The monkey in the cage di Andrea Fortezza

The Monkey in the Cage
This is the title of my first book that will be published in a few months. I never would have imagined that one day I could begin writing something, and yet, it happened. Let me tell you …
Often, when I would tell my testimony of faith to someone, speaking of all that I went through as a drug addict and delinquent, the way that God had freed me from bo***ge, how God has work

ed every day in my life and in the life of my family with clearly visible miracles, I was encouraged to write it down because whoever listened said they were touched by my story. I accepted this idea, I liked it, but I never started to write. I never gave it the importance it deserved, thinking that it wouldn’t be of any use. Yet, the people that stimulated me to write continually increased, as if they were all in agreement even though they didn’t know one another. This caused me to reflect, until one day I decided to pray, and for the first time, I asked God if writing my story was something He wanted. God put the desire to start writing on my heart. I had never written anything before, as I said already, and having only finished middle school (by the skin of my teeth), I really didn’t know where to start. Every time I took up my pen, I remember that I prayed, asking God to guide me, and my hand began to move. The most difficult part for me was remembering the past, but He always came to my help and brought to mind the memories, the moments, the feelings that were buried deep in oblivion. Very slowly, day by day, about five years passed, and today, in 2020, we have arrived almost at the conclusion of this first step. I say “we” because several people have helped me carry out this project over time, some brothers and sisters in Christ that each in his or her own way have given me a hand (without them, I would not have been able to manage). And now that we are here, we’re ready for the next step. To spread this testimony throughout the world! The reason is very simple: now more than ever, and not necessarily due to drug addiction, people suffer from an incurable disease called “pain of the soul” that can result in different actions: drinking alcohol, using drugs, and even resorting to su***de. In this way, people try to alleviate this great pain inside, but not finding exactly what they are looking for, they instead only make the situation in which they find themselves worse. The Monkey in the Cage is a message of hope for whomever, either for the drug addict or for the person suffering from loneliness, anxiety, depression, or other problems. The Monkey in the Cage speaks of a God, the true God, the only one who can change lives, the only one who can give real peace, who can give freedom from any bo***ge, who can give purpose to life, who can give joy, even in the most difficult moments. This is the reason that I hope and pray with all my heart that this book might be spread everywhere and to whomever, so that thousands of other people may find Jesus and may have a real and personal relationship with God through the Holy Spirit, and receive salvation of their souls by grace. God bless you