Called to do more...

Welcome to the Testament Faith Podcast. I'm Ray Bradshaw, and joining me tonight is a discussion that dives deep into our true calling as Christians. We are not merely saved to sit idly by; we are called to action, to serve, and to share the love of Christ with others. Ephesians 2:10 reminds us that we are His workmanship, created for good works that were prepared for us beforehand. This post will explore the importance of stepping out in faith, embracing our purpose, and actively participating in God's plan for our lives.

## Understanding Our True Purpose

As believers, it’s crucial to understand that our salvation isn’t just a ticket to heaven; it’s an invitation to fulfill a divine purpose. God has crafted each of us with unique gifts and a specific calling. Many Christians mistakenly believe that their primary goal is simply to be saved and attend church. However, God created us to be active participants in His kingdom, serving others and drawing more people to Him.

### The Call to Action

In Romans 1:17, we are reminded that the righteous shall live by faith. This verse emphasizes the need for continuous growth in our faith. Each step we take in our spiritual journey opens new doors to opportunities for service and growth. Some people may feel stagnant in their spiritual lives, but God calls us to move forward, to pray, and to bear fruit.

The idea of waiting for God to act can lead to complacency. Instead, we should take proactive steps to grow spiritually and serve others. Reading the Bible is a fundamental way to hear from God and to equip ourselves for action.

## Everyone Has a Ministry

Every believer has a ministry, regardless of whether they are ordained. Jeremiah 1:5 states that God knew us before we were born and has a plan for each of us. Our ministry can take many forms—whether it’s in the workplace, at home, or in our communities, we all have the opportunity to share God’s love.

### The World as Your Pulpit

We do not need a physical pulpit to minister; the world itself is our stage. Wherever we go, we have the chance to represent Christ and share our faith. This perspective transforms mundane activities into opportunities for ministry. For example, you can share your faith while shopping or dining out, making every moment an opportunity to spread the gospel.

In our conversations, we should be bold in sharing our faith. Many may think that they cannot pray out loud or share their beliefs publicly, but being open about our faith can lead to profound connections with others who may be seeking hope.

## Growing in Faith and Service

As Christians, we are called to grow in our faith continuously. Just as human beings move from milk to solid food, spiritually, we should not remain in the infancy of our faith. We should seek deeper understanding and engagement with God’s word.

Healthy things grow, and this principle applies to our spiritual lives as well. We should strive to deepen our understanding of scripture and apply it in our daily lives. 2 Peter 3:18 encourages us to grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

### The Importance of Community

Being part of a church community is vital for our growth. When we come together, bringing our faith and expectations, we create a powerful environment for spiritual growth. Our collective faith can uplift one another and strengthen our resolve to serve.

To illustrate this, imagine a potluck dinner where everyone brings a dish. If only one person provides food, others may go hungry. Similarly, if only a few individuals take on the responsibilities of ministry, many will miss out on the benefits of community and service.

## The Light of the World

Matthew 5:14-16 reminds us that we are the light of the world. Our actions reflect our faith, and others will see God through our good works. This is especially important since many people may never step foot inside a church but will encounter our faith through how we live our lives.

### Living Out Our Faith

In practice, this means being intentional about how we conduct ourselves in public and private. Our behaviors and attitudes can either draw people to Christ or push them away. Therefore, we must strive to represent Christ well in all situations, offering hope and encouragement to those around us.

In Colossians 1:13, we are reminded that God has delivered us from darkness and brought us into His light. This transformation should be evident in our lives as we seek to influence the world positively.

## Conclusion

In summary, we are called to do more than just exist as Christians; we are to live out our faith actively and serve others. By understanding our purpose, embracing our ministries, and growing in our faith, we can truly fulfill the calling God has placed on our lives. Let's take steps to bear fruit, influence those around us, and shine our light for the world to see. Remember, your actions matter, and they can lead someone else to Christ.

If you want to dive deeper into this topic, be sure to subscribe to our podcast and join us for more discussions on living out our faith.

Transcript

SPEAKER_07 0:00

Welcome to the Testament of Faith Podcast. I'm Ray Bradshaw. Joining me tonight is John Paul Murphy and John Quinn from the Word of Faith Ministries and Mr. Daniel Bell. Tonight's podcast we're going to come called to do more. We as Christians are not just called to be, once we have Jesus Christ in our hearts to be our Lord and Savior and forgive us our sins, we're not just called just to say, all right, well, I'm a Christian. I mean it don't work that way. Ephesians 2 10 for we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. I mean God created every believer with a purpose. And you know, we're not merely saved from something, but we're saved for something. That means we're created to serve Him and to go out and minister to others and bring more people to His kingdom.

SPEAKER_03 1:03

Well, many people believed it the goal is to simply be saved and go to heaven. But God didn't save us for us to merely go in and sit down on a pew.

SPEAKER_04 1:15

That's right. Yeah, I mean if that was the whole goal, why didn't it just take me out after we got saved? Mm-hmm. Yeah, right. I mean it's my whole goal is just to go to heaven. Long baptisms. Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 1:27

Extra long baptisms from all stops.

SPEAKER_06 1:29

Yeah, which baptized and you want. Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 1:31

They're never sin again baptism.

SPEAKER_06 1:32

A lot of people are just so satisfied with where they are spiritually. Yeah. He never called us to stand still, sit still, be still. He he wants us to grow and serve, to reach and to pray.

SPEAKER_01 1:47

Yep.

SPEAKER_06 1:48

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:49

Bear fruit.

SPEAKER_06 1:50

And draw closer to fruit.

SPEAKER_01 1:51

Bear fruit. Fulfill his purpose.

SPEAKER_05 1:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 1:55

Absolutely. It the Bible even tells us in Romans 1 17, there for therefore the the righteous of God revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, the just shall live by faith. Paul didn't notice Paul didn't say to faith to be comfortable. He said faith to faith. Every level of faith opens another door. You know, I I speak on this all the time. You know, it re God requires you to step out in faith and trust him. And as you do, the door opens up. You know, the door just doesn't open up because you're sitting still not doing anything. You know, people's like, well, I'm waiting on God. We you need to take a step.

SPEAKER_00 2:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 2:39

Step a step out, a leap of faith, start moving. And as you do it, you know, um, I hear this all the time. I'm just waiting to hear from God. I'm like, open up your Bible. It's the words full here that you can read.

SPEAKER_07 2:53

I'll get ready because we talk about this seem like every podcast. You know, we know everybody knows somebody's like, well, I'm praying and I'm just waiting to hear from God. Well, you know, it's not gonna fall in your lap. You have to take that first step. Yeah. We've talked about it a lot.

SPEAKER_04 3:10

And maybe even praying and fasting, it's like a muscle.

SPEAKER_06 3:14

Yeah. That's right. The more you work it, the stronger it gets. So in Jeremiah 1.5, it says, Before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee.

SPEAKER_02 3:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 3:22

And before thou cameest forth out of the womb, I sanctified thee and I ordained thee. That's right. A prophet unto nations. Yeah. Before either born everborn.

SPEAKER_03 3:32

You were set apart.

SPEAKER_04 3:34

And I said this yesterday, and I was ministering yesterday. And I I covered this that everybody is a minister. Every born-again believer is a minister. You have a ministry. You're a minister and you have a ministry. You've been called to have a disciple. You've been called to carry the word of God out and to do something. So carry the word out, you know, wherever you're at. You're like, well, I don't have a pulpit. You don't have to have a pulpit.

SPEAKER_03 4:01

The world is your pulpit. That's right.

SPEAKER_06 4:04

Well that's what I said the other night in church. I saw some, I told somebody I was preaching last week, and they said, Really, where's your church? I said, My church? It's the same church you got. And he looked at me kind of funny. I said, the world is your church.

SPEAKER_02 4:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 4:19

I'm not a pastor.

SPEAKER_06 4:20

I don't have my own flock.

SPEAKER_07 4:21

Where two or three or more are gathered.

SPEAKER_06 4:23

Exactly. There I am also.

SPEAKER_07 4:25

Just like right now.

SPEAKER_06 4:26

Exactly.

SPEAKER_07 4:27

I mean, this is this is our church. Exactly. This is our Monday night church.

SPEAKER_06 4:31

And we're sharing it with the world. Exactly, exactly.

SPEAKER_04 4:34

We're having our Bible study publicly. That's right.

SPEAKER_06 4:38

The girl was talking to me yesterday and she said, So you're a preacher? I said, Well, uh, and I've never said this in my life. I knew I had a call on my life to preach, but I've never said what I'm fixing to say but till yesterday I said I'm an evangelist, and it rolled right off of my tongue, like just like I said, like if you asked me what my name was, Daniel, just as easy. And I've never said I'm an evangelist. I I never I knew I was called to preach. I knew I was called to minister. But like we said, the world is my church. I can be at work, I can be at the restaurant eating supper, I can be in Walmart. Don't ask me to pray for you because I'm not gonna go in the corner and say, All right, thank you, Jesus. Um let's bow our heads and pray. Now, what do you need me to pray for? I'm gonna be loud.

SPEAKER_03 5:24

Let us have a moment of silence. Yes. Oh God.

SPEAKER_06 5:26

I'm not gonna want to embarrass you, but there may be someone else that needs to hear it.

SPEAKER_03 5:31

I knew you'd lay down.

SPEAKER_06 5:32

We're called for more.

SPEAKER_03 5:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 5:34

And you never know when that call's gonna be. You never know when somebody on the next aisle over is struggling, and this person that walks up to you is asking you to pray, you're giving the word to the person over there.

SPEAKER_07 5:46

Yeah. That's right. And speaking of that, now I have had somebody ask me because they saw my logo on the back of the truck, are you a pastor? I was like, not ordained. Yeah. But I can talk with you. You know. Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_04 6:03

So I mean, if you're leading a flock, what is a pastor called to do? We have the requirements in the Bible. I ain't got it pulled up right now, but there's requirements in there. But one thing that I see, you know, live the Biblical, biblical to the requirements. But a pastor is someone that flocks sheep. If you have a leading under you, a follower, you're a shepherd. Like I see, you know, uh teachers, you know, as far as teachers in classes and stuff like that, I'm like, you realize you're pastoring them kids. That's right. You're pastoring them, whether you want to call it that or whatever, but they're following you. That's right. And you're leading them. And I go to churches that have, you know, 10, 15 pastors. They're not the lead pastor, but they have a pastor, uh, a worship pastor. Because he's leading that person's leading them into worship, shepherding them in. Do you know you'll have another pastor that does um home ministry, another pastor that leads into um the director of different organizations inside, like classroom teachings, then the kids' ministry.

SPEAKER_07 7:18

So, you know, I see that you have to have that too. It's just like that, what that uh Joby is done here in Florida, one that just done the 2,500 baptisms. They got 14,000 members in their church across eight or nine different campuses. Yeah. I mean, that one guy cannot lead that whole flock by himself. He has to have it.

SPEAKER_04 7:37

You need, and that's what we were leading in to do is to raise up ministers to come along and do the work of the kingdom. It's not about, you know, you having your own necessarily being at the front, because I say this all the time. I am not in front of people person. You know, to do this and think about this ten years ago, me being on this podcast, nah. I can't tell it on Sunday mornings. Yeah, that's why I heard and he provides. Yeah, that's what people say. Even my friends that watch me, they're like, Man, you preach hard on uh and you're wide open. I would never think that's you because they know me from the dog kennel and the business I'm in, and I'm a quiet person. I stay off to myself, I don't talk, I leave everybody alone. But that's what God gives you the power to do more, you know, in the ministry. And so um the Bible also says um the Lord changes into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. God never intended for believers to stay where they are. Every season, everything in your life should bring forth growth. Um, growth as a Christianity, you know, what doesn't the Bible tell us guys that you start out drinking milk like a baby? Yep. And I see so many. I'm on are you ready? I see a lot of milk, I see a lot of milk Christians. Yeah. That they're they've been in church a long time and they're still drinking milk. And I'm like, what is wrong with you?

SPEAKER_07 9:14

They want to stay on that high team.

SPEAKER_04 9:15

Yeah, they want to stay on the milk, and I'm like, there's a time to grow. You know, I d I've been eating, and I'm not gonna just take, I don't want you to bring me a bottle. I would be offended, Ray, if you brought me a bottle. I'd be like, what are you doing?

SPEAKER_07 9:30

I'd rather have a ribeye.

SPEAKER_04 9:31

That's what I'm saying. Give me a ribeye steak. I don't want no bottle, and that's what I don't understand about Christians.

SPEAKER_03 9:37

Healthy things grow.

SPEAKER_04 9:39

Yeah, healthy things grow. Yeah. Like the cedars, uh, the palm trees, it's tell it says that in the Bible. They're talking about the palm the palm trees and the cedars of Lebanon. You're to grow. You're to extend.

SPEAKER_03 9:51

Living things are supposed to grow. Christians are supposed to grow. Oh, what does 2 Peter 318? Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 9:59

Give it to us.

SPEAKER_06 9:59

But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, to him be glory, both now and forever. Amen. Yep. Amen.

SPEAKER_07 10:07

Yeah. I mean, you're supposed to grow.

SPEAKER_02 10:10

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_07 10:10

That's right. I mean, Jeremiah 29, 11, for I know the thoughts that I think toward you, this says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. I mean, that tells us right here, God has a plan for us beyond what we're what our current circumstances are. There's there's always more to learn. Yeah. I mean, it's just not just to show up on Sundays and be done, you know. Preach it. Your your present situation does not defined your circumstances.

SPEAKER_03 10:42

I mean, because we were all called to do more.

SPEAKER_00 10:44

That's right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 10:46

That's like you're supposed to experience more of God's presence. I mean, you know I hope I've not reached the peak. I well, I know I haven't. Right. I know I haven't reached the peak of of the presence in in my life. We we won't never reach that pinnacle. Well, we will when we get to heaven. We'll reach the peak of it. Because I'll be in his presence for always.

SPEAKER_07 11:09

Yeah, but you know, we I think we're still we still have some work to do here too. Oh, yeah. Yeah. But you know, down here on earth. Right now, I don't care what your circumstances are. I don't care if you've got a job or not. I don't care what your income is, spreading this Bible right here is free. All that takes is a little bit of time, which is considered a sacrifice. If you can sacrifice yourself to give up your time to help spread that word. I mean, you don't you don't have to have a job or a big fancy car to do that.

SPEAKER_03 11:44

And if you wonder if people are going to talk about you if you spread the gospel, they're talking about you now.

SPEAKER_07 11:49

They're already, yeah, they're already doing it. That's right.

SPEAKER_03 11:52

At least you got something good to talk about.

SPEAKER_07 11:54

I can tell you right now, if you lose a friend because you found Jesus, he wants your friend to start with. No, it weren't worth having.

SPEAKER_06 12:00

Not at all. You were a lot better off. Then that leads up, you know, we're called to bear fruit. Yeah. John 15, 16, it says, You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you. And ordained ye that you should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he will give it you. We're supposed to bring forth fruit. We're supposed to multiply. Like if y'all watched our previous podcast, we almost started this podcast in the end of it. So we're called to bring forth fruit, all of us. Not just the the ministers, not just the pastors who are not ordained pastors, but are still pastors anyways. You don't have to go to a Bible college to to be able to speak to people and lead people to God. The people who sit in the pews are part of the process. So we've said it before. I'll say it again. When you come to church, you need to come expecting, you need to bring your faith, you need to bring your expectations. We all bring our faith and expectations in, and it builds on each other. We need to go into the community to bring the community in. But as ministers, we can only see so many people a day. And the sad fact is so many people don't feel a call to do anything but sit in the pew, go eat lunch, and go home.

SPEAKER_03 13:26

Well, if you let me I heard it like this the other day. If we were having a dinner and I brought food. And I brought food. And you brought food and you brought food and you brought food, we'd have plenty of food to show. All of us. Right. But if only one of us, like that's like expecting the pastor to bring it all.

SPEAKER_02 13:46

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_03 13:47

If only one person brings, then somebody might go without.

SPEAKER_04 13:53

I was using the illustration of fishing. When you go fishing yesterday in the church, I said you go fishing on the pier, you don't go around asking, can I get a shrimp?

SPEAKER_05 14:03

Can I get a shrimp?

SPEAKER_04 14:04

Can I get a shrimp from you? Can I get a shrimp from you? Can I get a shrimp? Because you bring your own supply in everything we do in life, we bring our own supply. So that should be the same way when you come to church as a mature, you're called to do more. Come to come. You were talking about, you just read John 15 8, right? So he he no 1516. 1516, okay. My is my father glorified that you bear ye bear much fruit. So you shall be my disciples, not just fruit, but much fruit.

SPEAKER_07 14:41

Much fruit.

SPEAKER_04 14:42

That's called to do more, isn't it? Bear much. And it says, God is glorified when a believer grows. Think about that. You want to honor God, how it's better to honor God than He's seeing you grow up. Like just think about, like you said earlier, all of us are our parents here. How much good does it do when we see our children growing and doing good and being successful and and after more? Doesn't that glorify you? Like when you see them doing good and they're doing, they're really giving it all to God. That makes you happy. You know? So that's what glorifying God even tells you that in John 15 8.

SPEAKER_07 15:26

Yeah, one of my favorite was Matthew 5, 14 and 16, because we always talk about a world called to be a light. Yeah. And there's there's no darkness in this world that can put out a light. None. I mean, light puts out darkness. For free. So you are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.

SPEAKER_02 15:44

No.

SPEAKER_07 15:44

Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lamp stand so we can be seen. Yeah. And it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. I mean, that's what we're called to do.

SPEAKER_06 16:02

Some people, and this this is a deep one that people really need to see. Some people will only see our God, our Bible, our church, our faith to the walk that we walk. Before they'll set foot in a church, they'll see what we do. So we have to walk upright. We have to be the lamp at our feet, but we have to help them see. We have to be the light to guide out darkness. It don't cost us nothing to be the light of the world. In Colossians 1 13 it says, Who have delivered us from the power of darkness and have translated us into the kingdom of his dear son, he called us out of the darkness.

SPEAKER_03 17:31

As to the Lord. And not unto me. That's that's saying what have some passion in what you're doing. You know, I see people all the time they do stuff and they they just do just enough to get by. Just enough to merely squeeze by. But if you're gonna do something, do it with excellence. Uh it's the next part of it says, knowing that the Lord you sh knowing that of the Lord you shall receive the reward of the inheritance for ye serve the Lord Christ. You know, whether it's preaching, teaching, cleaning toilets, I mean singing, helping, giving, encouraging others, whatever you're doing, whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might. Do it. That when I do something I go at it just as hard as I can.

SPEAKER_06 18:32

The fruits of your labor, the fruits of your spirit. Yes. That's right.

SPEAKER_07 18:35

The the the passion. I was gonna use that analogy, it's like, you know, if I hired you to do a job, I expect you to give me a hundred percent. Right. So in return, it should be the same way what we're doing for the lower should be a hundred percent. That's right. No matter what. If you expect somebody else to give you a hundred percent, he expects the same thing from us. Yeah. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_06 18:57

The evidence of life is fruit. That's right. Yep. If that apple tree out there don't bear a single apple, what are you gonna do to it? Exactly. And it says excellence.

SPEAKER_04 19:07

Bear much fruit. I guess. It's just to bear a little bit of fruit, bear much. And then you got the scripture, he is divine, and we are the branches. It's not us doing the work. When you get to understanding that, he provides, he provides what you need to be able to do the work.

SPEAKER_07 19:28

Well, yesterday, I believe yesterday you said I've said, I don't know if I've heard you say it before, though. It's not our job to heal them. It's not our job to save them. That's right. It's our job to lead them to it, and then he's gonna take care of everything else. That's right.

SPEAKER_04 19:40

It's not when we're here to catch fish and bring fishermen them in, it's not my job to clean them up. That's right. They say, Well, brother, they're you need to help them. They're tied up in they're tied up in drugs and alcohol. No, I can preach the word. Jesus does the cleaning, I bring them in, and he does the cleaning up. That's not my job. I don't do God's word for it. I preach the word, I do that, and then let the word go in, you know, we're gonna plant the seed. That's right. I'm planting. Exactly.

SPEAKER_06 20:10

He takes care of it. That's right. I I told uh Pastor Jim the other day, I said, you know, we're we're in a at a revival, and uh the preacher said something, he was talking about the verse which says, Don't throw your pearls before before swine, whatever. He didn't say not throw your seeds there. Talking about seeds. That's right. I had hogs. I don't have hogs now, I have sausage now. But where I had hogs at, I've got uh pumpkin plants growing, I've got tomato plants growing, I've got uh what else the zucchini plants out there. I didn't plant none of it. Yeah, but I did. The hogs got the seed that I planted. It didn't save them, but that will bear much fruit.

SPEAKER_07 20:55

Yeah, they redistributed it.

SPEAKER_06 20:56

Exactly. You never know where the seed that you plant is going to end up.

SPEAKER_07 21:04

That's right. I mean, one of us in here could plant one seed and that seed could turn into a million. Absolutely. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_04 21:12

I was looking at a study the other day talking about an apple. You know, when you plant, just take an apple seed and you plant that seed, how many apples do you get off that tree? And then if you take all the apples off that tree once it makes, plant all them seeds, and then if you take a nut, then you do that I think it was like three or four times. It was like five million apple seeds you had before you knew what you were done, and you'd only done it like two or three times of planting the seeds. You know, this lady was illustrating it on the internet, and I was like, that's what we're called to do in the kingdom of God. If we plant seeds this time, it brings up much fruit. Then somebody else takes these seeds that we planted, planted them again, it brings up more fruit, and that kind of

SPEAKER_06 22:14

And along with that comes, you know, the the ways God calls. Because this is another I mean, when you're called to do more, you may not think that what you're doing is important. But you know, God calls by song. You may be leading a song or you may be singing. You may not think you have the best voice. But now the Bible clearly says make a joyful noise. All right. A joyful noise didn't say that it was beautiful. It didn't say it had to be in key. Exactly. Your song could convict somebody, could help call somebody. The word, the word, a prayer, our walk, all these are ways people are called. I mean, these are these are things, I mean, everybody everybody always considers what the preacher says. They put the brunt of it on the preacher. But nobody ever considers the other pieces that go into it.

SPEAKER_04 23:08

We're all one body, it's exactly.

SPEAKER_06 23:10

So if you're having a dinner at a church, the people serving food that's oh, we're just serving food. No, you're not just serving food. We're breaking bread.

SPEAKER_00 23:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 23:22

We're we're having fellowships. And there can be, I mean, you can call somebody, they may have never they may come to you and say, That's the best macaroni and cheese I've ever ate. Right. My goodness. And and you get in a conversation and before you know it, you've got them somewhere they need to be. So never look at what you do as being too small. There's this is cliche, there's no job too small. But really, I mean it really is. It's really that, and it's that serious.

SPEAKER_04 23:50

I mean, look at if you want to talk about that, talking about serving, look at Elisha, Elijah and Elisha.

SPEAKER_07 23:57

He was right there with him serving and helping him along. Elisha was serving Elijah.

SPEAKER_04 24:01

Yeah, and washing his hands, helping him along with everything he needed to be done, being a helpmate. And you know, that's that's you know, don't ever look at it, and then you realize that they had a school of prophets at the time. Elisha Elijah had a school of prophets, had a school of prophets, but instead of being there at the school, he was with the man, washing his hands, helping him along. If you read the scriptures, you find out all the things he was doing for him, just being a helpmate. And then he ended up having a double anointing because he was willing to help in the small things at the beginning. So, you know, God will find this is one of the scriptures, you know, if you're faithful in the little things, uh-oh. Called to do more.

SPEAKER_07 24:46

Bring it.

SPEAKER_04 24:47

If you're faithful in the little things, God will give you much. But if you're never faithful in what God has already given you, you don't expect to be have much. See, people get shut off a lot of times when they're talking about called to do more because, well, I don't have a ministry, I don't have anything. Well, you haven't been faithful in what little bit God has given you. You know, I started ministering on a Sunday night with only like 15, 20, 25 head. And then, you know, now it's blossomed out. I go to other churches, I'm I'm pastored all the time, I'm on a podcast, you know, but faithful in the little things at the beginning of your ministry, faithful into things of, you know, because I remember when they were bringing me up, I was going to a nursing home, ministering at a nursing home, because I told my grandparents, I said, there's a fire inside of me that I want to go, I just want to go preach the gospel. I want to, I want to go tell somebody about Jesus. And they sent me to the nursing home, and that's where I started at. I was in there talking to people about Jesus. And I went in the hallways and ministered to one lady and then went to minister to another lady. So, you know, that's shoot, that's been, I don't know, a long time ago. But that's that's what that's where uh I started in the ministry. Yeah. And so you but you faithful in the little things, and then God'll go give you more and more. Mm-hmm. So people get, I know, lost up on that.

SPEAKER_07 26:09

And and I think you ought to start in your own home to I mean that that's where you need to start. 'Cause it's easier because you're doing it with people you know.

SPEAKER_02 26:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 26:21

And then once you get well, you I guess you won't never be satisfied because we won't never have it one hundred percent. No, no. I mean we just won't. I mean we're everybody's gonna be disappointed in yourself and your family or whatever at some point. But since my wreck and my rebirth in Christ and just me reading and talking to my family about it, I've overheard my boys talking to their friends about it. Yeah. And 'cause one of my son's sons has got a friend that's r always depressed or something. And he's always trying to talk to him and lead him in the right way, giving him some scripture and stuff like that. And if you don't think that won't make you proud, make that chest swell up, don't it?

SPEAKER_06 27:03

It does.

SPEAKER_07 27:04

And the eyes.

SPEAKER_04 27:05

Yes, it does. It'll make the eyes swell up. And the eyes. I can't tell you how many m sermons Christians heard at the house, because I mean, I I'm she's like, Well, you're preaching to me. I'm like, I'm a preacher all the time. Yeah. I can't get to take this coat off. I don't, you know, that this this what's on me, I don't get to take it off. I mean, you're yeah, you're ram me and it's gonna come off. So the same thing what you're saying is you're you're a minister everywhere you go, and you're in if you're in your home, they're gonna hear it.

SPEAKER_07 27:33

I remember I probably told them read twice today, well, the Bible says this.

SPEAKER_04 27:37

Yeah, you'll you'll catch yourself all the time. The Bible says this. The Bible says this, and they'll be like, What are you talking about? I'm just telling you, that's what the Bible says. You know, we walked in, I walked in the other night and Christian wasn't feeling good, and I and I told her, I just got done listening to this amazing podcast. It was talking about dominion, and I had to listen to it about three or four times. There's some guys from what podcast was that on? The Testament of Faith podcast talking about dominion. And I walked in that house and she said, I don't feel good. I said I would take dominion over that thing and I would tell that thing where to go. And I would just, I would, and I just and I started quoting scriptures, one behind another that sounded like a shotgun. I had a Nelly going off. It was one shotgun shell after another one. And you know what? The next day she had made a turnaround because I told her, I said, quote the scripture. I said, three scriptures and the devil run from Jesus. Three scriptures. I told her to do this, and then I told her, I said, now turn this on right here. Play this in the background. You know, preachers and ministers at our home. You know, be a minister in your home. As Ray was saying, be a minister in your home. Your family needs a minister, and you could be the greatest minister in your home. Right where you're at. You know, you don't look at that as a small thing. You could be the greatest minister to what people need to hear, and nobody else knows that, but that's what you need to do. I mean, I do it all the time. I I'm very much guilty of the charge of being a minister in the home everywhere I go. I can't. But getting back to it, it really helped her out a lot. Yeah I mean, it turned her around from being sick to feeling a lot better and turning things around.

SPEAKER_07 29:21

You know, faith is meant to be active and not passive. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, you can't Well I mean I I hate to sound like a stutter box, but you can't accept Jesus and just sit still.

SPEAKER_02 29:36

Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 29:37

I mean, you got that that fire inside of you. Your cup has to run it over and share it with somebody else.

SPEAKER_04 29:44

It's to grow and it's a move. You gotta take a step.

SPEAKER_02 29:47

Right.

SPEAKER_04 29:47

Um, you know, it just like uh David and Goliath. You know, he had to take that step of faith to go out there and say, I'm gonna fight this dude with everybody else around him saying, Oh man, you're gonna get killed. You're just all you want to. Yeah, he took a step of faith saying, I know my God.

SPEAKER_00 30:04

That's right.

SPEAKER_04 30:05

I know my God will deliver this Philistine into my hands. He took that step of faith and he was called to do more because he knew he had a calling on his life. Samuel had already came in and anointed his head to have a calling on his life. And so that's the thing. And you said, Well, I don't know if I'm called. Well, have you read your Bible? Everybody's called.

SPEAKER_06 30:27

He had already killed a lion, and the Bible says that he grabbed him by the beard. By the beard. Now I can tell you the lion didn't look at him and say, Okay, brother, you got my beard. Now let me go.

SPEAKER_02 30:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 30:42

No, sir.

SPEAKER_02 30:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 30:44

Here's an interesting statistic. I knew I'd seen it somewhere. When you said something about ministering your home, I looked it up because this is a very important statistic. If both parents attend church, 72 to 74% of the children will attend church as an adult. There you go. If neither parent attends church, only six percent. That means 94% of children from homes that don't go to church are souls we could reach. That's the fields that are whitened to harvest.

SPEAKER_02 31:15

That's right.

SPEAKER_04 31:18

And if you look at it, it also talks about how much more a father makes a difference going to church. Oh yeah. That's right there. Yeah. I say say if a dad attends it's sixty-two to seventy four percent. Sixty-two to seventy-two percent if a if a m if a dad attends church.

SPEAKER_07 31:36

So Well, the fat the father is the leader of the household, just like the preacher is the leader of the church. And it's your job to lead your family.

SPEAKER_04 31:45

Yeah, but dads have dads and fathers have been made a laughing mockery. Look at every TV. Yeah, they every TV show, they always make dad the bed of a joke. And I don't watch TV anymore, but I'm just saying from I mean, from a long time, they have just made it a big old joke. That's right. Dad's a joke, they laugh at him, they pick on him, and they've made him as nothing. But you don't you don't realize fathers, dads is out there. You make a difference in a household as you go to church, as you honor God, your children are honored. That's your calling on your life.

SPEAKER_06 32:21

You know and if you flip it over and you're and mom is on what goes to church and dad sits on his till at the house, uh uh.

SPEAKER_04 32:29

Two percent. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 32:31

Two percent to fifteen.

SPEAKER_04 32:33

Yeah, two percent to fifteen. That's a while, ain't it?

SPEAKER_06 32:36

Man, that's crazy. Yeah, that I knew that statistic because I do that too. I'm fixed to shock everybody in this room. Yeah. I grew up Baptist. Yeah. All right. I heard a bad a very prominent Baptist minister the other day. And this this guy's dead now. So this would have been not even now in the times when people are more forgiving about stuff. He says, you know, there's an abomination that are going to destroy churches. He said, and he said, I feel like you know, y'all y'all are fussing about women being in church, but you men are too sorry to stand up and do what you're supposed to do. Left foot. You want to sit at the house, you want to watch your football. I'm fixing to get myself, you want to watch your westerns. Mm-hmm. That's for me.

SPEAKER_00 33:19

I've been there.

SPEAKER_06 33:20

But you don't want to put on the six guns and go out to church and shoot the devil down.

SPEAKER_00 33:24

That's right.

SPEAKER_07 33:26

Because it's too easy to be worldly. It's just too easy. You have to make effort. They just don't like we're talking about, they don't fall in your lap. Mm-hmm. You have to put that first foot forward and work in that faith. Stay in the scripture to build that faith and the trust. Find a circle of friends that do the same thing. Your friends will support you and hold you up. And you'll be elevated. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_02 33:56

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_07 33:56

That's why I was gonna read uh John chapter 14, verse 12, while I go before we got off the topic a little bit. I mean, no, I mean it's good though. That's why I There was a rabbit. Yeah, yeah. Hey, what we love we love rabbit holes for Jesus. Yes, that's that should be my podcast, Rabbit Holes for Jesus. The rabbit the Robertsons have one that called. Oh, okay, I didn't know that. Yeah, the rabbit holes for Jesus. Okay. Uh most assuredly, John this is John chapter 14, verse 12. Most assuredly I say to you, he who believes in me, the works that I do, he will do also, and greater works than these he will do, because I go to my Father.

SPEAKER_02 34:36

Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 34:37

That's Jesus calling believers to continue his work. Not just show up on Wednesdays and Sundays and then go back home. Yeah. And not I mean, even like, you know, Daniel, somebody at work, he he's have spreading the gospel at work. I mean, that's what we're called to do. Mm-hmm. That's right. Here's teeter. Mm-hmm. Public. I mean, I I've I've shared ever since this I've I've shared my testimony in probably every grocery store I've walked in around here. Yeah. Especially when I was in that wheelchair, somebody goes, What's wrong? Honey, let me tell you. Let me tell you what's right. Let me tell you what's right now. I tell you what was wrong, now I'll tell you what's right.

SPEAKER_04 35:20

Mm-hmm. That's right. So that's the the biggest thing is we're called to share the gospel. You know, um, God empowers us, you know, reading that scripture just then, God empowers us to do more. It's not us and ourselves to to do more. God gives us the God-given ability, the God-given authority to be able to do that. You know, you say, I hear this all the time. I can't do that. They'll tell me, like, I'll talk to them about talking to others. Well, you know I'm shy. Well, you know I I met you. Yeah, that's what I'm thinking. Like, come on. You know, they use every excuse in the book to get away from actually doing what God's called them to do. And I just want to grab them and shake them. Like, why are you saying all this? Don't you know greater is he that lives in you than he that lives in the world? It's not by might, not by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord. It's not on you to do it, it's God that does it in you. And, you know, we've talked about this on the podcast. I am wide open on Sunday morning. Yeah, I am a wide open minister. I go 100%. A lot of times I've been praying and fasting today before, but I'm still wide open because it's not my strength that does what I'm doing, it's his strength. I'm a shy person of nature, just don't I don't want to be around people. You know, if you tell me there's a crowd, I'm out. I'm out. Check me out, brother. I'm out. But that's what God gives you is that faith and ability to do it. So don't use the excuse because that's what the devil does.

SPEAKER_07 36:52

I'm gonna move, I'm gonna move out. I I'm gonna skip a couple of verses I've here go here to be on the topic and go to first Corinthians chapter fifteen. Give it to us. Verse 58. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. God calls his believers to abound, not merely just to participate. Now I am an old southeastern North Carolina red nick, so I had to look up the meeting of abound. And abound to exist in large numbers or great quantities, or to be abundantly supplied with something. Yep. It implies overflowing fullness. Yep. Letting that cup run us over with the love and the word of the Lord. That's right. I mean that's because there's always more work to be done.

SPEAKER_02 37:49

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_04 37:51

It never stops. Jesus said the the harvest is plenty, but the labors are few. That's the reason we're all called to be laborers and to get out there and go to work. There's a place for you to work at, like he says, the the the fields are white.

SPEAKER_06 38:05

The fields are white in the harvest.

SPEAKER_04 38:07

And it's ready to pick. You got just get out there and go to work.

SPEAKER_03 38:11

It's easy. I think it actually said, uh, all my children want to eat around my table, but who'll go and work in my field?

SPEAKER_02 38:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 38:21

Seems like all my children want to sit around the table, but who'll go work in the field? Who who'll go gather the harvest? That's right. Uh what did Jesus say? Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. Yeah. Go ye into all the world. Go ye.

SPEAKER_06 38:40

And and if you're wondering about it, does does God really call everybody? In Romans 12, uh, I'll start with the end of verse 3. It says, God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. All right. So that means we've all got the measure of faith. What is the measure of faith? Yep, that's it. That's the right amount. Because God don't do nothing wrong. So you've got the right amount for whatever mountain you need to climb. All right. And the next verse is, For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office. So we being many are one body in Christ, and every one members of one of another. We all have different gifts. That's right. But so as a human, we have different organs. All of our organs work to make our body function. Now think about the body of Christ and the church as your body. If your heart decides, oh well, I'm not working today, I'm gonna take the day off. I think I think the lungs can pump the blood today. What's gonna happen? The body's gonna die.

SPEAKER_00 39:45

That's right.

SPEAKER_06 39:46

So when I say that your role, even though it might not be my big in your mind, the Bible says we're all one body. We're all parts of one.

SPEAKER_03 39:53

Christ is the head, the church is the body.

SPEAKER_06 39:56

So that one little part that you think's not significant, like you think your skin's not significant, get it off of you and see what happens. Yeah, right. Yeah. That's your first line of defense against infection. And it's just skin.

SPEAKER_07 40:08

Leave it out on some of that asphalt.

SPEAKER_06 40:10

Yeah, exactly, exactly. You tried that. Yeah, I tried that one time.

SPEAKER_07 40:14

Don't recommend it. No. No. In James 1, verse 22, it says, but be doers of the word. Oh, yeah. And not hearers only, deceiving yourself. Put your faith on your feet. Well, you say, well, I've got closet Christian. Claws Christian. I mean, that's where that's coming from.

SPEAKER_03 40:35

If you've worked a job and nobody there, you've worked there 10 years and nobody there knows you're a Christian. Well, I got to work on Sunday. If your boss knew you were a Christian, you probably wouldn't have to work on Sunday. Well, I don't know now.

SPEAKER_06 40:48

Don't be that Christian that called porch light. Yeah, well, I mean, what do you mean porch light? He only works when people's looking. Right.

SPEAKER_07 40:54

I was I was stuck in a job. I had to work at least two Sundays a month and there was no getting out of it. But you still can minister.

SPEAKER_03 41:02

You still can't still carry out the wrong. Yeah, I'm saying I'm saying that there's a lot of people though that's been on jobs 10, 15 years, and nobody there even knows they're a Christian. Right. They ain't made no difference where they're at.

SPEAKER_07 41:14

They're not being uh walking, breathing. I I'll say I'm one of them because I hear back from some of the guys I used to work with now. They're like, man, have y'all listened to Ray's podcast? I never knew he was like that.

SPEAKER_02 41:29

Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 41:30

They know it now. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, for sure.

SPEAKER_06 41:34

The word is out. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. The word is out. Oh, I'm coming out of the closet. There's a sermon coming. The word is out.

SPEAKER_00 41:41

That's right.

SPEAKER_04 41:42

The word is out. Going back to James, you said James, even James 2, 17. Even so, faith even has not works, is dead being alone. Faith moves, faith acts, faith obeys, faith takes the next step. You know, in God talking about doing more, it's all boils down to faith. You know, you grow in faith, you grow in God, you grow. You should be a constant growing. You know, John was saying this earlier. Anything that doesn't grow is dead. You know, if it quits growing, you know, look at stagnant water. It's not moving. It has no out exit point and it dies. Everything in it dies. Right. Um, that's like the Dead Sea. You know, it has an in source coming into it, but no exit. And it dies. You have to be moving. But then you have the Sea of Galilee, both rivers flow into the same one, but it has an insource and an outsource. You should be pouring into. See, the church, if you say, I don't go to church, or I don't I don't believe in that. The church is clearly tells us in the Bible is to come get us equipped.

SPEAKER_00 43:01

Yep.

SPEAKER_04 43:01

To get equipment, to take equipment, to get it ready, to go to work. You know, it's like going to my tool, to my tool trailer, and I have a tool trailer full of tools, getting me a couple of nails and screws and my hammer and my screw gun and pitting it on and then never doing nothing with it. If you come to church and you just get this stuff, and it's only for me, and I'm walking around with a tool bag, oh yeah, I look like I'm doing something, but I'm not doing anything. You get this equipment when you come into church to take this word out and go and take the gospel out, and it should empower you. It should equip you to be able to go do the good work of Jesus Christ. It's not in you. You know, when you go lay hands on the sick, it's not you that heals the sick. It says, Lay hands on the sick and they shall be healed. It says, Go out and you have the ability to cast out devil. You have the ability, but you have to take the step and let God do the rest of the work. You know, that's the biggest thing people miss about being in Christ is he's called you to a greater calling to do more. But if you don't will aren't willing to do more, you'll never do it.

SPEAKER_07 44:12

You know, and that's you know, I th I think also a lot of times it people are scared to tell or approach their friends about Jesus and coming to Christ because they're thinking they're dwelling on their past. I'm like, well, you know, raised to I I used to cuss like a sailor. So you know, now, you know, I if I go meet s one of my old work buddies and I start trying to spread the word, I'm like, well, now he's just gonna remember who I was. Mm-hmm. You know, so they let their past stop 'em.

SPEAKER_02 44:47

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_07 44:48

And that's something that, you know, the whole Bible shows us never to look back. Don't look back.

SPEAKER_04 44:54

Yeah, I've been made new in Christ. Yeah, that was the old man. That's right.

SPEAKER_07 44:59

And that brought me to Philippians 3, 13 and 14.

SPEAKER_02 45:02

Yep.

SPEAKER_07 45:03

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended, but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead. I press toward the goal for a prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

SPEAKER_06 45:20

God's call is always.

SPEAKER_07 45:28

I mean, don't allow your past failures and your successes stop anything you do and spreading his word.

SPEAKER_03 45:38

That's right. You know, that's kind of that that kind of brings it back to what John Paul was talking about a while ago about bearing fruit. He didn't go quite far enough in that because it the next part of that says he that does not bear fruit will be cut off and cast into the flame. That's right.

SPEAKER_07 45:58

We said that in the last podcast.

SPEAKER_03 46:02

I mean, in him ye bear much fruit. And with me you can do all things, but without me you can do nothing.

SPEAKER_07 46:10

Daniel said, if you got a tree and they don't produce fruit, what you gonna do? Get it down.

SPEAKER_06 46:14

Exactly.

SPEAKER_07 46:15

I'm not launching this thing.

SPEAKER_06 46:16

In 1 Thessalonians 5 24, it says, Faithful is he that calleth you. Faithful is he that calleth you. You know, he will do it, he'll provide. You know, the the saying, you know, where where God leads, he's gonna provide, where God guides, he's gonna provide. It's true. It's it's not just uh an old wives' tale. If if you're called of God and He tells you where to go, uh oh, hold on, we're called to answer. God calls us to answer to the higher calling. We're supposed to answer the calling. If he calls for you to go to food line in Jacksonville and stand on a street corner and preach, he'll make a way for you to get there. But if you decide you'd rather go to Walmart because there's more stuff there for you to buy when you're done, you're gonna fall flat on your face because that was not your calling.

SPEAKER_01 47:09

You have to walk in your calling and answer the call for you.

SPEAKER_04 47:19

But in a in a way, there's um talking about being called you know, you were saying just a minute ago that people look at their past and look at their own weaknesses. Look at Gideon. He saw weakness, God saw greatness. The angel of the Lord appeared to unto him and said to unto him, The Lord is with thee, thou's mighty man of valor. And Gideon's like, Who you talking about?

SPEAKER_00 47:47

Who you talking about?

SPEAKER_04 47:48

Where'd they at? Where's this mighty man of valor at? Who you talking about? He's like, Gideon was hiding at the time. He's like, Who you talking about? Yeah, that's right. So that's what people, if you feel like that, guess what? Gideon did too. But then he ended up being a mighty man just like God called him to be. You have to be willing to take the call to do more. Yeah. Just like Gideon did. He was called to do more than what he was, and he answered the call, even though he had questioned himself, even though he questioned himself. It's okay to question yourself, because I mean, we've all in this room have questioned at times. Me? You should be talking to me God.

SPEAKER_02 48:30

Really? Really?

SPEAKER_04 48:31

Yeah. When I was called to preach, I'm thinking, you're talking to the guy behind me, right? Because I knew you ain't talking to me.

SPEAKER_07 48:37

I I had this note there here. We were created for more than comfort. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, Christian life's not just about being blessed. I mean, God calls us to impact others and advance his kingdom.

SPEAKER_03 48:51

Well, God very seldom asks you to do what you can do on your own.

SPEAKER_06 48:56

He's not looking for ability.

SPEAKER_03 48:58

Right. He's looking for ability.

SPEAKER_07 49:01

Comfort can become an enemy to the calling. I mean, just like you say, you know, everybody wants to be a couch potato. I mean, you know. Comfort is an enemy of a lot of comfort. Right. I mean, it's like, are we living for convenience or purpose? But then my n notes down there, what you were talking about, Gideon. So I got that down there, God's calling requires faith. Moses felt unqualified. Yep. Gideon felt weak. Jeremiah felt too young. God used every one of them.

SPEAKER_04 49:32

Yep. Look at Abraham. He was called out of comfort in Genesis 12 1. Now the Lord has said unto Abram, Get thee out of the country and from thy kinmen, and from thy father's house, and to a land that I will sow thee. And that a blessed look, so he was in his father's house. He had stuff going on, and then he was, guess where he was called? He wasn't called into the promised land right away. He was called into the desert. He was called into a place that he had no home, that he had to live out of a tent. He didn't have a house. So when you're given a call, I know that's kind of rough. They're like, I don't know if I want to leave him home, but I'm saying when you get understand that God calls you and you got a purpose-driven life, and you do have a purpose-driven life. If you're listening to us right now, you have a purpose-driven life. You need to know that for 100% of a fact. I can tell you and show you to you in the Bible, but you have a purpose-driven life, and you have to answer the call. And if one day, just as John's saying, you're going to have to answer for that call that's been put on your life. John said earlier, what if you get to heaven and one of your friends' name is on a chair there in heaven, and you didn't do nothing about it. You didn't go witness to them. You didn't go minister to them.

SPEAKER_00 50:56

That's right.

SPEAKER_04 50:57

You have a job. And I know we talk a lot about witnessing here on the podcast, but that's part of what our job is, is to witness to people and to help them grow in Christ Jesus.

SPEAKER_03 51:07

That is the great commission.

SPEAKER_04 51:08

That is the great commission. We're just doing what we were told to do.

SPEAKER_07 51:12

I got this note down here. God doesn't call to qualify, he qualifies the call. That's right. That's right.

SPEAKER_04 51:19

He qualified David. He wasn't, you know, David was a shepherd.

SPEAKER_00 51:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 51:23

He knew all about shepherding being out in the field, and then qu God qualified him. That's what I lived my whole entire beginning of it. He was just a shepherd boy. And God said, you know what? You can be a king. Nobody else seen that. That's right. His even daddy didn't even see it. His daddy left him out, left him out in the field when everybody else was coming to get anointed. He was left out. And he said, You know what? This guy right here, that's where you gotta understand. You're not, you can, God will use you to do it. That's right. And um, you know, Moses wanted us, could have stayed on the backside of the desert, but God had a different plan for it. He had left Egypt and ran out because he killed a man, and he could have stayed there, but God says, Hey, I'm calling you to do more. He looked unqualified. Uh not good enough. So if you're struggling today thinking, well, I'm not good enough, I'm unqualified, I mean, the Bible's full, you're in luck. You're in the perfect place because you're full of people that are unqualified throughout the Bible. That's right. Unqualified. They didn't look like they should have done it. Paul, persecutor of Christians, killing Christians, and God said, Hey, why are you kicking against the goats? Why are you going against me? And he used him to be a great apostle. That's right.

SPEAKER_07 52:43

Well, I mean, it's like, you know, Jesus didn't go to the synagogues and get over the Pharisees and the Sadducees as he come following me. Yeah. He went and got the Lulis. He went and got the fishermen's. Yeah. I mean the tax collectors, the people nobody liked and thought they were lower than dirt. Yeah. So you were in good company.

SPEAKER_06 53:01

We were all sinners. Come on, come on, join us, talk to us. Then said I, Here am I, send me.

SPEAKER_02 53:15

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 53:16

That should be our answer. Yeah. If he calls us, we should say, Here I am, Lord, send me. Because it doesn't matter. When you get where he sends you, you'll be able to do the job he asked you to do. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 53:31

Peter Peter didn't see how he was going to do it. Peter was a fisherman. And Jesus saw a preacher. He said and he said unto him, Follow me and I will make you fisher. Of men.

SPEAKER_03 53:42

Peter still said I'm unworthy.

SPEAKER_04 53:44

Yeah, Peter was always had second guesses. I'm not good enough. But he but God used him mightily to build a church. Peter went from catching fish to building the church.

SPEAKER_07 54:00

Yeah, that all I mean I was like that too when I first started sharing my Facebook testimony. I was like, I woke up one morning and it's like, hit me. And the Lord's like, tell the world. Yeah. Tell the world what I've done for you. Mm-hmm. Yeah. And and now look, we're four sitting here doing this. Yeah. Yeah. He's not called us to do less or settle down. Two years ago, I would have told you you're crazy. Mm-hmm. Saying, I'm not doing no podcast about the Bible. I know I believe, but I ain't doing no podcast about it.

SPEAKER_04 54:31

I'm gonna take some pictures of some dogs.

SPEAKER_07 54:33

Yeah, I'm gonna take some pictures of some dogs. Yeah, some drones. Right now, put yourself in good company. Yeah. Mm-hmm. I'm serious. I mean I mean, y'all have rubbed off on me.

SPEAKER_06 54:45

Good.

SPEAKER_07 54:46

I'm serious.

SPEAKER_06 54:47

You rubbed off on us. Well the the brethren build each other up. That's right. That's why it says not to forsake the coming together.

unknown 54:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 54:57

I mean, if if you're down and out and feel like you're in a bad place, put yourself around some better people.

SPEAKER_03 55:03

Look at the people you're hanging around.

SPEAKER_07 55:05

That's right.

SPEAKER_06 55:06

You know, to say a misery loves company is true. I don't want to be more miserable than you. I want to help you feel I want to help you be miserable.

SPEAKER_07 55:12

Yeah. And it's like I said earlier.

SPEAKER_06 55:14

Now, if you I don't want you to help me do that.

SPEAKER_03 55:16

But you know what I'm saying. I said earlier, I'm the happy man. You are the happy.

SPEAKER_07 55:21

Like I said earlier, if you if you think you're gonna lose some friends because you want to get closer to Christ, then they want your friends to start with. No, no, they're just dragging you down. They're an anchor.

SPEAKER_04 55:30

And you need to cut that root. And here's the thing you might be the one that changes your friends. Exactly. You might be the one, once you get saved, they see you and see the goddess inside of you and see how much change you've made. And then everybody else be like, well, tag on. If Ray Bradshaw can change like that, man, you remember him. He used to be rough, he used to do this. I've heard that. You know, and if he can change, if God can save him, there's hope for me, you know, and that's that's what people see, and you don't realize that's the call to do more is on you.

SPEAKER_07 56:05

You know I had a I had a fellow that's co-worker when I worked for a beer company here in town. Messaged me on Instagram the other day. He said, Man, are you the one sending me all them Bible verses? I was like, You like them? He said, You don't know how much it's done for me watching you do what you're doing.

SPEAKER_02 56:24

Yeah. There it is. That's what you're told to do.

SPEAKER_07 56:29

I love it, Sam. Uh-huh. Exactly, exactly. That's what we're here for. That's right. I mean, just just me. I mean, I just, you know, told what got on and started telling my testimony.

SPEAKER_04 56:39

Yeah, and that's what is I mean, the testament of faith is sharing your story to help other people to grow. You know, like he's saying, everybody's got a call and you know, you could be doing something else. It could be just sharing your testimony with somebody and building faith in that, you know.

SPEAKER_06 56:58

And you ain't got to have an hour-long testimony. No, no. I mean, well, that's like somebody's gonna say, well, oh y'all I ain't seen it yet, but somebody's gonna say it eventually. Oh, y'all read too many Bible verses. Well, I want you to know what I'm saying comes from somewhere. I'm not just going, well, let me see. Let me yeah, let me use this theory. This ain't a theory, this is Bible.

SPEAKER_07 57:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 57:18

And I I'm giving you chapter, verse, book. Go do it.

SPEAKER_07 57:21

My first four or five videos I put on Facebook with just me sitting out there in the chair on the back porch or something, were all Bible verses based on my testimony. Yeah. I mean, and that's why I started telling everybody right from the get-go, if you got something going on in your life, this instruction book can tell you how to handle.

SPEAKER_00 57:42

Exactly. Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 57:44

That is the book of life. That's right. It's right there. I mean, you don't have to look any further, you don't have to go to a psychiatrist or anywhere.

SPEAKER_06 57:51

No, it's right there. That is the living, breathing word of God. That is a living book. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 58:02

You know, if you don't think that increase matters to when you talk about call to do more, you might want to go read Matthew chapter 25 through 14 through 30. And it tells you about the parable of the talents. And it tells you, you know. Yeah. He rewarded the one that grew more. And the one that went and hit his talents. He's like, hey, get away from me.

SPEAKER_07 58:37

Yeah. He just went and buried your one.

SPEAKER_04 58:38

Yeah, he was like, I'm taking what you got and I'm gonna give it to the other ones because you didn't use what I have given you. That's right.

SPEAKER_06 58:46

I was afraid I was gonna lose it. I got it for you, boss, man. It's right here.

SPEAKER_07 58:50

Yeah, I was scared I was gonna lose your life.

SPEAKER_04 58:51

Yeah, well, this leads into a whole sermon. You've got talents, you've got abilities.

unknown 58:59

That's right.

SPEAKER_04 58:59

And that God has given you to serve the kingdom, you know, like my brother right here. He's got a great ability as far as doing cameras and stuff like that and doing ministry. And that, and you know what? I mean, I'm not ignorant to a thing when I see it. I'm like, hey, this man's good at that. Well, as soon as he came to church, I was like, he's on the camera. He's on the camera. There ain't no ifs, ends, or buts. This man's on the camera because I know he's got a talent. You know, everybody's got a talent that can be used for the body of Christ that you can be used. You may, well, I only bake or I only do this. I gotta you can help into church. There's plenty of things to do to build God's kingdom. You have talents that you're given. You might not be like he was saying earlier, you got a calling. You might not be the one up there preaching, you might not, but you have some ability that you can help build the kingdom of God, and then through that you grow more and more because you learn, like he's saying, get around people that'll help build you up, not put you down, and lift yourself up through that, through other people building you up through the word of God.

SPEAKER_07 1:00:04

I mean, and Paul Paul tells us that you know we're gonna be not all we're called to be ministers, not all are called to be prophets, not all are called to speak in tongues, some are called to be administrators, some are called to be musicians. Everybody has a calling.

SPEAKER_06 1:00:19

Somebody's called to be a secretary.

SPEAKER_07 1:00:21

That's right. Somebody's got somebody's called to watch the children for children's church. That's right. Somebody can go nowadays, do the computer work and you know, print do the printouts or whatever.

SPEAKER_06 1:00:30

Somebody's called to open the door and welcome them in.

SPEAKER_07 1:00:33

That's right. Yeah. Or hold the door and tell them thanks for coming today.

SPEAKER_04 1:00:37

You can you can do all that. But I can promise you, name his adjust out to y'all boys. Go ahead. I started out as a sound booth person. You start out and you be faithful a little. The next thing you know, God is gonna take you from being a little shepherd boy to being because if you notice David, he won't just a king. No. He was when he tore off his clothes, he had a prophet's outfit under it. He said, Y'all saw me as a king. I was really a star the whole time. He was leading them the whole time. That's right. He was like, you know, I'm leading y'all to the He said, Y'all thought I was just a king. And that's what I'm saying, you know, you'll end up at one place, and God will take you more and more. Because if you're this leads back to my favorite scripture, and I I tell God this all the time. You said, God, if I'm faithful in the little, you'll give me much. I'm faithful in working now in what what you have given me, in the area you've given me. Even in ministry and everything you're doing, I'm faithful. I'm being honorable. I'm I'm giving honor to God. It's not my works, it's your works. I'm being honorable. And as you do that, it you'll grow. You have nothing else. God wants you to grow. I mean, I've showed you that just then in chapter 25 of Matthew, that he wants you to take your talents and use them, multiply them. It's not just talking about money here, it's talking about your God-given ability. You've got to realize this is a parable. Yeah. That he's saying, take what you've got, multiply it to grow it. And as you grow it, he'll m he'll do the increase and then grow in what you have given him. Everything that you give God, he'll multiply it.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:24

Yep.

SPEAKER_07 1:02:24

So we all want to hear them words, well done, good and faithful servant.

SPEAKER_02 1:02:29

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_07 1:02:30

He ain't like and I've said it a hundred times on here when I was doing 'em by myself. It doesn't take thirty seconds every morning to share a Bible verse on Facebook.

SPEAKER_02 1:02:44

Yep.

SPEAKER_07 1:02:44

Mm-hmm. I mean, most people I know's got more than five hundred friends on Facebook. And all five hundred might not see it.

SPEAKER_03 1:02:52

Takes less time to share a scripture than it does your problems.

SPEAKER_07 1:02:56

That's right.

SPEAKER_03 1:02:57

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_07 1:02:58

And you yeah, look how many problems you see when you open up Facebook. That's all you see is different problems. Get on there and start sharing scripture. Mm-hmm. Don't be ashamed. Post it. Exactly. You never know. You might wake up in the morning and your best friend from high school, whatever, that you ain't seen in twenty years, might read that and you might change their lives. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_06 1:03:20

God calls by the word. That's right.

SPEAKER_02 1:03:23

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_06 1:03:24

Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of the Lord.

SPEAKER_07 1:03:29

Exactly. See, and that's the thing to him. Everybody's like, well, I don't know what I can do. You can do what I just said. Start out somewhere. Just start small.

SPEAKER_06 1:03:38

Take that step. The longest journey starts with a single step.

SPEAKER_01 1:03:45

That's right.

SPEAKER_04 1:03:46

You'll be willing to step out.

SPEAKER_02 1:03:48

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_04 1:03:49

Another thing that's in Isaiah 54, verses 2 and 3, you know, God is always planning for you to enlarge, to get bigger, to grow. You know, I'd I hate to see something that just stays small, that's never growing. That's, you know, it it should grow even the church. What was the very first thing he told us? To be fruitful and multiply.

SPEAKER_00 1:04:12

That's right.

SPEAKER_04 1:04:14

God is a multiplying God. He's supposed to multiply. We are supposed to grow more. We're supposed to do more. You know, enlarge the place of thy tent. Stretch forth thy cur cords, forth thy curtains, of thy habitat, spare not, lengthen the cords, and strengthen thy stakes. God's this was God's command. You're not to stay where you're at. God says, enlarge, expand, grow, move forward. You know, God gives us the power to do more. It's not in our own power, not in our own strength, not in our own mind, but in God's strength. His spirit goes through us to be able to give us the power to do more.

SPEAKER_07 1:04:54

So, um Yeah, he didn't call us, he didn't call us just to simply exist, the ten church, or maintain the status quo.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:03

Mm-hmm. Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 1:05:04

I mean, we were all called to grow, serve, disciple, influence, and advance his kingdom. Exactly.

SPEAKER_04 1:05:14

Yeah. This is a scripture you can say when you think, oh, I can't do that, I can't do this. This is what as a pastor really jerks my cords. Is when you start telling me I can't do something. Oh yeah. I can do, and then I want to hit you with a Philippians 413. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. You're making an excuse and just joining up. That's right. I don't want to look at the camera. You're just joining up with the devil. Okay. When you're telling, make an excuse that you can't do something, then you're saying I'm more dependent on John Paul than I am in God. That's right. I'm dependent on me. Me, I'm I'm gonna do it. No.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:58

Mm mm.

SPEAKER_04 1:05:59

No. When I get up there and minister, I don't want John Paul, I want God flowing through me to do the ministering. Same thing when you're going out growing in Christ Jesus. It's not you. You know, you're talking about sharing a scripture of a morning. You know, that's start a good way to start off. But as you grow, it's going to go from a scripture to you sharing with other people. It's God that gives you the ability. It gives you the ability. Stop making excuses, teaming up with hell that you, oh, I'm not going to do anything. No, God gives you the power. You know, the devil wants you to keep quiet, shut up, don't say a word, be a little quiet, know nothing, Christian, because then you can't affect nobody. If you'll keep your mouth shut and not say anything, then I can I don't have to worry about you. I can count you off. That's what the devil's thinking. If you if I can get ready to shut up and sit down and not say nothing, I don't have to worry about him. I'll go to the next guy.

SPEAKER_07 1:06:55

He loves him close at Christian.

SPEAKER_04 1:06:57

He wants somebody to shut up and sit down and not say nothing.

SPEAKER_07 1:06:59

That's right.

SPEAKER_04 1:07:00

But you know, you realize, like we were talking about a while back, you have dominion. Get up and take a charge for Jesus Christ. He's the one that gives you your very next breath. And I think him from my breath that I have in my lungs and what I can be able to do. So I'm gonna go give it all I got until he takes me home. And when I go home, then I'm gonna be like, Yeah, I'm I'm done. I'm I'm here now. But give it all you got. I I don't want to hear people keep on saying, uh, I'm too shy, uh, that's not me. Well then who are you then? That's what I want to look at them, but uh angry look like I have right now. Well, who are you then? Who are you then? If you're not uh if you're not called by God, then who are you? Who are you? That's it it really drives me upset when people say, Well, uh that's not who I am. I I'm scared, I can't do that.

SPEAKER_05 1:07:51

Well then why why?

SPEAKER_07 1:07:53

Well, you got two options. I mean, you either serve the Lord or serve the devil. Exactly.

SPEAKER_06 1:07:58

You're gonna serve one or the other. That's no question about it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:08:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 1:08:02

You know, we were called to be more than conquerors. We're not we're not called to be little fledglings. That's exactly right. That's right.

SPEAKER_04 1:08:09

You know, you know, and he gives you the ability to be the more than conqueror. Yeah. It's not you. It's him.

SPEAKER_07 1:08:15

So just get out there. Right back to Philippians 4.13. Yeah. And that's why, and that's why I use that verse on my low on this late podcast logo. Yeah. It was probably it's one one of my favorite verses, probably not my favorite, but it has the most meaning because I could not have done any of this without his strength. I mean, I wouldn't have come out of that wreck without his strengths. Exactly. I mean, I wouldn't have been able to get over here and tell my testimony without his strengths.

SPEAKER_03 1:08:43

Yeah. You know, you're talking about shyness. What is shyness but hidden fear? Fear, that's right. Fear. That's exactly right. That's right. What is shyness but hidden fear? That's right. And God has not given us a spirit of fear but of sound mind.

SPEAKER_06 1:08:59

That's right.

SPEAKER_03 1:09:02

Exactly. Exactly. He's given us that. I was sitting here thinking about that. What what is shyness? It's fear. He just read off my last Bible verse.

SPEAKER_06 1:09:09

Oh, I'm sorry. Oh, read it again. That's right. We might get something different when you read it, because every time you read it, there's new revelation.

SPEAKER_07 1:09:19

There's revelation in the word. Yeah. That's gonna be my clothes. Go ahead with it.

SPEAKER_04 1:09:23

I'm so you know, going throughout the Bible, Ruth was called to do more. You gotta realize that instead of she could have just took a back seat. All these people throughout the Bible.

SPEAKER_06 1:09:39

If you think about Ruth, yeah, think about Ruth. She could have said, I'm the queen. Yeah. They're not gonna kill me.

SPEAKER_04 1:09:48

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 1:09:49

They gonna kill all y'all. Yeah. But if I do what you want me to do, they may kill me, and then all you die too.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:57

That's right.

SPEAKER_06 1:09:57

But instead of looking at herself, instead of looking inward, she looked outward. And at the time she was called, she said, Here I am, Lord. Use me. That's right. That's a deep one. I mean, that's oh I know. There's another one that that was called and he hung on a tree. He could have said, Lord, get me down right now. And God would have took him down off a tree and said, Son, I don't want you to die. But he didn't.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:38

He took it.

SPEAKER_06 1:10:39

He took our sins and our transgressions in his body and he died for us. He answered the ultimate call and became the ultimate sacrifice.

SPEAKER_01 1:10:55

My God, my God. Man, I can't be for that and just not grasp that. Grasp it.

SPEAKER_06 1:11:04

When they joked to him and said, Why don't you call somebody to get you down? Yeah. He could have. That's right. But that's not what we needed. We needed him. That's right.

SPEAKER_04 1:11:17

Yeah. God establishes those who are willing to move. When you're willing to be out and go out and do it, you say, Well, I'm not I'm not able to do it. I cannot stand excuses. You know, one of the things I say is either you're too sorry. Or you don't want to. Or you don't want to. That's excuse to make.

SPEAKER_06 1:11:40

My wife says one excuse is good as another.

SPEAKER_04 1:11:43

Yeah, and that's what really jerks my chain in Christians, and I see it all the time, is well, I I can't, I can't shut, shut up. Why are you partnering with hell? Look, I'm gonna say it plenty of times, I know. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers that burn that brings forth fruits in his season. He will establish you in good ground to be able to abound in fruits. We were talking about fruits earlier. You abound in good fruit because it's not you just drawing off the river. He's the river, he's the source, providing everything that the fruit tree needs to produce the fruit.

SPEAKER_00 1:12:24

That's right.

SPEAKER_04 1:12:25

You're talking about bearing much fruit earlier. He's the river that gives life, the river of life that flows to you, that your roots grow down into. That's the reason it's important to get into this word right here to grow these roots because this is how you grow. This is how you go develop and to be able to bear these fruits. You know, if somebody's telling me this and I don't I don't get on people, you know, I'm I'm an uplifting pastor, I don't get on people. But it does bother me when I see people sitting there saying these things, especially when they've been here a long time. Yeah. I'm thinking, well, how long are you gonna sit here and drink milk?

SPEAKER_06 1:13:04

Yep.

SPEAKER_04 1:13:05

How long?

SPEAKER_06 1:13:06

When are you gonna try some bread?

SPEAKER_04 1:13:08

Yeah, how long are you gonna sit here and just keep on drinking milk? You know, I haven't been in churches. I mean, I've been in church my whole life, but some of these people have been in church for 45, 50 years and they still want some milk. And I'm like, I'm over here just about to shake, like, why? There's so much more you can do. Cake off and let's run.

SPEAKER_07 1:13:32

That's what's sad too, because the devil loves excuses. Oh, he does. If you're a Christian, if you go, well, I'm not really that type of person that likes to say anything to anybody, or I won't do that again, or maybe just this one time. Just I'm just again, just one more time, or I just couldn't imagine what Paul would think if he came back and seen the church today.

SPEAKER_04 1:14:00

I'd love to be a fly on the wall.

SPEAKER_06 1:14:04

I don't want to be a take me back now.

SPEAKER_03 1:14:05

Take me back.

SPEAKER_06 1:14:06

Maybe churches wouldn't be standing because he'd have them destroyed. You wrong me in the wrong place. He would be yeah, he would call this a church. I don't think you put me on the right earth.

SPEAKER_04 1:14:16

Could you imagine the letters? The letters the letters. You get a head. Could you imagine the letters? He would be emailing just blowing them up, boy, and sharing them up.

SPEAKER_07 1:14:31

There might be some things said in there we can't say on here.

SPEAKER_03 1:14:37

These churches today would get Paul and sin. What in the world are you? That's bad. Paul would be mad.

SPEAKER_07 1:14:44

Yeah. Hey, you might have to be like Jesus, start flipping some tables, and that's why we need more roof right now in the daytime. Yeah, exactly. I mean, we need people flipping tables.

SPEAKER_06 1:14:53

Exactly. And we're not saying that your church may not be good. You may be in a good Bible-believing fundamental church that's preaching the word.

SPEAKER_02 1:15:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 1:15:03

What we're saying is if your church isn't preaching the word, if your church isn't following the Bible, you need to find somewhere to go that does. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:15:11

If they sell a pride flag, you might need to find another church.

SPEAKER_06 1:15:14

Oh, you do for sure.

SPEAKER_03 1:15:15

No affirming, no affirming.

SPEAKER_02 1:15:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 1:15:18

If they're agreeing with this world instead of what the Bible says, I believe it wouldn't be matter how long my family has been going to this church. I'd be like, I got it. We're gone. We're out.

SPEAKER_07 1:15:30

Exactly. So Yeah, and that's one of the things I've said it on here before, too. I don't care how many people say something negative about if we say something like that or if they just done it false or whatever, fine. Mm-hmm. If it's not in that Bible, I'm not gonna say it.

SPEAKER_03 1:15:46

Be ye not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the reasoning of your mind.

SPEAKER_07 1:15:51

Right.

SPEAKER_03 1:15:52

Yeah, I've I've preached to four people.

SPEAKER_06 1:15:54

Four.

SPEAKER_05 1:15:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 1:15:57

I've preached to one person. Yeah. And I'm telling you, I had a shouting time because I was sitting there, I was broke down on the side of the road. It was when I was hauling logs for Dill Smith. He's passed away now, but I was on the way to New Bern to um the Warehouser plant. I lost a tire and I called Dill. I said, Deal? She had a tire pop on my trailer, and doesn't don't look real good. It's a May pop.

SPEAKER_00 1:16:21

Maypop.

SPEAKER_06 1:16:22

It ain't gonna, maybe it ain't gonna, well, no, it's it may pop, it's gonna, it's feasing to become a gonna pop. I can see the air in the tire from here. He said, Well, how far are you from the from the mill? And I told him, he said, Well, go ahead and try to make it. And if you can get the load off, you can drive back with one tire. All right. So I went on down the road a little further, took the next turn, and what I did, it popped the other tire. He said, Go on get unloaded because we can't fix it. Would you load it? I put a mark. I don't know if it's still there now or not, but years later you can still see the groove where my rim dug into pulling around. So I pull up and I pull off to the side to wait, and I was supposed to go to church, and um I was upset and I was just sitting there and I was, you know, misery loves company. I was in there, I was woeways me. I'm broke down. And then I thought about it. Where two or three are gathered, there I am also. Now walk with me. Walk with me. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost. I counted. I can count to four. I went to shouting. Boy, we had us a good time. I'm telling you, it's it's it's it's that simple. I turned from being upset and I couldn't do what I needed to do to to just like that. That's right.

SPEAKER_01 1:17:52

Because he's with me always. Yep.

SPEAKER_07 1:17:58

I was trying to we we were talking about the churches and stuff. What verse isn't Revelation where it's if you change the words. Change the words uh and that Bible, yeah. If you like taking it out of context, yeah, taking it out of context, yep. I can't remember what chapter what we have mentioned on this podcast. We've said it before.

SPEAKER_04 1:18:22

I'll read another scripture why they find them. I'll find it. Yeah. So, you know, this is as we're I guess kind of slowing down a little bit. I quoted the trees planted. You know, God establishes and then listen to this. And did y'all read first Peter 5 10? I don't think we read that one. If we did, read it again. But but may the God of all grace who's called us into his core called us into his internal glory in Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, you'll be perfectly established and strength settled in you. You know, you gotta realize that scripture says that you he has called us into his internal glory by Christ Jesus. You know, sometimes there is some things that you suffer through in life. I know we all have had things that we've suffered through, but then God establishes you, strengthens you, and gives you the ability to keep on. So, you know, that's what God does. He gives you that. Now he unto him that is able to do exceedingly above all we can ask or think according to the power that works in us. Notice that it says the power that works, the power that works in us, not the power that works around us, it's the power that works in you. It gives you that ability. So when I hear people say, Well, I I don't know about doing more, you do. It's giving you that ability to do more, that perfect work that works inside of us to be able to be that believer that he's called us to be. That ability to go and do and reach and teach other people, you know, for Jesus Christ. Everything you're doing is for his kingdom. You have to have this kind of mindset. We're building God's kingdom. We're building his kingdom here on this earth. We're expanding heaven, we're expanding God's kingdom and his heaven. Take off expanding God's kingdom and his heaven through what you have already been placed inside of you. Did you get that scripture?

SPEAKER_07 1:20:33

Yeah, it was all Revelations 22, 18 and 19. Yep. And I had it highlighted, I just didn't get that far in. For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book, if anyone adds to these, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book. And if anyone takes away from the words of this book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the book of life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. And I wanted to read that because we were talking about churches that are affirming and stuff, because they'll take these scriptures out of context. And that's man, I'm sorry. I don't like to preach hellfire and brimstone, but if you're taking this book and saying, Well, love is love. Yeah. Jesus did love everybody and commands it, God commands us to love our neighbors, but he does not command us to love your sin.

SPEAKER_04 1:21:32

Yeah. And it's something called can't accountability to them. That's right. You know, you're not, as you're saying, hellfire and brimstone, you're holding people accountability. Right. There's a difference in accountability and beating people down. You're saying, I'm lifting you, I'm holding you accountable for what you're doing.

SPEAKER_07 1:21:51

That's right. We had to be held accountable just like we hold our kids accountable for what they do wrong and just letting them know. You're not beating them up. I read in uh two or three podcasts ago in that daily devotion. I like to read it. He said, God will break boons to set you on the right path.

SPEAKER_01 1:22:09

And I truly believe that. I mean, just like if we were to punish our child for cussing us out or whatever. I mean I mean, God loves us enough that He's gonna He He will punish us to set us on the right path.

SPEAKER_06 1:22:37

Are you fool?

SPEAKER_01 1:22:40

So we're all called.

SPEAKER_06 1:22:45

Yeah. And we've referenced a flag and we've referenced something else, and like the love is love thing. And one of the verses that likes to be thrown around is I'm fearfully and wonderfully made. That's Psalms 139-14. And the word fearfully it doesn't mean afraid. Right. It means that we're made with reverence, all and great care. Yeah. God was meticulous making us.

SPEAKER_07 1:23:12

Yeah, I read that a couple of podcasts ago, and uh used the word fear. And in Hebrew that word fear means in awe of. Exactly. Not to be scared of, but to be in awe of.

SPEAKER_06 1:23:26

Exactly. And then wonderfully it's it's something extraordinary, it's marvelous, it's set apart. So God made us in reverence, and he made us extraordinary and marvelous. And he's perfect and makes no mistakes. And that's the truth. And he's not a man that he should lie. So you can't use the Bible to defend your sin.

SPEAKER_03 1:23:52

That's called perverting the word. Exactly. And that comes right off of what you just said.

SPEAKER_07 1:23:57

That goes right back to Revelation 22, verse 18 and 19. That's right.

SPEAKER_02 1:24:02

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_04 1:24:04

But uh a lot of people they want to use the word to make themselves okay for their sin. Right. And now you see that, you know, and you're like, no, no, no, no, no.

SPEAKER_06 1:24:15

That that's not what he meant.

SPEAKER_07 1:24:16

No. A lot of times when you see people post stuff like that, if you'll go get re go find that verse, either they've only put half of it out. Mm-hmm. They didn't put the whole verse out, or they should have put the verse before in the verse after.

SPEAKER_06 1:24:33

It's like all things work together for those who love the Lord. That's right. And they stop right there. The rest of the verse says, and are called according to his purpose. Wow. I didn't even have that in my in my list of verses.

SPEAKER_00 1:24:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 1:24:46

But all things work together for the good for those who love the Lord and are called according to his purpose. That's right. What a perfect verse to pop up randomly in my brain. And God don't make mistakes. No, no, not at all.

SPEAKER_07 1:24:59

Yeah. So if you were born one way, guess what? That's the way God intended it. Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 1:25:05

Exactly He knew every head on your head in the wound. Mm-hmm. Yep. All righty. Everybody's satisfied. Parts good.

SPEAKER_07 1:25:22

You better treat me. He looked about to fallout. What are y'all gonna have to drive home? Got a monster in the truck.

SPEAKER_03 1:25:31

I don't need one. You've been quiet on this one. That's the reason we were wondering. I know he was quiet. He's usually basically yeah, hey, y'all used a lot of my point.

SPEAKER_06 1:25:43

That's all them chicken wings. He was picking up on stuff and looking other stuff up and hitting high points between to to drive points on.

SPEAKER_07 1:25:51

I mean, it's like that sometimes though. I mean, there's there's gonna be times that we're gonna gather and we might have a topic and just like, well, I might have three words to say and y'all might take over, and vice versa. I mean, it's gonna be like that every time. So I mean that's because we're doing this as we see it. Yeah. So it's kind of like a Bible study too. It really is a Bible study.

SPEAKER_06 1:26:13

And I think I think once we get where we can or think about it, if people and it and this mainly to go out with the podcast, like if they wanted to try to have a live we could try and like a test a a live.

SPEAKER_07 1:26:28

Yeah, we're gonna see we're we're gonna get into the live stuff sometime. 'Cause we can go live on our YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, I believe it is where I got it set up now. But you know, it's just w we had a test of orders, so to speak. Yeah. See if we can get anybody watching. 'Cause I would love to do it for the interaction part of it. Yeah. That'd be a good time right then, right now, you can ask us anything you want. Mm-hmm. And we can look it up. And there's four of us in here. Yeah, well I mean we can just say tell you how we feel about it and what the Bible says about it.

SPEAKER_06 1:27:00

Well the thing about it is we sit down to to do these podcasts. And it's like I I said the other day, I was I was working on a sermon and the producer needs to learn how to work. I heard I heard three different preachers preach the same sermon I was working on. Now if that don't tell you something, uh we're working off the same sheet of music.

SPEAKER_00 1:27:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 1:27:21

You know, he said, take my yoke upon you. It's light and it's easy. You know, if we're both in the yoke, we both pulling the same way, job's a lot easier. And when we sit down here for the podcast, you know, one I watch some of y'all's and it's like you go home and you study to get ready for these things, and then when you come back, like I I didn't know the length of it and uh like until I was in here. You know, it's like I have like you're going over your verses and like, oh, it's one of mine, there's one of mine, there's one of mine, there's like my God, my, my, my. Oh, I got one that he got. Yeah. But most of them are like we're we're we're plowing the same field, the same direction.

SPEAKER_03 1:28:04

That's right.

SPEAKER_07 1:28:05

I mean, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:28:06

I don't worry about if John Paul has them. Yeah. I just cover it. Yeah. I've got the whole Bible, man. Yeah. 30 to 40 scriptures.

SPEAKER_07 1:28:15

I mean, we should do it too. I mean, if I got a verse on there and you somebody says it, I mean, fine. There's plenty more. There's a whole book right here. Exactly.

SPEAKER_05 1:28:24

Exactly. Well, I like to back everything up with the word. That's uh in a Bible study, you know, even as we're talking as men, I like to I if I'm gonna tell you it, I'm gonna have it in this Bible, I can prove my point. Yeah, I'm not gonna just tell you something.

SPEAKER_07 1:28:36

That's right. Yeah. I mean, that's why I was ought to give my testimony. I had a Bible verse to go with it. Every time I said something on Facebook about my testimony, I had a Bible verse to go with it.

SPEAKER_06 1:28:45

And this ain't bad stuff for the podcast right now either. No.

SPEAKER_07 1:28:48

I mean, it's yeah, this is that's why I'm still recording.

SPEAKER_06 1:28:51

Yeah. Oh, I thought you cut it off. Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_03 1:28:57

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might. Right, that's right. That's why we talked earlier.

SPEAKER_07 1:29:02

Give it a hundred percent. Do it with all your might. That's right. Yeah. Give it all you got. I earned twenty-nine minutes.

SPEAKER_06 1:29:11

You only go for one more minute. You ever had you ever had your name called in the middle of the night and you wake up and you're like, Did you call me? Who was that? Yeah. Who was that?

SPEAKER_01 1:29:22

And then you stop and you listen, you don't hear anything? Time to pray. Yeah, and I wake up every night between twelve and four a.m.

SPEAKER_07 1:29:35

Somewhere in there, I'll wake up every night. And I'm up for an hour to two hours. And that's what I do. Even though it's before I wanted to get up, but he woke me up. Exactly. And then I pray and thank him for everything he'd done for me. Mm-hmm. And allowed me to later to pray. And thank him to pray. And then I go on back to sleep now. I'll get up about 5 30 or 6.

SPEAKER_06 1:30:03

Yeah. I might as well.

SPEAKER_07 1:30:06

And I thank him again. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_06 1:30:08

Yeah. I don't set a clock. I mean it's I I I firmly believe that that we're called to pray. And you know, when you're doing intercess intercessory prayer, you may not you may not know who you're praying for. God uses us to bless people, but the blessings we are for other people in turn blesses us. Right. So when you wake up at four o'clock in the morning and your spirit's uneasy and you don't know why it's uneasy, your thought for always goes to where my kids work like my wife worked night shift, so where is my wife okay at work or the kids okay, or all the kids in bed? Like I've got up and walked around the house to make sure the kids are on you know when they were little. And if all that's good and my spirit's still uneasy, it's not within me, it's without. But it needs attention from the throne room. Yeah. And he's using me or you or you to handle that situation.

SPEAKER_04 1:31:04

Yeah, I I can't tell you how many times I've been woken up in the middle of the night and pray for somebody. And God'll tell me their name. I mean, I've had it so clearly a name, a face come to my mind, you know, and I've started praying for that person, and I told Christian, you know, she's like, What are you doing up? I'm like, God laid it on my heart to pray for so-and-so. I don't know what's going on. And then I called them the next day and they were telling me what they went through that night. They told me, you know, I got pulled over. I was dealing with the law at this time, I was dealing with some stuff. Now that was this is just one story. I'm not gonna give you no dame's details, but they got pulled over, they were dealing with some things, and I didn't know, but God had me up. I'm not 1:30 in the middle of the night. Oh, me up, and I'm a sleeper. And he was like, pray for this person. I was like, all right, I got up and started praying, and I told Christian, I said, You remember you asked me what I was doing up praying? I said, I told her the whole story, the background of it. That there's just times like that, that you know you'll have people that you're praying for, and God will give you that answer. You know, it's don't ever count it off when you're just sitting there and sleep at night or wonder what's going on, no? And I've even found out the more you get into this, you start asking God, because I I'm a questioner. I say, God, you got me up. Who am I supposed to be praying for? I ask him flat out, Lord, who is it? I know I'm up for a reason. Who is it? Because I don't I want to know. Tell me, and then I'll go ahead and start praying for him. Yeah. And I because then he all the time he gives me answers, but he has got where a lot more. He'll show me a face, he'll show me a name, and I start praying for that person, and it'll be in the church or something like that. And then the next day I just call them up and say, Hey, you're on my mind. Yeah, everything all right. Everything good? I've been praying for you. Yeah. So, um, and even my young people, you know, throughout the day, God'll give me their names and you need to pray for this.

SPEAKER_07 1:33:03

Yeah, I I truly believe when you have that gut feeling or somebody just pops in your mind that you ain't spoken to in a while, God put that there. Yeah. And you should contact them and pray for 'em. Yeah. Like I said during my t on my testimony, buyer's remorse. That's God telling you I told you not to buy it to start with. Yeah. And you knew that, 'cause I mean I I was like that. I'd go married I'd to go buy something without even saying anything and get home and go, man, why'd I buy that? I mean, the Lord told me not to buy it to start with, but I did it anyway because I thought I knew better. I mean, those gut instincts, that's the Lord telling you something. And you need to start listening to it. Like you said, the small voice that God says.

SPEAKER_04 1:33:53

Trying to talk to you, but you want self to be over that voice of God. And that's the reason, you know, it's it's so important to stay in tune to God's word as He's telling in it. Right. And you listen, you know, I I say all the time, I train dogs, I don't want you to have to put the collar on me to pull me and snatch me around, God. When you say heal, I want to fall in line. You say sit, God, I'm sitting, I'm in line. That's right. You don't have to get no harder, you don't have to do anything. I'll follow. I'll listen. I will obey. When you tell me I want to be yielding to your presence to listen to everything you have to say because I want to be in tune to that voice.

SPEAKER_06 1:34:41

Amen. I want to be the softness that we try to build.

SPEAKER_04 1:34:45

I want to listen to you. I I want to hear from you. My desire is to hear from you. And that's goes right along with what we're talking about. And I have a call for do more. It's the hearing him.

SPEAKER_00 1:34:56

Call to do more.

SPEAKER_04 1:34:58

Hearing God. How are you going to do more if you're not willing to hear that voice of him to tell you what you need to be called if you can't hear? Yeah, it's hard to be caught if you can't hear because you're too busy being big headed. I don't want to get nicked.

SPEAKER_06 1:35:11

I don't want that if it's a nick, at least not the constant. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 1:35:16

I want to listen.

SPEAKER_07 1:35:18

And that's uh mass callers I got from y'all. I mean, everyone's got a boost button on. If you got that thing set on 25 and hit that button, it multiplies it by two.

SPEAKER_06 1:35:28

Said sweet Jesus. You have to vibrate me, vibrate me. Leave your finger off that boost button. Please don't hit that boost button. I'm good. I'm listening. Yeah, I got you. I got listening. I got you. I don't need to hit that one.

SPEAKER_07 1:35:45

Let me go read these instructions. Oh, no wonder. Sorry, Cash.

SPEAKER_04 1:35:53

So that's that's about listening to the voice of God, hearing from Him. Like we said, it's hard to be called to do more if you're never listening to the voice that He's speaking to.

SPEAKER_07 1:36:04

Listen, that's for sure.

SPEAKER_04 1:36:05

Yeah. Pay attention. Okay. God will speak to you. And like that voice. But there's a lot of times you pick up that Bible and God will speak to me through that Bible. I'll read a scripture and I'm like, man.

SPEAKER_07 1:36:21

You know, it amazes me. It amazes me speaking about that. I've done the same thing. And even in that daily devotional I read, I'm like, man, does has this guy been watching me my whole life? Yeah. I can open up a page and read it, because he always gives a little saying at the top, but it's always a Bible verse in scripture to go read afterwards. Sometimes he'll put a whole chapter on there. I'm like, man, that's me to a T.

SPEAKER_02 1:36:46

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_06 1:36:47

Daddy always said, and it was one of the reasons I just want the reasons I started saying that the Bible's a living book. But, you know, he would say, the Bible's like a current event. It's like your newspaper.

SPEAKER_00 1:37:00

Open it up and read it. That's right.

SPEAKER_06 1:37:02

Yep. It'll start speaking to you.

SPEAKER_04 1:37:06

You know, I'd be praying about things and needing an answer, and then I'll be studying the next thing I know. There's my answer. There it is, right? There it is, Roger. There's my answer. We were talking about that on the Kubota earlier today, talking about a scripture that the Lord gave me a pile back, and it was like I was so upset, and then God gave me a scripture and I was like, There it is. There it is. All right. There's your signs.

SPEAKER_06 1:37:28

Healing to your soul. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 1:37:30

It'll minister to you, and you're like, I want an answer. And a lot of times that answer is if you just start reading, before long, you'll find the answer you need in that Bible that you're you're believing for.

SPEAKER_07 1:37:42

That's why I say there. If if you got any issues going on in your life, all you got to do is get in that Bible. Yeah. It'll tell you exactly what you need to do. Yeah. Financial, mental, health, everything.

SPEAKER_05 1:37:54

Yeah. Yeah. It's got a lot of good stuff in there. That's right. I like it.

SPEAKER_07 1:37:58

You have to take dominion.

SPEAKER_05 1:37:59

Yeah. Yes, take dominion. I read I don't I've watched that thing so many times this last week, man. That was a good podcast.

SPEAKER_07 1:38:06

I told you this was gonna be a good one. We had Iron 38 Minutes. I told you today I'm gonna really enjoy the second one. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 1:38:13

Well, we talk about this all the time when we're on the phone. Because we are.

SPEAKER_07 1:38:16

Every single one of us is called to do more.

SPEAKER_04 1:38:19

We get on the phone and many talk about it like, why is these people not getting them fired and doing more? And then because me and you are like, we're ready to go, man. I'm ready to take the world. And I'm like, why is the rest of the people that are just sitting back?

SPEAKER_07 1:38:34

You know, come on, let's go. He saved my life in that motorcycle raid, and I realized right then that he said he left me here for a reason. Yeah. And I and I had that, I could have called this podcast called to do more. Yeah. Because I felt like I was called to get out there and tell my testimony and start inviting my friends on that I knew to give theirs, and now it's turned into a a Bible study.

SPEAKER_04 1:38:58

Pretty much that's what I was realizing today.

SPEAKER_07 1:39:00

I mean, we still want people to come on if you if you're willing to come on and give your testimony. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:39:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 1:39:08

I mean, just because there's four people sitting here don't mean we can't shift some things around and get somebody else in here. Absolutely. And and Ray said it plenty of times. We'll come towards you. Yeah, we'll come to you. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 1:39:19

To to be able to share your testimony.

SPEAKER_07 1:39:22

I don't have anything in this building that's not that's bolted down that I can't put in the back of my truck, carry it somewhere, and say it up. And if you need prayer, that's right.

SPEAKER_06 1:39:30

If you want us to pray for you.

SPEAKER_07 1:39:31

Yeah, we'll take prayer requests.

SPEAKER_06 1:39:33

We'll take prayer requests. Uh the power of prayer is real and it's amazing. And we'd be and we'd be glad to pray for you. We'd be glad to pray with you. With you.

SPEAKER_07 1:39:41

Yep. That's right. If you do have a prayer request or want to ask us anything, you can email us at the testament of faith at gmail.com. I mean, if you you know, if you want to keep it private, I can understand that. A lot of people don't want to get on Facebook and say, hey, you know, I got this going on, but if you do, that's fine too, we'll still pray for you and answer you back. Mm-hmm. So guys, with that being said, we're gonna close this one. Every at then every one I like to read a Bible verse, and then John Paul closes out. But before I read that Bible verse, do think about this and pray on it. Get in that scripture. We are called to do more. We're not just called to go to church on Wednesdays and Sundays and call ourselves Christians. It is our job to get out there and spread that word. I mean, the the pastors cannot do it by themselves. It takes everybody. Everybody. So that being said, I'm gonna read 2 Timothy chapter 1, verses 6 and 7. Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you, for God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. So please take that sound mind and spread the word of the Lord and let uh let let somebody else know how much Jesus loves them. That being said, John Paul, how about closing us out in a word of prayer?

SPEAKER_04 1:41:10

Father God, we thank you today that we have answered your calling to do more. I thank you that everybody listening to this is answering the calling to do more. This word has stirred up on their hearts and on the inside of them, and they're gonna answer your call to do more for the kingdom, and we're gonna build your kingdom for your glory. And Lord, we thank you for it in Jesus' mighty name. Amen.

SPEAKER_07 1:41:35

Amen. Amen. Amen. God bless y'all. Y'all have a good week. Remember, Jesus loves you, and so do we.