I got my first guitar on my twelfth birthday and in Junior High, I put together my first band with some of my buddies from school. About that same time, the popular press, TV and Magazines all said GOD WAS DEAD! I think it started in Europe and spread quickly to the USA. It didn't matter to me however—I ELVIS WAS MY GOD! My band got our union cards and started making some "real" money playing Top-40 Songs in dance halls, ballrooms and nightclubs even though half of us were underage. I found myself in jail a few times and my parents disowned me. I was a total disgrace to them so I moved out. HEY, I was sixteen. I could take care of myself. We had a good band and even got to play That band, The Starfires are currently in the Rock & Roll Halls of Fame in three different states: Iowa, South Dakota and Minnesota. One of my drummer buddies from high school was BUDDY MILES. I heard he was playing with Jimi Hendrix out in California so I packed my guitar and a duffel bag of clothes and hitched a ride to California to look him up. I wanted him to introduce me to HENDRIX. HENDRIX WAS MY GOD! I didn’t quite make it all the way to California though, I got stuck in Arizona living on a hippie commune for a while, experimenting with all kinds of different drugs.
I WORSHIPED them.
I finally made it to Hollywood in 1970 and all the newspaper headlines blasted: DRUGS KILL JIMI HENDRIX AT 24—OVERDOSE! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO... HE CAN’T BE DEAD— As fate would have it, a friend introduced me to the Doors' equipment manager and knowing they didn't have a bass player, I thought maybe I could become their new bass player. Suddenly, I had a NEW GOD and without any hesitation, I joined the In 1971, Jim Morrison took his girlfriend Pam to Paris for a little vacation—but they never came back. They found him DEAD in his Paris hotel bath tub. My Door of opportunity suddenly slammed shut. OHH NOOOOOOOOO.... NOT AGAIN!!!!
I tried everything to quit drugs... but nothing worked. I didn't want to die like Hendrix and
He hopped into my van and
very first thing he said was, "Dude, DO YOU KNOW JESUS?” "No" he interrupted, "I didn't ask if you knew ABOUT him, I asked if you knew HIM—PERSONALLY!" "PERSONALLY?" I said shrugging my shoulders "How can I know someone who died two thousand years ago personally?" "DUDE" he chuckled, "Remember Easter?" (face-palm to the forehead) "Oh Yeah.....EASTER!" He told me that Jesus was ALIVE and that His Holy Spirit was right there seated in my van with us . "No way." "Yah Way." "Right here?" "Um-hmm!" "Really?" "Yeah Really!" He said he was on his way to his weekly bible study/prayer group meeting and he invited me to go with him—I was curious—so I went. That night, I made a major decision. Almost immediately, a million pounds was lifted off of me.
When I went to quit my band, the drummer said mockingly, "Awww... you're just using Jesus as a CRUTCH to get off drugs." "YEAH—EXACTLY!!! (I almost became the first martyr in my family line.) My new Jesus-Freak friends told me that I needed to go buy a Bible. I wanted to see how it all ends!!! Guess what...
WE WIN!!!!
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