Behind the Walls Blog Revival! - 2016 Ministry Update

It's been a pretty long time since anything has been posted to this blog, but we're reviving it! I'm Ben Casey, the new Communications Coordinator for Bill Glass Behind the Walls. I was hired to help Staci Woodruff in developing the Communications Department. One of the things that I'll be doing is working with the ministry's social media sites and helping to increase awareness of what we do in the vast realm that is the Internet.

We're still in the brainstorming stage of what this blog will look like on a more permanent basis, but for now, I'll give you an update on what 2016 looked like for Bill Glass Behind the Walls. If you weren't involved in the ministry this past year, you missed out on seeing God do lots of amazing things!

In 2016, 4,473 teammates shared the Gospel with 145,661 offenders, and 24,138 of them made a decision to make Jesus Christ their Lord and Savior! Praise God for blessing this ministry.

The biggest event from 2016 was our last one, the DFW/Waco Weekend of Champions that took place over the first weekend in November. 22 different units were visited in the DFW and Waco areas, and nearly 2,500 inmates made decisions for Jesus.

I was able to serve as a teammate at the DFW/Waco event, and it was a huge blessing for me. I knew God did big things through BGBTW before that weekend, but experiencing it firsthand opened my eyes to how truly incredible it is. The nature and layout of the events make it incredibly easy to share one's faith, and, from what I saw, the inmates were extremely responsive! I can't wait to serve at many more events during my time with BGBTW.

I wasn't the only first-timer (freshman) who was impacted by serving at a Day or Weekend of Champions. Here are some quotes from several different freshmen from various events throughout the year:

"Most Christ-like ministry I've ever been associated with. Incredible testimony by all the platform guests and just an awesome witness to the prisoners and to me too."

"I was so energized by being able to and encourage so many women and just be with them and listen to them and pray for and with them. It was great!"

"I love the simplicity of how we are to share the Gospel with the inmates. I will definitely use this in the future when I share with others about Jesus Christ."

"It was amazing, I was extremely uncomfortable thinking that I would be with the male inmates but I enjoyed every minute with them! ... I can't believe how receptive, kind and respectful the men were. I can't wait for the next event."

Part of my job with BGBTW will be to utilize social media and online marketing to recruit new freshmen teammates to serve at 2017 events, and I'm excited about that after reading through so many incredible testimonies from 2016's freshmen.

Another highlight from 2016 was the hiring of our new Operations and Process Manager, Joe Barron. Joe has been a wonderful man to work with for the time I've been with BGBTW, and his heart for the gospel is apparent to anybody who's met him. Joe's experience ranges from pastoral jobs to high school basketball refereeing, and has a story that makes him especially passionate about BGBTW's mission.

"I am so thankful for the opportunity to serve the Lord through Bill Glass Behind the Walls," Joe said, when asked about his experience so far working with BGBTW. "Knowing the work we do has an eternal value that can be expressed and enjoyed while here on earth is both humbling and awe-inspiring. Only a great God, with a great purpose, could call me to a great mission, and allow me to witness such great results. I am grateful for this ministry and the countless lives impacted by its God-honoring desire to minister to the least of these!"

Like Joe said, countless lives were impacted by Bill Glass Behind the Walls in 2016, and we're excited for an even better 2017! There are 32 events on the calendar for next year, from a Day of Champions in Austin in January to one in Florida in December, and we are praying that God changes many lives through each one of them! You can already sign up for events in Austin, TX, Macon, GA, Shreveport, LA, and Huntsville, TX. If you want to see the other 28 events for next year, visit the calendar on our website!

I hope that you'll join me in praying consistently for Bill Glass Behind the Walls. The Lord has great things planned for this ministry, but that means the devil is eager to get in the way. Pray that God's will be done through BGBTW in 2017, and that the Gospel changes many hearts!

I hope that this post has been informative, and that this blog can be a good source of encouragement in the future as we near the start of 2017. If you have any stories you'd like shared on this blog or ideas for posts, leave a comment with your email address and I'll get contact you as soon as possible. Or, just give me a call at (972) 283-7325. Thanks for reading!

Fresno, CA Weekend of Champions 2013 Spiritual Enrichment

Click here to listen to Bill Glass speaking at the 2013 Fresno, CA Weekend of Champions Spiritual Enrichment.

Click here to listen to Steve Williams, pastor of Northpointe Community Church in Fresno, speaking at the 2013 Fresno, CA Weekend of Champions Spiritual Enrichment.

Chris Moody - 2011 Beaumont Weekend Spiritual Enrichment

Chris Moody, pastor of First Baptist Church Beaumont, speaking at the Beaumont Weekend of Champions Spiritual Enrichment session.

Bill Glass - 2011 Orlando Weekend Spiritual Enrichment

Ministry founder, Bill Glass, speaking at the Orlando, FL Weekend of Champions Spiritual Enrichment session.

C.F. Hazlewood - 2011 Huntsville Weekend Spiritual Enrichment

C.F. Hazlewood, pastor of Fellowship of Huntsville and Director of Agribusiness for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, gives the message at the 2011 Huntsville Weekend of Champions Spiritual Enrichment.

Fading Glory or Eternal Glory - Encouragment on the Run! by Bill Glass

A couple weeks ago, as I watched Green Bay win the Super Bowl and receive the Lombardi trophy, I was reminded of when I was fortunate enough to be on a team that won the World Championship in 1964. The celebration of the Packers players after the game brought back fond memories of my experience with Cleveland over four decades ago.

One of my good friends and teammates on that special day was Paul Wiggin. In that championship game, Paul played left defensive end, and I played right defensive end. Paul had a great game that day, and over his career, he was selected to the Pro Bowl twice, and played 11 years with the Browns. He spent a lifetime around football. After he retired as a player, he had a successful career in coaching, including Head Coaching jobs at his alma mater, Stanford University, and also with the Kansas City Chiefs. And after he left coaching, he began to work for the front office for the Minnesota Vikings. You could say that Paul knew as much about football as anyone. And yet, that Championship game in 1964 stands out as the greatest memory in his life. Terry Pluto (Pulitzer Prize-winning sportswriter with the Cleveland plain dealer), in his book Browns Town 1964, quotes Paul as saying:

“If you were to ask me what was the greatest feeling in my life, it was winning the championship. I don’t wear jewelry. I don’t even wear my wedding ring. But for years, I wore that championship ring. My wife asked me why, and I tried to tell her that for one moment in my life, nothing has ever meant that much to me as that championship. It only lasted a short time, but to have that feeling about being the best in the world...” Reflecting on that day, Wiggins continued, “As I walked out of the Stadium that day, there was a telephone pole. I wanted to climb that pole and just yell to the whole city of Cleveland that I was part of the best football team in the world—and I know that the city would have understood what I was talking about. We had a group of guys from Georgia, California—you name it. White guys, black guys, it didn’t matter. Nothing mattered except on that one day, we came together and did something very special. I have spent the rest of my life in pro football trying to duplicate that feeling, and I never have."

Paul was normally much too sophisticated for anyone to even imagine him climbing a pole, and shouting from the top. But, on that day, if he had asked me, I would have joined him, and climbed that pole with him. Like Paul, that World Championship was certainly the highlight of my years in pro ball as well.

However, as wonderful as that day was, I am also reminded that the glory of that day was temporary and fleeting. In fact, if you watched any of the post game interviews after the Super Bowl this year, you may remember hearing the broadcasters already talking about next year.

The Romans seem to have understood this as well. Military historians tell us that when Roman generals came home from victory in battle, there was always a huge parade of celebration. Marching in the parade were the cavalry, foot soldiers, conquered slaves carrying the spoils of war, and then came the victorious general in a golden chariot in full parade battle dress, preceded by trumpeters bugling his triumphant return. But historians tell us, that a slave would ride behind the general in his chariot and repeat over and over again, “All glory is fading!”

I have a whole room full of trophies and memorabilia from my college and pro career. But I’m quite sure that after I die, you will be able to pick them up cheap in a garage sale. “All glory is fading,” except the glory that comes from the Lord (II Corinthians 3:6). As great as the World Championship was, and all my trophies and accolades, in the end, it is all simply “fading glory.” Peter says it this way, “All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall” (1 Peter 1:24).

God has so much more in store for you and me than the earthly glory that this world offers. Paul tells us that God has a glory for us that is not fading, but ever-increasing (2 Cor 3:18). Peter talks a lot about glory as well. He says that “the Spirit of glory and of God” rests on us, and that we have been called to “His eternal glory” that will “never fade away.”

I am so blessed that God has given me the privilege of spending most of my life in pursuit of His eternal glory, and not my own fading glory. As Paul tells us, God is passionate about “bringing many sons to glory.” God loves people, and He says that the fields are ripe for harvest, and He is calling for laborers to His harvest. Thank you for your part in this great harvest of souls. As you continue to dedicate your life to His glory, you can be assured that “when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away” (1 Pet 5:4).

Love, Bill

Coach Grant Teaff - DFW Roundup Banquet

Former Baylor coach Grant Teaff gave a fantastic talk at the DFW Roundup Banquet.