When you are in sin, Satan tries to fool you into believing that it doesn’t matter what you do, and you won’t have to answer to anyone for your actions. Down inside, I knew better. As a child, I went to Sunday school and church regularly because both my parents were ministers. I saw miracles in our home. But that upbringing  didn’t make me a Christian.
I wanted to do my own thing. When we left the town of Talladega Alabama, and moved to Los Angeles, California, I got into all kinds of trouble and sin. I drank. I smoked. I used profanity. I stayed out all night partying. I knew those things were wrong, but I didn’t care. I was in two automobile accidents where I was thrown from the car. After one of them I got up without a scratch and said to my brother, “I sure was lucky!” But it wasn’t luck. God was showing mercy to my rebellious soul.
I enjoyed being known as a tough guy. I worked as a bouncer in a bar. It didn’t bother me to fight three or four guys at a time because I knew I could beat them up. After I quit the job at the bar, I went to work at a service station. I was soon living with a woman and I thought everything was all right. I was having fun living just as my brothers did.
Two devastating events happened about that time. Both my brothers died in just over a year’s time. I had never lost a relative that close to me and it was extremely hard to bear. A month or so after the second brother died, my grandmother also passed away. I loved her dearly, so this was another blow to my heart. After her death, the Lord let me know that I could be next. That really hit me because I knew that if I died in my condition, I was going straight to hell.
One night, I dreamed that I was falling into a dark pit. The more I tried to climb out, the farther I slipped into the hole. In panic I struggled and struggled but couldn’t get out. Finally I awakened and the song “How Great Thou Art” came to my mind. I kept hearing those words, “O Lord, my God…..how great Thou art”, over and over again. After that dream, things were different. I had been the life of the party. Friends would come to my job and wait for me to get off work so we could go to parties together. But after Holy Ghost conviction came upon me, I wasn’t much fun to be with. The whiskey, the cigarettes, the cigars, and the pipe didn’t taste the same.
Then one I did something out of character. I picked up a Bible and took it to work with me. As I sat in the little gas station booth where I was selling oil and cigarettes, I began to read the Word of God. When I read the part where Jesus was crucified, it just broke my hear. It seemed as if the words came alive to me that night. Then I came across the portion of scripture that said, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” That verse said to me, “Buddy, ask Me what you want,” and I answered, “Lord, save me.” Right then and there, God saved me from my sins. He came down in such a mighty way that I wept openly. I hadn’t cried for so long that the tears felt strange on my face. My heart was truly broken up and the fountain of my tears was overflowing. I kept saying, “Thank You, thank You, Jesus.” The devil came and said, “You had better stop crying. Somebody’s going to see a big guy like you weeping and that won’t look good.” I tried to stop, but the joy just kept coming and coming. I couldn’t stop. Eventually the Spirit of the Lord seemingly gave me a break and I stopped crying and looked around. Nobody was there. So I went right back to praising God. He had saved my soul!
The next night after work, I went home and prayed and God sanctified me. I continued to read the Bible and seek the Lord for strength to serve Him. I really needed that strength as persecution and temptations came in abundance. Friends came by and brought me beer and whiskey, but I wouldn’t accept it. One friend was so bold that he left a glass of whiskey beside my bed, but I poured it down the sink. I was through with it. I also parted ways with the woman I’d been living with. The Lord had taken every desire for wrongdoing out of my life.
I began attending the Apostolic Faith Church in Los Angeles. There I met many beautiful people in Christ who prayed for me and became my friends. I was troubled about having to sell cigarettes at the service station so I talked with a brother at the church about it. He told me, “Well, I wouldn’t do it. But you pray about it.” I took his advice and prayed about the matter. I learned from what followed that telling someone to pray about their needs and problems is the best advice you can give them. As I prayed and read the Bible, I came across a verse that said, “Touch not the unclean thing.” That was enough for me. I went to my boss and told him I could no longer sell cigarettes for him. He said that I’d have to quit my job, so I did. I was determined to do whatever God wanted me to, no matter the cost. A few weeks later, my boss called and said, “Come on back. I’ll let you work at another station where you don’t have to sell cigarettes.” On top of that, he gave me a raise! It pays to do right.
The change the Lord made in me was wonderful. I went from being a fighter carrying a pistol, and convinced I was a match for any man, to one who found that God’s strength was the only one that could see me through life. When I tried to live my life in my own way, I had been shot, knifed and was in and out of jail. But now the fight was gone. When faced with situations that in the past would have turned into heated arguments, the Lord helped me to keep my mouth shut and my hands in my pockets. Once after I was saved, a man came to the station and robbed me at gunpoint. He pulled the trigger and the bullet hit my left arm. I came close to losing my life, but there was peace because I was ready to go. And the spirit of revenge was gone.
After a time, I felt I should return to Alabama where I was born and raised. One of my Christian friends said, “Make sure that it’s God leading you there.” He knew that a person can get into trouble going back where there might be influences to draw one to sin again, but God was faithful to me. I returned to Birmingham, and there I received the baptism of the Holy Ghost. I met and married my wife, and was also called into the ministry. Every day has not been a flowery bed of ease, but God has never failed. He is real and He’s in my life today. Praise His name!