Melissa and Jay felt like they had hit rock bottom. “Our business was failing. Our marriage was failing. I was searching.” It wasn’t until Melissa’s mother encouraged her to watch a series called The Wild Goose that the two were able to find healing, reconciliation, and conversion. 

In the midst of the brokenness that seemed to plague every aspect of her life, Melissa decided to watch the series by herself. “Every morning I just watched an episode by myself at like five o'clock in the morning. It was just me and the episode. And I thought, ‘Wow, these are really good.’ So I started changing a little bit and [Jay] kind of saw that.”

But Melissa knew that she couldn’t fix their marriage alone and needed to get Jay on board. 

“I thought, all right, Holy Spirit, I have nothing left. It's just me and you. What am I gonna do with this man? And one morning I got up and I said, ‘I need you to watch this. I'm going to work.’ Then I prayed, come Holy Spirit, if it's your will, you're gonna change this man, because I'm done. Our marriage is just in shambles.” 

The episode she asked him to watch was Episode 10: The Spirit and the Desert. “Jay was in the desert. He was truly in the desert and had nothing left.” And after leaving him alone to, hopefully, watch the episode, Melissa drove to work never imagining what would happen next. 

This is the text she received from her husband: 

I watched the video and it moved me. I am in the desert and can no longer walk alone. I asked Jesus to walk with me and give me peace and guidance. I’m trying to give myself and my problems to him and will pray for the right thing to do before I respond or take action. My decisions have been made with my control alone and they are not working. I know I need guidance and to be ok with whatever is at the end of this chapter. I have great gifts that can be used for good and can possibly help others with something. I don’t know what that is but if I listen it will be revealed. I have nothing left but to submit and ask to be led through this time in my life so I have prayed and asked Jesus to lead me to wherever he needs me to be.

Her prayers had been answered, and from that moment forward, things began to get better. Jay entered the Catholic Church, and, afterwards, he was even asked to teach RCIA. “He was on fire. I had never…it was so out of character for my husband. He was sharing his feelings and even brought another couple into the church.” Their relationship began to heal and Jesus was at the center of it all. 

A few years later, however, Jay’s health took a plunge and he began to experience cognitive decline. He can no longer remember the past 20 years, including his conversion, but miraculously, even without his memories, Jay cannot shake the feeling of the Spirit within him. 

“Right before this call I asked him, ‘What do you remember about the Wild Goose?’ And he said, ‘I don’t. I just know I have the Holy Spirit with me through this journey. I know there was a time that I didn’t have it, but I know I have it now.’”

Everyday Jay surrenders himself to God and offers up the pain he’s in for different intentions. Whenever he experiences moments of intense confusion, he pauses and says, “Come Holy Spirit.” 

The Wild Goose was instrumental in Jay’s conversion. It’s what opened the door for the Holy Spirit to amend their life and relationship. When asked if she would recommend this series to someone who’s on the fence about their faith, she said, “Absolutely! God has a plan for everything. And I think these videos do so much good. They’re just so relatable. Now, when I encounter difficult situations in life, I sometimes pray about which episode to watch, and sure enough I watch one and something that I need to hear pops up.” 

The desire and hope for stories like Jay and Melissa’s are what inspired The Wild Goose and gave birth to other projects from 10th Hour Productions. In the ongoing collaboration between 4PM Media and Wild Goose TV, series like Metanoia and, more recently, My Father’s Father have and will continue to draw hearts into deeper conversion.

Let us pray for Melissa and Jay, and ask that we too can experience healing, conversion, or a renewed conversion within our own lives or the lives of others.