SpiriseBible
From the Streets to the Pulpit
Carlos "Ghost" Rodriguez's Radical Transformation
Pastor Carlos Rodriguez
Former Gang Leader, Now Urban Ministry Pastor
"I used to rule the streets with fear. Now I walk them with love. Same streets, different kingdom."
East LA, 1985. I wasn't born—I was recruited. My father was Los Santos leadership, my uncles were soldiers, my destiny was written in gang signs before I could write my name.
"By age 8, I was a lookout. By 12, running drugs. By 16, I had my first body. They called me 'Ghost' because I could disappear after a hit. But I was already a ghost—dead inside, haunting my own life."
The streets were my classroom, violence my curriculum. I graduated with honors in hatred, majored in survival, minored in soul destruction.
My Resume at Age 23
I had everything the streets promised—money, power, respect, women. So why did I feel empty? Why did I wake up disappointed that I survived another night?
"The higher I climbed in the gang, the deeper I sank in my soul. Every life I took, took life from me. I was 23 with the eyes of a 60-year-old. Rich in cash, bankrupt in spirit."
October 13, 2008. A rival gang ambush. Thirteen of us went in, I was the only one who came out—barely. Five bullets, flatlined twice, shouldn't have survived. But God had other plans.
Arrested at the hospital. Life sentence hanging over me. Solitary confinement. Just me, concrete walls, and a conscience I'd been running from for years.
Chaplain Williams: "You Carlos Rodriguez?"
Me: "Who's asking?"
Chaplain: "Your mother. She's been praying for you for 23 years. Asked me to give you this."
He handed me a Bible. Inside, hundreds of tearstained pages where my mother had written my name.
Day 47 in Solitary
I'd read the Bible three times out of boredom. Then I hit Luke 23—the thief on the cross. A criminal, like me, dying for his crimes, like I deserved. But Jesus told him, "Today you'll be with me in paradise."
If Jesus could save a dying thief, could He save a living ghost?
I hit my knees on that cold concrete. "Jesus, if You're real, if You can hear a killer's prayer, save me. I'm tired of being Ghost. I want to be alive."
No lightning, no angels, just peace. For the first time in 23 years, peace. The rage that fueled me for decades... gone. The hatred that was my heartbeat... silenced.
"The chaplain started visiting daily. Teaching me Scripture, praying with me, showing me a Father I never had. My gang put a hit on me for 'going soft.' My own brothers wanted me dead. But I was finally alive."
The Yard Confrontation
Six Los Santos members cornered me in the yard. "You disrespected the set, Ghost. You know the price."
I looked at these boys I once led, now sent to kill me. "I love you brothers. But I can't serve two masters anymore. If you gotta do what you gotta do, I forgive you. But I'm already dead to that life. Christ lives in me now."
They walked away. Word spread: Ghost found God. Some mocked, some wondered, some secretly wanted what I had.
The Long Road to Redemption
Earned my GED, then bachelor's in theology through prison program. Led Bible studies in the yard where I once dealt drugs.
Case overturned on appeal—prosecutorial misconduct. 25-to-life became time served. God opened prison doors.
Fuller Seminary scholarship. Worked three jobs. Every paycheck, a reminder of grace. Former enemies becoming brothers.
Ordained pastor. First assignment? East LA. Same streets, different mission. Time to reach the "unreachable."
Hope on Central Avenue Ministry
We don't wait for gang members to come to church. We bring church to them. Same corners where I sold death, I now offer life.
Midnight Basketball
Church from 11 PM - 2 AM. When the streets are hot, we offer a different kind of heat.
Feed the Hood
Free meals, no preaching required. Love looks like a full stomach in the ghetto.
Jobs Not Jail
Partner with businesses to hire ex-gang members. Redemption needs a paycheck.
Safe House Network
Secret locations for those trying to leave gang life. Sometimes salvation needs witness protection.
The Ripple Effect
Miguel "Psycho" Ramirez
My former enforcer, now my associate pastor. The hands that once broke bones now break bread at communion.
Maria Santos
Lost three sons to gang violence. Now leads our mothers' prayer ministry. Her tears water seeds of change.
The Peace Treaty
2019: Mediated peace between Los Santos and East Side Locos. First ceasefire in 40 years. The blood of Jesus covers blood feuds.
"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."
- 2 Corinthians 5:17 (KJV)
I'm living proof that "new creature" isn't just theology—it's biography.
15 Years Later: God's Math
To My Brothers Still in the Game
I know you're reading this thinking I'm weak, I sold out, I forgot where I came from. But I remember everything. Every corner, every code, every funeral. That's why I came back.
You think you're hard? Try forgiveness. You think you're strong? Try surrender. You think you're real? Try righteousness. The streets promise you the world but give you a casket. Jesus promises you a cross but gives you a crown.
Your gang says "Blood in, blood out." Jesus says "My blood in, your sins out."
Prayer for the Streets
"Father, You see that young man on the corner, weapon in his waistband, death in his plans. You see that girl, trafficked and trapped, thinking the streets are her only family. Arrest them with Your love like You arrested me. Show them there's another way—Your way. Give them courage to ghost their old life and be born again. Use my scars to show Your stars. In Jesus' name, Amen."
My name is Carlos Rodriguez. Former shot-caller for Los Santos. Responsible for more pain than I can calculate. But God specializes in impossible math—He subtracted my sins, multiplied His grace, divided my past from my future, and added purpose to my pain.
Every Sunday, I preach where I used to sling. Former enemies sit in the same pews. Mothers who cursed my name now call me Pastor. The corner where I first killed is now where we baptize new life.
They still call me Ghost on the streets. But now they know why—the old Carlos is dead. What walks these streets now is a resurrection.
If God can change a ghost into a pastor, what's your excuse?
