Davy is a homeless man with alcoholic problems. He has been arrested many times in several states for burglary, and has been in and out of jail for much of his life. Since the other inmates in my Bible class were delayed, Davy told me the story of his dysfunctional home life, starting in the third grade. “There was never any milk in my home,” Davy told me, “so I’d put beer in my cornflakes and survived as best I could”. He ended up becoming an alcoholic at a very young age, and his addiction wrecked his marriage and life and health.

“Happy Father’s Day to the Best Dad Ever!” I read the card, smile, and thank my family, but deep inside, I know better.

Mike is a veteran who served in Iraq and came home with multiple problems. In addition to needing surgery, he suffered with PTSD and wrestled with questions of faith. Mike’s PTSD was so severe, that when he was in the hospital, the staff was warned never to wake him while he slept.

I’m sure you’ve probably heard the story of Jonah. You can picture that big fish with his mouth wide open and Jonah sitting in the belly. But would you believe that Jonah’s lesson can bring encouragement to someone in jail?

God did an amazing thing in class today at the House of Corrections. As we were talking about being works in progress and that God has promised to walk with us through this process, one of the brothers bared his soul. He confessed that he was struggling with his faith because God was not answering his prayers. Indeed, it seemed he was receiving the opposite of what he was requesting.

On March 14, 2020, Wisconsin closed its prisons to all visitors and volunteers because of the Covid-19 virus. The prisons stayed closed for nearly sixteen months which meant there was no in-person contact from family, friends, a home pastor or even an IM Chaplain. This had to be an especially disheartening and discouraging time for all the men and women living inside those facilities.