Texas Executes Rodrigo Hernandez

Thirty-eight year old Rodrigo Hernandez was executed shortly after 6 PM CST, at Huntsville, Texas, for the 1994 murder of Susan Verstegen. Hernandez was convicted of abducting Verstegen from a grocery store where she was stocking shelves for Frito-Lay, raped, and murdered her. After killing Verstegen he drove to a church where he stuffed her into a garbage can. Verstgen was a single mother.

Anna Verstegen, Susan’s mother, is opposed to the death penalty and has been praying for Hernandez to accept Jesus as his personal Lord and Savior. As Anna says, it is never too late. Susan’s son, 15 at the time of his mother’s murder has different feelings toward the death penalty. He planned to attend Hernandez’s execution tonight. Please pray for peace for the Verstegen family.

It appeared that Susan’s murder would not be solved when DNA taken at a Michigan prison in 2002, linked Hernandez to Susan’s murder and some years later to a murder in Michigan. Police for San Antonio interviewed Hernandez at the Michigan prison where he was incarcerated. He confessed to Susan’s murder; however, later recanted his confession. His confession contained details of Susan’s murder that were not released to the public and his DNA placed him with Susan.

Please pray for Rodrigo Hernandez’s family. Please pray for the Lord to grant them peace.

Gary Roland Welch First Person Executed In United States In 2012

Forty-nine-year-old, Gary Roland Welch was executed shortly after 6 PM at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary at McAlester, Oklahoma. Welch is convicted of murdering Robert Dean Hardcastle in 1994. A fight broke out during a drug deal which resulted in Welch stabbing Hardcastle to death with a knife and broken beer bottle. Hardcastle was stabbed 50 times.

Prior to being convicted of murder, Welch was convicted of multiple assaults on women, police officers, stabbings, and carrying concealed weapons.

Please pray for the family of Robert Hardcastle as they are forced to relive their loved ones horrific murder one more time. Please pray for the family of Gary Roland Welch as they suffer the loss of a loved one tonight. Please pray that the Lord grant both families peace.

Gary Roland Welch was the first person executed in the United States in 2012.

January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month

 “Human Trafficking”? Not in My Neighborhood!

That’s in some far off, third world country. Or in the neighborhood of drug lords, crack heads, and prostitutes. Are you sure about the girl next door?

As a student about to graduate from college, I reflect upon all I have learned. One thing I will never forget is a presentation on human trafficking. Nearly everyone has a preconceived conception of what human trafficking is and the victims of it. I will be honest. I didn’t think it was a major problem in the United States. I was arrogant and naïve. My preconceptions were horribly inaccurate. I attended a lecture given by a survivor of human trafficking. She was nothing like I expected. She wasn’t from some vastly foreign country. She wasn’t from a country similar to the United States. She was hardly from a different state. She was from Michigan, USA, not far from where I attend school in Pennsylvania. She lived in a nice neighborhood. She was well- educated, the granddaughter of a judge, and daughter of a big time executive for a large company. She didn’t travel to a far off land where she was taken. In fact, she continued to live with her parents, attending high school, and working part time at a fast food restaurant, while at night she would be escorted to various locations, forced to satisfy the desires of whoever was there. For two years, she lived a horrible life, terrified that if she spoke out or sought help that her family would be killed. Today, she stands strong, fighting back.

What struck me most about her testimony wasn’t what she was forced to endure, for that was expected, but the location. Human trafficking can and does happen everywhere. The United States is no exception. Everyday women and children are forced to perform sexual acts for a multitude of reasons. I encourage you to pray today for not only the victims of human trafficking but also the survivors. The psychological effects take years, if not a lifetime to work through.

Human Trafficking is a violent crime committed all over the world. It is the abduction of children and adults, generally female, to be used as sex slaves, sold as prostitutes, or simply sold to the highest bidder for whatever evil pleasure the buyer desires. For pedophiles with financial resources, this is an easy source of children. The woman described above credits one thing to helping her survive her horrific ordeal, faith in her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Prayer is a very powerful weapon and one that is all too often, under used. By praying for those who have been abducted into the human trafficking world, we can give them strength. The Bible tells that “all things are possible through Christ” (Phil 4:13) and that we simply must “ask and we shall receive” (Matt 7:7). We can fight back against the atrocities that are being committed, through prayer.

To learn more, please visit: http://www.traffickfree.com/

Executions Scheduled in the United States for January 16-20, 2012

Executions Scheduled for January 16 – 20, 2012

Five men were set to be executed this week, Ralph Birdsong and Kenneth Hairston of Pennsylvania, Charles Lorraine of Ohio, Michael St. Clair of Kentucky and Robert Gattis of Delaware. Birdsong, Hairston, and St. Clair had their executions stayed to allow opportunity for appeals. Lorraine’s execution was stayed by a Federal Judge when he discovered Ohio continues to violate the protocol set for executions in Ohio. The Governor of Delaware, following the advice of the Delaware Board of Parole and over the objections of the family of Shirley Slay, commuted the sentence of Robert Gattis from death to life without the possibility of parole. The Delaware Board of Parole made the recommendation because Gattis suffered severe child abuse growing up.

Please continue to pray for these men. Charles Lorraine writes to The Forgiveness Foundation and claims Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. He is ready for whatever final decision is made by the Ohio Criminal Justice System. Ralph Birdsong, Kenneth Hairston, and Michael St. Clair have not written to TFF so we know nothing about their faith orf lack of faith in Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior. Unfortunately, death is fearful, the fear of death blinds men sentenced to die so they seek to save their lives by means of men and fail to seek the giver of life, eternal life, Jesus Christ. As stated earlier, we do not know if these men are believers. I encourage you to pray for them, pray for salvation if unsaved and peace if saved.

Robert Gattis finds himself ready to spend the rest of his life in a Delaware prison because he was granted a pardon by the Governor. Gattis has never written to TFF so we do not know if he is a believer in Christ. Unfortunately, men who avoid the executioner, just live out their lives. Their purpose is merely to get by. It doesn’t have to be that way for Robert Gattis. Make no mistake about it; although Governor Jack Markell of Delaware spared Robert Gattis from Delaware’s executioner, Gattis’ eternal life is totally dependent on his relationship with Jesus Christ. I encourage you to pray for Robert Gattis, pray for salvation if unsaved and peace if saved.

John 3:17 is possibly one of the most under quoted verses in the Bible. It states Jesus’ mission in just 23 words, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” Ralph, Kenneth, Charles, Michael, and Robert have hope, that hope is Jesus Christ. Please pray for TFF as we minister to them, that they may come to know Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior.