might be taking drugs or
00:00:05.10\00:00:08.34
something at that point because
00:00:08.34\00:00:10.84
he was getting sick a lot.
00:00:10.84\00:00:12.87
He was always complaining that
00:00:12.87\00:00:14.34
he was tired and he wasn't
00:00:14.34\00:00:18.35
always seemed like himself.
00:00:18.35\00:00:20.62
He was kind of grumpy a lot with
00:00:20.62\00:00:24.02
me so, you know, it was really
00:00:24.02\00:00:26.49
hard as a parent to try to get
00:00:26.49\00:00:29.39
through and communicate
00:00:29.39\00:00:30.66
with him.
00:00:30.66\00:00:31.79
So I was worried for him.
00:00:31.79\00:00:34.50
>> Josh and I, we were very
00:00:34.50\00:00:35.90
close and he would confide in me
00:00:35.90\00:00:37.47
a lot, but there was times when
00:00:37.47\00:00:39.60
he would just shut me out and
00:00:39.60\00:00:42.07
just say, "I need to be alone,
00:00:42.07\00:00:43.77
Mom," and, you know, "Give me
00:00:43.77\00:00:47.18
some time," which I did.
00:00:47.18\00:00:48.98
But in that time, I was like,
00:00:48.98\00:00:50.75
What's going on with him?
00:00:50.75\00:00:52.11
Why isn't he talking to me?
00:00:52.11\00:00:53.65
And again, just had to give it
00:00:54.85\00:00:56.35
to God because there was nothing
00:00:56.35\00:00:58.02
that I could do at that point
00:00:58.02\00:01:00.12
but pray and have faith that God
00:01:00.12\00:01:02.46
would protect him and that He
00:01:02.46\00:01:04.39
would bring him back.
00:01:04.39\00:01:05.59
[theme music playing]
00:01:07.13\00:01:09.36
¤¤
00:01:09.36\00:01:41.56
[gentle piano music playing]
00:01:42.63\00:01:45.03
¤¤
00:01:45.03\00:01:49.17
>> Welcome to It Is Written
00:01:50.07\00:01:51.27
Canada.
00:01:51.27\00:01:51.97
Thank you for joining us.
00:01:51.97\00:01:53.64
>> We all have significant
00:01:53.64\00:01:55.21
influences that have touched our
00:01:55.21\00:01:57.15
lives in ways that have shaped
00:01:57.15\00:01:59.38
us to become the people
00:01:59.38\00:02:01.55
we are today.
00:02:01.55\00:02:02.92
>> Yes, and without those
00:02:02.92\00:02:04.05
people, we can't imagine what
00:02:04.05\00:02:06.12
our lives would look like today.
00:02:06.12\00:02:08.09
Our special guest is Joshua
00:02:08.09\00:02:10.06
Hernandez, a man whose life is
00:02:10.06\00:02:12.26
influencing many young men here
00:02:12.26\00:02:14.56
in Oshawa, Ontario, at Kingsway
00:02:14.56\00:02:16.73
College.
00:02:16.73\00:02:17.73
And Josh has agreed to share his
00:02:17.73\00:02:20.20
story with us.
00:02:20.20\00:02:21.90
>> Josh, thank you for joining
00:02:22.37\00:02:23.67
us on It Is Written Canada.
00:02:23.67\00:02:25.64
>> Thank you so much
00:02:25.64\00:02:26.57
for having me.
00:02:26.57\00:02:27.64
[MIKE] Josh, you work here at
00:02:27.64\00:02:28.98
Kingsway College and you work
00:02:28.98\00:02:30.38
with young men.
00:02:30.38\00:02:31.85
Tell us about why you do that,
00:02:31.85\00:02:33.58
what you do, and maybe some
00:02:33.58\00:02:35.62
stories about some of the
00:02:35.62\00:02:37.69
experiences you have
00:02:37.69\00:02:38.82
in the dorm.
00:02:38.82\00:02:39.62
[JOSH] Okay.
00:02:39.62\00:02:40.26
Yeah, so Kingsley College is
00:02:40.26\00:02:41.69
just located here in Oshawa,
00:02:41.69\00:02:43.29
Ontario and it's a Christian
00:02:43.29\00:02:44.86
boarding school.
00:02:44.86\00:02:46.13
And what my role is, is as a
00:02:46.13\00:02:48.40
dean, I take care of the
00:02:48.40\00:02:49.86
students.
00:02:49.86\00:02:50.93
And so I make sure they get up
00:02:50.93\00:02:52.23
in the morning, actually go to
00:02:52.23\00:02:53.50
class and do what they need to
00:02:53.50\00:02:54.94
do and then in the evenings, we
00:02:54.94\00:02:56.77
have worships, we do fun
00:02:56.77\00:02:58.61
activities together and we just
00:02:58.61\00:03:01.18
try and keep a positive,
00:03:01.18\00:03:03.21
Jesus-centred life and role
00:03:03.21\00:03:04.78
model for me and the students
00:03:04.78\00:03:07.42
and to be able to connect with
00:03:07.42\00:03:08.82
them and mentor them in whatever
00:03:08.82\00:03:10.55
way is possible.
00:03:10.55\00:03:11.82
Yeah.
00:03:11.82\00:03:12.52
Some fun experiences that I've
00:03:12.89\00:03:14.19
had with some of the students
00:03:14.19\00:03:15.96
would be planning different
00:03:15.96\00:03:17.93
activities.
00:03:17.93\00:03:19.16
We made a card, a thank you card
00:03:19.16\00:03:20.93
for one of the teachers when
00:03:20.93\00:03:21.90
they were having a bad day and
00:03:21.90\00:03:23.70
we were able to give some
00:03:23.70\00:03:24.80
encouragement to another one of
00:03:24.80\00:03:26.60
the teachers who-- whose mother
00:03:26.60\00:03:28.90
or father had passed away and
00:03:28.90\00:03:31.27
they were able to to help them
00:03:31.27\00:03:33.07
in that way.
00:03:33.07\00:03:33.94
>> When Josh was a little boy,
00:03:36.01\00:03:38.51
he said to me one day, he said,
00:03:38.51\00:03:41.48
"I want to be--"
00:03:41.48\00:03:43.79
He was very sad that he found
00:03:43.79\00:03:45.29
out that some children didn't
00:03:45.29\00:03:46.86
have any fathers.
00:03:46.86\00:03:48.29
And he said, "I would like to
00:03:48.29\00:03:50.16
be, when I grow up, a father for
00:03:50.16\00:03:52.39
all those boys and girls that
00:03:52.39\00:03:54.36
don't have any parents."
00:03:54.36\00:03:57.03
And that was very touching to me
00:03:57.03\00:03:59.80
that he said that.
00:03:59.80\00:04:01.27
And, you know, it's kind of
00:04:01.27\00:04:03.74
funny how life is that now he's
00:04:03.74\00:04:05.94
in this position where he is,
00:04:05.94\00:04:08.24
you know, a father figure in a
00:04:08.24\00:04:09.71
way to these boys when they're
00:04:09.71\00:04:14.92
facing some major challenges
00:04:14.92\00:04:17.19
sometimes in their lives.
00:04:17.19\00:04:19.19
And it's exciting that he has--
00:04:19.19\00:04:23.59
that God has brought him to this
00:04:24.43\00:04:25.93
place where he is able to share
00:04:25.93\00:04:29.13
his faith with these boys and to
00:04:29.13\00:04:32.30
help them, mentor them on to
00:04:32.30\00:04:35.90
do great things for God.
00:04:35.90\00:04:37.31
>> So Josh, take us back to the
00:04:39.24\00:04:41.28
people who have influenced
00:04:41.28\00:04:43.11
your life.
00:04:43.11\00:04:44.31
>> Yeah, definitely my
00:04:44.71\00:04:45.91
grandfather was one of the
00:04:45.91\00:04:47.32
biggest role models or
00:04:47.32\00:04:48.45
influences in my life.
00:04:48.45\00:04:50.09
He was always positive, he was
00:04:50.09\00:04:52.52
always encouraging.
00:04:52.52\00:04:53.96
He just helped me to see what
00:04:53.96\00:04:55.92
Jesus was like.
00:04:55.92\00:04:57.26
And as a pastor, it was his job
00:04:57.26\00:05:00.10
to take care of the family but
00:05:00.10\00:05:01.33
also take care of the church.
00:05:01.33\00:05:03.00
And so he would often take me on
00:05:03.00\00:05:04.83
different trips, different
00:05:04.83\00:05:06.57
meetings, I would get to see
00:05:06.57\00:05:08.14
what his life was like and how
00:05:08.14\00:05:10.27
he connected with different
00:05:10.27\00:05:11.24
people and also would always
00:05:11.24\00:05:13.01
just take care of me, rock me to
00:05:13.01\00:05:15.24
sleep, sing songs to me and he
00:05:15.24\00:05:17.38
was just really a loving and
00:05:17.38\00:05:19.18
positive person in my life.
00:05:19.18\00:05:21.12
Some other people that
00:05:21.65\00:05:22.52
influenced me would be Ashley
00:05:22.52\00:05:24.25
Brown, who currently is the Camp
00:05:24.25\00:05:26.19
Frenda cook.
00:05:26.19\00:05:27.19
Her and I had a great
00:05:27.62\00:05:28.79
relationship when I worked at
00:05:28.79\00:05:29.99
the camp, which is located in
00:05:29.99\00:05:31.69
the Muskokas, and also the
00:05:31.69\00:05:33.90
previous cook before that, whose
00:05:33.90\00:05:35.73
name was Susan James and we had
00:05:35.73\00:05:37.57
a great relationship.
00:05:37.57\00:05:38.80
She was definitely like a
00:05:38.80\00:05:39.80
grandmother figure to me, very
00:05:39.80\00:05:41.40
encouraging, very loving, very
00:05:41.40\00:05:43.10
positive, and just helped to
00:05:43.10\00:05:44.91
guide me when I was coming back
00:05:44.91\00:05:46.31
to the faith and to be just a
00:05:46.31\00:05:49.18
positive role model in general.
00:05:49.18\00:05:50.68
Ashley especially was very
00:05:51.31\00:05:52.81
encouraging towards me,
00:05:52.81\00:05:53.98
especially coming back
00:05:53.98\00:05:55.15
into the faith.
00:05:55.15\00:05:56.05
She was like a big sister to me
00:05:56.05\00:05:57.85
and was very inspiring and
00:05:57.85\00:05:59.59
encouraging, helping me to just
00:05:59.59\00:06:01.66
process some thoughts and
00:06:01.66\00:06:03.02
emotions and also just being
00:06:03.02\00:06:04.63
there for advice and good
00:06:04.63\00:06:05.69
counsel.
00:06:05.69\00:06:06.49
We worked really well together.
00:06:06.49\00:06:08.06
She has an amazing family and
00:06:08.06\00:06:09.60
two beautiful kids and I just
00:06:09.60\00:06:11.60
had great memories and a really
00:06:11.60\00:06:12.83
positive experience with her.
00:06:12.83\00:06:14.54
>> Josh, your grandfather was a
00:06:15.54\00:06:17.84
huge spiritual influence in
00:06:17.84\00:06:19.31
your life.
00:06:19.31\00:06:20.04
Tell us a little bit about
00:06:20.04\00:06:20.91
his life.
00:06:20.91\00:06:21.58
What was that like?
00:06:21.58\00:06:22.48
>> Yeah, so he was one of 12
00:06:22.48\00:06:24.51
brothers and sisters and he grew
00:06:24.51\00:06:25.81
up in Sri Lanka, which was
00:06:25.81\00:06:27.48
formerly known as Ceylon.
00:06:27.48\00:06:29.15
He had a hard upbringing,
00:06:29.15\00:06:30.85
actually.
00:06:30.85\00:06:31.92
His father was an alcoholic and
00:06:31.92\00:06:34.02
his mother was a stay-at-home
00:06:34.02\00:06:35.19
mom.
00:06:35.19\00:06:36.02
And so he eventually had to
00:06:36.02\00:06:38.19
stand up to his dad and-- to put
00:06:38.19\00:06:40.60
the abuse aside.
00:06:40.60\00:06:41.86
And then he actually ended up
00:06:42.26\00:06:44.80
leaving Sri Lanka to go to
00:06:44.80\00:06:46.53
Australia for schooling and
00:06:46.53\00:06:48.84
joined the Adventist Church and
00:06:48.84\00:06:50.51
became a pastor where he then
00:06:50.51\00:06:52.17
moved to Oshawa, Ontario and
00:06:52.17\00:06:54.14
actually worked at Kingsway
00:06:54.14\00:06:55.24
College.
00:06:55.24\00:06:56.28
>> So he had a rich past.
00:06:56.61\00:07:00.05
[JOSH] Yes.
00:07:00.05\00:07:00.75
>> Was he a missionary at
00:07:00.75\00:07:01.95
some stage?
00:07:01.95\00:07:02.85
>> He did some colporting I
00:07:02.85\00:07:04.25
believe, yeah, where he would go
00:07:04.25\00:07:05.79
door to door and tell people
00:07:05.79\00:07:06.79
about Jesus and also just work
00:07:06.79\00:07:08.86
hard to share the gospel.
00:07:08.86\00:07:10.46
He also learned how to bake when
00:07:11.06\00:07:12.49
he was in Australia and he would
00:07:12.49\00:07:14.50
also make these famous Chelsea
00:07:14.50\00:07:15.96
buns for our family, which is
00:07:15.96\00:07:17.63
one of my mother's favourite
00:07:17.63\00:07:18.40
things.
00:07:18.40\00:07:19.03
[MIKE] And you're quite the cook
00:07:19.10\00:07:19.93
yourself.
00:07:19.93\00:07:20.84
>> I try, I try, yeah.
00:07:20.84\00:07:22.24
[MIKE] You do a great job.
00:07:22.24\00:07:23.24
You must have got it from your
00:07:23.24\00:07:24.17
grandfather.
00:07:24.17\00:07:24.87
[JOSH] I must have got it from
00:07:24.87\00:07:25.74
my grandfather, yeah.
00:07:25.74\00:07:26.44
[RENÉ] And now you work at
00:07:26.44\00:07:27.34
Kingsway College, too, just like
00:07:27.34\00:07:28.58
your grandfather did.
00:07:28.58\00:07:29.58
>> Yes, exactly.
00:07:29.58\00:07:30.58
[RENÉ] Wow!
00:07:30.58\00:07:31.41
>> I think, starting off with my
00:07:32.08\00:07:37.15
father-in-law, Ralph, he was a
00:07:37.15\00:07:39.92
good cook and he watched and
00:07:39.92\00:07:43.32
learned some things from my
00:07:43.32\00:07:44.99
father-in-law.
00:07:44.99\00:07:46.13
And also myself, I would help
00:07:46.80\00:07:50.37
Sandra in the kitchen, or
00:07:50.37\00:07:52.20
sometimes if she was working
00:07:52.20\00:07:53.80
late, I'd be the one cooking the
00:07:53.80\00:07:55.87
meal and making them
00:07:55.87\00:07:59.14
what they liked.
00:07:59.14\00:08:00.68
And my father owned my-- was a
00:08:01.14\00:08:05.58
chef as well.
00:08:05.58\00:08:06.98
He owned a pizza Italian
00:08:06.98\00:08:09.32
restaurant in New York City.
00:08:09.32\00:08:11.62
So he had good influence from
00:08:11.62\00:08:14.52
all the men as far as knowing
00:08:14.52\00:08:17.66
how to cook.
00:08:17.66\00:08:19.09
Well, we always joked that
00:08:19.46\00:08:21.43
Joshua had two sets, two
00:08:21.43\00:08:25.33
fridges, two sets of parents,
00:08:25.33\00:08:28.80
two houses, because my
00:08:28.80\00:08:31.27
father-in-law would, Ralph would
00:08:31.27\00:08:33.74
pick him up from school and
00:08:33.74\00:08:36.51
would have food ready for him.
00:08:36.51\00:08:38.75
And so they were very-- he was
00:08:38.75\00:08:40.88
very blessed that way, so were
00:08:40.88\00:08:42.55
the other boys.
00:08:42.55\00:08:43.75
And they had a good upbringing
00:08:43.75\00:08:47.06
in a good Christian home.
00:08:47.06\00:08:48.86
My father was-- he was just,
00:08:49.99\00:08:53.13
had a very steadfast faith
00:08:53.13\00:08:55.10
in God and he was very positive
00:08:55.10\00:08:58.00
influence on my life and then in
00:08:58.00\00:09:02.04
turn on my children's life.
00:09:02.04\00:09:04.34
I have three boys, Nathan and
00:09:04.34\00:09:08.81
Jason and Joshua is the third
00:09:08.81\00:09:11.21
boy and there's a little bit
00:09:11.21\00:09:12.28
of a gap.
00:09:12.28\00:09:13.25
So Joshua got a little bit
00:09:13.85\00:09:17.02
teased by his older brothers,
00:09:17.02\00:09:18.95
and as a mom I was a little
00:09:18.95\00:09:21.02
protective of the youngest and
00:09:21.02\00:09:23.63
he became a little bit of a
00:09:23.63\00:09:25.59
mama's boy.
00:09:25.59\00:09:27.10
And-- but it's a good thing
00:09:27.10\00:09:30.23
because we were close and we
00:09:30.23\00:09:32.50
remain close as adults, too.
00:09:32.50\00:09:35.04
>> Josh, growing up, what was
00:09:36.34\00:09:38.07
your relationship with God and
00:09:38.07\00:09:40.11
the church like?
00:09:40.11\00:09:41.41
>> Growing up, my relationship
00:09:41.74\00:09:42.88
with God was really stable.
00:09:42.88\00:09:44.58
Growing up in a Christian home,
00:09:45.05\00:09:46.85
God was just part of the
00:09:46.85\00:09:47.78
picture.
00:09:47.78\00:09:48.42
It's what we did every week.
00:09:48.42\00:09:50.65
We worshipped together in
00:09:50.65\00:09:51.89
church, family worships.
00:09:51.89\00:09:53.89
I had a really good picture of
00:09:53.89\00:09:55.69
God, I would say, growing up and
00:09:55.69\00:09:57.93
especially seeing my grandfather
00:09:57.93\00:09:59.89
and his ministry really helped
00:09:59.89\00:10:01.96
me to have a good picture of who
00:10:01.96\00:10:03.43
God was in my life and with me
00:10:03.43\00:10:06.07
constantly.
00:10:06.07\00:10:07.07
Growing up we were a family of
00:10:07.90\00:10:09.74
three boys and so I was the
00:10:09.74\00:10:11.94
youngest.
00:10:11.94\00:10:12.74
Both my brothers are eight and
00:10:12.74\00:10:13.94
nine years older than me.
00:10:13.94\00:10:15.38
We had lots of fun growing up.
00:10:15.84\00:10:17.61
My parents and grandparents were
00:10:17.61\00:10:19.48
both very loving and we often
00:10:19.48\00:10:21.72
spent lots of time doing family
00:10:21.72\00:10:23.28
trips, going to visit family in
00:10:23.28\00:10:24.82
California and just spending
00:10:24.82\00:10:27.06
time as a family was essential
00:10:27.06\00:10:29.06
growing up to us.
00:10:29.06\00:10:30.56
So we bonded very closely as a
00:10:30.56\00:10:33.16
family and I enjoyed my church
00:10:33.16\00:10:35.13
and God, having Him in my life,
00:10:35.13\00:10:38.30
and it was just a great
00:10:38.30\00:10:39.10
experience for me.
00:10:39.10\00:10:40.10
>> So, Josh, it sounds like your
00:10:40.70\00:10:42.64
childhood years were really
00:10:42.64\00:10:44.24
good.
00:10:44.24\00:10:45.04
What about your teenage years?
00:10:45.04\00:10:46.78
[JOSH] Teenage years were a
00:10:47.28\00:10:48.28
little bit of a struggle.
00:10:48.28\00:10:49.44
It was hard to find my identity
00:10:49.44\00:10:52.05
and to really build my
00:10:52.05\00:10:53.52
relationship with God
00:10:53.52\00:10:54.45
at that point.
00:10:54.45\00:10:55.42
Different challenges presented
00:10:56.45\00:10:57.75
themselves trying to fit in, be
00:10:57.75\00:11:00.16
my own person, discover my own
00:11:00.16\00:11:02.16
identity.
00:11:02.16\00:11:03.09
These are things that I
00:11:03.09\00:11:04.03
struggled with and so looking
00:11:04.03\00:11:06.09
forward, trying to find out what
00:11:06.09\00:11:07.73
my pathway was or my future and
00:11:07.73\00:11:10.07
finding God in that was
00:11:10.07\00:11:11.73
definitely challenging for me.
00:11:11.73\00:11:13.13
>> Of course, your grandfather
00:11:13.94\00:11:15.14
was always a stable person in
00:11:15.14\00:11:17.07
your life and keeping you solid
00:11:17.07\00:11:18.87
through whatever those
00:11:18.87\00:11:20.04
challenges where, there are a
00:11:20.04\00:11:21.14
lot of different things
00:11:21.14\00:11:22.34
happening at once at that time.
00:11:22.34\00:11:24.31
How did you deal with those
00:11:24.31\00:11:25.31
challenges?
00:11:25.31\00:11:26.31
>> Yeah, my grandfather was
00:11:26.31\00:11:27.85
diagnosed with cancer in my high
00:11:27.85\00:11:30.05
school years and that really
00:11:30.05\00:11:31.89
shook me.
00:11:31.89\00:11:32.99
It shook my faith and it shook
00:11:32.99\00:11:35.09
just my identity.
00:11:35.09\00:11:36.79
I really had a hard time
00:11:37.43\00:11:38.76
figuring out who I was and
00:11:38.76\00:11:40.76
starting to question whether I
00:11:40.76\00:11:41.93
wanted God in my life, if I
00:11:41.93\00:11:43.77
wanted to still be a Christian,
00:11:43.77\00:11:45.47
and really having an anger
00:11:45.47\00:11:46.74
towards God, seeing my
00:11:46.74\00:11:48.17
grandfather, who served as a
00:11:48.17\00:11:49.50
person of faith and ministry,
00:11:49.50\00:11:51.24
going through such struggling
00:11:51.24\00:11:52.41
and hard times.
00:11:52.41\00:11:53.58
[MIKE] Mmm.
00:11:53.84\00:11:54.68
And what was it like when he
00:11:54.68\00:11:55.84
passed away?
00:11:55.84\00:11:56.95
>> It was devastating for me.
00:11:57.05\00:11:58.38
Going through those raw
00:11:59.15\00:12:00.38
emotions, it really was hard for
00:12:00.38\00:12:02.92
me to process.
00:12:02.92\00:12:04.15
I had always wanted for him to
00:12:05.05\00:12:07.16
see-- his dying wish was to see
00:12:07.16\00:12:09.22
me graduate from high school and
00:12:09.22\00:12:11.33
I felt that God had taken him
00:12:11.33\00:12:12.96
just too soon and I couldn't
00:12:12.96\00:12:14.63
reconcile those feelings and
00:12:14.63\00:12:16.63
those emotions with what I was
00:12:16.63\00:12:18.37
going through.
00:12:18.37\00:12:19.27
Unfortunately, that meant I
00:12:19.27\00:12:20.77
turned to hookup culture, drugs
00:12:20.77\00:12:23.17
and alcohol, and other outlets
00:12:23.17\00:12:25.87
for me to find ways to deal with
00:12:25.87\00:12:27.54
the emotion and deal with the
00:12:27.54\00:12:28.54
stress.
00:12:28.54\00:12:29.41
>> Was there ever a time, Josh,
00:12:29.98\00:12:31.58
where you completely rejected
00:12:31.58\00:12:33.52
God, completely rejected the
00:12:33.52\00:12:34.88
church?
00:12:34.88\00:12:35.78
>> Yeah, I was going through
00:12:36.08\00:12:37.05
some family struggles and some
00:12:37.05\00:12:38.65
internal problems at that time.
00:12:38.65\00:12:40.52
There was a lot of moving parts.
00:12:40.52\00:12:42.49
I didn't fully reject God, but I
00:12:42.49\00:12:45.06
definitely left the church
00:12:45.06\00:12:46.56
during that time.
00:12:46.56\00:12:47.73
Just seeing everything and
00:12:48.10\00:12:49.30
dealing with everything was a
00:12:49.30\00:12:50.33
bit too much for me, and I began
00:12:50.33\00:12:52.30
to pull away slowly as my
00:12:52.30\00:12:53.80
parents saw I would stop
00:12:53.80\00:12:55.40
attending church as much as I
00:12:55.40\00:12:56.60
was used to and just not as
00:12:56.60\00:12:58.51
involved in some of the
00:12:58.51\00:12:59.47
programming and activities that
00:12:59.47\00:13:00.64
the Church was holding and my
00:13:00.64\00:13:02.14
relationship with God started to
00:13:02.14\00:13:04.11
dwindle.
00:13:04.11\00:13:05.11
>> Josh and myself are very much
00:13:06.45\00:13:08.45
alike and I would try to give
00:13:08.45\00:13:11.19
him advice and he would just
00:13:11.19\00:13:15.66
tell me, "Yes, Dad, I know," and
00:13:15.66\00:13:17.73
I knew he wasn't listening.
00:13:17.73\00:13:19.69
And so we had some exchange of
00:13:19.69\00:13:23.16
words many times, and it was a
00:13:23.16\00:13:26.43
frustrating experience for me as
00:13:26.43\00:13:28.94
a parent.
00:13:28.94\00:13:30.21
And I just had to walk away
00:13:30.21\00:13:33.07
because I was so upset and I
00:13:33.07\00:13:36.18
would try and get my wife to
00:13:36.18\00:13:40.32
take over.
00:13:40.32\00:13:41.25
Maybe she could make more sense
00:13:41.25\00:13:42.88
than I can because she had more
00:13:42.88\00:13:44.69
patience.
00:13:44.69\00:13:45.69
So it was a trying experience
00:13:46.15\00:13:49.16
for sure.
00:13:49.16\00:13:50.13
I was kind of worried that he
00:13:51.59\00:13:55.80
might be taking drugs or
00:13:55.80\00:13:59.03
something at that point because
00:13:59.03\00:14:01.60
he was getting sick a lot.
00:14:01.60\00:14:03.64
He was always complaining that
00:14:03.64\00:14:05.11
he was tired and he wasn't
00:14:05.11\00:14:09.11
always seemed like himself.
00:14:09.11\00:14:11.38
He was kind of grumpy a lot with
00:14:11.38\00:14:14.78
me so, you know, it was really
00:14:14.78\00:14:17.25
hard as a parent to try to get
00:14:17.25\00:14:20.16
through and communicate
00:14:20.16\00:14:21.42
with him.
00:14:21.42\00:14:22.56
So I was worried for him.
00:14:22.56\00:14:25.29
>> Josh and I, we were very
00:14:25.29\00:14:26.70
close and he would confide in me
00:14:26.70\00:14:28.23
a lot, but there was times when
00:14:28.23\00:14:30.37
he would just shut me out and
00:14:30.37\00:14:32.83
just say, "I need to be alone,
00:14:32.83\00:14:34.54
Mom," and, you know, "Give me
00:14:34.54\00:14:37.94
some time," which I did.
00:14:37.94\00:14:39.74
But in that time, I was like,
00:14:39.74\00:14:41.51
What's going on with him?
00:14:41.51\00:14:42.88
Why isn't he talking to me?
00:14:42.88\00:14:44.41
And again, just had to give it
00:14:45.61\00:14:47.12
to God because there was nothing
00:14:47.12\00:14:48.78
that I could do at that point
00:14:48.78\00:14:50.82
but pray and have faith that God
00:14:50.82\00:14:53.15
would protect him and that He
00:14:53.15\00:14:55.09
would bring him back.
00:14:55.09\00:14:56.66
[MIKE] What did that look like
00:14:57.09\00:14:58.09
for you?
00:14:58.09\00:14:59.03
>> Um, on my knees and, you
00:14:59.66\00:15:03.30
know, reading the Bible passages
00:15:03.30\00:15:05.57
for the promises and just...
00:15:05.57\00:15:08.47
>> Having faith.
00:15:09.00\00:15:10.31
>> Yeah.
00:15:10.31\00:15:11.31
You know, remembering what my
00:15:11.31\00:15:13.14
dad had taught us, and my mom,
00:15:13.14\00:15:15.58
too, they had been through some
00:15:15.58\00:15:18.05
trying times with my siblings
00:15:18.05\00:15:20.15
as well.
00:15:20.15\00:15:20.98
So I knew that God was faithful
00:15:20.98\00:15:24.99
and that He would, He would come
00:15:24.99\00:15:27.19
through for us, I knew that.
00:15:27.19\00:15:28.99
So there was a lot of tears and,
00:15:29.26\00:15:31.56
So there was a lot of tears and,
00:15:31.56\00:15:32.23
you know, I had to spend a lot
00:15:32.23\00:15:34.10
of time praying and reading the
00:15:34.10\00:15:37.37
Bible and, you know, just
00:15:37.37\00:15:39.33
talking to other friends and
00:15:39.33\00:15:41.14
family that had been through
00:15:41.14\00:15:42.84
some similar experiences.
00:15:42.84\00:15:44.94
But I didn't have my dad at that
00:15:45.44\00:15:46.98
point, and he was my confidant.
00:15:46.98\00:15:49.14
So that was very--
00:15:49.14\00:15:51.01
a difficult time for sure.
00:15:51.01\00:15:52.71
>> So Josh, looking forward, you
00:15:54.92\00:15:58.05
are now actively involved as an
00:15:58.05\00:16:00.79
elder in your church, you're
00:16:00.79\00:16:02.79
working at Kingsway College with
00:16:02.79\00:16:04.33
young people and have an amazing
00:16:04.33\00:16:06.39
influence with them.
00:16:06.39\00:16:08.00
What happened?
00:16:08.66\00:16:09.66
How did you get from where you
00:16:09.66\00:16:11.83
were to where you are now,
00:16:11.83\00:16:14.67
presently?
00:16:14.67\00:16:15.67
>> You know, it was a long
00:16:16.54\00:16:17.41
journey.
00:16:17.41\00:16:18.37
Getting into hookup culture and
00:16:18.77\00:16:20.68
going to clubs and partying
00:16:20.68\00:16:22.11
every weekend became kind of the
00:16:22.11\00:16:24.01
norm for me.
00:16:24.01\00:16:25.01
Pulling out with even some of
00:16:25.68\00:16:26.78
the friends that I used to hang
00:16:26.78\00:16:28.32
out with church, we ended up all
00:16:28.32\00:16:30.05
leaving together.
00:16:30.05\00:16:31.49
And it was very hard for me to
00:16:31.49\00:16:33.39
come back.
00:16:33.39\00:16:34.29
I actually reached a breaking
00:16:34.29\00:16:35.49
point with that group and with
00:16:35.49\00:16:37.53
my own life where I was laying
00:16:37.53\00:16:39.89
in my bed one night and I was
00:16:39.89\00:16:41.33
just staring at a bottle of
00:16:41.33\00:16:42.36
pills, whether-- thinking about
00:16:42.36\00:16:44.60
whether to continue living
00:16:44.60\00:16:46.94
or not.
00:16:46.94\00:16:47.94
And I felt like there was an
00:16:48.24\00:16:49.67
internal voice that spoke to me
00:16:49.67\00:16:51.57
that said, "Am I really gonna
00:16:51.57\00:16:53.44
let this moment and this
00:16:53.44\00:16:56.14
situation define my life and my
00:16:56.14\00:16:58.51
future forever?
00:16:58.51\00:16:59.65
And I respond to that question
00:17:00.15\00:17:01.72
with "No."
00:17:01.72\00:17:03.02
And so moving forward, I had to
00:17:03.02\00:17:04.79
rediscover who I was, my
00:17:04.79\00:17:06.45
identity, what I believed in,
00:17:06.45\00:17:09.09
my faith.
00:17:09.09\00:17:09.96
And it took me on this journey
00:17:09.96\00:17:11.39
when I had so many supportive
00:17:11.39\00:17:12.36
people like my friends in
00:17:12.36\00:17:13.66
college that I had met that
00:17:13.66\00:17:15.40
helped me on this journey, to
00:17:15.40\00:17:17.33
working at Frenda, where I just
00:17:17.33\00:17:19.73
came back to the faith and I had
00:17:19.73\00:17:21.70
such supportive people that I
00:17:21.70\00:17:23.14
mentioned earlier that just
00:17:23.14\00:17:24.71
really nurtured and helped my
00:17:24.71\00:17:26.17
faith to grow and to recover.
00:17:26.17\00:17:28.14
Along that process, you know,
00:17:29.31\00:17:31.05
there was dietary changes, there
00:17:31.05\00:17:32.28
were spiritual changes that
00:17:32.28\00:17:33.78
happened with me.
00:17:33.78\00:17:35.12
And it just really helped me to
00:17:35.12\00:17:36.89
understand who God was as a
00:17:36.89\00:17:38.92
loving Father who wanted me to
00:17:38.92\00:17:40.92
come back and to take
00:17:40.92\00:17:42.09
care of me.
00:17:42.09\00:17:42.89
>> And then you met your sweet
00:17:43.49\00:17:44.83
wife, Alicia.
00:17:44.83\00:17:45.93
Tell us about her.
00:17:45.93\00:17:47.03
>> Yes, she's a big inspiration
00:17:47.03\00:17:49.06
of mine.
00:17:49.06\00:17:49.90
Alicia is so patient, she's so
00:17:50.50\00:17:52.07
stable, not like me, kind and
00:17:52.07\00:17:55.24
loving, and she really helped to
00:17:55.24\00:17:58.51
get my Christian experience on a
00:17:58.51\00:17:59.81
really level playing field and
00:17:59.81\00:18:01.88
just to show me what true love
00:18:01.88\00:18:04.48
looks like.
00:18:04.48\00:18:05.48
Always being there for me,
00:18:05.48\00:18:07.12
always caring about me, always
00:18:07.12\00:18:09.38
just looking out for me and
00:18:09.38\00:18:11.42
being such a supportive
00:18:11.42\00:18:12.92
girlfriend and now wife and
00:18:12.92\00:18:14.22
soon-to-be mother.
00:18:14.22\00:18:15.49
I'm so proud of her and she's an
00:18:15.49\00:18:17.76
integral part of my Christian
00:18:17.76\00:18:19.29
experience of me getting
00:18:19.29\00:18:20.53
to know God.
00:18:20.53\00:18:21.50
[SANDY] So Alicia, which is
00:18:24.47\00:18:27.04
Josh's wife now, has been a very
00:18:27.04\00:18:30.17
positive influence in his life.
00:18:30.17\00:18:33.04
When Josh turned 25, we were up
00:18:33.51\00:18:36.44
at the Camp Frenda and you know
00:18:36.44\00:18:40.22
how you blow out the candles and
00:18:40.22\00:18:41.95
make a wish, so he said then
00:18:41.95\00:18:44.92
that he would like to find a
00:18:44.92\00:18:48.12
good Christian wife.
00:18:48.12\00:18:49.89
And so we were praying that he
00:18:49.89\00:18:51.89
would meet somebody and God
00:18:51.89\00:18:53.76
answered our prayers there.
00:18:53.76\00:18:56.16
And she came for a weekend and
00:18:56.16\00:18:59.73
they made a connection.
00:18:59.73\00:19:01.77
And I could tell from the very
00:19:01.77\00:19:04.37
first time I met Alicia that she
00:19:04.37\00:19:06.44
also had a strong connection
00:19:06.44\00:19:08.31
with God and that that was an
00:19:08.31\00:19:12.45
answer to prayer, that time.
00:19:12.45\00:19:14.68
>> Very positive experience
00:19:14.68\00:19:16.48
meeting her, yeah, and
00:19:16.48\00:19:17.95
her family.
00:19:17.95\00:19:19.12
So it was wonderful.
00:19:19.12\00:19:21.19
>> Your walk with God is one
00:19:23.53\00:19:26.96
that's also influencing others.
00:19:26.96\00:19:29.46
How do you put that together
00:19:30.03\00:19:31.03
with your own struggle?
00:19:31.03\00:19:32.47
Like every day, of course,
00:19:32.47\00:19:34.14
you're getting closer to Jesus.
00:19:34.14\00:19:35.94
What does that look like in the
00:19:36.27\00:19:37.14
dorm for you?
00:19:37.14\00:19:38.14
>> In the dorm, it just means
00:19:38.64\00:19:39.91
taking time away from what I
00:19:39.91\00:19:42.11
wanna do and making sure that I
00:19:42.11\00:19:43.91
prioritize time for the
00:19:43.91\00:19:45.65
students.
00:19:45.65\00:19:46.51
The guys, they're constantly
00:19:46.51\00:19:47.55
going through different
00:19:47.55\00:19:48.58
struggles and things on a day to
00:19:48.58\00:19:49.95
day basis that most people don't
00:19:49.95\00:19:51.72
see or are not aware of.
00:19:51.72\00:19:53.32
And so for me, just carving that
00:19:53.96\00:19:55.76
time out of my day to take
00:19:55.76\00:19:57.93
five minutes and listen to what
00:19:57.93\00:19:59.09
they're going through, to ask
00:19:59.09\00:20:00.66
them questions, to give them
00:20:00.66\00:20:01.93
some life advice, to not make
00:20:01.93\00:20:03.77
the same mistakes that I did.
00:20:03.77\00:20:05.63
Those are the kinds of things
00:20:05.63\00:20:06.57
that really help my relationship
00:20:06.57\00:20:08.00
with God grow and it actually
00:20:08.00\00:20:09.64
teaches me things about myself
00:20:09.64\00:20:12.07
and about my character, just by
00:20:12.07\00:20:14.11
spending time with them and
00:20:14.11\00:20:15.11
seeing what they're going
00:20:15.11\00:20:16.01
through.
00:20:16.01\00:20:16.61
>> Do you feel like the journey
00:20:16.71\00:20:18.41
that you went on has made you
00:20:18.41\00:20:20.25
stronger?
00:20:20.25\00:20:21.25
>> Definitely.
00:20:21.62\00:20:22.62
It's definitely helped me to
00:20:22.62\00:20:23.99
have a better understanding of
00:20:23.99\00:20:26.19
just the human experience and
00:20:26.19\00:20:28.32
especially the teenage years
00:20:28.32\00:20:29.86
when things are uncertain,
00:20:29.86\00:20:31.79
people are not sure what they
00:20:31.79\00:20:33.63
are doing, where they're going,
00:20:33.63\00:20:34.83
what they believe.
00:20:34.83\00:20:36.26
And just to be that positive
00:20:36.26\00:20:38.73
Christian support for them, when
00:20:38.73\00:20:40.47
I didn't have that, it makes a
00:20:40.47\00:20:42.60
huge difference in impacting
00:20:42.60\00:20:44.37
their life and it helps them to
00:20:44.37\00:20:45.61
see that someone really cares
00:20:45.61\00:20:47.01
about them, not just me, but God
00:20:47.01\00:20:49.38
also cares about them and
00:20:49.38\00:20:50.51
loves them.
00:20:50.51\00:20:51.28
>> What kind of advice you give
00:20:51.28\00:20:52.51
to young people?
00:20:52.51\00:20:53.65
>> I tell them to take their
00:20:54.08\00:20:55.05
time, to slow down, to really
00:20:55.05\00:20:56.65
think things through.
00:20:56.65\00:20:58.12
One of the best pieces of advice
00:20:58.12\00:20:59.79
that I received when I was in
00:20:59.79\00:21:01.49
college was...
00:21:01.49\00:21:03.12
Because when you react, things
00:21:05.83\00:21:07.36
are just blown way out of
00:21:07.36\00:21:08.93
proportion and things don't go
00:21:08.93\00:21:10.63
the way they should.
00:21:10.63\00:21:11.83
But if you take a pause, you
00:21:11.83\00:21:13.37
take time to reflect, it will
00:21:13.37\00:21:15.20
help you later on to make a
00:21:15.20\00:21:17.24
correct decision and for
00:21:17.24\00:21:18.61
everything to go smoothly the
00:21:18.61\00:21:20.14
way it should.
00:21:20.14\00:21:21.24
>> And what about parents?
00:21:21.51\00:21:22.81
Parents who may have seen, like
00:21:22.81\00:21:25.75
your parents did, their children
00:21:25.75\00:21:28.15
leave the faith or maybe
00:21:28.15\00:21:29.52
even grandparents see their
00:21:29.52\00:21:30.75
grandchildren leave the faith?
00:21:30.75\00:21:32.32
What would you say to them?
00:21:32.89\00:21:34.49
>> Pray always, make sure that
00:21:34.49\00:21:35.99
you're super loving, supportive
00:21:35.99\00:21:38.03
and kind with them.
00:21:38.03\00:21:39.73
It's a process and sometimes it
00:21:39.73\00:21:41.80
takes time for them to realize
00:21:41.80\00:21:44.27
who is actually loving and
00:21:44.27\00:21:46.00
caring and supportive in their
00:21:46.00\00:21:47.07
life and who's a fake.
00:21:47.07\00:21:48.97
So as long as you can be there
00:21:48.97\00:21:51.04
to support them and encourage
00:21:51.04\00:21:52.74
them and nurture them without
00:21:52.74\00:21:54.41
being judgmental, it will do
00:21:54.41\00:21:56.64
wonders for their experience and
00:21:56.64\00:21:58.75
their-- your character will
00:21:58.75\00:22:00.05
shine through and your children
00:22:00.05\00:22:01.88
will see that they are loved and
00:22:01.88\00:22:04.12
cared for by their parents
00:22:04.12\00:22:05.52
and people that love them.
00:22:05.52\00:22:06.49
[MIKE] Did you ever feel like
00:22:06.49\00:22:07.49
your parents were saying, hey...
00:22:07.49\00:22:09.86
you know, putting down a hard
00:22:09.86\00:22:11.06
line and saying, "Josh, you need
00:22:11.06\00:22:13.63
to get your life together?"
00:22:13.63\00:22:14.76
[JOSH] Yeah, actually, several
00:22:14.76\00:22:15.80
times both my parents would give
00:22:15.80\00:22:18.60
me some side advice that was,
00:22:18.60\00:22:20.97
you know, encouraging, but
00:22:20.97\00:22:22.54
also firm.
00:22:22.54\00:22:23.94
And they were really desperate
00:22:23.94\00:22:25.01
to get me back to church because
00:22:25.01\00:22:26.41
they knew that if I left the
00:22:26.41\00:22:27.94
church completely or if I left
00:22:27.94\00:22:29.68
church for an extended period of
00:22:29.68\00:22:30.81
time, it would not be good for
00:22:30.81\00:22:32.45
me long term.
00:22:32.45\00:22:33.58
And so they would constantly ask
00:22:33.58\00:22:35.42
and remind, but really just
00:22:35.42\00:22:37.69
their love and their support was
00:22:37.69\00:22:39.29
what made a huge difference.
00:22:39.29\00:22:40.89
Not being as judgmental as I had
00:22:40.89\00:22:42.42
expected and being inquisitive
00:22:42.42\00:22:44.93
of what I was going through and
00:22:44.93\00:22:46.29
my experiences really helped to
00:22:46.29\00:22:48.10
bring me back.
00:22:48.10\00:22:49.16
And I'm sure the prayers that
00:22:49.16\00:22:50.50
they prayed also helped
00:22:50.50\00:22:52.17
immensely in God reaching out to
00:22:52.17\00:22:54.14
me and helping me to get back to
00:22:54.14\00:22:55.74
faith and back to Him.
00:22:55.74\00:22:57.14
[somber music playing]
00:22:57.81\00:23:01.08
¤¤
00:23:01.08\00:23:08.15
[ERIC] Well, first of all, I'd
00:23:08.15\00:23:09.45
like to give the honour and
00:23:09.45\00:23:12.29
glory to God for answering our
00:23:12.29\00:23:15.52
prayers.
00:23:15.52\00:23:16.52
It was tough to see the things
00:23:17.53\00:23:21.13
that were happening and what he
00:23:21.13\00:23:22.50
was going through.
00:23:22.50\00:23:23.93
But the Lord saw us through.
00:23:24.20\00:23:27.10
He answered our prayers.
00:23:27.47\00:23:28.90
So I just want to tell other
00:23:28.90\00:23:31.37
parents out there,
00:23:31.37\00:23:32.81
there is hope.
00:23:32.81\00:23:33.94
And...
00:23:34.94\00:23:35.98
...thinking back, my parents
00:23:37.41\00:23:39.48
always prayed for me and my
00:23:39.48\00:23:41.98
experience wasn't always
00:23:41.98\00:23:44.45
perfect.
00:23:44.45\00:23:45.45
I had slipped away myself
00:23:45.92\00:23:48.72
many times, but I always hung
00:23:48.72\00:23:50.99
in there.
00:23:50.99\00:23:51.99
And it's the prayers of the
00:23:52.63\00:23:53.80
parents...
00:23:53.80\00:23:54.86
...that make the difference.
00:23:55.93\00:23:57.60
>> Josh, I really like the
00:24:01.60\00:24:02.77
statement that you made to
00:24:02.77\00:24:04.67
respond and not react.
00:24:04.67\00:24:07.08
And I think that's what us as
00:24:07.08\00:24:08.81
parents need to do, too.
00:24:08.81\00:24:10.38
We need to respond in love and
00:24:10.38\00:24:13.15
not to react with the guilt and
00:24:13.15\00:24:16.25
the shame and the rules and "you
00:24:16.25\00:24:19.32
should have, you should have,"
00:24:19.32\00:24:20.52
but just...
00:24:20.52\00:24:21.29
>> Which is all driven by fear,
00:24:21.29\00:24:22.52
right?
00:24:22.52\00:24:23.06
>> That's correct, yeah.
00:24:23.06\00:24:24.89
But we don't need to have fear
00:24:24.89\00:24:27.13
because perfect love casts out
00:24:27.13\00:24:29.03
all fear.
00:24:29.03\00:24:29.73
We just have to have faith that
00:24:29.80\00:24:32.17
God is gonna save our children
00:24:32.17\00:24:33.80
and that He-- because He loves
00:24:33.80\00:24:35.70
them more than what we do.
00:24:35.70\00:24:36.97
[JOSH] Yes, absolutely.
00:24:36.97\00:24:38.07
RENÉ] So... Mm-hm.
00:24:38.07\00:24:39.24
[MIKE] So Josh, we've come to
00:24:39.24\00:24:40.38
end of our time together, but
00:24:40.38\00:24:41.81
I'd like to ask you to pray.
00:24:41.81\00:24:43.38
Pray for parents, grandparents
00:24:43.38\00:24:46.25
who are perhaps worried, that
00:24:46.25\00:24:49.92
they can hold on to the promises
00:24:49.92\00:24:51.72
of God, to claim promises like
00:24:51.72\00:24:54.49
Isaiah 49:25 that "I will save
00:24:54.49\00:24:57.03
your children says the Lord."
00:24:57.03\00:24:58.83
And also pray for those who may
00:24:58.83\00:25:01.73
have left the faith, you know,
00:25:01.73\00:25:03.60
children, grandchildren who have
00:25:03.60\00:25:05.37
drifted away, that they will
00:25:05.37\00:25:06.74
hear the voice of God, that
00:25:06.74\00:25:08.27
they will come back, they'll be
00:25:08.27\00:25:09.40
drawn back to His love.
00:25:09.40\00:25:10.74
Maybe even those-- pray for
00:25:10.74\00:25:12.44
those who have never heard the
00:25:12.44\00:25:14.61
voice of God, don't know Him at
00:25:14.61\00:25:16.28
all, have never gone to church,
00:25:16.28\00:25:18.55
that they can hear Him now,
00:25:18.55\00:25:21.08
calling them and drawing them
00:25:21.08\00:25:23.02
with His love and showing them a
00:25:23.02\00:25:25.32
better way to live.
00:25:25.32\00:25:26.89
[JOSH] Absolutely.
00:25:27.12\00:25:28.22
Let's pray.
00:25:28.22\00:25:28.99
[MIKE] Let's pray.
00:25:28.99\00:25:29.89
[JOSH] Dear Heavenly Father, we
00:25:30.06\00:25:31.43
just wanna thank You so much for
00:25:31.43\00:25:32.93
being with us today.
00:25:32.93\00:25:34.36
We thank You for the opportunity
00:25:34.36\00:25:36.40
to just share a little bit about
00:25:36.40\00:25:38.40
how You've worked in my life,
00:25:38.40\00:25:40.64
putting me in Your hands of
00:25:40.64\00:25:41.97
grace.
00:25:41.97\00:25:42.64
And I just wanna pray for all
00:25:42.64\00:25:44.24
the parents and grandparents who
00:25:44.24\00:25:46.07
might be fearful right now,
00:25:46.07\00:25:47.41
might be afraid of losing their
00:25:47.41\00:25:49.34
children, losing them to drugs,
00:25:49.34\00:25:51.98
alcohol, pornography, any of the
00:25:51.98\00:25:54.32
things that are just relevant in
00:25:54.32\00:25:56.02
this world to distract them from
00:25:56.02\00:25:58.69
the loving relationship that You
00:25:58.69\00:26:00.12
want them to have, to experience
00:26:00.12\00:26:02.19
life to its fullest.
00:26:02.19\00:26:03.53
And I just pray that You would
00:26:04.19\00:26:05.56
be with the parents, to claim
00:26:05.56\00:26:07.23
the promises of the Bible.
00:26:07.23\00:26:08.90
As Pastor Mike shared, You will
00:26:08.90\00:26:10.43
save those children, Lord, if
00:26:10.43\00:26:12.27
the people and the parents and
00:26:12.27\00:26:13.97
the family pray.
00:26:13.97\00:26:15.27
And I also just wanna pray, God,
00:26:15.27\00:26:16.74
for those who have not had a
00:26:16.74\00:26:18.07
faith-based experience, who
00:26:18.07\00:26:19.61
don't know You, that their
00:26:19.61\00:26:21.18
hearts may be open to You, that
00:26:21.18\00:26:23.11
they may hear Your voice, and
00:26:23.11\00:26:24.71
especially those who have left
00:26:24.71\00:26:26.72
that, God, You will bring them
00:26:26.72\00:26:28.45
back to the fold in such a
00:26:28.45\00:26:29.98
mighty and powerful way.
00:26:29.98\00:26:31.15
Thank You so much for this time
00:26:31.52\00:26:33.22
and bless everyone watching.
00:26:33.22\00:26:34.72
In Jesus' name we pray, amen.
00:26:34.72\00:26:36.73
[MIKE & RENÉ] Amen.
00:26:36.73\00:26:37.86
>> Josh, thank you so much for
00:26:38.19\00:26:39.76
joining us on It Is Written
00:26:39.76\00:26:41.26
Canada today and sharing your
00:26:41.26\00:26:43.20
testimony.
00:26:43.20\00:26:44.33
>> And thank you so much for
00:26:44.33\00:26:45.23
having me.
00:26:45.23\00:26:45.93
I feel so blessed.
00:26:45.93\00:26:47.00
>> Friends, whenever life
00:26:49.30\00:26:50.47
doesn't make sense or I'm
00:26:50.47\00:26:51.97
feeling down and discouraged, I
00:26:51.97\00:26:53.58
pick up this little book, Help
00:26:53.58\00:26:55.11
in Daily Living, and we would
00:26:55.11\00:26:56.85
like to send this book to you
00:26:56.85\00:26:58.58
free of charge.
00:26:58.58\00:26:59.78
>> If you're feeling like the
00:26:59.78\00:27:01.15
wheels are falling off and your
00:27:01.15\00:27:02.72
life is becoming unglued, or if
00:27:02.72\00:27:05.52
your wheels are simply spinning
00:27:05.52\00:27:07.36
and you're not getting anywhere,
00:27:07.36\00:27:09.39
you will find solutions in this
00:27:09.39\00:27:11.36
little book, Help in Daily
00:27:11.36\00:27:13.09
Living.
00:27:13.09\00:27:14.10
Before you go, we would like to
00:27:16.60\00:27:18.53
thank all of you who have
00:27:18.53\00:27:20.00
supported the ministry of It Is
00:27:20.00\00:27:21.70
Written Canada, with your
00:27:21.70\00:27:23.51
prayers and financial
00:27:23.51\00:27:25.11
contributions.
00:27:25.11\00:27:26.91
Without your support, this
00:27:26.91\00:27:28.98
television ministry could not
00:27:28.98\00:27:30.71
have reached so many people for
00:27:30.71\00:27:33.28
so many decades.
00:27:33.28\00:27:34.75
>> Yes, thank you.
00:27:34.75\00:27:35.82
And we would also like to invite
00:27:35.82\00:27:37.19
you to follow us on Instagram
00:27:37.19\00:27:38.52
and Facebook and subscribe to
00:27:38.52\00:27:40.06
our YouTube channel and also
00:27:40.06\00:27:41.79
listen to our podcasts.
00:27:41.79\00:27:43.36
And if you go to our website,
00:27:43.36\00:27:45.36
you can see our latest programs.
00:27:45.36\00:27:47.73
>> You, too, can experience the
00:27:48.06\00:27:50.00
fullness of life found in the
00:27:50.00\00:27:51.57
words of Jesus when He said,
00:27:51.57\00:27:54.00
"It is written, 'Man shall not
00:27:54.00\00:27:56.34
live by bread alone, but by
00:27:56.34\00:27:59.04
every word that proceeds out of
00:27:59.04\00:28:01.68
the mouth of God.'"
00:28:01.68\00:28:03.11
¤¤
00:28:03.11\00:28:22.43
>>And he's actually been--
00:28:22.43\00:28:24.17
gotten us back on track.
00:28:25.10\00:28:26.97
I meant to say that he has
00:28:26.97\00:28:30.01
really been an influence for us
00:28:30.01\00:28:33.27
to get more closer to God.
00:28:33.27\00:28:37.38
Josh says, "Guys, you gotta
00:28:38.15\00:28:39.98
wake up.
00:28:39.98\00:28:41.15
The Lord's coming soon, so we
00:28:41.15\00:28:42.75
have to get ready."
00:28:42.75\00:28:44.15
So he was quite a positive
00:28:44.55\00:28:46.52
influence on our lives, too.
00:28:46.52\00:28:48.72
So we're thankful for that.
00:28:49.26\00:28:51.06