August 5, 2025 • 64 mins
August 5th from 11 AM - 12 PM EST for an eye-opening and powerful conversation with Author Henry Coaxum Jr.!
From the Nation of Islam to Christianity, Elder Henry Coaxum shares his personal journey of transformation, truth, and faith. You don’t want to miss this bold testimony of redemption and spiritual awakening.
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#TheKimJacobsShow #HenryCoaxum #FaithJourney #FromIslamToChristianity #TransformationStory #ChristianFaith #LiveInterview
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From the Nation of Islam to Christianity, Elder Henry Coaxum shares his personal journey of transformation, truth, and faith. You don’t want to miss this bold testimony of redemption and spiritual awakening.
Subscribe and Watch LIVE on The Kim Jacobs Show YouTube Channel: Youtube.com/kimjacobsshow
Every time you support The Kim Jacobs Show it helps us Bring Balance to the World one Household at a Time. Take a moment to partner now: Paypal.me/kimjacobsinc or Venmo @thekimjacobsshow or ZELLE or APPLE CASH to 704-962-7161
#TheKimJacobsShow #HenryCoaxum #FaithJourney #FromIslamToChristianity #TransformationStory #ChristianFaith #LiveInterview
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kim-jacobs-show--2878190/support.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Have a great show lined up for you.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
I'm your host, Kim Jacobs, better known as the Balance Doctor,
and all of our guests that come on there either
people that have overcome some tremendous odds in their own
lives as they balance this thing called life, or they're
experts and they're here to share tips and strategies that
will help you better balance and manage your life. Grab
your virtual seats and let's get ready for some real,
(00:24):
relevant and relatable content on today's episode of The Kim
Jacobs Show. That Jacob Hello, everyone, Yes, welcome to this
episode of The Kim Jacob Show.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
I am super excited.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
I am back in the house with you all right
at our regularly scheduled time, and today we are going
to be talking about how people transition from all different
aspects of life and me today is Elder Henry Kochom Junior.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
How are you today, Elder.
Speaker 3 (01:04):
Henry, I'm doing great. Doctor Kim, how are you doing today, ma'am?
Speaker 2 (01:08):
I am doing wonderful and I'm doing so much better
knowing that you are here in my presence, even though
it's virtual. I'm super excited. I feel like there is
a connection for life between us.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
And I get a chance to see you.
Speaker 2 (01:22):
I get a chance to see you in different regards
at Kingdom Builders Church. We got to make sure we
tag your your your pastor, and your bishop and over
there let everybody know you all you you here.
Speaker 1 (01:34):
On the Kim Jacobs Show.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
Right, Yes, ma'am, yes, right.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
So I'm super excited because God has just done some
tremendous things through your life. I personally get to be
a witness to see your transformation. But today, everyone that's
tuning in, I encourage you to tag everyone and invite
people to be a part of today's discussion on how
(01:58):
this gentleman made a conscious decision to transition from the
Nation of Islam to Christianity. And it's going to be
a heartfelt discussion and one that's almost like a roller
coaster ride, if that makes sense. But we're going to
talk through it and hear your heart on it. Elder Henry, Okay, yes,
(02:19):
So introducing him, I'm actually right here looking at the book.
You are a father, an educator, a mentor, a friend,
and a confidant whose life has been shaped by an
unwavering faith in God and a deep belief in the
power of prayer. These principles have been your foundation upon
(02:40):
which you stand and the driving force behind your message.
And you are a graduate of Andersonville Theological Seminary, and
you were ordained as an elder in the Church of
God in Christ in nineteen ninety eight, where it continued
to serve faithfully everyone. This military terry man also with
(03:01):
over fifteen years of service in the United States Army,
is a proud veteran and lifetime member of the Veterans
of Foreign Wars And so anyway, I could read his
entire bio, but I'm just so honored and privileged to
have Elder Henry coxhom Junior here on the Kim Jacobs
Show today.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
Well, thank you man, it's a pleasure to be here.
Pleasure and honor. Yes, ma'am.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
Well, I know when you know when we talked before,
I've had you on the show before, and some things
have changed because now you.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
Have a new book out.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
But I really do want people to get a chance
to just learn more about your foundation and some of
your backstory, if you will allow us the opportunity.
Speaker 3 (03:47):
Sure, my foundation was really rooted in the Nation of Islam.
I was a member of the Nation of Islam as
a baby. So I was reared in that environment in
New York under Minister Lewis Fara Khan, the Honorable Minister
(04:09):
Lewis far Khan, and I got a chance to attend
the Muslim School at different phases of my life, which
I talk about in the book. So I did part
in the public school, but I was also able to
attend the University of Islam, which is what the school
was called, and it kind of shaped my thought process,
(04:33):
it's not kind of. It shaped my thought process throughout
the early years of my life. And really I never
saw myself where I am today. So to be here
sitting here as an ordained elder in the Grand Old
Church of God in Christ, and then to be doing
(04:54):
it with understanding, it's short of a miracle, nothing short
of a miracle. And I give God praise for it
all the time, and I just thank God for how
He's worked in my life. I never saw myself being
a Christian, so let me start there. I never saw
(05:15):
myself being a Christian. I never saw myself being able
to confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Those are
great accomplishments for anyone that would come from an Islamic background,
and so for me to have done that and not
(05:38):
even look back, have that understanding of both and not
even look back, and I'm grateful. Oh yeah, it's been
quite a journey.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
That's you know what you said pretty much you said
the whole show right in that initial opening statement, only
because it's so this is so profound to see. When
I was reading your book, I literally I curled up,
put my blanket on, and I felt like I was
reading a novel.
Speaker 1 (06:08):
And I'm I'm an avid reader.
Speaker 2 (06:10):
But the way that you allowed us to go on
this journey with you, and you started with being a
child and dealing with having to deal with breakup at
an early age. Yes, And so I want you to
just tell us a little bit without giving too much
because everyone you need to get the book. So we're
not gonna reveal every detail on this episode. But there
(06:35):
are a lot of young people that go through dealing
with watching their parents break up and it impacts them
permanently to the point where really they can't come out
of it. What advice what happened to you? And then
what advice would you give people that may be watching
today that are still suffering from the aftermath of their
(06:55):
parents breaking up in their earlier years.
Speaker 3 (06:59):
You know, that's a very good question, and it was.
It was painful, and I'm gonna be honest. I learned
how to pray, and for some reason, at a very
young age, I would always communicate with God. And even
(07:21):
though I was you know, people would say, well, you
were a Muslim and God wouldn't But you know, God
looks at the heart, so if you are really trying
to connect with God, he's going to make sure that
you make that connection, regardless of what the circumstances look like.
(07:41):
So even as a young child, I would talk to
God about things that I didn't understand, and it kind
of would give me a sense of hope that I
didn't even understand that I had at the time. Now
I know what it is, but then I didn't understand
that I had this hope embedded in me. So it
(08:04):
was a struggle. But I was getting a measure of
love from both parents and so that was helpful. But
at the same time, there were times when I desired
my parents to be together, and they split up when
I was in such a young age until I really
never really remember them being together except for the time
(08:27):
that I talk about in the book.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
That's right, that's right. And yeah, the town that you
talk about in the book is one that you all
have to get booked because once you hear the reverence,
in my opinion, that I witnessed from reading you talk
about both of your parents in spite of elder Henry,
in spite of some of the things that they both
(08:49):
were dealing with as adult man. And that's something that
I think that a lot of times we don't give
grace and mercy to our parents.
Speaker 3 (08:59):
Amen.
Speaker 1 (09:00):
We don't know what they've been through, Amen, but.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
They still chose to have you, you know what I mean?
Speaker 3 (09:06):
Right right? Amen? And you know that is a struggle
within itself. A lot of people will have something against
their parents because of a breakup. Are and you know
you have you know, the Scripture says to honor your
mother and your father, that your days may be long
(09:29):
upon this earth. Now that honor does not say based
on their situation. Honor comes in spite of that situation.
So you use the word grace, and that is I
think the most important factor of us being able to
forgive our parents of their shortcomings. And then we have
(09:52):
to remember that we also have shortcomings. So we have
to know that we are not perfect, and so our
parents definitely and have been perfect perfect And it causes
a lot of pain just dealing with that aspect of
having bitterness and animosity towards a parent. So I purposed
(10:15):
in my heart not to and I've seen some things
that I would never discuss that I would not let
anything i've seen ever take me away from showing my
parents' love and respect. And yeah, yeah, I love that.
Speaker 2 (10:32):
I love that, And I think that that was just
totally woven throughout your book and as every time you
mentioned your parents, and whether it was with some love
of disappointment or whether it was how happy you were
about their teaching and what they were instilling in you
individually at the different phases that you were in, you
(10:55):
really showed reverence and honor to them regardless, and I
really admire you for doing that.
Speaker 1 (11:01):
So let me go to Harlem.
Speaker 3 (11:04):
Harlem.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
I have to talk about Harlem for a little bit. Well,
I want you to talk about Harlem.
Speaker 2 (11:08):
Yes, that seemed to be a really pivotal time in
your upbringing, especially in your earlier years.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
How did that play a role in.
Speaker 2 (11:16):
Your faith and spirituality at that phase of your life?
Speaker 3 (11:21):
Harlem is a is a is in Manhattan in New York,
so it's not a different part of New York. But
Harlem is a neighborhood in Manhattan, and Harlem is unique,
and especially back in those days, in the fifties and sixties.
And let me let me say this as I'm answering
(11:42):
that question. So I've gotten so much feedback about this
book from older people, younger people, and it's all been positive.
And one person that I know is from Harlem, and
he's an older gentleman and he just said it just
took him back. And then another person told me when
they went to New York after reading the book, they
(12:04):
walked some of the streets that I was talking about
and could feel the presence of that, right. And so
Harlem is it's a place of beauty, is a place
of blackness, is a place of black respect and black
minor And so I feel I feel blessed to have
(12:26):
seen that and witnessed that. At the same time, you know,
it has its bad points to it, but I was
I was blessed to, you know, just come up in
that environment. And in the sixties, the Nation of Islam
was prevalent in Harlem, and just to be a part
of that background in Harlem was special also, you know,
(12:49):
to see the unity. I think about my father and
all of his friends were businessmen in their twenties in
the sixties in early seventies because of them being a
part of the Nation of Islam. So where people might
think about it, it's just teaching hatred and it was
(13:12):
really a place of motivation and strength to bring black
people out of a mental gutter. Yes, ma'am.
Speaker 2 (13:23):
So when you were in that area and going to
school and learning and becoming educated, there were some things
that were being it were impacting you and they were
still shaping you at an early age, even though ultimately
your decision went into a different direction.
Speaker 1 (13:41):
But those are still.
Speaker 2 (13:42):
Great memories that help you become because it's like to me,
and this is what I've learned, And you tell me
if I'm wrong, that everything that happens along our journey,
Elder Henry, it helps to shape who we ultimately will become.
Speaker 3 (13:57):
Yes, ma'am, I agree.
Speaker 2 (13:59):
If we don't, even if that may not be the
ultimate outcome of our destiny, it's still played a pivotal
part in your upbringing.
Speaker 3 (14:07):
Right, yes, ma'am.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
Yes, Mam to talk about that a little bit.
Speaker 3 (14:11):
So in Harlem, you had all kinds of people you had,
You had drug dealers, you had heroin addicts, you had
all of that. And I had some of that in
my family, so, you know, you just had to it.
(14:32):
And one thing it taught because I had people in
my family that were heroin addicts as teenagers and we
still loved them. Of course, we did not look you know,
even though we understood that they were on this drug,
we did not overlooked them or kicked them to the curve.
(14:57):
It was just it was just kind of a natural
type of love that would be hard to explain. But
we still loved them. You know. If we had family events,
they were there, and you know, and as a child,
I would look at them and say, I'm never doing that.
You know. I made certain things. I made up my
(15:18):
mind that and then the Nation of Islam was teaching
about those things and why these things were taking place. Now,
mind you, I'm hearing this stuff at four, five, six, seven,
eight years old, okay, and still being able to apply
(15:40):
it and under have some understanding, which was God all
the way. And I just didn't realize it. You know,
God has always given me the ability to think, to
calculate things, and and I just never knew what all
of it meant. But when I look now, I see
(16:02):
all of it had purpose and intention, you know. So yeah,
and it helps me now because you know, we give
our food at the church every Monday, at Kingdom Builders,
we give our food, and so a lot of the
people we're on the west side of Charlotte right now,
and a lot of the people that come, they're coming
(16:23):
with all kinds of addictions. And and so when I
go to him, you know, because you would look at
me now and just think, well, he's just this preacher guy.
He probably been in church's whole life. And I, you know,
but I can reach them and touch them and be
personable with them, you know, And and that that's important
(16:45):
to me to be able to show that love and
just not look down on people.
Speaker 2 (16:49):
I'm glad you're saying that, because every time I see you,
you're in a soup, right. So you're very intentional as
an adult. But I realized that when reading your book.
It started it way back when you were a young man.
At this young age, you actually did something. And I
would like for you to tell people what you did
(17:10):
at a restaurant when you order your French fries and
sit there like you were having a one man meeting.
Speaker 1 (17:17):
So you're just about that for a few minutes.
Speaker 3 (17:19):
Yeah, that's that's that's funny, you know. I often would
think about that. And so at about four or five
years old. First of all, when we would go to
the mosque, there was a restaurant at the mosque, and
so we would go in there and eat, but everybody
would always be in a suit. So I was under
(17:40):
the assumption that when you went to a restaurant you
had to have on suit to eat. And so my
grandmother's boyfriend, he would be keeping me sometime, mister Bill.
He was a long long shore seamen, so he would
go be out on the water and then come back,
but he would be watching me. And so I'd go
(18:01):
put on a suit. And mind you, I'm a little kid,
I'm like five years old, four years old, and I
would put this suit on, and he say, boy, what
are you doing with that suit? I'm gonna tell your father.
And I put my suit on and take my little
change that I had and go downstairs and around the corner,
you know, out of and not worried about anything, not
(18:22):
worried about anybody harming me, you know, just going around
the corner and going It was a drug store that
had a little restaurant in it, and I would go
in there and order some fries and sit down with
my little suit on and everything like I was having
a meeting, you know. But the funny part about it,
(18:44):
you know, looking back now, this man knew who I was,
and he always treated me like a wreck hey man,
you know, and gave me what I wanted. And so
it was never like where are your parents and what
you're doing down here by yourself? It was never that.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
So yeah, so community, it was still a sense of community. Yes,
everything that I was reading in your book, it seemed
like you were just protected. Even like you say, going
over to get an order of fries, It's like you
cannot come in here in today's time. If a child
goes into a store, then first of all, every adult
(19:20):
is definitely going to try to figure out who does
this child belong to? You going to put it on
social media, this child is lost, somebody come and find
a child reported to DS. It's going to be a
problem because the child is by themselves. That's just the
anxiety says right, yes, in your time being in Harlem,
going at the age of four or five years old
(19:40):
in a little suit, going to a local convenience store
a drug store and coming in, nobody hurt you, nobody
did anything but serve you. How important is that for
a community to be able to really be a village
for children in this.
Speaker 3 (19:58):
Is very important. And one thing about we lived on
one hundred and fortieth Street between seventh and eighth Avenue.
I did some research on that block, and a majority
of the youth, the young men that came out of
that block ended up being in prison. Okay, there are
(20:19):
some success stories, but a lot of people from that
from that block ended up in prison or whatever. But
at the same time, in the sixties, it was a community.
And then every my dad grew up on that block,
and everybody knew that he was a member of the nation,
it's all. And even the crazy people that would bother somebody,
(20:44):
they didn't bother me, because you know, he had a
life before he became a Muslim.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
That's so they like that.
Speaker 2 (20:51):
That's right there, that're right there, Henry, Yeah.
Speaker 3 (20:54):
Yeah, exactly, that's that's that's that's little Henry and that
was it. And so yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
So so not that not that we're comparing the Nation
of Islam to any kind of mafia situation under any
certain stance, but they knew better not to mess with
Henry's boy, right, Yeah.
Speaker 3 (21:11):
They No, they wasn't doing that from from his previous
lifestyle and from him being a member, you know, of
the nation. Yeah, they just didn't.
Speaker 2 (21:20):
So And in speaking of the nation, one thing that
I see I admire about what I observe, because I
definitely don't want to show that all one sided or
the other, because there's some good attributes to every component
of life, is that I really do admire the team
work that I see and and the people working together
(21:41):
to be united and in uniform.
Speaker 1 (21:44):
It's like, okay, together, we're going to go out.
Speaker 2 (21:47):
And I don't care what it is that's happening, whether
it's putting out flyers, whether it's put I've had people
approach me on it's on the side of the road
with different types of pies and things, and first of all,
those piths tastes good, by the way, but anyway being.
Speaker 1 (22:01):
But but the point that.
Speaker 2 (22:03):
I'm making is the united front that I see in
that situation, and did you feel that when you were
in the Nation of Islam.
Speaker 3 (22:12):
Yes, I'm gonna I'm gonna just be honest. The closest
thing that I've seen to the Nation of Islam, and
I think surpasses the Nation of His Law to a degree,
is the Church of God in Christ. And I don't
want to I don't want to promote any religion or
(22:34):
any religious organization or anything like that. But just to
that point, we were taught to work in unity, to
work together. We were taught that brotherhood is of the
utmost importance at all times, and we were taught to
(22:54):
have respect for our women at all times, and we
would we would art to protect our area. So in
the Nation of Islam, every male has to understand the
importance of some measure of security at some point. So
(23:16):
it's not like you have a choice. You part of it.
This is what we do, and you're going to do it.
So you don't get to just come and sit down
and clap your hands. You know all the time. You
get to do it, but then you're going to have
an opportunity to make sure everybody else could do that.
While you're making sure everybody is secure and so you know,
(23:37):
I work with that aspect of the church, and I
look back and I say, you know, I've been doing
this my entire life, so.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
It's very normal to you.
Speaker 3 (23:51):
So the unity. I think about my father and his friends,
and I think about we would have an event called
Black Family Day in Harlem and well in Randall's out
which is right by Harlem, and we would have like
one hundred thousand black people there, no violence, no police,
(24:14):
you know, and no concern about violence and just peaceful,
you know. And so I'm used to seeing black people
work together. I was raised with black people working together.
So when I don't see that, I feel like it's
something wrong.
Speaker 1 (24:33):
You know, that's good.
Speaker 2 (24:35):
And so being a part of the Church of God
in Christ, you're seeing that at the ministry that you
are a part of as well. Come people coming together
and large numbers and having a very smooth and no riots,
no yes, gun violence or anything. It's just literally people
working together. Why do you think that was the case
with the Nation of Islam? What did you what do
(24:57):
you attribute that to based on your learning?
Speaker 3 (25:00):
Well, the purpose of the Nation of Islam was to
bring black people out of a state of captivity and
bondage from oppression, okay, from the oppression of the former
(25:24):
slave masters. And it was to teach you to lift
your head up, that you are somebody special, that you
are not, that you are important also right, and that
you should not look down to anybody but walk with
(25:45):
your head up, you know. And so they instill that
from a very young age. Now with our preaching. So
where when I was eventually converted, because it was you know,
my conversion itself was something that I didn't expect, excuse me,
(26:11):
to happen the way that it did happen, right, But
once the conversion happened, and I begin to study the
BIB like not, you know, a lot of people will
talk about Christianity and go from a tidbit of what
they heard over here or what they heard over there
and try to incorporate that into their thought process without
(26:35):
reading the Bible. Well, God, before I joined anybody's church,
because I didn't save that the altar, and before I
joined anybody's church, I had read the whole Testament, good, good,
and and I didn't have understanding at first. Okay, God,
(27:01):
I was in career and the gentleman flew there together,
and God allowed me and this guy to ride on
the bus going to do some shopping side by side,
show you how God would set you up and position you.
So this guy was a preacher and I never knew
(27:21):
and he told me. He said, I said, well, man,
I'm reading the Bible, but I don't have no understanding.
And he says to me, pray before you read, and
then God would give you the understanding. And so that's
what I did. And what my point is, a lot
of people never really read the Bible. I'm talking about
(27:44):
people that's seeking salvation or seeking direction, and so they
would say, well, that's the white man's Bible. And I
was even told that by people, and I told them
that I was minister, Well how are you going to
be a minister? And you know that's that's the white
(28:05):
man's religion. The white man might have intended to use
portions of scripture against the slaves, which is well documented.
I said, but there's a thing called the Holy Spirit
that once you start reading that Bible, that Holy Spirit
supersedes every trick that anybody ever tried to utilize the
(28:28):
Bible for. So there's life, there's power in the world
of God, and it only comes from studying it. You
can't get that from a little t bit here and
a little tit bit there.
Speaker 1 (28:41):
That's good.
Speaker 3 (28:42):
That's good.
Speaker 2 (28:42):
And you know what that was one of the questions
I was going to ask you, is what was that
thing that sparked you to have an interest in having
more curiosity in Christianity? And I know that one of
the things based on your book here is Nathan the evangelist.
Speaker 3 (29:01):
Yes, Nathan Nathan Milton, Bishop Nathan Milton. He hells in Greensboro,
North Carolina right now. I was able to put a
copy of my book in his hand. And he's a
brother that was a child evangelist. He grew up in
(29:21):
the Apostolic Faith, and he's a bishop currently. And he
would sit beside me in the band room and playing
the trombone and look at me and say, boy, I
don't want to hear none of that Muslim jump. He
would say, if you don't except Christ, you're gonna bust
(29:41):
hell wide open. Now. I didn't pay him any attention
at the time, but I heard him. You know, people
hear you, whether they pay you attention or not. Yes, ma'am.
So it kept sticking with me, and I began to
question God. And then when I went in the army,
I saw some other things happen and it kept making
(30:06):
me question God. And so then my final question to
God was I believe that I am going to have
to serve you in my lifetime. My question is which
direction will this service be coming from? Christianity or Islam?
Speaker 2 (30:26):
Okay okay, So that's you having your own yes. So
first of all, this reminds me of somebody planting the seed,
then somebody watering the seed, because then you were on
the trip that with the bus ride, with the person
that continued to talk to you, and then ultimately God
providing the increase and deciding when you're at a crossroad
(30:48):
which way you're ultimately going to go. That's what I
see in that situation. So Bishop Nathan Melton actually planted
the seed and he was like saying a childlike what.
Speaker 3 (31:01):
No, no, no, he was he was he was very serious.
Speaker 2 (31:05):
No, I know what I'm saying from out of the
mouth of babes, out of the.
Speaker 3 (31:08):
Mouth child, Yes, ma'am, Yes, ma'am. Yes.
Speaker 2 (31:10):
So we don't know how, we don't know how important
it is for a young person. That's why parents are
watching this show. Let your young people know that this
man was converted from the nation of Islam to Christianity
because a child that was in a band at the
(31:33):
school said, listen, man, you got to get away from
me saying all of that he was he was being
matter of fact and usually the gifts and the talents
that God gave him, Yes, ma'am important.
Speaker 3 (31:43):
Amen, it's and I instill that in young people today.
You know, when I see them, I say, it's important
for you to be an example, because I'm here standing
here today because of an example of a man, of
someone that wasn't afraid or wasn't ashamed of being criticized
(32:06):
while he was in school, because you know, back then
they would pick at you and I'm sure they, oh,
he'll preacher, hear this. You know, he a holy roller
and all of that kind of stuff. And I thank
God for that holy roller because if he didn't tell
me about Jesus the way he did, and sometimes he
just look at me and say, boy, you just need
to get saved, you know, And I'm grateful. I mean,
(32:31):
I tell him, man, you know, I don't have words
to express my gratefulness to him, just for not being
ashamed of the Gospel wow.
Speaker 2 (32:43):
And that should be a testimony or testament to all
of us that like God.
Speaker 1 (32:48):
He says, I'll be ashamed of you if you're ashamed
of me.
Speaker 2 (32:51):
But for him to be a young person and to
go and to spread the Gospel, doing exactly what is
required of God, of each and every one of us
mandate that man spread the word of God to people.
So is there ever a time that you felt like
you were facing some internal personal resistance between dealing with
(33:12):
what you had believed for so long and now trying
to transition over to a new belief in Christianity?
Speaker 3 (33:21):
You know, I believe that happens to a lot of
in a lot of cases. With me, it was a
little different because I didn't get saved at the altar,
and so my I think my transition was kind of
like Paul and the you know, on the road to Damascus.
(33:43):
So I think it was kind of similar to his transition,
where once it happened, he knew that it was solid
and he never looked back. And mine was the same
way because it happened on the highway in the midst
of us, in the midst of a snow.
Speaker 2 (34:00):
I wasn't sure you're gonna talk about that on that
I wasn't gonna see.
Speaker 3 (34:04):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I don't I share that anytime. Good good, yeah.
You know, on my way from Greensboro to Chicago and
nineteen eighty six, I pulled over in Indiana to take
a little nap about uh one in the morning. I'm
(34:24):
a you know, young man, twenty three years old, my
first real long trip by myself. So I said, I'm
gonna pull over, take a nap. And when I wake
up and it started driving, I hit the sheet of
black ice. It's snow coming down, but I don't realize,
you know that it has been coming down for this
(34:45):
hour that I've been taking his nap and has got
the road just in dangerous conditions. And my car slid
and went into the air. And now I'm kind of
leaning sideways in the air. I could fill the car
about the flip, and I scream out, Lord, and I mean,
(35:10):
you know, Lord, I mean, I've never really said that,
not like that, man. That's what I screamed out, Lord.
And the car landed without flipping. And I'm in the
opposite direction, facing and flashing my lights, pushing the button
in and out. You know, old nineteen seventy eight for
(35:31):
of LTD. And I'm pushing those pushing the button in
and out. Thank god, it was a big old tank,
you know. And this gentleman comes up to me and
he happened to be a white guy, at about one
in the morning, two in the morning, and he says,
you're okay, you need a ride? I say yes, sir,
(35:52):
you know, and he said, well, come on, I'll take
you to this gas station down the road. I say, ya,
I need to call my aunt because you know, this
is before this cell phone days, so we had to
go to the little pay phone at the gas station. Well,
on this ride, he looks at me and says, if
you would have died to night, do you think you
(36:13):
would have went to heaven or Hell?
Speaker 1 (36:15):
This is a stranger that this man.
Speaker 3 (36:18):
Does not know me. I don't know him. I'm in
a whole nother state. And his question to me was,
if you would have died tonight, do you think you
would have went to heaven a hell? And I said
to him, I hope I would have went to heaven.
And he said, there's a way to ensure that. He said,
(36:38):
I'm an evangelist and God has sent me here for
you tonight, Thank you Jesus. And so when he said that,
I felt it, and I felt me having questioned him.
He questioned God, not him, but questioned God in that direction.
(37:02):
Now I'm not putting all of this together, but I
knew that I had questioned God. And he says to me,
the Lord sent me here for you tonight. He said,
there's people dying on this highway. Said, look at all
these accidents. You know how when the snowstorm and the
ice storm happens, his accidents like almost immediately. And he
(37:24):
says to me, people have died on this highway tonight,
and God saved you, and you might not be so
lucky the next time. And so I looked at him,
and when we got in the parking lot, he asked me,
you know, and I told him, yes, I'll accept Christ.
(37:46):
And he prayed the prayer of salvation in the gas
station parking lot. So I had been to church maybe
three times prior to that, and really for several years
after that, I still hadn't joined the church per se,
(38:08):
but I was able to study and read the Bible.
I started going to a church, and then when I
got to Korea, I started attending church now here's the
thing that I didn't know, but I know now. In
the military they allow elders of the Church of God
(38:29):
in Christ to conduct services and they are sanctioned by
the Military Chapel Service, and so they'll call full gospel services,
so they allow everybody to come in. Everybody could come in.
You know, it's not specific to the Church of God
in Christ. But even when I was in Iraq, I
(38:52):
ran the service for several months in two thousand and four,
two thousand and three, I'm sorry, two thousand and three.
I was able to run the service because of me
being elder in the Church of God in Christ. So
I was getting introduced to the Church of God in
Christ in Korea and it didn't even really but now
(39:12):
I know, you know, because I heard I would hear
them saying, Elder this, and but now I know what
was going on, and so yeah, so that that thing
caused me that the way that I transition, it caused
me never to look back. So I've never looked back.
And I had to. I had to bring myself to
(39:35):
a point where I could articulate my reverence for the
nation of this without saying that I'm still a member
because I'm not and I don't plan on being one
because I'm saved. I'm saved, sanctified, Holy ghost. Feel you understand.
(39:55):
And it's a difference. It's good as the work is.
There's a difference. This isn't This is an another level.
And I don't want to be offensive, but this is
a whole other level. This is a whole another level
of grace, a whole other level of operation.
Speaker 2 (40:12):
Mm hmm. I think that what I admire most is
again your respect and honor of which you gleaned.
Speaker 1 (40:20):
From that aspect of life.
Speaker 2 (40:22):
But being very clear that there is a difference in
that I am a child of God and I am
serving my Lord and Savior Jesus christy has. It's been
my encounter in my time of transformation when you had
that road on Damascus, on the Black Ice Man Highway experience.
Speaking of which I do want to take a moment
(40:43):
to acknowledge that you know you're one of your leaders
is here supporting you in the studio audience, and that's
Lady Lawana as Grant.
Speaker 1 (40:53):
Doctor Lawana.
Speaker 2 (40:54):
Ask Grant, who is the visionary behind supporting your your
book project?
Speaker 3 (41:00):
Right, yes, ma'am. She is the editor and publisher and
phenomenal editing and publishing of this great work. I greatly
appreciate her her work, and not only in this book,
but her work in the Kingdom of God. You better
believe it is on. Yeah, it's powerful, and so you
(41:24):
appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (41:25):
This is where you can visit with a Kingdom Builder's
Church International, where you will see Bishop Darryl Grant and
Lady Lawana Grant. They have services at ten a m.
Right at Kingdom Builder's Church International, and that is let
me put the address up. I wanted to make sure
(41:47):
I acknowledge an honor where you be able to personally
see Elder Henry and I pop I type this address
so I can make sure I put it up here
for you. Yes, So, if you'd like to visit with
Kingdom Builder's Church International, they are at twenty three point
fifty two Doctor Weber Avenue and Charlotte, North Carolina on
(42:09):
Sunday mornings at ten a m. And you will see
Elder Henry Coox some in his suit and he is
standing guard. Trust me, don't you're not gonna play in
the Church of God in Christ, you might as well
feel like you at the Nation of Islam.
Speaker 1 (42:23):
Because you ain't getting too close to.
Speaker 2 (42:25):
The bishop and to Lady Alawana, because Elde Henry will
will stop you kindly, Okay, Amen. Yeah, I'm really grateful
and honored that you're taking the time to educate the
world about your transition. And I do want to ask
you to, like, I know, when people around you, you
have friends, mentors, family, people that are always surrounding us,
(42:49):
how do people embrace your change when you were transitioning
to Christianity.
Speaker 3 (42:58):
The good part about it was I wasn't around a
lot of the people that I grew up with in
the nation when it when it happened, and so it
was able to I was able to do it without
a lot of scrutiny. I did end up getting a
(43:20):
little a little backlash from my mother at first, which
was surprising when I told her that I that I
you know, got called to the ministry excuse me. But
when I explained to her because my mother was an
educator and and she you know, so once I explained
to her about the revelation side of Christianity and not
(43:44):
so much the the human side where they could say
it was tainted because you can't taint God's work. You
could do it. That you could, you could, you could
use your personal touch on whatever you want to do.
But when you get into the annointing of God's work,
that's clear, that's pure. So nothing in there that could
(44:07):
be tainted. Only thing is gonna come out of that.
You're gonna come out pure as gold, right, because you're
coming in something. There's a change agent. So you know,
God is there. He changes us, He puts us and
brings us to where he wants us to be so
that he can get maximum use. And so nobody has
any control of that, no race, nationality, anything, you know.
(44:30):
So that's the power behind that. And so once I
explained that to my mother in that way in which
was holy ghost inspired. Let me say, because I didn't
just you know, I had to respect my mother. You know,
I'll tell you all the story. So don't don't take
don't take bad of my mother. But you know, when
(44:50):
I was a teenager, my mother was a little short lady.
And when I was a teenager, I call myself mouthing
off to her one time and it was just she
and I in the house, and so she just went
in the closet and got the hammer and said, boy,
if you say one more.
Speaker 2 (45:05):
Word, She's like, you're gonna, You're gonna, You're gonna shut
that mouth.
Speaker 3 (45:10):
Yeah, And so I had to, you know, be mindful
of how I was explaining it to her, you know,
even though I was a grown man. I'm saying that
in all humor, right, But she ended up going back
to church and dedicating her life back to Christ. Yes,
and see, so that's and then my dad, as I
talk about in the book, and I'm not gonna get
(45:30):
it into that deeply, but who's in the nation of
Islam for many, many, many many years, and I saw
him in the condition that touched me, and I began
to pray that God would save my father. And this
was in nineteen eighty seven and I didn't talk to
(45:53):
it again until ninety two. And when I talked to
him again, he tells me, so, I'm no longer a Muslim,
I'm a Christian. And so yeah, so that you know
that aspect of everything, the people I cared about the most,
(46:14):
my parents both be dedicated their lives to Christ, and
my dad had never been a Christian, you know. So yeah,
it's just awesome, beautiful, oh good.
Speaker 2 (46:28):
God is more than good. And I want you all
listen to me carefully. You have to get the book, Okay.
I have read this book about yeah two and a
half times, because I'm reading half reading again, and I
actually have. I went through and I folded pages, and
I took notes. I took notes and different things, and
(46:49):
I was like the marching band, who knew a marching
band with These are my own personal notes, like I'm
actually reading the book and taking notes as if I'm journaling.
And I from learning how to cook eggs at five
to a deep rooted love for cooking as an adult.
These are all notes that I personally have been taking. Praying,
a praying grandmother, How important a praying grandmother is. These
(47:12):
are all people that he acknowledged in his book. But again,
you feel like you're reading a novel. His dad taught
him to be a man of purpose. This is a
note that I took to Tom Cogdill and his grandmother
and who Tom Cogdail is, you name it very intentional
at a young age, being able to be authentically me,
(47:35):
and how important it is to be authentically me, not
compare myself to anybody else. This is all stuff that
I've learned right from reading Elder Henry Cokexam's book. You
have got to get this book today. Put it in
the comment section. If you already know that you have
your copy and you're gifting another copy to somebody else,
(47:56):
or that you're getting a copy for the first time,
put it over in the comment section. I'm getting my copy.
I got my copy. I have my copy. I'm on
my way to go and get it right now. You
can get your copy at www dot h cj journey
dot com. I'll have podcast listeners on iHeartRadio, so I
(48:17):
want to make sure I spell it h is in
Henry c is in Charlicke Coxham j Journey, So hcj
journey dot com. Get your copy of The Journey, My
journey from the Nation of Islam to Christianity, A story
of change, trans transition, and destiny. Get your copy today,
(48:39):
you guys, because you don't want to miss the opportunity
to learn how that transition happened. What role, in your opinion,
did the Bible actually play, Because I know that people
played a role, but the Bible seem to have played
a key role too.
Speaker 1 (48:55):
What role does Bible play?
Speaker 3 (48:57):
The thing about that I'm gonna I want to I'm
gonna answer that, And I want to back up to
my grandmother real quick.
Speaker 2 (49:04):
Yeah, I knew you were gonna say that once I
mentioned that Grandma was yeah about her.
Speaker 3 (49:08):
So my grandmother, as he made in Harlem, she ran
a gambling spot and she you know it was it
was a true gambling spot in Harlem, and all kinds
of people were in there. I mean, this place would
get robbed. It was just you know the bottom. Now,
(49:29):
I never saw my grandmother get in the bed without praying,
without getting on her knees praying. She literally would get
on her knees, pray and then get in the bed. Wow.
My grandmother would not allow me to play cards, gamble,
any kind of thing that had anything to do with gambling.
(49:52):
She would not allow me to do it. I don't
gamble to this day. And I often wondered, why is
she telling me this? And she works in the guard
playing cards, And she explained to me at about nineteen
years old, when I was about nineteen that when she
came to New York in nineteen twenty five, that she
(50:16):
tried to get a job working in the factories, and
the little money they were paying her, she wasn't able
to do anything right, and she ran into her guy
from South Carolina, Bumpy Johnson, who we all know is
a well known gangster in Harlem, and that's what she
started running card games for. And so she was able
(50:38):
to take care of herself all of the years that
she lived in Harlem, working and taking care of herself.
And that's what So that's what the gambling was all about,
being able to take yourself and not you know, so
much as the crime aspect of it. It was a
way of living for her, and you know, I just
(50:58):
had to respect that. But to your I the Bible
didn't really start playing a key part until I really
started reading it. And I understood the importance of reading
because of a gentleman that my mother was a common
(51:19):
law married to for eight years, a guy named ah
Met Abdullah, and he set me down and taught me
how to read and taught me the importance of comprehension.
And so as I began to read the Bible, and
my first revelation of scripture came and reading John fifteen,
(51:40):
Saint John, chapter fifteen, I am divining you out of branches,
And so I began to understand what God was saying
and began to tear up, and from there a hunger
just just kept going until this day. You know, I'm
going through now, I'm reading the entire Bible. Now, I'm
(52:01):
in the Old Testament and I'm not on the schedule,
so I'm just reading it as I go. But I'm
in Isaiah right now. So yeah, I think that's imperative
because you don't go to school to be a dentist
without going through dentistry school, and then you have to
do continue continuing education along the way. So what you
(52:26):
learned ten years ago is not going to be relevant
in dentistry. The medical field, taxes, anything you're doing is
not going to be relevant. So if that's changing, we
cannot effectively work in Christianity and not utilize the tool
of Christianity, which is the Bible.
Speaker 1 (52:47):
That's so good.
Speaker 2 (52:48):
So we have the master blueprint right in our hands.
Then God has already written a vision and made it plain.
All we have to do is follow the plan. And
I think, yes, ma'a, your story is beautiful execution of
that happening. Listen, I do want to give you all
an opportunity to partner with us today here at the
Kim Jacobs Show. We come on Monday through Friday at
(53:09):
eleven o'clock am Eastern Standard time. And the only way
we can bring balance into your home every single weekday
is to have some partners that believe in our broadcast
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things that keep it professional in order for you to
be able to have this level of connection in us
bringing guests like Elda Henry Coxom Junior into your home.
(53:33):
So we are now with CTR Media Network and we
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(53:55):
balance to the world, one household at a time. Okay,
all right, So what advice would you give someone that
is transitioning from the Nation of Islam and it's just
curious about Jesus and want to explore it a little
bit more.
Speaker 3 (54:11):
I would say first of all that being in the
Nation of Islam is setting a good solid foundation for you,
but to achieve that next level of understanding of grace
(54:31):
and as I said in my book. I think the
main difference between the nation of Islam or Islam as
a whole in Christianity, true Christianity, pure Christianity is the
word love. And the Bible says that God soul loved
the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that
(54:55):
whosoever believed in him should not perish, but have everlast life.
And I think the secret is to tap in to
the love of God. So the weak of be in
the fullness of the God, of the promises of God.
And so if you are feeling a hunger and you're
feeling a void on the inside of you, and you're
(55:19):
trying to fill that void, Jesus Christ is the only
way that Voyd could be felled. Accepting Christ is Lord
and Savior is the only way that boy can be felled.
Speaker 2 (55:29):
Oh wow, and listen today. If you accept Jesus Christ,
or maybe you hadn't accepted Jesus, but after hearing Elder
Henry's story, you want to accept Jesus. Know that in
Romans ten and nine, it's very simple. If you believe
in your heart and you confess with your mouth that
Jesus is Lord and that he is the Son of God.
(55:49):
And he died for our sins. You are a brother
orn and a sister in Christ. And if you did
accept Jesus today, please let us know in the comment
section so that we can and celebrate because all of
Heaven rejoice. Is all because you decided to become a
new child in the body of Christ. So thank you,
(56:10):
Elda Henry for sharing your story. Let me go just
to a few of the studio audience comments. I don't
like for people to take time to come in and
not acknowledge. So let's see. I see Anita watching from destined, Florida.
I will welcome. Sean decart Wright said, now this this
(56:32):
is this right here, this right here. Please probably we said,
Lady Lawana Grant, your first lady at Kingdom Builders Church.
She's also I'm a part of the Charlotte Metro District
and so she's I'm my local bishop and our district
superintendent's wife, Lady Lawana Grant. She's also a leader in
(56:57):
the Christian marketplace. She has a confer for instance, coming
up female leaders in ministry in Tampa, Florida.
Speaker 1 (57:05):
You name it.
Speaker 2 (57:05):
You all look doctor Lawana s Grant up and stay
connected with her because everything that she touches. I would
say turn the gold, but I would say turned to platinum. Baby,
it turns to platinum. She is a force to be
reckoned with in the body of Christ. So glad to
have you here, Lady Lawana. She said, also, oh wow,
thank you Pastor Kim and Elder Coaxam. You are both awesome.
(57:29):
This book and the interview are both great. You're great,
so we thank you again. She actually publishes other Christian authors,
so if you're looking for a reputable publishing source, you
want to connect with doctor Lawana s Gring. Yes, definitely, Okay,
let's see Ethelbert Bayer said, to God be the glory,
(57:51):
and thank you so much for your transparency.
Speaker 3 (57:55):
Bless you have to bias.
Speaker 2 (57:58):
Now see I would have missed all these comments if
I before going here. This some good coming.
Speaker 1 (58:02):
The Ressa T.
Speaker 2 (58:03):
James says, thank you for your transparency and your journey
and your commitment to God. I'm honored to serve under
your leadership and your guidance. And Theressa also said, listen, everybody,
get the book today, Get the book.
Speaker 1 (58:20):
Get the book. To God be the glory. To God
be the glory.
Speaker 2 (58:23):
Lots of comments coming in I'm sure lots more will
come in. Lisa Graham Dixon says, thank you so much
for sharing.
Speaker 1 (58:30):
Great job.
Speaker 2 (58:31):
Elder Henry Cokes of Junior and she is a real
estate agency also has a lot of senior care facilities
throughout the Charlotte and surrounding area. So y'all make sure
you connect with Lisa Graham Dixon. All right, all right,
So what's next for you in ministry?
Speaker 3 (58:49):
Well, I'm just continuing to serve and I'm grateful to
be at Kingdom Builders with my great leader, Bishop Daryl L. Grant,
and y'all come check Kingdom Builders out. We're doing something
phenomenal in the city of Charlotte. Bishop and Lady Grant,
you just got to come and be a part of this.
We're going and growing fast and the Word of God
(59:13):
is coming out pure and we just we're just so grateful.
Speaker 2 (59:18):
You can visit KBC I n C dot org kb
Kingdom Builders Church International and it's KBC I n C
dot Org Sundays at ten am Kingdom Builders Church International.
Speaker 1 (59:36):
Make sure you all go and visit. You will be blessed.
Speaker 2 (59:39):
Your life will never be the same, So make sure
you do that. And let's see I think, I thought,
I think I've asked everything I could think to ask,
but oh, I do want to know you. In your book,
there was a nickname. Yes, I'm gonna put you on
the spot. I saw something, Ohbar huh.
Speaker 3 (59:57):
The nickname is oh Bar. Oh. Yeah. So that name
is an African name and it means king. And so
I have been called that name from the age of five,
and all of my friends in Greensboro, a majority of
them still call me that King o Ba.
Speaker 2 (01:00:18):
All right, yeah, So if we revealed that on that's exclusive,
y'all because it was not revealed in the book. So
it's on the Kim Jacob Show. King o Ba is
elder Henry Koxham Junior. Listen, I'm gonna put this up
one more time. My Journey from the Nation of Islam
to Christianity a story of change, transition, and destiny. You
(01:00:40):
can get your copy. I would recommend that you get
your copy directly from him because it can be an
autograph copy at HCJ Journey dot com or you can
also get it on Amazon.
Speaker 1 (01:00:52):
When you do get it, please make sure you leave
a review. I know I went on and left a review.
I had to.
Speaker 2 (01:00:57):
I was like I love this book so much, like
I was reading a novel and I was on a
roller coaster rod and and it speaks to so many
different aspects of life. Is there anything that you wanted
to say, Elder Henry, that maybe you didn't get a
chance to say on this episode that's still ringing in
your spirit.
Speaker 3 (01:01:14):
I just want to I just want to encourage everybody,
you know that no matter what challenges you're going through
in life, because we all have challenges and some days,
you know, seeing darker than others. But trust God through
the process. Don't give up when you make a mistake,
don't be too hard on yourself. You know, ask, ask
(01:01:36):
for forgiveness. God is here for us. He's here for us.
He's not here to leave us. You know. He says
he will never leave us nor forsake us. And that
is so true. So forgive yourself and just trust God
through the process. Tomorrow is another day. God is another.
Speaker 2 (01:01:57):
Day, y'all. This man is going to be leaving a
legacy of hope and inspiration for generations to come. So
I really hope that today has been a tremendous blessing
to you, learning about in a very respectful way, how
Elder Henry Cokexom transitioned from the Nation of Islam to Christianity,
(01:02:20):
and I really encourage you to get his book. Tomorrow,
I will have a guest coming on talking about his
transition from the Good Me and the Hood Meet and
he's talking about how young people need to be able
to learn that there is a good me, there's a
hood meie and what the difference is. So we're going
to be talking with that author tomorrow right here on
(01:02:41):
the Kim Jacobs Show at eleven o'clock am Eastern Standard time.
You don't want to miss that episode. All week, we're
talking about how people are transitioning from different aspects of life.
He transitioned also from the gutter to greatness. He's the
author of that book, so you don't want to miss
that episode. We have some great episodes lined up for
you this week. You are in for a tremendous treat.
(01:03:03):
Thank you, Elder Henry Coxom for your Thank you for
your service in the military as a veteran. We appreciate you,
we salute you, we honor you, and thank you for
all that you do. I see that panther signe back
there to anything you want to say, you show repping
them back there, what you want.
Speaker 3 (01:03:20):
To say, trying to wrap them a little bit. I
hope they're going to do something this year, Doctor Kim.
Thank you for having me on your show. I greatly
appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (01:03:29):
Thank you for blessing our studio audience, and I love
each and every one of you all. Thank you for
being here today and we will see you again Monday
through Friday at eleven o'clock AM Eastern Standard Time, right
here on the Kim Jacob Show. Have a great day, everybody.
Thank you for tuning in to today's episode of The
Kim Jacob Show and for being in the virtual studio audience.
Your presence truly does make a difference, and I look
(01:03:51):
forward to you bringing your friends and family to join
you in the virtual studio audience Monday through Friday at
eleven o'clock AM Eastern Standard Time. I look forward to
seeing you and make it a great day.
Speaker 3 (01:04:05):
M
Have a great show lined up for you.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
I'm your host, Kim Jacobs, better known as the Balance Doctor,
and all of our guests that come on there either
people that have overcome some tremendous odds in their own
lives as they balance this thing called life, or they're
experts and they're here to share tips and strategies that
will help you better balance and manage your life. Grab
your virtual seats and let's get ready for some real,
(00:24):
relevant and relatable content on today's episode of The Kim
Jacobs Show. That Jacob Hello, everyone, Yes, welcome to this
episode of The Kim Jacob Show.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
I am super excited.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
I am back in the house with you all right
at our regularly scheduled time, and today we are going
to be talking about how people transition from all different
aspects of life and me today is Elder Henry Kochom Junior.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
How are you today, Elder.
Speaker 3 (01:04):
Henry, I'm doing great. Doctor Kim, how are you doing today, ma'am?
Speaker 2 (01:08):
I am doing wonderful and I'm doing so much better
knowing that you are here in my presence, even though
it's virtual. I'm super excited. I feel like there is
a connection for life between us.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
And I get a chance to see you.
Speaker 2 (01:22):
I get a chance to see you in different regards
at Kingdom Builders Church. We got to make sure we
tag your your your pastor, and your bishop and over
there let everybody know you all you you here.
Speaker 1 (01:34):
On the Kim Jacobs Show.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
Right, Yes, ma'am, yes, right.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
So I'm super excited because God has just done some
tremendous things through your life. I personally get to be
a witness to see your transformation. But today, everyone that's
tuning in, I encourage you to tag everyone and invite
people to be a part of today's discussion on how
(01:58):
this gentleman made a conscious decision to transition from the
Nation of Islam to Christianity. And it's going to be
a heartfelt discussion and one that's almost like a roller
coaster ride, if that makes sense. But we're going to
talk through it and hear your heart on it. Elder Henry, Okay, yes,
(02:19):
So introducing him, I'm actually right here looking at the book.
You are a father, an educator, a mentor, a friend,
and a confidant whose life has been shaped by an
unwavering faith in God and a deep belief in the
power of prayer. These principles have been your foundation upon
(02:40):
which you stand and the driving force behind your message.
And you are a graduate of Andersonville Theological Seminary, and
you were ordained as an elder in the Church of
God in Christ in nineteen ninety eight, where it continued
to serve faithfully everyone. This military terry man also with
(03:01):
over fifteen years of service in the United States Army,
is a proud veteran and lifetime member of the Veterans
of Foreign Wars And so anyway, I could read his
entire bio, but I'm just so honored and privileged to
have Elder Henry coxhom Junior here on the Kim Jacobs
Show today.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
Well, thank you man, it's a pleasure to be here.
Pleasure and honor. Yes, ma'am.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
Well, I know when you know when we talked before,
I've had you on the show before, and some things
have changed because now you.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
Have a new book out.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
But I really do want people to get a chance
to just learn more about your foundation and some of
your backstory, if you will allow us the opportunity.
Speaker 3 (03:47):
Sure, my foundation was really rooted in the Nation of Islam.
I was a member of the Nation of Islam as
a baby. So I was reared in that environment in
New York under Minister Lewis Fara Khan, the Honorable Minister
(04:09):
Lewis far Khan, and I got a chance to attend
the Muslim School at different phases of my life, which
I talk about in the book. So I did part
in the public school, but I was also able to
attend the University of Islam, which is what the school
was called, and it kind of shaped my thought process,
(04:33):
it's not kind of. It shaped my thought process throughout
the early years of my life. And really I never
saw myself where I am today. So to be here
sitting here as an ordained elder in the Grand Old
Church of God in Christ, and then to be doing
(04:54):
it with understanding, it's short of a miracle, nothing short
of a miracle. And I give God praise for it
all the time, and I just thank God for how
He's worked in my life. I never saw myself being
a Christian, so let me start there. I never saw
(05:15):
myself being a Christian. I never saw myself being able
to confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Those are
great accomplishments for anyone that would come from an Islamic background,
and so for me to have done that and not
(05:38):
even look back, have that understanding of both and not
even look back, and I'm grateful. Oh yeah, it's been
quite a journey.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
That's you know what you said pretty much you said
the whole show right in that initial opening statement, only
because it's so this is so profound to see. When
I was reading your book, I literally I curled up,
put my blanket on, and I felt like I was
reading a novel.
Speaker 1 (06:08):
And I'm I'm an avid reader.
Speaker 2 (06:10):
But the way that you allowed us to go on
this journey with you, and you started with being a
child and dealing with having to deal with breakup at
an early age. Yes, And so I want you to
just tell us a little bit without giving too much
because everyone you need to get the book. So we're
not gonna reveal every detail on this episode. But there
(06:35):
are a lot of young people that go through dealing
with watching their parents break up and it impacts them
permanently to the point where really they can't come out
of it. What advice what happened to you? And then
what advice would you give people that may be watching
today that are still suffering from the aftermath of their
(06:55):
parents breaking up in their earlier years.
Speaker 3 (06:59):
You know, that's a very good question, and it was.
It was painful, and I'm gonna be honest. I learned
how to pray, and for some reason, at a very
young age, I would always communicate with God. And even
(07:21):
though I was you know, people would say, well, you
were a Muslim and God wouldn't But you know, God
looks at the heart, so if you are really trying
to connect with God, he's going to make sure that
you make that connection, regardless of what the circumstances look like.
(07:41):
So even as a young child, I would talk to
God about things that I didn't understand, and it kind
of would give me a sense of hope that I
didn't even understand that I had at the time. Now
I know what it is, but then I didn't understand
that I had this hope embedded in me. So it
(08:04):
was a struggle. But I was getting a measure of
love from both parents and so that was helpful. But
at the same time, there were times when I desired
my parents to be together, and they split up when
I was in such a young age until I really
never really remember them being together except for the time
(08:27):
that I talk about in the book.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
That's right, that's right. And yeah, the town that you
talk about in the book is one that you all
have to get booked because once you hear the reverence,
in my opinion, that I witnessed from reading you talk
about both of your parents in spite of elder Henry,
in spite of some of the things that they both
(08:49):
were dealing with as adult man. And that's something that
I think that a lot of times we don't give
grace and mercy to our parents.
Speaker 3 (08:59):
Amen.
Speaker 1 (09:00):
We don't know what they've been through, Amen, but.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
They still chose to have you, you know what I mean?
Speaker 3 (09:06):
Right right? Amen? And you know that is a struggle
within itself. A lot of people will have something against
their parents because of a breakup. Are and you know
you have you know, the Scripture says to honor your
mother and your father, that your days may be long
(09:29):
upon this earth. Now that honor does not say based
on their situation. Honor comes in spite of that situation.
So you use the word grace, and that is I
think the most important factor of us being able to
forgive our parents of their shortcomings. And then we have
(09:52):
to remember that we also have shortcomings. So we have
to know that we are not perfect, and so our
parents definitely and have been perfect perfect And it causes
a lot of pain just dealing with that aspect of
having bitterness and animosity towards a parent. So I purposed
(10:15):
in my heart not to and I've seen some things
that I would never discuss that I would not let
anything i've seen ever take me away from showing my
parents' love and respect. And yeah, yeah, I love that.
Speaker 2 (10:32):
I love that, And I think that that was just
totally woven throughout your book and as every time you
mentioned your parents, and whether it was with some love
of disappointment or whether it was how happy you were
about their teaching and what they were instilling in you
individually at the different phases that you were in, you
(10:55):
really showed reverence and honor to them regardless, and I
really admire you for doing that.
Speaker 1 (11:01):
So let me go to Harlem.
Speaker 3 (11:04):
Harlem.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
I have to talk about Harlem for a little bit. Well,
I want you to talk about Harlem.
Speaker 2 (11:08):
Yes, that seemed to be a really pivotal time in
your upbringing, especially in your earlier years.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
How did that play a role in.
Speaker 2 (11:16):
Your faith and spirituality at that phase of your life?
Speaker 3 (11:21):
Harlem is a is a is in Manhattan in New York,
so it's not a different part of New York. But
Harlem is a neighborhood in Manhattan, and Harlem is unique,
and especially back in those days, in the fifties and sixties.
And let me let me say this as I'm answering
(11:42):
that question. So I've gotten so much feedback about this
book from older people, younger people, and it's all been positive.
And one person that I know is from Harlem, and
he's an older gentleman and he just said it just
took him back. And then another person told me when
they went to New York after reading the book, they
(12:04):
walked some of the streets that I was talking about
and could feel the presence of that, right. And so
Harlem is it's a place of beauty, is a place
of blackness, is a place of black respect and black
minor And so I feel I feel blessed to have
(12:26):
seen that and witnessed that. At the same time, you know,
it has its bad points to it, but I was
I was blessed to, you know, just come up in
that environment. And in the sixties, the Nation of Islam
was prevalent in Harlem, and just to be a part
of that background in Harlem was special also, you know,
(12:49):
to see the unity. I think about my father and
all of his friends were businessmen in their twenties in
the sixties in early seventies because of them being a
part of the Nation of Islam. So where people might
think about it, it's just teaching hatred and it was
(13:12):
really a place of motivation and strength to bring black
people out of a mental gutter. Yes, ma'am.
Speaker 2 (13:23):
So when you were in that area and going to
school and learning and becoming educated, there were some things
that were being it were impacting you and they were
still shaping you at an early age, even though ultimately
your decision went into a different direction.
Speaker 1 (13:41):
But those are still.
Speaker 2 (13:42):
Great memories that help you become because it's like to me,
and this is what I've learned, And you tell me
if I'm wrong, that everything that happens along our journey,
Elder Henry, it helps to shape who we ultimately will become.
Speaker 3 (13:57):
Yes, ma'am, I agree.
Speaker 2 (13:59):
If we don't, even if that may not be the
ultimate outcome of our destiny, it's still played a pivotal
part in your upbringing.
Speaker 3 (14:07):
Right, yes, ma'am.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
Yes, Mam to talk about that a little bit.
Speaker 3 (14:11):
So in Harlem, you had all kinds of people you had,
You had drug dealers, you had heroin addicts, you had
all of that. And I had some of that in
my family, so, you know, you just had to it.
(14:32):
And one thing it taught because I had people in
my family that were heroin addicts as teenagers and we
still loved them. Of course, we did not look you know,
even though we understood that they were on this drug,
we did not overlooked them or kicked them to the curve.
(14:57):
It was just it was just kind of a natural
type of love that would be hard to explain. But
we still loved them. You know. If we had family events,
they were there, and you know, and as a child,
I would look at them and say, I'm never doing that.
You know. I made certain things. I made up my
(15:18):
mind that and then the Nation of Islam was teaching
about those things and why these things were taking place. Now,
mind you, I'm hearing this stuff at four, five, six, seven,
eight years old, okay, and still being able to apply
(15:40):
it and under have some understanding, which was God all
the way. And I just didn't realize it. You know,
God has always given me the ability to think, to
calculate things, and and I just never knew what all
of it meant. But when I look now, I see
(16:02):
all of it had purpose and intention, you know. So yeah,
and it helps me now because you know, we give
our food at the church every Monday, at Kingdom Builders,
we give our food, and so a lot of the
people we're on the west side of Charlotte right now,
and a lot of the people that come, they're coming
(16:23):
with all kinds of addictions. And and so when I
go to him, you know, because you would look at
me now and just think, well, he's just this preacher guy.
He probably been in church's whole life. And I, you know,
but I can reach them and touch them and be
personable with them, you know, And and that that's important
(16:45):
to me to be able to show that love and
just not look down on people.
Speaker 2 (16:49):
I'm glad you're saying that, because every time I see you,
you're in a soup, right. So you're very intentional as
an adult. But I realized that when reading your book.
It started it way back when you were a young man.
At this young age, you actually did something. And I
would like for you to tell people what you did
(17:10):
at a restaurant when you order your French fries and
sit there like you were having a one man meeting.
Speaker 1 (17:17):
So you're just about that for a few minutes.
Speaker 3 (17:19):
Yeah, that's that's that's funny, you know. I often would
think about that. And so at about four or five
years old. First of all, when we would go to
the mosque, there was a restaurant at the mosque, and
so we would go in there and eat, but everybody
would always be in a suit. So I was under
(17:40):
the assumption that when you went to a restaurant you
had to have on suit to eat. And so my
grandmother's boyfriend, he would be keeping me sometime, mister Bill.
He was a long long shore seamen, so he would
go be out on the water and then come back,
but he would be watching me. And so I'd go
(18:01):
put on a suit. And mind you, I'm a little kid,
I'm like five years old, four years old, and I
would put this suit on, and he say, boy, what
are you doing with that suit? I'm gonna tell your father.
And I put my suit on and take my little
change that I had and go downstairs and around the corner,
you know, out of and not worried about anything, not
(18:22):
worried about anybody harming me, you know, just going around
the corner and going It was a drug store that
had a little restaurant in it, and I would go
in there and order some fries and sit down with
my little suit on and everything like I was having
a meeting, you know. But the funny part about it,
(18:44):
you know, looking back now, this man knew who I was,
and he always treated me like a wreck hey man,
you know, and gave me what I wanted. And so
it was never like where are your parents and what
you're doing down here by yourself? It was never that.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
So yeah, so community, it was still a sense of community. Yes,
everything that I was reading in your book, it seemed
like you were just protected. Even like you say, going
over to get an order of fries, It's like you
cannot come in here in today's time. If a child
goes into a store, then first of all, every adult
(19:20):
is definitely going to try to figure out who does
this child belong to? You going to put it on
social media, this child is lost, somebody come and find
a child reported to DS. It's going to be a
problem because the child is by themselves. That's just the
anxiety says right, yes, in your time being in Harlem,
going at the age of four or five years old
(19:40):
in a little suit, going to a local convenience store
a drug store and coming in, nobody hurt you, nobody
did anything but serve you. How important is that for
a community to be able to really be a village
for children in this.
Speaker 3 (19:58):
Is very important. And one thing about we lived on
one hundred and fortieth Street between seventh and eighth Avenue.
I did some research on that block, and a majority
of the youth, the young men that came out of
that block ended up being in prison. Okay, there are
(20:19):
some success stories, but a lot of people from that
from that block ended up in prison or whatever. But
at the same time, in the sixties, it was a community.
And then every my dad grew up on that block,
and everybody knew that he was a member of the nation,
it's all. And even the crazy people that would bother somebody,
(20:44):
they didn't bother me, because you know, he had a
life before he became a Muslim.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
That's so they like that.
Speaker 2 (20:51):
That's right there, that're right there, Henry, Yeah.
Speaker 3 (20:54):
Yeah, exactly, that's that's that's that's little Henry and that
was it. And so yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
So so not that not that we're comparing the Nation
of Islam to any kind of mafia situation under any
certain stance, but they knew better not to mess with
Henry's boy, right, Yeah.
Speaker 3 (21:11):
They No, they wasn't doing that from from his previous
lifestyle and from him being a member, you know, of
the nation. Yeah, they just didn't.
Speaker 2 (21:20):
So And in speaking of the nation, one thing that
I see I admire about what I observe, because I
definitely don't want to show that all one sided or
the other, because there's some good attributes to every component
of life, is that I really do admire the team
work that I see and and the people working together
(21:41):
to be united and in uniform.
Speaker 1 (21:44):
It's like, okay, together, we're going to go out.
Speaker 2 (21:47):
And I don't care what it is that's happening, whether
it's putting out flyers, whether it's put I've had people
approach me on it's on the side of the road
with different types of pies and things, and first of all,
those piths tastes good, by the way, but anyway being.
Speaker 1 (22:01):
But but the point that.
Speaker 2 (22:03):
I'm making is the united front that I see in
that situation, and did you feel that when you were
in the Nation of Islam.
Speaker 3 (22:12):
Yes, I'm gonna I'm gonna just be honest. The closest
thing that I've seen to the Nation of Islam, and
I think surpasses the Nation of His Law to a degree,
is the Church of God in Christ. And I don't
want to I don't want to promote any religion or
(22:34):
any religious organization or anything like that. But just to
that point, we were taught to work in unity, to
work together. We were taught that brotherhood is of the
utmost importance at all times, and we were taught to
(22:54):
have respect for our women at all times, and we
would we would art to protect our area. So in
the Nation of Islam, every male has to understand the
importance of some measure of security at some point. So
(23:16):
it's not like you have a choice. You part of it.
This is what we do, and you're going to do it.
So you don't get to just come and sit down
and clap your hands. You know all the time. You
get to do it, but then you're going to have
an opportunity to make sure everybody else could do that.
While you're making sure everybody is secure and so you know,
(23:37):
I work with that aspect of the church, and I
look back and I say, you know, I've been doing
this my entire life, so.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
It's very normal to you.
Speaker 3 (23:51):
So the unity. I think about my father and his friends,
and I think about we would have an event called
Black Family Day in Harlem and well in Randall's out
which is right by Harlem, and we would have like
one hundred thousand black people there, no violence, no police,
(24:14):
you know, and no concern about violence and just peaceful,
you know. And so I'm used to seeing black people
work together. I was raised with black people working together.
So when I don't see that, I feel like it's
something wrong.
Speaker 1 (24:33):
You know, that's good.
Speaker 2 (24:35):
And so being a part of the Church of God
in Christ, you're seeing that at the ministry that you
are a part of as well. Come people coming together
and large numbers and having a very smooth and no riots,
no yes, gun violence or anything. It's just literally people
working together. Why do you think that was the case
with the Nation of Islam? What did you what do
(24:57):
you attribute that to based on your learning?
Speaker 3 (25:00):
Well, the purpose of the Nation of Islam was to
bring black people out of a state of captivity and
bondage from oppression, okay, from the oppression of the former
(25:24):
slave masters. And it was to teach you to lift
your head up, that you are somebody special, that you
are not, that you are important also right, and that
you should not look down to anybody but walk with
(25:45):
your head up, you know. And so they instill that
from a very young age. Now with our preaching. So
where when I was eventually converted, because it was you know,
my conversion itself was something that I didn't expect, excuse me,
(26:11):
to happen the way that it did happen, right, But
once the conversion happened, and I begin to study the
BIB like not, you know, a lot of people will
talk about Christianity and go from a tidbit of what
they heard over here or what they heard over there
and try to incorporate that into their thought process without
(26:35):
reading the Bible. Well, God, before I joined anybody's church,
because I didn't save that the altar, and before I
joined anybody's church, I had read the whole Testament, good, good,
and and I didn't have understanding at first. Okay, God,
(27:01):
I was in career and the gentleman flew there together,
and God allowed me and this guy to ride on
the bus going to do some shopping side by side,
show you how God would set you up and position you.
So this guy was a preacher and I never knew
(27:21):
and he told me. He said, I said, well, man,
I'm reading the Bible, but I don't have no understanding.
And he says to me, pray before you read, and
then God would give you the understanding. And so that's
what I did. And what my point is, a lot
of people never really read the Bible. I'm talking about
(27:44):
people that's seeking salvation or seeking direction, and so they
would say, well, that's the white man's Bible. And I
was even told that by people, and I told them
that I was minister, Well how are you going to
be a minister? And you know that's that's the white
(28:05):
man's religion. The white man might have intended to use
portions of scripture against the slaves, which is well documented.
I said, but there's a thing called the Holy Spirit
that once you start reading that Bible, that Holy Spirit
supersedes every trick that anybody ever tried to utilize the
(28:28):
Bible for. So there's life, there's power in the world
of God, and it only comes from studying it. You
can't get that from a little t bit here and
a little tit bit there.
Speaker 1 (28:41):
That's good.
Speaker 3 (28:42):
That's good.
Speaker 2 (28:42):
And you know what that was one of the questions
I was going to ask you, is what was that
thing that sparked you to have an interest in having
more curiosity in Christianity? And I know that one of
the things based on your book here is Nathan the evangelist.
Speaker 3 (29:01):
Yes, Nathan Nathan Milton, Bishop Nathan Milton. He hells in Greensboro,
North Carolina right now. I was able to put a
copy of my book in his hand. And he's a
brother that was a child evangelist. He grew up in
(29:21):
the Apostolic Faith, and he's a bishop currently. And he
would sit beside me in the band room and playing
the trombone and look at me and say, boy, I
don't want to hear none of that Muslim jump. He
would say, if you don't except Christ, you're gonna bust
(29:41):
hell wide open. Now. I didn't pay him any attention
at the time, but I heard him. You know, people
hear you, whether they pay you attention or not. Yes, ma'am.
So it kept sticking with me, and I began to
question God. And then when I went in the army,
I saw some other things happen and it kept making
(30:06):
me question God. And so then my final question to
God was I believe that I am going to have
to serve you in my lifetime. My question is which
direction will this service be coming from? Christianity or Islam?
Speaker 2 (30:26):
Okay okay, So that's you having your own yes. So
first of all, this reminds me of somebody planting the seed,
then somebody watering the seed, because then you were on
the trip that with the bus ride, with the person
that continued to talk to you, and then ultimately God
providing the increase and deciding when you're at a crossroad
(30:48):
which way you're ultimately going to go. That's what I
see in that situation. So Bishop Nathan Melton actually planted
the seed and he was like saying a childlike what.
Speaker 3 (31:01):
No, no, no, he was he was he was very serious.
Speaker 2 (31:05):
No, I know what I'm saying from out of the
mouth of babes, out of the.
Speaker 3 (31:08):
Mouth child, Yes, ma'am, Yes, ma'am. Yes.
Speaker 2 (31:10):
So we don't know how, we don't know how important
it is for a young person. That's why parents are
watching this show. Let your young people know that this
man was converted from the nation of Islam to Christianity
because a child that was in a band at the
(31:33):
school said, listen, man, you got to get away from
me saying all of that he was he was being
matter of fact and usually the gifts and the talents
that God gave him, Yes, ma'am important.
Speaker 3 (31:43):
Amen, it's and I instill that in young people today.
You know, when I see them, I say, it's important
for you to be an example, because I'm here standing
here today because of an example of a man, of
someone that wasn't afraid or wasn't ashamed of being criticized
(32:06):
while he was in school, because you know, back then
they would pick at you and I'm sure they, oh,
he'll preacher, hear this. You know, he a holy roller
and all of that kind of stuff. And I thank
God for that holy roller because if he didn't tell
me about Jesus the way he did, and sometimes he
just look at me and say, boy, you just need
to get saved, you know, And I'm grateful. I mean,
(32:31):
I tell him, man, you know, I don't have words
to express my gratefulness to him, just for not being
ashamed of the Gospel wow.
Speaker 2 (32:43):
And that should be a testimony or testament to all
of us that like God.
Speaker 1 (32:48):
He says, I'll be ashamed of you if you're ashamed
of me.
Speaker 2 (32:51):
But for him to be a young person and to
go and to spread the Gospel, doing exactly what is
required of God, of each and every one of us
mandate that man spread the word of God to people.
So is there ever a time that you felt like
you were facing some internal personal resistance between dealing with
(33:12):
what you had believed for so long and now trying
to transition over to a new belief in Christianity?
Speaker 3 (33:21):
You know, I believe that happens to a lot of
in a lot of cases. With me, it was a
little different because I didn't get saved at the altar,
and so my I think my transition was kind of
like Paul and the you know, on the road to Damascus.
(33:43):
So I think it was kind of similar to his transition,
where once it happened, he knew that it was solid
and he never looked back. And mine was the same
way because it happened on the highway in the midst
of us, in the midst of a snow.
Speaker 2 (34:00):
I wasn't sure you're gonna talk about that on that
I wasn't gonna see.
Speaker 3 (34:04):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I don't I share that anytime. Good good, yeah.
You know, on my way from Greensboro to Chicago and
nineteen eighty six, I pulled over in Indiana to take
a little nap about uh one in the morning. I'm
(34:24):
a you know, young man, twenty three years old, my
first real long trip by myself. So I said, I'm
gonna pull over, take a nap. And when I wake
up and it started driving, I hit the sheet of
black ice. It's snow coming down, but I don't realize,
you know that it has been coming down for this
(34:45):
hour that I've been taking his nap and has got
the road just in dangerous conditions. And my car slid
and went into the air. And now I'm kind of
leaning sideways in the air. I could fill the car
about the flip, and I scream out, Lord, and I mean,
(35:10):
you know, Lord, I mean, I've never really said that,
not like that, man. That's what I screamed out, Lord.
And the car landed without flipping. And I'm in the
opposite direction, facing and flashing my lights, pushing the button
in and out. You know, old nineteen seventy eight for
(35:31):
of LTD. And I'm pushing those pushing the button in
and out. Thank god, it was a big old tank,
you know. And this gentleman comes up to me and
he happened to be a white guy, at about one
in the morning, two in the morning, and he says,
you're okay, you need a ride? I say yes, sir,
(35:52):
you know, and he said, well, come on, I'll take
you to this gas station down the road. I say, ya,
I need to call my aunt because you know, this
is before this cell phone days, so we had to
go to the little pay phone at the gas station. Well,
on this ride, he looks at me and says, if
you would have died to night, do you think you
(36:13):
would have went to heaven or Hell?
Speaker 1 (36:15):
This is a stranger that this man.
Speaker 3 (36:18):
Does not know me. I don't know him. I'm in
a whole nother state. And his question to me was,
if you would have died tonight, do you think you
would have went to heaven a hell? And I said
to him, I hope I would have went to heaven.
And he said, there's a way to ensure that. He said,
(36:38):
I'm an evangelist and God has sent me here for
you tonight, Thank you Jesus. And so when he said that,
I felt it, and I felt me having questioned him.
He questioned God, not him, but questioned God in that direction.
(37:02):
Now I'm not putting all of this together, but I
knew that I had questioned God. And he says to me,
the Lord sent me here for you tonight. He said,
there's people dying on this highway. Said, look at all
these accidents. You know how when the snowstorm and the
ice storm happens, his accidents like almost immediately. And he
(37:24):
says to me, people have died on this highway tonight,
and God saved you, and you might not be so
lucky the next time. And so I looked at him,
and when we got in the parking lot, he asked me,
you know, and I told him, yes, I'll accept Christ.
(37:46):
And he prayed the prayer of salvation in the gas
station parking lot. So I had been to church maybe
three times prior to that, and really for several years
after that, I still hadn't joined the church per se,
(38:08):
but I was able to study and read the Bible.
I started going to a church, and then when I
got to Korea, I started attending church now here's the
thing that I didn't know, but I know now. In
the military they allow elders of the Church of God
(38:29):
in Christ to conduct services and they are sanctioned by
the Military Chapel Service, and so they'll call full gospel services,
so they allow everybody to come in. Everybody could come in.
You know, it's not specific to the Church of God
in Christ. But even when I was in Iraq, I
(38:52):
ran the service for several months in two thousand and four,
two thousand and three, I'm sorry, two thousand and three.
I was able to run the service because of me
being elder in the Church of God in Christ. So
I was getting introduced to the Church of God in
Christ in Korea and it didn't even really but now
(39:12):
I know, you know, because I heard I would hear
them saying, Elder this, and but now I know what
was going on, and so yeah, so that that thing
caused me that the way that I transition, it caused
me never to look back. So I've never looked back.
And I had to. I had to bring myself to
(39:35):
a point where I could articulate my reverence for the
nation of this without saying that I'm still a member
because I'm not and I don't plan on being one
because I'm saved. I'm saved, sanctified, Holy ghost. Feel you understand.
(39:55):
And it's a difference. It's good as the work is.
There's a difference. This isn't This is an another level.
And I don't want to be offensive, but this is
a whole other level. This is a whole another level
of grace, a whole other level of operation.
Speaker 2 (40:12):
Mm hmm. I think that what I admire most is
again your respect and honor of which you gleaned.
Speaker 1 (40:20):
From that aspect of life.
Speaker 2 (40:22):
But being very clear that there is a difference in
that I am a child of God and I am
serving my Lord and Savior Jesus christy has. It's been
my encounter in my time of transformation when you had
that road on Damascus, on the Black Ice Man Highway experience.
Speaking of which I do want to take a moment
(40:43):
to acknowledge that you know you're one of your leaders
is here supporting you in the studio audience, and that's
Lady Lawana as Grant.
Speaker 1 (40:53):
Doctor Lawana.
Speaker 2 (40:54):
Ask Grant, who is the visionary behind supporting your your
book project?
Speaker 3 (41:00):
Right, yes, ma'am. She is the editor and publisher and
phenomenal editing and publishing of this great work. I greatly
appreciate her her work, and not only in this book,
but her work in the Kingdom of God. You better
believe it is on. Yeah, it's powerful, and so you
(41:24):
appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (41:25):
This is where you can visit with a Kingdom Builder's
Church International, where you will see Bishop Darryl Grant and
Lady Lawana Grant. They have services at ten a m.
Right at Kingdom Builder's Church International, and that is let
me put the address up. I wanted to make sure
(41:47):
I acknowledge an honor where you be able to personally
see Elder Henry and I pop I type this address
so I can make sure I put it up here
for you. Yes, So, if you'd like to visit with
Kingdom Builder's Church International, they are at twenty three point
fifty two Doctor Weber Avenue and Charlotte, North Carolina on
(42:09):
Sunday mornings at ten a m. And you will see
Elder Henry Coox some in his suit and he is
standing guard. Trust me, don't you're not gonna play in
the Church of God in Christ, you might as well
feel like you at the Nation of Islam.
Speaker 1 (42:23):
Because you ain't getting too close to.
Speaker 2 (42:25):
The bishop and to Lady Alawana, because Elde Henry will
will stop you kindly, Okay, Amen. Yeah, I'm really grateful
and honored that you're taking the time to educate the
world about your transition. And I do want to ask
you to, like, I know, when people around you, you
have friends, mentors, family, people that are always surrounding us,
(42:49):
how do people embrace your change when you were transitioning
to Christianity.
Speaker 3 (42:58):
The good part about it was I wasn't around a
lot of the people that I grew up with in
the nation when it when it happened, and so it
was able to I was able to do it without
a lot of scrutiny. I did end up getting a
(43:20):
little a little backlash from my mother at first, which
was surprising when I told her that I that I
you know, got called to the ministry excuse me. But
when I explained to her because my mother was an
educator and and she you know, so once I explained
to her about the revelation side of Christianity and not
(43:44):
so much the the human side where they could say
it was tainted because you can't taint God's work. You
could do it. That you could, you could, you could
use your personal touch on whatever you want to do.
But when you get into the annointing of God's work,
that's clear, that's pure. So nothing in there that could
(44:07):
be tainted. Only thing is gonna come out of that.
You're gonna come out pure as gold, right, because you're
coming in something. There's a change agent. So you know,
God is there. He changes us, He puts us and
brings us to where he wants us to be so
that he can get maximum use. And so nobody has
any control of that, no race, nationality, anything, you know.
(44:30):
So that's the power behind that. And so once I
explained that to my mother in that way in which
was holy ghost inspired. Let me say, because I didn't
just you know, I had to respect my mother. You know,
I'll tell you all the story. So don't don't take
don't take bad of my mother. But you know, when
(44:50):
I was a teenager, my mother was a little short lady.
And when I was a teenager, I call myself mouthing
off to her one time and it was just she
and I in the house, and so she just went
in the closet and got the hammer and said, boy,
if you say one more.
Speaker 2 (45:05):
Word, She's like, you're gonna, You're gonna, You're gonna shut
that mouth.
Speaker 3 (45:10):
Yeah, And so I had to, you know, be mindful
of how I was explaining it to her, you know,
even though I was a grown man. I'm saying that
in all humor, right, But she ended up going back
to church and dedicating her life back to Christ. Yes,
and see, so that's and then my dad, as I
talk about in the book, and I'm not gonna get
(45:30):
it into that deeply, but who's in the nation of
Islam for many, many, many many years, and I saw
him in the condition that touched me, and I began
to pray that God would save my father. And this
was in nineteen eighty seven and I didn't talk to
(45:53):
it again until ninety two. And when I talked to
him again, he tells me, so, I'm no longer a Muslim,
I'm a Christian. And so yeah, so that you know
that aspect of everything, the people I cared about the most,
(46:14):
my parents both be dedicated their lives to Christ, and
my dad had never been a Christian, you know. So yeah,
it's just awesome, beautiful, oh good.
Speaker 2 (46:28):
God is more than good. And I want you all
listen to me carefully. You have to get the book, Okay.
I have read this book about yeah two and a
half times, because I'm reading half reading again, and I
actually have. I went through and I folded pages, and
I took notes. I took notes and different things, and
(46:49):
I was like the marching band, who knew a marching
band with These are my own personal notes, like I'm
actually reading the book and taking notes as if I'm journaling.
And I from learning how to cook eggs at five
to a deep rooted love for cooking as an adult.
These are all notes that I personally have been taking. Praying,
a praying grandmother, How important a praying grandmother is. These
(47:12):
are all people that he acknowledged in his book. But again,
you feel like you're reading a novel. His dad taught
him to be a man of purpose. This is a
note that I took to Tom Cogdill and his grandmother
and who Tom Cogdail is, you name it very intentional
at a young age, being able to be authentically me,
(47:35):
and how important it is to be authentically me, not
compare myself to anybody else. This is all stuff that
I've learned right from reading Elder Henry Cokexam's book. You
have got to get this book today. Put it in
the comment section. If you already know that you have
your copy and you're gifting another copy to somebody else,
(47:56):
or that you're getting a copy for the first time,
put it over in the comment section. I'm getting my copy.
I got my copy. I have my copy. I'm on
my way to go and get it right now. You
can get your copy at www dot h cj journey
dot com. I'll have podcast listeners on iHeartRadio, so I
(48:17):
want to make sure I spell it h is in
Henry c is in Charlicke Coxham j Journey, So hcj
journey dot com. Get your copy of The Journey, My
journey from the Nation of Islam to Christianity, A story
of change, trans transition, and destiny. Get your copy today,
(48:39):
you guys, because you don't want to miss the opportunity
to learn how that transition happened. What role, in your opinion,
did the Bible actually play, Because I know that people
played a role, but the Bible seem to have played
a key role too.
Speaker 1 (48:55):
What role does Bible play?
Speaker 3 (48:57):
The thing about that I'm gonna I want to I'm
gonna answer that, And I want to back up to
my grandmother real quick.
Speaker 2 (49:04):
Yeah, I knew you were gonna say that once I
mentioned that Grandma was yeah about her.
Speaker 3 (49:08):
So my grandmother, as he made in Harlem, she ran
a gambling spot and she you know it was it
was a true gambling spot in Harlem, and all kinds
of people were in there. I mean, this place would
get robbed. It was just you know the bottom. Now,
(49:29):
I never saw my grandmother get in the bed without praying,
without getting on her knees praying. She literally would get
on her knees, pray and then get in the bed. Wow.
My grandmother would not allow me to play cards, gamble,
any kind of thing that had anything to do with gambling.
(49:52):
She would not allow me to do it. I don't
gamble to this day. And I often wondered, why is
she telling me this? And she works in the guard
playing cards, And she explained to me at about nineteen
years old, when I was about nineteen that when she
came to New York in nineteen twenty five, that she
(50:16):
tried to get a job working in the factories, and
the little money they were paying her, she wasn't able
to do anything right, and she ran into her guy
from South Carolina, Bumpy Johnson, who we all know is
a well known gangster in Harlem, and that's what she
started running card games for. And so she was able
(50:38):
to take care of herself all of the years that
she lived in Harlem, working and taking care of herself.
And that's what So that's what the gambling was all about,
being able to take yourself and not you know, so
much as the crime aspect of it. It was a
way of living for her, and you know, I just
(50:58):
had to respect that. But to your I the Bible
didn't really start playing a key part until I really
started reading it. And I understood the importance of reading
because of a gentleman that my mother was a common
(51:19):
law married to for eight years, a guy named ah
Met Abdullah, and he set me down and taught me
how to read and taught me the importance of comprehension.
And so as I began to read the Bible, and
my first revelation of scripture came and reading John fifteen,
(51:40):
Saint John, chapter fifteen, I am divining you out of branches,
And so I began to understand what God was saying
and began to tear up, and from there a hunger
just just kept going until this day. You know, I'm
going through now, I'm reading the entire Bible. Now, I'm
(52:01):
in the Old Testament and I'm not on the schedule,
so I'm just reading it as I go. But I'm
in Isaiah right now. So yeah, I think that's imperative
because you don't go to school to be a dentist
without going through dentistry school, and then you have to
do continue continuing education along the way. So what you
(52:26):
learned ten years ago is not going to be relevant
in dentistry. The medical field, taxes, anything you're doing is
not going to be relevant. So if that's changing, we
cannot effectively work in Christianity and not utilize the tool
of Christianity, which is the Bible.
Speaker 1 (52:47):
That's so good.
Speaker 2 (52:48):
So we have the master blueprint right in our hands.
Then God has already written a vision and made it plain.
All we have to do is follow the plan. And
I think, yes, ma'a, your story is beautiful execution of
that happening. Listen, I do want to give you all
an opportunity to partner with us today here at the
Kim Jacobs Show. We come on Monday through Friday at
(53:09):
eleven o'clock am Eastern Standard time. And the only way
we can bring balance into your home every single weekday
is to have some partners that believe in our broadcast
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things that keep it professional in order for you to
be able to have this level of connection in us
bringing guests like Elda Henry Coxom Junior into your home.
(53:33):
So we are now with CTR Media Network and we
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(53:55):
balance to the world, one household at a time. Okay,
all right, So what advice would you give someone that
is transitioning from the Nation of Islam and it's just
curious about Jesus and want to explore it a little
bit more.
Speaker 3 (54:11):
I would say first of all that being in the
Nation of Islam is setting a good solid foundation for you,
but to achieve that next level of understanding of grace
(54:31):
and as I said in my book. I think the
main difference between the nation of Islam or Islam as
a whole in Christianity, true Christianity, pure Christianity is the
word love. And the Bible says that God soul loved
the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that
(54:55):
whosoever believed in him should not perish, but have everlast life.
And I think the secret is to tap in to
the love of God. So the weak of be in
the fullness of the God, of the promises of God.
And so if you are feeling a hunger and you're
feeling a void on the inside of you, and you're
(55:19):
trying to fill that void, Jesus Christ is the only
way that Voyd could be felled. Accepting Christ is Lord
and Savior is the only way that boy can be felled.
Speaker 2 (55:29):
Oh wow, and listen today. If you accept Jesus Christ,
or maybe you hadn't accepted Jesus, but after hearing Elder
Henry's story, you want to accept Jesus. Know that in
Romans ten and nine, it's very simple. If you believe
in your heart and you confess with your mouth that
Jesus is Lord and that he is the Son of God.
(55:49):
And he died for our sins. You are a brother
orn and a sister in Christ. And if you did
accept Jesus today, please let us know in the comment
section so that we can and celebrate because all of
Heaven rejoice. Is all because you decided to become a
new child in the body of Christ. So thank you,
(56:10):
Elda Henry for sharing your story. Let me go just
to a few of the studio audience comments. I don't
like for people to take time to come in and
not acknowledge. So let's see. I see Anita watching from destined, Florida.
I will welcome. Sean decart Wright said, now this this
(56:32):
is this right here, this right here. Please probably we said,
Lady Lawana Grant, your first lady at Kingdom Builders Church.
She's also I'm a part of the Charlotte Metro District
and so she's I'm my local bishop and our district
superintendent's wife, Lady Lawana Grant. She's also a leader in
(56:57):
the Christian marketplace. She has a confer for instance, coming
up female leaders in ministry in Tampa, Florida.
Speaker 1 (57:05):
You name it.
Speaker 2 (57:05):
You all look doctor Lawana s Grant up and stay
connected with her because everything that she touches. I would
say turn the gold, but I would say turned to platinum. Baby,
it turns to platinum. She is a force to be
reckoned with in the body of Christ. So glad to
have you here, Lady Lawana. She said, also, oh wow,
thank you Pastor Kim and Elder Coaxam. You are both awesome.
(57:29):
This book and the interview are both great. You're great,
so we thank you again. She actually publishes other Christian authors,
so if you're looking for a reputable publishing source, you
want to connect with doctor Lawana s Gring. Yes, definitely, Okay,
let's see Ethelbert Bayer said, to God be the glory,
(57:51):
and thank you so much for your transparency.
Speaker 3 (57:55):
Bless you have to bias.
Speaker 2 (57:58):
Now see I would have missed all these comments if
I before going here. This some good coming.
Speaker 1 (58:02):
The Ressa T.
Speaker 2 (58:03):
James says, thank you for your transparency and your journey
and your commitment to God. I'm honored to serve under
your leadership and your guidance. And Theressa also said, listen, everybody,
get the book today, Get the book.
Speaker 1 (58:20):
Get the book. To God be the glory. To God
be the glory.
Speaker 2 (58:23):
Lots of comments coming in I'm sure lots more will
come in. Lisa Graham Dixon says, thank you so much
for sharing.
Speaker 1 (58:30):
Great job.
Speaker 2 (58:31):
Elder Henry Cokes of Junior and she is a real
estate agency also has a lot of senior care facilities
throughout the Charlotte and surrounding area. So y'all make sure
you connect with Lisa Graham Dixon. All right, all right,
So what's next for you in ministry?
Speaker 3 (58:49):
Well, I'm just continuing to serve and I'm grateful to
be at Kingdom Builders with my great leader, Bishop Daryl L. Grant,
and y'all come check Kingdom Builders out. We're doing something
phenomenal in the city of Charlotte. Bishop and Lady Grant,
you just got to come and be a part of this.
We're going and growing fast and the Word of God
(59:13):
is coming out pure and we just we're just so grateful.
Speaker 2 (59:18):
You can visit KBC I n C dot org kb
Kingdom Builders Church International and it's KBC I n C
dot Org Sundays at ten am Kingdom Builders Church International.
Speaker 1 (59:36):
Make sure you all go and visit. You will be blessed.
Speaker 2 (59:39):
Your life will never be the same, So make sure
you do that. And let's see I think, I thought,
I think I've asked everything I could think to ask,
but oh, I do want to know you. In your book,
there was a nickname. Yes, I'm gonna put you on
the spot. I saw something, Ohbar huh.
Speaker 3 (59:57):
The nickname is oh Bar. Oh. Yeah. So that name
is an African name and it means king. And so
I have been called that name from the age of five,
and all of my friends in Greensboro, a majority of
them still call me that King o Ba.
Speaker 2 (01:00:18):
All right, yeah, So if we revealed that on that's exclusive,
y'all because it was not revealed in the book. So
it's on the Kim Jacob Show. King o Ba is
elder Henry Koxham Junior. Listen, I'm gonna put this up
one more time. My Journey from the Nation of Islam
to Christianity a story of change, transition, and destiny. You
(01:00:40):
can get your copy. I would recommend that you get
your copy directly from him because it can be an
autograph copy at HCJ Journey dot com or you can
also get it on Amazon.
Speaker 1 (01:00:52):
When you do get it, please make sure you leave
a review. I know I went on and left a review.
I had to.
Speaker 2 (01:00:57):
I was like I love this book so much, like
I was reading a novel and I was on a
roller coaster rod and and it speaks to so many
different aspects of life. Is there anything that you wanted
to say, Elder Henry, that maybe you didn't get a
chance to say on this episode that's still ringing in
your spirit.
Speaker 3 (01:01:14):
I just want to I just want to encourage everybody,
you know that no matter what challenges you're going through
in life, because we all have challenges and some days,
you know, seeing darker than others. But trust God through
the process. Don't give up when you make a mistake,
don't be too hard on yourself. You know, ask, ask
(01:01:36):
for forgiveness. God is here for us. He's here for us.
He's not here to leave us. You know. He says
he will never leave us nor forsake us. And that
is so true. So forgive yourself and just trust God
through the process. Tomorrow is another day. God is another.
Speaker 2 (01:01:57):
Day, y'all. This man is going to be leaving a
legacy of hope and inspiration for generations to come. So
I really hope that today has been a tremendous blessing
to you, learning about in a very respectful way, how
Elder Henry Cokexom transitioned from the Nation of Islam to Christianity,
(01:02:20):
and I really encourage you to get his book. Tomorrow,
I will have a guest coming on talking about his
transition from the Good Me and the Hood Meet and
he's talking about how young people need to be able
to learn that there is a good me, there's a
hood meie and what the difference is. So we're going
to be talking with that author tomorrow right here on
(01:02:41):
the Kim Jacobs Show at eleven o'clock am Eastern Standard time.
You don't want to miss that episode. All week, we're
talking about how people are transitioning from different aspects of life.
He transitioned also from the gutter to greatness. He's the
author of that book, so you don't want to miss
that episode. We have some great episodes lined up for
you this week. You are in for a tremendous treat.
(01:03:03):
Thank you, Elder Henry Coxom for your Thank you for
your service in the military as a veteran. We appreciate you,
we salute you, we honor you, and thank you for
all that you do. I see that panther signe back
there to anything you want to say, you show repping
them back there, what you want.
Speaker 3 (01:03:20):
To say, trying to wrap them a little bit. I
hope they're going to do something this year, Doctor Kim.
Thank you for having me on your show. I greatly
appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (01:03:29):
Thank you for blessing our studio audience, and I love
each and every one of you all. Thank you for
being here today and we will see you again Monday
through Friday at eleven o'clock AM Eastern Standard Time, right
here on the Kim Jacob Show. Have a great day, everybody.
Thank you for tuning in to today's episode of The
Kim Jacob Show and for being in the virtual studio audience.
Your presence truly does make a difference, and I look
(01:03:51):
forward to you bringing your friends and family to join
you in the virtual studio audience Monday through Friday at
eleven o'clock AM Eastern Standard Time. I look forward to
seeing you and make it a great day.
Speaker 3 (01:04:05):
M
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