Episode #10 He made it to the Paralympics... Then walked away!

0:00 SPEAKER_03: After the games, I had the fame, I had the money, I had the success. I mean, I was gonna get um nominee for Espie Award. I had everything that the world said would make you happy. I tell you what, I'd never been so depressed. I became suicidal again. I got into partying. I got into drugs. I fell into lust. I fell into all the worldly desires. And I remember the day that I was talking to one of my buddies. He's like, what are you most thankful for?

0:45 SPEAKER_01: God, thank you so much for uh for today, Lord. Um we just asked for for the strength to get through this, Lord, and uh you would just give us the give us the words to speak. And Lord, we just thank you so much for for using us as vessels to reach these kids this this past week and that you would even consider us worthy to to to be in a leadership role for them and to be a spiritual father figure for these kids. And we thank you for for the blessing and the fruit that comes for that. We pray for them.

1:16 SPEAKER_01: We pray that they continue in the in the faith, that they would seek wise counsel and seek discipleship and things of that nature. But God, we're just we're grateful for last week and the way that you used us. And we pray that you would just continue to open doors like that for us in our lives to to to be your witnesses and to be your to to be your hands and feet, Lord. God, we are just we're so thankful for you. We're so thankful for the cross. We're thankful that you called us your children. When the enemy calls us all the wrong things, you call us your children.

1:48 SPEAKER_01: Lord, we don't deserve any bit of your grace, not one droplet, but you poured on us in buckets, Lord. We just love you so much, and we're thankful that you love us back. In Jesus' name. Amen.

1:59 SPEAKER_04: Amen.

2:00 SPEAKER_01: All right.

2:03 SPEAKER_01: Welcome back to Called and Running. My name is John Rowland. I'm here with Dakota Christensen, and we're so excited to have special guests, our brother Garrett on the top this morning. What's up, dear? It's great to have you on.

2:16 SPEAKER_03: Good to be on. Thanks for asking.

2:18 SPEAKER_01: Yeah. Yeah, well I'm we we're we're super tired after after last week.

2:23 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, yeah. It was a long week. It was a long week, but I the Lord moved, so it was it was a special week overall. So I was really happy to be there.

2:33 SPEAKER_04: Yeah.

2:34 SPEAKER_01: If if I if I sound kind of funny, I lost my voice. We were at kids camp this past week and we were getting rowdy with the kids. There was a lot of labor, a lot of reward. It was a it was a great week to just see God work throughout these kids. But yeah, it was awesome. Dude, we just had we've had your eye uh our eyes on you for a while, and we've just been so encouraged by the by the work that the Lord is doing in your life and the impact that that's having on other people. I mean, I'm sure Dakota sees us sees the same thing.

3:03 SPEAKER_01: I mean, we all see it in you, and we see that fire in you, and it's just so encouraging to us.

3:07 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, definitely. I mean, it's the Holy Spirit talking, man. It's I mean, I'm on fire because of the Holy Spirit. It it feels so good for the first time in my life. I mean, I came to Christ in October and it it's just made a huge difference in my life. I can just see him work in my life, open doors, and I mean, for the first time I can truly see him work and understand what it means to hear God's voice, you know. I mean, it's not like verbal to me, but I can just see God's voice working by opening doors and you know, getting into the church, meeting people, and it's just a blessing overall.

3:40 SPEAKER_03: It's it's pretty awesome.

3:42 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I mean, like I'll say being in like the leader group that we were in this past week and like watching you worship with those kids, man, it was awesome. You know, I can't tell you how many times I looked over and you had a kid like picked up over your head, like just the air and having fun, just seeing the smile on their face, it was so heartwarming.

4:05 SPEAKER_03: It was awesome, man. Like I said, I mean, the Holy Spirit worked. I mean, it was supernatural. I mean, I've seen supernatural encounters in a cliff with young adults and saw the same supernatural environment with I mean, the the young kids, the students, and it's crazy that the Holy Spirit works in all ages. I mean, it's it's a blessing to see.

4:25 SPEAKER_01: It's a straight up move of the Lord, and we're just caught in caught right in the middle of the hurricane of grace that's going on in this upcoming generation. Do you have like a do you have like a like a story or just something like a like a the your biggest takeaway from one of your kids at camp? Like just this super special moment that you had. I know you had a I mean, we we we all came and huddled it back up in the hotel room after the stories that was awful.

4:49 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I mean immediately just wanted to fall asleep. I mean But I mean I tell you that, I mean, the worship. I mean, the first day you just saw the kids kind of just standing there, I mean, singing along and just not really moving. And I mean, the first day I was kind of jumping around. I had this one kid, he started jumping around with me, but each day it just got better and better and better. I mean, by the I mean, we went from just standing there singing to the last day. I mean, it felt like a full-on concert.

5:16 SPEAKER_03: It was amazing. All the kids up there raising their hands, and it was cool. Like my group, it started out by all, like I said, standing in the same row, just kind of singing to the last day. They'd all be on the side with me and Joseph and just jumping and praising. It was awesome. I love it. I mean, you don't see a lot of kids doing that these days. I mean, this new generation is just so different. I mean, the Holy Spirit's just working in this new generation and to see it is just such a blessing.

5:47 SPEAKER_03: It's it's amazing, man, just seeing them kids worship. And yeah, it was it was awesome. Yeah, we had this one kid, he was kind of very, very quiet in the beginning, and each day he's asking questions. I mean, you could tell he was interested, but you just saw the Holy Spirit growing and growing and growing, growing in within him. And by the last day, I mean, he he came to Christ and got baptized, and it was such a blessing to see. It was it was amazing. I mean, like I said, the Holy Spirit grew in him, and it was it was amazing.

6:22 SPEAKER_03: I mean, buried with Christ and resurrected, and it was it was amazing.

6:26 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, let's go. Yeah, it was truly a special moment to see all those kids line up, you know, like over 40 of them. Like it was it was so crazy to just stand there on the beach and watch them go out there. And it and it was kind of cool being behind the scenes of it too, with all of the people that were on the beach for like the sunrise and all that that were sitting out there, that were watching this happen, you know, that were like walking up to the sides and going, Hey, so you know, what's going on?

6:53 SPEAKER_02: You know, what church are you guys from?

6:55 SPEAKER_04: Yeah.

6:56 SPEAKER_02: And it was just crazy because a lot of them would be like, What? Cartersville, Georgia, like where is that? You know, like how far of a drive is that, you know, and we would tell them, and they're like, Oh my gosh, y'all came all the way out here with all these kids? Like, like, man. And but yeah, dude, it was just so crazy to see how it impacted all of them, man. Like, yeah, I I was I was kind of like grieved a little bit because I missed last year and I heard like the the things that God did last year with the kids that went.

7:30 SPEAKER_02: But man, I was so just overwhelmed in so many good ways this last week with these kids. Just you know, especially my group, you know, I had a little bit of a challenge. I had 10th and 11th graders, and you know, I had two that were brothers that kind of like did their own thing a little bit, you know. One of them had some special needs, so it was kind of one of those things where I had to like figure out how to connect with them at the same time connecting with the other kids that were like, you know, wanting to go to the pool or wanting to go, you know, talk with people or play games or whatever.

8:10 SPEAKER_03: How did you split those groups up?

8:11 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah. And you know, finally by like Wednesday night, Thursday morning, man, I was able to just find that connection to where I can make it work to where finally they were like talking and opening up in group, man, and it was just so cool. Such a blessing to be a part of.

8:27 SPEAKER_01: Sorry, go ahead.

8:28 SPEAKER_02: No, you're good. Go ahead.

8:29 SPEAKER_01: I had six great boys. Same year, man. Same year. So we had our handful, but I mean, it was like I said earlier, a lot of labor, a lot of reward. I had this one moment, it was really unlike anything that I've ever been a part of in in my ministry or in my time of doing ministry. So I had this one kid, his his mom got into a horrible car accident with a drunk driver, and she broke, I can't remember how many bones she said or he said, but uh she broke a lot of bones, got a traumatic brain injury, and developed dementia somehow as a uh side effect of what happened.

9:08 SPEAKER_01: And the kids at school, they make fun of him and they they like they beat him up, they pull his hair out, and they make fun of his mom. And he like hated himself so much and he hated the way that the way that kids treated him at school, so he attempted suicide in fourth grade and was unsuccessful. He had an encounter with the Lord at this camp, got saved, and now he's like, I don't think those thoughts anymore. I'm just grateful that the Lord saved my mom. And I'm like, people without the Spirit of God don't speak like that.

9:45 SPEAKER_01: So he had an encounter with the Lord on this trip, and he I mean it made me sweaty-eyed, but he asked me to baptize him yesterday. So we did that yesterday, and that's that's just one kid. I had two other kids with their own stories who asked me to baptize them as well, but for time's sake, I won't get into that. But his story was like, holy crap. God supernaturally got me to this place, and he's allowed me to be a part of this ministry. And I'm like, what what do what did I do to deserve that? Yeah, yeah.

10:19 SPEAKER_01: Yeah, no, we don't we don't deserve, I mean, not not a single one of us deserves to be a part of what's going on.

10:24 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, for real. I mean, it was, I mean, I got invited four days early, and I was like, I was like, I gotta pray, I gotta pray about it, man. And not even 30 minutes later, and I was I was talking to Jesse, my fiance, and she was just, I mean, I think you should do it. And I was like, you know what? I just I'm just gonna put my yes on the table. I'm just gonna do it. I didn't know I didn't know what to expect, but I mean, seeing the Lord work, I mean, so many doors have opened, and just putting your yes on the table.

10:51 SPEAKER_03: I mean, you just see supernatural things, and God can use you in so many ways by just one step of obedience. And just, I mean, praise God. I mean, it it was amazing. Yeah.

11:02 SPEAKER_01: Well, um I think we all want to hear your story, bro.

11:07 SPEAKER_03: You're ready, you're ready for a ride. Oh man. Ooh, man. I mean, it it it's first of all, I mean it's not my story, it's it's God's. Yeah, I mean, he he he he put he allowed a lot of things in my life. And I mean, I want to say right now, praise God for it. I mean, I I mean, at a young age, I always grew up in the church. I mean, let's go to church this Sunday. I mean, all right, let's go. I'm gonna have fun with my friends. But I never really paid attention. I was just there to hang out with my friends, you know?

11:39 SPEAKER_03: And never really encountered God. Never. And I mean, growing up through that, I mean, my faith slowly deteriorated over time. I got to the point where I was 12, 13, 14 years old, and I was like, I don't believe in this. I mean, this is stupid. This is so stupid. I'm not gonna believe in this. And I mean, I went through many years of really disrespecting my parents. I mean, I'd straight up cuss them out. I mean, I wouldn't, I wouldn't obey them, nothing. But I remember the day my dad, he was like, Man, God's gonna catch your attention.

12:12 SPEAKER_03: He's gonna get your attention. And I was like, how is someone gonna get you my attention that doesn't exist? I I don't believe you. And I remember June 2nd, 2016, and that day God got my attention. I was driving down a back road about 9:30 at night, and I we don't exactly know what happened, but I'm guessing I fell asleep at the wheel, and I was going about 70 miles an hour, speeding down a road that's the speed limit's 45, going 70, always breaking the rules, and ended up falling asleep at the wheel and veering off the road and smacked the tree, going 70 miles an hour.

12:52 SPEAKER_03: And when I say a person doesn't live through that, I mean the firefighters pulled up and they expected to see a dead person in there. And they heard me screaming, and they're like, oh my gosh. I mean, it how? I mean, they rushed down there and I was I was fully conscious. I mean, the dashboard came up on my lap. I had a I had a compound fracture on my femoral sticking out of my leg. I mean, blood pouring out, and the dashboard came up on my lap so hard it actually completely broke my leg in half.

13:25 SPEAKER_03: I mean, it was holding on by a piece of skin. I mean, my dad walked up. He he he tried when he got there, he tried to run through. All the cops were standing there. I mean, the cops were about to tase him, and we actually knew when he knew one of the cops and was like, if that was your son, what would you do? And he just stepped aside, all right, go. And he was right beside me the whole time. And just having him there really helped me fight through it. It was crazy going through, I mean, I lost all, I mean, nearly all of my blood.

13:53 SPEAKER_03: I mean, I will I didn't have I barely had any left. And what's crazy is I was conscious the whole time. And they were using the jaws of life. It it took about an hour and a half to cut me out. I mean, an hour and a half with blood pouring out. It's crazy. I mean, the firefighter, it was like over a ditch. So one of the firefighters was leaning down and I was laying on his back, and he had a belt just around my leg, holding it for an hour and a half, full strength. I mean, God gave them the power to do that.

14:23 SPEAKER_03: And coming after I heard this story, the Jaws of Life died about five seconds after they got me out. About five seconds. I'm like, wow, that's insane. And they were like, we can't we can't get this kid out with him awake. So they ended up giving me ketamine. And by that time, I was almost dead, so it spiked my blood pressure up. Right. They finally got me out. They transported me from the scene over to a church where the helicopter landed and ended up life flighting me. And on that flight, I mean, before that, they couldn't get a blood pressure on me.

15:00 SPEAKER_03: I mean, this kid should be dead. And it only spiked my blood pressure up for about 40 over 20. I got to the hospital with the blood pressure about 40 over 20. And I was on the CAT scan table, they were taking CAT scan on me, and my dad touched me, and I was ice cold like a dead person. I mean, if you ever touch this person at a funeral, he's ice cold, there's no warmth, and that's how I felt. And I was in surgery for about eight hours, and the doctor walked out and to give my parents an update, and my dad was like, Are you gonna be able to save his leg?

15:28 SPEAKER_03: He was like, Man, you need to be worried about saving his life. And that just kind of hit my dad. He was like, Whoa. I mean, he sat down in his chair, and it's like realization came over him. I'm my stepmom Jordan was looking out the window, and there's just everyday life. People walking around in the morning. And he was like, How can people just be walking around in life and we're dealing with this? You know, God, God will give us challenges like that to really show himself, you know. It took me hitting rock bottom.

15:57 SPEAKER_03: It just taking something from me to eventually give me the Holy Spirit. And after the hot, and when I was in the hospital, I kind of, my uncle, he's an orthopedic surgeon, he came and told me my leg was gone. I cried for about 15, 20 seconds, you know, and I was like, hey, am I gonna play football again? He's like, Yeah, you can do anything. I was like, all right, sick. Dried up, dried up my tears. I was like, all right, cool, look at that. I mean, going through the hospital, it kind of hasn't it kind of didn't click yet, but depression started slowly coming in.

16:26 SPEAKER_03: And I stayed there for about a month and a half, going over to going through physical therapy and stuff. And I had this guy come visit me in the hospital. He ran an Iron Man, he was a double amputee, he was missing both legs below the knee. And I was like, okay. He was like, Thank God you have your knee. I'm missing it, I'm missing about halfway up my shin. So that was the first blessing. I was like, heart sick. And after that, I got out of the hospital, like I said, about a month and a half later.

16:53 SPEAKER_03: And I was in a wheelchair for about nine months. I had to go back to school in a wheelchair, and it was so different. It that's when depression really hit in. I was like, man, I want to walk. This sucks. I had to miss football, I had to miss wrestling. My entire junior year, I couldn't do anything. And about nine months later, I got my first prosthetic, and I slowly started walking. And I remember the first time I ran and I could barely run. I mean, what was good is the doctor was like, you ain't gonna better run for about a year and a half, and 11 months later I was running.

17:25 SPEAKER_03: I was like, awesome, let's go. God's God's working in my life. And like I said, after the car accident, I I was like, God's real. He didn't know kids should have lived through that. But I slowly started to see I couldn't do things that I could do before the wreck, and that's when depression took over my life. I mean, I I'd cry myself to sleep. I was so angry. I was so I I became mad at God, you know, and it got to the point where one day I I broke and I tried to go find a gun and kill myself. But my dad caught me and pulled me away and said no and just hugged me, you know.

18:10 SPEAKER_03: Yep, right there, right there. And I ended up having to go to a hospital. You know, I stayed there for a week, impatient. I was impatient, and just the Lord really worked in my life. I saw kids that were not in the same boat as me, but were in the same mindset, and I was like, I have more to live for than this. And so I I got released from there and kind of, you know, was a little little little happier, and but I still had depression and stuff. So I came back my senior year, and I slow, I I couldn't play football because of the damage to my right leg.

18:54 SPEAKER_03: If I would have broken that, they would have probably had to amputate that too. So I had to quit football, but I got to go back into wrestling. And for the first time in my life, I was like, or not in my life, but after the wreck, I was like, okay, I I can do something. I told my dad, I was like, I'm gonna I'm gonna go to state this year. I'd never been to state before. And he was like, Yes, son, but he was like, I mean, in his mind, he was like, Yeah, he's always gonna encourage me. But going through that year, I made varsity, I had a positive record and ended up going to state.

19:24 SPEAKER_03: And I was like, man, I want to do something with this. I I wanna I want to be bigger than just being someone that lays in bed depressed. You know, I could have laid down and been depressed and not done anything with my life, but I was like, no, I want to do something. So I figured out what the I figured out what the Paralympics were. I don't know if some people know what the Paralympics are, but it's like the Olympics, but for people with disabilities. And I looked at the summer games and I was like, I ain't fast enough.

19:54 SPEAKER_03: I'm not fast enough to run track or anything like that. So I looked at the winter games and I saw snowboarding. And my dad, I remember my dad taught me how to snowboard at seven years old, but went on like four or five vacations, like three-day vacations. So I didn't really know how to do that, but I was like, you know, I'm gonna give that a try. So it was a big step. I moved out to Colorado at 18 years old right after high school. And that was a challenge itself. I mean, I was always, you know, with my parents my whole life, and then moving, I mean, 21 hours away was big.

20:29 SPEAKER_03: And it's like life hit me. He was like, all right, you ready for life? I was like, mm-mm. No. But moving out there, it really matured me and taught me responsibility. And just knowing that, you know, I could, I could live on my own and take care of myself, and just saying this disability isn't gonna hold me back. And I went out there and started snowboarding with this club team called Adaptive Action Sports. My coach was Daniel Gale, and he brought me in and God worked so much out there. I mean, it was very the living expenses in Colorado is very, very high, right?

21:05 SPEAKER_03: You know, I was I was working so much and it was hard to train. And I ended up having a bad roommate, so I had to move out. I was like, I don't know what I'm gonna do. And that was that was hard, but God was like, I got you, trust me. I ended up getting free housing. And so I was like, wow, that is God working right there. And I was able to pour everything I could into snowboarding. And I remember my first competition, it was in believe it or not, snowboarding in Dubai. They they had an indoor resort in a mall, and I got dead last, like my first three World Cups.

21:44 SPEAKER_03: And I was like, I don't know if this is for me. But someone was telling me, just hang in there, keep working. I was like, all right. And going through that year, it was pretty hard, but I started to get better and better and better. I was like, I'm gonna keep working hard, I'm gonna keep working hard, and ended up making the US division. Development team that year. I mean, praise God, it gave me a lot of confidence. And moving into that second year, I was competing with the US team and I was getting consistent top 15 and stuff.

22:13 SPEAKER_03: And by that time, I had to move out of that free housing. And my coach, he was like, All right, come live with me. Second gift, free housing again. And I was like, wow, that's just God right there. But I started having more success and then COVID hit and we couldn't travel. And so that was really hard mentally for me. I'm going through that. It dropped a lot of my confidence with snowboarding. A lot of the resorts closed early. And so I had to move back home to Georgia and was working here. And I got to live with my parents then.

22:51 SPEAKER_03: But after COVID, well, it still continued, but the resorts in Colorado started opening back up. So I moved back out there. And that was going into the Games year, right? The Paralympic year. I was like, all right, it's time to lock in. I was like, I want to not only my goal was to go to the Paralympics. And that was just my fourth year competing. I mean, it started at 18 and I was 21 at the time. And I poured everything I had into it. I mean, I was training eight plus hours a day and working from 3 o'clock to 1 a.m. And because out there you got to have a full-time job.

23:26 SPEAKER_03: You can't just go out there and play around. You got to have a full-time job. And it ended up going through that season and ended up getting second overall in the world. And I was like, all right, sweet, and qualified for the games. I was like, cool, sick. I I had my goal. I completed my goal. I was like, awesome. Went to the games, and they usually keep about four athletes in a room, but I ended up getting isolated because a person next to me had COVID, so I had got put in isolation. And I thought it was a bad thing, but praise God for that because it was able, I was able to lock in and focus on myself, right?

24:02 SPEAKER_03: And went through the games and ended up getting a silver medal in Beijing. Praise God, it was awesome. And, you know, I had the money coming in, I had the fame coming in, I had I had everything I ever dreamed of, you know. But over the years, I I came to Christ. I was very close to Christ that first year out there. But as soon as I started to have success, he got further and further and further away. And I started relying on myself. You know, I I kind of forgot about God. I was like, I have all this successful.

24:37 SPEAKER_03: It was me who did it. It was me. You know, I forgot about all the times he blessed me with free housing, all these opportunities, and I was like, nope, I don't need him anymore. And like I said, after the games, I had the fame, I had the money, I had the success. I mean, I was gonna get nominated for SB Award. I had everything that the world said would make you happy. I tell you what, I'd never been so depressed. I became suicidal again. I got into partying, I got into drugs, I fell into lust, I fell into all the worldly desires.

25:18 SPEAKER_03: And I remember the day that I was talking to one of my buddies, he's like, What are you most thankful for? I said, Snowboarding. I said, I loved snowboarding more than God, and I had never seen my career crash so hard. It was injury after injury, it was the anger that came out. I was not successful anymore.

25:44 SPEAKER_03: And he he allowed it to happen because I forgot about him. You know, I was missing the only thing that was gonna make me happy, and that's the Holy Spirit. And I lost the love for the sport. You know, one year after I competed one year after the games, and ended up, I was like, I had to quit. And I was forced to retire, you know, and I ended up staying out there for about four more years trying to find my identity. You know, I was so mad at God. I was so mad at God for how my career ended. You know, I I could not stay healthy, and the depression just took over my life, and I just partied to make me happy, the drugs to make me happy.

26:35 SPEAKER_03: You know, I would come to Christ and then find a relationship, leave Christ, break up with that girl, come to Christ, find another relationship, leave Christ. It was a pattern that was going on. I could not find happiness. I was like, how am I not happy in the most beautiful state in the country? I mean, I I had I got to do everything. I mean, nature was right out the back door. I mean, I got into dirt biking, I could ride out my back door and go dirt biking for eight plus hours, you know, and I thought I had a relationship with God, but no, I was still living for the world.

27:09 SPEAKER_03: I couldn't find happiness. And it was job after job after job. I couldn't find happiness in any job. I could not stay in a friend group. And like I said, I was so mad at God. And I was like, I don't know what to do. So I was like, I actually tried to start my own business and couldn't get that going. I remember the day my dad called me on the phone. He usually starts saying, What's up? How you doing? How you been? Like, what are you up to? I answered the phone and said, hello. He didn't say anything.

27:38 SPEAKER_03: He said, Come home. He had always tried to get me to come home before, but all he said was, come home. I tell you that. That was my supernatural encounter. That was the Holy Spirit speaking through my father. And I didn't think twice about it. I said, okay. I said, all right, I'm coming home. I was like, I'm gonna come home after winter, but things started to fall apart, and God was like, you know, you need to come back now. And I was like, all right. I was like, okay, I'm finally gonna obey. And I came home in September and just tried, just isolated myself because I came with depression I came home with depression like that.

28:24 SPEAKER_03: And I was like, that was not the only obedience I needed to follow. But I got plugged in at Cross Point City Church in Cartersville. And when I did that, dude, the doors that opened, the people I met, I mean, I met y'all. I remember I was, I was, people try to encourage me to go to a small group, and I started dating my fiance, Jesse. And I was like, okay, I want to go to co-ed. All right, let's go to co-ed. And she was like, all for it. And then one day she was like, I think you need a men's community.

29:00 SPEAKER_03: I think you need to get a good, solid men's community. I kind of got upset. I was like, no, I don't want to do that. And then about a day later, I really prayed about it and thought about it. And I was like, you know what, you're right. Let me let me try that. All right. I got plugged into a men's community, met y'all. And oh my gosh. I ended up getting saved in October. And since then, I the Holy Spirit, I've seen the Holy Spirit work in my life so much. You know, and we went to this event called Equipped.

29:34 SPEAKER_03: It was a young adult event. And when I say that was supernatural, that was something else. I remember for the first time in my life.

29:45 SPEAKER_03: I never thought I would do it. I never thought I would come to this, but for the first time in my life, it was during worship. I got down on my face and I was like, God, thank you for taking that out of my life. Thank you. Thank you for bringing me home. And when I say God gives you peace beyond your understanding, I don't know, I don't understand why I'd be more happy in Georgia than the beautiful state of Colorado. But I have peace because I now have the Holy Spirit in me. My depression is gone, my anxiety is gone.

30:20 SPEAKER_03: All it took was one step of obedience. One step of obedience to open up so many doors.

30:32 SPEAKER_03: And I think it's John 13, 7. You do not, er, that's right. You do not know what I'm doing now, but soon you will. I didn't know what he's doing back then when he first took my leg. I thought I always understood, okay, he's gonna give me all this fame and glory. I went to the Paralympics. You know, he let me go through that, you know, he gave me that success, right? But I didn't glorify him. So he was like, all right, I gave you that. You took advantage of it, so I'm gonna take that away. I'm gonna make you hit rock bottom.

31:01 SPEAKER_03: And now what God gave me, what he was, what he was doing when he took my leg, he gave me the Holy Spirit. That's that's the whole time what it was meant for. That's what it was meant for. What when it says God will take away and give back double, what he gave back double, he gave back tenfold. I mean, it was the Holy Spirit, and I would choose the Holy Spirit over any fame or money. And it was amazing. I mean, what he's done in my life. I mean, I'm now saved, first of all. I now have a godly community.

31:37 SPEAKER_03: I'm getting married, praise God. Right there, right there. Jesse's over here, and and I I found my best friend, and I found God. Man, I found God finally. And for the first time, I see how God speaks. I was praying, what do you want me to do? I surrender everything to you. My life is yours now. I don't I don't know what to do with my life, it's yours. Show, show, show what you're gonna do in my life.

32:14 SPEAKER_03: I mean, now I'm getting plugged into a discipleship group. I now want to serve in kids' ministry.

32:24 SPEAKER_03: Man, I tell you what, I am more happy in Georgia because I have the Holy Spirit and I'm in a godly community than I was out there partying and having fun. Now I wouldn't ask for anything else. Like I said, I mean, like I said back then, I mean, I had the partying, everything, every every worldly desire that the world would say would make you happy. And no, the only thing that's gonna make you happy is the Lord Jesus Christ. That's the only thing that's gonna make you happy. And I finally understood that.

32:52 SPEAKER_03: That was my testimony. My testimony wasn't the fame and the glory and achieving everything. You know, I showed a lot of people you can do what you put your mind to, a disability can't hold you back. But no, my testimony was to come to the Lord. And that, and I didn't understand that for the longest time, but now I understand. I understand, I understand this whole story my entire life. And I'm uh I was always thought it's my testimony to tell, but no, it's God's that's God's testimony, and so it I wouldn't change anything, I wouldn't change anything.

33:29 SPEAKER_03: I mean, I would be lying if I said I don't miss snowboarding and I want to go back, but I know that's the enemy talking because I know if I went back, I'd probably fall into that life again. So no, now I'm on the path of righteousness. I mean, with all that fame and glory, I saw hell in front of me. But now that I have the Holy Spirit and the godly community, I see the kingdom ahead of me. And that's that's what I'm talking about.

33:58 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, it took me, it took me 26 years to figure that out. You're never too far gone. You were never too far gone. I was lost in my sin. I was dead in my sin. Like I said, it took one step of obedience to now to truly be saved. Now now I know I'm going to heaven. Now I know I am. Like it says, I was lukewarm out there. It says God will spit you out of his mouth. He would rather you be cold than lukewarm. And now I'm on fire. And that that that's the goal in life. And now I want to go and make disciples of all nations.

34:36 SPEAKER_01: Come on.

34:38 unknown: Come on.

34:38 SPEAKER_01: Let's go.

34:39 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's kind of funny, man, because like I remember back in group a few weeks ago, I don't remember who asked you. I mean, it may have been Jonathan. When when he looked at you and was like, So if God took your other leg, would you still be as excited and on fire for the Lord? You were like, Absolutely, he can take it right now.

34:58 SPEAKER_03: You could take everything from he. I feel like he took everything from like I said, he I had to hit rock bottom. I'm like, take more from me. If it's in your will, take more from me.

35:08 SPEAKER_01: You know, it's funny how that works. When I go through extreme periods of suffering and confusion and doubts and me questioning the work of God, why is it that that's the the moments when I feel him the closest?

35:24 unknown: Yeah.

35:25 SPEAKER_01: So I think God will strip these sort of things away from us to get our attention. And also, you're you're talking about like you got everything that you ever wanted. I think sometimes God will allow us to have the the desires, the worldly desires of our heart, just for us to realize that that's not what we're after. And just for us to realize that we are what we're really after is Him. Because that's what we are created for. We are created to fellowship and commune with the Lord.

35:53 SPEAKER_03: Exactly. I mean, he can He can give you everything to show you that, yeah, that's not gonna make you happy. Put me put me at the center of it and it's gonna make you happy. You know, he'll continue to bless a successful life if you have him in it. But as soon as you idolize that thing over him, he'll take it away in an instant. Yeah, he'll be like, nope, you ain't gonna idolize that. No, you are gonna, you are gonna follow me. So I was like, Yeah, I'm gonna follow him. And I tell you what, my my life has been so much better.

36:25 SPEAKER_03: And oh man, yeah, just following the Lord is so much better than any worldly desire. Praise God. Praise God.

36:32 SPEAKER_01: So you mentioned out in Colorado, you would um you would go on these like these highs and lows with the Lord. So what do you think is different about those about those times out there and and your time here in Georgia? Because since you've been here, it's just been like just a high, and you've just stayed there and you're just you're chasing after the Lord and and what you've got going on inside of you is contagious.

36:56 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I mean, I mean the high the highs were not following the Lord out there. The highs was meeting new friends, getting more exciting things, you know. I I had I had rich people in my life. I did, and I got to go do so many cool things, you know. And I mean, I was I'm very thankful for them. I mean, I'm very thankful for them. They gave me so many experiences that I could ever I I dreamed of. And I had it was so awesome I get to experience that life. But in the end, I would drop right back down.

37:31 SPEAKER_03: I was I was like a roller coaster the whole time. And like I said, when I decided to obey, when you have God at the center of your life, you you're gonna have a high. Even when you're in the low, you're still at a high because you have that Holy Spirit working in you. You know, I've I finally understood that. And even when bad things happen to me, still, there's still some things that are not great. You know, I still have trials, you know, but even though I have those trials, I'm still in a high because I know I have the Holy Spirit working in me that's gonna help me.

38:02 SPEAKER_03: And I trust God that He's not gonna let me fall. You know, He's not gonna let me fall. He's gonna be He's gonna be with me in those valleys just like He's gonna be with me in those mountaintops, you know.

38:13 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah. And it's also really cool too because you have, like you were saying, you have that community around you that when you are at that low point and you might be like questioning yourself or questioning where you're at or what you're doing in that moment, you have somebody to kind of be like, hey, no, like I see what you're doing, I see how far you've come, I see what's happening around you, even though you may not right now. And you know, just keep hard charging, you know, like keep keep that fire for the Lord, keep following him.

38:45 SPEAKER_02: There's a reason why you're here, there's a reason why you're going through what you're going through, or you're thinking what you're thinking. Also, on the flip side of that, too, is you also have people to remind you of like maybe some of those thoughts aren't you know from the Lord. Some of the thoughts that are coming into your head are the enemy trying to get into your head and you know, steal, kill, and destroy everything that that you're creating with the Lord and the Holy Spirit, you know, and it's just it's so cool like when you are in those moments watching you bounce back ten times harder, you know, after that that conversation, you know, it's just really cool just to see the energy that comes from you in the in those moments where you know uh you know, Joan and I both have just kind of seen you emotional a few times and just got like the enemy trying to work, you know, and then you turn around and go, uh-uh.

39:40 SPEAKER_04: Yeah, uh-uh.

39:41 SPEAKER_02: He is not getting that part of me again. I I am I am just gonna rise up and and just boast in the Lord, man. And when you do, it's it's so cool to watch.

39:52 SPEAKER_03: Yeah. And what people don't understand, man, when you come to Christ, the enemy's gonna attack you ten times harder. Man, I've seen the enemy attack me ten times harder since I proposed, man. I mean, I've like, this marriage is gonna be so powerful, and dude, the enemy's after it, man. I mean, they got one more in heaven, you know, so the enemy's gonna try to take everything that from me. He's gonna try me to reject the Lord again. He's gonna try to make me angry with the Lord again. But no, that Holy Spirit helps me fight that every single day.

40:21 SPEAKER_03: You know, the enemy ain't gonna get me no more. No, no, because I know I got the Holy Spirit to fight with me, to fight for me.

40:29 SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and also kind of add to add on to that. I mean, the discipleship that you've got now and the community that you've got now. I mean, you mentioned that as part of your testimony, the how important that's been for you. And I think that's such a crucial thing that the new believer needs to have because the concrete's wet and they've gotta have people pouring into them with the right things, you know. And if they don't have that, then the world's gonna pour into them all the wrong things. Yeah.

40:53 SPEAKER_01: So you need to pop on that like shortly after you come to Christ. And that's that's like honestly my concern for for the kids at this KISS Camp last week. I think it's so easy for people to have this emotional interaction at like a camp or a church or whatever it might be, and they you just have to go on this spiritual high.

41:14 SPEAKER_00: Yeah.

41:14 SPEAKER_01: But what what we lack is just is discipleship, you know? And that's what builds faith that actually lasts, you know.

41:22 SPEAKER_03: Exactly. And it's like the enemy is more prone to attack you in isolation. And when I first moved back, I kind of isolated myself and I felt the enemy going at me, going at me, going at me. But as soon as I got community, dude, I mean, multiple brothers will fight that for you. And I remember Carlos, he had a sermon on the importance of community. And community is so important. It's so important. Because if you have that community, you're more likely to stay in Christ because you're able to fight it so much harder.

41:53 SPEAKER_03: I mean, being isolated is so dangerous. Being isolated, so dangerous. But like I say, you got that community, man, you're so much more likely to stay strong and on fire in your faith.

42:06 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, isolation is the devil's playground, man. Yep. You know, and it's the it's the same thing with like with sin, you know, when you're in that isolation, there's so much darkness. And, you know, we've said it so many times on this podcast, but that's where sin flourishes is in the dark. It grows and it grows and it grows just like a fungus, you know, and the minute that you shed that UV light on it from you know, from the Holy Spirit, man, it just the enemy flees and the and the fungus dies, and and man, it's just such an encouragement to know that we have a God on our side that will do that, you know, that that he just comes in with that sword and that armor and just chops the enemy down at our uh at our behalf, you know, and what's even crazier about it is he doesn't have to do it.

42:56 SPEAKER_03: Yeah.

42:57 SPEAKER_02: You know, he doesn't have to come in and save us. You know, we're the ones that put him on that cross to begin with. You know, but the fact that he comes in, man, with just like a screaming eagle, man, and just just just beats the enemy down and makes him flee on our behalf anytime we call on him is just such a humbling experiencing and and and it's a love that we could truly say that we want everybody to be able to experience, you know, like we want everybody that's lived a similar story to yours, you know, to have that experience and have that encounter and be able to just experience that that interaction and that love, you know, to be able to experience the fire that you have, you know, in your life, you know, that I mean it's gonna open so many doors and allow so many to close.

43:50 SPEAKER_02: But man, it it's just it's such an incredible love. You know, like this this walk is just so awesome.

43:59 SPEAKER_03: Yeah. And and that's the only love that is gonna fully fulfill you. Yeah. You know, that's the only love that's gonna fill those gaps in your heart. You know, worldly things can fill it up a little bit, but Jesus is the only thing that's gonna make it full. You know, that's something I didn't understand for the longest time.

44:19 SPEAKER_01: That's like John Ford, you know, when Jesus goes to the woman at the well, she's like, hey, the water you've been drinking hasn't been making you thirsty. Yeah. But the water that I offered, you can drink it and you're not gonna be thirsty anymore. Yeah. And I think that's the same thing with with the with the lies that that the world is is feeding everybody, you know. The world's never gonna make you fully satisfied. Yeah, I mean the Bible calls Satan the the ruler of this world. So I find it very interesting when you see the the these things that are pushed on all these people, like these things are gonna make you happy, the relationships, the women, the money, the sex, the power, all these things.

44:58 SPEAKER_01: But one common theme that I've heard from a lot of people that come to Christ is that, hey, I've tried this thing and it doesn't work. And that's why I think Gen Z is on fire for the Lord right now. We have such instant access to sin. So we're coming to find out what doesn't work a lot quicker.

45:16 SPEAKER_04: Yeah.

45:16 SPEAKER_01: Yeah. And we've got young adults coming into church just absolutely broken, going through things that that should really uh children and young adults should not have to go through. Exactly, exactly.

45:28 SPEAKER_03: And it's like when you come to that, like I said, the enemy's gonna try anything to pull you away from that. Whenever I tried to come to Christ in Colorado, he used a woman to pull me away from that because he knew that was my weakness. That that was my weakness. He was like, Oh, you want to come to Christ? Let me throw this woman at you and pulled me away, yanked me away, and fell back into sin. You know, because if you don't center your Christ around Christ around your relationship, man, it's gonna fail.

45:58 SPEAKER_03: It's gonna fail.

45:59 SPEAKER_02: Yeah. I mean, the enemy is like the greatest fisherman. Yeah, you know, like he is he's got a tackle box full of lures that he's made just tailored directly for you since birth. Yeah, you know, and he knows exactly which ones you'll bite on, and you'll continue to cast them and dangle them in front of you, and you know, eventually the fish is gonna bite, you know. And that that's just his his favorite tactic. And I mean, even with being in Christ, you know, there's still times where he's gonna cast that lure.

46:31 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, you know, and we might bite, you know, but it's just really important for us to take a deep breath, stop for a second, and be like, you know what? Yeah, that shiny thing right there looks nice and it looks tasty, but man, I know that lure and I know where it's gonna take me, and it is not gonna be where I'm at right now, and where I'm at right now is exactly where I need to be.

46:55 SPEAKER_03: Exactly. And it's like you need to find an equally yoked relationship. Like, like going off the fish thing, I mean, you see that fish that's hooked, you know, that hooked fish is not equally yoked. And you see this beautiful fish that has Christ in it. Man, you need to go for that one because you go for this one, you're gonna get snatched right off, right? And for the first time, I found a godly relationship. Now we're getting married. Like that's all that's all it took to center Christ around your relationship and boom, success.

47:22 SPEAKER_03: You know, he's gonna bring success if you center him around your life in general.

47:26 SPEAKER_01: Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I think most everybody knows now, but the divorce rate in this country is one out of every two marriages. I don't know, I'm not sure if you're familiar with this study that they did, but they did a study on the divorce rate of couples who pray together every day, married people who pray together. It's one in eleven hundred marriages. It's almost like prayer changes things. Exactly. Prayer does something to people. Exactly.

47:50 unknown: It's crazy.

47:51 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, it's awesome. And like I said, like you don't center Christ around that relationship, man. There's a high rate of divorce for that. You know, is it's gonna crumble. It's gonna crumble because you don't have that to help you, you know? And like it's yeah, like I said, it took me a long time to figure that out.

48:10 SPEAKER_01: Yeah. Yeah, you know, you know, we're we're kind of talking about early you having uh moments where you fall down and things like that. And kind of I wanted to touch on a little bit what you said, like how sometimes we do bite that that lore, you know. I think the mark of a of a man of God or a woman of God is what do you do after that? I think that's that's where the enemy works a lot too, and we don't really talk about it a whole lot. The enemy is gonna do a lot to get you to fall into sin, yes.

48:41 SPEAKER_01: I mean, the reason the reason that it's called temptation is because it's tempting. I mean, he he literally it's a it's something that we that he puts on our heart like we want to do it, but our heart is wicked above all things. But what we don't talk about as much is what he does after that. He's going to do everything he can to get you not to go back to the Lord after that. But the mark of a man or a woman of God is is is not if you're going to sin or not, because we're all going to uh whether we like it or not, but do we go back to him?

49:13 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, it's like you got two choices, right? You can either be angry with him and reject him and find worldly things to please you and be depressed, or the other hand, you can say, All right, look, I'm at rock bottom right now. You know, let me go to the Lord. And you go to the Lord, he will, he will, he will snatch you out rock bottom. You know, he will help you through rock bottom. You know, he'll he'll put people in your life, things in your life, opportunities in your life. He's like, okay, rely on them, surrender everything to me, have faith in me, trust me with all your heart, and I will bring you out of that rock bottom.

49:52 SPEAKER_03: You know, you either go left to where it's flat and stay in your depression, or you're gonna go up with the Lord. I mean, like it says, you're never too far gone. You are never too far gone. You living in sin, you hit rock bottom, turn to me. I will give you everything, what everything is the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit's gonna pull you out of that. Yeah, yeah. So cool.

50:14 SPEAKER_01: Cool that he does that too.

50:15 SPEAKER_03: Yeah.

50:15 SPEAKER_01: How he gives us the the tools, the people, the resources that we need to help us get back. You know, it's kind of like I mean, I'm sure all of all of us growing up had had fathers in our life, or most people listening, but our dads didn't give us everything that we wanted every single time, but they give us they gave us the necessary resources for us to flourish. And it's the same thing with the Lord. I mean, he gives us the the people, uh, the resources and tools that we need to to get back up when we fall.

50:44 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, exactly. I mean, you fall seven times, get up eight, you know. And it's like, I like I like to follow the story of Job, you know. He job had everything. He he richest man in the world, everything. And devil's like, I bet I could take everything from him. He's gonna he's gonna reject you. You know, Satan took everything from him, and Job was like, No, I'm gonna still trust the Lord. And the Lord got him out of that and brought him back. So brought him out of that low.

51:13 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah. I mean, you could even go as far as talking about Ecclesiastes, you know, King Solomon. Or so the the scholars believe it was King Solomon. It's not, you know, definitive proof, but I I think that at that time period it sounds right. But you know, you're talking about the richest man in the world who had everything. You know, he's the he's the son of David, right? And he was able to have all the women, the concubines, the sexual slaves, the the money, the food, the parties, the castles, the, you know, just everything that man spoke and wanted, he got, right?

51:55 SPEAKER_02: And if you go through the book of Ecclesiastes, after every chapter, the end is it's just vanity. It's like chasing the wind. He tried it all, he sought it all, he could snap his finger and have it, and it never gave him the peace, the happiness, and the joy, and and all the things that he was truly seeking. It was like a lifetime experiment, right? And at the end of his experiment, he finally admits and realizes at the end of the book that again, his whole experience of chasing those things was like literally like being at a campfire and trying to grab the the smoke.

52:38 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, you know, it just it's out of your hand before you can even grasp it. But he he admits and he realizes that the only person that's gonna give him that joy and that love and that peace and that kindness is the Lord.

52:52 SPEAKER_03: You know, exactly. Exactly. And it's like like the smoke concept, you say you grabbing on those worldly things, you know, and after you keep doing that, you're gonna smell like it, right? You're gonna be defined by it, yeah, you know. And it's if you choose to wash your hands in the blood of Christ, that that smell is no longer gonna exist, right? You're no longer, you're no longer defined by that, yeah, you know, and you came new. Like I said, like I was dead in my sin and I was defined by my past, right?

53:24 SPEAKER_03: But as soon as I came into it, you know, as soon as you trust the Lord, He washes you clean, you're a new creation. Yeah, you come to Him and your life changes.

53:38 SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean we talk about identity, uh Satan's after your identity. I mean, that's he he was in the garden. Yeah he was after Eve's identity. He was like, no, if you eat the fruit of this tree, you can become something that you are not right now. Yeah. Create an image of an image of God. And he wanted, he said, if you if you create uh excuse me, he said if you eat the fruit of this tree, you will be like God. And that's the same way the enemy works now. He'll try to define us by the worst things that we've ever done.

54:03 SPEAKER_01: But Romans 8.1 will tell us, no, like we're not defined by those things. There's now, therefore, no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. What our identity is, it it is it's where we're going.

54:15 SPEAKER_03: Exactly. And it's like people try to, people, the devil tries to remind you of your past, right? And it says God throws those sins into the depths of the sea, and there's a no-fishing sign, and they do not do not remember them. You know, you are not defined by your past. You're made new in Christ, man. It's a new life. Yeah, you are not your old self. He he forgets all that.

54:36 SPEAKER_02: Yeah. You know, God turns his back on your sin and your past, and and the trajectory is forward with him. You know, he doesn't care about anything that you did prior to.

54:46 SPEAKER_03: Exactly. You are made new. Yeah. You know, your mistakes doesn't matter. Do not matter.

54:54 SPEAKER_01: So so what do you do when the enemy tries to attack you?

54:57 SPEAKER_03: Man, you I I fall on my knees and I pray. I say, God, put the full armor of God on me. Satan, flee from me in the name of Jesus Christ. You rely on your brothers, right? You get into the word. That's how God speaks to you, is through his word. You know, he speaks to you in many different ways, but you want him to truly speak to you, get into the word. You know, and I would say I struggle to get in the word sometimes. I do. I think a lot of people do. You know? And when I'm having problems and I have anxiety and stuff, I go back to the word.

55:30 SPEAKER_03: And dude, that's how, like I said, that's how he speaks to you. You know, and it's like a lot of people think worship is like, let me raise my hands, let me sing along, but no, a lot of time during worship, I'm dancing around, but when I'm feeling it, man, I don't sing along. I pray during worship. You know, you know, I rely on that when I feel like I'm going back into something. You know, I rely on that. I rely on I I rely on Jesus and the Holy Spirit to get me out of that.

55:58 SPEAKER_00: Yeah.

55:59 SPEAKER_01: So yeah, worship is war, man. Exactly. It's you declaring to the gates of hell, like, hey, this shame that you're trying to bring in my life, it's gone. Exactly. All the battle has been won. All the battles have been won, and I know where I know where I'm going. I know where my identity is.

56:15 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, praise God. I mean, like I said, there is no condemnation in Christ. My dying my identity is in Christ. You know, He lives in me, He's a part of me, He is me, you know.

56:27 SPEAKER_01: So is there any more Garrett's out in Colorado who are still living, who are still living this lie, chasing after these kind of worldly things? And what what would be your message to them?

56:40 SPEAKER_03: Man, turn. Turn away from that. You are not too far gone. You know, I was deep in my sin. I was so deep in darkness. Like I said, it takes one step of obedience. Obey him one time. Start with one time. And that one step of obedience is gonna turn into two, three, four, five steps of obedience. And dude, your life is gonna change. He will take things away that you thought would make you happy and replace them with things that will make you happy and will fulfill you. Right? All I say is turn from your sin.

57:12 SPEAKER_03: Find a godly community, get into a church, start reading the word. Start sometimes I say, start off by praying. Start off by talking. Just try talking to him. You know, have a conversation with him. Like have a conversation, like I'm having a conversation with y'all. It doesn't have to be with big words, it doesn't have to be with all this stuff, you know. Sometimes I say silent in my prayer. He knows your thoughts, he knows your heart. You don't have to talk to pray sometimes. You can just sit in his presence.

57:42 SPEAKER_03: You know, so I say start with prayer, right? And prayer will lead to getting into a church. Getting into a church will bring interest. Getting interest is okay, I want to talk to people, and talking to people will bring a godly community. It's just a step, step, step, step, all the way up until heaven. You know, that stairway leads to heaven.

58:02 unknown: Yeah.

58:02 SPEAKER_03: You know, drugs and alcohol and partying lead straight to hell.

58:06 unknown: Yeah.

58:07 SPEAKER_01: You know? Yeah. I think that question that you brought up earlier in the uh uh in your testimony was really cool too. When the whenever whenever that guy had asked you what's most important to you, I think that's a question really we should all ask ourselves. Yeah. There's always there's always that that that thing in our life. I mean, for you a snowborn, but there's always that thing in in our life that that tries to to to take it to get on the same level as God. And it's like a continual thing.

58:36 SPEAKER_01: Like we have to continually remind it where it belongs. And I think of that verse, um, you know, cast your cares upon him because he cares. And even if it's that, if if it's that idol, if it's that fear, if it's that insecurity, I think what we'll do and we'll get comfortable doing is just praying about it one time and thought, oh, we're good. But here comes creeping back a week later, you know, like we've been using fishing analogy since he's like, You gotta constantly, you gotta constantly battle it.

59:03 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, you know, and it's crazy. When I was idolizing snowboarding, it brought so much depression on me. I was angry. I took my anger out on my teammates, you know. You know, I wasn't very liked on that because I was so depressed. And when I was depressed, anger came out of me and resentment towards everybody, you know. And things happened, you know. I made terrible decisions, you know? And I mean, I wasn't obeying. Like I said, I wasn't obeying. And God took it away. So he took the love of it away.

59:35 SPEAKER_03: I didn't love it anymore. I didn't work hard anymore. But you work hard in the right things. Oh, dude. Man, I can't describe it. Man, yeah, your idol needs to be Jesus, your idol needs to be God.

59:51 unknown: Yeah.

59:52 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, like the the next step in your life, right? You know, you're getting married. And what would you say to other men or even women out there that have gone through the similar things, made it to fame, made it somewhere in a sport or a career or something like that, and had the similar instances happen and have found that somebody, you know, that's going to be equally yoked with them. Like what encouragement do you have? Or maybe I guess rather somebody who hasn't found that and is looking for that.

1:00:33 SPEAKER_02: What encouragement would you have for them through that season of of seeking that person, looking for that person, and maybe even when they found them, just some wisdom and encouragement that you could shed on that for them?

1:00:46 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I mean, put Christ as the cornerstone of your the cornerstone is the most important thing in a building, right? Put Christ as that cornerstone, your relationship is going to be successful. And I would say work on yourself first. Get deep in your faith first, get strong in your faith first. Because if you're not, you'll you'll you'll fall and it'll that relationship will be destroyed. You know, you won't be able to fight against the enemy, and the relationship will end up failing. You know, so find your identity in Christ first, find someone that's equally yoked, and things will be successful.

1:01:29 SPEAKER_03: And it's not each other against it's not you against your wife, not you against your girlfriend. It's you and your wife, and you and your girlfriend against the enemy, against the problem. Right? Because if it's y'all against a problem, you'll defeat that problem. But like I said, put Christ at the cornerstone of your relationship and it will be successful. That's my encouragement to people.

1:01:53 SPEAKER_01: Yep. Do you you have a gifting of the Lord? You have a gift to communicate and connect with people. Never never apologize for that. Just walk in it. Yeah, just do what he's called you to do. There's gonna be people that that get in your way and they try to stop what the Lord's doing in your life and try to get you discouraged and try to get you to to not not take that that serve opportunity, you know? Never apologize for what the Lord has gifted you with. Yeah. And you you you just serve him because he's because he first served you.

1:02:25 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, put that yes on the table. Yeah, you know. So obey. Yeah, like I said, it's a one step of obedience. One step of obedience, and boom, look at that. I see the kingdom. Oh man, he's great. Yeah, praise God, man. Man, I can now get up and know my day is gonna go good because I have Christ. Even if I have trials during that day, I know it's gonna end good because I got Christ. You know? Oh, I'm so much happier now that I have Christ. So that that's what I'm fulfilled now. I'm finally fulfilled and I'm filled with the Holy Spirit, and that's what matters.

1:02:59 SPEAKER_03: Yeah.

1:03:00 SPEAKER_01: You know. Well, I guess I got one last question for you. If you had to say something to the person right now who is maybe not following Jesus, but they're curious about your story and they've been observing from a distance, what would it be?

1:03:20 SPEAKER_03: Turn from your sin, repent, find a community, obey the Lord, trust the Lord, surrender, and you'll find happiness. You'll find happiness. Take that one step of saying no. Take that step of saying no to that friend of going out and partying and saying no to alcohol. I am now I've been sober from alcohol and weed since December. Praise God. It's all because I was surrounding myself with the wrong people. Following the Lord is hard. You have to say no to people, you have to take certain people out of your life, you have to take yourself out of situations, you have to take yourself out of community.

1:04:06 SPEAKER_03: Sometimes you gotta take yourself out of state and go back home, like the prodigal son. I went out and partied just like he did and everything and try to find happiness. But no, I came back. My dad saw me with open arms, brought me in immediately. The Lord said, Come home. You know, I was that I was that one lost sheep, and God was like, Let's go. He came and found me. So let the Lord find you, follow the Lord, obey him. That's what I gotta say, is say no to it. Take it one day at a time. So that's my encouragement is just say no.

1:04:47 SPEAKER_03: And take the take the narrow path, the harder path than the easy one, you know, because in the end, the narrow path is gonna be easy and it's gonna bring you to glory and it's gonna bring you to the kingdom of God, you know.

1:05:01 SPEAKER_02: So yeah, and I think the other thing too, just piggybacking off the lost sheep part, you know, like when the shepherd would leave the 99 to find the one, he when he found the one, he celebrated.

1:05:16 SPEAKER_03: Exactly.

1:05:17 SPEAKER_02: You know, and I think a lot of people think, oh man, you know, if the Lord finds me, he's gonna chastise me and he's gonna make me, you know, make it known that he's so angry and disappointed in me. And no, he's not. You know, he he's gonna find you in that deep pit, and he's gonna pull you out, and he's gonna throw you on his shoulders, and he's gonna bring you back to the herd, and he's gonna he's gonna he's gonna jump and skip and and and sing his way back because he's excited that he found you and that he's bringing you back home.

1:05:46 SPEAKER_03: Exactly. I think I think there's a wrong view of Christianity now these days, is if you try to come back, you're going to be judged and condemned and just looked at so different. It's like no. There are some people out there like that, yes. I will say they are some people out there that that's like that, you know, but there is a huge community that will accept you just like Christ will accept you. You gotta find that right community, you know. And people have the wrong the wrong view of Christianity.

1:06:21 SPEAKER_03: But you find the right one and you really trust him, and you're like, no, he is gonna open me or come to me with open arms, man. That that's the right one. That's the right view. You know, like I said, there's like y'all said, there's no condemnation in Christ. So yeah, he's gonna he gonna carry you on his back straight back to the herd. And that's that's the community you need to find. God goes and finds that one lost sheep and brings them back to the herd. God went and found me and brought me to such an amazing community.

1:06:51 SPEAKER_03: Like y'all help me meet y'all in such an amazing men's group. Monday night men's group at seven. Y'all come to it, you know. It yeah, it's gotten so big, we're gonna have to start going into smaller, small. It's gonna be a small, small group.

1:07:04 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah, it's either that or we're gonna have to get a big building or something.

1:07:08 SPEAKER_03: Exactly. Exactly. Yeah, I know, man. I tell you what, it's awesome, man. I every every man I meet, I'm like, hey, we got men's group on seven on Monday. Come on.

1:07:19 SPEAKER_01: I see you doing that at as service. I'm like, oh my bro, praise God. Yeah, for real.

1:07:24 SPEAKER_02: I think we get a new request to the group like every couple of days.

1:07:31 SPEAKER_01: It's been awesome.

1:07:32 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we're like pushing 50 people now.

1:07:34 SPEAKER_03: It's like, whoa, but let's make that small group into small group, and then that small group into that small group, man. That's what it's all about. That's the church. Yeah, that's the church. A lot of people think the church is inside a building. No, it's your community, that's the church. You know, people are like, You ain't got to go to church to find God, blah, all this stuff. It's like, no, the church is who you surround yourself with, it's the people, it's the community, you know. And it's like if some if someone's like, I'm uncomfortable in a church, say, okay, come to our small group, come play some pickleball with us, come play some football with us, and then talk about Jesus.

1:08:07 SPEAKER_03: That's also a church, yeah, you know, and finding that church you might feel comfortable because you'll see that community of okay, let's come come sit on the front row with us. I'm on, I'm on the me and Joan are on the front row every Thursday, man. You know? It's like you find that community, you'll be comfortable coming with that group.

1:08:24 SPEAKER_01: Yeah, you know, which I get it, man. I mean, star small. I mean, dude, I was introverted my whole life growing up. I mean, I was still kind of breaking that shell, working on it a little bit.

1:08:34 SPEAKER_00: Exactly.

1:08:34 SPEAKER_01: But it was a lot for me to to walk into a church I've never been to and just put myself out there. Like you talk about a weight on my shoulders. It was just a lot for me. It may not, it might not be a lot for a lot of people person, extroverted people, but that that just was not me. So start a small man. Yeah. If you've got a friend that's a part of a small group, just go chill with them, man. And they're gonna love on you and they're gonna invite you to be a part of what's going on if they're really following the Lord and just start there.

1:09:02 SPEAKER_01: And maybe from there you'll get plugged into the church and you'll start going with them. And that that way you know people in the church that you can point to and be like, these these are my brother these are my brothers.

1:09:12 SPEAKER_03: Exactly. Exactly. And it's like a lot of people think they're gonna, it was funny. My friend, he came into the church a couple weeks ago and he he came up to the front. He didn't go to service, but what a huge cool thing was is he came into the church. You know, he he's he's always felt uncomfortable in the church, right? But he just came into the church and talked to everybody. He was like, Man, I didn't bust out in flames when I came when I walked the door. I was like, praise God, man. It's like you ain't gonna bust out in flames.

1:09:37 SPEAKER_03: Like I said, yeah, God is standing in there with open arms, man. Uh, he came to small group. I was like, let's go, it's awesome, man.

1:09:47 SPEAKER_01: We we we love him so much that I hardly know the guy. Yeah, exactly.

1:09:51 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, there's nothing better than coming into church and worshiping with your friends and acting a plum fool, man.

1:09:56 SPEAKER_00: Exactly.

1:09:57 SPEAKER_02: Like, like literally, man, Thursday night with the students, dude. Like, just you know, going back to that for a second, man, like we were all dancing like plum fools with these kids, you know. Like we were on the stage.

1:10:11 SPEAKER_00: They were on the stage, bro. Yeah, we were don't go on the stage, all right. Kick them off the stage, yeah.

1:10:17 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's just it's so funny, you know. Like, just and even at the church, Thursday night, Sunday, whatever, man, like just being able to just jump around, you know, throw your hands up and just just have have a good time celebrating the Lord, man.

1:10:31 SPEAKER_04: Yeah, exactly.

1:10:32 SPEAKER_02: You know, it's it's it's like it's like with you, you know, before you came to Cross Point, you had never put your hands up during worship before. Yeah, you know, we and yeah, and like when when he told me that, I was like, wait, what? And he was like, Yeah, dude, that was the first time I ever felt comfortable putting my hands up, and now look at this man. He's like, he he's up in he's up in the crowd, like with his hands up, jumping, twisting.

1:10:53 SPEAKER_03: Like, yeah, I always felt uncomfortable. Like, I was like, people are gonna think I'm weird when I raise my hands. Now I'm like, I don't care. I'm jumping in the front row. I had this, I had this man come up to me. He was like, I love the way you worship, it's awesome. I'm just jumping around, spinning around all the time in the front row.

1:11:08 SPEAKER_00: It's awesome. I love it. When I walked in there, I'm like, why does everybody have their hands up? Exactly. And then I did it for the first time.

1:11:15 SPEAKER_03: I'm like, oh, that's yeah, it's freedom. Oh man, it's like what a lot of people, what I always understood about or kind of thought about worship is like you as a big group is like singing everything. It is you as a big group singing, but also it's like a direct connection between you and God. Like there's been times I've been worshiping and I don't notice anybody around. You know, I'm just like this on my head. Sometimes I'd be raising my hands like that, you know, and it's like almost like blocking out all the distraction.

1:11:43 SPEAKER_03: I just feel like a direct connection with God. And like I said, sometimes I pray. I don't sing all the time. Sometimes I'm praying with God because it's such like an intimate, direct connection with him. You know, and like like like a lot of people misunderstand worship too. Some like it's not always a concert, it's like that direct connection, you know, it's that war against hell.

1:12:05 unknown: We are not the audience.

1:12:07 SPEAKER_03: Exactly. Exactly. Yep, yep.

1:12:10 SPEAKER_02: I I really I really enjoy closing my eyes when I'm worshiping. You know, hands up, surrendered in a posture of like, you know, I'm right here, you know, and I'm glorifying you. Like, you know, this past week, man, I had no voice. You know, I was struggling, you know, and I'm talking I'm talking about just like eyes closed, hands up, just just eyes. If my eyes were open, they would be in an upward position, right? You know, but just closed and just singing at the like the top of my lungs, man. Until like I would have to like in between songs, like stop and go get some water, chug it real quick, and get back because like dude, it just it felt so good, man.

1:12:54 SPEAKER_02: And I love doing that. Yeah, but uh you know, I also love like the quiet moments too. You know, I really enjoy when we come together in prayer, you know, and just throw our hands over each other's shoulders, man, and just sit in silence for a minute, you know, and then and then pray over each other. Like that's you know, that's another form of worship that I love too, is just being able to lock arms with your brothers and and just pray over whatever situation somebody's going through, you know, just going back to our group a few weeks ago with Leo, you know, when he when he had that moment, you know, where he just kind of ran out of group, you know, and we brought him back in seeing literally like 20-something dudes just sit him down in a chair and every place everybody place a hand on him.

1:13:39 SPEAKER_02: And and there was like eight people that prayed over him. And and what's crazy is when I've talked to him since then, he's like, dude, my my my my life has changed. He's like, I feel so different. He hasn't been having those episodes and you know that he was dealing with anymore. And it's just that there's just so much power, so much power in prayer, man.

1:14:04 SPEAKER_00: Yeah. Sorry, sorry, you got my bad.

1:14:06 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, there's one thing before I forget, and I know you guys remember this. So there was a girl, uh, a student that went to the the counter at the hotel and asked the lady at the counter in the hotel, you know, if there's anything she could pray her, pray for her for. And she was like, Well, no, everything's okay, everything's fine. And as like the girl was walking away, she thought in her mind, like, oh man, like I'm in a lot of pain right now. I can be I barely walked coming in here. And she says, You know, maybe there is one thing.

1:14:35 SPEAKER_02: And so the student walked back over to her and she's like, How can I pray for you? And she's like, you know, I I came in here struggling to walk. You know, I'm getting older, my hips are hurting, and and all the things, and I just can't get around it like I used to, you know. And she prayed over her. And I we have a picture. Somebody to snapped a picture and sent it of her praying over her, and that woman came to leadership later that afternoon and said that her pain in her hips were gone and that she she didn't even realize it.

1:15:06 SPEAKER_02: Yes, you know, she went all day not even realizing that she was running around like a chicken with her head cut off with no pain anymore because that student had that one moment of obedience to go over there and pray for her. There is just so much power in prayer.

1:15:19 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, exactly. And it's like a lot, a lot of people are like, God doesn't show himself the same these days as he did back then. Yes, he does, man. Yes, he does. I mean, Jesus was healing people back then, still healing people today, just like that story. Just like that story. He is still performing amazing miracles. I mean, you hear stories of cancer just disappearing out of nowhere with no treatment. It's I mean, praise God, it's amazing.

1:15:48 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah, we encountered the these two girls on the bus, too, that were like 15, 16 years old. And Jonah and I kept telling each other, like, man, like there is not many 15, 16-year-old girls that that speak and talk like this and have the Holy Spirit just radiating out of their pores like this, man. Like, so much so. One of them has a podcast, too.

1:16:11 SPEAKER_03: Oh, not yet.

1:16:12 SPEAKER_02: You know, and like, dude, it was just it was so encouraging to sit by them, you know, on the way there and on the way back and just listen to the like, you know, one of them was telling us yesterday about her uh she was the youngest person to have brain surgery. Oh she was what seven six or seven?

1:16:31 SPEAKER_01: Okay, she was in third grade, I think. Yeah.

1:16:35 SPEAKER_02: She had spinal surgery and brain surgery at in third grade. And now she, you know, it it led her to the Lord, you know, through the through those next few years after that. And it was just it was so encouraging to hear her talk about like she doesn't feel pain anymore, you know, from from that surgery. She had rods all up her back, still does to this day, and she's worshiping like you would never even know. We didn't know until she told us, you know. And then the you know, the other girl watching her worship during students was awesome too because she was lifting up her Bible in the air while she was worshiping.

1:17:15 SPEAKER_02: And because she was doing that, all the other younger kids around her started doing it, man. And it was just it was just so cool to be a part of and witness, man.

1:17:24 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and what's crazy is like a lot of people are like, okay, why does bad things happen to good people? Like, okay, why does why does God make all these bad things is stories like that? It's stories like that, stories like mine, he like so much bad happened in life, and it's to pull you towards him, but it's your choice to come towards him through those bad things. You know, it's either your choice to be mad at him and run from him, or it's your choice to say, okay, I'm gonna rely on you. And when you rely on him, man, your life will be so much better.

1:17:54 SPEAKER_03: And you you'll say, like a lot of people say, could would you change losing your leg? I'm like, no. I'm glad that bad thing happened to me because it brought me to the Lord. You know, and I mean, sometimes, well, every time a bad thing's happened to me, I'm like, praise God, it's gonna bring me closer. You know, it it bad things happen to you. If the bad things happening to you shows the enemy is after you and that you have something special in your heart and you have the Holy Spirit in your heart.

1:18:19 SPEAKER_03: You know, is everything's just Peachy King, blah blah, like I'm living for the world, and like, well, everything's awesome. I mean, sometimes that's dangerous, you know. The enemy's like, okay, you're good, you're living for the world. You're you're on you're on that path. I'm gonna leave you alone. Because if I if I attack you, you might come to Christ. You know, those people in Christ, he's gonna try to attack you. Even when you're not living in Christ, but God knows you're going to come to him, that enemy's gonna try to attack you, attack you, attack you more and more, more and more and more.

1:18:51 SPEAKER_01: Well, if you're not getting attacked, are you really a threat?

1:18:54 SPEAKER_04: No.

1:18:56 SPEAKER_01: So when I think about the attacks of the enemy, he's gonna go, he's not gonna go for the guy that's chilling on the bench eating up pop dart, you know. Exactly. He's going for the dude with with his sword up on the front lines. Exactly, exactly. If you're serving the Lord, if you're on the front lines in the kingdom, if you're serving the the kids in the ministry, if you're pouring into the young adults, or if you're uh if you're a pastor, you know, I mean you've got a target on your back. The enemy's after you because he knows what you're doing for the kingdom, and he's he knows how much you're doing for the faith of the men and women that you're pouring into.

1:19:30 SPEAKER_03: Yeah, exactly. He knows you're gonna bring uh Satan's people to Christ, and he's like, No, those are mine. And God's like, Nope, those are my kids. Yeah.

1:19:41 SPEAKER_02: Well, Jesus says to rejoice, you know, when you're being persecuted. Yep. You know, when when when bad things are happening and you feel like your back's against the wall, and all the things are just all the bad things are happening, man. That's just a sign that the enemy knows you're you're you're a threat. He he's he's through he's trying to take you out because he knows that you're a warrior for the kingdom of God. And it is it's just you know, I I strongly encourage the the listeners to really think about that in that moment when they're like, man, nothing's going right, everything's falling apart, all the things like man, just embrace it.

1:20:19 SPEAKER_02: Exactly, rejoice in it, because that means that the enemy is terrified of you and he is trying everything he can to bring you down, but the Lord's not gonna let it happen. You know, every everything in this life, again, taking it back to Ecclesiastes, it's all vanity. You know, this body, the the things that we have, our homes, our cars, our our money, all of it is useless in the kingdom of heaven. None of it comes with us, none of it matters. So stop worrying about it.

1:20:51 SPEAKER_03: Exactly.

1:20:51 SPEAKER_02: You know, like some of the it's crazy because some of the happiest people in the world are the homeless people. There's some of them out there that are like, man, I don't want none of that, dude. I am perfectly content in my tent with the one pair of clothes that I have and the the quick trip cup that I get to go get drinks in, you know. Like, shout out to the email. Yeah, yeah, like it. I I have seen some people in those positions that are just truly joyous and rejoicing in that, man. And and that is so beautiful to see because it's so true.

1:21:23 SPEAKER_03: Exactly.

1:21:24 SPEAKER_02: It's so true.

1:21:25 SPEAKER_03: Yes, man. Like it says, it's harder for a rich man, or it's easier for a camel to pass through an eye of a needle than a rich man to enter heaven. Because you have everything, man, you'll be comfortable with the world. You know, you've I got everything, I ain't gotta rely on Jesus. I remember this video on Instagram. This is of this old lady and this very successful man, and the man's like, Why do you follow Christ and all these bad things are happening to you? Why do you think, why do you think all these bad things are happening to you, but I'm I'm living in success and all this stuff?

1:22:00 SPEAKER_03: And the old lady's like, What you don't realize is you're in a jail cell that seems comfy and everything, but one day that jail cell is going to slam shut and you will be trapped for eternity and in total damnation. And it's like, man, a lot of people are comfortable in their sin. And they're every eye will see, every knee will bow before the Lord one day, and they'll they'll either hear, Well done, my good and faithful servant, or depart from me. I never knew you. I know which one I want to hear, and I know which one I'm gonna hear.

1:22:32 SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah.

1:22:33 SPEAKER_03: And I want to be exhausted when I get there. Exactly, exactly. You'll have the rest of your eternity to rest and praise God and worship God, you know, and praise God for what Jesus did for us to allow us to happen like that. I mean, we don't deserve it. What Jesus did, what Jesus did, we don't deserve, but because of what he did, we get to spend eternity with him. You know, so praise God, the gospel, the good news, man. The good news.

1:23:02 SPEAKER_01: Well, I think that is a great place to put an internet. Yeah. Yeah. End on the gospel message. I love it, but we're so grateful to have you on. And you become a good thing. Thank you very much. Yeah, absolutely. Vulnerable with your testimony. Um, it was super encouraging to me, and I'm can't walk, I cannot wait to watch it continue to be written.

1:23:20 SPEAKER_03: Yes, for real. I want to keep talking. I I love this. Yeah, no, you need to get married in November. Let's go let's go.

1:23:27 SPEAKER_00: Y'all can't see her if you're watching on YouTube. But she's sitting right over there.

1:23:31 SPEAKER_03: Here, come show.

1:23:32 SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah. Yeah, come on. Yeah, come on. Come wave of the camera. Yeah.

1:23:38 SPEAKER_03: Is this JC Johnson's here to be JC Jarrett? Praying God.

1:23:43 SPEAKER_01: Awesome. Well, I'm gonna pray for us. Yeah, and then we're gonna wrap it up. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, awesome. Dear God, thank you so much for for today for this episode. Um we thank you that you've allowed us to get some good sleep before filming this episode. Yeah, not a whole lot of sleep this past this past week at student camp. Uh, we're thankful for Garrett and his testimony, and uh Lord, we know that it's still being written, and we know also know that he's got a target on his back because he is serving your kingdom, Lord.

1:24:12 SPEAKER_01: So we just pray for spiritual protection for him, Lord, that you would just send angels to to guard and protect him and and continue to pour uh poor blessing on him and and his upcoming marriage and his current relationship right now. Lord, we just pray that you would use him as a vessel to reach these these children in the fall and to reach these young adults, Lord. And we just know that you have great plans for his life. So we thank you for everything that you're doing for him. God, we pray that for for the person listening to this that may might have felt that tug on their heart, that there's something that they've been missing, and they've been chasing after the wrong things, and they've been chasing chasing the wind, as we've been saying.

1:24:49 SPEAKER_01: Lord, we pray that you would just uh reveal yourself to them, Lord, through dreams and visions, what uh whatever means necessary, that you would just reveal to them that you want a relationship with them. And and you are the only thing that's going to satisfy uh the the empty feeling that they feel in their heart, God. So we love you. We love you, and um, and we're grateful that you love us back.

1:25:15 SPEAKER_01: Awesome, awesome, awesome. Well, thank you guys so much for watching. Say that's good. See you guys next Monday. God, I'm gonna go.