Coming up, a show on a mission goes on a mission.

We are in the country of Colombia.

Announcer: The Whitney Reynolds Show is funded by Yates Protect, a minority owned business focused on protecting communities and providing solutions to safety problems for public and private institutions, including air purification, metal detectors, thermal detection, and more; Together at Peace: a community lifting you from coping to hoping; O'Connor Law Firm: when it comes to your injuries, we take it personally.

Xtreme Xperience: making the world's supercars accessible, so you can experience being in the driver's seat on the race tracks and back roads of our country; Theraderm Clinical Skincare: committed to developing skin care products designed to restore skin health and promote natural beauty.

And by 10 West Real Estate Group, UFC Gym Lakeview, Ella's Bubbles, Hi-Five Sport Chicago, Fresh Dental, Kevin Kelly Real Estate Agent, Concierge Aesthetics & Plastic Surgery, Deluxe Cleaning Services, Mid-West Moving & Storage, TuTu School Chicago, Goldfish Swim School Roscoe Village, and by these funders: Hola, welcome to the country of Colombia.

We are a show that's dedicated to being a safe space for all stories.

And for the last decade, we've been doing that.

Our belief is, your story matters.

In fact, that's our mission.

So today, a show that's on a mission is taking you on a physical mission with us.

Let's go.

[opening theme music] [cultural music] The streets of Colombia hold so many stories, and as an outsider, we can be quick to think on the negative, like sex or drug trafficking or the dangerous cartels.

But what we don't always think about is the vibrance and the beauty that a country holds and the developing stories of redemption and passion for change that are within.

What would you want people to know about the thriving stuff that's happening in Colombia?

Well, Colombia is a democratic government right now.

So, they produce many, many minerals for sure.

Gold.

Gold.

These country's are rich countries.

The people are very kind people, are very human people, and beautiful people.

Whitney: Personally I have been seeing such a vast difference of a way of life.

But there's so many people that live here that love their Colombia.

Yes, me too because I am not a Colombian citizen, but I visited Colombia many times because it's beautiful.

Whitney: The flashy streets can catch the eye with promises of money and brotherhood, all during a time when poverty is on the rise.

Do you consider Colombia dangerous?

Enrique: No, Colombia is a good country, but for sure the illegal people live in the border.

Many people don't have medicine.

Many people don't have other things, for example schools, education, etc.

So, Colombia is the best country.

But the political situation is the problem.

You know, the authorities are the corruption.

That is a problem, I think.

Whitney: Yet even in the midst of it all, there are locals out here on a mission.

Some who have even been on the other side.

Daniel Sanchez joined us at an undisclosed taping location for this exclusive interview of his powerful life change.

He is a former terrorist, and was a member of a prominent Colombian Rebel group.

This organization is known for their bombings, human trafficking, murders and drugs.

Thank you so much for joining us today.

[speaking through translator] It's a pleasure.

I know it's not easy going back to where you came from.

It's a good opportunity to help and heal about all things that happen before.

Terrorism.

When you hear that word, what does it mean to you?

I think about the past and about an opportunity to help.

Why did you sign up for the opposition?

When I was 12 years old, I came into this group.

I was working with guns and as I was a child, they didn't find out.

I was born in a very poor place where it was normal to belong to this kind of groups.

Did you know at 12 years old that you were signing up for a form of terrorism?

In the neighborhood where I lived, actually it was a good thing to belong to these kind of groups.

It gave you power and authority.

Did you have a dad in your home?

Sí.

Was he a member as well?

No.

My dad was a good person.

He was the pastor of a church.

But maybe the context where he lived, it made him take that decision to belong to this group.

Can you give us information on the group you were a part of?

We made many things that we are not supposed to do.

Bombings?

And some other things.

Drugs?

Yes.

Murder?

Yes?

And you were against the government?

Yes.

What is a day in the life of a terrorist like?

It's kind of hard because you feel like death is really close to you.

You do bad things or bad things happen to you.

Was the terrorism for a higher calling?

No.

What was it for?

I think when poverty and when you are in need, many people wants to be in power of something and it doesn't matter who will suffer with it.

Were you involved in a human trafficking?

No?

Did that happen in your group?

Sí.

How did you go to forgiving yourself?

I think God is who changed my life and He forgave me.

What was your rock bottom moment with that group that caused a life turnaround?

When I was in danger and my friend was in danger as well.

We were in the position to choose his life or my life.

What happened?

I am alive.

After that, very hard moment, what did you do?

I was getting mad.

Crazy.

How did you find God?

Somebody was around sharing the gospel and showed me God and told me that God was above all things I've done.

What was it like trying to get out of that group?

It was really hard because it was very probable that if I left that group, I was going to die.

Why are you comfortable doing this interview today?

Because I think that with this interview we can help other people.

We can.

What are you up to today?

I'm at the border between Venezuela and Colombia.

When I looked at the situation Venezuela was at, we decided to help people in Venezuela, because there are children just like me when I was a child who don't have an opportunity.

And I don't want them to feel and experience the same that I went through.

Through the church, we are helping them with meals and food, medicine, Bibles studies and Bible books.

Have you helped any young 12-year-old boys or girls avoid joining that organization?

Many.

There's not a goal in that decision.

At the beginning, it may look really shiny.

But at the end, it's a destructive way.

Not only for that person, but also for his family.

I lost my family during eight years until God changed my life and I could recover.

After being the worst thing for my family, now they feel proud of me and of what I'm doing.

How long did that take to get to that point?

Since I started changing my life, they started feeling proud of me.

Do you feel like you have saved more lives than what you have hurt in the past?

Not me, but God.

For all the men that are still members of that organization you were a part of, what would you want to say to them?

I'd like to tell them that yes, there is an opportunity because they are being slaves and God wants them to be free.

So you feel like it is a form of slavery in terrorism?

Yes.

Why do you believe hope is still out there after seeing all you have seen?

Because my life has changed and now I am a lawyer and I am a pastor.

Do you consider yourself a new man?

Yes, God changed my life and what I did wrong now, I want to make it better.

Have you gone back to your friend that lost his life and apologized to his family?

Yes.

Did they accept it?

They are now part of the church.

That's amazing.

That's amazing.

Well, thank you so much for for this.

Gracias.

Can I give you a hug?

[clapping] Whitney: When asked off camera the emotion he felt behind the tears, he let us know it was going back there reliving his hurtful past.

And this is only the second time he has shared his story.

The first one being with his daughter.

Those tears were both sadness and thankfulness.

His path was changed and it was not easy, but now he's saving lives on the Colombia and Venezuela border.

We wanted to understand more about this, so we loaded up the crew and went to a spot on the border where refugees cross in hopes for a better life.

[cultural music] How many hours?

[speaking through translator] I had to go for about a week?

Walking for a week with them.

Whitney: They walk mile after mile, some with very little food, hoping for a light at the end of the tunnel.

But what is that light?

We made our way to the Colombia and Venezuela border, and this is a spot where people are coming and traveling hours for help.

And there is help right here.

We discovered a spark when we went to a specific spot on the river.

This location is where thousands illegally crossed.

It is a never-ending stream of hope.

We stumbled upon Samaritan's Purse who, in collaboration with several other nonprofits, help refugees with food, shelter, health info and a lot more.

This is not a permanent spot, yet one that lifts spirits, allows rest, and recharges the refugees to keep going to their final destination.

We went on a tour to see what it was like.

I met a woman whose son needed surgery.

Another mother didn't say one word, yet her tear-filled eyes told a story of their own; one that is still heavy on my heart today.

We met with the cooks.

who were measuring out the perfect amount of nutrition for their meals that the refugees would need.

Some have been lacking food for years.

Before leaving, the group I was with prayed for the workers at Samaritan's Purse.

They are looking out for people every day, yet in this moment you could sense the gratitude for them being seen.

[cultural music] With so many refugees crossing into Colombia, we wanted to know what life was like on the other side of the Border.

Thank you so much for joining us today.

Thank you.

I've been with you now for over 24 hours learning more about your story and discovering a place that you came over to, but chose to go back home.

You went back to a place that is in a much different situation.

Why did you go back?

I've been out of my house three months.

I was looking for a better life for me and my family.

It was my plan.

But God's plans where other.

The main reason was to look for a better economic life.

What are you doing in Venezuela?

I work with some pastor's children.

I help them in this situation they're going through.

I support them.

Actually, I have some jobs.

How much do you make an hour?

Twenty-five cents per hour and I have four jobs.

With going back and choosing that life, how do you make sense of it?

My focus is to work on the children of the pastor's heart.

I'm a son of a pastor, and I know what a son of a pastor experiences.

Sometimes we feel abandoned in our home because our fathers need to do everything for the church.

We can get together with more than 100 children of pastors.

We work together as team, and we can help other churches as well.

Those are some of the things we do as children of pastors.

As we just saw, Jose is one example of someone who left his country, but went back to help the next generation.

Thank you for joining us.

[speaking through translator] Thank you.

It's great to be here.

We're taping in Colombia, but you actually came over from Venezuela for this interview.

Why did you choose to live in Venezuela?

Because I love my country and I know that God has me there because of one purpose.

And I could see that the very place that needed my help was my country.

So what are you doing over there?

I helped my parents in a church.

I teach music free.

You also are helping the next generation through Reach For Life.

Reach For Life helped me.

I was trained so I could help some other young.

I go to some poor neighborhoods and I help children.

And that's not all you're doing.

You talk about knowing you're needed in your country.

You also helped get thousands together.

There are many teenagers who feel rejected in need of a friend.

We have a group with Jose and the son's pastor, and we make meetings so they can have new friends and share God's love.

We can see a glimpse of hope, and when we see that happening in a multitude, it's a big light.

Whitney: Colombia is a country I am honored to share this story from.

A quick internet search might not show you all the goodness that can be found here.

On our downtime, I reflected on each interview.

Sometimes when people travel to these type of countries, we say, "Man, we're so lucky," and we go home and we do nothing with that.

One of the things I've been charged with here is what do we take back from this and make changes in a tangible way?

I enjoyed the views, the culture, and of course, the stories that came from here.

[cultural music] On our next mission, we go back State side and it's a reminder no matter where you are, you can do mission work even in your own backyard.

It all begins here with CPD waiting nearby.

Pastor Michael Allen, co-founder of Together Chicago, takes on the daunting task of knocking on the doors of repeat offenders, giving them the rare opportunity to seek his help.

Why is it that young black and brown men by and large are picking up guns and killing other black and brown men?

So that to me is just insanity and I'm trying to understand why that is.

Whitney: And just like that this quick and significant decision can forever change a life.

What's interesting is I've been on a hundred or more of these visits throughout the years and and we've never had an incident where a guy pulls a gun on us.

Once the police say, "Hey, this is Commander So-And-So.

"Nobody's in trouble.

"Nobody's going to jail today.

"Nobody's leaving here in handcuffs.

"But I brought a pastor with me to talk to you.

"I want to just talk with you.

"And the pastor has some good news to share with you and some resources."

By the time I get back to my office, or the next 48 to 72 hours a guy will call the office and say, "Hey, you came to my door with Commander So-and-So "and you offered me some help.

And I'm calling that in right now."

Whitney: Pastor Allen, through his many years of ministry and urban outreach, realized more needed to be done to minimize the gun violence.

And unfortunately, he was a witness first hand while volunteering at a local church.

Michael: We have a Monday night meal at Uptown Baptist Church.

And that meal is something we do every single Monday afternoon or Monday evening, and I heard what I first thought was fireworks.

And so I quietly stepped out the back of the sanctuary and opened the door, looked down at the corner of Wilson and Broadway and five people were laying on the ground bleeding.

It felt like it was too close to home, too close for comfort.

I couldn't get over it.

I just kept thinking, "We have to do something.

We can't allow this to continue happening."

How can we minister on both sides of the gun?

It's not an either or.

Both are necessary.

And desperately need the church to step in and to try to do what we do and what only we can do.

Whitney: And former gang member, Lafonis, decided he was ready to make a change and is one of the many young men that Michael Allen has personally helped to get off the streets.

We grew up with each other.

We fought each other.

We shot at each other.

We all got a little older and just realized like, man, we shouldn't be doing it.

So what we do is stick together, band together.

We go out and canvas the neighborhood and let them see that we're together.

If we was able to get through it and come together, we try to show them that they can do the same as well.

Whitney: And this story of major transformation is a reminder that sometimes the mission can start right in our own backyard.

And from Chicago back now to be here on a mission in Colombia.

We are hearing stories of change and hope.

What you might not know about all the stories on today's show is that they're very interconnected.

Let's find out how No matter what the challenge may be, Jeff Morin is committed to spreading hope across the world.

He is the CEO of Biblica and is bringing help to places that need it the most, and also inspiring positive change in the process.

Welcome to the show.

Hey, thanks.

So good to be here.

We have been going on a mission today and the common chord between everybody that we've seen is actually an organization that you're the CEO of.

It's true.

And thank you so much for just picking up these stories.

So 200 plus years, from the very foundings of this nation, when we were just a baby nation, there was an organization created to bring the hope of the Bible to people who needed it who are just in desperate situations.

That's where we began.

And that's that's really been the heartbeat for two centuries.

In this third century, now that we have this book available to serve 7 billion people on planet Earth, these translations across 85 languages, now you have this opportunity to take hope for folks in challenging places to invite new discovery, to bring healing, to address some critical issues in the world today.

To see the work that you are doing globally is incredible, and to also know that there is sometimes some threads that we don't know between all of our stories.

Yeah.

That's what we found when we sat down with all these different interviews is, the stories you might look across and say, "Oh, we're very different, but you realize you're really not when you take that moment to open up and realize that their story does matter.

Right.

So we're talking about one little organization called Biblica, which has this common thread because of this big book that's so central in the lives of people across history.

Okay, that's one opportunity.

There's so many others.

Where will you step forward and say, "This is making me uncomfortable.

"I've never done this before "but I think I could impact change here If I was to step across that line."

Amazing.

You are so right.

Thank you so much for coming on today.

Thanks.

It's been fun.

What a mission we have been on together.

I am honored to be a vehicle for change with you each week on the show and from Colombia here today.

Remember, your story matters.

[music] Announcer: The Whitney Reynolds Show is funded by Yates Protect, a minority owned business focused on protecting communities and providing solutions to safety problems for public and private institutions, including air purification, metal detectors, thermal detection, and more; Together at Peace: a community lifting you from coping to hoping; O'Connor Law Firm: when it comes to your injuries, we take it personally.

Xtreme Xperience: making the world's supercars accessible, so you can experience being in the driver's seat on the race tracks and back roads of our country; Theraderm Clinical Skincare: committed to developing skin care products designed to restore skin health and promote natural beauty.

And by 10 West Real Estate Group, UFC Gym Lakeview, Ella's Bubbles, Hi-Five Sport Chicago, Fresh Dental, Kevin Kelly Real Estate Agent, Concierge Aesthetics & Plastic Surgery, Deluxe Cleaning Services, Mid-West Moving & Storage, TuTu School Chicago, Goldfish Swim School Roscoe Village, and by these funders: Announcer: For more information on today's program visit www.whitneyreynolds.com or get social with us.

Facebook: @WhitneyReynoldsShow Twitter: @whitneyreynolds or on TikTok and Instagram: @whitneyó_Reynolds.

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