"Surrender the Outcome" - Benny DiChiara AlongTheWay 96

is not a devastating thing. It's a freeing thing. And just to see all of these, my experience with the Navy being a Navy Corpsman allowed me to understand in the middle of a traumatic brain injury that I needed help. God will never use something from our past that he gives us for our harm, because it's lessons, right? You learn from those lessons. It's to help us into push us forward in him. In other words, it's his way of saying, Do you see what I just did in your life?

Welcome to along the way. I'm John Matarazzo, your host and fellow traveler, thank you for joining me along my way as I try to become more like Jesus every day, when I was working as a TV producer with Cornerstone television network. For the hope today program. One of the things that I had to do with all of my guests that were joining via Skype was to do a test with them the day before Benny to share and I had one of the most difficult times for that Skype test, but overcoming the technology issues, and made a way for us to become friends quickly. As I learned more about Benny's testimony. I knew that his story was one that I wanted to share on this podcast. I hope that as you listen to our conversation, that you are blessed, like we were, I'll get to our conversation in just a moment. But as always, I want to thank you for listening to along the way. I hope that you like what you hear and you subscribe. Please rate and review along the way on Apple podcasts or wherever you're listening. All of my socials and contact links are in my show notes. And you can check out all of my episodes, and join my email list on my website along the way dot media, I would love to hear from you. I also have a Patreon page if you want to help me to continue to put up these along the way episodes. If you'd like to become a Patreon supporter, simply go to patreon.com slash along the way and select the level. The link to become a Patreon supporter is also in the show notes. And now here's my along the way conversation with Benny to share. Well, Benny to share it, it is great to have you on along the way. Thanks so much for being here.

Thanks for having me. I'm blessed to be with you today. And I'm excited. So

yeah, this is gonna be a great time you were recently as the time we're recording this, you were recently a guest on the hope today program. And well, there were some technical difficulties the day before. And we literally spent about two hours trying to get Skype working so that we could get you on the show. And so through that we ended up talking over the phone throughout trying to you know, troubleshoot this whole thing. And I just felt like God knit our hearts over tech support call that was pretty amazing. It was better than

than Windows support. I just want to go on the record, it would be a no because I could understand you. It was great. It was fabulous. But it was it was it was an episode to get through that.

It was it was and you know, whenever you go through hardships, and you know the just the struggles of life, you develop friendships, and you're doing things alongside people, for the kingdom of God, there's just something that happens that your heart's just kind of getting it together. Either that or we could have been really frustrated. But I'm so glad that the Lord kind of knit us together and we became friends through that. And we had a great time with you on the program. And in this episode, we're going to talk about your band and your history, your story of how God has led you to where you are today. But before we get into that, I would just want to play a little bit of music from the song three days.

Let us say I don't know what to do. You want around a miracle. Nero's round you. You want to know if you can never get back up again. Follow the Savior and cause easily the place for you my friend. You really should not even His name is Jesus. He's in just three days.

And that'd be that song. You know when we wrote that song It was, it's about the resurrection, obviously. Right. And, and so and I think I've mentioned this in the TV interview as well, like the cover of our records a title track for the new record, cover of a record. Is Jesus literally running? Running out of the tube? Yeah, with, with cloth falling off of him. Right. And, and, I mean, he's, he's moving with purpose and his picture and, and I think a lot of times, people get drawn into what they see with all the paintings and religious paintings and here's a fear skin guy. And, you know, he's the Holy One. But he was a carpenter until his ministry with his dad, right? I mean, so he was, he was Jim Caviezel, on the passion probably, to me in my mind's eye is the closest depiction of what Jesus would have been and because he didn't play, and but that's for him. And I mentioned this also, when he left that to where he came to, that's where our salvation started. Because lest he be risen, we're not going to have exactly, so it's powerful, and it's energetic. And so when the song was coming together, I'm like, this thing's got to be powerful and energetic. In the summer, when it first came out. I had some people were like, Whoa, that's, that's hot. And you know, and it's a Christian song, right? And I'm like, Listen, just because we're saved in Christians, right? does not mean that we're supposed to be boring. and lively. People should look at you, john, and go, What does john have that? I don't have? What is Benny have that I don't have? That's our gift back to him. Right when people can see that. So yeah, it's exciting. We'd like that song.

Yeah, before we talk about your story, since we just listened to a little bit of your song from your band empowered. I want you to tell me a little bit about the band itself. What is the age range of the people in the band? And how did you guys come together?

Okay, so we'll start with me, because I founded the band. I'm the frontman of the band. You don't want to know my age, because I'm taking the fifth. So. So actually, I'll tell you, so I founded empowered in 1998. I got saved in 1995. Okay. And then during that couple of years, whatever, you know, I told God, I've given you everything. Except the music. However, comma, I don't want to do tambourines and Hallelujah, I just, I'll do it if you want me to. But if I can bring so I had a secular ban years ago, in New Orleans, we did the circuit. And it it was like, it was rock, not heavy rock, but rock. Right. And I was like, if you let me bring some of that passion energy. I'm all in. He's like, I've been waiting for you. And so so yeah, so I am currently cruising on the the six decade mark so yeah, I'm pushing it. still rocking? No, but I'm thinking you know if the Rolling Stones can do 287 come up. So we're not doing it for Jesus I am. So there's that. So Shane, Shane midair Jr. is my lead guitarist, my guitarist, background vocals, he kind of helps sort of CO lead the band so far is how we're going to produce sound and all that kind of stuff. Eric Johnson Jr. on guitar. Seriously, he's just, he's got crazy skills. And yeah, yeah. So he's, he's, yeah, he's hard to beat. Jeff maddix is our bass player. He's the baby of the group. He's the youngest.

How old is he? 28 or something like that. So we got that. Yeah, the six the decade of life now just kind of an ambiguous term to 28. Okay, so there's, there's a bit of a stretch there a little bit of,

but one of the one of the most, one of the most old school guys the way he plays and he's got that little he's got that little smooth thing, you know, and it's, it's just, he's awesome. Now, he was kind of in his shell. A little bit when he first started with the band he showed up for when we initially invited him to try out for the band. He showed up and we gave him 10 songs and said learn knees and a week and a half and then come to practice and he knew all but two, so we looked at each other. Okay, because guys never come prepared. And he did that. And in one song we do Raise your hand. It's like a big arena rock song, right? It's a witness. And we he did a bass run in that that we had never played that way. And we got done and Shana They are just looking at each other right? And he says, I'm sorry to do something wrong. And we said, never play it different than that again. And so now the song has morphed and so for me being the founder and the writer this other mostly within the band, the bands a band, everybody brings their own talent in it whatever into it. And that's what makes a band a band because I don't have to be you know, that guy. So so there's Jeff then we've got Justin, Justin Burnett is our is the newest member. He's a guitar player too. Creepy good. Just, he's like Shane, there. These guys are technical. In the middle of a practice sale, stop, hey, let's do something into diminished seventh and drop it down and a half. I'm like, y'all want to make me vomit. Don't do that. Just play what you play. And so but they they're the technical guys, right, but equally equally as well. Just great guys. And it will make MC capital Ville as my drummer. He's played on this. He's played in on the secular circuit for years, this setting up I've known him forever, man. In the pocket. There's not pants big enough for the pocket. He plays just crazy. And he sings backup. He sings background vocals, too. Now, I've been drumming since I was five. That's my first instrument I was taught on it. I can teach how to read music, all that. And I can also sing and drum there is I can't tell you how smaller percentages of people who can do

it. That's not easy, because drumming is a full body workout.

If you're doing it right full body workout. And then you've got to add a face in your mouth into it mix. Mix, absolutely awesome. So he's just coming out of something pretty traumatic this year, too. And we've just been praying over him and his family and all that kind of stuff, too. So

yeah, so you got a good group of guys around you. And that's great. The band's been around since 98. But you said that you got saved in 95. And I'm doing the math here that you said you're in your sixth decade of life. So what does that put you? How did you? How did you come to the Lord? Let's Let's hear let's back up a little bit and hear your story of how God brought you to that place. Well,

this this will be interesting for you today, john. So so I was raised Lutheran, in, in church every single Sunday, my mom had us religiously, the church every single Sunday, Vacation Bible School during the summers, just just all of it right? If I would have died, I would have gone to hell. Because I could tell you about God, I learned about God, I can't even tell you who Jesus was. But I couldn't tell you about him and what he did in my life. I didn't have that personal could be unsaved people. Why are people so creeped out about letters written and read is beyond me. Right? you're saved and people just want to crawfish and back away from you and stuff. And I'm like, man, listen, lest you be saved. You're not gaining the kingdom of heaven that you've got, like, just sometimes when you want if the Bible is too much for you just read everything and read letters. Just read everything and read as Jesus talking. And he pretty much wraps it up in this neat little synopsis. You know, and it's john 14, six, right? No way into the kingdom, but through me. He's the way the truth and the life. That's it. That's it. And so if people could get ahold of that, man, that would be it's, it's a life changing thing. So I was involved with Amway, way back when it was Amway. Okay, right. And New Orleans, we had this big meeting one weekend. And so I'm like, well, I'll go. And so I went, it was three days. And so the guy who was running it, that his he's from North Carolina, South Carolina, big, big organization. And little did I know, their Christian base, did not know that. And so so I'm sitting there, and he goes, if you really want to know what this is about, you need to come on Sunday, we started 11. But at nine be here for nine. So I'm like, Well, I'm in New Orleans, you know. So when in New Orleans go at nine. So I'll go at nine. And it was these little foreign looking guys singing songs about Jesus at nine o'clock, and I'm looking at I had no idea who I was looking. It was the containers. Right. So Wow, I had Yeah, so I mean, and if played our church several times wave. And so I'm like, this is kind of, you know, I mean, I'm a musician, right? So drawn into, then he walks out and he's got this book, and he's talking about stuff. And he's, you know, husbands and wives learning how to work together and this other and that's what it's all about, and he's holding the Bible and he goes, this needs to be your route. And I'm like, What is going on? I thought this was a business thing. And he's talking, he said, one of the things that came up, he's like, if you're married, and you're both working, stand up and so a bunch of people stood up, he had him sit down in It needs like, if your wife's car is older than yours, stand up. So a bunch of guys stand up. He says, Take your key off the ring, hand it to your wife. Take that. And I'm sitting there. I'm like, right? I mean, I'm having like blown. I'm having little synopsis. And my synapses were like blowing up. And I'm like, What in the world is he taught? And he's like, and if you're both working, and you have a boat at home, get a fluorescent piece of poster board in a big marker and put it for sale. Because you can't afford that. Anyway, you both work. And I mean, those kinds of things about becoming financially independent. And that's how as a man, you're the lead and I'm like, yeah, so they do this little altar call, which I didn't go to, but they were given out Bibles. And I had gone through a divorce around 1990. That wasn't pretty and all that kind of stuff. And so, like, I did not get a lot of things. remodels. Right and the Bible was one of them, ironically, which is weird. So I'm I go up and I get one. And in go sit down, and then nothing happened. Well, I was a floor manager for Toyota dealership back then. And I had sold this lady a car, her husband, a truck, her daughter, a car, and she says, Hey, aren't you musician? You had a band, right? I'm like, Yeah, she goes, you would love our church. We have really cool band. I'm like your church as a band. And she's like, yeah, and I'm like, cool. I'm like, what do you what kind of church are you? You know? Because like, I grew up Lutheran, right? Oh, y'all like

was worship like for a Lutheran Church? pipe organ? Okay, in a lot of abramo. So that when you were interested in it, musically.

What the pipe organ thing? Yeah. Well, no pipe organs are killer, right when you're when you're playing. But there's, it is amazing to me, what man has decided is holy. Well, I just gave myself a revelation. It's amazing what man has, right because at some point that like, like, the energetic music in churches today, people look at and go, Well, that's not holy. Well, if you're bringing people to the Lord, it's, it's holy. So so she had asked me, she says, You need to come to this church and check it out. I'll say, okay, and lied for three months, literally, literally, three, oh, I was busy. I was watching the saints lose. And that's all they did back then. So I'm like, I was busy. And then so Meanwhile, I go to this event. And then two weeks later, she calls me and she says, Hey, listen, I know that you said you've been busy. And I'm not believe in you. So I'm going to come pick you up for church. And I said, I said, Miss Linda. No, I'll meet you there. And she goes, really? And I said, Yeah, she says nine o'clock. I said, I'll meet you there at nine o'clock. So so I get in my car. And Highland road is this really beautiful road in Baton Rouge, and it's got oak trees going over the top of it. It's on a historic roads, right list and all that kind of stuff. And I get him a car and I'm driving it. And I hear this voice saying, What are you doing? Like, where are you going? You were raised? You were an acolyte. You were an altar boy, man, what do you do in the fog? You know, we're going to be talking about let's spaghetti spaghetti stuff? What you in all these preconceptions, right? You're coming out? And what do you do? And this isn't you this is an for the first time in my life. I knew what Satan sounded like it was him. So I get mad. I mean, I'm here to john like mad, and start screaming in my car. You know what I'm doing? I'm repeating stuff I learned in that business meeting with with a way, and I'm like, I demand seven times back everything you stole for me, Satan. And I mean, I'm screaming, right? And I'm like, you're about to lose me today, forever. And ever. And I'm crying. And I look down. I'm doing 80 and a 35. And I'm like, Oh, goodness. Let me back down. So um, yeah, man. And so. And I knew at that point, I think at that point, I had just given my life to Christ, right. But I didn't really know so I go to I go to the service music was great. He does an altar call. I go down. Little Italian pastor, Dino Rizzo fantastic guy. And, and he founded the church. And so it was Trinity Christian Center back then now it's healing place church in Baton Rouge. And we're a little bit a little bit bigger. So from 40 people service Yeah. So So I go to him for the altar call. And he I'm very Sicilian. And I knew very few things in Italian, and he's speaking in tongues and I'm not freaked out at all. And he puts his hand on my head and He's prayed over me and all of a sudden this little you a more day to two thing comes out I love you so much in in comes out and it's like in Italian it was all it was like God was going you ready for this? I got you

it was coming out of his mouth that your mouth

is his mouth. And I'm thinking how random in only for me Can that? Can that be so I did what anybody would do in that situation, right? I was crying tears from my toes. And it was four guys in the church who had never met before. And they surrounded me like a cocoon. And you're praying over me. And I mean, they're crying real tears, because I mean, I was I was broken in this went on for some time. And that was in 1995. And that's the that's actually the one of the first things I did after I was saved. The last song on our first record, we released direct our first record in 2012. It was soul cry was the name of it. The last song on it is called 1995. And it's my testimony set to music. So, I mean, so it's one of the official videos that we have. And but it's it's basically telling the world Listen, this is what he did for me. So get a hold of that because the world needs it right now. So and that's how that's how I got saved. That's how I came to, to know Christ. And it was it but a few years later when I told him, I'll do it for you if I can bring some energy and passion to it. And he's like, Yeah, let's go. Let's do it. And the rest is history, as they say,

yeah. And right now I just want to play a little bit of that song 1995 and then we'll come back in just a moment.

The first time my life was slipping by me. And I don't know why. When I felt that level, alone, visit chilling group around me and I had to die from my life, because Christ died for me. Now the grip is left me. And I began to see fewer plans in one guy got a hold of me my buddy. It was 1995 it was 99. Me 1990.

So Benny, one thing that I was just wondering about you. You mentioned that you were divorced in the early 90s. And then you met Jesus in 1995 through an Amway convention, basically. And that's kind of where that thing started. Know what drew you to, to that type of a business. What was what was going on? And how did God get you there?

Well, the way that God got me there was I was during all that time. I mean, I had had several jobs. I mean, I've been working since I was 18 right everything I went into the military and 82 right, I was in the Navy. I was a Navy Corpsman, which for layman's is a medic. And so, went to San Diego went to boot camp out there, went to study studied my medicine at the Naval school Health Sciences out there at Bell bow hospital. Huge, huge. And then I got stationed of all places in the Navy I got stationed in Millington, Tennessee, which is just north there's

just no men around there. That's Yeah, there's there's a

Mississippi River okay, but but it was the largest inland training base for air support. So pilots, mechanics, all that and there's a Naval Hospital there. So I was stationed there. So a lot of the administrative stuff that I had done prior to the military, once I got there and and I did the medical part to care people, you put tubes, you just Yeah, yeah. And so, but it's awesome. And they found out about my administrators. And so I spent my whole four years my first four years there, I got extended there. And at the end of my four years, I got hurt a snap my left hand off, when. So my hand, my hand snapped, and it broke, my wrist broke completely clean, and in the back of my hand on my left arm went above my forearm, so it looked like a ZZ Top logo. It was crazy.

That's okay.

And this is not a war story. I was the pitcher for the naval hospitals baseball team, and I was coming. I was coming to the home plate, and we were playing the Marines. And this guy thought he was Johnny Bench. So he stuck me in the stomach with the ball and flipped me over him. And when I landed snap,

Oh, goodness. So yeah,

so there was that. And so when it came time for me to re enlist, I was still going through the physical therapy, trying to fix the what was wrong with my arm and PT every day, several times a day, whatever. And at the end of it, they determined that I could not go serve with the Marines, that would have been my next thing. Or ship. And it was most likely going to be going to serve with the Marines at a camp was in North Carolina. And so they were like, Listen, you're 20% disabled. So here's a little severance. Good luck to your future. And that was I really wanted to be an officer. And that didn't. And in retrospect, a friend of mine that was stationed with me, went with the Marines. And he was in the company that went to Beirut, when hotel Beirut went down in late in the late 80s. So there's a strong possibility that I would have been there for that. Wow. And my mom said, God must have a plan for you, son. And I'm like, little did I know. Yeah. Little did I know. So.

So after your time in the military, what was the next step for you?

Well, and so the next the next step, so I had all kinds of background, right, I had business background, plus the military. And until I got out, move to slide L, which is right outside of New Orleans, it was a hospital there. So I became an assistant manager at the hospital for the materials department, because I knew all that it would, there was just there was that. I don't know if people can relate to this. But it was the go to work every day, over and over doing the same thing, not making anything extra thing. So I call it you're ready. affectionally the right so so it was in the right? And I'm like, how do I get out of this rut? You know, and a friend of mine had invited me to this Amway meeting to learn how to expand how to make money. But it was the first time I learned how to expand and make some money with a biblical underlining Renu it. So it was awesome. And that's what got me that's what got me into that. So in the relationships were fantastic. It wasn't like working at your job.

Yeah. So the rut that you were allowed to get into, the only way that you could get out of it was taking steps closer to God, and learning biblical principles through the Amway process. And then you got the Bible, and then you get invited to church. And this lady, Miss Linda just just doesn't give up on you. I mean, that's, that's a huge testimony right there. Because I know there's been times where I've invited people to church, and it's like, you know, you'd fight them once or twice, and I just kind of don't come and it's like, well, I did my part. Thank God that Miss Linda didn't give up on you, Bernie.

Absolutely. She She, she was on me like white on rice. She was on me like gravy on biscuits. I mean, there's so many things, and she did not she saw something. I think, you know, I'm a big di guy. I'm a big divine intervention. Guy. There's a reason that I'm talking to you, john, again. And this was preordained eons ago. And we just had to be in the right place spiritually with him for that provision to be there. Right. And so and I think we miss those God winks every single day, if not for her, being persistent. In her passion is almost like Jesus made me her project. Right. And if we could all go through life, thinking about how we not that we need to make people our projects or anything like that, but that, that we don't give up on people because they may not be in a place to receive where we are, if we just think about it, and I'm talking to every believer out there, we were there wants to Yeah, nobody's born saved. No. It's a decision. It is

very much. So by any chance, do you know where Miss Linda is today?

Do you feel they had moved to they had moved to Las Vegas? A while back. And I believe they're back in Baton Rouge. And I just came back in Baton Rouge now her Mr. Max's her husband, they were they were just treated me like I was one of their kids. Wow, it was awesome. It was awesome.

Yeah, it's so awesome. Whenever God brings people like that into our path and our journey along the way. Because, you know, it's those people that he uses to draw us closer to him. And that's right, they might not be able to be the ones that see the finished product. But it's so great to know that as we look back, we can see that God was using them that you know, from these early, these early steps. So many Tell me about your I love the story that you're just talking about as you're driving to church and how you were shouting down the devil and rebuking him on your way as you're going 80 miles an hour and a 35. And thank God you didn't get pulled over. Or at least you actually heard this. So like you were you were doing some things that people don't always do at the beginning of their of their time with the Lord. So you had a little bit of that understanding there. Can you tell me about some of your early walk with the Lord and some of the things that God was revealing to you in that as you're getting to know him more?

Yeah, you know, the big, the big thing that I learned when I was first eight, and I mean, that day that I got saved, that was I was fired up. I was I was I freaked my family out, because my family's Lutheran, they've converted to Catholicism since and so I was the Jesus re I was the walking definition of the sea talk to them, right? They were like, what is happening to you? And I'm like it and I have the personality of like, I'm like, Well, let me tell you. And I just and I just lit it up, and just and just told them and I'm like, you know, and Mom, Dad, you know, thank you so much for having us in church, but it's not a building. Right? Right. Or, or a pastor or a priest or anything like it's, it's, it's Jesus, it's always been Jesus. It's always been about Jesus. And now I'm his. So I have to tell the whole world about it. Like the whole world starting with you, because y'all are closest to me. Right? Right. So, so from there, it's just this, this, I'm so grateful that all these years later, as we as we're saved, and we move through our walk with the Lord, right, sometimes we get so accustomed to being saved, that our fire flickers, and it's just isn't burning like it was when we first got saved, or this is my personal experience. So what I say, right, and at some point, it's almost like you walk past people, and you go, man, I hope they at least smelled smoke. Right? Like, like, Wow, he was on fire once and you know that with that. And so, but when you when you delve down into it, and you think about it, if not for what Jesus did for us, where are we? We're condemned to death, right? We're can we're condemned to hell. And people are like, Is it really that simple? Well, guess what? Yes, it is. And the only thing standing between us and a relationship with him is us. It's it's, it's our decision, we have to make that decision that we accept what he did. And that only through His death and resurrection, do we gain the kingdom of heaven? In? So it's strictly a decision of personal decision on us and people go through different things and in their lives and everything? I mean, look at me, I got divorced, it was like 8990, somewhere around there. It was ugly, right? And did I run to Jesus? No, I ran away. And so went back to Memphis did the back and forth saying it was a separation from my kids, this that and the other. I wanted them she wanted a more for other reasons. And and I'll leave that there. But you know, you go through so much stuff. And I think God allows us to set ourselves up to be ready for a miss Linda, and our life right? Or for a business event where they're talking about Jesus and you're like, what, there's business people who are successful, and this is what they're talking about. We you know why they're successful because this is what they're Talking about and if they're talking about Jesus, that means they're living for him. And there's an elevation that we don't see. Normally. Right? But it's until we make that decision for him that we can't see where he wants to bring is the fact that we're talking today all these years after is cool. Yes, it's it's Providence, right? It's His providence for that. And people say all the time. I had a friend of mine, there's a lot going on right now with us with the band and with interviews and stuff. And you're like, dude, your stuffs blowing up on social media. Oh, my goodness that you do this. And you, you're on hope today, you're on a 700 Club, and you're doing all this other stuff? Well, when it's happening, like so fast, and so once I stopped laughing, I go, listen. No, this is like, decades. Oh, yeah. And you're like, really? No, here's the thing. is surely what God told me, I want you to do this music thing for me. Because there's people out there looking for the style of music you guys play, which is not boring. And and they get saved later in their life to an aid have nothing to relate to. But for what I'm giving you now. And so there's that right. So, so you do that. You're just walking in his will. And if we're walking in his will, it's not. We cannot save anybody we get on stage we're playing we can't save a person, right? I can't save one person, right. But Jesus can, and God can. And as long as we point them to him, it allows him to allow the Holy Spirit to work on their heart, because we can't do that.

Yeah, Benny, a little bit ago, you mentioned this injury that you had to your hand, and you had to go through physical therapy and everything. And you were already playing music before that. And so I had a similar situation, I didn't break my hand, but I tore a tendon in the ring finger on my left hand, and I play the guitar. So that's a finger that you really need if you're going to play chords and anything on the guitar. So I literally had this, the season where I was like, I don't know if I will ever physically be able to play the guitar again. And that the guitar is something that I do love. I need to spend some more time doing it than I've give myself currently. But that was something that I was like, I might never be able to do this again. And I had dealt with some depression during that as well. Yeah, but God brought that back. And actually, the doctor was amazed at how well my my hand was able to heal. And you know, I can I can do this. And that's the that's the finger. Yeah, it's my fingers. My fingers are extremely bendy. And he said, You're not gonna be able to do that again. But God, God heal it. And so it's back to where it was before. Thank the Lord. Yeah, yep. You know, nobody can see this because we're This is an audio podcast, but correct. Basically, my fingers kind of have a strange backward bend that I can do. It's very, very flexible.

For the listeners if anyone's seen someone skydive.

Yeah. That's it's like that. It's like my hand is skydiving down. Yeah. Anyway, we digress a little bit, I want to get back to the point of how did you get through that season? Where your hand was basically, you didn't know exactly how you were gonna be able to do music after that anyway. I'm assuming. So what was that like with you? And how does that now that you can do music, and you've been doing it? What does that mean? Yeah, it was.

It was cast that up for a long time, everything. So now the reason that they said you're 20% disabled and move on was was that the manager, so she had some stuff. So just going back to the reason it back to the recent, the, the wrist, while I can get 90 degrees on my right hand, I can only get what 45 Okay, on my left, that's as far as it'll go. And if I can get 90 degrees, hold in the palm of my hand to the ceiling, but it's a bend so sure. And so. So with all that and so I thought about that because when I write or write on keys, and so unlike guitar, and fingers, right, if it wasn't my fingers, it would have been an issue but it was my wrist so my wrist is pretty stable. When I'm playing keys, however, there was fatigue a lot in the rest, right? Because because of the tendons and everything, so I did not get overly hung up with it. I mean, I wasn't saved then either. So I wasn't pressing in praying about it now whatever kind of stuff it was just what I was going through, not like the not like most recent injury Which was, I do want to talk about that in a moment? Yeah. Yeah. So so it was it was it was okay. It was okay. And what I would always do is like, wear a heavy duty wristband on our wrist just to give us some support and stuff. So

yeah, I'm grateful that during that time period in my life that I had the Lord to lean on here. Yeah. That would have been very, very difficult without him. It was difficult even with him, but I knew that he was walking with me. But you the next injury that I want to talk about with you, you did have the Lord walking with you. And you were aware of him. Can you? Can you tell that story?

Yeah, sure. 2015 October, I'm watching the news. I had a decision to make. So I was trying to get some information. Because there's just a lot of craziness going on in the world around that time. So. So what happened is I fell asleep on my sofa, right? And so at 630, the next morning, my alarm goes off, it's in the room with my wife while I'm outside in the living room on the sofa. So if you're a guy, first two things in your mind, you have the Astro moment right row. Oh my god, I'm in trouble. So I recall seeing her coming out of the bedroom with my phone and held holding it out, extending our arm holding it out to me. I remember getting up walking toward the windows in my living room. And I've got a 20 minute gap. There's nothing and so basically, her discussions with the neurosurgeons and everything else that was involved with this was when she went to me to phone I was horizontal already. They were like how did he catch himself? And she said he did not. And they said he didn't return anything. They said no. Was he wearing socks? No. With the floor wet? No. Did he trip on something? No. But when when she saw me I was just horizontal when I hit the hardwood floors in my living room. She said it sounded like a gunshot went off. Right. So so she said I tried to crawl toward the recliner, and put my head on the seat of the recliner. And she says no, no, no, you need to let's go to bed you need to come lay down in the bed. So my Navy training is such that you never lie down someone with a head injury, you can sleep them into a coma. I was not aware enough. So I'll climb into bed with her. Man after a few minutes, there was one guy on the left with a jackhammer fighting a guy on the right with a jackhammer, run, spin in nausea, I'm hearing stuff, whatever, all those all that all the stuff I was trained for ironically, in the military, right? I'm picking up even in a state of wobbliness is what I call it, right? Because everything everything sounded like if you were talking to me, it was like Womp womp womp, like Charlie Brown's teacher, and but I knew enough to know something was wrong.

So this is that 20 minute period where you don't know

Oh, yeah. Okay, yeah. And I'm like, we got to go. The next thing I do recall is saying we need to go to the hospital. And so I was together enough to hang on to her and then she drove me to the emergency room, they took me straight in CT scans, MRIs, just, I should be able to see through stuff like a superhero, something, there's so many of them in the emergency room. So basically, what they diagnosed me with was I had a double fracture in the back of my skull, okay, with a frontal lobe crush with an internal brain bleed. So it was a traumatic brain injury. With all those things cut, there's a lot of stuff going on. So I did not split the skin, there was no blood or anything. So the blood had to go somewhere. So bled into my face, like my left eye, my left cheek, if people are familiar with LSU, because you know, that's the big thing down here, like the eye of the Tigers on the 50. That's what my face look like. It's just purple and green and crazy. So I see you for a day a couple of days of observation. And they said, All right, the only thing you can do is go home and rest in no TV, no electronics. No whatever you do for a living No. No music. Don't nothing to stimulate. Your brain is basically going to shut down to heal itself is how it works. And isn't that cool? The way God designed us? retrospect, right? Just count, right? Whatever. And so the first month or so. I slept for about 20 hours a day. Donna became a full time 24 seven nurse every three hours meds. Ensure because I couldn't eat in like a Powerade or something like that over the course of that first month and a half or so. I mean, I was 198 when I got hurt, and I was in a 160s Wow at that. Yeah, there's there's better ways to lose. Wait, folks, I'm just saying. And so so it was all that in. And then around, probably around the middle of November, I actually started coming out of so much downtime, sleeping. It wasn't 20 hours a day, I would sleep for four hours, and I'd be up for a few and then that crash out again and come back. So this is a month later. So a month. We're about a month, a month later. Yeah. Wow. So, you know, and and in becoming a little bit more cognizant, you know, it's weird. It's not like, I'm a young guy, so, but I've got a walker. Got a walker in my house. I'm like, you've got a little tennis balls on the end to no wheels, which is worse, maybe because I can get away from you. But But, but it you know, and I'm sitting there and I'm thinking, and, yes, I had. Yeah, I was saved. So yeah, was president. And when I was aware, I'm just praying my big prayer and only prayer that I can think of, to be honest with you over and over. It was thank you for saving my life. I mean, it's all I had, right. Thank you for saving my life. I didn't have time to. Because when I was coming out of it, if I were talking to you, just like I was talking to my wife, I would tell you ready, this is going to be interesting, john. So I would say I'd say, john. So this week, I really enjoy the TV interview that you set up, the sound was talking to and kind of just I would see the word in my head and I would see the next word in my head, and it would go and kind of connect and I'm like, Oh, those go together. Oh, that's how it was. Now. Now you can ask my kids and Don, I'm on the seal. And most of the time, it's how God wired me. Most people get a v4. I've got like a dragster engine. It's alright. It just once you're up, you're rolling. And so this is how I talk all the time. Thank you, Jesus. All that's back. And right. I still have no smell five and a half years later, I have no taste five and a half years later, and I'm Italian by golly. So like food. Exactly. Me too. I don't care about the nose so much, but a little flavor would be good. So I'm putting Tabasco on everything. I'm trying to do anything to stir it up. And, and, and nothing but you know,

my brother that comes back?

They told me six months. I would know if it was gonna come back. Well, you know, it's been five and a half years. But in somebody asked me how I think about how I feel about that. And I'm like, Listen, no smell, no taste. 99% back living for Jesus. Doing what I do. I was really afraid about the music like was that gonna go? Especially talking like that? I'm like, the lead singer of a Christian rock band. And I'm talking like this. So what's gonna happen there? And he restored absolutely everything. I think that smell invitation ready? Are my Jacob moment. Remember when Jacob wrestled or whatever, he had his hip touched in that way forever. I'm okay. I'm okay. If this is a reminder of what he did for me. I'm way okay with it. That's good. way okay with it. Because it's part of it's part of my story that he's given me. So

yeah, that's there's that, you know, it's part of your story that is given you and I'm glad that that story is not over yet. And God, amen. God saved you for a greater purpose. You know, like, right, you're not done yet with the race that he's given you that he set out in front of you. And before we started this conversation, before we started recording this conversation, you mentioned something about whenever you leave the stage, you have two questions, that you are two questions that you process. You know, let's talk about your stage of life. You know, whenever you leave the stage of life, what are those two questions that you process? And how does that relate to not just your music performance stage, but the you know, your life stage? Right. What are those two questions? First off?

Wow, I appreciate that. I really appreciate I think that question, john. So so for for your listeners if it's okay, if I share what we're talking about, as a band, and anyone out there who's ever performed, you'll relate to this. I'm pretty sure. There are two thoughts that go through your mind as you talk offstage after a performance. One of them is. We should never do that again. Ever. Yeah. And that's not the one you want, right. And the second one is like, wow, what just happened there? And it's it's the moment. So yeah, we're a Christian rock band. We're not praising worship. Now. We're very much performance on worship. It's a show It's a show. And I've talked to a pastor about this before. And the difference being praise and worship bands in churches are to usher the body into the presence of the Lord so that they can then receive what God's given the pastor, there's a very fine line, because there's a lot of praise and worship bands who think their performance in worship, I'm just saying, if I'm being real, and it's a very fine line, excessive light, excessive fog machines in church is not what the Holy Spirit looks like, coming into your sanctuary, I'm just saying. So that's kind of performance oriented, rather than whatever. So there's places for both, but there are places there are places for both and, and two levels of extent. So and I'm okay with that. Because God's gonna use whatever he's going to use. However, he's going to use it. This is just me, me, so in. But we don't have a pastor come in behind us when we play. So if people who see us hear us come out to listen, don't get his message from what we're saying from the stage, then we're just another band. We're simply just another band, we happen to be singing about Jesus. But if they don't feel the Holy Spirit, crossover, the Footlights, and affect them in a way that's going to change your life where where it makes them think right and go out. In other words, when they leave a show, I don't want them to have a, they should never be up there doing that ever again. On the flip side of it, right, I want the audience to be like, wow, what did you just hear that message, and they can take that and go share it with empowered, right? God empowers us with the music, so we can empower others, so they can turn around and go empower others. It's the mantra of like, what the name of the band is so so, ironically, that we should never do that, again, while just what happened on stage translates into this stage of life, whether or not you perform or not. Wow, the what I just say to that person. I should never say that again. Wow, what just happened when I mentioned that a person about Jesus that met her funeral workplace, if you're in a store, if you're in a parking lot, if somebody is begging for something on a street corner, and you have that discussion with them, you still have one of the two ways that you can look at it right? You're going to leave a person that you talk to, and they're going to go, I should never talk Wow, I should never talk to him again. Or what does he have, like we talked about earlier, that I don't have an I want to know more. And it may not be that we're the ones to provide the more. Yeah, it may be that they stumble into a church that they've been deathly afraid of stumbling into, in God touches them at that point. Or they reach another Christian who sits down with them one on one, and boom. And there's that point, because with all the things like with the brain injury that have gone through the setting, I mean, that's my story is worse, my drummer Mick, if I can share this with you, September, his his son's having a little problem. They bring him to the doctor. Doctor says we're putting him in an ambulance. We're going to St. Jude, he's got leukemia, oh my gosh, gather your stuff and go. So they've been gone the entire end of the year. And they're finally home two weeks ago. And so Praise God. This boy is in remission. And he is going to kids when he gets back in school kids faces will melt when crews capdeville tells them what God's done in his life. I'm serious. This boy is on fire. And well done mom and dad right Right. Well done mama dad so so he's going through all that it is so but that's Cruz's story. And it's also mixed story because it's his son. So our story isn't everybody else's right story. It we're not supposed to try to tell everybody else's story. But God gives us our own personal story to reach other people for him. And if we can wrap our heads around that incredible. Amen. Amen.

You know, Benny, I love hearing people's stories and their journey with the Lord and where God has brought you to today and how he's gotten you from where you started to where you are today. And you know, as you look back at your life, and just like the road to Amelia story in Luke 24. The disciples were walking with Jesus but had no clue that it was actually him. Not and they didn't realize that it was him until they sit down at the table with him. Jesus bless the food breaks Bread, their eyes are opened, and then poof, he is gone. They turn to each other and say weren't our hearts burning within us along the way as he was revealing the scriptures to us? You know, Benny, as you look back at your life now, what is a moment that you can say now that, you know Jesus was walking with me in that, but I didn't realize it in that moment, but I see it now.

I don't know. Maybe my whole past? Yeah, right. Yeah, like hindsight is 2020. We hear that all the time, right. But listen, hindsight, was spiritualize is not a devastating thing. It's a freeing thing. And just to see all of these, my experience with the Navy being a Navy Corpsman allowed me to understand in the middle of a traumatic brain injury that I needed help, right, God will never use something from our past that he gives us for our harm, because it's lessons right, you learn from those lessons. Could you say that again? Yeah, God will never give us something from our past. That's going to harm us. It's to it's to help us into push us forward, in him into into that moment where we, where we, in other words, it's his way of saying, Do you see what I just did in your life? You're looking back. But do you see because we can't move forward? If we're looking backwards? Yeah, we just can't. And so that's why we don't operate in life. Looking back all the time, we'll never get anywhere. Right, right. But when he allows us snippets of memory, to look behind, and see what he's done in our life. If you can't get excited, if you get we have a song, raise your hand. And it's like a big arena, rock kind of worship. Get on it. So that kind of song in. And I don't know if it's okay to say this, but I'm going to have to edit you may have to edit. So we're doing we're doing a show in a church when one day and it's rowdy and energetic. And so, and my son in laws, my sound engineer, and my daughter handles all of our merchandise, everything. And we're there. So just in the middle of I'm excited for Jesus, right? And I'm like, Listen, this is a testimony song is called Raise your hand. So if you can stand in the middle of 102,000 people on Saturday for LSU and scream for a bunch of teenagers playing football, you can certainly stand and scream for Jesus and what he's doing for you. So get off your seat and on your feet. Let's go and my daughter My daughter's like, Did you just really say off your seat on on your feet in a church? I'm like, why? Yes. Yes, I did. Because it's because it's a truth. Right? And until we're ready. Strike that. Until we allow the Holy Spirit to make us look like King David dancing back from war on adorned with clothing in the middle of the street. In his case, he's professing the awesome this right? He's professing the awesomeness of God. And if everybody reads that in the scripture in his wife says, what do you do? And he's like, get behind me. This isn't about that. This is what this is. People praise God in different ways, I guess is what I'm trying to say. Right. So So there's all that to it. And if we look back, stripped down and dance man is not literally but you know, moderation and discretion in that moderation and discretion. Yeah. But in your in your spirit. You should just be Oh, you just should be you should be in that that part too. Right? Like, not not that we should never do that again. But Wow, I cannot. Because when we have those wild, what just happened moments, we can't wait for those to happen again, especially when Jesus is the root of it in the cause of it much like our discussion again. That's fair.

That's good.

You know, many of you were able to have a time machine and go back and visit young Benny somewhere along your timeline. And you could with hair with hair. Yeah, that'd be great. And, and you could give yourself some piece of advice. What stage of life would you like to go visit young Benny? And what would you tell them? Could you paint that picture of why you would go to that as well? Yeah, sure.

I would go to the end, the high school and the high school, drum Captain marching band, all superior marching band. Thank you so much. But ironically, we were to Blue Devils explain that. So. So you do that. I would go back to there because back then when I was in church, every Sunday, clueless, it was it was kind of like a friend hang right. Oh, hey, see you in church Sunday. When you left, it was like, Hey, where are we going to eat? What we're going to do what's gonna happen this week? And there wasn't, there wasn't the personal relationship effect that God could have on you. You just, I just wasn't dialed in, right? I don't think even my friends, I don't think we were that spiritually dialed in, except that we went in, we went and spent our time on Sunday, we were supposed to go and spend, I don't know if that relates. So, so. So I would go back and just say to myself, if you could see your future self, and what God is doing in your life, you would not believe it. You cannot Dream big enough to see what God is doing in your future life. So you should dial in now. And then maybe what you see now would happen sooner? Does that make sense? Yeah. Yeah, right. I mean, just just really press in and and and know who I am and know what I can do for you. And I think at it at an earlier age, it would have had a profound difference. In in my early life, my early adulthood life especially.

Interesting. Yeah. You know, there's, I wish we had that that moment of clarity where we can see the end from the beginning, but we can't, we got to trust God with the outcome, we've got to trust him with what's going to be laid out in front of us. And so here it is, you know, you've you've mentioned before about surrendering the outcome. And in our, in our previous conversations, that's been a concept that is really resonating in your heart. And as you and I were talking about that before, I want to just give you the opportunity to invite people to surrender the outcome of their life to Jesus, but also explain what that means and how people can do that. Okay,

I would invite all of your listeners to surrender the outcome. And this is what it means. And john we were talking about earlier, I think it's going to be the title of it's going to be one of the next songs written, sometimes it all comes in a flurry. Sometimes it doesn't. But God really, really has been dropping that title on me as, as a life living affect for some time. And here's, here's the skinny on that. If I I'm going to make this about me. If it applies to you all, that's going to be great for me, if I truly believe that the Bible is the living, breathing, Word of God, I truly believe that he's the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning. In the end, he's omniscient, he's omnipotent. He knows all he knows everything he knew us before we were formed, the Bible says so if we really believe all those things, then our outcome is pre determined. The fact that john and I are talking right now was a pre determined outcome that he had planned eons ago, and it's coming to fruition right now, as you hear us talking, if we really believe those things, surrender the outcome to him. And that's what God's been telling me. If you really believe in my plan for your life, don't try to figure it out. Surrender the outcome. If I tell you to move on something does four things you should do mo v move, don't go Wow. I wonder if God really meant that I want you know, don't try to sit there and figure it out. He wants to use us but he can only use us when we're willing to be used and to do that we have to mo ve when he says to move, right? So surrender that outcome to him because he had Jeremiah 2911 For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord plans to prosper you and not harm you. Plans for a hope and a future Jeremiah is a crazy book if you read through it as a lot of judgment in it all these type things if if if you're not read through the Bible do so numbers you might get hung up on but read through it but but he's he's he's telling us that there's a hope in the future. But only if we move when he says to move Otherwise, there is no hope or a future because his plans not being carried out. So that's how I mean when it comes to surrender the outcome. That's the no i'm not saying that your life in your life. You're not going to go through things I just talked about Mick and his son. I talked about my brain injury. I lost my sweet sweet daddy October the second last year. I thought it was gonna be COVID stuff. He had heart issues his whole life. And it wasn't cancer. God him When I saw his PET scans, it looked like an inkblot. So being medically trained. I knew and it was quick. And it was short. And it was two weeks. Wow, get to go. And and but if I can share this with you guys, I had two very cool and deep discussions with dad within the last two weeks of his life and I'm like Dad, do you know where you're going? I need to know that you know where you're going? He goes, yes, I know where I'm going. I said don't talk to me, like in Italian. Just, I need you to tell me how you know. And he was able to tell me about the resurrection in the way to life in a way to heaven is Jesus in verbalize that so. So we go through traumatic things. And I was, you know, me and my dad were tight. And he, when I left high school, he had roofing company, he was teaching me to take it over. And he taught me integrity and how to do things, all that type stuff. But that was that was a hard thing to get through. It didn't really devastate me hit me until like the day after he was gone. But um you know, the very next radio single actually, is going to be called I'll meet you there. And it's it's daddy song. I wrote a song about my dad. And then Mikey Howard, who produces me, we were talking about it. And he actually helped co write it. As we were talking. And he's like, what do you want it to be? I said, I don't want it to be some sad, sappy. Oh, to support dude's dad's gone type thing, because I know where my dad lives. Yeah. Right now. He's not dead. He's physically gone from this world. But I know he's living. And I know where his addresses right. And that is want to get there. So I'm like, and that's the whole thing. I know, I'm gonna meet him there. So I wanted to be uplifting and a little energetic, because our main goal is to get to heaven, right? And so that's kind that's kind of what we're working on and where it'll be. So it's just, we can take tragic moments in our life. But if Jesus Christ is the foundation, it's back to the parable of building your house on rock or singing. If he's your rock, no matter what storms come against you, you're going to still be standing right? Because you have him. So if if, if anybody's going through anything like that, just take solace in knowing that Christ is our rock. And that's who we're that's what we're built on. In, in that knowledge, we can surrender the outcome Damn,

would you pray for people that are having a hard time surrendering that outcome?

Sure, sure. I would love to Father God. We come to you this day. For anyone out there who's listening. That's going through a tough spot that's going through pain, pain, of pain of losing someone, pain of losing a job, pain of not being able to function the way they think they could, Lord, people who have gone through a divorce, people who are who have children who are rebelling, there's so many issues, Lord God that you know, you know, all of them, you know them all in advance, Lord, and I just pray that the peace that surpasses all understanding, permeate their spirit, Lord, and just touch them in a way that they've never felt before or in a long time, Lord, that they know that you're King, that they know that you are in charge of their life, Father, and that they know that you have plans for them, and that you bring them that peace and that comfort father, and that you draw them to know you more, and walk with you more each and every day, until your kingdom come. And we thank you for that, Lord Jesus, who we thank you for that in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Wow, Benny,

I love talking with you. I love the fact that you have surrendered the outcome to the Lord, and amen. We're gonna encourage people to take that step. And you know, Benny, I just want to give you the opportunity to let people know how they can get ahold of you how they can hear your music, and you know if they want to, if they want to connect with you, how do they do that?

Okay, cool. Thanks. There's several there's several ways the website Our website is probably the the main way especially getting in touch with us. And it's rockin without a G RPC. k i n, the number for Jesus, calm rockin for Jesus calm. We're a little excited about it. Yeah, you should be too. So there's that and so there's you can hear the songs on there. There's a media page updated. As a matter of fact, once we get this done, it'll get on there as well. It goes, I think, Spotify, Google music, YouTube, music, apple, iTunes, we're on every streaming good platform. We're excited on Spotify, we've pretty much just gone over a quarter million streams for the record, which is fantastic. And it's an only God thing, right? So So there's that. And that's the easiest ways to get in touch with us.

Good. I'll make sure to put that link in the show notes for this episode. So you can just, you know, go to those and click that and you'll go right to where you can connect with Benny.

Awesome. And if they look for empowered on YouTube, it's like, Listen to the children, three days and 1995 are the three official videos that we have. And then go click on and see those two. So it kind of is kind of different, because you get the CSS we play, and it's just not audible. Right,

right. That'll be good. I'll make sure to put those in there as well. And so hey, yeah, Benny, it's been great talking with you and getting to you know, just spend some more time with you. I'm glad we didn't have to do a two hour test call to make sure that we got all the tech stuff set up for this one. Before but but yeah, I just want to thank you so much for allowing me to join you along your way. Yeah,

thanks so much for having me again, john. And man, we pray continued blessings for along the way. That it just continue to reach people for him. Amen. Amen.

I hope that you enjoyed my conversation with Benny to share. I really enjoyed connecting with him. And I hope to stay connected with him for a very long time. I'm also glad that I got to share some of his music with you in this podcast. I'll be providing all of his info in the show notes. Thank you for listening to along the way. If you've enjoyed joining me along my way, please share this episode with a friend who you think will be encouraged by this podcast. Also, please rate and review on iTunes that helps more people discover along the way. And subscribe to this podcast wherever you're listening. You can find me on Facebook, Instagram and on my website along the way dot media. I hope that you've enjoyed this part of my journey. And may you realize when Jesus is walking with you along your way. Along the way is honored to be part of the charisma Podcast Network. You can find tons of spirit filled content from their vast catalogue of podcasts, including my Monday through Friday news stories for the charisma news podcast. Go to CPN shows.com to see the full list and latest episodes.