1949 was a year for fighters. Olympic Gold Medalist and two-time World Heavy Weight Boxing Champion, George Foreman, was born in January. Rick Flair, the only wrestler inducted twice in the WWE Hall of Fame, was born in February. Then, on September twelfth, one of the greatest fighters of our generation was born. He never fought in the ring, but he went many rounds with the devil and whipped him all over the US and overseas. His name is Larry Nix, and I’m privileged to call him my dad!
The following is his story. I will attempt to tell it using his own words as much as possible. I’ve written from his perspective as if he is communicating directly to you. The bulk of what I share comes directly from recordings of when he shared at Camp Tribe. This book isn’t a full biography; hopefully, that will come later. My goal here is to put into print what he shared with thousands of young men and women at camp.
For over twenty years, Dad lovingly labored to tell his story of rejection and redemption. Through the years, multiplied thousands of children and teens would sit enthralled at our annual youth camp as he communicated the story of his pain and joy. Thousands more tuned in from all over the world via the medium of internet streaming. Year after year, even those who had heard it multiple times would lean in to listen. They got caught up in the story, regardless of how often they heard it, crying, laughing, and soaking in the uniqueness of this man.
What many didn’t know was that Dad tired of telling his story. It cost him every time he told it. He had to relive the pain each time. Even though it ends with redemption, the memory of the journey hurt every time. It also cost him the respect of some peers. They would scoff at his telling it again and again. Some questioned his reasoning and even his motives.
But he kept telling it.
Why?
Because it continued to connect with a generation of orphaned hearts from vastly varied backgrounds. On some level, they felt the rejection personally. His story was their story. As he acknowledged his pain, it permitted them to acknowledge the pain in their hearts. His story of redemption gave them the courage to believe that their tomorrows could also be victorious.
He paid the price many times over for the sake of all who responded to receive the healing life of Jesus. I hope that thousands more will know the glories of God’s grace by reading the story of one of God’s outstanding fighters. The enemy marked Dad for a hellish life on Earth, followed by an eternity in hell. But, before the devil even heard of Dad, God already set aside Larry Nix for the glories of Heaven. God chose him as an anointed vessel who would land many debilitating blows against the strategies of darkness.
I am privileged to have heard his story many times over and tell it many times, myself, worldwide. After all, his story is our family’s story. If God hadn’t redeemed him, our family wouldn’t even be here. Even if, somehow Dad had met Mom, and we children were born, things would be extremely different. In all of these past years, I’ve never heard him tell it or told it myself when it didn’t touch the hearer in a profound, life-changing way.
My prayer is that his story will deeply touch your story and cause hope to rise in the power of God for you! I hope that this little volume will cause great things for you, in you, and through you. Get ready to laugh, cry, and be touched by the goodness of God’s grace and the awesomeness of His faithfulness!
Keith Nix is the founding lead pastor of a thriving congregation, The Lift Church in Sevierville, Tennessee. [Visit www.TheLiftChurch.tv] He has traveled internationally since 1993 carrying a unique prophetic message of awakening to this generation. He and his wife, Margie, have one daughter, Isabella.
