Peace Freak
An uncompromising true-life account of the paths followed in search of peace...
by
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FELLOW EXPLORERS Something deep down inside kept telling me that I had to get out of this place. Decatur, located smack dab in the Central Illinois prairie, was a tough, gritty industrial town. The hot, humid summers were barely tolerable, as the corn and soybean fields throughout the area would thrive, giving us the satisfying impression that we were blessed to live in America’s bread basket. Winters were a drag, though. As the fields were cleared, all you could see, stretching endlessly toward the horizon, were miles of flat, black land. For weeks at a time, there would be no sunlight. The expanse of flat gray sky, combined with the flat black earth, gave the illusion that we were living in a colorless, black and white world. Almost everyone worked at a factory of some sort. Two of the three largest food processing plants in the world, Archer Daniels Midland and A.E. Staley, were located there. Staley’s put out so much pollution that whenever Decatur had a heavy cloud cover, a fine yellowish powder would drift down from the sky like a light rain. Caterpillar, Firestone, Pittsburgh Plate Glass, Mississippi Valley Structural Steel, just to name a few, had huge plants there. It seemed like there were bars on every street corner. They always seemed packed as the factory workers flocked there after work, and especially on paydays, to drown their miseries. The town was gripped by a blue-collar, staunch union mentality. It was unthinkable that anyone could, or would, expect anything better out of life. After all, our parents’ generation had made a good living in the factories. The next generation was fully expected to join their ranks. If one left town to obtain a college education, then they were expected to return and perhaps expect a little better position at one of the plants. One way or another, you were going to work at a factory. That was just a fact. The only way of escape was a college education, which could possibly launch you into a higher tier of life. As a kid, I could remember swimming in scenic Lake Decatur, which the city was built around. However, because of the pollution caused by the factories, swimming had long since been prohibited. The only distractions for young people were movie theaters, summertime swim clubs, and bowling alleys. The Decatur Commodores, a class D professional baseball team, had been an interesting diversion, but because of a lack of ticket sales and interest, they folded and left town when I was still very young. On occasion, like everyone else, I would escape through television. Whenever I caught a cop show or drama that featured a story around New York City’s Greenwich Village, I identified with the beatniks, who oftentimes were depicted as renegades. I thought they were cool as they played their bongos and recited poetry. The beatnik guys wore ill-fitting sweatshirts, grew long scraggly hair and goatees, and appeared to be free thinkers. I persuaded my parents to get me a bongo one year for Christmas. I couldn’t help it. I was different as I grew up. The music I liked was edgier than what everybody else was into. I couldn’t get into the Beatles singing "I Want To Hold Your Hand." To me, that was the musical equivalent of Mickey Mouse. I liked earthier, heavier stuff. One of my favorite groups, Eric Burdon and the Animals, convinced me through their song, "We Gotta Get Out of This Place," that somehow, some day, I had to get out of Decatur. Like their lyric, "Girl, there’s a better place for me and you," I knew there had to be a better place for me. Without even realizing it, I began to push the boundaries in every aspect of my life. I had to explore and see what was out there.
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About the Book
Michael Maddox has never been one to compromise or shrink from controversy. During his lifetime, he has earned a reputation for following his heart, and for living according to the dictates of his personal conscience. Michael’s reputation for "telling it like it is" has profoundly affected his approach to writing Peace Freak. The book boldly and truthfully relates the events, adventures, and misadventures that have shaped his life, as he and his wife, debi, more than thirty years ago together embarked on their journey to discover genuine peace of mind and spirit.
Peace Freak draws the reader into the mind and heart of an earnest seeker, who wholeheartedly explored the hippie and peace movements; the drug culture; Transcendental Meditation; and the unseen, spiritual realm. Michael and debi pursued every lead in their quest to discover the true source of love and peace. What they experienced during their amazing, startling journey is simply astonishing. This book is a must for fellow seekers.
About the Author
Michael Maddox married his high school sweetheart, debi Story, on May 23, 1970. Both were referred to by their friends as quintessential hippies, who fully embraced an alternative lifestyle promoting peace, love, and brotherhood. In their honest pursuit of peace, and in their journey through life, they followed many paths, all of which seemingly offered promise, but ultimately resulted in disappointment and disillusionment. Those paths included active involvement in the drug culture, the peace movement, and Transcendental Meditation. Wherever they turned, however, it seemed that God kept pointing them in the direction of Jesus Christ. Michael and debi finally met Jesus, the Prince of Peace, on June 12, 1972, during a Jesus Freak tent rally. They knew immediately that they had to spend the rest of their lives introducing others to the Prince of Peace. Shortly after their conversion experience, Mike and debi forsook their 34-acre farm and hippie lifestyle and joined the ministry that had led them to the Lord, Christ Is The Answer. CITA was a forerunner of the Jesus People movement and was primarily comprised of other hippies, who had also discovered that there could be no genuine peace without a life dedicated to the Prince of Peace. This itinerant band of pioneering Jesus People traveled the U.S., conducting nightly city-wide Jesus rallies underneath a giant tent. The rallies featured cutting-edge, spiritual rock music and occasional bold theatrical presentations. By late 1973, when the group’s ranks swelled to over 250, it was decided that an outreach team would be sent to Europe. In 1974, Michael and 4 other elders took a team of 50 and a big tent to Sweden, officially launching the first European branch of Christ Is The Answer. Pat Robertson (The 700 Club) was instrumental in this endeavor by helping to pay for the tent. Mike and debi returned to the U.S. from Italy a year later to again work with the mother team. For more than 7 years, Michael served primarily as CITA’s crusade director and one of the elder/teachers. debi, as the art director and later the managing editor, helped pioneer the New Manna, one of the first Jesus People street newspapers in the U.S. and Italy. Some of Michael and debi’s more memorable experiences during their time with CITA include: being beaten by thugs and pimps, while witnessing in the Red Light District of Amsterdam, Holland; ministering in front of hostile communist crowds in Rome, Italy; smuggling Bibles across the Iron Curtain; conducting street meetings and theatrical presentations on Florida beaches during spring break; and conducting a 3-week Jesus tent rally on the grounds of the Washington Monument. From November of 1979 to May of 1989, Michael served as both the crusade director and the director of the ministerial fellowship for R.W. Schambach. debi headed Schambach’s graphics art department. As crusade director, Mike organized city-wide tent and auditorium campaigns throughout the U.S., the West Indies, and Nigeria. Crusades were conducted in large venues such as New York City’s Madison Square Garden; the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles; the national soccer stadium in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti; and Tafawa Balewa Square, the government stadium in Lagos, Nigeria; just to name a few. Michael contracted the crusade sites, conducted the pastors’ luncheons, coordinated the media advertising, and oftentimes ministered in churches. Michael also edited Schambach’s Power Magazine. Michael and debi officially founded their own non-profit work, Project Peace on Earth, in 1991. Since February of ’92, the organization has utilized a wooded, fifty-two-acre farm near Kaufman, Texas, just forty miles from Dallas, as its headquarters. The ministry has a fivefold vision: 1) providing an environment conducive to prayer, meditation, and creativity; 2) operating a teaching and counseling center; 3) generating support services for missions teams around the world; 4) availing the facilities for major events, including music and art festivals; and 5) utilizing the arts as a means to introduce a new generation to the Prince of Peace. Currently, the ministry facilities include: three houses for staff; debi’s art studio and gallery; the Asylum Moon recording studio run by Mike and debi’s son, Jesse, a talented musician; 2 small guest cabins; a fishing dock on the 6-acre Stillwater Lake; and acres of scenic camping sites. debi authored and illustrated a poetic, allegorical tale called Wordivore World, which was published as a full-color, hardback book. The book relates the adventures of the "Wordivores," creatures who live on and by the words that are spoken. This imaginative tale conveys the power of words, which can be used for healing or destruction, and how words can reveal the contents of one’s heart. She is currently authoring a book detailing the parallels between the Bible book of Jonah with the creative and artistic processes. Most of her recognition over her lifetime comes from her work as an oil painter. Known as a series artist, she recently completed the ninth painting in a series called "The Dreaming." Michael and debi have co-authored and published a poetry book entitled Lightning Bolts and Butterflies. Together, their poetry celebrates love, peace, and nature. Some of Mike’s poems have been referred to as "lightning bolts," because of the bold, thought-provoking messages they convey. Michael is currently writing the follow-up book to Peace Freak, which will be entitled Peace Freak In Deed. It will relate many of the Maddox’s adventures and experiences during their more than thirty years of full-time Christian service. Michael’s speaking schedule has taken him to churches, schools, and civic organizations. He has been a frequent interview guest on television and radio programs. Project Peace on Earth has been featured on television news programs and in numerous publications, including Christian Family Magazine. The Maddox’s thirty-minute television special, "Simply--by Faith," which primarily focuses on their highly successful counseling services to troubled teens, has been broadcast across the country. Their scenic farm headquarters has also been the site for major music and art festivals. Primarily, however, the grounds are used by those who desire a quiet, peaceful place where they can hear for themselves the still, small voice of God. For more information on Michael and debi Maddox, or Project Peace on Earth, please write to P.O. Box 404, Kaufman, TX 75142. Or, check out their website at