With everything that’s going on in our nation’s capital now, I’ve been thinking much about my elementary-age years and the joys we had going to Washington, D.C. On Wednesdays during the summer, Mom would pack a picnic lunch, and we would go to D.C. as soon as Dad got off from work at noon. We’d head for the zoo, or National Airport, or to one of the historical sites. The zoo and other sites were fascinating and educational, but the airport helped to form my future. We would park the car next to the chain-link fence and watch in wonder as the planes took off or landed. I believe a seed was planted there for my love of flying and my desire to travel.

As a child, Washington was almost a sacred place. We highly respected our government officials, the flag, and our military. The Constitution was considered exceptional, the only one in the world that balanced the three branches of government, legislative, executive, and judicial. We not only read our local newspaper, but we also read The Washington Post. A sister and brother that lived a few doors from my grandparents took the train everyday into D.C. to work at the capitol. We honored them for their daily sacrifice and hard work. They were our heroes.

About 50 years ago as the Watergate scandal was being exposed little by little, my Washington bubble burst. For the first time, I realized that Washington was not as pure as I thought; everyone in the government did not have sterling motives. Those were difficult days in our nation’s history. At first, just seven people were arrested for the June 1972 burglary at the Washington offices of the Democratic Party. (The five who conducted the burglary and two who planned and paid for the it.) But by end of 1974, 69 people were indicted, including top government officials. Forty-eight government officials went to jail, and President Nixon resigned. But something good came from those chaotic days.

In August of 1973, as the investigation was closing in on him, Chuck Colson, special counsel to the President and the first to go to prison, accepted Christ as his Savior. A business friend, Tom, witnessed to him and encouraged him to read Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. Colson was called Watergate’s “master of dirty tricks” and “the evil genius of the Nixon administration,” but God completely revolutionized his life. About the night he heard the gospel, he said, I couldn’t drive out of Tom’s driveway. Ex-Marine captain, White House tough guy, I was crying too hard, calling out to God. I didn’t know what to say: I just knew I needed Jesus, and He came into my life.

Colson’s conversion was genuine. He pled guilty to obstruction of justice for his part in trying to cover-up Watergate and served seven months in a federal prison. There he became an evangelist and led many to Christ. Following his release, he founded Prison Fellowship Ministries and Colson Center for Christian Worldview. He traveled the world giving his testimony, wrote nearly 30 best-selling books, and received many awards for work and ministry.

God did not cause Colson’s Watergate suffering just so he could find Christ as Savior. Colson sinned and broke the law, which brought about prison. But God, in His mercy, brought something good out of the entire situation because Colson surrendered his life to Christ. The apostle Paul said, “And we know that for those who love God, all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28, ESV). If you are suffering today, know that God is not the author. He, however, is quite able to bring good out of those problems as you allow Him to work in your life.

I have hope that God is at work, despite all the lies, confusion, and dissension in our nation. Surely, He is in the process of calling others, like Colson, who will come out of a world of darkness and influence thousands of people for Christ.