Testimony/God Stories

When I was asked to write either about my testimony and walk with God, OR a miracle, I could only think that life is full of everyday miracles. The biggest miracle in my life came when I was just 9 years old. I grew up in church and my precious Mom & Dad had always shared how Jesus loves us so much that He gave His life on a cross for us, then was resurrected. The Holy Spirit began to show me that I was a sinner and not worthy of God, but that Jesus died to make me worthy. A new joy and purpose came to my life as I believed and received Jesus as my Lord and Savior and God forgave my sins. Plus, I was born again and got a new home in heaven! Later, I remember praying many nights in a field looking up at the stars and wondering how the God of this magnificent creation cared for even me.

At the age of 12 I found myself in turmoil seeking answers from God. I was a paper boy praying while stopped on my bike at the top of a hill when suddenly a pigeon came out of nowhere and landed on my shoulder. As I looked at him in surprise he looked at me as if to say he was supposed to be there. I knew instantly that God the Holy Spirit was with me as I remembered the dove coming to Jesus. As he flew away the peace of God fell upon me and the turmoil vanished. I know that this was just another everyday miracle which happened only once in my life at just the right time. God is so awesome!

“I knew instantly that God the Holy Spirit was with me…”

People always want to hear about a huge supernatural miracle, and I would love to tell you that I experienced such a powerful miracle when my brother Jeff jumped off his deathbed at age 20 as we prayed, but that did not happen. Instead, God’s answer to our prayers was “no” and my young brother went to be with Jesus. He had his miracle as did the hundreds of shocked Mosley High students who came to his funeral and heard the gospel about why my brother was now in heaven. I wonder how many of them experienced a miracle that day as they considered their own mortality. Was it also a miracle that my Dad witnessed my brother speaking to someone above him on his hospital bed when nobody was in the room as if discussing what was to come? Was it a personal miracle when his softball coach told this broken hearted young man that my brother now has the answers while we are still asking the questions and the peace of God again fell upon me? How about when God’s grace and comfort pulled my family through the pain of losing him without losing faith, and gave us the peace to accept that we may never know the “why” in this life?

Yes, they are all miracles and I could tell you of many more of finance, of healing, of mercy and protection. In fact, it is an everyday miracle that we even wake up each morning and live and breathe. From the millions of stars in the sky to the baby’s first cry – truly our world is full of everyday miracles – but the greatest of these is love. God so loved us all that He gave His only Son to die, so we may live the miracle of eternal life with Him by simply believing and receiving forgiveness. Thank God for His everyday miracles…

Nobody wants to admit failure. In a society that bases success on position, money, friends, possessions, status….you never think you will end up in the same position as the Prodigal Son. Sittin’ in a pig pen realizing…..I’ve come to the end of myself! I’d really prefer to talk about my athletic conquest, my master’s degree, or even all the important positions I’ve held as a platform for a testimony…..but that’s not what happened. It’s not to say God can’t use people like this; in the big picture I squandered those opportunities, I was too busy enjoying the limelight. If I had used them, I probably would have taken credit for that success; God won’t share the spot light with anyone.

Two words I hear used almost exclusively together….divorce and alcohol dependence. Don’t ask how a “health nut” and drinkin’ go together…..that’s a whole testimony in itself. I want to focus on the day Jesus spoke to me. Sounds crazy, something you would see on a Face Book post or a magazine at the grocery store check out….but it happened. I don’t care what you think.

My ex-wife had not spoken to me is 3 years. I had issues I was working on. I had not had a drink in about 3 years and had worked on sobriety, church, mission trips, choir in church, and teaching a 12 step class at the Rescue Mission. I was the problem so I instituted a sure fire make-over plan…and it was working! The notion hit me to call to see if she wanted to have dinner, so I did. The first miracle was her answering the phone with caller ID and all. I was stunned…she said yes. At this point I must ask you to digress to the days of your very first date with the girl of your dreams for the guys; ladies, think about the Captain of the football team, who also was homecoming King, asking you out. Excited and thrilled do not describe that moment. I set out to really impress her. A plain dinner would not do….a dinner cruise…yeah, that will impress her! Got to have a new set of clothes, washed and waxed my car…twice. Should I bring flowers or candy…both should fix that!

The day arrived. I was early…by an hour. Drove around, washed my car again…..then the time came. I knocked on the door and ….NO ANSWER. Maybe she was still in the shower! Thirty minutes after the appointed time, I called her. She had an emergency arise and had forgotten to call me. After the disappointment subsided….my first thoughts were about me, naturally. I worked hard, cleaned up, changed my life. This was just wrong. Returning to my old ways crossed my mind, but another thought showed up just in time. Pray about this. So with all my disappointment and despair I asked God…why do I deserve this?! At that moment a voice clearer than any Bose system answered. Jesus never wastes words….He cuts to the heart of the matter; it quickens your heart. He said, “How many days have I gotten ready for you and knocked at your door, only to no answer?” I suddenly realized, He’s gotten just as excited about my return to Him…everyday, Jesus had new clothes on for me everyday…for years. If He has a car….He has washed it every day waiting on me. Look up ‘conviction’ in Wikipedia…..my picture was there at that moment.

We were remarried in 2007 on the same day we were married on our first try. I married up, I out punted my coverage with my wife. She is a blessing and a gift. I prayed for God to return her and…He did. You see, my wife spent those 3 years praying for me and growing closer to God. We are two people that think each one of us got the better deal. That’s how God Works, miracles happen, lives are changed, prayers are answered. There are abundant blessings, but there are changes you have to make..

I was blessed to be raised in a home where on the rare occasion that someone was sick, our first resort was to pray the prayer of faith and believe for a miracle. As a young boy I witnessed people get out of wheelchairs and walk. I have come to personally believe that miracles should be common for Christians.

A recent miracle I witnessed happened within one of our services. During our time of worship, I received a word of knowledge from the Holy Spirit concerning God healing and restoring the cartilage in the knee. I asked the congregation if there was someone who had this issue in the knee. A young man within our congregation raised his hand. People then gathered around him and began to pray for him.

His parents later told me that he had an incurable condition where the cartilage in his knee had disintegrated and was nothing more than a very thin layer. It was causing him pain and the inability to participate in sports activities. The doctors had told them that it was impossible for the cartilage to regenerate and he would probably be in a wheelchair before he was thirty years old.

The following week, this young man had a doctor’s appointment to reexamine his knee. The young man was excited and kept telling his mother, “God healed me.” His mother waited while the doctors examined his knee and conducted an MRI. She began noticing that it was taking longer than usual. Finally the doctor reappeared and asked that she come back to the examination room. He showed her the MRI and began to report to her, “We don’t know what has happened.” He continued by telling her that the cartilage in her son’s knee had been totally restored and there would be no need for surgery or for her son to see them again. PRAISE GOD! He is the miracle worker!

When all seems lost, God will show you the way. It was February, 1995, I was training in the middle of the Mojave Desert. My artillery battalion pulled into our position around midnight and expected a mock attack moments before dawn. So, we started digging fox holes. We used sand bags and built bunkers, and coordinated with the rest of the gun line to interlock our lanes of fire. As dawn approached, my squad was ready for the attack. Everyone down the heavily armed gun line was ready. And then the order came to open fire.

It was a sight to behold! We had 9mm handguns, M-16 rifles, M-60 machine guns, Mark-19 grenade launchers (basically shooting grenades as fast as a machine gun), 50 caliber machine guns, and 155mm cannons with high explosive rounds being shot right in front of us. We called in air strikes from A-10 Warthogs and had other artillery units dropping explosives right over our heads. It was loud and impressive until one or two of the artillery rounds landed extremely close to our bunker. It rattled the walls of the subterranean fighting position, which began to collapse. There was a Lieutenant and a mechanic in the bunker with me shooting an M-60 machine gun. As the roof of sandbags began to sag I grabbed the Lieutenant and pushed him to the exit. The mechanic was still shooting the machine gun and could not hear what was happening. Before the roof collapsed I pushed back on the roof of the bunker. Fortunately, the gun jammed and the mechanic could finally hear me frantically yelling for him to exit. He got out. But now what? I was stuck. If I let go and tried to exit thousands of pounds of sandbags might fall on me. If I didn’t move, there would be no way to hold up the tonnage that would invariably crush me below the weight. So I prayed, closed my eyes, and jumped toward the bunker exit. As I stretched my body and leaped, the bunker collapsed. The roof fell in and just missed my legs as I lunged to safety. What seemed hopeless was just another funny story from the National Training Center. But as my friends reflect and laugh about it, I recall my prayer and a divine hand delivering me from certain death.

An active teenager in church, I had never given thought to entering the ministry. A Week after my high school graduation in 1973, I attended a “Youth Revival” with our church group. That night the guest evangelist spoke about what we “young people” would do with our lives. I remember going forward and asking for prayer. Shocked as I was to hear it, I knew that God was calling me to enter into full-time ministry. Guess what? I didn’t want to do it, so I didn’t. I ran away from that calling and avoided doing anything very spiritual for a number of years.

God blessed me anyway with a good paying job at the Postal Service, a great marriage, and 2 healthy kids. Later, when I got involved in my local church and recommitted my life to Christ, God started calling me again. I realized that things I was doing to find fulfillment in life were making me miserable because I was not in the center of God’s will for my life. In 1995, I reluctantly went on a Mission Trip to Mexico. The whole time there, God kept whispering that he was still calling me to ministry after 22 years of running away. At home, I told my wife what had happened and she said, “What took you so long? I recognized your calling many years ago.”

We started life over in 1996 by quitting our jobs, selling our home, and moving to another state for me to attend College and then Seminary. Now, after having served 13 years as a pastor, I know that God “allowed” me to run from Him those years for a reason. He knew I was not quite ready to serve Him yet. In seminary, I felt guilty for wasting years I could have been serving my Lord, but God has since affirmed that my life experiences during those years of “testing” has made me more compassionate to peoples’ needs, and more ready to serve God’s purposes not my own. I, for one, am proud that “the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable” (Romans 11:29), and that God equips and uses those whom He calls in His timing.