by Randy J. Guliuzza, P.E., M.D., and Jake Hebert, Ph.D.*

Following a lengthy illness, Mike Riddle, founder and president of Creation Training Initiative (CTI), has gone home to be with the Lord.¹

Mike devoted over 40 years of his life to training the next generation of Christians, emphasizing the importance of critical thinking skills, biblical apologetics, and a face value understanding of the first 11 chapters of Genesis. Having spoken at more than 500 churches and taught more than 15,000 young people, Mike was well-known in creation circles.² His ministry also extended into professional circles and academia: he spoke at non-Christian universities and even at NASA.³ His presentations shared with students information often withheld from them in public and (sadly) even in some Christian schools. They covered a wide array of topics, such as dinosaurs, general Christian apologetics, theologial and scientific problems with an old earth, difficulties with alleged human evolution, and “hot-button” topics like transgenderism and climate change. Many of his presentations are archived on YouTube.^4,5

Mike’s background ably prepared him for this ministry. He was a former captain in the United States Marine Corps and worked as an instructor while in the service. With his degree in mathematics, he taught at both the junior high and high school levels. Before founding CTI, he held leadership and teaching positions with Sprint, now merged with T-Mobile, and Microsoft, and was a leading speaker and teacher for ICR and Answers in Genesis.

Mike knew the importance of keeping an audience engaged. He often said that a boring presentation was the unpardonable sin! He was also known for keeping his training sessions lively by making late attendees do push-ups (perhaps this came from his Marine background!).

Mike, and his faithful wife and partner in ministry, Lesley, served with ICR for many years as a speaker at conferences and on ICR’s beloved loop tours. Additionally, by hosting a pastors luncheon, Mike would secure the eager participation of church leaders in ICR’s work by instrucing them in the foundational importance of Genesis to the Christian faith. The Riddles were instrumental in the success of some of our largest events.

Since Dr. Randy Guliuzza assumed the presidency of ICR, CTI and ICR have worked together closely to host numerous training sessions at our Discovery Center.⁶ Upon hearing of Mike’s passing onto glory, Dr. Guliuzza commented,

In the world of creation science, Mike had no equal to either his commitment to creation education or his appreciation for the exceeding importance of this education for the spiritual health of Christians and churches. He never came to an event to just give a talk, but to educate his audience. I had the privilege of working together with him at multiple events, and I was always inspired by his passion and determination. Mike would not have been the potent force for creation education that he was without the faithful and capable companionship of Lesley. Together, they were a winning combination. Mike’s contributions are genuinely appreciated by the ICR family and by me. I will miss our talks together very much.

Past ICR president Dr. John Morris was fond of saying, “It’s a great time to be a Bible-believing Christian.” Dr. Morris would say this because of all the evidence we have for creation that was unknown to earlier generations of Christians. Mike would say the same thing, but for a different reason: “Not because it’s getting easier, but because it’s getting harder . . . . We’re outnumbered, we’re out-financed, and there’s surrender within the church ranks.”⁵ Yet Mike saw this as opportunity. “You know what that means? The harvest is ripe and plenty for all of us.”⁵

Mike saw it as a privilege and honor to stand for the truth in difficult times. May this “good soldier of Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy 2:3) “rest easy” in his Commander’s presence. May the Lord comfort Lesley and their extended family, and may we creationists who are still here be inspired by his example to “contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude v. 3).

References

1. For more information about his organization, visit their website at creationtraining.org.
2. The CTI Team. Mike Riddle. Creation Training Initiative. Posted on creationtraining.org. 
3. Mr [sic] Mike Riddle - The Battle for the Next Generation. Denver Society of Creation. Posted on denversocietyofcreation.org February 2, 2017. 
4. See, for example, Riddle, M. Mike Riddle - Contending for the Faith 2019 Bible Conference. YouTube. Streamed live by Christ in Prophecy on July 13, 2019. 
5. Riddle, M. Mike Riddle - Critical Thinking Skills That Disarm Evolutionists. YouTube. Posted by Midwest Creation Fellowship on September 28, 2018. 
6. That relationship was highlighted in a feature article in Acts & Facts. See Guliuzza, R. J. 2021. Stronger Together: ICR’s Education Outreach with CTI. Acts & Facts. 50 (4): 5–7. 

* Dr. Guliuzza is the president of the Institute for Creation Research. He earned his doctor of medicine from the University of Minnesota, his master of public health from Harvard University, and received an honorary doctor of divinity from Southern California Seminary. He served in the U.S. Air Force as 28th Bomb Wing flight surgeon and chief of aerospace medicine. Dr. Guliuzza is also a registered professional engineer and holds a B.A. in theology from Moody Bible Institute. Dr. Hebert is a research scientist at the Institute for Creation Research and earned his Ph.D. in physics from the University of Texas at Dallas.