May 2011

After we all read the above passage together I gave my congregation a short message of encouragement from it. I told the men that Christ is our solid Rock. He is a sure foundation from the storms of life. And while the world faces war, acts of terrorism and seemingly insane acts of violence, financial chaos, killer hurricanes, fierce floods, fires, earthquakes, and so much more, that the truth is that Jesus Christ is still saving souls.

I said that the simple gospel message of the Lord Jesus Christ dying for our sins and being resurrected on the third day, continues to impact our generation as it has every generation before us. And that every year millions of persons place their faith in Him and willingly repent of their sins, too.

Furthermore, I told the brothers that the Lord is still on His throne. That He is as busy as ever filling hungry hearts with hope and comfort amidst so much craziness and unrest which often characterizes our society.

I then concluded by telling these precious men that Jesus remains a faithful Carpenter. Only now, instead of building houses, He is rebuilding shattered lives. This, I declared, is the supernatural power of God at work. And He is at work, even in this chapel.

D.B.

Genuine humility, prayer, seeking God's face and a desire to repent of sin are the prerequisites needed for the Lord to keep His blessings upon a nation, and to heal the land from whatever damage sin and wickedness has caused it to experience. And it is the God-given right and privilege of Christians to join together in the task of making intercessory prayers for a nation and its citizens. And today happens to be the officially designated National Day of Prayer, although Christians should pray for their nation and its rulers every day.

Furthermore, I believe that it is the Lord Himself who is holding the United States of America together. He's working behind the scenes, so to speak, to keep my nation safe. However it may very well be that the combined prayers of God's people - those who trust in the Lord and who seek His face - are somehow helping to keep God's hands upon us. Otherwise, if we were ever to become complacent and self-sufficient in thinking that we do not need divine assistance, and if we were to stop seeking His wisdom and counsel, we might eventually go the way in which many other nations and civilizations have gone before us...into oblivion.

Without God at the helm, America can lose her voice in world affairs as well as her overall power and influence. Like a body that's been left in a field to decay on its own, America may become nothing but a pile of dust and ashes, and a land of spiritual death.

D.B.

Not everyone is blessed with a good mother. Even fewer have been blessed by two good mothers like I was. This is true. I had the privilege of having two wonderful mothers. Therefore, being it is Mother's Day, I want to devote this journal entry to honoring both my moms. They're deceased now. But the memories of them will forever be in my heart.

My first tribute is to Pearl Schwimmer Berkowitz, my adoptive mother who carried me home from the hospital in 1953, and raised me. She and my father, Nathan, gave me all the love they possibly could. Being a difficult and hard to manage child - this is my opinion - I caused her more grief and aggravation than happiness. However I'm sure she'd vehemently disagree with my assessment of myself. Mama Pearl would insist to this day that I was her angel. I wish!

My adoptive mother, who had been the pillar of my life, died from cancer in 1967. I was fourteen. But with the stabilizer of my life gone, my turbulent behaviors and emotions would only get worse. Although I did have periods of normality, too. For the most part I was just a mischievous Jewish kid growing up in the Bronx.

While the second tribute is for the kindly woman who gave birth to me and made sure that I was given over to good people who'd care for me, which she was unable to properly do at the time. Rebecca Broder (known simply as Betty) was a gentle and loving woman whom I had the privilege of meeting for the first time in 1975. I was twenty-two.

I tracked Betty down with the help of an organization known as ALMA (Adoptees Liberty Movement Association). After an intensive one year search, which I did with ALMA's staff providing advice and guidance as to where to locate the information needed to find her, my birth mother and I were finally reunited in 1975. It was a good meeting.

I learned I had a half-sister. I discovered there was an entire family of blood relatives whom I never knew existed before this. The relationship with my birth mother blossomed. I became close to my sister, brother-in-law, and my nieces. It was a dream come true.

Unfortunately, however, other negative factors would come into play that not even having a new family could overcome. I allowed myself to be overpowered by evil, and this was my fault. I ended up in prison. The short two year relationship with my birth family would gradually come to an end as I foolishly burned the bridge between us by my self-destructive and self-punishing ways. And this bridge has never been rebuilt, much to my regret.

Yes, I look back with much sorrow by all that was lost. Betty passed away in the 1980s. By this time I had lost contact with her. Yet life must go on even in spite of my past failures, sins and mistakes. Nevertheless I consider myself blessed for having had two great women in my life. I had two mothers. I've much to be thankful for.

D.B.

I hope the readers of my journal who know Jesus Christ as Savior are allowing yourselves to be filled with the joy and contentment of the Lord, that you are resting in His love. My favorite verse in the Bible is Zephaniah 3:17. It speaks of God resting in the love He has for His children. And what could be more beautiful than this?

Praise God that I don't have to do something to earn His love. I do not have to labor for it or follow a bunch of rules to obtain it. Instead God's love is freely given because it is His very character. As the Scriptures tell us, "God is love (I John 4:8,16)."

Frankly it took me a handful of years to grasp this truth. My initial years as a Christian were sometimes filled with periods of doubt and uncertainty when it came to the belief that God loves me. But one day it was as if a light went on in my soul. I finally came to understand and accept the fact that God loves me, and that He has always loved me, just as I am; not because of what I do.

The Lord's love is unconditional. It's not based on someone's having to meet certain conditions. It's the kind of love God Himself rests in, and the kind of love I must rest in, too.

D.B.

It has been said that prayer is a supernatural endeavor. It can definitely change things, not because a Christian's words are powerful, but because we serve an all-powerful God who can, when necessary, move mountains and rearrange circumstances whenever He is in agreement with our prayers. And with this in mind, today I awoke with a heavy burden on my heart to pray for young persons, everywhere. And especially for those who are runaways, are on drugs, are in some aspect of the occult, or who are suicidal. In addition I offered up prayers for any adolescent who may be in some kind of dangerous situation right now. Only the Lord knows why He has led me to pray this way.

I prayed, as well, that God would provide me with more opportunities to share with youth about the unsearchable riches of Christ, and His amazing love, mercy and grace that He has towards them. The truth is that Jesus Christ is the One they need.

D.B.

This morning's worship service went very well and God was with us. However, before the service started I stood before the congregation and asked them if they had any prayer requests. I then took my pen and pad and quickly scribbled down each request. Within several minutes I had two full pages to work with. The men asked for prayer for wives, children, parents and other family members. Others requested prayer for friends who needed healing, salvation, or both. And one man actually asked that we pray for several countries he mentioned. I was especially thrilled by this request because I've been encouraging the church to make intercessory prayer for all the nations, including ours.

In addition to this we also prayed for the family of David Wilkerson, the founder and former pastor of Times Square Church in New York City. Pastor Wilkerson left this world unexpectedly after losing his life in a car accident. In fact yesterday his church held a memorial service for him. Three lay ministers, who usually visit with us every second Saturday of each month to teach a Bible study, had to cancel their usual trip to the prison to attend this event instead.

Nevertheless, my beautiful God shined His face upon us today. Another inmate, brother Roberto, gave the main sermon on being ready for the Lord's return. The entire service from start to finish went just fine.

D.B.

As I was reading the Bible this morning I began to ponder the work of the Holy Spirit. He is the third person of the Godhead who always seeks to bring honor to God the Son (the Lord Jesus Christ). The Spirit operates ever so gently and diligently behind the scenes to open hearts to the message of the gospel.

Then, later in the day, as I was writing a letter to a friend in Chicago who helps inner city youth with their spiritual needs, and who has been fervently praying for one particular fifteen year old whom she says is a "hard case," I reminded her that God's word will never come back to Him without first accomplishing the purpose for which it was sent.

I tried to encourage my friend by letting her know that no matter how things may look through the lenses of our eyes, the Holy Spirit is working behind the scenes to convict people of their sins, while at the same time softening their hearts so that they will want to turn from their sins and place their faith in Jesus Christ for salvation.

I likewise reminded her that because of the Holy Spirit's unseen work, there is still hope for this young man to turn to God.

D.B.

I believe we are living in what the Bible says are "perilous times." "This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come (II Timothy 3:1)." And perhaps one of the biggest threats now facing society as a whole is not only such things as terrorism, crime or economic instability, but from a spiritual standpoint, we could also be harmed by those whom the Bible calls false prophets and false teachers. They can lead astray those who are ignorant, and ruin them physically, emotionally and financially.

Yes, the Bible warns that, in the 'last days' especially, such liars will abound. They will skillfully and deceitfully use the Scriptures (the Bible) to their advantage. They will twist the meaning of various passages to say something else than what God intended them to say. In addition, the Bible also announces that many will follow them. Even many Christians, I believe, will somehow end up following after these false prophets and teachers for which the end result will be the destruction of their faith. How tragic!

Therefore, with this in mind, I must say that the Bible emphatically states that no one could possibly know the day nor the hour when Christ will come for His church. Many Christians call this event the "rapture." It will be an event in which those who have truly placed their faith in Jesus Christ will be taken from the earth in an instant of time, and will join together in the clouds to "meet the Lord in the air" so that we could be with Him, forever (I Thessalonians 4:13-18).

In fact, till this day Christians are divided on the matter as to when the rapture will take place with regard to world events that will be happening at the time, or even if there will be a rapture. Nevertheless, regardless of one's personal views on the subject, the Bible proclaims with absolute certainty that, if there is going to be a rapture, it is impossible to know when it will occur. And there are no exceptions. Nor should one have any expectation of a special or private revelation. As Christ Himself was quoted as saying, "But of that day and hour knoweth no man, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only (Matthew 24:36)."

Yet in spite of the clear pronouncements found in the Scriptures about the setting of dates with regard to Christ's coming for His church, fools still make their attempts at doing this, while bigger fools continue to believe them. This, obviously, is an embarrassment to serious-minded Christians everywhere. We're ashamed of all the nonsensical date setting, and we're heartbroken for those who have placed their hope and faith in lies.

Still, with this said, the church needs to show mercy and compassion toward those who've mistakenly followed these false prophets and teachers. Such people are victims who've been duped. They've been humiliated, as well. And many have suffered the loss of a good reputation, or the loss of a job or a relationship. Now they need to be encouraged, forgiven, and gently restored. They need to be loved, prayed for, and brought back into fellowship. No sin or wrong decision is too big that it cannot be forgiven.

Wherefore, knowing now what the Bible says about trying to set dates for the rapture of the church, let us refuse to heed those who claim to know the date for this event. Let us recognize these false prophets and teachers for what they are: liars!

Also, may we as Christians seek to know the Word of God for ourselves. We should be diligently committed to the study of Scripture, ideally, if possible, in both a home fellowship under the leadership of a mature teacher, and in a doctrinally sound church, as well. This way we can become proficient in knowing correct doctrine, and thus rightly discern truth from error.

And, in closing, may I say that the Bible pronounces dreadful judgment upon all liars. They will each have their part in the Lake of Fire, where they will be tormented day and night, forever. This, then, will be the final end for all false prophets and teachers who refuse to repent (Revelation 21:8)

D.B.

Today I had a visit from my friend, Mark. He's an active member of the Gideons, a worldwide organization that distributes Bibles into the hands of anyone who wants one. Mark arrived around 10:30 and left shortly after one o'clock in the afternoon. Because I knew he was coming I didn't go to church this morning. It was a joy, however, to fellowship with my friends.

Mark had recently returned to the United States after a two week missions trip with several other Gideon members where they gave out thousands of Bibles in the South American countries of Guatemala and Nicaragua. He also took lots of photos of the people and the countryside and brought a stack of photos into the visiting room to share them with me. I was overjoyed and humbled to see so many school children with smiling faces, each one holding up a new Gideons Pocket Testament in Spanish that was given to them as a gift.

But I also saw photos of terrible poverty. Yet the people living in those shacks seemed happy. So I mentioned to my friend Mark how I wished I could share the photos with the men in my congregation. It would give them a greater appreciation of what we, even as prisoners, have here in the United States. To live with an entire family in a one room shack, without running water and a flush toilet, and to have no vehicle so that you have to walk miles on dusty dirty roads in order to get to school or to the local market, is a way of life that few Americans experience nowadays.

Towards the end of the visit Mark and I joined hands, and we prayed. For me today was not only a time for one-on-one fellowship. I actually had a Sunday in which I could rest rather than run around in a state of busy activity. I needed this visit.

D.B.

To feel the crunch of the semi-frozen ground under my boots as I walk across the vast expanse of Canada's Arctic tundra is an exhilarating experience. I'm dreaming, or course. But my heart really is in the Northland where the Lord has made a way for me to share with a group of people, both white and Native Inuit (formerly called Eskimos), what he has done in my life. How that God saved me from a life of sin and self-destructive behaviors, and how I am now at peace.

Yes, my prayers have been answered. Because last week I received an encouraging letter from a missionary pastor who lives in the town of Inuvik, far above the Arctic Circle in Canada's Northwest Terrorist. The pastor wrote to tell me that my story of redemption has inspired those in his congregation who are part of a drug and alcohol recovery group. I was thrilled at the news.

Inuvik is a town of perhaps a little more than three thousand people that's located just off the rugged Mackenzie River, and not too far from where the river meets the icy cold waters of the Beaufort Sea. It's remote and isolated. Inuvik is a place that few have ever heard of, and fewer still have had the opportunity to visit.

But in spite of its isolation, Inuvik has become modernized. In decades past it was a rough and tumble settlement of shoddily constructed, ramshackle huts mostly put together with sheets of plywood, reused lumber, and even randomly found pieces of driftwood from the sea. While nowadays, small but well-built government sponsored homes dot Inuvik's landscape.

Nevertheless, even with Inuvik's modernization, its hearty residents still have to manage, year after year, to survive the long Arctic winters where forty to fifty below zero temperatures are the norm, and where powerful gale force winds would batter the sides of every house in Inuvik for weeks at a time.

Yet here, too, God has those who love Him. And it is in this remote part of the world that I have received a warm welcome from those who, like me, are not ashamed to declare Jesus Christ as Lord.

D.B.

My heart was touched the day before when I received a letter from a member of the United States Marines. He's stationed on the Western Pacific island of Okinawa. He told me he was watching a program on television about me when he decided to look up my address and write. He said he hopes to attend Bible college when his time in the military is over.

I'm always overjoyed when I get a letter from someone who's serving in the Armed Forces. I wrote back within a day or two and included a printed copy of my story in pamphlet form along with a wallet-sized pocket calendar with Scripture verses on it. I may ask a friend to mail him a copy of my journal book as a surprise gift.

In my letter I thanked this Marine for his service to our country, and for doing his part to keep the nation safe and secure. I also told him that I am praying for him, and that I asked God to grant this Marine divine guidance and extra protection as he goes about his tasks. He told me he has a wife and a young son, and I let him know that I'm praying for them as well.

D.B.

At approximately 9:30 this morning Mister Smithers stumbled out the front door of the prison. In the five or six years that I have known him, Smithers always walked and talked as if he were intoxicated. Because he was born with a crooked spine, Smithers is unable to stand fully erect. Neither can he walk in a straight line. Instead he moves with a zigzag pattern. Whenever I'd see him traveling the corridors, he would sway from side-to-side while those walking in the opposite direction would give their best effort to step aside to avoid getting bumped. In addition, due to his defective spine, Smithers' head has a noticeable tilt to the right. It's as if he has to constantly fight the forces of gravity that are trying to pull his head to the ground.

Naturally uncoordinated plus being zonked out from an array of psychotropic medications he is required to take to help control his behaviors and to keep him calm and sedated, Mister Smithers was now leaving Sullivan Correctional Facility with a destination to his home in Buffalo, New York, an almost all day drive by bus.

Prior to his incarceration Mister Smithers had been a long-term patient at a psychiatric hospital in the city of Rochester. Normally, Smithers would've been paroled back to the hospital. This time, however, for reasons unknown - they would not take him back. So it was decided that Mister Smithers would live with his elderly mother and spinster sister in the home of his youth.

Illiterate and uneducated, unskilled in any kind of trade and diagnosed since his early 20s as "Schizoprenic, paranoid type," the prognosis for my friend is not good. How sad. But not much can be done for Mister Smithers. His time in prison has come to an end. He has completed the sentence he had received for assault and attempted robbery. Smithers, who was himself intoxicated at the time, tried to rob another drunk as he walked down the street. This happened while Mister Smithers was on a weekend pass from the hospital.

I enjoyed my many talks with him. During his ten years of confinement, a handful of which were spent here at Sullivan, Mister Smithers had to be housed in different Intermediate Care Program units. A chain-smoker with only a few crooked, yellow and burned from years of smoking hand-rolled cigarettes down to the last possible puff.

Poor guy. I've already told Mister Smithers again and again that when he gets out, to head to the nearest Christian rescue mission, or to seek out a simple storefront church for help, prayers and companionship. In such places he will get a meal or a warm cup of coffee. And to avoid churches with well-manicured lawns and pastors who wear fancy suits because it's doubtful he would get any help or even so much as a welcome. It will be the rescue missions and poor churches that will provide the help he needs. As these places specialize in caring for those who are down and out and the spiritually broken, which is all that Mister Smithers is. God is his only help.

D.B.

Smithers is not his real name.

I continue to pray as I await word from my friends who live in Carthage, Missouri. This is a small industrial city not far from the much larger city of Joplin. Last week Joplin was struck by a devastating tornado which claimed about 150 lives, and has left much of the city and the surrounding area in ruins. And there were lesser tornadoes which plowed through the state at about the same time, as well.

Furthermore, within the city of Joplin are two Christian ministries that I am particularly concerned about. They are the American Prison Outreach International, and its sister organization, American Rehabilitation Ministries. Both of these regularly supply my facility and thousands of other prisons and jails with Christian literature and Bible study materials. They also offer greeting cards that are shipped to correctional facilities by the case as part of their outreach to prisoners and their families.

It would be a miracle indeed if both of these ministries incurred no damage, and if they are still operational. It would even be a bigger miracle if no one from these ministries lost his or her life.

Meanwhile I continue to pray for my friends, and for the citizens of Missouri.

D.B.

It's been a busy month. I know I need to take more time to rest so as to be renewed in strength, and refreshed. But with my work schedule being what it is, plus the constant busy buzz of chapel activities - the elders who run the church love keeping our monthly planner calendar full - getting any kind of serious rest or having quality time with the Lord, is difficult. Sometimes it seems nearly impossible.

Yet I continue to hang in nonetheless. Yes, I feel as if I am riding the proverbial "merry-go-round." When, I often ask myself, will it stop? Probably not until my heart stops first, which may very well happen if I don't slow down. Or maybe I'll be fortunate to experience the rapture? Either way, by death, or by rapture, I'm stuck for now. I'll just have to make the best of my situation. I have no other choice but to trust in the Lord.

D.B.