The following is a testimony written by Mark Egerton from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Mark has been a part of Bold Faith Journey since 2019.
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This testimony is titled:
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam
(To the glory of God)
Fortunately, my walk with Christ began early. I was born into a Catholic family in Montreal, Québec, Canada. My parents were involved with our local parish. I was encouraged to become an altar boy and attend mass weekly. My grandmother, who lived with us, was a Godly woman of simple yet very deep faith. As a young man I was educated by the Jesuits and attended an all boys Catholic High School called Loyola, where I was encouraged to serve the community and to develop into “A Man for Others”.
Unfortunately, my early family life was very dysfunctional. My mother had (and still has) a Cluster B personality disorder that greatly affected all our happiness at home, and my sisters and I suffered tremendously as children. At sixteen, after graduating from High School, I decided to leave home for school and from then on worked and studied to support myself. This began a very difficult but very formative period of my life. At nineteen I married my High School sweetheart. We are still married today. This remains the best personal decision I ever made.
However, the following seven years were the hardest of my life and I began my drifting from faith. Between ages twenty to twenty-seven, all I did was work full time to support my little family (our son was born when I was twenty-four) and studied nights and weekends to complete my University courses in Business. This consumed all of my time. I stopped attending church regularly. Graduating at twenty-seven, I immediately threw myself into a business career that again consumed all of my time. It required a lot of travel, moving us to France, and even began separating me from my wife and son.
All of this pushed me further from a path of faith. At this time I started giving in to worldly temptations more and more, living what Paul and scripture describe as a life “of the flesh”. Now I was truly separated from God’s will, and living to satisfy worldly temptations. I am very embarrased about this, not proud of myself or of this part of my life.
Very predictably, my marriage fell apart. My wife decided to separate. This was by far the most painful part of my life. The shock of losing my new little family, and the love of my life, had a profound effect on me. I knew I needed to return to my faith. At the same time, a new company offered me a job in Texas and a move to the US, agreeing to sponsor me for permanent residence. I took the job, intending to re-start my life there and praying my wife and I would reconcile and she and our son would move to Texas to join me.
On the drive down it happened. I had what can best be described as my Damascus moment. While in a hotel, I prayed that the Holy Spirit would speak to me. I picked up a hotel Bible and began opening it at random and reading whatever verse presented itself. Miraculously, every verse spoke to the problems I was experiencing, touched me deeply, and offered encouragement. I knew this was divinely inspired and God was speaking directly to me through His word.
That night I decided to completely change my priorities. I decided to put God and my family first. I prayed my wife would rejoin me. I started attending church services and Bible studies as soon as I settled in Dallas. My prayers were answered and my wife did rejoin me. We both began attending worship together and I never looked back. I was 100% committed to changing my life and putting Christ first.
My faith journey began then. I read scripture and prayed daily. Over the years my faith deepened. Professionally, I ended up working for seven companies between Texas and California, including helping to start five new businesses. I always found ways to live my faith and started mentoring the young people that worked for me to be successful in both their careers and in life. I became a VP of Sales and Marketing, primarily to have a positive effect on the young people and organizations I served.
At fifty-five, I was able to retire as planned. But, unfortunately, a pre-existing health condition disqualified me from “for profit” health care in the US. So, I was compelled to move back to Canada and started retirement in Vancouver, BC. In all, Joanne and I made twelve large moves in our lives. I attribute all our success in marriage, in our moves and in careers with a commitment to a Christian life and to the Holy Spirit.
Early retirement now afforded me much more time to dedicate to putting God first and really living my faith. It enabled me to do more Bible study, meditation and mentoring of young entrepreneurs and young people trying to switch to careers in business. As the Holy Spirit has led me, I went from being a member of Executive Staff at companies to the Board of my Church, to founding a Men’s Bible study, to working to assist refugees in relocating to Canada, and in volunteering with organizations like the Salvation Army.
It was while attending a Men’s Fellowship in Arroyo Grande, California that I met Greg Hargis and Mike Maddy. The Holy Spirit led me to a Zoom-based prayer ministry and Bold Faith Journey. And, here we are today.
I hope this story encourages all who read it to live a Godly life. I write this only to His glory. Let me be clear: It is God and the Holy Spirit that allowed me to be reborn and to live a Godly life. God and The Holy Spirit are 100% responsible for every success and happiness I have experienced.
If God could save me and lead me back to Him, He can do it for you. As He promised, you too can live life to the fullest… if you always, every day, PUT GOD FIRST, and learn to “Walk in The Spirit”.
Amen.
3 responses to “AD MAJOREM DEI GLORIAM”
Mark: An amazing testimony of God’s goodness and faithfulness. Thank you for sharing your story. What a blessing you are to so many people. It’s exciting to watch what God is doing through you.
Blessings…
Thank you for sharing your life story and inspiring me that there are no boundaries to the love that God has for us. And all we have to do is come to Him, confess our weakness, and put HIM FIRST in our lives… every single day.
Thank you for the blessing of your testimony Mark.
Mark, what a wonderful testimony! God truly reaches everyone from all over the world if only we call His name. Your hope and faith are an inspiration. God bless you and your family always 🙏🏻✝️💕