During the fall of 2008, R.P.M was given a house and we began a discipleship program. Currently, we have six men in the program ranging in ages from 20 to 45. Their pasts are varied and the majority of them have served jail time. Today I learned that one of the most gentle guys in the house served 20 years because of attempted murder. So many times we see the pain of regret in their faces and I have to admit, my heart hurts with them. The decisions that they made in their youth still haunts them today. Getting a job is obviously difficult. So many of them really want to change and through Christ are changing, but the world just wants to keep them down. I spoke with a young man in a business two weeks ago, who claims that although he appreciates what the ministry is trying to do, he believes that no one ever really changes.
I don’t really know what I’m trying to say. I guess that I’m beginning to see life through the eyes of others. What if all of us got what we deserved? I am so unworthy of Christ’s love and yet He loves me anyways. The truth is that I have seen hearts change, walls come down and self-esteem restored. When I think of the people we care for, I have a tendency to think of what I like about them the most. Isn’t that how we think of our own children? My children certainly do things that are wrong and I’m not oblivious to it. However, when I think of them, I think of the things that make me smile. So even though I’m certainly not naive, because we are dealing with people with a criminal past…….I can still see their unique talents and strengths.
Love simply hopes the best. Which is stronger. The one who hates or lashes out against those who are guilty of wrong doing or the one who loves in spite of it?