Said devil made him set church fire
The Kentucky Post, Oct. 11, 2004
INDEPENDENCE — A man who claimed Satan led him to set fire to a church and served five years in prison for the crime became a minister Sunday.
Jayme Dustin Murphy, 23, was ordained at Community Pentecostal Church in Independence last night.
“He’s kind of a poster child for a way a life can be changed by Jesus,” said Stephen Rust, director at the church.
Murphy once wore black, was drug-addicted and drew blood from his fingers to allow demons in as part of his satanic beliefs. In 1998, he and three friends spread gasoline around the Fairview Christian Church near Williamstown and set it ablaze.
Murphy said his life began changing soon after his arrest in 1998, when he started studying the Bible and attending the worship services offered at jail by various denominations. He studied with Baptists, Episcopalians and Pentecostals.
“I learned a lot from each of them,” he said. “Little seeds were planted. Over time, the seeds grew.”
By the time he was released from the Boone County Jail in February 2002, Murphy, who goes by the name Dusty, said he knew he wanted to be a minister.
Rust, 59, said Murphy came to him about two years ago and asked him if he would serve as a mentor, to help keep him on the right path as he learned more about God.
“He is miraculously changed,” Rust said. “His testimony is very moving.
“People ask me if I trust him and I say, ‘Of course I do.’ “
Now that he is ordained, Murphy can seek out many ministry opportunities. Community Pentecostal Church has no plans to bring him on staff. He has a very effective jail ministry, however, Rush said.
“You get excited about God when you know him,” Murphy said.
Murphy and his friends were arrested after three Grant County churches were damaged by fire in less than a month. He was charged in only the one and says that he was not involved in the others.