Here are 10 things I think are interesting…

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Here are 10 things I think are interesting…

 

1. I think it’s interesting that Condoleeza Rice says, “It does not matter where you came from it matters where you are going” (and gets BIG applause for it) yet there is a very vocal group of conservatives obsessed with President Obama’s past.

 

2. I think it is interesting that Mike Huckabee said he’d vote for a Mormon “in a heartbeat” and that being a Mormon is not a “disqualifier.”

 

3. I think it’s interesting that President Obama changed his itinerary from going to Texas today to Louisiana instead as soon as Mitt Romney stated he was going to visit Louisiana.

 

4. I think it is interesting that Clint Eastwood (an Oscar winning film director) used a theatrical “devise” (talking to an invisible President Obama in an empty chair) at the Republican National Convention and people in the entertainment business (some call it network news) called it “weird.”

 

5. I think it’s interesting (irritating, really) that Hurricane Isaac left too much rain down South and not enough in the KC area.

 

6. I think it’s interesting that the film 2016 Obama’s America has made over $12,000,000.

 

7. I think it is interesting that the KC Royals sweep the top two games in their division in 6 straight games when KC is hopelessly out of contention.

 

8. I think it’s interesting that the KC Chiefs rack up 247 yards rushing and allow only 46 yards rushing against Green Bay and they get beat 24 to 3.

 

9. I think it’s interesting that Sen. Claire McCaskill (D) leads Rep. Todd Akin (R) by only one percentage point in the polls (done by a liberal source no less) 45%-44%.

 

10. I think it’s interesting that my favorite food is a cookie, yet my least favorite cereal is Cookie Crisp. (Ironic, ain’t it?)

 

chris

BONUS #11: I think it's interesting that I'm going t sit in the rain for 2 hours at Wesley's football game tonight in Norborne, MO. (Should have kept that "Isaac" crack to my self.)

 

Criminal Career Options

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I was talking to a young man in the common area of Unit “E” at the Newton Correctional Facility.  He was from the Quad-Cities and 26 years of age. He was nervous about getting out of prison and “not” being a drug dealer.  Our conversation went something like this:

 

QUAD-CITIES: Chris, I’m nervous about getting out.

ME: What are you most nervous about?

QUAD-CITIES: Well, I can’t deal drugs anymore.

ME: Yes, that’s right.

QUAD-CITIES: I don’t know what I’m going to do for money.

ME: What jobs have you had in the past?

QUAD-CITIES: Dealing drugs.

ME: Besides that.

QUAD-CITIES: That’s it. I’ve only ever just been a drug dealer.

ME: You’re kidding.

QUAD-CITIES: Nope.

ME: Never had a paper route or worked fast-food or retail or anything?

QUAD-CITIES: Never needed to.

ME: How long have you been dealing drugs?

QUAD-CITIES: Since Junior High.

ME: You sold drugs AT a Junior High or you were IN Junior High when you started dealing?

QUAD-CITIES: Both. I was IN Junior High and I was AT a Junior High.

ME: What did your Dad do for a living?

QUAD-CITIES: Drug Dealer.

ME: Grandpa?

QUAD-CITIES: Drug Dealer.

ME: Siblings?

QUAD-CITIES: Dealers.

ME: Neighbors?

QUAD-CITIES: Not all of them were Dealers.

ME:…

QUAD-CITIES: Some of them were Cooks.

ME: Meth Cooks?

QUAD-CITIES: Oh…yeah.

ME: Do you know anyone who is not a Drug Dealer?

QUAD-CITIES: You.

ME: Anyone else?

QUAD-CITIES:……………My IFI mentor?

 

Insert your own life lesson here: ________________________________________.

 

chris

The Penal System/Penitentiaies/Corrections (and how to tell them apart)

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The word “jail” literally means, “a small cave or cove in a mountain.”  Apparently back in the day “bad people” were placed in those small caves as a punishment.  All the men at the Newton IFI had been to “jail”.

 

The word “prison’s” origin comes from the term for “taken.”  You are “taken” against your will to be confined when you do something against the law.

 

All societal response to “law-breaking” throughout most of human history had been in the form of “punishment.” Beatings, brandings, stocks, irons, slavery, torture, and death have been practiced and are practiced still today through out the world.  If you hurt someone, you were hurt in return (the ole’ “eye for an eye” concept.) Lawbreakers were sent to “penal” colonies to be punished, hence the term “penal system.”

 

In to 1700’s and 1800’s, however, there was a change in philosophy. The “Pennsylvania System” was incorporated in America and throughout Europe.  The term “Penitentiary” was coined.  The Quakers believed that a Lawbreaker should reflect on his crimes as well as the status of his life in general and he should “repent” or become “penitent” hence the term “Penitentiary.” It was believed a convicted criminal should “spend time alone with God” in a small cell, much like a monk.  He should pray and feel really really sorry. Then, when he was released, he would regret his crime and want to be a changed man.  The prisoner was isolated most of the day with little human interaction.

 

This was the primary “prison” philosophy up until the 1960’s and into the 1970’s.  Then the term, “Corrections” began to be used.  It was believed the Lawbreakers had some “errors” in their thinking that needed to be “corrected.”  So an educational and medical model crept into the prison system.  Different treatments and classes became available such as Alcoholics Anonymous, GED programs, Counseling, Job Training, Criminal Thinking Classes, Classes about Victims, Social Training Classes, and Re-entry Classes.

 

So, here’s the bottom line:  all three approaches (punishment/repentance/correction) have been dismal failures as far as changing people from Law-breakers to law-abiders.  At least with “punishment” the goal of “you did this so this happens to you” is fulfilled.  But no one can make anyone “feel sorry” or “think correctly” against that person’s will.

 

All three of those aspects are “right” in what they can do.  They all have a place in the changing of a law-breaker to a law-abider.  The criminal must be punished severely and aversely.  Justice demands it. The criminal must feel sorry and repent of his ways.  The criminal must change his way of thinking and learn a new way of living.

 

The question is not “what” must happen, but “how” can it happen.

 

I quickly learned how to present IFI to prison/treatment in a short synopsis that was true, but also was in terminology they could connect with.  Here is how I presented it (over and over and over…even under oath):

 

“At IFI we do not approach crime as primarily an education problem, cognitive problem, health problem, or societal problem.  We approach crime as primarily a “heart” problem and a “spiritual” problem.  If a man’s heart changes, his actions will change.”

 

I remember one time a group of Iowa State Legislators toured the IFI program.  Some of the Representatives were pro-IFI, but one woman was vehemently against IFI.  I kept talking about “men’s hearts” and “men’s spirits.” The woman could no longer contain herself and she blurted out, “You know, you keep talking about ‘hearts’ and ‘spirits’ but I don’t believe people HAVE ‘SPIRITS!’”

 

That was a telling comment, and a very “Western” comment at that.  Western thought is that there is no supernatural.  There is a belief that only the tangible exists and that only the brain and the body are involved in the life of a man.

 

But that in not so in “Eastern” thought. Even Eastern secular thought believes that there is an “intangible” or “spiritual” world that affects us.  In “Eastern” thought a man has three paths within him, his mind or thoughts, his will and emotions, and his spirit.  At the place where all three of these paths intersect is a chair or a throne. And in that chair or throne sits a man’s “Heart” who rules all three paths. Remember, Jesus was a Middle-Eastern man and he spoke of “the heart” often.

 

Everyone who is not saved has the Prince of the Rulers of the Air seated on that throne in their lives.  The spirit of the World, The very spirit of LAWLESSNESS rules in that place in the heart of the unbeliever (I didn’t say that to the treatment people) and until he is thrown down and replaced by the Good and Just King, LAWLESSNESS will continue.

 

That was our compelling reality and something we couldn’t cause to happen. God himself had to move upon a man and the man had to say “yes” to Him.

 

All we could do was tend the environment for that to happen.

 

And it did happen…often.

 

chris

IFI Gets Studied (or how flexible is your paradigm?)

167

On one hand, I was very familiar with government entities as a private/contract provider of public services. At the King’s Daughters’ School we had contracts with The Tennessee Department of Education, The Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation, the Department of Children’s Services, individual school systems from multiple states, multiple contracts from children’s services agencies from all over the country, insurance companies, and private individuals.  I juggled a lot of contracts.

 

On the other hand, I was really naïve as to the entrenched traditions and biases of the correctional system.  I didn’t realize how threatening IFI was to some long-standing practices and to the very nature of prison itself. (I’m going to write more about that at another time.)

 

Needless to say, we had a lot of visitors.  Some were blind promoters of our program without really knowing what we did.  Others were blind opponents of our program that were not interested in facts or stats.  There were a rare few who really just wanted to come see what we did and if it was effective.

 

A young lady came (let’s call her Pam, because I can’t remember her name) from a national prison treatment program entity (let’s call it the National Therapeutic Community Organization again, that’s totally made-up.) Pam from NTCO traveled the country assessing and accrediting prison treatment programs.  She and her minions were at Newton to see if what we did at IFI compared to the “best practices” of prison treatment.

 

Statistically speaking, prison treatment programs fail miserably, as does prison itself when it comes to coming back to prison.  We were kind of there in Iowa on the premise of, “Guess what traditional prison treatment people? You are failures and we’re here to do something different.” We were on a waiver (so to speak) and we were not obligated to participate.  We didn’t need the “accreditation.”  Jack Cowley would have fought their assessment tooth and nail. But Sam and I welcomed it.  We weren’t afraid of what they would find and we certainly had nothing to hide.  I wanted to see how we stacked-up.

 

In came the assessment team, and because I was in charge of the in-prison treatment program I was the first to be interviewed by Pam.  She took copious notes and asked excellent questions.  Near the end of the interview, our conversation went something like this:

 

ME: Miss Pam, I want to tell you something up front about what you will likely find as you assess our program

PAM: Yes?

ME: You’ll see many processes you are familiar with.

PAM: Ok?

ME: You’ll see education groups, insight groups, independent studies, processing groups…

PAM: Yes, go on (as she begins writing furiously on her yellow legal pad)

ME: You’ll see shared values and expectations in a community setting…

PAM: Uh-huh (scribble, scribble, scribble…)

ME: You’ll see peer counseling, tutoring and accountability…

PAM: (scribble, scribble, erase. Scribble, scribble…)

ME: You’ll see community connections and volunteers with pro-social modeling.

PAM: Yessssssss…

ME: Then you’ll se a lot of outcomes…

PAM:……

ME: You’ll see pro-social interactions and insight. You’ll notice brighter affects and happiness.  You see participants who can clearly articulate what their crimes were and how it affected their victims, their families and even themselves…

PAM: Yes, Yes…Yes…

ME: Then you will try to connect the dots from one particular treatment activity and how it affects a particular and specific outcome or trait.

PAM: YES! (SCRIBBLE SCRIBBLE SCRIBBLE…)

ME: But at this point you’ll become a bit frustrated because on the one hand you’ll have a lot of varying processes and on the other you’ll see all these wonderful desired outcomes.  But something happens in between the process and the outcome that you don’t know about and that you won’t be able to quantify…

PAM: (SCRRRRRRIIIIIBBBBBBBBLLLLLLLLLE……)

ME: What happens between the Process and the outcome is what we like to call,

“A Miracle.”

 

PAM: (dead stop……) What?

 

ME: A Miracle happens. The men’s hearts change and they are different people and therefore, do and say different things. I can’t explain it any differently. A Miracle happens.

 

Pam walked out of my office in a bit of a daze.  I didn’t talk to her again for the rest of the week as she talked to counselors, inmates, staff and observed everything I told her she would observe.

 

Weeks later, a whole team of treatment representatives, DOC officials, evaluators and prison officials all crowed into the library in Building, “M” to here the results of our treatment evaluation.  When it was time for PAM to report on all of the specifics, I felt a bit bad for her.  She began her report something like this:

 

PAM: IFI practices most of the components of successful therapeutic communities. They utilize a variety of groups. There is community life and shared accountability.  There is pro-social modeling and lots of education.  And the outcomes are good as evidenced in the lived of the participants. They are positive and pro-social in their demeanor. They seem hopeful and have solid outlooks for their release. They are articulate when it comes to their triggers and they have good plans.  Upon looking at the treatment components and the outcomes there really wasn’t a clear…that is to say… there really wasn’t a direct link…when trying to….

 

Then she made probably the best descriptive statement about IFI I’ve ever heard.

 

She said:

 

“For years in the treatment field we’ve talked a lot about cognitive restructuring. What IFI is attempting to do is the most difficult kind of restructuring of all, the restructuring of the heart.”

 

Well said.

 

chris

It seems like Mike Bickle was stalking me...

168

 

In 1988 Amy and I lived in Nashville.  Our home church was The Belmont Church on Music Row.  Belmont had a brand new building and there was a lot of excitement, as well as a lot of guest speakers.

 

We were all kind of relieved (or disappointed) that the Rapture hadn’t happened in spite of those theological masterpieces, “88 reasons Why the Rapture Will Be in 1988” and it’s follow-up, “89 Reasons Why the Rapture Will Be in 1989” by Edgar C. Whisenant.

…but back to all the guest speakers.

One dude who came to Belmont was a little Vineyard guy named Mike Bickle.  He was very, very excited.  He raised his voice a lot when he talked, not in a shouty way or even as a preaching technique. He just got very enthusiastic and his voice got louder and louder.  He had with him an old dude, Paul Cain.

Apparently Paul Cain was a “Prophet.” From an early age and he would “read-people’s-mail” at church, especially church leadership. Then he was out of circulation for 40 years or something like that and now he was back in the “prophesy” business again (that was a horribly inadequate and inaccurate recounting, I’m just kind of lazy right now.)

Bickle and Cain were at Belmont for a few meetings and Amy and I went. The only thing I remembered was that I thought Paul Cain was a terrible preacher.  His jokes were sophomoric and corny.  He meandered as he talked. I don’t remember any points from any of his “lessons.”  But then he would pray and prophesy of people and that seemed to have an effect.

Bickle kept talking about prayer and worship and his vision and prayer and worship…(and prayer and worship.)  He was weird, but I liked him.

Fast forward to 1998…

 
Amy, the family and were entrenched at New Life in Columbia and we were in the midst of full-blown charismatic revival.  We heard about Brownsville and Toronto, Smithton, and Kansas City, specifically “the Kansas City Prophets” with (who else) Mike Bickle, Paul Cain, and a host of others.

Fast forward again to 2001…

Amy, the family and I were in Newton and I was fighting to keep my head above water at IFI.  Prison Fellowship scheduled a conference for all of the IFI staff.  The entire staffs from Texas, Kansas, and Iowa were going to meet for a weekend in Kansas City.  Our Aftercare Manager, Greg Allen, was very excited to be in Kansas City to go to this new 24-hour prayer and worship ministry called IHOP, The International House of Prayer started by (you guessed it) Mike Bickle.  So after the super-boring IFI meetings, a bunch of us would pile in our rented 15-passenger van and head to IHOP.  It was a bit tricky to find, but we found it.

The first think I noticed was that the Prayer Room was really just 4 double-wide trailers lashed together, just like M-Building at the prison.  The next thing I noticed was that the floor of the trailers was really spongy (I later found out that Mike Bickle thought it would be a great idea to put judo mats under the carpet so it would be soft for those on their knees. It was not a great idea.)

We got to the prayer room at around 10:30 PM.  There were people scattered throughout the room that could maybe seat a couple hundred.  There was a map of the world on one wall, a place to take communion at another wall and some people at the front of the room with guitars singing.  I plopped down in a chair and closed my eyes.  I could tell they were improvising their lyrics around a 4-chord progression.  Each singer would sing a bit in-turn and they would “go-around-the-horn” as it were.  I had my Bible in my hand but I never opened it. I just listened.  Soon, one person from the worship team left, then another, then another, finally a new guitar player sat down and he began to sing.  Someone tapped me on the shoulder and said, “We probably should go, we have a very early morning.” I was about to question leaving within a ½ of our arrival until I looked at my watch, it was after midnight. We had been there nearly 2-hours and it seemed like 30 minutes. I knew I’d be coming back the next night.

The next night, Friday night, we arrived at the same time. There were more people in the prayer room than the previous night.  I sat in the very front row just a few feet from the worship team. There was a thin young woman on the piano and three other young women singing.  To the side was a percussion player who also sang.  They again sang a simple repeated lyric over a 4-chord progression.  This went on for some time, They sang:

Eternity is written in my heart

 

Eternity is written in my heart

Eternity is written in my heart

Eternity is written in my heart

Try as I might to find another lover I find there is there in no other

Try as I might to find another lover I find there is there in no other

Over and over they sang these phrases.  In the pauses one of the singers would say short prayers/phrases, “There is none like you…no one can take your place…you love us.”

After some time the intensity changed and the young piano player began to sing:

If I never, walk on water

If I never see the miracle

If I never hear your voice so loud

It’s enough to know you love me

It’s enough to be here at your side

I couldn’t leave if I tried

 And around the horn they would go…

The young woman then shouted out, “Lord You love us…you bend down and kiss our hearts!” Tears sprung from my eyes as I sang along.  I didn’t want to leave that room, but more importantly, I didn’t want to leave who I could feel and perceive in that room.

On our way back to the hotel that night I whispered something very small in my heart. I said, “Lord, I never want to leave IFI. It is perfect for me, but if I have to leave, I would want to come here.”

Little did I know what that prayer would do…

chris

 

For More Info

 

mikebickle.org/

 

www.mistyedwards.com/

 

www.paulcain.org/

 

The "88 Reasons" Guy

 

www.ihopkc.org/

 

 

 

 

gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw

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I Corintians 3: 10-15

¹⁰ By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. ¹¹ For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. ¹² If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, ¹³ their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. ¹⁴ If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. ¹⁵ If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.

I've been thinking about this a lot...

chris

If God were a football referee...

170

So today was Christian's and Wesley's first football games of the season.  We left at 7:45 this morning for Joplin to play the Cornerstone Spartans.  Christian's game was first and at the end...it was a tie, 12 all.

Then the varsity game started.

The Lions drove the ball to the 10-yard line but turned it over on downs. The first play for the Spartans was a hard run by #31, 15-yards straight up the middle.  The second play the Spartan QB threw a bad pass over the middle which was intercepted by the Lions' middle linebacker and returned for a touchdown.

#31 was livid.  He threw off his helmet and began to scream at the ref, "I WAS HELD! I WAS HELD!"  The ref threw a penalty flag for unsportsmanlike conduct.  #31 screamed at his coach, "I WAS HELD! I WAS HELD!" as he tugged on the front of his own jersey.

Then the hayseed head coach started yelling at #31, then another coach started yelling at #31, then even another coach started yelling at #31. #31 then flung off his shoulder pads and jersey and stomped off the sideline cursing and fuming.  As he made his way behind the bleachers he was then surrounded by a crowd of parents, fans and others all trying to "calm him down."

Now maybe the "calm-him-down-mob" surrounding  #31 wasn't listening earlier because I got the distinct impression that #31 didn't like to be held.  Yet one of the "dad-types" of the "try-to-calm-him-down-but-actually-enrage-him-more-mob" grabbed #31's shirt (always a good tactic to de-escalate a situation) and of course #31 proceeded to punch the dad-type in his bearded face repeatedly, (however, the bearded dad-type inexplicably continued to hold onto #31's shirt.)

Later in the game #85 also stomped off the field and threw his helmet because one of the Lion's players knocked him to the ground when he was trying to run with the football (this maneuver is typically called "a tackle.")  #85 was subsequently surrounded by the villagers holding pitchforks and torches yelling CALM DOWN! CALM DOWN!

At this point the hayseed head coach calls a timeout and gives his team a "pep-talk" that I couldn't hear over his own shouting.

The next series one of the Spartan players displayed a bit of frustration. To this the hayseed coach bellowed at him, "Not only do I see you," as he points to the sky "BUT HEEEEEE SEEEES YOU!"

That's a lot of pressure on a 15-year-old kid.

After the game Wesley said #31 "rage-quit." Apparently "rage-quitting" is a gaming term where a player of an on-line game gets shot in the virtual world and just throws his controller and quits.

I like that term.

chris

PS: On the Spartan sideline, where I was sitting in the bleachers, they had a table with water coolers and water bottles.  When I went to the Lion's sideline they had a table of cut-up watermelon and homemade oatmeal-raisin cookies with M&Ms.  Ahhhhhh homeschool sports!

 

The IFI Chronicles: What I can't do

171

What changes a man?  How do men move from the darkness to light?  How do criminals go from lawbreaking to law-abiding? How does an evil man become a good man?  What can we do as a program/ministry to ensure this happens?

 

These were the basic questions we consistently asked ourselves as an IFI staff.  We had a bottom-line mandate from the State of Iowa: Keep ex-offenders from coming back to prison.  To some extent the process by which we achieved that goal was not interfered with as long as we were achieving that goal.

 

The first (and foremost) answer we concluded for the question, “How can we change men?” was, “We can’t.”  Possibly we could change men to become worse, but certainly we couldn’t, within our own power, change them for good.

 

I think we all recognized that the establishing of IFI in Iowa was miraculous.  Iowa was not on the radar for Prison Fellowship.  A state like Florida was.  It was a southern conservative state with lots of rich people and Jeb Bush as governor.  Brother George W. was instrumental in IFI Texas, so Florida seemed a natural place to go.

 

But somebody from Iowa heard Chuck Colson talk which made him interested in Prison Fellowship. Then he heard about IFI and he suggested it to the Director of Corrections and the Governor and wha-la, IFI-Iowa, without a major Prison Fellowship presence or donor base or volunteer pool. It was as if God said, “I’m going to show the world something riiiiiiiight…here.” and he placed his finger on that Newton Prison.

 

So we understood that we couldn’t make it happen.  And that really was not some kind of trite christianese slogan, we really couldn’t do it.  Our weakness was hilariously evident. Yet, men began to change, and people in the prison took notice.

 

We weren’t without responsibility or action or effort. We all worked a lot of hours.  We were called to be faithful as a co-laborer in the work, but we could claim no credit.

 

I began explaining what we did to people in agricultural terms.

 

The Bible is full of agricultural terms and analogies. Everyone in Bible times had an intimate relationship with agriculture, or farming.  They either directly or indirectly worked on farms or for farmers of some kind of sustenance occupation, which was convenient for us in Iowa because our prison was surrounded by pastures and fields.

 

The “Parable of the Sower” in Matthew 13 was a crucial passage for us.  It describes the planting of seeds and the growing of crops and the reaping of a harvest.  John 15 talks about Jesus being “The Vine” and producing fruit.  It is a difficult task, being a farmer.  There is a lot of preparation and maintenance of the fields and crops.

 

A farmer maintains an environment where crops can grow. A farmer cannot cause crops to grow.  He can till and weed and water and fertilize and prune and care for a field, but he has not the power to cause one grape to ripen on the vine.

 

That was our task, to maintain an environment where God would do His work.  We could weed, water and prune in the men’s lives, but we couldn’t cause them to Love God or grow.  That was God’s responsibility.

 

chris

IFI Year 2

172

Back to the “IFI Chronicles”

 

We moved to Newton and I started at IFI in August of 2000.

 

By August of 2001 we had two new counselors, a new secretary, and a new Aftercare Manager.  Much of class 1 and 2 had completed the program and had moved on. We had a new warden, new treatment director, and a new unit manager.  Amy, the boys and I had renovated and moved into “The Bergstrom” house in Newton.  With all the changes in our lives, we had even more changes.

 

The IFI staff was unified. We had a group of DOC staff that we were working collaboratively.  We had worked on volunteers and supporting churches.  After 12-months of turmoil, we were poised for some type of growth.

 

Sam and I were committed to confront head-on the road-blocks constructed by our predecessors, and we were making headway.

 

We spent a lot of time praying as a staff and as a community.  We scheduled early morning prayer times where we cried out to the Lord as a staff and as a community.

 

In the midst of this time and even throughout the rest of our time in Newton God spoke clearly to me in many areas.

 

Here is one of those breakthrough “words.”

 

God said (so to speak) I’m not interested in your little prison ministry.  I’m, not interested in your little “Unit E” or your little Prison Fellowship.  I’m interested in My Kingdom and My Name.  I give you everyone whose foot touches this prison property. And I give you their extended families.  Every inmate. Every guard. Every service worker. Every visitor. Every administrative person. Everyone. You have claims on EVERYONE. Not just those 242 guys in the unit.  I want to change the world.

 

It was a message I spoke of often to the staff and community.  It broadened our vision and purpose.  We had a time of great growth over the next three years.  It was a rich time.

 

chris

I Meet Chuck Colson

173

The first InnerChange Freedom Initiative Program was established in the Carol Vance Unit at the minimum security prison near Sugar Land Texas outside of Houston in 1996-97.  All the principles from the Humaita Prison in Brazil were worked through at the Carol Vance Unit.  Then Governor George Bush visited the IFI-Houston as did many politicians.  It was the U.S. template for how IFIs were to look, act, and feel.  Jack Cowley (National Director of IFI) felt it was important for me to see the Carol Vance Unit in action.  So I took a trip down to Houston.

 

Texas is huge and flat.  Houston is also huge and flat, and in September? Horribly hot and unbearably humid. Jack met me at the airport and drove me to meet Jerry Wilger (IFI Executive Director) and his wife, Glenna.  I just wanted to listen to them and get a feeling for their spirits.

 

We went through flat, dust, dirt fields to the prison.  And we did a lot of sweating.  The compound was a maze of one story buildings and fences. The inmates all wore white.  There were huge fans blowing hot air around.  Of course the guys were great (not as great as my guys in Iowa, but still great.) The staff was great.  It was a sweaty-hot-great environment.

 

The main meeting area for IFI-Houston was an outdoor revival tent full of chairs.  Every day the IFI community would meet under that tent.  But that was about to change…

 

Money had been raised and a new (air conditioned) treatment building was going to be constructed.  There were a lot of folks in suits wandering around the prison…including Chuck Colson himself.

 

Now, I’m not a celebrity chaser, but I was determined to meet him.

 

It was hectic. People were running around and Mr. Colson had an entourage. There were guys with clip boards and phones and they were pointing here and there and Mr. Colson was striding through the yard like they weren’t even there.

 

I was standing to the side so I kept my distance, but then I saw my chance.  I strode up at an intercept angle, stuck out my hand and said, “Mr. Colson, I’m Chris Geil. I’m the new program manager for IFI-Iowa. It’s an honor to meet you.”

 

He and the entourage stopped. He looked me in the eye and said, “Yes. Iowa. That’s a difficult job there. Very difficult. Good luck Chris.”  Then he shook my hand and went on his way.

 

For me, Mission Accomplished.

 

The next day we went to local university for some kind of conference. Chuck was one of the main speakers, so all of us Prison Fellowship employees went to have a presence there.  It was a huge conference and it had something to do with public policy and faith and the law. It was packed.

 

Tom Delay (Texas native and Congressman) introduced Chuck to the crowd (ironic since a couple years later Mr. Delay would be convicted of money laundering and sentenced to 3-years in prison.)  Mr. Colson then gave his address to the several hundred people there.

 

After the speech I was standing near the massive doors leading into the lobby.   Mr. Colson had been bombarded with people and he was shaking hands and giving autographs.  The closer he got to the door the fewer and fewer people were around him.  At last it was just he and a couple of his assistants standing at the door near where I was standing.  I already had my hand shake, so I was just waiting to go back to the hotel.

 

Chuck’s assistant was reviewing his schedule for the rest of the day when Mr. Colson looked up at me and said, “It’s very contentious up there in Iowa. We’re all very interested how IFI does up in such a liberal state.  You have a big job up there Chris, good luck!” The, off he went.

 

Now, he had to have met dozens if not hundreds of people over those two days.  People were clamoring and pawing for his attention the entire time. I was shocked he recognized me, let alone pick right up on the “conversation” we had had the day before.

 

The guy was impressive, and technically, he was my boss.

 

chris

To learn more about Chuck Colson: chuckcolson.org

Yet another Blog about Todd Akin

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Ok, I have to weigh in on this Todd Akin thing…

Here is the quote from Representative Akin that has him in so much trouble:

“It seems to me, from what I understand from doctors, [pregnancies from rape are] really rare. If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down. But let’s assume that maybe that didn’t work or something: I think there should be some punishment, but the punishment ought to be of the rapist, and not attacking the child.”

Now, if I was teaching a Victim’s Impact class or Criminal Thinking class in a prison and Representative Akin was instead Inmate Akin and he made that statement, I would consider (and probably would) kick him out of class and make him reapply.  I certainly wouldn’t allow him to receive treatment credit.

His statement was part “Freudian-slip” and part convenient “science”.

Let’s go with the “science” part.  No one believes that the trauma of rape is any type of “barrier” to protect a woman from pregnancy. Here are the statistics:

“Statistically, the chance of getting pregnant from a one-off rape that involved penis-to-vagina penetration and male orgasm (of course not all rapes do) is about 5%, the same as for consenting sex under the same circumstances.” RAINN: The nation's largest anti-sexual violence organization.

”There were around 25 000 pregnancies occurring from rape each year in the US, say studies done in 1998 and 2000. Of those, about 9000 were aborted.” According to the Kaiser Family Foundation Research

This idea that a woman’s body will “fight-off” the sperm of a rapist is preposterous and no-one (and when I say no one, I mean no one reputable, or even otherwise) adheres to it.  It was quoted by Representative Akins because it suited him and his position on abortions for rape victims.

However, for me, the most condemning statement came from the “legitimate” comment. He has tried to backtrack today, but he said what he said.  He believes that not all reported rapes are rapes. That is actually true. A small portion of claims are fabrications, just like the reports of any type of crime, some are false accusations.

However: I don’t think that is what Mr. Akins meant by it. In the interview he threw off some very suspect body language as he made his statement. Maybe he knew he didn’t know what he was talking about. Whatever the case, he needs some “inner work” in his heart as it comes to rape victims.  He needs empathy, which he did not show.

Jesus is very clear in Luke 6:45, “The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.”

If Mr. Akins would have said something like, “Rape is a horrible act and the perpetrators of such an evil crime should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, not ruling out the death penalty or life in prison. The victims of such crimes should be defended protected and supported by our communities and government in their greatest time of need and the people who are conceived as a result of a rape have rights. The manner and circumstances of their conception do not negate their right to life. ” I could have respected him. He would have at least been consistent in his statements.  Instead, he has become one of the most reviled figures in politics and in the nation…and rightfully so.

I know people who were conceived as a result of incest (which, is rape.) I came to love them deeply in my heart. I was so sad for their circumstances, but I was glad they were alive and that I was able to contribute to their happiness and experience.

I’ll be honest, I‘m torn on this issue.

Mr. Akins is not.

chris

One Year Ago Today...

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I started this blog one year ago today.

I was to have written 365 blog entries by now, but alas it has only been 326 entries.

I've gotten bogged down over the summer, but really, I have been avoiding writing about my work in the prison...which, really, this has been all about anyway.  I have not wanted to remember the hurt from Newton, Iowa...so I have avoided writing...refused to write, really.

And, I've not gotten to the Dr. to get my physical...

And I haven'r been working out...

And I've only lost 13 lbs for the year...

There.

What will I do? I'm unsure.

chris

The Birth of Christian

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In 1998 we had three very unique boys and we had gone through a family loss. Amy was pregnant earlier in the year, but lost the baby after a minor car accident.

It was without question that we would have another child.

We were making other life-changes as well. I was going to leave The King’s Daughters’ School after 11 years. I was going to be on staff at New Life Church , and I was going to get a job with the local school system.

We were also having multiple meetings at Church preparing for the “end of the world” the dreaded Y2K.

In the midst of that, Christian was conceived.

I was surprised at the amount of anxiety I had early on in Amy’s pregnancy. She was having some pregnancy related conditions and was uncomfortable through the hot Tennessee summer. On August 7^th, 1999; he came.

We had friends who had “home births,” some without incident, some with incident. We were not so brave.

We had friends (who were Catholic, and had multiple Children) who had a pool in their bedroom so they could have a home water birth.

Again…not so brave.

The “Water-Mom” was also training to be a birth attendant or “Doula.” So she was going to be in the room with us as Amy delivered.

Christian decided to come on a Saturday. Our experience with Eric and Wesley was that they came very quickly. So we “paged” (remember those?) Water-Mom and headed to the hospital. Water-Mom, being a good Catholic, was at Mass and we didn’t have a cell phone. So we left the message and got down to business.

Things progressed at a more typical rate than his brothers. She was dilating but not yet ready to push. The contractions were getting more intense.

Suddenly the birthing room door busted open and in barge Water Mom to the rescue.

WATERMOM: I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I was at Mass and I didn’t pay attention to my pager.

ME: No problem, we’re just here suffering. And when I say “we” I mean “her.”

WATERMOM: How far is she dilated? How far are the contractions apart? What is your pain level?

ME: I have a slight headache…

WATERMOM: Not You!

Water Mom then pulled out her Hippie Satchel and began dumping, what appeared to me, instruments more suited for Gitmo, but were really different massage implements.

Ultimately, Amy then pushed a few times and out came Christian.

He nursed right away and was a pretty good sleeper.

I remember holding him a lot because I knew he was going to be the last baby for awhile (until the grandbabies.)

He survived Y2K and the new move to Iowa and a thousand other perils…

Even Water Mom.

chris