About Pursued by Michael J. Heil:
We had lit a forest on fire…
We were stoned as crap…
My sister was calling 9-1-1…
As I watched the flames dance across the twilight sky, consuming everything in their path, I realized they represented my life. In my pursuit of pleasure and partying, I had ignited an addiction worse than any forest fire. After five arrests, a dozen allegations, a v-squad of cop cars chasing me down center street, and years of worshipping all the wrong things led me to the brink of death, I finally found hope in life. This is a story of how the initially enthralling and sometimes humorous pursuits of drugs, sex, and success cannot satisfy in the way that they promise, but there is One who can.
Embark on a journey of tears, hysteria, and utter chaos that will help you realize you are not as alone in your brokenness as perhaps you once thought.
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Author Bio:
Since being rescued from the clutches of addiction, Michael has traveled to, volunteered, and lived in over 35 countries. He has spoken in jails, rehabs, detention centers, treatment centers, churches and schools with an unquenchable passion to help people find and experience the love of God which he rejected and missed out on for so many years.
Some of Michael’s favorite memories are from when he worked with Youth With A Mission (YWAM) and Operation Mobilization (OM). Living in a tent for five months, he had to shower with a water bottle as he served across southern Africa, empowering locals, planting churches, and helping remove injustices oppressing children. Another team lived in a van and slept on church floors for six months across Europe as they served gypsies and orphans, creating education and distribution programs alongside local churches. When he lived in Asia for two years, he was adopted by the underground church, learned an eastern language, danced with a hundred grannies across the town square, and fended off rabid monkeys with the broom from fantasia.
After four years of international service, Michael returned to the United States to complete a Master’s Degree in Intercultural Studies and Community Development. After that, he pastored a small Presbyterian church in the heart of Mormon country for three and a half years. He currently has five jobs, all but one of which is related to writing. He also runs two ministries in conjunction with his church Calvary Mountain View: a weekly Bible study for juvenile delinquents at private and state-run facilities, and Evangelism Explosion. Both efforts are aimed at helping those who are facing addiction, homelessness, helplessness, depression, suicide or lack of purpose.