Dennis & Donna - In the Beginning - Part 1

I was raised in a family that never went to church, but a neighbor down the street asked my parents if she could take my siblings and I to Sunday School. They were having some kind of contest and from that day until I was eighteen and entered the military, my brothers, my sister and I all went on the bus to the Baptist church; however, none of us were saved.

Jumping years ahead: In 1978, shortly after I was married to my first wife, we discovered that we were expecting our first child. My wife (who had been married before) said to me, "Since I've already raised my children (from her first marriage) "Catholic" you can raise your child "Baptist". After my daughter was born, my wife asked me when I was going to get my daughter baptized as she didn't want her to go to Hell. Of course, neither did I.

I knew a man at work who read his Bible, so I began asking him about getting my daughter baptized. He explained to me about "child dedication" and how the Bible shows that infant baptism is wrong, but then began dealing with me about my soul and where I would spend eternity. On March 3, 1980, I went to speak with his Pastor and was saved.

By this time my daughter had been baptized in the Catholic Church, and you can say that "the war was on" with my wife. I started going to the Baptist church regularly, began reading my Bible and listing to the "Through the Bible" radio program with J. Vernon McGee. I took tracts with me to work and passed them out to my coworkers. All of this added to our problems at home because my wife worked at the same place that I did. Luke 12:51 says, "Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division." Although she was annoyed with me, she put up with it all for a while, rationalizing in her own mind that, "He'll get over it!"

At home she would complain that I was not the same man she married-I had changed. I would tell her I had not changed - I was the same person she married. I had not realized the big change that she observed in me - a drinker, smoker and curser that quit overnight. One time I remember talking with her about being saved and she told me that her father would kill her if she changed. The Catholic Church sure has a big hold on its children. I admit I made many stupid mistakes, but looking back now, I did them in ignorance, yet well-meaning. No one took me under their wing to disciple me. I was left floundering in this divided marriage. Well, as much as I tried to resist it, she decided to divorce me and turn my daughter away from me (because of my salvation/religious differences) in early 1987, after seven years of my salvation. She thought it would "wear off" after a while, but it never did...even to this day.

The Bible tells of how "a man's foes shall be they of his own household." Matthew 10:36-37, "He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me."

These are hard sayings to endure, but the Lord says he will replace the lost family an hundredfold with Christian family, as well as giving us eternal life! Mark 10:29 "And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's, 30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life."

This He has done, as I met and married my current wife, Donna, which leads us to where her story begins ... in the next column.

 

Dennis and Donna - In the Beginning, Part 2

I would like to take this opportunity to give a brief synopsis of how we met, my (Donna's) salvation testimony, and how the Lord got hold of my heart to start passing out tracts and witnessing. My prayer is that this story will show you the urgency and need for us to tell others of salvation through Jesus Christ before it is eternally too late for them!

I was saved on July 16, 1989. At that time I was single and had been working four jobs (one of which was as a waitress at Denny's restaurant) and putting myself through college. One day in late 1987, Dennis Gunning (now my husband) came into Denny's with Dan, a regular customer that I knew. They sat in my section and we were introduced. From that time on, Dennis would come in weekly and request my section, leaving Gospel tracts with the tip and I would even find them on my car windshield. I read them with interest, but really didn't understand them. Dennis started asking me out (missionary dating? I do not recommend anyone doing this!) I thought he was a nice guy and couldn't deny that there was something different about him, but at the same time I was not about to go out with some "Jesus Freak".

To make a long story short, thru a long course of events, I was eventually saved in July of 1989. As time went on, I finished my business degree, quit 2 of my jobs and began building my business clientele so that I could finally quit Denny's, to be solely self supportive. I was still in contact with Dennis' friend, Dan. He was a graphic artist and he printed all of my business cards and flyers, as well as several "visual aids" for my college assignments. Whenever I went to pick up my flyers from Dan, Dennis "just happened" to be there, so I would still run into him. Now that I was saved, we eventually started seeing each other and were married in Oct. 1990. I was thankful that he had planted the seed that lead to my salvation.

This just goes to show that you never know what God will do with the gospel tracts that we hand out. Unlike this story, there will be many instances where we will not see the outcome of what happens with the tracts we give out. We must continue to "walk by faith and not by sight". Even when, in all appearances sake, it seems like the tracts are not doing anything but making the receiver indifferent or even angry, we must still believe God when He says in Isaiah 55:11, " So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."

Next time, I will tell of how I began to share my new found faith with others, and the mixed reactions that I had received. My prayer is that you may learn from my mistakes (and successes) as experience is a good teacher!

 

Dennis and Donna - In the Beginning, Part 3

In the previous column, I gave a brief testimony of my salvation and how I met my husband. The first thing that happens when you are saved is: your eyes are opened (believing is seeing) and you see others in the same lost condition that you were in. The Lord fills you with a burden for your lost loved ones, family and friends. The first thing you want to do is call them and tell them what happened to you and how they too can be saved!

More than a little disillusioned (and naive), I was very discouraged to find that most people were not as excited about this new discovery as I was! I had just found the treasure of the universe! Surely everyone else would want it too?!

However, there was one reaction (from 2 close friends) that I was totally unprepared for. They both told me "I know about that. I'm already saved!" Now, I had known each person for about 7 or 8 years — They were not mere casual acquaintances! When I asked them why they never told me, they each said, "I didn't want to offend you and I didn't think you would listen anyway." I was floored!

"Friend #1 went (occasionally) to a liberal charismatic church, had "live in girl friends" and had partied with my co-workers and I. So, perhaps he was right: Seeing absolutely no difference between him and me, I probably would not have listened to him.

Friend #2, on the other hand, went to an Independent, Bible-Believing, Baptist Church and was the epitome of Christianity. He was polite and he did not cuss, drink, party, smoke or chase women. He would go bowling with a group my co-workers, but when we went into the bar area afterward, he would just go home. Thus, there was something very different about him, although I didn't know what it was at that time. I believe that if friend #2 had witnessed to me, or at least had given me tracts, I would have been quite open to discussions, given his pristine testimony.

I decided, right then that I would not ever let fear of being unpopular, stop me from witnessing to anyone. My family was and still is, the most difficult to witness to. In the next column we will give more testimony of this, and how I overcame that difficulty.

Witnessing to Family
09/21/2005

Almost immediately after being saved, I found that witnessing to my lost family members was the most difficult thing to do. They had seen and known what I was like in my lost condition, thus, after salvation, my attempts to talk to them about the Lord and give them tracts, was met with varying degrees of opposition .

In my eyes, the major change in my life was an indisputable testimony of what the Lord had done for me! However, in their eyes, they saw me as a hypocrite, saying, "She used to do all the things that we do. Who is she to tell us that we are not saved?" I became discouraged when I didn't see the results that I had expected (i.e: excitement over this great news!)

On the contrary, some of my religious (in denomination "name" only) relatives actually began "practicing" their religion– earnestly working their way to Heaven--which pacified any conviction of which my changed life had affected in them. ("Not the reaction I was hoping for, Lord!")

Also, I had an Aunt and Uncle that had been very "religious" all along, yet hostile to my "new faith" and I (being a new Christian) began to reason within myself, that "God certainly wouldn't send someone to Hell who is so outwardly religious, yet doesn't know the truth! Maybe I am better to keep my mouth (and tracts) shut and hope they make it to Heaven by reason of ignorance." But we've all heard the term, "ignorance is no excuse for breaking the law." Thus, it is not an excuse for breaking God's law either. Romans Chapter 1 says that they are without excuse because their conscience and creation bears witness to God's truth.

This is when I realized that I must warn people of the wrath to come and that I, personally, will be held accountable to God for not warning them if I fail to do so! Ezekiel chapter 3 talks about this very instance of warning your own people whether they listen to you or not (emphasis added to note specific references that the Lord used to get my attention):

11 And go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear.
17 Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.
18 When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
19 Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.
20 Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
21 Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he is warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul.

Then It hit me! The Lord brought back to memory my two friends who never told me that they were saved until after I had told them of my conversion! I was doing the same thing! I read in Acts 20:3 about how Paul said that he is innocent of every man's blood and that he "ceased not to warn everyone night and day with tears" (2 Cor. 5:11).

Thus, I had gone from the "before" to the "after" state of the prophet Jeremiah as shown in Jeremiah 20:9

9 Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.

Back around this time, I had seen a tract by Jack Chick named, "The Letter" which was a fictional story that illustrated a spiritual truth. It told about a woman who died and went to Hell, and she sent a letter to her saved friend asking why she never told her about this place of torment? We must warn people even if it could cost us their friendship, our inheritance, our job etc. One day, at the great white throne judgment, we will be on one side (with the Lord) while they are on the other side (eternal damnation), and I don't want anyone there to be able to point their finger at me and say, "Why didn't you warn me about this?!" How horrible that would be to hear from the people I love (Dad, Mom, relatives & friends, not to mention from any person that my path had crossed in my saved life).

In forthcoming articles we will give true object lessons/stories of things that have happened when we have given tracts out, and what the Lord has taught us through these adventures (and misadventures). Our prayer is that you will learn these valuable lessons with us

 

Why Did My Car Break Down?
10/28/2005

One day earlier this year, our car broke down and we were calling around trying to find the part we needed, for the best possible price. We went to order the part from the place we decided on, and gave a tract to the man (Larry W.) who helped us. As he looked at the church information stamped on the back of the tract, he said,"Oh, I know this church. My sister used to go there, last I knew of her!" "However," he said, "I haven't seen her in over twenty years. All of our siblings were separated into different foster homes when we were younger, and we've talked a few times, but not really kept in contact since we've grown up." He also admitted to being very confused about God and whether He really exists. When we asked who his sister is, he said it was Carolyn H. "We know her!" we exclaimed. We said, "Her family is still at our church and she usually sits right behind us! I'm sure she would love to see and talk to you again! Why don't you call her or come visit our church sometime?" He said that he couldn't visit the church because he usually works afternoons and weekends, but maybe he'd try calling his sister. We gave him her current phone number, asked him to read the tract and bid him farewell until we returned to pick up the part.

We immediately called Carolyn and told her what happened. She was in tears! We gave her Larry's basic work schedule and location, so she and her husband could go and see him there if he didn't call her in the next few days.

To make a long story short, they had a grand reunion and now they see each other fairly regularly. Larry still admits to confusion about spiritual things, but he is open to conversation about it. He teeters somewhere between agnosticism and atheism, but says that he wishes that he could know the truth for sure in his own mind - even if it is something bad - just so he won't keep wondering. What an opening! We told him the good news and gave him more tracts when we returned to pick up the auto part.

Shortly after that, our other car was acting up and we went to the same auto parts store, so we could see Larry again. This time we brought a couple different tracts and a book by Ray Comfort entitled, God Doesn't Believe In Atheists - Proof The Atheist Doesn't Exist. (See www.livingwaters.com for a sample of some very unusual and interesting tracts.) This book tastefully mixes scripture with indisputable proof and logic, and adds humor to "help the medicine go down"! It is the kind of book that once you start reading it, you just can't put it down. There are numerous testimonies of atheists who have been saved after reading it. We gave it to Larry and asked him to just read the first chapter tonight when he goes home from work, knowing he would want to keep on reading once he started. He accepted it as a thirsty man would accept a drink of water.

We have been back to Larry's work place periodically and always have another tract or tape for him (but not too many as to overwhelm him though). We truly believe that the Lord allowed our cars to break down just so that we could witness and minister to Larry with eternal things (his soul) in mind. It sure puts our little temporal problems (car repair bills) in a better perspective! Instead of complaining about having to put out more money for car repairs, we now rejoice as we look at it as an eternal investment in someone's soul!

We are asking our readers to please pray for Larry W. He came to church on Easter Sunday, but he is still not saved. However he is more open to discussion than he has ever been. Just the reunion with his saved family members alone has put him in a position to be exposed to the Gospel regularly now. If/when he does come to know the Lord, we will give a praise report in a future column. We shudder to think of what would have happened (or would not have happened) if we had not been faithful to the Lord's leading to give that tract to Larry. We may never see all the results of our tract passing/witnessing in this life, but we will be glad we did it when the Lord does show us the results one day.

Tract Tip: Of course, God knows who the people are that will be or never will be saved, but we have a command to tell them all anyway, so that no one can say that God never tried to warn them. Just by the law of averages we know that the more seed we sow, the more chance there is of it falling on good ground. Don't be too busy to give out a gospel tract. You never know whom you may miss, and you can't tell who is good ground and who is stoney ground just by looking at them - only God knows that.

.

The Biker in Home Depot
11/28/2005

Several years ago, we decided to add a 3rd bedroom/"Prophet's Chamber" onto our first home (see II Kings 4:8-11), to be able to house missionaries, evangelists, preachers, and other friends when they are in our area for church meetings, etc.

We needed to go to Home Depot to pick up some building supplies. When we found the first section that had some of the items we needed, there was a long-haired biker-type guy standing there also deciding which items to purchase.

Immediately, the Lord brought to mind an evangelist that we know who was saved out of a life as a national officer for the Toledo, Ohio, chapter of "The Outlaws" motorcycle gang. This evangelist, Bro. David Spurgeon, of Charity Baptist Church in Beavercreek, Ohio, has written his testimony in tract form with "before" and "after" (his conversion) pictures on the front of it.

It was as if the Lord was strongly compelling me to give this man at Home Depot a David Spurgeon tract. If you are a soul winner (or even if you are not), you know that irrepressible feeling! Sometimes it comes at (seemingly) the most inopportune times or during the most uncomfortable circumstances--or so the devil would have us to believe.

Sometimes we, like Moses, try to think up all these creative reasons why we can't talk to someone about the Lord at this time, e.g., "But, Lord, I just know if I try to give this burly biker guy, with the pony tail longer than mine, a gospel tract (especially one with Spurgeon's picture on it), he's going to take offense and bite my face off! I know--maybe I don't have any more in my purse? Surely, I can give him anything but the Spurgeon tract?!"

Of course, you already know that "As the Lord guides, He provides" and I did find that particular tract in my purse. Maybe the guy will be more receptive, seeing it is coming from a woman. After sending up a quick prayer flare and making sure I had my husband nearby for "back-up," I thought up a good "icebreaker" question as an excuse to approach him. Then, as politely and cheerfully as I could muster, I asked, "Excuse me, sir, could you tell me where I might find drywall and plywood?" After he answered my question I said, "I like your vest (aka: motorcycle club ‘colors’). I have some friends that were in a couple of different motorcycle clubs both here and in Ohio. ABC News Primetime did a short segment a couple years ago about one of them. This pamphlet tells about it. It's an interesting story. I think you'll like it." He took one look at Bro. Spurgeon's picture on the tract and said, "Hey, cool! This guy looks like me! Thanks!" (Wow! No face biting, as the devil would have had me believe!) Then he said, "Is this the same guy--both pictures?" I told him, "They are pictures of before and after the Lord had saved him. The Lord totally changed his life and mine, too, and He can do the same for you!" He said, "Thank you. I'll read this," and went on his way.

I shudder to think of how close I was to not obeying the Lord's leading. Just because we write this column doesn't mean that we are the epitomes of perfection and 100% faithfulness in witnessing. We sometimes struggle with it too. It helps to recognize that the devil is the one who gives us all the bogus excuses for not witnessing, as he is trying to keep us from warning the lost of the judgment to come. Remember that John 8:44 says that "he is a liar and the father of it." Don't listen to him!

In this situation, this biker's reaction was exactly opposite of what I was expecting. Actually, he was quite friendly toward me! Bikers, unlike "religious" lost people, are more easily convinced of sin, because they already admit that they are sinners. Usually our fears of witnessing are just within our own mind and are totally unsubstantiated. Even on the rare occasions that someone does react rudely, just recognize it as Satan's ploy to discourage you from further witnessing and count it all joy to have "suffered" the minimal "persecution" that may rarely befall us in this great, free nation of ours! This is nothing compared to our saved brethren in communist countries who are truly being persecuted and tortured for their faith. If we do not utilize our religious freedom, we will lose it.

In our next column we will talk about one incident where I was not faithful to give a tract to a certain person and how God dealt with me about it. Once again, we pray that you will learn from our successes as well as from our failures and mistakes.

Tract Tip: If the Lord is leading you to give someone a tract, but you are unsure how to approach them, think of a question to ask them, as an icebreaker (even if you already know the answer to it. For example, ask for directions to the highway or where you would find a certain item at the store in which both of you are shopping, etc.). Then, after they answer your question, cheerfully thank them for their help, give them a tract and say something like, "Now here is something to help you, too!" If you are really bold and the person appears to have the time, you may want to briefly explain what the tract is about and strike up a conversation with them. Be sure to smile and be cheerful. They won't want what you have if you are a sourpuss or you have a bad case of the mullygrubs. Remember, Jude 22 says, "...and some having compassion, making a difference." Compassion makes a difference!

The Biker in McDonald's
01/16/2006

Please excuse us as we preempt our regularly scheduled column/story for this one, which is of special interest and somewhat related to the last article about passing out a David Spurgeon tract. Our regularly scheduled article, which we alluded to last month, will appear next month.

We had something unusual happen to us recently. Last week (Wed. Dec. 20th) we drove a family from our church to the Detroit Metropolitan Airport at 5am and afterward stopped at a McDonald's restaurant nearby for breakfast. While we were sitting there, this guy walked in and sat 2 tables over from us and started eating his breakfast. We went over and gave him a David Spurgeon (biker) tract and said, "Here's something for you to read while you are eating". He proceeded to read the entire tract! That is not a short tract either. A few minutes later he got up and left and it didn't look like the tract went into the garbage, but we couldn't be sure. We left just after he did.

It turns out that he was parked in the parking spot next to ours and was pulling out of the space as we walked out. When he saw us approach our car, he pulled back into his parking space and rolled his window down to talk to us! He said, "You know, it is really kind of funny that you should give me this paper. I just got one similar to it a few days ago and I am a national officer in a nationwide motorcycle club, 'The Avengers'. I can't believe I got these twice in less than a week!" He asked if we were from around here (probably because the Spurgeon tract is from Ohio), and we said we used to live here, but have since transferred out of the area.

He said, "My wife and I were just talking this morning before I left for work, that we should start taking the kids to church." I told him that obviously the LORD is trying to 'speak' to him, and that I hope he listens before HE has to do something drastic to get his attention, as HE had to do with Bro. Spurgeon. I said, "Not only do your kids need to go to church, but you and your wife do too, and we know of a good church nearby." We gave him directions to Prayer Baptist Church in Westland, Michigan which was just down the road. I told him how the LORD changed Bro. Spurgeon's life and HE could do the same for him.

He said, "I used to go to a nondenominational Protestant church when I was a kid growing up. You want to know why I quit going there?" I could probably figure it out, but was afraid to ask. He said, "Because there were so many hypocrites in the church!" (Surprise!?) I wholeheartedly agreed with him and said, "Of course there are hypocrites in the church! All of us are hypocrites in some respect or another! But, I wouldn't go to hell for a bunch of hypocrites, or for even just one! Name me one person you would go to hell for? I wouldn't go to hell for anyone!" I continued to tell him that just because a mouse is in the cookie jar, that doesn't make him a cookie. Lots of people in our churches today are just "playing church" and are not really saved. That's kind of dumb to go to hell for someone like that!" He said that he did "profess to be saved" when he was younger, but just sort of got away from church." I said, "Then you are just like those people that you are accusing of being a hypocrite then?" You could see him thinking.........I said, "You need to get saved or get right and back into church (only you know which), because you can't help your wife and family if you aren't "in" yourself. You said you have kids. Did you know that the Bible says that you, as the parent, will be held personally responsible, by God, for whether your children are shown the way to heaven or not?" He sat there dumbfounded for a moment and said, "Uh, I, uh, never thought of it...like that before." I said, "Obviously, God is trying to get a hold of your heart to help you and your family. I hope you get right and get into church and start serving Him."

Twice during our conversation he asked me to repeat the directions to PBC. It sounded like he was really kicking around the idea of going! What's really strange is that, this guy didn't look like your typical biker! I have no idea why I chose the Spurgeon tract to give to him. He was clean cut, short hair, and I think he may work at UPS, since he had a clean brown work uniform on, and there was a UPS warehouse not too far up the road nearby. I was able to get his first name. Please be praying for "Scott". I've been trying to talk to some friends at PBC to see if they may have noticed a new guy and his family as visitors, but how do I describe him specifically and know for sure? Only the LORD knows and I can only pray for them.

Then, on Christmas Sunday we were visiting a friend's church, "Bad Bob" Nogalski', pastor of Victory Baptist in Clarkston, Michigan, and told him about this incident. Bro. Bob is an ex-biker who the Chic tract, "Bad Bob" was written about (see http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0021/0021_01.asp ).
He gave us some cards with his contact information, his website ( www.victory-baptist.net ) , and plan of salvation on it so that if we ever run in to Scott, or anyone like him again, we could give one to him. His website has a picture of his old Harley-Davidson and his testimony on it too. That will definitely catch a biker's interest! I wish we had had one of these cards when we ran into Scott the other day, but the LORD knows where to find him again, even if I don't!

We went back to pick up our friends from Detroit Metro Airport on Dec. 30th, and we also made another stop at that same McDonald's restaurant, around the same time of day, to see if we would run into Scott again. This time we were armed with Bro. Bob Nogalski's business card, tracts from the church we referred him to, and some other things to give him if he showed up. Unfortunately, he did not show up, but the LORD has his number and knows how to get a hold of him, even if we don't. We have talked to some people at Prayer Baptist in Westland (where we directed him to go) but our friends there said they hadn't noticed any visitors similar to his description. We think the LORD is working on him and will compel him to go sometime, if he hasn't already (maybe we just don't know it yet).

It scares me to think of what would have happened (or what wouldn't have happened) if I had not obeyed the LORD in giving this man a tract. At the very least I would have robbed myself of a great blessing, but at the most, I could have caused someone to miss a gospel message, prepared by the LORD just for them!

Tract tip: Once again, looks can be deceiving. Don't be discouraged either way, from giving someone a tract. You never know when it will fall on good ground that the LORD has been tilling before you came along!