Praises

Recently we have been going through a series on the person of Christ. The past two weeks focused on Christ's deity, on Him being fully God. This was mostly done through an exposition of John 1:1 in which the Lord has really been seen working in these men's lives. For the next couple of weeks we will be focusing on Christ's humanity.

I was thinking of how the Lord has been working in these men's lives. I remember a year ago when I started going there how there would be one or two who would bring their Bibles to the meetings. And now it's the opposite; one or two do not bring their Bibles. It's encouraging to see that when they, the men, now come they know what the source of the authority is going to be. They know that it's now about the man who is in front of them but the God of the Bible. During the week they discuss what has been taught among themselves and bring questions on Saturday. I have hope for them and what the Lord is doing in their lives. All of them, save a handful, have spent a significant amount of time in prison and the destruction that has brought to their families is nothing short of sad. Please pray for their families as well.

Next week we have about ten men being baptized which has been another fruit of the Lord's work. My prayer, as I ask you to join me in, is that these are genuine professions of faith and that if they are not, the Lord draws these men to Him.
I am ever so grateful as well for the men who have come alongside this ministry and have been given a great desire by the Lord to minister to these men. Of special note is Jim Cosley, who lost his brother to drugs. He will be teaching on the humanity of Christ in two weeks. Another has been Bill Stamper. He has been faithful each week in encouraging the guys there and giving them practical advice on the world that awaits them after they finish their time. These guys have been a huge blessing from the Lord and we praise Him for that. I am also grateful for your prayers which I value greatly because the Lord does answer them.