09-29-2018 - 2Serve - Carl Wilkens — Transcript

Full transcript

1. 0:04[Music]
2. 0:09[Music]
3. 0:13[Applause]
4. 0:28[Music]
5. 0:44[Music]
6. 0:51[Music]
7. 1:16[Music]
8. 2:00[Music]
9. 2:07[Music]
10. 2:20[Music]
11. 2:32[Music]
12. 3:10[Music]
13. 3:33[Music]
14. 4:45[Music]
15. 5:00good morning church family Oh almost
16. 5:04good morning - yes good morning to
17. 5:06everyone
18. 5:07Church family we are welcome we're
19. 5:09excited to have you here welcoming to
20. 5:11the service and to our second
21. 5:13opportunity that we get to hear from
22. 5:14Carl Wilkens this morning so a little
23. 5:17bit later than our normal only because
24. 5:19of our time in Sabbath school here in
25. 5:21the sanctuary so we are glad you are
26. 5:23here with us I don't know how many of
27. 5:24you are excited that we have turned the
28. 5:26corner into fall but I have enjoyed the
29. 5:29rain I have enjoyed the blue skies
30. 5:32without the humidity so for just a
31. 5:34moment for a bit of an icebreaker for
32. 5:36those around you or close by and
33. 5:38whatever is to share with each other
34. 5:40your favorite fall beverage I was gonna
35. 5:43say a hot beverage but some aren't hot
36. 5:45drink people so it could be cold drink
37. 5:47but your favorite hot fall beverage
38. 6:14so as we begin our worship this morning
39. 6:18or continue our worship really I was
40. 6:21talking with our summer young adult
41. 6:23intern Nick who has gone back to the
42. 6:25northwest in the Walla Walla for his
43. 6:27last year in school but before he left
44. 6:30he was sharing with me one of his
45. 6:31favorite passages from Scripture and
46. 6:34what he does with that passage it's a
47. 6:35little unique and I thought it would be
48. 6:38a great call to worship for us today
49. 6:40because when we gather in this space for
50. 6:42worship it's not about preference or you
51. 6:45know what I get out of this worship is
52. 6:47about our response to God
53. 6:49it's our response to say he's given us
54. 6:51so much grace and so much blessing and
55. 6:54we come together to honor him in this
56. 6:56time in this moment and so the call to
57. 6:58worship today is from first Corinthians
58. 7:0013 but I'm gonna replace the word love
59. 7:02for Jesus which is what Nick had said
60. 7:06that he does whenever he reads this
61. 7:07passage and I thought this made it
62. 7:09meaningful to me in a way that I hadn't
63. 7:11seen it before
64. 7:12first Corinthians 13:4 Jesus is patient
65. 7:15and kind Jesus does not envy or boast
66. 7:18Jesus is not arrogant or rude he does
67. 7:21not insist on his own way he's not
68. 7:23irritable or resentful he does not
69. 7:25rejoice at wrongdoing but rejoices with
70. 7:27the truth Jesus bears all things
71. 7:29believes all things hopes all things
72. 7:30endures all things Jesus never ends amen
73. 7:35I thought that was a beautiful way to
74. 7:37read through that passage I knew so let
75. 7:41us have just a moment of prayer as we
76. 7:43continue in worship this morning father
77. 7:46God in heaven we thank you for calling
78. 7:48us together in this place
79. 7:49and I pray that you would give us eyes
80. 7:51to see you and ears to hear you and that
81. 7:54every aspect of our worship and time
82. 7:56together today with every person
83. 7:57involved and participating in the
84. 7:59worship we would all come to see Jesus
85. 8:01even more clearly and your holy and
86. 8:04precious name we pray amen
87. 8:09welcome to worship at the Caterine
88. 8:12seventh-day Adventist Church this is
89. 8:14your K life update we're so glad to have
90. 8:16with us the Sabbath Carl Wilkens who
91. 8:18worked for addre during the Rwanda
92. 8:21genocide he's going to share with us two
93. 8:24different sermons at first serve and
94. 8:26second serve you don't want to miss this
95. 8:27special Sabbath the Ducato ministry is a
96. 8:30ministry for children by children and
97. 8:32for our church we have our tekapo
98. 8:35children's choir that is sharing a song
99. 8:38with us today but we also have de capo
100. 8:40bells and a capo strings if your
101. 8:43children would like to get involved with
102. 8:44this ministry please see me it's a
103. 8:47wonderful and exciting opportunity for
104. 8:49them to be involved at first serve today
105. 8:51Samantha Schneider gave her heart to
106. 8:54Jesus in her baptism and so when you
107. 8:56find her give her a big hug and welcome
108. 8:58her to the family one of our very own
109. 9:00young adults nathan farrell is putting
110. 9:03on an island home video concert this
111. 9:06Saturday night at 7 p.m. in the youth
112. 9:09center it's gonna be a wonderful evening
113. 9:11of great music come and join us this
114. 9:13coming Sunday September 30 from 11 to 4
115. 9:16p.m. we have the Fall Fest at Spring
116. 9:19Valley Academy you don't want to miss a
117. 9:21day of fun make sure you go our no
118. 9:24fright night is coming up October 27 and
119. 9:26our theme this year is treasure hunt you
120. 9:29want to get involved and you want your
121. 9:31kids to come so start telling your
122. 9:33friends and neighbors to plan on coming
123. 9:35that evening but also we need all the
124. 9:37help we can get
125. 9:38so please sign up either at the Welcome
126. 9:40desk or on my name is pastor Alex and
127. 9:43this has been your kale if-- update
128. 9:52happy Sabbath please stand with me as we
129. 9:55sing him to 11 low becomes with clouds
130. 9:59descending once for favorite sinners
131. 10:01slain
132. 10:02[Music]
133. 10:43[Applause]
134. 10:43[Music]
135. 11:17yes
136. 11:18[Music]
137. 11:34[Music]
138. 13:08you may be seated we would like to
139. 13:11invite all the kids to come to the front
140. 13:14now for the kids life section and we
141. 13:18want you to take your time and collect
142. 13:20the dollars as you come forward all the
143. 13:23kids come forward now
144. 13:24[Music]
145. 15:22[Music]
146. 15:45[Applause]
147. 15:45[Music]
148. 16:13[Applause]
149. 16:18[Music]
150. 16:56I
151. 17:10I
152. 17:34I
153. 17:41[Applause]
154. 17:45[Music]
155. 18:26okay kids you can go back to your seats
156. 18:30with your parents thank you for coming
157. 18:32up and that was wonderful to hear that
158. 18:34singing wasn't it good morning church
159. 18:44family it's a privilege to be up here to
160. 18:45talk about an opportunity that we have
161. 18:49to engage directly with our church today
162. 18:55I've been asked to tell you that the
163. 19:00offering today the loose offering goes
164. 19:04to Washington Adventist University and
165. 19:09how many graduates from Washington at
166. 19:11this university are in here there are
167. 19:13and so we support that program it's a
168. 19:17Union College educational institution
169. 19:22and today the funds that we're going to
170. 19:25going to provide support the Gail and
171. 19:28Bruce Boyer Health Professions and
172. 19:31Wellness Center but they also support
173. 19:35student missions and I watch at
174. 19:40Kettering college how many are here from
175. 19:42Kettering college let's see a few more
176. 19:44hands okay those of you that went to
177. 19:47Kettering college know that we also
178. 19:48participate in student missionary
179. 19:51programs and it's hard to say no to
180. 19:55programs that take young people in a
181. 19:58college and give them the kind of
182. 20:01experience that you're going to hear
183. 20:03about during the sermon a
184. 20:05once-in-a-lifetime life-changing chance
185. 20:12to have depth added to your life that
186. 20:16you can't get anywhere else even in the
187. 20:20the pictures we're going to see you
188. 20:23cannot experience what we're gonna see
189. 20:26today without being there completely and
190. 20:30so today I encourage you to be generous
191. 20:33I also encourage you to be generous with
192. 20:36our local church I church family
193. 20:40makes arrangements for everything you
194. 20:43see here but it also is our lead
195. 20:46outreach ministry to our children our
196. 20:49young people our Sabbath school rooms
197. 20:53that by the way our Sabbath school rooms
198. 20:55are jam-packed full I don't know if
199. 20:58you've seen that recently but our young
200. 21:00people Sabbath school rooms are so full
201. 21:04it's like a popcorn popper that we put
202. 21:07too much popcorn in it just blows the
203. 21:09lid off but I invite you to be very
204. 21:12generous today as the Deacons wait upon
205. 21:15you
206. 21:40Carla right it's good to be with you
207. 21:42today the offering plate gives us a
208. 21:45chance to praise and worship God with
209. 21:47our resources and some I'm gonna sing
210. 21:49praise him over and over i rose this
211. 22:08morning
212. 22:11my
213. 22:13I'm praying to Jesus through a long rest
214. 22:18last night when at last he came to me
215. 22:24all my cares were gone and I just raised
216. 22:28him over
217. 22:30and over and over Oh
218. 22:34all the day long
219. 22:36I
220. 22:37[Music]
221. 22:46I felt a piece inside I can't understand
222. 22:53every time I think about it it helps me
223. 22:58carry
224. 22:59and I just raised him over
225. 23:07all the tails
226. 23:09oh yeah
227. 23:12the Lord this morning as I rose to start
228. 23:16my day
229. 23:19raise him on the highway
230. 23:23all the way
231. 23:26raise him at my tail
232. 23:29[Music]
233. 23:30Racing on my man I praise him over and
234. 23:37this is what I said
235. 23:40thank you Lord for giving me some trial
236. 23:46yes I said thank you Lord for bringing
237. 23:50me some toy and
238. 23:54I said thank you Lord for not leaving me
239. 23:58although I've done some wrong and I
240. 24:02praise Him
241. 24:04over and over and over Oh
242. 24:09all the tail
243. 24:11oh yes time praise the Lord this morning
244. 24:15as I rose to start my day
245. 24:21praise him on the highway he led me all
246. 24:25the way
247. 24:28raise him at my table and I raised him
248. 24:33on my bed I raised him over and over and
249. 24:38over this is what I said
250. 24:42I said thank you give me some tests and
251. 24:49I said thank you for bringing me so much
252. 24:55I said thank you you didn't although
253. 25:00I've done some wrong
254. 25:03[Music]
255. 25:08Oh
256. 25:15the day long
257. 25:21[Music]
258. 25:23[Applause]
259. 25:33[Music]
260. 25:42today's scripture is found in Romans 914
261. 25:46I'll be reading from the New
262. 25:47International Version what then shall we
263. 25:51say is God unjust not at all I would
264. 25:59like to invite all of you that are able
265. 26:01to kneel with me as we come before the
266. 26:05throne of grace
267. 26:18our precious Lord Jesus Christ we are a
268. 26:25people called by your name and we are
269. 26:31astounded by that great privilege thank
270. 26:37you so much praise your name for your
271. 26:41willingness to involve yourself in the
272. 26:44intimate needs of our everyday lives
273. 26:48thank you so much for your patience you
274. 26:53call us Saints in the scripture but we
275. 26:57need to ask you for your forgiveness for
276. 27:00our unsane like behavior during this
277. 27:04week to thank you for your patience with
278. 27:08us because you do not leave us nor
279. 27:10forsake us we are so grateful that there
280. 27:14is nothing in all heaven or earth that
281. 27:17can separate us from your love father we
282. 27:23are a family but oftentimes we do not
283. 27:29know how to behave as a family and we
284. 27:32make many mistakes and we ask that you
285. 27:36will draw close to us and that you're
286. 27:39loving patience and your loving kindness
287. 27:42will teach us to be more like Jesus
288. 27:46moment-by-moment we are a family also
289. 27:50Lord Jesus that has many requests so we
290. 27:55ask that you will bless anise Alice
291. 28:00Charlie
292. 28:02Darlene Diana Martin Paula the Krause
293. 28:07family Willa Hedrick we also ask that
294. 28:13you will bless the Dunn family who has
295. 28:16lost their loved one and please Lord
296. 28:20Jesus we ask that you will bless new
297. 28:25members of our family Emmett Lewis
298. 28:28Schaeffer
299. 28:29and Jackson Norman price what a
300. 28:33marvelous thing to have new babies born
301. 28:36to this group I ask especially today
302. 28:41that you will be with your servant Carl
303. 28:43Wilkens that you will give him words
304. 28:46that will be able to touch our hearts
305. 28:49and will be the voice of Jesus speaking
306. 28:52to our hearts growing us encouraging us
307. 28:56and helping us to be more the family
308. 29:01that you have intended us to be
309. 29:04all these favors we pray in the pret a
310. 29:07blessed name of our Lord Jesus Christ
311. 29:10and for his sake amen
312. 29:14[Music]
313. 30:20I'm happy to have my friend call the
314. 30:24right
315. 30:25I bring music this this afternoon in the
316. 30:28Sabbath even though Carla right traveled
317. 30:31here from the Indianapolis area she's
318. 30:33coming home for she's from the Dayton
319. 30:35area and from the Adel writes em they're
320. 30:38finished Church in Germantown Ohio the
321. 30:41songs that the song first song that
322. 30:43she's saying is a song written by her
323. 30:46mother Eleanor write one has written
324. 30:47many many songs so it's always very
325. 30:49special I can imagine to have the
326. 30:52opportunity to sing your mother's music
327. 30:54so again thank you so much for
328. 30:56worshiping with us this morning
329. 31:10[Music]
330. 31:22I want a heart that forgives a heart
331. 31:28full of love one with compassion just
332. 31:34like yours above one that overcomes evil
333. 31:39with goodness and love like it never
334. 31:44happened never holding a grudge I want a
335. 31:49heart that forgives that lives and let's
336. 31:53live one that keeps loving over and over
337. 31:59again one that men can't defend because
338. 32:03your word is within one that loves
339. 32:07without price like you Lord Jesus Christ
340. 32:11I want a heart that loves everybody even
341. 32:18my enemies wanna love like it'd be like
342. 32:23you just like you do I want a heart that
343. 32:30forgives
344. 32:31[Music]
345. 32:40wanna heart that forgives when the ones
346. 32:44that are closest that I've known the
347. 32:48longest hurt me the most
348. 32:51I still wanna love them just like you
349. 32:56love me even though I'm hurting wanna
350. 33:03heart that forgives when the pain is so
351. 33:08deep so hard to speak about it to anyone
352. 33:14just like your son I give up my right to
353. 33:21hold it against them
354. 33:23with hatred inside I want a heart that
355. 33:27loves everybody even my enemies wanna
356. 33:35love like you'd be like you just like
357. 33:39you did I wanna walk like you talk like
358. 33:43you just like
359. 33:46[Music]
360. 33:48like just like you day hey cuz a heart
361. 33:56that forgives is a heart that live
362. 34:01totally for me from the pain of the past
363. 34:06the heart that lets know is the heart
364. 34:10that will know so much freedom I want a
365. 34:19heart that forgives a heart full of love
366. 34:24one with compassion just like yours
367. 34:28above one that overcomes evil with
368. 34:33goodness and love like it never happened
369. 34:38never holding a grudge give me a heart
370. 34:45that for game
371. 34:49[Music]
372. 35:00[Applause]
373. 35:12[Music]
374. 35:40here we've been studying through the
375. 35:42book of Romans for several months now
376. 35:45and we've been just enjoying the journey
377. 35:48as we've studied through Paul's
378. 35:50quintessential gospel message a message
379. 35:53that he had that had been percolating
380. 35:55and ruminating in his heart ever since
381. 35:57his conversion on the Damascus Road and
382. 36:00so now our new series is heading into
383. 36:03the last few chapters of the book of
384. 36:04Romans and as we do that we are going to
385. 36:08look at focusing on practical
386. 36:10applications that brings concepts from
387. 36:12Romans to our present-day experience
388. 36:14here in Dayton as if Paul wrote the
389. 36:17letter specifically to us and this
390. 36:19morning we'll be focusing on how it is
391. 36:22that we love and care for each other as
392. 36:25Hannah read is God and just no not at
393. 36:28all and we'll look at that through a
394. 36:30different lens this morning and I'm
395. 36:31excited to have our guest speaker here
396. 36:33with us this morning I was reminded by
397. 36:35pastor Chantelle sitting by me in the
398. 36:37service that my worlds kind of are
399. 36:38colliding on this Sabbath day that I was
400. 36:41actually dedicated as a baby at
401. 36:43Germantown church by Walter right and
402. 36:45when I was baptized here in this
403. 36:47baptistry and then of course I spent a
404. 36:49lot of years out in the northwest and
405. 36:51growing and going to school and all of
406. 36:53those kinds of things and I got a friend
407. 36:55from the Northwest here this morning
408. 36:57we've had the privilege of being able to
409. 36:59host pastor Carl Wilkens here Spring
410. 37:02Valley Academy brought him in for the
411. 37:03weekend we just get to reap the benefits
412. 37:05but I first met Carl when he was the
413. 37:08pastor and chaplain from Milo Adventist
414. 37:10Academy in Southern Oregon but I know
415. 37:12all of his story and if you have not
416. 37:14heard his story he and his family had
417. 37:17moved to Rwanda in 1990 and of course
418. 37:20history tells us in 1994 was when the
419. 37:22genocide took place there and Carl was
420. 37:24the only American that stayed by and
421. 37:27helped and working with addre and
422. 37:30providing food and necessary materials
423. 37:33and and medical supplies to those that
424. 37:36were in need especially to an orphanage
425. 37:37so we're excited to have him here this
426. 37:39morning I've had the privilege of
427. 37:41hosting him as a speaker I when I was in
428. 37:43Walla Walla working with different
429. 37:45members of his family getting to know
430. 37:47his kids all sorts of things were
431. 37:48excited to have him here please welcome
432. 37:50with
433. 37:51this morning pastor Carl Wilkins thank
434. 38:01you good morning it's some really nice
435. 38:06to be with you I spend most of my time
436. 38:11in schools and after the Rwandan
437. 38:16genocide I was actually in in at Milo
438. 38:20Academy I always told people I sort of
439. 38:22slipped in the back door without going
440. 38:24through seminary Alf Burch and the team
441. 38:28there and Oregon was very open and I
442. 38:31suppose progressive and in allowing me
443. 38:34into Milo Academy their main request was
444. 38:39to just teach the kids about Jesus and
445. 38:42I'm like well we learned a few things in
446. 38:46Rwanda during that horrible time but
447. 38:49life is a continual journey of learning
448. 38:51and thoroughly enjoyed each Sabbath
449. 38:57morning I missed that a lot coming I am
450. 38:59I forget how many years ago it was I
451. 39:01just decided to take my shoes off when I
452. 39:04was standing there Sabbath morning
453. 39:06because it just reminded me of the
454. 39:08sacredness and the holy ground and I'd
455. 39:13love to add my prayers into the person
456. 39:16already this morning father I am really
457. 39:21grateful to be here this Sabbath morning
458. 39:24to stand in your house House of Prayer
459. 39:29for everyone to sing kind of vicariously
460. 39:36with sister right the heart that
461. 39:39forgives oh man we feel so many
462. 39:44different needs and as we come here we
463. 39:47know that you have abundantly provided
464. 39:51no surprises with you in fact you even
465. 39:54drew us here and so we thank you for
466. 39:57that we thank you for the privilege of
467. 39:59being
468. 40:00of looking into your word looking into
469. 40:03life stories and we're we're looking for
470. 40:07a clearer picture of your love your
471. 40:09unconditional unmatched love so please
472. 40:14lead us in that search we pray in Jesus
473. 40:17name Amen
474. 40:21I was welcomed into ya this morning a
475. 40:26couple of things this is a strange idea
476. 40:28this idea of barefooted vulnerability I
477. 40:31didn't really think about that preached
478. 40:33him without my shoes but this last time
479. 40:37back in Rwanda there's one of the
480. 40:42memorials that we visit there that's a
481. 40:43really tough Memorial they told the
482. 40:46people in the surrounding villages we
483. 40:50can't protect you during the genocide
484. 40:52the government said we can't protect you
485. 40:54at your home you've got to come to this
486. 40:56school and it was a terrible plot to get
487. 41:00them all together and then to take their
488. 41:02lives more than 50 thousand people at
489. 41:05that school and the government has made
490. 41:08a pretty pretty bold and at times
491. 41:12controversial decision when they dug up
492. 41:16the remains of thousands and thousands
493. 41:19of people partially for closure for
494. 41:23their family and and as one young man
495. 41:25said I couldn't walk past this pit
496. 41:27latrine every day knowing that's where
497. 41:29my grandmother had been thrown and so
498. 41:33they dug up and they would scrub brushes
499. 41:38and basins of water they would clean
500. 41:41what they dug up the bones basically in
501. 41:44many cases and then they would give them
502. 41:47a respectful burial in in Rwanda like
503. 41:49many developing nations there's not a
504. 41:52big caretaker Undertaker mortician
505. 41:57business the families do it they wash
506. 42:00their loved ones they dress them in
507. 42:02there
508. 42:03close they dig the grave usually with
509. 42:06friends and and then they placed them in
510. 42:09the ground and they shoveled the dirt in
511. 42:11I've stood in this lines often you tap
512. 42:13the guy on the shoulder who has this
513. 42:15shovel after several pitches he hands
514. 42:17you the shovel you then a few and
515. 42:19somebody pitches your shoulder and and
516. 42:21it touches your shoulder and and and the
517. 42:24whole thing you know from birth to death
518. 42:27the family is so involved in the
519. 42:29genocide montt one of the many horrible
520. 42:31things that did was interrupt that
521. 42:33process as you might imagine and so
522. 42:35folks I've seen them sit around
523. 42:38scrubbing bones talking sometimes
524. 42:40laughing I mean as they're remembering
525. 42:43we've all been to funerals and those
526. 42:45funerals are full of laughter and then
527. 42:46tears and laughter and tears and then
528. 42:49somebody laughs really loud more like oh
529. 42:51wait that was maybe too loud for a
530. 42:52funeral but they're like no others and
531. 42:54we're celebrating a life and Rwandan
532. 42:57found different ways to process but some
533. 42:59of these bodies that were not claimed
534. 43:01were in a rather crude way preserved
535. 43:06with lime and laid on tables so they're
536. 43:11kind of mummified in some cases often in
537. 43:14a fetal position which would have been
538. 43:16the position that they were in as they
539. 43:17were killed it's it's the skin stretched
540. 43:23tight over the I won't try to get too
541. 43:25graphic here but it's a very it's a very
542. 43:28difficult site to visit and we told the
543. 43:30young people we were with there's no I
544. 43:32we talked a lot in fact about whether we
545. 43:34would even go there and they wanted to
546. 43:36go they had studied about Rwanda they
547. 43:38they they felt that they for different
548. 43:41reasons some for honor others just
549. 43:44simply as a witness as they would go
550. 43:47forward and share the story of Rwanda
551. 43:49they felt it was important to go there
552. 43:51we said you don't need to go into each
553. 43:52classroom unless you choose to you might
554. 43:55choose to stand at a door and look in
555. 43:56the smell is very strong the smell of
556. 43:59decaying human flesh is different from
557. 44:02like you might you know on the side of
558. 44:04the road or something it was my second
559. 44:07time there in just two weeks because I
560. 44:10had been there with a group of teachers
561. 44:11I chose not to go in the classroom this
562. 44:14time to stay outside and be there for
563. 44:17the students who wanted to talk and and
564. 44:19process this and I sat down on a bench
565. 44:23it was a warm day and I looked at the
566. 44:26grass growing around me I actually took
567. 44:28my shoes off I took my socks off and I
568. 44:33started walking in that grass thinking
569. 44:36blood much blood flowed here at this
570. 44:40place and somehow life keeps going and
571. 44:46grass grows and trees grow and and I
572. 44:50listened and there were kids chattering
573. 44:52and laughing you know on the next Hill I
574. 44:55heard music from a wedding plane on
575. 44:58another hill and as I thought about this
576. 45:02sacred ground
577. 45:04where so many innocent lives had
578. 45:09needlessly been taken I thought to
579. 45:13myself you know some of the time my
580. 45:14mindset has not been right here it we've
581. 45:18been focused on those who took the lives
582. 45:21so much and the violence is just it's
583. 45:23just so obvious there but this ground is
584. 45:26sacred made sacred by the blood of those
585. 45:29innocent lives who are taken and as I
586. 45:33walked barefoot through the grass I
587. 45:35stepped on to the cool cement of the
588. 45:38sidewalk and I started to walk in the
589. 45:41rooms and I
590. 45:48really couldn't begin to imagine the
591. 45:52unfulfilled dreams that the young the
592. 45:57middle-aged and the old maybe some of
593. 45:59the fulfilled dreams that they had had
594. 46:03couldn't help but think about Jesus
595. 46:05coming again and these old dry bones as
596. 46:12they say new life we have this hope and
597. 46:19sometimes it is it is clouded it is
598. 46:22shadowed by the horrors this morning I
599. 46:29would like to share with you just in the
600. 46:31next few minutes a few stories from that
601. 46:37time in 1994 and I oh yeah I was gonna
602. 46:44die was in some other schools here will
603. 46:46skip over this is where I do get the
604. 46:48privilege of going to public schools
605. 46:49private schools all around chucks on
606. 46:53Thursday started out at dressed and went
607. 46:56to tree of life's high school and
608. 46:57dressed in Tree of Life Christian school
609. 46:59and Columbus Stivers is that right
610. 47:02School of the Arts yeah those those kids
611. 47:06were just so insightful the arts and and
612. 47:10as we talked they're about caring for
613. 47:11your heart I had such a wonderful time
614. 47:13there and and then that evening here at
615. 47:16the Academy with some parents the next
616. 47:18morning with your kids at Spring Valley
617. 47:19you know one of your kids at Spring
618. 47:21Valley when I asked them a survivor well
619. 47:26I think we're almost there we'll get to
620. 47:28his picture here in a minute
621. 47:29Rwanda used to be known for gorillas and
622. 47:32now tragically it's known for genocide
623. 47:35but I think that reputation is changing
624. 47:38I think the day really is here for those
625. 47:40who have visited especially for the
626. 47:43young young people that we were there
627. 47:44with the did did I yeah we were there
628. 47:48with teachers and
629. 47:50and then these young people and both the
630. 47:53teachers and the young people they said
631. 47:55it might sound cliche but this is
632. 47:57life-changing for us and one of the kids
633. 48:01as they were at the end of their visit
634. 48:04there's a very special school for Ethics
635. 48:06and global leadership a semester school
636. 48:08one semester of their junior year of
637. 48:09high school they go to Washington DC to
638. 48:12this school one of the students wrote I
639. 48:16found out in Rwanda forgiveness is not
640. 48:18as much for those who did wrong as it is
641. 48:22for me to set me free in fact I almost
642. 48:27think it could be selfish she said but
643. 48:31they were beginning to explore these
644. 48:34ideas of forgiveness and and and
645. 48:37listening to the testimony one of the
646. 48:40survivors okay I keep getting ahead of
647. 48:43myself this morning especially when I
648. 48:44was talking about going back to that
649. 48:46school my mind just goes back there real
650. 48:49real briefly my wife and I right out of
651. 48:52college we get married in six weeks
652. 48:54later in Zimbabwe our daughters are born
653. 48:57there I'm teaching at a secondary school
654. 48:59Teresa's working in the business office
655. 49:01after six years we come back I go back
656. 49:03and get an MBA and and our boy Sean is
657. 49:07born there in Maryland and we take a
658. 49:10call to Rwanda as the director for
659. 49:13address I always have to throw in as a
660. 49:15proud dad a picture of the family today
661. 49:17got a wedding coming up I could not be
662. 49:19happier I love this guy I've heard
663. 49:22people say you know you're not losing a
664. 49:23daughter you're getting a son and I am
665. 49:25like so excited about this son yeah I
666. 49:28could I went on a run he's a police
667. 49:30officer
668. 49:30okay I'm too easily distracted but
669. 49:33in in there addre we're building schools
670. 49:36very rewarding work you know operating
671. 49:39clinics around the country and our kids
672. 49:42are just loving it a great place to
673. 49:43raise children the tragedy
674. 49:47starts well doesn't start but the fire
675. 49:49the explosion you could say starts on
676. 49:51April 6 1994 when the president's plane
677. 49:54is shot down they blame the minority
678. 49:56there so long there's been a three-year
679. 49:58war there's a long story which I won't
680. 50:00get into the history but this doesn't
681. 50:01that's why it's a didn't start April 6
682. 50:04but but there had been killings going on
683. 50:07for years in at smaller degrees around
684. 50:10the country before that but this is
685. 50:12going to be the one that that just is
686. 50:15gonna astound the world we're nearly a
687. 50:18million people will lose their lives but
688. 50:20for us in our house we're putting the
689. 50:24kids to bed in the hallway gunfire
690. 50:25you're trying to keep them away from the
691. 50:27windows you know and and we're trying to
692. 50:29make it like a and it kind of like an
693. 50:33adventure while this horror is out is
694. 50:36playing outside our house our neighbors
695. 50:39here the little X there there's some of
696. 50:40the first ones who are killed and and we
697. 50:44don't even know when we're putting our
698. 50:45kids to bed that a gang gathers at our
699. 50:47gate and some of our neighbor ladies
700. 50:49come and stand in front of our gate and
701. 50:51tell stories about taking a neighbor we
702. 50:53took a neighbor to the hospital
703. 50:55you know she the baby wasn't coming
704. 50:57usually born at home we took her little
705. 50:59acts of kindness our neighbors are
706. 51:01arguing with people who would do us harm
707. 51:04Thursday night they turn them away
708. 51:06we don't even know until the next
709. 51:08morning what our courageous neighbors
710. 51:10have done for us and yeah they said
711. 51:13their kids play with our kids the
712. 51:16embassy says we're all leaving the
713. 51:17Ambassador everybody nobody is sticking
714. 51:19around and nobody they said has a choice
715. 51:21well I'm on the radio talking to her
716. 51:24because Theresa and I talking to Laura
717. 51:26the consulate officer Theresa and I had
718. 51:28been in the bedroom we talked we prayed
719. 51:30we made the decision I always kind of
720. 51:34wrestle when I tell some of these
721. 51:35stories because I don't want to race
722. 51:36through them but there's parts to I want
723. 51:39to get to about about Rwanda today
724. 51:42what's happening there and this journey
725. 51:44of healing but we can't really get there
726. 51:47and appreciate it without being here and
727. 51:49yet there's much here to unpack so
728. 51:51please be patient with me as I as I tell
729. 51:56the rather abbreviated story Laura tells
730. 52:00me on the radio we're all meeting at the
731. 52:02ambassador's house over and I go okay
732. 52:05I've directed the people at the dental
733. 52:07clinic to meet there over a good Roger
734. 52:10good copy I'm sending my wife and
735. 52:13children there over wait what do you
736. 52:15mean you're sending them we are all
737. 52:17leaving over I said no I'm not leaving
738. 52:20over Theresa and I had been in the
739. 52:22bedroom we had talked and prayed we had
740. 52:24a young lady who lived and worked in our
741. 52:27home and she was marked to be killed as
742. 52:29part of the minority group that was
743. 52:31being blamed for the killing of the
744. 52:33president much longer campaign of
745. 52:36constructing an enemy enemies are
746. 52:38constructed hey they're not born and and
747. 52:42so so I'm telling Laura I'm not leaving
748. 52:46over she says you don't have a choice
749. 52:48over and I'm like as a private American
750. 52:50citizen I do have a choice over and then
751. 52:54she says okay and she's a wonderful
752. 52:56friend of ours wonderful person she was
753. 52:59she was just trying to do what she was
754. 53:02assigned to do
755. 53:03she was really torn she wanted to keep
756. 53:06the embassy open and make that a safe
757. 53:08haven she was arguing with Washington DC
758. 53:10finally she says to me okay then you
759. 53:13need to write on a piece of paper that
760. 53:14you refuse to help with the American
761. 53:15government to leave Rwanda over and so I
762. 53:19remember writing on a little one of our
763. 53:21kids notebooks lo lined paper I refuse
764. 53:24to help the American government to leave
765. 53:25Rwanda and tore it out and folded and
766. 53:28gave it to Teresa and she and the
767. 53:34children left went to the neighboring
768. 53:35country Burundi she didn't want to come
769. 53:37back here to the States she was afraid
770. 53:39of losing contact and eventually she
771. 53:42took the children to to Kenya because
772. 53:45Burundi was too unstable every single
773. 53:47day we okay I need will you come for a
774. 53:50minute here Trisha I'm sure you guys can
775. 53:52help us with this one
776. 53:53I am being mindful of thank you sir be
777. 53:57mindful of the clock but I can't have
778. 54:00Teresa here and not have you hear her
779. 54:03voice and I just love standing here with
780. 54:07her she was 16 when I met her in Academy
781. 54:12and we've been on an amazing adventure
782. 54:16over the last 37 years and every day we
783. 54:23had Tresa made heroic efforts to find
784. 54:26somebody to watch our children walk down
785. 54:29the streets of Nairobi a very dangerous
786. 54:31city at that time and and go to the
787. 54:34American Embassy they bent the rules let
788. 54:36her in the communications room and I had
789. 54:39hooked up my little radio to a car
790. 54:41battery and I'd static and I was
791. 54:42listening for this sweet voice called
792. 54:45over the radio and her initials are TW
793. 54:49theresa wilkins but in radio talk she
794. 54:51would use that proficient radio talk and
795. 54:54she would say do you see this big silly
796. 55:05grin on my face our home radio station
797. 55:09was 7 6 and and I would I would then say
798. 55:13yes tango whiskey this is 7 6 go ahead
799. 55:16and sometimes we would talk for hours as
800. 55:21if she had nothing else to do I'm in the
801. 55:24middle of the genocide she's over in in
802. 55:27a foreign country a single mom as it
803. 55:30were doing laundry in the bathtub home
804. 55:33school all kinds of stuff but how do you
805. 55:36do that huh some of us were so busy and
806. 55:38when we talked to people they know we're
807. 55:40busy and some give the impression that
808. 55:44you are the most important thing right
809. 55:46now and got all the time in the world
810. 55:49when you know she didn't there's a lot I
811. 55:52learned about tree said during the gym
812. 55:56during the genocide
813. 56:01there's a lot more I'd like to do but
814. 56:03thank you laughing and so Teresa is
815. 56:09there I'm in in Rwanda our work you can
816. 56:13I make tapes Patrice and the kids for
817. 56:16the first two weeks I'm arguing with God
818. 56:18I'm saying look God you wanted me to
819. 56:19stay keep me alive huh that should be
820. 56:21the deal and it's really stupid because
821. 56:23it's as if I know more than God
822. 56:26I don't even love me a fraction of what
823. 56:30God loves me and I kind of love me but
824. 56:34nothing like God and God knows what's
825. 56:37ahead and God has God has all of these
826. 56:40plans and all these pathways and all
827. 56:42these care packages along the pathway
828. 56:44and I don't know anything about them and
829. 56:46finally I quit arguing about staying
830. 56:48alive and I say okay you know what it is
831. 56:52god I'm afraid I grew up Adventist and
832. 56:56yes you're saved by faith but there was
833. 56:59this crazy phrase some of you might
834. 57:01remember this but it's stuck and lodged
835. 57:03in my head and it haunted me and brain
836. 57:05pathways you know what they say they say
837. 57:07negative stuff and neuro people negative
838. 57:08stuff sticks like velcro positive stuff
839. 57:10slides off like Teflon this phrase was
840. 57:13something like safe to be sit safe to
841. 57:16save did any of you ever hear that
842. 57:18phrase I don't know what there must have
843. 57:21been great intentions but for me I just
844. 57:23saw myself as not safe to save I knew my
845. 57:27weak I knew my mistakes I knew my
846. 57:28repeated you know repeat offender type
847. 57:31of stuff and it wasn't really until I
848. 57:35was completely desperate that I said
849. 57:38okay God you know me I know me it's not
850. 57:44about me it's about you you said you
851. 57:48have a place for me and you said if I
852. 57:54will believe you you love me
853. 57:58you have boatloads to forget you throw
854. 58:01my sins you don't never bring them back
855. 58:03and rub them in my face you got a place
856. 58:05I'll save you so I said save me if I die
857. 58:11I want to leave something for Theresa
858. 58:13and the kids and so I started recording
859. 58:15cassette tapes stories so by the time
860. 58:18the genocide is over I've got about
861. 58:20eight hours of stories that I recorded
862. 58:22recorded for Theresa so I'm not gonna
863. 58:24get into some of those stories I thought
864. 58:26I'd get into him and this morning
865. 58:27service and then I don't know I talk
866. 58:28about other stuff and now I thought I'd
867. 58:30get into him and now I'm talking about
868. 58:31other stuff too but um I will just share
869. 58:36with you the young lady did survive this
870. 58:39I was at her home just a few weeks ago
871. 58:40with her sons and her husband the young
872. 58:42man survived and the pastor who joined
873. 58:47me I can't get done telling you how much
874. 58:49I appreciate pastor suraíh and his wife
875. 58:51he was this wonderful source of wisdom
876. 58:53they could have gone to another part of
877. 58:55the country they had the ID card that
878. 58:57let them through of the majority that
879. 58:59left them through the roadblocks but
880. 59:01they chose to stay with me an enormous
881. 59:03help she was so practical and help us
882. 59:06get food and survive and pastor suryya
883. 59:08said if you're gonna do anything outside
884. 59:10the house you got to build a
885. 59:11relationship with the people in power we
886. 59:13went through the horrible roadblocks and
887. 59:15we met this man and I began to build a
888. 59:18relationship with Colonel Rennes Ajo I
889. 59:20never saw the other side that that he
890. 59:22was orchestrating and killing and and
891. 59:25the horrible I saw another side of this
892. 59:27man he will be hunted down and captured
893. 59:30and tried and he's now in prison for
894. 59:32that side that I didn't see the side I
895. 59:34saw we became allies of sorts and
896. 59:38there's a lot of stories of working
897. 59:40together with this man trying to stop
898. 59:44people from being killed and he'll give
899. 59:47me a travel permit he'll send me to an
900. 59:49orphanage I'll be bringing food and
901. 59:52water to these little kids I mean it's a
902. 59:54densely populated part of the city but
903. 59:58where I am going to
904. 1:00:00take you to this morning that's the
905. 1:00:04director today of the orphanage in fact
906. 1:00:06this young man came up to me when I was
907. 1:00:09there this summer and of course I didn't
908. 1:00:11recognize him he was a little kid at the
909. 1:00:12time of the genocide and it gives me
910. 1:00:14this big bear hug he's there working at
911. 1:00:16an after-school program now it's so neat
912. 1:00:19to talk to these people the the story
913. 1:00:22that we didn't make it to this morning
914. 1:00:24and that we're not making it to this
915. 1:00:25afternoon is working together with my
916. 1:00:28Rondon friend Jessica and my other
917. 1:00:32addre both of them Adric colleagues
918. 1:00:35Dawson we were bringing food and water
919. 1:00:38and medicine to these orphans were
920. 1:00:40surrounded one day they had threatened
921. 1:00:42to come and kill everybody now they're
922. 1:00:43here to do it for some reason they don't
923. 1:00:45while I'm there and the massacre has
924. 1:00:47stopped and and and I I apologize for
925. 1:00:51just going past that if you want you can
926. 1:00:53you know I take the books with me
927. 1:00:55usually to schools where I go to speak
928. 1:00:57and make them available for kids who
929. 1:00:59want to read it there just for any sized
930. 1:01:01donation so a lot of them go out at
931. 1:01:03schools as a result there's a bunch of
932. 1:01:05them used on Amazon so if you want to
933. 1:01:07grab one of them there you can you can
934. 1:01:09grab it but we all sort of printing
935. 1:01:11another batch of 10,000 so you can read
936. 1:01:13these stories you can get your hands on
937. 1:01:14a copy I'm sure easily where it's on
938. 1:01:16Kindle so that's easy this afternoon but
939. 1:01:19what where I want to where I want to go
940. 1:01:21with you here this morning or this
941. 1:01:24afternoon now this morning we talked
942. 1:01:26about meeting the leader of a killing
943. 1:01:28squad and the reframing and reclaiming
944. 1:01:32putting forth that the five most
945. 1:01:35important principles to me about God and
946. 1:01:38claiming them for his life those five
947. 1:01:40about principals okay actually I will I
948. 1:01:44wasn't gonna this afternoon but I think
949. 1:01:46I stuck him down yeah here we go these
950. 1:01:49five principles I was I was talking to a
951. 1:01:53teacher at a Catholic school and I was
952. 1:01:56telling him about meeting this man 21
953. 1:01:59years after the genocide being super
954. 1:02:01angry and then these five truths that
955. 1:02:05help Center me help help get me back on
956. 1:02:07my feet starting to substitute his name
957. 1:02:10for my name
958. 1:02:11in these five things and I said now to
959. 1:02:14the teacher I said now there's got to be
960. 1:02:16something here if this is really true
961. 1:02:18like like real rock-solid truth it's got
962. 1:02:21to transcend religions because I think
963. 1:02:24real rock-solid truth God is not bound
964. 1:02:27or contained in in this religion or that
965. 1:02:30nobody has nobody has a monopoly on God
966. 1:02:35and God's truth are I believe are
967. 1:02:39communicated in many ways most
968. 1:02:40powerfully for me through the life of
969. 1:02:43Jesus but I said if there's some truth
970. 1:02:46here and and I wish we were actually at
971. 1:02:48dinner and it was the teachers wife she
972. 1:02:50was a social worker she said read though
973. 1:02:53tell me those five again cuz I didn't I
974. 1:02:55was just telling him at dinner and she
975. 1:02:57says that sounds like unconditional love
976. 1:03:00to me and you look at those things and
977. 1:03:04I'm like yeah I'm always with you take
978. 1:03:07great delight you're my child my love
979. 1:03:09will come yeah I've got everything you
980. 1:03:11need it's not about you it's about me I
981. 1:03:14am your shepherd I'm your Redeemer and I
982. 1:03:17started thinking unconditional love how
983. 1:03:23can that not reframe the world that's
984. 1:03:26important how can that reframe the
985. 1:03:30people I'm still struggling with or in
986. 1:03:33this afternoon's case the institutions
987. 1:03:36I'm still struggling with a year ago
988. 1:03:40April I was invited okay let me get
989. 1:03:44myself back here on track here we go I
990. 1:03:47was invited to the United Nations for
991. 1:03:50the commemoration of the genocide and
992. 1:03:53and they the Rwandan government actually
993. 1:03:56invited me the United Nations didn't the
994. 1:03:58Rwandan government did and they were
995. 1:04:00having this at the United Nations
996. 1:04:02I was super I was honored by the Rwandan
997. 1:04:08government but I was really torn to go
998. 1:04:11to the United Nations because the United
999. 1:04:14Nations had 2,500 soldiers in Rwanda at
1000. 1:04:17the time of the genocide that was enough
1001. 1:04:21by the
1002. 1:04:23by the thinking of the Canadian
1003. 1:04:27commander general Dallaire he felt he
1004. 1:04:29had enough soldiers to stop the genocide
1005. 1:04:32but he needed support they were poorly
1006. 1:04:34equipped most of them and he needed but
1007. 1:04:37the most of what they what they needed
1008. 1:04:39wasn't guns and machine gun they had
1009. 1:04:41what they needed it's called presence
1010. 1:04:44soldiers about 300 did stay they took
1011. 1:04:472,200 away and abandoned the people and
1012. 1:04:50and people had come to schools where the
1013. 1:04:53UN soldiers were and and thinking who
1014. 1:04:55were safe now and then the soldiers left
1015. 1:04:57mothers were trying to put their babies
1016. 1:04:59in the truck of the soldiers leaving
1017. 1:05:01they were begging don't leave and 3,000
1018. 1:05:03people at one school were killed because
1019. 1:05:05the soldiers abandoned them there and
1020. 1:05:07the killers like thank the soldiers you
1021. 1:05:09made our work much easier the people
1022. 1:05:11came here now we don't have to go
1023. 1:05:12hunting for them in their homes in the
1024. 1:05:14ceilings of their houses and and then
1025. 1:05:16the horror it's a horrible story of
1026. 1:05:19abandonment of betrayal they were going
1027. 1:05:22around with their with their fancy UN
1028. 1:05:24vehicles and their armored personnel
1029. 1:05:25carriers and and some of the soldiers
1030. 1:05:27well-equipped the Belgian paratroopers
1031. 1:05:28full military gear trying to give people
1032. 1:05:31the message it's going to be ok and
1033. 1:05:32people believed it while on the other
1034. 1:05:34side this storm this this man-made
1035. 1:05:36politically driven storm was growing and
1036. 1:05:39the UN is saying it's going to be ok and
1037. 1:05:41the storm is coming closer and most time
1038. 1:05:43when people see storms they run but in
1039. 1:05:46this case they saw the UN and they
1040. 1:05:48stayed and for many that meant their
1041. 1:05:51death I'm glad the UN came initially I
1042. 1:05:54think that was a great move solidarity
1043. 1:05:57but they didn't have a flexibility and
1044. 1:06:01ability to change when the times changed
1045. 1:06:03and they said this isn't our mandate and
1046. 1:06:05they abandoned the people so when I'm
1047. 1:06:07invited to come back to that building
1048. 1:06:09I'm like these this is like the heart of
1049. 1:06:16abandonment the death of hundreds of
1050. 1:06:20thousands of people and it's beautiful
1051. 1:06:23they can have candles and flowers and
1052. 1:06:25everything but I went at the invitation
1053. 1:06:28of the wandering government but I didn't
1054. 1:06:29know what to say and well and they only
1055. 1:06:31gave me six minutes so
1056. 1:06:33that wasn't that wasn't tough but what
1057. 1:06:37am I going to say in six minutes at the
1058. 1:06:39UN and I prayed that's what I do
1059. 1:06:43i journaled and i said god what and the
1060. 1:06:48Rondon government had asked me to speak
1061. 1:06:50on the lessons of rwanda ceiling as I
1062. 1:06:57said okay
1063. 1:06:58what they have taught me again and again
1064. 1:07:02is you don't have to define people by
1065. 1:07:06their one worst action people can be
1066. 1:07:11defined by what they do next now let's
1067. 1:07:16simplify it okay I say something part
1068. 1:07:19less to my wife is that going to define
1069. 1:07:22me or is what I do next gonna define me
1070. 1:07:26if I follow that up with another
1071. 1:07:28thoughtless statement it'll soon define
1072. 1:07:31me but if I and and I said well you know
1073. 1:07:34I'm tired and I'm not feeling well yeah
1074. 1:07:40that was thoughtless I am sorry you
1075. 1:07:44don't deserve that will you forgive me
1076. 1:07:50we can be defined by what we do next so
1077. 1:07:54here I am at the UN and I'm realizing
1078. 1:07:56I'm defining the UN by their worst
1079. 1:07:59actions in Rwanda and so I apologized
1080. 1:08:05actually I didn't know how how do you
1081. 1:08:07apologize to the UN now let me not skip
1082. 1:08:11over I didn't know when I was telling
1083. 1:08:14you this story this morning I didn't
1084. 1:08:16know how to how to depict the betrayal
1085. 1:08:19of the UN and I wrestled with the idea
1086. 1:08:23of putting a picture in here or not
1087. 1:08:25because at that memorial site at that
1088. 1:08:27school where the bodies are preserved
1089. 1:08:29with lime there's some pictures of some
1090. 1:08:33of the kids before and so I'm thinking
1091. 1:08:39of these children and I'm thinking about
1092. 1:08:43their innocent loss of life
1093. 1:08:49and I am here this guy
1094. 1:08:55this gentleman sorry is the Secretary
1095. 1:08:58General two years ago actually I'm not
1096. 1:09:02up to date he price still is I turned to
1097. 1:09:06him and I said I am sorry for defining
1098. 1:09:12the UN by their failure in Rwanda they
1099. 1:09:17had already un tiss talked about its
1100. 1:09:18failure in Rwanda so I'm not like this
1101. 1:09:20is not some backhanded way to rub your
1102. 1:09:22nose in it this is just me trying to get
1103. 1:09:26free from my anger and resentment
1104. 1:09:28because that's the core for me the core
1105. 1:09:31definition of forgiveness I don't know
1106. 1:09:36what I expected if he would graciously
1107. 1:09:39nod or something he just he just sat
1108. 1:09:46there which I don't know what I would do
1109. 1:09:48if I was sitting there I don't know what
1110. 1:09:50he used by wondering what was coming
1111. 1:09:52next but then I turned to the stories of
1112. 1:09:57the people of Rwanda for the last couple
1113. 1:09:59of minutes and I talked about try phim a
1114. 1:10:02lady who worked at the biggest orphanage
1115. 1:10:05I was at she not only was treating the
1116. 1:10:08children who had seen many of their
1117. 1:10:10parents killed the horrors of that but
1118. 1:10:12she also was treating those who did the
1119. 1:10:15killing they would bring their wounded
1120. 1:10:16buddies to the orphanage and I'm like
1121. 1:10:19how does tri Fein do that how does she
1122. 1:10:22treat the children who are sobbing at
1123. 1:10:24night waking up screaming from
1124. 1:10:26nightmares comfort them wipe their runny
1125. 1:10:30noses and deal with the runny bottoms
1126. 1:10:33and then dress the wounds of the men who
1127. 1:10:37made these kids orphans and my best
1128. 1:10:41guess is that tri Fein doesn't see them
1129. 1:10:44that way tri Fein has reframed and
1130. 1:10:48reclaimed those people before many of
1131. 1:10:51the rest of us would even imagine
1132. 1:10:53she saw those young men I think in much
1133. 1:10:55the same way she saw the children at the
1134. 1:10:57orphanage as her children this ability
1135. 1:11:02to reframe is so crucial to us to me and
1136. 1:11:06if you get a chance there's a podcast
1137. 1:11:09invisibie leah one of my favorites and
1138. 1:11:12it's called the personality myth and it
1139. 1:11:15gives many wonderful tools for this
1140. 1:11:17reframing of the other believing that
1141. 1:11:22people can really change we believe that
1142. 1:11:24we say that and I believe it with my
1143. 1:11:26heart and I love it when we say God can
1144. 1:11:28change someone's heart and I'm like yeah
1145. 1:11:29but how because a lot of people hear
1146. 1:11:33that and they're like well doesn't seem
1147. 1:11:35to be changing my heart and God gives us
1148. 1:11:37very practical tools that's the brain
1149. 1:11:39stuff I skipped over earlier they're the
1150. 1:11:41new pathways that we can develop in our
1151. 1:11:43brain the choices that we make that the
1152. 1:11:46the choice to look for the good the
1153. 1:11:48choice to not define people by their
1154. 1:11:50worst actions the choice to to express
1155. 1:11:54gratitude the choice to be open and
1156. 1:11:57vulnerable to find I don't pray yet we
1157. 1:12:03have a song to close I'm just gonna
1158. 1:12:07share this one little piece here from ya
1159. 1:12:13there was a whole part of forgiveness to
1160. 1:12:14two for me and the US government which
1161. 1:12:18will save for another day okay I gotta
1162. 1:12:21tell you I was really angry Clinton all
1163. 1:12:23right and then about a year ago I'm
1164. 1:12:28walking by a lake and there he is
1165. 1:12:31and I had wondered if this day would
1166. 1:12:33ever happen he was our president at the
1167. 1:12:35time of the genocide and he too was
1168. 1:12:37leading the UN to say no don't stay in
1169. 1:12:40Rwanda it's people who had the
1170. 1:12:42capability to do things and didn't do
1171. 1:12:45those things that was making me so angry
1172. 1:12:47and so I'm like do you do it or not here
1173. 1:12:51he is this is your chance so I walked up
1174. 1:12:54to him okay wait a minute I should tell
1175. 1:12:56you this was a dream all right but I
1176. 1:12:59mean I mean honestly
1177. 1:13:03it was it was very real you know how
1178. 1:13:06real dreams are and in this dream I
1179. 1:13:10walked up to him and I wasn't angry and
1180. 1:13:14I wasn't resentful and I said excuse me
1181. 1:13:18mr. Clinton and he turned and this is
1182. 1:13:23really silly but one of my core values
1183. 1:13:25is to be vulnerable okay so I'll tell
1184. 1:13:27you I said um my name's Carl Wilkens do
1185. 1:13:32you recognize that name I mean okay I
1186. 1:13:36was the only American that stayed in
1187. 1:13:37Kigali but I'm like I don't know if he
1188. 1:13:39knows that or not and I don't know why
1189. 1:13:40that was it was a dream okay
1190. 1:13:42and he goes no I'm like okay I just
1191. 1:13:48wanted to say hi and I walked away where
1192. 1:13:51I woke up something but I wasn't angry
1193. 1:13:55getting free of anger and resentment
1194. 1:13:59it's so and and reframing is a huge part
1195. 1:14:02of that if it's okay with you can we not
1196. 1:14:08do the last song and I'm gonna ask
1197. 1:14:10Theresa to play wait did somebody
1198. 1:14:13prepare was it was it a congregational
1199. 1:14:15song or was it a special music is it
1200. 1:14:20okay I got permission from the Brethren
1201. 1:14:23Theresa would you come and play I'm
1202. 1:14:28always looking for an excuse to get
1203. 1:14:30Theresa to the piano her mood music just
1204. 1:14:33moves my heart like like very few other
1205. 1:14:35things do and we have an agreement we've
1206. 1:14:38been married for 37 years and so we make
1207. 1:14:40different agreements and I agreed to
1208. 1:14:44read something while she plays a piece
1209. 1:14:46here before we have prayer okay so I'm
1210. 1:14:51finding it here but if you you can go
1211. 1:14:53ahead and start if you don't mind I am
1212. 1:14:55[Music]
1213. 1:14:57I wrote this piece quite a while ago and
1214. 1:15:01this is kind of off the cuff that's why
1215. 1:15:03I'm just finding it here but it's about
1216. 1:15:06freedom those of you who have who are
1217. 1:15:10familiar with Galatians five you might
1218. 1:15:12find some parallels here
1219. 1:15:22freedom it's clear we've been created
1220. 1:15:25for freedom it's our birthright freedom
1221. 1:15:30to love and be loved
1222. 1:15:31freedom to serve our birthright just
1223. 1:15:35stop and think about your happiest
1224. 1:15:36memories didn't they have something to
1225. 1:15:39do with exploring or learning weren't
1226. 1:15:42they somehow connected to serving
1227. 1:15:44serving without any thought of repayment
1228. 1:15:46serving without any thought of duty or
1229. 1:15:48obligation just the sheer joy of doing
1230. 1:15:50something you could do for someone else
1231. 1:15:52the sheer joy may be that memories
1232. 1:15:57wrapped in a moment of being loved loved
1233. 1:15:59unconditionally especially when we know
1234. 1:16:02we don't deserve it freedom doesn't mean
1235. 1:16:05doing what we want getting what we want
1236. 1:16:07searching for what we want that's how we
1237. 1:16:09lose freedom that's how we end up
1238. 1:16:11labeling and trampling each other and
1239. 1:16:13loose in sight of the image of God and
1240. 1:16:16each other and tragically eventually
1241. 1:16:19trying to exterminate each other you see
1242. 1:16:23I believe freedom is discovered when we
1243. 1:16:25encounter the other or freedom is
1244. 1:16:27threatened when we encounter the other
1245. 1:16:29the choices ours
1246. 1:16:32and and who is the other someone far
1247. 1:16:34away or someone fascinating someone
1248. 1:16:37repulsive someone feared someone longed
1249. 1:16:39for who are we the other two do I see
1250. 1:16:44the other is enriching my world or do I
1251. 1:16:46see the other is spoiling my world is my
1252. 1:16:49world safer with the other or what I
1253. 1:16:50sleep better knowing the other is far
1254. 1:16:52far away what would happen if I entered
1255. 1:16:56the others world if I said silently with
1256. 1:16:59the other if I staggered under the huge
1257. 1:17:02emptiness of the others loss if I was
1258. 1:17:04paralyzed by the others fear if I sobbed
1259. 1:17:07with the other if I simply walked with
1260. 1:17:09the other and asked myself why the other
1261. 1:17:12attacks hives is take screams is so
1262. 1:17:16secretive do I have the desire the
1263. 1:17:19courage will I take the time to enter
1264. 1:17:23the others world you see I believe every
1265. 1:17:26encounter is an opportunity and every
1266. 1:17:29opportunity demands a decision so
1267. 1:17:32freedom it's clear we've been created
1268. 1:17:35for freedom this free choice God gives
1269. 1:17:37us freedom to learn to love to serve and
1270. 1:17:41personally I believe it is discovered
1271. 1:17:44when we encounter the
1272. 1:17:47but the choice is always there it's our
1273. 1:17:53choice will you please stand with me
1274. 1:17:58pray father we thank you for this time
1275. 1:18:08together in your house the good news is
1276. 1:18:13it doesn't have to end your spirit can
1277. 1:18:16continue to go with us take the stories
1278. 1:18:20the thoughts the impressions that that
1279. 1:18:23were that you customized because they
1280. 1:18:25this stuff I'm sure changed from the
1281. 1:18:27time it left my house my mouth till it
1282. 1:18:29got to some people's ears and that's
1283. 1:18:32what we want we want your spirit to do
1284. 1:18:34that so we can hear just what we need so
1285. 1:18:37please do take this and might it
1286. 1:18:41continue to kind of marinate and then
1287. 1:18:44grow and an impact my heart my life and
1288. 1:18:49I think there's others here who share
1289. 1:18:51that prayer that wanted to impact their
1290. 1:18:54hearts in their lives and the way we
1291. 1:18:57perceive the other the way we treat the
1292. 1:19:00other so we thank you for this time
1293. 1:19:03together we thank you for examples like
1294. 1:19:06the nurse that the orphanage who
1295. 1:19:11tragically didn't survive
1296. 1:19:16she was your hands she was your feet she
1297. 1:19:19was your arms and she gave everything
1298. 1:19:24might we not be discouraged by that but
1299. 1:19:29might we be inspired to clearly see
1300. 1:19:32there are things worth living for
1301. 1:19:35and things worth dying for and we trust
1302. 1:19:39you Lord to help us see those things and
1303. 1:19:41we pray this with confidence because of
1304. 1:19:44Jesus
1305. 1:19:49[Music]
1306. 1:19:53[Applause]
1307. 1:20:02[Music]
1308. 1:21:25[Applause]
1309. 1:21:29[Music]
1310. 1:21:58[Applause]
1311. 1:22:01[Music]
1312. 1:22:10[Music]
1313. 1:22:53[Applause]
1314. 1:22:55[Music]
1315. 1:23:29you
1316. 1:23:38you