A Plan, Purpose, and Blueprint- Ken Freeman

Sharing good news of great joy to all people,

Elation Church. I'm going to give you several

statements, and then I'm going to share my story.

That's typically what I do when I go for a one

-day deal. I've been doing this for over 40 years.

I was traveling at one point over 300 days out

of the year, and now it's a little over 200 days

out of the year, which I could retire. I'm not

going to. I don't know how these preachers retire.

I'm going to do this as long as I can do it.

And I'm not going to let age be my gauge or whatever's

going on. So for you that need to know, everybody

say wow. Yeah, everybody say wow backwards. Yeah,

like the ones that paused, like the letters had

changed. So if you say it forwards or backwards,

it's still. If you say it upside down, yeah,

it would be mom, not wom. So everybody say wow.

So I'll introduce myself a little bit. I'm a

little calm now. I'm sure I'm going to get loud

in a few moments. So I'll say a few things. You'll

say wow. I'm married. Just celebrated August

17th, 53 years, being married to my first wife.

Somebody will get that later, I promise you.

I have two boys. They're ugly. When they were

born, the nurse said they were cute. She lied.

They look like lizards. There was blood everywhere.

I have 10 grandkids. And as of July the 30th

of this year, I am now a stinking great -grandfather.

I have a great -granddaughter, and I've met her

only once, so now I'm a great -grandfather, freaking

me out. And then I have a dog named Fluffy, and

my boys think that I love Fluffy more than them,

and I do. I do. She wants a biscuit. They want

my money. I love Fluffy. She poops in my backyard.

They pooped on my life. Can I get an amen? I

love Fluffy. So that's my family. For you that

got to know, March of this next year, I'll be

74 years old. And I've been doing this a long

time. I'm in good shape for the shape I'm in.

I used to run three miles a day. I now take my

car. I feel better, get there faster. I'm just

kidding. I do work out. I try to take care of

myself as best as I can. And Dean and Gany, you're

not going to meet. And Jeffrey, you're not going

to meet finer people. The worship that you get,

a lot of churches don't get the worship you get.

And if you notice, they do everything right.

They do everything right. And so I pray one day

that you will be in that new building and pray

one day that you'll be that lighthouse on this

street. And I pray that you just, you know, found

people. I want to give you some stuff to write

down. By the way, these are 18 note cards that

I've taken from my pastor. And so we run around

24 ,000 or more. We have three campuses. Our

main campus runs about 16. And so we have service

on Saturday night at 5 and 4 on Sunday morning.

So if I get to be home, I'll go Saturday night

because we get the whole thing. And then I'll

go to the 2 o 'clock service on Sunday because

we get the whole thing. And so even though he's

going to preach the same message, I know I'm

going to get something different. So these are

just 18 note cards. I don't know how many I have,

but I take notes. Everybody say note takers or

history makers. And if I was you, I would start

writing stuff down every chance you get. And

I realize on my phone, I've got my Bible. I do

a quiet time on my phone. I'm reading through

the chronological Bible this year. And I'm on

200 and something days now. And then I also do

another devotional. So I spend about an hour

just in my time, me and the Lord, sometimes more.

And I'm always writing stuff down. And so I would

encourage you to start taking notes. I mean,

they offered you those little notebooks, and

I would encourage you to do that. This is my

11th preaching Bible. Now, I realize you can

have it on your phone, and that's great, but

there's nothing like a paper copy of the Scripture.

And so this is my 11th. My other 10 Bibles I've

already signed to my grandkids. I don't know

what I'm going to do with my great -granddaughter.

That's way down the road. But this Bible here

is my 11th preaching Bible, and it will go to

my son who's a pastor in Oklahoma. And I say

I'm going to give it to him. If I pass away,

get to be with Jesus, which I'm ready to do that,

this Bible will be his. So note -takers, I hope

that you'll say this a lot, note -takers are

history makers. and I would encourage you, write

stuff down every chance. And this is why, because

every now and then I get to watch you guys online.

I watch my son online, watch my pastor as well.

And I would just tell you that you can go back

and look at your notes in the week. That could

be your quiet time. My son actually, on his Facebook

page, he puts the notes from his messages. and

he encourages his families to have family time

and discuss the sermon. So I would encourage

you to do that if you would. But anyway, I just

wanted to show you that what he said is true.

You want to take notes. It's important. Let me

give you a couple of thoughts before I get into

Scripture. God has a purpose for everything.

I'd write that down. God's got a purpose for

everything. He's got a purpose for our pain.

And we need to live life with an eternal purpose.

I'm going to say that again. We need to live

life with an eternal purpose, not a temporary

purpose. There's so many messages. And here's

the difference between me and Dean. He's got

to come up with messages every week. I don't

have to do that because I'm always in a different

place. Now, I do have plenty of messages. But

the bottom line, I still need the same anointing

that they need. I need that same anointing. But

they've got to come up with stuff every single

week to give to you. I just need to make sure

that I preach the right messages. Amen? So I

want to give you, let me give you that statement

again. God has a purpose for everything, number

one. And God has a purpose for your pain. And

then the last one is we need to live life with

an eternal purpose, things that last. And that's

just important. Bad assumption in this gym that

everybody in this room is saved. Bad assumption.

No doubt in my mind, I believe now there's a

greater chance of everybody in this room being

saved than in a building that's running 4 ,000.

So there is a greater chance. The question is,

Do you know that you're saved? I'm going to give

you three thoughts in my story. Now, if you came

to leave at a certain time, you should have stayed

home. You should have watched Joel Osteen. Nobody

ought to be that happy. That dude needs to have

a bad day. But here's the deal. My hope is that

you leave this place different than you came.

Who would have ever dreamed that... this family

would leave North Carolina to come here. And

then for me, the hell that I grew up in, that

I would end up being in the same place. God's

got a purpose for everything that happens in

our life. Three things. Write these three things

down. I'm going to give them to you. God and

the devil have a plan and a purpose and a blueprint

for your life. I'm going to say it again. God

and the devil have a plan. a purpose, and a blueprint

for your life. You just got to make sure you're

on the right plan with the right purpose and

the right blueprint. That's the bottom line.

There's a lot of messages I would love to have

preached today, but this is where I'm heading,

and my story is in this as well. About an hour

and 45 minutes from my house, in fact, I'll be

doing a... some kind of a camp, a weekend camp

in Kerrville, Texas. I don't know if you've read

the news or saw the news, but Kerrville is about

an hour and 45 minutes from my house. I was home

on July 4th when 27 little girls, 8, 9, and 10

-year -old girls, and the head of the camp there

and several counselors were drowned. There were

over 134 people that ended up dead. I still think

there's two that they haven't found. That's about

an hour and 45 minutes from my house. They were

at a camp that day. They weren't planning on

dying that day, but it happened. About an hour

from my house in Uvalde, Texas, a young man walked

into a school. and shot 21, two teachers and

19 children, brutally murdered an hour from my

front door. That's just two events. And then

you saw this guy that went to the Catholic school

just recently and killed an 8 -year -old and

a 9 -year -old, I'm sharing this for a purpose,

and wounded 17 others. I think there are two

that are still in critical condition. So we act

like we got all the time in the world when all

we got is right now. That's all we got. And so

Psalms 39, I didn't give this to them, but Psalms

39, you can look at it later. You can read verses

four through seven. Basically says this, our

days are numbered. I was in a little fender bender.

This guy just stopped and it just happened. But

I can't tell you how many wrecks. when I left

my home to where I am here that I saw that were

pretty bad wrecks on the way here. So he says

that our days are numbered. He says, remind me

that my days are numbered, how fleeting my life

is. You've made my life no longer than the width

of my hand. An entire lifetime is but a moment

for you. And then he says, we're merely moving

shadows, Psalms 39, 6. All are busy rushing ends

in nothing. So, Lord, where do I put my hope?

In verse 7, our only hope. is Jesus Christ. So

God and the devil have a plan, a purpose, and

a blueprint for our life. Psalms 139. If you'll

go there, Psalms 139 and verse, oh man, they're

putting, I'm not used to all this technology

stuff. Chapter 139, but it's verse 12. Even in

the darkness, now watch this, God has a plan,

purpose, blueprint for your life. Even in darkness,

I cannot hide. From you. To you the night shines

as bright as the day. Darkness and light are

the same. But look at verse 13. You've made all

the delicate inner parts of my body. And knit

me. I have a t -shirt. I didn't set anything

up. But I have a t -shirt. One of my shirts.

And on the front it says your mama is pro -life.

It's a great shirt. On the back it says we're

fearfully and wonderfully made. And so I want

you to notice what he said. He said, you made

all the delicate inner parts of my body and knit

me together in my mother's womb. And mine says,

thank you for making me wonderful complex, but

I like it where it says, we are fearfully and

wonderfully made. Your workmanship is marvelous,

how well I know it. You watched me as I was being

formed in utter seclusion, verse 15. I was woven

together in the dark of the womb. You saw me

before I was born. Look at verse 16. And every

day of my life was recorded in your book. Every

moment was laid out before a single day had passed.

Everybody say God and the devil. I feel like

we ought to yell or scream or something. It's

just so quiet. But here's the deal. You're looking

at a dude that... I had no family, no friends,

no future, and no faith. And here's the sad part

of my story. I've written three books. Again,

I didn't bring all that stuff in. But my new

book is called Choices 101. The choices we make

will affect family, friends, future, and our

faith. Every choice we make will affect those

four things in your life, in a good way or a

bad way. I have a shirt that also says, people

make choices, choices make people. On the back,

we're one choice away from a different life.

In fact, let me give you this statement. The

direction of your life is also a reflection of

your heart. And then I like this. The choices

we make today determines how we'll live tomorrow.

And so we've got to be heavenly minded. We've

got to be eternal minded. How can we be a light

and salt in a lost and a dying world? I had nine

stepfathers growing up. I was in jail at 15,

suicidal at 10 after one of my stepdads beat

me with the switch, cleaned the blood off my

legs, grabbed a small bottle of aspirins. Don't

know that anybody wants to die, but they want

the pain to stop. Took my first drink of alcohol

at nine. See, here's the sad part of my story.

There were churches all around us, but nobody

knocking on my door. And so I want you to understand,

you're looking at a dude that's got every reason

to be atheist, agnostic. I got every reason to

flip God off or to cuss God out. But God had

a, everybody say plan, purpose, blueprint for

my life. Just as well as the devil had a plan.

a purpose, and a blueprint for my life. The last

verse that I'll end with will make sense. Two

voices, two choices, two plans, purposes, and

blueprints. My dad was a gutless man, knew how

to make a baby, didn't want to be a daddy to

a baby. 38 million kids in America have no idea

where their real father is. And these numbers

are probably higher now. But 19 million kids

in America have never seen their real dad. 24

different schools, nine stepfathers. I've slept

in bars and cars and streets and alleys, backyards,

garages. My mom was an alcoholic, would beat

me and my sister. I'm the oldest of eight siblings.

I have a half -brother that died from needles

at 40, lost. Two half -sisters lost, alcoholics

along with their kids. Another half -brother,

I think he's finally won the drug battle. and

doing much better, making better choices. I've

got another half -brother who went to prison.

He got out of prison years ago, started making

better choices. I helped him get his first book

published, and that he speaks in the business

world. I have a half -sister I know nothing about.

I may have other siblings I know nothing about.

And my baby sister, when I found her, well over...

I don't know how long ago it was now. But when

I found her, she was 40 years old. Her 12 -year

-old little boy, watch this, was crumpled and

crippled over. He was in a walker. And bar some

miracle, he was born that way because of my sister's

choice to do drugs. You see, we act like the

choices we make just affects us. It doesn't.

Last week, I spoke in three public schools. I

spoke to about 1 ,800 kids. Just a motivational

deal. And then I invited them to come hear my

story at night. And many of them did come. And

we had a great, great, great time. The sad part

of what I do in schools is I can't talk about

Jesus. I can just tell them I made a choice that

changed my life, but I still have to make choices

to keep my life changed. Every day, one choice

away from a better life or a bitter life. You're

here today because you made a... When you leave

here, you're going to make more. And you're always

one away from a different life. I mean, this

is a great place to be. The saddest part is empty

seats. They got 300 chairs they'd love to bring

in here. And they get here about seven. I don't

know who helped set up, but they set all this

up. And you would think we were going to speak

to about 3 ,000 people today. But it's all about

a perspective. It's an eternal perspective. not

temporary. God's more concerned about the eternal

things in our life than he is the temporary things.

Amen? So everybody say God and the devil. We're

not used to talking. No, he does pretty good

with it. Have a plan, a purpose, and a blueprint

for our life. The question is, are you on the

right plan, right purpose, and blueprint? And

let me give you this thought, by the way, as

I get into my story. I saw this on Facebook,

Dean, and I've shared it. There was a youth pastor

who did a little survey. He said, do you know

that if you read your Bible three days or less

a week, listen to this statistic, if you read

your Bible three days or less a week, there's

a great chance you're not going to pray very

much, you're not going to share your faith, you're

not going to volunteer, you're not going to serve,

you're not going to give, you're probably not

going to try to win people to Jesus. There's

a great chance of that. But if you read your

Bible four days or more a week, and by the way,

I'm in the Bible every day. There's not a day

goes by I'm not in the Word, even if I don't

feel like it. But if you read your Bible four

days or more a week, there's a greater chance

that you're going to serve, volunteer, love,

pray more, share more. You're going to tithe.

You're going to give. When I get home, I'll tithe

on what I get. from where I've been these last

couple of weeks. And there's a greater chance

that you're going to tell somebody about Jesus.

I can't help. I mean, I got these bracelets that

glow in the dark. I got a key that I've been

wearing about 10 years. I don't even know what

this key goes to. I ain't got a clue. But nobody

ever asked me about the cross, but they always

want to know. It's a conversation. Dude, what's

up with the key? And the key to my life is the

cross. You know, I got tattoos. I know I probably

should have got bracelets. But they're conversation

pieces. I'm almost, when I checked in the hotel,

they saw these bracelets. Hey, tell me about

your bracelets. So I'm looking for avenues to

share my faith with other people. All you got,

listen, we got too many secret agents for God.

Listen, it ain't no secret. My neighborhood knows

where I stand with Jesus. I mean, I want you

to understand the people where I go to restaurants,

my wife and I, when my boys graduated and left,

my wife decided she would never cook again, and

she's done well. So we eat out a lot, and we

frequent some of the same restaurants, and the

reason being we get to witness to waitresses.

We've had them come to our church. We've seen

them give their life to Christ. So I'm not asking

you to do something I don't do. Can you imagine

if next week, if every one of you decided to

bring one person next week? I'm not a math person.

I studied all night to make a high F. I wasn't

smart. I got two brain cells and they're fighting

with each other right now. But you know what

I figured? If everybody here brought one person

next week, the crowd would double. And that's

not deep. But see, we just come to church. to

get rather than to give. And let me just say

this to you. How many of y 'all have people in

your life that are not Christians? Raise your

hand. How many of y 'all care about those people?

Do you care enough to get them here? You see,

I'm telling you, there were churches all around

me. My mom would drive, again, I'm the oldest

of eight. When I found my baby sister, her 12

-year -old little boy could barely walk because

of her drug use. She had hepatitis C, cirrhosis

of the liver, became the person she hated. She

became my mom. I've slept in bars and cars and

streets and alleys, but watch this. I'm fearfully

and wonderfully made. And my mom told me all

my life that I was a mistake. My dad didn't want

me. She didn't want me. I mean, we cost her too

much money. We'd be better off dead. I slept

on a floor next to my baby sister's bed from

the age, can you imagine? From the age of 10

to 15, I slept on a floor in our school clothes.

Remember, 24 different schools, which means I

was always the new kid. So I got beat up and

bullied at home. I got beat up and bullied at

school. If you're listening, say yes. I'm not

boring you, right? See, so here's the deal. I

grew up with a lot of hate. Is it raining? I'm

so glad we're in here. We need rain in Texas.

Bottom line is this. My mom told me all my life

I'd be nothing to nobody. So I slept on a floor

next to my baby sister's bed because my mom worked

at bars and clubs. And when my mom would come

in late at night, 2 or 3 in the morning, if I

heard her, can you imagine? I'd wake my baby

sister up. We'd slip out the back door, depending

upon where we lived. We would hide in a garage,

a street, an alley, a park, a backyard. My mom

would pass out. We could slip back in, get in

our beds, and get a good night's rest. And then

we'd go to school. And I didn't run into any

Christians at school. I'm sure they were there,

but nobody told me about Jesus. Nobody invited

me to their church. I got no family, no friends,

no future, no faith, but I am fearfully and wonderfully

made. I think it's Jeremiah 29. You can go there.

Jeremiah 29, 11. Very powerful verse. And in

Jeremiah 29, notice what he said. When I pause,

will you speak? For I know the... See, a minute

ago when he was talking about the offering and

everything, I saw some things that I just needed

to highlight for me. My wife and I, I just got

back from Africa, if you can imagine. I got back

from Africa. It'll be two weeks past Monday.

And I got back on Tuesday, left on Monday from

Kenya, saw over 200 give their life to Christ.

In Africa, I spoke two days to preachers, trying

to share with them how to give an invitation,

how to draw the net, how to present the gospel.

Spoke in another church that I didn't need an

interpreter, praise God. And in the middle of

my message, there were two monkeys that showed

up in my sermon. I've had dogs and cats, never

had a monkey, but they're there. I don't know

if they got saved, but maybe they were listening.

But when I finished, I got home. I left on Monday,

didn't get home until Tuesday. And then my wife's

in the hospital Friday, and I'm on the road again

Saturday. See, here's the deal. I grew up with

a lot of hate and a lot of pain. And my mom told

me all my life that I was worth nothing. Nobody

really wanted me. That's what I grew up in. And

are you ready? I didn't run into any Christians.

And I know there were kids that went to church,

Bible study. And me and my sister, you know,

you had the cowboys. I didn't want to be a cowboy.

They're weird. Some people smoke cigarettes.

Cowboys eat them. You'll get that later. I wasn't

an intellectual. I wasn't athletic. I had athlete's

foot one time. I don't know if that counts. But

you're looking at a dude that just didn't fit.

And notice what he said. For I know the. Come

on, be strong. For I know the, I have for you,

says the Lord. There are plans for good, not

for disaster, but to give you a future and to

hope. Can we go to the next verse? I don't know

if you can get that up there. Look at it. No,

no, go back. No, I was talking about Jeremiah.

Here it is. Let me read it. All right, that's

all I get. Here it is. Jeremiah verse 12. In

those days when you pray, I will listen. Everybody

say if. Do you know that the word if is used

1 ,800 times in my Bible? He could do a whole

series on the word if. You look at the word life,

and in the middle of the word life is the word

if. Man, if my people, if you want to be my follower,

if you walk in the light, if you love. If is

a big word. And notice what he says here in verse

13. He said, if you look for me wholeheartedly,

you will find me. I will be found by you, says

the Lord. I will end your captivity, restore

your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations

where I sent you and bring you home again to

your own land. God and the devil have a plan,

purpose, and blueprint for your life. Now go

to John chapter 10. Now go to John 10. We're

John 10 · chapter mention

going to camp here for a few minutes. Powerful

one verse, very powerful verse in John chapter

John 10 · chapter mention

10. If you're listening, say yes. We moved to

California. I was seven. My sister was five.

I don't know why we moved. This will be the hardest

part that I share, and here's the sad part of

my story. When I started doing school assemblies,

and I've done over 20 ,000, I'd love to come

back here and get in this school, be with sixth,

seventh, eighth graders, and invite them here,

whether it's Sunday morning, Saturday night,

whatever we could do. But over 20 ,000 school

assemblies, not counting Christian schools, private

schools, alternative schools. And do you know

that when I started doing this over 40 years

ago, I would ask how many students came from

a divorced or broken home? And out of 800 kids,

I bet you there wasn't 20. Now I ask the same

question out of 800 kids. 70 to 80 % of students

in public schools come from divorced and broken

homes. 50 % live in single -parent homes. 30

% don't live with either one of their parents

at all. There are a lot of Ken Freemans in our

life. And we've got to figure out, by the way,

this is a good group this morning. Jesus only

had 12, and they were weird people. Think of

what he could do with you if every week you got

a Ken Freeman here. If every week that person

that you care about, you said, you know what?

Go to church with me Sunday. We'll go to lunch

afterwards. I promise you, if you can get people

here, they're going to hear the gospel. You see,

worship is our life. It's not a song. And you'll

never worship a God that you don't know, and

you can never worship a God that you don't serve.

When I was in Africa, man, I didn't understand

their language, but I worshiped. It's not knowing

a song, it's knowing a Savior. Amen? We moved

to California. I'm seven, my sister's five. My

mom woke me up. She said, I'll see you in three

days. I'm going to go party. My mom left us with

an ex -boyfriend, made another. Woke up to my

baby sister crying. I fell back to sleep. When

I looked in the bunk bed, usually a dream or

a nightmare, my sister was weeping, and it wasn't,

I'll be careful here as best I can. I watched

as this dude did horrible things to my baby sister.

And for my sister and my two half -brothers and

myself, the abuse that we went through, you can't

imagine. You can't even imagine. And then we'd

go to school and get beat up and bullied. Nobody

reached out to us. We didn't dress very cool.

I wore glasses back then. That was not a cool

deal. I wasn't athletic. I was always the new

kid. He grabbed me by the arm. My anger turned

to fear, slung me to the bottom of the bed, and

it was my turn. You see, that happened because

my dad mayday. Watch how it works. My mom mayday.

Her ex -boyfriend mayday. And here's where I

share this in public schools. Here's what I tell

students. Sometimes, like me, you've got to live

with the consequences of your parents, your families,

your classmates, your workers' choices. One choice

away from a different life. Romans 6 .16, you

ought to read Romans 6. 23 verses, powerful chapter.

You ought to read it. Christian life's about

life and death. The Christian's life is about

freedom and bondage. It's about wages and rewards.

But listen to Romans. It's one of my bracelets.

Romans 6 .16 says, Don't you realize whatever

you choose to obey becomes your master? You become

its slave. You can choose sin that leads to death,

or you can choose to obey God and have a righteous

life. One choice away from a different life.

It all started in the garden. Everybody say thank

you. Yeah, I'm giving you more. I'm giving you

as much as I can. Adam and Eve, do you understand,

had one wrong choice. And if you don't think

it messed with you, read Romans 5 .12. Because

of one man, Adam, and his sin, all of us became

sinners. That's why we needed Jesus, the second

Adam. Amen? If you're listening, say yes. My

mom came home three days later. We rushed into

the living room, wrapped our arms around my mom's

legs. I'm looking up at her. I'm going to tell

my mom what I think this guy did, what he probably

did to others. He's already drinking a bottle

of beer. He gets in the car and leaves. My mom

kicks us off our legs because she was pretty

drunk. We passed out on the floor, or we slept

on the floor. The next morning, I went into my

mom's room. It's a little bit bigger bottle than

this. And on my mom's nightstand, she had a warm

bottle of whiskey with a shot glass. Now, I haven't

had a drink of alcohol over 50 -something years

I've been clean. Yes, I can have a beer. Yes,

I can have a glass of wine. But I've chosen to

be an example, not an excuse. And what we do

in excess, kids are going to, excuse me, what

we do in moderation, kids will do in excess.

Just drink a bottle of water or a Diet Dr. Pepper.

It'll change your life. I want you to understand

that I began to tell my mom what I thought happened

after she drank that shot glass. Got us to the

hospital. My sister stayed. They arrested the

dude. He did go to prison. And from the age of

7 to 20, 13 years, I lived in a prison of guilt,

shame, and blame for 13 years. I was 20 when

I realized. What happened to my sister was not

my fault. We moved from California back to St.

Louis. That's when I wake up with a knife to

my throat, mom's whiskey breath in my face. I

didn't hear her come in. She's going to kill

me and my sister. I begged and cried. She dropped

the knife in the ground, and we got to live one

more day. My sister began to run the streets.

I moved to Texas, born in Virginia. Just got

to Texas as quickly as I could. As I drove in

with my two half -brothers because I wanted to

take care of them, my stepdad married another

woman just like my mom. She began to beat me

like my mom. I was real small growing up, real

small. So I was easy prey to get beat up. After

a year or so, maybe longer, I don't know, I packed

my suitcase. I'm not advocating this. And I lived

in the streets for about three days. And then

family started letting me live with them. Everybody

say God. devil, have a plan, purpose, blueprint

for my life. According to Psalms 139, we're fearfully

and wonderfully made, scheduled and planned each

day of our life. According to Jeremiah, I know

the plans I have for you to prosper, not to harm

or hurt you, give you hope and a future. And

then John 10 .10, look at that one. The thief's

purpose, I'm not lying to you, is to steal, kill,

and destroy. Now, I'm going to tell you, the

devil's real. But if you know the Bible, 1 John

4, 4, greater is he that is in than he that is

in the. You read James, James in chapter 4, he

says, submit yourself therefore unto God, resist

the devil, and he's got to go. We got to quit

blaming stuff on the devil. Can I get an amen?

Can you imagine getting a flat tire and you're

getting ready to change it and you're upset because

you think the devil gave you a flat tire? You

really think he's in the pits of hell going,

this will be good. You know why you got the flat

tire? I'd write this down. This is deep. Got

a hole in it. The devil and God had nothing to

do with the flat tire. After the flat tire, the

devil wants to have something to do with it,

as well as God. You'll understand that in a few

moments. My story just keeps going. I mean, here

I am, a great -grandfather, and you're looking

at a dude that should be a wife -beater, child

-abuser, drug -user, and I should be an alcoholic.

But 50 -something years ago, this coming October,

56, 57 years ago, I'm living on a couch. This

family took me in. I'd been living with different

families. Finally, I got this couch. A football

player gets me to go to church. There were girls

and foods. I was into chicks and chickens, so

I went. Y 'all are laughing. I walked in the

back of that church. I was going to sit in the

back row. I found out you want to get a good

back row, you got to get there four or five days

early. My first time to go to church, I joined

the youth choir. I could cuss wallpaper off a

wall, and I'm in the choir. Big old football

players hugging me. I didn't even know they're

mamas. I don't know how I became their brother.

The girls hugged me. Hallelujah. I thought that

was good. Now I'm giving you the short version.

You can just go online and look. Bottom line

is... October of 1968, gas was 13 cents a gallon.

The dude said, are you tired of running? His

name was Freddy Gage. I started crying. I didn't

cry in front of people. But see, the thief's

purpose is to steal, kill, and destroy. Every

six minutes in America, there's a murder. Every

eight minutes in America, there's a rape. One

in three women, usually a date rape. Every 15

minutes, someone dies because of somebody drinking

and driving. It used to be 90. Every 16 minutes,

someone will take their own life and probably

didn't want to die. And children under the age

of five will be beaten to death by somebody they

love. Are you all listening? That's why we've

got a world that's dying to go to hell. We've

got to give them a reason for heaven. We ought

to be the difference. They don't read Matthew,

Mark, Luke, and John. They read me and you. We're

the Bible that people read. Are they closing

the book? Are they asking more questions? Bottom

line is I got saved that night. I'll never forget.

School system found out I had no legal guardian.

I had to go back and live with my mom in St.

Louis. The football player's name was Jeff that

got me to go to church. I didn't run into another

Jeff. And then I call them my Jesus parents.

In one of my books, they write the foreword.

and they were the minister of music at the church

where I was saved in Corpus Christi. They moved

to San Antonio to another church, and I went

to St. Louis. They sent me a one -way plane ticket.

I can count on two hands the choices I made to

where I am right here today. They changed throughout

the years, but I chose to get on that plane,

one -way ticket. They took an Hispanic girl coming

off of drugs. She got the extra bedroom. I got

a camper shoved up in a carport. I thought it

was a condo. Now I'm giving you the short version.

The thief's purpose is to steal, kill, and destroy.

You look at the abortions, the murders. You look

at our political garbage. I'm just telling you,

we're in a mess. I think our country is better

than it's ever been. I don't know who you voted

for. I don't really care. But I think we're in

better shape than we've ever been. But the four

years before this, I'm 73, so I've seen a lot

of presidents. It was probably the worst four

years I've ever seen in America ever. And I'm

not talking about a man. I'm just talking about

politics. But can I tell you this? We don't need

a politician. And let me just tell you this.

A politician ain't going to make America great.

God can. And we've got to be praying for those

people. See, I'm in this Bible every day. When

you're in the Word every day, you're going to

pray more. You're going to reach out more. You're

going to listen better. You're going to love

more. You're going to serve more. Man, who can

I tell about Jesus today? The little fender bender

I had, I got out. I said, hey, listen, my foot

slipped off. I gave them all the insurance stuff.

And I took a few minutes to say, hey, listen,

I'm getting ready to preach this weekend. I guess

my sermon just now started. So I got to tell

them a little bit about Jesus and a little bit

of my story. It was an incredible conversation,

but we had to have a wreck for it to happen.

You see, the bottom line is. I was able to graduate

from high school, two years of college. I've

written three books, two boys, ten grandkids,

a great -granddaughter. I was able to forgive

my mom because forgiveness is a... I watched

my mom laying in bed. I wiped the blood from

her eyes, skin turned yellow, body bloated. For

14 years, I loved my mom as best as she'd let

me, but my mom died lost, never got saved. Found

my dad. After 42 years, my dad got throat cancer,

bone cancer. I was able to lead my dad to the

Lord 12 days before he died. You see, here's

the deal. Your story, just everybody's got a

story. But are you on the right plan with the

right purpose and the right blueprint? I'm going

to give you the biggest ripoff in just a moment.

On this arm, you're going to see my first tattoo.

I probably should have got a bracelet. But my

grandson, Trey, this year would have graduated

from high school. You would think I've been through

enough. And at the age of seven, we couldn't

beat leukemia. Our loss was heaven's gain. This

other one, if you go to pray for Caleb Freeman

or go to hashtag but God, his older brother Caleb

was in a horrible wreck about seven years ago.

They pronounced him dead. He was in a coma for

about two and a half months. He now walks without

a walker. He's still going to all kinds of therapies

in incredible shape. Him and my son travel and

speak. They spoke at Falls Creek this year, 6

,000 students. So he's still in front of people.

I'm praying for complete healing that one day

he'll run again. He walks like a drunk. It's

awesome. We love it. So here's what I'm saying.

There's a purpose for our pain, and God's got

a purpose for everything. Amen? Romans 8, 28.

For all things work together for those who love

God and are called according to His purpose.

Now, before I close, the second part of John

10. Jesus, I love how the New Living reads. He

said, my purpose is to give you a rich, satisfying

life, but I like it where it says, my purpose

is to give you life. That's salvation. But then

he said, and life more abundantly. Everybody

say upgrade. See, you know what I believe? I

never thought I'd ever say this, Dean, and you've

heard me say it before. There's more than just

getting saved. Nothing wrong with getting fire

insurance, but if that's all you got. And you

know what I tell people? If all God is going

to get out of you is Sunday morning, and that's

all God gets, you probably ought to get saved.

I mean, you've got small groups that you ought

to be a part of. I lead a small group in my church.

We have about 12 in our group. Don't stop listening.

So Jesus said, my purpose is to give you a rich,

satisfying life. You know what I noticed about

John 10 .10? Two voices, a deceptive voice and

a voice of life and truth. Two choices, two blueprints,

two plans, two purposes. I want to give you this

statement. I believe the biggest ripoff, everybody

point to your head. I'm trying to be careful

with your time, not really. Everybody point to

your head. Say you can know about God. Point

to your heart without knowing God. Point to your

head. You can know about God's love. Heart without

knowing God's love. 18 inches. You can know a

lot. In 1 John 5, 13 said these things are written

that you might know you have everlasting life,

not hope. In 1 John 5 chapters, the word K -N

-O -W is used 34 different times. That's the

one thing you ought to know. I think my wife

and I are going to make it. You know, I bought

her a little pebble when we got married. It's

all I could afford. And then I gave her the rock

for our 20th anniversary. I think we got a shot

at it. Ten grandkids and a great -granddaughter.

I think we're going to make it. I don't know

that. But what I do know, if I die, he were to

come, I'm going to be with Jesus. That's what

I do know. I close with this. A .W. Tozer said

this. He said, if your Christian conversion...

Dean, I'll take a picture of it and give it to

you. If your Christian conversion didn't change

the direction of your life... Listen to this.

If your Christian conversion didn't transform

or change your life... He said, you've never

been converted at all. In fact, here's what he

said. You're simply a victim of a pray this Jesus

prayer, pray this prayer. Do you know that you

can pray every prayer you want, that ain't going

to save you? Not according to Scripture. Romans

10, 9 and 10, if you believe in your, confess

with your, that Jesus is, believe that he raised

from the, he said you'll be saved. You see, salvation

starts right here. And most people are going

to split hell wide open. They knew about him,

but never got changed. Now I know when you're

supposed to grow up, and I told my wife the day

I wear my pants up to my chest, white socks and

sandals, she needs to shoot me. We don't got

to dress like we're dying. You know, the Bible

says in Timothy, don't let people look down on

you because you're young, but can I tell you

about... My age is not a gauge. I've met Corrie

Ten Boom. Anybody know who she is? Sat on a stage

with her twice. One of the most powerful women

I've ever met in my life. And most of her family

was burned and martyred. But she continued to

live. You see, Jesus said, my purpose is to give

you life. And life more abundantly. I was in

Samson, Alabama. Didn't even know where it was.

First Baptist Church. Running 115 or so people.

And Sunday morning, the Sunday before Easter

of this year, 17 people were saved. Two of them

were deacons in the church. They've been deacons

for years. I thought they were just coming to

pray. And both of them walked up to me and said,

Brother Ken, and they both said not hearing each

other, I've known for years that I was lost.

He said, I knew about Scripture and blah, blah,

but I didn't have a passion for the Word. I didn't

have a passion for lost people. Both of them

were baptized on Easter Sunday the next Sunday.

Little teeny church, we probably had 75, 80 people

saved. It was unbelievable. So here's the question

today. Hebrews 9 .27 said it's appointed once

for man to die and after that the judgment. So

we're all going to die. We're all going to be

judged. If Judge Judy is our judge, we're all

going to hell. But are you ready for this? We

all have a destiny. You see, the next funeral

you go to, that's not the end of their life.

It's the beginning of eternity with God or without

God. I just said it nicer. So I got to ask you,

my son prayed a prayer when he was eight, baptized

him. Here's what he told me at 16. And he's one

of the most incredible Christian men I've ever

met in my life. He said, dad, from the end, some

of y 'all are going to do what? What he did for

three years. He said, Dad, from 13 to 16, he

went to an incredible Christian school, a great

church. He had a great dad. Are you ready for

this? He said, Dad, for three years, I knew I

was lost. He was a virgin when he got married.

Never did drugs. Drank with a couple of his dorky

friends. He said, Dad, it wasn't a biggie. He

said, Dad. I knew I was lost. I didn't have a

passion for the Bible. I didn't care if my friends

got saved. He said, Dad, I was disobedient. I

was deceptive. I was rebellious. And then he

said this. He said, I was embarrassed of who

you were as an evangelist. And my son at 16 finally

got saved. My wife grew up in a military home.

She was born in Tallahassee. Married in an Air

Force home, Southern Baptist home. Prayed a prayer

with her dad at nine. And at 20 years old at

Texas State in San Marcos, she got saved at a

campus revival. Came home and told her dad, hey,

dad, I got saved. And he said, but Debbie, I

prayed with you when you were nine. Dad, I remember

you praying with me, but I got saved this week.

90 -year -old great -grandmother in my son's

church. In 2019, right before COVID, we had 15

saved at the 8 o 'clock service when we had 159

for the week. And this woman came forward, 90

years old, great grandmother, walked up to talk

to my son, her pastor. The others were right

here. My son walked over. I said, I'll never

forget this. I need to tell the church what this

lady just told me, who, by the way, just passed

away. He did her funeral three years later. She

said, Brother Jeremy, I've heard your dad preach.

I've been in his church four or five times. He

said, When I was 12 years old, I sat at the back

of the church, and I was sitting with four of

my girlfriends, 12. She's now 90. I didn't hear

one thing that was preached. I hope you all are

listening. See, I know you can hear me, but it

doesn't mean you're listening. And see, when

you have your Bible with you, When you've got

that notebook and you're writing stuff down,

you're engaged. I said, Jeremy, I didn't hear

anything. I looked over. My four girlfriends

were weeping. I mean, weeping. Invitation came.

They all four stood up. So I stood up. I worked

up a few tears with them. Went forward. Prayed

the same prayer they prayed. Got in the baptistry.

She said I was 12 years old. She said, Jeremy,

20 minutes ago, I just got saved sitting right

back there. She said, I'm 90 years old, and I

knew I was lost. You see, when I was 12 years

old, God didn't deal with me. My girlfriends,

what was going on, I just went forward. He baptized

her that night, and about three years later,

passed away. Almost missed heaven. So here's

my question, and we're done. if your heart were

to stop, if you were to die. And here's the deal.

I was able to forgive my mom. She died lost.

I found my dad was able to lead him to the Lord

12 days before he passed away. My baby sister

was going to kill herself and kill her son. I

called a preacher friend of mine. My baby sister

got saved. We don't think it was on purpose.

I mean, I bought her a brand new set of dentures,

teeth, so she could smile again. I found a lot.

Dean, I called three churches to go. visit my

sister in St. Louis, Baptist churches. You know

what all three of them told me? My sister lived

in the wrong neighborhood. So I found a biker

church. Have Bible, will travel. My sister got

saved. Now, we don't think it was on purpose,

but my sister, about three or four years later,

drank a little vodka one night. She was still

dealing with some alcohol. and took some pain

pills. She had chronic pain, and my sister died

in her sleep. I think she's with Jesus today.

She just couldn't win some of those battles.

So here's the deal. You're looking at a dude

who should be a white beater, child abuser, drug

user, alcoholic. But God had a... and a... and

a... Would you bow your heads? Every head bowed.

The moment that I don't know if they're going

to start playing music. But with every head bowed,

every eye closed. I'm the only one looking. If

you really listened to me today, raise your hand.

If you learned something today, raise your hand.

I'm always learning. So my invitation won't be

long. How many sitting here would say, Brother

Ken, Mr. Freeman, yo dude, now listen to me close.

I'm not asking if you've been christened as a

Catholic, sprinkled as a Methodist. I'm not asking

if you've been baptized in a Baptist church.

I'm not asking about an aisle that you walked,

a church that you joined, or a prayer that you

prayed. I'm not even asking about your commitment

level, how committed you are. How much you know

the word. Husband, wife, I hope y 'all are listening.

And if you're visiting here today, this was a

divine appointment for somebody here. How many

here would say, Brother Ken, Mr. Freeman, yo

dude, if my heart were to stop, if I were to

die. Brother Ken, I know without a shadow of

a doubt that I'm born again. I'm saved. I know

I'm a Christian. Hey, Brother Ken, I know that

if I died, I'm going to be with Jesus. I know

that. Would you raise your hand? I'd be careful.

God, I'd be careful. Put him down. Is there anybody

here? I'm going to come back to you in a moment.

Who would say? Brother Ken, this might surprise

my husband and wife. And I wonder. If there was

somebody here that did what my son did for three

years, you raised your hand one more time, convincing

yourself. But is there anybody here that would

say, Brother Ken, Mr. Freeman, I honestly don't

know that I'd go to heaven if I died. I honestly

don't know that I've ever been saved. But I want

to know. Would you pray for me? Anybody here?

Say, Brother Ken, I'm lost. Okay. Now the sad

part about that is we got to get lost people

here. So can I ask this question before I turn

it back over to Dean and we close? How many of

you here would say, Brother Ken, I know I'm saved,

but I'm going to be honest with you. Lately in

my life, the devil's been ripping me off. There's

been voices in my life. There's choices that

I'm making. Brother Ken, I'm not in the Word

like I should be in my prayer life. I'm not being

the husband, the spiritual leader. How many here

would say, Brother Ken, I know I'm saved, but

would you pray for me? Because lately I feel

like I've been listening to wrong voices, wrong

choices, and I'm not being that person God wants

me to be. Would you raise your hands? Put them

up high. Come on, hold them up high. All over.

Unashamed? Unafraid. Well, here's what we're

going to do. Just for a few moments. I'm going

to ask if you'd say, Brother Ken, I want an upgrade.

Remember he said, I've come to give you life.

But I want to give you life abundantly. How many

of you would say, Brother Ken, I want to know

him more. I really do. Raise your hands. Hold

on. I want to know him more. I want an upgrade.

Put them down. I'm going to pray for you, but

before I do, would you take a moment? Husband,

would you lean over to your wife or your son

or your daughter right now? Put your arm around

them. And would you pray out loud for your family

right now? Would you just say, hey, God, I want

an upgrade as a dad. I want an upgrade as a husband.

God, give me a passion for your word. Would you

do that? Give me a passion for worship to be

a witness. Would you do it, husband and wife?

Just take a moment. Maybe you're single, widowed.

God, give me a fresh, a fresh touch of your spirit.

Hey, God, I want an upgrade today. I want to

know you more and I want to make you known. Hey,

wife, you might want to pray for your husband

right now. Thank God for your husband. Twenty

-seven little girls, their parents don't get

to hug them again. Eight and nine -year -old

in that Catholic school, two parents won't get

them. So hold on to your kids. Hold on to your

family. stay on the right plan, walk in His purpose.

And the blueprint is the Word of God. So Father,

for this church, may You bless this church. I

thank You for Dean, Gayna, Jeffrey, and I thank

You for their families. And God, my prayer is

that You would bless their faithfulness. God,

I pray one day you'd fill this gym up where they've

got to move or add more chairs. I pray financially

you would bless this church. God, I want to thank

you for the worship today, your word today. Now,

God, would you bless these people right here?

Let them get somebody to church next week. God,

let them get a key and put it around their neck,

hoping somebody's going to say, what's up with

the key? But help us to be conversation pieces.

Help us to make a difference in your kingdom.

We'll give you praise in Jesus' name. Amen. Look

this way. You can go to KenFreeman .com and more

of my stories there. You can look up Ken Freeman

books. You can get them online. But I challenge

you. Don't settle for just being saved. Want

more. I always want more. Amen? This online worship

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