Steve's Testimony
The Journey
Huntington, WV is my birthplace. However I grew up in Fairfield, Ohio. I was a very compliant child, didn’t get into much trouble. But I had no direction for life. I grew up with wild horses and just wanted to grow up to be a cowboy. At the age of 17 between graduation from High School and going to college, my dad took me out for a drive and told me; “There are no such thing as cowboys, so get over it.” While in church during the summer singing in the choir my dad came up and said to me; “Don’t you think it’s about time you did something with your life”? I didn’t know exactly what he wanted, so, I went forward. Many people came and laid hands on me and prayed for me, but nothing changed on the inside. Thinking they wanted me to do something with my life, I thought I’d become a missionary. That sounded like a fun adventure . . . swinging from the trees with monkeys and riding elephants like Tarzan. So, I went off to New Tribes Bible Institute to become a missionary.
New Tribes Bible Institute
I obtained a lot of head knowledge about God there, who He is, who His Son is, the Holy Spirit, the Word of God . . . but I didn’t know Him; didn’t have a relationship with Him.
On September, 26, 1967 an incident happened that scared me. Five demons had possessed a young woman and while praying for some missionaries one night they revealed themselves. I was scared so the next morning, I went to the Dean of the school who quizzed me about my faith. I told him I was born in a Christian family, baptized when I was 12, and grew up in a good church. His response was, “Well, you can stand in the garage and go beep-beep all night long, but you’ll never become a car. He read me a passage that has become my live verse:
Romans 4:4-5 - Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. But to him who worketh not, but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,
On September 27th I acknowledged that I was a sinner, confessed my sin, and place my trust in Jesus and the price He paid for my sin on the cross as my savior.
However, for some reason, still to this day I don’t understand, I became very mischievous. Not doing bad things just playing tricks on people. And I guess I made a reputation for myself, because at the end of the year, the Dean invited me to his office and made a deal with me . . . “Steve, if you will leave school, we won’t kick you out”. I took the deal.
Viet Nam
1969-1972 – Someone told Uncle Sam that I had left college so he extended another invitation to me to join the Army. I was US Army, Special Forces two years in Viet Nam. Two incidents happen bringing me to a better understanding of my journey with God.
- On August 30th, while my company was under attack and had overtaken our position, I called a bomb strike on our location. I remember several individuals while in their fox holes waiting to be overrun by the North Vietnamese, they would cry out to God bargaining that if He would keep them alive they would do one thing or another. I simply looked up into the black sky and told God; “If you want to kill me right here, right now, I know you can and have the right to do so. I also know that you have authority to keep me alive. But, I’m not going to make you any promises that tomorrow, I’m know I not going to keep. Either way, it’s your choice, the next day, out of 97 men; I was the only one left alive.
- On another occasion while my company was being air lifted out of Cam Duck by helicopter, I volunteered to stay behind and patrol the parameter. The chopper took a round and everyone on board was killed. I was left behind for three days before they picked me up. The verse that kept going through my head was:
Hebrews 13:5-6.(Amplified Version) 5) Let your character or moral disposition be free from love of money [including greed, avarice, lust, and craving for earthly possessions] and be satisfied with your present [circumstances and with what you have]; for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. I will not, I will not, I will not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let you down relax My grip on you)! Assuredly not! 6) So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently and boldly say, The Lord is my Helper; I will not be seized with alarm I will not fear or dread or be terrified. What can man do to me?
Returning from Viet Nam
During this time, I was involved in a very bad automobile accident while racing drunk and stoned with six people (three girls and three guys) in a two seater Opel GT. The only one hurt in the accident was me. I had a small cut on my shoulder and was taken to the hospital. After harassing the cute nurses for some time, they put some mercurochrome and a band aid on it and told me to get out and sent me home. While leaving the hospital a policeman came up to me and held out this Bible that I kept in the back of the car. It was dripping with beer; “Here ya go son, you may need this tomorrow morning.” It was just like Jesus came in the door and walked up to me face-to-face. He took me back to that foxhole experience in Viet Nam saying; “Steve, I have kept my commitments to you, don’t you think it’s about time you start keeping your commitments to me?” I’m not sure if I believe in a Lordship commitment separate from our salvation, but it was at this time that I submitted my life to Christ. I wanted to completely trust Him and to be Lord my entire life. His will, not mine.
What I am Learning
I currently consult to the White House, National Security in a tent maker capacity while working for the Navigators:
- 1973 - Overland Park, KS
- 1992 - Washington, DC metro
- 2007 - Moved to St. Pete/Tampa Bay Florida
- 2010, Washington DC metro area
I have learned to take the mask off and let people see me as God does, warts and all. And instead of trying to earn God’s love with performance, I am simply trusting Him and allowing Him to work through me, allowing Him to infuse His grace and mercy with my weaknesses.
I am also learning how to advance the gospel of Jesus and his kingdom into the nations through spiritual generations of laborers living and discipling as we live among the lost.
II Corinthians 12: 7-10 (The Message) Because of the extravagance of those revelations, and so I wouldn't get a big head, I was given a weakness to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan's angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn't think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me, “My grace is enough; it's all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness. Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ's strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.
