Micah Wilder shares "Passport to Heaven"
Growing up Mormon
Micah grew up in Muncie, Indiana, in a devout Mormon family where he was taught that through religious acts he could make himself right with God. He did not believe that God gave His love freely and did not believe that he was saved by grace. At the age of 14, Micah's mother, Lynn, was hired as a professor at Brigham Young University (BYU), a prominent Church of Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints (LDS) in Utah. In 1999, his family moved from the Midwest and replanted in the heart of Mormonism. During Micah’s teenage years his devotion to the LDS church was strengthened and cultivated. Micah describes himself as a “zealous, religious man.” In high school, he held numerous leadership positions in the church and worked tirelessly to establish right standing with God through the laws, ordinances, and works of his religion. He pined for the assurance of the forgiveness of his sins, but felt unable to satisfy an ever-growing thirst within his soul.
After Micah graduated from high school, he attended BYU for a semester and prepared for the most important two years of his life: his full-time LDS mission. As a child Mormons are taught there is no salvation outside the church therefore, they are passaionate to be missionaries and convert people to their faith. In an effort to spiritually ready himself for this undertaking, Micah worked in the Mormon temple leading up to his two-year mission trip. Then, at the age of 19, he was sent to Orlando, Florida (a very evangelical and Bible based area) as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He rode his bike and would knock on the doors of strangers sharing about the Mormon faith.
A Life-Changing Encounter
Just months into his mission, Micah confronted a Baptist minister, Pastor Alan Benson, with the intention of converting him to Mormonism. In response, Pastor Benson lovingly shared the biblical Gospel with Micah. For the first time in his life, Micah learned of the salvation that comes by grace through faith, and not by works. It was a love of God Micah did not know, but always wanted. “Never in my life had I heard the Gospel with such clarity and simplicity,” shares Micah. At the conclusion of their encounter, Pastor Benson challenged Micah to read the Bible as a child by removing any preconceived notions and allowing God’s Word to speak truth through the Holy Spirit. Micah accepted his challenge with the intent of proving him wrong. This challenge sent Micah on a quest to read the Bible over the remainder of his two-year mission. For the next 18 consecutive months, he read the New Testament from beginning to end a dozen times. Micah recalls, “I came to the understanding, through God's Word, had a life changing transformation, and was born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ as a Mormon missionary.” As a leader in the mission, he had been given a unique opportunity to boldly witness of Jesus and His Word to his peers. “What God was teaching me through the Bible I was then teaching to other missionaries, who, in turn, taught others,” shares Micah.
With less than three weeks left on his two-year mission, Micah became a Christian. He was confronted by his LDS leaders about his noticeable change in faith. Micah publicly witnessed that he no longer needed the Mormon church or any of its rites, rituals, or ordinances to be saved—only Jesus. As a result of his confession, Micah’s two-year mission was cut short and he returned to Utah to face discipline from his church leaders. Micah reveals, “They chastised and debased me for my open profession of the sufficiency of Jesus Christ alone for my salvation. I was accused of being possessed by Satan, threatened with ex-communication, and told I was an anti-Christ.” Micah’s mission ended and he left the church. He ministered the Gospel to his close friends and family, challenging them—as he had been challenged—to read the Bible like a child. The first of his loved ones to openly accept this invitation was his high school girlfriend, Alicia. She too was born again through reading the Word of God and she and Micah eloped just days after Micah’s mission ended. Over time, many of Micah’s loved ones came to knowledge of the truth including his older brother Matt, younger sister Katie, best missionary friend Joseph, and eventually his parents.
Adam's Road Ministry
After Micah left the Mormon church, (2006) he and four other young men who also left the church founded Adam’s Road, a ministry to proclaim the Gospel through song and testimony. “We felt a unique calling to directly put the Bible into music, as a medium to reach those of our former community,” shares Micah. In fifteen years, they have produced ten full length albums. Five months of the year they travel throughout North America. They do not charge fees for ministry and their materials are free of charge.
Micah is also an owner and operator at the Historic Edgewater Hotel in Winter Garden, Florida. The hotel operates as a “tent-making” ministry for Adam’s Road, providing the personal living expenses for the majority of the ministry members, allowing them to distribute all of their resources at no charge.
Seeds Planted
When Micah moved to Florida, he contacted Pastor Alan Benson who had challenged him to read the Bible as a child would. He shared how his life had been changed after their encounter. Alan said, “I never knew anything I said to you had any impact on your life. In fact, I walked away from that meeting feeling like I had failed.” Micah says this is often the case when we share the Gospel with the lost. We rarely see the fruit in the moment. Micah says, “We are called only to lovingly plant and water the seeds – only God can give the growth. Micah’s heart for the LDS people is that they too will come to know the righteousness of God revealed in Christ, be released from the bondage of man-made laws, and set free in Christ Jesus through His Word. He prays for Christians to be bold and a loving witness of the Gospel to the lost. “My testimony is one of millions that is evidence that no one is beyond the reaches of God’s amazing grace."
