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Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners--of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display His unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on Him and receive eternal life. --Paul (1 Tim. 1:15-16)
Jesus Christ transforms lives. Just as He dramatically redirected the life of the apostle Paul, the Lord continues to change the lives of men and women today. Bill Fay, the author of this booklet, is one of those people. He was pursuing his own goals when the Lord brought him crashing to his knees.
Early in life Bill had determined that he was going to be number one in whatever he did--no matter what it took. In college he discovered ways to cheat to reach his goals. But more important, he learned how to gamble. In fact, his exceptional talents as a card shark helped pay his way through college.

After college he landed a sales job and rapidly moved up the corporate ladder. But his life took on a new dimension when he visited Las Vegas, the gambler's mecca. Because of his card skills he was noticed, and he made connections with prominent people in the underworld. While keeping his corporate job intact, he began to be a channel for mafia money around the country.

Bill moved from city to city, job to job, wife to wife, pursuing his self-centered goals. He thought he had it made when he became the president and chief executive officer of a large heart pacemaker company. He had limousines, big expense accounts, recognition, Rolexes, diamond rings, and gold on his hands and around his neck. But amid all the money, power, and glamour, life was lonely and empty.

In addition to his regular corporate job, Bill then decided to get involved in another enterprise that would make use of his marketing skills. He built one of the larger houses of prostitution in the United States. This business, however, got him into trouble. He was arrested on charges relating to his new venture, and his corporation fired him. But Bill started an executive search business and began making money again.



As a relaxing diversion during his high-rolling, high-stress life, Bill would escape to a vacation spot in Colorado called Lost Valley Ranch. He didn't know it at first, but the place was staffed by believers in Christ. He did notice, however, that there was something different about the place.

Bill could out-argue any believer who dared to take him on, but one Easter morning he heard something that would eat away at him until he gave his life to Christ. During a service in an open field, a young man about 22 years old talked about the difference between happiness and inner peace. Bill listened intently because he knew he didn't have inner peace. But when the young man said that peace comes only through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, Bill got on his horse and muttered, "I don't need that kind of junk in my life." And he rode out of the meadow.

Some time later, Bill walked into a racketball facility and met a man who would play a key role in his coming to faith in Christ. Dr. Paul Grant had gone to play racketball that day after asking the Lord for an opportunity to share his faith. The two men met, and Paul lovingly told Bill about Christ.

Paul invited Bill and his wife, Peggy, to church. After the service he invited them to his home. Paul and his wife, Kathie, radiated a personal relationship with Jesus. Although moved by their testimonies, Bill was not ready to give his life to Christ.

Still on probation from his previous arrest, Bill was caught in a police sting. After a weekend in jail with a bond of $250,000, his life came to a crisis point. Bill sat around his house for 2 days in tears. The pain in his life was surfacing. He considered escaping through drugs, alcohol, and even suicide. By God's grace he didn't take any of those options.

Bill's wife suggested that he call the pastor who had married them. After some initial reluctance, he picked up the phone. What he had heard 7 years before at the ranch was on his mind. He told the pastor he wanted inner peace. The next day hedrove 85 miles to a little country church. Kneeling on the dusty floor, he came to know Jesus Christ in a personal way. That was on March 4, 1981. He left that church a different man.

He returned home and stood trial, but the case was dismissed. As he left the courthouse he determined never to go near a jail or prison again. But the Lord had other plans. For the next several years he visited prisoners to tell them about Jesus.



Since then, Bill has shared his faith with people from all walks of life and has taught many others to do the same. But in Bill's own words, "The greatest miracle of all is not the change in what I do but in what I have become. The pursuit of power, money, and women has been replaced by the pursuit of the virtues I had once scorned: love, honesty, loyalty, self-sacrifice, self-discipline, humility, faith, patience, and endurance. And because I know that the only life worth living is through Christ, I have made it my life's work to share Him with others."

In the pages that follow, Bill will explain how he shares his faith with confidence, and how you can too.