Ron Wheeler’s Story

Today’s guest blogger is nationally known cartoonist, Ron Wheeler. Ron who resides in Kansas City, Missouri, has been a cartoonist/humor illustrator since 1980, working primarily with Christian organizations. He is compelled by God to create cartoons to be a communication vehicle for spreading His Truths. Ron has created cartoons for many well known organizations including the Fellowship of Christian Athletics, Focus on the Family, Youth for Christ, the American Tract Society, Zondervan Publishing, the Kansas City Chiefs Football Team and the Kansas City Royals Baseball Club.

We are blessed to say he is also the creator of the cover art for the book, If I Only Had….Wrapping Yourself in God’s Truths During Storms of Insecurity, written by Pearls of Promise Founder Lisa Burkhardt Worley and Creative Director Catherine Weiskopf. To see Ron’s fabulous work and to know more about him, please visit his website at: http://www.cartoonworks.com. The following is Ron’s personal testimony:

I am a cartoonist by profession and began drawing cartoons from the moment I could pick up a pencil. However, it wasn’t until college that I started to become successful with it. While there, I drew a comic strip called “Ralph” for the school paper. Ralph was a hit with the students because I poked fun at a lot of things with which they could identify. People would tell me that there was a lot of truth in what I wrote. This led me on a long journey to pursue what truth really is, so I could then relate it through my comic strip.

I knew that there was a lot about life I hadn’t learned yet. So, I thought that if I experienced all life had to offer, I would understand truth. This zeal for experiencing life enabled me to enjoy many things from mountain climbing to skydiving. I thought I had it all.

After graduation, I landed a great job in a major corporation. I had a hot new sports car, and I even had more hair on my head. But there was a lot I was missing too. All that notoriety in college didn’t carry over into the real world. I found that spending time trying to experience life wasn’t gaining me friends, and I found inner contentment becoming more and more elusive. By this time, my thirst for adventure had led me into immoral areas where I didn’t belong.

Fortunately, it wasn’t long before I got fired from my job and my life fell apart. I say “fortunately” because if it hadn’t, I might not have come to grips with the fact that there is a lot about life, such as inner peace, that I can’t experience through my own strength. For the first time, I began to seek help in the church.

I was surprised to learn at church that the Bible had a lot to say to me personally. I learned that God had always loved me, but my pride and selfishness kept me from experiencing that love. I also learned that God already knew about my life of sin and sent His son, Jesus, to pay for my sins through His death. By inviting Christ into my life, I could freely come before the Lord and experience His love.

One night, this finally made sense to me. I was at the end of my rope and had no place else to turn. I had been trying to become a cartoonist in my own strength. My identity was wrapped around my abilities in this area. My pride was such that I actually thought I was a better person than others because I could draw cartoons. However, the more I tried to make it as a cartoonist, the more doors seemed to be slamming in my face. Finally, I let go of my desire to be a cartoonist. In fact, I let go of my very life itself. I just wanted to be right with God. So, I cried out to God and placed my total trust in Jesus.

The irony of all this is that the day after I accepted Christ, I got my first full-time job as a cartoonist and it was waiting for me for three months, right across the street from my apartment. After I gave my life to the Lord, He opened doors so I could be used where He wanted me. You see, He created me with the desire and the ability to be a cartoonist, and He wanted to fulfill His purposes through me. But He couldn’t use me until He had me. Once He had me, the doors began flying open for me to be used drawing cartoons as a communication vehicle for spreading God’s truths. Now, I am drawing cartoons that are published all over the world. I am fulfilled in that purpose. What is even more satisfying is that God has filled me with His peace for eternity. I had been searching for peace for so many years, (I actually thought true peace was an illusion) and now… I have it because of the personal loving relationship I have with God through Jesus Christ.