Psalm 146:7 Prison Ministries
Psalm 146:7 Prison Ministries has included prison visitations with a worship
team, work with newly released inmates, writing every prisoner who writes to
him, half-way houses and ex-offenders meetings, worship meetings called
Praisuarys, a powerful book,
The Happy Prisoner, tens of thousands of
salvations, and numerous other endeavors to help prisoners find Christ and
stay out of prison once released. See timeline for details.
Ministry Timeline
- Dec 1983
- William Sultzer is released from prison
- Dec 1983
- William goes to his first Full Gospel Businessmen's
International breakfast fellowship meeting the day after getting out of prison and
was with them for the next 11 years. He gave his testimony that first meeting, and
was put on the door as greeter the next Saturday! In 1988 he is elected President
of the original breakfast chapter that Dimas Shakerian started in 1952.
- March 1984
- Psalm 146:7 Prison Ministries is established with 3 board
members: William Sultzer, attorney Jack Golden, and accountant Phil Serico.
- May 1984
- The Praisuary, a worship meeting of God's Word in song,
was started on the patio of Movieland Wax Museum in Buena Park, CA. It was
there for 5 months until it got too cold to continue outdoors, and had to be moved
to warmer locations.
- 1984-1991
- William began attending the Crystal Cathedral and
immediately became a part of the prayer team receiving people coming forward
after the service, with miracles of healing and deliverance regularly. Many people
not only received salvation, but also the baptism of the Holy Spirit and spoke in
tongues. And the Crystal Cathedral leadership didn't even allow speaking in
tongues!
- 1986-1993
William opened and ran a half-way house for men getting out
of prison. Each man received clothes, which included a new suit. First half way
house was in Garden Grove, the second larger one that took its place was in
Anaheim. Once the half way homes began, the Praisuary worship meetings (on
Saturday nights) and the Ex-offenders Reunion meetings (on Sunday afternoons)
met weekly for the next 7+ years. Men and women from other half-way and also
sober-living houses came and joined them for the Word, worship, encouragement,
all the clothes they needed, and an all-they-could-eat home-cooked meal. Since
the men from some of the other half-way houses got little to eat, they were loaded
up with all the left-overs they could carry. It was a time of great blessing for them.
And they all looked forward to the weekends. Also during this time,
William met his second wife who came wanting to help with the weekly worship
team, and decided she wanted to be his wife. But the honeymoon lasted just a
year before her on-going illness surfaced, and William had to quit all ministry.
- 1994-1996
- William went from full-time ministry to taking care of his sick
wife and working at a hotel for the insurance to cover her medical expenses. In
1996 his wife unexpectedly left him and he returned to full-time ministry.
- 1996-2006
- The Ministry was given an office, a meeting room and an
apartment at the Best Inn in Buena Park by the Lin family. From there he again
ran the Ex-offender's Reunions and Praisuary almost every weekend for ten
years.
- 3-16-2004
- The 20 year Anniversary of Psalm 146:7 Prison Ministries met
at Poor Folk Restaurant at Movieland Wax Museum, in Buena Park, California.
It was a grand celebration.
- 1984-2010
- William and his friend, William Vanderplus, and a worship team travelled to various California prisons, often 2-3 times a week, to minister to
the prisoners and bring them the gospel of the good news of our God. Tens of
thousands came to the Lord in these years.
- 2005-2010
In 2005 The Happy Prisoner book was printed and given free to
prisoners at meetings. It soon took on a ministry of its own, independent of
William, becoming an evangelistic tool in the Hands of God that brought thousands
of prisoners to the saving grace of Jesus Christ as they read the prayer on page
118 and asked Jesus to change them. At the same time, they learned the source
of much of their problems and how to cope with them and live a normal life
outside of prison.
- 2010-present
- William continues to minister one on one to every prisoner who writes him,
and to every person The Holy Spirit brings into his life. He also accepts
speaker requests, and still occasionally ministers in California prisons. At
75 he is not as active inside prisons as he once was, but still prays for them
and actively works for their good, doing what he can to make more people
aware of the ADD factor prevalent inside prison walls. He is also still
writing to every single prisoner who writes to him, a ministry he started soon
after the printing of The Happy Prisoner. He is now writing a new book on
"what not to do when you get out of prison", which should prove to be another
valuable aid for the ADD man or woman. And if God provides the funding, William
would also like to see The Happy Prisoner made into a movie.
- 3-16-2014
- The 30th Anniversary of Psalm 146:7 Prison Ministries.
- 11-4-2019
- William's Graduation to be with The Lord less than two months before his
82nd birthday. His minstry will continue under his ministry partner, Tim Adams
(Timboe13@hotmail.com).
The Happy Prisoner