God Will Meet You!

Mike-P1020072-200Dear Friends,

It took a significant experience in my life for me to grasp that all that the world has to offer cannot fill the vacuum that God places in each one of us. A vacuum that only He can fill. I had an experience as a young man that clearly demonstrated to me that God will meet you wherever you are in life and fill you with an abundance of His love. And He will bring you into a place of restoration where life once again has meaning and purpose.

By the time I reached 26 years of age, I had accumulated an abundance of friends, stuff, and experiences. I had spent 4 years in the Air Force and had already traveled to many foreign countries. However, it was during this time that I emotionally hit bottom. I was in my last year at the university, working part-time and living on a sailboat in Sausalito, CA. I clearly remember sitting there one sunny afternoon saying, “God, I don’t get it. Is this all there is to life? What’s the point to even go on? If you are real do something, anything! If not I am ready to sail off into the sunset.” I felt that if this was all that life was about it was pretty pointless. I had reached the point that though I knew God existed I didn’t feel He was that intimately involved in my life and wasn’t sure He even cared.

Soon after this conversation with God, I came home to Bakersfield for a weekend visit. While there I met up with a good friend, Bob Hartley, who was the leader of our college group at the church I attended when I first returned from the Air Force. We were sitting in a room down at the church when I began telling him how low I was feeling. Bob listened to me patiently and then wisely said, “Mike, why don’t we just pray.”

We bowed our heads and I simply said, “God if you are real I need to know!” I immediately felt this warm rushing wind envelope my entire body and I heard God say, “Michael, when you accepted me as your savior at age 12 you received the gift of eternal life but you didn’t allow me to be Lord of your life. So you have missed the real joy of life and the power of my spirit living within you. That’s why you are so empty.”

I looked up and said to Bob, “Did you feel that?” He smiled and said, “Yes.” Now I’m not the smartest person around and sometimes I’m a little slow on the uptake but I said, “Lord, I place myself in your hands and give you all of me that I know how to give, my needs, my desires, my goals, and my mind, emotions, and will. I ask you to fill me with your Holy Spirit, let me experience your power and use me anyway you choose.”

After that experience life began to have some meaning and purpose for me. There have been up times and down times, struggles and temptations, failures and victories. But life has meaning, I have a purpose and a goal. There’s a deep joy that no amount of booze, sex, or drugs could ever bring. The Bible says that the pursuit of these things of the world is death. I experienced the first stage of death which is emptiness and that’s where you’re headed without the power of Jesus Christ in your life.

It is 2019 and I’m now 77 years of age and this is part of my story. I am excited and filled with deep love and joy beyond any I have ever known. I am thankful that my Father God not only stood by watching over me but when I reached those times of discouragement He was there to pick me up, brush me off, and lovingly put His arms around me. At no time did I feel God had given up on me or abandoned me to the consequences of my actions. Whenever I called out to Him he was there. What amazing grace and love my Father has for me. This is what you can experience when you move into an intimate relationship with God.

$$$ Finances have taken a dive the last couple of months. Can you help?
Thanks to all of you who have been faithful financial supporters over the years. If you have not yet made the decision to financially support Wholeness Ministries I would ask that you consider doing so. You can click HERE to visit our “Donate” page where you can send a one-time donation, set up automatic monthly donations, or simply write us a check.

Thank you,

Mike

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My newest book BEFORE YOU GET HERE: Baggage To Drop On Your Way To Heaven, is a guide to assist you in discovering freedom from the invisible burdens that oppress and defeat many Christians today. Chapters include: The Importance of Forgiveness, The Traps of Unforgiveness, A Look in the Mirror, Harmful Words and Harmful Connections, Let Yourself Be Loved By God, The Recovery of Intimacy, and more. Copies are available at Wholeness.org and at Amazon.com. Check out the entire Wholeness Ministries Catalog right HERE.

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