December 19, 2024 • 20 mins
What would you do if you found yourself facing a life-altering diagnosis? Join me, Pete Van Ward, as I recount my personal battle with cancer, from the harrowing experience of undergoing major surgery to the relief and joy of being declared cancer-free. My journey has been incredibly challenging, but also deeply rewarding, particularly through creative collaborations like the Instagram Reels project with filmmaker Martin Zavala. Together, we aim to shed light on the daily lives of cancer warriors and spread hope to anyone impacted by this disease. Discover how these stories, shared on my Instagram, might just offer the inspiration you need.
I also delve into the crucial role of spiritual support in the cancer journey. Explore two new initiatives designed to provide this support: The Healing Chronicle newsletter and an upcoming pastoral care platform. These resources offer a blend of soul care advice, inspirational stories, and personalized spiritual guidance through teaching videos and discussion groups. Plus, don’t miss out on a special Christmas offer featuring my devotional collection, crafted to bring encouragement and reflection through daily pocket prayers.
Finally, get a sneak peek into the upcoming season of Sidewalk Conversations. With a diverse lineup of guests, including a man whose near-death experience sparked a profound spiritual awakening and my brother, whose faith journey as an engineer will captivate you, the new season promises to be deeply engaging. Reflecting on the spiritual essence of Christmas, I share my transformation from skepticism to belief, inviting you to explore the holiday’s deeper significance. Tune in across various platforms like Facebook, YouTube, Google Play, iTunes, and Spotify for these compelling stories and more.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Yeah, we have so much to cover today.
I hope we have enough.
I hope people hang with usbecause it's really going to be
good.
I really think it's going to begood.
Of course, I'm a bit biased,because I know where we're
headed.
All right, thank you forjoining us for another Sidewalk
Conversation.
My name is Pete Van Ward and Iam here with you solo today,
(00:21):
other than my great technicianover here behind the camera,
preston.
One day we're going to pull himout.
One day we're going to get himin front of the camera because
he's a smart kid as well.
Can I still call you a kid?
I can still call you a kid.
I can rent a car now.
You can rent a car now.
All right, good.
So the reason I wanted to do anindividualized program for
(00:44):
today is because there are somany things I want to catch you
up on and we have some thingsthat we have in the works.
There are some projects that Iwant to let you know about, some
future interviews that I'mparticularly excited about, and
I know that some of you havebeen like texting me and private
messaging me and saying, hey,give us an update on kind of
(01:06):
what's happening in your world,and so that's what I would like
to do today.
And for many of you, you knowthat I've been in this battle
with cancer now for going on sixyears.
This past summer, when we wereout of pocket, I had a pretty
significant surgery.
So I went up to Mayo in May andI had a fairly substantial
(01:29):
surgery.
So they took out my rightkidney, they took out my ureter,
they took out suspicious lymphnodes, my prostate, and I now
have a scar from basically hereto the top of my belt buckle.
I mean it's a pretty like 15inch scar.
So I feel very like macho whenI go into the hot tub right
(01:51):
these days.
But yeah, so that was prettyintense.
I was not feeling all thatgreat this summer and so many of
you are praying for me and I amso grateful because here I am,
six months out from that surgery, and I've already had one
checkup.
I'm having another one comingup here in a few days actually,
(02:14):
and I'll have more informationabout where I'm at and what's
going on.
My biggest concern is with mybladder.
That's where it all started.
Biggest concern is with mybladder.
That's where it all started,and when they took out my kidney
this summer, they said thattumors in the kidney were
seeding the tumors in thebladder, and so I was super
grateful for them to have that.
(02:35):
A discovered that and, in theirminds once they took the kidney
, they said you know what?
We should be now all clear withthe bladder because it's not
going to be not being seededfrom any other organ in your
body.
So, as far as we know, we'recancer free.
My last checkup in September, Iwas cancer free, so that's what
(02:57):
we're still hoping will be thecase when I get out of that
appointment next week.
So pray for me about that andthank you for all the prayers
that have already been prayed.
All right, let me tell you abouta couple things that we've been
working on that I hope thatyou'll consider taking advantage
of and taking a look at.
(03:17):
First of all, I've been workingwith a filmmaker named Martin
Zavala, and he is just adynamite, very talented, skilled
filmmaker and we have beenworking together on a Reels
project on Instagram where weare sharing, basically, a day in
(03:40):
the life of a cancer warrior,and part of what we've been
doing is we wanted to showcasethe challenges that cancer
warriors face, but on top ofthat, actually some of the
things that we do that give ushope, and my hope is that if you
know somebody who's strugglingwith cancer, or if you're
struggling yourself, or ifyou're caring for somebody in
(04:03):
that regard, or if you'restruggling yourself or if you're
caring for somebody in thatregard, I would hope that you
would just check it out, thatyou would stop by Pete Van Ward
on Instagram and just take alook at those videos, maybe even
send they're very short,they're like 45, 50 second
videos and send them to peoplewho you think might be
encouraged by them.
(04:23):
You'll be so impressed by them.
They're super high quality andI think they are the thing I
keep hearing.
I think they are very authentic, real and genuine, and so a lot
of times, that's the hardshipthat cancer warriors face is
that they are wondering ifanybody else gets it, if anybody
(04:44):
else is going to be real aboutthe journey, and that's our
aspiration is to show it as itreally is and provide
encouragement and hope along theway.
So check out Instagram Reels atPete Van Ward.
I think you'll be encouraged.
Which leads me also to anotherproject that we've been working
on.
We have started a newslettercalled the Healing Chronicle,
(05:09):
and one of the things I loveabout the newsletter is that it
provides stories of other cancerwarriors.
So at the front end of thenewsletter I share a story of a
friend, or maybe even someone inthe public sphere, who's been
dealing with cancer.
I share their story and we tryand glean some of the lessons
that we can learn from a storylike that.
(05:30):
And so if you are interested ingetting a newsletter or you
want to send it to somebody,please just email me,
petevanward, at gmailcom, and Iwill make sure that that person
gets on the newsletter list.
In addition to the stories thatwe tell, I have several other
(05:52):
contributors that include thingslike tips on nutrition, soul
care, what to do when you're thecomforter and the caregiver, a
prayer piece, a poetry piece, aworship piece, some reflections
out of my own heart about thejourney.
And I have found people sayregularly man, pete, this is
(06:16):
such a lifeline for me, it's sogood to hear other stories and
then be encouraged in thevarious ways that we try and
encourage others through thatletter and we make that
available without cost.
And so, again, if you knowsomebody and I promise we don't
sell off any names, we don'tforward it to any, we're not
(06:36):
going to try and sell you onothers.
I just it's a way for me tokind of redeem my own journey in
being a pastoral encouragementto others who are finding
themselves in a very similarplace.
And so, again, if you'd likethat newsletter themselves in a
very similar place, and so,again, if you'd like that
newsletter, just email me atpetevanward at gmailcom, and
(07:00):
we'll get you on that list.
One of the things that I'm alsoexcited about is a project that
we hope to launch at the firstof the year, and this is
something that I've been workingon behind the scenes for the
last two months.
It's a platform, and it's goingto be serving as a pastoral
(07:22):
care platform where people canaccess resources that will
provide a more intensive andpersonalized help and support in
the cancer journey personalizedhelp and support in the cancer
journey and so one of the thingsthat I've been thinking about
is like I have this pastoralcalling.
I've been a pastor for over 40years, and so that's my
(07:42):
inclination with any situationthat I'm walking into.
And now the Lord has seen fitto provide me with this cancer
experience.
And I've been asking thequestion since I've been
diagnosed how can I marry thosetwo things together the pastoral
calling and orientation andthis experience with cancer,
(08:02):
because the thing that I'venoticed and I'm sure you've
probably seen it as well thereare literally millions of people
who are being diagnosed everyyear with cancer, some kind of
cancer, and it is now the secondleading cause of death around
the world, and so it issomething that people are having
(08:23):
to process in a prettysignificant way.
And, of course, there are a lotof resources out there.
Of course, you have yourmedical team.
You even have counselors thatcan help you process that.
You have your nutritioniststhat work with you on the health
and fitness side, but one ofthe things I've noticed is that
there are not a lot of resourcesas it relates to the pastoral
(08:45):
or spiritual component, and sothat's the space that I want to
try and fill.
And so we're going to createthis platform and it's going to
kind of live under the umbrellaof the cancer pastor and we're
going to have resources where weare going to provide videos
like five to 10 minute teachingvideos and then have discussion
(09:07):
groups around those videos thatyou can access through the
platform.
Now, there will be a pricepoint for that, because we're
going to be trying to includesome of the greatest minds and
thinkers and pastors types inthat resource, and we want to
engage with you personally.
See, that's one of the things Ithink that's often missing is,
(09:28):
you can often feel, especiallyin the medical world and I don't
mean this in a disparaging way,it's just the reality of it you
can feel rushed in and rushedout.
You can feel like you're just anumber and maybe not going to
get the personalized hey, just,I care about you as a person
type of care, and so that's whatwe're trying to provide through
(09:50):
this platform and you just wantto.
I'll be talking a lot about itover the next few months, but I
just wanted to give you a littleheads up that that's one of the
projects that we're working onthat I am absolutely super
excited about.
I'm also aware that we areright around Christmas and
everybody's thinking aboutChristmas, and I just wanted to
(10:10):
let you know that thisdevotional that I wrote last
year is now available as aspecial for those who may still
be wanting to purchase somethingfor Christmas.
One of the deals that we'redoing is that we're making these
available If you buy three, youget a fourth one free, and many
(10:32):
people have said oh, this is agreat stocking stuffer.
They're $25 each, but if youbuy three for $75, then you'll
get your fourth one for free andyou can put that in your
family's or in your friend'sstocking and it's actually a
great resource to have around.
When you meet people who youknow, you feel sometimes a
(10:53):
prompting to say, hey, I want totry and provide a resource
that'll help you spiritually.
These pocket prayers, they'rejust very short, they're one
paragraph, in fact.
Let me just read one.
This is one from May 31st.
They're every day, so it's apassage Jeremiah 31, 25.
(11:14):
For I have given rest to theweary and joy to the sorrowing.
And then there's a littlereflection piece.
One of the things I mostappreciate about God is his
consistent work of redemption.
It's not just to save us fromour sin, it's about every facet
of our lives.
He's always lifting, restoring,helping, encouraging and
(11:38):
redeeming, and that's the beautyof his presence in my life,
because every day that's exactlywhat I need.
And then there's a pocketprayer at the end of the
reflection Thank you, lord, forbeing my redeemer.
So maybe that's something thatyou want to provide as a gift to
a family member or a friend,and if you want to find this and
(12:03):
purchase it, you can go to thewebsite PeteVanWardcom and
you'll find a place there whereyou can do shopping Also some
other merch there if you want totake advantage, and hope you'll
consider that.
I also want to tell you a littlebit about some of my upcoming
guests.
So we have relaunched this.
We're now in our season threeof Sidewalk Conversations and we
(12:27):
have some great guests that wehave lined up and it's just
really fun to me to kind of meetthese folks in random ways.
So I was at a Christmas partynot long ago and I got into a
conversation with a gentlemanwho was raised Jewish, had a
near-death experience and becamea believer as a result.
(12:50):
And I was talking to him and Iwas like just my jaw was like oh
, what a story.
And I asked him I said, wouldyou be willing to share your
story on a podcast?
So we have him on the schedule.
I've also been kind of tappingon Preston's shoulder.
He's working on a specialproject that is related to poker
(13:13):
stars and if this works out,there's a very interesting guest
that I'm hoping to bring on thepodcast, who is a poker player
and a believer and a black sheepfor sure, and I'm very much
looking forward to having her onthe podcast.
And then my next guest, just ina couple of weeks, is going to
(13:35):
be my brother, who's actuallytraveling to be in town, and I
twisted his arm and I said, john, I would love to have you on my
podcast.
He's an engineer and just areally great guy and he's been
doing engineering in a varietyof ways over his life and I just
think that his story, as wellas his faith journey, will be
(13:57):
really interesting.
Plus, you get to meet mybrother I mean, what could be
better than that?
So he'll be one of our nextguests actually.
So we have some greatconversations coming, and I
would also remind you that younot only find Sidewalk
Conversations on video onFacebook and YouTube.
You can also get an audioversion of our interviews on a
(14:21):
variety of platforms.
You can go to Google Play, youcan go to iTunes, you can go to
Spotify.
We have a wide distribution ofthese interviews and you can
find them on anywhere where youtypically find a podcast under
the moniker SidewalkConversation.
So I hope you look that up.
Great way to pass the time whenyou're sitting in traffic,
(14:43):
especially here in Austin, sotake advantage of that.
I also want to just say aspecial thanks to the people who
have been supporting thispodcast behind the scenes.
So you hear me referencePreston on a regular basis.
He has been with me pretty muchfrom the beginning.
(15:04):
So when we were just a one-stopshop with one camera in a
closet at church, he joined meand he's been with me from the
beginning, and I just want tosay, preston, I love having you
work with me.
You've been a such a blessingand a great support for this
project.
I also want to say thanks to myadministrator, jen.
(15:26):
She is a person who actuallytakes all of the stuff that we
do in the studio packages.
It edits it, adds the intro andoutro and then makes sure that
it gets to all our distributionplaces, and so I want to say a
public thank you to Jen.
And then finally, to Jared, whoowns Pickleball Kingdom.
(15:47):
We did an interview with himthe first interview of this
season, and he's a great guy.
He's made this studio spaceavailable and I'm so
appreciative of the work thathe's done to let us use this
space free of charge.
It's just a blessing.
So thanks, jared.
I want to close with one finalthought about Christmas.
(16:08):
You know, christmas is one ofthose seasons that for some
people is full of great memories, great joy, lots of great
family stuff that goes on, andit's just something that people
very much look forward to andenjoy.
But there are also people whoexperience Christmas and often
(16:30):
find themselves wondering whatis the big deal Like?
Why do we make such a?
You know Like, why do we makesuch a big deal about this story
?
In fact, I remember growing uparound the church and that was
my question.
(16:51):
I mean, I get the fact that welike to have a holiday where we
celebrate family and wecelebrate gift giving, but the
whole religious side of thestory I just never really
understood it because it justseemed a little bit out of sync
with everyday life.
Here we are celebrating thisidea that a child was born in a
manger thousands of years ago,and though it's kind of an
(17:13):
interesting story especially ifyou buy into the whole idea that
this is the Messiah and he cameto earth and such but I could
not make the connection betweenthat historic event and my
everyday life here and now,until I hit my own crisis moment
, until I came to the pointwhere I realized that I needed
(17:37):
more than what I had.
I had made a bunch of foolishdecisions, I was in trouble, I
had been in prison, I had hadall kinds of things that were
going wrong in my life, and Ifinally began to ask the
question could it be a spiritualissue?
Could I be facing a spiritualproblem?
And that's when the story ofChristmas was illuminated to me
(18:00):
in a way that made sense,because the whole story of
Christmas, when you really boilit down, is that what happened
historically is also significantspiritually.
In other words, what Godillustrated in the event of
Christmas, in bringing Christ tothe earth, to come into the
(18:22):
mess of the earth, is alsowhat's true for us in our life
today that that same dispositionexists in the heart of God,
that he is willing to sendChrist into our mess, and he
does that in a very personal way.
And what I discovered in thestory of Christmas is that
(18:45):
Christ can be made alive in ourhearts and, in the same way that
Jesus totally revolutionizedthe world, he can revolutionize
a life, and that's the power ofChristmas.
And so if, in any way, you'refeeling like ah, you know, why
are we doing this?
Do we have to just go throughall the motions of holiday stuff
(19:07):
.
I just want to remind you thatthere is something truly
supernatural behind it all andif you need to know that in a
personal way, it's about openingyour heart and just inviting
him in.
The prayer that I prayed when Iwas in my crisis moment was
very simple Lord, if you're real, would you show yourself to me?
(19:31):
I need something desperately,and he graciously answered that
prayer, and I think he would dothe same for you as well.
So thanks for joining us hereat Sidewalk Conversations.
We're excited about the seasonto come, and so hope you'll
consider continuing to join us,and God bless you and yours this
(19:52):
Christmas.
Yeah, we have so much to cover today.
I hope we have enough.
I hope people hang with usbecause it's really going to be
good.
I really think it's going to begood.
Of course, I'm a bit biased,because I know where we're
headed.
All right, thank you forjoining us for another Sidewalk
Conversation.
My name is Pete Van Ward and Iam here with you solo today,
(00:21):
other than my great technicianover here behind the camera,
preston.
One day we're going to pull himout.
One day we're going to get himin front of the camera because
he's a smart kid as well.
Can I still call you a kid?
I can still call you a kid.
I can rent a car now.
You can rent a car now.
All right, good.
So the reason I wanted to do anindividualized program for
(00:44):
today is because there are somany things I want to catch you
up on and we have some thingsthat we have in the works.
There are some projects that Iwant to let you know about, some
future interviews that I'mparticularly excited about, and
I know that some of you havebeen like texting me and private
messaging me and saying, hey,give us an update on kind of
(01:06):
what's happening in your world,and so that's what I would like
to do today.
And for many of you, you knowthat I've been in this battle
with cancer now for going on sixyears.
This past summer, when we wereout of pocket, I had a pretty
significant surgery.
So I went up to Mayo in May andI had a fairly substantial
(01:29):
surgery.
So they took out my rightkidney, they took out my ureter,
they took out suspicious lymphnodes, my prostate, and I now
have a scar from basically hereto the top of my belt buckle.
I mean it's a pretty like 15inch scar.
So I feel very like macho whenI go into the hot tub right
(01:51):
these days.
But yeah, so that was prettyintense.
I was not feeling all thatgreat this summer and so many of
you are praying for me and I amso grateful because here I am,
six months out from that surgery, and I've already had one
checkup.
I'm having another one comingup here in a few days actually,
(02:14):
and I'll have more informationabout where I'm at and what's
going on.
My biggest concern is with mybladder.
That's where it all started.
Biggest concern is with mybladder.
That's where it all started,and when they took out my kidney
this summer, they said thattumors in the kidney were
seeding the tumors in thebladder, and so I was super
grateful for them to have that.
(02:35):
A discovered that and, in theirminds once they took the kidney
, they said you know what?
We should be now all clear withthe bladder because it's not
going to be not being seededfrom any other organ in your
body.
So, as far as we know, we'recancer free.
My last checkup in September, Iwas cancer free, so that's what
(02:57):
we're still hoping will be thecase when I get out of that
appointment next week.
So pray for me about that andthank you for all the prayers
that have already been prayed.
All right, let me tell you abouta couple things that we've been
working on that I hope thatyou'll consider taking advantage
of and taking a look at.
(03:17):
First of all, I've been workingwith a filmmaker named Martin
Zavala, and he is just adynamite, very talented, skilled
filmmaker and we have beenworking together on a Reels
project on Instagram where weare sharing, basically, a day in
(03:40):
the life of a cancer warrior,and part of what we've been
doing is we wanted to showcasethe challenges that cancer
warriors face, but on top ofthat, actually some of the
things that we do that give ushope, and my hope is that if you
know somebody who's strugglingwith cancer, or if you're
struggling yourself, or ifyou're caring for somebody in
(04:03):
that regard, or if you'restruggling yourself or if you're
caring for somebody in thatregard, I would hope that you
would just check it out, thatyou would stop by Pete Van Ward
on Instagram and just take alook at those videos, maybe even
send they're very short,they're like 45, 50 second
videos and send them to peoplewho you think might be
encouraged by them.
(04:23):
You'll be so impressed by them.
They're super high quality andI think they are the thing I
keep hearing.
I think they are very authentic, real and genuine, and so a lot
of times, that's the hardshipthat cancer warriors face is
that they are wondering ifanybody else gets it, if anybody
(04:44):
else is going to be real aboutthe journey, and that's our
aspiration is to show it as itreally is and provide
encouragement and hope along theway.
So check out Instagram Reels atPete Van Ward.
I think you'll be encouraged.
Which leads me also to anotherproject that we've been working
on.
We have started a newslettercalled the Healing Chronicle,
(05:09):
and one of the things I loveabout the newsletter is that it
provides stories of other cancerwarriors.
So at the front end of thenewsletter I share a story of a
friend, or maybe even someone inthe public sphere, who's been
dealing with cancer.
I share their story and we tryand glean some of the lessons
that we can learn from a storylike that.
(05:30):
And so if you are interested ingetting a newsletter or you
want to send it to somebody,please just email me,
petevanward, at gmailcom, and Iwill make sure that that person
gets on the newsletter list.
In addition to the stories thatwe tell, I have several other
(05:52):
contributors that include thingslike tips on nutrition, soul
care, what to do when you're thecomforter and the caregiver, a
prayer piece, a poetry piece, aworship piece, some reflections
out of my own heart about thejourney.
And I have found people sayregularly man, pete, this is
(06:16):
such a lifeline for me, it's sogood to hear other stories and
then be encouraged in thevarious ways that we try and
encourage others through thatletter and we make that
available without cost.
And so, again, if you knowsomebody and I promise we don't
sell off any names, we don'tforward it to any, we're not
(06:36):
going to try and sell you onothers.
I just it's a way for me tokind of redeem my own journey in
being a pastoral encouragementto others who are finding
themselves in a very similarplace.
And so, again, if you'd likethat newsletter themselves in a
very similar place, and so,again, if you'd like that
newsletter, just email me atpetevanward at gmailcom, and
(07:00):
we'll get you on that list.
One of the things that I'm alsoexcited about is a project that
we hope to launch at the firstof the year, and this is
something that I've been workingon behind the scenes for the
last two months.
It's a platform, and it's goingto be serving as a pastoral
(07:22):
care platform where people canaccess resources that will
provide a more intensive andpersonalized help and support in
the cancer journey personalizedhelp and support in the cancer
journey and so one of the thingsthat I've been thinking about
is like I have this pastoralcalling.
I've been a pastor for over 40years, and so that's my
(07:42):
inclination with any situationthat I'm walking into.
And now the Lord has seen fitto provide me with this cancer
experience.
And I've been asking thequestion since I've been
diagnosed how can I marry thosetwo things together the pastoral
calling and orientation andthis experience with cancer,
(08:02):
because the thing that I'venoticed and I'm sure you've
probably seen it as well thereare literally millions of people
who are being diagnosed everyyear with cancer, some kind of
cancer, and it is now the secondleading cause of death around
the world, and so it issomething that people are having
(08:23):
to process in a prettysignificant way.
And, of course, there are a lotof resources out there.
Of course, you have yourmedical team.
You even have counselors thatcan help you process that.
You have your nutritioniststhat work with you on the health
and fitness side, but one ofthe things I've noticed is that
there are not a lot of resourcesas it relates to the pastoral
(08:45):
or spiritual component, and sothat's the space that I want to
try and fill.
And so we're going to createthis platform and it's going to
kind of live under the umbrellaof the cancer pastor and we're
going to have resources where weare going to provide videos
like five to 10 minute teachingvideos and then have discussion
(09:07):
groups around those videos thatyou can access through the
platform.
Now, there will be a pricepoint for that, because we're
going to be trying to includesome of the greatest minds and
thinkers and pastors types inthat resource, and we want to
engage with you personally.
See, that's one of the things Ithink that's often missing is,
(09:28):
you can often feel, especiallyin the medical world and I don't
mean this in a disparaging way,it's just the reality of it you
can feel rushed in and rushedout.
You can feel like you're just anumber and maybe not going to
get the personalized hey, just,I care about you as a person
type of care, and so that's whatwe're trying to provide through
(09:50):
this platform and you just wantto.
I'll be talking a lot about itover the next few months, but I
just wanted to give you a littleheads up that that's one of the
projects that we're working onthat I am absolutely super
excited about.
I'm also aware that we areright around Christmas and
everybody's thinking aboutChristmas, and I just wanted to
(10:10):
let you know that thisdevotional that I wrote last
year is now available as aspecial for those who may still
be wanting to purchase somethingfor Christmas.
One of the deals that we'redoing is that we're making these
available If you buy three, youget a fourth one free, and many
(10:32):
people have said oh, this is agreat stocking stuffer.
They're $25 each, but if youbuy three for $75, then you'll
get your fourth one for free andyou can put that in your
family's or in your friend'sstocking and it's actually a
great resource to have around.
When you meet people who youknow, you feel sometimes a
(10:53):
prompting to say, hey, I want totry and provide a resource
that'll help you spiritually.
These pocket prayers, they'rejust very short, they're one
paragraph, in fact.
Let me just read one.
This is one from May 31st.
They're every day, so it's apassage Jeremiah 31, 25.
(11:14):
For I have given rest to theweary and joy to the sorrowing.
And then there's a littlereflection piece.
One of the things I mostappreciate about God is his
consistent work of redemption.
It's not just to save us fromour sin, it's about every facet
of our lives.
He's always lifting, restoring,helping, encouraging and
(11:38):
redeeming, and that's the beautyof his presence in my life,
because every day that's exactlywhat I need.
And then there's a pocketprayer at the end of the
reflection Thank you, lord, forbeing my redeemer.
So maybe that's something thatyou want to provide as a gift to
a family member or a friend,and if you want to find this and
(12:03):
purchase it, you can go to thewebsite PeteVanWardcom and
you'll find a place there whereyou can do shopping Also some
other merch there if you want totake advantage, and hope you'll
consider that.
I also want to tell you a littlebit about some of my upcoming
guests.
So we have relaunched this.
We're now in our season threeof Sidewalk Conversations and we
(12:27):
have some great guests that wehave lined up and it's just
really fun to me to kind of meetthese folks in random ways.
So I was at a Christmas partynot long ago and I got into a
conversation with a gentlemanwho was raised Jewish, had a
near-death experience and becamea believer as a result.
(12:50):
And I was talking to him and Iwas like just my jaw was like oh
, what a story.
And I asked him I said, wouldyou be willing to share your
story on a podcast?
So we have him on the schedule.
I've also been kind of tappingon Preston's shoulder.
He's working on a specialproject that is related to poker
(13:13):
stars and if this works out,there's a very interesting guest
that I'm hoping to bring on thepodcast, who is a poker player
and a believer and a black sheepfor sure, and I'm very much
looking forward to having her onthe podcast.
And then my next guest, just ina couple of weeks, is going to
(13:35):
be my brother, who's actuallytraveling to be in town, and I
twisted his arm and I said, john, I would love to have you on my
podcast.
He's an engineer and just areally great guy and he's been
doing engineering in a varietyof ways over his life and I just
think that his story, as wellas his faith journey, will be
(13:57):
really interesting.
Plus, you get to meet mybrother I mean, what could be
better than that?
So he'll be one of our nextguests actually.
So we have some greatconversations coming, and I
would also remind you that younot only find Sidewalk
Conversations on video onFacebook and YouTube.
You can also get an audioversion of our interviews on a
(14:21):
variety of platforms.
You can go to Google Play, youcan go to iTunes, you can go to
Spotify.
We have a wide distribution ofthese interviews and you can
find them on anywhere where youtypically find a podcast under
the moniker SidewalkConversation.
So I hope you look that up.
Great way to pass the time whenyou're sitting in traffic,
(14:43):
especially here in Austin, sotake advantage of that.
I also want to just say aspecial thanks to the people who
have been supporting thispodcast behind the scenes.
So you hear me referencePreston on a regular basis.
He has been with me pretty muchfrom the beginning.
(15:04):
So when we were just a one-stopshop with one camera in a
closet at church, he joined meand he's been with me from the
beginning, and I just want tosay, preston, I love having you
work with me.
You've been a such a blessingand a great support for this
project.
I also want to say thanks to myadministrator, jen.
(15:26):
She is a person who actuallytakes all of the stuff that we
do in the studio packages.
It edits it, adds the intro andoutro and then makes sure that
it gets to all our distributionplaces, and so I want to say a
public thank you to Jen.
And then finally, to Jared, whoowns Pickleball Kingdom.
(15:47):
We did an interview with himthe first interview of this
season, and he's a great guy.
He's made this studio spaceavailable and I'm so
appreciative of the work thathe's done to let us use this
space free of charge.
It's just a blessing.
So thanks, jared.
I want to close with one finalthought about Christmas.
(16:08):
You know, christmas is one ofthose seasons that for some
people is full of great memories, great joy, lots of great
family stuff that goes on, andit's just something that people
very much look forward to andenjoy.
But there are also people whoexperience Christmas and often
(16:30):
find themselves wondering whatis the big deal Like?
Why do we make such a?
You know Like, why do we makesuch a big deal about this story
?
In fact, I remember growing uparound the church and that was
my question.
(16:51):
I mean, I get the fact that welike to have a holiday where we
celebrate family and wecelebrate gift giving, but the
whole religious side of thestory I just never really
understood it because it justseemed a little bit out of sync
with everyday life.
Here we are celebrating thisidea that a child was born in a
manger thousands of years ago,and though it's kind of an
(17:13):
interesting story especially ifyou buy into the whole idea that
this is the Messiah and he cameto earth and such but I could
not make the connection betweenthat historic event and my
everyday life here and now,until I hit my own crisis moment
, until I came to the pointwhere I realized that I needed
(17:37):
more than what I had.
I had made a bunch of foolishdecisions, I was in trouble, I
had been in prison, I had hadall kinds of things that were
going wrong in my life, and Ifinally began to ask the
question could it be a spiritualissue?
Could I be facing a spiritualproblem?
And that's when the story ofChristmas was illuminated to me
(18:00):
in a way that made sense,because the whole story of
Christmas, when you really boilit down, is that what happened
historically is also significantspiritually.
In other words, what Godillustrated in the event of
Christmas, in bringing Christ tothe earth, to come into the
(18:22):
mess of the earth, is alsowhat's true for us in our life
today that that same dispositionexists in the heart of God,
that he is willing to sendChrist into our mess, and he
does that in a very personal way.
And what I discovered in thestory of Christmas is that
(18:45):
Christ can be made alive in ourhearts and, in the same way that
Jesus totally revolutionizedthe world, he can revolutionize
a life, and that's the power ofChristmas.
And so if, in any way, you'refeeling like ah, you know, why
are we doing this?
Do we have to just go throughall the motions of holiday stuff
(19:07):
.
I just want to remind you thatthere is something truly
supernatural behind it all andif you need to know that in a
personal way, it's about openingyour heart and just inviting
him in.
The prayer that I prayed when Iwas in my crisis moment was
very simple Lord, if you're real, would you show yourself to me?
(19:31):
I need something desperately,and he graciously answered that
prayer, and I think he would dothe same for you as well.
So thanks for joining us hereat Sidewalk Conversations.
We're excited about the seasonto come, and so hope you'll
consider continuing to join us,and God bless you and yours this
(19:52):
Christmas.
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