Rick Patrick: Greene Publishing, Inc.
Michael Hamm will be the guest speaker at Honey Lake Church during the 11 a.m. service on Sunday, July 9.
Hamm was born and raised in rural Arkansas and left home at an early age in order to enlist in the US Navy. After serving honorably, Hamm returned home. Having only a ninth grade education, Hamm completed his GED and continued his education with the Investment Training Institute. Hamm entered into the business world, owning several motel properties. During this time, he fulfilled a lifelong dream of becoming an airplane pilot. Hamm's alcohol and drug use became an addiction, which resulted in several business failures and a broken marriage.
Desperate for money, Hamm turned to a life of crime, using his piloting skills to smuggle drugs and weapons to and from the US, Central, and South America. Eventually, Hamm was arrested and convicted of drug smuggling. He was sentenced to the Florida State Prison in 1985 to a minimum 45 years to life sentence. “When they slammed that prison door behind me, I never thought I would ever see the free world again,” said Hamm. While incarcerated, Hamm became a Christian and was released after serving only 21 months.
After his release, Hamm began working with several prison ministries, including Bill Glass and his Champions for Life Prison Ministries, United Prison Ministry International, and others. Hamm became an ordained Evangelist in 1996 and has on the national television programs The 700 Club appeared and TBN Live. He was the founder of Cross Roads Ranch, a one-year rehab and re-entry program. Most recently, Hamm has started a new ministry, Legacy of the Cross, located in North Carolina. Legacy of the Cross is a “faith-based, non- profit, Christ-centered organization committed to helping inmates, former inmates, and those with life-altering and controlling addictions.”
Hamm will be sharing his incredible story of redemption and deliverance at Honey Lake Church, located at 1445 N. Honey Lake Rd., in Greenville.