“I never thought breakdancing would change the course of my life. But your generosity invaded my East Dallas life in the form of Break Free!”
Geovanni’s dad left his family in Mexico to go to Texas when Geovanni was one.
“In those early years, I would talk to my dad on the phone, but I never really connected with him. I felt unknown by my father.”
His father came to Texas for a better life, but he struggled with addiction. He was In and out of prison. Geovanni’s family thought it would be best if they all joined their father in Texas.
“My uncles all thought my dad would do better if my mom brought my sister and I up to all live together. They were wrong.”
After years of addiction and abuse, Geovanni’s dad was sent to state prison. After 18 months, he was deported back to Mexico. Geovanni was 12.
“My view of a father was someone who was distant, and when you got close, he hurt you. This shaped who I was and the value I thought I had.”
But God had other plans for Geovanni. “A friend of mine told me about a ministry called the Lion’s Den that was in our neighborhood. I initially went to the Lion’s Den because they were playing basketball.
“But I felt loved and seen by the men who ran the ministry.
“They invited me to go to a summer camp called KAA and I accepted.
“At KAA, I continued to hear the gospel. They put on a gospel play at the end and God used that to open my eyes to the gospel. I was loved, in my sin, and by putting my faith in Jesus I would be fully accepted!”
Geovanni came home that summer as a son. “I had a loving Father! What a joy. But wow, what a struggle to believe and live in that.
“I am so thankful for you because God would use Break Free to show me the importance of discipleship.”
“A few of my friends wanted to learn how to breakdance and the Lion’s Den leader, Scott, was looking for opportunities to make that happen.
“Scott saw Mike dance at a church outreach in Dallas. He asked Mike to come to the youth center and teach a few moves.
“That first week, I didn’t even dance. I just watched. But Mike kept coming back every Saturday. Over time, I fell in love with the dance. But Mike would also do a Bible study and prayer every week. He started teaching us how to read Scripture and teach others!
“Mike’s discipleship started showing me how to walk with God. He showed me my birthright as God’s son is to make disciples!
“Mike would take me and other guys to practice spots and bboy jams. We saw this community needed the gospel. We started ministering with Mike.
“I was shown the importance of walking with others in discipleship. In those years, Mike was my Paul. Since then, I have been able to be a Paul to others!
Now as a prayer partner with Break Free, I take much of what I learned to impact East Dallas. I serve in my church and family, and look to make disciples in my neighborhood.
Break Free often says you are changing generations, one man and one moment at at time. My story is a testimony to that. One moment at a breaking outreach led to a moment of practice. That led to another moment, and another moment of continuing discipleship that has shaped me into a man who will change my family’s legacy. Thank you for being a part of my generational change!