If He Wants To Go To Hell Just Let Him

My wife reminded me of an interesting event, or series of events, that took place in the history of our families. It is amazing how a story triggers the memory of another story. Just a few words that Melinda said brought back to my mind something that was very life impacting, not only for those directly involved, but for hundreds of other people.

I first met my wife, in 1963. That is correct, I was seven and she was three when we met. I would love to say it was love at first sight, but I cannot. We have now been married over thirty years. However, I have never forgotten the occasion we first met.

It was outside of the Fresno, California First United Pentecostal Church, which at that time was located on the corner of Harvey and Thesta. It was a large old building with a basement. It was in the basement that the Children Churches were located. I say Churches because there was actually two. Each was for a different age group. There was a door coming out of the basement with stairs leading up to the sidewalk on Thesta St, which ran along side the Church.

The Fresno Church, which is now Truth Tabernacle pastored by Elder Vaughn Morton, was pastored by the late Brother Murray Layne at that time. My father was Brother Layne’s assistant pastor. As the assistant he helped the pastor any way that he could.

This particular Sunday morning I came out of Children’s Church and Mike Power Sr. had lined all four of his children up along the curb. Margie had gone to the Baptist church and they were waiting for her. Now Mike wasn’t a happy camper. Michelle, Maureen, Michael Jr. and Melinda were lined up in that order, oldest to youngest, and they were all crying for their mom, who hadn’t showed up yet.

Mike was a new convert. He had just left the Baptist church because in his Bible studying God had revealed His oneness to him. Margie had yet to make the change, but did so not long after Mike. When Mike realized he needed to be baptized in Jesus Name he asked to be re-baptized. He knew he had to be baptized in Jesus name as directed in Acts 2:38. For some reason Brother Layne was unable to baptize Mike and so Brother Layne asked my Dad to fill in for him. A connection was made between the two men which lasted for many years.

Mike was a very sincere young man. He studied the Bible, not just reading it, but really studying it. I won’t go into a lot of the “wherefores” and “be causes”. Just let it be said that for the first four or five years of his walk with God Mike had a hard time living for God. Mainly it came down to not being able to be as good as he thought he should be. This would cause him to become discouraged and decide to quit.

There would be times when Margie would come to church with just the children. Dad would ask her where Mike was and she would reply that he was at home. Dad would get in the car and drive to their house. He would talk with Mike for a while and then, most of the time he would bring him to church. This went on for about a year and a half.

In September of 1965 Dad felt called to pastor a church in Rio Dell, California. This is a lumber mill town on the north coast. It was a small town and a very small church. There was actually only one member, a seventy-five year old man named Burl Horn.

Every service Brother Horn would raise his hand and say, “Pray for my family.” None of his family, children or wife, lived for God. Yet every service that was his request and prayer.

We had been in Rio Dell for about four months. We were living in three rooms in the back of the church. It was a late cold wet winter night when a knock came on the back door of the church. When Dad opened the door he found Mike Power standing at there.

Dad invited him in and in the course of the conversation asked him why he was there. Mike told us the story. He had been having a hard time living for God. In fact it had gotten so bad that he and Margie had split up. He had left Fresno on a freight train. He was headed toward San Diego going to a place he didn’t even know, just getting away. While riding the freight, he began to pray. God spoke to him and told him if he would go to Rio Dell God would help him get his family back together. So there he was.

God worked miracles immediately for Mike and Margie. The next day he went to work for the lumber mill in the neighboring town. It was a well known fact if you wanted to go to work in that mill you had to show up at their office every morning for about three months or more before they would hire you. Mike was hired the first day. It was pretty difficult to find a house in that town. My cousin had just moved out of a house and it was still empty. So right away Mike was able to secure a house and find a job. On March 1, 1966 he returned to Fresno and moved his family to Rio Dell.

The next two years were difficult for Mike. He was still fighting the same battles. There were times Dad would go down to their house and talk and pray with Mike and get him back in church.

I will never forget one night, it was late. We had all gone to bed and there was a knock on the door. I heard Dad get up and get dressed and answer the door. From my bedroom I heard him greet Mike. Mike came into the living room, I heard this from my bedroom, and laid his church keys on the coffee table. I heard him say, “I quit! I just can’t do this, I can’t make it!” I went to sleep that night listening to my Dad talking and encouraging Mike that he could live for God. I heard him reaffirming that God loved him and would help him if he would allow Him to. Mike never gave up on God. Dad never gave up on Mike. God never gave up on either of them.

I remember getting into the car after church one night. We had been to a revival at a neighboring church. Dad was very hurt and upset. David, my brother, and I had learned that if we would be quiet and act like we were asleep, mom and dad would talk. That night Dad, with tears in his voice, told Mom what the pastor of the church we had just visited had said to him. He said, “If Mike Power doesn’t want to live for God, just let him go to hell! Quit wasting your time on him!”

Well Dad refused to give up! Mike refused to give up! God refused to give up! It wasn’t long after this that Mike stabilized in his walk with God. There was a dramatic change.

In the summer of 1969 Brother Burl Horn went home to be with Jesus. Dad was visiting this dear old warrior of the faith in the hospital just days before his death. Sitting with him in the hospital room was his youngest daughter Jean Daniel. Brother Horn called Jean over while Dad was there and made her promise that she would take a home Bible Study. It was her last promise to her father.

Over the next several months after the death of Brother Horn there were several life changing events that happened in the life of Jean Daniel. They all, combined with her promise, lead up to her and Will, her husband, taking a Bible Study.

About two or three weeks into the Bible Study Will’s brother and his wife, Slim and Rose Daniel asked if they could join the study. It started all over. About two or three weeks into the study Peggy King, a friend of the Daniel’s asked if she could sit in the study. They started over a second time. About two or three weeks into the study, David Daniel, Slim’s fourteen year old son, asked if he could sit in on the study. They started over a third time.

The Sunday before Christmas 1970, Mike Power, the teacher of the Bible Study led seven new people into Sunday morning service. On New Years Eve he rejoiced as six people were baptized in Jesus Name for the remission of their sins. A few weeks later all of them received the Baptism of the Holy Ghost during a revival.

From that Bible Study alone there are scores of people living for God. Jean Daniel has taught literally hundreds of Bible Studies over the past thirty eight years. Slim Daniel has picked up hundreds of boys and girls, men and women on Sunday School Buses and brought them to church. Rose Daniel has taught scores of Junior Boys and Girls in Sunday School, one of them is now my wife.

Mike Power went on to be my Sunday School teacher for the next six years. Every time I went up a class, so did he. He helped me to have a love for the word of God. He helped me to learn to love the things of God. He was my youth leader when I started to preach at the age of thirteen. It was Mike Power that asked me to preach my first youth service. He became the Assistant Pastor and right hand man.

Mike Power taught many more Bible Studies. It seemed like for a while, every one that started coming to our church was taking lessons with Jehovah Witnesses. They would try to get them to leave them alone and they kept coming back. Mike would be there the last time they would come and when he finished showing them scripture they would leave permanently. He was one of the most knowledgable Bible Teachers that I have ever known.

Today, Mike Power has been gone for twenty-six years. Yet the impact that he has had on lives hearing the Gospel is still happening. He has a son and daughter in law who are very involved in ministering in their local church. He has a son in law who is an ordained minister of the gospel. His daughter is involved in music ministry. He has a grandson and granddaughter in the ministry. Several of his grandchildren are living for God. All are involved in winning souls to the Lord.


Many of the people he taught Bible Studies to have taught others. They have discipled and won souls. Brother Horn’s prayer request was answered through the efforts of Mike Power.

When my wife mentioned to me that her family would not be living for God if it hadn’t been for my Dad a memory was awakened. I was reminded of something my Dad told our family when he told us we were moving to Rio Dell. He said God had given him a scripture which he shared with us, “Ps 142:4, “I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul.”

He told us the question came to him, as if God were asking it, “Do you care enough to go?”
God planted a caring heart in a preacher. Because he cared only eternity will tell how many souls were influence by the Gospel.

I have been tremendously blessed to have two men who were Godly, God fearing, God loving, Bible believing and preaching, people loving men in my life. The wonderful thing is one was my Father in Law and the other was my Father. Both of them made the name of the Lord known to all generations.

God Bless!