Near Death Experiences & Freedom from Addiction
Our most recent guest on the Everyday Faith podcast is Gabe Craig, a husband, father, photographer/videographer, who has spent most of his life on the road traveling with his family, showing the love of God wherever he goes!
Although Gabe grew up in Church, he never really believed in God or the Bible. It wasn’t until he had a few near-death experiences to wake him up to the power of God and the reality of heaven and hell. One profound encounter was when he nearly overdoses at a party…at a Christian college. He experienced what felt like “tunnels going down to hell” accompanied by many screams. All night he felt like he was fighting for his life. Still, this encounter wasn’t the one to shake him from his addictions. He needed to hear the voice of God.
Years later, Gabe heard the Lord’s voice. To his surprise, he heard the Lord say an address. In faith, he got on his motorcycle and drove to the address. Turns out the Lord was inviting him to a Church! The pastor there had tattoos from head to toe, which was a surprise to Gabe, and the pastor was preaching on Proverbs 3:5 -6…which Gabe had tattooed on him prior to meeting God.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. - Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV
At the end of the sermon, Gabe ran to the front, threw his bag of pills at the altar, and gave his life to the Lord. On his way home, he knew he needed to leave the situation he was in…given that he was living at a drug dealer’s house. He got out of there to kickstart him turning his life around. For him, that looked like heading cross country on his motorcycle, out of his present city and heading back home.
The wildest part of Gabe’s story is that though he was formerly addicted to painkillers and marijuana, he had no withdrawals after giving his life to the Lord and he experienced God supernaturally setting him free from the power of addiction.
Learn more about God’s redemption in our interview with Armin Assadi: It’s Never Too Late: A Real Story of God’s Redemption
Unashamedly Sharing the Testimony of Jesus
At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.” - Revelation 19:10 NIV
One of Gabe’s earliest memories of sharing his faith was in his hometown. He visited a bar he used to go to prior to meeting the Lord and instead of drinking beer, he drank water and ate almonds. His friends who were there were wondering what was up with him and why he wasn’t drinking. Gabe told them the radical story of being set free from addiction and how God met him in the Church.
This was the beginning of him growing in sharing his faith. On a run at a park? He asked people if they wanted prayer. Whoever he happened to meet? He would tell them his story of freedom. Seeing someone sad at the gas line? He’d pay for their gas and tell them about the love of Jesus. Gabe is filled with love, always has fun, and knows that evangelism is as simple as sharing history.
Learn more practical steps about how to share the love of God with others: 3 Reasons Why Sharing Your Faith Story Matters
Another story Gabe shared with us was while he was in a Starbucks…a place that as a kid, he dreamed of working at. Though he’s never been an employee of Starbucks, he’s made it his mission to be an ambassador of heaven at Starbucks. One time while he was there, Gabe felt like he had a word of knowledge for a man in the store. Gabe felt like the Lord had shown him that this man was struggling with lower back pain. After Gabe shared the word with him, the man responded well and let Gabe pray for him. The pain began to decrease, so Gabe prayed again, and shortly after – the man was able to touch his toes! Rather than being filed with pain, the man Gabe prayed for was filled with joy!
You can pray for people to be healed too! Hear more stories about praying for the sick with our friend, Rebecca Ribnick: Healing the Sick
Supernatural Encounters & Evangelism through Tattoos
During another season of his life, Gabe lived in a town called Modesto, California. For context, Modesto has one of the highest crime rates in the United States. While living in Modesto, Gabe worked at a Church in the area, would head to the gym before it closed at 10PM, and then would walk home – around 4 miles – each night. He would often walk home through the darkest parts of the city.
Once while walking to his home, he had an encounter with a homeless man who saw that Gabe was walking with a Bible in his hand. The gentlemen stopped Gabe and asked, “Do you believe in that?” To which Gabe told him “Yes,” and the homeless man responded with Psalm 74. Gabe stopped, opened his Bible to read it, and when he looked up, the man disappeared! To this day, Gabe still doesn’t know whether the man he was speaking to was human or an angel!
Learn more about supernatural encounters: How to Have Faith in the Fire | A Miracle Story of Resurrection
Because of Gabriel’s former life in the party and drug scene, he has seen how the things he’s overcomed, he has supernatural authority in. During one specific revival event in Tampa, the pastor called for those who are struggling with suicide to come to the front. Gabe happened to be the videographer who was capturing the entire altar call on camera. The men who received Jesus dropped their drugs at the altar, just like Gabriel did so many years ago.
Even Gabe’s tattoos have opened up conversations for him to share his faith. A more recent tattoo of his is an arrow on his left shoulder. The tattoo was based off of Isaiah 49:2
He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me;
He made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in his quiver. - Isaiah 49:2 NIV
While getting this tattoo, the man next to Gabe started a conversation with him about his tattoo. The man asked, “What are you getting?” Gabriel told him, “An arrow.” To which the man next to him in the tattoo shop says, “My daughter’s name is Arrow.”
Gabe got to share the meaning behind the tattoo, the Bible verse it’s based off of, and his story of finding the Lord! He began to encourage this new father about his daughter’s life. The owners even turned the music off in the tattoo shop because everyone inside wanted to hear what Gabriel was saying.
Read more stories about sharing your faith without fear: How to Find the God Intersect
Gabe has seen this pattern continue strong as he traveled all across the United States during the coronavirus pandemic, ministering to the lost, the broken, and the hurting during the shutdown. Despite being pepper sprayed, spat on, and enduring several threats of violence, for the sake of the Gospel and sharing the love of Jesus, Gabe and his wife saw revival in the streets during 2020 - 2022.
Faithful Ministry to Family Members
Another story Gabe shared with us about his brother-in-law, who is actually his brother’s ex wife’s new husband. Gabe was able to stay at his house and spend time with his niece and sister in law. They played music, video games, and spent quality time getting to know each other as family members. This process of simply being the love of God to his family continued for 5 years. During that final year, his niece wanted to go to Church and so they all went.
The pastor was talking about baptism and Gabe’s brother in law felt a burning desire to get baptized! Though he wasn’t baptized then, a few days later, Gabe’s brother-in-law encountered Jesus in a dream and called Gabe saiying, “Jesus is real!” Just like that, another soul was brought into the kingdom and freed from sin!
Related Post: How Unconditional Love Creates Boldness to Share Your Faith
Encouragement to Live Your Faith
As we finished our conversation with Gabe, he shared with all of our listeners his best tips to grow in sharing your faith with others:
1) Don’t put too much pressure on yourself: Gabe reminded us that everyday is a new day with God and there’s no reward in putting excess pressure on yourself. Because of your faith in Jesus, you have good news to share with others. Whether you’re planting the seed of faith or watering the seed that someone else planted, you are still a disciple of Jesus sharing the good news.
2) Don’t get familiar with a God you barely know: Gabe reminded us that God is infinite, wonderful, and as humans, we can never fully comprehend him. As a follower of Jesus, you have permission to get lost in God and spend all of your days getting to know Him!
Conclusion
We are so blown away by Gabe’s story! Gabe's walk with the Lord is truly inspiring. It's a powerful reminder that God can use anyone, even those who have walked through extreme darkness to share His love and bring hope to others. Whether it's through simple conversations, acts of kindness, or even your tattoos, God can use you to be a light in this world. Don't be afraid to step out in faith and share the good news of Jesus with those around you. You never know whose life you might change! We hope Gabe's story encourages you to live a life of faith and to boldly share the love of God with everyone you meet. God bless
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