11/03/2026
Each week one of our band members shares devotions during our band practice. Here's what Lesley Ann Paterson shared at last week's practice.
When my kids were a lot younger, we used to watch two You Tube channels: one called FGTEEV – “Family Gaming Teams Extraordinarily Entertaining Videos” - which was basically a channel about a family that made vlogs about playing video games together, and FUNnel vision, which was more daily family life based. They have 44 million subscribers to their channels, and over 50 billion collective views on their videos, so their reach and influence is quite vast.
Both channels were run by the same American family - you have mum and dad, Moomy and Duddy, and 4 kids – Lexi who’s about 20 now, Mike in his late teens, Chase and Shawn who are around the same ages as my kids. Duddy, whose real name is Vincent, was loud, and funny and a bit hyperactive. For unknown reasons – Duddy was never seen without a hat.
We kind of fell away from watching their videos as their kids, and my kids, got older but I still followed them on social media. I noticed that they shifted from light‑hearted gaming and family content to more Christian‑focused posts around early 2025. In December 2025, they released a serious video revealing a long‑kept secret: Duddy always wore hats because he was born with grade 2 microtia, leaving him with a deformed left ear and 90% hearing loss on that side. This caused him lifelong shame, bullying, depression, and spiritual struggle. It had such an effect on his life, that he had thoughts of ending it.
He hid his condition for decades, even from his children. He fell away from church and from God all together. His mother, however, consistently prayed for him, and visualized him one day sharing his story publicly. And this day had finally come – he was sharing his story and publicly acknowledging his return to faith and sharing this with his massive social media and YouTube following.
He shared Genesis ch50 v20: “What you meant for evil against ne, God is using for good to do what is being done now for the saving of many lives”. Evil tried to tear him down, to make him feel less than, and to try and ruin or end his life, but now he was dedicating his life and his platform to try and help other broken people.
In the video he shared a clip of a pastor from Vizion Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, who preached on this, and in the clip he says that “when you are afflicted you have 2 options: you can let it poison you and try to kill you, or you can offer it back to Jesus in his service and allow your affliction to bring healing to others. Do not be ashamed of the wounds of your past, as these are the things God will use to bring healing to the nation.”
My interpretation of this is that difficult circumstances can be transformed into opportunities for blessing and that God’s providence can turn adversity into a means of accomplishing good.
Duddy/Vincent has since redefined FGTEEV to mean – For God’s Truth, Every Effort Victorious. He is no longer keeping his true story or his faith hidden behind the "Duddy" persona. Luke ch8 v17 says "For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open." Just as Vincent felt the need to be honest with his massive audience, we are called to live authentically before God and others. Secrets cannot stay hidden because exposure is inevitable, honesty with God and others, repentance from sin, and confidence in God’s just vindication become the only sensible way to live.
Standing for Christ can sometimes be difficult, but it is worth it and as Vincent has shown, the gospel’s power is transformative. Vincent took his difficult circumstance, and used it as an opportunity to be unashamedly vocal about his faith. He is chose observation and truth over seeking validation from the world. Romans ch1 v 16 says “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes..."
We may not have individual YouTube channels, with millions of followers, but may we have the courage to share our faith with those we meet, and to transform our difficult circumstances in to opportunities to influence and change the lives of others for good.
