Today (8/11) marks 15 years since I played my first softball game with the Saints in Toledo Correctional Institution. That trip changed my life in so many ways and God has been so faithful since that fateful trip. I'm thankful for the men on that trip who modeled what it meant to take the Gospel to prison. They also modeled having fun playing softball and enjoying team meals!
Since then, I have made 229 visits to prisons across the country. Out of those 229 visits, there are so many that are memorable and special but one of the most special if not the most special is FCI Greenville.
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| 2011 Ohio Crusade Team |
Greenville was the first place that our Illinois team went in 2012. Those of us who made that first visit remember everything about the day. We remember the sound of the gate being pulled shut behind us as we walked into the yard and we remember just how good the Greenville team was and just how far we were in over our heads!
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| 2012 First Visit Team |
One of the special things about Greenville is this has always been the model of a Saints day. There is a big crowd that will stick around and watch the game. There is competitive softball- this is a challenge and a thrill all at the same time. And, there is a supportive administration that helps facilitate the day so we can share the Gospel with the men.
This Saturday met and exceeded all of those expectations and made this visit one of my all time favorite visits our Illinois team has ever made.
Saturday our team met up to prepare for the day at Greenville. Because of the early yard time, we met at 4 AM to pack up and then pray for the day. After we prayed, we drove for a while in the dark until we got to Greenville. We stopped for a restroom break and then made it to the prison on time by 7 AM. We went through the security process and made our way out to the field. We got to meet several guys on the Greenville team once we got out to the softball diamond. Our team got some warmup throws in before we huddled up as a team. During our huddle we discuss the ground rules for the game, go over the lineup, discuss the ministry portion of the day, and pray as a team.
The game was really close to begin with. We had to break early for ministry time because several guys in the crowd were going back in before we could complete our game.
We paused our game and Hunter Stewart shared his testimony about how he came to know the Lord. After Hunter’s testimony, Kris Mettelmann shared the Gospel.
After the testimony and Gospel message, we have some time with the men as they fill out response cards and prayer requests. I had an opportunity to talk to a young man about where he stood with the Lord. He marked on his response card that he decided to follow the Lord. I wanted to make sure that he understood where he stood with God so I asked him, “If you were to die today and meet God at the front gates of heaven, and if He were to ask you, “Why should I let you in?” what would you say?” This opened a door to walk through the Gospel and explain that our good works don’t save us. It is only by putting our faith in what Jesus did on the cross.
Several guys on our team also had some good one on one conversations as well during this time.
We transitioned out of ministry mode and right back into game mode. After the ministry time, we came out of the gate scoring runs and put the game out of reach.
After the win, we circled up with the men in the yard. During our closing circle time, we handed out some award books to the umpires and the team MVP. After this we prayed with them and told them to consider the message that was preached to them and encouraged them to follow Jesus.
While we were putting our equipment away in the recreation director’s office, we had an opportunity to talk to a guy who wanted to know how to know Jesus. Bruce Buri and I walked him through the Gospel and that it is only by faith in what Jesus did on the cross that we can be saved. I also told him that a call to believe is also a call to repent and make Jesus the King of your life. We were able to pray with the man while we were leaving the yard.
We left the field and made our way back through the front gates of the prison. The Education Director and the Recreation Director took us to a local diner for a breakfast/lunch. We enjoyed some time as a team eating diner food, making fun of each other, and sharing stories about the first half of the day.
We got back to the prison and we had a little bit of time in an air conditioned workout room. Some of our team rode an exercise bike to stay loose while some of us got to play some drums and guitar in an adjacent music room.
Once the staff was ready, we made our way back to the field and prepared for game 2. Unfortunately, our lunch was a little too good and as a result, we had trouble getting the bats going and we suffered our first defeat of the year.
After the game, Jon Isbell shared his testimony of how he came to know the Lord and Kyle Krall shared the Gospel.
After Kyle shared the Gospel, I had another opportunity to talk to a guy who was indicating that he was making a profession of faith and walk him through the Gospel.
We started the third game and the game went back and forth for several innings. We were the “home team” for the last game. The score was tied in the last inning. James Mast hit a deep fly ball and one of the Greenville outfielders raced back toward the outfield wall- which is also a perimeter prison fence covered in razor wire. The outfielder jumped up and got hung up in the razor wire which delayed and eventually ended the game.
The staff immediately provided medical attention to this man and helped him off the field.
Please pray for “JD” the outfielder and his recovery.
We then circled up with the men one last time to hand out some award books and pray with them one last time.
Overall on the day we won 2 games and lost 1 game.
We handed out 347 Gospels of John and saw 28 men make professions of faith.
We huddled up one last time and shared praises about how God worked during the day in the conversations that we had with the men. We then spent some time in prayer as a team, thanking God for the day that we had and for the way that He worked. At the very end, we huddled up around one of our teammates who lost his job the night before and we prayed for him as a team.
We made the trip back home while making a stop at Darcy’s Pint in Springfield to get the best horseshoe sandwich on the planet!- Springfield is known as the legendary home of the horseshoe sandwich!
Eventually we made our way back home. This was one of the best prison visits in my 15 years with the ministry and it was an answer to prayer in so many ways. Thank you for praying as God answered prayer about the Gospel going out to the prison and He answered prayer about having good Gospel conversations with the men we saw in the yard!
Our next time out is August 29th as we make our first ever visit to FCI Thomson.
Thank you again for praying and supporting our team this summer!
