Podcast Episode 18: Courtship And What You Need To Consider Before Getting Married – Special Guest Bro. Benjamin Norrod – Pt.3

Benjamin Norrod: And I really believe that God understands that your great, great, great grandfather had a horrible temper and you’ve got 10 times what they had. I think your great, great grandmother might’ve been a flapper and she or her great, great, might’ve been a chorus girl. I think he understands if you’re a rock and roll strip tease, and I think he still knows how to take care of all those problems and his love extends to us in a manner that it’s not a judgemental thing. But it is [01:30:00] a here, I can fix this if you’ll let me fix it.

Benjamin Norrod: I really believe that’s an important component of this discussion. You know? So many people just don’t feel like that they can be loved, that God, they know me. I know me. So since I know me, I don’t really think too much of myself. So how could God love me. You know, and the Lord’s really not even looking at those things. He’s not even really looking at those flaws or character flaws or whatever we want to call it. He’s not even paying attention to that. You know, he’s, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

[01:30:34] Luis Urrego: [01:30:34] That’s well said, brother, brother Ben. Um, whether it been, let me ask a question. Do you have, um,

[01:30:40] Benjamin Norrod: [01:30:40] do you have just a little bit more

[01:30:41] Luis Urrego: [01:30:41] time?

[01:30:42] Benjamin Norrod: [01:30:42] Sure. I do. Yes, sir. Yeah. Okay.

[01:30:44] Luis Urrego: [01:30:44] I just wanted to run two more questions by you and then we can, we can call it a night and we can continue another time if you want.

[01:30:52] Benjamin Norrod: [01:30:52] I would love that. Yes, I’d be honored. I would love that.

[01:30:57] Luis Urrego: [01:30:57] Um, but what I was going to ask you by the ban [01:31:00] is, I’m just changing

[01:31:01] Benjamin Norrod: [01:31:01] gears,

[01:31:02] Luis Urrego: [01:31:02] um, regarding of how you met your wife and, uh, and also, um. Well, you know what all entailed as far as, um. Uh, you know, maybe the courtship process or if you, if you, if you feel comfortable sharing that you don’t, you don’t have to,

[01:31:21] Benjamin Norrod: [01:31:21] Oh, no. Just a .

[01:31:24] Luis Urrego: [01:31:24] Okay. All right. Absolutely. Well, wonderful. Cause I’m an, I know that this is some, this is a big question in, in, in many young people’s minds and uh, sure it is, it’s a big deal for them. It is. So they, yes. They have so many different ways of thinking about it or how they taught, how to think about it or things like that. But what was your experience when you, when the God showed you that sister Samantha was the one that you were

[01:31:48] Benjamin Norrod: [01:31:48] supposed to marry? Well, you remember, um, me talking about my call to preach, how that it just nagged at me and bothered me and stayed with me and all that. Uh, [01:32:00] I actually met Samantha at, um, a church I was preaching at. Uh, in 1993 I do believe it was. And, uh, it wasn’t my, it might’ve been 93, 94, someone through there. I was just barely 16. So, uh, let’s see. Uh, yeah, they might’ve been 93, actually. And, uh, I was preaching for, um, a brother that, and, and this is a, this is a funny story actually. Uh, the ladies room was occupied, and so she had stepped into the men’s room. And her sister was supposed to be watching the door for, and she disappeared and I was jiggling the handle. And she opened the door and walked out and almost and run. And my, my wife is five foot one, I’m six foot two almost just a, just a pinch from being six foot three. And he literally runs into my chest and then her eyes just kind of trail up, you know, and I stuck my hand out. God bless you sister. [01:33:00] And I tried not to make a big deal. And, uh, then her, her story was that she about died when I got an a pulpit and preach that night. And so that was how we bumped into each other, literally. Um, it was, it was a very, uh, beautiful thing the way the Lord brought us together because after just the woman, just teenagers, after spending just a little time with her, I was, I was pretty well smitten with her and I had actually asked her to be my girlfriend. And, uh, she, she told me no. And the reason she told me no it was because she said, it tells me now, and we were going to S we just celebrated 20 years of marriage in June, and she tells me, Oh yeah, my bald spot grows. And then, you know, so does my age. I never, I never thought I’d be saying 20 years of marriage, but here we are. But. Um, I’ve had

[01:33:54] Luis Urrego: [01:33:54] two lessons

[01:33:55] Benjamin Norrod: [01:33:55] by the way. I’ll thank you brother. I appreciate that. She’s, she’s a good lady. She’s a good woman. [01:34:00] And, uh, she loves God and she has to be a good lady to put up with me all these years, that’s for sure. But she, um, she told me no because she said, here I am a preacher, and she says she didn’t feel worthy. And what more like that. Now her testimony is, is that. Uh, we had a conversation during that time where I over the phone at my grandmother’s, which was about an hour from the church I was preaching for. Um, I led her to the Lord, uh, actually one night, and she got saved over the phone talking to her that, that night. And, um, and she told me, she said, well, I, I D I didn’t want to try to date or. Any of that kind of stuff cause you’re a preacher and I didn’t want to mess you up in any way in your ministry and things. I said, well, I, I respect that. So a couple of years went by and I was invited to come preach again as well. About the time I come back, um, the lightened flashed and the thunder rolled and, uh, and I was so smitten with her and I never will [01:35:00] forget. It was October 12th, sweetest day and me and her and. Her sister and her sister’s husband at the time. Let’s see what she married. I think my sister in law was married then. They was married or engaged. One of the other, I forget which one, but I think, I think they were married. I think they’d been married just about a year maybe. And uh, and we went to a park and some of the saints and all of us was going through together and her, and I was just walking and talking, you know, and, uh, I was so smitten by this scow. That when I left out of there, just like with my ministry, I was, I just could not get her off my mind. I would go to work and weeping about this girl. I know under these men out here listening to me. Then yeah, brother been crying. What a man. But listen, it’s so effected me. Her life and something about her so affected me that I could not get away from this girl. And prior to that, I had had an experience. I was walking out of [01:36:00] my room there at my mother’s house in Ohio, and I was, I was just, you know, kind of going about my business as I say. And the Holy spirit moved on, man. I heard the Lord speak to my heart and say, pray for a wife. So I just turned around and knocked down by the bed and I said, Lord Jesus, at the time, in the season of your choosing, uh, send, send me my wife, let me meet my wife. And um, right after that I was, I sat down to read the seal book and I happened to open up to this spot where brother Brown was talking about how good the Lord had been, Tim Houghton to show him where the game was at and everything, you know. And I remember that stood out to me cause I thought, well, you know. If God could show them where the animals were, surely can show me where my wife’s at. And mind you at the time, I was so focused on ministry at the time that I wasn’t even thinking about getting married. That was the farthest thing from my mind actually. And, and just the Lord just moved on. They pray for a life. So I did, [01:37:00] a few months went by, I have October come along. I had preached, we have the experience of walking and talking and, and just the way that affected me and. I, I remember, I remember right off the bat, I mean right off the bat, that the feeling I had was not love necessarily. It wasn’t an infatuation necessarily, but it was a peace. Uh, I can’t even begin to describe the piece that I felt about being around her. Just being with her was such a piece. It just felt so comfortable. It felt so right. And of course, being a preacher, there’s qualifications that a woman has to have in order to be, um, you know, to, to, uh, move forward in your ministry. You know, I couldn’t tie of, there’s certain things that I’d have to do and have to know. And I was actually surprised that one of those questions were approached that, um. [01:38:00] You know, she was very honest with me. She wasn’t offended at me. And, uh, you know, and we had discussed very openly, and I told her that I was very serious about her. And when we came to the part of being engaged, I asked her father, I went to her father and I asked my, my father, who’s been passed away for a few years now, but, um, my father-in-law, um, at the time, he was very, uh, uh, he, he was the guy, he was the kind of person that he loved. He loved little pranks. So they’d always told me the story of when my brother-in-law had asked for my sister in law’s hand. He ran and got his shotgun and put it in his face and said, what’d you say again, boy, you know? And so I was waiting for that moment to come and he was sitting at the table and he kind of made like a stir in the chair and he just looked up and said, you can have her. Like I was just the end of it. And that was important because scripturally speaking, if it’s possible for the father to be involved. Then [01:39:00] him being the head of this girl, I really needed to seek his permission for him to release his headship to me, and I felt like that was an important step. We maintained. Um, everything that brother Brendan talked about in court ship, meaning that, you know, I, I was, I, and as always, I was cautioned to the Lord, you be careful how lovey w get, you know, you don’t want to, um. There are a lot of touching and, and you know, and, and sweet nothings, and you gotta be careful with that stuff early on because especially if you’re young and, and, uh, and you’re healthy and, and you know, and hormones are raging and all that, you can get in trouble very quickly. And I also remember what the Bible said, that it’s better to marry than to burn. And so, um, we had a very short engagement because I didn’t want to waste any time. And the only reason that our engagement lasts a week. It was about six, [01:40:00] six months, cause I asked her to marry me in January of 97. And we got married in, I’m sorry, not January 98, actually, the turn of the year. And then we got married June 27th of 98. So it was about six months engagement altogether. And, uh, from October to January, I had already proposed. So it wasn’t a, it wasn’t a try amount to see if I want to buy them. It was something by waiting on the Lord. And waiting on God to give me the proper leadership. I knew right where the game was at. That I was hunting for, and the Lord showed it to me and it was, everything was right. Everything fit. Both families on both sides. My parents, their parents, her parents, you know, they, everybody was in harmony. I felt like that was important because brother Graham said, you should look at the girl’s family and her background and where she come from. You wanted to ask all those questions. And so her family was always very open with me. Um, I knew about all the history in the past and I knew about a lot of those things. We, a lot of great discussions and, uh, [01:41:00] so when Samantha and I got married, one thing that I really preached prior to, to, uh, our vows was no unresolved issues. And this is something that during engagement I think is very important, specially is not to go to the altar with unresolved issues. Cause remember by the brand and taught us that  has to be a good faith engagement. You know why you’re engaged is not the time to find out that she’s had 12 boyfriends and she’s been with every one of those and has got two children by two other different man and all this kind of stuff. You know, those are not the questions that you want to come up during engagement. So it’s important to do your homework. It’s important to do your research. Don’t just fall in love, but understand who it is you’re marrying because you’re not marrying a feeling. You are marrying a person and people are complex. They have a lot of complexities and issues and strains and spirits, and there’s, you know, there’s a lot of that and humans [01:42:00] and you need to know the human that you’re trying to marry. Because believe me, friends, I’m telling you all you, they’re listening. You know, if you’re not married yet, believe me, when you get married, all of that as brother Luis could probably testify as well. You know, all of that shows up, you know, all the, everything, you know, uh, the leaving the socks on the floor, the, the stealing of the hairbrush. You know, I, I, I used to know where my hairbrush was at. Move four girls in the house. I have no idea where airbrush is that I have to hide my hairbrush now. It’s appears often and you think you’re sanctified, Holy ghost filled Christian till you can’t find a hairbrush 10 minutes before you need to leave for church. Oh,

[01:42:38] Luis Urrego: [01:42:38] absolutely. I’ve been there, done that. Got the tee shirt and the mouse pad.

[01:42:46] But you know, rather than that, that’s wonderful that you’re mentioning these things, but let me ask you this real quick, before you continue, when you, before you got engaged to sister Samantha. Did you know at that point? [01:43:00] Well, let me ask you this, how old were you at that moment? And also, did you know at that point what, um, what your end goal was to be? Because sometimes, sometimes I, I feel that some young people, they just kind of do this, try it out. Let me see if this gonna work out or not over this network out here. Okay, let me try this, this, this, and it just becomes almost as, as a,

[01:43:23] Benjamin Norrod: [01:43:23] as a routine

[01:43:24] Luis Urrego: [01:43:24] of trying different. Uh, girls out or trying different

[01:43:29] Benjamin Norrod: [01:43:29] guys out,

[01:43:30] Luis Urrego: [01:43:30] but did you know for a fact that what your end goal was going to be? Was it going to be marriage.

[01:43:36] Benjamin Norrod: [01:43:36] Very good question. Very good question. But Luis, um, I, I, I, I’ll, I wanna want to begin answering that question by referring back to the message, choosing abroad for the brand and they could make a three word statement and there, that’s very important. I actually wrote this down and kept this as kind of like in a little folder at the time. And he said, you want to plan, look [01:44:00] and pray while you’re choosing. I kept that as a, as a guide, plan, look and pray. I do understand why there is a tri amount mentality because I mean, quite honestly it’s, it’s, you can’t just necessarily, I’m sure this has probably happened to some people, but it’s not really. Feasible always to say that, you know, you’re just going to be walking down the street. A lightness, spiritual lightning bolt is going to hit you in the head. And bam, there’s your wife, my predestinated wife, for the foundation of the world. Um, uh, Hey, Hey, Hey doll. Um, you know, can we get married? You know, there has to be some amount of looking that goes on. There has to be some amount of planning that goes on. The thing is always marriage. You never, you never want to become romantically involved with anybody that you’re not really seriously intending on marrying. Because when you start toying around with people’s emotions, that leaves [01:45:00] scars. Um, I’ve counseled people through the years that, that are Karen scars and, uh, you know, many years of marriage from things that went on from other relationships prior to the marriage. And it was just a dating thing and, uh, you know, had a couple of weeks or a couple of years live with this person or whatever. So it’s, it’s the end goal is always marriage. But I think it’s also important to realize that marriage is, is also a complexity of many different components. And some of those components are money. That a good portion of divorces are over. Uh, one of the, there are two super duper, if I could even just use a kind of a corny little word here to describe this, but a SuperDuper big reason. Now you can tell I’m a seventies baby, or there’s super duper big reason for marriage fail is renovations and money problems. Absolutely. And I know of. Some statistics that will [01:46:00] prove that couples going through a renovation have split up over things like that, you know, uh, difficulties in the home. So I think it’s important. So do enough planning that you can at least know what it is you’re trying to get to. For example, anybody can choose to do it any way they want to, but I feel like that if a man.  and this is especially for you young men that’ll listen to this. And and in your mind you’re thinking, well, wonder why I don’t have a wife? Well, then I’m going to ask you the question, how many hours do you spend playing video games? How many hours do you spend working? Do you have a job? Are you even able to save money? Do you have a savings account? Do you know how to balance a checkbook? You know, I’m going to ask one of those kinds of questions. If I’m your counselor. Because all of that is important to know. I mean, if Jesus is creating a future home for us, then we should have some future idea [01:47:00] of what it is we’re kind of home we’re trying to make. So, you know, I, I know a couple of…

[00:00:00] Benjamin Norrod: [00:00:00] So if, if Jesus is planning a future home and creating a future home for us, then we must have some kind of a future plan. Right? So. I’ve heard of people living with their in-laws or their parents to save money for a house, a certain type of situation, that’s okay. If they can make that work, that’s okay. I’m not going to say that a young man has to have a job making 80,000 a year, you know, have a big home, $200,000 home and have three car brand new cars in the driveway, but there should be some kind of a plan in place to move forward. There’s a lot of considerations. Education is a consideration. Um. If you want to learn a trade or if you want to become, you know, a, a doctor of business, or you want to become a doctor of Germanic languages or whatever you want to become, you know, those things need to be tackled, if you will, before going into this. Because once you get started in marriage, there’s no rewind. It’s the [00:01:00] every, all the plays are moving forward. You know, the football team is moving down the field as it were, and it’s very hard when you’re not single or one. So when you’re married, it’s very hard when you’re married, not to. Have little holdups along the way, especially cause in the first few years of marriage you’re trying to enjoy one another, learn one another, get to know one another. That’s not really the time to work out. Money issues when you’re trying to figure out who likes what and what don’t like, and you want to go taco bell? No, I hate Mexican. I want to go to Italian. No, I don’t like that Italian. How about subway? Well, I don’t want to subway. Let’s go Mac Donald’s. I’m tired of McDonald’s. Just go. That’s not really the time to start arguing and fighting and about. You know what kind of a Roth IRA they’re going to choose. Yeah.

[00:01:41] Luis Urrego: [00:01:41] Yeah.

[00:01:42] Benjamin Norrod: [00:01:42] You know, assemble. Things need to be done. So my sermon to my wife was always no unresolved issues. Let’s talk about money. Let’s talk about future homeless. Talk about. Bills. Do you have bills? What bills do you have? Are they going to be paid off when we’re married or is that something we have to [00:02:00] tackle? I know couples to get married and the man finds out, you know, the very next day when they, they have a new postal address that, Oh my gosh, you know, she’s got $30,000 in debt. You know, those are things that need to be dealt with prior to entering into your first years of marriage. And certainly before engagement, those things need to be worked out. And. It can be with the right planning. So you have to plan. But now the looking part, that gets a little bit more tricky because there are pastors in the message that don’t believe in dating. They’re pastors that encourage dating, but with limits. There are pastors that don’t carry the way, and they think we know it. Everybody make their own decisions. And there’s some brothers that are, are very, uh, they take the spiritual side of it, that God will just reveal it to you. Well, I don’t doubt that there’s a little truth in all of that. Some people can’t handle dating. And some people can’t handle. Um, you know, other aspects of courtship that kinda depends upon your own walk with God. If an [00:03:00] individual is strong in their walk with the Lord, that doesn’t necessarily, that if they become, uh, head over heels in love with somebody, that doesn’t mean they won’t subcam the sexual temptations. And especially if they’re in level of this person that makes sex a lot easier. And so. I, and I want us, and forgive me for this bluntness, what I’m going to say, but that is, I think one reason why that that if premarital sex exists at all amongst couples who do get married, it is more because they do really genuinely love each other and they’re just throwing the rule book out the window and moving forward and see that’s bad planning. That’s bad planning. So you have to plan for all of these elements. Romance as a plan thing, finances, a plan thing. Where are you going to live as a plan thing? What you drive, what your history is. Um, for brothers out there that are marrying somebody that’s been molested or it has been abused or raped, vice versa, sister marrying a man [00:04:00] in that condition, a brother in that condition. You know, those are things that need to be talked out and discussed because when it becomes to the marriage. A side of things. Those are issues that will resurface. They will. There’s no way around that. So the planning is huge. Huge, huge, huge. And if there are topics, this is what I would encourage. If there are topics that are uncomfortable to be spoke of privately, I would encourage having some sort of a mediator, maybe not somebody that would talk so much, but just be present during those conversations where they could be handled in a way of. You know, that it would be respectful to the sister, respectful to the brother, that they’re going to engage in conversations about molestations or whatever, maybe do so with their pastor, you know, and, and talk those issues out with a godly leader somewhere that could set them down and talk to them about those things. And, uh, you know, I think it would avoid a lot of unpleasantries if there was better planning involved. [00:05:00] Um, and certainly the most important element. And I didn’t mean to make it the last element, I was just quoting it in succession, but the most important element, which is actually number one, is to pray once you hear from the Lord, as I felt like I did, it was positive to me that she was it. So I, I quit shopping. Yeah, my looking is ended when I met Samantha, and as a result, I knew everything else would work itself out, but I just didn’t take it for granted that it would, I still kept planning. I had a new job. I was a 20, by the way, you’d ask  my age. I was 20. She was 18. Uh, when we got married, I had just turned 21 in March and she had just turned 19 in January. So when we was in, we was engaged with right before her birthday, she was 18 when I asked her, yeah, it was 20.

[00:05:46] Luis Urrego: [00:05:46] Do you feel, do you feel brother Ben, that you were, um,

[00:05:50] Benjamin Norrod: [00:05:50] you were

[00:05:50] Luis Urrego: [00:05:50] pretty matured or, um, as compared to maybe many, many 18, 20 year old at this [00:06:00] time, at this, in this day and age, and I, and I know that

[00:06:04] Benjamin Norrod: [00:06:04] a

[00:06:04] Luis Urrego: [00:06:04] woman matures a bit more, an a bit faster than a, than a man. Um, but, um, they, they, uh. But do you felt that, that you were mature enough to handle a responsibility that was coming

[00:06:19] Benjamin Norrod: [00:06:19] like marriage? Well, I’ll be honest with you, I’m still not sure I can answer that question. Even now at 42 I’m still wondering if I’m mature enough to handle the whole day.

[00:06:32] Luis Urrego: [00:06:32] Hopefully you can with three children

[00:06:34] Benjamin Norrod: [00:06:34] already. It’s a, it’s a day to day effort, man. I mean, it’s just a, you know. Aye. Aye. Aye. I don’t know. I thought I was,

[00:06:45] Luis Urrego: [00:06:45] yeah.

[00:06:46] Benjamin Norrod: [00:06:46] Yeah. I thought I was mature enough to handle it, but I don’t know. We were the, we were the babies of the family and, uh, ready to take on the world. We both thought that we had the world by the tail. But you know,

[00:06:59] Luis Urrego: [00:06:59] as I would [00:07:00] think, Mo as I knew, I had thought that the same thing, and probably majority of young people do. They think the same thing, you know?

[00:07:07] Benjamin Norrod: [00:07:07] Yeah. But you know, here’s the way I would chase that. The the best, and I wish I could have ridden this part of my, of my, of my life. If I’d have known then what I know now, you know, hindsight 2020 and all, I think the way I would’ve probably handled that now with the Louis is I would have talked to people. Who had been there and who knew me based on what you know, I would have tried to get opinions based on what you know of may. Do you think you’d think I’m ready for this? Am I missing anything? Um, I, I think that’s where the Bible said in the multitude of counselors that makes one wise, I think that’s, that’s a good application there. Not to just try to tackle all that by yourself, but to seek for help. Talk to your dad, talk to your mom, talk to your pastor, talk to your best friend. Talk to the, you know, the Walmart clerk. Talked to the subway guy, talked to the taco bell fella. You know, talk to your school chums, you know, what do you think I’m [00:08:00] ready for this? I mean, you don’t always have to take their opinion, but you can at least get enough data as it were. Uh, if you’re going to be a researcher of sorts, you want to collect your data as it were, so you, you, uh, you can get enough information to figure out, okay, you kind of get a picture, you know? Uh, yeah, I think I’m ready. I feel like I’m ready. You know? And, and certainly you want God’s opinion, so you spend a lot of time talking to the Lord about these things. And, and, and listen folks, you have, they’re listening. I spent hours praying hours throughout every day, each day for weeks, hours invested. And to praying about that matter. And I had spent so much time in prayer with it that, you know, I felt like before I even got a chance to, to pray is like that little book. Are you there? God, it’s me, Margaret. And then she’d say, are you there? God, it’s me again, Margaret. You know? And I kept feeling like a Lord. It’s been again, and you know what I’m going to pray about? I’m back here again with sister Samantha. You know, what about it? You know, and [00:09:00] I, I just, I was beating a drum. Every time I parade I, I knock and kept on knocking. And as the Bible said, you get what you knock. F not just knock once, but continually knocking. And I just kept beating heaven’s door down until I’ve got satisfaction in my heart. Cause this was what the will of God was for me. And once I had that in place, then it was just a matter of continuing on doing what I planned to do. I had always planned to try to be a breadwinner because remember boys. The Bible said he that will not provide for his own is worse than an infidel and has denied the faith if he doesn’t provide for his own. And if you don’t work, you don’t eat. So it is important to always be ready to work your life of video games and, and, uh, you know, and ever, ever, what little activity as a leisurely person, uh, you know, what? Slum slamming around, slumping around, slashing around, whatever you do. Remember when you get married, it’s a new ballgame. And everything’s a whole lot different. What it was when you were [00:10:00] single. And the Bible even said that. Paul said in first Corinthians seven that when you’re single, you think about how you please the Lord. But remember when you get married, you’re thinking about the things of the world and how you may please your wife or husband. So, and as Christian we say, well, I don’t care about the world. Yeah, but be careful. Paul said, you care about the things of the world and how you may please your wife or husband. So shoes matter, clothes matter. You know, um, things matter and the substance of the world matters where you’re going to live, what kind of neighborhood, what church you’re going through, things of the world. They matter once you get married, up to that point, maybe not so much, but afterwards. Yeah, it’s, it’s very significant. So, and the multitude of counselors, your wives seek for advice. Seek for counsel when you got married to what would, what if you take a clipboard with a piece of paper or take your phone and record it with an app. You know, uh, do your own podcast, if you will, uh, using [00:11:00] anchor, um, you know, uh, that’s, that’s a cheap insert there, but you know, uh, you, you know what I mean? And just, and sit down with people and just record it and say, if you had something to do over when you got w when you, when you was working in your courtship, getting engaged, whatever, and tell me as a young person, tell me what you would’ve done different. You know, what advice do you have for me as a young person? There was no harm. And even asking those questions prior to entering into courtship, I think, um, when I was a kid, they used to have a cartoon GI Joe. And at the end of those old cartoons. Do you remember GI Joe?

[00:11:36] Luis Urrego: [00:11:36] You’re the old coach. Oh yeah. I was more of a teenage mutant Ninja turtle guy. But

[00:11:43] Benjamin Norrod: [00:11:43] yeah, I was too. I was too young. I loved the boat. And at the end of those cartoons, they used to have these safety tips they’d put in and. When they finish the safety to like for example, you fall in the water and then this is how you cup your hands and you’d scissor your legs to stay afloat and so forth. [00:12:00] And they would always end it by saying, and it’s said, well thanks GI Joe. Now I know. And he would say, and knowing is half the battle. And I’ve always remembered that little, that little phrase ology, because I think it’s important. In major decisions in life to have enough knowledge about what it is you’re getting into. Um, I heard Dave Ramsey, one of the financial gurus of the, of the States here. He made a statement about, you know, well God led me to have this truck. He said, yes, but if you’re looking at your finances, it’s obvious. God is not leading you to buy that truck cause you can’t afford it. You know? So knowing and having that kind of knowledge in your head, in your possession, it equips you and arms you with all of the, the what you need to take the bat along. You know, you wouldn’t rush into anything. And the Bible said not to do anything in haste. So you, you need to know. Now, granted, I will say this for the listeners had it, it took me longer to pray through about Samantha. I would have done that. [00:13:00] I would’ve done so it wouldn’t have went from October to January. If I needed to pray till January of the following year, 1999 or 2000 or 2001 or 2020 if I’d still been praying about it to this day at 42 years old, I would have took whatever time I needed. To be satisfied that I’d had the will of God. So it wasn’t a rush job. Mind you and you, you’re there hearing this testimony, I want you to realize I wasn’t rushing anything. It just, it was just, that was the amount of time that it took during the process of knowing that that was the amount of time it took for me to know. And, and it could have been even shorter than that. I mean, I really. Um, by the time I hit early November, just a few weeks afterwards, I was ready to propose, but I didn’t want to rush things. I wanted to wait on the Lord to make sure I have the mind of God. Cause I knew it was a serious thing, especially for a preacher. You know, immersion divorces a significant issue for a preacher. But, um. You know, because when you’re called, your wife is called as well. [00:14:00] So, uh, you know, and yeah, and, and, and as you, as you know yourself, brother, you know, whatever gift you have affects her as well. Burdens of the people, things that are going on and you know, in churches or whatever, and you’re involved in that. Well then that’s something that’s extra besides just the marriage. So it was important to me to know from the Lord that whatever I’m getting ready to thrust this girl into that, you know, she’s going to be able to handle it. And I didn’t want her just to bail out after the first six months. Like, you know, she gets in and gets a picture of what’s going on. Hey, Whoa, no way. This ain’t what I signed up for out she goes, but I wanted to make sure that whoever this girl was, that she was going to be the one that could stick this the whole thing through this whole preaching thing and all that. And uh, you know, and I can honestly say that I’ve never had a better partner. In my life. I’ve never had a better companion in my life. I’ve had many friends. The Lord’s blessed me with people I work with. Different people like yourself are the least that I respect highly. But she, she has been somebody that, that [00:15:00] has, she’s had a special place in all of this, and this has been 29 years this coming June, but it’s been 17 years. This coming may full time ministry. 300 days a year on the road, 52 weekends a year, uh, and all over North America, all over the world. And when I’m preached on the internet, it goes all around the world, different parts of the nation. Um, you know, the, this is, this is a big burden, this full time ministry stuff. And I never asked for it. The Lord give it to me. And as he’s given, is blessed to very much, and he’s blessed a lot of people with it, but I never asked for it. And looking back on these years now. Had she been the right girl, I think to myself now, I was thinking about it just the other day. Matter of fact, I thought, wonder, knowing what I know now, all of the miles, I put 60,000 miles a year on a vehicle just traveling for the Lord 60,000 in one year, and that’s not counting the air miles [00:16:00] and the areas of travel. I, I sat down and did some numbers at a day in my 16 years as of this may 16 years of traveling full time for the Lord. I’ve traveled over a million miles. Just gaging the 60,000 a year off the vehicle, which could be it. It might even be double that in the air. And, and also, uh, people picking me up and taking me to and fro on these other countries go on hours at a time, so it’s way over a million miles. I’m sure that I’ve traveled for the Lord already, but had not, I married the right person all the hours away from home or how many hours she was in the vehicle with me. You know, packing our babies around from meeting to meeting had not she been the right woman or kind of thing that would have been. Hmm. Wow. Yeah.

[00:16:44] Luis Urrego: [00:16:44] Well, thank God for his mercy and his grace and his direction in our lives.

[00:16:49] Benjamin Norrod: [00:16:49] Amen. Because

[00:16:50] Luis Urrego: [00:16:50] the good thing about these things is that he knew it even before the foundation of the

[00:16:54] Benjamin Norrod: [00:16:54] world. Yes, sir.

[00:16:56] Luis Urrego: [00:16:56] So, um, you just step out on it and, um, [00:17:00] to this day by the band that you regret any of it.

[00:17:03] Benjamin Norrod: [00:17:03] Not at all. I do it all over again.

[00:17:06] Luis Urrego: [00:17:06] Amen. I would say the same thing too, because I marriage, um, um, as brother Ben said, there is a process, but in order for you to be happy in your marriage, do things right at the beginning, put the right foundation in all things and. According to the word, and it’s not going to make it to where your marriage is going to be easy, but it is going to make it to where, uh, you’re going to learn lots of things, lots of life lessons that you would not have learned otherwise. And you wait until children come on the picture in the picture more about yourself and the more about your wife and, uh, that, that

[00:17:46] Benjamin Norrod: [00:17:46] you’d never even knew

[00:17:47] Luis Urrego: [00:17:47] that was there. And it’s all part of the package of you. I’m grown in, in, in him. Um, I, I believe it because, uh, it’s not, it’s not that it, [00:18:00] that the relationship between you and Christ is something separate between the relationship that you had with your wife’s in, in marriage. You see

[00:18:08] Benjamin Norrod: [00:18:08] all those things

[00:18:09] Luis Urrego: [00:18:09] is, is, is molding your life to become more like him because . Jesus Christ, you know, he has a bride. So he’s concerned about marriage. He’s concerned.

[00:18:20] Benjamin Norrod: [00:18:20] Absolutely. So, to answer your question or worry about whether you know you have the Holy ghost or not step on a Lego after a bad day, and that’ll be a lot more evidence to get than signs and wonders because when the kids come along, it’s a whole different thing altogether.

[00:18:37] Luis Urrego: [00:18:37] Oh yeah. Absolutely.

[00:18:39] Benjamin Norrod: [00:18:39] You’ll keep it real.

[00:18:42] Luis Urrego: [00:18:42] Yeah. Oh, yeah. And then it’s gonna like I said, it’s going to help you learn more about yourself

[00:18:47] Benjamin Norrod: [00:18:47] that, you know. Absolutely. That’s right,

[00:18:51] Luis Urrego: [00:18:51] brother Ben. Um, you have, um, you have, uh, uh, a little, um, CD that you came out with in a [00:19:00] website. Um, can you just tell us a little bit about that?

[00:19:03] Benjamin Norrod: [00:19:03] Yes. So would love to, um, a few years ago, my wife and I, uh, we, we published our first CD, it’s called feeling fine. And, um, we, we travel as part of the ministry of the, those of you that’s been in my meetings, you, you know, that most of the time my wife and I was saying two or three songs before I preach. And when we first started that there was a prophecy that went out one night. We was. Um, the Lord spoke about Samantha and said that he would send, that he would take her gift and send it around the world. And, and so in the early days of our marriage, we didn’t think too much about the music, even though I was a musical person from a musical family and all that. And so we just added it in as part of just to be a blessing to people. And so we, we started receiving a lot of demand from people to do a CD. So we, we did accomplish that by the help of the Lord. And it’s our very first and, um, so, uh, to [00:20:00] kind of, and as I travel, people are always interested in where I’m going to be. And you can only imagine with . Hundreds of people contacting you and asking you where you’re going to be here and there. We’re traveling. Hey, we want to visit. Um, we’re right next door and they’re not having church tonight, so we’d like to come over. So it got very busy. So what I did is I constructed a website. It is the Norada music.com that’s uh, nor rods in O, R R O D S music.com, the newer rods, music.com and right on the run, on the landing page, the home homepage there you will see a. A little, little picture of the CD and you can click on that CD and you can purchase it with credit or ever how you’d like to do with PayPal as an option. I do believe, and uh, and that’s, that’s globally around the world. There is a shipping charge if it goes out of the country. I do believe, um, and I think there’s a small shipping charge, I think all together, the CD, it’d be about $15 shipping and everything. I do believe. And so, um, if you’d like to get one of our [00:21:00] CDs, we would most. Most certainly love to. I’d love to send you one, and I will always advertise this to, um, if there is a need amongst anybody that would want one of the CDs, but financially you are not able to swing the amount and you’re just not able to do it, and it is a legitimate need. And if you really have a need of it, and you’d love to have some of our music and take us home with you that way, um, if you’ll write me. On the  music@gmail.com um, or you could write my personal email, which has been nor od@gmail.com that’s B, E N N O, R R O, d@gmail.com. And just to let me know of your need and give me your address and so forth. I’ll send you one for free and you don’t have to worry about it. Um, now I don’t expect the entire audience to have a financial need, but, um, if it’s legitimate, we’re certainly happy to help you. But now, uh, for those that would purchase a CD, I just want to share with you that, and I always tell this, when I traveled preaching, I let [00:22:00] people know the money we make off these CDs. It does not go into our pocket as profit. What we do as a take the money, I set it aside in an envelope. And in my envelope, it’s to collect money for the next CD project we do, which we’re working on finishing the second project now. Um, we got to get it to, uh, during the, we had a studio shut down on us. They, they went out of business. And so we’re transferring the work from that place over to another fellow, North Carolina. And, uh, by God’s grace, we’re going to try to get it, get it done. Maybe by the spring of this coming year, the Lord will help us. And so, um, if you’d like to purchase our first cities there, my schedule is also there. Uh, so if you want to know where I’m preaching, it’s also there. And we also have a, um, we have a cooking web blog called edible adventures. And as we travel different parts of the country, we have a. Um, and we have a site on Facebook. If you go to the website, you can see the little link there. It will take you right to edible adventures. If you like our page, you’ll be able to get updates on the [00:23:00] places we travel and the foods that we experience and little restaurants and nooks and things. And also it’s a good spot. I love to cook and, and anybody that knows anything about me knows that I used to be a horrible cook and I didn’t even, I couldn’t even burn water. And for whatever reason, when I turned 40 years old, I fell in love with cooking. And, uh, so I’m always looking for good recipes and I’m looking for new things, new places to visit. Uh, Sam and I are always looking for, you know, some, some new restaurants, some mom and pop place that you know, you know about in your state or your hometown that, uh, that nobody else knows about, but they got the best barbecue in the country. Hey, you, you let us know about it. We’ll go there. We’ll do a review. We’ll put it all on the face, on the Facebook page and on the website. And, uh, and, and, and, uh, we’ll, we’ll enjoy it together.

[00:23:46] Luis Urrego: [00:23:46] That’s, uh, that’s wonderful. Brother Bandha. I’ve actually thought about doing something like that with my wife, cause we love, um, we love eating, uh, at different places and trying different things. And, um, I, I’m more of a [00:24:00] guy. I mean, not, I, I’m more of a person that if I will, I will give you my judgment on something. Uh, when I, when I try it. Yeah, I will. That’s how I am. I mean, I eat Guana in Honduras. I eat cow eyeballs in Columbia, and this is how I am,

[00:24:18] Benjamin Norrod: [00:24:18] but

[00:24:19] Luis Urrego: [00:24:19] I don’t, I’m not scared of those things. But, uh, yeah, that’s wonderful that, that, that, that will, um, that you guys are doing that. And of course, for the listeners, I will post all of these, uh, links and this information on the website show notes there on, uh, 10,000 worlds website. And you can get all this information from there.

[00:24:40] Benjamin Norrod: [00:24:40] And I’m also going to post a link on our neurons music website to, uh, the 10,000 worlds podcast here. So any of the listeners visiting our page would like to link back to where the Lewis, I’m going to try to put that information there as well. Um, I’m going to construct a page that will have our friends on it. Um, and from [00:25:00] this podcast, as we’ve been talking, I, I, it’s kind of birthed the idea in me that I’d like to try to. Publish some of this. You’ve been so gracious that you need to do some things, and I’d like to help you drum up some listenership as well because I think these issues are very pertinent. They’re important, they need to be discussed and they need to be heard. And this is a beautiful forum to do this. And I’m quite inspired myself. I may become a podcast or after a bit. You know,

[00:25:25] Luis Urrego: [00:25:25] Oh, praise the Lord, brother, brother, Ben. Just, uh, just real quickly and if you could just sum it up as quick as you can, but what is the law? What, what are the,

[00:25:37] Benjamin Norrod: [00:25:37] what is,

[00:25:37] Luis Urrego: [00:25:37] uh, what is it that you’re most excited about? Today as a, as a believer at this at this very moment.

[00:25:44] Benjamin Norrod: [00:25:44] Oh my. Yeah. That’s, that’s, um, I, I suppose if I had a, a one thing that I’m very excited about it is the flow of the revelation that’s coming forth in the preaching. Now. [00:26:00] The things that we are hearing in the ministry are things that I have longed to all of my life to hear. And to hear the Holy spirit revealing things out of the message and out of the Bible and to do it in such an intimate manner the way he’s been speaking to us, it has been so exceptional. And I’ve noticed I’m ministry and other brothers ministries that the things they are bringing are just so phenomenal. We are hearing things that we have never heard before. And when brother Brown would say, you know, I got 15 or 20 pages left, but not time to get to it. I’ve often wondered, you know, as the Holy spirit now revealing to us what was on those pages and, right. And we’re getting things now in the ministry that we never heard before. There are new things coming out and I don’t mean new things as in like doctrines, but just, just real good life applicable things that is, is going to bring us to. Uh, just a deeper commitment and, and, and dedication and loyalty for that [00:27:00] matter to the word and to Jesus Christ and to what we’re trying to accomplish out here for the kingdom of God. Uh, do believe it’s going home time. And I don’t know how much longer we have. I may be an old man before we arrive there, but you know, I want to give my life and strength for this because I believe that. That what we are hearing is, is literally the thing that is going to change our bodies one day or resurrect us out of the ground. One of the other, yeah, we shall meet the Lord in the air. So that’s, if I had one thing I’m excited about, it’s that now, if I could just. Give a little sub, uh, just a, just a, you know, a sidebar of that. I am excited about our young people. I want to tell you, as I’ve been traveling, I’ve noticed a stir amongst our youth that has not been there the last few years. And it seems to me the young people are getting stirred, and that excites me because I think of what it was like. The climate. It was when I got saved and received the Holy ghost, and the Lord called me to preach what [00:28:00] the climate was like then. And I’m seeing a lot of that beginning to come around again. You know, history has a way of tendency repeat itself, and we’re seeing a lot of that same kind of thing come back around in our, in our, our youth, um, on. I’m really excited about that too because. When brother Graham talked about the cloud, he made one statement about that and that that experience in Arizona, he said, and you said you taught him to the Lord. Yes, Lord. And especially about those young people. What you told me, especially about those jumpy, well, of course he’s talking about men that are in their eighties now from, from back then. But I feel like that that same anointing is carrying throughout our young generations. And I see some things coming in our young men and women now. That is very exciting. They are, they are, their eyes are wide open. Many of them, they are understanding where we are at. They are seeing the mistakes that we have made and they’re trying to rectify that. They’re trying to move the church forward. They’re trying to become [00:29:00] the church of moral of tomorrow today. And I’m very excited about that. I really, the last year, especially, uh, and maybe longer than that, but especially the last year, uh, you know, new Newfoundland and, and, and, uh. Uh, in Arizona and, and, and Texas and just, just all around and Ghana and, and Uganda and New Zealand. Even in Honduras, I was there a few years ago, preached a revival, a thousand young people under the tent, and these kids were hanging on every word I was saying. I was so excited about the culture of young people that we’ve got. It’s really an exciting time for them. Oh,

[00:29:41] Luis Urrego: [00:29:41] brother brother. They’re not connected. I can concur with you on that as well. Um, because I’ve seen the same thing. For example, last year when I was there in Honduras, we had a little question and answer sessions with them. And, uh, and the, you know, you’re, you’re, you’re expecting to get questions regarding, [00:30:00] uh, you know, can I have a Facebook account or something like that. None of these questions were like. Word based questions, you know, you know, what is the new birth, how and, and,

[00:30:12] Benjamin Norrod: [00:30:12] and

[00:30:12] Luis Urrego: [00:30:12] just things like that, you know, because that’s really, you know, what’s, it lets you see what is in, what they’re thinking about, what they’re, what they’re

[00:30:20] Benjamin Norrod: [00:30:20] feeding upon. That is absolutely,

[00:30:23] Luis Urrego: [00:30:23] that is, that is bringing out those questions in them. Um, and I can’t remember the, the, the details of the questions at this moment, but it was questioned that I wasn’t expecting to year from them. Yeah. Um, and so it was wonderful. And I concur with you. I, I’m seeing the same exact same thing even in our, even with our local youth, uh, as well.

[00:30:44] Benjamin Norrod: [00:30:44] Um, they, while your brother, they do, they wow me. They really do. And

[00:30:48] Luis Urrego: [00:30:48] so it’s so important to give attention to them and let them be an environment that, that will help them to grow and nurture those that, that Holy spirit in them. Uh, [00:31:00] you know, um. And so I definitely concur with you, brother Ben. That’s wonderful to hear that that is a. That’s what you’re most excited about. And of course, the preaching that you’re hearing today, it’s at a level that you haven’t, uh, that you haven’t, uh, heard, uh, before.

[00:31:19] Benjamin Norrod: [00:31:19] Yeah, of

[00:31:19] Luis Urrego: [00:31:19] course, still with the word, but

[00:31:21] Benjamin Norrod: [00:31:21] absolutely. And I’ve, I personally, I think the connection between the two is that it is these young people that’s bringing this preaching out. I believe they’re part of the reason why the pool on the revelation and the messages and things, that’s, that’s why this is coming out. They are pulling that out of us ministry. Um, you know, they don’t want to play church. These young people, they wanting to get down to business with God. I feel. And yeah, I, I believe that’s part of why the preaching is going the way it is because without a pool, you know, you can’t, you can’t minister without a pool. And I honestly, I believe this, this revival we’re seeing amongst the youth, I believe that’s part of the reason that the [00:32:00] spirit of God has taken us right to those, those issues. Amen. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. And it’s an amazing time. Thank God for it.

[00:32:08] Luis Urrego: [00:32:08] Thank God for this time.  I’d rather live in this time than any other time.

[00:32:14] Benjamin Norrod: [00:32:14] Yes, sir.

[00:32:15] Luis Urrego: [00:32:15] Amen. Praise the Lord. Well, brother Ben, thank you so much for joining us here and being part of our, the podcast and, um, and just thank you for taking your time and, and sharing the things that you have shared or not. And I know. For sure. That this probably won’t be the first and the last episode that we will have

[00:32:38] Benjamin Norrod: [00:32:38] for his phrase.

[00:32:39] Luis Urrego: [00:32:39] But, uh, but, um, we’ve gone over here quite a bit, so definitely I will be cutting this in, in a couple of parts, but, but thank you once again, brother Ben for being with us. And is there one last words that you want to say to the listeners before we, we cut it.

[00:32:55] Benjamin Norrod: [00:32:55] God bless every one of you. We love you. We respect and [00:33:00] appreciate every effort that you’re trying to make out there for the kingdom of God. And we would just ask my wife and I and my family that you just pray for our little ministry that the Lord would help us. To get souls and to encourage people, and we cover your prayers, never your money, never, never for a gain of any sort. We just, we select you solicit your prayers that, you know, you pray for us. And I want to thank everybody for taking time to listen to this podcast. It’s been lengthy, but there’s been a lot of wonderful things covered in this. And you know, if you can’t get it all in one bite, you know, at least it suffers too much. Then just take it in little little snack size bites. I think you’ll get a lot out of it. But. I just want to thank everybody for, uh, for listening and I want to thank you, brother Luis for allowing me to have this time with you again. I still remember our first Skype interview together some years ago, and, and, uh, I’ve always cherished that memory and, and was just so happy to have the opportunity to do it with you. And I’m looking forward to more podcasts with you, buddy. I really appreciate it.

[00:33:57] Luis Urrego: [00:33:57] Okay, man. Well, thank you very much for the [00:34:00] band. I appreciate your time.

[00:34:08] Benjamin Norrod: [00:34:08] Thanks.

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