Q&A With Koloff #49

Nothing says Christmas like a water buffalo. For a poor family in Asia, getting a water buffalo is like getting a farm tractor to pull a plow, or getting a milk truck full of delicious milk, or getting a stand at the market to sell cheese. A water buffalo opens the door for work, food, and income. More importantly, it opens the door to talk about Jesus.

And nothing says Christmas better than that. This is Chris Hughes with the Christian Perspective Podcast with Chris Hughes, where we encourage our listeners to engage the culture with Jesus Christ. Your chosen Truth Network Podcast is starting in just a few seconds, so enjoy it, share it.

But most of all, thank you for listening to the Truth Podcast Network. Welcome back to another edition of the Man Up Show. It's such a joy to have this man in the studio with me today.

I would say he needs no introduction, but I'm going to give him an introduction nevertheless. Rocky Wagner, a dear friend of mine, many, many, many years. Rocky, welcome to the Man Up Show. I'm glad to be here, Nikita. I'm excited. Well, and you know, the tagline is, it's time to man up. And you personify that tagline, Rocky. And what I mean by that is, you have such a phenomenal story.

I had to bring you back in the studio to share some of not only your story, but other stories that you've experienced. And starting with something that's not typical, and that is, you came to the faith at age 62, am I right? Yes, sir. At age 62, which is not typical. I mean, you know, we've heard the stories of the older somebody gets, the more hardened their heart maybe gets, the more jaded people will get.

And so it's hard. And as an evangelist, I've witnessed that firsthand. You know, I just, I ministered not long ago on Sunday Night Revival service.

I had this little 13, 14 year old girl, Rocky, that came up after service and they said she has something she wants to tell you. And it was obvious she had been crying. And she said, I gave my heart to Jesus tonight because of your preaching.

And you know, I was like, to God be the glory, right? It's the Holy Spirit and it's the Lord drawing and wooing her in. But she was noticeably touched. Her heart was touched.

And she's 13, 14 years old. So you're 62 years old. And give our listeners just a quick synopsis of what brought you to that point of age 62. Because we may have others out there, 50, 60, 70, that have yet to surrender their life to Jesus.

What brought you to that point of decision? Nikita, I go back to when I gave my testimony at church, my mom, she's 90 years old today. And when I got saved, you know, she prayed for all of us. There were five of us children, but she prayed, she constantly prayed for us from the time we were born.

And it's almost like dedicating a child at church when they're young. The Lord had his hand on me from the get go. I just straddled the fence all the years I've been in and out of church several different times.

And I just, you know, grew up there in Kannapolis and we, you know, just friends and we had places that we go and hang out and things like that. But I always knew that my dad told me one time he said, Rocky, if you do something wrong, you'll know you're doing it before you do it. You just know in your heart what's right and what's wrong.

And I just straddled the fence for a long time, Nikita. I've been in church, like I said, in and out. And there were several times when I had a chance to go to the altar and I just turned my back on Jesus and I just didn't live right for the longest time. And finally, it went in when everything in my world was crumbling. I just heard a voice or the Holy Spirit or the Lord was dealing me or ever how you want to say it. But that particular day on 7-23 of 17, the Lord said, Rocky, if you don't come to me today, I'm done with you. And at that point, I'd had enough of the life that I was living and playing games with the Lord.

And when I accepted Christ that day and when that Holy Spirit, I tell people all the time, I said it was like an error or something going through your heart. I knew it right then. There was no doubt about it.

I knew exactly what happened. I knew I'd gotten saved. And from that time on, my whole life has been different.

I can't hardly believe I was the same way at one time. Well, we're going to talk about that and you bring up an interesting illustration because I've known you for quite a few years prior to that decision at age 62. And I would say, and we'd have conversations, you and I, we might be traveling for business or just in the truck together or doing some things over the years, if somebody had asked you prior to 62, now I know you said you straddled the fence, you've been in and out of church, would you have said, if somebody had said to you prior to that decision at age 62, so Rocky, are you a Christian? What would your answer have been? I probably would have said something like, yeah, I believe in Jesus or something to that effect.

But if somebody would have point blank asked me if I was saved, I probably would have told them no. Right. Right. Because what I want the listeners to understand out there is there's people that straddle the fence, there's people that are in and out of church.

Yes. Well, it's like this right here. When we were doing, when I first met you and I was hanging around with some of your friends, Marty Cox comes to mind. He's a good friend of mine. Matter of fact, him and my son's in business together now.

Nice guy, great family. But I was hanging around with you guys and I was pretending to be somebody I wasn't. I would leave these meetings or these places we'd go and then I'd be back to the same old, you know, things that I always did.

And when I say I was straddling the fence, I was straddling the fence because I was playing games. And I knew in my heart that maybe I'd go to church. And then when I got out of church, I acted different Monday through Saturday. But I'd go into church and I'd be, you know, a church guy or whatever. Super spiritual.

Yeah. And then through the week, but I had no, did bear no fruits, didn't, you know, just said what I wanted to say, did what I wanted to do. And there, there were, there was no change.

There was no hard change. I got a feeling to rock in. And I think as others are listening to this story that perhaps there may be some conviction coming upon some listeners and, and or others who can identify with what you're saying. Couple words, use the word pretend.

And the word that popped in my mind as you were saying, I go into church on Sunday and the word facade, you said playing the game. And I'm guessing, I'm guessing there's others out there that either have done the same thing, Rocky, or, or even right now are doing that very thing. I'm reminded, quick story, reminded of my uncle. My father shared with me one time. I had never met my uncle. He grew up in Nebraska and him and his, him and his brother grew up in church.

And his brother, my uncle, worked on a golf course in high school. And to your point, he actually turned his back on Christianity because of the hypocrisy and the double standard of seeing the deacons and elders act the way they acted on Sunday morning, or in church on Sunday, but how they acted out on the golf course during the week or even on the weekend, right? And, and he said, if that's Christianity, I want nothing to do with it. And, but when you have that arrow, that Holy Spirit pierce your heart, like you experienced everything changes, like you said, doesn't it?

It absolutely does. You, I told, um, some folks just the other day, we were talking and I said, you might've, you, you might not have liked me. You know, five, 10 years ago, I call it BC before Christ.

Yeah. And it's, and then, and some of my buddies at church, they, they, you know, I'm telling them stories about, you know, the way I used to be. And they, they just can't believe it. They said, you know, you, it's hard for me to believe that you're telling me that you used to be a, a certain way, but I was. And, but when you get saved, if you truly get saved, and what I mean by that, if you truly get saved, you won't want to do an act and do the things that you used to do. And when you go out in your daily walk, you just absolutely, the Holy Spirit won't allow you to, to be that person. And you don't want to be that person. You want to, it's different when, when God's leading and you're being obedient to him, you don't, you don't, you don't want to be that person used to be. And you can't be that person used to be the Holy Spirit's got a, got a hold of your heart and you don't desire those things. I'm not saying that we were not human. We are, we make mistakes, but I don't have the desires that I used to have in my heart. And if I do say something, or if I do act a certain way, the Holy Spirit chastises me so fast that I have to make it right.

And I'll give you a prime example. I came in the house a couple of weeks ago and I didn't say anything bad or, uh, any, I didn't do anything that wasn't above board, but my wife asked me something. And, and, um, uh, the, just the tone of voice that I spoke back to her, um, as I walked away and walked into my bedroom, the Holy Spirit said, you don't, you don't, you don't raise your voice like that. And it wasn't like I did anything crazy. I walked back in there. I said, Shelly, I'm sorry that I talk like that or in that tone of voice.

She said, Rocky, I know you've had a busy day and I have to, and we're good. So when you do something, you shouldn't all to do. The Holy Spirit zaps you pretty quick and you have to, you have to get it straight right then. Well, that's a great word of advice for those listening out there. Uh, I think biblically it's a, you know, keep a short account.

And even the scripture comes to mind is don't let the, you know, don't let the sun go down on your anger and especially if you're, you know, if you're, if you're married and have an argument or disagreement or, you know, whatever you want to call it with, with your spouse, you know, to, as you said, just take care of business right away. Because that makes a difference. It makes a big difference.

Bonds the two of you together. And I'm sure Shelly had to really appreciate you humbling yourself because that's, that's a point of humility. Let's face it, men have egos, um, believe it or not, and, and are pretty full of pride.

At least, well, at least I am. Um, and, and so that's quite a humbling thing to go back and ask for forgiveness or, and or apologize, right? But when you do, man, the, the, just the, the, what happens to the relationship just drills out, draws that much closer, right? Exactly. It does. It really does. You just, you have a, you just have an inner peace that, okay, I did what you told me to do, Lord, and you were right and I was wrong. And then you go on about your day and it, but it just makes a better relationship with your wife. It just, it, it, it just makes you want to do better.

Your children, your coworkers, anyone and everyone around you, right? Nikita, I was in Pittsburgh a while back. My son, Daniel married a girl from Pittsburgh. They've got a, we've got an another grand baby just recently, Daniel and Johnny.

They, um, had a little girl, Juno and Juno, Grace Wagner, but one was in Pittsburgh. We had to get together for Daniel and Johnny, her, his wife's families from Pittsburgh. And as me and Daniel were talking, got over to the side, I felt honored because Johnny's dad had asked me to pray for the meal. And they was, there were quite a few people there.

There's probably a hundred or so people at this function. And it just, he asked me because I had had conversations with him about the Lord. And he had watched me and, and talk with me and what's, you know, the way I was, I acted in different things. So when he asked me to pray, um, I, I was honored by that, but later on when me and my son, Daniel had a little bit of time just by ourself. He said, daddy, I'm so proud of you. He said, since you got saved, it's just been a blessing. And I, and I thought, wow, you know, and he said, all of us, he's talking about all of the boys. He said, we've all realized and recognize what man you have become since you've gotten saved in it. And I was so thankful that I had made a difference in my son's life. And, and hopefully in, in other folks as I walked daily with Christ, that I can make a difference just by my actions and the, you know, the way I talk, the way the things that I say and the way, the way I carry myself.

Right. And you bring up a valid point that people are always watching, especially if, if you're a professed believer, Christ follower, let's say Christian, um, people, people are watching. And, and which, which leads me into, uh, uh, one reason I want to have you and come back and be on the show again too, Rock, is, and, and I'm, I hope your ears are burning cause I'm talking about you often, especially when I'm, uh, preaching like at the revival recently or in other places I go, I bring you up as an example. And what I mean by that is, uh, you have shared with me that essentially every morning now you, you, you wake up and you're like, Lord, bring somebody across my path that I can share my story with, or, you know, or, or be an example.

And give us, am I right? You pray that virtually every morning, just about, or if not every morning, almost every morning, right? Nikita, I get up every morning pretty much. And the first thing I do is I thank the Lord for giving me another day. I thank him for my family and my children and my grandchildren. And I say, Lord, I just want to be obedient to you. Put somebody in my, in, in my path today that I can witness to and tell you about, tell them about Jesus. And almost every single day at the most opportune time, somebody will drift my way and I get to witness to them. And, and, and, and it's always in a little quiet place where it's not busy. It's crazy because I just, and it's, it's just random people that I know some of them that I don't know.

Right. And I just get, I'll just say, Jesus, one of the things that I'll say is something like anybody told you day, Jesus load, and then you, you basically start a conversation with them. And then, then, and I said, have you got a minute?

Sure. I said, well, let me tell you my story. Let me tell you what happened to me on seven 23 of 17 when I got saved. And when I tell that story, it touches her heart.

And it's not me bragging on me. It's I'm giving the Lord the credit for everything. I mean, if somebody had told me, you know, five, six years ago, uh, you know, you was going to act like this or be like this, or even, you know, about the salvation part of, I, I, I don't, I would just, you know, I said, well, y'all, you know, maybe dismissed it or something. Yeah, sure.

Right. But, um, as I go out in my doing business with my apparel company, I get to see a lot of different folks. And so my mission is I just let the Lord handle it. I found out pretty quick, um, to just get out of the way and let God handle things, be obedient. And he puts those people in my path every day. And so I get a chance to witness to him and tell him my story.

Well, and I know you've told me it's been in warehouses has been so many different places. I think it's great that you open up a conversation with anybody told you today that Jesus loves you. And here's, what's great about your story too. Rocky, you're not a pastor. You're not an evangelist. You had gone to seminary and you mentioned your apparel, RW Sportswear Incorporated, right? That your apparel company. And so you're out there just, just in the marketplace, conducting business, praying a prayer, saying, God, bring someone across my path that I can share my story. And have you, let me ask you this. So in that, is there a short story of, of how not only did you share your story, but it brought conviction upon somebody, but you saw them then surrender their life to Jesus?

Nikita, this is the craziest thing. I was in Salisbury at a flea market. And as I was leaving the flea market, there was a man on the side of the road and he's holding up a sign, work for food. Or I, you know, I can't remember exactly what he had on his little sign, but he was standing there. And when I actually came out of the flea market, um, it was later on.

So there was a lot of folks had gone. So the guy was just kind of standing there. And so I, I pulled over and he walked up my car and I said, tell me your story. And he was telling me how he was, had gotten addicted to drugs and things like that. And I said, well, I got a question for you. I said, do you know Jesus? He said, well, yeah, I know a little bit about Jesus. I said, but have you ever asked Jesus in your heart? Have you ever asked him to come into your heart and save you? And he said, no. I said, would you like to do that?

And he said, yes. And so I gave him the plan of salvation. We talked about, I said, just, just, just say, Lord, I'm a sinner. Come into my heart. I realized that you, you died, you rose to the, on the third day and come into my heart. Jesus, if you do that, I promise you I'll live for you the rest of my life. And the, the guy that started crying, sobbing, and he professed, you know, to be saved at that point. And so we just had a, we just had a time right there.

And so it doesn't matter if it's a, uh, a professional business person or just a homeless person, right? There's, there's, there's people out there that, and sometimes I get frustrated because I'll maybe pass somebody else. I should have stopped. I should have stopped the witness to that person.

Cause you don't never know sometimes even though, you know, like me and you's been in a restaurant before and you would say something to the waitress about, uh, you know, could we pray for, can I pray for you? Yeah. And it's amazing what the reaction you get sometime.

Yeah. So always keep that in mind. If you have a, if the Lord's leading you to witness to somebody go do it. Well, and, and you mentioned the word obedient a couple of different times in our conversation. And that's part of one of the keys is, is just be obedient. And if you delay that obedience, delayed obedience is really called disobedience. So, so, you know, just, just obey right away.

Just go and talk to that person. That's a phenomenal story. And, and one more short story. Um, you know, as you have had encounters with others out in the marketplace. Well, I've, yeah, I've had, I've had encounters with lots of folks. Um, even my, you know, folks in my own family, um, Which is the hardest, by the way, family is really tough.

My brother, Bobby, I love him so much. He's just, um, he's, he's a, he's just a, he's a really nice guy and he, uh, he's, he, uh, he's a hard worker. And we, uh, we've had several cons conversations about Jesus and he works a lot and he, he's kind of mirror me, you know, coming up and he, he works a lot. He wants to provide for his family. He wants to be the best that he can be.

And I, I'm telling him all the time, slow down a little bit, slow down a little bit. Remember where all this is coming from. Right. Right. That type thing.

Um, it's powerful. Uh, and, and, and you, I'm reminded a quick story. I'm reminded of, uh, one of the recent man camps that, that, you know, Lex Luger and I facilitate this, this camp called man camp.

We had a guy there, Shane, and he opened up his heart one day and he said, I'm 45 years old. I'm selfish. I'm self-centered.

I'm an only child. He goes through all these things. And, and he goes, I've been in church my whole life. Been in church my whole life.

VBS, Vacation Bible School, youth camps. Right. Been around his whole life. And, and he goes, but he concludes by saying, but I don't know Jesus. And so I just paused and the Holy Spirit let me say, well, Shane, do you, do you want to know him? He goes, absolutely. And, and so I had him pray.

And here's the thing. You talked about having that homeless man pray. I want all those out there listening to understand. There's no perfect prayer. There's no cookie cutter prayer. There's no perfect prayer. There's no prayer in the Bible. But the key is, and Rocky you might attest to this, the key is just this praying from the sincerity of your heart.

Because God, man looks at the outward appearance. God looks at the heart and he sees the sincerity of your heart. And man, when you pray that prayer and ask for forgiveness and confess and in some cases, you know, repent, God sees that. And, and the transformation like happened in your life takes place. What happened to this young girl who prayed that recently. The homeless man who began to sob and cry. And so, one more comment, so one last comment.

So, and I'm thinking about this. A praying mama, you had a praying mama who had to be nothing but thrilled to see her son Rocky surrender his life to Jesus. Any, any final thought? I just want to tell folks out there, if you've got a loved one, you've got somebody that you care about and they're lost, just keep praying for them. Don't quit praying. My mom prayed for me literally until I was 62 years old and she still prays for me. But, I mean, and she never quit, so God finally went on his terms, not our terms. I was able to meet the Lord at 62 and when my mom came to church that day and I gave my testimony a few weeks later, I was so thankful. And she was so proud for me to stand there and tell people about Jesus. That was the most, one of the highlights of my whole life, the fact that she was still living and she saw that her prayer got answered. Right, an answered prayer.

So, hey, you're listening out there, did you hear what Rocky said? Oh man, Rocky, you're gripping my heart with your story. A praying mama, 62 years. See, some of you might give up after 62 days and go, oh, I'm not going to pray for that person anymore, or 62 months. But a praying mama for 62 years that led to this man's transformation, sold out for Jesus. Listen, I'm around him now, I was around him BC, I'm around him now, he motivates me, he's an inspiration to me as I hear him share his stories. And know that every day, and listen, again, you don't have to be an evangelist like me, you don't have to be a pastor.

All you have to do is have a heart for Jesus, love Jesus, love God well, and then a heart for other people. And maybe you pray that prayer that Rocky prays every morning, Lord, bring somebody across my path. Rocky, thanks for coming in, and real quick, what's your website for your sportswear?

RWSports, with an S on it, W-E-A-R-S, at yahoo.com. Check out his sports apparel, he's got an amazing business and blesses a lot of people. So I can't thank you enough for coming in, Rocky, again, and sharing more of your stories.

Man, we could have ten of these shows with all the people that you've been a witness to. Thank you. Thank you. So listen, dial in, tune in again to It's Time to Man Up with Nikita Kolov, and if you have yet to surrender your life to Jesus today, listen, there is no promise of tomorrow, there's no promise of today. Surrender your life today. God bless you. PSA, public service announcement, coming soon, it's coming, it's coming. Hey, if you have enjoyed the Man Up radio show and or the Man Up podcast, tune to MorningStarTV.com to catch the new Man Up show on TV. That's right, MorningStarTV.com. Be sure to tune in.