Dave's influence on me.

The first book of Dave's that I read was "A Woman Rides the Beast." As I was educated at Catholic schools and my family were nominal Catholics--but with Jewish and Protestant sympathies--I was delighted to find this great expose on Roman Catholicism. I already knew a great deal about Catholic dogmas and history but not in the detail Dave presented. I was so enthralled by his book that I wanted every Christian I knew to read it. It was like Dave covered everything that needed to be known about Catholicism in that amazing book. My wife and I been involved in Armstrongism from 1978 till about 1998. Then we started to realize something about grace and eventually left WCG. We soon attended a kind of pentecostal church. There were lots of nice folk who attended that church but Dave's writings were really waking me up to the false signs and wonders that were going on. I only wished that I had read all Dave's books earlier because I could have contended more easily with unscriptural things I heard in that church. In fact, had I read Dave's books earlier, I would have got out of Armstrongism sooner. Again we made excellent friends in that cult who are still friends. Many of them too have moved on. As I was looking for another church to attend, I came on a Calvinist site. I read a lot of their literature and I was near to despair at the stuff I read. I was shocked to think that God had created most of humanity for the eternal fires of hell. And I was in tears for those decent people I knew who I thought were to be damned without hope--especially disabled people and those with downs syndrome and aspergers and other maladies with whom my wife and I worked. Thankfully, I managed to get a copy of Dave's "What Love is This?" on Amazon. Oh, the joy I felt on reading it! It was about that time I found The Berean Call and listened to Dave's and Tom's talks. I've since read most of Dave's other books. And it astonishes me the things of which he spoke decades ago that have come to pass. I remember the time my wife and I flew from Scotland to Spain--on 1/1/2000. The Y2K scare was in full bloom. I had a friend who lectured in computers who told me that theY2K scare was bunkum. So he eased my mind a bit. But about eight or nine years later, I discoverd that Dave had dealt with Y2K in a book I purchased. How that would have saved me a lot of worries at the time we flew to Spain! It astonished me the insight Dave had on even that; and he showed straight from the Bible how Y2K was not going to happen. Dave's teachings certainly enriched the lives of my wife and mine. I have much to thank God for in bringing Dave and TBC into my life. In fact, I do not thank God enough for the blessing Dave has been to us. I wanted to believe in the Rapture but there were always things that made me think that we'd have to go through the Great Tribulation. Dave, again, with his incisive logic and Bible knowledge, made it so plain to me that the Rapture is scriptural. It is a blessing to know that if I am around at the time, I will not have to go through the Great Tribulation. I have no doubts whatsoever now that the Rapture is going to happen. And, due to Dave's sound teachings, I have stumped detractors by those things I have learnt from Dave. My wife and I were saddened to hear of Dave's death. But we are happy for him to now be with the Lord. I look forward to seeing him so that I can thank him for the things he's done for my wife and me. The only thing I really find frustrating these days is that not enough Christians I know have read any of Dave's books. Dave's not that well known in British Churchianity. He is better known in Christianity but Britain's churches do not major in sound doctrine. I don't wish to sound judgmental but when my wife and I spent three months in South Carolina in 2001, we were delighted to find how biblically literate the people were that we met there. Britain, in comparison, is extremely secular. So are the churches which only a tiny part of the British public attend. That means churches with sound doctrine are even fewer and further between! Through reading Dave's work and listening to his talks my wife and I felt that we knew him personally. So much of him went into those books and talks that it is not surprising. And virtually all of which he wrote and talked was God centred. How could anyone who knew his work not feel they knew him? It must have been a privilege for those at TBC to have worked with Dave and known him personally. I look forward to that opportunity in God's kingdom. Thank you so much, Dave. Thank you all at TBC for keeping up the good work.