Participants: Pr. Joshua Nelson (Host), Ashaala Sana Jenkins, Zoe Winston Cartwright, Krishel Panton, Alexa Philassaint
Series Code: PC
Program Code: PC000014
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00:01 The following program discusses sensitive issues.
00:03 Parents are cautioned that some material 00:05 may be too candid for younger children. 00:40 Hello and welcome to Pure Choices. 00:43 I'm your host Pastor Joshua Nelson. 00:45 And I'm so happy once again that you decided to join us. 00:48 We are here again with a team from Pure Reality, 00:53 and they have come all the way 00:55 from Miami to talk to us about making Pure Choices. 00:59 And we just want to introduce 01:01 those who are here with us today. 01:03 We're going to start with this lady here, 01:06 tell us who are you, what's your name. 01:08 My name is Alexa Philassaint, and I'm from Miami, Florida. 01:11 All right, and over here to my right. 01:14 My name is Ashaala Sana Jenkins, 01:16 I'm also from Miami, Florida, 01:18 and closely with the Pure Reality team 01:19 as the worship coordinator. 01:21 Very good. 01:22 My name is Zoe Winston Cartwright, 01:23 and I am from Atlanta, Georgia. 01:26 All right. 01:27 My name is Krishel Panton, also a motivational speaker 01:30 with Pure Reality and just happy to be here. 01:34 Very good. 01:35 Well, we're very happy that you all are here 01:37 because this is a very, very important topic 01:40 and you all talk about it a lot all the time, 01:42 and so we want to really about 01:44 some of these here today for those who are watching. 01:46 And I spoke with Ashaala earlier 01:49 and she is actually 01:50 our famous recording artist here today, 01:52 so happy to have her. 01:53 I just wanted to talk to her about... 01:55 and maybe just sharing with us first that we start off, 01:57 just give us your testimony, 01:59 you know, what really has God has done for you 02:01 and even through this ministry of Pure Reality. 02:04 Well, my Pure Reality experience is, 02:07 at a very young age, I was molested. 02:11 And I didn't realize how much impact 02:15 it would have me on until my adult life. 02:17 I was actually writing a book and I started the first pages, 02:22 and I remember typing 02:23 and saying my first experience with porn 02:28 was at the age of 11, and I stopped. 02:31 And immediately all the experience 02:36 that I had at seven came into my head, 02:39 all at once and I shut the computer down, 02:42 and I just started crying because I had erased that 02:46 experience out of my mind what had happened 02:49 because the last words to me by my baby sister, 02:52 who was a 17-year old girl, 02:54 said to me, "Don't say anything to anyone." 02:57 And I ran home and I never said anything to anybody. 03:02 And shutting that out of my head 03:05 until that moment I realized, 03:07 wait, no, my first experience to porn was at age seven 03:11 because I had to perform 03:14 what was on the television to her, 03:18 and it was very, very damaging, I think, for me. 03:23 So because of that, 03:25 that seed that was planted of that experience 03:28 and that perverted experience did not harvest 03:31 until I was in my adult life. 03:34 And it got to the point where I didn't realize that 03:37 as a Christian woman that this was something 03:40 that I struggled with which was porn addiction. 03:42 And what happens is that it's considered a taboo 03:46 in the church, it's a man issue, 03:48 and it's not a man issue. 03:49 As a matter of fact, a perversion as we call it 03:52 no respecter of gender or denomination, 03:57 so yes, it happens in some of the Adventist church. 04:00 And so it got to a point where it wasn't 04:02 even for anything sexual anymore, 04:04 it became entertainment. 04:06 And so when that happened, 04:08 I realized that that was an issue 04:10 and I started writing during that experience, 04:13 I started journaling during that experience 04:15 because I knew this was something 04:17 more than just my flesh or more than just the choice, 04:20 it was deeper than that, 04:21 it was something that I know I had to only be handled 04:24 from a spiritual perspective. 04:26 Sure, sure. 04:28 And because of that, I realized that 04:31 this was something that I could only handle 04:32 through the Word of God. 04:35 I had a dream, I was actually walking 04:37 through a highly populated area and I was walking, 04:40 my parents were behind me, and as I was walking, 04:42 I was silent, I wasn't saying anything. 04:45 Immediately ahead of me, and this is in my dream, 04:49 I saw about 7 to 10 demons walking across. 04:54 And I said, "Guys, look!" 04:56 And as soon as I opened my mouth to speak, 04:58 they stopped, they shifted, they looked at me, 05:00 and they started coming after me. 05:02 Immediately, none of my parents were there, 05:04 it was just me and these demons, 05:06 and they circled and camped around me. 05:08 And they all had weapons in their hands, 05:10 and they were trying to actually afflict me 05:12 with the weapons, 05:14 but I started calling on the name of Jesus. 05:15 And when I started calling on the name of Jesus, 05:17 they started to spew as if you would see 05:19 in a game or a movie, 05:21 but as they started to spew, more started coming. 05:24 And I woke up, 05:26 literally calling on the name of Jesus. 05:28 And I called a friend of mine that's very accountable to me, 05:31 one of my prayer partners, and I said, 05:33 "Listen, this is the dream that I had." 05:34 And she said, "Ashaala, obviously 05:36 there's a reason for this because the enemy 05:39 has put ungodly fear in you 05:41 because you're getting ready to expose the enemy 05:44 and all that he has been doing to put the people of God 05:48 and to bound them, you know. 05:50 And so because there is power in the name of Jesus, 05:54 when you call on Him, the weapons will form 05:56 but they will not prosper." Hallelujah. 05:58 She did not know I was writing a book, 06:00 she did not know I was talking about these issues. 06:02 But she said to me, 06:03 "Is there something that you're doing, 06:05 you're getting ready to do." 06:06 And I said, "Yes, I'm actually writing a book 06:08 about Christian women that's struggling 06:10 or addressing Christian women that deal with 06:12 sexual perversion in the church. 06:14 And she says, "Well, obviously," 06:16 she said, "You need to keep doing it. 06:18 I'm going to pray, you need to do it. 06:19 I said, "I can't." 06:21 She said, "You need to do it 06:22 because we don't talk about it enough." 06:24 And let me tell you, there is not a pill to take. 06:27 There is not a drink to swallow to get you over it. 06:31 It comes through prayer. 06:33 It comes through the Word of God. 06:34 I thank God for Romans, I thank God for Galatians, 06:37 I thank God for knowing that God loves me despite 06:41 and God still wants His best for me 06:44 even in the midst. 06:45 And I said, "Well, God, I'm not worthy." 06:46 And God says, "Okay, well, I just want you to write." 06:48 And so running from that for two years, 06:50 it's been a three-year process, but this summer, 06:53 by God's grace, and I'm glad to say that 06:56 by the grace of God everyday dying, 06:59 not even daily anymore, but dying millisecondly, 07:04 I have been able to overcome this addiction. 07:08 And now I'm able to take up my bed 07:10 and walk and tell others about how God has delivered me 07:14 from such a thing that we don't want to talk about. 07:16 Yeah, yeah, that's right. 07:17 So that's a little bit of my testimony. 07:19 Ashaala, I thank you so much for sharing that. 07:20 That is awesome, 07:22 and it's so beautiful, and it's so true. 07:23 You know, God is able to deliver us 07:25 and still delivering us, 07:26 you know, praise God for that and redemption. 07:28 Thank you so much. 07:30 And it's so brave of you to share that with us... 07:33 Thank you. It's not easy. And to be transparent. 07:34 I understand that. 07:36 And that's why I really want you to share that, 07:39 and thank you again for being open 07:41 because we want to talk about this Pure Reality ministry, 07:44 and how it really invokes that idea 07:46 of being to say thing like that you just said. 07:49 So I want to talk to Krishel and you were talking about 07:52 your experience with Pure Reality, 07:53 and there may be a little skepticism about 07:56 being in this ministry. 07:58 Share with us a little bit about that. 08:00 I definitely have heard different things 08:03 about Pure Reality 08:05 and sometimes you hear the young people call it 08:07 a sex camp 08:09 because of the way we address certain issues, 08:13 it just makes it so real and so to the point. 08:18 As a 25-year old, going to Pure Reality, 08:24 I had already made some decision in my life, 08:27 I had already been exposed to certain things, 08:29 I have already decided that I wasn't going to be a victim, 08:33 so at the end of the day, 08:35 I started trying to overcome it by being bigger than it. 08:40 I tried to manipulate the situations, 08:43 and so I didn't want a man to hurt me, 08:46 so I decided, "Okay, well I'm going to get 08:48 in front of him. 08:50 I'm going to better, I'm going to be quicker, 08:52 I'm going to outthink his game." 08:54 And Pure Reality was just a great... 08:58 it was just a great eye-opener for me 09:00 because it allowed me to be able to see that 09:05 the devil moves in so many different ways 09:08 through your thought pattern 09:12 that it makes it to the point 09:16 where you can think that you're doing the right thing, 09:20 but as soon as God steps into your life, 09:23 you realize that 09:25 you can't do it that way anymore. 09:27 That's not going to work, that's not His will, 09:29 that's not His plan. 09:30 Pure Reality says that you're set apart by divine design, 09:34 that means that there is a divine plan 09:36 for each one of our lives. 09:38 And this camp, this retreat has given us 09:43 the opportunity to be able to put 09:45 some of these cards on the table. 09:47 "Okay, so you are a backslider, 09:49 so you are not a virgin anymore, 09:53 so you're addicted to pornography, 09:56 okay, so you're thinking about homosexuality," 09:59 it allows us to put some of these things on the table 10:02 and actually have a real discussion. 10:04 When you're coming from homes you don't 10:07 or you're not able to have these discussions 10:09 because they did not have the discussions, 10:11 not because they are missing, 10:13 you know, anything as far as your parenting, 10:15 but they just never had those discussions. 10:17 You can't expect your parents to do something 10:20 that they weren't exposed to or you can't hold them 10:23 accountable for these type of things. 10:25 And it allows young people, 10:28 Pure Reality allows young people 10:30 to have those type of conversations, 10:32 we have to have a fireside chat about the issues 10:35 that are trying to consume us. 10:37 We have to have talks about how our sensuality, sexuality, 10:44 and our divine purpose are all connected. 10:47 If we do not have these conversations, 10:50 then we will be consumed 10:52 because the devil has created a pattern to consume us. 10:57 He is giving us the same cycles from the beginning of time. 11:01 It's the same idea about choices. 11:04 And so this retreat has, 11:07 even over the years I realized that, 11:09 year one, "Okay, this is just a retreat. 11:12 Yup, we're going, of course, we've been to camp. 11:14 You know, this is not new, we've been to camp before," 11:18 but when I got there, 11:20 "Oh, no, I got to go through this experience. 11:23 This is not a camp anymore, this is my life." 11:26 And... Oh. No, no, go ahead. 11:27 I was just going to talk about 11:29 what you said about it being a retreat. 11:32 So maybe some people didn't know that, 11:34 so is it more of a retreat or are there other things 11:36 that you all do involved with this whole process 11:38 of this Pure Reality ministry? 11:40 Somebody else want to maybe share about 11:41 what other things happened with Pure Reality. 11:46 Oh, man, where do we begin. 11:48 Well, you come, you get there, there's orientation, 11:51 there's registration. 11:52 But not only that, 11:54 I think the beauty of Pure Reality 11:55 is that you meet so many young people 11:57 from all different parts, not just America, 12:01 but we've had our children from the Bahamas, 12:03 we've had youth from Jamaica, we've had speakers, 12:07 you know, from California. 12:10 I mean, there is a plethora of... 12:14 There's diversity, you know, and so Christ is represented 12:18 in every one that comes to Pure Reality. 12:20 Not only that, but the worship, 12:22 you know, we do praise and worship. 12:24 And as a worship leader, from my perspective, 12:26 I'm looking at a sea of 600, 700, 12:29 we've had 800 kids, 12:31 just all lifting their hands and worshiping God. 12:34 You know, game night, we do have game night, 12:36 we have fun, the guys play basketball, 12:39 we have the bounce house. 12:41 And another thing that's very pivotal 12:43 for the Pure Reality Retreat on the weekend 12:46 is the baptism in the burning service 12:48 or the consecration in the, the consecration service 12:50 when you see so many young people come up 12:53 and they say, "I want to give up life over to God." 12:55 And they come and the pastors, 12:57 and the Pure Reality counselors, 12:58 or the elders that are there pray over them 13:00 and anoint them with oil. 13:01 And then those that want to become baptized, 13:03 there's the river, 13:05 and we actually go into that river, 13:07 it's not a pool, it's the actual lake, 13:10 and they go and they baptize, 13:11 they get baptized into the lake. 13:13 And I think that's an amazing experience. 13:15 That's awesome, wow. 13:17 So these students or young people, 13:20 they come and they experience this weekend, 13:22 and we talked about and touched about 13:24 the transparency that you all to promote, 13:26 and I want to talk to Alexa 13:27 then, there is a story 13:29 I think you were telling me earlier about 13:30 when you all were at an anointing service 13:31 or something, you want to just share with us 13:33 about this issue of transparency. 13:35 Well, you know, transparency is a big issue in our church, 13:40 especially as Seventh-day Adventist youth, 13:42 we recognize that a lot of our parents, 13:44 a lot of our elders don't tend to be transparent with us. 13:48 And perhaps it's because they might believe 13:50 that we will judge them 13:51 or not take their word of their wisdom, 13:54 but it's completely the other way around. 13:56 And at Pure Reality, we really have a chance 13:58 to be transparent because we see older people, 14:02 the speakers who come, 14:04 they give their testimony and tell us, 14:06 they've suffered with pornography, 14:08 they've suffered with infidelity 14:09 or different things that have happened, 14:11 and that allows us in turn to become transparent as well. 14:14 During the anointing ceremony one year, 14:17 there was a speaker and she encouraged those... 14:20 usually what we do during the ceremony 14:22 is that we will write on a piece of paper any sin, 14:25 anything that you want 14:27 God to take away from you for that year, 14:30 and we will burn it in a bonfire. 14:32 But that year, she told us, when you write it down, 14:34 when you go to the pastor or the elder 14:36 that's going to pray over you, you need to read it, 14:39 and you need to speak it out loud. 14:42 And immediately, there was a hush in the room, 14:44 and then murmuring everywhere, murmuring everywhere. 14:48 And she began to speak loudly and she said, 14:50 "Be quiet, be quiet," and there was a silence. 14:54 And we were talking later and we realized that 14:57 it wasn't the youth or the people 14:59 that she was speaking to but the demons 15:02 that were speaking to the children 15:04 and telling them, "You can't say it, 15:06 no don't say it 15:08 because they're going to think that you're horrible. 15:09 You'll never be saved. You can't say it." 15:11 And I think that moment was the moment of realization 15:14 especially for me because when I went up there, 15:16 even though I couldn't speak it, 15:17 I showed the paper, and it was a big deal 15:20 because it was the year of freedom. 15:24 Amen. 15:26 I could see that's really has touched you. 15:29 You know, being able to be open and transparent. 15:31 And I believe that Satan has done 15:32 just a number on us. 15:34 And that just goes back to garden, 15:35 you know, trying to hide ourselves, 15:37 same goes with us to recluse and not wanting to go 15:40 to Christ for that salvation, for that saving, you know. 15:44 That is... 15:45 I appreciate you sharing that, Alexa. 15:48 We want to continue talking about this issue 15:50 with transparency that why is it so hard, 15:51 you know, for people to feel okay to share. 15:56 And I appreciate you all sharing 15:58 because this is important for us to see this. 16:00 But why is it so hard for people to share, 16:03 you know. 16:05 I think it's because 16:08 the devil has convinced us that we're not worthy, 16:11 that worth is so important to know that 16:15 you can share, it's like if we muffle it, 16:19 if we close it up, 16:21 then everybody will die silently, 16:24 but if we're able to just open up, 16:27 then we will see able to see that we are each connected. 16:31 Sometimes I relate it to science, 16:33 every cell is dependent on another cell 16:36 in order to survive, in order to build, 16:38 to make tissue, in order to make organs, 16:40 in order to make organ systems. 16:42 And if we looked at each other as cells, 16:45 we need each other, 16:47 we need to be able to support each other. 16:49 We need the walls of each other to build structures. 16:55 The devil has created division by making us feel like 17:01 we are divided from the throne, we are not worthy to be there, 17:05 we are so far removed from it 17:08 that we need to just stay in our place. 17:10 Transparency is so difficult 17:12 because you just feel like you're the only one, 17:14 and Pure Reality gives you the opportunity 17:16 to feel like you are not the only one. 17:18 I'm not the only one struggling with molestation. 17:21 I'm not the only one struggling with perversion, 17:24 and once you get in a room of people that know 17:27 that they have these problems and can say and admit it, 17:31 it just, it frees you. 17:33 Like Alexa said, it frees you, 17:37 you don't want to stop talking about it anymore. 17:39 You want to let everyone know that you come in contact with 17:43 that God has changed your life and you're not a victim, 17:46 you are a victor, that is a powerful movement. 17:49 And the devil just does not want you 17:51 to feel the power that God has given you. 17:53 He doesn't want that, you know, the truth will set you free. 17:56 And really this society 17:57 and how things looks in the media 17:59 is all kind of set up to really say you know, 18:01 don't share your problems, you know, 18:03 just go with the flow. 18:05 And even in our churches 18:06 how things are set up, you know, 18:07 just don't say, just come to church, 18:09 go home, don't ruffle up the feathers, 18:11 don't rock the boat, just keep thing on, you know. 18:14 And don't really say anything, you know, 18:16 but what is that you're saying here 18:18 is we need to reject that type of mindset. 18:21 We need to speak about, and talk, 18:22 and be in community and fellowship, 18:23 that's just beautiful. 18:25 But I want to touch it even more on 18:26 what this society, what is happening now 18:27 in this generation, so we have Zoe, 18:29 who is our younger one here, yes, but talk to us about this. 18:35 I guess the biggest thing I see, 18:38 I just started college, I'm a freshman, 18:40 I guess what I see mostly is our generation 18:45 especially the younger ones 18:46 can tell when people aren't being transparent. 18:50 So we see all these people 18:51 in front of us who aren't being real, 18:53 who aren't being realistic, who aren't telling the truth, 18:56 and you can see, 18:57 I guess you can see that there is struggle 19:00 but they're not bold enough and brave enough to admit 19:04 that they are struggling, and so you are saying, 19:07 "Well, if you can't admit it, then why can't I admit it. 19:09 And if you're saying that you can be all something, 19:13 you can be so perfect 19:15 with this sense then why can't I?" 19:17 And that's why the transparency 19:21 that comes with Pure Reality is so powerful 19:23 because that's when you have victory over things 19:25 is when you're transparent, 19:27 when you're open about what's wrong. 19:28 And I guess that's what happened with me 19:31 with Pure Reality because it was different. 19:34 And I had heard about Pure Reality 19:35 when I first came to church. 19:37 They just had a retreat, 19:40 and somebody came to me and said, 19:41 "You're going to be a Pure Ambassador," 19:43 and Pure Ambassadors are basically, 19:45 this is what we do, we go and we talk about 19:47 the Pure Reality. 19:48 But somebody said you're going to be 19:50 a Pure Ambassador, and that time, 19:51 I didn't even know about Pure Reality. 19:53 And they said I'm going to be a Pure Ambassador, 19:54 I said, "Okay, if you say so, all right." 19:57 And over then I hadn't even been to retreat yet 20:00 when I started working with Pure Reality. 20:02 And I started to see all these people 20:04 who were so touched by this ministry 20:06 that I wasn't really even aware of. 20:08 And so when I first went, I was like, okay, 20:10 this is going to be, I had this already a mindset 20:12 about how it was going to be, and I went to the retreat 20:14 and it was completely different than anything I expected to be. 20:17 And I think that was the year 20:19 of actually hearing your testimony, 20:20 was the first one I heard. 20:22 And I was like, "People are so real here, 20:24 it's so different," because it's not the usual 20:27 we are going to cover it up, we are all going to, 20:29 you know hearing how bold people were about changed, 20:32 they had been was very powerful. 20:34 And I think that's what touches, 20:37 what's so powerful about the ministry 20:39 and what touches this generation 20:40 is the transparency 20:43 because that's when you know what's coming, 20:46 this is what happens, if you stay on this path, 20:47 this is what you get into. 20:49 If you aren't careful, this is what happens. 20:51 If you let the devil have a little bit, 20:55 you can play games with the devil 20:56 because he is going to want it all. 20:58 And when you can say that, 20:59 and when people can be bold about that and say, 21:01 "You know what, you really don't want, 21:03 this is not a road you want to go down 21:04 or if you're down this road, you need to stop 21:06 because there is way you can stop, 21:08 that you don't have to..." 21:10 There's a certain I guess stereotype 21:13 that goes with certain things that come along with it, 21:16 and if this happens to you, 21:17 then this is what you're going to do. 21:19 This happens to you, 21:20 this is what you're going to become. 21:21 And Pure Reality says you don't have to. 21:23 Just because this has happened to you, 21:25 just because you've been molested, 21:27 just because you have these things happen to you, 21:29 just because you have issues with your father, 21:31 this does not mean that you have to become this. 21:33 You have power, and I guess you always hear 21:36 these generational curses 21:39 into the third and fourth generation. 21:40 I guess, Pure Reality 21:42 is where those generational curses 21:43 into the third and fourth generation meets that mercy, 21:46 that mercy and showing mercy to thousands, 21:49 "If you love me, keep My commandments." 21:50 And that's where Pure Reality works for me, 21:52 it's where I met that mercy 21:55 that stops those generational curses. 21:57 Amen. 21:59 Amen, that's powerful, that's preaching over here. 22:00 I know, right? 22:02 All right, don't get me started. 22:03 That's all right, and this generation 22:05 really is craving for, like you said, 22:07 the authenticity 'cause you see, 22:09 you know, this generation, our generation, 22:10 you know, we're real because a lot of times, 22:13 we'll say, "This is what I'm doing, 22:15 so what? I'm going to do it, you know." 22:17 But we really meet that other person, mentor, 22:21 who is also going to be real back to us and say, 22:22 "What? You know, you shouldn't be doing this 22:24 and this is why." 22:25 So that's awesome, that's awesome. 22:26 So talk to me now as, you know, all four young ladies here, 22:31 talk to me about 22:32 what are the issues of young women now. 22:34 And we only have a few more minutes now, 22:35 but talk to us a little bit about 22:37 what would you say to young women now, 22:39 what are they going through. 22:42 One of the issues where I know, over the past seven years 22:46 that I have been going to Pure Reality, 22:49 one of the biggest issues I think that's happening, 22:51 especially for the young women, peer pressure, 22:54 peer pressure to have sex, not only that, 22:57 we are dealing a lot with young girls, 22:58 lesbianism, experimenting. 23:02 Now you have a lot of young girls, 23:04 it's no longer BFFs, they are BFFs 23:06 with other benefits. 23:07 You know, we had a lot of girls 23:10 that are cutters that are very depressed. 23:13 We've had a lot of young ladies that are dealing with... 23:15 I remember one Pure Reality, we did a survey, 23:18 and there were actually young girls 23:20 that were actually going through being raped 23:23 or molested in the process of Pure Reality. 23:27 I mean, and the list goes on and on and on and on, 23:31 but I think the biggest thing that we're dealing 23:33 with right now is lesbianism, low self-esteem, 23:36 peer pressure, promiscuity, different things like that. 23:39 And we have a quite a few of our young ladies 23:41 that are virgins but are struggling 23:43 with masturbation, and really don't know... 23:47 they feel dirty, they feel that's why they don't know 23:49 who to talk to in regards to it. 23:52 And then we have a lot of young ladies 23:53 that are having unprotected sex 23:55 and they don't feel threatened by it. 23:57 They don't feel like anything's going to happen 24:00 because they haven't been pregnant, 24:01 it's beyond pregnancy, you know. 24:03 That's what Pure Reality teaches you 24:05 because that's what you... 24:06 The most common thing that we teach 24:08 is pregnancy and STDs, 24:09 and so especially in the church... 24:11 Well, first of all we feel like we don't have any STDs, 24:13 but then we feel like, you know, 24:16 "If I'm not pregnant, then I will catch a disease. 24:18 If I'm careful, if I use protection, 24:21 then that's the only issue that comes with it. 24:24 And so as long as I don't get pregnant, 24:26 as long as I don't get an STD, I'm safe, I'm good." 24:29 And we don't talk about the demons 24:33 and the things that you encounter, 24:37 the spiritual warfare that you go through 24:39 doing things that you know you shouldn't be doing. 24:42 A lot of our women 24:44 are also feeling the need to settle. 24:47 That is like the biggest issue when you hear young women, 24:50 "Should I settle because I just don't see 24:52 anything come in my way, 24:54 there are not a lot of men that are Christ-like 24:58 or it's not enough men in the church," 25:00 and so they feel the need to settle. 25:02 And they end up settling with things 25:05 that they have no business settling with. 25:07 And so I think that's also a big issue 25:10 for our young ladies because now they're questioning 25:13 whether they are worth enough 25:15 to find somebody that is God-fearing. 25:18 They question whether or not they're worthy enough 25:21 to have their list of expectations 25:25 but reasonable expectations, and they're questioning 25:29 whether they should even have that list. 25:31 "Let's just throw it out of the door 25:32 because I'm not going to be able to find that," 25:34 but God has a different purpose. 25:36 And if we understand His plan, then we have to understand 25:39 that He is working on creating 25:42 somebody just as perfect for us on the other side, 25:47 but we have to be able to wait on him 25:49 and understand that it's okay to be alone in Him 25:53 for Him to be able to make that connection for you. 25:56 Amen, amen. 25:57 We have just a few more minutes here. 25:59 Alexa, you're married. Yes. 26:01 So why is it important for young women 26:03 to just wait and be pure? 26:05 What is purity? What's so important about that? 26:08 This is a big deal to me 26:09 because in my experience in growing up, 26:13 you know, my mother was huge in always telling me 26:17 that I needed to maintain my virginity. 26:19 And, you know, sometimes when we're growing up 26:21 we don't understand it 26:23 because there is that peer pressure 26:24 like Ashaala mentioned. 26:26 There is that feeling that I have to settle. 26:28 There's this thing that, you know, 26:30 "We have to live together or I need to know 26:31 what I'm getting before I tie it down." 26:33 And I waited, and I'm so glad that I did 26:39 because my husband always tells me 26:41 that's the best gift you could have given me, 26:43 the same words that my mom told me came to fruition. 26:46 And he said, "That's the best gift 26:48 that you could have given me because I know that my wife 26:50 hasn't been with anybody else." 26:52 And along the way, 26:54 it's not to say that we have been perfect, 26:55 we did it for a long time, 26:57 but God has been able to keep us 26:59 and I earnestly believe that it's only through Pure Reality, 27:03 going there, understanding, 27:04 taking it in, being willing to be open 27:06 and receive the knowledge and the wisdom 27:08 that was given to us and impart that knowledge, 27:11 and use it, and practice it 27:12 in our relationship was what kept us. 27:14 Wow, that's beautiful. And maybe 15 seconds here. 27:18 Tell the young ladies something that... 27:20 Listen to me, God loves you, but the enemy hates you. 27:23 And because the enemy hates you, 27:24 he is going to create diversions 27:26 to make you think that you're not fearfully 27:27 and wonderfully made in His image. 27:29 But I'm here to tell you today 27:30 that if God can use me out of concrete 27:33 and now blossoming into a rose, God can use you. 27:36 Have no fear because He loves you, 27:38 He loves you, and He wants what's best for you. 27:41 So keep your head up, 27:42 keep your head up, and keep going. 27:43 And know that you are victorious through Christ. 27:46 God has made you more than a conqueror 27:48 and through your testimony, you can overcome. 27:51 Well, that's the end of our program. 27:52 Until next time, stay pure. God bless. |
Revised 2018-03-07