I was born August 5th, 1999 in Boca Raton, Florida. I was born in a family of Brazilian heritage meaning out of everyone in my family, I am the first one to be born here in the United States. My biological father left my family and me at two years of age. As I grew I began to develop hate and resentment towards him and had a desire to make him pay for what he did to my family. My mother had suffered emotional and physical abuse before I was born, she was left weak and partially broken on the inside. I had to become my mother’s aid in times of anxiety attacks and take care of her recovering health. This was a wound that I didn’t want to heal because of the anger and crave for revenge that I allowed into my heart, this lasted until I was about 14 years old.
God began to heal me when my mom married my step-dad in 2009. It was a slow and hard process of accepting a new father-figure, but he loved me from the beginning! I was adopted by him in 2013. I had built a huge wall around my heart and found it difficult accepting an authority other than my mother in my life. In the first couple years of living with my step-dad I would only allow myself to open my heart to a certain extent. I did not want any type of intimacy because I still had not fully accepted him as a father due to so many years being just with my mother. It was Christmas of 2016 when looked my step-dad in the eyes with tears flowing down my face and told him that I loved him with my full heart. God had sent someone who filled a huge void in my heart and who would raise me into the man I am today. I forgave my biological father for what he had done 
and embraced the gift of starting a new family back up again! Today I happily call my former “step-dad” Dad and I could not thank the Lord more for such a blessing in my life.
I am grateful that I was able to forgive the man who caused great pain to me and my family. If I had chosen not to forgive, I would not be the person I am today. Glory be to God! Today I am healed, restored, and equipped with a testimony to share with those that have gone or are currently going through the same valley I went through. My testimony is a witness to the power of forgiveness and hope that God gives to those who believe life has come to a dead end. I have shared my testimony with many students at church, camp, youth and it has been amazing to see hope ignite once again in the hearts of those young people! All glory to God. The Holy Spirit has recently been teaching me more about what the love of God really is. It is a love that comes and helps us through whatever situation we might be going through. If we are anguished, His love sends tranquility. If we are filled with anger, His love fills us with peace. His love calms our raging seas with an instant. It is a love that gives us a new air to breathe, new words to speak, new thoughts to think, and new sings of praise to sing.
the Gift of His love 