Prison Leads Man Back to God

Craig had a solid start on a rewarding life. He had earned degrees in film production, and he was flourishing in his young career. He was also the proud father of two young children.

Then, his life took a disastrous turn that led to a ten-year prison sentence. Now, he is working hard to turn his life around in the years that remain in his sentence.

“When you are growing up, you don’t say, ‘I want to go to prison,’” Craig said. “I asked God, ‘Where did I go wrong? Show me how I can get back on Your road.’”

He started going to chapel and invited others to attend with him. At the chapel, he found a Crossroads enrollment card, and he has been studying with Crossroads for a year. The lessons and letters have helped him grapple with the choices that led him to prison. The lessons are also drawing him closer to God.

When Craig was growing up, a neighborhood church was there for him, providing a buffer of hope against the harsh realities and abuse at home. His parents had substance abuse problems, which led them to divorce when he was six years old. He remembers taking care of his mother while he was still a child, praying she wouldn’t die from her addiction or her abusive boyfriend.

The neighborhood church was a continued presence through his adolescence, and he even considered pursuing a seminary degree until a division in the church turned him off. In place of seminary, film production captured his attention. From there, life zoomed along for several years as he built a career and started a family. And then,  his life veered completely off course.

As difficult as it has been to go to prison, Craig said prison is exactly what he needed to get his life on a better path because he has the chance to study and pray. Craig has recommitted his life to Christ, accepting the grace of God’s forgiveness as he works toward the day of his release. From behind bars, he encourages his parents in their newfound faith and their sobriety. He also sees his children monthly. Even from behind bars, he tries to be a stable, faithful presence in their lives as he strives to be the parent he never had.

Crossroads has become an important part of Craig’s life. The feedback on the lessons supports his learning, and the letters and prayers from his mentors help him to carry on.

“It’s a corny saying, but you can make a mess into a message,” he said. “We have two jobs in life: to know Him and to make Him known.”

Craig is doing both jobs as he studies and shares the love of Christ with his family outside prison walls and with the people around him in prison. He has been involved in growing participation in a daily prayer circle in his dorm and helped to organize a worship time in the prison yard on Sunday afternoons.

“I know I am walking out a different man,” Craig said.

 

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