Fox and Rob Richardson experienced being separated by incarceration for 21 years. They come on the podcast today to share about their experience, what God did in the midst of it, and how we as the Church are to be the hands and feet of Christ in the face of injustice and oppression. May you come away from this episode inspired to make a difference.
WHAT WE CHAT ABOUT ON THIS EPISODE:
~Fox and Rob’s documentary, Time, and book, Time: The Untold Story of the Love that Held Us Together When Incarceration Kept Us Apart, and what you can expect from them; what led them to produce these resources
~How Fox and Rob met, and what their journey of marriage has been like
~What led to the day when the Richardsons robbed a bank; the desperation that resulted in this decision
~How being incarcerated for 21 years for the offense of robbing a bank reveals the injustice within the criminal justice system, the problem of mass incarceration, and the racism which does still exist in the justice system
~The importance of listening to other peoples’ stories and experiences
~Stories from Scripture of affliction and how God saw people through
~How our hard seasons take us from knowing “about” God to truly knowing God Himself
~God’s sovereignty and sufficiency even in our hard seasons
~The importance of understanding that we cannot afford to take our eyes off God
~Trusting the process as we remember that God is sufficient
~The slavery that exists in the criminal justice system
~How leaving prison is like going from slavery to sharecropping
~The modern day taxation without representation that is faced by the victims of mass incarceration
~Rich Family Ministries and the Richardson’s family mission to be free and free others
~Seeking to better America and make it what it can be; seeking alternatives to mass incarceration
~The role of God’s people to say “not on my watch” when injustice and oppression exist
~What we as everyday lay people can do to seek to make a difference in the system
~The power of bearing witness, being in proximity, and looking injustice in the face so that your heart and spirit will be quickened and you will seek to be used of God to be of service in that area
~Rob’s experience in what is known as “America’s Bloodiest Penitentiary” and what enabled him to get through with strength
~What this journey was like for Fox having to solo parent, homeschool, provide for her family, and support and encourage her husband during this 21 year journey
~Tapping into the strength God gives us
~And much more!
RESOURCES MENTIONED
The Richardsons’ documentary, Time
INSPIRING QUOTES TO REMEMBER:
“You can know about God, but it is in your lowest moments where you can really get to know God and His heart for you. It is then that you realize the only place you can truly turn is towards God.”
“God never left our side, not one day during this 21 year journey of incarceration.”
“The Lord worked miracles all along the way. My husband was given the equivalent of a death sentence, death by incarceration, as a first-time felony offender. And yet God redeemed and restored his life.”
“Our story is a testimony to the fact that no matter what you are going through, God is still all-knowing, in control, at work, and sufficient.”
“We cannot afford to take our eyes off God. God is sufficient. We just have to trust the process.”
“We must not turn the other way from injustice and oppression. When we do not stare injustice in the face, we become desensitized to it and then are not able to be of service in that area as God calls us to.”
“We are both veterans, fought for this country, and believed in this country. We never would have believed we would be dealt the hand we were dealt in the criminal justice system. We had assumed and believed that our justice system was working as it should. But when we experienced it for ourselves firsthand, we discovered the modern day slavery that still exists in this system.”
“Leaving prison is like going from slavery to sharecropping. The treatment and loss of rights is very much the same. Your fundamental rights that you enjoy in this country are forfeited, and those rights are not restored to you the minute you exit prison.”
“If you are set free, it is your mission to seek to free others. The role of God’s people is to say ‘not on my watch’ when injustice and oppression exist.”
WHERE YOU CAN FIND FOX AND ROB ONLINE
Website – Fox and Rob Richardson, Rich Family Ministries , PDMNOLA
Instagram – @foxandrob
Facebook – FoxAndRob
To Leave a Rating and Review on iTunes
Have you been encouraged or inspired by today’s episode? If so, could I ask a little favor? If you could leave the podcast a rating and review in iTunes, that would be amazing! The more ratings and reviews a podcast receives, the more iTunes shows that podcast to other folks searching for shows to listen to, so by leaving me a rating and review, you truly are partnering with me in this podcast ministry to encourage and help as many women as we possibly can. Thank you so much for taking the time to do that! Here’s how:
If you’re on your computer:
- Access iTunes on your desktop and type Home and Hearth in the search box on the upper right hand corner.
- Click on the podcast photo when it comes up
- Click on “Ratings and Reviews” beneath the podcast title
- Under “Customer Reviews”, click on “Write a Review”
- Click on how many stars you want to rate the podcast and then write out your review and click submit
- You’re done! Thank you so much!!
If you’re on your phone:
- Open the podcasts app
- Click the search button on the bottom righthand corner (the magnifying glass) and type in Home and Hearth in the search box that will appear at the top of your screen
- Click on the podcast photo when it pops up
- Click on the reviews button near the top middle of the screen
- Scroll down a bit, if needed, until you see “Write a Review” and click on that
- Click on how many starts your want to rate the podcast, write out your review, and click “send” when finished
- You’re done! Thank you so much!!
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