Do you want to learn
about an innovative program
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that grabs at your heartstrings?
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Well, stay tuned
to hear all about it.
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My name is Yvonne Lewis
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and you are
watching Urban Report.
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Hello and
welcome to Urban Report.
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My guests today are
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Lydia Muwanga and Peter Kibanyi,
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co-directors of 1HeartArt.
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Welcome to Urban
Report, Lydia and Peter.
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Thank you so much for having us.
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Oh, you are so
welcome. Thank you.
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To God be the
glory for being here.
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Amen. Amen.
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God is so good because He always
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just puts people
together and orchestrates things
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and it's such a blessing.
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I met you guys when
Jason, my assistant/son
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and I went up to Chicago
to meet with some folks there
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about getting
into the prison system
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and you were both there
and you made a presentation
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that so moved my heart
that I felt like the Lord
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would have us to bring
you here and tell our viewers
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just all about 1HeartArt.
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But before we
talk about 1HeartArt,
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let's let our viewers know a
little bit about both of you,
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Start with you, Lydia.
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Tell us a little bit
about your background.
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Yeah, so I am Ugandan-American,
so my family is from Uganda
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and I was born and
raised in Colorado.
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And I-- God has
given me a gift of art.
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From a very young
age, I started drawing.
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When I was 12, started
taking it more seriously
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but then I went on to
college, I studied engineering
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so that was on the other
side, but then I got a chance
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to study art in Florence,
Italy, which was awesome,
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'cause there was art everywhere
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and just got to take it all and,
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yeah, so I'm
passionate about art
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and I'm thankful
to be a part of this.
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That's awesome.
What about you, Peter?
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Thank you so much for that.
My name is Peter, as you said.
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I am born and raised in
Uganda. All my childhood years,
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I spent it in Uganda.
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We moved from Uganda
with my mom to Scotland,
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lived there for about two years
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and then we moved
to the United States,
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I've been in
the US for 13 years.
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I currently
hold a Masters degree
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in Molecular Genetics.
I'm a scientist by background,
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and I'm so
passionate about second chances,
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and also passionate
about the love that Christ
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has for all of us.
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Yes, yes, yes,
that's incredible.
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So you're both from Uganda,
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kind of, I mean,
you're Ugandan-American,
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but your
families are from Uganda.
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Did you guys know
each other in Uganda?
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Well, so I grew up
here and Peter's been
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my good friend
for about 11 years,
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so we got to meet
through family friends.
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That is great.
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So how-- tell us about
1HeartArt, what is that?
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1HeartArt,
that's an organization
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where our mission
is to come together
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as one community
and transform lives,
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especially, the
inmates and ex-offender artists
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and their families through art.
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So you want to transform
the lives of the inmates
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and ex-offenders through art?
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Why through art?
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Why do you think
that's important?
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Well, I think art is
so powerful, you know,
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when you create an artwork,
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it can be very therapeutic,
and it has the opportunity
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to actually allow people to
work through a lot of trauma
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'cause we know that hurt people,
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hurt other people.
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So I think a lot of people
in prison have gone through
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a lot of pain in their lives
and art is such a powerful tool
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to kind of process that
and help them heal from it.
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You know, we often look
at music as a powerful tool
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and we kind of neglect art.
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Growing up, I didn't
grow up around a lot of art
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so I never-- and in
my childhood, did not
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learn to appreciate it
until I became an adult
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and then I began
to love art myself
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and I would go to
people's homes and see art.
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And now in my home,
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I have pieces
from different friends
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because it means
something to have something
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from someone that
you know in your home,
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you know, an art piece.
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So you are an
artist, but are you, Peter,
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are you an artist, too?
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I am passionate about
art, I'm not an artist
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but it's meticulous how
God called me to the ministry
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and as Lydia was saying,
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we've been friends for 11 years.
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And God persuaded me.
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I had made ungodly
choices in my life.
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This was at a time when I was,
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I just finished
my Masters degree
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and just got
married with my wife
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and at that time,
I was in New York.
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God, through His love,
persuaded me through His word,
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leading me to the word
where convicting me of things
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I had done in the past.
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At some time, He was
leading me to Christ,
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knowing that Christ
did it all, paid it all,
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but I was so much
dwelling on the past
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and it actually caused
hurt, it caused pain to my body
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because I was still in unbelief,
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I was a Christian already
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but it's amazing how God kept
on persuading me in His word.
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And in fact, in
2013, I got really sick,
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I thought I was
going to lose my life
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and apparently, the
devil was fighting to see
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that I don't get to
know this goodness of Christ.
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And through His word,
God slowly persuaded me.
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I went to emergence
home-- emergence rooms for like
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every day for three
time, like three times.
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To the emergency room in
the hospital, three times?
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- Yes. Because-- - In a row?
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In a row.
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My body was really out
of control and I get there,
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the doctors say, "Peter,
there's nothing wrong with you,
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this is nothing
serious, what's wrong with you?"
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But in my body, I was
not feeling well at all
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and apparently God is a genius.
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He was connecting us
with my old friend to work
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in the ministry that He had
already shown out the vision
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and He was putting me together
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and in fact I was at
the time living in New York
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and I moved to
Chicago where she was
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and began working in a ministry
and it's meticulous what
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that Christ did.
He healed my body.
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Yes.
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I didn't have to
go to hospital again.
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I started believing the word
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He had been
showing me all along.
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And in fact He commanded
me through Romans 11:31,
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He told me, "Peter, still
even you are in your unbelief,
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I gave you mercy
that by your mercy
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others can also be served,
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can receive mercy
at the same time."
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And I really
believe that's why He put me
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in this ministry to see that
I carry that out with these,
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the artists who are in prison
and also who get out of prison.
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And at the same time, He
led me to the Desire of Ages,
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page 324 where it talks about,
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when a soul
surrenders to Christ,
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a new nature, one you
contradicts the new heart.
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And this is a
supernatural nature
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that no man can
achieve themselves
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but only through the
divine power of Christ.
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Yes, yes. So let's
unpack this a little bit.
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Sure. Let's go back a second.
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So you had two
things you mentioned.
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Yes, ma'am.
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Amongst other things
but there are two things
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that kind of caught my ear.
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One is that you
made some bad choices
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and the other one is that
you got really, really sick.
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Now in those bad choices,
is that what connected you
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to the prison population?
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Is that why you feel a
burden for the inmates,
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because of the bad
choices that you made?
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That's a great point.
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God, I reached a point
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where I didn't see life anymore.
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And through God's love
and how He persuaded me,
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and this was a
enemy fighting to see that
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I don't get to know the truth
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which is in Christ He
wants us to have life.
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- Yes. - Second chances.
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And that's what I realized.
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When I moved to
Chicago, it all changed.
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My outlook for life, I
saw that I can now live again
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because all the
pain had gone away.
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So this is the same thing,
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you know,
inmates can go through,
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they can be hopeless
in their prison cells
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and I really
believe Christ wants us
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to reach out to those people.
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And having gone through that,
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I know exactly what it can mean.
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Right, because now you
have a point of identification
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with them whereas
before, you might not have.
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Exactly.
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But because you went
through this situation yourself
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with the bad
choices and the illness,
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now you can relate to
those who feel hopeless
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or those who just don't know
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how their
circumstances can change.
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Yes. Exactly. Now
you can relate. Exactly.
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Isn't that amazing
that God does that?
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Yes, and I have a
similar testimony of seeing
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God's mercy in
my life, you know,
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I grew up in the
Church but I struggled
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with my faith in college.
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I went to engineering schools,
there's a lot of evolution
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and I just really struggled,
you know, believing God's word
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and just believing everything
that goes on in the Church
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and everything
and there was a point
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where I walked away from God.
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But God relentlessly pursued me
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and he brought me
back with open arms
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and I saw that His
blood, it covers all of my sins
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and I'm so thankful
to God for His mercy
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because it's so sweet
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and I want
everybody to experience that.
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So back in 2011,
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I actually met
somebody at a bus stop
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who bought art from an inmate
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and I really resonated
with that because I'm like,
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"Okay, I'm an
artist and it's amazing
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that these people
are doing such, you know,
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amazing things in
prison, of all places,"
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and then also,
I'm an ex-offender,
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you know, I've never
served time in prison,
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but God has given me a
second chance in my life.
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Amen. So you mean
you are an ex-offender
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in terms of sin or
you are an ex-offender
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in terms of bad choices?
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Yes, in terms of sin
and bad choices, definitely.
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Okay. Well, you know what?
We all have made bad choices.
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Right.
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We are all sinners
in need of a savior.
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Amen.
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And we all can, if
we really look at it,
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we can relate to those
who are feeling despondent
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because we've all,
we all have a testimony,
00:11:06.76\00:11:09.73
a story, a place where
we were that God brought us
00:11:09.76\00:11:13.57
from into a new place.
00:11:13.60\00:11:15.77
And so God is so amazing
because He doesn't leave us
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there to just languish,
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He's brought you guys
together to do this program
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and one of the things
I want to say to you guys
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too is that I notice,
00:11:30.72\00:11:33.09
I get mail from
inmates sometimes
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and the artwork is phenomenal.
00:11:35.59\00:11:39.49
I mean, we're talking
this phenomenal talent
00:11:39.53\00:11:42.46
that's locked away.
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Now we know that
people have made mistakes,
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we know that some of them are
in there for horrific choices,
00:11:48.10\00:11:51.91
we know that, but
Jesus came to save
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every one of them so
no choice is too horrific.
00:11:54.14\00:11:57.91
Amen. Exactly.
00:11:57.95\00:11:59.08
And so I'm loving
what you guys are doing.
00:11:59.11\00:12:01.62
So explain
1HeartArt a little bit to us.
00:12:01.65\00:12:04.12
Not just-- we know you
want to transform lives.
00:12:04.15\00:12:08.12
What are the
mechanisms by which you do that?
00:12:08.16\00:12:11.16
Yeah, so it also
reflects in our logo.
00:12:11.19\00:12:15.30
Just to see-- everybody
can see the logo there,
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it's two hearts.
00:12:19.17\00:12:20.27
And we have a website,
00:12:20.30\00:12:21.30
we're going to put
that up on the screen, too.
00:12:21.34\00:12:22.97
Tell us your website again.
00:12:23.00\00:12:24.01
It's 1heartart.org and
the logo is two hearts,
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so the red heart
symbolizes Christ's blood
00:12:28.88\00:12:31.18
that was shed for us and
then the two lines symbolize
00:12:31.21\00:12:35.05
the transformation that happens
00:12:35.08\00:12:36.55
after we allow
God's blood to cover us
00:12:36.58\00:12:40.19
and then the blue
heart symbolizes obedience
00:12:40.22\00:12:42.89
after we accept
Christ as our Savior.
00:12:42.92\00:12:45.19
So that's really like the
heart of the organization.
00:12:45.23\00:12:49.53
The heart of-- I love it.
00:12:49.56\00:12:50.90
And, you know, there's
three main things that we do.
00:12:50.93\00:12:55.14
There's-- we
have an art challenge,
00:12:55.17\00:12:57.27
so we invite the inmates to
submit their amazing artwork
00:12:57.31\00:13:00.28
to an art challenge--
00:13:00.31\00:13:01.41
- Okay, let's talk
about that. - Yes. So--
00:13:01.44\00:13:03.04
Okay, so how did that come
to deed, the art challenge?
00:13:03.08\00:13:05.68
What made you decide to do that?
00:13:05.71\00:13:07.18
Well, we went to a conference,
00:13:07.22\00:13:09.18
the American
Correctional Conference
00:13:09.22\00:13:11.22
back in January
and I met some people
00:13:11.25\00:13:13.19
who did a contest
around poetry and I was like,
00:13:13.22\00:13:15.96
"Wow, that's great."
00:13:15.99\00:13:17.49
And they got over a
thousand submissions,
00:13:17.53\00:13:18.96
so I thought this is a great way
00:13:18.99\00:13:21.06
to meet the artists that way.
00:13:21.10\00:13:22.86
So the current art challenge
is on the theme of hope,
00:13:22.90\00:13:27.10
so we're inviting
inmates to submit artwork
00:13:27.14\00:13:29.20
on the theme of hope
and they can submit it
00:13:29.24\00:13:32.11
through their
family, so the prize money
00:13:32.14\00:13:34.38
actually goes
back to the families.
00:13:34.41\00:13:36.71
Oh, so this is a
way-- oh, this is wonderful,
00:13:36.75\00:13:41.82
this gives the artist a
way to support his family.
00:13:41.85\00:13:46.39
Yes, because--
00:13:46.42\00:13:47.36
To do something to
bring something to them
00:13:47.39\00:13:49.92
other than the
shame and the condemnation
00:13:49.96\00:13:53.29
that sometimes they receive.
00:13:53.33\00:13:56.10
That's wonderful. Right.
00:13:56.13\00:13:58.73
So the art challenge--
how do you get the word
00:13:58.77\00:14:01.77
to the inmates that
this challenge is existing?
00:14:01.80\00:14:05.64
How do you get
that word to them?
00:14:05.67\00:14:06.74
Yeah, there is a
couple of different ways.
00:14:06.78\00:14:08.98
We go through wardens at prisons
00:14:09.01\00:14:11.78
and there is a lot of
wardens that support the arts,
00:14:11.81\00:14:14.45
which is a beautiful thing
00:14:14.48\00:14:16.32
and then also, different
channels like Instagram,
00:14:16.35\00:14:19.89
there are groups on
there of prison wives,
00:14:19.92\00:14:22.92
Prison-- loved
ones of prison inmates
00:14:22.96\00:14:25.53
and that's a great way
to reach people as well.
00:14:25.56\00:14:27.83
And we also have
partners like JPay
00:14:27.86\00:14:30.70
which is the gmail of
prisons and they've posted about
00:14:30.73\00:14:33.87
the art challenge
on their Facebook page
00:14:33.90\00:14:36.04
which has over 160,000 likes
00:14:36.07\00:14:38.77
so it reaches a
lot of people that way.
00:14:38.81\00:14:40.71
Praise the Lord.
That's wonderful.
00:14:40.74\00:14:43.85
What is your role
in the art challenge?
00:14:43.88\00:14:46.78
Do you have-- are you--
00:14:46.82\00:14:48.52
what are you
doing with that, Peter?
00:14:48.55\00:14:50.55
Well, the art challenge is
mainly, as she talked about,
00:14:50.59\00:14:54.79
but I'm all
concentrated on the Penpal side.
00:14:54.82\00:14:57.09
Okay. Let's talk about that.
00:14:57.13\00:14:58.76
So we have the art challenge,
this is one part of 1HeartArt
00:14:58.79\00:15:03.63
and then we have the Penpal.
00:15:03.67\00:15:05.83
Now the Penpal side
sounds a little bit scary,
00:15:05.87\00:15:09.34
Tell us-- let's talk about that.
00:15:09.37\00:15:12.84
Why is mine scary?
00:15:12.87\00:15:14.21
Well, only because,
you know, the first thing
00:15:16.98\00:15:20.42
that pops into mind is,
00:15:20.45\00:15:23.02
are inmates gonna
know where I live?
00:15:23.05\00:15:25.45
Right.
00:15:25.49\00:15:26.49
Would they be able to come--
00:15:26.52\00:15:27.72
not that anybody would
hurt anybody necessarily
00:15:27.76\00:15:31.46
but that's one
of the first things
00:15:31.49\00:15:32.96
that would come to my
mind if I were hearing Penpal.
00:15:32.99\00:15:36.43
So explain that, explain
that part of the program?
00:15:36.46\00:15:40.24
Sure.
00:15:40.27\00:15:41.50
This is, you know, we know that,
00:15:41.54\00:15:43.34
you know, inmates are
in secluded locations,
00:15:43.37\00:15:47.38
sometime in points
of no return, no hope
00:15:47.41\00:15:50.35
and this is where
we give a opportunity
00:15:50.38\00:15:52.31
to the viewer viewing
their artwork to write to them.
00:15:52.35\00:15:56.85
Words of encouragement,
00:15:56.89\00:15:58.52
words of hope
and at the same time,
00:15:58.55\00:16:02.52
you don't have to be
nervous because we have,
00:16:02.56\00:16:04.29
like, a "to do" "what
to do" and "not to do"
00:16:04.33\00:16:06.59
when you're writing
to them on their website
00:16:06.63\00:16:09.23
and at the same
time, we've been to like
00:16:09.26\00:16:11.17
six conferences so
far and we've gotten
00:16:11.20\00:16:14.27
150 letters written by
enthusiastic supporters
00:16:14.30\00:16:19.21
of these talented inmate
artists and ex-offenders,
00:16:19.24\00:16:22.44
so which is
really being going fast,
00:16:22.48\00:16:24.98
so God has been blessing.
00:16:25.01\00:16:26.65
And at the same time
we have a video we sent,
00:16:26.68\00:16:30.79
it's on the
website, it's by Bamji.
00:16:30.82\00:16:34.12
Bamji is one of
our inspiring pen pal.
00:16:34.16\00:16:38.46
He got a letter from
one of our inmate artist,
00:16:38.49\00:16:42.23
he had written
about how he found it hard
00:16:42.26\00:16:45.30
to forgive himself
from the past acts.
00:16:45.33\00:16:49.00
And when Bamji read it,
this was an opportunity for him
00:16:49.04\00:16:53.17
to reach out to
him and write a word
00:16:53.21\00:16:56.04
of encouragement straight
from the Bible telling him
00:16:56.08\00:16:59.45
how Christ still loves him
and he can forget his past.
00:16:59.48\00:17:03.18
And it's all in the
video on the website by Bamji.
00:17:03.22\00:17:07.72
So this is a program
00:17:07.76\00:17:09.19
where we are
giving an opportunity
00:17:09.22\00:17:11.93
just to write a note, it
doesn't have to be a letter,
00:17:11.96\00:17:14.66
just a note to these
inmates and ex-offenders
00:17:14.73\00:17:19.03
to give them
encouragement and hope and--
00:17:19.07\00:17:22.27
And so they write the letter
but it's through your website
00:17:22.30\00:17:26.11
so they remain
anonymous, correct?
00:17:26.14\00:17:28.84
So they remain
anonymous but yet the inmate
00:17:28.88\00:17:32.65
gets that word of encouragement?
00:17:32.68\00:17:34.52
Yes. So that's
kind of a win-win.
00:17:34.55\00:17:37.52
Because there
is no danger there,
00:17:37.55\00:17:39.95
there is no concern
there on the part of the person
00:17:39.99\00:17:42.86
that's writing, but
yet, the inmate can still
00:17:42.89\00:17:46.19
benefit from the feedback
00:17:46.23\00:17:48.33
and get just some kind
of word of support and hope.
00:17:48.36\00:17:52.73
So that's a beautiful thing.
00:17:52.77\00:17:54.00
And they can be
led to Jesus Christ.
00:17:54.04\00:17:55.94
That's the
ultimate goal. Exactly.
00:17:55.97\00:17:58.14
So how many people have
you thus far do you know of
00:17:58.17\00:18:03.28
'cause there might be people
00:18:03.31\00:18:05.18
that you don't even know about,
00:18:05.21\00:18:06.28
but how many people,
first of all, is your program
00:18:06.31\00:18:10.19
reaching that you know of?
00:18:10.22\00:18:11.82
We're reaching-- you
mean the inmate artists?
00:18:14.62\00:18:16.86
Yes.
00:18:16.89\00:18:18.03
We are right now
in prisons in Indiana,
00:18:18.06\00:18:22.76
we are in Illinois,
and as well as Florida,
00:18:22.80\00:18:26.70
and we are reaching
to different artists.
00:18:26.74\00:18:28.90
Right now we have a
list of around 15 artists.
00:18:28.94\00:18:32.44
But we know there's
10,000 inmate artists in the US.
00:18:32.47\00:18:36.01
Wow.
00:18:36.04\00:18:37.08
So as God leads,
we'll be able to tap
00:18:37.11\00:18:39.28
into all of those, reach them.
00:18:39.31\00:18:41.68
Yes. Yeah.
00:18:41.72\00:18:42.78
And another one of the
inmate artists that we met,
00:18:42.82\00:18:46.62
started writing
to him last year,
00:18:46.65\00:18:48.19
just getting to know him
00:18:48.22\00:18:49.76
and he got out
of prison in April,
00:18:49.79\00:18:51.83
and so we have another
program called ArtStarter
00:18:51.86\00:18:54.63
and that's where we
really help inmates transition
00:18:54.66\00:18:57.27
back into society.
00:18:57.30\00:18:58.93
So, you know, he got
out of prison in April
00:18:58.97\00:19:01.70
and it really put us in
that position to help him
00:19:01.74\00:19:04.14
with that transition
00:19:04.17\00:19:05.71
and he has totally
changed his life around,
00:19:05.74\00:19:07.88
like, he so inspires me,
he used to be super selfish,
00:19:07.91\00:19:11.78
that's how he described himself.
00:19:11.81\00:19:13.55
It's all about
attracting attention to himself
00:19:13.58\00:19:15.72
through his artwork
but now he is all about
00:19:15.75\00:19:17.85
giving himself back to
the world through his art
00:19:17.89\00:19:19.99
and it's really inspiring,
like, he is so focused,
00:19:20.02\00:19:23.56
he wants to go back to school
and support his two children
00:19:23.59\00:19:27.13
and get his
bachelor of fine arts.
00:19:27.20\00:19:30.07
So far we've
gotten over 400 supporters
00:19:30.10\00:19:32.97
who bought his
artwork and that helps him
00:19:33.00\00:19:35.14
reach his goals as well.
00:19:35.17\00:19:36.94
How beautiful is that.
00:19:36.97\00:19:38.97
Because we all know that
the recidivism rate is so high.
00:19:39.01\00:19:42.81
You know, people
come out of prison,
00:19:42.84\00:19:44.35
what are they gonna do?
00:19:44.38\00:19:45.65
How are they gonna
support themselves?
00:19:45.68\00:19:47.58
What are they--
because many times
00:19:47.62\00:19:49.72
they can't find a job,
things are closed to them,
00:19:49.75\00:19:52.32
so now they can use their gift
00:19:52.35\00:19:54.02
which they love doing,
00:19:54.06\00:19:56.36
use this gift to
support themselves
00:19:56.39\00:19:58.69
and their families
and not go back to prison.
00:19:58.73\00:20:01.83
Right, exactly.
00:20:01.86\00:20:02.90
I mean, that's tremendous.
It gives them an income.
00:20:02.93\00:20:05.50
Right, exactly.
00:20:05.53\00:20:06.57
And the statistics
are really shocking
00:20:06.60\00:20:08.57
as you just mentioned,
00:20:08.60\00:20:09.74
you know, out of
every three people
00:20:09.77\00:20:12.07
that come out of prison,
00:20:12.11\00:20:13.81
two of them go back to
prison within three years,
00:20:13.84\00:20:17.01
which is-- that's
crazy, you know, that's--
00:20:17.05\00:20:18.85
And their children go, too. Yes.
00:20:18.88\00:20:21.08
Their children end up--
It's a generational curse.
00:20:21.12\00:20:23.08
It's a generational curse.
00:20:23.12\00:20:24.75
The children end
up going into prison,
00:20:24.79\00:20:27.92
their fathers or
mothers have been there,
00:20:27.96\00:20:30.19
most-- usually, the fathers,
but now we have statistics
00:20:30.23\00:20:33.80
that show that women
are being arrested more now.
00:20:33.83\00:20:36.87
Right.
00:20:36.90\00:20:37.93
So this is really a
serious issue and many times
00:20:37.97\00:20:43.71
I know for me and I'm
sure for you guys, too,
00:20:43.74\00:20:46.14
at some point,
you say to yourself
00:20:46.17\00:20:47.94
what can I do, like,
what can I do to change things
00:20:47.98\00:20:51.85
and this is a wonderful
program because this can be used
00:20:51.88\00:20:56.92
to transform hearts
and that is wonderful.
00:20:56.95\00:21:01.42
So this is called
the ArtStarter part?
00:21:01.46\00:21:03.86
- Yes. - Of the program.
00:21:03.89\00:21:05.73
So once-- walk me
through the process,
00:21:05.76\00:21:10.13
walk us through the
process, so someone,
00:21:10.17\00:21:13.34
an inmate finds
out about 1HeartArt.
00:21:13.37\00:21:18.74
What happens? What
do they do from there?
00:21:18.77\00:21:21.08
Well, the art challenge is
00:21:21.11\00:21:22.28
really the first
point of contact.
00:21:22.31\00:21:24.18
Okay.
00:21:24.21\00:21:25.18
That's really where we
want to meet the artists
00:21:25.21\00:21:26.88
and get them
involved, see their art.
00:21:26.92\00:21:29.02
And we've gotten
letters from people
00:21:29.05\00:21:30.75
all over the
country sending us their art
00:21:30.79\00:21:33.76
which is awesome
and then from there,
00:21:33.79\00:21:36.02
that's where we
really want to connect them
00:21:36.06\00:21:37.49
with pen pals so
that we can develop
00:21:37.53\00:21:39.46
those relationships with them
00:21:39.49\00:21:41.26
and then, God
willing, lead them to Christ
00:21:41.30\00:21:43.90
through the Penpal program,
00:21:43.93\00:21:45.40
then after they
get out, then that's
00:21:45.43\00:21:47.10
when we help sell their art,
00:21:47.14\00:21:48.24
So they could support
themselves and their families.
00:21:48.27\00:21:50.01
That's great.
00:21:50.04\00:21:51.27
So when they are in the Penpal
program, are you sending them,
00:21:51.31\00:21:54.71
how are they
learning about Christ?
00:21:54.74\00:21:56.91
What are you doing?
00:21:56.95\00:21:58.41
It's a great question.
00:21:58.45\00:22:00.52
We're right now
the, one of our artists
00:22:00.55\00:22:02.35
who got out of prison
in April, when he got out,
00:22:02.38\00:22:09.02
we had a conversation
with him, he is right now,
00:22:09.06\00:22:11.53
he is a Buddhist at the moment.
00:22:11.56\00:22:13.86
He is a what? He is a Buddhist.
00:22:13.90\00:22:15.56
- A Buddhist. - Yes.
00:22:15.60\00:22:17.17
And we're thinking of
ways how we could have
00:22:17.20\00:22:19.87
a holistic measure of
him, this is three sections,
00:22:19.90\00:22:24.67
the body, the
mind, and the spirit
00:22:24.71\00:22:27.38
and I was able to
get a survey given to him
00:22:27.41\00:22:31.65
which is measurable.
00:22:31.68\00:22:32.98
So we are able to
see how he has scored
00:22:33.01\00:22:34.88
in those different sections
and this is, he came out,
00:22:34.92\00:22:39.99
his spirit side of the section
was the highest in the score,
00:22:40.02\00:22:43.89
so this gave us,
showed us an inclination
00:22:43.93\00:22:46.59
that he is
actually spiritually strong,
00:22:46.63\00:22:49.86
but he's yet a Buddhist.
00:22:49.90\00:22:51.90
But it's amazing
from the conversation
00:22:51.93\00:22:54.34
we've been having with him.
00:22:54.37\00:22:55.34
How God is pursuing
him through the spirit.
00:22:55.37\00:22:59.24
He reads the Bible, he
loves the teachings of Jesus
00:22:59.27\00:23:04.05
and we believe
as we continue on,
00:23:04.08\00:23:07.25
he will end up,
actually sent out
00:23:07.28\00:23:08.88
some Bible lessons to him
00:23:08.92\00:23:11.42
which I'm
waiting to get in return.
00:23:11.45\00:23:13.86
We believe that Christ is,
00:23:13.89\00:23:15.29
he ultimately will accept Christ
00:23:15.32\00:23:17.16
as if we continue, as
he leads and continue doing
00:23:17.19\00:23:20.16
what he directs to do.
00:23:20.20\00:23:23.43
And at the same
time from this survey,
00:23:23.47\00:23:26.00
one of his lowest score
was the body, the physical body
00:23:26.03\00:23:30.41
and he was
actually, he found out
00:23:30.44\00:23:32.37
he was slacking
off on certain things
00:23:32.41\00:23:33.81
like working out so he
was able to be motivated like,
00:23:33.84\00:23:36.75
"Oh, man, I need to
work on this now also."
00:23:36.78\00:23:38.48
So it's showing us how it,
00:23:38.51\00:23:43.52
it's shown right before our eyes
00:23:43.55\00:23:45.72
how the holistic
transformation is happening.
00:23:45.75\00:23:49.96
Yes. Specially
in this gentleman.
00:23:49.99\00:23:52.56
- Yes. - Yes.
00:23:52.59\00:23:54.23
You know, 'cause
well, I was never a Buddhist
00:23:54.30\00:23:57.90
but I studied eastern
medicine that kind of thing
00:23:57.93\00:24:00.90
and there is that whole
focus on the holistic person
00:24:00.94\00:24:06.11
but there is in our belief, too,
00:24:06.14\00:24:09.21
because we
believe that how important
00:24:09.24\00:24:11.01
the physical
aspect is, the emotional,
00:24:11.05\00:24:13.55
and the spiritual, so we are,
00:24:13.58\00:24:17.19
you know, we
are holistic beings.
00:24:17.22\00:24:18.39
Exactly.
00:24:18.42\00:24:19.45
We just have to help people
00:24:19.49\00:24:21.22
to channel it
properly into the right focus
00:24:21.26\00:24:25.46
and Jesus Christ is of
course at the helm of all that.
00:24:25.49\00:24:29.60
So it's not, it's different,
00:24:29.63\00:24:33.03
but yet, he can
maintain the idea
00:24:33.07\00:24:36.67
that we are holistic beings,
let's just say Jesus Christ
00:24:36.71\00:24:39.47
has to be at the
center of the whole thing.
00:24:39.51\00:24:42.48
And we totally agree
with that because our vision
00:24:42.51\00:24:46.68
is to see them
as whole individuals
00:24:46.72\00:24:49.38
and in every sense of the
word and we really look to Jesus
00:24:49.42\00:24:53.42
as our example
'cause often times,
00:24:53.46\00:24:55.76
we read that when
Jesus would heal people,
00:24:55.79\00:24:58.39
he would first
forgive their sins,
00:24:58.43\00:25:00.50
then all the
other types of healing
00:25:00.53\00:25:01.76
would follow after that.
00:25:01.80\00:25:03.20
So we believe that same
thing. Like our highest goal
00:25:03.23\00:25:06.53
is for them to
know Christ and then,
00:25:06.57\00:25:09.70
you know, all the other
aspects we want to help them
00:25:09.74\00:25:11.54
achieve health in
those ways as well.
00:25:11.57\00:25:14.28
This is such a
great ministry to support
00:25:14.31\00:25:17.35
because again, so
often people will think
00:25:17.38\00:25:20.08
what can I do to
make a difference,
00:25:20.12\00:25:23.28
how can I change a
life when I'm just,
00:25:23.32\00:25:27.59
I don't know
anything about prison,
00:25:27.62\00:25:29.12
I don't know anything about.
00:25:29.16\00:25:30.49
Well, now this is a
program that our viewers
00:25:30.53\00:25:33.16
can support and
say, you know what,
00:25:33.19\00:25:35.73
even though I don't go
into the prison myself,
00:25:35.76\00:25:39.17
I can support this program
that helps to change lives
00:25:39.20\00:25:43.14
through art and through
learning more about Christ.
00:25:43.17\00:25:48.48
This is, you
guys are trailblazers
00:25:48.51\00:25:53.11
in that you're
using their gifts,
00:25:53.15\00:25:56.32
That-- their God
given gifts to help them
00:25:56.35\00:25:59.22
to move toward God and
that is just a beautiful,
00:25:59.25\00:26:03.39
beautiful concept.
00:26:03.43\00:26:05.13
- Praise God. - Amen.
00:26:05.16\00:26:06.39
- Praise God. - Amen.
00:26:06.43\00:26:07.66
How long ago did
this come into being?
00:26:07.66\00:26:09.90
How did you
think of this concept?
00:26:09.93\00:26:12.17
Yeah, I mean, the
idea first came in 2011
00:26:12.20\00:26:15.67
but we've really
started working on it last year,
00:26:15.70\00:26:18.54
picking up, Peter
joined last year so.
00:26:18.57\00:26:20.74
End of November.
00:26:20.78\00:26:21.94
Okay, so we're
talking really new.
00:26:21.98\00:26:24.25
Yes.
00:26:24.28\00:26:25.45
And already, you're
seeing lives changed.
00:26:25.48\00:26:28.28
Yes, praise God.
00:26:28.32\00:26:29.45
What do you think
is the most profound
00:26:29.48\00:26:33.09
example of a life changed
00:26:33.12\00:26:35.19
that you can
think of in one minute
00:26:35.22\00:26:36.59
'cause we're almost done.
00:26:36.62\00:26:38.03
I can't believe our
time went this quickly.
00:26:38.06\00:26:41.46
Can you think of one
inmate whose life has been
00:26:41.50\00:26:45.20
profoundly
changed by your program?
00:26:45.23\00:26:48.80
Well, I could say
right now one of our inmate
00:26:48.84\00:26:52.01
who's got out of prison,
we've seen how Christ Himself
00:26:52.04\00:26:56.44
is pursuing him
and He is doing it
00:26:56.48\00:26:58.75
through this ministry to see
that he accepts Him ultimately
00:26:58.78\00:27:03.62
and the profound
change we want to see is him
00:27:03.65\00:27:07.46
accepting and passing on
the word of second chances
00:27:07.49\00:27:11.09
because of what
Christ has done in his life.
00:27:11.13\00:27:14.20
God has been so merciful to us,
He's given us a second chance
00:27:14.23\00:27:19.03
and so we can
extend that mercy to others
00:27:19.07\00:27:22.40
and help them to have
the second chance in life
00:27:22.44\00:27:26.04
because we can
reduce the recidivism rate,
00:27:26.07\00:27:29.58
we can allow them to have
some kind of dignity again,
00:27:29.61\00:27:33.72
because so often, the
dignity is just taken away,
00:27:33.75\00:27:36.82
and so-- now they can
support their families,
00:27:36.85\00:27:39.42
I mean, this can
really make a huge difference.
00:27:39.45\00:27:41.72
So I thank you
for being obedient
00:27:41.76\00:27:44.16
to what God has
called you to do.
00:27:44.19\00:27:46.59
And I thank you so
much for tuning in today.
00:27:46.63\00:27:50.37
Please support this
ministry and let them know
00:27:50.40\00:27:53.84
that you're with them.
00:27:53.87\00:27:55.70
Well, that's the end
of our program for today,
00:27:55.74\00:27:57.77
thanks so much for tuning in.
00:27:57.81\00:27:59.21
Join us next time,
'cause, you know what,
00:27:59.24\00:28:01.11
it just wouldn't be
the same without you.
00:28:01.14\00:28:03.41