one of those reality TV shows
00:00:02.06\00:00:04.23
where the experts come in and
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they renovate the family house
00:00:05.70\00:00:07.70
and they change the wardrobe and
00:00:07.70\00:00:08.97
they change the hairstyles and
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they even change the menu.
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>> Most people think this is
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what Christianity is like. It's
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a home improvement project.
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>> I used to think that becoming
00:00:18.05\00:00:20.22
a Christian is becoming the best
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version of me. I really didn't
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understand what happens when God
00:00:25.22\00:00:28.06
comes into my life. I thought
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that it was this home
00:00:30.46\00:00:32.23
improvement plan, kind of like a
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renovation.
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>> Well, that's not what it's
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like at all. When you become a
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Christian, you don't become a
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new version of yourself.
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II Corinthians 5:17 says,
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"Therefore, if anyone is in
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Christ, he is a new creation.
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Old things have passed away;
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behold all things have become
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new."
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>> So how does that work? Well,
00:00:56.05\00:00:58.82
Galations chapter 2 verse 20
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puts it this way: "I am
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crucified with Christ." That
00:01:02.89\00:01:04.43
means I die. "Nevertheless I
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live." What? I die, but I live?
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Well, the verse goes on: "Yet
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not I, but Christ liveth in me:
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and the life which I now live in
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the flesh I live by the faith of
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the Son of God, who loved me,
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and gave Himself for me."
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>> You see, I, the old "I", the
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sin-loving "I" must die. The old
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selfish and self-centered me
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must be crucified.
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>> And once the old "I" dies,
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then the true "I" is born. "Yet
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not I, but Christ lives in me."
00:01:41.76\00:01:45.13
God is saying your old house has
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to be burned to the ground,
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bulldozed, and the remains
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dumped into a land fill and
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buried. This is definitely not a
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home renovation.
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>> The new house where God lives
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is called a temple for His Holy
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Spirit. The old, dirty shack is
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reduced to ashes and now I
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become a sacred temple.
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>> So the old you is now gone
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and Paul says that you must die
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daily. And you are willing to do
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that because once you have
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tasted and seen what happens
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when God comes into your life,
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you never want to go back to
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living a life without Him.
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>> That is exactly what happened
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to our guest who we will be
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talking to
today. His name is Dr.
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David Sloan and we will be right
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back to let him share his
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amazing story of what happened
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when God came into his life.
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¤¤
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>> So, Dr. Sloan, thank you so
00:03:05.68\00:03:07.18
much for joining us on It Is
00:03:07.18\00:03:08.62
Written Canada and you're going
00:03:08.62\00:03:10.85
to share your story with us.
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>> I look forward to that. Thank
00:03:12.75\00:03:13.49
you.
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>> So, Dr. Sloan, let's go back
00:03:14.22\00:03:16.49
to the beginning. Where were you
00:03:16.49\00:03:18.33
born and what was your
00:03:18.33\00:03:19.66
upbringing like?
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>> Well, I was actually born out
00:03:21.66\00:03:23.50
west in Saskatchewan. I was the
00:03:23.50\00:03:27.70
eldest son of a United Church
00:03:27.70\00:03:29.40
minister so I was a preacher's
00:03:29.40\00:03:31.37
kid. I was the eldest of four
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boys. We lived there just for a
00:03:34.41\00:03:37.81
few months and moved to Toronto
00:03:37.81\00:03:39.91
and for many years of my life
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I've lived in the Greater
00:03:41.55\00:03:42.85
Toronto Area.
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>> So pastors; they move quite a
00:03:46.76\00:03:48.29
bit and you had other interests,
00:03:48.29\00:03:50.23
I believe, that you had a great
00:03:50.23\00:03:51.59
interest in music and that was a
00:03:51.59\00:03:53.40
part of your growing up.
00:03:53.40\00:03:54.66
>> Absolutely. My parents
00:03:54.66\00:03:57.67
"forced" me to take piano
00:03:57.67\00:04:00.20
lessons, but I'm very glad that
00:04:00.20\00:04:02.74
they did, you know, I'd rather
00:04:02.74\00:04:04.31
be out playing sports and so on,
00:04:04.31\00:04:06.17
but thankfully they persevered
00:04:06.17\00:04:09.34
with me. Might have seen
00:04:09.34\00:04:11.48
something, you know, that might
00:04:11.48\00:04:14.25
have led them to believe that
00:04:14.25\00:04:15.92
there was something there,
00:04:15.92\00:04:16.92
musically. But in time, you
00:04:16.92\00:04:20.72
know, church choirs and school
00:04:20.72\00:04:22.96
bands and things like that
00:04:22.96\00:04:25.99
developed a real interest. I
00:04:25.99\00:04:30.50
remember seeing the Beatles on
00:04:30.50\00:04:31.97
Ed Sullivan, that kind of caught
00:04:31.97\00:04:34.20
my imagination so in time I met
00:04:34.20\00:04:38.51
a fellow at the University of
00:04:38.51\00:04:40.98
Toronto when I was attending
00:04:40.98\00:04:42.34
there who -- we had both
00:04:42.34\00:04:44.25
responded to an audition for a
00:04:44.25\00:04:46.95
band. And we got together
00:04:46.95\00:04:50.25
ourselves and thought, well, I
00:04:50.25\00:04:51.62
think maybe we could actually
00:04:51.62\00:04:53.76
start our own band. So we did.
00:04:53.76\00:04:56.26
And in time we graduated from
00:04:56.26\00:05:00.13
the garage or the basement and
00:05:00.13\00:05:03.70
found a manager and we were,
00:05:03.70\00:05:06.74
before we knew it, touring all
00:05:06.74\00:05:09.20
over pretty much all of Canada.
00:05:09.20\00:05:11.07
>> Wow. That was pretty
00:05:11.07\00:05:12.14
successful?
00:05:12.14\00:05:13.68
>> Yes, it was. And it was an
00:05:13.68\00:05:17.48
interesting experience. I would
00:05:17.48\00:05:21.22
say that, you know, from my
00:05:21.22\00:05:24.99
Christian experience, you know,
00:05:24.99\00:05:27.09
growing up in a Christian home,
00:05:27.09\00:05:28.59
that I had drifted away from my
00:05:28.59\00:05:32.86
spiritual roots to the point
00:05:32.86\00:05:36.33
where I really didn't think of
00:05:36.33\00:05:38.33
God anymore. It was actually
00:05:38.33\00:05:41.97
just completely out of my mind.
00:05:41.97\00:05:45.14
I was just so wrapped up in what
00:05:45.14\00:05:47.08
I was doing.
00:05:47.08\00:05:49.48
>> So, Dr. Sloan, you mentioned
00:05:49.48\00:05:51.58
that you got so absorbed in the
00:05:51.58\00:05:54.08
music industry that you had
00:05:54.08\00:05:56.82
almost forgotten about God and
00:05:56.82\00:05:58.75
put Him on the backburner, but
00:05:58.75\00:06:01.26
we know that God doesn't forget
00:06:01.26\00:06:02.09
about us.
00:06:02.09\00:06:03.53
>> Yes, that's very
00:06:03.53\00:06:04.96
true, Rene. The band was getting
00:06:04.96\00:06:08.70
rave reviews, we were -- the
00:06:08.70\00:06:10.93
crowds were going crazy. We had
00:06:10.93\00:06:14.67
the oportunity to audition for a
00:06:14.67\00:06:18.71
recording contract. And so all
00:06:18.71\00:06:21.71
of these things were happening
00:06:21.71\00:06:23.18
and so, you know, as I think
00:06:23.18\00:06:26.11
back, my mind was just so
00:06:26.11\00:06:29.65
involved with these things I
00:06:29.65\00:06:30.55
didn't even think about God.
00:06:30.55\00:06:33.96
>> So, you're immersed in what
00:06:33.96\00:06:35.92
seems to be, like, great
00:06:35.92\00:06:37.69
success, right? And something --
00:06:37.69\00:06:40.50
I believe you had an encounter
00:06:40.50\00:06:42.06
in the midst of this and that's
00:06:42.06\00:06:44.17
what really spoke to me when you
00:06:44.17\00:06:45.67
were sharing that. So do you
00:06:45.67\00:06:46.80
want to share this?
00:06:46.80\00:06:47.97
>> Yes, it was just a surreal
00:06:47.97\00:06:50.14
experience. We were touring out
00:06:50.14\00:06:52.17
west, we were in Edmonton at the
00:06:52.17\00:06:55.01
time at the Riviera Hotel. I
00:06:55.01\00:06:56.88
still remember everything very
00:06:56.88\00:06:58.81
clearly. And it was a weeknight
00:06:58.81\00:07:02.42
and so there were very few
00:07:02.42\00:07:04.72
people in the audience. There
00:07:04.72\00:07:06.55
was just the -- typically the
00:07:06.55\00:07:08.16
people that would be heavy
00:07:08.16\00:07:09.92
drinkers, they would come
00:07:09.92\00:07:11.39
through the week and so in
00:07:11.39\00:07:13.60
between our sets we would just
00:07:13.60\00:07:15.60
basically not want to go into
00:07:15.60\00:07:17.90
the audience and talk to anybody
00:07:17.90\00:07:20.07
because they weren't really --
00:07:20.07\00:07:21.84
they didn't have much to talk
00:07:21.84\00:07:22.84
about. And so we would make a
00:07:22.84\00:07:25.61
bee-line to our rooms and come
00:07:25.61\00:07:28.31
back and do the next set. But on
00:07:28.31\00:07:30.68
this particular night, there was
00:07:30.68\00:07:32.95
a fellow sitting there and he
00:07:32.95\00:07:34.62
was just paying rapt attention
00:07:34.62\00:07:36.82
to us. He was -- and so when we
00:07:36.82\00:07:39.42
finished our set he says, "Come
00:07:39.42\00:07:42.06
on over and sit down, I want to
00:07:42.06\00:07:43.43
talk to you guys." So, Bob and
00:07:43.43\00:07:45.56
I, my close friend and the
00:07:45.56\00:07:47.86
fellow that co-founded the band
00:07:47.86\00:07:49.70
with me, we sat down with him,
00:07:49.70\00:07:52.30
introduced himself to us and
00:07:52.30\00:07:54.84
said, "You know, you guys are
00:07:54.84\00:07:57.31
terrific! And I can say that
00:07:57.31\00:08:01.01
with, you know, some credibility
00:08:01.01\00:08:03.61
because I used to be in a rock
00:08:03.61\00:08:06.11
band. I was a drummer." And so
00:08:06.11\00:08:08.82
we kind of took to him. He was
00:08:08.82\00:08:10.12
very, you know, complimentary.
00:08:10.12\00:08:13.82
And so in a few minutes we kind
00:08:13.82\00:08:17.76
of got towards asking him,
00:08:17.76\00:08:20.60
"Well, why did you come here
00:08:20.60\00:08:22.83
tonight, on a weeknight?", you
00:08:22.83\00:08:28.57
know, "You don't go to bars." He
00:08:28.57\00:08:30.81
had told us he didn't really go
00:08:30.81\00:08:32.54
to bars anymore.
00:08:32.54\00:08:34.31
>> And he's not a drinker, he's
00:08:34.31\00:08:36.28
just conscious, he's like
00:08:36.28\00:08:37.35
completely clear and sober...
00:08:37.35\00:08:39.58
>> So, it was just, you know, I
00:08:39.58\00:08:41.58
just kind of just felt I needed
00:08:41.58\00:08:42.98
to, you know, find out a little
00:08:42.98\00:08:44.49
bit more about why this guy was
00:08:44.49\00:08:45.45
here.
00:08:45.45\00:08:46.29
>> Pretty intriguing!
00:08:46.29\00:08:47.72
>> So, he said, "Well, God told
00:08:47.72\00:08:53.09
me to be here tonight." And, you
00:08:53.09\00:08:55.86
know, Bob and I are just sitting
00:08:55.86\00:08:57.27
there, we're just thinking, "Oh,
00:08:57.27\00:08:58.50
boy, this guy is...", you know.
00:08:58.50\00:09:02.74
And so I said, "You say that God
00:09:02.74\00:09:06.07
told you to come here tonight?"
00:09:06.07\00:09:08.88
"Yes, in fact, He did." And I
00:09:08.88\00:09:12.58
said, "How can that happen? How
00:09:12.58\00:09:15.35
did that..?" You know. So, he
00:09:15.35\00:09:17.59
said, "Well, I had a clear voice
00:09:17.59\00:09:20.59
in my mind telling me that I
00:09:20.59\00:09:23.26
needed to go to the Riviera
00:09:23.26\00:09:24.83
Tavern tonight. And I had gotten
00:09:24.83\00:09:31.57
away from rock music, I had had
00:09:31.57\00:09:33.60
a spiritual rebirth, so I just
00:09:33.60\00:09:36.30
didn't do those things. I didn't
00:09:36.30\00:09:37.84
go to bars, I didn't drink, I
00:09:37.84\00:09:38.91
didn't do the rock music
00:09:38.91\00:09:40.61
anymore." And so I questioned
00:09:40.61\00:09:44.48
whether this was God speaking to
00:09:44.48\00:09:46.41
me or whether it was the Devil.
00:09:46.41\00:09:47.65
>> So this is what he's saying
00:09:47.65\00:09:48.22
to you.
00:09:48.22\00:09:49.15
>> This is what he's saying to
00:09:49.15\00:09:49.92
me and to Bob. And we were all
00:09:49.92\00:09:52.52
kind of just a little bit, you
00:09:52.52\00:09:54.26
know, uncomfortable about this
00:09:54.26\00:09:56.52
discussion. And so he said, "I
00:09:56.52\00:09:59.49
put it out of my mind and it
00:09:59.49\00:10:02.46
came back again and this time it
00:10:02.46\00:10:06.70
was even more forceful. And so I
00:10:06.70\00:10:10.24
went to my wife and I said to
00:10:10.24\00:10:13.21
her, you know, 'I have this
00:10:13.21\00:10:14.48
voice that's telling me to go to
00:10:14.48\00:10:15.71
this Riviera Tavern in downtown
00:10:15.71\00:10:18.75
Edmonton and I don't know what
00:10:18.75\00:10:22.75
to think of it.'" So she said,
00:10:22.75\00:10:26.89
"Well, if it's persistent and
00:10:26.89\00:10:29.42
you really feel that you need to
00:10:29.42\00:10:31.13
do that, well, maybe you should.
00:10:31.13\00:10:33.50
Maybe it is God telling you to
00:10:33.50\00:10:34.83
do that." So they prayed about
00:10:34.83\00:10:36.63
it. And he said, "And I came
00:10:36.63\00:10:40.00
here and now I know why I'm
00:10:40.00\00:10:42.54
here." And I looked at him and I
00:10:42.54\00:10:45.01
said, "And why is that?" Without
00:10:45.01\00:10:49.51
hesitation he pointed his finger
00:10:49.51\00:10:51.28
at Bob and myself and he said,
00:10:51.28\00:10:52.78
"Because God wants you." Well,
00:10:52.78\00:10:58.25
at that point, Bob was very
00:10:58.25\00:11:00.26
uncomfortable and he kind of
00:11:00.26\00:11:02.26
made his exit, but I was riveted
00:11:02.26\00:11:06.90
and I just could not --
00:11:06.90\00:11:10.57
>> Couldn't shake it.
00:11:10.57\00:11:11.63
>> Yes, I was really torn, you
00:11:11.63\00:11:13.74
know. I said, "Well, what makes
00:11:13.74\00:11:17.04
you say that?" "Well, because
00:11:17.04\00:11:20.24
now I know that God has sent me
00:11:20.24\00:11:24.55
here on this particular night,
00:11:24.55\00:11:26.25
this particular bar, on this
00:11:26.25\00:11:29.02
particular occasion to come and
00:11:29.02\00:11:34.76
make my case for Jesus to you."
00:11:34.76\00:11:42.03
And so, rather shaken, it was
00:11:42.03\00:11:46.03
time for us to get up and play
00:11:46.03\00:11:47.27
our next set. So we played the
00:11:47.27\00:11:49.54
next set, he still was there.
00:11:49.54\00:11:51.01
And through this whole exchange
00:11:51.01\00:11:55.04
I was just, "Should I sit down
00:11:55.04\00:11:56.81
with him? Should I not?
00:11:56.81\00:11:57.45
Should I -- "
00:11:57.45\00:11:58.41
But I was so intrigued with
00:11:58.41\00:11:59.61
this. How could this happen,
00:11:59.61\00:12:01.75
that out of nowhere this guy
00:12:01.75\00:12:03.75
doesn't know me, I've never seen
00:12:03.75\00:12:06.55
him before in my life, I just,
00:12:06.55\00:12:10.29
you know. So I sat down with him
00:12:10.29\00:12:12.46
again and we talked, but he'd
00:12:12.46\00:12:14.56
always come back to this:
00:12:14.56\00:12:16.77
"David, you need to give your
00:12:16.77\00:12:18.53
heart to Jesus." And I said,
00:12:18.53\00:12:21.74
"Really?" And I said, "I grew up
00:12:21.74\00:12:24.74
in a Christian home and I've
00:12:24.74\00:12:28.51
gone to church all my life,
00:12:28.51\00:12:30.41
we're doing this thing with the
00:12:30.41\00:12:32.78
band and I don't feel I really
00:12:32.78\00:12:35.75
need God. I haven't really felt
00:12:35.75\00:12:38.02
that...", you know. But he said,
00:12:38.02\00:12:40.76
"But you do need God, you do
00:12:40.76\00:12:42.72
need the Lord, I can tell
00:12:42.72\00:12:44.09
you -- " (chuckles)
00:12:44.09\00:12:45.23
So we finished out
00:12:45.23\00:12:48.50
our night and he said, "I still
00:12:48.50\00:12:51.60
want to talk to you." And I
00:12:51.60\00:12:54.14
said, "Well, we can go back to
00:12:54.14\00:12:56.87
my room and we can talk a little
00:12:56.87\00:12:59.37
bit more." So we talked and
00:12:59.37\00:13:06.38
talked and talked and it wasn't
00:13:06.38\00:13:08.65
always about this, but he kept
00:13:08.65\00:13:10.12
coming back to it: "David, you
00:13:10.12\00:13:12.15
need to give your heart to the
00:13:12.15\00:13:13.62
Lord." "But I grew up in a home
00:13:13.62\00:13:15.12
-- it's already done." He says,
00:13:15.12\00:13:17.13
"No, it's not done. You haven't
00:13:17.13\00:13:18.43
given your heart to Jesus." So
00:13:18.43\00:13:23.37
he said, "I'll tell you what. I
00:13:23.37\00:13:24.83
want yo think about this
00:13:25.20\00:13:27.14
tonight and I'm going to come
00:13:27.14\00:13:29.10
back tomorrow and I want to take
00:13:29.10\00:13:31.61
you around Edmonton and show you
00:13:31.61\00:13:33.58
the sights of the city, my
00:13:33.58\00:13:35.61
favourite parts of the city. And
00:13:35.61\00:13:38.91
then my wife wants you to come
00:13:38.91\00:13:41.42
back and we're going to have a
00:13:41.42\00:13:44.12
nice home-cooked meal for you."
00:13:44.12\00:13:45.85
Now, being in the band and
00:13:45.85\00:13:48.62
traveling on the road, getting a
00:13:48.62\00:13:50.93
home-cooked meal is extremely
00:13:50.93\00:13:54.10
tempting. And I just, you know,
00:13:54.10\00:13:58.40
I thought about that. I said,
00:13:58.40\00:14:01.77
"OK, alright. I'll be here." We
00:14:01.77\00:14:03.87
arranged a time for him to come
00:14:03.87\00:14:05.14
back. But what I want to share
00:14:05.14\00:14:07.38
with you is that that night,
00:14:07.38\00:14:09.38
that I tried to sleep and I
00:14:09.38\00:14:12.48
didn't sleep the entire night,
00:14:12.48\00:14:14.65
it was -- there was a war in my
00:14:14.65\00:14:16.75
soul because -- and as I look
00:14:16.75\00:14:18.99
back on it, I was being pulled.
00:14:18.99\00:14:21.99
So Jesus was pulling me this
00:14:21.99\00:14:23.53
way, Satan was pulling me this
00:14:23.53\00:14:25.56
way and I was just absolutely --
00:14:25.56\00:14:28.70
when I woke up I felt that I had
00:14:28.70\00:14:30.97
been beaten up a hundred times.
00:14:30.97\00:14:33.00
I just was so distressed in my
00:14:33.00\00:14:35.70
mind and I just knew that there
00:14:35.70\00:14:39.21
was a battle going on for my
00:14:39.21\00:14:41.51
soul. So Lance came by and --
00:14:41.51\00:14:45.21
his name's Lance, still remember
00:14:45.21\00:14:47.48
his name -- and he came by,
00:14:47.48\00:14:50.22
picked me up, took me around as
00:14:50.22\00:14:51.72
I said. One of the last places I
00:14:51.72\00:14:55.26
want to take you through this
00:14:55.26\00:14:57.49
park area. And as I recall, the
00:14:57.49\00:15:00.26
weather was kind of cloudy and
00:15:00.26\00:15:02.20
overcast and it was kind of
00:15:02.20\00:15:04.47
spitting, you know, light rain.
00:15:04.47\00:15:06.77
And -- but we got out. And he
00:15:06.77\00:15:08.44
says, "I want to take you
00:15:08.44\00:15:09.67
through these trails." And I
00:15:09.67\00:15:11.67
thought, "What has he got up his
00:15:11.67\00:15:13.01
sleeve now?" (laughter) And so
00:15:13.01\00:15:16.58
as we started walking, he said,
00:15:16.58\00:15:18.08
"David, it's time. You must give
00:15:18.08\00:15:22.32
your heart to the Lord. And,
00:15:22.32\00:15:24.29
really, what is it that's
00:15:24.29\00:15:27.12
holding you back?" And I said,
00:15:27.12\00:15:29.09
"Well, I don't think I'm worthy.
00:15:29.09\00:15:32.59
I've done so much in my life
00:15:32.59\00:15:35.83
that I don't think Jesus could
00:15:35.83\00:15:37.57
accept me." And he said, "Well,
00:15:37.57\00:15:39.80
I've got news for you..." And he
00:15:39.80\00:15:42.30
explained to me that Jesus would
00:15:42.30\00:15:43.81
accept me just as I am, that
00:15:43.81\00:15:46.04
there's no way that I can be
00:15:46.04\00:15:49.08
good enough to come to Jesus. He
00:15:49.08\00:15:52.58
wants us to come as we are;
00:15:52.58\00:15:54.35
broken, sinful. And so I said,
00:15:54.35\00:15:58.85
"OK..." But he said, "There's
00:15:58.85\00:16:00.32
something that's holding you
00:16:00.32\00:16:02.09
back. I think I know what it
00:16:02.09\00:16:03.36
is." I said, "What is it,
00:16:03.36\00:16:05.09
Lance?" He says, "You think that
00:16:05.09\00:16:08.33
if you accept Jesus that He is
00:16:08.33\00:16:09.96
going to take you away from what
00:16:09.96\00:16:11.27
you're doing, that He's going to
00:16:11.27\00:16:13.17
force you out of this band and
00:16:13.17\00:16:16.04
this experience that you're
00:16:16.04\00:16:17.77
going through." And I said,
00:16:17.77\00:16:19.54
"Well, yes, I would say that's
00:16:19.54\00:16:21.41
pretty much a pretty big
00:16:21.41\00:16:24.78
question right now." And he
00:16:24.78\00:16:26.92
said, "Well, I'll tell you what
00:16:26.92\00:16:29.05
my experience was, is that Jesus
00:16:29.05\00:16:31.85
does not force us to do
00:16:31.85\00:16:33.15
anything. It's our choice. But
00:16:33.15\00:16:37.09
what I will say is that if you
00:16:37.09\00:16:39.33
accept Jesus into your heart, it
00:16:39.33\00:16:42.06
will be the best decision that
00:16:42.06\00:16:43.53
you will have ever made in your
00:16:43.53\00:16:45.30
entire life." And he was so
00:16:45.30\00:16:47.80
emphatic that, you know, because
00:16:47.80\00:16:50.04
I, well, you know -- no, you
00:16:50.04\00:16:52.57
know, he just would not let go.
00:16:52.57\00:16:54.81
And as I look back on it, I just
00:16:54.81\00:16:58.31
see how the Lord loves us so
00:16:58.31\00:17:01.85
much that He would not give up
00:17:01.85\00:17:06.32
on us even though we put all
00:17:06.32\00:17:08.86
kinds of obstacles in His way.
00:17:08.86\00:17:12.49
That doesn't stop Him. Thank
00:17:12.49\00:17:14.83
God. And so I said, "OK, so what
00:17:14.83\00:17:19.60
is the next step?" He said,
00:17:19.60\00:17:21.34
"Well, we're going to have a
00:17:21.34\00:17:23.37
prayer." And so he said -- we
00:17:23.37\00:17:26.88
stopped here. In my mind I was
00:17:26.88\00:17:28.64
thinking, "Lord Jesus, if you
00:17:28.64\00:17:30.85
want to accept me and if this is
00:17:30.85\00:17:33.38
what you want for me, I would
00:17:33.38\00:17:36.12
like a sign." And I thought that
00:17:36.12\00:17:40.39
was a little bit audacious at
00:17:40.39\00:17:41.86
the time, but that's what I was
00:17:41.86\00:17:44.86
praying in my heart. I said,
00:17:44.86\00:17:45.86
"Lord show me if this is really
00:17:45.86\00:17:47.30
what you want me to do..."
00:17:47.30\00:17:50.03
>> Because your faith wasn't
00:17:50.03\00:17:50.57
strong at that point.
00:17:50.57\00:17:51.90
>> No, not at all.
00:17:51.90\00:17:52.77
>> So you're looking for a sign,
00:17:52.77\00:17:53.54
give me a sign.
00:17:53.54\00:17:54.54
>> Absolutely. And so, as I say,
00:17:54.54\00:17:56.84
it was cloudy, it was overcast
00:17:56.84\00:17:58.54
and after I prayed that prayer,
00:17:58.54\00:18:00.64
the rain stopped, the sun came
00:18:00.64\00:18:02.71
out and I thought,
00:18:02.71\00:18:06.41
"OK...alright. OK, Lance." We
00:18:06.41\00:18:11.69
knelt down and we prayed. And we
00:18:11.69\00:18:13.32
prayed the sinner's prayer and I
00:18:13.32\00:18:16.09
invited Jesus -- first forgiving
00:18:16.09\00:18:18.59
me for my sins. And he said the
00:18:18.59\00:18:21.50
prayer and had me repeat it
00:18:21.50\00:18:22.63
after him and invited Jesus to
00:18:22.63\00:18:26.13
truly come into my heart. After
00:18:26.13\00:18:30.67
that prayer was over, the clouds
00:18:30.67\00:18:34.14
closed in and it started to rain
00:18:34.14\00:18:36.91
again. I felt certain that Jesus
00:18:36.91\00:18:40.18
was calling me. So true to His
00:18:40.18\00:18:46.72
word, God did not force me out
00:18:46.72\00:18:50.19
of the music business. But it
00:18:50.19\00:18:54.13
was an experience that basically
00:18:54.13\00:18:57.00
pulled the cover, or the
00:18:57.00\00:18:59.67
curtain, so that I could really
00:18:59.67\00:19:01.14
see what I was doing and slowly
00:19:01.14\00:19:05.14
but surely I was realizing that
00:19:05.14\00:19:07.68
I was in the Devil's playground
00:19:07.68\00:19:10.15
and that the music that we were
00:19:10.15\00:19:13.15
playing and the people that
00:19:13.15\00:19:15.15
were, you know, in the bar, you
00:19:15.15\00:19:19.45
know, with the alcohol and the
00:19:19.45\00:19:21.46
mind-numbing affects of that,
00:19:21.46\00:19:23.16
and drugs, and the violence, and
00:19:23.16\00:19:27.13
the car accidents, and the, you
00:19:27.13\00:19:29.66
know, pregnancies, and all of
00:19:29.66\00:19:32.40
the things that just -- it just
00:19:32.40\00:19:34.44
kind of all opened up to me. I
00:19:34.44\00:19:37.67
never ever thought of it before.
00:19:37.67\00:19:39.44
I never even thought about the
00:19:39.44\00:19:40.68
words I was singing. I never
00:19:40.68\00:19:41.91
thought about any of that until
00:19:41.91\00:19:44.45
this experience where God just
00:19:44.45\00:19:46.68
opened my mind to this. It's
00:19:46.68\00:19:50.69
just amazing.
00:19:50.69\00:19:52.29
>> It's sometimes like a veil is
00:19:52.29\00:19:54.69
between us and the spiritual
00:19:54.69\00:19:56.96
world, but when we invite the
00:19:56.96\00:19:58.93
Lord in it's like He lifts that
00:19:58.93\00:20:00.16
veil and we start seeing things.
00:20:00.16\00:20:02.76
And we start seeing the
00:20:02.76\00:20:04.67
spiritual world and we start
00:20:04.67\00:20:05.90
realizing we are not just in
00:20:05.90\00:20:08.67
what we see physically, but
00:20:08.67\00:20:10.67
there's something happening
00:20:10.67\00:20:11.64
behind the scenes and that there
00:20:11.64\00:20:13.54
are principalities and powers,
00:20:13.54\00:20:16.44
as the Scripture says, that we
00:20:16.44\00:20:19.01
are really battling against and
00:20:19.01\00:20:20.78
we need divine guidance. We need
00:20:20.78\00:20:23.99
the Lord to be with us and
00:20:23.99\00:20:25.29
that's why Jesus is our Saviour.
00:20:25.29\00:20:27.32
And you prayed that prayer, He
00:20:27.32\00:20:28.82
came into your life, now He's
00:20:28.82\00:20:30.53
opening your eyes. And He's not
00:20:30.53\00:20:32.53
forcing you, but through His
00:20:32.53\00:20:34.30
Holy Spirit, He's convicting
00:20:34.30\00:20:36.10
you.
00:20:36.10\00:20:38.10
>> And what is so beautiful,
00:20:38.10\00:20:39.33
too, is the way that you
00:20:39.33\00:20:40.97
mentioned God really loves us so
00:20:40.97\00:20:43.74
much. Like he sent Lance and
00:20:43.74\00:20:46.74
Lance listened to His voice and
00:20:46.74\00:20:49.48
He reaches us through other
00:20:49.48\00:20:51.01
people that can work through,
00:20:51.01\00:20:54.25
you know, with Jesus working
00:20:54.25\00:20:56.48
through them and was just
00:20:56.48\00:20:58.75
miraculous that Lance listened,
00:20:58.75\00:21:00.26
and then He gave you those signs
00:21:00.26\00:21:03.26
with the sunshine coming and
00:21:03.26\00:21:04.63
the, you know, and the rain.
00:21:04.63\00:21:07.10
It's just such a beautiful
00:21:07.10\00:21:09.10
testimony, so...
00:21:09.10\00:21:10.53
>> Absolutely. So, Lance didn't
00:21:10.53\00:21:15.10
give up. God didn't give up, and
00:21:15.10\00:21:17.01
He continued working in your
00:21:17.01\00:21:18.14
life.
00:21:18.14\00:21:20.01
>> Yes, it was a gradual thing.
00:21:20.01\00:21:21.51
I stayed with the band some time
00:21:21.51\00:21:23.55
after that. We didn't get the
00:21:23.55\00:21:27.28
recording contract. It was for
00:21:27.28\00:21:29.72
over a million dollars in
00:21:29.72\00:21:32.22
today's money and we were
00:21:32.22\00:21:34.29
excited about it, but the Lord
00:21:34.29\00:21:36.06
did not allow that to happen.
00:21:36.06\00:21:38.29
And our band personnel changed
00:21:38.29\00:21:41.70
and our direction changed
00:21:41.70\00:21:43.50
because of that and as we became
00:21:43.50\00:21:46.27
more, sort of, moving towards
00:21:46.27\00:21:50.01
heavier rock music, that was the
00:21:50.01\00:21:52.77
direction that we had sort of
00:21:52.77\00:21:54.54
felt we should do. I began to
00:21:54.54\00:21:58.01
feel more and more uncomfortable
00:21:58.01\00:21:59.75
about that. Again, when you take
00:21:59.75\00:22:06.19
on Christ, you become a new
00:22:06.19\00:22:07.99
creature as it says in the
00:22:07.99\00:22:09.52
Bible. And so I left the band, I
00:22:09.52\00:22:16.23
went out on my own for a while,
00:22:16.23\00:22:17.50
I found that was very lonely. My
00:22:17.50\00:22:21.27
old manager found a show band
00:22:21.27\00:22:24.27
that I could join and this was
00:22:24.27\00:22:29.04
sort of how I was being led to
00:22:29.04\00:22:32.55
the point where I would leave
00:22:32.55\00:22:35.25
the music industry and the music
00:22:35.25\00:22:38.02
business, in that sense, for
00:22:38.02\00:22:40.02
good.
00:22:40.02\00:22:41.62
>> So God was working graciously
00:22:41.62\00:22:44.89
in your life. And we have a
00:22:44.89\00:22:47.86
song, "Amazing Grace", and it's
00:22:47.86\00:22:50.10
a beautiful song and want to cut
00:22:50.10\00:22:51.67
to that song right now. Listen
00:22:51.67\00:22:53.37
to that song and listen to these
00:22:53.37\00:22:54.37
words, they're so beautiful.
00:22:54.37\00:22:56.14
¤¤ Amazing grace! How sweet
00:22:57.97\00:23:06.15
¤¤ the sound
00:23:06.15\00:23:08.95
¤¤ That saved a wretch like me!
00:23:08.95\00:23:19.83
¤¤ I once was lost,
00:23:19.83\00:23:25.23
¤¤ but now am found
00:23:25.23\00:23:30.47
¤¤ Was blind, but now I see
00:23:30.47\00:23:41.38
¤¤ 'Twas grace that taught
00:23:41.38\00:23:46.45
¤¤  my heart to fear
00:23:46.45\00:23:52.09
¤¤ And grace my fears relieved
00:23:52.09\00:24:02.54
¤¤ How precious did
00:24:02.54\00:24:07.98
¤¤ that grace appear
00:24:07.98\00:24:13.82
¤¤ The hour I first believed
00:24:13.82\00:24:25.69
¤¤ The Lord has promised
00:24:25.69\00:24:31.80
¤¤ good to me
00:24:31.80\00:24:35.64
¤¤ His word my hope secures
00:24:35.64\00:24:45.55
¤¤ He will my shield
00:24:45.55\00:24:51.72
¤¤ and portion be
00:24:51.72\00:24:56.59
¤¤ As long as life endures
00:24:56.59\00:25:07.37
¤¤ Through many dangers,
00:25:07.37\00:25:12.64
¤¤ toils, and snares
00:25:12.64\00:25:16.75
¤¤ I have already come
00:25:16.75\00:25:25.85
¤¤ 'Tis grace hath brought
00:25:25.85\00:25:30.83
¤¤ me safe thus far
00:25:30.83\00:25:35.40
¤¤ And grace will lead me home
00:25:35.40\00:25:44.87
¤¤ When we've been there
00:25:44.87\00:25:50.28
¤¤ ten thousand years
00:25:50.28\00:25:54.85
¤¤ Bright shining as the sun
00:25:54.85\00:26:04.06
¤¤ We've no less days
00:26:04.06\00:26:09.13
¤¤ to sing God's praise
00:26:09.13\00:26:14.17
¤¤ Than when we'd first begun
00:26:14.17\00:26:25.41
¤¤¤
00:26:25.41\00:26:50.47
>> "Amazing grace", what
00:26:55.21\00:26:57.01
beautiful words, "that saved a
00:26:57.01\00:26:59.21
wretch like me." And, Dr. Sloan,
00:26:59.21\00:27:01.72
you felt that you were a wretch,
00:27:01.72\00:27:04.02
that you weren't good enough,
00:27:04.02\00:27:05.25
but God saved you because you
00:27:05.25\00:27:07.26
trusted and believed fully in
00:27:07.26\00:27:09.32
Him.
00:27:09.32\00:27:10.26
>> And thank you very much for
00:27:10.26\00:27:11.96
coming in and sharing your
00:27:11.96\00:27:13.53
testimony with us, but we have
00:27:13.53\00:27:15.00
run out of time and you still
00:27:15.00\00:27:16.97
have the second part of your
00:27:16.97\00:27:17.97
testimony and I hope you can
00:27:17.97\00:27:19.57
come back next week.
00:27:19.57\00:27:20.77
>> Yes, I look forward to that.
00:27:20.77\00:27:22.17
>> So, thank you
very much, and, Dr.
00:27:22.17\00:27:25.34
Sloan, and also, friends, if you
00:27:25.34\00:27:28.74
have been blessed by this
00:27:28.74\00:27:29.44
testimony we want to just offer
00:27:29.44\00:27:30.75
you this offer. And this is a
00:27:30.75\00:27:32.48
beautiful book, Steps to Christ,
00:27:32.48\00:27:33.52
and it has blessed me so much.
00:27:33.52\00:27:35.72
And so the information is on the
00:27:35.72\00:27:37.45
screen and we also want to
00:27:37.45\00:27:38.95
invite you to follow us on
00:27:38.95\00:27:40.22
Instagram at
00:27:40.22\00:27:42.06
is_it_written_canada, underscore
00:27:42.06\00:27:43.99
between each word. And so let's
00:27:43.99\00:27:46.19
just close with a word of
00:27:46.19\00:27:48.16
prayer, let's just bow our
00:27:48.16\00:27:49.46
heads. Father in heaven, we
00:27:49.46\00:27:51.67
thank You so much for the
00:27:51.67\00:27:55.20
persistence with which You come
00:27:55.20\00:27:56.71
after us as You did through
00:27:56.71\00:27:59.51
Lance with Dr. Sloan, how You
00:27:59.51\00:28:02.74
worked through him and how the
00:28:02.74\00:28:05.25
Holy Spirit did not give up in
00:28:05.25\00:28:06.72
convicting Dr. Slaon. And I
00:28:06.72\00:28:08.72
thank You, Lord, that You do
00:28:08.72\00:28:10.02
that for each one of us. And I
00:28:10.02\00:28:11.72
pray, Lord, that if there is
00:28:11.72\00:28:13.22
anyone listening to my voice
00:28:13.22\00:28:14.22
right now who is in any way
00:28:14.22\00:28:16.02
resistant, that You will give
00:28:16.02\00:28:17.26
them strength to overcome and
00:28:17.26\00:28:19.26
that they will surrender their
00:28:19.26\00:28:20.03
lives to You. I thank You for
00:28:20.03\00:28:21.16
hearing and answering our
00:28:21.16\00:28:23.23
prayer. In Jesus' name, amen.
00:28:23.23\00:28:27.04
So, friends, we thank you so
00:28:27.04\00:28:28.94
much for joining us on It Is
00:28:28.94\00:28:31.44
Written Canada. And I just want
00:28:31.44\00:28:32.47
to remind you of the words of
00:28:32.47\00:28:33.68
Jesus where He said, "It is
00:28:33.68\00:28:35.21
written, man shall not live by
00:28:35.21\00:28:36.71
bread alone, but by every word
00:28:36.71\00:28:38.95
that proceeds out of the mouth
00:28:38.95\00:28:40.55
of God."
00:28:40.55\00:28:41.92