"Keep Your Post & Do Your Duty!" w/ Pastor Manny Mill

Today we do our first ever “on the road” in person podcast interview. Thanks to a generous donation from a co-worker of mine, I was able to purchase equipment to make this podcast possible. I traveled to Wheaton, Illinois to meet with Pastor Manny Mill from “Koinonia House National Ministries” at his home.

Pastor Manny’s life begins back in Cuba where as a young kid he sees Fidel Castro come into power. His family is finally able to flee Cuba after many years and they end up in Spain. A couple of years later they make their way to the United States and land in New Jersey. As a young man Manny begins to accomplish the “American Dream.” He gains the big three, "power, sex and money." Because of a shady business deal he finds himself being investigated by the F.B.I.  He flees the country and ends up in Venezuela. While on the run in Venezuela, his mother becomes a born-again Christian and begins to pray for her son Manny.  Through a series of events God grabs a hold of Manny and he decides to return back to the United States to face the music. He gets sentenced to three years behind bars. It is in prison that God begins to transform Manny's life and where the journey to the work he is doing today begins. You will be encouraged, challenged and prompted into action by this man's radical story of redemption.

“The Mission of Koinonia House® National Ministries (KHNM) is to equip the local church to receive Christian inmates released from prison to be integrated into the Church, the workplace, and society through biblical discipleship”

There are two primary avenues through which KHNM seeks to assure that Christian neighbors coming out of prison are met at the prison gate: assist churches, groups or individuals in setting up a post-prison ministry discipleship home for Christians coming out of prison; equipping local churches to prepare to receive a Christian neighbor – matching at least one ex-prisoner to one local church.

https://www.khnm.net
https://koinoniahouse.org/programs/radical-time-out

Transcript

Manny Mill: 0:00

Thank you for this podcast,

Omar: 0:02

Yes. We're

Manny Mill: 0:02

from Wrong To Strong, uh, father. And we pray in the name of Jesus And the power of the holy spirit that you may use, sir, father, to advance the kingdom of Jesus Christ, To make the kingdom of Christ that seems so invisible to many father become visible father. Father, open hearts. Open the eyes of people's heart, father. Illuminate minds, father. And I pray that they will become receptive to receive and retain your truth And your grace to this podcast, use a father in a way that we had never seen, heard, Dreamt or even pray before, father. Above and beyond, father, that you will, father, with this podcast, you will, father, surprise us To see many come to Christ, to see many, father, be encouraged and be uplifted. And, father, I pray that you will surprise us. surprise us, father. I say, good father that you are. I say, good daddy that you are. You are Abba. You are Adonai, you are a daddy. So we commit this time to you now. In Jesus' name, amen. Hallelujah.

Omar: 1:12

Amen. Amen. Hello, everyone, and and welcome to another episode of Wrong to Strong Chicago. I'm your host. My name is Omar Calvillo. And right now, we're doing the first ever Podcast basically on the road. You know? So, uh, we're me and pastor. Uh, this is first of all, let me introduce my guest, pastor Manny Mill from Koinonia House Ministries. Uh, I was able to connect with, uh, pastor Manny through a friend of ours. His name's, uh, Dean Valera. Wanna send a Shout out to Dean. We're praying for you, praying for your family. You know, stay strong and keep keep doing the Lord's work wherever you find yourself. Uh, but, man, pastor Manny Mill Does focus on primarily, uh, it's through prison ministry that he'd be doing. So, uh, I'll I'll let you introduce yourself, pastor. Maybe share a little bit.

Manny Mill: 2:10

Thank you. Well, thank you, Omar, for this blessing of being able to be with you, with all of your audience, on social media That you have, and I'm praying already that this will truly explode, that God the father will bless this with the Plus the grace of the father. Amen. So my name is Manny Mill, m I l l, Manuel. I am from Cuba, but I told Omar, earlier that I am a Christian that happens to be Cuban. Amen. I don't let my culture dictate to my faith in Christ, but I let my Faith incredibly take to who I am now. Amen. So I I am saved by the grace of God. I am saved by the mercy of our father. He he invaded me with his grace, and Jesus Christ arrested as I was running from the FBI. I escaped from the FBI.

Omar: 3:08

Yeah. We'll get into that part of the story in a little bit because, eventually, we wanna start at the beginning, pastor. Like, Where did you grow up at, and how do you how do you how it ended up happening? So we'll

Manny Mill: 3:16

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So I am I am thankful that I was rescued. I was arrested. And God the father through his mercy and through Jesus Christ his son, Now my savior, my lord, and my older brother gave me a new beginning, and that's why we are here today. Hallelujah.

Omar: 3:36

Amen. Yes. Uh, right now, uh, we find ourselves actually, uh, uh, pastor Manny's house. We're out here in Wheaton. I wanna thank pastor for, man, treating me to a a great breakfast before we got here. We, man, we we

Manny Mill: 3:47

keep you strong. I

Omar: 3:48

hey. I I Strong. I don't know if that's good or bad because I'm gonna start falling to sleep over here, man. I don't know either. Hey. That that was a hearty meal, you know, that we ate, but, uh, man, it's a good breakfast, good conversation, uh, prayer, praying. We were praying earlier how we we want this to go, and, uh, Uh, I was telling him too. Every every time we start a podcast, uh, interview, we pray before we start, and we ask the Holy Spirit to have its way. Uh, not our will be done, but God's will be done, you know, and, uh, man, may, uh, whatever story needs to be shared, uh, whatever it is that our listeners need to hear, may the Holy Spirit just lead us guide us, uh, but, uh, yeah, there's so much we're gonna get into, But let's go back. Where did your story begin? Where did you grow up at? And tell us a little bit about,

Manny Mill: 4:28

Began in Cuba.

Omar: 4:28

Okay. Yeah. Let's talk about that a little

Manny Mill: 4:30

island of Cuba, you know, right below, uh, Key West And I was born in 19 56 just before Castro came into power, Fidel Castro. And as you know, Cuba was a very beautiful country, and people got greedy. You know? Many, dictators that came there, and Castro took advantage of that. So in 19 59, he took over, And he promised many things, like, we're gonna give you milk through your faucet in your Sink in the kitchen. We're gonna give you everything that you need. We're gonna make everybody equal, you know, so people believed him. I mean, he was a very charismatic guy. So he came from the mountain at age 33 just like Jesus With a beard With a very charismatic figure, so people believed him. You People fell for what he was Saying. But then he declare, that he was a communist, and he took over. So he took People's homes away. He took away their businesses. My father was a butcher. He took that away. My mom was a beautician. He he took that away. So it took us 11 years to be able to leave Cuba As a refugee, so my father had to spend 3 years in prison because he wanted to leave. Finally, he got out. So I was 14 years old and 2 months. If I would have been 15 years old, I had to serve in the Cuban military,

Omar: 6:21

At 15.

Manny Mill: 6:22

not knowing god then because my mother was a witch. My mom was a medium. She was a. So all these mediums went through her. So we left Cuba to Spain to Spain. We're there for 2 years. I didn't go to school. So from 14 to 16, I had 2 jobs In Spain. We left without anything. I mean, nothing. Nothing. And then we had to wait there to come to America. So I got to this country when I was 16 years old. I went to school. I took, uh, ESL. You know? And then I accomplished what people call the American dream. I had everything going for me. I played baseball. I went to school. I went to college. I became the mayor, aids for the city of Union City, New Jersey William v Mostow, who was a very powerful mayor and very powerful senator. And the other aide It's Bob Menendez, who today is a US senator for New Jersey. So I did that. I was the first Hispanic ever to put together Latin shows and Latin cruises. I became a womanizer. I was the number 1 salesman in the country for a little company called Prudential. So I had the money. I had the I had the feet to dance. I became addicted to sex, to females, And females could be more expensive than drugs and alcohol put together. Amen? And, uh, I used to go to New York City because, that was not too far to Vito's Cafe. And I have my own table there. It it was the best Cuban restaurant in the world. So I went to eat there Every night with a different female every night, I went to dance, and then I went to sex because, you know, that's what we want. We want power, We want sex, and we want money. Right? Those are the 3 big sins. Right? And my mom, in the meantime, Became a Christian. She was born from above. A lady from the center that she went to, Talk to her about Jesus. Now I don't wanna go to church. So finally, she went to church, and she heard the gospel of Jesus Christ, and she went forward, And she trusted Jesus. And she came home that night. This is something that's so important. She came home that night, and I was there. And she got the whole house clean. My mom doing the whole house of all the idols, of the coconut, of the cigars, Or the which is a Cuban drink for the idols of the handkerchiefs. She cleaned the whole house clean, she became a true Christian. And she began to pray for me. But the more that she prayed for me, the worse I got it. Yeah. You say it. Yes. And and and and but she did not give up. She persisted. She kept praying. Father, if you don't, it won't. Father, save my son. I give you him to you do whatever it takes. So it took for me to become more greedy For more money I mean, I have 4 cars. I remember, I had an Audi 5000, brand new. I had a Cadillac Seville, brand new. Uh, the Lincoln Towne car, brand new. I had a Mercedes 3 80 SL, brand new. But I wanted more. I had Italian shoes. I had suits. I had gold. I had my name on gold And diamonds I had a watch with my name on it too. I had a you know? Pinky finger.

Omar: 10:29

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Manny Mill: 10:30

I was gonna Forget my name. You know? Yeah. I was full of self. Yes. I was selfish. But god allow all that to happen, So I broke the law, and I thought that I was god. Because you see, when you don't know Jesus, you become god yourself. And God used that, that was evil, to turn that around for the good. So I heard that the The FBI was looking for me because I basically took money from a bank that I was not supposed to, but I had the People and the power and the connections. And when I heard that they were looking for me, I began to run because whenever you get into Trouble, what do you do? You with a fight or you run like a chicken? So

Omar: 11:20

and hide.

Manny Mill: 11:21

I was hiding. So I went from country to country, and I ended up in Venezuela. And it was there after 2 years that Jesus found Arrested me, brought me back to faith and music of the FBI, you know, right here. Face the music of the FBI.

Omar: 11:41

Now what happened? You said you were on the run. You're in Venezuela 2 years hiding. What did did they somebody grab you to come here? Did you decide to come? Uh, what what happened in you that made you come back?

Manny Mill: 11:52

I opened the best Cuban restaurant in Venezuela

Omar: 11:56

Okay.

Manny Mill: 11:57

In Caracas. Title, meaning the corner from Havana. I had a restaurant on top, 5 star. On the bottom, I had a Cuban cafeteria With Cuban sandwiches, papa rellena, croquettes, you know, everything. On top, it was chef, happy hour, everything. I was there every day 13, 14 hours a And there, my addiction became stronger. So I was the Cuban in Venezuela, And the Cuban culture is very similar to the Venezuelan. So my mom kept praying for me. So 1 day, the FBI went to see my dad at the store that he used to own in Union City, New Jersey.

Omar: 12:55

Okay.

Manny Mill: 12:56

And And the FBI sent a Hispanic agent because my parent never knew English. You know? Union City is the third Cuba.

Omar: 13:06

Oh,

Manny Mill: 13:07

Cuba, Cuba. You know, Havana, Cuba. Miami. Right. You know, Florida. That's the second Cuba. On the third Cuba is Union City, New Jersey.

Omar: 13:15

I didn't know that.

Manny Mill: 13:16

is the most condensed city in America. So they send The agent, he asked to to talk to my father, and my father talked to the,

Omar: 13:28

The agent?

Manny Mill: 13:30

And the agent said, we are looking for your son. Why? So they told him. Why? So my father became very much ashamed, Ashamed that his son was doing So he called me, and my father did not believe in Jesus. I mean, he was a good worker, worked 17 hours a day, 7 days a week as a butcher. On his feet every day to Provide for his family.

Omar: 14:00

And, uh, could I ask you this? The shame came because

Manny Mill: 14:03

Of the embarrassment. yeah.

Omar: 14:04

Because he's a hard worker. His his family Earns the money the hard way. Right? Like, the

Manny Mill: 14:09

And his son is being looked after by the FBI. But my mother was praying. You see? Yeah. God's ways are not our ways. His thoughts are not our thoughts. And it's so it's about knowing the who who knows the how and the when. We don't have to worry about the how Although when we we have to be worried about the who. Let's get to know the who. And the who is god the father through his son Jesus. Amen. And to obey his word without delay. So my mother prayed. I I guess, you know what? We're gonna do it this way. You know, we're gonna do it this So my dad called I was on my way to having sex with a lady At about 2 o'clock PM in the I have my guy who I used to take me here and to take me there waiting for me. And when he called me with my mother too, with my mother too, Mani, your father is calling you, you know, from my so I turned around. You know, it's a reversal. Turn around. I got the phone call, and my dad says to me, if I die tonight, Could you come to my funeral? And my mother was praying, And that broke me. I never cried. I was a stoic. I was a black belt in judo in Cuba, our stoic, you know, that's what you learn to to be and and and to learn to do when you are Cuba without any god, without anything, so you become god yourself. so. So that broke me down. Because you see, I lied to my father. I told my told to my father, I'm here because I wanted to open a Victor's Cafe, you know, kind of Victor's Cafe. You know, like, you're uh, but but that was not true. You see? A half of truth is a full lie. You know what I'm saying? So when he told me that, I broke down and my mother Began to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to me on the phone. He said, Manolito, you have sinned against the holy God. she says, god loves you. He sent Jesus to die on the cross for you, to give you The opportunity to be forgiven and to be reconciled to the father. God the father wants to be your father. You need to repent. she said, you know what I mean? To repent is to live. Uh, man, those those words just cut me through cut me through, and I wept. I wept. I just I mean, I was weeping for about 2 hours. Wow. And I repented from my sins. And when I did, it's like, something lifted up From from me, and I became a newborn from above Christian. that. So something had happened. But then she said to me, well, no need. When are you gonna come back? I said, come back where? To America. I said, well, you're crazy. They're gonna be looking for me. They're gonna be waiting. They're gonna meet me at the gate of the airport. You say it? Yes. Let me so but she said but but she gave me my first Verse. She gave me Hebrew 13 5. She said, Marlito, the word of God said that if you trust Jesus, The father will never leave you. He will never forsake He will be with you. And that verse, Just 1 verse in the bible gave me enough courage to muster the courage that I needed it to leave everything behind The restaurant, the ladies, take my wife then.

Omar: 17:53

you had a wife down there? Oh, yeah. Okay. Okay.

Manny Mill: 17:56

Cecilia. And my son, Manny Junior, who was 5 then, and my youngest daughter, Ceci that I was born in Venezuela. I never forget. 1 day, I got mugged by 2 guys that took my money And my passport I said, man, don't take my passport. Take the money. So they they took everything. So so I had to go back to the embassy To get my new passport. I said, man, if I go to the embassy, they're gonna get me. Yeah. You know what I'm saying? So I had to go through that fear, You know that I you know, when I saw a a white guy or something, blonde guy, I I thought that, you know, they were looking for for me. You know? So I I was in fear. I had no peace. But when I trusted Christ, I got the peace that Philippians 4 Talks about an promises that Christ purchased that peace for us, that we cannot understand. So that 1 verse that my mother Get me from Hebrew, you know, think

Omar: 19:03

was it? Yeah.

Manny Mill: 19:04

which is a quote from Joshua 1 5. When God told Joshua I was with with Moses, I'm gonna be with you too. Amen. That's a promise that God has given to So I held to that verse. I held strong to that verse, and I came back with my wife, with my kids at the FBI. Yeah. They were waiting for me at the airport in New York City. Uh, yes. I was arrested. Yes. I I went to Prison? Yes. But I got mercy. I didn't get what I deserved. I was Supposed to have received 55 years plus the 5 years for the escape. I got 3 I mean, that was a miracle. And god used me when I was locked up to turn the whole prison upside down. So I mean, I didn't wanna fake it to make it. I wanted to be for real. You know what I'm saying? So he gave me the ability And then I knew that when you become a Christian, you have within you the holy spirit Who comes not to pay rent, he comes to own your house. So, I mean, it has been a tremendous journey for 37 I mean, I've been an an amazing ride of the father just giving me and giving me and giving me and Showing me that he's a good father. Just like he gave you to me. I mean, I I have no idea that you existed. But here we are today. Yes. Glory to god. Giving a Testimony.

Omar: 20:40

Yeah.

Manny Mill: 20:41

Amen.

Omar: 20:42

Amen. Alright. So so you ended up doing the the time. You get out. What what happens? Basically, I guess, what road leads to what you're doing now? Yeah. I know we talked about earlier. You're doing prison ministry. Can you can you take us through that journey? Maybe the beginning stages of that.

Manny Mill: 20:57

Well, I told you earlier that 1 verse From Hebrew 13 5. I mean, that's my life verse because I've seen how how god works. He's a father that if you obey him without delay and you take true to his word And you do not go back to Egypt, meaning to the same, you know, lifestyle that I used to have. So I began, number 1, by truly getting a new beginning. So all of my old friends, My old people that I they no longer are my I'm saying? Now they know who I am. So I could witness but I'm not gonna go into what they do. I'm saying? Into who they are. So by the by the grace of God, I went to prison. My wife then left me. My kids, Cecia and Manny Junior, I didn't get to see for 5 and a half years. So that was hard. Because now I felt kind of abandoned. So here I am coming back doing the right thing, And I lose my wife and I lose my kids, but I gained Christ. I gained Christ.

Omar: 22:23

At any moment during that, Did you question God? Like, God, I'm serving you. I'm seeking you. I'm trying to do the right

Manny Mill: 22:30

I was new in the faith Yeah. But I was all in. I was all in. I'll never forget my mentor, the late The late Kenneth t Wessner, who helped me get into Wheaton College. I was their first ex convict Able to attend Wheaton College on the Charles w Colson scholarship. And it's another miracle how he and I met At the Hilton in Washington DC as an inmate, Chuck Colson took me out of prison for 2 weeks Against all odds. See, my life is a life of surprises. I mean, in my book, which is called Radical Redemption. I'm saying. In the back of the book, I wrote, I could have been dead so many times. I always spend more money than I had. I was always in over my head, and I was always involved into too many things at once time. And here's the clincher. Everything that I did was with me in mind. In other words, I believe in the human trinity, Me, myself, and I.

Omar: 23:43

Why not?

Manny Mill: 23:44

most people do. Uh, but I wanna die to self. You see what I'm saying? So so so by the grace of God, I was denied because Chuck Colson heard Heard, you know, what I was doing in the prison. I don't know if you guys know who Chuck Colson

Omar: 24:00

Okay. There you go. I knew I heard that name. Yeah. Yes. Yeah. I remember that. He

Manny Mill: 24:10

Chief counsel to work at the White House, age 34. He was a marine, Captains to 1 of my sons right now, he's a major commander. You know? Marine so Chuck Colson Became a Christian before he went to prison. And then his first book that he wrote was called Born Again, And then he wrote 30 books more after that. God used him to be the founder of Prison Fellowship.

Omar: 24:42

There you go. Prison. Okay.

Manny Mill: 24:44

he was my mentor and my father. So he told me, he said, Manny Mill, 2 things. Keep your post and do your duty. That's it. Keep your post at the cross. Sounds

Omar: 24:54

like a direction for the

Manny Mill: 24:55

Direction for the marine. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And then my other mentor, The late Kenneth t Wesner, who was the board chairman for a company called ServiceMaster, Who was the board chairman for Wheaton College, who I met at the Hilton as an inmate in Washington, DC.

Omar: 25:16

this scene. How how are you at the Hilton as an inmate, I guess?

Manny Mill: 25:19

Let me tell you. Yeah. God surprised me. And that's how we began this Podcast. Right? So so I want the audience to know That when you know God the father as Jesus does, he becomes your father. And, therefore, for his own sake of his glory, he needs to provide for you. He wants to provide for you. He wants to protect you because he's a good You, as a father, want to provide for your daughter, don't you? And for your son. Right? Yeah. Not all that they want, But you will make sure that they eat, that they are fed, that they have a home. Right? Because if not, you are what? You are what was on an infidel. Right? So if we being evil know how to give good gift to our children, how much more, right, Is your heavenly father gonna give you when you're asking for the holy spirit? Right? When you ask a s k. Right? As, seek and knock. So by the grace of God, I was denied, and God used me to begin a church in prison With the elders and deacons, I began a 3 prayer meetings a day. I started a Hispanic church. The church went from 12 guys to 1 70 on Sundays, And we only had 400 guys there. So God used me to really evangelize and to disciple. So that was my foundation, you And when Joe Coulson heard about what I was doing in there, he wanted me to go to Washington DC to participate in what is called the Washington Discipleship seminar. So I was chosen to go to Washington, DC. There's a picture in the book about that. So when

Omar: 27:09

a you're an inmate and they

Manny Mill: 27:10

And he may he took me out for 2 weeks, and the counselor And the manager denied because I escaped from the FBI. Yes. You see what I'm saying? Right. But we prayed. We prayed with my chaplain who god sent him to the prison to be my chaplain. Before he got there, There was a dead chaplain that we asking God to remove them, and God removed that. So I became the chaplain as an inmate of the whole prison. As an inmate. So God used me for that too. And then we prayed, me and the new chaplain prayed, and God removed The counselor that say no. And the case manager that say no. We brought 2 new people in, and we had just a couple days to spare. They say yes to me, and the day before I had to fly to Washington, DC, my permit came signed from From DC from Washington, DC, for me to be able to go to Washington for 2 weeks and meet Chuck Colson, meet Ken Westner and meet Billy Graham.

Omar: 28:18

Wow.

Manny Mill: 28:19

There's 3 big ones.

Omar: 28:20

Yes.

Manny Mill: 28:22

So God used that Opportunity. And then I met at the Hilton in Washington, the DC with about 800 people. The speaker was Billy Graham. I mean, where have you heard, you know, Billy Graham speak at a banquet? Never. Right. Always speaks to massive of people. Right? But at that day, by the sovereignty of god, god put next to me Ken Wesner, And he served on the board of Wheaton College and on the board of prison fellowship. So he was there. Um, by the sovereignty you've got, I got right next to him of all the people. So he knew who I was. So he said to me, uh, Manny, Uh, what are you gonna do when you leave prison? I said, sir, by faith, I'm going to Wheaton Bible College. I said, well, It is not Wheaton Bible. It is just Wheaton College. I said, sir, I know what I'm talking about. I just applied for the scholarship to Wheaton Bible College. So I kept going with that story, and he tells me finally, he said to me, my name is Ken Wesner, And I'm the board chairman of Wheaton College. So I didn't know I didn't know what to hide. You know what I'm saying? But we became good friends, And he got the influence on the clout to be able to help me. So by the grace of God, I was released early from prison.

Omar: 29:49

But you you know what? Let let let me ask you this. You're this is in DC. You're having this conversation with him, but but Wheaton college is out here. Yes. Illinois. And you already you're in prison. And and and what in what state are you in prison?

Manny Mill: 30:02

In Pennsylvania.

Omar: 30:03

So you're in you're in prison in Pennsylvania. You're applying you're applying to a school in Wheaton, which is outside of Chicago, Illinois, and you meet right next to you. So

Manny Mill: 30:12

At the Hilton, at a banquet, only God. Right. Only God. Oh,

Omar: 30:17

Yeah.

Manny Mill: 30:18

And I so I had no idea when I was gonna be out, but God released me just on he surprised me. So this is something that I want every person that is locked up or is gonna be locked up or locked up, that when I left prison by By a surprise. With no money, With no place to go because I lost my wife and my kids. I look back. I took a stop. You know, where did it go? Time out. Right? And I look back, and I said, man, where Where did it just come from? I came from prison. So I came from Cuba, from a big prison to another prison. Why is that? That's crazy, isn't it? I mean, lost everything. I had everything. I lost my cars. I I lost everything. I lost my family. I mean, what did I just do? So the holy spirit said to me, say this. He said to me, Say this after me. He said, Manny Mill, you will always be an ex convict. But by the grace of God, you will never be an inmate again.

Omar: 31:29

Praise

Manny Mill: 31:30

Grace. Grace is equal to power plus ability. When we pray, we partake from the grace of God to empower us with the power that we don't have. See what I'm saying? And that Grace is sufficient. That grace is unlimited. And second Peter 1 3 to 4 says that Prayer is when we become a radical partaker of that grace. As we enter into the inner glory of God, the father, And we partake from the holy throne of grace. So that was something that I learned. You know what I'm saying? Now to To to develop it. So so so when I met my good friend, Ken Westlake, he told me, I'm gonna help you get into Wheaton, but you you have no room to fail. I said no room to fail. What What do you mean by that? I said, well, Manny, in life, you don't become a loser when you fail. You become a loser when you quit. So he gave me good Good advice that I stuck with me, which I've been able to transfer and stop, like, I will always be an ex-convict. I cannot change that. I mean, I have a number. You too. Yes. Okay? But by the grace of God, I will never be an inmate again. And you and I have seen So many guys in prison come back again. Right? Why is that? Do they like the C.O.'S? Do they like the food and the and the celly? I don't think so. But they couldn't help themselves. So we need to get our help from Christ. Christ has everything that we need because it is he who shows the father. And the father gave even Jesus on the cross the holy spirit. On the Holy Spirit, resurrected Christ from the dead. So he wants to make us who used to be dead, We need to be resurrected again by Christ Jesus. You know what I'm saying? And to stay alive and to experience life. Life means what? L.I.F.E. Mean living in freedom every day With no fear. Fear of what? I mean, what can men do to me? Nothing. You see what I'm saying? So that was the beginning Oh, the holy spirit is showing me that the sky is the limit, that I can do all things Through Christ. Yes. So I've been to the mountain top, Omar. Uh, I mean but but guess what? There's more There's much more coming. The best is yet to come. I don't I'm just saying that. I know that. I believe that. I believe that because you know what? God told me in his in his word. So through all of that experience, I was released early. I came to Wheaton on May first 88 on parole. I had to ask my PO To give me a permit to come to Wheaton to be interview. Then I had to get approved by the scholarship, Approved by the college and approved by the possible new PO here in Illinois. So I prayed. And not to pray for the impossible is to offend God. can you

Omar: 34:56

say that again?

Manny Mill: 34:57

Yes. Not to pray for the impossible is to offend God. You see? If we only pray for a cold or a flu or And ear pain or whatever, that might be resolved, you know, naturally. But when you pray For the impossible, You know that God did it. Yeah. You know that God that that only God could do that, you're saying? And I think that we don't know yet the size of our god. So the sizes of your prayers It speaks of the size of your God. And therefore, we need to pray in such a way that everything that we pray. In the back of my book, it's called Radical Prayer. In the back of my book, We wrote, when you pray, hallowed be thy name, big things happen. Now you tell me, Who does not need something big to happen? We all do. Right? We all do in all kinds of ways. Right? Because, you know, we have issues, But our faith is weak. Our belief is feeble, and it's shallow. And sometimes we don't believe what we're supposed to believe Because we listen to too many voices out there. You know what I'm saying? But what we have to believe that we need to Listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit who is there to reveal to us more of Christ, of the mystery of Christ. But Christ is the fullness of truth and the fullness of grace, and our objective is to be able to learn to to live as a Christian In the healthy tension of grace and truth. Not to deviate to the left nor to the I as Joshua says, but to stay in the path of righteousness, And we want your audience to be able to learn How to experience truth by knowing the word, worshiping the father through Jesus Christ, and to be able to pray. Prayer is the engine. The word is a fuel. If we don't put the right fuel in the engine, then we cannot move forward, you say. And we're supposed to move forward because we are walking where? Towards the promised land, e d at the end. And we need to take the honey and the milk. And when you taste the honey, it's sweet. When you think get the milk, it's delicious and nutritious. We don't wanna drink Synthetic milk. We don't wanna eat Mickey Mouse, uh, honey. We wanna eat I'm doing the real thing because Christ is the real deal. You know what I'm saying? So I come to school at Wheaton, finally got worked it out. God worked it out. I I got accepted on the scholarship. I got accepted on the school. And by a miracle of God, against all odds, I was transferring my PO, allowing me to stay here.

Omar: 38:14

This was in New Jersey? Were you paroled to or where?

Manny Mill: 38:16

Union City, New Jersey. So I came here. Yeah. And both PO told me, ain't no way we can do this. I said, okay. Wanna pray? God will make a way. God the father will Make a way I don't know. Do we believe that? You see? Do we do we believe that God the father can do a reversal? Kindly think things about you see, prayer is not just 1 thing we do. Prayer is what we do. Prayer is who we are. Jesus said, my house shall be a house of prayer for the nation, you see, including their prison nation, The jail nation because the That's a nation. You see? So they gave me A big test. So, yes, I got accepted. I got transferred, but then I had to go through 1 test. It's called High Road. Think about that word, high road. Life is a high road. Life has many turns and twist, Have any mountains. Right? So, I mean, they I never been In my life, camping. I don't even know what camping means. But part of the test that they gave me is called High Road. So before they gave me the final blessing, I had to go through 18 days on the woods, in the woods, In the woods.

Omar: 39:40

Is that by yourself or somebody else? How did that look?

Manny Mill: 39:42

We had 8 people Okay. In adult high road. They sent me to Wisconsin and to Michigan 18 days outside. I mean, to me, camping Was going to the Hilton or to the Holiday Inn Express. You know what I'm saying? I never knew camping outside where you have tent, you have to eat the food and cook the food and don't take a shower for I wanted to quit so many times because I had to do rappelling. I had to do climbing. I had to bike in the woods. I mean, my butt was so sore. I mean and it was a drought. It was July of 19 80. It was a drought. We couldn't even find water. Wow. It was crazy. But I remember the words of my mentor, Manny, You have no no room to fail. That just kept ringing in my the words of my other mentor, Manny, keep your post and do your duty. Manny, move forward. Right? So that was ringing in my ears. But by god's grace, I made Alright. I I remember sleeping by the rock without a mosquito net In Michigan, by Lake Superior. I never forget that. Never never never forget that. And the mosquitoes ate me up. They found out that I was Cuban.

Omar: 41:16

Had a had a

Manny Mill: 41:17

they found out. Forever. The honey

Omar: 41:19

They they never had Cuban

Manny Mill: 41:20

The sweet blood the the sweet blood from the sugar cane. Right? With the sugar cane. Right? They ate me up. I said, wow, man. That's crazy. So I went through some and then on the last day, said, oh, thank you, father. I made it. So we get into this van, Drove us to the camp and they stopped. Say, get out. Say, get out. Get out. So I got out. Run to the camp. 10 miles, I had to run to the camp. So it was a tough test. But that was a big lesson. So I've been on a high road since that day because God gave us a difficult ministry. And then I get to school. Man, I didn't even know how to speak English. And I'm going to school. I was in college Well, I had to do everything in English, in a white culture. In a white culture. I'm Cuban. You know, Christian, Abraham, and you. So I had to learn to adapt to the white collection in Wheaton. It was crazy. Write 18 papers for 1 class. I had to read so many books. I had to work 18 hours a day, send this a week. I couldn't fail. I just couldn't fail. Um, and I was able to make the Dean's list. I mean,

Omar: 42:40

Yeah.

Manny Mill: 42:41

In the meantime, I have an opportunity to go to Israel. But but it was on parole. I mean, how do you go to Israel on parole? Right?

Omar: 42:52

Tell us. I

Manny Mill: 42:54

how do you go to Israel, to Egypt, to Holland, And to Greece, 4 countries with no money and on parole. Think about that. God made a way. To talking about God giving me a surprise, he did. He introduced me to my wife today, Barbara, of almost 35 years. On parole in Mount Zion, Jerusalem at 10 30 at night. And I was sleeping. You see what I'm saying? I can tell you stories after stories. They are here Okay. In the book. You know, not all of them. Right. But but that's a wonderful that is chapter 9 Okay. On my book, you know, Radical Redemption, where I met my wife, and She became my wife. And she's a white woman, as you know, from Philadelphia.

Omar: 43:55

Okay.

Manny Mill: 43:56

And she got to the school that I was going to From Philadelphia at 10 30 at night. And, usually, the the the little bus That goes from the school to the plaza to pick up people that come from out of town with the luggages. But only that night, July thirteenth 89, only that night only that night, the little bus broke down. So they were knocking on our doors to get out of the bed and to go and help these People that just came, you know, from Philadelphia. I didn't wanna get I didn't wanna get up. I was sleeping Yes. Because I had to get up early this morning To do a digging of Roman tombs in our theology. So I had to be up early. So I wanna get up, but they they kept knocking. So I got up. And Barbara, my wife now, was the last lady or the last person To to be helped because she was The leader of the group from Philadelphia Bible College. And she was going there to begin a master's In Bible geography and Bible typography. But I distracted her. So we met. I was half asleep. But when I saw her, I became awake. And I took her luggages, and I've been doing down now for 35

Omar: 45:28

Praise god.

Manny Mill: 45:29

her luggage to her room, And, uh, here we are. Amen. And she is what I call my human holy spirit.

Omar: 45:37

Yeah.

Manny Mill: 45:37

Because without her, I cannot do much. So she's the she is my life right now. We have 2 boys. Together, we have 5 kids, But she's the mother of my kids. So god reconciled me to Cecia and to Manny Junior. They're both Christians now. amen. And then God introduced me to Sasha, to my fifth child. I told you I was a womanizer.

Omar: 46:02

womanizer. Oh, okay.

Manny Mill: 46:03

a womanizer, I want you womanizer, you don't know what's going on. Yeah. I mean, you could be surprised. Yeah. You're you're exactly. But Sasha is in this book. She's on chapter, 10. Okay. So she found me, uh, some 20 years ago, And now she's a Christian too.

Omar: 46:21

Man, look at that.

Manny Mill: 46:22

her mother, who was my mistress, who was a singer We with 1 of the big bands, uh, she became a Christian too Through Satya. And my 2 other kids, Manny Junior and Cessia witnessed to Sasha, and through them, she became a Christian. She got baptized, now she's a leader, in her church.

Omar: 46:43

Look at God.

Manny Mill: 46:44

meetings, alpha groups. She witnessed to her mother. And her mother is now a Christian baptized, have gone to Africa, and now she wants to be involved in prison ministry. Only God. Yeah. Tell so a little taste Yeah. For the audience to see that nothing is impossible for God. You know, there's a verse that really has impacted me. It's in the book of Jeremiah chapter 32 verse 27. So talking about Prisons. Right? Jeremiah is in prison. He's locked up underneath Jerusalem About to be destroyed. About to be wiped out. And God asks Jeremiah. So Jeremiah tell me, Jeremiah, is there anything too hard for me to do? Is there anything too hard for me to do? And Jeremiah said no. And that is 1 of my favorite, you know, verses. Nothing is impossible for God. Amen.

Omar: 47:58

Amen. Amen. So so, pastor Manny, you meet your wife, married. How did you end up Koinonia House Ministries?

Manny Mill: 48:08

in 5 and a half months Wow. For the day that we met. She was in Philadelphia. I was in Wheaton. I was a poor student. I'm still poor, but I'm wealthy in Christ.

Omar: 48:20

poor teacher.

Manny Mill: 48:23

So so so we got married on the sixth of January, 3 Kings Day. Right there. So we got Mary on that day, on a beautiful day, 50 degrees, sunny day, You know, in Philadelphia. we came to Wheaton, and I completed With her, my master's degree so so I got a BA. You got a master's degree. So and I was ordained 35 years ago As a minister, I had to do my thesis and to defend it, you know, publicly and everything. So God the father prepared me for the ministry. And my goal, my my goal Okay. My goal was to become a federal prison chaplain To follow on the footsteps of my other chaplain, My chaplain's name was Manny Cordero.

Omar: 49:17

Okay.

Manny Mill: 49:18

And he was so good to me. He was my mentor, my teacher. He helped me out in so many ways. Through him, I was able to get to Wheaton College too. So so he became a wonderful friend. So At that time, there was only 2 bilingual chaplains in the country for the feds, For the, uh, BOP. So so I went to be the third. So I got to get my BA Degree and my master's degree and be ordained and all of that. So I did all of that. And then god said to me, no. You are too proud. I'm gonna have to humble you some more. You see, humility is to a Christian, like garlic is to Cuban black beans is the main ingredient. You cannot be a Christian, an effective Christian, without humility. We have to Anchor, our conscious on the cross. Christ humble himself. Therefore, we must as well. Christ washed his disciples' feet. Therefore, we must do the same as well. John 13, you So God said to me, no. You're not yeah. You got the degrees now. That's okay. You got the degrees right now. That that's all good. All that and all that that you have, but you're too proud. So he told me, we're gonna be getting a house. A house for what? For ex-convicts. So we began to search if there was something like that in the country. We couldn't find We couldn't find it. So we became the pioneers in post prison ministry. Because if I say to you or to your audience, I love you, what do you mean by that? So As we look at society today and even now more than then, you know, when we began almost 35 years ago, the family is broken. The devil is not playing games. He's demons are not playing games. They want to kill Christians. They want to steal our joy, and they want to destroy the family. And they're doing a good job. They're doing a very good job. Gangers I mean, gangsters, gang bang. What is it? A gang is a Mickey Mouse family. A gang is a pseudo family, Where they get you in there, in this gang, and they tell you that you're a family. Right? But you're not. But you're not. They're lying to you. You know what I'm saying? So so we have to recreate what they never had. Uh, most people in prison never had a family, never had a healthy family. They had Chaos. They have messes. Right? But god the father want to take your mess and give you his message. Right? So we said, you know what? If we're really gonna love these these neighbors, we need to create a model that Introduce the family. A house in a neighborhood that they never had. So so my wife and I, We had no idea where we were doing, but we knew that if we're going to say with the with integrity, I love you. I have to love you with what you need. So God gave us the grace and the ability to be able to put together A gospel driven family post prison ministry model. And that is That Christ came from heaven as god and became man. Right? And he came to tabernacle with us. But he came equipped. He came with what you came today. You you came with your microphones. You came with your camera. You came with your cables. You came with your knowledge. You came with your headphone. Right? You came equipped. Right? Yeah. Well, if we're gonna serve others As Christ did, we have to be equipped, right, with what they need, not not with what we want. People say, well, I'm gonna give you Jesus. Well, what what kind of Jesus are you gonna give know, what you're gonna do for me? You know, what do I get when I get Jesus? Right. So my wife and I began this ministry. And, Omar, The the moment that we announce it, the devil declare war on us. I was now prepared for it, but my mentor told me, Manny, you have no room to fail. Colson told me, Manny, keep your post and do your duty. So those words, those those statements, They're ringing my head every single day. And now I have a new mission. I don't wanna bring my father any shame Any shame. You know why? Because Christ took our shame so we would not be ashamed.

Omar: 54:32

Amen.

Manny Mill: 54:33

Meaning, we are no fear, but we have to have humility, and we have to be teachable Yes. Unaccessible. and willing. Right? So we began this house in Wheaton, Illinois Well, we have so many Christian churches, well, we have Wheaton College, well, we have this all these Christians. But then I was surprised because the moment that we got this house and we checked with the city of Wheaton And you met today at the restaurant, the former city manager, Dan Rose, who gave me nothing but hell.

Omar: 55:13

You know what? The that's that's not a coincidence. Right? That you you wanna you you wanna talk about that that part of it?

Manny Mill: 55:20

I mean, he was right next to us. Yeah.

Omar: 55:21

Yeah. So I'm I'm I'm there. I'm I'm at the restaurant waiting for Manny, and there was a a man, like, on the on the move yeah. Yeah. 2 men. They were right on the side of us. And you had your conversation with them. And afterwards, you shared the history. So you wanna share that?

Manny Mill: 55:33

Well, um, we had to sue the city of Wheaton.

Omar: 55:38

And I even got to see the letter they sent you. He wants to talk about the letter. You still got it framed in your office.

Manny Mill: 55:43

I have it be because hell broke loose. Um, every church in Wheaton, every neighbor in Wheaton, didn't want us Not not

Omar: 55:54

you, but the people you were bringing in. Right?

Manny Mill: 55:55

Exactly. It's it's it's who you represent. They don't want they they might they might want you, but they don't want you to bring Christ with you. what are you gonna do? Are you gonna take a stand?

Omar: 56:11

Can't leave Christ behind. Right? Hey.

Manny Mill: 56:13

It it can't. But we do because we compromise. We compromise too much. In America, we compromise too much. We no longer mention sin because we don't wanna offend people. No longer do we proclaim the cross. No. No longer do we declare that we have a Jesus that came once already. We're gonna come back again For the holy bride, we don't proclaim that. I mean, you can live any way that you want. And we proclaim a Christ, you know, many times, who wants to Just follow you. No. No. No. You follow him. mean, I mean, he didn't come. I didn't come to take the monkey from you back so you can do whatever you want. No. It's about becoming like Christ. It's about carrying the cross and walking forward and dying to self and becoming humble, you So God had to humble me. Be I still had too much self in me. And, unfortunately, today, many of the people that are, You know, proclaiming the gospel from the pulpit, but it's too much self in the gospel. Too much of self in the gospel, So when we opened this house, the city of Wheaton went crazy. And let me tell you, I have no idea what to So I adopted second Chronicles 20. That's the story of king Jehoshaphat Well, when he was being attacked by everybody, you know, Egypt, Jordan, All the Arabs country in saying, come coming against the king, you know, Jehoshaphat. And he gathered everybody, and he they fasted and they prayed. And they sought the Lord. They sought the father, Yahweh. And God said to him, I got this. Prepare for war, but you you won't have to fight. I wanna fight for So so Jehoshaphat said to him, I have no idea what to do, but my eyes are fixed on

Omar: 58:21

Yes.

Manny Mill: 58:23

And that was the victory that god gave us that for 5 years, we had to fight in federal court. I mean, just to pay for the lawyers in the middle of the fight, but we never we never gave up. And they shut the house down, but we gotta open again. God gave me lawyers Um, people he provided for me. God surprised me with the right people. And for the first 5 years, me and my wife, never took a day off because we were on the papers every single Day. I'll never forget Thanksgiving Day 19 91. First page, headlines, Chicago Tribune. Halfway from prison, but no way in Wheaton. I had no idea. And the neighbors said to us, we're gonna kill you. So okay. You know, make my day. Yeah. So so, I mean, it was a real war Right. In Wheaton. You know what I'm saying? But God gave us the victory, and then we were we're able to create this model for the glory of God that has been Copy all over the country. You know what I'm saying? Because you see, if we made the baby in prison or in jail and we don't take Care of the baby when the baby comes home from the hospital. That's not a gospel. Yeah. There's no hope in that.

Omar: 59:59

You you know, you wanna talk about making the baby. What what does that mean? What what what do you

Manny Mill: 1:00:02

means well, that's a big topic be because today, we wanna be evangelist. Look how many people came to Christ because of of my sermon. Really? Is it your sermon? No. You didn't give any sermon. We don't come to Christ be because we made the choice or because we made it happen. No. We've been chosen. The bible says, I chose you. You didn't choose me. Yes. Right? You know what? You know, in John 15, I gave you my life. You didn't give me your life. He gave us his life. So when you become a Christian, you become a stewart, you become a keeper Of the life of Christ in you, and that will make you think twice before you sin. Yeah. You know what I'm saying? So to make the baby is to evangelize, but then when the baby is born again, right, then, you you know, Then you have to take care of the baby. You have to disciple. Right? Because we have been given, as a baby Christian, as a mature Christian, we've been given what? To fulfill what? The great commission. To teach him to obey everything he has commanded. Right? You know, where's everything? The entire word of God. And therefore, we better know what God's word said. I mean, you just cannot keep teaching the same thing every day. And you cannot keep giving people the story That happened 10 years ago. That won't do anything. We we must have a new testimony today. You you don't wanna eat old food from the freezer. You want for your wife when you get home today to cook you a fresh meal. Right? Well, we need to give people a fresh meal today from the word of God. And John 6 says That Jesus is the bread of life. And he's delicious. K? He's better than than the black black beans and rice, Better than Tostones and Maduros and Roba Vieja and Flanko and Coco. You know what I'm saying? He is Delicious. You see? But we have to serve it for people. And when they eat from that bread, man, they want more. When you drink for that milk, they want more. When you drink for that honey, they want more. But we have to provide them Jesus honey. So we cannot deviate from the truth and the grace of the gospel. You see? So we have We could never divorce that that we don't today. Evangelism from discipleship. And the most beautiful thing on that verse, 20 from Matthew 28 is that It says, I'll be with Don't worry. I'm with you. So It is about what? It's about God's presence, 1 of the guys that you know, Rodney Massey, Say this. I quote, he said he said, production Minus presence is equal to pride.

Omar: 1:03:16

My my Minus God's presence. Right? Right. Yes.

Manny Mill: 1:03:19

Yeah. Yeah. You know? So so so we wanna make sure that we don't know all this production that we have in the church today. The smoke and the and the lights and the music and all this stuff, like, looks like the world. No. We we we are serving a holy God.

Omar: 1:03:37

Reminds me of Moses when he said, lord, if you don't go with us, do not send us up from here. Right?

Manny Mill: 1:03:42

Right? Chapter 33 and 34 from Exodus. Yes, sir. Because you see, we the devil The devil's gonna give you everything that you want, but he was in a change of your soul, of your soul. And, unfortunately, many people are serving the devil in Jesus' Many people today, uh, giving themselves to the devil, thinking that they are serving Jesus when in fact, they are Making idols of people and idols of themselves. An idolatry, God will not allow it. I mean, Moses got fired.

Omar: 1:04:23

Yeah.

Manny Mill: 1:04:23

He got fired because he failed to get the name of the father hallowed. In other words, he became god for the moment when When when the people were angry, you know, asking for water. Yeah. I said, you want water? You want water? So he hit that rock 3 times. you cannot You cannot do that. You're not So we cannot become God. I'm saying. So god used that house for 10 years to begin to prepare me for ministry. So we have been very, very blessed to be able to help many, many, many, the country and around the world. I'm saying. And then but you see, even even when you see god's glory, Sometimes we forget. If if I have to tell you 1 word that That's gonna bring the whole Bible together in summary. It's 1 word, remember, because we forget too quickly. That's why we have to do Communion the right way. To remember the sacrifice that God did for us through his son Jesus, that he crushed his son on the cross for us. And what we believe in the sacrament also of what of baptism. Right? Because we have to die and live again. Right? But sometimes, we get distracted, and we get too busy. And that happened to me. That happened to me. So that's why this book, Radical Prayer, because Even with my testimonies, even with my blessings, even with everything that I saw, I forgot. And I began to say, oh, maybe it's me doing it. Maybe. I don't need God too much. So I began unconsciously. I mean, It happened so quickly. I mean, so fast. I mean, it happened so without even thinking about You know? Because there's so much distraction from the world. There's a magnet out there that is trying to to to To distract you and to take you away from the cross and begin to exalt the flesh. say it? So I began to treat god the father, Omar, like a paramedic, Like a paramedic. In other words, I came only to him with a 9 1 1 And god said, really? I bless you so much. And you're gonna treat me like a paramedic? You don't want for your daughter or your son to come to you for the 20 dollars Or for the keys of the car. You wanted to be with you just because you are their father. Just to be with you. Right? But sometimes we come to the father not for who he is, but for what he has. And that's wrong. That's sin, isn't it? Yeah. Right. Because that means I'm going to misuse my father. That's not right. Right? So that's what I did. Yeah. I was preaching. I was going to prisons. I was writing everything else, but I was too busy doing nothing. It's like when you shoot 3 points. And look at me. 10 of them in a row. Shoo. Shoo. Shoo. But your foot was on the white line. don't don't count. Don't count.

Omar: 1:08:06

Wow.

Manny Mill: 1:08:07

Don't count. And then you don't even hear the whistle. You don't even hear the whistle that you are so deaf that you don't hear the whistle. Can't do that. That's prohibited it's not counting. But didn't I serve, didn't I knew you, no. I never knew you depart from me. That's scary, isn't So God, in his mercy, though, we were eating A restaurant that you and I wear to today on the other room with 6 people, I just come back from speaking At a at a reentry summit packed with all the chief of the prison system, all the Wardens, everything was a big deal. I came back late that night. The next morning, I had a guy that came from Angola, Louisiana to to the Koinonia House. I wanted to To meet with him and we had a few other people that came to the to the meeting, I was 87 pounds heavier than I am now. We only had 1 car then, So my wife had to go to the post office and then back to the office. That was 3 weeks before a big Banquet to raise money for the ministry. And so I had 1 of my guys came to pick me up here to my house, and we went to the meeting. And my wife passed by the restaurant, so she saw me. I didn't see her. And, uh, I had a phone call But 11 20 in the morning. What was was the police? So when the owner called me, Manny, a phone call who? The police. I said, I wanna talk to the No. You have to go. So I did. The lady officer says to me, is your name Manny Mill? I said, yes. He said, well, Your wife was just involved in a car crash. My heart, whoo, went to my To my throat. said, where? So she told me Willow and May. I said, Willow and May. Where's Willow and May? We're just 4 blocks away. So my friend Bill took me 1 of the and I went to the scene of the crash, And there was a car that we just received from a donor, brand new car, tilted, on the street, on the middle of Main Street, a lady took a red light and got my wife hit in the middle of the 2 doors. The the car flipped, and there she was trapped in the car for 90 minutes bleeding. But yet, she was singing hymns.

Omar: 1:10:41

singing

Manny Mill: 1:10:41

You see, as a husband, as a Christian husband, We are the mantle of our wives. We are the covering of our So how do we do that? By praying for her. I had forgotten to pray for my So my wife, as you know, lost 3 fingers. She almost died. She didn't die for my benefit and the benefit of my kids and for God to teach me a lesson and to awaken me So that was the first of 3 stories in this book that God show me, And he gave me an awakening. And then the third story is I was in a cabin because I was at this conference with 2000 pastors, and I was not gonna go, but my wife forced me to go because she knew that God was beginning to work in me in a new way, in a first way. He was awaken And I went to this conference about prayer For pastors. And for 4 days, we talked about prayer, but we never prayed. So I came home The stress. And I asked my wife if I could go to a cabin that 1 of the members of the board had. So I was there a few days. But the first hour that I got there, God's God said to me Said to me, kneel down. I wanna talk to And he showed me when he fired Moses in Deuteronomy 32. And he asked me, tell me 1 reason why I should not fire you I had no reasons, I began to weep again. I never wept until the first time. This is the second time that I really And I asked him for mercy. He did not give Moses a do over, but he gave me a do over. And he told me, lose the weight. Write the book. And I want every sermon that you get from now on is about prayer. Every book on the Bible, you're gonna but you're gonna speak about Prayer and what it means. So now we do prayer conferences, So so we wrote the book and Moody published it. I mean, You know, what is a Cuban refugee doing a book on prayer? That's crazy, isn't it? But God in his mercy, He asked me to do the book, and now it's also in Spanish, so we've been all over the world.

Omar: 1:13:22

Amen. Praise God.

Manny Mill: 1:13:24

teaching people in prison and out of prison to pray. Because if we don't pray, nothing happens. Nothing happens. You know So God gave me an A do over. I I can tell you, don't you do it again. Don't you ever treat me again like a paramedic. So when you come on a Thursday night To R.T.O. You know, radical time out is basically a unique prayer meeting, you know, Because we pray to love, and we love to pray. Be because, really, I cannot do anything for you. Yeah. But but I know the father

Omar: 1:14:00

Yeah. Know someone who could. Right?

Manny Mill: 1:14:02

Right? Who could. Yeah. And who wants to. Yeah. Because he wants to save us. He wants to bless us because he, along with the Holy Spirit and Jesus, he made us into the image and likeness So we can bring him glory. And if you become a Christian, you wanna be filled with the glory of Of God. So I see his mercy. I see his grace. I have experienced it. I experience his his love and his new beginning. So anybody here today can have a new beginning. I don't care who you are. I don't care what you've done. Every sin that we have committed was paid for by Christ Jesus. Past sins, Present sins, future sins, his blood that he shed on the blood, every drop was efficacious. In other words, it was effective to make the payment that the father required for us to be safe from the justifiable wrath of God, So I am glad that we're doing this

Omar: 1:15:14

Oh, yeah. Not

Manny Mill: 1:15:14

only to give a testimony, but to educate Yes. The church, To equip the, you know, the church because people are asking questions. People need to receive the right answers to their question. You know? The the the there are 5 basic questions that we all have To And only the Bible gives a cohesive answer, meaning It puts it together. Only only Christianity does that. Not the Hindus, not the Muslims, not the Bahad religion. Only the Bible, new and old testament. Only the Bible. Number number 1, origin. Where did that come From number 2, purpose. Why am I Number 3, morality. You know, what's right and what's wrong. And today, even people in the church, they're doing the wrong thing. Number 4, destiny. I mean, we're all gonna die.

Omar: 1:16:23

But where are we heading afterwards?

Manny Mill: 1:16:24

Exactly. And number 5, justice. So Mark, Macy, and I wanna do our third book.

Omar: 1:16:32

Oh, no way. You guys are working on it?

Manny Mill: 1:16:33

It's called Radical Justice. So we had, you know, radical redemption and radical prayer, radical Because at the cross, God's justice and mercy kiss. The gospel is a love affair. And god the father wants to invite us to enter into into the same love that Jesus and the father have together without interruption or destruction. That's the And, usually, we get interrupted by our sin. My dear friend and my dear mentor, John Piper, says this, I quote, that Sin is the suicidal abandonment of joy, end of quote. Sin is coming to god and saying, no. Thanks. I can handle And if we're only with each other, if we're honest with each other today, not only do we need to repent Because we come to the father many times as a paramedic. I'm saying. We must repent, you know, from But, also, the fact that we don't bring God the glory that he deserves. You know what I'm saying? And Many times, we tell God we don't need then

Omar: 1:18:05

we might not say it, but by the things we do or by the things we don't do, we're basically saying it. Right?

Manny Mill: 1:18:12

Well, look at the condition of our society. As the church goes, society goes. When I go to Chick fil A I was just there. I just came back from Grand Rapids, Michigan. So my wife and I had a quick dinner, and And we went to a Chic Fil A in Michigan Yeah. In Grand Rapids. Have the same menu, the same uniform, the same sauces, The same service is our pleasure.

Omar: 1:18:49

Yeah. Yeah.

Manny Mill: 1:18:50

The same language. Right? Yeah. The same restaurant, the same colors. Right? We go to a church today in Chicago or in Wheaton or in Grand Rapids, and you don't know what you're getting. In a Chick fil A, you know what you're getting. You know what you're getting. You know the menu. Well, what is our menu in the gospel? What is our menu? What is that we're proclaiming? You know, what message are we sending people? What hope are we giving them? You see what I'm So we have to proclaim the same message. I'm going to call sin sin Amen. We are not to be afraid to proclaim the gospel. But for me, To live is Christ, and to die is gain. You know, Philippians 1 21. And so we want this podcast not only to get people encouraged, but to get people equipped to To become hungry to go after God and his word and to worship And to adore and to hallow his and to pray. Prayer is a relationship. Prayer is a lifestyle. Father, I want to pray all the time. Yeah. I wanna be like Paul. You're gonna pray without ceasing.

Omar: 1:20:13

Right? Yeah.

Manny Mill: 1:20:15

And I want to pray. Why? Because I wanna get the name of the father hallowed.

Omar: 1:20:21

Yes.

Manny Mill: 1:20:22

I wanna make him happy. Your biggest gift every day is for your daughter and your son to make you happy. If they make you happy, if they're going to school, getting good grades, if they are respectful to you and to your Wife to all the people, uh, they don't give you headaches. You would do anything for Anything for those father too. The father will bless The more that you bless him, the more that you open, He will open the gates of And I said, what do you What do you And you said, I don't want I just want your And when you want the father and you feel and sense his presence And you're filled with his glory? You are complete. We don't need to be seeking People today are seeking Christ and then some. No. No. No. It is not Jesus plus. It is Jesus period. exclamation point. Jesus is our all in all. He's not first. He's not at the center. I said To you before that, our faith in Christ does not go against logic, reason, nor reality. It makes sense when you become a Christian. And then you become your own living apologetics. In other words, You don't need to use all these scholastic, defensive tools to defend your faith. No. I was blind, but now I see. I was lost, but I've been found. I was dead now. I'm alive. I gave those 3 evidence. There's no argument, isn't it? So we wanna be a walking gospel. We wanna be a walking bible. We wanna be a credible witness. Right? Remember the 5 c's?

Omar: 1:22:21

I remember some of them.

Manny Mill: 1:22:22

percent. Most

Omar: 1:22:24

courageous, consistent, uh, commited? it?

Manny Mill: 1:22:29

Committed. yeah.

Omar: 1:22:31

Uh, I would yeah. I I got 3 out of 5. Not bad. Right? Credible, wasn't it? Christian. Oh, credit. Okay. Got it. Can you can you say him again the way you say him in that

Manny Mill: 1:22:40

We have to become credible, committed, Courageous Christian. And let me define for your audience the word courageous. Courage means, according to Joshua, Is doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord Regardless of the consequences. That means that we have to trust.

Omar: 1:23:09

you you gotta say that 1 again. That

Manny Mill: 1:23:11

Courage is courage is doing what is right. Doing what is right In the eyes of the Lord, of Yahweh, of the father, of Adonai, It doesn't matter What the consequences It's about having the right belief With the right conviction to be compelled that no matter what, wanna stand firm for And he promised to be with I mean, Stephen Stephen was the first what? The first martyr. And who was there? The apostle Paul a serial killer. But that was, I believe, the beginning of the conversion For the apostle Paul. Because he saw a real Christian. He saw a real man of God. So that blood That was shed by a martyr was not shared in vain. And your testimony and my testimony to be credible, have to be have to be committed to the Christ crucified. Christ resurrected him coming Cannot And to be prepared At the bread of Christ because he went to prepare what? A honeymoon suite. He went to prepare a honeymoon suite Because he's the groom. We are the bride. He's coming back for us, and we have to be ready with the with the dress. Like, when You married your your wife? That dress was white. Had no wrinkle. Had no stain. Nobody could touch it. No fingers. You know what I'm saying?

Omar: 1:25:07

Yeah. Yeah.

Manny Mill: 1:25:07

Choose prepare. Then on top of that, we have to have a lamp A lamp full of oil he may come at night, like thief In the night and you have to be looking. You have to be vigilant and alert because The Bible says that we have to be holy in all of our conduct, free of first Peter 1 15. And we have to prepare the bride. Well, we have to be equipped. Because if you don't see the light if if you don't have the light, you won't see him coming back. And he wants to rescue you To your honeymoon suite with your future husband. Right? So that's the kind of mentality that we need to have. And that's why we have to have the meet me at the gate.

Omar: 1:25:57

Love is creative. Love is creative. In other words, We cannot love people with a cookie cutter. We have to love people with what they need. Like like, my wife says to me, Manny Mill, you used to be good looking no more. To me, the the way that I want you to love me It's by listening to me 20 minutes a day without saying anything back because you cannot solve any of my issues. But if you listen to me, half of the battle is already And god the father sees and he listens. And therefore, RTO is a new ministry that we started about 13 years Where anybody can come, and it's for the forgotten for the unwanted. And, unfortunately, people in prison and getting out of prison are the unwanted, especially When there's an offense that people don't think that God can change, The people don't think that Christ made made a payment for that. But I remind people that king David was a rapist. He was a killer. a cheater. was a liar. deceiver. This is king David now. This is this is God's man after his own heart. Right? But yet, He wrote Psalm 23. He he wrote many of the Psalms. And he's mentioned in the New Testament too, like, for example, Romans 4. He's right there. So We began this new ministry because when somebody goes to prison, Omar, Your family goes to prison in a different way, but they are also locked up. And it's not just to impact With the gospel, the person in prison or in jail, for us to reach out their family because The gospel is about 1 word. It's about reconciliation. Vertical with the father, but also horizontal with our neighbors. Right? And the family is the fabric of society. So, therefore, we want to unify that family. So we started also what's called Malachi Dads, is a ministry Out of Malachi 4 6 where god promised it that he's gonna turn the hearts of their father to their children their children to their fathers. So we began that 18 years ago in Angola prison in Louisiana, and it had expanded all over the country with our ministries. So the RTO ministry as an extension of that as well because We want the family members of inmates To be loved and to be cared for. If every pastor of every evangelical church, a bible believing church will take Twice a year. Take 2 minutes, like I said to you earlier. And just before he'll preach from the pulpit, it says something like this. Is anybody in this congregation today impacted by the prison? Do do do you have anybody in prison Who you love, a son or a daughter Or a father or a mother Most people are impacted by their prison Most people have a family member that have been locked And if we will provide that opportunity for them to come forth and leave the shame at the door and go to the altar and feel loved. Love is an amazing thing. The reason that Christ came, and you're not you're not gonna hear this too often. The reason that Christ came It's because he was secure in his father's love When you are secure In your wife's love, when you are secure in your mother's when you're secure and affirmed by your father, You would do anything You would do anything for your wife, won't yeah. Anything. Right? You even would die for that Because you're secure in that love. Right? Christ is is and was And we'll be secure in his father's love. So so when his father said to him, go and rescue my other children, And you're the only hope that they have. You're the only way that they have. He came knowing that he was coming to a difficult mission, Knowing that he was gonna come out, substitute on the cross that was hours to take and to die on, knowing that he had the equipment of the sinless blood, amen, to make the payment that was necessary by the father that he required To appease his wrath so we will be safe from his wrath. So he came out of love. He didn't come so much for us. He came because his objective, his goal, he was motivated To make sure that he made his father happy, that he defended his father reputation. You don't hear this either. And, therefore, we must keep that in mind when we are involved in the church, when we are involved in ministry In ministry, you see. And the most neglected people in America, Omar, are People that have been impacted by the prison system. Not only people in prison, people at risk, but also people on parole, people on probation, people on home monitor, on anchor monitor, on home arrest, on Go into the justice system, people who are on bail. Right? Because, you know, when you're on bail, you're in limbo. You you you are in limbo. You you don't know what's coming or going. You don't know if you're gonna go in or out. I mean, you're thinking about prison. You're thinking about your family. You're thinking about, you know, how am I gonna support my family from I mean, there are so many questions. Right? We have the responsibility as a church To step in. We have to be a family. That's why God gave us the name it. Which which means belonging in the Greek. It means belonging together in mutual partnership. In other words, we are in chains together. I cannot leave you. You cannot leave me. this thing together. We are family. We are the body of Christ. Is that right? Right? So we began this ministry of Radical Timeout For anybody who's hungry for grace, who's hungry for mercy, who wants to be who wants to be prayed for, Who wants to belong, who wants to to to to put the shame on the altar at the across who who who wants to come and not feel that you are being marked, that you are being looked You just come as I mean, really come as you are. You're not gonna be judged. You you you are Going to be loved. Uh, I know what we do. So we have pre a meeting to pray, you know, before we meet for the RTO. You know, the RTO is the word, worship, it. Prayer. And then after RTO, we have people that also spend time praying for you, and then we stay until people work. No. Go home. Yeah.

Manny Mill: 1:34:29

You you know what? Could could you share, um, what day of the week you

Omar: 1:34:32

We meet on a Thursday On a Thursday night, Once a month, usually, on their first Thursday of the month, uh, we have a meal that we give the people, home cooked meal. So their first third of the month, we give them a, home cooked meal. But check on the website because sometimes it changes. That would be www.khnm.net. And we meet when it's a meal at 5 15. When there's no meal, it. 6 o'clock. And it goes to about 7 15, 7 20. Okay? And the slogan that we have is We pray radically because we want to love radically. Because, really, I cannot do anything for you, but I know the who, who know

Manny Mill: 1:35:24

Yes. Amen.

Omar: 1:35:26

So

Manny Mill: 1:35:26

um, and and and where do you guys meet at? If you could share that.

Omar: 1:35:29

we meet at the Compass Church of Wheaton. Okay. That's 5 20 East Roosevelt Road in Wheaton, and it's in the gym in the east door, east part of the church under the canopy into the gym. And when you get there, you're gonna feel loved. You're gonna feel welcome.

Manny Mill: 1:35:49

You you you know what, Pastor? If if we know we're talking right before we started again. Uh, can you share about the diversity of of the people that gathered there? Because I was telling them, I've been involved in ministry. I got saved in 2 2004, and I just recently heard about this ministry. And it's so amazing That you guys are are showing love to the prisoners, to their families like you mentioned, and and there's so many that are impacted. But when I went there, it's just a It's not just ex convicts or people that got out of prison that go there. Could you share, like, the diversity of people that gather that have a heart for

Omar: 1:36:20

It's a diversity of class. People with money, people without money. Last night, for example, we got Paul. Paul showed up last Paul was locked up for 35 years. Just out of prison. Yeah. Broke. Well, he came last last night, God surprised me. God blessed us. He was in heaven. I was too. You know what I'm saying? So we have people that just out of prison or out of jail, people that have never gone into prison Because, you know, they may got caught. And

Manny Mill: 1:36:57

Exactly. Right.

Omar: 1:36:58

so so

Manny Mill: 1:36:59

Or they or they had good lawyers.

Omar: 1:37:01

It. PhDs, PhDs, professors, business people, white people, African American, Asian, Hispanics, you know Indians, you know, Native America.

Manny Mill: 1:37:13

And and here's another thing that stands out to me, different churches too. There's people that come from all type of churches. Right?

Omar: 1:37:20

So I told people I'm a biblicist. No. No. In other words, I don't have a denomination. Yes. I'm a Baptist by conviction. I'll reform in my Doctrine, I'm a charismatic in how I display my faith, but I believe in deep I love to dig in God's word. I love to preach text and context, not just a theme or topic. I want to preach what the word of god has to say. Let let the word do it. Yes. I mean, the word to me is Jesus incarnate. The word became flesh, right, and dwelled among us. Right? So and it's an Equal opportunity. You know, RTO is an equal opportunity. And on the cross, the ground is level. So when you come to RTO, you're going to level ground, and we are equal. You know? Last week, I was not in town, And we had doctor Ken Chase. He spoke. He has a PhD. He's been teaching at Wheaton for 30 years. Uh, very smart man. I mean, we have all kinds of people that come to RTO, and we are thankful for them, including you. Yes. You know?

Manny Mill: 1:38:40

You you know, if I could share real quick on on that connection because, uh, I connected obviously through Dean. That's how it started.

Omar: 1:38:47

Our friend, Dean?

Manny Mill: 1:38:48

Michael Buhrman, who who is part of the RTO,

Omar: 1:38:51

who met at the gate.

Manny Mill: 1:38:52

a similar story like you on the run-in Venezuela. So So if you guys get a chance, go listen to his testimony

Omar: 1:38:58

Yeah. Michael Buhrman.

Manny Mill: 1:38:59

Mills here and how they connected. Is this a long story? But, uh, Michael Burman and, uh, Sarah Gonzalez, my wife had the opportunity to to interview her. Yeah. And now now through through your ministry, Koinonia House, through the RTO, It awakened something in me. Like, uh, like

Omar: 1:39:16

you're ministering in Cook County jail.

Manny Mill: 1:39:19

know, and even, uh, like, the connection Before coming to, uh, um, RTO and then meeting you guys, God has started to bring old friends of mine that we were incarcerated together. So it's only like, you mentioned going back to God. God you know, when God moves is he does what what what he wills. Right? Yes.

Omar: 1:39:38

That no man can

Manny Mill: 1:39:39

And he'll close others where he don't want you to go in

Omar: 1:39:42

you don't need to go through. Yeah. I'm saying? So And he's a good father who wants to surprise us. Right? Yes. I I want to do the impossible. Right? Not to pray for the impossible, but to offend God. Right? So I am and then you came with us and you shared your it. Your story,

Manny Mill: 1:39:57

Yes. Uh, uh, Stateville. Yes. So that that's it's man, I just wanted to share that. It's been a blessing. So for anybody that's watching this or listening to this Podcast. Maybe you're serving the Lord, and and maybe you have a past. Maybe you you, you know, you've you've been incarcerated. And like me, I had gotten saved, and to be honest, I had left that part of my life behind in a sense. You know? And then I did. I'm just being honest. Uh, I I left it behind, and it wasn't until God started reconnecting me with with my old friends. It's almost like I think like Moses when he left. Right? He was out in the wilderness, you know, where we when he left. He was gone for, uh, what, 40 years before the Lord sent him back to Egypt. And I feel in a sense, like, God sent me away, you know, worked on me, and now okay. Now it's time to go back. Now yes. Now it's time to reach those that were just like

Omar: 1:40:47

I remember when you went to Stateville, there was a very impacting testimony that you gave there. And now you're going into the Cook County jail. And now you're doing this podcast, and you're using guys that have been in prison to do this podcast. So that's gonna bless this. It's

Manny Mill: 1:41:02

No. Yes.

Omar: 1:41:03

like a wildfire.

Manny Mill: 1:41:04

Amen. So so, yeah, I just wanna share it to anybody that, uh, maybe that's been part of your past. You don't know what to do with it. Man, come to R.T.O.. Yes.

Omar: 1:41:11

Well, that would be the beginning. Yeah. You know? And we would love to meet them and for them to be part and we want this this ministry of RTO To come to your churches too, like, I would like to see your church be be able to because, you know, many people in In jail or from, they're gonna get out To Chicago. So when when I have a net to catch them You know, the big fish Amen. From Chicago. Because you see, revival is happening already in the prisons. It's brewing already. And who better to bring change as a vessel of mercy, right, To the people of Chicago, to the gang banger, the people like you, people like Dean it. Who have been there, done that, that you understand the culture of the gangs. And that is now opening doors for you to be able to meet those Ex gangbangers. Like, I just gave you a few names Yes. That you're gonna call. Right. And they are gonna bring the change to Chicago because we know that the police Cannot do We we know that the the the mayor cannot do it either. They can try all they want. Not about throwing money at the problem. It's about a person. Yes. The name is Jesus. And he's the 1 that can transform and redeem radically anybody. I don't care what you done or what you came from. we need to pray. Somebody had to be praying for Saul

Manny Mill: 1:42:46

Yes.

Omar: 1:42:47

who Who who became Paul?

Manny Mill: 1:42:49

Yeah. I was just reading that, uh, we had a a a a Bible study in my house on Wednesday. We're talking about, uh, not Not only Saul, you know, before he became Paul, but Ananias. When when Jesus told him, I want you to go to this

Omar: 1:43:02

afraid. He afraid.

Manny Mill: 1:43:04

And he said, go because Saul is praying to me right now.

Omar: 1:43:07

And he went.

Manny Mill: 1:43:08

Yeah. But he was scared in the beginning. But, you know, like, a prison ministry is scary, but

Omar: 1:43:14

need courage. But guess what? Prisons are the safest place because when you go in, the guys know Who's for real and who's not? And they are grateful. 2 things.

Manny Mill: 1:43:30

Yeah.

Omar: 1:43:31

As a Christian, we have We we must have 2 qualities. We have to be teachable, and we have to be grateful. We have to have the same attitude of Christ. A grateful it. Attitude. What I give you altitude. So we need to be grateful, teachable To give you the attitude that you need with the father. Amen? Man, we've been here for almost 2

Manny Mill: 1:44:01

2 hours. So

Omar: 1:44:01

HalleluYah. love it.

Manny Mill: 1:44:03

been it's been a blessing, uh, pastor Manny. I I've been wanting to to interview pastor Manny, man, for some months now, and We've we we yeah. We're finally able to do it, and look it. You you're you're

Omar: 1:44:12

guinea pigs

Manny Mill: 1:44:13

yeah. Yeah. So he's the first, uh, a victim on the On the traveling podcast, it was we'll we'll see how it comes out and to hear it.

Omar: 1:44:21

see it.

Manny Mill: 1:44:21

know what? Real quick, uh, pastor Manny, I bet I was I was telling you earlier. I gotta share with you the story how I got this

Omar: 1:44:26

equipment. Please.

Manny Mill: 1:44:27

wanna, uh, give a shout out to my coworker. You know, okay. But, uh, right before Christmas, I'm at work. It's lunchtime, and I'm sitting by my desk, And he walks up to me, hands me an envelope. He's like, here, man. I just been been wanting to give you this. Uh, I've been wanting to give you this for a while. Like, what's this, man? He's like, I'm I'm thankful for what you're doing. He's like, you're you're spreading a positive message through the podcast. And he's like,

Omar: 1:44:50

you were a witness?

Manny Mill: 1:44:51

Yeah. And he said, uh, here, uh, I want you to invest this into into what you're doing.

Omar: 1:44:57

Wow.

Manny Mill: 1:44:57

I opened the envelope. It was 400 dollars that he handed me. I went over there to look for him. Like, man, you sure, man? You sure you wanna give me this amount? And he's like, you know what? I I wanted to give you more, but the ATM only allowed me to

Omar: 1:45:10

Yeah,

Manny Mill: 1:45:11

Hello, man. Darn you, ATM.

Omar: 1:45:14

But,

Manny Mill: 1:45:15

but, uh, you know what? He he told me this. He's, like, invested into what you're doing. And no lie, Pastor Manny. I took out my phone and I already had some, uh, some, uh, equipment on my Amazon wishlist That I was hoping, man, once I get some money, I'm gonna buy it and here we are. Much. Uh, yes. So, uh,

Omar: 1:45:34

Wow.

Manny Mill: 1:45:35

wanted to send a shout out, you know,

Omar: 1:45:37

So you got all these

Manny Mill: 1:45:38

yeah. The the the recorder, yes, cables and extensions.

Omar: 1:45:42

Wow.

Manny Mill: 1:45:42

I'm gonna be able to do this. So I just wanted to, you know, um, you know, give a shout out to my coworker for doing that and, uh, to show him that, hey. His money got invested into to what he

Omar: 1:45:51

do? He surprised you.

Manny Mill: 1:45:52

Yes. And he he met a need. You know, like, uh

Omar: 1:45:55

And he surprised me too because you you you came to me

Manny Mill: 1:45:58

Yeah.

Omar: 1:45:59

To Wheaton, and then to be with me. Amen. So thank you, father, for surprising my brother, Omar. So it'll be many more like this. Many more

Manny Mill: 1:46:10

gonna keep sharing it. And each story, something

Omar: 1:46:12

that they take you out to it first.

Manny Mill: 1:46:16

Hey. Yeah. We'll we'll make that as

Omar: 1:46:17

that Alright. Hey, guys. Yeah. Yeah. Thank You I'll do it first Uh, do it, Uh, do

Manny Mill: 1:46:24

Okay. 5 or 4 at least. No. No. Hey, pastor. But, no, this has been a bless a blessing, man. And, uh, usually, I ask, like, my guest Yeah. Um, 2 things is, uh, any final words you wanna share, maybe a message, uh, with the audience, those that are listening, and close us out in

Omar: 1:46:39

prayer. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Well, The the main thing that I want the people to do is to keep the main is to keep the main thing. And the main thing is Prayer. I know exactly what I want in my tombstone. I want the simple words, Manny Mill was a man of because that is the summary of a Christian man or a Christian That he didn't wasted his time no That he was able to invest in the father. Uh, the father invests and to be for real. So, man, be real. Keep it real. Don't be 2 different persons. Be the same all the time. Be credible. Be consistent. Be committed. Be courageous. Don't bring the father any more shame. When we fail to pray, we bring the father shame. When we Fail to pray to the father, that mean that we pray into self. self will always give you the wrong When we turn our backs to god, we give our faith to the devil. Don't do that Let's become a conqueror. Let's not allow the world and the culture And the devil to conquer Let's become a conqueror. And Christ came already to conquer our sin That we may be free and free indeed. And we have to maintain ourselves in Christ, and it's gonna come through prayer Through the word, Through worship, prayer. Amen. Amen,

Manny Mill: 1:48:51

Break them chains. Right?

Omar: 1:48:53

And when you When those chains are broken, they are broken indeed. Never be locked up again And put a face of love around you and embrace the cross. Embrace Christ With the cross. They are together they are together what I call God the Father's Precise primary Prescription. We must take that prescription every single I remember what I said at the very beginning. The father promised that he will never leave you. He will never forsake Remember what I said, keep your post and you do and your duty. Remember what I what what what I what I said? You have no no room to fail. Because your victory comes when you keep yourself positioned in Christ and in Christ alone. Not on the sun, But on the rock, he's giving you a new song, and he wants to give you more testimonies that are fresh So you can bring the god, the father that is your father, more glory. Amen? So thank you, father, for this podcast. And once again, father, we pray that the viewers of this podcast, father, will be encouraged, will be Uplift, father, would be invigorated, father. I pray that you will bless their souls, That you will encourage their hearts. I pray Father god that you will all live their spirits and that they will know for the god that you're a good father. And I'll be able to declare, father god, that you're a good father. So I pray Father god that they will feel and sense your presence even in this podcast. Thank you again for Omar. Thank you for his coworker father who blessed him with this equipment. And I pray Father god that this Weekend will be a joyful weekend for Omar, for his beautiful bride and his 2 children father. And that this podcast, father god, will be 1, not only because he's a pioneer, their first podcast out of his house, But, father, that the that that this podcast, uh, you will give him the ability, the wisdom, the discernment, father, to him and to his team To know how to edit it, father, that will be used, father, to equip the church and to equip those in prison and those getting out of prison And their family members, father god, to be able to include father, the prisoner, because you, Christ, yourself became And he made yourself. And you did not die between James and John, but you died between 2 convicted felons, And 1 made it to heaven. But today, you will be with me in paradise. So, father, I pray The the the people will also experience heaven to this podcast because heaven is not just A place is also a person. His name is Jesus. So we yield ourself to you. We humble ourself to you. Thank you so much, father, for this opportunity that you have given to us to share the gospel and to share What you can do with a man or with a woman when he or she surrenders and yields to Christ. And it's in Christ's name that I pray. Amen. Hallelujah. you

Manny Mill: 1:52:32

pastor Manny. Man, it's been almost like a whole day with him out here. But, uh, man, thank you guys for joining us on another episode of Wrong 2 Strong. Matthew 4 16 reads, the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death, Light has dawned. Alongside pastor Manny Mill, my name is Omar Calvillo, and we are Wrong to Strong.