Faith Seeds Travels to COLORADO!

We were blessed to be part of the Operation Starting Line collaboration that traveled to Colorado in October. Ministry occurred in 3 facilities: Friday included two men's facilities; and Saturday was spent at a
women's facility.

During our times of prayer and intercession before the events, we had prayed into a word for the “Spirit of the Lord” to be released and manifested at the facilities. This is in line with the Scripture from 2 Corinthians 3:17, “Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” It was also very exciting that for the first time, our nationwide team of prison ministry intercessors (called the Prayer Force) had designated time of on-line intercession! This allowed for intercessors to communicate with each other whether they were in Texas, Ohio, or Massachusetts.

Friday was an extremely challenging day. There were some challenges with travel on the ride to Colorado Springs and then to Canon City. The first facility was a re-entry center, which houses prisoners about to be released. Some 250 men attended the event. There was definitely some spiritual activity going on and warfare prayer was needed. It was, as always, a blessing to hear the men express their appreciation to have people travel some 2000 miles to spend a couple of hours with them as the gospel message is shared.

Saturday was quite interesting - as the day began with some of the same spiritual battles and then we began to see some breakthroughs. We had the opportunity to visit a small segregation pod where we thought a "mini-event" was going to occur. We visited most of the cells, and the majority of women were asleep. We has the chance to speak with one woman, who had her face pressed up against the little glass pane of the cell. The doors were solid, with small holes for communication and the little glass pane (not like regular prison bars on the doors we typically think of). We had a great time visiting with the woman, who knew the Lord, read her Bible, and was so thankful for a visit. I encouraged her to read one of my favorite Psalms – 27. I told her I loved the whole Psalm – but the beginning and the end were exceptional.
She smiled broadly and said she would read it. Next thing we knew, we were being moved out of that pod and into a men's infirmary pod. BTW - this is life in prison ministry - things can change in a second. So off we went to join other volunteers who were meeting with about 7 men. Each one was injured or sick. Many were confined to their cells because of their illness. A mini-event was done, with some singing and we could see the Lord working in some of the men. As just another way that our awesome God works was reflected when one of the platform minister’s CDs would not work. She was forced to make a decision and as she paused, then drew closer to the group and began to sing Amazing Grace. It was perfect. A holy hush came over the room and the Holy Spirit was powerfully moving. One man in particular caught my eye. He kept fighting back tears and tried to resist God’s love. It was clear to see he was losing that battle, as God’s love was winning. At the end of the event, he was one of the men who asked for prayer. I went right over to him and as I bent down on my knees, I could see the tears coming down his face. We both wept together. He asked for peace in his life - and couldn't fully express what he needed prayer for, as it was very difficult. It was a sweet and precious time. Words cannot convey what it meant for me to spend those few minutes praying with this man. I told him what an honor and a joy it was to meet him and that there would be people praying for him. He nodded his head in humble thankfulness.

Later that day we were in the gym, where the musicians and speakers conducted the final event. About 200 women attended - and things flowed smoothly. We had the opportunity to pray with 3 women after the event: one woman is being released soon and is very scared; a second woman has some unforgiveness issues and her husband is also in prison; a third is due to deliver a baby boy on Nov. 26th and asks for a healthy delivery.

Let me encourage you, as I was so encouraged in Colorado by something that happened in our meetings on Thursday: a young man gave a brief testimony, as he is an ex-offender. At one point he looked at us and said, "If you ever question if your work in prison has any affect, just look at me." With that, he grabbed his chest as if to show just how much good has happened in his life - and how God has used people to show love, compassion, and support. I wasn't the only one in the room who couldn't stop crying. It blessed me, and I pray it blesses you.