From Prison to Prison

From Prison to Prison



The boys began to break camp pouring the remaining coffee into the camp fire. The fire sizzled and popped then went out as the smoke lingered around the camp. It was beginning to be day break and they expected to be close to town around noon. They saddled up their horses and one could hear the leather squeak softly as they mounted their horses.  With their cowboy hats on and boots settled firmly in the stirrups they began to slowly ride out towards town. Not much would be said as they proceeded down the road. Occasional the Boss would look over his shoulder to see if everyone was in tow. His face had that worn look just like his saddle. A firm man though with a determined look.  Yep, he was all business.

  This gangly group of hard men had a reputation as being cold hearted killers and it made no difference to them if you were a man or a woman. They were known to cause havoc to folks who opted to break away from the old traditional way and choose this new following. This posse was feared by everyone. Even the local Sheriffs would start to shake and tremble in their presence. That was if they could find the local Sheriff. Often they would find his badge on his desk as if he had just laid it there and walked out.

When the boys would ride into a local community it would look as if it was a ghost town.  A town that was bustling with activity minutes earlier would soon be abandoned.  If it was a windy day one might see a tumbleweed rolling down the middle of Main Street or a mother quickly snatching her child from the sidewalk and then running for cover. Occasionally one may observe a window curtain move momentarily as if someone was trying to take a cautious look into the street.

As they rode on down the road the Boss was rolling his shoulders and rubbing the back of his neck. He had struggled the last few nights to get a good night sleep. He would wake up at night yelling and screaming with his knife in his hand slashing the air. Something was bothering him really bad but no one dared to ask.  As they rode on the sun was dancing in and out among the clouds.  After riding for several hours they slowly approached the outskirts of town, stopping only momentarily to take a look at the town from atop of the bluff.  They were getting close now as they approached the sign that said “Welcome, Damascus Chamber of Commerce Welcomes You.”  The clouds momentarily blocked out the view of the sun as a gentle breeze began to blow.  To ride into town you had to cross over those railroad tracks near the entrance of the Main and First Street. It was at that very moment when it happened. 

Just as the Boss started to cross the tracks with his horse, this light shined on him. A second later one could hear the screeching of the horses followed by noticeable thump.  The next thing we know man and beast separated in the air.  The horse went one way and the Boss the other minus his hat and boots.  He was hit so hard his boots were still stuck in the stirrups of his horse.  He was mumbling and groaning something as he laid there in the middle of the road trying to get up on his hands and knees. He was talking to somebody but not to anybody in his posse. He couldn’t see no more than a bat could on a moonless night.  The other horses and riders were jumping and kicking over the excitement. Something dynamic happened here on this road.

Let me tell you the boss was a changed man after that ride. Yes sir he saw the light. It was like he was in this tunnel when he saw this light coming towards him and it was a fast moving freight train from heaven.  Word had gotten around about this amazing transformation. People were talking everywhere from coast to coast. In the barbershops and beauty shops all over they were talking. The local church sent out advertisements saying, “Come hear the former "Gang Leader and Lawman" whose name changed from Saul to Paul." 

Oh that first Sunday service was jammed packed.  The song service was powerful and there was this expectancy in the air.  Finally the time came when the guest speaker was introduced.  This was his first service. He stood up at the podium kind of bowlegged like those Cowboys are famous for.  Cleared his throat and blew his nose real hard.  Looked up to heaven with his mouth wide open but no words were coming out. Tear drops could be seen forming up in his eyes.  Then rolling down and dripping off the end of his blunt chin. It seemed like forever before he could speak. Then he said real softly, “Hi, I’m Paul.  I’m a prisoner of the Lord Jesus Christ. Not long ago I used to throw people in prison for going to this Church well now I am what I once hated." 

He went on to talk about that light he saw on the road to Damascus and how it changed him. He described how stubborn he had been. "I hated these people and hated what they stood for. I went from prison to prison dragging people and even killing a few along the way.  God began to deal with me. I started having nightmares and hearing voices in my sleep.  I could see faces of people I hurt and tormented. God was dealing with me but I just was too stubborn to listen. You see I suffered from this medical condition known as Cranium Titanium or otherwise known as being a hard head.  All along I thought I was right in what I was doing but in reality I was all wrong." There was a long pause and then he said "Well, now I'm the Prisoner.  It just don't matter who you are and how strong you may think you may be.  There comes a time when God says, enough is enough. If God shines that light on you like he did me well lets just say your wild bull riding days is over."

Oh that was a service to remember. “I’m a Prisoner of the Lord Jesus Christ”. From prison to prison he went preaching the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. His life was no longer driven by deep rooted stubbornness which inflected great pain and fear on the righteous.  He was now driven by the peace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. What a magnificent transformation to a life of great jubilation. For God made Paul a living example of a geological metamorphic alteration of the heart of man.  His life was forever changed by the light of the Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Cor 4:6 “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

                                                 
                                                               
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