Welcome to Thinking About Home. 00:00:30.25\00:00:31.98 I am Kathy Mathews and I am glad that you 00:00:31.99\00:00:33.58 are back with us again. We're going to do 00:00:33.59\00:00:35.76 something a little bit different 00:00:35.77\00:00:37.36 this time, So just hang on. 00:00:37.37\00:00:40.18 Alright we're changing places. 00:00:43.78\00:00:45.63 I am Pastor Richard O'Ffill from the Florida 00:00:46.25\00:00:49.91 Conference and I've been a guest on 00:00:49.92\00:00:53.53 Thinking About Home, Kathy numbers of times. 00:00:53.54\00:00:56.12 But you remember between programs 00:00:56.13\00:00:59.96 sometimes I have said to you, you know Kathy 00:00:59.97\00:01:02.42 I think you ought to be a guest on 00:01:02.43\00:01:04.44 Thinking About Home. And I fight with you 00:01:04.45\00:01:06.37 occasionally. And you have so many wonderful 00:01:06.38\00:01:09.55 programs and what I should say that other 00:01:09.56\00:01:12.31 people should because you have all of these 00:01:12.32\00:01:14.39 guests that come in and then when you and 00:01:14.40\00:01:16.62 I talk in between time. I say well Kathy you 00:01:16.63\00:01:19.69 need to tell us about these things. 00:01:19.70\00:01:21.65 We need to have a Thinking About Home that 00:01:21.66\00:01:23.86 has you as the guest and so that's what we're 00:01:23.87\00:01:26.19 going to do for couple of programs. 00:01:26.20\00:01:27.83 And he always scares me away I think and 00:01:27.84\00:01:30.16 I chicken out and have other reasons and 00:01:30.17\00:01:32.80 other excuses. But there are some things that 00:01:32.81\00:01:34.74 I would like to share. Well and I think that our 00:01:34.75\00:01:36.78 viewers are going to appreciate the programs 00:01:36.79\00:01:39.20 that we are going to have and we're going to begin 00:01:39.21\00:01:41.67 with something that I think that you are so well 00:01:41.68\00:01:44.72 qualified to do for us and we're going to talk 00:01:44.73\00:01:47.43 about the subject of hospitality. 00:01:47.44\00:01:49.45 Yes, I enjoy hospitality. You know it feels 00:01:49.46\00:01:53.28 different over here. I feel really unusual. 00:01:53.29\00:01:56.38 There you do to see how the rest of the 00:01:56.39\00:01:59.21 world lives. I am so out strive, I am. 00:01:59.22\00:02:01.39 Sometimes when I am flying, hope I can cope 00:02:01.40\00:02:03.22 with this, sometimes when I am flying in the 00:02:03.23\00:02:04.62 aeroplane Kathy, you know they have the first 00:02:04.63\00:02:06.70 class in the coach and so the plane takes 00:02:06.71\00:02:09.63 off course and they draw the curtain between 00:02:09.64\00:02:11.94 the first class and the coach. And so sometimes 00:02:11.95\00:02:13.91 I'll say the attendant leave it open so we 00:02:13.92\00:02:15.60 can see how the other out leaves. 00:02:15.61\00:02:17.10 And so you are getting to see what that's like. 00:02:17.11\00:02:20.87 Yes. Speaking of hospitality and for down south 00:02:20.88\00:02:24.77 you know when they talk about Southern Hospitality. 00:02:24.78\00:02:27.14 Yes. And hospitality I suppose we ought 00:02:27.15\00:02:31.25 to define it. I mean where do you see at 00:02:31.26\00:02:33.35 coming from, what are we talking about when we 00:02:33.36\00:02:35.50 talk about hospitality in general terms, 00:02:35.51\00:02:37.33 in general terms. Well I would like to, 00:02:37.34\00:02:39.45 we'll about that in just a second but I'd like 00:02:39.46\00:02:41.57 to start with that I was not a custom really 00:02:41.58\00:02:46.82 to hospitality as I was growing up and that 00:02:46.83\00:02:48.97 kind of hospitality that you would just talking 00:02:48.98\00:02:51.28 about is just having someone in for dinner, 00:02:51.29\00:02:53.85 a mere invitation or just fixing something that's 00:02:53.86\00:02:59.05 going to last couple of hours and it's over 00:02:59.06\00:03:01.15 in major. Entertaining! Just entertaining that 00:03:01.16\00:03:03.15 sort of thing, that's not really what I want to 00:03:03.16\00:03:05.27 talk about even though we talked about that 00:03:05.28\00:03:07.30 little bit. When I was growing up I didn't really have 00:03:07.31\00:03:10.38 the concept of even that kind of hospitality. 00:03:10.39\00:03:14.65 I grew up on farm in Arkansas and I am the 00:03:14.66\00:03:16.62 youngest of twelve children and I could 00:03:16.63\00:03:19.03 tell you stories about how my daddy married 00:03:19.04\00:03:22.15 momma's sister and sister would died and all those 00:03:22.16\00:03:25.40 kinds of long drama, stories that would make 00:03:25.41\00:03:28.04 me my own grandma and, but I won't 00:03:28.05\00:03:32.55 go into that, that's irrelevant. 00:03:32.56\00:03:33.91 But the hospitality like that I really wasn't 00:03:33.92\00:03:37.45 accustomed to and when I became a Christian, 00:03:37.46\00:03:43.16 there was a display, a modeling of hospitality 00:03:43.17\00:03:48.20 that helped me to understand what I should 00:03:48.21\00:03:50.96 be doing and as a gift to Christ in ministry. 00:03:50.97\00:03:54.50 In other words you are saying though you were 00:03:54.51\00:03:56.08 down in the south with the southern hospitality 00:03:56.09\00:03:58.52 that your life was a little complicated 00:03:58.53\00:04:00.83 from a big family and of course there weren't 00:04:00.84\00:04:02.57 a lot of opportunities to be hospitable. 00:04:02.58\00:04:05.69 No there weren't. Taking care of 12 kids 00:04:05.70\00:04:07.39 was a hospitality challenge. That was enough and 00:04:07.40\00:04:08.72 there were a lot of people in the home and usually 00:04:08.73\00:04:10.42 all that I ever solve was my own family. 00:04:10.43\00:04:12.97 If there was a sister or brother that got married 00:04:12.98\00:04:14.75 and they moved away. That's who was invited 00:04:14.76\00:04:17.28 back into the house, when they come home 00:04:17.29\00:04:19.44 for a visit. I didn't have a lot experience at all 00:04:19.45\00:04:23.09 about having any other people in our home. 00:04:23.10\00:04:25.67 So I didn't understand what hospitality like 00:04:25.68\00:04:28.38 that was either but it was modeled to me by 00:04:28.39\00:04:31.45 the house family when we became Seventh 00:04:31.46\00:04:34.35 Day Adventist Christians, we were in Fort Hood 00:04:34.36\00:04:36.25 Texas and Tom was in the military and I knew 00:04:36.26\00:04:40.90 they had something that we wanted and part of 00:04:40.91\00:04:43.80 that package was how hospitable they were to us 00:04:43.81\00:04:47.45 and now I had more modeling than just this 00:04:47.46\00:04:51.79 one family, you know you got to see several people 00:04:51.80\00:04:53.96 and you were a new Christian coming into 00:04:53.97\00:04:55.48 the church. We were ignored. 00:04:55.49\00:04:57.00 We were terribly ignored and we were 00:04:57.01\00:04:59.80 in our late 20s and almost 30 and what I mean 00:04:59.81\00:05:03.27 is ignored about a lot of culture refined 00:05:03.28\00:05:06.14 things in life. And I was impressed by the family 00:05:06.15\00:05:10.48 of God that I got see at that point. 00:05:10.49\00:05:12.92 Now we're not all like these families that modeled 00:05:12.93\00:05:15.53 it us but in way, it was modeled to me in both 00:05:15.54\00:05:22.19 just the entertaining and it was modeled to me 00:05:22.20\00:05:24.77 in the nurturing soul winning, and that's what 00:05:24.78\00:05:28.84 I want to talk about. I don't want to talk about 00:05:28.85\00:05:30.72 just inviting someone at home for dinner. 00:05:30.73\00:05:33.01 Here there's we are not talking about Emily 00:05:33.02\00:05:35.38 Post here. No we are not. Or it's manners. 00:05:35.39\00:05:36.36 No not at all, no we are not talking about 00:05:36.37\00:05:37.76 etiquettes and manners though it think that's 00:05:37.77\00:05:41.19 something that we could talk about it another time 00:05:41.20\00:05:43.09 but that's what this problem is all about. 00:05:43.10\00:05:45.59 It took crude in my heart there that I wanted 00:05:45.60\00:05:49.36 to be a soul winner and I felt like it needed 00:05:49.37\00:05:52.82 to be on my grounds. It needed to be to 00:05:52.83\00:05:54.67 where I could have an effect on people and 00:05:54.68\00:05:58.11 but being really naturally friendly and I was in 00:05:58.12\00:06:01.78 the sales. I met a lot of people and as I wanted 00:06:01.79\00:06:08.63 to share the gospel of Jesus with others, 00:06:08.64\00:06:11.62 I felt that to bring them into my home was 00:06:11.63\00:06:15.90 really important. Now I had a lot of 00:06:15.91\00:06:18.94 naive expectations. I felt that everybody 00:06:18.95\00:06:20.99 in the church ought to be able to have this gift 00:06:21.00\00:06:22.90 and we might be traveling somewhere and 00:06:22.91\00:06:26.45 I would just expect what type, it was just 00:06:26.46\00:06:30.74 10 years. I just expected everybody in the 00:06:30.75\00:06:32.63 church to be able to have the gift of hospitality. 00:06:32.64\00:06:35.10 We're not, you know I might sake of you 00:06:35.11\00:06:36.67 I remembers years ago and may be times have 00:06:36.68\00:06:39.36 changed because there was a time in which 00:06:39.37\00:06:41.80 you would visited a church, you would almost, 00:06:41.81\00:06:44.30 always get asked you know, over for lunch 00:06:44.31\00:06:46.72 or people were making sure that you are being 00:06:46.73\00:06:50.63 carried for, but you know I might say before 00:06:50.64\00:06:52.56 you gone I was down in one of the southern 00:06:52.57\00:06:55.22 cities one time. I won't say who it was because 00:06:55.23\00:06:57.76 I don't want to embarrass the people there 00:06:57.77\00:06:59.06 in Miami and, okay sorry. Anyway so anyway 00:06:59.07\00:07:05.14 I don't know somebody dropped the ball 00:07:05.15\00:07:07.68 because it was a big church and I walked out 00:07:07.69\00:07:10.23 of that church and you know we had lunch 00:07:10.24\00:07:11.77 in our car that day, we had lunch in our car. 00:07:11.78\00:07:14.00 Yes we did. Yeah but anyway, but that's not 00:07:14.01\00:07:16.40 an unusual thing. No it's not an unusual thing 00:07:16.41\00:07:19.44 and as I went through the years I was kind of 00:07:19.45\00:07:21.14 sad to see that. But again I want to 00:07:21.15\00:07:24.26 distinguish between just nearly inviting someone 00:07:24.27\00:07:26.27 home and being hospitable which we need to do 00:07:26.28\00:07:28.24 as opposed to those of the kind of hospitality 00:07:28.25\00:07:31.73 that's required when you are so winning. 00:07:31.74\00:07:34.43 And I notice a moment ago that you would almost 00:07:34.44\00:07:36.99 interchange those words. You are saying that you 00:07:37.00\00:07:39.48 feel hospitality is a part of soul-winning 00:07:39.49\00:07:43.84 or is it on the road to soul-winning? 00:07:43.85\00:07:45.71 I think it is a serious part of soul-winning 00:07:45.72\00:07:47.10 because the nurturing that I received had to do 00:07:47.11\00:07:50.16 with the type of hospitality that required a great 00:07:50.17\00:07:52.67 deal more from an individual or a family 00:07:52.68\00:07:55.35 or a couple than just the word seems to signify 00:07:55.36\00:08:00.01 that hospitality usually makes us think of. 00:08:00.02\00:08:02.45 When you are so winning, you have a lot more 00:08:02.46\00:08:09.23 of self that's going to be put into this lot more 00:08:09.24\00:08:11.69 efforts and I wanna to tell a story. 00:08:11.70\00:08:13.50 I was doing some Apartment Management. 00:08:16.53\00:08:18.78 My husband and I were doing, we were property 00:08:18.79\00:08:20.66 managers and this was in the last few years. 00:08:20.67\00:08:23.41 Actually the couple I am gonna talk about has 00:08:23.42\00:08:25.40 been on the program here couple of years ago. 00:08:25.41\00:08:27.13 Okay. And this before they became members 00:08:27.14\00:08:29.53 of the church, but my heart went out to this 00:08:29.54\00:08:34.48 couple and they had just gotten married 00:08:34.49\00:08:36.42 and rented an apartment from us and it was going 00:08:36.43\00:08:39.72 to be a difficult situation I could because I had to 00:08:39.73\00:08:42.94 screen people, you have to show apartments 00:08:42.95\00:08:45.49 to screen people and Rachel, our younger 00:08:45.50\00:08:48.10 daughter was 12 at that time, and she watched 00:08:48.11\00:08:52.89 these people come up to the apartment and they 00:08:52.90\00:08:54.82 fill out their applications or put like that. 00:08:54.83\00:08:57.15 And I was just won over by the young lady that 00:08:57.16\00:09:00.76 was a part of this couple that had not yet 00:09:00.77\00:09:03.11 gotten married and she was telling her experience 00:09:03.12\00:09:07.60 in Christ that she had come out of drug rehab 00:09:07.61\00:09:09.96 and that she knew that the Lord Jesus had 00:09:09.97\00:09:12.22 helped her come out of that. Now she had not 00:09:12.23\00:09:14.44 given up many other things out of their lives. 00:09:14.45\00:09:16.79 Now you're giving me this background because 00:09:16.80\00:09:18.39 they haven't moved in yet. They haven't 00:09:18.40\00:09:19.37 moved in yet. You are processing these people? 00:09:19.38\00:09:21.49 We're processing these people and Rachel 00:09:21.50\00:09:23.23 was standing in the apartment then the 00:09:23.24\00:09:25.13 second day that we met them when the young 00:09:25.14\00:09:28.42 lady brought up her husband to be and 00:09:28.43\00:09:30.99 he looked, frightful. He frightened her, 00:09:31.00\00:09:35.71 I don't want. He frightened Rachel? He frightened 00:09:35.72\00:09:38.31 Rachel yes and she backed off against twill, 00:09:38.32\00:09:40.99 and she backed up against the wall 00:09:41.00\00:09:42.12 and I could see the expression on her face 00:09:42.13\00:09:43.83 and she had to leave the room. 00:09:43.84\00:09:45.03 Is this because he looked weird or something? 00:09:45.04\00:09:46.85 He was different yes. So he had his chains on and, 00:09:46.86\00:09:49.97 I said weird and you said different, 00:09:49.98\00:09:51.68 I guess that's. You're little more, 00:09:51.69\00:09:54.25 I thought about my words differently. 00:09:54.26\00:09:56.18 Now this is true. And the multiple earrings 00:09:56.19\00:10:00.88 and the various body things. Oh mine. 00:10:00.89\00:10:04.44 The black jacket, the boots. Right. 00:10:04.45\00:10:06.50 It was kind of, to her it was frightening, 00:10:06.51\00:10:08.50 the hair was down to here and I don't have 00:10:08.51\00:10:10.28 any problem with that but all package put 00:10:10.29\00:10:12.84 together makes you wonder. 00:10:12.85\00:10:14.80 Okay, if I rent an apartment to these 00:10:14.81\00:10:16.63 people what am I going to have to deal 00:10:16.64\00:10:18.23 with that, deal with later on? Is it going 00:10:18.24\00:10:19.94 to be a difficulty for other people in the 00:10:19.95\00:10:21.58 apartment complex and this was a 00:10:21.59\00:10:23.31 secured area, however it wasn't a very, very, 00:10:23.32\00:10:26.51 it was in the ghettos. It was in a poor part 00:10:28.13\00:10:30.36 of town. So our lives had seriously changed 00:10:30.37\00:10:32.99 by being in that part of the city and it was 00:10:33.00\00:10:36.17 not something that we had wish for and 00:10:36.18\00:10:37.97 I did a lot of lamenting that who am I going 00:10:37.98\00:10:40.21 to get witness to. Why am I here Lord and so forth? 00:10:40.22\00:10:44.36 There were nice ambulances and people 00:10:44.37\00:10:48.40 who would in fact to be this young lady's sister 00:10:48.41\00:10:51.76 that I had also for her sake rented an 00:10:51.77\00:10:54.44 apartment to. I had to go through a night of 00:10:54.45\00:11:00.36 suicidal attempt and to hold or deal with 00:11:00.37\00:11:03.72 the police and this was not an uncommon thing. 00:11:03.73\00:11:06.28 Now that was probably one of the worst things 00:11:06.29\00:11:07.99 that we had gone through at that time, 00:11:08.00\00:11:09.51 but I was in ministering to them. 00:11:09.52\00:11:12.20 It changed a lot of things in my life and 00:11:12.21\00:11:16.28 how I needed to really spend time with this 00:11:16.29\00:11:20.40 type of person well. Excuse me for interrupting 00:11:20.41\00:11:22.66 and so that I'll unders and, so there you were as 00:11:22.67\00:11:25.60 apartment manager. This couple comes. 00:11:25.61\00:11:27.47 He is kind of far out looking you know to put 00:11:27.48\00:11:29.88 it mildly and so apparently you let 00:11:29.89\00:11:32.40 them move in then. Well yes because of her 00:11:32.41\00:11:35.04 experience in Christ and where it appeared 00:11:35.05\00:11:37.23 that she was. So she didn't look like he did? 00:11:37.24\00:11:39.11 She did. She looked a lot like he did. 00:11:39.12\00:11:41.36 But she had a kind of a testimony that 00:11:41.37\00:11:42.44 appealed to you. That appealed to me 00:11:42.45\00:11:43.78 in great deal and when they moved in then 00:11:43.79\00:11:45.84 you kind of, do I want to use the word sort of, 00:11:45.85\00:11:49.92 sort of felt you know, there's something out 00:11:49.93\00:11:52.67 to be doing for this. Yes exactly and it appeared 00:11:52.68\00:11:55.64 that it would make a difference in their life 00:11:55.65\00:11:57.95 they were, they probably didn't know it at that time 00:11:57.96\00:12:01.52 but I felt like they could, they needed mentoring 00:12:01.53\00:12:04.91 and that I really didn't understand my own 00:12:04.92\00:12:07.39 desires to mentor at that time and I didn't 00:12:07.40\00:12:09.57 understand how successful the Lord could make me. 00:12:09.58\00:12:12.44 How blessed, what a blessing it could be. 00:12:12.45\00:12:15.13 Of course it was, you really didn't know what 00:12:15.14\00:12:17.44 you might be getting into? No, I had no idea 00:12:17.45\00:12:19.32 what I was getting into but it was satisfying 00:12:19.33\00:12:23.64 to say the least because even if you loose sleep 00:12:23.65\00:12:26.10 at night, you are still, you are in very close 00:12:26.11\00:12:29.31 connection with the Lord for the sake of 00:12:29.32\00:12:30.76 someone else. Sure, sure. 00:12:30.77\00:12:32.07 So I rented an apartment a month later the two of 00:12:32.08\00:12:36.30 them married and they moved in and it started 00:12:36.31\00:12:39.48 the opportunity to invite them on my grounds 00:12:39.49\00:12:43.79 to woo them, to pitch out the beauties of 00:12:43.80\00:12:49.01 and the gems of truth and just see how 00:12:49.02\00:12:50.82 they would react. I would look for the green 00:12:50.83\00:12:52.40 lights you know. One thing I was gonna ask about 00:12:52.41\00:12:54.51 that because obviously they were, you know shall 00:12:54.52\00:12:57.16 I say that they were some kind of a different 00:12:57.17\00:12:58.72 culture then you're and Tom, yes, yes and 00:12:58.73\00:13:01.14 so did they look at you and think you know what's 00:13:01.15\00:13:03.46 going on here or it would be interesting to know 00:13:03.47\00:13:06.87 how is it that they responded even at 00:13:06.88\00:13:09.30 all through you. Well they responded 00:13:09.31\00:13:10.94 like children to parents that really loved 00:13:10.95\00:13:13.46 their parents. They loved our interest 00:13:13.47\00:13:16.36 in their life and now they had their own thing 00:13:16.37\00:13:21.37 that they were constantly doing but then when 00:13:21.38\00:13:24.98 I would share with Karen and with John when I 00:13:24.99\00:13:29.90 would share with them and Tom too, 00:13:29.91\00:13:31.72 they were really, they were highly interested 00:13:31.73\00:13:35.08 but then there were some things that would happen 00:13:35.09\00:13:37.32 that would their own life would take over, 00:13:37.33\00:13:39.74 their own lifestyle, which was surprising, 00:13:39.75\00:13:42.46 I am interested while I am standing here 00:13:42.47\00:13:43.44 but when I go away you know everything 00:13:43.45\00:13:45.23 else takes over my habits, my practices of things 00:13:45.24\00:13:48.23 that they were dealing with. Okay, so anyway 00:13:48.24\00:13:51.70 we moved on to a point where we could talk 00:13:51.71\00:13:57.38 about Biblical matters and then we moved to a 00:13:57.39\00:14:00.45 point of having them in our home for Bible studies 00:14:00.46\00:14:03.02 and this is where the hospitality in the sense 00:14:03.03\00:14:08.55 of so winning and nurturing really takes 00:14:08.56\00:14:12.55 intentional effort. Oh my. And so as they would 00:14:12.56\00:14:17.55 come in for Bible studies, we discovered that they 00:14:17.56\00:14:20.99 could not even open the Bible and concentrate 00:14:21.00\00:14:24.47 on the scripture without several hours sometimes 00:14:24.48\00:14:29.44 of mediating between arguments because of 00:14:29.45\00:14:31.96 their personal life. No. So we discovered that 00:14:31.97\00:14:34.72 when we would try to give them a study if they 00:14:34.73\00:14:39.96 were tensed about something that was 00:14:39.97\00:14:41.26 going on in their life, they could not concentrate 00:14:41.27\00:14:43.01 and if we're trying to give them something that 00:14:43.02\00:14:44.94 seem to be a little drab in the way of video 00:14:44.95\00:14:47.46 or we used to have encounter series that it 00:14:47.47\00:14:50.73 became slow and soft. Right, right. 00:14:50.74\00:14:52.81 And they would. Sleeping? You know. Oh Lord. 00:14:52.82\00:14:56.34 And we didn't know what to do so we, 00:14:56.35\00:14:58.31 it took a little while to discover what was going 00:14:58.32\00:15:01.85 to really grab them, but the first things that 00:15:01.86\00:15:05.05 we had to do is just mediate between arguments. 00:15:05.06\00:15:07.21 It was draining. Well, you know and I was thinking 00:15:07.22\00:15:10.66 too because you know knowing you like I do 00:15:10.67\00:15:13.99 in of course being a man I am wondering you know 00:15:14.00\00:15:16.53 what Tom's added to you, did Tom ever say to you, 00:15:16.54\00:15:19.65 you know there's no hope for this, 00:15:19.66\00:15:20.89 you know this couple. Leave them alone, 00:15:20.90\00:15:22.39 you know they are messing up our lives. 00:15:22.40\00:15:23.92 Let's go on. I don't know. He may have felt that 00:15:23.93\00:15:26.97 way sometimes because time is not, 00:15:26.98\00:15:28.68 time is more even kill and more quiet and 00:15:28.69\00:15:31.60 though, but he was just as interested in 00:15:31.61\00:15:33.45 witnessing to them. But you mean you 00:15:33.46\00:15:34.93 would have moved to the house as so to speak, 00:15:34.94\00:15:37.18 they would get into it right there on. 00:15:37.19\00:15:38.57 Oh, yes, yes. And then it wasn't, it's not a 00:15:38.58\00:15:43.06 funny thing. It was a very hard thing on them 00:15:43.07\00:15:45.18 and it was a hard thing on Rachel because 00:15:45.19\00:15:47.28 we are not pastors. We don't spend our time 00:15:47.29\00:15:53.48 all the time doing this and I just want to say 00:15:53.49\00:15:55.85 to the audience that I am not talking about 00:15:55.86\00:15:59.06 the type of soul-winning where you need to 00:15:59.07\00:16:03.57 neglect your whole family to take care of a person. 00:16:03.58\00:16:07.05 I am talking to the people who find it 00:16:07.06\00:16:10.71 difficult to do much of anything and I want to 00:16:10.72\00:16:15.50 encourage you that it's satisfying to where 00:16:15.51\00:16:21.03 it was people like these, but I wouldn't want 00:16:21.04\00:16:22.61 you to neglect your family to do it. 00:16:22.62\00:16:25.37 But when I say that because I just mentioned 00:16:25.38\00:16:27.96 Rachel's difficulty with our doings this in 00:16:27.97\00:16:30.94 our home, but we have always been witnesses 00:16:30.95\00:16:33.35 and we have often had people on our home 00:16:33.36\00:16:35.06 but nobody liked this, nobody like this people. 00:16:35.07\00:16:37.37 Amazing! They were needy people. 00:16:37.38\00:16:39.05 Amazing! And so we would invite them into our home 00:16:39.06\00:16:44.00 and we would mediate between arguments 00:16:44.01\00:16:46.11 and sometimes up to four hours and there has been 00:16:46.12\00:16:49.08 nights that we were there because they 00:16:49.09\00:16:51.76 seem to need it until 4'O Clock in the morning, 00:16:51.77\00:16:54.48 now Tom had to quit before 4'O clock in the 00:16:54.49\00:16:56.93 morning came on. But I would try to work with 00:16:56.94\00:17:00.64 them until we could pray together. 00:17:00.65\00:17:02.80 So it came to time where between these arguments 00:17:02.81\00:17:06.39 we couldn't get description. We needed 00:17:06.40\00:17:07.91 to get description and I finally exacted a 00:17:07.92\00:17:12.81 commitment out of them and that was in the 00:17:12.82\00:17:15.07 sense of I needed to lay down my proprietors, 00:17:15.08\00:17:17.98 I mean my proper behavior, yes right, 00:17:17.99\00:17:22.90 so to speak and I got on my knees in front of 00:17:22.91\00:17:26.23 them on the couch and I said you know we, 00:17:26.24\00:17:28.89 if we are going to make a commitment 00:17:28.90\00:17:30.18 for Bible study and if we're going to really get 00:17:30.19\00:17:31.94 into the word Lord, if you really want to change 00:17:31.95\00:17:33.69 for your life then we need to make at least 00:17:33.70\00:17:36.56 two commitments. One is that you need to study 00:17:36.57\00:17:39.24 on your own and you need to pray together out loud. 00:17:39.25\00:17:42.66 The studying together you could do here and 00:17:42.67\00:17:45.08 I would like to get two weekly commitments 00:17:45.09\00:17:47.62 from you and I got their attention and I made them 00:17:47.63\00:17:50.14 look into my eyes just if I were talking to little 00:17:50.15\00:17:52.49 children and look at me this is what we need to do. 00:17:52.50\00:17:56.91 And they looked at me and said we'll do that 00:17:56.92\00:17:59.48 and they did it. And you know I was fascinated by, 00:17:59.49\00:18:03.55 okay they committed and now 00:18:03.56\00:18:07.13 they were coming regularly. 00:18:07.14\00:18:09.38 Now I have to say that one of that, when I am 00:18:09.39\00:18:12.71 talking about not regularly, they weren't 00:18:12.72\00:18:15.42 coming regularly before that point and 00:18:15.43\00:18:18.07 Tom would take off work because they would 00:18:18.08\00:18:20.09 commit to come to a Bible study. 00:18:20.10\00:18:21.97 So Tom's quite, and we lost many for this. 00:18:21.98\00:18:25.40 And then they wouldn't show up? 00:18:25.41\00:18:26.38 And then they wouldn't show up, there would be 00:18:26.39\00:18:27.63 a no show and this was kind of becoming regular 00:18:27.64\00:18:30.79 and so that's when I exacted this commitment 00:18:30.80\00:18:33.28 out of them that they needed to do that. 00:18:33.29\00:18:35.37 The time, the hours, the efforts, the dinners, 00:18:35.38\00:18:41.32 the inviting them to be with us in the 00:18:41.33\00:18:44.32 recreational things and eventually we invited 00:18:44.33\00:18:47.88 them to 3ABN because I wanted them to see 00:18:47.89\00:18:51.33 how the sharing of the Gospel, the work of the 00:18:51.34\00:18:55.22 Lord was far larger than me and Tom. 00:18:55.23\00:18:58.23 Now that even before they had changed their lives. 00:18:58.24\00:19:00.36 Oh yes, they came in their leather jackets and 00:19:00.37\00:19:03.03 their chains and all this kind of stuff. 00:19:03.04\00:19:04.63 They dressed a little differently when we did 00:19:04.64\00:19:06.19 a program with them but that was their normal 00:19:06.20\00:19:08.08 attire and that was their normal life. 00:19:08.09\00:19:10.44 It wasn't unusual for them to have serious 00:19:10.45\00:19:15.57 argument that would require police intervention 00:19:15.58\00:19:21.02 and trying to work with someone like that 00:19:21.03\00:19:25.52 requires a lot of commitment. 00:19:25.53\00:19:26.98 Now was it going on over months? 00:19:26.99\00:19:29.90 This went on for several months until it was 00:19:29.91\00:19:34.44 probably from about a fall to spring time 00:19:34.45\00:19:39.18 and anyway, could you see in their lives though 00:19:39.19\00:19:43.70 as you are going along a little changes that was 00:19:43.71\00:19:46.98 beginning to breakup. Yes. Now that you must 00:19:46.99\00:19:49.67 have seen, you must not have been going 00:19:49.68\00:19:50.91 from bad to worse although it was manifested. 00:19:50.92\00:19:54.18 You wondered sometime if it was. 00:19:54.19\00:19:55.73 But there must have been a little hope because you 00:19:55.74\00:19:57.13 weren't giving up. There was, there was, 00:19:57.14\00:19:58.81 because finally when this one night where we had 00:19:58.82\00:20:03.82 this mediation so to speak for them and with them 00:20:03.83\00:20:08.85 and trying to help them and counsel them 00:20:08.86\00:20:10.84 and just listening to them. We had to send Rachel 00:20:10.85\00:20:15.90 out of the room. It wasn't the first time 00:20:15.91\00:20:17.35 but we had to send Rachel out of the room 00:20:17.36\00:20:18.60 because we were, they would need to discuss 00:20:18.61\00:20:20.76 material that she didn't need to hear. 00:20:20.77\00:20:22.82 No, right. And we can talk about that may be 00:20:22.83\00:20:27.52 on the next program the resentment 00:20:27.53\00:20:29.24 and the things that happened in her heart 00:20:29.25\00:20:31.46 and yet at the same time there were resentments, 00:20:31.47\00:20:34.21 there was, they need to pray for them, 00:20:34.22\00:20:36.78 the desire to help them. So you know, you don't 00:20:36.79\00:20:38.78 have your mind can go back and forth and you 00:20:38.79\00:20:40.28 can feel two ways about something. 00:20:40.29\00:20:41.80 But the Holy Spirit must have been working 00:20:41.81\00:20:43.24 in their hearts because their hearts weren't 00:20:43.25\00:20:45.83 getting harder that's for sure. 00:20:45.84\00:20:47.35 No, it wasn't getting harder. 00:20:47.36\00:20:48.46 They would come up and we could hear them 00:20:48.47\00:20:52.65 discussing things even from the spiritual point 00:20:52.66\00:20:55.26 of view before they would even come into 00:20:55.27\00:20:56.59 the house and may be that we had an appointment 00:20:56.60\00:20:58.60 set and they will be standing on the stairways 00:20:58.61\00:21:01.20 before they would enter into the door, 00:21:01.21\00:21:02.57 knock on the door. Right. And we're gonna hear 00:21:02.58\00:21:04.14 the argument going on before they will enter 00:21:04.15\00:21:05.80 the house. And we were just be inside praying, 00:21:05.81\00:21:07.61 and waiting for them to come to terms with 00:21:07.62\00:21:11.66 themselves before they could walk in our door. 00:21:11.67\00:21:13.65 But now they weren't getting any harder, 00:21:16.04\00:21:18.19 they were in fact getting much softer and 00:21:18.20\00:21:20.26 you could see things beginning to change 00:21:20.27\00:21:21.79 in their lives. What's all the purpose of 00:21:21.80\00:21:26.41 all of this? What's the point I am trying to 00:21:26.42\00:21:28.82 make in all of this? Well, now let me tell you. 00:21:28.83\00:21:33.85 You know the viewers and me, you know I am 00:21:33.86\00:21:37.11 beginning to think Kathy has taken hospitality 00:21:37.12\00:21:40.71 here into the next generation because 00:21:40.72\00:21:43.70 some of the start it was having people over 00:21:43.71\00:21:45.48 after Sabbath and you are talking about 00:21:45.49\00:21:49.10 opening your life with someone. 00:21:49.11\00:21:51.14 That's right, yes I am. You're talking about 00:21:51.15\00:21:53.02 something that goes way beyond even 00:21:53.03\00:21:54.83 staying overnight, you know further, 00:21:54.84\00:21:57.87 this represents a kind of a commitment 00:21:57.88\00:22:01.78 and I can see why that you are a calling 00:22:01.79\00:22:05.23 it soul winning. It's a commitment to change 00:22:05.24\00:22:09.13 your life. Now you would go so far as to 00:22:09.14\00:22:12.08 say that you know, every Sabbath that 00:22:12.09\00:22:16.67 we would be doing this. I think that what 00:22:16.68\00:22:19.55 you are talking about is almost even being, 00:22:19.56\00:22:21.32 about being neighborly is do we want to bring 00:22:21.33\00:22:24.19 that into it? Well, I was being. 00:22:24.20\00:22:26.01 Is this about a good neighbor stuff? 00:22:26.02\00:22:27.82 It is but I was being neighborly. 00:22:27.83\00:22:29.70 It may be moves out of that ramp from the 00:22:29.71\00:22:33.74 beginning because you have to be neighborly, 00:22:33.75\00:22:35.97 you have to win a rapport, and you have 00:22:35.98\00:22:37.76 to build a trust. We did that in the beginning 00:22:37.77\00:22:40.20 and then it moved on but you know hospitality 00:22:40.21\00:22:43.33 enters in because you have them in your home. 00:22:43.34\00:22:45.72 You are feeding them, you are working with them, 00:22:45.73\00:22:48.66 you are bring friendly and sociable to them, 00:22:48.67\00:22:50.36 that's all hospitality. You are and it is a soul 00:22:50.37\00:22:53.45 winning that's true but in the realm of getting 00:22:53.46\00:22:56.16 them into your home to do it in, and so that they 00:22:56.17\00:22:59.00 can see a different atmosphere then the 00:22:59.01\00:23:00.85 way they grew up. Off course there's something 00:23:00.86\00:23:02.73 true I think that really touches my heart with 00:23:02.74\00:23:05.20 the story to tell and that is you are giving 00:23:05.21\00:23:07.75 the time and you know this generation doesn't 00:23:07.76\00:23:10.01 have time. We would rather and we would 00:23:10.02\00:23:12.70 diminish the importance of writing out a 00:23:12.71\00:23:15.09 cheque to 3ABN. So that someone else can 00:23:15.10\00:23:18.23 take the time. Alright. But you gave time 00:23:18.24\00:23:22.28 and time is what life is about, you are paying 00:23:22.29\00:23:25.17 someone else to do it for you. Right. 00:23:25.18\00:23:27.28 And I made this you know. 00:23:27.29\00:23:29.62 What did you like to? No I have got to make a 00:23:29.63\00:23:33.12 confession here but I am sure that the viewers 00:23:33.13\00:23:35.30 are holded in confidence. You know, I am not very 00:23:35.31\00:23:38.73 good about this. I think that I was a little bit 00:23:38.74\00:23:42.26 like you, I didn't have the models. 00:23:42.27\00:23:43.77 You had a model and I was raised in the 00:23:43.78\00:23:47.10 minister's home and I think we were more 00:23:47.11\00:23:49.99 you know close. Now we're gonna it was a 00:23:50.00\00:23:51.73 very sociable life but I don't remember having 00:23:51.74\00:23:54.93 that opening up your. But I didn't either 00:23:54.94\00:23:57.40 because, I think my wife saw almost a little 00:23:57.41\00:24:00.19 more this way. Yes. But you know I am such 00:24:00.20\00:24:01.96 a bad neighbor. I am using the word neighbor 00:24:01.97\00:24:04.18 you know to go with this. You know that a Seventh 00:24:04.19\00:24:06.52 Day Adventist moved in as a neighbor to us 00:24:06.53\00:24:09.58 in the house next door and in the five 00:24:09.59\00:24:11.57 or six years since they have been there, 00:24:11.58\00:24:13.01 they have left the church. Oh sorry. 00:24:13.02\00:24:15.56 I mean now that all for, I am sorry to hear 00:24:15.57\00:24:16.77 that, and so when you tell me a story like this 00:24:16.78\00:24:19.01 you could imagine how it makes me feel. 00:24:19.02\00:24:21.15 Now when I look back on it, I think well may 00:24:21.16\00:24:23.13 be it was complicated, may be there were 00:24:23.14\00:24:24.82 things going on. You know that I couldn't do 00:24:24.83\00:24:26.89 anything about but I know that I could do 00:24:26.90\00:24:30.12 so much more in giving off my time. Yeah. 00:24:30.13\00:24:32.89 Now off course in the ministry, the ministry 00:24:32.90\00:24:35.56 is about ministering. Yes. And so may be the 00:24:35.57\00:24:38.06 minister rest by not ministering but how can 00:24:38.07\00:24:41.31 I ask you to minister while you do your work. 00:24:41.32\00:24:45.28 While I minister and then when I rest, 00:24:45.29\00:24:47.25 I don't minister, you know that's kind 00:24:47.26\00:24:48.65 of messing up the word. Alright. God calls on us 00:24:48.66\00:24:52.12 to minister to each other in season and 00:24:52.13\00:24:54.25 out of season and that's what I am hearing 00:24:54.26\00:24:55.75 you say. And well that's true and it is because 00:24:55.76\00:24:59.19 this became not only ministering in our home 00:24:59.20\00:25:03.64 and so winning and being hospitable and giving 00:25:03.65\00:25:05.99 our time and our effort and our money. 00:25:06.00\00:25:08.73 It also eventually this young man needed work 00:25:08.74\00:25:12.91 and it went on to where Tom was able to help 00:25:12.92\00:25:16.04 him get a job where he was. And then it was all 00:25:16.05\00:25:20.03 day long and. Working together. 00:25:20.04\00:25:22.74 Because well you know not because they were 00:25:22.75\00:25:25.55 talking all day long but there would always be 00:25:25.56\00:25:27.76 that time where he will be watching Tom 00:25:27.77\00:25:29.90 and where he needed to know while I don't react 00:25:29.91\00:25:32.58 to this. Now does the story have a happy ending? 00:25:32.59\00:25:34.41 Oh yes, it does. Do these people, then 00:25:34.42\00:25:36.61 I think in the minutes that remain in the 00:25:36.62\00:25:39.08 program bring us right up to the happy ending. 00:25:39.09\00:25:41.59 Well they have but I want to say you don't always 00:25:41.60\00:25:45.42 have a happy ending just because you put 00:25:45.43\00:25:46.92 all these effort into it. Well no, that's 00:25:46.93\00:25:48.37 important. You know, you don't always have a 00:25:48.38\00:25:50.01 happy ending but that doesn't mean that you 00:25:50.02\00:25:51.69 shouldn't do it. In fact there is a text scripture 00:25:51.70\00:25:54.79 Kathy that says a give expecting nothing in return 00:25:54.80\00:25:57.89 and your reward will be great and you are doing 00:25:57.90\00:25:59.98 this just as a matter of principle. Yes. 00:25:59.99\00:26:02.08 And we need to how it was, I want to share 00:26:02.09\00:26:03.83 the Lord and I want to share, I found out that 00:26:03.84\00:26:05.98 I was much enjoying and being very satisfied 00:26:05.99\00:26:09.56 in the Lord to ministering into this way. 00:26:09.57\00:26:13.13 I don't want to rescue people, there comes a 00:26:13.14\00:26:16.70 time when there is tuff love and you want 00:26:16.71\00:26:18.32 them out of your life. But we're gonna talk 00:26:18.33\00:26:19.71 about these things that it does to you in 00:26:19.72\00:26:21.66 another program. Sure, in another program 00:26:21.67\00:26:23.68 we're gonna talk about some of the principles 00:26:23.69\00:26:25.91 behind hospitality. Yes. Because this is been 00:26:25.92\00:26:30.06 good for me to hear the story, we're suppose 00:26:30.07\00:26:31.94 just because it's right to help. It is. 00:26:31.95\00:26:34.48 That's what Jesus did. It is. That's what 00:26:34.49\00:26:35.66 Jesus did, God causes the rain to fall on, 00:26:35.67\00:26:38.66 he could cast it back and sometimes we think 00:26:38.67\00:26:42.84 well I'll help somebody if they respond 00:26:42.85\00:26:46.61 but if they're not gonna respond I am not 00:26:46.62\00:26:48.51 going to help. Absolutely, and their response 00:26:48.52\00:26:51.39 was good and then there was no response 00:26:51.40\00:26:53.62 but the ideas to not give up and to continue 00:26:53.63\00:26:56.35 on inviting them into your home and giving 00:26:56.36\00:26:58.91 them an environment that they don't 00:26:58.92\00:27:00.55 normally have. For this type of person and 00:27:00.56\00:27:04.29 we can talk about more of heart affected 00:27:04.30\00:27:07.41 our family. We'll have to do that in the 00:27:07.42\00:27:08.39 next program. Thank you so much for being 00:27:08.40\00:27:09.37 our guest today on Thinking About Home. 00:27:09.38\00:27:13.23 It feels funny being over here. 00:27:13.24\00:27:14.21 And we're going to pray as we close the program 00:27:14.22\00:27:16.55 and I wanna pray for my self and going to pray 00:27:16.56\00:27:19.64 for others who may be a little bit like me 00:27:19.65\00:27:21.94 that God will give us greater sense of 00:27:21.95\00:27:25.24 commitment, catering into hospitality 00:27:25.25\00:27:27.58 and off course in the next program 00:27:27.59\00:27:29.61 we're gonna talk, we're gonna flush this 00:27:29.62\00:27:31.14 concept of hospitality out some more. 00:27:31.15\00:27:32.96 Yes and some other things that are blessings 00:27:32.97\00:27:34.70 though they may hurt to do it. 00:27:34.71\00:27:36.30 It is developing our character. Let's pray. 00:27:36.31\00:27:38.36 Yes. Heavenly Father, Oh God of love and 00:27:38.37\00:27:41.97 the true hospitality. We pray that this love with 00:27:41.98\00:27:45.98 this compassion that you have so richly for us, 00:27:45.99\00:27:48.83 that we might have for others, but Lord we won't 00:27:48.84\00:27:52.36 be afraid to invest not only of our funds, 00:27:52.37\00:27:55.41 Lord but we may be willing 00:27:55.42\00:27:58.18 to invest the right time. 00:27:58.19\00:27:59.94