Don’t Give Up on Your Vision [Inside the Vision S02E13]

[Music]

I’m Pastor George and welcome to another

episode of inside the vision this

program is all about two things one of

them is to ignite and encourage your

vision helping you to build and walk out

your god-given vision so you can fulfill

your purpose on this Earth it’s also

about sharing with you all that we do as

a Ministry what we’ve done what we’re

doing and what we’re going to do and not

just what we’re doing here in the states

Kenneth Copa Ministries is an

International Ministry with have offices

around the world England Ukraine

Australia South Africa South America and

our friends to the north Canada So today

we’re going to go inside our Canadian

office the Canadian office and the

people who work there are so full of

faith and filled with vision this last

year alone they launched our first ever

International Kenneth copen Bible

College on top of that they started an

Outreach to their local community

Victory coffee and kitchen

so let’s not delay any longer grab your

latte and let’s follow my good friend

Tim Fox as he takes us inside our KCM

Canadian

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office the act of preparing food is more

than just about

sustenance it’s bringing people together

it’s a way of expressing

love the act of service goes beyond the

kitchen it’s about cultivating a spirit

of

generosity putting others before

ourselves for the chef the process of

sharpening a knife is more than just a

routine it’s a moment of quiet

reflection honing their skills and

preparing to serve

others just as a chef’s tools must be

sharpened to Perfection so too must our

hearts and Minds be honed and refined

through the roughness of life it’s

through our experiences and

relationships that we become who we are

meant to be capable of creating

something beautiful and nourishing not

only for the physical body but for the

soul

when we are led by faith to use our

gifts and talents to serve others we

reflect the love and compassion of God

iron sharpening iron this simple tool is

transformed from a scrap of metal to an

instrument of

creativity

passion and

love

[Music]

these hot chocolates from the Victory

Cafe and kitchen talk about this place

and the vision behind it really yeah

well when we uh really took our

bookstore and uh converted it to a cafe

as a social Enterprise and the vision

behind it was to reach our local

community yeah you know for years we’ve

been in this building now almost 20

years and for many many years people

would just drive by thinking we had

nothing to offer we’re in the middle of

a neighborhood there’s a lot of people

live around here aren’t there yeah we

have 10,000 homes within a kilometer of

us and we’re also in a in a business

area so there’s businesses that are

nearby and and people are needing a spot

to go for lunch and uh this is just an

opportunity to reach our local community

we do so much across Canada but we were

realizing we needed to actually reach

our local local neighborhood we’ve also

heard the saying if if you feed the body

and feed the spirit you’re kind of

feeding the whole man is that kind of

what we’re looking at yeah and we’re

truly believing that through a whether

it’s a great cup of coffee or hot

chocolate that we’re having here today

or a great meal people are going to be

able to come and taste and see the

goodness of God you know the ultimate

goal of a place like this Joe is really

an Outreach as you mentioned a moment

ago an Outreach to the community it’s

really to show the love of Jesus and the

hands and feet of Jesus right yes it is

and and furthermore when you when you

add that to our actual um purpose of

what we’re doing with our um prison

ministry full Circle so we’re taking the

men and women coming out of prison and

mentoring them and discipling them

giving them uh job skills and training

it is just wonderful all the way around

well you know brother copen has always

had prisoners on his heart that’s that’s

an Outreach this ministry has done for

years and I think that’s really you’re

kind of continuing that Vision that he

had so many years ago uh and it’s a way

to show them that they have value right

because a lot of people in society once

you’ve been in prison they think you

have no value anymore but that’s not the

truth and that’s what like this is going

to teach them yes we’re going to we’re

going to reestablish their identity in

Christ and they’re going to know when

they leave after 18 months of being with

us they’re going to be built up strong

in faith but also have practical real

life skills um to use in the workforce

yeah now you’ve never run a business

quite like this before have you so uh

what what do you anticipate being some

of the challenges or some of the

victories that you’re going to have at

Victory Cafe and kitchen yeah the the

transformations of people’s lives are

obviously the the the victories that I

know we’re going to see you know um

people uh following the Lord and and and

feeding on the word and and being in a

place like this as an employee and being

mentored and discipled um with the word

I know it’s going to transform and

change your lives and it’s going to

break potentially generational curses

for

[Music]

them

all right so here we are eating this

salad where are we by the way yeah so

we’re in our newest uh Outreach that

we’ve got is Victory coffee and kitchen

oh my goodness so yeah I mean we’re a

cafe but as you can see by the food Tim

um the cafe really doesn’t the name of a

cafe just doesn’t do it justice based on

the the quality of the food that has

been prepared so Robbie brought us this

food he’s the chef he he made all this

talk about the process how you found him

how you got him here yeah he’s um really

believe he was just tailor made for this

position and uh and so uh as we were as

I was saying it I thought it’d be a soup

salad sandwich you know um I could have

could have prepared that kind of food

right and uh was um asked a friend if he

knew of anybody that would uh who’s a

respected Chef I asked him do you know

of anyone he said you know I think I

might um and uh and he he shared with me

um Robbie’s name so I gave gave Robbie a

call and uh he immediately came and sat

down with me and uh and I just I cast

Vision into him as to what we were going

to do um you know this is the space this

is the plan the program The

Internship um reaching our local

community mentoring and and discipling

the the former um inmates and uh and he

just he had said it was everything that

had been on his heart wow and he

actually didn’t didn’t know that he

could use his giftings and talents from

The Culinary World in

Ministry all right so tell me about your

journey how you got to where you are

today um honestly it was just about

really following the obedience like deep

deep in that just I was just a real

passion yeah um it was I didn’t go for

like any formal training or or anything

like that I just I wanted to keep it a

hobby I just wanted to keep cooking

something that I did for fun that I did

for like family and friends and um yeah

I was actually a birthday present I

received from uh my oldest brother uh he

gave me a chef’s coat no way for my

birthday and I don’t know why it just

like it totally caught me off guard and

I got like super emotional and it was

just like this powerful moment where it

almost felt like it was uh it would have

been an act of Disobedience not to

pursue it even though I didn’t uh so was

it an interest you had from a little boy

or I mean something that you kind of

picked up well I was like I was the

youngest of four kids and uh I you know

kind of fended for myself a lot and I

just really I would cook something and

then uh if I had a family member around

I’d cook for them and it just like

that’s really how it slowly started

build yeah just I started figuring out

like I could change how I made that I

could make it better than the last time

I I did it and so that’s that’s really

just how it how it started what about uh

how you came to know the Lord uh when I

was really really young um we church was

our life we were there you know four

four days out of the week uh just always

there and uh that actually ended up

becoming a little bit of a difficult

thing for me just uh my my parents I

think got a little bit burnt out burnt

out there and so um but I always had

this real intimacy with God at a very

very young age and that is what really

protected me and and I just kind of uh

listened to that voice in my life and it

really guided me uh throughout yeah at

what point did you understand that you

could use the talents that God gave you

to serve him and to do do something for

him um it’s really it’s really

interesting I I I think at one point I

didn’t realize that the the voice and

the conversation I was having was with

him yeah I thought it was just with like

an internal dialogue but really

genuinely I just I at one point in my

life uh God just like really really met

me uh at one point in my career and it

was really the big moment of my career

where I decided to uh move away from San

Francisco and come move back here and it

was just I just to me it was a real

powerful moment because I uh

just was getting that affirmation from

God and just recognizing throughout my

whole pass that God was with me

throughout that whole that whole time of

following my passion and all of that it

was a pretty powerful moment for

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me one thing about you that I’ve always

appreciated and you carry this because

of the leadership of this ministry is

the vision uh we see on the sign behind

us we see Kenneth Copa Ministries we see

Victory uh coffee and kitchen we also

see Kenneth copen Bible College which is

brand new but there’s no empty spot

there too talk about the vision of all

the different things that we’re involved

in yeah so uh you know prior to us

starting uh this you know and this this

Vision that came out about two and a

half years ago uh we had just one one

sign it was Kenneth copel Ministries

with a vision of what we could change

our bookstore into being the cafe and

then the expansion of the Bible College

uh we needed to start putting in the

spots on the side and so you see them

and we have one blank spot on the bottom

which is four that Blank Spot on the

bottom is we we are uh believing and

we’re going to be having emic here as

well emic Canada yes and actually this

is anybody that’s been to Eagle Mountain

in Texas knows that yeah there there’s a

mountain but and by standards of

mountains it’s more of a hill right and

right we’re going to put the Mountain in

Eagle Mountain International Church will

you ever cuz there are a lot of

mountains around you know you talk about

all the different things that you’re

doing it it takes room it takes space to

do all that how have you managed to do a

bible college and do the the the cafe at

the same time while you’re running the

ministry by

faith yeah it’s uh it has been um I mean

if I just went back to my my first uh

you know when I first started here you

know I don’t have a Ministry background

I have a construction and a business

background and and a management as an

executive and management and when when I

first started Jessica my wife said to me

what are you going to do on my first day

she said what do you think you’re going

to do today and I said I don’t know but

I said the Lord has gotten me this far

he’s not going to drop me at the door

yeah and that’s truly what what this you

know four and a half years of me being

the director of uh Kenneth Copa

Ministries has been it’s been a faith

walk it’s been a journey but he just

keeps continuing to reveal his plan and

I just have to keep stepping

out

let’s talk about bringing people that

have been incarcerated to work here and

to be a part of what we’re doing here uh

it it’s proven there have been proven

studies that if you don’t give an inmate

that gets out if you don’t give them

purpose or goals or Vision they’re going

to go back in yeah so would it be fair

to say that’s that’s really what this is

all about yeah it is uh the the

recidivism or reincarceration rates are

staggering um they can they can approach

uh high 60 to 70% a percentile where

people get out and they they reoffend

mhm um and often times it’s because they

either go back to their same you know

friends or

influences um that maybe got them there

in the first place and uh and a lot of

times people you know Society is

unwilling to give them a chance they

have a record there’s a stigma behind uh

who who they might be regardless of that

person has truly made a change in their

life or not it’s just it’s a heaviness a

burden that they carry around and so our

goal here is to to break that down build

up their identity of who they are in

Christ and give them a firm foundation

in the in their identity with Christ and

then the skills they need um to to be

Victorious and the Practical tools um um

um physical but also the spiritual tools

the word and just that foundation so

that when the challenges come they know

where to to turn to they’re going to

turn to the word and not to the world

yeah talk about those practical biblical

principles that will really make a

difference in their lives right I mean

talk about what we’re going we’re not

just going to give them food we’re going

to give them spiritual food as well yeah

so we we’re going through um the

ministry has some great resources and

one of the ones that we’re going to be

using are the lifeline kits um so they

they um have great Biblical teaching on

um dealing with stress anxiety

depression um Financial stewardship

relationships how to have healthy

relationships with um with you know

family and friends and um a lifestyle of

prayer um so those are all those things

we’ll be going through those modules um

over the course of their internship W

how long will they be here what’s what’s

the internship program look like yeah

they’ll be here 18 months with us wow

and uh and over the course of that 18

months they’ll they’ll not only get an

um opportunity to work in the kitchen

and and prepping food but also you know

the the um staff of you know cleaning

and maintaining the kitchen the cafe

staff of you know pulling a a good uh

cup of coffee and uh By the time and

even to the point of um you know helping

out in the warehouse with some some

logistical things and and shipping and

receiving um so that maybe even we’re

looking at some groundskeeping so that

by the time they leave with us after 18

months they might have a handful of

things they can put on their resume and

we’ll help them write their resume do

some mock uh job interviews so that when

they go out and sit down for maybe that

first interview of their life much like

the one I had uh where I I didn’t want

to be nervous that they feel confident

and they feel ready for it yeah you

talked about the fact that uh if you

don’t give someone a vision then their

their path to life is is not a good life

not a good path uh what do you foresee

in 18 months now that this place is open

and you have someone come in do you have

a vision for how people are going to

come out of this place and what they’re

going to do when they leave here I I

believe hope will be

restored that they’ll

be they will go on to live a Victorious

life right that when you know when the

world says that they’re they’re not

adequate they’re not good enough their

past is going to follow them that that

will all be removed and that they will

go on to live a Victorious Life and and

I believe we’ll develop leaders I

believe that um men and women coming out

of this internship will go out into the

into into society into the workforce and

they will be known as being some of the

the

strongest um most Dependable hardworking

and honest staff those companies

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have so we’re standing on the property

you talked about that’s right across the

street from the office the office is

right behind us here talk about how this

is this is Vision right here right I

mean this it takes Vision to believe or

something like this yeah um this this

property as I was saying I believe it’s

been set aside and hidden it’s one of

the only vacant Lots in the city that’s

but it’s right across the street and I I

Envision uh multiple buildings that you

know the lot’s about four times the size

of the lot that we’re on across the

street where the ministry is but I I see

us having multiple businesses that can

be out there and and uh social

Enterprises helping change people’s

lives interacting with the community

second floor being classroom and church

Auditorium third and fourth floors being

residences for the Bible school students

and for the men and women going through

the internship program

uh that we’ll be putting together you’ve

been in business so from a practical

standpoint from a natural standpoint

something like this is really not that

possible right I mean it’s not I mean

without faith something like this

wouldn’t be possible but thank God we

have faith right praise God yes when I

first looked at the lot and I and and I

really believe the Lord dropped that

into my heart um that we we could be

here and have this lot in the natural I

looked at the tax assessment of the

property and I and I um had my choking

point where I kind of I saw thought and

I I went oh like that’s and then Faith

rose up and that that’s nothing that’s

nothing for the Lord you know as you see

it’s a busy property um there you know

trucks and trailers uh they’re using it

just as a as a yard for for that so it’s

it’s very useful for them but I I do

believe that there will be a time um

that I’ll have an opportunity to sit

down with the owner and just explain to

him that uh the the Lord has need of

this yeah what what uh the plans and

purposes could be for this l

yeah you’re a man of vision what does it

mean to be a man or a person of

vision oh

boy I I guess how I I don’t know if this

is the right definition or not

but I guess in my my own life how I look

at it is um looking to you know what

what do I believe the Lord has in in

store for me and to be to be able to

trust that he he will fulfill it he

wants me to step into it um you know

can’t see maybe you can’t see the the

end from the beginning and it takes

Faith you know I when I first had this

thought I couldn’t have pictured it this

I actually thought this was going to be

a a soup and salad place I thought we’d

have a little pantry you know we’d serve

serve just a couple you know appetizers

little things like that um um but the

Lord I re as we continued to step just

we had the vision of we’re going to have

the space but didn’t know what it was

going to look like necessarily the Lord

just continued to reveal and lined up

people in along the pathway like Chef

Robbie who came in and re quickly

realized that no it needs to be so much

more the the Lord wants it done with

Excellence to the highest level yeah and

so I think vision is just um

it’s truly I’d say believing God um and

believing him for his best so the

followup to that would be if someone is

watching this and they’ve got a vision

but they’re not seeing really any fruit

there what would your advice be to

someone that has Vision not to give up

on that Vision take a step and be and

just step with what you can step at that

point um you know brother brother

copelan um or brother sevel all you know

they you know maybe rented a hanger

before they had a plane but the lord

gave them the vision that they were

going to have this plane to minister um

or when the when the land you know what

does the ministry need 1500 acres

for there’s a there’s today we see it

Victory Studios coming on all of you

know the church all these other kcbc but

just take that step the Lord will

continue um I think often times he um

there’s two reasons I don’t think he

reveals the whole plan um to us at that

time I think first one is for our own

good because I think we would often

times say no no no not me I’m not ready

that’s too big but that’s when you know

it’s God right because it should be to

it should be bigger than what we can do

it does it wouldn’t take Faith it would

take Faith if it

right in the last four months that has

come alive to me is the word of God I’ve

always you know I’ve learned from the

father we always say you know see the

word take the word as it is but kcbc

does something for you I’ve learned to

pause that I think that’s my biggest

thing now un likee before when you would

just open up the word your medita on but

now you read the verse of scripture and

you pause and begin to

picture I think for me that is the

biggest part that I will take away

you’re beginning to see you you almost

see yourself walking in the light of the

scripture so you sit there and you’re

reading that verse almost like example

is the woman with the issue of brother

and remember we in class one they were

talking about it and it just came alive

and you know

as Pastor went about how the woman must

have Jesus must have come down to her

level and he just began to come alive

and I I said to him after that day this

is the reason I almost say this is the

reason why I’m here because I’m not just

reading the Bible now I’m not just

meditating upon it but I’m actually

seeing it com to life so when it it

comes to my life situations I can look

in the word see what he says but but

begin to see myself in the

word

in the 15th century Leonardo da Vinci

wrote this once you have tested flight

you’ll walk the earth with your eyes

turned Skyward for there you have been

and there you long to return 500 years

later President John F Kennedy said I

believe that this nation should commit

itself to achieving the goal before this

decade is out of Landing a man on the

moon and returning him safely to the

Earth the concept of flying began with a

vision and that Vision resulted in a man

landing on the moon July the 16th

1969 at 4:17 p.m. eastern Daylight Time

Neil Armstrong

radioed uh Tranquility base here the

eagle has landed Mission Control erupted

in

celebration and at 10:56 p.m. eastern

Daylight Time Armstrong was ready to

plant the first human foot on the moon

more than a half a billion people

watched on television that night

including a 15-year-old Pastor George

Armstrong climbed down the ladder and he

proclaimed that’s one small step for man

one man they left behind an American

flag a patch honoring the Apollo 1 Crew

and a plaque that read here men from the

planet Earth Earth First set foot upon

the moon July 1969 ad we came in peace

For All

Mankind mission accomplished Vision

accomplished what began as a dream

hundreds of years before became a

reality don’t give up on your

mission don’t give up on your god-given

vision Galatians 6:9 in the Amplified

classic tells us to not lose heart and

grow weary and faint in acting nobly and

doing right for in due time and at the

appointed season we shall reap if we do

not loosen and relax our courage in

faint Hebrews 10:23 says let us hold

fast to the profession of our faith

without wavering for he is faithful that

promised let me pray over your vision

your mission right now father in the

name of Jesus I pray over those who are

watching and I thank you that you’ve

given each one of us a mission to

accomplish a vision to fulfill and that

Lord with your help in your direction

and by faith we will complete that

mission and thank you Lord for giving us

your peace your love and your future in

Jesus name amen 2024 will be a year of

more and more and more and more more

finances more healings more Miracles

more outpourings more people coming to

Jesus so rejoice and be glad for I have

things well under

control I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing all

that our Canadian office is doing for

the kingdom and of course I trust it

inspires your own Vision as you heard

accomplishing vision is being led by the

spirit of God and taking one step at a

time

that’s all any of us can do just take a

step perhaps this episode inspired

something else in you and that is to

become a partner with Kenneth Copa

Ministries but no matter which state or

country you’re watching from your

financial seat is making an impact

through this ministry it’s easy to begin

your partnership Journey simply head

over to insidethe vision.org and select

partner now and of course as you’re

there you can also become a KCM Vision

Insider when you sign up we’ll send you

a personal Vision journal and a book by

Kenneth copen about the power of

partnership plus you’ll have access to

some exclusive content and you don’t

want to miss that visit insidethe

vision.org and stay connected again

thank you for joining us on inside the

vision and remember this God loves you

we love you and Jesus is

[Music]

Lord