Participants:
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY018043A
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00:02 I want to spend my life
00:07 Mending broken people 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:19 Removing pain 00:24 Lord, let my words 00:30 Heal a heart that hurts 00:35 I want to spend my life 00:40 Mending broken people 00:46 I want to spend my life 00:51 Mending broken people 01:11 Hello, I'm Shelley Quinn, 01:12 and we welcome you once again to 3ABN Today, 01:16 the mending broken people network. 01:18 And, oh, I'm so excited 01:20 what we're going to talk about today 01:22 because we are getting ready to launch a new program, 01:27 it is Raw Questions Relevant Answers, 01:31 and this is to help 01:33 mend the broken hearts of young people. 01:37 And I have to tell you that it doesn't matter 01:40 what age you are, you will enjoy this program. 01:44 I'm very blessed to introduce our three guests today, 01:48 who are the co-hosts 01:50 for Raw Questions Relevant Answers. 01:52 And first, we have Dee Casper. 01:53 Dee, you're no stranger to our audience, 01:56 you've been on a number of times. 01:57 That's right, yeah. 01:59 You are currently working as a brand evangelist 02:01 for ARTV. 02:03 Yes, that's correct. 02:04 Well, we're excited about that, 02:06 and we're going to let you tell us 02:07 what that is in just a moment. 02:08 But then, next to Dee, 02:10 we have the beautiful Michelle Doucoumes. 02:13 And Michelle, believe it or not is a college professor. 02:17 You are a professor at SAU and you teach business. 02:21 I do, yeah. 02:22 So you have an MBA, 02:24 but you also teach religion classes. 02:25 Correct. Okay. 02:26 Well, we're glad to have you here. 02:28 And then we have none other than Mark Paden, 02:31 who is a freelance filmmaker. 02:34 And I'm going to say something, Mark. 02:37 Sure. 02:38 I know you're the youngest in the group. 02:40 We have three young single adults. 02:43 And I am so impressed with their wisdom. 02:48 I've had the blessing, 02:49 the privilege of producing this program. 02:52 So as we are recording, 02:54 and I'm listening to these young people, 02:56 they sound like they have knowledge 03:01 way beyond their years. 03:02 And that brings me to our scripture for today, 03:06 James 3:17 says, 03:09 "The wisdom that is from above 03:11 is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, 03:17 full of mercy and good fruits, 03:19 without partiality and hypocrisy." 03:23 And these young adults have uncommon wisdom, 03:29 it is wisdom from above. 03:31 And I have to tell you that as I've listened to you, 03:35 I think, "Oh, I wished I had known 03:38 what you know when I was your age." 03:41 Seriously. Praise God. 03:42 Yeah. And it's beautiful. 03:45 So before we launch into the program, 03:47 and I'm actually going to let you all do some talking here. 03:50 We first love to start with music, 03:53 and the person who will sing for us today 03:56 is one of my favorites, 03:58 she has a beautiful spirit, 04:01 she ministers, she's a music minister. 04:05 And I'm speaking of Sandra Entermann. 04:08 She is from Down Under. 04:11 And Sandra is a person that loves God, 04:16 she worships God when she sings, 04:19 and she just brings you into the presence of the Lord. 04:22 So Sandra is going to sing for us now "Who am I." 04:40 Who am I that the Lord of all the earth 04:46 Would care to know my name 04:49 Would care to feel my hurt 04:54 Who am I that the bright and morning star 05:01 Would choose to light the way 05:04 For my ever wandering heart 05:10 Not because of who I am 05:13 But because of what You've done 05:17 Not because of what I've done 05:21 But because of who You are 05:26 I am a flower quickly fading 05:30 Here today and gone tomorrow 05:34 A wave tossed in the ocean 05:38 A vapor in the wind 05:41 Still You hear me when I'm calling 05:45 Lord, You catch me when I'm falling 05:49 And You've told me who I am 05:54 I am Yours 06:08 Who Am I that the eyes that see my sin 06:15 Would look on me with love 06:18 And watch me rise again 06:23 Who Am I that the voice that calmed the sea 06:30 Would call out through the rain 06:33 And calm the storm in me 06:39 Not because of who I am 06:43 But because of what You've done 06:46 Not because of what I've done 06:50 But because of who You are 06:55 I am a flower quickly fading 07:00 Here today and gone tomorrow 07:04 A wave tossed in the ocean 07:07 A vapor in the wind 07:10 Still You hear me when I'm calling 07:15 Lord, You catch me when I'm falling 07:18 And You've told me who I am 07:23 I am Yours 07:38 Not because of who I am 07:42 But because of what You've done 07:45 Not because of what I've done 07:49 But because of who You are 07:56 I am a flower quickly fading 08:00 Here today and gone tomorrow 08:04 A wave tossed in the ocean 08:08 A vapor in the wind 08:11 Still You hear me when I'm calling 08:15 Lord, You catch me when I'm falling 08:19 And You've told me who I am 08:24 I am Yours 08:31 I am Yours 08:39 I am Yours 08:47 Whom shall I fear Whom shall I fear 08:53 'Cause I am Yours 09:11 Oh, we want to thank you, Sandra, 09:13 and that was our friend Christy Sidebick 09:15 on the piano accompanying her. 09:18 If you're just joining us today, 09:20 we are going to talk about Raw Questions Relevant Answers. 09:25 Let me introduce you, this is a new program 09:27 that we're launching in July, 09:29 and we're very excited about it. 09:31 Let me introduce you once again to the three co-hosts, 09:33 and we had Dee Caspar, 09:35 Michelle Doucoumes, and Mark Paden. 09:37 What I'd like to do first is let's just get a little bit, 09:42 the Reader's Digest version of your background. 09:46 Dee, did you grow up in church? 09:48 No. Okay. 09:49 So I grew up about a half hour from here actually 09:52 and had never heard of a Seventh-day Adventist, 09:53 had never heard of 3ABN, 09:55 and in that finding it on television, 09:57 and so that was the fall of 2006 10:00 that I first started to watch, 10:02 and I think it was Doug Batchelor's 10:03 Most Amazing Prophecies series that he did. 10:05 And I remember thinking, 10:06 "I've never heard that before, but that's what the text says. 10:08 And never heard that before but that's what the text says." 10:11 That kind of began a process. 10:12 I eventually came, visited here, 10:15 and then over a series of events, 10:17 I was baptized in 2010 10:19 at the ARISE Cornerstone Program, 10:21 December of 2010. 10:23 And I've been in ministry ever since, 10:24 it's been about seven years if I'm right. 10:27 Glory to God, that is exciting. 10:30 I didn't know that about you. 10:32 So you are currently serving as the brand evangelist for ARTV. 10:36 What does a brand evangelists do? 10:38 So ARTV is the Adventists Reviews 10:41 on demand media platform that we've designed. 10:44 We believe that digital media is the new publishing work. 10:47 So we're continuing in publishing, 10:48 but we're also branching into digital media 10:50 that's on demand short and sharable. 10:52 So my job, kind of the way the role 10:54 that I play on our team 10:56 is to kind of increase awareness about what we do, 10:59 recruiting talents to kind of help us create the content 11:02 that we're doing, 11:03 overseeing our social media stuff, 11:05 and whenever I travel and speak doing evangelism, 11:07 I just increase awareness about what it is, 11:09 how people can get involved, 11:11 and I had to share with our friends. 11:12 So that's kind of my responsibility. 11:14 Okay, you know, we're so glad that you're here, 11:16 and we're so glad that you are co-hosting 11:19 Raw Questions Relevant Answers. 11:21 And the next guest today is Michelle Doucoumes, 11:24 and she's a college professor at SAU, 11:28 Southern Adventist University. 11:30 And when I first met you, I thought, 11:34 "No way you could be a professor." 11:36 You look like one of the students. 11:38 Thank you, I appreciate that. I'll take it. 11:41 Tell us a little did you grow up in the church 11:43 or what is your background? 11:45 Well, I did grow up in the church. 11:46 In fact, my dad was a pastor in the church, 11:48 so I grew up with a lot of church. 11:49 Okay. 11:51 But it wasn't maybe till I was in college myself, 11:53 studying business at Southern Adventist University 11:56 that God started to work in my life. 11:59 And there were some different people 12:00 and things that were a part of that, 12:02 the GYC movement was a part of that, 12:05 doing literature evangelism in a summer 12:07 really changed my perspectives on life. 12:10 And through a number of these things, 12:11 God just impressed upon me 12:12 a desire to not just do business as usual 12:15 but to be able to do something for the Lord with this. 12:18 So things changed, 12:20 I ended up going after school and doing accounting, 12:24 but then going to 12:25 the Amazing Facts Center for evangelism, 12:27 doing Bible work, 12:28 I was the business manager for evangelism school called 12:31 Souls West in Arizona. 12:33 I did my MBA, and then we started a program 12:36 at Southern Adventist University 12:37 in partnership with It Is Written, 12:39 called SALT, Soul-winning And Leadership Training. 12:42 So I did that for several years 12:43 and still teach for that program. 12:45 And I was at the Wildwood College of Health Evangelism 12:48 as their director for several years. 12:51 And then just recently came back to, 12:53 where it started, 12:54 at Southern Adventist University 12:56 to teach business there. 12:57 So much experience in just such a short little lifespan. 13:00 Oh, my, I will tell you one thing, Shelley, 13:03 when you do things for the Lord, 13:04 it doesn't always seem to make sense, 13:06 it's never what you expect, 13:08 but it's been a really rewarding experience 13:11 and it's still teaching me many things. 13:13 And so you have a lot of interaction 13:15 there with young people, with college age students. 13:19 And in this program that we're doing, 13:21 Raw Questions Relevant Answers, 13:23 I would say our target market is 15-30, 13:27 it seems like that's where the questions are coming from. 13:30 But the next co-host is Mark Paden. 13:33 And, Mark, you are a freelance filmmaker. 13:38 Tell us a little of your growing up here. 13:41 Sure. 13:42 When did God really become... 13:45 When did it become a personal relationship? 13:47 Sure. So I grew up in the church. 13:52 Good godly parents, everything like that. 13:54 But then in my early teen years, 13:58 I kind of got a whiff of the world 14:00 and decided that I wanted to have a little bit more 14:02 than I wanted God. 14:04 And so I took, it might say sabbatical 14:05 from Christianity for a little bit, 14:07 at least from God and really being a part of Him. 14:10 And then I got involved with a bunch of stuff, 14:13 and I ended up going to school up in Michigan called 14:17 Great Lakes Adventist Academy. 14:18 And when I went up there, 14:20 you know, God just started to really work on my heart. 14:22 I was separated from some of the influences 14:24 that I was at in my home in Texas. 14:28 And I just started... 14:29 You come from the Austin area, right? 14:31 That's party city, 14:33 anybody from Texas knows that Austin is party city. 14:35 Yeah, yeah. 14:37 Oh, yeah, and honestly I love Texas. 14:39 It's a great place but... 14:40 If I could high-five you, darling, from here I would. 14:44 A high-five, yeah, you know. 14:46 But yeah, it was a really good experience for me 14:49 to go up there to that school 14:51 because it separated me from some of the things 14:53 that I was doing and got me in a place 14:56 where I could start to think about God. 14:57 And I remember God keeping coming back to me saying, 15:00 "Mark, I want you to come to Me, 15:01 I want you come to Me." 15:03 And finally, I realized, you know what, 15:05 I need to give my life to God. 15:07 And so I just decided, "You know what, Lord, 15:09 I'm going to give you my life 100%." 15:11 And I knew that there'd be some things 15:13 that I needed to give up in the process. 15:16 And God just gave me so much grace to do that, 15:18 and it was incredible to me 15:20 because once I made that decision, 15:21 you know what, 15:23 I'm going to surrender these things, 15:24 I know God doesn't want me to do and follow God. 15:27 It was incredible just to see the way that God put me 15:30 into leadership positions 15:32 and gave me so many opportunities to do the things 15:34 that I'd always wanted to do. 15:35 You know, I'd grown up loving cameras and technology, 15:40 and as soon as I... 15:41 So were you a movie buff for a while? 15:43 I was, big time. 15:45 And it was actually kind of funny 15:46 because I was watching a lot of things 15:48 that, you know, 15:50 Christians really shouldn't be watching. 15:52 And it was incredible 15:53 because that was one of the things 15:55 that I knew I needed to give to God. 15:57 And when I decided to do that, it was incredible 16:00 because then God started giving me 16:01 so many opportunities to film. 16:03 Like right after that, 16:05 I had an opportunity with the school 16:07 actually to film a couple different videos 16:09 using a $20,000 camera. 16:11 They bought like $3,000 computer 16:13 so that I could work on that, right? 16:15 And it was just incredible 16:17 how it just started going from there. 16:21 Then I started, after I graduated, 16:24 you know, all the way along, 16:25 I just wanted to get into filmmaking, 16:28 I wanted to do freelance videography, 16:30 and my thing was I wanted to learn on my own, 16:33 I wanted to learn from sources online 16:36 and just by doing, and it was crazy 16:37 because that's how God started to lead. 16:39 He brought me from one ministry to another, and I just... 16:45 He taught me so much about not only filmmaking 16:48 but about how to do it for Him. 16:50 And how to use this medium of communication 16:54 to communicate the gospel. 16:55 And yeah, at this point, 16:58 it's so crazy that God really does give us 17:01 the desires of our hearts, I mean, 17:03 I love traveling, I love cameras, 17:05 I love filmmaking, I love telling stories, 17:07 and that's what I do now. 17:08 And He's obviously given you a great gift for that. 17:11 Mark actually did the open 17:13 and all of the graphics for this program. 17:15 We've never done this before. 17:17 But this concept... 17:21 we've been earnestly seeking the Lord, 17:25 we knew we needed more programming for youth, 17:29 when we've been earnestly seeking the Lord, and I say, 17:31 "Lord, what kind of program?" 17:32 And I think I'd have an idea here, 17:34 and maybe identify a host there. 17:36 And you know what happened? 17:38 God just brought Dee Casper right into our office one day. 17:42 Dee, tell us where the concept, and explain a little more 17:47 because Raw Questions Relevant Answers 17:50 isn't a preaching program. 17:53 Correct. 17:54 It's not preaching, 17:56 you're really touching the heart issues, 17:58 the relevancy of scripture in young people's lives. 18:04 So tell us how that concept came about. 18:07 I think I was speaking with Molly probably about a year... 18:10 over year ago, and she had asked, 18:13 we've been kind of partnered 18:15 with 3ABN on different projects, and she said, 18:16 "We've tried to do programs for young people in the past, 18:19 and we're looking to try to either resurrect 18:20 one of these programs or do something else, 18:23 so would you be willing to help us with it?" 18:25 And through that dialogue, 18:26 I kind of gave a counteroffer 18:28 to one of the program offers they've given, 18:30 based on something that Mark and I had done a lot of. 18:32 So I travel a lot, I've been to, 18:33 like 22 of our academies, 4 of colleges 18:36 speaking and investing in young people, 18:37 that's mainly what I do is invest in young people 18:39 and youth conferences and stuff. 18:42 And one of the things that Mark and I found 18:43 was that sharing at schools during Q&As, 18:45 just we have no idea what's coming, 18:47 we don't know what they're going to ask, 18:49 but we came to find was by preaching on hard issues 18:52 and then opening up for them to ask questions, 18:55 the questions were very raw. 18:57 And these kids were burying their hearts 18:59 and asking stuff that many adults 19:01 wouldn't have the courage to talk about, 19:03 let alone ask. 19:05 And to ask as vulnerably as strongly as these kids did, 19:08 kind of burying their hearts, 19:09 we realized something has to be done about this. 19:11 And so when I saw that there was an opportunity 19:13 for a program, my thought was, 19:15 "Why not do a Q&A format program, 19:18 where we give young people an opportunity 19:19 to anonymously ask questions, 19:21 where they can be as vulnerable as possible 19:23 and give them Christ-centered answers." 19:25 Mark and I found that by being 19:27 immensely Christ-centered in our preaching, 19:29 by being vulnerable to the people 19:31 were preaching too, 19:32 and by dealing with hard issues that cripple them, 19:34 it opens doors to reach young people in ways that, 19:37 basically, better than anything else can. 19:41 So we're not coming in as if we have our act together, 19:43 we're telling them what they need to know. 19:45 We're speaking from vulnerable standpoints of young people 19:47 who have wrestled in life, and we're honest about that. 19:50 And this shows them that we're safe, 19:52 and then they can open up and share. 19:53 And so that's kind of how that door opened. 19:55 And so I sent some examples, 19:57 where Mark and I had done 19:58 some Q&As in a school before, to say, 20:00 "Would you guys be okay 20:01 with doing a program like this?" 20:02 And that kind of facilitated discussion, 20:04 and then my insistence was I want Mark to be here, 20:07 I want Mark to be one of the hosts, 20:09 and then we wanted to ensure that we had diversity. 20:11 And someone that I knew would... 20:14 'cause I mean I don't have 20:15 all the answers neither does Mark, 20:17 and we surely don't have a lot of the answers 20:18 to issues that females are contending with, 20:19 and we need to have diversity. 20:21 And the person immediately came to my mind 20:23 was someone had a lot of respect for in ministry, 20:25 and we rubbed shoulders a ministry 20:27 in a lot of different locations the last few years, 20:29 it was Michelle. 20:30 And I had seen her in Q&A format discussions 20:33 whether be GYC southeast or some other place 20:35 I can't remember what it was. 20:37 And I knew that she had a lot of experience in ministry 20:39 and is someone who's down to earth 20:40 and practical and would be Christ-centered. 20:42 And so I asked her, "Would you be able to come?" 20:44 And she said, "Yeah." And the rest is history. 20:47 And it's been amazing 20:48 because as we've been filming together, 20:50 though the three of us haven't done this together, 20:51 Mark and I've done it a lot. 20:53 Though the three of us together have not done it, 20:55 it just feels like home. 20:57 And it just feels like a home family discussion, 21:00 where we can talk about issues. 21:01 And each of us have a story 21:03 that's different and is diverse. 21:04 Mark grew up in the church, and left, and came back. 21:07 Michelle grew up as a pastor's kid and stayed 21:09 but kind of found a deeper experience 21:10 later in life 21:11 and has been blessed by college ministries 21:15 and other things from a different perspective. 21:17 And she's worked in multiple environments, 21:19 whether it be self-supporting environments 21:20 and within the church. 21:22 And Mark and I have both worked in self-supporting environments 21:25 and been to other schools. 21:26 And I wasn't raised in the church but came in. 21:29 So there's this broad approach 21:30 that we're taking from different areas. 21:32 Mark can speak from experience in some areas, 21:34 I speak more from kind of a clinical side 21:37 of having to help people work through those. 21:38 So that's kind of the background 21:40 of how the program came about 21:41 and why we're passionate about it 21:43 because we all see the same issues 21:44 that young people contend with and want to help. 21:46 You know, one thing that I was telling my husband, JD, 21:50 when I get to listen to these, 21:52 I'm sitting in the control room, 21:54 and when these three young adults 21:56 get off the set 21:57 and they go back into the green room 21:58 when they're doing a quick change, 22:00 and I hear them laughing together 22:02 and the joy that's in your heart. 22:04 And then when they get on the set, 22:06 something that I appreciate about the tone of the program 22:12 is it's very relaxed, it's not preachy, and I said, 22:16 we're hitting, I mean, kids are saying, 22:20 "Why is this happening to me? 22:21 Where is God?" You know, they're searching. 22:25 And a lot of times, 22:26 the questions that you're answering, 22:28 we're not talking about anything this program 22:30 doesn't have to have a disclaimer in front of it, 22:34 you could lead a child of any age listen to this. 22:37 But they are heart cries, if you will, 22:43 that somehow and I don't know why, 22:46 and maybe we'll discover that, 22:47 but sometimes young people are afraid 22:50 to ask parents or the pastors or other people in church, 22:55 they don't feel like 22:56 they can get that vulnerable with them. 22:58 And they kind of hide, 23:00 we're really good at camouflage, aren't we? 23:04 Oh, Shelley, I mean, I remember being in that position. 23:07 Even as a young person growing up 23:10 with a relationship with Jesus and in church, 23:12 there are times that I went 23:13 through a lot of this questioning, 23:15 and felt like, "If I told someone, 23:17 either I would be looked down on 23:19 or just given a Bible verse 23:21 and told to just go have more faith" 23:23 or something like that. 23:25 And so I think that that's part of the burden 23:26 that we have is to say no. 23:29 Young people need to know that other people struggle 23:31 with these questions too. 23:32 And that it's okay, 23:34 and that God does have the answers. 23:36 And I think part of the reason is also a little bit casual is, 23:40 I remember being asked to do this program, and thinking, 23:43 "I don't know that I have all these answers either." 23:45 I'm afraid it's going to be like raw questions, 23:48 half-baked answers, instead of relevant answers. 23:53 But we're just sharing genuinely 23:56 from what we've seen, from what we know of God, 23:59 and that's all we have to share 24:01 and that's what we're trying to do. 24:02 Yeah, now, how did you get the questions, Mark? 24:05 Sure. 24:06 So basically, what we did is we went online 24:09 and asked young people to ask questions. 24:14 And a lot of people have sent them in 24:16 and, you know, it's... 24:18 What's the Facebook account? 24:20 Raw Questions Relevant Answers. 24:22 or R-Q... 24:23 R-Q-R-A-3-A-B-N is kind of the handles. 24:25 So if you just type R-Q-R-A-3-A-B-N 24:28 in the Facebook search bar, it will take you there. 24:29 Okay, okay. 24:31 You know, the other thing too 24:32 that I just wanted to piggyback on 24:34 what you all are saying, 24:35 you know, the reason that I think 24:37 that we're able to grapple with some of these questions 24:40 is that we've spent a lot of pain 24:42 and agony wrestling with them 24:44 in our own lives and experiences. 24:46 And I think that, I mean, I know for me, 24:48 and I think I can say for them too that, 24:50 you know, we've spent the nights agonizing 24:52 because of something 24:54 that we've been wrestling with 24:55 or, you know, those painful emotions 24:57 when we just can't seem to get it together. 25:00 And I think because of that, and I think too, 25:03 like none of us have been satisfied 25:04 with just letting the pain go on unaddressed. 25:08 And because of that, I think that's driven us 25:10 to really seek answers 25:11 and to find help in the Word of God. 25:13 And I think the beauty of what I see 25:16 that God has shown us is answers in His Word. 25:20 And the powerful thing about that is, like, you know, 25:23 you can go to some human 25:24 and they can give you their advice. 25:26 But at the end of the day, 25:29 it can be lost in the midst of uncertainty, 25:31 maybe it works, maybe it doesn't. 25:32 But with the Word of God, we know it works. 25:34 When God says, "I will put within you a new heart." 25:37 We can take that to the bank, we know it works. 25:40 And that's the beauty... 25:41 the relevance of this whole thing is that, 25:43 you know, we're taking these issues 25:44 that we don't want to talk about, 25:46 that we're scared to talk about, 25:47 that we sometimes can't even put into words in our minds, 25:50 we're taking those 25:52 and giving the most relevant answer possible 25:55 from the Word of God, 25:56 The Word that spoke the earth into existence. 25:59 And I think that Word can say a few things 26:00 about our experience too, you know. 26:02 Amen, and that Word, implanted in your hearts 26:05 has the power to save your souls. 26:08 Go ahead, you were going to say something. 26:09 I was just going to say that it's a burden to make it clear 26:12 that Jesus is acquainted with our grief, 26:13 that's one of the burdens that we want to communicate as well 26:15 that you have a Savior who understands. 26:18 It's mentioned in Hebrews 2 and in Hebrew 4 26:20 that Jesus had to suffer in all points like us 26:22 so that He could comfort us for one and two, 26:25 to show us that He stays so that we would in turn 26:27 come boldly to His throne and grace 26:29 and that we may obtain mercy 26:30 and find grace to help in a time of need. 26:32 And so to make God the Father and Jesus 26:34 as personal and accessible as possible 26:38 to these young people is another burden that we have. 26:40 To make it clear that we're not talking about a God 26:43 who is disconnected and doesn't care. 26:44 We talked about this in one of the programs, 26:45 in Daniel 2, the belief of the astrologers 26:48 and the sorcerers was that, you know, 26:50 that God doesn't dwell with men. 26:52 And, you know, He's just someone, 26:53 you can't deal with us. 26:54 It's the Babylonian and pagan view of God, 26:56 but that's not the view of scripture. 26:57 Our view is a God who was willing to become flesh 27:00 and dwell among us, to suffer alongside us, 27:03 and offer us a means of escape. 27:05 And so we would try to make it clear 27:08 of how beautiful and inviting 27:09 the character of God the Father and Jesus is 27:12 and how much power through the Holy Spirit 27:14 is available to us 27:16 to be able to walk in the things that God requires. 27:18 You just, we're clarifying a lot of topics, 27:20 whether it be why Adventism matters, 27:21 and just kind of explaining why we believe 27:23 Seventh-day Adventism is important. 27:25 Dealing with practical Christianity, 27:27 how to know the will of God, dealing with identity issues, 27:31 dealing with family issues, you know, in brokenness 27:33 in the family environment. 27:34 Someone asked a question, 27:36 "If I have a business relationship with my dad, 27:38 and I view God in the same way, 27:39 what do I do about this?" 27:41 And the amazing thing is the insight 27:44 that a lot of these young people are given 27:45 regarding their circumstances gives me so much hope for them 27:49 because it's not, you know, there are heart cries 27:52 that they don't have answers for, 27:54 but then there's other questions 27:55 where people are saying things... 27:56 There's one we did on self-governance, 27:58 I think when we filmed yesterday... 27:59 And explain what self-governance is. 28:01 Self-governance, yeah, 28:02 'cause a lot of us need that explanation. 28:03 Self-governance is the principle 28:05 that we're not to coerce and control 28:07 and deprive our children of liberty. 28:09 We are to give them information, 28:12 and give them the freedom to walk in this information, 28:14 and then counseling them and correcting them as they go 28:16 as opposed to sometimes we think 28:18 we're pretty protecting them by removing any opportunity 28:20 to make the bad choice. 28:22 The problem is they're so afraid of making bad choices 28:25 that they don't know how to make any choice, 28:26 for one. 28:28 And the first time they get a freedom to make a choice 28:30 is when there's no one around to help them through it. 28:33 And so it's a principle covered throughout 28:36 the writings and Adventism through the Spirit of Prophecy, 28:38 and other means that this is something 28:40 that we're supposed to have access 28:41 to help teach us these things. 28:42 God works through freedom and information. 28:45 Let me give you a quick example 28:46 'cause some people are sitting there saying, 28:48 "I still don't know what he says," 28:49 but my mother, and I've talked freely on air 28:53 that she was bipolar, she had some difficulties, 28:56 but she was still a great mother. 28:57 And one thing she always did with me, 29:00 from the time I was maybe 10 years up, 29:02 is that when I'd have a question, 29:04 "What should I do," 29:06 she would say, "What are your options?" 29:08 And we'd sit and enlist the options, 29:10 "What do you think 29:11 the consequences will be if you do this? 29:13 What about if you do this?" 29:15 And of course, it was age appropriate, 29:18 she would guide me through, but by the time I was 16, 29:23 she would sit and say, "Well, what are your options? 29:25 What do you think the consequences?" 29:27 And sometimes she let me make the wrong choice. 29:31 And then I had, you know, I'd come to her 29:33 and it was like, "I shouldn't have done that." 29:35 And she said, "Honey, we discussed the consequences." 29:38 There is something... 29:39 I'm not afraid to make a decision, 29:41 by the time I remember going off to college, 29:43 where people were like, they were freaking out 29:46 'cause they couldn't balance a checkbook 29:49 or they had to take care of themselves, 29:51 and I was off to college just totally prepared, 29:55 and it did not frighten me at all to make a choice. 29:57 And that's what we're talking about. 29:59 Yes, the ability to kind of think through intelligently, 30:02 to ration through each decision to know 30:03 why it's right why it's wrong, 30:05 but sometimes in our attempts to protect our kids, 30:07 we're actually setting them up for harm 30:08 because they've never learned how to think for themselves. 30:11 They've been a reflector of men's thoughts around them. 30:13 And many times, they're basically 30:14 internally thinking, 30:16 "I just need to obey to stay out of trouble," 30:18 which has horrific consequences down the line, 30:21 particularly with our view of how this whole scene 30:23 is going to end up on earth like. 30:25 Carry that out for us. 30:26 Yeah, just in blatant honesty, 30:28 we're setting these kids up to fall in a Sunday law crisis. 30:31 If these kids are being taught in their mind 30:33 and in their experience just to basically obey 30:35 to stay out of trouble, what do they do 30:37 whenever the government and law enforcements speak 30:40 louder than presenters, preachers, and their parents? 30:42 They're just going to obey to stay out of trouble. 30:45 This is why we need to train our children 30:46 to think for themselves now. 30:48 So this young person's question was, "Wouldn't it be... 30:50 Why do our parents do this to us? 30:53 And why is God letting this happen? 30:55 Doesn't He know that if we don't know 30:56 how to make these decisions in a safe environment 30:58 where we can receive correction 31:00 that we're just going to fall later? 31:01 Why would God let them do that to us?" 31:04 That was the person's question. 31:06 And the insight the young person had on 31:08 how self-governance should work 31:10 is amazing to me and very insightful. 31:12 So we give them the opportunity 31:14 to ask their questions anonymously as well. 31:17 All they have is like a gender, an age, and a state, that's it, 31:21 or country or province, wherever they're from. 31:23 And it just kind of gives some insight 31:25 into the other people who are listening to realize, 31:26 "Oh, man, someone else 31:28 who's my age is wrestling with this." 31:29 But we're not giving specific details about the person, 31:32 so they can be vulnerable but not be exposed. 31:34 And their story can still inspire 31:36 and help other people wrestling the same way. 31:39 Go ahead. 31:40 I just want to jump in here too. 31:42 You know, we've both... 31:44 We're actually networking at Heritage Academy in Tennessee. 31:48 I've been involved a lot with GYC, 31:50 so I've seen a lot of young people around. 31:53 And I am a young person, 31:54 so I've met a lot of young people 31:58 who have grown up in an environment 32:01 where they haven't been free to govern themselves, 32:05 where that self-governance hasn't been taught. 32:07 And so these perspectives have come from 32:09 seeing a lot of situations 32:11 in which young people are just plain 32:15 and simply unprepared to stand for the right. 32:19 And what we've seen is, where this happens, 32:23 there tends to be a significant backfire of things, 32:27 where, you know, a young person, as soon... 32:30 And I've seen this again a lot 32:33 where we'll have a lot of coercion as to 32:38 what we're supposed to do. 32:40 And then, in the end, just go buck wild. 32:41 So this isn't just like theorizing and whatever, 32:45 like this is seen a lot of times 32:47 and seen a lot of evidence in scripture, 32:50 in The Spirit of Prophecy, is seen, 32:52 you know, a lot of counsel on being careful 32:56 to not control the will of a young person 33:00 so much that it forces them in the other direction. 33:02 And there are many parents 33:03 who try to break the stubborn will. 33:06 When we think that, there's two points 33:08 I wanted to make very quickly. 33:10 The identity crisis that young people are feeling... 33:13 Let me tell you something, there are a lot of people 33:16 who've been in the church for years 33:18 who are suffering this identity crisis. 33:20 And if we understand how God... How does God govern? 33:25 I mean, does God just put His finger on us and say, 33:27 "You've got to do this, you've got to do that"? 33:29 No, it is... 33:32 It's a covenant relationship 33:34 with the love-motivated obedience. 33:38 But God lets us decide for ourselves. 33:41 So it's very important. 33:43 Did you go through that identity crisis? 33:45 You know, I did. 33:46 I mean there came a point where I had to realize 33:48 and think about what do I believe is me. 33:50 I know what my parents have said, 33:52 I know what the church has said, 33:53 but I got to college and realized, 33:57 "Well, what do I believe?" Yes. 33:59 That was a time in my life where a lot of my close friends 34:02 either went toward God or away from God. 34:05 And I saw that and I had to ask, 34:06 "Where do I fit with this?" 34:08 And I see it so much every day working 34:09 in a university environment 34:11 and having worked at other Adventist schools, 34:14 it's sad to me, how many, after college 34:18 or shortly thereafter, 34:20 will no longer be part of church 34:21 or even practicing Christians. 34:24 And you think about why is that? 34:25 there's a lot of discussion in the Church. 34:27 "Why the young people leave the church?" 34:29 But there's a significant place 34:31 where young people are going to ask questions. 34:33 We have to. 34:35 That's part of that identity piece, 34:37 "Who am I? Who is God? Where do I fit in the world?" 34:40 And there's a point 34:41 that everyone has to go through that, I believe. 34:43 Absolutely. 34:44 And so the question is 34:46 when people are asking those questions, 34:47 what answers are they going to hear? 34:48 Is it just going to be the pat answers 34:51 that don't meet the needs of the heart? 34:52 Is it going to be the answers 34:54 that are out there in the world, in the media, 34:55 and that are flooding you every day? 34:58 Or is someone going to be there to say, 34:59 "Hey, let me help you see 35:01 where the Word of God fits those things 35:03 that are really like aching inside?" 35:06 These questions are not just intellectual. 35:09 That's a huge thing. 35:11 It has to do so much with what's going on 35:13 in our hearts and our lives 35:15 and the really deep things inside. 35:17 Go ahead. 35:20 We took a deep breath at the same time. 35:21 I'm sorry, the other thing too 35:23 that I want to mention with this is, 35:26 on Facebook, you go on, 35:27 and you see a hundred posts about 35:30 how to meet these emotional needs, right? 35:33 You're seeing constant blogs and videos and all these things 35:36 from, in many cases, 35:38 a secularly humanistic standpoint 35:41 to address the heart needs that we're dealing with. 35:44 Or even worse, like let's say, 35:46 some of our raw questions about is, 35:48 "Should I be doing this or not?" 35:50 If we go on there, 35:52 we're having a ton of answers that aren't biblical. 35:55 Yes. 35:56 So I think a lot of the impetus for this program is to say, 36:00 you know what, news media, social media, 36:05 all of those things are giving answers to our young people 36:08 that are totally out of harmony with the Word of God. 36:11 And it's happening in a vacuum where we as a church 36:14 are scared to address issues 36:16 because it goes a little bit too depressed sometimes 36:19 or it goes a little bit too intense 36:21 or it gets a little bit too in the range of things that 36:24 we're not comfortable with. 36:26 And so if we can address these issues in a way that, 36:30 you know, young people can actually learn from, 36:34 we need to take over the narrative from the world 36:37 and start saying, you know what God has answers to this. 36:41 And God is able to actually give you peace, and hope, 36:43 and happiness way more than the world can give. 36:45 Amen. 36:47 God doesn't shame us for having questions 36:48 and make us feel idiots when we're vulnerable. 36:50 He says, "Come, let us reason together." 36:52 But many times our parents do. Yes. 36:55 And I, fortunately, wasn't in that situation, 36:57 but many times, our young people are 36:59 where they just feel like, whether it be anyone 37:02 who is leading them as teachers or chaplains 37:04 or pastors or just parents, they are made to feel like, 37:08 "How could you possibly ask a question like that?" 37:10 Or "You should know better than that." 37:12 The problem is they don't. 37:14 And I mean, you guys can testify to the fact 37:16 you get alarming phone calls from adults and pastors 37:20 in the pastoral department here of real heart issues 37:23 of not having any assurance of salvation, 37:26 why would God let this happen. 37:27 And so if the adults are having these questions, 37:30 of course our young people are going to have them 37:32 because the very people that are raising them 37:33 and leading them are wrestling with the same things. 37:35 The difference is these have more courage 37:38 to at least ask if they're given a safe place to do so. 37:41 So one of the things that we try to do 37:42 when we just practice ministry in general 37:44 is to do ministry in a way 37:46 that shows young people that we're safe, we understand, 37:48 and that God understands and they're safe. 37:51 So just from a preaching and teaching standpoint, 37:53 that's been our perspective. 37:54 And then from the Q&A format, 37:56 we're just carrying that over into this environment. 37:58 I think another thing that happens in Adventism 38:00 is that we're pretty good at communicating to the world 38:03 that there are a lot of things that God expects 38:05 that Christendom seems to have lost sight of. 38:08 And we need to tell people these things 38:09 because they matter. 38:11 The problem is many times we have communicated 38:13 what God expects at the expense 38:16 of how God enables us to do what He expects. 38:17 Absolutely. 38:19 And so, in turn, we have all these fears 38:21 and all these failures in our experience 38:24 and yet we have no idea how to get there. 38:25 It's like Paul says in Romans 7:20, 38:27 I think, he's just like, "I know what I need to do, 38:29 but how to get there, I have no idea." 38:31 And this is exactly how our young people feel 38:34 and our adults are feeling the same way. 38:35 But they're asking these questions. 38:37 So this is why the message of Righteousness by Faith, 38:40 in Christ, our righteousness was meant to be 38:42 a large component of the third angel's message 38:45 to prepare people to stand in the day of God. 38:48 And it makes sense to young people. 38:50 When I preach at our colleges or universities 38:52 or at our academies, 38:54 I don't downplay what God expects, 38:56 but I uplift who God is 38:58 and how He enables us to do what He expects. 39:00 And so it's not just a matter of saying the "what," 39:03 we need to communicate the "who" and the "how." 39:05 Absolutely. 39:06 And those contextualize the "what." 39:08 And that's why the everlasting gospel, 39:10 in Revelation 14:6, 39:11 contextualizes everything else in the three angels' messages. 39:14 That's how God operates. 39:15 He realized that if people know 39:17 who He is and how He works, what He asks just makes sense. 39:21 Exactly. 39:23 And that's not communicated to our young people 39:26 as well as it ought to be, 39:27 even our adults, and so we're wrestling. 39:28 Well, and I think part of it is that many people 39:32 grew up with a lot of rules and no relationship. 39:35 And rules without relationship 39:37 results in rebellion or confusion, one of the two. 39:41 But I do believe... I love what you're saying, 39:44 and my mind is going 90 miles an hour. 39:47 When you said that the world has stolen the narrative, 39:52 you're going to, this program, 39:54 Raw Questions Relevant Answers 39:56 will be paired in a half-hour slot. 39:59 And you'll be first. 40:00 It's a 15-minute program, but the weekly half-hour slot 40:04 will have this and in Intimate Clarity, 40:07 now that is a program that will follow this, that is... 40:11 We will have a disclaimer on it because you may want 40:14 your younger children to be out of the room. 40:17 But what I believe is on these issues, 40:23 on sexual issues, 40:24 and we're not so much talking sex, 40:26 you're not getting into what we do. 40:27 We will to some degree. Yeah, to some degree. 40:29 But we're not going to go as deep as she does, yes. 40:32 Yes, and she being Jennifer Jill Schwirzer. 40:36 These are things that we need to get before the people. 40:40 And to your point, yes, 40:43 we don't just relax God's standards, 40:46 but if we don't understand 2 Corinthians 12:9, 40:50 what Jesus said, "My grace is sufficient for you," 40:53 and we understand that, to me, 40:55 the greatest gifts of grace are Jesus Christ. 40:59 "For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son." 41:02 The Holy Spirit, that was the gift from on high 41:06 that it is by the Spirit, Ephesians 3:20-26 is saying, 41:11 "This is how Christ dwells in us by faith 41:14 through His Holy Spirit." 41:16 This is how He empowers us. 41:18 And obedience is by grace because He says, 41:21 "God works in us to will and to do His good pleasure." 41:25 As we learn to simply yield to Him, 41:28 we call it surrender and people go "Surrender?" 41:32 But it's just yielding, 41:33 consenting to allow Him to follow us 41:36 'cause He's not going to force us. 41:38 But He does give us the power. 41:40 And then I love the emphasis on the Word 41:43 because this is alive and active and it is, 41:46 you know, when Paul says, 41:48 "We've been given the mind of Christ." 41:50 Here it is. This is the mind of Christ. 41:53 And so as we operate by the principles of this Word, 41:58 that identity crisis I mean, when we begin to understand, 42:03 Christ isn't only our substitute, 42:05 but He's our surety, that, you know, 42:07 2 Corinthians 1:20, He's our surety. 42:10 "From God to us, 42:11 that all of God's promises are yes and amen in Him." 42:15 But then He's our surety from us to God 42:19 because He is going to work in us to will 42:21 and to do His good pleasure. 42:22 He will complete the good work He's begun in us. 42:25 And we could just get here and have church. 42:28 This is, to me... I'm so excited about... 42:33 I told Jill this morning, we were talking, 42:35 and I said, you know, 42:36 Danny declared this to be the year of present truth. 42:40 And we're doing the Three Angels' Camp Meeting. 42:43 We always have a theme for the year. 42:45 But we're doing Raw Questions Relevant Answers, 42:47 Intimate Clarity, we've got a program coming up 42:51 Life After Choice that will be about 42:54 abortion and people, it's testimonies about people. 42:57 We're going to do a program on Create... 43:03 God as Creator... Creation science if you will. 43:06 And it's so exciting to see what God's doing 43:09 because, to me, 43:11 we're still having the preaching on all of this, 43:15 but we're hitting places where people are crying out 43:19 and they need these answers. 43:21 Yes, yeah. 43:23 They need these answers. They do. 43:24 Of the topics you've covered so far, 43:27 what did you feel was something 43:31 that touched you more on a personal level, 43:34 either the question or the topic 43:35 that had the greatest impact 43:37 or influence in your life in the past? 43:41 You know, I would first say 43:43 something that really touches me 43:45 is people asking where is God, 43:48 this happened, that happened, where was God 43:51 or how do I recover 43:53 from all of these things going on. 43:54 And it touches me because I've seen it in my life 43:58 I've asked that question at different times, 44:01 and I've also seen so much, 44:02 as our world gets crazier, more stuff is happening. 44:06 The percentage of kids who have been through abuse, 44:09 who have been through so much brokenness in life, 44:12 how can you not get to adulthood 44:14 and have some of those questions of what now 44:17 and how does God play into this. 44:19 And like you said, Shelly, we have God's Word, 44:22 we have so much healing there, 44:24 but sometimes, it's like there's a wall around it. 44:28 We don't know how to make that be alive. 44:31 And so that's something that has really 44:33 touched me with this is to say how can we share that 44:37 there are answers about this type of thing, 44:39 that God's Word is more than just maybe the religion 44:42 that you grew up with or the things 44:45 that you thought it was about 44:46 but that it can actually appeal to those places. 44:50 And understanding the rules of engagement 44:53 in this great controversy between good and evil, 44:56 I mean, sometimes our kids don't understand it. 44:58 I mean, a lot of adults don't understand that 45:00 because we get a lot of questions like where is God, 45:03 people calling in to the pastoral department. 45:06 So thank you for saying that. 45:07 That's a beautiful sentiment, and this is something that 45:10 if people can understand... 45:14 And, Mark, you always bring it home 45:16 on the word to me. 45:17 And to me, that was a life-changing. 45:20 When God taught me that... 45:21 Isaiah 55:11, "As I return, His word to Him, 45:25 it does not return void." 45:27 But Jeremiah 1:12 says, "He's active and alert, 45:30 watching over His word to perform." 45:32 And in Romans 4:17, 45:34 "That He's the God of the dead 45:36 who calls things that are not, as though they already were." 45:40 And so this is something I feel, 45:43 you know, I may get up there and say this, 45:45 but you can tell, I'll break out into preachy. 45:47 What I love about your format 45:50 is that there is good energy, great synergy, 45:57 but there is this easy flow. 45:59 It is just like you're eavesdropping on three people, 46:03 who are discussing this topic 46:06 from a very personal perspective 46:08 but from a very spiritual perspective 46:11 to find the answers. 46:13 People are from very different places, 46:14 I mean, some are asking the questions like 46:16 we've talked about, some are just asking, 46:18 "Why am I an Adventist? Why does it matter? 46:21 How do I share my faith? 46:23 What should I be watching on TV? 46:24 What should I be listening to?" 46:26 And so it goes from the big things 46:28 to just the every day life things, 46:31 the practical things. 46:33 And that's what's been fun to look at to, 46:35 it's just to be able to look at a broad spectrum, 46:38 just of life as a young person today 46:41 and talk about it. 46:43 Yeah. 46:44 I think honestly the other thing too for me has just been, 46:48 you know, recently, there'd been 46:51 some rather intense things happening in my life 46:54 that just really, really got me down on a level 46:58 where I had to go through 47:00 and wrestle through a bunch of other questions, 47:02 just in my own personal experience. 47:05 And I think, for me, something that this program 47:08 has really done for me is just help me to see 47:14 how much of God has grown me in the past year too 47:19 'cause like, you know, 47:21 you get you get hit broadside or something, 47:22 and then you're floundering, 47:25 you're wondering which way is up, 47:27 and that kind of becomes a little bit of your identity 47:30 on the inside, you know. Absolutely. 47:31 And then something like this, it's just... 47:34 I was realizing the other day, it's like, 47:36 "Wow, God has really done a lot in helping me 47:40 to wrestle through some of these things 47:41 and finding answers that I didn't have before." 47:44 And, you know, it's like that song blessings, 47:47 you know, What if His Blessings Come through Raindrops. 47:51 And it's just made me realize, 47:52 you know, these circumstances that, you know, 47:56 were really difficult to go through, 48:00 they've really worked for good and have brought me 48:05 to a much more firm place in my own walk with God 48:09 than had they not happened. 48:11 So I guess it's just been kind of affirmation 48:14 and healing process. 48:15 And here's what's interesting that I found in the past. 48:17 I remember I was doing a series and I believe in Texas 48:20 before becoming an Adventist, 48:21 but God had given me this teaching, 48:24 and I was just watching these 40 ladies just grow. 48:29 I mean, their trajectory... 48:30 And one night I was coming home, 48:32 and I'm praying on the way home, 48:34 and I said, "Oh, Lord, thank You that they're all," 48:37 you know, "You're changing them all so fast. 48:39 Oh, Lord, thank you." 48:41 And then I said, "Change me, change me." 48:43 And the Lord said to me, "Do you not realize..." 48:47 And I knew this was God's voice, 48:48 that's still small voice, 48:50 I didn't actually hear something, 48:51 but boy it was bang! 48:54 He said, "Do you not realize the changes 48:56 that I have wrought in your life 48:58 and you've yet to thank Me." 49:00 Whoa! 49:02 And I mean I never used the word wrought. 49:04 I knew that wasn't my own thought, 49:06 but it just came through. 49:08 And I drove the rest of the way home in silence 49:11 for nearly an hour, 49:12 thanking about what God had done in my life. 49:16 And sometimes we aren't quick to recognize 49:19 what God's doing in our own life. 49:21 What impact has this had on you 49:23 or what through the filming so far? 49:26 Because I've spent the last three years 49:28 or so just traveling and doing a work 49:30 that I felt was an unmet need in Adventism 49:32 of trying to communicate who God actually is, 49:36 how the very things that God requires, God provides, 49:39 all of His biddings are enablings, 49:41 and dealing with heart issues that I feel like 49:43 we aren't doing as much as we could, 49:44 there's been a lot of praise in my heart 49:46 just to realize that, one, 3ABN 49:48 had the courage to do a program like this 49:50 and to reach a demographic. 49:52 Two, to have the willingness to disperse it 49:54 on more than one platform, 49:56 it's going to be released on Facebook and Youtube, 49:57 not just 3ABN. 49:59 On all three vehicles, to try to find these people 50:01 wherever we can. 50:03 And three, that it's actually happening. 50:05 One, to get to do ministry with my friends, 50:07 but two, to be in a situation where we can finally, 50:10 on a large scale, release something to the church 50:13 has been an unmet need for way too long. 50:16 To see this thing actually have skin and bones on it 50:18 and be brought to the people who need it the most, 50:21 just brings a lot of praise and gratitude to my heart 50:23 because who God actually is, how He actually operates, 50:27 God is desperate to be understood. 50:29 This is the whole purpose of the controversy, 50:32 not just to give a legal argument 50:33 for the existence of evil 50:34 but to allow God himself to be understood on 50:37 who He actually is. 50:38 He's always had your best interests at heart. 50:40 He's doing everything in his power to save all, 50:43 even the ones that we can't stand. 50:45 And if this is actually true, 50:48 someone should be telling this to people. 50:50 And as loud as possible, and to have a vehicle like 3ABN 50:54 and the Internet to do this, 50:57 just brings great joy and gratitude to my heart 51:00 because I think that the very thing that 51:02 God said would happen in Revelation 18, 51:04 "Dispersing to the world a true picture 51:06 of His character of love." 51:07 I think this is the beginning of that process happening. 51:10 God's been doing it for years. 51:11 But on a larger scale to get traction, 51:13 I see stuff happening, and this excites me. 51:15 Well, we are excited as well. 51:17 And I just know this is a God-ordained moment, 51:21 I know that He brought the three of you in, 51:24 and this is a program you... 51:27 I guarantee you, it doesn't matter 51:29 what your age is, it's ministering to all of us 51:32 who are listening right now. 51:34 And there really is no age barrier. 51:36 But I'm so excited that we have a program 51:39 that is specifically targeting the youth. 51:44 We have to go to our news break just now, 51:47 and we're going to come back in a moment 51:50 for some closing comments. 51:52 Please stay tuned. |
Revised 2018-10-09