August 10, 2022 – Click here to listen
I used to speak at prisons all over the country and it was some of the most rewarding and important work I’ve ever done. The Bible is clear about God’s love for the men and women who are locked up in prisons. Jesus preached: “I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me“.
I had recently sold my largest company to date when I visited a prison in South Georgia. It was brutally hot, and our event was located out on a dusty prison yard with no shade in sight. I witnessed to them for almost an hour, then asked them to come follow Jesus.
Many came forward but some did not. Those who didn’t seemed distrustful, and knowing cons the way I do, I’m sure didn’t trust me. I told them that at that very moment I could be on the French Riviera, or Maui, or literally anywhere in the world with my family but instead I had decided to visit them in that hot hellhole. I said, “For most of your lives no one has loved you, but God loves you and so do I”.
Statistically 82% were raised without a father and no one cared about them. They raised themselves on the streets and didn’t do a very good job. Now they were incarcerated and paying the price for making bad decisions. When I told them that God loved them and so did I and that was why the other volunteers and I were standing out there getting sunburned in the blazing hot sun, it hit a nerve. This opened the water faucet, and many more came to know Christ that day. Afterwards an inmate came to me and told me that with my financial standing he knew I could be somewhere else, and he wanted me to know that he appreciated us coming to see them. He had been incarcerated for over 20 years and not one person had visited him, nor did he receive one letter or card.
I told him I was sorry to hear that. I thought back to the short time I spent in two prisons and remembered that aside from my court appointed attorney, no one had come to visit me either, nor did I receive a single letter or card. I hung out with seasoned criminals inside and was taught how to become a better criminal. At the time no one had ever told me they loved me in my entire life, and I thought if there was a God, He was mean. As it turns out He loved me all along and I just didn’t know that. It made all the difference in the world when I realized that I was loved by Jesus and was not totally alone.
I was involved with prison ministry for decades and during that time I saw many of these incarcerated men and women come to know the Lord. My deteriorating eyesight has ended my travel and thus my prison ministry and I’m just left with memories. The thing I love the most about Jesus is that He loves us all regardless of finance, standing in the community, accomplishments, fame, or power. He loves the poor, the downtrodden and yes even those incarcerated. Shouldn’t we emulate Him as it pertains to this? Jesus is the true meaning of love – God’s love is not just for the privileged, but to all humanity. In fact, if we love Him, we should help the downtrodden with whom He relates…Think about it…
Matt. 25:37
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’