Lenten Journey

My most recent wilderness wandering included a few friends and a journey through the Kentucky/Ohio terrain to the federal prison in Chillicothe, Ohio to visit Tyrone Ballew, a beloved member of this church. It never fails to amaze me, each time I go, how truly incredible this individual is when I witness the Light which emanates from his very soul. There are no words which can do justice to this man’s presence.

I assume with the kind of time Tyrone spent alone all these years, that he must really know something about introspection. He likely knows what he’s made of and what the human spirit is really capable of enduring. We may never truly understand what he has learned about himself in all those years, but I can share with you a little of what I have learned about this man in my few visits.

I learned that Tyrone is a man of tremendous Love and Blessings. In spite of the loss of a life of great promise, he speaks of such a tender and genuine love for his daughter, Jasmine. He knows fully the blessing it is that her mother did not keep her from him, but helped her to develop a relationship with her father even though he was on Death Row in an Ohio prison. He gathers every bit of news of her basketball career and follows devotedly all the adventures she has with joy and celebration that she is able to live life fully… and shows a great measure of pride that she shares her love and talent for the sport with her dad.

He is also a man who knows of Love and Blessings with a deep and abiding faith in God. And he understands as few others can what it means to have forgiveness through Christ. We celebrated Communion together that day with the savings of a portion of bread from a sandwich eaten at lunch and a capful of soda, both purchases from the prison vending machines. For me, this was the most incredible Communion service in which I have ever participated. We each shed tears as we ate this meal together. We knew WE were forever connected by a God who knew our human frailty so well, but loved us anyway… a God, who lived and walked among us… a God, who knew our every sin and fall from grace before we were even born… a God who loved us anyway, in spite of the ways in which we all turn away from that love so freely given. We were aware that in Communion, no matter how far our tables were separated from one another, each time we celebrate that meal, WE are forever be present with one another and with Christ, because we all know forgiveness and blessings through Christ. To me, no bread will ever taste better and no liquid will ever be as satisfying as what we ate together on that day.

Blessings,
Tracy