Participants: Jason Bradley (Host), Sandy Smith
Series Code: UBR
Program Code: UBR000188A
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00:01 Stay tuned to meet a man who left the NBA after two years
00:03 and grew to be on fire for the Lord. 00:05 My name is Jason Bradley 00:07 and you're watching Urban Report. 00:32 Hello and welcome to Urban Report. 00:34 My guest today is Sandy Smith and he is the Director of 00:37 Laymen For A Finished Work. 00:39 Sandy won Columbia Union College's 00:41 Coach of the Year Award for two consecutive years. 00:44 The Phoenix Suns drafted him to the NBA 00:47 and he was inducted to the 00:48 Winston-Salem State University Sports Hall of Fame. 00:52 These are just a few of his many accomplishments. 00:55 Welcome to Urban Report Sandy. 00:56 Thank you. 00:58 It's great to have you here amen... 01:00 Tell us, we want to know... 01:01 often we want to start with the background 01:03 so, give us a little bit of your childhood, 01:06 where did you grow up? 01:07 Oh, I grew up in Jersey City, New Jersey, 01:10 stayed there for maybe ten years. 01:12 My father was sent to prison 01:15 so we moved to Trenton, New Jersey, 01:17 where I spent most of my teenage life 01:20 there in Trenton, New Jersey. 01:21 Hmmm... okay... in Trenton New Jersey! 01:23 I grew up in New York a little bit 01:26 so that's... New Jersey and New York is... 01:28 Sandy: close... Jason: very, very close... 01:29 And what was your childhood like? 01:31 Well, as a childhood... again... 01:33 father was sent to prison for drug use 01:37 and so my mother had to attempt to raise 01:40 four young siblings on her own, 01:43 so, it was a very rough, rough childhood for me... 01:47 Okay, well you've had quite a journey as well 01:51 I mean... all of the accomplishments, 01:53 I only listened to a few of the accomplishments 01:55 that God has blessed you to be able to make 01:58 so... at... were you a Christian? 02:02 Were you Seventh-day Adventist growing up 02:04 or what was your faith like? 02:06 Well, my mother... I always say that... 02:09 she's passed six months' ago but my mother... 02:11 we had no religious background, 02:13 we weren't atheist 02:14 but we just had no understanding of God 02:17 or the plan of salvation or devil 02:19 so we pretty much... like a lot of people... 02:22 just pretty much... just day by day 02:24 just did what you had to do 02:26 but no religious background at all. 02:28 Was anybody around you religious? 02:30 None... no... none... we just... no religious background at all. 02:35 Wow, wow... and how do you think 02:38 that affected you as a child, like... did you ever... 02:41 go to school or anything and notice any differences 02:45 with the kids or... and then how do you think that 02:48 played out in your childhood? 02:50 Well, when you grow up... 02:51 I'll say... when you grow up in the hood, 02:53 pretty much everybody is the same... 02:56 living the same type of lives you just... 02:58 you know... from food from hand to mouth 03:01 and you just get by... there's drugs, 03:03 there's alcoholism, there's prostitution, 03:06 there's fighting and killing so, you just kind of fit in, 03:09 and there's nobody that really sets the example for you, 03:12 it's just... basically, 03:13 we're all living the same type of lives. 03:15 Yeah, yeah, trying to make it. Sandy: Trying to make it. 03:17 Now, how do you think that you were able to... 03:21 or how would you say that 03:23 you were able to avoid succumbing to 03:26 the peer pressure and the things 03:28 that you probably faced growing up? 03:30 Well, to be honest, I didn't escape a lot of it 03:33 at the age of maybe 8-years' old I was already involved in sex 03:38 because that was... 03:40 that was a thing that happened in the ghetto 03:43 and so, I didn't avoid some of those things, 03:46 we stole, we stayed out late at night, 03:49 my mother was a wonderful mother 03:51 but with four rambunctious children, 03:52 I mean, there wasn't much she was going to do 03:55 to control us so at a very early age 03:57 you know, you learn to smoke... 03:58 pick up cigarette butts on the ground, 04:02 you get involved with sex, you get involved with stealing, 04:05 you get involved with cursing, 04:06 that's just the way of life 04:08 in many places in the inner cities. 04:09 Yeah, yeah, and so, 04:12 how did you make it out of that situation? 04:15 Well, the one thing that I have really learned 04:19 is that God... when He sees you in a situation 04:22 and He knows your heart, 04:24 He knows that you haven't had an opportunity 04:27 to learn about Him because of your background, 04:29 many times things will happen and in not knowing God, 04:33 you feel like... "Well, God... 04:35 why are you allowing me to go through what I'm going through?" 04:38 So in our situation, we went to Trenton... 04:41 my mother came down with Tuberculosis, 04:44 we were living in a Boarding House 04:47 in a one-room apartment, four children and a mother 04:49 and I noticed, as the... the oldest of the four siblings 04:54 my mother was doing a lot of coughing 04:56 and to my surprise, I went to school one day 04:58 and I came home and I saw the ambulance 05:01 in front of our Boarding House 05:02 and I went upstairs and here... my mother was being 05:05 placed on a gurney, taken to the hospital, 05:10 they didn't know if she was going to live or not, 05:11 she had Tuberculosis, so the four of us were split up, 05:14 two went to one foster home... 05:17 two went to another foster home 05:19 and I didn't even know God but I said, 05:21 "God, why are you doing this to us? 05:23 I mean... we are already in a bad situation, 05:26 we are living in a Boarding House 05:28 in a one room... a one room... 05:30 and now my mother is going to a sanitarium... she might die," 05:34 I must have been around 13-years old 05:36 and so, that's not a good idea of going to a foster home, 05:42 and you're being split up so it's like, 05:44 my world had just about come to an end, 05:46 as far as I was thinking. 05:47 Wow! but yet... God still pulled you through... 05:53 even though you weren't... 05:55 I know you weren't in the church... you weren't religious, 05:57 you didn't have the religious background, 06:00 but... the amazing thing is that even... 06:03 sometimes in that situation, God never leaves or forsakes us. 06:09 Well, the thing is, as I look back over the years, 06:13 that was the greatest blessing that I could have... 06:16 we could have received because 06:18 remember, we were running the streets, 06:20 Twelve... one o'clock at night... 06:21 really, no supervision, and going to the foster home 06:25 God was taking us out of a negative situation 06:29 into a positive... because even though 06:31 we were going to a home where the lady was a Baptist 06:34 and her husband... but here were... they were 06:36 serious Baptist members 06:40 and they gave us rules and regulations 06:42 be in at sundown... no cursing... 06:45 no... no running the streets, 06:47 so God was taking us out of a negative situation 06:50 and to a positive one so that's where 06:53 the seeds of Christianity were planted in my young heart 06:56 because this lady and her husband believed, 06:58 you went to Sunday School, 07:00 you went to Divine Worship Service 07:03 and you went to Evening Services 07:06 so we went to church three times on Sunday 07:08 and I said, "You know, 07:10 this is a pretty good life, I like this... " 07:12 living with my mother... I mean, we had the same clothes, 07:16 we... underwear, undershirts, socks... 07:18 we were never able to change that 07:20 because my mother was poor, 07:21 we were receiving welfare 07:22 but when we went to this foster home 07:25 now we had our own clothing, I had a job in the morning, 07:29 I worked in the afternoon, I worked on the weekends, 07:32 I had money saved 07:34 so God took a bad situation and turned it into a good situation. 07:37 Yes, so even though the circumstances were... 07:40 they weren't favorable... 07:42 they were unfavorable circumstances, 07:44 there was still a blessing at the end of the tunnel because 07:47 it sounds like you had more structure, 07:50 you were provided with a job, I mean... 07:52 and you were introduced to Christianity for the first time. 07:57 So how did you... how did you feel at that point? 08:03 Did you feel like things were changing for the better? 08:06 Did you feel like you were starting to move up? 08:10 Well, after living the type of life 08:13 that my three siblings and I lived, 08:16 that was not a pleasant experience, 08:19 I mean, there were some days 08:20 we didn't even know if we were going to eat, 08:22 I mean, some days we had one meal a day 08:24 and we would go to the farm and pick tomatoes and blueberries 08:29 just to have a meal for the week 08:31 and so... going to the foster home... 08:33 at first I rebelled against it, 08:35 I mean, I didn't like being there... 08:37 being separated from my mother 08:39 and being separated from two of my siblings 08:42 but after a while... it was like... 08:44 "Man, this is a good... a good experience... 08:47 and it came to a point that 08:49 even if I knew my mother was going to recover, 08:51 I wasn't sure if I even wanted to go back home, 08:54 I was enjoying that life so much, so for me... 08:57 it was a change of thoughts and it was a change of lifestyle 09:01 and I really, really enjoyed it. 09:04 Wow! now... so at that time... 09:06 did the stealing and the other things stop? 09:08 I know that there is... you couldn't curse there 09:11 because it was a Christian household... 09:14 but did the stealing stop, did the... 09:16 What was going on in that part? 09:18 Were you transitioning out of that at that time? 09:20 Well, once we learned that lifestyle, 09:23 the cursing ended, the stealing ended, 09:26 going to church... I was singing in the choir, 09:29 singing solos and... 09:30 it was really a very dramatic change 09:34 and I really enjoyed it 09:35 so all of those things... fell off... 09:37 and I know that God allowed us to go into the foster home 09:42 to bring about that change 09:44 so for me... that was the change of my life 09:46 and I never looked back after that. 09:48 Yeah... a blessing at the end 09:50 of a tunnel. Sandi: Yes. 09:51 Now, when did basketball come into play? 09:55 See, I love basketball, I play basketball when I can... 09:58 I'm not going to the league now... I'm past that 10:01 but I enjoy to play it recreationally 10:06 but when did you begin playing basketball? 10:09 Well, I started playing at the foster home, 10:13 I was an average player 10:15 but the thing that really changed my life 10:18 with basketball is... when we went back to Trenton, 10:21 I was in the 8th Grade and the thing is 10:26 if you make the team in Junior High School, 10:28 I mean, that was like... you were a celebrity. 10:29 Jason: Wow! 10:31 And so they said, "Ah... there's no need for you 10:33 to even go out... you're 5.9... 10:35 we got players that will play 10:37 rings around you... circles around you" 10:39 and it was something in me that said, 10:41 "You know what... I'm going to prove these guys wrong" 10:43 so I went on the playground going to my 9th Grade 10:46 and while most were in the swimming pool, 10:49 they would see me out in the court, 10:51 they'd drive by and say, 10:52 "Hey stupid, you're out here in this hot sun" 10:54 and I just played and played and played and I came back... 10:57 in my 9th Grade year, I made the team 10:59 so now, we're going to the high school... 10th Grade... 11:02 so I went out... it was just luck, 11:03 "You won't make the JVs at the high school level" 11:06 so I went back out on the playground, 11:07 while most of my guys... they were much better than me... 11:11 and I knew I had a lot of making up to do, 11:13 so, 10th Grade, I did the same thing, 11:16 made the team... started... 11:17 11th Grade, they said, 11:18 "Well now, this is the varsity buddy, this is not JVs," 11:22 so, I just continued my habit and I played and played 11:26 and I came back, made the high school team, 11:29 was a star... made All State 11:31 came back... my senior year... nobody said anything, 11:34 I broke all the records... city, county, 11:36 was "All East Coast" 11:38 now, in my senior year 11:40 I had offers around the Country 11:42 and so now... the ball was in my court. 11:44 I could choose where I wanted to go to college. 11:47 Wow! you had to make your haters your motivation 11:50 because everybody was telling you, "Oh, you can't do that, 11:52 why are you going to even try to help the team?" 11:55 But you didn't listen to that, 11:57 you just stayed focused and persevered 12:01 and so, then you went to college, 12:04 you were at Winston? 12:07 Winston-Salem State University Winston-Salem, North Carolina. 12:10 And you ended up being inducted into the Hall of Fame 12:14 and you played for the Phoenix Suns for two years, 12:17 tell us about that. 12:19 Well, actually, when I left New Jersey, 12:21 even though I was All State 12:22 and one of the top players in the Country, 12:25 but I went through the same thing again, 12:28 they said, "Well, you know, 12:29 you were all of that in Trenton, New Jersey, 12:32 State of New Jersey, but this is North Carolina, 12:34 we got all Americans and All State" 12:36 so I had to go down there and prove myself again 12:39 and I was determined, Jason, 12:42 that I was going to graduate from college, 12:43 nobody in my family... 12:45 my father... he graduated from high school, 12:47 nobody went any further so, it was like, 12:49 "Man! if I could go to college and graduate... " 12:52 so at Winston-Salem I played hard 12:54 and my first two years there, I made "All Conference," 12:59 "All Big South" and I wound up... 13:03 wound up graduating in 3 years rather than 4 years, 13:07 that's how determined I was, I was taking 20... 21 hours... 13:10 and playing basketball so then, I actually... 13:14 like I said earlier... "You're going to go up 13:18 and there are going to be times... you're coming down 13:20 so don't become too relaxed where you are. " 13:24 I was drafted by the Phoenix Suns... 13:26 but the Phoenix Suns decided, you know, 13:28 "We're only going to take our first four draft picks," 13:30 they had 20 draft picks, I was the 9th, 13:32 they decided, "We're only going to take 13:34 the four top draft picks, nobody else is coming to camp, 13:37 so I wound up playing in the Baltimore Bullets Organization 13:41 which is now... the Wizards. 13:42 Oh, okay, okay, and after those two years, 13:46 why did you decide to leave? 13:49 I know, people were probably like... 13:51 you were young, first of all... 13:53 and so, I'm sure, you know the NBA pays pretty well, 13:56 why... people are thinking, 13:59 "Why would you leave that, why did you give that up?" 14:02 Well, when I was a little boy and I don't know... 14:05 I didn't know where it came from then... 14:07 but I do now where it comes from now. 14:10 I believe the Holy Spirit had convinced me 14:13 that I've got a calling on your life 14:16 and that, you're going to be doing more 14:19 than playing basketball and so, 14:21 even when I was running the streets, 14:23 drinking beer, carousing and doing all those things, 14:27 I always knew that... God only allowed me to go so far 14:31 I never got into the drugs, 14:33 I was the type of person who tried to be kind to people, 14:38 tried to help people and I always knew 14:41 there was a calling on my life but what it was... 14:43 I had no clue, so after two years... 14:46 I was out on the basketball court, 14:48 we were playing at Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, 14:50 it was raining very hard, it was cold 14:53 and while I was running down the court, 14:55 I said, "You know what? This is my last game, 14:57 I'm not going to play anymore. " 14:59 People thought I was crazy 15:01 after I made the decision to walk away at 25... 15:03 but I just... the thrill... was gone... 15:06 and so I decided, 15:07 "You know, there's got to be more in life 15:10 than just playing basketball" 15:11 I mean, I would be at games, I would see some of my teammates 15:15 before the game they would be smoking reefer, 15:17 they would be practicing immorality 15:19 and I wasn't a Christian but I decided... 15:23 I don't want any part of this, so I knew that somebody 15:27 or something was working on me. 15:28 Yeah, yes and so, after you left the league, 15:31 what did you... what did you do? 15:33 Because, I mean, going from the NBA to the regular workforce 15:36 I mean, what job did you take? 15:38 Well, I took a job in Trenton as a supervisor 15:42 training college interns how to get inmates out of jail 15:47 on their own recognizance and I got... 15:50 I received letters from the Team... they're like... 15:53 "If you come back, we'll give you more money," 15:55 and for me, there was a vacuum 15:58 in my life because that's all I knew, 16:00 basketball was my god, 16:02 I played basketball day and night, 16:05 I knew the shots, I mean, God had blessed me 16:09 and allowed me to be blessed 16:10 to be a very... one of the best players in the Country, 16:13 but the thrill was gone and I just went back to working 16:16 and I was at the Court House one day, 16:20 and this senior citizen lady came up to me, 16:22 she gave me a book, "What Adventists Believe" 16:25 and I'm thinking, "What is this?" 16:27 I took the book... took it home, threw it in the garbage 16:30 and so, as the devil, I'm sure, 16:34 knew that God was pulling me through the Holy Spirit, 16:36 he was out to make sure that that wouldn't happen. 16:39 So, therefore, believe it or not, 16:42 after I came out of professional basketball, 16:45 I was recruited by the Seventh-day Adventist Church 16:49 to play on their basketball team. 16:51 Jason: Wow! 16:52 Sandy: Can you believe that? 16:53 And the thing is, as hard as it is to believe, 16:56 the golden opportunity to witness to me, 16:58 nobody ever gave me a Bible Study, 17:00 I was just there to score points, 17:03 one game... I scored 60, another... 61 and another... 62, 17:07 nobody gave me a Bible Study but you know what? 17:11 God doesn't depend on men or women to win you, 17:15 what He allowed me to do is... 17:18 I started reading the Amazing Facts 17:20 and I read myself into the church 17:22 without having a Bible Study 17:24 from anybody who was a Seventh-day Adventist. 17:25 Wow! it's sad though 17:28 because that was a wasted witnessing opportunity, 17:31 they had the opportunity to witness to you 17:34 but they were focused on other things, 17:37 but thank God for the Holy Spirit 17:40 that convicted your heart 17:41 and led you to studying for yourself... 17:45 Sandy: Amen. 17:46 And so, after joining the church 17:49 you became heavily involved with the church, right? 17:54 Well, once I... all my life... 17:58 my father was in prison most of my life, 18:00 and so, therefore, for me, there was a void, 18:03 no manly guidance or role model and I played for many teams, 18:10 Yeah, God blessed me to score lots of points 18:13 and had a good career but it was a void there... 18:16 because I knew that these coaches were 18:18 just using me just for my athletic abilities 18:22 so when I started reading the Bible, 18:25 I had never read the Bible in my life, 18:28 I didn't know the difference between Genesis and Revelation 18:31 but when I started reading the Bible, 18:33 it was so fascinating to me to be able to think, 18:37 "Man, I can't believe 18:38 the questions that I had were answered," 18:41 I went through the Bible, Jason, three times from cover to cover 18:45 in less than six months. 18:48 Jason: Three times! in less than six months? 18:51 Sandy: Yes, in less than six months. 18:52 Jason: Wow! 18:54 And my wife... I mean... 18:55 it was almost like I wasn't married 18:57 because all I wanted to do was read the Bible, 19:00 I mean, sometimes, I would be up 19:02 at one or two in the morning reading 19:04 because I couldn't put the Bible down 19:05 and then I found my best friend, I found the coach and the father 19:09 that I had been looking for all my life... Jesus Christ, 19:12 and I never looked back. 19:15 Wow! that is so powerful 19:17 and the fact that you read the Bible 19:20 three times in six months... 19:22 there are people who are trying to do the... 19:24 "Read it through in a year plan" but three times in six months, 19:29 that's a blessing and so, now you have a ministry, 19:33 tell us about your ministry, what's it called 19:36 and the website and what's it all about? 19:41 Well, when I became a Seventh-day Adventist, 19:45 I had people at the church in 19:47 Mount Sinai in Trenton, New Jersey 19:49 who said, "You know, you ought to be a minister, 19:51 you have such a knowledge of the Bible," 19:53 and so, I wound up going to Oakwood 19:55 and I figured, "If I go to Oakwood, 19:57 I'm going to get a chance to meet 19:59 the presidents of the conferences, et cetera," 20:02 I sent out letters to all the conferences, 20:05 none answered, 20:06 one answered and said, 20:08 "Well, we appreciate... but we don't have an opening" 20:10 and so I went through years like that and I said, 20:12 "God, you've given me the talent, the abilities, 20:14 but I'm not able to use it, 20:17 give me a ministry that I can use" 20:20 so the Holy Spirit gave me the title: 20:23 Laymen For A Finished Work 20:25 that is... you don't have to be a pastor, 20:27 it's the greatest calling in the world 20:29 but yet, laymen have a work to do, 20:31 so He gave me the title: Laymen For A Finished Work 20:34 which I do, as I go around, I teach and train laymen 20:37 how to witness, how to win souls, 20:39 God has blessed me to travel to 37 countries, 20:43 I've been to all 50 States 20:45 and my job is to train laymen to work 20:49 because we're told that the laymen will help finish the work 20:52 along with the dedicated pastors so, that's my job 20:56 and I look back now, Jason, and I say, 20:58 "You know, God, if you gave me an opening as a pastor, 21:02 I wouldn't want to be a pastor 21:04 because I'm having too much fun and I can... I feel free, 21:07 I don't feel like I have any restrictions on me 21:10 and it's really been a journey to help laymen. " 21:13 You don't want to be confined to one church. 21:15 Sandy: Yes, that's correct. 21:16 Yeah, I hear you, now, I watched another interview with you 21:20 that you actually did on the Parent Network 21:23 and you said something about a shepherd and the sheep, 21:31 unpack that for us. 21:32 Well, the thing is Shepherds are needed 21:36 to tend to the sheep but shepherds don't make sheep. 21:41 Sheep make sheep, so the thing is, 21:44 as a layman, I feel like you're going to be 21:48 probably more affected than when in labor 21:50 because... like what my testimony... 21:51 when people hear my testimony 21:53 they are amazed, it's like, "If God can do that to you, 21:56 He can do that for me" 21:58 as a Pastor, you know, people say, 21:59 "Well, you're getting paid to preach, 22:01 you're getting paid to win souls, 22:03 you're getting paid to say certain things," 22:05 I'm not being paid by the Conference or anybody, 22:08 I do it because of my love for souls 22:10 and I can remember going to Australia, 22:13 that trip cost me, personally, 22:15 4,000 dollars to go to Australia, 22:18 I preached in Australia, I preached in New Zealand, 22:20 I mean, I've traveled to over 37 countries 22:23 and it's coming out of my pocket and so, therefore, 22:27 I just want to let the laymen know 22:29 that there is a big work that we can do. 22:32 Yeah, absolutely, and there's a work for everyone, 22:35 you know, there is a work for those 22:37 that are pastors in the Conference 22:39 and they're doing a very important job, 22:41 and the laymen are doing a very important job as well, 22:44 we want to see as many people as possible in heaven 22:48 and we want to... and witness to as many people 22:51 as we possibly can, 22:53 so, how do people get you at their church? 22:56 Well, the thing is... I've got a website 22:58 and it will be posted I'm sure before this program goes off. 23:01 Jason: What's your website? 23:03 www. LaymenForAFinishedWork. com 23:08 and if people would like for me to come to their church, 23:11 they can go online to my website and have my e-mail address 23:15 and I'm going to be going... not too long... 23:18 I'm going to be going to Lima, Peru, 23:20 and possibly Chile and Ecuador 23:25 and so, I'm ready to go. 23:27 And so what does it look like when you go to the churches, 23:30 is it a Week of Prayer or is it just case-by-case basis 23:34 like how... what happens? 23:36 Well, I usually leave it up to the churches, 23:37 sometimes I go in and I do a weekend, 23:41 some churches may want me to do a week, 23:44 and also, I'd like to mention, 23:46 Jason, that every week I'm on Facebook 23:49 and YouTube under: Last Day Events Sandy Smith 23:53 so I'm dealing with topics that... 23:56 basically for non-Christian people 23:59 I'm reaching out to the non-Christian people 24:01 especially to our young people. 24:04 Now that's: Last Day Events... 24:06 Sandy: Yes, and it's under Sandy Smith. 24:08 Jason: Under Sandy Smith. Sandy: Hmmm... Hmmm... 24:10 Okay, okay, I just want to make sure the Viewers get that. 24:12 Yes, and I'm dealing with topics that vary... 24:16 I have to be honest with you, 24:18 and I'm not trying to pat myself on the back, 24:20 but I'm dealing with topics 24:21 that I have never heard any ministers deal with, 24:24 the young people, you know 24:26 this is a different generation, 24:27 these young people want you to come straight out... 24:29 tell them the truth, 24:31 they don't want you to be politically correct, 24:34 they want you to just tell like it is. 24:35 Jason: No sugar coating... Sandy: No sugar coating, 24:37 so I deal with topics that none that I've ever heard deal with. 24:41 Hmmm... hmmm... well, I mean, if you just... 24:44 if you turn on the news or you turn on TV 24:47 or television or whatever 24:48 and you listen to the radio or whatever, 24:51 time is running out 24:53 and we don't have time to sugar coat 24:56 and all that stuff, time is running out. 24:58 Well, the thing that I'm finding being... 25:01 coming out of the world... 25:03 and even though now that I'm a Christian... 25:05 but people... they have no idea 25:08 of what's coming on this earth suddenly 25:10 and we've got to be straight up with these people, 25:13 I mean, if you... coming out of the ghetto, 25:15 I know if we go into the ghetto with a lukewarm message, 25:18 the people are not going to listen. 25:19 You've got to just come straight... out with the truth 25:23 and let them know that time is running out 25:25 and if you stay on the track 25:26 that you're on... you're going to be lost. 25:28 Hmmm... hmmm... and I think another important thing is 25:31 to meet people's needs, you know, you have to... 25:34 it's like... you come and you talk to people but 25:37 you have to meet them where they are 25:39 and you have to also meet their needs, 25:41 you know... and that's why I also think that 25:43 like... Pathway to Health... 25:45 I think that is an excellent way to witness to people 25:49 and to minister to people and I mean... it gets media coverage 25:53 and if you look at the Bible, 25:55 that's how Jesus did it... he was healing so many people. 25:59 Sandy: That's right. Jason: So many people... 26:01 Well the thing is when I watch your program, 26:03 I like your program because it deals with people's needs 26:08 and people like myself were not raised in the church 26:11 and so, therefore, you've got to come down on their level 26:15 and like Jesus did, bring them up, 26:18 you don't wallow in the mud with them 26:20 but you give them something to think about... a better life... 26:24 Yes, yes, you know, oh! it just dawned on me too, 26:31 we said your website: LaymenForAFinishedWork. org 26:38 okay... dot org 26:40 Sandy: or dot com either one will work. 26:42 Oh, either one will work, it's interchangeable, okay, 26:45 okay, I have dot org now okay. 26:47 Sandy: Yeah, either one will work. 26:48 Okay, I just want to make sure 26:50 our Viewers are able to get there... 26:51 get you to their churches 26:53 so you can share your powerful testimony with them 26:56 and the congregation as well. 26:59 Well, the thing is... 27:01 I know we're just about out of time... 27:03 God has given me many, many experiences 27:06 and I just don't feel like the church has taken advantage of me 27:09 as much as they should have, I'm ready and willing to go, 27:13 but you got to... got to make the call 27:16 and I'll be more than willing to come out 27:18 and to do what I can for the young people. 27:21 Absolutely... and it's such a blessing 27:24 to share Christ with others. Sandy: Amen. 27:28 And it actually strengthens us 27:30 by sharing Christ with others. Sandy: Amen... 27:32 And so, we definitely appreciate everything you're doing 27:36 and for answering your calling 27:38 and for allowing Christ to use you 27:43 and overcoming all that was in your childhood. 27:47 I just give God the praise 27:49 because there's nothing that I did... 27:51 I just allowed Him to do what He had to do. 27:52 Thank you so much for being here. 27:56 And thank you... 27:58 well, we've reached the end of another program, 28:00 join us next time and remember, 28:01 it just wouldn't be the same without you. |
Revised 2016-05-31