A Christmas Prison Breakthrough

Christmas 2016

 

A few weeks ago I asked my 2 substance abuse classes if they would mind if I practiced my sermons for them. I also said if just one guy doesn’t want me to, I’d respect that. It was unanimous…they wanted me to preach. Our last class was Monday of last week so I preached a Christmas message on “Emmanuel, God with Us.” 

     

As I was driving to the prison that morning, God spoke to my heart and said, “I want you to hug each inmate in your classes as they leave class.” I was like, “Really God?! That’s 60 men plus per class! Seriously…some guys have real hygiene issues!” 

“Just let me do My work,” was the response I got. 

So, I started my message by saying that I understand how lonely a time of year this for a lot of the men. Family might be too far to travel, some families may have disowned you, etc. As I got into the message during the first class, there were a ton of interruptions, even at the end of class there were some security issues happening in another classroom. There was no way I could have hugged these men as they left. (This kind of stuff is commonplace at prisons. Security trumps everything.) 

So, during my lunch-break I prayed. I basically said, “If You mean what You asked me to do, then please close interruptive doors and let me do what You asked.” 

Well, during the second class I started the message out the same way. Then I felt a special unction from the Holy Spirit. Preaching stuff that wasn’t even in my message, etc. Suddenly God took over! Not even one interruption except for count (that’s when security has to come into each classroom to count inmates). As I continued to preach, I started to notice quite a few misty eyes. I was somewhat shocked. The whole time, it was so quiet that you could practically hear a fly’s wings flap. 

A summary of what I preached included statements like, “You are not alone. God is with you. Always has been. He loves you so much. No matter what you have done in the past doesn’t change the depth of His love for you. He loves you for who you are not how you are. Don’t let this place harden you to the love of God in Jesus. He was born, died and rose from the dead to give you life, a new start, a clean slate. No matter how tough you think you are, God wants to rejoice over you with a happy song.” (Zephaniah 3) 

As my message was coming to a close, I told them what God wanted me to do. Hug them all. I mentioned that this might be the only hug some of them get during Christmas. I also explained that if anyone didn’t want a hug, just walk by me and say, “pass.”   

I finished my message about 20 minutes before class ended. They just talked among themselves for the time remaining. Well, as the classes were getting ready to be released, one guy yelled out, “Time for those hugs Chap!” (Many of the guys still call me Chap from when I was the Assistant Chaplain.) So I stood by the door and started the hugging process. Some of the men were crying with tears of joy and appreciation. I never saw anything like it! One guy, nestled his head on my shoulder, with tears in his eyes, said, “Thank you Chap. God bless you Chap. I love you Chap.” It was so hard for me to contain myself. Only one guy out of 60 “passed!” 

Then came this one old guy. They call him Turtle. He reminds me of the Tim Conway old man character from the Carol Burnett Show (if you’re younger than 40, google it). Turtle never took care of himself. I found out later he only showered once a week. His prison clothes were stained with food and who knows what. So I gave him a hug, and he went on his way. 

Needless to say, I practically floated out of that prison! For the first time in my life I felt the manifestation of Jesus in a supernatural, yet practical way. It was as if He was hugging them through me. I never felt like this in my life.

 

On the next day, Tuesday, there were no education classes but there were chapel call-outs. As I was sitting in my classroom alone, preparing lessons for the following week, one of the guys (let’s call him Johnny) from my afternoon class came bursting into my classroom. He was excited to tell me something. (Johnny had given his life to Christ a few years ago in prison.) 

He went on to say, “When I came up to you for the hug, I don’t know if you noticed I was crying.” I said, “I did notice.” I also pointed out that God was moving in such a powerful way that he wasn’t the only one! Johnny affirmed that he saw some of the other guys too. Then he tells me that when he saw me hug Turtle (from whom everyone stays away) he had an idea. He wanted to be Turtle’s caretaker! He goes on to tell me that earlier in the morning he approached the Lieutenant responsible for housing. He explained that he wanted to be Turtle’s caretaker and knew he would need to change bunks in order to do that. He was instantly granted his request! (That is almost an impossible timeline in prison!) So, as of that afternoon, Johnny and Turtle were officially bunkmates! I told him that was awesome and now he can be the hands and feet of Jesus to Turtle! 

Oh, if we would just listen to that small still voice and not argue if it doesn’t go right the first time. God knows what He’s doing…duh. 

Well, this will be one of the most memorable Christmas’s ever. Seeing that prison classroom become holy ground, God taking over, and seeing one Turtle being loved with the love of Jesus. I thank God, the Master Potter, for using this lumpy pile of clay to make something beautiful…a vessel used for His good pleasure! 

Please pray for those incarcerated. I know what happened last Monday was a direct result of the prayers of God’s people. May He use all of us the same way as we allow the Potter to mold us and use us…lumps and all. Merry Christmas. 

Matthew 25:34-36“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I WAS IN PRISON AND YOU CAME TO ME.’” Jesus