Sommer Miner Part 7

Today on **John Dash and Friends**, John sits down with Sommer Miner, This young lady is the true definition of perseverance and determination. As she shares how God reach down and brought her through the battels of life. She's a bright light in this world and her testimony will prove that Gods not done with anyone. For the full Interview go to John Dash and Friends Facebook Site.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Knowing where you come from and you know things that I only think.

SPEAKER_01 0:04

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 0:05

And and I think that's so important. It really is. And I admire that. Okay. You know, I I can't understand. I listened to my cousin that come out of rehab and he tells me the things he thought and what he went through. And I listened to him and it's powerful. Had him over to a uh, we had a we have a big shindig at our house on the fourth. Family all comes and it's a wild outfit, okay? They call the law sometimes. We have a big time. But he uh he came over and we was all outside and was sitting around and and uh done some things, and I so I got a timer, a five-minute timer. I've got one of those hourglasses. And a lot of times I let people talk, but I turned the timer over. I said, share your testimony. You got five minutes, you know, and that's the way I work with him. I said, I don't want you up our windbaggin. Let's get it done. You know, and he shared his testimony, talked about what all the Lord done with him in it. Just beautiful. And you see his wife cry while he shares it, and uh, I don't know, man. I don't know. I just try to find my part. Yes, you know, and I think as long as I do that, and my family we do that little part, and we we stay out of the way. I shared with everybody, you know, I pastored 20 years. Only one church, one one place, one time, and that's what I was supposed to do. Opened a church up and closed it down when I left. It was a 120-year-old building, and uh, that's what I was supposed to do. But when it wasn't time for that, it's time to do something else. And I think you even in ministries you go on, you gotta recognize your seasons and know where they're at, what's happening, and and move with that stuff. Yes, saves you a lot of heartache, doesn't it? Yes, all right. Let's talk about this. I I got ahead of you a little bit, okay? A lot of positive statistics on Christianity, but let's talk about homeless. Okay? I know that's on your heart. I think it is.

SPEAKER_01 1:57

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 1:58

Think Barry's gonna be in trouble? Okay. Uh 771,000 people were experiencing homelessness in 2024. The highest number on record since they ever started doing it. There's so many people out there that are homeless. Are there two types of homeless people?

SPEAKER_01 2:18

Yes, I think, you know, some people are homeless by choice, and some people just have, you know, it's come through a series of events, you know, just like some people get put in a fire and some people jump into it. Right. You know, and they want to stay in it. Right. You know, and but yes, so um that's why I love like doing outreach and working with homeless people, getting to talk to 'em, because I can share with them and tell them, you know, no, I don't have all the resources. Like we need resources, there needs to be resources. But if you truly want out of this situation, if you get saved and call in the name of Jesus, he will start giving you opportunities to increase. No matter where you find yourself. Right. And so, but yeah, um, because when you work with homeless people, you can pretty much tell the ones that want to listen to you and want to hear, you know, that there is a way out, and the ones that just want what you're giving to them.

SPEAKER_00 3:35

Yeah. Yeah. I you know, I we've done a lot of food ministry, gent my wife and I, we over three million pounds one year we gave to local families. I kept a tractor trader on the road. There was a season in our life that we'd done that. That was what we'd done for for years, about 15 years. So we knew it was important.

SPEAKER_01 3:54

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 3:55

And uh, and the Lord spoke a word to me one time. People get mad at you sometimes because you don't give them enough or you don't give them stuff, and sometimes they cuss you, you know, because you didn't give them what they wanted or enough of it. And it was just okay, I can take that. But the Lord told me one time he said, Thank you for being good to the ravens, because anybody will be kind to the doves.

SPEAKER_01 4:15

That's good.

SPEAKER_00 4:16

And uh because at one point in time we can all be a raven or a dove. Yes. And and I think that in this, when you're talking about, we have to know that there's differences in people. Yes. And I think the spirit helps you pick up on that. Yes. You know, when when you know there's I think some people look at it as a blanket thing. Uh homelessness increased by 18%. Tell me how much it increased. Uh, one in five people experience it in our life in different ways. Yes. Okay. Some people find ourselves sleeping on couches of other people, and uh we just have to know where we're at. Exactly. And then we have to I think we have to know what we're supposed to do too, because we can go off on everything in ministry that needs to be done and wear ourselves out.

SPEAKER_01 5:02

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 5:03

And uh, how do you guard against that?

SPEAKER_01 5:05

Well, just like with Air Church City on a Hill, we partner with um Destiny Outreach. They have a ministry called A Heart for People. And so I have in the past, you know, led many things, done many things through the church, you know, and it's just to the point that, you know, I hadn't really stepped out and done anything like this in years. But when I found out, well, this church is doing this, a heart for people, they're getting out, being a blessing to the homeless community, then we can just join with them. Right. And that way it's not just on, you know, you and your ministry, you know, let's work together. I've always been a big advocate for bringing churches together. Yes, ma'am. That is the I think that there is such an uncommon anointing release when churches come together and work on anything, and there's such a blessing in it. So, yeah, that's the thing. I mean, I've always loved street ministry from years ago when I first got saved, we was just wild. You know, we would go to Bishop, Irwin, War, all those places, go knock on doors, you know, have revivals out in the streets, you know, just get out and share testimony and everything. I've I've always loved outreach ministry. And so because those people, when you go to places like that, or especially like the homeless ministry that we do in the Bristol area, which the reason why we do it in the Bristol area, is because those people are on the streets there. You can set up in a central location and they come to you.

SPEAKER_00 6:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 6:54

And so that it's just easy, you know. We just set up and they come to you, and when they come, they are in need. And they're coming to you with a need. Right. You know, it's not like some people, they they don't really have the pride and stuff that you know you run into in other situations. But yeah, I've always that's always been close to my heart.

SPEAKER_00 7:16

Yeah. See, I think it's so important. Okay. I mean, my Lord, it's it's important. I had a one time and I've shared this story, but I mean, uh I was in England preaching on and preaching on the street, and uh I was there preaching, been preaching for days, and uh I had a buddy with me that'd come through not rehab, he'd come through drugs and things and been delivered of all these things. And I hadn't never experienced it. But anyway, he was he'd been through, he'd been rough. And he always shared his testimony, how he'd what all he'd been through and stuff like that. And I went to high school with him, liked him, was always friends, always a nice guy. But so we're on the street preaching, and this lady comes over and she says, uh, she's standing there with him. She said, I I hear you talking how God will help you with your finances and help you. She said, But I don't have no money trouble. And I hear you talking about how God will heal your body. She said, I'm not sick. She said, God will help you with your marriage. She said, Don't have no marriage problems. And that God will help you with your children, all these things and situation in life. She said, My kids are doing just fine.