“MAYBE IT’S FOR ONE MORE.”

Robert “Yogi” McKee had just been denied parole.

His wife and daughters were devastated.

Jake Bodine walked over expecting Yogi to be crushed too.

Instead, Yogi looked at him and said:

“Maybe it’s for one more.”

Maybe God still had one more person inside Angola Prison that Yogi was supposed to reach.

In this episode of the God Behind Bars Podcast, Jake sits down with Yogi inside Louisiana State Penitentiary to hear the story behind a man who has spent more than 20 years incarcerated and has become a leader, mentor and servant to the men around him.

Yogi grew up in Chicago’s Cabrini Green projects. His father was absent, his mother struggled with mental illness and some of the people who stepped in to help him as a child were gang members.

As he got older, that loyalty pulled him deeper into a lifestyle that eventually led to drug dealing, robbery and prison.

While incarcerated in a Louisiana jail, Yogi says his life became increasingly dangerous. After fearing for his life, he made the decision to escape. That decision eventually led him to Angola.

He was 27 years old.

Today, he is 52.

But Yogi says the man who entered prison is not the man sitting in front of us today.

After years of isolation, a panic attack forced him to confront what his decisions had cost him. He had been disconnected from his family for years and realized that if he died in that cell, almost no one would even know.

So he cried out to Jesus.

Yogi says peace entered his life, and for the first time he began seeing a future.

From there, he earned his GED, a paralegal degree and a bachelor’s degree through Bible college. He became a certified mentor, helped lead programs for men battling addiction and now serves as a lead mentor inside Angola.

But one of the most powerful moments in Yogi’s journey came when his mother died.

Yogi was angry with God.

Then he found letters from his mom describing how she had started going to church, stopped using drugs, gotten baptized and given her life to Christ.

Yogi realized that God had used his own transformation to help lead his mother to Jesus.

That moment changed the way he viewed everything.

Parole.

Loss.

Prison.

His future.

His purpose.

Today Yogi says that while he is still inside Angola, he will continue serving until God says his assignment there is finished.

“If it’s just for one, then it’s worth it.”

This is Yogi’s story.

At God Behind Bars, our mission is to introduce inmates to Jesus and connect them to the local church. We believe no life is too far gone and that God can bring redemption, purpose and transformation into even the darkest places.

#GodBehindBars #PrisonMinistry #PrisonPodcast

“I’m in prison and I feel more free, more fearless inside than I ever did on the outside.”

Micah Wines is sitting inside Jefferson City Correctional Center in Missouri when he says those words.

So what happened?

In this episode of the God Behind Bars Podcast, Jake Bodine sits down with Micah inside the prison cell he currently calls home.

Micah grew up with a good family, played sports and had faith around him. But resentment, fear and insecurity began changing the direction of his life. He started using drugs around 14 years old, drinking heavily soon after and eventually found himself battling addiction.

Years later, knowing he was about to become a father, Micah entered treatment. Sitting inside the treatment center chapel, he says he experienced the presence of God in a way he never had before.

For a season, his life began to change.

Then he relapsed.

What started with alcohol eventually became an eight month relapse involving methamphetamine. During that season, an altercation ended with another man losing his life.

Micah knew there was a grieving family on the other side of what had happened.

For the next two years, Micah rebuilt his life while carrying the weight of knowing his past could eventually catch up with him.

Then on Valentine’s Day, while working as a supervisor at UPS, his security manager approached him.

There were officers outside waiting for him.

Micah expected fear.

Instead, he says it felt like a thousand bricks had been lifted off his shoulders.

From inside prison, Micah opens up about accountability, addiction, forgiveness and rebuilding his relationship with his father. He also shares what it means to remain a dad to his two sons while incarcerated, including apologizing for the moments he has missed and choosing to consistently speak courage, faith and purpose into their lives.

Today, Micah has graduated from Bible college inside prison and has become someone who disciples and encourages other incarcerated men in their faith.

His physical circumstances have not changed.

He is still behind prison walls.

But Micah says Jesus has changed the man living inside them.

“I’m in prison and I feel more free, more fearless inside than I ever did on the outside.”

This is Micah’s story.

At God Behind Bars, our mission is to introduce inmates to Jesus and connect them to the local church. We believe no life is too far gone and that God can bring redemption, restoration and purpose into even the darkest places.

Subscribe to the God Behind Bars Podcast for more conversations from inside prisons across the country and stories of what God is doing behind prison walls.

CHAPTERS

00:00 Introduction

00:36 Welcome to Micah’s Prison Cell

01:09 Tour of His Cell

03:21 Micah’s Childhood

04:49 Resentment Toward His Father

06:54 Drugs and Alcohol at a Young Age

07:42 Entering Treatment Before Becoming a Dad

08:57 Experiencing God for the First Time

09:21 Relapse and the Night Everything Changed

10:59 Carrying the Weight of What Happened

11:15 Officers Arrive at Micah’s Job

12:36 Running to God After His Arrest

13:28 Learning the Truth About His Father

14:00 Forgiving His Dad

15:14 “He’s Never Been More Proud of Me”

16:11 Being a Father From Inside Prison

18:26 Speaking Courage Into His Sons

19:21 Advice for Incarcerated Fathers

21:20 Micah’s Hopes for His Future

22:44 Why Jesus?

24:09 Micah Shares the Gospel

25:14 “I Feel More Free Inside Prison”

25:47 Final Thoughts

#GodBehindBars #PrisonMinistry #PrisonPodcast

From a prison cell, Kevin “Big Country” Gilhouse used to look out at a lake and dream about fishing with his son. Years later, he found himself on that very lake, looking at his son on one side and the prison unit where he spent some of his darkest years on the other. ❤️

Inside Louisiana State Penitentiary, better known as Angola Prison, Kevin shares his incredible journey from a childhood spent in foster care to years of addiction, violence and hopelessness behind bars. At his lowest point, Kevin reached out for help and entered the New Men program, where he found a community of men who encouraged him to pursue Jesus.

On May 23, 2024, Kevin gave his life to Christ. Today, he shares how his faith has transformed the way he sees himself, his family and his purpose inside prison.

In this episode of the God Behind Bars Podcast, Kevin sits down to share the emotional story of fishing with his son for the first time, the unexpected moment his daughter received his prison identification number at a GBB event, and the important role his wife has played in keeping their family connected. He also opens up about the moments he wishes he could get back as a father and the message he wants his children to hear.

“I’m better than the worst thing I’ve ever done.”

Kevin’s story is a reminder that our past does not have to define our future and that God can bring hope, healing and purpose even inside prison walls.

At God Behind Bars, our mission is to introduce inmates to Jesus and connect them to the local church. Subscribe for more prison testimonies, stories of transformation, family reunifications and powerful conversations about faith and redemption.

CHAPTERS

00:00 Introduction

00:44 Meet Kevin “Big Country” Gilhouse

01:35 Growing Up in Foster Care

04:00 Fishing With His Son for the First Time

05:20 Kevin’s Darkest Years in Camp J

06:49 Dreaming of the Lake From His Prison Cell

07:17 Looking at His Past and His Son on the Same Lake

10:12 Addiction and Hitting Rock Bottom

12:47 Asking for Help Inside Prison

14:28 Surviving His Darkest Moment

15:18 Entering the New Men Program

16:18 Giving His Life to Jesus

17:10 An Unexpected Moment With His Daughter

19:18 Staying Connected to His Children From Prison

21:10 Kevin’s Emotional Message to His Family

22:45 His Advice to Every Parent

23:44 Finding Hope in God’s Plan

24:26 “I’m Better Than the Worst Thing I’ve Ever Done”

25:00 Finding His Identity in Christ

This episode includes discussion of addiction and a suicide attempt.

#GodBehindBars #PrisonMinistry #PrisonPodcast