Transformation of Character -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Members of a heavy metal rock group were incarcerated for drug use. Some attended our Saturday Service in prison. The ministry provided instruments for those who wanted to play Christian praise music. The rough praise and worship group that emerged drew many inmates who had never been to a church service in their lives. The secular base player came to service that day in order to play the base. When he heard the practice he pulled back. "I am a professional base player", he explained, "I have never played this kind of music, only Heavy Metal". The Services had already begun and he felt trapped. He took a seat in the front row to wait out the hour long event. Worship in song ensued after the opening prayer. I still remember this man's entire continence change. The Spirit of God fell on him. His attitude totally changed. After grabbing the base, he joined in the band. He came forward and prayed the sinners prayer. All this happened in November of 1997. He continues to serve Christ behind bars, study the word, and lead other to a saving relationship with Jesus. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Still Small Voice -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- After service one Saturday a tall man approached me with a request. "Please pray for my girlfriend, I think she might, well, hurt herself, she is so depressed." "OK", I replied. We spent a minute praying that Jesus would speak to her heart, draw near and comfort her. The man was subsequently released and came to the outreach ministry. Almost a year later I met the women prayed for. She said that she had a loaded gun in her mouth but heard a small voice in her mind say "I love you, there is hope, I will be help". She believed it to be the very day we prayed. She accepted Christ as her personal savior. Two years after the prayer she has overcome addiction to alcohol and is off antidepressants. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Stunning Beauty - Transformed -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A young girl, addicted to cocaine became a women. She found that she could fund her addiction by satisfying men who wanted her. The three children she bore were given to her mother when she went to jail. In jail she came to Christ and actively participated in Services. Over and over again she fell into addiction and prostitution upon release. Each time we saw her again, back in jail, she promised that this time would be different. We prayed, pleaded, counseled and shared the hope of salvation in Christ. The last time she was released was a year ago. She attended our support Center one time. We told her, "You must separate yourself from all your past and start all over". Today she is off cocaine and earning a good living, $13 an hour in a dental office. She bought presents for her children's birthday, with money she earned, for the first time. Jesus Transformed her life....pray for her. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "My Wife Died in Her Sleep" -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A man was incarcerated for driving under the influence and reckless endangerment in 1997. He participated in Chapel Services, made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ and voraciously devoured the books in the Christian Library at Geiger. When I arrived one Wednesday afternoon he came to my office. He was anxious and noticeably depressed. "My wife died in her sleep last night, if I had been home she would still be alive", he moaned. Prayer, comfort, and the living Spirit of Jesus Christ ministered to his grief over the ensuing months. There were moments when I felt he needed to be in high security because of his grief and sorrow. Gradually he replaced his need for alcohol with the effective word of God. Substances had never comforted him as effectively as did the Holy Spirit. After sincerely seeking God in Christ for strength he was able to hide himself in the cross, receive forgiveness, forgive himself and find purpose in serving Jesus. After his release the sincerity of his commitment was established by his behavior. Regular attendance at church, bible studies, philanthropic support of others in need, and complete sobriety demonstrate the transformation of character brought about through the power of Christ's crucifixion and resurrection power. This guy found a new life. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "I see faces on the wall that tell me the future" -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A twelve year old boy was brought to me several years ago. Parents and teachers were at a loss to know how to deal with him. He would be doing fine in class and suddenly become agitated, horrified and go hide under or in something in the classroom. No one could identify an apparent cause and he refused to talk with anyone about what happened. He would run from the school if approached and had to be physically restrained while being removed from the classroom. I worked with the school and implemented an intervention program. After several episodes he was removed permanently from class and placed with me during the school day. Our team of prayer warriors prayed for an effective plan to help this boy. After six months of intervention the episodes grew less and less. He came to realize that the team cared about him and trust developed between us. He told us what caused the violent events. "At night after I go to bed I see faces on the wall. The faces talk to me and tell me things. They tell what is going to happen in the classroom the next day. Then when I get to school it is so scary when the stuff does happen. I can't stay there and watch it anymore." "When did this start happening?",we asked. He reported, "I watched a movie when I was real little about Demons from Hell with my dad. A while later the same demons started appearing on my wall." After a months or so an opportunity came to apply an effective intervention that permanently changed this boy's life. While transporting the boy to a therapeutic activity out of school another conversation ensued. "If there was a way for you to make these demons leave you alone would you want to know about it?" a staff member asked. "Well yea of course but that is impossible"he answered. "Why do you think it is impossible?" I questioned. "Because nobody came make demons do anything, they are too powerful." He shouted. Is there any power anywhere greater than demons?", I wondered. "Well sure, God, but he can't help us." He demanded with disgust. "Why not?" "Because he's in heaven and we are down here!", He blurted. "God created a plan by which we can communicate to him through His Son." The salvation message was explained. He accepted Jesus as his personal savior in a black truck outside the school building. We bound the demons in the name of Jesus Christ and cast them away from him. The next day He reported that they were gone. He returned to his regular class a few weeks later. He has been a model student to this day. The episodes immediately stopped after that prayer. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Deliverance From Folklore The summer of 1978 was the hot. Tulsa summers were stifling for my northwestern blood. I was not looking forward to leadership at the week long United Methodist District Junior High Church camp but as Youth Director both Sue and I were obliged to go. Hundreds of children bunked into the woodland setting and counselors met to set plans for activities and supervision. I had agreed to teach a class in song writing while Sue conducted instruction in the sewing arts and other counselors taught classes according to their gifts. Managing behavior was the topic of our first wrap up counselor meeting. One child's name repeated emerged in the conversation, "Martin". Martin was an American Indian. He had recently been adopted by a District Minister from a regional orphanage. The girls melted around Martin, his dark handsome face, bad boy twinkle, and rugged physic evidently made an attractive package. Though only a ninth grader, he looked like a high school senior. Martin's behavior was perplexing. He was very pleasant to work with one moment and very disruptive the next. Some felt he was just showing off for the ladies. We tried several behavior management techniques but by the end of the third day we were considering sending him home. His adoptive father entreated us to try harder. A shocking event occurred late on the third night. The primitive rugged cabins circled a central meeting area with a large fire pit in the middle. Boys on one side, girls on the other. The fire was out for the night. All the kids were been rounded up and sent to bed. The other counselors had tucked their charges away and snuggled into their sleeping bags. I was running late! As cleanup supervisor I had to finish what my delegation had missed. As I hurried down the road leading to the cabins a figure appeared by the fire pit. "Oh, one more kid to deal with!", I thought in exhaustion. As I approached I recognized Martin. He was throwing rocks between the cabins into the forest . Obvious that he was upset about something, I overcame the urge to exercise my authority and command him to bed. "Something bothering you Martin?, I asked. "Awwwwwwww these girls are a real pain!", he asserted. "How's that", I pried. "Oh their just all angry about stuff!", he asserted. "Having trouble with relationship, huh", I suggested. "Yea", he agreed. This was my golden opportunity! I was all about leading kids to Christ and this looked like an opportunity. I gave it a try and said, "Ya know...if you accept Jesus Christ as your Savior, He will help you handle this type of situation". "I can't!", he demanded. "Waaa why?", I stammered. "The Chief told me that satan lives in wolves, dogs are the descendants of wolves, and if I accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior a dog will come in the night and kill me!", he explained. Martin looked over my left shoulder at something behind me , his eyes widened with fright, and his head quivered slightly. I calmly turned around to check it out. I saw a dog, about twenty feet away, it's tail was between it's legs, it's head was hanging down and it looked as if someone had scolded it. The dog was slinking slowly off under a cabin. Martin's was astonished, the expression on his face made me curious. "What is the mater Martin?", I asked. "Listen man, before you turned around that dog's teeth were gnarled, it's eyes were red, hair was standing on end and it's legs were stiff! When you started turning around that dog put it's tail between it's legs and started slinking away!". Well, Jesus Christ is more powerful than the devil any day", I asserted confidently. Martin agreed to accept Jesus Christ as his personal Savior. I went into my memorized four spiritual laws mode and started the speal. It was not so easy! "OK, Martin", I began, "repeat after me, I believe......" Martin grabbed his stomach and shouted out in pain, "There's a ball of fire in my stomach, I am burning up! "Great", I thought, this kid is just shinning me on, I'm such a sucker!" Martin would not relent, his body went limp, I held him up and continued to repeat the salvation message. "Jesus I ask you to come into my heart", Martin repeated. Then the ball of fire moved up to his throat. "I am choking"!, he cried. By now I was sure every counselor and kid were watching. "Making a fool of myself again", I thought, " this kid is probably having a psychotic break!" Martin finally choked out the sinners prayer and settled down. Standing on his own again he started seeing things in the air around us and began to panic. I laid my hand along the side of his face to get his attention. "Martin, say 'Jesus Christ is more powerful than the devil, leave me alone, in the name of Jesus'! He finally calmed down again, went to bed and slept like a baby. I stayed up all night and watched for dogs. The next day Martin approached the campers one by one. He reported that many demons had been cast out of him. He earnestly pleaded with his peers to accept Christ as personal Savior, repeated the sinners prayer and persuaded all to receive Christ. The campers met in the lodge for a service on the last day of camp. I remember hundreds of children on their knees, weeping, asking one another for forgiveness, confessing offenses, forgiving one another and praising God. ( Not a typical United Methodist service!) Back at Bixby United Methodist Church in Bixby, Oklahoma I resumed my role as Youth Director. A few days after I returned from the camp Martins adoptive father gave me a phone call. Saying that he was angry would be an understatement. He was furious! "We all know there are no demons, your actions were cruel, vicious, selfish self glorification. If you think you will get any where in this denomination think again ....", he went on and on, I stopped listening. The months passed. I entered seminary. The memory of Martin dimmed as I pursued a career in ministry. One day, about nine months later I got another phone call. Martin's father had a different tone in his voice. I strengthened myself for the attack. "Don , I have to ask you to forgive me. I do not believe in the devil or demons, I do not understand what happened with Martin on that night last summer. Martin is a different person! When he went to that camp he had a severe behavior problem, he was failing all his classes, and nothing seemed to help. Since the event at the camp Martin has been a model child and student. I do not understand what happened but I want to thank you for helping Martin. The sweltering office on the second floor of the ancient United Methodist Church in Bixby, Oklahoma was furnished with second hand, donated furniture. My disorganized desk had the account of "Martin", somewhere in the pile. I was very uncomfortable with the idea of demons, had no intention of ever dealing with them and purposely steered clear of such matters. With Martin's father on the phone I recalled how innocently I fell into the situation. "Hey listen", I demanded, " it wasn't me who helped Martin, please do not thank me! If I had known what I was getting into I would not have been at that camp! Jesus loves Martin and used me to conquer some spiritual bondage that I do not understand. Thank Jesus Christ, not me! God bless you, good bye." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ©1999 The Spokane Outreach Center. All rights reserved by author.Written by Donald W. Russell