I got the Holy Ghost when I was about 7 years old during Children's Church. I liked going to pray because I always got slain in the spirit. When I met Laurence, my cousin, we played SOS (a connect the dot game) and now we are like brothers.  We would often get mad after we prayed because people were talking out in church. They were really insensitive to the spirit of God; He would come to do great things and the people would interrupt the spirit. At church, we all fit in because we all did things pertaining to God. Even Sunday School was cool with my friends there.  Later, I appreciated what I learned.

I have always wondered what would I do (in the regular saint, not realizing what He wanted me to do because God did not put His spirit in me for no reason! I would always sit back and observe the people testifying and shouting unto the Lord. I wanted a testimony; but I never wanted a real test; but I almost died twice…

In December, 2002, I was attacked by a group of guys while I was walking away from the cinema. The group of guys that I was with were "talking trash".

I was attacked by more guys than any of us; I was stumped and kicked unconscious.  When I came to I was on the ground in a puddle of my own blood, surrounded by the police. "What happened to me," I asked. Don, one of my friends, said "You were jumped, Duh!" At the hospital, the doctors kept running CAT Scans and other tests looking for broken bones and internal bleeding; I had scratches on my arm and back (my head was also swollen and misshapen-my mother was allowed into the emergency room when she first got there and she said that she didn't recognize me, I was so beaten up). I didn't remember much of anything. After I was taken home, I couldn't stand the hospital gown to touch me; I hurt so much.  By the time my family and friends came by my grandmother's house to see me, especially Uncle Daniel and Aunt Deborah Garcia, my scars and scratches went away, but I still hurt. I had a scar from my temple to my cheek--I saw myself in the mirror in the hallway and figured that I would be messed up and ugly forever--but that ugly scar also disappeared!  As the pain started going away, I became mad at God because the family was going through a lot things.

About 2 days after I was prayed for, I wanted my cousin to come over; but he had

to put up Christmas lights. So I went to see him and was on the roof helping him!  Although He did a lot for me, I wasn't really thanking God, but still going in my own way. I knew that what happened to me was strange, because most people would be dead or still in the hospital.

I thought I was cool, so I didn't hold any grudges. At times I would thank God for saving my life, yet I was still angry because my family was breaking up; my brothers getting in trouble. In school I was just messing around-people laughing made me feel good. My mother realized what I was doing but there was only so much she could do with her punishments.  When I got kicked out of high school; I attended ACE, a school  that helps you get your credits; but still I refused to go to school. Finally, I graduated in late May, 2004.  My plans were to attend Texas Southern University and mess with the girls all day long. The first week I didn't go to any classes.  One day in the recreational center I was playing basketball and I met Terrence. We realized while we were playing that neither one of us was happy, but we noticed that we both were Christians. People thought that because I had my own job, I had everything; people were always thinking that I was happy. The devil put a block on my mind and I forgot about God; but I felt there had to be something else.  In church, ministers would preach their sermons; it would go in one ear and out the other without even coming into my head. Nothing meant anything to me. Talking to Terrence, I realized that music had me bound. My rap CD's went everywhere with me, even church. God would start telling me to throw away my CD's. I heard Him but kept on giving Him excuses.  The Lord started dealing with me about my ignorance like "I made the trees that the pencils were made out of".   Still the Lord tried to get me to give up my CD's. I turned up my stereo, but God continued to talk to me.

One night I felt a spirit hovering over me.  The Lord told me to pray. The spirit remained there!   I said," God, why is he still here?"   The Lord said, "Because this spirit has a right to be here". "But why?"  God turned my head toward the CD's I had in my