When it came time for Ben Tankard to pick a college,

he had 35 scholarship offers for basketball and 30 others

for playing the tuba.

Who knew?

He's a true Renaissance man.

And if you want to know his secret,

it's because he lives a full tank life.

Ben Tankard is the King of Tankard Palace on Bravo TVs

Thicker Than Water.

He's also the godfather of gospel jazz music, a former NBA

star, and a motivational speaker.

With his many talents, Ben says he's

doing what he was born to do.

In his book Full Tank Life, Ben shares the changes

to making your daily routine that clear you for takeoff

and fuel your dreams.

Well, Ben Tankard is here with us now.

And Ben, we welcome you to the 700 Club.

It's great to have you here.

Thank you so much for having me.

You're so sweet.

You know, we're talking about all of the wonderful blessings,

and successes, and victories that you've had in your life.

But I want you to talk about your beginnings.

Because sometimes we let the stuff that happens around us

define us.

And that didn't happen for you.

But your beginnings were lean?

Oh yes, we were very, very poor when I grew up.

I was six foot six by the time I was in the sixth grade.

Wow.

And so I'm 18 inches taller than the rest of the class.

And they're saying, Tank, how many years did you stay back?

I'm not dumb, I'm just tall.

[LAUGHING]

But we were very, very poor.

Public assistance, powdered eggs, powdered milk,

Hamburger Helper without the hamburger.

And I thought that my way out of the ghetto

would be pro basketball.

But I was a tuba player.

So I loved the music, but I liked the basketball.

But the basketball was just because I was tall.

Well, I mean that would seem logical.

You know, anyone seeing a young guy

that's got that kind of height as part of his gift

would say NBA.

My parents, they didn't help matters.

Because we were so poor that when

I wanted to choose between the basketball and the tuba

scholarship, I wanted to go with the tuba.

Well, I love what your dad said.

What did he say to you, something about--

He said son, we're black, you're tall, we're poor.

Play ball.

[LAUGHING]

A wise man.

And so I went the basketball route

not because that was my true heart.

I went the basketball route because I felt like that

would be a meal ticket.

And I went to college and dropped out after one year.

I went pro in the minor league.

Here I am with the opportunity to work out

with Jack Ramsey, the coach of the Portland Trailblazers.

If I can just get through this camp--

You're on your way.

I might be the guy coming off the bench behind Clyde

the Glide, who knows.

But what happened?

I got injured.

Early on?

Injured in camp.

And they cut me from the team.

So here I am with no education, no money, and a Jheri curl.

Wow.

You know, I want you to talk about what

happened to you then.

Because you were alone in a dark room--

I mean, you've got to feel like you played all your cards

and this is what you're left with.

And everybody can look back and have thoughts about gee,

if I could do it over again.

But what happened to you in that dark room?

Well, I felt kind of like I'm on my own cross.

And God, why has though forsaken me.

Yeah.

You know, that's how I felt. But I had enough sense

to get myself up and go to church.

Because I was born in church-- my parents were ministers--

but I never accepted the Lord for myself

because I would just kind of living off their wings.

But away from home, nothing to turn to except God,

I decided let me try this.

I went to church really to get something to eat.

I knew they would have chicken dinners.

And I went to get a chicken sandwich and messed around

and got saved.

And the minister called me up and told

me to put my hands on the keys.

I had never played keyboard.

I had played tuba.

So I'm like why is he praying for--

That is just a prophetic move on his part

to call you forth to do that.

And he tells me to put my hands on the keys by faith

because God has a new destiny for me.

I'm like, what is this guy talking about?

Did he know your music background at all?

Or your tuba?

He knew nothing except that I was this former basketball

player that hobbled into this church.

Wow.

And I put my hands on the keys and I

begin to play the first time like a professional jazz

musician in church.

Wow.

And I didn't know if it came that night

or if it was in me the whole time.

Wow.

But if it was in me the whole time,

I wouldn't have known it because I was chasing the basketball.

Yeah.

Wow.

And my mission in life is then to encourage people

that are at that crossroads that don't know what they're

supposed to be when they grow up, there is life after death.

And I'm the biggest failure in the room.

But God blessed me.

I mean, I've had two divorces.

I've had bankruptcy.

I've had my parents both die within a year of one another.

But now.

But now-- thicker than water.

A hit TV show with a blended family,

great wife-- Jewel-- five kids, three grandkids.

I'm a pilot.

I fly my own airplanes to my concerts.

My music is played in every country.

I am happier than a witch in a broom factory

with a 90% off coupon.

[LAUGHING]

We get questions like this all the time here on our Bring

It On segment-- how do I find out

what my destiny, what my purpose in life is?

What do you say to people who say that?

Look at your left hand and put in that left hand

what makes you tick.

What do you like?

What do you lose time doing?

You know, times get away from you because you love it.

And that makes you tick.

Then look in this hand at what makes you

ticked-- what makes you mad.

Yeah.

For me, I love music and motivation.

And here I hate poverty and sickness and depression.

So somewhere between what makes you tick

and what makes you ticked is your purpose.

That's where you find it.

You know, you could've missed yours.

And that's true for a lot of us.

We pursue our dream rather than asking God what

did you create me within mind.

I think we get caught up with Goliath.

But I don't think Goliath was sent to defeat David.

I believe Goliath was sent to make David famous.

I like that.

I like that.

So the bigger the problem, the bigger the victory

on the backside of that problem.

You know, Jesus died and there was life after that death.

There was life after the death of my basketball career.

Had I known that God had all this planned for me,

I would have never dressed out for PE.

You would have gotten there sooner.

Absolutely.

You know, I was hijacked by my own dreams which we're not

really God's plan for me.

But maybe that's part of the struggle,

because it brings us to surrender.

Do you think?

Absolutely.

And I think in times of depression,

in times of confusion, that's where

our character is developed.

Because riches can be deceitful.

Oh, maybe the worst.

And as a motivational speaker, I speak to NBA players.

And the reason they ask me to come talk to the players

is that they say to take somebody

with money to tell somebody with money that it's not

about the money.

Boy, that's the truth.

That's the truth.

God has given you an amazing platform,

an amazing gift on many levels.

But music is one of them.

So I'm going to let you go get ready, because you're

going to give us a treat today.

Absolutely.

So if you'll go get ready to play, Ben.

I want to tell people about your book.

The book is called The Full Tank Life, fuel your dreams

and ignite your destiny.

It's available nationwide.

And don't forget to check your local listings for air dates

and times for Thicker Than Water.

And lastly, for more, check out Ben's latest CD.

It's called Full Tank 2.0.

And it's available for purchase or download

wherever music is sold.

But now to play us to break here is the very gifted Ben Tankard

with How Great is our God.

[PIANO PLAYING]