Testimony of Frank Hernandez

Frank H. is a new found friend of mine from a Christian website called Battle Cry. I would encourage you all to check out Battle Cry. You will be blessed!

Hello, My name is Frank Hernandez I pray that through this testimony the Lord can use my bad choices to minister to someone out there amen. Well I'm 35 years old. I was born in Riverside, Ca. However I was raised in Corona, Ca. I was raised by my mother and step father. I also have four brothers and two sisters, all younger than me. Growing up in my home with my step dad was very hard for me. I was always treated differently, was mistreated very bad. I never have been fishing, camping, or to a baseball game. My life was very restricted to being home. My step dad never showed me anything. At the time well I was young I didn't know he was my step dad. I grew up thinking he was my real Dad because He raised me from the time I was 6 mo. old. At the age of 8 years old I finally met my real dad. He had just been released from prison. Still at this time I was not told he was my dad. He was introduced to me as my uncle. My uncle (dad) saw me in the store on day. He wanted to buy me some candy, I told him I couldn't because I wasn't allowed to eat candy or drink sodas, but my brothers could. The next day he came over to visit me without my dad knowing. And gave me all kinds of sweets=) I thought he was the coolest. Yet I still didn't know he was my real dad. It wasn't till about 2 weeks later that my mom called me over from my grandma’s house to talk to me. She informed me that my real dad had just been killed, and that he was not my uncle but my real dad. Then she just got up and left me there by myself. At that point it hit me, all the hurt of never knowing who my dad was. Why I had always been mistreated everything hit me. I was only 8 years old, and I was filled with so much hate. All I knew was that this man my uncle or dad who ever he was, was the only person who treated me the way a father should treat his son. I put it in my heart to avenge my dad. So at the age of 12 years old I got jumped into my street gang. I started using drugs fighting anybody and everybody. I wanted too be feared. I had so much hate inside of me. I started too get locked up in juvenile hall at 13. I was on a down ward spiral, going no where real fast. at the age of 14, I started to shoot up speed and heroin. By that time I had made a name for myself in the streets. Even with the older homies. Everyone knew that when someone messed with my gang or its members I was the one to call. I was so dedicated I would sleep with my shoes on so I could be ready when the gang needed me. It got to the point that I was already fighting with the police. Shortly there after, a local gang was out to kill me. The police had called my mom to inform her that she should keep me inside and try to prevent me from going out that night. I didn't listen I went out looking for them and ended up getting busted. Thank you, Jesus. They ended up going to my house, chasing my lil brother shooting at him for my mistakes. That just made matters worse. I was still filled with so much rage and hate. I ended up finding out that my real dads brother had something to do with my dads killing. It may have been due to some prison politics stuff. So my ultimate goal was to go to prison. At 15 years old they sentenced me to 1 year in juvie camp. I ended up doing three years. When I got out I was just about 18 years old. After only about 2 mo. of my release, I met my wonderful wife. Everything moved so fast. 3 mo. later I was living with her, and her two young girls ages 4 and 2. They are my girls now=) Anyways I changed my whole outlook on life as a result of falling in love with my wife, although we both continued to use drugs, and partying all hours in the night. About 1 year later we both accepted the Lord. Halleluiah! We then got married and were doing good. However we were not reading our bibles at all=( We were the, yea look at me I'm a Christian type of person. you know the type.) We knew of God but didn't know God. In the year 2000 I lost my baby brother. He was only 23 years old. Didn't understand why he died he was in good health and shape. He went to sleep on night and didn't wake back up. It wasn't till later that we found out he had high blood pressure and didn't know it. That hit me real hard. I wasn't prepared for it spiritually. I fell back into drugs and gangs again real heavy. This time I now had not only my wife, but also my two daughters and two sons. I was bringing drugs and guns into my home. The only thing that mattered to me was me. I got involved in some pretty heavy duty stuff. I ended up in prison on a five year sentence for my crime. I thank the Lord because I was facing about 12 years. And yet even in there I wasn't ready to change. The first half of my term I was involved in some pretty bad stuff. My wife was driving 12 hours every weekend to come see me. Half way through my prison term God used an unsaved man to minister to me. This man said what was wrong with me. He said there was something different about me; I had a wife who came to see every weekend, got mail everyday. He went on to tell me that he knew I read my bible at night he suggested that I get my bible and stick to it. Prison wasn't for me he said. I knew at that moment The Lord was giving me one last chance. If I didn't respond he was going to stop knocking on my heart. So I literally went to the guys I was running with in there and said that was it I was going to serve the Lord. I really gave my life to him. I started to minister in there, the Lord was really using me inside there to minister to all those men. I was leading men to the Lord in there. I began preaching every weekend in the prison chapel. I always say that being in there was my spiritual boot camp. Being in there the Lord showed me how to depend on him. When my wife was sick and in the hospital, there was nothing I could do but pray. I couldn't even go see her because I was in prison. When my sons were doing bad in school, I couldn't help them. I just sought the Lord and he took care of it. Now I'm in Bible college to obtain my ordination lic. to become a prison minister. I was just recently invited to speak at the juvenile hall in my county. I am also involved in are churches youth group. I just had the opportunity to minister to them as well as our men’s meeting. God is doing something in my life. There is nothing better in life than serving the Lord. God is good. He has restored my relationship with my step dad and mother. Halleluiah. My mom is serving the Lord. I now work with my dad. So I minister to him through out the day. The Lord is just moving so much in my life. All praise and glory belong to Jesus. If this testimony has touched you and you would like to e-mail me for anything prayer someone to talk to. I'm here for you. But most of all God is there for you AMEN. my e-mail address is f.hernandez70@yahoo.com.

The Importance of God's Word

How important is the Word of God to you? Co you make sure that you spend some time everyday in His Word?
When I meet a fellow brother or sister in Christ, one of the first questions I ask is, “What have you been reading in the Word?” Which is usually followed by, “Is anything sticking out to you while you read?” Most of the time I get a response of “I haven’t been reading the Bible lately,” or “I’m...uh...reading...uh... I forgot what I read this morning.”
“For I delight in Your commands because I love them. I lift up my hands to Your commands, which I love, and I meditate on Your decrees.” –Psalm 119:47-48
Delight- the source of pleasure; great satisfaction; joy (Webster’s Encyclopedia of Dictionaries)
Do you delight in the Lord’s commands because you love them, and Him?
Think of the Word of God this way... a letter written to you from the Person who loves you the most. If someone wrote you a love letter wouldn’t you want to read it every chance you got? (Personally I would especially if I said I loved that person back)
We as followers of Jesus Christ should want to spend time in God’s Word.
"Oh, how I love Your law! I meditate on it all day long." -Psalm:119:97

Urgent Prayer Request!!!

I have a major prayer request. My mom and I babysit a 2 year old named Landon, and he's in the hospital right now. He was sick this morning when his mom dropped him off, and it just got worse as the morning progressed. He'll be staying in the hospital for a few days. Please keep Landon and his parents in your prayers. Neither of his parents are followers of Jesus Christ. Thanks!!

I'm sorry for my absence as of late. I've become extremely busy, and have not had a whole lot of time to do anything but school.

Resurrection Day

“ When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus' body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?"
But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.
"Don't be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.' "
Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.
When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. She went and told those who had been with him and who were mourning and weeping. When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it.
Afterward Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them while they were walking in the country. These returned and reported it to the rest; but they did not believe them either.
Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.
He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God.” –Mark 16:1-19

Easter isn’t about some cute, little, fuzzy bunny who gives out Easter eggs for good little boys and girls to find, but it’s about the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave.

My prayer is that you all will have a most blessed Resurrection Day!! God bless and take care on this wonderful day that we remember when the Lord Jesus Christ rose from the grave!

Fearfulness of Witnessing

My throat is dry; I try to swallow
My brow is wet with perspiration; I wipe it away
I open my mouth to speak; but no words come out
I close my eyes and open them, trying to blink the fears away
What was that verse? I can’t remember
I’m trembling from head to toe
I want to say “Jesus loved you enough to die for you”, but “how was your day” comes out instead
I want to tell them about Heaven and Hell; instead we talk about the weather and the latest news
“I’ll tell him next time, Lord.” I say as I’m driving home
There won’t be a next time
I get a phone call from his parents later that night
They tell me he died in a car wreck
The told me about the head on collision with the semi
And how he died on impact
“Oh God!! Why didn’t I tell him?”
Now he’s gone, and there’s no turning back
I let him go, and now he’s burning in Hell for eternity

We as true followers of Jesus Christ shouldn’t be afraid to share the Gospel with our friends, family, or even someone we don’t know.

Why?

Well, one...He told us not to fear those who can only kill the body. Matthew 10:28- “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the On who can destroy both soul and body in Hell.”

And two...God tells us to GO. Matthew 28:19-20- “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Mark 16:15- “He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.’”
How about it? Who will join with me to save our lost and dying generation?