The following program
discusses sensitive issues.
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Parents are cautioned
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that some material may be
too candid for younger children.
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Welcome to The New Journey,
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a program about real life people
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with real life testimonies,
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doing real life
ministry for Jesus Christ.
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I'm your host,
Pastor Marquis Johns.
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Join us on The New Journey.
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On today's show, we have
a very interesting story.
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One that flies in the
face of exactly what Jesus said
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in Matthew 25:31.
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He admonishes us
and this is the few,
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one of the only
times in the Bible
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where you see Him saying,
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"Depart into everlasting fire."
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It's when we don't feed, clothe,
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or visit those who are in jail.
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On our show today,
we have Mr. Sam Young.
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How are you doing today,
Sam? Just fine. Thank you.
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Good, good, good.
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So let's just get
a little background.
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Tell me about your upbringing?
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Okay, I'm born and
raised from Washington DC
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by a single parent.
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I have two
brothers and two sisters.
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Went to school in Washington,
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didn't graduate
high school, got a GED.
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And after that, you
know, little part in military,
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and got married.
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So help us
understand something today.
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Did you have a conversion story?
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Or were you born
into the Christian faith?
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I mean, tell me?
Oh, no. No, no, no.
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Okay, tell me a
little bit about that?
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No, I got Christian
faith when I got married.
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My wife's family
was Adventist. Okay.
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And Pastor Elder Karlow
baptized me back in 1970.
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1970.
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Yes, then I went
into military, came out,
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and then I left the church
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and had a nice
little walk there.
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Now you often hear
these stories about people
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who start off in the church,
but then leave the church.
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What caused you
to leave the church?
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I guess just, I
didn't know who I was.
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You know, I'm just
trying to be one of the fellows,
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you know, trying to be cool,
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you know, had a
great job and everything,
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but yeah, I want to
be out there, be cool.
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Okay, so just
painting the picture.
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Here's a guy who grows
up in the streets of DC,
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gets married to a
lady who is Adventist,
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then embraces
the Adventist faith,
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but then decides that you
be more comfortable hanging out
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with the boys, and
doing what they were doing.
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And tell us where
did this lead you?
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It led me to jail.
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That's where that led
me to be incarcerated.
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Okay.
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Just doing some dumb stuff like
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kind of try over
some drugs, you know.
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The judge decided I need to
go in and take some time off.
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Okay.
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So were you using
drugs, selling drugs?
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Oh, yes. Okay, so
tell us about that?
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Never sold drugs.
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I got started off
smoking little marijuana
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and then it led
to smoking cocaine.
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So would you say that
anybody who is using marijuana,
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it's gonna lead
them in smoking cocaine
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or is that just
what happened to you?
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That's what happened to me.
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But it's not a good
choice either way around.
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Okay, okay.
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So, okay, grew up
DC, married, Adventist,
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started using marijuana,
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then it progresses
to a cocaine addiction.
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Yes.
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And as a result of
your cocaine addiction,
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you get into a
fight, you go to jail,
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and how long were you in jail?
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I had a five years stay.
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Thirteen months. Okay.
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Thirteen months
in Denver County.
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And that's where
I've reestablished myself
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with the Lord at that point.
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Okay, so tell us about this time
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when you were in jail.
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Is it everything
that everybody's heard?
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No. It's worse, you know. Okay.
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Now I really miss
is what's you make up,
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you go in a man,
you come out a man.
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Okay.
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When I went in, the
Lord started leading me,
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right then and there
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because my wife was a Christian.
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And I ended up being
the chapel's assistant,
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I started from one
job to the next job.
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I worked in a commissary,
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and the Lord was
leading me back and forth say,
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you know, and I was in dorms.
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And I knew what
things are going on.
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I would be in a dorm,
you think, you call it home,
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and you get comfortable.
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Well, I would be in
there couple of months,
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and then I would get moved.
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Couple of months and
I get moved, you know.
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Well, I was doing a
lot of Bible studies
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and stuff at that time.
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So I asked a lady,
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the counselor at
the time was Snowden.
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"Why you keep
moving back and forth?"
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She said, "You know what,
'cause God's working with you."
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Every time you go into
the dorm, it quiets down.
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Mercy.
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You know, guys stop
doing all kinds of crazy stuff.
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Well, it was different,
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I remember in Los
Angeles being incarcerated
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a couple of times myself.
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They have a
system in Los Angeles
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where they will move
you from the county jail
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to the state
prison and move you back.
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And it's basically a hustle.
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They're making money
every time they move someone,
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but what you're
saying and she's saying,
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this wasn't
because they were hustling,
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you were a good influence
everywhere you were going.
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Yeah, but they
didn't tell me that
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after about the fifth move,
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you know, it would
be a maximum security
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and I'd get comfortable,
you'd get your bunk,
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and as you call
it your house setup.
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Yeah, yeah.
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And, you know, they...
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I'm moving, I'm
moving, you know,
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but all in the process,
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you know, I was writing to judge
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for my verification
on my sentence, you know.
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And finally, after a
while, I finally got that,
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you know, I wrote it and judge
Philips Williams, it was funny.
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Anytime they give
you, the judge says yes,
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he will hear you back in court,
you know you're going home.
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I'm the only man they
had around in the county.
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The judge called up in
there, after the chaplain,
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the superintendent of the jail
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and several other COs
went to court with me.
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Judge said, "You're doing
that kind of work in jail,
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you might well go back
and finish out your time."
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He actually sent me back.
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Wow.
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After that, the guys exude
part in everything, you know.
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I thought it was bad at the time
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'cause I really
missing my family life,
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I had done them so much
harm as long as I'm gone.
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But ended up being the best time
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because of I've
met some good people
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and just, you know, reminded me
that I had to get my faith back
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and really walk in the Lord.
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Now I want to go back to
something that you just said
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because we can be a
very resilient people.
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And I remember on a
number of occasions where,
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you know, you go to jail,
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you actually meet
some good friends.
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You go in initially
and you're kind of like
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let me stay to myself, let me,
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you know, not really
ruffle any feathers or anything,
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but you begin to develop
relationships with people
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that as you develop
these relationships,
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you actually grow to see them
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as your friends
and as your buddies.
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So did you have a
similar experience?
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Well, not really.
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No.
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You know, well, I'm more or less
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wanted to better myself.
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I had a prayer in
jail, and I asked God,
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you know, if He'd give me back,
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allow me be the man
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I'm supposed to be in Him,
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that I'll promise to
bring His word back in jail.
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So I was just
concentrating solely on myself.
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I wouldn't even go
outside for breaks,
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you know, they
would give me one hour
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out in the yard or whatever.
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I didn't think I deserved it.
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Okay, so wait, wait.
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So while you're in jail...
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You went in jail
from the Adventist Church.
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You were already
Adventist when you went to jail.
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I was baptized
Adventist. Baptized Adventist.
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So of course, there were a lot
of people coming to visit you
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and make sure
you were okay, right?
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No. No?
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No.
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Not at all, other than...
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My wife visited me once.
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She visited me once.
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And that was to tell me
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she was giving
me divorce papers.
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Mercy.
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And I said, at that
time, I truly accepted God,
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I was a chaplain's assistant.
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And I said to her, I
just looked at her and said,
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"You know what, if this is what
you want, that's fine, but..."
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I asked her, looking
through that glass, I said,
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"If God wanted
us to be together,
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I hope you'd be open for it."
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And we're still
together today, 46 years.
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Mercy, mercy, praise God.
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So was there an
Adventist presence in the jail
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when you were
there beside yourself?
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No, not at all. Okay.
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Even in that trial.
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They allowed the
Muslim to have a service,
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but they didn't have one
in our county, they didn't.
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So did you serve the
extent, the full sentence?
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Yes, I did. The full 13 months?
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Yes, I did.
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So for 13 months...
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Again, so you grow up in DC...
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Just painting the picture
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so that we can
have the full vision.
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You grow up in DC,
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you get married to a
woman who's Adventist,
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you become Adventist,
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and then you find yourself
in some trouble from marijuana
00:08:48.32\00:08:49.92
to a cocaine addiction,
00:08:49.96\00:08:51.29
cocaine addiction
lands you in jail.
00:08:51.33\00:08:53.09
Was this your
first offence? Yes.
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First offence, 13 months.
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Yeah.
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Crazy. That's crazy.
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And you did the whole 13 months.
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Yes, I did.
00:09:00.67\00:09:02.00
In Los Angeles, you do a thing,
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you do a stint with
what they call a county lid.
00:09:03.41\00:09:05.51
County lid is where you have
to do 50% to 70% of your time.
00:09:05.54\00:09:08.31
But no person gets
on their first sentence
00:09:08.34\00:09:10.38
something like 13 months
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and then do 100% of that time.
00:09:11.78\00:09:13.72
So you do 100% of your
time, and while you're in there,
00:09:13.75\00:09:16.72
what's happening is
you're growing closer to God,
00:09:16.75\00:09:19.42
but there is no one
coming to bring God to you.
00:09:19.45\00:09:21.86
There's no one coming
to tell you about God,
00:09:21.89\00:09:23.49
no one that's in here,
00:09:23.53\00:09:24.86
ministering the
Gospel of Jesus Christ,
00:09:24.89\00:09:27.13
although there is
a Muslim presence,
00:09:27.16\00:09:28.86
and so this begins
to tug at your heart
00:09:28.90\00:09:30.67
and you start sharing
the gospel with people.
00:09:30.70\00:09:33.20
I started, yes. Okay.
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We didn't have
any Saturday services.
00:09:34.70\00:09:37.04
They'd have Sunday
services, morning and afternoon.
00:09:37.07\00:09:40.54
So we just
continued, I will have the guys.
00:09:40.58\00:09:42.74
We had one room in the dorm.
00:09:42.78\00:09:45.08
It was like a sweat box.
00:09:45.11\00:09:46.61
And I admit, they
kept lockers in there,
00:09:46.65\00:09:49.05
had as many 13,
14 guys at a time.
00:09:49.08\00:09:51.45
And we'd be packing
a lot of good resource,
00:09:51.49\00:09:53.59
took the advantage of teaching
00:09:53.62\00:09:54.96
with a little pink kids' Bibles,
00:09:54.99\00:09:57.39
you know, and
they would teach them.
00:09:57.43\00:09:58.89
Did you have the brown
paper and the little pencils?
00:09:58.93\00:10:02.70
No.
00:10:02.73\00:10:04.07
It looked a bit better
than that, but it was really...
00:10:04.10\00:10:06.60
sweat would be running off us,
00:10:06.63\00:10:08.04
you know, and another
ministry, heard about it,
00:10:08.07\00:10:11.01
ROAD to New Life Ministry,
00:10:11.04\00:10:12.61
they started coming in,
00:10:12.64\00:10:13.98
but they were still
Sunday service people,
00:10:14.01\00:10:16.11
but they were good people.
00:10:16.14\00:10:17.48
Okay, and so now you're in jail,
00:10:17.51\00:10:19.11
you're sharing the gospel,
00:10:19.15\00:10:20.48
you're in a sweat
room with 14 guys,
00:10:20.52\00:10:22.95
guys who can't read,
00:10:22.98\00:10:24.32
guys, I'm sure, who had
greater offences than yours.
00:10:24.35\00:10:28.32
What was that interaction like?
00:10:28.36\00:10:30.46
And just to give you a little
bit of background, for me,
00:10:30.49\00:10:32.53
I remember when I went to...
00:10:32.56\00:10:35.00
I was an Adventist
00:10:35.03\00:10:36.43
and had something
hanging over my head.
00:10:36.46\00:10:38.13
And I went in jail and I said,
00:10:38.17\00:10:39.50
"Okay, here's what
I'm not gonna to do.
00:10:39.53\00:10:40.87
I'm not gonna bother anybody,
00:10:40.90\00:10:42.24
I'm not gonna
ruffle any feathers,
00:10:42.27\00:10:43.61
I'm gonna stay to myself."
00:10:43.64\00:10:44.97
And I saw someone with the Bible
00:10:45.01\00:10:46.91
and then I
started reading the Bible.
00:10:46.94\00:10:48.64
And inevitably, it seems that
00:10:48.68\00:10:51.01
when we are in the
darkest points of our lives
00:10:51.05\00:10:53.75
is when we start
grasping for light
00:10:53.78\00:10:55.52
and someone seeing me
reading the Bible said,
00:10:55.55\00:10:58.05
"You don't know
anything about that."
00:10:58.09\00:10:59.42
And I said, "Well, you
know, I know a little bit."
00:10:59.45\00:11:01.62
And so then they started
asking for Bible studies,
00:11:01.66\00:11:03.86
they started
asking for Bible studies.
00:11:03.89\00:11:05.23
I had a guy come to me
00:11:05.26\00:11:06.59
and asking me to
help him to read.
00:11:06.63\00:11:07.96
And for me, it was there
00:11:08.00\00:11:10.37
that I realized that I was
actually called to ministry.
00:11:10.40\00:11:12.70
They say you
can't con on a conman.
00:11:12.73\00:11:14.30
Right. Right?
00:11:14.34\00:11:15.67
And so here I am in
jail doing more Bible studies
00:11:15.70\00:11:18.64
and more sharing of
Jesus than anything else.
00:11:18.67\00:11:21.21
And I realized that
there was a call on my life.
00:11:21.24\00:11:25.45
Was there something
similar that happened with you?
00:11:25.48\00:11:27.48
Absolutely,
yeah, I'm still having
00:11:27.52\00:11:30.75
prison ministry right now
00:11:30.79\00:11:32.12
'cause I made a promise to
God, it's been 24 years now.
00:11:32.15\00:11:36.12
Twenty-four years you've
been going back to the jail.
00:11:36.16\00:11:38.09
Going back into the
jail and giving the Word.
00:11:38.13\00:11:40.96
I came out.
00:11:41.00\00:11:42.33
I'm now the president of
ROAD to New Life Ministry.
00:11:42.36\00:11:44.23
Say that one more
time, president of...?
00:11:44.27\00:11:45.60
Of ROAD to New Life.
ROAD to New Life Ministries.
00:11:45.63\00:11:48.20
ROAD stand for
redeemed offenders as disciples.
00:11:48.24\00:11:50.97
I love it.
00:11:51.01\00:11:52.34
And we take it back in.
00:11:52.37\00:11:53.71
And I made that promise to God,
and I won't break that promise.
00:11:53.74\00:11:58.35
He gave me back my life.
00:11:58.38\00:11:59.91
So basically, you realized
00:11:59.95\00:12:02.75
that there was something
missing in the jail system
00:12:02.78\00:12:06.22
because no person
from the Adventist church
00:12:06.25\00:12:08.12
was visiting you.
00:12:08.16\00:12:09.49
Right.
00:12:09.52\00:12:10.86
And you saw a need
00:12:10.89\00:12:12.23
because of what was
missing in your life
00:12:12.26\00:12:13.60
for others to hear about
the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
00:12:13.63\00:12:15.13
Yes.
00:12:15.16\00:12:16.50
And so at this
moment, you began sharing...
00:12:16.53\00:12:17.90
Now tell me this, did
you run into any opposition
00:12:17.93\00:12:21.50
during 13 months of
sharing the gospel with people?
00:12:21.54\00:12:24.47
A lot. Tell us about that?
00:12:24.51\00:12:26.37
The superintendent, Mr.
Averson at one point of time
00:12:26.41\00:12:29.24
did not want that.
00:12:29.28\00:12:31.45
He thought that
religion was just a cop-out
00:12:31.48\00:12:34.12
for a lot of guys.
00:12:34.15\00:12:35.48
Wait, wait, wait.
00:12:35.52\00:12:36.85
When you said the
religion was a cop-out,
00:12:36.89\00:12:38.22
break that down,
unpack that a little bit?
00:12:38.25\00:12:39.59
Okay, like I went to
worship on the Sabbath,
00:12:39.62\00:12:42.19
he said, "Well, you guys just
want to get out of your dorm."
00:12:42.22\00:12:45.13
You know, they don't want
to be locked up in the room.
00:12:45.16\00:12:47.00
You know, they want to
get out and mingle around.
00:12:47.03\00:12:49.13
But when you come to my service,
00:12:49.16\00:12:51.30
you come to hear about God.
00:12:51.33\00:12:53.03
You're not coming there
to mingle with your buddies
00:12:53.07\00:12:57.07
or whatever, you know.
00:12:57.11\00:12:58.47
One time, one guy threatened me.
00:12:58.51\00:12:59.84
Mercy.
00:12:59.87\00:13:01.21
One of the
guards or one of the...?
00:13:01.24\00:13:02.58
No, one of the
inmates threatened me
00:13:02.61\00:13:03.95
'cause he want to
talk to his buddies.
00:13:03.98\00:13:05.31
And he said, "What
are you gonna do to me?"
00:13:05.35\00:13:06.68
So I've told and made the point,
00:13:06.72\00:13:08.05
I said, look, you're in church
00:13:08.08\00:13:09.42
and you have to learn
about the power of my God
00:13:09.45\00:13:11.45
'cause He is the Son
of the lightning bolt down
00:13:11.49\00:13:13.52
and it will go
through my left arm
00:13:13.56\00:13:15.12
and when I strike
you with the right,
00:13:15.16\00:13:18.09
you just won't know.
00:13:18.13\00:13:19.59
I said, you just sit down,
00:13:19.63\00:13:22.13
I told him to sit
down and learn about God,
00:13:22.16\00:13:24.43
and you go back to the
dorm and press your button.
00:13:24.47\00:13:26.74
And he gave me
some regard that day.
00:13:26.77\00:13:28.90
My Lord, my Lord.
00:13:28.94\00:13:31.47
So he realized
the power of your God
00:13:31.51\00:13:34.31
in more than one way.
00:13:34.34\00:13:35.68
Amen. Amen.
00:13:35.71\00:13:37.05
So you're sharing the
gospel with people in jail.
00:13:37.08\00:13:40.55
You're meeting
with some opposition.
00:13:40.58\00:13:43.92
What was it that
caused you to keep going?
00:13:43.95\00:13:47.39
Other than my promise
to God, I just knew that,
00:13:47.42\00:13:50.49
the men needed leadership,
they needed some focus.
00:13:50.53\00:13:53.56
But I went in there, the
one thing I realized is that,
00:13:53.60\00:13:56.80
there were good people,
00:13:56.83\00:13:58.17
a lot of good
people were incarcerated.
00:13:58.20\00:13:59.53
They just didn't
know how to give focus.
00:13:59.57\00:14:01.77
They needed God in their life.
00:14:01.80\00:14:04.57
The worst thing I would say,
00:14:04.61\00:14:05.94
"Well, I got to get
myself ready for God."
00:14:05.97\00:14:08.01
No, you just come to God
and just teach them that,
00:14:08.04\00:14:10.48
you know, you just got to
come, make a decision now.
00:14:10.51\00:14:12.91
I would tell them, "Look,
this is Jonah's great fish,
00:14:12.95\00:14:15.52
you're just in it
for a little while.
00:14:15.55\00:14:17.45
You're just
swallowed for little while,
00:14:17.49\00:14:18.92
he's gonna spit you out.
00:14:18.95\00:14:20.29
What are you gonna do
when you get spit out?
00:14:20.32\00:14:23.02
You know, he's
gonna let you out.
00:14:23.06\00:14:24.39
Focus now, make
yourself a strong man now,
00:14:24.43\00:14:26.93
and gel with people who
really don't care about you,
00:14:26.96\00:14:30.10
when you walk out.
00:14:30.13\00:14:31.47
You can make
something of yourself.
00:14:31.50\00:14:33.50
And last semesters I've
taken that's what they like.
00:14:33.54\00:14:36.10
So in 13 months
dealing with inmates,
00:14:36.14\00:14:38.34
being an inmate yourself,
00:14:38.37\00:14:39.71
did you find that
was the pervasive mindset
00:14:39.74\00:14:41.41
that people in jail for like
00:14:41.44\00:14:42.88
those on the outside
didn't care about them?
00:14:42.91\00:14:45.55
Yes. Yes.
00:14:45.58\00:14:46.92
Absolutely.
00:14:46.95\00:14:49.75
Well, they've
done so many things.
00:14:49.78\00:14:51.42
They've done something to
their wives, their children,
00:14:51.45\00:14:53.82
their family, their friends,
00:14:53.86\00:14:55.19
they had nothing,
they just didn't care.
00:14:55.22\00:14:57.29
And but, you
have to let them know
00:14:57.33\00:14:58.79
that there's a second chance.
00:14:58.83\00:15:00.90
You know, you get a
second chance to start over
00:15:00.93\00:15:03.47
and you just have to want,
00:15:03.50\00:15:05.40
you have to reach
out there and grab it.
00:15:05.43\00:15:06.97
You know, it's all
about bettering yourself
00:15:07.00\00:15:09.17
and once they realize that,
00:15:09.20\00:15:10.87
you know, they
really, really try.
00:15:10.91\00:15:13.14
Sam, wait, wait, you've
said bettering yourself.
00:15:13.17\00:15:15.74
Now is there opportunities
to better yourself,
00:15:15.78\00:15:19.58
if you will, in jail?
00:15:19.61\00:15:20.95
What I'm trying to
say is you make yourself,
00:15:25.15\00:15:27.02
you get a right mind.
00:15:27.06\00:15:28.82
You get the right
mindset, you have to know,
00:15:28.86\00:15:31.23
you know, you got time to study.
00:15:31.26\00:15:32.89
Like you talk to a
guy that's incarcerated
00:15:32.93\00:15:35.26
and you talk to
them about the Bible.
00:15:35.30\00:15:36.63
Most of the time,
he can quote the Bible
00:15:36.67\00:15:38.17
better than most people who
come to church every Sabbath
00:15:38.20\00:15:41.47
because he is in there
24/7 reading the Bible.
00:15:41.50\00:15:44.61
Now whether he
understand in that,
00:15:44.64\00:15:46.78
that's a
different story, you know,
00:15:46.81\00:15:48.51
and that's he had to get
him to understand the Bible
00:15:48.54\00:15:51.68
and apply it to
themselves and really want it.
00:15:51.71\00:15:54.42
And the thing I like about
00:15:54.45\00:15:56.38
the jails I go
into, they're locally
00:15:56.42\00:15:58.25
and I work in
there and they see me
00:15:58.29\00:16:00.26
and they say,
"You're still doing it."
00:16:00.29\00:16:03.93
You know, and I
like that. Mercy.
00:16:03.96\00:16:05.69
So upon this charge,
so 13 months goes by,
00:16:05.73\00:16:08.76
you've been
ministering in the jails,
00:16:08.80\00:16:11.27
at one point your wife comes
00:16:11.30\00:16:12.70
and attempts to
serve you divorce papers,
00:16:12.73\00:16:14.70
you guys pray through that?
00:16:14.74\00:16:16.07
That, excuse me, she served me.
00:16:16.10\00:16:18.01
Oh, you got served. Yes.
00:16:18.04\00:16:19.37
You got served. Yes.
00:16:19.41\00:16:20.88
So you got to serve the papers.
00:16:20.91\00:16:23.75
Yes.
00:16:23.78\00:16:25.11
But you told us that
you guys are still together.
00:16:25.15\00:16:26.48
Tell us how did that work out?
00:16:26.51\00:16:27.85
Well, I signed them
and I sent it back to her,
00:16:27.88\00:16:29.28
and I went through
my bump when I did,
00:16:29.32\00:16:31.72
and I gave it to God.
00:16:31.75\00:16:33.62
And I said, "God, you have this,
00:16:33.66\00:16:34.99
I'm not taking it back."
00:16:35.02\00:16:36.36
So when I got out,
I didn't go back home,
00:16:36.39\00:16:40.60
you know, I had to stay
with friends and everything,
00:16:40.63\00:16:43.03
and I've just kept praying,
00:16:43.06\00:16:45.20
and then they said,
you know, she called me
00:16:45.23\00:16:46.80
and she saw that
I was really trying
00:16:46.84\00:16:49.27
and through the grace
of God, she took me back.
00:16:49.30\00:16:53.58
And so you guys have been
married for how long again?
00:16:57.31\00:17:00.92
Forty-six
years. Forty-six years.
00:17:00.95\00:17:02.68
Yes, and we have raised
00:17:02.72\00:17:04.05
five grand kids
in the process of...
00:17:04.09\00:17:06.02
our daughter's kids,
00:17:06.05\00:17:07.39
we still have two at home now.
00:17:07.42\00:17:09.22
Amen, amen.
00:17:09.26\00:17:10.59
So I want to go back to
13 months again in jail,
00:17:10.63\00:17:15.83
sharing Christ, the day
that you get discharged,
00:17:15.86\00:17:19.53
tell us about that day?
00:17:19.57\00:17:21.70
That was a good day.
00:17:21.74\00:17:24.21
No Adventist people came,
00:17:24.24\00:17:25.57
but some of them
ROAD to New Life Ministry
00:17:25.61\00:17:27.38
they came out to get
me, we're starting out,
00:17:27.41\00:17:29.34
they met me at the door
00:17:29.38\00:17:31.08
and they took me to
lunch and that was it.
00:17:31.11\00:17:34.25
I was, that
time I called my wife
00:17:34.28\00:17:37.85
and talked to her
for a little while
00:17:37.89\00:17:39.59
and see what we can
do and that's basically
00:17:39.62\00:17:43.76
that's how I had to find a
church I wanted to attend to.
00:17:43.79\00:17:45.83
That's what I wanted to get to.
00:17:45.86\00:17:47.20
You know, I
definitely had to find a church,
00:17:47.23\00:17:48.60
that was the first
thing, I wanted to find a church
00:17:48.63\00:17:51.17
and I started attending church
00:17:51.20\00:17:53.13
and rest is history since then.
00:17:53.17\00:17:56.00
I will not be a church.
00:17:56.04\00:17:59.91
Well, you got to bring us
to the pages of this history.
00:17:59.94\00:18:02.21
So you find a church,
00:18:02.24\00:18:03.75
is there an
active prison ministry
00:18:03.78\00:18:05.41
at the church that you find?
00:18:05.45\00:18:07.55
No. No.
00:18:07.58\00:18:08.92
It wasn't there.
00:18:08.95\00:18:10.29
I have to say, it
wasn't Adventist church
00:18:10.32\00:18:11.72
that I found at firstly.
00:18:11.75\00:18:13.09
Okay, okay. It was not.
00:18:13.12\00:18:14.46
I went to several other churches
00:18:14.49\00:18:16.46
before going back
to Adventist church.
00:18:16.49\00:18:19.59
My wife was still
attending Adventist church
00:18:19.63\00:18:21.60
and but I was working
with the ROAD Ministry
00:18:21.63\00:18:25.13
and doing that
attending Calvary temple church
00:18:25.17\00:18:28.44
until that pastor
did some crazy stuff.
00:18:28.47\00:18:31.34
And I said, "Okay, all right,
I know where I got to go."
00:18:31.37\00:18:35.04
So one day, I told my wife,
00:18:35.08\00:18:36.71
I said, "Honey, I'm missing you,
00:18:36.75\00:18:39.18
every weekend was conscious of,
you know, you come to church.
00:18:39.21\00:18:43.28
Okay, fine."
00:18:43.32\00:18:44.65
So I once started going
to church, I told the pastor,
00:18:44.69\00:18:46.32
"I want to be re-baptized."
00:18:46.35\00:18:48.02
I wanted Pastor
Pavet to re-baptize me.
00:18:48.06\00:18:50.03
And 'cause it was a joy,
00:18:50.06\00:18:53.60
it was a joy being
there with my wife.
00:18:53.63\00:18:55.23
Okay.
00:18:55.26\00:18:56.60
So now you've come
to the Adventist church,
00:18:56.63\00:18:59.53
there is no prison
ministry at the church.
00:18:59.57\00:19:04.91
How do you...?
00:19:04.94\00:19:06.27
I'd show you there is
the prison ministry...
00:19:06.31\00:19:08.81
Pastor Pavet and no one knew
that I had been incarcerated.
00:19:08.84\00:19:14.72
They never heard my testimony,
00:19:14.75\00:19:17.45
I think Jackie Davis is
probably first one to hear
00:19:17.49\00:19:19.92
any parts of my testimony.
00:19:19.95\00:19:22.72
But I was in and no one
else knew from Cherry Hill.
00:19:22.76\00:19:25.36
So how did you get
involved with prison ministries?
00:19:25.39\00:19:27.90
Now you had
made a deal with God.
00:19:27.93\00:19:29.26
You already told God,
"Listen, no matter what,
00:19:29.30\00:19:31.60
I'm gonna continue to share
your gospel in the presence."
00:19:31.63\00:19:34.57
How did you get
involved with prison ministries?
00:19:34.60\00:19:36.44
Okay, a
gentleman, Jerry Ackerman
00:19:36.47\00:19:40.28
and part of ROAD Ministry,
00:19:40.31\00:19:42.91
they were just
about this ministry
00:19:42.94\00:19:44.31
ROAD to New Life Ministry.
00:19:44.35\00:19:45.88
And they came and said,
"Well, we're gonna help you,
00:19:45.91\00:19:48.12
you are one of the first ones."
00:19:48.15\00:19:49.55
And they started.
00:19:49.58\00:19:50.92
I started giving my
testimony going back and forth
00:19:50.95\00:19:53.09
and they started
working with men and women
00:19:53.12\00:19:55.72
and it went from that
point on, and that's it,
00:19:55.76\00:19:58.73
I have to be a part of this.
00:19:58.76\00:20:00.10
Okay, so how long
before you got involved
00:20:00.13\00:20:03.67
with prison ministries
after you were discharged,
00:20:03.70\00:20:05.57
after you got out?
00:20:05.60\00:20:06.94
Almost
immediately. Almost immediately.
00:20:06.97\00:20:08.80
Like I said, they
met me when I came out
00:20:08.84\00:20:12.07
and they took me
around, they took me to lunch,
00:20:12.11\00:20:13.68
and was helping me look
for a job and everything.
00:20:13.71\00:20:16.31
Like I said, we're
just getting started.
00:20:16.34\00:20:17.68
So immediately I
got involved with that.
00:20:17.71\00:20:19.85
So... I was a volunteer.
00:20:19.88\00:20:21.82
I'm sorry, I was a
volunteer. No, no. It's okay.
00:20:21.85\00:20:23.35
So in experience
that I had, I remember,
00:20:23.39\00:20:25.45
you know, getting out
00:20:25.49\00:20:27.62
and then seeing some
guys that I was in with.
00:20:27.66\00:20:30.79
Did you have some
experiences like that?
00:20:30.83\00:20:32.16
Oh, yeah. Tell us about those?
00:20:32.19\00:20:33.53
Oh, yeah.
00:20:33.56\00:20:34.90
As soon as I got out, couple
of guys I used to get out with,
00:20:34.93\00:20:37.83
you know, when I
went in, they were broke.
00:20:37.87\00:20:39.93
But when I got out,
they had plenty of drugs.
00:20:39.97\00:20:42.00
"Come on, man,
and let's do this."
00:20:42.04\00:20:44.14
So guys are
seeing you, you are out,
00:20:44.17\00:20:46.68
and they are
saying, "Hey, come on, man,
00:20:46.71\00:20:48.04
let's get back into
what we were into before."
00:20:48.08\00:20:50.21
Yes, let's do this.
00:20:50.25\00:20:51.58
I said, "No, I
don't want to do that.
00:20:51.61\00:20:52.95
Not at all." Why not?
00:20:52.98\00:20:54.32
Because I gave up too
much, I gave up my home,
00:20:54.35\00:20:58.59
my wife had to sell our
home when I was incarcerated,
00:20:58.62\00:21:02.26
she had to take
care and raise my kids
00:21:02.29\00:21:04.16
when I was away, she
had to do everything.
00:21:04.19\00:21:07.20
I gave up a lot to
go to Jonah's great fish
00:21:07.23\00:21:09.80
that mean to be incarcerated,
00:21:09.83\00:21:11.43
and I just
didn't want to do that.
00:21:11.47\00:21:14.24
I strengthen my mind
00:21:14.27\00:21:15.60
and I said, "This is
not gonna happen to me."
00:21:15.64\00:21:17.24
Drugs isn't that
what I wanted anymore.
00:21:17.27\00:21:18.81
And so these guys see
you, you are on a new journey,
00:21:18.84\00:21:21.68
you are on a new road,
00:21:21.71\00:21:23.65
and they're
trying to pull you back
00:21:23.68\00:21:25.61
into the some of
the old behavior.
00:21:25.65\00:21:28.15
Did you try and witness to them.
00:21:28.18\00:21:29.75
I mean, 'cause in
essence what they're doing
00:21:29.78\00:21:31.22
is they were
trying to evangelize you.
00:21:31.25\00:21:32.65
Yes.
00:21:32.69\00:21:34.02
Did you find yourself
trying to evangelize them?
00:21:34.06\00:21:35.42
Yes, I did.
00:21:35.46\00:21:36.79
And I told them what I
was doing and everything,
00:21:36.83\00:21:39.19
but here's the most
important thing for me,
00:21:39.23\00:21:41.13
jumping in a little bit.
00:21:41.16\00:21:42.86
When I would get in my car
and drive a certain directions,
00:21:42.90\00:21:45.60
you know, I can sense
myself wanting to get high.
00:21:45.63\00:21:48.64
And I'll have to pull
aside the road and say a prayer.
00:21:48.67\00:21:51.47
You know, till I
learn to call on Jesus
00:21:51.51\00:21:53.48
just saying in my mind,
00:21:53.51\00:21:54.84
just to get the
urge out of my head,
00:21:54.88\00:21:56.88
you know that, I
learnt early on that
00:21:56.91\00:21:59.41
if I call on Jesus,
00:21:59.45\00:22:01.12
you know, that urge
wouldn't stay there,
00:22:01.15\00:22:03.02
it would go away.
00:22:03.05\00:22:04.39
And I couldn't even
keep it more than $5 or more
00:22:04.42\00:22:07.22
in my pocket at one time.
00:22:07.26\00:22:08.59
Mercy. It took about two years.
00:22:08.62\00:22:10.53
Mercy.
00:22:10.56\00:22:11.89
Two years before I
could handle anything.
00:22:11.93\00:22:13.53
So, Sam, you're out,
you're on the streets,
00:22:13.56\00:22:15.76
and you're running
into some of your old pals,
00:22:15.80\00:22:17.27
but you are
able to tell them no.
00:22:17.30\00:22:18.63
Absolutely.
00:22:18.67\00:22:20.00
But you realize that
even having more than $5
00:22:20.04\00:22:22.00
in your pocket
would be problematic
00:22:22.04\00:22:24.11
because you have this urge
00:22:24.14\00:22:25.47
that you have to literally
pull on the side of the road
00:22:25.51\00:22:27.64
and pray through or else
you probably would be back.
00:22:27.68\00:22:30.28
I could slip. Mercy.
00:22:30.31\00:22:31.68
I could slip. Absolutely.
00:22:31.71\00:22:33.42
That the pull was that strong?
00:22:33.45\00:22:35.52
Absolutely. Mercy.
00:22:35.55\00:22:36.89
Yes. Mercy.
00:22:36.92\00:22:38.25
So now what I want
to get to real quick is,
00:22:38.29\00:22:39.65
so tell me about...
00:22:39.69\00:22:41.02
So you said you're
almost immediately involved
00:22:41.06\00:22:43.26
with prison ministries.
00:22:43.29\00:22:44.63
Tell me about
now, as a free person,
00:22:44.66\00:22:48.26
having made this
covenant with God
00:22:48.30\00:22:49.90
going back into the prison,
tell us about that real fast?
00:22:49.93\00:22:52.63
Oh, well, it's a joy
really, it really is a joy,
00:22:52.67\00:22:56.00
you know, you never get used
00:22:56.04\00:22:57.44
to the clanging
at the doors though
00:22:57.47\00:22:59.04
when they go behind.
00:22:59.07\00:23:00.41
No, no, no. You
never get used to that.
00:23:00.44\00:23:01.91
But when I talk to them
00:23:01.94\00:23:05.08
and tell them how good
God is in my life and work.
00:23:05.11\00:23:08.05
And talk about
what I went through,
00:23:08.08\00:23:10.89
they know that I
really went through it,
00:23:10.92\00:23:12.59
they know that is true,
00:23:12.62\00:23:14.86
you know, because
they know the language
00:23:14.89\00:23:16.69
and know what I'm
saying and everything.
00:23:16.73\00:23:18.66
And they get the feel that,
you know, if you can do it,
00:23:18.69\00:23:22.03
you know, I should be
doing, some of them tried.
00:23:22.06\00:23:24.30
They really tried. Mercy. Mercy.
00:23:24.33\00:23:25.87
So tell us a little
bit about the ministry
00:23:25.90\00:23:27.24
that you're involved with?
00:23:27.27\00:23:28.60
Tell us about how that's
helping in the prison system?
00:23:28.64\00:23:30.54
Tell us about that?
00:23:30.57\00:23:31.91
Well, what we do, what
ROAD to Life Ministry does is,
00:23:31.94\00:23:34.64
we go in widely inside
00:23:34.68\00:23:36.14
there we help them
with Bible studies,
00:23:36.18\00:23:38.98
we try to help
their families a little,
00:23:39.01\00:23:40.92
it's a non-profit organization.
00:23:40.95\00:23:43.89
We teach them, and
then when they get out,
00:23:43.92\00:23:46.52
we try to help them
find a job, place to stay,
00:23:46.55\00:23:49.56
and hopefully, be able to
get back with their family,
00:23:49.59\00:23:52.09
but mostly, we find
them a church immediately.
00:23:52.13\00:23:55.23
Mercy. That's the
first thing we do.
00:23:55.26\00:23:57.17
We would try to take them
to one of our churches or,
00:23:57.20\00:24:00.80
you know, one of the
other members they're of.
00:24:00.84\00:24:03.17
The members are often
from different denomination,
00:24:03.20\00:24:04.84
but we try to, you
know, get them into church,
00:24:04.87\00:24:06.61
that's the main thing.
00:24:06.64\00:24:07.98
Okay. Okay.
00:24:08.01\00:24:09.34
So now how long have you been
involved in prison ministries?
00:24:09.38\00:24:11.85
Twenty-three or
twenty-four years.
00:24:11.88\00:24:13.95
Twenty-four years
in prison ministries.
00:24:13.98\00:24:15.92
Do you have a story,
have you had an experience
00:24:15.95\00:24:18.05
where someone that you had
been ministering to in jail,
00:24:18.09\00:24:20.99
came out, and
you actually saw them
00:24:21.02\00:24:23.73
get on the road
to a better life?
00:24:23.76\00:24:26.23
Tim Greene, he became
a deacon in his church.
00:24:26.26\00:24:30.10
Oh, this guy could sing like
I don't know what, you know.
00:24:30.13\00:24:34.07
He really got admired,
he'd done everything right,
00:24:34.10\00:24:36.50
he did everything right.
00:24:36.54\00:24:41.01
I mean, he was the
lowest of the low, but once...
00:24:41.04\00:24:44.05
he come from a church,
his father was a pastor.
00:24:44.08\00:24:48.02
And but he got
back and he got strong
00:24:48.05\00:24:50.19
and he started going into
the jail with us a little bit
00:24:50.22\00:24:54.92
and, you know, then he
started his own prison ministry
00:24:54.96\00:24:58.19
through his church.
00:24:58.23\00:24:59.56
And to this day, he
is still a success story.
00:24:59.59\00:25:01.46
Mercy.
00:25:01.50\00:25:02.83
So basically what
you're saying to us is,
00:25:02.86\00:25:04.47
so as a person who had interface
00:25:04.50\00:25:07.47
with the Adventist faith,
00:25:07.50\00:25:08.84
you went into jail, saw
that there was no presence.
00:25:08.87\00:25:11.41
And so that
became a burden of yours,
00:25:11.44\00:25:14.28
you got out and now
for the last 23 years,
00:25:14.31\00:25:16.85
you've been going
back into the prisons
00:25:16.88\00:25:18.41
and you have
testimonies of people
00:25:18.45\00:25:20.08
who have come out and
gotten on a new journey.
00:25:20.12\00:25:22.48
Yes.
00:25:22.52\00:25:23.85
So now tell us,
in those 23 years,
00:25:23.89\00:25:25.85
I'm sure that you've
experienced some things
00:25:25.89\00:25:27.36
that let you know that
you're on the right track.
00:25:27.39\00:25:29.32
So just if you can...
00:25:29.36\00:25:31.03
'Cause there's probably
some people listening right now,
00:25:31.06\00:25:33.26
who they have been
through the prison system
00:25:33.29\00:25:35.76
and maybe they felt
like nobody cared about them
00:25:35.80\00:25:38.53
and nobody was there for them.
00:25:38.57\00:25:39.90
I want you to right
now look into this camera,
00:25:39.93\00:25:41.80
I want you to
look into the audience,
00:25:41.84\00:25:43.17
and I want you to just
now talk to that person.
00:25:43.20\00:25:45.04
Talk to that person about
00:25:45.07\00:25:46.41
the goodness of
God in your life.
00:25:46.44\00:25:47.78
Well, having God in my life
00:25:47.81\00:25:49.51
is, like I said,
it's been a big joy.
00:25:49.54\00:25:51.65
Before that, I lost everything,
you know, I gave it, excuse me,
00:25:51.68\00:25:55.18
I gave everything to Satan,
my home, my family everything.
00:25:55.22\00:25:59.02
But once I found the Lord
00:25:59.05\00:26:00.96
and decided I
gonna stay with Him,
00:26:00.99\00:26:02.82
He gave me my home
back, He gave my wife back,
00:26:02.86\00:26:05.96
you know, He
gave me my pride back.
00:26:05.99\00:26:07.46
You know, as a man,
if we have true faith,
00:26:07.50\00:26:12.73
I learnt about true faith
00:26:12.77\00:26:14.10
knowing that He would
supply everything for me.
00:26:14.14\00:26:16.60
You know, He keeps His promises,
00:26:16.64\00:26:19.01
you know, all we had
to do have faith in it,
00:26:19.04\00:26:21.51
just have faith,
He will make sure.
00:26:21.54\00:26:23.85
We wanted a house, we
were trying to get a house,
00:26:23.88\00:26:26.48
they turned us down
for a house, my wife and I.
00:26:26.51\00:26:29.38
And I was working, I met a man
00:26:29.42\00:26:31.89
who asked to pray for me,
00:26:31.92\00:26:33.79
and I tell him
about our ministry,
00:26:33.82\00:26:35.42
he said, "He prayed for me."
00:26:35.46\00:26:36.79
I told my wife that day
00:26:36.83\00:26:38.16
that gentleman is gonna
be a big part of our life.
00:26:38.19\00:26:39.96
Real quickly,
about seven months later,
00:26:40.00\00:26:43.33
he became a part,
00:26:43.37\00:26:44.70
he gave me money towards to
get a house that I didn't need.
00:26:44.73\00:26:48.77
And we went, my wife
and I we bought a house
00:26:48.80\00:26:51.04
that the same people
who actually turned us down
00:26:51.07\00:26:53.74
before in the same
development turned us down,
00:26:53.78\00:26:56.48
said, "No, we
couldn't afford it,
00:26:56.51\00:26:57.98
we couldn't do anything."
00:26:58.01\00:26:59.41
We went to it, bought a bigger
house from the same people.
00:26:59.45\00:27:02.05
Mercy.
00:27:02.08\00:27:03.42
A bigger house when we
went into settlement...
00:27:03.45\00:27:06.15
Thank you, Jesus.
00:27:06.19\00:27:07.69
When we went
into the settlement,
00:27:07.72\00:27:09.96
we walked out of
settlement with more money
00:27:09.99\00:27:11.83
than we took in.
00:27:11.86\00:27:13.19
Mercy.
00:27:13.23\00:27:14.83
I called my prayer partner
on my way there, my wife and I,
00:27:14.86\00:27:18.13
and we told him
we're going there
00:27:18.17\00:27:19.97
and the gentleman
that loaned me the money
00:27:20.00\00:27:21.50
was in real estate,
00:27:21.54\00:27:23.34
he told me my
credit was too bad.
00:27:23.37\00:27:24.87
I said, "Mike, you know
Jesus, you know our Lord,
00:27:24.91\00:27:28.44
He said this is our house.
00:27:28.48\00:27:30.31
He said this is our house."
00:27:30.35\00:27:31.68
And when we went in,
came out I called him up
00:27:31.71\00:27:34.65
and said, "Mike, I'm coming back
00:27:34.68\00:27:36.02
to bring you your money back."
00:27:36.05\00:27:37.39
He said, "Yeah, I figured
you didn't get the house."
00:27:37.42\00:27:38.75
I said, "No,
Mike, I got the house."
00:27:38.79\00:27:40.79
They just gave
me some money back.
00:27:40.82\00:27:42.56
And they gave
us that money back.
00:27:42.59\00:27:43.93
God really, really
worked in our life there.
00:27:43.96\00:27:47.10
Thank you for
sharing, Sam. Thank you.
00:27:47.13\00:27:48.86
Brothers and
sisters, we've seen here today
00:27:48.90\00:27:51.07
that you never know
00:27:51.10\00:27:52.43
where there is
someone who needs Christ,
00:27:52.47\00:27:54.20
even in the prisons,
00:27:54.24\00:27:55.67
there could be a
Sam Young right now
00:27:55.70\00:27:57.67
waiting for someone to
bring them Jesus Christ.
00:27:57.71\00:28:00.04
So I say to you, visit
those who are in prison.
00:28:00.08\00:28:05.58
This has been The New Journey.
00:28:05.61\00:28:07.02
God bless you.
00:28:07.05\00:28:08.38