IAAOOO241
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Hello, I'm Shelley
Quinn, and welcome again to
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Issues and Answers.
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Let me share a scripture
with you from Galatians 6:22.
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The Bible says the fruit of
the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
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patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, humility,
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and self control.
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When God is working in your
life, and the Holy Spirit is
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indwelling you, what
will be your inward response?
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Your contentment, will
be the love, joy, and peace
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of the Lord.
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The patience, kindness,
and goodness is an outward
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expression of the Holy Spirit
living in your life that we
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actually are
demonstrating to mankind.
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Then the faithfulness, the
humility, and the self control
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is how we respond to God.
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I am so excited today!
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We're going to be
talking about not letting anyone
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steal your joy.
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And it is my great pleasure
to introduce to you someone who
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is a relatively new friend
of mine, but a sister in Christ.
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I want to welcome Heather Dawn
Small who is the Director of
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Women's Ministries for
the General Conference of the
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Seventh-day Adventist Church.
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Heather it's a
joy to have you here.
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Thank you.
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I'm glad to be here.
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Now how long have you been
Director for Women's Ministries?
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I'm been Director since the year
2005, and before that I was the
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Associate Director.
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And you came from?
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The island of Trinidad
and Tobago where I was the
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Union Director for Women
and Children's Ministries.
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So you've been involved
with Women's Ministries for a
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very long time.
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I know this is a
passion of your heart.
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Definitely!
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But when I look at you, Heather,
and having met you previously,
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you are a person
who is filled with joy.
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We can track this back though.
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Sometimes people think that
just because you see someone who
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is joyful, you think
they must never have trials
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and tribulations in their life.
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But in 1985 something
devastating happened to you,
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and I would like for you to
tell us about that incident.
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Well, if we can back
track two weeks before that,
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I'll tell you what
happened prior to that.
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My husband and I had
been having a rough time
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with our marriage.
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We had gotten married in 1979.
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We had two beautiful children:
my son who was, at that time
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in 1985, was 4 and a few months,
and my daughter who was 2.
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Two weeks before the event
in 1985 my husband and I were on
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the brink of breaking up.
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We had discussed it and I
remember it was New Years Eve
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and we had decided we were
not going into the New Year with
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things the way they were.
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We just decided,
okay, that's it, Lord.
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Forget this!
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We're going our separate
ways and I, of course, said,
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the children stay with me.
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He could go
wherever he wanted to.
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We just didn't have that
love for each other anymore
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with all the bickering and all
the sadness which had gone on.
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But something happened because
I remember at the end of that
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conversation, I
remember my husband asking me,
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What do you want to do?
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I said, Well, I've
already said what I want to do.
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He said, Well, yeah,
but I'm asking you again,
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what do you really want to do?"
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I remember thinking okay,
what do I really want to do?
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I really want to leave, but the
training that I had been brought
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up with, because I had grown
up in this church, kicked in.
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The thought came, can I really
walk away without giving God
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the final say?
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So I said to him, "Well, I'll
be willing to pray about this
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one last time. "
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And we did, and we pledged that
every night, and every evening,
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every night, and
every morning, we would pray
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about our relationship.
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My prayer was simple,
Lord I don't want to be here.
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I want to get out of this.
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But if You could somehow
love this man through me,
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then do it.
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Really I was saying to
God, I don't want You to do it.
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Yes.
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But God does His awesome things,
so as the time passed over the
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two weeks, my husband
and I began to feel that love
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for each other come back.
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I remember one night we
knelt to pray and we held hands.
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But then two weeks after
that particular event we had an
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accident at my home, where
my father's dog attacked my son.
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We took him to the hospital,
and they tried to save him,
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and he died.
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He was 4 years and a few months.
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This was just two weeks away
from the time we had decided
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to give our lives back
to the Lord, and let Him do
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everything for us.
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Well, praise the Lord that first
God had gotten your attention,
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and had started you
all on the right path.
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But, Heather Dawn, I know when
you first shared this story with
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me a number of months ago,
I told you that there's one
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thing that I had prayed
since I was 13 years old was,
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Lord, don't ever let me
have a child if that child would
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precede me in death, because
I can't think of anything worse.
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How did you, in this new
relationship that you and your
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husband were being
bonded together again in love,
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how did this effect you though
to suddenly lose your child,
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your baby, at 4 1/2 years old?
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Did that create a
problem in the marriage again?
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Well, it didn't really.
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It's interesting how
God really works things out.
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I know this may seem strange,
but it is something that I need
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to share because a few
nights before my son died,
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I had a dream.
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I don't normally put any
stock in dreams, but you know,
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sometimes you have
dreams of the end of the world,
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and you're running, and
racing, and trying to get away
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and save yourself.
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In the dream it was
only my husband, my daughter,
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and myself.
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I remember we got to a
point where we were at the...
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It looked like the sea
was there, and the people were
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behind us screaming at us
because we were Christians.
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Then my husband said,
Look, Jesus is coming!
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But I didn't look at Him because
over to the right, as I looked,
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I saw an angel
coming with my son.
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I remember the next day I said
to my husband, I don't think
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Joey's going to be
alive when Jesus comes.
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He said, Why?, and I shared
with him what I'd dreamed.
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He said, 'Hum,
that's interesting. '
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So when the event took place
about two or three more mornings
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later, that dream
came back to my mind.
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It was as though God had put
it there to kind of prepare me
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that something was
going to take place.
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And even though I fell apart,
I mean it was a disastrous
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time for me.
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Of course!
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But there was that
thing in my mind that,
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yeah, but God's in control.
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I don't know what's
going on, and I don't know why,
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but God's in control.
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So my part was to go
through that struggle.
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My husband and I had a
two week time where he sent me
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by his sister because he thought
I would need a little rest.
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And it was during that time
that I really connected with God
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on my own.
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I came back from my
sister-in-law's home all pumped
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up, and excited that I
had renewed my relationship
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with God, and that I was
ready to go, and my husband was
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in a slump because he
had not had that experience.
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But God had taken me aside and
then sent me back to share it
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with him, and it was awesome.
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So this dream you received was
like a message of hope from God,
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a message of joy.
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That I'd see him again.
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You know though, have you
ever considered, and I'm sure
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you have, and particularly
when you're dealing in
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Women's Ministries, how
do women, how does anyone,
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whether it's a man or a woman,
face these kind of life trials
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without God?
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Without hope that they will be
reunited with their loved ones?
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That's right!
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And that is what brought me to
the first thing, which I want to
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share with you, which is choice.
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God gives all of us a choice,
and I had to make a choice
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because I remember one day,
and it's strange how things,
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even though you put things into
perspective, you still have to
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go through that
period of mourning and loss.
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Absolutely!
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I remember every afternoon
around the time of about
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3:00 o'clock I'd steal
away into a quiet bedroom,
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and I would just cry my eyes
out because I missed my son.
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He was my first born.
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Amen.
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It was always around the
time when I would be picking him
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up and bringing him
home from his day school.
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And so I was crying and crying.
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I did this for weeks.
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Nobody knew.
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I remember one afternoon I went
into the room and as soon as I
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closed the door
I started to cry.
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I sat on the bed and I had
a pillow and I'd scream into
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the pillow because
it was just such pain.
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Yes.
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I said to God, I can't keep
doing this because I felt myself
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physically getting weaker.
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I said, Lord, I
can't keep doing this.
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You've got to do
something for me.
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And as I said that my tears
stopped and I began to think.
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I said, You know, Lord,
what am I going to do here?
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I mean, I grew
up in this church.
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Everything that I believed
in, at least that I thought
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that I believed in, didn't
seem to hold true because now
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my son's dead.
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And I need to know, and this is
after I had given my life back
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to Him, but there comes
those times when you still have
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your little doubts.
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I said, I need to know.
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Are you really
going to be there for me?
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I still have a daughter.
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Who's going to look after her?
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I can't lose her, too.
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And I remember the Holy
Spirit began to say to me,
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Well, good things happen to
everyone, and bad things happen
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to everyone.
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The person who is not a
Christian loses their job,
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and the
Christian loses their job.
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I thought about that and I
said, You know, that's true.
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And then the Spirit said to me,
Yeah, and the person who is not
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a Christian; they have
disaster in their family,
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and the Christian does as well.
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I thought, yeah, you know,
bad things happen to everyone.
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Then I thought, well, what's the
difference because if I'm going
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to be a Christian,
and bad things happen,
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and I'm a non-Christian,
and bad things happen,
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what is the difference here?
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And the Spirit said
to me, The difference is
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Christians have hope.
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Amen!
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And that made me come to choose.
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I got to the point where
I said, My choice is God.
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Because without Him I
would not have the hope of ever
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seeing Joey again.
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I wouldn't have the hope
of living for eternity without
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the pain and the sorrow,
but if I stayed with God,
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I would have it.
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And then I wondered, how
do people who do not have God
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live with the troubles
that happen in their lives?
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The only thing I could think of
is they turn to drink and drugs,
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and try to keep themselves busy,
and pleasures, and all sorts
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of stuff, looking for
that momentary time of joy
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which they can only get if
they give it all over to God.
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So making that choice
was the first thing for me;
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choosing God.
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So, and as you chose
God, you know, He says in
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Deuteronomy 30:19, He
sets before us life and death.
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Yes, He does.
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And that's on a
day by day basis.
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We can either choose
life, or choose death.
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But as you were choosing
God, and He helped you to return
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your eyes to
Him, trusting in Him,
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did you find the promise
of Isaiah 26:3 came true that
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He promises to keep us in
perfect peace when we keep our
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minds
steadfastly focused on Him.
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Definitely!
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That's when I began my joy walk.
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That was the beginning.
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That was when God first took
me to Philippians, and from that
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tine the word joy
has become my trademark.
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It's just, I
wish my name was Joy.
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I just love that word because
it expresses that in spite of
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everything else going on
in my life, I can have joy,
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which comes with peace.
00:12:14.24\00:12:16.18
It doesn't matter how bad things
get, there is this thought
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constantly in my
mind, but God's in control.
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And if He's in control,
then I have nothing, really,
00:12:23.09\00:12:25.84
to get concerned about,
even if it does turn out
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for the worst.
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So that reminds me of Nehemiah
8:10 that the joy of the Lord
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will be your strength.
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That's right, that's right.
00:12:33.39\00:12:34.57
Amen.
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Well, tell us a little
more about this joy walk.
00:12:35.58\00:12:37.29
Well, the next thing that
I'd like to share with you is
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the second point which
I call What's your view?
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Because as Christians we've got
to look at this world through
00:12:43.44\00:12:47.25
different eyes than the
person who is not a Christian.
00:12:47.28\00:12:50.71
As Christians we've got to
see the world as God sees it.
00:12:50.74\00:12:55.53
That's one of the things
that I pray for every day.
00:12:55.56\00:12:57.57
I say, Lord give
me Your eye salve.
00:12:57.60\00:12:59.90
Help me to see the
world as You see it.
00:12:59.93\00:13:02.61
Because, you see, if I look at
it as I see it, I'm only going
00:13:02.64\00:13:05.37
to see pain,
and hurt, and anger.
00:13:05.40\00:13:07.74
I'm going to see people who
are hurting me, people who are
00:13:07.77\00:13:10.04
unkind to me, but I want to
see the world as God sees it.
00:13:10.33\00:13:14.01
And so, because I ask for
that, and He gives it to me,
00:13:14.04\00:13:18.71
when I look at situations
I don't see the person who's
00:13:18.74\00:13:22.84
trying to hurt me, I see
what's behind the person.
00:13:22.85\00:13:25.87
I see that demonic spirit who
is trying to steal away my joy
00:13:25.90\00:13:31.62
because I've discovered that a
joyless Christian is on his way
00:13:31.65\00:13:36.23
to losing his faith in God.
00:13:36.26\00:13:37.69
Amen!
00:13:37.72\00:13:38.69
That's why Satan
wants to take away your joy.
00:13:38.70\00:13:40.59
And, you know, over the
years as a Pastor's wife,
00:13:40.62\00:13:42.91
I remember that so many
times my husband and I would go
00:13:42.94\00:13:46.16
and visit people
who had left the church.
00:13:46.19\00:13:48.97
I would say 99% of the
time it was because of something
00:13:49.00\00:13:53.69
which happened
that stole their joy.
00:13:53.72\00:13:55.79
Whether it was their personal
life, or something in the church
00:13:55.82\00:13:58.87
that discouraged
them, and depressed them,
00:13:58.88\00:14:02.04
that caused anger, and that set
them up then for Satan to just
00:14:02.07\00:14:06.19
step in and take away that
faith in God which they had.
00:14:06.22\00:14:09.96
And you know what?
00:14:09.99\00:14:10.96
As we're discussing joy,
let me ask you if you would
00:14:10.97\00:14:13.87
agree with this.
00:14:13.90\00:14:14.87
I tell people that we're
not always going to be happy.
00:14:14.88\00:14:17.88
Happiness depends on
circumstances, but we can
00:14:17.91\00:14:20.57
always have joy, which is
one of the fruits of the Spirit.
00:14:20.60\00:14:24.37
We can always look to the Lord
with that hope in our heart,
00:14:24.40\00:14:28.51
and the joy that
He instills in us.
00:14:28.54\00:14:31.49
And something you said about
asking God, you know you and I
00:14:31.52\00:14:36.09
have done so many similar things
in our walk with the Lord.
00:14:36.12\00:14:39.88
I once had to go to the Lord
and say, Father, help me to see
00:14:39.91\00:14:44.29
other people through Your eyes.
00:14:44.32\00:14:45.77
Which in II Corinthians 5:16
Paul says, We no longer look at
00:14:45.80\00:14:50.89
anyone from a human perspective.
00:14:50.92\00:14:52.69
We once looked at Jesus this
way, but now we see people from
00:14:52.72\00:14:57.08
God's perspective.
00:14:57.09\00:14:58.46
That can help restore your
joy faster than anything because
00:14:58.49\00:15:01.94
if you see someone as trying
to harm you, and you see them
00:15:01.97\00:15:06.54
as being hateful, you
may lose some of that joy.
00:15:06.57\00:15:10.09
But when you look at them
through God's eyes, and see that
00:15:10.12\00:15:12.90
they are suffering, or
they're lost, or it is a
00:15:12.93\00:15:16.34
spiritual battle that's going
on, it kind of pumps you up
00:15:16.37\00:15:20.44
a little bit to see things from
God's perspective, doesn't it?
00:15:20.47\00:15:23.54
It does, and you know joy,
as you said, is not a constant
00:15:23.57\00:15:27.04
walk of, Oh, I'm
constantly happy.
00:15:27.07\00:15:29.48
There are days when I am down.
00:15:29.51\00:15:31.10
There are days when I'm
struggling with various issues.
00:15:31.14\00:15:33.49
Joy produces happiness, but
happiness cannot produce joy,
00:15:33.52\00:15:37.78
because joy is that inner state
of mind, I call it, that says,
00:15:37.81\00:15:42.27
no matter what's happening
in my life, my connection to God
00:15:42.30\00:15:45.75
stays strong, and I
know He's in control.
00:15:45.78\00:15:48.58
And even though I may be going
through a joyless period in my
00:15:48.61\00:15:51.85
life, a time when I'm not
bubbling over, and all excited,
00:15:51.88\00:15:55.36
that okay.
00:15:55.39\00:15:56.36
My joy is still there
because Jesus is still there.
00:15:56.37\00:15:59.18
Amen.
00:15:59.21\00:16:00.18
So what you're saying is,
if I'm hearing you correctly,
00:16:00.19\00:16:03.26
and correct me if I'm not,
is that when you started this
00:16:03.29\00:16:06.62
joy walk with the Lord,
it didn't mean that there
00:16:06.65\00:16:10.09
weren't other challenges
that you've experienced.
00:16:10.12\00:16:12.37
It didn't mean that you
stayed in a constant state of
00:16:12.40\00:16:15.33
happiness, but still you
maintained that contented
00:16:15.36\00:16:20.08
state of joy inside.
00:16:20.11\00:16:21.93
Inside, that's right.
00:16:21.96\00:16:22.93
Very true!
00:16:22.95\00:16:23.92
And it always stays there
with you, and it's why I can do
00:16:23.93\00:16:28.18
the things that I do, you know,
travel, and leave my family
00:16:28.21\00:16:31.52
behind and not be worried about
if my son's going to be okay,
00:16:31.55\00:16:34.62
or my daughter, or my husband.
00:16:34.66\00:16:36.62
I don't concern
myself with that.
00:16:36.65\00:16:38.56
Even if something
went wrong, and, you know,
00:16:38.59\00:16:41.80
God knows my heart.
00:16:41.83\00:16:42.80
I don't want anything to happen
to any of my family, but if
00:16:42.81\00:16:46.54
something should go
wrong, and I know Satan's always
00:16:46.57\00:16:50.87
out there trying to do
his worst, yet inside I know
00:16:50.90\00:16:54.66
I'm going to be okay because
God can take me through this.
00:16:54.69\00:16:58.40
Amen.
00:16:58.43\00:16:59.40
And the son you refer to
now is a son that you had
00:16:59.41\00:17:02.53
after Joey's death.
00:17:02.56\00:17:04.17
Yes, yes, it is.
00:17:04.20\00:17:05.37
About a year after my son's
death, we decided to try again
00:17:05.40\00:17:08.29
for another child, because we
always wanted to have two kids,
00:17:08.32\00:17:11.15
But then I got in a car
accident and as a result of the
00:17:11.18\00:17:14.15
car accident, I had to have
surgery, and I couldn't have
00:17:14.18\00:17:17.88
any more kids.
00:17:17.91\00:17:18.88
I was determined.
00:17:18.89\00:17:21.09
I said, Lord,
that's not the end of it.
00:17:21.12\00:17:23.08
I could adopt.
00:17:23.11\00:17:24.08
And so we began searching.
00:17:24.11\00:17:25.78
It was a couple of
years, but then God brought this
00:17:25.81\00:17:29.82
precious son into our lives,
and he is the joy of my life.
00:17:29.85\00:17:34.32
I said to him the other
day, you know he's 16 now,
00:17:34.35\00:17:38.34
and we got him when he was
about 2 1/2, and he's going
00:17:38.37\00:17:41.88
through his little ups and
downs that teenagers go through.
00:17:41.91\00:17:44.75
I said to him, you
know, I would not exchange you
00:17:44.78\00:17:49.30
for anything in the world.
00:17:49.33\00:17:50.61
Even if it meant I
could have my first son back.
00:17:50.64\00:17:54.28
I would not have missed out
on the opportunity, and the joy
00:17:54.31\00:17:58.93
of having you in my life.
00:17:58.97\00:18:00.47
Because, you see, I know I'm
going to see my first son again,
00:18:00.50\00:18:02.73
but Jerry is here with us now.
00:18:02.76\00:18:05.63
The joy of having him
with us is something that
00:18:05.66\00:18:08.56
I would not exchange.
00:18:08.57\00:18:09.59
What a precious
thing to say to him.
00:18:09.62\00:18:11.82
I'm sure that those are
words he will never forget.
00:18:11.83\00:18:14.57
I hope so.
00:18:14.60\00:18:15.57
But, you know, it occurs to me,
Heather Dawn, as we're talking,
00:18:15.58\00:18:18.52
many people who had had
a child taken so violently,
00:18:18.55\00:18:23.86
and that is a violent
death, what Joey went through,
00:18:23.89\00:18:27.58
and then hoping to have another
child so that they could have
00:18:27.61\00:18:34.17
the two they wanted, and ending
up in a car accident that forced
00:18:34.20\00:18:38.30
this surgery.
00:18:38.33\00:18:39.30
Many people would have
wanted to shake their fist
00:18:39.31\00:18:42.17
in God's face and say,
you know, What good does it do
00:18:42.20\00:18:46.70
to serve You because
look what's happening.
00:18:46.73\00:18:49.21
Did you ever, ever experience
that moment where you could have
00:18:49.24\00:18:53.84
turned your back
on the Lord easily?
00:18:53.87\00:18:55.68
Not then, No, and
that's interesting.
00:18:55.71\00:18:58.44
I never even thought of it
like that until you said it.
00:18:58.47\00:19:01.16
It was as though, okay, this
door has closed, but there has
00:19:01.19\00:19:04.74
got to be some other window,
because houses have windows,
00:19:04.77\00:19:07.04
and I'm looking for one.
00:19:07.07\00:19:08.04
And God just turned me
in a different direction,
00:19:08.06\00:19:10.78
and I realized why, because it
really wasn't necessary for me
00:19:10.81\00:19:15.39
to make another child in
the way I thought I should
00:19:15.42\00:19:19.27
have a child, when God
already had a wonderful child
00:19:19.30\00:19:22.33
waiting for me.
00:19:22.37\00:19:23.34
So it was fine.
00:19:23.35\00:19:25.16
It was fine.
00:19:25.19\00:19:26.88
Yeah.
00:19:26.91\00:19:27.88
Have you ever experienced
anything after that where you
00:19:27.89\00:19:30.54
felt that you questioned God?
00:19:30.57\00:19:34.47
Well, I did go through a rough
time in my life during the 19...
00:19:34.50\00:19:38.32
I would say it was
about 1990-98 when I was going
00:19:38.35\00:19:45.06
through a very
bad time physically.
00:19:45.09\00:19:46.67
I was suffering with depression.
00:19:46.70\00:19:49.56
My health wasn't good, and
I went through a bad slump.
00:19:49.59\00:19:54.53
I remember that a
family in our church had...
00:19:54.56\00:19:59.80
Their son had gotten in an
accident on a Ferris Wheel.
00:19:59.84\00:20:05.79
They almost lost
him, and God saved him.
00:20:05.82\00:20:08.92
I remember when the mother
stood up in church praising God
00:20:08.95\00:20:12.13
for saving her son that
the devil whispered in my ear,
00:20:12.16\00:20:15.59
Well, how come God
saved this woman's son
00:20:15.62\00:20:18.17
and didn't save yours?
00:20:18.20\00:20:19.17
And because of my emotional,
and mental state at the time,
00:20:19.18\00:20:23.27
I just went off the deep end.
00:20:23.30\00:20:24.90
I mean I turned my back
on God for three months.
00:20:24.93\00:20:27.04
I didn't want to
have anything to do Him.
00:20:27.07\00:20:28.67
I didn't want to read my Bible.
00:20:28.70\00:20:30.16
I didn't want to talk to Him.
00:20:30.19\00:20:31.34
I went by my sister in
California, and I remember
00:20:31.37\00:20:34.59
at the time, I left my
Bible home because I said,
00:20:34.62\00:20:37.53
I'm not even talking to God so
I'm not even taking it with me.
00:20:37.56\00:20:40.30
And when I got there right
on the side there by the bed
00:20:40.33\00:20:44.88
she had left me some gifts,
and one of them was a Bible.
00:20:44.91\00:20:47.58
And I felt, Okay, Lord, I can't
run from You, because I've left
00:20:47.61\00:20:51.10
Trinidad and come all
the way to California.
00:20:51.13\00:20:52.75
I thought I left You there,
and yet You are here willing to
00:20:52.78\00:20:55.62
meet with me, so let's talk.
00:20:55.65\00:20:57.34
And so for two weeks, every
day when my sister would leave
00:20:57.37\00:21:01.84
for work, I would sit
in my room, and I cried,
00:21:01.85\00:21:04.63
and I screamed,
and I shouted at God.
00:21:04.66\00:21:06.73
I told Him I unfair He was and
how hurt I was that He had done
00:21:06.76\00:21:10.54
this to me.
00:21:10.57\00:21:11.54
And this was like 13 years
later, but things come back.
00:21:11.55\00:21:15.57
Satan will always get
you at your weakest point.
00:21:15.60\00:21:18.20
So when that happened I just
threw it all out, because I had
00:21:18.23\00:21:23.02
had stuff that I was holding
inside, and I let it all out.
00:21:23.05\00:21:26.01
Then God began to talk to
me and He strengthened me,
00:21:26.04\00:21:29.38
and gave me the
hope that I needed.
00:21:29.41\00:21:31.92
He restored my joy.
00:21:31.95\00:21:33.26
That was something that I had
to go through, but first I had
00:21:33.29\00:21:36.95
to tell God how I really felt.
00:21:36.98\00:21:38.40
And, you know, too many of
us as Christians feel, well,
00:21:38.43\00:21:40.78
I can't really
tell God how I feel.
00:21:40.81\00:21:43.02
Yes, you can.
00:21:43.03\00:21:44.01
It's not that He doesn't know,
but we need to verbalize it.
00:21:44.04\00:21:46.36
We need to do it.
00:21:46.39\00:21:47.36
And as we get it out, then His
Holy Spirit can minister to us,
00:21:47.37\00:21:52.06
and the healing can begin again.
00:21:52.09\00:21:54.08
Amen.
00:21:54.11\00:21:55.08
And this is something
that I was thinking about.
00:21:55.11\00:21:56.89
When David lost his joy after
the incident with Bathsheba,
00:21:56.92\00:22:02.83
and when Nathan had come to
him and said, You're the man.
00:22:02.86\00:22:05.25
In Psalms 51 one of the
precious things I think that
00:22:05.28\00:22:08.83
David said in his prayer of
repentance was, restore to me
00:22:08.86\00:22:12.73
the joy of thy salvation.
00:22:12.76\00:22:14.12
That's right.
00:22:14.15\00:22:15.12
And so that's what God was
doing with you was restoring
00:22:15.13\00:22:17.87
to you the joy
of your salvation.
00:22:17.90\00:22:20.29
You know, it's so wonderful,
Heather Dawn, as we're talking,
00:22:20.32\00:22:23.54
I'm looking at you, and
I'm thinking we all really do
00:22:23.57\00:22:27.18
go through the same things.
00:22:27.21\00:22:28.58
Yes, we do.
00:22:28.61\00:22:29.58
We're all human, and praise
the Lord, that He remembers,
00:22:29.59\00:22:32.59
earnestly
remembers we are but dust.
00:22:32.62\00:22:34.83
and for the viewer who is out
there who may have been on this
00:22:34.86\00:22:40.66
little roller
coaster ride with the Lord.
00:22:40.69\00:22:42.80
Don't ever feel that God is just
going to write you off when you
00:22:42.83\00:22:48.89
maybe do shake
your fist in His face.
00:22:48.92\00:22:51.61
And when you're saying just talk
about it openly with the Lord;
00:22:51.64\00:22:55.63
He already knows.
00:22:55.66\00:22:56.99
What He wants from us, and it's
very cathartic to go to the Lord
00:22:57.02\00:23:01.51
and to speak these things.
00:23:01.54\00:23:02.77
Speak it, shout it,
scream it; just let it out.
00:23:03.53\00:23:06.87
And God understands.
00:23:06.90\00:23:08.49
It's just like, you know, when
you were talking about Jerry.
00:23:08.52\00:23:12.79
Yes.
00:23:12.82\00:23:13.79
When you were talking
about your adopted son, Jerry,
00:23:13.80\00:23:15.83
I was thinking when you said to
him, I wouldn't have missed this
00:23:15.86\00:23:20.33
for all the world, even if
it meant having my natural born
00:23:20.36\00:23:24.68
son back.
00:23:24.71\00:23:25.68
I was thinking here God adopts
us, and He will say to us,
00:23:25.69\00:23:30.90
I wouldn't have saved my
own natural son, which is Jesus
00:23:30.93\00:23:37.09
Christ, to miss
out on having you.
00:23:37.12\00:23:40.21
And even though we are all
alike, and we all go through
00:23:40.24\00:23:43.93
like Jerry is going through
his teen years and testing his
00:23:43.96\00:23:48.89
wings a little bit, and
maybe rebellious occasionally,
00:23:48.92\00:23:51.57
we do this with the
Lord, but that doesn't mean
00:23:51.60\00:23:54.00
He quits loving us.
00:23:54.03\00:23:55.01
So if you were going to
sum up how not to let someone
00:23:55.04\00:24:00.19
steal your joy, what steps
can we leave our viewers with?
00:24:00.22\00:24:05.14
Well, the first thing that
I would say to the viewers is
00:24:05.17\00:24:08.33
make a choice.
00:24:08.36\00:24:09.85
I had to come to the point in
my life where I said no matter
00:24:09.88\00:24:14.35
what happens, I am determined
to see Jesus when He comes.
00:24:14.38\00:24:18.93
Now I knew that I couldn't
do that by my own strength.
00:24:18.96\00:24:21.62
But I had to make
that choice in my mind.
00:24:21.65\00:24:24.49
I had to realize that
God and I have a contract.
00:24:24.52\00:24:27.61
Amen.
00:24:27.64\00:24:28.61
And it was written by His blood.
00:24:28.62\00:24:30.74
Amen.
00:24:30.77\00:24:31.74
And He is the one who is going
to give me the staying power
00:24:31.75\00:24:33.83
to keep my side of it, but
yet I still have to realize that
00:24:33.86\00:24:37.43
I've got to make that.
00:24:37.44\00:24:38.59
And so I did that first, many
years ago after my son died.
00:24:38.62\00:24:42.74
So I chose God
above everything else.
00:24:42.77\00:24:45.54
So no matter what happens
I keep remembering, okay,
00:24:45.55\00:24:48.91
but I chose God and He's
going to help me through this.
00:24:48.94\00:24:51.42
The second one, I
would say to the viewers is,
00:24:51.45\00:24:54.88
don't lose hope.
00:24:54.89\00:24:55.86
There is always hope.
00:24:55.87\00:24:57.63
Amen.
00:24:57.66\00:24:58.63
Don't give up.
00:24:58.64\00:24:59.61
God will stay there with you.
00:24:59.62\00:25:01.62
It doesn't matter how dark
the night, how big the storm.
00:25:01.65\00:25:05.20
When the disciples were in
the boat, and the boat was being
00:25:05.23\00:25:07.95
shaken, and Christ was sleeping.
00:25:07.98\00:25:11.21
They didn't even
know where He was.
00:25:11.24\00:25:12.94
Why didn't He get up?
00:25:12.97\00:25:13.94
Why didn't He do something?
00:25:13.95\00:25:15.19
That story has taught me
that no matter what, even though
00:25:15.22\00:25:18.87
God may be silent,
He is still present.
00:25:18.90\00:25:21.55
Amen.
00:25:21.58\00:25:22.55
He's never absent.
00:25:22.56\00:25:23.53
He was right there in the
boat, and He's in my boat.
00:25:23.54\00:25:26.34
So choose to have God in
your boat so that even though
00:25:26.37\00:25:29.48
the storm gets rough, and even
though sometimes you can't hear
00:25:29.51\00:25:32.14
from Him, and you want to get
a word from Him, and it seems
00:25:32.17\00:25:35.66
as though, God,
why are you silent?
00:25:35.69\00:25:37.36
He may be silent,
but He is never absent.
00:25:37.39\00:25:40.25
Amen.
00:25:40.28\00:25:41.25
So those are the two things
that I would say to the viewers.
00:25:41.26\00:25:43.84
Hold onto God because in this
world there is nothing worth
00:25:43.87\00:25:47.10
holding onto.
00:25:47.13\00:25:48.10
That's right.
00:25:48.11\00:25:49.08
When you think about you've
got this covenant agreement
00:25:49.09\00:25:54.13
with the Lord, this contract,
and yet even as a pastor's wife,
00:25:54.16\00:25:58.30
there was a time that you
then, thirteen years later, went
00:25:58.33\00:26:04.00
through this depression.
00:26:04.03\00:26:05.75
And I'm guessing, and I don't
think we've got time to discuss
00:26:05.78\00:26:09.54
it today, so we're going
to invite Heather Dawn Small
00:26:09.57\00:26:11.92
to come back.
00:26:11.95\00:26:12.92
I am guessing there are
things that led up to this
00:26:12.93\00:26:18.23
state of depression.
00:26:18.26\00:26:19.23
Oh, Yes!
00:26:19.25\00:26:20.22
Some contributing factors that
you may have even done yourself.
00:26:20.23\00:26:23.03
Oh, definitely.
00:26:23.06\00:26:24.03
Okay.
00:26:24.04\00:26:25.01
So we're going to want you to
come back and talk to us about
00:26:25.02\00:26:29.07
how here you're on a joy
walk, and yet you allowed
00:26:29.10\00:26:33.49
circumstances
to close in on you.
00:26:33.52\00:26:37.61
You got into that depressive
state and God restored your joy.
00:26:37.64\00:26:41.70
That's right; He did.
00:26:41.73\00:26:42.70
And you are a joyful person.
00:26:42.71\00:26:44.43
I certainly am
because I'm saved.
00:26:44.46\00:26:46.81
Amen!
00:26:46.84\00:26:47.81
That's what gives you that
joy; knowing that you are saved.
00:26:47.83\00:26:51.10
Amen, amen.
00:26:51.13\00:26:52.47
Well, Heather Dawn, I thank you
so much for being with us today.
00:26:52.50\00:26:56.39
I know that you have
a great ministry for the
00:26:56.42\00:27:00.31
General Conference of
Seventh-day Adventists.
00:27:00.34\00:27:03.15
And as Director of Women's
Ministries we do want you to
00:27:03.18\00:27:07.00
come back and be with us again,
and share some more of your
00:27:07.03\00:27:10.10
story, and some of the
things that you're sharing
00:27:10.13\00:27:11.93
around the world.
00:27:11.96\00:27:12.93
I hope for you that you
will remember Nehemiah 8:10,
00:27:12.94\00:27:16.61
that the joy of the
Lord is your strength.
00:27:16.64\00:27:19.51
And remember also in Galatians
6:22, that the fruit of the
00:27:19.54\00:27:24.34
Spirit, (You can't
really divide it up.
00:27:24.37\00:27:26.18
It's all one part of a single
fruit.), is love, joy, and peace
00:27:26.21\00:27:31.13
that you can
experience on the inside.
00:27:31.16\00:27:33.38
Patience, kindness, and
goodness that you can express
00:27:33.41\00:27:36.97
toward others.
00:27:37.00\00:27:37.97
That's how the Holy Spirit works
that fruit out toward others,
00:27:37.98\00:27:41.35
and faithfulness, humility,
and self control that you can
00:27:41.38\00:27:46.02
express toward God.
00:27:46.05\00:27:47.69
Now may the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ, the love of the
00:27:47.72\00:27:51.05
Father, and the fellowship
of the Holy Spirit be with you.
00:27:51.08\00:27:54.89
Thank you for joining us.
00:27:54.92\00:27:56.64