Joseph David "Dave" Meier's story can encourage those who have had a challenging childhood. God cherishes lost sheep and hard cases. A life of failure and sin is no problem for God! Regardless of your past, there is hope. Dave was born near Los Angeles, California, in 1947 to military veterans. His parents met in service during World War II. When the war ended in 1945, they married and began a family. Dave's life in Southern California started out quite normally. But in 1954, the small family moved for one year to Melbourne, Australia. There, Dave's parents decided to divorce.Dave; his mother, Connie; and his little sister, Laura returned to the United States in 1955. It was then that everything started to become wild, unstable, and dysfunctional.Dave's mother had life-saving brain surgery in 1951. She survived but with minor brain dysfunction. Divorced and with two children who needed a father, she married a Merchant Marine war veteran, who was a chronic alcoholic. Let the wild begin. Dave's mother had no addictions. His new stepfather had several-and became Dave's best friend.By age twelve, Dave loved black coffee, beer, wine, whiskey, gambling, and smoking. He and his stepfather, Martin, fished for food at night. Because of trouble with the law, the family became nomadic couch surfers. They ran from friend to relative, from campsite to fleabag motel. Dave's natural father was successful and faithfully paid his monthly $200 child support. Most months, the little wayward family survived only on that. Dave's childhood days were quite a challenge.When camping (homeless) as a child near the coast, Dave loved to surf. At age fourteen and a half, his mother and stepfather went to jail. Dave ran away to the beaches, living wherever he could. He spare-changed for food, surfed, and enjoyed all his new friends.As the summer of 1964 in California ended, Dave (a high school dropout) was almost seventeen years old. He was alone. His friends were all back in school. The weather was cold. The surf was blown out and choppy. Dave hitchhiked to his father's house. His father signed him into the Marine Corps upon turning seventeen years old.After boot camp, Dave spent four years as a US Marine. He surfed, drank, and earned his GED. He also got his girlfriend pregnant and married her. Many of Dave's friends in the Marines, by 1967, had died in Vietnam. His first marriage ended in 1968. Dave, though born Catholic, had become a confirmed atheist.In February of 1970 Christ paid Dave a visit. He was preaching against having faith in Christ to Christians on a Southern California college campus. Christ slammed him right off his high horse. Within three days, Dave quit college and his job and moved. His atheism was over. Dave's spiritual life had begun.Dave experienced many setbacks. He failed in business, ministry, and marriage. Despite being an active Christian who loved God, Dave struggled at times in many ways. Only by God's grace did he find freedom from sin in Christ. Dave has seven amazing children who all love him-and God.Dave has served Christ as a youth pastor, a campus pastor, and an associate pastor of a large nondenominational church. Dave, in 2005, cofounded Tahoe Christian Ministries. From 2009 to 2023, he wrote and published Edifire magazine, a Christ-centered free magazine in Southeast Georgia.Dave now lives and serves the Lord in Titusville, Florida. He writes small devotional books about Christ-centered living. Dave loves to see young people find new life in Christ and the freedom he has found. Dave especially enjoys mentoring, counseling, and trying to help alcoholics and drug addicts. He lives in hopes of pointing people to a vibrant life in Christ. Because of Christ, he's now enjoying the best of his life for the rest of his life. To him, all things are sovereign of God in his life. His life in retirement as a husband, father, grandfather, and neighbor has become a great romantic adventure.
