Urban Report

Jason's Testimony

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

Program transcript

Participants: Yvonne Lewis (Host), Jason Bradley

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Series Code: UBR

Program Code: UBR000134A


00:01 Stay tuned to meet a young man
00:02 whose life made a U-turn just in time.
00:05 My name is Yvonne Lewis
00:06 and you're watching Urban Report.
00:31 Hello and welcome to Urban Report.
00:33 My guest today is Jason Bradley, Assistant to the General Manager
00:37 of the Dare to Dream Network, me... and my baby boy...
00:41 welcome to Urban Report Jason.
00:43 Thank you, thank you, it's a pleasure to be here.
00:45 You know, some people would think
00:47 "Wow! why is she interviewing her son...
00:50 like that must be nepotism at its best
00:52 but you really have a testimony
00:58 that I want our Urban Report Viewers to know about
01:02 when I first heard it, I didn't know all the details
01:07 in fact, I joked with you later and said,
01:09 "You'll get a beating later on"
01:10 After this interview, I'll be running...
01:12 as soon as this Program is over.
01:16 But you have a story
01:19 that I want our young people to hear,
01:23 I want our older people to hear
01:25 so that they can kind of know, maybe,
01:28 what's going on with their kids or grandkids
01:31 or whatever, so I really think that
01:34 what you have to say today is going to be a blessing
01:38 as I said, I heard it for the first time
01:42 really, in total, with T. Marshall Kelly
01:46 on his radio program and I thought,
01:49 "Wow! we have to have that on Urban Report"
01:51 so thank you so much for being...
01:54 willing to be transparent, I appreciate that.
01:56 That's not an easy thing to do especially when it's your Mom.
02:00 I know, that's got to be so... Like Mom and Boss.
02:04 Yeah, that's right, but anyway,
02:06 tell us a little bit about who you are
02:11 and where you came from, your family background.
02:14 Yeah, so, and I'm glad you asked that
02:17 because it's important for people to understand
02:19 the background and the family and all of that.
02:22 I was raised Seventh-day Adventist,
02:23 I was raised in the church, my mom was Adventist,
02:27 well, you're Adventist, my dad was not
02:31 but he was kind of... at the time... just because
02:36 I have a feeling that he had a strong pressure from you.
02:41 What! what!
02:44 So he was kind of faking it to make it... at the time
02:48 and growing up, I was very loved,
02:53 I came from a very loving home, you were singing professionally,
02:57 still doing jingles and all of that at that time,
03:00 for my early part of the years,
03:02 and then I remember you and dad
03:05 getting a divorce and at first it affected me,
03:09 at first I didn't understand it
03:11 I was a kid and I just couldn't grasp it
03:13 and I didn't like it, but then after that I loved it
03:15 because I got two sets of gifts, I got two places to go to,
03:20 you were the strict parent,
03:21 dad was kind of like the "fun parent"
03:24 you know, I mean, so, I had a good time,
03:27 I kind of liked that you guys got divorced
03:29 and then I had two places to go to,
03:32 and dad, throughout all this time
03:35 has always stayed in my life, like, he is a great father,
03:39 I mean, he's been there
03:41 through thick and thin from day one,
03:43 when you got remarried and we moved to Texas,
03:47 he uprooted his whole life
03:50 and just came to Dallas to finish raising me
03:53 and I think that's huge. It is...
03:55 so for the people that are watching this Program,
03:58 that there's hope, there are some good fathers
04:02 out there, and my dad is definitely one of them.
04:06 Your Dad loves you a lot and made a decision
04:09 to be in your life, to stay in your life,
04:13 and I so applaud him on that
04:16 because he...
04:17 he has never veered away from you,
04:21 he's always... when we first moved to Texas,
04:25 you were so unhappy without your dad,
04:29 and I was talking to him one day about you
04:32 and I said, "Why don't you just come here"
04:35 I mean... because he wanted to come
04:37 and when he realized that he needed to be there with you
04:42 and you were just so happy that he was there
04:44 and then you learned to, I guess, work it,
04:47 because then you had my place and then you had his place
04:50 and you said, like, your dad was a fun parent
04:52 I was the strict one, Absolutely, absolutely...
04:54 so, yeah... You were still fun
04:56 but there were just, you know, more and more rules...
05:00 more rules. More rules, yes, you had rules.
05:03 I had fun though.
05:05 Okay, all right. I don't want to discredit you.
05:06 Okay, that's good, that's good, I like that.
05:08 So, you grew up in a Christian home,
05:12 and you grew up in a loving home.
05:16 Yes. And even though,
05:17 your dad and I divorced,
05:19 we still maintained a relationship
05:22 for you too,
05:24 so that, you know,
05:25 you never felt like we were fighting and all that stuff
05:27 over you and all that which was really good
05:31 so, what happened when you were about 12,
05:35 like... where was your life after your dad and I divorced
05:41 and then, we moved to Texas
05:43 and then I got another divorce
05:46 what did that do to your life?
05:49 Well, I was honestly happy when you got that divorce
05:55 because it's just... I wanted it to be "us"
06:01 I wanted this to be you, me, Mark, when he was out there
06:07 and so, I felt a little bit relieved, so to speak,
06:13 when you got that particular divorce
06:15 and then after that, I mean, at that time my life was okay
06:19 I was playing basketball and just having fun at school
06:23 still being good, it was probably in 8th Grade
06:26 when I got approached to smoke Marijuana
06:29 and I was 13 years old, I turned it down,
06:32 I didn't begin smoking until I was 14
06:34 14 was that time in my life where everything just started
06:38 kind of like... all the bad things started happening.
06:42 Like what? Poor choices...
06:43 I became sexually active at the age of 14
06:46 and so I lost my virginity at 14 years old,
06:49 I began smoking Marijuana at 14,
06:52 I started drinking at 14, so I would find... an all...
06:58 while leading a double life so, hiding it from you and dad
07:02 and going out and hanging out with friends
07:06 on sleepovers or whatever, and going to different parties
07:11 and things of that nature,
07:12 so, at 14, I began smoking Marijuana
07:17 and I was still functioning,
07:20 I was still making sure I did right in school and stuff,
07:24 my grades slipped a little bit
07:25 but you quickly put that in check
07:29 but, you know, it was just like...
07:32 that was a pivotal point where it was...
07:35 where the bad choices
07:36 started coming in.
07:38 You know what's interesting, Jay, is that,
07:40 I really did not...
07:42 I didn't know the way you were spiraling
07:46 I didn't see it, I saw some things
07:49 you know, like, when the grades started slipping
07:51 and I could say, "What's going on with your grades?"
07:55 like, you know, but I... the sleepovers and the parties,
08:00 I'm thinking, you're just going over to a friend's house,
08:04 and everything was okay,
08:06 and these were friends from the Adventist School,
08:09 so, you know, it's important for parents, I think, to know...
08:13 I knew where you were going, of course,
08:16 but I just didn't know
08:18 about the choices you were making at that point.
08:22 Were you using the computer in a bad way too,
08:25 were you involved in pornography
08:28 and stuff like that on the computer?
08:29 Yeah, I watched that porn,
08:31 I watched porn on the computer and all that
08:33 and deleted the history and stuff
08:35 so you couldn't find anything. Hmmm... hmmm... hmmm... hmmm...
08:37 but you know, it's not just like,
08:40 I would spend the night at some friends' houses from school
08:43 or some that might have been from a Public School,
08:46 or something like that,
08:48 I mean, I went to an Adventist School from Fifth Grade on
08:52 but there's... it doesn't matter where you are,
08:55 you will find whatever...
08:58 the devil knows where your weaknesses are,
09:02 and he'll exploit those, and he exploited mine,
09:05 and I got heavy in the Rap Music,
09:07 I got heavy into bad movies,
09:10 not porn movies, per se, but like Rated-R movies
09:15 or drug movies or gangster movies
09:18 or whatever, and so, as you continue to watch that
09:22 and you continue to listen to that,
09:23 you're poisoning yourself,
09:25 you're starting to desensitize yourself to certain things
09:29 and so... you... and everything is
09:32 glorified in there, you know, you see these drug dealers
09:36 with big houses and big cars, like... fancy, expensive cars
09:40 and beautiful women,
09:41 but what you don't see is
09:43 when they're getting locked up for life sentences,
09:46 when they're getting murdered,
09:47 when they're getting robbed and shot
09:50 and all kinds of stuff, you don't see that part
09:52 because they don't you to see that part
09:53 so, you know, as I went on from 14 to like... 15, 16...
10:01 on through college, my drug habit got worse
10:05 and worse, and it just progressed
10:08 in the wrong direction.
10:10 So then you weren't able to focus on your schoolwork
10:15 you were now, when you went to college
10:18 because you went, first you went to Oakwood
10:22 no, first you went to Southern
10:24 Yes, Texas Southern
10:26 and then to Oakwood,
10:27 you weren't focused on your academics
10:31 you were... were you partying?
10:33 Yes, I was partying, I was very much into women
10:37 so, it's college, you're away from home,
10:41 I'm at a Public University, I got an on-campus apartment,
10:45 it's women everywhere, and so I was heavy into partying
10:49 I was still heavy into drugs because
10:51 where that particular college is located,
10:53 it's like the Third Ward of Houston or something like that
10:56 which is not really a great area
10:59 and then on top of that
11:01 you have all these kids coming from all these places
11:04 bringing drugs and drug habits and all that
11:06 to a central location,
11:08 no parents, just drugs and bad influences
11:12 and all of that
11:13 and those on-campus apartments where I was living,
11:17 it was
11:20 it was crazy
11:22 because there were robberies,
11:23 there were... people were going to bed,
11:25 there were gunshots, they were shooting at night
11:27 and I got my car broken into, I got my apartment broken into,
11:33 and then I went to a party one night
11:36 and there was a young lady that was at the party
11:40 I left the party because there were a lot of guys
11:44 and that wasn't my scene, I don't want to be
11:48 somewhere in an environment where...
11:50 it's a whole bunch of guys
11:52 in a small space and not... no women really,
11:56 so I left the party, after that same party
12:00 this young lady, I knew her roommate
12:02 and this lady... she got shot in the head and killed.
12:07 At the same party that you had been in?
12:09 Same party I was at, so throughout...
12:12 even though I've made all those bad choices
12:15 and continued to make... not continued now,
12:18 but continued to make bad choices,
12:22 God has still had His hand on my life
12:25 whether or not I gave Him the time or not,
12:28 he still protected me.
12:29 Where were you spiritually at that time?
12:32 Non-existent... my spiritual life was...
12:34 I mean, I knew there was God, I knew there was a God,
12:38 and I would do the rituals, I'd say my blessing,
12:41 but I wasn't going to church, I wasn't reading my Bible,
12:44 I didn't desire a relationship with God,
12:49 I was more about... myself and what I wanted to do
12:52 and the women and the drugs and all that
12:57 it consumed me,
12:59 and the party life... that consumed me
13:01 I began selling drugs, I went out and got a scale
13:06 and I decided I wanted to make some money
13:08 while... I had a job too
13:10 but I decided that I wanted to make some other money
13:13 and support a drug habit,
13:15 and so I began selling some drugs.
13:18 Were you scared,
13:21 I mean, that whole scene
13:23 was that... that's not how you were raised
13:26 Hmmm... hmmm... so, were you uncomfortable
13:29 with that scene or had you...
13:31 because you were using it,
13:33 had you developed a certain level of comfort
13:36 in that whole environment?
13:37 I grew kind of comfortable, there's never
13:42 like a true level of comfort that can be obtained
13:46 or attained with that lifestyle
13:49 because you constantly have to worry about getting robbed,
13:51 you have to worry, looking over your back,
13:53 because people...
13:55 if they find out about you selling drugs,
13:58 some of them might go to the police
14:00 or some of them might try and rob you
14:02 or some of... you just have different things
14:04 to worry about and... I mean...
14:07 it's not something that I owe, and I knew it was wrong
14:09 and I wasn't raised that way, I was never raised that way,
14:12 from either parent,
14:14 so, I mean, I felt that it was wrong
14:17 but my morals had shifted Hmmm... hmmm...
14:24 because I was in a cloud,
14:26 basically... Hmmm... hmmm...
14:28 even at that particular school like I said... a minute ago,
14:31 my apartment got broken into,
14:33 I ended up figuring out who broke into my apartment,
14:37 but I wasn't going to go to the Cops because
14:39 if they can prove that they did it,
14:43 then they know that I told that they did it,
14:46 and I know those particular people had guns
14:50 so, I went to try and get a gun at the time,
14:53 and I was going to go confront them
14:56 on breaking into my apartment,
14:58 God made it to where that
15:01 every time that I was trying to go purchase a gun,
15:03 something fell through, and it just never...
15:07 it didn't happen, it never happened,
15:10 Hmmm... hmmmm. so, He saved my life with that
15:15 because what happened if I would have gone over there
15:17 and I would have confronted them
15:19 and they would have pulled their gun
15:21 then I would have had to take a life
15:23 which is never...
15:24 I never would ever want to do that...
15:27 Yeah, and things can escalate. Absolutely.
15:30 You have a gun, they have a gun,
15:32 words are spoken
15:35 and then you're in each other's faces
15:37 because then your "Manhood" is on the line
15:39 you know what I mean? disrespects you...
15:42 it's just craziness,
15:43 and it just goes into a another whole area
15:46 that can turn your life around forever.
15:50 Absolutely. Forever.
15:51 I think we have a picture of you,
15:53 when you were in that lifestyle that I'd like to put up
15:57 because I'd like for people to kind of see
16:00 the difference in the way you look now
16:03 and the way you looked then.
16:04 Yes, there are three pictures that we have
16:09 this is one of them,
16:11 I was in a car, I couldn't even tell you
16:14 where I was going or where I was coming from,
16:16 it could have been a party at the time
16:18 we have another picture
16:21 where I was getting ready to go out
16:24 or I just came from going out, it's very dark, you know,
16:30 it was a dark time in my life
16:31 that's another picture where I was going to go party
16:36 Hmmm... hmmm... to the wrong kind of parties.
16:40 Yeah, God is so amazing because
16:42 during the time you were away in college,
16:46 of course, I didn't know all the stuff you were getting into
16:49 I knew about the apartment getting broken into
16:52 and that kind of thing, but I didn't know about
16:54 the drugs and the selling of the drugs and all that,
16:57 but I knew that you weren't walking with the Lord
17:01 and so, the praying...
17:05 I was praying for you and for Mark
17:08 and have been, I mean,
17:10 because that's what we have to do as parents
17:13 we have to stand in the gap for our kids,
17:17 and I knew that your life wasn't right
17:20 but I didn't know the extent
17:21 I didn't know how far away you had gone
17:25 because you kept it... you kept it from me
17:30 and so that was one phase of your life
17:34 what happened later
17:36 that was so life-changing for you?
17:38 Well, there were a couple of things
17:42 one is... after a while... okay...
17:46 I went to a private college
17:47 after TSU, I went to a Seventh-day Adventist College
17:52 and I ended up driving back to TSU to buy some Marijuana
17:58 and bring it back to school and sell it...
18:01 You were going to sell it back at the Private school?
18:03 Yes, yes, there are people that abuse drugs
18:08 everywhere Yeah.
18:09 and so, I was going to sell it there
18:12 but I ended up getting robbed at a gas station
18:14 in one of these States, okay,
18:18 and so, then, what that did was...
18:21 that was still a little bit of a protection
18:23 because I ended up getting pulled over
18:25 down the highway, and the Cop ended up lying
18:30 and saying that I didn't...
18:32 I failed the breathalyzer or something and he said...
18:37 basically I didn't have anything to drink
18:39 but it was zeroes across the things
18:42 that I had point 008 which was legal and so he lied,
18:45 they ended up letting me go, taking me back
18:48 and I went on and got back home,
18:51 went on my merry way, but later on in life though
18:54 my appendix ruptured inside of me
18:58 and that was a life-threatening issue
19:02 because I had been misdiagnosed, I got sent home twice
19:06 the third time, my doctor was supposed to be on vacation,
19:10 but he happened to be in the office
19:11 and he came and saw me, that's not just a coincidence
19:15 that's God putting him in the building
19:17 that particular time when I needed him
19:19 and so he ran one more test and sent me to the ER
19:23 and told my dad to take me to ER
19:25 they performed an emergency surgery on me
19:29 and Dr. Carlton Byrd came and prayed with me
19:32 I didn't know him because I wasn't going to church
19:35 but that prayer meant so much and I thank him all the time
19:40 whenever I see him, so, if you're watching this,
19:42 Dr. Byrd, thank you for praying with me
19:45 and you would have thought that after that experience
19:48 that I would have given my life to God,
19:51 I thanked Him, but I was still stuck on "me"
19:54 I was still stuck on things that I wanted to do
19:57 so I ended up getting out of the hospital
19:59 and as soon as I was okay to walk around and move around,
20:04 I want back to the "hood"
20:07 and I started selling drugs again
20:10 and using drugs, this particular day, though,
20:14 I ended up having 14 bags of Marijuana
20:19 and two Ecstasy Pills, and these Cops walked up
20:25 from behind the building...
20:26 Undercover? No... they were in uniform
20:29 but they came up from behind the building
20:31 so, I was walking into the building
20:35 because I saw them coming and I was acting like
20:37 I was on the phone and they called me back out
20:39 to sit down with everybody else and they wanted to search us
20:43 and they were asking us to give up our drugs,
20:45 they ended up finding my 14 bags of Marijuana
20:48 I had tried to discard it,
20:50 but they found it and they took me to jail
20:53 my stomach was still open at the time, mind you,
20:55 From your surgery?
20:57 yes, from my surgery, and I went to jail,
21:00 they took me to jail, and that ended up being
21:04 one of the best days of my life
21:06 because it was a turning point, it was a wake-up call
21:09 and it was that push that I needed
21:12 it was like, God saying, "I've protected you this far,
21:16 I'm still protecting you, you're being held in here,
21:19 but I'm still protecting you but you need this to wake up
21:22 and change your life around, so I got out of jail,
21:25 and I was determined not to go...
21:28 How long were you in... just overnight, right?
21:30 I spent the night and I slept on steel
21:32 because when I came back from the Pre-trial,
21:34 there was no mattress pad or anything,
21:36 just straight metal, I got out the next day,
21:40 anybody who knows me knows I love food,
21:43 so, I do not like to be in a place
21:45 where I can't go in my refrigerator
21:48 or go get what I want to eat so I got out
21:51 and when I got out, my family didn't abandon me
21:55 my family rallied behind me and supported me through it all
21:59 and helped me get the help that I needed.
22:02 I still didn't give my life to Christ,
22:06 I went a couple more years,
22:09 I'm not convicted of anything that's a blessing,
22:11 I'm not convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor,
22:14 I went on through life and then
22:17 I ended up managing a restaurant which was a huge blessing
22:22 because I needed to gain that experience
22:26 I needed to experience success so to speak
22:30 I had 60 to 70 people under me at the time
22:34 and so I became a Restaurant Manager
22:36 I was working crazy hours, 70 hours a week,
22:39 but I was making good money,
22:41 but there was still that emptiness
22:43 I was still empty and going back to my upbringing,
22:46 from when I was a kid,
22:48 I've always heard, "Money isn't everything"
22:50 I would not have believed that until I started making the money
22:54 and then realizing that I'm still not happy
22:57 that money isn't everything and I knew
23:00 that the only person that could fill that void was Jesus
23:03 and so when I accepted the Lord as my Savior,
23:06 How did you know that, how did you know that?
23:08 because I had the money, I had the good-looking girl
23:13 I had a house, I had... I had things,
23:17 but things don't bring that happiness
23:20 it does for a short period of time,
23:23 "I'm okay, I got this" but there's still...
23:27 you lack that inner peace and so I knew that
23:30 that void that needed to be filled,
23:33 money wasn't going to fill it, women weren't going to fill it,
23:35 drugs and alcohol weren't going to fill it,
23:37 and even before that, I had been doing Club Promotions
23:43 I was known within a circle where I could go in
23:49 and I'd be in VIP, I'd get in for free,
23:52 I had all the benefits of the wrong places,
23:56 I'd drink for free, whatever,
23:58 all the benefits of the wrong places
24:01 and so, after coming to the realization that,
24:04 "Okay, my way has been wrong all this time
24:07 and it's not bringing me happiness... "
24:10 I accepted the Lord as my personal Savior,
24:13 and I came to 3ABN and it was the Day of Prayer
24:17 and on that Day of Prayer, I remember Danny Shelton saying
24:21 that if you leave this place
24:25 and you can't get it off of your mind,
24:28 and this is where God would have you to be.
24:32 So, I went back home, I was still working,
24:35 managing the restaurant, working 60 to 70 hours a week,
24:38 and I kept thinking, 3ABN... 3ABN...
24:40 Dare to Dream... Dare to Dream...
24:42 and I was like,
24:45 "This is where God would have me to be"
24:47 you're here, Grandy's here, my Grandpa,
24:50 and I was like,
24:53 this is where God would have me to be
24:56 because I can't get it out of my mind.
24:59 Hmmm... hmmm... It's so amazing, Jay, how
25:02 we talk about God's divine purpose,
25:05 and how everyone has a purpose,
25:08 for me... I was trying to get an Assistant
25:11 and could not get an Assistant, I'd get different resumes,
25:15 but I would instantly... after talking to people
25:19 I'd know, they really just wanted to be on television,
25:22 I was looking for an Assistant, and so...
25:25 and God never let me get one until you...
25:29 and you had worked for me in Dallas
25:31 when I had a Medical Practice and I knew your work ethic,
25:34 I knew how you were with people,
25:36 and so, I wanted you here with me
25:39 and look at what God did, He brought you...
25:41 how do you like your job as the Assistant
25:44 to the General Manager?
25:46 I love it and I'm fine with not being on TV
25:48 I'm fine with being behind the desk
25:51 doing whatever... traveling, all that, I love this job
25:54 and I feel like I'm walking in my divine purpose
25:57 this is where God would have me to be.
25:59 That is so... so awesome,
26:02 what would you say to that young man
26:04 who thinks that women and drugs and alcohol and money
26:09 are the answer, look into your camera
26:11 and tell that young man right now
26:14 what he needs to do.
26:16 First of all, the money and the drugs,
26:20 the alcohol, the women,
26:21 none of that is going to bring you happiness,
26:24 you might have happiness for a short period of time
26:27 but it's not going to last
26:29 and then you're going to be searching for something else.
26:31 You might not be as blessed as I was
26:35 to have escaped that bullet that night,
26:39 to have escaped somebody...
26:41 and I didn't even go into the "somebody popping their trunk"
26:45 while we were sitting at a light which means
26:47 they're going to get a gun, you might not dodge that,
26:51 you might get that life sentence,
26:53 you might get robbed, you might get killed,
26:56 change your life today,
26:58 if you're watching this Program,
27:00 please, make a decision to accept Jesus Christ
27:03 because He is the answer
27:04 and He will bring you true happiness
27:06 and He will bring you that inner peace that you need,
27:08 you have nothing to lose but everything to gain
27:11 so, do it today.
27:13 Amen. Thank you Jay,
27:15 you know I'm so proud of the man that you are,
27:19 that God has brought you such a mighty long way
27:24 and I'm just so thankful for that.
27:25 Look at what God did, I needed an Assistant
27:28 my son was away from the Lord,
27:31 and He did both things
27:33 in one move,
27:34 you know, brought you back to Him,
27:36 and brought you here to help me
27:38 and now I feel like Dare to Dream is really
27:41 in such a better place because
27:43 the Lord has brought you here so, thank you,
27:46 and thank you for being so transparent.
27:48 Thank you. I love you so much,
27:49 I'm so proud of you.
27:50 I love you too.
27:52 And parents, know that God has a plan for your children
27:55 don't be discouraged, you hang in there
27:57 and God's going to bring them through.
27:59 That's the end of our Program,
28:01 join us next time, because you know what?
28:02 It just wouldn't be the same without you.


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Revised 2015-11-18