Participants: Shelley Quinn (Host), Wyatt Allen & Jenni Allen & Purity Allen
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY016008A
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00:01 I want to spend my life
00:07 Mending broken people 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:18 Removing pain 00:23 Lord, let my words 00:29 Heal a heart that hurts 00:34 I want to spend my life 00:40 Mending broken people 00:45 I want to spend my life 00:51 Mending broken people. 01:07 Hello, I'm Shelley Quinn. 01:08 And we welcome you to 3ABN Today. 01:11 We want to thank you so much for joining us, 01:13 sharing this time with us. 01:15 And we want to thank you for your love, 01:17 and your prayers, and your financial support. 01:20 3ABN is reaching all of the world 01:22 because of you. 01:23 And we thank you for that. 01:25 You know, I want to encourage you today 01:28 to call your friends, your neighbors, 01:31 and have them tune into the show. 01:33 We are going to hear the most amazing conversion story, 01:37 a story that will bring hope and encouragement 01:41 to all who are watching on television, 01:43 or listening on the radio. 01:45 And the scripture that this story reminds me off 01:48 is 2 Corinthians 5:17. 01:52 And there-- 01:53 Here's what Paul wrote to the Corinthians. 01:55 He says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, 02:00 he is a new creation, old things have passed away, 02:05 behold, all things have become new." 02:08 And certainly that could be said, 02:11 for our special guest today whose name is Wyatt Allen, 02:15 and he is an associate speaker, 02:18 an evangelist for Amazing Facts. 02:21 So, Wyatt, we are so excited that you are here today, 02:25 that God has taken whole of your life. 02:28 And that you have such an exacting testimony to share. 02:31 Praise God. 02:33 And we are going to have a special treat 02:34 toward the end of the program. 02:36 We're going to be introducing 02:38 your beautiful wife and daughter. 02:40 Yes. 02:41 And before we get into this incredible story 02:46 of what God has done. 02:48 What we like to do is start with some music. 02:51 You like music? Absolutely. 02:53 Well, we certainly do here. 02:55 And the person who is gonna be singing 02:57 is a personal friend of ours here at 3ABN. 02:59 We love him dearly. His name is Darrell Marshall. 03:02 And Darrell's got one of those voices, 03:05 that is just as smooth as butter. 03:07 And Darrell is gonna be singing "Because of Who You Are." 03:19 You spoke the words 03:22 And all the worlds came in to order 03:26 You waved your hand 03:28 And planets filled the empty sky 03:33 You placed the woman and the man 03:37 Inside the garden 03:40 And though they fell they found compassion 03:44 In your eyes 03:47 Oh Lord I stand amazed 03:51 At the wonder of it all 03:54 Yet a greater wonder brings me to my knees 04:00 Lord I praise You 04:04 Because of who You are 04:07 Not for all the mighty deeds that You have done 04:14 Lord I worship You 04:17 Because of who You are 04:21 It's all the reason that I need to voice my praise 04:27 Because of who You are 04:34 One holy night You sent your promise 04:38 From a virgin 04:41 Your promise grew 04:43 As You revealed to us Your heart 04:48 Enduring love displayed throughout Your crucifixion 04:55 And with Your death 04:56 You tore the darken grave apart 05:02 Oh Lord I stand amazed 05:06 At the wonder of it all 05:09 Yet a greater wonder brings me to my knees 05:15 Lord I praise You 05:19 Because of who You are 05:22 Not for all the mighty deeds that You have done 05:29 Lord I worship You 05:32 Because of who You are 05:35 It's all the reason that I need to voice my praise 05:42 Lord I praise You 05:46 Because of who You are 05:49 Not for all the mighty deeds that You have done 05:56 Lord I worship You 05:59 Because of who You are 06:03 It's all the reason that I need to voice my praise 06:09 Because of who You are 06:15 Because of who You are 06:22 Because of who You are. 06:41 You know, Darrell, 06:43 if he were singing in the secular world, 06:45 he'll be making huge money. 06:47 But we're so glad, 06:48 that he has a heart for the Lord. 06:50 And that he has dedicated his gift, his talent 06:53 back to God. 06:54 So we're always blessed when we hear him sing. 06:57 Well, if you just tuned in a moment or two late, 06:59 let me once again introduce our special guest. 07:02 His name is Wyatt Allen. 07:04 And if you look at him, 07:06 you would think with his cherub face of his 07:09 that he had never had a problem in his life. 07:12 But, Wyatt, you are a, an associate speaker 07:16 and evangelist for Amazing Facts. 07:19 But you also have your own ministry 07:21 and that's End-Time Hope Ministries. 07:23 That's right. 07:25 So, I look at you especially in the family setting 07:28 having met your wife and your daughter. 07:30 And you think, this young man has served the Lord 07:33 all his life and never had a problem. 07:34 Wish that was the case. 07:35 Yeah, kind of take us back 07:38 to how you got off on the wrong foot in life? 07:42 Oh, well. 07:43 I mean there is, you know, it goes way back to 07:45 when I was even just a little bitty kid. 07:47 My parents split when I was three years old 07:50 and from there it's just a whole mess in family. 07:51 So they divorced? Okay. They divorced. 07:53 And my mom is actually being attacked by my dad frequently, 07:56 and so she had to get find a way 07:58 into a woman's shelter and we eventually moved away. 08:01 My dad got locked up for some time. 08:03 And when he got out, he tried to do better with his life 08:05 and get a victory over his alcoholism 08:09 and various things and he did pretty good, 08:11 because he wanted to get custody back of us kids 08:13 and so we-- 08:15 He tried hard and he eventually won the custody back, 08:18 partial custody, so we're back and forth 08:19 between my mom and my dad quite a bit. 08:21 But the violence didn't end 08:23 and my dad continued to use drugs 08:25 and it was still a mess. 08:27 So how did that affect you as a young child growing up? 08:31 I know, you said, that there was an event 08:33 when you were six years old that made the newspapers. 08:37 Yes, it was definitely a time 08:39 when I was living with my mother 08:41 in Jefferson City, Missouri. 08:42 And we would just run the streets, 08:44 my mom worked three jobs to just-- 08:46 even when we were living in the projects over there 08:48 and-- 08:50 And how many children? 08:51 There is three of us, so there's my older brother, 08:52 two years older, 08:54 and my younger sister three years younger, 08:55 and the three of us, we just-- 08:57 My sisters stayed with a babysitter, 08:58 my brother and I, we took off and would run the streets. 09:01 And even at six years old, we would go into stores 09:04 and steal things and because we were little kids, 09:07 we can hide them and get out easy, it wasn't a big deal. 09:09 You were a little hoodlums, weren't you? 09:11 That's a good word for it. 09:13 But we started setting little fires here and there. 09:17 And just playing with fires, kids, 09:20 and one fire got out of control 09:22 and burning down a whole house and-- 09:25 So some firefighters were hurt in that accident. 09:28 Well, we wouldn't call it accident that child crime, 09:32 so they arrested us kids, 09:34 and even took custody from my mom. 09:36 And so that she's actually still heard about that recently 09:39 when she tried to adopt. 09:41 And so, they remembered back to the time 09:44 that we got in trouble. 09:46 So then they did? 09:48 Did they permanently remove custody from your mother? 09:51 No, it wasn't permanent, 09:52 but it definitely caused some friction there growing up. 09:56 And, of course, 09:57 my dad has always wanted custody of his kids back. 10:00 And both my parents remarried 10:01 and so I inherited some step-siblings, 10:03 and a half sister later and we-- 10:07 It was, it was very interesting 10:09 because my dad continued in his violence. 10:11 I would still see him beat up my step mom quite often 10:14 and he would even-- 10:16 At one time he broke the headlights. 10:17 She threatened to leave. 10:19 Well, he went outside and broke the headlights of her car. 10:21 So she couldn't go anywhere. This is at night. 10:23 So what you're saying, 10:24 you're painting a picture of something 10:26 and many of you watching 10:28 actually have probably experienced something like this 10:32 in your life or aware of something that goes on 10:34 because, any time that there's this sickness of alcoholism 10:38 or drug addiction. 10:39 There's just a complete chaos around it, 10:42 that there is dysfunction. 10:44 And it happens, it crosses every-- 10:48 There's no borders, 10:49 it crosses every social economic range if you will. 10:55 It must have been so confusing for you as a child. 10:58 Now, take us forward to your pre-teen years, 11:01 when you started or just as you're becoming a teenager. 11:05 You actually went a step further 11:07 than just pranks and petty crime. 11:11 You became involved with a very questionable group, 11:16 tell us about that? 11:18 Well, there was-- 11:20 And by the way, Shelley, there is definitely, 11:22 when I share my story with people, 11:24 I do find that there's a lot of people 11:26 that has experienced some more things 11:27 and I think that's why my story resonates 11:29 is because it does, it strikes the chord. 11:32 People have been through these experiences and-- 11:36 You know, the good news is that there is hope, 11:38 there is redemption in all that. 11:40 And that's the story I'm really wanting to tell 11:42 but it did, it did get pretty worse. 11:45 I was diagnosed as having ADHD. 11:48 And so, I was put on medications 11:50 and, and I, even though I try to do okay in school, 11:53 I never really succeeded too well. 11:55 I wasn't very popular kid and pretty much a loner. 11:58 And I remember back was '98 was it or '99 Eric Harris, 12:03 and Dylan Klebold does that, 12:05 shut up the school there at Columbine. 12:08 And that pretty much was the scene 12:11 that I was in during the same time. 12:13 And I was, I got involved in-- 12:17 I was listening to heavy metal music. 12:18 I was getting involved into the occult. 12:20 I was reading books on witchcraft, playing, 12:22 role playing games like dungeons and dragons 12:24 and Magic: The Gathering 12:26 and reading these fantasy books. 12:27 And so, I was really entering 12:29 into this whole isolated spiritualistic type mentality. 12:35 Kingdom of darkness. 12:37 It was definitely the kingdom of darkness. 12:38 Well, as I dabbled in it more and more 12:41 and I was introduced into meeting people 12:43 that were into the same thing. 12:44 One man, he performed a spell on me, a Satanist. 12:47 And he really encouraged me to go out and find, 12:51 but his spell worked, it was, it was magical. 12:53 It really was satanic magic I see now, 12:55 but it was power to me back then. 12:59 Anyway he encouraged me to go out 13:00 and get a Satanic Bible. 13:01 And so I went out and got a Satanic Bible, 13:03 begin to read it. 13:04 And just I loved it. It told me I was a God. 13:07 Just which is the lie of Satan, 13:08 you've always heard from the Garden of Eden. 13:11 And, and so I-- 13:14 You know, I believed it and I really wanted power. 13:16 I wanted acceptance and belonging 13:20 and, and that's where I found it in that. 13:23 But, you know, this is not the only thing going on 13:25 in my life. 13:26 It's just at the same time getting involved in drugs 13:30 and alcohol, and for myself 13:33 just finding myself at every party I could. 13:36 So you're seeing. 13:37 You know, you see a pattern developing here. 13:40 First of all, you were at a tender young age 13:43 things were so confusing. 13:44 You felt powerless over your circumstances. 13:47 So this is why kids do get involved with witchcraft. 13:51 They do get involved with the powers of darkness, 13:55 as they're just, they don't even know 13:57 that God's got a power available too. 13:59 You know, I always felt judged by Christians, 14:01 so I never liked Christians. Okay. 14:03 And even though my mom would send me to church 14:05 every once in a while as a kid. 14:06 I never felt of belonging there. 14:08 But among the Satanists 14:10 and when I was involved in Wicca 14:12 and witchcraft and the gothic group. 14:14 I felt welcomed, I felt accepted. 14:17 And they didn't judge me for my curly hair, 14:19 or my weirdness that I had or my music I listen to. 14:23 And because of that, you know, I liked it and... 14:28 Explain to us what Gothic is? Gothic. 14:31 Well, that was, that was a short time, 14:33 when we, when we went to our parties 14:35 and raves or whatever we would dress up. 14:39 There's a movie called, The Crow, and there we just, 14:41 we put a face paint on and black eye shadow, 14:45 lipstick, fingernail polish. 14:47 These are the guys too. 14:48 And their face would be pasty and various things like that 14:51 and so, it was just, 14:53 it was a whole subculture of gloomy darkness. 14:57 But now, people who dress like that 15:00 aren't necessarily Satanists. 15:02 The Gothics are not necessarily Satanists, 15:04 but there's a lot of Satanists who are Gothic, isn't it? 15:07 Right, they're not mutually exclusive, they are-- 15:09 Let me say this right. 15:10 They're mutually-- 15:12 I'm not sure exactly what I'm saying. 15:13 They're two separate groups but there's crossovers. 15:15 You got it. Okay. 15:17 So you have the gothic on one side of that. 15:19 Many of them are involved in witchcraft, 15:21 in the occult or even into Satanism. 15:23 But not all Satanists dress like that. 15:25 Some Satanists would walk around, 15:26 you wouldn't even know it. 15:27 Now, if you've heard of the stories 15:29 of like Roger Morneau. 15:30 And he was deep into Satanism, I was more on the dabbler side. 15:35 But you are looking for power on one side, 15:38 and that's why you're studying the occult 15:40 and feeling acceptance. 15:42 But at the other time, if you're doing these drugs. 15:45 What kind of drugs were you doing? 15:46 Well, mostly marijuana, 15:48 but we did everything we can get our, our hands on. 15:49 So this was kind of, you were trying to escape, 15:51 it's a means of escape. 15:54 So you see the conflict in this message here. 15:57 You were doing drugs as an escape 15:59 and yet you're seeking this power. 16:01 So what happened to you 16:04 as you were just dabbling in this, 16:07 something very serious happened? 16:09 Well, you can't dabble in darkness too long 16:11 before you get out so far, 16:12 you don't know where you're at. 16:13 And my life was just spiraling out of control 16:15 and because of the drug use I was doing. 16:19 We were committing all kinds of crimes from vandalism 16:21 to burglaries to assaults. 16:23 You know, we were getting arrested 16:25 for possession many times, 16:26 because I was a juvenile, you know, 16:28 this whole occult Satanism thing happened 16:30 when I was about 14 years old. 16:32 And at 15, I mean my life was just uncontrollable. 16:35 I mean, I slept through school 16:37 because I partied all night long, 16:39 and so I had straight F's in school. 16:41 And this was ninth grade and so I just had no desire 16:46 to succeed in life. 16:47 I just wanted to party, have fun and do my drugs. 16:50 How was your mom during all of this? 16:52 What was her feeling? She was heartbroken. 16:54 And this is the tragic thing about it. 16:56 A selfish life isn't just about self, 16:59 it breaks other hearts. 17:00 Yes, it does. I need to give example. 17:02 I would run away from home, 17:03 basically I would be out partying, come home. 17:05 My lights are on, I was busted. 17:06 Well, forget about going home, I just went back to the party 17:09 and stayed out for several days to a couple weeks. 17:11 You know, you can imagine what that's going to do 17:13 to a mom's heart, now sure I was 15. 17:15 But I was still my mommy's baby, right. 17:16 Right. 17:18 She actually had to post a want, 17:19 I mean, not a wanted poster but-- 17:21 A missing poster. 17:22 A missing poster for you 17:24 when you were just 15 years old. 17:25 She did it, and, you know, 17:27 and I had my friends all saying, 17:28 "Your mom is looking for you, 17:29 the police are looking for you." 17:31 And I was, I was eventually caught several times 17:33 after doing this and arrested. 17:35 And it was actually after the final 17:38 or I think it was three or maybe even four times 17:40 I got arrested. 17:41 But every time I was arrested, 17:42 I was positive for drugs or I had drugs on me. 17:45 And so they finally said, you know what? 17:46 We're tired of this. 17:48 Because they kept slapping me on the wrist and let me go. 17:50 But they finally said, "We're sending you to drug rehab. 17:52 We're going to do something about this." 17:55 And so how effective was drug rehab for you? 17:58 Well, I hated it. 17:59 I didn't want to go, I wanted my drugs. 18:00 I didn't want to, you know, stop using them. 18:03 My parties was all I live for, my music, my friends and-- 18:07 So it was actually, it was during the time in drug rehab 18:11 that they sent me to into a prison 18:12 to try to scare me straight. 18:14 Of course, that just hardened me more 18:16 because as I've learned now, fear is not a good motivator. 18:20 It may work sometime. 18:23 But it's not going to keep you on the right path 18:25 and so anyway. 18:29 I definitely planned on using drugs 18:31 after getting out of rehab. 18:32 But I was gonna play their game while I was there. 18:34 Okay, so you were pretty savvy as a kid. 18:37 Now, you had a run in with one of the counselors? 18:42 That's the tragic part of the story. 18:45 A story that I wish, I could tell without adding this part 18:48 but it is, this is vital. 18:50 My-- 18:52 I was, I was sneaking cigarettes. 18:53 I thought I was playing the game 18:54 but I wasn't very good at it. 18:56 So I was smoking cigarettes and I eventually got caught. 18:59 And the counselor who caught me had to report me 19:02 and I begged him not to and he just, 19:05 he had to do his job and he made me do a report. 19:08 And I knew, I was going to get kicked out of the program. 19:10 In fact, kicked out the program, 19:11 there is, all these consequences waiting for me. 19:14 And I just didn't want that, 19:15 and so I had the most imaginable anger 19:18 and just hatred, that you can imagine a person ever 19:21 having a murder in my heart. 19:27 I prayed to Satan. I asked him for power. 19:31 And then and there, 19:33 I cast a spell of destruction on this guy. 19:35 And as I went to attack him with a knife, 19:40 he got hurt really bad. 19:42 And he went to the hospital and I ended up 19:45 of course getting locked up 19:46 in the juvenile detention center for that. 19:48 I was 15 years old. 19:50 Fifteen years old, 19:52 and what was the outcome of that? 19:54 Well, I was-- 19:57 Were you taken to trial? Were you sentenced? 20:00 Well, that's a long story. 20:02 I was actually-- 20:03 I sat at the juvenile detention center for a year 20:06 waiting to be certified as an adult 20:07 because at 15 year old, 20:09 they don't typically send to prison. 20:10 But what they say, when the crime is severe enough 20:12 they might, so I had to, I had to wait for a year 20:15 to find out whether or not I was competent 20:17 to stand trial as an adult. 20:18 And after a year they said, "I finally was." 20:20 I was 16 then. 20:21 And that's when they send me to county jail. 20:24 But that's not before something incredible happened. 20:26 Okay. And that's-- 20:28 So I mean, I love it when you kind of hit it with it, 20:31 hit us with it, then you drop back 20:33 because even as lost as you were, 20:36 you have written. 20:37 He has written an incredible book. 20:39 And it's called, "The Least of the Least: 20:43 From Crime to Christ." 20:45 This book is something that will bring 20:48 hope and encouragement to anybody, 20:50 that you're never too far gone. 20:52 So here why you are, you have really messed man up. 20:59 You've been, you committed a violent crime 21:02 by the power of Satan, 21:04 praying specifically to Satan for this destruction. 21:08 But something happens to you 21:10 while you're being detained this 15 year old kid. 21:13 What happens? 21:15 Well, I definitely wasn't going. 21:16 First of all, I became suicidal. 21:18 I didn't want to live. 21:20 I mean, I knew that my life was over. 21:22 The guy, I didn't know, if he lived or died 21:24 from this crime. 21:25 I found out a couple weeks later, 21:26 he did live but he had incredible injuries. 21:30 It was terrible, he was in the hospital 21:31 for a few days-- 21:32 Did you feel remorse? 21:34 No, I felt angry that I got caught. 21:36 You know, that I had to go through all this. 21:39 And I didn't feel remorse. 21:41 I hated life, I hated my family, 21:44 I hated everybody. 21:46 You hated yourself, didn't you? 21:47 Well, I must have, 21:48 I didn't think of it like that because, I meant. 21:50 Again even the Satanic Bible when I read it, 21:52 it talked about, you know, 21:53 loving yourself is one of the ultimate things. 21:56 In fact, the Satanic Bible, for those that are listening. 21:59 It's absolutely the opposite of the Christian Bible. 22:03 And so, it takes like the... 22:05 Where Jesus says, "Turn the other cheek." 22:07 The Satanic Bible says to do just the opposite 22:10 and to smite him back on his cheek. 22:12 It says, you know, 22:13 "It's foolishness to love your enemies." 22:15 What it is worldly speaking, 22:17 foolishness to love your enemies, 22:18 it takes a miracle-- 22:19 Yes. To do that. 22:21 And I just couldn't comprehend that obviously 22:22 because I wasn't converted. 22:23 Yeah. 22:25 So as I'm sitting there 22:26 in this juvenile detention center, 22:28 I mean, I wanted my life to end. 22:30 But I wasn't going to surrender my Satanism. 22:32 And so, I was kind of known early on 22:34 in the juvenile detention centers as a Satanist, 22:37 and I was scratching Satanic symbols, 22:39 you know, in my bunk bed and everything. 22:41 And I was under like 24 hour surveillance. 22:43 But I eventually began, I was good enough 22:46 to start earning some privileges. 22:47 And they let me have some books 22:50 in the juvenile detention center, 22:51 and that's really where my life began to change. 22:54 Because it was your own mother, who was a believer 22:58 but maybe a nominal Christian we could say in her life, 23:01 just from all the circumstances she was facing. 23:04 But it was your mother who encouraged you 23:06 to read the Bible, right? 23:08 You know, we get like 23:09 a ten minute phone call once a week. 23:10 And so, my mom, she asked me, she said, 23:12 "Son, do they have any Bibles in there?" 23:15 And I could look across the room 23:17 and I can see on the bookshelf in the day room 23:19 of this juvenile center that there was some Bibles 23:21 and I had no intention on picking one up. 23:24 But she wanted me to read one and I just, I brushed it off. 23:28 But, you know, the incredible thing, Shelley. 23:31 Day after day as I would walk past that bookshelf 23:33 coming back from my shower, I would-- 23:36 There was something that was just piercing me 23:38 about that book, about the Bible. 23:40 And I finally got in my head, I had a solution. 23:43 I was going to take a Bible. 23:44 I would take it back to my cell, 23:46 and I would prove it wrong. 23:47 You see, the Satanic Bible says, that, 23:50 that the Christian Bible is riddled full 23:51 of contradictions and errors. 23:53 And so that was a simple, simple task. 23:57 Find the contradictions, find the errors, 23:58 and put the Christians in their place. 24:00 And so I snuck the Bible, sorry, I snatch on the self 24:03 before anybody can see me. 24:05 I have to say something. I had a reputation. 24:06 I have to say something. 24:08 Here you are a straight F student. 24:10 But you were really a smart kid and you are-- 24:13 I mean obviously, you're an intelligent person. 24:14 Well, I read a lot. Okay. 24:16 I read a lot, and even when I was a kid, 24:18 even though I wasn't getting any good grades. 24:20 I learned to read when I was young. 24:22 And-- 24:24 you learn to read 24:25 and you can do anything with your life. 24:26 Okay, all right. 24:28 So you take this Bible back, you were gonna prove it wrong. 24:30 Yes. 24:31 And I opened it up, of course, you begin a Bible 24:33 or a book in the beginning 24:34 so that's all I knew the Bible was. 24:36 I began to read. 24:38 And I started there in Genesis Chapter 1 24:40 and I read and I read and I read. 24:42 And of course when you're locked in your cell 24:43 about 23 hours a day, 24:45 you can do a lot of reading. 24:47 And so, I was, I mean, I was encountering stories, 24:50 I had never heard of before, I mean fantastic stories. 24:54 I mean of a global flood, and of a sun standing still. 24:57 I mean can you imagine reading these things 24:58 for the very first time in your life, 25:00 giants in the land. 25:02 And I always thought, you know, David and Goliath was a myth. 25:05 I didn't know it was from the Bible. 25:07 And, but here it is right in front of me 25:10 all these incredible things happening, 25:12 and even though, I was hardened against this. 25:15 And by the way, not finding the contradictions and errors. 25:17 But even as hard as I was, the power of the word 25:21 just has a way to pierce the heart. 25:22 Yes. Yes. 25:24 And I was being softened the whole way through. 25:28 And I began to sympathize with God. 25:31 Because these people that God was always chasing 25:34 were some stubborn people. 25:36 And I'm like, you know, get rid of them already. 25:38 I really sympathize with Moses you know. 25:41 Like when God says, "I'm just going to destroy, 25:43 I'm going to start over with Moses with Moses." 25:45 I'm like, "Yes, to hell with Moses, 25:47 they don't have anything common." 25:48 And, but Moses, you know, answered that call 25:52 to stand up and say, "Please, God save your people." 25:54 If you want to-- 25:56 He didn't understand that. 25:57 If you want to blow, I mean, to think of that love 25:59 for Moses to be able to stand up and say, 26:01 Lord, blot my name out of your book of life 26:04 and save your people." 26:06 I mean he was a pre-figuring Jesus Christ. 26:10 I mean that love was in his heart. 26:11 He was ready to give up 26:12 his eternal life to save the people. 26:14 And that's a love I have never seen. 26:16 I'm not sure I ever met a Christian in my life. 26:18 What I mean by that is just somebody demonstrating 26:21 that Spirit of Christ like Moses did, like Paul did later. 26:26 Yes. 26:27 And I wonder if I would have met somebody 26:29 with that selfless love, what it would have done to me? 26:33 But I tell you something. 26:34 When I saw it and kept reading, 26:36 I mean even though I didn't understand it, 26:38 I knew it was something I wanted. 26:40 But it wasn't later on, 26:41 until I got to the story of David and Saul. 26:44 I think this is 1 Samuel Chapter 24. 26:47 We have Saul pursuing David. 26:49 You remember the story? Right. 26:50 And David flees into the cave 26:52 and Saul has to use the bathroom, 26:53 so he goes into the cave. 26:54 And while he's in there, David sneaks up behind him, 26:59 and cuts off right a little corner of that robe 27:02 and-- 27:03 And you know, and this was the opportunity. 27:05 And I'm like rooting on with his generals like get him. 27:07 That was the time to get him. 27:09 You know, he's pursuing your life and I'll take his. 27:11 And but when he said, "I can't do this." 27:15 Can't touch the anointed of the God. 27:16 I can't touch the anointed of the Lord. 27:18 And when Saul goes out, David goes out behind him, 27:20 he holds up that little corner of that robe. 27:24 And I can just imagine that how low 27:26 Saul's jaw just dropped when he saw that. 27:29 You think that would have turned him around? 27:31 Well, it did for a moment. 27:32 You know, you know, what I'm saying, 27:34 it just it really touched his heart. 27:36 And he said, "You've been more righteous than I." 27:38 Yeah. 27:39 He said, "You have returned me good for evil, 27:41 I returned you evil for good. 27:42 " And so, when I saw that story-- 27:46 Listen, this is the, this was the turning point 27:48 in my Christian experience. 27:50 Really? 27:51 The beginning of my Christian experience. 27:53 Really? 27:54 I saw that Saul deserved to die 27:57 and David had every right to take his life. 27:59 Yes. 28:01 But David chose to have mercy. 28:03 And so, for the first of my life, 28:04 I'm in Saul's shoes feeling the condemnation, the guilt, 28:08 the heaviness, the reality that I deserve to die 28:13 for what I have done, not just in the crime 28:15 where I assaulted this good man. 28:17 But for all the crimes I have done. 28:21 And yet, God still extends His arm of forgiveness, 28:24 His arm of mercy. 28:26 And says, look, and you're just like, 28:27 just like David held up that cloth. 28:29 So Jesus bleeds His blood for you and me. 28:31 And I tell you, just to taste that, 28:35 it brings me back to right now, just it's-- 28:37 just remembering that the goodness 28:39 and the grace of God that can save somebody. 28:41 And that's where I began my Christian experience. 28:42 But, you know what? 28:44 I'm sitting here thinking is the power of the word. 28:45 A 15 year old child, 28:48 locked away in detention center. 28:51 No formal education at this point. 28:54 I mean you could read well. 28:55 But you're partying and just flunken out of school. 28:57 Oh, yeah. 28:59 And just you and God, 29:01 the Holy Spirit alone in this cell, 29:03 he's teaching you. 29:04 But now, God also send some people to you. 29:07 Tell us about the people who came to visit you? 29:09 Well, that comes later, listen there's miracles, 29:12 miracles start happening at this time. 29:15 I am, you know, now I'm reading the Bible 29:18 not to find the contradictions, not that they were there 29:20 but I couldn't find it anyway. 29:21 But now, I'm reading the scriptures 29:23 to see what's in it for me. 29:25 What kind of teachings are in here. 29:28 And I kept reading, and I have read about how David, 29:30 he had committed a sin with Bathsheba. 29:32 And later was rebuked by Nathan, 29:34 of course he murdered her husband, but you know, 29:36 now here is the same David who gave mercy 29:39 and now he is in the place of needing mercy. 29:42 Yes. 29:44 And when he received that mercy from God. 29:45 Now he still suffered 29:46 the consequences of that sin by the way. 29:48 Yes, he did. Yes, he did. 29:49 And at that moment I realized. 29:51 Even if I become a Christian, 29:53 it doesn't mean God's going to send a key 29:54 to unlock these doors. 29:56 Right. 29:57 I realize there are still consequences for my crimes. 29:59 But there could still be mercy, I could still be saved. 30:02 And so as I kept reading, I come into Psalm 51. 30:06 And, you know, I'm gonna share this with you. 30:07 I love Psalm 51, greatest, greatest psalm of repentances, 30:10 if you ever want to know how to repent, 30:13 just read Psalm 51. 30:15 And this psalm is directly connected with that story 30:18 of Bathsheba being in adultery as well as-- 30:22 This is after Nathan had approached David, 30:24 and this is how David responds. 30:26 Listen to some of these words that David wrote. 30:29 He says, have, this is verse 1, "Have mercy upon me, O God, 30:32 According to Your loving kindness; 30:34 According to the multitude of Your tender mercies, 30:37 Blot out my transgression. 30:39 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, 30:41 And cleanse me from my sin." 30:42 And, I read all of this and I'm just floored 30:45 at the poetry of this, the beauty of it, 30:47 but also the heart cry, because it became my heart cry. 30:50 Amen. 30:51 And then I came to these words in verse 14. 30:53 "Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, 30:57 The God of my salvation, And my tongue shall sing aloud 31:01 of Your righteousness." 31:02 I-- 31:04 And if ever that has come true 31:06 those words God has fulfilled in your life. 31:08 I doubted for years. 31:12 I mean and it took me a long time 31:14 to really, really understand what it means 31:19 to be clean of the Lord. 31:20 I struggled with guilt for years 31:22 because of what I had done and forgiveness. 31:25 But I know 100 percent 31:28 that Jesus and the Father are true 31:30 and when they say they forgive you, 31:31 they do indeed. 31:33 And I believe that I've been cleansed 31:34 from this blood guiltiness just as David was. 31:36 Absolutely. 31:37 But it took a long time to realize that. 31:39 I struggled with that for years but I know. 31:40 And there's people out there 31:42 that's done worse things than I have. 31:43 But God can forgive them just the same. 31:45 So as you said though, there were still consequences. 31:48 I'm glad to hear you say you recognize they would be, 31:51 because it wasn't just jailhouse religion. 31:53 You weren't getting in there saying, 31:54 "Okay, Lord I'm gonna accept you 31:56 if you will set me free." 31:58 You knew, He was going to set you free 32:00 in a different way. 32:01 But you did actually, you were tried, 32:05 you were sentenced. 32:06 Yes. 32:08 Well, I was certified as an adult. 32:09 I was now 16 years old, so they sent me to County jail. 32:11 I was 17. I turned 17 in County jail. 32:14 When I was in County jail, 32:17 I met tons of other people that were. 32:19 I'm gonna talk about jailhouse religion, I mean literally, 32:22 they left their Bibles on the bunks when they left. 32:25 You know, how I know this? 32:26 Because they came right back. 32:28 And I saw them again and again. 32:29 But I was eventually went to court 32:30 because I was guilty. 32:32 I was no longer denying what I did. 32:33 I was guilty. 32:34 And so I asked the judge, I didn't go to trial. 32:36 I didn't, I just, I didn't even take a plea bargain. 32:38 I just said, just said, "Judge I did what I did." 32:42 You know, my attorney tried to get me off 32:44 because I was on, 32:45 you know, psychotropic medications 32:47 and I was, you know, always different issues in my past. 32:50 But I said, "Judge, I'm guilty, have mercy." 32:54 And after deliberating on the sentence he came back 32:57 and he said, "Taking everything in consideration. 33:00 He felt that I deserved 20 years in prison." 33:03 And so I sentenced to 20 years in prison. 33:05 And that's when they shackled me up 33:06 and sent me off. 33:08 This is in the prison in Missouri and, actually, 33:12 I was in four different prisons overtime there. 33:14 But, yeah, that, and that is where-- 33:17 I mean just, and my life 33:18 is just a story of miracles Shelley. 33:20 And I know, you know, about miracles 33:22 but listen being a firsthand account 33:24 of all these miracles in my life. 33:25 God protected me for all those years, 33:29 I was incarcerated. 33:30 And when you think about a 16 year old child 33:34 going to prison, to the big house if you will. 33:36 I was 17 by the time I went to the prison, 33:38 16 in county jail, which in my opinion 33:40 County jail was worse than prison 33:42 but it was very rough in County. 33:44 But to think that you went off to the big house, 33:46 but you didn't go alone, God was with you. 33:49 Absolutely. 33:50 Jeremiah, 1:9, one of my favorite scriptures 33:52 I quoted that almost every day. 33:54 But now, and we want to kind of fast forward this 33:57 because I want to take the remaining time, 34:00 a good portion of time to talk about 34:02 what God has done in your life. 34:03 But let's do talk about several things. 34:05 God did send some one to you in prison, 34:08 who ended up baptizing you. 34:10 Tell us how you became, you were a Christian, 34:12 how did you become an Adventist Christian? 34:15 Well, I-- 34:16 He actually did it all way back to juvenile detention 34:18 another miracle. 34:19 My mom sent me a strong concordance. 34:21 And so I began. 34:23 As I became a Christian now, 34:24 I wanted to understand the Bible. 34:25 And my mom won't even sure a book she was getting me, 34:27 she went to the bookstore and said, 34:28 "What should I send, my son is locked up." 34:30 And so, she sent me a new Bible 34:32 and a Strong's Exhaustive Concordance. 34:34 And with that I began studying the scriptures. 34:35 Now, it would take me a couple of years to be an Adventist. 34:38 But I began studying back then. 34:40 The second miracle was my dad getting me a walkman radio. 34:43 And I began to listen, 34:44 this is in Springfield, Missouri, where I was locked up 34:46 in the juvenile detention center. 34:47 So there's lots of Christian radio. 34:49 And I began to listen all these different preachers 34:52 and as I began to filter through all these things, 34:54 I realized that there are so many teachings 35:00 I want to know what the truth is. 35:01 So I began to write all these churches 35:03 and ask what do you believe, what do you believe? 35:05 And when they send me their beliefs, 35:06 I compared them to the scriptures. 35:08 And then one lady 35:10 gave me a book called The Great Controversy. 35:13 And so, I read through that book, 35:14 I breezed through that thing in just a couple of weeks 35:16 and I tell you, it was an incredible journey. 35:20 But I began to see in that book conforming 35:21 all the things I have seen in the Bible. 35:23 And just, all these things adding up 35:26 when I was sent to County jail, I receive some more books 35:30 that were saying the same things 35:33 and just providence let me write to this church 35:38 because I, So I decided in County jail, 35:40 this is the year 2000. 35:41 I decided to become an Adventist, 35:44 the Seventh-day Adventist. 35:45 Okay, so you were still in County, 35:47 so you were been baptized? 35:48 But I couldn't be baptized. 35:49 In the jail there was no place to get baptized. 35:51 Oh, okay. 35:52 And so, that's when I actually went. 35:54 Well, after I was sentenced to the 20 years, 35:57 I went to the prison. 35:59 I did everything I could. 36:00 So I begin to write all these churches 36:01 all across my area and nobody was responding. 36:05 But two eventually did. 36:07 One church responded and they actually started 36:09 a prison ministry in that prison. 36:11 And listen these, these brothers are incredible. 36:14 And the second one is Pastor Dan Kaffenberger 36:19 and this pastor, he actually was able 36:21 to come into the prison and baptize me. 36:24 There he is. 36:25 Yes, and these are dear sisters up on the screen. 36:28 These dear sisters came with him 36:30 and because I was, 36:32 I was pretty obedient so I got privileges. 36:34 They actually was able to bring food in 36:36 on a food visit. 36:38 And it was good vegetarian food, 36:39 it was quality stuff. 36:41 All right, so are they the ones I know that you tell me, 36:44 when we were talking in the green room 36:46 that you actually got to listen to 3ABN 36:49 or watch 3ABN on DVD when you were in prison. 36:52 That's cool. 36:53 I-- 36:54 There is actually a brother named Robert. 36:56 Robert was a volunteer, he was an older gentleman. 36:58 He's passed away since, but he would come in faithfully 37:01 along with his other prison ministers 37:03 like my brother John and Doug. 37:06 But they would, he would come in, 37:07 and he wasn't a preacher. 37:09 But what he could do is bring DVDs 37:12 and so he would show Brother Kenneth Cox 37:14 every, every Sabbath he came in. 37:16 We'd watch Brother Kenneth Cox on the screen. 37:18 But he would leave us with a DVD. 37:20 There was four hours of packed 3ABN material, 37:23 so he would just record at home on his DVR, 3ABN. 37:26 And then he would bring it in and he'd leave us the DVD. 37:29 So we could go to the chapel and just watch it there. 37:31 So I'd watch four hours 3ABN about every two weeks. 37:35 And that's, that's all I knew about 3ABN. 37:37 And I said this, since the day I said, 37:39 "We've got to get 3ABN into prisons. 37:42 We got to do it." 37:43 Well, we know that there's 3ABN, 37:45 God is opening so many doors for 3ABN in prisons 37:48 and we want to just say hello to all 37:51 of our brothers and sisters who are behind bars. 37:54 And we do have many brothers and sisters behind bars, 37:57 but glory to God. 37:59 But I think every prison in United States, 38:01 around the world even should have 3ABN. 38:03 And I don't know, if there's ways we can do that 38:06 but definitely has more support. 38:07 The Lord is really opening a lot of doors 38:09 and Brian Hamilton. 38:10 I'll have to introduce you afterwards. 38:13 He is the director of finance here, 38:15 but he is also our CFO. 38:17 He has, God has put it on his heart 38:21 to become very actively involved 38:23 in prison ministries, 38:24 so 3ABN has a prison ministry now. 38:26 And then we have two ladies upstairs 38:28 who answer all these prisoners 38:30 and send them Bibles and things. 38:32 It's a beautiful thing. 38:33 But now, we only have about ten minutes left, 38:35 so what I'd like to do is 38:38 you spent 14 of those 20 years in prison. 38:44 And God got you released six years early. 38:47 Tell me how he took you 38:50 from prison to being a Bible worker? 38:52 Well, who wants to hire somebody fresh out of prison? 38:57 So I was 29, getting out of prison, 39:00 I never had a driver's license, I never had a job, 39:02 I have no education. 39:04 What a culture shock. 39:05 Well, it wasn't so bad, I prepared myself 39:07 where I did all, I researched and studied 39:09 and did everything I could staying up-to-date 39:11 to be prepared as best I could. 39:13 But that didn't change the hearts 39:15 of those I was applying for job. 39:16 So 40 job applications, 39:17 nobody wanted to hire me, Shelley. 39:19 I mean who would. I have a violent crime history. 39:22 No work history, 39:24 no really education to speak of, 39:25 I got my GED while I was locked up, 39:27 and took some college classes. 39:28 But I-- 39:30 just there was nothing attractive about me. 39:33 I learned computer science when I was locked up in prison. 39:36 Praise God for many opportunities I was given, 39:38 but I just, nobody want to hire me. 39:40 So without a job, I just went to the church and volunteered, 39:44 we went door to door knocking and giving, 39:46 doing surveys and trying to give Bible studies. 39:50 And eventually the same pastor, who I was going 39:51 with door to door said, "You know, what? 39:53 I've been talking with my church's, 39:54 we're really interested in a Bible worker. 39:56 Would you be willing?" 39:57 This is the first job offer I've had. 40:00 He said, we've got a place in the church basement, 40:01 it's not finished but we will work on it 40:03 and it's not we can't pay you much 40:05 but we'll give you something. 40:06 And I said, "Well, praise God, let's do it. 40:09 Be a Bible worker, so what's that all about. 40:12 So I had to learn what it meant to be a Bible worker. 40:14 But listen, I have seen so many souls come into church 40:17 through the work we did, going door to door. 40:22 and doing Bible studies in people's homes 40:24 It's been incredible. Amen. 40:26 Now you, obviously, we announced that you are the, 40:31 an associate speaker and evangelist 40:34 for Amazing Facts. 40:36 What I want to understand is your conversion-- 40:41 Well, if we have a moment, 40:42 we'll go back to that a little bit more but. 40:45 When you came out, you're Bible worker. 40:46 Did you write this book before Amazing Facts 40:51 or after Amazing Facts? 40:52 I wrote a little pamphlet of just the conversion story 40:55 and the grace the God has given me in my life. 40:57 And I sent it to a friend. 40:59 He took the liberty of sending that 41:01 to Remnant Publications. 41:02 And it sat on a desk at Remnant Publications 41:05 for several years. 41:07 And after I was released, I get a phone call one day 41:11 and says, "Hey, we just we just read this thing 41:13 and there's a little big story behind this. 41:16 But we want to publish your book. 41:17 And you have to finish." 41:19 So I spent another year as a Bible worker at that time, 41:20 I spent another year writing the book 41:22 and the book actually came out the same time 41:25 that I went to AFCO and trained with Amazing Facts. 41:28 And, and so I was actually picked up at the same time 41:31 to do full time of public evangelism, 41:34 while I was out there. 41:36 So listen, the miracles don't stop 41:38 and the book is packed with them all the way through 41:41 and how God protect me, not one fight 41:43 during my entire time incarcerated. 41:45 That is amazing. God's promises are powerful. 41:49 But anyway, the God, even when I was a Bible worker 41:53 preaching evangelistic series during that time 41:55 gave me some experience. 41:57 And, and ever since we've been doing full time evangelism 42:00 all across this country around. 42:01 I've been in Thailand and in fact, 42:05 we, we just baptized a lot of people in Taiwan 42:07 this last December. 42:09 And we had in Nepal a year before that. 42:13 We did some work there and did prophecy seminars 42:16 in Thailand or Nepal. 42:17 So it's been an adventure where God has sent me 42:21 and we just keep working for Him wherever He sends us. 42:23 Okay. 42:24 So the book is called, 42:26 "The Least of the Least: From Crime to Christ." 42:31 And you can get this book at Remnant. 42:34 Yeah. 42:36 And that would be what remnantpublications.com 42:40 or is it also available on your website? 42:42 If you go to my website, endtimehope.org. 42:45 And End-Time Hope Ministries is our, 42:48 the name of our prophecy seminars, 42:49 the name of our ministry 42:51 where we also help send these books into prisons. 42:53 But if you go to End-Time Hope Ministries. 42:55 Excuse me, endtimehope.org, 42:58 you can find ways of also getting the book there. 43:00 And there's also e -book version as well. 43:02 Wonderful. 43:04 And tell us a little bit about your time at AFCO. 43:10 And how God, I mean, 43:11 there's a lot of people who go to AFCO, 43:13 I've taught out there myself. 43:15 And you see that there's a lot of people come through. 43:18 There's very few people that are selected 43:21 to be the speakers 43:25 and evangelists representative of AFCO. 43:29 So tell us a little bit how God arranged that? 43:33 Well, I'm not sure all the behind the scenes. 43:36 God, I think He's been working on this for a long time. 43:38 No doubt. 43:40 Even in meeting my wife, 43:41 and everything just worked out so perfectly. 43:44 But, you know, the fact that they don't choose 43:46 a lot of people to be evangelists 43:47 or full time Bible workers, it doesn't mean 43:49 that there's not quality there, because these students 43:51 that come through AFCO are the cream of the crop. 43:53 They're definitely solid 43:55 and but there's just only so many, 43:58 I guess positions available. 43:59 And so, how the Lord worked it out that it was me, 44:02 I mean when we went, 44:04 I thought I was getting some more training to go out 44:06 and be to continue doing the Bible work 44:08 somewhere else and. 44:10 But the Lord had other plans. 44:11 We weren't there long before the offer was given, 44:13 and so I spent most of my time at AFCO 44:15 knowing what our future was going to be 44:18 and so studying extra hard with that in mind. 44:22 And I can tell you, looking back 44:24 that this isn't been nothing but divine. 44:27 God has been in this from the beginning 44:29 and it's been more miracle stories. 44:32 Now, when you were there, you were already married, 44:34 is that correct? 44:35 We went there, in fact, 44:37 we'd already had a baby at that time. 44:38 All right. 44:40 So let's, let's back up just a little bit then. 44:41 You're out of prison, you're Bible worker. 44:44 How long were you out of prison 44:45 before you met your wife? 44:47 I'll tell you what. 44:48 My wife would be on a little bit, you ask her that question. 44:50 And she's-- 44:52 But we, I wasn't out too long, because I wasn't-- 44:55 I was, I had a two year plan. 44:56 Okay. 44:58 I wasn't going to get involved in relationship for two years. 45:00 I realized getting out of prison 45:01 was a lot of adjustment to take. 45:03 But I had a two year plan, 45:05 but the Lord had different plans. 45:06 And again, looking back I can see 45:08 that God had a rush order on this thing 45:13 to get us where we are at today 45:15 where we can do as much good as we can. 45:17 But God sent her in my life pretty early. 45:21 And we began to court and I met her, 45:24 this is actually a picture we took at a camp meeting. 45:26 This is the beautiful Jenni. 45:27 That's my wife Jenni. 45:29 She is-- 45:31 You know, and from the beginning 45:33 we both knew even though it took us a long time 45:34 to admit to each other that we were meant-- 45:37 When I first met her, I knew she was the one, 45:40 and she said the same about me. 45:42 And I tell you, we didn't tell each other this for long time. 45:45 But it was, it was definitely providence 45:48 that brought us together. 45:50 And so, we got married in June of 2013. 45:54 And about ten months later, we had our beautiful daughter 45:59 Purity, Purity Allen. 46:00 And she is a beauty. We're gonna meet her. 46:03 I feel like I keep teasing people, 46:05 we need to go ahead. 46:06 Actually, what we're gonna do is we're gonna go ahead, 46:09 and right now Wyatt is doing prophecy seminars. 46:15 You just did last or in 2015 I believe it was. 46:19 He did week prayer at Oklahoma Academy. 46:24 He's traveling, speaking and he and his wife and Purity 46:28 are pretty much on the road constantly, aren't you? 46:32 We have no place to lay our head. 46:34 Yeah, and which is, I ask if you all 46:37 were gonna have another child soon 46:39 and he said this is a little difficult time right now to 46:42 when you don't know where you gonna be 46:44 so, but, if you would be interested 46:47 in having Wyatt come and do a week of prayer, 46:51 or speak at your church 46:53 or perhaps you would like to book them 46:55 for a prophecy seminars. 46:58 We want to put up the address roll 47:01 so that you can know how to get in touch with Wyatt. 47:10 If you would like to know how you can get the book, 47:12 The Least of the Least: From Crime to Christ. 47:15 Then you can write to End-Time Hope Ministries, 47:18 PO Box 1681, Jefferson City, Missouri 65102. 47:24 That's End-Time Hope Ministries, 47:26 PO Box 1681, Jefferson City, Missouri 65102. 47:32 You can call 573-280-4827. 47:36 That's 573-280-4827 47:40 or you can visit them online at enditimehope.org. 47:45 That's enditimehope.org. 47:52 I know that Wyatt and Jenni would be happy 47:55 to come to your church and to bless you. 47:58 And I do want to encourage you, 48:00 I will be forth coming with you. 48:03 I have not had the opportunity to read this book yet. 48:05 I just got it in my hands today. 48:07 But I happen to have an autograph copy now. 48:09 I have however spoken with several people at 3ABN 48:13 who have read the book and said, 48:15 it was a compelling story, one they couldn't put down, 48:18 one that they found so much encouragement 48:21 and the title of Wyatt's book is, The Least of the Least-- 48:26 By the way, that's based on Matthew 25. 48:29 Yes. Remember the story? 48:30 If you look at that list of leasts, 48:33 I mean the bottom of that list, 48:34 you know, I was hungry you fed me, I was thirsty. 48:36 At the bottom of that list he says, I was in prison 48:38 and you came to me, that in list of leasts, 48:41 The Least of the Least or those in prison. 48:44 And yet, he didn't leave them out. 48:45 That's incredible. It is incredible. 48:47 So The Least of the Least: From Crime to Christ. 48:51 And you can get this either at remnantpublications.com 48:56 or you can go to 48:57 endtimehope.com. 49:04 Okay, let me say that one more time, 49:05 endtimehope.org or amazon.com. 49:12 Is it in the ABCs yet? It's in a lot of ABCs. 49:14 Okay. And you can also check with the ABC stores. 49:17 And I'm really looking forward to reading this. 49:20 And what we're going to do now 49:22 is we're gonna go to a newsbreak. 49:23 And when we come back, 49:24 we're gonna introduce you to Jenni, 49:27 momma Jenni and precious baby Purity. |
Revised 2016-05-12