jeffery lee bears witness
holy week reflections
Jeffery Lee did not walk into the Holman Correctional Facility a man of faith. That came later and it came slowly – from the inside out.
Twenty-six years into his journey, Jeffery shares reflections on Holy Week that only someone who has built a spiritual life from scratch, from behind bars without easy answers, could offer. He speaks about denial, transformation, and the hope of resurrection not as inherited beliefs, but as hard-won ones.
His voice carries the weight of that journey, and the warmth of someone who still believes in what's possible.
Listen. Then decide for yourself.
“I believe it took the denial. It took the turning away from the faith. It took all that for Peter to know who he was actually supposed to be.”
The Friday Message: From Simon to Peter
Luke 22:31–34 (The Denial of Peter)
This year, for the first time in Jeffery's years at Holman Correctional Facility, the men are holding a Good Friday service from 5 to 7pm, the hours scripture marks as Jesus's final breath. Jeffery will be preaching.
His message centers on Peter. Not the rock, but the man before the rock: Simon, impulsive and boastful, who swore he would follow Jesus to prison and to death and then denied him three times before morning.
Jeffery sees something in that failure that most people miss. It wasn't a detour. It was the path. Simon had to deny, had to turn away, had to go back to his fishing nets before he could walk into that upper room and be transformed into Peter. The one Jesus had actually prayed for. The one who would stand up on the day of Pentecost and move three thousand people.
Hope Beyond the Bars: The Power of Sunday
The Resurrection as a Source of Strength
For Jeffery, the Resurrection is not a static story from a novel, but a source of living power. He explains that the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead now provides him the daily strength to find victory over the challenges of life behind bars, whether it be the pull of addiction or the weight of his environment. In his own words, ‘nothing that comes against me has power over me' because of that enduring hope.
“Nothing that comes against me have the power over me because of that spirit that lives within me.”
A Call to My Neighbors: A Message to Holman
Resilience in the Face of Despair
Addressing the men he lives alongside every day at Holman, Jeffery’s message is one of radical resilience: press forward. He acknowledges the crushing weight of their environment and the constant temptation to give up on the faith. In a moment of deep wisdom, he reminds his neighbors that their own human strength will never be enough to accomplish what they feel they must, it is only by leaning on a higher power, one day and one step at a time, that they can find the endurance to overcome. His call to his community is simple yet profound: don't quit, because the same strength that arrived on Pentecost is available to every man who chooses to stand.
“Even when you feel like you don’t have the strength to do it, press forward, because in your own strength, you’re not going to do it anyway.”
Changed from Within: The Choice to Lead
The Hard Work of Faith in Prison
In a profound moment of personal reflection, Jeffery challenges the common perception of life behind bars. He admits that falling into the ‘politics of prison' or simply ‘doing the things of a prisoner' is the path of least resistance, it is easy to let an environment harden you. The true, grueling work is choosing to remain a man of faith and a source of peace in a place of such high tension. Jeffery views his life as a ‘Living Epistle,' a story of redemption that is meant to be read by others. By documenting his 26-year journey, he hopes to serve as a living example to both the men inside and the world outside: that if he can find the strength to change, anyone can.
“To be a man of faith in this environment, to me, that’s hard... my life is an example: if I can do it, you can do it.”
recognize 26 years of redemption
Jeffery’s voice is one of peace and leadership.
Help us ensure this voice continues to better the world around him.