Participants: Aaron Chaney (Host), Annex Luberisse
Series Code: TNJ
Program Code: TNJ000041
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00:01 The following program discusses sensitive issues.
00:03 Parents are cautioned that some material 00:05 may be too candid for younger children. 00:09 Today, you will meet a man from the life of hard knocks. 00:11 But now, he serves Jesus. Find out how. 00:14 Join us on The New Journey. 00:48 Welcome back to The New Journey. 00:49 On today's program, we have a young man 00:51 by the name of Annex Luberisse. 00:53 Welcome to the program again, Annex. 00:55 Thank you. Thank you. All right. 00:56 For the record, how old are you and where are you from? 00:58 I'm 30 years old, and I'm from-- 01:01 Originally I'm from Haiti. 01:03 But I grew up in Florida, my whole life. 01:05 In West Palm Beach, Florida. All right. 01:07 And Palm Beach is by Lake Worth and Miami, Florida, correct? 01:10 Yeah, it's like 45 minutes outside of a Miami, 01:14 heading south. 01:15 And it's right around that facility. 01:17 Okay, as a young man growing up in Florida, 01:20 in infamous Miami, Lake Worth area. 01:23 What was it like growing up in that area? 01:24 Well, it was pretty hard. 01:26 It was pretty difficult. 01:28 Reason being is because when I first moved 01:30 to the States from Haiti, 01:33 I had a little problems speaking the language. 01:35 So it was pretty hard coming up. 01:38 You know to be able to speak the language 01:40 and to also be able to communicate. 01:42 So, it was a little hard growing up in West Palm. 01:44 Okay, what age did you move from Haiti to America? 01:48 Well, my parents are, 01:49 my father moved me from Haiti since I was three years old. 01:54 So I have been staying at Florida 01:56 since I was about three years old. 01:57 Okay. Okay. 01:59 Now, you grew up 02:00 with your mother, your father, and your siblings. 02:02 Talk about your home environment growing up in, 02:05 eventually your parents did separate? 02:08 My home environment was pretty hard. 02:10 It was pretty bit difficult 02:11 because my father was a hard man. 02:14 You know, I used to have to watch them 02:16 argue back and forth all the time, 02:18 fist fights most of the time with my, not just, not just 02:23 but with my mother but my brother 02:26 and also some of my elder siblings. 02:28 So growing up was pretty hard, I was more a quiet kid. 02:31 I stayed in my place 02:33 because I didn't want my father to know I was there. 02:37 Get out of line, and get you back in line. 02:39 Yeah, get you back in line real good. 02:40 Okay, okay. He was good at that. 02:42 Now, you eventually got involved 02:43 in infamous Top 6 gang. 02:46 I remember, I first heard of Top 6, 02:48 actually maybe a year ago or so, 02:51 and it was, I was a watching a program called Gangland. 02:54 And it was talking heavily about this, this violent gang, 02:57 and you eventually got involved in Top 6, 03:00 which is based out of Lake Worth, Florida. 03:02 Talk about that? 03:04 Well, Top 6 is based out of Lake Worth, Florida. 03:09 And Top 6 was a street gang 03:15 and also a rap gang. 03:16 But I didn't get involved into Top 6 03:21 until I got into high school. 03:24 When I was in high school, 03:26 the same guys I will see in school 03:28 would be the same guys I will see at the club. 03:30 And when things break out at the club, 03:32 they would always have my back. 03:34 So Top 6 ran the streets from Lake Worth going down. 03:38 Our gang name was San Castle, 03:41 we ran it from Hypoluxo, Lantana 03:43 all the way down to Delray. 03:45 And when you said getting involved, 03:46 I didn't get involved in gang, I was the gang. 03:49 You was. Okay. I started it. 03:50 I created it. 03:51 So, I didn't get the opportunity 03:53 to just get involved in the gang, 03:55 to run it like there. 03:57 Now, why do a lot of young people 04:00 get involved with gangs? 04:02 You see, Aaron, most of the time, 04:04 young people would get involve in gangs 04:06 because they would be looking for protection. 04:09 You know, they would be, 04:10 they would be trying to prove their self, 04:11 trying to make it seem like they are tough. 04:14 But that wasn't why we became a gang. 04:20 We was home boys. 04:22 What I mean by home boys is that 04:24 we would stay together, we would live together, 04:26 we would do everything together. 04:28 Every weekend, we was at the club together. 04:30 So, it was very natural for us to have each other back 04:32 in case anything break out. 04:34 So, we was very deeply rooted with each other. 04:41 So did you find that you got like this brotherhood, 04:43 this loving brotherhood bond by being in the gang? 04:50 Of being in a gang really helped me out 04:56 in a many different ways, because it helped me. 05:02 All my life I have been chasing after one thing. 05:06 Okay. 05:08 My guys in the streets was more to me like a brother. 05:12 You know when the Bible says that 05:13 "There is a friend that sticks to you closer, 05:16 there is a friend that sticks closer to you 05:18 than a family member." 05:19 Top 6, San Castle was that. 05:21 They are friend, 05:22 they stuck to me closer than the family member. 05:24 That was my life. That's who I knew. 05:26 So when anything happened, that's who I turn to. 05:29 Now you said something interesting. 05:30 You said that you were always searching for that one thing. 05:33 What was that one thing that you were searching for? 05:36 Well Aaron, as a kid growing up, 05:38 my father didn't really care about me, 05:41 at least he didn't show that. 05:43 My mother worked two jobs. 05:45 She was never there. She did the best she can. 05:47 Okay. 05:48 So, I never had love. Okay. 05:51 I chased after it my whole life. 05:53 I was involved in the gang because of love. 05:55 You know, it's very difficult when a kid grow up, 05:57 mother never hugged him, father never kissed him. 05:59 They never mentioned that word, "I love you," to me. 06:01 So, I spent my whole life chasing after love. 06:05 I would do anything for love. 06:06 I would even kill, I would even be killed for it. 06:09 Looking for something, you know, it's interesting, 06:12 because in my life growing up, I had that love. 06:15 I had the mother and the father that hugged me, kissed me 06:18 and all that stuff like that. 06:20 But still I gravitated to that kind of lifestyle, 06:23 to the street lifestyle. 06:25 Do you think that there was like a strong pool 06:28 that was saying, you know, 06:29 "Get involved in this and that," 06:31 you know, whether or not you had the love or not? 06:33 Oh yeah, it's a very, very strong pool. 06:35 When you see these guys, and they have everything, 06:37 everything you want, you know, 06:41 they treat you like a brother, they always there for you. 06:46 You know, it's a pool to always have a support base. 06:50 You know we are very social creatures. 06:52 So we're always looking for someone 06:53 that we can talk to, someone that we can depend on. 06:56 And I didn't have the family upbringing for that. 06:58 So, whenever I need a guidance, whenever I need a help, 07:02 I would always fall back on my friends. 07:04 Okay. Okay. 07:05 You know, I have done that a lot of times too, 07:07 even though I had the parents to talk to, 07:10 could have prayed with and various things like that. 07:12 I would always, you know, fall back on the friends. 07:15 I would trust my friends 07:17 more than I would trust my own family. 07:19 And I remember even when I was changing my life, 07:23 that I didn't want to contact my friends, 07:26 because I felt if I contact them, 07:28 they'd kind of give you this prescription. 07:30 And the prescription will be, "Well, smoke a blunt, 07:33 drink some alcohol, and call me in the morning." 07:34 Kind of like the doctor's prescription. 07:37 Now, you have lost friends in the street though. 07:40 Talk about that, those feelings that you got, 07:43 when you would see friends or even loved ones, 07:46 lost in the streets? 07:48 Well, the thing is that's one of the most difficult things 07:52 you can go through with your life, is losing 07:54 friends or family members in the street. 07:56 But the more and more you end up 07:58 losing people in the streets, the easier and easier it gets. 08:00 Okay. 08:01 One of my home boys, 08:03 he stayed three houses down the street from me. 08:05 The night before he got murdered, 08:06 I remember I was telling him, 08:08 "Hey, you know, just be careful." 08:09 Because I already knew 08:11 what he was getting ready to do. 08:12 So I told him be careful, you know. 08:14 The next day I was at work, I received a phone call, 08:18 one of my other friends called me and told me 08:19 that he was just gunned down. 08:21 And it really hit a home, when the last words 08:25 you can tell your friend was be careful. 08:27 Yeah. 08:28 Now, you know, you had to go to a funeral 08:29 because he is been murdered. 08:31 But the next one really hit close to home, Aaron. 08:34 Reason being because this next guy was like, 08:39 he was a family. 08:40 I grew up with him, I live with him. 08:43 He was mainly like a brother to me. 08:48 He was told prior to him getting, 08:53 prior to him dying that if he didn't retaliate, 08:55 the person that he had the issue with would retaliate. 08:59 But he didn't retaliate. Okay. 09:01 So, he was gunned down, down the street from-- 09:03 I actually watched him die in the street. 09:07 Wow, you know, on the streets 09:08 it's kind of like a killer be killed type world. 09:11 You know, you have many people, you know, out to get you. 09:14 You know, I told him. 09:17 I told him that, you know, 09:18 if you don't take care of your business, 09:20 your business will take care of you. 09:22 You live by the gun, you die by the gun. 09:24 And you know, you've told me before 09:26 that you develop that mentality 09:28 "live by the gun, die by the gun." 09:29 First of all, explain what does that mean, 09:32 and then how did you come to that type of mentality? 09:34 Well it's simple, it's just like in Matthew 09:36 when Jesus says, "Then that lived by the sword, 09:39 will perish with the sword." 09:41 It's the same thing. 09:42 You live by the gun, you will die by the gun. 09:44 You know, if you are going to shoot people, 09:47 be ready to be shot. 09:48 You know, because the devil is out to take it out. 09:51 He is not out to play around. 09:53 The devil is not out to give you a second chance. 09:55 He is out to take you out and your family out. 09:57 So if you gonna live with a gun, 09:59 be ready for someone else to take care of you as well. 10:01 Be ready to use it. Yeah. 10:02 And you know, people used to say on the streets, 10:03 "If you are going pull it, make sure you use it." 10:05 And the interesting thing about it is 10:07 we grew up with the mentality, 10:09 "If you gonna use it, use it right." 10:10 You know, if you gonna shoot some one, 10:12 make sure you don't just shoot him in his side 10:14 because they are gonna come back. 10:16 They are gonna come back and they are gonna kill you. 10:18 They are not just gonna shoot you. 10:19 When we shoot, we shoot to kill. 10:20 And that is the reality out at streets. 10:23 You know, I often tell people, "Not everybody makes it back." 10:26 We are blessed and fortunate that we can sit here today, 10:31 and we can communicate. 10:33 But many ones that you know, ones that I know, 10:35 they are dead 10:37 or they're incarcerated doing years behind bars. 10:40 You know, but it's a blessing to be able to walk away 10:43 from that stuff with your life. 10:46 Now at this point in your life, 10:47 what was your religious background? 10:49 Well, it's interesting that you asked that question. 10:51 At that point in my life, I was a baptized Mormon. 10:55 I was a Mormon. 10:56 And, but I wasn't really going to church, 10:59 like I was supposed to be going to church as a Mormon. 11:02 So, my understanding of the Bible 11:04 and of my Savior Jesus Christ was very limited. 11:07 So, as being a Mormon 11:10 and as growing up in a very secular household, 11:15 it was very hard. 11:16 It was very hard for me to learn about Jesus 11:18 or for me to know anything about Jesus. 11:20 So, I pulled away from the Mormon Church 11:23 to run into streets. 11:25 Now, in your household was anybody else a Mormon 11:28 or did they frequently go to church, 11:30 or was it just you? 11:31 Well, at first it was just me. 11:33 And I think my brother got involved into it a little bit. 11:36 And my sister got involved into it a little bit. 11:40 But just like I said, 11:41 they get involved for a little time 11:43 and then they fade off. 11:44 You know, it was never a binding relationship 11:48 with the Lord Jesus Christ. 11:49 It was just something that you would do every Sunday. 11:51 Okay. 11:53 Now talk about your involvement 11:54 in hip-hop music, secular hip-hop music 11:57 as well as doing shows in clubs as a underground rapper. 12:00 Talk about that? 12:01 Well, as hip-hop played a big part of my life. 12:03 Okay, as it did for mine as well. 12:04 Yeah, yeah, you know how it is. 12:06 We talk hip-hop, we live hip-hop. 12:09 It becomes a part of our culture. 12:11 You know, so, most of those guys 12:14 that I was with as growing up, we love music. 12:17 So we would always do music. 12:19 I would love to write song, 12:20 because that's the closest I can get to write poetry, 12:23 without my homeboys calling me self. 12:25 You know, so, we was, 12:27 every week we was in the studio, 12:29 and after we get out of the studio, 12:30 we would go to the club to perform the music, 12:33 and to do various things 12:34 like do concerts and things like that. 12:38 Okay. Okay. 12:39 Now, talk about that time where you said 12:42 the devil fully began to enter you. 12:44 Now, it's interesting that you say that 12:47 because, you know, all these things 12:49 that you and I were doing in the streets 12:51 were "devilish." 12:53 But there was a specific incident 12:55 that you kind of really felt that the devil entered you. 12:57 Talk about that? 12:58 Well, it was on a Friday. Okay. 13:02 It was on a Friday night, 13:04 I was with the group of friends, 13:06 and we was getting ready to go to the club. 13:08 Okay. 13:09 Now, prior to getting ready to go to the club, 13:11 I had told one of my closest friends 13:13 that I was gonna go to the club. 13:15 I had a right hand man. 13:16 Okay. 13:17 But he told me that he wasn't gonna be there. 13:19 He was gonna be at a-- 13:21 I think he was gonna be at a basketball game, somewhere 13:25 but he wasn't there. 13:27 So, I end up going to the club with these group of friends. 13:29 They wasn't San Castle nor Top 6. 13:31 It was just a group of friends. 13:33 So, we end up going to the concert. 13:34 At that concert, Top 6 was there. 13:37 They was performing. 13:39 So when they got done performing, 13:43 I remember like it was yesterday. 13:44 I was standing on stage, standing in front of the stage. 13:48 And once they got done performing, 13:50 they jumped off the stage 13:51 and another group came on to perform. 13:56 As that other group was performing, 13:57 I was talking to a girl on my right. 14:02 And as I was talking to her, 14:03 I overheard the guy that was performing. 14:06 After he got done, he said 14:08 "If anyone wants to see about me, 14:10 meet me outside." 14:11 You know, I knew what that means, 14:14 you know, I have been putting these predicaments before. 14:16 So, I already knew those was fighting words, 14:19 or possibly killing words. 14:20 So, it was like a threat. Yeah, it's a threat. 14:22 You know, first ones to the trunk wins. 14:24 You know, 'cause be the first one 14:25 to grab your gun, you win, 14:27 because everything else is history. 14:30 Okay. So, I knew what that meant. 14:32 So as I'm talking to this girl on my right, 14:35 as I'm trying to wrap up the conversation with her, 14:38 the guy jumps off stage. 14:40 So as soon as he jumps off stage, 14:42 I'm thinking, "Okay, what is this guy gonna do?" 14:44 So I have one eye on him and another eye on the girl, 14:47 'cause I'm trying to finish doing 14:48 what I have to do with her, 14:50 so I can attend to this situation. 14:52 So, I looked at him, just like I'm looking at you right now. 14:56 So he saw me. 14:58 I don't know if he recognized me, 14:59 but he started-- 15:00 Now, he was walking towards the crowd, 15:02 he started walking towards me. 15:03 So, as he is walking towards me, 15:06 he picks up a bottle. 15:07 Okay. 15:09 So when he picks up the bottle, 15:10 the girl grabs my attention again. 15:12 So, I turned back to look at her. 15:14 And as soon as I turned back to look at her, 15:16 I tried to turn back to see where he was at. 15:19 And he hits me right over the face 15:21 with the bottle. 15:23 So when he hits me over the face with the bottle, 15:25 I turn around and I catch him with the hard right. 15:27 So, he falls back. He falls back. 15:29 So, I jumped on top of him. 15:31 And I just went to, I just went to work. 15:33 You know, I went to hit him 15:35 and as they are trying to pull me off of him 15:37 at no success. 15:38 I was gonna beat him until he just stopped breathing 15:40 because that's just the way it is in the streets. 15:42 Oh yeah, that's exactly how it is. 15:43 We don't fight to fight later, we fight and end it now. 15:47 So, I wasn't coming off of him. 15:49 I was gonna beat him until he stops. 15:50 So as would stop, as he begin to stop moving, 15:54 I heard some say, "Move, move, move, move." 15:56 So someone hits me over the head with a bar stool. 15:59 So, I roll over, 16:01 after being hit with a bar stool, 16:02 and I get up and that's when everything breaks loose. 16:05 Now, everyone's fighting for their life. 16:07 So as we, as we fighting, I'm fighting like 16:10 with like six or seven people on me. 16:14 The group that was there, they had a lot of people 16:16 that was on their side. 16:18 So, six or seven people on me, and we are fighting, 16:21 I'm fighting for my life. 16:23 In a fight, I always-- 16:25 By being in the street so long, 16:26 I knew that you have to get your back against the wall. 16:29 Because you don't know, 16:30 you don't want somebody coming behind you. 16:32 So, I'm trying to find, 16:33 I'm trying to get my back to the wall. 16:35 So, as I get my back into the wall, 16:37 we're just fighting, you know, 16:39 it's really, really getting intense. 16:41 So it's just mayhem in a club? It's mayhem. 16:43 It's crazy. Wow. 16:44 Chairs are being throne, bottles are being-- 16:46 Everything. 16:47 So, a long time into this fight, 16:51 you know, it's just more and more people 16:53 are building up on me. 16:54 So, I started to lose energy. 16:58 I started to get exhausted from all of that fighting, 17:00 all of that fist war. 17:02 So, I was starting to give up. Okay. 17:06 So, one of my homeboys from Top 6, 17:07 he jumped in and he helped me out, 17:09 you know, he got a couple of 'em off from me. 17:11 So, he basically saved my life. 17:14 He gave me the opportunity to get away. 17:16 So, I came outside, and as soon as I came outside, 17:20 more of 'em was outside than they was inside. 17:22 So, they got back on me again, 17:24 and they just started really, really starting to work me. 17:27 They started to really beating me, 17:29 beating the life out of me. 17:30 So, at that time, I couldn't fight 'em. 17:32 Where I was tired. Okay. 17:34 I had no more strength left in me. 17:35 Okay, now at that point, were you on any type 17:37 of narcotic or alcohol or anything like that? 17:39 Interesting, I've never drunk, I've never did narcotics 17:44 or drugs and nothing like that. 17:45 Okay, and that is very interesting 17:47 'cause most people that have been in streets, 17:50 they get high, they drink, you know, it's just, 17:52 it's almost like it comes with the lifestyle, 17:53 the territorial almost. 17:55 Well, yeah, those people, we were more smart. 17:59 We usually look at those people as people that didn't really-- 18:01 Because you can't use what you are selling. 18:03 Once you start using what you are selling, 18:04 you become addicted 18:06 to what you are selling, and now-- 18:07 There is less profit in your pocket. 18:08 Now, less profit in your pocket. 18:10 So, I wasn't on narcotics, I was pretty aware. 18:13 That's why I remember it so good. 18:14 So as I'm fighting and the girls, 18:18 and I heard this girl saying, "It's Annex, it's Annex." 18:21 So after that, I'm pretty much helpless. 18:24 I'm on my knees, defenseless. And they just working me. 18:27 So, I heard three shots fire, pop-pop-pop. 18:31 So, that stopped, that stopped. I won't be hitting no more. 18:35 I don't know if, I think they helped me out. 18:38 So, I was just lying there in the puddle of blood 18:41 actually fighting for my life. 18:43 And this girl comes up to me and she grabs me 18:45 and she says, "You will be okay, 18:47 you will be okay." 18:48 So, I said, "I'm thirsty, give me something to drink." 18:50 And she says, "Okay". So she gives me some water. 18:52 Okay. 18:54 So after I get the water, 18:55 I told, "I'm tired, I feel sleepy." 18:58 So automatically, she says, 19:00 "No, no, no, no, no, no, don't go to sleep." 19:01 "Don't go to sleep, don't go to sleep, 19:03 stay awake, stay awake." 19:04 I'm covered in blood. 19:05 We don't know where the blood is coming from. 19:07 Okay. So, I said, "I couldn't." 19:09 Because at that time, it was easier to go to sleep 19:11 than it was easier to fight. 19:13 Death seemed a lot more easier 19:14 than to try to fight to stay alive. 19:16 Yeah, exactly. So, I went to sleep. 19:20 So, and I remember waking up in a ambulance. 19:24 And the guy in ambulance is telling me, "Stay awake, 19:26 stay awake, stay awake. 19:28 What's your name? What's your name?" 19:29 And I don't remember if I answered him 19:31 or told him my name but they were able 19:33 to stabilize me in the hospital. 19:35 I had major head trauma. 19:37 I lost my hearing in one side of my-- 19:40 On this side, I can't really hear 19:43 that well in this side. 19:45 I came three inches away from being completely blind. 19:48 From after when he hit me over the face with the bottle. 19:50 Yeah, okay. So, the Lord spared my life. 19:54 Praise the Lord. 19:55 But I really didn't look at it that way. 19:57 I was so corrupt, that I didn't see it that way. 20:00 The way I looked at it is like, 20:02 "These guys was going to kill me." 20:03 Okay. 20:05 So now, Aaron, I lost complete control. 20:07 The devil had full sway. I would-- 20:10 Up until that time, I had sympathy for people. 20:13 You know, sometimes my friends would do something, 20:15 "Nah, nah, nah, just leave that alone." 20:17 You know I would, I would tell him not to do it, 20:19 because I had sympathy towards people. 20:22 At that point-- But after that incident-- 20:23 I understand that these guys was gonna kill me 20:25 if they had the chance. 20:27 Yeah. If they didn't get-- 20:28 If those shots wasn't fired, if they didn't get shot, 20:31 they was gonna literally make sure that I was dead. 20:33 Yeah, okay. 20:34 So at that point, I, my life completely turned around. 20:36 I was gonna kill, or I was gonna be killed. 20:38 Yeah. So, the devil had full control. 20:40 So, the people that your beating in the club, 20:43 did you know them or was it just some kind of random? 20:45 Well, we always knew each other. 20:47 We always knew the group 20:49 that you don't want to get caught in their territory, 20:51 or they don't want to be caught in your territory. 20:53 And if you are caught in their territory, 20:54 you better make sure you have strap. 20:57 You strap. 20:58 Because when they come, they come in 21:01 and if you get caught alone in their place, 21:05 they would take care of you. 21:06 And I mean by taking care of you 21:07 that they would make sure that you don't make it out alive. 21:10 Because if you make it out alive, 21:11 you will come back and you'll make sure that 21:12 they don't make it out alive. 21:14 Now, let me ask you this. 21:15 How much of an influence do you think that music had on, 21:18 a secular hip-hop music had on your life at the time? 21:20 Let me tell you something. I'm gonna tell you a story. 21:23 We couldn't perform an act without music. 21:26 We couldn't go to war without music. 21:30 We needed to listen to music. 21:32 We needed to listen to Master P, 21:33 we needed to listen to Trick Daddy, 21:35 we needed that mental build up to get us to do something. 21:39 Without the music, we couldn't really, really do nothing. 21:41 So, when we did music, we did the music 21:44 pertaining to what we are doing. 21:46 Oh, yeah. How we are living. 21:47 So when we listened to our song, 21:49 we're more ready to attack. 21:52 Yeah, I understand, I know for myself, 21:55 times when I become really angry, 21:56 I would listen to Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. 21:59 And it was like that the evil inside of the music 22:02 would just speak to me, 22:04 and make that aggression even worse. 22:06 So, I can very much relate with you, Annex, 22:08 in terms of that. 22:10 But you began to make a transition in your life 22:12 out of the gang. 22:13 You didn't change your life at that point. 22:15 And start coming closer to Jesus, 22:17 but you did make a transition out of the gang. 22:19 How did that inspired? 22:21 Well, as I was in the streets, I always had a day job. 22:25 I had a day job during the day time. 22:27 And on that day job, I used to work at a warehouse. 22:30 And I got my CDO. 22:32 So, I started to drive trucks. 22:34 And driving trucks, I went to truck driving school. 22:38 And as I was coming back home from the truck driving school, 22:40 I was at a train station, waiting to catch a train 22:42 to go back to West Palm. 22:44 And I was sitting at the train station, 22:45 and that's when the spirit of God 22:47 started to strive with me. 22:48 You know, I had a little bit of Mormon background, 22:50 so I had to form of godliness but denied the power thereof. 22:53 Yes. 22:55 You know, so I knew 22:57 that my past was covered with blood. 23:01 I had no future. 23:02 So at that point of time, I got down on my knees and I prayed. 23:06 It was very simple. 23:08 I said, "Lord, Jesus, if there is a God out there, 23:12 please, I have done everything that there is to do. 23:15 I have broken all Your commandments, 23:17 I have done everything that You said not to do." 23:20 Okay. 23:21 There is two things that I have not done 23:23 and I promise you. 23:24 If You watch my back, 23:26 I will never do those two things. 23:28 I will never drink a day in my life, 23:29 and I will never smoke. 23:31 And that was all that I haven't done. 23:33 Everything else, I have done it." 23:34 So I was like, "If You can just watch my back, 23:38 I will not do these things." 23:39 And before I can finish praying, 23:41 a lady tapped me on my shoulder, 23:42 and she said, "Do you believe in God?" 23:43 I said, "Yeah, I believe in God." 23:45 And she gave me a tract 23:47 and she gave me her phone number, 23:49 she was a Jehovah's Witnesses. 23:51 So, I went back home 23:52 and that's when the transformation 23:53 started to happen getting out of streets. 23:55 Okay, but, you got out of streets, 23:57 but you still didn't make a change, 23:59 and actually we are gonna have a part two of you 24:02 and find out what happened after the gang life. 24:05 But let me ask you this. 24:07 You know most people, they say they can't leave the gang, 24:10 or if they do, the only way they will 24:12 is in a body bag pretty much. 24:14 So how were you able to pull away from the gang 24:17 without the repercussions of leaving the gang? 24:19 Well, it was pretty difficult. Okay. 24:21 The street life, you never get away from it. 24:23 Yeah. 24:24 You know, it's hard to get away from it. 24:26 You can never get away from it. 24:27 Only Christ can pull you away from it. 24:29 And the transition started happening 24:33 as I started to move towards Atlanta. 24:36 But as I started to move towards Atlanta, 24:39 the streets kept coming with me. 24:40 Yeah. Oh, yeah. 24:41 You know, the streets kept coming with me. 24:43 So it was, it was very difficult 24:45 to leave that type of stuff alone. 24:48 What really helped me out 24:49 was the more and more violent it got, 24:53 the more and more the friends 24:54 that really know me starting to die off. 24:56 You know, they would get murdered, 24:58 they would end up in jail. 25:00 And so other people would fill in their slot 25:03 that didn't know me that well, 25:05 that really helped me out as well. 25:06 But it was still a hard, it was still hard 25:10 to be able to completely pull yourself away. 25:12 To walk away, yeah. 25:13 Now, the ones that you walked away, 25:15 they were like these brothers to you. 25:18 Are you still in communication with them today? 25:21 Have you tried to reach out to them or how was that going? 25:24 Well, some of 'em are on my Facebook page. 25:29 So, yeah, I do try to reach out to some of them, 25:31 but you have to be careful with these guys. 25:33 Oh, yeah, yeah. 25:34 Because when you look at it, 25:37 they are still in the same things 25:39 that they was in before. 25:41 Yeah. 25:42 So, it's very difficult as the type of wrap 25:45 that I have to easily try to reach out to. 25:48 But I always try to be an example 25:52 for the next person. 25:53 You know, if I can make it out, 25:55 it's possible for them to make it out as well. 25:56 Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. 25:58 So, your life is pretty much 26:00 what helps other people to come out of that transition. 26:03 Okay, now, as I stated, 26:04 we are gonna do a part two, Annex. 26:06 But some people may not see part two. 26:08 Some young man that is in your situation 26:11 right now that you were years ago in gangs. 26:14 What word can you say to that young person 26:17 to turn him away from that street life? 26:19 Well, what I can say is, brothers and sisters, 26:24 Jesus still save. 26:26 Up until this day He still save. 26:28 He brought me out of the streets, 26:29 so He can bring anyone else out of streets." 26:32 Like John 3:16 say, "For God so loved..." 26:34 So loved the world. You, not the world. 26:38 "For God so loved you 26:39 that He gave His only begotten Son." 26:41 Jesus is the only way. 26:43 Yes, He is the only way. 26:44 He is the way. 26:45 Everything else is a counterfeit. 26:48 Nothing else will save you except for Jesus. 26:50 Because, it's hard, Aaron, it's very, very hard 26:54 to sit and to watch your friends die. 26:56 I had the cars, I had the clothes, 26:58 I had the money. 26:59 I ran the streets. I lived the fast life. 27:01 All of that is vanity. Yeah. 27:03 There is nothing in that to gain. 27:06 There is nothing in that 27:07 that you can take with you to the afterlife. 27:09 Only thing you can take is that Lord Jesus Christ, 27:11 Lord and Savior. 27:12 So, my appeal would be to the young people is, 27:16 all of that stuff means nothing. 27:18 Hold on to Jesus, grab hold on to Jesus, 27:21 and don't let Him go. 27:22 You don't want to go through what I went through. 27:25 You gonna-- 27:27 Someone's mother is gonna cry at the end of the day. 27:29 Someone's mother is gonna be in black and white. 27:32 You don't want your mother to be 27:34 coming to see you at a funeral nor in jail. 27:37 So, you have to really, really do it for your mother sake. 27:40 If not for your mother sake, for your God sake. 27:43 And the thing about it is really, really interesting 27:45 is that I came from this part. 27:48 Annex, I would like to thank you 27:49 for being on the program. 27:51 Please tune in next week for part two. |
Revised 2016-04-11