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 Hi,
my name is Mike Furches. My life didn’t start
off positively. My mother was pregnant before she
was married and life from there didn’t get better.
My birth-father was killed in a car accident on his
way back from Washington D.C. to try to make things
right with my mother who was pregnant with my sister.
She married a 2nd time and her 2nd husband was killed
while hopping a train near Chicago. Her 3rd husband
was abusive, and her 4th an alcoholic. Through all
of this, I was both physically and sexually abused
until about the age of 13 by various individuals when
I finally decided to leave home.
As a young man my life involved many things related
to the life of an urban child. I became involved in
gangs, drugs, and to a small extent the occult. I
had not had the opportunity to learn appropriate things
related to sexuality so I ended up having a lot of
difficulty in this area.
I lived from friend’s house to wherever I could
find, ultimately moving into a YMCA transient home
where I would stay off and on for two years. I came
to know the Lord and became a follower of Jesus while
attending a David Wilkerson Crusade. There, I learned
for the first time of the love and sacrifice that
was offered through Jesus. I learned the importance
of looking to Christ for my example instead of the
Church and Christians. Since then, my life has been
different and I have learned many things about God’s
faithfulness. You can read more about my testimony
through previewing my book The Keystone Kid from my
web site http://www.furches.org/writing/keystone_kid/review.html.
A copy of the entire book in draft form may also be
obtained via request.
Over the years I have been honored to share my story
and of the Lord’s miraculous love before thousands
all over the world. I have appeared on Carman’s
Times 2 “Gangs The Mean Streets,” Night
Line, and other television shows. I write movie reviews
for http://hollywoodjesus.com
one of the most visited movie review web sites on
the planet. Hollywood Jesus receives between 7,000,000
and 10,000,000 hits each day, with an estimated weekly
readership in the millions. I have also worked with
many of the top bands in the world in the area of
music. I was a pastor a church, United at the Cross
Community Church in Wichita, KS. It met the needs
of the urban poor and those living in Urban environments,
from former prostitutes to drug addicts, and gang
members. The Church closed its doors in April of 2006.
I still maintain contact and ministry to many within
the body of the church, via weekly in home meetings
centered around prayer, and community, and other weekly
meetings called Faith In Film where we discuss the
spiritual truths involved in popular, contemporary
movies. I get to see God work in the lives of others,
through day to day living in the real world.
Prior to my work as a pastor I worked in the Mental
Health Field within rehabilitation programs for severely
mentally ill adults. This was a natural fit and training
ground for me. I grew up in a family that had mental
illness in it, and learned attributes that went from
just telling people that I loved and cared for them,
but enabled me to learn how to help them. Over the
years I was involved in the training and set up of
mental health rehabilitation programs around the globe
including Japan, Australia, England, Russia and many
others. I also served on the International Faculty
for Club House Development for the International Center
of Clubhouse Development out of New York City. God
blessed the efforts of working with the mentally ill
and I better came to understand the process of helping
The Lost, The Last and The Least. While I loved this
work, and considered it a job sharing the love of
Jesus with others, I wanted a vocation where I would
feel more complete and be able to share the full measure
of love of Jesus with others, including the potential
for fruitful, productive lives. I wanted to be a part
of changing lives that would start on earth and continue
in Heaven.
I am amazed at how God chose to use a dumb, poor,
street kid for ministry. In and of myself, I could
do nothing without Christ. Knowing that God loved
me to the extent he has is amazing. I continue to
grow in my relationship with Christ. I still have
failures but believe that those who follow Jesus should
focus more on the progress and successes than we do
the failures. I left a life of notoriety in the field
of mental health rehabilitation to become a pastor
of a small urban church with barely enough funds to
pay me. It meant leaving a life of financial comfort
to move to a place where I depend entirely on God.
I continue to see that when I am faithful in the little
things God is faithful in the big things.
Because of my background I continue to have to deal
with issues such as substance abuse and even criminal
acts such as murder in my family. I am reminded of
the Lord’s grace and deliverance every day.
I know now, some 25+ years later that the love and
compassion I found in Christ is as real as the day
I asked Jesus to be my Leader and Forgiver. If Christ
will do that for me he will do that for you.
I am in my 40’s, have a loving wife, and two
wonderful children that never experienced the heartache
that I did as a child. God still works miracles.
I am licensed to perform pastoral duties. The Virtual
Pew is a non-denominational church. I am also a Licensed
Social Worker, Qualified Mental Health Professional,
and trained to provide professional counseling.
Blessings
Mike Furches
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