VL - Issue 22 - November 2016 by VICTORIOUS LIVING Magazine

REAL PEOPLE | REAL STORIES | REAL HOPE

Quarterly Publication | Issue 4 2016

A Publication of Kristi Overton Johnson Ministries

A New Man

An incurable sociopath Turned entrepreneur and serial lover of people. VL_November2016rF.indd 1

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I WAS IN

PRISON And You Visited Me.

Matthew 25:36

SEND VICTORIOUS LIVING TO A PRISON INMATE To learn how to send a copy or to join us in other partnership opportunities, see back cover.

ARE YOU AN INMATE WHO NEEDS ENCOURAGEMENT? Every day, inmates reach out to KOJM through letters asking for prayers and encouragement as well as discipleship opportunities to help them grow in their faith. Every inmate who contacts KOJM receives in-depth monthly devotionals, personal letters from ourVictorious Living Correspondence Team, and a quarterly copy of Victorious Living. BECOME A PART OF OUR VICTORIOUS LIVING FAMILY TODAY! WRITE TO:

VICTORIOUS LIVING CORRESPONDENCE OUTREACH PO BOX 328 â&#x20AC;¢ STARKE, FL 32091 VL_November2016rF.indd 2

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Thank you to the following organizations who faithfully support Victorious Living.

When asked why they give, they respond,

“Because we care!”

Why I Care EMIL HEINS | MILWAUKEE, WI I support the Victorious Living prison outreach because Victorious Living changes lives, and that’s the most important thing any of us can do. I minister to male inmates in jails and prisons, and I give them this impactful and encouraging magazine. I see firsthand how God is using this magazine to help inmates. Through testimonies of faith and the Word of God, Victorious Living helps men realize that even though they are incarcerated, there are people who do love them. Even greater, they realize that Jesus loves them too. He loves them just as much now that they are incarcerated as He did before. It’s a simple truth: Jesus loves prisoners. In fact, the last person Jesus talked to while on this earth was a prisoner. Jesus is in the life changing business. He doesn’t care about past mistakes and failures; He only cares about a person’s future. Through Victorious Living, God is helping incarcerated men and women have a new future in Christ Jesus. There’s nothing greater. Emil Heins Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Thank you to all who have supported this outreach! We need more churches and individuals to help support KOJ Ministries and Victorious Living. For just $1,000, you or your church or organization can sponsor our ministry in a prison for one full year. So much can be done through your generous giving.

Will you help today? American Solutions for Business cstallings@americanbus.com Captain’s Party Rentals captainspartyrentals.com Community Church of Keystone Heights ccokh.org Davis Gas davisgas.com Discount Inboard Marine skidim.com First Baptist Orlando firstorlando.com

First Baptist of Starke fbcstarke.org Greater Greenville Foundation Long’s Chapel Methodist longschapel.com Keystone Plumbing

REAL PEOPLE | REAL STORIES | REAL HOPE ISSUE 4, NOVEMBER 2016 For the Lord your God is going with you! He will fight for you against your enemies, and he will give you victory! Deuteronomy 20:4 Publisher & Executive Director | Kristi Overton Johnson f

Contributing Writers Lucy N. Adams, Sarah Beckman, Roy A. Borges, Mark Castilloux, Becky Coursen, Kyle C., Linda Cubbedge, Kristi Dews Dale, Kristi Overton Johnson, Nate Miller, Sue Moose, Kenny Munds, Angel P., Dominic P., Chris Patton, Sharon R., Rick Renner, Darriel W., Jack W., Bob Williamson, Kaytee Zentmeyer f

Cover Photography | Ken Ross Photography f

Faithful Distributors Special thanks to Bill Coleman and Tina Brown for distributing Victorious Living in local areas in Florida and North Carolina f

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. Copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Scripture marked KJV is taken from the King James Version of the Bible (public domain). Scripture marked MSG is taken from The Message. Copyright ©1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. Scripture marked NASB is taken from the New American Standard Bible. Copyright ©1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Scripture marked NIV is taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®, copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Scripture marked NKJV is taken from the New King James Version of the Bible®. Copyright ©1982 by Thomas Nelson. Scripture marked TPT is taken from Letters from Heaven by the Apostle Paul, The Passion Translation®, copyright ©2014. All scripture versions are used by permission. All rights are reserved, worldwide.

HOW TO REACH VICTORIOUS LIVING Receive a Personal Copy • See this issue’s back cover • Visit kojministries.org • Call 352-478-2098 • Write to Victorious Living PO Box 120951 Clermont, FL 34712-0951 • Bulk copies available, call 352-478-2098.

Submissions • Submit your story online at kojministries.org • Due to Internet restrictions, inmate submissions should be mailed to: Victorious Living Outreach PO 328 Starke, FL 32091. ALL Inmate Correspondence • Mail correspondence to Victorious Living Correspondence Outreach PO Box 328 Starke, FL 32091

keystoneplumbinginc@yahoo.com

Nautique Boat Company nautique.com The Clipping Corner Melrose, FL The Trophy Shop thetrophyshop.com

VICTORIOUS LIVING MISSION

The purpose of Victorious Living is to declare freedom for the captive through true testimonials of God’s grace, love, and power in the lives of everyday people. A captive is anyone enslaved to their circumstances, relationships, thought patterns, habits, or emotions. A captive can be incarcerated or living in a free society. Captives can be of any age, gender, race, and socio-economic background.

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CONTENTS 7 Seven Ways to Get and Keep a Good Name

1 9 Walk It Out Bob Williamson

Your reputation precedes you. Here are seven tips to help you build up or maintain the integrity of a great name. Chris Patton

8 Want to Move Forward? Forgive Kristi Overton Johnson

9 Worth the View

Life is hard, but don’t give up. When you reach the top of your mountain, you’ll see far and wide. In that glorious moment, you might just forget how hard it was to get there. Sarah Beckman

1 1 Stop Running! Linda Cubbedge

From clinically diagnosed sociopath to surrendered Christ follower to successful serial entrepreneur, Bob Williamson is proof positive that with God, all things are possible and no one is irredeemable. Bob Williamson

6 Publisher’s Note 25 From the Father’s Heart 26 Ministry News 27 Reader Testimonies 30 Our Contributors

2 1 Cultivating Friendship

A good friendship is not a lazy, sunny ride down a country road. It is a roller-coaster ride through life. Kristi Dews Dale

2 2 A Crack in the Concrete

Like a flower pushing through a crack in a sidewalk, the hope of Christ invades even the darkest corners of our world. Becky Coursen Nate Miller

When stepping out into what you thought was God’s will doesn’t end up like you expected, don’t lose faith. Kaytee Zentmeyer

1 3 Until the Answer Comes

God’s timing may not be ours, but we can trust His response, even when it doesn’t come how or when we expect. Roy A. Borges

1 4 Walking Iris

The little yellow walking iris can bloom almost anywhere. It overcomes all odds to show its face and glorify its maker. You can too. Don’t just survive. Thrive. Sue Moose

1 5 The Fragility of Life

Lost in the dark? The light of Jesus has made a way for freedom, power, and victory over the darkness. Lucy N. Adams

2 3 Change the Atmosphere

1 2 Overcoming the Fall 16 A New Man

2 0 A Lesson from Rudolph

Life is short and death is sure. Have you secured your eternal future through a relationship with Jesus Christ? Kenny Munds

2 4 Unwavering Hope

Depression led to DUIs, DUI led to another man’s death, that death led to prison. Prison led to new life in Christ and unwavering hope for the future. Mark Castilloux

2 4 Glimpses of Glory Becky Coursen

2 9 Moving Past Injustices Victorious Living Family

3 1 An Overcoming Attitude Despite the obstacles you face, you can be a mighty instrument in God’s hands. Allow His power to operate through you, and you will overcome. Rick Renner

10 Living Boldly for Christ

How do we live boldly for Jesus, exhibiting His tender, loving, compassionate heart, in today’s often hostile world? Linda Cubbedge

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PUBLISHER’S NOTE

The SON Is Always There

BE STRONG. TAKE COURAGE. DON’T BE INTIMIDATED. DON’T GIVE THEM A SECOND THOUGHT BECAUSE GOD, YOUR GOD, IS STRIDING AHEAD OF YOU. HE’S RIGHT THERE WITH YOU. HE WON’T LET YOU DOWN; HE WON’T LEAVE YOU. DEUTERONOMY 31:6 MSG

I love the mornings. I especially like to watch the sun rise over a perfectly calm lake. Throw in a little lake fog, and I’m a happy girl. When I see those red hues light up the sky, I can’t help but thank God for His amazing creation. His beauty and creativity cannot be ignored. One day, I was admiring God’s handiwork, when clouds suddenly appeared and rain began to pour. I have to admit, I didn’t exactly praise God for this drastic change in weather. I prefer the warmth and beauty of the sun’s rays to dark clouds, wind, and rain. But as I thought about that drastic change in the weather, God revealed an important truth to me. Although the clouds had moved in front of the sun and the rain was pouring down, the sun was still there. It hadn’t budged. I just couldn’t see it with my natural eyes. And in that moment, I realized something else. God is always there, too. I am embarrassed to admit that, just as I praise God for sunny days and complain about the rain, I also have a tendency to praise God when I see His blessings and to complain and grow anxious when clouds and rain move in and obscure them in my life. How quick I am to focus on the things I see with my eyes and feel in my body and emotions, when I should trust the fact that the Son is still there loving me, fighting for me, and working all things out for my good. I’m not the first one who’s fallen into this cycle of praising God in the good times and complaining and worrying in the cloudy times. Murmuring and complaining kept the Israelites from moving forward into God’s blessings for forty years. In Exodus 17:7, they tempted God and argued with Moses, saying, “Is the Lord here with us or not?” Clouds had moved into the lives of the Israelites, and rather than remembering the protection, provision, faithfulness, and power of the Lord their God, they focused on their circumstances, wondering aloud if God was really there among them. Have you ever found yourself wondering if the Lord was with you? I believe we must each answer this question for ourselves, once and for all. If we don’t, every cloud that drifts our way will toss us about. But once we do believe and declare that God is always present in our lives, that His Word is true, and that His

love and faithfulness are never ending, then our hope in Him becomes the “strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls” (Hebrews 6:19). Then we can face the storms of life, knowing that one day the Son’s rays will once again shine brightly for all to see. They always do. No matter what you are going through today, let me encourage you with the answer to the Israelites’ question. Yes. God is among you. Although the clouds may be so thick you cannot feel His presence or see His beautiful rays, you can trust in the truth that the Son is always there, and His glory will soon be revealed in and through your situation. The above truth is why this magazine, Victorious Living, exists. This publication is committed to helping people discover the love and the helping hand of our heavenly Father. He is always near. His love is available for every person reading this magazine. On the following pages, you will read inspiring testimonies of how God helped men and women overcome dark, ominous clouds and emerge victorious. Many of our contributors overcame incurable mental disease, addictions, violent temperaments, disappointments, and even imprisonment through the love of God. Some of our contributors, however, are still in the midst of a storm. With God’s help, they are persevering and remaining confident that God is with them. They are relying on His strength and trusting He will lead them to victory. Right now, you may be facing an incredibly powerful and perhaps painful storm. Life’s clouds have set in and brought with them the rain. You may feel desperately alone and wonder, where is God? Friend, don’t give up. Don’t lose hope. Don’t let despair set in. God is there! And what He has done for our contributors, He will do for you, too. Lay aside your frustrations and even your complaints. Look past the clouds to the Son. As you keep your eyes focused on Him, rest on His promises. He will see you through. V

Kristi Overton Johnson

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SEVEN Ways

to Get and Keep a Good Name

by Chris Patton

We’ve all heard of famous people—politicians, sports heroes, businessmen, coaches, celebrities, even religious leaders—who have done something to forever ruin their good name. But it’s not just famous people whose names have reputation. Every one of us is known by the name we have made for ourselves, whether by a few or by the world, and the value of that name can increase or decrease in an instant through our own actions. Unfortunately, it seems that a good name is tough to get these days, and it’s even tougher to maintain. Yet, having a good name or reputation is of utmost importance, especially for Christians. We are God’s ambassadors to the world. Therefore, we have a responsibility to represent the name of Jesus with excellence and to live a life without reproach wherever we are. Proverbs 20:11 says that “even children are known by the way they act, whether their conduct is pure, and whether it is right.” Proverbs 22:1 tells us to “choose a good reputation over great riches; being held in high esteem is better than silver or gold.” Our good name makes the great name of Jesus known. So how is your reputation? How are you known? When people think of you, do they think of Christ? Don’t panic if the answers to the above are negative. No matter what, it’s not too late to begin rebuilding your reputation. In fact, you can begin today! Here are seven ways to get and keep a good name.

1. Do what is right. The best way to gain a good name is to begin doing the right thing, whether someone is watching or not. It’s really that simple. Having a good name is a by-product of the life you live in public and private. Do the right thing because it is the right thing to do.

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2. Always be aware that others are watching.

While our motive to do the right thing shouldn’t be to impress others, we must remember that people are always watching. We are on stage. When you associate your name with the name of Jesus, people will watch you. Some will secretly hope you will fail, while others will secretly pull for your success. Either way, you need to know that their eyes are on you, even when you are not aware of it. Don’t slip up when you think you’re alone. Most likely, you aren’t.

3. Make your decisions ahead of time.

My father always taught me to make my decisions ahead of time. By determining for myself how I would respond if certain situations arose, I was prepared to act when temptations popped up. These boundaries kept my good name intact. Set your boundaries now! No opportunity will trip you up if you have already decided how you will respond ahead of time.

4. Remember why you are different.

It is almost certain that there will be times when you are tempted to give in. When these times arise, stop and think about what you are about to do. Then remember the reason you are committed to a good name. Remember that you have taken on an association with Jesus and giving in would bring a mark against Him as well. Then run from that temptation!

Faithful, Trustwo Prompt, rthy, Hones t, Excellen t

5. Underpromise and overdeliver. It’s often tempting to promise more than we can deliver. We want to please people; we want to look like we can perform at high levels. But if you don’t or can’t live up to your promises, you damage your good name. Make it your practice to underpromise and overdeliver! That way, people will know they can count on you to be true to your word.

6. Err on the side of doing the right thing.

There are many times when the “right thing” to do is not black and white. In times like these, err to the side of more. Go a little further than you might think is necessary. Get the opinions of others if you must, but add that one notch at the end. Go a little overboard rather than risk falling short. You won’t be sorry in the long run. Acts 24:16 says we should “try to maintain a clear conscience before God and all people.”

7. Enlist accountability. We all have blind spots or areas we cannot see as well as others. Asking others to hold you accountable for your actions will ensure these blind spots are covered. You will be less likely to miss something that could be damaging to your good name when others have your back. In my business, my inner circle of leadership helps me avoid trouble. You may find help in your spouse, a friend, your minister, or someone else. Regardless of who you are, realize that you need to enlist someone to keep you accountable. There are too many pitfalls out there that will destroy a good name. It is not worth the risk of going it alone! V kojministries.org Issue 4 2016 7

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Want to Move Forward?

FORGIVE

by Kristi Overton Johnson

GOD CAN HELP

YOU MOVE PAST ANY OFFENSE.

BUT YOUR FREEDOM STARTS WITH YOUR

CHOICE TO FORGIVE.

FORGIVE

Love. Forgiveness. These words can stir up various emotions, but what if I told you the two are one and the same? You can’t love someone without forgiveness, for “love keeps no record of being wronged” (1 Corinthians 13:5). Further, you can’t love others as you love yourself (as God has commanded) unless you love yourself. It’s impossible to love yourself unless you forgive yourself. Every day I see people presented with great reasons to be offended. I myself have had many occasions to be upset, angered, or hurt by people. It is often a tall order to extend forgiveness to someone who has hurt you. And sometimes, it’s even harder to forgive yourself when you’ve caused another pain. But forgiveness is a choice, and it’s something you have to do. Your very life depends on it! Brother Yun, a heavily persecuted Chinese Christian wrote in his book, Heavenly Man: The Remarkable True Story of Chinese Christian Brother Yun, “Forgiveness is a great gift that God has given us so we can survive in an evil world where people hurt us, betray us, and do terrible things to us. When we have learned to live in a flow of forgiveness, we will be living in freedom.” Did you catch that? A flow of forgiveness. Forgiveness brings freedom, while unforgiveness brings bondage. If you choose to hold onto an offense, you will live enslaved to people and past circumstances your entire life. Unforgiveness renders you unable to move forward to a better future. But how can you forgive? I won’t lie…forgiveness won’t be easy. How can you forgive someone who has abandoned you? How can you forgive a group of people who have maliciously attacked you with lies and schemes designed to destroy your life? How can you forgive someone who says you will never amount to anything? How can you forgive a spouse who has decided to spend life without you and with someone else? How can you forgive yourself? Apart from the love and grace of God, you can’t. Only He can give you the ability and strength to truly forgive. With Him, all things are possible! Forgiveness is not for the offender. It is for you. Understanding this can help you move forward. Forgiveness is an opportunity to find release and restoration in your own life. Study the life of Joseph. His forgiving heart toward his family and those in authority over him kept him in the protection, provision, and presence of God. Because Joseph continually focused on God rather than the offense and offender, God was able to bring him out of the pit and place him in the palace.

Forgiveness isn’t the same thing as reconciliation. Reconciliation requires two parties to come together and sort out their differences. Forgiveness requires only one…you. God commands believers to forgive (Luke 6:32– 36). In fact, the forgiveness you receive from God is directly related to the forgiveness you extend to others (Matthew 6:14–15). Forgiving others protects you from Satan’s attacks (Ephesians 4:25–27), and it brings many other benefits with it as well. First, it will release you from the offender’s control over your life. It will release you from the past, free up precious space in your mind, and enable you to move forward in life. Forgiveness will also protect you from the consequences that stem from a bitter, angry, guilty heart—things like sickness, depression, broken relationships, and a Ping-Pong game of retaliatory acts. Further, it releases the offender to God, so that God can deal with the person or situation (Romans 12:18– 20). God may refrain from dealing with someone when your hands are in the mix. Furthermore, forgiveness will keep your light shining bright for others to see Christ in you (Philippians 2:14–16). If you are offended today, I encourage you to go to God and present the person or offense to Him. Ask God to give you His perspective on the situation. Ask Him to give you His heart for that person. Realize that hurting people hurt people. This will give you a grace perspective toward the person who has caused you pain. Make the choice to forgive your offender and confess your choice to forgive to God. Ask Him to forgive you for holding onto the offense for so long. Then as God directs, communicate with the person. Oftentimes, the offender never intended the offense the way it was received. Communication and openness can heal many broken bridges in a relationship. Also remember to pray for the offender. Remember that you, too, are capable of sin. Finally, if you are holding onto guilt and shame, if you’ve been unable to forgive yourself, I want to ask you something. If God has forgiven you, isn’t it time you forgive yourself? Stop constantly reminding yourself of your shortcomings. God has already forgotten them. Psalm 103 declares the unsurpassed mercies of God. Verse 12 says He has removed your sins as far as the east is from the west, and He remembers them no more. If God doesn’t condemn your past, why should you? Let it go and move forward. V

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WORTH THE VIEW I was a Midwestern girl for almost forty years, and I never met a lake I didn’t love. But then my family moved to the Southwest…lots of sand, very little water, and a mountain view from my window. Well, if I can’t look at a lake, I guess a mountain is a decent trade. After living there awhile, I learned that hiking to the top of the mountain is something you have to do. Basically, if you live in a place that has mountains instead of hills, you spend lots of time hiking near, in, around, and up them. Yes, I said up. Every day, that mountain taunted me from my window, so early on I determined I would hike to the top someday. After three years, that someday came. All I could think of was how amazing it would feel to reach the crest, to gaze at those wide-open expanses of land, and to take in the captivating vistas as far as my eyes could see. In my mind, it was majestic, brilliant, and thrilling. But then I actually had to do the hiking part. The day dawned with skies as blue as the ocean. Crisp, fall air filled our lungs with courage. We chose our route to the top. Our map showed it as seven miles, start to finish. We had trained a bit. I had been walking three and a half miles several times a week. How hard could it be? Several hours into my “I have a dream” hike, our GPS showed we had gone five miles. I was optimistic, we had only two miles to go! We pressed on. As we inched closer to six and a half miles, I gained momentum. My adrenaline started pumping, and I prepared to start the final ascent. I checked the GPS every few minutes, and though the tenths of miles ticked by, I was no closer to that glorious finish. Soon we were at mile seven. Then well past seven miles—no end in sight. As we approached mile eight, it was clear we weren’t steps away from a breathtaking finish. Defeat and anger had long since set in. My legs felt like lead, and I lost my footing every few steps. Oh, how I longed for the solid ground at the peak! If it hadn’t meant hiking eight miles back the way I’d come, I might have quit. “Will I ever reach the top of this mountain,” I wondered. Maybe you’ve been there. Maybe you are there. Whether your life, job, or family situation, maybe your current circumstance isn’t what you thought it would be. You might be in that place where the only choice you have is to keep putting one foot in front of the other, no matter how frustrating, painful, or difficult it is. You long for a better, brighter tomorrow. You long to be finished. You long for solid ground.

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by Sarah Beckman

I LIFT UP MY EYES TO THE MOUNTAINS— WHERE DOES MY HELP COME FROM? MY HELP COMES FROM THE LORD, THE MAKER OF HEAVEN AND EARTH. PSALM 121:1–2 You might even wonder, “How did I end up here?” What I learned that day on the mountain is something I could never learn just by looking at the mountain from my bedroom window. I learned the only way to get to the top is by taking a multitude of small steps. Some are arduous. Some are joyful. Some feel like more of a stumble than a step. The truth is, the upward climb will be fierce, but it’s impossible to get to the peak without going through the valleys along the way. And life isn’t just a series of destinations; it’s a series of long, slow walks that take you where you’re headed. On that mountain, I also learned that if we spend too much time looking up, we can lose our footing; we can fall or get hurt. If we take our eyes off what’s in front of us, we might never reach the pinnacle. However, by continuing to take one step at a time, we will inevitably reach our destination. I would never hike to the top of a mountain without water, food, and proper attire. Hiking shoes, for example, are essential for the climb. Similarly, in order to be successful in life, we must be well equipped. We cannot do life without the right tools for the journey. One of my life tools is God’s Word. Every step I take, whether victorious or painful, is made richer when I’m laden with life-giving truth. Especially when I face challenges, I need to remind myself who orders my every step and who will hold me up when I feel like giving up. We finally reached the peak after more than nine miles and seven hours. No GPS could have prepared me for how hard the climb would be (or, apparently, give me an accurate distance!). But if I hadn’t pressed on, even when it was excruciating, I would not have experienced the thrill of sitting on a rock at 10,679 feet, soaking in the breathtaking 360-degree view. Nothing can prepare you for the joy you will experience when you finally traverse your “mountain.” When you do, you will be able to see far and wide. And in that glorious moment, you might just forget how hard it was to get there. V

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Living Boldly for Christ May we live boldly for Christ until we reach our true home. A dear friend of mine wrote this statement in a book she gave me last year. So many times, my mind replays these words. Live boldly for Christ. This unrelenting statement has led me on a quest to determine how I can live it out. How do I do that? How do I live boldly for God without being weird, religious, arrogant, or isolating myself from the world? There are so many things in our culture that can keep even the most dedicated Christ follower from boldly living for Jesus with a tender, loving, and compassionate heart toward others. As I pondered this one day, the Lord reminded me of my mother. She lived a bold, authentic faith before her family, friends, and strangers. Her love for Jesus Christ and for people was unmistakable. She was a humble servant who loved well and, through that love, lived her life boldly for Christ. The Lord then guided me to Max Lucado’s book, A Love Worth Giving: Living in the Overflow of God’s Love. The subtitle jumped right off the cover of that book for me. That’s it— that’s how I can live boldly for Christ until I reach heaven, my true home! But this led me to more questions. How do I do this? How do I live in the overflow of God’s love? How do I soak in it? How do I dive deep into the overflow of God’s love? First, we must know that we are loved extravagantly by God. First John 4:19 NKJV says: “We love Him because He first loved us.” We cannot give or offer something we do not have. We can only be filled with His love as we come to Jesus, receiving and admitting that we need more of His love in our lives. Do you realize how much God loves you? Do you know that nothing can separate you from

by Linda Cubbedge

His love (Romans 8:38–39)? Your performance is not what attracts Him. He simply chooses to love you. We may never grasp the true depth, length, width, or height of God’s love, but I do believe we can enjoy greater measures of this understanding as we pursue Him daily. The more we understand His love, the more we realize His love is for all mankind. What did Jesus do when He lived on this earth? He purposely and boldly sought out the broken, the lonely, the grief stricken, the ignored, and the discarded. His actions toward broken humanity demonstrate this unconditional love. And the ultimate demonstration of His love came at the cross (Romans 5:8). When we receive God’s love with no strings attached; when we believe that He loves us unconditionally, passionately, and powerfully like no human being ever could, that’s when we can love others as Jesus does. How did Jesus have the strength to live such a bold, world-changing love? It was through the power of His Father working through Him. Acts 10:38 says that “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.” Everywhere Jesus went, He loved fully through the power of God working through Him. The next step to living boldly for Christ is learning to love through the power of God. We cannot love in our own strength. Only God can give us the strength to love those around us, even difficult people. What does this love look like? First Corinthians 13:4–8 describes the incredible, extravagant love of Christ. As you read this passage, insert the name of Jesus everywhere you see the word love. [Jesus] is patient and kind. [Jesus] is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. [Jesus] does not demand [His] own way. [Jesus] is

not irritable, and [He] keeps no record of being wronged. [Jesus] does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. [Jesus] never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become useless. But [Jesus] will last forever!

THE POWER TO LIVING BOLDLY FOR CHRIST IS TO LIVE IN THE OVERFLOW OF GOD’S LOVE. Love is who Jesus is, and love is who we are to be. We are to be a demonstration of God’s love to others. How will we know when we are operating in this power? Well, our lives will look like Galatians 5:22 TPT: The fruit of the Holy Spirit within you is divine love in all its various expressions. This love is revealed through: joy that overflows, peace that subdues, patience that endures, kindness on display, a life full of virtue, faith that prevails, gentleness of heart, and strength of spirit. It may sound impossible to live a life like this, but it’s not. God’s Spirit operating in us will reveal a life, a love, like the one above. Will loving others always be easy? Of course not. But reading and meditating daily on the Word of God and keeping our eyes on Him will enable us to live out His extravagant love. His Word changes us from the inside out, and it empowers us to lay aside our flesh so we can put others first. Here’s a tip. When you are tempted to be unloving, stop, drop, and pray! Stop what you continued on page 11

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Joiner

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K r is t

STOP RUNNING!

One day, I took my two sons shoe shopping in a very busy New York mall. While Stephen, my oldest, was trying on some shoes, my three-year-old decided to see how fast he could run. And run he did! He zipped out of that store like a flash. I told Stephen to stay put while I raced after Clint. With my heart pounding, I pushed through the crowd, trying to catch a glimpse of my son’s head. Finally, I saw his hair bouncing up and down. “Clint! Clint!” I yelled. (I’m sure I called out Jesus’ name too, so people may have been confused about what my child’s name was!) All of a sudden, Clint stopped and turned around. I was so relieved when I got to him. I wrapped my arms around him, scooped him up, and nearly burst out crying. Why did I pursue my son like that? Why was my heart so desperate to capture him? Because he is my child, and I love him deeply. There’s only one of him, and his value to me is priceless, just like that of each of my children. But my human love as a mother

gives only the smallest glimpse of God’s love for every person on this planet. Our heavenly Father values every human life—from every precious little baby in the womb to every child and young adult to the middle aged and the oldest here on earth. Not one person escapes His loving eyes. Our society has so devalued human life, but God hasn’t! His love is fierce and forgiving. It pursues relentlessly and protects continuously. Regardless of your past or present situation, God is pursuing you. He is calling you by name. Will you surrender to His call? Now, we all know God can outrun us any day of the week. But God is a gentleman. He will never force you to come to Him. He waits patiently for you to make the choice to stop, turn around, and come to Him so He can swoop you up and wrap His massive arms of unconditional love around you. It’s time to stop running from Love. Come to Him today through a relationship with His Son, Jesus. In His arms, you will find freedom and a life of hope. V

continued from page 10

Now all grown up, Clint wraps his strong, protective arms around his mother.

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are doing, drop the offense, and pray: “Jesus, Your love has been poured out within me by Your Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). I choose to release Your love to this person and offer them the same love You offer me” (1 Corinthians 13:4–8). The Holy Spirit will help you love. God’s love has been poured into you by the Holy Spirit; it’s not been sprinkled or dripped. He has poured His love into your innermost being! Now it’s up to you to give Him permission to flush out every bit of unforgiveness, bitterness, resentment, stubbornness, or anything else keeping you in bondage. It’s a daily decision to give Him your heart so He can search it and show you if there is anything wicked lurking around. When He does, then you can repent and release it (Psalm 139:23–24). It is only when we live in the overflow of God’s love, rely on His power, and allow the Holy Spirit to produce godly fruit in our lives that we will be able to live our lives boldly for Him. And bold lives change the world! V

HIT IT!

IF A MAN HAS A HUNDRED SHEEP AND ONE OF THEM WANDERS AWAY, WHAT WILL HE DO? WON’T HE LEAVE THE NINETY-NINE OTHERS ON THE HILLS AND GO OUT TO SEARCH FOR THE ONE THAT IS LOST? AND IF HE FINDS IT, I TELL YOU THE TRUTH, HE WILL REJOICE OVER IT MORE THAN OVER THE NINETY-NINE THAT DIDN’T WANDER AWAY! IN THE SAME WAY, IT IS NOT MY HEAVENLY FATHER’S WILL THAT EVEN ONE OF THESE LITTLE ONES SHOULD PERISH. MATTHEW 18:12–14

is a true, exciting, detailed story of the rise, fall, and resurrection of a real sports champion… Kristi Overton Johnson. Get ready to be challenged, encouraged, and motivated!

Purchase your copy at kojministries.org for $14.00 plus shipping and handling. kojministries.org Issue 4 2016 11

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Overcoming the FAL by Kaytee Zentmeyer

We all stumble and even fall at times. But thank goodness, the Bible promises that if we have built our life on the firm foundation of God’s Word, we will be able to remain steady and continue on solid ground. The past two months have been challenging for my husband, Johnny, and me. We excitedly ran after what seemed to be a life-changing opportunity that was short-lived. In fact, it was quickly swiped out from under our feet. We felt like we had walked into a sandstorm…and we are still waiting for the dust to settle. I’m sure you’ve experienced your own sandstorm. We all experience failure and defeat at times, but it’s how we rise that truly matters. We can either become hopelessly defeated by our disappointments, or we can turn to God and allow Him to shape and mold us into exactly what He desires. In those moments, failures can turn into incredible victories that move us to new levels. The Bible says, “though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again” (Proverbs 24:16 NIV). Now, that’s a great promise! But who is righteous? Does that mean we have to be perfect? Definitely not! No one is perfect. That’s why God sent His Son, Jesus, to die for us. He knew we needed a Savior. Righteous means that we have “right standing” with God. Those who have right standing with God will rise over and over again. We gain a right standing before God through our faith in Jesus Christ. “For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Because of our faith in Christ, when God looks at us, He no longer sees our sin; instead, He sees the righteousness of His Son, Jesus. Pretty cool, huh? I’m thankful for Jesus’ sacrifice that made me righteous. But I sure wish the righteous didn’t have to fall. It hurts! I have to wonder—why do the righteous have to fall at all?

Obviously, they fall when they take their eyes off God or when they walk in disobedience to Him. In those times, I’m thankful for God’s forgiveness and helping hand to get up and keep moving forward. But oftentimes the righteous fall at no fault of their own. The enemy comes at them with trials that knock them off their feet, or other people make mistakes that hurt them. We live in a fallen world where evil runs rampant. In our case, Johnny and I were actively seeking God’s will at the time of our fall. We had prayed earnestly before we gave up our livelihood and moved halfway across the country. The opportunity before us seemed to provide everything we needed to bring about the fulfillment of the dreams God had placed on our hearts. Yet everything fell apart, right before our eyes. “Why, God? Why did this happen to us?” I couldn’t help but ask. Months later, I still don’t have the answers, but nonetheless, I trust the Lord. I trust that He was with us when we stepped out, and that He is with us now as we put our lives back together. Proverbs 3:5–6 says: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” Answers or no answers, I will trust the Lord. Johnny always says, “In every adversity lies an even greater opportunity.” We trust that God will help us rise again and move forward victoriously. Thankfully, our heavenly Father is always ahead of us. What seems to be a defeat, He will make into a victory. We know it. Time and time again, He has proved Himself faithful. God knew that this adversity was going to fall on us, and He has helped us move forward as we’ve been faithful to trust His love for us. This brings me great comfort. The simple truth is I don’t have the answers to why we experienced this trial. But here is what I do know: God is a good Father, and this experience, if we allow it, will offer so much wisdom. We may not yet have received the fulfillment of a dream, but we have experienced the Father’s tough love of character building. And you know what? God cares more about our character, our heart, and our unyielding faith in Him than He does our comfort. We will continue to look heavenward, trusting that

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there is a bigger plan in the works. Our current worldly circumstances are not the end. They are merely the building blocks on which we are able to stand through every circumstance. Right now, you may be in your own sandstorm. Maybe you don’t have the answers either. I implore you to trust God’s love for you. Trust His plan. Don’t give in to the lies of the world or your enemy, Satan. He will stop at nothing to attack your character and your future. He will tell you that you are a failure and a loser, and that there is no hope for your future. “Life is over,” he will taunt. He is a liar. God has a plan, and He is working in the midst of your storm right now. In the meantime, here is what has helped me overcome our fall.

Be Still Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still, and know that I am God.” Being still may seem impossible, but I believe the Psalmist was referring to our minds, not necessarily our bodies. We have to discipline our minds to become still, even in our movement. We must lay aside the memories of failures and disappointments, the million why, if only, and what if questions, and just trust God. I repeat this verse over and over in my mind until the failure replays of the past disappear from my mind.

Reflect Rather than looking at past falls as failures, look at them as learning opportunities to help move you forward. Regardless of why you fell, there is always something you can learn. Stop blaming others. Ask the Lord to help you in this process.

Get Back to the Core of You Often the events in our lives can cause us to lose sight of who we truly are. We are not an event or a moment in time. We are people loved by God and destined by Him for greatness. No matter who you are, this is true. You are an overcomer! No fall or failure can keep you from becoming who God has designed you to be. Ask Him to show you who you are. The Bible is the best place to find this answer!

Trust the Plan Jeremiah 29:11 promises that God has a plan of hope and a future for you. Get excited about God’s plan now. Live expectantly!

Set a Goal Where do you want to be in one year, two years, or five years? What are the desires of your heart? Create moment-by-moment goals. They will help you stay focused, bring satisfaction and excitement back into your life, and enable you to move forward. V

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Until the Answer Comes by Roy A. Borges

I’ve been in prison twenty-six years, waiting for God to answer my prayers to release me from behind these razor-wire fences. But I often find I’ve been focusing on the unfairness of life instead of on the One who will one day make all things right. Life is hard, and we often don’t understand God’s timing or His purposes. But God always responds with His best for our lives. The truth is that God does not give us what we deserve; He gives us mercy instead. “For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee” (Psalm 86:5 KVJ). God is more than enough, despite what we see. His grace is sufficient and His strength is perfect (2 Corinthians 12:9). Yet before we can find such reassurance, we may have to step back, lay down our own efforts, and take the hand of Jesus that is extended to us in mercy and grace. Waiting is hard at any time, but when days, months, or even years pass and our prayers seem to go unanswered, it’s easy to feel God has forgotten us. When we’re waiting for God to resolve a difficult situation or to answer oftrepeated prayers, it’s easy to get discouraged. Time is passing by; it may seem like things will never change. You may even think, “Why make the effort to worship with fellow believers?” When we are waiting on God’s answer, the lifelines we need most are prayer, the studying of God’s Word, and fellowship with other believers. They help us to hold steady in the flow of God’s love and care. They remind us of all He has done in the past to bless us. God is always at work in us. He is worth waiting for; His timing is always the best. Learning to wait on God for the answers means patiently looking for what we need. Sometimes lessons in patience take a long time to learn, but we can always trust His response, even if it doesn’t come in the time we expect. David understood why he had to wait on the Lord. First, his salvation came from Him (Psalm 62:1). He learned that no one else could deliver him. His only hope was in God (62:5), for God alone heard his prayers (62:8). My prayers often ask God to hurry up and bless what I want. David learned to be patient and wait on God. He said, “My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning, I

will direct it to You. And I will look up” (Psalm 5:3 NKJV). We must learn to respond like David did when God tells us to be patient. David made a vow to praise God each day. He continuously praised God through both the good and the difficult times of his life. Do you find something to praise God for each day? Do you ask Him for patience to wait for His answer? As you do, you will find your heart elevated from daily distractions and discouragement to lasting confidence and hope. The secret of a close relationship with God is to pray earnestly to Him each morning. In the morning, our minds are more free from worries, and we can commit the whole day to God. It’s the best way to start the day! As we continue our communication with God through the day, our relationship with Him strengthens. Regular communication helps any friendship; it is certainly necessary for a strong relationship with God. Prayer strengthens my ability to wait. It gives me confidence in God’s unconditional love for me. I know He is listening; He will help me. I can wait for an answer from God no matter how long it takes because He knows the beginning and the end, and He tells me, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). He is with you, too. V

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Walking Iris

by Sue Moose

I can still hear her Southern drawl as she referred to those plants in her yard as “walking iris.” She was in her wheelchair, thinning out her garden. She proudly showed me a large bag full of the plants she had pulled out of the ground, a bag full of walking iris and dirt. She insisted I take the bag with me, since she would just throw it away. I asked her why she called them walking iris. I had never heard of them. She explained that the flowers send out runners and spread as easily through her garden as if they were walking around. As iris go, they were petite, with small, fragile-looking, yellow flowers, but she was sure that I could grow them, since they were a hardy plant. She said they do well in shade, so I took them home and planted them under a big oak tree with so much shade that hardly anything grows there. Well, she was right. They grew easily and covered a large area under that big old tree. When I moved from that house, I dug up a bag full of walking iris and planted them again under an oak tree at my new house. The pretty little yellow flowers blooming in the spring always bring a smile to my face. These little guys will be with me forever because they hold a very special meaning to me. That petite Southern lady who gave me those flowers was someone I will never forget. She weighed only about ninety pounds, but she was the strongest person I have ever known. Hers wasn’t a physical strength; she had that inner strength that gets you through life…a strength that can only come from above. I met her when she was in her thirties. She faced many struggles. She’d been in a car accident when she was eighteen and was paralyzed from the waist down. Her fiancé couldn’t cope with her situation, so he left. She moved on though; got her college degree and became a teacher. She got married, and she and her husband lived in a simple house with Pumpkin, a stray cat they took in. She had a heart of gold and always did whatever she could to help another soul, even animals. Being in a wheelchair didn’t slow her down. She did everything she needed to do from that chair. She taught middle school in an area known for violence. At school, she didn’t take any lip from her students, but those kids knew that she cared about them, and they respected her for that. This is not her whole story though; she had many other challenges, and that is what is so remarkable about her. I was young and still believed that

life should be fair. If someone was paralyzed, I thought, then that’s their challenge for life. Life shouldn’t throw any other challenges their way. But that is not how life is—unfortunately, life often is not fair at all. She was diagnosed with cancer and had to undergo major surgery and chemo. It took her months to recover, but she couldn’t wait to get back to the classroom and be with her students again. This is when I met her. She was always thinking about others, even as she was going through this. She worried about everyone else. She wasn’t working, so money was tight, but she was worried about a neighbor girl who looked hungry. So she made her a tomato and cheese sandwich. She felt bad that it was all she could afford to give her, a tomato from her garden and a slice of cheese on plain white bread, but the little girl said it was the best thing she ever ate. A little while later, my friend was diagnosed with another type of cancer and had to have surgery again. Really? Becoming paralyzed and having cancer twice should have been enough to crush anyone—but she never let it get her down. She stayed strong in her faith and continued to be a ray of sunshine to everyone she met. Next, my friend developed a blood clot and had to have her leg amputated. This was the only thing I ever heard her complain about. “Even if it was a paralyzed leg, it was still my leg,” she said. “I miss it.” She recovered from that challenge and returned to the classroom where she continued to give her best to her students. Just like the Energizer Bunny, she kept on going. This is why that plant with delicate yellow flowers is so special to me. This plant will bloom even in the darkest part of the garden. It brings beauty where there is very little light. It doesn’t just survive; it thrives in any condition. It reminds me of my friend. She had the ability to shine, no matter where she was or what she was going through. She inspires me to do my part, to be something bright in all circumstances. She inspires me to spread hope like her walking iris. V

DO EVERYTHING WITHOUT COMPLAINING AND ARGUING, SO THAT NO ONE CAN CRITICIZE YOU. LIVE CLEAN, INNOCENT LIVES AS CHILDREN OF GOD, SHINING LIKE BRIGHT LIGHTS IN A WORLD FULL OF CROOKED AND PERVERSE PEOPLE. PHILIPPIANS 2:15

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The Fragility of Life by Kenny Munds

Life is fragile. Anyone, at any time and anywhere, could succumb to one of a variety of fatal occurrences. Terrorist attack, accident, illness, natural disaster, crime… the list goes on. The fragility of my life was made clear after a recent close call in the little city of Madison, where I live. I was driving into town in my Toyota Corolla when I suddenly remembered I had forgotten at the house something that I needed. (That’s almost a regular thing with me.) So I pulled off onto the shoulder of the road, waiting to make a U-turn. Using my side-view mirror, I watched the cars pass from behind. When I was satisfied it was clear, I whirled my car around and was shocked to find one more car I hadn’t seen. It swerved at the last second, just barely avoiding hitting me broadside. Had I begun my turn a moment sooner, there’s no doubt the car would have collided with mine, and most likely, I would have been killed. It was a giant wake-up call, and I had to pull over again. Deeply shaken and trembling, I thanked God for sparing me. Now, as a born-again believer in Christ, I don’t fear death itself. But to be honest, the process of dying is a little unnerving. Most of us will not know how or when we will die. Those who are terminally ill may be told how but won’t know exactly when. I anguish over those who are lined up to be executed by ISIS or other evil factions, for it must take a huge amount of courage to face dying that way. But the fact is, we’re all going to die someday, somehow. “Everyone has to die once, then face the consequences” (Hebrews 9:27 MSG). But we are also eternal beings. Our bodies will return to dust, but our spirits will live on. Ecclesiastes 12:6–7 MSG explains: “Life, lovely while it lasts, is soon over. Life as we know it, precious and beautiful, ends. The body is put back in the same ground it came from. The spirit returns to God, who first breathed it.” We don’t know when death will come, but chances are, we won’t be

Wherever you’re headed today, have you remembered to secure your eternal future? If not, it’s time to pull over and have a prayer session with God. expecting it. The comforting news is that when that moment comes, we need not be afraid, because God will be there to see us through it. David reassures us of this fact: “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me” (Psalm 23:4 NKJV). We don’t even need to fear criminals or terrorists—the Word tells us, “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather, fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28 NKJV). If you know the Lord and have surrendered your life to Him, dying is just the beginning of a new eternal life. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16 NKJV). However, if you don’t know the Lord and have not surrendered your life to Him, then dying is to be feared. It is the beginning of a tormenting hell and eternal separation from God. “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Daniel 12:2). Wherever you’re headed today, have you remembered to secure your eternal future? If not, it’s time to pull over and have a prayer session with God. Confess your need for Him, ask His forgiveness, and surrender yourself totally to His will. Then make your U-turn and start following the Savior. He’s made sure the road is clear. V

Share Your Story! DO YOU HAVE A STORY OF VICTORY? SHARE IT WITH OUR READERS! Your story has the power to transform lives and bring much needed hope. Here are the guidelines: • Submissions are not guaranteed to be included in the magazine. • Submission is acknowledgment of your granting KOJM and Victorious Living publication rights to produce your submission in this magazine and other ministry publications. • Photos submitted must have photographer’s and each photographed subject’s consent of use. Photographer’s name must be included. Hard copies of photographs will not be returned. • Victorious Living does not pay for submissions.

• Submissions must not exceed 800 words and are subject to editing. • Submit your story online at kojministries.org • Due to Internet restrictions, inmate submissions should be mailed to: Victorious Living Outreach PO 328 Starke, FL 32091. • Victorious Living is a free quarterly publication distributed to KOJ Ministries partners, at various distribution locations, and within the prison system.

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A Ne w New Man by Bob Williamson

A psychiatrist sat across from me; a file several inches thick rested on the table between us. One infraction after another had led to this moment. I was in the military, and to put it mildly, I wasn’t a model soldier. The military had been my attempt to “get straightened out.” I thought a little authority and structure would be good for me, but it hadn’t helped. I didn’t do well with authority, and that file on the table proved it. My behavior was so violent and my personality so “off” that several military psychiatrists had been called in to assess me. They concluded something was very wrong with me. It was no shock to me; I’d been hearing those words since I was five years old. It was a favorite question of my parents and teachers—What is wrong with you?! The lead military psychiatrist sitting across from me seemed to have an answer. “You’re a sociopath, Bob.” A what?! He pulled out a book and read the definition to me. “Sociopaths have a complete disregard for the rights of others and are incapable of love. They don’t have any normal feelings of remorse, shame, or guilt. They are cruel to both people and animals and have no empathy for others. They are capable of deadly violence. They are callous and have a reckless disregard even for their own safety. Most are pathological liars and are quick to rationalize the pain that they inflict on others in such a manner as to imply that the other party ‘deserved’ what they got.” He continued with a strange look on his face. “Sociopaths don’t have a conscience, Bob. Several serial killers are diagnosed sociopaths, and if I had to guess, I’d say you are well on your way to becoming one.” “What can be done about it?” I asked. “Nothing,” he replied. It was officially determined that I was not suitable to continue to serve in the military, and I was given an administrative discharge. I left with a hopeless diagnosis and continued down a tumultuous path. 16 kojministries.org Issue 4 2016

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All my life I’d been told I was a stupid idiot who would never amount to anything. I believed every word of it. And now it had been confirmed. There was no hope for me. All I’d ever wanted as a child was to be loved and accepted by my parents or by a friend. It was obvious my father hated the very sight of me. His daily beatings confirmed it. And as far as having a friend goes? Well, transferring to nineteen different schools because of our family’s military background made that impossible. No one had ever loved or befriended me. The tipping point came the day the school principal gave me a paddling for something I’d done wrong. When I got home, my dad continued the beatings with his fists and a strap. I distinctly remember making up my mind between blows that no one, and I mean no one, would ever see me cry. I looked at my dad and snarled, “Give me your best shot.” In that moment, I became stone cold and full of hate, rage, and bitterness. When you live with such powerful emotions, something has to give. You either need an outlet to release the pent-up anger and rage, or you need something to cover it up. I chose both. Just as my father had done, I began to use my fists to control people and manipulate situations. That graduated quickly to a baseball bat and then guns. I inflicted great pain on many. I turned to drugs to cover up my pain. Methamphetamine and heroin were my drugs of choice. I shot up anywhere I could find a vein… even the veins in my big toe. photography by Ken Ross Photography

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Once homeless, Bob now enjoys riding his horse and spending time in the great outdoors at his plantation near Greenville, Florida. Bob and Teresa, his wife of 40 years, have shared the beauty of their plantation and their faith with many. In the pictures to the right, Bob oversees construction of the building for his first company and makes business deals that paid great dividends.

As soon as the effects of the drugs wore off and the pain of my miserable life began again to overtake me, I would shoot up again. It was a constant, deadly cycle. It’s nothing short of a miracle that I’m alive. If it hadn’t been for God’s intervention, I would be dead for sure. One such intervention came when I was twenty-four. God sent an angel in the form of a nurse named Lydia. I’d been in a terrible car wreck and broken nearly every bone in my body. Several blood transfusions and major orthopedic surgeries were required to put my leg and other broken bones back together. Lydia was in charge of caring for me. An insomniac, I asked her to bring me books to read to pass the night away. Lydia brought the bestseller book list for me to choose from. I was shocked to learn that the number one selling book was the Bible. I asked her for a Bible. She gave me her own. I started in the Old Testament, but it was boring. I moved over to the New Testament and began to read about a man named Jesus. I’d heard about Jesus but, to be brutally honest, I didn’t want anything to do with Him. I blamed God for everything wrong in my life. But I couldn’t help but notice that Jesus was a man of love. I longed for love. He was a man who hung out with what the world would call the unlovable. People like me. He hung out with prostitutes, drunks, and ungodly sorts…and He loved them.

I was attracted to this love, primarily because I’d never been loved by anyone. My relationship with my own father made it difficult for me to view God as a father—I couldn’t imagine what that would be like. But Jesus was different. Over and over again, I saw it. Jesus loved. And, according to John 3:16, He loved me too. I kept reading, and I came to Philippians 4:13 NKJV. It said, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” I read it and reread it. And then I felt compelled to read it again. I just couldn’t seem to get past the statement that I could do anything. It bugged me to no end. I thought to myself, “Well, if you really could do anything that you wanted, what would it be?” I didn’t hesitate. I’d change my life! I wanted off the streets. I wanted to be far away from the never-ending violence of guns, knives, and vicious fights. I wanted to permanently kick drugs. I was weary of continued on page 18

As a child, Bob longed for love and security. He found both in the arms of his heavenly Father. God healed Bob’s broken heart, freed him from addictions, enabled him to love others, and gave him the wisdom to build several multimillion dollar companies. Bob now devotes himself to philanthropic efforts and speaking engagements throughout the country using his personal story of overcoming adversity and years of substance abuse to inspire others to do the same. kojministries.org

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A NEW MAN | from page 17______________________________________________________________________________________

Yes, I believed that God was God. I even believed He could do anything. He could change me…if He wanted to. But why would He want to? Why would the Creator of this world want to change me? Why would He help me do anything? I hadn’t done a good thing in all my life. I was rotten through and through.

spending my every waking moment thinking about how I was going to find my next fix, whether or not a “hot shot” might kill me, or if bad dope might send me freaking out to an insane asylum. I was worn down from being a criminal, I was sick of the paranoia and looking over my shoulder for cops, and I was sure sick of being around other dangerous, psychopathic criminals and drug dealers who would kill me for a nickel bag. I wanted to make my family proud of me instead of ashamed. I wanted to find a good job that was interesting and paid decent money. I wanted a girlfriend who was wholesome. I wanted some intelligent, happy friends who weren’t losers. Most of all, I just wanted to be happy and loved for once in my life! Could Jesus give me all of that? No way. I exploded with rage. This is all just a frigging Cinderella story! People like me don’t change! I’m a sociopath, destined to be a serial killer. I knew better than to believe I could change. I’d tried time and time again…and failed miserably every time. I’d seen scores of others do the same. There is only one way out for an addict like me, and that’s to be lowered six feet under into a pauper’s grave in a hundred-dollar pine box. I called Lydia into the room and demanded an answer. Mocking her, I said, “Your Good Book says right here”—I tapped my finger on the page—“that I can do anything through Christ who strengthens me. Jesus or no Jesus, there ain’t no way, Lydia! You know it, and I know it. And I’ll tell you something else: if there was a God, He’d know it too!” I threw her Bible across the room. She didn’t take lightly to that. Crossing the room to pick it up, she snorted contemptuously, then said, “Jesus performed miracle after miracle, and every one was a lot harder than

changing your sorry a--! Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, and you ain’t even dead, crackah!” Then she marched out of the room, leaving me to think about what she’d said. Yes, I believed that God was God. I even believed He could do anything. He could change me…if He wanted to. But why would He want to? Why would the Creator of this world want to change me? Why would He help me do anything? I hadn’t done a good thing in all my life. I was rotten through and through. I figured it was worth a shot. I prayed a feeble prayer, the only kind I knew to pray. I asked the Lord to forgive me of my many sins and to save me. And He did. At that moment, I became a new man. God took away my desire for drugs and alcohol. No longer did I need those things to cover my pain. For the first time in my life, I knew love—the unconditional love of my heavenly Father. And His love covered all the pain and loneliness I’d ever experienced. Yet even though I now had God’s love and my soul was saved for eternity, and even though I had freedom from my addictions, I still had unresolved feelings toward my parents and the world. I remained angry and bitter. You know, Philippians 4:13 says that through the power of Christ operating within us, we can overcome anything. But I had yet to realize that there was a part of Philippians 4:13 that involved me (and it does you, too). Yes, God’s power will help us overcome difficulties, but we have a part to play as well! My part was to forgive my father and mother. I had to let the hate and anger go. They were killing me. I’m telling you, forgiving my parents was the hardest thing I have ever done. Overcoming drugs and alcoholism was a piece of cake compared to releasing them—especially my father—from all the hurt they had caused me physically and emotionally. But the Bible didn’t give me a way out of this forgiveness. In fact, it clearly said that if I didn’t forgive those who had hurt me, I wouldn’t be forgiven. Would my father even be receptive to my forgiveness toward him? I realized it didn’t matter. This wasn’t about him; it was about me being obedient. At first he wasn’t receptive, but over time, he came around. Ultimately, both he and my atheist mother gave their lives to Christ. Letting go of my hatred and refusing to allow anger to control me took years. I didn’t receive an instant deliverance like I had from my addictions. This was a daily process that required letting go of old habits. Every day I had to choose Christ over my feelings. Released from the hospital, I began to search for work. But I was twenty-four with no resume whatsoever. Who would hire me? I started with an entry-level position at a

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A NEW MAN | from page 18___________________________________________________________

Not only did God bless me with incredible success in the business world, but He has blessed this lonely man with a wonderful family. He blessed me with a beautiful, wholesome wife, Teresa. We’ve been in love now for forty-five years. Our three sons are all college graduates and, along with their wives and our seven grandchildren, live an active faith. They are my biggest blessings. All I can say is, to God be the glory! Apart from Him and His great love, I would be in an insane asylum, on death row, or dead and condemned to hell forever. Instead, I am living out the destiny God has planned for me. I’ve shared my story here because I want my life to be a testimony of hope for you. If God can love and change old Bob Williamson, a violent man who was diagnosed a sociopath and destined to be a serial killer, then God can love and change you. If I can overcome drug and alcohol addictions, hatred, violence, and a sociopath diagnosis, you can overcome your weaknesses. Through Christ, through His power operating in you, you can overcome anything. You are not alone in this world. For years I felt I had no one. Then I met Jesus Christ. Through Him, I not only found strength and power to overcome, but I found love. I found hope. I found purpose and life. Don’t listen to what the world tells you. A military shrink told me I was an incurable sociopath on the way to becoming a serial killer. But I’m not. What I am is a serial entrepreneur and serial lover of people. I met the Great Physician, and He healed me! And He will do the same for you. V

paint company. I had the worst job in the company: putting labels on paint cans in a dark, dingy, dungeon-like atmosphere. It was hard. I could have made more money in five minutes with a gun on the street than I would in a whole month at work. But I continued. I was the first at work in the morning, and the last to leave at night. You know, the Lord says if we are faithful in the small things, He will bless us much. And that’s exactly what happened. I stayed faithful in that terrible position. By the end of the year, those above me couldn’t help but notice me—I’d saved the company over $50,000 in paint-label expenses. I was promoted eight times in the next two years, all the way up to plant manager. I decided I wanted to start my own business. People told me I was crazy. “You don’t have an education. You don’t have the money or experience,” they said. But I didn’t listen. I borrowed $1,000 on my credit card and began a business out of my home. I clung to my verse, Philippians 4:13. I knew if God had helped me overcome all that I had overcome to this point, then He could surely handle a business. I worked hard, again remembering that as I did my part, God would give me the strength to be successful. I leaned constantly on the Lord and prayed for His direction. God blessed the work of my hands, and soon my company was thriving. I went from making $30,000 a year to $30,000 a week. To date, I’ve started twenty companies. I sold the last one for $75,000,000.

Miracle on Luckie Street is available as a hardback, paperback, and e-book, with an audio book and CD versions coming soon. Orders can be placed at miracleonluckiestreet.com or contact: Williamson Publishing 1445 NW Honey Lake Road Greenville, FL 32331

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Walk It Out

by Bob Williamson You know, God made it easy to get saved from your sin. You come into a relationship with God through faith in His Son, Jesus. At that moment, you are made new and right before God. But the Bible also tells us that we are to surrender our lives to Jesus and make Him Lord of our lives. It’s the surrendering aspect of our Christian walk that isn’t so easy. It’s a daily decision to choose to follow Christ and to tap into His power, rather than follow the lusts of the world. My brother Jim and I had the same dysfunctional upbringing; consequently, we were both a mess. But our lives were not lived out the same. I remember him calling one day and asking, “Bob, how is it that your life is so much different than mine? How do you have a family who loves you and a successful business, and friends and…my life is just the opposite?” At the time, Jim was addicted to drugs and having serious problems with his kids and his third wife. I told him the only difference between us was that I had Jesus in my life and he didn’t. I told him Jesus was the only reason I was where I was. Jesus is still the only reason I have peace, joy, and the ability to love and forgive. I should be dead in a ditch somewhere; but God in His great mercy forgave me of my sin and made me into a new man. At my urging, Jim came to see me, and he accepted Christ; but it wasn’t long before he was back to his old ways. Why? Because he didn’t keep his eyes and thoughts on Christ. He didn’t stay in the Word of God, and He didn’t make a daily choice to follow Christ through obedience to His Word. As a result, Jim had no power, and he lived a defeated life. Sadly, my brother took his own life, just as our grandfather and two of our uncles had done before him. Many believers live this same powerless life, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Real change can happen, no matter who you are. You can overcome all things— all things!—through Christ Jesus. He will give you His strength to do what you can’t do on your own; but you must choose to operate in Christ’s power. Outside of Him, we are all destined to fall. How do you do this? Stay close to God. Stay in His Word daily. Stay in fellowship with other believers. Get in a Bible-believing, God-loving church. Put on the whole armor of God every day (Ephesians 6), so you will be able to stand through every trial. If you do these things, if you love Christ and allow Him to love you, you will have success. You will find that peace and joy, that purpose and hope you’ve always wanted. V

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A Lesson from Rudolph

by Lucy N. Adams

One day, I discovered a box of memories nestled in the very back of a closet. A tattered and torn old diary revealed interesting facts about my childhood days. The first pages, however, made me sad. At only ten years of age, I had written my feelings in large letters over several pages. One such page contained only two words: “dumb bunny.” Those early diary pages revealed my stuttering problem and the loneliness that had taken root in my heart. I remember those days; I’d felt so blue and alone. I am thankful that those were fleeting feelings. The remaining diary pages were about school days, friendships, and a loving family, and they showed that melancholy was just a passing phase of growth. Those blue feelings were also true for a man who wrote a poem that has given thousands of people great happiness. His daughter, Virginia, says that the poem tells a story that is similar to her father’s life. She states, “Dad was a very shy man and felt like an underdog.” As an advertising clerk for Montgomery Ward in Chicago, Robert May was working at his desk in the fall of 1939. His boss walked by and asked Robert to come up with a new gimmick for the Christmas season, since sales had been down the year before. So Robert May gave birth to an idea that would eventually explode into the popular music phenomenon recognized as “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” He drew a cartoon-style reindeer and wrote a poem about its life. The result was delightful. It is amazing that Robert May apparently reached into his own life to portray the personality of this sad little reindeer. Rudolph had a funny red nose and was laughed at and not allowed to play with the others. Robert’s daughter believes her dad placed his own blue feelings on paper through Rudolph’s character. Several years later, the poem became the basis for a short movie cartoon. Rudolph’s fame spread further when music was added and the famous Gene Autry recorded the song. Millions of records were sold. When I think of the blue emotions of Robert May and the bright red nose of Rudolph, I can’t help but think about the deep blue despair of the disciples over the death of their Lord. Their hearts were broken. But they did not yet know that His bright red blood had been shed for them or that His blood would light the way to freedom, power, and victory over the darkness. The resurrection revealed the glory of a living Lord Jesus who lives that we might have life and have it abundantly. Christians are not immune from experiencing blue days. Like Rudolph and his creator, Robert May, we will at times feel low, be excluded, or even be poked fun at. Remember the cross, the precious blood of Christ, and the gloriously empty tomb—and you’ll find hope and strength for victorious living in our Lord Jesus. V

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. John 1:5 NIV

The holiday season can be a very lonely time, especially for inmates. Our ministry provides encouragement year round for thousands behind bars. If you are an inmate battling loneliness, become a part of our Victorious Living family today. Write to Victorious Living Outreach, PO Box 328, Starke, FL 32091.

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Cultivating Friendship It takes a lot of work to be a good friend. When my grandmother spoke these words to me, I was nineteen years old. We were in her burgundy Buick, delivering a meal to a sick friend. Her hands were knotted and worn from many years of painful arthritis, but she was always the first one to arrive with food after a friend lost a loved one or was newly discharged from the hospital. I reluctantly admit I did not realize the value of her words until much later. My friendships at nineteen consisted of laughter, pool parties, movies with popcorn, and bike rides. They were sweet friendships, but they were also easy ones. Fast forward through the years since, and our lives and those friendships have changed a lot. We’ve faced many obstacles—cancer, loss of loved ones, hospital visits, financial difficulties, and other hardships. There have also been many joys—marriages, first homes, careers, and starting families. Over the years, I have explored what being a friend really means, and my conclusion is that it is hard work to be a good friend, but it’s, oh, so worth it. A good friendship is not a lazy, sunny ride down a country road. It is a roller-coaster ride through life. But when the ride ends, you take a deep breath, look at your friend, and say, “That was awesome!” One of the best examples of friendship in the Bible is the story of David and Jonathan. First Samuel 18:1 NASB says that “the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as himself.” Jonathan was loyal to David and was not jealous that David would become the next king, a position that should have been his own. Even though Jonathan’s father, Saul, wanted to kill David, Jonathan was faithful to his friend and helped him escape from his father. They parted that day as dearest friends but were never able to see each other again. This relationship was messy, but that didn’t keep them from being friends. The relationship between Jonathan and David shows that friends need to be sacrificial, loyal, and trusting. It is important to seek out Christian friendships, wherever we find ourselves. Some relationships will be lifelong, and some, like David and Jonathan’s, will be only for a season. We must pray and ask God to bring these Christian friendships into our lives.

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by Kristi Dews Dale

In order to be a good friend, we should consistently seek after a personal relationship with Christ. Without a relationship in Christ, we will be unable to mirror so many important characteristics of healthy friendships. Colossians 3:12–13 NASB says that “as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another and forgiving each other.” None of my friendships are perfect; we are not perfect people. But this verse is a pretty good formula for a Christian friendship. Following this advice will reduce misunderstandings and arguments that must be forgiven. There will be opportunities to show kindness and compassion. There will be many times when the friendship requires listening, understanding, and great patience. To protect good friendships, you must cultivate them. Don’t wait for your friends to call or visit. Building a good friendship requires action from you. Seek out friends, be compassionate, and provide help and encouragement. Praying for each other is another big part of a Christian friendship. Paul’s writings in the New Testament are filled with his prayers for others and his thankfulness for their relationships. In Ephesians 1:15–16 NIV, Paul says, “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.” His writings encourage Christians to be strengthened with God’s power (Ephesians 3:16), to glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 15:6), and to share the precious gospel of Jesus with everyone (Colossians 4:2–4).

Just like fingerprints, no two friendships will look alike. As I stated before, there is no perfect friendship, because we are imperfect people. We will mess up, be unkind, and lack compassion— and we will have to ask for forgiveness from our friends. My grandmother was right: it is hard work to cultivate friendships. However, we see in scripture that an important part of our Christian life is to walk alongside other Christians. Christ calls us to “Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another” (John 13:34 NIV). Let us fulfill Christ’s call to action. Cultivate friendship; love and encourage your friends today! V

MAY THE GOD WHO GIVES ENDURANCE AND ENCOURAGEMENT GIVE YOU THE SAME ATTITUDE OF MIND TOWARD EACH OTHER THAT CHRIST JESUS HAD, SO THAT WITH ONE MIND AND ONE VOICE YOU MAY GLORIFY THE GOD AND FATHER OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST. ROMANS 15:5–6 NIV

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A Crack in the Concrete A concrete slab. Why does it make me cry? Daily I feel as if heavy, wet concrete has been poured all over me—it covers, binds up, and robs my light. Darkness is its atmosphere. My country bows down, not to God the Father, the Giver of Light and Life, but to a god of self and money. The newspapers cry out economic woes. A toddler is beaten to death by his own parents. Children are neglected as adults turn selfishly to their own lusts. Teenagers cut themselves out of frustration and a desperate search for relief from their inner turmoil. Sexuality has become a tool of rebellion against our Creator. Depression and anxiety cripple our productivity and steal away our sunshine. Wars, oppression, politics, and tyranny bubble and brew. And of course, drugs, alcohol, and filthy entertainment are offered as relief so that we might endure the oppressive life under the concrete. Hopeless, heavy, wet, gray globs of concrete are dumped daily upon us. No wonder I cry as I walk the city streets. And then, there it is—a crack in the concrete; a sharp splinter of light and hope. A peek through the barrier of our concrete prison wall; a preview of what our world might be if flipped entirely upside down. It’s radical! It takes my breath away. It is power in its most sublime form. What a miracle! A small and fragile flower has pushed the mass of concrete out of its way and invaded the city streets. How cheeky of the little beauty. It is an astounding find. I have found a link to the other side of the concrete; hope and joy ride high upon the shoulders of this tiny blossom. No wonder I cry as I walk the city streets. I cry because I hear it singing in the face of darkness: “This is my Father’s world!” I hear it in a voice that the world cannot hear—a voice with such power that even the gates of hell cannot prevail against it. The intensity and immensity of the message pouring through this frail flower illuminates and magnifies the incredible deafness of the world. How can they not hear it? Why do they continue walking around and past me with their weighty and unrelenting steps? Where are they all going, and why? Their scurry is unnecessary—the answer is right here. How incredible that no one stops, and no one seems to hear! I recall another time when a crack in the concrete opened up. I wasn’t exactly there to see it, but I can read about it anytime I care to open my Bible. Peter,

by Becky Coursen

James, and John saw it, and I’m not certain that they cried, but I’m told they were so overcome that they fell with their faces to the ground. One moment, Jesus was standing there with them under the concrete of the darkness of the world—and then there it was. The Father provided a crack in the concrete, and a sharp splinter of light and hope peeked through the barrier of that gray prison wall. It was radical! It was power in its most sublime form. What a miracle! Jesus glistened. I’ll bet they cried. I’ll bet any hopelessness they felt about what was going on around them was instantly swished away. I’ll bet the shot of hope they received that day as they gazed upon the supreme glory of the Flower of Heaven kept their faces full of hope and joy for quite some time. Of course, I am aware that it did fade, because not too much longer after that, we read of Peter’s betrayal and subsequent weeping. I wonder how differently the story might have gone if Peter could have held onto the hand of someone already on the other side of the crack. But then, the resurrection hadn’t occurred, and Christ hadn’t gone just yet. We have no right to accuse Peter. Without a hand to hold, we’d have done the same thing. But Christ has risen and goes before me! How very important it is to me, as a Christian woman, to persistently gaze at little flowers pushing their way through cracks in the concrete. In my humanity, I am so prone to dwell on the darkness and lose sight of my hope. I must constantly remind myself that Someone had to love me very much to sacrifice the drops of blood that were required to blast the crack through that concrete and shine His beam of light and hope. I must daily reach into that cleft in the rock and take hold of the hand of the One who broke that wall, who made a way, and who abides on the other side; the One who’s reaching through that crack to me. No wonder I cry as I look at the little flower—I hear it singing: This is my Father’s world. O let me ne’er forget That though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet. This is my Father’s world: the battle is not done. Jesus who died shall be satisfied, And earth and heav’n be one. * V

Jesus took Peter and the two brothers, James and John, and led them up a high mountain to be alone. As the men watched, Jesus’ appearance was transformed so that his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as light . Matthew 17:1–2

* “This Is My Father’s World,” by Maltbie D. Babcock (1901).

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CHANGE THE ATMOSPHERE by Nate Miller

Prior to coming onboard with the water sports ministry, In His Wakes, I was a teacher. Meteorology was one of my favorite subjects. Maybe it was because the weather has such a direct impact on our daily lives, or perhaps it was because, given just the right conditions, an immense amount of energy can be generated and released right before our very eyes. And there’s not a thing we can do to create it, stop it, or even change it. When it comes to the weather, we can only function within the conditions we encounter at any given moment. But this is not true in regard to the spiritual atmosphere in and around us. We are called to be atmosphere changers! Romans 8:11 says that the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives inside us. I love what I heard a pastor once say—that same Spirit lives in you, and He wants out! Wherever believers go, the Holy Spirit’s presence should flow out of us. As His love flows, the atmosphere of every place we set our feet will change. It should be so tangible a change that it is undeniable to those around us. Weather is defined as the constant changing of the atmosphere. So the question becomes, what’s the weather like inside of you? Is it peaceful and stable, or is there a storm brewing? You will project whatever atmosphere is within you. If it’s storming inside—if you’re harboring hate, anger, bitterness, jealousy, fear, or pity—then

If you don’t like the atmosphere of your home, church, work environment, prison, or school, then do something about it! The power of God lives in you, and His power can calm the fiercest storm. you will project that stormy atmosphere. And that will make people around you absolutely miserable. I can’t stand to be in places that have a lot of cloudy, foggy, gloomy days; nor do I care to spend time around those types of people— unless, of course, I can change their “weather” for the better. I love our In His Wakes “A Day to Remember” water sports program. Our events are real atmosphere changers, because our staff and volunteers are committed to establishing an incredible God-filled atmosphere for those who arrive on site. Many of our participants come from dark, depressing, and often violent atmospheres. But when they step foot outside their vehicles into this new atmosphere, they encounter the power of God within us. It flows out like a mighty river, and a deluge of our Father’s love soaks everyone nearby.

As a result, the actual atmosphere begins to change. I’m telling you, it’s contagious! I have seen so many individuals arrive in an atmosphere of extreme darkness and hopelessness, only to leave with a power within that has transformed their lives. They have peace, joy, and hope for their future. They are even laughing and smiling. So many believers sit back as if they were watching a weather forecast that they can do nothing about. Maybe they think they’re powerless, or maybe they just don’t care. Maybe they’re so used to that negative atmosphere that they are comfortable in it. But that shouldn’t be you! Be an atmosphere changer. If you don’t like the atmosphere of your home, church, work environment, prison, or school, then do something about it! The power of God lives in you, and His power can calm the fiercest storm. Begin by allowing God to change the atmosphere within you. Get in His Word, draw close to Him, and give Him your stormy thoughts. He will replace them with joy and peace and a love for others so powerful that it will have the ability to change any atmosphere. God’s love is way too amazing and wonderful to keep it dammed up, hidden away from those we encounter. It’s time to let the wonderful, lifechanging power of Christ flow out. It starts with you. V

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Unwavering Hope I understand depression, a broken heart, divorce, missing my boys growing up, alcohol, drugs, and the devastating effects of adultery and fornication. I’ve lived these things. In fact, at one time I was so hopeless that I wanted to end it all. Depression destroys the spirit. My spirit was almost destroyed, but I found hope. Today, I want you to know that there is hope. Jesus in me gives me the hope to not only survive, but to thrive. Yes, I am in prison today serving a life sentence, yet I am more emotionally free than ever. On the street, I had everything a man could want. I had a house complete with a picket fence, a car, a wife, and kids—yet something was still missing. When my wife and I separated, I spiraled downward. The joy that I had known left me, and my appetite for life died. I fell into a funk that led to four DUIs. But I didn’t care. I kept riding the emotional roller coaster, headed for death. Sadly, the stupidity of my actions caused the death of another man and landed me in prison for life. I’ve been locked up now for nineteen years.

by Mark Castilloux When I caused the death of that man, I made a promise: his death would not be in vain. Nor would my time in prison. Therefore, I am committed to helping others find the hope I found; I’m committed to helping them know that God is real and that there is hope. First Peter 3:15 NIV instructs us to “always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” I want to give you my reason. I have hope today, even though I am locked up for life, because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. I didn’t have hope on the streets. Truth be told, while I was free, I was in prison! It didn’t have any walls, but it was still prison. On the streets, I had everything visible—but I was completely empty, emotionally and spiritually. If only I had known then what I know now! If only God had been a part of my life! I would have been equipped to get through the pains of life. That’s why I am so passionate about telling others about the hope and freedom they can have through a relationship with Jesus. And they

Glimpses of Glory by Becky Coursen

Just ask the animals, and they will teach you. Ask the birds of the sky, and they will tell you. Job 12:7

can have this hope and freedom anywhere— even in prison. Today, I sit with two life sentences—the one that man gave me, and the one that God gave me. Man’s sentence condemns. God’s sentence frees. I am incarcerated; yet I am free! Through Christ I have peace, joy, happiness, love, and forgiveness. I also live with the knowledge that I am a child of God and I am in His care. God helps His children! Do you want this freedom and unwavering hope? It can be yours, whatever your situation. Are you tired? Confused? Do you need a friend to listen and understand? Then call out to God. Give Him your feelings, your worries, your questions…and let Him heal you (1 Peter 5:7). He will transpose your pain into joy, your fears into strength, your sorrows into happiness, and He will give rest to your weary soul (Matthew 11:28–30). V

A low sun reaches across the sky with long, golden fingers. It is quiet here except for a strange, almost eerie chorus of insects left over from summer. I pause in my walk just to look and listen. “Oh, God, it’s so beautiful,” I whisper reverently. Currents of evening air descend on the grasses that still hold the mild warmth of the day. A soft evening haze is born, and the earth celebrates with little white seed puffs that float in the air to catch the last rays. A night owl gives out a first timid note. “Oh, God,” I repeat. “Surely heaven is here.” I actually do suspect that heaven pokes its fingers through the darkness of this world here and there, touching the finite and reminding us of an Eden we have forgotten. Sometimes I know it—I see it or hear it, and sometimes I even taste it. It’s heavenly beauty given to encourage us that we were not actually created for a finite life of destruction and sadness. I think this is the Lord’s quiet calling to our eternal inner man through our temporal outer one. It’s grace. V

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FROM THE FATHER’S HEART

Above The Circumstances

Are you experiencing victorious living? Is your life filled with

purpose, love, joy, and peace? Do you have

hope for your future?

Forgiveness for your past? Strength for your tomorrow? Right now you might be thinking, “Are you kidding me? Joy, peace, purpose? Worth, strength, forgiveness? I’ll never have those things! Look at where I am! Look at what I’ve been through. Look at what I’ve done. Look at what has been done to me.” Friend, right now, no matter what your past or present, all of these things can be yours. You can have peace that passes all understanding, joy in the midst of hardship, love and acceptance despite your failures, forgiveness, and a fresh start. Your life can have purpose. It doesn’t matter if you are sitting in a mansion or in a jail cell or somewhere in between,

I am the Lord your God who takes away your sin and the sin of the world. Do not fear man; do not fear the unknown. Your life is in My hands, and I will not let you go. Be not dismayed or troubled, for I go before you. I will make straight paths for your feet. I will remove the obstacles or cause you to conquer them. I will take care of those enemies that are too strong for you. Rise up, My child, and be bold—I, the Lord God Almighty, am on your side. I will not fail you. Draw close. Seek Me constantly and set your mind and heart on things above. I am doing a new thing; something you cannot imagine. Man will not be able to understand it. I am the Lord your God. I make a way when man says there is no way. I remove hindrances as you step forward with Me and hide yourself in Me. Take the time to learn from Me. Listen and then obey. My power will move mightily in you; do not fear it. I will protect you. I will use you to touch others. Never allow bitterness or offense to settle in your heart. Stay on guard. Satan will bring opportunities for offense daily. Let them fall to the ground. Believe in Me above all. Don’t look at your circumstances and waver in your faith. I am the Lord your God. Nothing is too hard for Me. V

a victorious life can be yours TodaY!

How? Through a relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ. If you do not currently have a relationship with God, begin one right now. Romans 10:8–10 nkjv explains how: “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart…that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” As you accept what Christ has done for you and put your faith in Him alone for salvation, you are then free to have a relationship with God and experience His peace, power, presence, and love. You don’t have to do anything to earn God’s love and forgiveness. It’s yours for the asking! After you’ve received this free gift of salvation, guess what? You are then able to step into the life of victory Christ died to give you—an abundant life of peace, joy, worth, love, and purpose. As you grow in your relationship with Him through studying and applying the Word of God and by trusting Him, these things are released in your daily life.

Will you pray with me right now and receive all that God intends for you?

Dear Lord, I confess that I am a sinner in need of salvation. I thank You for sending Your Son, Jesus, to save me from my sins. Thank You that He laid down His life for me so that I could have a new life in Him. I receive, by faith, this forgiveness of sin. I now give my life, my past, and my future to You. Guide my steps and speak to my heart, Lord. Amen

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MINISTRY NEWS In 2016, we added a new facet to our ministry—Shine Bright and Write events! Our Shine Bright and Write events bring together people who desire to encourage the brokenhearted and carry out God’s command to visit prisoners through the avenue of written correspondence. In the unintimidating atmosphere of a home or church, we provide a time of fellowship and an opportunity to write words of encouragement to inmates. Perhaps you’d consider hosting one of these awesome, life-changing events? Your friends will love it! For more information about hosting a Shine Bright and Write event in your home or church, e-mail Linda Cubbedge at linda@kojministries or call 352-478-2098.

First Baptist Starke (in Starke, FL) hosts Shine Bright and Write events every month. Consider hosting your own Shine Bright and Write event. Contact linda@kojministries.org or call 352-478-2098.

2016

In our Victorious Living Correspondence Outreach Team has grown to

Since April 2015,

1,000 inmates

31 writers

Carry It Out Inform your church about our prison ministry. Our outreach helps the church carry out Jesus’ mandate to visit prisoners by: ✚ training the church to effectively minister to inmates through correspondence; ✚ providing a proven, safe outreach tool and method to reach lost souls; ✚ giving adults of all ages the opportunity to bring healing to the brokenhearted, even from home; and ✚ encouraging a connection between the church and a local inmate for future mentorship upon release. This connection brings help and restoration to an inmate, thereby reducing the rate of recidivism.

And the King will say, “I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!” Matthew 25:40

who evangelize, encourage, and equip inmates on our discipleship list.

have been added to our discipleship list, receiving monthly devotions and letters from our Victorious Living Correspondence Outreach Team. As of October 2016, we minister to 1,330 inmates on a monthly basis! 26 kojministries.org Issue 4 2016

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Every day, our Victorious Living Correspondence Team receives letters from inmates who love the Lord and who desire to encourage us in our faith journey. These letters lift our spirits, strengthen our faith, and spur us on to continue the work the Lord has put before us. We hope these letters will encourage your heart as well.

The Process Are you an inmate in need of encouragement? Our Victorious Living Correspondence Outreach Team is here for you. Here’s what you can expect:

Send a letter to us at: Victorious Living Correspondence Outreach PO Box 328 Starke, FL 32091

You’ll receive: ✚ Welcome letter from founder, Kristi Overton Johnson ✚ Timely, handwritten responses from our correspondence team ✚ Monthly devotionals from Kristi Overton Johnson ✚ Personal subscription to Victorious Living magazine ✚ Prayer support from our Victorious Living Correspondence Team

Please note: Due to the volume of inmate correspondence, we are unable to assign specific writers to individual inmates. Nor can we guarantee continued correspondence with one writer. What we can guarantee, however, is an opportunity for you to correspond with a team of writers who love the Lord and who are committed to encouraging you in your life journey. We are also unable to handle legal cases, contact people on your behalf, or disperse items such as money or stamps. Thank you for understanding.

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Iron Sharpening Iron As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. Proverbs 27:17

Dear Victorious Living Correspondence Team, I read your magazine today for the first time, and all I can say is wow! I read it from cover to cover. Every article brought tears to my eyes. Your magazine gave me hope when I didn’t think there was any. I am currently serving a life sentence, and I am in solitary confinement for the next three years. Everything just seemed hopeless—until I read your magazine. After I finished the inspirational articles, I prayed to God and asked Him to restore the joy in my life. I feel like a weight has been lifted off me. Thank you for showing up on time! Would your team pray for me? Pray that I grow in faith, pray that I will have a spirit of endurance, and pray that I can really experience a true relationship with Jesus. Also, please pray that God will watch over my family and protect them.

Dear Kristi, Thank you so much for sending me your powerful thoughts, wisdom, and love by way of your monthly devotionals. Of course, my gratitude is for your entire team—everyone has picked me up when I was feeling blue. Your wisdom and knowledge have given me hope to conquer the obstacles that are in front of me. Truly, most days I feel like I am climbing Mount Everest in blizzard conditions! I don’t receive very much mail, so when your godly inspired magazine, letters, and monthly devotions show up, I feel peace come over me. The entire team’s dedication, splashed with love, certainly has affected the needs of incarcerated individuals everywhere.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my letter. I look forward to hearing from someone soon.

If your team were major league baseball players, the entire crowd would be on their feet, cheering until you took a curtain call. May God bless all of you involved for providing a perfect model of Christ, which is as obvious as light shining in darkness. Your courageous team is truly a class act!

Sincerely,

God bless,

Dominic P. Florida State Prison

Kyle C. Apalachee Correctional Institution

Wow! What excitement! What a thrill! I wish every person of faith could feel in their hearts the intensity of the joy pumping through my heart today. This week I received the new issue (August 2016) of Victorious Living, and I must tell you, it was like getting a visit from God for several days! So, of course, I put aside whatever I was doing and immediately started to read it. To be honest with you, I was so surprised to get that new issue that I totally forgot about my letter that I had sent you. So I was sitting at my desk turning the pages, browsing through the magazine, scanning some of the stories, and as I get toward the end of the issue—BOOM! There’s my letter and my name! What a shock. No words can describe how I felt. You guys really sent my heart soaring.

God is so good to me. All I can do is be grateful and thankful for my blessings, and pray that other people can feel this kind of joy in their daily praise and worship. Thank you for allowing me to be a deliverer of His message, to be a tool that He uses to guide others in His Word. If my written words help one person, then my job is done! Thank you, each and every one involved with the Victorious Living Outreach. My gratitude is endless. This is just the beginning; there is yet much work to do. Angel P. Florida State Prison kojministries.org Issue 4 2016 27

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MINISTRY NEWS UPDATE FROM KOJ MINISTRIES FOUNDER, KRISTI OVERTON JOHNSON

VICTORIOUS LIVING FAMILY When inmates write to our Victorious Living Correspondence Team, they are inviting our ministry into their lives. We answer their invitation with the love of God and encouragement from His Word, for those two things alone have the power to heal broken hearts, transform minds, and restore lives. His love invades the darkness, and His Word brings hope and encouragement as these believers wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled (Romans 15:4). The written Word of God, sent into their lives through our correspondence team, provides a stream of living water that infuses these men and women with life! We are the only contact most of these inmates have with anyone in the outside world. Many of our inmates are serving time in solitary confinement. They have long been forgotten or written off by family and friends. God sends our ministry to them in their darkest hour. Through the Victorious Living magazine, handwritten letters, and monthly devotions we provide, we are able to go where no man can go! As a result, we become their family, and they become a part of our Victorious Living family. I invite you to become a part of the Victorious Living family. Become a part of a family that is strengthening and encouraging each other daily. Be a part of what God is doing in the lives of incarcerated men and women across the nation. Here’s how you can join our family: • Become a prayer partner. • Become a financial partner. Any amount is appreciated and changes lives! • Sponsor an inmate to receive regular discipleship through this quarterly magazine, handwritten letters from our team, and monthly devotions ($20 a month). • Sponsor an entire prison to receive Victorious Living for a year ($1,000 a year). • Share your story of God’s faithfulness in Victorious Living. • Share our ministry with others. Give a gift of Victorious Living to your friends or family. • Invite Kristi to come speak at your church. Her speaking fee goes directly toward the Victorious Living Outreach. V

I have been blessed beyond measure to be on the wisdom to know what to share in each letter I write. To read the responses and witness the moving of God touching the hearts of inmates brings great joy to me. Reading the transformation of souls saved by God brings me to tears! Tears of joy! The more I write, the more the Lord pours the passion in my soul for the inmates and their spiritual journey. Pat (Pennsylvania)

OUTREACH CORRESPONDENTS FROM

6 STATES

1,300+ DEVOTIONS MAILED OUT THIS MONTH TO INMATES IN 10 STATES 70+ PRISON FACILITIES RECEIVING VICTORIOUS LIVING

1,000 NEW INMATES

ADDED TO OUR MAILING LIST IN 2016

65,000 COPIES

OF VICTORIOUS LIVING DISTRIBUTED SO FAR IN 2016

10 READERS PER COPY IN PRISON

WANT TO HELP? PRAY for our ministry BECOME a correspondence

Writer Testimonies Victorious Living Correspondence Team. I pray for

Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies. Hebrews 13:3

Consider hosting your own Shine Bright and Write event. Contact linda@kojministries.org or call 352-478-2098.

team member

SHARE Victorious Living with others

SPONSOR an inmate or prison INVITE Kristi or Linda to your church or organization to share what God is doing through KOJM

SUPPORT our publication and outreaches financially

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Moving Past Injustices wisdom from our victorious living family

Injustices are tough to forgive. Through our Victorious Living Correspondence Outreach, we often meet inmates who testify that they are currently incarcerated for crimes they did not commit. Some tell us they have unfairly been passed over for parole. Talk about difficult situations to overcome! How easy it would be for a person to grow bitter toward their accuser or angry with a flawed system. Negative emotions like these could easily consume them. Yet many of the inmates who write to us have not been consumed by their situations. They have learned to forgive their accusers and the system. And they are using their time behind bars to touch the lives of others and grow stronger in their faith. It’s truly amazing. Their letters often exhibit wisdom, including insight on how God’s children can stay victorious in unfair and painful situations. We’ve touched on the subject of forgiveness in several articles in this issue. Forgiveness is the key to moving forward in tough times. But here are some other wonderful nuggets of wisdom that, if applied, will help us all move past injustices to live lives of victory.

Contentment Jack W., an inmate at Taylor Correctional Institute in Florida, says that contentment in one’s relationship with Christ is key. “When all my worldly possessions were stripped away from me, I learned quickly that I can live well on very little as long as I have my Lord God Almighty, my Savior Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. I really don’t need anything else.” Read about the power of contentment in Philippians 4:11–13. Being content and being tapped into the power of God is what enabled Paul to overcome his own false imprisonment and continue to touch the world!

Die to Self

Lay Aside Fear

Darriel W., an inmate at Calhoun Correctional in Florida, says that staying grounded in the Word of God and in the knowledge of who he was called to be, as well as dying to himself daily, enables him to forgive and move forward. “Dying daily to myself is indeed a step-by-step process. To speak forgiveness and not hatred toward my accusers is hard. But staying in God’s Word, praying, and allowing the Holy Spirit to minister to me helps me stay strong. It keeps my mind from succumbing to Satan’s attacks, especially when he pokes fun at me for being in prison or goes as far as suggesting I take my own life. As I resist him (not tolerate him), he flees, and I am able to remain standing.” (See James 4:7; Zechariah 3:2.)

Angel P., an inmate in Florida State Prison, says, “If God allows me to be in serious perplexity, must He not give me guidance? In positions of great difficulties, much grace? In circumstances of great pressures and trials, much strength? I have every confidence that His resources will prove equal to the emergency! His resources are mine because He is mine and He dwells inside me. My steps of faith fall on what seems void but find the Rock of Christ beneath. I will fear no evil, for God is with me. It is a matter of prayer and trust. I have given my situations entirely into the Lord’s hands. I feel quite at peace that He will provide and be my guide in this and every perplexity.” V

Trust God’s Timing Sharon R., an inmate at Trusty Camp in Gatesville, Texas, is learning that trusting in God’s daily faithfulness is all she needs to stay victorious in an unfair parole situation. “Recently I was overlooked once again for parole, and I found myself in a familiar pit of feeling sorry for myself. But this week during my pity party, I was moved to read one of your ministry’s devotions. There it was, in bold print, the reason I was struggling: “Beyond saving faith, I had no faith for daily living.” I realized I had completely taken God out of the equation of my daily life. All I was trusting in was what I could do. I had limited myself to my temporal circumstances, and I couldn’t see past the physical world around me. God’s faithfulness is all I need. It’s not about just reaching up and taking His hand for salvation; it’s about my never letting it go as I move through life! I must trust that God is never late but know He’s never early. He is always right on time!”

Dying daily to myself is indeed a step-by-step process. To speak forgiveness and not hatred toward my accusers is hard. But staying in God’s Word, praying, and allowing the Holy Spirit to minister to me helps me stay strong.

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It’s not about just reaching up and taking His hand for salvation; it’s about my never letting it go as I move through life!

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OUR CONTRIBUTORS Your story has the power to transform lives and bring much needed hope. See page 15 for specific guidelines. Submit your story online at kojministries.org. Due to Internet restrictions, inmate submissions should be mailed to: PO 328 Starke, FL 32091. LUCY N. ADAMS

KRISTI OVERTON JOHNSON

RICK RENNER

Lucy is the author of 52 Hymn Story Devotions (www.52hymns.com). She lives in Tennessee and has a prison ministry. Sharing the gospel with inmates is as important as the song stories she writes for newspapers. She and her husband of sixty years have ministered in churches in Tennessee and have been missionaries in Korea.

A former world champion water-skier, Kristi is the founder of In His Wakes and KOJ Ministries. She encourages and equips people for victory in every season of life through her writings and speaking engagements. Kristi is the publisher of Victorious Living and a multi-published author. She resides in Central Florida with her husband, Tim, and their three children.

SARAH BECKMAN

NATE MILLER

Sarah speaks to audiences across the country as part of Salt and Clay Ministries, which she founded in 2007. Insights for Christian Living can be found on our blog www.sarahbeckman.org. Her book, Alongside: A Practical Guide for Loving Your Neighbor in their Time of Trial, will be released in February 2017. Sarah and her husband of twentythree years live in Albuquerque, New Mexico and have three teenage children.

Nate is the president/director of In His Wakes. Through his passion for water sports and his love for Jesus Christ, Nate helps at-risk youth discover hope, purpose, and victory. He lives in Bend, Oregon, with his wife, Ivy. If you are interested in learning more about In His Wakes, contact Nate at nate@inhiswakes.com.

Rick is the author of more than thirty books, including his top-selling classics Sparkling Gems from the Greek and Dressed to Kill, which have sold more than a million copies combined. A highly respected leader, teacher, and author within the Christian community, both in the United States and abroad, Rick and his wife Denise have traveled the earth for three decades, teaching the Word of God. They reside in Moscow, Russia, along with their three sons and their families.

ROY A. BORGES

Roy writes about his life experiences from a prison cell in Florida. His stories have appeared in many Christian publications. Roy has won AMY Foundation awards in 1998, 2002, 2003, and 2007. MARK CASTILLOUX

An inmate at Suwanee Correctional Institution, Mark became an ordained minister behind bars to help other inmates discover the love and healing power of God. BECKY COURSEN

Becky is an artist and a high-school English teacher in Northeast Ohio. She hears God best when she is outside working in her flower beds or spending time with her dog, Buddy, and her brand new beehives. LINDA CUBBEDGE

Linda is the director of KOJM’s prison correspondence outreach program. She is passionate about the Lord and leading others to Him. Linda has four children, nine grandchildren, and two great-grandsons.

SUE MOOSE

Sue and her husband have eight children and live in central Florida. She works as a home-care nurse and is often inspired by the patients that she cares for. KENNY MUNDS

Since January 1998, using Hebrews 13:3 as his guide, Kenny has taken the good news of God’s love and forgiveness into prisons all across America. To find out more about his ministry, go to: kennymundsministry.org. CHRIS PATTON

Chris is President/CEO of his family’s business at the Mike Patton Auto Family. His blog, Christian Faith at Work (www.christianfaithatwork.com), is directed to business owners and leaders who wish to integrate their Christian faith into their businesses. Using practical resources and reallife examples from his many years of experience, Chris teaches readers how to run a business from an eternal perspective. He and his wife live in LaGrange, Georgia, with their three children.

BOB WILLIAMSON

Abused as a child, an alcoholic at thirteen, a drug addict at seventeen, and carrying a .357 Magnum and a sawed-off shotgun at nineteen, Bob Williamson was a dangerous, violent, and vicious sociopathic criminal who was incarcerated numerous times. Then he found Jesus, and today, he’s drug and alcohol free, happily married for forty-six years with three college graduate sons and seven grandchildren. He has founded nineteen highly successful companies and is a millionaire many times over. KAYTEE ZENTMEYER

Kaytee and her husband, Johnny, live in Denver, Colorado. Their brand, Know Idea, helps people get to know the idea of their life so they can discover their God-given passions and improve their quality of life through the power of Jesus. Kaytee is a certified life coach. For more information, go to www.know-idea.com. INMATES

A special thank you to our incarcerated brothers and sister, Kyle C., Angel P., Dominic P., Sharon R., Darriel W., and Jack W., who contributed to this issue.

KRISTI DEWS DALE

Kristi is a wife and the mother of three amazing daughters. She holds a master’s degree in public health and is an adjunct business instructor at a local college in North Carolina. Kristi is passionate about encouraging others with Christ’s love.

Is God working in your life? Do you have a story of victory? Share it with our readers!

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An Overcoming Attitude July 12 • Sparkling Gems from the Greek, Volume II by Rick Renner

It seems we live in a world where negativism is the rule of society. Many people think the worst, believe the worst, and constantly talk about worstcase scenarios. But that shouldn’t be the case for believers. Those who bear the name of Christ should walk as He walked—full of faith and confidence in the Father. The best example of this kind of overcoming attitude is found in Philippians 4:13, where the apostle Paul wrote, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” If anyone had a reason to be dominated by the flesh at that moment, it was Paul. Think of it—he was in a horrible prison and facing terrible circumstances. But rather than let his flesh dominate him with negativism, Paul used a number of powerful Greek words to declare that he had the upper hand over all the natural challenges that were around him—and that he could do anything through Christ who strengthened him. Although Paul was in a horrible predicament at the time he wrote the book of Philippians, he declared, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me!” I want us to look at this verse today, because it is loaded with insights about having an overcoming attitude. When Paul said, “I can do,” the phrase is a translation of the Greek word ischuos. In classical Greek, Old Testament Greek, and New Testament Greek, that word denotes the strength and power of gods. But when ischuos was noted to operate in individuals, it caused them to be superior to others, to be champions and victors. It gave them the upper hand in every situation, so that individuals operating in ischuos prevailed in every circumstance. Furthermore, Paul adds, “I can do all things.” The phrase “all things” is from the Greek word panta, the word pan with ta attached. The word pan is an all-encompassing word that includes everything and excludes nothing.

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The little word ta denotes even the smallest of things. So when Paul uses the word panta, he is proclaiming that through Christ, he has the upper hand over everything, with nothing excluded, including even the most minute details. An interpretive translation would read: “I have the ischuos power operating in me, and it causes me to be superior—a champion and victor! This ischuos gives me the upper hand in every situation I face and causes me to prevail in every circumstance.” But Paul then went on to say, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” The word strengtheneth in Greek is a translation of the word endunamounti, a present active participle of endunamoo. The word endunamoo is a compound of en and dunamis. The word en means into, such as placing water into a vessel, and dunamis means power. But more importantly is to note dunamis depicted the forces of an entire army. In fact, in the Old Testament Septuagint, the word dunamis was primarily used to picture the combined forces of a complete military. So when those words en and dunamis are compounded, the new word endunamoo pictures the power of the whole army being deposited into a person. Making this even more significant is the fact that Paul uses it in the present active participle, which means he was declaring this type of power was presently acting in him and would continue to express itself through him. He was telling us that, deposited into his spirit and at his disposal, was the equivalent of an entire fighting army. So the full verse could be interpreted as follows: “I have the ischuos power operating in me, and it causes me to be superior—a champion and victor! This ischuos gives me the upper hand in every situation I face and causes me to prevail in every circumstance, and it is all through Christ, who has filled me and continuously infuses me with the strength of a whole army!” If Paul could write this in the horrific situation he was in at that time and really mean it, there is absolutely nothing you face that you can’t overcome too. God’s ischuos power is available to you as well, to cause you to be superior, to be a champion—a victor—to have the upper hand in every circumstance you face. When He filled you with the Holy Spirit, He infused you with the ability of a whole army (endunamoo)—and He continues to infuse you with that strength at this very moment. Your flesh may try to tell you that there’s no chance you’ll make it through what you’re facing. That flesh will try to tell you that you might as well give up and throw in the towel, because there’s no hope for you. But that’s your moment to take charge of your flesh, command it to get into subjection, and release the power of God that’s been mightily deposited inside you! Soon you’ll find a supernatural flow of divine power coming forth from your inner man that will give you the upper hand in whatever situation you find yourself. Rather than being dominated by your mind, body, and negative emotions, you’ll find that you have become a mighty instrument in God’s hand, through whom His power can and will operate! Regardless of what you face, you’ll have an overcoming attitude that prevails in every situation! V kojministries.org Issue 4 2016 31

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GIVE

Victorious Living PO Box 120951 Clermont, FL 34712-0951

Non Profit Org US Postage

PAID

VICTORIOUS LIVING

Permit No. 610 Jacksonville, FL

GET

VICTORIOUS LIVING People everywhere desperately need to know about God’s power, love, and grace. With your help and God’s Truth, Victorious Living can set captives free! $ .00 25 Donation You’ll receive VL for one year, and an inmate on our list will also receive a personal copy for one year. (You may also provide the name of an inmate.) $ .00 1,000 Donation enables KOJM to send one case (approximately 180 copies) of Victorious Living into a prison for 1 year (4 issues). $ .00 20 / Month provides monthly discipleship for an inmate on our list. Inmate will receive Victorious Living Magazine, monthly devotions, and personal correspondence.

A monthly gift of $ to help with KOJM general expenses. A one-time gift of $ to help with KOJM general expenses. Yes, I commit to pray for Victorious Living Outreach

Are you interested in:

l hosting a Shine Bright and Write event? l being a member of our correspondence team? l having Kristi Overton Johnson speak at your church/organization?

Become a Part of the Victorious Living Family Today! • Go online at kojministries.org • Call 352-478-2098

YES! I Want to Be a Part! __________________________________________________ Name #1

__________________________________________________ Address #1

__________________________________________________ City | State | Zip #1

__________________________________________________ E-mail #1

______________________________________________________________________________________ Telephone #1

__________________________________________________ Name #2

__________________________________________________ Address #2

__________________________________________________ City | State | Zip #2

__________________________________________________ E-mail #2

Telephone #2

A card will be sent to recipients on your behalf to inform them of your gift! If you would like to send more than one gift, please list names on a separate piece of paper.

r Check attached (make payable to Victorious Living) r Debit (include voided check) r Mastercard r VISA r Please automatically renew my partnership! Donation Amount _______________________________________________ Cardholder Name (please print) ____________________________________ Card Number __________________________________________________ Expiration Date ________________________________________________ Credit Card Billing Address (required)________________________________ Signature_____________________________________________________ If you have any questions, please call 352-478-2098. Mail completed form and Victorious Living support to: Victorious Living • PO BOX 120951 • Clermont, FL 34712-0951 Send all inmate correspondence to Starke, FL address on page 4.

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