CCK Life blog

Dave Edwards – From Rags to Riches to Christ

In 1994, I was on a crowded beach in Rio de Janeiro. There were some kids body boarding on waves that were over 10 feet high and very powerful. There were 7 or 8 breakers but beyond the waves the sea was calm and I thought if I could get through the breakers, I could swim in the calm sea. So I managed that and felt quite proud of myself as there was no one else there. However, it took me quite an effort and so was feeling very tired. So I decided to come back in but I couldn’t. The harder I tried the further I kept getting dragged out. Panic set in. I was miles away from land on either side. Then I remembered the kids body boarding and so I stiffened my body and rode the first wave which led me to the second wave and to cut a long story short I landed on the beach exhausted but very grateful. It gave me a new respect for the sea. That was one of the many times I almost died!

A few years later God revealed to me that it was He who had plucked me out of the sea and placed me on solid ground. It helped me a draw parallel with the messed up life, from which I had no way out. God had pulled me out and placed me on solid ground.

I was born into abject poverty in Ireland. 3 of my 4 siblings including me were put in an orphanage because my parents couldn’t afford to look after us. I know what poverty is and being in that situation I vowed that I’d never be poor again. At a young age I started working in hotels ON  the catering side. It gave me free food, free accommodation and a wage and tips! So it was quite good. And my story of discovering Jesus really begins when I was working as a hotel manager in Jersey in 1975. This hotel happened to be a Christian hotel where they served non alcoholic wine and I found that very weird! But it was my job and the owner’s beliefs didn’t really bother me. Anyway, a young church leader, Graham Topping, and his wife and 9 month daughter, came to stay at the hotel. One day as I was sitting by the pool, he came up to me and I knew what was coming next! He asked me, “David, are you happy with life?” I laughed at him and replied, “Look around, I have the sun and the pool, money and a healthy body! Why shouldn’t I be happy with life?!” After talking a while, he left, but before checking out, he gave me a book instead of a tip, which was a bit disappointing! It was called The Late Great Planet Earth by Hal Lindsey. It was a book about the prophecies in the Bible especially about the Jews and Israel. It talked about a prophecy that God would disperse the Jews among the world for their disobedience but He was not going to completely forsake them and He would bring them back in the end times, just before Jesus the Messiah was to come back. This happened in 1948 when Israel was re-established as a homeland for the Jews. I thought it was all very interesting but didn’t pay much heed to it.

25 years later, I was successful in the antiques business. I had made loads of money and travelled all over the world. I had all the trappings of a rich man. I got divorced in 1993 and from there on I was free to go and do all the things I shouldn’t be doing but I did. I did drugs and alcohol and women. I mixed with a crowd that also had lots of money. But when it came down to it, they turned out to not be genuine friends.

One Sunday morning after a night of very heavy cocaine and alcohol, I put the TV on and the first channel that came on was the God channel. There was no way after my hangover that I was going to get up and change the channel. So I listened to the programme and strangely enough, they were talking about the biblical prophecy about the Jews returning to Israel. I was interested immediately. But I thought this couldn’t be real because if it was they would be shouting it from the rooftops. Anyway, the show ended and they said if you have anymore questions, you should call the number shown on the screen. So sure enough I called the number and they said there was an Alpha course starting in Brighton at a place called Church of Christ the King. I thought to myself I’ve done everything in my life and I owe it to myself to have a look at this. I wasn’t going to tell my friends because they would have thought that I had lost the plot. I was determined that they wouldn’t get me or my money but I would look at the Alpha course very carefully. I was too street wise for them and I would find the mistake. I never did!

So I went along. This was the year 2000. I met some very interesting people there. I was told that there was a church that met in the building we had the Alpha course in. I was surprised because this building didn’t look anything like any idea of a church I had in mind from a catholic point of view. I thought I’d sneak up one Sunday and mingle with the crowd and see what it was all about. So I went along and I saw people worshipping in a way that you never do in a catholic church. They had a peaceful look about them and I thought this was very unreal. But I was really intrigued so I went back again. Everyone looked as peaceful, like angels. So I made quite an irreverent prayer, “God if you’re real and here, I want some of this. I want loads of this.” I didn’t even recognize that it was a prayer at that time.

5 weeks later in to the Alpha course, I suddenly encountered the Holy Spirit and I committed my life to Jesus. Here was this big cheese with loads of money, drugs and girlfriends who was giving his life to Jesus. I was amazed at myself. I had never thought I’d do something like this but I knew this was real and I knew that there was nothing more I wanted in life than Jesus. Everything else could fall away for all I care. From that point on God has answered my first prayer – He has given me loads of it. He has given me a joy and a peace that goes beyond all understanding. I can’t explain it. I have a fulfilment now which I never had before. I understand where it’s come from but I don’t have words good enough to relate what God has done in my life for me. I deserved nothing. I can’t stop telling people enough how grateful I am. I can’t stop telling God enough how grateful I am!

The day I became a Christian, I had an excessive amount of cocaine with me. I had a bag which was probably worth about 600 quid. I was trying to justify to myself that nowhere in the bible did it say ‘thou shall not do cocaine’ but I knew in my spirit that it was wrong for me to have this. So I decided to give it away and tell my friends that I had stopped doing it and that would be a good testimony of me becoming a Christian. But I felt God tell me that He did not want me to do that. So then I thought that maybe I could sell it and give the money to the church or some charity and some good would come out of this. But God said no, I want you to flush it down the toilet. I argued with God for a bit but then I just did it and from that moment on I’ve never taken cocaine nor had the urge to do so.

A lot of wonderful things have happened to me since. One of the first things I did after becoming a follower of Jesus was to pray for my family to come to know the Lord. And from one miraculous story to another, all 4 of my children came to know Jesus and love Him with all their hearts. Seeing their love for Jesus makes me a very grateful and proud father.

I hope my testimony gives you hope if you’re praying for family members or friends. I was far far away from God, but He has brought me home.