Dr. Robert Wallace: The Night an Intervention at Age 13 Saved a Life and Sparked a Divine Calling

Hi I'm Anger. This mission starts right in our home. So for my wife and three sons, thank you for standing with us. As we continue the mission of the 12 million convosations believers' podcasts, we invite you to help us share more stories of faith, hope and transformation. Your donation helps us produce new episodes, reach more listeners, and continue meaningful conversation to Jesus believers around the world. Every donation helps. Hit the donate button at 12manconvos.com. That's 1-2-MIN-convos.com. God chose us to have a conversation with us, His creation. Our prayer is that this listening space brings growth and transforms your life forever. Praise God for you Dr. Wallace, it's a great pleasure to connect with you. We're part of the world are you into it. So right now I'm in Maryland. We just got back from Panama. We're heading to New England and then California. Wow, that's East, West, no East, North, West. So what's responsible for you traveling as much as you are? So we spent a lot of time in Latin America and Panama because we love the area, love the country. We have five kids and 12 grandchildren who are spread out all over the place. So we're going to California to visit our newest granddaughter in California and that would make 12 grandchildren. Wow, well we do love the number 12 here. Yes, we did. Yes, we did. He made amazing. Did you ever envision that this is what life would be like today? Well, it depends on what phase of my life we're talking about, right? Because when I grew up in projects in South Baltimore, you know, because of the environment and because of the experiences, I had a very narrow view as to what I could be and what I could do. But as I was as God gave me life and I continued to grow and to learn, then I began my scope began to expand and to the kinds of things that I've done and I'm doing now. And so yes, as I had come to know God and come to know Christ and I my vision of for myself and of myself has expanded. So yes, it's been, it depends on what part of my life you asked me where I addressed that question. How did you meet Jesus? So in an indirect way, you know, you know how some people say they saw a light on it, you know, they, you know, were, no, that's not how it happened to me. When I was a young man, I was raised in the projects of South Baltimore, really tough neighborhood and we lived a tough life and did things that I look back on that I'm not very proud of. But during that period as a young teenager, I got into a point where I began to see how we were living and what we were doing from a spiritual standpoint. And when I looked at it that way, I said, this is not how we're meant to live, right? I mean, we were getting drunk, we were fighting, we were, you know, being disrespectful, we were, you know, all the things that, that, that, that are ungodly kinds of behavior. And it wasn't until I was about 1314 and we had an incident where my guys, because I ran with some pretty tough guys in Baltimore. But they were about to do something that I looked at and I said, we can't do this. I can't do this. And so I intervened in this situation. The young man's life was, I believe, saved. And he was able to get home safely, but little bruise, but get home safely. And it was at that moment that I looked at my, my homeboys, I looked at myself and I said, God does not mean for us to live like this. This got to be a better way. So I went home that night and I knocked on Mama, Mama Daddy's bedroom door. And I said to Mama, Mama, next morning, next Sunday, tomorrow morning, which was going to be Sunday, when you go to church, wait me up. I'm going with you. Now, I didn't understand. I didn't, you know, I wasn't reading the Bible. I wasn't, you know, I just knew there had to be something better than what we, how we were living had to be a better way than the way that we were moving. And I thought that Mama's, Mama, Mama was the spiritual leader in the family. Daddy believed, but Mama was the leader. I believe that what she had and what I observed in her was a better path than what I was on. Okay. As a, as a thug. I can't put any, any plane in there, right? Yeah. So that was, that was how I met. I began to meet Craig. And I didn't know him that right away took some time, took some time, brother, because I was still hanging on my boys, but I was, but I had pivoted. I had like, okay, it's a better way. Let me learn more about this way and sort of the rest of my life became about learning more about that way. And then of course, God put people in my life to give me guidance, each, each strategic node of my life. And I think that made a difference. Is it challenging having that initial building block of your foundation being that individual who has to take what he desires or take what he wants for very good reasons here for, and for every other reason that we can talk about. But is it challenging in the, as you're going through navigating the business world or even just education, let's start with education here. Sure. And fighting with the mindset of, I can't just take this, this is required. And I'm pointing to my brain while I'm speaking here, this is the thing that's required. And the spiritual aspect of me, yeah, without answering the question that I think it is there, it was challenging for you. Well, it's always challenging. And it always has been, and it always will be, right? Because there's this continual battle between the spirit and the flesh, right? My flesh wants to be in charge. My flesh wants to be dominant. My flesh wants to dominate. My flesh wants, you know, selfish and self-centered, which is contrary to the spirit of Christ. And so this, this friction always exists. And we'll always exist. I mean, I'm seven years though. I turn 70 this year, right? Wow, let me put this in here though. Wow, you look great for 70. Do you have the thing on zoom on that's doing like, like fixing you with air? God been good, man. If there's tension, you know, it's so whatever I'm doing, whether it's business, whether it's education. I mean, I went to University of Pennsylvania undergrad study engineering. I went to Dartmouth College to study my masters in business. I've lectured at all kinds of universities over the world. God's been good to me, but there's always this tension between the spirit and the flesh. And I will submit to you that that tension will always exist. Now, as I come to know Christ better on a daily basis on my daily walk, okay? What tends to dominate between the two spirit and flesh, it's the one that you focus on the most. So as I have learned to focus on the spirit, focus on Christ more than that force and over time begins to dominate over the flesh, but make no mistake about it. The flesh is always there. The flesh is a daily battle. And you have to go to God every morning and say, Lord, help me fight this battle, help me to overcome this flesh. So I don't kid myself about that. Especially as you can become more visible, sir, as you come with visible, as God bless you with more resources and wealth and things like that. Then Satan gets real busy. Then he gets, oh, yeah, let me see if I can get him from this way or this angle or that angle. So you got to get even closer to Christ as you ascend the ladder of society. Well, you talk about the educational aspect. Take me to the person responsible for allowing you to have as many children and grandchildren as you did have. Yeah. Absolutely. Tell me about your wife. Yeah, my lovely wife. My wife is an angel. She is also, we're both engineers. She's biomedical engineering. I was mechanical. We actually met at college. We met freshman year college. And I would like to tell you that it was love at first sight. It was love at first sight for me, but not for her. Because I was like, I was very attracted to her. I was, I like, this is going to be my wife, but she had, in beginning, she had no interest in me. She was hard to get, right? But she don't know a kid, or a book from South Baltimore. If we put our mind to something, we're going to get it, right? So either I pursued her, you know, if it was today, I might be in jail for stalking because I was stalking her. And I was talking to her a big time back in the '70s. But we finally hit it off and got married, right after college, as a matter of fact, started having new children. And she comes from a very big family, nine children. I come from a big family of five boys, all boys. And we were on a big family. So we were kind of clear on that. We weren't clear on the exact number, but we wanted to have big family. So we started out and we had four boys and one girl. We got to number five and we said, "Okay, this is kind of expensive." (laughing) So maybe five at the right number. (laughing) I get it, I get it. I remember paying by diapers and pamphlets and the medical care and the education. I tell my kids all the time, brother. I say every one of you, me and mom have invested at least a million dollars between education and raising them and vacations and sending the camps. I mean, at least a million dollars per child. Yeah, but it's a labor of love. But we did get to five and we said, "Okay, this is probably enough." (laughing) Yeah, you didn't even factor in the fact that you're looking after them. The time that could have been. Yes, sir. Yeah, eight men, eight men. And having my kids all the time on that fact. Five years from today, you are listening to this conversation. What's a message you leave for future? At eight is the same thing I tell young people today. Number one is get to know God early and why he young. Spend time building on a relationship, right? And then leveraging the resources and gives he's giving you to go back and honor him in that process. I think that's what's gonna be key. And years for now, with reviewing this interview, I would say the same thing. Because life is so short, brother. It's so short. Like I said, I'm 70 years old, man. I'm like, man, where does 70 years go? It's like, it's so fast. And so if you don't be intentional about using what God is giving you. I'm giving you and put under your stewardship that time will go by. And you will say, man, what did I do with that time? I don't wanna have that conversation. Someone's listening. They immediately connect with you. You're told in your voice, your truth. What's the best way for them to be introduced? How they can do what you've done? - Absolutely. So I tell all my friends, people who want to connect with me, they can start at my website, www.Robert Wallace.com. Robert Wallace.com. They can start there. And then from there, they can branch out. They can see the books I've written. They can see the businesses I've started. They can see how mission-trisks where you've done in different countries in Africa and Latin America and Southeast Asia. They can get a really good glimpse of who I am, what I believe and what's important to me. So they can go to www.Robert Wallace.com. They also go to www.bithgroupbihgroup.com, which is our technology and energy companies. - It's been a long time speaking with you and closing, is there anything else you'd like to share? - I'm just glad that there's a brother like you who's out there in the media world representing our God. Representing our Christ. Not ashamed, not afraid, not fearful, but just communicating. This is the most important thing you need to learn on this planet is to get to know the God of the universe and make him your God and be part of this kingdom. - Dr. Robert Wallace, I'm pleasure and treasure. Thank you for being on What Is Inspired. Thanks for everyone to come. (gentle music)