The young man you see in this picture, Matthew Rodriguez, is now a Monk of the Coptic Orthodox Christian church, which is one of the strictest and most ascetic Christian churches around. But, he wasn't exactly born with that outfit and a bible in his hand...and therein lies the amazing testimony of God's work in his life.
I met Matt recently in the St. Mary and St. Moses Abbey, where he now lives. I had a chance to hear from him first hand just what led to such a radical transformation in his life. He grew up a nominal Christian and seemed to have it all. The slim young man of Irish and Puerto Rican descent was on his way to a promising career as a pharmacist, was in tip top shape and was popular as could be. Usually this is the set up for the dramatic moment, right? "He gets hit by a car" or "got hooked on heroin"...but the awesome thing in Matt's story is it's simplicity. While living a life disconnected from God and focused on partying and self, something internal happened that caused him to leave all that he had, and follow Jesus. When pressed to describe it he said "I realized that my life was literally leading me to death and I didn't want that anymore." He began to be aware of his eternity and Jesus became more than just a name to Matt...He became real.
Read the rest here:
http://mirhom.blogspot.com/2012/05/from-club-to-monastery.html?m=1
