July 26, 2023 • 57 mins
Get ready to embark on a real-life journey of transformation and faith with our inspiring guest, Tom Crandall. An integral part of the Bethel Young Saints group, Tom relates his powerful narrative of finding truth and purpose amidst struggles and bad choices. From his life-defining encounter with God's love to the radical shift in his life's trajectory, Tom's story will leave you awestruck.
We dig into some deep conversations with Tom, exploring the significance of creating a dwelling for God's presence at home. You'll hear about Tom's astounding feat of leading 125 students to Christ using a book gifted by a campus minister. Listen to how a divine moment in a school full of children led to an overwhelming rush of over 1,300 young souls willingly committing their lives to Jesus Christ. We also explore the crucial role of faith in nurturing the next generation and how we, as parents, can step up our game to effectively guide them in their spiritual journey.
As we progress, we delve into the profound impact of fatherhood and the transformative power of God's love. Hear from an orphan who felt the warmth of God's love early in his life and witness the potential of a fatherless generation to be transformed by God's power. We also touch upon the indispensable role of speaking life into our children and the significance of authenticity in reaching out to the next generation. As we wrap up, we discuss Tom's book, 'Becoming a Man', highlighting the power of a father's love and the importance of guiding our children to become warriors who can change the world.
Ready to be the parent or grandparent you’ve always dreamed of becoming? Subscribe and Tune into my podcast each week, and check out my resources, heartfelt encouragement, and practical tools to help you make a lasting impact on the ones you love most. Click this link below:
https://www.thefatherdifference.com/links
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
And so I think, as mothers and fathers I mean I
think we have we're connected toheaven, man we have an
obligation to see what theFather sees and declare that
over this generation and seewhat they see People are looking
for.
Who am I, what's my value andwhat's my dreams?
And the Father imparts allthose things.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Welcome to the man of Honor podcast, where we help
men just like you win thebiggest game of all in life love
and family.
Your host, ed McGlassen, hasbeen coaching and speaking to
men for the last 40 years in 14countries.
He's a five-year veteran of theNFL, a pastor, life coach,
(00:41):
best-selling author, and hasbeen married for over 40 years,
blessed with five adult children, 10 grandkids, with three more
on the way.
And now here's Ed.
Speaker 3 (00:54):
Well, welcome to the man of Honor podcast, and I got
another young squire.
He's a younger than me, buthe's one of those If you follow
him at all and you've heard himpreach and lead.
He's one of these youngfirebrands that's become one of
the spiritual fathers of thisnext generation of young people
(01:18):
that we need so desperatelyright now, and God is doing
something with him, and so I'mjust so honored today to have
Tom Crandall.
He's part of a Bethel YoungSaints group that's one of the.
That's your Instagram, right?
Speaker 1 (01:35):
That's one of.
It's one of them.
Yeah, I'm on the seniorleadership team at Bethel.
I oversee evangelism and youngsaints and so yeah, you oversee
evangelism.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
You just, you know, clean the nets.
You just make sure the nets aregetting out there for the kids.
I'm just just toss them Justkeep tossing, yeah you have the
same hard idea which I love somuch in what you do.
Speaker 2 (01:57):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:58):
So tell us a little bit before we get into kind of
what you're doing in ministry.
How did Tom get this to thisplace where the father has kind
of been shaping you or theseyoung people?
Tell me about how you met him.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
Yeah, well, I was born and raised in Salt Lake
City, Utah, and no, I was neverMormon and I only have one wife.
Just get that out of the way.
Yeah, I preach all over andI'll introduce myself and say
that, and I can just feel thecrowd kind of get tense and so
(02:34):
I'll just break it up.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
Like how can you have two they?
Have like 10 women working onyou.
You come home as a man.
How do you survive that?
Oh?
Speaker 1 (02:46):
I just don't know.
Speaker 3 (02:47):
I think what they?
They just keep asking wiveshoping to get one is not going
to nag them off the top.
Speaker 1 (02:54):
Yeah, I know they're going to just don't work, man.
So yeah, born and raised inSalt Lake, I knew God as a kid,
growing up in a Christian home,and then started hanging out
with the wrong friends junior,high school and high school.
You know the old saying goesshow me your friends and I'll
show you your future.
(03:14):
Yeah, and started hanging outwith the wrong kids and I just
started making choices that werecontrary to my faith, walked
away from God and then painstarted punching me in the face
around 17, 18 years old, youknow, and I began to just cry
out like say God, if you'rereally want to know you?
And long story short, I beganto read the Bible for myself.
(03:36):
I was being challenged in myfaith by the Mormon culture.
I never believed even for asecond that Mormonism was the
way, because I could just seeall the lies and all the stuff.
Long story short, I began tohave these encounters with God
in my living room, reading theBible.
And then one Sunday night, I'mat church and my dad, my dad.
(03:58):
I looked at my dad and somebodypreached a message.
Couldn't tell you what theysaid, but at the end they said
if you want more of God, comedown here and I said to my dad
I'm going to go down there.
So I went up front, I sat downon my butt and I prayed this
really deep, theologicallyimpressive prayer.
Ready, I said.
I said God, I'm here, and thepresence of God just came and
(04:23):
overshadowed me and I felt, Ifelt like liquid love go right
through me and he just said hesaid three words I'm cleansing
you.
And I began to weep.
I had snot hanging from my faceto the floor.
It was an absolute mess, justencountering the love of the
(04:44):
Father.
He wasn't throwing my sin in myface, he wasn't beating me, he
was just.
I felt known and loved and holy.
I got up light man, I wasdifferent and changed my life
and then set me on a trajectoryof just.
I just want to see other peoplecome to know God like I just
(05:04):
encountered.
Speaker 3 (05:05):
Well, you get.
You know, your story is so, soclose to mine.
I had an injury in college anddorm room in the dark with ice
packs on my knee and the skyknocks on my door and he goes
you got everything going for you, but you lack one thing.
And I said what's that?
He said Jesus Christ, wow.
(05:26):
And I looked at him and I saidwhat's he going to do for me
here, pointing at my ice packs,like where's God?
I'm not a church kid at all,yeah.
And he didn't get into aconversation.
He just opened his Bible andread for God, so loved the world
.
(05:47):
And when I heard the word of Godfor the first time in my life,
when I heard that God loved me,he gave his only son, that
whoever believes in him, faithcomes by hearing yeah, I
actually say this in mytestimony I felt like a
waterfall of liquid love pouredout of heaven all over me and I
(06:10):
had snot coming out of my ears.
I mean I had not even lost afootball game yet.
I mean I was done.
And the next I mean I was just.
And then he looks at me he's aPresbyterian campus minister who
didn't really believe inhealing, but he puts his hand on
(06:31):
my ice bag and goes he'll addme in Jesus name.
Well, the next morning I wakeup.
I felt like it.
I just something's different.
I know one verse in the Biblewell pray, to simple prayer, and
receive Christ in my life.
And so I go.
You know, I call him on thephone and I go okay, um, like a
(06:56):
bill.
Oh, by the way, he goes, you'renot in the hospital.
I go.
No, god healed my knee.
I got healed what?
No no we got one and I said whatdo I do with my life?
What's my first step?
I don't even have a book.
He goes.
You remember that little book Igave you from Bill Bright, the
(07:17):
Four Spiritual Laws?
Grab it, go into the quad, findsomebody and read it to him and
leave him to Jesus.
That's what he tells me.
Wow, I'm not even like hoursold, I'm fresh baked, right.
Yeah, the book went to aHardee's restaurant in Young
South State University, lookedaround, saw this really cute
(07:40):
girl that's in my fifths classand I figured well, why would
God want to say a cute?
Speaker 1 (07:45):
one, why not her?
Why not her?
Speaker 3 (07:49):
You know.
And I said hey, have you heardof the First Spiritual Laws?
She goes what are those?
I was so nervous that I justjumped over and I started
reading it.
I didn't even look up Second,third, fourth, tenth, fifteenth
page.
If you'd like to receive Jesusas your Savior, pray this prayer
, dear Jesus.
And I heard dear Jesus.
(08:09):
And I looked up and she'sweeping.
Wow, see, evangelism iscreating a moment for Jesus to
show up in that person's life.
And when he shows up, bam shereceives Christ.
I almost wanted to do a chestbump with her, but get her high
(08:32):
five.
I called Bill and I said hey,bill, bill, I you know, I got a
girl.
You got a.
What A girl.
No, eddie, I want you to gopray for something.
No, no, no, I did the bookthing.
You let somebody to cry.
Some would yeah, god, he letsome nice for that year ahead of
(08:54):
125 students that I got to leadthe Christ with that little
book on my university and I washooked.
Speaker 1 (09:04):
That's amazing.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
And it's like well, why, why shouldn't I?
Speaker 1 (09:08):
Right yeah.
Speaker 3 (09:10):
Same.
How are you?
Yeah, so you have this withJesus at this new beginning.
What happened next?
Speaker 1 (09:19):
I, just I started plugging into my youth group and
I started serving.
I started serving at my church,I bought a guitar, I started
worshiping in my room and just Idid the same thing.
Speaker 3 (09:32):
I got it.
I got a guitar, I startedworshiping.
Go ahead, me and you.
Yeah, we're like twins.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
Come on, I know man, I got lost in the presence in my
room and the place that used tobe a den of sin was now a
habitation for the presence ofGod.
Speaker 3 (09:49):
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord.
Speaker 1 (09:50):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I tell kids all the time I'mlike go to your room.
Here's what I did Annoy yourbed with oil.
Speaker 3 (09:57):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (09:58):
And each part of your door, your room, and just make
a declaration that this placebelongs to God Absolutely.
And when I did that, all of thesexual nasty dreams at night
they stopped and my room becamea habitation for the presence of
God.
Speaker 3 (10:15):
And it took me a little longer on that part.
Yeah, I had, I, just one ofthese other girl in my fifth
year's class why don't we go toyour room to study?
And we kind of jumped on ourbed and, you know, some of our
clothes weren't on all the wayand I was pretty jumpy and I,
yeah my face.
(10:36):
I jumped on my bed, my Bible wason my pillow and I was, and I
went, oh, okay.
And so there I went in mybirthday suit with her letter to
find right there, so, and Isaid to her we have testimony
time, I'm never calling on youand our fellowship.
(11:03):
And so, a year later, I thinkI'm good, I'm good.
And all of a sudden, a yearlater, bill goes oh, by the way,
you, oh Pat, you haven't sharedyour story.
She is like Red is a V.
I'm like I think I got to getthe science.
Okay, I won't tell you who itis, but me and this guy got
(11:32):
naked.
He jumped on the bed, hit hisface on his Bible, fell guilty,
and then I received Jesus.
I prayed to receive Jesus withno clothes on and the whole room
looked over at me.
I was cured, I was cured.
(11:53):
It's like I got you God.
Speaker 1 (11:59):
You're toast.
Speaker 3 (12:02):
So, anyway, you have this encounter with the Lord,
you've got a holy habitation now.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
Yeah, I'm serving my youth group, and then I just
wanted to go.
I just wanted to help peoplefind Christ, I just wanted to.
That was just my desire.
And so everywhere I'd go, Ijust began to witness this
everywhere.
And then this revival broke outin Pensacola Florida.
Long story short, heard aboutit, my pastors went down there.
(12:28):
They came back and said they'restarting a school ministry.
And I knew in my heart, that'swhere I'm going.
And so, ty, everything lined upand in 1997, fall of 97, I
moved to Pensacola, florida.
I went to the BrownsvilleRevival School of Ministry and
spent four semesters there, soalmost two years, and just got
marked deeply for revival.
Speaker 3 (12:50):
Yeah, I just got the move where you just sort of you
check into that where thepresence of the Lord in Jesus
shows up on the earth.
Speaker 1 (13:01):
Yeah, and it was just .
Ever since then there's been noplan B.
And I began to have dreams Ididn't know, just desires, like
I could see myself being a youthevangelist.
And so I began to dream aboutthat and met my wife.
We got married September 11th2001.
(13:23):
No, sorry, 1999.
Yeah 1999, close there and Ibecame a youth pastor around
2002.
And just began to reach kidsand I did full-time youth
ministry for just under 20 yearsright around 20 years and just
(13:44):
reaching kids.
And now I started a ministrycalled One Hope for America just
a couple of years ago year anda half ago yeah, I will.
We're partnering with churchesall across America, mainly right
now on the West Coast InOrville.
In about a month we're gonna godown there.
There's about 40 pastors andleaders that have come together,
that are standing together fortheir city.
(14:06):
So we rented the conventioncenter.
We're gonna do a three-daycrusade.
But what I'm excited about iswe're gonna be doing school
assemblies in the high school,in one of the high schools.
I'm trying to get into theother schools where we just you
know I'm not the power team,okay, but we're gonna go in
there and talk about.
I started something calledDream your Dream,
dreamyourdreamorg, which isschool assembly.
(14:28):
You wanna teach kids how todream and it doesn't matter your
background, current situation,what race you are, everybody can
dream and we're gonna go in andteach kids how to persevere,
walk through adversity and letthat adversity shape where you
are going toward your dreams.
So we're gonna do this schoolassemblies, but then pass out
(14:50):
raffle tickets to the wholeschool and invite the whole
school to the crusade meetingsat night where we get to preach
the gospel.
Speaker 3 (14:58):
Well, you know, there's another parallel when I
was playing football in the offseason, I would go to high
schools, share my testimony andhave altar calls.
Yeah, come on, we saw between25 and 30,000 kids in Florida
and Texas get saved over aboutsix weeks in assembly.
(15:19):
Oh my gosh that's amazing.
And it was.
And I wanna tell you this one Idon't share it very often, but
we were in Austin cause it'sright along, you know what
you're talking about.
And the second part of Malachisays he's gonna turn the hearts
of children back to the father.
Speaker 1 (15:38):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:40):
And that's starting to happen.
It's starting to bust up right,that's awesome.
As kids and I'm in this, youknow I got invited to this high
school and they said there's alot of problems here, a lot of
racism, a lot of problems.
So they brought me into thisgymnasium and the whole upper
deck of gymnasium are kids andthere were teachers with
(16:01):
yardsticks, kind of smackingkids to get them to mind.
Then an empty bleacher.
And then there was me there witha friend of mine who's a guitar
player and he lead in a fewworship songs and so as he sits
down, I'm standing there andgetting ready to introduce me.
I hear his day.
(16:23):
Let me do it this time.
So I looked over at Milton andMilton used to open Willie
Nelson been a long-term friendof mine and I said what do you
wanna do?
He goes I didn't talk to you.
I go yes, you did.
Come on, man, no mess with me,what do you wanna do?
So I'm sitting there, the guy'sstill introducing me, and he
(16:46):
goes.
I hear it again.
Let me do it this time.
And I look back at him and I gowait, what do you wanna do?
He said maybe it's the Lord.
Then it strikes me and I said,lord, what do you wanna do?
I wanna save all these kids.
What do you want me to do?
Nothing.
(17:06):
So I stood up there at thelittle podium do I share?
Do I do anything?
And I saw something and thekids were thinking I was afraid
of talking.
So they started making fun ofme.
(17:26):
And I looked and I sawsomething.
It started on the ceiling andit looked like what it did in my
house when I burned a TV dinnerin a middle of the night not
too long and it started todescend and it was just almost
like smoke.
(17:47):
But now I know it was the gloryof the Lord and it's the
attention on the children.
They snapped to attention and Isaid at the end I said, if
you've never fully given yourlife to Jesus Christ, come.
And it was a stampede.
They were running and they werebeing delivered, they were
(18:10):
crying, they were shaking andI'm just, I'd never seen
anything like this.
I'm just looking and then allof a sudden I felt this thing
around my leg and it was theprincipal.
And the principal was huggingmy leg and he was confessing
that he was having an adulterousrelationship and I'm like did
(18:30):
you get off my leg?
I wanna hear all this.
You know, and I had no grid andthere's TV cameras there and
they're starting to feel they go.
What's going on?
I go, it's Jesus.
It's the best we could tell.
And, counting up, we had 1,300kids out of 15,.
(18:53):
1,600 kids give their life toChrist that day.
Speaker 1 (18:57):
Unbelievable.
Speaker 3 (18:58):
And remember leaving that and just and the Lord said
the time is coming or you'regonna see this.
That's amazing when he'ssovereignly Moving and they've
counted, and I was gonna talk toyou about this.
I mean, the culture thinksthey're holding up their arms
(19:19):
going we got them, we're gonnawrite woke under their name.
We're gonna write any identitywe want under name.
We're gonna become their daddy.
But they don't know that kidshave been marked by God and the
very ones they're trying to wokeout are waking up.
(19:42):
The fire of God is gonna be intheir belly, that's right, and
they're gonna rock the world,that's right, that's awesome.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
Wow, preach the gospel in school, that's amazing
.
Yeah, I mean now we can't dothat, we have to.
Speaker 3 (20:03):
Well, you gotta have the right principle.
I even had a Jewish high schoolwho heard about that event in
Texas, invite me and falselythinking I was just gonna do a
motivational speech.
And when I walked on the stage,all these Jewish mothers showed
up and started screaming withthe police and they came up on
(20:27):
the stage to arrest me.
I didn't even talk to you, ohmy gosh.
I was like I'm not gonna letthis girl, girl in the crowd
going.
Let him speak.
He has the words of life.
They couldn't shut me up.
They're grabbing me off thestage and I'm just sharing
Christ and if you want toreceive Jesus, you can leave
(20:50):
this campus.
They're throwing me off thecampus.
You can meet me off the campusand I'll be over there to
introduce you to Yeshua.
Look at your life and all thesekids start getting up and
running out the door with me andthe principal.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
Oh my god, it was going crazy.
Speaker 3 (21:06):
Of course, they never invited me back.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
That's okay.
Speaker 3 (21:13):
Dang.
Well, you know, you know, youknow part of this is that God
loves these kids.
That's right, and all he needsis some firebrands who go.
I'm gonna go get them, helpthem with you, lord, I'm
following you and you carry thison, you, brother, I see it,
(21:37):
thank you.
Yeah, I don't see it very often,because I see a lot of guys who
are really worried about theiranointing and about you know,
it's like the Charismaniacs loveabout being anointed and
getting worse, but the sons ofthe father they only care about.
(21:59):
You know, depopulating theorphanage and bringing kids into
a place where they encounterthe father they've always wanted
.
Yes, come on.
Speaker 1 (22:12):
That's the answer.
Speaker 3 (22:14):
It is.
So tell me, let's shift alittle bit and share with them.
They're listening going.
There's two crazy people rightthere.
Amen, we're totally crazy, comeon I am crazy A lot of shots in
football.
That's okay, but what is whatare?
You know?
Share with some of the parentsout there that are listening
(22:39):
about what you see in this nextgeneration, that's that they're
desperate for and how they canbe better parents of reaching
them.
Speaker 1 (22:49):
Yeah, you know, I I don't know.
I heard this quote came out ofme years ago.
What we believe, what webelieve about the next
generation, is what we will seein the next generation, and I'm
believing for good things.
Speaker 3 (23:05):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
It's really easy to look at all the dirt that we see
and say, yeah, that's just thisgeneration.
But gold miners, they dig forthe gold, they push the dirt out
of the way.
And so I think, as mothers andfathers, I mean I think we have,
we're connected to heaven, man,we have an obligation to see
what the father sees and declarethat over this generation and
(23:29):
see what they see.
And so I'd like to lead thatconversation with that question,
with that thought there, astory that God gave me years ago
.
I read this 15 years agoprobably, in the book of Judges,
about Jeb's daughter.
I think it's Judges, chapter 11.
To me, that's where a lot ofkids are at today.
(23:55):
Jeb there was an anointed man ofGod but was an orphan.
He was the son of a harlot andhe got rejected by his whole
family and then, when they foundout they're gonna get destroyed
in this battle, we betterinvite Jeb to back, because he's
our only shot at winning.
They invited him back.
Now he's wanted just what hecan do for them.
(24:17):
So he's off to battle and onhis way to battle he prays a
prayer, and I think he prayed afoolish vow.
He said God, if you'll give memy enemies and give me victory.
I'll sacrifice the first thingthat comes out of my house.
He was only got one daughter.
Scripture doesn't reveal thathe has anybody else in this
family, and so he wins thebattle.
(24:39):
I don't think it's because ofthe vow.
I think it's because thepresence of the Lord was already
on his life.
It was before he made the vow.
And on his way home his daughtercomes rebounding out of the
house, all excited to see him,and of course an orphan does
this.
He blames her and says you'veruined my life and rips his
clothes.
(25:00):
And she said what's the matter?
And he tells her I got tosacrifice you now.
And she says well, let me go be.
Well, my virginity because Inever married.
And so here's a girl who shedidn't even have her own name.
She was Jeff's daughter.
She didn't have value becausehe would sacrifice the first
thing coming out of his house orrisk it, and she never got to
(25:21):
fulfill her dreams.
So in Christ, all those thingsget redeemed.
People are looking for who am I,what's my value and what's my
dreams, and the Father impartsall those things, and so I think
for this generation it's lowhanging fruit if we have the
right message and the rightbeliefs as we approach them, if
(25:42):
we believe as parents and if webelieve what the news says and
if we just believe thattransgender mania is if a kid
walks in.
We've had kids come to ouryouth conference that are flat
out boys dressed like girls andvice versa, and we just love
them like everybody else and thepower of God.
(26:03):
I mean just wax them andthey're out in the power,
getting completely delivered,and we don't treat them any
different than anybody else.
We don't let the media and thenews narrative shape what we're
seeing when we see each of thesekids.
They're just confused, they'rejust fatherless.
Speaker 3 (26:20):
No, there's no.
We only have 80% of the youngkids today without dads in their
story.
Yeah, In our country that'sjust not in our country.
Young kids today go to bedwithout their birth dad in their
story.
Speaker 1 (26:35):
That's crazy.
It's the most fatherlessgeneration in history of the
world.
Speaker 3 (26:38):
right here it is but guess what God does?
And father's generations?
Yeah, the father loves adoptingkids.
He loves it, that's right.
His family never gets too big,that's true.
And so that's that.
Because at the moment ofadoption there's a transfer of
(27:01):
the wealth of the kingdom, theinheritance of the son in the
life of that boy or girl.
Come on Right, Galatians.
And if a son no longer a slave,and if you're no longer a slave
, then you're what You're anheir, yeah yes, right so when
the devil is spiking the mat,going bam pin.
(27:24):
Yeah, you're right.
When the devil doesn't see it,it says Jesus is bridging
underneath that kid.
He doesn't have his back on themat.
Jesus put his back on the mat.
Yeah, he could be pinned in ourstate so that we could come up
and have the life, yeah yeah,that's exciting Because I
(27:48):
believe see the narrative thiscomes out of the we, the, the
media has shaped itself of beingan authority, and they have no
authority other than political,earthbound authority.
Speaker 1 (28:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (28:05):
And yet the words that come out of our mouth have
great power over our children.
Speaker 1 (28:12):
Mm, hmm, that's right .
Speaker 3 (28:13):
We can order them and make them a worldly
disenfranchised orphan veryeasily, or we can, because we're
a word activated men and women,right the words over us, either
do what they elevate us, right,what's this down?
That's why when we, when youread your Bible, don't read it,
(28:36):
speak it out loud, have it shakeoff the wall in front of you,
have it come back and hit yourears.
And faith that comes by hearingand hearing the word of God
that's in you, right in yourlife.
Yeah, but as a dad, I you knowI had to learn how to speak life
(28:58):
into myself, first, mm, hmm,and then out of that speaking
into my children and a changetheir family.
Speaker 1 (29:08):
Yeah, yeah, that's true.
Speaker 3 (29:11):
To manage the mistake I was now learning.
To coach, to manage the greattalent in my children.
Mm hmm, when you just watch him, you start telling your sons
what you love about them.
They're little chest goes.
Speaker 2 (29:27):
Yeah, mm, hmm.
Speaker 3 (29:30):
Right what you love about your daughters they
release their beauty.
Speaker 1 (29:35):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (29:35):
Right, because of those words, that's.
I said you got, you got somekids.
Speaker 1 (29:40):
Yeah, I got two kids.
Yeah, 14 and 18.
Speaker 3 (29:43):
Boy girl or boy boy.
Speaker 1 (29:45):
My, my daughter's 14 and my son is 18.
That's awesome.
Yeah, I've been married 23years.
I know I look, I look like Igot married when I was 12.
Speaker 3 (29:56):
I know but you got that 12 year old face, that
clean living, and so you're.
What's your wife's name, leslie?
Leslie, and where'd you meether?
Speaker 1 (30:11):
Ben Florida at the Brownsville Revival.
Speaker 3 (30:13):
Oh boy, she's shaking bacon.
I helped too, so she's.
Oh, that's awesome, that'sawesome he leads.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
She leads first year Bethel School Supernatural
Ministry.
Oh that's, she's powerful,she's powerful.
Speaker 3 (30:26):
Well, I love what you guys do.
We, you know we.
We found a lot in my churchwhen I had a vineyard in Anaheim
.
I had my years we would havethe kids go up the Bethel, come
back and they're popping andhaving fun and wow doing life,
and that's that's the way it'ssupposed to be, yeah, so so let
(30:52):
me see where we are in time andwe're having so much fun.
It's going by really fast.
Speaker 2 (30:56):
I know a little bit about.
Speaker 3 (30:58):
we've talked about kids, but that talk me a little
bit about what you think God'sbeen saying to you and the way
we should reach these kids forthe sake of the church today.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
Yeah, how to reach these kids.
You know, I think love isspelled in two words T I M, e
and F O O D.
Let's just make it simple.
Speaker 3 (31:28):
Yeah, you know what, man?
That second word I've beentrying to conquer for years.
Part of a football player,what's a training table?
And you forget, when you're 66,that you're not expelling
12,000 calories a day.
Speaker 1 (31:46):
I'm starting to slow down.
At 46, man, oh you're, you're,you're 146 now I'm.
I'm 46 years old, but I'm 152pound, 162 pounds.
Wow, you're a beast baby I'm,I'm telling you, I'm getting
getting fat down here, I gothalf of it, that's half me,
that's half this.
(32:10):
So, so it's food and time.
Food and time.
You know, I mean let's keep mydog over here trying to say hi
to me.
Come back in there, buddy, Backin your creed.
That's okay, he's a good dog.
You know my father-in-law.
He started a church around 20years ago.
He's been a stone mason for 48years.
Speaker 3 (32:33):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (32:34):
And he's.
He's in his upper 60s andaround 10 years ago he saw a
need to reach teenagers in hischurch.
He's the most irrelevant oldguy for kids you've ever seen in
your life.
I mean like if you don't workhard, he doesn't get you.
(32:56):
That's my father-in-law, I meanhe's, he's an awesome guy, but
he's just like he was raised bya pretty tough World War II
Marine, you know.
And so he, just he went, hegraduated with straight to work.
He didn't know nothing butworked.
So he gets on all these kidsand he just showed up and was
just himself.
And you get pizza and he justlove on these kids.
(33:19):
And he didn't try and changewho he was or his clothes or be
relevant or any of that garbage.
He just showed up and washimself and he ran a youth group
every Sunday night.
For I can't remember how manyyears 10 years or something like
that reaching kids, and so youdon't have to.
The lie is you gotta berelevant, you gotta be cool, you
(33:39):
gotta know the language.
I've been around teenagers forso long.
I couldn't even tell you whatthey're watching right now.
Somebody just told me uh, someband the other day and said
they're the hottest band everand I'm like I wouldn't have
known.
I don't care, like beingrelevant is is not important to
this generation.
It it can have its place, but Imean, I have had sons and
(34:02):
daughters around me that arereally relevant and I just let
them be them and I'm gonna be meand um and just let the river
flow, and you know I mean somany times I think we're trying
to figure out how do we reachkids.
I just think it's as simple asbe yourself, walk with God, pray
(34:22):
and um, and just love him rightwhere they're at, and and they,
they are looking for theauthentic gospel.
Speaker 3 (34:31):
See if you're preaching a message.
You don't live when no one islooking.
Speaker 1 (34:37):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (34:38):
They don't believe the gospel in you.
Speaker 1 (34:40):
That's true, because you can feel the integrity of
the spirit.
That's a thing really.
Speaker 3 (34:44):
No, it's like when and when your kids are like
whatever yeah, you're preachinga, you're preaching the sermon
that doesn't work for you, butwhen you carry the message and
let your kids in on one of thethings the Lord showed me to do,
because my dad was killed inaction, so I didn't have a day
(35:06):
with my dad.
Oh, uh, in Vietnam, or or in thetest, pilot in the Navy, okay,
and so he had to water at 400miles an hour on May, the 29th
1956.
Wow, about a month before I wasborn.
So I didn't have a single daywith my dad.
Speaker 2 (35:25):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (35:26):
And it's just, and I never was adopted.
My mom remarried, but he didn'tadopt me.
So when I was 40 years old,adopted for the first time by
God, and it completely write mystory because I'd never, I never
(35:46):
got to be somebody's son.
I was football player, I was youknow, living life, you know,
did all that and you know, but Inever.
I never just got to be aroundmy dad.
I never got to figure out whathe thought about me.
My mom would say, oh, yourdad's looking down from heaven,
(36:09):
which kind of screws up a kidbecause he's got like this
invisible.
But I always imagine what's helike.
And you know, at 40, when I hadthis encounter with the father,
yeah.
That I never thought I couldhave.
Wow, it righted this, thisbrokenness in me, and I started
(36:32):
to be fathered and at the moment, that was happening, tom, I
started to father my kids.
Wow, the way God was fatheringme.
Speaker 2 (36:42):
You know, that's amazing.
Speaker 3 (36:44):
Second Corinthians 618, paul writes he brings two
verses together from the OldTestament, and God says I will
be a father to you, and you mysons and daughters.
Speaker 1 (36:56):
Yeah.
So, God's so long.
Speaker 3 (37:01):
Even so, for the most unfathored of us is that he
will be our father wants toadopt us.
Good have two dads, yeah.
Speaker 1 (37:14):
I grew up.
My dad yeah, my dad yeah, mydad's a great man.
He's still alive.
I'm blessed to have a good dad.
He was a railroader, growing upfor Union Pacific Railroad, so
he's gone a lot and wasn'talways there, you know
(37:35):
emotionally.
And so you know, I grew up, Ibecome an adult and and I'm
working through some of this inmy own head and and then I had a
son and I'm sitting thereloving on my son and playing
with my son, and then some ofthose things began to just come
up in my heart that I had totake to God and let the Lord
(37:58):
heal me and and then I'm workingon me.
And so I remember I'll neverforget the day the Lord spoke to
me.
He said your son is going tochange your life more than
you're going to change his, andI was like what does that even
mean?
I didn't know how to frame that.
And so, you know, god became afather in my life, obviously,
(38:20):
but but then I've had theopportunity to have a lot of
different people in my life thathave just been an incredible
example of a father to me thatI'm so grateful for.
I met with one of them thismorning on zoom Danny Silk.
Speaker 3 (38:32):
Yeah, great guy.
Speaker 1 (38:35):
Oh man, he's such a legend, just uh, yeah, just just
always been there for me.
Got to go to Russia one timewith Chris Valleton.
We just had fun, just had ablast together, and so God's put
lots of different fathers in mylife.
Speaker 3 (38:53):
I got a verse for you , by the way, with your son.
Yeah, when Enoch became afather, he walked with God for
the rest of his day.
Oh wow, Something happened whenhe became a father.
Yeah, you know man who becomesa dad.
(39:13):
He walked with God.
I think about you know.
You know so part of that,because that's half of you, and
that in your boy that's halfyour wife.
You know the broken parts, yourwife and your parts.
Just teasing, just teasing.
So you know part of that isthat something happens when you
(39:37):
begin to experience.
You know what it means to loveunconditionally.
Yeah Right, it changes.
You know it happened with.
You know one of the most youknow I read.
I did an interview with a guywho wrote a book called the boy
(40:00):
crisis.
Yeah, men's group in New YorkCity and had this guy comment
how he, for the first time, was,you know, experiencing
unconditional love.
And that his first son.
He spent his whole life tryingto arrive.
But when he had a second son hestarted to discover
(40:25):
unconditional love, even thelove of God.
And so they're walking aftertheir seminar in New York City
and this guy isn't a believerwho wrote the book he just
associates.
And this young person comes upand says Can I have your
autograph?
And goes, sure, I been writingthese books.
And he goes no, not you sir Him.
So he signs the autograph andkid runs away screaming.
(40:50):
And so he looks down at him andgoes Are you like somebody
famous?
Well, I used to have a rockband.
Well, what's your name?
John Lenin.
And he goes the Beatles.
He goes yes, he said you know Ilove people wonder why I left
(41:13):
the Beatles.
I love Beatles to become afather.
Wow they really hurt my firstson, wow, and he died not too
long after that.
He got shot by somebody Wow.
But there's something that'sreally powerful and men today
are being so devinized andmarginalized about fatherhood.
(41:36):
It's true, they're.
They're terrified.
They're terrified Even even alot of young men, I guess the
since Elon's done his deal onTwitter, the relation of young
men on Twitter is justskyrocketed.
Speaker 1 (41:53):
Has it really.
Speaker 3 (41:54):
They're looking for men, they're looking for fathers
, they're looking for examples,but you know, many of them are
afraid of getting involved withgirls because they don't want to
get somebody pregnant and thenhave to lose their money that
they've earned at the job.
So you have this culture, that'seven back from having sex, not
(42:18):
because God's calling them tocelibacy until they get married,
but, yeah, they're afraid of,they're so fearful they have no
fathers in their story.
Yeah, so that's a target richenvironment, by the way, on
Twitter right now For guys likeI just started, and it's
starting to go Wow, wow.
(42:39):
Because these kids are, they'redesperate to have a real guy
who's not changing to be cool,you like, right, but it's really
secure and who he is.
Yeah, that's what they want,right.
Speaker 1 (42:57):
It's true.
It's true, we just did.
I just went to a took my son toa men's conference actually
then in San Diego a couple weeksago.
It's called Emerge.
You ever heard of AwakenedChurch there in San Diego?
Speaker 3 (43:10):
I was gonna be there, do you?
Went outside, camped out andeverything.
Speaker 1 (43:15):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (43:16):
Yeah, we're there to be there, but I got delayed in
Hawaii because we had our 40thanniversary.
My wife goes.
Can we stay a couple more days?
Yeah, that's when you say ohyeah, honey, yes dear.
Speaker 1 (43:31):
Yeah, yeah, that's when you say yes.
Speaker 3 (43:34):
So you're an emmerge, so tell me, you're telling me
about Emerge.
Speaker 1 (43:40):
So we're down at a merge.
It was just an awesome time andwhat we did was everybody got a
two by four.
It was about this big and youtook this two by four and you
wrote everything on it that youwere struggling with fear,
insecurity, anxiety, just youknow, perp, you lost anything
else that you were you werestruggling with, and so we had
(44:04):
to wear that board for two dayson our back and put the board on
your back and you had to wearit everywhere.
And then there's 3000 guysthere and then the whole camp
gets divided up into 40 guys perteam and then we competed all
day one day and we go toservices at night in the morning
(44:24):
.
It was just powerful.
I would recommend any fatheryou got to get there with your
son.
But there was one point I thinkone of the highlights for me, a
couple of things.
They had a, they had a right ofpassage for sons and the right
of passage was this three milelong obstacle course that kids
(44:49):
had to you know terrain throughand they were they're running
and and jumping over 15 footwalls.
This obstacle course wasdesigned by a former Marine, so
it wasn't, you know, just someeasy thing and my son was going
through it and at this onecheckpoint I went down.
(45:09):
I was waiting for him and allof a sudden, there he was.
He was running down the hilland just going and I just
started yelling tiger, you know,to start cheering him on.
He comes around this, this band, and he has to run to his
gauntlet, where there's theseguys with these pads just
nailing kids.
Kids are flying everywhere.
You know, made to make itthrough all that, had to go get
an American flag and then finishthe rest of the race, and my
(45:34):
desire was to run with him.
So I'm running with him.
I got on video.
I'm going with him like I'mgoing to finish this race with
you, but I'm by with you.
This is a prophetic statement.
I'm with you for life.
Let's go running together.
And he's 18 years old and inshape and I'm 46.
And I pulled my groin like amonth ago.
(45:57):
So I've been doing nothing tojust try and get my body in the
place where I can just be there.
Yeah, I've been doing nothing.
So we're running.
And I ran out of gas.
Now, I know it's like to pushmyself, but I had no gas,
nothing, nothing.
I quit, I couldn't keep going.
I was about to throw up and die.
He kept going.
(46:18):
I finally made it but, man, heand he was up there cheering.
All the other kids on that werethat were running.
It was it was amazing One ofthe greatest sites you know.
They had to run all throughoutall this terrain in San Diego
mountains and hills going up anddown, stuff that traverse
underneath this.
You know this thing in the mud,you know, and these kids are
(46:44):
going and somebody's kids.
They look like they've knownnothing but Minecraft and Xbox,
you know, and they're, they'rerunning and it was cool because
you had leaders and other boysaround these kids that wanted to
quit.
They just looked like theywanted to die and they had to
come up this hill and aroundthis band and they finished at
(47:04):
the cross.
They came in, they touchedacross and that was where the
finish line was and my son wasjust sitting there cheering on
every kid as they came aroundthe bend and ran up there and it
was just leading the way.
But it was just a powerful sightto see so many boys going
through this rite of passage todo something challenging, do
something hard that requiredgrit and perseverance and was
(47:29):
masculine and manly, yes, and topush through, yeah, and and
finish, and then they, then theygot an award at the end it was
called this Valor award.
It was just, it was such a greattime but my son and I really
got to kind of tarts.
And then, at the very end, thenight before the last night
(47:50):
before the, the rite of passageyou got to run the campfire with
all your guys pray together,and then you took off your board
and you threw it in the fire.
You know, and it was just anawesome time Just being with my
son and I think more.
I think guys need more thingslike that.
I look back and I'm like I'vedone things for my son and when
(48:14):
he turned around 14 years old, Ihad a big man party with
barbecue and invited a bunch ofguys over that have been a part
of his life for years and wewatched Braveheart together
Greatest movie ever and and thenat the end I bought him a sword
, a Viking sword, a real sword,and I knighted him as a man and
(48:36):
then just me and all the guysthat were around him just read
prophetic words over his lifeand just spoke life into him and
that's the day he became a man.
Speaker 3 (48:49):
Yeah, because that's you know, bar mitzvah was.
I mean, abraham didn't become afather until God blessed him.
Speaker 1 (48:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (48:59):
Then they changed his name.
He is a father of many nations.
Yeah, whatever the fathercalled that son was the destiny
of that child.
So when you think about youknow, you know when he comes
back and there's his wife deadwith the baby and she names him,
he names him son of my sorrow,ben O'Neill.
(49:23):
Yeah, and he has just wrestledwith Jesus and had his name
changed.
Speaker 1 (49:30):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (49:31):
Israel, from, you know, jacob to Israel.
He renames that child Benjamin,which means my right hand, wow.
So there's that picture againin scripture where the words of
a father can change and the namethat father calls that son can
change the destiny of that child.
(49:52):
That's amazing, yeah, that'samazing Right that's the.
You know that's what theblessing of the father is all
through history, to where it's,you know, because what matters
to your son more than anythingis the words you call him and
how you speak.
(50:12):
Well, he can.
He can become a, you know, hecan conquer every obstacle
course, which is a great moment.
But to have your dad look atyou and say you know what I love
about you, yeah, yeah, right,that sticks on him, and with
(50:32):
school and you'll experiencethis is you'll hear him say that
to your grandkids.
Speaker 1 (50:41):
Wow, I received that man.
Speaker 3 (50:44):
I got 10, with three more coming, and I'm watching my
children that I blessed nowbless my grandkids.
Wow, right in front of me, I'mwatching this going.
Oh, you are so good.
Speaker 1 (51:00):
That's amazing.
Speaker 3 (51:01):
That's the way the blessing of the father is
supposed to go generation togeneration.
Yeah, we've had.
We've had different events.
I used to, before COVID, wewould bring all the boys or
girls ready to make that walk ofyou know, become a man or woman
.
We put back of the church withlike many lines depending on the
(51:21):
church, and fathers publiclywould bless their children and
they'd come running down.
Well church just goes crazy,just goes crazy and it's a train
, and then all the kids whodidn't have a father call them
out.
The men stood up and the pastorstood up and called those boys
and girls in the manor Dangerlot.
Speaker 1 (51:43):
That's a fan.
That's a family right there.
That's a family.
Speaker 3 (51:46):
That's it is.
That's it, man.
It's been so good Boy.
We've already been cranking anhour here, man we're just
running through the field.
Speaker 1 (51:55):
You're like another mother man.
I know we encountered God thesame way.
I didn't lead somebody toChrist naked, but you know
that's okay.
Speaker 3 (52:06):
I know it's funny about that, henry Cloud.
Yeah, you know, I gave Henry aword years ago and he tells his
woman's conference.
You know, I'm in the shower andthis big naked guy walks in.
He looks at me we're at a gymand he goes I got a word from
God, you want to hear it?
(52:27):
And Henry goes well, can I getdressed first?
So he takes me into this otherroom and he looks at it and says
okay, what's your word?
He's a really conservativechurch.
At the time he said, and I saidto him I said well, you know,
(52:47):
I'm not going to go to thechurch.
God's going to use you to speakin front of thousands upon
thousands of people all over theworld.
You're going to have a majorimpact and he looks at the crowd
and he says he didn't knowanything about me and my biggest
fear that I had in my life wasspeaking in public.
He spoke that word, somethingwent into me and God gave me the
(53:12):
ability.
So I'm really that big nakedguy.
Speaker 2 (53:17):
That's what he says.
That's hilarious.
Oh, that's it.
Speaker 3 (53:22):
Listen, why don't you roll us out just with your best
prayer for these moms and dadsout there?
Yeah not to not be in the way,but help raise children that
make demons tremble and knockthe other way.
Speaker 1 (53:39):
Yes, yes, you know, I want to just release one word
and then I'm going to pray.
Yeah do it.
I'm going to pray.
Learning how to deal with myown shame is what's kept my
voice alive in my kid's lives.
Shame will try and silence you.
Shame is a liar.
There's a healthy shame and anunhealthy shame.
Healthy shame is when you dosomething wrong and feel bad
(54:02):
about it.
That's called conviction.
Right, yeah, it's conviction,but unhealthy.
A unhealthy shame is when youknow the stuff of the past
you've already dealt with.
Or am I a good enough parentand you just start disqualifying
yourself?
Speaker 3 (54:16):
Right.
Speaker 1 (54:16):
You just want to back up and go high.
I want to encourage everyparent and I watching, listening
to this Don't listen to thevoice of shame.
You're doing better than youthink.
Just the fact that you're stillgot skin in the game shows that
you're winning.
I've learned if I just learned,how to repent fast, I can
restore anything.
(54:38):
Anything can be restored if Ijust repent, and so I just want
to release hope to every parentright now.
God even uses our deepestfailures and mistakes to shape
our kids in great, great ways,and so I just released hope
right now over you.
Romans 15.13 says Now may theGod of hope fill you with all
(54:59):
joy and peace in believing thatyou may abandon hope by the
power of the Holy Spirit.
So let us release faith tobelieve that in every situation,
every circumstance that theseparents are facing right now,
the things that are going on, Ifeel like somebody just got a
kid, just came home and toldthem something really just
negative about their lives, thatthey're.
(55:20):
It could be something liketheir mom I'm gay, something
like that.
And I just release hope to youright now to not freak out.
The truth will win.
The truth is more powerful, andI just release grace right now
for every parent to just standstrong in who they are, that the
voice of shame would just goaway.
(55:41):
We just release faith and gracein Jesus' name for every parent
to just crush it in this seasonof life.
In Jesus' name, amen.
Speaker 3 (55:50):
Amen, boy, that's powerful man, high five.
Speaker 1 (55:54):
Let's go.
Speaker 3 (55:56):
That's it, man.
Bless you, chest bump.
Good to be Bam.
Speaker 2 (55:59):
Bam, that's my brother man.
Speaker 3 (56:07):
Oh man, I knocked her out All right.
Speaker 2 (56:14):
Ed.
Speaker 3 (56:15):
So good, good hanging out with you, man.
Hey, you too, man.
Thanks for showing up for manof Honor.
Make sure you check the link.
We got a book from Tom there.
You got to get it and supporthim, pray for him, bless him,
thank you.
If you're around Bethel area,you better be sending your kids
there.
You'll turn them into warriorsand they're going to make you
(56:36):
tremble.
Come on.
Thank you for coming to man ofHonor podcast.
We also got free coaching piecein the bio for you We'd love to
bless you with.
Remember it's never too late tobecome the man God's called you
to be A husband and your wifeis a dream in about and the
father that your children needright now so they can be the
(56:58):
warriors that change the world.
Bless you, jesus.
And so I think, as mothers and fathers I mean I
think we have we're connected toheaven, man we have an
obligation to see what theFather sees and declare that
over this generation and seewhat they see People are looking
for.
Who am I, what's my value andwhat's my dreams?
And the Father imparts allthose things.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Welcome to the man of Honor podcast, where we help
men just like you win thebiggest game of all in life love
and family.
Your host, ed McGlassen, hasbeen coaching and speaking to
men for the last 40 years in 14countries.
He's a five-year veteran of theNFL, a pastor, life coach,
(00:41):
best-selling author, and hasbeen married for over 40 years,
blessed with five adult children, 10 grandkids, with three more
on the way.
And now here's Ed.
Speaker 3 (00:54):
Well, welcome to the man of Honor podcast, and I got
another young squire.
He's a younger than me, buthe's one of those If you follow
him at all and you've heard himpreach and lead.
He's one of these youngfirebrands that's become one of
the spiritual fathers of thisnext generation of young people
(01:18):
that we need so desperatelyright now, and God is doing
something with him, and so I'mjust so honored today to have
Tom Crandall.
He's part of a Bethel YoungSaints group that's one of the.
That's your Instagram, right?
Speaker 1 (01:35):
That's one of.
It's one of them.
Yeah, I'm on the seniorleadership team at Bethel.
I oversee evangelism and youngsaints and so yeah, you oversee
evangelism.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
You just, you know, clean the nets.
You just make sure the nets aregetting out there for the kids.
I'm just just toss them Justkeep tossing, yeah you have the
same hard idea which I love somuch in what you do.
Speaker 2 (01:57):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:58):
So tell us a little bit before we get into kind of
what you're doing in ministry.
How did Tom get this to thisplace where the father has kind
of been shaping you or theseyoung people?
Tell me about how you met him.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
Yeah, well, I was born and raised in Salt Lake
City, Utah, and no, I was neverMormon and I only have one wife.
Just get that out of the way.
Yeah, I preach all over andI'll introduce myself and say
that, and I can just feel thecrowd kind of get tense and so
(02:34):
I'll just break it up.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
Like how can you have two they?
Have like 10 women working onyou.
You come home as a man.
How do you survive that?
Oh?
Speaker 1 (02:46):
I just don't know.
Speaker 3 (02:47):
I think what they?
They just keep asking wiveshoping to get one is not going
to nag them off the top.
Speaker 1 (02:54):
Yeah, I know they're going to just don't work, man.
So yeah, born and raised inSalt Lake, I knew God as a kid,
growing up in a Christian home,and then started hanging out
with the wrong friends junior,high school and high school.
You know the old saying goesshow me your friends and I'll
show you your future.
(03:14):
Yeah, and started hanging outwith the wrong kids and I just
started making choices that werecontrary to my faith, walked
away from God and then painstarted punching me in the face
around 17, 18 years old, youknow, and I began to just cry
out like say God, if you'rereally want to know you?
And long story short, I beganto read the Bible for myself.
(03:36):
I was being challenged in myfaith by the Mormon culture.
I never believed even for asecond that Mormonism was the
way, because I could just seeall the lies and all the stuff.
Long story short, I began tohave these encounters with God
in my living room, reading theBible.
And then one Sunday night, I'mat church and my dad, my dad.
(03:58):
I looked at my dad and somebodypreached a message.
Couldn't tell you what theysaid, but at the end they said
if you want more of God, comedown here and I said to my dad
I'm going to go down there.
So I went up front, I sat downon my butt and I prayed this
really deep, theologicallyimpressive prayer.
Ready, I said.
I said God, I'm here, and thepresence of God just came and
(04:23):
overshadowed me and I felt, Ifelt like liquid love go right
through me and he just said hesaid three words I'm cleansing
you.
And I began to weep.
I had snot hanging from my faceto the floor.
It was an absolute mess, justencountering the love of the
(04:44):
Father.
He wasn't throwing my sin in myface, he wasn't beating me, he
was just.
I felt known and loved and holy.
I got up light man, I wasdifferent and changed my life
and then set me on a trajectoryof just.
I just want to see other peoplecome to know God like I just
(05:04):
encountered.
Speaker 3 (05:05):
Well, you get.
You know, your story is so, soclose to mine.
I had an injury in college anddorm room in the dark with ice
packs on my knee and the skyknocks on my door and he goes
you got everything going for you, but you lack one thing.
And I said what's that?
He said Jesus Christ, wow.
(05:26):
And I looked at him and I saidwhat's he going to do for me
here, pointing at my ice packs,like where's God?
I'm not a church kid at all,yeah.
And he didn't get into aconversation.
He just opened his Bible andread for God, so loved the world
.
(05:47):
And when I heard the word of Godfor the first time in my life,
when I heard that God loved me,he gave his only son, that
whoever believes in him, faithcomes by hearing yeah, I
actually say this in mytestimony I felt like a
waterfall of liquid love pouredout of heaven all over me and I
(06:10):
had snot coming out of my ears.
I mean I had not even lost afootball game yet.
I mean I was done.
And the next I mean I was just.
And then he looks at me he's aPresbyterian campus minister who
didn't really believe inhealing, but he puts his hand on
(06:31):
my ice bag and goes he'll addme in Jesus name.
Well, the next morning I wakeup.
I felt like it.
I just something's different.
I know one verse in the Biblewell pray, to simple prayer, and
receive Christ in my life.
And so I go.
You know, I call him on thephone and I go okay, um, like a
(06:56):
bill.
Oh, by the way, he goes, you'renot in the hospital.
I go.
No, god healed my knee.
I got healed what?
No no we got one and I said whatdo I do with my life?
What's my first step?
I don't even have a book.
He goes.
You remember that little book Igave you from Bill Bright, the
(07:17):
Four Spiritual Laws?
Grab it, go into the quad, findsomebody and read it to him and
leave him to Jesus.
That's what he tells me.
Wow, I'm not even like hoursold, I'm fresh baked, right.
Yeah, the book went to aHardee's restaurant in Young
South State University, lookedaround, saw this really cute
(07:40):
girl that's in my fifths classand I figured well, why would
God want to say a cute?
Speaker 1 (07:45):
one, why not her?
Why not her?
Speaker 3 (07:49):
You know.
And I said hey, have you heardof the First Spiritual Laws?
She goes what are those?
I was so nervous that I justjumped over and I started
reading it.
I didn't even look up Second,third, fourth, tenth, fifteenth
page.
If you'd like to receive Jesusas your Savior, pray this prayer
, dear Jesus.
And I heard dear Jesus.
(08:09):
And I looked up and she'sweeping.
Wow, see, evangelism iscreating a moment for Jesus to
show up in that person's life.
And when he shows up, bam shereceives Christ.
I almost wanted to do a chestbump with her, but get her high
(08:32):
five.
I called Bill and I said hey,bill, bill, I you know, I got a
girl.
You got a.
What A girl.
No, eddie, I want you to gopray for something.
No, no, no, I did the bookthing.
You let somebody to cry.
Some would yeah, god, he letsome nice for that year ahead of
(08:54):
125 students that I got to leadthe Christ with that little
book on my university and I washooked.
Speaker 1 (09:04):
That's amazing.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
And it's like well, why, why shouldn't I?
Speaker 1 (09:08):
Right yeah.
Speaker 3 (09:10):
Same.
How are you?
Yeah, so you have this withJesus at this new beginning.
What happened next?
Speaker 1 (09:19):
I, just I started plugging into my youth group and
I started serving.
I started serving at my church,I bought a guitar, I started
worshiping in my room and just Idid the same thing.
Speaker 3 (09:32):
I got it.
I got a guitar, I startedworshiping.
Go ahead, me and you.
Yeah, we're like twins.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
Come on, I know man, I got lost in the presence in my
room and the place that used tobe a den of sin was now a
habitation for the presence ofGod.
Speaker 3 (09:49):
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord.
Speaker 1 (09:50):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I tell kids all the time I'mlike go to your room.
Here's what I did Annoy yourbed with oil.
Speaker 3 (09:57):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (09:58):
And each part of your door, your room, and just make
a declaration that this placebelongs to God Absolutely.
And when I did that, all of thesexual nasty dreams at night
they stopped and my room becamea habitation for the presence of
God.
Speaker 3 (10:15):
And it took me a little longer on that part.
Yeah, I had, I, just one ofthese other girl in my fifth
year's class why don't we go toyour room to study?
And we kind of jumped on ourbed and, you know, some of our
clothes weren't on all the wayand I was pretty jumpy and I,
yeah my face.
(10:36):
I jumped on my bed, my Bible wason my pillow and I was, and I
went, oh, okay.
And so there I went in mybirthday suit with her letter to
find right there, so, and Isaid to her we have testimony
time, I'm never calling on youand our fellowship.
(11:03):
And so, a year later, I thinkI'm good, I'm good.
And all of a sudden, a yearlater, bill goes oh, by the way,
you, oh Pat, you haven't sharedyour story.
She is like Red is a V.
I'm like I think I got to getthe science.
Okay, I won't tell you who itis, but me and this guy got
(11:32):
naked.
He jumped on the bed, hit hisface on his Bible, fell guilty,
and then I received Jesus.
I prayed to receive Jesus withno clothes on and the whole room
looked over at me.
I was cured, I was cured.
(11:53):
It's like I got you God.
Speaker 1 (11:59):
You're toast.
Speaker 3 (12:02):
So, anyway, you have this encounter with the Lord,
you've got a holy habitation now.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
Yeah, I'm serving my youth group, and then I just
wanted to go.
I just wanted to help peoplefind Christ, I just wanted to.
That was just my desire.
And so everywhere I'd go, Ijust began to witness this
everywhere.
And then this revival broke outin Pensacola Florida.
Long story short, heard aboutit, my pastors went down there.
(12:28):
They came back and said they'restarting a school ministry.
And I knew in my heart, that'swhere I'm going.
And so, ty, everything lined upand in 1997, fall of 97, I
moved to Pensacola, florida.
I went to the BrownsvilleRevival School of Ministry and
spent four semesters there, soalmost two years, and just got
marked deeply for revival.
Speaker 3 (12:50):
Yeah, I just got the move where you just sort of you
check into that where thepresence of the Lord in Jesus
shows up on the earth.
Speaker 1 (13:01):
Yeah, and it was just .
Ever since then there's been noplan B.
And I began to have dreams Ididn't know, just desires, like
I could see myself being a youthevangelist.
And so I began to dream aboutthat and met my wife.
We got married September 11th2001.
(13:23):
No, sorry, 1999.
Yeah 1999, close there and Ibecame a youth pastor around
2002.
And just began to reach kidsand I did full-time youth
ministry for just under 20 yearsright around 20 years and just
(13:44):
reaching kids.
And now I started a ministrycalled One Hope for America just
a couple of years ago year anda half ago yeah, I will.
We're partnering with churchesall across America, mainly right
now on the West Coast InOrville.
In about a month we're gonna godown there.
There's about 40 pastors andleaders that have come together,
that are standing together fortheir city.
(14:06):
So we rented the conventioncenter.
We're gonna do a three-daycrusade.
But what I'm excited about iswe're gonna be doing school
assemblies in the high school,in one of the high schools.
I'm trying to get into theother schools where we just you
know I'm not the power team,okay, but we're gonna go in
there and talk about.
I started something calledDream your Dream,
dreamyourdreamorg, which isschool assembly.
(14:28):
You wanna teach kids how todream and it doesn't matter your
background, current situation,what race you are, everybody can
dream and we're gonna go in andteach kids how to persevere,
walk through adversity and letthat adversity shape where you
are going toward your dreams.
So we're gonna do this schoolassemblies, but then pass out
(14:50):
raffle tickets to the wholeschool and invite the whole
school to the crusade meetingsat night where we get to preach
the gospel.
Speaker 3 (14:58):
Well, you know, there's another parallel when I
was playing football in the offseason, I would go to high
schools, share my testimony andhave altar calls.
Yeah, come on, we saw between25 and 30,000 kids in Florida
and Texas get saved over aboutsix weeks in assembly.
(15:19):
Oh my gosh that's amazing.
And it was.
And I wanna tell you this one Idon't share it very often, but
we were in Austin cause it'sright along, you know what
you're talking about.
And the second part of Malachisays he's gonna turn the hearts
of children back to the father.
Speaker 1 (15:38):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:40):
And that's starting to happen.
It's starting to bust up right,that's awesome.
As kids and I'm in this, youknow I got invited to this high
school and they said there's alot of problems here, a lot of
racism, a lot of problems.
So they brought me into thisgymnasium and the whole upper
deck of gymnasium are kids andthere were teachers with
(16:01):
yardsticks, kind of smackingkids to get them to mind.
Then an empty bleacher.
And then there was me there witha friend of mine who's a guitar
player and he lead in a fewworship songs and so as he sits
down, I'm standing there andgetting ready to introduce me.
I hear his day.
(16:23):
Let me do it this time.
So I looked over at Milton andMilton used to open Willie
Nelson been a long-term friendof mine and I said what do you
wanna do?
He goes I didn't talk to you.
I go yes, you did.
Come on, man, no mess with me,what do you wanna do?
So I'm sitting there, the guy'sstill introducing me, and he
(16:46):
goes.
I hear it again.
Let me do it this time.
And I look back at him and I gowait, what do you wanna do?
He said maybe it's the Lord.
Then it strikes me and I said,lord, what do you wanna do?
I wanna save all these kids.
What do you want me to do?
Nothing.
(17:06):
So I stood up there at thelittle podium do I share?
Do I do anything?
And I saw something and thekids were thinking I was afraid
of talking.
So they started making fun ofme.
(17:26):
And I looked and I sawsomething.
It started on the ceiling andit looked like what it did in my
house when I burned a TV dinnerin a middle of the night not
too long and it started todescend and it was just almost
like smoke.
(17:47):
But now I know it was the gloryof the Lord and it's the
attention on the children.
They snapped to attention and Isaid at the end I said, if
you've never fully given yourlife to Jesus Christ, come.
And it was a stampede.
They were running and they werebeing delivered, they were
(18:10):
crying, they were shaking andI'm just, I'd never seen
anything like this.
I'm just looking and then allof a sudden I felt this thing
around my leg and it was theprincipal.
And the principal was huggingmy leg and he was confessing
that he was having an adulterousrelationship and I'm like did
(18:30):
you get off my leg?
I wanna hear all this.
You know, and I had no grid andthere's TV cameras there and
they're starting to feel they go.
What's going on?
I go, it's Jesus.
It's the best we could tell.
And, counting up, we had 1,300kids out of 15,.
(18:53):
1,600 kids give their life toChrist that day.
Speaker 1 (18:57):
Unbelievable.
Speaker 3 (18:58):
And remember leaving that and just and the Lord said
the time is coming or you'regonna see this.
That's amazing when he'ssovereignly Moving and they've
counted, and I was gonna talk toyou about this.
I mean, the culture thinksthey're holding up their arms
(19:19):
going we got them, we're gonnawrite woke under their name.
We're gonna write any identitywe want under name.
We're gonna become their daddy.
But they don't know that kidshave been marked by God and the
very ones they're trying to wokeout are waking up.
(19:42):
The fire of God is gonna be intheir belly, that's right, and
they're gonna rock the world,that's right, that's awesome.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
Wow, preach the gospel in school, that's amazing
.
Yeah, I mean now we can't dothat, we have to.
Speaker 3 (20:03):
Well, you gotta have the right principle.
I even had a Jewish high schoolwho heard about that event in
Texas, invite me and falselythinking I was just gonna do a
motivational speech.
And when I walked on the stage,all these Jewish mothers showed
up and started screaming withthe police and they came up on
(20:27):
the stage to arrest me.
I didn't even talk to you, ohmy gosh.
I was like I'm not gonna letthis girl, girl in the crowd
going.
Let him speak.
He has the words of life.
They couldn't shut me up.
They're grabbing me off thestage and I'm just sharing
Christ and if you want toreceive Jesus, you can leave
(20:50):
this campus.
They're throwing me off thecampus.
You can meet me off the campusand I'll be over there to
introduce you to Yeshua.
Look at your life and all thesekids start getting up and
running out the door with me andthe principal.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
Oh my god, it was going crazy.
Speaker 3 (21:06):
Of course, they never invited me back.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
That's okay.
Speaker 3 (21:13):
Dang.
Well, you know, you know, youknow part of this is that God
loves these kids.
That's right, and all he needsis some firebrands who go.
I'm gonna go get them, helpthem with you, lord, I'm
following you and you carry thison, you, brother, I see it,
(21:37):
thank you.
Yeah, I don't see it very often,because I see a lot of guys who
are really worried about theiranointing and about you know,
it's like the Charismaniacs loveabout being anointed and
getting worse, but the sons ofthe father they only care about.
(21:59):
You know, depopulating theorphanage and bringing kids into
a place where they encounterthe father they've always wanted
.
Yes, come on.
Speaker 1 (22:12):
That's the answer.
Speaker 3 (22:14):
It is.
So tell me, let's shift alittle bit and share with them.
They're listening going.
There's two crazy people rightthere.
Amen, we're totally crazy, comeon I am crazy A lot of shots in
football.
That's okay, but what is whatare?
You know?
Share with some of the parentsout there that are listening
(22:39):
about what you see in this nextgeneration, that's that they're
desperate for and how they canbe better parents of reaching
them.
Speaker 1 (22:49):
Yeah, you know, I I don't know.
I heard this quote came out ofme years ago.
What we believe, what webelieve about the next
generation, is what we will seein the next generation, and I'm
believing for good things.
Speaker 3 (23:05):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
It's really easy to look at all the dirt that we see
and say, yeah, that's just thisgeneration.
But gold miners, they dig forthe gold, they push the dirt out
of the way.
And so I think, as mothers andfathers, I mean I think we have,
we're connected to heaven, man,we have an obligation to see
what the father sees and declarethat over this generation and
(23:29):
see what they see.
And so I'd like to lead thatconversation with that question,
with that thought there, astory that God gave me years ago
.
I read this 15 years agoprobably, in the book of Judges,
about Jeb's daughter.
I think it's Judges, chapter 11.
To me, that's where a lot ofkids are at today.
(23:55):
Jeb there was an anointed man ofGod but was an orphan.
He was the son of a harlot andhe got rejected by his whole
family and then, when they foundout they're gonna get destroyed
in this battle, we betterinvite Jeb to back, because he's
our only shot at winning.
They invited him back.
Now he's wanted just what hecan do for them.
(24:17):
So he's off to battle and onhis way to battle he prays a
prayer, and I think he prayed afoolish vow.
He said God, if you'll give memy enemies and give me victory.
I'll sacrifice the first thingthat comes out of my house.
He was only got one daughter.
Scripture doesn't reveal thathe has anybody else in this
family, and so he wins thebattle.
(24:39):
I don't think it's because ofthe vow.
I think it's because thepresence of the Lord was already
on his life.
It was before he made the vow.
And on his way home his daughtercomes rebounding out of the
house, all excited to see him,and of course an orphan does
this.
He blames her and says you'veruined my life and rips his
clothes.
(25:00):
And she said what's the matter?
And he tells her I got tosacrifice you now.
And she says well, let me go be.
Well, my virginity because Inever married.
And so here's a girl who shedidn't even have her own name.
She was Jeff's daughter.
She didn't have value becausehe would sacrifice the first
thing coming out of his house orrisk it, and she never got to
(25:21):
fulfill her dreams.
So in Christ, all those thingsget redeemed.
People are looking for who am I,what's my value and what's my
dreams, and the Father impartsall those things, and so I think
for this generation it's lowhanging fruit if we have the
right message and the rightbeliefs as we approach them, if
(25:42):
we believe as parents and if webelieve what the news says and
if we just believe thattransgender mania is if a kid
walks in.
We've had kids come to ouryouth conference that are flat
out boys dressed like girls andvice versa, and we just love
them like everybody else and thepower of God.
(26:03):
I mean just wax them andthey're out in the power,
getting completely delivered,and we don't treat them any
different than anybody else.
We don't let the media and thenews narrative shape what we're
seeing when we see each of thesekids.
They're just confused, they'rejust fatherless.
Speaker 3 (26:20):
No, there's no.
We only have 80% of the youngkids today without dads in their
story.
Yeah, In our country that'sjust not in our country.
Young kids today go to bedwithout their birth dad in their
story.
Speaker 1 (26:35):
That's crazy.
It's the most fatherlessgeneration in history of the
world.
Speaker 3 (26:38):
right here it is but guess what God does?
And father's generations?
Yeah, the father loves adoptingkids.
He loves it, that's right.
His family never gets too big,that's true.
And so that's that.
Because at the moment ofadoption there's a transfer of
(27:01):
the wealth of the kingdom, theinheritance of the son in the
life of that boy or girl.
Come on Right, Galatians.
And if a son no longer a slave,and if you're no longer a slave
, then you're what You're anheir, yeah yes, right so when
the devil is spiking the mat,going bam pin.
(27:24):
Yeah, you're right.
When the devil doesn't see it,it says Jesus is bridging
underneath that kid.
He doesn't have his back on themat.
Jesus put his back on the mat.
Yeah, he could be pinned in ourstate so that we could come up
and have the life, yeah yeah,that's exciting Because I
(27:48):
believe see the narrative thiscomes out of the we, the, the
media has shaped itself of beingan authority, and they have no
authority other than political,earthbound authority.
Speaker 1 (28:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (28:05):
And yet the words that come out of our mouth have
great power over our children.
Speaker 1 (28:12):
Mm, hmm, that's right .
Speaker 3 (28:13):
We can order them and make them a worldly
disenfranchised orphan veryeasily, or we can, because we're
a word activated men and women,right the words over us, either
do what they elevate us, right,what's this down?
That's why when we, when youread your Bible, don't read it,
(28:36):
speak it out loud, have it shakeoff the wall in front of you,
have it come back and hit yourears.
And faith that comes by hearingand hearing the word of God
that's in you, right in yourlife.
Yeah, but as a dad, I you knowI had to learn how to speak life
(28:58):
into myself, first, mm, hmm,and then out of that speaking
into my children and a changetheir family.
Speaker 1 (29:08):
Yeah, yeah, that's true.
Speaker 3 (29:11):
To manage the mistake I was now learning.
To coach, to manage the greattalent in my children.
Mm hmm, when you just watch him, you start telling your sons
what you love about them.
They're little chest goes.
Speaker 2 (29:27):
Yeah, mm, hmm.
Speaker 3 (29:30):
Right what you love about your daughters they
release their beauty.
Speaker 1 (29:35):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (29:35):
Right, because of those words, that's.
I said you got, you got somekids.
Speaker 1 (29:40):
Yeah, I got two kids.
Yeah, 14 and 18.
Speaker 3 (29:43):
Boy girl or boy boy.
Speaker 1 (29:45):
My, my daughter's 14 and my son is 18.
That's awesome.
Yeah, I've been married 23years.
I know I look, I look like Igot married when I was 12.
Speaker 3 (29:56):
I know but you got that 12 year old face, that
clean living, and so you're.
What's your wife's name, leslie?
Leslie, and where'd you meether?
Speaker 1 (30:11):
Ben Florida at the Brownsville Revival.
Speaker 3 (30:13):
Oh boy, she's shaking bacon.
I helped too, so she's.
Oh, that's awesome, that'sawesome he leads.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
She leads first year Bethel School Supernatural
Ministry.
Oh that's, she's powerful,she's powerful.
Speaker 3 (30:26):
Well, I love what you guys do.
We, you know we.
We found a lot in my churchwhen I had a vineyard in Anaheim
.
I had my years we would havethe kids go up the Bethel, come
back and they're popping andhaving fun and wow doing life,
and that's that's the way it'ssupposed to be, yeah, so so let
(30:52):
me see where we are in time andwe're having so much fun.
It's going by really fast.
Speaker 2 (30:56):
I know a little bit about.
Speaker 3 (30:58):
we've talked about kids, but that talk me a little
bit about what you think God'sbeen saying to you and the way
we should reach these kids forthe sake of the church today.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
Yeah, how to reach these kids.
You know, I think love isspelled in two words T I M, e
and F O O D.
Let's just make it simple.
Speaker 3 (31:28):
Yeah, you know what, man?
That second word I've beentrying to conquer for years.
Part of a football player,what's a training table?
And you forget, when you're 66,that you're not expelling
12,000 calories a day.
Speaker 1 (31:46):
I'm starting to slow down.
At 46, man, oh you're, you're,you're 146 now I'm.
I'm 46 years old, but I'm 152pound, 162 pounds.
Wow, you're a beast baby I'm,I'm telling you, I'm getting
getting fat down here, I gothalf of it, that's half me,
that's half this.
(32:10):
So, so it's food and time.
Food and time.
You know, I mean let's keep mydog over here trying to say hi
to me.
Come back in there, buddy, Backin your creed.
That's okay, he's a good dog.
You know my father-in-law.
He started a church around 20years ago.
He's been a stone mason for 48years.
Speaker 3 (32:33):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (32:34):
And he's.
He's in his upper 60s andaround 10 years ago he saw a
need to reach teenagers in hischurch.
He's the most irrelevant oldguy for kids you've ever seen in
your life.
I mean like if you don't workhard, he doesn't get you.
(32:56):
That's my father-in-law, I meanhe's, he's an awesome guy, but
he's just like he was raised bya pretty tough World War II
Marine, you know.
And so he, just he went, hegraduated with straight to work.
He didn't know nothing butworked.
So he gets on all these kidsand he just showed up and was
just himself.
And you get pizza and he justlove on these kids.
(33:19):
And he didn't try and changewho he was or his clothes or be
relevant or any of that garbage.
He just showed up and washimself and he ran a youth group
every Sunday night.
For I can't remember how manyyears 10 years or something like
that reaching kids, and so youdon't have to.
The lie is you gotta berelevant, you gotta be cool, you
(33:39):
gotta know the language.
I've been around teenagers forso long.
I couldn't even tell you whatthey're watching right now.
Somebody just told me uh, someband the other day and said
they're the hottest band everand I'm like I wouldn't have
known.
I don't care, like beingrelevant is is not important to
this generation.
It it can have its place, but Imean, I have had sons and
(34:02):
daughters around me that arereally relevant and I just let
them be them and I'm gonna be meand um and just let the river
flow, and you know I mean somany times I think we're trying
to figure out how do we reachkids.
I just think it's as simple asbe yourself, walk with God, pray
(34:22):
and um, and just love him rightwhere they're at, and and they,
they are looking for theauthentic gospel.
Speaker 3 (34:31):
See if you're preaching a message.
You don't live when no one islooking.
Speaker 1 (34:37):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (34:38):
They don't believe the gospel in you.
Speaker 1 (34:40):
That's true, because you can feel the integrity of
the spirit.
That's a thing really.
Speaker 3 (34:44):
No, it's like when and when your kids are like
whatever yeah, you're preachinga, you're preaching the sermon
that doesn't work for you, butwhen you carry the message and
let your kids in on one of thethings the Lord showed me to do,
because my dad was killed inaction, so I didn't have a day
(35:06):
with my dad.
Oh, uh, in Vietnam, or or in thetest, pilot in the Navy, okay,
and so he had to water at 400miles an hour on May, the 29th
1956.
Wow, about a month before I wasborn.
So I didn't have a single daywith my dad.
Speaker 2 (35:25):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (35:26):
And it's just, and I never was adopted.
My mom remarried, but he didn'tadopt me.
So when I was 40 years old,adopted for the first time by
God, and it completely write mystory because I'd never, I never
(35:46):
got to be somebody's son.
I was football player, I was youknow, living life, you know,
did all that and you know, but Inever.
I never just got to be aroundmy dad.
I never got to figure out whathe thought about me.
My mom would say, oh, yourdad's looking down from heaven,
(36:09):
which kind of screws up a kidbecause he's got like this
invisible.
But I always imagine what's helike.
And you know, at 40, when I hadthis encounter with the father,
yeah.
That I never thought I couldhave.
Wow, it righted this, thisbrokenness in me, and I started
(36:32):
to be fathered and at the moment, that was happening, tom, I
started to father my kids.
Wow, the way God was fatheringme.
Speaker 2 (36:42):
You know, that's amazing.
Speaker 3 (36:44):
Second Corinthians 618, paul writes he brings two
verses together from the OldTestament, and God says I will
be a father to you, and you mysons and daughters.
Speaker 1 (36:56):
Yeah.
So, God's so long.
Speaker 3 (37:01):
Even so, for the most unfathored of us is that he
will be our father wants toadopt us.
Good have two dads, yeah.
Speaker 1 (37:14):
I grew up.
My dad yeah, my dad yeah, mydad's a great man.
He's still alive.
I'm blessed to have a good dad.
He was a railroader, growing upfor Union Pacific Railroad, so
he's gone a lot and wasn'talways there, you know
(37:35):
emotionally.
And so you know, I grew up, Ibecome an adult and and I'm
working through some of this inmy own head and and then I had a
son and I'm sitting thereloving on my son and playing
with my son, and then some ofthose things began to just come
up in my heart that I had totake to God and let the Lord
(37:58):
heal me and and then I'm workingon me.
And so I remember I'll neverforget the day the Lord spoke to
me.
He said your son is going tochange your life more than
you're going to change his, andI was like what does that even
mean?
I didn't know how to frame that.
And so, you know, god became afather in my life, obviously,
(38:20):
but but then I've had theopportunity to have a lot of
different people in my life thathave just been an incredible
example of a father to me thatI'm so grateful for.
I met with one of them thismorning on zoom Danny Silk.
Speaker 3 (38:32):
Yeah, great guy.
Speaker 1 (38:35):
Oh man, he's such a legend, just uh, yeah, just just
always been there for me.
Got to go to Russia one timewith Chris Valleton.
We just had fun, just had ablast together, and so God's put
lots of different fathers in mylife.
Speaker 3 (38:53):
I got a verse for you , by the way, with your son.
Yeah, when Enoch became afather, he walked with God for
the rest of his day.
Oh wow, Something happened whenhe became a father.
Yeah, you know man who becomesa dad.
(39:13):
He walked with God.
I think about you know.
You know so part of that,because that's half of you, and
that in your boy that's halfyour wife.
You know the broken parts, yourwife and your parts.
Just teasing, just teasing.
So you know part of that isthat something happens when you
(39:37):
begin to experience.
You know what it means to loveunconditionally.
Yeah Right, it changes.
You know it happened with.
You know one of the most youknow I read.
I did an interview with a guywho wrote a book called the boy
(40:00):
crisis.
Yeah, men's group in New YorkCity and had this guy comment
how he, for the first time, was,you know, experiencing
unconditional love.
And that his first son.
He spent his whole life tryingto arrive.
But when he had a second son hestarted to discover
(40:25):
unconditional love, even thelove of God.
And so they're walking aftertheir seminar in New York City
and this guy isn't a believerwho wrote the book he just
associates.
And this young person comes upand says Can I have your
autograph?
And goes, sure, I been writingthese books.
And he goes no, not you sir Him.
So he signs the autograph andkid runs away screaming.
(40:50):
And so he looks down at him andgoes Are you like somebody
famous?
Well, I used to have a rockband.
Well, what's your name?
John Lenin.
And he goes the Beatles.
He goes yes, he said you know Ilove people wonder why I left
(41:13):
the Beatles.
I love Beatles to become afather.
Wow they really hurt my firstson, wow, and he died not too
long after that.
He got shot by somebody Wow.
But there's something that'sreally powerful and men today
are being so devinized andmarginalized about fatherhood.
(41:36):
It's true, they're.
They're terrified.
They're terrified Even even alot of young men, I guess the
since Elon's done his deal onTwitter, the relation of young
men on Twitter is justskyrocketed.
Speaker 1 (41:53):
Has it really.
Speaker 3 (41:54):
They're looking for men, they're looking for fathers
, they're looking for examples,but you know, many of them are
afraid of getting involved withgirls because they don't want to
get somebody pregnant and thenhave to lose their money that
they've earned at the job.
So you have this culture, that'seven back from having sex, not
(42:18):
because God's calling them tocelibacy until they get married,
but, yeah, they're afraid of,they're so fearful they have no
fathers in their story.
Yeah, so that's a target richenvironment, by the way, on
Twitter right now For guys likeI just started, and it's
starting to go Wow, wow.
(42:39):
Because these kids are, they'redesperate to have a real guy
who's not changing to be cool,you like, right, but it's really
secure and who he is.
Yeah, that's what they want,right.
Speaker 1 (42:57):
It's true.
It's true, we just did.
I just went to a took my son toa men's conference actually
then in San Diego a couple weeksago.
It's called Emerge.
You ever heard of AwakenedChurch there in San Diego?
Speaker 3 (43:10):
I was gonna be there, do you?
Went outside, camped out andeverything.
Speaker 1 (43:15):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (43:16):
Yeah, we're there to be there, but I got delayed in
Hawaii because we had our 40thanniversary.
My wife goes.
Can we stay a couple more days?
Yeah, that's when you say ohyeah, honey, yes dear.
Speaker 1 (43:31):
Yeah, yeah, that's when you say yes.
Speaker 3 (43:34):
So you're an emmerge, so tell me, you're telling me
about Emerge.
Speaker 1 (43:40):
So we're down at a merge.
It was just an awesome time andwhat we did was everybody got a
two by four.
It was about this big and youtook this two by four and you
wrote everything on it that youwere struggling with fear,
insecurity, anxiety, just youknow, perp, you lost anything
else that you were you werestruggling with, and so we had
(44:04):
to wear that board for two dayson our back and put the board on
your back and you had to wearit everywhere.
And then there's 3000 guysthere and then the whole camp
gets divided up into 40 guys perteam and then we competed all
day one day and we go toservices at night in the morning
(44:24):
.
It was just powerful.
I would recommend any fatheryou got to get there with your
son.
But there was one point I thinkone of the highlights for me, a
couple of things.
They had a, they had a right ofpassage for sons and the right
of passage was this three milelong obstacle course that kids
(44:49):
had to you know terrain throughand they were they're running
and and jumping over 15 footwalls.
This obstacle course wasdesigned by a former Marine, so
it wasn't, you know, just someeasy thing and my son was going
through it and at this onecheckpoint I went down.
(45:09):
I was waiting for him and allof a sudden, there he was.
He was running down the hilland just going and I just
started yelling tiger, you know,to start cheering him on.
He comes around this, this band, and he has to run to his
gauntlet, where there's theseguys with these pads just
nailing kids.
Kids are flying everywhere.
You know, made to make itthrough all that, had to go get
an American flag and then finishthe rest of the race, and my
(45:34):
desire was to run with him.
So I'm running with him.
I got on video.
I'm going with him like I'mgoing to finish this race with
you, but I'm by with you.
This is a prophetic statement.
I'm with you for life.
Let's go running together.
And he's 18 years old and inshape and I'm 46.
And I pulled my groin like amonth ago.
(45:57):
So I've been doing nothing tojust try and get my body in the
place where I can just be there.
Yeah, I've been doing nothing.
So we're running.
And I ran out of gas.
Now, I know it's like to pushmyself, but I had no gas,
nothing, nothing.
I quit, I couldn't keep going.
I was about to throw up and die.
He kept going.
(46:18):
I finally made it but, man, heand he was up there cheering.
All the other kids on that werethat were running.
It was it was amazing One ofthe greatest sites you know.
They had to run all throughoutall this terrain in San Diego
mountains and hills going up anddown, stuff that traverse
underneath this.
You know this thing in the mud,you know, and these kids are
(46:44):
going and somebody's kids.
They look like they've knownnothing but Minecraft and Xbox,
you know, and they're, they'rerunning and it was cool because
you had leaders and other boysaround these kids that wanted to
quit.
They just looked like theywanted to die and they had to
come up this hill and aroundthis band and they finished at
(47:04):
the cross.
They came in, they touchedacross and that was where the
finish line was and my son wasjust sitting there cheering on
every kid as they came aroundthe bend and ran up there and it
was just leading the way.
But it was just a powerful sightto see so many boys going
through this rite of passage todo something challenging, do
something hard that requiredgrit and perseverance and was
(47:29):
masculine and manly, yes, and topush through, yeah, and and
finish, and then they, then theygot an award at the end it was
called this Valor award.
It was just, it was such a greattime but my son and I really
got to kind of tarts.
And then, at the very end, thenight before the last night
(47:50):
before the, the rite of passageyou got to run the campfire with
all your guys pray together,and then you took off your board
and you threw it in the fire.
You know, and it was just anawesome time Just being with my
son and I think more.
I think guys need more thingslike that.
I look back and I'm like I'vedone things for my son and when
(48:14):
he turned around 14 years old, Ihad a big man party with
barbecue and invited a bunch ofguys over that have been a part
of his life for years and wewatched Braveheart together
Greatest movie ever and and thenat the end I bought him a sword
, a Viking sword, a real sword,and I knighted him as a man and
(48:36):
then just me and all the guysthat were around him just read
prophetic words over his lifeand just spoke life into him and
that's the day he became a man.
Speaker 3 (48:49):
Yeah, because that's you know, bar mitzvah was.
I mean, abraham didn't become afather until God blessed him.
Speaker 1 (48:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (48:59):
Then they changed his name.
He is a father of many nations.
Yeah, whatever the fathercalled that son was the destiny
of that child.
So when you think about youknow, you know when he comes
back and there's his wife deadwith the baby and she names him,
he names him son of my sorrow,ben O'Neill.
(49:23):
Yeah, and he has just wrestledwith Jesus and had his name
changed.
Speaker 1 (49:30):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (49:31):
Israel, from, you know, jacob to Israel.
He renames that child Benjamin,which means my right hand, wow.
So there's that picture againin scripture where the words of
a father can change and the namethat father calls that son can
change the destiny of that child.
(49:52):
That's amazing, yeah, that'samazing Right that's the.
You know that's what theblessing of the father is all
through history, to where it's,you know, because what matters
to your son more than anythingis the words you call him and
how you speak.
(50:12):
Well, he can.
He can become a, you know, hecan conquer every obstacle
course, which is a great moment.
But to have your dad look atyou and say you know what I love
about you, yeah, yeah, right,that sticks on him, and with
(50:32):
school and you'll experiencethis is you'll hear him say that
to your grandkids.
Speaker 1 (50:41):
Wow, I received that man.
Speaker 3 (50:44):
I got 10, with three more coming, and I'm watching my
children that I blessed nowbless my grandkids.
Wow, right in front of me, I'mwatching this going.
Oh, you are so good.
Speaker 1 (51:00):
That's amazing.
Speaker 3 (51:01):
That's the way the blessing of the father is
supposed to go generation togeneration.
Yeah, we've had.
We've had different events.
I used to, before COVID, wewould bring all the boys or
girls ready to make that walk ofyou know, become a man or woman
.
We put back of the church withlike many lines depending on the
(51:21):
church, and fathers publiclywould bless their children and
they'd come running down.
Well church just goes crazy,just goes crazy and it's a train
, and then all the kids whodidn't have a father call them
out.
The men stood up and the pastorstood up and called those boys
and girls in the manor Dangerlot.
Speaker 1 (51:43):
That's a fan.
That's a family right there.
That's a family.
Speaker 3 (51:46):
That's it is.
That's it, man.
It's been so good Boy.
We've already been cranking anhour here, man we're just
running through the field.
Speaker 1 (51:55):
You're like another mother man.
I know we encountered God thesame way.
I didn't lead somebody toChrist naked, but you know
that's okay.
Speaker 3 (52:06):
I know it's funny about that, henry Cloud.
Yeah, you know, I gave Henry aword years ago and he tells his
woman's conference.
You know, I'm in the shower andthis big naked guy walks in.
He looks at me we're at a gymand he goes I got a word from
God, you want to hear it?
(52:27):
And Henry goes well, can I getdressed first?
So he takes me into this otherroom and he looks at it and says
okay, what's your word?
He's a really conservativechurch.
At the time he said, and I saidto him I said well, you know,
(52:47):
I'm not going to go to thechurch.
God's going to use you to speakin front of thousands upon
thousands of people all over theworld.
You're going to have a majorimpact and he looks at the crowd
and he says he didn't knowanything about me and my biggest
fear that I had in my life wasspeaking in public.
He spoke that word, somethingwent into me and God gave me the
(53:12):
ability.
So I'm really that big nakedguy.
Speaker 2 (53:17):
That's what he says.
That's hilarious.
Oh, that's it.
Speaker 3 (53:22):
Listen, why don't you roll us out just with your best
prayer for these moms and dadsout there?
Yeah not to not be in the way,but help raise children that
make demons tremble and knockthe other way.
Speaker 1 (53:39):
Yes, yes, you know, I want to just release one word
and then I'm going to pray.
Yeah do it.
I'm going to pray.
Learning how to deal with myown shame is what's kept my
voice alive in my kid's lives.
Shame will try and silence you.
Shame is a liar.
There's a healthy shame and anunhealthy shame.
Healthy shame is when you dosomething wrong and feel bad
(54:02):
about it.
That's called conviction.
Right, yeah, it's conviction,but unhealthy.
A unhealthy shame is when youknow the stuff of the past
you've already dealt with.
Or am I a good enough parentand you just start disqualifying
yourself?
Speaker 3 (54:16):
Right.
Speaker 1 (54:16):
You just want to back up and go high.
I want to encourage everyparent and I watching, listening
to this Don't listen to thevoice of shame.
You're doing better than youthink.
Just the fact that you're stillgot skin in the game shows that
you're winning.
I've learned if I just learned,how to repent fast, I can
restore anything.
(54:38):
Anything can be restored if Ijust repent, and so I just want
to release hope to every parentright now.
God even uses our deepestfailures and mistakes to shape
our kids in great, great ways,and so I just released hope
right now over you.
Romans 15.13 says Now may theGod of hope fill you with all
(54:59):
joy and peace in believing thatyou may abandon hope by the
power of the Holy Spirit.
So let us release faith tobelieve that in every situation,
every circumstance that theseparents are facing right now,
the things that are going on, Ifeel like somebody just got a
kid, just came home and toldthem something really just
negative about their lives, thatthey're.
(55:20):
It could be something liketheir mom I'm gay, something
like that.
And I just release hope to youright now to not freak out.
The truth will win.
The truth is more powerful, andI just release grace right now
for every parent to just standstrong in who they are, that the
voice of shame would just goaway.
(55:41):
We just release faith and gracein Jesus' name for every parent
to just crush it in this seasonof life.
In Jesus' name, amen.
Speaker 3 (55:50):
Amen, boy, that's powerful man, high five.
Speaker 1 (55:54):
Let's go.
Speaker 3 (55:56):
That's it, man.
Bless you, chest bump.
Good to be Bam.
Speaker 2 (55:59):
Bam, that's my brother man.
Speaker 3 (56:07):
Oh man, I knocked her out All right.
Speaker 2 (56:14):
Ed.
Speaker 3 (56:15):
So good, good hanging out with you, man.
Hey, you too, man.
Thanks for showing up for manof Honor.
Make sure you check the link.
We got a book from Tom there.
You got to get it and supporthim, pray for him, bless him,
thank you.
If you're around Bethel area,you better be sending your kids
there.
You'll turn them into warriorsand they're going to make you
(56:36):
tremble.
Come on.
Thank you for coming to man ofHonor podcast.
We also got free coaching piecein the bio for you We'd love to
bless you with.
Remember it's never too late tobecome the man God's called you
to be A husband and your wifeis a dream in about and the
father that your children needright now so they can be the
(56:58):
warriors that change the world.
Bless you, jesus.
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