“The Things Which Have Happened Unto Me” Philippians 1:12 But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel;
January 25, 2007
The last six months of my life have been both a challenge and a blessing at the same time. July 13, 2006, the day before my thirty-third anniversary, my wife and I were arrested without notice or warning that the IRS thought we were doing something unlawful. We were shocked to say the least—and even more shocked when the jury found us guilty.
Our attorneys had advised us not to even give a defense because they were confident that the government had not proven its case. Well, that is water under the bridge.
Last week the judge sentenced me to ten years and delayed sentencing on my wife until March 6th. Some details of the case are on www.penaltyprotestor.org. There is still a great chance the case will be overturned on appeal for multiple reasons, but that is in God’s hands.
Previous blogs record the Lord working in the jail. So far, sixteen men have trusted Christ for salvation. The spiritual need in here is staggering to the mind. I encourage everyone to get involved in, or at least support a jail ministry. I know that some are “stony ground” but some “will bear much fruit.”
When Paul was arrested (who knows which time), he wrote to the Philippians that his arrest resulted in three things. 1. The furtherance of the gospel (v. 12) 2. Political peers heard the gospel in the palace and in all other places (v. 13)
3. Believers were made more bold to speak the word (v. 14)