SABBATH SCHOOL MISSION STORY OF 14 SEPTEMBER | REAL TREASURE

My name is Jahiquel.
I grew up poor in Costa Rica, with little more than the clothes on my back. At 16, things started to change for me, at least on the outside. I began wearing a thick gold chain and rings, flaunting them around my neighborhood. But this didn’t go unnoticed by the local gang. I used to be one of them before leaving to join a different group. Back then, I wasn’t selling drugs; instead, I was robbing homes and kidnapping people to fund my new lifestyle. That gold jewelry I was so proud of came from my crimes, and it caught the wrong kind of attention.
One day, the gang leader, known as “The Devil”, grew suspicious. He didn’t believe I had that kind of money without dealing drugs, and worse, without his permission. One of his guys messaged me, asking, “Is your chain made of real gold?” I knew who he was and what the question meant, but still, I replied with one word: "Yes." That moment would change my life forever.
Later that evening, I was outside my grandmother’s house. Out of nowhere, I saw the gang member speeding toward me on a motorcycle, his brother riding behind him. Time slowed down as I watched the brother pull out a 9mm handgun—the same gun I had sold him months earlier. Before I could react, eight bullets hit me. Two in my legs, five in my chest and stomach. I fell to the ground, numb with fear, too shocked to scream.
As I lay there, bleeding and helpless, my mind was flooded with memories of my childhood. I remembered the prayers and Bible stories my aunt, a Seventh-day Adventist, had taught me. I realized I had made a terrible mistake by turning to gang life. With what I thought might be my last breath, I prayed, “God, forgive me.”
I don’t know how long I lay there, but eventually, I heard the motorcycle drive off. A car passed by but didn’t stop. It was my grandmother who first rushed out to help, and then two strangers arrived and took me to the hospital. When I woke up the next day, hooked up to machines, I knew I had barely survived. I had 23 stitches down my stomach, and the doctors told me I was lucky to be alive. My aunt’s church had been praying for me, and I believed that their prayers and God had saved me.
That’s when I knew I couldn’t live the way I had been anymore. I was given a second chance, and I wasn’t going to waste it. From that moment on, I committed myself to Jesus. It wasn’t easy, and it’s still a process, but I started reading the Bible every morning and night, praying, and trying to fill my mind with positive things. I realized the garbage I had once put in my head through gang life had to be replaced with something good.
Now, three years later, I’m studying to become a barber, a career that gives me a fresh start. I also share my story with young people, urging them to stay away from gangs and find purpose through faith. I tell them that real treasure isn’t the gold chains or money, it’s who you are inside and the peace you find in God.