- Nothing you want is gonna happen in your timing. It almost never does. I said, "Come on, God, man "I've been trying to make this dream come true.
"You done left me out here like this. " See, when you ask God for something, He box it up and He ships it immediately. But you have to remain on Faith Street in order to receive the gift.
And I was crying so hard that He just said, I didn't like hear a voice or nothing, but He spoke to me. And however, He said, "If you get up, "I'm gonna take you places you ain't never been. " You can't move over on the I Doubted Boulevard.
He don't ship packages to I Doubted Boulevard. He only ship packages to Faith Street. Now I was finna quit.
So I got in my car, I went to a payphone. He said, "Hey Steve, this is Chuck Sutton "with Showtime at the Apollo. "We saw a tape of you.
"You're very funny. "If you could get here Sunday night, "we'd love to put you on television. " Quit tripping.
The road to success is always under construction. I got $35. How I'm gonna get to New York?
I was determined. I was determined to be something. Before I hit the button, I heard boop, "You have another message.
" I listened to the second message. Says, "Steve Harvey, this is Tom Silver "from the Comedy Caravan. " I had, this was a Thursday.
He said, "I have a gig in Jacksonville, Florida "on Friday night that pays $150. "If you can get there Friday night, you'll make $150. " Name one time God ever let you down.
Name one situation He didn't bring you through. Everything you've ever gone through, God got you through it. You didn't even realize it.
He just got you through it. So, I drive to Jacksonville, Florida and that night I killed, I made the 150. Club owner said, "Man, you funnier than the guy we hired.
"If you stay tomorrow night, "I'm gonna give you another $150. " So now I got $300 now. So everything you ask God for, it comes in a process.
It's going to happen. Got to the Apollo. The Apollo, man, they went crazy.
They lost they mind. I got a standing ovation, man. I used to always imagine myself in front of 10,000 people.
Man, I'm one of (beep) original Kings of Comedy, man. So, you have to stay. You have to stay in the process and complete the fall.
You gonna get cut up on the rocks. You gonna get your skin tore up. But I'm here.
You know, I got through it. You gonna get through it. He's never too late.
At your worst moment, look man. It ain't over. It ain't over.
(audience cheering) Ain't no such a thing as over. As long as God wakes you up, that means He ain't through with you yet. And if He wakes you up, you got a shot to correct it and get it right.
When they told me I had to be in New York, I saw no way I could get there. But that God though, He make the phone ring. I end up in Florida, I make $300.
Then I go to New York, I make $750. I almost got $1,000. He done got you past whatever it was.
Whatever it was that's been on you, He done really bought you through it. You have to know that God got you some kinda way. God is in your imagination, He ain't in your paycheck.
He ain't in your current set of situations. God is in your imagination. He put, I imagined at 10 I would be on TV.
Now I didn't get that 'til I was 38, but I got there. Do you know all the stuff you've imagined was really God just showing you a preview of a coming attraction He has for you. (audience clapping) You've got to chase that dream before you die, man.
You should go and live your dream. Just go see. Because God equipped you the moment He gave birth to you.
God equipped you at birth with what you needed. He gave all of you a gift. All of you.
Every last one of you, you're gifted. God made you with a gift that all of you are gifted people. God never created a soul without giving them a gift.
All of you sitting in here were given a gift at birth. He put it inside you. You ain't gotta look under the ocean.
It ain't on a mountain. It ain't under no rocks. He put it in you at birth.
He gave you a gift. It is the thing that you do the absolute best with the least amount of effort. That's your God-given gift.
That's the thing you should pursue. But if I had listened to my mother who was saved and a Christian and a Sunday school teacher, if I had listened to her, I wouldn't have quit my job. All my brothers, everybody told me, "You can't go be no comedian.
" I left anyway. I won amateur night on October 8th, 1985, won 50 bucks. I went to work the next day, October 9th, 1985, quit my job.
Everybody in my neighborhood called me a fool. I send planes, pick all of 'em up, take 'em to shows and (beep) now. If you bold enough to chase the dream, He'll get you through the journey.
You just can't quit in the middle of the journey. 'Cause He know you're chasing dreams. God in the make your dream come true business.
That's real talk. I kid you not. You looking at somebody living his dreams because God made it happen for him.
That's real.
