 How do you follow Two great messages Thank the Lord. I'm just giving my testimony and I'm not sharing the word of God But guys, um, you know, I'm humbled to you know, be able to come up here and just to you know, boast about the Lord God has been good to me You know before we get started. Um, let's just go before the Lord in prayer Our father we thank you so much Lord for God has been so good to us for Bringing us here for waking us up this morning for putting breath in our lungs Lord We thank you for your grace and for always being compassionate towards us and Lord that your compassion they never fell us and they're brand new every morning for we need it And Lord we thank you so much father for sending your only begotten son Lord who shed his blood that we can be forgiven We thank you Lord for giving up your life To pay the price For our sins that we can be redeemed And we thank you Lord that You defeated the power of death and you rose again That Lord today, we don't have to be Held in bondage to the power of sin And so we give you all the honor we give you all the glory It's because of you that we are here And we pray this in jesus name amen You know guys, I stand here grateful and thankful for the grace and the mercy of god You know brothers look around you in this room Look around you in this room. You see the grace and the mercy of god all over You know men in this room And guys, I am just another man who god has been so good to And you know my this is my testimony. I grew up in the city of Baldwin park And I didn't grow up in a christian home. I grew up in a catholic home You know guys in the world standards. I had good parents. They loved us. You know, they provided for us You know, my father he was there, but he wasn't there. He was often out with his friends You know, my mother she was the rock of the family. She did her very best to raise us You know guys one thing that I remember growing up as a catholic is this Like I was going to go to heaven because I was water baptized as a baby You know guys my father being away often and this thought that I was promised heaven because of water baptism You know guys, it really impacted my life in such a negative way You know my my um, you know, it would it would and guys it would make me to you know, make the wrong choices That I would make growing up And so guys from a very young age, you know, I was exposed to pornography You know and and from a very young age I became sexually active You know in high school I started to experiment with drugs You know, I had done marijuana. I've done cocaine and I started to drink And guys eventually I would you know get um introduced to methamphetamine And you know guys, I would waste the next 15 years of my life You know with the life that was revolved around meth You know guys, I got involved in manufacturing meth and selling meth and guys eventually I got addicted to meth And for almost those 15 years guys, I used meth daily multiple times a day And you know, it was rare when I didn't use meth And and so guys, um You know this this would just um As the young man, I will start to you know run the streets and and and you know violence the drugs the gangs And and and in sexual sin the women And you know guy that can tell you you know so many things That this life took me to but you guys know, you know, we're we're this type of life where men end up And so guys instead of sharing with you guys with that guys, I want to tell you all that god has done You know guys, I want to share the reason why I stand here A believer and a follower of jesus christ because guys, I shouldn't be standing here And you guys know right romans chapter five verse eight But god demonstrated his own love towards us and that while we were still sinners christ died for us You know guys, I stand here a man who obtained the mercy of god because of his grace Guys, you know god didn't give me what I deserve. I don't deserve to be here I deserve judgment. I deserve death But guys instead he gave me what I don't deserve and he gave me a relationship with jesus christ And you know guys jeremiah chapter 29 verse 11 john shared it for I know the thoughts I think towards you says the lord, you know thoughts of peace and not an evil to give you a future and a hope And guys today, we have that future. We have that hope with jesus christ You know guys, but the life that I chose to live the choices I made It got me off of god's plan the plan that he had for me And I would end up in two comas. I would let end up once on life support You know guys, and I want to share with you guys two events in my life Where god just showed up miraculously You know guys in in march of 1992 at the age of 17 I was in a car accident You know, and I went off a cliff in azusa canyons And you know speed and and alcohol were involved You know, and I ended up in a coma for close to two weeks And guys, I want to share what god did in this accident You know, I had a grandmother who lived in east dalai and she loved jesus You know guys and she shared with me that on the day of my accident That she was there in her backyard and she was sweeping the floor there And you know being from east dalai she was used to you know hearing sirens around the neighborhood But she she shared with me how this particular morning how the sound of the sirens they were different And she shared with me that something started to be very heavy on her heart And she started to just pray and ask the lord just speaking to him there And she said it got to this point where it was unbearable this heaviness And so she started she told me that she put down her broom and that she dropped to her knees there on that The concrete floor and that she began to cry out to god and just ask him like who is it? What is it and guys she would just start praying for somebody that she will start praying for something there She didn't know what it was though and guys while this is taking place in east dalai You know guys it's at the very same time that I was going off the cliff in in azusa Guys my grandmother was praying for me and she didn't even know it You know guys what had happened is that I went off this cliff Speeding you know being foolish We tumbled twice in this in on the road We went I went off the cliff my friend flew out the side window I went off the cliff in the car and I hit an angle on that cliff and when I hit that angle My body was you know ejected out of the car through the windshield And so I was stumbled the rest of the way down to the bottom of that canyon And the car guys, you know came back You know tumbling behind me and when the car finally came to a rest You know it would land on top of me and the catalytic converter would burn my whole lower back And you know, I was later told that the reason why you know That car didn't kill me that day was because I was ejected out of the car You know because the car was all smashed in on all sides top and bottom You know and because too I was told that I I lived that day was because of the on the bottom of the canyon There was a trench that was perfect width in the length of my body And so the car could not crush me And so guys, you know, I don't believe that I lived that day because you know I flew out the car I don't believe that I lived that day because of that trench at the bottom of the car You know, I believe that I lived that day because of the grace because of mercy of god and because he had a plan for me You know guys fast Fast forward nine years later Guys, my life was just out of control And because of my sexual sin, you know guys, I would I would end up having three sons You know guys and your young brothers Let me share something with you Make it your aim To to live a pure life Make it your aim to not get involved in sexual sin You know, we may think it's cool to sleep around with women We may think it's the thing to do But let me tell you this sexual sin Will destroy will hurt and it would will will will bring pain You know children If it comes out of that relationship It will bring pain to that woman that you're having sexual relationship with and let me tell you this It will bring pain to your future wife And I encourage you Make it an aim to stay pure Ask god to help you to remove that desire You know for sexual sin whatever sort it is because they will destroy it It will destroy your it will it will hurt your marriage. It will hurt your future wife And so guys out of this, you know sinful life You know, I would have these three children and at the age of 19 I would have my two oldest and I'm ashamed to say that none of my sons, you know have the same mother You know guys and I'm still addicted to drugs You know our friends are being killed around me You know guys, I had built up a lot of anger and a lot of hate and I became very violent You know guys, but this would start changing in 2001 because it's when I met the lord And so guys, I want to share with you guys about two friends that the lord used in my life for my salvation You know pastor talked yesterday about you know friends You know and so guys one is um louis lopez. He was my childhood, you know best friend growing up You know, we went in two directions in life, you know, he became a christian I did it but one thing that louis did and he always showed me and displayed the love of jesus christ with me You know guys and all that I was doing and you know, he never judged me You know, but he just loved on me, you know guys, I remember that no matter what condition I was in You know or where I was at if I called him He was there You know guys and you know, and then I had another friend. We used to call him shorty But I remember one day we changed his name shorty We started calling him cowboy because he was putting work in the neighborhood and and he loved guns And and so guys shorty, you know, he was a knucklehead, but then guess what? He got saved You know guys, there was a man by the name of gilbert and matt who let shorty You know to the lord and i'm going to share something a little bit later But guys after shorty got saved guys, you know for a couple weeks He was going around the neighborhood telling everybody about this jesus, you know, we thought that he lost it We thought that he was on a good one You know and and and he you know and see he comes to this place where i'm at It's just me and him right there in this room And he starts to share the gospel with me. He tells me that jesus loved me He was telling me that that he died for my sins that he wanted to forgive me for all of the bad stuff I did he I remember those words You know guys that I just had to put my belief that I just had to put my faith in what jesus did for me You know before this guy that I have heard the gospel so many times Several times but guy that was always easy for me to reject it But guys when shorty shared it with me that day guys It started to really penetrate my heart and I remember I was getting angry and I tried to shut him up And I started to smoke dope and I even offered him to you know to smoke dope And and guy then he rejected and I thought to myself. Okay, you're gonna reject dope I know you won't reject the gun Because he loved guns And and so I try to give him a gun and guys he rejected that too And I remember that he told me he says I don't need that because I got this and then he pulled out a little pocket Bible and he showed it to me and I know who give him that bible You know guys this was the last time that I saw shorty or I spoke to him Because you know a couple days after that day He would end up getting shot and killed and guys I am sure that he was preaching the gospel and I bet he was preaching it to the enemy And and so he got killed You know guys in my life the seed already had been planted You know had been watered and then God would ultimately give the increase You know guys just a little over a year, you know from when shorty got shot You know guys in march of 2001 at the age of 26. I was shot twice You know guys me and some couple friends we were in this garage and I had my back towards the garage door You know looking under a hood of a car, you know, I had a stash spot in there But guys all of a sudden this guy he runs up and he just starts shooting into the garage and three of us get shot You know guys the first bullet it hit me on the on my upper leg and it knocked me down And then when I'm trying to get back up the second bullet just missed the top of my head And it went in my back went long ways down my body and it hit my my my kidney And so guys here I am guys a second time on a dying bed in a hospital You know guys this time I was a medically induced coma for about a week And guys my body just went into to trauma started to affect my organs My other kidney was shutting down. My lungs were failing had brutal fragments all over my chest And guys I got put on life support, you know a machine was helping me breathe You know guys and what I'm going to share next I have never shared You know openly I've never shared what I experienced, you know in this coma But you know a couple of people on my wife knows and I told someone other person But guys, you know, I believe that You know, I wrestled with God about sharing but I believe that the Lord really wants me to share What I experienced in this coma with you guys You know guys in this coma I experienced something spiritual You know and I can tell you this guys that there is a spiritual war for the souls of the unsaved Guys and if I had died that day I would be in hell today You know guys in this coma I felt like I was trapped in my body It was dark You know the in guys, you know this darkness, you know, it's something like you you can't explain it With words and you know, I came if I had to say our English words to describe this darkness that I was in You know, I came in across this verse just this week and jude verse 13 June called jude was referring to a darkness and he said the blackness of darkness And guys there was an evilness in this darkness that I was in You know most of the time in this coma I would build up saliva, you know on the sides of that tube That you know it was going down my throat that you know that was helping me breathe and guys and I felt like I was drowning You know, and now I was able to have conversations with myself I felt like I was conscious, you know, I would I would start to have moments where I can hear You know people but nothing made no sense at all and guys and I remember that I would try to yell out for help Because I wanted to get out of there And and nobody can hear me And and then and I was so scared And and then guys that came to a point You know where where my fear it turned into terror because I began to be tormented by demons You know guys out of this darkness that I was in Several demonic faces they would start to manifest Themselves in this darkness and guys these faces were even darker than the darkness that I was in You know guys they would they would be mocking me Laughing at me and guys they would bring terror, you know to me by just making a bunch of these Laughing screeching noises guys And and guys and I could not get out of this You know, I don't know how long that I was being tormented, but it seemed like it was forever I thought that I was going to go crazy. I felt like I was going crazy You know guys in here I am in this darkness alone Being tormented by demons You know guys and out of nowhere I began to feel this drawing out of the darkness You know guys and God would demonstrate his own love towards me There in that darkest hour of mine You know guys I didn't know it at the time But it was the spirit of God Who came alongside of me and who started to convict me of the sin of not believing in Jesus It was a feeling of love that wanted to set me free and I didn't understand it at that time You know, I started to be reminded of my friend Louis who who ministered to me the love of Jesus christ You know, I started to be reminded of the words of shorty You know that day when he shared the gospel with me You know, and I would start to say to God the words that shorty gave me I'm sorry for all the bad things that I have done And I would start to confess my sin And I and I would confess Jesus christ as my personal lord and savior at that moment And you know romans chapter 10 verse 13 whoever calls on the name of the lord shall be saved You know guys and it was from that moment the darkness The torment the demons they were gone You know guys every knee shall bow At the name of Jesus Of those in heaven of those on earth and of those under the earth And so guys all of a sudden I see this really bright light And I I really thought but maybe just had this conversation with myself. I think I'm dead Well on the good note it looks like I'm going to heaven But guys that was not I said the baptism worked the our fathers the hell Mary's they worked But guys there wasn't that it was just a light fixture on top of the hospital bed that I was at That's that's a true story And guys and I started to see finally no more darkness It I started to see shadows of people moving around my hospital bed You know, my hearing was still faint, but I could understand more You know, I started to hear the machines that are you know connected to me the beeping of the machines And and and I heard bits and pieces of my friend Louis there on my hospital bed praying for me You know guys I would be begin to have this peace In discomfort that I cannot even explain and for the first time Since high school I had joy in that I had joy You know guys I was finally able to rest because Jesus Christ The light of the world he stepped into my darkness to be with me at that moment You know guys my mom shared You know, my mom has shared with me how at one point You know tears just were coming down flooding down the sides of my face And I really do believe guys that it was at this time because I was resting with Jesus You know the Lord would touch, you know, my other kid and he would heal it And he would breathe the breath of life into my lungs I would be removed from that, you know life support machine And the Lord would not only heal me physically there But also spiritually because Jesus called me out of darkness into his marvelous light You know guys and by the grace and the mercy of God guys, I would leave that hospital a saved man You know guys I later, you know attended my friend's church and I went up there publicly and I You know confessed the Lord has my Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior And I wish that I could stand here guys and tell you guys that from that moment forward That I walked faithfully with the Lord But that was not the case because guys I turned my back on God two times You know and for the next six years I would be up and down in my relationship with the Lord You know and I you know after I got shot, you know, my mom She moved out of Baldwin Park and she moved here to Ontario. That's how I ended up out here You know, but I had again been running the streets and doing mad angry And and and after you know about six months of being out there Just doing dope every day again, you know, I went to this house to go sell dope And I remember going into this restroom And the mirror I looked in the mirror And I remember seeing myself dying slowly. I had lost a lot of weight from doing meth for six months And I remember I hate what I saw I saw that old man that old Louis And and I remember the guys that I I just began to weep and to cry because I was convicted Because I had turned my back on God And I remember I I flushed that dope And I left that house and I would call my mom and I said mom I'm coming home And she says no me. Oh you cannot come here no more And guys for the very first time my mom rejected me Everybody else had rejected me, but my mom never did But guys, you know what? It was the best thing that my mom ever did for me Because guys I would call my friend Louis and he would come and pick me up And and you know take me to his house and he kept me there and then he took me to a Christian men's home And guys I want to share two things that I learned in this Christian men's home One I learned the power of God's word to transform a life You know not because I was taught that because but because I experienced it You know guys my life first John shared it Second Corinthians 5 17, you know when I first came across this verse. I really believed it I really believed that I was no longer that old man and that I was a new man in Jesus Christ And you guys know what therefore if anyone is in Christ he has a new creation All things have passed away behold all things have become new I believe that You know guys God then started to strip things off of me that were getting in the way of my relationship with me With you know with him in that in that home and the biggest of these was unforgiveness And so the second thing that I had learned in that home was how to forgive you know one morning God was dealing with me about forgiving my enemies because that's what had taken me back to the neighborhood in the first place You know guys and out we at this home We had these times where we used to gather in a room And and and we had the opportunity to share something that the Lord put on our heart And so I shared about loving your enemies about forgiving the way God has forgiven you And so that's what I share in little did I know that God would put me to the test later on that day That night actually You know guys a brother Lorenzo. He was a leader in the home But he comes and he wakes me up And he says and they quote He says he says hey Louis wake up He goes there's an essay who's trying to come into the home But he don't want to talk to me because I think I'm black So so so he tells me that So guys so so he wakes me up and I wake up and I go into this intake room where you know Men would come in and standing there Guy is the guy from the gang who had shot me and we knew each other And guys he was so messed up And at that moment, you know, God gave me compassion for this guy And I was able to share the gospel with him I was able to lead him and he accepted the Lord as his personal lord and savior that night. Look, I don't know I do not know why this guy was there But I remember I told the brothers don't get this don't let this dude get get, you know By my bed when I'm asleep, I didn't try to But I don't know why he was there But that you know because the next morning when I woke up he was God But right there and then God healed my heart He removed the hate he removed the anger the revenge And he touched my heart that day and that day I was able to forgive and I learned how to forgive You know, so I get out of this home I'm doing good. I'm going to church. I get a pretty good job And so God I start dealing with you know A time where I started being tempted to do meth again And I give into the temptation and I turn my back on God once again I go back to the neighborhood and you know this time you know I'm out there and I run into this girl What I had ran the streets for a lot of years with You know one night we got high together and I remember the high guys was not the same It was never the same when I went back the parting was not the same because you see guys when you taste and see that the Lord is good Returning to your vomit. It's never going to be the same. Don't believe that lie It's not You know one day I was there getting high with this girl and I remember guys that I started to weep Because again, I was being convicted because I had turned my my back on God And I remember looking at her and I remember thinking that God loved her I remember thinking that God created her that he cared for her I remember thinking that she had a father who loves her And guys and I wanted to tell her about Jesus, but how could I I was high You know guys and here I am a so-called Christian And you know a so-called Christian and I'm getting this girl high on methamphetamine You know guys, I had never felt you know Fillings for women like this, but God already had started to transform my heart started to change it And so guys around this time I was offered a position, you know to you know in my job You know and so, you know the position was out of state in Idaho And so I took the position I needed to get out of here. I just needed to leave Because I was going to just keep returning to my vomit being here And so I asked here Turning my back on God again. I asked this girl if she wanted to go with me to to Idaho and she said yes And so we moved to Idaho in 2006 and you know We start going to a Calry Chapel there Calry Chapel, Burley, Idaho And we're you know, we're there, but we're living in sin and you know We're playing church and we're playing games with God And you know one one day I got to the point where I was just sick and tired of being sick and tired For letting God down And guys in march of 2007 I would fully surrender my life to God and I I remember this one day I pleaded with him I begged him I fell on my face. I cried and cried and I asked them lord Take this addiction for me It keeps pulling me away from my relationship with you And guys and I remember that day that was the last time that I used meth I did not go through no withdrawals. I did not go through no temptations and God set me free that day from meth and and it was even And this girl that I'm living with she also You know, surrenders to the lord and she gets saved in march of 2007. Well, let me share something guys It was a man named Gilbert and a man named man who shared the gospel with my friend shorty Gilbert's my father-in-law math my brother-in-law Because they shared the gospel with shorty shorty shared the gospel with me and the fruit now her their daughter and their sister Is coming to the lord. You never know what god's gonna do when you share the gospel with somebody Every opportunity you get share the gospel So she ends up getting saved And god I start to have this desire to be used by god But god's I knew that god couldn't use me because I was living in sin You know, so guys in september of 2007. I married this girl. You guys know her my wife becky Some of you guys call her becca Somebody calls her sad girl. He serves on the worship team but guys I don't deserve her but god gave her to me You know guys from that moment that we got married god would begin to use me You know in the ministry and I had the opportunity to minister in calvary chapel in burley, Idaho And and and it was there that I learned how to you know serve the lord how to be a servant You know, the lord would just transform my life guys and you know for nine, you know years You know, and after nine years in Idaho, you know, the lord will bring us back here to to california You know in september of 2017 you see guys. I wanted to come back here because You know, I had that desire Because to this day I am praying for my sons You know the consequence of my sin I don't have a relationship with my sons and I pray for their salvation and I pray that one day The lord will find will put in their heart to find them to forgive me You know, that's one reason why it came But you know, you know, john shared at a mark Chapter five You know another reason that I came because it's very same verse God gave me when he gave me the desire to want to be back You know in in mark chapter five In verse 19 Go home to your friends and tell them what great things the lord has done for you and now he had compassion on you Well, little did I know You know as I came back and since I've been here I have had the opportunity to share the gospel with my mom when my dad They are saved and they come to this church You know guys, I thank the lord for leading us here to my church To Calvary chappuccino valley here where I have learned from my pastor by his example how to love the word of god And how to love my wife You know guys, it is here that I get to serve god You know just by serving the men in our men's ministry You know guys, I'm not perfect and the lord is still doing so much work in my life You know, but one thing I've learned is I've learned to appreciate the grace and the mercy of god You know brothers, I am a testimony Of love of god's love. I am the testimony You know of god's long suffering and his patience I am the testimony of his grace and of his mercy guys, and here's my testimony I was blind, but now I see you know guys and by the grace of god By the grace of god, I have been married and I have been sober for over 16 years and guys god is good You know god is good and he deserves All of the glory he deserves all of the honor all of the praise He deserves and it's all the power is him and I'm here to testify that god is good And guys the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing But to us who are being saved it is the power of god. I thank jesus for the cross I thank him for dying for my sins that I have been forgiven. We are forgiven and we god bless you amen