RCI #25

Recently got home from being a part of Kairos #25 at Ross Correctional. It was an amazing experience. God showed up and started changing people’s lives!

 I am pretty hooked into doing more of this Kairos ministry.You know that the fields are white and ready for harvest right? (Jn 4:35). Well in Kairos ministry, these men are hurting. These men are ready for some life change. The fields are white and the harvest is literally falling off the plants. All we do is bring the Gospel and bring our servant attitudes.
The Kairos weekend is set-up for success. It has been field tested and edited to a science. We know this because it works! We do not try to fix something that is working. God is using Kairos. People are coming to Christ through Kairos. We are just God’s instruments.

God really worked even just within those 4 days that this Kairos team was at RCI. We now desire to pray for these men, that they will be able to continue their walk with Christ in this institution. They are the church of Christ. They are the community of change at RCI. They are the church! Together and with Christ all things are possible. Even within the walls of the dark prison blocks they can live for Christ! So please pray for them.

This was truly an amazing experience for me for a number of reasons. First I saw gang members find Jesus. Instead of living for themselves, they now want to live for Christ!!!!! It was so powerful.

Second, I got to meet and work in the back room with some of the leaders of this lay ministry. There are some amazing men living for Christ. That alone was so encouraging. I just wanted to eat up every word of wisdom I was hearing from these godly men.

Third, God was there. That was where I wanted to be, in a place I could feel the presence of the Lord!

I have a few more reflections: I found out that as an ordained clergy, I cannot lead Kairos. This is kind of a sad revelation but it is okay. On one hand this is relieving as the stress level will never really be an issue for me. On the other end, I am sad because the leadership track for Kairos looks like a lot of fun. I would enjoy it. But I am ordained and therefor not a lay person, so I have a different calling than leading the lay-driven ministry. I am called to be clergy at a table and/or be spiritual director. I can still do all the behind the scenes leading and serving. So it is actually quite alright.
Well there are so many stories. So little time. The point is that Kairos takes some dedication, although it is completely worth it. It is for Jesus.
God would have it that Governor Kasich loves Kairos and wants it in every prison in Ohio because it really does work.  The difficultly is that we need more volunteers. We need your help. My witness of the program is that it is utterly entirely worth the dedication, to serve Christ in this way.