In It's a Long Story: My Life by Willie Nelson, Willie recounts his time as a "popular" Sunday School teacher at Metropolitan Baptist Church—a popularity he attributed to his "openness in exploring spiritual issues"—an openness that led to his eventual dismissal. Willie's dismissal from the church was an "opportunity to delve deeper in the mystery of the Holy Spirit. More than ever, I sought to learn about the Lord."

One book that had a huge impact upon Willie was The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ, which taught that Jesus discovered and embraced the notion of reincarnation. Willie wrote:

From the first moment I considered the concept of reincarnation it made sense. The old paradigm was just too cruel, just too unchristian, to be believed: If you die in your sin, you spend eternity in hell. How could the compassionate God of mercy ever set up such a system? On the other hand, I was drawn to the idea that you keep coming back till you get it right. Reincarnation seemed merciful and completely Christ-like. Jesus got it right the first time around and was, after all, God incarnate, perfect man. But the rest of us would need several lifetimes to shed our sins and learn the lessons necessary to heal our troubled souls.