Kingdom Pursuits - 2 Different Prisons

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Sit back and enjoy it, share it, most of all, thank you for listening and choosing The Truth Podcast Network. This is the Truth Network kingdom pursuits here from ordinary people instilled with an extraordinary passion together we explore the stories of men and women who take what they love and let God turn their passion into the kingdom pursuits now live from the truth. Your host Robbie Gilmore. Oh wow, if we got another fact is blesses me all the time with amazing people that I get a chance to share with so you should be glad I'm glad to kingdom pursuits today to start off. We have murder like your member to member Murray on on love boat. Well, if you're to see him or you go, I get it. That's a fact which by the way Is doing there. I got a chance to interview him to remember his name but I interviewed him one time because he was in the secret to Johnson's very wonderful Christian movie and he has a testimony that will blow your socks off on how God restored him his marriage after his fame on the love boat so that's but this is murder young that's that's different than Murray on the love boat but anyway he is the founder of senior compassion foundation and I got a golf tournament coming up to find out a lot about that, but those who know me well know I love senior compassion and so I'm excited about what Murray is doing in this season because it's a it's an interesting time for that insight cannot. You may know, we have been partnering with the CLI prison alliance, which is providing Bible studies, books, and all into the prison system. Well, what do you know how cool is it that we have Mike as it rang and Mike Mike Reagan okay I apologize – I got it right.

Mike Reagan and Mike share a little bit of your story was CLI. Well, I got a hold of Eli.

I was an inmate in a state prison in Pennsylvania and I ended up doing over 11 years upstate, and through that it was one of those things that leading up to me going to prison.

I was running from the Lord is Christian but every time the Lord asked me hey can you serving now. My answer was no.

Over and over and he kept providing the things I uses excuses and the day I went to prison I got on my knees and fit Lord you know everything is yours anyway. At this point, I'm yours.

So taking everything in me. Dear I will serve you here and that was the only time in my entire life. I heard the audible voice of God, and it was no longer any survey it was now you can serve me and within the prison system. If you've never worked with inmates or or seen that side of things.

It can be a very, very dark place and early on I got a hold of the book and in that book is a stamp that said Mr. library international what they were name back then and I reach out to him and through many years of getting books calculate they donate thousands and thousands of Christian book and that's one of the main thing lacking the prison systems in Annapolis. Typical Christian book study material study Bible. Those types of things and I went through CLI alliance there Bible studies did that and corresponded with them and I tell you through there, Bible studies, we brought probably over 100 people to Christ of the years I was in there one-on-one Bible study how using the Bible studies you can see where loads repair and murder your story little bit of how you got involved with senior compassion. Well, senior compassion was a secondary effort.

My wife and I both worked in nursing homes for several years. She was a resident services coordinator that did just about every service for the elderly, and I was at my last seat was a director of nursing home thinking I could make change type thing and we were talking about. We need to do more for these.

It's a very deserving populace of elderly folks and we can figure out what we want to do and we called on God to lead us in and we we agonized over it for months and I actually was at the farmers market Greensboro the day that we got the call from God, and she and I experienced something that it would take too long for the show that that was the day that we invented through God's wisdom and compassion foundation to serve the same populace in a much different way one-on-one soma. Today it's it's grown spent a couple years and either way, the way I met Murray was through my good friend Vinnie Menino went to be in the Lord. Earlier this year and when Vinnie spoke highly of you that was it. And believe me, murder was like his favorites. He was my favorite. He started the ball rolling as nobody quite like Vinnie but you know that I have to do my riddles, which even might. Maybe my voice is telling I got to do it in a minute. I lit murder talks more and get into that story a little bit because I really now you got me.

It may take longer than a shell but you gotta give us a bit more, no problem. Ellen now well we started by a simple lunch and me passing a note over to my wife that that I had just put in my 60 day notice with corporate step down as the director of nursing home to start this entity, senior compassion foundation and without moment of change she just kept eating goes okay and has been a huge transition but what we do it senior compassion foundation is quite simple. It's not reinventing the wheel at all is just following the passion to have something for the seniors to look forward to their in long-term care could be a nursing home. It could be in assisted living. It can be independent homes that they have a lot of facilities I have just apartments and their totally on their own.

There just at that facility in case something happens.

Does the people that were trying to serve in just life enrichment activities, sort of like grant a wish or that other well-known one for the elderly and we take him out.

We grant wishes for them. One of the finest we've done is at 87, almost 90-year-old women last year that wanted to go, not skydiving, but the zip lining, and so we took her to High Point. We went zip line with her and that's the kind of thing they were not really want to do fun stuff. So it's not just a bunch of you know folks wasting away in these these four walls in nursing homes and assisted living facilities.

They want to do things and and as long as they have their mind their body and still have the fervor to do some things from the past where the people call and Mike I'm sure you see the connection. You know I do that. What is it mean your prisoner to get a visit to the next thing one of the things that blew my mind. Being in prison was every morning there's a male call and that male call everybody gets up 40 been down 2030 years and they come to the fill door and you can just see when they walk past because when you're down for a while. People just upright and you just feel her head go down and they walk away from the door and the discouragement that no one written me but I tell you what. Even a simple Bible study a letter a Christian letter just you see the joy on their faith in the place that you don't know me for joy so you know, visits, and especially the letters in that type of stuff are just huge and I can only imagine how that equates back back to the elderly to because you know I think even though there different circumstances. One, went the wrong path and one is just aging but at that time that date have those same things. I think you just need to go is him and give him some love from God I have a sense just got out after 13 years, dear friends, actually for his family friend and he told me that the first person he saw take his life was a man who got to try to get to the phone for a week else to get the phone call and nobody will answer and and so you know what you guys are doing the analogous, especially in these times. So how: we get a chance to hear my riddle which is to be a really bad taste but nonetheless it's about prison stuffiness and you got all that common. And then you find out what we do in these times when the visiting so a lot more pursuits, welcome back to where we were so blessed to have murdered a young murder young I don't want to say so is Murty. You get murder at the time I got these, the founder, senior compassion foundation and the golf tournament they got coming up with to hear some of the cool things are funding with this golf tournaments coming up September 12.

It's at the winding Creek golf course in Thomasville where she can go to kingdom pursuits and register for that and I think it's going to be an amazing event.

It's her first time it so really cool chance to do so into a time when believe me, these seniors are struggling because nobody gets to visit them and so ways in her are becoming creative and then we also have witnessed Mike Regan and he is in no essentially testifying to what seal I present what prison alliance which you hear that hopefully throughout the September their big drive that they have what they're looking for is partners not just people to give a one time gift, but the people that will put down 10, 15, $25 a month so that they can actually budget for these things to get these materials in the prisoners again for such a time as this when they can receive letter when I can't get visits I'm in a centrist is absolutely critical and I can't tell you how thrilled I am to partner with both these guys that God and only God always feel so lucky that God allows these things in my life that I get a chance to take part in them so you know it was coming. And yes, it's in bad taste but hey I got a do it.

It's always a joke that dirty job, not a dirty joke all clean very, very clean. I so speaking of prison yeah so I was walking by a prison.

When I saw a midget actually orange jumpsuit he was climbing down the fence when he hit the ground he just sneered at me.

So I told him no, that's a little condescending and prison could be in your future of your gift.

Your drug dealer cracks you up to be careful about the cracks you effective could have happened at the crack of dawn, and you then try to cut the lock on your cell but you know that would be crossing line is my favorite part actually later if you fully recover. You know, you believe anything will fully recover.

You be crack a lacking yes yes so unfortunately so many people in prison have drugs, you know, too hard to get things like that that you're addicted to. So here comes actual Bible riddle.

Are you upset that up by saying pot can get you in prison. I'm just saying.

So who was the first prisoner in the Bible when he got there.

As a result of this pot of her happened.

If you know who that prisoner was gotten prison. As a result of pot for 866-34-TRUTH 87884 866-34-TRUTH and I have to tell you about them. We got more prizes after you tell me it first got tell him about your price I got more. We are trying to reach deep into the kingdom pursuits half-price closet and walk-in something.

Well let me tell you are working to grab Beth and working to grab a foundation senior compassion foundation T-shirt coloring book and believe it or not. One admission to the golf tournament which is a $60 value all despite sensitivity style and profile of the golf tournament with your T-shirt coloring book that obviously all provided by senior compassion foundation, you guys know the answer to this drive which was a first prisoner in the Bible he got there. As a result of pot for 866-34-TRUTH 878-848-6634 true so Mike can you put a little flesh on one of those stories you said that you had several hundred people that you saw come to Christ was there one that just kinda jumped at you like this guy never, you know, I can imagine you met some pretty hard and people right and an acute kidney to share one of those stories like you wouldn't believe this guy well I'll give you one that still blows my mind day. We had a gentleman and he was a devout Muslim and I don't know how many people he killed, to get there but the only reason you did not get the death penalty was, he was showing where he buried body. The hitman and he was very very everybody was scared of him to the executable CO imprisonment of Sally in prison. So this guy was doing years in the whole and everybody in the prison. Norman pretty much a prison system because even though you're one place you kindly hear rumors and stories from other locations throughout the state law. But this dude, it's like no way would he ever you know God would have to come visit him change this man's heart. Well, we have a great pastor prison and every day he would fly Christian literature under his door at the whole and every day you would slide it out and scream at him and tell me to kill him and this went on for a few years. Well the one day and I was the clerk in the church. Therefore, the prison and becomes in and says the name of the listed don't expect and as an his first name strategist shares first name and is the trip to be coming to church like are you okay, really. Do we have CO standby you know it was like one of those you just knew things were going to be in in your flesh. There is no way this man truly accepted Christ. And when this gentleman walked in and he is probably 66 probably close to 400 pounds was all he did was work out so if something went bad. It was pretty much seals would have to come in and save you can. There's no winning that and he walks in and he was like everybody turned her head and there's 300 people in the service and everybody current terms of go by. He said that I didn't say anything and then after church we came up to me and yet I need a new Bible you have one, so I gave him a Bible, but we started talking and we would go to the yard and not to talk to them.

It, unfortunately the prison system is still separated by color and you know the different races work out in different areas and you part of that whole thing is you don't cross that boundary but I also let a service for about seven years. When I got to preached about automating inmates every week and we had people come in. I could actually walk into the different areas without any problem. God protected me when they knew I was there because they all asked me to pray for so I walked in that area when we started building this friendship and to this day they put in the newest meanest inmate in his cell as the first stop and he speaks life into and talk some about Christ in a way they understand.

They were, they won't disrespect us to know what else. It's amazing how sold out.

He'd had become Christ to where the first night they have something prison because of the code and the single cell and I took that problem when normally that's not a good thing he didn't have any didn't go into the flesh, and they took the guy out.

The first night because they were scared for his life really and they said what was going on and there is likely that me uses okay. Did he want anything regarding yeah the only single piece that you can have anything you want to eat only thing you have to do is read a chapter of the Bible and you can have anything you don't need understanding. You don't need to believe it, but if I'm giving you food. I wanted to know where it's coming from is coming from God to really check so that was the thing that really blew my mind that you had a life changing thing that came about that.

You know it's from God and I still correspond with them the day and he still serving the Lord wholeheartedly stories me and that's just absolutely mind blowing but kind of along those lines murmur of I imagine you see the same kind of thing that that seniors find themselves in a place where there more alone than they've ever been in their heart start searching well out.

Mike was talking about that story immediately made me think of a few of our participants through the year that there near a lot of our participants are in their 90s even got 100 year old. Unfortunately, recently passed, but I've got a lot of older folks that deal with, and so on. The human and the man in their 1 foot in the grave.

So speak and that's our last chance for my wife and I to witness because you don't know their background or their faith or anything and I like Mike mentioned I would come across some devout Muslim.

Some other faiths and we still witness and their some of my pretty stubborn, but when we begin our conversation a lot of the time I'll just say where you at in your walk of faith. I don't say what religion you I don't talk about Jesus, I don't. Don't start out. Forsyth asked where you at your walk of faith that gives them an open-ended answer opportunity and you know the number one thing that they say the answer to where you at your walk faith. I went to church and that so calming and and so of course I got a go much further than that, that you went to church. Great news is we got the lines were lit up for this T-shirt and coloring book, we might have get a few more can be more the doctrine that will do more those as we got Scott and Angela just all sorts of things is gone will be right back with this wonderful answer to this thought was fanatic have welcomed back to kingdom versus where we hear how God uses it to build the kingdom and today the wow are blessed to have with us, murdered a young with the foundation of senior compassion in my Reagan. He was reached by our partner CLI personal lines while they are incarcerated.

We have a lot more, and from them we got I think we got five realtors for Hitler's and by all means I realtors now even if someone else gets its downline because I was on talk to you. We got stuff for you, so by all means hang there for member.

First off, we got Amy, was calling you and Amy is the host of the cure which is coming on at 1 o'clock today and Amy are loaded for bear, you got right Steve Skipper.

He's an artist painter in your to be doing gang member redemption kinda fits with what were doing today. I got an online block right you are, that we can't come back. Kyle and Matt call in and I think about you got this phenomenal artist right mean and so I tell you one time I did a show with the mind, you know, and so that Amy you know it's a very visual thing that you got with artist so I'm I'm I'm I'm saying you you have fun trying to illustrate all this going on with that but I know it could be a great show.

Again, this show is live folk so you can call them and share on Amy's show talking about gang redemption.

Thank you for calling and Amy got bless you bye-bye yet yet you try doing that.

Why were you the you the producer back then and now I actually had like four mimes and you know there was no words that I had to cut it and walk my way through it. So first up today on my rigors is Scott and he is in Winston-Salem.

Scott you're on kingdom versus component. I am excited to hear your answer again to the other regulars. By all means downline to talk to all of you in case Scott gets exactly the right answer. No stress can have the right answer, but sometimes you don't have exactly the right Scott who was this prisoner by your exactly right that that's the case upon God, and in prison and so the big question I got for you.

I can you actually come to this golf tournament on Saturday the 12th. Perhaps this is okay so we want to make sure that that is we want to get some people out this doctrine. And so when I do that, Scott, and I'm try to be there too, so I'll be playing with you and there you go, so I put you back on hold so she gets that information and will gum up today.

Robbie oh thank you Scott. Always a joy in so glad you called in today so we got Angela is in Burlington, Angela, you're on kingdom versus component. It is a good morning good morning anytime I get to hear from Angela my good friend in the wrong believe me the listeners are what make this the reason for the season so so who do you think was this pot added he was not actually it was it was when you think story you know what that jumps out at you.

Regarding the other one candlestick maker cupbearer you really got a severe and eventually came to the beauty of that this is what Joseph actually said later to his brother what God thought of his life. It meant for evil God used for good. Because think I'm a divorce saved as a result of Joseph's incarceration.

Not unlike you know Mike, your story right. It was a different kind of famine.

The course that was was across the land, but I think her friend Manny was in a bad famine at and ask if kinda cool to see.thank you Angela for Conan's always great to hear from you doing okay. I like everybody. God is working good and will anything good could happen there, but it gives me to lean on the Lord and what court happen, thank you Angela God bless you have a great weekend. Thank you bye-bye and we have Daniel is in Richmond, Daniel, you're on kingdom pursuit.

I hope you held on for me on something called in so often. My listeners have way better answers than I do. I was curious what you think the proper answer to this riddle. If he about that day kind of I knew it I see that my man, that's like this that's that's very quick of you know that's worth a whole lot of prizes) for the prize well just you know really brings peace and joy to think about that.

But on the other side of it and tell me your thoughts on Joseph well I just kind of amazing world we live in. I grew up not really being biblically biblically knowledgeable about Christianity and amazing running. I'm sure was still evil days down to the fact that there is to live his life and what God did is just an example of one when you really trust God really laid on the kind of thing happen absolutely. Did you have any brothers. Daniel yes I do Benji.

Please pray for them that they would believe on Jesus as well. Our family right now. Wow thank you Daniel, Jesus, thank you, Richie and Benji.

I want an opportunity we have to speak into their lives with the Lord. I know you love them more than we can ever imagine.

And I know that you want to speak to men. We just joined with Daniel their brother was crying out for their heart. We just pray that you would reach into their lives since somebody send some words and some letter or whatever it might take that would touch them where they would see how much you love them and they would turn their lives to you and and and bear much fruit in Daniel's family and we ask this in Jesus name, amen. Thank you Daniel there you go, that it makes my day more. Thank you everyone else involved and what a great name to buy the way that my parents did that power that's true.

I understand God bless have a great weekend. Bye-bye.

So while you know it's always so cool to get a chance to engage with the people that you know these things, they bring up things in our own lives. Like so many of us are in prison before we get to know the Lord we not may not have bars but you know it's pretty clear in Isaiah 61 that he's got a free the captives and so he's been out about doing that to get another segment of that with Mike Regan and merge the young of course all the stuff the kingdom versus.com I don't play well welcome back to where we build the kingdom. Today we have with us Mike Regan. He was reached by our partner see live as incarcerated again where asking this month that people reach out there you can see that kingdom pursuit.com and go to TruthNetwork.com and you can click there to be a partner. That's five dollars a month you know $10 month. Whatever it is that's just something they know that they can count on and and and continue to get these publications out into the prisons as well as Marty Young and he is the founder of the senior compassion foundation golf tournaments coming up September 12 and it is at winding Creek golf course in Thomasville which I've never been there before but I'm pretty soon I'll be blinding in this Creek.

If there's a way to get the balls in that creek. If that's winding I'm pretty sure robberies can do that but Merck tell us what what what what do you do with the proceeds from this oil. That's the best part. Robbie would have to change our whole organization structure during the pandemic.

Obviously, because we can't get in the nursing homes or long-term care centers we been doing window visits and care packages and letters and phone calls but we found an object that we think is going to revolutionize even during the Pam pandemic. It's a skull to try shawl.

It's a specialized bicycle for the elderly has a bench seat on the front it's custom-made overseas and it's going like hotcakes over there at their nursing homes and I found it and that it's electric assist of the whole front end, the bench seat up front lower to the ground so if they have limited mobility like canes or walkers they can get on safely and buckle up and then it raises backup and I can take him around the campus of whatever facility therein, or even if they're at home we could do around, you know, sidestreets and just let them enjoy that wing in their hair in the sun on their face and just get out again and let me just tell you that once when I was struggling with my whole cancer thing and I had been in inside the hospital. I think for maybe 90 days and I've been in those four walls to hang that's just a taste and they said Robbie were to let you go outside and I imagine that you know exactly when talk about my salute link like oh my good ass like a gift from heaven like this is huge just to hear it. Like you said the Windemere Heron and the outside and the smell of outside just just interacting with other people even if it's from afar. During the pandemic date they see people, not just the four walls and Rob as I'll talk to you earlier Mike. I was kind of showing the analogy between your prison ministry bit and our senior home bid that it's it's very very common to hear from our participants saying it's like being in prison because they could be in these homes for literally decades, and it's the same for concrete walls and I know there's a young obviously a difference but really doing this pandemic. It's it's it's a must like Amir thing they bring their medicine they bring their food.

They bring everything they don't need that room… Like to the hospital or some like that, but it's definitely itself. You have clearly Mike can you kindly share with our listeners. In this last few minutes we have which really is only probably about a minute and 1/2. You know what it means to these prisoners to get the CLI actually not just something that is wanted is needed. The inmates that are there.

They have a hunger for okay is there something better is or something after this and CLI is alliance through the Bible study. They not only get things coming in that actually enriches our lives, but they have a chance by someone supporting them and getting these things cost everything when he gets in the hands of an inmate. It doesn't just touch one inmate because they all share it so you could actually from one Bible study.

Watch multiple people come to the Lord and then prison no longer matter. Still because you're serving God altering life-changing thing that CLI is alliance does unless you see it firsthand. You can't imagine how much you came to someone's life. So it is something that isn't to stay doing something good for the guys I Bart you're actually selling to the kingdom.

Here you are bringing people to the Lord that may never hear the gospel any other way. So it is extremely needed and it is not just cherish their they use it. Handed off and it impacts so many people between the books and the books they send them to that one book like it written read by thousand inmate so they do an incredible work I do stuff outside of the prison with and I cannot say enough good things about. So believe me when a cool thing. God is given all of us a chance to partner with these ministries, which can you go to kingdom pursuit.com and then you can see the deceptive the donate now thing on the CLI or register for the golf course and golf outing. I mean, this is going to be so much fun and murder.

I know the sun came your mind you wanted to say were just very quickly. I was liked and my presentations with our founding logo. The ladies hands in our logo. She was the one that believed in us enough to get this going and we all came together with our founding scripture of Psalm 70, 19 and it it it matches our foundation perfectly. It is do not cast me away when I'm old enough or save me when my strength is gone absolutely be final and are in heaven of these different people a chance to meet us a chance to listen to the Truth Network we get a chance to see what God is doing in so many different ways I can't think – and uses it now how you got so much truth I can tell you this encourage prayer is often followed by masculine journey starts here now and then so much truth. This is the Truth Network