To all those who are confounded

You know, some people look at me like I'm crazy (and not just me, but anyone who is sold out and BELIEVES in the knowledge of the Truth of Jesus Christ) because I praise God's name as loud as I can in my car or anywhere else that I feel moved by the Spirit. People seem confused that you can be so obsessed with Jesus. Like it's a bad thing to have your life revolve around something so tightly.....like I'm missing out on life because of my obsession.

Well, I'd like to ask all of those people...what would you do if someone rescued you from a hellish prison? I want you to imagine(i know many of you haven't been to jail, but it's terrible...I've only been in holding tanks and I can tell you it's miserable) being inside a dark, humid, run-down jail cell in the very bottom basement of Lew Sterrett jail in Dallas. You have NO freedom. You sit in your concrete cell for 24 hrs a day with nothing to read, nothing to eat but filth (just enough to stay alive), and no one to talk to. You see no sunlight...the only light you have is a small lightbulb that slowly becomes the center of your universe. Your cell is so small that you can't take more than 2 steps in any direction, and on TOP of everything else you have two guards who are constantly outside your cell mocking you, telling you how pathetic you are. They spit on you, beat you, and make sure you never have any hope of ever leaving your prison! They never leave the outside of your cell and take pleasure in every ounce of your suffering. You have no contact with your family...you aren't even sure your loved ones know where you are. Like anyone, at first you think this can't last forever. But after years of sitting in the same place, with no signs of hope, you lose confidence you will ever leave your cell...Just imagine this reality.

Now imagine, one day, after years and years of being trapped in your cell...all hope having escaped your mind a countless number of days ago...and you think, 'This is it...this is my life. I can expect no more'. And just as you finish your thought, just as you look up at the pathetic light bulb that hangs from your ceiling, a BLINDING white light fills the entire cell...everything that was once dark is now illuminated and you are awestruck by the man you see approaching your cell. The guards who once beat you so fervently, who cursed your name, and spit in your face are now face first on the ground screaming to the man "Have MERCY on us!! Spare us O' Lord!" They cry out in horror as He approaches them and hide their faces from Him...and although He hasn't said a word, and although the screams of the guards is horrifying, an overwhelming peace has come over you. Even though your persecuters cower before Him, you are drawn to His presence. Quickly, the prison door is ripped from its hinges and the Man stands before you. As you hear the screaming voices of the guards, you aren't sure if you should be scared....but the Man calls out to you 'Come child...come to me' and at the sound of His voice you fall to the ground and begin to weep because you know without any doubt that you have been set free. And this Man takes you by the hand, picks you up from the ground and leads you out of your cell, up out of the basement, past countless more guards who would have killed you on sight before, and leads you straight out the doors of the jail into a world whose beauty you had long forgotten. Your family and loved ones are waiting for you...overjoyed to see you once again. And when you turn to the Man, before you can say anything to Him, He looks you in your eyes and says 'My child, I have loved you for an eternity...I have never forgotten you and I witnessed your suffering. I could not bear to watch you suffer anymore, so I, myself, suffered just like you so that I could set you free. My love for you knows no bounds...Go in peace, and show the love that I showed to you to everyone you see.'

Now, tell me...who wouldn't praise this Man's name with everything they had if He had saved them from that cell?!? Because this is EXACTLY what Jesus Christ has done for me and countless other souls. And this is what He wants to do for all of you that are STILL stuck in that cell. You've been in it for so long that you don't know what life is really about anymore. The guards have you convinced that there is no hope, and that your life is worthless...to be wasted on drugs, alcohol, and partying...but that is not the Truth. Jesus can set you free and show you the world He has prepared!

So, I praise His name everyday...and I am not ashamed to tell anyone I meet, or anyone who may see me giving glory to God, that I am sold out to Jesus and that there is nothing in my life that is more important than Him! And who wouldn't feel that way about the Man who set you free?! So, next time you call someone a 'Holy roller' or a 'Bible bumper' or whatever, consider what Jesus has done for us all...including you.