028: A Journey Through Faith, Politics, and Personal Expression in Today's World. With Lawrence Williams

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
At some point I wasn't even recording, I just
started recording.
There you go.
Glad that I figured it out, butat some point in that show
Stephen Crowder voiced the brainReally, yes, Isn't that crazy.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
It is crazy.
What's crazy is that I evenknow who Stephen Crowder is.

Speaker 1 (00:17):
I don't think it's that crazy.

Speaker 2 (00:18):
That should surprise you, isn't he like the ultra
conservative?

Speaker 1 (00:26):
Yeah, but that's where I think you would know who
he is.

Speaker 2 (00:28):
I don't, I don't exist in that I know.

Speaker 1 (00:32):
But he's one of the most annoying ones I, I have her
.

Speaker 2 (00:36):
I well, now that you say that I found out about him
because there were someprominent conservatives who were
talking about him in a very badway, yeah, because like there's
something that happened withhis wife.
I didn't know what happened,but they were not calling him.
They were calling himeverything but a child of God.
So I figured it had to besomething he said or did.

Speaker 1 (00:58):
I don't know the whole story, but on the video
they're in a fight and he's justlike saying you need to respect
me.
But it's like the second youask someone or tell someone they
need to respect you, they haveevery right to not respect you
period because there's somethingyou don't have to ask for.
Right, it's just something thatpeople give because you uh not
require it.
What's the word?
You maybe?

(01:19):
Deserve it yeah, deserve it orlet's start there.

Speaker 2 (01:22):
if you do things that are respectable, yes, exactly
then you will easily getrespected, or at least you
should get respected, by yourspouse.
So I would take it if yourspouse is already disrespecting
you, if it's gotten to thatpoint.
But what do I know?
I'm just newly married, that'sright, you're married, newly

(01:46):
married.

Speaker 1 (01:47):
Four weeks to lawrence, four weeks, two days
or something like that but Ialso think part of it was he was
talking about the whole likesubmission thing and oh which I
have my opinions on why I'vesubmitted to husbands.
It's not something that youforce them to do.
I think it's something thatwomen naturally do when there's

(02:09):
a man worthy of submission.

Speaker 2 (02:11):
Let's talk about it.
I want to park right herebecause I think this is great.
Oh, no, no, I don't want to becontroversial.
I love this part.
I love this part let's talkabout it because I feel like
what is controversial has beenmen going into marriage or
looking for a spouse with thatin mind.
Women should submit and theyneed to do what I want them to

(02:35):
do when, in all actuality, it'snot the case.

Speaker 1 (02:39):
I don't think that's what submission means, though.
No, that's what submissionmeans, though.
No, I think it's like she maylook to him as the leader, but
that's not going to happenunless he is worthy of that
position.

Speaker 2 (02:52):
Right.

Speaker 1 (02:52):
Where he's mentally, spiritually, physically strong
and fit.

Speaker 2 (03:00):
Submission by definition, even if we look at
just the example that Jesusshowed of what submission is.
Submission is willful.

Speaker 1 (03:09):
Right, like we submit to Christ.
We're not forced to do it.
No.

Speaker 2 (03:13):
Ain't nobody forcing you to do anything.
Submission is willful.
So the idea that there's a manyou can't force someone to
submit, it's either they chooseto do that or that's not
submission.
Correct, that's just coercion,yes.
So I think, yeah, if he's onthe bin that his wife won't

(03:37):
submit, well, I don't think theproblem is her.

Speaker 1 (03:42):
He's probably not portraying good.
And good and in that video itwas not very good emotions
coming out, it was he wasn'tlike emotionally stable.
It didn't seem like in thatparticular video some people say
it's taken out of context.
I don't know if it is I'm.
What I'm saying is what I saw.

(04:03):
It's like that's not somebodywho's acting in an emotionally
stable way.

Speaker 2 (04:08):
So maybe he needs the Lord and therapy.

Speaker 1 (04:12):
Well, he does Cause a lot of Christians like him, but
he swears and oh yes, he looksunkempt.

Speaker 2 (04:20):
There is a proliferation of custom
preachers online.
Yes, there is.
Don't look it up on YouTube,though, because you know
algorithms will kick in and thensend you down a wormhole, like
I've already been.
But I mean, if that's what youwant to do, go ahead, but I'm
telling you what's going tohappen afterwards.
And there are some cussingpreachers.

(04:42):
I mean they saying everything,and I ain't talking about just
like in a house and doing apodcast or something.
I'm talking about.
These are preachers at thesacred desk, like in the pulpit,
who are cussing and preachingat the same time, and people are
just hallelujah, that's right,pastor.

Speaker 1 (05:07):
They're into it, you mean.

Speaker 2 (05:08):
They're very into it.

Speaker 1 (05:10):
I wonder, why that is .

Speaker 2 (05:12):
Some people just like to hear.
Other people keep it real.

Speaker 1 (05:17):
Yeah, but I've heard that too.
Pastors are like oh, I likethis particular person because
he swears sometimes.
So it just lets me know he'sreal and it's just like I feel
like that shouldn't makesomebody real.

Speaker 2 (05:31):
No, no, no, no.
It shouldn't make somebody realat all.
There's decorum.
There are things that you do incertain places that you
wouldn't do in other places.
Not that I'm saying thatChristians should be cold
switching everywhere that theygo, but I think there's a way
that you you walk into a sacredspace yeah that we just and I

(05:55):
think we talked about thatsometime before when we hung out
that nothing is sacred anymore.
Nothing is sacred anymore.
And so there's these spacesthat we once had, that we
considered sacred.
They're not being taken asseriously anymore and it's
bringing just a bad light to thefaith.
I feel like it's casting Jesusin a bad light.

(06:17):
It's just not good.

Speaker 1 (06:23):
Yeah, what do you think about?
Somebody online said we dressbetter for our wedding day than
we do when entering the house ofthe Lord, because that's true.
Right, I'm saying I feel likethat's not a good thing.

Speaker 2 (06:36):
That is not a good thing, but it's the absolute
truth.
And at some churches now Iain't going to call no names,
nah, but don't worry for thefolks looking.
It ain't no church that I havebeen to, but there are some
churches I know, some worshipleaders, because you only go to
perfect churches, right?

Speaker 1 (06:53):
That's true.

Speaker 2 (06:54):
Yeah, okay, that's true, it's definitely not true.
But I can say in my personalexperience, I've never been
asked, you know, when leadingworship, I've never been asked,
you know, when leading worship,I've never been asked to dress
or not dress a certain kind ofway.
Um.
So you know, everywhere thatI've been, they've been cool

(07:15):
with jeans.
They've been cool.
My my typical swag is is thatblazer with jeans?
I like that blazer jeans.
Gym shoes, um, or tennis shoes,as some of y'all like to call
it, um, but no, they're, they're.
I know worship leaders who areat some mega churches.
Right, they do some big thingsand they're dressed cold as
jeans.
It's just like no, you, youcan't even come up in here with

(07:36):
your three-piece suit on.
You can't even have your blazeron because it doesn't fit the
audience, it doesn't fit wherethe majority of our congregation
is is coming from, and I'm like, since when did we start trying
to fit the culture instead oftrying to impact the culture?

Speaker 1 (07:57):
Yeah, for real.

Speaker 2 (07:58):
It's true.

Speaker 1 (07:58):
Like.
We're trying to like win theworld almost Exactly, or not.
I mean, you want to win theworld.
We're trying to be more likethe world to win that To win
them, which I don't understand.

Speaker 2 (08:07):
That makes absolutely no sense.
It's just like, you know, ifI'm blue and you red, it's like
I'm just going to pour myselfinto you in order to make you
blue.
Well, I get more red.
So we're not helping each other.
We're not helping each other.
If I become broke, so I canexperience and help you, stop
being broke, we go be, we goboth be broke, right?

(08:30):
So so, uh, yeah, I, I think,instead of trying to make an
impact where you know we'retrying to fit in, and it's so
true and it's sad, it's reallysad Well, I, it's so true and
it's sad, it's really sad.

Speaker 1 (08:43):
Well, I've been thinking about getting a
three-piece suit for church.

Speaker 2 (08:46):
Go ahead, go get one.

Speaker 1 (08:47):
Well, I want a tweed like the windowpane tweed.
No, I have to stop yousomewhere.
No, you don't have to stop me.

Speaker 2 (08:53):
I must stop you.
There has to be a line drawn.
This is probably why some ofthem I take it back Half the
things I said.
This is probably why some ofthem churches say you can't come
in with your three-piece suit,because some people just take it
too far.

Speaker 1 (09:05):
You think a tweed suit is too far.

Speaker 2 (09:12):
I feel like if you came in in a three-piece suit
and it was bedazzled and you gotrhinestones all over it.

Speaker 1 (09:14):
Okay, it's not.
It's not.
That's not what tweed means.

Speaker 2 (09:18):
I feel like this is a slippery slope.

Speaker 1 (09:20):
You allow the tweed and the next thing you know,
people are going to be dressedin gold and diamonds, I suppose,
but they're so nice I feel likethe vest on a tweed suit would

(09:42):
look really nice.

Speaker 2 (09:43):
That's what I'm mostly excited about, okay, but
I support you If that's how youwant to get connected with the
Lord and his people at church,as long as you're going.

Speaker 1 (09:51):
I support you Thank you.

Speaker 2 (09:53):
You're welcome.
You're very welcome.
All I can do is pray.

Speaker 1 (09:58):
Well then, I guess I'll go with a Nord's basic suit
then.

Speaker 2 (10:05):
And now you don't have to be basic.

Speaker 1 (10:06):
I just don't like the gray or black.
I wouldn't do that, I wouldn'tdo blue.

Speaker 2 (10:10):
No, it's given funeral if you do that.
But no, you don't have to dothat, you class it up.
Come in nice, little something,something Sure.
They got a whole lot ofdifferent colors down at the
men's warehouse.
Talk to them about it, or yourlocal Tocito dealer, whoever
that is.

Speaker 1 (10:31):
It's probably men's warehouse or that one that you
told me about.

Speaker 2 (10:34):
I forget their name, and I shouldn't forget their
name, because they were reallygood.

Speaker 1 (10:38):
Yeah, they're really good.

Speaker 2 (10:39):
They had some very great options and I'm still
thinking about going in thereand buy that blazer that I wore
for the wedding reception.
The bedazzled it was bedazzled.

Speaker 1 (10:52):
You see what I'm saying, but see I had the I
wouldn't really think anythingof it if you came into church
with that oh no, not at all.

Speaker 2 (10:58):
That's what I was gonna do.
I was gonna wear that blazerfor church, but if I came in
with the matching pants too much, it's the spirit of too much,
and I cast it out whatever yeah,it would be the spirit of too
much.
I can't deal with it.
You can have the blazer.
You saw me.
I had the blazer, but my pantswere black maybe I'll do that

(11:19):
then yeah, see, that isacceptable, because then you're
not too much.
especially if I'm on stage, ifI'm on the platform, to have
both that tricked out blazer andthe matching pants.
It's like no, you can't comeback no more, you can't leave
worship for us no more, becauseyou too much.

Speaker 1 (11:38):
Well, that sounds like a legalistic rule that
you've implemented.
I have.

Speaker 2 (11:42):
Yes, it's all me.
Lawrence elation's 319.

Speaker 1 (11:46):
Read it yeah, we were due for an awkward silence.
We needed that's true.

Speaker 2 (11:56):
We didn't need an awkward silence.
We don't have those enough no,um.

Speaker 1 (12:01):
So now that we're past the the suit debate, okay,
let's move on to a little bit ofpolitics and how Before we get
there.

Speaker 2 (12:13):
Yes, I must.
I must say this because theseasons are changing.
By the way, welcome to fall.
It's a little warmer here inMichigan, so temperatures are
working with us right now forthe fall temps.
But I must say this, now thatwe are in the midst of a
transition when we are in themidst of a seasonal transition,
people like to do things a lotsooner, and that's just not
God's timing.

(12:33):
So what I'm saying is if youpicked up a pumpkin, you need to
take it back.
No, pumpkins can be boughtuntil October 1st.
If you want to decorate yourhouse, nothing for Thanksgiving
can be bought until October 1st.
If you want to decorate yourhouse, nothing for Thanksgiving
can be bought until November 1st, and nothing for Christmas can
be said or bought or thought ofuntil December 1st.

Speaker 1 (12:55):
Well, you better not listen to Star.

Speaker 2 (12:57):
Who is that?

Speaker 1 (12:58):
Star 1057.
They start Christmas music theday after Halloween, and that is
unacceptable.

Speaker 2 (13:03):
So that's why I'm trying to tell y'all and warn
the people that God is notpleased, Because this is too
much Y'all doing too much.
You're blending the holidaystogether I don't know whether
Thanksgiving, the Halloween orChristmas, but y'all doing it
all together.
I just don't know what's goingon.

Speaker 1 (13:20):
Well, here's a question Is God even happy about
Halloween?
To begin with, probably not.

Speaker 2 (13:25):
And he would be equally disrespected by this
foolishness y'all doing.
That's all I'm saying youcannot have.
Listen.
They had the Easter candy.
I'm sorry.
Yes, they had the Easter candyout and the Valentine's Day
candy January 1st.

Speaker 1 (13:42):
Why Wouldn't it go bad?
That's what I said.
I said how much junk is weputting in?

Speaker 2 (13:48):
our food, that it can last until March.
I just don't understand.
But they had it out January 1st.
I said Christmas ain't evendone yet.
I said I didn't even take downmy tree.
I take down my tree January 2nd.

Speaker 1 (14:01):
I didn't even get a chance to take my lights off,
yet I take my tree January 2nd Ididn't even get a chance to
take my lights off yet.
I take my tree down theChristmas Eve of the next year,
and then I put my new one up.

Speaker 2 (14:09):
You shouldn't do that .
K, I'm just kidding, I'm aboutto say because there are some
people who do do that and God isnot pleased.

Speaker 1 (14:16):
Yes, who even knows if he's pleased with the
Christmas tree to begin with,he's probably not Because of all
the.
It's like some.
What is it Like?
The celebration of the tree?
There's something.
I'm sure there's some spiritualbackground with it.

Speaker 2 (14:34):
Yeah, the pagan holiday, the fact that Jesus
wasn't born on December 25th,but we can't talk about that,
otherwise we're going to getcanceled.

Speaker 1 (14:42):
Canceled.

Speaker 2 (14:43):
Yeah, canceled.
They still cancel a lot ofpeople Because we know the
history of Christmas.
Yes, and Christmas is amulti-billion dollar holiday.
I might want to sell somethingthis year on Christmas, so I
can't be out here telling peoplethat Jesus wasn't born on
December 25th and there's nobiblical evidence to support
that.

Speaker 1 (15:02):
People already know that.
I think it's more the the factthat it's based off a pagan
holiday, not jesus being born,but christmas.
Right with the christmas treesand right the lights, yes, but
the same with jack-o'-lanternsthose jack-o'-lanterns are meant

(15:22):
to keep evil spirits away.

Speaker 2 (15:24):
Not the evil spirits.
We don't want them.

Speaker 1 (15:28):
Which sounds good on paper, but as soon as we put our
trust in anybody other thanJesus, we're in trouble.

Speaker 2 (15:35):
You're in trouble.
But yeah, don't tell too manypeople that, Otherwise we don't
want to get canceled.
We don't want no mysteriousheart attacks or insurance
lapses.

Speaker 1 (15:46):
Yeah, for me for sure , I don't want one.
You're right, I don't want amysterious heart attack.

Speaker 2 (15:50):
So, as far as I'm concerned, christmas is a good
holiday.
We ought to celebrate it.
And there you go.

Speaker 1 (15:56):
But I do like the.
I hate using the word vibe, butit's the only word I can think
of.
I like the vibe of Halloween.

Speaker 2 (16:04):
Why do you hate using the word vibe?
But it's the only word I canthink of, Like the vibe of
Hollywood.
Why you hate using the wordvibe?
Let's talk about it.
This is a therapy session.

Speaker 1 (16:09):
Because it's cringy Vibe, yeah like, oh, that's such
a vibe.

Speaker 2 (16:13):
When you say vibe, then that's cringy.
You're supposed to leave someof them letters off.
Vibe, that's better.
See you, vibe, that's better.
So you're getting betteralready.
I told you, you learn reallygood you learn really good.

Speaker 1 (16:33):
You're getting better already.
Yeah, yeah, I don't know, Idon't know what the thing is.

Speaker 2 (16:34):
I like the word vibe anyway.

Speaker 1 (16:35):
Okay, yes, go ahead, I'm sorry, I like the vibe of
halloween, not like it'snecessarily scary, but just like
the fall and the apple orchards.

Speaker 2 (16:44):
I do love me a good apple orchard.

Speaker 1 (16:46):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (16:47):
And the corn maze.

Speaker 1 (16:49):
Corn maze.
Ethan and I actually worked ata corn maze last year, did you?

Speaker 2 (16:54):
Yeah, did y'all ever get lost in the maze, or did
y'all have a map?
Cause y'all be cheating.
We worked at it, that's whatI'm saying.
And the workers be always becheating.

Speaker 1 (17:04):
Yeah, we worked at it , that's what I'm saying and the
workers always be cheating.
Yeah, we probably cheated,exactly.
Well, we were just likepositioned because it was one of
those scary ones.
You weren't allowed to dress asanything too scary because it
was still like family oriented.

Speaker 2 (17:15):
Okay, which I don't understand how that works.

Speaker 1 (17:18):
How, what works.

Speaker 2 (17:20):
If it's scary, it's scary.

Speaker 1 (17:28):
And if I'm bringing my family to something that's
supposed to be horrific or scaryor Halloween thing, well,
there's not.
Like if you've ever been to thehaunt which I don't really go
to the haunted houses anymore-I've never been to a haunted
house.
Really.

Speaker 2 (17:36):
Mm-mm.

Speaker 1 (17:37):
I went once to the haunt and then once to the
forest of fear.
But when you go to those it'slike they're just like
depictions of horrific stuff Isee.
But in this corn maze it's likeyou're just dressed up as
something and then you like jumpout.

Speaker 2 (17:53):
Yeah, you're just scaring them, but it's not.
They don't see images andthings.
Right, okay, so it's not like atrue crime mystery up in there,
correct?
Okay, yep, I get it now.
Yeah, I don't think I could.
I'll do well in the hauntedhouse One, because when I'm
scared I'm fighting.
So I mean, there's just no.

(18:14):
Hey, I believe in Jesus and Ialso believe in laying hands,
and that's exactly what I'll bedoing in the haunted house I'm
just fighting.

Speaker 1 (18:21):
What about turning the other cheek?

Speaker 2 (18:23):
I only got two, so you be doing in a hundred hours
I'm just fighting, what aboutturn the other cheek?
I only got two, so you got twochances.
Only got two, you got twochances, so I'm gonna let you
have that one, but the next one,hey, it's over gotcha.
I'm sure that's what thetheologians discovered I'm sure
it is yes, okay, but politics,politics, yes, so how should

(18:54):
we're kind of this, like lastyear with the guys?

Speaker 1 (18:56):
but this is more like in depth, like how should
christians go about politics?
Is it our, is it our, ourChristian duty to vote?
What is it?
What are we supposed to do?

Speaker 2 (19:09):
I'm going to get in a whole lot of trouble with
evangelicals here, but I do notthink there is a Christian duty
to vote.
I know, I don't think there's aChristian duty to vote.
There is a civic duty.
One could obviously argue, butI don't think even for and I'm

(19:32):
not picking on nobody, no side.
I'm just saying if we argue forcivic duty, then we have to put
weight on the argument that,let's say, election Day should
be a holiday or that you shouldhave the right to vote, and

(19:54):
there are some people who woulddisagree that not everyone
should have the right to voteand that Election Day should be
a holiday.
So that's, that's my littlesoapbox moment there, but I do
not believe that there is aChristian duty to vote.
I do believe, however, thatit's okay and you should most

(20:19):
certainly hold your Christianvalues and your beliefs in mind
when you cast your vote.
If you choose to cast the vote,but if you choose to not vote,
it's fine with me.
Um, I don't.
I don't think god will besending you to hell for not
voting in the election and Idon't think he'll be sending you

(20:42):
to heaven, because you did votein the election.

Speaker 1 (20:47):
Right, but how do we this is a good one how do we
reconcile who we vote for as aChristian?
Because I'm somebody whodoesn't believe that either
party is Christian and,technically, if you vote for
either one of them, you'revoting for some type of sin to
be implemented into our society.

Speaker 2 (21:08):
Well, that's the whole thing.
That's why I say with yourfaith, biblically, you can't
reconcile it.
All of us can find biblicalthings for each political party,
biblical things for eachpolitical party and all of us

(21:30):
confine anti-biblical things foreach political party, yeah, um.
So if you know they're going tobe, um, there are plenty of
preachers who are holding theelected office, for instance,
that are democrats, right?
Senator rafael work not, who isa preacher who is a reverend,
by the way.
I heard him preach.
That boy can preach is it good?

Speaker 1 (21:50):
oh man, is it sound?

Speaker 2 (21:53):
he good, he good.
Now he's a black preacher.
Okay, he's a black preacher.
He, he's actually pretty and Ihad never heard him give a
sermon.
But I heard him him give asermon.
He was talking about walking onwater.
And I heard him.
It had nothing to do withpolitics, he was just giving a
sermon.
He was teaching the Bible.
It was a good sermon, that'sall I'm saying.
He could preach.

(22:15):
But, yeah, so he's a Democrat,right, and there would be plenty
of evangelicals or conservativeChristians who we usually
identify as evangelicals whowould say well, that's a sin.
Why is he a Democrat and also apreacher?
Right, he would never go to hischurch.
And then, right on the flipside, there are some
conservatives who are alsopastors.

(22:37):
You know former pastors whowork in the ministry and things
of that sort.
So you've got people who areactive in government who hold
the same faith, at least intheory.
They believe in Jesus Christ,they preach Jesus Christ on
Sunday, and then they go totheir respective legislative

(22:58):
offices and vote the way thatthey vote, right.
So how do you reconcile thatyou can't, because you can't
serve they vote Right.
So how do you reconcile thatyou can't?
Because you can't serve twomasters Right.
So either one of them has to beright and the other wrong, or
this is a no brainer.
This is nothing to talk about.
So yeah, in that respect andI'll say over and over again I

(23:20):
feel like I'm repeating myselfbecause I am you can't reconcile
it with your faith.

Speaker 1 (23:24):
You can't reconcile it with your faith.

Speaker 2 (23:25):
You can reconcile it with your civic duty.
You can reconcile it with yourpocketbook.
You can vote based on aparticular issue that you like.
But you know to a lot ofevangelicals, their one issue is
abortion.

Speaker 1 (23:40):
Yep.

Speaker 2 (23:42):
And a lot of liberal political activists that want to
issue health care.
How do you reconcile that right?
You know, I, I can't.
I can't say that, um, we shouldnot be allowing refugees into
the country wait, what say thatagain?

(24:03):
I can't say that we should notbe allowing refugees into the
country.

Speaker 1 (24:09):
Right.

Speaker 2 (24:09):
Because that's not what my Bible tells me to do.
Jesus was a refugee, so how canI be against refugees coming
into the country?
At the same time, I can't sayyou should be able to go out and
kill somebody and get a onestrike instead of getting a

(24:35):
death sentence or getting lifein prison.

Speaker 1 (24:38):
Right.

Speaker 2 (24:38):
Who's voting for that Right?
That's what I'm saying.
You can go any place in Americaand there will be some sort of
law or some set of laws that areanti-biblical, that are not
according to your faith, thatare not according to your
religion, and whoever you arevoting for, whether they are
Democrat or Republican, there'ssomething in their political

(24:59):
agenda that does not vibe withyour theology.

Speaker 1 (25:03):
That does not vibe with your theology.

Speaker 2 (25:05):
Yeah, so you can say I'm voting for this person
because I like their economicpolicies, or I like their
policies on healthcare, or Ilike their policies on climate
change, whether I believe itexists or not, but you can't say
I'm voting for this personbecause the Lord told me to vote
for this person that I agreewith Also side note, I want to

(25:27):
talk to theologians about this.
Is it cheating if you pray towin an election?
I've always wondered this.

Speaker 1 (25:35):
Yeah, it is.

Speaker 2 (25:36):
I feel like it would be cheating.

Speaker 1 (25:39):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (25:39):
Yeah, because if God answered your prayer, then that
means we didn't vote for you,but the Lord.

Speaker 1 (25:45):
Well, I guess there'd have to be either more
conservatives praying or moreDemocrats praying.
Maybe that's how it works.

Speaker 2 (25:52):
Yeah, so if a Democrat wins, then that's
because it was more liberalspraying than Democrats.
Okay, I see how it works.
So I guess, hey, y'all got toget together in this next
election and figure out what thenumber's looking like.
Right, oh man?
But no, I don't think there's aChristian duty to vote.

Speaker 1 (26:16):
Yeah, as far as the refugee argument goes, I agree
the Bible does tell us.
I forgot what verse it was, butit's like be kind, some
translations.
Like be kind.
Some translations say you kindto the alien, which means
immigrant.
But where I'm coming from,because obviously I lean more
conservative when it comes toimmigration is I like I just

(26:37):
want to make sure everybody'svetted before they come yeah and
be going to become um, actuallyI can't really say like be a
productive member of society,when we have so many people here
who are American citizens andare not productive members of
society.
I can't make that argumentanymore, but to make sure that
they're a safe person.

(26:58):
I think is an okay thing to do.

Speaker 2 (27:01):
Uh, before I get to whatever, my argument is what is
a safe person?

Speaker 1 (27:09):
well, like somebody, if okay, so I.
Obviously this is gonna soundbad.
I'm saying mexico, but I don't.
I'm not saying every mexican isthis way, but the cartel does
run mexico for the most partright.
So if somebody from the cartelwas coming into America from the
border, it would be nice toknow that they're here, not the

(27:30):
cartel.
Yes, and they are in the UnitedStates?

Speaker 2 (27:33):
Yes, Because we do have ways to track people who
are coming into the UnitedStates, Although I will give you
that the Customs and BorderProtection does estimate that
millions of people have comeinto the United States
undetected.
But we don't know that right.
That's neither here nor there.

(27:53):
It's like saying it may bewater in that.
Well, it's like you know itcould be full of water, it could
be completely empty.
So you can't go off what youdon't know.
But from what we do know andwhat we have been able to count
right, we know that those peopleare here in the United States.
We know their names.
They come to the border, theyask for asylum or they ask for

(28:15):
refugee status.
1980s law, as well as manyinternational conventions, means
that the United States musthonor that request for asylum.
Now what we could do, of course, is send them in front of a
judge, which is what the processis.
They go in front of a judge,they try to explain to the judge
and justify their claims forasylum.
Then that judge decides whetheror not that's valid or not, and

(28:36):
they either get admitted to theUnited States of America or
they get immediately deportedand expatriated back to wherever
country that they came from.
Now our problem is it takes solong to do that.

Speaker 1 (28:51):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (28:51):
And by law, if you come to the board and you ask
for asylum, we can't just sendyou back, right, we have to
bring you in.
So I guess what I'm saying isin that regard, it would have
been nice, at least on thepolicy front, because the
political conversation is justup the wazoo and then there's so

(29:12):
many partisan back and forthand I stopped loving partisan
politics years ago and I'vebecome more just infatuated with
the policy, the actual policy.
And I've become more justinfatuated with the policy, the
actual policy.
If let's say that the mostrecent border bill or proposal

(29:33):
would have passed, it would haveadded more judges to the bench,
which would have helped speedup the process for those folks
who are coming in at the border,claim an asylum to see a judge
and have their case heard.
And I guess I don't know why Iwould be against that, because I

(29:55):
agree with you, right, youshould be vetted, right?
Unfortunately, we can't vetnatural born citizens, right?
Who are the folks who are goinginto schools and shooting them
up?

Speaker 1 (30:09):
Right.
I know I've heard that argumenttoo, but it's like if we have a
problem here and there's aproblem here, we can at least
lower one other problem.

Speaker 2 (30:18):
We should do something about it.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
No, I get you, I get you andthat's, I think, the, the, the,
the liberal dilemma.
I don't know what the politicalscience term, uh, is for that.
Uh, my political scientistshave to help me with that.
But there is a liberal dilemmain that.
You know, liberals tend to havemany problems that they focus on

(30:40):
and they think, if you focus onany other problem, you're not
focused on my problem, so youdon't care about me and my
problem or things that I'm goingthrough, so I'm not voting for
you.
Right, Conservatives tend tohave ton of vision.
Right, you can give them aproblem, you can give them a
fear, you can give conservativesan issue and they stick to that
issue, which is whyconservatism is really

(31:03):
successful in elections, becauseliberals tend to.
We have this problem and thatproblem and that problem, that
problem which one do we solve?
Where conservatives are likelook, we got two problems, okay,
now I want to do somethingabout them two problems.
And because they all theproblems that exist, and then,
boom, right, it's an easierargument.
Um, that said, that said, Ithink it would have been great

(31:29):
to see that border bill passthat was proposed.
It would be great for Congressto do something about the border
, but we've been talking aboutthis forever and neither party
is doing it.
I mean, I don't care who youvote for this year, it's doing
it.
I mean, I don't care who you'revoting for this year.
These are the same people whohave been in charge and have had

(31:51):
the power to do something aboutthe immigration I even hate to
say immigration problem, becauseat this point it's not a
problem, it's just immigration.

Speaker 1 (32:00):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (32:00):
Because if it was a problem, then somebody would
have been trying to solve it,and as far as I'm concerned,
this is a hoopla, do you think?

Speaker 1 (32:09):
that they purposely don't solve it just because it
keeps bringing in more money100%.

Speaker 2 (32:15):
If you let the problem persist, then you have
something to run on in the nextelection.
You can't just get elected andstart solving problems that you
said was a problem when you wasrunning.
Why would people vote for youagain?
At least I feel like that's thethinking it seems to be.
So it's like let me just talkabout the problem, but I'm not

(32:35):
going to actually do anything tofix it.
And when I can't do anything tofix it, I'm just going to blame
the other party or the opposingcandidate for my failures.

Speaker 1 (32:46):
And it works.

Speaker 2 (32:47):
And it works because, you know, every four years or
every two years for the House,we go back and we vote against
the person who we felt like didnot address our problem.

Speaker 1 (33:02):
Yeah, well, what do we, I mean, what do we have to
do to get these issues solved?
Then is my question.

Speaker 2 (33:09):
I am usually a very optimistic person and you know
that about me.
I usually see the glass halffull.
I think politics is probablythe one area where I'm becoming
more and more pessimistic.
Really want to have thesepolicy discussions, civilized
policy discussions, and come upwith some reasonable and

(33:31):
civilized solutions.
It's not that those peopledon't exist, it's that those
people right now are silenced.
The loudest voices in the roomare the most fringe voices in
the room.
They're the most extreme voicesin the room.
They're the most extreme voicesin the room yeah, so the people
who actually want to solve theproblem.

(33:51):
We can't really do anything tosolve the problem because you
know we've got primaries and, atthe end of the day, you know
it's not the people who show upto the general election that
determine what our politicslooks like four years from now.
It's the people who show up inprimaries who determine what our
politics looks like four yearsfrom now.
It's the people who show up inprimaries who determine what our
, who are what our politicslooks like four years from now.

(34:12):
And those people who show up inthe primaries, they are diehard
, they they are further to theleft or they are further to the
right.
And so then our options for thegeneral election seems to be
two extremes.
That's true, and it's where didyou guys come from?
I thought we were having a niceconversation, and they just
come in from the two extremesand they just blow everything up

(34:36):
.
But, as my uncle just alwayssay, it wouldn't happen if
nobody was making money from it.
Think about it.
Well, yeah, I agree with that.
I mean from it, think about it.

Speaker 1 (34:49):
Well, yeah, I agree with that.

Speaker 2 (34:50):
I mean, I don't think about it every day, but it
wouldn't happen if nobody wasmaking any money.
Okay, if the so-called invasionand I hate that word invasion
at the southern border, if thatwas not making folks money, they
would have stopped that longtime ago.
You can't tell me we can fighttwo wars at the southern border.
If that was not making folksmoney, they would have stopped
that long time ago.
You can't tell me we can fighttwo wars at the same time and

(35:13):
not do something about theborder in our own country.
Come on, it don't make no sense.
Somebody's making money.
Now, good luck figuring out who.
Right, it's the deep state, thedeep state.
I know it ain't me, ain'tnobody send me my check yet, so
I don't know.
If y'all lost me, if y'allforgot, put me back on the check

(35:34):
, the payroll, because I need mycheck, but yeah.
But to your point, though, tothe point earlier, um, I think
all of us can agree that, right,we want people, um, uh, to go
through a process in order toenter the United States of
America, because that makes usfeel safe.
And I think my point is thatprocess already exists.

(35:57):
We have 15 differentintelligence agencies that vet
every single name of a personwho comes into the country.
We've got Customs and BorderProtections.
We need more officers on theground, we need more boots on
the ground, but we have themoney there in order to invest
in technology.
We could have got more moneythrough that solutions bill
which I thought it was but wealready have that process in

(36:21):
place.
The point is it is taking toolong, it is being drug out and
it's leaving millions of peoplewho have come to the United
States to claim asylum in limboAll the while.
By the way, when they're hereand they are caught and then
released into the United States,they get the ability to work.
You take away their ability towork and you wouldn't be making

(36:48):
people money Right, and Iguarantee you immigration solved
.
They too.
Congress will wake up tomorrowand they get it done.
Both parties, both sides of theaisle.
At the end of the day, they'rehere, people who have come into
the country and do not haveauthorization to be here.
They be here.
They're here, they're working.

(37:10):
They're paying taxes becausethis is the United States of
America.
We go tax you wherever you are.
Your problem is life, death andtaxes in the United States.
So they're paying taxes.
They don't receive anythingfrom the government because
they're not American citizens,they can't vote, so they don't
have a vote in the or voice inthe political process, which I

(37:32):
think all of us, most of us,would agree with.
Um, we just have to make itmore efficient.
We have to make that processmore efficient so that way we
can deal with what seems like anissue more humanely.
And then, secondly, and I thinkimportantly, we have to
acknowledge and deal with and Iknow we don't want to be the

(37:52):
world's police, but we have toacknowledge and help deal with
the issues on the ground.
These people would not becoming to the United States
seeking asylum if there wasn'tan issue in their homeland.

Speaker 1 (38:04):
So you think that we, as America, should go to other
countries and offer support?

Speaker 2 (38:10):
I do not think that we should do that, because I
think our idea of offeringsupport has failed, and I think
we are the reason why a lot ofthese countries are in the mess
that they're in in the firstplace.
Yeah, that said, I do thinkthat we as Americans at least
our civic duty, at least toourselves, is to say listen,

(38:33):
instead of the problem beinghere right, instead of you
having to flee your home andseek asylum here.
What can we do there?
What's going on there?
Why are we okay with thecartels coming in and taking
over?
We shouldn't be.
Why are we okay with you livingin dire poverty wherever you

(38:59):
are?
That shouldn't be okay.
Why aren't we helping you andgiving you the tools and
resources that you need toinvest in yourself?
Now, that is at least whatChina has done to the continent
of Africa.
The US came in and said we onlygo trade with you if you honor

(39:21):
human rights.

Speaker 1 (39:23):
They said that to who ?
China?

Speaker 2 (39:24):
The continent of Africa.
Okay, the US say we only gotrade with you when you honor
human rights.
And of course they didn't honorhuman rights, so we didn't do
much trade.

Speaker 1 (39:34):
Africa didn't honor human rights.

Speaker 2 (39:36):
Many countries in Africa.
Africa is a continent.
Yeah, I know that, yes, but manycountries in Africa continue to
violate human rights, continueto defy the norms of democracy
or democratic societies.
So the united states said, okay, we're not gonna trade with you
.
And china said, screw that, wewill.

(39:59):
And, matter of fact, we'lltrade with you, ignoring your
violations of human rights.
We'll trade with you and we'llteach you how to do this for
yourself.
And so, over the next decade orso, we're going to have over
500 million people on thecontinent of Africa living a
part of the middle class.
Let that sink in, not fromAmerican investment, but from

(40:21):
Chinese investment.

Speaker 1 (40:22):
People from China are moving to the continent of
Africa.
No.

Speaker 2 (40:25):
China is going in there and they're saying let's
partner, let's trade, yeah,let's have our economies, do
some business together to growyour economy.
And what they have done is wonover the soft and the hard power
I guess the soft power all overthe continent of Africa, which

(40:48):
the United States failed to dofor 50 years of our diplomacy.
So I guess my point is, if wetook that approach as Americans
and just said we're not going toignore your human rights
violations and we also want tohelp you train your people, we
also want to help you invest inyour own markets.
Basically, we want to help youtrain your people.
We also want to help you investin your own markets.

(41:08):
Basically, we want to teach youhow to fish.
We're not here to give you fish.
Okay, that was Jesus.
Now Jesus gave out all the fishand the lowest of breed Now
ain't, no more.
That was Jesus.
But we are here to teach youhow to fish.
If we would go in with the sameapproach, I think it would be a
lot better, so that way peopledon't have to flee and come to

(41:31):
the united states instead ofstarting wars.
Exactly exactly what I thoughtyeah, we're not gonna blow you
up with this money.
We want to invest in yourmarket.
I'm going to teach our peoplehow to fish.
We want to invest in in scienceand technology in your country
and the thing is in the unitedstates, especially for students

(41:54):
who are undocumented.
Right, they learn here, andthen what do we do?
We deport them.
And what world does it makesense to educate a person in
your country and then send themaway?

Speaker 1 (42:09):
Send them back to where they originally came from.

Speaker 2 (42:12):
That makes no sense.
I mean, if anything, you'll betrying to keep them here.
You'll be trying to get them toreinvest their knowledge, their
expertise, their skills, theirambition.
You'll be trying to get them toreinvest that back into the
country.
But why deport them?
It makes no sense.
But if we could get togetherand have a civilized

(42:35):
conversation around policy andget people who really want to
solve the problem, I do thinkthat we can.
But I'm pessimistic because Idon't think that we're going to
see that, at least no time soon.

Speaker 1 (42:52):
That is very pessimistic.
I think that as long as peoplelike you and I have
conversations because obviouslywe have our disagreements and
fall on different politicalsides and people start seeing it
more and more- I have hope, I,I and the thing is, I even

(43:13):
reject the, the idea thatthere's some sort of
disagreements, because I meaneven us.

Speaker 2 (43:20):
I think I feel like nine times out of ten we
actually agree yeah, yeah.
At least with the end result.
We agree with the end result.
We're all looking.
We're both looking to the samething.
We're both going after the samegoal.
How we get there, of course wehave differences of opinion on,

(43:41):
but it is easier and it is moreprofitable for partisans and
political parties to magnify the10% where we disagree, get us
to be uncivilized and hate theother person for disagreeing on
the 10% of things we disagree on, and then view you as the enemy

(44:06):
and then the candidate that I'mvoting for as the savior yeah
it's disgusting now I know whatis meant by money is the root of
all kinds of evil.
100 listen, it wouldn't happenif ain't nobody making money.
Yeah, and, and that is so trueeven with our uh, our partisan

(44:28):
divide, right it.
We would not be so deeplydivided among partisan lines if
there weren't people who aremaking money.
It ain't us, it ain't us I'mand I by us I mean the vast
majority of people in America.
I don't care how you vote.

(44:49):
The reason why we keep fightingover what's on the agenda is
because we're not on the agenda.
Yeah, and I think the sooner werealize that, then the sooner
we can really have aconversation that's civilized
and the sooner we can reallyhave a conversation that's
civilized.
And I'm not saying that you gotto be changing your vote on

(45:10):
political party, because I don'tthink that it really matters.
And there was a time where thatdidn't matter with certain
things.
Right when Nixon got into hisstuff Republicans, they wanted
him out of office, and therewere some Democrats who were
rooting for the removal of BillClinton when he got into his.
Although I guess we can sayyeah.

Speaker 1 (45:31):
I know your wife is different than you know.

Speaker 2 (45:34):
but then all the stuff Nixon did, but you know,
it's the same thing.
You know, there there was atime where wrong was wrong and
right was right, and no matterwhat your political um decision
was or your political persuasionwas, at the end of the day
there were certain things youjust couldn't say as a candidate

(45:55):
yeah without losing supportfrom everybody.
Um, and I don't feel like we'reliving in that time now.
I feel like you just say enoughto appeal to your base, and
then your base will believe you,and then nothing is true.

Speaker 1 (46:15):
The end Election day.
So do you think that with, likeyou said, they're never going
to solve the immigration policy,all that?
Do you think that it's the samewith health care, that they're
never really going to solve itjust because it creates that
divide and makes them more money?

Speaker 2 (46:39):
Yeah, obviously, there's definitely a special
interest in health care.
Right that want that.
I do think that the one maindifference as it relates in
health care, right, um, that,that want that.
I do think that the the onemain difference, um, as it
relates to health care, um isjust the desire of most of us as
americans and I am one of themum, that really like our private

(47:02):
health insurance.
Yeah, we really like it.
It's provided for my job.
I like my private healthinsurance.
Yeah, um, would I like to payfor it?

Speaker 1 (47:14):
probably not nope, I don't.

Speaker 2 (47:16):
I do not like paying for it and it's like I am all
good, um, I love it the wholetime.
And then I look at my check andthen when I see that they took
out such and such X amount ofdollars to go to my health care
plan, I'm like why y'all do that?
Because I didn't go to thedoctors in the last two weeks,

(47:37):
so I don't know why I need it,right.
So, you know, we don't like, wedon't like paying for it, but I
don't think that there are manyAmericans who would be willing
to give up their private healthinsurance.
And I feel like, eventually,that's what the conversation
leads to.
You know, first it's aregulation of the marketplace,

(47:58):
which, by the way, obamacare is,is not a national health care
plan, but it is a regulation ofthe marketplace.
It is a regulation of themarketplace.
But there is an argument, right?
First there's a regulation ofthe marketplace, then there is a
public or nationalized healthcare, as we see in some other
countries around the world, andmost Americans Democrat,

(48:22):
republican, liberal,conservative we don't want to
see that here in our country.
But again, it's the fringeright.
It's that small minority ofpeople who are very vocal, who
are very loud, who would like tosee that.

Speaker 1 (48:31):
Like the universal health care.

Speaker 2 (48:32):
Universal health care yeah.
There's definitely a loudchorus of people who would love
to see that happen.
Do I think it will happen?
No Two, should it happen, Iwould be alone the size to argue
.
No, I don't think it shouldhappen that's very unliberal of
you it's very unliberal.

(48:53):
But here's why mostly because,while capitalism has its faults,
I love capitalism.
I do, I love having the choice.
And if we start saying let'stake away choices in healthcare,
what's next?

Speaker 1 (49:14):
Right, that's where the problem lies.

Speaker 2 (49:16):
People don't think about that at all.
What's next?
Because I can name a whole lotof other things that I really
don't like paying for, likegroceries, yeah.
So it's like you know, okay,there's a farm bill.
Every year, we give billions ofdollars to farmers.
Why do I still have to pay formilk and for eggs then?
Right, think about it.

(49:38):
If we already gave them our taxdollars, then why we still got
to pay, I don't understand.

Speaker 1 (49:42):
Yeah, but then they can regulate what we eat,
couldn't they?
If that was the case, if, thatwas the case.

Speaker 2 (49:47):
If that was the case, and ain't nobody getting any
skinnier in America, so whosefault is it that we're gaining
all this weight?
Personally, I think it's theindividuals.
It can't be.
If we're going to have thegovernment control it, shouldn't
it be the government's fault ifthe government subsidizes the
farmers?
Sure.
You see, what I'm saying, allI'm saying is all important, I'd

(50:09):
have to say it's a slipperyslope that'll leave all of us
confused when we start doingthis.
And I'm not saying that we havethe perfect system of
capitalism.
We do not right.
Nobody does, nobody does, andthere also is no perfect system
of socialism.
So if you want to point to somecountry, oh, look at this, at
this socialist, look atVenezuela that is not a perfect

(50:30):
socialist system, and neither isChina's system a perfect
communist system or I'm sorry,socialist system, while it is
maybe a perfect communist system, so you don't have that in
anywhere right now.
There are some social elementsof the United States of America,

(50:50):
but am I ready to go that faron health care?
Yet?
Don't look for me in the nextelection, because the Democrats
won't vote for me as a nominee,with me saying no, I'm not
looking forward to nationalpublic health care.
I would agree, though, thatit's a shame.

(51:12):
It's immoral, both as anAmerican and as a believer, that
people are having to choosebetween paying for their
medicine and paying for theirlight bill.

Speaker 1 (51:27):
Paying for their medicine and paying for what
else, and paying for the lightbill Light bill Light bill Like
electricity.
Electricity.

Speaker 2 (51:34):
You should not be in fear.
I don't know if you know this,but the cost of seeing a doctor
or going to a hospital to have ababy.
Going to get a checkup isexpensive.
I think that's ridiculous.
So I am in no way saying that Iam okay and I'm perfectly

(51:59):
peachy king with the system asit is right now, because there
are a lot of things that arejust expensive and they really
shouldn't be.
The fact that the federalgovernment is just now getting
the authority to negotiate drugprices in a capitalistic system.

Speaker 1 (52:17):
That is mind-boggling .
Couldn't that be seen a littlebit as government overreach
though?
The ability Because once theyyou said they're regulating.

Speaker 2 (52:27):
Negotiating drug prices're regulating negotiating
.

Speaker 1 (52:29):
Negotiating drug prices yeah, isn't that also a
slippery slope though?

Speaker 2 (52:34):
how so?

Speaker 1 (52:35):
if they're negotiating drug prices, then
negotiating turns intocontrolling drug prices and then
it's definitely control.

Speaker 2 (52:43):
My mentor used to say I'm gonna be quoting people all
night tonight, at least itlooks like.
But my mentor used to sayLawrence, never forget the
golden rule.
I said love the Lord, your God,love your neighbor.
He said the golden rule is thatthe one who has all the gold
makes all the rules.
Let that sink in.
So if the federal government ispaying billions of dollars for

(53:07):
prescription drugs of which, bythe way, we subsidize through
taxes for research anddevelopment.
But if the federal governmentis paying billions of dollars
for prescription drugs.
Like us, why shouldn't thefederal government get the

(53:28):
option to shop around?
Yeah, option to shop around,yeah, yeah.
So when I go to the store andI'm looking for a product that I
don't really need, but I justkind of want, what do we do?
We don't go to the store, we goto amazon because we want to
look for the lowest price, forthe cheapest junk, to just make
us feel good, and and so wescroll through amazon and then
we choose that at its lowestprice, right.

(53:49):
Why shouldn't the federalgovernment be doing that with
our tax dollars?
Because right now, the current,under the current system, the
pharmaceutical companies can saythe drug costs this amount of
money.
Well, the government has to paythat amount of money.

Speaker 1 (54:04):
The government has to pay.
Who that amount of?

Speaker 2 (54:05):
money, the pharmaceutical company, so not
us as Americans.
The pharmacy can say this drugis going to cost you 50 bucks
this year.
Well, the federal governmentgot to pay that.
Next year they can say it'sgoing to cost 150 bucks.
The federal government got topay that.
Why not say it costs $1,000?
The federal government has topay it.

Speaker 1 (54:22):
The federal government pays for drugs.
The federal government pays fordrugs.
That's what we're talking about.

Speaker 2 (54:27):
Caleb, where you been .

Speaker 1 (54:28):
I know, but I always have paid for my own Right.

Speaker 2 (54:33):
Because you are not on Medicaid or Medicare, you're
not on a government healthsystem.
Somebody who's on a governmenthealth system when they get
their pills.

Speaker 1 (54:42):
It's the government paying for that.

Speaker 2 (54:43):
It subsidizes exactly so now full circle, circle.

Speaker 1 (54:46):
You're saying the government is negotiating drug
prices and that exactly.
Okay, there you go exactly whenyou started off with saying the
federal government wants tonegotiate drug prices, and then
now, we got here.
Now it makes sense as to whythey're negotiating.

Speaker 2 (55:02):
Yeah yeah, because they're paying, because they
have to pay for they have to payfor the people who are on
Medicare.

Speaker 1 (55:09):
Medicaid and government health services I
didn't know that.
I did know that, but I don'treally think about it.
Right Because obviously, ifit's government health care,
obviously the government has topay for it.

Speaker 2 (55:20):
Right, right, right, but most people don't.
It's okay.
But, yeah, if you're on any ofthose systems, um, um, then the
government foots that bill, justlike our insurance company
would.
For instance, if we were to gopick up drugs, of our doctor
prescribed drugs, we would go inand pay the copay.
Well, our insurance would pickup the rest of that bill.
That's what the federalgovernment is, uh, to people who

(55:41):
are on medicare, medicaid, and,yeah, the government foots bill
.
So, just like we do in ourcapitalistic society, why is it
okay for the government, who arespending billions of dollars of
our money each year, to also beable to negotiate and to shop
around?

Speaker 1 (56:02):
You're saying it should be okay for them to shop
around.
It should be okay, yeah.

Speaker 2 (56:04):
I think it should be okay and I think that makes a
lot of people happy, except thepharmaceutical companies,
because that was a check youcould always depend on.
Now there's no guarantee, yeah.

Speaker 1 (56:19):
Well, I am not on the , I'm not on Team Pharma, so I
don't really care.
Yeah, no one.
I have no sympathy for them.

Speaker 2 (56:28):
But okay, I'm going to take the opposite side.
Uh-oh, I have to.
I'm going to take the oppositeside for you because there is
tons of really good research anddevelopment and folks who can
do it.
Capitalism in part because ofthis, because we can have people

(56:51):
who can focus on a particulardrug.
That, I mean, may or may notwork, but they can at least
focus on a particular drug.
They can then market that drug.
They can get, then get peoplewhat they need, the healthcare
that they need.
There is a reason why the worldcomes to the United States for
healthcare.

Speaker 1 (57:07):
Yes, I agree.

Speaker 2 (57:08):
There is a reason, and I think that's part of the
reason right, and I think that'swhat makes our health care not
only just successful but a lotbetter in many ways the fact
that we have a capitalist systemand where pharmacies can, or
big pharma can, be big pharmaand do their thing.
Now the scary thing is going tobe yeah, we want to take down

(57:33):
big pharma, we want to take downa man, but what happens when we
do?

Speaker 1 (57:38):
We just get a bunch of little pharmas.

Speaker 2 (57:40):
We get a bunch of little.
So you know, if you get rid ofbig pharma, the drug that you're
taking that's now FDA approved,does it really work for you?

Speaker 1 (57:51):
Yes, I hope so Always will.

Speaker 2 (57:54):
I pray.
I pray to the Lord.

Speaker 1 (57:57):
Well, it's not that I think that we necessarily need
to take down Big Pharma.
It's just that a lot of their Ithink a lot of their drugs and
prescriptions are the cause ofother prescriptions.
Oh yes, oh, yes, oh, absolutelyso that's where I mean like and
that is one of the downfalls ofcapitalism where it's like they

(58:19):
can create something and thenit's like well, I have this
issue now.

Speaker 2 (58:22):
Well, we, have another pill for you.
They can create reoccurringcustomers.
Yes, like car manufacturers.
Yep Right, they coulddefinitely make those cars last
a whole lot longer.

Speaker 1 (58:32):
Well, that's why you got to get a Toyota or Honda.

Speaker 2 (58:34):
Now you know I'm not buying a Toyota but I will buy a
Honda.
I love Honda.
Hondas never break.
I know Honda didn't get thebutton.
Now all the other car companiesthey got the button.
So when you call in you andyou're going for the oil change
and they say you reach like 110000 miles, they hit a button

(58:55):
somewhere and all of a suddenyour car start breaking down.
You got to get a new one.
Too bad for you, I believe it.
But they didn't get a button tohonda.
Honda ain't got that button.
They don't use it.
I know people who got hondas.
They got 250, 300 000 miles on.
It's Still going real good too.

Speaker 1 (59:07):
Yeah, and it's still running good, yep.

Speaker 2 (59:10):
Yep.

Speaker 1 (59:12):
I feel like Toyota's up there too, but maybe they
have a.

Speaker 2 (59:15):
I just don't like them, I'm sorry.
I love capitalism, so let themsell their cars in our country,
but I have not seen a Toyotathat I think looks nice.

Speaker 1 (59:30):
Toyota Tacoma, those trucks, those look nice.
That's about it.
They really messed up with thePriuses back in the day.

Speaker 2 (59:40):
They did.
Those were so ugly.
They should have called Elon.
Let him take it.
Yeah, let him design it theyshould.

Speaker 1 (59:49):
He would have done better.

Speaker 2 (59:50):
I don't necessarily I think he would have done, but I
think he would have designed alittle bit better.
I think they, of course theydesigned it with the now in mind
.
Uh, and context matters, right,it's a toyota, so you know.
They're not sitting in atlantalooking at the latest and
brightest in technology andamerican culture, right?
So they're not right.
They're not sitting in Atlantalooking at the latest and
brightest in technology andAmerican culture, right?

Speaker 1 (01:00:09):
So they're not Right.

Speaker 2 (01:00:10):
They're not doing that, but if they were, they
would have redesigned the ToyotaPrius a long time ago.
But have you seen the new Prius?
Toyota prius yes, it's nice.
I give it to them on that one.

Speaker 1 (01:00:23):
Yeah, they stepped that game up.
That one does look nice.
I would buy one of those yes, Inot.

Speaker 2 (01:00:27):
I heard that from a lot of people who was like tesla
customers through and through.
They said they saw that newtoyota prius and it was like for
the price and for the range,the gas mileage, gas mileage the
whole nine yards.
They're about that toyota prius, so I give them that.
I saw one on the road the otherday.
It looked real slick.
It had tinted windows on it.

(01:00:48):
I've never seen a prius withtinted windows, had tinted
windows on it, uh, and it hadlights.
I could see the lights up onthe neon lights up on the inside
.
Maybe that's custom, thoughthey probably don't sell,
probably.
But they are nice now yeah yeah,for me I'll just take that
electric um beamer just electricyep, I take that and how much

(01:01:13):
is that going to cost you?
An arm and a leg and probablycouldn't get to the other side
of michigan in it.
But that's not the point thethe point is that I look nice
driving an all-electric vehicleto and from work there you go
yeah, that's all that mattersthat's all that matters how long
does it take to charge thosecars?

Speaker 1 (01:01:33):
I have no idea.

Speaker 2 (01:01:35):
You don't know my hybrid, my beamer hybrid, which
is what you have now, which iswhat I have now, that thing
thing take and it's only like Ican only go 15 miles, only on
battery.
I know right, beamers don'tmake hybrids.
They say they make hybrids butit's not really a hybrid, it's a

(01:01:56):
gas powered vehicle with a bigbattery.
But, yeah, it can only go 15miles.
That still takes four or fivehours to charge from E to full.
That is crazy, yeah, that'scrazy.
So I can only imagine if yougot a 215-mile range and you use
that whole battery up, youain't just stopping at BP for

(01:02:21):
some Skittles, some Arizona icedtea, and come back and your
pump done.
No, no, that ain't happening.
You're gonna be there for a fewhours yeah for sure.

Speaker 1 (01:02:32):
Um, you think they'd find a way to have the
alternator charge it whileyou're driving, because I
thought hybrids was like thebattery kind of kicks on in
different area times when it'slike if you're going a little
bit slower or city driving, ormaybe it kicks in on the highway
or something.
That's what I thought hybridwas no, so that that yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:02:54):
Well, actually you're right.
Hybrids just kick in at certaintimes, usually on the city, in
the city.
So if I'm just going up anddown 28th, you know, at some
point my car would just run onbattery, but if I'm getting on
the freeway it's gonna alwaysrun on gas.
So because over a certain mphit goes, oh, it does so.

Speaker 1 (01:03:17):
Yours does do that, yep, only for a limited time
though, because you only got 15miles on the battery only got 15
miles on the battery.

Speaker 2 (01:03:23):
But the thing of course with the hybrid is once
your battery is depleted, itjust won't use the battery, just
go to gas, right, so so you'resaving 15 miles, I'm saving 15
miles.

Speaker 1 (01:03:36):
What does that thing even get for gas mileage,
because it's kind of big.

Speaker 2 (01:03:38):
Don't ask me that it's a very nice car.
We don't talk about financialthings with a car like this.
I call her Bianca the Beamer.
She's beautiful, she is.

Speaker 1 (01:03:50):
Man, the doors, the way, the doors shut.

Speaker 2 (01:03:51):
It's just so beautiful, it's just that sound,
it's like why does it feel soofficial up in here?
I don't know, but I think thegas mileage is 17, 18.
Lawrence, it's bad.
You're a part of the climateproblem I am a part of the
climate problem and you usepremium gas with all beamers you

(01:04:19):
do.
Yeah, everybody been holleringwhen they was talking about
paying $5 a gallon.
Now, luckily, when the gas was$ dollars a gallon, I was
driving my honda and that thingthat went forever.
I man, I could go a week and ahalf, never stop at a gas
station in that honda do youhave to put premium in a bmw?
you have to.
I mean, unless you want to tearup your engine and then pay

(01:04:41):
tens of thousands of dollars toreplace it.
That's which one?
You want to tear up your engineand then pay tens of thousands
of dollars to replace it?

Speaker 1 (01:04:45):
that's which one you want.
Where do bmws come from england?
Germany uh, so do volkswagens,but I don't have to put premium
in mine well, sucks to be you.

Speaker 2 (01:04:59):
No, uh, my beamer is American.
Made it's made out in SouthCarolina.
Yes, it was indeed.
And my last car.
This is where my liberal sideis coming in.

Speaker 1 (01:05:17):
My Honda that I had was made in Marysville, ohio, by
union workers.
Well, unions have now switchedto the Republican Party.

Speaker 2 (01:05:26):
Not all of them the Teamsters did.
That's a pretty big one.

Speaker 1 (01:05:29):
The Teamsters is a pretty big one Also, which, just
because they switched, I'm notbrainwashed.
I still don't like them BecauseI did not like being part of
the union when I went to UPS.

Speaker 2 (01:05:38):
Tell me about it.

Speaker 1 (01:05:39):
Do you know how annoying it was?

Speaker 2 (01:05:40):
I could be very annoying.

Speaker 1 (01:05:41):
At UPS.
I get that they're to protectthe worker.
I understand the whole meaningbehind them.
But I was a loader at ups soI'd be loading semis with boxes
and then when it would getreally busy they would have to
send somebody else and to helpme.
But sometimes I wouldn't haveanybody else.
But my supervisor was there.
But oh, supervisor can't helpbecause then he's taking our

(01:06:03):
work away really like basicallytaking the management, yeah, so
he'd be technically taking myjob and so he wouldn't be able
to.
He couldn't come into the semitrailer with me and help me so
he got to be lazy for a reasonyeah legitimately sometimes he.
Sometimes they would help.

Speaker 2 (01:06:24):
But because you always skirt the rules.

Speaker 1 (01:06:26):
You got to get things done right, but like just that,
that idea is a littleridiculous to me.

Speaker 2 (01:06:33):
Is it that way in every case, though?
I don't know oh, because I'venever.
I never worked.
Well, I can't say that I'venever worked in a manufacturing
facility because I have, but Inever done like the hard
physical.
I've never done any loading ofboxes, sure.
And because I didn't do that, Ididn't have access to a union

(01:06:59):
or I couldn't sign up for aunion.
Now, I'm sure we could haveunionized, but we all know what
happens, when that happens.
We know what happens when thathappens.
But yeah, I didn't have theunion, so I always wondered how
it is for people.
I will say this, though you gotto get credit where credit is
due.
We only got eight-hour workdays, 40-hour work weeks, thanks

(01:07:20):
to unions.
Yeah, there is some good thathas, oh yeah oh yeah, uh, we we
got wage increases in partthanks to unions.
Um, so, yeah, there's some,there's some good deeds that
union does, but I never hear allof the the ways that it
negatively impacts yeah, there's.

Speaker 1 (01:07:43):
There's the good and the bad with everything.
That's true.
It seemed like a lot of thelazy people really liked being
part of the union because you'rebasically you can't be fired
when you're part of a union.

Speaker 2 (01:07:54):
Well, why not?

Speaker 1 (01:07:55):
because because you're under the protection of
the union.
I remember I, the big boss, waswalking through ups I think he
was like the head of that branchand he looked in my trailer
because sometimes people wouldjust throw the boxes.
Okay, we all did it and I wasthrowing him.
He's like hey, why are youthrowing those boxes?

(01:08:16):
And I was like because it'sfaster.
And then I had to go into theoffice and have a sit down and
talk with him.
But I had a representative fromthe union come and sit with me.

Speaker 2 (01:08:28):
Oh.

Speaker 1 (01:08:28):
And, like under other circumstances at another place,
I could have been fired.

Speaker 2 (01:08:33):
for that I'm about to say if you do that at my job,
you're going to be fired.

Speaker 1 (01:08:38):
Exactly, and so I was able to talk back to like the
biggest guy up and still keep myjob.

Speaker 2 (01:08:45):
That's not very Christian-like.

Speaker 1 (01:08:47):
Well, I wasn't necessarily Christian-like
during those times.

Speaker 2 (01:08:51):
Oh, okay, I guess I have to give you the past.

Speaker 1 (01:08:54):
That was the lukewarm days.

Speaker 2 (01:08:55):
Got you, but you have repented.
You'd have been saved andyou're on fire for Jesus.
Yes, okay.

Speaker 1 (01:09:00):
I will say that even during my lukewarm days, I was
still given to the church.
Amen.
Which is just like so crazybecause I'd be living in
complete sin.

Speaker 2 (01:09:08):
It's not crazy at all .

Speaker 1 (01:09:10):
But I'd still make sure to give my 10%.

Speaker 2 (01:09:12):
That's not crazy, let's park it right here.
I get on my soapbox and Ibecome very passionate with
talking about tithes andoffering.
And I know a lot of people inour generation they do not like
the conversation tithes andbecause they think, oh the money
, the church is just trying totake your money and blah, blah,

(01:09:32):
blah.
You know why?

Speaker 1 (01:09:33):
the pastor driving the beans driving a buick they
have.
They have a bit of a pointthere they do.

Speaker 2 (01:09:37):
They do now, if your pastor is crooked like, um, uh,
bishop gucci, what's his name?
Out of New York he faked arobbery.
The people came in and robbedhim while he was preaching.
If you like, bishop Gucci, andyou know you driving Rolls
Royces and you coming in withthree-piece suits in a church

(01:09:59):
with six people in the middle ofthe ghetto, you stealing, I
know you stealing.
So, yeah, I think there is apoint for that.
But I just want to say payingtithes is not about the pastor,
it is not about the church, itis not about the people in the

(01:10:23):
church.
Obviously you want to be.
It is not about the people inthe church.
Obviously you want to be payingyour tithes to somewhere that
is taking that money andinvesting it back into your
community.
However that looks for you.
I like paying tithes tochurches that have job programs,
that have outreach ministries,food pantries, stuff like that.

(01:10:43):
But you do, you.
But the tithes it's not aboutany of that.
It's about your commitment,it's about your stewardship,
it's about what you are doingfor God, to God.
It's about putting God first.
So when I pay tithes, I don'tsay I hope they create a food

(01:11:05):
pantry or I hope the pastordon't steal this money.
I don't care what you do, to behonest with you, right, because
you're giving, I'm giving.
It ain't about you.
I'm sorry to say that, but Ican be selfish it's about my
relationship with God.
It's me telling God God, I'mputting you first in every step

(01:11:28):
of my life and my money, andeven with my money, you get
first dibs.
Now, some people pay 10%, somepeople like to pay 20.
I want to get to a place whereI can pay 50% tithes.
I ain't lying to you.
I would love to be in a placewhere 50% of income half half
goes straight to ties, becausethe more you give out of your

(01:11:50):
sacrifice, that is so justbecause you gave 20 and only
gave 10, god ain't gonna blessyou more.
Right, it's about the level ofsacrifice.
I want to up my level ofsacrifice, yeah.
And then god is like okay, Iit's not that I trust you.
God is saying I trust you withthat money which you are showing
trustworthiness, but it's moreso.

(01:12:12):
God is saying I honor that, youhonor me being first in your
life.
I honor that.
You honor our relationship andour commitment to one another.
Yeah, it's it's, it's all aboutyour relationship with god.
So yeah, same here.
Even when I was a lukewarmchristian, when I wasn't going

(01:12:32):
to church, when I was living avery sinful life, I paid my
tithes every single time I gotpaid.

Speaker 1 (01:12:39):
Yeah, do you still think you would have went to
heaven during those times?

Speaker 2 (01:12:42):
Absolutely not, absolutely not.
But the thing is, paying tithesis the one commandment where
God mentions nothing about youbeing saved.
You ain't got to be saved topay tithes, and you don't have
to be saved in order for God tohonor your tithes.

Speaker 1 (01:13:07):
So you're going to be an evil person and he'll still
honor it.

Speaker 2 (01:13:10):
Because that's what God does.
God is principled.
So if you are following theprinciple, you give, and I will
give it back.
Press down, shake it together,run it over.
Well, men, give unto your bosomwhen you follow the principle.
Now I'm not telling you to livea sinful life and then pay
tithes, because you're wastingyour time.

Speaker 1 (01:13:30):
It sounds like you are trying to tell me that.

Speaker 2 (01:13:31):
I feel like you're wasting your time If you're
living a sinful life and you'restill paying tithes.
You're helping out a lot ofpeople at that church, but
you're wasting your time.
I I refuse to be given to God'skingdom and I can't be a part
of it Right.
Because that's really whatyou're doing.
Yeah, but yeah, it's not aboutthat's not even a prerequisite

(01:13:53):
to doing that.
It's the principle, that's it.
If you honor me with your firstfruits, then I will give it
back to you.
I will honor you.
I will cause the rest tomultiply.
I will honor you.
I will cause the rest tomultiply.
I will make the rest work foryou.
I'll have men given to you.
The money ain't going to dropdown from the sky and a lot of

(01:14:14):
times what I've learned in mywalk with Christ and paying
tithes is that it's not alwaysmoney that I get.

Speaker 1 (01:14:21):
Right yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:14:22):
It's favor with God and with man.
It's favor, it's trust, it'srelationships.
That opens up doors andprovides opportunities.
Good health let's talk aboutthat.
When I was out living how Iwanted to live again, being a
lukewarm Christian and stillpaying my tithes, there was a

(01:14:43):
whole lot, lot of instances Ishould have gotten in a car
accident.
I should have had a transmitteddisease.
Whoa, let's talk about it sincewe go talk about it and be real
.
There was plenty of times whereI put myself in harm's way right
, yeah, I mean, I can secondthat with me and I'm not saying
that God will protect youbecause you pay tithes, because

(01:15:05):
that's not it either.
But what I am saying is I cansecond that with me, and I'm not
saying that God will protectyou because you pay tithes,
because that's not it either.
But what I am saying is, whenyou pay tithes, you can depend
on God to do things in your lifethat are just unexplainable,
and a lot of times it ain't gotnothing to do with money and
it's something that money can'tbuy.

Speaker 1 (01:15:18):
It's true.
I've also noticed that usually,like the more I give and this
is I'm not saying like I'mgetting money from him, but it
just seems like I'm able tosave- more yeah so he makes the
rest of it stretch.

Speaker 2 (01:15:36):
You think I drive that beamer because I'm rich?
Oh, I thought you were.
No, no, no, I didn't hit thelotto, the lord.
I told the lord now, if he letme hit that lotto, I'm gonna pay
my time.
I told him.
I promised them.
I said, lord, if you let mejust hit that number, that that
800 million jackpot they hadjust the other week, I said,

(01:15:58):
lord, if you just let me hit, Iwill pay my time, I'll put
offering on there, I will give.
So the person I'm giving tothey won't have room enough to
receive.
And the Lord didn't let it workout that way.
But he done blessed me in otherareas.
But I don't drive that thatthing because I'm rich.
I can only explain that it wasthrough the favor of God that I

(01:16:26):
have gotten to where I am today.
That's all I can say.
There hasn't been anything.
I graduated high school, I wentto college, I fought and I did
what I needed to do.
I tried my best to get theright job, to get the highest
paying job, to have the highestsalary, to do the right thing.
I didn't do any of that.

Speaker 1 (01:16:47):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:16:47):
And yet the scripture remains true.
I have never seen the righteousforsaken, nor his seed, begging
for bread.
So I don't.
I'm not into the prosperitygospel thing, although I do got
a couple of messages in my backpocket.
But I do believe that when youhonor God with your money, with

(01:17:11):
your time, when you give Godyour heart, that every need that
you have will be taken care of.
I don't have all that I want,and if the stock market crash, I
might have to cry.
And if the stock market crash,I might have to cry.
So if it crashed right now,today, I might have to cry,

(01:17:32):
because that's a whole lot ofmoney I'll be losing out on.
But I tell you what I'll wakeup tomorrow morning knowing that
when I had absolutely nothing,when my account was $500
overdrawn and I didn't haveenough money to pay my rent, I
remember not only did my mamawas able to send me some money,
but this lady from church.

(01:17:53):
I didn't know this lady.
I didn't know this lady.
I was leading worship there andshe walked up to me and she said
the Lord told me to give youthis.
I said Well, I, I hope hetalking to you.
Good, because I needed it wasthe exact amount that I needed
to pay my rent that month.
I would have been evicted ifthat that lady had no bad guy.

(01:18:17):
And then when I needed money,uh, to pay my car note because I
had lost my job, um, and Ineeded money to pay my car, I
was broke, I needed money to paymy car note.
This other guy walked to me,coming out of the store, shook
my hand.
He say I feel like some peopleare called and some people are

(01:18:37):
chosen.
He said I can tell you, chosen.
I didn't know this man.
He said I just want to give toyou because I believe that if I
give to you that God will giveto me.

Speaker 1 (01:18:47):
Well, that's the wrong motive.

Speaker 2 (01:18:48):
That's the wrong motive.

Speaker 1 (01:18:49):
Behind him, but you're the one receiving right
now.

Speaker 2 (01:18:58):
Capital One got paid that day.
They had been calling for weekstrying to tell me when we go
expect payment.
They got paid that nightbecause that man sold and I
honestly believe that Godprobably blessed that man more
than I can ever imagine.
But yeah, there are just a lotof things in my life that I can
say, and not just financial.
I was healing in my own body,people around me who have gone

(01:19:21):
through health crisis and healthscares that have been healed
just from the faithfulness ofGod, just from the prayers of
the righteous.
So even if I am broke, I'm okay.
To be honest I was talking tomy wife about this earlier Since
probably 2011,.

(01:19:42):
I have never this is a truestory I have never worried about
money.
How many times have I beenbroke since 2011?
A lot, a lot of times.
I've been broke since 2011.
But since 2011, I have neveronce worried about money.
Because I preach, I sing Godwill provide all of your needs.

(01:20:08):
How dare I go to sleep and notbelieve that?
And he has definitely done that.
When I didn't have a job and Iwasn't making any money, I ate
every day, every day.
My sister worked at a hospital.
She worked in the in.
She worked in the food kitchen.
I probably shouldn't be sayingthis, but she don't work there,

(01:20:28):
no more, so it's okay.
But I worked in the kitchenthere and I was able to get me a
plate every day.
And guess what?
Here's the awesomeness of God.
I wish that I would havedocumented this, because there
were some days I couldn't go upthere to get anything to eat
because our boss was was aroundyou understand that and I

(01:20:49):
couldn't get anything to eat.
And every one of those days Iwas living in her house her
house on her couch, not payingher rent.
I was broke.
Every one of those days Iwasn't able to go.
Somebody out of somewhere justso happened to stop by the house
, dropped off food.
You can call my sister rightnow and ask her.

(01:21:10):
Every single day that summersomebody dropped off food when I
wasn't able to go down there.
The most recent time I had lostmy job.
I didn't have enough money tobuy food and I was scared to
tell people that I really didn'thave enough money to buy food.
And I remember doing that wholeseason.

(01:21:33):
My roommate at the time you methim Yep, my roommate at the
time just got this, I don't knowimp.
I don't know whether he waswatching the Food Network
channel or what, but he justwanted to cook every day.
And do you know?
That's what he did.

Speaker 1 (01:21:52):
And he cooked for you too.

Speaker 2 (01:21:53):
I said what's gotten into you?
He said I don't know.
I just wanted to try out thisrecipe.
I just got all these ideas inmy head that I want to do, and
he made food every day.
Was he a good cook, very goodcook, very good, so good?
I had lost my job.
I was without a job for threemonths.
Three months, no income comingin, no money to spend on food

(01:22:15):
during the vid this was notdoing the vid.
This was not doing that evilawful time.
This was before that, believeit or not.
Oh, for three months straight Ididn't have no money to spend
on food.
Three months straight he cookedevery day.
I gained 12 pounds in threemonths.
How you do that with no job andno income?

Speaker 1 (01:22:38):
gain, weight because you're not gain weight that's
easy to do if you're not working.
I also.
I shouldn't have been eating.

Speaker 2 (01:22:46):
Yeah, eating every day, that's my point I was
eating every day.
I should not have been eating.
I was eating every day.
I gained 12 pounds in threemonths.

Speaker 1 (01:22:54):
At any point did he ever tell you to get another job
?

Speaker 2 (01:22:58):
What do you mean?
Did my roommate tell me?

Speaker 1 (01:22:59):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:23:00):
No, but he knew I was looking.
Yeah, no, but he knew I waslooking.
Oh, okay.

Speaker 1 (01:23:03):
He knew I was looking For another job.
But the thing is Are you stilllooking for a job?

Speaker 2 (01:23:07):
The thing is, I never asked him hey, I'm hungry, I
need something to eat.

Speaker 1 (01:23:11):
Yeah, he just did it.

Speaker 2 (01:23:12):
He just did it.
He said that he had the feelingthat he just wanted to do it
and so, all summer long, that'swhat he did he just cooked.

Speaker 1 (01:23:18):
Well, cooking for people is a really nice thing to
do.
Yes, it is.
I was going to.
I mean, like a better word isfulfilling.
It's a fulfilling thing to do,it is.

Speaker 2 (01:23:29):
I personally love to cook for other people when
people come over, but I didn'texpect that from him.

Speaker 1 (01:23:35):
And you were a freeloader for three months.
I was, I was a freeloader.

Speaker 2 (01:23:40):
I was praying, I was crying.
Lord, give me a job, dosomething, because I cannot sit
on this couch another day.
Looking for a job became afull-time job.

Speaker 1 (01:23:49):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:23:51):
It was crazy.

Speaker 1 (01:23:54):
And.

Speaker 2 (01:23:56):
I ate every day.

Speaker 1 (01:23:56):
What kind of stuff did he cook Everything?

Speaker 2 (01:24:00):
Pot roast, pulled pork Ribs oh man, a brats we had
.
Sounds like you were unemployedduring the summer, man, when I
tell you, yes, I was unemployedduring the summers, over the
summer months, okay, and hegrilled or baked every day, and

(01:24:21):
all I did was help him set upthe plates and stuff.
All I did was hand him thebarbecue sauce when he asked for
it, so that's all I needed todo.
But the point is, god will takecare of you.
Yeah, yeah, god will take careof you, and and and I.
You really don't understand howdeep that is.

(01:24:42):
Until you don't have anything,until your only source is God.
And that's sad, becausesometimes we don't realize that
our only source is God, untilour only source is God.

Speaker 1 (01:24:56):
How do you think that we can recognize that, when
life is going well, that God isour only source?

Speaker 2 (01:25:02):
To not get full of yourself, and for me, paying
tithes is a part that God is ouronly source.

Speaker 1 (01:25:07):
To not get full of yourself.

Speaker 2 (01:25:08):
And for me, paying tithes is a part of that.
Yeah, it's recognizing.
Yes, faith without works isdead.
I believe in putting in workand I do work, but just because
you work doesn't mean that youare entitled to anything, and
that is our American kind ofthought.
If I work, I deserve.

(01:25:29):
You don't deserve good healthbecause you got a job, that's
true.
You don't deserve to be eatingsteak and eggs every morning
because you work.
At the end of the day, when weget to a point where we think
that we have everything that wehave because we work, because of
our own ability, god will showyou exactly who's God.

(01:25:53):
I fear the person, or more like, fear for them, for that person
who is so confident in theirown intelligence and ambition
and ways and plans that theythink that they only exist for
their ambitions and their plansand their ways.

(01:26:14):
Boy, when God wake you up, it'sgoing to be a very rude
awakening.

Speaker 1 (01:26:22):
Yeah, well, it says.
I just read it in Luke Jesus istalking about how, if you're
it's also in Proverbs but he'salso talking about how, if
you're going to like the King'shouse, you want to sit away from
him so that he brings you up,instead of sitting right next to
him and you get humbled.
Because if you, if you humbleyourself, you'll be exalted.

(01:26:45):
But if you exalt yourself, youwill be humbled.

Speaker 2 (01:26:48):
Yes, that's exactly it.
We don't stay humble with Godof all people.
We don't stay humble.
Yeah, it's true, and I'm guiltyof it.
I'm guilty of it.
There have been times in mylife where God has had to humble
me because I got so full ofmyself, I got so confident in my

(01:27:09):
own intellect, I got soconfident in my own ambition.
I'm born and raised in Detroit.
Hustle culture that's what wedo, right, we go make a way, we
go hustle, we go get it done.
Okay, great.
But if it's all up to you, thenat what point do you need God?

(01:27:34):
Right, and God will show youexactly how.
Your hustle culture meansabsolutely nothing.
That, at the end of the day,he's still in control and every
knee go bow.
It's only a matter of when, butit's never a matter of if Every
knee's going go bow.
It's only a matter of when, butit's never a matter of if Every
knee's going to bow Right on,All right.

Speaker 1 (01:27:53):
Well, it's getting a little late you know, for us.
We're old, it's 820.

Speaker 2 (01:27:58):
Oh, you know I'm old, it's my bedtime.

Speaker 1 (01:28:00):
Right.
So thank you for coming ontelling the stories, having the
discussion, Of course.

Speaker 2 (01:28:08):
Good, as always, anytime.

Speaker 1 (01:28:10):
And everybody else.
Thanks for listening and have ablessed week.
Yes,

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