Passport to Heaven: The True Story of a Zealous Mormon Missionary Who Discovers the Jesus He Never Knew Paperback – June 1, 2021

I was recently made aware of Micah Wilder and his book due to the controversy surrounding him online. My interest was piqued by all the noise and I was curious to see what all the hoopla was about. I am not one to cast stones from my glass house, nor do I place too much stock into what I read online. The internet is a cesspool of gossip, slander, and misinformation. As a staunch libertarian, I care less about what Micah is guilty of in his personal life and more about what his book actually says, as there seems to be a large public outcry for his book to be “cancelled” and removed from circulation. Thus, I purchased Passport to Heaven and read the entire thing in a matter of days. I wanted to give my objective opinion on the book itself, devoid of the rumors about Micah’s personal life.First, Micah is most certainly a gifted writer and storyteller. Admittedly, he can be a bit verbose. And I understand why some of the other reviewers have been critical of the jumping back and forth between points in time, but I actually enjoyed it. If you pay careful attention, the order in which the story was told appears to be very deliberate, as the author connects points in the timeline with precision. Micah also keeps the reader engaged throughout the book (a couple of lulls in the middle, perhaps) and I found myself constantly wanting to know what was going to happen next. I laughed and even cried several times throughout the book.Second, and perhaps most importantly, Jesus Christ is at the forefront of this story. Micah’s testimony of Jesus and His Word is the foundation of the entire book. I don’t think anyone could argue that point. If I could summarize Micah’s overarching message, it would be as follows: Jesus is the only way to be saved, the Bible is God’s Word and contains the message of salvation for mankind, and God’s grace and love are for all people.I am torn by some of the allegations of sin floating out there about Micah, which have recently surfaced in various circles online. Does it make it harder to trust Micah? Undoubtedly. Does it taint my view of him as a person? Unfortunately. But there in lies my conundrum (and perhaps many other’s as well). How do I dismiss the power and potency by which Micah testifies of his personal convictions? How do I ignore the wealth of scripture and spiritual knowledge revealed in this story? How do I cast something aside that so clearly witnesses of God’s Word and Gospel? The message in his book is clear as day: Jesus is everything, and Jesus is enough. What do I do with that? Throw it away because he made terrible mistakes later in his life? Do these mistakes invalidate his testimony as communicated through this book? Hence my bewilderment.As far as I am aware from what I have read online, none of the allegations against Micah took place during the timeline of the events of the story (the book only encompasses the two-year period of Micah’s Mormon mission). The testimony therefore stands on its own. It would be intellectually dishonest for me to say that this book is not an incredibly convicting testimony of the Christian Gospel. In fact, this is perhaps one of the best Christian testimonies I have ever read. It is well written, genuine, transparent, and chock full of the Gospel message. There is scripture everywhere. The reader cannot walk away from reading this book without having a clear understanding of who Jesus is and what He has done for them. The good news of Jesus is so clearly presented.The question then becomes, what do we do with this book? How do we reconcile Micah’s testimony with his sin? This question is not easy to answer. I myself have wrestled with this since I finished his book and, admittedly, have researched more about his moral failing. I don’t know that I have the answer, except to say that we are all sinners who have fallen short of God’s glory. I too have made egregious mistakes in my life, and I certainly would not want them publicized for the world to see. I cannot judge Micah, or anyone else for that matter. King David made horrible mistakes in his life. Do we eliminate the Psalms because he sinned later in his life? It is a slippery slope to believe God can no longer use this man’s testimony. I believe God’s grace is greater than our sin. He uses even the most wretched of people to bring about His purpose. Why would Micah be any different?Ultimately, this book, and the testimony contained within it, must be judged on their own merits. Does this book preach the true Gospel? Yes! Is it doctrinally accurate? Yes! Does it accurately differentiate between Mormonism and biblical Christianity? Yes! Does it glorify God? Yes! Therefore, I cannot advocate that it be removed, because to do so would be to take away a powerful testimony of Jesus from the world. Why would Christians want to remove a testimony of Christ? This book impacted me and convicted me in a way few books have. I have felt a deeper devotion to God since reading it, and I know I’m not alone in feeling that way. I can set aside Micah’s humanity to embrace the beautiful witness of Jesus through his story, and I hope you can as well.In the end, even by Micah’s own admission, don’t follow him, or any man. Follow Jesus. If we look to man, we will always be disappointed. If we look to Christ, he will never fail us.I’ll end with this quote from Micah’s book:“To His praise, the enormous sin debt I had accrued didn’t have to be mine anymore—if I trusted in Christ’s finished work on my behalf. I could now have the guarantee of my right standing with God. I could be called His child by adoption! And because of this love, I could have an eternal rest in Him that neither my religion nor the world could offer. The remedy to my perpetual dissatisfaction was so simple: Jesus!”I pray for Micah, his family, and all who have been affected by what he has done. And I pray that God can and will still use this testimony to bring people to Jesus.PS. I find it strange that people are publicly posting Micah’s (and other’s) personal failings on his Amazon book reviews. I don’t understand what good this does, why it would be necessary, or how it glorifies God. It seems to serve to only shame and embarrass Micah and his family.

Outstanding story of the zealous Mormon boy who found Jesus. And, Jesus wasn't in his religion. The Wilder son is a missionary made free in that he found the truth and shares with others how to get there. May many blessings come to those who read his story!!

Full disclosure, I pre-ordered Passport to Heaven after seeing Micah post about it on Facebook. I ended up gifting that copy to a friend, because Micah sent me a review copy after my co-hosts and I had him on our podcast. When we launched our program two years ago, Micah graciously allowed us to use Adam’s Road music as our outro bumper. They give away all of their music for free!I just finished reading Passport to Heaven by Micah Wilder and would recommend it to any Christian who wants to understand the life of a Mormon missionary. While every young man and woman wearing those little black name badges is a unique creation of God, they are each taught and trained in the tactics of Mormon missionaries and—for the duration of their missions—live within a regimented and carefully curated experience. As a result, they will think in similar ways. This book will help Christians to understand the needs of the missionaries who knock on their door or who stop them on a busy street corner to a chat about religion. It will give Christians a heart for reaching those zealous young people.But this book will also be helpful to Latter-day Saints. I’m a former Latter-day Saint myself, but I don’t read many books/memoirs by ex-Mormons—though I know there are many. That’s a result of my own experience leaving the LDS Church. I was warned not to read anti-Mormon material, so as I studied, I only wanted to read faithful, LDS Church-approved materials. I didn’t buy Fawn Brodie’s No Man Knows My History until after I left and I still haven’t read it.Micah does not write as an “anti-Mormon.” Rather, he writes of his own experience of the Latter-day Saint religion. It is an experience shared by many Mormons of striving for perfection and strict obedience. Micah tells the story of how God unfolded the doctrines of grace to him through his reading of the New Testament, something that will be enlivening to any Latter-day Saint.Micah’s story is enthralling and very well-written! I first heard his testimony a little while after leaving the LDS Church in 2011 via a YouTube video. Since then I’ve watched the Adam’s Road Ministry grow and impact many lives. As someone who also served an LDS Mission (in Hungary), Micah’s mission experiences recounted in Passport to Heaven deeply resonated with me. I too had experiences with religious leaders of other faiths in which I was far too presumptuous and confident for my age (like Micah’s Pastor Shaw in Chapter 6). I had a kind Baptist missionary couple witness to me, similar to how Pastor Benson witnessed to Micah (Chapters 9-11).God’s drawing of Micah to his Son all took place within the almost 2 years of his Mormon mission, and the details of what God did and who God used are recounted in this book. Mine took longer. I guess I was more stubborn. Or rather, God drew me through various means, and in His providential timing. Like Micah, I can look back in amazement at the work God has done in my life and the change he has wrought.If you’re a Christian and want to be better equipped to speak peace, love, light, and Christ into the lives of Mormon missionaries you encounter, then this book is for you. If you’re a Latter-day Saint, and you want to understand what would drive a young Mormon missionary to leave his mission and run after Christ—and you don’t want to read a book that is just about all of the reasons the author thinks the LDS Church is wrong—then this narrative is for you.After reading Passport to Heaven, you can read “the rest of the story” as told by Micah’s mother, Lynn Wilder in Unveiling Grace. If you would like to read another memoir by a former Latter-day Saint whom God drew to his Son, I can recommend Falling into Grace by Michael Flournoy. I’ve read both of those books as well, and very much enjoyed them.I’ll be seeing Micah and the rest of Adam’s Road at a church in Ohio later this week, and encourage you to search Adam’s Road and check out their tour page to find out when you can see them near you!