EVERY LITTLE BOY NEEDS THE
IMAGE OF HIS FATHER.
THE NEED TO HEAR THAT MAN.
THAT IS WHO MY DAD IS.
THROUGHOUT MY LIFE I GUESS I WAS
SEARCHING FOR THAT FATHER
FIGURE.
ANTONIO SANTANA GREW UP NEVER
KNOWING HIS BIOLOGICAL FATHER.
MY MOM WAS ALWAYS AT WORK AND
STEP DAD GONE.
I DID WHAT I WANTED.
HE HAD LITTLE DIRECTION IN
HIS LIFE BUT MANAGED TO AVOID
THE NEGATIVE INFLUENCES IN HIS
NEIGHBORHOOD.
I PICKED UP A BASKETBALL,
BEING ON THE BASKETBALL COURT
PLAYED A VITAL ROLE IN KEEPING
DRUGS AND GANGS OUT OF MY LIFE.
HE COULDN'T AVOID THEM
FOREVER.
I MADE IT ALL THE WAY TO MY
SENIOR YEAR IN HIGH SCHOOL AND
STARTED SMOKING MARIJUANA AND
SKIP CLASS TO GO SMOKE WEEK AND
IT WENT DOWNHILL.
EVENTUALLY HE WAS KICKED OUT
OF HIGH SCHOOL.
THERE WAS NO ONE TO GUIDE
ANTONIO IN HIS DECISIONS,
CERTAINLY NOT HIS OWN FAMILY.
THEY NEVER SAT ME DOWN TO
TELL ME I WAS MESSING MY LIFE
UP.
MAYBE I WOULD HAVE AVOIDED
THINGS IN MY LIFE. I WENT TO
JAIL A NUMBER OF TIMES.
THE LAST THING YOU HEAR IS THE
CLOSE OF THE JAIL CELL.
TRAPPED WITH YOUR CONSCIOUSNESS.
THERE HAS TO BE SOMETHING MORE
IN LIFE.
I HAD A VOID IN MY LIFE.
I COULDN'T FILL IT NO MATTER
WHAT DRUG, WHAT GIRL, NOTHING
COULD FILL THE VOID.
IT LED ME FURTHER INTO
DEPRESSION.
I NEEDED A CHANGE IN LIFE.
HE FOUND WORK AT A LOCAL
FACTORY.
IT WAS THERE HE BEGAN TO SEARCH
FOR GOD.
I HAD A FEW FRIENDS THAT
WOULD SMOKE MARIJUANA WITH ME
CLAIMING TO BE MUSLIM.
WHEN I GOT OFF WORK I WENT TO
THE MOSQUE.
I WAS EXCITED BECAUSE I WANTED
TO LEARN ABOUT WHO GOD IS.
THIS LITTLE ARAB MAN WALKED OUT.
HE WAS TALKING ABOUT HOW IT
COULD CHANGE MY LIFE.
I NEEDED A CHANGE IN MY HEART.
I STARTED OFF MY DIFFERENT
JOURNEY OF LIFE.
I STOPPED CUSSING, STOPPED
PRE-MARITAL SEX, I STOPPED
SMOKING MARIJUANA.
I HAD A NEW IDENTITY.
I WAS A MUSLIM.
HE DEVOTED HIMSELF TO ISLAM.
YET SOMETHING WAS MISSING.
I WAS PRAYING FIVE TIMES A
DAY.
EVERY TIME I KNELT DOWN, IT FELT
LIKE I WAS PRAYING TO A BRICK
WALL.
IT MADE ME MORE DEPRESSED.
I AM TRYING TO BE RIGHTEOUS.
I FELT GOD FURTHER AWAY.
HE HAD STRANGE DREAMS.
I DREAMT I WAS SWIMMING IN
THE OCEAN ALL BY MYSELF.
THERE WAS A FIGURE IN THE
BACKGROUND FISHING FOR ME.
I DIDN'T KNOW WHO THAT FIGURE
WAS, I COULDN'T CATEGORIZE HIM
AS JESUS CHRIST.
I HAD AN IMPRESSION IT WAS
JESUS.
I WAS TRYING TO MAKE SENSE.
I COULDN'T EXPLAIN IT.
THE DREAMS CONTINUED.
ONE DAY ON THE STREET I MET A
CHRISTIAN EVANGELIST.
THEY TOLD ME TO READ THIS
VERSE JOHN 14:6.
WHEN I READ IT I WAS STUNNED.
JESUS SAYS I AM THE WAY, THE
TRUTH AND THE LIFE, NO MAN
SHOULD COME TO THE FATHER BUT BY
ME.
I HAD NO REBUT L.
I COULDN'T REFUTE THOSE SAYINGS.
THE EVANGELIST PRAYED FOR
ANTONIO TO FIND THE TRUTH.
OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS HE
STRUGGLED.
I AM TIRED OF PRAYING, GOD
WHERE ARE YOU?
I HEAR A KNOCK ON THE FRONT
DOOR.
IT TURNED OUT TO BE MY UNCLE
RICKY.
HE SAYS THE LORD, YES.
THEN HE WALKS AWAY.
IT LED ME TO LOOK UP THE WORD
"LOVE" IN THE KORAN.
IT WAS BASED ON A STIPULATION.
THEN I LOOKED ROMANS 5:8, GOD
DEMONSTRATES OUR LOVE FOR US
WHILE YET WE ARE STILL SINNERS.
THAT LOVE LED HIS SON TO DIE FOR
ME.
I WAS LIKE WOW, THIS GOD.
HAS TO BE THE TRUE GOD.
ANTONIO FOUND WHAT HE HAD
BEEN SEEKING.
I BELIEVED IN THE JESUS OF
THE BIBLE.
I HAD A SENSE OF PEACE.
NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS WHATEVER
I AM HEADED, GOD HAS MY BACK.
I BECAME SO ENRAPTURED STUDYING
GOD.
I WANTED TO TELL EVERYBODY ABOUT
JESUS.
HE ENROLLED IN THE BIBLE
INSTITUTE TO LEARN MORE.
I WANT TO SERVE IN THE CHURCH
FULL TIME TO HELP BROKEN
FAMILIES AND MINISTER TO A
FATHERLESS GENERATION.
TO BE A BIG BROTHER TO THE
BROTHERLESS.
THE SEARCH FOR MY FATHER
DEFINITELY WAS A VOID.
SCRIPTURE IS TRUE, GOD ADOPTS US
INTO HIS FAMILY AND HE BECOMES
OUR FATHER.
