Stories of Transformation: From Death to Life

   
To read other stories of transformation, read The Difference a Dad Makes and Jesus, My Firm Foundation.

    If you know my friend Denis now, you would never be able to guess what his past has held. He has one of the best hearts and most consistent walks of anyone I know. He is kind, compassionate, and longs to care for and protect others. That is the Denis that I know and is the one who is becoming one of my closest friends.
   However, these things have not always been true about him. Denis is coming out of a life of gang activity, drugs, and violence. Denis spent years as part of a local gang. He was addicted to and sold drugs. He was a totally different person than the person I know now.
   Last August, the Lord opened the door for our church to begin ministering to gang members in Nuevo Amanecer and Marvin (read Riots, Gangs, the Church, & Redemption). Through this ministry, the Lord called Denis to Himself. Denis began to hear the Word of God and be drawn to His love. The pastors came alongside of him to disciple him. Denis made the decision to leave his gang life and to follow the Lord. I have had the privilege to watch as he has grown in the Lord, become involved in the church, asked the pastors to really pour into his life and disciple him, and was baptized in March during our church’s 9 year anniversary celebration. I just love to see what the Lord is doing in his heart. It’s been such a beautiful thing! 
   His hunger for the Lord just continues to grow. Denis has a longing to one day become a pastor reaching his own community for Christ. As he is learning and growing in his faith, he is also catching a vision to begin reaching out to other young men. There are a few young guys in the youth group who are really longing to be discipled. Denis has started reaching out to them to give them wise counsel and pray with them about things happening in their lives. I am excited to see what will happen as this ministry grows.
   The Lord has done an amazing transformation is Denis’s life to take him from a path that only leads to death and to firmly plant his feet in the path of life.

*Between the time I started this blog and now, his job (Denis works for a local construction company) has moved him to Managua for about a month to help with a project that they are doing there. Please pray for Denis during this time. Pray a covering of the Lord’s protection over him while he is separated from his church family. Pray that he will continue to grow in the Lord and in His Word. Pray for a deeper intimacy with the Lord as Denis is in a place of being filled only by the Lord rather than being filled by the pastors and the church. Pray for safety in his work and a quick end to this project so that he can return quickly to Candelaria. I believe that the Lord will use this time to strengthen Denis and further prepare him for the plans that God has for his life.