A Quarterly Publica�on of Street Level Ministries, UW-

Word on the Street 16 ISSUE

2

What is

WOTS? WOTS is our fond acronym for Word on the

Street. We’re a UW-Superior affiliated

publica�on released twice per semester. WOTS

is wri(en, laid out and printed by members of

Street Level Ministries on UW-Superior and UW-

Stout campuses. We’re Chris�ans who love Jesus

and want to write about life, God and college.

Want to meet the crew of WOTS? No problem.

We can be found on campus each Thursday

while school is in session with the crew of Street

Level Ministries, a Chris�an student organiza�on.

See the ad on page 9 for details about Street

Level. We hope the magazine is funny,

challenging and maybe even controversial.

We’d like your feedback!

streetlevel@uwsuper.edu

MEET THE STAFF OF WORD ON THE STREET

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LAIR

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LAU

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LAU

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AN

NIE

BE

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KA

YLE

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KR

IST

INA

AV

EG

AIL

JAS

ON D

AN

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MENOMONIE WRITERS

PHILIPPINES WRITER

DULUTH WRITERS

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LSE

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3

ORPHAN RESOLVE

this month’s tear-jerking

fic�on feature

TRUE WORSHIP

what does it mean to truly

worship the living God?

LESOTHO

learn about a small country

facing large problems

INDIE FOLK BAND GUIDE

all you need to dis�nguish

current folk favorites

WHERE IS GOD IN THE

VIOLENCE?

he’s not absent; he threw

himself into the fray

NEVER TOO LATE

You’re never too broken for

God to fix

4 6 7

8

10 13

14 16 18

4

18

14

PURSUIT AND RESPONSE

recent college grads share

their rela�onships with God

in college

FROM PRISON TO

PURPOSE

true story of transforma�on

A PASTOR’S

PERSPECTIVE

Jesus prays for your joy

4

I watch them get ready. They have chosen their best clothes and shiniest shoes. Suits and

�es, dresses and bows. The girls brush each other’s hair; pigtails, ribbons, braids and

ponytails. An arrangement of whatever looks the cutest, most charming and cap�va�ng. The

boys yank a comb through their snarled greasy mops of hair. Over to the side, maybe to the

le? this �me. The faces are important, and the most influen�al. They must be clean with no

bruises. If your teeth are straight that is a definite advantage. But the smile, the smile is what

wins many of them.

The staff rushes to get us from our bedroom quarters to the main hall. Palms press against

our backs urging us forward. “Hurry,” the voices firmly whisper, “They will be here any

minute.” They start lining us up, but not from oldest to youngest. The age gap here is small,

and this orphanage only takes on a par�cular group of children. This line is ranked from dying

to dead. The small handful of staff members stands before us. They step back to approve of

their work. An awkward pause before someone straightens a boy’s �e. Ul�mately they

appear, for the most part, sa�sfied with what stands before them: an assembly of parent-less

children dying from cancer preFed up with ribbons and bows. Astrocytoma: brain tumors.

Most of us are recently diagnosed, and few orphans have funding for treatment. Hope’s

Orphanage has volunteered to take us on and give us the opportunity for a family we never

had, even if only for a short period of �me.

They start lining us up, but not from oldest to youngest. The age gap here is small, and this orphanage only takes on a particular group of children. This line is ranked from dying to dead.

Orphan Resolve

Fiction

5

We are a rare bunch. Most of us were

diagnosed around the age of four. We are

considered fortunate to be alive even five

years later. The paperwork to adopt a child is

extensive and o?en takes more �me than

the child has. The staff would rather not

bother with the extra paperwork for a child

so close to the end, so they line us up. Those

at the end of the line are truly at the end of

the line. They will die soon. The adop�ve

parents tend to forget the kids at the end;

they are not informed of why we line up the

way we do.

They s�ll dress up, those children at the end.

They s�ll hope for a family, but I do not. I

have just passed my five-year mark, and I

stand at the end of the line. My hair is

snarled and ragged. The comb is not a

familiar friend of mine. I scratch my head

and complain of lice. I dig out my worst

ouGits, the large ones with countless stains

and jagged holes. The staff tries to throw

these away, but I dig them out of the

garbage cans when they are not looking.

They add a par�cular scent that tends to

keep the poten�al families in my range for

mere moments. My face is smeared with

whatever I find, and I never smile. A scowling

sulk is all they will see.

I don’t want them to pick me. I am not a doll,

and I will not be bought off a shelf like a toy,

to be stolen away into some short dream.

This good deed won’t save you. You can’t

add a gold star to your chart for adop�ng

me. This false posi�ve won’t outweigh the

nega�ve. This moral act will never �p the

scale in your favor. I tell them I don’t want a

family; I don’t want them to be my family

because I already have one. That family is

wai�ng for me, and I did not have to do

anything to be adopted by that family. I did

not have to dress up, put a smile on, and

impress them with my shiny shoes or my

best clothes. I had no best - I am dying!

Nothing can dress up death.

The staff thinks I’m crazy, or they think I am

referring to my old family: the family that

died in a car accident that made me an

orphan. But it is my old family that

introduced me to my new one. And I know

that my new father will come, that he is

wai�ng for me. I refuse to be picked out of a

line-up by someone who claims to have my

best interests at heart when it is their

interests they are honestly engrossed in. My

father is true and will come. His promises are

trustworthy.

Nevertheless the others wait in line and

con�nue to smile. They are excited to be

picked off of the shelf, to be purchased as a

checkmark on someone’s list of good deeds.

To be used as a subs�tute sleeping pill, so

the buyers can ease their conscience. The

pre(y moms and dads pick up their pre(y,

new, a(en�on-grabbing, fragile, sick children

and whisk them off to their dream: a dream

they assume the children need. We are

offered a big house with a yard to play in, a

dog, or maybe even a brother or sister. They

present a chance to live out our short

remaining days in luxury and comfort.

Nonetheless it is a lie, it is merely a farce.

I tell them that these families won’t last.

That they could have a family like me, and

that we could be family. There is no need for

a house or a dog. They laugh and giggle, or

get angry and yell. I am called foolish and

unrealis�c. I yearn for them to see how brief

their wish is, but they refuse to see and o?en

plug their ears when I speak. I know it is

temp�ng, for all short dreams are, and I feel

the pull during every lineup. I, too, could be

happy, comfortable, and full. The pain is

paramount and we want relief, but I want

peace that lasts. I would be content with

nothing else, and I would want nothing else

for those I love.

So they take away my friends. My soul

screams, and I watch them slip away. The

“charitableness” kills them. They give them

presents, food, par�es, and comfort. The

presents are false and an imita�on. The food

is hollow and leaves the stomach the same.

But I wait because my family is be(er. My

stomach is empty, but I am filled. I have no

need for presents, because the gi? of being

in this family is beyond enough. I have never

known comfort, but am at rest. I have only

known pain, but am at peace. I will die

young, but I will be home.

“Father to the fatherless…this is God, whose

dwelling is holy. God places the lonely in

families…I will not leave you as orphans; I

will come to you.”

(Psalms 68:5-6; John 14:18)

I don’t want them to pick me. I am not a doll, and I will not be bought off a shelf like a toy, to be stolen away into some short dream.

6

When you hear the word “worship,” what comes to mind? Do you

picture a Sunday morning church service filled with people singing

and li?ing their hands? Do you see the band and hear the beat of

the drums? Or does worship look more like bowing down in a

temple or ligh�ng a candle?

In the Hebrew language of the Old Testament, the main word for

"worship"—shachah—means “to bow down.” Similarly, in the

Greek of the New Testament, the word proskuneo is used. It is the

act of geFng down on one’s knees in adora�on. Therefore it is

giving oneself completely to the worth of someone or something.

Knowing who you are worshiping is key. God is not just a topic in

your philosophy class or the “G” in “OMG.” One of the reasons

why we don’t always put God at the center of our lives and come

before Him humbly is because we have li(le knowledge of Him.

We beli(le His worthiness, and we want to be in control of our

lives so we can do whatever we want. We become ungrateful and

arrogant. In those heart condi�ons, worship cannot be born. The

Psalmist, David, wrote in Psalm 8:3-4, “When I look at the heavens,

the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have

set in place, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son

of man that You care for him?” David placed God on center stage

and saw the greatness of the God who loved him. He looked at

God, then looked at himself and was puzzled by why he was

geFng so much affec�on when he was no one compared to God. It

is when we bring ourselves to that place of humility,

acknowledging that we are nothing without Him that we truly see

the greatness of God.

Worship is not a genre of music. It is not the three to four songs

that are sung in church before the sermon. Worship is a posi�on

of the heart. It is when Jesus is the object of your affec�on. It is

recognizing His authority in your life. Some people will express this

through gestures like kneeling down, singing, clapping their hands,

and many more, but your ac�ons do not guarantee that you are

worshiping God. In Ma(hew, 15:8-9 God says, “They worship me in

vain” and “they honor me with their lips but their hearts are far from

me.” Therefore some of us can look like we are in love with Jesus

but are actually faking it. What other people think about you from

what they see does not count. It does not ma(er how loud we sing,

how new the song is, or how long we stay kneeled down or

facedown; if our heart is far from God, the things we do are empty

and meaningless.

Worship is a lifestyle of sweet surrender. It originates from the

heart of a person who truly understands and experiences the love of

God. It is true that God loves us, and it is through that love that we

are able to love Him; then our worship is manifested. Romans 12:1

says, “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your

bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a

living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is

truly the way to worship him.” Our en�re life can be con�nuous

worship. A life of worship is a life of obedience to God. It involves

seeking God every day, responding to Him even when we don’t feel

like it and laying down our en�re life in complete surrender to Him.

We can submit our daily decisions, ac�ons, rela�onships, thoughts

and speech to Him. Are you a true worshiper of God?

It’s not what you do, but why you do it. WORSHIP TRUE

“Strong affections for God rooted in and shaped by the truth of Scripture – this is the bone and marrow of biblical worship.” - John Piper

7

Lesotho enter the lives of those living in this

small country facing big challenges

2 million (popula1on)

320,000 people living with AIDS

life expectancy at birth

YEARS

half of pregnant

women ages 25 - 29 have

HIV

children lost a parent to AIDS

50% of

Lesothians

live below the

poverty line.

HIV AIDS’ Toll on Lesotho

H ave you ever felt like you live in an isolated bubble, unaware of

what’s going on in the rest of the world? One of the least fortunate

countries in the world is Lesotho. Lesotho is not a well known country,

and is rarely men�oned on the news. It is approximately the size of

Maryland. If you look at a map of Africa, Lesotho is hard to spot as it is

landlocked by the Republic of South Africa. Surprisingly, it is the only

country in the world where the en�re area is one thousand meters

above sea level. Lesotho was controlled by Britain un�l its independence

in 1966. It has a cons�tu�onal monarchy with a mostly ceremonial king,

Letsie III.

Lesotho is a small country, but has very big problems. Unfortunately the

threat of HIV and AIDS could cause the country’s downfall. In 2001, over

31% of the popula�on were infected with HIV, making it the fourth

highest rate of infec�on in the world.2 Besides this, their economy is very

poor. Considering that more than half of Lesotho lives in poverty, it is

hard for them to get the medicine they need. One in five adults in

Lesotho has or will have AIDS or HIV. They have a limited amount of

water, poor soil, and many droughts. Knowing what is going on in other

parts of the world helps to burst the bubble we have formed around us

as Americans. Want to know more so you can pray for Lesotho? Visit the

Opera�on World website at www.opera�onworld.org/leso

1 h(p://helplesotho.org/index.php/who-we-are/

2 h(p://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/ar�cle/PIIS0140-6736(07)60172-X/fulltext

Infographic sources from UNAIDS and the CIA World Factbook

1 out of 5 adults in Lesotho has HIV

Lesotho

South Africa

World Feature:

8

Move over, Beiber! There are new tunes on the

block. It’s no doubt that the Indie Folk

music genre is on the rise, complete

with numerous stringed instruments

and capturing vocals. Because so many

of these emerging bands have similar

sounds, how do we tell them apart?

Thankfully, this guide will help you

dis�nguish between the Brothers,

Sons, and Men, and between the

Monsters, Dragons, and Whales.

—THE AVETT BROTHERS—These guys

look like they’ve stepped out of the Wild

West, complete with mustaches and three

piece suits. Their lyrics are both heavy and

light, and their music both slow and

upbeat. Songs like “I and Love and You”

and “Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of

Promise” will seduce you with rich,

southern, soulful epiphanies about life and

death. You won’t find any other band with

a more authen�c sound; the Ave(

Brothers are truly one of the best.

—THE LUMINEERS—You’ll recognize this

band because of two words: “Ho hey.”

This catchy tune has made its way from

radio to TV to movies, ac�ng as

background music for Bing TV

commercials, shows like “Bones,” and

movies like Silver Linings Playbook. Stay

tuned for their upcoming second single,

“Um Hi.”

—OF MONSTERS AND MEN—If you want

to add a bit of Icelandic whimsy into your

9

life, Of Monsters and Men will fulfill that childlike desire with

songs like “Dirty Paws,” “King and Lionheart,” and “My Head is

an Animal.” As you listen to their combina�on of upbeat tunes

and heavy lyrics, it’s hard to know if you’re meant to be happy or

sad, but the ambiguity is surprisingly enchan�ng.

—THE HEAD AND THE HEART—This is music to sooth the

introspec�ve soul. With evoca�ve, heart-wrenching lyrics, The

Head and the Heart bring unmatched honesty to their songs.

You can remember these guys by their hometown: Sea(le. The

Northwest is coincidentally where Starbucks originates as well.

There’s nothing be(er than pairing a listening session of The

Head and the Heart while sipping a double dirty chai.

—IMAGINE DRAGONS—Above all others, Imagine Dragons

completely excels at heart-pumping, foot-stomping anthems like

“It’s Time” and “Radioac�ve.” More importantly, this is the only

band that has a male lead vocalist who knits—hats specifically.

—NOAH AND THE WHALE—Bri�sh accents. What more could

you ask for? Don’t let their biblically inaccurate name deter you;

they have some pre(y great tunes.

—THE CIVIL WARS—This is the smallest group on the list,

consis�ng of John Paul White, who looks incredibly like Johnny

Depp, and Joy Williams. The sound of The Civil Wars will

transport you back to a 1920s radio broadcast when music was

simple. All they need is two voices and one guitar to make the

hairs on the back of your neck stand up.

—MUMFORD AND SONS—Mumford and Sons is a Pandora

Radio staple, perfect for working out, cleaning, or pondering.

Because they’ve reached worldwide success and entered

mainstream music, they are no longer considered “hipster.”

—IVAN & ALYOSHA—A band for those who like meaning behind

their music. Ivan & Alyosha’s lyrics are extremely deep,

contempla�ng the rela�onship between God and man in the

most un-churchy way possible. A taste of their song “Running

for Cover” reads, “If I could see the garden place/Before the fall,

would things have changed?/I wasn't there, and neither were

you/But I take the blame, as you should too.”

Equipped with clear dis1nc1ons such as these, you’ll be

able to discuss the latest Indie-Folk tunes with your hipster

friends and know exactly what they are talking about.

They will no longer look ashamedly at you overtop their

black glasses with missing lenses.

10

have a close friend who works at a shelter

for women who are vic�ms of abuse. Day

in and day out, she talks with, comforts,

advocates for and cries with women who have

been beaten, in�midated, and controlled for

years by a man who was supposed to be their

protector. She loves her work, but is drained by

the steady flow of nonstop violence. In all truth,

many of us have also felt the drain of daily

violence in this world and have posed the

following ques�on: “Where is God in all the

violence?” We ask it as we stare dumbfounded

at the news as the scenes from the latest school

shoo�ng shock our senses, we ask it as we hear

of women raped while others looked on

without ac�on, and we ask it as we hear of

teenage murderers who cockily flip off their

vic�m’s family in the courtroom with no

remorse.

It’s a valid ques�on. The reasoning behind it

usually sounds something like this: “If I was

God, and could put a halt to all the murder,

rape, and suffering, I would do it!” Sounds

simple enough, un�l you consider that the

problem is not with God or His perceived lack

of ac�on; the problem is within all of us.

Before we can ask, “Where is God in the

violence?” we need to look at the human heart.

11

Most of us don’t think we are

capable of a heinous crime. In

fact, we think we are pre(y

good people. Our thoughts,

reac�ons and words spoken in

anger or frustra�on o?en paint

a darker picture of what’s

actually going on inside our

hearts. Jeremiah 17:9 says,

“The human heart is the most

decei+ul of all things, and

desperately wicked. Who really

knows how bad it is?”1 Every

person alive has acted in anger

– even violence – when the “right”

situa�on presented itself.

We cannot let ourselves off the hook

because of what we “don’t” do. You

may not be out on the streets hun�ng

down women, planning the next school

shoo�ng, or robbing homes, but a

wicked heart is manifested in more

ways than this. Being jealous of a friend,

geFng angry at another person, or

flipping someone off on the freeway

puts us at the same level as a murderer.

Violence stems from our need to get

ahead, our self-seeking, and our

indifference.

Apathy is just as bad as violence. The

Bible says God weeps at our cold ability

to see injus�ce and cruelty and then

walk away and quickly forget about it.2

We shake our heads as we watch footage

of the latest school shoo�ng, but when

we shut it off, our lives go back to normal

and we remain unaffected. While Jesus

was on earth, compassion poured from

His life as he healed the hur�ng and

reached out to those who were vic�ms of

this world’s violent system. So, in effect,

it’s us who are absent from the vic�ms of

violence, while God plunges Himself into

the fray.

Our plans to bring about peace in this

world are a fu�le endeavor because we

refuse to deal with the issue of the

human heart. While we lobby for gun

control and stand in silent protest, our

violent hearts remain unchanged. What it

comes down to is that we don’t want

God’s cure, we want temporary

fixes. It’s the same thing as having

a fever because of a sickness and

taking Tylenol; it may get rid of

the fever, but you are s�ll sick.

Elimina�ng a symptom doesn’t

cure the disease. The spread of

violence is only stopped when a

heart is made new through

repentance and a rela�onship

with Jesus Christ. It’s only then

that we begin to embrace Christ’s

mindset instead of this violent

world’s. It’s only when we truly

come to know God and understand His

character that we can clearly see His

rabid compassion at work in world full of

murder, terror and heartache.

God isn’t siFng on white clouds in a

LazyBoy, cackling at the pain we’ve

inflicted upon ourselves. God chose to be

born into a destruc�ve world and die by

our violent hands. He risked everything

to see to our eternal safety. He chose to

send His Son, Jesus Christ, to save the

souls of the people who killed Him and

hated Him. He has provided the way to

eternity with Him for those who will

abandon their rebellious lives and come

to Jesus. “For God loved the world so

much that He gave His one and only Son,

so that everyone who believes in Him will

not perish but have eternal life.”3

Before we can ask, Before we can ask, Before we can ask, Before we can ask, “Where is God in the “Where is God in the “Where is God in the “Where is God in the violence?” we need to violence?” we need to violence?” we need to violence?” we need to look at what really lies look at what really lies look at what really lies look at what really lies within each of us.within each of us.within each of us.within each of us.

continued on the next page...

12

So where is God in the violence? Here is where the Bible says He is:

• He is with the brokenhearted

• He is near to the oppressed

• He hears the cries of the poor

• He is a father to the orphan

• He knows every tear that is shed

• He brings jus�ce to vic�ms

• He is a refuge for those in trouble

• He was on the cross, taking on

Himself all the sin of the world, and

making a way for violent people to

be made right with God.4

The point is that God is WITH us. He is not absent, He is not

apathe�c, He sees, hears, knows and cares. The world is

broken and we’re all to blame. It’s clear from a brief viewing

of the nightly news that things aren’t geFng be(er. The

human heart apart from God will grow increasingly violent

un�l the day of Christ’s return to earth. However, God

con�nues to open the hearts of people who will come to Him

and receive a new heart. The heart He gives is one like His

own; one that throws itself into the fray on behalf of the

vic�mized, brokenhearted and oppressed. This new heart

longs for others to know las�ng peace instead of temporary

comfort in this world. God’s heart is grounded in the reality

of heaven. In heaven there is not a trace of violence except

for the scars that remain upon the hands of Jesus Christ as a

reminder of the violent death He died on our behalf. God will

fulfill His promise to His followers in Revela�on 21:4, “He will

wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there will be no

more death or sorrow or crying or pain All these things are

gone forever.”

1: All verses cited from the New Living Transla�on Bible

2: Psalm 10:18, Ma(hew 23:37, John 11:35

3: John 3:16

4: Verses in order from top to bo(om: Luke 4:18, Ma(hew 5:3-10, Psalm

98:5, Psalm 56:8, Psalm 146:7, Psalm 9:9, Romans 6:10

13

H ave you ever wondered what it

takes for God to stop loving you? Is

it possible to have sinned so much,

pushed God away so far that it’s

impossible to come back? King

Manasseh of Israel probably pondered

that ques�on once.

Manasseh was born In what we would

consider today a “Chris�an family.” His

father wasn’t just any man; his father

was King Hezekiah. The Bible says that

Hezekiah, “…did what was pleasing in

the Lord’s sight, just as his ancestor

David had done.” His father not only

loved God, but also did many great

things for Him as king of the land of

Israel.

When Manasseh was 12 years old, he

was made king a?er his father’s death.

He began to undo all the noble things

his father had done. The book of II

Chronicles explains that he did more evil

than the na�ons that existed in that

region before them. Manasseh indulged

in sorcery, divina�on, and witchcra?.

He consulted mediums and psychics

instead of God; he used astrology, and

even par�cipated in satanic worship.

Manasseh defied God by seFng up idols

in the temple of God as well as had the

prophet Isaiah sawed in half. If all of

that wasn’t bad enough, he even

sacrificed his own children to false gods

by burning them alive, which was the

custom of pagan na�ons .

God wouldn’t let him get away with

these detestable acts forever. He spoke

to both Manasseh and his people but

they paid no a(en�on. They didn’t care

about God; to them God was as good as

dead.

Finally, God had enough, so He sent the

King of Assyria to conquer Manasseh

and his people. They captured

Manasseh, put a hook in his nose, bound

him in shackles and led him away. There

in a deep, dark, hopeless dungeon, with

moldy bread and stale water, thinking of

all the murder and the terrible things he

had done in his life, Manasseh hit rock

bo(om. However, as bleak as the

situa�on was , it was at this point that

Manasseh turned to God.

As much as Manasseh had rebelled

against God, He was not done with

Manasseh. The Bible says that Manasseh

humbled himself greatly before the Lord,

and God heard his prayer. God allowed

Manasseh to return to Jerusalem.

Manasseh knew that God alone

deserved his worship. He knew it was all

real. This changed his life forever;

Manasseh did a complete 180. A?er

returning to Jerusalem, he began to

reverse the evil he had previously done.

He even encouraged the people of Judah

to worship the Lord. Because of God’s

mercy and grace, Manasseh’s

rela�onship with God was restored.

Though Manasseh lived most of his life

apart from God, doing one horrible thing

a?er another, God was not done with

him. God would not let him do those

things forever. Manasseh deserved to die

for the horrible things he had done;

however, God was gracious towards him,

giving him �me to realize his hopeless

condi�on.

Centuries later, we once again see God’s

grace when He sent his only son Jesus

Christ to die on a cross and take the

penalty for all sin, including Manasseh’s.

Jesus suffered the wrath of God and the

penalty for all of our sins. He traded

places with Manasseh; He took

Manasseh’s sin, in all its terribleness, and

gave Manasseh His righteousness, in all

its goodness.

Nobody is too far gone from God to come

back to Him. Gala�ans 3:13 says, “When

Jesus was hung on the cross, He took

upon himself the curse for our

wrongdoing.” If you feel like your life is

beyond hope, beyond fixing, or you’ve

done too much damage to turn it around,

remember Manasseh and know that it’s

never too late. While you s�ll live, God is

never done with you.

Never Too Late

14

College life is hec�c and confusing.

As a student, my mind is

bombarded with a torrent of

ques�ons before I’ve even had �me

to take my first swig of coffee: How

will I finish everything I need to do?

What will my major be? Where will I

work a/er I graduate? What makes

me stand out as a person?

Somewhere along the line, a more

serious ques�on will most definitely

surface: Where does God fit into all

of this? We all ask it at some point

in our lives, and obtaining an

answer requires nothing less than a

whole-hearted pursuit. This sounds

exhaus�ng, doesn’t it? Is this pursuit

even possible on top of all the other

school-related tasks we have to

accomplish? Is this search

something that college students can

actually embark on? The Word on

the Street crew wanted to know

how this pursuit and applica�on of

the truth prac�cally played out in

the lives of UW-Stout students. We

got our answer as a panel of

graduates recently spoke at a Street

Level Ministries mee�ng. Each of

their stories shared a common

element: God sought them first, and

they responded.

For a lot of people, it takes a

disaster to kick them out of their

daily rou�ne and ques�on who God

is. Susie, a recent graphic design

graduate, grew up in church and

followed her boyfriend at the �me to

Stout. When the rela�onship ended,

she was le? without an iden�ty and

began to seek a?er Christ. Ben, also a

recent graduate, had gone through

the mo�ons of church his whole life.

However, it never had an impact on

him. When his father died, he began

to ques�on where God prac�cally fit

into his life. Another graduate in

computer engineering, Cory, began to

seek God a?er he got into a moped

accident. Jus�n, a recent graduate in

manufacturing engineering, had spent

his life trying to be a “good person.”

Anxiety ate away at him, and he

began to read the Bible for answers.

He realized that he was never going to

be good enough. Christ died because

there is no way man is ever going to

be moral enough to get to God on his

own. Jus�n recognized that he

needed a rela�onship with Jesus in

order to do that.

While each of these stories is

different, they share a similar trend:

Each iden�fied brokenness in their

lives and looked outside of

themselves for a cure. St. Augus�ne

commented that, “[God] made us for

[Himself], and our heart[s] are restless

un�l they rest in [Him].” These

students found their hearts restless

and hungry for something they

couldn’t iden�fy. It wasn’t un�l each

recognized that God was pursuing

them that they realized it was their

responsibility to respond. This

prac�cally played out for these

graduates by seeking a community of

other Chris�ans to be a part of and by

beginning a rela�onship with Christ.

Now, each of these former students

con�nues to seek what God has

planned for their lives.

Responding to the call of God didn’t

end here for these students. Being a

How can a college student have a strong relationship with God? Four recent Stout grads shared how God revealed Himself to them, and what their response led to in college and beyond.

PURSUIT & RESPONSE susie

ben

Ben had gone through the motions of church his whole life. However, it never had an impact on him. When his father died, he began to question where God practically fit into his life.

15

Chris�an does not consist of securing

a spot in Heaven and choosing to be

a moral person on the outside.

Mee�ng God causes your heart to

change, transforming you from the

inside out. He created each of us

with a dis�nct purpose, and a?er a

rela�onship with Him has begun, we

get to find out what that purpose is.

Cory has had the opportunity to be a

part of Street Level (a UW-Stout

organiza�on of Chris�ans on

campus) student leadership and now

serves in the Burning Dog Radio

(Stout’s only college radio sta�on

run by Jesus Fellowship of Believers

Church). Susie also was a part of

student leadership in Street Level, is

a writer for Word on the Street

magazine (the magazine you have in

your hands!), and recently came

back from a missions trip to the

Philippines. Jus�n serves in The Blind

Munchies Coffeehouse (a volunteer-

run coffeehouse under Jesus

Fellowship of Believers Church), and

Ben is a writer for Word on the

Street magazine as well. In addi�on

to these outward posi�ons of

service, each con�nues to deepen

their rela�onship with Christ and

discover what purpose they were

created for.

If your palms are geFng all sweaty

at the thought of this daun�ng quest

for God, you can take a breath. The

Bible says in Romans that no one

searches for God (3:11), and Jesus

sheds some light on the topic in John

when He stated that we did not

choose Him, but He chose us (15:16).

This leads to the conclusion that we

seek God because He’s seeking us.

Yeah, you read right. The God of the

universe loves you and wants to

have a rela�onship with you. He is

pursuing you as you pursue Him (see

James 4:8), so you’re not in this

alone. The heart of this quest is not

only believing the fact that Jesus

died, but understanding why. Christ

died in order to make a rela�onship

with God possible. It would be like

someone paying for your �cket into

a movie if you had no money. You

have the op�on to take the �cket

from them, try to pay for it yourself,

or decide you don’t want to see the

movie at all.

Christ’s death on the cross is a gi?, a

free payment for something that you

can never pay. You can believe that

He died, just like you can believe that

someone bought you a movie �cket.

However, in order to get into the

movie, you’ll need to respond and

take the �cket. Susie, Jus�n, Ben,

and Cory all saw that they could

never pay the price of having a

rela�onship with God. They acted on

this truth, and God never le? them

hanging during the process. If you

want to have a rela�onship with

God, you’re not alone. Acknowledge

you can’t pay the price required,

accept Christ’s gi?, and seek Him. He

will respond.

cory

justin

These students found their hearts restless and hungry for something they couldn’t identify. It wasn’t until each

recognized that God was pursuing them that they realized it was their responsibility to respond.

16

student at River Falls just moments before my

arrest, but then some of the fun I was having

with drugs got out of control and resulted in

a tragedy.

This was back in 2002. I was devastated in

jail, I didn't know where to turn or what to do,

and in walked some of the people from your

ministry for a Sunday service. They looked

like me, and were excited about God, and I

looked at them from my orange jumpsuit and

I was amazed. At that �me of my life I

couldn't imagine how people could be having

that much fun without drugs...

But when service ended, I remember looking

at them, and saying, "That's it, Whatever

those people have found that makes them act

that way and brings them that much real

happiness, that's what I want. That's what I'm

going to build my next life around.” And it all

began there with you." When I give my

tes�mony to people today, I s�ll tell them

about that day I met you. Over the years I've

told that story to thousands of people. This

story, which you've never heard about before

In 2003, Issue 15 of Word on the

Street magazine

featured the true story of an inmate’s

encounter with Jesus in jail. Bill had lived an

average life with a loving family and good

morals. When college arriving in a blinding

storm, he was caught up in a �de of

academics, social acceptance, drugs, sex and

rock n’ roll. This eventually landed him in jail,

where he began to read the Bible desperately

desiring to know truth. The last words of his

tes�mony, wri(en while he faced a ten year

prison sentence read as follows:

“I believe in God, Jesus as my Savior,

and faith. Faith that I’m alone for a

reason and faith that though I will fall

during this life, God will accompany

me through each trial.”

God has done just that in Bill’s life.

Jesus Fellowship of Believers church in

Menomonie, who first brought God’s

love to Bill in jail, received an amazing

le(er from him this year, ten years

a?er they had lost contact with him.

Here is what God has done.

Dear Jesus Fellowship of Believers

Church,

This le(er is going to be a Celebra�on

for all of us. We are about to be

reunited a?er a long journey apart. I'm a

tough guy, but I can feel my throat geFng

�ght as I speak. My name is Bill Banholzer and

I haven't been part of your church in many

years, but the love and direc�on you gave me

never le? me and s�ll guides me to this day.

Ten years ago I was incarcerated at the Dunn

County Jail and it's where I met your church

body and ministry for the first �me. At that

�me I was 21 years old and I was lost and

scared. I had been a dean's list college

now, has touched thousands of people and it

will touch many more because I'm not done

telling it. I've just started.

I ended up becoming extremely close with

your church during that �me I was in that

jail. I didn't know it when I first got there and

walked on to my first cell block, but I would

be there a whole year before I could move on

with my life. Your church provided me a

mentor at that �me who came to visit me

every week, and who was a role model for me

as I picked myself back up again. His name

was Travis Brodman, and we became really

good friends over that �me.

I also became very involved with many

different outreach programs you had

at the jail, and I was there every

Thursday night for the two hour

"intense" bible study. I remember

a?er my first Thursday session I asked

to quit the study because my brain I

couldn't take two hours of heavy

study. My a(en�on struggles to do

anything a?er an hour, and these

studies just kept going. But the jail

program director at the �me talked me

into trying it again, and I stuck it out.

Looking back on my life, staying in the

class was one of the top ten best

decisions I ever made, because those

are the studies that laid the founda�on

for all of the philosophy and wisdom

that s�ll guide my life. A?er three

months incarcerated, I gave my life 100% to

Jesus at one of your studies and I've never

looked back from that moment.

I actually have the Bible you provided me in

2003 for that moment and it's siFng on my

desk right now. I've carried this with me

everywhere since to remind me where I've

been. There's pen stains on it, and the

binding's cracking, but it's s�ll beau�ful to me

because it was a gi? from you at my weakest

moment which gave me the strength and

I was devastated in jail, I didn't know where to turn or what to do, and in walked some of the people from your ministry for a Sunday

service.

A few months ago, Jesus

Fellowship Church received

From Prison to Purpose

17

hope to believe that one day I'd have a

stronger moment if I just kept following

God. If you open it up it s�ll has the

signatures of the jail ministries guys that were

there that night. On your website I saw a

picture of Rich Sutliff, so I'd like both him and

his brother Tim to know that I've been

carrying around their names for the last ten

years. Whichever one plays guitar, tell him I

s�ll have a song of his wri(en down in the

back of it, "Father God and King" which I s�ll

hum from �me to �me.

From your website, I also see you s�ll have the

Street Level magazine in publica�on. I once

wrote an ar�cle that was published in that

magazine. Since we've lost contact, I've

actually become a writer and I always look

back on that ar�cle and say it was my first

published work. I s�ll have it in my house

now. But back to the story...

A?er a year in jail enjoying my journey

pursuing God with your church family, I finally

got to my sentencing date. Nothing looked

good. It was like the perfect storm of

everything going wrong and I found out the

night before that the district a(orney was

going to ask for twenty years. My parents of

course started freaking out because I come

from a good family and they couldn't

understand how this all happened.

They've told this story many �mes over the

last ten years… "As parents we were just in a

blind panic and we called our pastor and he

just gave us a psalm scripture and hung

up...but then we called (Calvary) and they

talked with us, and even sent people out to

the courtroom to make sure we were

OK." That's when they say, "We learned what

a real church was like that day." Your church

impacted their lives and everyone who has

heard that story since.

I ended up surviving that nightmare court

hearing but I s�ll had to carry the burden of

doing the next ten years in prison before I

could be set free on this earth again. Your

en�re prison ministry team at the �me prayed

for my safety and determina�on to make it

through. I was on the bus going to prison the

next morning and that's the last �me I was

part of your church body or saw any of

you. But obviously as you can tell now, I

didn't forget your love or stop being a

Chris�an, I just became really pa�ent and

made my rela�onship with Christ extremely

strong so that when my second chance did

come - and God promised me it would come

one day - I would be ready.

I could talk about my journey through prison

forever. In my eyes it was an extremely

interes�ng journey to another planet where I

how one can go and reach theirs. It's my love

and passion. Because I'm actually a writer,

I've built my own blog/website which I plan

on growing in the coming years. I have three

writers wri�ng on it now. We're going to start

with quality wri�ng because that's what we

do best. It's been up for a month and we've

already hit 1,000 views so I'm happy my goals

and God's plan are moving in the right

direc�on. I would be honored if

you'd check it out. It's called The Purpose

Pages. Like the Yellow Pages. Except for all

life purpose stuff.

So that's where I'm at now. One of your

brothers is home, doing well, and just wanted

you to see that that li(le mustard seed you

helped plant many years ago is s�ll growing

and blessing others as I live my life. I've never

forgo(en how you helped develop me get to

where I am today.

Bill Banholzer

learned a new way to cope, I laughed at

�mes, and even experienced awe seeing what

God was doing with my life. I became

comfortable just being myself, and in ten

years I never even had a single physical

alterca�on happen to me. My walk with God

through that valley kept me extremely

safe. The only gang I joined was with the

Chris�ans and they all became my

friends. My character became respected, so I

was able to share what I'd found with so

many others who came from places so

different from me. I was even chosen by my

inmate peers and staff to be a featured

speaker in a program where high school

classes would come into the prison and our

group would talk about making good

decisions. And between all of this, I was

always wri�ng. That's where I found my

peace, and it gave me purpose, because I felt

like I was wri�ng my new life story.

This last summer is when my �me finally

came due. On August 21st, I walked out of

that concrete planet, and into a free parking

lot where my family was wai�ng. It was a

perfect morning filled with sunshine - a great

way to start a new adventure. We drove

from Green Bay all the way home to where

I'm originally from in St. Paul, Minnesota. I

registered for college before I got out, so five

days a?er I was free, I started my senior year

to finally finish my bachelors degree. I

got straight A's for fall term. As you can tell,

even though my freedom was taken away, my

mind was never locked up. I was s�ll free

every day to improve my heart, mind, and

spirit anyway I wanted. Even though I was

gone from the world, I was using it to prepare

every day for my second chance God told me

would come. I plan on gradua�ng in business

communica�ons this summer.

For my first couple months I was trying new

churches. But I think I recently found mine at

Substance Church in the northern suburbs. I

felt like when I walked in, I was immediately

amongst my friends even though I didn't

know anyone, and they responded the same

way to me. There were warriors there and

that's what I've been looking for since I've

been home.

While I was gone I actually became a

philosopher on what a life purpose is and

my second chance God told me would come.

I was using it to prepare every Even though I was gone from the world,

Read Bill’s amazing blog: PurposePages.com

18

I t’s hard for people to keep themselves from

praying when they know they’re about to

die. It just comes out. It’s like a reflex. Many

�mes it’s an a(empt to coerce God into revers-

ing their fate, but some�mes it’s not. And un-

less your death is unexpected and instant,

you’ll probably have something to say to God

about your own departure when the �me

comes.

In John 17 we read the prayer of a dying man.

Jesus knew His �me had come. In a few mo-

ments He would be going to court where He’d

be found guilty of a crime He didn’t commit. In

a few hours He would be sentenced to a death

He didn’t deserve. And by this �me tomorrow,

He would be executed. None of this, however,

took Him by surprise, which le? Him �me to

pray. And pray He did. John 17 records that

prayer, and it reveals the things that were at

the forefront of Jesus’ mind. He prays for what

is most important to Him while He was s�ll

around…and the things that He desired most

when He was gone.

In verse 13 Jesus prays for something par�cu-

larly baffling. As He’s praying for His disciples,

He expresses a hope that His joy would be ful-

filled in them. Jesus is praying to God, that God

would allow the disciples to feel the same joy

that Jesus had. Why is this so baffling? Because

how could Jesus, just hours before His own

torture and execu�on, have any joy at all? Was

there really anything par�cularly joyous about

the occasion in which Jesus found Himself? And

furthermore, couldn’t we almost charge Him with

cruelty for praying to God that the same quanda-

ry may be felt by others…par�cularly, those clos-

est to Him?

There are two kinds of joy in this life. There is a

joy that can be felt in the denial of responsibility,

the indulgence of the flesh, and commiFng of

various sins. Even the Bible itself acknowledges

that these things can bring pleasure (albeit tem-

porary). But then there is another kind of joy that

comes in the denial of self, the discipline of the

flesh, and the repentance of sins. In other words,

one guy finds a certain amount of joy by calling in

sick and staying home to play video games and

eat junk food all day, while another man finds a

different kind of joy altogether, because his is

acquired by working hard all day and coming

home exhausted.

Jesus is experiencing an exclusive type of joy that

is reserved only for those who are willing to ven-

ture down the long, hard, self-denying road of

sacrifice. His work is done (vs. 4) and hard work it

was. His was the kind of joy that won’t necessari-

ly be felt to the fullest as you travel that road,

but rather when you successfully arrive at the

very end of it. It’s the joy that’s felt by those who

succeed in laying down their life for their broth-

er. It’s the seldom experienced joy that will only

be felt by the faithfully brave who follow Jesus to

the very end…and that’s precisely why Jesus felt

the need to pray for it on behalf of others. Had

not Jesus prayed for some to experience this joy,

it’s likely that no one would. Unless God were to

intervene on our behalf, none of us would

naturally choose that path for ourselves.

That the average Chris�an would ever follow

Christ to the very end was so improbable, that

Jesus felt the need, in His last hour, to ask

God to intervene in the lives of some, causing

them to go where they would rather not, in

order to experience a joy that they could nev-

er top. Jesus here, on the day of His death, is

interceding on behalf of those who would

otherwise pass on the opportunity to have His

joy. This prayer has been answered through

the succeeding centuries as a few select men

and women have forsaken the en�cements of

the world, denied themselves of worldly

pleasures, and risked their own physical bod-

ies to follow Christ and accomplish God’s

purpose for them. The tragedy is when this

prayer of Jesus goes unanswered because too

many people are content to live vicariously

through those who have actually given their

lives to feel this joy.

Some�mes we make too much of whether or

not Jesus is responding to our prayers, and

too li(le of whether or not we are responding

to His. Jesus prayed for you long ago, and s�ll

does today. Are His prayers being answered?

Are you en route to feeling the same joy that

Jesus did at the end of His road? Will you feel

that joy at the end of yours?

Jesus Prays For Your Joy A Pastor’s Perspective

19

Sources & References

Zach Brown

Band

Street Level Ministries

30 N. 58th Ave. W.

Duluth, MN 55807

Eclipse it.

How does the man on the moon cut his hair?

Gun: thedailyflogblog.com

Girl in Orphan Resolve: julie-rc_deviant art

Blood spla(er in Where is God: officialpsds.com

Never Too Late: kylethompsonphotography.com

Pastor’s Perspec�ve: Alex Stoddard on Flickr

Back cover photo: Copyright Vincent Bourilhon

CHRISTIANBALE?

20