Lightly edited for readability while preserving the speaker’s meaning and substantive statements.
Praise the Lord. Thank you, Jesus. Um we're so excited to be here um with you guys today. Um we're we're very thankful to be here. Um we've been through a lot. We're going to tell you a little bit about us. Um but we're very thankful to be a part of Grace. Um and anyway, my name is like she said, Julie. You can call me Jules or Julie, whichever you prefer. and I'm Johnny and I with Parsons and Road Music. And so we have been uh traveling for the past 10 years um you know doing music full time. And so we just want to give you a little bit of our backstory and um and tell you just a little bit about our history. So uh we've known each other a long time. We've been married 30 years. April 12th was 30 years. And but we've known each other a whole lot longer than that. Um we've known each other since I was five years old, believe it or not. 5 years old back in the 80s. So that's going to date me a little bit. Um we met through gospel music. Our families both had groups. You know, back in the 80s there was a lot of rep. How many of y'all remember the 80s? All right. There's a few. Okay. Well, um, there was a lot of gospel groups back then. And my family had a traveling, just not real farreaching, but kind of regional traveling quartet. My dad and uncle, and I sang with them when I was 10 years old, and Johnny's family had a group. Yeah. My mother and dad uh sang with my sister and my brother-in-law back in the late 70s. And then in the early to mid80s, my mother and dad had a trio, a country gospel trio with my aunt Lois. And I did have an aunt Lois. So, um, but yeah, a lot of musical history in our families. Yes. And me and my sister both had a crush on him and she's younger and so we would always uh, you know, be like, "Oh, is we called him little Johnny. He was little Johnny back then." Yeah. I looked good back. And uh we would always fight over, you know, who liked him the most and who was going to have him or whatever. We were really little though, y'all. Crazy. But anyway, but we would end up at the same dates together. And so that just gives you a little bit about how we knew each other. Um I had I was saved at 10 years old in Baptist church, uh real independent fundamental Baptist church, and I had a real experience of being born again. Um, but as time went on, um, I backslid and, uh, ended up going a different way. But me and Johnny ended up dating back, uh, when we were teenagers, so we had a period. She broke up with me. She thought the grass was greener on the other side. No, actually I my mom and dad liked him and so I was
rebellious and so I said, "You I see it." Yeah, cuz they like I feel like they liked him better than they liked me. But anyway, so I broke up with him. We dated for a little bit. She broke up with me and then I married another girl. Yep. And so uh they were married. Meanwhile, they were married. They had a daughter and she's 34 years old now. Put all this dating put all this together. No, she couldn't. But anyway, and I went on to um be very promiscuous and I got pregnant with our oldest, Michael. He's 30 years old now. And um actually um we ended up coming back together while I was pregnant with Michael. Yeah. And uh basically what happened and everything, basically what happened there was um um I I made a profession of faith at the age of 13 and I got baptized. I went to the Christian church. And if you you know anything about the Christian church, if you're not baptized, you're not saved. So, I sort of got baptized so that I would be saved. But I didn't understand what I was doing until later on, and I'll tell you about that later on. But, um, I come into the marriage with a bunch of baggage. I had a sexual addiction, uh, pornography. I had uh been had wild buddies at real early ages. Mother and dad didn't know the half of my what was going on with me. So, um I'll say this. If you're a parent in here, make sure you know what your children is doing at all times. And it's just it's just it's I know this is a marriage conference, but if you're a parent, you keep control of your child because their direction is what happens to them early, stays with them, and those demons are after your children. They're after us. And uh that's something that we're just learning after 30 years is how to deal with these demons and get them out of our our lives. So we married in 1995 and it was actually after we dated while I was pregnant and when I my son our son was 5 months old we got married in 1995 and um then we went on to have two more boys and we spent the first 15 years of our marriage um just struggling and really I'm surprised we didn't kill each other. Uh we had a lot going on, you know, at Skyfall the couple of Brianna and they told some stories. We had very similar stories. Um where we have scars to prove our stories. Um one time I went to hit Johnny, I missed. He moved out of the way and I hit a metal fan and so I had I have scars on my knuckles from that. But u yeah, one time I got mad and I was leaving. She didn't want me to leave. So she jumped on the hood of the car and I
backed out. It's like a movie. And I started to think I off, you know, but I still didn't wind up leaving because, you know, she wouldn't let me. I wouldn't let it leave. But we had a lot of strongholds and we were very immature. I was uh just a week before 18 when we got married. And so we basically grew up together. Um very immature. A lot of strongholds, a lot of addictions like he was saying. Um, and then you fast forward just a little bit, 2003, 2004. Um, we met Nancy. Um, so that was about 20, it was about 21, 22 years ago. Biddy was like four years old, I think, our youngest. And so anyway, um, that was a good time in our lives. Uh, we went to her home Bible study. I have a lot of people that say, "So, how do y'all know Nancy indeed?" I'm like, "Well, we knew Nancy." Yeah, see Nancy Nancy was our pastor before Dean. She just didn't realize it. And uh her and her sister actually they they uh they they were a blessing to us. They really were. I mean we seen we we didn't know uh life like they had, you know, and so we just thank God for them. Yeah. Like we cuz we did live a miserable life. I mean our whole life was horrible. And we would go to their house and you know I guess it's cheers. Is it cheers? But everybody when you walk in would go hi baby the person, you know, and it was all so happy. Yeah. And Nancy loved coffee, you know, and she would have coffee and she had these little this uh uh these coffee cups in her cabinets and uh they would say different things and and it was it was I believe it was God cuz usually the coffee cup that I got said the thing that I needed that week on it it was pretty cool. Yeah. So there was a lot of good seeds sewn in us in those days and we actually ended up going to that Bible study for a good long while. Uh but in 2010 uh we fell off the deep end. Yeah, I fell off the deep end and um you know I gave in I decided to agree with this the devil and I knew what I was doing but I didn't I didn't understand that there was demons I needed to be fighting. I didn't understand. And um I I I made that confession of faith in the year 2000 going riding down the road in uh the guy on the radio station, Christian radio I was listening to. And he said, "Have you ever truly asked the person of the Lord Jesus Christ to come into your heart?" And I had to say no because I was baptized, but I didn't really understand that I needed to talk to Jesus and ask him to come in. And when when I did, I felt the difference. and I felt like I was saved, but I wasn't discipled. I didn't get in the word. I didn't study and pray and seek him like I needed to. I prayed, but that's all.
And then by the year 2010, I was off the deep end. So, I told her, "Look, I just want to go satisfy my flesh. I just want to go out and party and drink with my buddies, and that's what I want to do, and that's what I'm And so I left home and uh I was I wound up uh a drunk and I was living in my pickup truck and she was at home and she had been praying for me and uh one night I woke up I don't know why I didn't run over somebody and kill them but one night I woke up in my pickup truck and I had been drinking and I woke up but when I woke up I realized what I was doing I couldn't keep doing. I started realizing I couldn't keep being the way I was being. I was I was wrong. And that was God. That was God moving in on my mind cuz I I I just I wanted to just do what I wanted to do. I didn't want no uh accountability. We had even tried counseling. So Margie's sister was sort of our pastor at that time and she had suggested that we go to Dean and Nancy. So we met with Dean and Nancy. I don't know how much of this Nancy and Dean remember, but we met with them and Dean basically said, "You're not ready." Yeah. Dean came in and he talked to her a few minutes and then he he called me in there and asked me a couple of questions. I can't even remember, but Dean knew. I mean, he he just knew I wouldn't I wouldn't in no mindset to to change my ways. I had I could I could trick you back then, you know, and I would have back then, but he knew. And so anyway, I went and saw a divorce lawyer and I found out that uh divorces when you have children and property, it's really expensive. So, praise the Lord, it was really expensive because I didn't have any money to pay for it. And so, we just kept moving along and um and I had been praying for Johnny, but the Lord actually spoke to me back then. And um these are the this is it's not wasn't an audible voice, but I I heard him in my spirit say that if Johnny didn't change that he was going to die and I like heard that it was a serious thing. And so before that I had kind of just been praying because I wanted my life to be good. Like you know you ever pray a prayer to God but really you have selfish motives and you're really just praying for your life to be good. So, you're praying fix them so I could be happy. And that was basically what I had been doing. But the Lord said that if he didn't change, he was going to die. And it was serious. So, I began to pray different for him. And I began to just pour my heart out to the Lord for his salvation and his eternity. And um not just that, but I I just got before the Lord and and I just poured my heart out to him. And really my relationship, I have been looking to Johnny for a lot more than I needed to be looking to
Johnny for. I've been looking to him for my security, provision, love, everything that I needed. I was expecting him to give that to me. And um and so I started to just love on the Lord and receive his love. And there were so many times that I spent um at that house that I was in. Uh, we had a prayer room, worship room that I had and the floor stayed soaked with my tears. I mean, I was just pouring my heart out for before the Lord. Um, and I was such so broken. Sometimes I couldn't even pray. And some of y'all might be able to relate. When you're so broken, you can't pray words. All you can do is cry. And I feel like the Lord heard my cries. He they were words to him and and actually the Lord gave me this scripture. It's Psalm 56:8 and it says, "Thou tell us my wonderings. Put thou my tears into thy bottle. Are they not in thy books?" And so, um, I believe in that time when I wasn't able to to put the words out, I believe the Lord heard my tears. And so, um, I'm going to sing a song for you guys if that's okay. Um, and I feel like this song really applies to where I was, but it also applies to where Johnny was at that time. Um, I was broken before him. I'd been pouring everything I had before all of this took place into fixing the marriage, fixing Johnny, fixing every situation. And um, but at that time, it was no longer priority. I just had to fix my relationship with the Lord. And but this also applies to Johnny because um because you'll you'll see why it was it's it's a song about Mary um who poured out her oil and she washed Jesus's feet um with her tears and she dragged them with her hair. And so as I sing this song um just worship the Lord with me. Let's see if it's going to be good. Let's see. because he's worthy, y'all. And nobody knows truly what um what you're going through, but the Lord knows what you're going through. And so [Music] [Music] Just worship the [Music]
Lord. No. steel. As she made her way to Jesus, she stumbled through the tears that made her blind. She felt such pain. Some spoken anger. Her folks whisper, "There's no place here for her kind." But she came through the shave and flushed her face until at last she knelt before his face. And though she spoke no words, everything she said was heard as she poured her love for the master from her son. I come to my praise my go [Music] from don't be angry if I wash his feet with my tears dry them with my Cuz you were there. The mighty found me. You did not feel what I felt when you wrapped his all around me. And you don't know the cost of the earth from I am the star. I can't forget the way life used to be. I was a prisoner to the sin that had me bound. I spend my days for my life without measure into that little treasure box. I thought I found all the day when Jesus came to me and he healed my soul with the wonder of his time. So now I'm giving back to you all the praisees for you. Heat. Heat. Heat.
I praise you from angry with my tears trying my Hey there me around me. No way. You don't [Music] know. I am master. Amen. Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. He hears our tears. Amen. So, I told you about the uh uh the pickup truck and and um she had been praying for me that God would uh save me. And so that night in the pickup truck when I when I woke up, I was different. Um I was thinking different. And um I asked Jesus to just please forgive me and help me cuz I knew I I knew what I was doing was wrong. I did. I knew what I was doing. Um um and and the Lord showed me that. But she had been at home on the floor praying for me that God would save me. And so I just got him to thank for that. I just thank God for his mercy. And so um yeah. Um so so as after I prayed, I felt like I was supposed to call her and uh tell her I love her. And it was weird. It was it was strange. I went I was thinking I can't call her. I can't man. I done left home and been stupid and and it was pride really was it was pride in me. I I was thinking I can't call her and say that. But uh I guess it was the Holy Spirit's I maybe I'm wrong but sometimes when when the Lord I believe wants me to say something or do something, he'll kind of nag me about it and I call it Holy Spirit nag, you know. But I thank
God for that. I'm not I'm not uh agreeing with the devil on nothing like that of negative about the Holy Spirit. I'm just thanking the Lord that he speaks to me that way. And and that's the way it happened. I just kept feeling like I need to call her, call her, call her, call her. And so I did. And uh and I said, "This is weird." I said, "I know, you know, you probably hate me by now." I said, "But I love you." And I said, "I love you, too." And that was the moment when the Lord began to change our hearts. And there's only one other moment in my life that the Lord just cuz I was headed even though I'd been praying for him. I thought it was over because he didn't want me anymore. And there were times back even when we knew Nancy that you know he would tell me, "I hate you. You know, I hate you." And he just it was really bad. But but um but the Lord in that moment changed like turned us, you know, turned us back toward him and back toward his will for us and back toward each other. And we met up at the river um down there in Monaceel. We met up. It's a Jackson. Anybody know about Jackson, Georgia? Nobody. Well, it's a Jackson Lake. He does. It was Jackson Lake Dam right there. And uh the old muggy river runs after the dam. We were at the dam on the lakeside. She she calls it the river. So pastor Troy and D talked about this a while ago. Disagreements. Anyway, we were at the dam on the lakeside, not the river. But anyway, the long story short is we decided um to to give it another try. we decided to give it uh to get in there forgive first of all and I had a friend back then who uh it was a mutual friend with me and Nancy and he took me aside and he said you know are you going to be able to forgive or are you going to keep bringing it up and bringing it up and um and so I had to make the decision to just forgive. So we decided to forgive and to get back in the fight because it is a fight and um and we lost a lot. I will say we lost our home. We We're showing our It's very little on the screen, but that's our battle ready picture. That's as close as I can get to it at the Old Western place. But anyway, we lost a lot, but we've gained so much more. Um the Lord gave us a motto and it still stands today. Everywhere we go, we sing, we give this motto and we sing this song that we're going to sing for you guys. Um and it's basically our motto is if you're still breathing, there's still hope. And so we would look at each other at that time. It was a process of healing that we had to go through. And we would look at each other and we would just say, "We're still breathing, so there's still hope." And so, um, so we have that motto. And Proverbs 24:16 says, "For a righteous man fallth seven times, ariseth up again, but the wicked shall fall into mischief." That's
right. you know, so I felt like that the Lord had had had not completely uh let go of me that he had his hand on me and I just pray the power of prayer. You know, the the the the wicked fall into the mission. And you know, when I was wanting to be wicked, I fell into that mission. And you know, when I was desiring those things, I when I was desiring to to to fulfill the lust of the flesh and the pride of life, you know, um I I did those things cuz I was out of the the abundance of the heart, you know, uh we we we we do the thing that's on our heart. And so just thank God for change. Yeah. And then Galatians 6:9, this is a scripture the Lord gave us. says, "And let us not be weary and welloing, for in due season we shall reap if we faint not." And so this song we're going to sing for you just talks about that. And if you don't get anything else from our testimony today, it's that you don't need to quit. Um if you don't quit, guess what? You will win. Things always change. And but if you quit today or you quit tomorrow, you lose already when you quit. And so we just want to encourage you um to keep moving. And this is for you. I know this is a marriage boot camp, but you might be praying for somebody and and you just you feel weary in it. You know, you've prayed and you've prayed and you've seen no change. But um just don't quit. Keep praying for them cuz God is good and he answers the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man. Amen. That's right. Amen. I just want to say one more thing too. Um, we were a quartet for years on the road with our two sons and um um it is so important and I think Pastor Dean's probably going to talk about this. It's so important to learn how to deal with the demons and the forces of evil that's trying to destroy your life. You know, we did we we God graced. He gave us his grace. I mean, we traveled on the road. We sang southern gospel music for the wild for a while with our two sons, Nathan and John. And uh you you know, pray for Nathan. Nathan has went he's wild. He's wavered. He some of you know about him. But then John is has got a great voice. He's got a good a great gift and a calling to to preach and sing on his life. but he he he's yet to serve God in that full capacity. So, it's so important to deal with the spiritual aspect of your life. You know, God wants to we we got to go by the the whole word. We got to do the whole word of God. Um so, just keep that in mind as as you listen to this song and and and listen to us close out. Yeah. This is a
song we wrote, the Lord gave us. And just uh worship the Lord with [Music] us. If you don't quit, you will win. Cuz his hand is not too short to reach you. your hearts he will men. So keep holding on. Help is on the way. There is hope for the morning. We all things will change. Keep on going. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] There they can wear you down and fresh. But there's joy to be found. So keep holding on. Heat. Heat. Heat. Yeah. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Yeah. Heat. Just like we do, you make it through. Just hold on. Just hold
on. Cuz if you're still breathing, there's still hope. There's no so deep at the end of your [Music] bre. Heat. Heat. Heat. Oh, amen. Praise the Lord. God is so good. Don't give up. Yeah.