Unexpected Journey Conversations With People Who Turned from Other Beliefs to Jesus

The Unexpected Journey Copyright © 2005 by Thom S. Rainer Requests for information should be addressed to: Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Rainer, Thom S. The unexpected journey : conversations with people who turned from other beliefs to Jesus / Thom S. Rainer. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-10: 0-310-25741-7 ISBN-13: 978-0-310-25741-7 1. Christian converts-United States-Interviews. I. Title. BV4930.R35 2005 248.2'46'092273-dc22 2005013994 This edition printed on acid-free paper. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible: New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. The website addresses recommended throughout this book are offered as a resource to you. These websites are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement on the part of Zondervan, nor do we vouch for their content for the life of this book. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means-electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other-except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher. Interior design by Tracey Walker Printed in the United States of America 05 06 07 08 09 10 /?DCI/ 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 We want to hear from you. Please send your comments about this book to us in care of zreview@zondervan.com. Thank you. C H A P T E R O N E " M O R M O N I S M W A S O U R L I F E " AN INCREDIBLE JOURNEY TO CHRISTIANITY April 12 Salt Lake City, Utah My wife, Nellie Jo, and I boarded the plane leaving Louisville with mixed emotions. On the one hand, we still were not fully rested from our trip to Uganda that had ended just three days earlier. On the other hand, we were energized with anticipation of the interview that would soon take place. My research assistant, Stuart Swicegood, had worked very hard to find the people we would soon meet. A former Mormon couple, Dennis and Rauni Higley, would be waiting to tell us about their amazing pilgrimage from Mormonism to faith in Jesus Christ. The connection in Atlanta went without a hitch. We arrived late at a hotel in downtown Salt Lake City, and sleep came quickly. In what seemed like the blink of an eye, we were getting ready the next morning to travel to the Higleys' home in a suburb of Salt Lake City. A cloudless day with a bright blue sky greeted us as we left the hotel. We both breathed in the fresh air and felt the warmth of the mild spring day. If the weather was to be a sign of the hours ahead, the day would be good indeed. My wife and I discussed our strategy for this interview-the first for this book-because we wanted to be ready for any contingency. I had a list of numerous questions I would be prepared to ask. Nellie Jo would keep the conversation going smoothly in the event that the discussion came to a lull. The fifteen-minute drive to Sandy, Utah, was filled with constant conversation and the occasional interruption of the navigation computer in the rental car. I commented to Nellie Jo that every navigation system I used had a female voice, and I wondered why. My bride of twenty-seven years did not respond verbally, but her smile said it all. As we pulled into the driveway of the Higley home, I looked at the mountains framing their home and neighborhood. The scene was postcard perfect. A sign on the door of their home told us of a Finnish custom that asked all guests to remove their shoes. We rang the doorbell and were quickly greeted by a sRainer, Thom S. is the author of 'Unexpected Journey Conversations With People Who Turned from Other Beliefs to Jesus', published 2005 under ISBN 9780310257417 and ISBN 0310257417.