MARK SOTOMAYOR

“A man having separated himself seeketh and intermeddleth with all wisdom.” — Proverbs 18:1 (KJV)

This verse means a lot to me—because I didn’t just read it, I lived it.

There was a time when I was living out of my car. I had just moved to Dallas, Texas, trying to obey God and start over, even though I didn’t know how it was all going to work. I had visited Dallas months earlier, praying and asking God if this was really the place He wanted me to be. Every time I came, I felt peace. Texas felt like home. I lived here when I was a kid, and even back then it felt right.

There’s something special about being Hispanic-American here—being able to speak both Spanish and English every day, fitting in naturally, and using the gifts God gave me to connect with people. “There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:4). I didn’t realize it then, but even that was part of God’s design.

Still, peace didn’t mean stability.

I didn’t know what I was doing with my life. I worked random temp shifts—one-day jobs, different locations almost every day. My car was my house. Planet Fitness was where I showered, worked out, and tried to keep myself together. At night I DoorDashed until I couldn’t anymore. Most nights I ate whatever food restaurants were going to throw away. I would ask them straight up if there was anything that hadn’t been picked up earlier. Food they were about to toss. I asked them to throw it away—just in my direction.

Those were hard days. Lonely days.

But those were also the days when I separated myself.

In that season—when I didn’t know what to do, when I felt stuck and stripped down—I found myself sitting alone in a coffee shop, talking to God. Not performing. Not pretending. Just asking Him to guide me. To show me what to do next. “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God… and it shall be given him” (James 1:5).

And He did.

He didn’t give me everything at once. He gave me steps. Strategies. Direction. He showed me how to start becoming the man He had already called me to be. “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord” (Psalm 37:23).

Around that time, I ran into a small book called Good Things Happen to Those Who Try. It wasn’t famous. It wasn’t flashy. But it was practical—and God used it. It helped renew my mindset. It pushed me toward discipline instead of distraction. Reading good books instead of wasting time on endless videos. Exercising so my body and mind could work the way God designed them to. Choosing healthy habits instead of self-destructive ones.

Slowly, my mind began to change.

I started building daily morning routines that helped me focus and kept negative thinking from running my life. “To be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8:6). I learned that growth requires hunger—not just for money or success, but for knowledge, truth, and understanding. “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness” (Matthew 5:6).

I had to stop letting my mind drift into useless thinking—judging myself, judging others, replaying old failures, or wasting time on things that produced nothing. I learned to guard my mind. “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23).

Today, my priority is simple: to do the will of God, no matter what it costs, and to become who He’s called me to be. “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart… and he shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:5–6).

Looking back now, I understand Proverbs 18:1 in a way I never could before.

It was through separation that wisdom found me.

It was in the quiet that I heard His voice.

It was in humility that understanding was added.

“Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).

So yes—I separated myself. And in doing so, I came into communion with wisdom. Listening to that still, small voice within (1 Kings 19:12). Allowing God to teach me, shape me, and reveal not just knowledge—but His hidden mysteries.

God is incredible. But I believe in Him.