Merry Christmas! These words meant very little to me before I received the gift of Eternal Life. There was a time in my life that I was a very angry hate filled man that had absolutely no regard for anyone but myself, let alone a little eight pound baby Jesus in a manger. I was very disgusted with the whole materialistic nature of this holiday, especially as a self proclaimed "atheist". I hated God and anything to do with religion. Then one day while I was incarcerated, facing a life sentence, a couple of men came into that jail cell and shared how that eight pound baby Jesus became a man and died to pay the penalty for my sins. I believed the message of the Christmas story and received the free gift of eternal life. I did receive a life sentence, an eternal life sentence, and was set free from the wages of sin and death.
I spent 5 Christmases incarcerated. However, it was while in prison that I learned the true meaning of Christmas. Prison is a very dark, lonely and dangerous place and even more so during the holidays when the fact of isolation and depression hit hardest. Christmas is a time when families come together. Which makes the pain of separation drive men to desperate and violent measures, fights and suicide are prevalent during these times. Yet it was during these dark times that the light of the gospel shined the brightest. I finally understood what all those Christmas songs meant, "O Come Emanuel, In Excelsis Deo,"Glory to God in the Highest", Angels We Have Heard on High and others proclaiming the fact that our Holy Creator came into the world he created now darkened by sin. Christmas is not about lights hung on Christmas trees. It is about the Light of the world who hung on a tree to bring light and life to all who believe. He who knew no sin became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God. He came unto His own but His own did not receive Him, but as many as received Him, He gave them power to be the sons of God.
It was there in that dark place and time that the power of the Christmas story changed my life day after day, year after year. I discovered that even if a man possesses nothing, if Christ possesses him, he possesses everything. I understood why there is the emptiness and desperation in a Christ less Christmas of materialism, as empty as the boxes and wrapping paper tossed in the garbage. After all the gifts were open and everyone had gone home there only remained loneliness and emptiness, I now had more peace and joy then while "free".
I now have the privilege of going back into prison and sharing the testimony of those blessed years of Christmas behind the concrete and razor wire and how the gift of eternal life continues to change me day to day. At 22 years old facing a life sentence, I prayed, "Lord, they say I will be over 40 years old when I finish this sentence, I will never have a wife or children." Today, 15 years later, I am 38 years old , have been married for 7 years and by the grace of God, on December 27th, Frances and I will welcome little Elijah David Powers into the world! Praise God!
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
