There is a saying: “When EF Hutton talks, people listen.” Another saying goes like this: “When mothers pray, all of heaven gets quiet.”
As a child I went to a Lutheran church with my mother, where seeds were planted through the word of God. But, we were never admonished to seek a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, to invite Him to be Lord of our lives, to be born again, or filled with the Holy Spirit. There was no emphasis on these wonderful gifts and truths.
But one day at the age of 15, while I was at school, my mother sat in our living room reading the Bible. She came to a passage of Scripture that radically changed her life and is now leaving a legacy because of her faithful prayers.
While sitting and reading her Bible, her eyes and heart were fastened on John 17:23; “ I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.” She then laid the Bible down in her lap, looked towards heaven and asked God to please reveal to her what this passage meant. Right there in our living room, sitting in her favorite chair, my mom was baptized with the Holy Spirit. She described it as a physical manifestation. She said a warm feeling started at the top of her head, worked its way down to her fingertips and then down to the soles of her feet.
I came home from school that day to meet a transformed, new mother. She became a devout follower of Jesus Christ, a committed studier of the Word and a prayer warrior. I was a regular part of her prayer time and she had me on numerous prayer lists.
There came a time in my life that my mother had to pray a very hard prayer. This prayer is specifically hard for a mother to make for her son, but she did it nevertheless. Her knowledge of my drug dependency caused her to rely on the Holy Spirit to give her the strength to pray, “Lord, whatever it takes!” Three days after that prayer, I was arrested and had to serve time in a Southern California prison. This is how the ministry of Gateway To Glory was birthed. Glory to God!
My mom was very instrumental in the startup of Gateway to Glory Ministries (GtG). She helped us obtain a 501(c)3 and helped us remodel and refurnish the first aftercare home. Now GtG governs the ministry to the incarcerated at the Macomb County Jail, which involves the coordination of 80+ volunteers, as well as 2 aftercare homes for men and one for women.
Thank you, Helen Malek, my mom. Hats off for your diligence, perseverance, steadfastness and your prayers!
Continuing the Legacy,
Chaplain Steve Malek