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>> Hello and welcome to It Is
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Written Canada.
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Thank you for joining us.
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In our program today you will
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witness how God is more than a
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story in a dusty book.
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>> Yes, God is much more than a
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religious building, a doctrine
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that seeks to explain Him, a
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painting hoping to capture the
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features of God or a
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well-rehearsed choir whose songs
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to Him inspire audiences around
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the globe.
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God is alive
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and you can trust Him
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completely.
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Our special guest, Pastor Don
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MacLafferty, knows from multiple
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personal experiences how God has
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never failed him and how God
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will never fail you.
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>> Whether you are going through
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puzzling predicaments, dangerous
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dilemmas or heart wrenching
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hardships, we invite you to
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listen carefully and prayerfully
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to Don's personal faith-building
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adventures.
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May they open the eyes of your
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heart to see how God still
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lives, even when you wonder.
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>> Don, welcome to It Is Written
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Canada.
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>> Thank you.
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I'm excited to be in Canada
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again.
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>> And, Don, you're a revivalist
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and a missionary and you train
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people to be disciples
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for Jesus.
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[DON] Yes.
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[RENÉ] Can you tell us about
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your In Discipleship training
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program?
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[DON] Yes.
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Our In Discipleship training
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program is focused on helping
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young and old
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be equipped on how
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to call children, youth, and
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adults to revival.
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And then once people are called
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back to Jesus Christ through
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revival, how to train these same
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people to be disciples and
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disciple makers, how to live as
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a disciple of Jesus, like
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through the day, every day.
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And then how to disciple,
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especially the new generations
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coming up.
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[MIKE] So your focus
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is not just...
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...handing it off to the church,
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but it's actually equipping the
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family and
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in that, you yourself
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work with your wife, April.
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[DON] Yes.
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[MIKE] How do you work together?
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Tell us about that.
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>> We've been married 35 years
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and all during those 35 years,
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we walk together hand in hand.
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But that's also true of our
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marriage.
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And so she is my best friend
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after Jesus, and she's my
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confidant, and she is also my
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prayer partner.
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And so having her to be able to
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pray with and to bounce ideas
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off with and to take major faith
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steps together, that's just a
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huge thing to me in my life.
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[RENÉ] Mm-hmm, that's beautiful.
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And you know what, Don, when we
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work together like that and
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we're such a powerful team, the
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Devil is angry...
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[DON] Oh, yes.
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[RENÉ] ...and he does not like
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it at all.
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[DON] No.
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[RENÉ] So can you tell us about
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a time that April was attacked?
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[DON] Yes.
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Well, about 18 months ago, all
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of a sudden, when I came back
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from a mission, I think I was in
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Africa, I came back and
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I said, "Babe," I said,
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"What's this on your forehead
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right here?"
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And make a long story short, she
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said, "Well, I just ran into
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something while you were gone,"
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and she said, "It's not healing,
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but it should be okay."
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Well, long story short, we found
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out that she had stage four
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lymphoma, and that's aggressive,
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large B-cell.
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And this is with-- this was
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very, very shocking to us
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because we walk together every
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day, we have a good diet, we
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have good exercise.
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Not that cancer can't come to
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anybody, it just surprised us
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because we had no...
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[RENÉ] It was totally
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unexpected.
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[DON] Totally unexpected.
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Yes.
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[MIKE] And besides, I mean, this
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is really hard on you and April
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going through this.
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How are you doing it?
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>> How are we coping with it?
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[MIKE] Yes.
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>> Well, with Jesus,
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to be honest with you.
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So the day after we got even
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part of this diagnosis, we
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decided to take a day of prayer
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and fasting and ask God
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what we should ask of Him.
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That might sound funny because
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some people think that, of
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course, if you believe in God,
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then God's gonna heal you.
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But we know that God has a
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thousand ways to provide of
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which we know nothing.
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And so we fasted and prayed and
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said, "God, what should we ask
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of You?"
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And God impressed us in our
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situation, not saying that it's
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for all those watching, but for
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us in our situation, He said,
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"Focus rather not on the healing
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of April, focus on crying out to
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Me that she'll be full of the
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peace of Jesus and that
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believers and unbelievers will
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come to Christ through her
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testimony and our testimony as a
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couple through this challenge."
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So it's a different perspective.
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You following me there?
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Very, very different
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perspective.
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And I've actually watched this
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last 18 months as my dear wife
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has been wrapped up with the
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peace of Jesus,
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knowing that we don't know
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about tomorrow.
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We honestly don't know because
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with that kind of diagnosis,
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even though that she is in
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remission right now, that
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diagnosis is very dangerous.
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We know it can come back
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any time.
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So we don't know tomorrow, but
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we know who does know tomorrow
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and that's Jesus.
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[MIKE] Absolutely.
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[DON] So we are resting in Him.
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[MIKE] Absolutely.
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[RENÉ] And so you have an
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unbreakable peace, Don...
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[DON] Yes, yes.
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[RENÉ] ...the two of you.
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[DON] Yes.
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[MIKE] Yeah.
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[RENÉ] And God blessed you with
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three beautiful children.
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[DON] Amen.
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[RENÉ] Jason, Julie, and Jess.
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So Jason was first and then you
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had two girls?
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[DON] Yes.
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[RENÉ] So can you tell us
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about a time
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that God convicted both
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you and April
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that Jason and Julie
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had to go with you on a mission
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trip into a closed country?
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[DON] Yes.
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[RENÉ] A dangerous place.
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[DON] Yes.
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[RENÉ] So can you walk us
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through how that happened and
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how you dealt with it and how
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the children dealt with it, too?
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>> When Jason and Julie were
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teenagers,
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God gave me another invitation
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to go back to a closed country
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that I'd been to before.
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When I say closed country,
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closed country to the Gospel.
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It's illegal to disciple for
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for Jesus there, make disciples
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for Jesus, it's illegal for
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parents to even disciple their
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children to Jesus.
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You get the idea.
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And when I received this
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invitation from believers inside
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that country to come and train
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them, they, like, they were
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hungry to be trained.
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And I prayed about it, but as I
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prayed, I had the overwhelming
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conviction that I should have
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Jason and Julie go with me.
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Well, that's quite a conviction.
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But then I thought, I needed to
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share this with my prayer
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partner, my faith partner, my
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life partner, all three and one.
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That's April,
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my beloved wife.
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And I remember going up to her
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and I said, "Well," I said,
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"I'm getting ready to go on
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this trip."
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She said, "Yes, and I'm praying
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for you."
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And I said, "Well, what about if
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you prayed for not just me?
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What if you prayed for Jason and
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Julie and me?"
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"Why?"
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"Because I believe that I should
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take our children and let them
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experience the power of God in
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this closed country."
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"Have you prayed about this?"
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she asked me.
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And I said, "Yes, I have."
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She said, "Well, that's good,"
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but she said, "I'm the mother,"
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and she said, "I need to pray
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about this, I need to have
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peace about it."
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So I said, "Absolutely,
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you pray on it."
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So I prayed, she prayed apart.
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And then, that's what we do, we
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pray apart and together, apart
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and together until we know we
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have a unity.
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And that means God can change
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me, He can change her.
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He can change both of us.
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So she came back several days
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later and she said, "Oh," she
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said, "This is really stretching
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my faith.
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However, I believe that God's
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calling you to go with Jason
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and Julie.
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So you go with my blessing."
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So can you imagine as a mother,
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how close would you hug
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your girls if that was
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you in this story?
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So she hugged me fiercely and
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she hugged our two eldest kids
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with all her might and we said
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goodbye.
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I remember that as we started
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over, leaving from the United
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States to this faraway country,
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we had a good talk as a daddy
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and two teenagers.
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And I said, "You know, if you
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are separated from us, from me
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I should say, and they question
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you, rely on the Holy Spirit
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because the Holy Spirit will
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teach you what to say."
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We had serious conversations.
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I said, "If when we go into the
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airport and we walk," I said,
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"there's gonna be a big line
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across the cement.
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When you cross that line there's
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no more freedom
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and they may separate us and it
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may be very, very even emotional
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to see-- they may drag me away
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if they suspect that I am
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actually a missionary for Jesus
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coming in, they may want to
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question me apart from you."
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They nodded their heads very
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gravely, very seriously, and
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said, "Okay, Dad."
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And I said, "Remember that
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you're never alone and Jesus is
00:09:54.79\00:09:56.26
always with you and the gift of
00:09:56.26\00:09:58.23
the Holy Spirit means that the
00:09:58.23\00:09:59.59
Holy Spirit will guide you and
00:09:59.59\00:10:00.90
teach you what to say."
00:10:00.90\00:10:02.16
So we had all these
00:10:02.96\00:10:03.60
conversations, very serious
00:10:03.60\00:10:04.57
conversations, landed in the
00:10:04.57\00:10:06.00
airport and my heart was
00:10:06.00\00:10:07.84
thumping as a daddy, and I can
00:10:07.84\00:10:09.90
see there's this big, huge line
00:10:09.90\00:10:11.81
in the cement.
00:10:11.81\00:10:12.87
And when you walk across the
00:10:12.87\00:10:14.48
line, you are leaving your
00:10:14.48\00:10:16.04
freedom and your religious
00:10:16.04\00:10:17.01
freedom.
00:10:17.01\00:10:18.11
So we went right up there and
00:10:18.11\00:10:20.25
the person at the desk, you
00:10:20.25\00:10:21.35
know, immigration, you know,
00:10:21.35\00:10:23.35
asked us for our passports.
00:10:23.35\00:10:24.79
He looked at them and he said,
00:10:24.79\00:10:26.29
"So you're a daddy
00:10:26.29\00:10:28.92
of these two teenagers?"
00:10:28.92\00:10:30.33
I said, "Yes, sir."
00:10:30.33\00:10:31.99
And then I was praying, praying,
00:10:31.99\00:10:33.76
praying.
00:10:33.76\00:10:34.56
And this immigration officer
00:10:34.56\00:10:35.96
looks us right in the eye and
00:10:35.96\00:10:36.90
they said, "Fantastic, welcome
00:10:36.90\00:10:38.90
to our country.
00:10:38.90\00:10:39.87
I'm so glad that you came as a
00:10:39.87\00:10:41.37
family to visit us."
00:10:41.37\00:10:43.14
I could have hugged him,
00:10:43.14\00:10:44.07
but I didn't.
00:10:44.07\00:10:45.04
But I was so excited and...
00:10:45.04\00:10:47.48
So that's the way we came into
00:10:47.48\00:10:48.84
the closed country, closed
00:10:48.84\00:10:51.25
to the gospel.
00:10:51.25\00:10:52.18
[MIKE] Wow, praise God.
00:10:52.18\00:10:53.05
[DON] So we went into this
00:10:53.05\00:10:55.28
country, we got to our secret
00:10:55.28\00:10:58.19
place where the believers were
00:10:58.19\00:10:59.35
meeting and where we were to
00:10:59.35\00:11:01.16
hold meetings for Jesus just
00:11:01.16\00:11:03.22
for them to train them on how to
00:11:03.22\00:11:04.93
disciple their children
00:11:04.93\00:11:06.16
for Jesus.
00:11:06.16\00:11:07.40
It was breakfast the first
00:11:07.40\00:11:08.50
morning and we came down from
00:11:08.50\00:11:11.17
the little place where we were
00:11:11.17\00:11:12.17
staying and Jason and Julie,
00:11:12.17\00:11:13.94
their eyes were big, like,
00:11:13.94\00:11:15.54
what's this gonna look like?
00:11:15.54\00:11:16.60
What are we gonna have
00:11:16.60\00:11:17.24
for breakfast?
00:11:17.24\00:11:17.87
Oh, you'll see.
00:11:17.87\00:11:18.91
And we walked down there and
00:11:18.91\00:11:20.14
they said, "No one talks
00:11:20.14\00:11:21.78
like us.
00:11:21.78\00:11:22.48
And...
00:11:22.48\00:11:23.81
...what is this they're eating?"
00:11:24.85\00:11:25.98
It was all very different
00:11:25.98\00:11:26.98
for them.
00:11:26.98\00:11:27.92
And I said, "You know what,
00:11:27.92\00:11:28.98
let's just be praying and the
00:11:28.98\00:11:30.32
Holy Spirit will show us
00:11:30.32\00:11:32.05
who to sit with."
00:11:32.05\00:11:33.22
Now, this was all believers in a
00:11:33.22\00:11:34.62
very protected place.
00:11:34.62\00:11:36.86
So we walk across the crowded
00:11:36.86\00:11:38.46
little area and there was an
00:11:38.46\00:11:40.46
elegantly dressed woman sitting
00:11:40.46\00:11:43.26
there by herself.
00:11:43.26\00:11:44.83
And the Holy Spirit impressed
00:11:44.83\00:11:46.37
me, take your children and go
00:11:46.37\00:11:49.34
sit with her with your meal.
00:11:49.34\00:11:50.67
So we sat down and we said, "Can
00:11:50.67\00:11:52.51
we eat with you?"
00:11:52.51\00:11:53.88
She said, in crisp English,
00:11:53.88\00:11:56.08
which is rare in that part of
00:11:56.08\00:11:57.21
the world, she said, "Oh, yes.
00:11:57.21\00:11:59.21
Is this your family?"
00:11:59.21\00:12:00.55
I said, "Yes."
00:12:00.55\00:12:01.45
I said, "These are our two
00:12:01.45\00:12:02.52
oldest children.
00:12:02.52\00:12:03.42
My wife and our youngest is back
00:12:03.42\00:12:05.72
at home."
00:12:05.72\00:12:06.55
She said, "Well, I'd be happy to
00:12:06.55\00:12:07.76
have you...
00:12:07.76\00:12:08.66
...eat with me."
00:12:09.26\00:12:10.19
So we started eating and I said,
00:12:10.19\00:12:12.23
"What does your husband do?"
00:12:12.23\00:12:13.83
And she looked at me, like,
00:12:13.83\00:12:16.20
really intently, like, why was
00:12:16.20\00:12:18.40
I asking that?
00:12:18.40\00:12:19.83
And she proceeded to say what
00:12:19.83\00:12:21.67
his position was in the
00:12:21.67\00:12:22.87
government and my heart started
00:12:22.87\00:12:25.07
racing because he had a high,
00:12:25.07\00:12:28.11
high position in government and
00:12:28.11\00:12:30.78
I knew that her husband had the
00:12:30.78\00:12:33.38
power to turn me into the
00:12:33.38\00:12:35.78
government because I was there
00:12:35.78\00:12:37.75
training for Jesus in a country
00:12:37.75\00:12:39.65
where you're not supposed
00:12:39.65\00:12:40.46
to do that.
00:12:40.46\00:12:41.52
You follow me in the situation.
00:12:41.52\00:12:43.59
So I was processing this
00:12:43.59\00:12:46.33
and I was thinking,
00:12:46.33\00:12:47.13
"I wonder if she's safe."
00:12:47.13\00:12:48.40
Here's my two teenage children
00:12:48.40\00:12:50.17
on the other side of the table.
00:12:50.17\00:12:51.77
Is she a plant for the
00:12:51.77\00:12:53.10
government?
00:12:53.10\00:12:53.64
You know what I mean?
00:12:53.64\00:12:54.47
Is she a spy, is she safe?
00:12:54.47\00:12:56.04
And I prayed and the Holy Spirit
00:12:56.04\00:12:57.54
said, "Trust her."
00:12:57.54\00:12:59.31
So I just smiled at her and kept
00:13:00.04\00:13:02.41
talking and sharing.
00:13:02.41\00:13:03.95
And before I knew it, the Holy
00:13:03.95\00:13:05.41
Spirit, just like this, just
00:13:05.41\00:13:07.12
impressed my heart to ask her
00:13:07.12\00:13:09.28
another question.
00:13:09.28\00:13:10.65
I said, "Do you think your
00:13:10.65\00:13:11.65
husband would like to come to
00:13:11.65\00:13:12.75
this training?"
00:13:12.75\00:13:13.82
As soon as I said that, I just
00:13:13.82\00:13:15.56
thought, "Can I-- what made me
00:13:15.56\00:13:17.53
say that?
00:13:17.53\00:13:18.36
That's a crazy thing!
00:13:18.36\00:13:19.56
He's a last person that I want
00:13:19.56\00:13:21.06
to come to this training!”
00:13:21.06\00:13:22.56
But I knew that the Holy Spirit
00:13:22.56\00:13:23.87
told me to say that.
00:13:23.87\00:13:25.47
She looked at me again like
00:13:25.47\00:13:26.43
this, like just startled.
00:13:26.43\00:13:27.77
"You, you, you, you," kind of
00:13:28.44\00:13:29.90
stuttering with me,
00:13:29.90\00:13:31.24
"You wanna ask my husband to
00:13:31.24\00:13:33.14
come to this training?"
00:13:33.14\00:13:34.84
And I said, I swallowed, I said,
00:13:35.78\00:13:38.31
"Yes," I put my biggest smile
00:13:38.31\00:13:40.02
on, "Wouldn't be wonderful
00:13:40.02\00:13:41.48
if he came?"
00:13:41.48\00:13:42.68
And she said, "I think I need to
00:13:43.15\00:13:45.09
think about that a little bit."
00:13:45.09\00:13:47.12
And I was thinking internally,
00:13:47.12\00:13:48.52
"I think I need to think about
00:13:48.52\00:13:49.62
that some more."
00:13:49.62\00:13:51.06
And I said, "Let's do this: you
00:13:51.06\00:13:53.29
pray tonight and Jason and Julie
00:13:53.29\00:13:55.56
and I will pray tonight and then
00:13:55.56\00:13:58.03
if we both agree in the morning
00:13:58.03\00:13:59.77
at breakfast, then why don't you
00:13:59.77\00:14:02.00
ask him?"
00:14:02.00\00:14:03.10
And I was starting to backpedal
00:14:03.77\00:14:05.14
a little bit.
00:14:05.14\00:14:05.74
I was getting a little bit
00:14:05.74\00:14:06.61
nervous that, oh, yes, I knew
00:14:06.61\00:14:08.78
that God had told me, but I was
00:14:08.78\00:14:10.45
starting to think about what
00:14:10.45\00:14:12.08
would happen if he came and
00:14:12.08\00:14:14.18
threw me into jail, threw our
00:14:14.18\00:14:16.35
children into jail.
00:14:16.35\00:14:17.99
The next morning we come with
00:14:17.99\00:14:19.79
our trays of food and we sit
00:14:19.79\00:14:22.26
down beside her.
00:14:22.26\00:14:23.83
And she gave me a big smile and
00:14:23.83\00:14:25.99
she said, "Guess what?"
00:14:25.99\00:14:27.66
I said, "What?"
00:14:27.66\00:14:28.90
"He's coming."
00:14:28.90\00:14:29.53
I said, "Who's coming?"
00:14:29.53\00:14:31.03
"My husband's coming."
00:14:31.03\00:14:32.40
I said, "I thought we were gonna
00:14:32.40\00:14:33.27
pray about it first.
00:14:33.27\00:14:34.14
I thought we were going to talk
00:14:34.14\00:14:35.17
together first."
00:14:35.17\00:14:36.67
And she said, "Well, you said
00:14:36.67\00:14:37.74
you were praying.
00:14:37.74\00:14:38.61
Well, I prayed, too, and God
00:14:38.61\00:14:40.64
convicted me I should be bold
00:14:40.64\00:14:42.01
and invite my husband to come to
00:14:42.01\00:14:43.38
the training.
00:14:43.38\00:14:44.15
So he's already on the way."
00:14:44.15\00:14:45.55
I said, "Eh-hem, that's...that's
00:14:46.78\00:14:49.28
wonderful."
00:14:49.28\00:14:50.52
And here's what happened.
00:14:50.52\00:14:53.05
We started the training and we
00:14:53.05\00:14:55.22
are well into it.
00:14:55.22\00:14:56.89
Here is my teenage children
00:14:56.89\00:14:58.33
beside me, here is this elegant
00:14:58.33\00:15:00.73
woman, you know, that's, that is
00:15:00.73\00:15:03.00
the wife of a high up
00:15:03.00\00:15:04.57
government official.
00:15:04.57\00:15:06.00
And I'm well into the training,
00:15:06.00\00:15:07.50
right in the middle of teaching
00:15:07.50\00:15:08.57
about Jesus and how to be a
00:15:08.57\00:15:09.84
disciple of Jesus and disciple
00:15:09.84\00:15:11.24
the new generations, everything
00:15:11.24\00:15:12.81
that's illegal to talk about,
00:15:12.81\00:15:14.71
and the door opens.
00:15:14.71\00:15:16.68
And here comes this smartly
00:15:16.68\00:15:18.21
dressed man with some kind of
00:15:18.21\00:15:20.65
insignia on him that means
00:15:20.65\00:15:21.95
nothing to me, but I will tell
00:15:21.95\00:15:23.45
you that when the believers in
00:15:23.45\00:15:24.79
the room saw his dress,
00:15:24.79\00:15:27.72
like, his style and the
00:15:27.72\00:15:29.16
insignia, they gasped.
00:15:29.16\00:15:31.03
Like, "How did he get in here?
00:15:31.03\00:15:32.93
How did he know, you know, that
00:15:32.93\00:15:34.56
he's, that we are here?"
00:15:34.56\00:15:36.83
And he walked right across in
00:15:36.83\00:15:39.40
front of me, you know, between
00:15:39.40\00:15:40.90
me and the audience, gave me a
00:15:40.90\00:15:42.94
polite nod, sat down.
00:15:42.94\00:15:45.31
And I thought, "Lord, what do I
00:15:45.31\00:15:46.57
do?" and the Holy Spirit said,
00:15:46.57\00:15:48.34
"Keep on sharing about Jesus."
00:15:48.34\00:15:50.61
So I kept on sharing, but to my
00:15:50.61\00:15:52.61
consternation, he took out a
00:15:52.61\00:15:54.65
satchel and writing paper.
00:15:54.65\00:15:57.75
Then he took out a fine pen and
00:15:57.75\00:15:59.85
he looked at me intently and
00:15:59.85\00:16:01.52
started writing notes on
00:16:01.52\00:16:03.26
everything I was saying.
00:16:03.26\00:16:04.76
"Oh, no!" I thought, "He's
00:16:04.76\00:16:06.59
getting evidence to take against
00:16:06.59\00:16:08.00
me and our children.
00:16:08.00\00:16:09.40
This is the worst possible
00:16:09.40\00:16:10.73
scenario."
00:16:10.73\00:16:12.07
And then after he did that for
00:16:12.07\00:16:13.67
about two hours, then he put it
00:16:13.67\00:16:15.70
all away, put it into his
00:16:15.70\00:16:17.21
satchel, stood up right in the
00:16:17.21\00:16:18.91
middle of my presentation,
00:16:18.91\00:16:20.51
walked right in front of me
00:16:20.51\00:16:21.64
between me and the audience,
00:16:21.64\00:16:23.14
went out the door and politely
00:16:23.14\00:16:24.51
closed the door.
00:16:24.51\00:16:25.61
Oh, no, I know what he's doing
00:16:25.61\00:16:27.22
now, he's taking it--
00:16:27.22\00:16:28.38
well, what do you think?
00:16:28.38\00:16:29.58
[MIKE] To the police.
00:16:29.58\00:16:30.25
[DON] He's gonna take it to the
00:16:30.25\00:16:30.89
police station and turn me in.
00:16:30.89\00:16:32.99
So he's gone for quite a while,
00:16:32.99\00:16:35.09
hours go by and it's the end of
00:16:35.09\00:16:37.93
the day now.
00:16:37.93\00:16:39.09
And so I gather Jason and Julie,
00:16:39.09\00:16:41.56
I said, "Let's go have some
00:16:41.56\00:16:43.77
supper by ourselves."
00:16:43.77\00:16:45.13
And the man is standing there
00:16:45.13\00:16:46.80
waiting for me outside the door
00:16:46.80\00:16:48.60
and I thought, "Oh no."
00:16:48.60\00:16:49.80
He has a box in his arms and he
00:16:49.80\00:16:51.71
says, "Here, this is a box
00:16:51.71\00:16:53.07
for you.
00:16:53.07\00:16:53.98
I brought you something."
00:16:53.98\00:16:55.58
And I'm thinking, "Oh, no, is
00:16:55.58\00:16:57.15
it-- is there something that's
00:16:57.15\00:16:58.55
gonna blow up in my face?"
00:16:58.55\00:17:00.22
I mean, and it's terrible to
00:17:00.22\00:17:01.52
think this way, but when you're
00:17:01.52\00:17:02.78
in such a country, you just
00:17:02.78\00:17:03.95
don't know.
00:17:03.95\00:17:05.25
And so I was thinking, "I think
00:17:05.25\00:17:07.76
I'll open it up and far away
00:17:07.76\00:17:09.22
from my kids."
00:17:09.22\00:17:10.16
And he said, "Open it, open it!"
00:17:10.16\00:17:11.43
Now, this is through a
00:17:11.43\00:17:12.16
translator because he couldn't
00:17:12.16\00:17:13.26
speak my language.
00:17:13.26\00:17:14.46
And I thought, "Oh, I guess I'd
00:17:14.46\00:17:16.43
better open it."
00:17:16.43\00:17:17.27
So I consciously open it and
00:17:17.27\00:17:19.07
it's full of a special kind of
00:17:19.07\00:17:20.90
fruit that he has in this
00:17:20.90\00:17:21.87
country.
00:17:21.87\00:17:22.87
"Oh, that's, uh, that's lovely."
00:17:22.87\00:17:25.01
My mind is instantly thinking,
00:17:25.01\00:17:27.41
"What if that has cyanide or
00:17:27.41\00:17:30.01
some crazy thing in it?" you
00:17:30.01\00:17:31.45
know, "Is he gonna poison me
00:17:31.45\00:17:32.88
and the kids?"
00:17:32.88\00:17:34.05
And he says, "Try it, try it!"
00:17:34.05\00:17:35.42
I was thinking, "Right here in
00:17:35.42\00:17:37.05
front of the kids?" and you
00:17:37.05\00:17:38.25
know, that's what I'm thinking.
00:17:38.25\00:17:39.39
So I try it and it is tasty.
00:17:39.39\00:17:42.32
And to make a long story short,
00:17:42.32\00:17:44.86
the Holy Spirit impressed me to
00:17:44.86\00:17:47.23
invite him and his wife to come
00:17:47.23\00:17:49.26
up and enjoy the fruit with us
00:17:49.26\00:17:51.07
up in the little apartment where
00:17:51.07\00:17:53.03
we were staying.
00:17:53.03\00:17:54.17
And so we get up there and...
00:17:54.64\00:17:56.97
...we sit around a table and
00:17:57.84\00:18:00.14
we're en-- and I think, I was
00:18:00.14\00:18:02.04
thinking now, "At home I always
00:18:02.04\00:18:03.51
pray, in a public restaurant I
00:18:03.51\00:18:05.75
always pray."
00:18:05.75\00:18:06.98
And I thought, "Well, he already
00:18:06.98\00:18:08.15
knows what I'm doing."
00:18:08.15\00:18:09.65
So I prayed a blessing on the
00:18:09.65\00:18:11.89
fruit and I really prayed a
00:18:11.89\00:18:13.56
blessing on the fruit in case
00:18:13.56\00:18:14.82
there was something in it.
00:18:14.82\00:18:16.39
And then we ate it and we
00:18:16.39\00:18:17.96
enjoyed it and it was a
00:18:17.96\00:18:18.93
wonderful time.
00:18:18.93\00:18:20.23
And I was thinking, "Okay, we're
00:18:20.23\00:18:21.43
almost down to the bottom of the
00:18:21.43\00:18:23.40
fruit and the hour is late.
00:18:23.40\00:18:25.83
It's time to go."
00:18:25.83\00:18:27.27
I was just thinking, "Ah, I can
00:18:27.27\00:18:29.04
sit back here.
00:18:29.04\00:18:29.94
Everything's gonna be fine.
00:18:29.94\00:18:31.04
I survived this.
00:18:31.04\00:18:32.61
We didn't die from the fruit, he
00:18:32.61\00:18:34.48
didn't turn us into the police.
00:18:34.48\00:18:36.24
Everything's great."
00:18:36.24\00:18:37.51
And that still, small voice of
00:18:37.51\00:18:38.98
God asked me to ask him a
00:18:38.98\00:18:41.12
question that I didn't wanna
00:18:41.12\00:18:42.48
ask him.
00:18:42.48\00:18:43.39
And I said, "My friend," I said,
00:18:44.02\00:18:46.76
"You have gone to several hours
00:18:46.76\00:18:48.49
of this training.
00:18:48.49\00:18:49.82
You know what I'm doing here,
00:18:49.82\00:18:51.39
I'm helping people to know about
00:18:51.39\00:18:52.73
Jesus and how to disciple their
00:18:52.73\00:18:54.56
children to Jesus."
00:18:54.56\00:18:56.23
And he looked at me right in the
00:18:56.23\00:18:57.50
eye very directly.
00:18:57.50\00:18:59.07
He said, "Yes, I'm taking
00:18:59.07\00:19:00.60
notes."
00:19:00.60\00:19:01.27
My heart is starting going like
00:19:01.27\00:19:02.64
this again.
00:19:02.64\00:19:03.71
And I said, "I am impressed to
00:19:03.71\00:19:05.57
ask you, what do you think about
00:19:05.57\00:19:07.18
the training?"
00:19:07.18\00:19:08.41
"Oh, it's very, very
00:19:08.41\00:19:10.05
interesting," he said.
00:19:10.05\00:19:11.75
Well, they didn't tell me if
00:19:11.75\00:19:12.71
that's a good or bad.
00:19:12.71\00:19:14.42
And again the Holy Spirit
00:19:14.42\00:19:15.68
coached me and I said, "My
00:19:15.68\00:19:17.75
friend," I said, "I'm impressed
00:19:17.75\00:19:19.95
to ask you the question,
00:19:19.95\00:19:22.29
what do you think about Jesus?
00:19:22.29\00:19:24.23
I'm asking you, are you a
00:19:25.76\00:19:28.20
follower of Jesus?"
00:19:28.20\00:19:29.56
Now, again, I didn't wanna ask
00:19:30.20\00:19:31.63
that question, but the Holy
00:19:31.63\00:19:32.83
Spirit guides us.
00:19:32.83\00:19:34.04
Scripture tells us He teaches us
00:19:34.04\00:19:35.54
what to say.
00:19:35.54\00:19:36.81
His poor little wife at his
00:19:36.81\00:19:38.31
side, [gasps] just like this,
00:19:38.31\00:19:39.51
took a gasp and her face
00:19:39.51\00:19:41.18
turned white.
00:19:41.18\00:19:42.24
She-- because this is not
00:19:42.24\00:19:43.48
something that she would talk
00:19:43.48\00:19:44.55
about with her own husband
00:19:44.55\00:19:46.41
behind closed doors.
00:19:46.41\00:19:47.65
It's just not.
00:19:48.52\00:19:49.75
And...
00:19:49.75\00:19:50.52
...he was very, very
00:19:51.02\00:19:52.99
careful.
00:19:52.99\00:19:54.06
And he looked me right in the
00:19:54.06\00:19:54.92
eye, like he was looking right
00:19:54.92\00:19:56.16
through me and he said, "You're
00:19:56.16\00:19:57.83
asking me a very difficult
00:19:57.83\00:19:59.56
question, aren't you?"
00:19:59.56\00:20:01.56
I said, "Yes, sir."
00:20:01.56\00:20:03.30
And he said, "You understand
00:20:04.03\00:20:06.30
that to be a follower of Jesus
00:20:06.30\00:20:08.10
and to be on my level of
00:20:08.10\00:20:09.94
government is almost
00:20:09.94\00:20:11.81
unheard of."
00:20:11.81\00:20:12.97
"Yes, sir."
00:20:12.97\00:20:14.48
He took a big breath and then he
00:20:15.14\00:20:18.08
said very quietly,
00:20:18.08\00:20:19.85
"Yes, I am
00:20:19.85\00:20:22.12
a follower of Jesus."
00:20:22.12\00:20:23.49
And his wife, you would have
00:20:24.12\00:20:25.22
thought she's gonna have a
00:20:25.22\00:20:26.05
heart attack.
00:20:26.05\00:20:26.86
She just looked up at him and
00:20:26.86\00:20:28.49
just her eyes just so big, and
00:20:28.49\00:20:30.76
she was trying to decide whether
00:20:30.76\00:20:32.03
to cry for joy, because she had
00:20:32.03\00:20:33.86
prayed in secret places for him
00:20:33.86\00:20:36.10
for year after year after year,
00:20:36.10\00:20:38.20
and he had never said this to
00:20:38.20\00:20:40.24
her, and she had never dared to
00:20:40.24\00:20:42.27
ask her own husband, that she
00:20:42.27\00:20:43.61
loved with all her heart,
00:20:43.61\00:20:45.04
this question.
00:20:45.04\00:20:46.44
And so I was just thinking,
00:20:46.44\00:20:47.91
"Wow, here is a believer in
00:20:47.91\00:20:50.18
Jesus in the highest places in
00:20:50.18\00:20:52.58
this government!"
00:20:52.58\00:20:53.65
And the Holy Spirit wasn't
00:20:53.65\00:20:54.75
finished.
00:20:54.75\00:20:55.55
"Ask him to pray."
00:20:55.55\00:20:57.19
Well, again, that's illegal to
00:20:57.79\00:20:59.32
do in this country and stronger,
00:20:59.32\00:21:01.99
He said, "Ask him to pray.
00:21:01.99\00:21:03.76
He said he's a follower
00:21:03.76\00:21:04.83
of Jesus.
00:21:04.83\00:21:05.39
Ask him to pray."
00:21:05.39\00:21:06.93
I said, "My good friend," I
00:21:06.93\00:21:09.03
said, "We would like to pray
00:21:09.03\00:21:10.60
around the circle.
00:21:10.60\00:21:11.57
Jason and Julia would like to
00:21:11.57\00:21:12.70
pray for God's blessing on you
00:21:12.70\00:21:14.20
and your wife.
00:21:14.20\00:21:15.37
And would you like to pray
00:21:15.37\00:21:16.81
before I close with prayer?"
00:21:16.81\00:21:19.14
And again, his wife's knuckles
00:21:19.14\00:21:21.08
were like this, this white, just
00:21:21.08\00:21:23.24
scared to death about
00:21:23.24\00:21:24.15
what this meant.
00:21:24.15\00:21:25.25
Never had she prayed in front of
00:21:25.25\00:21:27.15
him, much less ask him to pray
00:21:27.15\00:21:29.08
at the table for any meal.
00:21:29.08\00:21:30.79
And very quietly
00:21:31.39\00:21:33.19
he prayed
00:21:33.19\00:21:34.49
a simple, precious prayer from a
00:21:34.49\00:21:36.76
very highly educated man who had
00:21:36.76\00:21:39.33
little experience with prayer.
00:21:39.33\00:21:41.46
He had never prayed with
00:21:41.46\00:21:42.66
somebody before.
00:21:42.66\00:21:43.73
He had prayed before in private,
00:21:43.73\00:21:45.80
but never out loud.
00:21:45.80\00:21:47.50
This was his first time to
00:21:47.50\00:21:49.87
declare that he's a follower of
00:21:49.87\00:21:51.17
Jesus and to pray out loud.
00:21:51.17\00:21:53.54
And his wife just could barely
00:21:53.54\00:21:54.88
hold back the tears.
00:21:54.88\00:21:56.51
And my two children...
00:21:56.51\00:21:59.15
...were in awe, were
00:22:00.08\00:22:01.35
just in awe.
00:22:01.35\00:22:02.35
They were awestruck because they
00:22:02.35\00:22:03.52
got to see...
00:22:03.52\00:22:04.69
...the power of Jesus
00:22:05.62\00:22:07.62
to go in places that's
00:22:07.62\00:22:09.62
impossible for man to go.
00:22:09.62\00:22:11.76
[RENÉ] But, Don, this is so
00:22:13.29\00:22:14.96
amazing because I'm just trying
00:22:14.96\00:22:17.33
to picture what was happening in
00:22:17.33\00:22:20.04
his wife's heart
00:22:20.04\00:22:21.70
and how she was
00:22:21.70\00:22:23.30
trying to process all of this.
00:22:23.30\00:22:26.11
[DON] Yes.
00:22:26.11\00:22:26.88
>> Because she had attended
00:22:26.88\00:22:28.58
those meetings and obviously he
00:22:28.58\00:22:30.78
knew that she was attending
00:22:30.78\00:22:34.05
and then she finds out
00:22:34.05\00:22:35.88
that her husband
00:22:35.88\00:22:37.52
is a believer like her.
00:22:37.52\00:22:38.89
[DON] Yes, but a secret
00:22:38.89\00:22:40.12
believer.
00:22:40.12\00:22:40.82
[RENÉ] Yes.
00:22:40.82\00:22:41.82
That's beautiful.
00:22:42.52\00:22:44.23
Wow.
00:22:44.23\00:22:45.29
[DON] And you-- and I hope this
00:22:45.29\00:22:46.76
encourages
00:22:46.76\00:22:48.40
everyone viewing
00:22:48.40\00:22:49.96
that, you know, when you cry out
00:22:49.96\00:22:52.10
to God in secret for your
00:22:52.10\00:22:54.04
husband, for your wife, for your
00:22:54.04\00:22:56.00
children, for your
00:22:56.00\00:22:57.14
grandchildren, you see no
00:22:57.14\00:22:58.51
evidence that God is moving.
00:22:58.51\00:23:00.78
He is moving and He does answer
00:23:00.78\00:23:03.04
prayers and He is influencing
00:23:03.04\00:23:05.78
people even behind closed doors
00:23:05.78\00:23:08.35
and closed hearts.
00:23:08.35\00:23:10.02
[MIKE] Absolutely.
00:23:10.49\00:23:11.42
Don, this is, I guess I have to
00:23:12.25\00:23:14.76
pause for a moment because it's
00:23:14.76\00:23:16.36
so different from the way we
00:23:16.36\00:23:19.23
think here in Canada.
00:23:19.23\00:23:20.26
We have freedom of speech,
00:23:20.26\00:23:21.20
freedom of religion, freedom of
00:23:21.20\00:23:23.37
conscience, and you're talking
00:23:23.37\00:23:25.13
about a country where if you
00:23:25.13\00:23:27.27
express your thoughts or your
00:23:27.27\00:23:29.44
faith or your belief in any way,
00:23:29.44\00:23:31.64
you can be imprisoned, right?
00:23:31.64\00:23:33.98
So that's extremely dangerous.
00:23:33.98\00:23:36.31
So even, I mean, before we were
00:23:36.31\00:23:38.65
talking before we even came on
00:23:38.65\00:23:40.48
set that this is dangerous for
00:23:40.48\00:23:43.59
you to even, you know, you don't
00:23:43.59\00:23:45.85
tell where these people are or
00:23:45.85\00:23:47.42
what this country is or anything
00:23:47.42\00:23:48.59
like that because it's dangerous
00:23:48.59\00:23:50.16
for them.
00:23:50.16\00:23:50.99
[DON] I don't identify people's
00:23:50.99\00:23:52.46
names or country names,
00:23:52.46\00:23:54.46
any of that.
00:23:54.46\00:23:55.66
And I also respect that country,
00:23:55.66\00:23:57.97
too.
00:23:57.97\00:23:58.77
[MIKE] Absolutely.
00:23:58.77\00:23:59.77
So the people within that
00:23:59.77\00:24:00.90
country are really living when
00:24:00.90\00:24:03.57
they do express their faith in
00:24:03.57\00:24:05.01
Jesus, it's putting their whole
00:24:05.01\00:24:07.24
life on the line.
00:24:07.24\00:24:08.18
[DON] Yes, yes.
00:24:08.18\00:24:09.31
And especially, the bigger issue
00:24:09.31\00:24:11.58
is not only expressing it, but
00:24:11.58\00:24:14.22
if you're intentionally teaching
00:24:14.22\00:24:17.29
someone else how to be a
00:24:17.29\00:24:19.15
disciple of Jesus, that's
00:24:19.15\00:24:20.99
extremely dangerous.
00:24:20.99\00:24:22.42
>> We are very privileged.
00:24:22.42\00:24:24.06
But I wonder if, just a final
00:24:24.06\00:24:26.63
question, can I ask you to pray?
00:24:26.63\00:24:28.33
Pray for those people in those
00:24:28.33\00:24:30.10
countries, of course, and pray
00:24:30.10\00:24:32.17
for those who are viewing this
00:24:32.17\00:24:34.34
that they will have a
00:24:34.34\00:24:35.54
sense of...
00:24:35.54\00:24:36.81
...you know, their great
00:24:37.74\00:24:38.87
privileges, but also a sense
00:24:38.87\00:24:40.71
that God is real, that He
00:24:40.71\00:24:43.14
wants to work in their lives and
00:24:43.14\00:24:45.15
that they have a story, too, and
00:24:45.15\00:24:46.48
they have an experience that God
00:24:46.48\00:24:48.08
wants to work in their lives and
00:24:48.08\00:24:49.62
that they can see that He is
00:24:49.62\00:24:51.02
real, He is alive today.
00:24:51.02\00:24:52.39
[DON] Yes, amen.
00:24:52.39\00:24:53.66
Let's pray.
00:24:53.66\00:24:54.66
Dear Father in heaven, thank You
00:24:55.82\00:24:58.03
so much for being the living God
00:24:58.03\00:25:00.76
of heaven and Earth.
00:25:00.76\00:25:02.30
Thank You for hearing our
00:25:03.03\00:25:04.43
prayers, even when we wonder.
00:25:04.43\00:25:06.84
Thank You that You're the kind
00:25:07.64\00:25:09.60
of God that works behind the
00:25:09.60\00:25:11.51
scenes like in this story, so
00:25:11.51\00:25:13.84
that we can be encouraged when
00:25:13.84\00:25:15.24
we're praying for our husband or
00:25:15.24\00:25:17.85
we're praying for our wife or
00:25:17.85\00:25:19.15
praying for our children, when
00:25:19.15\00:25:20.62
we're praying for our
00:25:20.62\00:25:21.45
grandchildren, whoever we may
00:25:21.45\00:25:23.59
have on our heart right now that
00:25:23.59\00:25:26.19
may not be walking with You.
00:25:26.19\00:25:28.22
When we pray, You move.
00:25:28.22\00:25:30.59
Not to force the person, but to
00:25:30.59\00:25:32.33
love the person and draw the
00:25:32.33\00:25:33.96
person to You.
00:25:33.96\00:25:35.60
Please help us to
00:25:35.60\00:25:37.47
seize the day
00:25:37.47\00:25:38.97
in sharing You gently and
00:25:38.97\00:25:40.77
lovingly with our own family and
00:25:40.77\00:25:43.10
be with those closed countries
00:25:43.10\00:25:45.17
that struggle to have the same
00:25:45.17\00:25:46.91
opportunity.
00:25:46.91\00:25:47.98
In Jesus' name, amen.
00:25:47.98\00:25:49.68
[MIKE & RENÉ] Amen.
00:25:49.68\00:25:50.81
>> Don, thank you so much for
00:25:51.28\00:25:52.55
joining us today.
00:25:52.55\00:25:54.02
And we are not done with you and
00:25:54.02\00:25:56.28
I'm so excited about that
00:25:56.28\00:25:58.59
because you're gonna be back
00:25:58.59\00:26:00.06
here with us next week.
00:26:00.06\00:26:01.76
Can you give us a little bit of
00:26:01.76\00:26:03.59
a preview to what we have to
00:26:03.59\00:26:05.76
look forward to next week?
00:26:05.76\00:26:07.20
>> Next week, we want to deal
00:26:07.20\00:26:08.73
with how to forgive
00:26:08.73\00:26:11.10
the unforgivable.
00:26:11.10\00:26:12.83
What do we do with bitterness
00:26:12.83\00:26:14.87
when someone that we love and
00:26:14.87\00:26:16.37
trust hurts us in the deepest
00:26:16.37\00:26:18.31
level?
00:26:18.31\00:26:19.14
God has an answer.
00:26:19.14\00:26:20.61
[MIKE] He does have an answer.
00:26:20.61\00:26:21.74
And I'm sensing from what you're
00:26:21.74\00:26:23.91
saying that you've had to
00:26:23.91\00:26:25.25
wrestle with this personally.
00:26:25.25\00:26:26.95
[DON] Mm-hmm.
00:26:26.95\00:26:27.58
Oh, yes.
00:26:27.58\00:26:28.48
[MIKE] And I know that we
00:26:28.48\00:26:30.02
see this in ministry as you're a
00:26:30.02\00:26:31.89
pastor, but you go around the
00:26:31.89\00:26:33.19
world, and this is a big issue,
00:26:33.19\00:26:34.59
right, of forgiveness.
00:26:34.59\00:26:36.73
How do we forgive, as you said,
00:26:36.73\00:26:38.93
the unforgivable?
00:26:38.93\00:26:40.56
And some of these are horrific
00:26:40.56\00:26:42.23
experiences.
00:26:42.23\00:26:43.10
And so I look forward to you
00:26:43.10\00:26:44.87
sharing that with us next week.
00:26:44.87\00:26:46.87
[DON] Happy to do so.
00:26:46.87\00:26:48.20
>> Friends, our gift for you
00:26:50.27\00:26:52.34
today is Don MacLafferty's book,
00:26:52.34\00:26:54.71
God Still Lives Even When You
00:26:54.71\00:26:56.91
Wonder.
00:26:56.91\00:26:57.78
>> Don's true stories and
00:26:57.78\00:26:59.35
testimonies will encourage you
00:26:59.35\00:27:01.28
to trust God more fully
00:27:01.28\00:27:03.52
and completely.
00:27:03.52\00:27:04.92
>> We trust that our gift, Don's
00:27:04.92\00:27:07.42
book, God Still Lives Even When
00:27:07.42\00:27:09.82
You Wonder, will inspire you to
00:27:09.82\00:27:11.79
live by faith
00:27:11.79\00:27:13.56
and not by sight alone.
00:27:13.56\00:27:16.16
>> Before you go, we would also
00:27:17.20\00:27:19.13
like to thank all of you who
00:27:19.13\00:27:21.30
have supported the ministry of
00:27:21.30\00:27:22.34
It Is Written Canada with your
00:27:22.34\00:27:23.84
prayers and financial
00:27:23.84\00:27:25.44
contributions.
00:27:25.44\00:27:26.44
Without your support, this
00:27:26.44\00:27:28.24
television ministry could not
00:27:28.24\00:27:30.48
have reached so many people
00:27:30.48\00:27:32.58
for so many decades.
00:27:32.58\00:27:34.18
>> Yes, thank you.
00:27:34.18\00:27:35.75
And we would also like to invite
00:27:36.55\00:27:38.52
you to follow us on Instagram
00:27:38.52\00:27:40.42
and Facebook and subscribe to
00:27:40.42\00:27:42.56
our YouTube channel and also
00:27:42.56\00:27:45.03
listen to our podcasts.
00:27:45.03\00:27:47.30
And if you go to our website,
00:27:47.30\00:27:49.30
you can see our latest programs.
00:27:49.30\00:27:51.87
>> You, too, can experience the
00:27:51.87\00:27:53.37
fullness of life that is found
00:27:53.37\00:27:55.07
in the words of Jesus when He
00:27:55.07\00:27:56.57
said, "It is written, 'Man shall
00:27:56.57\00:27:58.44
not live by bread alone, but by
00:27:58.44\00:28:00.38
every word that proceeds out of
00:28:00.38\00:28:02.84
the mouth of God.'"
00:28:02.84\00:28:04.51
[uplifting music playing]
00:28:04.51\00:28:07.12
¤¤
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>> This is a miracle book.
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I just wrote it and it's called
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“God Still Lives Even When
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You Wonder.”
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I brought you a copy.
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And it is 16
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God stories of His
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faithfulness to me in all kinds
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of difficult situations in life.
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Sixteen stories talking about
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forgiving the unforgivable,
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loving the unlovable, being in
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difficult situations where I
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have no idea what to do and
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finding out that God still
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speaks, He still lives, He still
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guides us to know what to do and
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when to do it and how to do it.
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And these are those kinds of
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stories.
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