Tue, 03 Apr 2012 02:35:07 -0800WeeblyMon, 09 Jan 2012 19:13:18 -0800http://www.newhopeforwomen.com/1/post/2012/01/post-title-click-and-type-to-edit.html
Below is a post from my www.newhopeforwomen.blogspot.com November post.  I revisited with the inmate again.  This time she was able to come to my office because she is no longer in protective custody.  So we are making progress!  She has had her ups and downs, and struggles to stay out of PC.  She finds herself "egged on"  by other inmates who want desperately to get under her skin so that she will react.  She is working on practicing to surrender daily to Jesus, not an easy thing for this young lady, and certainly not an easy thing inside a prison.  She has to get through the next 2 weeks with no incident so that she can get a visit with her 2 young daughters.  The challenge I posed to her was, "practice submission" for 2 weeks, and watch God reward you.  She has not see her daughters for close to 6 months. She will be joining my weekly Bible Study and then into  my office for some personal one on one.  Underneath this rough exterior, is a sweet young lady who is extremely sensitive and just wants to be loved and accepted.  I am determined for her to see our loving Father's heart toward her through my actions.  I believe that the love of Christ will melt her rough exterior  and warm her heart to want more of Jesus. I am amazed at her hunger to get something right with the Lord, and I know she really wants more of Jesus.  She needs for everything she has ever learned to drop from her head knowledge of Christ to a revelation heart knowledge.  She is a very smart lady and remembers everything she reads in the Word and everything I tell her.  She can repeat back to me just about everything I tell her  the following week. But she has to get her anger issues under control.  So we discussed how to call upon the Lord in the heat of her angers. We will see how well she does.  Please pray for this young lady so that she can turn her life around, she would be an amazing testimony of the POWER of the Living God.

11/2011 Post
Another Day in the Life of a ChaplainToday wasn't much different than other days.  I went into my office and looked over my request forms from inmates wanting to see the Chaplain for various reasons.  As I was setting up my appointments for this morning, I came across a name of an inmate that I visited two weeks ago.  She was requesting to see me again, so off to the protective custody unit to visit this woman who is locked down 22 hours a day.  She is basically a trouble maker and been in multiple fights, therefore she is confined to her cell on a unit where she can not be around other inmates. So when she meets with the chaplain, she has to have cuffs on so she can't get into trouble. But here's what I see when we spend an hour together, I see a woman who has a tough exterior which is a facade to cover her real sensitive and fragile personality.  This young woman allows me to speak into her some hard truths, and I see she really wants to change.  She is tired of her very long lifestyle of playing the "bad girl", and she wants to be a better role model for her children.  We looked at Ephesians 4:17-31 "So this I say in the Lord, that you no longer live like the heathen do in their perverseness of their minds.  Their moral understanding is darkened and their reasoning is beclouded.  They are alienated from the life of God because of ignorance that is deep-seated in them, due to their hardness of heart.  In their spiritual apathy they have become callous and past feeling and reckless and have abandoned themselves to unbridled sensuality, eager and greedy to indulge in every form of impurity. But you did not so learn Christ.  Assuming that you have really heard Him and been taught by Him, as all Truth is in Jesus."  We stopped here and I asked her if she can say her actions reflect Christ- like behavior or does she appear more like the heathen just described in the above scripture? Her accurate assessment of herself was difficult for her to admit, but she knows that as a child she was taught differently.  As a child her mother taught her to believe in Jesus, and that she was to act a certain way.  She had failed her mom, her children, herself and her God.  So we continued on,  verse 22; "Strip yourselves of your former nature, which characterized your previous manner of life and becomes corrupt through lusts and desires that spring from delusion.  And constantly be renewed in the spirit of your mind having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude.  And put on the new nature created in God's image in true righteousness and holiness."  Once again we stopped to discuss how do we strip ourselves of our old nature, and what does it mean to put on Christ's new nature?  I told her when her anger and rage buttons are triggered, then she needs to ask Jesus to calm her, give her peace in her storm and to ask the Lord to be her strength when she feels weak.  I told her this would require her to practice self control when she finds herself in stressful situations, and as she gets control of her rage, she will begin to show more respect for the correctional officers and they will begin to allow her more privileges. Continuing on, verse 25; "Therefore rejecting all falsity and being done now with it, let everyone express the truth with his neighbor, for we are all parts of one body and members one of another.  When angry, do not sin; do not ever let your wrath last until the sun goes down.  Leave no room or foothold for the devil.  Let the thief steal no more, but rather let him be industrious, making an honest living with his own hands, so that he may be able to give to those in need. Let no foul or polluting language nor evil word nor unwholesome of worthless talk come out of your mouth, but only such as is good and beneficial to the spiritual progress of others as is fitting to the need and the occasion, that it may be a blessing and give grace to those who hear it.  And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God by Whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.  Let all bitterness and indignation and wrath (passion, rage, bad temper) and resentment and quarreling (brawling, clamor, contention) and slander (evil speaking, abusive or blasphemous language) be banished from you with all malice or baseness of any kind. And become useful and kind to one another, tenderness, compassionate, understanding, forgiving one another freely as God in Christ forgave you." That was a lot for her to absorb, but as we continued our conversation I shared with her that I thought she was intelligent and after looking at these verses carefully and asking God to help her understand them, she had the capability to turn her out of control life around.  That's when this "tough as nails" inmate began to cry.  Sometimes I have found that the combination of reading God's Word and a kind word of encouragement, these woman soften and I am able to see the real person emerge making it easier to minister instead of trying to make headway with a created fictitious character.  We prayed together, and then I asked her to try to work on these issues and see what changes she notices.  She will be taking note on how others begin to treat her.  Next week we will look at her progress.  I told her she has a responsibility to work on putting to death her old nature, and putting on the nature of Christ. This much I know, if she sincerely tries to work on her character defects, and asks Jesus to help her, all of heaven would be working on her behalf to help her get this right. I will meet with her again, and I am hopeful that this young lady will have something good to share with me.  She has a long way to go, but God takes us just as we are and skillfully uses His Word to chip away at our old nature convicting us by His Spirit so that we want to make changes, and the end result is - He gets the glory for a life redeemed, and restored and a mindset renewed by the reading of His Word.  Today was a first step, but a step in the right direction. ]]>Mon, 03 Oct 2011 18:50:23 -0800http://www.newhopeforwomen.com/1/post/2011/10/today-was-just-another-day.htmlToday was just like any other day in the life of being a chaplain in the Philadelphia Prison System.  However, my visit with an inmate today was anything but a typical day for her and may just be a turning point in her life. Locked in a cell, separated from all family and friends with no opportunity to make bail she awaits her day in court.  I am not at liberty to go into any details, but can tell you that her excessive worrying about the possibility of getting the death penalty for her alleged crime was the topic of our discussion.  Trying to get her to focus on God's heart for her despite what she may or may not have done, was very difficult and took 2 hours to get a spiritual breakthrough. Knowing that I had all the time in the world to pierce the darkness in her mindset with the light of God's Word because she was a "captive audience" I kept on point with the Word of God trusting in its powerful message to be alive and active in tearing down the strongholds in her mindset.  Her understanding of who God is, is very misguided.  With a terrible childhood experience, coupled with a longtime relationship with a man who was extremely abusive, she made a series of bad choices leading up to her final act which brought her to prison.  I don't know how this will end up in the judicial system, but I do know if she surrenders her life to Jesus, trusting in the power of His blood to wash away ALL of her sins, accept the LOVE that was poured out for her even before she was born and allow Him to be Lord of ALL our circumstances,  she will have life everlasting.   It is also possible that she stands a chance to see a merciful God "turn the heart of the judge".  One thing I know for sure, the Lord can pardon any inmate who turns their heart and their life over to Him and trust Him for the results, and they find "mercy instead of judgement".  This may not happen every time, but it is a reality I have seen many times.  Without God there isn't even hope for a future beyond the walls of her cell, but with her eyes on Him, even if she is found guilty of her crime, at the very least she will find a peace from God, the peace that passes all understanding. Isn't that something all of us desire?  When we live in turmoil, confusion, depression and lots of drama, doesn't a moment of peace relieve us of the stress?  I pray that she has a real encounter with the Living God.  I pray that she gets revelation knowledge of the love of Christ.  I pray that she discovers that through Christ there is a renewed hope, with the promise of life eternal. I left her with Matthew 6:33,34 "But seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right) and then all these things taken together will be given you besides. So do not worry or be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will have worries and anxieties of its own.  Sufficient for each day is its own trouble."  Amplified Bible  The Bible teaches us that if we seek God, we will find Him.  This is because He initiates the seeking, He draws us into His love, because He longs for each of us to be in a relationship with Him, no matter what we have done.  The blood of Jesus is powerful enough to cover and cleanse a multitude of sin.  As we prayed at the end I saw a tear in her eye,  I saw the start of a smile come over her face, and I heard an excitement in her voice when she asked, "will you visit me again?" My answer to her was "of course", because today was just another day in the life of being a chaplain. ]]>Sat, 24 Sep 2011 17:39:24 -0800http://www.newhopeforwomen.com/1/post/2011/09/thought-for-the-week.htmlI Am the Light of the World
In John 8:12, Jesus once agains makes a declaration of who He is by saying," I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." He is basically saying that the world is in darkness apart from Him. In the Book of Isaiah we see the prophetic announcement of the Child being born and the government would be upon HIs shoulder. But before that, in Isaiah 9:2 "The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death. Upon them a light has shined." Shifting away from the period in which darkness and gloom covered the earth, Isaiah prophesies about a bright hope. In John 1:5 it states; "And the light shines in the darkness and the darkness does not comprehend it." The essence and mission of the incarnate word, Jesus made flesh is to bring light into darkness. By Jesus coming into the world He becomes the true light to those who believe in Him. Light infiltrates darkness, and exposes things that are hidden. In the Book of Matthew, right after Jesus speaks about the character of a believer, He goes into how the believer should influence their world. He likens them to the light of the world, a city set on a hill cannot be hidden. As we come into a relationship with Jesus, He fills us with His light. As we live in a way that reflects Him and His kingdom, we bring glory to Him. Matthew 6:16 "Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."
1 Peter 2:9 "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light". Let me end with this, you were born for this moment, God purposed in His heart to use you to make a difference and impact your world. He knew this period in history would become particularly dark, and once again darkness would cover the earth. I believe He is preparing His church for His return. Until then He has commanded us to"Arise and shine for your light has come and the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. For behold the darkness shall cover the earth and deep darkness the people; but the Lord will arise over you and His glory will be seen in you. The Gentiles shall come to your light and kings to the brightness of your rising" Isaiah 60:1-3. God is calling His people to be fearless and arise in His manifest glory. We are not simply to maintain or endure the darkness. Light overpowers darkness, always. Therefore God is calling us to be in stark contrast to the darkness of the world and those who live in it. The radiant light of the presence of God in His people must shine. In a world of so much upheaval, God still has a plan. And His plan includes you! Arise means get up and get moving and allow the splendor and glory of God to be seen in you. Isaiah 60:3 says " The Gentiles shall come to your light and kings to the brightness of your rising." ]]>Sat, 24 Sep 2011 17:33:01 -0800http://www.newhopeforwomen.com/1/post/2011/09/lets-talk.htmlI included this blog so that I can interact with individuals who visit our site and would like to share their thoughts.  There are many women who have stories to share, or who may be looking for a place to learn from others about the successes and failures in the process of trying to change their life. Hopefully, you will become comfortable in sharing your thoughts here with us.  Sometime women will feel they need to be encouraged, or have more questions than they have answers to, and we would like to help you through the confusion into a place of clarity.  I also would like to share thoughts to ponder each week. Hope to hear from you soon.     ]]>Sat, 24 Sep 2011 17:07:32 -0800http://www.newhopeforwomen.com/1/post/2011/09/first-post.html