Rafal’s Story

What was my life like before I met Jesus?

I was born in Poland in 1975, into a Catholic family. I remember childhood very well. Ever since I remember my parents always tried to give their faith to my younger brother and I. They tried to convey their beliefs into our lives but I was not interested. I never thought about faith seriously. Since an early age I discovered my love of motorcycles, which my parents didn’t accept. As soon as I could I bought my first motorbike, I will never forget that feeling….

After the completion of my education, I began living a very colourful way of life. I began drinking until I was unconscious, did things against the law and many other things that are to shameful to mention. I just flew on the wild side for several years, having “fun” with my friends.
However at the same time, many people including my parents were saddened by my attitude, but I didn’t care. In all my selfishness I thought my life is going to look like this until the end of my days, but in 1997 the Lord God placed a woman in my way! A woman of incredible beauty and with a wonderful heart. My passion for motorbikes dropped to second place. I had one goal, to get this girl.

What circumstances caused me to accept Jesus as my Saviour?

Unfortunately, to my surprise the problems started when we learned more about each other. She had found out about my way of life and that I liked to smoke and drink a lot and have “great fun” with my biker mates. She was a totally different kind of person; she attended church every Sunday, the prayer group during the week, she was reading her Bible every day. I realized it won’t be easy but I had to trick her. So in her presence I started to pretend to also believe in God and when I was alone I lived my own life as I used too. When she discovered my strange behaviour she wasn’t very happy. Then she boldly set out a condition: “You have to make a choice: “Me or Your awful life”.

“The choice was easy”, I said “You are what is most important for me”. However it was yet another lie. I guess I upset God with all I had done. So He allowed me to experience hardship and place me in awkward situations. I lost my driving license because of driving under the influence of alcohol, I was arrested, hand-cuffed and brought to a sobering-up centre, I lost all respect in my younger brother’s eyes and almost lost my beautiful girlfriend. My world was falling apart and my parents were fed up with me.

When everything was beyond my control I decided to go to the Sunday service to check on what was going on with this God. I was shocked from the first few minutes. I never met people like this before, filled with love, kindness and smiles on their faces. There was great music, people praying. The word of God read in such a clear way. All those things worked to touch my heart. So I decided to come for another meeting like that – the next Sunday. Probably after the fourth service I landed on my knees asking God for forgiveness. I realized that God is great, He is mighty and He is Holy and He will not allow anybody to mock Him. I invited God to become Lord of my life, to take all my broken life away and make it new. I started a new chapter in my life and in 1998 and I got baptized. My life has been completely changed since. I felt that the chains of sin were broken!

Where am I now?

Today I can tell of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, he gave me new life, the most wonderful wife, great friends surrounding me and assurance of my future. Peace for my soul through the Holy Spirit. He has given me great opportunity to share His gospel with others and what happened in my life. I praise God that He has placed me in this country to be good tool in His hands sharing my faith and I know that this is what He wants me to do with all my pleasure in the Unchained Gang Motorcycle Ministry.

Vicky’s Story

Hi my name is Vicky Gill. I am married to Nigel and we have three children Joshua (8), Jessica (6) and Wilda (4).

How and when I became a Christian?

I was born into a Church of Ireland family who didn’t attend church often, when I was very young. My Granny lived with us and she often got a lift to church and sometimes I went with her. My Dad’s youngest brother was very concerned none of us went to church and as a believer encouraged my parents to bring us somewhere to church, so we were all dressed up and taken to a Baptist church outside Kilcullen. There we had church and Sunday school and we learned all the Bible stories and why it is important to follow Jesus and believe in Him. So in November 1990 at the age of 10 and with the help of my Uncle I prayed to Jesus asking Him to come into my heart and forgive me of my sin and thank Him for dying on the cross for me so I could be forgiven. When I die I will be with Him forever. That night I gave my life to Him. In John 14 v 6 Jesus said “I am the way, the truth and the life, No one comes to the Father but by me” Now I believed this.

My life since then?

Life is for living and yet sometimes it is hard. But with Christ leading and directing I know that His ways are not my ways. I don’t always understand why things happen the way they do, but I have learned to look at the bigger picture for my life and know God knows best. He has blest me greatly over the years and I know that I don’t have to go through life alone and Jesus is only a chat away at anytime. He gives you a peace and a joy in life that many others cannot understand, but that is the great thing of being a child of God. His love is so great and He only wants the best for me. God has a purpose for my life and I will through Him that strengthens me complete this purpose to the best of my ability. God has a purpose for your life too. How are you doing???

Marcin’s story

What was my life like before I met Jesus?

I was born in Poland in 1978 into a very religious family. My mother was a very religious person practising in the Roman Catholic faith, my father also but his love of alcohol never allowed him to practise his beliefs. They were also very busy people working as much as possible. The combination of religion and alcohol created an angry atmosphere in our family life causing conflicts and extreme behaviour.

My two older brothers also chose their own way of life unfortunately apart from God. No one from my family treated Christianity seriously.

The occult experiences of my two brothers also affected my life as I realised later. In my teenage period of life I got involved in the darker side of the music industry which was heavy metal and then step by step into heavier music and occult messages. It had a very bad influence on my physical and emotional life. I found I could put all problems, good and bad moments and all types of emotions into my music. It was only temporary relief for my wounded soul. In my life strange things started to happen, scary supernatural experiences. I was frightened of all those things but something was pushing me deeper and deeper into that.

What circumstances led me to accepting Jesus as my Saviour?

In the meantime in my parent’s life Jesus Christ took the place of the anger, dissension, bad language and alcohol.

I still lived in my own world fighting with all my strength against God’s voice somewhere in the depths of my heart to not let Him change my life. However something encouraged me to reach for the Bible.

A voice in my head was saying to me that there is no sense in reading the Bible and believing in all the things written in that book because there is no any hope for a case like me.
This voice, which I now recognised whose it was, kept saying to me that I was on my highway to hell, where there is no stopping nor turning back.

One evening God showed me His power and focused my eyes on one verse from the Bible that says: “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” Romans 10;9

It was a huge step into light away from my dark world. That evening I decided to follow Jesus. In my room, on my knees I asked God to take my broken life and lead me forever. He took my fear, my sadness and depression away. He has made me spiritually a new person.

What has changed and where am I now?

Now I know the purpose for my life. Since that day He leads me and corrects me everyday through His word the Bible, because I am not perfect but I desire the perfection of my faith. Now for over 16 years of walking with God I can see effects of His work and I know that life without God is like chasing my shadow.

Recently with all pleasure I serve my Lord Jesus by being Vice President of the Unchained Gang MM Ireland and taking responsibility for the work He has laid upon me. My love to Harley Davidson motorcycles that has lasted for over 16 years does not exclude living in the fullness of Christ.

Testimony of John Walsh

I was born on the 22nd Nov 1949 to John and Phil Walsh. Due to my small weight I was sent home to die, as there were no incubators during those years.  My grandmother took care of me, as was the custom in that generation and saw a weakling baby grow healthy.  I stayed with my grandmother Ellen Berry until her death I was then aged 15yrs.  My parents also had seven other children. Four Boys, four Girls

Growing up in Cork City in the area called Shares Street (the marsh) was a wonderful time for me. The neighbours were kind as we were all in the same situation, poor yet no one was ever short or left without. The mothers kept an eye on all the kids playing on the street to stop any mischief and one shout would cease or see us scatter.

Like all Catholic Boys I became an alter boy in the Franciscan Church called St Francis.  I served there for a number of years and continued when in the Army overseas as a Chaplains assistant.  I love my time with the Franciscans especially the preaching.  This placed in my heart to become a priest and upon leaving the Army   But I guess when I met and fell in love with Betty my wife and the idea of a priest was cancelled as I thought.

We married on the 26th June 1971 in the Lough Church Green mount Cork City and were blessed with four Children Niamh, Graham, Carolyn, and Derek.   Betty and I are also blessed as grandparents to Nine Grandchildren. Megan, Erin, Shauna, Conor Holly, Nicole, Caitlin, Andrew, Jack,

I lost the love of going to church when I stopped serving mass and became disillusioned but critical. This closed my heart and made me bitter and made me suspicious of people.

I walked out of my mother home after some words were spoken in anger and it was to take 14yrs before I returned or spoke to my family

By this time I had employment with the Cork Fire Dept and friends with Tim Riordan (RIP). Tim and I also covered roofs on our off duty days which brought us closer.   Tim was aware of my situation but never brought the matter up. I learned that Tim had become a Bible basher as it was stated to me in the fire station. My answer to that was it was his business as long as he kept it to himself.

I could not but notice how happy Tim looked and asked him why, the reply was  “ I have found Jesus”. My reply was “Tim I am up to my neck in religion and mass “ His remark” I have not got religion but a relationship”. The idea of someone loving me was strange as I did not love myself, again Tim asked me to recite John 3v16 and put my name where world was opened and prepared my heart to receive Jesus

On the 5th December 1988 at the Assembly of God Church in Mc Curtain St. Cork Betty and I received Jesus into our lives. This has enriched and blessed us so much. I was with Tim the night he passed away and went to be with the lord, Catherine his wife informed us Tim prayed for a year for Betty and I to be saved, the night we accepted the lord he words were my work is now done. It soon became clear the lord had work for us to do as a couple

April of 1989 my pastor Mike o Brien returned to Indiana to itinerate to be able to minister for four more years in Cork Ireland. We felt I should go and visit to give glory to God for the work in Ireland, share my testimony, and thank the people of Indiana for supporting my pastor.

After a long day of travel and visiting churches we were tired but this night we decided to call to a mission in Linton Indiana where a gospel night was being held.

On entering the building I felt the lord tell me I was home and this is what I would be doing in Ireland.  The building was the HQ for Unchained Ministries Inc. Pastor Mike spoke to Dr Carl Beadle Unchained president and I was asked to visit the Indiana state farm where I knew then that my calling was to prisons.   Seeing the inmates worshiping the lord set my heart on fire to see the same in Ireland.

A work began with no training or help in Ireland as it was a new work but the lord led me to prison fellowship and I adapted their programme to suit the Irish culture.   Prison doors opened and for the next 18yrs all the prisons were visited not without opposition from Clergy I am sad to say.
Ordination

In April 1993 I was invited to Indiana as a candidate for ordination with unchained Ministries Inc a position I still hold with this ministry in Ireland. I am also Chaplain to the Unchained Motorcycle Gang Ireland.

In August 2005 I was ordained with Church of God Cleveland Tn, this covers me for Europe and the Unchained for USA. European law state Ministers must affiliate with an authorized Church

Nigel’s Story

What was my life like before I met Jesus?

I was only 5 when I met Jesus and my life prior to that was one where the Lord Jesus was taught to me and we had devotions around the tea table and at bed time. My parents didn’t push Jesus on me but He was a very important part of our lives.

What circumstances led me to accepting Jesus as my saviour?

The Death of one of my fathers relatives was the pivotal point to me accepting The Lord Jesus as my Saviour and a straight answer from my mother. I asked her if I died would I go to hell? She said yes. I knew hell was a place where God wasn’t and I didn’t want to be where God wasn’t when I died. So it was a very simple sum Nigel + Jesus as saviour = eternal life with God. So I asked Jesus into my life.

What has changed and where am I now?

The answer is everything and yet there is so much to be changed. But God brought me to the end of myself to prove to me that the only reason I exist is Jesus. I wasn’t the rebel, I wasn’t the run away prodical, I wasn’t on a mission to make a statement no I was the faithful older brother who missed out on the love and blessings of God as I busily served him I evolved into being a Pharisee of the Pharisees, a religious zealot who was judgemental condescending arrogant and smug. Not the best tool in God’s hand. As a result I missed the simple understanding of His grace love and mercy as understood by those who can identify with the prodical son. I had the head knowledge but not the heart knowledge.

God was not happy and as the potter He picked up this lump of clay and smashed it on His wheel and started moulding again. And I mean He smashed me the worst type of a Christian is one who knows it all. You can’t live with him. So I am today a humbled Pharisee (note I said a humbled not a humble there is a difference humbled is the work of another, humble is a characteristic of one’s nature) I exist live and move only due to the mercy, grace and love of God my father. I know the blessing, the goodness, the compassion, and the extravagance of God only due to the mercy, grace and love of God my Father. Everything is a gift from breath onward and upwards.

So I will finish up here before this turns into a sermon. Why God uses or wishes to use somebody like me is a mystery whenever I consider who I am but there again that to is only due to His mercy and Grace and Love. Yours because of Him

Nigel