Redemption in the Newspaper

You might be surprised to see what is making the news today.  Among the stories of war, corruption, pollution, and where carnival workers live, there are glimpses of the Kingdom and accounts of redemption. 

Take Monday, June 18th in the San Diego Union Tribune.  The UT has never been considered a bastion of articles on faith, but on this day three separate pieces appear that promote the Gospel.

First is the story of Christopher Yanov.  Yanov seems like the classic product of a church youth group.  Smart, college bound, and wondering how to serve God in today's hustle and bustle. 

After college, he subed at a jr. high not far from where I grew up in San Diego and noticed the oppression and hopelessness gangs and broken families have on smart kids.  So he walked in their shoes and reached out to Hispanic gang members.  Now he runs Reality Changers, a ministry that tutors smart kids from tough neighborhoods so they can get to college. 

The UT also featured Majur Malou, a Sudanese survival of torture for his Christian faith and belief in democracy.  Malou was assisted by Survivors of Torture and now is the director of St. Luke's Refugee Network, an outreach to Sudanese refugees settling in San Diego.

Last was the story of Richard Liggett, the Louisiana convict who built the coffin in which Ruth Graham was buried.  Liggett was serving a life sentence for second-degree murder and found Christ.  Liggett built simple, but beautiful birch caskets at the prison before he died of cancer.  

These three stories are examples of today's medium for the Gospel.  These are the quiet stories that reach people without knowing that God has just laid His hand on their shoulder.  These are the examples of redemption in our midst.