Randy Meulman: How to Become a Real Man

CBN.com Randy Meulman was the all American kid raised in a strict Christian home. But years of striving to please God drove him away from his faith.

“I can remember when I was 16 years old I came to the conclusion that I was going to spend an eternity in hell,” Randy says. “That if this was what Christianity was all about, if this was life, I didn’t want anything to do with it.”

Randy spent the first 16 years of his life trying to please God by following the strict rules laid down by his family and church. Love didn’t seem to be a part of the equation.

“He was an angry God and He didn’t like sinners,” he says. “And I knew that I was a sinner. If you were doing things that God didn’t like, he was going to smash you to death.”

So Randy rebelled, chasing after anything he thought would make him a man.

“James Bond. That was when James Bond first came out. And I thought a real man as James Bond,” he says. “Well, man … he smoked.  Back then you smoked, drank, fought, went out with girls, played around.”

Randy was a good athlete and went to college to play football. 

“I lettered on the varsity as a freshman, but they threw me out because I didn’t want to go to class. That was a part of the deal I didn’t like,” he says.

Randy dropped out of college and took a job as a janitor. Then, a friend at work shared with him about a God who forgives, a God of love.

“I wasn’t buying it,” Randy says. “And I wasn’t buying it that night. But God showed up. I just knew, in your knower, how you know, who God was. This was life. And where I was headed was death.”

“I said, ‘I’m ready to accept Christ.’ And I got down on my knees and asked the Lord into my life.”

Randy had a new purpose in life – to disciple the world for Jesus Christ.

He married and started classes at a Bible college. He went into full-time ministry for his church.  But the old compulsion to please God by being the perfect Christian kicked in.

“I thought, ‘If that’s what God wants from me, I’m going to be the best at this. I was going to be a superstar for God.’”

Striving to be perfect in all these areas of his life brought frustration and despair. 

“My life was not characterized by joy,” he says.

Randy’s ministry was falling apart and his marriage was failing. So he just tried even harder to make his life work. 

He reached his breaking point late one night. 

“I felt I was one of the most righteous men alive, that I was a high-performer,” Randy says. “But this faith was legalistic faith. My Christianity was dependent on me. And real Christianity isn’t.”

Randy and his wife divorced. He left his church and took a job with an insurance agency. At night, he spent his time partying.

“My life basically was built on a lie. It was a waste and I threw it out. And believe me, I was going to make up for lost time. I went in exactly the opposite direction,” Randy says.

Soon, his wayward lifestyle took its toll. Health problems and a hefty divorce settlement forced him to declare bankruptcy.

“…everything that I valued. I’ve lost my money. My relationships are gone. My health is gone,” he says.

Randy moved into a little trailer in east Texas and spent a lot of time fishing and talking to God. 

“Me and the Lord … getting to know who He was,” Randy says. “He became my best friend.  And I became unbelievably intimate with the Lord.” 

Randy began to understand that his salvation didn’t depend on what he did, but what Jesus did.

“He said, ‘You know, Randy, I appreciate all that you’ve done. But it’s already been done,’ he recalls. “And so for the first time in my life after having lost everything, I found it.”

Today, Randy will tell you that he does have everything. He’s back in the insurance business — this time he owns the company. He’s happily married. But most of all…

“… for the first time in my life I know what joy is,” he says. “And I know what Jesus said when He said, ‘I’ve come that you might have life and have it more abundantly.’

God doesn’t need a man like me. I need a God like him.”