When Gary Graham started an entertainment company with his wife, Kathleen, he had no idea that they would one day leave it all behind to follow Jesus Christ.
Over the years, they have been members of several different Christian churches—and even New Age faiths; although they were aware that something was missing in their search for truth, they didn’t know how to find it except through their regular church attendance. But they would soon come to learn a deeper dimension of commitment to Christ.
On a day like any other, a man came to their home handing out flyers for an upcoming Bible prophecy seminar. Gary was not home at the time, but Kathleen was. The man was the pastor of a church located just down the street. Kathleen admitted to the pastor that she was not interested, but she took the pamphlet knowing Gary would be.
The two of them led very busy lives. Their business—doing sound, lighting, and audio-visual production work—was a big undertaking; they employed several dozen people. In addition, they were raising their children, ages three, eight, and nine at the time. They were working nearly 80 hours a week, yet they still struggled with debt and worry.
It was several days before Gary ever had a chance to read the flyer; three different times his wife decided to throw it away, but she always stopped as she remembered the pastor asking, “Would you please give it to your husband?”
A New Dimension
In his efforts to understand the book of Revelation, Gary had been reading many books by popular Christian authors. Without fail, he could not make sense of their teachings when he compared them to the Bible. So when he read the flyer and its promises to help him understand such topics as Armageddon, 666, and the mark of the beast, he hoped to finally find answers to questions that had troubled him for some time. Providentially, his work schedule was clear that opening Friday night.
Gary remembers well the first message of the Amazing Facts prophecy series, “The Millennial Man,” and how enthralled he was by it. He knew immediately that it was the truth. He kept attending the meetings and reading the Amazing Facts Study Guides that he received each night. Afterward, he and his wife and children completed all the Study Guides together. Gary recalls how blessed his family has been as a result: “My children have all had the experience of keeping the Sabbath and going to church schools,” he says with gratitude.
Moreover, he and his wife were blessed in their professional lives in ways they did not expect. Their entertainment business was always active on the weekends, and there was no realistic way of closing down every aspect of the business so they could keep the Sabbath in every way possible, including not employing others to work during holy time. After struggling about this in prayer, they made the decision to sell the business. They walked away from their 16-year investment with nearly nothing, only some minor equipment.
God honored their sacrifice!
Kathleen explored new business opportunities and was able to open a franchise fitness center without compromising the Sabbath; it was not open on Saturdays! Gary, too, was led by God to greater blessings. He interviewed with a company that manufactures and installs stage curtains and rigging equipment around the world. The supervisor told him he would never need to work another weekend—and he also paid Gary more than he had been making on “an owners’ salary”! God led both Gary and Kathleen to greater prosperity and freedom without Sabbath conflicts because they were willing to follow Him and trust His lead.
Letting it Shine
Following his baptism, Gary was called to teach Sabbath School at his local church. One Saturday, Gary saw his children running around outside the classrooms. He learned that they didn’t have a teacher that day, and frequently didn’t, so Gary stepped up and began teaching the youth on Sabbath—using the Amazing Facts Study Guides and Storacles of Prophecy Bible lessons. He contiues to teach a Sabbath School class called “Amazing Facts Bible School,” rotating between the Study Guides and Storacle Lessons. After a student completes one of the series, he or she receives a framed Amazing Facts Certificate of Completion diploma. It’s been a very successful program! Today, Gary continues to look for opportunities to share the truth he’s found.
When he recalls his days before finding Amazing Facts, Gary suffered from what he calls “religious confusion.” More often than not, he felt perplexed by a pastor’s explanation of the Bible, rather than enlightened, as varying interpretations of the same passage would contradict one another and the Bible itself. “In all the churches we have attended, I have never seen anyone study the Bible like this church; line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little,” he explains.
Gary has encouragement for believers who want to share their faith but don’t know how: get, study, and use the resources available at Amazing Facts. “As the teacher, all I need to do is ask the questions in the Storacle lessons. Anyone should be able to do it!” He knows the Lord will bless other people’s search for truth just as He did for Gary’s family. “This is our testimony of how one family seeking for truth overcame by the Blood of the Lamb.”