#TWITTER SAVED MY LIFE

We all have heard stories of Divine intervention, but when it happens to you it changes your life forever. I say this because in 2011, while I was pastoring a small church in Salisbury, MD, I was told by the denomination I was affiliated with that there is a pastor who was on the Biggest Loser TV show who is now helping other ministers and people regain their life and health. The problem was the denominational officials didn't have the former Biggest Loser contestant’s name or contact information. Like most people, I shrugged my shoulders and said, “Oh well, if it was meant to be it would have happened.”

TWITTER SAVED MY LIFE
On April 8, 2012, I was sitting on the floor in my apartment when my phone dinged. It was a notification that Ken Andrews, former Biggest Loser contestant & pastor, started following me on Twitter. With a puzzled look on my face I said out loud, "I wonder if this is the guy my denominational leaders were telling me about" almost a year before hand. After only about 30 minutes of snooping on Google, I found out that lo-and-behold, sure enough, it was the former Biggest Loser contestant Ken Andrews that my church denominational officials were trying to tell me about. Immediately, I started to follow Ken and sent him a direct message asking for help. It's hard to tell your story in only 140 characters but here is my actual direct Tweet:

"I am 37 yrs old, over 500 lbs. An AG pastor that has lost everything. 

health, wife, friends, family, ministry, job.. everything do to fat."

A SIMPLE PHONE CALL

Once some information was exchanged, a phone conversation happened that radically changed my life. Ken was not a TV celebrity to me. He was just an everyday ordinary guy who had a great weight loss experience and who understood the pressures, pain, burnout, & downfall many, many ministers experience. I was able to share my heart with someone who understood me. He wasn’t just a TV personality, he was minister and a voice in the wilderness offering hope. He showed me how I could truly receive God’s wholeness in my life, the wholeness that I so desperately needed and that I found nearly impossible to find.


My Thot: After 6 years of working alongside Ken, and his son Austin, they no longer are simply coaches. They are friends, brothers, and fellow ministers in teaching people wholeness through faith and fitness. They know my story and the transformation that has taken place in my life. They know I was a broken mangled mess of a man who was desperate for change, transformation, and wholeness that only God brings. God used the social media medium of Twitter to save my life. I am forever grateful!!

Until next time grab a FREE Refill of the Kings Brew @ the Soul Cafe.