(gentle music)
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(footsteps thudding)
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- Welcome everyone.
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We're excited to share
some country wisdom with you.
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- King Solomon had a
thing or two to say about
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the path to wisdom.
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In Proverbs four, he wrote,
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let your eyes
look directly forward
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and your gaze be
straight before you.
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Keep straight the
path of your feet,
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and all your ways will be sure.
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- Join us now
for "Country Wisdom."
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(gentle music)
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I've been talking with
Marty Miller on the phone
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for a couple
months now, perhaps.
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Really begin
enjoying our conversation.
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I could tell he's
a man that, you know,
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wants to stick to a plan.
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Well, his plan perhaps used
to be a little bit different.
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We're gonna talk to
him about that today.
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He loves men's ministry.
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He loves to
point men toward Christ
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and working for
Christ in a godly manner.
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So Marty, thank you
for being with us today.
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Appreciate it.
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- Well, thanks for having me.
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You bet ya--
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Now. - In my own garage.
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- I was gonna say,
you know, it's like
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Tim the Tool Time here,
you know, where he would watch.
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- I feel a little out of place.
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Like I've been
invited into the man cave.
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- Woo woo woo
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(All laugh)
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- You're welcome though.
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- Why did we end
up in your garage?
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I mean, maybe we
can get to that in a
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roundabout way - Sure
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- But yeah, let's hold that up.
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Let's keep people in
suspense for a little bit.
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- Sure.
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- Tell me about
your personal life.
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I understand you have kind
of an interesting testimony.
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- Yeah, I think everybody's
got a story and I think
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that really, as I've
gotten older, it's become clear.
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When you're young, you're
trying to figure things out,
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trying to find your way,
trying to discover who you are.
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And there's a
lot of wasted effort.
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There's a lot of, you
know, misguided efforts.
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And anyway, my story
really starts out in Nebraska
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of all things.
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I was born out in the
corn fields in Nebraska
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and moved to Florida
when I was a little guy
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and right away my mom,
she was very intuitive.
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She was a teacher and my
dad he was a teacher as well.
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And we moved to
the Orlando area.
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This is Pre-Disney.
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And so what ended up
happening when we moved there,
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it was pretty much orange
groves, swamps, sand roads.
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- Gators.
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- Exactly.
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- I was just thinking that.
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- And so I would
go out in the backyard
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and out into the back woods
and I'd come back with turtles,
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lizards, snakes.
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And my mom was
very tolerant of that
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and actually encouraged it.
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And so right away, they
realized that I had this,
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what Howard Gardner
calls the nature intelligence.
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And I just had
this love of nature.
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And so that really was
kind of my heart with God
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in a very early way,
connecting with the creator
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of all that
there is on this earth.
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And I just found my
connection and my identity
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in the outdoors and in nature.
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And that really has
defined much of my life.
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- You really did find that
God's second book is nature.
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- Oh yeah, exactly.
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I've actually been a,
you know, college professor
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and high school
science teacher for many years
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and put a lot of
lectures together
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and one of my
presentations, I say, you know,
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"God created nature and
that's his book of pictures."
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And there's so
many lessons there
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that it's just really profound.
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And that's been one of
my joys as well is just
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seeing what God has to
say, looking at scripture.
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But it's playing out in a
real physical way in nature.
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- We may take him
on a rabbit trail here,
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but I've gotta ask
as a teacher who's seen
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all these things and
loves all these things.
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So many people don't believe
at all that there's a creator.
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- Yeah.
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- And that this
all this just happened.
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What would you
say to those people?
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- Well, I would just invite
them to take a second look,
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especially looking deeply.
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I think the deep questions
of life are really important
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to wrestle with.
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I think today's world
people are so distracted
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that they don't
even contemplate some
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of the deeper questions and
the meaning of life, you know,
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why am I here?
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Where am I going?
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And that's part of the problem.
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But also I think that the
popular educational systems
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of the day, all of
the science publications,
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I mean, evolution is
the only thing there is.
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And so it's really
been an indoctrination
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that has given no other options.
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And a lot of times when I
talk to somebody, I just say,
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"Have you really
considered the cell?"
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Let's just look at the cell
and how can you get one cell?
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The more time has gone on
the more we know about the cell
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and the inner workings,
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(throat clears)
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and most of them have had such
a glossed over presentation.
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They don't even question it.
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So anyway, there's no
way to convince somebody
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of something that
they want to believe.
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And so in the end I
find that arguments are very
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non-productive.
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It's mainly sharing
your story and sharing
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something you've
learned from nature.
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They will come to the
end of themselves someday.
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- So let's continue with
your story and I appreciate you
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going out there.
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Because I think
it's so important.
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- Yeah.
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Yeah.
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So anyway,
yeah, as a child, I...
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Again, a lot of your
identity as I've mentored
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a lot of young
men over the years.
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I have discovered that
most people don't really know
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themselves and they have
to go back to their childhood
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to really extract
who they really are.
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'Cause it's been covered up.
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So when I go back to
my childhood, I happened
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to go to a school that
was very special in Orlando.
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It was called
The Open Air School.
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And it was
actually started by a woman
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that came out of Germany
before Hitler and everything.
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And she came over and
started a kindergarten program,
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which was new in America.
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And she was all about
the outdoors, you know,
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and just embracing nature.
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So her daughter
actually was my teacher,
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her name was Mrs Achenbach.
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And Mrs. Achenbach
would take us out every day.
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And during that time
she would have us stop,
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close our eyes, listen,
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look, not talk
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to learn to be still.
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And she called me eagle
eyes because I would see things
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that most kids didn't.
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And so that
became my affirmation.
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And that's kind of
what I've discovered
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as one of my love
languages was affirmation.
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You know, it's
like when I'm told
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that I'm doing something
well, I want that, you know.
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And so she would tell me,
you know, you're eagle eyes,
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you can see
things, nobody else can.
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And so early on
that became a joy to me
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in a way that
really propelled me
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through the rest of my life.
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- Kind of amazing, isn't it?
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Don't you wish you
could be there sometimes,
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you know, in some of
that as a bird watcher
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the way you are a little bit.
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- I'm far too myopic for
anyone to call me eagle eyes.
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(All laugh)
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- There's a...
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One of my favorite
authors kind of looking
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at that time of creation of
Adam and Eve makes a statement.
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It's kind of
interesting to me said,
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"Adam and Eve
withdrew from plant and animal
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"the secrets of
their existence."
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And I think in a way
you were kind of doing that.
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- Yeah, probably a little bit.
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And in a very simple
way, I just love nature.
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And so basically
during those early years,
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that was really
an imprint on me.
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And then we happened to
move back to Lincoln Nebraska,
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and my dad took a
year out of his teaching.
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He was a
physical education teacher
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and he worked
on a masters degree
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at the University of Nebraska.
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And during that time was
when I had my first exposure
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to something that a
young boy should not
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and that was pornography.
00:08:08.18\00:08:10.12
And so my cousin who happened
to be pretty much my age,
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who was out in the back,
my grandfather's back 40.
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He was a guy, my grandfather was
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that would take down
these old army barracks,
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military base
that was going down.
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He contracted to
salvage all the materials
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and he had this wood
all stacked up in the back.
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And anyway, my cousin,
found this stack of pornography.
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And I was 10 years
old, very, very young.
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And of course,
"You gotta see this."
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And so I go back
there and of course,
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I'd never seen
anything like that.
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And I was in shock, of
course, and yet we being boys,
00:08:46.09\00:08:51.16
it was like, you
feel something and you go,
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"I know this is bad
but this is interesting."
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You know, this
really attracts me.
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And here's the
interesting thing.
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I think that God
created for us to enjoy beauty.
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And yet Satan takes everything
that is good and perverts it.
00:09:08.14\00:09:12.85
Whether it's
food, whether it's sex,
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some of these core
things of life and his plan
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is to pervert
them and hijack them.
00:09:19.82\00:09:22.62
So the earlier he can plant
seeds, the better off it is.
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And so long story short, that
was my first exposure to it.
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Of course, that
was back in the day
00:09:31.77\00:09:33.13
that there wasn't much access,
but the seeds were planted.
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And as any man knows, 'cause
I counsel with many, many men.
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This is, and you
read in the Bible.
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I mean, this is
the stumbling block
00:09:45.01\00:09:46.82
of all stumbling blocks for men.
00:09:46.82\00:09:49.45
And so that was the
seed that was planted
00:09:49.45\00:09:53.52
early on pre-puberty.
00:09:53.52\00:09:55.42
- There's a,
and I won't mention,
00:09:56.69\00:09:58.59
but an international
men's group that Barna,
00:09:58.59\00:10:02.23
I think did a study
on not too long ago.
00:10:02.23\00:10:04.30
And these are all the
high quality top men, you know,
00:10:04.30\00:10:07.70
that are
professing God out there.
00:10:07.70\00:10:09.37
And at that time,
this is an older study,
00:10:09.37\00:10:11.64
I'm sure it's more now.
00:10:11.64\00:10:12.71
- Yeah.
00:10:12.71\00:10:13.81
- 40% of those men
were hooked on pornography.
00:10:13.81\00:10:16.11
- Yeah.
00:10:16.11\00:10:17.45
- It is probably the
worst thing that's happened
00:10:17.45\00:10:19.18
in the world.
00:10:19.18\00:10:20.22
- Yeah.
00:10:20.22\00:10:21.02
- At this point in time and so--
00:10:21.02\00:10:22.38
- And it used to be that
you had to go looking for it.
00:10:22.38\00:10:24.75
- Right.
00:10:24.75\00:10:26.12
- And now it comes right
to you, right into your home.
00:10:26.12\00:10:27.96
It's there in your
hand, on your phone.
00:10:27.96\00:10:29.12
- Exactly.
00:10:29.12\00:10:30.19
- So, so many
people who would never
00:10:30.19\00:10:33.43
have gone out
seeking that kind of thing,
00:10:33.43\00:10:36.60
it comes to them
and gets them in a...
00:10:36.60\00:10:39.63
It's just much
easier to snag people.
00:10:39.63\00:10:42.20
- Right.
00:10:42.20\00:10:43.04
Right.
00:10:43.04\00:10:44.27
It's the perfect
thing for addiction
00:10:44.27\00:10:46.24
because you're in isolation,
00:10:46.24\00:10:48.94
it's anonymous
and it costs nothing.
00:10:48.94\00:10:52.68
All of these doors just
open wide to our young men
00:10:52.68\00:10:56.35
and women.
00:10:56.35\00:10:57.15
It's both in today's world.
00:10:58.49\00:11:00.76
- Well, I wanna get
into what happened to you,
00:11:00.76\00:11:04.13
how you got away
from that but you told me
00:11:04.13\00:11:06.13
you have an office
that's air conditioned.
00:11:06.13\00:11:08.53
Do you mind if
we head down there
00:11:08.53\00:11:09.60
and we'll talk
down there about it?
00:11:09.60\00:11:11.60
- Sure.
00:11:11.60\00:11:12.40
- All right, sounds good.
00:11:12.40\00:11:13.27
Yep.
00:11:13.27\00:11:14.17
- I felt like Satan
was constantly nipping
00:11:15.87\00:11:18.01
at my heels and I just
couldn't catch my breath.
00:11:18.01\00:11:20.98
I was grieving.
00:11:20.98\00:11:22.34
I felt scared, confused,
anxious, and depressed.
00:11:22.34\00:11:26.78
My life was literally turned
upside down and falling apart.
00:11:26.78\00:11:31.09
I didn't know what to do,
but I knew who had the answers.
00:11:31.09\00:11:35.09
Can you relate?
00:11:35.09\00:11:36.39
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00:12:02.55\00:12:06.62
Log on to
talkingdonkeyinternational.org.
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- Marty I'm so glad
you had the idea actually
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of the man cave down here.
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It's really great, it's cooler.
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- And I have to admit
that I was actually wrong
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about something.
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I know,
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- Would you kind of
restate - You've never heard
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that before, right.
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(All laugh)
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Because up in the
garage with all those tools,
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I thought I was in the man cave.
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This is the man cave.
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- It's true Axes
and knives, and well,
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I don't see the knives.
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He's probably got
those outta the desk.
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- Yeah.
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- But Marty kind of, you know,
we don't wanna leave people
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hanging you had a
problem and you're gonna tell us
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how on earth
you got out of that?
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- Well, you know,
like I was saying,
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this is something that
seeds are planted early,
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they germinate, they
sometimes go dormant,
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but the roots are still there.
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And you know, when you
start having to face yourself,
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you come...
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For me, work was an addiction,
kind of the workaholic.
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I kind of came to the end
of myself in that career path
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of education
after about 30 years.
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And at the same time
I was struggling through
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this issue in my life.
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And what I was also dealing
with was having young men
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coming to me
saying, "I need help."
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And so it was like,
let's do this, you know,
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I need to
address this in my life.
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And I hear these
young men needing
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to address it in their life.
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And so you in a
naive way, think, you know,
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let's just deal with this.
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But it's a long
journey that God uses to heal.
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I've heard it said this way.
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"God heals rarely
through a lightning bolt.
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"It's mostly more like
a river, it's over time
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"and it's more gentle."
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He wants a relationship with us.
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And so I have learned to
actually appreciate that,
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'cause it makes
me depend on him.
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And so that's the
beauty of it is ultimately
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he wants our heart.
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- You are a Christian.
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- [Marty] Oh yeah.
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- 30 years you had this problem.
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You're teaching,
you're instructing others
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in the ways of God.
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- [Marty] Yeah.
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- But how does that work?
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- Well, it's a very
common situation actually
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in the American
landscape about half the pastors
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are struggling in
some way with sexual sin.
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- [Jim] One half.
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- Yeah.
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And of course surveys
are all over the place,
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but that's what I've
seen pretty consistently.
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And much higher than
that for the guys in the pew.
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And there's a lot of
pressure for those of us
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that are in
Christian leadership,
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pastors and teachers to
do things that are right.
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So we can't be real.
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We can't actually talk
about it, but that is a trap.
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- You're
supposed to be an example.
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- Exactly.
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- So you can't
admit, "Oh, by the way,
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"I've got the
same problems you do.
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"I struggle
with the same thing."
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- I'll pray for you.
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- Yes.
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- But it takes--
- And I also think,
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as I was saying upstairs,
that it used to be you had
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to more actively go and seek,
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- [Marty] Right.
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- Sexual sin.
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- [Marty] Right.
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- And now it's
just the whole culture.
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- [Marty] Exactly.
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- You're just steeped in it.
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You can't turn on
your computer, your phone,
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your television.
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- [Marty] Right.
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- When you said 50% of
pastors are dealing with this,
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my first thought was
yeah, and the other 50%
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don't have computers.
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- Well, you know, we
don't meddle too much,
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but you know, it's...
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Surveys are only good
as the responses, you know,
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and it could be higher,
but we know it's a problem.
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And that's what really matters.
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Now, I wanna just do
a real interesting jump
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into the axes
behind me here, okay?
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They're not there for just--
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- [Janice] Oh oh.
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- They're not just
there for no reason, okay?
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One of my favorite
texts is from Proverbs 27:17.
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And everybody's
probably heard of this text
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and it's, as iron sharpens iron,
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so does one man sharpen
the countenance of his friends.
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That's one
translation, the Old King James,
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but basically the idea
of we need a brotherhood.
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We need others in
our lives to bring us
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to a better sharper place.
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Now with me, it was these
young men coming to me saying,
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"I need help and I'm going"...
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So it can work both directions.
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A young man can come
to an older man and say
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that they need help.
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But in an a roundabout
way, it's a way for an older man
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to say, "You know what, I
need to step it up here too."
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And as I've thought
about my name, my birth name,
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Marty
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Miller,
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and I've dissected what
the meaning of the name is
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any name that
starts with M-A-R is Mars,
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which is warrior.
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So I'm a warrior, Mars, Marty
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and Miller is a grain grinder.
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So I'm a warrior grain grinder.
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And I thought to
myself, "How strange is that?"
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You know.
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But immediately my mind
went to the Bible character.
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That was a
warrior grain grinder.
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And who's that?
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- Gideon.
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- Gideon.
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And so Gideon, the age
the Lord came to him and said,
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"You mighty man of valor,"
and he's hiding out grinding.
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- I was thinking,
how much of a warrior?
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He was not a warrior
grain grinder at that moment.
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- No, he was very
scared, basically.
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He was living in
fear and in isolation
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and God calls him up.
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And so the first thing
that he asked him to do
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after he did the fleece
thing, we know the story.
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But the first
thing he did was he went
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to the grove of trees
where the altar of Baal was.
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And he took down
those idols and all--
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- At night when
nobody could see.
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- Yes, at night when nobody...
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But here's the key thing
is that all of the idolatry
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of the day, it was always
laced with sexual imorality.
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And so I believe that
that is the lesson for me
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and every other man,
is that if he is going
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to use you as a
mighty man, as a warrior,
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you're gonna have to
deal with your stuff.
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And it's not a
matter of, you know,
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if you're going to, it's when.
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And it's better now than later,
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because I've had so
many men in this office
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that have marriages
that have been destroyed
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because of this.
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And so when I have
unpacked a name Gideon,
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it's fascinating
to know that his name
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actually means hewer
and destroyer and woodsman.
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And the axes to
me are a reminder
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that every man needs
to destroy whatever altar,
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excuse me, idol
that's in his life
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and without doing that,
he's not going to be effective.
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And so that was my
story about saying,
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"I'm taking ownership of this."
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And I'm transitioning
from being a grain grinder,
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which is
somebody that's, you know,
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teaching, words, basically.
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You think about
words like grain, like seed
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and grinding it up and
I'm giving to my students
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and saying, "Go do
something with this."
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But he says, "No,
in your later years,
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"you're gonna be a warrior."
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And so that's been a
really huge transition,
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but it's a...
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I can't say enough for
those of us that are older.
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It's like, it's
not time to lay down.
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It just fade into the sunset.
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It's time to take up your sword.
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We've gotta go
into the promised land.
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And just like the
Israelites of old,
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they fell into
sexual sin at the front end
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and at the back end.
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The enemy is after this
church with every man and woman.
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And we can't take it lightly.
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- And there's a lot of
viewers that, you know,
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they're not in your
classes, they're not
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in your men's group.
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- [Marty] Right.
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- What would you say to them?
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How does that actually work?
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Give us some, if you
would, give us some really solid
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basics for the folks
out there to grab onto.
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- Right.
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Well, most men
from what I understand,
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what I not
understand, what I've observed
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over and over in my
own life is that guys go
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from a experience in life
where they're with a bunch
00:20:23.12\00:20:26.55
of friends and
going through school,
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they get married to
the love of their life,
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many of them,
they have a family,
00:20:31.43\00:20:33.56
the career crush is
going on and whatever issues
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are in the background, because
now they're in isolation,
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start blowing up.
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Whether it's
alcohol, sex, you name it.
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You pick your flavor.
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Whatever's there is
gonna blow up on him.
00:20:48.98\00:20:51.48
And so most of the time,
every, almost every man I know
00:20:51.48\00:20:56.45
that gets into
a deep, rock solid
00:20:57.42\00:21:01.36
relationship with
God has had to come
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to the end of themselves.
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They have to come to
a point of brokenness
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to really
understand the love of God.
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'Cause as long
as you play the game
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that I'm doing good.
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And I'm fine.
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And just putting masks up,
God will never get through.
00:21:17.94\00:21:23.01
- I've never seen...
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I want you to keep
going on that trail.
00:21:24.78\00:21:26.05
I just wanna say, I've ever seen
00:21:26.05\00:21:27.58
the devil give us
something that actually is good
00:21:27.58\00:21:31.35
for any length of time.
00:21:31.35\00:21:32.65
- No, no, no.
00:21:32.65\00:21:34.36
It always comes
back to bite you.
00:21:34.36\00:21:36.73
- Big time.
00:21:36.73\00:21:37.73
- [Marty] Yeah.
00:21:37.73\00:21:38.79
- I've seen so
many, so many guys
00:21:38.79\00:21:39.93
destroys the
family, destroys the church,
00:21:39.93\00:21:42.00
destroys everything.
00:21:42.00\00:21:43.30
- [Marty] Right.
00:21:43.30\00:21:44.13
- Their whole life.
00:21:44.13\00:21:45.40
- Whether it's
gambling, drinking, pornography,
00:21:45.40\00:21:47.30
it's always a lot of
fun at the beginning.
00:21:47.30\00:21:49.04
- Yeah.
00:21:49.04\00:21:50.57
You know, in some ways
you can't drink everywhere,
00:21:50.57\00:21:52.11
you know, but pornography,
you can hide it everywhere,
00:21:52.11\00:21:54.81
you know, and that's easy.
00:21:54.81\00:21:56.18
- And what I'll
say to women sometimes
00:21:56.18\00:21:58.88
that are trying to
understand their husband
00:21:58.88\00:22:01.32
is that, you know, if
you like chocolate, right.
00:22:01.32\00:22:04.72
And most women--
00:22:04.72\00:22:05.65
- Oh.
00:22:05.65\00:22:06.49
(Jim laughs)
00:22:06.49\00:22:07.29
- Boy, he has me pegged out.
00:22:07.29\00:22:08.09
- He got you really good.
00:22:08.09\00:22:08.62
(Janice laughs)
00:22:08.62\00:22:09.72
- And what if you had
chocolate in your purse,
00:22:09.72\00:22:10.83
on your
nightstand, in your glove box,
00:22:10.83\00:22:14.10
everywhere was chocolate.
00:22:14.10\00:22:16.40
You might have a
snack once in a while.
00:22:16.40\00:22:19.67
And I'm not making any excuses,
00:22:19.67\00:22:21.60
but that's the
kind of world most men
00:22:21.60\00:22:23.71
are facing in today's world.
00:22:23.71\00:22:26.24
- Well, that's
what I meant about,
00:22:26.24\00:22:27.54
it's harder nowadays
than it was for my father
00:22:27.54\00:22:30.85
or certainly my grandfather.
00:22:30.85\00:22:32.31
- [Marty] Absolutely.
00:22:32.31\00:22:33.58
- Because you are
surrounded with the temptation.
00:22:33.58\00:22:35.48
- [Marty] Right.
00:22:35.48\00:22:36.52
Right.
00:22:36.52\00:22:37.35
- Yeah.
00:22:37.35\00:22:38.45
- So I really just
kind of wrapping things up
00:22:38.45\00:22:42.02
is to just say that, you know,
00:22:42.02\00:22:44.29
I know that, back to
the small group experience
00:22:44.29\00:22:48.80
this is many men, how they come.
00:22:48.80\00:22:51.00
This is an axe head,
00:22:52.10\00:22:53.97
I found this in the woods.
00:22:53.97\00:22:55.27
- [Jim] It's pretty rusty.
00:22:55.27\00:22:56.47
- Very rusty, very
dull, it has no handle.
00:22:56.47\00:23:00.21
And yet this has the
potential of being restored,
00:23:00.21\00:23:03.01
doesn't it?
00:23:03.01\00:23:04.15
I can take this,
I can Polish it up.
00:23:04.15\00:23:06.92
I can sharpen it.
00:23:06.92\00:23:07.92
I can put a handle on it.
00:23:07.92\00:23:09.35
And it will be just
as good as ever, right?
00:23:09.35\00:23:12.25
And that's what God wants to
do in every one of our lives.
00:23:12.25\00:23:14.46
But we cannot have
that happen in isolation.
00:23:14.46\00:23:17.93
God created us
to be in community.
00:23:17.93\00:23:20.73
And you look at the
nature in the animal kingdom,
00:23:20.73\00:23:23.63
males alone,
00:23:23.63\00:23:26.50
most men, alone,
00:23:26.50\00:23:27.90
even the guys that
might go golfing together,
00:23:27.90\00:23:29.94
and do things together.
00:23:29.94\00:23:31.14
Shallow, shallow relationships.
00:23:32.37\00:23:35.31
We need honest conversations.
00:23:35.31\00:23:37.88
We need allies that are
fighting the same battle with us
00:23:37.88\00:23:40.95
in a small group.
00:23:40.95\00:23:42.32
Where we're real, where
hard questions are being asked.
00:23:42.32\00:23:45.42
But one of the
first questions I ask guys
00:23:45.42\00:23:47.86
is if it's iron sharpens
iron, you don't add anything
00:23:47.86\00:23:52.93
until you've removed.
00:23:53.60\00:23:54.66
So if I'm gonna
wanna sharpen this blade,
00:23:54.66\00:23:57.50
it's all about, I
gotta get rid of the dull.
00:23:57.50\00:24:00.44
And so God's design is, that
he wants to remove the dull.
00:24:00.44\00:24:04.97
All of the stuff
that's sticking to us,
00:24:06.01\00:24:09.68
making us ineffective.
00:24:09.68\00:24:11.11
- I felt like Satan was
constantly nipping at my heels
00:24:12.91\00:24:15.72
and I just
couldn't catch my breath.
00:24:15.72\00:24:18.02
I was grieving.
00:24:18.02\00:24:19.39
I felt scared,
confused, anxious and depressed.
00:24:19.39\00:24:23.83
My life was literally turned
upside down and falling apart.
00:24:23.83\00:24:28.10
I didn't know what to do,
but I knew who had the answers.
00:24:28.10\00:24:32.10
Can you relate?
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This amazing study
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00:24:37.87\00:24:40.61
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My confusion turned to
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00:24:41.88\00:24:46.28
my depression eased.
00:24:46.28\00:24:48.15
I let myself be
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00:24:48.15\00:24:51.45
and he calmed my aching heart.
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00:25:07.37\00:25:10.91
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00:25:10.91\00:25:15.11
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- I used to be a
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and a thief along with far too
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00:25:29.42\00:25:33.43
You know, I kidded
myself that I was great.
00:25:33.43\00:25:35.80
Life was great.
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But knowing there was a
massive void in my life.
00:25:36.93\00:25:40.37
I'd like to offer you a pamphlet
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You know, addictions come
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but you don't need to be
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00:25:46.84\00:25:50.15
Go to
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Request offer 101,
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Remember it's completely free.
00:25:58.25\00:26:00.16
Marty, we've only
got a minute or so left,
00:26:01.69\00:26:03.76
but we started
out in the man cave.
00:26:03.76\00:26:05.43
And I don't wanna
leave that because we said
00:26:05.43\00:26:07.40
we'd explain it.
00:26:07.40\00:26:08.26
- Yep.
00:26:08.26\00:26:09.63
Well, one of the first times
that I had a young men's group
00:26:09.63\00:26:12.67
was actually in
my garage up there.
00:26:12.67\00:26:14.57
We sat in, you know, camp chairs
00:26:14.57\00:26:17.67
and we went through
12 weeks of two hours
00:26:17.67\00:26:22.28
every once a
week in the evening.
00:26:22.28\00:26:25.18
- [Janice] What made
you pick the garage rather
00:26:25.18\00:26:26.65
than the living
room with comfy couches?
00:26:26.65\00:26:28.75
- Well, it's just, I felt
led to be in that environment.
00:26:28.75\00:26:33.29
I think guys get that.
00:26:33.29\00:26:34.92
It's a place where--
00:26:34.92\00:26:36.36
- [Janice]
They're more comfortable?
00:26:36.36\00:26:37.39
- It represents
what's really going on.
00:26:37.39\00:26:39.69
We did a
retreat a few years ago.
00:26:40.56\00:26:42.03
We call it broken beauty.
00:26:42.03\00:26:43.93
It's because God is
all about taking brokenness
00:26:43.93\00:26:47.97
and making it into
something beautiful.
00:26:47.97\00:26:49.87
In fact, better than
what it would've been.
00:26:49.87\00:26:53.38
You've ever seen a car that's
been restored better than new.
00:26:53.38\00:26:56.78
That's what he
wants to do with us.
00:26:56.78\00:26:59.08
- You came up, I asked you
for a title for this episode,
00:26:59.08\00:27:01.85
you came up with a title
that I thought was brilliant.
00:27:01.85\00:27:04.29
Would you tell us what
that title was as we wrap?
00:27:04.29\00:27:06.65
- Yeah.
00:27:06.65\00:27:07.76
Well, it's just,
The End of Myself.
00:27:07.76\00:27:09.76
And I really believe, and
I've already alluded to this,
00:27:09.76\00:27:12.39
that God and his love
for us, he allows us freedom
00:27:12.39\00:27:17.43
to do as we choose.
00:27:18.10\00:27:19.33
But in the end we discover
00:27:19.33\00:27:22.27
that all the freedom
in the world without him
00:27:22.27\00:27:25.11
leads to destruction.
00:27:25.11\00:27:26.71
And you come to
the end of yourself,
00:27:26.71\00:27:28.41
you're able to
face yourself in a way
00:27:28.41\00:27:31.18
that you wouldn't if you
were kept on a short leash
00:27:31.18\00:27:34.82
and controlled.
00:27:34.82\00:27:36.25
And so men to come
00:27:36.25\00:27:39.82
to the end of themselves
is actually the beginning
00:27:39.82\00:27:44.89
of coming to know God.
00:27:45.56\00:27:46.66
- And the coming
of happiness too.
00:27:46.66\00:27:48.13
- Yes.
00:27:48.13\00:27:49.10
- Marty, thank you so much, man.
00:27:49.10\00:27:50.33
Appreciate it.
00:27:50.33\00:27:51.17
- You're welcome.
00:27:51.17\00:27:52.00
Glad to be here.
00:27:52.00\00:27:53.10
- Thanks for
allowing me in the man cave.
00:27:53.10\00:27:54.10
- Yeah.
00:27:54.10\00:27:55.07
(gentle music)
00:27:55.07\00:27:57.74
- Thank you for watching.
00:28:01.01\00:28:02.38
Join us again for another
exciting, "Country Wisdom."
00:28:02.38\00:28:04.21
- See you next time.
00:28:04.21\00:28:05.28
(gentle music)
00:28:06.82\00:28:09.48