Black Sheep

BsHDfC e-Mag august 2018 | Page 3 Age Sandoval (San Diego BSHDFC) Editor's Note: I was east bound on highway 70, driving through Colorado, headed for a patching ceremony in Colorado Springs. My cell phone rang and the person on the other end proceeded to tell me about a pastor named "Age" who they thought needed to become a Black Sheep. I asked them where he lived and they said, "Denver, Colorado." (Isn't God funny?) I thanked them for the informa on, hung up the phone and called Pastor Age Sandoval. I learned that he was the pastor of an inner city "hip-hop" church. We talked and I loved what I was hearing: the heart of a man who had been transformed by the love of Christ, now trying to share that love with others. I invited him to the patching ceremony only half believing that he would come – but he did! A few months later I would fly into Denver to meet with Age and a half dozen of his friends who had become Black Sheep. The rest is history. Today, Age Sandoval is the president of one of our San Diego chapters. He is my brother and I celebrate our friendship! Here's his story. ~Marty Edwards ------------------------------------------------------------------ It all started with my need for acceptance. At first, it led me into things like throwing spit wads at my teachers and figh ng with schoolmates. Later, I started a gang with my friends. It was our way of gaining a en on. As I grew older, the a en on turned into organized crime, drive-by shoo ngs, burglaries, assaults, par es, drugs and guns. It was all I knew. This all started to change in one single day. I was doing 78 mph on I-70 East of Denver, driving an 8000 series diesel truck, when it started to rain. It was four AM and I was very red, so I began to doze off. The next thing I knew, I was rolling end over end with a few thousand pounds of res in the back. When I woke up, I realized that I'd been ejected from the truck's cab, just a few feet in front of where the truck had stopped rolling. I recognized that if God had not stopped that truck where He did, I would've been crushed to death. That was the beginning of change. I s ll hadn't learned my lesson un l I landed in the county jail with four felony counts against me. It was there, cuffed to a cement bench, that I confessed to God that, if he was real, I needed him to come into my life. I knew I needed Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. Preacha' From Tha' Hood One year later, my younger brother Flow and I started a rap group called "Preachas in tha Hood." (No. That's not a misspelling.) Our desire was to lead people to the Lord through rap and hip-hop music. You can imagine how excited we were when forty Crip gang members came to Jesus at our first concert! Though my life had changed, I s ll had to answer for my past felonies. When I went to court, I was facing a very long sentence. The judge invited anyone to speak on my behalf, so I stood up, being led by the Holy Spirit. When I was finished speaking, the judge gave me a small sentence and told me that he didn't want to see me in his courtroom ever again or he would put me away for a long me. Message received! Since that day I have encountered many situa ons that my background has helped me overcome. I've traveled the world, performing on small and big stages with many opportuni es to share my faith in Christ. Today, I am a member of Black Sheep HDFC and it's a way I can reach a lost and hur ng people. Riding my motorcycle, preaching the Gospel through simple acts of service, allows me to do what I know I have been called to do. Even though I have wrecked my motorcycle three mes, God s ll has his hands upon me. There's a quote I will never forget: "The law cannot change the heart. It can only punish the guilty. Only Jesus Christ can change the heart. We want to introduce you to Jesus Christ!" (Arthur D. Sandoval)

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