Micah Wilder Interview (uncut) Part 2

so what what other influences now you have this experience of the pastor and went in winter garden you had the experience of reading through the Bible did you have any other meaningful encounters with Christians that sort of moved you in that direction yeah yeah I mean there were certain people who who it's like God would seem to place you know in the right the right place the right time to kind of move me along but one of the things I've always told people about my story and which people seem to really have a hard time believing is that you know a lot of times Mormon Mormons will ask you know well what what anti-mormon literature were you given on your mission you know what did you read on the internet you know who told you this that caused you to leave Mormonism and and the answer I always give is you know the only anti-mormon literature I ever read was the Bible you know and and that is that a sincere you know because as a missionary I didn't have access to anything else you know what can be surfing on the internet or you know any of this other stuff I never read a piece of anti-mormon literature in my life up to that point and even on my mission and so that was you know one of the amazing things about the change that God made in my life was it was completely and totally through the Bible you know and and the pastor all he did was point me to the Bible he's you know he didn't even say believe me he said believe them but you know read the Bible believe it you know and and but and prove me wrong and and so the Bible as a Mormon had you been taught to kind of hold it at arm's length or at least mistrust it yeah and how did you kind of move from that attitude toward the Bible to them to the attitude that it was actually very true that's a good question he has a Mormon I really you know one of the articles of faith is that that you know we believe in the Bible as far as this translated correctly well they say that it hasn't been translated correctly so therefore you know do they really believe in the Bible and there were always certain passages of the Bible that we read and they always seemed to coincide with Mormon doctrine I mean that was just that was the way it worked you know as especially as a Mormon missionary you know you were just hammered with these these particular scriptures that seem to back up you know particular Mormon doctrine this seemed to contradict Christian doctrine and and and we knew those you know like the back of our hand but you know all the other scriptures that that seem to go against that we just ignore it or didn't read you know things like in first Corinthians 15 you know about baptism of the Dead you know James chapter 2 you know faith without works is dead those types of thing is like oh we really knew those we were you know passionate about those but it came to you know Ephesians chapter 2 you know or any of Romans or any of Galatians it was like you know we didn't even read that stuff and and so even as a teenager you know there are parts or the Bible I enjoyed reading but it was like what's the point in the Bible we have the Book of Mormon the Book of Mormon is perfect it's the most correct book on earth and it contains the fullness of the gospel Jesus Christ and so just the way that I was raised in the way that was ingrained in me you know I put every amount of trust and faith into the Book of Mormon and that's what I read and actually ironically when I was a temple worker I read the doctrine of covenants that was what you know why that was in between our little you know sessions and stuff I've read the doctrine of covenants all the way through when I was a temple worker that was where I put my focus tonight and so yeah I mean I was just kind of the Bible was there but it wasn't really you know where my heart was you know because it was you're kind of taught to mistrust it because it's not correct and so as you started reading the Bible do you believe and again I don't ask leading questions but do you believe it really was the Holy Spirit that has began to change the way you read it it was it self-evident if you were reading it or we exposed to some of the realities of okay this is why the Bible is trustworthy and all the time right what what was kind of the process and finally being able to trust in the Bible that's a good question boy you know when I started reading the Bible it just I guess is Hokies who may sound it was just so natural like you know it's like the Holy Spirit just it was almost just ingrained in me that that that this is true you know it wasn't like you know I I didn't have that feeling of mistrust because because you know especially when you start out in the New Testament you're reading the Gospels I mean you're reading the direct words of Jesus Christ I mean there's there's nothing to do not trust about that and it's almost a fearful thing to say that you should mistrust that and I just I I just completely fell in love with the gospel I I don't know any other way to explain it but you know reading Matthew and Mark and Luke and John and reading the ministry in the life of Jesus Christ and the things he taught and the way that he taught it it just it was so right you know and it was like there's there's these four separate accounts you know of this you know Jesus's life and all these different things that they coincide perfectly and they all witness of each other I was thinking you know this this is right and it just honestly I just didn't question I just read and read and read and as I and then I got into you know the epistles of Paul and and where he really kind of tells us what the gospel really was because Jesus was now teaching this transition between the old law and the New Covenant and then when he died like it says in Hebrews you know that the will isn't enacted until the person who's enacting it spills his blood and dies and so you know the New Covenant didn't take place until Jesus Christ died on the cross but once he did you know then he commissioned the Apollo the Apostles and specifically Paul you know where he came down and he hand-picked Paul you know to to preach the gospel to the Gentiles which is everybody everybody outside of Israel and and so you know as I just started reading this gospel it just it just rang true to me I mean there was no questioning I just I didn't I didn't look at and go as this mistranslated or what is the Joseph Smith translation say here I just I just knew it was right so how how is that I don't want to put it in terms of feelings necessarily but you know you had your your testimony of the Book of Mormon the Mormon scriptures how was that different in your own personal experience with the Testament by basically received right well I guess the biggest difference is is with the Book of Mormon you know at the end of the Book of Mormon it tells you to ask God if these things are true and that's just what we were taught you pray about it if you have that feeling in your heart that it's true then that's how you know it's true with the Bible the truth is there okay I don't have to ask God if it's true because the truth is right there in the Bible you know God's God's Word his gospel everything is right there and it all testifies of it of itself and so I didn't have to get on my knees and say God you know is this true I knew it was true because it was God's Word it's God's Word spoken through his prophets spoken through his son spoken through his apostles you know I didn't have to question and I didn't have to get on my knees and ask God well is the Bible true or is what he's saying true you know it just it's there you know and so now that's the amazing thing about the Bible is you know we don't have to you know if there's a doctrine or something that that you know one of the modern-day prophet teaches we don't have to pray to God to ask if it's true we just have to go check and say well does this align with the Bible you know we're supposed to test the spirits and we test that with the Word of God and if it doesn't align with the word of God and doesn't coincide with the Word of God then we know that it has to be you know rejected and thrown away and and and I just I got to that point where you know the Bible was was my complete source of truth and and you know even if what Gordon B Hinckley said or what the Book of Mormon said or what the doctrine of covenants said if that didn't align with what the Bible said then I couldn't believe it you know and I didn't believe it and I got to the point where probably halfway through my mission I just I stopped reading the Book of Mormon and I did not do it consciously I honestly did not I was so enveloped in this incredible new message I was getting in the in the in the Bible that that just became an obsession mine so anytime I could study any time you know free time I had to read the scriptures I spent it reading the Bible I just put the Book of Mormon down and never touched it again and it just kind of shows that that that difference you know how I felt about the Bible and it wasn't what somebody was telling me the feel about the Bible it just it just came talked a little bit about the cost to you your family was kind of catching up to speed and getting on the same page and doing the same thing talk about this the cost that okay well you know one of the things that I guess people are always afraid of in coming out of Mormonism or you know giving up something is the cost of discipleship but one of the things that jesus said you know is that that we have to be willing to give up everything for him you know if we're not willing to forsake you know father mother or brothers or sisters or children or lands or everything for his name you know that we're not worthy of him and that we have to you know basically lay down our own lives take up our cross and follow him in order to be his disciple and that was basically the the position that I was put in you know we're where I got to the point of my life were you know God said okay I've shown you the truth now and and now here's the true test of discipleship you know here's your cross you know what are you going to do and and I guess that that moment for me kind of came when when I was sitting waiting for for my mission president to arrive at this interview and going through my head I know what he's going to ask I know it's going to happen I know that if I say the truth then my life as I know it is is over you know this I won't be going back to BYU I probably won't be going back to Utah you know my family my friends my peers you know everything that I've ever known is rooted in the Mormon culture and so if I speak the truth then I I could potentially lose everything that I've ever had or known and that was that moment for me where I had to to consciously make that decision I remember sitting on the couch waiting for my mission president to arrive and I remember consciously you know that scripture coming in in my head you know take up your cross and follow me and and I at that time ironically a Christian friend that I had met on my mission gave me a cross a physical cross necklace and I remember pulling it out and looking at it and and knowing you know I'm I'm taking this as me taking up my cross you know not this physical necklace but but taking up my spiritual cross and being a disciple knowing that I am and was willing at that point to give up everything for Jesus Christ and so when I was asked those questions giving the answers that I gave I knew okay my time as a Mormon is over you know and and everything that that is involved in my life as a Mormon is over and and the fact that I was willing I think is what you know God is looking for because he's looking for our heart but he also says that that you know we'll be given a hundred times more if we are willing to sacrifice anything for him and you know the immediate sacrifice you know came at at some cost I mean obviously there are a lot of my friends missionary peers you know even parts of my family different things who completely rejected me for the decisions that I had made my fiance's family and just a lot of people that I had known and grown up with it was like those immediate those relationships were immediately dead as soon as they found out and rumors and speculations and it was just you know it just blew up but but the amazing thing like I said you know that promise that God gives is that that will receive a hundred times more and receive eternal life in the life to come and actually my my sister my brother within probably six months of my experience both came to know the Lord and and left the Mormon Church my other brother and my parents both within the next two years or so had similar experiences and and became born-again Christian and left the LDS faith my mom was a professor Brigham Young University my dad was a high priest in the church and so the cost their cost of discipleship I would say it was far beyond my own and you know but it all came back and that's the amazing thing you know I got my family back and I even gained a larger family and that you know I now in part of the body of Christ I have this incredible Christian family you know where I am accepted with open arms because I have this common faith and that is a faith in Jesus Christ and you know even though it may seem like a lot to give up you know in the moment it's like Paul said everything that I once counted as gain amount count as loss you know to to knowing Jesus Christ the knowing ham is it's is so just surpasses everything you know that I ever had in my life and and now I have it all back and I have an incredible wife I have three kids you know I have my immediate family back but I you know have my family in Jesus Christ and God's Word it's won't return void and that's that's a promise he gives and it hasn't so it was it was worth it what what we're kind of the typical accusations are misconceptions it's yeah it's one of the the amazing things about leaving the Mormon Church is people can't accept it for what it is and that's one thing that I learned so quickly and within days of what had happened to me I was getting phone calls from people from my mission you know telling me you know asking me why did you do I heard this I heard this I heard that you know and I just I couldn't believe it and and I was the one thing in dealing with a lot of these LDS people they just they can't give credit to the story that that we found Jesus Christ that I found Jesus Christ through reading the Bible and discovered that the Mormon doctrine is not in line with the doctrine of the Bible and because of that I left the Mormon Church you know it's just you know we always get well they obviously they never had a real testimony you know that's one thing that people say a lot well you never really believed in the church you weren't righteous or worthy or you had some terrible sin that you are afraid of owning up to and so you left the church to take the easy way out a lot of people say oh the Mormon Church was too difficult the standards were too high you know now you're just a born-again Christian you just throw your hands up in the air and believe and you're saved now and so you're just taking the easy way out I mean we even online on YouTube we've had Mormons accused I've had Mormons accuse me of being gay and that was the whole reason why I left you know was was so that I could you know live my homosexual life even though I'm married and have kids you know just it never ends and the rumors about why I got kicked off my mission that floated around the mission you know for years - you know even years later now there's just there's still rumors that go around and it's kind of like the infamous elder Wilder and what he did and he had sex on his mission and you know these things like that and you know but it doesn't matter it doesn't bother me but I guess what does bother me is that people can't can't see through you know their own desire to find something wrong and just accept okay he's found Jesus Christ he's found the the Word of God in the Bible he's come to know what the true gospel is and that is his life and that's what he's given his life to you and people just won't accept that and they won't believe that and they you know they want something to blame it on because they can't be the ones that are wrong you know it has to be us yeah and I mean it kind of makes sense if it's they're desperately searching for a reason to remain in the church yeah the last thing they want to do is see somebody leave for a valid reason right don't want to give validity to any reason to leave what were some of the myths or misconceptions about Christianity that you had to kind of haha unlearn and relearn yeah and good good just think first again it was kind of interesting because you know my training as a Christian didn't come from outside sources it came from the Bible which I think is very unique you know I didn't grow up in the Christian Church that was you know pastors interpreting passages and this type of thing I you know I came to know the Lord through reading his word and so there were kind of all these misconceptions that I had as a Mormon missionary and and that a lot of Mormons have about what Christians believe and when I read the Bible I just you know I realize it's not these aren't misconceptions you know they just it's just not it's not there you know and one of those things is one of the big things is that that Christians simply believe that you believe in Jesus and then you can do whatever you want okay that is one of the that is one of the biggest misconceptions because that's not what the Bible teaches you know so again it's one of those those things they've placed on Christianity that's not in the Bible there's nowhere in the bible does it teach that in a matter of fact you know it teaches that that if we knowingly sin after having accepted grace and that grace no longer exists for us you know because we're we're basically rejecting that grace and so if you knowingly sin then then the grace no longer applies you know because you've you've accepted the Lord and and James two is is something that the Mormons use so strongly to say faith without works is dead so simply confessing the name of Jesus Christ isn't enough to get you saved and and now that was another big misconception you know that I had about Christians is that you know when you become a Christian when you become born-again and you accept the Lord Jesus Christ and like Romans 10 says I believe that when you that when you believe in your heart and confess with your mouth does it Romans 10 I don't want to miss it see they're eight or ten you know okay well I'll just say Romans then I don't because I don't want to I don't want to misquote anything like it says in the book of Romans you know that if you if you believe in your heart and confess with your mouth then then you will be saved that's that's what the word says and but the thing is is is once you are saved you know once you've made that confession once you've had that that that cleansing water washed through you then you live a life as a disciple of Jesus Christ because faith true faith is life-changing and that's what James is teaching is that you know the evidence of true faith is going to come with good works is that if you have true faith then you're going to show that true faith through good works but those works have nothing to do with your salvation you know it's you're already saved you've already been saved the moment that you accepted Jesus Christ in your life you know because he already did that work on the cross okay so when you accepted that work then that grace was was poured upon you and you were saved you were given eternal life and once that happens then you as a Christian have the responsibility to produce the fruit of a Christian which is to do the good works and and the good works which is another thing I think Mormons confuse you know the works that it's talking about are not not works to be saved they're not you know temple works they're not you know even doing you know charitable works because Jesus says you know in Matthew five in Matthew six that we shouldn't do works to be seen by men you know the right hand should even know what our left hand is doing you know so how can those work save us you know but it's it's the love that comes from us as Christians that we produce that are the works that are required of us once we accept Jesus Christ in our lives you know the note that when we change from the old law to the new covenant that the number one commandment was to love God and the number new to command was to love your neighbor as yourself so love fulfills the law the Bible teaches that level fills the law of God himself is love so when we become Christians we love I mean love is the fulfilling of the law you know love is the fulfilling of the commandments and all the law and the prophets everything the old law hangs on that new commandment which is to love and so you know that was just one of those huge misconceptions was well you know as a Christian I do nothing you know I just I sit around I eat potato chips and I sin and I'm saved you know but that's that's not true faith and so you know that faith is void if you're not living a life that is producing the fruit of a Christian and so I would say that would that was the biggest one that was a little long-winded but and the in fact that is that very thing that I would be getting to is right because that's such a huge huge one that we deal with constant let me there's a couple more - one of the let me just think about this for singing because there's one of the other things that was a huge misconception of Christianity by the Mormons and by myself I'm actually before you start that want to move the a little bit okay sure no that's all right no that's right one of the other misconceptions about Christianity from the point of Mormonism and from my own personal point was one of the things we taught as a missionary was just that that Christians are so divided that they all interpret the Bible differently and that's the reason why there's thousands of denominations and thousands of churches that they all disagree with each other none of them get along and and there's just mass confusion and boy that is one of the biggest lies that has been you know perpetrated by Mormons and it's kind of propaganda you know that that the Christianity is just in this mass state of confusion and and you know dissension with one another and there's all this hatred and this fighting and I can say now because you know in the years that I've been a Christian now I have traveled to almost every state in the United States been to churches of every denomination that exists you know been to literally hundreds and hundreds of different church services and I've realized that that the body of Christ though it is not perfect it is it is it is United ok the denominations and in it's not true for every church everywhere but for what I have observed there's no church that says you need to belong to their church in order to be saved ok I've been to Baptist churches and say if this is what if this is where you think you should make your home that's great but if you have another church if you're a Methodist or Lutheran or whatever then that's fine it doesn't matter all that matters is that you're following Jesus Christ and you're following the Bible and and I've heard that everywhere I've gone and and and the amazing thing too to say well there's all these different denominations well denominations that's what the body of Christ is all about that's why there are different parts there's different purrs it's like you know talks about how you know what would the body be without the hand what would the body be without the arm or the foot or the eye but it's like the foot can't be the hand the hand can't be the foot you know the the the leg can't be the eye it's like you need every unique part of the body of Christ to work together you know it's okay to have different denominations because they're not they're not saving denominations they're just different parts of the body who have different roles in the body of Christ and I rise wow you know the body of crisis is a lot more unified than I ever believed that it was as a Mormon and though it's not perfect and we feel that one of our missions is to help unify the body of Christ it is not what the Mormon Church has made it seem and I'm amazed actually how you know the the core principles of Christianity the core principles of salvation are so United you know across denominational lines and that is you know faith in Jesus Christ is what saves you I mean there's there's no arguing with that it is by grace that we are saved and and you know through that salvation you know we live the lives as Christians and we're given the instructions of how to do that in the Bible it's no you know it's it's nothing we have to run around like chickens with our heads cut off you know looking for you know Paul instructs us you know Peter instructs us how to live as Christians and that's all in the Bible and so if we're following in the Bible then then we're doing what's right and it doesn't matter what church you go to or even if you go to a church as long as you you know unite yourself and and are gathered with other believers in Jesus Christ and so there isn't this math state of confusion within the body of Christ there isn't this mass hatred you know from denomination to denomination and there's not this you know mass kind of you know confusion interpretation of the Bible that's going on where everybody interprets the Bible differently and they all have different understandings of every passage is this that is simply not true and and when it comes down to the core foundation of what it means to be a Christian and what salvation is you know Christians they all have it down that's one of the other Biggie's that we yeah how does it ever guess well that's your interpretation right right Methodism right you know and and for somebody who didn't come from an LDS background it took me a while to kind of wrap my mind around why why am I getting this question sometimes almost verbatim yeah where are you guys reading this you know and so that's that's great in terms of determining truth you know how you know kind of compare and contrast the methodology of the Turkana truth between a Mormon and in a biblical Christian when I was Mormon you know my the way that I determined truth was was really to pray about it you know intent is to seek for feelings but even beyond that it's like you know if the Prophet spoke something or any of the General Authorities spoke something in General Conference that was true there was no questioning it you know there was no need to pray about it because that was God's Word and so you know you just accepted that the the scriptures you know that the Book of Mormon the Doctrine and Covenants the pearl of great price you know anything that that the prophets say and the ensign and all that that was truth you know so there was no there was no questioning it and that was a frightening thing as they could say anything and there was nothing by which it had to be tested and and that's the thing you know they put themselves in this position where whatever the current prophet says that is that is what God is saying now so even if it contradicts what somebody said before you know that's it doesn't matter and and the scary thing is is is that means that it can trump the Bible and that means it can trump Jesus and that's happened before you know we're we're prophets will say things that they directly contradict what what is in the Bible you know but but we're supposed to believe what was spoken now above what was spoken 2,000 years ago and and that's a huge difference from being a Christian now and understanding okay number one the Bible is God's Word I've accepted that I've accepted that you know God is is bigger and better than we could ever give him credit for and that if he wants us to have his truth he will make a way for it to happen and and despite know all the people say well the Bible you Mormons and say the Bible's corrupt it was mistranslated this and that know God's word is is you know it will never heaven and earth will pass away but his his word will never pass away and you know don't you think God is is smarter than man don't you think that you know he can trump the devil but by keeping his word together and so the first thing is is as a Christian you know I accept the Bible as God's Word I accept it as you know infallible and I accept it you know as my complete and total source of truth so everything else outside of the Bible has to be tested with what the Bible says even the Bible itself says that in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established well guess what I mean we have four Gospels you know that all have the same accounts of Jesus's life we have those witnesses within the Bible stuff the Bible was not written as the Bible the Bible is a compilation of witnesses of Jesus Christ and so what mean were the their be for another witness another Testament you know being the Book of Mormon you know the Bible is a compilation of those witnesses and and and when I seek for truth I just I seek for it in the Bible and if I hear something from a pastor or from any outside source and then I test it with the Bible you know Timothy teaches us to test the spirits and we have the Word of God to test it with and so if something doesn't align with with what is taught in the Bible then I reject it and it's that simple I don't pray about it I don't get on my knees I don't seek for feelings I don't have to seek for feelings it's like God gave me the answers it's right in front of me all I have to do is look and when I find it you know I know what's true and I know what isn't true and there's no questioning about it and it's just it's it's a complete and total night-and-day difference between you know being a Christian and being a Mormon and and how you know how I seek for truth now interesting is what so how do you answer that on Mormon who really comes out with with a very strong sense of testimony mm-hmm I mean obviously you could say well you have to test it against right are you testing it against your own personal is it subjective or objective I mean it's that's a tough one yeah I mean what would you say to Saudi how do you get past that whole the emotional testimony yeah well I it's hard it's hard to get past you know a Mormon who feels like they have a testimony because I felt that same way and I was nearly I was a brick wall you know until until God broke down that wall and I mean for me personally the first approach I would say is well I know how you feel because I was once there but the thing is is you know what about the Muslims what about the FLDS I mean do you think that they don't believe strongly and in in their faith you know if somebody's willing to strap a bomb to themselves and to blow themselves up for their faith don't you think they have a testimony just the same you know so so if your standard is is having feelings then then then you know what standard do you hold that - I mean I want to point meets world and I can you know I can get teary-eyed I can watch you know Hollywood can do that so so if I'm watching a movie and I'm getting emotional about it and I feel you know what I would believe to be the Spirit of God moving within me it's like what does that mean that this is the one true movie on the earth you know and I need to find the people that made it and unite my selves with them I mean you know there's so many things that we can get emotional about but that that doesn't mean that they're true and so if you don't have you know a physical you know literal stander to hold yourself by then there's there's you can be so easily deceived and that's the amazing thing about the Bible and why God gave us the Bible is that we have his work okay we have the truth that's right there it's an open book it's you know beginning and it's closed there's there's no more to add to it so all we have to do is go to that book and find what's true and and I've had so many experiences where I've prayed about things and I've gotten that that burning you know in the bosom and all that stuff and and so much of it is just subjective you know because now when I think about the same things those feelings are completely void and in fact they're they're almost you know when I think about Joseph Smith and I think about how I used to feel about him and how I just I would have died for him and now you know knowing some of the you know the really horrible things he did and not judging him as a person but just knowing okay these were the some of the the fruits of his life as a prophet and just going you know my goodness I that's terrible you know I do not have those feelings for this men anymore and that's the thing is you know your heart can change so quickly like that but I'm not even relying on you know my feelings on Joseph Smith on whether or not he's a true prophet I'm testing it against the Bible and I use that as my source and hopefully you know people can get through that and but it's really hard it's really hard because when you truly believe something in your heart you know there seems to be nothing in the world they can shake that and sometimes there's not and I just pray for those people yeah well um kind of on that same line what would you want to communicate to a Mormon who you would who is a steadfast TBM true-blue yeah thank you oh my look at a camera on this one sure yeah it's it's kind of hard to know what to say you know to somebody who is once it's it's kind of hard to know what to say to somebody who who is where I you know once once was because I know how I felt and I know that I could not deny you know with any part of me what I believe and I knew it to be true I had a testimony know beyond anything that that I could ever imagine and and I had countless spiritual experiences about you know Joseph Smith about the Book of Mormon about you know the church the prophets everything and and I know that there's a lot of people that that feel that way right now who say well you know there's nothing that could ever shake my testimony and and I once said that and the amazing thing is you know it wasn't somebody else that shook my testimony it was God that reached into my life and showed me that there is a better way and that the way that I was once following is in fact not his way and almost the only thing I could say to somebody who who is in that situation is just give you the same challenge that that pastor gave me and that's to to read the Bible I challenge you to read the Bible as a child and as a child means that you're reading it seeking for answers you know because if you seek you will find but if you read the Bible you know believing that you already know everything there is to know then you're not going to you're not going to learn anything but if you read the Bible as a child would seek for answers I can promise you you know without a doubt that you will see what the true gospel of Jesus Christ really is and you will know that the gospel that you're living is is indeed a false gospel and you were led by a false prophet and strong harsh as those words may seem and as harsh they were to me when I heard them they're true and the only reason that I even care is is because I you know it's because of the love that I have for the people that that are deceived like I once was and I've dedicated my entire life to a ministry that is reaching out to to the Mormon people and to anybody who's lost in and if I didn't care or was doing this out of hate I wouldn't do it there would be no point I'm not getting rich off of it I'm getting poor off of it as a matter of fact but but it's done out of love and I just you know if you don't believe that I I'm sorry but I would still challenge you to read the Bible you know to open up your eyes and just just read the Bible without any preconceived notions of what truth is and start in Matthew and read the entire New Testament and see what God does with your life so just describe briefly sort of the mission experience of preparation training the culture all sort of well going on a mission is very it's definitely a unique experience and there's actually a lot that goes in you know beforehand as far as training and preparation and and one of the things is culturally it's just expected you know especially if you live in Utah which I did at the time that I went on a mission you know when you turn 19 you were expected to go on a mission and everybody's got their eyes on you so even though you have a choice you really don't have a choice and if you don't go I mean it's you really almost shunned upon because because you know every every young woman grows up saying I'm going to marry a returned missionary for me it was an intense period of preparation that I actually put upon myself now I started I worked in the temple every day 40 hours a week I would read The Book of Mormon you know hours upon hours every day I actually had study groups with some of my friends and that's false full-time I was a full-time missionary prepare is always the way to say it and and then when you go on your mission you do more preparation and what's called the Missionary Training Center which is just like it's like boot camp for missionaries and you know you up at 6:30 every day you eat your breakfast and you go to class for like 12 hours a day I mean it's it's insane and you just they just shove you know the Mormon gospel down your throat all day every day you know they just train you to to go out there and to teach the Mormon gospel they even train you how to how to deal with with Christians how to deal with you know some of these scriptures that seem to oppose Mormon doctrine like Galatians 1 things like that and they they they feed you the answers and so you you know without getting to now I want to you know be too too biased about it but it's almost like a robot you know it's like you're almost being trained as this robot because every missionaries going to deal with things in the exact same way because that's how they've been trained to do it so that mission that MTC experience is just it's so intense and it's it's you almost want to give up because it's it's really hard and there's a lot of missionaries that do give up in the MTC and well I felt like a lot of times for me I was in the MTC for nine weeks and that's because I was learning Spanish I was going to on a Spanish speaking mission so not only did I have to you know learn the Mormon gospel inside of now but I had to learn it in another language which was which was really difficult in really intensively background in Spanish before that a little bit but not really not really a little bit a little bit in high school so you know you would you a lot of that what was kind of the focus was just sharing with the the essentials of what you would be sharing with with the would-be converts right six lessons yeah yeah yeah I mean how far afield of the basic lessons did you get to study in other words where you did you feel prepared when you left maybe you more than others but I general you as missionaries as a group did you feel prepared yeah we're gonna go go out and you know a lot of ways I felt prepared but I think a lot of that was just anxiety you know honestly you know you just you want to get out there cuz you've just you've been waiting your whole life to serve a mission you have to sit in this bootcamp I thought it was prepared yeah yeah I would say I thought I would ferret I think a lot of missionaries think they're prepared until they're actually thrown into that situation especially if you're learning another language because you think you could speak it and say you get out of the street and you're talking to some bikes that can speak it out of miles an hour if you just you you know you don't understand a word of it so do you want want me to explain some of the life as a missionary itself okay well life as a missionary is is really like regimented I mean it's really disciplined you you're you get up at 6:30 every day and you exercise and you shower you eat breakfast and then you study Mormon gospel for four to three hours every morning and then you go out and you just preach the gospel you know for 11 12 hours a day you know you you whether you have appointments or you go and you just you know walk on the street and talk to people or you go knock on doors whatever it is you know your whole focus and your whole goal is just to to preach to people the the LDS gospel and it's it's really hard I mean it's really hard and and I give a lot of credit to people that can do it because I felt like I was as as spiritually emotionally mentally physically prepared as anybody could be to go on a mission and it beat me up and in so many ways and so you know it's a really really difficult thing because you know so much of it is rejection it's just you know out of some of these times you know I have a hundred people we've talked to we maybe maybe get into one you know one house or get one person who was who was positive and oh man that was so frustrating and just just difficult to deal with and you just you get so down on yourself and an almost depressed at times and you really got to try to keep you know companionships have to really try to keep each other keep your morale up and stuff but there are those amazing experiences when when you genuinely do make connections with people and there are people my mission that I genuinely loved and I really was help trying to help them and and a lot of times we had opportunities to do service for people and and and and help people in a genuine way and and I you know I really remember I think I'll always remember some of those experiences and they were amazing I just I wish I had known at the time you know the true gospel of Jesus Christ so that that I could have have given them you know something more than what I was giving them but you know it's it's all part of all part of God's plan but you know for two years it's it's seven days a week and you know twelve well you get up at 6:30 and then you go to bed at 10:30 and you do it all over there's no days off there's no you know days to rest it's it's it's really intense two years straight you know where you're on your bicycle or knocking doors getting yelled at by people I had somebody throw a bottle at me one time when I was riding a bike I had somebody try to run me over in a car one time you know people have said every every swear word on the planet you know I know people I got dogs you know let let go after this it's really rough what would you you know what advice would you give to Christians as they kind of yeah obviously it's not to throw bottles right right right yeah I think mmm I think one of the problems with with a lot of Christians is the way they deal with with Mormon missionaries and one of those problems is number one they just they they don't want to talk to them and I'm thinking you know here's here's two people okay who want to sit down and discuss God and they're they're completely lost they don't know the true gospel of Jesus Christ they want to come into your house discuss scripture and you reject them and and that's just one of those things where I just you know it just it hurts me because you know what if pastor the pastor that I met on my mission had said I don't want to talk to you guys you know I I know I already have the truth you know but I think some of the best advice that I could give Christians is to let them into your home you know give them an opportunity to share their message so that you can share your message and it's like somebody's you know somebody's drowning and there's they're standing on your front doorstep and you can save them and you and you just you know slam the door in their face it's just it's not the right way to deal with it and you think well I'm a Christian I've got the truth I'm better than these Mormons and a lot of times even now I have that that attitude sometimes and a lot of Christians do and I kind of have to slap myself in the face and say hey you know God has called you to help these people they're coming right after your door you don't help them and you know so just have your scriptures ready you know have those have those different Bible verses ready where you can sit down and teach them the true gospel and in fellowship with them and show them love and show them compassion and understanding and and you never know I mean you know we're I'm a living example of what you know a loving Christian the fruit that came from from the ministering of a loving Christian in my life and and if he had hadn't done that I don't know where I'd be you know but but look at this ministry and how it's grown on how we reach people you know all around the world with what will you do all because of one seed that was planted and so I just encourage you you know if you see him you know even giving him a glass of water you know you know let him into your house you know show that that christ-like compassion and love and use those opportunities to Minister the gospel to them yeah you know it's being if somebody who's been on the other side I I know him personally and I think I priced it for a lot of Christians it's not even so much pride as much as it is fear yeah how do we what if they say something that's going to stop me right what what if I end up talking myself into a corner these guys are so prepared that's a great question and how do you kind of get past that yeah now do you understand a lot of reason why Christians don't let Mormons in their home is because of fear and and and and I I completely understand that because they're you know they come in your door and they're so well dressed and they've got their scriptures and they are so well prepared and well rehearsed and and they probably know the exact scriptures you're going to use and they know how to make it you know to kind of twist it around and make it seem a certain way but but you you know you can't be afraid is the first thing you can't be afraid because you have the Word of God you know one thing I would suggest is getting online and preparing yourself for when Mormon missionaries do come to your door if you go to Adams Road BAM calm we have a links page there's some amazing sights on there Institute of religious research concerned Christians Utah lighthouse ministry there's just a bunch of links on there to websites that their whole purpose is to educate Christians about Mormonism and what I would do is is take you know a half an hour an hour or whatever sit down with your Bible go onto one of those websites and you know make some notes and just prepare yourself I mean people have written books about about what to do when you account our Mormon missionaries I mean the the the information is all there so I would just really encourage people to to prepare for that and then you know to invite them back and to continue that discussion as long as you possibly can because you know you're not going to get you know tricked into joining the Mormon Church you know so so if they're willing to come back you know I keep keep them coming back and continue that dialogue and hopefully you'll you'll finally find something that might you know might might get them in the heart yeah if you can just kind of in as briefly as possible tell me about the whole formation of the band okay the the Adams Road ministry is has an amazing kind of history and it really started when when I came to know the Lord Jesus Christ well as a missionary and while I was a missionary I actually knew Joseph he was a very very close friend of mine he was a fellow missionary I had been around him numerous times on my mission and I started sharing these experiences that I was having with him I started saying hey you know check this out in the Bible you know read this and see just just see what you think and so I started having the opportunity minister to him actually while I was going through that exact process and amazingly while I was on my mission as well I met Jay he was actually a member of the Mormon Church in one of the areas I served in and and Steve was a missionary here in in Orlando at the same time as well so four of us actually had kind of that that connection all while I was a missionary here and Matt is my blood brother so when I had this experience where I was kicked off my mission and finally you know was able to live my life as a Christian I I started ministering to my brother I started ministering to Jay and and everybody just kind of started ministering to each other and and and everybody kinda in their own time and in their own way through reading and studying the Word of God ended up coming to the same conclusion and a you know accepting their Lord Jesus Christ becoming born-again and leaving the Mormon Church and and I just there's there's too many things to to explain on how it all happened but it's just it's a miracle on how God put us together and and how we all felt that same you know divine call from God that we need to to form this ministry form this band and and and share the Word of God through music and that just from day one that was the passion from our hearts and it's been over four years now and it's just it's no less I think we're more passionate now than we've ever been we've done we're recording our third album we're about to go on our third national tour you know we tour around the country months out of the year just sharing our testimonies and sharing the Word of God through our music and it's just it's been the ride of a lifetime but but it's it's to see the people that have come to know the Lord Jesus Christ and to see the people who who have been saved through the message of salvation found in the Bible that we simply put to music has just been the the most amazing feeling world there's there's no better feeling than that to see people come to know the Lord like we have come to know him and we're just going to keep doing this forever until we can't move anymore now first now you were sort of the instigator the human instigator anyway yeah this right yeah so so that is sort of developed around you're coming to a clearer understanding of who Jesus is and sharing that with others mhm and a mutual interest in music is that correct yeah okay so how how would you say your involvement with the band has been a instrument in your own personal growth yeah one of the really unique things about the atoms are abandoned ministry is that we all live together we live in this old 1920s bed-and-breakfast that we actually run and it's it's it's a huge blessing to me personally because you know I get to to spend every day with with my family you know which are my brothers and sisters in Christ that you know the guys and their wives in the band and it's just it motivates me honestly personally you know when I get up and I spend time with them every day to know that we're all working for this common purpose and I'm not you know nobody's isolated you know we're one you know we're unified and it's this common goal you know to to preach the Word of God and especially to the Mormon community and it's it's such a unique lifestyle that I don't know if anybody else lives like that you know I don't know about all of our wives and our families our kids we all live here in the bed and breakfast you know we all we all work together we're always around each other and it's just it's really fun it's really fun and it's it's it's helping me personally too because you know spiritually I feel like you know we're all kind of keeping each other in check you know we are all accountable to one another and we're accountable to the body of Christ you know everywhere we go you know it's we're accountable to do those people and that's kind of the unique thing about our ministry because we're not we don't belong to a church and that's the question we get from a lot of people is you know do you belong to church and a lot of people amazingly there are some Christians that really look down upon that and think that it's terrible that we don't have a home Church the amazing thing about it is you know we week to week we're in a different part of the body of Christ you know we get to go to more church than a lot of people and listen to a lot more pastors you know then a lot of people do and we're held accountable to to those people and it's just a really unique but but wonderful lifestyle and I wouldn't trade it for anything the world I can't imagine living in a house by myself that would be boring so what would you describe I mean that's great I think that's really interesting and in terms of being a member of a church I mean what is large right except gathering of believers does the church have to have 50 people in order to be considered okay yeah anyway uh what would you describe as being the mission and the vision of the band an administrator okay that's that's a great question kind of from day one the the established I guess kind of vision for this band and this ministry was to put the Word of God into music and I know I've said that but but that is something that that the Word of God is what changed our lives the Word of God is what you know brought us out of darkness into this incredible marvelous relationship with Jesus Christ okay there's nothing more powerful than God's Word there's nothing we could say on our own words you know that's gonna that's going to move so many more than what the gospel of Jesus Christ has been given to us in the word and so you know we are trying to reach people who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ we are trying to reach people who are in darkness through the Word of God and so we're taking the Word of God we're taking specific passages that have really moved us and really changed our lives and putting those into song with a hope that if people listen to that and have that ingrained in their minds and in their hearts that it will have the same impact upon them and mmm you know it's just we're a complete and total biblical ministry that's it it was just to get the Word of God out there and music is our vehicle and it's I think one of the most powerful vehicles for people to you know for people's lives to be changed and you know we're not trying to put flowery you know no Christian you know praise songs together we're trying to just just take the raw Word of God put it into put it into music and put it out there and let people be changed by it and obviously because of our histories and backgrounds in the Mormon Church one of our biggest missions and visions is to reach the Mormon people but it's not limited to the Mormon people you know there's a lot of denominations and and different people who don't know the Lord who think they do you know but they don't know that the true Jesus of the Bible and so our mission is to you know use our testimonies wherever we go and use our music to try to reach out to those people and hopefully you know we're reaching as many people as we can and we're always looking for you know kind of different avenues to to to you know share share our message but that's the amazing thing about music is that you know it's worldwide and we can put mp3's you know on the web and people can listen to it from anywhere in the world and get that same message of salvation of Jesus Christ it's actually one of the unique things about our ministry that we've decided to do and one of our vision visions was that you know our music should be accessible to everybody and so we shouldn't charge for that and one thing that we've done is been able to produce and duplicate and release CDs and give them away and we've given away in the tens of thousands of CDs and we also on our website Adams Road band com we have all of our music available for free download you know so if we ever get to the point where we can't afford to you know give away physical CDs anymore you know what the age of technology anyone from anywhere in the world can get on our website and download our music for free and have it you know and that's because our motivation is not to make money it's not to sell records you know it's not to to get rich off of what we're doing it's we're just trying to get get it out there in any way possible and see it seems to be working well we got about maybe 60 seconds left in the tape anything you want to any last words to throw out there mmm okay well is is awesome yeah yeah kind of long but you know it's well you have to do the job of editing not me but it is good I've noticed sometimes it's better to have more than then last yeah

Channel: Sacred Groves

Views: 27,126

Rating: 4.7695851 out of 5

Keywords: mormon, mormonism, christian, christianity, bible, biblical, adams, road, micah, wilder

Id: sNB9zp2jNjI

Length: 60min 4sec (3604 seconds)

Published: Sat Jan 22 2011