BEFORE & AFTER

Good evening, brothers and sisters. I would like to discuss something with my brothers and sisters who are watching through that camera right now. You know, I'm first I'm going to start off with Psalm 23. It's something that while I was in a cell. I came to just memorize. Little did I know that that prayer right there held so much power. And it is the Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He make it me to lie down in green pastures. He leaded me to the side of the still waters. He leaded me down the path of righteousness for his namesake. And he restores my soul. And yet, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for thou art with me. Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. Thou prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. Thou anointest my head with oil and my cup runneth over. Surely, goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Amen. And that prayer right there is about the shepherd, the shepherd who leads, you know, and I was lost for a long time in my life. But all of you that are sitting in that place, I want you to know that God sees you. He sees where you're at. He's only guiding and directing you and correcting you. A good father who has children will never say, hey, you can run out there in the street. It's OK. Just traffic. I doubt that any father who loves his children will discipline them.

So just know that you're only in a place of crushing right now so that you can be fashioned and formed into a strength that you never had before so that you can move forward. And it did. It took a place of crushing for me so that I could realize that rock bottom I was standing on was the rock of Jesus Christ. But I'll begin by telling you, I'm Joshua Seal. I'm 45 years old. I'm born and raised in Morristown, Tennessee. How y'all doing? I was born to a mother, Nancy Seal and Odin Seal. And my mother was a big advocate for domestic violence in Hamlin County. And most of my life, I had to deal with a lot of violence in our home just because that was mom's profession. She had to deal with a lot of things and it spilled into our home. And at a young age, I began to be a little smarter than your average kid. You know, I ended up at eight years old being introduced to marijuana and alcohol. And it was it was damaging because at eight years old, I shouldn't even been anywhere close to something like that. But nonetheless, these things happened. And time would move forward in my life as a small child into nine, 10 years old, just a few more years. And I'd hurt my knee real bad because I was really active. And I remember I got prescribed some hydrocodone. And man, did it go downhill from there? From about 10 years old to 13 years old, I had a full blown drug. I was an addict. By 14 years old, I had a girl pregnant. By 15 years old, I was a father. I wasn't even old enough to drive.

And in my household, I had created so much turmoil and so much I allowed so much evil to come into our home that pretty much my parents had threw their hands up. I had truant officers after me trying to put me and my parents in jail because I did not want to go to school. You know, I'm sitting here with a newborn baby because her mother had abandoned us. And as a young man that broke my heart into pieces, I never thought would heal. They were scattered to the wind. So I had to become cold inside just to survive because I had no idea of what real freedom was. And I urge all of you in that cell to know that you're called to be free. You're called to be free in Jesus. Everyone in this room. Jesus Christ has called you to be free like in Galatians. Galatians chapter five. When when lights out coming here in the next couple of hours in that cell and your tablet gets turned off. Once you sit in a little circle with your homies, man, why don't you grab that Bible and open it up to Galatians five tonight and know that you're called by Christ the Lord to be free. If you don't have a Bible in your cell, just get around each other, man, before you hit them sheets tonight, man, and pray. Pray to the Lord God. The Lord hears every word that is spoken out of the mouths of His children and He does love you. You are not lost and forgotten. Just because time seems to be standing still on the other side of that wall, other side of that door, God sees you. He sees you.

He's not forgotten you. And I can tell you this, I do, I have a scripture that I want to touch on because right when I got to be about 14, 15 years old, this is when I began to start hatching out some master plans. I was always trying to put my fingers in things and hatch out these evil schemes, you know. But little did I know I was trying to make a master plan but I was not paying attention to the plan of the master. And it was. It was really damaging most of my life and it was Proverbs 19, 21 right here it says you can make many plans but the Lord's purpose will prevail. Many of us have these plans that we're going after. I'm making a plan to do this, I'm making a plan to do that. Let me tell you, there's been many a time at True Purpose I've sat for weeks preparing my notes for my teaching that evening and then when I get up there I'm going, oh, whoa. Well, the Lord said forget about that. You know, even when David was constructing the temple, he was sitting there doing notes on it like, you know what Nathan, dude, I'm going to make a temple for the Lord and he did. He sat here and designed it all the way down to the dishes but then the Lord goes, you know what, your hands have shed blood, sir. You can't, you can't build that temple for me. But you know what, I've got a better idea. Your son's going to build it for me, you know, because God's plans will always prevail. His are better than mine. My best laid plans in life led me to destruction because number one, they were unholy. They were unholy plans. I always had feet that were so quick to run to evil. If it wasn't, let's go find another plug. It's a man, I got to go get another scale. Hey, I'm going to plan to make a move on that dude or man, your sister's hot.

I'm going after her. Let me tell you about these unholy plans that led nowhere, led nowhere. There was no longevity in it. There was no righteousness involved in it. All it did was dishonor my name, dishonor my family and hurt my father's heart. But God's plans, they do unfold. They do unfold in a way that are longevitous and they are prosperous and they give you hope. They give you a future that lasts. This is what God has in store for those who love him. Because let me tell you, if you delight yourself in what God wants for you, okay, if you delight what God has for you, his plans, and you're like, Josh, man, hold on, bro. I got to know everything. Okay. I need the details, bro. If you're making plans, I need the details. Let me tell you something. The devil's in the details. They say that a lot. The devil's in the details. God's in the details too, bro. He's in them. But let me tell you about God. The way that I've learned in my life that I have to have faith. I don't need to know the details, Lord. Once I began to grow in Christ, I come to find out that the details will follow obedience. Let me obey what God is telling me to do. And then he'll be like, yeah, okay. Now I'll tell you, this is my plan. Joshua, I've got plans for you to go here and do this and do that.

Discovering God's voice was tough for me too. It was really hard because my house up here in my mind was full of noise. It was always full of noise. Let me tell you, by the time 15 came around and I was a father, 18 rolled around and my father died. And he begged me to stay that night at home and said, please don't leave, son. I don't feel good. And I said, dad, mom don't want my dirty money in this house no more. If she sees me here, she's going to call the cops. I had just gotten an apartment, I was 18 years old. It took 10 years to get over that because I left that night. I left that night because I had plans. I had these plans. Let me tell you, God's plan was that he was going to go ahead and take the life of my father back to the heavenly realm so that I could have a crushing. Because at that point in my life at 18 years old, nothing would have pulled me away. Nothing would have knocked me down other than that type of crushing. And let me tell you, that kind of... Discipline hurt. But I had to learn that I had to trust God when he says no. I'm teaching my guys that right now at True Purpose. Everybody knows how to win. Oh, it's so easy to win. You ain't gotta put forth no effort, man. When you win, it's just like, yeah, I know how to win. Everybody knows how to win. But do you know how to lose? Do you know how to say, God, I trust you when my father's dead? I trust that you've taken my child from me.

I trust you, Lord, but I'm having a divorce. I trust you. I'm looking at 15 years flat. Trusting God is something I had to develop, and it was through crushing. I had to have my spirit crushed because my rebellious heart. And most men and women will not, they will not be put in a place of crushing of their own accord most of the time. It's because God will say, son, you have strayed so far away from me. I'm gonna put you in the pit. And even the righteous man goes as well. Because you look at Joseph, he went right to a pit he didn't ask for, a prison he didn't earn, and got accused of being a rapist, and he never did those things. But he trusted God. Not once did his faith falter. And that's what I say to each one of you tonight. Where is your faith at? Is it in your job? Is it in your spouse? Where is it at? Is it in your attorney? Is it in your homies, man? Is it in your clique? The only Almighty I know is the Almighty God. And he's the one that all increase will come from.

This picture I'm about to show you right now was when I had first gotten out, and you can see me with my safety glasses on here. This is me on break at work. And this is after my second violation. I had gotten out of federal prison. And we'll get to that. I'm bouncing all over the place here. But by 18, I ended up selling drugs for a good 15 years in my town. That's what I was known for. I wasn't known for being a hardworking dude. I was known for running around selling dope. And by the time I had hit my 30s, I was so deep into selling drugs and crystal meth, I got that job over there at Otix in Morristown. And you can see the sadness in that man's eyes on the left. I had no idea who I was, what I wanted, or where the heck I was going in my life. All I knew is that my car payment would get due. And let me tell you, I got to go re-up somewhere. I got to go re-up somewhere, man, because I can't pay for life on my own out here. I got to go find some more dope. That was one of the most terrible times in my life, because right there in that picture, you'll see that I ended up in jail shortly after that first picture. They took me to jail. The feds came and got me at work on break

because of that third overdose in Knoxville. I died in a young lady's living room floor on Lindale Avenue. And that was the hardest I think I've ever seen a human being cry when I woke up. That was a hard thing to deal with too, because once I got sober, it was hard to forgive myself for that. But after all those overdoses, I really didn't even take my life seriously. I had died three separate occasions on paper, and I'm still not taking it serious. I'm like, dude, you were dead. We were going to give up on you, bro. You know, you just were intubated, and now you want to cuss us, man, and run out of the hospital? I did not take these things seriously. Your life is not a joke, but you'll be blinded by drugs and alcohol, I promise you. This is the veil Satan will use to throw over your eyes, to numb you to every feeling you should feel, every conviction you should have from the Holy Spirit. Get sober first. I'm telling you, man, when I came to True Purpose, I have never been more afraid in my life, because I'd never been sober, never. Even in jail, I'm getting high. I had an overdose in Laurel County, Kentucky right when I got there,

and they had to rush me to Corbin, because I just could not get the job done. I didn't want to live, and I kept dying everywhere, but I kept coming back. But in a cell in Laurel County, Kentucky, I met a man named George Messer, and he wrote something on a piece of paper, because George would stay up all night praising God while we were asleep, because he said, I can't stand you boys in the morning. You're just loud and... And Bunk's just fighting, getting high. So I praise God at night, and I sleep all day. Well, he slid me a message written on a piece of paper. He said, Joshua, Heavenly Father told me to give that to you. And I know you don't believe that, but he did. That paper said, through your hurt and disappointments, out of them I shall bring great joy. In my heart, I knew it was the Lord. And when God speaks to you, you will know it, because you will not be able to mistake it for anything else. When the Lord speaks, you'll know. And when I heard that voice in my heart after reading these words as him using that man as an instrument in my life, I ended up getting offered a chance to go to rehab at True Purpose Ministries. And I'm a three-time violator looking at seven more years. How is that possible? Where do they do that at?

I had a cuss fight with my lawyer, saying, I'm going to the yard. You know, you're going to die. You're going to rehab. And when I got to True Purpose Ministries, that's when I had a real encounter with God. I had a real encounter with God. And then Ezekiel 36, 26 started to manifest itself in my life, because he had taken that heart of stone from my body and replaced it with a tender, responsive heart, a new spirit. I could feel again, not only that, but I had a thirst for righteousness now. For the first time in my life, I wanted to do things that were right, instead of having those feet that was quick to run to the trap. I can only explain it like this, that if you choose to surrender to Christ in your heart, you'll be transformed. But you have to mean it. This isn't something where you can ride the fence and be like, man, I'm one foot in the water, and I'm one foot in the fire, man. Because right there in the middle, in that ambivalence right there, you still belong to Satan, because you're serving the flesh. But if you will choose Jesus Christ tonight, serve him for once in your life. I know many of you behind them walls are like, I ain't never tried this Jesus thing. Bro, I didn't either.

This is four years into this thing. And now I'm a manager over a multimillion-dollar warehouse in Wexton, Knoxville. I am a teacher and counselor of other men. To let them know, I will proclaim the name of Jesus Christ, and I will witness to you the gospel. Four years ago, you can ask anybody that knew me back in the joint back home, and they brainwashed Josh, bro. He's become a Jesus freak. And yes, I have. I will serve the Lord far beyond this life. Into eternity will I serve him, because this life is fleeting. And what you do in this life will echo in the one after. So please, I'm begging you, even if you're doing some big time, all that means is the Lord is setting you apart so that you can be sanctified, set apart for his holy purpose. Don't close your mouth when it's your turn. There'll be an assignment in each one of your lives, and you will know it in your heart when you should step up and pray. Donate to that one family. Make that sacrifice. The Holy Spirit gives the conviction of the heart. And you cannot deny these things. It's like when my mama used to teach me good and evil. This is right. This is wrong. You'll know when the Lord is speaking to you. Do not shy away, because he will put you to the test in many places,

some of the most odd places God has told me to step out. I went to go eat with some friends at Jersey Mike's one time, and there was a man fighting with his wife, and it was getting violent. I literally heard the spirit go, you better go pray for that man. I walked outside, introduced myself, and told him, this is not the way. This is not the way. I began to speak over this man in tongues, and I began to pray over him. He began to cry and feel the spirit of God. And that is what I'll do. Every single time, we'll all be obedient to it. Brother Pierce, I don't know you, but you felt the spirit tonight just as I did. Because the spirit of God is something I will never deny. And I will proclaim the name of Jesus till the day that I die. If you need help, reach out. Come out to Rio. This church is amazing. Don't give up. Give in to God. I love each and every one of you for having the bravery and the courage to step forward in your life towards something good. It does take a lot to step out of your comfort zone and to pursue something healthy in your life. This is what Christ will offer you. He will offer you peace, prosperity. He will give you life and life more abundant. If you're sitting in a place right now where you feel like you've been stolen from, like some things have died in your life, like everything's destroyed, that is the enemy. That is not your Lord and Savior. Step away from those things that are causing all that. Step toward the Lord. That's all I have for you, ladies and gentlemen.

But I pray tonight that you come to a surrender. Come to a place with the Lord. Come to know Him. Because one of the biggest blessings that you and I take for granted is that we're not promised tomorrow. I don't know who said that or who said, hey man, you gonna wake up? We never know when the last time we'll see each other will be. So please, please come to know our Savior. Reach out to Him. Know His Word. Now is the time. I love you. Have a wonderful evening. You minister to them, brother. I love you. Hoo-wee, that was good. Alright, y'all. So really quick, we are going to close out with a serenity prayer and then we're going to do the chip ceremony. Where's Dave? Hawk? Do we have folks to do the chips? You do? That rocks. Okay. So really quick about groups. As soon as we're done praying, we're going to do chip ceremony and then we usually break out in our groups. Melissa, somewhere over there, is going to facilitate Katie Hawks, the multi-issue group in room F is in Frank, right? And then I will still do room A and then we got Dave, you'll be doing the boys in room B, right? Awesome. Alright, with that being said, if everyone will please stand. Amen. Someone buy me a gown and I'll wear it. Just kidding. Alright, so together we start with God. Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time,

accepting hardship as a pathway to peace, taking as Jesus did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it. Trusting that you will make all things right if I surrender to your will, so that I may be reasonably happy in this life, and supremely happy with you forever in the next. Amen. Amen. I want to thank our online community. I have no doubt that you all were ministered to because Josh blew it out of the water. I hope you receive the call, and tonight when you lay your head down, have that moment with Jesus, accept him into your heart, and allow him to be the Lord and Savior of your life. I promise you it will be better than you ever imagined. We'll see you next week.