December 2008

I am thankful the Lord remembers to show His mercy to those who are incarcerated. He is also concerned as well for those who've been the victim of a crime, whether they have experienced physical violence or had some of their possessions stolen or damaged. In these times of economic hardship even having one's wallet stolen or his home burglarized can be devastating. It's a loss that some cannot recover from unless God intervenes.

And I would hope that Christians everywhere are using their time and resources to help those in need. For this is part of what the Lord has called us to do. We're to go in the name of the Lord Jesus bringing His love and help to a hurting world.

D.B.

A thought came to me today. How many people live and die without someone ever telling them "I love you?" Jails and prisons, juvenile detention centers, and psychiatric centers are filled with such persons. And so are many homes. Yet this is the reason that I love the Lord: because He first loved me!

The Bible tells me that God loves me very much. In addition, His love for me will never grow cold or die. It's an everlasting love that will outlast the sun. And these are the words I love to hear: "David, my son, I love you."

D.B.

I've been asking the Lord to help me pray more for those Christians who are being persecuted for their faith. Indeed there are ugly and terrible attacks occurring nowadays that are routinely being launched against the evangelical church. In nations such as Iran, Iraq, Saudi, Arabia, Algeria, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, China, Vietnam, and Nigeria, and in many more places, our brothers and sisters have to endure much suffering at levels we in the United States could not imagine. Our brethren are hated because our Lord is hated. And this is why ministries such as Voice of the Martyrs are so important. It's organizations like VOM who help to keep us aware of the struggles our fellow disciples often face for trying to live out their beliefs before a hostile world.

Unfortunately, however, I think that much of the church in North America is oblivious to this. For the most part we're unconcerned about such persecution. After all, such atrocities seem so far away. And we've got our own problems to deal with. We have our own lives to lead. But we also need to realize that, one day, the time may come when we'll be facing the same unbridled persecution. Even now, there are undercurrents of this happening, maybe in the not too distant future. Yet we remain asleep.

For example, the number of Muslims now living in the United States and Canada is increasing daily, just as in Europe and in the former Russian territories. Christians are being outnumbered. While along with this, from a different direction, more laws are being passed by our respective legislators calling for limitations on activities such as "street preaching," open air evangelistic gatherings, and passing out gospel tracts on college campuses or in public. Why it's almost as if they're trying to make basic evangelism illegal. In addition, some experts say that the fastest growing religion among America's young people today is Wicca.

Furthermore, I believe that if many of the sermons given by well respected ministers to their congregations only a few decades ago were to be preached from pulpits today, that such sermons would actually be regarded as inflammatory by today's standards. And these men of God would be sued, harassed, and maybe even arrested. Such are the times we're now living in where it may soon be against the law to share the gospel with our friends, co-workers, and especially with strangers. I assure you, this is coming!

Sadly, however, many of us are like the proverbial frog in the pan. While the water gradually warms, the frog is so busy splashing around and enjoying himself, that he's oblivious to what is happening. He's slowly being cooked. The result: a very dumb and dead frog! He was clueless until it was too late.

Could this happen to us? The church in America needs to wake up. This is my opinion.

D.B.

Jose and I could've been walking down a street in the Bronx, but we found ourselves walking together in the prison's outdoor recreation yard in the freezing cold. Jose has been in prison for approximately five years, and he has only fourteen months left to serve before he's eligible for release. He is 39-years old, and is HIV positive.

I've known Jose for about eight or nine months. He came here to Sullivan from Clinton Correctional Facility, a maximum security prison that's not very far from the Canadian border. Clinton is an old fortress of stone and steel, a hellhole that's surrounded by huge concrete walls. It's hemmed in by the Adirondack Mountains as well. I spent almost seven years there myself. Clinton is the proverbial "end of the line." Like me, Jose was glad to leave that place. Besides, now he's closer to New York City, and to his family.

At present, Jose is living in Sullivan Correctional Facility's "Intermediate Care Program" where I work on weekday afternoons. And this is where I first met him. As he and I got acquainted I learned he is from the Bronx, too.

Unfortunately, however, Jose has a drug problem in addition to a variety of mental issues. Yet he is friendly and easygoing. He's not a troublemaker. Like a majority of the men in here, Jose only wants to do his time and then go home.

And speaking of his home, Jose told me that he used to hang out with a crew of fellow drug addicts and street people whom he fondly referred to as his "friends." He said they'd all gather at night along Woodycrest Avenue in the "High Bridge" section of the borough. While his mental problems kept him from holding a job for any length of time, it was his regular Social Security checks that he received because of his mental disability which helped to provide him with money for food and rent, and, regrettably, narcotics. A neighborhood clinic for the poor helped to keep Jose alive with medications to assist his immune system in fighting off the virus which causes AIDS.

Like many chronically unemployed persons, Jose slept during the day but would come out at night to score his drugs and socialize. His friends, from the stories he's told me, always had lots of personal adventures (and lies) to tell each other as to how they got enough cash to buy their latest "hit" of crack or heroin.

But the saddest part of Jose's life is the fact that he has two beautiful fourteen year old twin daughters. They're the products of a long-term relationship with his lover and occasional live-in girlfriend, Jeanette. According to Jose, Jeanette was also diagnoses with HIV. He told me that several years ago she began to get night sweats. Then came the "constant shivering." He complained, "She's always lying under a pile of blankets whenever I call her." Jose told me that he'd love to see her but, "She's too sick to make the two hour trip, plus she's got to watch the kids."

Jose's doing time for assault. He told me that he pulled out a small knife and stabbed another man because he "caught a bad delusion" that the man was going to cut him first. Jose said his victim was also a drug addict whom he knew from the neighborhood. Thankfully, however, although the victim, whom it turned out was unarmed, received several puncture wounds, he survived and has since fully recovered.

Jose said it was a "nightmare." He dropped the bloodstained weapon and ran away. Months later, Jose, at the advice of his court-appointed attorney, entered a plea of guilty and thus "copped out" to a lesser charge and was subsequently given a lighter sentence than had he taken his case to trial.

Although I enjoyed walking with Jose, it was difficult to talk to him on the matter of his soul and about Jesus Christ. He would listen for awhile, but then he'd quickly change the subject. So I finally settled for reminiscing with him about the Bronx.

One day, if he survives his imprisonment, Jose will find himself back in his old neighborhood. He'll find out what has changed over the year he's been gone. He will also learn the fate of his friends. Jose will discover who's still alive and who has since died. He'll learn, as well, who ended up in prison, too. And, hopefully, Jose will meet some of the former Woodycrest Avenue crew who have since found the Lord and are now free from sin and bondage.

D.B.

God has been very good to the church that's behind the walls of this prison. Yesterday we were permitted to have a Christmas/Chanukah meal and gathering in the chapel. Approximately sixty men were in attendance. We had a nice meal which was paid for by the prisoners. And those who could not pay, as some men only have a few dollars or less in their spending accounts, were covered by the men who could afford it. So it was a time of great generosity, and not merely a group of guys meeting together just to eat. In fact, our event ran from one o'clock in the afternoon until 8 P.M. During this time we prayed, sang songs, shared testimonies, watched two Christian movies, and, of course, ate.

For me, however, it was humbling. I watched the men as they worked together setting up the tables and chairs. While some of them served the food and then volunteered to clean up the mess. And let me tell you, sixty men eating greasy fried chicken makes for a big mess. But everyone worked willingly, and we left the building cleaner than when we first came in.

I thank the Lord for His grace. By human standards I live in a society of outlaws and outcasts. We are those who, because of our criminal actions, have been banished from the streets. But Christ doesn't see it this way. He sees souls who are in need of mercy, and who yearn for another chance. This is the Lord whom I worship. He is a good God!

D.B.

Earlier this year I had heard reports on the news that the population of men and women who are incarcerated in state and federal prisons throughout the United States of America is now at more than 2.2 million. This is not counting those who are presently confined to city and county jails, or juvenile detention facilities. Moreover, with a rapidly worsening economic situation, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that, as more Americans find themselves without a job and therefore with less money to survive on, that the overall crime rates, especially for offenses like robbery and burglary, will increase. And, correspondingly, the number of prisoners will increase, as well.

Think of this as a national tragedy which will ultimately affect almost everyone. Consider, too, that many of those who are now locked up could have been a useful part of America's work force instead of being burdens to taxpayers, and to the various governmental branches (local, state and federal) who must care for them.

As I've oftentimes discussed in my writings, jails and prisons may very well be one of America's largest mission fields. Therefore, my prayer is that more Christians would be willing to take the gospel into such places, or at least offer their support to those who do go in. The need is tremendous.

D.B.

Today I learned that a good friend of mine lost his youngest brother to a drug overdose. He told me that his brother went to a park where he took a hit of heroin into his veins. Something went wrong, however. He lapsed into a coma from which he never recovered.

Also on this day, an inmate at this facility was informed that his 37 year old kid brother died on or near Christmas from what he was told was a sudden heart attack. But the word is that his heart burst from cocaine. According to another prisoner who knew the deceased from the streets, he had had struggles with drugs.

But tragedies such as this only makes me more determined to serve the Lord and to continue my efforts to proclaim the life transforming gospel to a spiritually lost world. Besides, by allowing God to use my life to help win people to Christ is a type of divine justice, I believe. It's like serving notice on the Devil, "Yeah, you lost another one!" A precious soul was snatched from Satan's grip and redeemed by the blood of Jesus.

Of course saving souls is really the work of the Holy Spirit. However, He oftentimes uses ordinary Christians as His instruments in order to accomplish this. While Christ gets all the glory when it comes to salvation, His plan allows for people like myself to be a part of it. What a privilege! I am not at all worthy, for I am nothing without the Lord.

D.B.

As another year comes upon me, I hope to go all out for Jesus Christ as never before. And one reason for this is because I don't know how much longer I will be on this earth. While another reason is because it appears evident to me that the United States of America is not only going bankrupt economically, but morally and spiritually, as well. And I doubt if even our most well intentioned leaders could reverse the slide. I doubt they could save our economy. They seem incapable of providing the nation with sound moral compass, too. Therefore I am conscious of the fact that, perhaps at some future time, I will not be allowed to publicly share my faith or be able to openly serve the Lord. Thus I must do what I can today.

Furthermore, it appears that greed, corruption and dishonesty have permeated every level of society, to include many churches. The love of money, which the Bible warns about, has already caused myriads of people to suffer astounding levels of personal loss. Mankind's quest for more material goods has gripped millions of hearts with an increasing lust for the things this world has to offer. We've become a generation who cannot be satisfied with less. Many are restlessly unhappy and dissatisfied with life.

Yet in spite of the morass of evil we're swimming in right now, I believe there is still a degree of hope for America. This is because, as my King James Bible states, "But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound (Romans 5:20b)." While another translation puts it like this: "Where sin fills up, grace overflows the more (The Berkeley Version)."

My prayer, therefore, is that men will begin to see the uselessness and empty vanity in having an abundance of earthly wealth and material possessions. Besides, such things will decay eventually. Instead, I believe that one's real treasure can only be found in knowing Jesus Christ, and by having a personal relationship with Him. For with such a relationship comes the gift of eternal life. And if a person has eternal life, then he has the best and most important gift of all. It will last forever, too.

D.B.

I don't know how it was for my fellow Christians, but for me 2008 was a difficult and spiritually challenging year. I went through an unusual amount of inner anguish and deep trials that cannot be put into words. There are some big disappointments as well. Yet there were many spiritual victories, too. My testimony traveled into new places, even to distant lands. I also had many opportunities to help and encourage other believers, both inside and outside of prison.

While, in 2008, several dear friends left the facility on transfers to other prisons, or they were released on parole, new men have joined the church after arriving from other lockups.

But now the year is almost over. A new year is about to arrive. Yet I want to continue to serve the Lord in His strength. I'm looking forward to new challenges and new opportunities to be a help to others. And I want to become more like my Savior in love, kindness, mercy and compassion.

So may the Lord help me to press toward the prize. I'm headed to heaven. This is my home. And it's only a matter of time before I'll be gone from this earth, forever.

D.B.

Father God, and Lord of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, you have been loving, kind and faithful to see me through another year. Thank you, as well, for watching over my family and my friends. I am a blessed man for the privilege of knowing you, and I want to know you even better.

Lord Jesus, you have been faithful to lead the church that's behind these walls. You've provided a chaplain for us who loves you, and who gives us your word. You've also shown us how to have peace with you by having faith in your name.

Now may we continue to experience your mercy and grace in the year ahead. May our nation awaken to its greatest need - not a smooth running economy or a season free from terrorism - as needful as these are, but may we sense the emptiness of a life lived without you. Let us see that without you as the True Leader of our land, we won't have lasting success. Instead we will reap a whirlwind of disappointment and destruction.

So in behalf of our leaders and citizens, I plead for your patience. In addition, please help our young people, and the elderly, too. Have compassion on the poor, jobless, homeless, and the destitute. Lord, may we recognize your hand as it works in our lives for our good, and for the benefit of this nation.

I ask all this in Jesus' name. Amen.

D.B.