Forgive me at first hand, this is a bit long....
Do you ever get the days where you get a sudden epiffany? How clear do they seem to you? In my own little world that I'm in I would call those ideas revelations.
The day was May 26, 1985, the time was 1:30 pm. At Victoria Hospital in London Ontario. My parents had just recieved terrible news concerning me.
The doctor said words that would shake anybody to their knees, but not parents.
Doctor: It seems like your baby boy has suffered serve damage to the left side of his brain.
In fact my parents (father especially) used this news as movitaion, all the doctors that we all saw, said one thing. This boy will never lead a nornmal life. He will never walk so don't even try... This news infuriated my dad to accept the diagnosis.
Years passed and I became aware of my differences, I hated , I never could be the quote on quote normal child that I wanted to be. I never was the strongest, the tallest, I had to wear smaller clothes than usual for my age, because I could never grow. So I grew up with plenty of hatered for the world and my differences...
I was determined to lead a "normal life" So I began to watch wrestling to escape the pain of living with terrible burden. Infact there was a time that I was acting like the wrestlers I saw on TV.
Thats right could you imagine me having all the wrestling weights , which were blue and working out to the Hulk Hogan excercise cassette tapes. I did everything I could to catch up with rest of the world.
At the age of 14, I came face to face with the reality of death in the loss of my grandmother, before that I just thought everyone just lived forever.
After my granmothers death, I was pretty depressed and wanted to search for a reason why that had happen. Thats where Kristin came in.
At the time I didn't know her but we had a friend in common so I sent her a random message. She was actually pretty nice about everything. She introduced me to music that I now can't live without hearing music from Kutless, Casting Crowns, Rebecca St. James, Chris Tomlin and many others.
From the word of God she sugguested that I join a website called TDDM which stands for Teen Daily Devotional Ministry. She was like my counsoler to me she was so kind. From that site I met my dear friend Silvie. She had such a passion for Jesus it resembled in the way she spoke to me. She is a person who assuming overwhelming happiness.
In Addition I made numerous friends from the sites ministry site. As time went though, I got pulled away , my friedns thought I was just a bit off my rocker. It became too hard to be a Christian.
So I faded fast as a clump of sand stives through your fingers I was barely gripping the concepts being taught to me. I would be at home, where it would resemble a battlefield more than an actual family.
Years later I asked to leave home and asked to live with other family members. The arguements at home at this point got very intese and very bloody. It usually ended with me crawling on the floor, or in a ball covering up.
It turned out the most of the family I lived refused to look at the situation from my point of view. I just wanted all of their viewpoints and opinions out of the era of the time of 50's .
As a child I would be watching wrestling and then they would go to a shoot interview featuring The Undertaker and or The Ultimate Warrior.
When this happened I would leap in the air and hide behind the living room couches and plug my ears.
Reguardless of that fact I would never be short on things to say , I would stand a mere 3"5 and weigh 50-60 pounds at 14. Yes you heard me right I really did weigh that much.
Which is why I loved wrestling so much , because I could focus on entertainment and for a few moments maybe a hour or two I could just enjoy life without having to be involved in fight with my parents or worry about my eatting disorder.
I still say that The Ultimate Warrior was just a bit crazy for me. But on the other hand The Undertaker did make me cry when I saw him at a random event at the CNE. He appeared out of nowhere walking to the ring, everything went dark and I was freaked... I honestly thought he was the boogyman. (the actual one.)
You can judge for yourself as I will post some videos of the two.
Anyway as time passed the fear of The giant of a man known as the Undertaker passed
Days before I left for college, I forgave my mother and father for how they abused me. They laughed and I went off to college.
I started at Conestoga in Kitchener under journalism, I did this because I loved to write. I got out of Journalism because I saw this news thing invovling THE WWE and CNN. I decided from that point on that even though I was a good journalism student, I wanted no part of that business.
I wasn't into ruining people reps. I had too much respect for wrestling superstars , heck I grew up watching them from a very young age. Most people childhood hereos would be Batman, Superman, Heman, Spiderman , members of the Fantasic 4. I had my heroes, They were Hulk Hogan, Brett Hart, Sting and even Rocky Bollea himself.
Frankly wrestlers known as The Ultimate Warrir and The Undertaker scared the living daylights out of me.
As I mentioned before it got extremely hard for me to be a Christian. I let it go really I went to college and enjoyed much of the party scene. It was a way for me to be cool, but one night I overstepped my bounds amd I would say, I was all partied out.
I was invovled in a drinking contest, and without a word I drank a mickie of rum and coke in under a minute. (No word of a lie) I ended up on the floor, I was picked up by friends and after throwing up numerous times, I somehow crawled on my stomach using every ounce of my shaking cold body to reach a phone. To call 911.
I did and I was treated for alcohol poisoning. That was the scariest night of my life, much scarier than the Undertaker. I know the people that carried my limp body to my room was quite scared, I was quickly freezing and my body temperature was dropping fast.
I was taken in the emerge by Grand River and was treated for alcohol posioning. I forgot to mention I also had 2 yes 2 thermal blankets on me to keep me warm and for my body temperature to regulate.
After that night I had begged my parents that I needed to move from this place that I was living in which was the local residence. It was too much for me. This caused my parents to have distress, mainly because at the res there was secruity, Reguardless of how my parents felt, I was presistant that I needed to move away.
When I moved I moved in a perfect area with a church a six minute walk from my house. Oh and it also a grocery store in the same area with a Dairy Queen and Tim Hortons in the same distance from eachother.
I went began to attend church and I enjoyed it infact that it was one of the places where I would feel like I was home. I could really find peace in Christ and Church. Along with the music I enjoyed it immensely. I got introduced to a rapper KJ52 (a Chtistian rapper, who became like my mentor. I became so involved with Christian music that I appllied for radio with dreams of going to work at Faith FM. I didn't get in but I was still hungry for God.
Reguardless of that , I still had my passion for music and got so invvolved it was like I had a plan for mysel without really consulting God on it... Now it is evidant that I LOVE TO TALK. I love God and I wanted to make a huge impact and give him praise for everything that I went through, and through it alll, I was very happy that Christ still called to me.
As I said I was into rap music, and that would have to be because of wresttler/rapper John Cena who wrote some killer lyrics. I still listen to some of Cena to remind myself of where I have been and what it took me to get here. Even I need some reminding now and than.
I now have grown so much in Christ, seeking and making friends. I can say that Krista and Amanda as sisters and friends and now my sisters in Christ have a very big impact, because they constantly speak to me and proudly testify about Jesus.
I would attribute people like Kristin , Melanie, KJ52, Casting Crowns, Kutless, my brother Angelo, Nathan Innes, Frank Struth, Silvie Jones, Reva Weeks, John Cena, Sting, the Hulkster, Taker, as being pilars to myself needing Christ.
Why would I consider them my piiars that lead me to faith, well its simple really I seeked foundation. My dad who is a brick layer, once said to me ,it is hard for a house to stand if they have no foundation.
What I believe I must do now is preach the gospel and become a pastor , use the gift of my speech to make disciples.
Mathew 28:19 Therefore go to them baptizing them in the name of the father , son and the holy ghost.
In a way if I was a tree and Jesus was the gardener people like John Cena , Jesus, Kristin , Silvie, Reva, Nathan, Taker KJ52, Frank Struth Casting Crowns, Sting and Hulk Hogan are my vines and I am the branch - *used as a metafor. John 15:1,2,3
I attritube all the praises to Jesus for alloing to come to him and feel not alone with the spirit of Jesus that lives within me, feel more alive than ever.
" The Undertaker" once said "Sometimes its hell trying to get to heaven." I think that is nicely put and thats the story of how I came from bottom of the pit to pastor.
Frank asked me a while ago if that desire of becoming a pastor still exist. I can say this. IT DOES, IT DOES....
Here is the difference between John Cena and KJ52
The Contrast is cool which why I love rap music, I don't listen rap for the beats but for the message being sung.....
John Cena - Right Now
The contrast between Undertaker and Warior - who is more scary?
The Undertaker
The Ultimate Warrior
When talking and making a devotional which discusses wrestling I would remise if I didn't include this video.....
"Anthony"
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