Hey there. Welcome to Pastor's Perspective. I'm your host, Brian Perez. It is Wednesday, the 4th of June, and here we are live until 4 o'clock this afternoon. 888-564-6173 is the number to call to ask your questions about the Bible, the Christian faith, other religions, cults, the occults, things of that nature. 888-564-6173, Creation, evolution. So much that we can talk about for the next hour. What do you want to discuss? We are here, 888-564-6173.
Pastor Brian Broderson of Calvary Chapel, Costa Mesa is in the studio with me. How's it going, Brian? Well, Brian, it is going well. I am happy to be here sitting across from you in the studio. Yes, yes, it's a good day. Always good to have you here. Well, thanks. And Bobby Conway is joining us online. He's the pastor of Image Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, also the guy you.
See on the YouTube channel called The Graphite Apologist. Check that out, like and subscribe, click the bell so that you'll get notified every time Bobby does a new graphic graphicy thingy, which is kind of cool to see it all put together. What what's the latest, uh, Bobby, how are you doing?
Uh, yeah, I'm doing good. I'm working on a, a monkey, and I got the monkey smiling big, and so it's like a hyper realistic looking monkey, and then along the row of its teeth, I've put the evolution from ape to man, and then I'm ending with AI and basically the monkey's just laughing at the concept. So it'll be a refutation on naturalism and the dangers of, you know, AI.
Wow, wow, wow, wow. You know, Bobby, there are people that are not watching us on YouTube and I just want to give them a visual like if you wonder what Bobby looks like, think of Doc in uh Back to the Future and you've got Bobby because that's what his hair looks like today. OK, time for a haircut,
right?
I read this thing the other day that back, you know, when Back to the Future was first made, Doc, the guy, you know, he was like, he was like 48 years old, and, you know, everybody thought he was 80.
That's what I was thinking, like, hey, go check out my 80 year old teammate and, uh, see him. We kind of do the same thing though we just get it cut and then it goes haywire eventually and then it's time to cut it.
I love it. I, I really, you know, I'm a big fan. Doc's not the only one. I, I remember as a kid growing up watching Betty White on TV. I always thought she was 80 and she. I know. Well, you know, on Instagram now they have these things where, where it shows you like the actors who were old in the, in the shows and how old they really were. They were like in their 40s. They were kids like Fred Sanford. He looked, but he was or or uh.
Mr. Cunningham, um, you know, Richie's dad on, uh, oh yes, yes, Tom, happy days, yeah, Tom Bosley, yeah, yeah, Tom Bosley, yeah, yeah. So you look at these guys, you think, why were they looking so old back then? Could be the makeup. Maybe they just had really good makeup artists. I think it was just it was just the era. I was talking to somebody about this the other day how, um. You know, like when I was young, a person that
was 70 was like they were ancient. I mean, it was, you didn't know maybe 70, and now I have like I have all kinds of friends that are in their 70s and they're. Uh, you know, and I'm not in my 70s, but no, lots of friends that are. Yes, 70s, the new 40, right? Maybe the new 50, 50, OK, yeah, I, I and 40 is a little bit of a stretch, I think.
Yeah, that might be.
But I was, I was in Ireland a few weeks ago and I was sitting across the table from a friend of mine and we were talking. And he asked me how old I was random. I don't remember why. And when I told him, he just stared at me, he didn't say anything, and then he goes, what are you're you're really that old? And I said, well yeah, that's really my age, so. Um, he was shocked, and which I don't know if that was good or bad.
You do have a youthful vibe about you though, you know, you keep, you keep, even though you're quite ancient, you keep it looking cool. So,
well, you know, it's like, I mean, think about Jesus. He's the ancient of days, and yet, you know, he's still young, so he's keeping me young. You're you're more like Jesus every day, right? That's what it is yeah. All right, 888-564-6173 is our number. You can also send in your questions online, Kwave.com, or on the pastor's perspective Instagram, you can DM us, or you can send us a message through Messenger on the pastor's perspective Facebook page. Here's Daniel.
He sent this in, and, uh, he says, I've been a believer, off and on since I can remember. And recently I've been struggling with my relationship with God. Due to my marriage also being broken up, I've lost my wife. I've lost my son. I just have a question. Why does God make it seem like He's answering your prayers one day and he fills you with hope, even gives you signs and messages, and then randomly one day
you come home. Everything you thought he said he would do is simply just gone in the snap of a finger, completely unexpected. Brian, what do you tell Daniel? Well, I You know, I, I just wonder. Sometimes. If people have a realistic view of of what is happening and uh I've I've heard a lot of people. Whose lives are a mess, you know, ask what why is God doing this to me? And You know, in some cases it God is not doing
this to you. You, you've actually done it to yourself. Now, I don't know that that's the case with Dan, but I do think that sometimes people fail to to sort of look in the mirror and, you know, your marriage breaks up and you lost your kids and uh you know, what why did that happen? And it I I would imagine you, you would have to take some responsibility for that to happen and I would say that it's not anything to put on. Um, I don't, don't put it on God, recognize that.
You know, you've, you've made bad decisions, mistakes, and sins that that have led to that. Now, if By chance, that hasn't been the case. And it just all, everything just sort of imploded and you you have no idea why, because you've actually been following the Lord, you've been seeking Him, and, and you're sincere in your relationship with him, but yet, everything seems to be crashing down around you, um.
We have a book in the Bible called the Book of Job that describes That these things sometimes happen to people, and Job is the classic, um, you know, he's the proverbial case of a guy who doesn't really do anything wrong, but everything crumbles around him. And yet in the midst of it all, God is working, and we see that there is a great outcome finally. But in the midst of it, Job can't see any
light at the end of the tunnel. I mean, to him, it just looks like everything's ruined, but he keeps trusting the Lord, and I think that we have to We, we have to get serious with God. And sometimes crisis in our lives is the thing that forces us into that seriousness. And then when we, when we start to take the Lord seriously, we can be confident that he is going to work on our behalf
to bring restoration in our lives. Now, restoration might not look exactly like we would hope it would look because sometimes we can we can permanently wreck a relationship, but it is possible to do that. And um so. What you're hoping is gonna be the outcome might not be the outcome, but There will be a good outcome if you seek the Lord. And I'm not trying to cast judgment on Daniel, but the very first verse in the book of Job describes Job as a man who was blameless and upright, one
who feared God and shunned evil. Daniel, in his message to us, says, I've been an off and on believer since I can remember. So like you said, there's that. There's something missing there, you know, there's a point where you just have to take responsibility for the fact that you, you haven't really followed the Lord. And so there's, there's no guarantees in life that if you're out there on your own doing your own thing, that things are gonna
go well. Um, there's a lot of um possibility that they're not gonna go well because if you're out there doing your own thing and not living for the Lord, then inevitably you're living in sin of some sort. And living in sin brings um. You know, it breaks, it breaks things and, and. Life, life gets messy, really messy. Yeah, Bobby.
Yeah, I mean, I, I would say I'm sorry that you are confused and it is a tough space to be in. Uh, I think your statements, though, you've been an off and on believer, and then you indicated that there are these signs where your hopes get up and then it doesn't seem to materialize, and then it's dashed. So we're just trying to read between the lines and there's danger in that and forgive us for where we miss it.
But if I'm just reading that without a lot of context and trying to think about, that's all I have. It seems perhaps that maybe, um, you're off and on, and then yet you're reading signs and you get hope, so maybe you're on, and then it doesn't happen, and
then you're off again. And so it seems like there's a lack of stability in the walk, and maybe you're looking for signs that weren't signs to begin with, so you might have misinterpreted that, and I would just encourage you to Make up your mind that life is gonna be filled with curveballs and God's not trying to trick you or deceive you, uh, but just learn how to lean into him and don't just go to him when life is difficult and you want him to put things back together, uh,
learn how to remain in him and bless him and love him and. Make much of him regardless of circumstances, and that's hard. It's hard for all of us at times and I will say, uh, you know, that I, I understand that confusion piece. There are times in my own journey where I, I just misread things or I thought it was a and it turned out to be B and
I'm baffled as well by God. So even though there's been this journey where a lot of things have been clear and you step out in faith and follow and it materializes. There is an element that I can really relate to you on where sometimes, you know, you do get your hopes up and you think this is it, and then boom, um, I've seen this happen. A lot, and I think the key is um. I don't know, like, you just, I just tend to think, well,
maybe I just need to put the blame on me. I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm misunderstood or maybe there's lessons even and all of that,
but it can be challenging at times. It, it, there's been times where I've thought it'd be nice to have the aquarium God where you just kind of look up and there he is and he just points you this direction or that direction, uh, and then, you know, he says he's the good shepherd and the sheep hears voice and You know, I think sometimes I do feel like I sense that that impression, and then other times I think I might sense it and then my emotions are in a way and I've confused it, and that can be
challenging for us.
Yeah, just one, you know, one final word, and I, I don't wanna, um, I, I don't wanna come across as harsh with Dan, but I do think that The first thing he said is, is really the key to everything. uh this off and on thing with the Lord, it doesn't work that way. It's just that simple. the off and on thing does not work. That's why everything's screwed up because you're, you're living a double life. You're um a double-minded person, and the Bible says a double-minded
person is unstable in all their ways. And so the answer is to get serious with the Lord. And I, I was reading, you know, I was, I was reading Titus this morning and I just, in the very beginning, he speaks about Paul, Paul is writing and he's talking about, um, you know, how, how The Lord has commissioned him as an apostle of Jesus to further the faith of God's elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness. And that, that last part just really struck me, the knowledge of the
truth that leads to godliness. This is Where the gospel takes us. It takes us to godliness, it takes us to a life that pleases God and a life that is in alignment with God, and a life like that. is a good life and that's what that's what God is wanting to give us, but we have to do it his way and his way is a a complete surrender, not this on again, off again thing because your life will um. Show that, and, and that's true for everybody who tries to do the on again, off again thing. It, it
just doesn't work that way. Yeah, Bobby.
Yeah, um, this is just a word of encouragement to Pastor Brian. Uh, one of the things that I do love about you, uh, you know, we were joking earlier or whatever, uh, you know, that you're about your age and stuff, but I do think it's encouraging to see your hunger for the Lord, Brian, and I, I know, I'm sure you can remember being 50 many, many years ago. Uh, I'm 52 now, uh, but, you know, barely, it's
just nice. Yeah, it's, it's nice, it's nice just to see you pressing on because you have been through, uh, challenges in your life for sure. But every, you're always talking about, um, I read this, I listened to this podcast. I've been thinking about this, and I Seeing that you're intentional with your life, and even, even like after you've stepped away from the lead pastor post, you're still out doing ministry work and connecting with people and reading and studying.
And I just want to say that that is something that's a, a great example because I think a lot of times younger Christians and even like kids like my son's age, they feel like there's not a lot of older examples that just love the Lord and stay in the word. A lot of times people just start to burn out and check out, and I just I'm thankful that you haven't done that.
Thank you for being an older example. That's what Bobby. Well, thank you, Bobby. I, I do appreciate that.
So here's a question for you then from just from a wisdom standpoint. What, what, what is it that helps you kind of stay like that? How do you, how do you just stay in that game like that?
Uh Yeah, I mean, it's it it really is just the, the habit, the pattern that you, you know, that I developed early on in my Christian life of just Staying in God's word and, and, you know, letting, letting
God's word work in me. Now, I, I mean, I've had plenty of days where I've been busy and I haven't really gotten to spend time in scripture like I, like I would have liked to or whatever the case, um, but, uh, and I say that just to say, you know, I'm, it's not like I'm some You know, some monk, you know, who, who rises up before the sun rises and I'm on my knees and
I'm in my Bible. Um, but you know, I do try to have a regular time in scripture because I know that scripture is the place where God meets us and he speaks to us. And, and I, one thing truly is I, I've just felt my entire life as an, I've been in ministry almost my entire adult life. And I just know that what I do. I cannot do. On my own. So, if I'm gonna serve the Lord, if I'm gonna help people, uh, I have to be in connection with God Himself, you know, because what do
I have to offer? I don't, I don't really have anything to offer, but um I have what God speaks to me, what God does in my life, what he's done. That stuff that I want to impart to people. So somebody recently asked me um to, if I would be willing to speak at this particular thing with this group of leaders, and I wasn't able to do it, my schedule didn't permit it, but I thought, um, I thought, you know, I only want to do those things.
Because I've been with the Lord and I sense that he's given me something to give to them, you know what I mean? And so, yeah, I, I think that's at this stage in my life, that's what I, I wanna be that guy that truly does have wisdom, and it's wisdom that has come through my relationship with Jesus. So it's good. Yeah, I wanna, I wanna keep doing that.
All right, let's go to the phones now. 888-564-6173 is the number to call until 4 o'clock today, and we're gonna begin with Justin, who's watching us on YouTube in Reading. Hi there, Justin, thanks for watching. How can we help you? Hello, thanks for taking my call. I um called a few months ago, um, asking for advice for someone who wants to begin in ministry, and you guys gave me great advice, and now an opportunity has come up to maybe take um an assemblies of God lead pastor position
at a really small church up here. But yeah, I was wondering if you guys had any advice on um Yeah, like what your prayer process might be or like any, I, it's not for sure, but it's something that might be offered to me. So, do you have any advice on How to say yes or how to say no even, stuff like that. Um, that, that's great, Justin. Um, So I think this is an often overlooked um. Consideration And yet I think it's a really important one. And and it's simply this, um, would you like to do it?
I I I think sometimes we almost think like. I, I know we do cause I've, I've heard people express this many times, like, yeah, I, I, you know, That just sounds like it, it sounds so good. Uh, man, I'd love to do that, but that surely couldn't be God's will because, you know, God doesn't want me to do stuff that I want that I want to do. You know, people think that way. And I think, well, actually, no, that's not the way we should be thinking. God is good.
And um he, you know, Paul said to the Philippians that it is God who works in you. Both to will and to do the things that please him. And I think, um, you know, he puts in our hearts these desires. So to will and then he creates opportunities for those desires to be fulfilled. So I, I think that the first question to ask yourself is, uh, do I want to do this? And then the second one is, uh, do I feel like God is calling me to do this?
And then the third one would be, is there an opportunity to do this? So What do you think about that? That's great. Yes, thank you so much. Bobby, you wanna chime in on it.
Yeah, um, I would say, you know, are you comfortable with assembly of a God doctrine, um, assuming you are, but does it feel like a natural fit for, uh, the theology that you've been trained in, uh, that, that, that would be important. Uh, I would want to spend time with the, the current leadership team, and I would be looking to see, do I connect with them. I would want to understand the history of the church
and what the present, uh, concerns are. Uh, I would probably even wanna ask the leadership team, uh, kind of like what they see the vision for the future of the church. Uh, I would be probably listening very carefully to see if there's conflicting visions because I'm trying to sense for these guys unified. Um, if there was a clarity of vision, then I, I would also want to know, um, what type of
freedoms that I'm gonna have coming in. Uh, I, I would wanna know, um, you know, am I gonna be micromanaged? Like I, because I don't wanna micromanage others either, but I certainly don't think most, uh, league guys want to be micromanaged, um, and that can, that can be a danger for a new person coming in. But I'd also want to take time to affirm to them that I don't want to come in as a control freak, that I wanna come in as a listener.
I wanna be gentle. I wanna be a person that trust in your historical knowledge of the church, so we can help navigate things together. And I'd really wanna stress to them how much I want to be a team player. That would be really important to me if I wasn't a lead pastor, if I was trying to hire somebody. Because, um, especially, I don't know, you know, uh, you know, being younger, I would say just rest secure, don't let anyone look down on you because you're young, have confidence
in the calling God has you. A lot of times young people feel like they have to prove something and so they go too hard, and I think that it's better to listen more. Uh, then, then even direct because that can scare people. And just as you could get scared, if you feel like you're gonna get micromanaged, they'll get scared if they feel like someone's just gonna come in and just change
everything at once. So I would say the last thing is what are the, what are the kind of the biggest needs of the moment, uh, um, and then I want to know what kind of resources I'm gonna have to build a team that's going to be able to kind of complement my weaknesses because I, I, I can't do this alone.
Brian. Yeah, 11 of the thing Justin, I would say and Bobby kind of touched on it, but I, I would just. Well, I would, I would want to have a clarity on um what the expectation is from those who are considering you for this role, you know, what, what do they actually want you to do? And then, you know, as you understand what that is, then you can better. You can better ascertain, um, well, yeah, I, you know, I'm, I think I'm cut out for that. I think the
Lord's gifted me for that. I'll grow, it doesn't mean that you've got it all together at the moment, but you'll you'll grow into it. But I think just generally that you share um That you, you understand what they're asking you to do and you, so you're committing to something that you're um aware of, and then what is the vision of the church? And do you feel like that's a vision that you can be on board with?
Yeah, maybe one other thing is um. Sometimes it can be a freeing thing for both sides, like, you know, you can even talk about like You know, an interim run with this, with, hey, let's evaluate after 6 months to make sure that this feels
like a great fit for both sides. Because if God's in it, you know, he's gonna be in it, but if you, you'd hate to feel like you're 6 months into something or they feel that same way and it's not a good fit, and it can, it can be a way for you to put your feet in the water too, but that's That's just a. You know, that that might not be the answer either, but those are all kind of conversations you can have if you sense any checks or if they sense any checks,
you can always kind of help out for a season too.
Yeah, and I've had plenty of those where we've done, uh, um, hey, let's let's give it 6 months and just let's see, let's see how it goes. And you know, most of the time it goes well and then a few occasions after a few months, the person begins to sense like, yeah, I don't know if I'm really cut out for this and the leadership begins to recognize that no, maybe this isn't the perfect fit. So yeah, we probably gave you so much stuff now you're gonna have to.
Remember, wait, OK, what, what did they say?
But you get years of ministry advice combined between the two of us right here, right, bro?
Yeah. So, but Justin, you know, I would just want to encourage you, the Lord's with you and and he's gonna direct you and I, I think one other thing I'd just say is that just Don't complicate it, and sometimes we can make it more complicated than it is, you know, it's an opportunity to serve Jesus if you feel like this is something that's a fit for you, then, um, there might be different
aspects of it that it's not exactly ideal. You know, when I began in ministry years ago, it's, it was so much different back then and it was, it was especially different with my um my pastor Chuck, who was my, uh, he was my pastor and he was my boss.
And, you know, nowadays we tend to sort of, you know, we're gonna bring some on staff and we're gonna kind of ask them, you know, what's your vision and what would you like to do and what do you feel most cut out for, and, uh, you know, all of that sort of stuff, be real sensitive to the person. And that, you know, back in back in the old days, it was like, Uh, OK, we're hiring you and you're gonna do this, this, this and that and the other thing, and we'll, you know,
we'll talk to you later, go get to work. And that was pretty much, uh, you know, it wasn't like, well, how do you feel about this? What do you think about this? I was like, no, this is the job, so just right. So we're, uh, we're in a different world today. Boy, ain't that the truth. Justin, thank you for your phone call today on Pastor's Perspective. We're gonna take a break and we'll be back with more of your questions. 888-564-6173 is the number to call for the next half hour.
My name is Brian Perez. I'm here with pastors Brian Broderson and Bobby Conway, and we would love to hear your questions on the Bible, the Christian faith. Just about everything we can talk about here on Pastor's perspective. You can also send your questions in online, but we prefer to dialogue with you guys. So grab an open line while there's still time. 888-564-6173 is our number. Adam, you'll be the first one up when we come back here on Pastor's Perspective.
Welcome back to Pastor's Perspective. Brian Perez here. 888-564-6173 is the number to call. We're gonna be here till 4 o'clock and we want to talk to you. 888-564-6173 is our number. We've got author and apologist Doctor Bobby Conway answering your questions. He's also the pastor. of Image Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the graphite Apologist on YouTube. In the studio with me is Brian Broderson, the pastor, a pastor at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa, and, uh,
we've got a conference coming up. The, uh, Calvary Global Network has a conference later this month, and, uh, Brian, tell us all about it. Well, Brian, it is going to be the 22nd to the 25th of June, and it's going to be out in Temecula, California at Reliance Church. We are very thankful to Ted and Brenda Leavenworth, that's, uh, they offered their church. It's gonna be amazing. And our theme is the way forward ministry according to Jesus.
So we're gonna be looking at uh John's Gospel, uh, chapter 13, you know, you have the Jesus washing the disciples' feet and then uh 1415, 16, you have this, you know, this. Jesus just speaking really kind of heart to heart to his intimate followers about the mission, essentially, and so that's the, the text we're gonna be breaking down, then looking at chapter 17, the the great prayer of Jesus. So, it's gonna be a fantastic conference. We always have a, a
really great time of fellowship. We've got some Excellent, uh, workshops, times of prayer, worship, and we've got our main teaching sessions, and we've got a great lineup of speakers, uh, this time around, uh, Alistair Begg, uh, Greg Opine, Doug Souder from Calvary and Fort Lauderdale, Ed Stetzer, uh, Kiki Torres, my good friend from Carretaro, Mexico, and, uh, lots of others. It's gonna be fantastic. And so if you're in ministry and you'd like to join us, we'd love to have you.
This is a ministry conference, so we're really uh providing um encouragement and instruction for people in all different um areas of ministry within within the church. So, yeah, um, conference. Dot Calvary Chapel.com is where you can find out all the information. And where you can get registered, so come on out, love to see you. Starts on June 22nd, so you'd
better hurry up and uh make those arrangements now. Yeah, June June 22nd is a Sunday, so it, it actually starts, we kind of have like a a soft start on Sunday nights where we really just gather for worship and prayer. It's a sweet time and then we get into, you know, the various teaching sessions and and all of the other stuff on Monday morning, but yeah. Come on out. Very good. Conference. Calvary Chapel.com. 888-564-6173 to Texas we go now. Here is Adam, who's listening to
us on Kwave.com. Welcome, Adam to Pastor's perspective. Thank you. Uh, while I was on hold, I've reworded this question many times and I don't know which way to say it, so please work with me. OK, um. I've, I. Love Jesus. I fear God and I believe everywhere in the Bible. But um I just, I've had bright spots in my life, but It always, I mean, it seemingly returns to Poor Uh, and I just Wondering Maybe I'm reading it wrong. But this God creates Honor, uh, vessels of honor and dishonor.
What is the reference of the Bible that you're talking about? I've read that. It's uh it's a Timothy. Timothy, right? Yeah, yeah, and I've read it in several different ways, but Is it possible that God created me for a Life of dishonor. No. No, that's, that's not what God created you for. I mean, the, the passage. You know, Paul, Paul is talking to Timothy about. Basically about serving God and he's talking about.
Um, yeah, you know, he, he says in a great house, he uses this illustration in a great house, there are vessels of, of, um, wood and earth, and there are vessels of gold and silver, and then he says some for honor, some for dishonor. And he says if anyone will cleanse themselves from the latter. If anyone will cleanse themselves from the things that are would would cause a vessel to be dishonorable, then they will be sanctified and they will be fit for the master's use.
So it's a it's a great promise really that um a dishonorable vessel doesn't have to remain there. We can be cleansed and sanctified and then made useful. To the Lord. Bobby.
Yeah, and then you you mentioned in the question, does he create vessels of honor and dishonor, and that passage isn't talking about God creating, it's talking about what exists in a house, and you'll get honorable and dishonorable uh vessels because some people won't walk in accord with God's ways, but it's not that he created them to walk.
Out of accord, uh, because God would be contradicting himself, like, hey, walk in my ways, and then he command, but he created you for the purpose of dishonor, but he tells you to walk in an honorable way. That would be a pretty mixy uh setup right there, so that's not the case.
Does this help you, Adam? Well, I'm just getting really tired. Um, like I said, I've had spots in my life that were great. 5 years ago, I had a wonderful wife. Fantastic house. We wake up in the morning and do devotions. Um, but we've lived more than 4 years, and most couples live in 40, but then one day she decides she wants to do something else. And, and then it's just like can't get out of it. You know, I have a rough spot at work and
And seems to level out. I Go buy a truck, not a brand new one, but I go buy a truck and 3 days later, I lose my job. And it's just like, I can't shake this off of my foot. Yeah, that, that's, that's tough, and was there. Was her departure was that like seemingly out of nowhere, just a complete surprise, um. How did that go down? He refused to go to counseling. He refused to talk
about it. Mhm. Um, You just wanted me to leave everything I. Left her turn her everything and in fact, I walked away from the house with a backpack. And lived in Great Bay Park for a month. Do you, so do you, do you have a church, Adam? Yes, I do. Mhm. Have you been able to get any encouragement, any counsel from? The pastors there. Um, Yes or no. I mean, I just keep praying for change and Um, I mean, I went as far as starting a
prayer group at work several months ago. And I could only get one guy to Reliably Participate in it with me, but I just went with it and and it just Have you had time to grieve this loss? I mean, grieving everything, not just the loss of your marriage, but your house and your job and everything. Yeah, and I get to do it again and again and again. Are you, it sounds like you're working now again though, right? No, I lost my job 2 days ago. Oh my,
2 days ago. OK. And are you, are you on the street or you got a place to live? No, I, I have a place to live. Um, I'm, I'm not back out on the street again, but. It's, you know, I have no job and I got a. Pay for this truck I just bought and and I got other bills and it's like Yeah. I'm tired. Yeah, well, I, I mean, I can understand that, and yet, Don't, don't give up hope that.
I'm, I'm not, gotta bring you through this. I got, you know, it's just just the scripture keeps Jesus keeps asking me, am I enough? Yeah. And I got to know that Jesus is enough for me. Yeah. Well, yeah, we all, we all have to do that at some point in life, you know, we have to recognize that that is, that is the case and and I mean it's a tough situation you're in obviously, but it's also an opportunity to, you know, just sort of
stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. Just, you know, just watch and see what God's gonna do. Keep asking him, don't. Don't think that you're the vessel of, of dishonor. God's created you just to have a, a miserable existence. He didn't do that at all. And yet sometimes we go through these seasons, like we talked earlier on the program today about Job and the experience of Job, and I mean, who in the world would have ever thought that anything could come.
Any positive thing could come out of the whole experience of Job, but you know, we read in the New Testament that um we looking back at Job, we see the end intended by the Lord and the Lord's intention was ultimately to bless Job in a great way and I, I would just encourage you to to believe that God has, he has better days ahead. And don't isolate yourself from from Christians. Stay in fellowship, stay in the word, pray for a job. And and see what God will do. Bobby. I'm not
giving up, it's just that it hurts. Yeah. Understandably
Yeah, yeah, and that, man, I'm sorry, bro. I can, I can feel your pain. A couple resources, one, I bring it up often in these moments, uh, but your question is one that comes up a lot. So you're not, you aren't alone, obviously, uh, but Shattered Dreams by Larry Crab, who was a great Christian counselor, and he just talks about how do you rediscover joy when all your dreams have been shattered. And, uh, he writes it like a counselor, and it's, uh, a book that was very meaningful to me at one
time in my life. Um, you know, I've been reading some different biographies this past week. One by Darlene Rose called Evidence Not Seen, and her and her husband were missionaries during the Second World War.
And when I just read her story, it, it put my problems in perspective because She gets separated from her husband, her husband dies, and she just, the horrible stuff that she went through as a POW and then totally remaining faithful to the Lord, it blew me away because, you know, I was having a little bit of a, a pity party, uh, myself, and then I'm reading this book and she's just crying out to God for a banana. And, you know, she's got to go to the restroom
and they it's just a complete mess. They, they make them, they, they make them wait for forever to go, and if they went then they would punish them. Uh, and sometimes just reading the story of people of deep faith like this, you know, I'm reading a book called Hiding in the Light by Rifka Barry, whose father threatened to kill her after she converted to Christianity, and she's sharing the story of having to run from her parents in fear of her life.
Um, and then I read God Smuggler by Brother Andrew last week. I, I never read that book, but here's a guy who was smuggling Bibles through the Iron Curtain and how God was unbelievably providing for him when he really didn't have a whole lot. And so, what, what these books that I'm mentioning offer is real life examples of those who don't have much, but they got a ton of faith in God.
And man, it's just so encouraging when I listen to these stories, um, and that's the biggest thing I would encourage you is to avoid going into a, a negative mindset, because that, that will go toward depression and hopelessness, and that And, and then you'll get in that hopeless and depressed state and you might go, God, why did you let this happen? But really, it can just be, uh, negative thinking. And it's hard not to think negative when you feel
like you're losing things around you. It's so hard, but I really encourage you to like, just have thoughts about, OK, God, you're sovereign. You're gonna guide me, you do love me. You're not gonna abandon me. You've, you've, and didn't think about your life. You've been through tough times throughout your life, and he's never let go.
And you just persevere, and I think that you'll come out of this at some point and realize, hey, it's OK, because there's been many times where we all can struggle and we just kind of feel like checking out on life, and then it's like a year later, we're like, wow, I can't even believe I was in that place. So, stay strong, bro. Life is very hard at times, but God will carry you through.
Adam, thank you for calling us today here on Pastor's Perspective. Yeah, I, I just want to second um what Bobby said about um. You know, sometimes hearing uh somebody else's story can really, really put things in perspective for us. And it kind of pull you out of your own pit that you're in and get your eyes back on,
on the possibilities. Um, and I've So often been encouraged by a a good biography uh good missionary biographies are extraordinary so often because the hardship that people experience and yet the faithfulness of God in all of it so, so maybe um. You know, maybe just. Look into something like that. Maybe that'll be an encouragement.
Had you read that one before? I've never even heard of Evidence not seen by Darlene Rose.
Is that something that you're familiar with Brian? No, but Cheryl did a, a podcast on her, um, for her women worth knowing, yeah, so, um.
I think you would love because you love war history. I think you would, and it's, I think you would really enjoy that read. It was her faith was just remarkable.
Yeah, I might, I might have listened to it, but I might have missed it, um. Yeah, I, I mean those stories like I Cheryl did a, she did a podcast recently on this on this gal, um, her, her name's so so right now, but she, she was absolutely amazing. She, she was a nurse and she ended up in, uh, the Middle East.
She ended up in Jordan. She's there during the, the, uh, war of independence, you know, when Israel's fighting for their independence and all of that's going on and she's her and a friend, they've built this hospital, uh, in Jordan.
And they're treating all of these children and all of these women and and they're Christians and they're going through one challenging thing after another, but at the same time, God is blessing them and using them in such extraordinary ways and uh you know when I finished listening to that thing, I just thought.
You know, sometimes we think our problems are, are big problems and then you're like, I, I, I don't think I've ever had a problem in comparison to the stuff that these people faced, you know, and, and even recently I was thinking about, you know, we live in a pretty chaotic time right now and it's easy to to just sort of get our attention on all of the negative and everything that's going on and.
In the world and, and it, I just, I had a moment where I thought of all the stories I've read about missionaries who carried on the work of the gospel in the midst of insane stuff like war, like, you know, revolution, all of that stuff, and they just all of this was going on around them and they were, they just had their hand to the plow, they weren't looking. Up or around, they were just moving forward with the
work of God. And I think, you know, I, I don't want to be distracted by all of the stuff in the world that I actually have no power to affect anyway, uh, except by praying for it. I wanna, I wanna stay focused on what Jesus is doing right in front of me and make sure I'm, I'm sticking to that task. Bobby. Yeah,
I think sometimes like in my own life, like. Maybe I'll fear bigger trials, so then, you know, maybe I'll throw a big pity party in a smaller trial so that maybe he'll think, oh yeah, I don't need to give him any bigger trials because if I handle the smaller trials good, then maybe he'll give me some real licking.
Wow, you need some counseling, man.
Like, Lord, please,
that isn't that hilarious though how we actually do play these sort of mind games with God like he doesn't know.
It's like, it's like, it's like the smallest thing can happen. And it's like, OK, I should probably really freak out because, you know, if he, if I handle this too good, I, there's always a trial that can get my attention. So I'm just gonna get, I'm gonna let him get my attention and the small things of life, so he doesn't give me something too big. Because he's like he'll certainly crack
under
that.
That's, that's some great theology, Bobby. I'm, I'm glad you're what they teach at
right now here to provide hope for you today.
Well, check this out. On the other line, we have someone who was calling in to offer hope and encouragement to a caller from a few days ago. But Adam, I think she's going to encourage you as well. Adrian from Orange, California, listening on Kwave.com. We've got a few minutes left. What did you want to share? Hi, you're so right. I called for one thing, but Adam has captured my heart. And could I just read a couple of verses that I feel like the Lord put on my heart for Adam? OK.
It's uh Psalm 1816 through 19. It says he reached down from on high and took a hold of me. He drew me out of deep waters. He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes who were too strong for me. They comfort me in the day of disaster, but the Lord was my support. He brought me out into a spacious place. He rescued me because he delights in me. Mm, that's great. What is there another one? No, OK. That, that's plenty. You, you just said some scripture,
so I wondered if that was it. Yeah, and I really was calling about Laurie who called in on Monday, you remember her? Um, she had lost everything. You guys spent a lot of time with her. She was losing her home and moving into a skilled nursing kind of a place, but, um, My heart went out to her because um I've been in her shoes so it kind of makes you uniquely uh. Empathetic. Yeah. And, um, gosh, I felt her pain and I want to encourage her and hope she's listening cause
I'm praying for her, my Bible study is praying for her. And, um, just hang on to Jesus, just wrap your arms and your legs and hang on. Um, listen to K wave, get a steady diet of truth, or I think Hanograph said steady diet of lies. So, um, anyway. Well, thanks for that. Um, I'm sure Adam was encouraged by that. That's a, that's a great passage. Yep, and Laurie's listening too. So you've come through the other side, huh? I have, uh, 18 years ago, my, you know, we
were just stroking in life. We had our business, our, um, you know, forever house, and life was good. We were in our late 50s and my husband had a massive stroke. He's still alive, but we lost our business, our house, our cars, our dog, because we had to move in with my parents. It was horrific. And uh our life, you know, was. Pretty much surrounded around serving God and the church and um so fortunately we had a lot of support. Um, yeah,
people come alongside. Oh, the other thing I wanna say to Laurie is she mentioned that there was a little church uh where she was living at the extended living or whatever it's called. Go there. Um, my husband and I served, um, at one of those places and we had. Church every Sunday and it was delightful. The ladies loved it. It's so encouraging and maybe meet some other Christians. Yeah. Anyway. Yeah. Great, good encouragement. Yeah, thanks for sharing your story, Adrian. That's uh amazing.
Sometimes we need to hear these stories to like you guys were saying, sometimes it's good to read the biographies of Christians that have gone before us and everything that they endured. And those are great, but sometimes to hear that there's somebody, you know, who lives locally, who went through the same thing whose whose situation is so like yours, uh, as Adrian just shared. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. All right, we have, uh, just about run out of
time here on Pastor's Perspective. Thanks so much for listening today and for watching. We're gonna archive today's episode on Facebook and YouTube and Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Speaking of podcasts, you can also find Cheryl Broderson's podcast called Women worth knowing and, uh, you might be able to look through those and, uh, find the, uh, episode that she did about Darlene Rhodes whom Bobby was just talking about. We'll be back tomorrow. Thank you so much for joining
us today for Brian Broderson and Bobby Conway. I'm Brian Perez. God bless you. Thanks for listening and watching Pastor's Perspective.