From the Dark Shadows of Life into the Son-Shine of Love: An Autobiography

By William Cicansky

Bill Cicansky highlights the trials, tribulations, and tears he faced when he turned his back on Jesus and allowed Satan to take over his life in this autobiography.

Although he now lives in the Son-shine of our Lord Jesus Christ, he suffered many dark days, including stints in prison. While he married, he and his wife, Illona, went through thirteen separations and reconciliations. Despite their trials and tribulations, they never stopped loving each other and will soon celebrate sixty years together.

They had to learn to be more patient with one another, as the Lord is patient and long-suffering with all of us. They had to learn to be more tender, as He is tender with us. They had to learn to express more love for each other, as He expresses His love to all of us—and so much more.

Join the author as he reveals how he survived a life filled with trials, troubles, and tears—and what led him to go back to Jesus, plant roots for three Baptist churches, and become a missionary to the Jewish people.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Dec 21, 2022
• ISBN: 9781664284852

William Cicansky

Bill Cicansky, a native of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, is one of twelve children. After accepting Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior at age twelve, he backslid and fell in with the wrong crowd. He went to prison, became an alcoholic, and even tried to kill himself. He ultimately repented and reconciled with Jesus, establishing three Baptist churches. He now serves the Lord as a missionary to the Jewish people. He is also the author of Will the Real Antichrist Please Stand Up! and Will the Real Devil Please Stand Up!

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Copyright © 2023 William Cicansky.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

WestBow Press

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, King James Version (Authorized Version). First published in 1611. Quoted from the KJV Classic Reference Bible, Copyright © 1983 by The Zondervan Corporation.

ISBN: 978-1-6642-8484-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-8485-2 (e)

WestBow Press rev. date: 12/20/2022

Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1Prayerful Parents

Chapter 2Childhood Carelessness

Chapter 3Seeking the Spiritual

Chapter 4Work Or Whipping

Chapter 5Carnal Companions

Chapter 6Locked & Lonely

Chapter 7Military Misgivings

Chapter 8Construction & Courtship

Chapter 9Disciplined & Distressed

Chapter 10Marriage & Misery

Chapter 11Blessed Brood

Chapter 12Building & Burning

Chapter 13Suicide & Salvation

Chapter 14Repentance & Reconciliation

Chapter 15Praying & Planting

Chapter 16Self-Will & Sadness

Chapter 17Ministry to the Misguided

Chapter 18Devilish Division

Chapter 19Double Disclosure

Chapter 20Planting & Praise

Chapter 21Blessings & Battles

Chapter 22Marriage & Merriment

Chapter 23Miracle In Manitoba

Chapter 24Salvation & Security

"In whom we have redemption through his blood,

the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace."

~ Ephesians 1:7

Introduction

Billy, someday they will hang you! As a cocky kid of 15, I was mouthing off to my Uncle Bill and even challenged him to a fight. He was right. I could have faced the death penalty in 1958. The death penalty in Canada was still in effect until 1976.

I am not proud of this story I’m about to tell you. Though I’m now living in the Son-shine of my Saviour, Jesus Christ, there were many dark shadows throughout my life which you are about to read.

After serving multiple prison sentences and a suicide attempt, I was married and later became an alcoholic that resulted in our thirteen marital separations and reconciliations during which time my wife also attempted suicide twice. We never stopped loving each other throughout the trials and tribulations, and on September 12, 2022, we will celebrate 58 years.

How did we manage to overcome a life that was rife with trials, troubles and tears? This book will explain how and why we are still together today.

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Prayerful Parents

My Father:

My father, Francis Czekanski, (Dept. of Immigration later changed his name to Frank Cicansky), was born in Romania on August 21, 1900. He tells the story growing up very poor in Romania. He heard that the streets in Canada were paved with gold. At the age of 24 he made the big move to Canada, and instead of gold on the streets, he endured troublesome and difficult times. The government of Canada was placing immigrants to work on farms in western Canada where he settled. There, in the dirt hills of Truax, Kayville, and Ormiston, Saskatchewan, he worked as a blacksmith and carpenter, building barns and houses - trades he had learned in Romania. A few years later he moved to the east side of Regina, Saskatchewan, where he continued building wagons and houses, and shoeing horses.

This district was known as garlic flats. Here you would find Romanian, Ukrainian, Hungarian, German, and Polish people who loved their garlic.

My father was a jack-of-all-trades, a master tradesman, a blacksmith, a carpenter, and a bricklayer. He was a tireless worker. During the Depression of the 1930’s when jobs were scarce, as a government relief project, he was one of over 2,000 men who widened and dredged Regina’s Wascana Lake using only their own bare hands and horse-drawn wagons. He would dig ditches for the city in winter when the ground was completely frozen to provide for our family. He and my mother together built a house in Regina which they lost due to the depression in the 1930’S.

In 1939, my father worked for an electrical contractor, Mr. Suderman, who invited him to attend some evangelistic services at Victoria Avenue Baptist Church in Regina where he trusted in Christ as his personal Saviour. My mother being so upset about this, was encouraged by her mother to leave my father. However, she never left him and within a year my mother was saved.

Then World War II broke out a few years later, and my father joined the Canadian Army in which he served for several years. After the war ended, he worked for a number of construction firms and built small houses for resale.

Growing up in our Bible-believing home, my father led our family in devotions every night.

After teaching us the Word of God, my father would give an invitation to trust Christ. I recall as a young boy of seven years old staying behind while one of my siblings, laughed at me.

My father placed his big hand on my head and prayed for me. I don’t remember what he prayed. But I’m glad he did.

My father also kept busy in his garage at the rear of our home on Victoria Avenue in Regina, Saskatchewan. He would design and build rocking horses and wagons for his grandchildren. He also built small windmills for front yards and each of us received one.

In his spare moments he would read and study the Word of God, and in ink he would write Scriptures dear to his heart on paper that was scrollable for the family, one being Psalm 130.

If I could compare my father to the Bible, I would choose Deuteronomy 6:7, and I Timothy 3:4, and Proverbs 13:24:

And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

Deuteronomy 6:7

"He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he

that loveth him chasteneth him betimes."

Proverbs 13:24

"One that ruleth well his own house, having his

children in subjection with all gravity;"

I Timothy 3:4

My Mother:

My mother was born in 1914 in Montreal, Quebec. At the age of four, her mother decided to move to Cupar, Saskatchewan, where they knew certain Romanian people. My mother attended school while my grandmother worked for a farmer.

In 1922, they relocated to Regina where my mother attended Wetmore Public School. She confessed she didn’t do very well in school, but excelled in art classes.

Poverty in her life meant she had to wear boy’s shoes because they were much sturdier than girls shoes. All of her clothing were hand-me-downs, which made her very ashamed at school because the other children would notice her clothes and would look with disdain on her. The only time she received a new dress and shoes was at Easter. During the hot summers in Regina, she had to walk barefoot. In the harsh, bitter cold Saskatchewan winters, my grandmother couldn’t afford mittens so my mom would have to pull her hands up into her coat sleeves to keep them as warm as possible.

My Mom couldn’t afford beauty salons which meant her hair was never cut or even trimmed. It was very long and difficult to maintain.

Meals were a cup of black coffee and a slice of bread for breakfast, a piece of bacon and a slice of bread for lunch, and supper might be a piece of boiled bacon with sauerkraut, or mamaliga (boiled cornmeal) and borscht soup.

School lunches were packed almost the same - a few pieces of bacon sprinkled with salt and a couple of slices of bread or a piece of cornmeal left over from the night before.

All of this resulted in Mom being malnourished and sickly. At the age of twelve, she missed an entire year of school. She developed a severe case of sore feet and couldn’t walk. She was never taken to a doctor simply because they couldn’t afford it. They lived in poverty, so my grandmother used home remedies to cure this problem.

As a young child, mom had to look after herself because Grandma was too busy brewing and drinking alcohol. This was one reason my mother never drank so much as a sip of alcohol to her lips.

Life was very difficult for mom. But soon things began to turn around for her when she met my father. In 1929 at the age of 15, she met my father who invited her to a dance. However, she was not allowed to go alone with him, so her mother came along as a chaperone.

One day mother was given a beating and sat outside the house on the steps crying. Just then, my father was passing by her house and