June 16, 2024 • 60 mins
What does it take to transform a life marred by poor decisions and a lack of direction into one filled with purpose, faith, and family? Join us as we welcome David, who takes us on his compelling journey from Mexico City to California and finally Utah. From a life caught up in partying and reckless behavior to one centered on Jesus Christ and His gospel, David's story is a testament to the how even the “vilest of sinners” can be spiritually reborn through Christ’s Atonement. Through David's experiences, we see the importance of having a supportive partner in faith, the blessings that come from adhering to spiritual principles, and the daily choices that shape a righteous life.
Please reach out to me if you are interested in sharing your story! I would LOVE to hear from you. :)
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
Hello everyone and welcome to.
More Than Coincidence,remembering Jesus Christ in your
Story as the author andfinisher of our faith, our
Savior writes personalexperiences into each of our
lives which can later strengthen, empower and bring us peace
upon reflection.
This podcast is dedicated tosharing these anchoring memories
(00:26):
from everyone's unique storiesin order to collectively
remember and testify of thereality of Jesus Christ and his
presence in our lives.
I'm your host, lily, and I'mvery excited to share these
experiences together.
All right, so good eveningeverybody.
Tonight on the podcast we haveDavid, how you doing?
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Good, how about you?
Speaker 1 (00:46):
Fantastic.
We just caught up a little bit,got to know each other and now
I'm really excited to share yourstory.
Would you mind introducingyourself to everybody?
Speaker 2 (00:54):
Yeah, so my name is David.
I was born in Mexico City, butthen I moved to California when
I was 10 years old, and then Imoved to Utah when I was 21 or
20, actually, so I've been heresince 2003.
So I guess I'm more Utah than.
(01:16):
California now so married, beenmarried for 16 years, going on
17.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
Congratulations.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Thank you.
We have a daughter who isturning 12 next week actually,
so almost teenager.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
How you feeling about ?
Speaker 2 (01:32):
that it's a little nerve-wracking because she's
starting to.
You know, like she, she wantsall that, but she's always been
very independent.
To begin with, yeah, um, butnow even more so.
Like she wants to hang out withfriends and she wants to go
ride her bike all over the placeand she wants to go by herself
everywhere right so, yeah,that's, that's, it's an
(01:52):
interesting switch, um, and yeah, it's, it's just great.
Uh, we live.
We live here in utah and I workfor, for a great company named
Visa.
And yeah, I love shoes.
That's kind of my oh really.
Yeah, I'm addicted to buyingsneakers, like I.
(02:12):
Just I have so many tennisshoes.
Speaker 1 (02:16):
Do you wear them all or do you just?
Speaker 2 (02:18):
display them no.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
How does it go with sneakers?
Speaker 2 (02:22):
Oh no, I wear them.
I don't spend money not to wearthem.
I don't.
I don't spend money to not towear them.
Um, I may not wear them all thetime, but I so.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
What's your favorite pair that you have or your
favorite brand?
Do you have one?
Speaker 2 (02:36):
Uh, so I'm, I'm a sucker for Jordans, so like the
old school Jordans, jordansthey're called retros and uh,
just Yeezys.
You know, like kind of like thehard to find shoe, like that's
the kind of shoe that I leantowards um I it's weird.
I my shoes are veryostentatious, they're very
bright right yeah, and sosometimes I wear shoes that are
(02:57):
super colorful and people arelike what are you wearing?
Speaker 1 (03:03):
so is that what usually?
Is that what usually attractsyou?
You're like a moth to flame.
You're like, oh, those colorsit depends.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
It depends on the, on the style of the shoe, like if
it's a shoe that I like, likethe silhouette is what they call
it.
Um, yeah, I like to go for thecrazy colors, um, but but yeah,
uh, shoes are my, that, that'smy vice, and I love music.
Yeah, I'm 41 years old, whichis crazy because I still feel
(03:32):
like a 20-year-old.
Speaker 1 (03:34):
Right, you're young mentally, which is great.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
Yes, yes, so yeah, life is just crazy because you
know, one minute you'reliterally you're young and the
next minute you're 41 years oldand you're throwing your back
out mowing your lawn, whichactually happened.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
so your age is caught up to you.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
Yes, no, it's no joke .
Like once you turn 40.
Well, I say that, once you turn, like once you get into your
30s, things start to hurt.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
That's my husband.
He's like 32 and he's like oh,why do I?
Ache so much.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
And then, once you turn 40, that's when things
start really going downhill.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
You're actually over the hill.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
They say it's 50, but it's actually 40.
And I work out almost daily.
I take one day off a week andstill, like you know, my body is
constantly sore.
So yeah, it's the age man ageis a thing, man.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
Thank heavens for the resurrection.
We'll be like right boom youdon't have to worry about that
anymore perfect body, six bags,you know that's awesome.
Well, I'm so grateful for youcoming tonight and sharing your
story, so I'll ask you thequestion um, what memories do
you reflect on that prick yourheart in remembrance of our
(04:51):
savior jesus christ and anchoryou to him?
Speaker 2 (04:55):
okay, so it's kind of a long story, um, and we like
long stories, it's okay thanks.
um, I think'm so.
I don't want to say like it'sjust, it's just one thing.
I think to me, like the, the,the topic or the theme of my
life so far has been theatonement.
(05:16):
Just because of how I've seenit affect my life and how the
gospel has affected my life, Iwent from one extreme end in
life and to another.
So so I mean, I think that'sthe center, that's at the center
of my story, is the atonement Ilike obviously I'm not going to
(05:39):
compare myself to Alma theYounger, but that is one story.
Alma the Younger and Ammon areyou know the two characters that
I relate to the moster, butthat is one story.
Alma the Younger and Ammon areyou know the two characters that
I relate to the most becauseyou know, in the Book of Mormon
it says that they were thevilest of sinners.
You know, and you know I feellike I was one of those people.
(06:02):
But you know, through theatonement of Christ and the
gospel and a lot of key figuresin my life, great individuals I
was able to turn my life aroundand so much so that if you were,
you know, if maybe 19 year oldme could see 40 year old me or
41 year old me, he'd probablylaugh and point and say there's
(06:23):
no way that you're this person.
Speaker 1 (06:25):
That we're the same yeah.
Speaker 2 (06:26):
Yeah, no, I mean drastically different person,
individual.
So I guess let's start at thebeginning.
You know, I, like I said, I wasborn in Mexico City and we
lived in Mexico until I was 10years old, so 1993.
To give you a little betterbackground, my mom, she, was a
(06:50):
convert, but when she was little, Like when her dad became a
member of the church and theywere converted, obviously.
And so when my mom was youngshe married a man and she had
three kids.
She had my two brothers and mysister.
My dad knew my mom when theywere young because her brother
(07:17):
was my dad's best friend growingup.
Speaker 1 (07:19):
Well, there you go.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
They knew each other when they were young.
Yeah, well, there you go.
They knew each other when theywere young, yeah, yeah, and
there was, you know, there was,sparks were there, but they
never got together.
He ended up marrying someoneelse as well and he had my other
sister and my other brother andso they went different ways.
Right, my dad was a staunchCatholic, like you know, like
(07:43):
straight.
Yeah, you know ways.
Right, my dad was a staunchcatholic, like you know, like
straight, yeah, you know.
And uh, so at that time my mom,she had a really rough, uh,
marriage.
You know, her husband back thenused to beat her and my
brothers and very abusive.
My dad, on the other hand, healso had a rough marriage.
His wife was a little cuckooand, to get really dark here,
(08:07):
she committed suicide, yeah, andshe tried to actually kill my
brother and my sister with her.
So that, really, obviously, shedidn't succeed with that.
She did end up dying, but shedidn't.
My brother and sister didn't.
That put my dad in a reallydeep depression.
(08:28):
Um, so he started going to to adoctor and he took to the
bottle like he started drinking.
Um, he, him and my momeventually kind of connected
again because my mom ended upleaving the, her ex, her other
husband, right and uh.
So they connected and theyeventually got married and so
they kind of became like theBrady bunch.
Speaker 1 (08:49):
All of these children and all of these children.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
So he had two and my mom had three and they got
together and, uh, her and my dadhad my sister and then me, I
was.
I was the last child.
Speaker 1 (09:02):
Um, and the baby of the family, the baby of the
family.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
And I was not planned is what they say.
But I never met my dad this way, like they tell me that he used
to drink a lot, like he used tobe an alcoholic.
Speaker 1 (09:17):
Right.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
My mom would have to drive him to work and it was
kind of a hectic life for themand he didn't want her to be to
go to church because she wantedto get back into the church
because she she was really notactive at all.
Yeah, so for the longest timeshe didn't go to church.
I was born.
My dad at that time was toldthat if he drank again he would
(09:41):
end up dying.
Like it was so bad, like hisdrinking was affecting his body,
so bad.
Right.
So, to cope with all the stressand all the the issues he had
left from his ex-wife commandand suicide, he took like he.
He took to running, like thatwas his, that was his outlet,
right.
So when I was born and you know, like my recollection, my dad
(10:03):
never drank.
I never met that man.
He was just always active, veryhealthy person.
Eventually my mom startedgetting back into the church.
Her parents, very straight andnarrow people.
They served the mission in theMexico City Temple.
(10:24):
All this was happening in theearly 90s, late 80s, early 90s.
My dad eventually got baptized,but I don't think he did it for
the right reasons.
I do remember a little bit oftime in my life when I was
younger where he would go tochurch with us.
I remember him paying tithing.
(10:45):
I recall him paying sometithing, which was cool, but I
never really had that in my life.
Like none of my siblings wereactive, I never had a priesthood
holder in my home.
Like I never had a blessing.
I never, you know.
We never said prayers.
We never, you know, we neverdid that.
And so when my mom tried tolike take us to church, I
(11:06):
remember being little, probablylike around five or six, and me
not wanting to go to church.
I just, I just never, you know,some kids grow up and they
automatically cling to thegospel, or you know God and
they're you know all that Inever did, I remember.
Speaker 1 (11:24):
Well, and it's exposure too.
So if you're not like asexposed to it, you're just like,
why would I go and hang out?
With random strangers and singthese songs that I have no idea
what's happening Exactly?
Snowman popcorn.
I don't understand what'shappening.
Speaker 2 (11:39):
And so, and when you have a parent who doesn't you
know, doesn't believe that ordoesn't like to be part of that
right, and you have another onewho's like trying to fight it,
but you know, it's kind of likeit's a it's a losing battle, you
know yeah, and it's acontentious topic.
Speaker 1 (11:53):
So you're kind of like is this a good thing or is
this a bad thing?
Like as a small child, youdon't understand exactly so to
keep the peace at home.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
my mom just kind of, she just left it alone, um, so,
you know, like I said, wasn'treally active.
Um, eventually, my brother, myone of my older brothers, moved
to california, um, and then, inall my, some of my siblings
followed, um, and then, in 92,we, we wanted to visit
(12:21):
california, like we went, wewent there for the summer, my,
my, my sister, who's five yearsolder than me, my mom and my
other sister who's, I want tosay, like 10 years older than me
, and, uh, we went to Californiaand my brother was trying to
convince my mom to stay.
He was, like, you know, there'sno future in Mexico for you and
the kids, like you guys, willbe better off here, right?
(12:46):
Uh, my dad and I'm not, not,I'm not saying that my dad was a
horrible individual, he was not, he was a great dad uh, he
loved us.
He made a lot of mistakes inlife and at the time my dad had,
you know, an affair and youknow, like, my mom and him
weren't really together, um, sothere really wasn't anything for
my mom to have here and or tohave in mexico, to leave in
(13:06):
mexico.
So we ended up, um, we ended upgoing back to mexico to to get
all of our stuff together andand then in 93 I remember it was
october of 93 we moved tocalifornia right like I said, I
was 10 years old.
You know they totally justuprooted me, uh, from everything
I knew and you know they tookus to to California.
(13:27):
It was Southern California, atown called Lancaster and it was
.
It was just such a cultureshock, you know, like here you
have this little 10 year old kidand and Yep, did you speak any
English?
No, no, we didn't, and but itwas cool though, because it was,
it was.
It was a cool.
It was a great change for mebecause, living in Mexico, I had
(13:50):
you know, I had no friends, itwas.
We lived in a really like busyarea, um, so I I really wasn't
allowed to go out because of howmuch traffic there is in Mexico
City.
Traffic is insane is it?
oh yeah, oh yeah.
And so I went from not goingout as much and being glued to a
tv into video games right tocoming to California and and
(14:13):
really just like the perfectweather, yeah, disney, yes,
beach really close and so, um,yeah, you know, it was crazy for
me to like, oh, I have friendslike oh, I can go to the park, I
can ride my bike.
You know it was crazy for me tolike oh, I have friends like oh,
I can go to the park, I canride my bike.
You know like.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
I didn't know how to throw a ball.
Speaker 2 (14:29):
You know, like I never did any of those things.
So when we moved to California,like you know, I met friends
and you know I started doing thethings that normal kids do.
Speaker 1 (14:38):
That's a big deal.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
Yeah, it was huge and my mom loved it.
You know, she saw the bigchange in me and my brother, my
brother, he, he's my olderbrother.
He's kind of he's been myfather figure for most of my
life Because my dad stayed inMexico.
He loved us but he just he justcouldn't leave his life in
Mexico and so when we moved toCalifornia again, we still
(15:05):
weren't really active.
Um, my mom tried here there alittle bit, but you know,
nothing really stuck Um, and youknow, life just kind of went on
.
Um, I got older, I learnedEnglish in three months I
actually got a diploma for it.
Oh my gosh, that's incredible.
Speaker 1 (15:20):
Yeah, well, when you're little, you know things
just.
You know you're, you justabsorb it.
Speaker 2 (15:22):
Yeah, you observe it.
Oh my gosh, that's incredible.
Yeah, well, when you're little,you know things, just you know,
you just absorb it.
Yeah, you observe it, youlisten to, you know, you watch
TV, you listen to music inEnglish, and the only time I
spoke Spanish was at home.
So and then I had really goodteachers that you know wanted to
teach me English.
So so, yeah, um time time wenton and you know I, I got into
(15:47):
into high school and I just wasnot hanging out with the right
people.
Um, I was just making reallydumb decisions.
Um, I got into drinking, I gotinto smoking, um, you know, uh,
like I said, not having thegospel being a center of your
life, not having the gospelbeing a center of your life, uh,
(16:09):
I see it as a father now, andyou know, um just having a
priesthood holder at home.
You know somebody that can say,hey, you know this, this is
what you should be doing, and Idid have that with my brother
yeah but it wasn't gospelcentered, it was more of, like
you know, life, life experiencesyou know, yes and and uh, you
know life, life experiences.
You know, yes, and and, uh.
You know I, my brother, is likemy dad to me.
Uh, because of that, he taughtme a lot, but again, with him
(16:32):
not having the gospel in hislife either, like it was.
Speaker 1 (16:35):
Those things were not it was more like don't make the
mistakes.
I have then Like these are theprinciples.
Speaker 2 (16:42):
Yeah, you know, street smarts, you know, you
know like uh those type ofthings like hey, I want you to
be better like I, you know youhave a better way, you have a
better uh shot at having a goodlife if you don't do this or if
you don't do that or if youdon't hang out with these people
.
Speaker 1 (16:55):
But right, or even like the eternal perspective of
like.
Why would you want to do this?
Right like what things for thefuture could this bring you?
The short term gratification.
Right, exactly which is hard tothink of, you know, as a
teenager.
Speaker 2 (17:09):
Well, yeah, and again , you know like I you know I
never had those conversationsLike I see people now that have
kids.
You know I have.
I don't have a boy of my own,but you know my best friend has
kids.
you know boys and you know I seemy friends with their teenagers
and you know, being able tohave a conversation and say, hey
, you know what, like youshouldn't have sex until you get
(17:32):
married.
Or you know you shouldn't watchpornography, you shouldn't
drink, you shouldn't smoke, youknow, aside from you know, like
the things that the worldteaches you.
Obviously we know that drinkingand smoking is not good for you
.
But, right, um, having a gospelcentered perspective at home
and somebody to tell you thesethings, um, it's just different,
especially as a, as a young man.
(17:53):
Yeah, it's, I don't know it's.
I hate to sound dated, but it'sdifferent to hear from from my
mom.
Speaker 1 (18:00):
Um, you know, you just feel like, oh, you're just
nagging me like stop right well,but I feel like men have a
special connection yes because Isee that with my husband and
his and our son too, like theyjust connect on different ways
that I can't connect with him,and I've seen that with you know
, my dad and my brothers rightmen just connect differently,
(18:22):
women connect differently.
It's just what it is.
Speaker 2 (18:25):
Yes, you know it's like.
It's just like me trying toteach my daughter how to be a
woman Obviously I'll have goodperspective and to tell her
things.
But you know, my wife, you knowthat's, you know that's her
real mother.
Exactly, yeah, so yeah, just nothaving that really affected me.
So you know, I, like I said I Igot I don't want to say I got I
(18:46):
didn't get heavy into drugs.
Thankfully I don't have anaddictive personality, but I did
.
You know, like, um, I, I smokedweed and I, you know I smoked
and I I drank at parties, gotdrunk and, yeah, hung out with
really not the best people, um,good friends, but you know again
, people who didn't have kind ofa, you know, like a, like a
(19:09):
structure at home either, right,so we got into a lot of trouble
, we got into situations yeahand you know, there's so many
times where, where I could havebeen arrested, I could have been
killed.
I could have been, you know justreally put myself in stupid
situations, but for one reasonor another.
(19:32):
Obviously at the time you don'treally realize it until you're
older.
Nothing happened, nothing cameof it.
I remember one time we a coupleof friends and I we jumped a
fence and there was like a treeof peaches and right behind the
fence there was like this streetwhere you know, just cars would
come by, and I remember amotorcycle was driving by and
(19:54):
we're throwing peaches at peopleand that motorcycle happened to
have a little kid in the backand so we threw a peach at them
and the guy got hit in thehelmet and he almost fell with
the kid and you know like hestarted chasing us.
And one of my friends ended upgoing to jail for that and but
you know they never didn't catcheverybody, they only caught one
(20:14):
person.
So that guy didn't rat us outor anything like that.
But those are the kind ofsituations I mean you're like
wow, I was kind of.
Speaker 1 (20:22):
That's not a coincidence I.
You're like wow, that's not acoincidence I should have gone
to jail.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
And it didn't click in my head as to why those
things happened until I wasolder and I'll get to that.
So I mean, it's just the waythat life kind of comes full
circle at times.
It's, it is, it's a littlecrazy and you know, again,
living in a household where youknow, hey, you know you're
you're good to to watchpornography, you're good to do
(20:57):
that, you're good to have sex,you're good to do these things.
Just be safe, be, you know, likeright just just know that if
you mess up, like you knowyou're gonna be, you know, kind
of held accountable for youractions.
You know it was that kind ofmentality, um, and and that's
just that was just the norm inmy household.
Like I, you know, when I, whenI met my wife, I like I had a
(21:17):
mouth on me, like I cussed likea sailor and right, you know,
all these old habits that I justnever, never thought were were
bad, like I, just I just thatwas just the norm.
You know, like that was justall my friends were like that,
all my, you know, my siblingswere like that.
So, um, you know, fast forward,uh, 2000 to 2001,.
(21:38):
I graduated high school, um,around that time my dad started
getting sick, um, and he, he gotcancer.
Uh, yeah, in 2002 he passedaway and you know I was really
rough.
I couldn't go see him becausehe was in mexico, right, and at
the time I wasn't even legallyhere, I was actually um.
(21:58):
So I came from from mexico witha with a um, from Mexico, with
a, with a like a traveling visa,like a tourist visa, and then,
once, once that visa andpassport expired, we stayed here
and so I, I couldn't go toMexico to see my dad, so I never
got to see him.
I got to talk.
The last time I got to talk tohim, he was pretty delirious
(22:20):
yeah, unfortunately, you know,like I said, he, he was, but I
don't think that he ever really,you know, fully accepted the
gospel at the time, right, andyou know, a lot of things were
happening in my life where Ifelt like I needed to change.
But I to Utah and they came tovisit us and one of them said,
(22:52):
he, he was a return missionaryand it's always the rms.
Speaker 1 (22:55):
Yeah, it's always the rms he's.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
He was like hey, man, you should, you should really
think about moving to utah.
Man, like there's so many, somany more opportunities.
It's a lot easier for you to goout there.
It's a lot cheaper cost ofliving.
That's not the case anymore.
But yeah, I was gonna say anduh, you know I was like, yeah,
I'll think about it.
You know I wasn't doinganything with my life.
I was like I said high schoolgraduate, I was working at, like
(23:21):
, wendy's and McDonald's andSubway, you know, not that
there's anything wrong withdoing that, but, like you know,
there I had no path in my life.
I wanted to be a rapper.
I mean so that tells youanything.
That's who I hung out with, andthe funny thing is is that one
of the friends that I used tohang out with he later on I
(23:42):
found out when I, when I livedhere in Utah.
Later on he ended up going toprison because he was involved
in the murder of his mother inlaw for money.
Speaker 1 (23:57):
So and they were investigated and there were
pictures of us, like I was insome of the pictures.
Yes, thankfully you didn't havea connection.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
That's what I'm saying like so many things that
happened in my life where Icould have really been in really
bad in a bad situation just I Iwas able to to kind of get away
from those things right, so Ijust had this.
Speaker 1 (24:12):
I don't mind if you don't mind me asking oh yeah, I
just yeah, I just had thisthought so what inside you was
really like something doesn'tfeel right, but I don't know
what it is.
But I want to change, but Idon't know how to like.
Can you yeah, can you dive intothat a little bit?
Speaker 2 (24:27):
so I I I mean at the time, I don't, I don't, I didn't
credit the spirit because Ididn't believe in it, you know
like I believed in God, but Ididn't really have the idea or
the notion of like, oh yeah, theHoly Ghost is with me.
Speaker 1 (24:41):
Yeah, right.
Speaker 2 (24:42):
So it was a combination of things it was.
It was me being frustrated withlife and just working dead end
jobs, not really gettinganywhere and constantly getting
fired from from jobs because Ididn't have papers, I couldn't
work legally in the UnitedStates, so it was just.
It was all of that mixed withmy desire to be something and
(25:04):
someone in life, and I think alot of that has to do with me
being an immigrant.
You know the the the immigrantmindset is is you know you leave
your country of origin to cometo this country to make it?
Speaker 1 (25:18):
Right, and especially if you're in America, it's like
the American dream, exactlythis is where you make it.
Speaker 2 (25:25):
And you know, my family, my mom, my brothers,
having sacrificed so much tokind of put us in a situation
where we can be better, be more.
Yeah, it was that drive, thatkind of like, helped me a little
bit, but again it was still the, the.
I don't want to leave myfriends ever.
You know people that I've knownfor 10 years.
And uh, again my brother came,comes into the picture he's,
(25:49):
he's always kind of been the onesteering me away from from the
bad situations and putting me ina, in a, in a good path.
And he told me, he said, hey,you know, you really should
think about going to Utah, likeI think it'd be a good change
for you.
And at the time, you know, Iwas so young and naive and and
and just so, guided by him, andI was just like, oh, you think
(26:11):
so, okay, let's do it.
You know he would tell me, likejumping, I would say how high
you know, so yeah when he saidit it was kind of like the okay
for me to do it cool.
So uh in, in 2000, uh 2003 I, Ileft California and I moved here
to Utah when.
I moved in with my aunt, um, and, and her, her sons, and you
(26:38):
know, I'll be honest, thingsdidn't change.
I was still party mode, I wasstill, you know, like this
hooligan who thought he wasgoing to make a big and rap, and
I was still going to clubs.
I was still getting high andgetting drunk and girls and all
that stuff and um work, you knowsame thing, dead end jobs.
(27:02):
I kept getting laid off, youknow, fired, because my, my
papers didn't match, et cetera.
It's just a typical situation.
Yep, I was just far away from myfamily and everyone I knew, and
I didn't have the beach near meand the weather sucked and the
snow was pretty awful, isn't it?
Well, it's cool when you, whenyou move from California, you
know your winters are, like youknow, 60 degrees perfect and
(27:25):
yeah, and you get like rain, youknow, and then you move to Utah
and it's like snowing it likethe first time.
It's like, oh my gosh, it's,it's magic yeah then, but then
it doesn't stop yeah, and it'scold and it's depressing.
Yes, yeah, the snow is not myfavorite no, it scared you to
drive in, and anyway, so I was.
I was to the point where I toldmy aunt.
(27:47):
I said you know what?
I'm gonna move back because youknow everything that I came for
is really not.
Nothing new is happening andI'm away from my family.
I don't have any of my friends.
So my aunt looked at me andsaid OK, tell you what, just
give it three more months, andif three and in three months
things don't change, I'll driveyou down there.
(28:09):
I'll drive you myself.
So I said, ok, so three moremonths, let's stick it out
myself.
So I said, okay, so three moremonths, let's stick it out.
In those three months I got ajob at a call center, which is
dialogue marketing, and I met aguy at this job.
I just turned 21.
(28:29):
We just came back from Vegasbecause you know 21,.
Speaker 1 (28:32):
You have to go to the .
You have to, you can legallydrink and all these things.
Speaker 2 (28:33):
So I come back from Vegas because you know, 21, you
have to go to, you have to right, you have to uh, you can
legally drink and all thesethings.
So, um, I come back from Vegasand I'm thinking like this job's
not gonna last, they're gonnafire me because of my papers and
all that.
Um, seven years later, I'mstill there anyway.
So, uh, yeah, I, I right at thebeginning.
I want to say, maybe like threeor four months into me turning
(28:55):
21, I'm sitting around at thecall center and there's a guy
sitting down, another RM, andthere's a discussion going on
with the people around him andthey're talking about the church
.
Now, I had this preconceivednotion of the church.
Now I had this preconceivednotion of the church.
(29:17):
Growing up, I didn't have thebest view of members of the
church.
I felt like people werehypocrites.
I just didn't have a goodvision of the members of the
church.
So I didn't want anything to dowith the church and I don't
remember exactly what was beingtalked about, what the topic was
(29:37):
.
But I remember seeing my, uh,this guy his name is jordan and
he was just sitting therelistening to what everybody was
saying and they were, they weredoing a lot of church bashing,
um, and he was just quiet.
And then somebody saidsomething specifically to where
he he chimed in.
He said, okay, like I'm I'm notagainst people talking bad
(29:58):
about the church, like everybodyhas their own opinion, but if
you're gonna do it, you gotta doit right, like.
And so he started talking aboutwhatever.
Again, I don't remember exactlywhat the topic was, yeah, but I
I didn't say anything, like Iwas just sitting there listening
and I remember him saying thesethings and and obviously now I
know that it was the spiritSomething just in me, just kind
(30:20):
of like my mind just kind oflike cleared up and I was just
like, wait a minute, like that'snot true, like, yeah, like I've
known about the church my wholelife, right, but I've never
heard someone explain aspects ofthe church in such a way that
it just kind of clicked in myhead.
Speaker 1 (30:38):
So he was defending the church.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
He was defending the church.
And again, 21 years, I'vealways had this notion of the
church.
You know, it's just anotherreligion that wants to control
people and tighten that Right.
And then here's this, you know,return missionary, 20 years old
, and he's, you know, talking,and just he's just speaking
truth.
And I'm just like, oh my gosh,hey, everything that you just
(31:03):
said, like is that true?
Like are you like making thingsup to make things better?
And he was just like he's.
Like I mean, it's all in thebook of Mormon and I was like I,
(31:27):
I've been a member my wholelife, Um, I was baptized by my
dad who, again, I don't believehe had an actual testimony of
the church when I was like 11 or12.
And I'm like I've never heardthe gospel explained that way
and it's never really resonateduntil just now.
And so I mean, obviously,having been a return missionary,
(31:50):
he was just like, oh you know,golden member, right here, let
me talk to you a little bitabout this.
And he starts talking to meabout it and he's just like look
, I don't want to overwhelm you,right?
He said tell you what, let meinvite you to church.
He was, he was going to BYU.
He was teaching Sunday schoolthat Sunday or the following
(32:13):
Sunday, I don't rememberteaching Sunday school that
Sunday or the following Sunday,I don't remember, um.
But he said come, listen towhat I have to say and you know,
if anything, you can just, youknow, walk away knowing that you
gave it a try.
Speaker 1 (32:23):
Right.
Speaker 2 (32:23):
Right, I'm like all right, sounds good.
I mean, I honestly, in the backof my mind, I was like this
sounds cool, but nothing's goingto come from it.
I don't really want religion inmy life, right?
Um, at the time my cousinwanted, told me to move here.
He was just like, hey, you know, like you should, you should
try the church and give thechurch a try.
And again I was like I don'twant to, I don't want to.
(32:44):
But then, with this happening,and then just work, not really
working out for me the way Iwanted life, not working out for
me the way I wanted it to right.
He was like why don't you justgive the gospel a try?
You never know.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
Like what do you have to lose?
You have everything to gain.
Speaker 2 (33:02):
if this is true, and so in my mind I said, okay,
let's give the church a try tosee if my financial situation
changes.
So I did it for very selfishreasons.
I want to give that caveat.
Speaker 1 (33:17):
I don't, you know what, and honestly, I don't
think Jesus cares, I think he'sjust like we got him yeah.
Speaker 2 (33:22):
So so my, so my, uh, my intentions were not
altruistic at all.
Um, so I was like, okay, let'sgive it a try.
So I started going to churchwith him.
It's not really resonating withme.
Speaker 1 (33:35):
Right.
Speaker 2 (33:35):
And then I hear my buddy talk and I asked my cousin
.
I said hey, this guy invited meto church.
Can you come with me?
So him and his girlfriend atthe time, who's now his wife, we
went to BYU and I rememberwalking in and I'm thinking like
I mean, I don't know that he'sgoing to say anything that
hasn't already been said to me.
(33:56):
It's not going to change myview, right?
Speaker 1 (33:58):
Right.
Speaker 2 (33:59):
I remember sitting down and he's.
He's at the bottom.
You know he's about to start hisclass, his lesson, and he looks
up and he finds me in theaudience and he big old smile
and he proceeds to give hislesson.
And I felt the spirit.
I can't tell you what thelesson was about, but I remember
feeling the spirit and we, hefinished his lesson, you know,
(34:23):
classes over.
He came up to me give me thisbig old hug and he said, he
looked at me, he said I cannotbelieve he came.
That's so awesome.
And he said I have something totell you.
Well, I told him, you know,like that was awesome, like
thank you so much.
That was super cool.
And he said I have something totell you.
I I prepared two lessons.
I prepared one lesson in caseyou didn't come and I prepared a
lesson in case you came.
(34:50):
Wow, touched and so moved by bysomeone who would be willing to
to do something like that, yeah,um, and he gives me a book of
mormon and I still have thatbook of mormon and he, like you
know, he wrote a littleinscription in it and, uh, so
he's like here, I want you tohave this, you know, use it,
read it, so that kind of starts.
(35:10):
You know, the seeds startgetting planted.
Um, I start reading a littlebit, uh, and just things in my
mind start changing like, okay,well, I don't want to give up
this, I don't want to stop doingthis, but I'll, you know, I'll
try a little harder, right?
So I started going to churchI'm still drinking, I'm still
(35:30):
smoking, I'm still partying, I'mstill, you know, with girls and
all that.
But then, little by little, likethose things, just like I'm
like, okay, well, I'm still, youknow, with girls and all that.
But then, little by little,like those things, just like I'm
like, okay, well, I'll stopdrinking, I'll stop smoking.
And then the next thing, youknow, I'll stop partying.
And I remember vividly one time, um, if I don't know how, maybe
(35:51):
you can, if you feel like youneed to cut this out, you can,
but I this is really crucial toto my conversion story um, one
day we went my, my other cousinand I went to a party and we met
these girls and one of them wasreally drunk and we went back
to their place and you know, we,we had a one-night stand,
(36:13):
basically yeah, and I've donethat before and it wasn't.
You know, we, we had a one-nightstand, basically.
Yeah, and I've done that beforeand it wasn't.
You know, for me it was.
It was just kind of like ohyeah, I had fun, that was it
right.
I remember leaving and I wasoutside of her apartment.
I didn't know this girl.
I've never met her and to thisday I can't tell you name, I
can't tell you what she lookslike.
She was really drunk and thisfeeling just came over me and I
(36:40):
started to weep, like I juststarted crying.
It just I'd never felt thatbefore.
Um, I just felt so awful, likeI can't believe I just did that
to this girl, like I, you know Idon't know her and you know I
don't know like it was.
It was just that the spirit wasjust so strong and from that
(37:02):
moment I just said, okay, nomore.
So I credit that bad situationsomething that I'm really kind
of ashamed of.
Speaker 1 (37:14):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (37:15):
That helped me kind of get back in the track and
track, you know, like that.
That put me on the right path.
And after that I, I, I said, uh, you know, I'm done, I'm done
with this life.
I, I, I stopped smoking, Istopped drinking, I stopped
having sex, I stopped that partylife and I started going to
church.
(37:35):
And it was almost like the.
The change was, was so instant,like the, the.
I don't know if you've ever beenin that situation where, where
your life is a little dark andthen once you make the right
decision, or once you have thelord in your life, it's kind of
like everything just kind ofclears up, it brightens, it
(37:56):
brightens yeah and and like justthis, this overwhelming feeling
of like desire to read thescriptures, came over me and I
started reading the scripturesand, um, I wanted to serve a
mission.
And I was just like, wow, likethis is going way too fast, but
I, you know, I need to embraceit right.
And so I remember um talking tomy mom, and my mom, you know,
(38:22):
she started crying because shewas so happy that I was going to
church and that I was activeagain, or that I was, you know,
reactivating myself, and and um,and I told her I want to serve
a mission and she was just like,oh my gosh, you know she was so
excited.
And I told my brother I wantedto serve a mission and keep in
mind that at the time a lot ofmy family didn't understand the
(38:43):
gospel, didn't really care aboutit, and so he, instead of him
being supportive about it, hewas just very like, why, like
you don't need to serve amission?
You're old, you know you're tooold now.
And because you know, at thetime you think like you should
do it right out of high school.
You're 21.
You're going into 22.
Right, I didn't have my papers,you know, to leave the States
(39:06):
you know, he was like what ifthey tell you you have to go to
Mexico and then you can't comeback?
So he started throwing allthese things, yeah, and that
really played with me.
That stuck with me and so Ichose not to go on a mission
because at the time they weresending missionaries out of
their country of origin.
So like, if I live in theUnited States, I have to go back
(39:26):
to Mexico to serve my mission,and I didn't have that guarantee
to come back, right.
So because of that and you knowmy, I guess, lack of faith, as
you could say I didn't serve amission, which is something that
I regret.
But you know, my wife alwaystells me like you don't have to
(39:47):
serve a mission to serve amission, right.
Speaker 1 (39:51):
So I try to live.
I agree with her.
I think she's right too,because what you're doing right
now, it's wonderful, thank you.
Speaker 2 (40:04):
So you know, I try to just continue to live my life
as best I could.
Cool story Again got back intothe church and I was trying to
get my records straight with thechurch and they could not find
my baptismal records.
Oh, I'm 21 years old and theycannot find my records in.
(40:25):
Yeah and, and I was like my dadbaptized me when I was 12.
They couldn't find thoserecords.
My brother remembers being there, uh right we have a picture
here's the picture like thefunny thing is my mom doesn't
remember, my sisters don'tremember my dad baptizing me, so
they couldn't find my record.
Speaker 1 (40:41):
So I ended up getting baptized again at 21 wow, uh,
by my cousin that was probablyreally cool.
Speaker 2 (40:46):
Yes, it was.
It was super cool because again, I, again, we go back to the
whole.
You know alma and alma theyounger.
It's just like you go throughthat repentance process of like
oh you see the wrongs and theLord gives you an opportunity,
like, hey, you know, like youwere baptized at 12.
You didn't understand what wasgoing on.
Your dad probably wasn't evenworthy to baptize you.
(41:06):
But here's another opportunity.
So, at 21, I was baptized againand and I, I, you know, like
that to me that was the realtime that I got baptized and,
yeah, I, I got a calling.
As you know, I was a secondcounselor to the young men in
the war that I was attending.
Speaker 1 (41:24):
You're probably the fun young men's leader too.
I was, I was.
Speaker 2 (41:27):
Because, again, I'm still not polished, like I was
still pretty rough around theedges.
Obviously I stopped doing allthe bad things, but I still like
I still cussed likeuss like asailor, you know, and the cool
thing is is that it was a younglike our presidency was pretty
young, so like the, the, theyoung man's president.
(41:48):
He was in his in his late 20s.
I was in my early 20s, theother guy was in his early 20s,
so yeah, it was like a big.
Speaker 1 (41:55):
It was like all the bros getting together, man
exactly.
Speaker 2 (41:58):
And so you know, like I listened to music and I had a
jeep and I had, like, myspeakers in the back and like we
take the boys everywhere andlike I'm over here bumping tupac
and eminem and they're alljamming out, and yeah, you know
it was.
It was such a fun experience,but I also felt like, um, I, I
need to be an example, like Iright, you know like the
(42:18):
experiences that I've had, I canteach these kids a little bit.
So that was, that was a coolexperience.
Fast forward a little bit and I, I'm, you know, obviously I'm,
I'm, I'm celibate, I'm nothaving sex anymore.
You know like that, thatmindset of like I need to start
(42:39):
looking for my wife, I need tostart, you know, kind of
settling down, and so I, youknow, I begin to hunt and I meet
this girl and she was prettyyoung at the time.
She was also a member of thechurch, but she really wasn't,
you know, like active at all.
Speaker 1 (42:59):
Right.
Speaker 2 (42:59):
Her dad unfortunately unfortunately forced her to go
to church a lot, and so she hada very negative outlook on the
church.
Right and it was.
It was always a constantstruggle because I wanted to get
sealed in the temple and shedidn't want that yeah she would
tell me like, what if I can't doit?
What if I can't, you know, goto church?
(43:19):
Or what if I don't want to goto church?
You know how's that going toaffect us?
And yeah.
And I was just always like, oh,you know, we got to have faith
and we got to do things rightand um, it was easier for me to
say and to think these things,obviously not knowing the deep,
how deep her scars were, youknow.
And she was pretty young, likeI said, I was in my mid-20s, I
was probably like 23 and she was18 at the time, almost 19.
(43:51):
And I ended up proposing we gotengaged.
I was still hoping that shewould eventually come around.
We ended up messing up once andI remember going to my bishop
at the time and he was just likeokay, man, like either you get
married or you guys break up,because you can't, you can't
continue this, because the nexttime something worse is going to
happen, right?
Um, so here I am thinking I'm afailure because I let God down
(44:14):
and I'm not, you know, like allthe things that he's done for me
at the time and and here I amlike the moment, a moment of
weakness, and and mess it all uptotally normal, yeah.
I've had that moment too right,so where?
Speaker 1 (44:27):
you feel like you've walked so far, and then you're
like, oh, I just now I'm back atground zero.
Speaker 2 (44:31):
I just did all this work and the one mistake, and
now I'm back to zero yep, and,and I I was just admonishing
myself and I'm like I'm ahorrible human being and I
remember my mom telling me youknow what honey?
Like I know that you reallywant to get married, but I just
(44:52):
don't feel like this is rightfor you.
And she gave me an analogy thathas stuck with me and my wife
and I use it all the time now.
Speaker 1 (44:59):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (45:00):
She said right now you are looking at a shiny ring
that you really like and you'retrying to put that ring on, but
that ring does not fit andyou're trying to force it down
your finger and all you're goingto do is you're going to hurt
yourself in the process.
Speaker 1 (45:13):
Right.
Speaker 2 (45:15):
She said you need to find the right ring, you need to
fight the right fit.
And once you find the right fit, you'll know it.
This isn't that ring, so Wow,that's pretty deep.
Speaker 1 (45:27):
It's like really interesting.
Speaker 2 (45:34):
Yeah, and so that clicked with me, that resonated
pretty deeply with me, and so Ihad a conversation with my at my
at the time my fiance, and andyou know it was determined she
just that this was not the paththat she wanted, this was not
the life she wanted.
So we ended up breaking up,called thing, called and quits.
Um, I had other girlfriends,nobody really.
The ring wasn't right and, uh,I I'm still working in dialogue
(45:58):
marketing and I remember at thetime it was 2007, I went to go
get some breakfast at a placecalled Jason's Deli at the Orem
Mall and I walked in and I sawthis girl and she just caught my
(46:19):
eye.
Um, and I caught her eye shesaid.
She said that that I was like hewas really good looking, but he
was also ghetto.
Speaker 1 (46:29):
I don't know how to feel about that.
Speaker 2 (46:31):
No, it was good like it was.
Oh, it's good yeah, I have.
I mean, if you talk to Andreishe'll tell you.
But that's hilarious.
Yeah, I have a little bit of aghetto swagger to me, but anyway
.
So she starts being reallyflirty or like, just very
talkative and like I know youfrom somewhere, I know you from
and I just felt like either thisgirl really thinks I'm cute or
(46:53):
Right, she's crazy, she's justreally friendly yeah.
And so I got my food and I leftand so that I went back to work
and I had time, I had a friendat work with me and I said hey,
I need you to come with me toget some lunch to jason zelly,
because there's this girl there.
I don't know if she's justreally friendly or if she's into
me, so I need you to tell me.
Yeah, so we go back and samething.
(47:15):
She's just super funny and justvery talkative towards me and
then she keeps saying, like youguys, you just look so familiar,
have I met you?
And anyway, we walked away.
My friend said yeah, I thinkthat she's either very happy or
she might like you.
I don't know.
Speaker 1 (47:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (47:35):
So this was a Friday, obviously.
I was off saturday and sunday,and then um monday I go back to
jason's in the morning.
I don't even think they wereopen yet, but I was just so
eager to see her to see her.
Yeah, yeah and uh, and I walk inand there's a girl with her
(47:56):
back towards me and she's gother phone up, like she's talking
on the phone and taking anorder, but her hair was up and
it was curly.
The girl that I had met onFriday.
Her hair was down and it wasstraight, so I didn't, and she
had a different shirt on.
I didn't think it was her.
So I was like, oh well, youknow, I'll get something to eat.
She turns around and it's herand like big old smile, you know
(48:21):
.
And uh, and I'm like allexcited, I'm like all right,
cool.
So, um, she hangs up and and I'mlike, hey, I want to get some
breakfast.
And she's like, oh, how youdoing.
And yeah, and so I'm like, okay, this is the moment, like I
need to throw on that charm.
So I I tell her, um, I justwant you to know something.
I actually had a blueberrymuffin, because I used to have,
like I used to get the blueberrymuffins from Costco and that
(48:41):
would take one for breakfast.
I said I brought a blueberrymuffin with me for breakfast but
I gave it away.
But I can come here to see you.
Speaker 1 (48:50):
Smooth.
Speaker 2 (48:53):
As soon as I tell her that, like she turns bright red
, a big old smile and she's likeoh my gosh, I'm going to get
some breakfast and she, like,runs in the back and like that's
adorable and uh, and so I writemy number down for her because
she's at work and I didn't wanther to get in trouble.
So when she comes back, I handher my number and I said here's
(49:14):
my number, call me.
I don't usually do it this way,you know I would.
I would ask you for your number, but I don't want you to get in
trouble because you're at work,right?
I said, call me.
I don't usually do it this way,you know I would.
I would ask you for your number, but I don't want you to get in
trouble because you're a word,right?
I said, call me, and when youcall me, I'll ask you for your
number officially.
So, um, so, yeah, I gave her mynumber.
You know, long story short, we,we date, we start dating and we
fall in love.
And the funny thing is is that,um, before our first date, she
(49:41):
asked me if I was a member ofthe church and I said yes, but
to her recollection, sheremembers me saying that I
wasn't active, like that, I wasa member but I wasn't active.
She had her own issues and herown story, growing up and dating
somebody who wasn't a member ofthe church and just all that.
You know all that stuff thatshe went through and, uh, she
(50:04):
was having second thoughts aboutit.
Eventually we did go on a dateand it was.
It was just magical, like weclicked, you know she's from san
bernardino, california.
I'm from lancaster.
We both grew up same area.
You graduated at the same time.
Um, parents are similar stories.
Um, both of us kind of kind offell away from the church but,
(50:25):
you know, came back.
She served a mission.
I didn't serve a mission, right, um, and she helped me a lot,
she, she helped me because,again, still rough around the
edges, still trying to figurethings out, I was still doing
things that I shouldn't be.
I still, you know, because Ididn't know these things, I
didn't have that structure thatyou know, a priesthood holder in
(50:47):
my household to teach me thesethings, so I'm just kind of like
learning as I go.
Speaker 1 (50:50):
As you go right.
Speaker 2 (50:51):
Yeah, and so she helped me kind of become a
better individual.
She, she never told me likedon't do that.
She would just say like well,maybe you should pray about it,
and pray about it, and sureenough, like, oh okay, Like yeah
, I shouldn't be drinking a chailatte, Cause you know I used to
love coffee.
Speaker 1 (51:11):
Yeah, well, and that's cool, cause it looks like
you guys were just more alignedin general right.
Like even I, I think it's reallyimportant that it doesn't
matter, obviously, if you'reperfect or not.
It's two individuals are really, truly trying to want to
incorporate the gospel and headin the same direction, and I
think that you were able to findthat, and it's awesome when you
(51:32):
can say, you know, oh, you canstrengthen each other and you
can help each other with theirweaknesses, know, and I think
that that's great.
You found your ring, likethat's so cool.
Speaker 2 (51:42):
I found her, I found my ring and she fit me perfectly
, and did she?
Speaker 1 (51:46):
ever?
Did you guys ever figure outwhere she knew you from?
No, no, she or it was just likethis one thing that she was,
just like you're familiar, andno, I don't know, because this
day she truly believes that weprobably met in the
pre-existence.
Speaker 2 (51:57):
I don't know.
Speaker 1 (51:59):
That's adorable.
Yeah, I totally believe in that.
I totally believe in that.
Speaker 2 (52:04):
Yeah, she was totally smitten and I was smitten and
it was just great and yeah, Imean we've definitely grown
together.
Like I said, we started datingin 2007,.
Got married by 2008.
And you know, it's just beensuch a wonderful time in my life
(52:24):
and growth and you know, justspiritual growth and just
personal growth and just havingsomeone with you that can push
you to be better in the gospel.
It's just, you know, it's unrealto have such a strong partner
in the gospel and it makes sucha difference, you know, like
when you, when you're not havingto fight someone because your
(52:46):
beliefs are different, um, andand to be honest with you, like
all the things that I did andthis is kind of where I was
going back with back in the day,when I was doing all these
stupid things and we can't havekids the normal way, so our
daughter is adopted, and also I,you know I wasn't here legally,
(53:09):
so she knew that and I was ableto fix my papers with her.
And I remember the day, the daywe went to get my, my residency
or for my interview, the personwho interviewed me said, you
know, she looked at my recordsand she asked like, have you
ever been convicted of anything.
You know you're not divorced,you don't have any other kids or
(53:31):
anything like that, and shejust asked me all these
questions.
I was like no, no, no record,I've never been to jail.
None of that stuff, and shelooked at me and she looked at
us and she said I wisheverybody's cases were as clean
as yours.
And that was one thing.
And then being able to adoptour daughter is another reason
why I know that Heavenly Fatherwas with me in all those times
(53:55):
where I could have really beenin trouble.
Speaker 1 (53:59):
Yeah, with your home study.
Speaker 2 (54:03):
Yes, if I had any kind of record, if I had any
kind of marks in my past.
I don't know that we could haveadopted my daughter because we
went through LDS church I mean,we went through LDS services to
adopt my daughter and I don'tknow that I could have become a
resident or a citizen.
You know, I don't know that Icould have become a resident or
(54:23):
a citizen.
Um, so again, it's just, itjust kind of goes to show you
that, like god has a plan forfor everyone and you know you
may not see it at the time um,and my wife gives a great
analogy.
As you know, you have theprophet and he's like standing
up in a in a tower and he seeseverything right we're not able
to see everything, so we justkind of have to go by faith yeah
and you know it's just, it'sincredible to me that somebody
(54:47):
like me, somebody who's done thethings that I've done and has
said the things that I've saidand felt the way that I felt,
could, you know, come back andbe sealed in the temple and have
an eternal family and, you know, be a righteous priesthood
holder, somebody who I'm theonly active male in my family
(55:09):
and you know it's tough at timeslike it's difficult, but you
know I wouldn't have it anyother way.
I love, I love being there formy daughter and my wife and for
anybody that needs a blessing oranything like that, things that
I never had growing up, youknow.
Speaker 1 (55:27):
and again, just going from one of the viola sinners
to I'm not saying that I'm likethis, you know like glowing,
pretty positive alma the youngerwasn't perfect, even after his
conversion right my husband andI were actually having that
conversation of you know I I'msure there are people who really
can just flip on a dime likethat and be totally squeaky
(55:50):
clean, but I really I just kindof felt like you know, I bet
after his conversion in thereand his friend's conversion,
they probably really struggledstill yeah, and they probably.
It was really a daily thingwhere they had to say like I'm
choosing this.
I'm choosing this because, eveneven when we have our own
personal experiences, we stilldoubt them sometimes or we still
get tempted sometimes you know,and it's, it's a constant
(56:12):
struggle.
Speaker 2 (56:13):
Man like yeah you know, like I miss coffee, like I
I love the smell of coffee.
Speaker 1 (56:19):
I can't even drink it because I know I'd be addicted,
because I love the smell.
I love the smell so much.
Speaker 2 (56:24):
Yeah, I used to drink coffee all the time.
I have tattoos and I'm like I'malways like, oh my gosh, I wish
I could have more and but youknow, I feel like, you know, I
stopped watching certain moviesand and not that those things
are going to keep me from, youknow, going to heaven, but it's
always the little things thatGod asks of us.
You know, I don't know whywe're not allowed to drink
(56:45):
coffee, or we are advised not todrink coffee, I should say, but
you know there's a reason.
You know there are higher lawsthat I don't understand, but
it's the little things that Godasks of us.
And if we're not able to listento those little things or
follow those little things, howare we supposed to get, you know
, into the bigger picture andhow are we supposed to follow
(57:07):
the bigger commandments?
Speaker 1 (57:08):
Right we literally have no idea how the celestial
anything is set up.
So I think it's good that wehave what we have now.
Speaker 2 (57:16):
Yeah, so it's just I.
I mean, life is great with thegospel.
I've, I've lived both ways andand I I would never go back.
Yeah, it's, it's.
It's just nice to wake up andnot have to worry about, you
know, just normal things like oh, I hope I don't get shot today,
or oh, I hope I don't get in,you know, into some sort of
(57:36):
trouble, or I hope I don't getpulled over and have weed in my
car, or I'm drunk, or Right, somany things yeah.
Speaker 1 (57:48):
Sweet.
Well, I really appreciate yourtime.
This has been so much funchatting and do you?
Mind, just leaving us with abrief testimony.
Yeah, of course.
Speaker 2 (57:56):
I appreciate it.
Again, I don't share mytestimony that often I actually
don't like testimony Sundaysbecause of it, but you know,
it's a great opportunity to saythat I just I love the gospel
(58:25):
and just knowing that anybodycan come back to Christ, no
matter how far they've gone orhow much we feel that we've
messed up, no matter howatrocious we think that our sins
are or have been or our actionsor our, yeah, just anybody can
come back to Christ and he, youknow he bled for us, he died for
us and and I know that that hissacrifice, um, has made it so
(58:47):
that even people like me cancome back and to the fold.
You know he, he leaves the 99to go find that one, uh, and so
I feel like I'm that one personthat he came back to find and so
it's just just saying it outloud is just kind of like okay,
yeah, like this is my testimony.
(59:07):
Just the atonement is real and,again, satan's a big, fat liar.
My wife always says that.
Speaker 1 (59:14):
I agree.
Speaker 2 (59:16):
He will tell you all the horrible things that you've
done and you'll never be goodand you'll you know god will
never forgive you.
But that's not true, becausegod, god forgives.
You just have to forgiveyourself.
So right, yeah, that's.
That's my testimony, that thatgod loves and he forgives and he
wants you back.
And, uh, beautiful, his son andhis son will, will look for you
(59:40):
, no matter how long it takes.
Speaker 1 (59:43):
That's awesome.
Well, thank you so much, David,for your time tonight.
I really appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (59:47):
I appreciate this too , thank you.
Speaker 1 (59:51):
Thanks again for tuning into More Than
Coincidence, remembering JesusChrist in your story.
Please follow us on socialmedia or share us with a friend.
If you have an experience you'dlike to share Jesus Christ in
your story, Please follow us onsocial media or share us with a
friend.
If you have an experience you'dlike to share, feel free to
reach out tomorethancoincidencerememberhim
at gmailcom.
I can't wait to hear all of theamazing memories you all have
of our Savior.
(01:00:12):
See you next time.
Hello everyone and welcome to.
More Than Coincidence,remembering Jesus Christ in your
Story as the author andfinisher of our faith, our
Savior writes personalexperiences into each of our
lives which can later strengthen, empower and bring us peace
upon reflection.
This podcast is dedicated tosharing these anchoring memories
(00:26):
from everyone's unique storiesin order to collectively
remember and testify of thereality of Jesus Christ and his
presence in our lives.
I'm your host, lily, and I'mvery excited to share these
experiences together.
All right, so good eveningeverybody.
Tonight on the podcast we haveDavid, how you doing?
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Good, how about you?
Speaker 1 (00:46):
Fantastic.
We just caught up a little bit,got to know each other and now
I'm really excited to share yourstory.
Would you mind introducingyourself to everybody?
Speaker 2 (00:54):
Yeah, so my name is David.
I was born in Mexico City, butthen I moved to California when
I was 10 years old, and then Imoved to Utah when I was 21 or
20, actually, so I've been heresince 2003.
So I guess I'm more Utah than.
(01:16):
California now so married, beenmarried for 16 years, going on
17.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
Congratulations.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Thank you.
We have a daughter who isturning 12 next week actually,
so almost teenager.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
How you feeling about ?
Speaker 2 (01:32):
that it's a little nerve-wracking because she's
starting to.
You know, like she, she wantsall that, but she's always been
very independent.
To begin with, yeah, um, butnow even more so.
Like she wants to hang out withfriends and she wants to go
ride her bike all over the placeand she wants to go by herself
everywhere right so, yeah,that's, that's, it's an
(01:52):
interesting switch, um, and yeah, it's, it's just great.
Uh, we live.
We live here in utah and I workfor, for a great company named
Visa.
And yeah, I love shoes.
That's kind of my oh really.
Yeah, I'm addicted to buyingsneakers, like I.
(02:12):
Just I have so many tennisshoes.
Speaker 1 (02:16):
Do you wear them all or do you just?
Speaker 2 (02:18):
display them no.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
How does it go with sneakers?
Speaker 2 (02:22):
Oh no, I wear them.
I don't spend money not to wearthem.
I don't.
I don't spend money to not towear them.
Um, I may not wear them all thetime, but I so.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
What's your favorite pair that you have or your
favorite brand?
Do you have one?
Speaker 2 (02:36):
Uh, so I'm, I'm a sucker for Jordans, so like the
old school Jordans, jordansthey're called retros and uh,
just Yeezys.
You know, like kind of like thehard to find shoe, like that's
the kind of shoe that I leantowards um I it's weird.
I my shoes are veryostentatious, they're very
bright right yeah, and sosometimes I wear shoes that are
(02:57):
super colorful and people arelike what are you wearing?
Speaker 1 (03:03):
so is that what usually?
Is that what usually attractsyou?
You're like a moth to flame.
You're like, oh, those colorsit depends.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
It depends on the, on the style of the shoe, like if
it's a shoe that I like, likethe silhouette is what they call
it.
Um, yeah, I like to go for thecrazy colors, um, but but yeah,
uh, shoes are my, that, that'smy vice, and I love music.
Yeah, I'm 41 years old, whichis crazy because I still feel
(03:32):
like a 20-year-old.
Speaker 1 (03:34):
Right, you're young mentally, which is great.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
Yes, yes, so yeah, life is just crazy because you
know, one minute you'reliterally you're young and the
next minute you're 41 years oldand you're throwing your back
out mowing your lawn, whichactually happened.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
so your age is caught up to you.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
Yes, no, it's no joke .
Like once you turn 40.
Well, I say that, once you turn, like once you get into your
30s, things start to hurt.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
That's my husband.
He's like 32 and he's like oh,why do I?
Ache so much.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
And then, once you turn 40, that's when things
start really going downhill.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
You're actually over the hill.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
They say it's 50, but it's actually 40.
And I work out almost daily.
I take one day off a week andstill, like you know, my body is
constantly sore.
So yeah, it's the age man ageis a thing, man.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
Thank heavens for the resurrection.
We'll be like right boom youdon't have to worry about that
anymore perfect body, six bags,you know that's awesome.
Well, I'm so grateful for youcoming tonight and sharing your
story, so I'll ask you thequestion um, what memories do
you reflect on that prick yourheart in remembrance of our
(04:51):
savior jesus christ and anchoryou to him?
Speaker 2 (04:55):
okay, so it's kind of a long story, um, and we like
long stories, it's okay thanks.
um, I think'm so.
I don't want to say like it'sjust, it's just one thing.
I think to me, like the, the,the topic or the theme of my
life so far has been theatonement.
(05:16):
Just because of how I've seenit affect my life and how the
gospel has affected my life, Iwent from one extreme end in
life and to another.
So so I mean, I think that'sthe center, that's at the center
of my story, is the atonement Ilike obviously I'm not going to
(05:39):
compare myself to Alma theYounger, but that is one story.
Alma the Younger and Ammon areyou know the two characters that
I relate to the moster, butthat is one story.
Alma the Younger and Ammon areyou know the two characters that
I relate to the most becauseyou know, in the Book of Mormon
it says that they were thevilest of sinners.
You know, and you know I feellike I was one of those people.
(06:02):
But you know, through theatonement of Christ and the
gospel and a lot of key figuresin my life, great individuals I
was able to turn my life aroundand so much so that if you were,
you know, if maybe 19 year oldme could see 40 year old me or
41 year old me, he'd probablylaugh and point and say there's
(06:23):
no way that you're this person.
Speaker 1 (06:25):
That we're the same yeah.
Speaker 2 (06:26):
Yeah, no, I mean drastically different person,
individual.
So I guess let's start at thebeginning.
You know, I, like I said, I wasborn in Mexico City and we
lived in Mexico until I was 10years old, so 1993.
To give you a little betterbackground, my mom, she, was a
(06:50):
convert, but when she was little, Like when her dad became a
member of the church and theywere converted, obviously.
And so when my mom was youngshe married a man and she had
three kids.
She had my two brothers and mysister.
My dad knew my mom when theywere young because her brother
(07:17):
was my dad's best friend growingup.
Speaker 1 (07:19):
Well, there you go.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
They knew each other when they were young.
Yeah, well, there you go.
They knew each other when theywere young, yeah, yeah, and
there was, you know, there was,sparks were there, but they
never got together.
He ended up marrying someoneelse as well and he had my other
sister and my other brother andso they went different ways.
Right, my dad was a staunchCatholic, like you know, like
(07:43):
straight.
Yeah, you know ways.
Right, my dad was a staunchcatholic, like you know, like
straight, yeah, you know.
And uh, so at that time my mom,she had a really rough, uh,
marriage.
You know, her husband back thenused to beat her and my
brothers and very abusive.
My dad, on the other hand, healso had a rough marriage.
His wife was a little cuckooand, to get really dark here,
(08:07):
she committed suicide, yeah, andshe tried to actually kill my
brother and my sister with her.
So that, really, obviously, shedidn't succeed with that.
She did end up dying, but shedidn't.
My brother and sister didn't.
That put my dad in a reallydeep depression.
(08:28):
Um, so he started going to to adoctor and he took to the
bottle like he started drinking.
Um, he, him and my momeventually kind of connected
again because my mom ended upleaving the, her ex, her other
husband, right and uh.
So they connected and theyeventually got married and so
they kind of became like theBrady bunch.
Speaker 1 (08:49):
All of these children and all of these children.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
So he had two and my mom had three and they got
together and, uh, her and my dadhad my sister and then me, I
was.
I was the last child.
Speaker 1 (09:02):
Um, and the baby of the family, the baby of the
family.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
And I was not planned is what they say.
But I never met my dad this way, like they tell me that he used
to drink a lot, like he used tobe an alcoholic.
Speaker 1 (09:17):
Right.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
My mom would have to drive him to work and it was
kind of a hectic life for themand he didn't want her to be to
go to church because she wantedto get back into the church
because she she was really notactive at all.
Yeah, so for the longest timeshe didn't go to church.
I was born.
My dad at that time was toldthat if he drank again he would
(09:41):
end up dying.
Like it was so bad, like hisdrinking was affecting his body,
so bad.
Right.
So, to cope with all the stressand all the the issues he had
left from his ex-wife commandand suicide, he took like he.
He took to running, like thatwas his, that was his outlet,
right.
So when I was born and you know, like my recollection, my dad
(10:03):
never drank.
I never met that man.
He was just always active, veryhealthy person.
Eventually my mom startedgetting back into the church.
Her parents, very straight andnarrow people.
They served the mission in theMexico City Temple.
(10:24):
All this was happening in theearly 90s, late 80s, early 90s.
My dad eventually got baptized,but I don't think he did it for
the right reasons.
I do remember a little bit oftime in my life when I was
younger where he would go tochurch with us.
I remember him paying tithing.
(10:45):
I recall him paying sometithing, which was cool, but I
never really had that in my life.
Like none of my siblings wereactive, I never had a priesthood
holder in my home.
Like I never had a blessing.
I never, you know.
We never said prayers.
We never, you know, we neverdid that.
And so when my mom tried tolike take us to church, I
(11:06):
remember being little, probablylike around five or six, and me
not wanting to go to church.
I just, I just never, you know,some kids grow up and they
automatically cling to thegospel, or you know God and
they're you know all that Inever did, I remember.
Speaker 1 (11:24):
Well, and it's exposure too.
So if you're not like asexposed to it, you're just like,
why would I go and hang out?
With random strangers and singthese songs that I have no idea
what's happening Exactly?
Snowman popcorn.
I don't understand what'shappening.
Speaker 2 (11:39):
And so, and when you have a parent who doesn't you
know, doesn't believe that ordoesn't like to be part of that
right, and you have another onewho's like trying to fight it,
but you know, it's kind of likeit's a it's a losing battle, you
know yeah, and it's acontentious topic.
Speaker 1 (11:53):
So you're kind of like is this a good thing or is
this a bad thing?
Like as a small child, youdon't understand exactly so to
keep the peace at home.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
my mom just kind of, she just left it alone, um, so,
you know, like I said, wasn'treally active.
Um, eventually, my brother, myone of my older brothers, moved
to california, um, and then, inall my, some of my siblings
followed, um, and then, in 92,we, we wanted to visit
(12:21):
california, like we went, wewent there for the summer, my,
my, my sister, who's five yearsolder than me, my mom and my
other sister who's, I want tosay, like 10 years older than me
, and, uh, we went to Californiaand my brother was trying to
convince my mom to stay.
He was, like, you know, there'sno future in Mexico for you and
the kids, like you guys, willbe better off here, right?
(12:46):
Uh, my dad and I'm not, not,I'm not saying that my dad was a
horrible individual, he was not, he was a great dad uh, he
loved us.
He made a lot of mistakes inlife and at the time my dad had,
you know, an affair and youknow, like, my mom and him
weren't really together, um, sothere really wasn't anything for
my mom to have here and or tohave in mexico, to leave in
(13:06):
mexico.
So we ended up, um, we ended upgoing back to mexico to to get
all of our stuff together andand then in 93 I remember it was
october of 93 we moved tocalifornia right like I said, I
was 10 years old.
You know they totally justuprooted me, uh, from everything
I knew and you know they tookus to to California.
(13:27):
It was Southern California, atown called Lancaster and it was
.
It was just such a cultureshock, you know, like here you
have this little 10 year old kidand and Yep, did you speak any
English?
No, no, we didn't, and but itwas cool though, because it was,
it was.
It was a cool.
It was a great change for mebecause, living in Mexico, I had
(13:50):
you know, I had no friends, itwas.
We lived in a really like busyarea, um, so I I really wasn't
allowed to go out because of howmuch traffic there is in Mexico
City.
Traffic is insane is it?
oh yeah, oh yeah.
And so I went from not goingout as much and being glued to a
tv into video games right tocoming to California and and
(14:13):
really just like the perfectweather, yeah, disney, yes,
beach really close and so, um,yeah, you know, it was crazy for
me to like, oh, I have friendslike oh, I can go to the park, I
can ride my bike.
You know it was crazy for me tolike oh, I have friends like oh,
I can go to the park, I canride my bike.
You know like.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
I didn't know how to throw a ball.
Speaker 2 (14:29):
You know, like I never did any of those things.
So when we moved to California,like you know, I met friends
and you know I started doing thethings that normal kids do.
Speaker 1 (14:38):
That's a big deal.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
Yeah, it was huge and my mom loved it.
You know, she saw the bigchange in me and my brother, my
brother, he, he's my olderbrother.
He's kind of he's been myfather figure for most of my
life Because my dad stayed inMexico.
He loved us but he just he justcouldn't leave his life in
Mexico and so when we moved toCalifornia again, we still
(15:05):
weren't really active.
Um, my mom tried here there alittle bit, but you know,
nothing really stuck Um, and youknow, life just kind of went on
.
Um, I got older, I learnedEnglish in three months I
actually got a diploma for it.
Oh my gosh, that's incredible.
Speaker 1 (15:20):
Yeah, well, when you're little, you know things
just.
You know you're, you justabsorb it.
Speaker 2 (15:22):
Yeah, you observe it.
Oh my gosh, that's incredible.
Yeah, well, when you're little,you know things, just you know,
you just absorb it.
Yeah, you observe it, youlisten to, you know, you watch
TV, you listen to music inEnglish, and the only time I
spoke Spanish was at home.
So and then I had really goodteachers that you know wanted to
teach me English.
So so, yeah, um time time wenton and you know I, I got into
(15:47):
into high school and I just wasnot hanging out with the right
people.
Um, I was just making reallydumb decisions.
Um, I got into drinking, I gotinto smoking, um, you know, uh,
like I said, not having thegospel being a center of your
life, not having the gospelbeing a center of your life, uh,
(16:09):
I see it as a father now, andyou know, um just having a
priesthood holder at home.
You know somebody that can say,hey, you know this, this is
what you should be doing, and Idid have that with my brother
yeah but it wasn't gospelcentered, it was more of, like
you know, life, life experiencesyou know, yes and and uh, you
know life, life experiences.
You know, yes, and and, uh.
You know I, my brother, is likemy dad to me.
Uh, because of that, he taughtme a lot, but again, with him
(16:32):
not having the gospel in hislife either, like it was.
Speaker 1 (16:35):
Those things were not it was more like don't make the
mistakes.
I have then Like these are theprinciples.
Speaker 2 (16:42):
Yeah, you know, street smarts, you know, you
know like uh those type ofthings like hey, I want you to
be better like I, you know youhave a better way, you have a
better uh shot at having a goodlife if you don't do this or if
you don't do that or if youdon't hang out with these people
.
Speaker 1 (16:55):
But right, or even like the eternal perspective of
like.
Why would you want to do this?
Right like what things for thefuture could this bring you?
The short term gratification.
Right, exactly which is hard tothink of, you know, as a
teenager.
Speaker 2 (17:09):
Well, yeah, and again , you know like I you know I
never had those conversationsLike I see people now that have
kids.
You know I have.
I don't have a boy of my own,but you know my best friend has
kids.
you know boys and you know I seemy friends with their teenagers
and you know, being able tohave a conversation and say, hey
, you know what, like youshouldn't have sex until you get
(17:32):
married.
Or you know you shouldn't watchpornography, you shouldn't
drink, you shouldn't smoke, youknow, aside from you know, like
the things that the worldteaches you.
Obviously we know that drinkingand smoking is not good for you
.
But, right, um, having a gospelcentered perspective at home
and somebody to tell you thesethings, um, it's just different,
especially as a, as a young man.
(17:53):
Yeah, it's, I don't know it's.
I hate to sound dated, but it'sdifferent to hear from from my
mom.
Speaker 1 (18:00):
Um, you know, you just feel like, oh, you're just
nagging me like stop right well,but I feel like men have a
special connection yes because Isee that with my husband and
his and our son too, like theyjust connect on different ways
that I can't connect with him,and I've seen that with you know
, my dad and my brothers rightmen just connect differently,
(18:22):
women connect differently.
It's just what it is.
Speaker 2 (18:25):
Yes, you know it's like.
It's just like me trying toteach my daughter how to be a
woman Obviously I'll have goodperspective and to tell her
things.
But you know, my wife, you knowthat's, you know that's her
real mother.
Exactly, yeah, so yeah, just nothaving that really affected me.
So you know, I, like I said I Igot I don't want to say I got I
(18:46):
didn't get heavy into drugs.
Thankfully I don't have anaddictive personality, but I did
.
You know, like, um, I, I smokedweed and I, you know I smoked
and I I drank at parties, gotdrunk and, yeah, hung out with
really not the best people, um,good friends, but you know again
, people who didn't have kind ofa, you know, like a, like a
(19:09):
structure at home either, right,so we got into a lot of trouble
, we got into situations yeahand you know, there's so many
times where, where I could havebeen arrested, I could have been
killed.
I could have been, you know justreally put myself in stupid
situations, but for one reasonor another.
(19:32):
Obviously at the time you don'treally realize it until you're
older.
Nothing happened, nothing cameof it.
I remember one time we a coupleof friends and I we jumped a
fence and there was like a treeof peaches and right behind the
fence there was like this streetwhere you know, just cars would
come by, and I remember amotorcycle was driving by and
(19:54):
we're throwing peaches at peopleand that motorcycle happened to
have a little kid in the backand so we threw a peach at them
and the guy got hit in thehelmet and he almost fell with
the kid and you know like hestarted chasing us.
And one of my friends ended upgoing to jail for that and but
you know they never didn't catcheverybody, they only caught one
(20:14):
person.
So that guy didn't rat us outor anything like that.
But those are the kind ofsituations I mean you're like
wow, I was kind of.
Speaker 1 (20:22):
That's not a coincidence I.
You're like wow, that's not acoincidence I should have gone
to jail.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
And it didn't click in my head as to why those
things happened until I wasolder and I'll get to that.
So I mean, it's just the waythat life kind of comes full
circle at times.
It's, it is, it's a littlecrazy and you know, again,
living in a household where youknow, hey, you know you're
you're good to to watchpornography, you're good to do
(20:57):
that, you're good to have sex,you're good to do these things.
Just be safe, be, you know, likeright just just know that if
you mess up, like you knowyou're gonna be, you know, kind
of held accountable for youractions.
You know it was that kind ofmentality, um, and and that's
just that was just the norm inmy household.
Like I, you know, when I, whenI met my wife, I like I had a
(21:17):
mouth on me, like I cussed likea sailor and right, you know,
all these old habits that I justnever, never thought were were
bad, like I, just I just thatwas just the norm.
You know, like that was justall my friends were like that,
all my, you know, my siblingswere like that.
So, um, you know, fast forward,uh, 2000 to 2001,.
(21:38):
I graduated high school, um,around that time my dad started
getting sick, um, and he, he gotcancer.
Uh, yeah, in 2002 he passedaway and you know I was really
rough.
I couldn't go see him becausehe was in mexico, right, and at
the time I wasn't even legallyhere, I was actually um.
(21:58):
So I came from from mexico witha with a um, from Mexico, with
a, with a like a traveling visa,like a tourist visa, and then,
once, once that visa andpassport expired, we stayed here
and so I, I couldn't go toMexico to see my dad, so I never
got to see him.
I got to talk.
The last time I got to talk tohim, he was pretty delirious
(22:20):
yeah, unfortunately, you know,like I said, he, he was, but I
don't think that he ever really,you know, fully accepted the
gospel at the time, right, andyou know, a lot of things were
happening in my life where Ifelt like I needed to change.
But I to Utah and they came tovisit us and one of them said,
(22:52):
he, he was a return missionaryand it's always the rms.
Speaker 1 (22:55):
Yeah, it's always the rms he's.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
He was like hey, man, you should, you should really
think about moving to utah.
Man, like there's so many, somany more opportunities.
It's a lot easier for you to goout there.
It's a lot cheaper cost ofliving.
That's not the case anymore.
But yeah, I was gonna say anduh, you know I was like, yeah,
I'll think about it.
You know I wasn't doinganything with my life.
I was like I said high schoolgraduate, I was working at, like
(23:21):
, wendy's and McDonald's andSubway, you know, not that
there's anything wrong withdoing that, but, like you know,
there I had no path in my life.
I wanted to be a rapper.
I mean so that tells youanything.
That's who I hung out with, andthe funny thing is is that one
of the friends that I used tohang out with he later on I
(23:42):
found out when I, when I livedhere in Utah.
Later on he ended up going toprison because he was involved
in the murder of his mother inlaw for money.
Speaker 1 (23:57):
So and they were investigated and there were
pictures of us, like I was insome of the pictures.
Yes, thankfully you didn't havea connection.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
That's what I'm saying like so many things that
happened in my life where Icould have really been in really
bad in a bad situation just I Iwas able to to kind of get away
from those things right, so Ijust had this.
Speaker 1 (24:12):
I don't mind if you don't mind me asking oh yeah, I
just yeah, I just had thisthought so what inside you was
really like something doesn'tfeel right, but I don't know
what it is.
But I want to change, but Idon't know how to like.
Can you yeah, can you dive intothat a little bit?
Speaker 2 (24:27):
so I I I mean at the time, I don't, I don't, I didn't
credit the spirit because Ididn't believe in it, you know
like I believed in God, but Ididn't really have the idea or
the notion of like, oh yeah, theHoly Ghost is with me.
Speaker 1 (24:41):
Yeah, right.
Speaker 2 (24:42):
So it was a combination of things it was.
It was me being frustrated withlife and just working dead end
jobs, not really gettinganywhere and constantly getting
fired from from jobs because Ididn't have papers, I couldn't
work legally in the UnitedStates, so it was just.
It was all of that mixed withmy desire to be something and
(25:04):
someone in life, and I think alot of that has to do with me
being an immigrant.
You know the the the immigrantmindset is is you know you leave
your country of origin to cometo this country to make it?
Speaker 1 (25:18):
Right, and especially if you're in America, it's like
the American dream, exactlythis is where you make it.
Speaker 2 (25:25):
And you know, my family, my mom, my brothers,
having sacrificed so much tokind of put us in a situation
where we can be better, be more.
Yeah, it was that drive, thatkind of like, helped me a little
bit, but again it was still the, the.
I don't want to leave myfriends ever.
You know people that I've knownfor 10 years.
And uh, again my brother came,comes into the picture he's,
(25:49):
he's always kind of been the onesteering me away from from the
bad situations and putting me ina, in a, in a good path.
And he told me, he said, hey,you know, you really should
think about going to Utah, likeI think it'd be a good change
for you.
And at the time, you know, Iwas so young and naive and and
and just so, guided by him, andI was just like, oh, you think
(26:11):
so, okay, let's do it.
You know he would tell me, likejumping, I would say how high
you know, so yeah when he saidit it was kind of like the okay
for me to do it cool.
So uh in, in 2000, uh 2003 I, Ileft California and I moved here
to Utah when.
I moved in with my aunt, um, and, and her, her sons, and you
(26:38):
know, I'll be honest, thingsdidn't change.
I was still party mode, I wasstill, you know, like this
hooligan who thought he wasgoing to make a big and rap, and
I was still going to clubs.
I was still getting high andgetting drunk and girls and all
that stuff and um work, you knowsame thing, dead end jobs.
(27:02):
I kept getting laid off, youknow, fired, because my, my
papers didn't match, et cetera.
It's just a typical situation.
Yep, I was just far away from myfamily and everyone I knew, and
I didn't have the beach near meand the weather sucked and the
snow was pretty awful, isn't it?
Well, it's cool when you, whenyou move from California, you
know your winters are, like youknow, 60 degrees perfect and
(27:25):
yeah, and you get like rain, youknow, and then you move to Utah
and it's like snowing it likethe first time.
It's like, oh my gosh, it's,it's magic yeah then, but then
it doesn't stop yeah, and it'scold and it's depressing.
Yes, yeah, the snow is not myfavorite no, it scared you to
drive in, and anyway, so I was.
I was to the point where I toldmy aunt.
(27:47):
I said you know what?
I'm gonna move back because youknow everything that I came for
is really not.
Nothing new is happening andI'm away from my family.
I don't have any of my friends.
So my aunt looked at me andsaid OK, tell you what, just
give it three more months, andif three and in three months
things don't change, I'll driveyou down there.
(28:09):
I'll drive you myself.
So I said, ok, so three moremonths, let's stick it out
myself.
So I said, okay, so three moremonths, let's stick it out.
In those three months I got ajob at a call center, which is
dialogue marketing, and I met aguy at this job.
I just turned 21.
(28:29):
We just came back from Vegasbecause you know 21,.
Speaker 1 (28:32):
You have to go to the .
You have to, you can legallydrink and all these things.
Speaker 2 (28:33):
So I come back from Vegas because you know, 21, you
have to go to, you have to right, you have to uh, you can
legally drink and all thesethings.
So, um, I come back from Vegasand I'm thinking like this job's
not gonna last, they're gonnafire me because of my papers and
all that.
Um, seven years later, I'mstill there anyway.
So, uh, yeah, I, I right at thebeginning.
I want to say, maybe like threeor four months into me turning
(28:55):
21, I'm sitting around at thecall center and there's a guy
sitting down, another RM, andthere's a discussion going on
with the people around him andthey're talking about the church
.
Now, I had this preconceivednotion of the church.
Now I had this preconceivednotion of the church.
(29:17):
Growing up, I didn't have thebest view of members of the
church.
I felt like people werehypocrites.
I just didn't have a goodvision of the members of the
church.
So I didn't want anything to dowith the church and I don't
remember exactly what was beingtalked about, what the topic was
(29:37):
.
But I remember seeing my, uh,this guy his name is jordan and
he was just sitting therelistening to what everybody was
saying and they were, they weredoing a lot of church bashing,
um, and he was just quiet.
And then somebody saidsomething specifically to where
he he chimed in.
He said, okay, like I'm I'm notagainst people talking bad
(29:58):
about the church, like everybodyhas their own opinion, but if
you're gonna do it, you gotta doit right, like.
And so he started talking aboutwhatever.
Again, I don't remember exactlywhat the topic was, yeah, but I
I didn't say anything, like Iwas just sitting there listening
and I remember him saying thesethings and and obviously now I
know that it was the spiritSomething just in me, just kind
(30:20):
of like my mind just kind oflike cleared up and I was just
like, wait a minute, like that'snot true, like, yeah, like I've
known about the church my wholelife, right, but I've never
heard someone explain aspects ofthe church in such a way that
it just kind of clicked in myhead.
Speaker 1 (30:38):
So he was defending the church.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
He was defending the church.
And again, 21 years, I'vealways had this notion of the
church.
You know, it's just anotherreligion that wants to control
people and tighten that Right.
And then here's this, you know,return missionary, 20 years old
, and he's, you know, talking,and just he's just speaking
truth.
And I'm just like, oh my gosh,hey, everything that you just
(31:03):
said, like is that true?
Like are you like making thingsup to make things better?
And he was just like he's.
Like I mean, it's all in thebook of Mormon and I was like I,
(31:27):
I've been a member my wholelife, Um, I was baptized by my
dad who, again, I don't believehe had an actual testimony of
the church when I was like 11 or12.
And I'm like I've never heardthe gospel explained that way
and it's never really resonateduntil just now.
And so I mean, obviously,having been a return missionary,
(31:50):
he was just like, oh you know,golden member, right here, let
me talk to you a little bitabout this.
And he starts talking to meabout it and he's just like look
, I don't want to overwhelm you,right?
He said tell you what, let meinvite you to church.
He was, he was going to BYU.
He was teaching Sunday schoolthat Sunday or the following
(32:13):
Sunday, I don't rememberteaching Sunday school that
Sunday or the following Sunday,I don't remember, um.
But he said come, listen towhat I have to say and you know,
if anything, you can just, youknow, walk away knowing that you
gave it a try.
Speaker 1 (32:23):
Right.
Speaker 2 (32:23):
Right, I'm like all right, sounds good.
I mean, I honestly, in the backof my mind, I was like this
sounds cool, but nothing's goingto come from it.
I don't really want religion inmy life, right?
Um, at the time my cousinwanted, told me to move here.
He was just like, hey, you know, like you should, you should
try the church and give thechurch a try.
And again I was like I don'twant to, I don't want to.
(32:44):
But then, with this happening,and then just work, not really
working out for me the way Iwanted life, not working out for
me the way I wanted it to right.
He was like why don't you justgive the gospel a try?
You never know.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
Like what do you have to lose?
You have everything to gain.
Speaker 2 (33:02):
if this is true, and so in my mind I said, okay,
let's give the church a try tosee if my financial situation
changes.
So I did it for very selfishreasons.
I want to give that caveat.
Speaker 1 (33:17):
I don't, you know what, and honestly, I don't
think Jesus cares, I think he'sjust like we got him yeah.
Speaker 2 (33:22):
So so my, so my, uh, my intentions were not
altruistic at all.
Um, so I was like, okay, let'sgive it a try.
So I started going to churchwith him.
It's not really resonating withme.
Speaker 1 (33:35):
Right.
Speaker 2 (33:35):
And then I hear my buddy talk and I asked my cousin
.
I said hey, this guy invited meto church.
Can you come with me?
So him and his girlfriend atthe time, who's now his wife, we
went to BYU and I rememberwalking in and I'm thinking like
I mean, I don't know that he'sgoing to say anything that
hasn't already been said to me.
(33:56):
It's not going to change myview, right?
Speaker 1 (33:58):
Right.
Speaker 2 (33:59):
I remember sitting down and he's.
He's at the bottom.
You know he's about to start hisclass, his lesson, and he looks
up and he finds me in theaudience and he big old smile
and he proceeds to give hislesson.
And I felt the spirit.
I can't tell you what thelesson was about, but I remember
feeling the spirit and we, hefinished his lesson, you know,
(34:23):
classes over.
He came up to me give me thisbig old hug and he said, he
looked at me, he said I cannotbelieve he came.
That's so awesome.
And he said I have something totell you.
Well, I told him, you know,like that was awesome, like
thank you so much.
That was super cool.
And he said I have something totell you.
I I prepared two lessons.
I prepared one lesson in caseyou didn't come and I prepared a
lesson in case you came.
(34:50):
Wow, touched and so moved by bysomeone who would be willing to
to do something like that, yeah,um, and he gives me a book of
mormon and I still have thatbook of mormon and he, like you
know, he wrote a littleinscription in it and, uh, so
he's like here, I want you tohave this, you know, use it,
read it, so that kind of starts.
(35:10):
You know, the seeds startgetting planted.
Um, I start reading a littlebit, uh, and just things in my
mind start changing like, okay,well, I don't want to give up
this, I don't want to stop doingthis, but I'll, you know, I'll
try a little harder, right?
So I started going to churchI'm still drinking, I'm still
(35:30):
smoking, I'm still partying, I'mstill, you know, with girls and
all that.
But then, little by little, likethose things, just like I'm
like, okay, well, I'm still, youknow, with girls and all that.
But then, little by little,like those things, just like I'm
like, okay, well, I'll stopdrinking, I'll stop smoking.
And then the next thing, youknow, I'll stop partying.
And I remember vividly one time, um, if I don't know how, maybe
(35:51):
you can, if you feel like youneed to cut this out, you can,
but I this is really crucial toto my conversion story um, one
day we went my, my other cousinand I went to a party and we met
these girls and one of them wasreally drunk and we went back
to their place and you know, we,we had a one-night stand,
(36:13):
basically yeah, and I've donethat before and it wasn't.
You know, we, we had a one-nightstand, basically.
Yeah, and I've done that beforeand it wasn't.
You know, for me it was.
It was just kind of like ohyeah, I had fun, that was it
right.
I remember leaving and I wasoutside of her apartment.
I didn't know this girl.
I've never met her and to thisday I can't tell you name, I
can't tell you what she lookslike.
She was really drunk and thisfeeling just came over me and I
(36:40):
started to weep, like I juststarted crying.
It just I'd never felt thatbefore.
Um, I just felt so awful, likeI can't believe I just did that
to this girl, like I, you know Idon't know her and you know I
don't know like it was.
It was just that the spirit wasjust so strong and from that
(37:02):
moment I just said, okay, nomore.
So I credit that bad situationsomething that I'm really kind
of ashamed of.
Speaker 1 (37:14):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (37:15):
That helped me kind of get back in the track and
track, you know, like that.
That put me on the right path.
And after that I, I, I said, uh, you know, I'm done, I'm done
with this life.
I, I, I stopped smoking, Istopped drinking, I stopped
having sex, I stopped that partylife and I started going to
church.
(37:35):
And it was almost like the.
The change was, was so instant,like the, the.
I don't know if you've ever beenin that situation where, where
your life is a little dark andthen once you make the right
decision, or once you have thelord in your life, it's kind of
like everything just kind ofclears up, it brightens, it
(37:56):
brightens yeah and and like justthis, this overwhelming feeling
of like desire to read thescriptures, came over me and I
started reading the scripturesand, um, I wanted to serve a
mission.
And I was just like, wow, likethis is going way too fast, but
I, you know, I need to embraceit right.
And so I remember um talking tomy mom, and my mom, you know,
(38:22):
she started crying because shewas so happy that I was going to
church and that I was activeagain, or that I was, you know,
reactivating myself, and and um,and I told her I want to serve
a mission and she was just like,oh my gosh, you know she was so
excited.
And I told my brother I wantedto serve a mission and keep in
mind that at the time a lot ofmy family didn't understand the
(38:43):
gospel, didn't really care aboutit, and so he, instead of him
being supportive about it, hewas just very like, why, like
you don't need to serve amission?
You're old, you know you're tooold now.
And because you know, at thetime you think like you should
do it right out of high school.
You're 21.
You're going into 22.
Right, I didn't have my papers,you know, to leave the States
(39:06):
you know, he was like what ifthey tell you you have to go to
Mexico and then you can't comeback?
So he started throwing allthese things, yeah, and that
really played with me.
That stuck with me and so Ichose not to go on a mission
because at the time they weresending missionaries out of
their country of origin.
So like, if I live in theUnited States, I have to go back
(39:26):
to Mexico to serve my mission,and I didn't have that guarantee
to come back, right.
So because of that and you knowmy, I guess, lack of faith, as
you could say I didn't serve amission, which is something that
I regret.
But you know, my wife alwaystells me like you don't have to
(39:47):
serve a mission to serve amission, right.
Speaker 1 (39:51):
So I try to live.
I agree with her.
I think she's right too,because what you're doing right
now, it's wonderful, thank you.
Speaker 2 (40:04):
So you know, I try to just continue to live my life
as best I could.
Cool story Again got back intothe church and I was trying to
get my records straight with thechurch and they could not find
my baptismal records.
Oh, I'm 21 years old and theycannot find my records in.
(40:25):
Yeah and, and I was like my dadbaptized me when I was 12.
They couldn't find thoserecords.
My brother remembers being there, uh right we have a picture
here's the picture like thefunny thing is my mom doesn't
remember, my sisters don'tremember my dad baptizing me, so
they couldn't find my record.
Speaker 1 (40:41):
So I ended up getting baptized again at 21 wow, uh,
by my cousin that was probablyreally cool.
Speaker 2 (40:46):
Yes, it was.
It was super cool because again, I, again, we go back to the
whole.
You know alma and alma theyounger.
It's just like you go throughthat repentance process of like
oh you see the wrongs and theLord gives you an opportunity,
like, hey, you know, like youwere baptized at 12.
You didn't understand what wasgoing on.
Your dad probably wasn't evenworthy to baptize you.
(41:06):
But here's another opportunity.
So, at 21, I was baptized againand and I, I, you know, like
that to me that was the realtime that I got baptized and,
yeah, I, I got a calling.
As you know, I was a secondcounselor to the young men in
the war that I was attending.
Speaker 1 (41:24):
You're probably the fun young men's leader too.
I was, I was.
Speaker 2 (41:27):
Because, again, I'm still not polished, like I was
still pretty rough around theedges.
Obviously I stopped doing allthe bad things, but I still like
I still cussed likeuss like asailor, you know, and the cool
thing is is that it was a younglike our presidency was pretty
young, so like the, the, theyoung man's president.
(41:48):
He was in his in his late 20s.
I was in my early 20s, theother guy was in his early 20s,
so yeah, it was like a big.
Speaker 1 (41:55):
It was like all the bros getting together, man
exactly.
Speaker 2 (41:58):
And so you know, like I listened to music and I had a
jeep and I had, like, myspeakers in the back and like we
take the boys everywhere andlike I'm over here bumping tupac
and eminem and they're alljamming out, and yeah, you know
it was.
It was such a fun experience,but I also felt like, um, I, I
need to be an example, like Iright, you know like the
(42:18):
experiences that I've had, I canteach these kids a little bit.
So that was, that was a coolexperience.
Fast forward a little bit and I, I'm, you know, obviously I'm,
I'm, I'm celibate, I'm nothaving sex anymore.
You know like that, thatmindset of like I need to start
(42:39):
looking for my wife, I need tostart, you know, kind of
settling down, and so I, youknow, I begin to hunt and I meet
this girl and she was prettyyoung at the time.
She was also a member of thechurch, but she really wasn't,
you know, like active at all.
Speaker 1 (42:59):
Right.
Speaker 2 (42:59):
Her dad unfortunately unfortunately forced her to go
to church a lot, and so she hada very negative outlook on the
church.
Right and it was.
It was always a constantstruggle because I wanted to get
sealed in the temple and shedidn't want that yeah she would
tell me like, what if I can't doit?
What if I can't, you know, goto church?
(43:19):
Or what if I don't want to goto church?
You know how's that going toaffect us?
And yeah.
And I was just always like, oh,you know, we got to have faith
and we got to do things rightand um, it was easier for me to
say and to think these things,obviously not knowing the deep,
how deep her scars were, youknow.
And she was pretty young, likeI said, I was in my mid-20s, I
was probably like 23 and she was18 at the time, almost 19.
(43:51):
And I ended up proposing we gotengaged.
I was still hoping that shewould eventually come around.
We ended up messing up once andI remember going to my bishop
at the time and he was just likeokay, man, like either you get
married or you guys break up,because you can't, you can't
continue this, because the nexttime something worse is going to
happen, right?
Um, so here I am thinking I'm afailure because I let God down
(44:14):
and I'm not, you know, like allthe things that he's done for me
at the time and and here I amlike the moment, a moment of
weakness, and and mess it all uptotally normal, yeah.
I've had that moment too right,so where?
Speaker 1 (44:27):
you feel like you've walked so far, and then you're
like, oh, I just now I'm back atground zero.
Speaker 2 (44:31):
I just did all this work and the one mistake, and
now I'm back to zero yep, and,and I I was just admonishing
myself and I'm like I'm ahorrible human being and I
remember my mom telling me youknow what honey?
Like I know that you reallywant to get married, but I just
(44:52):
don't feel like this is rightfor you.
And she gave me an analogy thathas stuck with me and my wife
and I use it all the time now.
Speaker 1 (44:59):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (45:00):
She said right now you are looking at a shiny ring
that you really like and you'retrying to put that ring on, but
that ring does not fit andyou're trying to force it down
your finger and all you're goingto do is you're going to hurt
yourself in the process.
Speaker 1 (45:13):
Right.
Speaker 2 (45:15):
She said you need to find the right ring, you need to
fight the right fit.
And once you find the right fit, you'll know it.
This isn't that ring, so Wow,that's pretty deep.
Speaker 1 (45:27):
It's like really interesting.
Speaker 2 (45:34):
Yeah, and so that clicked with me, that resonated
pretty deeply with me, and so Ihad a conversation with my at my
at the time my fiance, and andyou know it was determined she
just that this was not the paththat she wanted, this was not
the life she wanted.
So we ended up breaking up,called thing, called and quits.
Um, I had other girlfriends,nobody really.
The ring wasn't right and, uh,I I'm still working in dialogue
(45:58):
marketing and I remember at thetime it was 2007, I went to go
get some breakfast at a placecalled Jason's Deli at the Orem
Mall and I walked in and I sawthis girl and she just caught my
(46:19):
eye.
Um, and I caught her eye shesaid.
She said that that I was like hewas really good looking, but he
was also ghetto.
Speaker 1 (46:29):
I don't know how to feel about that.
Speaker 2 (46:31):
No, it was good like it was.
Oh, it's good yeah, I have.
I mean, if you talk to Andreishe'll tell you.
But that's hilarious.
Yeah, I have a little bit of aghetto swagger to me, but anyway
.
So she starts being reallyflirty or like, just very
talkative and like I know youfrom somewhere, I know you from
and I just felt like either thisgirl really thinks I'm cute or
(46:53):
Right, she's crazy, she's justreally friendly yeah.
And so I got my food and I leftand so that I went back to work
and I had time, I had a friendat work with me and I said hey,
I need you to come with me toget some lunch to jason zelly,
because there's this girl there.
I don't know if she's justreally friendly or if she's into
me, so I need you to tell me.
Yeah, so we go back and samething.
(47:15):
She's just super funny and justvery talkative towards me and
then she keeps saying, like youguys, you just look so familiar,
have I met you?
And anyway, we walked away.
My friend said yeah, I thinkthat she's either very happy or
she might like you.
I don't know.
Speaker 1 (47:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (47:35):
So this was a Friday, obviously.
I was off saturday and sunday,and then um monday I go back to
jason's in the morning.
I don't even think they wereopen yet, but I was just so
eager to see her to see her.
Yeah, yeah and uh, and I walk inand there's a girl with her
(47:56):
back towards me and she's gother phone up, like she's talking
on the phone and taking anorder, but her hair was up and
it was curly.
The girl that I had met onFriday.
Her hair was down and it wasstraight, so I didn't, and she
had a different shirt on.
I didn't think it was her.
So I was like, oh well, youknow, I'll get something to eat.
She turns around and it's herand like big old smile, you know
(48:21):
.
And uh, and I'm like allexcited, I'm like all right,
cool.
So, um, she hangs up and and I'mlike, hey, I want to get some
breakfast.
And she's like, oh, how youdoing.
And yeah, and so I'm like, okay, this is the moment, like I
need to throw on that charm.
So I I tell her, um, I justwant you to know something.
I actually had a blueberrymuffin, because I used to have,
like I used to get the blueberrymuffins from Costco and that
(48:41):
would take one for breakfast.
I said I brought a blueberrymuffin with me for breakfast but
I gave it away.
But I can come here to see you.
Speaker 1 (48:50):
Smooth.
Speaker 2 (48:53):
As soon as I tell her that, like she turns bright red
, a big old smile and she's likeoh my gosh, I'm going to get
some breakfast and she, like,runs in the back and like that's
adorable and uh, and so I writemy number down for her because
she's at work and I didn't wanther to get in trouble.
So when she comes back, I handher my number and I said here's
(49:14):
my number, call me.
I don't usually do it this way,you know I would.
I would ask you for your number, but I don't want you to get in
trouble because you're at work,right?
I said, call me.
I don't usually do it this way,you know I would.
I would ask you for your number, but I don't want you to get in
trouble because you're a word,right?
I said, call me, and when youcall me, I'll ask you for your
number officially.
So, um, so, yeah, I gave her mynumber.
You know, long story short, we,we date, we start dating and we
fall in love.
And the funny thing is is that,um, before our first date, she
(49:41):
asked me if I was a member ofthe church and I said yes, but
to her recollection, sheremembers me saying that I
wasn't active, like that, I wasa member but I wasn't active.
She had her own issues and herown story, growing up and dating
somebody who wasn't a member ofthe church and just all that.
You know all that stuff thatshe went through and, uh, she
(50:04):
was having second thoughts aboutit.
Eventually we did go on a dateand it was.
It was just magical, like weclicked, you know she's from san
bernardino, california.
I'm from lancaster.
We both grew up same area.
You graduated at the same time.
Um, parents are similar stories.
Um, both of us kind of kind offell away from the church but,
(50:25):
you know, came back.
She served a mission.
I didn't serve a mission, right, um, and she helped me a lot,
she, she helped me because,again, still rough around the
edges, still trying to figurethings out, I was still doing
things that I shouldn't be.
I still, you know, because Ididn't know these things, I
didn't have that structure thatyou know, a priesthood holder in
(50:47):
my household to teach me thesethings, so I'm just kind of like
learning as I go.
Speaker 1 (50:50):
As you go right.
Speaker 2 (50:51):
Yeah, and so she helped me kind of become a
better individual.
She, she never told me likedon't do that.
She would just say like well,maybe you should pray about it,
and pray about it, and sureenough, like, oh okay, Like yeah
, I shouldn't be drinking a chailatte, Cause you know I used to
love coffee.
Speaker 1 (51:11):
Yeah, well, and that's cool, cause it looks like
you guys were just more alignedin general right.
Like even I, I think it's reallyimportant that it doesn't
matter, obviously, if you'reperfect or not.
It's two individuals are really, truly trying to want to
incorporate the gospel and headin the same direction, and I
think that you were able to findthat, and it's awesome when you
(51:32):
can say, you know, oh, you canstrengthen each other and you
can help each other with theirweaknesses, know, and I think
that that's great.
You found your ring, likethat's so cool.
Speaker 2 (51:42):
I found her, I found my ring and she fit me perfectly
, and did she?
Speaker 1 (51:46):
ever?
Did you guys ever figure outwhere she knew you from?
No, no, she or it was just likethis one thing that she was,
just like you're familiar, andno, I don't know, because this
day she truly believes that weprobably met in the
pre-existence.
Speaker 2 (51:57):
I don't know.
Speaker 1 (51:59):
That's adorable.
Yeah, I totally believe in that.
I totally believe in that.
Speaker 2 (52:04):
Yeah, she was totally smitten and I was smitten and
it was just great and yeah, Imean we've definitely grown
together.
Like I said, we started datingin 2007,.
Got married by 2008.
And you know, it's just beensuch a wonderful time in my life
(52:24):
and growth and you know, justspiritual growth and just
personal growth and just havingsomeone with you that can push
you to be better in the gospel.
It's just, you know, it's unrealto have such a strong partner
in the gospel and it makes sucha difference, you know, like
when you, when you're not havingto fight someone because your
(52:46):
beliefs are different, um, andand to be honest with you, like
all the things that I did andthis is kind of where I was
going back with back in the day,when I was doing all these
stupid things and we can't havekids the normal way, so our
daughter is adopted, and also I,you know I wasn't here legally,
(53:09):
so she knew that and I was ableto fix my papers with her.
And I remember the day, the daywe went to get my, my residency
or for my interview, the personwho interviewed me said, you
know, she looked at my recordsand she asked like, have you
ever been convicted of anything.
You know you're not divorced,you don't have any other kids or
(53:31):
anything like that, and shejust asked me all these
questions.
I was like no, no, no record,I've never been to jail.
None of that stuff, and shelooked at me and she looked at
us and she said I wisheverybody's cases were as clean
as yours.
And that was one thing.
And then being able to adoptour daughter is another reason
why I know that Heavenly Fatherwas with me in all those times
(53:55):
where I could have really beenin trouble.
Speaker 1 (53:59):
Yeah, with your home study.
Speaker 2 (54:03):
Yes, if I had any kind of record, if I had any
kind of marks in my past.
I don't know that we could haveadopted my daughter because we
went through LDS church I mean,we went through LDS services to
adopt my daughter and I don'tknow that I could have become a
resident or a citizen.
You know, I don't know that Icould have become a resident or
(54:23):
a citizen.
Um, so again, it's just, itjust kind of goes to show you
that, like god has a plan forfor everyone and you know you
may not see it at the time um,and my wife gives a great
analogy.
As you know, you have theprophet and he's like standing
up in a in a tower and he seeseverything right we're not able
to see everything, so we justkind of have to go by faith yeah
and you know it's just, it'sincredible to me that somebody
(54:47):
like me, somebody who's done thethings that I've done and has
said the things that I've saidand felt the way that I felt,
could, you know, come back andbe sealed in the temple and have
an eternal family and, you know, be a righteous priesthood
holder, somebody who I'm theonly active male in my family
(55:09):
and you know it's tough at timeslike it's difficult, but you
know I wouldn't have it anyother way.
I love, I love being there formy daughter and my wife and for
anybody that needs a blessing oranything like that, things that
I never had growing up, youknow.
Speaker 1 (55:27):
and again, just going from one of the viola sinners
to I'm not saying that I'm likethis, you know like glowing,
pretty positive alma the youngerwasn't perfect, even after his
conversion right my husband andI were actually having that
conversation of you know I I'msure there are people who really
can just flip on a dime likethat and be totally squeaky
(55:50):
clean, but I really I just kindof felt like you know, I bet
after his conversion in thereand his friend's conversion,
they probably really struggledstill yeah, and they probably.
It was really a daily thingwhere they had to say like I'm
choosing this.
I'm choosing this because, eveneven when we have our own
personal experiences, we stilldoubt them sometimes or we still
get tempted sometimes you know,and it's, it's a constant
(56:12):
struggle.
Speaker 2 (56:13):
Man like yeah you know, like I miss coffee, like I
I love the smell of coffee.
Speaker 1 (56:19):
I can't even drink it because I know I'd be addicted,
because I love the smell.
I love the smell so much.
Speaker 2 (56:24):
Yeah, I used to drink coffee all the time.
I have tattoos and I'm like I'malways like, oh my gosh, I wish
I could have more and but youknow, I feel like, you know, I
stopped watching certain moviesand and not that those things
are going to keep me from, youknow, going to heaven, but it's
always the little things thatGod asks of us.
You know, I don't know whywe're not allowed to drink
(56:45):
coffee, or we are advised not todrink coffee, I should say, but
you know there's a reason.
You know there are higher lawsthat I don't understand, but
it's the little things that Godasks of us.
And if we're not able to listento those little things or
follow those little things, howare we supposed to get, you know
, into the bigger picture andhow are we supposed to follow
(57:07):
the bigger commandments?
Speaker 1 (57:08):
Right we literally have no idea how the celestial
anything is set up.
So I think it's good that wehave what we have now.
Speaker 2 (57:16):
Yeah, so it's just I.
I mean, life is great with thegospel.
I've, I've lived both ways andand I I would never go back.
Yeah, it's, it's.
It's just nice to wake up andnot have to worry about, you
know, just normal things like oh, I hope I don't get shot today,
or oh, I hope I don't get in,you know, into some sort of
(57:36):
trouble, or I hope I don't getpulled over and have weed in my
car, or I'm drunk, or Right, somany things yeah.
Speaker 1 (57:48):
Sweet.
Well, I really appreciate yourtime.
This has been so much funchatting and do you?
Mind, just leaving us with abrief testimony.
Yeah, of course.
Speaker 2 (57:56):
I appreciate it.
Again, I don't share mytestimony that often I actually
don't like testimony Sundaysbecause of it, but you know,
it's a great opportunity to saythat I just I love the gospel
(58:25):
and just knowing that anybodycan come back to Christ, no
matter how far they've gone orhow much we feel that we've
messed up, no matter howatrocious we think that our sins
are or have been or our actionsor our, yeah, just anybody can
come back to Christ and he, youknow he bled for us, he died for
us and and I know that that hissacrifice, um, has made it so
(58:47):
that even people like me cancome back and to the fold.
You know he, he leaves the 99to go find that one, uh, and so
I feel like I'm that one personthat he came back to find and so
it's just just saying it outloud is just kind of like okay,
yeah, like this is my testimony.
(59:07):
Just the atonement is real and,again, satan's a big, fat liar.
My wife always says that.
Speaker 1 (59:14):
I agree.
Speaker 2 (59:16):
He will tell you all the horrible things that you've
done and you'll never be goodand you'll you know god will
never forgive you.
But that's not true, becausegod, god forgives.
You just have to forgiveyourself.
So right, yeah, that's.
That's my testimony, that thatgod loves and he forgives and he
wants you back.
And, uh, beautiful, his son andhis son will, will look for you
(59:40):
, no matter how long it takes.
Speaker 1 (59:43):
That's awesome.
Well, thank you so much, David,for your time tonight.
I really appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (59:47):
I appreciate this too , thank you.
Speaker 1 (59:51):
Thanks again for tuning into More Than
Coincidence, remembering JesusChrist in your story.
Please follow us on socialmedia or share us with a friend.
If you have an experience you'dlike to share Jesus Christ in
your story, Please follow us onsocial media or share us with a
friend.
If you have an experience you'dlike to share, feel free to
reach out tomorethancoincidencerememberhim
at gmailcom.
I can't wait to hear all of theamazing memories you all have
of our Savior.
(01:00:12):
See you next time.
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