from the book"The Voices Within Us" by Jim Stewart

Cliff Rushing, one of my Dad's best friends, was at my house recently to purchase a car I was selling. Knowing he was a recovering alcoholic, I asked him if he could tell me how he got started in AA; I had a friend of mine that's been an alcoholic for 30 plus years. Cliff looked at me, shaking his head, and said, "Jimmy, you wouldn't beleive me if I told you." I told him, Try me." Here is Cliff's story.

Twenty years ago I got pie-eyed, red-faced drunk. When I woke up , I was in the middle of a plow, all cut up. I realized I was no longer on the edge of destruction, but right i the middle of it. I sat there and asked God to help me. That night, I had an out-of-body experience. I floated over my body and found myself satnding on the back porch, looking up ata partially cloudy sky. Suddenly the clouds opened up and a golden staircase came down from the heavens to my feet. Down the stairway cam a brilliant figure headed right towards me. This image startled me so much that I got up out of bed and had a cigarette and a cup of coffee.

When I went back to bed, my dream picked up right where I left off. The light emanating from this figure was so bright, I couldn't look at it directly. Every time I tried to look at this figure, deep shame welled up all over me. This scenario continued until I woke up the next morning. After having my morning cigarette and cup of coffee, I needed to look up a phone number. When I opened up the phone book, the first number that I saw was AA's. Right then and there, I decided to call them. They told me that they had meetings every night and on Sunday Mornings. I told them that I would bve there Sunday Morning. They told me, "You are going tonight!" I have been going to AA ever since.

This is not the end of my story. A short time after I had this out-of-body experience and met Jesus Christ, I had another one. I found myself flying over this big, red barn and there were people on the ground trying to convince me to go down there with them. They kept telling me, "Come on down, Cliff! There's all the whiskey and women you want. It's all free!" I went down to confront these people and when I got there they again said, " Go right in, Cliff. All the free whiskey and women you want!" I began questioning them about God and Jesus Christ and they told me, " Cliff, There is no God, for I am God!" When Itold them no, this isn't what God or Jesus wants me to do, they all vanished, in an instant! I woke up from this experience almost immediately.

Cliff now realizes that both of these experiences were real, not dreams. Both experiences had a message for him. First, he asked for God's help and Jesus showed up to tell him that He was there for him. The second message told him that there is nothing more powerful than God. Cliff thanks God and Jesus for saving his life. After Cliff told me these stories, I informed him that I was in the process of writing a book and that I would like to use his stories. Cliff had no prior knowledge of me writing a book. In fact, this was the first time we had ever met.

Bless You, Cliff