Ed Castillo

"And you he made alive, who were dead in trepasses and sins,
in which you once walked according to the course of the world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience,
among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others."
Ephesians 2:1-3 NKJV
Just as the above scripture states, I was dead as a result of my sins and the life I was leading. The following is my testimony and I hope that someone reading this will come to realize that they are where I once was and wants to change their direction in life!! This no joke!! This is no game!! This is reality!! I will take you on a ride of ups and downs to show you that even as a Christian, we are all subject to the same issues and difficulties as non-Christians. The only thing that seperates Christians from others is that we have been saved from a fate so uncomprehensible, words can not describe.
"For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Himshould not perish but have everlasting life."
John 3:16 NKJV
ED'S TESTIMONY...
I was saved in 1988 by the grace and mercy of our saviour Jesus Christ. Had I not found Jesus then, who knows where I would be today.
"If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."
Romans 10:9 NKJV
In the year 1988 I had no direction and was considered to be one of the lost souls wandering aimlessly and without purpose. I should have been working or going to college but I got lazy. In otherwords I was being a typical 20 year old punk. I basically spent my time lounging around the house, watching TV and at times looking through the classifieds for a job suitable for a 20 year old with no experience. I was two years out of high school and hated it. I wanted to go back but that just was not possible. I was essentially caught in the real world now.
It was also in the year 1988 when I got caught up in the middle of my father's financial troubles and cocaine use and it had taken its toll on me. At the time I found it easier to just check out and do my own thing. I did whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted with no one to answer to. My father pretty much let me do what I wanted and I figured with his problems, he had more to worry about than keeping tabs on me. Through it all I was never disrespectful to him and if he needed something of me, I would certainly help.
"Children, Obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
Honor your father and mother, which is the first commandment with promise:
that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth."
Ephesians 6:1-3 NKJV
During this time my Father was on the verge of losing the house that I spent the best 8 years of my life in. I loved that house with all my heart and it was embedded with so many wonderful memories. The thought of losing it really killed me inside. With no hope of recovering his finances and since I had no job to help with the finances, he put the house up for sale without saying much of anything to me about it. One day I come home to find a "For Sale" sign on the front lawn and it blew my mind!! The most difficult part of the sale agreement was that when the house sold, he opted for a 30 day escrow which had really freaked me out. Well, the house was sold in a matter of a few weeks. I knew I had nowhere to go and because I had a dog it was tougher for me to find a place to go. I looked everyday for rooms for rent and the results were no dogs allowed. I also knew that I needed to find a very good job that would allow me to move into a place of my own but it was just not happening. I was an absolute emotional wreck and I felt like there was no hope for me. I knew that my life was crashing and burning before my very eyes. I had approached my Grandmother who lived in the San Fernando Valley about moving into her place until I could find a place of my own but she said no dog! I pleaded for my companion but her answer was still no. Basically my father kicked me to the street, I had to euthanize my dog because my Grandmother was not willing to cut me any slack, and boy was I pissed. I was mad at the world! I was left to fend for myself for the first time in my life and I had no idea what I was going to do. I thought for sure that I would be living out of my car and looking back I probably should have done that rather than to put my companion down. I at least would have been able to live with myself instead of knowing that I had killed a friend of mine.
It was one day during the midst of all of this when I ran into an old friend named Brent Fisher. I had not seen or heard from Brent since high school graduation and never thought that I would ever run into him again. After speaking with Brent for hours, he invited me to a little place I had heard about called Bouquet Baptist Church. I was a little skeptical about being invited but I agreed to go and check it out. I had heard of the church since as a sophomore at Saugus high, there was a group called "Campus After Dark" that met there during the middle of the week. It was then that I had met Pastor Ron Hanney and had a taste of good Christian fun although I was not at the time. I went for maybe a semester then left the group. I spent the rest of my high school years playing hard and not looking back. In fact I remember clearly that I would listen to Judas Priest and Iron Maiden among many other bands. I used to glorify Satan by scrawling satanic symbols on my book covers and other stuff. I was a rebel at heart. I was a sinner at heart!!
"He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil."
1 John 3:8 NKJV
After revisitng Bouquet Baptist church, and re-establishing a friendship with Brent in 1988, I was invited to the home of Kent and Deanna Fisher, his parents. My first impression was that there was something dynamic going on in that house and within the family. With a burning curiosity, I asked Brent what it was. Brent explained to me that his family had God in their lives. Intrigued, I wanted to know more. Knowing this, Brent sat me down with his Mother and she explained in detail what it was they had and how I could have the same thing. After hearing Deanna speak out of love, I was blown away and I knew that I was being called to the life that Jesus desired of me. I knew that something was about to change. I never knew by how much. At this point I had still not accepted Jesus into my life but I had felt something.
"Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another"
1 John 4:11 NKJV
About a week after meeting Brent's family, his father Kent called me into their garage and he gave me a bible and a little pocket sized book of the gospel of John. Taking this booklet home, I was glued to the book of John and I remember reading this thing with my dog laying by my side. I did not want to stop reading. I really felt God pulling me in. It was a feeling or experience I can not put into words but was exciting to say the least. These two things were the only things that kept my mind off the impending move and my hopelessness of not having a job or a place to go. These little books were the only ray of light I had at that time.
The dreaded day came upon me quite rapidly and I knew that I had to be out of the house. All of my furniture was hauled off to my Grandmothers house weeks before in anticipation of this move so all I had was some small stuff which I had managed to pack into my little car. My father and I packed the big truck with his stuff and I was just so pissed off because we were the only ones doing all the work. He said that some of his friends would be able to help but they all flaked out on us. Some friends I thought. When finished, we started driving down the street in separate vehicles when we saw the new owners big truck coming up the street. What an insult that was in my eyes.
As I pulled away from the house, I knew that I had to do something with my companion. Since this particular breed was a one owner dog, I had no choice but to take her to the pound and have her put down. I cried so hard and for so long after that. I was devastated!! I hated my father and I hated my Grandmother for not being so understanding of my plight.
Well, it was about a week after being kicked to the curb that I accepted Jesus as my saviour in the home of the Fishers. Praise God!! They all spent hours with me one evening explaining the life of Jesus and what he did so that I could be saved from the pit of hell. They prayed for me and I knew that God was there in the midst of this. It was probably a couple of weeks after that I pubicly accepted Jesus as my saviour at my new home church. (Bouquet Baptist Church) I spent a number of years at Bouquet Baptist church learning about God and serving with the youth ministry. this was such a wonderful time for me and was a lifsaver as well. I had been able to deal with the things that had occurred and I had great support of new friends.
During the course of a number of years, I had gone to Church on the Way since I had outgrown Bouquet Baptist church. I had worked with the youth group at Church on the Way under the direction of Pastor Frank Parrish. I had learned alot from Frank and had definitely grown as a person. Occasionally I was asked to speak to various youth groups regarding topics that I was familiar with and hopefully in the process to reach just one student.
FAST FORWARD...
In 1994 I left the church because I felt that I had not lived my life and I felt that my effectiveness in the youth ministry was pretty dead. That decision led me on a dark path that would lead me into binge drinking, smoking pot occasionally and sex. I spent the next ten years in the club scene that would basically dominate my life. I had everything I wanted and more, so I thought.
During this time, God had been calling me back home but I kept ignoring him. I eventually started dabbling in spiritualism. I was dating girl after girl and having the time of my life in a sinful world. A world I had never known existed in the sense that I had discovered it.
In 2004, after having panic attacks and realizing that my life was going nowhere in the club scene, I returned to the church. I knew that there had to be something better than going to some dark nightclub and drinking. I thought to myself that I would check out the Church at Rocky Peak and since then I had been part of their congregation.
In April 2007, I left Rocky Peak for reasons you can read on my blog. I have decided to go to Frontline Community Church in Santa Clarita. More on that later....
CURRENTLY...I am currently running a company that provides on-site medical standby, set medics, and disaster preparedness consultants on a nationwide scale. As a 20 year veteran of the fire/EMS field, I have a wealth of knowledge and skills that God has blessed me with.I also currently work for Braemar Country Club in Reseda, Ca. as a lifeguard for the huge aquatics center they have.
ED's FUTURE PLANS...
My future plans for my life in Christ includes living a life of adventure and finding my true identity and place in the world. Honestly I would love to write a book or two and maybe speak to youth groups or even singles groups. If I can affect the life of one person through my life and my testimony, I would say that I have done well. I would like to visit some reservations and help those natives who have been neglected by this Government. I want to help the children overcome their predicament. The native people need our help!!
My future plans include getting married on December 2nd, 2007 and having a beautiful family. We all deserve happiness and this is my prayer for all.
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