My Life B.C. --Then Jesus Came with Signs and Wonders

By Donald E Emrick

This is an autobiographic collections of stories about my life with God. Join me to see how God has been faithful and miraculous in my life both in humorous and poignant ways. From a young age I experienced God's hand guiding, protecting, and helping me to live a worthwhile life. I hope these stories will inspire you to seek God for yourself and

• Language: English
• Publisher: Emrick Publishing
• Release date: May 10, 2021
• ISBN: 9781639016860

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© 2020 by Don Emrick

All rights reserved. This book, nor any portion thereof, may be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations, or book reviews.

Scriptures used in this book:

Noted as NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®

Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®

Noted as MEV are taken from the Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014

by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.

Noted as NKJV are taken from the Holy Bible, the New King James Version®.

Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Noted as TPT are taken from the Holy Bible, The Passion Translation®.

Copyright © 2017 by Broad Street Publishing® Group, LLC.

Used by permission. All rights reserved. the- PassionTranslation.com.

Noted as MSG are taken from the Holy Bible, The Message (MSG)

Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson.

Cover Photos: whooping crane, Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge, jaguarundis, a buffalo roundup

Publisher’s Cataloging-In-Publication Data Block

Emrick, Donald (Donald Eugene), 1948 - Title: My life B.C. ... : then Jesus came with signs and wonders /

Don Emrick. My life before Christ

[Second edition.]. | Kearney, NE : Emrick Publishing, [2020]

Includes bibliographical references.

Identifiers: ISBN: 9780578681108 | LCCN: 2021907550

LCSH: Emrick, Donald (Donald Eugene), 1948- | Witness bearing (Christianity) | Wildlife managers—Biography. | Wildlife management—Personal narratives. | Wildlife management areas—Personal narratives. | God—Knowableness. | Jesus Christ—Knowableness. | Miracles. | Signs and symbols—Religious aspects—Christianity. | LCGFT: Biographies. | Religious materials.

Classification: LCC: BV4520 .E47 2020 | DDC: 248.5/092—dc23

For additional copies, contact:

Don Emrick

5511 Buffalo Avenue • Kearney, NE 68845

[e-mail]

Dedication

Idedicate this book to my wonderful Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, the Source of all life, without whom I would not be here to write this book.

And to my wonderful wife of 48 years, thank you for leading me to our Savior.

about the author

Don is a man who has always had a love for the outdoors and nature. He currently lives with his wife of 48 years in Nebraska.

introduction

In 2017 I attended a program at The Spirit of Life Church called Discover Track. The first session introduced a series of questions to help the attendees reflect on how they had ended up in Kearney, Nebraska, from where they had been born.

Later at the 2018 Full Gospel Annual Rally, I was told through a gift of the word of knowledge that the Lord wanted me to write a book about my life and how the Lord had come into my life. At that time, I started the work of putting this manuscript together!

During the writing of this book, the Lord brought many circumstances and healings to my remembrance that had occurred in my life that I had completely forgotten, which convinces me all the more that Father God is guiding my steps, as He does for everyone who will listen. He truly is Abba—a Hebrew term of endearment. To put into today’s plain English, saying Abba is equivalent to a small child’s saying, Daddy, I love you for God truly is my Abba—Daddy.

Table of Contents

Title Page

1 - Where it all started

2 - Life With My New Family

3 - Starting Again At A New School And Family

4 - Back To The Grandparents

5 - Life Continued On The Farm

6 - No Sports Allowed

7 - Kicked Out Of Sunday School

8 - All For Nothing

9 - Finding Out The Truth

10 - The Truth Continues To Come Out

11 - Finally, The Lord Is Revealed

12 - Regressing A Bit

13 - Continuing The Saga

14 - Just Another Adventure During My Navy Days

15 - The Last Year Of My Naval Career

16 - Finding The Love Of My Life

17 - Family Life

18 - Post-Hole Diggers

19 - Blessings

20 - Snakes, Snakes, And More Snakes

21 - Sighting Rare Species

22 - More Rare Species

23 - The Truth About Lead Shot

24 - Back To The Land Of Winters

25 - My First And Last Buffalo Roundup

26 - Meeting Jesus

27 - Miracles, Signs And Wonders

28 - More Signs & Wonders

29 - Baptism In The Holy Spirit

30 - Witnessing To Others

31 - Spiritual Warfare

32 - The Final Transfer

33 - Words Of Knowledge

34 - The Perfect Home

35 - At Home In Kearney

36 - What Do They Gain?

37 - My Next Career

38 - My Job As A Woodworker

39 - Another Miracle

40 - Praise And Worship

41 - Were You There?

42 - Finding The Ark Of The Covenant

43 - Replacement Theology

44 - Forcing Israel To Give Up Their Land

45 - Perseverance Under Persecution

46 - When The Perfect Comes

47 - Easter Or Resurrection Day

48 - Divisions In The Church

49 - Too Many Translations

50 - God’s Word Is True

51 - Evolution And Flying Saucers

52 - Religion vs. Christianity

53 - Nonsense Of The Unbelievers

54 - Faith And A Ten-Point Buck

55 - Discernment

56 - Fun In The Fellowship

57 - The Christian Life Program

58 - The River Story

59 - More Miracles

60 - God Provides

61 - Faith And Christian Fellowship

62 - A Brother In The Lord

63 - The God-Mobile

64 - Fame Or Infamous?

65 - Bible Study

66 - Finding My Brother

67 - The Inspiration Of The Spirit

68 - What Do You Believe?

69 - More Miracles

70 - The First Man Saved Under Grace

71 - In Conclusion

Chapter 1

WHERE IT ALL STARTED

Before I was born in central Ohio on July 11, 1948, my father abandoned my mother and me. The desertion of my father would have a very negative impact on me, as some would insinuate that I had caused the abandonment—even though I was not yet born when he left. Of course, for any child to bear the pain of believing that bad things happen because of him is unconscionable. Especially is true in the case of divorced parents.

When my mother went to the hospital to give birth to me, she contracted hepatitis, a viral illness that attacks the liver. The hepatitis caused cirrhosis, scarring of the liver. When I was four, my mother passed away, culminating in my being sent to live with my mother’s maternal uncle. My uncle’s farm was located in southeast Ohio, along the banks of the Ohio River in Meigs County, near the village of Longbottom, Ohio.

Though my mother was chronically ill, I cannot remember a time when I did not attend church. I believed that Father God created the heavens and earth and that He had sent His Son, Jesus, to die for our sins. I have strongly believed this ever since I first heard it in Sunday school at a very young age. I believe my experience is indicative of what the Bible refers to when it says that God reveals Himself in His creation to all mankind. A well-documented fact is that small children have a natural and inherent belief in God.

When I was very young, I had very vivid memories of a very beautiful place that I had visited. The place was so peaceful that I wanted to go back. When I told my guardians, Uncle Frank and Aunt Mae, about this memory, they told me that I had dreamt of this place.

I insisted, I’ve been there!

It’s your vivid imagination! I was told.

So being young and quite impressionable, I believed what they said. Then after my born-again experience, I started reading other Christians’ salvation stories. I read more than one that told of others having these same experiences when they were quite young.

One story that resonated with me told of a young mother who had given birth to her second child, a girl. Her firstborn son, whom I will call Johnny, was about four years older. Johnny had told his mother stories about being in a place of indescribable beauty and peace—like mine! His mother, like my guardians, had also dismissed Johnny’s story and told him that it was his vivid imagination.

Johnny began spending an abundance of time with his baby sister and sometimes the mother could hear him talking to his sister. One day when the mother’s curiosity got the better of her, she crept in close enough to hear what he was saying. What she heard was shocking and quite remarkable.

Please, little sister, you must tell me what Heaven is like, I am starting to forget and Mom thinks it’s just my imagination!

WOW! Out of the mouth of babes! I now believe that some of God’s children have a gift for remembering where they came from and to where they are returning when they leave this world. Perhaps parents should listen more closely when the little ones start telling those stories that sound like fairy tales or when they have imaginary playmates!

On the other hand, some little ones are being visited by demonic spirits. A case in point was told by a good friend, who is a former member of our Full Gospel Men’s Fellowship. His young daughter was having bad dreams and even nightmares, and she started telling about what she was seeing, which she could only describe as little pink elephants. Then she started seeing them when she was awake.

One day after praying about his daughter’s nightmares, my friend discerned that she was being harassed by evil spirits. He prayed with her, bound, and cast out those pink elephants! After that time of prayer, his daughter was no longer bothered by the pink elephants! Parents, if your child has imaginary playmates, you would be wise to look into the matter and find out if the playmate is truly imaginary or demonic or if they think they have been to the place they are remembering. This process takes true discernment of the Spirit of God!

Chapter 2

LIFE WITH MY NEW FAMILY

As I think back, I now believe that this strong belief in God and His Son, Jesus, sustained me during my childhood, which was not without tribulation. I learned early on that I was not quite accepted as an equal part of my new family. When I was sent to live with Uncle Frank and Aunt Mae, they had three daughters of their own. Patty was about the same age as me, one cousin was almost seven years older than me, and their oldest daughter was about ten years older than me. Since Patty and I were only about three months apart in age, we got along very well. We also started school the same year. Patty and I became like bona fide siblings with all the bumps and bruises that go along with normal sibling rivalry.

Uncle Frank and Aunt Mae did not allow many do overs or second chances. I realize now that their strictness helped to shape me into the man that I am today. At the time, I thought their discipline was somewhat harsh. I also learned that the rules for me and those for the natural born in this household were a little different. As a young boy, I did not understand this favoritism, but after giving my heart to Jesus and learning about spiritual matters, I learned of a concept called favor, an intangible that you either have or do not have, and I never seemed to have anyone’s favor.

As I was growing up, I referred to favor as having luck or not having luck. But I soon realized that luck really has nothing to do with favor. I even came to the point where I believed that I was one of the unluckiest people on the face of the earth! I got in more trouble at school and at home for doing nothing than anyone I knew. I admit that I was a bit on the rowdy side, but hey, I was a boy! Looking back, I think that if Uncle Frank and Aunt Mae had had one boy instead of all girls in the family, they might have seen things from a different perspective. Multiple times those with favor would get laughed at for doing exactly what I would get in trouble for doing.

Sometimes when no one knew who to blame, they would blame me. One Sunday morning, we noticed a horrible odor when we entered the church building. Well, I thought, they surely cannot blame this one on me. How very wrong I was!

The next day, I happened to be outside when the church’s janitor came to our house. I was also the first person he encountered. In a very gruff manner, he said, I would like to speak to your Uncle Frank. After a rather heated conversation with Uncle Frank, I was called in and berated for turning on the burner of the stove in the church kitchen—the source of the terrible odor. Of course, my denying this accusation seemed to fall on deaf ears. I was very soundly chastised by the janitor, and I am certain he wished to enact some corporal punishment also. Things were somewhat different in those days, any adult other than the parents or guardians could seemingly administer verbal discipline.

Then Uncle Frank took his turn! In my case, I was always guilty until proven innocent! I was grounded, and surprisingly, he did not administer any physical punishment. After another day went by, one of my best friends in my Sunday school class went to his mother, who was also a Sunday school teacher, and told her that I could not have turned on the burners because when I got to the church, the people were already wondering about the terrible odor.

An adult’s taking an interest in the case of the Church People vs. Don seemed to make a difference. Of course, it took a child to figure out the truth! I never received an apology from the janitor or Uncle Frank. In fact, from this point on, the janitor seemed to avoid me and never looked me in the eye. This incident is only one of many that occurred during my childhood.

CAPTURING THE CHICKEN THIEF

On the lighter side, I did enjoy times of humor at Uncle Frank’s farm. We all had our share of chores on the farm, and one of mine was to take care of the young flock of chickens. Every spring Uncle Frank purchased about 400 day-old chicks that included 50 to 60 roosters and 340 to 350 hens. When the flock was about 15 weeks old, we would process them and put all of the roosters in the freezer. Of course, we would butcher them first! Yes, putting 50 live roosters in a freezer does paint a strange mental image.

One year, thieves were stealing our chickens, and one of them actually slipped into the back of the house where the freezers were and stole the frozen chickens. Uncle Frank also believed the thieves were getting into the chicken house and stealing the live chickens. He beefed up the windows on the chicken house and padlocked the only entry door. My job was to lock the door to the chicken house when they were all roosting for the night.

One evening after it was already getting dark, I remembered I hadn’t locked up the chickens. When I got to the chicken house, I could see the outline of a person in there. It appeared to me that the person was putting the chickens in a sack, preparing to steal them. I was only about eight years old, and I was so scared that I almost ran back to the house. But then I decide to be brave. I slipped up to the door, quickly closed it, attached the padlock, and locked the thief inside! I felt like a hero!

I ran back to the house yelling very loudly, Uncle Frank! Uncle Frank! Come quick! I caught the chicken thief!

Uncle Frank grabbed his revolver and a flashlight now that it was fully dark. He cautiously approached the chicken house and flashed the light inside—right into the face of Aunt Mae who was standing with her arms crossed and a less-than-happy look on her face. She was definitely not a happy camper over my catching the thief.

LIVE BAIT FOR SALE

One day Uncle Frank told me about another boy my age who had made several hundred dollars in one summer by selling fish bait (live minnows and night crawlers). I thought, I can do that too! Uncle Frank had a large water tank that he was not using, so we set it up near a hand cistern. A cistern was a large covered hole in the ground with a hand-cranked pump installed to make use of the collected water. The cistern’s water source was rain from the roofs of nearby buildings. I would pump water into the tank and then go to the nearby creek to seine minnows and keep the tank well stocked with live bait.

I then learned how to collect night crawlers, otherwise known as very large earthworms. I would go out at night with a flashlight covered with red cellophane because the worms can detect white light. Not only that, the vibrations from walking near them sent them slithering to their underground burrows. I had to learn to step quietly and cautiously and at the same time, move quickly to catch them. We lived only one mile from the entrance to Forked Run State Park, which had a large lake that was very popular for fishing.

I posted signs that read Live Bait for Sale on each end of our property so the people could see them both coming and going. I spent the entire summer collecting night crawlers and minnows. I figured if I undersold the bait house at the park, I couldn’t help but make lots of money. One car stopped the entire summer to inquire about the live bait. Did I make a lot of money? NO! I made absolutely nothing; no one wanted my minnows or night crawlers! I felt my attempt to earn money that summer was another example of the No-Favor status that seemed to plague me in my youth.

Chapter 3

STARTING AGAIN AT A NEW SCHOOL AND FAMILY

In 1957 when I turned nine, right before school started, Aunt Mae informed me I was going to West Virginia to live with my grandmother’s sister named Aunt Minnie and her husband, Uncle Jack. I wasn’t asked if I would like to go; that I was moving had already been decided. Though their homestead was only 15 miles away, as the crow flies, we had to drive 30 miles to the nearest bridge over the Ohio River at Parkersburg, West Virginia. We then traversed another 30 miles of narrow and curvy roads along the Ohio River to Uncle Jack and Aunt Minnie’s in Rockport where I would attend school.

I felt like I had entered a foreign country. Ohio allowed corporal punishment in school, but in West Virginia, the slightest infraction brought out the ubiquitous board of education as some liked to call their ever-present paddle. The Bible says that to spare the rod is to spoil the child (Proverbs 13:24), but the rod should be administered only when needed. I do believe in discipline, but accidently dropping a pencil on the floor after being told to be quiet is not a reason for corporal punishment! The standing rumor was that some of the teachers had bets as to who could administer the most whacks with the board of education. I still vividly remember one sixth grade teacher who actually used a very wide leather belt instead of a paddle. Sometimes we would hear the sound of the belt contacting the place God especially designed and the screams of the victim. I was also deathly afraid of being in that school for two more years and having that sixth grade teacher.

Rarely did I witness corporal punishment being administered to the girls—even if the girls broke the same rule as the boys. Seemingly, the teachers were afraid to paddle a girl. Oh, that we boys could have been so fortunate!

Thinking back, I still wonder why the parents put up with what the teachers felt merited corporal punishment. In no uncertain terms, I was warned, "If you get paddled at school,

Reviews for My Life B.C. --Then Jesus Came with Signs and Wonders

[Julee Pooler Yong · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The pictures are beautiful and it's fun to read about his adventures growing up. Life was not easy for him. He was a hard worker and loved nature. God blessed him with unique sightings and miracles in his life. God also blessed him with a wonderful family. I'm reading this book for the second time and enjoying it very much!