A bar owner found himself struggling to help some of his customers through their problems and found a way to guide them to help through his source of help, the Lord.
The bar owner, Joe Beene, asked his Tulsa pastor at the Celebration Church, Eastman Curtis, to live stream his Sunday church sermon through the Internet to the Drunk Monkey’s televisions sets.
The pastor, Eastman Curtis was ecstatic about the idea. His congregation raised $1,000 just for the equipment to make it happen. Both Beene and Curtis understand some people do not like to associate a place where sins happen and the Lord. However, Curtis reminds us that God is everywhere beyond the four walls of the church.
“When Jesus dies on the cross, it wasn't in a cathedral,” said Pastor Curtis. He died on a town trash heap, people were gambling, and cursing.”
His goal is to reach people through the word of God who are outside the church. That is how he was saved many years ago.
“I was like a mom's worst nightmare, somebody took the time to go to a bar where I was and share the good news of Jesus,” said Curtis.
“Jesus didn't have a church necessarily, he went out to see the people,” said Beene. “In essence, it's the same thing here.”
Beene touched on his most recent situation with a customer who needed help.
“We had a customer here who was talking suicide and you know you try to reach out from back here as much as you can, but it's hard when you got a full bar,” said Beene.
He hopes the next time he runs into a struggling regular, he can say “Come in tomorrow, Sunday morning and listen to a church service from inside my bar.” He knows all too well a lot of his customers are uncomfortable going into a church. Some haven’t even seen a Bible in years. So, by having the church service streamed live through to his bar’s TV screens, he hopes his customers will be comfortable to stay and listen to the service.
It will be at The Drunk Monkey in Glenpool on Sunday, April 29th at 10:30 a.m. and there will be a free brunch.
