[MUSIC]

Welcome to the 700 Club

Canada. I'm Brian Warren.

And I'm Laura-Lynn Tyler

Thompson. Love to see you

here.

We've got a powerful show for

you today, packed with a potent

promise. God can restore you

from an early life of sorrow

and pain.

Many of us struggle with

letting our past define us.

Well, today's show exists to

help shine the light of the

Gospel into the dark prison

that you might feel you're in.

You know, so often,

Laura-Lynn, when we find

our self in dark places, that's

what the Good News is all

about, that you don't have to

stay in bondage but you can

be set free because Jesus came

to set the captives free. He

came to destroy the works of

darkness and the power of

darkness as well. So no matter

what you're going through, He

can deliver you. You just have

to put your faith in that.

Yes, and, you know, I think

about some of those that are

caught in addiction. I

recently ran into a woman that

has just been so radically set

free you would not recognize

her.

Yes.

But if you were to read her

story, you know, she were to

summarize it in a paragraph,

you would be shocked at what

she'd been through, you know,

shocked at the dark days that

she had gone through, and yet

as she put her faith and her

hope in Jesus, He changed

everything. And it really

requires that those who are

in that place receive it by

faith. You know, you cannot

force anyone to take in this

hope.

You're absolutely right

because what you find and what

I see time and time again is

that through those cracks,

God's light shines so much

brighter. And that's why I

always say and it's kind of

tongue-in-cheek but God uses

cracked pots. When we have it

all together and really no one

has it all together, it does

not allow the light of God to

shine. But no matter if it's

abuse that you've gone through,

no matter if it's a trauma

because of a divorce or whether

it is because you have had to

endure some very, very

difficult seasons of life,

that's why Christ came, to set

the captives free. And today

that's what we're praying for,

that as you see these

testimonies and as you begin

to pray along and you can

believe God, if you did it for

them, you can do it for me.

And, you know, Brian, some

of the segments that we do

you really have to treat with

tenderness and that's the case

today. The stories we're

featuring are those kind and

they're precious stories but

they're really gut-wrenching

stories.

You're so right, Laura-Lynn.

As a pastor, I realize we

feature people whose lives

were wrecked with abuse,

addiction, and disease. In

each case, God ultimately came

through.

And Dana Casper's story is

proof. You've got to see this.

Check it out.

[MUSIC]

I'm in Hollywood. I'm in the

thick of it. I'm living in

Malibu on the beach.

Nicollette Sheriden and Leif

Garret are upstairs, and we

hang out together on the ocean

and like life couldn't get any

better.

Dana Casper was living her

dream. But behind the scenes

of her glamorous world of

acting, Dana had a secret.

Abandoned by her father as a

baby and raised by a single

Mom, she spent her childhood

in the care of babysitters.

After swimming one day,

you know, he asked me to follow

him into his bedroom for

naptime, and I really didn't

know what was taking place

cause I thought this person

was wonderful and he was a

good friend of the family and

someone I looked up to and

expected to keep me safe.

And instead he harmed me

sexually.

A year later, Dana fell prey

to another abuser.

Afterwards I felt great guilt

and shame. It was the huge

shift in my heart. It's when

my world really like turned

upside down.

To ease the pain of her

abuse, Dana escaped into the

world of television and film.

You don't want to be there

so you try to be somewhere

else, and I perfected

disassociation being somewhere

else. I could be whoever I

wanted to be. I could be the

actor on TV. I could be Julie

Andrews in Sound of Music

with all the kids and I can

sing like her and I could run

on the meadows and

everything pure and good and

that purity and that goodness,

you know, I held onto that.

But that escape was only

temporary so she turned to

other things to ease the pain.

And I started experimenting

with drugs, alcohol, hanging

out, you know, with people

everywhere.

After high school, Dana moved

to Hollywood to work in the

film industry. It was the

perfect place to bury the shame

and guilt she carried.

I didn't have to think about

me, and then to be in that

where everything is pretend, it

was a good place for me to

continue the pretend, because

if I let it out, I'd be found

out for the badness that I was

and then I would be rejected

again and abandoned again

and not be loved.

Dana quickly found success

in tinsel town. As she

embraced the Hollywood

lifestyle, she fed headlong

into drugs and alcohol abuse

and something more.

Worked at ABC motion pictures

and went to all the parties and

worked at 20th Century Fox for

years and publicity and

promotion thinking that would

make me happy. You know, oh,

gosh, if you're in, you know,

the movie business, if you're

in Hollywood, if you're working

at Fox and you're with somebody

that's important, you're going

to be happy. But they're

passing cocaine underneath the

table at business lunches. So

it drove me deeper into

depravity instead of being any

kind of lifeline.

Then Dana became pregnant.

She decided to have an

abortion. She quickly

regretted that decision.

Well, I remember the guy

calling the hospital after it

happened when I'm in

recovery and just feeling like,

you know, oh, God, just let

me die, you know, that's how

I felt. I just wanted to

really die.

Later got into a relationship

and became pregnant again.

But a week before she found

out, some friends talked her

into taking LSD. This time

doctors talked her into an

abortion. Dana had had enough.

One night she fell on her knees

in desperation.

I just wanted to end life

so I'm on my knees and I'm

hysterical and I'm just ready

to end it. And I cried out to

Jesus to please help me.

Dana surrendered her heart

to the Lord.

He had the depths of my

heart. He knew I needed help.

Dana says for the first time

she had hope. She went through

AA and with God's help put

away drugs and alcohol. She

also forgave her abusers and

received God's healing,

forgiveness, and love.

I didn't want to drink, like

I didn't want to drink which

is remarkable because I loved

to be social and drink. And

that was the beginning of

walking out of the pit of hell.

Today Dana is married and

has two daughters. She's an

advocate for victims of sexual

abuse. The love she found for

Jesus Christ has given her

peace.

He softened my heart to

receive His love, and that

helps me with myself and

that helps me love others.

In the storm of life, He is the

rock. It will be the sweetest

life you ever live. If you

want joy, the road to joy is

Jesus.

[MUSIC]

As a mother of five, Shawna

Cerantes doesn't have time

to be sick.

Mom, what's for dinner?

Corned beef and cabbage.

When is it going to be done?

In 2012, she started having

symptoms that would interrupt

her busy life.

Actually started breaking out

on the back of my neck, and

even before that my hair

started falling out. I didn't

know what it was. What is

going on?

After several months, she

saw a dermatologist.

They diagnosed it as

folliculitis, and they gave me

medication. So it was a

dermatological reaction from

something that was going on

inside of my body.

But none of the medications

worked.

And then it went up to my

head and then it moved to my

face. It just became

unbearable. I didn't deal with

it real well because it's like

having ants crawling all over

your body constantly like fire

ants. So I was irritable. I

was tired because I wasn't

sleeping. I stopped my whole

life pretty much. Like I was

in the house and I didn't

really go to church. I wasn't

going anywhere. Super,

super depressed. I was praying

intently every single day,

begging, begging God cause I

couldn't take it anymore. I

mean a woman's hair is kind

of like a frame to a picture,

t was

heartbreaking.

Shawna had been suffering

with rashes and thinning hair

for nearly two years when she

turned on the 700 Club.

[MUSIC]

And then I heard her say

the words, "Somebody has a

rash on their head and nobody

knows what this is but God

does."

There's someone else. You

have a problem. This is very

strange with your scalp. You

get some kind of a reaction

where you get these sores all

over your head and they're

t's

just a mess. God is healing

that for you right now. I

don't know what's causing it

but He does and He's creatively

giving you back totally healthy

skin.

I just looked up and I

rewound it and I rewound it.

Twelve times I rewound it and

then I played it throughout the

day because I just fell into

tears. I felt like, you know,

God finally heard me.

Over the next two weeks the

itching and burning subsided

and gradually her hair started

growing back. Months later,

she even found the source of

the problem.

And I ended up going to an

endocrinologist and that did

it. We at least figured out

that the inflammation was

coming from the thyroid.

Shawna manages it with diet

and her life and health are now

back to normal. She says she's

learned a lot from her journey.

The way I look at it is that

everywhere I've been in my life

that's been hard and especially

this part, there's a reason,

and it's usually for me it's

been needing to draw near and

to rely on Him more and

ot just say you

believe, believe because God

knows your heart.

[MUSIC]

Daddy.

Yeah, buddy.

How many nickels are in a

dollar?

There are 20 nickels in a

dollar.

How do birds fly? Does milk

really make my bones stronger?

Yeah, yeah.

Daddy, when we die, will we

go to heaven?

Do you have the answer to

life's biggest question? Call

the 700 Club. We'll help you

find answers to the important

questions life brings your way.

[MUSIC]

Growing up, you know, it was

pretty, you know, kind of

brutal. I'd take severe

beatings. It wasn't, you know,

a smack on the rear end or

something like that. It was

putting you over the top rail

on the bunk bed and smashing

your head or driving your head

through the wall. I mean you

could go in and take down the

wallpaper in my bedroom and

you'd probably see I don't know

how many holes from where

he had to plaster them up after

he had finished beating on me.

Michael Bull Roberts'

childhood was full of pain and

abuse as he was the target of

his father's rage.

The only way I knew his

emotions it was judged by,

you know, whether or not he

took his steel-toed boots off

when he came home from work

and came up and threw a licking

on me. But everybody in town

was afraid of my dad, you know.

Everyone I think, you know,

this big Ed Roberts, everyone

was scared of him. And because

nobody ever went after him,

everybody knew what was

going on but nobody did

nothing, you know. I mean I

used to sit on the end of my

bed every night rocking back

and forth saying please, God,

please, please don't let him

come up today. Please, please,

please, and I'd be just rocking

back and forth at the end of

my bed praying and praying and

praying, but God never

answered, you know, and so I

hated God.

Constant battering took a

toll on him early as his

struggle to find love and

acceptance gradually gave way

to hatred and cold-bloodedness.

You know, nobody in the

school, nobody anywhere ever

took the time to say, you know,

"What's wrong? What's going

on or whatever?" cause they

didn't want to deal with it and

so I had to keep going through

it.

There was one teacher who

saw what was happening and

dared to stand up and say

something. After his case was

reported, young Michael was

taken from his home and placed

in foster care.

So I went into foster care

and I became very confused

because I didn't have anybody

to punish me anymore, right.

So I started punishing myself

so I would do a lot of self-

mutilating. Stabbed myself

three times through the arm

here, ran it through to the

other side. I mean you can

feel the scars everywhere.

Isn't that right? They ended

up having to put me in a

mental institution. They put

me on the forensic ward for

criminally insane. So now I'm

in there with, you know, an

ax murderer. I'm in there with

serial rapists, all this stuff,

you know. God was never there

where I was a kid. He wasn't

there thhereLike I just

was no God. I just didn't

believe.

In his search for acceptance,

Mike joined one of Canada's

most notorious gangs. His

size made him a perfect fit,

and he was an intimidating

force. He felt unstoppable.

You know, I knew a lot about

organized crime. I've been

involved with organized crime

in some way, shape, or form

for years, you know. And,

you know, all these crews over

the years that I've been

involved with, you know, like I

said I was always looking for

that family, looking for that

love, the respect, wanted

somebody to respect me, right?

But I also wanted to have that

fear in the end that I had with

my father because I wanted

people to respect and fear me

like I did my father, because I

didn't want to be messed with

anymore.

But the law eventually caught

up with the gang, and that was

just the beginning of Mike's

problems.

One day we got raided.

Luckily I didn't get busted

with anything. My safes were

empty. There was no guns in

my house or anything like that.

And then there was all this

paranoia and the mistrust

started kicking in and all this

other stuff and just the crew

wasn't the same anymore.

The crew began to turn on

each other and big Mike had

a big target on his back.

One day I was sitting there

talking business with a couple

of guys and the other guy

snuck up behind me in the

lilac bushes and cracks me in

the back of the neck with a

baseball bat. I hit the ground

and all I remember is them

saying, "Get him. He's down."

And they're, you know, beating

me with baseball bats and

everything and, you know, left

me unconscious and then they

disappeared. A farmer took me

to the hospital. They were

scared at the hospital and

stuff so it was like as soon as

this guy regains consciousness

get him out of here, you know.

So they took me and stashed

me in a hotel room. So now

I'm, you know, I'm lying in

this bed. My leg is all

fractured up. I had skull

fractures, you know, black

and blue all over. I had

three broken bones in my arm,

hand crushed, all that stuff,

and I had severe spinal damage.

I got myself against the wall

and I was going to go to the

bathroom and I fell down. And

when I fell down, I fell on

the side that was broken so

I couldn't lift myself back up

again. And at that point I

was like, you know, for me to

live to 33 in the life that

I've lived over the years,

you know, I'm ready to die

today. And I had it in my head

if I could drag myself to the

bathroom and get my hands

on a razor I was just going to

poke it, right. I knew I'd get

rid of myself and I was just

going to cut off the jugular,

bleed out on the floor and be

done with it, right, but I

decided to make one more

deal with God before I died.

And I said, "You know I'm done

today," right, and I said, "but

before I die today, there's one

thing I've never ever known.

Just give me an inch. Just

show me what love is once

before I die. I didn't have to

wait for nothing. It was there

instantly. I was forgiven.

And I just started bawling. I

knew I was so forgiven. I was

so ashamed of myself I couldn't

lift my head up. I was so

ashamed of myself for ever

doubting that there was a God.

I've told this story so many

times over the last five years

and it still amazes me and

breaks my heart like I can't

believe that God would do that

for me. There's a God. I know

there's a God, and to today I

tell people all the time if you

want to fight about it let's

go over to the park. Come on,

I know there's a God, man. I'm

telling I know it, you know,

and I could never go back. I

don't care how poor I get or

what I'm doing now, I could

never go back to who I was.

[MUSIC]

Next on the 700 Club Canada.

I'm not ashamed of it

because it's my road map of

life, you know, like it's my

journey.

Too often we carry baggage

from our past. You know, what

it's like. It affects

everything and everyone in our

lives. It's always there

weighing us down and keeping

us from achieving true

happiness. But do you know God

never meant for us to be

trapped in the past? You can

be free of your baggage. Learn

how God's forgiveness leads to

changed lives and new

beginnings. Call the 700 Club.

[MUSIC]

So I was on Facebook one

night and I asked my friend I

said, "Listen, can you come

over for coffee tomorrow, all

right?" She said, "I can't.

I'm busy. I have an art show

tomorrow." I said, "Oh, what

kind of art?" And she said,

"Abstract." I said, "Oh,

that's where you throw the

paint at the canvas and you

think it's art, right?" And

she said, "No, not quite,

right." And I think she was a

little bit offended that I said

that. And I said, "Oh, you

think that will work for me

if I went and got a canvas and

tried to paint on it or

whatever?" She said, "Give it

a shot." So I went out and I

got to do, you know, go big or

go home and that's the way I

always do it. So I bought the

biggest canvas I could find,

brought it home, painted the

first paining. You know, I

knew what I was going to

paint on it. And it was,

you know, it was dark delight

and there was a cross in the

middle that was half-dark,

half-light and, you know, it

was all hate, anger.

Everything was all listed here

in the dark and it represented

the light going in the dark and

the dark going into light. I

put it up on Facebook and

everybody loved it. I said,

"Hmm, maybe I'm on to

something," cause a guy ordered

ten copies of it, you know. So

I went and I painted another

one, you know, that represented

my heart and Christ coming out

of the prison, was my heart and

there was the salvation crosses

and prison cell in the

background, right. And

everybody like that. And so

then for the next three months

I painted a couple hundred

paintings.

When Michael Bull Roberts

gave his life to Jesus, he was

amazed at how God was able

to change his hardened heart

and release a talent he never

knew was inside.

I've been dealing with my

emotions that way. That's

how I deal with my emotions.

It just has been so healing

to me. All my painting are all

from memories, you know, like

something that's been lost

subconsciously, but I guess

some people get it. And like

I'm starting to understand it

now. Like I don't know. I

just pain whatever is on my

heart, man, and it comes out,

you know.

Mike also discovered that

he had a heart for people and

a desire to share what God was

able to do for him.

Over the last five years,

I've tried different types of

ministries, right, and, you

know, I thought I could get

into motorcycle ministry and

that would make me happy,

you know, cause I could be

around guys, you know, big

burly biker guys like myself

and, you know, I'd fit right in

because I didn't fit in in

church. Tried prison ministry.

Did prison ministry for three

years. That wasn't it either.

One thing that stayed constant

in the last five years is the

youth, nonstop, man. My

heart for them is incredible.

In my head I think, you know

what? Them other fellows,

they're old enough to know

better, you know, and these

ones, they need to hear what

the reality is, you know. And

I mean don't get me wrong.

I'll go to the Salvation Army

and do devotionals or I'll

go with the men. If they want

me to come, I'll come. I'll

share God's love with anybody

and not just the youth, right?

But my passion and the burden

that's on my heart is my love

for the youth. It's these kids

I've seen that I've painted

with and stuff like that that

brings me so much joy like

it does with me. I can relate

to them and I tell them. They

were like cause they think I'm

going to teach them how to

paint. The best technique is

none. Just paint.

But what about other

people's perception of Mike?

How would they react to a

man covered in tattoos?

I'm not ashamed of it

because it's my road map of

life and it's my journey and

I think, you know, it's like I

tell people all the time.

You know how I tell people

about God? All I got to do is

sit there like this while

they're staring at me and then

smile. Right? And then they

say, "Oh, he's not so mean.

He's smiling, right? How come

he's smiling. That guy looks

pretty mean, right. So then

they want to come and say,

"Hey, so how much did that

hurt?" Right, and then I can

tell them about the tattoos and

I can tell them how it changed

my life. That was my old life.

But I'm not dangerous. I'm

not mean. I'm going to show

the love of God. You can't

look me in my eye and see

Jesus in me? They'll see it.

Underneath all the pain,

all the struggle, and all the

tattoos is Michael Roberts,

a man whose heart has been

changed by the amazing power

of God and a man whose passions

and talents are still being

revealed as God continues to

reveal Himself to Michael.

You have to know God.

You have to feel God. You

have to desire God. You have

to want Him. You have to be

at that point where you need

that love, right, and until

you feel that love or that

power of God for real and you

reach a point, like you don't

have to come to the point like

I was, a bag of broken bones

lying in your own filth on the

floor. You could come to your

own point of, you know,

understanding, you know,

where you need to cry out

and ask for that real love.

[MUSIC]

You know, Laura-Lynn, when

you look at Michael Bull

Roberts, you recognize that

you can't judge a book by the

cover.

Sure can't.

You know, and

Awesome.

he walks around with that

as well, and he's just a gentle

giant. But I wonder if you're

struggling with some of the

same things that he was

struggling with as well for

most of his life, that

rejection, being unwanted,

and not really fitting in.

You know, God says you fit

in with Him because He

doesn't make any junk. I'd

like to get something into

your hands. I want to pray a

prayer with you, but I believe

that this is going to be one

of the most powerful days of

your life, because what you're

going to do is get out of you

and then get into the purpose

that God called you to. Let's

pray a prayer. Let's just come

into agreement together.

Pray this prayer with me.

Jesus, I'm tired of doing it

alone, doing life. I confess I

am powerless to help myself,

powerless to improve my

circumstances. I need help.

I confess my sin. I turn from

them. I turn to you. Please

come into my heart. Make

me the person you want me to

be, in Jesus' name. Amen.

Amen. We all know that life

can be uncertain at the best

of times. Each of us will face

seasons of struggle and

significant battles.

If that's you, then you're

going to want to get your hands

on the newest DVD, Victory

Through Life's Storms.

In this new powerful DVD

Pat Robertson teaches you

the Biblical answers that will

help you win the battle and

enjoy tremendous victory

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So call now. 1-855-759-0700.

Become a monthly partner and

we'll send you Victory Through

Life's Storms right away. It

would be such an encouragement.

And, you know, Brian, we have

some prayer requests. I have

one here from Lee from Toronto

and she needs protection and

deliverance from jail. And,

hey, we want to pray that you

get out, get free not only from

jail but in your heart and in

your soul. That's true

freedom.

Yeah, and also Elizabeth from

Clearview, Newfoundland. She's

praying for her husband to rise

up as the spiritual leader.

Wow.

Yeah, come on, let's touch

and agree.

Father, we just thank you,

Oh, God for Lee. We thank you,

Lord, that you have had your

hand on her, that you have kept

her from destruction and from

death. And that, Father, you

are dealing in her life and

that you are the one who is

able to set her truly free.

Because when we know you,

Jesus, we are free indeed. I

ask you that you would open

up her soul, Lord, to receive

more of you so that she would

have peace that passes

understanding, joy that

overflows her circumstances,

and that she would know that

within her being, within her

soul, no matter what it is

like on the outside, she is

free in you, in Jesus' name.

And, Father, we do pray for

Elizabeth but we also ask you

that there would be a

mutual submission that her

husband and her would be

under your headship and that

that home would be

recalibrated, that their

marriage, Lord, would truly

be reignited and that you would

give them the tools and you

would send in help even now.

God, we cover them under the

blood and we call it so in

Jesus' name. Amen.

Amen. Amen.

Well, you know, it's such a

privilege every time we get

an opportunity to join you

and come into your homes and

pray with you.

It really is, Brian, and,

you know, I just appreciate

that you are such a strong

man of faith. It encourages me

every day, and what a privilege

it is for me to work with you.

And myself as well because

you're a self-proclaim a

wrecking ball for the Kingdom.

Amen. Amen. Until next

time, I'm Laura-Lynn Tyler

Thompson.

And I'm Brian Warren. Have

a great day, Canada. God

bless. To contact us mail

Christian Broadcasting

Associates, Incorporate.

That's 700 Club Canada,

P.O. Box 700, Scarborough,

Ontario M1S 4T4 or visit us

at 700Club.CA