“Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel?” – Ezekiel 18:31
As a 16-year old, Mike Benson was sent to prison. “A friend of mine and I were high on cocaine and drinking vodka all day long,” he said. “And we decided that we were going to rob a bank. Right in broad daylight, we went into the bank, held up the tellers and took the money. We ran and got away.”
But the FBI caught him and he was sentenced as an adult and given five years in the Michigan Department of Corrections.
“When that door shut and the key turned, it was one of the lowest points of my life. Finally, I did get parole. It was a happy day. I had all these good intentions. I had all these good desires. I was going to get a good job. I went to college. I did everything I could to set myself up for success when I was released from prison.”
But Mike again turned to a life of crime. Mike was arrested for three auto theft charges, kidnapping, parole violation and armed robbery. While in prison, he recalls: “I started to remember some words that a guy spoke to me back when I was doing my first five years. He said, ‘Mike, Jesus died for your sins, and God has a plan for your life and can redeem any area of your life.’ I started to yell out to Him, ‘If You’re so good, if You’ve got this great plan for my life, then how come my life is so messed up?’
“It was the first time I have ever heard God’s voice, and He said, ‘Call on Me, son. Call on Me.’ I got on my hands and knees in the jail, put my arms out and I reached out to God. I said, ‘God, I’ve ruined this life, and there is nothing I can do about it. So I’m just giving it to You. Take it. It’s Yours to do whatever You want.’
“When I got off the floor, nothing changed on the outside. Still facing all that time in prison. Still looking at never seeing freedom or my family again, but this time, something had changed on the inside and something was different. For the first time in my life, I really knew what life was and I really knew what it meant to be free.”
Mike got involved in prison worship services and Bible studies. He was eventually freed from prison in 2002. Today, Mike is President and Team Captain of THE CONQUERORS International Strength Team, a group which shows feats of strength and shares their testimony of Jesus Christ.
Jesus came to give us a new heart and spirit. Today in prayer, thank our Heavenly Father for new life in Christ.
“You will never be happy till you are converted.” – J.C. Ryle
God’s Word: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” – Ezekiel 36:26
By Peter Kennedy, Copyright 2013, Devotional E-Mail
DEVOTIONS IN EZEKIEL AND DANIEL