June/July, 2014
Dear Friends,
I think it is past time to update everyone on what has been going on since I joined Lynn in the ministry. Nearly two years has passed since I began going to the Marion County jail with Lynn and a couple things have changed (for me) since that time. I now teach an adult men’s Bible study one day a week and see men one-on-one two days a week. I have faced some obstacles gaining entrance to the jail, due to my criminal history. But God appears to be opening doors. Please pray with us that He continues to clear that path.
In addition to the Marion County jail, I am also involved at the Madison County jail in Anderson, Indiana. On Tuesday afternoon I see men one-on-one and Tuesday evening I assist with the worship service and often have the opportunity to speak to the men. I anticipate greater involvement at the Madison County jail in the near future, now that I am out of school. Please Pray!
A few weeks ago I was asked by a chaplain to see a man who was a recent convert and a long term offender. I will call him Todd. Todd is serving a lengthy sentence for murder and he is a high ranking member of an extremist group. Currently, Todd is back at the jail facing new charges for his behavior while incarcerated. He is a violent offender and has spent a number of years on isolation units and this is his current status, even at the jail. He has no contact with other inmate, only an officer and weekly chaplain visits by me.
My first few visits with Todd were filled with casual conversation to get to know each other a bit, but soon he began to share some pretty dark thinks about the way he has lived his life. Todd openly confessed to his violent lifestyle and, fighting back tears, said he did not want to live that way anymore. And so, together, we opened the Scriptures. Our next couple of visits were filled with questions; the questions were not personal and somewhat abstract and I was starting to think that Todd just did not understand. He was failing to understand how his sin was against God. We talked for a while and then I suggested some passages to read.
A couple of weeks passed before I was able to see Todd again. I saw him the other day and he said to me, “Shawn, this whole Christian thing is about surrendering and obeying God isn’t it?” My heart jumped in my chest! Throughout our conversation it became clear that he had been devouring the Word of God. I saw in Todd a genuine hunger for God’s Word. He is spending hours each day in the Scriptures (a time benefit of being in jail). I think maybe Todd will be alright. He has a long road ahead of him but I think he will make it.
I thank God for His goodness and His grace and that He looks past all the ugliness of our sin and sees us, His creation, that He loves deeply. I thank God for Todd. I pray Todd will understand that serving God does not depend on where you are and that he can bloom right where he is planted and bring the beauty of Jesus’ love into his ugly world. Please pray with me.
Because of Him,
Shawn
Dear Friends,
I think it is past time to update everyone on what has been going on since I joined Lynn in the ministry. Nearly two years has passed since I began going to the Marion County jail with Lynn and a couple things have changed (for me) since that time. I now teach an adult men’s Bible study one day a week and see men one-on-one two days a week. I have faced some obstacles gaining entrance to the jail, due to my criminal history. But God appears to be opening doors. Please pray with us that He continues to clear that path.
In addition to the Marion County jail, I am also involved at the Madison County jail in Anderson, Indiana. On Tuesday afternoon I see men one-on-one and Tuesday evening I assist with the worship service and often have the opportunity to speak to the men. I anticipate greater involvement at the Madison County jail in the near future, now that I am out of school. Please Pray!
A few weeks ago I was asked by a chaplain to see a man who was a recent convert and a long term offender. I will call him Todd. Todd is serving a lengthy sentence for murder and he is a high ranking member of an extremist group. Currently, Todd is back at the jail facing new charges for his behavior while incarcerated. He is a violent offender and has spent a number of years on isolation units and this is his current status, even at the jail. He has no contact with other inmate, only an officer and weekly chaplain visits by me.
My first few visits with Todd were filled with casual conversation to get to know each other a bit, but soon he began to share some pretty dark thinks about the way he has lived his life. Todd openly confessed to his violent lifestyle and, fighting back tears, said he did not want to live that way anymore. And so, together, we opened the Scriptures. Our next couple of visits were filled with questions; the questions were not personal and somewhat abstract and I was starting to think that Todd just did not understand. He was failing to understand how his sin was against God. We talked for a while and then I suggested some passages to read.
A couple of weeks passed before I was able to see Todd again. I saw him the other day and he said to me, “Shawn, this whole Christian thing is about surrendering and obeying God isn’t it?” My heart jumped in my chest! Throughout our conversation it became clear that he had been devouring the Word of God. I saw in Todd a genuine hunger for God’s Word. He is spending hours each day in the Scriptures (a time benefit of being in jail). I think maybe Todd will be alright. He has a long road ahead of him but I think he will make it.
I thank God for His goodness and His grace and that He looks past all the ugliness of our sin and sees us, His creation, that He loves deeply. I thank God for Todd. I pray Todd will understand that serving God does not depend on where you are and that he can bloom right where he is planted and bring the beauty of Jesus’ love into his ugly world. Please pray with me.
Because of Him,
Shawn