On Bill’s first day in prison, he felt completely disoriented. “I was so lost and confused,” he remembered. “I couldn’t believe where I was—I was locked in a cell with another man, using the restroom with him in there. All the politics, rules, me with a number, no...
On Labor Day of 2019, Scott was working on his deck. “I hadn’t been feeling well but was pushing through to try to get the project done,” he said. His wife encouraged him to seek medical advice. By the end of the day, he was in an ICU bed with end stage heart failure...
Looking back on his childhood, Brandon recognizes how easy he had it. His parents worked hard to make his life worry-free. And he grew up believing that “whatever [he] dreamed to be would come true, and [he] had infinite time to do it.” So, when he found himself...
For most of his life, Forrest has been searching for freedom. It’s been a long, exhausting and destructive search, but it finally ended in prison where he found true freedom in Jesus. Growing up, Forrest’s mom owned a surf shop and introduced him to church at a young...
Last year, I led a small Ash Wednesday service at my church. I placed ashes on foreheads as I spoke the words, “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” I reminded everyone that the season of Lent invites us to slow down—to pray, fast, repent and be...
Convict. Inmate. Thief. Prisoner 24601. Maybe you recognize this number from the Broadway musical-turned-film Les Misérables, based on Victor Hugo’s book about a former prisoner, Jean Valjean, who experiences redemption. Valjean served time for stealing bread during...
