New Journey, The

Stop the Violence -part 2

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

Program transcript

Participants: Aaron Chancy (Host), Latoya Holloman

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Series Code: TNJ

Program Code: TNJ000044


00:01 The following program discusses sensitive issues.
00:04 Parents are cautioned that some material
00:05 may be too candid for younger children.
00:10 In part one, we learned about Latoya Holloman's testimony.
00:14 In part two, we're gonna focus on
00:15 an exciting ministry that she has,
00:17 stopped the violence in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
00:20 Join us on The New Journey.
00:53 Welcome back to The New Journey.
00:55 For many of you, you may not have seen
00:56 part one of Latoya Holloman's testimony,
00:59 so we'll give you a quick recap
01:01 so that you can enjoy
01:03 some of the info from her testimony.
01:05 Latoya Holloman, we like to thank you
01:07 for being back on the program.
01:09 Just to recap a little bit, where are you from?
01:12 I'm from Baltimore. Okay, from Baltimore, Maryland.
01:15 And you grew up in a gang life, right?
01:16 Right.
01:17 And talk a little bit about your household involvement
01:20 in the streets and various things
01:22 like that before we move on.
01:23 My household involved in the streets?
01:25 Yes, like your father, your mother, your brothers.
01:30 Well, we were all raised up in that environment.
01:34 Okay.
01:37 Just this life of Baltimore.
01:39 Okay, okay, it's a very hard place to grow up, right?
01:42 Right, right.
01:43 Okay, now eventually, you left Baltimore
01:46 and you moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee.
01:49 Why did you eventually make that move?
01:51 Well, I have been going back and forth so much anyway
01:55 that I just decided
01:56 to go ahead and relocate to Chattanooga, Tennessee.
02:01 And I ended up staying for good
02:04 because my grandmother ended up getting sick.
02:06 Okay, okay, now what eventually happened to your grandmother?
02:10 She was diagnosed with stomach cancer.
02:12 Okay, and she eventually passed away?
02:14 Yeah, she had passed away in 2012 on October the 5th.
02:20 Now when you, when you came down there,
02:22 you were taking care of your grandmother
02:23 and things like that, then she passed away,
02:25 how did that make you feel internally?
02:29 Ah, I was hurt... Okay.
02:32 I was deeply hurt.
02:34 She was my best friend,
02:36 you know, I could tell her about anything,
02:38 so definitely took a lot out of me when I lost her.
02:41 Okay.
02:43 You know, often when a person's loved one dies
02:45 or a very close friend or whatever,
02:46 people often feel resentment to somebody
02:49 or resentment towards God.
02:51 Did you have any of that resentment within you?
02:54 Not towards God,
02:55 but I had a lot of anger towards my family.
02:58 Okay, was it, was it pertaining to your mother's death
03:00 or people taking, not taking care of your mother.
03:04 Yeah. Okay, okay.
03:06 Now eventually, after your grandmother passed,
03:09 you got married, and what happened after that?
03:12 Well, I ended up getting married to,
03:16 you might as well say my husband's...
03:18 Okay, so y'all knew each other for a while?
03:20 Yeah, we knew each other for forever.
03:21 Okay.
03:23 And we ended up getting married
03:24 and unfortunately, he ended up getting sick
03:27 with the MD, which is a muscular dystrophy.
03:30 Okay.
03:31 And he ended up passing away, October 21st.
03:35 Okay, now how old were you when you got married?
03:37 I was 24.
03:39 Twenty four years old,
03:40 so when you left Baltimore, came to Chattanooga,
03:42 your grandmother passes away,
03:44 then you get married, your husband passes away,
03:46 were you still involved in the streets at that time
03:48 or had you already kind of pulled yourself away from?
03:50 I had already kind of pulled back.
03:53 Okay, and what caused you to want to take that step back
03:56 and get away from that lifestyle?
03:58 Just be happy for once.
04:03 I tried everything but the right things,
04:05 so I felt like it was time to just buckle down.
04:08 Okay, now eventually you started a ministry called,
04:12 Stop the Violence.
04:13 I did.
04:14 What motivated you or prompted you
04:16 to want to start a ministry entitled, Stop the Violence?
04:19 Just wanted to see more done in my community,
04:22 wanted to see the youth do more and the community,
04:25 just letting them know
04:26 that there's a lot more to life than what they see on the TV,
04:30 what they hear on the radio, what they see in the streets.
04:33 Okay, so what are the different facets
04:36 of the Stop the Violence ministry?
04:39 What are you all involved in Chattanooga, Tennessee?
04:42 Well, we're involved in a lot of things.
04:44 We do concerts, marches. Okay.
04:48 My church is very well involved,
04:52 we just recently did a Stop the Violence rally
04:56 at the Carverc Center,
04:58 which I changed the name to, Loving My Community,
05:01 and that went very well, where we gave our clothing.
05:06 We fed the community,
05:08 gave them a little entertainment,
05:10 prayed for them, we do marches.
05:14 At the Salvation Army,
05:17 I did a week long campaign
05:19 and that made a magnificent impact.
05:22 Okay. Praise the Lord.
05:24 So at the Salvation Army,
05:25 what did y'all do at the Salvation Army
05:27 that made that great impact on the community?
05:29 Well, I just reached out to a lot of people and,
05:33 got a lot of people involved,
05:35 I reached out to the Gang Task Force,
05:38 Boyd Patterson,
05:39 and I reached out some, my church Orchard Park
05:43 and the Salvation Army as well,
05:45 so let me use their building
05:47 and the Chattanooga Fire Department,
05:50 and we just made it,
05:51 put our heads together and made a powerful week..
05:53 Okay, praise the Lord.
05:55 Did a little network and got things going, huh?
05:56 I did.
05:57 Okay, now you talked about the marches.
06:00 What do y'all generally do at the marches?
06:01 Or how do you, how do you even gather people up
06:04 to be involved in a march?
06:06 Well, what I did was I made an appointment
06:08 at a Power 94 radio station
06:11 and I got it planned on the radio,
06:14 and I also got it done and put in an article,
06:19 so that people would know.
06:21 And then I also did by word of mouth,
06:23 you know, what happened was
06:25 this young lady by the name of Kea Shaffoy.
06:28 She was shot in the head due to gang violence,
06:34 but she survived, praise God she's still living.
06:37 And we did a march for her to stand against violence.
06:41 Do you generally see a great turnout
06:44 from the church,
06:46 from other churches in Chattanooga,
06:47 from the community at these marches?
06:51 I do, from my church Orchard Park
06:54 and from the East Lake Community.
06:57 Okay, okay, that's great, that's great.
06:59 Now you also have the street ministry.
07:01 What's the components of the street ministry?
07:04 Well, the street ministry, we're still working on,
07:07 we've already started
07:09 for as the campaigning and pitting our rallies,
07:13 but what I want to happen
07:14 is to have different counselors to come out
07:16 and counsel these women and these young guys
07:20 and have job programs for them,
07:25 just offer job training
07:27 and minister, do door-to-door work
07:30 and just kind of influence the youth
07:33 in a positive way and in innovative way.
07:35 Okay, now at the concerts that you have,
07:38 one, how is the turnout at the concerts
07:40 and two, what's all involved in the concerts
07:43 and how do you get people to come to the concert,
07:45 how do you get various artists
07:47 and things like that at the concerts?
07:48 Well, what I do is I do research
07:52 and actually, the concert,
07:55 I had a flyer on a board at the Salvation Army
07:59 and these two guys
08:00 by the name of a Terry Davis and Michael Kelly,
08:05 they reached out to me
08:06 and said, "We like what you're doing.
08:09 My name, they call me Big Mike, and I do rap,
08:14 you know, I rap
08:15 and I'm out to do the same thing you're doing,
08:18 doesn't make a difference in the community."
08:20 So that's how I started networking with the talent.
08:23 It's through him.
08:24 Okay, now for the Stop the Violence,
08:26 is it, is it pretty much
08:27 that you're doing the work all alone
08:29 or do you have a team or how does that work?
08:31 Well, I started it all alone by myself,
08:34 started doing networks and stuff by myself and then,
08:37 my church got involved and started helping me,
08:40 like they gave away food, clothing,
08:43 and they even gave away bags at the campaign
08:46 with different hygiene products and stuff.
08:48 Okay, so that's great
08:51 that you got the church support,
08:52 very great that you have the church support.
08:55 In the various things that you do in the ministry,
08:59 what impact have you seen it have on the community?
09:02 I know, I know, of course, we all pretty much know that,
09:04 you know, violence is still going to be around,
09:06 but what kind of impact have you seen thus far?
09:10 I've seen a great impact.
09:12 I got little kids coming up to me saying,
09:14 "Stop the violence."
09:15 You know, when are you gonna do another one
09:17 and violence is definitely,
09:21 definitely still a part of the community,
09:23 but it's not as bad as it was.
09:25 Okay, okay.
09:26 Now somebody, because pretty much
09:28 your ministry is focused
09:30 in Chattanooga, Tennessee, right?
09:32 So if somebody wanted to let's just say in Philadelphia,
09:35 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
09:37 or anywhere in the United States,
09:38 they wanted to start a Stop the Violence program ministry,
09:41 something like yours,
09:43 what steps do they need to take to do something like that?
09:46 Just pretty much stay prayed up,
09:48 know that, know that
09:49 you know that you want to do it.
09:51 Okay, you said, know that you know
09:52 that you want to do it, that's interesting, okay.
09:54 And do network, lot of network. Okay.
09:59 Find different talents from nationwide,
10:02 don't be picky with the talent
10:07 and try to find youth that is,
10:10 that would like to be involved in doing something positive
10:13 'cause what you want to happen is influence youth
10:17 and it start with us,
10:18 so you also want the youth to be a part of it.
10:20 Oh, yeah, oh, yeah, definitely, seems like, you know,
10:23 when they're actually a part of it,
10:24 they're more interested in it.
10:27 And from the, from the young people,
10:29 say around ages 13 to 17,
10:31 do you get a pretty good turnout
10:34 of those ones involved or coming to the rallies
10:36 and different things like that?
10:38 I do.
10:39 Actually, one of the ones that came and performed was 13.
10:43 Thirteen years old? Okay. Okay.
10:46 They one day performed at this last event that we had.
10:48 Okay.
10:49 Now in the work that you're doing,
10:52 does it involve any type of mentoring,
10:55 like kind of sitting down one on one with a young person?
10:59 How could, if a young person wanted to ask you something,
11:02 what do they need to do?
11:03 Can they come sit down, you mentor them,
11:05 give them the word of God,
11:06 what would, what would take place?
11:09 They can definitely come to me.
11:10 I'll pray with them, minister to them,
11:12 invite them to my church.
11:15 Just influence them in a positive way,
11:17 help them in a way that I can.
11:19 Okay, you know, the reason I asked that is,
11:21 I'll tell a quick story.
11:24 I remember when I changed my life
11:26 and the mother of this young man asked me,
11:28 she asked me, to, you know,
11:30 kind of mentor her son
11:32 and so I did, he was 16 at the time,
11:34 and, you know, I tried to share my experiences with them,
11:37 you know, the streets, to being incarcerated,
11:39 various things like that and, you know,
11:41 sometimes we get in our heads that, you know,
11:44 even though somebody is trying to steer me differently,
11:47 we're so bent on doing wrong
11:49 'cause we want to see how it is for ourselves.
11:51 You know what I'm saying, right?
11:52 Right, right.
11:53 My mom used to call me, bull-headed.
11:56 I had to learn the hard way, so anyhow, I, you know,
11:58 I got involved with mentoring the young man,
12:01 really schooling him on how the streets work
12:03 and the reality what I tried to get across to him
12:06 is some people die out there,
12:07 or some people get incarcerated for years and years,
12:11 and the sad thing is last year January 2012,
12:17 he, a week after he turned 19 years old,
12:19 he was murdered, got shot five times,
12:21 and got shot five times and they determined
12:24 that the bullet through the neck
12:26 was the one that killed him.
12:27 And, you know, it was, it really had an impact on me
12:30 because here is one that I spent time with,
12:33 studying the word of God with,
12:35 trying to get him to see
12:37 the reality of the streets and, you know,
12:40 it saddens my heart that it didn't have the impact
12:44 that I hoped or that I expected out of it.
12:48 So what have you seen
12:50 thus far in the ones or one that you have mentored?
12:54 What impact or what have you seen
12:57 from working with individuals?
12:59 Well, I had a next door neighbor,
13:03 her name was Amanda, and she very bull-headed...
13:10 Yeah, that's most of us really.
13:11 Right, right.
13:12 And very outspoken, quick-tempered,
13:17 and I started just going over there to check on her
13:21 and just started mentoring to her,
13:22 started praying with her and it's funny
13:26 because one night, I was in my kitchen
13:30 and some shots went off,
13:32 and she was a victim of being shot.
13:34 Okay, now, let me...
13:37 She was shot but the bullet wasn't intended for her?
13:39 No, it was.
13:41 It was intended, okay, okay. It was, it was.
13:43 And I had the opportunity to leave out my door,
13:46 she called my name as soon as she got shot,
13:49 and I had the opportunity to pray with her,
13:52 while we were waiting on the ambulance,
13:54 and that definitely made an impact on her life
13:57 and it was good to see,
13:59 good for her to see somebody praying with her
14:01 and ministering her and encouraging her.
14:04 We got, is there any decisions
14:06 or any bad thing that she ever did.
14:08 Okay.
14:09 Now let me go back to this, you said,
14:11 if somebody wanted to get involved with like,
14:13 Stop the Violence,
14:14 doing something like this in the city,
14:16 you said that they need to know
14:18 that they know that they want to do it.
14:20 Why do you specifically say,
14:21 know that they know that they want to do it?
14:24 Well, a lot of people are easily influenced.
14:29 A lot of people easily prefers it.
14:31 Yeah, that is true.
14:33 And a lot of people,
14:35 it's in them to want to do the right thing,
14:37 but they're not bold to step up
14:41 and do what it is they want to do
14:43 because they want, don't want to have that title
14:45 of being weak or sorrowful, whatever the case may be,
14:49 so and if you know that you know that you want to do,
14:52 and you're bold about it then it will be success,
14:57 but if you kind of if ye...
14:59 Yeah, if ye about it.
15:01 And kind of still in a state of mind
15:02 where you're worrying about what the next person will say,
15:05 or, you know, you're still in a state of mind
15:08 where you don't wanna be called weak and stuff
15:10 and, might wanna just keep praying and...
15:13 Okay, so being that you have a background in the gangs,
15:17 in streets, in using drugs, and various things like that,
15:20 while you're out there, you know, being in the streets,
15:23 looking for people, knocking on doors,
15:25 whatever you all are doing,
15:27 do you ever find yourself saying to yourself,
15:29 you know, what if I just go back to this type of lifestyle?
15:32 Or have you come to the, come to the conclusion,
15:34 I'm through with it completely?
15:37 We all go through a battle
15:39 and it definitely, it's definitely still a battle
15:43 and I think it to be a battle till the day we die.
15:46 Yeah.
15:48 But to me the important thing is to just keep praying
15:51 and keep that desire, that fire,
15:53 you have people not only do you keep praying,
15:55 have people to pray for you.
15:57 Oh, yeah.
15:58 And, you know, and that's great encouragement
16:00 because some people may say, "Well, I can't overcome this."
16:02 They're trying and they're trying,
16:04 but they can't and they find themselves "backsliding"
16:07 because they don't feel that they can overcome
16:10 whatever, whatever it is
16:11 that they're, that they're dealing with
16:13 and it's encouragement to know that,
16:14 even though that you're tempted,
16:16 you can still overcome and continue to press forward,
16:20 just as the Bible says in the Book of Revelation,
16:22 "Heaven is for the overcomers."
16:24 So it's overcoming everything in our lives
16:27 and it does take time.
16:28 It does. It takes a lot of time.
16:30 My motto is adjust, adapt and overcome.
16:32 Adjust, adapt and overcome.
16:34 And often that's what it is.
16:37 I know for myself, when I was making a change,
16:39 it wasn't easy when I made the change,
16:42 you know, I was so addicted
16:43 and I was used to doing so many things,
16:47 that just saying, "Okay, I'm ready to change now."
16:51 Things then stopped cold turkey for me.
16:53 You know, it was a process that I had to go through
16:56 but praise the Lord, God has brought me to the point
16:58 where I'm not tempted with those things anymore,
17:01 it's kind of like, God has worked on me so much
17:04 that the cigarettes, the alcohol, the drugs,
17:06 those things aren't even temptations to me anymore,
17:09 and I believe that as we continue to resist,
17:13 the Bible says, "Resist the devil
17:15 and he will flee from you."
17:16 So as we continue to resist those things
17:19 time and time again,
17:21 eventually, those things stop becoming a temptation.
17:24 How have you seen that in your own life?
17:28 I definitely agree with you on it.
17:31 So he trembles to the word of Jesus,
17:34 to the name of Jesus.
17:36 So when I found myself going through something
17:39 I don't think I can handle
17:41 well, I think the devil is just out to give me,
17:43 I'll just call His name out.
17:44 Oh, yeah, call on the name of Jesus.
17:47 So your ministry, Stop the Violence ministry,
17:49 how long have you been,
17:51 how long have you been doing this ministry now?
17:53 Well, it started back in October 2012.
17:57 Okay, so from 2012 until?
18:00 Until now. 2013, okay.
18:03 How long do you plan on continuing this ministry
18:06 or are there other facets that you're gonna add to it?
18:10 I don't plan on stopping.
18:11 Okay, praise the Lord.
18:13 I might actually want to go back to my hometown,
18:17 and start it there.
18:18 Okay, in Baltimore, right?
18:20 Okay, now what kind of impact
18:21 do you think, is Baltimore and Chattanooga,
18:23 it's similar but it's a little bit different.
18:25 It is.
18:26 What kind of impact
18:28 do you think it may have in a place like Baltimore?
18:30 I think it would be a great impact.
18:33 I'd say chips of that often
18:36 and I definitely think that it is needed
18:42 and I think that the youth would definitely enjoy it
18:45 to see some, the other youth
18:48 in something that is so powerful
18:50 and that would leave a mark,
18:51 so I definitely think that is good to get out there
18:57 and kind of work the streets of Baltimore.
18:59 Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.
19:00 So do you think your background kind of gives you that passion
19:03 for wanting to see the violence stop?
19:07 Not only my background,
19:08 just having a heart for my community.
19:10 Okay, just that genuine love for people.
19:13 That's the one.
19:14 Yeah, because I've never been a victim
19:19 of losing a family member by the gun or knife
19:24 or stuff like that,
19:26 it's just in my heart
19:27 to just see my community change.
19:29 Okay, as I said, do you get a lot of support
19:31 from other than your church?
19:34 Do you get a lot of support like you go,
19:35 going into projects
19:37 and you're not gonna endorse trying to get people involved,
19:40 do you get a lot of support from various people
19:42 in the project areas you're working
19:44 or do people be like, nah, not really interested in it?
19:47 It's kind of balanced.
19:51 It's 50% here, 50% there.
19:54 Some want and some don't?
19:56 Okay, what have you seen that has made some say,
20:00 "Nah, I don't really want to be involved?"
20:01 Because it seems like a good thing.
20:03 You know, to stop the violence, to stop the murdering,
20:06 to stop the drugs, various things like that,
20:08 that are killing off the community,
20:11 Why have...
20:12 What have you seen thus far, that has made someone say,
20:15 "No, I don't really want to be involved
20:16 in something like this."
20:18 Well, I talked to a young lady a while back...
20:22 Back in November, I believe it was.
20:24 Okay.
20:26 It's good thing you're doing
20:27 but it ain't, violence will never stop
20:30 so, you know, that's what, that's how people are thinking
20:33 and then you've got those ones who have been victim of it,
20:36 lost a child or closed loved ones
20:39 that they just don't, they just don't decide
20:41 to be part of anything like that no more
20:44 'cause they're so deeply ruined it, yeah.
20:46 Yeah, hurt by the situation
20:48 and, you know, they want to see things stop.
20:51 True, the violence will never stop,
20:53 you know, it's going to,
20:55 until Jesus comes it's always going to be so,
20:56 but we can each play our part
20:58 in stopping it a little bit in our areas, right?
21:01 Right, right, absolutely.
21:02 And all we have to do is have that will,
21:04 that determination
21:06 and a trust in God to open up those doors
21:07 to be able to do something like that, right?
21:09 Right, just come together as one.
21:11 Okay, okay.
21:13 For the various people that want to,
21:15 that want to get involved in something like this,
21:19 but they don't have the background
21:21 that you and I have,
21:22 you know, they have an interest for the community,
21:24 they have a love for people,
21:26 but they haven't been incarcerated,
21:27 they haven't used drugs, they haven't sold drugs,
21:31 but they have that loving desire for people.
21:34 Would you encourage them
21:36 to get involved in something like this?
21:37 Absolutely, I would.
21:38 Okay, now my second question that would be.
21:41 Why would you encourage them
21:43 to get involved in something like this?
21:45 There's some positives, it's leaving a mark
21:48 and regardless of your background
21:50 it's always good to spread the word of Jesus.
21:52 Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.
21:53 So how do you all
21:54 in the Stop the Violence program,
21:56 how do you incorporate the biblical aspect
21:58 along with just stopping the violence,
22:00 just you know, say no to guns, say no to drugs,
22:03 how do you incorporate Jesus into this whole ministry?
22:07 Well, ministry, just praying with people.
22:13 Okay.
22:15 Encouraging people, why?
22:17 It goes deep.
22:19 It definitely goes deep.
22:20 You definitely had to have the love for Christ
22:24 as well as for people.
22:25 Okay.
22:26 And God just take you from there, you know.
22:29 Okay, praise the Lord.
22:31 I want to back up a little bit.
22:33 You said, some while ago where you started studying
22:36 the Bible with your grandmother.
22:38 And you know,
22:39 this is what kind of started sparking that change.
22:42 What were you seeing in the Bible
22:44 that was making you want to gravitate to Jesus Christ?
22:48 Well, it was just a lot of stuff
22:51 that was being pointed out to me.
22:53 Actually not with my grandmother,
22:56 Janice Wolman.
22:57 Okay, yeah.
22:58 And she started pointing out different stuff to me
23:02 and it started making sense.
23:04 Okay, what were some of those things
23:06 that she was pointing out
23:07 that, that started to make sense or register?
23:09 Well, I loved the fact that anything she told me,
23:11 she could show me in the Bible...
23:13 Yeah, okay. That especially about that.
23:16 And then she allowed me to see how much Jesus loved me.
23:19 Okay.
23:20 And how much, how important it was to love Him back.
23:23 And how important it was to let go,
23:28 just let go with the God.
23:30 Oh, yeah.
23:31 And she will call me
23:35 and just say, I want to pray for you.
23:37 Amen.
23:39 Or she will come by and say,
23:40 well, did you read your Bible today
23:42 or did you pray about or call whatever issue
23:44 and she, did you pray about it?
23:46 So she taught me the importance of praying and reading.
23:50 And then I was starting to become interested
23:54 in what I was reading and what she was saying,
23:56 I'd ask the lot of questions.
23:57 Okay.
23:59 Now, talk about the experience of being baptized
24:02 into the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
24:03 Talk about the joy that you have,
24:05 because you know, many young people are watching the program
24:09 and, you know, they want to gravitate to the streets.
24:12 You know, they're not interested in ministry,
24:14 you know, they think it's boring,
24:16 there's no excitement in it,
24:18 but talk about that joy
24:20 that you, that you received from being baptized,
24:23 from coming into the church, from doing ministry?
24:26 Well, I was just overwhelmed with joy.
24:31 It really made me feel good,
24:34 my life has been blessed ever since.
24:36 Okay.
24:38 When I'm down, I got tons of church members
24:41 that I can call and they can pray with me.
24:44 And youth, young adult group is awesome,
24:47 we have gang nights
24:49 and it just, it's just awesome to have a church family
24:52 outside of your, your family, right.
24:53 Yeah, outside of your regular natural family.
24:56 So do you think in making that transition in your life,
25:00 being baptized, going to church,
25:03 involved in ministry,
25:06 do you think that all of these things have helped
25:09 keep you into the church,
25:10 because what tends to happen
25:12 is someone may come into the church
25:14 and because maybe they're not rooted enough in Jesus,
25:17 they eventually walk away,
25:19 they have this problem or they have that problem
25:20 and they backslide, they walk away.
25:22 But you on the other hand, you got involved in things,
25:24 you got involved in youth ministry,
25:26 you got involved in your own ministry,
25:29 you're very close with your church family,
25:31 do you think those things
25:32 helped you stay rooted into Jesus Christ?
25:35 I do.
25:37 Okay.
25:39 Just that desire to just want more,
25:41 to want to do better, to know that you can do better.
25:45 And people rooting for you, they're praying for you, so.
25:48 Oh, yeah.
25:50 Now as I stated earlier, there's many young people that,
25:53 you know, they see TV shows,
25:56 they hear the music
25:57 and they have this addiction to that lifestyle,
26:01 I want to try that lifestyle.
26:03 What would you say to that young woman
26:05 or that young boy
26:06 that wants to try things out
26:09 but doesn't find that,
26:13 doesn't find that he can have that joy in church,
26:15 he wants to go out to the streets,
26:16 she wants to go out to the streets.
26:18 What can you give them?
26:19 What word of advice can you give them?
26:22 Stay rooted.
26:23 Stay rooted in Jesus.
26:24 Okay.
26:27 And know that you can do it, don't without a doubt,
26:30 just never doubt yourself, believe in yourself.
26:33 Okay.
26:34 And know that you can overcome anything...
26:37 Oh, yeah, okay.
26:38 With the help of Jesus. Okay.
26:40 And lastly what I want to briefly talk about is,
26:44 pertaining to the ministry Stop the Violence ministry,
26:47 you going into the communities, people's lives are changed
26:52 and people coming to church,
26:54 have you seen the joy yet of someone coming into church
26:58 and accepting Jesus as yet?
27:00 Yes. Okay.
27:02 I have a couple of young ladies in my community.
27:07 Praise the Lord.
27:08 They don't go to my church but they're in a church.
27:11 And just praise God for that.
27:13 Okay.
27:14 And one of the young lady said that,
27:16 "Me talking to her and giving her hug everyday
27:20 and asking, how she was doing
27:21 and seeing me just smile and be happy
27:24 really helped her out a lot."
27:26 Okay. Okay.
27:27 So that's awesome for her.
27:29 You know, Lato, I want to congratulate you
27:31 on your ministry
27:32 and having that determination to want to do right
27:35 and to get active into the church.
27:38 So many people they walk away from God
27:41 because they're not getting involved.
27:43 And the reality is
27:44 that we need more young people like yourself,
27:46 like myself, I'm 30-years old,
27:48 that are interested in seeing lives changed.
27:52 So I just want to encourage you keep on doing the work.
27:55 Stay focused on God and keep going forward.
27:57 I'd like to thank you all
27:59 for tuning into "The New Journey".


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Revised 2017-05-11