Last weekend, I had the opportunity to participate in the Bill Glass Week of Champions prison ministry event in Beaumont, Texas. I was (providentially) assigned to the local short-term juvenile corrections facility. There were six of us volunteers and twenty-six inmates, twenty guys and six girls. There were two platform speakers that day, both retired NFL players. They gave their testimony and shared the gospel.
I had a group of five guys whom I was able to spend most of the day with. Some of them were “first-timers.” For others, though, this was their third or fourth stint in juvy. These young men ranged in age from 14 to 17, and were incarcerated for a number of different crimes. Some were in for family violence, others for theft of parole violations. I had the opportunity to hang out with them in the commons area and just talk and get to know them. They were eager to talk because they don’t often get the opportunity. After the speaker, we read through a gospel tract as a group. I led the discussion about the scriptures by asking them specific questions. Some of the guys were familiar with gospel, having been raised in church or exposed to other ministries such as opportunity camp. They were all open and eager to discuss the gospel. We also read through a short study guide that accompanied the tract. It was difficult to gauge the genuineness of their response. I led them in the acceptance prayer written on the tract, and they repeated after me.
Next, we ate lunch with them. It was taco day. I would rate the food as being slightly worse than high school cafeteria food. After lunch they reluctantly went back to their cells for an hour or so. In the afternoon, though, I was able to spend more time with them.
Getting to know these guys really opened my eyes. They were emotionally and spiritually broken. Unlike most of the teens I’ve come across before, they did not put on a tough guy front. These fellas were real and honest. They all said the same thing, “I just want to go home to my momma.” It broke my heart to hear the pain in their voice as they told me their stories. They were living in the consequences of their sins, and they knew it. They wanted to get out, and never come back again.
But some of them have already come back, several times. I asked them what went wrong, what was the root cause. They all gave the same answer. They hung out with the wrong people. When they would first get out, they were repentant and swore to go on the straight and narrow. But soon they began to associate with their “homeboys” who negatively influenced them back into sin, crime and bondage.
This reminds me of First Corinthians 15:33,
“Do not be deceived, bad company ruins good morals”
So please pray for these five young men. Pray that the Father will draw them to Himself. Pray that the Holy Spirit will convict them of their sin and show them their need for salvation. Pray that they have ears to hear and hearts to understand the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ. Pray that they may be transformed and set free from the bondage of sin and death so that they may live for the Glory of God.
