My stepdad, he would come back drunk and just go on a tirade. If I made a mistake, he would just whip me. At those times, I would just cry to God, “God, why?” I remember that week when I was born again, looking in the mirror and knowing that that wasn’t me anymore.

I was born in Erlingsville at St. Mary’s Parish in Antigua, a little countryside hamlet, more than a village, very tiny. As a little baby, my mother moved to the Virgin Islands, and I grew up there until I was about three years old, then went back to be raised by my grandmother. When my grandmother died, the responsibilities of my care were shifted to one of my aunts. At that time, my mother had my little sister with my stepdad.

My mother would send all these things for us so we could have a good life, clothing and food and all these products, and it was never passed on to us. My sister and I were literally kids in rags while my cousins had our clothes that my mother sent for us. I was probably about eight years old at that time. Eventually, one of our neighbors wrote a letter to my mother saying how we were being mistreated. My mother came back to Antigua to get us, and I remember seeing her with tears coming out of her eyes when she saw us because we were filthy.

We moved to St. Thomas and grew up in a house where my stepdad was really not a very nice man. My mom was very strong because she had to be. She had an abusive man as her husband. I remember learning my timetables, and if I made a mistake, he would just whip me. He would go play cricket, come back drunk, and just go on a tirade. At those times, I would just cry to God, “God, why?”

The abuse had gotten so bad in my house that I moved out and lived with one of my aunts. My senior year, I moved back home, and it was just horrendous. I remember at one point my stepdad went after my mom, and I stood between him and her. I grabbed him by the shoulders, shook him, and said, “Don’t touch my mother again.” That was it. I think he knew at that point that he couldn’t do that anymore.

Three days after high school graduation, I packed my essentials in a $55 trash bag and left. I never looked back. That first year out of high school, I was walking downtown when two guys came up to me and said, “I want you to read this.” They opened the Bible and asked me, “Do you want to accept Jesus in your heart?” I held their hands, prayed on that sidewalk, and accepted Christ in my heart. For three days, I felt like I was walking on air. So much of the burden I carried just fell away.

Lo and behold, there was a big revival in North Texas. A brother named Lewis and I went to Texas for that revival, not knowing what was ahead but trusting God, because I felt then, and still do, that there was a call to ministry on my life. That was the first step into whatever that was going to look like. Shortly after, I went to school and ended up at Christ for the Nations for two years. It was such a good time because everyone there was focused on Jesus. I learned how to study the Word and how to preach the Word.

One of the friends I met there was Don Scrivner. We became really good friends. He graduated a year before I did and moved to California, but we stayed in touch. Another brother, Steve Genovese, and I drove across Texas into California. Don met me and took me back to Long Beach, and that began my adventure in California. I got a job with Macmillan Publishers and made great money, but I also lost touch with the church.

I was doing drugs and getting tired of that life. Don and I decided to go to Yosemite to get away from the city. When we got there, there was a youth revival happening. I was wearing a white shirt, and someone called me up and began to prophesy over me. The Lord spoke clearly that I was off track and needed to change course. It sent chills down my spine, but it was also reassuring to know God was still watching over me.

I spent about two and a half years in Cambria, and then it was time to move on. I decided to come back to St. Thomas, where I felt I needed to be. Riding the safari bus, I met the woman who became my wife, Haga, whom I love dearly. I was still not walking the straight and narrow, but three months after we met, we moved into our first business together. By December, our restaurant was up and running.

I look back and know I have not been perfect, but God has given us perfect grace. We have been in the valleys and on the peaks, and through it all there has been consistency, love, and the grace of God. When we had children, I returned to a deeper faith and understanding of God. We eventually began attending the church we go to now through a pastor who came to our restaurant.

In my conversion, God became my first father. Becoming a father myself gave me the opportunity to be the father I never had. If my kids did sports, I was there. Even with a packed restaurant, I would leave and say I would clean up the mess later. I thank God that He protected my mind and guarded my heart.

While we are all born into sin, God in His foreknowledge made a sacrifice for us through His son, Christ. I only have one son, and I think about how painful it would be to lose him or give him up. For God to do that for everyone, for all the sins of this world, is the ultimate love.

The Lord is good. He is so good to us. And whoever is listening to this, I want you to know that if you do not know that love, it is free and it is available in Christ Jesus.