{"id":305907,"date":"2020-04-07T07:00:04","date_gmt":"2020-04-07T11:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/%series%\/from-pig-feed-to-kingdom-work\/"},"modified":"2020-04-07T07:00:04","modified_gmt":"2020-04-07T11:00:04","slug":"from-pig-feed-to-kingdom-work","status":"publish","type":"podcast","link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/from-pig-feed-to-kingdom-work\/","title":{"rendered":"From Pig Feed to Kingdom Work"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Entrepreneur Gary Ringger and his wife, Marla, talk about the thriving food business they built with God&#8217;s direction and grace. Hear about how Gary and Marla have invested in hundreds of families by helping them adopt children.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":294104,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"https:\/\/mp3.familylife.com\/fl2020-04-07.mp3","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"00:28:06","filesize":"25.73M","filesize_raw":"26984436","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":""},"categories":[2822,2821],"tags":[2712],"podcast_series":[8349],"cwp_profile":[9610],"series":[2101],"class_list":["post-305907","podcast","type-podcast","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-growing-in-your-faith","category-reaching-out","tag-adoption","podcast_series-radical-business","cwp_profile-gary-and-marla-ringger","series-familylife-today"],"acf":[],"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg?w=508","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2023\/02\/image-scaled.jpg","download_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-download\/305907\/from-pig-feed-to-kingdom-work","player_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-player\/305907\/from-pig-feed-to-kingdom-work","audio_player":null,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"light","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/familylife-today\/id212174303?mt=2&app=podcast","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0j5UaKdQOHQCuo1bt0ebEm","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"},"youtube":{"key":"youtube","url":"","label":"YouTube","class":"youtube","icon":"youtube.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/feed\/podcast\/familylife-today","embedCode":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"w4hzZW8hZZ\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/from-pig-feed-to-kingdom-work\/\">From Pig Feed to Kingdom Work<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/from-pig-feed-to-kingdom-work\/embed\/#?secret=w4hzZW8hZZ\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\" title=\"&#8220;From Pig Feed to Kingdom Work&#8221; &#8212; FamilyLife\u00ae - A Cru Ministry\" data-secret=\"w4hzZW8hZZ\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script>\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/\/# sourceURL=https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-includes\/js\/wp-embed.min.js\n<\/script>\n"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg",508,508,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"kfairris@familylife.com","author_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/author\/kfairrisfamilylife-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Entrepreneur Gary Ringger and his wife, Marla, talk about the thriving food business they built with God's direction and grace. Hear about how Gary and Marla have invested in hundreds of families by helping them adopt children.","meta_box":{"show_notes":"","transcript_url":"https:\/\/transcript.familylife.com\/fl2020-04-07.pdf","transcript_content":"<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Gary and Marla Ringger were successful business people who wanted their lives to count for more. That\u2019s when God put a burden on Marla\u2019s heart.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Marla: <\/strong>I remember talking to a young lady in church who\u2014she and her husband were adopting a little boy from Korea. She had had cancer before they were married and wasn\u2019t able to have children biologically. She was just telling me about it; we were just chatting. She told me they are going to have to take out a loan to bring this little boy home.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI just went home that day and I told Gary, \u201cNo young couple should have to go into debt to have a child.\u201d We committed to helping them bring that little boy home. It was a seed planted, I believe by God, because we had no idea that we would be involved in orphan ministry.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>This is <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> for Tuesday, April 7<sup>th<\/sup>. Our hosts are Dave and Ann Wilson; I'm Bob Lepine. You\u2019ll find us online at FamilyLifeToday.com. Have you ever asked God to put a kingdom burden on your heart?\u2014how He might want to use you to advance the work of His kingdom? We\u2019ll hear today how He did that with Gary and Marla Ringger. Stay with us.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd welcome to <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>. Thanks for joining us. I\u2019m sitting here, trying to come up with something\u2014from pig feed to kingdom\u2014and I can\u2019t\u2014[Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann: <\/strong>\u2014contrast.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>\u2014I\u2019m close; it\u2019s not there. Our listeners are going, \u201cWhat are you talking about and what\u2019s all this on <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>?\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>From pig smells [Laughter] to kingdom swells. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Let\u2019s see if we can explain all of this! \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tGary and Marla Ringger are joining us this week on <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>. Guys, welcome back.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Thank you.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Gary and Marla are from central Illinois. Pig feed is a part of Ringger Feeds, which is a company that your dad founded, that you got involved with after you got out of college.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tRingger Feed then gave way to Ringger Foods, where you were starting to make food for human consumption, not just for pigs. That business kind of had some ebbs and flows. We\u2019ve already talked this week about the fact that it was stressful for you, and you came to a point where you weren\u2019t sure what to do. You ultimately wrote out a contract, where you turned the business over to God and said, \u201cIf we ever get this thing turned back around\u2014Ringger Foods\u2014we\u2019re going to sell it, and we\u2019ll fund God\u2019s work after we\u2019ve paid back our debts on this.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThat was a turning point. Ringger Foods\u2014at that point, you were making donut sugar; is that what I remember?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Well, that\u2019s what we were making at the beginning, but donut sugar did not make it.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Okay, when donut sugar didn\u2019t make it, what was next for Ringger Foods?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Because we were doing so poorly at donut sugar\u2014I\u2019m jesting here\u2014when a gentleman came to us and asked us to buy his extruder, I thought, \u201cWell, sure, we\u2019re not making it in donut sugar; so we can make it with this extruder.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>What\u2019s an extruder?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann: <\/strong>Yes, that\u2019s\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Yes, an extruder is a cooker.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>You don\u2019t have one of those, Bob? [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Yes; anybody that knows anything knows that\u2014[Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Okay. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>\u2014just kidding. The extruder is the way you can do a lot of the cooking, and it just happens that you could cook and make rice crisp. We would take rice flour\u2014and it would come out the end\u2014and we would make it into shapes like Rice Krispies<sup>\u00ae<\/sup>. Where rice crisp goes, it\u2019s a little cheaper to make than Rice Krispies. What you can do is go into granola bars and things like that\u2014and cereals.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Okay, so you buy an extruder; and you\u2019re making rice crisps and selling them where?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>We\u2019re selling them to Quaker<sup>\u00ae<\/sup>, to M&amp;M Mars<sup>\u00ae<\/sup>, and to\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>Ooh, right now, you just interested; didn\u2019t you, Bob? [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann: <\/strong>I did. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>If it\u2019s in candy, I\u2019m in. Yes; alright.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>What we first did\u2014when I\u2019m thinking, for sure, we can\u2019t miss\u2014so we\u2019re trying to figure out a way to use this.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Yes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>About that time, the oat bran craze\u2014I call\u2014hit.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Yes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>Yes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Do you remember when oat bran\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>\u2014was everything.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>\u2014yes, heals everything. I thought, \u201cWe have to get into making that.\u201d I started getting equipment to take oats and get them into what\u2019s called oat groats so people could make oat bran from it. I found a broker that sold a semi-load of oat groats that we made to the east coast. Then I get the call, \u201cI\u2019m sorry, Gary, our customer rejected your load.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>All of this was happening after you had taken the business and said, \u201cThis belongs to the Lord.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>That\u2019s right; that\u2019s right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>So you\u2019re operating this entrepreneurially, but with the idea that this is God\u2019s business.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>That\u2019s right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>So, when you got a call that a load of God\u2019s oat groats has been rejected, what did you do with that news?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>We went on a vacation that was planned. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Marla: <\/strong>Why not?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>I bet that was fun!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>We walked the beaches and wondered, \u201cWhat is going to happen?\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBasically, about that time, Dad and Steve Baner, our CFO, and I got together then shortly after I got back. We said, \u201cOkay, Ringger Feeds is doing good, but we\u2019re starting to lose enough in Ringger Foods that we can\u2019t do this.\u201d We prayerfully said, \u201cHow long are we going to keep this going?\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI believe that the contract\u2014when you make a commitment to God, you still have to do right things in business\u2014but I think He provides extra mercy. What happened, during that time, one of the guys I worked with, Greg Umland, had put a little ad at the back of a food magazine that said who we were and that we had an extruder\u2014a Wenger extruder. Quaker called us, saying they have a plant in Danville, Illinois, which is just an hour-and-a-half\/two hours from us\u2014not very far; we are in the perfect position\u2014and they are needing somebody to produce rice crisp. That was, probably, maybe three to four months before we were going to shut it down\u2014that was in that period of time\u2014it was God\u2019s grace.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>So the call comes through, and the extruder is a wise decision now; right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>It was, by the grace of God\/by His mercy.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>That ends up being a profitable business for you?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>That ends up being a profitable business and, really, a blessing that we knew where it came from.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann: <\/strong>It\u2019s remarkable that they called you.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Yes, I know!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann: <\/strong>You had an ad; but still, it was almost like God brought it to you.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>At one point, my son-in-law, who worked with me\u2014we had built a new plant, and we were standing outside it\u2014and he said, \u201cDoes this ever make you proud?\u201d I said [Emotion in voice], \u201cNo,\u201d because it was so obvious.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Just telling that story gets you emotional; doesn\u2019t it?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>[Emotion in voice] Yes, it was just the grace of God.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>At what point does God start to birth in you a concern for or an interest in the needs of orphans around the world?\u2014Marla?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Marla: <\/strong>Well, we didn\u2019t know it at the time, that this would be something that we would be doing; but I remember talking to a young lady in church who\u2014she and her husband were adopting a little boy from Korea\u2014she had had cancer before they were married and wasn\u2019t able to have children biologically. She was just telling me about it; we were just chatting, and she told me they were going to have to take out a loan to bring this little boy home.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI just went home that day and I told Gary, \u201cNo young couple should have to go into debt to have a child or adopt a child.\u201d We committed to helping them bring that little boy home. The neat thing about it is that we had a vested interest in that child.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Sure.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Marla: <\/strong>So we see him in church, and it was a little bit of a special connection. It was just a seed planted, I believe by God, because we had no idea that we would be involved in orphan ministry.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>That seed that got planted just stayed in the ground, really, until the point that you, Gary, said, \u201cIt\u2019s time to sell the business.\u201d How did you know it was time to sell the business?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>There are kind of two stories on that, if I can. The first story was I didn\u2019t know what we wanted to get into in ministry, but I was feeling the tug to get out of business and into ministry. At one point, a company came to us and made an offer for our company. I was getting kind of excited about it and wanting to move, but Marla was\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>I see a tendency there, Gary. [Laughter] Getting excited and wanting to move; okay!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>\u2014and for some reason, Marla wasn\u2019t catching the vision. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>I see something there, too! [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>We were on the way to church one night, and we drove by Ringger Foods. I turned to Marla and I said, \u201cI\u2019m mad at you.\u201d She said: \u201cWhat? Why are you mad at me?\u201d I said, \u201cBecause I want to sell the business, but you\u2019re not giving me that freedom,\u201d\u2014not that she was saying, \u201cNo,\u201d \u2014but she just didn\u2019t feel right about it.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann: <\/strong>What were you feeling, Marla?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Marla: <\/strong>I don\u2019t know. It wasn\u2019t something I had prayed about; I just knew in my heart this just didn\u2019t feel right, so I believe that was from God.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann: <\/strong>It just wasn\u2019t time to sell yet.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Marla: <\/strong>It just wasn\u2019t time, right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Yes, so\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>Wait, wait! Go back to that, \u201cI\u2019m mad at you!\u201d How did that go?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>I said: \u201cYou don\u2019t get it, Marla; because we have three great customers, but if we lose <em>one<\/em> of them, we\u2019re in trouble,\u201d and \u201cWe have borrowed money.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tShe said, \u201cWell, you\u2019ll figure it out, Gary.\u201d I said: \u201cYes, that\u2019s easy for you to say. [Laughter] You\u2019re not the one up in the middle of the night.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>I have to stop you, because I would confess to you a tendency that\u2014if my wife said, \u201cI just don\u2019t know, but I don\u2019t feel comfortable with this,\u201d\u2014there would be this tape in the back of my head that would be like: \u201cI understand the business. I know what\u2019s going on. So you have some queasy feeling in your stomach\u2026\u201d I would have a tendency to tune that out and go, \u201cI know better than you do.\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWas there any part of you, going: \u201cWhy am I even listening to her? She doesn\u2019t know the business; she\u2019s taking care of the kids at home\u201d?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>I probably would have, maybe, moved on to act on that; but God was, again, very merciful to us; because literally within a week\u2014I would say I don\u2019t know the exact time\u2014I was on a plane to go to visit one of the customers\/one of their plants down in Texas. I was still considering it; I hadn\u2019t totally said, \u201cOkay, Marla; we\u2019re done.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI was reading a book by Chuck Swindoll, and it was called <em>The Mystery of God\u2019s Will<\/em>. I was reading that because I\u2019m trying to search it out. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>Yes, right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>I read this one part, and he\u2019s talking about fear. The Scripture came to my mind of Timothy, where he said God is not the spirit of fear, but He\u2019s of power and of love and of a sound mind. I <em>knew<\/em> that I was\u2014I mean, the Spirit just spoke to me clearly that that\u2019s what I was doing\u2014I was just at peace [Emotion in voice]: \u201cMarla\u2019s right.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Wow; so you were feeling fearful; you recognized it at that point and you said, \u201cI can release this.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThen it turned out\u2014you had a conversation with Marla; and God had been confirming that same thing with you, Marla?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Marla: <\/strong>Yes, he called me that night from the hotel. As soon as he said, \u201cHello,\u201d he said, \u201cI have something to tell you.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI said, \u201cWait, dear, I have something to tell you\u201d; because we had just had that conversation this past week. I said, \u201cI was listening to <em>Focus on the Family<\/em><sup>\u00ae<\/sup> this morning, and he was interviewing Chuck Swindoll. Chuck Swindoll was talking about this book, and he was talking about knowing God\u2019s will. He even mentioned about not doing things out of fear, and not letting fear decide what you do.\u201d I said, \u201cSo Gary, I don\u2019t want you to be mad at me;\u2014[Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>\u2014kind of real cute like.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Marla: <\/strong>\u2014\u201cbut if you really believe we\u2019re supposed to sell the business, that\u2019s one thing; but I don\u2019t want you to do it out of fear.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>That was just a wonderful confirmation, and I\u2019ve never looked back. And there\u2019s a \u201crest of the story.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>The rest of the story is?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>That company that made that offer to us gave a relatively small amount of money, and then I was stay-on; and after a period of time, I would get a payout. It was a five-year payout; and within a couple years, they went broke. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWithin two to three years after that was when God just opened the doors, and this other company came. We wouldn\u2019t be sitting here, because I don\u2019t think Lifesong would have ever happened; the dollars wouldn\u2019t have been significant enough.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>You sold two to three years later for\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>I sold it two to three years later for roughly six or seven times more than what we would have gotten at that point.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>You talked about Lifesong. That was what really came out of\u2014once the business was sold, you\u2019d had a nudge that maybe you should be doing something in ministry. You didn\u2019t know what that meant.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>That\u2019s right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>How did you figure out what was next?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Well, I have had some great mentors in life. One was a gentleman by the name of Clayt Irmiger [spelling uncertain]. I said to Clayt\u2014who had been part of my journey when I was struggling before, and I would go to him\u2014I said, \u201cClayt, what do we do with this money?\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHe said two things\u2014he said: \u201cBe focused and involved; and whatever you do, don\u2019t just write checks\u2014number one.\u201d \u201cNumber two, dream big; and then if it happens bigger, you\u2019ll know it was God and not you.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tSo Marla and I\u2014just the prayer life became this daily question, \u201cWhat do You want us to focus on?\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Marla, how did the answer on that come to you guys?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Marla: <\/strong>Well, we kind of thought back to that adoption story, how we helped that little child come home from Korea. We decided to help fund adoptions for adoptive families. I remember talking with another friend of ours, who was starting an orphan ministry also; and adoption just seemed to be the right direction at that time.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>You didn\u2019t have any background or experience in starting a non-profit or starting an orphan ministry. Where do you go with a dream like that?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>That\u2019s not going to stop Gary! [Laughter] I just know he\u2019s going\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann: <\/strong>That\u2019s not going to stop God in Gary\u2019s life and Marla\u2019s.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>Yes, there you go.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Where do you find the extractor for that?\u2014is what I\u2019m wondering. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>He\u2019s going to figure it out; so yes, how did you figure it out?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>One thing that\u2014I think this was before this\u2014but through the journey and searching out God\u2019s will, there was a book by Blackaby. You may remember <em>Experiencing God<\/em>.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>Sure.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>The key thing I took from that was: \u201cIf you want to experience God, don\u2019t try to recreate the wheel. See where God is moving, and join the movement.\u201d We had the history of us helping Darren and Marie, so that was a part; talking to the friend that she mentioned; and just the Word\u2014we could just see this was God\u2019s way, so we started on that path. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe really didn\u2019t know what we were doing, but I had had a relationship with National Christian Foundation. They were really helpful in kind of guiding me.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>You found out about the Christian Alliance for Orphans\u2014which FamilyLife<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> was part of helping give birth to\u2014and wound up coming to some of those events. Was this at the very beginning of your involvement with Lifesong?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>That was at the very beginning, and that was even <em>before<\/em> Lifesong; that was when it was a family foundation. The original vision: that we would have a family foundation. We took part of the money and put it into our family foundation. We put part of the money\u2014because I am the business guy\u2014into a new business that was to feed the foundation. That was our original vision.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThat led, in time\u2014based on the work we were doing with that to\u2014a lady asked us to take over another ministry, which led then to Lifesong.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Tell our listeners what Lifesong is.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Marla: <\/strong>It\u2019s a lot of things right now, but it started out helping people to adopt by supplying matching grants and interest-free loans. People would apply; and I got the privilege, actually, of reading many of these stories of adoptive families, who were needing funding to help bring their children home; so that\u2019s how it started.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe eventually got involved with an orphanage in Ukraine and, then, a school in Zambia. I mean, I feel like we never really went searching for new places to get involved; and I feel like God just brought them to us one way or the other.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>This lady asked us to take over this ministry. At that point, we knew it was bigger than us; it was this Ukraine ministry. Frankly, I\u2019m a business guy; I know, if we do this, we\u2019re going to have to ask for money.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Yes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>I\u2019m really struggling with that. I tell people: \u201cI\u2019m many times broken, but twice significantly broken. The first time was the failing business; the second time was when we were supposed to take over this Ukraine ministry, and I didn\u2019t want to do it.\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI remember specifically coming to work one day and struggling with that, and Rich Mullins\u2014remember Rich?\u2014was singing, \u201cHold me, Jesus, I\u2019m shaking like a leaf.\u201d I was feeling like I was shaking like a leaf; and I was feeling like I was in repentance, and that God was saying: \u201cYou have pride in your little family foundation. This is not about your family, this is about My family; and you need to let go and give it to Me.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Today, if listeners want to find out more about Lifesong, and about what you\u2019re doing, we have a link on our website at FamilyLifeToday.com where they can go and learn about this. Are you still providing matching funds?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<em>\u00a0<\/em>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Marla: <\/strong>Yes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>If folks are saying, \u201cThis is something we are interested in finding out more about,\u201d they can go to FamilyLifeToday.com and click the link for Lifesong and find out how\u2014see if they qualify; and what they would need to do to get the no-interest loans or to get the matching-gift money.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tYou guys look back on all of this and go, \u201cThis is a long way from making pig food\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>That\u2019s right!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>\u2014\u201cto where you are today\u201d; but what a journey God\u2019s had for you!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Yes, it\u2019s been great. I tell people: \u201cIt\u2019s so much more than the American dream.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann: <\/strong>That\u2019s what I was going to ask, Gary. Here you wanted to be a millionaire by the time you were 40 so you could retire. God took you on a little different path. Would you consider yourself a millionaire, in many respects, in terms of what God\u2019s done in your heart?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Yes, it\u2019s been <em>so much more<\/em>. I mean, I would have been bored, I think. First, when I was starting, I was burned out on business, frankly; but now at 65\u2014and what I see\u2014we\u2019re involved in 13 countries with schools, and we have kids coming out. We have a four-part pledge for these kids; we call it \u201cOrphan care and adoption.\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tSo adoption\u2014if you have Christian families, these four things happen naturally\u2014but in an orphan care situation, our pledge that we work towards is: one, that we take care of their physical needs; two, that we give them an education; three, we disciple them in Christ; and the fourth pledge is that we care for them just like our own kids as they age out and help them land well.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIn Zambia, as an example, we have 30 kids a year coming out; and within a few years, 80 kids a year coming out each year into a 70 percent unemployed country: \u201cHow do we do that?\u201d Now, I\u2019m getting more involved with the Lifesong network: \u201cHow do we create businesses that can help those kids become leaders?\u201d I\u2019m loving business for what it can do but in a way that is strictly for God and the kids.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>I don\u2019t know where I\u2019ve heard this quote\u2014Bob, you may know\u2014but: \u201cWhen God blesses you, He rarely has you in mind.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Yes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>You ever heard that quote? It\u2019s almost like\u2014the blessings of God; and so often, we think it\u2019s for <em>us<\/em>; and then, when we step back and get His perspective, it\u2019s like, \u201cMaybe He wants to use that blessing <em>through<\/em> us.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI sit here\u2014and both Ann and I experience this\u2014we are the missionaries that other people have donated to our ministry. FamilyLife is a donor-supported ministry; so there are tens of thousands of people, even listening right now, that give.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI don\u2019t know if you, on that side, ever know what it feels like to be on this side; because you are the ones who made a contract with God, and God blesses, and you just obey and you give. We\u2019re the ones\u2014I can remember lying in bed at night, as a young dad, thinking: \u201cHow am I going to make the mortgage payment? The donations aren\u2019t coming in,\u201d and God shows up through people, like you, who are obedient to God. We get to experience the blessing of God on this side.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI just want to say, \u201cThank you.\u201d And to the thousands that donate to FamilyLife: \u201cThank you. I don\u2019t know if you\u2019ll ever understand\u2014because you\u2019ve been on the side, where God blessed you\u2014we\u2019re on the side, where we have to sort of ask\u2014and sometimes, feel embarrassed to have to ask\u2014but you know, we\u2019re doing what God wants us to do as well. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tGod has blessed you, and then you use that blessing. The adventure of eternal impact that you\u2019re a part of\u2014thank you!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Thank you for saying that. We, from this end\u2014yes, we had our family foundation; but we had this little dream, and we wanted our kids involved. Once we opened it up to Lifesong, then we started experiencing what you were experiencing\u2014people giving to Lifesong. We feel the responsibility of that, but it\u2019s just opened our eyes to how big the church is; and it\u2019s been a great journey.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>I have to wonder how many people are listening today, and God\u2019s tapping them on the shoulder, and saying: \u201cYou need to write a contract. You need to start thinking differently about your business, about your family, about what you\u2019re doing.\u201d Maybe you need to get a copy of Gary\u2019s book and read through it\/pray through it together. Get a hot tub, and\u2014[Laughter]\u2014because that\u2019s key to your prayer life!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>It is! It is!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>I just have to believe that\u2014because I know how this works. I\u2019ll run into listeners all the time; and they\u2019ll say: \u201cThat program, where you had that guy on, talking about that contract he wrote, God used that in my life and our business. Our family is different as a result.\u201d So thanks for being here and sharing your story. Thanks for writing the book.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Marla: <\/strong>You\u2019re welcome.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Gary: <\/strong>Yes, thank you.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Nice to have you guys here.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe book we\u2019re talking about is Gary Ringger\u2019s book, <em>Radical Business: From Ownership to Stewardship<\/em>. You can order it from us, online, at FamilyLifeToday.com; or call 1-800-FL-TODAY to get a copy. Again, the title of the book: <em>Radical Business: From Ownership to Stewardship<\/em>. Order the book from us, online, at FamilyLifeToday.com; or call to order: 1-800-358-6329\u2014that\u2019s 1-800-\u201cF\u201d as in family, \u201cL\u201d as in life, and then the word, \u201cTODAY.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tFor most of us this week, our focus is on the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ as we prepare for our celebration of the resurrection this week. Here, at FamilyLife, that\u2019s our focus 365 days a year. Our mission to effectively develop godly marriages and families is anchored in the truth of the gospel. That\u2019s how marriages and families are transformed\u2014by believing the gospel.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe want to thank those of you who share this passion\/this vision, who want to see marriages and families realigned and strengthened. You make all of this possible when you support the ministry of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> with your donations. We\u2019re grateful that you help us reach more people, more often, with biblical blueprints for building a stronger marriage.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIf you are a regular listener to <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>, and you\u2019ve never donated, join us today. Be a part of what God is doing through this ministry. Help us provide practical biblical help and hope for marriages and families all around the world. You can donate easily online at FamilyLifeToday.com, or call to donate: 1-800-358-6329\u2014that\u2019s 1-800-\u201cF\u201d as in family, \u201cL\u201d as in life, and then the word, \u201cTODAY.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tNow, tomorrow, we want to talk about the early church: about marriages and families in the early church and how those first Christians changed the world. Jerry Sittser\u2019s going to join us for that discussion. I hope you can be here with us as well.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI want to thank our engineer today, Keith Lynch, along with our entire broadcast production team. On behalf of our hosts, Dave and Ann Wilson, I\u2019m Bob Lepine. We will see you back next time for another edition of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> is a production of FamilyLife of Little Rock, Arkansas; a Cru<sup>\u00ae <\/sup>Ministry. Help for today. Hope for tomorrow.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe are so happy to provide these transcripts to you. However, there is a cost to produce them for our website. If you\u2019ve benefited from the broadcast transcripts, would you consider <a href=\"http:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/donate\">donating today<\/a> to help defray the costs?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tCopyright <sup>\u00a9<\/sup> 2020 FamilyLife. All rights reserved.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"http:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/\">www.FamilyLife.com<\/a>\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t1\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>","theme_header_position":"","post_header_is_sticky":"","is_header_overlay":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast\/305907","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/podcast"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/91"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=305907"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/294104"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=305907"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=305907"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=305907"},{"taxonomy":"podcast_series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast_series?post=305907"},{"taxonomy":"cwp_profile","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cwp_profile?post=305907"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=305907"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}