Do you have a few minutes? I feel horrible and really need to talk.
That is how we were greeted a few weeks ago by a young man named Raul while getting ready for our Wednesday Bible Study at La Roca. With tears in his eyes he began pour out his heart and his desire to change his lifestyle. We chatted for a while and he asked me to pray for him, which I did. I then invited him to pray, which he did. He thanked us, said he felt much better, and went off to skate.
Raul lives in the rougher part of Quito and is an exceptional skater, probably one of the 10 best in Ecuador. He also parties pretty hard and isn’t particularly respectful of women. We had chatted a bit about God before, but nothing about the way he was living showed any indication that he was interested in changing. I was curious if this time would be any different.
A couple of days later I saw a long Facebook post from Raul mentioning things like feeling blessed, full of love and thankful for what God has given me, thank you God for taking away my envy, bad thoughts, bad habits, and more, I am a new creature, I’m crazy about Jesus Christ. He filled my void and is my best friend, do not be surprised if I act different, I apologize to all those who I’ve hurt, I’m really sorry, my eyes had been blinded, and with my hand on my heart, I apologize for everything, but now give the glory where it’s due. To the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The post thrilled and surprised me, but I honestly wondered if he was drunk or high when he wrote it. We had talked about getting together again, so I sent him a note and we met up a few days later at a local skatepark. During our time there, he was asking lots of questions and witnessing to the friends that he normally parties with. He was being extremely honest with them and they were not quite sure how to respond.
On the way home I asked him what had happened; why the sudden and drastic change? He responded;
The Lord really convicted me. I realized that I was wasting my life and the talent that He has given me. I’m 24 and have been smoking weed for over 10 years. I see young kids at the skatepark, who look up to me, doing the same thing, trying to be like me. I don’t want to be a bad influence any more. Now I’m talking to them, telling them about God, and trying to be a better example.
As we drove along, we talked about a Christian book he was reading, the fact that he used to only listen to gangsta rap and now he is into worship music, and how he is all in and ready to die for Christ. He said that he used to be disrespectful at home, but now tries to help out as much as he can. His dad has been a smoker for a long time and is trying to give up tobacco. Raul now reads the Bible with him and they pray together.
The transformation in Raul’s life is one of the most drastic we have seen at La Roca. We pray, share, and try to influence, but often don’t see much change. That being the case, it is easy to get discouraged and start thinking that our small contributions aren’t making much of a difference. But sometimes God lets you see and hear what He is doing and it is a huge shot in the arm.
I smile when I think of what God could do with a talented, well-known skater like Raul who is open and willing to share his faith. That being the case, I know the devil is going to be working hard to trip him up and make sure that doesn’t happen. Please join me in praising God for changing Raul’s heart and praying that his faith and witness will remain strong.
If you’d like to see a bit of Raul’s skating, here’s a link to a video put together by one of his sponsors;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZykTQ7caAo
PS. sorry if you read this twice. This story was first featured in the La Roca newsletter, by Brock 🙂