- I was scared to death that my life

was over and there was no turning back.

- [Narrator] February 28th, 2008.

(heart rate monitor beeps)Mark Nelson was admitted

into a Tallahassee, Florida,hospital with double pneumonia.

But that wasn't theworst news he would get.

- They said that I had AIDS.

The virus was in my system for,

they said, eight to 10 years.

- [Narrator] Now in ICU,Mark began to reflect

on his childhood and thedecisions he had made in life.

Growing up in a churchgoingmiddle-class family,

he had most everything he needed,

except the attention andaffection of his dad.

- I was looking for that connection

to a male figure that could give me

some affirmation that Iwas doing something right.

- [Narrator] He did find a father figure

in his youth pastor at church.

At 13, Mark was doing his best

to stand out and to be admired.

- He did get kind of arrogantto some extent, and proud.

- I would actually tell other people

that I knew more thanthem, that I was better

than them, that Godloved me more than them.

- [Narrator] Seeingthe strife and division

Mark was causing, his youth pastor

pulled him aside and chastised him.

- I thought he wasrebuking me as a person,

and so, when I left thatyouth group that night,

I was weeping and just hurt, deeply hurt.

- [Narrator] Now, instead of spending

all his time at church,Mark found another crowd.

He started drinking and doing drugs.

Then he got into pornography.

- I had to find other thingsto really fill that wound.

My entire mind was overrunwith perverse thoughts.

It led me into a very broken world.

- [Narrator] A broken world that led

to a growing attraction to men.

Throughout high school, Mark kept

his same-sex desires hidden.

But in college, he startedtesting the waters,

and found acceptance amongthe homosexual community.

Then, after he graduatedfrom college in 2000,

he stepped fully into the gay lifestyle.

- I was getting a lot of male affirmation.

I was really, reallypromiscuous all over the place.

- [Narrator] For sevenyears, he kept his secret

from his parents and co-workers.

Then, in February 2008,after several months

of being sick, he landed in the hospital

with double pneumonia and AIDS.

- I had a lot of fear aboutwhat was gonna happen to me.

- [Narrator] Doctors decided to put Mark

into a coma to help his body rest.

Meanwhile, Mark's parents got word

and came as soon as they could.

They discovered their son was not only

in a physical battle, but a spiritual one.

- And when we went intohis room that night,

and we went over nextto him to pray for him,

I heard a voice say, "We havehim, stay away from him."

- [Narrator] Doctors gave Mark's parents

little hope as his healthcontinued to decline.

- I knew the Lord did miracles,

and we started praying right away.

- I was reading the Bible all the time,

and every place I went, Iwrote the scriptures down

that God gave me, and then I would say

them out loud, and I would proclaim them.

- [Narrator] For the next several weeks,

(heart rate monitor beeps)family and friends prayed

around the clock.

Then, on Easter weekend,

(heart monitor sustains beep)Mark coded.

- I started seeing scenesof my life just flashing

before my eyes, and Iknew that they were all

based off my years ofliving in homosexuality.

It went complete darkness again.

Slowly, I started hearing thesescreams and cries for help.

And then, I started feelingthese kicks and these punches,

these physical blows to my body.

It was overwhelming me,and I got to the point

where I couldn't really take it anymore.

And I cried out, "Jesus!"

And immediately, mysoul re-entered my body.

I just thanked God that day with such

depth for what he brought me out of.

(hopeful piano music)

- [Narrator] After Mark stabilized,

doctors decided to bringhim out of his coma.

Next day, everyone could seethat something had changed.

- There was a differentatmosphere in the room.

Every improvement waslike a time to rejoice.

- My same-sex attraction leftme that night in the hospital.

The afternoon of Easter Sunday,I started getting stronger.

I was becoming less andless dependent on oxygen,

so they saw that my lungswere getting stronger.

- [Narrator] In fact, by the time doctors

released Mark a few weeks later,

they said his HIV was undetectable.

Now at home, Mark surrenderedhis life to Jesus Christ.

- And I just started weepingand crying out to the Lord

and just saying, "Lord, I'm sorry.

"I'm sorry for all that I've done.

"I want to be in fullrelationship with You, Lord."

And I just felt this peace come over me,

and I felt like at thatmoment, that that was it.

- [Narrator] Mark has since married

and works for a missionsorganization in Florida.

His HIV is still undetectable,

and has been since thatEaster Sunday years ago.

- It is a day of remembrance, it is a day

of exclamation and joy and thankfulness

for Him bringing us out of so much.

And the cross is there for anyone, anyone.

It doesn't matter what kind of sin it is,

the cross is where you lay it.