I love a good redemption story. Isn’t that the whole point of the Bible? To redeem us from our sins and set us on the right path…

That’s why I have to share the story of Leonard “Rusty” Medlock, who I read about on the Dallas Morning News website. A former drug dealer, he began dipping into his supply…

“Even in my darkest hours, I was praying,” Medlock said. “I was the only one sitting in a drug house, using drugs and praying out loud. I’d say, ‘Lord, please don’t let me die in this sin.’”

Although he eventually went to jail, God still heard his prayer…

“When I was in elementary school, my art teacher told my mom I had a real talent,” Medlock said. “And Mama said, ‘I know. He’s doing it all over my living room walls.’”

Behind bars, he started sketching again. He learned how to strip the bright colors off of Skittles candy and turn it into brilliant paint. He even used toothpaste to paint.

But another creative idea — drawing portraits of those featured in newspaper obituaries — got him noticed. He mailed them to funeral homes and asked them to pass the images along to survivors.

“All of a sudden … I started getting money on the books,” he said, referring to the cash — as much as $150 — that folks sent him.

To read his how art eventually freed him from jail physically, mentally and spiritually and see his artwork, go here…

Medlock’s art will now be featured in the National Prison Summit on Incarceration held at Hamilton Park United Methodist Church in Dallas, Texas this Friday through Sunday. 

According the summit website, the National Prison Summit on Incarceration is a weekend designed to bring national, statewide and local experts together to share strategies and best practices to those who work in prison ministries. The goal for the summit is three fold. First, providing information about the need for community and faith-based volunteers to do ministry inside the prison walls that will transform the lives of persons incarcerated; Second, learn from experts about evidence-based practices on starting and growing your prison ministry; and finally how to be more effective and develop successful re-entry programs.

Any thoughts?

Comments

comments

The post Ex-Con’s Art Featured in United Methodist Church National Prison Summit appeared first on After the Altar Call.