I want to add one specific vignette to your summary of the trip, because I want God to be praised for how he prepared hearts and moved through His Spirit. Of course I refer to Jose.

During my 3 days counseling at The Lambs, I got to talk to many people about the Lord. Five prayed to receive Jesus as Savior and many more were so very close. Of those five, one stands out most in my mind.

Jose was a handsome young man who listened attentively as I began to move our conversation toward spiritual things. Then he said he needed to tell me something so I would understand him. Jose explained that at 15 years of age he was tried and convicted as an adult for a gang murder (which he never denied). He spent the next 13 years in prison, where he saw a lot of what he described as "B.S. religion," i.e., guys who went to chapel, read the Bible, etc., but who stopped entirely after being released. God gave me the wisdom not to argue, but to tell Jose that he could have a real and personal relationship with God and experience God's love and the forgiveness of his sins.

After reading over an example of "a sinner's prayer," Jose said that was how he felt and what he wanted. He asked that i lead him in such a prayer. I did, and when we opened our eyes, after "Amen," both of us were crying. I will never forget the incandescent glow on his face, as he hugged me and repeated, "I'm so glad I came here today." I am following up on Jose to see that someone contacts him to disciple him. (I also told him he needed to marry the mother of his child and start going to a church that taught about Jesus!)

Blessings,

Sandy