PSALM 23:4
Anthony Ray Hinton is an American activist, writer, and author who was wrongly convicted of the 1985 murders of two fast food restaurant managers in Birmingham, Alabama. Hinton was sentenced to death and held on the state’s death row for 28 years, and was later released in 2015. The supreme court was unable to affirm the forensic evidence of a gun, which was the only evidence in the first trial. After being released, Hinton wrote and published a memoir ‘The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row (2018).’
Life on death row was not easy for Ray. It was like walking through the valley of the shadow of death. As the prison lights flickered whenever the electric chair was used for others, it was a stern reminder of what was awaiting him.
Ray said after his release, “This joy that I have, they couldn’t ever take that away in prison.”
Joy while on death row? That is hard to fabricate. It points us to a God who exists even though He is unseen and He sustains us in our trials.
May the God of all hope, fill us with His joy and peace as we trust in Him despite our circumstances.
