Mike Norman, a New England man in his fifties, will remember the weeks from Labor Day to Election Day 2008 not so much for the economic or political headlines as for his new birth in Jesus Christ. Mike (not his real name) was raised in Christian Science, wandered away in his late teens, came back for another try a decade ago, then left forever without finding another spiritual anchor for his life.

Along the way, he watched both parents die fairly young — and needlessly, as it seemed to him — under Christian Science treatment, lost his first wife to alcoholism, raised their children, and built a business. In early September this year, something drew Mike to the Christian Way website, and from there to this site. He emailed a couple of us to learn more, and from this an acquaintance sprang up over the ‘Net and by phone. He told us of his hunger to really know God, saying, “I feel about eight years old spiritually.”

Mike began reading the Bible with new eyes, digging into books like Lee Strobel’s “The Case for Christ” and John Stott’s “Basic Christianity,” learning to pray daily, and visiting local churches with Kelly, his current wife, looking for something that seemed right for them. On the last weekend in October, Mike felt the time had come to give his life entirely to Jesus. You can imagine the rejoicing with which we at Ananias.org received this news.

Mike’s initial email to us included the following comments:

The biggest problem I think I have that I learned as a child is that problems aren’t real and as a result I tend to procrastinate and live in denial far too much of the time. I think this has caused some significant problems in my life – and continues to do so. In terms of Christianity, I definitely consider myself a Christian but I only attend church on Christmas and Easter and frequently try out different churches. I am happily remarried and have a successful business but I do feel that there is a void in my life.

We told him that such a “void” was something we too had experienced, as have countless others before they came to know the Lord. It is the “God-shaped hole in each person’s heart” about which St. Augustine wrote 1600 years ago. His latest email about the climactic autumn day at a nearby college, said in part:

God continues to call me to His service and, in fact, on Saturday afternoon, about 30 minutes after completing the penultimate chapter in “Basic Christianity” and having been challenged by Dr. Stott to make a decision about Christ, I knelt in front of a beautiful pond on the campus and recited the prayer that Dr. Stott recommended. I accepted the invitation to “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved”(Acts 16:31). I had begun to feel pretty certain that I was going to be born again and was patiently waiting for the right time – “Thy will be done.” I had left Kelly with her son and was walking alone, thinking about the fact that I had one more chapter of Stott to read but it was only to be read by believers in Christ. I knew I had become one but I still had to physically kneel before Him and declare my commitment to Him; to answer His knock on the door that had been barred to His entry all these years and welcome Christ into my life forever. It was a beautiful, glorious moment and I am aware that my life will never be the same.

If you are in circumstances at all similar to those of Mike Norman, as a result of following Christian Science or any other non-biblical teaching, and if you would like to experience the life-changing new relationship and fresh start that he described, we invite you to get in touch with us. We’re here for you.