Ten years ago, Becket Cook was a gay man in Hollywood who had achieved great success as a set designer in the fashion industry. He worked with stars and supermodels, from Natalie Portman to Claudia Schiffer, traveling the world to design photo shoots. He attended award shows and parties at the homes of Paris Hilton and Prince.

A decade later, Cook has moved on from that life—and he doesn’t miss it. What changed for Cook? He met Jesus. On a momentous day in September 2009, while drinking coffee with a friend, Cook started chatting with a group of young people sitting at a nearby table—physical Bibles opened in front of them … and they invited Cook to visit the church. When asked, “What was going on in your life that made the soil, so to speak, ready to receive the gospel seed?”

Cook replied:

It was a moment at a party in Paris six months earlier. I just felt empty: I had done everything in Hollywood, met everyone, traveled everywhere. Yet I was overwhelmed with emptiness at this party. It was one of the most intense “is that all there is?” moments in my life. I had already been wrestling with questions about the meaning of life, searching for it in all sorts of ways. But I knew God was never an option, because I was gay. It was off the table. I wasn’t confused about what the Bible had to say about homosexuality. I knew it was clear. But I was still searching for meaning.

So, when I came to this coffee shop six months later and saw that group of young people with their Bibles open, I started asking them questions. They explained the gospel, what they believed. I asked what their church believed about homosexuality, and they explained that they believed it is a sin. I appreciated their honesty and that they didn’t beat around the bush. But the reason I was able to accept their answer was because I had that moment in Paris. Five years earlier I would have been like, “You guys are insane. You’re in the dark ages.” But instead I was like, “Maybe I could be wrong. Maybe this actually is a sin.” So, I was open to it in the moment. And then they invited me to church.