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My beloved brothers and sisters, my fathers, mothers, and even some of you, my children, bound to me by the Blood ties of one Saviour, stronger than any earthly bond.
I am proud of you; I love you; I rejoice in you; I praise God for you. This is the body and family of Christ. He said that when father and mother forsake you, He will take you up, We are his body, and we are commanded to love as He loves – His Church and those of His Church ought never to forsake each other. And you have not. You have shown His glory and His love, His mercy and His grace. God bless you richly for it.
You have all heard already some of the mechanics of what has happened with me recently. My new court date and whatnot. I want to tell you my decision which made this happen, and why I am doing what I am doing. I want to give God the glory. And He will get the glory.
I have struggled and labored in thought and prayer over the last three months, trying to figure out what God's will is for me to do, and even pray for. Were the charges true? I struggled with that. Should I plead guilty? Should I fight it? If I did... how? Should I pray for release, or accept jail and prison as Gods will for my life – my new ministry? Was God chastening me? Was He blessing me? Where did the path of true justice lie? What could I trust God for in it all? Was I suffering for righteousness' sake, or for my own mistakes? So many questions, doubts, fears, worries, confusions, and thoughts filled my heart and mind, I didn't know what to do. But my life was at stake, and God's glory and gifts and callings in my life – I had to get it right. And as things drew closer and closer to the trial, and I wasn't any closer to knowing, I grew desperate.
In my indecisiveness, I listened to my public defenders counsel about what would be best and least risky. I played along, unsure of what I should do, and stalling, hoping things would become clear to me. My lawyer's counsel centered around waiving my right to a speedy trial in order to play a waiting game, trying to haggle for a good plea deal.
This route has nothing to do with justice, and everything to do with extortion – on both sides. It is a game of the courts vs. the inmates. The courts (including both sides of lawyers, the judge, and the jail itself) play to extort money. The inmates play to extort their lives back out of the system. Both sides play ruthlessly, and their playing field is time, and it works against the inmates. This is how the courts work, from Florida to Washington.
I knew this, but it wasn't until the night of the 11th – just before my readiness hearing, that I finally opened my eyes and saw my clear path.
The system could guarantee me nothing. No matter how well I played their game, it was stacked against me, and I was most likely to lose. God, however, is in absolute control. He could free me or sentence me in whatever way He wanted with equal ease. I could not trust in the mercy of the courts, but God's mercy I could. His powers and His truth are absolutely reliable – the courts are absolutely unreliable. People kept telling me to face reality whenever I brought up God... but God is reality! He is far more real than the systems net of lies and trickery. God is real. And so at last I turned utterly to Him.
And His promises made all clear to me.
The first thing I lost was all fear. I had nothing to risk or lose, because all was His. If I went to prison and lost my freedom to get married until I was thirty, my ability to return to my family, to have a good job, to have children, to work with teens, to lead Holy Worlds, or any of my callings. Even if, as is far from unlikely if I lose my trial, they add on more charges and sentence me to life – even if I lose every gift God has ever given me and made me love. I would lose nothing. God alone is my treasure. He gave, He can take away. They are His gifts. He is the one who holds them – not me, not the courts. If He gives, He gives. If He takes, He takes. He alone is my treasure, and they cannot take Him.
The first thing I gained was a firm resolve. I would simply do right – come what may. Regardless of what was “best” or most “safe” I would follow my God's precepts. The first thing to go was all plea deals. Aside from being unjust, deceptive, and corrupted, they were lies. I could not bear false witness, even against myself. And I couldn't accept the sentences they came with either. If I accepted a plea deal, I would be accepting not only the charge but the sentence – I would be agreeing that their judgment was just. I couldn't do that. It would be wrong.
Also, I realized I couldn't play the game. If God was to release me, He could do so without having to wait – I would let Him choose the time, and not the system. He wanted all the glory, and waiting for my lawyer to play his game would be trusting him over my God. Anything like that would be disastrous. God promises to bless those who trust Him – and promises to not bless those who walk in the way and counsel of the ungodly. I don't mind learning how to make a website from an ungodly man, but I cannot follow the advice about justice from a man and system who have rejected the Just Judge and His ways.
I'm counting on a miracle, no matter what way this goes.
I doubt no more what God's Will is for me to pray and believe for: my total and free release. Soon. This is not a selfish demand, nor is it born out of fear. It is a calm knowledge of my God's promises and sure Faith in them. I am not denying that bad things happen to Christians. That has no real bearing, though, on this trust. So pray in faith – pray on in belief. God will work wondrously.
Today I have been in jail for three months. God is still God. God is still good. And those things I have lost in this time – friends, liberty, job – will be restored to me in even greater measure.
I love you all, dearly.
God be with you and bless you beyond all that you ask or think.
In the name of our beloved Saviour, and Lord, Jesus Christ,
Jay Sir Emeth Mimetes
P. S. Pray that the case will be dismissed well before the trial. That makes the most sense and glorifies God best from what I can see. Be strong.
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