The Boy from El Mirage: A Memoir of Odd Beginnings, Unexpected Miracles, and Why I Have No Idea How I Wound up Where I Am

by Thomas Horn

Today, Tom Horn is the CEO of SkyWatch TV and Defender Publishing. He is well known for such books as Forbidden Gates, the Petrus Romanus series, and Zenith 2016, as well as his award-winning documentary Inhuman. For decades, people have read his works, watched him on nationally syndicated television, and come to know the brain of the man who has pioneered biblical scholarly studies in the subjects of transhumanistic sciences, the Nephilim giants and Sons of God mentioned in Genesis 6, the Vatican¿s role in eschatology, Freemasonry, the concerning architecture of Washington, DC, and a wide variety of other cutting-edge subjects.But many have also come to wonder about the man behind the media. Who is Tom Horn at the core? What drives him to tackle the questions very few others will address? Did he know the Lord from an early age, or was there a paramount moment when Christ revealed Himself to Tom? And is there a powerful message in his life¿s story that is crucially relevant and applicable to all generations within the Body of Christ?In The Boy from El Mirage, readers will discover for the first *How Tom cheated death-twice-and came to discover why God spared him for a Kingdom purpose *Why he frequently retreated to the desert for hours at a time alone-and what his reflections during those times eventually revealed *His divine meeting with his lifelong mate, Nita, and his less-than-divine first impressions *How his early years in ministry as a pastor were merely training grounds for his true calling *Humorous moments that led to great humbling and reshaping of character *Supernatural events that irrevocably proved God's personal intervention and provision from well before Tom was ever born and onward to today *Most importantly, how his story relates a call-to-action and message of truth for male and female, rich or poor, young or elderly, and of every race.

223 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 7, 2018

About the author

Thomas R. Horn (Also Published under the Name Thomas Horn ) is an internationally recognized lecturer, radio host and best selling author of several books including his newest books, Petrus Romanus: The Final Pope Is Here, Forbidden Gates and Apollyon Rising 2012. He is a well-known columnist whose articles have been referred to by writers of the L. A. Times Syndicate, MSNBC, Christianity Today, New Man Magazine, World Net Daily, News Max, White House Correspondents and dozens of newsmagazines and press agencies around the globe. He has been interviewed by US Congressmen and Senators on his findings as well as featured repeatedly in major media including top-ten talk shows, America's Morning News for The Washington Times, The 700 Club, The Harvest Show, Coast to Coast AM, Prophecy in the News, and the Southwest Radio Church to name a few. Thomas received the highest degree honorary doctorate bestowed in 2007 from legendary professor Dr. I.D.E. Thomas for his research into ancient history, and has been endorsed by such national leaders as Dr. James Kennedy.

Reviews

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

HORN EXPLAINS THE ORIGIN OF HIS MINISTRIES, AND HIS EARLIER LIFE

Thomas Horn (1957-2023) explains in the Introduction to this 2017 book, “What you are about to read is MY story… the story of Thomas Horn of Defender Publishing and SkyWatch TV. Yet, it is far more than that. I hope that each of you will be encouraged to absorb the lessons that can be drawn from these pages… if even one person arrives at the end of this book with better understanding of how the Lord might be nurturing the desires of his or her heart, then my goal will be achieved.” (Pg. 9-10)

Born in El Mirage, Arizona, he begins by explaining how for his parents, “The King James Bible was given the utmost respect. As was God. Bible studies were a part of their daily regimen… God was everywhere and in everything. Not a single hour of any given day went by that the recognition for provisions wasn’t given to Him, to whom it was due… Mom was a… woman of unshakable faith. When she was advised to abort me, told that she likely wouldn’t survive the pregnancy, and … I would probably perish in a miscarriage---or be born deformed, damaged, or dysfunctional… she knew the One to look to regarding provisions. But she would not abort the baby.” (Pg. 41-42) Later, he adds, “I was certainly the boy who wasn’t supposed to live, by all human and finite prediction. Physically, I mended better than anyone could have hoped… The damage to my brain was permanent in only one very specific way… I lost my long-term memory. I do not remember much of my childhood… this memory damage was a small scale trade-off for my life.” (Pg. 47-48)

He was the youngest in the family. He reports, “When I was in … sixth grade … I dropped out of school Mom and Dad had gotten a divorce, and it was up to Amil and myself to support Mom… I DID have the best family anyone could have asked for. I remained close to all of them, including my Dad, who even after the divorce was ALWAYS there for me.” (Pg. 60-61) He continues, “I owe the value of my life to all of them: Grandma, Grandpa, Mom, Dad, Amil, Vidabell, and so many others in my extended family whose roles in my life have shaped me and the footprint I will leave behind in this world.” (Pg. 63) He advises, “Keep your family close, and God closer. Remember to always give thanks to the One who provides. Be thankful for the time you have with those who love you.” (Pg. 64)

He recounts, “I liked to think my life had a purpose… The girls didn’t understand. The guys didn’t really care… I definitely felt the pang of isolation. Would there … EVER BE---someone for me to fully relate to?... To know the real ME, and let me see the real HER?... and then life (translation: God) presents you with the remedy to your greatest illnesses… I remember when I met Nita…” (Pg. 85) He continues, “Nita was incredible… We could talk about lots of things… people our age didn’t appear to be interested in… And her inability to be fake or contrived simply made me fall in love with her over and over again.” (Pg. 97)

He acknowledges, “I may not have been a believer in the sincerest sense by that time, but I do believe that the Spirit had a hold on me… out in the desert, God knew that in my own way, I was seeking Him. Far too many circumstances of my life were headed down a path of serious trouble just before I met Nina… Arrested for being an accessory to car theft… generally acting like a punk any time I could get away with it… seeking to find a thrill.” (Pg. 99) He also admits, “once we were married, a tension started to brew. I was never cruel to her… but I was a goon at times… I always loved her. Yet, I found a funny way of showing it as I criticized a lot of the things she did… and made her feel less than desirable… There was an enormous hole in my life, and I wasn’t going to be happy until it was filled with a greater perception of the unknown.” (Pg. 109)

He recounts, “I was in bed staring at the ceiling… A pressure came into the room silently… I DID identify the evil for what IT was… I didn’t bow my head or get on my knees,.. [I] opened my lips to call for help from the Divine… ‘Jesus… Jesus… Jesus…’ Over and over… A feeling of safety augmented around Nita and me… it pushed away they evil… There is no describing the relief… Neither Nita nor I was saved at this point, but that episode in the bedroom affected us, and we both … [felt] an urgency to figure out what all this talk of ‘eternal salvation’ really meant.” (Pg. 115)

Their first child was born: “when she was old enough to make her preferences known, she asked to be called Allie, and we have done so ever since.” (Pg. 115) Nita confessed the Sinner’s Prayer while watching a Billy Graham crusade on TV. (Pg. 116-117) He continues, “The following Sunday we headed to a church in Amity, Oregon… What we found there was … exactly what we needed… These people nurtured and discipled Nita and me… They were all immediately friends first, and that opened our ears to hear what else they would share with us regarding their long-tempered faith, in God and Christ resurrected.” (Pg. 118-119) He adds, “Needless to say, I gave my heart to the Lord alongside Nina… At home, we began to pray and read the Bible together…” (Pg. 121)

He recounts, “the next supernatural event … in the middle of the night, my consciousness was jerked to a place I had never seen… Had I died? Yes, I had… I abruptly found myself … before a spectacular pillar of light… I was urgently exclaiming… ‘Please, Lord, don’t let me forget… IT’S TOO WONDERFUL!’ … a deep, still, small voice countered, ‘You will not remember… and it is time for you to go back now.’ … it felt as if I had landed on my bedroom mattress with a thud.” (Pg. 122-124)

Nita “tearfully described how she had awakened to find me dead… I had remained in that condition for approximately fifteen minutes… We didn’t have a phone in those days… Nita had been unsure of what to do… Later… I understood why God had allowed my wife to wake up and find me in that condition. Without her eyewitness account, uncertainties about the supernaturalism of the experience would undoubtedly have crept into my mind… That I had been dead for a significant period of time… also attested to the preternatural aspect of the event.” (Pg. 125)

He muses, “God was keeping me here… I was supposed to do SOMETHING. What, though, was the mystery… Well… I was determined to start somewhere. .. I had seen a role at church that needed filling… the teens had … almost no age-appropriate curriculum to delve into… I became a mentor for the youth…” (Pg. 128) He, Nita, his sister Vidabell, and Nita’s brother John also began a Christian music ministry.” (Pg. 135) But “Pretty soon… our days of traveling ministry became more difficult as Nita’s belly was growing heavy with another member of the family… my son Joe was born… We were back on the road for a while, and Allie was being homeschooled.” (Pg. 146-147) Their youngest daughter, Donna, was also born. (Pg. 156)

He notes, “I had been listening to Southwest Radio Church radio broadcasts with Noah Hutchings. I learned SO much about theology from his show…. a church called Life Center contacted me to send a resumé, which I did. They subsequently invited me to preach a sermon… I did not know at the time that my role would not simply be as a preacher.” (Pg. 159-160) This church soon merged with another church, Evangel Temple. (Pg. 161)

He recalls, “In the mid 90s, I wrote my first book, ‘Spiritual Warfare: The Invisible Invasion.’ … my next title, ‘The Gods Who Walk Among Us,’ [was] an expository work focusing on the modern mystical resurrection of ancient gods into our country… Christian leaders were shocked by my decision to focus on such unconventional theological spheres… I was undeterred. However, to my surprise, feedback poured in from pastors around the nation who themselves had felt the need to address these categories of theology.” (Pg. 169)

He observes, “in the 1990s, enterprises like YouTube, Netflix, Roku, and streaming from a ‘smart TV’ in the living room had not yet been implemented., [but] I knew that was where our world was headed… I was starting to connect the dots from old-school book industry to the coming new world of media. Through technology, a sea of unnumbered people COULD be reached by our ministries, should the Lord continue to use me in this way.” (Pg. 171) He adds, If the boy from El Mirage, the lonely youth … in a secluded part of the desert, could grow up and turn his uncomfortable questions into spiritually thirst-quenching answers for the lost, then everything Nina saw might… mean more ... than I thought.” (Pg. 172-173)

They begin running a youth camp: “By our third year there, all of us were working together in ways we couldn’t have foreseen. I was the … executive director and Nita was the head of administration… Allie had become a crucial multidepartmental secretary… Joe and his wife, Katherine, had become the recreation department heads… Donna was our head chef… each of us realized that our own talents complemented the others in unexpected ways.” (Pg. 185-186)

He notes, “I wasn’t a mainstream minister. There, I .. started … [a publishing company] that focused directly on biblical expositions of prophecy, science, the supernatural, the paranormal, and the official disclosure of disturbing current events. This … company was named Defender Publishing…” (Pg. 192) He adds,
“The company nearly exploded out of control with international attention when I released ‘Petrus Romanus: The Final Pope Is here.’… I remain convinced today that much of the inspiration of that book came from revelations that were given to me by God the night I passed away in bed… years prior… I am still … seeing the depth of the revelations God showed me that night.” (Pg. 194-195)

This book will be “must reading” for anyone wanting to know more about this popular figure, and his family.