Gary Brooks’ Testimony

I was born at Fort Riley, Kansas in 1970. My father was in the Army at the time so we moved around a lot. When I was little, I attended Catechism in the Catholic Church and received my necessary requirements such as my First Communion and Confirmation. I didn’t have a true understanding of those ordinances at this point. As I grew older I didn’t go to church at all unless I was invited to one, which was not very often. I went to high school at Medford High School in Massachusetts and graduated in 1989 and joined the Army to follow in my Dad’s footsteps.

I was stationed in Alaska for three years. I enjoyed Alaska while I was there. As a soldier without Jesus in his life, I would go out and party on weekends and get drunk and led a very sinful lifestyle. I am grateful I never got involved in drugs though. My conception of God at that time was very distorted due to a lack of knowledge. I didn’t have a personal relationship with Him or know how to have one. I thought I was all right because I received the sacraments when I was little.

When I was in Alaska I met a girl at a mall in Anchorage and we married in June of 1994. My concept of marriage at this point was distorted. I really didn’t know what marriage was about nor did I care to learn because I was very selfish. We argued a lot and didn’t know how to talk to each other. Well, my tenure up in Alaska had come to an end and it was time to move on. The Army stationed me at Fort Meade, Maryland. We argued practically the whole way to Maryland and after we moved. In the latter part of 1994 she got fed up and left me. She filed for a divorce in Alaska and it became final in 1995.

During the time we were apart, I became very depressed and a little suicidal. I thought I had let God down, who I didn’t even know, and felt like a tremendous failure in life. Thank God I had a boss in the Army that was a born-again Christian. He attended a Bible-believing church near post. He knew of my despair and estrangement from my wife and invited me to his church around February of 1995.

I heard the gospel message of how Jesus loved me so much that no matter what I had done in my past He wanted to forgive me and be a part of my life. He wanted a personal relationship with me. When it came time to go to the altar to give my life to Jesus I did not hesitate; so I went to the altar and confessed my sins to God and asked Jesus into my life. I became born-again and for the first time in my life I felt peace and true joy and knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I had a personal relationship with my Heavenly Father who loved me so much. I was forgiven and washed in His blood.

After my conversion, I tried to make amends with my ex-wife and told her of my experience, but she did not want to reconcile. She proceeded with the divorce and in July of 1995 it was final. But I continued faithful to the Lord and continued in my spiritual walk with Christ.

The Lord has really blessed my life and changed my destiny. I met my beautiful wife I have now in 1997 and got married on April 24^th, 1999. The Lord restored the years the locust have eaten and has blessed my wife and me tremendously. He has called me to be an evangelist and I have been living for my Savior ever since.

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