In the latest from the Church’s Hope Works series, Moroni shares his experiences growing up amidst total dysfunction, becoming a fighter, selling drugs to get by before he even turned 18, and an eventual prison sentence. He describes all that it took to finally decide that he had to change something fundamental about his life:

Moroni saw the drunkenness and beating and chaos of a dysfunctional family and went to the boxing gym to release his anger. A trainer, noticing how often he was pummeled, told him that the “fight comes from within.”

That counsel came to mind years later as he sat alone, abandoned and full of doubts in his prison cell. Facing a certain 15-year prison sentence, he prayed in his sanctuary of concrete and metal bars. He remembered a dream from years earlier when he saw the Savior on the beach come to him, lift him up, and say, “I remember you, and I’m with you.”

He recommitted his life to goodness. He prayed and served others. He attended Church services and kept his faith and hope bright. To his surprise, he did not face the prison sentence but was released into drug court where he met his future wife, who was also recovering from an addiction.

For the last four years, they’ve served as addiction recovery missionaries for the Church.

“I never thought I’d be here,” he said. “Christ keeps me afloat in the storms of my life. For those who struggle, know that Jesus is in the ring with you.”