episode 9 season 2

Oh, that's a long one, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey Take these myths and these cliches and they run with it thinking that it's biblical or it's something that God said or it's spiritual and I think we need to address it. You know, I want to actually start off with this one. There are phrases that people say that are not scripture, but because we've been told that it's scripture, let's just dispel them. And we never check. Let's just let people know that some of those phrases that we've heard over the years, yeah, those are quotes. Myths. Myths. Myths. They're not scripture. Can you give me an example, Mr. Nathan? Oh, 100%. Absolutely. Thank you for asking. One example I heard over the years in a cliché-ish way is, there's so many going through my head. Uh-oh. We'll just rattle them off. One is... Hmm. Hmm. Hmm. Pick one. Any one. Hmm. You know... Okay, here's one. Here's one. The race wasn't given to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but he that endures to the end. That's not scripture. It sounds fancy. I know. It does. It sounds like it was right there. The Bible says the race wasn't given to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but he that endures to the end. Yeah, that is not scripture. The Bible does talk about finishing the race. Mm-hmm. And don't give up before you get to the finish line. Mm-hmm. But it does not say... What is the finish line, Nate? The finish line. I would say, personally, the finish line, in my words and my words only, is to get to that place of completion. Sanctified? Yes. Standing in the presence of God, saying that I've done what you said to do. I've completed your will and not my will. Hmm. Ooh, that's a good one. That's a tough one right there. Because we do want our will to be done at times. Go on my way. Yeah. Another one. I'll give you another one. Have you ever heard this one? When praises go up, blessings come down? Oh, never. Never. Is that part of the prosperity envelope? Oh my God, yeah, yeah, yeah. That's not scripture. Darn it. That's not scripture. When I hear, and I've heard preachers say this, the Bible says when praises go up, blessings come down, I ask them, is that in 2nd Jude chapter 10? I missed that one. You're not supposed to add or take away from the word. I missed it. Some of the stuff that has been said in the church, even the things that we're going to go to hell about, I think we talked about it last week. Those things that they said we're going to go to hell for. Cursing. Drinking. Yeah, we're going to go to hell for that stuff. You do know we're not going to hell for that. No, because he died on the cross. Yeah, absolutely. And thank you. Thank you for mentioning that. So give me another one. Give me another one. That was a cliché, and I'll probably get more as they come to my head. But give me one of those religious myths that you've heard about growing up. Well, I know people don't believe in healing, like they don't believe in miraculous healing. Really? The laying on of hands. Huh. Yeah. Why is that? Because... Hospitals? Doctors? I don't know if that's part of it or if it's because we just don't see it. And we have to see things. Huh. So we don't see that God can heal a human, and we don't believe it? Yeah. Don't you think that we live in what we see, not faith? Oh, yeah. Things not seen. And I'm a believer, and I'll tell you that I struggle with it every damn day. That's one of the things everybody in this world does. There's no way possible that we can say that we 100% walk in faith every day. No. That's not true. We can't do it. I'm going to pray for that lion spirit. Whoever said that they do, I'm going to pray for the lion spirit. Oops. That's not true. Everybody struggles in the natural realm. There's a scripture in 2 Corinthians 4, verse 18. It says, While we look not at the things that are seen, but the things that are not seen. Because things that we see are temporary. So we struggle in that area because we're looking at everything in a natural state. Yes. It's what we see. Yes, some of us do. Try to say, okay, I'm not going to look at my bank account. I'm not going to look at my doctor's report. I'm not going to look at my this and that, and I'm just going to believe. Yes, some of us do, and some of us struggle. Yes. I'm one of the ones that may struggle in those areas. And like we've talked about, when it's your own body, and you're feeling all of it, it's very hard to hold on to that. Especially with healing. I believe that 100%, especially with healing. It's so easy to encourage someone else. Yes, because you're not feeling it. You're not in that body. Is that it? I think so. Because we're not feeling it ourselves? Yes, absolutely. But I've seen miraculous healing, and I've seen prayers answered and all that. And I think we need to explain that when you pray for healing for someone, when they're very ill or whatever, healing is also them going to be home with Jesus. That's complete healing. Come on. So when we pray about that, and then we get really ticked off that he didn't hear our prayers, we think, because they left us, and we're grieving, that is the ultimate healing. There is no healing above that. God, that's so good. So we have to explain that, because I think a lot of people see death as the opposite of healing. Yes, we get angry, we get upset, we're hurt. And, of course, those feelings are going to take place. However, and I'll speak this transparency, in a transparent way, I'm sorry, about my mom. My mom had a heart disease for years before she passed away. And we knew that this heart disease was getting worse. The doctor told us probably seven years before she passed away that it's not going to get better, and that she was not able to get a heart transplant. So we knew, inevitably, that it was going to happen. I struggled with the death at the beginning, and then I sat one day and I was like, Nate, that's selfish, because she don't have to struggle like that anymore. So the ultimate healing took place, what I had been praying for. So it's amazing that you said it to that perspective, because I think that we think that God is treating us bad. Yeah, he didn't answer our prayers. And he didn't answer the prayer. Yeah. If he knows that it's going to be worse, and you're saying, God, please heal this person. God, please, you know, supernaturally, blah, blah, blah. And the ultimate healing is that which they go home. Right. Wouldn't you want anything? I mean, you would want that for them. 100%. Yeah. I was selfish at a period of time, because I'm like, eh, she could have stuck around a little bit more, and this and that, you know. But, God, I thank you that you did answer my prayer. So thank you for saying that. That's really good. And that was miraculous, because it began to get so bad for her. And I look at even the time that she passed away, this entire world went through a huge pandemic. She wouldn't have been able to handle that. And then, if they had told me I can't go to the hospital and see her, because we were distant, she would have been in her house by herself. Oh, my God. God, I thank you, because I'm sitting up thinking, like, man, I was so selfish in that. And, yeah, of course, Mother's Day coming around, do we think about the memories? Absolutely, man. Love my mama dearly, and I thank you for answering my prayers, because he did. Yeah. And while we're on that subject, something that just struck me was, you know, we talk about when people have passed on, that they can look down and see us. I'm going to step on a lot of toes right now. Go ahead. Why would we want them to look down and see us when they're going to be absolutely grieved by what they see, when they're going to be heartbroken overseeing a struggle? They don't see us, because everything in heaven is peaceful and perfect, and that wouldn't be allowed, because that's going to bring in all of the bad, sucky stuff. And so, I know it comforts us, and I think that's something that we've made into this thing, but I don't believe that that's the way it works. It's not, and you just said it, because it's a comfort mechanism. It gives you that comfort in that moment. Oh, my God, my so-and-so is watching over me. Now, you have angels. One hundred. But they are not the people that have passed on. Angels have been around for eons. Beginning of time. Yeah. They're prehistoric creatures, if you want to talk about it like that. Yeah. But they're not the ones that left this world and left your life. So, some of the people that have said, hey, you know, I've got this loved one looking down on me, and this and that. If that provides comfort for you, I mean, I understand, but there is truth behind that. Like, that would be, that couldn't make a lot of sense for them to see you in the state that you're in, and they're at rest. I mean, yeah, that would be hard to do. So, if it gives you comfort, I mean, to each his own, but do understand that they're not looking down on you. No. I mean, they're not. No. But God is. We're going to get some comments after that. I want those comments. But that's, it's just, we have to touch these things that aren't touched. We do. And they're hurtful sometimes. Truth sometimes hurts. Yes. Actually, it hurts quite often. Most of the time. Anyways, that's another one that I, yeah. Absolutely. Thank you for bringing that one out. Last week I had called Shelby. I was leaving from podcasting. I called Shelby. I was like, man, one of the ones that we did not touch on last week, which I really wanted to touch myself, was speaking in tongues. This one is really debatable upon theologians, religious people, denominations. Well, they do talk about them in the Bible, Nate. Yes, they do. So, let me give my opinion about it. You know, it's just mine. Absolutely. That's what we do here. And no one has to agree. No one has to agree. Everyone's allowed to have their own. Absolutely. So, at one point in time in my life, I did not know anything about tongues. I didn't know what it stood for. I think, yeah. A lot of us don't. I was clueless. I had no idea. And I began to read and study a little bit more, and I was intrigued by what it said. When I'm reading these scriptures, and I had never heard about it, so I went to a leader, and I asked this person, Hey, you know, would you care to share with me what is this? I was a young man. I said, Would you care to share with me what is this? And that person said, Hey, this doesn't pertain to you. Don't worry about that. And what it, I mean, what it said, I was in the book of Acts, and it talked about... I was going to say, we probably need to explain. Yeah. And it said, you know, you would be baptized in the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. I was confused doubly. That ain't a word, but hey, I said it. The first confusion came in because all I knew was water baptism. The first confusion is, there's another baptism. The second confusion is, what's wrong with my tongue? Is it going to move? I mean, what is this with the evidence of speaking in tongues? Really? What is that? And I had a person to tell me, Hey, it's not something that should concern you. And I was confused. And this is someone who was mentoring you in studying the word. Yeah, yeah, yeah. This was a person that I looked up to very, very much so. And I guess after doing a lot of studying, understanding why he made that comment, I can see now, when people don't have any information to give you, of course they can just kind of throw you off and say, Hey, don't worry about that. Well, maybe sometimes that's better than giving you the wrong information, but... I guess that would make sense. Because I had a coach that told me one time, I came to him with some math problems at school, and he was like, Yeah, don't worry about that. Coach, I got to pass the class. But he didn't know. So I mean, I can't fault him, can I? So I'm looking at this leader that I thought that knew something biblically. All you could have told me was, I didn't know. Is it pride? Yeah. No weakness, no weakness. Okay. So tongues is a symbolic action that is produced in prayer to God in a language that is only between you and God to express in a way where you basically kind of want to have a conversation with him and him only. And it's to be done in a way that is not outwardly expressed, that people can be confused by what you're doing. It's led by the Holy Spirit. It is definitely led by the Holy Spirit. And if it's going to bring confusion to a person that do not understand, then be ready to explain to that person or congregation or whatever may have you what it is instead of doing something that confuses people, because God is not the author of confusion. But we know who is. So it's been debatable. I've been through theology school, and this was a big conversation. Huge. Do you think it's a gift, or do you think everyone can have it? Because it's a gift, everyone can have it. Because it's a gift. Okay. Any gift that's from God, it's not restricted from his children. To certain individuals. Yeah. From his children. I just wanted to clarify. Yes. Now, it's up to you to receive it. It's like, say on Christmas. You buy me a gift on Christmas. It's up to me to open it. I can say thank you all day long. Thanks. Shelby, I appreciate it. Oh, my God. And it's wrapped with a pretty bow, and I just throw it to the back of the closet. Well, there's lots of people that don't use all the gifts. Right. Yeah. Even me. I'm not. Yeah. And there are spiritual gifts. Yes. Probably just one. I want to touch on right now is the prophetic. Because it kind of goes along with the tongues thing. Yes. The word says we all prophesy in part. In part. That means we all. We all. We all. It very clearly states we all prophesy in part. In part. And the reason we prophesy in part is because we are a body, and it's just like a puzzle. We can put those parts together to get the greater message. You know what has, well, I guess I got to give this disclaimer, my opinion. You know what has placed people in an uncomfortable way when it comes to the prophetic? A lot of people wasn't prophetic. They were pathetic. Amen. Now, I think that you're salty, not me. Where's your ring at? I'm just sitting over here quietly. Yeah, I got to put on your ring today. Because, I mean, the 1-900-I'll-tell-you-you-know-your-future and stuff like that. Well, that's different. I believe that some of those people do have gifts. That's different. Because those kind of, the palm readers, the psychics and all that, okay. Yes, they have a gift. But they're using their gift in the wrong manner. Absolutely. And it's been taken over by the enemy. Is that not what Jesus went into the church when he began to flip chairs in the church because of that thing that was going on? How do you sell a miracle? How do you sell a sign? It ain't your right to do any of that. Exactly. So people that do have those gifts, it became pathetic because, can I just give you, here's my saltine. Do it. My saltine reason why. Do it. I'll get on the bandwagon with you. So I had a situation that happened to me, man, in my earlier years where I was met in the parking lot by a prophet. So I call them parking lot prophets. And I got, yeah, this parking lot prophet, and he said, God told me to tell you X, Y, and Z, and A, B, and C, and blah, blah, blah, and this and that. But it was all for gain for him in other ways. And then I was met by another pathetic, because he wasn't speaking prophetically, but pathetic person. I'm standing in a service, and at the time I was standing with my wife and my children, and there was a couple of people that was there with me. And this prophet said to me, God is about to send you a wife. Whoops. Really? I thought she was standing next to me. I've been married for like five years already. Oh, that's hysterical. I missed something, like, did we get married? I was thinking, I know we went through the, I said I do, I saw her say I do. I was thinking, like, and what did I do wrong? So explain to me, or can you discern the difference between pathetic, prophetic? Well, like you said, if there's an agenda behind it, it's definitely the pathetic and not the prophetic. And anybody who's charging you money for something is not prophetic. They are pathetic. But you have to have discernment. Yeah. And that's, the discernment is a really big, big deal. Like, we all need more. But, you know, the word says we all do it. We all have the ability. To prophesy. Yeah. But. If we're game. And that's the motive that people need to check first within yourself. I've even had, man, I got a book. I'm going to just tell you I got a book. But I've had people, especially in leadership roles, that would use their means of trying to get something and utilize their platform to lure people. It was all manipulation and witchcraft to me. And when I saw it, it made me just, yeah, as you said, you just need the spirit of discernment because it can get weird. There are wolves. Oh, yeah. The word says there's wolves. And they have on sheep clothing. I promise you. And they got a turn back collar and a big old cross carrying a Bible. And they want to be part of the flock. They just want to assimilate, get in there. Yes, ma'am. Yes, ma'am. I sound very passionate. And Shelby's looking at my face. But I'm so serious. I saw some stuff that it's terrible from a male standpoint where men would lure women to sleep with them, to do just sexual things. And they would use their platform and their pathetic words to lure them. I've saw so many different, even from women, even from women. Yeah. I've saw some manipulating things. And it's sad to say. I had a woman tell me, God told me, I'm your wife. I said, how? Wow. Did God miss me? I wasn't in that conversation. He needs to reveal that to me because that's news. I wasn't in the conversation. He didn't share it with me when he wasn't going to tell me. I was surprised. Wow. But, yeah, that can be misleading and hurtful if you don't have the spirit of discernment. Yeah, and that. Discernment is a gift. The enemy does everything like the people of God do because he wants to imitate them. So you have to be able to determine what's the imitation and what's the real. You spoke about counterfeit. Yeah, you can only do that through discernment. Because the enemy puts out some pretty dang good imitations, let me tell you. Looks so good. Oh, yeah. And they can spew the word at you. You think the enemy doesn't know the word? It reminds me of a movie. I don't know if anybody ever saw this movie. Have you ever saw Devil's Advocate? No. It's a really, really good movie. And it was talking about how this guy was so talented in his craft. He was a lawyer and he was very talented. He could never lose a case. And it kind of showed where the devil was making sure that he never lose as long as he served him. The mom, thank God for moms, the mom with the spirit of discernment says, uh-uh, I know who you are. And mentioned to the son, yeah, there are wolves that look just like sheep. Be careful. Can I just say that to the listeners? There are wolves that look just like sheep. Please be careful. It's okay to grab your Bible and read it for yourself. It's not going against your pastor and, you know, you got to go, oh, I got to see what he said. I'm not saying that. I'm saying that it's okay for you to grab your Bible. You don't have to listen to what everybody's saying and just do what they say do. Yeah, and when you're reading it, ask the Holy Spirit to impart it into you and to help you see it and understand it. See it. Yeah. There are people that do. I do that every morning. I mean, that's what I do every morning because I don't. Amen. Every time you read, even if it's the same scripture, you read it again and it gives you something new because it's living. It's a living word. Yes. Yes. Yes. That there have been times where people would just take what the pastor is saying. Yeah. Just run with it. Never read for themselves. So it's not the Bible says it's what the pastor said. It's not God's word. It's his word. Pastor so and so. Because he said it. It's the truth. Got to know that they're just as human as we are. I know that's hard to hear, but they are human. Just like us. We're human. Yeah. Yeah. We make mistakes. Oh, all the time. We mess up. Yep. So let's let's talk about the spiritual realm. Spiritual. Yeah. Because I think a lot of people don't really understand it or don't really think it's real or. Oh. OK. I'll start with there's a scripture in the book of Acts chapter one. Verse eight. It says this is after Jesus ascended. It came and he showed himself to the disciples. Talk to him. Give him instructions and stuff like that. And right before he left, he gave them the ultimate thing to do. The last instruction. He said, I'll leave unto you the Holy Spirit. And you will obtain this power. I need you to use this power. In Judea, Samaria and the uttermost parts of the earth. The power of the Holy Spirit. The reason why he said that is because it kind of flipped from a natural fight to a spiritual fight. There were letters that was written about Paul. One of the letters that and there was a lot of things that he said talking about the spirit realm and just spiritual things, period. One of the things that he mentioned in the book of Ephesians was the weapons of our warfare. They're not carnal, but they're mighty through God to pulling down strongholds. And then he talked about how we're wrestling not against the flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers and rulers in dark places. And so the spirit realm is a is a realm that is controlled by demonic activity and satanic forces, rulers in dark places. And we have to understand that we can't win that fight with a gun, with a bat. With our fists. We have to understand that our weapons that we can use, we have a weapon of worship. We have a weapon of praise. We have the weapon, the biggest one of all, it's our sword. Fight them with the word. Do you know what Jesus said when he was tempted by Satan? Everything he said, he started off with three words. It is written. The reason why he started off with that, because he Satan thought that he was going to get him out of character to fight another way. I can fight you with the word because I mean, that's facts. That's truth. In the beginning was the word. The word was with God and the word was God. You can't go against that. And Satan knows that. And it's a living thing. Come on. It's a living word. And because he knows that, that's the only weapon that we can fight back with. And the Holy Spirit. Of course. And with the Holy Spirit leading and guiding us. Not ourselves. But the Holy Spirit. So this spiritual realm, I think we need to understand that it's not what we think it is. Can I say this one thing? And I want you to touch on this Shelby. We're not aliens. Yep. You care to touch on that for me, please. Well, I mean, you want some more? Yes. Demons can take any form they want to. I have experienced it myself. And some of them are pretty yucky. Actually, they're all pretty yucky, but they can come across as a regular looking Joe. True. Absolutely. Some of them are really icky with really long fingernails. Yeah. I've had those standing over me before. That's not fun. Scratch their nails across my back. Standing over you. Oh my gosh. Yeah. Yeah, but they can take any form. Yeah. And a lot of them look really beautiful and dapper. And dang. Did she say dang? Dang. So are you telling me that demonic or satanic spirits can look just like us? Yeah. What? They don't have to, though. They don't even have to be visible. So they're not like they got 25,000 testicles. I mean. They might. I've never seen one like that. But they might. Antennas. Antennas. They have a bunch of antennas coming out their head. Coming out their head. Oh my God. Oh my gosh. That was too funny. Antennas. Antennas. Antennas. Antennas. They don't have a bunch of antennas coming out their head. They got like three faces. No, they can. I've seen them before where they're not. Yeah, they're kind of woo. But no, they can look just like you and me. Wow. They can look just like us. Yep. So can angels. You know, you could entertain angels. That's good. Now that's real good. Angels and demons can look just like us. Mm-hmm. Do you believe. And hear the phrase. Do you believe that demons can get on you or in you? On. On you. Okay. Do you believe that angels are within people or they just on people? I think they're on. Got it. Got it. So an angel can take the present, you know, the makeup, physical makeup of a person. But they're still an angel. Right. Yeah. Right. So that would be the same thing as a demon, right? Yeah. And they can take the physical form. Mm-hmm. I just got a movie that popped in my head. It's a movie called Falling with Denzel Washington. But it literally was demonic spirits entering into people off a touch. Mm-hmm. That's why, I mean, I'm going to say it. I don't let everybody touch me. I've been in services where they say they got. So you think they can get in you? But that's the spirit that gets in you. No. On me. Okay. On me. Not in me. Okay. On me. And that's the only way that I believe demonic and satanic things can happen. They only can get on you. God created us. Yes. But they can't get inside. Right. To be on you can take over a physical. It manifests. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah. And it can cause you to do some things that. Crazy, wacky stuff, man. Yeah. Now, I had this conversation even on last night. Demons versus mental health. Oh, you're going to muddy the waters now. Come on now. I don't know that we're ready for that one. I don't think we're ready for it. I mean, we got about a good 20 minutes. Would you want to touch it and we'll come back to it? Because, I mean, that's a huge one right now. Well, if you don't think that demons can affect your mental health, then you're strong. Period. Yeah. Okay. Okay. Because we all have intrusive thoughts. Right. And if they get a hold of those things, which they definitely can, and like we've talked before, the words that proceed out of our mouths, once they're out of our mouths, they can be used against us. Absolutely. Because death and life are in the power of the tongue. Absolutely. So you got to watch what you say and don't put curses out there on your own self. Come on. Because the pit of hell will use it against you. Absolutely. In a way it can. But, yeah, that's a touchy subject right there. It is, but it's going on nowadays. Well, we see it. Big time. Yeah, because of what we do. What we do. I will go on record to say that I've seen so much demonic activity in a zombie type of way. I just saw that this last Sunday. Wow. And I thought of you because you said that to me, and it was like I saw two of them, and I was just like, that is literally walking dead right there. Thank you. Thank you. I don't know if I can just say, okay, yeah, that's mental health. That's oppression. Yeah. In the scripture, it's in Matthew. It's in Matthew. I want to say Matthew 20. I don't want to give the chapter. But it talks about how when a spirit occupies the actual person. This is Jesus talking. And when a spirit occupies and rests on a person, once it leaves. You got a big old vacuum. Here's the biggest part of it. If it leaves and you never. Shut the door. Shut the door. And seal it. It'll come back, and it says it'll come back seven times stronger than what it was. We're missing the concept that these spirits have multiplied. And I think we need to talk about that we are not saying the person is evil. We're not saying anything about the person. We're saying we need to understand in flesh and bone that when you see something that you don't like about someone. Or when you see activity or behavior that is abnormal and vile. That's a demonic presence. So it has nothing to do with that person, really. But they have opened doors to things that have attached to them. And that's what we have to fight is getting those doors closed and get what has attached to them off of them. Thank you. We love that person. That person is not the issue. The issue is what has attached to that person. And what has oppressed the spirit in that person. And what has flooded them with the demonic stuff. Yes, and we've got to give them appeal. I think an appeal will help. Yeah, I had to go out and say that one. Because every time we see something that is, I guess, not normal. We're ready to give it appeal. Or we're ready to hate them. We're ready to, you know, condemn them and put them in the confines of whatever. I don't want people thinking that I'm against medicine. I don't want people thinking that I'm against medicine. I don't want people thinking that I'm against diagnosis and stuff like that. I do believe that there is a mental, chemically imbalanced thing that takes place in a human body. I believe that 100%. I saw it take place with my younger sister. I didn't believe at first in what you call bipolar. And I saw it manifest. I saw it manifest like she was just normal. And then five minutes later, she flipped. So schizophrenia and bipolar and stuff like that. I believe that that stuff is real. However, however, anytime there is spiritual, demonic attack, appeal ain't helping it. No. That's why we need to be discernful and mindful of the situation. Because it is. It's just masking it. Actually, it's probably going to make it worse. Well, I think we need to understand that everything boils down to a spiritual battle. Yes. Everything. There is nothing in this world that is not spiritual when it comes to human beings. There is nothing. We are all, we start as a spirit. That's what we are. Yes. So everything that we battle with is a spiritual battle. Yes. Whether it's mental health, whether it's weight loss, whether, I mean, like everything. Yes. Sickness, disease, all of that stuff. It's spiritual. Yeah. Even insecurities. All of it. Yeah. It's spiritual. Right. And we get so fixed on what the world sees and how the world handles things. And we don't deal with what lies underneath. Wow. I guess that's why we got to talk about it. Is it uncomfortable? Yeah. Yeah. And, you know, you've mentioned your eye gates and your ear gates and stuff like that. Those things are really important when you're talking about the spirit realm. You know, off camera, we were talking. Shelby shared with me when she was a kid, her mom wouldn't let her watch certain things. Yeah. And my mom was the same way. There were just certain things that we couldn't watch. Now, the key word in that is watch. Because that is a gate. And as long as you allow that gate. It's like the spirit of lust. If you're filling the gates to fill up that spirit. Yes. It's going to open up the gates. Yeah. Absolutely. I think we miss the concept that even with demonic activity, God reminded us, I didn't put a spirit of fear in you. No. I didn't give you that. That's not of me. And it's already conquered. God Almighty. So it's not something to be afraid of. It's not something to think, oh my gosh, what am I going to do? No, you've already won the battle. The battle's already handled. But we have to address it correctly. And we have to put the devil in his place. And it's very easy to do. You say the name Jesus and he's got to bow down. There ain't nothing. Because you're the head and not the tail. He is your footstool. Yes. You get to stomp on his head. Squish him. Come on. Squish him. Like the little thing he is. Yes. And that's all he is. Now he roars real big. Bark? Big old bark. Big old growl, man. He'll make you cower in a corner. But his bark is all he's got. That's it. He ain't got nothing else, honey. Nothing else. Wow. And it only looks big. It may sound big here and there, but it only looks big. Yes, it's all a show. You talk about Jesus and he goes, I'm so sorry. I'm going to say peace out right now. I'm going to go the other way. You got to bow down at that name. That is a name that is above every name. Every knee has to bow. Yes, but you have to use it in authority. And you have to be convinced and sure in that name yourself. Because he'll still railroad you if you're like, oh, Jesus. Get away. You got to have some confidence. You got to believe in no weapon formed against you. Excuse me. We have to stand firm and know that Jesus has already won this fight. A long time ago. So when I speak, I'm speaking victorious. I'm not speaking timid. I'm speaking with authority and power. The Bible says in Luke 18, God has given us the power over all the power of the enemy. All the power. That means he has none. Nope. Nothing. Yeah, I want to say something, because when I was pregnant with my second son and it was towards the end of the pregnancy, I was asleep one night and I was awakened and I was immobilized. I was paralyzed and I knew it was a demonic presence and I knew they were trying to take the baby and I could not move and I couldn't talk. I couldn't wake my husband up. I couldn't do anything. And I had always been taught that, you know, from a very young age, if you feel that, then you just simply Satan in the name of Jesus, I command you to leave. I couldn't even do that because I couldn't speak anything out. And I remember laying there and I was like fighting like, come on, come on. I got to get something out. I got to get something out. And I know the Holy Spirit welled up within me because I literally eked out like a little whimper. And that was enough. And it was gone. And it was gone. Just like that. Yeah. Now, when I had that baby and he was dedicated, prophesied over him that he was going to be the pastor of many people. Come on. And he tried to stop that. He tried to stop that and couldn't. So it's you just it's very simple. If you guys feel that oppressive feeling and it's just icky and you can I mean, sometimes you can literally just feel it. Well, you just say in the name of Jesus, Satan, get out of here. Book it. Has to go. Yeah. But you got to use the name Jesus and you got to believe that it's got the power. And you don't have to yell. You don't even I mean, like I said, I was a whimper. You said you you you literally said something small like I can I can see it. As you were explaining, I can see it like you just laying in bed. You feel like I can't move. I can't. My husband is right here. This is what is about to happen. And just that whimper. Yeah. He had to leave. That's how much power. Thank you, God. Thank you, God. Thank you, God. That's how much power you had in a whimper. Yeah. In a whimper. But it was the Holy Spirit. You know, that goes back to another thing that religious beliefs or things I've heard growing up. Something that was said to me and I hear it all the time by people and I just kind of look at them. You ever heard the saying, oh, the devil is busy. Oh, the devil is busy. Oh, the devil just attacking me right now. I question that to a certain extent, like, you know, for one, I'm not going to give him that much power over me because he's nothing. He is nothing. He is successful in staying on his job. Like sometimes we get off. We take a break. Right. When things are pretty kosher, when things are good. We'll take a break. We get slack. He never punch out. Nope. Never take a break in any capacity. And so once he continues to work and then he gets you not working. Now you're saying the devil is busy. No, he's he's consistent. You're not. That's how I see it. And it doesn't. I'm not saying for you to go out and be super spiritual and stuff like that. Just know that if you don't have your guard up. Yeah. You don't punch out. Yeah. Why we keep punching out when things are OK. Oh, man. My body's good. I'm good. My kids are good. Blah, blah, blah. I got some money in my pocket. He's waiting. Waiting. And not only that, but in our humble hearts, we should be thanking God that we are where we are. If we're in the midst of being successful and healthy and happy and things are going good, then you should be offering up some praise for that every day. At least acknowledging it. I agree. But we do get complacent in our comfort. Is it OK to say self-centered? Oh, yeah. Selfish. Yeah. It's all about us. And then once things get all out of hand. God. Help me. Where are you? Yeah. I don't know. This is one of those conversations that I guess it kind of it should help. It should get you your mental juices flowing and allow you to think. Yeah, I don't have to be afraid. No, there is no fear. Not of demons. Even if they're scary looking ones. Oh, and it's not that scary looking. I've seen them. Me too. Me too. It's something that is very, very scary looking, especially to the natural eye. There was some demons biblically. It's in all the Gospels. Jesus had saw or came across this particular area where some demonic activity taking place. And Jesus said, who are you? I know what he said. I know what he said. This demonic, satanic force stood up and said, we are Legion. Legion. There are many. There are many. Just within one. My goodness. Are we not? That right there led me to believe even Jesus can recognize that there are demonic and satanic activity that's taking place and still not be in fear. Because he said, who are you? He recognized it. And then once it stood up and thought he thought Jesus was going to tuck his tail and run. No, no. The Legion wasn't afraid either. Legion said, I know who you are. Because that's exactly what happened. I know who you are. And sometimes they buck up. Because they know who you are. You don't think that you remind them of who you are. Absolutely. Just say, yeah, I know who I am, too. So don't forget it. You can go back to the pit where you belong. Keep having your barbecue down there. Yeah. Do you think. And I know you don't. You got to understand that that demon that tried. You when you were pregnant. Didn't know who you were. A demon knew exactly who you were because he knew your child. Knows your mom. Can I go there, boy? That demon knew exactly who you were. And see, that's the thing. My mom taught us really young. About demonic stuff and how to deal with it. And so when the devil came to me at seven years old, I was just like. Okay, you need to like buy. Get on. Yeah, you do it here. You don't belong here. I'm teaching our kids fear. We got to run from. No. Never running from the devil. And there's a big difference between the fear of the natural things. Like I'm I'm not a big fan of spiders. Hmm. Oh, I have a kryptonite with me. I got a kryptonite. I'm not a big fan of them. So having spiders around. I mean, I let them have their area. I have my area over there. But that's not the same kind of fear. In which we're speaking about when it comes to. Spiritual or in the spirit realm. That that that fear. And it goes back into the second Timothy one and seven. When God said, I did not give you the spirit of fear. The key word is spirit. Mm hmm. Not natural. So you see me running from a spider. I've already. To say. Hey, no. Hey. But that's funny. Got too many legs for me to everybody. And that's another reason why we have to stay built up. We have to stay strong in the word. We have to stay strong in our knowledge because. You know, when you're at the bottom of the barrel, which we all go to. And then Satan comes knocking on your door. Well, he's actually already there. But. If you're not strong enough. Yeah, he can really tweak your noggin and. And get you in a bad place. Absolutely. Because he lies constantly. And anything that's confusing or confusing or chaotic. Is not God's plan. Amen. That is the devil. Yes. God deals in peace. God deals in peace. So if there's chaos and confusion coming in there. It's not of God. No. The chaos and the confusion part is not of God. Amen. Yes. Now, the chaos and confusion might be coming in. To redirect you away from what God wants you to do. Because that's what Satan likes to do. Good. Just take your eye off the prize. Yeah. And usually when you are fighting a battle. That means that you're on the right track. And he wants to stop you from getting to the goal. Wow. So. Wow. But just know that the confusion is not coming from God. God deals in peace. Yes. Yes. Amen. So as we wrap this up. Do understand, of course, at the end of the day. We are winners. We're victorious. We are the champions. Champions. Yes. We are the champions. The Bible says that the battle is not ours anyway. Nope. He's won it. Yep. All we got to do is walk in that authority. Walk in that confidence. Know it. Own it. Yeah. And you can strut. Like be, yeah. Yeah. I know who I am. Tell the devil, get on, bro. You don't have to do this. You don't have to do this. You don't have to do this. Tell the devil, get on, bro. You don't belong here. Nope. And stand on that. Please, please, if you've never heard the word discernment, look it up. Find out what it means. You need it. Yeah. This day and age, you need it. Yeah. And, you know, even the strongest warriors waver. Come on. We all have our moments. Come on. So don't get all over yourself. But it happens. It happens. It happens. Because we still have one less blessing. And that's part of needing the body. Yeah. Oh, yes. Yes. Yeah. We need each other. And, you know, there are some people that are more discerning about spirits. And, like, we have a friend who will throw me in between her and a spirit because she knows that. That person there. Yeah. So there are just some people that have, I don't want to call it a gift, but more discerning or there's something there where they're more. You said all the time, we need each other. It's the body. And say if you are better in making macaroni, and I know how to make it, but it's not really good, I want your macaroni to go to the. Right. Exactly. Because you're better at it. It's not saying that we're in competition. No. It's just saying you have. A little more knowledge. A little more experience. That's all. Yeah. That's why we need each other. Yeah, exactly. But we do. We need the body. We need the church. Yes. Not the four walls. Not talking the four walls necessarily, but we need people to edify us and build us up when we're being attacked or when we're in the pit. Yes. Amen. Thank you all so much for tuning in. We're going to finish this on this week, talking about those religious beliefs and those things that have been said over time. And I just want to kind of dispel those things and let you know that the truth is what it is. The truth will set you free. Set us free. So we love you. Bless you. Word of my podcast was made in Shelby. We'll see you soon. Bye. Bye.