Why do some ex-prisoners commit new crimes after release from prison, while others forge responsible, law-abiding lives?  I will be released from prison in a few months, after having served 10 years.  Which road will I take?  Having watched many fellow prisoners go home, only to return to prison a short time later, I have discovered some reliable indicators of which road a man may take.

Parolees fall into one of three broad categories.  First, there’s the thug.  This fellow has no desire to be law-abiding.  The thug will return to prison soon after his release, assuming he lives long enough.  Second, there’s the thief.  His Intention is to stay out of prison, but he’s not willing to put in the effort to live responsibly.  He wants the benefits without doing the work.  He talks a lot about how he’s going to be different.  He will be on his way back to prison not far behind the thug.  Last there’s the thankful man.  He understands the difference between an intention and a conviction:  An intention is something one has a mind to do, but it may wither or vanish in the face of temptation and adversity.  A conviction, on the other hand, refers to a sustained belief, which carries over into daily living.  While the thief acts sparingly on his intention to be responsible, the thankful man shows his conviction by taking action to make changes in his life.

I came to God in a roundabout manner.  I didn’t get “jailhouse religion”, as many do when first confined.  In fact, I was incarcerated for several years before I ever said my first sincere prayer.  I was approaching age 40 and pondering my mortality, especially my lengthy history of drug and alcohol abuse.  I got down on my knees in my cell, and poured out my heart to God.  I wasn’t worried about what to say.  The sincerity in my heart made it’s way to God, as I asked Him to help me overcome my cigarette craving.  I didn’t know it then, but God began a process of purification that was to go far beyond just giving up smoking.  Soon I gave up cigarettes, though I had failed on my own many times in the past.  When more than a year had passed and I was still smoke free, I started to experience the stirrings of faith.  To my amazement, I discovered that without me even asking or realizing it, God had continued to work in my life.  I had been a regular consumer of pornography, but realized that I had not purchased or read any in many months and didn’t have any desire to.  In fact, the very thing that used to excite me now disgusted me.  My cursing and use of filthy language disappeared.  My attitude toward people began to improve.  My mind and emotions attained a peace that was unfamiliar to me.  I started to open up and trust other people.  I began to have a hunger for spiritual knowledge, and the Bible took on new meaning as I heard God speaking to me through His Word.

On July 31, 1996, I gave my life to God and thereafter my heart to Christ.  Christ took all the icy bitterness that was inside of me and melted it into a river of love.  Truly I am a thankful man.  He’s given me all new values to replace the old ones of booze, hookers and dope.  He redeemed me from a dark, dead-end existence centered on self, to a new, light filled life focused on love, joy, peace, endurance, kindness, goodness, gentleness & self-control.  Against such there is no law.

The thankful man won’t be coming back to prison with the thug and the thief, because he has surrendered to God’s power to change lives.  God’s greatest miracles are changed lives.  My life in Christ assures me that when I’m released, I will remain a thankful man and live a free life.