Good morning…
On One Special Saturday while volunteering for Julie’s Dream, I met a fascinating person. In his morning and afternoon talks, Omar Howard challenged the at risk teens from PAWkids to think wisely about their daily decisions. Omar, the founder of Freedom is a Choice Inc., is a successful individual with an incarcerated history. He uses his transformational time in prison as a tool for mentoring troubled youth and adults who are making decisions that will impact the rest of their lives before rippling out to influence the lives of countless others.
While incarcerated, Omar realized he had to make drastic changes to his life. He made the decision to invest in the Christian faith, a choice that changed the direction of his life. While serving an 18 year sentence for multiple crimes, he joined the prison ministry choir, self-help groups, obtained his GED, and gained skills in several trades. While incarcerated and because of his positive institutional conduct, he was asked to become a part of the mentoring program where he mentored juvenile that were incarcerated in Lee Arrendale State Prison also known as “Alto”. He also did motivational speaking for the “Scared Straight ” program, where he spoke to students from local high schools.
Several years later while at the Atlanta Transitional Center (ATC) he was asked to speak at the Clayton County Performing Arts Center, as well as Clayton county high schools and middle schools students about the high cost of making bad decisions. Before leaving prison, Omar and a group of residence for the ATC traveled around the state of Georgia to various churches and school functions to promote Georgia Department of Corrections programs. His successful transition from prison and his readjustment to society serves as a viable positive example to at risk and troubled youth who have the opportunity to choose freedom over incarceration.
“One story really hit me when I was in prison, and it made me think differently about my life,” Omar said as he handed out to each of us own copy of the story below.
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The Unmoved Rock – Author unknown
Once upon a time, there was a man who was sleeping at night in his cabin when suddenly his room filled with light and the Saviour appeared. The Lord told the man He had work for him to do, and showed him a large rock in front of his cabin. The Lord explained that the man was to push against the rock with all his might. This the man did, day after day. For many years he toiled from sun up to sun down, his shoulders set squarely against the cold, massive surface of the unmoving rock, pushing with all his might.
Each night the man returned to his cabin sore and worn out, feeling that his whole day had been spent in vain. Seeing that the man was showing signs of discouragement, Satan decided to enter the picture placing thoughts into the man’s mind such as: “You have been pushing against that rock for a long time, and it hasn’t budged. Why kill yourself over this? You are never going to move it.” Thus giving the man the impression that the task was impossible and that he was a failure.
These thoughts discouraged and disheartened the man even more. “Why kill myself over this?” he thought. “I’ll just put in my time, giving just the minimum of effort and that will be good enough.” And that he planned to do until one day he decided to make it a matter of prayer and take his troubled thoughts to the Lord.
“Lord,” he said, “I have labored long and hard in your service, putting all my strength to do that which you have asked. Yet, after all this time, I have not even budged that rock a half a millimeter. What is wrong? Why am I failing?” To this the Lord responded compassionately, “My child, when long ago I asked you to serve me and you accepted, I told you that your task was to push against the rock with all your strength, which you have done. Never once did I mention to you that I expected you to move it. Your task was to push.
And now you come to me, your strength spent, thinking that you have failed. But, is that really so? Look at yourself. Your arms are strong and muscled, your back sinewed and brown, your hands are callused from constant pressure, and your legs have become massive and hard. Through opposition, you have grown much and your abilities now surpass that which you used to have. Yet you haven’t moved the rock. But your calling was to be obedient and to push and to exercise your faith and trust in My wisdom. This you have done. I, my child, will now move the rock.”
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“Looking back, I see that God was growing my ability to obey His call upon my life,” Omar said to me later. “Those years in prison grew my strength, my faith, and my ability to trust in God’s wisdom and perfect timing.” When the rock of imprisonment was finally removed from Omar’s path, God had miraculously transformed his heart, his mind, his life story. Now he speaks with authority to transform the hearts, minds, and lives of those caught in the powerful grip of poverty, gang violence, and domestic abuse.
Omar gave me and each child a copy of his book The Omar Howard Story: It’s All In The Name, which is available on Amazon and is intentionally written on a 5th to 12th grade reading level, encouraging kids to learn on many levels from this inspiring read.
“Great readers become great leaders,” Omar imparted a final nugget of wisdom before driving away from our special shared day, highlighting the importance of literacy for every child regardless income.
I will go before you
and will level the mountains;
I will break down gates of bronze
and cut through bars of iron.
I will give you hidden treasures,
riches stored in secret places,
so that you may know that I am the Lord,
the God of Israel, who summons you by name (Isaiah 45:2-4, NIV).
…Sue…
