Mission And Purpose From Behind Bars

So sorry I haven't posted in a while Ken has been doing a lot of moving around lately. He has finally gotten to the prison. He got to the prison a few days before Christmas and he is starting to get settled in he called me about a week and a half ago and said he found out he can show his I.D. and check out a guitar and play it. He is really good so i ask if he had gotten any fans yet. He said he had not that everyone just walks around the yard doing there own thing . Then he called me a couple of days later and said he was teaching someone to play guitar. Apparently someone really was listening i told him that was great. about two days later he told me he had two more pupils. And then two days ago he told me the prison has made him the new guitar instructor. How amazing i told him. You never know how that can impact those men's lives that could keep them from getting into trouble while locked up because they now have an outlet I'm so proud of him not only because he is teaching those men to play but because he is a light for Jesus everyday despite his circumstance. The very next day he told me they made him the new lead singer and guitar player at church .

Prayer call is something else in this place. My first day it was me and two other guys in the back corner of the pod. But now it is an average of 15 to 25 guys, and it is really something. Before we pray, we go around the circle and each guy open up about what's on their mind and what they want to pray about. So, for a few seconds you see hardened men become vulnerable and you see God at work its powerful. Then me and my friend Jon pray and then we always end it with the Lord's prayer while everyone is fist to fist. The Bible says anytime two or more believers are gathered together God is in their presence and i know he is here with us. AMEM!!! side note .... All but one of the guys who have been released since I have been here have been faithful members of the prayer group...... JUST SAYING!!!!!!!!     This post is by Ken

As the judge passed down the sentence

So, I tried copy and pasting his blog by emailing it to myself and copying from the email that didn't work so I decided to type it out. So, these are kens words. 

Hey guys I haven't posted in a while, but it's been kind of I guess you could say slow around there for him. He has started getting to go to their church services a couple of times a week. He has also read the entire New Testament. He spends a lot of time telling anyone who will listen his testimony and about Jesus. He told me last night he wants to write his own blog so you will be able to hear things directly from him. He is going to send them to me through the jail messaging system so i will be able to copy and paste on here and it will be his words. As soon as he does i will update you.

I have an update it's been a couple of days since i posted anything about what Ken is doing. He was telling me about a man he has been talking to a lot the man has a brain aneurism and the other night this man started having seizures and they took him out on a stretcher. Ken said that before it happened, Ken had talked to the man about blessings and the things we all take for granted every day because we are not promised tomorrow. Ken has shown a real concern about this man and has been praying for him every day.  The man has been gone three days i think and was brought back in today. Ken said he isn't able to speak but he is able to write down what he wants to say. Ken went over to check on him to see how he was doing, and the man wrote on a piece of paper "praise and glory be to God because he gave me a second chance at it." Ken said the man isn't doing well and would like everyone to pray for him. Ken also said he saw a light in the man's eyes.  Ken also wanted me to update everyone on his prayer circle it started out with 4 people and has gradually grown to 24 people there is only 43 people in his pod so he has over half of them praying with him every night. God is on the move.

Good morning, everyone I wanted to share a little about Kens Day yesterday. He said a guy come up to him yesterday who has been in jail for quite a while and asked him how long he had been a Christian Ken answered him and he replied, " I can tell because you talk about it all the time." then he said " well man i have tried to read my Bible I start in the beginning and don't ever get very far." Ken told him that probably isn't the best way to start he told him that he should start in Luke and when he got a better understanding of the Bible then go back to the beginning. Ken explained to him that he isn't able to quote the Bible verbatim but that he really enjoys reading the stories. And this is my favorite part he asked Ken what stories Ken answered you know Ester and Job. The man had no idea what Ken was talking about, so Ken spent two hours telling this man about those stories in the Bible. He told Ken "You make the stories sound so exciting."  Ken replied they are exciting." So, the man told ken he had a couple of chapters left in the book he was reading then he was going to start reading some of the stories in the Bible. The man come back up to him a little later excited and said he had read a verse that reminded him of Ken. I was driving down the road when Ken told me the story, so I didn't get to write it down. But i will add it in this afternoon when I get to talk to him and ask what the verse was.

So, I just have a couple of things that I want to share about Kens ministry today. He has become friends with another man who is waiting to go to prison. The man is scared for his safety and another inmate was trying to take advantage of him by offering protection for a fee. As Ken is hearing what is going on he started to remove himself from the conversation and he went off alone and prayed. Then went to bed woke up and prayed about it again this morning. Sometime today Ken went to his friend and told him he had an uneasy feeling about it he also told him something that really opened the man's eyes. He talked about the Armour of God and how important it is to keep on the full Armour of God especially in a place where satan is so obviously present waiting to attack new Christians. So, his friend told the person no thanks.  He also wanted me to share a verse that inspired him today. Philippians 2:14-15 Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights to the world.

 A week later I was driving home and got a call from someone wanting to discuss something will me that blew my mind. They were saying that Ken would be the perfect person to take on the role as a missionary in the federal prison system.  I talked with Ken and we both prayed about it that night and when I woke up the next morning I opened my devotional, and the title was WALK AND WORK. It was saying the path we walk down isn't always easy but trust God to lead us into our God given purpose. I immediately send Ken the devotion through the jail message system. then he called me later in the day I asked if he had prayed about it and what his thoughts, were and this is what he said, " my only drawback is I feel unqualified and not good enough." so i said "are you kidding me the disciples were tax collectors and sinners who gave up everything to follow him."  But he was right none of us are qualified and when we humble ourselves and tell God we feel unqualified he is pleased because that is such a pure form of humility, and he will then be able to use you in a mighty way. So here we are taken the path God is leading us down I'm not real sure what that will look like for us, but we are going to trust God and i know as a team we will be able to touch and change many life and win souls for the glory and kingdom of God. So now i will blog and update you on Kens ministry daily. 

Before going into the courthouse, we all stand outside waiting for everyone to arrive. Ken, myself, his mother, our daughter, two of our sons, the directors of Hisway , fellow brothers from the program, teachers, pastors, mentor, and family friends. When everyone had arrived, we all joined hands in front of the courthouse and said a prayer. We were rushed in so fast I didn't get a chance to hug him. But I was so sure he was going to be coming home. We all got seated and the benches were full. The judge enters the room, and the proceedings begin. I felt like I was watching a movie none of it felt real. I watched as each witness approached to tell the judge what a kind, giving gentle helping, changed man Ken is. When they were finished testifying and we waited for the judge to pass down the sentence it started to become all too real as I heard our daughter begin to sob next to me as she put her arms around me.  I heard the judge say 37 months in federal prison. It got even more real as i watched them put the cuffs on Ken and i turned to look at his supporters and saw the hurt in their eyes. We started home and my son starts to speak from the back seat saying," mom i wish they would let me take his place". My heart broke as i gently replied "i know son we all would take this for him if we could unfortunately, we can't. Here is where it got really hard for me. As much as i was hurting I knew i had to pick up my cross and trust God to lead us and be strong For Ken and our children. I knew if I broke, they all would and i wasn't about to let that happen. I prayed all day every day i, i studied, I ask God to give me peace, and kept faith. Mathew 11;28-30 came to me and i had peace.