Helping an Ex-Murderer

I'm helping an ex-murderer with a cement-covered shovel. (Photo by Jen)

So this guy grows up in La Sierra (translated "The Saw") neighborhood in Medellín.  It's one of the most dangerous places to be in the city.  It's a poor community, and many people are connected to the mafia and to gangs.  Drug use in Medellín is rampant, but here it's at a level many people haven't seen.

This guy becomes pretty important in the gangs and mafia for the neighborhood.  He becomes one of the leaders.  He kills kids for a thrill.

His mom prays for him and tells him about Jesus but he resists.  Then one day, he's about to kill some teenager when it suddenly occurs to him that this is wrong.  The kid lives.  He goes back to his mother, and she leads him to Jesus.

He changes the way he lives.  He starts a youth program that keeps kids out of the mafias, gangs, and drugs.  Instead of demanding the largest plate of food, he makes sure that the kids around him get fed before he does.  One teenage boy needs socks to go to school.  He takes his off and gives them to him.

His home needs a new door and a new window.  His mom tells him that he's cheap for not getting new ones and getting them installed.  He can just barely get enough food for his mom, grandmother, and others close to him.  He asks God for help.  God tells him that foreigners would do the work for him.

Five years later, a group of people from the United States go on a mission trip.  One of their goals is to give him a new door and window, scrape the mold off the wall, and seal the ceiling with cement on November 17.  Before they arrive, he asks the mafia permission for them to be in the neighborhood and requests their safety.

While we had lunch, this ex-murderer Felipe finally told us what he asked God for, and how God met his need.

Felipe, standing next to his mother, tells us his testimony, translated by Miguel.

One of his distant cousins, Carlos, managed the whole project and showed us what he wanted done.  Carlos got saved while we were working.  He was the first person who asked Jesus into his heart while we were in Colombia. 

Jimmie K., Dave S., MJ, and Jim T. pray the sinner's prayer with Carlos. (Photo by Michele)

What an amazing day!  God can change the heart of a murderer into someone very gentle!  No one has sinned so much or so badly that God cannot forgive them and make them a new creation in Jesus.

Before we left we prayed with Felipe.  If this story doesn't make you go, "Wow!" I don't know what will.

We pray with Felipe and one of the kids in his massive youth program.  We understand there are about 400 kids in it. (Photo by Jen)