I Got Life

By Rick Orozco

I Got Life presents a journey intended to inspire all ages. It is challenging, yet offers hope and confidence. Each eye-opening chapter offers a reminder of Gods wonderful promise of a full life and reminds the reader to take hold of that promise on a daily basis. I Got Life was written to leave its reader encouraged and inspired to take hold of the blessings God has bestowed.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Nov 3, 2015
• ISBN: 9781512713602

Rick Orozco

Rick Orozco was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. He moved to Nashville, Tennessee at the young age of twenty and has spent most of his adult life composing and recording music with many of his musical heroes. Rick has traveled the world and seen first-hand the poverty and heartbreak of daily life for many around the world. The sight of these things began to open his heart to Jesus Christ. He was first invited to study the Bible in 1999, and was baptized soon afterward. Coming to Christ served as the important step in life that eventually led to the writing of I Got Life. While living his musical dream, Rick found that life truly had no meaning without Jesus at the center of it all and that riches and fame were not the treasure he truly was searching for, ultimately he found that treasure in God’s Word. I Got Life is his way of sharing the lessons he learned along the way. Rick loves fishing, writing, public speaking, singing, playing his guitar, and simply spending time at home with the family. He is married to his wife of thirteen years, Oriana, and has two boys, Roman and Lucas, and a third, Elijah, on the way. He serves in the music ministry at Mission Point Christian Church in San Antonio, Texas.

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Copyright © 2015 Rick Orozco.

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Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission. NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® and NIV® are registered trademarks of Biblica, Inc. Use of either trademark for the offering of goods or services requires the prior written consent of Biblica US, Inc.

WestBow Press

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ISBN: 978-1-5127-1361-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-1362-6 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-1360-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015915631

WestBow Press rev. date: 10/13/2015

CONTENTS

Foreword

Acknowledgment

Preface

Chapter 1    I Got Life

Chapter 2    Broken

Chapter 3    One Nail at a Time

Chapter 4    Depending On You

Chapter 5    Yours

Chapter 6    Somehow

Chapter 7    A Man of His Word

Chapter 8    Knock, Knock, Knock

Chapter 9    Standing on the Mountain

Chapter 10    I’m Gonna Hit Rock Bottom

Chapter 11    Because You Say Yes, I’ll Say No

Chapter 12    Walking in the Footsteps of Jesus

Chapter 13    Dulce Corazon Sweet Heart

Chapter 14    Hope Worldwide

Chapter 15    In the House of the Father

Chapter 16    Even under the Rainbow

FOREWORD

When Rick chose I Got Life as the title of his new book, he wasn’t kidding. He has sung and written songs for a long list of legendary country-music and Tejano performers. The two-time Grammy nominee has traveled the world performing his music, and he has topped the charts in several countries. He not only does movie sound tracks but has produced his own movie as well. Success follows Rick into every endeavor. Oh, yes, Rick’s got life!

The truth is, however, that Rick has way more life than most people know. So when he started writing about life, it wasn’t music that poured out, but rather his story of Jesus and a life that comes from his walk with the Lord. Rick doesn’t just write about it; he lives it out. Through Rick’s faith and his obedience, God has poured blessing after blessing into his life over the years.

That is the beauty of this book. Coming from a man who has a life that most would envy, Rick instead describes a far better life that all of us can attain in Christ. There’s no way most of us will ever stand on the stage and do what Rick does. But all of us can learn and practice what he’s gained in his walk with the Lord. Whether it’s seeking God, depending on him, or triumphing when life is tough and challenging, Rick leads us in the way everlasting.

I Got Life will instruct, inform, and entertain. I promise that when you close the book, you’ll be much better prepared to say, I got life, as well.

Mike Taliaferro

Senior Evangelist

Mission Point Christian Church

San Antonio, Texas

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

I first of all would like to thank God for his grace and inspiration in my life. He has blessed my family and me more than we could ever deserve. I would also like to thank my beautiful wife of fourteen years for her encouragement and for her constant love and support—and my two boys, who were a big reason I started contemplating and writing this book. Their innocence and joy are a gift to witness. To my little boy on the way, I can’t wait to meet you, little buddy. And to my little one I never got to meet, who passed in the beginning of life’s journey, I can’t wait to meet you too someday in heaven, God willing. To all my brothers and sisters in Christ who have encouraged me to be the best husband, father, son, and man I can be, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I thank you for your love, your correction, your joy, and your tears as we walk the paths marked for us. It is a great honor to walk God’s journey with all of you.

PREFACE

Like many ideas in life, this book began while I was lying in bed in thought. I couldn’t sleep, as I was thinking about the future of my children. I was praying to God that he would keep them on the right path. I prayed they would choose to walk this life as Christians. I prayed that they would marry believers and raise their families in God’s kingdom. I then began to see the obstacles before them. The world in many ways seems like a scary place if Jesus is not at your side. I prayed that God would open their eyes to his Word and his purpose for their lives. I prayed that God would give my wife and me the peace and rest his Word describes as we began to struggle with worry and even anxiety over the unknown. I know worry is a sin we many times fall into. The more I prayed, the more I kept on asking our Lord to give us not just a life, but a life we could live to the fullest. His blessings are all around us. My wife and I were talking a few days later, and she told me I should write a song called I Got Life about the chains of sin that make us prisoners in this world. It was an immediate inspiration. I started writing the song not long after, and then surprisingly a friend asked if I might be interested in writing a book to inspire others. I was honored, but I was stumped as to how I would start. I have written songs for a living for years, but I had never written a book. I began waking up very early in the mornings to write, and I started brainstorming the idea; however, I could not find the path that set the light on in my mind. Suddenly the title I Got Life popped into my head. It was very clear that this was the direction I should travel. I then realized I had already written the outline of the book in many of my compositions. Each chapter would be based on a Christian song I had written. It is very hard to put an entire story and meaning into two to three minutes, but with a book, I could delve deeper into the emotion and meaning of each title. The chapters began to pour out of me.

In today’s world, we are challenged at every side and tempted with sin after sin. I know I was a prisoner to these sins for most of my life. Fourteen years ago, I was invited to study the Bible. I was baptized soon after, and those chains were broken, thank God; however, many of my friends and family are still chained to the sins of this world, locked in lives of denial. They are convinced by the lies of the television, the Internet, and the quiet, callused view that permeates today’s world—the slow disappearance of God in our schools, our government, our leadership, and, sadly, our churches. As Scripture warns, Satan has infiltrated our churches to say what many itching ears want to hear. I was saddened at first as my eyes opened further and further to the pain and delusion of many loved ones. That sorrow turned into anger, and eventually it changed into courage to take on the fight and shed light on what should be an obvious war we are all fighting. Many are sitting on the sidelines these days and have chosen the wrong side, or they simply do not know any better. Jesus dying on the cross destroyed the chains of sin for all of us. A prosperous and glorious life awaits those who are willing to accept the calling. My hope is that this book will inspire the masses to grab the sword of the Word, to strike down the lies that hinder them, and to grab hold of the life God has in mind. I pray that they will break the chains that rob them of their joy and confidence. It is time to grab hold of the victory that our God has promised. It is there before you, but you must take hold of it and not let go. It begins with the knowledge that these chains exist. Denial does not make the walls disappear. Do not settle for anything less than victory. The keys to unlocking their grasp are in the Word. I pray that this book will help create a bond with Jesus as you read his Word, that a friendship will grow, and that a love will abound in his glory. It is time to break the chains and take hold of the joy that God has made possible to all. We will not just have life, but we will live life to the fullest.

CHAPTER 1

I Got Life

All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life,