ARRESTED BY JESUS
by Avier Johnson
I was deceived at an early age into thinking I
didn’t need anyone—I could live independently
of everyone, especially God.
This is a favorite lie of the enemy.
I had no father figure in my life. I watched my
mother make sacrifice after sacrifice to protect
and provide for me. I didn’t like this burden on
her. I quickly figured out that, if I had my own
money, I would not have to ask my mother for
much of anything.
So I began providing for myself by gambling
and selling drugs. But this “quick and easy
money” landed me in jail on a drug charge at the
age of seventeen. After that, more arrests came.
Life became burdensome. Everything I built
was destroyed. Every plan I established failed.
I was tired of the life I was living, but I was so
addicted to it that I couldn’t find my way out.
And then, though I was deep in sin, God spoke
to me. What a loving God He is to speak to me
even in my rebellion! He warned me that if I
continued this way of living, I would end up in
prison and be separated from my family for a
long time. But I didn’t listen.
I didn’t need anyone, remember?
Sure enough, doing things my way landed me
in prison. The hardest thing about being there
was the lack of peace I felt. I spent the first four
years of my 15-year sentence seeking peace, joy,
and happiness. But I couldn’t find it anywhere.
I found temporary happiness at times, but it
always left me.
Thankfully, God, with His pursuing love,
continued to chase after me.
In 2014, after several facility transfers, I finally
ended up at Avon Park Correctional Institution—a
place the Department of Corrections had told me
I would never go. I call it my divine detour.
JESUS TOOK CAPTIVE MY HEART. HE
ARRESTED ME. I BECAME HIS PRISONER;
AND I’VE BEEN FREE EVER SINCE.
There, God placed one of His servants in my
path. We became acquainted and began meeting
for Bible study. Each time we met, the Holy Spirit
used him to open the scriptures to me.
I remember the October day in 2014, when
Genesis 1:26 pricked my heart. The more I
pondered the fact that God had said, “Let us
make human beings in our image, to be like us,”
the more I hated the man I had become. I neither
resembled the image of God nor reflected Him
in any way. I didn’t think like Him, act like Him,
speak like Him, or love like Him. I consistently
did everything opposite of what God would do.
I reflected on how much God loves me and
on His persistent pursuit of me. I had failed Him;
He’d never failed me. Even while I was a sinner,
Jesus had died in my place. He’d paid the price
for my sin.
I wanted to trade in my old life for the one
God desired for me. I wanted to reflect His image
and glorify Him. He was the only reason I was
still on the earth. I owed everything to Him. I fell
at Jesus’ feet in true repentance. I asked God for
forgiveness for my sin and surrendered all my
rights. And in that moment, Jesus took captive
my heart. He arrested me. I became His prisoner;
and I’ve been free ever since.
DIFFERENT | from page 9 _____________________
Satan wanted me to believe that no one would
hire me because I have a felony record; that I
would never be a mother because I aborted three
children. He convinced me that no man would
ever love me because I’d been a prostitute. But
you know what? Satan is a liar, and because I am a
child of God, he no longer gets to define me. I am
defined only by my Creator.
Today, because of Christ, I am a working mother
of three children. I have an amazing husband who
supports me in my endeavors as an author and
speaker. I travel and encourage others with my
story of redemption.
Before Christ, I chased drugs with unparalleled
passion. Today, I chase Jesus Christ with that
same passion. And unlike drugs, God has never
failed me.
Maybe you’re running, searching for freedom.
I can tell you from experience that real freedom
comes by running to the One who came to save
you, by trusting the One who created you. Run
through His door, not the door of the world, and
this time, it can be different.
For an adDicT, RunNinG aLwaYs
SeeMs The eaSieSt Way to
FreEdoM, But in reAliTy, it juSt
EnsLavEs The ruNneR fUrtHer to
The whIms of thE eNemY. SatAn
SpeAks, aNd The adDicT fOllOws.
Dana has self-published a book to share her
story of redemption. She also shares her story
in drug treatment centers in hopes of helping
others find hope and freedom.
kojministries.org Issue 1 2018 19
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