Although he credits God for being delivered from homosexuality, Andrew Caldwell is catching flack from those who feel his conversion is nothing more than an elaborate scam.
The doubts come amid the release of a video this week that captured Caldwell’s deliverance at the Church of God In Christ’s (COGIC) 107th annual convocation, which was held last week. In a statement posted on his Facebook page, Caldwell detailed what led him to the altar as well as how he’s dealing with the attention generated from the viral video.
“My name is Andrew Caldwell. I appeared on a video at the recent Church of God In Christ International Convocation in St Louis. On that video I gave a testimony of deliverance from homosexuality. As a child, I was raped by a member of my own family. At that time I did not think of it as abuse. I kind of enjoyed it. I kept it to myself, not realizing how it had changed me,” said Caldwell. “Growing up wasn’t a pleasant experience. I was harassed, heckled, and ridiculed by classmates. Many told me that I would never amount to anything. This gave me the motivation to try to prove them wrong. Being fairly attractive as a young man, it was not difficult for me to get involved with other men. I have dated athletes, ministers, and celebrities. As time passed I got tired of this way of living. I always attended church. But I always found the same things in church that I found in the world. After joining my present church, it came to me that this lifestyle was not right. It seemed that the more I tried to quit on my own, the more intense was the temptation. All last week I fasted and prayed. On this past Saturday at the Convocation, there was an alter[sic] call. I came forward and offered my testimony. It was unscripted. Not only do I hope for my own deliverance but for the deliverance of others who may be struggling with their own issues. To my doubting detractors, I pray for you. To my supporters, I am grateful for your support and prayers.”
Further diving in to his situation, Caldwell spoke with the blog show Church Folk Revolution Radio about how he was before his deliverance and life afterwards. Highlights from the interview are below:
How He’s Dealing With The Attention/Controversy:
“It’s a little bit overwhelming, but also, God, He gets all the glory. If it wasn’t for God’s grace and a chain has been broken, and I’m no longer bound, what would I be? So God is saying, take the chance I gave you. I always wanted to be famous. I always wanted that. In life, I always wanted to be the top person…That video was not be famous. That video was not planned. I did not know I was going to get that mic…When I walked up there, I was walking up there, chains bound. I was walking up there, not knowing that I had more hope to myself. I needed prayer and I got the prayer.”
What He Was Feeling Before He Went To The Altar To Share His Story:
“I was sitting there and I began to sweat. I began to start crying. The Lord gave me a vision while my eyes was open that, if you continue to walk in this, if you continue to be like this, if you continue to act like this, I was going to die, have a heart attack and die. I said ‘Lord, I’m not ready to die. I still have works to do. Souls out here that need to be saved.’ Well, He said, how can souls be saved and you’re not saved?’”
What He Was Like Before Being Delivered:
“When I first came to my church, my hair was dyed blond and red. I was carrying a purse. I had diamond earrings. I was wearing tights, the skinny jeans–with the boots. Different things that women would wear. I was acting like a first lady. So now, I don’t think about that no more…God can deliver, but you have to want to be delivered. You have to say, ‘God, I don’t want this no more. And then it’s going to take a process…I had to keep coming up there for prayer.
I don’t hang out the places I used to go. I don’t do the things I used to do. I don’t say the things I used to say. I don’t buy the things I used to have.”
How He Felt About The Video Going Viral:
“It was meant. God will put the spotlight on certain people in certain seasons. It was meant for that video to go into homes. You might laugh at it, but that laugh, at the end of the day before you went to bed, He got you on that laugh. You thought about that. I am delivered. I have been receiving thousands of inbox messages on Facebook and emails that say, ‘Hey, I laughed at your video, but I have not told my husband that I was gay. How can come out of it?’
It’s hard to believe, yes it is. It’s hard to believe that. But you have to hear a person’s story first. You have to talk to them, you just can’t judge it right away. The people who judge it right away are unbelievers.”
On Being Attracted To Women Now:
“I’m starting to get on hard for women. When I look at another brother, I look at them as another brother in Christ, or a big brother.
I like the pretty hair; I like the lips; I like the butt; the thighs…I didn’t see that in a man.”
Despite being happy with his new life, Caldwell’s now finds himself in the eye of those who question if he was really delivered as well as his motivation for doing so. According to WMC Action News 5, the 21 year-old convert was arrested in May on charges of “fraudulent insurance.”
Caldwell and his manager dispute that anything involving the deliverance was set up. In addition, he told the WMC that he hasn’t made a dime from his “deliverance.” When asked about the situation, issued a statement as it’s only comment.
Click here to watch Caldwell at the 107th Church of God in Christ (COGIC) Convocation in St. Louis, Missouri testify that he’s been “delivered” from his homosexuality in the now viral video.
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