October 2008

According to the Hebrew calendar, I have now entered into a new year. It is now 5769. The celebrated holiday of Rosh Hashanah has just passed. Tradition, therefore, says it is time for a new beginning.

Of course for those like myself who believe that Jesus (Yeshua) is the Messiah of the Jews, every day should be considered as special ( Psalm 118:24). Yet I think it is okay to honor certain days of the year and to commemorate various historical events. But I am not required to keep the Old Testament laws because the Lord Jesus abolished these ordinances by His death on the cross.

For now, however, I simply wish to rejoice in the goodness of God. And as the days pass, my prayer is that I may become more submitted to the Lord than ever before. Amen!

D.B.

Yesterday I was ordered to move to a different cell, but it's in the same building where I've been living for the past several years, which is D-North. I'm now upstairs on the second floor. My new cell is located in the corner of the tier where I'm sandwiched between two other men, each of them on either side of me. I've known both of them for a long time, and we get along okay.

However, this portion of the tier forms into a "V" shape. As a result, there's not a lot of privacy between us. In fact, as to the man who's on my left side, his door is located about five feet directly in front of mine. This means that our cells, which have open bars in the front of them, face each other. Therefore he and I could see each other whenever we use the toilets. My other neighbor has his door only a few feet to my right. It's definitely not a comfortable arrangement for the three of us.

Furthermore, yesterday's move came as a surprise because the cell I went to had been unoccupied for a few months. Its radiator wasn't working. So the entire unit had to be pulled out from the wall by the maintenance crew and eventually replaced. The cell was dirty, too. Whoever lived there before me didn't make much of an effort to keep his living space clean. Therefore I've been scrubbing the walls and floor. I also disinfected the sink and toilet along with the wall locker that's bolted to one of the walls. Plus I've got to finish unpacking. It's a lot of work.

D.B.

Lately it appears as if the Lord is making sudden changes in my life. Yesterday I wrote about my move to a different cell, which came as a surprise. However, on the same day that I moved, in an unrelated matter, I was summoned to the "Program Committee" to see if I wanted to make a change in my work schedule.

Every prison in New York has what's called a Program Committee. As this facility the committee consists of a senior counselor, another counselor, a secretary, and a correction's sergeant. Their task is to assign inmates to a program. And this program, as it's officially called, could either be a work assignment, or a school assignment. For example, some prisoners have a job working in the kitchen, like me, while others may be assigned to either an academic program to help them get a General Equivalency Diploma (GED), or to a vocational training shop such as carpentry.

Usually, unless an inmate is confined to his cell for breaking the rules, or is too sick to work or attend classes, he's expected to have a program. Idleness is discouraged, or at least it's supposed to be. Yet many of the jobs which are available do not require more than 30 to 60 minutes of time per day, thus allowing for lots of idleness and boredom.

Thus my getting called to appear before the Program Committee was unexpected. I hadn't applied for a change of jobs. So I saw this as the hand of God. Therefore, after speaking to the four member panel, I opted to change my program from being a full-time kitchen worker (see my journal for August 2008), to going part-time in the kitchen, and returning to my former job in E-North, as well.

Now, instead of working in the kitchen form morning till evening, I will only be there from 8 A.M. to 12:30 P.M. Then, after a quick lunch, I will have to go to the facility's Intermediate Care Program to work as an aid. ICP houses the men who have emotional problems and coping difficulties. I'll be working with them each weekday until 3 P.M. However, E-North's ICP is more than just a job. To me, this is a ministry of love and compassion toward inmates who need tender care.

Yesterday I moved to a different cell. And on the same day I also received a change in my work assignment. It all happened suddenly.

D.B.

When Jesus traveled the earth He concerned himself with the plight of widows and orphans, as well as with the lives of prisoners and prostitutes, and anyone who was helpless. He ate with sinners, and with both the rich and poor. He would also free all those who were oppressed by demons.

Likewise, the Lord was not afraid to touch anyone who had leprosy, and oftentimes fatal disease that was spread by human contact. Then, with those same hands, He would pick up little children in His arms to bless them. And Jesus was also a healer of the deaf, blind and crippled. He could raise the dead, too.

Messiah Jesus is His name. He is the heavenly King who chose to leave His throne to dwell for a time with mankind. Disguising Himself in human form, and taking on the role of a servant to mankind while remaining as God, He came to earth to suffer as a man. He willingly endured endless temptations. Then He allowed himself to taste death by getting nailed to a cross. Yet He never sinned. But the Lord Jesus Christ is freely able to forgive those who have because He paid for their sins (and ours) with His own blood. What a great and wonderful God He is!

D.B.

I know that the Holy Spirit who lives inside me is infinitely more powerful and stronger than Satan, or any demons in existence. Nevertheless, there appears to be an extensive amount of satanic oppression in the housing unit where I live. And in such an overtly negative environment it's difficult for me to get things accomplished. Even writing seems to require extra effort and energy on my part. In addition, I'm often feeling tired, and I have to push myself to do chores or to get out of bed. It's as if something is pushing me backwards as I attempt to go forward. At times I feel as if my life force, for want of a better term, is being drained. This is frustrating!

Yet through the Lord's power, and His strength which works within my body, I am still able to get things done, albeit, slowly.

D.B.

Today I tried to challenge the church to seek a deeper relationship with the Lord. So at the prompting of the Holy Spirit I read a short portion from the little known Old Testament book of the prophet, Haggai. I then invited those who wanted to, to join me by lying face down on the floor of the chapel in order to prostrate ourselves before God as an act of humble adoration, worship and contrition.

I also told the congregation that it was optional. I would never order them to lie on a dirty floor, let alone with their clean Sunday clothing. I told them, too, that if any did not want to place his face to the floor, he could just as well pray from his seat. Yet many did get on the floor as we cried out to God asking for His forgiveness if in any way we have failed Him. And while we were doing this, the choir sang, "Holy, Holy, Holy," one of Christianity's classic hymns.

It was a very moving moment for the fifty or so prisoners who were present. It was not a show. Instead, as I told the men beforehand, "Our hearts need to be broken." Most, I think, understood this. Putting our bodies face down to the floor as, for us, and outward demonstration of the need to learn humility. The prophets of old often did the same. They were not too proud to bow to the One they called Lord.

And in the book of Revelation, I told the brothers, the twenty-four elders who sit encircled around the Throne of God, do something similar. They're seen in the Scriptures as casting their crowns before the Lord Jesus. Then they fall to the floor. "And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped Him that liveth for ever and ever (Revelation 5:14b)."

Today, in a New York State correctional facility, several dozen convicted felons were not ashamed to do likewise. For Jesus is worthy of our worship, as well.

D.B.

On Friday, October 10th, I went back to work in the prison's kitchen after an approximately two month medical lay off because of an infection. It was good to be back washing those pots and pans! I never thought I could be so happy just to have a scouring pad in my hand. But my body does need to re-adjust to the workload.

I was also glad to see some of my co-workers whom I could only get to see when I'm in the kitchen. Likewise the corrections officers and civilian staff who worked in the kitchen seemed pleased at my return. Hopefully my health will hold up so that I won't lose any more time at work. The infection I had in my right leg was probably the most serious medical problem I've ever had in my life.

In addition, on October 14th, I went back to my ministry in E-North where I am assigned on weekday afternoons. This is the cell block for the men who have various psychiatric problems. I was missing them a lot. And when I returned I found some new faces whom I want to get to know. I want to tell them about Jesus Christ and His love for them.

D.B.

This is one of my favorite verses in the Bible. Yet I oftentimes find it difficult to wait on God. This may be because I am, by nature, a hyperactive and impatient person. I find it easy to run ahead of the Lord, so to speak. Nevertheless, God has been patient with me. For without Him I could not accomplish anything of lasting spiritual value. Without the Lord I could spend energy doing things. But I'd be like the hamster that's stuck on a treadmill, always running, yet getting nowhere.

So, at this time, I am seeking God's guidance and direction concerning several personal matters while I continue to work in the prison's kitchen and as I also assist the inmates who live in the E-North housing area. I've been busy with chapel services and Bible studies, too.

Moreover, I am confident that, while I do not always hear the gentle voice of the Holy Spirit as clearly as I should at times, He continues to guide my steps. He is always in control, and every circumstance or situation that the Lord allows me to face is for a good purpose.

D.B.

The Lord gave me a wonderful deliverance today. He allowed me to move again. This was something I'd been fervently praying for. So this afternoon the answer came. I was sent across the facility to a different cell block.

In my journal entry for October 8th I wrote about my move from one floor to another in D-North. But now I was sent to B-North, which is the building that houses the kitchen workers; I'm one of them.

Moving to B-North was an answer to my prayers. It's quieter and more peaceful than my former living area, which was loud, oppressive and demonic. Of course there's a degree of wildness in B-North, too. After all, this is prison. Nevertheless I can see I'll have opportunities to share my faith in Christ with a new group of men. Moving into another cell block is a lot like moving into a new neighborhood or to a different town.

With this move, however, I've been afforded a better location in which to do my writing. I'm on the second floor, too. Here no gangs will gather and no inmates will wander aimlessly in front of my cell as they did when I lived in the other building. I've no doubt this change was a gift from God.

D.B.

I'd like to thank everyone who has been praying for my Dad, and for his beloved wife, Julia. She passed away last week. Obviously, my father is devastated. He and Julia had been married since 1970. And I pray that, somehow, near the end of her life Julia received Jesus (Yeshua) as her Messiah. For now, however, I want to share a portion of the letter my Dad wrote to me the day after Julia was buried:

"Dear David... Since the last letter I sent to you, things became worse for Julia, and she passed away on October 22nd. I had been seeing her every day before that. I was with her that day and in her sleep she was holding my arm so tightly and I could feel that she was crying to herself, but not shedding tears on the outside. She must have known that she was going to pass away. She died that very night. As I am writing these words my eyes are filled with tears. I have to stop writing until I get over it... Love, Dad."

I only wish I knew what had been transpiring in Julia's mind and heart shortly before her death. For a brief time she had been in a nursing home because she was suffering from dementia. And at the time of her passing she had for the most part been semi-comatose. Yet, somehow, according to my Dad, she became aware that her life was coming to a close. How did she know this? Why did Julia suddenly grip my father's hand when, prior to this, for many weeks she had been bedridden and mostly unresponsive to anything?

My earnest hope is that, in a unique and supernatural way, the Lord was reaching out to Julia and was speaking to her soul. Julia was a wonderful wife and companion for my Dad. I'm thankful to have known her.

D.B.

I believe that we are living in the a period of time in which, sadly, the church of the Lord Jesus Christ is being extensively influenced by modern day psychology and New Age mind-over-matter "positive thinking" and "positive confession" concepts, which are unbiblical. In fact such beliefs as "speaking things into existence" and "creating" your own reality, align themselves with the occult and witchcraft, and not with Christianity.

To me this is happening because the 21st Century church wants to be thought of as fashionable. We want to be admired and accepted, even though the Lord warned His disciples that we would be hated by the world (John 15:19 and 17:14). Yet we keep trying to make those who belong to this world's antichristian and anti-God system think that we're not so different or strange after all. Somehow we've been deceived into thinking that the world should love us, even when Jesus specifically told us that they will not.

Nevertheless, in what I believe to be the Laodicean church period that we are now in, we've managed to find ways to mix the Word of God with the world's contradictory philosophies and beliefs. Even worse, perhaps the truth is that many who profess faith in Christ really do not believe He is the only way to the Father ( John 14:6). Also, that Jesus is the answer to mankind's greatest needs.

I pray, therefore, that the church will become stronger in our confidence in Christ. And, speaking the truth in love, may we choose to go against the grain of this world's belief systems, to instead proclaim a genuine life changing and soul transforming faith which has power over sin. In addition, may we also experience what the Bible says God has for us: complete victory over the demonic powers of darkness and deception which keep men bound in ignorance.

Furthermore, may we comprehend the folly of the "name it and claim it" nonsense which, unfortunately, masquerades as truth to many. Yet it is nothing more than New Age manipulation. Instead, our hope and trust needs to be in God alone.

The church cannot afford to be double-minded when it comes to these matters.

D.B.