01:49 Kim: No way. Jason: I was born in Manhattan, 01:51 yes, yes. 01:52 Kim: See you look like you fit Manhattan, you know. 01:55 Do, you like New York? 01:57 Jason: I do, I love New York, 01:58 there are so many great places to eat in New York... 02:02 so many great places. 02:04 Kim: Now, you didn't say, museums and all that, 02:07 you said, "Eat" okay. 02:08 So, you enjoy good food. 02:10 I love good food. 02:11 Okay, great, all right, so, from New York... 02:13 how long did you live in New York? 02:14 So, I lived in New York for my first ten years, 02:18 we moved... my mom was married to my dad, George, 02:21 and we moved to Upstate New York 02:24 which is like, Poughkeepsie, Pleasant Valley 02:26 when I was, I think, three years old. 02:28 Okay. 02:29 And then we lived there... and they ended up getting a divorce 02:33 probably when I was around six or seven, 02:38 somewhere... somewhere around there... 02:39 Hmmm... 02:41 And I remember not really understanding 02:44 the whole "divorce" thing and at first, I didn't like it 02:47 but my school had... what they called, "Banana Splits" 02:51 and so it was a coping type of therapy 02:55 that they provided at the school 02:58 and it was during lunch time... there was food involved 03:00 so, it kept me engaged... 03:02 Hmmm... of course it did because they had food, all right. 03:04 And then also... I mean they... 03:07 they really just dealt with the students 03:08 and talked about different issues 03:10 and tried to help the transitional period. 03:13 That's wonderful, 03:15 did they include the parents in there 03:17 or was it just for the children? 03:19 It was just for the children. 03:20 Kim: At school time... Jason: Yes. 03:22 Kim: Okay, all right then... on to your journey after that. 03:26 So, then, they were, of course, divorced and in separate places 03:30 and we ended up moving from the house that we were living in 03:33 to a townhouse... still in New York... 03:37 and I enjoyed the separation... 03:42 the divorce... after a while for selfish reasons 03:44 because I didn't have gifts coming from just... 03:47 collective... as one parent... 03:50 one parent as a whole 03:52 and then, I had two places to go... 03:55 with that... my dad wasn't Adventist... 03:58 he's not Adventist now either 04:00 but there was... and my mom was Adventist... 04:02 Okay. 04:03 So, when... when she married my dad, 04:07 she was out of the church at the moment... 04:09 Okay. 04:11 And then, shortly after they had been married, 04:14 she came back into the church. 04:15 And so, my dad was probably kind of wondering like, 04:19 "Whoa, what happened?" 04:22 You know, what I mean? "Where?" 04:24 Because his lifestyle was a little bit different... 04:26 Sure. 04:27 And now, hers was different too, 04:29 she was living with the Lord, 04:30 and so, now, you have a situation where 04:33 you have a mother that is following the Lord... 04:39 Kim: Yes. Jason: And serving the Lord... 04:42 and then you had my dad... who's a great guy 04:44 but he's not following the Lord, 04:46 so, his way of doing things is different 04:50 than someone who's walking with the Lord. 04:53 Hmmm... 04:55 So, that kind of creates a confusing environment 04:58 because there are some things that I can get away with 05:00 with my dad 05:02 that I can't get away with... at home with mom 05:04 or, you know, and stuff like that, so... 05:06 I understand, now, you have siblings? 05:08 I do, I have two older brothers. 05:10 All right... and your relationship with them... 05:12 are you close to your brothers? 05:13 Yes, we're close, we're close, 05:15 we don't talk, like, every single day 05:17 but when we talk, it's just like yesterday, 05:20 we're just picking right back up. 05:21 So, all right, so now, 05:23 how old are you now, during this time? 05:25 30... oh at that time? 05:26 Okay, at that time... 05:28 I was probably, 05:31 at that time, seven or eight... 05:34 about eight years old... something like that... 05:36 So you're still in New York, so, are you in school? 05:39 Are your grades... were you doing pretty good in school? 05:40 Yes, I was doing pretty well in school, 05:43 I don't think that my grades 05:45 suffered as a result of the divorce or anything, 05:47 I didn't have, like a traumatic experience 05:49 like some kids go through. 05:51 Oh yes. 05:52 But, it was just... I didn't really understand everything 05:57 but then I grew to... I guess enjoy some of the differences. 06:03 The Grand-kids... Yes. 06:04 Yeah, and I think that maybe that could be a potential area 06:10 where my life started to slip in the other direction 06:13 because I could do some things at my dad's 06:19 that I couldn't do at my mom's... 06:20 then... so, I had to be one way kind of... around my mom, 06:23 then I could be a little bit different around my dad 06:26 so it's like, the Bible says, 06:28 "A double minded man is unstable in all his ways" 06:30 well, I was double minded in the sense like, 06:34 I might go eat certain things at my dad's house... 06:37 Okay. 06:38 That I definitely wasn't going to be able to eat 06:41 at my mom's house. Kim: Yes. 06:42 And maybe watch some movies that might have some profanity 06:48 or something like that, 06:49 whereas, I couldn't do it at my mom's house... 06:52 she was not going for that. 06:53 That's right... that's right. 06:55 So, I mean, there was... there were those differences 06:57 and then we ended up moving to Texas... 06:59 Hmmm... that's a long way from New York. 07:02 Yes, a long way and that's something that 07:05 I really commend my dad on is... 07:07 we moved to Texas, my mom got remarried 07:10 when I was about ten years old, we moved to Texas 07:14 and a few months later my dad actually just picked up, 07:19 uprooted himself and moved out there 07:21 to finish raising me. 07:23 What? 07:24 I was the only reason, 07:25 he had a good job and everything in New York 07:28 but he moved to Texas to finish raising me. 07:30 In being in your life. 07:32 Yes, and so I was very appreciative of that... 07:34 that... that meant a lot of me. 07:35 Like my dad's not really like, I- love-you type 07:39 but you know... he shows in his actions that he loves you. 07:43 Is your father still living? 07:44 Jason: Yes, he is. Kim: Okay. 07:46 So now you're in Texas, 07:47 so you finished junior high and high school in Texas? 07:50 I did... 07:52 Okay, were you in a Seventh-day Adventist school 07:53 or a Public School? 07:54 I was in Seventh-day Adventist School. 07:56 Hmmm... 07:57 And then, during my freshman year though, I was... 07:59 I tried to go to public school 08:00 and my mom let me go to public school, 08:03 but she said, "If you do one thing 08:05 that is like, outside of the Adventist belief system, 08:09 you're going back to private school. 08:11 Okay. 08:12 Yes she did, so, two weeks later I was yanked... 08:14 Laughter... 08:16 Because I wanted to the dance... 08:18 I wanted to go to the dance... and she was not going for it. 08:21 And you had the nerve to ask... 08:22 did you sneak and go or did you ask? 08:24 No, I... I asked... 08:25 And she said, "Now why would you even bring that to me?" 08:28 Yeah, she wasn't going for that one. 08:29 And it was on a Friday night. 08:30 No, I think it was... 08:32 I think it was actually not on the Sabbath 08:34 but it was just a dance and she wasn't... 08:37 she was not down for the dance... 08:39 So, back to the Adventist School... you went. 08:41 And I went right back to the Adventist school. 08:43 So, how was the transition, 08:46 because you've been in an Adventist School... 08:47 So you finished your... 08:49 you matriculated all the way through your senior year. 08:51 Jason: I did. Kim: Okay. 08:52 Jason: And, really, I remember being at the school 08:56 till... like in 8th grade 08:58 and I was approached by some guys that I knew 09:01 and they were in High School... maybe freshman... sophomore... 09:05 or somewhere around there... 09:07 to try Marijuana... 09:09 and I told them, "No, I'm good, I'm not... I don't... " 09:14 And this was in the Adventist School? 09:15 This was in the Adventist School. 09:16 Kim: Really. Jason: Oh yeah... 09:18 the devil can find his way anywhere. 09:19 Kim: Come on now... can't he? 09:21 Jason: So, I was in the Adventist School 09:23 and they approached me and I was like, 09:25 "You know what? That's not for me... because I'm an athlete" 09:27 I played basketball through... throughout school. 09:31 Oh really, were you good? 09:32 I had a little skills... I have a little skills... 09:34 but I wasn't like NBA... going to NBA... 09:40 but... so they approached me for that and I turned them down. 09:45 It wasn't until my freshman year... 09:47 is when I started smoking Marijuana 09:50 and I decided that I want... up high school... 09:52 and I decided that I wanted to try it. 09:54 I had been listening to... 09:57 the Bible says, "By beholding you become changed. " 09:59 Kim: That's the Scripture I had right here... 10:01 Jason: Really? 10:02 Kim: Right here, I wrote it down here... 10:03 You know, 2nd Corinthians 3:18. 10:06 Hmmm... hmmm... 10:07 So, it's true, by beholding we become changed 10:10 and that works both in spiritual... with God, 10:13 if we focus on His Word, 10:16 we're going to become more like Christ, 10:18 if we're following His example, we'll become more like Christ 10:21 but if we're filling our heads with the Hip Hop... with the Rap 10:23 with the... 10:25 with the R and B of today's time 10:29 with the movies that are promoting the use of drugs 10:33 and the sale of narcotics and all that stuff 10:36 if we're filling our heads with garbage, 10:39 garbage in equals garbage out. 10:40 So, and I was filling my head with this, so... 10:44 so I was watching movies 10:45 where people might be selling drugs 10:48 or trying drugs 10:49 and I was listening to music 10:51 where they were promoting selling drugs and using drugs 10:54 and... and the exploitation of women 10:58 and just the whole nine... and listening to all that... 11:02 taking all that in... 11:03 I started to copy that lifestyle a little bit. 11:08 I started smoking weed and I loved it... to be honest 11:13 which is why I kept doing it. 11:15 Did your mother ever know... 11:16 your step-father... or even your father? 11:20 At this point, my mom had received... 11:24 she got a divorce from the guy in Texas. 11:27 Hmmm... hmmm... 11:28 And so, we were living in some apartments in Arlington 11:33 and my mom didn't know at first... 11:36 she had thought prior to the time when I was smoking weed 11:40 she thought that I had smoked weed 11:43 but I wasn't even smoking it at that point. 11:47 And then I decided to try it after that 11:49 and it wasn't for a while until she ended up finding out. 11:53 How did she find out? 11:55 Honestly, I don't remember how she found out, 11:58 I think that... I think it was because 12:02 I ended up becoming a little sloppy too. 12:05 Ahhh... 12:06 And she's very... she is perceptive... 12:09 she... she knows... she is very perceptive 12:11 if anybody knows my mom... she's very perceptive. 12:13 But I guess, throughout the years 12:16 doing the double life thing 12:19 where I can do this here, like, I can do certain things 12:22 eat certain things or whatever 12:25 over the course of those years, 12:28 maybe that contributed to my 12:31 being able to hide certain things 12:34 or be a certain way around my mother... 12:37 so, like, when... when I was hiding... doing drugs 12:42 I'd come home and 12:44 I might say, "Hello" 12:46 but I'd be going straight to my room... 12:48 Kim: Isolation... 12:49 Jason: And going to take a shower. 12:51 Hmmm... 12:52 Yeah, so that I could wash the smell of Marijuana off. 12:53 Hmmm... hmmm... 12:55 And then, brushing my teeth or something along those lines. 12:59 Hmmm... hmmm... 13:00 And I kept a change of clothes or cologne 13:04 and all kinds of stuff to try and beat the system 13:08 and she ended up finding out that I was smoking Marijuana 13:12 and had a home drug test and all that stuff too, so... 13:17 During High School, were you dating... 13:20 were you seeing different young ladies? 13:23 I was, I was dating during High School. 13:25 Kim: Hmmm... Jason: Hmmm... hmmm... 13:27 So, how long did this continue with your using Marijuana 13:31 and did you use other drugs? 13:32 I did... I say, "Marijuana is a gateway drug" 13:36 and that's very true 13:38 pause... 13:39 you come across a lot of people that say, 13:43 "Marijuana is not addicting" 13:44 or addictive... addicting... 13:46 and if that's the case, then, why don't you stop? 13:50 Hmmm... 13:51 Why can't you stop and... and quit for... indefinitely? 13:56 I had been doing it for a while... 14:01 I started with smoking the Marijuana... then I was drinking 14:04 then I would take some pain pills here and there 14:08 or anxiety like, Xanax. 14:12 Kim: Hmmm... you had cross addictions going on. 14:14 Jason: I did... one thing led to another... 14:17 going to some different parties and stuff like that 14:19 and trying different things, 14:21 then, I started doing Ecstasy, I tried Ecstasy... 14:26 and I ended up liking that too... 14:29 and it just... it was just a downward spiral, 14:32 you know, I kept moving in that direction. 14:35 Really? 14:36 And that stuff's not cheap. 14:38 Oh no... 14:39 You have to pay for it somehow. Kim: Okay. 14:40 So now, I'm at the point where, 14:42 "Okay, I'm making a little bit of money... " 14:44 at whatever job I was working at the time 14:47 but I also needed to sell a little bit of drugs... 14:51 so I can make some more money... afford my habit... 14:54 and be able to do things that I might want to do 14:57 or buy things that I wanted to buy... and all that stuff 15:00 and it wasn't... it wasn't worth it 15:04 and I was a horrible drug dealer to be honest, 15:07 I wasn't good at it. 15:08 You weren't good at it at all. 15:10 I thank God I wasn't good. 15:11 All right, so then, were you ever arrested or... 15:14 any issues there? 15:16 I was... and... but prior to being arrested... 15:19 you know how... 15:21 now I'm a part of Prison Ministry and stuff like that 15:24 so I go into prisons, yeah. 15:25 Kim: Are you... all right and tell your story. 15:27 So, this is... prior to being arrested... 15:32 God allows certain things to happen in our lives 15:35 to get our attention. 15:36 He doesn't create the issues or cause the issues 15:39 but He helped place a little roadblock in the way... 15:42 saying, "My child, you are headed in the wrong direction. " 15:46 Just think about your life, evaluate your life, 15:49 I'm giving you an opportunity 15:51 to move in the right direction and follow me... " 15:55 Well, I was misdiagnosed... 15:57 I went to the doctor three times 16:01 but on the first two times, they sent me home, 16:03 my stomach had been getting bigger and bigger 16:06 and I was in a lot of pain, 16:07 and I went back on the third time... 16:10 my doctor was supposed to be on vacation 16:13 but he happened to be in that office 16:15 and he ran one more test on me 16:17 and he told my dad to take me to the ER right away. 16:20 Really? 16:22 And so, I went to the ER 16:23 and they had to perform an emergency surgery on me, 16:28 my appendix had ruptured inside of me... 16:30 Oh... 16:31 And it was sealing off my intestine, 16:33 I think it was my large intestine 16:36 that it was sealing off. 16:37 So, now, to this day I am scarred from up here 16:40 till a little bit below my belt and I almost died from that 16:46 in fact, my mom was very, 16:48 very worried about this, 16:50 she was in the hospital, she flew out the next day 16:52 and was in the hospital and you know, Carlton Bryd... 16:55 Dr. Bryd... any time I see him to this day, I thank him 16:58 because I was out of church, I wasn't in church, 17:00 I didn't want anything to do with God 17:03 and He came to the hospital in Atlanta... 17:05 I was living in Atlanta at this point 17:07 and he prayed with me. 17:10 Wow! 17:11 And he prayed with my mom. 17:13 That's when he was the pastor at Berean? 17:14 Yes, at Berean. 17:16 And he came and found out that you were in the hospital... 17:17 came and prayed with you. 17:18 And I didn't know him, I'd never met him 17:20 but he... he came and prayed with us 17:22 and so, to this day, I thank him every time 17:25 so I hope that he watches this 17:26 and he can see that I'm thanking him again 17:28 as this has been an ongoing thing... I'm grateful for that 17:31 and the devil tries to take us out in our sins 17:33 so the doctors did what they call... 17:37 leaving-it-open-to-close 17:38 which means, my wound was still open 17:40 and they covered it with gauze pads... 17:42 and so, I went home... had a visiting nurse and all that 17:47 and I remember thinking, 17:49 "Well, God if you get me out of this, 17:50 if you heal me... bring me... " 17:52 Kim: Bargaining. 17:53 Jason: Yeah, "I'll... you know. I'll do something different, 17:56 and I'll change... I'll be better" 17:58 and so, my stomach was healing 18:02 and it took... it basically got to where 18:06 it was like, that wide of an incision... 18:09 it was still long but that wide... 18:12 Kim: What? 18:13 Jason: And it was on this one particular day 18:17 I remember being at the mall with my ex-girlfriend 18:21 from Georgia... one of my ex-girlfriends from Georgia 18:24 and her friend 18:26 and just thinking, 18:27 "I'm going to go and make some money today... 18:28 I'm going to go hit the block 18:30 I'll see you guys a little later" 18:31 and I went down the street 18:34 to what happened to be a known-drug area 18:36 and I was out on... 18:38 you know... on the block 18:40 trying to make a little bit of money 18:42 and knew somebody that lived over there too 18:43 and all of a sudden these cops walk up from behind the building 18:48 and I saw them coming 18:51 and so I started walking inside 18:52 and acting like I'm on my cell phone 18:54 "Oh yeah, da... da... da... I'll talk to you... 18:56 whatever... whatever... " and nobody is on the phone... 18:58 I just see them walking up 19:00 and there's other guys outside and they tell them, 19:02 "Why don't you guys stay right here... " 19:05 and then they're looking at me and say, 19:07 "Hey, why don't you come on back outside?" 19:10 So I come back outside and have a seat 19:12 and they're saying, "If anybody has drugs on them 19:14 let's get this out the way right now. " 19:17 And I, of course, wasn't volunteering that 19:20 that I had drugs on me 19:22 but they ended up ID'ing people and searching people 19:25 and while they were searching somebody... 19:28 I tossed... I had 14 bags of Marijuana 19:31 and two Ecstasy pills 19:32 and I tossed it behind my back... 19:35 it was like a stoop-type of deal so... on the side... 19:39 and then they ended up finding my drugs... my Marijuana 19:42 and eventually they kept saying, "Is that yours... is that yours, 19:49 is this yours... is this yours...?" 19:51 And I finally just said, 19:53 "Yeah, it's mine, take me... let's go" 19:55 and I told them that my stomach was still open 19:58 do not slam me against the door, I'm going willfully... 20:02 take me... let's go... 20:04 and so, as we're going to the jail... I get to the jail... 20:08 they find my other drugs... my two Ecstasy pills... 20:11 I was facing... this is... this is by the grace of God... 20:17 Yes... yes. 20:18 I was facing... I could face 20:20 or could have faced 15 years in prison... 20:23 Hmmm... 20:25 the maximum sentence in prison 20:27 now, I did not want to be in anybody's prison. 20:30 Kim: Nobody's prison... Jason: I don't even want to... 20:31 I don't want to be in anybody's jail... 20:33 I spent one night in jail... I got bailed out the next day 20:36 but I slept on iron that night. 20:38 Hmmm... 20:39 Iron... no mattress pad... nothing... iron... that night, 20:42 stomach still open... 20:43 it was crazy on my part to do the things that I was doing 20:46 but that's what happens when you're living in a live of sin 20:49 and you're following your own will instead of God's. 20:51 Yes... 20:53 And so, I got out... I got bailed out... 20:55 I was embarrassed... I had to call my dad... 20:58 he came and got me... 21:00 the biggest thing too 21:02 was that I had a family that loved me... 21:04 that rallied behind me 21:06 that supported me... 21:07 my mom didn't abandon me... my dad didn't abandon me... 21:09 they contributed to my... my rehab... 21:14 like, helping me go to rehab before I had to go to court... 21:17 just all kinds of... 21:20 my lawyer fees... everything like that 21:22 my family members that supported me and surrounded me, 21:26 now, if I would have done the same stuff again, 21:27 it would have been... well, you got to figure it out. 21:30 Kim: For yourself. 21:31 Jason: Yeah, I mean, you got to... you got to learn 21:33 but they rallied behind me... 21:35 they loved me... they supported me... 21:37 and I still did not give my heart to God at that very moment 21:41 but that was the last time I touched drugs 21:45 and that was over... about 10 years ago... 21:46 Kim: Praise God. 21:48 Now, did mom bail you out of jail in Atlanta? 21:50 Jason: No, my dad did. 21:52 My dad was living in Atlanta. 21:53 Kim: And mom was in Texas. 21:55 Jason: Mom was in Texas at the time. 21:56 Kim: So, you called your father. 21:58 Jason: I did. 21:59 Kim: And he came and got you. 22:01 Jason: Yes, the very next day so, I spent the night in there, 22:04 I ended up getting bailed out 22:07 and the first thing I did when I went home 22:11 you would have thought I would have been in jail forever 22:13 because I was just opening and closing doors... 22:15 opening and closing doors... and going in the refrigerator... 22:18 Kim: To have that freedom. 22:19 Jason: Yes, going in the refrigerator and all that stuff 22:21 but it wasn't... nothing scary happened, 22:26 nothing... it just... 22:27 your freedom is taken away from you, 22:29 your choices are taken away from you, 22:31 your... your... your food selection is taken away from you 22:35 you got to eat whatever they're giving you. 22:37 Kim: Yes. 22:38 Jason: And I wasn't raised that way. 22:41 My parents didn't raise me to sell drugs... 22:43 my parents didn't raise me to do drugs... 22:45 my parents didn't raise me to go out and do those things 22:50 I ended up choosing that lifestyle 22:54 after what I was beholding, you know, 22:57 I beheld... and I had all different walks of friends 23:01 but I had friends that... 23:03 some friends that were in that lifestyle 23:05 I was listening to the music, I was watching the movies 23:09 and I was filling my head with poison, basically, 23:12 and then, I was also filling my body with that poison as well 23:17 and so, I ended up not touching drugs, 23:19 I got sentenced to two years' probation 23:21 and deferred you... deferred... 23:24 first offenders deferred adjudication 23:26 which... that's a mouthful but basically what it is 23:29 is that... it was my first offense 23:31 and if I completed my probation successfully, 23:34 then it wouldn't... 23:36 I wouldn't be convicted of anything... 23:38 So, was your record expunged? 23:39 Just recently, my record actually got expunged 23:43 so there's nothing that shows up on Arrest History which is... 23:46 Kim: It's all God's doing. Jason: Oh yeah, and that's what 23:47 and that's the beautiful thing is... 23:49 that's what God wants to do for each and every one of us sinners 23:53 is expunge our record, 23:56 He wants to seal our record for us. 23:59 Kim: Hmmm... 24:00 Jason: So, after those... 24:01 that whole little time, I ended up managing a restaurant 24:04 it was a Sports Bar... 24:06 because I still wasn't... and I doing club promotions 24:09 but I wasn't touching drugs. 24:11 Kim: Wasn't touching the drugs... okay. 24:12 Jason: I smoked cigars back then but I didn't smoke weed. 24:16 Kim: Did you use alcohol? Jason: I did... 24:18 Kim: Okay. Jason: I was... I was drinking, 24:19 I kind of altered my drug of choice a little bit, to alcohol. 24:22 Kim: Okay. 24:24 Jason: But I didn't... I wasn't touching the other stuff, 24:26 all of it is bad, 24:28 so I don't want anybody thinking... 24:30 and it's against God's will for us. 24:33 So, none of that is okay but I switched 24:38 and I was managing the sports bar 24:39 and I was doing this the first few years... I had a house, 24:43 I had a girlfriend that was living with me at the time 24:46 and we had a nice house and everything, 24:49 like, I was making decent money and I had stuff 24:54 and I was still empty 24:57 and being raised Adventist I knew that... 25:03 what that emptiness was 25:04 and so, I remember going out to 3ABN on a day of prayer 25:09 and I remember the President and Founder, Danny Shelton, 25:13 saying that, "If you leave this place 25:15 and you can't get it out of your mind, 25:17 then, this is where God would have you to be. " 25:19 Kim: What? 25:20 Jason: And I was like... "Ooooh... okay... " 25:23 you know, I'm from New York, 25:25 I lived in Dallas, I lived in Atlanta... 25:26 Kim: Big cities... 25:27 Jason: You've been to 3ABN... it's not like... 25:30 there's no skyscrapers out there. 25:32 Kim: There's a General Store... that was exciting. 25:34 Jason: Yes, yes, so, I leave there... 25:38 I was working 70 hours a week at this restaurant 25:40 and I go back... and I just kept thinking, 3ABN, 3ABN, 3ABN... 25:46 I could not shake it, I couldn't get it out of my mind 25:49 and I had already broken up with that girlfriend 25:52 that I was living with 25:53 our lease had been up on the house... 25:55 we were renting the house... 25:56 the... the lease had been up, 25:58 I had moved back to my dad's house for a little while 26:01 before I was going to move out 26:04 and I decided, instead of just going on 26:09 and doing my own thing, 26:11 I was going to stop fighting God as I had for the 14 other years 26:15 and surrender my life fully to Him 26:18 and that was the best decision that I could have ever made 26:22 and now I'm walking in my purpose. 26:24 Kim: Praise the Lord, 26:25 because now, you've moved from Atlanta to 3ABN. 26:29 Jason: Yes. Kim: Oh my goodness. 26:31 Jason: It was a huge culture shock but it was... 26:34 but it was well worth it, we get to do Prison Ministry, 26:38 we get to do all kinds of stuff, fun programs, 26:41 I get to be out here with you. 26:43 Kim: Yes, I love it, I love it. 26:44 Jason: And then there's... there's so... 26:46 it's so much better on this side. 26:48 Kim: Oh yes. 26:50 Jason: You know, Jeremiah 29:11, 26:51 I always read this 26:52 eventually I'm going to memorized it... 26:55 it's just like, I don't want to butcher it, 26:57 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, 26:59 "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, 27:02 plans to give you hope and a future. " 27:04 And that's the truth, 27:07 like, we don't see the end from the beginning but God does 27:10 and He knows what He has for each of his children, 27:13 He knows what He wants to give us, 27:14 and it's way better than anything that any of us 27:18 could ever want or... or expect for ourselves. 27:22 I know your mother and your father... your family 27:26 they're just ecstatic... 27:28 and you get to work side by side with your mom... 27:30 Jason: Yes. Kim: In your ministry, 27:32 so, when are you going to become vegan? 27:35 Jason: Um, well, Jesus is coming back soon 27:39 and I don't... right now... I really don't have any plans to 27:45 yeah, well, when I can't... 27:48 I know I won't be able to eat meat in heaven. 27:49 Kim: You're right, but you got to get used to it. 27:51 Jason: Yeah. 27:52 Kim: Well Jason, I want to thank you 27:54 for coming on Live to be Well 27:55 what a testimony, 27:56 I ask that the Lord continue to bless you... 27:59 keep you... and continue to live to be well, 28:01 and to you, 28:02 it is important that you don't look back 28:05 but go forward as Jason Bradley has done. 28:08 I'm Dr. Kim... live to be well. 28:11 God bless. |
Revised 2018-04-26