Misfits Former Vocalist Michale Graves Reflects On Becoming A Born-Again Christian

Former Misfits vocalist Michale Graves recently spoke with CCM Magazine about his spiritual journey, discussing how he rediscovered Christianity after years of personal struggles, addiction, and searching for purpose following his time in the influential horror punk band.

During the interview, Graves reflected on growing up in a Catholic household, drifting away from his faith as a teenager, and eventually finding himself immersed in the chaotic lifestyle that accompanied his years fronting Misfits.

“Well, I was raised in a Catholic household, so I always knew God. I had a relationship with Jesus for a good part of my life, really up until about my teenage years. And I went to Catholic school, and once I was taken out of Catholic school, I got away from the Bible. I always had a relationship with God, I always knew God was there, but Jesus and I kind of drifted apart. I started to look at ways that I could manipulate my life and make things happen for myself. And then I found the Misfits.

I always knew that God had me on the path to play music. When I was young, I wanted to be a preacher. I wanted to tell people about Jesus. Then my heart changed, and I wanted to play music. So my path really led me to the Misfits in a very Forrest Gump way. I was at the right place at the right time. Then when I got into the Misfits, as you can imagine, this world that I was propelled into was insane. There was a lot of violence in the shows and it was a very crazy, tumultuous world.

I got to a point on the road where I said, ‘Well, maybe this is the way that I’m supposed to be in order to be part of this world.’ It felt very strange and uncomfortable. Standing at that crossroads, do I sign the deal with the devil and go this way, or do I go a different way? Ultimately, I decided to step away from the Misfits.”

Graves went on to describe a difficult period of his life marked by loss, addiction, and an inability to find happiness despite achieving success in music. He explained that his perspective eventually changed after learning more about the concept of being “born again” through the teachings of evangelist Billy Graham.

“God was always there, but I didn’t have this relationship with Jesus. Along the way my life was difficult. Lots of loss, lots of pain. I couldn’t find happiness in anything that I did. I developed a taste for drugs, and my life just went out of control.

I spent some time in Arkansas with these people, and I started to hear about this born-again idea. Somebody turned me on to Johnny Cash, then I heard about Billy Graham. I heard a sermon that Billy Graham gave about being born again and all of a sudden it clicked.

My life got to a point where I was at the lowest of the low, and I found myself in a hotel room on my knees just calling out to Jesus. I surrendered my life to Jesus and became born again. And here I am.

I meet so many young people that are hurt and lost, and they don’t have God. I get pushback from some Christian crowds about the music and some of the things that I’m doing, but my response is that Jesus said we have to be fishers of men. What’s the point in me playing to just a room full of believers? We already have those. I go out and talk to kids that are lost and hurt.

People have come to me and said they’ve given their life to Jesus after hearing what I’ve been doing and what I’ve been saying. I don’t have a lot of material things, but that’s treasure to me. That’s everything.”

Graves has increasingly focused on faith-based music and outreach in recent years, often discussing Christianity and spirituality during interviews and live appearances while continuing to perform and record new material.

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[Via Blabbermouth]