A few days ago, I did three chapel services at the Somerset County Jail in Madison, Maine. This is about a two hour drive north-easr from our home in Bridgton, Maine, and it's always worth the trip. Perhaps it's because the facility has the same initials as my ministry (Somerset County Jail / Supreme Court Jesters. Both SCJ). Perhaps it's because the chapel is such a prominent part of this particular jail: a real chapel with "stained glass windows" painted on the cement block walls instead of the standard library-conference room-chapel-classroom combinations in most county jails, but for some reason, this one is always special to me.
I hit the road at 6:00 AM in order to be there for 8:00 set up. My ride to Madison got the day off to a special start. Somewhere in the woods near Farmington, I saw a young moose cross the road in from of me. Not much further, there was a deer foraging on the side of the road, then a flock of wild turkeys. God has truly blessed this part of planet with a lot of natural beauty. Somewhere along the way, there was an Amishman riding in his carriage; a sight that is becoming more common around rural, inland Maine. All this before I even arrived at my venue.
One of the things I encounter at SCJ is they may not know how many shows I'll be doing until the very day of the show. It has varied from one to three depending on how many people waht to come to chapel, and what groups, if any, can be combined together. This most recent day saw a lot of interest among the inmates, and apparently groups who could not be together, so I did three shows back to back to back. I must say, I was pleased with my stamina that morning. Three in a day didn't used to be all that unheard of, but at 63, it's nice to know I can still do it if necessary. The biggest challenge was getting the next show set up in time. In fact, the second group of men arrived in the chapel as I was finishing up the first show of the day! Thanks to some flexible staff and cooperative inmates, they were able to make the transition between groups much smoother than it should have been.
As for the shows, none of them were exactly the same due to some confusion about ending times and a couple things that just couldn't be reset in the time provided, but I did end each service with my shackles escape. Not only did the audience find it funny that audience volunteers were given the chance to shackle me (talk about a role reversal!) it gave me the chance to talk about Paul's famous quote, "Sinful man that I am, who can set me free. I want to do what's right and I still do what's wrong. Thanks be to God through Jesus who sets us free." In some of the shows, I mentioned areas in my life where Jesus forgave and freed (or is in the process of freeing) me. I believe everyone there had the chance to hear the Gospel in a pretty clear and memorable presentation.
The officer who is my contact person for shows at SCJ has gotten a promotion, and someone else will be doing the role of scheduling outside programs. L asked if this would change anything regarding my ministry. I was humbled with the response. "Mike," he said, "The last guy to have my role is now the jail administrator. He has made it clear that he thinks what you do is important, and your coming here is non-negotiable." In fact, the new programs coordinator came to the last show of the day, and has already spoken to me about coming back in the winter.
My return home was just as scenic as my trip there, complete with a mother Canada goos leading her twelve goslings across the road in the small rown of Harrison, stopping traffic for several minutes. I love living in rural Maine!