Beyond Sunday
Welcome to Beyond Sunday, the Podcast that takes you deeper into the Word of God throughout your week, with your Hosts Pastors' Lee and Jim.
It's Time to Inspire, Uplift, and dig deeper. Beyond Sunday starts now!
Beyond Sunday
From Darkness to Light: One Man's Journey of Redemption
Billy Livingston's transformation from a self-proclaimed "devil's protege" to a devoted follower of Christ stands as one of the most profound testimonies of God's redemptive power I've ever witnessed.
The journey begins with a 13-year-old boy from a broken home who, lacking paternal guidance, quickly descended into drug addiction, violence, and crime. Billy's path led him through juvenile detention, multiple prison sentences, and a lifestyle defined by hatred and violence. By his own admission, he accumulated over 30 assault charges (many against law enforcement), trafficked drugs, worked as an enforcer for criminal organizations, and embraced white supremacist ideologies.
What makes Billy's story extraordinary isn't just the depths from which he came, but the miraculous way God intervened. After being awake for days on methamphetamine, Billy unexpectedly found himself on his knees in his garage, crying out to God for forgiveness. In that moment, he experienced divine intervention that instantly delivered him from decades of addiction. As he describes it, "I walked out of that garage sober as the day I was born," and has remained free from all substances since that day.
Two weeks later, while preparing to drive his wife to church, Billy heard God's voice reminding him of his promise to serve Him. That Sunday, he didn't just attend church—he enthusiastically surrendered his life to Christ with both hands raised high. The transformation was immediate and complete. The man who once embodied hatred now radiates peace; the enforcer who hurt people for money now helps those same people "cross the street."
Billy's testimony parallels Paul's Damascus road experience—a dramatic divine intervention that completely redirects a life headed for destruction. It reminds us that no one is beyond God's reach and that authentic transformation is possible regardless of one's past.
Have you been running from God or struggling with addiction? Billy's story shows that freedom and forgiveness are just one surrender away. Join us at Christ Family Outreach Church in Amelia, Virginia, Thursdays at 7pm or Sundays at 10am, to experience the same life-changing power that transformed Billy Livingston.
Welcome to Beyond Sunday, the podcast that takes you deeper into the Word of God throughout your week With your hosts, pastors Lee and Jim. It's time to inspire, uplift and dig deeper. Beyond Sunday starts now.
Speaker 2:Hey, good morning everybody. Welcome to another episode of Beyond Sunday. I'm Pastor Lee and, as always, I've got sitting here at the table with me Pastor Jim, and we are the pastors of Christ Family Outreach Church, located in Amelia, virginia, and just want to take a minute and say if you have not visited with us yet on a Thursday Recharge Church service at 7 pm or on a Sunday morning at 10 am. We want to see you, we want to get to know you, we want to meet you, so we encourage you to come out and be a part of what God is doing in the house of the Lord. Today's going to be a little different. We've got a special guest with us, a dear, dear brother in the Lord. His name is Billy Livingston and Billy's going to be with us today sharing his testimony. So, billy, how you doing, brother, doing pretty good, amen, amen.
Speaker 2:We're going to jump right into this thing and, billy, eventually we're going to work our way to that night in your garage when you'd been high on meth for three or four days and God showed up. He totally cleaned you in one touch. But before we get there, I want to share with the listeners what all God bought you out of what he delivered you from, because I'm believing that this interview and I know Pastor Jim is as well we're believing that this interview is going to be shared with many people who need the encouragement okay, but it's also going to be shared with people who need to hear it, because they're going through a lot of the same things that you struggle with and that you were tempted with. So let's dig right into it. Take us back, billy, to when you were just a teenager, at 13 years old. What does life look like for 13-year-old Billy Livingston?
Speaker 3:Oh, wow, Thirteen. I was a child of divorce. My mom stayed, my dad left and with her having to work and just to feed eight kids you know there's eight of us all together. My oldest sister's in a wheelchair from birth, you know. So it was a struggle for her, so she didn't have time to watch us. Yeah, so it was just run rapid. You know the streets hit the streets and just be wild as you want to be and do everything you can to to just make up for lost. You know what you lost and you know I searched for what I lost for a long time and didn't find it till a year ago yeah, and, and I know you had said that, um, you were 13,.
Speaker 2:At the age of 13, it's when you did your first juvenile sentence.
Speaker 3:I started doing drugs hard drugs, methamphetamine and cocaine. When I was 13 years old, drinking I mean, I remember being sick vomiting out of windows, you know, at 13 years old, from vodka. You know drinking and that led to you know the wrong thing, you know, to stealing, fighting. I went to a juvenile system when I was 13 for my first sentence, for, you know, stealing a car, you know shoplifting, whatever I could do, it's just everything that was out there. I was doing it, yeah. So, yeah, 13,. I was supposed to do like a four-month program. It was it set up to.
Speaker 3:Where good behavior. You know if you go in there you act right and you know they score you. They got a little score where they sit around and watch you. And if you're doing okay, every week you go in front of a counselor. Yeah, you're doing good, you're doing good, you're right on course. But that didn't work for me. I was just, I was violent. I wanted to fight all the time and cuss out the counselors. I didn't, I just didn't care. Yeah, you know, I had nothing that I cared about. Yeah, so when you do that, you score low. And when you score low, they add time. Yeah, and until you adapt to their program. You, just you're, you're being housed.
Speaker 1:Gotcha, and I heard you say before in a previous time of hearing your testimony, that you began to learn to take that system and you began to manipulate that juvenile system. And so I have a question about how maybe you said that your father was absent and I just wonder, like because I've heard a lot of stories about how a lack of father figures it seems to create like a void, and do you think that that made you more susceptible to trying to manipulate the system? Or do you think it was more about maybe just simply the thrill of defying authority?
Speaker 3:It was a little of both. You know, not having a father around, you have no direction. You know, especially when your mother has to make up for what was lost, when the father leaves, right, you know she can't be. You know mother, father, and you know, especially when your mother has to make up for what was lost, when the father leaves, right, you know she can't be. You know mother, father, and you know caregiver, yeah, you know. So try to fill that void. You know, looking for someone, you know I guess I didn't know what I was looking for, but that, and you know, just defiance, just being whatever I wanted to be and anything against authority, because I guess my authority figure was my father. So, against authority, because I guess my authority figure was my father. So when he left I had no authority figure. So that to me was just straight, just okay, I'm going to defy all authority.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I know, as Christians, you know and we see what the word of God says about like means for divorce. You know there's unfaithfulness in the marriage or maybe there needs to be a break. Somebody's got to step away because it's an abusive situation at home between spouses, so I'm not saying that there can't be reasons for divorce. What I'm going to ask you to do for a minute, though, Brother Billy, is talk to the parents out there today that you know they're thinking about getting a divorce. They're thinking about separating, not because of adultery, not because of an abusive situation, but just simply because they can't get it together. You know they're not willing to do the hard stuff and fight it out, they're not willing to work through it, so they're just thinking that the only fix is just to separate and start over. So what would you say to a mom or to a dad, to parents, who are considering a divorce and they don't want to try to work it out? What would you say to them?
Speaker 3:I'd say do everything humanly, spiritually possible to save that marriage, to save them children, because a lot, a lot of children that I, everybody I knew in the systems throughout my life, every one of them that I've talked to, come from a divorced family, a broken home. So if you I mean just whatever you have to do, you do it, you sacrifice, you know you do what is necessary to save that home and recreate that love. I mean you got married for a reason because you loved each other, you know, and that shouldn't just disappear. Things make it disappear. So you have to get rid of those unholy things. Yeah, and the biggest thing I've learned now is you got to have, you have to have faith in God in your marriage, absolutely. If you don't, you're not going to make it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, Because the world's throwing so much at marriages nowadays that you know you're right. If you've not got Christ at the center of it, it pretty much is destined for failure.
Speaker 3:Me and my wife now have been married 16 years, been together, 18. Amen. And right now we were on the verge of divorce. What saved our marriage, saved my life again, was God. You know, if God wasn't the center of our marriage now, we would not be together. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Do you think that some of the anger you held on to affected your relationship with God? Or maybe there was a time where you didn't even believe in God, but do you think that maybe your anger affected like where you believe in him and your relationship even now, like this sense of running away from anything that he could offer you?
Speaker 3:Oh, yeah, it did and, like I said, about the authority problem, in my growing up my mom was a very faithful, very godly woman and I learned early on about God. But I've rebelled against that too, because he was the ultimate authority figure and the way I was rebelling against authority, that was the biggest one that I rebelled against. That too, because he was the ultimate authority figure Right, and the way I was rebelling against authority, that was the biggest one that I rebelled against. Like, if he's the ultimate one, that's the one I want to, you know, rebel against wholly, with everything in my heart, to go against it. I was an atheist for a long time and it's like in my testimony it states you know, I hated it, didn't want to hear it. I mean, I've cussed out preachers. I was an atheist. I mean I just I would argue with anybody that wanted to argue and I had no clue what I was really talking about.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, you know, your your first, your first sentence at 13 years old, and because of violence, that four month program turns into a year. But your next sentence would come at the age of 15. And how long did that end up lasting, and why so long?
Speaker 3:Again. It was supposed to be if I'm not mistaken, it was like an eight-month program same deal, you know good behavior. But it was more of a juvenile penitentiary and it was full of people like me you know the worst of the worst kids and they sentenced me straight to there and it was all violence and it was that's where I learned how to be a racist the first time it really was. I grew up in a project, so, but once you got inside of those type of places, you kind of hang with your own, you know, and it's black against white, white against Mexican, mexican against black, and if you didn't hang with your people, you got beat up, yeah, so everybody kind of backed each other, and those type of places just taught me to be even angrier.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. So evil breeds evil, right? Dark breeds dark. So you get this eight-month sentence and it goes to how many years from eight months, whenever I was 15, it got out when I was 18. Okay, all right. So due to just rebelling even more? Yes, you know, we've stretched this out and maybe our listeners today kind of can relate to that day, kind of can relate to that. You know, the more we rebel against authority, the more we're disobedient. When God expects obedience, it causes us to be in longer seasons in life in order to learn lessons that maybe we didn't have to go through and learn if we'd have just done things God's way to begin with.
Speaker 3:Yep, it surely was, and if I feel if God had been in my life, then it might have been different. But that was the last thing I wanted in my life, because rebelling at that age it's exciting, it's fun, and when you have nothing else, that's all there is. Your home's gone, so you just do whatever you want. You're just wild. You were never taught any better.
Speaker 2:Because of your age. You were in programs right because you were younger. So you're thrown into the juvenile system, but eventually you're going to have to serve real jail time, right. So talk about the bitterness and anger you had towards the world because of all the pain you were dealing with as a teenager.
Speaker 3:I came out of that at 18 years old and that's where the party began, the real party. I mean, I'm an adult, nobody could tell me anything. I started dealing drugs. I fought for a living, I was fighting in alleys, I learned I could fight and I was good at it. It was an outlet. It was the only thing I had, if that makes any sense, and I know it really don't, but to me it did at the time. Yeah, so, and my whole reputation through life up until I was 30-something years old was you know, don't mess with that guy right there, he'll hurt you. Yeah, you know it was a, you know the big bad boy reputation, you know. And I thrived off of it instead of walking away from it. And I thrived off of it instead of walking away from it, I just fed into it more and more and more and more until ultimately, you know, it took me back to prison, yeah, to state prison.
Speaker 1:When did you so? You got out at 18 of the juvenile system.
Speaker 3:When was it that you went back into the Between 18 and 30, I went to jail just to county jails and stuff you know on and off a few times, but after that I wound up getting a state prison term for two and a half years when I was 30. And I was out. I got out after that and I was out for 11 days when I was indicted on federal drug trafficking charges.
Speaker 1:It's crazy to think about how quickly after getting out just kind of, that lifestyle continues and evolves.
Speaker 3:Yeah, because I didn't know it, but I was being investigated, while before the state charges, I was being investigated by the federal government. The ATF and the DEA were watching us and it was a sealed deal.
Speaker 1:Now, was there ever any fear of those consequences? Or, at this point, are you just numb to all of it? I'm just numb. And I didn't. It was a sealed deal. Now, was there ever any fear of those consequences? Or, at this point, are you just numb to all of it? I'm just dumb.
Speaker 3:I didn't care. I laughed at him. You know I I've cussed judges out. I'd look at the judges. I called a couple of judges idiots. I didn't. I didn't care at the time, I had nothing to care about. You know, my life was full of fun and partying and hanging out at different bars. I was bouncing, I was bodyguarding for people, I was dealing drugs. I was an enforcer for drug gangs.
Speaker 1:I was into all of it, so drugs probably felt like an old friend, oh yeah.
Speaker 3:I've been doing it all my life and that was something that was just always there, always part of it Now.
Speaker 1:do you think that the addiction was more about escape, or do you think it was just something that you had become so used to that you couldn't live without it?
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's. It wasn't ever an escape for me to get away from my reality or to ease the pain, because I fed into the pain. And what I mean by fed into the pain is I used the pain I was having to hurt others for monetary value. I had my own apartment. I had a race car, two motorcycles at 19 years old. Who wouldn't want more of that at that age if you got nothing else in your life? So that just existed. It was always there. The drugs were just part of that lifestyle. Yeah, and before I knew it it was just, it had to be there. It went from just being there to having to be there.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I know that part of your testimony is that by the time you received your first prison sentence, you had racked up over 30 assault charges, and many of them against law enforcement.
Speaker 3:Yes, At that time I'd get in fights. Cops would come, you know, hey, you know you're under arrest. No, I'm not, you know, and retaliate against them. And you know, there was times where, you know, I thought I'd won, until you know, I woke up in a jail cell, you know. Well, I got that guy but I'm sitting here in custody. I got him no, I didn't, you know. But yeah, I didn't settle down because the police pulled up.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:I got excited.
Speaker 2:Yeah, Now you mentioned the federal government was doing some investigating on you while you were locked up. After doing two years in state prison for assault and malicious wounding, you were out 11 days and that's when you're indicted on these federal charges for drug trafficking. And you did roughly eight more years. Eight more years for that and so like, as you say, you would think that one would learn by then. No Right, but that's not happening, Not yet, anyway at this point. And then you know God had already spared you from death quite a bit, Yep, but even at one point you had died in a car crash running from the police.
Speaker 3:Talk to us about that, I was at a bar one night, made a couple friends and I was driving a little hot rod. I built a little Camaro, a 70 split pump Camaro, you know, hot rod, and we were in one of the bars and got all drunked up and leaving there. And I left there sideways, you know, just rolling all over the car, you know, just lighting the tires up. The cops got behind me instantly and they chased me down the road and the boy that was with me, that was riding with me, he asked me. He said hey, man, that's the cops behind him. I said no, it's not, that's our escort home. Buckle up and I just drilled into it and I ran into another car at a stoplight at 131 miles an hour. Wow, ripped the car in half.
Speaker 1:Wow, when you almost died in that car crash, did you ever stop to think maybe this is God trying to get my attention? Or did you just keep pushing that out of your mind and say I'm going to keep rolling?
Speaker 3:I woke up the next morning in the hospital room my whole chest was black from where I hit the stairwell, where they hit me with the paddles. I learned later on, I learned actually in court, that I was actually dead for 91 seconds, did not have a heartbeat. They brought me back and at that time I did not realize. I thought it was just medical. You know that brought me back. I know today differently. I know it was God.
Speaker 2:Amen. Hallelujah, brother, hallelujah.
Speaker 3:And I got up in the hospital and looked around, seen my clothes on the thing. I put my clothes back on and I snuck out to the hospital because I knew the cops were still after me. You know I wasn't ready to give up on anything. I thought this was all a game. It was not.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and you know there could be some people listening to this testimony right now that know exactly where you're coming from. But rather than running from the law or maybe some of them are they're also running from the law, or maybe some of them are they're also running from the ultimate authority figure, and that's God. And they know God's knocking at their door. They know God's chasing them down. They're not ready to surrender yet.
Speaker 3:Not yet. And like I said in my testimony you know where I said that I've been. I died in that car accident. It was brought back. I've been shot a couple times. I've been stabbed in the chest with an ice pick. You know I've been stabbed. And all that still just, I was still just not knowing where I was going, still didn't wake you up.
Speaker 2:Not a bit. Did your mother ever tell you you had a hard head? Every single day.
Speaker 3:And my mother, being a godly woman, you know she always told me she said you'll find him someday, and I never knew what she meant by that. And my mom, she died while I was in prison. I never got to see that part of it, which I think that was another knock on the side of the head from God. I ignored. Yeah.
Speaker 2:The Bible tells us that when one sinner comes to repentance, the angels in heaven rejoice, and I don't believe there's any wasted praise in heaven, you know. So I personally believe that every time a sinner comes to accept Jesus Christ and repentance and receive him as Lord and Savior, I believe that when the angels in heaven rejoice, all of heaven knows what that uproar is about and they can participate in that rejoice. All of heaven knows what that uproar is about and they can participate in that. And so I, my personal belief is, is that when, when you got saved and heaven rejoiced uh, I believe your mother knew, and man I, what I would give just to see the look on her face you know what I mean.
Speaker 3:Both brother, I'll tell you what I I I think about it and it just makes me. You know it gets me very emotional, you don't know it. Knowing now I get to see my mother again. Yeah, think about it and it just makes me. You know it gets me very emotional, you know. Knowing now I get to see my mother again.
Speaker 2:Yeah, think about it, because now she knows, praise God, now she knows she's going to see you again and she doesn't have to be in heaven wondering about. Well, I wonder if my son, you know, is ever going to get saved. You know, she knows, because of that uproar in heaven that day, when you came forward in church and accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, that was a big big day for me.
Speaker 1:It was a powerful moment for all who were in witness to it. I mean, I don't know that I'll ever forget that Sunday.
Speaker 3:I know I won't. Sunday May, the 5th Sunday.
Speaker 2:May 5th, amen, amen, up to the point before the two prison sentences that you had. You know you've died in this car crash. You're running from the cops, the medics bring you back. I know, I know at one point you're you're, you've mentioned you're dealing drugs, you're using drugs, but you've also touched a little bit about how you were working for several, several local gangs. You know, touch on that just a tad. Like what does that mean for several local gangs? Touch on that just a tad. What does that mean, working for local gangs?
Speaker 3:You had gangs of guys that sell drugs, outlaw motorcycle clubs. They hired me as an enforcer to go collect their money If somebody wouldn't pay them. Instead of doing it usually do it themselves. The reputation I had all I had to do was go knock on somebody's door, yeah, and they was like here it is. You know, they didn't want no more trouble, yeah, so they paid me a certain amount of money to go over there and get it, and if they wouldn't give it up, then I took it in any way. Shape or form means necessary, yeah, you know before means necessary.
Speaker 3:I've done some really evil things to people just to get the money back out of them and it's sad now to even think about it. It upsets me knowing the harm I've done to people and it's not just to myself but to other people and there's no way I can make it up to them Except to live the godly life that I live now and to try to help all the people.
Speaker 2:Amen, Amen, Amen. And that's what we're doing here today. You know, you said and I thought this was really interesting you said that it was in prison that you learned how to be a racist. You saw the divide based off of people's skin color? Uh, based off of people's skin color? Um, and part of your testimony is is that before Jesus rescued you, uh, you were, you were part of a white supremacist group?
Speaker 2:Um, and you know, it's gotta be a, it's gotta be a feeling of freedom when Jesus comes into your life and sets you free from all of this. Because me, knowing you on this side right, Like I didn't know you prior to you coming to Christ, so me knowing you on this side, I can definitely testify to our listeners that you are a changed man of God, you know. So I can't even imagine, but talk about it. If you can even put it into words, what is it to go from being in such bondage to all of a sudden being cut loose from that way of living, that way of thinking? I mean the freedom that you've tasted and seen must just be incredible.
Speaker 3:It's unbelievable, it is 180 degrees. I mean I went from having one of the most hard hearts you could have I mean I could hurt a person and roll over and put my head on and use them as a pillow and sleep it wouldn't bother me a bit To now I help the same guy cross the street or something. It's a relief. It's knowing that all this, everything I've done, is washed away by God. Yes, you know to know in my heart, because I've been accused by my wife early on of having no empathy whatsoever for mankind whatsoever. I just I didn't care nothing about another person's life, I didn't have no compassion. And I've learned in this last almost a year what it's like to have a heart Thanks to God. You know, all praise go to God because he brought me out of this. He brought me out of that coma that I was in, that hate. It was just 100% hate, and being in that white supremacist group just gave me another avenue to hate. Yeah, yeah, Just another reason right.
Speaker 1:Just another reason. It's a true testament of Ephesians 5, where the Bible talks about the light being shed on you, you receiving the light and becoming illuminated by the light and then going out. So you are in this place of darkness Very very dark.
Speaker 3:Me and Lee have talked about it before my life verse in the Bible is John 3, 19 through 22. You know, the things you see that you do are in the light there, in the sight of God. Yeah, and you do it in the darkness because you don't want people to see your evil deed. That's right. So now everything I do is seen in the light of.
Speaker 2:God, Amen. I love that Amen. You know you, during all this ripping and running, uh, you, you had a daughter during this time, and you know. Question I have for you is did you ever stop and think that you were becoming a product of the environment that you were raised up in and that you were not being present for your daughter, the way that your dad was not present for you Because I know that part of your testimony goes, you know, to the direction of you weren't there for her in her earlier years, prior to being an adult. Do you think it's because you grew up without that dad?
Speaker 3:Yeah, it is this generational curse that we all talk about, that is so hard for people to break. Generational curse that we all talk about, that is so hard for people to break, you know. But you know, I was so wound up in myself that I didn't take the time realizing, by doing all these things, going to prison and everything what I was missing out on. Yeah, because I spoke earlier of a non-existent father for me and that's exactly what I was doing to my daughter. Yeah, fortunately, god put somebody in her path, her stepdad that stepped in and did the right thing for her and he was an amazing man. He still is. Amen. And fortunately now, you know, me and my daughter have a great relationship. I left it up to her. You know, when I come home from prison, you know, do you want this relationship with me because I wasn't there for you? You know it's up to you and she forgave me for that. Oh, praise God.
Speaker 1:Now, what do you say to the man who says I can't be the only one who doesn't know what to do, right, I've experienced generational curses. I didn't have a father to show me what it was like to be a father. What do you say to the man who's there right now and they're saying I don't know how to raise these kids. What do I do?
Speaker 3:You do know how to raise them. You just don't want to. It's hard to say that Right now I would scratch claw, fight everything in my being to be able to raise my daughter. You know been there for her and raise her, and I see people struggle with, you know, divorce and everything every day. And to that person that says I can't be the only one fighting the struggle, you're not. You're not alone, you know. All you have to remember is you're not fighting it alone. You know God is watching everything you do. God saved my life all these years for this purpose. Amen.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know, eventually you meet your wife, robin, but the troubled lifestyle for you was not over. But the troubled lifestyle for you was not over. You say there's about another 17 or 18 more years of trouble. And I was talking to you and Robin after church a couple weeks ago and I was just telling her, like Robin, I was just telling my wife about you guys, and I was like Erica, I don't know how Robin can take it, man, like, how's she not exploding with such joy, you know? And so I looked at Robin and I said, sister, you know, I don't know how you can withstand it. You know, here your husband has been so dramatically changed, for the glory of God, you know. And she looks at me, pastor Jim, she looks at me and she starts jumping up and down. She says I do a lot of this, I do a lot of this, you know, because she's just so full of joy that this man that she's loved so much and who she saw in so much pain and she saw just doing a tailspin and sinking and drowning in that quicksand of trouble, she now sees. For the glory of God, her husband has been transformed completely, by the way, into a new creature in Christ.
Speaker 2:Not only did you not want anything to do with God or religion, but you mentioned earlier that you were a dedicated atheist. You didn't want anything to do with anything. You didn't want anything to do with church. You didn't want anything to do with a preacher, a pastor. You don't want, you don't want to hear the word of God. You don't want anything to do with God. Now that you've tasted and seen that the Lord is good, you know. Have you? Have you ever sat back and thought, man, just how much have I missed.
Speaker 3:I think about it every day, about every opportunity I had to change my life through God, and I put it away. I just I shoved it away, I pushed it away, I hated it away, and I don't even think I've ever said this before, but I feel now that the reason I was so heavy against the Lord, against God, against preachers, everything, I think it was because I knew the truth. I didn't want to face it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, now that's a great point. At one point in your testimony you actually say that your life was so crazy, you were living so recklessly that you actually considered yourself to be the devil's protege 100%.
Speaker 3:I mean I was in it so deep. I mean just the drugs, the alcohol, I mean the women out in the strip clubs where I worked, and I mean it was just you watch all these movies about all this kind of stuff and I would laugh at them guys because I was like y'all don't have a clue what it really is. You know, it's worse than that, you know. And I was. I mean I was hurting people for money, you know, for I mean it was they pay me just to go hurt this person because they didn't like this person or that person. That was my job. My job was hate and the devil was all over me and I knew about God and I knew the difference between right and wrong. My mother instilled in me right and wrong. I just didn't care. Mother instilled in me right and wrong. Yeah, I just didn't care. Yeah, you know, and to walk hand in hand with the devil it's. It seemed like a good time, yeah, but I didn't know the destruction that I was doing, that I was capable of.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, you know, we we wanted to. We wanted to mention all of this part of your testimony to our listeners, not because we're glorifying sin. We wanted to let people know just what you came out of so that if there's other people out there that are in that type of situation, they can realize that if it was possible for you, it's possible for them. So we're not glorifying the sin folks by any means, but what we're doing is we are letting you know just how bad it was, so that we can point to God and give the Father, who is holy and righteous and loving and merciful, and grace, and he offers the forgiveness so freely, so we can give God credit. So let's get to that night, right? Let's get to that night where you're in the garage. It's the moment when God changed everything in Billy Livingston's life. Praise the Lord. Walk us through that night. Why were you in the garage?
Speaker 3:That was my spot. That's where I hid everything from my family, from my wife, from myself. That's where I went and got done. Now, the drugs turned into a full-on, 100% blown addiction. I had to have them, it know it. It it was more than me, than food, you know. And that's where I went and hid and escaped and thought nobody knew. You know, I was wrong. There too, everybody knew, you know.
Speaker 3:Um, that particular night that we're talking about, I had already been up for three, four, maybe more days. I'd lost count how many days I'd been up. You know, smoking, meth, snorting, meth snorting, cocaine drinking, and I was by myself and I was just so far out that I didn't even know what I was doing anymore. And I felt it. And I didn't even know what I was doing anymore. And I felt it, and I didn't even know it. I opened my eyes and I was on my knees, crying, begging God for forgiveness. And I didn't do that. I didn't put myself on my knees and start begging God because I was still rebelling. You know, god, put me on my knees. Come on, god, hit me with. I like to say it with a two by four. You know, hey, it's time for you to wake up. I've been there for you all this time. Yeah, it's your time. Yeah, let's get your life straight. And at that moment, I don't know, I can't describe it, but I was shown such a moment, just a glimpse of what glory could be. And at that moment I was sober. I was sober and I told God at that point that if he delivered me from this life of sin and evil and addiction, that I would devote my life to him. I made God that promise and God saved me. And I walked out of that garage sober as the day I was born, sober as the day I was born. Come on, and I have not had a pull towards addiction for alcohol, drugs or anything else since. And that's being truly set free. Set free.
Speaker 3:And I was still hesitant. Yeah, yeah, for all those years of being such a knucklehead, I was still hesitant. Yeah, and all those years of being such a knucklehead, I was still hesitant. Yeah, you know, and I just didn't know what to do at that point. Yeah, how do I fulfill my promise to God? He fulfilled his Amen. When God speaks, it's fulfilled. Yeah, you know. So he showed me what it would be like for me. Yeah, and I was still hesitant, and I know I was hesitant because I was scared First time in my life. I ain't never been scared of anything that walked this earth. I was scared then, wow, because it was the unknown. I'm this little child now In the eyes of God, I'm back, and I just didn't know where to go from there. Yeah, until I had to take my wife to church two weeks later.
Speaker 2:Well, you know you. You, you mentioned something. You mentioned something that I want to touch upon. You said it wasn't you to put you on your knees. You know you're. You're in that moment where you're just high out of your mind, right? You know?
Speaker 2:The Bible talks about how, you know, we can't save ourselves. It says that we can't even come to God unless the Spirit of God draws us unto Him. And personally, brother, after listening to your testimony, I personally believe that that's what was happening in that moment God was drawing you unto Himself. In that moment, he puts you on your knees. Next thing, you know, you wake up and, as you give this promise to God that, if he gets you right, you will serve him with the rest of your life. And I have seen you do that, man, and I'm so proud of you surrendering to God to work in and through your life. You know, as God has gotten you to this place, in this moment, in this garage floor, on your knees, you said something that I want to point out to the listeners In that moment, when you understood all that was going on, you were sober.
Speaker 2:You go from being high out of your mind to sober, you know, and I could see how that could be a little scary for a man who used to be in control of everything, or at least thought he was. I thought I was a little scary for a man who used to be in control of everything, or at least thought he was, I thought I was. Yeah, now, all of a sudden, you know you've had this moment with the authority figure that you've been bucking the system against for so long, that you've been defying and you've been pointing your finger, if you will, and shaking it in his face. And yet here, god's not angry with you. At this night in the garage, god is offering mercy and grace and forgiveness of your sins, and God just washes over you. And there comes a point where you say that you remembered that you had promised God that you'd serve him. So your wife needs a ride to church, sister Robin needs a ride to church and you were going to take her. Walk us through that.
Speaker 3:I got up that morning because I knew she needed a ride to church. She was dealing with some vertigo issues and I told her I'd give her a ride. You know I'd drop her off and I'd come back and get her While I was getting dressed to get up and take her walking down the hallway. A lot of people are not going to believe this the non-believers. Anybody who believes will believe this. God spoke to me.
Speaker 3:Amen brother, I heard his voice clear as I hear yours right now, hallelujah. And what I heard was two words, three words. Remember your promise, amen, come on. Walking down the hallway, there was that two by four again. Yeah, you know, there was that two-by-four again. Yeah, you know. Wham, wham. And as I watched Robin getting ready, I walked up to her and I said how does this look? And she said well, you're just driving me off. I said no, I'm not. And she almost hit the floor. Yeah, she just. I seen a smile on that woman's face I hadn't seen in a long time. Come on, you know, woman's face I hadn't seen in a long time, you know. And I walked into church that day and my pastor, pastor Lee, you know, I was sitting through that sermon. I'd never watched anybody worship and praise God before and it was all alien to me and I was like a long-haired what do they call it? A long-tailed cat in a room full of rocket chairs.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah, you know.
Speaker 3:I was on the edge, you know, and at the end of the sermon, when you asked anybody if they had, you know, not been saved, you know, I just didn't raise my hand. I mean, I jumped up with both hands in the air Shoot, come on. And at that moment, I felt like I was picked up out of my seat. You know, and glory to God. He saved me once again and I was saved that day and I've been with God ever since.
Speaker 1:So good. I think it's incredible that Robin stuck by you. Me too, you know like if you, after hearing this testimony, that woman was there through it all. I say it right there.
Speaker 3:I don't know why, how she was able to deal with that. She seen something in me, knew that I could be a better person, which I never proved to her at that time. You know that I could be, so to this day I still have. I know why now, but I still think about it. You know how could she have held on that long?
Speaker 1:Because you couldn't prove it, but she believed and had hope and faith in the one who did prove it, and that's God, and that's God. Yeah, I love that. And you know, when I hear your testimony, especially about you being in your garage, it reminds me so much of Paul and that road to Damascus experience, right when God just showed up in Paul's life. He was in the middle of killing people, he was in the middle of living a life that was completely not in line with what we know that life to be, and then, all of a sudden, god shows up and it was right there, in that moment His life was transformed forever.
Speaker 3:And I kind of lead towards that part of scripture too, because I could relate to that story, to where he was killing other Christians. You know, he was hating and just everything about Christianity and in a moment he's one of the most faithful servants for God that there ever was. Just like that man, Just like that.
Speaker 1:You know I had a question to ask you, but you've already answered it and I knew the answer anyway, because the answer is found in the word, and that was going to be what changed you, and the answer is simply this God.
Speaker 3:God, 1,000%. God's mercy, God's grace, god, I feel and I know. Now I don't feel. I know that God kept me alive during all this craziness and evil for a purpose. Yeah, he has a plan and a purpose for every one of us.
Speaker 2:Yes, he does, yeah, so walk us through that man. You're coming through the hallway in your house. God faithfully reminds you of a promise you made him that night in your garage you come to church. I remember that day, man, you didn't just come up front to the altar, you, you were willing to come up on stage and surrender your life to Jesus. There is a true countenance changed in your life, man, like when I see you like it. It's just, it's this lightness that you carry around, it's a peace, um, and I think that I think that the reason that you've completely sold out to the peace of the Lord is because you've known all along that's what you've needed is peace. You know it's not what you've had growing up, and now you also know that you've got something else you didn't have when you were growing up, and that's a father figure. You've got a heavenly father, amen.
Speaker 3:You've got a provider. I have the largest father of them all.
Speaker 2:Amen, brother. You've got a provider. Amen, brother. You've got a provider in your life. You've got a redeemer, you've got a savior. So, through it all, through it all, god has rescued you and God has transformed you. I want to just kind of leave with this verse right here. Romans 6.23 says leave with this verse right here. Romans 6.23 says for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus, our Lord and my friends. That gift was presented to Billy. It was also presented to myself, to Pastor Jim. That free gift of life from God through Jesus Christ is presented to every single one of us.
Speaker 2:So, no matter how far you've been running, no matter how long you've been running, all you've got to do right now, in this moment, is turn around and just simply surrender and trust God.
Speaker 2:So if you'd like that, today I want to lead you through a prayer. If you're saying, you know what, I'm tired of running, I'm tired of spinning circles, I'm tired of filling my life with enjoyment that quickly fades, then I invite you right now to accept Jesus Christ as the King of all kings and Lord of all lords in your life, as your Savior. Would you say a prayer like this Lord Jesus, I am a sinner and I ask you, lord, to forgive me of my sins. I recognize, jesus, that you died on the cross so that I could be forgiven, and I ask you now to come into my life, rescue me, redeem me and save my soul. I want to follow you with everything that I've got. Teach me how to be faithful and obedient In Jesus' name and blood. Amen, amen, amen.
Speaker 2:Guys, we want to thank you for listening to this episode of Beyond Sunday. You know, this time with our brother Billy has been so rich. It's been so blessed. Hopefully, you can come to church Thursday or Sunday and say hey to us and also meet Billy. He's there every Thursday, he's there every Sunday faithfully, and we're excited to introduce you to a brother in the Lord that truly is changed for the glory of.
Speaker 1:God and Billy, I just want to say thank you. You know, oftentimes our testimonies can be hard to tell. You know, oftentimes our testimonies can be hard to tell, but when you look at our testimonies and how they are just like the gospel in that they present and point everyone to the cross. They point everyone to the transformation that Christ has in our lives and for our lives. I really do want to say thank you for being willing to come here and just give us your testimony and being raw. So thank you.
Speaker 3:No, there's no, and just give us your testimony. And being raw. So thank you, there's no problem there. I'm blessed to do it and with the testimony, I feel that if one person is saved from having to go through everything that I went through, then every moment I went through that was well worth it.
Speaker 1:Amen, me and Pastor Lee say that often. If just one person shows up to church, they're going to hear the gospel.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely Real quick. Before we sign off here, tell us in just a few words what does life look like going forward for Billy and Robin Bright brother bright Amen In the light.
Speaker 3:God has got plans for us. I don't know what they are. I just know I'm going to be there to follow them and be and have my faith and walk in his, in his glory. And I don't know what he has in store, but I'm looking forward to it Amen.
Speaker 2:All right guys. That's a wrap on today's episode of beyond Sunday. God bless you. Share this link with someone because it can impact their life forever.
