Testimonies of Our People:
William Radvansky
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My name is William Radvansky and I was born the year of 1956 in Pennsylvania. My parents were both born and raised as Catholics so my “spiritual” upbringing was within the context of the Catholic religion. We were not a religious family, per se. We went to church sporadically, being the stereotypical Christmas and Easter attendees. I went to catechism every year and had my first communion and confirmation.

My Grandmother Radvansky was a Christian who read the Bible every day. When my parents would go out to the clubs on weekends, my Grandmother would tell us Bible stories and witness to my brother and sister and I. She prayed for us to be saved for many years.

I can remember from a very young age suffering extreme feelings of anxiety over the question, ”What is life all about” I would lay in my bed at night with the darkness all around me, trying to reconcile in my own mind the very reason for my own existence. Looking back on it, it seems to be a very burdensome thing for an 8 year old to have to deal with, but I now realize that the Holy Spirit of God was working on my heart even then. I read books on the occult as I searched for something to fill that emptiness deep inside.

As I entered into my teenage years I began to adopt the “God” that my parents seemed to worship, that of materialism. We had a very nice, big house with a built- in swimming pool, a Cadillac, color TV, etc. I began to think that happiness and purpose in one’s life is achieved through the acquisition of things. When I was 16 years old I began to drink alcohol. There were many bars and clubs in New Kensington that would serve teenagers and I and my friends became regulars at every one. There were more than a few nights that I stayed out until dawn, drunk.

As soon as I graduated from High School I went to work. I worked in the steel industry which, at that time, was one of the best paying jobs around. I wrongfully expected that my quest for happiness was about to pay dividends.

At 19 years old I married my wife, Maria, who was a Christian. She attempted to interest me in going to the Lutheran church that she belonged to. For two years she faithfully went to church, and I never once accompanied her. I had no desire for spiritual things. I bought a house, a new car, rental property, took vacations and yet when I laid down at night that nagging feeling of purposelessness was still there. I continued to drink. There were many times when my wife did not know where I was or when or if I would be home. We fought often and our marriage became strained. I vowed many times to stop drinking and be a better husband, all to no avail.

In 1978 at the age of 22 years old I felt like my world was falling apart. Everything that I had worked for and sought as my fulfillment had failed me. My episodes of anxiety became more frequent and intense. By fall of that year I was losing weight, not sleeping and drinking often. During the first week of November I was unable to eat or sleep and I thought that I was perhaps in the throes of a nervous breakdown.

Finally on Friday November 3, 1978 I had reached a crossroads in my life. I came home from work approximately 4:00 PM and my wife was out shopping. I sat down in my chair in the TV room of our home at Riverview Drive and I didn’t know what was going to happen next. All of the hopelessness and despair had come to a head and I could not envision myself going any further. At that point I believe that I fully understood why some people commit suicide, though I did not consider such an act myself. As I sat in that chair I heard an audible voice speak right out of the middle of the room. It said, “Why don’t you read the Bible?” I was not afraid or even startled. I thought to myself, “The Bible, Why would I want to do that”? The voice then said “You’ve tried everything else, go pick up the Bible”. My wife had a Bible that she always kept in the headboard of our bed so I went in and picked it up. I opened it to the first page and it said, In the Beginning... I figured that I must be in the right place! I began to read in the book of Genesis. I had heard the stories of Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, and Joseph before, but as I read them it was different. I literally felt as though the events were unfolding right before my eyes! I began to believe that the Bible was true and there really was a God, and perhaps he was the one who had spoken to me. I read the story of Moses and how God delivered his people from bondage. When I looked up for the first time, I saw that I had been reading for more than 4 hours.

I had noticed on the spine of my wife’s Bible that it said “Words of Christ in Red”. I wondered why I had not seen any red words so I started leafing through it. Of course I then saw that there was a New Testament which included the life of Christ so I began to read there. My wife came home as I was reading and walked into the bedroom. She got a startled look on her face and said, “What are you doing?” I said, I’m reading the Bible, leave me alone” She said, “Okay” and left the room.

I started reading in the New Testament and I saw the ministry of the Savior to fallen mankind. Christ said in Luke 19:10,

“For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

I read what Christ said to Nicodemus in John 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him,

“Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

I knew that what I needed in my life was Jesus Christ. The Bible spoke directly to the improper belief that I had. Jesus said in Luke 12:15 And he said unto them,

"Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth."

I worked with a man who said he was a Born Again Christian and I remembered him telling me how to be saved. Right there in my bedroom I asked Christ to come into my life and forgive me of my sins. As I looked up from my reading I began to realize that all of the anxiety, the hopelessness, and the feelings of despair were gone! I later read in 1 Peter 5:7,

"Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you."

Jesus also tells us in Mat 11:28

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest”.

I told my wife what had happened to me and she was, of course, overjoyed.

When I went to work the following Monday, my coworkers immediately sensed that something was different about me. I said a cuss word that morning as I always did, but something wasn’t right. The Holy Spirit of God began to change me from the inside. Our habit at lunchtime was to go over to a local bar and have a few beers with our lunch. I did this a few times but quickly realized that I could not do that any more. Many times I had told my wife that I would stop drinking, but this time it was different. I witnessed to many of those at work, sharing what the Lord had done for me.

I began attending church, always comparing what I was told with what the Bible said. I learned to do this from reading Acts 17:11

“These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so”.

My spiritual journey took me to several different churches until I found and became a member of, a solid, Bible-believing church.

When I told my Grandmother that her prayers for me were answered, she praised the Lord. My parents and both my brother and sister got saved through my witness in the ensuing year as well as my dad’s brother, and his wife. The Lord had honored the prayers of my dear Grandmother offered up faithfully for all of those years.

It took many years for me to understand that salvation is not the end-all of the Christian life. 1 Corinthians 9:14 says,

"Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel."

There is no greater joy than to serve the Lord. Jesus’ final words spoken while on earth were Mat 28:19-20,

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

I now endeavor to be a witness for him in all that I do and say.