A Day Like No Other

I know that the people who are incarcerated have a “debt to pay to society.” I get that. What wrecks me is that for every inmate there is a family that is also paying a debt – but they didn’t break the law.

For one day, Ridge Pointers, and other volunteers, served the men and their families at Brookes Correctional Facility in Muskegon, Michigan. The men were coached on how to “be a dad” for a day. The volunteers assisted the dads and kids so that they could experience one another’s love to the max. The volunteers were changed as they loved in ways they didn’t know they could and the inmates and kids were changed as they connected in a manner they never had.

That’s the Gospel – the good news of changed hearts and softened souls that open the door to new beginnings that give way to great endings!

Can I share some stories with you? I’d like you to read the words of the volunteers that went and to feel what they felt and to see what they saw and to be changed as they were. Enjoy walking with those who some of our society would rather not walk with anymore – and their kids …

The comment that keeps playing over and over again in my mind is “Why are all you people smiling?  Why are you here?  What is in it for you?  I could not help from smiling, I was in a room filled with love! I was in jail with a group of volunteers to assist in an event called "A Day with God" by Forgiven Ministries.

I was surrounded by daddies loving on their children.  Every situation was unique.  The resemblance between the kids and their fathers was almost too much.  When I met the gentlemen (and yes, he was a gentleman) he showed me a picture of his daughter.  This was all he had because Forgiven Ministries was unable to locate his daughter at the time.  He then proceeded to show me a tattoo of his daughter on his right upper arm.  It was beautiful.  He proceeded to tell me he sketched it out himself.  I was in utter awe of his talent.  As I reflected on how the children looked so much like their fathers and how we are created in the image of God, I was overcome with a thought of God with a tattoo of all his children on Him.  As I saw how much this father loved his daughter that he would tattoo her image on his body, I grew a greater appreciation for how much God loves us.  Being a creative person myself, I was able to encourage this gentleman; to use the talents God has given him to glorify God. 

Over the two day event by Forgiven Ministries, this man accepted Jesus into his heart! And if that is not enough to rejoice in, he not only REALLY learned about forgiveness but actively put it into practice.  He mentioned a brewing confrontation between another man of a different ethnicity.  He said he asked that person for forgiveness and that person accepted.  All this in just 2 days!

Towards the end of the day, I asked him how I and the other volunteer could pray for him.  He wanted us to pray for his daughter, but nothing for him.  The Holy Spirit was leading me in a different direction for praying for him.  He was a tough guy, but I believe he did not feel worthy of prayers.  He did not feel worthy of the volunteers being there.  He did not feel worthy of our smiles.  As I prayed, the Spirit spoke boldly through me.  The Spirit boldly spoke of God’s great love for his children, and that He loved him.   God knows him as his child - he is a child of God.  The sobbing was sweet coming from him.  This was the absolute highlight of my day - to be used by God to speak to his child. After that, he too was smiling - one of those big teeth smiles.

I reflect on his comment on how he just did not even want to swear anymore. Nobody told him he should not swear, but now he just wants to live to glorify his Father.  I continue to pray that he is surrounded by people that can grow his knowledge and relationship with the Lord.  He committed to trying out the Bible study that is offered.

At the beginning of my day, I struggled with the name of the event, “A Day With God”.  This sounded wrong to me, because I live for every day with God.  But after I realized I had a perm-a-grin on my face, I realized the reason why.  I could not but help smile about all the love I was seeing.  God is love and I spent a day experiencing and proclaiming God’s love!

How often do each of us put “our Daddy” in jail and separate Him from our lives.  I saw how these fathers just wanted to love on their kids and it was a great example of how God just wants to love on us.

How cool IS that!