"Not Guilty"....... just saying.

I was surfing the web on how felons get their life back after all they have been through.

After reading a story of another person who was arrested for trying to defend himself, I started crying because I know exactly where he is coming from.

The crime I was supposedly involved in, I had no idea even happened till 2 years after  My ex-husband and I had been divorced. The investigator was giving him a lot lesser conviction if he had someone he could blame or "made him do this" and that's how I got involved after he had admitted to doing the whole thing.

He and I both were to have no contact with our children for 2 years but he did and they found out and he went from 5 years in jail to 15 yrs to life prison, on that day his lawyer called him in and told him it had changed, Child Services found out he had been talking to his kids and he went home and committed suicide. 

I did my time, my family hired a lawyer, but my family did most of the work for him. I went to court many times just to be postponed which led to a longer time to serve. 

I really have been trying to make a whole new life to repair the hurt, distress, pain, mental stress, and more mental stress and of rebuilding my life for a crime I didn't even know about.......

I am still trying to make sense of it all, and it has been 3 years since probation. I was on probation for 3 1/2 years. Jobs are impossible because nobody wants to hire a prior felon.

The most important thing about all of this is Jesus was with me through it all. When  I went to jail I went through the fingerprinting and the whole works. I had never been in trouble at all, not even in school. 

I was terrified. When I got arrested I was taken in a police car in handcuffs. My husband was standing at the door, tears rolling down his face, and said "God is in control". When I got to jail they gave me that famous orange suit. They were very low on supply, so the pants had these words "Jesus loves you", which comforted me so much, especially since the only place they could put me was in a holding cell with a girl who had just beat somebody up.  

God knew I was going to jail that day before the day ever got there. I was arrested on a Thursday, the jail always had Bible study on Wed but God had her doing something else because He knew I was going to be there Thursday and I would need her and yes, she came Thursday night because she couldn't make it Wed., she had something else she had to do. 

The next morning we went before the judge. There were 4 of us, one girl wasn't getting a bond, she had been in trouble way too much, she was there for a while. The other 2 had very small bonds, but mine was 2500.00 that's only 10 % of the bond, that's what I had to come up with to get out. 

We went back to the cell. One of the girls was so cocky, and she said I'll be there first to get out then pointed to me and said you'll be the last, I said “No, I have a God who can do anything” and I was the first one to leave. I made a phone call to my husband, he called our church and he was there shortly after that and I got out.

  We went to court, I was facing life in prison, if I went to trial and they found me guilty, (which I had 3 people telling lies on me, 2 kids and 1 adult) so my Public defender (before the lawyer) advised me that the jury will believe the kids 99% of the time, so when I went to court I agreed to a plea. I got 5 years probation and got off in 3 1/2 because I had all my fines paid and for good behavior. God is so good. 

 We are to forgive and forget, do I forgive, yes because it would be a sin if I didn't, 

My prayer is that the 2 kids that told the lies, is for them to find God and to get saved. 

Forget, it's hard to forget when it is still following me around, I'm over all of this except how God showed up and showed out, which was the best part, He never left me nor forsake me,

• Hebrews 13:5-6 "Let your conduct be without covetousness, and be content with such things that you have, for he has said, 'I will never leave you, nor forsake you,' so that we may boldly say, 'The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do to me.'" (emphasis mine)
  (Many, if not most, of us have probably been in physical need at some time. All of us are in spiritual need, and will remain that way as long as we live in this body of flesh with its carnal nature, its lusts, phobias, hatreds, jealousies, and myriad other sinful proclivities. But God does not abandon us. Never.
  We can always trust in him to be there for us, no matter how hard and how far we fall. The word "never" in this passage is from "ou me", in Greek what is known as an emphatic negative . In other words, "never" means just that! Never!) 
• 2 Corinthians 4:7-11 "But we have this treasure (speaking of the truth of the Gospel and the knowledge

It destroyed all the dreams I had for my life, as far as me not able to find work. I had dreams to be an EMT, a nurse, or a police officer but now I can't be none of them, that will be on my record forever, all I can be is the person sitting at the computer telling all of this..... why am I saying this? I don't even know, except to give God the glory through it all, because it could have been a lot worse, and my faith in God grew more than it ever has and  I have been in church all my life, I got saved when I was 12, and God has blessed me with an amazing family.

 So now I just stay in His Word, and trust in Him, 

Jeremiah 29:11

New Living Translation (NLT)

11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope

 I love you all! 

     Faith~

Loving One Another 1 John 4:7~12 (NLT)

7 Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. 8 But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

9 God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. 10 This is real love—not that we lo

ved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

11 Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. 12 No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.

13 And God has given us his Spirit as proof that we live in him and he in us. 14 Furthermore, we have seen with our own eyes and now testify that the Father sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 All who confess that Jesus is the Son of God have God living in them, and they live in God. 16 We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love.

God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. 17 And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world.

18 Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love. 19 We love each other[b] because he loved us first.

20 If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a Christian brother or sister,[c] that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? 21 And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and sisters.[d]

Psalm 140
New Living Translation (NLT)
Psalm 140

For the choir director: A psalm of David.

1 O Lord, rescue me from evil people.
Protect me from those who are violent,
2 those who plot evil in their hearts
and stir up trouble all day long.

3 Their tongues sting like a snake;
the venom of a viper drips from their lips. Interlude
4 O Lord, keep me out of the hands of the wicked.
Protect me from those who are violent,
for they are plotting against me.
5 The proud have set a trap to catch me;
they have stretched out a net;
they have placed traps all along the way. Interlude
6 I said to the Lord, “You are my God!”
Listen, O Lord, to my cries for mercy!
7 O Sovereign Lord, the strong one who rescued me,
you protected me on the day of battle.
8 Lord, do not let evil people have their way.
Do not let their evil schemes succeed,
or they will become proud. Interlude
9 Let my enemies be destroyed
by the very evil they have planned for me.
10 Let burning coals fall down on their heads.
Let them be thrown into the fire
or into watery pits from which they can’t escape.
11 Don’t let liars prosper here in our land.
Cause great disasters to fall on the violent.
12 But I know the Lord will help those they persecute;
he will give justice to the poor.
13 Surely righteous people are praising your name;
the godly will live in your presence.

EL SHADDAI BY AMY GRANT

http://www.decaturbaptist.org/media/archive_player.php?service=20120805AM

This is Decatur Baptist Church, hope you take time to watch this service, it is awesome~
You will not be sorry!

Ephesians 4 (New Living Translation)

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Ephesians 4

New Living Translation (NLT)

Unity in the Body

4 Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. ² Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. ³ Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. ⁴ For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. ⁵ There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, ⁶ and one God and Father, who is over all and in all and living through all.

⁷ However, he has given each one of us a special gift^[a] through the generosity of Christ. ⁸ That is why the Scriptures say,

“When he ascended to the heights,
    he led a crowd of captives
    and gave gifts to his people.”^[b]

⁹ Notice that it says “he ascended.” This clearly means that Christ also descended to our lowly world.^[c] 10 And the same one who descended is the one who ascended higher than all the heavens, so that he might fill the entire universe with himself.

¹¹ Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. ¹² Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.¹³ This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.
¹⁴ Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. ¹⁵ Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. ¹⁶ He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.

Living as Children of Light

¹⁷ With the Lord’s authority I say this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. ¹⁸ Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. ¹⁹ They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.

²⁰ But that isn’t what you learned about Christ. ²¹ Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, ²² throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. ²³ Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. ²⁴ Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.
²⁵ So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body. ²⁶ And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.”^[d] Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, ²⁷ for anger gives a foothold to the devil.
²⁸ If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. ²⁹ Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.
³⁰ And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own,^[e]guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.
³¹ Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. ³² Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

Footnotes: