Participants: Yvonne Lewis (Host), Jason Bradley
Series Code: UBR
Program Code: UBR000134A
|
00:01 Stay tuned to meet a young man
00:02 whose life made a U-turn just in time. 00:05 My name is Yvonne Lewis 00:06 and you're watching Urban Report. 00:31 Hello and welcome to Urban Report. 00:33 My guest today is Jason Bradley, Assistant to the General Manager 00:37 of the Dare to Dream Network, me... and my baby boy... 00:41 welcome to Urban Report Jason. 00:43 Thank you, thank you, it's a pleasure to be here. 00:45 You know, some people would think 00:47 "Wow! why is she interviewing her son... 00:50 like that must be nepotism at its best 00:52 but you really have a testimony 00:58 that I want our Urban Report Viewers to know about 01:02 when I first heard it, I didn't know all the details 01:07 in fact, I joked with you later and said, 01:09 "You'll get a beating later on" 01:10 After this interview, I'll be running... 01:12 as soon as this Program is over. 01:16 But you have a story 01:19 that I want our young people to hear, 01:23 I want our older people to hear 01:25 so that they can kind of know, maybe, 01:28 what's going on with their kids or grandkids 01:31 or whatever, so I really think that 01:34 what you have to say today is going to be a blessing 01:38 as I said, I heard it for the first time 01:42 really, in total, with T. Marshall Kelly 01:46 on his radio program and I thought, 01:49 "Wow! we have to have that on Urban Report" 01:51 so thank you so much for being... 01:54 willing to be transparent, I appreciate that. 01:56 That's not an easy thing to do especially when it's your Mom. 02:00 I know, that's got to be so... Like Mom and Boss. 02:04 Yeah, that's right, but anyway, 02:06 tell us a little bit about who you are 02:11 and where you came from, your family background. 02:14 Yeah, so, and I'm glad you asked that 02:17 because it's important for people to understand 02:19 the background and the family and all of that. 02:22 I was raised Seventh-day Adventist, 02:23 I was raised in the church, my mom was Adventist, 02:27 well, you're Adventist, my dad was not 02:31 but he was kind of... at the time... just because 02:36 I have a feeling that he had a strong pressure from you. 02:41 What! what! 02:44 So he was kind of faking it to make it... at the time 02:48 and growing up, I was very loved, 02:53 I came from a very loving home, you were singing professionally, 02:57 still doing jingles and all of that at that time, 03:00 for my early part of the years, 03:02 and then I remember you and dad 03:05 getting a divorce and at first it affected me, 03:09 at first I didn't understand it 03:11 I was a kid and I just couldn't grasp it 03:13 and I didn't like it, but then after that I loved it 03:15 because I got two sets of gifts, I got two places to go to, 03:20 you were the strict parent, 03:21 dad was kind of like the "fun parent" 03:24 you know, I mean, so, I had a good time, 03:27 I kind of liked that you guys got divorced 03:29 and then I had two places to go to, 03:32 and dad, throughout all this time 03:35 has always stayed in my life, like, he is a great father, 03:39 I mean, he's been there 03:41 through thick and thin from day one, 03:43 when you got remarried and we moved to Texas, 03:47 he uprooted his whole life 03:50 and just came to Dallas to finish raising me 03:53 and I think that's huge. It is... 03:55 so for the people that are watching this Program, 03:58 that there's hope, there are some good fathers 04:02 out there, and my dad is definitely one of them. 04:06 Your Dad loves you a lot and made a decision 04:09 to be in your life, to stay in your life, 04:13 and I so applaud him on that 04:16 because he... 04:17 he has never veered away from you, 04:21 he's always... when we first moved to Texas, 04:25 you were so unhappy without your dad, 04:29 and I was talking to him one day about you 04:32 and I said, "Why don't you just come here" 04:35 I mean... because he wanted to come 04:37 and when he realized that he needed to be there with you 04:42 and you were just so happy that he was there 04:44 and then you learned to, I guess, work it, 04:47 because then you had my place and then you had his place 04:50 and you said, like, your dad was a fun parent 04:52 I was the strict one, Absolutely, absolutely... 04:54 so, yeah... You were still fun 04:56 but there were just, you know, more and more rules... 05:00 more rules. More rules, yes, you had rules. 05:03 I had fun though. 05:05 Okay, all right. I don't want to discredit you. 05:06 Okay, that's good, that's good, I like that. 05:08 So, you grew up in a Christian home, 05:12 and you grew up in a loving home. 05:16 Yes. And even though, 05:17 your dad and I divorced, 05:19 we still maintained a relationship 05:22 for you too, 05:24 so that, you know, 05:25 you never felt like we were fighting and all that stuff 05:27 over you and all that which was really good 05:31 so, what happened when you were about 12, 05:35 like... where was your life after your dad and I divorced 05:41 and then, we moved to Texas 05:43 and then I got another divorce 05:46 what did that do to your life? 05:49 Well, I was honestly happy when you got that divorce 05:55 because it's just... I wanted it to be "us" 06:01 I wanted this to be you, me, Mark, when he was out there 06:07 and so, I felt a little bit relieved, so to speak, 06:13 when you got that particular divorce 06:15 and then after that, I mean, at that time my life was okay 06:19 I was playing basketball and just having fun at school 06:23 still being good, it was probably in 8th Grade 06:26 when I got approached to smoke Marijuana 06:29 and I was 13 years old, I turned it down, 06:32 I didn't begin smoking until I was 14 06:34 14 was that time in my life where everything just started 06:38 kind of like... all the bad things started happening. 06:42 Like what? Poor choices... 06:43 I became sexually active at the age of 14 06:46 and so I lost my virginity at 14 years old, 06:49 I began smoking Marijuana at 14, 06:52 I started drinking at 14, so I would find... an all... 06:58 while leading a double life so, hiding it from you and dad 07:02 and going out and hanging out with friends 07:06 on sleepovers or whatever, and going to different parties 07:11 and things of that nature, 07:12 so, at 14, I began smoking Marijuana 07:17 and I was still functioning, 07:20 I was still making sure I did right in school and stuff, 07:24 my grades slipped a little bit 07:25 but you quickly put that in check 07:29 but, you know, it was just like... 07:32 that was a pivotal point where it was... 07:35 where the bad choices 07:36 started coming in. 07:38 You know what's interesting, Jay, is that, 07:40 I really did not... 07:42 I didn't know the way you were spiraling 07:46 I didn't see it, I saw some things 07:49 you know, like, when the grades started slipping 07:51 and I could say, "What's going on with your grades?" 07:55 like, you know, but I... the sleepovers and the parties, 08:00 I'm thinking, you're just going over to a friend's house, 08:04 and everything was okay, 08:06 and these were friends from the Adventist School, 08:09 so, you know, it's important for parents, I think, to know... 08:13 I knew where you were going, of course, 08:16 but I just didn't know 08:18 about the choices you were making at that point. 08:22 Were you using the computer in a bad way too, 08:25 were you involved in pornography 08:28 and stuff like that on the computer? 08:29 Yeah, I watched that porn, 08:31 I watched porn on the computer and all that 08:33 and deleted the history and stuff 08:35 so you couldn't find anything. Hmmm... hmmm... hmmm... hmmm... 08:37 but you know, it's not just like, 08:40 I would spend the night at some friends' houses from school 08:43 or some that might have been from a Public School, 08:46 or something like that, 08:48 I mean, I went to an Adventist School from Fifth Grade on 08:52 but there's... it doesn't matter where you are, 08:55 you will find whatever... 08:58 the devil knows where your weaknesses are, 09:02 and he'll exploit those, and he exploited mine, 09:05 and I got heavy in the Rap Music, 09:07 I got heavy into bad movies, 09:10 not porn movies, per se, but like Rated-R movies 09:15 or drug movies or gangster movies 09:18 or whatever, and so, as you continue to watch that 09:22 and you continue to listen to that, 09:23 you're poisoning yourself, 09:25 you're starting to desensitize yourself to certain things 09:29 and so... you... and everything is 09:32 glorified in there, you know, you see these drug dealers 09:36 with big houses and big cars, like... fancy, expensive cars 09:40 and beautiful women, 09:41 but what you don't see is 09:43 when they're getting locked up for life sentences, 09:46 when they're getting murdered, 09:47 when they're getting robbed and shot 09:50 and all kinds of stuff, you don't see that part 09:52 because they don't you to see that part 09:53 so, you know, as I went on from 14 to like... 15, 16... 10:01 on through college, my drug habit got worse 10:05 and worse, and it just progressed 10:08 in the wrong direction. 10:10 So then you weren't able to focus on your schoolwork 10:15 you were now, when you went to college 10:18 because you went, first you went to Oakwood 10:22 no, first you went to Southern 10:24 Yes, Texas Southern 10:26 and then to Oakwood, 10:27 you weren't focused on your academics 10:31 you were... were you partying? 10:33 Yes, I was partying, I was very much into women 10:37 so, it's college, you're away from home, 10:41 I'm at a Public University, I got an on-campus apartment, 10:45 it's women everywhere, and so I was heavy into partying 10:49 I was still heavy into drugs because 10:51 where that particular college is located, 10:53 it's like the Third Ward of Houston or something like that 10:56 which is not really a great area 10:59 and then on top of that 11:01 you have all these kids coming from all these places 11:04 bringing drugs and drug habits and all that 11:06 to a central location, 11:08 no parents, just drugs and bad influences 11:12 and all of that 11:13 and those on-campus apartments where I was living, 11:17 it was 11:20 it was crazy 11:22 because there were robberies, 11:23 there were... people were going to bed, 11:25 there were gunshots, they were shooting at night 11:27 and I got my car broken into, I got my apartment broken into, 11:33 and then I went to a party one night 11:36 and there was a young lady that was at the party 11:40 I left the party because there were a lot of guys 11:44 and that wasn't my scene, I don't want to be 11:48 somewhere in an environment where... 11:50 it's a whole bunch of guys 11:52 in a small space and not... no women really, 11:56 so I left the party, after that same party 12:00 this young lady, I knew her roommate 12:02 and this lady... she got shot in the head and killed. 12:07 At the same party that you had been in? 12:09 Same party I was at, so throughout... 12:12 even though I've made all those bad choices 12:15 and continued to make... not continued now, 12:18 but continued to make bad choices, 12:22 God has still had His hand on my life 12:25 whether or not I gave Him the time or not, 12:28 he still protected me. 12:29 Where were you spiritually at that time? 12:32 Non-existent... my spiritual life was... 12:34 I mean, I knew there was God, I knew there was a God, 12:38 and I would do the rituals, I'd say my blessing, 12:41 but I wasn't going to church, I wasn't reading my Bible, 12:44 I didn't desire a relationship with God, 12:49 I was more about... myself and what I wanted to do 12:52 and the women and the drugs and all that 12:57 it consumed me, 12:59 and the party life... that consumed me 13:01 I began selling drugs, I went out and got a scale 13:06 and I decided I wanted to make some money 13:08 while... I had a job too 13:10 but I decided that I wanted to make some other money 13:13 and support a drug habit, 13:15 and so I began selling some drugs. 13:18 Were you scared, 13:21 I mean, that whole scene 13:23 was that... that's not how you were raised 13:26 Hmmm... hmmm... so, were you uncomfortable 13:29 with that scene or had you... 13:31 because you were using it, 13:33 had you developed a certain level of comfort 13:36 in that whole environment? 13:37 I grew kind of comfortable, there's never 13:42 like a true level of comfort that can be obtained 13:46 or attained with that lifestyle 13:49 because you constantly have to worry about getting robbed, 13:51 you have to worry, looking over your back, 13:53 because people... 13:55 if they find out about you selling drugs, 13:58 some of them might go to the police 14:00 or some of them might try and rob you 14:02 or some of... you just have different things 14:04 to worry about and... I mean... 14:07 it's not something that I owe, and I knew it was wrong 14:09 and I wasn't raised that way, I was never raised that way, 14:12 from either parent, 14:14 so, I mean, I felt that it was wrong 14:17 but my morals had shifted Hmmm... hmmm... 14:24 because I was in a cloud, 14:26 basically... Hmmm... hmmm... 14:28 even at that particular school like I said... a minute ago, 14:31 my apartment got broken into, 14:33 I ended up figuring out who broke into my apartment, 14:37 but I wasn't going to go to the Cops because 14:39 if they can prove that they did it, 14:43 then they know that I told that they did it, 14:46 and I know those particular people had guns 14:50 so, I went to try and get a gun at the time, 14:53 and I was going to go confront them 14:56 on breaking into my apartment, 14:58 God made it to where that 15:01 every time that I was trying to go purchase a gun, 15:03 something fell through, and it just never... 15:07 it didn't happen, it never happened, 15:10 Hmmm... hmmmm. so, He saved my life with that 15:15 because what happened if I would have gone over there 15:17 and I would have confronted them 15:19 and they would have pulled their gun 15:21 then I would have had to take a life 15:23 which is never... 15:24 I never would ever want to do that... 15:27 Yeah, and things can escalate. Absolutely. 15:30 You have a gun, they have a gun, 15:32 words are spoken 15:35 and then you're in each other's faces 15:37 because then your "Manhood" is on the line 15:39 you know what I mean? disrespects you... 15:42 it's just craziness, 15:43 and it just goes into a another whole area 15:46 that can turn your life around forever. 15:50 Absolutely. Forever. 15:51 I think we have a picture of you, 15:53 when you were in that lifestyle that I'd like to put up 15:57 because I'd like for people to kind of see 16:00 the difference in the way you look now 16:03 and the way you looked then. 16:04 Yes, there are three pictures that we have 16:09 this is one of them, 16:11 I was in a car, I couldn't even tell you 16:14 where I was going or where I was coming from, 16:16 it could have been a party at the time 16:18 we have another picture 16:21 where I was getting ready to go out 16:24 or I just came from going out, it's very dark, you know, 16:30 it was a dark time in my life 16:31 that's another picture where I was going to go party 16:36 Hmmm... hmmm... to the wrong kind of parties. 16:40 Yeah, God is so amazing because 16:42 during the time you were away in college, 16:46 of course, I didn't know all the stuff you were getting into 16:49 I knew about the apartment getting broken into 16:52 and that kind of thing, but I didn't know about 16:54 the drugs and the selling of the drugs and all that, 16:57 but I knew that you weren't walking with the Lord 17:01 and so, the praying... 17:05 I was praying for you and for Mark 17:08 and have been, I mean, 17:10 because that's what we have to do as parents 17:13 we have to stand in the gap for our kids, 17:17 and I knew that your life wasn't right 17:20 but I didn't know the extent 17:21 I didn't know how far away you had gone 17:25 because you kept it... you kept it from me 17:30 and so that was one phase of your life 17:34 what happened later 17:36 that was so life-changing for you? 17:38 Well, there were a couple of things 17:42 one is... after a while... okay... 17:46 I went to a private college 17:47 after TSU, I went to a Seventh-day Adventist College 17:52 and I ended up driving back to TSU to buy some Marijuana 17:58 and bring it back to school and sell it... 18:01 You were going to sell it back at the Private school? 18:03 Yes, yes, there are people that abuse drugs 18:08 everywhere Yeah. 18:09 and so, I was going to sell it there 18:12 but I ended up getting robbed at a gas station 18:14 in one of these States, okay, 18:18 and so, then, what that did was... 18:21 that was still a little bit of a protection 18:23 because I ended up getting pulled over 18:25 down the highway, and the Cop ended up lying 18:30 and saying that I didn't... 18:32 I failed the breathalyzer or something and he said... 18:37 basically I didn't have anything to drink 18:39 but it was zeroes across the things 18:42 that I had point 008 which was legal and so he lied, 18:45 they ended up letting me go, taking me back 18:48 and I went on and got back home, 18:51 went on my merry way, but later on in life though 18:54 my appendix ruptured inside of me 18:58 and that was a life-threatening issue 19:02 because I had been misdiagnosed, I got sent home twice 19:06 the third time, my doctor was supposed to be on vacation, 19:10 but he happened to be in the office 19:11 and he came and saw me, that's not just a coincidence 19:15 that's God putting him in the building 19:17 that particular time when I needed him 19:19 and so he ran one more test and sent me to the ER 19:23 and told my dad to take me to ER 19:25 they performed an emergency surgery on me 19:29 and Dr. Carlton Byrd came and prayed with me 19:32 I didn't know him because I wasn't going to church 19:35 but that prayer meant so much and I thank him all the time 19:40 whenever I see him, so, if you're watching this, 19:42 Dr. Byrd, thank you for praying with me 19:45 and you would have thought that after that experience 19:48 that I would have given my life to God, 19:51 I thanked Him, but I was still stuck on "me" 19:54 I was still stuck on things that I wanted to do 19:57 so I ended up getting out of the hospital 19:59 and as soon as I was okay to walk around and move around, 20:04 I want back to the "hood" 20:07 and I started selling drugs again 20:10 and using drugs, this particular day, though, 20:14 I ended up having 14 bags of Marijuana 20:19 and two Ecstasy Pills, and these Cops walked up 20:25 from behind the building... 20:26 Undercover? No... they were in uniform 20:29 but they came up from behind the building 20:31 so, I was walking into the building 20:35 because I saw them coming and I was acting like 20:37 I was on the phone and they called me back out 20:39 to sit down with everybody else and they wanted to search us 20:43 and they were asking us to give up our drugs, 20:45 they ended up finding my 14 bags of Marijuana 20:48 I had tried to discard it, 20:50 but they found it and they took me to jail 20:53 my stomach was still open at the time, mind you, 20:55 From your surgery? 20:57 yes, from my surgery, and I went to jail, 21:00 they took me to jail, and that ended up being 21:04 one of the best days of my life 21:06 because it was a turning point, it was a wake-up call 21:09 and it was that push that I needed 21:12 it was like, God saying, "I've protected you this far, 21:16 I'm still protecting you, you're being held in here, 21:19 but I'm still protecting you but you need this to wake up 21:22 and change your life around, so I got out of jail, 21:25 and I was determined not to go... 21:28 How long were you in... just overnight, right? 21:30 I spent the night and I slept on steel 21:32 because when I came back from the Pre-trial, 21:34 there was no mattress pad or anything, 21:36 just straight metal, I got out the next day, 21:40 anybody who knows me knows I love food, 21:43 so, I do not like to be in a place 21:45 where I can't go in my refrigerator 21:48 or go get what I want to eat so I got out 21:51 and when I got out, my family didn't abandon me 21:55 my family rallied behind me and supported me through it all 21:59 and helped me get the help that I needed. 22:02 I still didn't give my life to Christ, 22:06 I went a couple more years, 22:09 I'm not convicted of anything that's a blessing, 22:11 I'm not convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor, 22:14 I went on through life and then 22:17 I ended up managing a restaurant which was a huge blessing 22:22 because I needed to gain that experience 22:26 I needed to experience success so to speak 22:30 I had 60 to 70 people under me at the time 22:34 and so I became a Restaurant Manager 22:36 I was working crazy hours, 70 hours a week, 22:39 but I was making good money, 22:41 but there was still that emptiness 22:43 I was still empty and going back to my upbringing, 22:46 from when I was a kid, 22:48 I've always heard, "Money isn't everything" 22:50 I would not have believed that until I started making the money 22:54 and then realizing that I'm still not happy 22:57 that money isn't everything and I knew 23:00 that the only person that could fill that void was Jesus 23:03 and so when I accepted the Lord as my Savior, 23:06 How did you know that, how did you know that? 23:08 because I had the money, I had the good-looking girl 23:13 I had a house, I had... I had things, 23:17 but things don't bring that happiness 23:20 it does for a short period of time, 23:23 "I'm okay, I got this" but there's still... 23:27 you lack that inner peace and so I knew that 23:30 that void that needed to be filled, 23:33 money wasn't going to fill it, women weren't going to fill it, 23:35 drugs and alcohol weren't going to fill it, 23:37 and even before that, I had been doing Club Promotions 23:43 I was known within a circle where I could go in 23:49 and I'd be in VIP, I'd get in for free, 23:52 I had all the benefits of the wrong places, 23:56 I'd drink for free, whatever, 23:58 all the benefits of the wrong places 24:01 and so, after coming to the realization that, 24:04 "Okay, my way has been wrong all this time 24:07 and it's not bringing me happiness... " 24:10 I accepted the Lord as my personal Savior, 24:13 and I came to 3ABN and it was the Day of Prayer 24:17 and on that Day of Prayer, I remember Danny Shelton saying 24:21 that if you leave this place 24:25 and you can't get it off of your mind, 24:28 and this is where God would have you to be. 24:32 So, I went back home, I was still working, 24:35 managing the restaurant, working 60 to 70 hours a week, 24:38 and I kept thinking, 3ABN... 3ABN... 24:40 Dare to Dream... Dare to Dream... 24:42 and I was like, 24:45 "This is where God would have me to be" 24:47 you're here, Grandy's here, my Grandpa, 24:50 and I was like, 24:53 this is where God would have me to be 24:56 because I can't get it out of my mind. 24:59 Hmmm... hmmm... It's so amazing, Jay, how 25:02 we talk about God's divine purpose, 25:05 and how everyone has a purpose, 25:08 for me... I was trying to get an Assistant 25:11 and could not get an Assistant, I'd get different resumes, 25:15 but I would instantly... after talking to people 25:19 I'd know, they really just wanted to be on television, 25:22 I was looking for an Assistant, and so... 25:25 and God never let me get one until you... 25:29 and you had worked for me in Dallas 25:31 when I had a Medical Practice and I knew your work ethic, 25:34 I knew how you were with people, 25:36 and so, I wanted you here with me 25:39 and look at what God did, He brought you... 25:41 how do you like your job as the Assistant 25:44 to the General Manager? 25:46 I love it and I'm fine with not being on TV 25:48 I'm fine with being behind the desk 25:51 doing whatever... traveling, all that, I love this job 25:54 and I feel like I'm walking in my divine purpose 25:57 this is where God would have me to be. 25:59 That is so... so awesome, 26:02 what would you say to that young man 26:04 who thinks that women and drugs and alcohol and money 26:09 are the answer, look into your camera 26:11 and tell that young man right now 26:14 what he needs to do. 26:16 First of all, the money and the drugs, 26:20 the alcohol, the women, 26:21 none of that is going to bring you happiness, 26:24 you might have happiness for a short period of time 26:27 but it's not going to last 26:29 and then you're going to be searching for something else. 26:31 You might not be as blessed as I was 26:35 to have escaped that bullet that night, 26:39 to have escaped somebody... 26:41 and I didn't even go into the "somebody popping their trunk" 26:45 while we were sitting at a light which means 26:47 they're going to get a gun, you might not dodge that, 26:51 you might get that life sentence, 26:53 you might get robbed, you might get killed, 26:56 change your life today, 26:58 if you're watching this Program, 27:00 please, make a decision to accept Jesus Christ 27:03 because He is the answer 27:04 and He will bring you true happiness 27:06 and He will bring you that inner peace that you need, 27:08 you have nothing to lose but everything to gain 27:11 so, do it today. 27:13 Amen. Thank you Jay, 27:15 you know I'm so proud of the man that you are, 27:19 that God has brought you such a mighty long way 27:24 and I'm just so thankful for that. 27:25 Look at what God did, I needed an Assistant 27:28 my son was away from the Lord, 27:31 and He did both things 27:33 in one move, 27:34 you know, brought you back to Him, 27:36 and brought you here to help me 27:38 and now I feel like Dare to Dream is really 27:41 in such a better place because 27:43 the Lord has brought you here so, thank you, 27:46 and thank you for being so transparent. 27:48 Thank you. I love you so much, 27:49 I'm so proud of you. 27:50 I love you too. 27:52 And parents, know that God has a plan for your children 27:55 don't be discouraged, you hang in there 27:57 and God's going to bring them through. 27:59 That's the end of our Program, 28:01 join us next time, because you know what? 28:02 It just wouldn't be the same without you. |
Revised 2015-11-18