The Man Who Cried Out in Prison
OPENING PRAYER:
Spirit of the Living God, let the story of redemption sink deep into my soul. Show me that no pit is too deep for Your rescue, no bondage too strong for Your deliverance.
"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up."
Solomon, the wisest king in Israel's history, wrote Ecclesiastes late in life after experiencing everything the world had to offer. This passage reflects his hard-won wisdom that human beings were never meant to face life's struggles alone, we need each other, and isolation makes us vulnerable to defeat.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 (NIV)
REFLECT:
Pastor Todd Carter told us about his friend Sean Ballinger, and Sean's story is the kind that makes you believe in miracles. For a long time in Sean's life, he was always the problem and never the solution. He fell victim to every kind of sin and temptation you can imagine, sex, drugs, and even success. Over and over again, sin and temptation beat him down and left him defeated. He ended up in prison, and the parole board wouldn't even let him out.
But here's where the story turns. Sean cried out to God in prayer. He cried out for deliverance from drugs, deliverance from the havoc that evil had created in his life, and ultimately deliverance from himself. And when Sean cried out, God rushed in. Sean got involved in church in prison and began to rely on God. But here's the crucial part Todd: Sean also began to rely on his church family to deliver him from all the suffering his sin had caused him.
Todd explained that a keyway we rely on God and put ourselves in a posture of humility is by relying on God's family. That's how we begin to experience God's deliverance. Because Sean relied on God and on his church family, God took away his addiction. Sean got involved in a recovery group in prison, and God began to use that to heal his life. God gave him peace, something sin had stolen from him for years. And God ultimately gave him his freedom.
Now, outside the walls, God has given Sean a new church family at Pathway, and Sean says it's the first place outside prison where he's felt safe and accepted. God has given Sean a great paying job at Cessna, and He's given Sean new purpose, he's now the leader at his sober living house. Todd's point was powerful: as we pray and rely on God and His family, He delivers. He does immeasurably more than we could ever ask or imagine as we follow Him.
The contrast Todd drew earlier in the message makes Sean's story even more meaningful. He said the reason Bill Hybels likely failed was because he was alone. He might have been surrounded by people, but he was alone. He didn't have that person or that safe group of people where he could share his struggles with temptation, and it made him vulnerable. In the end, it totally derailed his life. But when we're humble and we rely on God's family, we're relying on God, and that gives us strength to overcome the temptations and trials we face in this life. Sean found that strength in prison, of all places, because he stopped trying to do it alone.
I WILL STATEMENT:
I will pray the Lord's Prayer daily this week. Remember, if you missed a day, that's okay. God isn't keeping score; He's simply inviting you into daily conversation with Him. The real win is that prayer is becoming more natural, more central to how you navigate life. And if you need help maintaining this rhythm, check out the Daily Devotional in the Pathway app. It's a great resource to guide your prayer time each day. You can even have it delivered to your email inbox. The goal is to discover that daily time with God changes everything. Keep going!
CLOSING PRAYER:
Lord, thank You for Sean's story and for the reminder that no one is beyond Your reach. Help me stop trying to fight my battles alone. Surround me with people who will help me up when I fall, and make me that kind of friend to others. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.