Posted by Jud Wilhite:

Emmanuel Jal is a survivor of war in Sudan, a self-proclaimed “war child.” As the subject of a critically acclaimed documentary (War Child, 2008), Jal has known extreme poverty, near death starvation and unspeakable pain. He was only seven years old when his mother was killed by government soldiers. His father abandoned him, he witnessed his aunt being raped, and several of his brothers and sisters claimed by the war as well.

In an attempt to escape the horrors of war, he joined thousands of other children in seeking refuge, but on his way he was captured, recruited and turned into a child soldier.

After spending seven years as a child soldier, he found refuge with an aid worker. Jal now uses hip-hop as a medium for his message of reconciliation, forgiveness, and peace.

What is important about his story is that Emmanuel refuses to hate. In his work, he is full of hope and forgiveness, spreading the message of peace and reconciliation. He campaigns tirelessly against gun proliferation and the use of children in war. Emmanuel fights for peace, forgiveness, and restoration; being a spokesman of a several justice organizations.

Jal, a devout Christian, started making music in 2000. He comments: “[I started singing] in church, because that’s where there was hope. I looked at my life and I said, ‘I’ve been in hell and I’m told there’s another. Why choose that when I have another option?’ So I used to go to church and joined the gospel choir. We put on concerts in church and the school. Then I started to rap.”

When asked the question, “Do you find it ironic that rap music is often associated with guns and violence?” Jal gave a thoughtful and gracious response:

“I’ve seen those people. They have so much hatred and bitterness. A lot of them want to fight an enemy they can’t see, so they end up being violent to anyone around. That’s because they were slaves, in poverty and in a violent place. For me, I had the same violence, the same bitterness, but it changed. I was influenced by the Christian belief that you must forgive your enemy. But also by people like Nelson Mandela, he suffered so much but he still had to speak the word of peace and what he spoke is healing South Africa now. You have to give your enemy security, for them to trust you. Because they’re insecure, they think you’ll take what they have.”

In my life I have a hard time “moving on” with lots of things, particularly when someone has criticized or hurt my family.

What do you have a hard time “moving on” from?

Posted by Mike Foster:

A mistake we make when we hit rock bottom is that we fail to disclose ALL the relevant details. When we are caught, we only confess 80% of our crap instead of bringing everything into the light.

When we do this it is like leaving a ticking time bomb in place. We failed to clear our lives of future potential pain and destruction from our past.

We share 1 of the 2 affairs. We confess the drug addiction but forget to mention we embezzled company funds to pay for it. We hold back relevant details and fall short of true confession.

It is tragic to me when we waste this best opportunity to bring everything into the light. No strings attached. No ticking time bombs still left from our current life.

Full confession is critical, otherwise we set a path for “partial” restoration or even worse, another huge blow up in the future.

So why do you think when we are caught, we think it’s better to hold back some of the relevant details, and leave the ticking time bomb in place?

Posted by Jud Wilhite:

According to World Net Daily News, surveys show the average person tells four lies a day, or 1,460 a year for a total of 88,000 by the age of 60.

The most common lie is: “I’m fine.”

Others on the list include:

“Nice to see you.”

“Sorry I missed your call.”

“This tastes delicious.”

What are some other common lies people tell?

Posted by Mike Foster:

When a friend hits bottom, our silence is NOT golden.

Quiet support from the sidelines is not helpful when the critics and haters are yelling at the top of their lungs.

When people are hurting, our silence only communicates distance between us and them.

We can quietly pray. We can think about the person’s pain. We can feel deep sadness for them. These are nice things, but not good enough.

My advice: Go on the record with those who are hurting. Call them. Visit them. Text them. Tweet them. 140 characters of support is better than a book of silence.

When your world is falling apart you can feel sooooooooooooo alone. Trust me I know. And too often the only voice we hear is the critic living in our head.

So be a real friend. Have some courage and say the words. Write the letter. Pick up the phone for 5 minutes. Don’t be silent.

Someone needs you right now to remind them that they are loved…and that it is going to be ok.

Posted by Mike Foster:

I’m going to be interviewing Gayle Haggard tomorrow at 10am for the People of the Second Chance blog.

We will talking about grace, second chances, and her new book called “Why I Stayed: The Choices I Made In My Darkest Hour.”

I certainly have some questions for her but I’m sure you have some thoughts and questions too. So what would you want to ask or say to Gayle?

Post your questions in the comments section below or you can Tweet it and tag it #potsc.