How can I begin this story: hmmm.

Let’s start here. Whom I once was, was born into a non-Christian home. Not knowing the Way of the Bible. Like any normal family, there is chaos. It wasn’t a dysfunctional family, just a normal family. How did the Heavenly Father work to call him (who I once was) into the kingdom? One day, he was playing in the streets of New York City Harlem. This was around the age of 10-12 years old. Suddenly, he looked up into the sky. Just for a moment. The thought poured into his mind “Is there more to this life being lived?”. Feelings, in the midst of his being, were pulsing within. Then the journey started. The searching to fill the emptiness, the hole.

Harlem, in the 60’s – 70’s was filled with much chaos. Who I was, thought about drugs, smoking, and so on. Then one day the thought came to him: “Look at the old people who were once young, like yourself, see how their decisions to try drugs and smoking got them”. Then he looked and said no to all that.

A few years have passed by. In middle school. Whom I was, got interested in one of his female friends. So, he started to pursue her. But she was not interested. He asked why, but she didn’t say. Then one day her best friend asked him if he was afraid of dying. He said no and she called him a fool. He didn’t know why her best friend asked him that question. Later he realized why. However, he continued to pursue her. Then one day she asks him to go to church. He answered sternly “No! Not interested”. As he continues to pursue her, she continues to ask him to come with him to church.

Then one day, he said yes. He would go to church, just to please her. He went and realized that he got to see her six days a week, instead of five days a week at school. He was glad because he really liked her. So, he started to go to church regularly.

During church services, he would hear this voice saying to him: “Receive my Son as your Savior”. He would hear this Sunday after Sunday. He would sit with this young lady in the middle of the pew. He thought to himself, if he got up to give his life to Christ, he might fart in the people’s faces. LOL. Then, one day, he made an agreement with this voice, not realizing who was talking to him. The agreement was that if He can get him to sit at the end of a pew, he would go and give his life to His Son, Christ. He noticed that after the agreement was made, the voice stopped speaking.

Months passed by. One Sunday he got up late to go to church. In a hurry, he got up and went anyway, despite the snowstorm. He got there late, so he went up the stairs to sit, not remembering the agreement he had made months earlier. When he sat at the end of the pew, his heart started to beat fast, then he remembered and said, “Oh Lord, because you have kept your word, I will keep mine.” So, he got up and went downstairs to go up front to be prayed for. He was waiting in anticipation for the doors to open. But there was coming a test that he was unaware of. A test that would reveal if the decision he made was genuine.

This was a big church. Sunday after Sunday many people would go forward. So, whom I was, thought that he would be in the midst of the people, and no one noticed that he was going forward. No, not this time! When the two men opened the doors, to his surprise, there was no one else there. So, he said to himself, “Well! Oh! Lord because you have kept your word with me, I will keep my word with you.” So, with a cheesy smile and firmness in his steps, he who I was went up, looking straight forward.

But it didn’t end there. I was now a new creation. Just at the beginning of my journey. I went home and showed my dad the paper that was given to me. The paper testifies that I had received Christ as my Savior. My dad told me that if I really meant to walk with Christ, after one year he would also give his life to Christ. With this in mind, my resolve was even greater. I longed to see my dad give his life to Christ. And, yes, it did happen. After one year, my dad received Christ together with his whole family. Amen! Hallelujah! Now it has been over 47 years since I was born again, a brand-new creation, a new person.

Around the age of 18-19 years old, still learning the things of the Bible, the Father moved me to another ministry. A very active one. There I heard the other teens speak about God’s calling on your life. I asked what that is, and they explained. I thought to myself that I didn’t care about such things, because to me what matters was the peace that I had, and that the hole was now filled with life and joy. As we went up the stairs to go into the church building, I was the last one to enter. There was a tap on my shoulder. Seeing it was a bright sunny day, I turned around expecting someone, but seeing that there was no one else behind me, physically. Instead, I saw the church people walking together in chains wearing rags and malnutrition, of the worst kind. The other teens wanted to be sent to the world. At that divine moment, I said “Father, send me to your people”. Many years later, The True Life Ministry was Birth by the Father’s command. I am the Shepherd-Pastor of the True Life Saints. Amen.