Welcome to the New Journey, a program about real-life 00:00:10.14\00:00:13.07 people with real-life testimonies doing real-life 00:00:13.14\00:00:16.01 ministry for Jesus Christ. I'm your host, Pastor Marquis Johns. 00:00:16.04\00:00:18.61 Join us on the New Journey. 00:00:18.65\00:00:22.92 ¤ ¤ 00:00:22.95\00:00:52.58 The only testimonies aren't testimonies where you've gone 00:00:52.61\00:00:55.98 out into the world and done a whole bunch of terrible things. 00:00:56.02\00:00:59.95 There are some testimonies where you have just a slight brush and 00:00:59.99\00:01:04.23 realize you need to stay on the straight and narrow. Tate has a 00:01:04.26\00:01:08.50 testimony similar to that one. Tate, how you doing today? 00:01:08.53\00:01:11.50 I'm doing good. Fantastic, fantastic. So tell us 00:01:11.53\00:01:14.07 your name and where you're from. 00:01:14.10\00:01:15.44 My name is Tate Kimura from Tacoma Park, Maryland, 00:01:15.47\00:01:18.04 originally. 00:01:18.07\00:01:19.41 OK, OK. I pastored over in Hyattsville, Maryland. 00:01:19.44\00:01:22.78 Oh yeah? Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah. 00:01:22.81\00:01:24.25 So did you go to TA? Yeah, I'm actually a TA grad. 00:01:24.31\00:01:27.55 So for those who don't know 00:01:28.62\00:01:29.95 TA is Tacoma Academy, a Seventh-day Adventist academy in 00:01:29.98\00:01:32.45 Maryland. So OK Tate, So you grow up in a good home, good 00:01:32.52\00:01:37.33 Christian home, good Adventist home if you will. Graduate from 00:01:37.36\00:01:41.03 Tacoma. Take us through what happened after you graduated TA. 00:01:41.06\00:01:45.63 OK, I want to say this first of all. Even though I went to 00:01:45.67\00:01:50.01 Christian schools and everything you know I just really wasn't 00:01:50.04\00:01:54.34 really spiritually minded. I mean I was one that you know 00:01:54.38\00:01:56.28 I went through the motions of going to the Bible classes and 00:01:56.34\00:02:01.72 just basically had like a form of godliness, just kind of going 00:02:05.55\00:02:10.73 through the motions. But I really wasn't into it like that. 00:02:10.79\00:02:15.96 The whole Jesus thing, that just wasn't me. 00:02:16.00\00:02:18.57 OK, so then you go through the motions of academy life, good 00:02:18.60\00:02:23.04 Adventist upbringing, you graduated TA. So tell us what 00:02:23.07\00:02:28.64 happened after that. 00:02:28.68\00:02:30.01 Well actually it was before I graduated that I actually 00:02:30.05\00:02:34.35 started getting into drinking alcohol with some friends. We 00:02:34.38\00:02:38.95 would just hang out, get drunk, get high. It wasn't too long 00:02:39.02\00:02:43.43 after that I actually got a motorcycle because of the fact 00:02:43.46\00:02:47.96 that I was getting in so much trouble with my car. My car kept 00:02:48.00\00:02:52.43 breaking down. I started asking myself, why is this all 00:02:52.47\00:02:55.84 happening to me? I saw my friends, everything was going 00:02:55.90\00:02:59.17 nice, had nice clean cars. Me, I was just kind of struggling 00:02:59.24\00:03:04.61 and I was asking God why is this stuff happening to me. Just was 00:03:04.65\00:03:12.22 asking myself, am I cursed or something. So because I couldn't 00:03:12.25\00:03:17.59 keep a car going and it kept breaking down on me eventually 00:03:17.63\00:03:23.77 I started riding a bicycle to work. Those were some really low 00:03:23.80\00:03:29.90 moments in my life. 00:03:29.94\00:03:31.27 They were low moments because you were riding a bicycle or 00:03:31.31\00:03:32.74 because people looked at you and said that's Tate on a bicycle. 00:03:32.77\00:03:35.78 Yeah. I mean, that's probably it. I mean, I see my friends 00:03:35.81\00:03:40.32 driving by me, I'm here riding a bicycle to work. Then eventually 00:03:40.35\00:03:47.86 I got a motorcycle. Kind of the way I would get enjoyment would 00:03:47.89\00:03:54.00 be getting drunk, getting high, and riding a motorcycle through 00:03:54.03\00:03:59.13 D.C. and Maryland area, going to clubs and going to a friend's 00:03:59.17\00:04:03.67 house. It was just kind of a dangerous lifestyle and I was 00:04:03.71\00:04:06.44 just really confused about life and discouraged by life. 00:04:06.47\00:04:11.15 OK, so why didn't you go off, like most kids do that go 00:04:11.21\00:04:15.85 through the motions even and go through the academy life. Why 00:04:15.88\00:04:19.52 didn't you go off to one of the Adventist colleges, Adventist 00:04:19.55\00:04:23.16 institutions? Well it was because of financial 00:04:23.19\00:04:27.26 reasons. So I was going to have to work. I went to some 00:04:27.30\00:04:31.37 community colleges while I was working. But it's always a lot 00:04:31.40\00:04:36.67 harder to do it that way and that was the reason why I didn't 00:04:36.71\00:04:41.04 do that. OK, Ok, so now you're just in 00:04:41.08\00:04:42.68 and around D.C., partying, drinking, smoking. From about 00:04:42.71\00:04:51.75 18 to, how old are you now? 00:04:51.79\00:04:54.36 Right now 34. So from 18 to about... 00:04:54.39\00:04:57.03 Walk us through from about 18 to about 25. 00:04:57.06\00:04:59.59 What's Tate's life looking like? 00:04:59.63\00:05:03.13 Well I moved out in my own apartment it was when, I 00:05:03.16\00:05:07.87 believe about 20. And things were kind of getting worse. 00:05:07.90\00:05:11.61 But that was like the peak of it because once I had my own place 00:05:11.64\00:05:15.51 I started inviting friends over. You know it was just getting out 00:05:15.54\00:05:18.35 of hand. People are there you don't even know. You wake up in 00:05:18.41\00:05:22.68 the morning; you're walking over people that are passed out, 00:05:22.72\00:05:25.92 people with hangovers, people vomiting in your bathroom and 00:05:25.95\00:05:30.86 it was just getting out of hand. What happened was we were 00:05:30.93\00:05:35.76 having a party one night and it was around this time when things 00:05:35.80\00:05:38.40 were just really getting out of hand and we just started all 00:05:38.43\00:05:41.00 types of people coming. 00:05:41.04\00:05:42.37 I mean, it was one thing just getting drunk a couple times a 00:05:42.40\00:05:45.87 week but it was becoming almost an everyday thing. There was 00:05:45.91\00:05:49.24 one night when there were some friends over and my next door 00:05:49.28\00:05:53.15 neighbors who I had somewhat befriended they actually got 00:05:53.18\00:05:56.82 into it and he killed my room mate's friend. He actually ended 00:05:56.85\00:06:01.46 up stabbing him in front of my apartment. 00:06:01.49\00:06:03.99 So you have some friends over, you guys are partying, it was 00:06:04.03\00:06:08.96 late into the night, whatever. For some reason someone who was 00:06:09.00\00:06:13.23 attending a party at your house gets into an altercation with a 00:06:13.30\00:06:17.51 neighbor? Yeah. And my neighbor actually 00:06:17.54\00:06:21.41 ended up pulling a knife on him, stabbing him in the chest. And 00:06:21.44\00:06:24.21 we thought he was going to go to the hospital and everyone would 00:06:24.25\00:06:26.98 be OK but it didn't turn out like that. He actually passed. 00:06:27.02\00:06:32.12 What, how old were you when this happened? 00:06:32.15\00:06:34.02 I was about 21 I believe. 00:06:34.06\00:06:35.82 What were you thinking? What was going on in Tate's mind? Now 00:06:35.86\00:06:39.46 Tate, Adventist upbringing. Now even though you weren't doing 00:06:39.49\00:06:42.20 the Jesus thing and you were kind of just going through the 00:06:42.23\00:06:44.87 motions, what are you thinking as you're rushing a friend to 00:06:44.90\00:06:48.00 the hospital with the stab wound to his chest who passes 00:06:48.04\00:06:50.91 that night? What are you thinking? What's going through 00:06:50.94\00:06:53.78 your head? I mean, I don't know what's 00:06:53.81\00:06:55.21 going to happen next. I mean, I just couldn't believe this was 00:06:55.24\00:07:00.18 happening and it happened right in front of my house. I was just 00:07:00.22\00:07:05.09 kind of overwhelmed with the whole situation. I wasn't sure 00:07:05.12\00:07:08.09 should we tell, should we act like we don't know. Because that 00:07:08.12\00:07:10.56 was the first thing that we did was act like we didn't know 00:07:10.59\00:07:14.53 because the first reaction was I don't want to be involved. 00:07:14.56\00:07:18.50 But we ended up telling and that's why I... 00:07:18.53\00:07:23.20 Wait, wait, wait, pause right there. So you ended up telling 00:07:23.27\00:07:28.38 the authorities that you're neighbor had stabbed your 00:07:28.41\00:07:33.28 friend. So what reaction did your neighbor have to you 00:07:33.31\00:07:38.19 telling that he stabbed somebody? 00:07:38.22\00:07:39.55 Well he was on the run now because they're after him. But 00:07:39.59\00:07:43.79 I'll say my reaction is OK you know I just told on this guy, I 00:07:43.83\00:07:48.23 shot his gun before and he's now probably going to come after me. 00:07:48.26\00:07:52.67 He's my next door neighbor and I was still staying at my 00:07:52.70\00:07:55.87 apartment for a few nights and I know he was still at large. 00:07:55.90\00:07:59.04 So that was probably some of the most scariest moments in my life 00:07:59.07\00:08:03.01 was just the fact my next door neighbor, I just told on him for 00:08:03.04\00:08:06.98 killing somebody. And he's probably after me. He probably 00:08:07.02\00:08:09.45 that we told. And I was kind of nervous and 00:08:09.48\00:08:12.65 I actually did talk to God, I had some conversations with God 00:08:12.69\00:08:15.52 I was like if you get me out of this one, I'm going to serve you 00:08:15.56\00:08:18.36 That didn't happen though. 00:08:18.39\00:08:20.80 OK, OK, so tell us what happened Since that didn't happen, what 00:08:20.83\00:08:23.00 happened? Well I had just started a 00:08:23.03\00:08:27.04 relationship just a few months before that occurrence and it 00:08:27.07\00:08:31.07 started getting more serious over the phone, long distance 00:08:31.11\00:08:35.01 relationship. I knew someone in Indiana. I lived with my parents 00:08:35.04\00:08:38.28 because we actually both left the apartment and we actually 00:08:38.31\00:08:41.98 both me and my roommate moved back into our parents' homes. 00:08:42.05\00:08:45.25 Both of us were Adventist, raised in the Adventist church 00:08:45.32\00:08:49.36 and stuff, but just not doing the right thing. So ended up 00:08:49.39\00:08:54.56 moving to Indiana. Actually I didn't move with her immediately 00:08:54.63\00:08:59.30 but I was out here pretty much by myself. Her father actually 00:08:59.33\00:09:03.91 helped me kind of get back on my feet once I came out here. 00:09:03.94\00:09:08.44 Because I just left with nothing pretty much, just four boxes of 00:09:08.48\00:09:10.65 of stuff and came out to Indianapolis and started over 00:09:10.68\00:09:15.75 like a new life. But I pretty much met the same type of 00:09:15.78\00:09:20.76 people. I started working at a job and basically met the same 00:09:20.82\00:09:26.49 type of people. Started drinking and smoking and stuff with 00:09:26.53\00:09:31.10 people I didn't know so well but they were still almost the 00:09:31.13\00:09:34.37 same type of people that I was hanging out with before. 00:09:34.40\00:09:39.84 So, you leave Maryland because you don't want to face the 00:09:39.87\00:09:44.65 potential consequences of this life style which has erupted 00:09:44.68\00:09:49.52 into a murder that you are a witness to with the assailant 00:09:49.55\00:09:54.29 still at large possibly with a vendetta against you. So you're 00:09:54.32\00:09:58.93 like hey I'm getting out of here I'm going to Indiana where 00:09:58.96\00:10:02.66 there's this young lady that her and I have been having a 00:10:02.70\00:10:06.37 friendship. That was the first serious 00:10:06.40\00:10:09.50 relationship and I could kind of see in the future that this 00:10:09.54\00:10:12.91 would be a serious relationship. I hadn't had any real serious 00:10:12.94\00:10:16.31 relationships, just short relations. So it was a 00:10:16.34\00:10:20.08 combination of those two things that brought me out to Indiana, 00:10:20.12\00:10:23.59 but when I started working at this job I actually met a young 00:10:23.62\00:10:28.99 brother that was kind of coming out of the world himself and he 00:10:29.02\00:10:32.83 encouraged me. For the first time I met someone around my age 00:10:32.86\00:10:36.63 level that actually was into God. 00:10:36.67\00:10:39.43 OK. So how do you run into him while still hanging with the 00:10:39.47\00:10:43.71 same kinds of people that you were hanging with in your life 00:10:43.74\00:10:47.94 in Maryland? Where do those paths intersect? 00:10:47.98\00:10:51.68 Well, I'll say this that though I was hanging out... I mean you 00:10:51.71\00:10:55.42 know how it is. You have this friend and hang out with them 00:10:55.45\00:10:58.79 during the day. You do that and you have this type of friend. 00:10:58.82\00:11:02.12 He kind of was into more positive things and that's how 00:11:02.16\00:11:04.49 he was. He wasn't all the way out of the world yet. He had 00:11:04.53\00:11:07.06 started coming out, but he was the first one to actually talk 00:11:07.10\00:11:11.40 about God that I could relate to. He actually went to a non 00:11:11.43\00:11:15.20 denominational church and he actually invited me to his 00:11:15.24\00:11:18.94 church and I actually started going there for several months. 00:11:18.97\00:11:25.01 Now previous to that I had been kind of expressing some of my 00:11:25.08\00:11:29.78 problems in my relationship and just different problems I had in 00:11:29.82\00:11:34.82 life through visual arts. I was very much into graphic design 00:11:34.86\00:11:40.13 and I kind of like hip hop urban graffiti art and I 00:11:40.16\00:11:45.33 would express my views on life and just the problems of society 00:11:45.37\00:11:50.71 through visual arts. 00:11:50.74\00:11:52.94 OK so you meet this guy who's a little bit more on the 00:11:52.97\00:11:55.58 positive side than the other guys. You start attending his 00:11:55.61\00:12:00.38 church. Now how did you reconcile that with your 00:12:01.02\00:12:06.92 Adventist upbringing? Now you're going to a non-denominational 00:12:06.96\00:12:10.83 church, obviously on a different day from what you've learned 00:12:10.86\00:12:14.66 growing up. How are you reconciling these two that OK 00:12:14.70\00:12:19.07 I'm no longer practicing, or if you were, I don't know, I'm not 00:12:19.10\00:12:23.14 practicing Adventism as I was taught it, as I was brought up 00:12:23.17\00:12:26.84 under, and now going to this non-denominational church. How 00:12:26.88\00:12:30.55 are you reconciling this? 00:12:30.58\00:12:32.91 Yeah, that's what came up eventually, but at first I'm 00:12:32.98\00:12:35.58 just like you know this is the first time I'm really seeking 00:12:35.62\00:12:38.85 God. Going back to what I as doing with my art, as I was 00:12:38.89\00:12:43.02 illustrating on paper some of the problems I as having, 00:12:43.06\00:12:47.13 looking for an answer, solutions to life's problems and for the 00:12:47.16\00:12:52.33 first time as I met him I started to realize that God is 00:12:52.37\00:12:54.87 the actual solution to relationship problems, to drug 00:12:54.90\00:12:57.37 addiction, to materialism and just all the things that people 00:12:57.41\00:13:00.81 are going after. I started to realize that God is solution. 00:13:00.88\00:13:04.58 He's the answer. He's the source of peace and happiness and I'm 00:13:04.61\00:13:08.38 not even thinking about what denomination, I'm just thinking 00:13:08.42\00:13:12.75 about this is amazing. I'm actually into reading the Bible 00:13:12.79\00:13:16.42 and for the first time I'm actually reading the Bible, not 00:13:16.46\00:13:20.00 because someone tells me because it feels like where I'm supposed 00:13:20.06\00:13:22.76 to do, but I'm actually reading it to find understanding, 00:13:22.80\00:13:26.33 reading it to find solutions to what I'm going through. 00:13:26.37\00:13:30.61 OK, OK, so you so that for several months. Do you start 00:13:30.64\00:13:34.88 distancing yourself from those other friends? 00:13:34.91\00:13:38.05 Yeah, slowly distancing and just not feeling some of the things 00:13:38.11\00:13:41.28 they're into. Encouraging them to kind of see life a different 00:13:41.32\00:13:44.29 way. I wasn't one to just cut them off entirely but just kind 00:13:44.32\00:13:47.92 of talking like I'm just not into that anymore. Why do you 00:13:47.96\00:13:52.06 want to get drunk, man. It just confuses your mind, makes it 00:13:52.09\00:13:56.20 harder for you to better your life. 00:13:56.23\00:13:59.63 So as you're going to church for these several months, you get 00:13:59.67\00:14:03.54 off the alcohol, you get off the drugs. You're saying I don't 00:14:03.57\00:14:07.48 want any more of that. I'm dry. The Bible says dry nigh to God 00:14:07.51\00:14:11.91 and he will draw near to you. So you're drawing nigh to God, God 00:14:11.95\00:14:15.92 is drawing nearer to you and those things that you once were 00:14:15.95\00:14:19.75 into, they just don't hold sway over you anymore. So then you 00:14:19.79\00:14:22.96 begin to distance yourself from your friends, you're becoming 00:14:22.99\00:14:27.96 more, allow me to say, spiritual When do you start to back track 00:14:28.03\00:14:33.00 to the things that you learned from a child? 00:14:33.03\00:14:35.87 Well it was my grandmother. See she was one that always during 00:14:35.90\00:14:39.64 the whole time, in my childhood, always gave me little books. 00:14:39.67\00:14:43.85 She lived far away from us in another state and she would 00:14:43.88\00:14:47.02 always send little books and tracts and stuff and most of 00:14:47.05\00:14:49.92 the time I didn't read it. Because one time she sent me one 00:14:49.98\00:14:52.79 that had money inside the pages for my birthday and I was oh man 00:14:52.82\00:14:59.63 I don't want this. Then later on I can't believe I actually 00:14:59.66\00:15:01.93 looked through it, but I looked through it several weeks later 00:15:01.96\00:15:05.93 and found it was $20 through the book. But my grandma, she was 00:15:05.97\00:15:11.27 one that always tried to plant a seed in me and my parents as 00:15:11.31\00:15:14.48 well, but she sent me this tract that was called Let's Talk About 00:15:14.51\00:15:23.42 the Sabbath, and that tract was just amazing to me at that point 00:15:23.49\00:15:25.35 in time. If I had read it previous to that I probably 00:15:25.39\00:15:27.69 wouldn't have cared about it. But this tract just asked 00:15:27.72\00:15:29.96 questions and then it answered the question with a scripture. 00:15:29.99\00:15:34.36 And it was just showing the importance of if you're going to 00:15:34.40\00:15:37.23 keep some of the commandments that doesn't make any sense. 00:15:37.27\00:15:42.74 It's either all or none. Now I was interested in the Bible and 00:15:42.77\00:15:47.14 I started reading that. As I read through that tract, I was 00:15:47.18\00:15:51.65 convicted. Immediately almost after I read that tract to 00:15:51.68\00:15:54.95 actually take a stand for the Sabbath. So I went to this 00:15:54.98\00:15:58.15 pastor of this nondenominational church and I started asking some 00:15:58.22\00:16:03.16 questions. How come you don't keep the seventh day Sabbath? 00:16:03.19\00:16:05.49 according to the fourth commandment, Exodus 20 verses 00:16:05.53\00:16:07.90 8-11 and he was like, does it really matter. That was the type 00:16:07.96\00:16:12.47 of response that he gave me. According to the Bible, I mean, 00:16:12.50\00:16:15.80 the commandment's written on stone and you know the Bible 00:16:15.84\00:16:19.07 says that Christ did not come to destroy the law or the prophets 00:16:19.11\00:16:22.41 and he says that not one dot or one tittle will be taken away 00:16:22.44\00:16:26.08 from the law. So according to the word it wasn't about what I 00:16:26.11\00:16:29.15 felt or what I thought or what he felt or what anybody thinks 00:16:29.18\00:16:32.85 it's about what does the Bible say. So I was convicted on it 00:16:32.89\00:16:36.69 and even though seeing that he didn't take any action on it I 00:16:36.73\00:16:40.16 was like well I don't know how much I can feel his preaching 00:16:40.20\00:16:43.33 anymore. I mean, it was like his sermons were powerful before 00:16:43.37\00:16:46.50 that but afterwards I just wasn't feeling it so much 00:16:46.53\00:16:50.94 because of the fact that I knew there was a commandment, there 00:16:50.97\00:16:54.21 was a teaching that I knew was biblical that he didn't seem 00:16:54.24\00:16:57.45 like it was important to him. 00:16:57.48\00:16:58.81 OK so let's paint the picture: Good kid, Adventist upbringing, 00:16:58.85\00:17:03.28 Christian education whole life, goes to TA and graduates TA. 00:17:03.32\00:17:08.42 Gets into some things while he's there, begins to live a 00:17:08.46\00:17:13.63 party lifestyle, doesn't go to jail, never been incarcerated, 00:17:13.66\00:17:19.23 no drug bust, none of those things. But this brush, if you 00:17:19.27\00:17:24.27 will with the law by way of your neighbor killing a friend of 00:17:24.31\00:17:30.35 yours starts the process of waking you up. A relationship 00:17:30.41\00:17:35.85 that's on the horizon, these two things joined together cause 00:17:35.88\00:17:40.29 you to relocate. You get out to Indiana, Indianapolis, you find 00:17:40.32\00:17:44.99 yourself in the same rut. God begins to reveal himself to you 00:17:45.03\00:17:49.36 through your visual arts and this friend who's going to a 00:17:49.40\00:17:53.70 non-denominational church. Grandma who's always on you 00:17:53.74\00:17:57.97 sends you a tract and the tract is about the Sabbath, a Sabbath 00:17:58.01\00:18:01.68 that you've grown up going to church on, a Sabbath that you 00:18:01.71\00:18:05.78 probably heard about in Bible class, a Sabbath that you heard 00:18:05.81\00:18:09.28 mom and dad talk about. She sends you this tract, you read 00:18:09.35\00:18:12.75 it, boom, you're convicted. You go to the pastor. Hey man what's 00:18:12.82\00:18:17.43 going on. With this new zeal and this new fervor, hey want's 00:18:17.46\00:18:21.33 going on? He says hey you know it doesn't matter. You're 00:18:21.36\00:18:25.27 thinking hey it does matter because this is what the 00:18:25.33\00:18:29.17 commandments say. You can't feel his preaching anymore. Up to 00:18:29.20\00:18:32.47 that point something about that church service and that time of 00:18:32.51\00:18:35.61 your life has you delving deeper into the Bible. You're finally 00:18:35.64\00:18:38.91 getting to a deeper relationship with Christ. But after you 00:18:38.95\00:18:42.15 realize this guy is not preaching the biblical Sabbath 00:18:42.18\00:18:45.19 you don't want anything to do with this. So where do you go? 00:18:45.22\00:18:47.69 What do you do? 00:18:47.72\00:18:49.56 Well there was an Adventist Church, a Seventh-day Adventist 00:18:49.59\00:18:52.86 church that was actually almost walking distance from my 00:18:52.89\00:18:56.30 apartment. In actually my mind I say OK I'm going start 00:18:56.33\00:19:00.04 attending both churches. But that really didn't last very 00:19:00.07\00:19:03.67 long because like I said his preaching wasn't that powerful 00:19:03.71\00:19:07.31 anymore because of the fact that he overlooked that 00:19:07.34\00:19:09.41 commandment. So I started going to this Sabbath-keeping church, 00:19:09.44\00:19:13.82 it was a Seventh-day Adventist church and around that time I 00:19:13.85\00:19:18.19 believe I was living with my girlfriend and the Lord started 00:19:18.22\00:19:22.16 to convict my conscious. Because I would tell my friend that 00:19:22.22\00:19:26.13 invited me to his non denominational church that you 00:19:26.16\00:19:29.03 don't keep the Sabbath. Well he would tell me well you need to 00:19:29.06\00:19:32.67 stop fornicating. I was like wait a minute. There was a two 00:19:32.70\00:19:35.97 edged sword. So I started feeling kind of guilty for that 00:19:36.00\00:19:39.21 for the first time and I started studying up on that and I made 00:19:39.27\00:19:43.24 a decision. I was like this is the last time. So she moved out 00:19:43.28\00:19:47.22 and I was just living by myself. Eventually I got baptized, fully 00:19:47.25\00:19:51.39 committed my life to Christ in the year 2000. 00:19:51.42\00:19:53.32 So what have you 00:19:53.36\00:19:55.49 been doing since the year 2000. Well, since the year 2000 I've 00:19:55.52\00:20:00.70 just kind of grown in my understanding and knowledge of 00:20:00.73\00:20:04.67 Christ. I was influenced by different pastors like Pastor 00:20:04.73\00:20:08.80 Doug Batchelor and some other pastors. To start it off, I 00:20:08.84\00:20:12.87 really admired how Doug Batchelor could quote the 00:20:12.91\00:20:15.04 scriptures and I started memorizing texts; while I was 00:20:15.08\00:20:17.65 working I was kind of memorizing texts. I didn't know why I was 00:20:17.68\00:20:20.88 doing it. I just wanted to have the ammunition to whenever 00:20:20.92\00:20:25.12 somebody asked me about my faith I would know where to take them. 00:20:25.15\00:20:28.66 So I was like memorizing texts and just drawing closer to God, 00:20:28.69\00:20:32.56 trying to stay away from women and keep my focus on Christ. And 00:20:32.59\00:20:36.43 eventually it was 2001, September 11, that the World 00:20:36.46\00:20:45.31 Trade Center. I mean that just changed my entire world. I mean 00:20:45.34\00:20:48.91 because I'm here trying to get closer to God and all of a 00:20:48.94\00:20:54.08 sudden this crisis happens such as I've never experienced since 00:20:54.12\00:20:58.25 I've been on this planet in this country and when that terrorist 00:20:58.29\00:21:02.39 attack happened I mean I'm like man the end is coming in a 00:21:02.42\00:21:06.16 matter of weeks and months. I actually started praying to God. 00:21:06.19\00:21:09.36 Like Lord just let me know when you want me to quit this job. 00:21:09.40\00:21:12.20 I was working a full time job, I was getting paid pretty well. 00:21:12.23\00:21:15.87 And I asked God, Lord whenever you want me to quit this job 00:21:15.90\00:21:18.57 I don't care. I'm just going to go out there on the street and 00:21:18.64\00:21:22.08 talk to everybody I know about Jesus. Well I was always doing 00:21:22.14\00:21:24.35 that after work. You know, I would spend a few moments going 00:21:24.38\00:21:28.18 out handing out some National Sunday Laws, Steps to Christ. 00:21:28.22\00:21:32.02 Just trying to spread the knowledge that I was getting 00:21:32.05\00:21:34.66 But it was around 2005 when they were really hitting us with 00:21:34.69\00:21:38.99 over time and interfering with ... I started preaching actually 00:21:39.03\00:21:43.97 in 2001. Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait. In 2000 you get convicted, get 00:21:44.00\00:21:48.90 baptized, 2001 you start preaching. 00:21:48.94\00:21:51.27 Yeah, it was at a 00:21:51.34\00:21:52.67 little house church. When I was going to that church a lady 00:21:52.71\00:21:57.91 asked me to speak; first time I ever preached. I didn't sleep 00:21:57.95\00:22:03.08 very well that night, the night before I spoke but it turned out 00:22:03.12\00:22:08.26 pretty well. So I started preaching and preaching 00:22:08.29\00:22:12.03 occasions there and then I was invited like at this other 00:22:12.09\00:22:14.86 church just to speak occasionally as well. 00:22:14.90\00:22:16.67 It was a couple years after that I started getting involved in 00:22:16.70\00:22:20.70 prison ministry in Indianapolis as well. 00:22:20.74\00:22:23.00 OK so what causes you to want to go into prison ministry? 00:22:23.04\00:22:30.38 Why not go to Southern? Why not go to PUC? Why not go to Union? 00:22:30.45\00:22:35.12 Why not go to CUC? Why not go to school and become a pastor? Why 00:22:35.15\00:22:39.82 go into the prison? 00:22:39.85\00:22:41.19 Well I just had a burden for people that were really at their 00:22:41.22\00:22:46.56 lowest point. And really it's the same way now. 00:22:46.59\00:22:49.50 When you look at the ministry of 00:22:49.53\00:22:52.33 Christ. He sought to seek to save that which was lost, part 00:22:52.37\00:23:01.21 of Luke 19:10. He would minister to those that were at their 00:23:01.24\00:23:06.21 lowest point. I mean, really anybody. But if you focus on 00:23:06.25\00:23:11.32 those that were really going through hard time, had sickness, 00:23:11.35\00:23:16.42 disease demon possession. That was just something 00:23:16.49\00:23:19.79 that I just had a 00:23:19.83\00:23:21.26 burden on my heart for was for outreach to the people that are 00:23:26.37\00:23:31.07 behind bars. But also just people on the street, I mean, 00:23:31.14\00:23:32.77 that look like they're going through some things you know 00:23:32.81\00:23:34.88 depressed and just confused, like how I was. I was very 00:23:34.91\00:23:39.08 confused. I didn't really go into that too much but my party 00:23:39.11\00:23:44.12 life was 18 to like 22. There were some high moments but 00:23:44.15\00:23:47.52 most of it were low moments, whenever I 00:23:47.56\00:23:49.06 was not drunk I was very depressed at times and just 00:23:49.09\00:23:54.00 kind of confused about what life was all about. I really didn't 00:23:54.03\00:23:56.60 have much of a purpose. 00:23:56.63\00:23:58.57 And so now you found a purpose? 00:23:58.60\00:23:59.93 Yeah I definitely found a purpose. Around 2005 I was 00:23:59.97\00:24:03.84 saying earlier how the job was going mandatory overtime and 00:24:03.87\00:24:08.84 I had a burden to do more for Christ and it was interfering 00:24:08.88\00:24:14.98 the ministry that I was doing and I just made a decision. 00:24:15.02\00:24:18.52 I went full time in ministry and I quit my job not intending 00:24:18.55\00:24:23.29 to go full time ministry but someone suggested why don't you 00:24:23.32\00:24:28.03 try colporteur work? And I was like what's that? So he told me 00:24:28.06\00:24:31.27 about Colporteur Ministry. I started reading this book and 00:24:31.30\00:24:34.44 after I did that I was convicted on it and I went out there in 00:24:34.47\00:24:37.44 self-supporting colporteur work. This was right before because 00:24:37.47\00:24:41.28 I actually got married in 2003. I have two beautiful little 00:24:41.31\00:24:45.21 girls and my wife. I'm very much in love with her as well. God 00:24:45.25\00:24:48.55 has blessed me. But right around that time I found out she was 00:24:48.58\00:24:51.85 pregnant. Once I go full time in ministry and start the 00:24:51.89\00:24:58.76 colporteur work, found out my wife's pregnant that's when you 00:24:59.26\00:25:02.76 need that green stuff after that Yeah, I don't even know if I 00:25:02.80\00:25:05.47 would have done it, I don't know if I would have had the faith to 00:25:05.50\00:25:10.41 so it if it happened after that. That's when I found out she's 00:25:10.44\00:25:13.98 pregnant. Yeah, I'm out there, self-supporting colporteur work 00:25:14.04\00:25:18.01 started out going, just knocking on doors but I realized I was 00:25:18.05\00:25:21.75 more effective going into the parking lots, Walmart parking 00:25:21.78\00:25:25.52 lot, an area where there's a lot of people. On a nice day just 00:25:25.55\00:25:29.22 approaching people. 00:25:29.26\00:25:30.59 Let me interrupt because I get the story, I get it. There was a 00:25:30.63\00:25:36.70 reformation, there was a revival and now you realize that God had 00:25:36.73\00:25:41.94 ...I'm sure you realize God has always had a call on your life 00:25:41.97\00:25:45.74 and you were just running away to some degree from that call. 00:25:45.77\00:25:49.54 What I need you to do right now is over my shoulder there's a 00:25:49.58\00:25:53.85 camera and what I want you to do, I want you to talk to a 00:25:53.88\00:25:58.09 specific person the young person that's going through Adventist 00:25:58.12\00:26:02.29 schooling who's getting into stuff they know they have no 00:26:02.32\00:26:05.03 business getting into who has a call on their life. I want you 00:26:05.09\00:26:08.60 take the next minute, Tate, look in this camera directly over my 00:26:08.63\00:26:12.60 shoulder and talk to Tate, going through TA, God has a call on 00:26:12.63\00:26:15.64 your life. You don't realize it. You're disenchanted with the 00:26:15.67\00:26:18.67 church, it's all you've ever known, but there's a calling on 00:26:18.71\00:26:21.71 your life. Talk about that. 00:26:21.74\00:26:23.08 OK. Well the Bible tells us to be hot or cold, not lukewarm. 00:26:23.11\00:26:28.58 There's a lot of enticing things out here. You may be one that 00:26:28.62\00:26:33.56 you've been raised to believe the Adventist message, that this 00:26:33.62\00:26:37.96 is the truth, but maybe you're not all the way into it kind of 00:26:37.99\00:26:42.10 like how I was. But if you commit your life fully to Christ 00:26:42.13\00:26:46.13 that you'll find true joy and true happiness. It's when you 00:26:46.20\00:26:50.57 stay in between that confusion comes in. That's not what 00:26:50.61\00:26:54.94 is that its actually be better to be cold than actually remain 00:26:54.98\00:26:58.85 in a lukewarm condition. So I encourage someone who's in the 00:26:58.88\00:27:02.48 the Adventist schools or any Christian schools that because 00:27:02.52\00:27:06.05 you've been raised to do things and you haven't really 00:27:06.09\00:27:10.99 experimented with the world think that there's something out 00:27:11.06\00:27:13.76 there that's holding you back from making a full commitment to 00:27:13.80\00:27:16.40 Christ I encourage you to make a full commitment to Christ today. 00:27:16.43\00:27:19.60 Because he's the solution to all of our problems whether it be 00:27:19.63\00:27:23.30 financial problems, depression, health problems, and ultimately 00:27:23.34\00:27:26.68 the sin problem. You may not have any of those problems but 00:27:26.71\00:27:29.84 the sin problem is what we all have and if you want eternal 00:27:29.88\00:27:32.98 life I encourage you to commit your life to Christ. But also I 00:27:33.01\00:27:36.99 just want to encourage you too that don't procrastinate. Things 00:27:37.05\00:27:40.96 are wrapping up. We've got wars and rumors of wars, they got 00:27:40.99\00:27:44.29 tensions in the Middle East and all types of crazy things are 00:27:44.33\00:27:47.26 happening, natural disasters. You know this world is coming to 00:27:47.30\00:27:50.20 an end and now is the time to seek Jesus. 00:27:50.23\00:27:52.83 Amen. We see on today's show that even though you're a born 00:27:52.87\00:27:57.64 and bred Adventist, God can still come into your life and 00:27:57.67\00:28:02.34 take you on a New Journey. Dare to dream. God bless you. 00:28:02.38\00:28:07.02