My Friend John

The excitement of seeing people come to Christ was an awesome experience for me. I became the energizer bunny when it came to sharing my story. My next visit was with my closest friend John. John played in the band with me. He was our keyboard player. John and I would stay up all hours of the night talking about life. We were the closest of companions. I remember one night that John and I stayed up all night drinking beer in his mom and dad's living room. We never went to sleep. His mother awoke and saw us in the living room and offered to cook us breakfast. We ate 16 Eggs between the two of us. I'll never forget how John's mom just kept that frying pan hot and full of eggs. She laughed at us and said that she was glad that we weren't out on the highways after drinking beer all night. I was close to John's family. He had 3 sisters and a brother and they lived like the Waltons in a big old farmhouse.

I remember my visit with John very clearly. I knocked on his apartment door and ask him if we could talk. We ended up sitting on his bed. John looked rather cautious. He already heard what had happened to me and didn't know what to expect. John was very quiet and he listened intently as I retold my story from Nashville to New Years eve. John knew me well and so he knew that I was sincere. After I shared my story with John I ask him if I could pray for him. He gave me permission. He seemed shell shocked but I proceeded anyway. I began asking the Lord to come be with us. I ask the Spirit to open John's eyes and ears so that he could see and hear. The room was very still and quiet and I looked over at John and saw that his eyes were full of tears. He wasn't crying but he had been touched deeply. He looked over at me in amazement and had that look of "I'm ready". I ask him if he would like a personal meeting with Jesus. He said very little. He just nodded his head and then he began to pray. He ask the Lord into his life in a very sincere and humble way. It was beautiful and you knew that something had happened. He wanted a Bible immediately and he wanted to have more time in prayer. John looked like he just walked into a whole new world and that is exactly what happened. His life was changed forever.

John was a like a locomotive. He started out slow and chugged along and then started picking up steam and then became my partner in ministry. John was like a big teddy bear. You could see the pastor's heart developing in him. His pastoring heart started early in his Christian life and remained consistent. John is the Pastor of the Wheeling Christian fellowship today. He has about 800 members and has been the Pastor there close to 20 years.

God is so good. I love my friend John and I'm so glad that the Lord gave me the privilege of praying for him at the beginning. That's how God works. He knew that John would listen to me.

As you can see now, things were really starting to snowball but John's wife Marilyn, was extremely upset with me after John's experience. She felt that she lost her husband to religion. Marilyn was next. I knew that God wanted her as well. I was just waiting for the right opportunity.

Next up...

The Walls Came Tumbling Down