Alan: Trying to get his life back on track

What an incredible day this has been! Pastor Ron Wesley spent much of the day with me on the streets of Durham, witnessing and praying with many people who were lost and bound by the power of Satan.


One of the men we prayed with today was Alan. As we greeted Alan and made eye contact with him, it was as though we might have none each other. Alan told me that he had been to the Bible meetings in the park for the past two Wednesdays, and although he hadn’t given any public response, he had decided it was time to "get his life back on track."

Alan shared his story with us. He was born and grew up in New York City. He had enjoyed a decent life, grew up, got married, had a good job, and was involved in his church. As time went on, Alan got careless with his life and began indulging in things he knew were not right. In the course of time, problems developed in the marriage and Alan and his wife split up. This bothered Alan, but not enough to cause him to bring his life back in order so he continued to live life on his own terms. The result was that things went from bad to worse. The bright spot was that he wife decided that she was ready to give the marriage another chance. She moved to the Durham area, got a job and a place to stay, and invited Alan to come and join her. He did, but because he was still living a self-absorbed, out-of-control life, it was only a short time before the marriage had failed; this time is was permanent.

Now, things really went downhill for Alan. He found himself without a wife and family, without a job or a home, and without a purpose for his life. He has lived this way for more than ten years. "But I’m ready for all of that to change," Alan announced. I’m finally doing something about it. He named several support groups he had joined to help him with his addictions and his inability to control his anger.

As Alan continued, it became obvious that this wasn’t his first attempt to rehabilitate himself. He had started this process again and again. He had enrolled in programs, participated in groups, applied many techniques and methods to try to get his life in order and had failed each time. "What is the missing ingredient here?" Well, Alan said maybe he hadn’t really tried hard enough. Or maybe he hadn’t really gotten into the right program yet. But the answer was clear from his conversation: Alan had been trying in his own strength to do what only God can do. It takes the power of God to set us free.

So, we asked Alan, "Are you ready to admit that you can’t free yourself from the bondage that is on your life? And are you ready to turn to God for deliverance and cleansing?" And, without hesitation, he answered, "Absolutely.""Then, let’s pray," I said and as we began to pray, Alan humbly came to Christ, admitting his helplessness to change himself and asking to be cleansed, delivered, and healed by the power of God. As the three of us stood there, hand-in-hand, calling on the Lord, the Holy Spirit touched Alan and he was instantly and visibly changed by God’s power and grace.

Sometimes I wish they were all this easy.