It is About the Nail After Hours

Hey, this is Mike Zwick from If Not For God Podcast, our show.

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But most of all, thank you for listening and for choosing the Truth Podcast Network. Starts here, now. Welcome to Masculine Journey After Hours and we are talking about a topic today that, Danny, I just think you need to explain it, what we're really talking about, because I'm unsure. You're unsure. I'm unsure, yeah.

Talk about a nail in a sure place. Yeah, exactly. So, I'm a little unsure, so if you could help me be more sure. I'll help you nail it. All right, there you go.

There you go. The just topic is a nail in a sure place and it comes from Isaiah 22, 23. It's, I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father's house. It's talking about the places in life more so that you find yourself and could be a God-ordained place, but you may or may not be real happy about it. You know, we always find that, we always think that, you know, this Christian life is everything's going to be glorious and wonderful and I think it was said pre-show that this isn't Eden. That's over near Burlington, which we determined it was not, so. In relationship to here, it's over that way. It's over that way, yeah.

It's east. Yeah, east of Eden. No, wait, no. That's a different show. That's a whole different show right there. Exactly.

No clips from that. No, but it's just got a wing. Harold knows the way. What? Yeah. Harold knows the way.

He knows the way. He's from there. Just outside. Just outside. Just outside Eden. So a lot of, as we were talking before in the other show, about if you go back and you ask, I think a lot of the people in Scripture, did they feel like they were in a sure place at the moment they were in it?

I think the answer would be no a lot of times. Now they can be sure with God, that's a separate thing and that's what we're talking about, but to have their, what's going on around them to be a place where they feel comfortable, where they feel certain of, that's not the case, you know, in most places. Abraham going to a new country. A lot of uncertainties he made those travels, right?

Or Abram at the time. But yeah, you know, and so you have all this backdrop of uncertainty in it and that's typically what life is. There's a lot of uncertainty to it. I'm going to go to a clip from the movie Friday Night Lights. It's not the most uplifting clip, but what you have going on here is you have a football player, high school football player, he's in his junior year, I think at this point in the movie and in the TV show and he blows out his knee and he's from the inner city and it was his way of getting provision for his family, his dad had taken off, provision for his mom, you know, he's going to make the pros. He's got pro scouts that are looking at him even in high school, you know, talking to him about, hey choose a good college, all that kind of thing and then he hurts his knee and so his whole goal is to get back to the life that was a sure thing for him and so when you listen to this clip he runs into a doctor that tells him news he really doesn't want to hear and at the beginning of it you'll find this is Texas football so it's a big deal down in Texas, it still is a high school ball, but the doctor is from a competing town, Midland, he says early on and it comes back to haunt him as we listen to this clip, but as you listen to this guy what's really going on is he's not liking the place he's being nailed to right now. My son Andrew played for Midland and ended up back east at Penn. Oh he playing with Joe Paterno.

University of Pennsylvania, pre-med, just let it relax. You have any pain? Not at all. Does this hurt? Nope.

None of that hurts? Nope. Okay you're James's dad?

No I'm his uncle. Come over let me let me look at the skin with you. Uh this is the skin we just did today of his of his knee and this is looking right through the middle of the knee and what we're looking at right through here is is the ACL and what this shows is that he's had a fairly significant fairly serious injury. James let me show you right through here is where the injury is and and it looks like you've had a pretty serious injury to that part of your knee significant enough that that I have concerns about what you can do from here on. So when can I suit up? Well let me just say with how your knee felt when I examined it and what I see on the scan the things that you do well the reason you're great is that you can run and cut and hammer people and you don't hesitate because you've got a solid knee.

When you don't have this ligament you can't do that so it's really out of the question. No no no that's that's not what Dr. Spencer said he said three weeks three weeks is up and I'm ready to play. I understand I understand but again when I based on what I see when I feel your knee examine your knee what I see here you you you really can't play with this kind of injury. What are you talking about I can't play I'm gonna play I'm ready to play. What I want is for you.

My team needs me I'm ready to play. Listen to me. I am listening to you. I want I want what's best for you you and I are on the same page I want you to be on the same page. How you gonna want what's best for me? Hold on hold on how you gonna want what's best for me? You're from Midland right?

Listen to me. You're from Midland? You just jealous because you from Midland.

What I recommend listen to me. You jealous because you're from Midland? Who paying you? Who paying you? Who trying to take my football? That sounds like me sometimes. A little bit but you know I think that that's what you're hearing from him is a form of grief right and so you got to go through all those stages anger and denial all those kinds of things until you can get to the place of acceptance where our journey is not a lot different right there's a lot of things in this life to to grieve over whether that's relationships or finances or employment you know whatever that may be there's plenty of opportunity and we still have to go through that cycle get to get to that point at some point of acceptance right because we're at that point of acceptance that's when we can turn to God and say okay God what do you have it planned here I still may not like where I'm at but you have me here what now right you guys are all shaking your head again no rattling Harold has something to say I think the key is that we should always keep in mind what Isaiah said about God's ways being higher than our ways and his thoughts higher than our thoughts we can't understand things that he understands so if we're in a situation that we don't like we need to think about whether or not it may be good for somebody else and that we just got to endure it until it changes I think about Job a lot of the time that he never gave in to the friends quote unquote that were telling him things that were not true Job knew what was true and he stuck to his guns and God came on the scene and told the others that Job was right and so he won out in the end because he persevered even when his wife had told him to curse God and die and he said you're a foolish woman so I think that's important for us to realize that we may be where we are not because it's what we want or what we think is best for us but God knows better than us how did she take that did she take that hard when I told her that oh she went off in a huff yeah talked about it for weeks well you know God understanding thing I maybe God will understand Jim's texts sometimes because Jim tells us that he's going to be off towing t-o-e-i-n-g none of us ask him what he meant but so I don't really know what that means well I think you said it earlier in Tobo cop he's Tobo cop yeah yeah he's towing he used to be a cop I think you just call him Tobo cop nailed it nailed it that's right well we talked about earlier you know that since he doesn't have his whole big toe which is a scary you know picture you know do they become dude slip flops and slip flops yeah I mean we had a in between shows we had a really deep conversation on slip flops they would all be slides at that point you know if you call them slides you know because they do now and Harold was telling us about how big Goliath's sandals were yeah yeah yeah Philistine flops yeah exactly trademark anyway so Danny you had a question for the group did you not somewhat of a question a statement statement ish question ish we question whether it's a statement or not okay it's think of a time when life was tough and you may have been unsure where life had taken you and possibly in hindsight you see that God has used you as his nail in a sure place and you know just kind of personal stories and one of which about four or five years ago I was probably six or seven years ago when the journey began I was working at a company in Greensboro I was a commercial appliance technician well my knees and my back began to give out I went to the doctor about my back and he says I got good news and bad news good news is don't have to do surgery on your back bad news is what else can you do for a living and so I kind of went into panic mode and you know God opened up doors in that company and ended up with a desk job and you know moved into management and I was on the mountaintop because this was my nail in a sure place well it came to be that because of the way the management shuffled in that business I was going to literally die of a heart attack it was so much stress so dang it so I my wife looked at me and said you need to find another job or you're going to die of a heart attack she said I don't see and so here I am thinking okay God you took me here so what do we do because I don't know what else I'm going to do I know this business I know the service business and you know he opened up another door where I'm at now and but you know it wasn't a fun place to be and you know I went through the things you talked about the anger the grief you know because my plan was to retire from that company I've been there 11 years you know was invested in this company and all of a sudden it's like like somebody talked about earlier the claw hammer began to rip at things and you know I wasn't sure at all but God was sure because you know now here we are in King and hanging out with you guys and all kinds of neat things yeah that's the nail we're unsure about yeah that's going to go a little different direction but when you when you said about stories this one came to my mind I if something happened really surprised me I've never forgotten it is it when I was I used to run the big Chrysler Plymouth store in Winston-Salem and got fired um I won't even go into why all that was but I had done a bible study in the place and and we'd sold a lot of cars and from my standpoint we saw a lot of success when I left the place it was certainly a heartbreaker um and one of those where you felt the claw pulling you out but I got several calls from employees like six eight months later and by this time I'd started the west side Chrysler Dodge Jeep and I was doing okay and whatever and they said you just wouldn't believe what happened when you left Robby everything changed that the language changed the way people sold cars changed it went from we're doing this for the customers to we're doing it for ourselves and and and you don't even really because it wasn't anything that I sat there and oh I but you know God obviously is just with his servants let me just say this to everybody that's listening if you if you're if you've got a heart after God and you begin to enjoy those values and and even though you're blowing it like Sam says I was no angel and they would see me scream believe me all the things that that you would think you know would be a horrible witness you know I was all the above however I've never gotten over the fact that wow you you leave a footprint you don't even know that you leave because you're a nail in a secure place because people you you either bring out the best around the people that you're around or you bring out the worst and and with God you know with you in your incitement and your enthusiasm you know you're bringing out things and people you don't know you're bringing out you know I'd go down the path of not a pardon me not just being a single like nail in this place or this thing but there's constantly this I'm nail myself down I've got a wife and kids and a great job and I nailed myself I'm never probably going to leave that next thing you know God's ripping that nail out I'm moving to North Carolina and I'm in North Carolina thinking okay I got this job it this is kind of cool we're off on our own in North Carolina a new adventure and I don't even make it a year in that place I'm I'm kicked out of there because things are just corrupt and it's horrible but I've met three great guys that worked for me there that were just wonderful people and two of them are very godly people and I just had so much respect for me you know you think about that little small time and I think about what they imprinted on me while I was there they were just wonderful to work with and then you go into your next job and the shenanigans that went on there oh my gosh it just it started off as like a normal everything is normal but then the individual that I worked for and the things that he did and or his life was and then next thing you know relationship goes bad there because he's the one that actually hired me and brought me in and was you know things were good but you could just see how the all the just the nastiness in this man's life and what's going on inside his own world outside of work and inside of work and then it's like finally I'm out of there and you're just in you're nailed in one place nailed another one you're either wanting to rip out a nail or you want to just say no this is it I want to stay here it's that constant battle I don't know where the heck to be half the time and then Mary I'm driving in the morning going to going to work at 5 a.m and Dr. J Vernon McGee and Lord put that nail in for the final for the final time and said you are mine all these times that I would start up to church and then go out and I just felt so good being there but yet I couldn't sustain anything boom he nails it like I want to learn I want to read the bible and listen I want to learn about him and next thing you know I'm in I don't care it's like I'm going and I'm learning and I'm meeting people that I never would have met otherwise and here I am sitting on some crazy radio podcast show with a bunch of weirdos and you know here we are talking about we're talking about Jesus on the radio you know I remember Robby says that's one of my favorite ones where you're talking about guy like down in Texas and it's like yeah we're one of those who talk about Jesus on the radio this is I mean this is great this is as sure a place as I can get and every time I there's something that even would remotely say hey rip this nail out and I'm just like man I I just lord I'm really out to come to you do you have to really have to rip hard to rip this nail out Andy did you have something you want to share yeah so this has been something that's kind of my heart lately is so you guys know that and I've talked on the radio about it before that I came here broken relationship separated from my life and you know I don't tell everybody this but it's it's been like 10 years and and when I first started down I wanted to do like most people in that move on do it you know just go find something to ease the pain and to find somebody else and you know I tried that and I tried different things and I kept just running into like a you know a roadblock and you know I've I guess it was a really big nail because 10 years is a long time but um through that process you know I I just I know that I would not be the man that I am now without that process and walking through it it was it's not been comfortable at all there have been so many times particularly in the early stages and now I've kind of understood looking back what God was doing and still I question still I question just because you know that there's a nail there and you're supposed to be in God's will you're still going to ask why you're going to still say when can I get a reprieve when can things change when can restoration happen when can I get some kind of relief but you know so there's a lot of trust in there I mean we've talked earlier about Joseph and how he was in the jail for so long under Potiphar and all that situation all that God had to do in that situation so there is a part of just maturing and growth that comes through there there's glory when God's children suffer to to understand what their role is or to benefit the kingdom of the plan but you know again I I've not been by any means always I've not been a willing vessel that's been nailed you know we were talking earlier about just the fact that when the disciples were told to take up their cross and follow Jesus that was before he had actually been nailed to the cross obviously and he was basically telling them that they were going to have to be nailed you know that they were going to have to be nailed to his will to follow him and to do you know his will so I don't know I guess there's something that comes out of that that it secures your faith at a place that that good times never would I mean difficult times bring out the best in your faith we see it with Joe we see it with Paul we see it with David we see it with so many of and why wouldn't it be for us we're saints just like them right yeah I had a couple stories one of them you know my company in Indiana moved me down here to help start a division down here and 18 months later they're closing their doors corporately right and so there's a season in there the a lot of uncertainty because I had a house in Indiana we were trying to sell which wasn't going well had a house down here was very extended financially and all of a sudden I get no income it's going to be coming in and so Heidi and I were married at the time and we went off to pray and we both prayed separately and then came back together prayed together and felt very strongly that God was telling us to stay here you know at this point I wasn't really certain whether I was going to have any unemployment opportunity anything like that and we're just like well we're going to stay you know I feel like we're going to stay well I did get employment opportunity never missed a day of work at that point fortunately but more importantly about three weeks later is when Darren you know friend of the show that's been on the show founder part of the show here right reached out and said hey are you interested in doing a boot camp you know he'd found it found me on the ransom heart at the time or while the hearts website you know and so he reached out you know just a few weeks after we would have bailed and taken off and said hey you know would you like to do a boot camp and how many years later now you know and how many boot camps later that you know God really had a bigger plan you know the second part of that story I'd say the place that I got the next opportunity for work I was part owner of the company I thought that's what I wanted it was the most miserable time in my life because there was other owners you know and there are good people we just disagreed on how things should work and I'd signed a non-compete and it looked like there's no way to get out of there and still keep my livelihood alive and and God helped me get out of that situation and it came out really well but what it did for me is when I went to where I'm working now I've been out eight years is I can have a really bad day at work now but I can look back and go it's still not as bad as the days back here you know and so it gives me a perspective that I never would have had during that time it was not a pleasant time it was not good for my heart but it was good for my soul right it was something in that that you know I prayed for a year straight God I need out of this situation I don't know how to get out and he or castrated away that I got walked out of it with everything I'd asked about for the most part you know for the most part so it was sort of like a giant's what was the name of the giant's moment for you that's why I said almost it was almost like that yeah thank you we won't get into my whole philosophy on that yeah so uh Wayne do you have anything you'd like to say nailed it yeah nailed it yeah yeah Wayne you got anything you want to add to the uh the equation here we got a few minutes left yeah um I mean you know I'm kind of in this spot right now and it's not the first time uh yeah I've given a lot of thought to it you know in in 2014 you know whenever I went to Teen Challenge you know I had to walk away from everything I had to walk away from an amazing job an amazing house came out didn't really know what was going where and how we were going to make it what we were going to do kind of in that place again where God and and it's interesting because now we're watching you know he had me walk away from my job last March well now we're seeing where a lot of people are making that choice a lot of people are starting to do that so it's like there's this opening now where he's starting to allow me to speak into the lives of others and the things that I've had to go through um even today oddly enough you know I got the letter you know stating you know what's coming and and I had a lot I had some peace in it I wasn't um I wasn't angry anymore I wasn't uh you know why me God you know he prepared me to see this coming and and then this evening before the radio show you know we had a guy come by to pick up a dresser that we were selling and we sat out there for almost an hour talking about the same things um yeah the same things that he's seeing within the church and and the failure of community there within that and some different things and it just he continually even though it looks hard in the moment even though it's painful he keeps using it he keeps using these things and even now like I'm looking I'm looking forward I'm me and my wife we're talking about you know the fact that we're getting ready to sell our home and I truly want to see it through like I almost don't want to keep the house I want to see what God's going to do on the other side of this because each time it has it has gotten better um you know even another friend and I were talking earlier as we were driving and you know if you look at the life of the disciples we talked about how you know it was never easy for them but there was a certain point after the resurrection of Christ and after the fire baptism that things were different for them they saw things differently they were able to rejoice in the prison they were they had this joy this thing about them that you know it could not be challenged you could not challenge their faith in who God is and who Christ is and in who they were in him and so I'm I'm looking for that like I'm looking for the you know when does the when does the pain stop because at some point it's got to right at some point we press into our face so much that we truly believe what he says um you know that's what I'm looking forward to that's why I'm not there I'm not there yet but that's what I'm looking for thanks Wayne Harold did you have anything you want to add well I had a situation that was not unlike some that have already been described we were in Columbus Mississippi and uh and a great uh church family there uh and didn't want to leave but one of the things that happened when I lost that job we came here and I was able to take care of a great aunt and it was in Greensboro all by herself for about the last 10 years of her life and she didn't have any children of her own she considered me her child and uh so I look back and I and I see God's hand in all of it it wasn't something I wanted to do at the time but now I see the value in it thanks Harold I don't know where you find yourself nailed today I do know that God's in the midst of it and he's got something for you even if it's a really hard thing you're going through God will help you get through it just turn to him go through those stages walk with him go register for boot camp this is the truth network say what would you do if you were a new Christian and you didn't have a bible it's Michael Woolworth by the way from bible league international and you'd probably say well I'd hop in my car I'd go to a Christian bookstore or have one shipped to me what if those weren't options you'd say well I'm new to the faith I mean I need to know what it means to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus you know you would pray that someone anyone would bring you a bible and that's exactly the way it is for literally millions of Christians around the world they're part of our spiritual family they're new to the faith they want to know what it means to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus but God has them planning where it's very difficult to access a bible and that's why the truth network and bible league have teamed up to send God's word to 3500 bibleist believers around the globe our campaign is called the world needs the word $5 sends a bible $100 sends 20 every gift matched make your most generous gift by calling 800 yes word 800 y-e-s-w-o-r-d 800 yes word or give at truthnetwork.com