"How Ministries United to Bring Hope, Healing & Help" ft. Daniel Rivera

A Night of Breakthrough: Testimonies, Worship & Transformation in Gary, Indiana

In this episode, host Omar Calvillo interviews Pastor Daniel Rivera from Restoration House in Gary, Indiana. Pastor Daniel shares the harrowing spiritual battles he faced while trying to tell his testimony, including spiritual attacks, adverse weather and personal obstacles. The podcast also highlights a transformative event where various ministries came together in Gary, Indiana, for a concert that featured worship, Christian hip hop, and impactful testimonies. The event not only brought spiritual healing but also provided financial blessings and community support. Discover the divine connections that made this event possible and how it touched countless lives, turning darkness into light.

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• 14:53 (Cont.) "How Ministries United to Bring Hope, Healing & Help" ft. Daniel Rivera

Transcript

0:15

From the city of Chicago, a city most recently known for its crime and violence from this podcast. We will be sharing stories of redemption from individuals raised in the tough streets of Chicago and from around the country. Some of them were gang members, drug dealers, incarcerated victims, and perpetrators of violence. Listen to my guests as they share their experiences, struggles, trauma, but also the strength, hope, faith, and perseverance these have developed in them to keep pushing and moving forward in life. Tune in to hear how their lives have gone, from darkness to light, and from wrong to strong.

Omar: 1:04

Hello everyone, and welcome to another episode of From Wrong to Strong podcast. I'm your host. My name's Omar Calvio. Uh, tonight we're doing a Zoom interview. Uh, so my guest tonight joining us all the way from, uh, Gary, Indiana, is Pastor Daniel Rivera. Uh, he's a, a lead pastor at Restoration House out in Gary. Uh, they're doing a, a, a amazing work as far as ministry. I'm gonna let him. Uh, jump on and tell us exactly what, what he does there. For those of you who might not know of him, uh, we did a interview a while back. It was maybe about a year ago. Uh, but Pastor Daniel, uh, drove out here and that, that was a interesting, uh, part of the story as well when he came out here. Um, it was almost like the enemy didn't want him to share his story. You know, we were experiencing all type of attacks spiritually. Even the weather. A crazy storm. I remember when he, uh, parked in, in front of the house, jumped out of his truck and just to run into my house, got all soaked. Oh, matter of fact, I, I, I, I still owe you a shirt, brother. I have your shirt here. But anyways, you know, uh, welcome to the podcast, pastor Daniel. Uh,

Daniel: 2:10

Rivera. Thank you. Thank you, brother. I appreciate you having me on.

Omar: 2:15

Man. But yeah, that, that was an interesting, uh, uh, story that day. You know what, WWI, I, I know that wasn't our intention to start there, but, uh, I, I, I know you were very, uh, uh, hesitant in sharing your testimony, and I believe it, it was a fight that day. I don't know. You wanna share your perspective on the battle that you experienced, just, you know Sure. To get your story out there.

Daniel: 2:34

Sure. So on that day, uh, it was actually, it was tough for me because I knew that this was the, gonna be the first time that I had the privilege of sharing my testimony o on the airwaves where anyone and everyone could see it. And not that I was ashamed of the gospel in any means by any means. Uh, however, I had no idea. To what extent or to who, uh, this would be seen or who, who could see it? Uh, because as I had mentioned in the interview, um, I had shared my testimony many times, but never have I shared it in front of, uh, the family of the, uh, gentleman that I was responsible for taking his life when I was 17 years of age. And so I just wanted to be very, uh, considerate that it may be their first time hearing it. I didn't want it to come off like it was no big deal to me. I didn't want it to come off like, uh, I had no remorse or like, it was just, uh, another day. Uh, it was tough for me to share, uh, that day. Um, and yeah, like you said, when I got there, it was, it started off rough. Uh, just getting outta my vehicle, making my way to your door. I think I had to park just one house down. Uh, from there to your front door, I was soaked. It was raining real, real hard that day. And so you blessed me with a, with a wrong to strong shirt that day. It was perfect, not, I would've been just sitting there, uh, being interviewed in a sopping, uh, sopping wet T-shirt. But yeah, that's, that's what made that day tough was it was the first time that I was gonna be sharing this with not, uh, without knowing who, who might, who might be on the other side of the lens.

Omar: 4:15

I gotcha. And, and even, uh, that, that, that's your, that's just, uh, like what you were experiencing. Uh, but remember when you got here, like, I was experiencing my own stuff, you know? Uh, not, not to, not to get into details, but there was, I was being pulled in another direction with a, like a family emergency. Uh, but it was, it was kind of like a, a spiritual, uh, uh, uh, attack as well. Yeah. But, uh, yeah, so it started off with that. So I remember Pastor Dan came, we, we, we started praying for, for, for that situation. And then, uh, man, we decided to get into his testimony. So, yeah, you know what? I'm gonna put a link, uh, to his, uh, testimony to the, the podcast interview that we did. I'm gonna put it in, in the show notes, uh, so you guys could go back and hear his, uh, his testimony and to what he's doing now. Uh, but so eventually, you know, we, we got his story out there. It went out there, uh, people began to listen to it. So I'll, I'll, I'll, I'll let you share, uh, the, this part of the story, uh, how, how the podcast ended up. Being shared with somebody who's all the way out, out in, um, is it Tucson? I believe so. Right. Tucson, Arizona. Tucson, Arizona. Yeah. I had, I, I, I, did you wanna share that part?

Daniel: 5:22

Sure. So I, I had no idea, right? Like I said, no, once, once, uh, once you, uh, do something like a podcast, it can go anywhere. And, and, uh, little did I know there was a good brother by the name of Jaime was Cazares out in, uh. Tucson, Arizona, who became aware of the podcast and watched, uh, the interview. I'm not sure if it was because you were, you had, uh, uh, plans of interviewing him or how that worked, how he became aware of it nonetheless, uh, God was working in the midst of it. And on that day, he tuned in and he saw my interview. And it just so happened that Jaime is originally from the same area where I caught, uh, my case, where I, where I was, uh. Where, where I, um, got in trouble at. And, and the story was so similar to his brother's story that, uh, he couldn't, he said he couldn't help but finish watching it. And by the end of the story, he made a statement to his wife. He said, I don't know why, but I feel like I'm supposed to meet this guy and, and we're supposed to do some kind of work together. And, um, it wasn't long later, he was, he was coming out to, uh, the Chicagoland area and it was, uh, to be interviewed. Um, by yourself. And, um, he, he decided to stop by just to meet me there at the, uh, at the restoration house in Gary. And we, we talked for a little bit and, uh, we just kind of hit it off. We clicked. It was like we knew each other, however we just met. And, uh, uh, fast forward, I don't know how long, brother, it feels like it was almost. Month, eight months, a year later, he was, uh, calling me up and he was telling me, Hey, I, um, I, I normally, uh, do ministry out in Fort Wayne, Indiana. We normally, uh, do a free concert, uh, and share the gospel message out in Fort Wayne. But this year that, uh, venue was not available and he just asked him, what do you think about us bringing the. Bringing the concert to Gary, man, without hesitation. I said, man, absolutely man, come on out. And I had no idea what that looked like. I was just excited about somebody wanting to do something in the town that I love, you know? I'm like, yeah, absolutely. And so, uh, for the next few months we, we, we, we, we talked, we planned, we prayed, uh, um, and man, come August 23rd of this past summer, man, the, the concert went on and, and you know, you were there and it was just. An amazing time, man. And so just to look back and see how God used, uh, how God used his testimony to reach someone way out in Arizona, um, to eventually come together with the individual and then, uh, do an outreach concert ministry, uh, in Gary, Indiana to reach the loss. And it was amazing.

Omar: 8:14

Oh, yeah, man. And, and you know what, uh, uh, when, when, um, I, I believe it was through Mike, uh. Petrovic.

Daniel: 8:20

That's correct.

Omar: 8:20

I, I believe, uh, Jaime knows him. His family. I believe so somehow He, he, I believe that's how he heard of the podcast, or You're right. Started watching

Daniel: 8:30

him. You're right. You know Mike Petrovic. It's interesting. You good brother, man. Wow. What God is doing in that man's life today. Uh, but Mike, at that time, uh, way back then, Mike was, uh, was, was residing at the restoration. That was the program that I, I have the privilege of pastoring over, uh, helping men transition from. Uh, incarceration back into, uh, society. And, and Mike was, was there for a season and it was Mike, um, Jaime happens to be Mike's brother-in-law. And so, yeah, I forgot about that. So that was also part of it. And Mike also did his testimony here on. Strong. And so, yeah. God, God had been orchestrating this in, in multiple ways to bring it together. You're right. I forgot about that.

Omar: 9:15

Amen. And, and, and, uh, it is crazy because, uh, when, uh, me and you, obviously we shared this in our interview, but we met back, I believe it was in 2008. We were going to church together for, for a couple years. Yeah. You know, I went my way, you know, uh, you know, when went my way back to Chicago and, uh, we lost contact for a lot of years, then we, we reconnected. Yes. And, and you're like. You know what, uh, I don't wanna share my story on the podcast, but I'll connect you with somebody who I think you should interview. That's when I drove out to the restoration house and I interviewed Mike Petrovic.

9:50

Hello, this is Michael Petrovic. I did a testimony with Wrong and Strong, my brother Omar Calvillo, uh, Chicago Podcast. what the Lord has done since that testimony, man, I've, I've gotten married. I got, I got my own place. I got a car, man, a certified community health worker, peer specialist, mental health first aider a non. Group facilitator. So my wife and I can facilitate for people that's struggling in mental health. So the Lord just keeps, keeps growing and growing and growing and pushing me further as, as long as I'm submitting to him. So, um, man, my heart's in, in reentry and, and, and reaching out to the prisoners, reaching out to the addicts. I'm sober coming up on two years. Hallelujah. So, um, yeah, the Lord's doing a lot of work in me. Since the testimony and uh, um, and I'm just grateful, that's all I can say is I'm grateful, but, uh, wrong to strong my brother Omar Calvillo and to all the brothers and sisters that have done wrong to strong, that's involved in that man, God bless you. I love you man. All grace. All grace. And to, to the Lord Jesus Christ.

Omar: 11:09

there and, but then I told you, Hey man, later on I want to get you, and then eventually we got yours. And then, uh, what, what's, uh, what, what, what I, what, what tripped me out about Pastor Jaime Cazares is that he said he was listening to your interview and he, he couldn't put the phone down. And what made me laugh, he said that he even took it in the shower. He said, he said he was taking a shower with the phone. He said, man, how you, how you take a shower with the phone? There's like, oh man, I got a little holder there. And he said, he, when the interview, he said, got outta the shower, got dressed. He came out the bathroom still watching and his wife's like, man, what you doing? She like, man, it's this interview. There's, there's something about it. Like, I, I just can't put it down. And, uh, that was your, your story and, um, to me. Uh, well, one thing that, that I love since I started doing this is just the divine connections. Like this has been like a, a gateway, a a connection maker, I dunno, however you wanna put it, but it, it is been a blessing. I've been blessed by it and, uh, and, and the, the blessings, uh, not just for me, but even like. For you to connect with'em and just for the, for the body of Christ, from everywhere, from Illinois, Indiana, Arizona. Just the way God's moving and kind of putting the pieces together, to me, it, it's amazing and I'm just, uh, I'm excited to, to be a part of that.

Daniel: 12:27

You're absolutely right, brother. I, you know what, uh, if I had, uh, maybe if I had written this down, I would've thought about all, you're right. This actually started way back in 2008. Uh, when I first met you, when I first came out of prison, uh, we were going to a church in East Chicago, Indiana, and that's where you and I first, uh, got connected and, and, and got to know one another. And our wives got to know one another and. Uh, became good friends, and like you said, life happens and we, we parted ways for a little while, but, uh, but God, God knew right? God knew. Um, one day he was gonna bring all these pieces together to do something amazing to, to, to make music, literally, right? Yeah, no, you're right about that. That's, that's, uh, that's amazing when I think about that

Omar: 13:15

man. Yeah. Yeah. So, uh, uh, so Pastor Jaime listened to the interview. Flew out here and we, uh, visited with you, we were able to do the interview in person. So that, that, to me, that was amazing that he, he would, uh, pay to fly out here just to do all that. And, uh, not only that, going back to the reason we, we we're doing this interview is to talk about how these divine connections led to an event. And I want, I want you to touch on that.'cause I believe, if I'm mistaken, this might be. This might have been the first time that you did something like this. So let, let me ask you, how, how, how, how was that for you to, to, to organize, to put together the, the, this event especially,'cause you had a lot of pieces from not, not, not, not just, uh, from like your area, like you, you know, like people coming in from, from Arizona.'cause uh, pastor Jaime did, didn't come by himself, you know, so you, if you wanna share all that.

Daniel: 14:44

Yeah. Well, let me just give the credit where the credit is due. Um, the Holy Spirit, right? Because yeah, I, I have never, I have never been a part of anything. This, uh, big for me, this was huge. Uh, you're right. There were so many moving parts. I mean, um, Jaime with, uh, the connection to the various artists. I mean, on that day we had, uh, uh, brother Mike Servin was there. Uh, uh, Bobby Bendito was there. Third day was there, MOG was there. Um, so, so Jaime was connected to all of them. So he, he kind of worked on bringing, uh, the, the musicians, the artists, uh, to the concert. So I really have to work on that. But, um, uh, under his tutelage, because Jaime, Jaime has. Done these events before. He gave me some, uh, some pointers and things to, to, to think about and some things to plan on. And between him, but most importantly, through inspiration, man, honestly, I feel like every time everywhere I turned, God was opening a door, uh, met, I met, uh, I, I knew, uh, you know, pastor Indio, his brother, uh, David has a ministry that, that they, um, that they do out of, um, Seymour, Indiana. They, they travel, they travel to, to anywhere that, uh, if there's any catastrophes or things like that, they, they come on site with, with a, with a trailer where they can open it up and it becomes a stage and they do worship and they feed the people. I mean, this, this trailer's fully equipped, right? And so through Pastor Indio, because, uh, because of our relationship with him, um. I told him what I was working on. He's like, well, my brother has all of this. And through Pastor Indio, his brother came out, brought the stage, uh, the, the stage, the trailer opened up to a stage, brought the food, uh, truck. So that was taken care of. Uh, pastor Indio, uh, provided food, so we were able to feed, I mean, I don't know how many, how many tacos came out of that, out of that food truck, but it was nonstop. Everybody ate, everybody got food. It was like the, it was like the two fish in the five loaves, right? Yeah. Yeah. You know, I mean, it was everybody. There was food left over. There was so much food. Um, um, let's see. So there was different ministries, a bible way who was so kind to allow us to use their, their, their, uh, their church for the venue. Um, man, I'm, I'm, I'm sure I'm gonna miss somebody, but it was just, just like you said earlier, divine connections, just relationships that had been formed in the body of Christ. Um, brothers just coming together, the body of Christ coming together, believing that we were gonna reach the lost or the hurting or the broken in Gary, Indiana. Um. Yeah. Just for everybody bringing in the resources God provided them with and putting them together and, and we were able to just, uh, see God move.

Omar: 17:37

Amen. Amen. It, it was, uh, networking in, in the Kingdom, like you mentioned. I, when I release this, I'm gonna see how I, I'll attach it, but I'm gonna attach some pictures and some of the, the footage we, uh, I, I went out there to take some video. I was able to record, as far as like them singing music. I, I, to be honest, I, I don't know how that's gonna work.'cause I know like if I, if I put it like on YouTube or something, like if it's music, they might try to block it. So I'm, I'm gonna see, maybe if I just put a little clip here and there, you know,'cause I, sometimes when I load music up there, they'll, they'll get a block and then you gotta get like a license. You gotta have a license to post the music. But I'm gonna see if I put the, the clips out there, even if I just put, put'em. Just so they could see the, the, the, the artists that were there. Uh, but man, they, there, there was a worship, uh, Christian rap, uh, hip hop. Yeah. You mentioned, the networking with Pastor Indio. Uh, these are connections that, that I knew Pastor Indio all the way from back then as well. Probably since like 2006, somewhere around there. Him and his family, they got a big family, all, all involved in ministry. So it, it, it was awesome to see, uh, the body of Christ, uh, come together.

Daniel: 18:44

Yeah. He had, yeah, go ahead. I was just gonna say, you know, pastor Indio, who now today is a senior pastor Right. Come Alive church in Portage, Indiana. But um, yeah. Way back when we knew him, he was the youth pastor at our church. Right. Yeah. Doing amazing thing with our youth today who are grown adults, priest. And, and still loving Jesus. Amen. Amen.

Omar: 19:06

Amen.

19:06

My name is Pastor Indio. I'm from Kama Life Family Church. And I, I have an honor coming along with Water Walkers Restoration House, MOG out here, man. Just ministry to the city of Gary. I'm out here with M-O-S-M-O-S, was able to bring a few trailers and it just kind of join us to love on people and love this community. Listen, we are believing for the transformation of Gary, Indiana. And I am just completely honored just to be a part of what, what, what God is doing here on the earth and what an honor it is to be able to serve his people and love his people. So Danny, we love you. We are here. We're gonna partner with you to do what God has called you to do. And I believe as we come together, the kingdom comes together, the church comes together to fulfill God's purposes here on Earth. So come on, let the kingdom come and as we will be done here in Gary, Indiana, God bless, we love you guys.

Daniel: 19:52

Um, you know, but I, I was just thinking about, you know, the Bible talks about the parts of the body, right? And, uh, and how we are to use, uh, our, our uh, our gift with the measure of faith that we have. And just seeing, just seeing that come to fruition, just seeing the different people. I mean, I know that I'm forgetting there was so many different ministries. That showed up. I mean, restoration house, we were, we were doing parking lot duty. We were just picking up trash. We were just, I mean, just the different moving parts, uh, to, to see this come together. I have a feeling that whether you do video or steal clips, uh, people will begin to see how many people were actually there. I mean, people gave their lives to the Lord. Most important, there were people who reconciled with our Lord and Savior. There were people who, for the first time, gave their life. To Jesus Christ. Our families were reconciled, ministries were, were united. I mean, it was, it was just an awesome, uh, an awesome display of God's kingdom at work.

Omar: 20:57

Amen. Amen. It was, and, and, uh, there were also, um, the, there was the, the spiritual aspect, like you mentioned, salvations, uh, people dedicate their lives to the Lord, but, but also, man, what, what I love, I know. Of the, the, the financial blessings that they were giving as well, man. Like I know you want to touch on that, right?

Daniel: 21:14

Yeah, yeah, you're right. So the, so, so Tucson, Arizona showed up not only with, with, uh, with artists, um, musicians, but they also showed up with their pockets full to give away, man. So they came and they were blessing people with money for their, uh, utilities. I, I think, I think the, the biggest winner was I think a$500. Gift card to be able to use towards their utilities. Uh, they were given out, uh, a hundred dollars gift cards that I don't, I don't wanna, I don't wanna misstate the truth, but I know there were, there were some large gift cards, a hundred dollars, I think one was$200. There were several$50, some$25. I mean, just gift cards.

21:55

Okay. Okay. Okay. Then maybe this next girl really, really blessed. We gotta, Patricia. Oh, she twice. We're gonna.

Daniel: 22:25

They were, their intention was to come not only to, so. Uh, spiritually, as you say, but they, they came to sow into the city of Gary, Indiana. I mean, oh my God, I've never, I've never been a part of something to see so many people come and just, uh, it it, it reminds me of the book of Acts when they just came and laid everything at the apostles feet, right? Everybody had everything in common. I mean. That day we had everything together, you know, and we still do in, you know, in in, in our relationships. However, on that day, it was on display. On that day, it was for people to receive, people utilizing their own generators and, uh, just all kinds of, uh, of, of wonderful things. But yeah, I'm glad you brought that up. There were people who were blessed financially. People who went home that day and were in, they came. They came because they saw free concert free food. They came and didn't realize that God would answer prayer that day for those like, I don't know how I'm gonna pay this bill.

Omar: 23:25

Yeah. Oh, amen. And you know what, like, uh, a lot of times we, miss that, you know, like, I know the, the most important is like, like we talk about here on this podcast all the times, the spiritual sharing the gospel with man, some, some people they need that financial, you know, that at that moment with the struggles and all that, that makes a difference. And that's a way of showing love as well.

Daniel: 23:45

Absolutely. You know, I've heard it said like this, people don't care how much you know until they know how much you care. Right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. So it was clear to these people. They didn't know'em. These, these artists came from all over, man. And they came with their own, on their own dime. And they came in with, with, with, with pockets to give, man. I mean, who does that? Right? God's people. That's who does that.

Omar: 24:06

Amen. Exactly, man. Somebody who's uh, um, who's been touched by God, who knows what God could do in their lives and they just wanna. Uh, give of the blessings they receive, you know? Well, one of my prayers has always been, God bless me to be a blessing. And that's what I've seen on display, uh, with pastor, uh, Jaime Cazares. Uh, I know he brought his wife, his children, I believe it was a couple of his children. Uh, and then the whole team that he brought, uh, men of God, uh, third day, the mouthpiece, I believe is his name.

Daniel: 24:35

And

Omar: 24:35

I think you mentioned, I'm, I'm gonna miss a, a lot of these names, but there was a people,

Daniel: 24:40

uh, uh, Mike Ervin. Yeah, they were, they were there, man. It was, uh, it was amazing. And, and they, and they, and they did it. They, they served, uh, um, like selflessly, selflessly, selflessly. Like, like, man, they were there. Like they knew the people they were coming to minister to, but reality, none of them were from there.

Omar: 24:59

Yeah,

Daniel: 25:00

man.

Omar: 25:01

You know, what could, could I ask you this? Um, um, I know a lot of people have this perception, especially like with music, especially with a rap. Like, uh, there, there, there's some believers in the body of Christ that look at it like in a negative way.

Daniel: 25:17

Yeah.

Omar: 25:18

Uh, I don't know if, if previously you've ever encountered any, uh, Christian hip hop artists or any Christian rap artists and, uh, maybe what, what was your, um. Perspective before, and maybe now that you met them, I guess what did you see? Because, uh, the reason I, I don't know why that question comes to my mind.'cause, uh, I, I know a lot of people, you know, on social media, they, they kind of look, oh, you know, these people are, are just out to, to get on a stage. They just wanna sing. But from what I've experienced personally, man, like you mentioned everything we just talked about, how they fly out with their own dime. To just, to, to sow, to share the gospel, to give up their time, to give up their finances and, and man, the, the lyrics and the songs, I mean, seriously enough. But I, I wanted to get your take on that.

Daniel: 26:08

You know, you bring up a good point.'cause the truth be told, God knows the truth. No sense for me to tell the otherwise. I don't typically listen, listen to Christian rap. I, I typically don't, uh, probably for various reasons. Uh, some suffer for me sometimes. Is too close to what I remember before Christ. Right. But let me, let me, let me go, let me go on record as saying I was, my opinion has changed, right? Uh, my opinion has changed that these, these artists came. And they ministered the gospel message. Anybody who was there was ministered to listen. They didn't only come in music that these people broke. These people, uh, shed their hearts. I mean, they, they, they, they poured their heart, they shared their testimony. They talked about what God did in their life as they were talking about the next song. They were like, this is where I was at when, when God did this. And, and man, I mean, one of them, Bobby Bendito came with his daughter, told about a. Powerful testimony of reconciliation, restoration of healing, and, and now God is using what was once broken as a beautiful tandem, I mean, father and daughter, and, and man, they, you would think they'd been doing it for 30 plus years, man. It was just, it was, it was. It was, how should I say, synchronized through the Holy Spirit. It was woven well through the Holy Spirit man. Yeah. I, I have a different perspective today of, of, uh, gospel rap.

27:40

Remember all the drugs? The drugs I never knew was they say I'm here. When heart was just cold, like the winner to all my brothers and my sisters in the Lord. Don't stop. Keep knocking. He won't open up the door. Look, he came to him like he said he would. Same God, same service, same truth. It all good? Yeah. Look, and if you don't know, get to know. Hey,

Daniel: 28:30

i'm more open to it. I, I guess that's just a problem. I wasn't really listening before, but, um, now I'm, I'm, I'm, man, I'm, I'm just as much a, a, um, an advocate as anyone else is today. Uh, yeah. The men, the, the music was. Ministering. It was very good. Every one of them. I mean, I, these, these, listen, they came to share music, but what I didn't know was, man, they came to bring the, the, the, how should I say? They came with intention, man, listen. One of the artists stopped talking about. Music and just began to call the children forward and began to, uh, uh, uh, just pray over the children of the city because he knew how important it was that we, we, we forsake not, or we forbid not that the children come unto the Lord. He was praying over them and praying their purpose, uh, praying their, you know, uh.:Protection over what God had purpose for them.

29:28

Parents, adults, stretch your hand toward these kids. Don't be too cool. Come on now. Father God, in the name of Jesus, we thank you for these children, father God, and I speak your grace. I speak your mercy. Father God, I speak your favor over these children. Father God, I ask you to help them become the men and women of God that you called them to be. Father God protect their ears and their eyes, father God and their mouth Father. Yes. Let no harm come upon them. Father, make them into the men and women of God. You call them to be, place their feet as where you have placed them to be. We love you and we thank you for them. Father God let their minds not be corrupted by the things of his world, father God, but they become who you call them to be. And Jesus said, we pray. Amen. Make some.

Daniel: 30:23

And, and then he was calling forth marriages and I mean, man, this, this is a concert. This man is, is telling them husbands and wives to grab hands and he's pronouncing blessing over their marriage. I mean, they came and ministered to the City of America. It was amazing.

Omar: 30:39

Amen. That's definitely what they all were, um, ministers of the gospel, uh, sharing their testimony. And you, know, what I seen on them, and uh, anointing man. Yeah. I know you mentioned Bobby and his daughter. Yeah. Like the, the dual of him rapping and, and her, uh, what would you say more? Uh, I don't know, r and b kind of, uh, gospel singing was like a good tandem and just like the, the anointing like you mentioned, like on their family

31:04

She remembers the, the, the cops, the prison sentences, the fights. She was there, but it's only because of his grace that we can stand here and testify today that Jesus truly does say, good. My Lord is sat. I don't know how well to thank you, but I'm want to stop right here, right now by telling you I'm grateful. I'm thankful for your person. I'm so thankful that you heard me. I'm alive right here, right now. You said working. I'm still in awe. Still in shock. You, me. See, that's a price that I can never pay it off down at the cost, and all I have to say is we're so, so grateful, Lord. Man. Hey, what's up? This your boy Bobby Bandito out here at Gary, Indiana with water walkers and all the other men and women of God out here for the Gary Revival for all generations. Uh, I just wanted to send up word for encouragement to anybody out there right now who's watching this to know that, look, when we come together as a body of Christ, the way that he intended, we can have an impact no matter the region, no matter the community, no matter the city, no matter the region. I just wanna give some encouragement to say, keep your head up in the mighty name of Jesus. God can do. Anything but fail. He could do all things but fail. So in the mighty name of Jesus, I just wanna say, what's up from Gary, Indiana? That's.

Omar: 32:44

And everybody there, uh, Mike Seban Yeah. As well. You know, like a lot of people know him for break dancing and screaming, oh, Jesus Christ. Right? But, but then when he shares the story behind that, oh man, of why he says that. That's

Daniel: 32:57

right.

Omar: 32:58

If, if you guys haven't heard his testimony, you guys gotta go and, and, and, and listen to the reason why he says that.

33:04

But one day I'm in the middle of the street doing the noodle. You ever see that? People, you ever see'em, the people in the middle of the streets just they can't get ahold of their, their motor skills. You know what they're doing? Get off me. Get off me. They're fighting demons. They're fighting something you can't see. So when you see them out there, pray for them because what they're doing is they're showing you from the inside out. Man, I need help. Alright. Because when I was out there, I was like, ah, get off me. Ah, now demons will tell me if you walk like this, everybody gonna leave you alone. So I walked like that because I believed the lie. So one day I'm in the middle of the road, on the middle, ah, stop traffic. And there comes all them voices, all them demons, all them devils. And because their thoughts, it feels like they're everywhere. So it's like a jiggly one. And I scream at the top of my lungs. JESUS CHRIST! Yeah. I love you, Lord. And I asked it back for him. I love you too, Mike. And that's how I heard God's voice with my own voice. Because I believe if God didn't want me to ask for him, he would've stopped me.

Omar: 34:28

And, uh, friend is a powerful testimonies that, that were shared. And yeah, like you mentioned the prayer, uh, pausing, taking time, uh, during the songs to man that you mentioned, praying for the marriages, praying for the children, families. It was, I was definitely blessed to, to be, to be a a, a part of this.

Daniel: 34:46

Amen. Amen. Yeah. Yeah. For anybody who has never heard of these article, listen, don't feel bad. I didn't hear about them prior to some of them I had heard of Mike serving. I think that was about it for me. Um. But I hadn't heard of the others. And man, because of the concert, I decided to do some, do my due diligence and, and just see what YouTube had to, you know, had to show man. Uh, so you can find all of them on YouTube and, uh, man, I, I, I encourage anyone to listen to what God is doing through them.

35:17

Come on. Declare that today over your life. Let's. I remember late night smoking, drinking all night, wake up in the morning, feeling inside something ain't right. Had the block in my veins, wasn't feeling no change. Put the smoke in my lungs until the high hit my brain, Lotty money and the power and be grabbing me. I get my life of pride. That's insanity. Now I'm popping pills every night just to quiet me. I think I learn to live every day with anxiety, and I heard God say, give it all to me. I'm the chain breaker son. I can set you free. Thank you. God. Thank your love. Keep running after me. Thank you, God. In your house. You're making space for me real. Talk to chain. Gone. Thank you. Got the weights off. You remind me that the cross. First off, real talk to chain. Gone. Thank you. Got the weights off now Youhow, keep your head up. Time to take off.

Omar: 36:23

Have you got any feedback? I know you, you, you mentioned all the, the ministries. I, I met a bunch of different pastors, uh, from that area. Uh, did you get any feedback afterwards? Uh, from, from this event?

Daniel: 36:35

Yeah, they said, listen, uh, we're all in. If you wanna do this again, count us in. We, we will, we'll, we'll show up again. We'll, we'll serve in any capacity. I mean, you know, typically at a concert, people are just there listening to the music. But listen, man, a lot of these, a lot of these, uh, local ministers,

36:55

Praise God for today. Uh, we are here at the, outdoor concert. We're loving that. God has brought brothers here from, from Michigan, from from Arizona. We got folks from Illinois and got Indiana. We're just thanking God that we come here. House the restoration along with Bible way and, uh, water walker's ministry, all coming together to just praise God under, under his heavens. I only say one roof under, under his heavens. Uh, I'm Darius Osa, uh, pastor Osa. Uh, pastor Rocky de Losa is is the pastor of our church, my father, uh, here at two 20 East 49th Avenue in Gary, Indiana. Bible Way Church is come and see us. Our services start at 10 o'clock every Sunday. You can even find us live streaming, uh, BWC Ministries and YouTube. You can also catch us on a Facebook page, BWC two 20 on Instagram as well. Uh, God has just blessed our ministry, not only locally, but also to be in a space where we can go out in the and, and, and, and, and stream and be able to, uh, serve the world, you know, just from where we are. So. Check us out on Tu on Tuesdays as well. Tuesdays at 7:00 PM We're on YouTube live streaming as well. So check us out. And we just really thank God for what he's doing and we thank God for what he will do. So we thank God that you're listening. We thank God for this and we we're looking for a God to do some miraculous things through this and many other ministries. Amen.

Daniel: 38:08

some from, from further away, like I said, Seymour, Indiana. Were just content with walking in the crowd and just getting to know people and making sure that no, no one was left, uh, unspoken to everyone was, was welcomed. Everyone was ministered to and, and man, they. They didn't treat it like it was a, like, it was a vacation event. They treated it like an opportunity to share the gospel. So whether you was listening to the music or you were being, you, you were in the line to be fed, somebody was gonna be engaging you just to introduce themself to you and simply just, uh, ask you what brought you here and, and what do you, who do you, what do you know about Jesus? And so, man, there were many, many conversations that people had that they were just blessed behind and were like, man. Dan, when you do this again, just let us know, man. We will be here. So I'm convinced, man, that this is, this is a God thing, right? He, he gets the glory. The only reason that it worked was because God was in it, because God put the pieces together because God seen fit to draw the souls and ultimately. Uh, gets the glory for the souls that were saved for the, for the families that were impacted, for the ministries that were, uh, brought together. Right. It, it was just, it was great. But to answer your question. Everyone said, uh, call me in if you wanna do this again. So we're, we're planning on a 2026, uh, uh, return back to Gary, Indiana. Uh, maybe we can talk about that on another, uh, another interview or something just to kind of, uh, make people aware of the next one coming up. But as of right now, we don't have a date. We just know by faith we're gonna do it again.

Omar: 39:50

Man. Amen. So I got a whole year to practice on my, uh, uh, rap, uh, skills, man. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I I don't think you wanna see that man. But anyways, uh, speaking of that, of 2026, man, um, I, I know they came out here, you know, um, pastor Jaime, um, water walkers, umm ministry, I believe water walkers. Worldwide water workers, water war water walkers worldwide. So, but the question is, when are we going out there, man? Because I know we got a pastor Cazares Tucson. I got jc, he's out there in Phoenix. So I already told, I told my wife, man, I don't know why we gotta, we gotta go out there next year. So what, what's the plan there?

Daniel: 40:30

So, so, uh, so Tucson is getting ready to have their annual, uh, TRG, uh, concert, um, in Tucson in March. And so my wife and I talked about going out there. I think you mentioned you may make, make that trip also, man. Yeah, it would be awesome to go out there and just to assist. Them brothers in the same way they came out to, uh, to reach souls, uh, to, to, to bless the community out here. You know, I told them, I said, man, I just wanna, and man, listen, I'll pass out water. I mean, that's how blessed I was just to, just to work with the body man, just to see the results of what God would do, man, when, when everybody would just, uh, allow everything to be, um, uh, like I said earlier, um, all in one accord, right? Yeah. Yeah, all things. Having all things in common. That's what I'm trying to say.

Omar: 41:25

Alright, man. To man for sure. So God willing, man will be, will be out there. And, uh, I don't know why, like, I, I, I know, I know you, you know, like I just know that I got, I gotta go out to, to Arizona, man, so God willing, you know, maybe it might be in March or somewhere around there, but, uh, if you gimme the dates, man, I'll throw it on the calendar and start, uh, uh, praying about it, you know?

Daniel: 41:45

Praying about it and maybe, maybe telling others. Maybe they'll make the trip. Who knows? Who knows who's listening, right. Who knows who, who knows where, where someone's listening today, maybe, maybe right there in Arizona. Like, man, I didn't even know. Yeah. Next year, March 20, 26, TRG is is, is called Tucson Revival for all generations, TRG 2026. I know that everyone's invited, man. Come on out there and, and be with the body of Christ and just, uh, see what God does man.

Omar: 42:16

Amen. For, for, for sure. You know what, this is what I was gonna ask. So, uh, I think in July, uh, you came out to share your testimony at a radical timeout, uh, meeting. Uh, which is, uh, a house, uh, national Ministries, uh, pastor Manny Mill out in uh, Whedon, uh, Illinois. Uh, so you came out there, shared your testimony. Then we, we went out to eat, we went to Portillo's, and, uh, we were talking and I was sharing with you how I had turned the podcast into an LLC, so this was in June, early June. I, I did an LLC and me and you were talking and going back to Divine Connections, and we were sitting at Portillo's talking, and I, and I think I brought up, I think I told you how initially, initially I wanted to do a, a non-for-profit. Uh, through the podcast, uh, through what I'm doing here, through the content and just the, um, the vision that I have for this. I don't wanna share too much, you know, I don't want people to take my ideas, but, uh, uh, turn, turning what I'm doing, uh, into, into a, into a ministry. So, yes, I, you, I guess I'll throw it over to you. You remember the conversation.

Daniel: 43:21

Yeah. Yeah. I just remember you, you, you discussing with me saying this is something that you desire to do. And I just shared with you my experience of how, uh, LLCs were formed and, and, and how, uh, it may sound, uh, difficult or, and or, or a huge mountain decline. But in reality, there are people like accountants, people like lawyers in place who, who make the, make the process smooth, you know? And, um. I just remember telling you the, the, the, the different ways that I went about it in my personal life and also with the ministry and yeah. Praise the Lord. God has, uh, turned, uh, wrong to strong into an LLC now. Praise the Lord.

Omar: 44:02

A, a a a a non-for-profit.

Daniel: 44:04

A non-for-profit. I'm sorry. Yeah.

Omar: 44:05

Yeah.'cause remember, uh, uh, uh, when we were talking, it was a LLC at that time. Oh. So I, I was telling my son I had a business for about a month and a half. Yes. After our conversation. Now's a five.

Daniel: 44:21

That's right. Yep. Now it's a 5 0 3. Praise the Lord. So, are people becoming more and more aware that this is a five three?

Omar: 44:30

Actually, this might be one of the first times that, that I'm sharing it.

Daniel: 44:35

Okay.

Omar: 44:35

Because, uh, I know I, I talked with JC actually on my last podcast that I released with JC Almanza. Uh, he, he shared, he, he was trying to turn, uh, uh, wrong too strong, which is his brand. That, that he established, that he created. So we're, we're like an extension. So this podcast is an extension of him. Uh, so he was trying to turn wrong too strong into a non-for-profit out, out, out in Arizona, he said for years. And it just like, it was just like hurdle after hurdle. And he, he just got, uh, um, his IRS paperwork for not-for-profit. Oh. About a month before I did, which, which is crazy. So it was almost like in God's timing. So he, he's doing a, a, um, a, um, a lot of ministry out there in the prisons, men's prisons, uh, juvenile facilities, uh, women's prisons. Uh, just started, uh, working for Arizona State, uh, university. Uh, got a job doing, doing things there. So, man, he's really, uh, busy out there. So he, he's got his nonprofit going, uh, he wants to do something like, like what you're doing, like a, a restoration house. Uh, kind of like a, like a halfway house. Matter of fact, right across the street, not literally, but close, uh, right outside of a prison, uh, there was like a old hotel that they want to turn into, like a, like a house, like housing. Oh, what was it? Transitional housing, I guess. Yeah.

Daniel: 46:00

Word. Right. People are in transition. That's right, man. I'll tell you what I would, I would share every bit of experience, every bit of understanding, wisdom God has shared with me, with him, because guess what? Somebody else shared it with me, bro. It's all Gods. Right? And Manson. He would be, uh, creating a place, man. For, for, for men. Are you talking about men only or, yeah. Yeah. For, for, for this one? Yes. Yeah, man. So another place for men to be restored. Listen, there, there are, there are lots of different, uh, um, ministries out there for, for youth and praise the Lord. We need them. And there are lots of ministries out there for women. And praise the Lord, we need them, but not as many out there for men. And so, man, I'm, I'm, I'm rooting for'em. I praise the Lord. Uh, anything I can do to help. Please connect us when, maybe when we go out in March. Yes. Maybe when we take a stop there and share with him. I'd love to meet him. Praise, uh, God. And, and, and just share anything He, he, any questions he might have. Share what I know.

Omar: 46:58

Amen. Amen. I know for, for sure. So God willing that that'll be a connection we make. Uh, but yeah man, I, I'm excited about this. Uh, so, uh, I just wanna thank you for that conversation,'cause you basically, after we left Portillo's the next day, I reached out to my accountant. And he told me, yeah, man, I'm, I've done it before. Matter of fact, uh, he had worked with a, with a, uh, pastor that, that I know helped him, like with his nonprofit. So it was like a good, uh, what would you say? Co connection. Another divine connection you could say.

Daniel: 47:28

Yeah.

Omar: 47:29

And uh, man, yeah, sure enough, that was back in July. So earlier this month I got my letter. So, so now the plan is structure. Getting the team together, the, the board together, getting the rules, regulations, and all that. Uh, so, so my goal is in 2026 to like, I guess it will be the official launch Yeah. To what we're gonna be doing through the content, uh, getting the videos. My goal is to get these podcast interviews into the prisons,

Daniel: 47:58

yeah, just another, another avenue, right? Another avenue to share the gospel. Another give God glory to, to build relationships with people, right? To uh, to minister to the broken, right. For people to be able to hear stories that sound like their own. Kind of like how, uh, Hy is saying, man, that story sounds like my brother and. Eventually allowing God to bring us together in the same way, man, this could be used to reach people that otherwise wouldn't be reached. Right. And so, man, praise the Lord. That sounds, sounds exciting, bro. It sounds exciting. It sounds inspiring. Right? I can imagine that. Um, those who be, I mean, would these be from, this wouldn't be from people in there, right? This would be two people in there.

Omar: 48:42

Yes, exactly. So, uh, based on the interviews that I've done. Like to, to get it into the ones that are in prison.

Daniel: 48:49

Yeah.

Omar: 48:49

Yeah.

Daniel: 48:50

Wow. What man, man, what can God do with that?

Omar: 48:53

Man?

Daniel: 48:54

That's, that's awesome, bro.

Omar: 48:56

I, I, I, I know I was talking to a pastor, uh, of Rocky, I interviewed him. Uh, he grew up out here as well in Chicago. Crazy story, you know, gang leader, he's out in Texas now. Uh, but he, he, when I was talking to him or like sharing what, what I plan on doing, he's like, man, you know what? The, the one thing when I was in prison that helped me was the Bible and then reading testimonies.

Daniel: 49:19

Yeah.

Omar: 49:20

Like, like reading books of people that been through what I've been through, as he said, man, the Bible and Testimon. So, uh, the, I guess that's the short of what, of the ministry that I envision is the Bible and testimonies.'cause every testimony is gonna point to the God of the Bible, you know, and, uh, it's gonna be laced, uh, with scripture. Uh, the testimonies are gonna be scripture that ties in maybe to that part of the story, but e everything's gonna be the Bible and testimony. Uh, revelation 1211, if I'm not mistaken, right. They, they overcame him by, uh, and speaking of the enemy, speaking of the evil one, they overcame him by the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony.

Daniel: 49:59

That's right, man. That's right. Amen. May God use that in so many ways. Ways that you don't even know my brother. I know from my own experience when I was incarcerated, I needed to hear testimony. I needed to know. In fact, the man who led me to Christ, he was also interviewed on Ronald Strong Kojack. Co. Jack Fuller? Yes. Ko Jack Fuller. Uh, you know, hearing his testimony, hearing his testimonies as God was, as God was raising him up in penitentiary to share his testimony of, of conversion. But just, uh, man in that, like you said, not only, uh, the Bible, but hearing testimonies about the God of the Bible and what he did in the life of. People, how, man, how much God can do with that. I'm a living example. Yeah.

Omar: 50:53

Amen. Look at that. A confirmation why we need to be doing what we're doing, man. So I'm, I'm, I'm excited for that next chapter. And uh, today is what, September the 30th, right? Yeah, yeah. September 30th. In two days, man. On October 2nd is gonna make. Three year anniversary that I started this podcast.

Daniel: 51:13

Glory to God.

Omar: 51:14

Yeah. Yeah, man. So three years and I feel like, man, we're just getting started, man. This is just like, uh, the foundation and I'm excited for what, what we're gonna do. Uh, I, I got a good, uh, uh, a team of brothers out here. I got Cisco, got Arturo. Man, I, I got my pastor Juan, uh, my wife, man. She's, I honestly, my, my wife is my, well, we're one, you know, so, uh, I gotta include her in the team. You know, that, that's the, the first team right there. I, I, I call her my second Holy Spirit now. For real. Before I do anything now, man, I, I go to her. For her, uh, perspective, uh, to pray together. Yeah, she's definitely like a big blessing in my life, you know?

Daniel: 51:56

Amen. Amen. And a prayer warrior. I, Ooh. Oh, oh boy. Your wife can pray, man.

Omar: 52:02

Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. And I'm, I'm grateful and I'm thankful and I, I believe that's, uh, a big reason why I've continued to. To grow and just continue to, to stand, man, obviously it's God gotta give uh, glory and credit to to God. Right under God, or I'll say with my wife, my biggest blessing, honestly.

Daniel: 52:20

Our wives. You right about that. My brother. Absolutely. Absolutely. The ones who help clean up the clean up the mess, right? The ones who say, wait a second, wait A, don't put that on. Don't put that on. Put this on. Don't

Omar: 52:34

say

Daniel: 52:35

that. Don't say that. Say this. Yeah.

Omar: 52:38

That's, that's happened more than, more than like, man, she, she'll hear me say something, eh, I, I wouldn't say it that way. Or, you know, like. But anyways, yeah. So I'm, I'm excited man. I'm excited for, uh, um, what God's doing. Just the connections and, uh, I just wanna thank you for being out here, uh, a pastor. Um, is there anything that we haven't touched on, maybe something that, that you wanna share before we get ready to sign off?

Daniel: 53:03

No, I just, I guess it, uh, like last time I know that somebody might be watching and, hey, listen, we were talking about what God did on August 23rd, but man, he's the same God here today on September 30th, 2025. Man, the same God who will reach down right into your circumstances. Save your life and, and change your life. Uh, unlike you ever believed it could be. Your circumstances may look the same, but with God in a man you win. And so I would just encourage you not to just look at this for an event that took place on August 23rd, but look at this as, uh, us talking about the God who saves the God who delivers the God who sets free through His son Jesus Christ. That would be what I would wanna say, my brother.

Omar: 53:48

Amen. Amen. Amen. That's his name, man. He, he, he can and he will do it, you know? Yeah. Amen. Amen. You know what, a quick shout out to you, pastor Dan. I know you were reluctant to do this. You're like, man, I don't know. I'm nervous. I just want you to know. You did a great job, man. I think just, I think you were just playing a hard to get, man,

Daniel: 54:14

dude, you make it easy, brother. You make it easy. So thank you much. I appreciate you, my brother.

Omar: 54:19

No, no. For, for sure. That's one thing. Before I do any interview, always pray. I always pray be before we start with, with every guest, whether it's in person, whether, whether it's via zoom. I always pray and, uh, there's, there's a third person in the interview at all times, and that's the Holy Spirit. That, that, that's part of my prayer every time as a, I say God, as I begin to pray for my guests and myself in the conversation, uh, I invite the third person into here and the person of the Holy Spirit, and I ask the Holy Spirit to bring to remembrance any story. Anything that needs to be shared, that's gonna bring healing to the, uh, to the guests speaking and might be, uh, bring healing, hope and encouragement to those that are gonna be, uh, watching and listening to the, to the interview. So it's definitely got God, everything that I do and invite him and without him. This, this will just be two guys right here just talking, you know. But we know that we're, when we talk, we're talking about the God who saved us. Who delivered us, who healed us, who still sanctifying us working in us, and just doing what only he, he he could do in us and through us, you know? So yeah. Amen. Yes, sir. Amen. All right, thanks. Uh, uh, thank, uh, thank you for your time, pastor Daniel. And with that we're gonna get ready to, uh, to sign off. Uh, um, Matthew four 16 reads, the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death, light has dawned. Alongside my guest, pastor Daniel Rivera. I'm your host Omar Calvillo, and we are wrong too strong.