About Me...
From the Founder/Director
Thank you so much for your interest in A.S.M. and me personally. I was born in September of 1959 in Fresno, California and grew up in Clovis—a relatively small town right next door to my birth-city. I have been a Christian for twenty-eight-plus wonderful years. My early discipleship took place at Valley Christian Center (Foursquare) in Fresno where I was water baptized, filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8; 2:1-21; 10:44-48; 19:1-6), and attended regularly for many years. I moved to San Diego in 1984 and soon after received an Associate of Arts (Liberal Arts) degree from Grossmont College in El Cajon. At that time, I was also privileged to know and sit under the teaching of Richard Dresselhaus at San Diego First Assembly of God. I am presently a single father of two wonderful teenage boys. We love to participate in worship services at Coastal Christian Center, Encinitas, CA .
So, by starting A.S.M. am I seeking to exalt myself? Do I wish to “be somebody”? Absolutely not, except to the degree that I may be obedient to the Lord Jesus Christ whom I serve, and to the degree that I can, in His Name and by His power, be a blessing and help to the people of God. I agree with the proclamation of John the Baptist, “I must decrease, He [Jesus] must increase.” Furthermore, I will not magnify myself because there are far greater ministers in the Kingdom of God than I. They are the great men and women of God who change your child’s diapers in the nursery while you are in the sanctuary worshipping and learning, stay late to wash dishes after every “Afterglow” meeting, teach the Sunday School classes week after week without pay, visit the jails—loving the “unlovable”—just because the Lord asks them to do so, volunteer to clean the church restroom because the church is too small and poor to hire a janitor, adopt and love “retarded” or “handicapped” children who most of us will not even go near, and in complete solitude battle every day in prayer to make certain that the will of God is accomplished on the earth. It is these valued ministers and ministries that I will magnify, not my own.
My heart is full of gratitude for the many godly individuals who have positively impacted my twenty-eight-plus years of Christian life.
Here are just a few:
--Russ Pickett who introduced me to Jesus.
-- Roger Whitlow and the saints at Valley Christian Center of Fresno, CA.
--Jack Bohan: formerly of Clovis Unified School District and Fellowship of Christian Athletes, now sadly deceased, who taught me that "I can do all things through [Jesus Christ] who strengthens me (Phil. 4:13).
--My lifelong friends Eric Costa and Ron Leona.
--Robert May: formerly of West Coast Bible College, now serving as Senior Pastor of Valley Community Church in Clovis, CA.
--Richard Dresselhaus: formerly of San Diego First Assembly of God, now the Director of Journey of Hope.
--Keith Green: formerly of Last Days Ministries, now sadly deceased.
I would also like to publicly thank those who are presently a powerful blessing to me and A.S.M. They are beautiful people who are, in their special way, making this ministry possible.
They are:
--Adam Krueger for sharing my dream and for making the A.S.M. web-site a thing of beauty
--Brad Froese of Valley Community Church in Santee, CA for some timely help and encouragement.
-- Ed Chapman, Pastor of Adult Ministries at San Diego First Assembly of God for needed support and encouragement.
-- David Ritter, Worship and Arts Pastor at Sonrise Community Church in Santee, CA for weekly leading me into the presence of God and for support and encouragement.
--Nina , Natalie Wasko, and Missie Jacobs for their greatly needed typing skills.
The greatest books I've ever read...
-- The Holy Bible (New American Standard Version) by God
-- The Healing Power Of A Christian Mind by William Backus
-- The Man God Uses by Henry and Tom Blackaby
-- Adrenaline And Stress by Archibald Hart
-- The Root Of Righteousness by A.W. Tozer
-- The Dream Giver by Bruce Wilkinson
-- Bringing Up Boys by James Dobson
-- The Shroud Of Turin by C. Bernard Ruffin
-- No Compromise: The Life Story Of Keith Green by Melody Green
-- The Elijah Task by John and Paula Sandford
-- Getting Control Of Your Inner Self by Rick Yohn
-- Why Revival Tarries by Leonard Ravenhill
-- Courage by Edwin Louis Cole
-- The Perricone Prescription by Nicolas Perricone
-- The Common Cold Cure by Ray Sahelian and Victoria Dolby Toews
God bless all!
Michael