Love The Prisoners (My Kairos Experience)

If you're a friend of mine on various social sites, you may have seen some celebratory posts about a ministry weekend I was a part of recently called KAIROS.  This program, that ministers to incarcerated persons around the world, was an incredible blessing to me and I wanted to share a bit about my experience and testify that THE LORD IS GOOD AND LOVES THE PRISONERS.

To start, check out this passage from the gospel of Matthew:

Matthew 25:37-43

“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.’

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

Convicting, right?  Believe me, I'm no great example of self-sacrifice or faithful service to the broken and destitute, but I know from even a little firsthand experience that there is so much power and love in Jesus for the ones the world forgets.   

Though I'll go into much more detail (as any of you that read this blog may be expecting haha), I could almost sum up the Kairos ministry experience with this: SHOWING THE "UNLOVABLE" THE LOVE OF JESUS CHANGES EVERYTHING!  I know I'll get distracted and unorganized so feel free to contact me if you want more details, stories, or prayer about anything.

Seriously, that's a massive revelation to me.  If you've lived a spoiled life like I have, it can become so easy to be desensitized to the "Jesus Loves You" stuff we hear everyday in a church environment. BUT I've never seen transformation so obvious/absolute/emotional/freeing as I did on the Bledsoe County Correctional Complex last weekend, and from something as simple and profound as genuine love for the men there.

THINK ABOUT IT, if you're told (like these men have been) that you're scum, worthless, evil, disgusting, and worthy of condemnation for years and years then that's what you'll believe about yourself. These men live in a world of fear with almost no control over what they do, all within the confines of a glorified cage.  NOW I'M NOT SAYING A JUSTICE SYSTEM IS BAD, there are a lot of biblical reasons a society should have a system of punishing crimes within that society, I'm just saying it's a tough environment (especially for any kind of redemption to grow).

But when some of the participants saw genuine smiles on the team's face, or received hugs, good food, laughs, and sincere fellowship, you can't imagine the change that came upon many of the men. And you may be surprised by how much love you receive in return. The men in that group of Kairos participants showed more kindness and grace than the team could've ever showed them.  God is awesome! 

IF YOU EVER WANT TO GET INVOLVED WITH PRISON MINISTRY remember this:  Jesus died for us while we were still sinners and He loves those incarcerated as much as you or me. Showing someone that they are loved by Christ and His church can kick the door to salvation and transformation wide open!

And even though Christ's forgiveness is the same level of miraculous for all of us weary sinners, there is something indescribable about watching a person with decades of regret and suffering believe, for the first time, that JESUS STILL WANTS HIM AND HAS A PLAN FOR HIM!

 I know I'm word-vomiting and just typing sporadically, IT'S JUST DIFFICULT TO ORGANIZE MY THOUGHTS OR WRAP AROUND ALL THE COOL THINGS THAT HAPPENED! I'm not exaggerating when I say that every single person (team or inmate) was drastically changed by the gospel love of Jesus last weekend. 

To find some way to stop rambling in excitement, I'll make a little list below of things you should know and celebrate about ministry to prisoners:

1.  YOU ARE NO DIFFERENT OR MORE INNOCENT THAN PRISONERS. 

2.  Jesus is the ONLY WAY TO BE SAVED for any of us so the playing field is even here.

3.  We are called by God to set the captives free, showing someone Jesus is the free-est free there is!

4.  DON'T BE AFRAID, God gives us the words to say and sometimes a bag of cookies or a real hug is all you need.

5.  DON'T FOCUS ON WHAT THEY DID, what's important is Jesus' forgiveness and the NEW life!

6.  Make a friend and be a friend.  Having an agenda is nothing compared to genuine relationship with a person (a good rule for any encounter, not just with a prisoner)

7.  ENCOURAGE AND PRAY CONSTANTLY, these men and women live in a harsh world where persecution as a believer is real and often violent.  Pray for their safety and ministry to other inmates.

To close I'll just ask you to celebrate with me that there is so much life-changing ministry happening within the world's prisons BECAUSE OF THE PRISONERS.  There were some men I met in the program that were hardcore believers that are already fighting the battle for their brothers' lives, so pray these people up all around the globe.

LET US ALL PRAY THAT EVERY PRISON BECOMES A SANCTUARY FOR THE GOSPEL AND ASK THE LORD WHAT HE NEEDS US TO DO.

None of this is intended as a guilt-trip, I just want to testify (as a noob) that prison ministry is nothing but a blessing to everyone involved.  Pray and ask Jesus boldly if there's anything He wants you to do for the souls that live behind bars.  We were all sinners in need of Christ, so let His grace go past any wall, cage, or barrier to reach the lost.

Ask me questions on facebook or otherwise.  God is good.  Praise Him for lives changed forever!

-----Grady Milligan

Triumphant Fragrances (2 Corinthians 2:14-17)

To start today's devotional, consider this passage from 2 Corinthians chapter 2.  Meditate on the meaning of the sensory words like "aroma" and "fragrance".  Ask God to open your hearts and eyes and ears to what He may have for you in the scriptures (which might be completely different than what I needed to hear from Jesus today).

2 CORINTHIANS 2:14-17
"But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ."

So I wanna talk about 3 cool chunks of this passage:
1. Triumphal procession
2. The fragrance and aroma business
3. Believers as commissioned spokesman of Christ

First, I just want to quickly celebrate how gloriously humbling the that parade image is to me.  The Savior of weak and awful sinners, through His power, transforms us into a new creation that He is proud to display for all the world!  HOW AWESOME IS THIS??? Also, the word TRIUMPHAL is huge because our God is not eventually going to win, HE'S ALREADY WON IT ALL.  We are part of God revealing the glory of Jesus through the Holy Spirit and the VICTORY that is one from the Resurrection and the power of Christ in our lives. It's a celebration with no fear of defeat!

Through this parade of the Lord's power, we spread the "fragrance" of the knowledge of God. 

The word "aroma", found in the next phrase of the passage, reminds me of a passage from the old testiment.  Check this chunk of Numbers out:

Numbers 29:8

"but you shall offer a burnt offering to the LORD, a pleasing aroma: one bull from the herd, one ram, seven male lambs a year old: see that they are without blemish."

I think it significant that the verse from Numbers deals with sacrifice as an aroma to the Lord. In a final and more perfect sense, Christ and His sacrifice on the cross give us the ability to be pleasing to the Lord. The defeat of sin through Jesus and the ritual sacrifice of animals (which God established before Christ paid our debt in full to make a new covenant) are both means that God's people had to come in contact with Him in righteous and clean communion. Through death in Jesus, we find life, much like the sacrifice of animals showed us the severity of sin and God's promise to forgive the repentant.

It's interesting to me how death and life, on either side of Jesus' offer of salvation, both react INCREDIBLY different to the aroma of Christ. Read this part of the Corinthians passage again:  "to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life."

 Perhaps one of the reasons that the enemy, the world, and our flesh react so violently towards Jesus is the fact that death (the state we live in because of sin and before gracious atonement) is so completely defeated by another kind of death (the crucifixion of our old life with Christ). This reaction is the antithesis of the one we, as believers, experience when another person(s) that loves the Lord enters our space. In that moment, both parties are encouraged and grown through fellowship and common devotion and worship of Jesus.  The connection of the Holy Spirit within the believers is a powerfully binding force, the very Spirit of God affirming Himself in another of His Children.  The fragrance and essence of Christ is the most powerful thing in creation (since He created it), so it will always cause a reaction.

This is why we can say we are not "peddlers of God's word" as Paul writes, but we are ambassadors with authority speaking on behalf of a King. The last point of interest in this beautifully dense passage reminds me that we do not carry a light or fruitless burden in the gospel. I'm also saddened and little angered by the reminder that there are in fact those that would use the gospel cheaply, for personal gain, or without truly knowing the power they speak of. I pray that we seek to be genuine in carrying the truth of Jesus, that we would not be like the pharisees in Jesus' day (who profited off God's teachings without having His love in them). In Jesus, we are speaking the Truth of life and life everlasting.  As Paul says, we speak as the Body of Christ Himself, we are called to be the light of the world in that triumphal procession we talked about earlier.

I've rambled too long, so thank anyone for reading, but I hope that you and I would seek this day, this week, and this season to be the sweet aroma of Christ to God and to the world that He loves enough to die for.

Be bold and courageous, YOU'RE NOT A PEDDLER OF USELESS GOODS, you carry the light and word of Jesus' Gospel!

Much Love

- Grady

Confidence in Our Conscience: 2 Corinthians 1:12, 1:21-22, and 12:9

Meditate, if you will, on these three passages of scripture:


"For this is our confidence: The testimony of our conscience is that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you, with God-given sincerity and purity, not by fleshy wisdom but by God's grace."     ----  2 Corinthians 1:12

"Now it is God who strengthens us, with you, in Christ and has anointed us. He has sealed us and given us the Spirit as a down payment in our hearts"  ---- 2 Corinthians 1:21-22

"But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me."  --- 2 Corinthians 12:9

I challenge both myself and the reader to stop and evaluate ourselves.  When we think of our daily walk and ministry, do we have a CONFIDENCE OF CONSCIENCE?  Next, if we do in fact feel confident, WHO ARE WE CONFIDENT IN?  Do we draw a sense of peace and security from our approval of our own works, or do we grasp the magnitude of His humbling grace and guidance?

Having grown up in church life and teachings, it's easy for me to immediately equate the word CONFIDENCE with a much more sinful one: PRIDE. But there is a vast difference between  humble confidence in the power of God's Spirit guiding our every moment and foolish hope in our own strength.

The passages from 2 Corinthians call the believer to rise up in Christ's power and live "with God-given sincerity and purity" and love the people around us without fear of our sinful weakness.  EVEN MORE, Paul said that he would "boast all the more gladly of (his) weaknesses" because Jesus is made EVEN MORE evident when contrasted with human failure.

THINK ABOUT IT!  How excited and fearless (while still humbly) should we live knowing that EVEN WHEN WE'RE NOT GOOD ENOUGH Jesus will be glorified through His own confident authority within us.  How fantastic is that?!

The "down payment" that is His world-creating/life-changing/sickness-healing Spirit gives us the anointing to go and do His good works.  THERE IS NO OTHER STRENGTH NEEDED, the power of the MAKER is inside of the believer.  

So no matter where you've been recently in your walk, or how adequate you feel, pray that God would encourage you with grace to walk boldly, humbly, and CONFIDENTLY in the power to minister that He's given you through Jesus.  It isn't with your strength that hearts are changed, so don't worry about how strong you feel.  Be bold in weakness and conduct yourself above reproach so that the world would know Jesus is alive and strong to save!

Repentance

My wife and I have recently become frequent fliers at the Vineyard church in Maryville, TN.

I can say without a doubt that this has been the most spiritually refreshing couple of months we've enjoyed in several years.

Aaron, the preaching pastor at our church, was speaking about repentance this past Sunday as a part of a larger sermon series on prayer.  God has been preparing my heart for over a year to hear what I needed to hear in that lesson.

Pastor Aaron spoke about a huge misunderstanding and dangerous perspective regarding the subject of REPENTANCE.   For so many Christians, even the word "repent" sounds like a punishment.  We know we fall short and because of our failings God is going to make us go through a tiring and painful process of earning our way back into his favor... WRONG, WRONG, WRONG!

The act of repentance is a BEAUTIFUL GIFT OF GRACE!  We are called, nay, invited to embrace our Savior and get right back on the horse, riding in the direction of His will.  We don't have to go through a painful punishment period or retrace steps, we just "fall forward into grace"- as my friend Andrew Soreano (wonderful dude and awesome missionary) would say.  God brings us in an instant to the place we were right before we stumble.   But I had, for a good long time, been living in the lie that I was doing a terrible job and it wasn't worth trying to get back to a place of obedient walking and ministry.

As any of you who have spoken to me recently would know, I've been in a season of doubt.  Not doubting God (His self, love, or provision), but doubting myself.  Without being aware of what I've been doing, I've spent far too long in a rut of self-induced-guilt-trip-earn-my-way-back-to-Spirit-led-holiness-and-all-without-joy religion.

I haven't had a bad year, in fact it's been both financially and relationally blessed, but I've been giving myself a hard time.  My daily times of devotion, prayer, and scriptural study have been negligent at best.  This is a GENUINE PROBLEM that needs to be corrected.  There is a great deal of holy conviction at work in that area of my life.

BUT, instead of running towards God's open arms in repentance and skipping along our merry way, I've been constantly hesitant to push forward for the fear that I have lost the right to walk alongside Him.


THAT IS RIDICULOUS!   I know now that I need to constantly battle the enemy's lies about my current spiritual state.  Though I am definitely responsible to live in obedience (and deal with discipline and consequences should I stray), there is still NOTHING that makes God love me less or want me less!

The creator of the universe didn't come to earth as a man, suffer ultimate punishment, rise in death's defeat, and pour out salvation and His Spirit on me to take it all back after a dry season!  He adopted me and walks in and with me FOR LIFE!

I needed the reminder of that sermon to redirect my focus.  I am looking forward to a revamp of disciplined devotion and study and prayer, hopefully leading to a season of new spiritual heights and discoveries.  I am EXCITED TO REPENT.  What a glorious gift, to turn away from my weakness and TURN TOWARDS THE ARMS OF FORGIVENESS, SONSHIP, AND GROWTH IN JESUS!

I'll be blogging more (almost daily) to keep myself accountable and log any revelations from study time.

Much love and Grace and Peace to you through the Spirit of Jesus Christ!