Michael Franzese: From Crime to Christ - FULL INTERVIEW - Life Imprint Dinner 2020

He put that in my head and other problems because of it, but the alleged bank robbers were all drug addicts, so I knew my father would do it. I have nothing to do with them, so I said, but dad was 50 years old and I was a medical student at Hofstra University. He was playing ball and Joe Colombo, who was the head of our family, took me under his wing. I got really close to him and a lot of my dad's friends and they say to Mike what are you going to go to school? If you don't help your father, he will die in prison because he was 51 years old.

He came in, it figured he was 50 plus he would be dead so I go see him and I loved him more than I did. Dad said, I'm not going to go to school anymore, if I don't help you, you're going to die here and he was angry, you know, I don't want that for you and we were back and forth, but I was a pretty stubborn kid and He kind of put his hands up and said, "Okay, but if you're going to be on the street, I want you on the street the right way," and in his mind the right way was to become a member of his

life

, so he you know dr.

J he just looked at me and you know I'm going to be honest and I hope it's not offensive to anyone, but I'm being as honest as possible, he looked at me and said I want to ask you a question, it's very serious. and I said what he said: if you ever had to kill someone, could you do it? Honestly, that surprised me a little bit, but you know, I thought about it, I mean, and I said, given the right circumstances, I think I can do it. He looked at me and said that's the right answer, he said, go home, someone will contact you, just do what they tell you and that was it, and from that moment he proposed to me to be a member of

life

when you come into it . in life you can't just approach someone you'd like to join you know someone has to put you forward and vouch for you and say you have what it takes to become a member and in my case it was my father so now what we're going through It is to the second phase of your life, which is the Godfather phase.

Okay, so you're nominated as Chumlee or whatever the word is intended. Okay, by a friend of your father. I think so, since my father was not there. He texted and proposed to me, but then someone else had to make the introduction, so someone comes to you and I think he set up a meeting with Tom DiBella, yeah, he was the boss at the time, okay, and he did it. What happened in your meeting with Mr. develop why he sat down with Tom and he said Mike, I got a message from your dad, he says you want to be a member of that life, it's true and I'll never forget it, I said Tim, yeah, if that's what my dad wants, that is what I want. he looked at me he said this isn't about your dad I asked if that's what you would want and I said yes he's fine this is the deal from now on 24/7 , you are on duty serve this family, the Colombo family, that means if your mother is sick and dying and you are at her bedside and we call you to serve, you leave your mother, you come and serve us from now on, we are number one in your life before anything else. and everything, when and if we think you deserve this privilege, this honor of becoming a member, we will let you know and that's how it started for me and at that point you are a recruit, so the initiation or trial period begins last about a year, almost two years, yeah, yeah, you know when you're a recruit you're on call 24/7 and you basically have to do whatever they tell you to do in their eyes to prove that you are worthy of becoming a member and honestly that could be very servile there is a lot of discipline in that life a lot of authority a lot of authority a lot of respect you had a meeting at 8 o'clock you weren't there at 7:30 you can be elated Never be late for that one life take the boss to a meeting sit in the car three four or five hours God forbid you go out to get a newspaper go to the bathroom he comes back you're not in the car you're in trouble I know I did it once I paid the price, but there are many things like that and you honestly know that life is very violent sometimes and if you separate a life you are part of the violence and there is no escape if someone tells you otherwise. they make the order as a member of that life, well they are not being honest with you, which is part of life, so during the probationary period you have to make your bones, what exactly does that mean?

Well, you know, this is always very difficult, you know, I have to be honest, I do a lot of

interview

s and it's always very difficult for me to talk about this because I don't want to offend people and I certainly don't wear it as a badge of honor and I see There's other guys who talk about it like Sammy the bull and I don't mention age, but you know they're talking about it with a certain pride and I find it very difficult to do that, but also to be honest. Do you know that if you were ordered to murder someone within that life you have to do it and if you don't you are in trouble and you know that was during that time for 20 years before the time they did me?

He had an expression that said the books were closed, which meant that no new kids would be brought into the family in any of the families, it was kind of a security thing, the only time you were allowed to bring someone in was if someone died. and you replaced him. them, but in the early '70s they opened the books because they wanted to increase the rank, so what I told people is that they know that in that life it's not like you go around committing murders and you don't kill everyone you see , so there are not enough people to go around that had to be killed, but you had to be prepared to do it if they asked you to do it and they had to believe that you had that ability and that's how it was. during my time, okay, so on Halloween night of 1975 you get a call saying tonight is your night, no, you should never know when that night is because obviously that has to be something very secret that you always we are watched. the government, so no one knew that the night they were going to call you could have been at any time, so it just so happened that Joe was on Halloween night when I got a call from my kingpin regime, my captain at the time, and told me I needed to see.

Tonight in Brooklyn he told me to wear a suit so I got dressed and you know you're anticipating it but I heard them call me hundreds of times and nothing happened and that was the night it happened. Joe Colombo's son, Anthony Colombo, had a catering hall in Brooklyn and that's where this event took place for me, it was late at night, do you want me to describe it, yeah, it was that there were six of us that were brought in that night and we entered a room individually, the boss was sitting at the head like a horseshoe. configuration of deputy chief consul Gary to his left and right and all the captain couple regimes were next to him and we had about 15 in our family at that time and I walked down the hall I stood in front of the chief I held out my hand to him and he took a knife on the right here he cut my fingers from the blood that fell to the ground this is a blood oath and I joined my hands he took Victor from a saint the Catholic altar he caught it he put it in my hand he slid it into flames it didn't hurt burned quickly was merely symbolic and he That night told me something I don't remember ever hearing in my life and I grew up Catholic.

I went to a Catholic school from kindergarten to high school, but for some reason to me you know Catholicism was like a subject in school and I certainly don't blame the Catholics. I'm at my family's Catholic school. You know I do a lot with faith, but it just didn't work for me at the time and he said tonight Michael Franzese, you are born again in a new life until the Cosa Nostra violates what you know this life will betray your brothers and you will die and you will burn in hell like the Saint who burns in your hands he said: you accept and I said yes, I accept and that is the oath of the other five boys I entered, they all took the oath, you enter life, you enter as a soldier and, to For me, I was motivated to do two things: first, I wanted to get my father out of prison and I ended up getting him out on parole later. 10 years and he kept coming back after that, but I took him out and came back five times, but that's a whole other story, but then I wanted to make money, my dad said in this life you make money, it translates into power, not much different to the real world and once again please my dad and want to be the best gangster possible.

I was lucky enough to know how to use that life to benefit myself in business. He was very aggressive in the street. I brought some things to the family that they had not done before. I let him know a significant amount of money. Do you know what's curious? Dr. Jay after taking the oath we do what Italians do all the time we had a banquet we won't eat right across Cairo at a big banquet. I'll never forget this little Joe Java taco who was a soldier, walks in with a brown paper bag and says, "a boss, should I give them his entire bag of money?" You know, the irony of that statement is that everyone thinks you get to that life and people throw money at you, it's the complete opposite.

When you come into that life you have to prove yourself and you're always paying the boss and if you're a salaryman you know you're at a certain level, if you're not you're at a certain level so you know I learned that. that day because the boss said, hey, don't expect us to do anything for you, you guys have to make a living here and make a living, so it was a good lesson for me from the beginning, okay, let's briefly touch on this and then we'll move on. Go ahead in this story, there are certain rules that go with the mafia, yes, only the Italians, okay, the oath, absolute priority, once you commit to that, you have given your life, that's okay, no, there is no grace, no violation of blood.

What you can spill out is like you've had your finger pricked, that was a symbolism, you know, they told you and I want people to understand this, you know, because a lot of people look like how you did it, you know, when you get there to that life. They tell you, look, this is the deal, you comply with the rules, you do not violate the oath, you do not make any mistakes, if you do, you can pay for it with your life and it could be a best friend who accompanies you to that room from which you will not leave so that we all understand that We have to follow the rules and if we violate them we can pay the consequences.

They can be severe so that we understand that by entering I am not saying that it is right to accept something. Like that, but that's the mentality you have when you walk in and that's the sense in which you gave your life to the Godfather. Now you were under that influence. Yes, he defines your life in many ways, keeping all family rituals and secrets confidential. You're not supposed to talk about it, it's not a bad look at the mafia, that's the American oath we take, you can't talk about it, it's okay, you won't rape another man's wife, sister or daughter, that's a strict rule.

You know, when I came into life, maybe you should never worry about your wife, your sister, your mother, your daughter, no one will ever do that and if you haven't violated something like that you're in trouble, okay, never raise your hand. against another member never ever pay your debts to the boss unquestionably yes you follow orders unquestionably yes it is fine and there is no involvement with narcotics at that time they told us directly that if we worked with drugs we would die that has changed, I think you already know that with the youngest Guys Unfortunately, I saw guys that got into drugs during that time and they paid the consequences for that, but you know, I hated anything to do with drugs anyway, but at 24 years old, you know now they come in in the mafia, as they expected. for business connections and the opportunity to make money to try to get your dad out of prison yes and you were not disappointed business opportunities do not begin to present themselves if you took advantage talk a little about that please well again you know I knew how to use that life to benefit me in some way and you know, I don't want to get into all the various businesses that he had, but a couple of things that I did see, all the gangsters are somehow involved with the game, you know, in the During my operation , I had 12 13 sportsbooks respond to me and for those of you who don't know, sportsbooks take bets illegally on the street and if they are sportsbooks, they are poor in most of the big cities in Youngstown, Ohio.

Kansas City you can't operate without the mafia because first of all we wouldn't let you go to the police, you're a bookie you know that, second of all you know a lot of times we would finance them and third of all the bookies bets. I give you credit, so sometimes you know the guy loses and you don't want to pay well. We were pretty good at collecting money at that time so you know they wanted to get involved with us so I had several bookies working for me they were all involved in the game the mafia guys like to bet it wasn't a habit that I had, but a lot of guys do and then we always had money on the street if we had money and we used to lend it, you know, Julius. fees, you don't go to a bank, it comes to us, but you have to pay, that's it, you know, no, you don't get your way, so you know, I was definitely involved in that, most of the money I lent.

It was to business people or my own team so they could go out and make some money. I would lend it to them at 1% per week and theycrucified and absolutely rose from the dead and I can go into all the reasons why I think what I could address, obviously now I looked at it and said, okay, wait a minute. minute, here's the deal Jesus is the best man, the only man, so if I try to emulate Jesus throughout my life, okay, I will be a better person, I will be a better husband to my wife, I will be a better father to my children if I am a boss I will treat my employees well if I am an employee I will give my boss an honest day's work everything about me will be better everyone in the community I come from Contact with him will benefit from that and I will benefit and when he dies, well, if he's not the savior of the world, well, I'm dead anyway, so what did I have to lose?

But throughout my life I benefited from emulating this man. That's how I saw it, that was my rationalization, so I'm going to try to do what Jesus would like me to do, you know what Jesus would do with that famous thing? Now I fail miserably. I do it sometimes because I'm I'm going to be honest with you, you know, I didn't have a lobotomy when I came to Christ. Every time I go to a gas station, I want to rob the gas station, especially in California because it's $4 change per gallon. I say it and every time I look at a pump I say these people tell me this is premium when I know they put the same damn gas and everything because that's what we did right, you know you're in a constant battle, but I know I always say this you must be accountable in life Jesus number one holds me accountable my wife holds me accountable my children hold me accountable people with friends in mind that a brother in Christ holds me accountable you have to have that responsibility I tell these young gang members with whom I talk all the time you know I would tell them two things they don't tell me you can't leave your gang I left the biggest gang in the world there is a way through Christ who is number one number two I tell them you are who you walk with in this world you hang out with the wrong people You will be considered the wrong type of person, of course you will be influenced.

You have to surround yourself with the right people that you know and that's the ticket for me. I have surrounded myself with the right people that I love. The Lord for who he is and what he has done in my life and you know, can I? I just drive this home. I want people to understand something. I don't take credit for any of this because I had no plan to be who I am. Now if you had told me 25 years ago that you were going to be talking about Jesus, I was here out of your mind, I had no plan at all, that's how it happened, it happened, I told you this is lunch, but when I I walked away from that life in 1995, everyone predicted my death, everyone and there is no plan to walk away from the mafia publicly like I did.

In fact, I don't know anyone who has done anything that has publicly gone through the witness protection program. like that, yes, but when I walked away, quote from Life magazine, if he keeps what he has promised, it will be the first time that a high-ranking member of the mafia will publicly distance himself from his past and live in McDonald, boss of the organized

crime

strike force. He appeared on national television in 1995 when I got out of prison. He said: I wouldn't want to be on Michael Franzese's stuff. I don't think his life expectancy is very substantial.

He was very diplomatic, but you know, predicting my death, the F.B.I. agent one of them in my case she followed him to that post and he said straight up Michael Franzese will be beaten that's all that was in 95 1975 on Halloween night I walked into the room with five other gentlemen today I'm the only one alive five others were murdered we had a big war in our family 91 to 93 and I'll tell you this she doesn't even know it's okay because I didn't want to honestly I don't say anything to my wife whatever she knows. I she knows like you know she doesn't read my books she doesn't watch any of my documentaries she turns it off she doesn't want to know can I tell this quick story?

Let's go see Goodfellas, I'm out of prison, let's go see Goodfellas, I'm like, honey, come on, you know, it's nostalgic, I knew all those guys, let's be so juicy, so much fun, she's like, okay, let's get in there and I love them popcorn in a movie, right? and she will tell you that she always bought a large one. popcorn and I get my refill and I give it to her because I like to eat my popcorn alone so I'm eating I'm eating this takes four bytes and she's done I'm eating and I realized I made a mistake.

I don't know if you're that good, man, it's very graphic, right, and I'm eating my pop gun. I'm getting a little nervous and at one point she looks at me and says, "This is where your life is really about." I mean, you really did these things and I saw honey, it's a movie, it's Hollywood, they make things up, watch the movie well, as soon as I say that, that scene comes up and a visitor shows up and this could be Francie, since it looks amazing, come on, baby, come on. right and we went straight and I said it wasn't me, it was a guy with that name, so Sheila goes online and looks it up and Michael Franzese and there's a picture of me from Goodfellas anyway, right before I got raped, my father had called me. he was on parole and he told me the family is going to war stop the nonsense we need you back here and I'll be honest that really worried me and I was like man what kind of person am I?

I'm going to leave my The men over there and my family are going to war. I'm on parole. I'm breaking my parole if I go back, but what kind of man am I if I abandon my boys in a time of need because there was a power issue and the guy who was trying to get the purser's phantom power. He was loyal to her. He was someone I didn't really know and I told him I couldn't let him do this. He had decided to return. I was going to break my probation. I'm not going to tell you two days before that they raped me and put me in a cell and I was in jail the entire time of the war and during that war they killed thirteen men, 29 guys went to prison for life and Paul Michael is sitting in the hole that I believed until today that God saved my life at that moment.

I really believe it. I can't see it any other way because I have decided to go alone to continue with that when that life magazine. The article came out in 1986. The 50 biggest and most powerful gangsters. They featured six of us. I was one of six and they actually had a chart of all 50 of us based on Welton rank. I was number 18, the youngest guy on a list. I was five behind my friend Gotti at the time, he wasn't the boss, but they were number 13 and I always say people don't ask me how they make a list like that, they didn't ask us for our tax returns. ask me how they got it to be a dumb list, but I'll tell you what's not dumb about that list of that list of 50 33 years later, 49 of them a debt 49 a debt over a 33 year period and I think I'm here a reason and one reason only because God had a different plan and purpose for my life and that has been made evident to me over the last 23 years and let me talk about that for a second.

The second imprisonment was you. I think you have achieved it. the saving part of Jesus at the moment of baptism at the moment of the wedding, but in that second and present when you hit the wall of despair, can I commit to working on your life where you are in solitary confinement for 29 months ? Bible on trial with all your legal experience and you were totally convinced of the veracity of the Bible and that Jesus was he is the man like men he is the man made yes and at that moment you had gone from your earthly father controlling you to the father god controlling you and now God the Father is your boss yes and your life is in a place of surrender and after that you are describing all this talking to thousands of people all that was opened yes and you know another important thing my earthly My father had such tremendous control about me that I will describe this.

You know one of the horrors of that life and it really is the heart of that life. You make a mistake. Your best friend takes you to a room you don't leave. again and unfortunately I witnessed that throughout my time in that life, well I got that call once, you know, to be honest, in that life I was one of the younger guys and it was envy because I was winning More money than most guys. There were a lot of veterans and there was a story that was written in Newsday that I was becoming powerful enough to break away from the Colombos and stop my own family.

It was fiction, so it could have been made into a fiction film. There was no truth to that, but it started to get into people's heads and my father was on parole and he called me one day, so we had to go see the boss who sent us and since my father was on parole, and even though I had all those arrests and was never convicted, so he was able to stay with me. He took it everywhere, so I said, okay, what time do you want to go? He said no, they want to do this differently, they want me to come in first.

I want you to come second now we were both captains at that time he was captain I was captain I said dad why are we going to separate I said you know the talk in the street I said no we're not going to do that we're going to go together it was the first time I had a real disagreement with my dad and we were of the same rank back and forth back and forth my dad always know no, we have an order, we have to obey the order, I'm saying, but dad do you hear what's going on?

If there's going to be a problem let's go together you know back and forth I finally put my hands up I said you know I've been listening to you all my life I don't like this but if that's what you want I want to be okay so I'm leaving. I get another call from another captain, Jimmy Angelina, and he tells me to meet in Brooklyn. It was a late meeting and we had to be undercover because the boss was on parole at the time, so we had to be very careful because he. They've been raped so I leave my car I get in a car with him I've known this guy my whole life There's a guy sitting behind me I'm in the passenger seat who I didn't really recognize I'm saying why is this happening boy, you know , and while I'm driving with Jimmy I'm waiting for him to tell me what this meeting is about, well, he doesn't say anything, he thinks about telling me about the Yankees.

I am a die-hard Yankees fan. I want to hear about the Yankees that night. I'm waiting for you to give me a clue as to what we're doing. Don't say a word. I have this guy sitting behind me. I'm saying something is wrong here. It didn't look good so we got out of the car and it was about a 30 yard walk from the car to the basement apartment where we were meeting privately with someone's house. As I was walking, it was a summer night and I can tell you that I started to get very nervous because I guess now I don't look back, but I guess Jimmy is behind me and the other guys are behind him.

I'm saying this is a bad setup. I can remember that night so vividly when I speak. about that I can remember the aroma of the flowers I can hear the crickets talking that night because my senses were so heightened I said I'm going to walk in this house and let them leave they're not going to kill me this is all and the people You told me well , Michael, why didn't you run? You know it wasn't heroic, it was robotic. I said, well, this is it, this is it, it's like I just said "okay" and my knees started to get weak.

I thought it would scare me a lot. and he opens the door. I don't know how I didn't faint when the door opened. I'll be honest with you to this day, I don't know what kept me going and obviously I'm here, so we had a great party. thing and I started getting angry when they accused me because they said the paper came out and said I had made two billion dollars from a ridiculous amount and I said, come on, it was a billion and a half, I'm just kidding, it was kind of a ridiculous number and I said, You know what I said, I was making two million dollars a week at the time, it was my whole plan and I'm saying you guys had the nerve to be mad at me, I started getting a little irritated with the boss now you don't do that because from right you go to wrong immediately so I held back everything was done we ended up having a hug have a glass of wine I just wanted to get out of there so I told Jimmy I said Jimmy Take me back to my car.

I have to go to Long Island. I have a long trip. Now it's just Jimmy and I getting into the cars. I've known him my whole life and I was so mad at him that he didn't prepare me. I looked at him, I was about to attack him verbally, do it right and I always have to be careful with my words, but he looks, I mean, he says stop before you say anything, stop. I said what he said. I have to be honest with you, Mike. It was a problem for you tonight he said you behaved pretty well I said now I got even angrier I said you know I've known you all my life you know I'm walking into a possible trap that you welcomed me into right?

Tell me and he look, I mean, he said if it was the other way around, you would have told me and I thought about it for a second and I said no and he said it's the life we ​​lead, he said you know better than anyone. I grew up on this and man, you know, for some reason, it just caught my attention. I said what the hell is this. He's my good friend, but then we go back to my car and it gets worse. I'm going to get out of the car and heHe grabs my arm and says I want to tell you something he said you're not going to like this but I'm your friend and I'm telling you the truth could you take this to the bank were his exact words my father wasn't there when I came in he said your father wasn't there your father was there before you tonight he didn't help you at all Michael threw you under the bus and I said what I was so stunned I couldn't answer him and I get out of the car and I'm starting to walk back to my car I'm saying what could have been fact, but knowing my father so well, you know what he did, he said if my son is stealing money I don't know he does everything I'm on probation he takes care of everything you have to go to him he didn't defend me and my dad had juice I could have said what are you kidding?

Me, my son would never do this, he just threw me under the bus and man, I'll tell you what you know. I said man, if this life can separate father and son, what do we really have here? I'll tell you why this was so. Significant, I think I know for sure now that God used that time to break the control my father had over me because if that incident hadn't happened anyway, I never would have walked away from the life I had and I did. Later I decided to leave, but that never left me, so I realized that God, I had such a mafia mentality and such everything that my father had on me that the ad was broken, so that control was broken at that point and then he had to be able to penetrate me during that time in general in general because if I was on the street forget about whether they would kill me in a war or something would happen but if I was on the street I could never have turned to him because I was too much a product of myself and I can always handle everything she'll tell you my famous word don't worry I've got it covered even when I don't I mean don't worry about it and that's why I always thought I can handle anything and God had to show me you know what You can't, you can't, well, you're not a place you don't come to.

You feel the circle closes, it started under the power and control of your earthly father, then you pass to the Godfather and now you are solidly in the hands of God the Father for that period of ten to twelve years that broke you down, now you are in a place where that word surrender that her mother and she mentioned to you that is real to you, yes, it is something like this is what I see having studied your books and if you want the

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details on everything, they just talk about where you have a book. table in the foyer and you can get these books and you can read this because we're skipping over a lot of it, but this is what I see happening in your early life on your divine screen.

God was some kind of there was a scheme of God that was just vague points then you entered the mafia in God left the screen all together Prawns out of the picture that's right then you met kami God comes back to the picture but it's black and white then They throw you in the hole and you spend twenty-nine months with God God dealing with you you did them with God in the Bible and he went from black and white to color where you now see God in light colors with perfect clarity in your life you are completely surrendered in his hands if it is fair is very fair and you know I try to look back I don't create a story for myself I try to look back and see how God had a hand in this it's like when I met her she was in the The first beautiful woman I ever met in my life, but there was something about her when I met her, it was never on my radar to walk away from that life, it wasn't even a thought, you don't even think about something like that, but for some reason my love for her is becoming more powerful than this bond of all my life, this love I had for my dad became more powerful than this blood oath that I and I swore, how do you explain that?

You know, I don't know how to explain that. I wasn't looking for anything it was just her she doesn't come into my life I'm dead or in prison for the rest of my life there's no doubt a thousand percent I realized that and you know the way this just progressed for me, You know, I'll tell you how strong my belief is and it's hard for me to say. I get a little emotional when I say it, but you know there's a saying that the sins of the father fall away. about kids and I've always said, you know what God, don't do that to me, you know, I have seven kids, I love my kids, we've been very blessed, don't do that to me and he honors that greatly. somehow, but even if that happened, I might get angry at God.

I don't know what he would do, but I can never stop believing it. It is too strong, it is too powerful for me, not only in my life but in the lives of others. I have been lucky enough to witness it for the last 23 years. God has a transforming power in your life. If you hand it over to him, there is no other explanation. You know the reason why I walk so freely. People can't believe you know that. Just done and largely don't get it right, let's click on this point, when did you meet Jesus? and it went from black and white to color when that connection was made, that's when the whole mob death.

They were gone and when the images of your father and the Godfather released everything that had been displaced in Jesus took front and center of your life, that's when you came back

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y alive and that's when you became everything that God had you. created to be and he has kept you alive to talk about it, without a doubt, I mean, I can't explain it any other way, you know, and even that night, you know, when I walked away, what God made me realize, he said , I prepared you, you can face death. because I faced it at one point and you know, when I walked away I said, well, how is this going to happen?

These guys won't let me go and I said, "Okay, they won't walk me into a room." You'll have to work to get me. I'm moving to California. You know, I changed my entire lifestyle. She will tell you. I didn't take my dog ​​for a walk at 7:00 in the morning. I didn't create a pattern in my life. We didn't go to the same restaurant every Tuesday night in case the kids came looking for me, they had no way to go. I didn't put a house in my name or public services. I was very disciplined in that sense because I knew the methodology.

God prepared me. He says, you know exactly what. They're going to do I prepared you for all of this because I have a different plan for you so it wasn't like I just threw myself into the fire hello I'm going to force a preacher on you and you're going to override it. I was prepared for quite a while for this and I believed that and when I told you, you know, and again without making excuses that I didn't feel good about the things that I was doing, I think. God saw something in my heart and said I could work with this guy, so that's how, you know, on my own terms, break it down and you know, look, I mean, I'm by no means a perfect Christian, you know, I have my times. , You know?

Sometimes the mafia stuff comes back to my mind, you know, my wife will tell you, but I love the Lord for what He has done in my life and my commitment now is to allow others to understand the transforming power of Jesus Christ and it is because I work a lot with these gang members, I go to prison all the time and you know, it's incredible. I always say the best thing that happened to my ministry is The Sopranos being in everyone's living room for the last 10 years, why not when I started speaking at all the churches? go to I'm not kidding, we have the best attendance, you know, at Easter, not because they knew who I was.

The mafia guy is here. People came to see the gangster. They know that was it because now, with the Irishman outside, he's talking again. I mean they're starting all over again, so I always say God is brilliant, he knows how to get people in the door and then it's up to the Holy Spirit to do his job. You know, I want to tell you that I have never seen God in a dream and he has never spoken to me audibly. I don't have that gift. Some people do. I don't have that gift. But I, the Holy Spirit, speaks to my heart because I have a relationship with him.

My connection with the Saint. The spirit is on stage because there are times when I say things that I have no idea are going to come into my head and into my mouth and people come up to me afterwards and say Michael, I really needed to hear that tonight. I've been struggling so much that I really needed to hear that because you become a vehicle you know and that's what happens and that's what keeps me going because I see that it has an impact on people and as long as God allows me to. I will do it right A few minutes ago I mentioned that you were establishing extremes, you are few, you evolved through this process that we have detailed one night in a place of faith where you have now given your life to God. and God is in control for you Cami, you came to all of this with faith, but through all of this it served as a refining fire to strengthen you and also to bring you to a place of deep trust and conviction so that you are both in a place of trust. and surrender to the Lord but you came from two totally different angles to get there that's true anything else you want to say well I want to know I want to say this this is very safe both she is a much better person than the one I was born with now because for her I did what I did, she was involved in all of this and you know she stood by me and did what she did through all my things, which were huge and for her mom, my mom had a tremendous influence on me my mom died of cancer. in 2012 and we were taking care of her at that time and she was doing her chemotherapy treatments and I'm going to cure your mother so you don't worry.

I have about 30 different ones. homeopathic medicines that pay some doctors around the world. I have everything well taken care of and that's why her mother is starting to reject all the pills and everything we are giving her, so she refuses food and cries every night because she is very close to her. Mom, all the kids are crying, so I'm taking her to UCLA, her hair had fallen out, she's got the scarf on her head and I put her in my car and I'm like, Mom, what's wrong with you, man? I told her we're trying to help you you're starting to refuse the medication you cry every night I said I'm really upset with you and she turns to me she turns to me like this and looks at me and says I'm not kidding she had a glow, no You know, just the glow on her face and she said Michael, I'm going home, I'm ready to go home, what got me there was a hint of fear in that woman that she was so secure in her relationship with. the Lord and knowing how she lived her life I said this is real there is no doubt about it in my mind there was another thought in my life another thing that God put in my life to assure me that she died two weeks later not a bit of fear That was what bravest I have ever witnessed in my life and I come from the street.

I have seen many things that the bravest did not want. J not even I certainly don't fear anything and I said wow this is so powerful so between these two women you know what it is I mean I just look I'm grateful to God every day I really am because I know it should have been so much worse. For me, okay, I hate to end our time together, but we have to stop, let's do this, it is our tradition at these

dinner

s that when we finish we give the speaker the opportunity to pray for you, so what we are going to do is have a short word of prayer, if there is something you want to say before praying, you can say no.

Only then I want you to lead us in prayer, we will have a moment of silence and then I will close in prayer, okay? Say before you pray, no, I just want to, I want to thank Brian, who was the host and picked us up, and you know everyone has been very nice here, courteous and cordial, so I appreciate that we always appreciate the opportunity to be able to come and share . So I thank you all for that and thank you for the great turnout. I mean, it's important and I pray that next year is even better than this one, so we wait for it and that's it.

I want them to leave. This is great, let's all be very well. You know, dear Lord, I just want to thank you for bringing us all together, Lord, I appreciate everyone who has come here tonight and I'm praying Lord that the Holy Spirit, you know, has been able to touch some hearts here, plant some seeds through of the testimony that You have given Me to share in the Lord. I don't know anyone here, but I know some people have heavy hearts. Some people are struggling with something in their lives. I just want them to understand that your doors are always open, Lord, than the ground. at the foot of the cross it is level, no matter what people have done in their lives, you are a merciful, forgiving and loving God, and I ask you to come into their hearts, Lord, to guide them in the right direction.

Lord, we never try to impose You on anyone Lord but we try to open the door so that people can see that you know through someone like me and through the many testimonies that you have throughout the history of the world that you are real and that You are there with open arms waiting. for everyone, Lord, so I thank you again. I ask You to bless everyone in this room, you know, bless their trips home tonight, bless their families, Lord, and really point them in the right direction. Lord, let them understand that you know you are the answer. not only everything here on earth, but also happiness and all eternity and we always do it in the Holy Name of Jesus, let us have a London of silence and if there is something that those who are here want to say to God, we want to give it a between silence to do that someone when you turn your attention to the Lord on whatever is in your heart maybe you express that to him in private the Lord we want to thank you tonight for your presence here amongwe in the power we have felt and witnessed a power that is beyond all that is human and we want you to know, Lord, that we will always be grateful for the way you have not left us at the mercy of our sinful nature, our need to control our Tennessee to the heartbreak that went to the extremes and The life of Michael and took the lifestyle he did to rescue us from ourselves and Jesus is he is the essence of all that is true honorable good noble virtuous perfect and holy he is one man he is the answer to all our needs no matter what our questions are, we can always find our answer in him, what an amazing realization, so you know what to understand these things and see them work in a person's life and take it literally from the abyss of hell to the pinnacle of peace and forgiveness and a resignation of joy in your life is an amazing thing thank you for everyone here tonight Lord we trust that you have spoken to each of us in some way and as we come out of this event tonight Lord, let us, let us, let us resolve in all our hearts not to see you vaguely but to see you alive and in color and understand clearly how it is that our souls are restless and will be restless until we find our rest in you thank you for your presence here tonight Laurie, you have been wonderful in the name of Jesus, we pray, amen, America, let's give these guys a round of applause.