How Jesus saved me over a 38 year period of my life.
Family Foundation
My name is Andrew Joseph Harbison. I was the second born son of Harry Thomas Harbison and Barbara Ann Harbison. I have 5 siblings. My older sister Laura J., My younger Sisters Theresa M., and Diana H. and my Younger Brothers Thomas H. and Anthony H..
My Father was raised a Catholic and when he had gotten my Mother Pregnant with my sister Laura 1956, they decided to get Married and my Mother converted to Catholicism. I and all my brothers and sisters all attended St. Mary’s Catholic School in New Albany, Indiana. We all were Baptized as infants and were confirmed in the First grade. Every day that I went to school I attended I went to St. Mary’s church in the morning from 8:00 to 9:00 am. It was there that I learned about Jesus, but it would not be for another 53 years before I would truly know Jesus.
Drug’s Alcohol and Sexual Imorality
I grew up like many other children in the 60’s and 70’s when the Beatles came to America. These were years that many Americans fell away from Christianity and fell into Sex, Drugs and Rock n Roll. I was no different than any other teenager in those years. If you did not smoke pot you were not cool. I was 11 years old when Woodstock happened in 1969. The same year that we as Americans landed on the moon. I started smoking pot with my best friend Billy E. in the 9th grade when I started attending Public school. I was 13 years old. We would would head out to school and I would go into Dickmen’s Bar and get us a pint of Wild Turkey. I do not know why the Bar Tender served me I did look older than 13 but I am certain Satan was really behind the bar. Then we would walk down the alley’s me Billy, Greg G. and Tony L. and Drink the Pint and smoke pot on the way to school. Sometimes we would get to school and sometimes not.
That was the beginning of my Alcohol and Drug abuse. It would progress as time went on. I delivered news papers to pay for my Alcohol and Drugs for years 13-14. Later I would get a job at the Robert E. Lee Inn when I was 14 washing dishes. That was where my Mother was a waitress. I really did not pay much attention to my Mother dancing with men at the Robert E. Lee Inn. I was too busy trying to get pot and alcohol.
Generational Sin
I would later find out in that my mother was having affairs with men in which my Father was a willing participant. My Father and Mother had a demonic sexual oppression’s in their lives. This secret I think is only known by me and maybe my older sister Laura and of course my Mother who confessed these sins to me. My Father has since passed away. I never told my Father that I knew what his part was in the divorce of my parents. I did not wish to ever dishonor my Father even to this very day I do not want to dishonor my Father. My Father was a very good man in very many aspects of his life, but Satan has a way of getting to the very best of men. One example King David when he had sex with another man’s wife and then had that man killed.
The fact that my Father was a willing participant in these sexual sins was not known to me when I was 15 years old. I physically kicked my Mother out of our house because my Father was becoming sick every mornings and I learned that she was having relations with men other than my Father. My Mother confessed all these sins to me in January of 2018 when I had went over after my now X wife Leidy had separated from me and wanted a divorce. My Mother is now a Born Again Christian woman for over 20 years who believes that she was possessed by a Spirit of Lust back in 1970-1979. My Mother also confessed that Satan had her addicted to alcohol. These were the two if not more demonic spirits that possessed my Mother back in the 1970’s. I now believe that I too was also possessed by these very same Spirits.
Satan taking Control of my life
Now back to my youth at the age of 16. I was taken down to the Floyd County Court house on my 16th birthday to testify against my Mother as an unfit Mother. I never will forget that I got on the elevator and my Mother stepped into the elevator on her way up to the courtroom for the divorce. My Mother said to me that she wished me a happy birthday. I looked up at her and told her that this was the happiest birthday of my whole life. In fact that was the day that started a whirlwind of Satanic Possession of me through the use of Alcohol, Drugs and Sexual Immorality. My Parents were divorce that day on my 16th birthday.
I started using more and more drugs and alcohol and was having sex with my girlfriend at the time Cindy B.. Cindy was a very sinful girl and had sex with many young men before she ever got married. Cindy eventually stopped seeing me for some other young man. I was even more devastated so I started using even more drugs and alcohol. I would rarely go to school and if I did go to school I was put out in the hallway as a bad boy. I was then working as a Bus Boy at the Derby Dinner Playhouse. This is a Theatrical place that serves a meal and has a play while you eat. I was the Marijuana Dealer in the Playhouse. Dennis at the Bar was the Cocaine Dealer. I would always be carrying ¼ pound of pot on me nearly every day in my Cowboy boots.
One day I was high as a kite in the Kmart up in Clarksville, near my old girlfriends house and I decided to shop lift a sweat shirt. The guard caught me as I was going out and he called the police as he chased me. Eventually the police caught me in some nearby woods and took me to jail. I stayed in jail overnight and when I went to court the next morning and the Judge said that I could go to jail or go in the Military. So I joined the United States Army in September of 1975 and was delayed entry until January 1 , 1976. Because I did not turn 17 until October 4th 1975. Back then you had to be at least 17 with parents consent. I then went through all of the indoctrination into the Military as far as testing and physical and paperwork
Basic Training and AIT
My boot camp and Advanced Individual Training was in Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. I was a pretty good soldier and we only got to drink one time in boot camp after 6 weeks as a celebration after very hard training and a 32 mile march from White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico to Fort Bliss in the desert . Allot of us got drunk and got into a big brawl at the PX. We all got in trouble. However what I was learning was the ways of the world. I then went to AIT there at Ft. Bliss,(Advanced Individual Training). I would go over into Juarez, Mexico and get drunk and have sex with prostitutes. All of my buddies were doing it so I just thought that it was normal. Satan was turning me into a slave of sin.
When I graduated from AIT I got orders to report to AFFEES in Louisville, Kentucky to ship out to Budigen, Germany to my permanent party duty station with 3/61st Air Defense Artillery. I went back home for a short 4 week leave before shipping out to Germany. I brought back to New Albany some Texas Pot and two fifths of Tequila Mescal with the worm in it. I went over to my childhood friends house Bill E. and we sat down started doing shots of the Tequila with lemon and salt and smoking the pot. I think we also had some downers. I think Green Jelly Bean Placidyls. Needless to say after the first bottle I was pretty drunk and we started on the second bottle and I left and went home and passed out in my Father front yard. The next morning I would wreck my Fathers car. I do remember being present in the last week of leave as my other friends Graduated High School. I was at the ceremony in my Dress Military Kaki’s under the U.S. Flag. I really do not think that anyone ever really paid any attention. This was post Vietnam and the Military was very disrespected in those days.
Germany 1976-1979
I arrived in Germany in July of 1976. I really do not remember the exact date. Much of my memories were just a fog from this point on. For the next two and one half years. I smoked about 5-10 grams of Hashish a day and drank nearly every day. The only time that I was not drinking was when I was on duty. Even then many times I would be doing Hashish, Liquid Speed X112, Acid, Cocaine, Heroin and any other drug or alcoholic drink. I recall one night getting on the train to go to Frankfurt to buy Prostitute doing all of those drugs in one night. The club that we went to was handing out acid at the door. We did Hash and Liquid speed on the train then we went the club did the acid at the door then got Cocaine and Heroin in the club.
I was discharged from the Military in January of 1979. I did receive an Honorable Discharge. Somehow God was still watching after me. Somehow God put the idea in my head to go to School for Electronics. I was still drinking every day and still working every day for the City Of New Albany’s Street Department, but I enrolled in School over in Louisville, Kentucky at United Electronics Institute. Somehow God helped me graduate from that school, but not without another tragedy in my life.
Electronics School and Jerry N.
When I enrolled in that School I met a very smart young guy name Jerry N.. We all called him noodle because he was so smart. Jerry helped me allot with my school work. Jerry was also an alcoholic and a drug addict. We would smoke two or three joints before class then at break we would go over to Captain D’s and drink a Picture or two of beer. When we were only about three months from graduating Jerry and I and nearly our whole class went out to a lake to drink smoke pot and party. I was having sex with the one girl in the class named Barbara. I think Jerry was jealous of that I was having sex with her. Jerry took off all his cloths and challenged me to race him across the lake. I was a swimmer in Jr High School and early freshman high school so I obviously thought that I could easily beat him. It was very dark that night and you could not see the other side of the lake. We both dove in at the dock. Then after I was swimming out maybe 300-400 yards I started to cramp up. I knew what to do so I flipped over on my back and slowly started back towards the dock. On my way back to the dock I heard some gurgling noises out about 30-40 yards away. Jerry died that night in that lake. This is something that still helps me understand that False Pride can kill people.
Sexual Immorality
While I was in school I was having sex with Barbara out of wedlock and I started chasing after a true Jezebel of a Woman named Vicky. She was married, but would have sex with any man who had drugs and alcohol. Eventually Vicky moved in with me while she was still married to her Husband. He tried to come by my Fathers house one day and tried to cut me with a knife. I pulled my semi automatic 22 rifle out of the car and shot 6 shots at his car. He did not come around me anymore. He did burn my car down to the ground in the driveway of my apartment. I had passed out in my apartment from the party from the previous night. The next morning my Grandmother was there with the Fire Chief when they walked into my apartment there was a keg of beer floating in a blue tub. Whiskey bottles everywhere and pot in an album on the bar counter. The car apparently was totally engulfed in flame and they where beating on my apartment door because how close it was to the fire. There again God watching out after me. Vicky moved on to some other guy that had more drugs. I did not care she was only a sexual toy. My sexual perversions along with my drug and alcohol addictions was getting worse by the day. I just went out and found any other woman that would have sex for drugs and alcohol. Basically they were all prostitutes they just had a different payment.
God’s Preparing me for the Fall
I eventually Graduated United Electronics Institute on March 27,1981. UEI had a very Good job placement program and I as well as 8 other graduates all got a job with Stromberg Carlson in Longwood, Florida. I was going to be and Installer of their DBX1200 Telephone Exchange System Internationally. However they had to train us for the first 30 days in a classroom setting about their DBX1200 system. We all went to class during the day then when we got off at night we would go to the Bottle Club on Highway 436 in Longwood. It was basically a place that served coke and sprite and you had to bring your own alcohol. I had met a girl at the pool at the Motel that Stromberg had put us up in and I had come back from that Bottle Club all drunk and apparently went to her door at 1:30 in the morning and she called the police.
I really do not remember what happened. All I know is that I woke up in the Hospital and they were removing pieces of glass out of my left forearm the size of a quarter. They did not even have to give me an pain killer. I was that drunk. They then put me in a populous cell with about 20 other guys. Someone started to do a cat whistle at me because of my long hair and I almost got in a fight. I had 33 stitches in my arm and 15 stitches in my head but I was ready to fight anyone.
The guards quickly came in and took me to an isolation cell next to Crazy Joe Spoziano. Crazy Joe had killed some people in 1973 and was back in Seminole county jail for an appeals hearing. Crazy Joe and I became Friends. Crazy Joe sent me over his manuscripts to read about his case through the guards. There we were Crazy Joe and Crazy Andy. The guards would use us as a threat to drunks that came in and were a bit wild. They would take them down to my cell and open the window and inside was a skinny wiry muscled young man with a large bandage on his left arm and long hair that was completely blood soaked for two or three days. Looking back from today God had allowed me to become an animal.
Eventually I bonded out of jail after 11 days. The people that I had come to Florida with really did not want anything to do with me. One of them Bill the guy I came to Florida with sold me his 1970 Nova for $250.00. I bought some camping equipment and set up near a lake. One day some guys came by and asked did I want to party with them over at Daytona Beach. I said sure. So we got over to Daytona Beach and shortly there after I was arrested for drinking on the beach. I turned to these guy’s that I did not know and told them to take my car and my possessions to Shenandoah Village Apartments and park it and give the Keys to Bill H.. I never saw that car again. I got out of jail three days later and I was down to cut off jean shorts, tank top and flip flops. I hitch hiked back to Longwood about 25 miles. I was still employed by Stromberg Carlson , but was suspended until I cleared the Felony Charge of Resisting arrest with violence and assaulting a police officer which carries 5 years of Prison. I had just stopped by my work report my status. They must have known that I was crazy. I was hitch hiking out of there facility when God’s first Angel picked me up.
Jim W. and the Pollock
God works through many people and many ways. Jim W. had worked for Stromberg Carlson for about 7 years. At that time Jim was clean and Sober for about 5 years. I got in his car and started telling him about my life and how I thought the State of Florida was trying to kill me. Jim just laughed and told me that he did not know about all that, but he knew a place where there were some people that might be able to help me. He promptly took me over to the REBOS Club. That is Sober spelled backwards. The Rebos Club was at that time in the same office plaza as the new HAPPY HOUR. Later on in 1983 Chuck W. would donate the property to the Rebos Club House would be built on that property. When I first walked in I guess I might have been talking like a young man that thought he knew what he was talking about. Pollock John was sitting down on one of the couches. At that time the Pollock was about 62 years old and had been sober for 17 years. He was a Skid Rowe drunk from Miami that had relocated to Casselberry. Florida about ten years previously to be with his Nephew John M. the NFL football player who had a drinking problem. The Pollock promptly got up and told me to get out of the Club that I did not know what I was talking about. Several other member had to restrain him to get him to not come after me physically. Eventually they offered me a cup of coffee and this was right about noon time and they took me into the back half of the club behind office partitions and I went to my first AA meeting. I had been to AA and NA while in the service because I turned up a positive Mandrix (Same as Qualude)test result on a random piss test, but that was a joke because they were the same people that I used to score plates of hash with in Shit Park in Frankfurt. In my first meeting the one thing that I heard was that not every time I drank did I get in trouble, but every time I was in trouble I had been drinking. If you were at that meeting you would have seen a light bulb over my head. I made perfect sense to me. My whole problem was Drugs and Alcohol. Over the next 38 years God has revealed far more to me.
AA false Teaching All paths lead to God
That was my first meeting June 1, 1981. God has taken the desire for drugs and alcohol away from me. I have not used drugs or alcohol since that day. That Demonic Spirit was taken away from me. Satan was no longer going to be able to use that tool against me. I went through the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous and went back to my faith as a child of believing in Jesus Christ. Back in those days AA was not as Anti-Christ as it is today. One of the men who helped me was one of the founding 100 members of AA. His name was Clarence Snyder. Clarence was a Born Again Christian from Cleveland that had retired in Ocala and came over to speak occasionally at the Rebos Club. Clarence made no bones about his belief in Jesus Christ. Now today I understand more than ever what he was saying. AA was founded from the book of Matthew Chapter 5 and the Book of James. Today’s Generation of AA’s have been fed a lie by Satan that all spiritual paths lead to God. There is only one way to the Father and that is through his Son Jesus Christ. I followed AA’s deceptive path for 36 years. This path where I did not surrender all of my life and will to God let me keep my sexual perversions which destroyed two marriages. I still was addicted to Pornography. If you think you are a Christian and you are still watching pornography then you are not saved and you do not know Jesus. I knew about Jesus for 36 years. I tried to be a good person for 36 years. However during those years Jesus would have told me I never knew you. I am so glad that God chose me before the foundations of the world. I am so glad that my x-wife rejected me. That is what it took for God to finally open my eyes and see the only way is through Jesus Christ and the atoning blood shed on the cross for my sins.
This not my entire testimony. I still need to tell about my two failed marriages while still addicted to Pornograhy. I will finish this testimony soon.