If you have been in the Church for any amount of time it is likely that you have heard moving testimonies. Breathtaking tales from people that have been to the very bottom of life and through God have been able to rise up again. I Have heard many testimonies over the years from drug and alcohol addictions to deep dark depressions. Many times while someone is sharing their testimony you can begin to feel God move. When God moves in this way the lives of those listening begin to change. We all have a testimony and every testimony is meaningful in its own way. Many of these testimonies only encompass a few small or maybe a few large issues. Some, however, can encompass the completely unexpected.

It was not until a recent visit to Historic Brushy Mountain Penitentiary that I heard a man share a testimony that told a story far worse than any I had heard before. I was unable to imagine that a person could live through what he did and still be able to turn their lives completely around. I hope to share this man’s story with you the best that I can. Since I was unable to talk with him one on one I will not share his name, but only his story. I do believe that with how he shared his testimony with all those willing to listen.  He would not mind his story being here.

Before going too far into the story of this man, I feel that a little backstory is due. Recently Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary in Wartburg Tennessee reopened its doors. Allowing people to come and tour the historic site and enjoy the other offerings they have added. My mother and I have always wanted to know what was hiding behind those tall fences. Our real interest stems from the fact that my early childhood home was located only a few short miles from the prison. Our property was just on the other side of the ridge. You can read an in-depth piece on our experience at Brushy here.

Upon arrival at Brushy, we did not expect to meet a former prisoner. We soon found out this man had no affiliation with the people ruining the prison in its current form. He was actually leading a group he knew through the prison. As we entered the prison the woman taking tickets told us he had just entered shortly before us. She let us know that if we wanted we could probably catch up to them. At first, we were a little worried about following an ex-prisoner around the prison he used to inhabit. Especially since this prison was notorious for being one of the most dangerous in the nation. Even with our reservations, something in us told us to follow that man.

A group of about 20 to 30 people quickly formed and followed him from place to place. All the while he gave us his full story. Leading up to the day that changed his life forever. As a young boy, he moved around from boys home to boys home. From boys school to boys school. At the young age of 16, he started his journey in prison life. He was sentenced to 10 years for a 2 dollar robbery. This was just the small spark of a mistake that would lead to him serving a 99 plus year sentence. The additional years were added due to multiple incidents that occurred while in the prison.

He displayed a very extensive knowledge of the inmate made weapons on display in the prison museum. From shanks to handmade guns he knew it all. He even told us that he had experience in making a few of the different weapons on display. During this section of his tour, he explained that while serving his time he was convicted of killing two fellow inmates. Using weapons similar to those displayed before us.

In an adjacent display case, they had many different devices used for taking and smuggling drugs. This was a huge surprise to us. How someone could get drugs into a prison was simply mind-blowing. He explained that at times in the very room we were standing in he had been high on PCP. He also explained that he had done many other drugs while serving his time. 

While watching the short documentary that is offered in what used to be the chapel, a former prison guard tells the story of an inmate who was brutally murdered. The inmate was murdered while he and some other inmates were preparing meat for the day’s meals. While cutting chicken one inmate began to stab the other in the back while yet another inmate chopped at his arm with a butcher knife. Leaving the inmate in a pool of blood his are hanging by a thread.

The guard that discovered the man told of the horrors that he found. The guard had got down on the floor to check to see if the inmate was still alive. When the guard stood up he was drenched in the inmate’s blood from his nose to his toes. After leaving the room the man leading our tour explained to us that he had been in the kitchen that morning. And witnessed the horrible murder. The murder took place because instead of supplying the four pills he was paid to obtain. The deceased only supplied two.

From time to time as we walked through the various buildings around the prison, he would tell us about the one man who never gave up on him. A local preacher would come to the prison on a regular basis. He came to share the good news of Jesus Christ with the prisoners. Every time they crossed paths the preacher would tell him that Jesus was there for him. That he could be forgiven.

On one occasion our guide had tried to use the preacher to pass a message from isolation to the general population. Unbeknown to the preacher, that message contained hit instructions. Lucky the message that was intercepted by a prison guard before making it to its final destination. From that point on the preacher was no longer allowed in the higher security areas of the prison. But this would not be the last time the two would meet.

Near the end of our tour, we ended up in cell block C, in front of one very particular cell. The cell where our guide would forever change his life. He told us about the night he tried and tried to sleep. But sleep would not come. That night he felt a feeling like he had never felt before. A feeling far different than the drugs he had often used in the past offered. The feeling of God moving through the cell working on his soul.

In the early hours of the morning, he felt he needed to talk to someone about what he had experienced that night. Since his cellmate had already gone to start working in the kitchen he stepped into the cell next door where he spoke with a man by the name of Squirrel. From what I was able to gather Squirrel was some kind of drug dealer on the inside. After hearing the story Squirrel offered him drugs to help calm him down and catch some sleep. For the time the man said no to the drugs and explained this was different. Squirrel left to see if he could find someone else who could help.

Someone happened to be at the prison that day, who really had no reason to be. The preacher had shown up on a day that he normally did not. Squirrel found the preacher and brought him back to the cell where our guide was. After explaining what he had experienced the previous night. The preacher said he also could not sleep the night before. That he felt like he needed to visit Brushy the next day. The preacher asked at that time if he wanted to give his life to Christ and the man said yes.

When he gave his life to Christ he had never read a word from the Bible. But just like it says in Romans 10:17 “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Thankfully that preacher was able to bring the word to this man. He was sure to inform us that he did not give his life to Christ with the hopes of getting out of prison. He felt the presence of Jesus in that cell with him and knew that he needed to foster a relationship with God.

As I mentioned before he was sentenced to serve 99 plus years. He even stated that he fully deserved that sentence. That he should still be in prison today. However, God had another plan for his life. A few years after being saved a guard came and told him he would be going home. Of course, he did not believe that it was possible. But the guard took him to the computer and showed him that it was true.

Sadly in the world, we live in today it would easily assume that a man who recently got released from prison would quickly fall back into the life he left. This, however, was not the case for our guide. I did a little research on the man once we got home and found out that he frequently visits the new prison in Morgan County to preach and share his testimony to those that he has so much in common with.

He imparted many things throughout the tour. All the while backing up many of his points with a perfectly quoted Bible verse. He told us about the times that he felt no hope before he found Jesus. The man had been incarcerated at such a young age. He was looking at spending pretty much his whole life in prison. He’d witnessed many people in the same situation commit suicide over the years. When imagining the living conditions and the lifelong sentence. It is easy to see how someone in that situation would feel utterly hopeless. However, he met a man named Jesus and learned that you can find hope in any situation. Man can set no bounds on what God can do. As proven by a 99-year sentence turning into about 35 years.  

I continue to think back through all that man shared with us and I find that it means so much to me. I cannot begin to imagine the mixed emotions that you feel as you enter a place where you committed and witnessed horrors. Also adding to the fact that in the same place you had an experience with God that forever changed your life. It would take an amazing amount of personal strength to be able to walk back behind those walls. Then share everything about yourself in front of both people you know and complete strangers. I was amazed to see how God was able to help this man see the errors of his ways, but also release him from the guilt and shame he felt.

This experience opened my eyes to the extreme darkness that some people face in life. At the same time though, it affirmed so many Biblical teachings that I have heard my whole life. At the time of salvation, God is not concerned with your knowledge of the Bible or doctrine. He is concerned with the condition of your soul. This man had never read from the Bible nor had he been taught the ins and outs of Christian doctrine. But God still loved him and saved him. God’s view of you will never change, but your view of him may. 

Peace can only truly overcome through a relationship with Jesus Christ. John 16:33 says “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” Our guide told of the drugs he used to escape this life. But those could not bring the peace he needed. Drugs may be able to make you feel good at that moment, but in a short time, you will need another fix. Only Jesus can give you a life free of worry, pain, and suffering. 

No matter what you have done, the blood that was shed on Calvary, can make you clean. We feel at times that salvation could not be for us. We start to believe that we have done things that God could never forgive us for. It would not be a stretch to believe that a man who had done as much as this man has done. Would never be able to gain salvation. Thankfully his story teaches us something different. It tells us that all can be forgiven. Just as the Bible shows us in Mark 3:28 “Verily I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme:”. 

No matter how great the mountain before you is it is never too big for God to move. We encounter problems in our life that we do not know how to handle. When we encounter a problem we should not become overwhelmed by it. Instead, we should trust in God, for he will not forsake his people. Our guide told of how he was content and willing to serve out the rest of his sentence. To try and make up for all he had done. However, God had other plans for his life. A plan that he could have never imagined. That plan required the 99-year prison sentence to be reduced. Allowing him to fulfill his new purpose. Sharing what God did for him no matter where he is. As a believer in Christ, we should expect life’s mountains to be moved. Jesus taught in Matthew 17:20 that if have faith the size of a mustard seed we can move mountains. If we can do this with faith in God, what is God able to do without us asking? 

The few hours we spent peering behind the walls of Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary have left an impact on not only me but my whole family. I have to believe that it left a mark on all of those who were standing with us. It truly was a day that will be in my memory forever. I hope that I was able to share some of what we felt that day with you through that article. I do believe that God was with us that day. His presence was strong and unmistakable, just as it says in Matthew 18:20 “ For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” I am still not sure why we were all brought to the prison that day, but I do thank God for the experience.

Thank you for reading!

If you have any questions, we would be happy to answer them. Justin and I are not pastors or Bible scholars. We are just normal Christians trying to do our best to live for God, spread His word, and encourage others.

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