It is often said that pain is our best teacher; and when you think of all the things Carlos has been through, this statement couldn’t be more true.<\/em><\/p>\n However, the most amazing thing about this brother is that he never gave up. Despite everything he’s been through, he’s still willing to trust in God. This heart is ultimately what got him into the kingdom of God.<\/em><\/p>\n Ricky: Tell me a little about yourself. Where did you grow up, stage in life, working, going to school, are you from DFW originally?<\/b><\/p>\n Carlos: <\/b>My name is Carlos Arguero. I come from Dallas, to be specific I come from the town called Oak Cliff. When I was young I got picked on a lot by one of my family members, it was a constant thing. I started to have a lot of resentment and a lot of hate because of that. <\/p>\n My mom would always tell me I look like my dad’s side of the family. She would always say she hated that side of the family. So when I started growing up I started realizing she probably hates me. So growing up I had a lot of resentment in my heart; I was not very friendly with people, I was very introverted because of that, I felt like my own mom didn\u2019t want me. <\/p>\n How could a stranger in the world give me any worth? I started doing drugs, smoking, and fighting. I ended up stealing. Just all these criminal activities with friends, because I felt like they were the only ones showing me love. So whatever they did I wanted to do, just because I felt that sense of acceptance. That\u2019s all I wanted. I just wanted to be accepted by somebody. I wanted someone to show me love.<\/p>\n Something I never really experienced from my mom. I eventually got kicked out. Things happened. I got kicked out of three houses, and let\u2019s just say I\u2019m still here because of the grace of God.<\/p>\n Ricky: What are some of your favorite hobbies and something you would consider unique about yourself?<\/b><\/p>\n Carlos: <\/b>Something unique about myself: when I was younger and I was going through all of that– I did a little prayer to God. I talked to God and told him straight up, if you\u2019re willing, use my body and put all the disease in the world in my body so nobody in this world would be sick. I want there to be no sickness, and if it means I will die because of it then I was okay. I was only like eight years old.<\/p>\n Even though I experienced a lot of hate, God still gave me a heart to love and a heart of compassion. I feel like a lot of people don\u2019t know that about me, because I have this image of a macho man or a tough guy. In reality it\u2019s not that. Life hardens you up but I still have a heart, and I still have compassion.<\/p>\n Ricky: Tell me how you were met\/invited to Church? <\/b><\/p>\n Carlos: <\/b>I was part of a group called Oak Cliff Latinos! I was doing my thing on there, then one day I noticed a post from Brandon, asking us to do a Bible study. I thought that was weird but not in a bad way, in a good way, because in Oak Cliff Latinos they just post everything. For a youngster like him to post something about God– it really impressed me.<\/p>\n I knew about God. I\u2019ve been to churches here and there, but I wasn\u2019t really feeling it. I always felt like a black sheep or the outcast. Then he got in contact with me, and then we fell off, but then came right back. Ever since then it\u2019s been great. I got baptized January 23rd of this year, by the grace of God.<\/p>\n Ricky: Describe your relationship with God prior to studying The Bible and how it has changed? <\/b><\/p>\n Carlos:<\/b> I thought I had a relationship with God, but I was still living my life the way that I wanted. I used to believe in– once saved always saved. I believe that because that\u2019s what I\u2019ve been taught. It wasn’t until recently that I started to realize that I wasn\u2019t a Christian. I wasn\u2019t a disciple. That\u2019s what started changing my perspective, and now I see that all this time God has been working in my life.<\/p>\n He just wanted me to see that, because he had a greater purpose, not to just bless me but let me experience the miracle of being a part of his family. Ever since then our relationship has been growing more and more. It\u2019s not perfect, but way better than what it used to be.<\/p>\n Ricky: What are some of your favorite scriptures and why?<\/b><\/p>\n Carlos: <\/b>Ephesians 6:10. Where it talks about the armor of God. I\u2019ve always had a fighting spirit, I\u2019ve never liked problems but I always found a way to settle it. That\u2019s part of my soldier mentality. Even though I was being a soldier for the wrong reasons– now I\u2019m being a soldier for Christ.<\/p>\n Another scripture is Isaiah 43:2. (I have called you by name and you are mine. Though you go through the waters they will not overtake you, though you go through the rivers they will not sweep over you, though you walk through the flames they will not burn you). I\u2019ve gone through things and I\u2019m still here that\u2019s why I like it.<\/p>\n Ricky: What advice would you give someone who has started studying the Bible or is considering it? <\/b><\/p>\n Carlos: <\/b>Stop considering so much and just do it, because if you start considering so much then you\u2019re going to have outside influences come and try to take you away from God. If you give it too much time, because even the devil knows the scriptures. He can literally come and confuse you even more than what you were before, and that\u2019ll make you walk away, or it\u2019ll make you believe something that\u2019s not real.<\/p>\n You\u2019ll keep believing the way that you live now will get you to heaven. So don\u2019t overthink it, don\u2019t over analyze, just go and do it.<\/p>\n Ricky: What do you love about the Kingdom?<\/b><\/p>\n Carlos: <\/b>I\u2019ve been to a couple different churches, but here, I see a family. I see discipleship. Whenever I mess up– I mess up. But they don\u2019t let me stay in my own little bubble; they burst that bubble, and then they correct me and bring me back to God. That\u2019s something I\u2019ve been wanting– accountability. This church has that. I like the lifestyle too. They really pursue after the gospel and let their lives reflect that. It\u2019s amazing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Overcome Chief Editor~ Ricky Jean It is often said that pain is our best teacher; and when you think of all the things Carlos has been through, this statement couldn’t be more true. However, the most amazing thing about this brother is that he never gave up. Despite everything he’s been through, he’s still willing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":35773,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[102],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35767","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog-post"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/tribechurches.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Screenshot_20211117-212607_Photos-225x300.jpg\")
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