One Year Anniversary of Adeline’s Death

Today marks one year since sweet Adeline passed away. Another Thanksgiving is coming, our second since my brother was put in jail for a crime he did not commit. I have read horrible stories like this before, but living one is quite different. The pain that comes with tragedies like this is real, lives are deeply affected, and hearts are broken. It’s hard to communicate the heartache that our family has suffered since this started one year ago today. And what makes it worse is that we see no end in sight. It is a terrible feeling to see someone we love suffering but being helpless to make it stop. While the judges and attorneys take their time trying to build a case out of nothing, Chris has spent an entire year in jail, missing birthdays, Christmases, Thanksgivings… precious moments that he will never get back. And his family is approaching yet another holiday where we will sit mourning beside an empty chair where Chris should be sitting. If justice were still a friend of the innocent, my brother would have been released a long time ago, but the system has failed us.

While we are troubled to see the pain that Chris is going through, we are thankful for the many supporters we have had through this year. Many have stepped up to encourage us and aid where they can, and they are each a gift from God. Chris would have broken a long time ago if his joy had been placed in the things he had. Now that his family is taken away, his career, his home, even his ability to walk about freely, he has not lost his joy. He finds all he needs in his relationship with Jesus, and no matter what anyone else thinks, he knows that he is loved by a Heavenly Father who calls him “son”. And while he is trapped in jail, he looks at it as being a time that God has given him to serve his Father in such a humble setting. He does Bible studies with the men in the cells next to him, he shares his food and commissary items and takes advantage of every opportunity to share the love of Jesus and to make disciples of Jesus. God has greatly used him during his time in jail, and He is continuing to train him as he uses all of his free time to study Scripture, read theological books, and enjoy his fellowship with Jesus in his solitude. We have been very encouraged to see Chris grow in his faith during this year, and we know that God is in control of this. Nothing happens without God allowing it to happen, and we trust that God is much bigger than the temporary sufferings that we endure. We know that it could very well be a much longer wait before we get to have Chris back. His family asks for continued prayer as we endure this suffering, that we continue to trust that God will work everything out for His glory and our good.

Andy Conway