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>> Hello and welcome to It Is
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Written Canada.
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Last week we saw how Mathew
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Feeley's family desperately
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struggled to help him out of
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his life of drugs, alcohol,
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and crime.
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His dad's faith, the influence
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of his girlfriend, Christy, and
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her mom's growing faith were
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like seeds being planted in his
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perplexed, young heart.
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>> We ended our program last
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week when Mathew's mother
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received an urgent call
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concerning his close friend,
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James.
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>> Today Mathew Feeley, an
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ordained pastor and evangelist,
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shares the rest of his story of
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how the goodness of God rescued
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him from a life of conflict and
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confusion to one of confidence
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and contentment in a saving
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relationship with Christ Jesus,
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his Lord.
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>> Pastor Mathew Feeley,
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welcome back to It Is Written
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Canada.
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>> Thank you for having me.
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>> So last week we were talking
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about that phone call your
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mother had received about
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James.
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Tell us about that call.
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>> Yeah, my mother received a
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phone call from Christy's
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mother who knew James quite
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well, it was one of my
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childhood friends and he had
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been killed in a car accident
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so he was-- his car was hit by
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an oncoming vehicle that ran a
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red light and the driver was
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drunk, which was really ironic
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because all of us were
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partying, James was the one who
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really didn't party that much,
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he had moved away to Brampton,
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he would come and visit and he
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would be the one to kinda pull
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me aside because he knew me
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from my childhood.
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We used to play road hockey
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together and sports in the
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neighbourhood and...
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You know, he was one of the
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original young people that I
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knew and grew up with.
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There was a lot of other young
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people I got to know through
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the lifestyle I was living at
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the time and the drug abuse and
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addiction, but he was one of
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the original ones and, you
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know, he would pull me aside,
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he was a bit older than me and
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he would say, like, "What are
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you doing? Why are you here?
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Why are you with these guys?
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I know that they're our
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friends, but you don't really
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belong here," and "What are you
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doing with your life? What's
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happening with school?" and I
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would joke with him, you know,
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I joked about failing gym class
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and he's like, "Who fails gym?
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Like, what are you doing? You
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need to change."
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So he was another voice of
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encouragement, those were seeds
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sown, but it was just, it was
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right there at that moment when
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I was waiting to go back to the
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rave scene and I was going with
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good intentions, just to listen
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to music, but, you know, when
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in Rome, it's easy to live
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differently and I know it would
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have been hard to be strong
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that evening and just as I was
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leaving, I get this phone call
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and it was tragic and it was
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ironic and I was a pallbearer
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for his funeral along with
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other young men.
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It was tough, it was very
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tough.
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The hardest part for me, two
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things were really difficult,
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his younger brother, his name
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was Zach and he really loved
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him and was teaching him how to
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play football and to see him
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there not really understanding
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that he had lost James because
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he was so young was very sad
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and then the other thing that
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was really difficult was his
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mom who was so strong through
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the whole experience, but the
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moment that they closed the
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casket, it was an open casket
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and it was a viewing before the
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funeral and the moment that
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they closed the casket, she
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just said, "No!"
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She was like, "No, no!" and she
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was just yelling "No!" and she
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just grabbed onto the casket
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and she wouldn't let go and
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they had to help her and, you
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know, and we were just so
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devastated, you know?
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The night he died, a few of us
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got together, we were drinking,
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we were, again, just trying to
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numb the pain, listening to
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music.
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It was so hard and-- but I
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really believe God used that
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experience and James, his
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influence in my life, as a
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wake-up call, you know, I think
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it was a wake-up call and I
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could've gone back down that
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same dark path, but on this
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particular night, God kinda
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allowed things to play out the
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way they did so that I could
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wake up.
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>> Pastor Mathew, how did
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Christianity then influence
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your life?
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>> Well, I grew up catholic, I
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had a Christian background.
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My siblings, we all have
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Christian names or Catholic
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names because some of us are
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named for Bible characters or
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books of the Bible and others
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are named for popes and nuns
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and stuff like that.
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All of our names have meaning
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and we grew up Catholics going
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to church.
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Sometimes we only went to
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church at Christmas and Easter
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and stuff like that, but at one
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point I was an alter boy and I
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used to get out of class to
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help with funerals and
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different events and I thought
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that was a pretty good job with
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benefits and--
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But I had faith growing up, for
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sure, I would pray at church,
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I'd pray for my family, I would
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go to the confessional and I
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would confess my sins, but I
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would also tell the priest all,
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like, what was happening in my
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family and he was probably a
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little shocked 'cause, you
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know, my father was a really
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staunch Catholic and wasn't
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that he was abusing us
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directly, but it was somewhat
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abusive kind of, just some of
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the experiences we went
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through, just toxic and hurtful
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to our upbringing.
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But my parents prayed, my
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father prayed.
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He used to say, "I'm praying
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for you," and that used to
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really annoy me because I
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didn't want him to pray for me,
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I was very angry at my father
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at one point, but he would say,
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"I'm praying for you."
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My mother said after I came to
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Christ, I told her everything,
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I actually just told her so
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many stories one night about
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what I had been doing all these
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years and she knew I was in
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trouble, but she didn't know
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the half of it.
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And she said, "There's nights
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you didn't come home and I
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didn't know what to do and I
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would just stay up through the
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night praying for you."
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So my parents prayed and that
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definitely had an impact.
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I did have some form of
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Christianity growing up, but I
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wasn't in a personal
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relationship with Jesus Christ,
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I didn't know Him as my
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personal saviour, He was in the
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pictures on the wall, He was on
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the crucifix, right, but I
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didn't' really know Him.
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And I was invited by my
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mother-in-law who is now my
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mother-in-law, Debbie, she was
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doing Bible studies and sharing
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all of what she was learning
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and so I always listened to her
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talk about the Bible, kind of
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ramble on, and I would just sit
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there and just, you know, wait
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for it to be over.
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And then she wanted me to go to
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this series, it was a youth
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week of prayer and I went and
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the speaker was just so dynamic
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and, kind of like John the
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Baptist, you know, very--
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speaking the truth and speaking
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it plainly and I felt that he
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was talking about every detail
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in my life and I felt like he
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was only talking to me and I
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was sitting with my arm
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slouched around Christy and
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really kinda casual in the
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church and halfway through his
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sermon, I was sitting up
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straight and I was on my best
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behaviour and I knew that it
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was unlike any sermon I'd ever
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heard before.
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After three nights, I requested
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to be baptized and they didn't
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really know what to do with me
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because I walked into the
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church, you know, I had bleach
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blonde hair, I looked like
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Eminem at the time when he was
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new and popular and bleach
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blonde hair, I had baggy pants,
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I had pierced ears, I did not
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look like a Seventh-day
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Adventist.
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And I certainly stood out in
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the congregation, but I was the
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first one to respond to the
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message every night.
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It really touched my heart and
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I knew I wanted to change my
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life and I knew I wanted to
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follow Jesus and I said to the
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pastor, "I wanna be baptized."
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And, you know, in hindsight I
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can picture him kinda looking
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at me like, "What am I supposed
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to do with this guy coming off
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the streets of Scarborough,
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like, what am I supposed to do
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with him?"
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But, you know, he did the right
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thing, he loved me, he really
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treated me like a son and he
00:10:15.68\00:10:19.71
allowed me to be baptized and
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my life was changed.
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>> So, Mat, what was life like
00:10:25.89\00:10:27.96
for you as a young Seventh-day
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Adventist?
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>> You know, it was-- it wasn't
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that much different at first.
00:10:34.46\00:10:36.67
I got rid of the alcohol, I had
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mickey of rum in my dresser, I
00:10:39.43\00:10:42.37
poured it out the day of my
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baptism.
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And partying was over for me
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and that was a huge step.
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Everybody's starting kind of at
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a different point depending on
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what their life is like and I
00:10:56.35\00:10:58.02
think we have to be patient
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with people because they're not
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struggling necessarily with the
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things we're struggling with
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and they might be struggling
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with great things and more
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difficult things, great
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challenges, you know?
00:11:09.96\00:11:11.60
And I think people could have
00:11:11.60\00:11:13.03
been a bit more patient
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although I have to say the
00:11:15.04\00:11:16.67
Scarborough church was very
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loving.
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They would hug us and one lady,
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she would kiss us and they were
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just so friendly, they would
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invite us to birthday parties
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and their homes for lunch and
00:11:27.72\00:11:30.09
they would give us money.
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Like, one day the pastor said I
00:11:31.69\00:11:33.69
was looking for a job, he made
00:11:33.69\00:11:35.12
an announcement in the middle
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of church service because he
00:11:36.52\00:11:38.23
was really concerned and I had
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lost my job when I'd joined the
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church and I worked at Music
00:11:42.10\00:11:43.63
World and I lost that job
00:11:43.63\00:11:45.07
because I chose to go and get
00:11:45.07\00:11:46.67
baptized instead of going
00:11:46.67\00:11:47.97
to work.
00:11:47.97\00:11:49.17
And he felt really badly and he
00:11:49.17\00:11:51.81
was asking if somebody in the
00:11:51.81\00:11:53.71
church if they knew about a job
00:11:53.71\00:11:55.64
to let me know and after
00:11:55.64\00:11:57.55
church, this lady just, like a
00:11:57.55\00:11:58.98
drug deal, she just quickly
00:11:58.98\00:12:00.78
handed me some money and just
00:12:00.78\00:12:03.08
quick exchange.
00:12:03.08\00:12:04.45
And, you know, it was really
00:12:04.45\00:12:06.79
generous and it was really kind
00:12:06.79\00:12:08.79
and I knew the second I walked
00:12:08.79\00:12:10.79
in the doors of the church,
00:12:10.79\00:12:12.56
every Sabbath I would be
00:12:12.56\00:12:14.60
embraced.
00:12:14.60\00:12:16.03
And that's how it was, it was
00:12:16.03\00:12:18.27
kind of like an early-stages
00:12:18.27\00:12:20.27
experience, but eventually I
00:12:20.27\00:12:22.27
really started to dig deeper
00:12:22.27\00:12:24.57
and to study the Bible and I
00:12:24.57\00:12:26.31
had a mentor, he was assigned
00:12:26.31\00:12:28.28
to be a Bible worker at the
00:12:28.28\00:12:29.64
church and we became friends
00:12:29.64\00:12:31.11
right away and his name was
00:12:31.11\00:12:32.55
Mark Kirkus and he would take
00:12:32.55\00:12:34.32
me on Bible studies and I just
00:12:34.32\00:12:37.82
developed this amazing thirst
00:12:37.82\00:12:41.79
for the work of God and the
00:12:41.79\00:12:44.83
ministry and it just took off
00:12:44.83\00:12:48.73
and I really caught fire.
00:12:48.73\00:12:50.83
>> So, Pastor Mathew, how did
00:12:51.50\00:12:53.64
you become a pastor?
00:12:53.64\00:12:56.14
Did your work with Mark
00:12:56.14\00:12:58.51
influence you in this decision?
00:12:58.51\00:13:01.34
>> Definitely.
00:13:01.34\00:13:03.38
My pastor at my church, at
00:13:03.38\00:13:07.12
Scarborough church, Pastor
00:13:07.12\00:13:08.62
Hilton Garnett, was a huge
00:13:08.62\00:13:10.12
influence on my life and he
00:13:10.12\00:13:11.42
wanted me to become a pastor
00:13:11.42\00:13:12.72
because he saw something in me.
00:13:12.72\00:13:14.69
He saw what I couldn't see and
00:13:14.69\00:13:16.29
I think that's what we have to
00:13:16.29\00:13:18.09
be-- what we have to try to do
00:13:18.09\00:13:20.06
when we're working with people
00:13:20.06\00:13:21.66
that are especially new in the
00:13:21.66\00:13:23.30
church, is to see their value
00:13:23.30\00:13:24.77
and their gifting and he could
00:13:24.77\00:13:26.37
see something in me.
00:13:26.37\00:13:28.30
And so my pastor would send me
00:13:28.30\00:13:32.37
applications from Burman
00:13:32.37\00:13:33.98
University which is a Christian
00:13:33.98\00:13:35.81
university in Lacombe, Alberta
00:13:35.81\00:13:38.41
and I would just toss them into
00:13:38.41\00:13:41.28
the recycling bin, you know,
00:13:41.28\00:13:43.79
because I didn't see myself
00:13:43.79\00:13:46.22
becoming a pastor and the first
00:13:46.22\00:13:47.96
time someone mentioned it to
00:13:47.96\00:13:49.72
me, I actually laughed at it, I
00:13:49.72\00:13:51.73
laughed at the notion that I
00:13:51.73\00:13:53.36
would one day be a pastor.
00:13:53.36\00:13:55.00
I was coming from the rave
00:13:55.00\00:13:57.07
scene, I was coming from kind
00:13:57.07\00:13:58.80
of street life, I was a DJ, I
00:13:58.80\00:14:04.51
did small parties and stuff
00:14:04.51\00:14:06.81
with my friends and people at
00:14:06.81\00:14:08.78
my school and, you know, I was
00:14:08.78\00:14:10.55
into a different lifestyle and
00:14:10.55\00:14:12.28
to be a pastor was just not my
00:14:12.28\00:14:14.18
interest, not my goal.
00:14:14.18\00:14:16.48
But he never gave up and he
00:14:16.48\00:14:18.29
continued to persist in my life.
00:14:18.29\00:14:20.52
And then Mark, I found out, was
00:14:20.52\00:14:22.72
intentionally asked to kind of
00:14:22.72\00:14:25.73
mentor me, to befriend me and
00:14:25.73\00:14:27.96
to get to know me because my
00:14:27.96\00:14:29.86
pastor thought that it would be
00:14:29.86\00:14:31.60
important for me to have that
00:14:31.60\00:14:33.17
role model.
00:14:33.17\00:14:34.50
And he definitely showed me how
00:14:34.50\00:14:38.04
to reach people, how to
00:14:38.04\00:14:39.61
minister to people, how to care
00:14:39.61\00:14:41.21
for people, how to study the
00:14:41.21\00:14:43.18
Bible, he gave me books to
00:14:43.18\00:14:45.45
read, and all of that worked
00:14:45.45\00:14:48.68
together to just awaken this
00:14:48.68\00:14:50.89
fire within me and to give me a
00:14:50.89\00:14:52.82
thirst for ministry.
00:14:52.82\00:14:55.49
And so one night I was walking
00:14:55.49\00:14:57.46
my dog, it was actually
00:14:57.46\00:14:58.76
Christy's dog, but I would
00:14:58.76\00:15:00.33
always walk her dog for her and
00:15:00.33\00:15:01.73
he's very sweet and we were out
00:15:01.73\00:15:03.77
for our usual walk and I prayed
00:15:03.77\00:15:06.47
and I said, "Lord, if you want
00:15:06.47\00:15:08.10
me to become a pastor, let me
00:15:08.10\00:15:10.67
hear it from Pastor Morgan,"
00:15:10.67\00:15:13.01
and he was the pastor that
00:15:13.01\00:15:14.14
baptized me.
00:15:14.14\00:15:15.28
And I was attended some
00:15:15.28\00:15:16.98
meetings that he was doing in
00:15:16.98\00:15:18.28
Toronto and that same night, he
00:15:18.28\00:15:21.52
said to me, "You have to become
00:15:21.52\00:15:25.02
a pastor."
00:15:25.02\00:15:26.52
It was a fleece and it was a
00:15:26.52\00:15:28.96
way of testing to see God's
00:15:28.96\00:15:30.99
will and He made it very plain
00:15:30.99\00:15:33.70
to me and from there I just
00:15:33.70\00:15:36.43
committed to going to school
00:15:36.43\00:15:38.43
and my wife was a huge support,
00:15:38.43\00:15:41.40
she always has been and I
00:15:41.40\00:15:43.44
wouldn't be here were it not
00:15:43.44\00:15:45.44
for her love and support and
00:15:45.44\00:15:47.48
encouragement and together in
00:15:47.48\00:15:49.94
ministry, you know, we work
00:15:49.94\00:15:52.11
very hard together and she's an
00:15:52.11\00:15:53.68
amazing partner.
00:15:53.68\00:15:55.48
And we went to Burman with
00:15:55.48\00:16:00.06
three duffle bags, all of our
00:16:00.06\00:16:02.89
possessions in three duffle
00:16:02.89\00:16:04.73
bags, couple thousand dollars,
00:16:04.73\00:16:08.80
never had been there before and
00:16:08.80\00:16:11.93
we just went by faith, not
00:16:11.93\00:16:14.04
by sight.
00:16:14.04\00:16:15.90
And we went to school there and
00:16:15.90\00:16:17.97
we again saw the love of God's
00:16:17.97\00:16:20.48
church and the difference that
00:16:20.48\00:16:22.81
the church can make.
00:16:22.81\00:16:24.95
And there was a lady there,
00:16:24.95\00:16:28.45
Cathy, and her husband, James,
00:16:28.45\00:16:30.69
and they found out that we
00:16:30.69\00:16:33.99
didn't have furniture, we were
00:16:33.99\00:16:36.46
sleeping on the foam topper
00:16:36.46\00:16:38.73
that you put on the mattress,
00:16:38.73\00:16:40.26
we didn't have a mattress so we
00:16:40.26\00:16:41.83
slept on the foam, we bought
00:16:41.83\00:16:43.23
the foam from Wal-Mart, we
00:16:43.23\00:16:44.53
bought two chairs, we used one
00:16:44.53\00:16:46.00
chair as a TV stand to hold our
00:16:46.00\00:16:47.94
little TV and that's all we
00:16:47.94\00:16:49.97
had, I think we found a table
00:16:49.97\00:16:51.61
outside our apartment building.
00:16:51.61\00:16:53.31
And it was a very humble
00:16:53.31\00:16:54.98
apartment building and we went
00:16:54.98\00:16:58.71
there and that's how we lived
00:16:58.71\00:17:00.58
for a couple weeks and they
00:17:00.58\00:17:02.18
found out about it and they
00:17:02.18\00:17:04.39
showed up with a truck and
00:17:04.39\00:17:05.95
there was a bed and there was a
00:17:05.95\00:17:08.92
dresser and there was a TV
00:17:08.92\00:17:11.46
stand and there was a couch and
00:17:11.46\00:17:14.60
we had everything we needed to
00:17:14.60\00:17:18.90
serve and to learn and to grow
00:17:18.90\00:17:21.70
and we always had that
00:17:21.70\00:17:23.44
experience of being loved in
00:17:23.44\00:17:25.64
the church and the love of
00:17:25.64\00:17:28.14
Christ brought us into the
00:17:28.14\00:17:29.84
church, but the love of God's
00:17:29.84\00:17:31.68
people kept us in the church
00:17:31.68\00:17:34.18
and really made a difference in
00:17:34.18\00:17:36.48
our lives and through that
00:17:36.48\00:17:38.22
experience, I became a pastor
00:17:38.22\00:17:40.99
and I'm still a pastor today.
00:17:40.99\00:17:42.79
>> So now you graduated from
00:17:43.53\00:17:45.96
the theology program, you're a
00:17:45.96\00:17:47.60
pastor, what was that like
00:17:47.60\00:17:48.76
for you?
00:17:48.76\00:17:50.30
>> You know, it was amazing, it
00:17:50.30\00:17:52.13
was an answer to prayer.
00:17:52.13\00:17:53.77
I really felt God's calling on
00:17:53.77\00:17:55.67
my life and I felt that, and I
00:17:55.67\00:17:58.04
still feel like this is what
00:17:58.04\00:17:59.84
I'm supposed to do, so...
00:17:59.84\00:18:01.84
I went into ministry just
00:18:01.84\00:18:04.91
excited and ready to work hard
00:18:04.91\00:18:08.18
and God gave me so many great
00:18:08.18\00:18:11.12
experiences from my first
00:18:11.12\00:18:14.16
church to my current church and
00:18:14.16\00:18:16.89
not only pastoring, but also
00:18:16.89\00:18:18.83
doing quite a bit of
00:18:18.83\00:18:20.73
evangelism.
00:18:20.73\00:18:22.13
So I worked with Pastor Joel
00:18:22.13\00:18:26.57
Nembhard and he had me do my
00:18:26.57\00:18:28.37
first evangelistic series at
00:18:28.37\00:18:30.67
our church and it was exciting
00:18:30.67\00:18:33.71
and it was well supported and
00:18:33.71\00:18:35.68
that just got the ball rolling
00:18:35.68\00:18:37.55
and I would do series at
00:18:37.55\00:18:39.68
multiple churches in Toronto
00:18:39.68\00:18:42.68
and even kind of a really large
00:18:42.68\00:18:44.99
campaign at The International
00:18:44.99\00:18:46.72
Centre and at the College Park
00:18:46.72\00:18:49.46
Church and from there, going to
00:18:49.46\00:18:52.13
Brazil and Jamaica and
00:18:52.13\00:18:56.00
St. Vincent and, you know, a
00:18:56.00\00:18:58.57
whole bunch of places in the
00:18:58.57\00:19:00.27
Caribbean and the States and
00:19:00.27\00:19:02.97
different parts of Canada and
00:19:02.97\00:19:05.74
just really had a passion for
00:19:05.74\00:19:07.91
preaching, really love to
00:19:07.91\00:19:09.94
preach, I love it as an art
00:19:09.94\00:19:13.25
form, but more so, I love the
00:19:13.25\00:19:16.45
creative side of it, but I also
00:19:16.45\00:19:18.72
love how it calls people to
00:19:18.72\00:19:22.09
follow Jesus and that's
00:19:22.09\00:19:24.13
something I'm very passionate
00:19:24.13\00:19:25.73
about.
00:19:25.73\00:19:26.73
When I preach, I really believe
00:19:26.73\00:19:28.03
it's important to encourage
00:19:28.03\00:19:29.46
people to make a decision to
00:19:29.46\00:19:31.73
give their lives to Christ and
00:19:31.73\00:19:35.10
so I'm very intentional about
00:19:35.10\00:19:36.91
doing that and I've come
00:19:36.91\00:19:39.01
a long way.
00:19:39.01\00:19:40.81
I used to be very loud when I
00:19:40.81\00:19:42.68
was preaching because that's
00:19:42.68\00:19:44.48
kind of how I came in the
00:19:44.48\00:19:45.78
church, John the Baptist, you
00:19:45.78\00:19:47.52
know, it was this very, like,
00:19:47.52\00:19:51.29
fiery sermon and that style of
00:19:51.29\00:19:54.32
preaching has always stayed
00:19:54.32\00:19:55.79
with me, but I would say that
00:19:55.79\00:19:57.93
I've definitely toned it down
00:19:57.93\00:19:59.69
over the years or just tried to
00:19:59.69\00:20:02.33
have a bit of a variety.
00:20:02.33\00:20:04.80
>> So, Pastor Mathew, can you
00:20:04.80\00:20:06.70
tell us about other unique
00:20:06.70\00:20:08.57
ministries that you've been
00:20:08.57\00:20:10.34
involved in?
00:20:10.34\00:20:12.07
>> Yeah, for sure.
00:20:12.07\00:20:13.74
I would say the one that really
00:20:13.74\00:20:16.14
comes to mind is when I worked
00:20:16.14\00:20:17.98
for Yonge Street Mission.
00:20:17.98\00:20:20.15
So I attended Andrews
00:20:20.15\00:20:22.25
University which is a school in
00:20:22.25\00:20:24.69
Berrien Springs, Michigan and
00:20:24.69\00:20:26.25
it's a Seventh-day Adventist
00:20:26.25\00:20:28.02
Seminary and I was there doing
00:20:28.02\00:20:30.16
my Masters of Divinity and I
00:20:30.16\00:20:34.20
would travel back to Toronto
00:20:34.20\00:20:35.86
quite often and then the
00:20:35.86\00:20:37.73
summers I would work here and I
00:20:37.73\00:20:40.20
was given an opportunity to
00:20:40.20\00:20:42.00
work at Yonge Street Mission
00:20:42.00\00:20:44.21
which is a non-profit
00:20:44.21\00:20:48.94
organization that really
00:20:48.94\00:20:50.71
focuses on meeting the needs of
00:20:50.71\00:20:52.48
the marginalized, just an
00:20:52.48\00:20:53.58
the marginalized, just an
00:20:53.58\00:20:54.65
amazing ministry that has a
00:20:54.65\00:20:56.89
very holistic approach and a
00:20:56.89\00:20:59.82
very authentic ministry, you
00:20:59.82\00:21:02.92
know, people who are authentic
00:21:02.92\00:21:05.53
and vulnerable and real,
00:21:05.53\00:21:08.36
they're not really church-y
00:21:08.36\00:21:10.60
people, they're Christian
00:21:10.60\00:21:12.63
social workers, but they really
00:21:12.63\00:21:15.30
love Jesus and they know how to
00:21:15.30\00:21:17.61
love people and you would
00:21:17.61\00:21:19.84
sometimes maybe think that
00:21:19.84\00:21:21.84
they're not in the church
00:21:21.84\00:21:24.35
because they don't fit into
00:21:24.35\00:21:25.85
that mould, but they're so
00:21:25.85\00:21:27.68
spiritual and they're amazing
00:21:27.68\00:21:29.38
people that transform lives.
00:21:29.38\00:21:31.95
And I went to Yonge Street
00:21:31.95\00:21:33.92
Mission for my interview and I
00:21:33.92\00:21:36.66
was wearing a dress shirt and a
00:21:36.66\00:21:39.16
tie and a cardigan and pants
00:21:39.16\00:21:42.36
and it was the summer, dress
00:21:42.36\00:21:44.50
pants, and, you know, they
00:21:44.50\00:21:46.63
said, "You had a really good
00:21:46.63\00:21:48.20
interview, you did really well,
00:21:48.20\00:21:50.24
we like what we hear from you
00:21:50.24\00:21:51.87
and your life experience, we
00:21:51.87\00:21:54.61
would just say probably lose
00:21:54.61\00:21:57.18
the dress pants [laughs]
00:21:57.18\00:21:59.51
because you're gonna be working
00:21:59.51\00:22:01.38
with at-risk youth and, you
00:22:01.38\00:22:04.42
know, you have to be able to
00:22:04.42\00:22:06.12
relate to them and live in
00:22:06.12\00:22:08.52
their world and communicate in
00:22:08.52\00:22:10.96
a way that's non-threatening
00:22:10.96\00:22:12.49
and..."
00:22:12.49\00:22:14.00
So that was an eye-opener for
00:22:14.00\00:22:15.53
me, but it helped me-- I would
00:22:15.53\00:22:19.20
say Yonge Street Mission helped
00:22:19.20\00:22:21.10
me to see another side of
00:22:21.10\00:22:22.87
ministry, not just preaching
00:22:22.87\00:22:25.21
and teaching and Bible studies,
00:22:25.21\00:22:27.14
but another side of it and I
00:22:27.14\00:22:29.41
would say that it helped me to
00:22:29.41\00:22:31.91
be more in touch with who I am
00:22:31.91\00:22:34.42
and who God wants me to be and
00:22:34.42\00:22:36.62
to be authentic and to be
00:22:36.62\00:22:38.15
vulnerable and to be sincere
00:22:38.15\00:22:40.86
and it really made a difference
00:22:40.86\00:22:42.69
in how I did ministry and how
00:22:42.69\00:22:46.19
I'm even doing ministry today.
00:22:46.19\00:22:48.10
>> What does that look like
00:22:48.10\00:22:49.56
today?
00:22:49.56\00:22:50.63
[MATHEW] So I'm serving as the
00:22:50.63\00:22:52.27
pastor of the New Life
00:22:52.27\00:22:53.70
Seventh-day Adventist Church in
00:22:53.70\00:22:55.64
Oshawa, it's at 33 Olive Avenue
00:22:55.64\00:22:58.37
and it's an amazing church,
00:22:58.37\00:23:02.91
it's kind of like my life has
00:23:02.91\00:23:06.68
come full circle to be in a
00:23:06.68\00:23:09.88
church like this based on my
00:23:09.88\00:23:12.92
life experience and then also
00:23:12.92\00:23:15.92
even my ministry experience at
00:23:15.92\00:23:18.89
places like Yonge Street
00:23:18.89\00:23:20.66
Mission.
00:23:20.66\00:23:21.70
So I would say that New Life is
00:23:21.70\00:23:25.03
a unique church, everyone is
00:23:25.03\00:23:26.97
welcome at New Life.
00:23:26.97\00:23:28.67
It's not a very formal church,
00:23:29.50\00:23:31.51
but it's a very amazing
00:23:31.51\00:23:34.21
ministry as far as reaching the
00:23:34.21\00:23:37.75
community of Oshawa.
00:23:37.75\00:23:40.58
We have a centre called the
00:23:40.58\00:23:42.25
Neighbourhood Centre and
00:23:42.25\00:23:44.39
they're meeting felt needs and
00:23:44.39\00:23:46.09
they have amazing programs, the
00:23:46.09\00:23:47.89
SLIP program, the Productivity
00:23:47.89\00:23:49.69
Hub, the feeding program, the
00:23:49.69\00:23:54.50
food bank, these are all
00:23:54.50\00:23:57.13
programs that are geared to
00:23:57.13\00:23:59.07
empower people to meet felt
00:23:59.07\00:24:00.84
needs and to truly make a
00:24:00.84\00:24:03.51
difference in Oshawa and
00:24:03.51\00:24:05.57
they're doing that.
00:24:05.57\00:24:07.41
They are just amazing what
00:24:08.41\00:24:09.74
they're working at from
00:24:09.74\00:24:11.18
week-to-week and then outside
00:24:11.18\00:24:12.81
of the Neighbourhood Centre, we
00:24:12.81\00:24:14.45
have very inspiring worship
00:24:14.45\00:24:16.38
where we have great music and I
00:24:16.38\00:24:18.89
think the sermons are OK, but I
00:24:18.89\00:24:20.92
can't really be a judge of my
00:24:20.92\00:24:22.66
own sermons, but we try to give
00:24:22.66\00:24:26.19
our best in worship and it's a
00:24:26.19\00:24:29.46
really cool place.
00:24:29.46\00:24:31.13
I've made amazing friends here
00:24:31.13\00:24:33.13
at this church, I've been kind
00:24:33.13\00:24:35.14
of accepted into this community
00:24:35.14\00:24:37.87
and we really see our church
00:24:37.87\00:24:39.91
growing.
00:24:39.91\00:24:40.91
A lot of people are coming to
00:24:40.91\00:24:43.14
New Life and staying at New
00:24:43.14\00:24:45.08
Life because they see that it's
00:24:45.08\00:24:47.12
different, you know, it's
00:24:47.12\00:24:49.28
outside the box and it's
00:24:49.28\00:24:51.62
relevant and so I'm so excited
00:24:51.62\00:24:54.52
to be here at this time.
00:24:54.52\00:24:56.39
>> I must say that, as we wrap
00:24:56.39\00:24:58.16
up, we love coming to church
00:24:58.16\00:25:00.43
here and we enjoy your
00:25:00.43\00:25:02.03
preaching.
00:25:02.03\00:25:03.00
We're often on the road so
00:25:03.00\00:25:04.10
we're preaching at other
00:25:04.10\00:25:05.47
churches, but when we get a
00:25:05.47\00:25:06.67
chance and we're here in
00:25:06.67\00:25:07.84
Oshawa, we love to come to
00:25:07.84\00:25:09.30
listen to you preach and you do
00:25:09.30\00:25:10.94
a great job, you really do.
00:25:10.94\00:25:12.67
So we would like you to pray,
00:25:12.67\00:25:14.38
pray for our viewers and maybe
00:25:14.38\00:25:15.94
there's someone out there who's
00:25:15.94\00:25:17.91
feeling God speaking to them,
00:25:17.91\00:25:19.81
they don't know what to do with
00:25:19.81\00:25:21.68
that and to pray for them that
00:25:21.68\00:25:24.42
they'll get a clear message of
00:25:24.42\00:25:26.76
how God is leading in their
00:25:26.76\00:25:28.32
lives and where they should be
00:25:28.32\00:25:29.76
and how He can help them
00:25:29.76\00:25:31.59
through whatever dark struggles
00:25:31.59\00:25:33.46
they may be going through.
00:25:33.46\00:25:34.93
>> Definitely.
00:25:34.93\00:25:36.03
Let's pray together.
00:25:36.03\00:25:37.53
Loving Father, we're so
00:25:38.87\00:25:40.20
grateful that we can be
00:25:40.20\00:25:43.41
together as-- with my brother
00:25:43.41\00:25:46.34
and my sister here in Christ,
00:25:46.34\00:25:48.81
we can be part of the family of
00:25:48.81\00:25:50.65
God and that we've experienced
00:25:50.65\00:25:52.48
so much love in this family and
00:25:52.48\00:25:55.02
we want others to experience it
00:25:55.02\00:25:56.58
as well and there might be
00:25:56.58\00:25:58.12
people listening today, they're
00:25:58.12\00:26:00.26
feeling discouraged, they're
00:26:00.26\00:26:02.02
facing hardship, they're
00:26:02.02\00:26:04.59
hurting, Lord, and struggling
00:26:04.59\00:26:06.33
with sin and I just pray for
00:26:06.33\00:26:08.16
their deliverance, I pray that
00:26:08.16\00:26:10.17
You would shine Your light on
00:26:10.17\00:26:11.90
their life and give them hope
00:26:11.90\00:26:13.87
and give them courage and give
00:26:13.87\00:26:15.37
them strength and help them to
00:26:15.37\00:26:17.07
discover their purpose as well.
00:26:17.07\00:26:18.91
I'm so grateful for what You
00:26:18.91\00:26:20.54
did in my life and what You
00:26:20.54\00:26:22.91
continue to do even here at this
00:26:22.91\00:26:25.31
beautiful church.
00:26:25.31\00:26:27.28
And I pray for all the viewers
00:26:27.28\00:26:29.08
and I pray that, Lord, they
00:26:29.08\00:26:30.65
would feel Your presence and be
00:26:30.65\00:26:33.66
led by Your Spirit to the place
00:26:33.66\00:26:38.09
that You would like them to be.
00:26:38.09\00:26:39.96
I pray, dear Lord, for this
00:26:39.96\00:26:41.63
ministry, It Is Written Canada,
00:26:41.63\00:26:45.03
may You enlarge its territory,
00:26:45.03\00:26:47.64
may You, dear Father, bear much
00:26:47.64\00:26:50.04
fruit through the hard work and
00:26:50.04\00:26:52.31
labour and may this ministry
00:26:52.31\00:26:55.58
continue to reach lives and to
00:26:55.58\00:26:57.38
save lives.
00:26:57.38\00:26:58.81
For we ask it all in Jesus'
00:26:58.81\00:27:00.25
name, amen.
00:27:00.25\00:27:01.42
[MIKE & RENE] Amen.
00:27:01.42\00:27:02.95
>> Pastor Mathew, thank you so
00:27:02.95\00:27:04.62
much for joining us on It Is
00:27:04.62\00:27:06.32
Written Canada and for being
00:27:06.32\00:27:08.52
vulnerable and willing to share
00:27:08.52\00:27:10.19
your story with us.
00:27:10.19\00:27:12.26
>> Thank you, thanks for
00:27:12.26\00:27:13.40
having me.
00:27:13.40\00:27:14.36
>> Friends, you, too, can
00:27:16.67\00:27:17.97
experience the kind of
00:27:17.97\00:27:20.07
transformation that only God's
00:27:20.07\00:27:22.17
word offers.
00:27:22.17\00:27:23.57
So our free offer today is our
00:27:23.57\00:27:25.47
Bible Study Guides.
00:27:25.47\00:27:27.18
[RENÉ] Whether you want to
00:27:27.18\00:27:28.64
learn the major teachings of
00:27:28.64\00:27:30.38
God's word or Bible prophecy,
00:27:30.38\00:27:32.71
we can assist you to find
00:27:32.71\00:27:34.32
answers for how to face the
00:27:34.32\00:27:36.15
issues and challenges you may
00:27:36.15\00:27:39.09
be dealing with right now.
00:27:39.09\00:27:41.22
>> Before you go, we would like
00:27:41.79\00:27:43.89
to invite you to follow us on
00:27:43.89\00:27:45.83
Instagram and Facebook and
00:27:45.83\00:27:47.60
subscribe to our YouTube
00:27:47.60\00:27:49.36
channel and also listen to our
00:27:49.36\00:27:51.50
Podcasts.
00:27:51.50\00:27:52.87
And if you go to our website,
00:27:52.87\00:27:54.84
you can see our latest programs.
00:27:54.84\00:27:57.57
>> You, too, can experience the
00:27:58.04\00:28:00.18
fullness of life found in the
00:28:00.18\00:28:02.14
words of Jesus when He said,
00:28:02.14\00:28:04.91
"It is written, 'Man shall not
00:28:04.91\00:28:07.65
live by bread alone, but by
00:28:07.65\00:28:10.15
every word that proceeds out of
00:28:10.15\00:28:12.52
the mouth of God.'"
00:28:12.52\00:28:14.79
>> A fire can begin with one
00:28:15.69\00:28:17.09
match, a revival can begin with
00:28:17.09\00:28:18.83
one sermon, the world can be
00:28:18.83\00:28:20.56
changed by one person.
00:28:20.56\00:28:22.33
Are you willing to be that
00:28:22.33\00:28:24.27
person?
00:28:24.27\00:28:25.33
Are you willing to be that
00:28:25.33\00:28:27.00
match that sets the world
00:28:27.00\00:28:28.57
on fire?
00:28:28.57\00:28:29.84
God may be calling you to
00:28:29.84\00:28:31.31
preach, God may be calling you
00:28:31.31\00:28:33.07
to teach, God may be calling
00:28:33.07\00:28:34.91
you to serve in a different
00:28:34.91\00:28:37.41
way, but one thing is for sure,
00:28:37.41\00:28:40.42
God is calling you and everyone
00:28:40.42\00:28:42.95
here today to be a follower of
00:28:42.95\00:28:46.45
Jesus Christ.
00:28:46.45\00:28:47.96