Evangelist Art and Val Hanks Testimony
Back in 1982 as Art and I said our marriage vows at the Justice of the Peace,
I couldn't believe we were getting married. After two failed marriages for me, and a year of living with Art and my
three children our household as dysfunctional as any alcoholic family could be. Little did we know God had a plan to
heal our wounds and set us free and restore us to abundant life with God through His son, Jesus Christ.
Four years past, which was the most difficult period of our life. Alcohol
and drugs had totally torn our family apart. My son was living on the streets before he ended up at his grandparents.
My oldest daughter was left with the household duties and being mother to her handicap sister. Art was drunk every day
of the week, and I was right there at the bars working and drinking my tips.
To make along story shorter, I ran away from it all taking my youngest daughter
with me, and headed to Wichita Falls, Texas. I just knew my life had to change. Soon Art was wanting to make the
same change and joined me in Texas. Our first night together we decided to pray to God and ask for HELP!!! We
couldn't think of any other way to get out of this mess. Art prayed that night the shortest prayer I have ever
heard him pray. "Help us God, we don't know how to get out of this mess"!!! Six months from that date we relized we
hadn't had one drink, no urges, and no shakes from withdrawals. We couldn't believe we were healed and at that
very moment we both knew God heard our little prayer. What we didn't know, it was the very first part of a plan He had
for Art and I to be able to adopt a little girl and watch His healing hand touch her and the rest of the family.
Four more years past, and we found ourselves being led to Montana in 1990 where
high up on a mountain I disscovered through Ben Haden Ministry Radio show that I was not Born Again. I was depending
on my baptism and membership in a church to get me into heaven. For Art, he had received Jesus into his heart as a child,
and after all that backsliding all those years, he repentened and started growing in the Word of God and life began to really
change for us both. In the spring of 1994 we knew without a doubt we were being called to ministry in our old stumping
grounds back home in northern Minnesota.
August 1994 we opened an old remolded hotel building and held church there for
two years, we had no clue what we were doing or how to do it! We knew the Lord said to build a church like no other!
Well, by faith it happened and we seen seven people get saved and some healed. As we grew in the Lord, we come to understand
our calling for a church like no other didn't mean a building, but the people along the highways and byways was who we were
to minister to, just as Art and I once needed the healing and salvation we found in Jesus. We hit the road and spent
six years living in a school bus-RV during the winter months out in Arizona and coming back to Minnesota every spring.
Those years were more of a time of on the road training and learning everything God didn't want us to do.
We are now full time at home and look forward to each day God has something knew
for us in ministry and it continues, one soul at a time.
BUT GOD HATH CHOOSEN THE FOOLISH THINGS OF THE
WORLD TO CONFOUND THE WISE; AND GOD HATH CHOOSEN THE WEAK THINGS OF THE WORLD TO CONFOUND THE THINGS WHICH ARE MIGHTY:
(1 Corinthians 1:27)
Thank you for checking out our web site, we pray that we
can be a portal for you to find Truth and help you make a decision to receive Jesus Christ as your Savior.
We would love to hear about your decision to receive Jesus Christ into your heart
