Editor: First, I am sure our readers want to know how you are doing after your surgery.
Chaplain Pete: The November 18th surgery to repair a torn rotor cuff in my right shoulder was successful. The hard part was the time at home recovering. I am now completing physical therapy and doing fine. Thank you for asking and for everyone's prayers and concerns.
Editor: How long have you been a Christian?
Chaplain Pete: I was what you call a womb Christian. I was born into a Christian family and accepted Christ as a 5-6 year old with my Sunday school teacher.
Editor: Did anyone in your family teach you what the true Christian spirit was?
Chaplain Pete: My mother did, she was a saint. I always remember watching her after my father died, sitting there having tears run down her face, reading the word of God, and praying. We always had food on the table, clothes on our backs, and a roof over our head.
Editor: How old were you when your father died?
Chaplain Pete: I was eight years old.
Editor: When did you feel the calling from God?
Chaplain Pete: In 1973, when I was working at the Telephone Company in New York City, I was accepted at Calvin College in Michigan. I had found work and living quarters. The one I did not consult in my decision was God. He turned me down because I was not ready and, as I look back, I wasn't. I was an active Christian, active in my Church, on a Christian School Board however I was getting increasingly angry. Around that time the Telephone Company transferred me to the Miami branch and into a management position. They needed a "Pit Bull" so I got the job. I worked with a Lady in Miami who became very ill. Our desks were up against each other. I did not know how to speak about Jesus to her or how to quote the Bible to her. When she died I was the only one in the company who did not go to her funeral. In 1988, about 15 years later, God placed me in my own "prison" for 12 weeks after surgery. That is when reading through the Bible and it was Romans that made it click. I read the book of Romans 15 times and it changed my life. It took two years to clean out my anger, two years to build up for something useful to come out of it. In 1993 God opened up the doors for me. The first mission I got involved in was the Men's Rescue Mission, rehab center, and homeless shelter in Leesburg. In November 1998 God brought me as the Good News Jail & Prison Ministry Chaplain at the Lake County Jail.
Editor: On your first day on the job, what went through your mind?
Chaplain Pete: What am I doing here; this was a foreign field to me. I was overwhelmed.
Editor: When did you realize how important your job is to inmates?
Chaplain Pete: I cannot pinpoint an exact moment. I have all these events going through mind that took place in the first couple of months. One of the times when I realized how important was when I walked through the mall and a young man came up to me who had recently been release. He was in the mall with his seven children. He came over to me and literally picked me up and gave be a big hug.
Editor: Have you found that what you said to an inmate was beyond yourself?
Chaplain Pete: Every day, their problems are so huge.
Editor: Does God give you scripture passages in times like that?
Chaplain Pete: All the time, the Holy Spirit gives me the right verse at the right time for the situation.
Editor: Do you carry a Bible into the pods? At this point Chaplin Pete pulled out a little Bible.
Chaplain Pete: I never leave home without it.
Editor: What percentage of inmates commit to Jesus Christ while in jail?
Chaplain Pete: Let me explain it this way - out of 1000 inmates, 250 participate every week; out of them, 100 are serious; and out of them 10-25 are going to make it.
Editor: What advice do you have for released inmates?
Chaplain Pete: Three pieces of advice: first be in Church, second be in church, and third be in church. Let me explain what I mean by this. Released inmates who go to church all the time and do not miss three Sundays in a row, make it 100%. For those who miss three Sundays in a row, there is a 100% failure.
Editor: What are you going to do when you eventually retire?
Chaplain Pete: My goal is to not retire until the Lord makes it clear it is time. The only way I would quit now is if my wife needs a full time caregiver or my own health would prevent it.
Editor: What is your favorite Bible verse?
Chaplain Pete: For the inmates I like to give them Acts 2: 42 "And they devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers." My own life verses are Colossians 1: 9 - 12 "9And so from the day we heard we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord fully pleasing to Him) bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. 11 May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, 12giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light?"
Just the other day, The sky was falling down ‘round my ears. Happy seemed so far away, Goodness I could not see nor hear. Amidst the confusion and strife, You came into my life, Now everything's so nice. When I count my blessings, Yeah when I count my blessings...I count You twice.
Could not tell day from night. The dark just would not be deterred. Amidst the confusion and strife, You came into my life, Now everything's alright. When I count my blessings, Yeah when I count my blessings...I count You twice. Just the other day, Was a couple of years ago. Things are turning out okay. Just thought there's something you should know. Amidst the confusion and strife, You came into my life, Now everything's so nice. When I count my blessings, Yeah when I count my blessings...I count You twice.
Thanks to those who shared what Jesus Christ is doing in your life. Why not send your testimony to Chaplain Pete for the next issue-keep it to 200 words. Share Full Pardon on the Internet with those on the outside: www.trinityfree.com/fullpardon.
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