50 YEARS in Prison… Then He Found HOME | Sunday Stories

HE HAS SPENT NEARLY 50 YEARS IN PRISON.

Craig Lanell Jones entered prison at 18 years old.

For decades, he was known by another name: “Wally G.”

But after nearly a lifetime behind bars, Craig says God has given him something he never expected to find inside prison.

His identity back.

In this Sunday Story from God Behind Bars, Craig shares his incredible Christian testimony of incarceration, regret, forgiveness, faith, and finding his way back to Jesus after decades in prison.

Craig grew up on the South Side of Chicago and came to Missouri as a young man after someone hurt his mother. He says the choices he made next changed the course of his entire life.

At 18 years old, his life stopped looking anything like he had imagined.

Prison became home.

Years became decades.

And decades became nearly 50 years behind bars.

But Craig believes his story did not stop when he entered prison.

Today, the man who spent most of his life being called “Wally G” proudly says his real name again:

Craig Lanell Jones.

“That’s the name that He gave me. He didn’t give me Wally G. He gave me Craig Lanell Jones. And that’s who I am today.”

Craig says he is a SON OF GOD. ❤️

His mother has prayed for him for decades. When she told Craig that she believed God was keeping her alive long enough to see her son come home, Craig gave her an unexpected answer:

“I’m home.”

Not because he had physically left prison.

Because after decades of running, Craig believes he had finally come home to CHRIST.

Craig also opens up about his declining health and the reality that his life may be nearing its end.

But he says he isn't angry.

He can finally smile.

“Even though my life been in prison, I’m happy.”

When asked what he would tell his 18 year old self after all these years, Craig looks back at the decades he has spent incarcerated and asks:

“Is this what you wanted?”

Yet Craig believes God never stopped working through his story.

From entering prison as an 18 year old in 1981 to sharing his testimony in 2026, Craig calls the fact that he is still alive to tell his story a MIRACLE.

This is Craig’s story.

A story of consequences.

A story of forgiveness.

A story of identity.

And a reminder that even after decades behind prison walls, it is never too late to come home to Jesus. ❤️

Welcome to Sunday Stories.

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