Something God has been opening my eyes to more and more throughout this trip is the body of Christ. I’ve met many wonderful people with powerful stories and I cherish thretime I‘ve had to get to know them.
Now, I want to share some of their stories with you. I hope to post one of these about someone I meet from each country. The goal is to bring you stories of other brothers and sisters in Christ from around the world; to broaden your horizons; to open your eyes to people you might not normally think about; to inspire you to get out and listen to others; to remind you of the struggles of our fellow believers worldwide; and lastly, to remind you of the importance of lifting up the WHOLE body of Christ in prayer.
This is the story of my friend Alejandro from Colombia.
He was an only child growing up. His parents divorced when he was 2 years old. A few years later his mother remarried. This wasn’t a good thing though, as his stepdad began to physically abuse him. “My stepdad didn’t like me thinking that I had a safe place to stay,” Alejandro told me.
Going into his teen years he lived with his grandfather and uncle. These years he developed a rebel mentality. Around the age of 12 he developed a love for playing guitar and listening to rock and roll. At 15 he began to use glue as his first drug. “I loved getting high off sniffing the glue,” he told me. In his later teen years he began to drink alcohol and would use that to drown out his pain.
During these years he was pressing in to freedoms of the flesh to fill the holes he felt in his life. He had harbored a deep hatred for his mother and stepfather. There was a big hole in his life from lacking a father figure, and that hatred for absence was also put on God. “God was far away, just like both of my fathers. Why would I believe in him? For this reason I began to read the Black Bible… It told me more of what I wanted to hear. It allowed me to try to fill the holes of my life.”
Going into his 20s Alejandro moved away from his home to Medellin. This was a city where it was easy to find drugs. Here he also became involved with black magic. His job paid him well, which fed into his desires of the flesh. He never lacked money to fulfill his desires: music, cocaine, alcohol, and women.
Though he used many things to cover up his pain, Alejandro told me none of these things ever made him feel full. “I never truly felt full in this life. I only felt worse and worse and worse… Then I lost my job and had to live on the streets,” he said, “I had to eat out of the garbage and I thought my life was over.
During these years his life was littered with self cutting, thoughts of suicide, and attempts at suicide. Eventually he’d had enough sleeping on the streets and decided to sleep in the homeless shelter at Ciudad Refugio. “I hated having to sleep in a Christian place, but I needed to get off the streets.”
One rainy day, while in a drunken stupor he prayed to God, “God do you still remember me? Please, show me something.”
7 days later he saw his mother and uncle in the shelter. He was shocked, how could they be in Medellin? It had been years since they’d seen him, and now they were in the same place. They told Alejandro that his life needed restoration, that he needed God. His first response was “No, I don’t need a God.” But two days later he told his mother, “Yes, maybe I do need God.”
His mother told him that she would support him in the rehabilitation program and any dreams he had after that. Alejandro started the program and 4 months in God began to teach him something. “God showed me that my problem wasn’t drugs or alcohol or a missing father,” he told me, “the problem was in my heart.”
This began the process of change in his heart. He read the real Bible for the first time and fell in love with it. He found out how God, not Satan, is true freedom. I remember the joy in his voice as he said “The Black Bible and Satan are lies. The desires of the flesh are lies. God is truth, love, hope, and freedom. I learned to forgive all of the people I hated in my life, and now I believe God has purpose for my life.”
Alejandro never thought he’d go to God. Never thought he’d forgive. Never thought he’d have freedom. Never thought he’d have hope or feel true love. But God has redeemed him. Now God gives him the tools to work and now he wants to share the love he has found in his heart. Currently he is studying the Bible more (getting into hermeneutics) and learning more English. He has a dream to go study in Canada, and he finishes the rehab program on November 26th!
Alejandro’s story is a powerful story of God’s restoration, redemption, and victory through Christ’s blood. Even when Alejandro could not see it, God was at work. Perhaps You need redemption and forgiveness in your own life. Or maybe you feel a lack of hope and love. What are you filling those holes with? How are you covering up the pain? How is your heart?
I hope his story has moved you in some way. I know I was moved by how he found forgiveness for the people he never thought he would forgive, and how that brought freedom. Please take the time to pray for Alejandro! Both for his studies and the dreams he has! He finishes his program on November 26th, so also pray for the things he has learned to continue in his life!
