Spiritual Survival Guide
1: Starting Well: Surviving Spiritually on the Inside
period to see where you will be transferred to. On your way to us you undoubtedly thought “WOW! How did I end up here? And how do I get out of here?” During this time you have been watching, surveying and listen- ing. You have been paying attention to who can be trusted to give you the truth about your situation, who to be careful of, who you can relate to. You’ve thought, “I have to tell my family what is happening! What about my case? Can I get a lawyer and appeal and win?” Some of you will be searching for an answer as to why you were not set free. Others will be searching for the ability to adjust to your new life in corrections, be it short or long. Still others will be searching for God. I believe all things work together for good if you let God have the controls. That means resting in his ability to help and guide you through this process. God is love and as such is a spirit com- modity—God can engulf you in such a way that you actually trust him to take you to a life of joy. You can’t see it now but God is with you and loves you and desires the best for you. He is not limited by your cage or your circumstances or even your own bad attitude. None of that is any kind of obstacle to him and his desire to grow and bless you. Surrender is tough for the man who has never done it. It appears to be a weak thing to do. Yet Jesus the Christ surrendered to the cross and died for your sins so that “whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” You need to make sure you get through the process you are in smoothly and without more trouble. That means surrender to
Think About It. Talk About It.
1. For nine out of ten guys, a sense of crisis, cold hard facts, fear, and guilt don’t motivate us over time. Has that been true for you over the years?
2. What do you think about the research that shows that for eight out of ten guys, the four key motivators that lead to deep and lasting change are new lenses, radical change, short-term wins, and ongoing help?
3. What short-term spiritual wins could you try in the next thirty days?
4. When you look at the list of what inmates say doesn’t work spiritually, do you see things that you’re currently doing? Are you ready to stop doing them? 5. When you look at the list of things that do work spiritually, what two or three things do you think you need to try, or get more serious about?
From Where I Sit: Chaplain George Adamson, Stateville Prison
Listen to the perspective of a prison chaplain who’s met with thousands of guys over the past twenty years, and what he’s learned about what it takes to make a strong start spiritual start behind bars. You are now past the trial and the waiting it out to see which way it would go. You have been transferred to the Illinois De- partment of Corrections and are now sitting in another waiting
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