What your employees and incarcerated men have in common

What do your employees have in common with those released from incarceration? Anxiety, depression, pressure to find and keep a job, pay the bills, the list goes on. Life on the outside and on the inside creates stress; it’s just the stressors are a little different. But being different doesn’t make the stressors any less troubling.

Your employees can feel at times as though they are being pulled in multiple directions as they try to navigate their personal and professional lives.? However, the men we minister to, upon release, find they are being pulled in one direction - away from God.

Prison has an entirely different set of rules, expectations, and daily routine than life on the other side of the bars. The men who have actively participated in our mentoring programs and who have genuinely accepted Christ often find that life outside prison walls can be challenging from the moment they step outside.

Part of the reason we founded Freedom Lake is that we recognized these men who wanted to stay on the straight and narrow were needing time to reintegrate into society and a way of life that has become foreign to them during their time of incarceration.

You may have experienced in the workplace where one “bad apple” can cause a toxic atmosphere. For the men we mentor who are good, godly men, the “bad apple” we speak of is Satan, who desperately wants to find anything he can to trip up these men. We know that Satan can and does use nearly anything (good or bad) to distract us from our relationship with God and doing His will rather than our own.?

This is especially true when it comes to new Christians, including the men we minister to inside prison. You may be surprised to learn it is actually easier for most of the men we mentor to stay faithful Christians in prison than in the free world after their release.

Many of the men we mentor tell us they find the structure of prison to be easier to manage than the outside world. In prison, there is no pressure to find housing, food, or employment. These men are only responsible for observing the rules and schedules set for them.

Upon release, these men who have accepted Christ are almost immediately attacked by Satan who seeks to pull them away from God. Any distraction, pressure, or negative situations and influences he can throw at these men, Satan will.?

People want you to get a job immediately, get your kids back, get back with your spouse, pay support that you got behind on, find a place to live, pay rent, and stay sober. But these men need time to decompress and integrate slowly.?

Coming out of incarceration, men (and women) are so easily influenced.

The Enemy wants to undermine confidence, belief, faith, and trust during trying times so that the men will fall away from God and back into their old ways that, unfortunately, ends with the men reoffending and going back to prison or can lead to death.

Satan and his minions have been working overtime in attempting to sabotage our ministry and cause the men we’re serving to fall away from God. This past month has been challenging and difficult for all of us.

The first men of Freedom Lake who are staying at our house for the first 90-day's upon release have been under spiritual attack as we finish preparations on the first mission's house. Tony and I have been fending off spiritual attacks as we have also been preparing for the annual God’s Harvest fundraiser.

While this has been exhausting and discouraging we move forward understanding that as Satan attempts to pull us away, God is using these challenges to strengthen us and prepare us for what we need to do next.

Rather than pulling us away from God, The Enemy’s actions are actually pushing us closer to God as we wait patiently, seeking Him first, resting in His presence, and knowing that He will provide.

We also know that when Satan is in “attack mode” that we are doing exactly what God wants us to do. Knowing that doesn’t make our lives any easier but keeps our eyes and focus on God and keeps us - and the men preparing for Freedom Lake - from being pulled away from Him.

Like Brian who is one of the first Apprentices at the Discipleship Academy at Freedom Lake.

“Freedom Lake is an opportunity for me to put the worries of the world aside and have the special intimate time I need to grow spiritually connected with Jesus Christ. So many times when I began to grow I got hit with the pressures of the world, and it overwhelmed me and pulled me away.

I’m excited about being able to put 100% of my concentration on growing close to my Father in heaven. That way I can get back in the world with confidence and share my experiences with others in hopes of leading them to Christ.”

What we have found in mentoring the incarcerated - and particularly those involved with our Discipleship Academy - is that their faith and their wanting to build a better life for themselves is genuine. We have found these men to be ones who had a void within them that only God could fill but they were never told about that and never shown what an authentic relationship with God looks and acts like. Until now.

And these men are on mission wherever God leads them, whether they become full-time missionaries or a plumber in Louisville, Kentucky. They are the light in the darkness and bring the spirit of hope to those they meet.

Our ministry is about God changing people’s lives through us as we share the Gospel with the incarcerated and show them what leading a godly life is about. Our ministry is growing and we are looking to partner with community leaders and businesses in helping to change these lives for the betterment of these men and in helping to reduce recidivism for the betterment of our communities.

Message me today to learn how you can partner with us in our efforts.