It’s been 20 months. I’ve known it could happen. I’ve thought about what it would be like when it did. It exceeded my expectations. There, sitting in the pew next to me, where two beautiful ladies recently released from jail. One had been out for four months, the other for only a few days. It was a Wednesday night, the last night of our Crusade. There had been powerful preaching going on already for four services and I knew the last night was bound to be awesome. It was even more awesome to have my sweet sisters in Christ sitting with me in the service, Bibles in their laps, nodding and saying “Amen”! It had been that very day that I’d received a call from Shavonne*. We had talked previously on Sunday afternoon. I had been to the jail that afternoon and the girls were telling me she’d been released. I was so happy for and wondered if I’d hear from her. Over the last year and a half, I’d met and corresponded with several ladies who said they would let me know when they got released, but then never did. So I was so thrilled when my phone rang and it was my friend, Shavonne. She told me she was doing good and glad to be getting her life back together; that this time it was going to include God! I told her about the Crusade going on and invited her to come. She said she’d let me know which night would work best for her and promised to be in touch. A couple of days passed and finally, on Wednesday afternoon, she called me and told me she’d like to come. I promised to come and pick up her up along with her two precious kids in time for supper at church! Then just a few minutes later I was listening to a voice mail I’d gotten and it was from Tecorra*. She’d been out of jail for four months and hearing her happy voice on the phone just filled me with joy. I knew from our correspondence that she had a job and was staying busy. I found out she’s recently moved into her own place and silently I was lifting Praise to God for seeing how His hand of faithfulness has been with Tecorra. I invited her to come to Crusade with me and she immediately said yes! I have seen these women at their lowest. I have held their hand in the cell block as we prayed together. I have seen them surrender their lives and be baptized in a horse trough filled with ice cold water. I have waved at them from the hallway as i had to pass by their cell to go minister in another one. I have penned letters to them, hoping that they would be encouraged to keep fighting the fight even in the midst of such gloomy surroundings. Gloomy is defined as: dark or poorly lit, especially so as to appear depressing or frightening. That pretty much describes the jail. I know. It’s not supposed to be cheerful. I know. It’s not supposed to be a place they want to come back to. I know. But would it hurt to have some encouraging words painted on the wall at least? What if all someone needed was a little spark of hope to encourage them to change? You could paint the words way up high on the dank, grey wall, so that no one would could mess with it. It would just be there. Like a little tiny light shining down a dark hole. Ok, I’ll get off my soap box now. I was looking at two women who had survived; who had beat the odds. Two women who found Jesus in the Jail and they weren’t letting go! I just could have bust with joy sitting next to them. They just looked like beautiful angels to me. All I’d ever seen of them clothed in before was a jumpsuit issued to them at the jail. Now please understand, that’s not all I SEE when we’re at the jail. God allows me to see much more than what they are wearing. In fact, one of my goals in going to the jail is to help those beautiful ladies see themselves as God sees them…..redeemed by His love. I can SEE the potential in their lives. I can SEE what God wants to do through their lives if they’ll simply trust. The thrill was that now I was SEEING that reality sitting beside me. The two women as I pictured them, radiant and serving Christ with the second chance He’d given them. That night the evangelist preached on Jonah. I think his sermon title was something like “Going Down the Wrong Road.” We all nodded our heads at that. Seen that messy road. Been there, done that. The Word was so applicable that night. God sent a whale to swallow Jonah so he would stop running and get on the path ordained by God. God giving Jonah a second chance. God allowed my friends to be swallowed up by some disasters in their lives, and then provided a jail as a way to stop their progress in the wrong direction. He ordained Patti and I to go in and share the gospel with them. We never take that moment for granted. When women raise their hand if they want to pray and receive Jesus. When they sign a list if they want to be baptized. We pray with them. We baptize them. We leave Bibles and devotional books. We encourage as best we can. We know the odds may be against us. It’s just a “jailhouse conversion” some people say. “It won’t last.” “They’ll be back to their old ways as soon as they’re released.” Maybe that’s why I had tears in my eyes that night at Crusade. I saw evidence that we serve a God who keeps what we’ve committed to Him as the word says in 1 Timothy 1:12 “for I know the one in whom I trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until the day of his return.” And by the way, that was Paul writing from jail! *names used with permission
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AuthorHi! I am Donna and I'm traveling. It's a journey to discover who I am in Christ every day....no looking back, face to the Son! Come join me! Archives
October 2017
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