Issue 4 | 2023
Wrong to Strong
Wrong to Strong
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REAL PEOPLE | REAL STORIES | REAL HOPE<br />
DAR VUELTA<br />
PARA VER<br />
EN ESPAÑOL<br />
YOU HAVE A FAMILY<br />
THE PRISON OF BITTERNESS<br />
A magazine<br />
on a mission:<br />
see page 2<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong>
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PHOTO BY EDOVO
ISSUE 4, OCTOBER <strong>2023</strong><br />
“Surely it was for my benefit that I suffered such anguish. In your love you kept me from<br />
the pit of destruction; you have put all my sins behind your back.” Isaiah 38:17 NIV<br />
Publisher & Executive Director<br />
Kristi Overton Johnson<br />
Editor<br />
Rachel Overton<br />
Editorial Team<br />
Karissa Anderson<br />
Kate Harrington<br />
Kristi Overton Johnson<br />
Rachel Overton<br />
Carla Owens<br />
Spanish Translation<br />
Ebert Morillo<br />
Production Manager<br />
Christina Kimbrel<br />
Digital Content Managers<br />
Sheridan Correa<br />
Roman Randall<br />
Director of Prison Correspondence<br />
Lauren Everett<br />
Director of Partner Care<br />
Pat Avery<br />
Director of Development<br />
Ashley Smith<br />
Photography<br />
JC Almanza, Courtesy of<br />
Arizona Portraits, LLC<br />
Byrd Family, Courtesy of<br />
Mike Barber Ministries<br />
EDOVO<br />
Donnie Eagle Photography<br />
Bill Fay, Courtesy of<br />
Deborah Griffin Photography<br />
Kristi Overton Johnson<br />
Lauren Jones<br />
Joey Meddock Photography<br />
Drew Nicolello<br />
Parker Overton Photography<br />
Ted Squires<br />
Creative Designer<br />
Lauren Jones<br />
Creative Content Team<br />
Deborah Griffin<br />
Kristi Overton Johnson<br />
Christina Kimbrel<br />
Administrative Director<br />
Carla Owens<br />
Hispanic Outreach Director<br />
Denise San Miguel<br />
Artwork<br />
Incarcerated Family Member<br />
Cover Photography<br />
Arizona Portraits, LLC<br />
Story Contributors<br />
Julio “JC” Almanza<br />
Lisa Appelo<br />
Roy A. Borges<br />
Parker Byrd<br />
Stefanie Cabaniss<br />
Sheridan Correa<br />
Bill Fay<br />
Kristi Overton Johnson<br />
Christina Kimbrel<br />
Chris McCrimmon<br />
Naya Powell<br />
Victorious Living magazine is a publication of Kristi Overton Johnson Ministries, a 501(c) (3)<br />
organization. Copyright © <strong>2023</strong>, Kristi Overton Johnson Ministries, all rights<br />
reserved. For permission to reprint or copy any material contained herein, please<br />
contact us at admin@vlmag.org.<br />
DISCLAIMER: The articles featured in Victorious Living are designed to inspire and encourage<br />
our readers by sharing powerful testimonies from people who, we believe, have been transformed<br />
by God’s grace, love, and power. The articles are focused on each individual’s testimony.<br />
Although we conduct some independent research, we rely heavily on the information provided<br />
to us by those we interview. Our articles are not intended to be an endorsement of the views,<br />
opinions, choices, or activities of the persons whose stories we feature. The statements, views,<br />
and opinions of those persons whose stories we feature are purely their own, and we do not<br />
control and are not responsible for any such statements, views, or opinions.<br />
HOW TO REACH VICTORIOUS LIVING<br />
General, Subscription, and Partnership Inquiries<br />
• Victorious Living<br />
PO Box 2801, Greenville, NC 27836<br />
• 352-478-2098<br />
• admin@vlmag.org<br />
All VL Prison Outreach Correspondence<br />
• Victorious Living Correspondence Outreach<br />
PO Box 2751, Greenville, NC 27836<br />
• hope@vlmag.org<br />
Scripture Permissions<br />
Scripture marked NIV is taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®, copyright<br />
©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. | Scripture marked NLT is taken from the Holy Bible, New<br />
Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. | All Scripture is<br />
used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.<br />
La escritura marcada NVI es tomada de La Santa Biblia, Nueva Versión Internacional®<br />
NVI®, copyright © 1999, 2015 por Biblica, Inc.® | La escritura marcada NTV es tomada<br />
de La Santa Biblia, Nueva Traducción Viviente, © Tyndale House Foundation, 2010.<br />
| Toda la escritura usado con permiso. Reservados todos los derechos en todo el<br />
mundo.<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
3
THE VICTORIOUS LIVING STORY<br />
One visit with an incarcerated friend in 2013 opened the eyes<br />
of Victorious Living founder, Kristi Overton Johnson, to the<br />
hopelessness of life behind bars. It also birthed in her a desire to<br />
deliver hope to the souls of incarcerated men and women.<br />
Soon after, God opened doors for Victorious Living magazine to<br />
be distributed in the prison system. He then led Kristi and the VL<br />
team onto prison yards to share His message of hope in person and,<br />
more recently, digitally through prison tablets.<br />
Before that prison encounter, Kristi had<br />
spent 35 years water-skiing competitively<br />
worldwide, never considering those<br />
who had lost their freedom. But God<br />
had a plan for this world champion<br />
water-skier to go behind bars to<br />
encourage hearts with God’s love<br />
and His message of redemption<br />
and to equip people to get up and<br />
experience victorious living for<br />
themselves.<br />
Since 2013, Victorious Living<br />
magazine has impacted the lives of<br />
over one million incarcerated souls...<br />
and the story is still being written.<br />
BE A PART OF THE<br />
VL STORY<br />
Victorious Living is a great<br />
way to carry out God’s<br />
command to remember the<br />
prisoner (Matthew 25:34–40;<br />
Hebrews 13:3). Here’s how<br />
you can help us deliver hope<br />
to the incarcerated.<br />
SHARE<br />
Share VL with your local church,<br />
chaplain, jail, or prison. VL is a<br />
great mission to support and a<br />
good tool to use too!<br />
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VLMag into jails and prisons, where<br />
it saves lives. And when you give,<br />
we’ll send you a copy too.<br />
SPONSOR<br />
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facility, each quarter, for 1 year.<br />
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PHOTO BY MIKE BARBER MINISTRIES PHOTO BY JOEY MEDDOCK PHOTOGRAPHY<br />
VISIT VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM OR CALL 352-478-2098
ISSUE 4, OCTOBER <strong>2023</strong><br />
CONTENTS<br />
PHOTO BY ARIZONA PORTRAITS<br />
8<br />
9<br />
19<br />
29<br />
13<br />
STEPPING FORWARD<br />
Feel the Pain, Embrace<br />
the Healing<br />
BY NAYA POWELL<br />
One in a World of Two<br />
BY LISA APPELO<br />
Be the One to Tell Them<br />
BY CHRISTINA KIMBREL<br />
Look for the Blessings<br />
BY ROY A. BORGES<br />
TRANSFORMED<br />
LIVES<br />
You Have a Family<br />
BY KRISTI OVERTON JOHNSON<br />
A recent trip to the Holy Land brought<br />
our publisher to a deeper understanding<br />
of what being part of the family of God<br />
really means. Believers from all over the<br />
25<br />
10<br />
world were there to celebrate Jesus, and<br />
the unique DNA of their transformed<br />
hearts proved to be a powerful bonding<br />
agent. In the same way, you have a<br />
family here at Victorious Living.<br />
The Prison of Bitterness<br />
BY SHERIDAN CORREA<br />
Life is full of hurt and disappointment,<br />
but pushing those feelings aside allows<br />
them to grow into bitterness, and<br />
bitterness will take you down. God has a<br />
better plan.<br />
FEATURES<br />
Come Out of the Grave<br />
THE STORY OF CHRIS MCCRIMMON<br />
In prison for attempted murder, robbery,<br />
and aggravated assault, Chris didn’t<br />
think things could get worse. Then he<br />
was falsely convicted for a different<br />
murder. Sitting on death row, Chris finally<br />
remembered what he’d learned about<br />
God in childhood, including that God<br />
could give him a new heart and a new life.<br />
ON THE COVER<br />
JC’s life is one of<br />
tragedy to triumph.<br />
Years of childhood<br />
abuse set his life on<br />
a dark course until<br />
God intervened.<br />
Once a man to<br />
be feared, JC now<br />
brings life and hope<br />
into the lives of<br />
others.<br />
16<br />
20<br />
26<br />
30<br />
God’s Plan Is Still Good<br />
THE STORY OF PARKER BYRD<br />
A fun afternoon on the water turned tragic<br />
for college freshman, Parker Byrd. Twentytwo<br />
surgeries and a leg amputation later,<br />
he faced the likelihood that his dreams of<br />
playing college baseball were over. Where<br />
were God’s “good plans” now?<br />
COVER STORY<br />
Wrong to Strong<br />
THE STORY OF JULIO (JC) ALMANZA<br />
To say JC’s life has been colorful would be<br />
an understatement at best. From drug<br />
running on the streets of Chicago at 11<br />
to incarceration in a Mexican prison at 17<br />
to finishing that sentence in a US federal<br />
facility at 24, JC didn’t have time for God.<br />
But God had time for him. Today, God’s<br />
peace and joy shine through his life as JC<br />
serves Christ wholeheartedly.<br />
The Best Part of Your Day<br />
BY STEFANIE CABANISS<br />
When Stefanie’s best friend Mo was<br />
diagnosed with cancer, she became Mo’s<br />
caregiver, willingly entering in to the pain<br />
and struggle of survival. But as the disease<br />
progressed, Mo’s ability to find something<br />
good in every day, no matter what, baffled<br />
and angered Stefanie. What good could<br />
possibly come from Mo’s illness?<br />
Looking for Peace<br />
THE STORY OF BILL FAY<br />
As a successful professional gambler before<br />
he finished college, Bill had it all—money,<br />
power, possessions, and women. Degree in<br />
hand, he moved up quickly in both business<br />
and the underworld. But no matter how<br />
much he obtained, something deep inside<br />
him was never satisfied.<br />
IN EVERY ISSUE<br />
6<br />
Publisher’s Note<br />
Ten Years of God’s Faithfulness<br />
33<br />
Want to Know Jesus?<br />
I’m Saved...Now What?<br />
34<br />
Ministry Info/Resources<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
5
PUBLISHER’S NOTE<br />
Celebrating Ten Years of<br />
God’s Faithfulness<br />
Would you like to partner with<br />
our magazine to deliver God’s<br />
hope and to impact the lives of<br />
incarcerated men and women?<br />
Your gift enables us to send<br />
this magazine into prisons<br />
around the nation. Each<br />
magazine impacts many lives<br />
for years to come. To help, visit<br />
victoriouslivingmagazine.com.<br />
T<br />
en years have passed since Vic torious<br />
Living magazine began delivering<br />
hope to incarcerated persons.<br />
It all started when the Florida Department<br />
of Corrections invited me to distribute<br />
this magazine within its facilities. Since<br />
then, Victorious Living and our other prison<br />
outreaches have been impacting lives<br />
in thousands of facilities across America.<br />
I was in awe when the Florida DOC’s<br />
request came. While I had recently visited<br />
a friend in prison and had sensed God<br />
inviting me on an adventure with Him to<br />
minister to the incarcerated, it had not occurred<br />
to me that they might be interested<br />
in our magazine.<br />
But God had a plan. And with the DOC’s<br />
invitation, He set it in motion.<br />
I’d been publishing Victorious Living for<br />
two years at that point, and truthfully, I’d<br />
often wondered why I was doing it. Interviewing<br />
people, writing, and editing their<br />
God-stories was time-consuming and costly.<br />
Even my kids would ask, “Mom, why<br />
are you doing this?” It didn’t make sense.<br />
But the stories kept coming, and God<br />
kept giving me the energy and ability to<br />
write this magazine that He’d told me to<br />
distribute for free.<br />
I did my best to remain faithful to the<br />
call, even though people weren’t knocking<br />
down the office doors to get their copies. In<br />
moments of discouragement, I wondered<br />
who would miss my little project if I gave<br />
up on it. What difference was I making?<br />
Of course, God knew there were millions<br />
of people in prison who were waiting<br />
for these stories of hope, even though<br />
I couldn’t yet see the bigger picture.<br />
Following God’s call had required me to<br />
take many courageous, faith-filled steps<br />
over the years, but this magazine was the<br />
biggest one yet. I had to constantly remind<br />
myself that it was God’s idea. He’d<br />
used it to invite me on this adventure of<br />
delivering hope to the incarcerated. He’d<br />
put Victorious Living into the hands of the<br />
DOC and opened this door of incredible<br />
opportunity. I had done none of that. So<br />
who was I to say no?<br />
Still, all I could think about was how I<br />
would pay for the increased printing and<br />
shipping costs of all those extra magazines.<br />
Then someone suggested that if it was<br />
God’s will, surely it was His bill.<br />
It was, but still… Every issue brings me<br />
to a crossroads—should I wait until I have<br />
the money in hand, or should I let it go to<br />
press regardless of the numbers in my<br />
bank account? Well, let me tell you. God<br />
has proven Himself faithful every time,<br />
making it obvious this is His operation.<br />
Indeed, this magazine is an undeniable<br />
testimony that He has never failed to meet<br />
my steps of faith. To the tune of over a million<br />
dollars’ worth of free magazines, He<br />
has never been late with the needed provision.<br />
To God be the glory.<br />
As you read this issue, let it remind you<br />
of God’s faithfulness to His people and to<br />
His call on our lives. And if you are incarcerated,<br />
let it be a reminder of His faithful<br />
love for you. He led me to publish this<br />
magazine specifically for you. It contains<br />
His love letter to you.<br />
Friend, God is faithful, and He is trustworthy.<br />
Is there a step of faith He’s asking<br />
you to take? Maybe it’s a step toward Jesus<br />
as your Lord and Savior. Maybe it’s a step<br />
of obedience into a call. Or maybe He just<br />
wants you to stop doing what you’re doing<br />
and trust Him to do what you can’t. Whatever<br />
it is, it’s time to move. Faith without<br />
action is not faith at all (James 2:14–26).<br />
Trust me, God will meet you on the other<br />
side of your step of faith. He’s got you.<br />
And He’s got what you need when you need<br />
it. May the testimonies of our contributors<br />
and my testimony here encourage your<br />
heart today.<br />
Kristi Overton Johnson<br />
Publisher & Executive Director<br />
PHOTO BY TED SQUIRES<br />
6 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
Through the stories of<br />
Victorious Living, men and women<br />
behind bars meet the God<br />
of another chance.<br />
Testimony of<br />
Victorious Living Impact:<br />
David Sheppard<br />
PHOTO BY KRISTI OVERTON JOHNSON<br />
SPONSOR A PRISON IN YOUR STATE<br />
AND IMPACT LIVES TODAY.<br />
Visit victoriouslivingmagazine.com.<br />
Things were so messed up<br />
in my life. I felt trapped and<br />
prayed for God to change my<br />
circumstances. He did, after<br />
a physical altercation sent<br />
me to jail. Not the change I’d<br />
hoped for.<br />
Being in jail is hard, especially<br />
during the holidays. But God<br />
reminded me of His love<br />
when VL’s publisher, Kristi, her<br />
daughters, and her assistant,<br />
Carla, visited our facility in<br />
2022. They brought holiday<br />
cheer and left us with the gift<br />
of Victorious Living magazine.<br />
It was like a visit from<br />
heaven. Through them, God<br />
showed me that He still loves<br />
me, and He revealed that I<br />
wasn’t in jail just because of<br />
my crime, but so I could receive<br />
His message of love through<br />
VL. God wanted me to know<br />
that He wasn’t done with me.<br />
As Kristi spoke to us, a new<br />
feeling of hope and purpose<br />
came over me, and I didn’t<br />
feel trapped or lost in this<br />
world anymore. God assured<br />
me that He’s preparing me for<br />
something greater.<br />
God gave me the gift of<br />
seeing the VL team again<br />
the day before my release,<br />
and He’s continued to keep<br />
us connected. I’ve even been<br />
waterskiing with them! Isn’t<br />
God something? I’m thankful<br />
to be a part of the Victorious<br />
Living family.
STEPPING FORWARD<br />
Feel the Pain,<br />
Embrace the Healing<br />
BY NAYA POWELL<br />
“THIS HIGH PRIEST OF OURS understands<br />
our weaknesses, for he faced all the<br />
same testings we do” (Hebrews 4:15 NLT).<br />
As I was enjoying the savory, Southern<br />
goodness of a smothered turkey wing for<br />
lunch, I bit the inside of my cheek. Ouch!<br />
For the rest of the day, I was careful not to<br />
chew food or gum using the injured side<br />
of my mouth. The ongoing discomfort<br />
was a stark reminder of the intense pain<br />
that would follow if I were to bite the same<br />
spot again.<br />
After a couple of days, the soreness<br />
went away. Assuming it was healed, I began<br />
chewing gum as I normally would,<br />
but I ended up biting the same spot again<br />
because—surprise!—it was still a little<br />
swollen. It hurt worse now than it had the<br />
first time I bit it, and I realized that not<br />
feeling the pain on the inside of my cheek<br />
didn’t mean that the area had healed.<br />
In fact, the numbness had just made<br />
it easier for my routine chewing to cause<br />
reinjury.<br />
The physical, mental, and emotional<br />
injuries we experience in life are just like<br />
that. We endure something for so long or<br />
we are hurt so many times that we become<br />
numb to the pain. We’re functional, so we<br />
think we’re fine—but in reality, we still<br />
need to heal.<br />
Pain tells us that something is wrong<br />
and that corrective action should be taken.<br />
Numbness or indifference can indicate<br />
that the hurt we experienced in the past<br />
is more serious than we thought. The pain<br />
still remains, and unresolved pain can<br />
result in passivity, poor judgment, and<br />
further injury. But sometimes it’s easier<br />
to pretend that we’re fine, to deny those<br />
feelings, and to “suck it up”—all to our<br />
detriment.<br />
There’s nothing wrong with acknowledging<br />
our feelings. God has feelings too,<br />
and when we see His emotions in scripture,<br />
they are often in direct response to<br />
ours. He feels love (Jeremiah 31:3; John<br />
3:16); hate (Psalm 5:5, 11:5; Proverbs<br />
6:16); joy (Zephaniah 3:17); sorrow (Psalm<br />
78:40; John 11:35); pain (Psalm 22:14–18);<br />
compassion (Psalm 135:14), and more.<br />
We don’t need to be afraid to admit that<br />
we have feelings, especially the painful<br />
ones. Pain is an inevitable part of the<br />
human experience. Whether stemming<br />
from physical injury, emotional trauma, or<br />
psychological struggles, pain can be overwhelming<br />
and debilitating. A wound that<br />
hasn’t been tended to or given a chance<br />
to heal is easily reopened.<br />
When we acknowledge our pain, accept<br />
its presence, and actively engage in the<br />
healing process, we can begin the transformative<br />
journey toward healing and wholeness.<br />
It’s important to allow ourselves time<br />
to heal. We shouldn’t rush to replace what’s<br />
lost or try to reshape our lives to disguise<br />
the pain. Just be still (Psalm 46:10).<br />
Healing takes time, patience, and<br />
self-compassion, but we will not be in pain<br />
forever. Psalm 30:5 says, “weeping may<br />
last through the night, but joy comes with<br />
the morning” (NLT). God wants to heal every<br />
hurt we have, so embrace both the pain<br />
and the healing process.<br />
We’re never alone; even<br />
in our pain, God is there.<br />
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for<br />
being the God that heals me. Help me to<br />
recognize the unhealed areas in my heart.<br />
I ask You, Lord, to heal them all. I give my<br />
pain to You and embrace Your healing.<br />
Let me know when to move forward in<br />
the injured areas of my life. I trust Your<br />
wisdom. Amen.<br />
NAYA POWELL is a freelance writer and editor,<br />
currently working as a marketing and graphics<br />
specialist. She is a Christian minister and enjoys<br />
supporting outreach ministries including Habitat<br />
for Humanity and Tried by Fire Ministries, a ministry<br />
helping incarcerated women reenter society and live<br />
healthy, productive lives.<br />
8 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
STEPPING FORWARD<br />
ONE IN A<br />
WORLD OF TWO<br />
BY LISA APPELO<br />
I DIDN’T EXPECT VALENTINE’S DAY TO<br />
be so painful.<br />
I needed some ingredients for dinner, and I<br />
was blissfully unaware that it was February 14<br />
as I strode through the door of the grocery store.<br />
I stopped, caught off guard by the scene before<br />
me. The store was awash in pink and red.<br />
Men in dress shirts and ties from a day at the<br />
office strode past me, arms loaded with bouquets<br />
and balloons. Women, too, though noticeably<br />
fewer. I sighed. Getting to the items I needed to<br />
cook dinner would mean passing through stands<br />
of roses, tables stacked with heart-shaped cupcakes<br />
and cookie cakes, and bins filled with<br />
assorted boxed chocolates.<br />
I decided to take a shortcut to the back of the<br />
store, but that was a poor choice. I ended up in<br />
the card aisle. Hallmark central was filled top<br />
to bottom with pink and red cards and crowded<br />
with last-minute shoppers, frantically searching<br />
for that perfect card.<br />
This grocery run unexpectedly triggered my<br />
dormant grief. I’ve been a widow since 2011.<br />
You’d think I’d have this handled by now, but on<br />
that Valentine’s Day, everything I missed rushed<br />
back to haunt me.<br />
I’d gotten used to the single-mom life. The<br />
raw pain from my husband’s unexpected death<br />
had softened, along with the scary unfamiliarity<br />
of doing things alone. I’d grown accustomed to<br />
using only a small part of my bed, to going solo<br />
to parties and events and movies, and raising the<br />
kids on my own. I’d even begun to dream new<br />
dreams and was tackling a reviving wish list.<br />
But running headfirst into the world of all<br />
things romance messed with me, and I left the<br />
grocery store with a fresh wave of loss.<br />
Being one in a world that used to be two is hard.<br />
The thing is, I don’t want to spend my time<br />
pining for what I don’t have or being caught off<br />
guard by unexpected triggers. So I’ve developed<br />
a battle plan to help manage the pain. Maybe it<br />
can help you too.<br />
USE YOUR GRIEF TO PRAY FOR OTHERS.<br />
People all around us are hurting. Our pain and<br />
loneliness are healthy reminders to pray for<br />
friends and family who are grieving and to reach<br />
out to let them know they are seen and loved.<br />
CELEBRATE THE LOVE YOU DO HAVE. When<br />
my emotions are sinking, I’ve found that reaching<br />
out to others can provide a considerable<br />
boost. Proverbs 11:25 says, “those who refresh<br />
others will themselves be refreshed” (NLT). Instead<br />
of getting caught up in relationships we<br />
don’t have, we can nourish the ones that we do.<br />
TREAT YOURSELF. Do something for yourself<br />
to lift your spirits. Read a book. Listen to music.<br />
Visit with a friend. Go for a walk. Make plans.<br />
STAY CLEAR OF TRIGGERS. Be aware of what<br />
sends your emotions spiraling into a funk.<br />
Knowing your triggers helps you avoid them.<br />
Take positive steps like those listed here instead.<br />
SURPRISE SOMEONE WHO NEEDS AN ACT<br />
OF LOVE. Joy is contagious, and giving it away<br />
is a great way to fill a lonely or hurting heart.<br />
Surprise others with a word of encouragement<br />
or a gift. Let them know they are seen and loved.<br />
GIVE YOUR PAIN TO GOD. Pain, given and entrusted<br />
to God, has a great purpose. God will not<br />
waste it! Let Him reshape your wounded heart.<br />
Let Him be your comfort and fill the emptiness.<br />
Let Him satisfy your longings. Let Him deepen<br />
your faith as you wait in the wilderness. Choose<br />
to praise God through the pain.<br />
I’D BEEN A<br />
WIDOW SINCE<br />
2011, BUT<br />
THIS DAY, THE<br />
GAPING HOLE<br />
OF WHAT<br />
I MISSED<br />
BUBBLED TO<br />
THE TOP.<br />
LISA APPELO is a speaker,<br />
writer, and Bible teacher<br />
who inspires women to<br />
deepen their faith during<br />
times of grief and to find<br />
hope in the hard. Formerly<br />
a litigating attorney, her<br />
days are now filled with<br />
parenting seven children,<br />
ministering, writing,<br />
speaking, and running<br />
enough to justify eating<br />
lots of dark chocolate.<br />
Find encouragement at<br />
LisaAppelo.com.<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
9
HELEN D. MCCRIMMON, MY NANA, WAS<br />
the glue that held my family together. She<br />
was a mighty woman of God who wanted<br />
everyone in her household to know<br />
Jesus, the Savior she loved and served<br />
(Joshua 24:15).<br />
COME OUT OF<br />
THE GRAVE<br />
When Nana moved from where we grew<br />
up in Oklahoma to Tucson, Arizona, my<br />
mom packed up my two little sisters and<br />
me and followed. Our new neighborhood<br />
was notorious for gang violence and drugs;<br />
it was the local ground zero for the crack<br />
epidemic that ripped apart communities<br />
all over the country in the 1980s.<br />
Most adults in my family struggled with<br />
addiction. My mom wasn’t a drug addict,<br />
but she had other issues. That left me, my<br />
sisters, and Nana to navigate a war zone<br />
within our home and outside our door.<br />
Nana reminded me of my essential role<br />
on a regular basis. “Chris, no matter what<br />
happens, remember that you are the man<br />
of this house. I need you to stay out of trouble<br />
and protect your sisters.”<br />
I was in elementary school when Mom<br />
went to prison. Nana stepped in to raise<br />
us and instilled godly values. The only<br />
drug problem she had was dragging me<br />
to church!<br />
THE STORY OF<br />
CHRIS MCCRIMMON<br />
“You’ve got to get trained in God’s Word,<br />
baby. Write it on your heart. And know<br />
this: the Lord will find and rescue you even<br />
if you wander from Him.” (See Proverbs<br />
22:6; Deuteronomy 6:6–8.)<br />
I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior<br />
while I lived with her. I learned about<br />
Bible heroes like Joseph, Moses, and David.<br />
But then Nana got sick and moved into<br />
a nursing home, so my sisters and I went<br />
to live with our aunt.<br />
Everything changed. Away from church<br />
and Nana’s watchful eyes, I forgot all about<br />
God and my Bible heroes. The outside<br />
world looked more fun than church, anyway.<br />
So I quit playing sports and started<br />
smoking weed and drinking. Then I joined<br />
a gang.<br />
None of us had jobs, so I wondered how<br />
my new friends owned lowriders, gold jewelry,<br />
and name-brand clothes and shoes.<br />
When my homeboy pulled a handful of<br />
little, white rocks from his pocket and<br />
asked, “You want in the game,” I no longer<br />
wondered how they made their money.<br />
I didn’t hesitate. Just like that, I became<br />
a crack dealer. When I wasn’t dealing, I<br />
was blowing money on my own drugs or<br />
partying at motels with random girls. My<br />
new life brought consequences, but they<br />
didn’t do much to deter me.<br />
At 16, I went to juvenile detention for<br />
two years for auto theft. Before I went in, I<br />
discovered I had a son, but I was too immature<br />
to care about being a dad. I shrugged<br />
off that responsibility.<br />
In 1989, on my 18th birthday, I was released.<br />
Nana passed away soon after that,<br />
and I hit the streets, jumping headfirst into<br />
the drug game. When a friend inherited<br />
some money, we made investments that<br />
took our drug dealing operation to another<br />
level. The money rolled in for three years.<br />
Soon, I had another son. This time, I<br />
manned up and stepped into my role as<br />
a father. I told myself I was doing right by<br />
my family because I provided nice things<br />
and paid the bills. That couldn’t be further<br />
from the truth.<br />
Ironically, caring for Nana had created<br />
a soft spot in my heart for older adults. I<br />
had an honest job as a certified nursing<br />
assistant. I enjoyed the work, but I wasn’t<br />
content, so I chose to continue selling<br />
drugs on the side.<br />
I made a grip of money dealing drugs.<br />
Every Friday night, people from all over<br />
PHOTO BY ARIZONA PORTRAITS<br />
10 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
the city would visit my neighborhood<br />
looking for crack. They had cashed their<br />
paychecks, and I was waiting to take their<br />
money.<br />
I knew there were heavy consequences<br />
in the game I was playing, but I didn’t think<br />
they would catch up to me—I told myself I<br />
was lucky. But it was only a matter of time<br />
before my luck ran out.<br />
A friend needed some quick money, so I<br />
fronted him dope to sell. His troubles soon<br />
became mine, however, because I then<br />
owed money to my connection—and my<br />
source wasn’t about to take on my troubles.<br />
My friend presented a plan to get my<br />
money back. “We’ll just hit this lick,” he<br />
said, “and we’ll be straight.” We? How<br />
did this become a we operation? His plan<br />
included armed robbery. How did I let it<br />
get to this point? I knew better than to<br />
trust this guy, but I couldn’t do anything<br />
about it now; I had to get that money. Paying<br />
my connection back was not optional.<br />
I knew getting caught could send me<br />
to prison for over a decade, but I figured<br />
prison was a better alternative than owing<br />
money on the streets. So we mapped out<br />
our plan and put it into motion.<br />
The robbery went sideways right from<br />
the start. Shots rang out. Chaos ensued.<br />
And by the end of that night, our robbery<br />
victim lay critically injured in the hospital.<br />
It didn’t matter that I hadn’t<br />
pulled the trigger. I was there<br />
and had helped plan it.<br />
Someone came forward<br />
as a witness, offering alleged<br />
details in the case. The<br />
cops showed up at my day<br />
job. Coworkers and patients<br />
watched in disbelief as I was<br />
arrested and led to a police<br />
car in handcuffs.<br />
I was charged with, among other things,<br />
attempted murder, armed robbery, and<br />
aggravated assault. I was 21, barely old<br />
enough to buy alcohol, when the court sentenced<br />
me to 36 years in the Arizona State<br />
Prison system. Talk about a reality check.<br />
My first day on the yard, I watched a<br />
man’s head get split open with a baseball<br />
bat. A few days later, I saw someone else<br />
get stabbed. I was relieved when a friend<br />
got me a job with the paint crew.<br />
I just wanted a routine to figure out the<br />
ins and outs of prison and a way to stay out<br />
of trouble while there. But before I had a<br />
chance, I was rearrested and transported<br />
back to the county jail to stand trial for<br />
another crime.<br />
The police were determined to take me<br />
down. They had gathered evidence tying<br />
me to another armed robbery where three<br />
people had died. The same witness who<br />
testified against me before now named<br />
me as the trigger man in this new case.<br />
As the star witness for the prosecution,<br />
this man testified that I was responsible<br />
for the murders of three people. As a result,<br />
I was convicted of first-degree murder.<br />
I stood silently, holding back tears<br />
as the judge handed down my sentence:<br />
“Christopher McCrimmon, the court hereby<br />
sentences you to death.”<br />
Officers escorted me to my new cell on<br />
death row. Words can’t describe my loneliness<br />
as memories of Nana flooded my<br />
mind. I could hear her voice as if she were<br />
Opposite: Chris with his<br />
wife and newborn son.<br />
Right: Many mugshots were<br />
taken before Chris was<br />
sentenced to death row,<br />
but that’s where God finally<br />
reached Chris’s heart.<br />
Bottom left: Chris’s<br />
grandmother, Helen D.<br />
McCrimmon, planted many<br />
seeds of faith in his heart<br />
that eventually took root.<br />
DEATH ROW WAS LIKE A DRY, PARCHED LAND,<br />
AND MY SOUL THIRSTED FOR WATER.<br />
beside me, “Trust God, Chris. God never<br />
abandons His children.”<br />
Really? Then where is He now, Nana? I sure<br />
didn’t feel Him. Not at first.<br />
Death row was like a dry, parched land,<br />
and my soul thirsted for water (Psalm<br />
63:1). I was on lockdown for 23 hours a<br />
day, only allowed out a few times a week<br />
for a shower and recreation.<br />
I had plenty of time now to talk with and<br />
listen to the Lord. I spent hours studying<br />
His Word. The isolation drew me into a<br />
relationship with God, and eventually I<br />
recommitted my life to Jesus. He became<br />
the friend I needed most.<br />
It didn’t take long for the stories I had<br />
enjoyed as a child to come alive and revive<br />
my spirit, and I began to notice a common<br />
thread in the lives of my Bible heroes.<br />
They were all deeply flawed people with<br />
epic moral failures—just like me—yet they<br />
were never out of the reach of God’s love,<br />
grace, and mercy.<br />
Moses had killed an Egyptian and fled<br />
to the wilderness, but God still called him<br />
to lead the nation of Israel out of captivity.<br />
(See Exodus 2:11–3:15.) King David committed<br />
adultery and murder, but when he<br />
repented, God forgave him...and scripture<br />
calls him a man after God’s own heart. (See<br />
2 Samuel 11:1–12:13; Acts 13:22.) Saul<br />
murdered Christians until he met Jesus<br />
on the Damascus Road and became the<br />
apostle Paul, a great missionary for Christ.<br />
(See Acts chapters 9 through 28.)<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
11
Both Chris and his mother, Regina, served time,<br />
leading to separation and a strained relationship.<br />
Today, God has graciously restored their relationship.<br />
EVEN THOUGH I HAD<br />
WANDERED FAR FROM GOD,<br />
HE CHASED ME DOWN—ALL<br />
THE WAY TO DEATH ROW.<br />
The living water of God’s Word refreshed<br />
and revived my spirit in that arid land of<br />
death row. It also revealed my need for<br />
repentance and God’s forgiveness. I felt<br />
sorrow over my sin and repented to God<br />
in prayer (Psalm 51; 2 Corinthians 7:10).<br />
“Lord, I know I’m a sinner,” I said.<br />
“Please forgive me. I deserve punishment,<br />
but I don’t believe You will let me die here,<br />
this way. My life is in Your hands; I look<br />
to You for justice and mercy.” (See Psalm<br />
16:10; Isaiah 30:18.)<br />
My attorney submitted an appeal for a<br />
new trial. We waited almost three years for<br />
my case to move through the courts. Then<br />
one day, as I came in from rec, a friend<br />
shouted, “Chris, you got a new trial, man!<br />
I just saw you on TV.” I thought he was joking<br />
until I saw my face flash across the<br />
evening news with the headline, “Death<br />
Row Inmate Granted New Trial.”<br />
In 1997, my new trial was underway. My<br />
attorney tried to prepare me for the worstcase<br />
scenario, but I cut him off. “We’re not<br />
going to lose. No way, man. God’s Word<br />
says no weapon formed against me shall<br />
prosper” (Isaiah 54:17).<br />
He nodded in agreement and stood up<br />
to defend my case with irrefutable new<br />
evidence. Evidence from police interview<br />
transcripts proved that I been convicted<br />
based on perjured testimony and that the<br />
detectives and prosecutor had allowed the<br />
testimony, even though they knew the witness<br />
was lying. It took the jury 45 minutes<br />
to return with a new verdict.<br />
When I heard, “Not guilty,” I was like<br />
Lazarus when Jesus called him out of his<br />
grave (John 11:43–44). I left my graveclothes<br />
in that courtroom and returned<br />
to prison to finish my original 36-year sentence.<br />
I was one joyful, resurrected man.<br />
It’s amazing how different the<br />
prison felt when I was no longer<br />
on death row. God had brought<br />
this dead man back to life twice!<br />
He had saved me from eternal<br />
damnation and from being put<br />
to death in prison. It was as if I<br />
was seeing with new eyes.<br />
But Satan was still on the<br />
prowl, waiting to devour me (1<br />
Peter 5:8). I tried hard not to fall prey to<br />
the enemy, but trouble was on every corner.<br />
While I did make some missteps, God<br />
was patient as I learned to listen to the<br />
Holy Spirit’s warnings and follow His lead.<br />
(See John 14:26, 16:13; Romans 8:14, 26.)<br />
The Spirit stayed busy, nudging me away<br />
from various things and people. Listening<br />
and obeying became the difference<br />
between life and death.<br />
I avoided the chaos of prison politics by<br />
connecting with other Christian men and<br />
staying immersed in God’s Word. I grew<br />
bold in sharing my testimony and even<br />
led men to the Lord. I relied on God and<br />
the fellowship of my brothers in Christ to<br />
prepare me for life on the outside. These<br />
men and religious volunteers taught me<br />
the value of real friendship.<br />
Through them, I also learned about<br />
Along Side Ministries’ discipleship program<br />
in Phoenix. The program paired me<br />
with a mentor who walked closely with<br />
me for the last two years of my sentence.<br />
After serving almost 26 years, I was released<br />
on intense parole. I struggled to<br />
adjust to life on the outside, as many do,<br />
and soon violated my parole. I was sent<br />
back to prison for nearly two years.<br />
But instead of being angry, I embraced<br />
the gift of time for God to heal more areas<br />
of my heart and mind so I could live successfully<br />
on the outside. I devoured God’s<br />
Word until my release in March 2020. By<br />
God’s grace, I was allowed to return to<br />
Along Side Ministries. This community<br />
of believers showed me the love of Jesus<br />
when I needed it most.<br />
Since my release, the Lord has kept His<br />
promise to restore everything the enemy<br />
stole from me (Joel 2:25). He has given<br />
me a beautiful wife, a newborn son, and<br />
healthy relationships with all my children.<br />
God has redeemed my time so I can<br />
leave a worthwhile inheritance through<br />
the example of my life as I live for Him<br />
(Proverbs 13:22).<br />
Nana was right. Even though I wandered<br />
far from God, He chased me down—all the<br />
way to death row. He rescued me, and He’ll<br />
do the same for you, wherever you are<br />
(Psalm 107:20).<br />
The truth is we’ve all been sentenced to<br />
death by sin (Romans 6:23). But God, who<br />
is forever rich in mercy, made a way for our<br />
salvation through Jesus Christ (Ephesians<br />
2:4–6). He’s made a way for you, too.<br />
Jesus conquered death so you could<br />
live eternally with Him (2 Timothy 1:10)<br />
and experience an abundant life on earth<br />
(John 10:10).<br />
You don’t have to sit on death row any<br />
longer. Come out of the grave and live. Take<br />
off those graveclothes and embrace a new<br />
life in Christ.<br />
CHRIS MCCRIMMON is passionate about Jesus,<br />
his family, and his church community fellowship. He<br />
is grateful to spend the rest of His life serving God<br />
and others. Through his testimony and knowledge<br />
of God’s Word, Chris ministers to men returning to<br />
society from prison.<br />
PHOTO BY ARIZONA PORTRAITS<br />
12 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
TRANSFORMED LIVES<br />
You Have a Family<br />
BY KRISTI OVERTON JOHNSON<br />
PHOTO BY DREW NICOLELLO<br />
Above: The Rock,<br />
the Road, and<br />
the Rabbi tour<br />
group reminded<br />
VLMag founder,<br />
Kristi, about the<br />
importance of<br />
God’s family.<br />
RECENTLY, I VISITED THE HOLY LAND, and<br />
now that I’ve seen where Jesus lived, died, and returned<br />
to life, I am confident that I will never be the<br />
same. When I read the Bible or listen to a message, it’s<br />
like I’ve been given the gift of seeing and hearing the<br />
Word of God on a 90-inch high-definition television<br />
with surround sound, where I’d only experienced it<br />
in black and white before. The Word of God has come<br />
to life within me in a fresh new way.<br />
I experienced many places and revelations in Israel,<br />
but witnessing the masses of people longing<br />
for God impacted me the most. Each year, people<br />
from every tribe and nation descend upon the Holy<br />
Land to pray, worship, tour the land, and sit under<br />
biblical teachings.<br />
Seeing so many people hunger and thirst for the<br />
Lord encouraged my heart. Today’s news portrays a<br />
world that has turned its back on God. But in Israel,<br />
I witnessed a remnant of people boldly desiring His<br />
presence.<br />
A highlight of my trip included a moment of spontaneous<br />
worship with German believers. Our group<br />
had just entered a cathedral near Jerusalem when<br />
we heard some other spiritual pilgrims singing the<br />
old hymn, “How Great Thou Art.” It echoed against<br />
the stone walls in four-part harmony.<br />
Our group joined in for the last verse of the hymn—in<br />
English, of course. It was the most beautiful sound I’ve<br />
ever heard. I imagine God was smiling as He received<br />
the praises of His children. We couldn’t speak the same<br />
language, but we were saying the same thing—“God, You<br />
are awesome!”<br />
When the song ended, you could have heard a pin<br />
drop. The Lord’s presence was so thick in that room.<br />
Suddenly, everyone erupted in applause and hallelujahs.<br />
Our groups exited the church at the same time, and<br />
we hugged each other. I said to one lady, “Hello, sister.”<br />
She looked confused at first, but then she smiled and<br />
replied in broken English, “Yes, we sisters!”<br />
We had 84 people in our group, ranging from 22 to 86<br />
years old. We were of different races, denominations,<br />
and socioeconomic backgrounds. Our life experiences<br />
varied widely. One lady shared how just two years earlier,<br />
she’d been living in a tent under a bridge after addiction<br />
had stripped her of everything dear.<br />
Despite our various geographical and experiential<br />
makeups, we quickly bonded. We were in one accord,<br />
“agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one<br />
another, and working together with one mind and purpose”<br />
(Philippians 2:2 NLT).<br />
That’s because we recognized each other’s value in<br />
the eyes of God and treated each other with respect and<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
13
TRANSFORMED LIVES<br />
love, as Jesus commands in John 13:34. God’s love in<br />
us was a powerful bonding agent. It prevented us from<br />
seeing physical, political, and socioeconomic differences<br />
and opened our eyes to the beauty of each other’s spirit.<br />
It also resulted in generous acts of kindness, grace,<br />
and patience throughout the week. Due to age and physical<br />
limitations, some people walked much slower than<br />
others. But no one ever complained, and we didn’t leave<br />
anyone behind. If one of the group members stumbled<br />
or fell due to the rocky terrain, others helped them up.<br />
Oh, if God’s children could always be so loving, kind,<br />
generous, and patient with one another, our world would<br />
be transformed.<br />
One day, after a delicious and expensive meal by the<br />
Sea of Galilee, a young man from our group blessed our<br />
whole table by picking up the tab. I learned about Mark’s<br />
generosity while in line at the cash register. I had my<br />
shekels (Israeli money) in hand when he turned around<br />
and said, “It’s all been taken care of.” I was stunned. I<br />
hardly knew him—I just happened to sit at his table.<br />
Mark’s action caused me to think about God’s generous<br />
gift of salvation (John 3:16) when He “purchased our<br />
freedom and forgave our sins” (Colossians 1:14 NLT).<br />
I suddenly imagined myself at a heavenly cash register,<br />
waiting to pay the price for my sin, a price I could<br />
have never paid (Romans 6:23). Then Jesus turned<br />
around, looked at me with eyes of love, and said, “It’s<br />
all been taken care of. I paid the price for your sin and<br />
the world’s sins.” (See 1 Timothy 2:6.)<br />
I hadn’t done anything to deserve this kind act of mercy.<br />
In fact, no one deserves it. But just think—Jesus paid<br />
that heavy price for you and me before we even knew<br />
Him and while we were still active sinners (Romans 5:8).<br />
Sadly, that was the last interaction I had with Mark.<br />
At about midnight, Mark’s wife called with devastating<br />
news—his child had<br />
died.<br />
Our Bible teacher<br />
shared the news with<br />
our group after our<br />
morning devotion, sitting<br />
under a tin shelter<br />
overlooking Bethlehem.<br />
Sadness hung in the air, but then, one by one, we began<br />
to pray. We boldly took our brother and his loved ones to<br />
the throne of God and interceded on his behalf (Hebrews<br />
4:16; 1 Timothy 2:1).<br />
My heart hurt, and like everyone else, I had questions.<br />
But I took comfort in knowing that while Mark was flying<br />
home to reunite with his distraught family, more than<br />
80 people were crying out to God on his behalf.<br />
Anyone who professes<br />
Jesus as their Lord and<br />
Savior becomes a part<br />
of His eternal family.<br />
In His grace, I could see that God had given Mark a new<br />
Above: Kristi (third<br />
in line) and her son,<br />
Dalton (fourth) pray<br />
the Psalms of Ascent<br />
as they make their way<br />
up the temple steps,<br />
the same steps Jesus<br />
would have walked<br />
entering the temple.<br />
Right: A beautiful view<br />
of Jerusalem behind<br />
the Israeli flag.<br />
family of burden carriers to intercede on his behalf.<br />
Not only that, but my Lord had also positioned many<br />
mighty men of God to be with Mark when he received<br />
the news. They had stayed with him the entire night,<br />
supporting him and making arrangements for his<br />
flight home. Despite how it looked, God wasn’t absent,<br />
and He had not abandoned Mark.<br />
God never abandons His children. John 14:18<br />
promises that He will never leave us as orphans. The<br />
ARTWORK BY A VICTORIOUS LIVING FAMILY MEMBER<br />
PHOTOS BY DREW NICOLELLO<br />
14 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
TRANSFORMED LIVES<br />
word “orphan” always brings to my mind a picture<br />
of my adopted son, Dalton, and adopted daughter,<br />
Ivy. I see them as they were in 2004 when I first met<br />
them in Russia. In particular, I envision Ivy, who was<br />
living in a run-down children’s hospital. She was in<br />
extremely poor condition.<br />
Ivy’s mother had abandoned Ivy and her siblings.<br />
They had no provisions, protection, direction, purpose,<br />
voice, or hope. Even after being in the hospital,<br />
Ivy remained frail, pale, hungry, dirty, powerless,<br />
and voiceless. She knew no language. She didn’t even<br />
know her own name because she had lived her formative<br />
years in isolation.<br />
Through this image, I understand God’s promise<br />
not to leave us as orphans better now. Because of<br />
Him, we are never alone, rejected, dirty, weak, powerless,<br />
voiceless, or without hope for our future. We<br />
are accepted, protected, loved, pure, whole, heard,<br />
seen, and powerful. We belong to God, and we carry<br />
Above: Kristi enjoying<br />
the beautiful history<br />
of Caesarea Maritime<br />
(aka Caesarea by the<br />
Sea). This is the location<br />
where the Gospel was<br />
extended to the gentiles<br />
as recorded in Acts 10.<br />
Left: Kristi enjoyed<br />
developing new<br />
relationships with other<br />
children of God including<br />
Carol, Cornette (Mama),<br />
and Freda.<br />
We’re not perfect, but the grace<br />
and love of God bind us together.<br />
His name, the name above all names (Philippians 2:9).<br />
Sometimes, circumstances can make it feel like God<br />
has left us. But Numbers 23:19 reminds us: “God is not<br />
a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does<br />
not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to<br />
act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?”<br />
(NLT). God will not leave His precious ones behind. Not<br />
me, not Mark, not Ivy, and certainly not you.<br />
It might look like evil has prevailed in your life. You<br />
might feel completely alone. But you are not alone. God<br />
is close, and He is ready and willing to help you. Look<br />
at Psalm 121:2–8: “My help comes from the Lord… He<br />
will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you<br />
will not slumber. … The Lord himself watches over you!<br />
The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.<br />
… The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over<br />
your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come<br />
and go, both now and forever” (NLT).<br />
Does that mean you won’t experience pain? No. But it<br />
does mean that you are not alone in your pain. Does it<br />
mean that life won’t ever become dark? No. But darkness<br />
cannot overtake the light within you (John 1:5; 16:33).<br />
If there is one thing this trip taught me, it is the importance<br />
and beauty of family—God’s family. Ecclesiastes<br />
4:12 says, “A person standing alone can be attacked and<br />
defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer.<br />
Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not<br />
easily broken” (NLT).<br />
Like the Holy Land’s rocky terrain, life’s paths are<br />
often challenging and steep. Please, don’t try to take the<br />
journey alone. A person standing alone is open to attacks<br />
and defeat. But if you stand close to God and surround<br />
yourself with other believers, you will be victorious.<br />
Friend, you have a family. Anyone who professes Jesus<br />
as their Lord and Savior becomes a part of His eternal<br />
family (Ephesians 2:19). No matter who you are or what<br />
you’ve done, you have a place in God’s family. And nothing<br />
can separate you from His love (Romans 8:31–39).<br />
You also have a place in the Victorious Living family. See<br />
pages 2 and 34 for information on how to connect with<br />
us. Like my Holy Land tour group, we are a diverse group<br />
of people seeking to carry out God’s greatest commandment:<br />
to love the Lord with all we are and to love others<br />
as ourselves. We’re not perfect, but the grace and love of<br />
God bind us together. We invite you to join us.<br />
KRISTI OVERTON JOHNSON encourages and equips people<br />
for victory through her writings, speaking engagements, and prison<br />
ministry. To learn more, go to kojministries.org.<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
15
God’s<br />
Plan Is<br />
Still<br />
Good<br />
THE STORY OF PARKER BYRD<br />
Jeremiah 29:11 has<br />
always been my favorite<br />
verse. It says, “I know<br />
the plans I have for you,”<br />
declares the Lord, “plans<br />
to prosper you and not<br />
to harm you, plans to<br />
give you hope and a<br />
future” (NIV).<br />
And up until July 23, 2022, my life reflected<br />
every positive vibe of this verse. I<br />
had loving parents who paved the way for<br />
my success, awesome sisters and friends,<br />
and I played the game I loved—baseball.<br />
Even before I could walk, I had a bat and<br />
ball in my hand. I’d sit there in my diaper,<br />
swinging my plastic bat at a plastic baseball<br />
propped on a stand. My dad fed the<br />
baseball bug inside me, and every day, I’d<br />
wait excitedly at the front door for him to<br />
come home from work so we could play.<br />
Out in the sandbox, we’d pretend I was<br />
a certain professional player and I’d take<br />
on the role of their respective position. My<br />
favorite was Brian McCann, catcher for the<br />
Braves. Other times I became Josh Hamilton,<br />
outfielder for the Rangers, or Derek<br />
Jeter, infielder for the Yankees. Before we<br />
played, Dad and I would stand, place our<br />
right hands across our chests, and sing the<br />
national anthem.<br />
This dedication led to my commitment<br />
to play baseball for East Carolina University<br />
in the ninth grade. I had opportunities<br />
to play in larger programs, but being a Pirate<br />
felt right. Plus, both my parents had<br />
attended ECU. We had no idea then how<br />
important the Pirate community would<br />
be to our family when I headed to college<br />
for summer school in June 2022.<br />
Greenville was a fun town, and I bonded<br />
quickly with my teammates. My dreams of<br />
playing college ball had finally come true;<br />
I thanked God for His awesome plan.<br />
And then, on Saturday, July 23, I went<br />
out on the Pamlico River with my new<br />
friends. My girlfriend, teammates, and I<br />
had a blast on the back creeks, skimming<br />
across the water on inflatable rides behind<br />
my friend’s family boat.<br />
As one would imagine, things got a bit<br />
wild; we were, after all, a boatload of teenagers.<br />
My friend Dixon and I boarded the<br />
tube and held tight until we could hold no<br />
more and we were ejected from the tube.<br />
We laughed and groaned as our bodies<br />
skipped across the water.<br />
When our friend returned to pick us up, I<br />
decided I’d had enough. I grabbed the rope<br />
and pulled myself in toward the boat. At<br />
the same time, my friend put the boat in<br />
reverse. Suddenly, the rope was caught in<br />
the propeller, and I was pulled under the<br />
boat into the prop’s spinning blades.<br />
PHOTO BY PARKER OVERTON PHOTOGRAPHY<br />
16 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE BYRD FAMILY<br />
A water-savvy teammate from Florida<br />
saw what happened and jumped into the<br />
water. He had just lost a friend in a boating<br />
accident and wasn’t about to lose another.<br />
He helped me get to the side of the boat and<br />
the others pulled me inside. Blood mixed<br />
with dirty river water spread throughout<br />
the boat as everyone frantically tried to<br />
figure out what to do.<br />
Our boat was inoperable since the rope<br />
was still caught in the prop, so my teammates<br />
started waving and yelling for help.<br />
My girlfriend called 911, and someone applied<br />
a makeshift tourniquet to my thighs.<br />
After a few minutes, a man drove over to<br />
us. He refused to help us, though, saying<br />
he didn’t want to expose his children to<br />
the bloody scene. He threw us a first aid<br />
kit and drove away.<br />
Soon, another boat approached. There<br />
was a nurse in that boat who immediately<br />
began attending to my needs. She was like<br />
an angel from heaven, bringing order and<br />
peace to our chaos. I was transferred to<br />
their boat and taken to the marina, where<br />
an ambulance awaited. I fought to stay<br />
awake, knowing if I dozed off, I might die.<br />
From the local hospital, I was airlifted<br />
to ECU Health in Greenville. I had an outof-body<br />
experience during the transport.<br />
I was floating above my body, watching the<br />
medical team working on me, and wondering<br />
how this day could have gone so wrong.<br />
At ECU Health, I was rushed into surgery.<br />
It was a three-hour drive from Laurinburg,<br />
my hometown, to Greenville, but Dad had<br />
the pedal to the medal, and they made it<br />
in record time.<br />
The days that followed are a blur for me,<br />
as I went in and out of surgery, but for my<br />
parents, they were a living nightmare. I can<br />
only imagine the pain they endured and<br />
the helplessness they felt as they stood by.<br />
My parents faced heavy burdens as they<br />
balanced work and family and soon decided<br />
to relocate to Greenville permanently.<br />
My sisters and parents made a huge sacrifice<br />
to be by my side.<br />
I underwent 22 surgeries, including on<br />
August 4, a leg amputation below the knee.<br />
There was no time to grieve the loss of my<br />
leg or even process what it might mean for<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
my baseball career, as we were focused on<br />
my survival.<br />
People all over eastern North Carolina<br />
were praying for my recovery, and many<br />
sent letters of encouragement. The support<br />
of the Greenville community blew my parents’<br />
minds. This was not even our hometown,<br />
yet people cared so deeply.<br />
The community’s support and prayers<br />
carried my family and me, especially when<br />
the doctor told us that blood had ceased<br />
flowing around my knee. I would need<br />
another amputation, this time above the<br />
knee.<br />
The news didn’t shake me at first. My<br />
leg was already gone; what was a few more<br />
inches? But my dad knew that losing my<br />
knee meant losing our dream of a baseball<br />
career, and that news hit him like a ton of<br />
bricks. I hadn’t thought of that possibility<br />
until he shared it. I lost it, and we both<br />
began to cry.<br />
Mom, however, was not going to throw in<br />
the towel. “Look at me,” she said fiercely.<br />
We looked. “No one can tell you what you<br />
can or cannot do. No one can limit you,<br />
and no one knows your future. You decide.<br />
And if you want to play baseball, then that’s<br />
what we’ll go for. Don’t let anyone or anything<br />
stop you!” Her words smacked me<br />
and Dad back to the truth. Mom also knew<br />
nothing was impossible with God (Matthew<br />
19:26).<br />
“GOD, I’VE ALWAYS<br />
TRUSTED YOU HAVE A<br />
PLAN. BUT THIS PLAN<br />
DOESN’T FEEL SO GOOD.”<br />
My family had raised me to believe in<br />
God, and I had put my faith in Jesus Christ<br />
for salvation long ago. But in this trial, we<br />
all learned to trust God more deeply. We’d<br />
never experienced such an obvious need<br />
for His intervention. Our prayers grew in<br />
intensity.<br />
Our faith soared when, days later, a trickle<br />
of blood was spotted flowing through the<br />
vein in my knee during a washout of my<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> 17<br />
Parker’s love for baseball came<br />
early. Pictured above in one of his<br />
many professional uniforms.<br />
Parker competed on various<br />
travel teams as he waited to<br />
become an ECU Pirate.<br />
Parker underwent 22 surgeries<br />
after a boating accident took<br />
his leg and nearly his life.<br />
The Lord, hard work, and<br />
modern technology has helped<br />
Parker get back on the field.
IF IT HADN’T BEEN FOR MY ACCIDENT,<br />
I WOULD NEVER HAVE HAD SUCH<br />
A STORY OF INSPIRATION.<br />
Parker and his parents, Jeff<br />
and Mitzi, are grateful for new<br />
opportunities to share God’s<br />
goodness at special events.<br />
While in physical rehab, Parker<br />
encouraged his teammates<br />
and rallied the ECU fans from<br />
the sidelines.<br />
The Challenged Athlete Foundation<br />
arranged for Parker to throw out<br />
the first pitch at the Houston<br />
Astros game, April 19, <strong>2023</strong>.<br />
wound. We had our miracle! The doctors<br />
could not explain the return of blood but<br />
gladly postponed the surgery. Then, blood<br />
began to flow through the once-dry veins.<br />
My knee was saved.<br />
This was great news, but it didn’t erase<br />
the reality of my new situation or the pain<br />
I would face in the coming months. It was<br />
hard to reconcile Jeremiah 29:11’s promise<br />
of God’s good plan with this painful mess.<br />
I even told Him, “God, I’ve always trusted<br />
You have a plan. But this plan doesn’t feel<br />
so good.”<br />
I didn’t know what to make of it all, but<br />
I felt God reminding me that His plan<br />
never intends harm. Somehow, He would<br />
bring good out of this pain; I just had to<br />
trust Him. He assured me, losing my leg<br />
wouldn’t be the end of my dreams.<br />
I had plenty of opportunities to get angry<br />
with myself, God, and others. But I couldn’t<br />
let anger and blame have any place in my<br />
life if I wanted to move forward. I had to<br />
trust God’s love for me and stay humble.<br />
I had to start at ground zero, put one foot<br />
in front of the other, and learn how to walk<br />
again. And it wasn’t easy.<br />
I talked to myself a lot. “Get up, Parker.<br />
Keep going. You can do it—God’s with you!<br />
You will play again.” It didn’t matter that<br />
I didn’t know of any other leg amputees<br />
playing ball in Division 1 baseball. But<br />
doesn’t there always have to be a first? So<br />
why not me?<br />
I remembered the saying, “Hard work<br />
beats talent when talent doesn’t work<br />
hard.” In baseball, it didn’t matter that I<br />
had natural talent. Even with both legs,<br />
I’d had to work hard to succeed. So it was<br />
time to get off my rear and do my part to<br />
onto Lewis Field as a shortstop for the ECU<br />
Pirates. I still have a ways to go physically,<br />
but I’m sticking to my goal of being 1 percent<br />
better each day. Sometimes it feels<br />
like I’m going in reverse, but progress often<br />
feels that way. I just have to keep my eyes<br />
on the goal.<br />
When I’m back on the field, I hope people<br />
do more than admire my comeback. I<br />
hope they are inspired to get into the game<br />
of life. One lady told me recently that I’d<br />
inspired her to take the stairs instead of<br />
the elevator. That’s the kind of inspiration<br />
I’m talking about.<br />
It’s hard for me to believe my life today.<br />
This Southern teen, who admittedly mumbles<br />
his words, is now a public mouthpiece<br />
for God. If it hadn’t been for my accident,<br />
I would never have had such a story of inspiration.<br />
God has taken my life and the<br />
game of baseball and given them an eternal<br />
purpose.<br />
Maybe, like me, you are facing a painful<br />
trial that came out of nowhere, and you’re<br />
left confused and wondering, “God, what’s<br />
up with this plan? It hurts.” Please know<br />
there is still hope.<br />
Trust God and obey Him. Lean into Him<br />
and refuse to give up. In time, you’ll make<br />
it. God will take the messes of your life and<br />
work through them for your good and His<br />
glory (Romans 8:28).<br />
Don’t listen to the negativity around you,<br />
especially that nasty voice in your head. No<br />
one but God and you can determine your<br />
future. You might not see the good of His<br />
plan as quickly as I did, but it’s coming.<br />
So don’t give up. God is on your side, and<br />
that’s enough. Remember, with Him, all<br />
things are possible.<br />
experience God’s plan. Otherwise, it would<br />
never come to fruition. Faith takes action. PARKER BYRD is an East Carolina University<br />
student and baseball team member. You’ll find him<br />
It’s been 15 months since my accident,<br />
sharing his inspiring story at various venues when<br />
and today, I’m medically cleared to play he’s not studying, working out, or swinging the bat<br />
baseball. In February 2024, I hope to step with his teammates.<br />
18 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE BYRD FAMILY
STEPPING FORWARD<br />
Be the One to Tell Them<br />
BY CHRISTINA KIMBREL<br />
PHOTO BY LAUREN JONES<br />
ONE SCORCHING SUMMER DAY, I was sitting at a stoplight<br />
when a man approached my car. He was holding a sign that read,<br />
“Homeless, hungry. Please help.” I let him pass by, but I kept<br />
watching him in my rearview mirror.<br />
I noticed that every few steps, he would fall asleep where he<br />
was standing. His eyes would close, and he’d sway back and forth.<br />
Then, he would slump headfirst toward the ground until something<br />
would startle him awake and he’d move on.<br />
His feet were near the curb, and I worried he might slip and fall<br />
into oncoming traffic. I felt the Holy Spirit nudging me to help.<br />
What should I do, Lord?<br />
Experience told me this man wasn’t tired from the wear and tear<br />
of homelessness in the hot Arizona sun. As I observed him from<br />
my air-conditioned car, I remembered the decades I had spent as a<br />
junkie strung out on heroin, when the streets had been my home.<br />
I’d lived under bridges and in abandoned houses, and I’d hustled<br />
for money in neighborhoods known for drugs and prostitution. I<br />
was in the grips of my addiction, and it showed. But there at that<br />
traffic light, God didn’t let me linger on the traumatic memories;<br />
He used a different one to speak to my heart.<br />
I remember standing at a crosswalk one day when a woman<br />
called out from her car, “Good morning, beautiful. Are you hungry?”<br />
She didn’t wait for me to answer. She looked me in the eyes<br />
through her open window and said, “Jesus loves you, sweetheart.”<br />
She flashed a huge smile, handed me a warm breakfast sandwich<br />
and a couple of dollars, then drove away. I never saw her again.<br />
Whoever she was, she had looked past my skimpy outfit and<br />
the track marks on my arms to let me know, in a tangible way, that<br />
God loves me. Remembering her stirred my heart and encouraged<br />
me to do the same for this man.<br />
I didn’t have any food, but I did have a few dollars and some<br />
bottles of water in the car. That was enough—I’d been given the<br />
opportunity to let this man know that God loves him, and I was<br />
ready. I rolled down my window and called out to him.<br />
At the sound of my voice, he stood up straight and rushed to<br />
my car. He gave me the biggest smile as I handed him the money<br />
and the water.<br />
“How’d you know I was thirsty?” he asked.<br />
I smiled and answered, “I didn’t, but God did, and He loves you.”<br />
The light turned green, and the man stepped away. Tears<br />
streamed down my face as I thanked the Lord for this encounter.<br />
Through that gentleman, God had reminded me that He can use<br />
anyone who’s willing to reach His lost and hurting children. He<br />
does it through one compassionate act at a time.<br />
I love how Jesus handled people begging along the roadside<br />
(Mark 10:46–52). He didn’t waste time sizing them up or making<br />
assumptions about how they got there. Instead, He engaged with<br />
them in conversation and let them know that He saw them. He met<br />
their needs and loved them. (Read the Gospel accounts to see Jesus’s<br />
compassionate interactions with people of all backgrounds.)<br />
There is no shortage of opportunities to implement what Jesus<br />
taught us. Every day, in every city and on every street, we encounter<br />
suffering people. But homelessness and drug addiction are<br />
often symptoms of a greater, spiritual problem.<br />
It doesn’t matter who a person is or what they’ve done. It’s none<br />
of our business whether the sign they hold is true, how beaten<br />
down they look, or whether they are on drugs. Our only business<br />
is to show them the love of God without judgment.<br />
After all, as Romans 10:14 asks, “How can they call on him to<br />
save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe<br />
in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they<br />
hear about him unless someone tells them?” (NLT).<br />
May we always be prepared to give a reason for the hope within<br />
us (1 Peter 3:15).<br />
CHRISTINA KIMBREL serves as VL’s production manager. Once incarcerated<br />
and bound to her addiction, she now ministers hope to those held captive by<br />
their circumstances while sharing the message of healing she’s found in Jesus.<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
19
WRONG TO<br />
STRONG<br />
THE STORY OF JULIO (JC) ALMANZA<br />
My childhood<br />
was marked by<br />
unspeakable<br />
trauma. Long before<br />
I even reached<br />
double digits, my<br />
heart was hard,<br />
and my mind was<br />
confused. As far as<br />
I knew, it was up to<br />
me to survive in this<br />
harsh world.<br />
I was four when my father abandoned<br />
my mother, two sisters, and me. We moved<br />
in with an uncle, a man who molested,<br />
raped, and tortured me from then until I<br />
was nine. His favorite “game” was to hold<br />
me under ice-cold water in our bathtub<br />
until I passed out. Then, he’d revive me—<br />
and do it again. To this day, I’m petrified<br />
of water.<br />
For many years, every man I saw reminded<br />
me of my father and that uncle,<br />
and every woman reminded me of my<br />
mother. I hated her for not protecting me.<br />
She knew about the torture and sexual<br />
abuse yet did nothing to stop it. The collective<br />
actions and inactions of my family<br />
did a number on me psychologically.<br />
By the time I was 11, I was out on the<br />
streets looking for blood. Being a gangbanger<br />
on Chicago’s South Side gave me<br />
an avenue to take down my enemies—and<br />
I figured everyone was my enemy.<br />
On the streets, I thought I’d found a<br />
family who would have my back. But that<br />
wasn’t the case. Gang leaders were just<br />
happy to have another broken kid to do<br />
their dirty work, and I was eager to do it. It<br />
was easy enough to save some money and<br />
buy a handgun from a guy on the street.<br />
Like many involved with gang life, I<br />
caught multiple arrests and rotated in<br />
and out of juvenile delinquent facilities.<br />
Those experiences were only slaps on the<br />
wrist. Every time I was released, I went<br />
right back to my “family” and street life.<br />
Thinking back to those days, I’m sure<br />
my willingness to do anything I was asked<br />
was my way of trying to die. The pain in<br />
my heart and mind was intense; even at<br />
11, I didn’t want to live. I tried to take my<br />
own life on many occasions.<br />
That willingness to do, however, grew<br />
me a reputation of loyalty, and at 16, I was<br />
brought into a new family, a drug cartel.<br />
PHOTO BY ARIZONA PORTRAITS<br />
20 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
My first position was as a mule, trafficking<br />
drugs across the Mexican border. But I<br />
was quickly promoted to manager, where I<br />
made sure the cars carrying drugs reached<br />
their destinations.<br />
As a manager, I was making $60,000 a<br />
week. I thought I was the man, hitting Chicago<br />
nightclubs wrapped in my chinchilla<br />
fur coat and draped in thick gold chains,<br />
but I was nothing more than a dog in heat.<br />
I had no respect for women.<br />
I found no satisfaction in all that money<br />
or those one-night stands. They brought<br />
only an insatiable desire for more. And<br />
in my greed, I got sloppy and caught the<br />
attention of federal officials. I was 17 years<br />
old when I was arrested in Mexico for international<br />
drug trafficking and sentenced<br />
to 15 years in a Mexican prison with no<br />
chance of parole. I was in for the shock<br />
of my life.<br />
I’ll never forget entering those prison<br />
gates holding my two bags of belongings.<br />
As the officer shoved me from behind and<br />
told me to find a place to live, all eyes were<br />
on me—the fresh meat. Seconds later, the<br />
scariest dudes I’d ever seen “welcomed”<br />
me to the compound.<br />
“What size shoe do you wear?” one of<br />
them asked, referring to my shiny, red<br />
Air Jordans. But before I could answer,<br />
he stabbed me with an icepick and took<br />
what he came for.<br />
I quickly learned that the name of the<br />
game was survival of the fittest. I wouldn’t<br />
have made it out alive if I hadn’t been in<br />
the prime of my youth and well-acquainted<br />
with violence. It also helped that my boss<br />
got word that I was locked up and hooked<br />
me up on the inside.<br />
This place was a city within a city with<br />
its own rules. I saw more drugs there than<br />
I’ve ever seen on the outside. Every night,<br />
kilos of coke were spread out on tables; nobody<br />
tried to hide what was going on, but I<br />
tried to hide to avoid the nightly drug fest.<br />
My efforts proved useless, however, because<br />
the head man always sent someone<br />
to find me, then forced me to participate.<br />
I was like his little pet.<br />
It took nearly four years for the US<br />
Consulate to rescue me from that violent<br />
prison. I was the last American transferred<br />
to a US federal facility through an inmate<br />
exchange program, and yes, that was a rescue.<br />
I thank God for His grace—if I hadn’t<br />
gotten out when I did, I’d be dead.<br />
Back in America, I landed in a federal<br />
prison, where I completed my 15-year<br />
sentence by serving one year. Every year<br />
I was in prison in Mexico counted as two<br />
years in the United States, and the court<br />
gave me an additional seven-year credit<br />
for the pain and suffering I had endured.<br />
I wasn’t free five minutes before I was<br />
arrested again on a gang-shooting charge<br />
from Chicago. The local judge released me<br />
on my own recognizance, and I immediately<br />
returned to Chicago and appeared<br />
before the court. Impressed with my timely<br />
appearance, the judge sentenced me to<br />
seven years, then put me into a military-<br />
style boot-camp program for young gang<br />
members. A full prison, however, meant<br />
an early release for me.<br />
I was 24 years old when I became a free<br />
man. I had spent the majority of my youth<br />
Above: Not long after this picture<br />
was taken, a family member<br />
began severely abusing little JC.<br />
This long-term abuse left internal<br />
wounds that caused JC and<br />
others much harm.<br />
behind bars and wondered if I’d ever experience<br />
anything other than darkness<br />
and pain. I was desperate for a new life<br />
but had no idea how to create one. I tried<br />
getting a legitimate job, but no one would<br />
hire me because of my criminal record.<br />
Countless rejections left me feeling<br />
hopeless, and I returned to the only life I<br />
knew. The streets and my boss welcomed<br />
me with open arms, and just like that, I was<br />
back in the game, moving heavy weight.<br />
I went from having nothing to owning a<br />
restaurant and a house in the suburbs.<br />
When I met a girl whose father could expand<br />
my drug distribution operation, I<br />
married her. Every action I took was a<br />
calculated move.<br />
My inner demons grew to new proportions<br />
during this season of my life,<br />
as did the madness. Things were going<br />
south, and I lived in constant anxiety, always<br />
looking over my shoulder. I’d been<br />
stabbed, beaten, shot at, tied up, and<br />
gagged more times than I could count.<br />
And now, my boys were trying to kill me.<br />
After escaping eight attempts on my life<br />
Below: JC began his cycle of<br />
incarceration as a teen, serving<br />
time in US juvenile centers, a<br />
Mexican prison, and US state and<br />
federal prisons. Only when he met<br />
Jesus Christ was the cycle broken.<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
21
in one day, I decided it was time to move<br />
west—to Phoenix—alone.<br />
I thought that getting out of Chicago<br />
would fix everything, but it didn’t. My<br />
inner demons made the move with me,<br />
and they tortured me day and night. I was<br />
lonely and afraid, so I turned to drugs.<br />
In Chicago, using drugs was strictly prohibited<br />
by the cartel leaders. But I was no<br />
longer under the eyes of the cartel, so I ran<br />
wild, drinking and drugging and hitting<br />
the strip clubs on every corner.<br />
Immediate gratification was my only<br />
goal. But with every attempt to escape, I<br />
widened the door for more demons, and<br />
the demon of addiction took me captive.<br />
Meth, heroin, and crack dug their claws<br />
deep into me, and before long, I was a<br />
hopeless junkie who would do anything<br />
for his next fix.<br />
My criminal ways kept me rotating in<br />
and out of Arizona prisons. The system<br />
offered everything it had to fix me—prison,<br />
Above: JC turned to physical fitness<br />
and power lifting competitions to stay<br />
straight. But he found physical strength<br />
couldn’t heal the brokenness of his heart.<br />
Right: Today, JC shares his story of restoration with<br />
kids experiencing difficulties and traumas, and<br />
incarcerated men and women looking for new lives.<br />
grams, addiction meetings, and meds. The<br />
drugs they gave me kept me down, sideways,<br />
and flat. I could only stay straight<br />
for a few months and felt more hopeless<br />
with each failure.<br />
The only time I found tranquility was<br />
while working out. Physical fitness empowered<br />
me, provided a mental and emotional<br />
escape, and increased my desire to<br />
be physically healthy. I worked out two<br />
or three times a day in prison, and I still<br />
do today.<br />
I was released in 2013, and I really<br />
wanted to stay straight, so I focused on<br />
fitness, became a personal trainer, and<br />
eventually opened a gym. People in the<br />
fitness industry took notice of my strength<br />
and story, and 5% Nutrition took me on<br />
as a sponsored athlete. Currently, I hold<br />
state records in Arizona and Illinois for<br />
powerlifting.<br />
My success, however, fed my ego, and<br />
I began playing cat-and-mouse games<br />
with my parole officer. I ended up serving<br />
a one-year sentence for violating parole<br />
in a violent federal prison. The lifers I<br />
was locked up with there had nothing<br />
to lose, and they lived like it.<br />
One day, I watched a man get<br />
stabbed 30 times over a piece of<br />
shock treatments, drug rehabilitation prochicken.<br />
Bloody handprints streaked the<br />
walls from where he tried to escape his<br />
attackers. Sitting there watching the scene<br />
and eating a chicken leg myself, I thought,<br />
“What in the world are you doing here, JC?<br />
You’re 40 years old. Is this all your life will<br />
ever be?”<br />
I’d seen many prisoners turn to God for<br />
a life change, but I’d always made fun of<br />
them. Bible thumpers, I said, only wanted<br />
God because they were in prison and<br />
scared. Jail-house religion was a sign of<br />
weakness. And I wasn’t weak.<br />
So, instead of turning to God after my<br />
release, I turned to the internet. I sat at a<br />
computer and Googled, “How can I change<br />
my life?” The top answer? Get a college<br />
education. So I set out to do just that.<br />
I visited the local community college<br />
and met with an academic counselor who<br />
encouraged me to attend a criminal justice<br />
class led by a former cop of 30 years. No,<br />
thank you! I was an ex-felon who hated<br />
cops. Yet, the lady persisted, and something<br />
in her voice led me to register for<br />
the cop’s class.<br />
I didn’t know it yet, but God was setting<br />
me up for a fall—His love was about to take<br />
me down.<br />
On the first day, I got to class early, intending<br />
to intimidate the teacher so he<br />
wouldn’t call on me. He didn’t scare easily,<br />
though. In fact, he found a way to engage<br />
with me during every class. It didn’t take<br />
me long to understand that John Humphreys<br />
was a man of sincere faith who<br />
genuinely cared about me. He was the first<br />
white person I ever really trusted.<br />
At about the same time, I met a beautiful<br />
woman, Bethany, at the gym. She’d approach<br />
me while I was on the treadmill and<br />
tell me I needed Jesus. I’d think to myself,<br />
“Woman, I don’t care how pretty you are…<br />
You talk about Jesus too much!”<br />
Yet, somehow, I found myself being<br />
drawn to her and telling her about my<br />
past. I shared things with her I’d never<br />
told anyone else—I even told her about my<br />
uncle. This was the first pure relationship<br />
I’d ever had.<br />
Life was going well—I made a good living<br />
as a physical trainer and even had a suc-<br />
RED PHOTO COURTESY OF JC ALMANZA / BLUE PHOTO BY DONNIE EAGLE PHOTOGRAPHY<br />
22 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
PHOTO BY ARIZONA PORTRAITS<br />
cessful YouTube channel I called Wrong to<br />
Strong. But each night, I’d go home to my<br />
empty house and ask myself, “Is this it? Is<br />
there nothing else?”<br />
One night, overwhelmed with despair,<br />
I decided to end my misery. But before I<br />
went through with my plan, I called Bethany.<br />
She could tell something was wrong,<br />
and she stayed on the phone with me all<br />
night. I am alive today because of her unconditional<br />
love.<br />
The next day at the gym, she hugged me.<br />
It was my first hug without sexual strings<br />
attached, and it freaked me out. I felt vulnerable,<br />
and that made me angry. Over the<br />
next few weeks, however, we continued<br />
conversing until one morning, I called and<br />
said, “I think I love you.”<br />
I’d never known what it felt like to love<br />
someone or to be loved. Bethany told me<br />
she loved me, too, and I asked her to be my<br />
girlfriend. It wasn’t long before Bethany<br />
met the jealous and controlling monster<br />
who lived inside me. The phrase “hurt people,<br />
hurt people” is true. This beautiful<br />
woman paid quite a price.<br />
One day, we watched a movie together<br />
about a man who’d lost his daughter<br />
to rape and murder. God told the man to<br />
forgive the person who had violated his<br />
daughter. Memories of the abuse I’d suffered<br />
as a kid hit me like a ton of bricks.<br />
Forgive? Why? How? There was no way,<br />
but Bethany assured me that Jesus could<br />
help me.<br />
“JC,” she said, “Jesus wants to free you<br />
from your pain, and the only way to be free<br />
is to forgive those who have hurt you and<br />
forgive yourself. You won’t find the peace<br />
you want till you do.”<br />
I thought about my mom and sisters.<br />
I hadn’t talked to them for years; I hated<br />
them and blamed them for my pain. The<br />
Holy Spirit tugged at my heart, but I resisted.<br />
I was also angry with Him. Where was<br />
He when I was being drowned, raped, and<br />
beaten as a child?<br />
But God is patient, and He kept moving<br />
in my life despite my failures. Over the<br />
following months, the Spirit’s tug on me<br />
grew stronger until one day, I fell to my<br />
knees with an incredible urge to confess<br />
But God is<br />
patient, and<br />
He kept moving<br />
in my life<br />
despite my<br />
failures.<br />
everything I’d ever done. I couldn’t stop the<br />
words from flowing as I wept and sweat,<br />
and I told God everything. I listed the people<br />
I hated and confessed what I wanted to<br />
do to them. When it was over, I felt clean,<br />
like I’d had a heavenly shower.<br />
I headed out to my garage to work out<br />
when suddenly, it happened again. I fell to<br />
my knees, only this time, I heard a voice<br />
say, “JC, you’re not going to focus on your<br />
past anymore. You’re going to tell people<br />
about Me.”<br />
Since the launch of my social media<br />
platform in 2016, I had used it to talk only<br />
about my violent past. But on November 6,<br />
2021, I surrendered my life and platform<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
23
My whole life, I thought Christians<br />
were weak and only used their faith<br />
in Jesus as a crutch. I was wrong.<br />
There’s nothing more courageous<br />
than surrendering your life to Christ.<br />
to Christ. Since then, my videos have presented<br />
a new message—first of faith, then<br />
family, and then fitness.<br />
I didn’t know a lot about God, so I figured<br />
I’d better learn. I reached out to John,<br />
my teacher and mentor, and asked him<br />
to school me to be a follower of Jesus.<br />
John has faithfully poured into my life,<br />
answering my questions and showing me<br />
the blueprint for living according to God’s<br />
Word. I had seen the Bible as nothing more<br />
than a bunch of rules, but John explained<br />
that God’s commandments are His way of<br />
keeping us safe. (See Psalm 119.)<br />
I’d been taught that real men didn’t<br />
cry, but over the next few months, as God<br />
took me back to my past and mended my<br />
broken heart, I found myself an emotional<br />
mess. I can tell you though, if I hadn’t<br />
let out those feelings, I would never have<br />
found healing.<br />
I began telling people about God’s love<br />
Left: John<br />
Humphreys (left)<br />
extended God’s love<br />
and grace to JC.<br />
Through John, JC<br />
learned to trust God<br />
and others.<br />
every chance I got. The first time I shared<br />
my story, the gang members I spoke to<br />
gave their hearts to Jesus. They said, “Man,<br />
JC, we can see it’s real. We want what you<br />
got!” Today, I’m a gangster for Jesus.<br />
But I’ve got to keep it real: All those<br />
years of abuse and trauma and running<br />
the streets have taken a toll on my mind.<br />
Every day, I have to learn how to think new<br />
thoughts and to speak and react in new<br />
ways. (See Romans 6:12–13, 12:2; Ephesians<br />
4:22–32.) I’m overwhelmed by God’s<br />
goodness, especially by how He is restoring<br />
the relationships I destroyed.<br />
My whole life, I’ve been a thug on the<br />
streets; now, I am a man of morals. Even<br />
I can hardly believe it. God’s Spirit gives<br />
me the self-control and strength I need to<br />
not give in to my sinful, sexual, and prideful<br />
urges. God, who is rich in mercy, has<br />
helped me forgive those who’ve hurt me,<br />
and He is helping me become the father<br />
and husband my loved ones deserve. God<br />
is stopping the cycle of abuse and trauma<br />
in my family with me.<br />
As I continue to yield to the leading of<br />
His Spirit, I am no longer controlled by my<br />
emotions. Today, I’m happy and smiling.<br />
Instead of trying to kill the people around<br />
me, I hug them. Instead of tearing them<br />
down, I encourage them. The old JC is<br />
dead, and a new JC has been born. All<br />
because of Christ.<br />
If God did this for me, a former career<br />
criminal and convict, He can do it for anybody.<br />
Even you. You might feel like there’s<br />
no hope for change in your life, but I’m<br />
here to tell you, there is hope in Jesus.<br />
Jesus loves you.<br />
Isaiah 61:1 says that He was sent “to<br />
comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim<br />
that captives will be released and<br />
prisoners will be freed” (NLT). He can take<br />
you from feeling lost to finding strength.<br />
But you can’t be free to experience a new<br />
life until your heart is healed, and only<br />
God can heal a person’s heart. It’s through<br />
the power of the Holy Spirit that you are<br />
able to leave that sin alone and walk free.<br />
(See Romans 6:4; Philippians 2:13.)<br />
My whole life, I thought Christians were<br />
weak and only used their faith in Jesus as a<br />
crutch. I was wrong. There’s nothing more<br />
courageous than surrendering your life to<br />
Christ. In Him, I’m strong and have the<br />
power to overcome anything. I’ve made a<br />
lot of mistakes, but I’m determined now,<br />
with Jesus as my guide, to learn from my<br />
past and become a better, stronger person.<br />
God can give you a brand-new start<br />
too. With His help, you can experience a<br />
changed life and circumstance. It’s not<br />
always easy, but if you commit to the journey,<br />
you’ll find the peace you’re looking for.<br />
Romans 10:11 says, “Anyone who believes<br />
in him will never be disgraced” (NLT).<br />
Open your heart to Him today. Let Him<br />
restore your life. What do you have to lose?<br />
JULIO (JC) ALMANZA is on a journey of learning<br />
and growing, experiencing mental, emotional, and<br />
physical healing along the way. He shares Jesus<br />
at every opportunity he has and is committed<br />
to helping others find the peace and joy that<br />
transformed his life.<br />
24 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
TRANSFORMED LIVES<br />
The<br />
Prison of<br />
Bitterness<br />
BY SHERIDAN CORREA<br />
WE CAN’T TRAVEL THROUGH LIFE<br />
without experiencing hurt and disappointment.<br />
The simple truth is that people let<br />
us down—and we let them down too. Those<br />
hurts and disappointments can lead to<br />
bitterness that will consume us if we let it.<br />
How do you know if you’re a prisoner<br />
of bitterness? Consider these questions.<br />
Do little things irritate you? Do you<br />
blame others for your trials and troubles?<br />
Do you feel emotionally flat, quickly become<br />
fatigued, or lose interest in life? Are<br />
you easily frustrated and get defensive?<br />
Are you negative and critical of others?<br />
Do you justify your bad attitude by placing<br />
the blame on them? Do you withhold communication<br />
and withdraw from others?<br />
Do you envy someone else’s life? Do you<br />
replay scenarios in your head and reopen<br />
old wounds? Are you plotting revenge?<br />
If you answered yes to anything above, a<br />
poisonous root of bitterness may be growing<br />
in your heart. I suggest you deal with<br />
it now before it chokes the life out of you.<br />
Bitterness is a trick Satan uses to imprison<br />
us. He wants us to perish in the<br />
poison of bitterness and take others down<br />
with us. That’s why Hebrews 12:15 warns<br />
us to “Watch out that no poisonous root of<br />
bitterness grows up to trouble you” (NLT).<br />
I experienced many disappointments<br />
as a child, and bitterness took root in my<br />
heart. Those letdowns hurt and made me<br />
angry. Over time, unresolved anger fed<br />
the bitter root. It grew and enslaved me.<br />
In the prison of bitterness, I blamed others<br />
for my circumstances. I lost everything<br />
precious—my mind, children, health, and<br />
freedom. When I finally realized the problem<br />
was my bitter heart, I found freedom<br />
with God’s help and the truth of His Word.<br />
Here are some keys to coming out of a<br />
prison of bitterness:<br />
Forgive the offender and the offense. The<br />
world wants us to be bitter, but Jesus calls<br />
us to be better (Romans 12:2). That’s why<br />
He instructs us to forgive one another as<br />
many times as it takes (Matthew 18:22).<br />
While He was hanging on the cross, Jesus<br />
said, “Father, forgive them, for they<br />
don’t know what they are doing” (Luke<br />
23:34 NLT). Jesus understands our pain.<br />
He was hurt, abused, unjustly judged, and<br />
crucified. Yet He forgave those who hurt<br />
Him and modeled the way to a life of freedom<br />
with His dying breath.<br />
Forgiving the offenders and letting go<br />
of the offense is difficult. But it’s the only<br />
way to keep bitterness from poisoning our<br />
relationships with God and others.<br />
We like to keep an account of the wrongs<br />
that are done to us. Specifically naming the<br />
offense releases it to God and clears the<br />
cache. And that prevents bitterness from<br />
building up and taking root.<br />
Repent of sinful, unholy reactions. According<br />
to Ephesians 4:31, bitterness is<br />
an evil, sinful behavior in the eyes of God.<br />
Therefore, we must repent and ask God’s<br />
forgiveness for harboring offense in our<br />
hearts. Sin keeps us from experiencing<br />
God’s best, and sin spreads to corrupt the<br />
hearts of others.<br />
Look for a community of believers that<br />
can hold you accountable. Hebrews 12:15<br />
instructs us to “Look after each other so<br />
that none of you fails to receive the grace<br />
of God. Watch out that no poisonous root<br />
of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting<br />
many.” It’s hard to do that alone.<br />
God’s plan for you does not involve your<br />
being imprisoned by bitterness. You, as<br />
His child, have a higher calling. Don’t let<br />
Satan outwit you (2 Corinthians 2:10–11).<br />
The enemy wants you to believe that you<br />
are a victim and that you deserve to get<br />
even with those who offend you. But bitterness<br />
leads to darkness and death, and<br />
God has called you out of the darkness<br />
(1 Peter 2:9).<br />
Bitterness comes when we fail to forgive<br />
those who’ve hurt us. Therefore, forgiveness<br />
is the cure for a poisoned and bitter<br />
heart (Ephesians 4:32). A transformed<br />
mind and life must include forgiving others,<br />
past, present, and future.<br />
Is there someone you need to forgive?<br />
Tell the Lord and receive His forgiveness<br />
for harboring bitterness in your heart.<br />
Then, ask Him to help you release both the<br />
offender and the offense. He will help you.<br />
God never calls us to His higher purposes<br />
without equipping us to step<br />
forward in faith and live in His will<br />
(Hebrews 13:20–21).<br />
SHERIDAN CORREA is a biblical counselor<br />
who is trained in trauma-informed care. She’s a<br />
wife, mother of two teenage boys, singer, and avid<br />
runner who has been radically changed by Jesus.<br />
She joined the Victorious Living family in 2022 as<br />
the digital content manager.<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
25
The Best Part<br />
of Your Day<br />
BY STEFANIE CABANISS<br />
As<br />
a child, I wanted<br />
to be anyone other<br />
than myself and<br />
live anywhere but<br />
the house where I grew up. My mom had<br />
mental health issues that created an uncertain,<br />
toxic, and chaotic environment for<br />
my sister and me. I resented our constant<br />
struggles and envied the “perfect” lives of<br />
everyone around us.<br />
When I was 22 years old, I escaped<br />
my chaotic home by moving two states<br />
away. Unfortunately, that meant leaving<br />
my friends and small support system behind<br />
as well. Perhaps the isolation was<br />
too much for me because that same year,<br />
I traded chaos for a new form of misery—<br />
marriage. He was 10 years older than me,<br />
and our expectations were completely different.<br />
The escape I thought I’d found took<br />
me to a new emotional low. For the first<br />
time in my life, I didn’t want to live.<br />
I know now that my hopelessness wasn’t<br />
because of my marital issues or the lack<br />
of relational support; it was because I<br />
wasn’t in the will of God. It would be decades,<br />
though, before I even knew what<br />
that meant.<br />
When I was 27, my husband and I legally<br />
separated and I filed for bankruptcy.<br />
He refused to leave the house, however,<br />
which only made a bad situation worse.<br />
When a colleague told me about a lady<br />
named Monica who would likely welcome<br />
the company and additional income of a<br />
roommate, I called the next day. Monica<br />
had recently separated from her husband<br />
too, and she offered to rent a room to me<br />
in her tiny home.<br />
Monica (aka Mo) and I had similar yet<br />
different backgrounds. She was a child of<br />
divorce and alcoholism, whereas I’d grown<br />
up in an intact yet dysfunctional home.<br />
Her brother had died at a young age, while<br />
my sister and I had never shared a real<br />
conversation.<br />
We both felt very much alone in the<br />
world. We had been let down more than<br />
we thought we deserved. We’d made poor<br />
decisions. And now, we wanted more out<br />
of life.<br />
God allowed our paths to cross at the<br />
right time, and we each soon felt like we’d<br />
found a long-lost sister. Mo was genuine,<br />
kind, and honest with everyone she met.<br />
A friendship like hers quickly becomes<br />
precious when you’ve never experienced<br />
a sense of belonging.<br />
My whole life had been a soap opera, full<br />
of drama—much of which was self-created.<br />
PHOTO BY DEBORAH GRIFFIN PHOTOGRAPHY<br />
26 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
PHOTO COURTESY OF STEF CABANISS<br />
But life with Mo had meaning and was conducive<br />
to hope; she was genuine, kind, and<br />
honest with everyone she met. I felt safe<br />
and welcomed in her home. For the first<br />
time in my life, I finally felt like I belonged<br />
somewhere and had someone who truly<br />
loved me, so believe me, I held on tight.<br />
She was a woman of conviction and<br />
character who fought for what was right<br />
instead of settling for what was convenient.<br />
Mo had my back and encouraged<br />
me to be the best version of myself. She<br />
was my much-needed motivator.<br />
I had considered college at one time, but<br />
my husband had laughed and told me I was<br />
too dumb to do that. Any money spent on<br />
such a “futile endeavor,” he said, would be<br />
wasted. Mo, however, encouraged me to<br />
apply. In fact, we both did, were accepted,<br />
and we both succeeded.<br />
We didn’t have much money while we<br />
were in school, but we never lacked for<br />
anything. God provided. We received federal<br />
grants for school, and church friends<br />
and neighbors dropped off meals and left<br />
boxes of vegetables on our front doorstep.<br />
I’d never been so poor yet felt so rich.<br />
We were grateful to God for His provision<br />
and gave back wherever we could. In<br />
the end, Mo completed her nursing degree,<br />
and I earned a bachelor’s and two master’s<br />
degrees in psychology, exercise physiology,<br />
and public health.<br />
Mo loved the Lord and loved to tell people<br />
about His goodness. We traveled to<br />
churches where she would sing and share<br />
her testimony. She had an incredible voice.<br />
I remained in the background, taking care<br />
of the details.<br />
Early in 2009, 17 years after we’d become<br />
roommates, Mo developed an intense<br />
backache. She went to a chiropractor<br />
for treatment, but there was no measurable<br />
improvement after a week. So, he<br />
ordered X-rays, and I accompanied Mo to<br />
the chiropractor for her results. “She has<br />
a pleural effusion, which is excess fluid<br />
around the lung,” he announced.<br />
The words on the magazine in my hand<br />
blurred, and I felt flushed, short of breath,<br />
and sick to my stomach. I just knew that<br />
the world as I’d known it had ended. I<br />
wanted to run from the room and pretend<br />
I’d never heard the words pleural effusion,<br />
but it was too late.<br />
Mo handled it better than I did. As a<br />
nurse, she assured me that there could<br />
be several reasons for pleural effusions<br />
and that it didn’t automatically mean cancer,<br />
although it was one way melanoma<br />
could present itself. Keeping my horrible<br />
thoughts and out-of-control emotions to<br />
myself was challenging.<br />
Monica’s backaches worsened, and she<br />
was referred to a specialist. As we left the<br />
doctor’s office, I overheard the pulmonologist<br />
say, “That’s going to be a sad case<br />
When we let Him,<br />
God will take all<br />
the strangely<br />
shaped and often<br />
painful pieces of<br />
our lives and bring<br />
them together for<br />
His great purpose.<br />
Left: In 2021, Stef<br />
launched the<br />
podcast Grief<br />
2 Great Day for<br />
grieving women after<br />
her own journey of<br />
change, loss, and<br />
grief: including<br />
losing her best<br />
friend, Mo (right),<br />
to cancer. She also<br />
wrote Dying to Be<br />
Healed, to honor Mo’s<br />
incredible example<br />
of faith.<br />
over the next several months.” Stabbing<br />
me in the heart with a knife would have<br />
been less painful. Please, God, anything<br />
but this. Anything!<br />
It wasn’t long before Mo was debilitated<br />
and unable to drive. I became her caretaker<br />
when she was diagnosed with stage<br />
4 melanoma and given a prognosis of six<br />
months to live.<br />
Monica was convinced that God would<br />
heal her and asked me to keep a journal of<br />
our journey. She was sure God would use<br />
her testimony of healing to change more<br />
lives than she could count. I granted her<br />
wish and kept a journal, but most of what I<br />
wrote was a record of her increasing pain<br />
and the time we spent trying to find relief.<br />
She never asked me to read the journal<br />
to her, but she did request that I include<br />
a section called the BPOD—it stood for the<br />
best part of the day. In my eyes, there were<br />
no best parts of any day, but for Mo, something<br />
good was always happening.<br />
One evening after a horrendous day at<br />
the hospital, Mo said, “We had a great day,<br />
didn’t we?” She meant it, and that angered<br />
me.<br />
“Yup, we did,” I lied. Then I asked Mo<br />
to recap it so I could see events through<br />
her eyes.<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
27
Stef and her husband, Jeff, love on their<br />
pup, Buddy. Jeff encouraged Stef to<br />
step away from her healthcare job to<br />
produce her podcast full-time.<br />
In my eyes, there<br />
were no best parts<br />
of any day, but for<br />
Mo, something<br />
good was always<br />
happening.<br />
Her answer came quickly and with little<br />
deliberation. She said she was thankful<br />
I had ridden in the ambulance with her<br />
and that three of our closest friends (all<br />
nurses) had spent their entire day with<br />
us. She said she was treated like a queen.<br />
Then she became emotional, sharing how<br />
God was so good to her, always ensuring<br />
she was well cared for.<br />
I marveled then and I marvel now at<br />
how we viewed the same experiences<br />
so differently—but that day exemplified<br />
Mo’s journey. She endured each test and<br />
procedure like a trouper, despite being in<br />
pain, exhausted, and unable to move or<br />
find comfort. No matter what happened,<br />
she chose to see the good and told people,<br />
often in a whisper, that she was getting<br />
stronger by the day.<br />
It took me a long time to realize that Mo<br />
was getting stronger each day—stronger in<br />
her faith and confidence in what God was<br />
doing. I saw Mo’s physical pain—her inability<br />
to move, breathe, or eat without getting<br />
sick. I didn’t see what was happening in<br />
her heart and mind and soul.<br />
I understand now how Mo had such an<br />
optimistic view. She had fixed her eyes<br />
“not on what is seen, but on what is unseen,<br />
since what is seen is temporary, but<br />
what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians<br />
4:18 NIV). She zeroed in on God’s promises.<br />
I focused on the unbearable physical<br />
circumstances, and that led me to question<br />
God and my faith.<br />
Mo remained at home until the last 12<br />
days of her life; at which point, we moved<br />
her into a hospice house. As they rolled<br />
her in on a gurney, she told the staff, “I’m<br />
just here to complete my healing.”<br />
Mo’s life blessed me in countless ways,<br />
but her death changed me. I had been<br />
caring for my friend for six months. I was<br />
physically exhausted and had lost almost<br />
forty pounds. But I had become spiritually<br />
strong as I developed a deep relationship<br />
with God—something I’d never<br />
experienced before. That’s a good thing,<br />
because when Mo was gone, I questioned<br />
everything.<br />
I grieved a full year before I stopped<br />
accusing God of blowing up my life, yet<br />
again. It took another year before I could<br />
say, “Okay—You’re God, and I’m just going<br />
to trust that Your plan is better than mine.”<br />
That’s the moment I finally accepted<br />
God’s sovereignty and surrendered the<br />
rest of my life to His plan.<br />
No, life has never been what I thought<br />
it would be, and I’ve realized now that no<br />
one in this life has it easy. But when we let<br />
Him, God will take all the strangely shaped<br />
and often painful pieces of our lives and<br />
bring them together for His great and perfect<br />
purpose.<br />
I’m 56 now, and I’ve lived through<br />
change, loss, and grief that I truly thought<br />
(maybe hoped) would kill me. But I continue<br />
to survive (and even thrive), and I’m<br />
living out a calling I never asked for or expected.<br />
My experiences have equipped<br />
me to help others facing unwanted and<br />
unexpected events and circumstances in<br />
their lives.<br />
In 2021, I launched a podcast to support<br />
grieving women called Grief 2 Great Day.<br />
I even wrote a book about Mo’s journey,<br />
Dying to Be Healed, to honor her incredible<br />
example of faith.<br />
Regardless of the circumstances affecting<br />
your life, I encourage you to find your<br />
BPOD each and every day. Finding the<br />
good and praising God for it will enable<br />
you to survive and thrive despite the pain.<br />
What’s your BPOD?<br />
STEFANIE CABANISS was a public health<br />
professional before beginning Grief 2 Great Day. She<br />
is Southern by choice, a turtle-paced triathlete,<br />
wife, and follower of Jesus. She helps Christian<br />
women navigate loss through understanding their<br />
grief, growing their faith, and processing daily<br />
life to find hope. She and her husband, Jeff, live in<br />
eastern North Carolina.<br />
PHOTO BY DEBORAH GRIFFIN PHOTOGRAPHY<br />
28 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
STEPPING FORWARD<br />
Look for the Blessings<br />
BY ROY A. BORGES<br />
AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE doesn’t<br />
happen naturally, especially in prison.<br />
With its uncomfortable living conditions,<br />
constant noise, and unpleasant people,<br />
prison can be dark and lonely—hardly a<br />
place where one might think to count their<br />
blessings.<br />
The heart of every prisoner is a battleground<br />
for the war between good and<br />
evil that surrounds them on a daily basis.<br />
Satan thrives on the negativity that exists<br />
behind the razor wire. He works hard to<br />
keep a prisoner’s attention on life’s difficult<br />
and unpleasant circumstances, so<br />
they become critical and complain and<br />
turn away from God. Satan knows that if<br />
a person is looking only at what’s wrong in<br />
their lives, they’re bound to get depressed<br />
and succumb to hopelessness.<br />
During the 31 years I was locked up, I<br />
learned the importance of living with gratitude.<br />
But it wasn’t until I surrendered my<br />
life to Christ and started reading my Bible<br />
that I realized how much I had to be grateful<br />
for, even in prison.<br />
Learning about the apostle Paul changed<br />
how I looked at my circumstances. Paul<br />
went through some tough times in his<br />
life, including being beaten, stoned, shipwrecked,<br />
and thrown into prison (2 Corinthians<br />
11:23–28). But through it all, he<br />
kept his eyes fixed on Jesus rather than his<br />
problems (Hebrews 12:2). He kept fighting<br />
the good fight of faith (1 Timothy 6:12) and<br />
relied on God for the grace he needed to endure<br />
(2 Corinthians 12:9). He praised God<br />
even when He was suffering, remembering<br />
that his trials were temporary and would<br />
bring God glory (2 Corinthians 4:17–18).<br />
From his prison cell in Rome, Paul<br />
IF WE’RE ONLY<br />
LOOKING AT WHAT’S<br />
WRONG IN OUR<br />
LIVES, WE’RE BOUND<br />
TO GET DEPRESSED<br />
AND SUCCUMB TO<br />
HOPELESSNESS.<br />
taught that God wants His children to rejoice,<br />
pray, and give thanks, regardless of<br />
the circumstances they face (1 Thessalonians<br />
5:16–18). Doing time in prison never<br />
felt good, and I can’t say that I ever rejoiced<br />
over the bad things that happened to me<br />
while I was there. But my attitude began to<br />
change, as did my life, when I took Paul’s<br />
advice and started praising God for the<br />
blessings I could see and asking Him to<br />
reveal the ones I couldn’t.<br />
God opened my eyes to the beauty all<br />
around me and revealed the ways He was<br />
using my time in prison for His purpose<br />
and giving my life meaning. Through me,<br />
God was doing things I didn’t think were<br />
possible (Ephesians 3:20). I was most<br />
thankful that Jesus died on the cross to<br />
save my soul from eternal death. I can’t<br />
thank God enough for His gift of salvation.<br />
I certainly don’t deserve it and never could<br />
have earned it.<br />
Learning to live with gratitude on the<br />
inside of prison prepared me for life in the<br />
free world too. Out here, I’ve found that<br />
being grateful and counting God’s blessings<br />
is still the only way to survive. Life is<br />
difficult on both sides of the prison wall!<br />
I am grateful for every minute that I<br />
spent behind bars. Without the experience,<br />
I wouldn’t be the man I am today. Prison life<br />
wasn’t easy, but when has easy ever gotten<br />
anyone anywhere worth going?<br />
If you’re struggling in a dark place and<br />
overwhelmed by your circumstances, look<br />
to God. Praise Him for what He’s about to<br />
do. The joy of the Lord will drive out the<br />
darkness and give you the strength to<br />
overcome anything (Nehemiah 8:10).<br />
ROY A. BORGES served 31 years in the Florida<br />
Department of Corrections, where he realized<br />
his need for a Savior. While incarcerated, Roy<br />
ministered to others through his writing, over 300<br />
of which have been published. Roy’s book,<br />
101 Short Stories from the Prison Cell, is available<br />
from amazon.com.<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
29
Looking<br />
for<br />
THE STORY OF BILL FAY<br />
Peace<br />
I was raised with the classic<br />
silver spoon in my mouth. I was<br />
used to privilege, so as an adult,<br />
my biggest concern became getting<br />
to Dad’s money before he<br />
blew it. I wasn’t fast enough.<br />
Dad died in a veterans’ hospital<br />
without a penny to his<br />
name. I decided that would<br />
never happen to me, and I set<br />
out to secure the things the<br />
world offered, heedless of the<br />
cost to me or others.<br />
At age 16, I got a girl pregnant,<br />
and we married. After<br />
high school, I headed off to<br />
college, where I met a man<br />
who taught me how to cheat at<br />
cards. With his help, I became<br />
a professional gambler. I put<br />
myself through college by taking<br />
money with my deck of 52.<br />
Upon college graduation, I<br />
divorced my wife, abandoned<br />
my child, and focused on advancing<br />
my career. I found another<br />
woman to marry who’d<br />
let me do whatever I wanted.<br />
Because of my gambling<br />
reputation, I was invited to<br />
Las Vegas as a guest. I was immediately<br />
impressed by the<br />
endless supply of money and<br />
women, the limousines, the<br />
power, and the fountain in the<br />
middle of my suite. If I could<br />
connect to all this, my life would<br />
be fine, I thought.<br />
One evening, I went to<br />
the baccarat table where<br />
heavy-duty players gambled<br />
with money instead of chips.<br />
Millions of dollars were on that<br />
table, and I watched a man lose<br />
200,000 of them in 20 minutes.<br />
“You don’t know what you’re<br />
doing, do you?” I asked him after<br />
a few drinks. He called me a<br />
wise guy and invited me across<br />
the street to Caesars Palace.<br />
The minute we walked<br />
through the doors, people<br />
took notice. Blackjack dealers<br />
glanced up, and crowds parted<br />
as we went to the baccarat<br />
table. Once seated, the man<br />
whispered in the croupier’s<br />
ear. Immediately, the table was<br />
cleared and the gambling limit<br />
removed. The man ordered<br />
$50,000 as comfortably as you<br />
might order a glass of milk.<br />
Then he handed me the money,<br />
and told me to play!<br />
I hit a hot streak and, within<br />
15 minutes, won over a quarter<br />
of a million dollars. My new<br />
friend became my godfather. He<br />
quickly connected me with the<br />
underworld, and I began wholesaling<br />
Mafia money nationwide.<br />
Despite my new, illegal connections,<br />
I continued as the<br />
manager of a major corporation<br />
in Houston. My coworkers<br />
knew nothing of my double life,<br />
but that would soon change.<br />
Increasingly out of control, I<br />
chased every whim of my heart.<br />
One day while speaking with<br />
a woman from Kansas City on<br />
the phone, I asked her what she<br />
wanted out of life. When she replied<br />
“power and money,” I was<br />
on the next plane to meet her.<br />
At dinner, I suggested we get<br />
married. It didn’t matter that<br />
I had a wife of 12 years back<br />
home. Life was about me and<br />
what I wanted.<br />
I flew home and informed<br />
my wife I was leaving. Then<br />
I got into my Cadillac, drove<br />
back to Kansas City, picked<br />
up this woman, and moved to<br />
Denver. There I became the<br />
CEO of a multimillion-dollar<br />
international corporation.<br />
I had a limousine, an unlimited<br />
expense account, diamond<br />
rings, Rolexes, gold jewelry,<br />
and anything else I wanted.<br />
And I had power, both corporately<br />
and in the underworld.<br />
Yet I found myself wondering,<br />
What’s next? Is this it?<br />
PHOTO BY ARIZONA PORTRAITS<br />
30 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
PHOTO COURTESY OF BILL FAY<br />
I had no answer, so I set a new<br />
goal. I wanted to be a nationallyranked<br />
racquetball player.<br />
Moving up in this sport was<br />
fun and exciting, but like with<br />
everything else, the thrill of<br />
winning eventually faded, and<br />
emptiness returned.<br />
No one knew how lonely and<br />
miserable I was. My third wife<br />
tired of my shenanigans and<br />
left for another man. It’s only by<br />
God’s grace that I didn’t put out<br />
a contract to have her killed.<br />
I soon met Peggy, and we<br />
married. At the same time, I<br />
launched a new enterprise to<br />
cater to “powerful” men like me<br />
who wanted “more in life”—a<br />
brothel called Fantasy Island. It<br />
became one of the largest prostitution<br />
houses in the country.<br />
One day, I took Peggy to Las<br />
Vegas so she could see how<br />
people catered to my every<br />
whim. I waltzed in and took<br />
her to the same baccarat table<br />
where the insanity had begun<br />
years earlier. Ironically, that’s<br />
where I was when my attorney<br />
called to tell me the Feds had<br />
raided Fantasy Island. There<br />
was a warrant out for my arrest.<br />
I flew back to Denver and<br />
was arrested. Incredibly, I received<br />
only probation. To me,<br />
that just meant, “Don’t get<br />
caught again.”<br />
With my double life now exposed<br />
on national news, I was<br />
fired from my day job. But that<br />
didn’t matter. I went into the<br />
executive search business and<br />
quickly made top dollar again. I<br />
had escaped prison and continued<br />
to “win” at life—but inside,<br />
I knew I wasn’t right.<br />
There was only one place<br />
where I really felt good, and<br />
that was at Lost Valley Ranch,<br />
a beautiful community in the<br />
Colorado mountains.<br />
Every time I went there, I felt<br />
great. But every time I drove<br />
home, the reality of my pitiful<br />
life hit me hard. I didn’t know<br />
why the place was so special<br />
or what it was about the people<br />
there that made them so<br />
different.<br />
I remember being at the<br />
ranch on a random Easter<br />
Sunday and deciding to do what<br />
people do on Easter. I went to<br />
church. I rode my horse out<br />
on the meadow where a young<br />
man named Bob Foster was<br />
preaching a sermon.<br />
“There’s a difference between<br />
happiness and inner<br />
peace,” he said. “Happiness<br />
is like the smell of a new car, a<br />
new dating relationship, closing<br />
a big business deal, illicit<br />
drugs, or sex. You get high<br />
and feel good, but the feeling<br />
doesn’t last. Peace is different.”<br />
I knew the kid was right. I had<br />
achieved, received, performed,<br />
and climbed my whole life, but<br />
for what? I’d feel settled and<br />
happy for a while, but the void<br />
always returned—every time.<br />
How could I have this lasting<br />
peace Bob preached about?<br />
He answered my question<br />
by explaining that peace only<br />
comes through a personal relationship<br />
with Christ. Whatever<br />
that meant, it was not the<br />
answer I wanted. I cursed, got<br />
on my horse, rode out of the<br />
meadow, and drove back to<br />
Denver and my crazy life.<br />
In God’s goodness, He didn’t<br />
let me get away. He chased me<br />
down. Suddenly, my life was<br />
full of people telling me about<br />
the person of Jesus Christ and<br />
the peace He offers. I responded<br />
with mockery and insults.<br />
I’m sure many walked away<br />
believing they’d failed, but they<br />
didn’t. To this day, I can tell you<br />
their names, what they looked<br />
like, what they wore, and most<br />
importantly, what they said.<br />
God used every person to plant<br />
a seed in my prideful heart.<br />
Take Paul and Kathie Grant,<br />
for example. Paul, a Jewish<br />
believer in Christ, patiently<br />
shared his faith in Jesus with<br />
me on the racquetball court.<br />
Laughing behind his back, I<br />
pretended to be interested.<br />
For months, Dr. Grant answered<br />
my questions. He didn’t<br />
realize I was deliberately engaging<br />
him to make him late<br />
for work. What a stupid fool! I<br />
thought. How can this idiot sit<br />
here and let me do this when he<br />
has a waiting room full of patients?<br />
Yet Paul was my first true<br />
friend. When the arrest came<br />
down on my house of prostitution,<br />
he was the only one<br />
who called to make sure I was<br />
okay. Other “friends” called to<br />
ensure their names remained<br />
anonymous or to inquire where<br />
they could find the girls who’d<br />
worked at Fantasy Island—but<br />
Paul called for me.<br />
Eventually, Paul invited<br />
Peggy and me to go to church.<br />
We went, and Paul and Kathie<br />
took us to their home after the<br />
service. I didn’t want to stay<br />
long—I had $100,000 riding<br />
on the day’s sporting events.<br />
But they were our friends, so…<br />
We talked awhile and shared<br />
pieces of our life stories. Their<br />
stories always ended up back<br />
at something about God. As<br />
we left, I told Peggy, “Let’s go<br />
home and have a drink. That<br />
stuff’s fine for them, but I’m<br />
not interested.” I rejected God’s<br />
message once again.<br />
Meanwhile, Colorado’s Lakewood<br />
Police Department was<br />
dissatisfied with my probation<br />
I had escaped<br />
prison and<br />
continued to<br />
win at life, but<br />
something<br />
inside me didn’t<br />
feel right.<br />
Below: In his quest to win at life, Bill<br />
gambled in the casinos of Las Vegas<br />
and interacted with celebrities like<br />
actress, Ann-Margret.<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
31
The Prince of Peace has filled my<br />
heart and made me whole.<br />
deal. Determined to bring me<br />
to justice, they sent an attractive<br />
undercover policewoman<br />
my way. She offered to sell me<br />
Right: Bill’s book, Sharing Jesus<br />
Without Fear, is a must-read<br />
for anyone struggling to find the<br />
confidence to share their faith.<br />
a stolen television and implied<br />
that she “came with it.” I gave<br />
sage from her waiting for me on<br />
her $200 and was arrested.<br />
my home answering machine.<br />
Fear hit me as I sat in jail<br />
She said the strangest thing: “I<br />
over the weekend. Violating<br />
saw your name in the papers<br />
my probation could mean eight<br />
from all your arrests; I’d like to<br />
years of prison. I began to cry,<br />
meet you.”<br />
not because I was repentant,<br />
When we met, I immediate-<br />
but because I was panicked.<br />
ly asked her forgiveness. She<br />
Back at home and awaiting<br />
responded kindly. Incredibly,<br />
my trial, I imagined ways to<br />
the Lord gave me the privilege<br />
escape my impending doom.<br />
of leading her to Him.<br />
Drugs and alcohol could give<br />
With my charges, I fully ex-<br />
temporary relief, but I knew<br />
they’d only bring more problems.<br />
My money would sustain<br />
life on the run, but where would<br />
I go? I also considered suicide.<br />
God used my unbelieving<br />
wife to save my life. She suggested<br />
I call the man who had<br />
pected to go to prison. But the<br />
judge miraculously dismissed<br />
my case and even barred it<br />
from further prosecution at<br />
the district level. I walked out of<br />
court free to the world, but<br />
more importantly, Christ had<br />
freed me from my sins.<br />
whose sting had led to my arrest.<br />
She is a dedicated Christian<br />
and now a close friend.<br />
My life continued to change<br />
with God in it, and I soon became<br />
the chief chaplain for the<br />
Colorado State Patrol and the<br />
DEA. I held more credentials<br />
Don’t settle for the temporary<br />
highs of this world. God’s<br />
peace is available through a<br />
relationship with His Son, Jesus.<br />
My prayer for you is that<br />
“you experience the love of<br />
Christ, though it is too great to<br />
understand fully. Then you will<br />
PHOTO BY ARIZONA PORTRAITS<br />
married us—a Christian pastor.<br />
I began praying for an op-<br />
than most officers. God also be-<br />
be made complete with all the<br />
Her suggestion angered me. I<br />
portunity to return to the Lake-<br />
gan sending me into prisons to<br />
fullness of life and power that<br />
didn’t want that stuff in my life!<br />
wood Police Department and<br />
minister to juveniles, men, and<br />
comes from God” (Ephesians<br />
But the Holy Spirit was more<br />
share how Christ had changed<br />
women. With God, all things are<br />
3:19 NLT).<br />
powerful than my arrogance,<br />
my life. God provided my<br />
possible.<br />
If you’re ready to do that,<br />
and I called that pastor and told<br />
heart’s desire.<br />
I’ve not been the same since I<br />
pray with me: “Heavenly Fa-<br />
him I wanted inner peace.<br />
The assistant chief of police<br />
surrendered my life and will to<br />
ther, I am a sinner in need of a<br />
The next day, I drove 85 miles<br />
was having lunch with col-<br />
Jesus. The Prince of Peace has<br />
Savior. Forgive me for my sin.<br />
to his little country church, and<br />
leagues when my name came<br />
filled my heart and made me<br />
I believe You sent Your Son,<br />
at 10:00 a.m. on March 4, 1981,<br />
up. Wary of the news that I had<br />
whole. He has freed me from<br />
Jesus, to die on a cross for me<br />
I came to know Jesus Christ as<br />
changed, he declared, “Even<br />
my empty way of life, and my<br />
and that He rose again. I give<br />
my Lord and Savior. Immedi-<br />
God couldn’t forgive that man.”<br />
chief desire now is to share<br />
You my life. I desire Your will<br />
ately, God took hold of my life<br />
Someone challenged him to<br />
God’s good news of salvation<br />
above my own. Father, give me<br />
and flipped it upside down.<br />
find out, so he arranged a meet-<br />
with the world. I want people<br />
peace and make me whole. Give<br />
The first evidence of His<br />
ing. “I’ve come to see if what<br />
everywhere, including you, to<br />
me your Holy Spirit to help me<br />
presence happened on my<br />
you’ve found is truth,” he said<br />
experience the transformative<br />
live as You desire. I ask this in<br />
drive down the mountain from<br />
as we sat down. I gave him my<br />
power of His love.<br />
Jesus’s name. Amen.”<br />
my meeting with that pastor.<br />
testimony, then we held hands<br />
I began to think of my daughter,<br />
Tammy, whom I had abandoned<br />
23 years earlier. It was<br />
my first unselfish thought ever.<br />
Incredibly, there was a mes-<br />
and prayed together.<br />
Three months later, this<br />
man who had orchestrated<br />
my arrest introduced me to<br />
the under cover policewoman<br />
BILL FAY is a graduate of Denver Seminary and a former chief chaplain for the<br />
Colorado State Patrol and DEA. He has spoken cross-denominationally for 40<br />
years. His best-selling book, Share Jesus without Fear, has been translated into<br />
54 languages. It provides practical tools to present the compelling message of<br />
God’s saving grace. Visit sharejesuswithoutfear.com to watch videos on how to<br />
uniquely share your faith.<br />
32 <strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong> VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM
WANT TO KNOW JESUS?<br />
“Come to me, all you who are<br />
weary and burdened, and I will<br />
give you rest.” —Matthew 11:28 NIV<br />
ART BY VL INCARCERATED FAMILY MEMBER<br />
Do you need rest? Peace? Freedom? Forgiveness? Restoration?<br />
Call out to Jesus, accept Him as your Savior, and be made whole.<br />
Pray: “Jesus, I invite You into my life. I confess that I am a sinner in<br />
need of a Savior. Thank You for saving me from my sins and making<br />
me whole. Thank You for laying down Your life for me so that I can<br />
have a new life in You. I receive, by faith, this forgiveness of sin. Take<br />
my life—my past and my future. Guide my steps and speak to my<br />
heart, Lord. Use me, God. Amen.”<br />
Let us know of your decision so we can help you grow in your faith.<br />
Write to: VL Correspondence, PO Box 2751, Greenville, NC 27836.<br />
PERHAPS AFTER READING the stories in this magazine, you’ve surrendered your life to<br />
Jesus. Congratulations—it’s the most important decision you will ever make! But you might<br />
be wondering, now what? Here are five ways to ensure spiritual growth. Remember, the<br />
Christian life is a journey that brings lifelong transformation.<br />
1. PRAY. Talk to God about everything and listen for His response. You don’t need<br />
fancy words, just a sincere heart.<br />
2. STUDY THE BIBLE. God’s Word contains all the instructions we need for life. Get<br />
into a Bible study and discover new revelations daily. Free resources are on page 34.<br />
3. GET BAPTIZED. Although baptism is not a requirement of salvation, the Bible<br />
clearly tells us that we are to be water baptized after salvation. Baptism symbolizes<br />
our dying to sin and being raised to a new life in Christ Jesus (Romans 6:4). Prison<br />
restrictions may make immersion by water difficult, so get creative and let the Holy<br />
Spirit reveal how you can take this step of obedience until immersion is possible.<br />
4. FIND CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY. Join a local congregation of Christ-followers. If<br />
incarceration makes attending church difficult, fellowship with other believers the<br />
best you can. They will help you stand strong and keep you accountable.<br />
5. TELL SOMEONE. Share your decision to follow Christ and tell them what He has<br />
done for you. And then, tell us! We’d love to hear from you.<br />
WHAT NOW?<br />
I’ve Accepted God’s Salvation.<br />
Now What?<br />
VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
<strong>Issue</strong> 04 / <strong>2023</strong><br />
33
MINISTRY INFO/RESOURCES<br />
Victorious Living Prison<br />
Outreach Information<br />
• High transitional rates and DOC restrictions prevent us from<br />
mailing personal subscriptions of VLMag to incarcerated<br />
individuals. However, bulk copies are provided free to prisons,<br />
jails, recovery, and reentry programs, with or without staples, at<br />
the request of chaplains and program directors. They may also<br />
inquire about our national VL Prison Tour.<br />
• We offer discipleship materials on various prison tablet systems.<br />
Search “Victorious Living” on the prison tablet to discover MORE<br />
Victorious Living and STEPPING FORWARD with Victorious Living<br />
broadcasts and VL podcasts. If we are not yet on your tablet<br />
system, please write to us and let us know the name of your<br />
tablet system.<br />
• Family members of our incarcerated family and our ministry<br />
partners can enjoy our free resources through pandoapp.tv<br />
and VL’s online platforms like vlmag.org, Facebook, Instagram,<br />
and YouTube. Our care team is available to pray with family<br />
members of our incarcerated family by phone.<br />
• We offer fellowship to individuals through correspondence.<br />
Those incarcerated can write to us at PO Box 2751, Greenville,<br />
NC 27836, or email us through their tablet at hope@vlmag.<br />
org. High transitional rates in jail often prevent us from<br />
corresponding with persons there. Please know, we read all<br />
letters and pray over them.<br />
• We cannot receive COD emails or phone calls, nor do we accept<br />
unsolicited stories for publication or legal documents.<br />
• We encourage believers everywhere to use our materials in their<br />
ministry. VLMag makes an exceptional witnessing tool and can<br />
be ordered in bulk copies for use in free society.<br />
• Did you know that VLMag is available on both sides of prison<br />
walls? It is a gift to our ministry partners and can be delivered to<br />
anyone in free society. Call 352-478-2098 or visit vlmag.org and<br />
click the “give now” tab. A gift of any amount is appreciated.<br />
RESOURCES<br />
Below are opportunities for free Christian-based<br />
resources for both English- and Spanish-speaking<br />
persons and chaplains. When you contact the<br />
addresses below, tell our partners VL referred you.<br />
VICTORIOUS LIVING<br />
Personal correspondence available in English and Spanish.<br />
Bulk copies of VLMag are available for jail and prison libraries<br />
at chaplain’s request.<br />
PO Box 2751<br />
Email: hope@vlmag.org<br />
Greenville, NC 27836<br />
2ND OPPORTUNITY<br />
Reentry and<br />
employmentreadiness<br />
programming; job/<br />
housing referrals<br />
upon request.<br />
PO Box 3411<br />
Peachtree City, GA<br />
30269<br />
PRISON<br />
ALLIANCE<br />
Discipleship studies<br />
by mail; free Christian<br />
books and Bibles for<br />
libraries at request of<br />
authorized personnel.<br />
PO Box 97095<br />
Raleigh, NC 27624<br />
RESCUED NOT<br />
ARRESTED<br />
Free NIV Bibles, Bible<br />
study correspondence<br />
course, and NIV Life<br />
Application Study Bible<br />
upon completion<br />
of study.<br />
PO Box 90606<br />
Phoenix, AZ 85066<br />
CROSSROADS PRISON<br />
MINISTRIES<br />
Correspondence<br />
Bible studies and<br />
mentoring letters with<br />
completed lessons. Free<br />
Bibles for CRM students<br />
upon request.<br />
PO Box 900<br />
Grand Rapids, MI 49509<br />
HOPE IS ALIVE<br />
Nationally-based sober<br />
living homes, faith-based<br />
support groups, and grief<br />
support groups for those<br />
impacted by addiction.<br />
14400 Bogert Parkway<br />
Suite 200<br />
Oklahoma City, OK<br />
73134<br />
34<br />
WWW.VICTORIOUSLIVINGMAGAZINE.COM<br />
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