Dr. Donald Bell

I am not a pastor by profession, but I am a professional businessman with a deep, deep passion to see our Lord’s Kingdom visibly manifested in our country during this present generation.

I have been self-employed for the past twenty-five years, but prior to that, I served our country for twenty years in the Marine Corps. During that time, I spent two tours in the combat environment of the Vietnam War. Now I really wasn’t a God-fearing man back in those Marine Corps days. In fact I lived a pretty wild life, but there came a day when I was changed forever. It was November 6, 1979 and I attended a church service with my wife. I remember the sermon had to do with the sacrifice of Christ on the cross and His desire to have an ongoing relationship with each of us. Surprisingly, it touched me quite deeply and as I was talking with some men after the service, one suggested that I go home and read the Gospel of John. Well, I left church that morning without any real expectation that the Bible would do much for me, but I was wrong. Early that same afternoon, I sat down in a hot-tub expecting to read a couple of Bible verses and then switch to a more interesting detective novel. So I opened to the first chapter of John’s gospel, which begins:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of me... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth."

Suddenly the reality of those words struck me like lightning, and the Spirit of God dropped upon me like a strong wind flowing through my body over and over.