<![CDATA[AriseandShine.org - August 2008]]>Fri, 13 Mar 2026 10:35:02 -0600Weebly<![CDATA[True Freedom]]>Sat, 30 Aug 2008 02:07:38 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/true-freedomIf the Son therefore shall make
you free, ye shall be free indeed. 
John 8:36

I have now been in prison for 31 years... 
However, I recall a time, several decades ago, when I thought there was no hope for me. I saw myself as having no purpose in life, no future, and no reason to live. I also believed that God had utterly rejected me. There was no forgiveness and no mercy, but I was so very wrong.

It would be approximately ten years into my prison sentence before I was to learn that Satan had been lying to me. I'd been deceived into thinking that because I once made a pact with the Devil, he would therefore have ownership of me, forever. I would be his possession, always.

During this dark period of my life, I was in a state of mental confusion as well as rebellion. I became very psychotic, and I saw myself as a soldier for Satan who had to serve his wishes at all costs. I was supposed to sacrifice young persons in order to satisfy Satan's thirst for fresh blood. I was trying to appease a demonic entity known as "Samhain," the god of Druids. Sam wanted blood and relished death. The demons who also accompanied him desired acts of destruction, and I ignorantly allowed them to use my body as a vessel of evil. How I regret this! I'm so very sorry for the pain I've brought to many families by believing such lies and falsehoods.

But thanks to Jesus Christ, I don't believe in the Devil anymore. Yes, he exists, yet he is no match for the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Now I know the Truth, and this truth is a person. It is Jesus, Himself. He alone has made me free, and Satan no longer has any claim on my life.

Christ has indeed granted me a wonderful freedom which cannot be affected by adverse circumstances - not even jail. Now I am forgiven. I have peace. I have hope. I'm truly free.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Jesus & Suffering]]>Fri, 29 Aug 2008 02:05:45 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/jesus-sufferingThe Son of man must suffer many
things, and be rejected of the elders
and chief priests and scribes, and be
slain, and be raised the third day. 
Luke 9:22

From the above passage, we see that Jesus experienced "many" hardships... 
...during His 3 1/2 years of public ministry, which began with His baptism by John, followed by being tempted in the desert for forty days.

Then, throughout the remainder of His days on earth leading up to His crucifixion and His triumphant victory over death and the grave, the Lord had to endure hunger, thirst, long journeys on foot, exhaustion, rejection, and plots against His life. Jesus was even accused of being a worker of "Beelzebub," who was the chief of devils, namely Satan. How the religious rulers hated Him and continually trashed His name.

And we, too, may very well find ourselves being lied about, bullied, passed over for rewards and promotions, or mocked and rejected because of our walk with Christ, and because of our testimony that we belong to Him. Yet just as the Lord refused to be deterred from completing His mission, which was to die for our sins, we should likewise refuse to shrink back from serving the Savior and proclaiming His wonderful name.

Yet, Christ experienced many injustices at the hands of both the political and religious establishments of His day. We may experience the same. But as this verse from the Gospel of Luke proclaims, although Jesus was slain on a Roman cross, He arose in three days. For the Lord had the power to lay down His life, and to pick it up again. However, may I say that we, too, through the empowering of the Holy Spirit who now lives in every "born again" believer, has the same power inside us. In other words, just as Jesus triumphed over hardship and suffering, we can do the same.

Of course, this is not to say that we won't have to face pain and difficulties, because we will. But the victory comes in knowing that our suffering is only for a short time when compared to the length of eternity. Thankfully, there's a "third day" for us, as well. And this is because we've already been raised with Christ.

Therefore, let us continue to endure whatever problems and difficulties may come our way. It will all be worth it in the end.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Pain & Patience]]>Sat, 23 Aug 2008 02:04:03 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/pain-patienceTake, my brethren, the prophets,
who have spoken in the name of the
Lord, for an example of suffering
affliction, and of patience. 
James 5:10

I am now settled back in my cell after ten days of hospitalization as a result of a painful infection...
The prison's doctor has me taking an antibiotic called "Levofloxacin" three times per day in 500 mg size pills. I must continue to take antibiotics for at least a month, or longer if necessary.

Right now, however, I am enjoying two additional weeks being medically excused from work as my right knee and leg continue to heal. I still feel weak, too. Yet I'm doing much better.

And along this line, the Lord has been teaching me about the paradox between affliction and patience, and how they can work together for my good. Many times, I do not understand why I must go through difficult situations. Yet, as stated in the above passage from the letter of James, one can be faithfully serving the Lord, yet be undergoing hardships at the same time. But the thing to remember is that, no matter what the situation, God is always in control. There's a purpose for everything.

My responsibility, therefore, is to simply trust in the Lord, and to remain patient as I allow Him to do whatever is needed in my life at the moment. After all, the Lord knows what's best.

And here is a well-known passage of Scripture to back this up. "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths" (Proverbs 3:5-6).

Thus, while I've just undergone a period of tremendous pain with a leg that was filled with pus, I was able to remain at peace. In this instance, pain and patience worked together to help my faith to grow.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Hospital, Day 10]]>Thu, 21 Aug 2008 02:01:51 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/hospital-day-10I'm out! 
I was released from the hospital, and I'm back in my cell. The housing area is as wild and noisy as ever. The solitude and quiet I enjoyed for almost two weeks has ended. But I'm here with my typewriter and in familiar surroundings once again.

I've got a pile of letters to answer. I just finished doing an hour's worth of dusting because, in my absence, dust seemed to settle everywhere. It will take a few days at least to get things put back in order and to re-adjust to the hectic pace of life in the prison's general population. In addition, I'm still on a work restriction. The doctor is going to be monitoring me closely. He told me, when I first admitted, that if the infection had gotten worse I could've lost my leg. Whew!

I still have pain in and around the knee cap. There's some noticeable swelling, too. Obviously, I need a little more time to fully heal. I'm doing much better, however. The Lord has been watching over me, and while I was in the hospital I got plenty of much-needed rest.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Hospital, Day 9]]>Wed, 20 Aug 2008 02:00:17 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/hospital-day-9It's my ninth day of being confined to an isolation room in the hospital...
It's still early as I write these words in my pad. Breakfast is yet to arrive. I was up early - perhaps two A.M. I couldn't fall back to sleep, so I decided to go into a prolonged time of prayer. I talked with the Lord about many things, including some personal issues and concerns. There are times when I'd share various matters with Jesus that I would not share with even my dearest friends. I know He hears me. I know He cares. It's good, and even therapeutic, to open my heart to God and to give Him all my troubles.

Now I have the rest of my day to spend alone. I like the solitude. It's a pleasant reprieve from the constant noise and commotion of the cell block. Yet, at the same time, I find myself saying to God, "Okay, Lord. Enough already. Please get me out of here."

I think that being confined like this gives me the feeling that life is going on without me, that my life is on hold. I miss the chapel crew. I have a pile of letters with me that I want to answer since the mail is being delivered to my room. I also want to transfer my hospital writings over to typing paper. For now, I've only been able to scribble with a pen. I hope to leave as soon as I can.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Hospital, Day 8]]>Tue, 19 Aug 2008 01:58:45 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/hospital-day-8Bad news! 
I met with the doctor shortly after breakfast. As is his custom, he would make his rounds every weekday morning and visit each patient at his bedside. Well, when I saw how pleased he was with my progress, I thought for sure that I'd be allowed to return to my cell later today. After all, I've now been in the hospital for more than a week.

Unfortunately, however, and to my surprise, the doctor told both myself and the nurse who was accompanying him, that he wanted to keep me under observation for "several more days." This is prison lingo, which could mean anything from 'several more days' to many weeks.

I was disappointed. A week of solitude and quiet is nice, but I'm a workaholic (smile!) with a ministry. I've got lots of tasks to complete. For now, though, it looks as if I'm going to remain in this "medical monastery" a while longer.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Hospital, Day 7]]>Mon, 18 Aug 2008 01:57:05 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/hospital-day-7Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, who has blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ. 
Ephesians 1:3

God has put me on my present path... 
And while I do not always understand His ways, I must rejoice and be thankful in my situation. It is definitely less than ideal, but I am learning through a week's worth of confinement how to live with simplicity and contentment.

When I first arrived here, I could hardly walk. The pain was severe, and the facility's doctor spoke of sending me to an outside hospital because my leg looked very bad. This would've been the case if it had gotten worse.

However, now that I am doing much better, I'm eager to return to my cell and to rejoin my friends in church. I don't think it will be too much longer before I'm discharged.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Hospital, Day 6]]>Sun, 17 Aug 2008 01:55:00 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/hospital-day-6It has been a week of rest and reflection for me...
My right leg is getting better, but there's still a moderate amount of pain remaining in and around the kneecap. My leg also feels weak, but the swelling is going down. This is a good sign that the infection is under control. God has been good to me.

Now the hard part is looking out my window at a beautiful blue sky and a sun that's shining in its yellow brilliance. The day looks so perfect. But I have to lie here like an old man.

I feel like a shut-in who can do nothing but look out my window and watch the clouds go by. While I need this time of prolonged rest, I'm also dreaming of getting out of here.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Hospital, Day 5]]>Sat, 16 Aug 2008 01:53:18 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/hospital-day-5I feel somewhat stronger this morning...
I got up early, maybe around six o'clock. I can only guess because there's no clock in my room, and my wristwatch is in my cell.

I did try to do some stretching exercises while lying on my bed. I'm awaiting the results of my blood test and x-rays, which were both taken a few days ago.

Fortunately, I've got a writing pad and a pen with me. I've got my Bible, too. But I miss my typewriter. I also miss being with my friends.

I also wish I could discard my funky underwear. I've been living here in the same clothes since I was admitted on Monday. However, a change into fresh clothes will have to wait until I'm released, hopefully, some time next week.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Hospital, Day 4]]>Fri, 15 Aug 2008 01:51:20 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/hospital-day-4I have been sleeping on and off throughout the day... 
The constant pain has rendered me feeling tired and weak. 

​I'm also concerned about the possible side effects from the medications I'm being given. I have to take a powerful antibiotic which has the potential, according to its warning notice, to cause problems to my intestines. In addition, the pain medication I've been prescribed has been known to cause damage to one's stomach lining or even injure the liver. Pretty scary!

I try to eat all my meals even though I haven't had an appetite. It's the typical bland prison food. But I have to force myself to eat because I cannot take these kinds of medications on an empty stomach.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Hospital, Day 3]]>Thu, 14 Aug 2008 01:49:42 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/hospital-day-3Let me give you a description of my room... 
I'm on the second floor of a four-story hospital, to include a basement, which is located on the grounds of Sullivan Correctional Facility.

I must say, however, that it is not exactly like a regular hospital. It's really half hospital and half prison, if this makes any sense. While civilian nurses are on duty in addition to other personnel whom you'd find on staff in any hospital, there are also correction officers on duty at all times. They provide the security. They patrol the building and open and close doors. Therefore, I am always locked in my room. There are no steel bars here. But to gain entry to where I am, a guard has to accompany the nurse and unlock the door in order to come in. All rooms are like this. I'm not under any special watch. Yet unlike a normal hospital, I cannot come and go as I want. It's a paradoxical situation in which I am both a patient and a prisoner.

My room is approximately 15 x 20 feet. There's a small steel table in one corner that's bolted to the wall, with a small backless steel stool that's bolted to the floor. If I could get to this little table which is directly across from my bed, I could sit on the stool where I'd have to bend my legs inward. Thus, for now, I just try to prop myself up o my bed where I can do my writing and reading. It's not very comfortable, but it works.

Furthermore, sitting on top of this small table is a medium size color television. I tried out the TV. I can get about a dozen basic stations. Some of them come in cloudy, while other stations are okay. The TV looks as if it's at least ten years old, but at least it works. I'm often too tired to watch it, however. The television is here to keep a man who's assigned to the isolation room (like me) from going stir-crazy.

Then there's my bed, which is your standard hospital type item. And there is a plastic-covered lounge chair just parallel to the bed. Its back is on an angle, which makes it more comfortable to sit in. Still, it's a cheap product. But at least it's better than the metal or hard plastic chairs inmates usually have to sit on in church, school, the visiting room, or in the prison's library.

Next there is a stainless-steel single unit combination toilet seat and small sink. Then there's a stainless-steel shower stall which is specifically designed for use by someone who is handicapped. It has steel grips on its sides and a metal seat for a crippled person to sit on while he's in the shower. You press a button to start the water flowing, and press the same button again to make it stop. The pressure is very low, however. The water temperature is also preset. The shower is made so that an adult can squeeze into it and get a light spray from the overhead nozzle to wash yourself with.

Every several hours, a nurse will come into my room to either issue me my medicines or take my blood pressure and my temperature. Of course, a correction officer is always present; he must accompany her. While three times per day, an inmate orderly will come in with a guard to hand me my plastic food tray and a cup of milk or juice, he'll also ask if I need anything like toilet paper or a bar of soap. If my small plastic trash can is full, he'll empty it. Then the orderly and guard will leave. This is the extent of my human contact.

It's not the Hilton Hotel. But I've no complaints. I'm making do with the situation. I love the quiet. It's just me and Jesus together. I pray, read my Bible, write in my journal, and I mostly sleep. I need to be here. My body has been begging for rest for a long time.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Hospital, Day 2]]>Wed, 13 Aug 2008 01:47:50 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/hospital-day-2While in the quiet of my hospital room, it has dawned on me that I've been privileged to enter into what I would call a "medical" monastery...
I don't know how else to describe it. After years of living in a perpetually noisy and chaotic environment known as "general population," here I sit in almost total silence. The only sounds I hear are those of the birds as they sing in the small yard that's outside my sealed window, or the occasional low rattle of a metal hospital cart as a nurse pushes it down the corridor outside my door. Then there's the steady hum of the ventilation system as it circulates and changes the air. For me, this is about as close to paradise as one can get without having to die.

I'm in lots of pain. I wonder, too, if this is what it feels like when a man is about to have his leg amputated. I don't want to find out. However, I've never slept so much in my life. Today I slept from breakfast to lunch. Then, shortly after lunch, I feel asleep again, only to awaken when the inmate orderly came in with my supper.

It's the start of the evening now. There's no clock in here, but I can see that it's getting dark outside. I'm forcing myself to stay awake long enough to write these words in my journal via pad and pen.

I'm very tired. I'm going to lie down. But this must surely be what it's like to be cloistered inside of a monastery. Nothing is stirring or moving but the air. Ah, peace and quiet!

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Hospital, Day 1]]>Tue, 12 Aug 2008 01:46:14 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/hospital-day-1This morning I was admitted to the hospital which is located on the grounds of the prison...
The hospital has one doctor who's assigned to it along with about ten nurses who are divided up into three shifts. It's a small staff overall, who have to cover about 40 beds.

Right now, I'm in my own room. The doctor thinks it's a staph infection. My right leg is hideously swollen, especially around the knee cap. I can barely walk. The pain is awful.

For now, I am handwriting my journal on a lined, yellow "Legal" pad. Later, when I leave here and return to my cell, and to my trusty typewriter, I will re-write this entry and any others I manage to pen while I'm here.

I'm too weak to say more. I need to rest. However, I cannot believe the quiet. I'm now in a smoke-free, noise free environment. Amazing! It feels as if I have stepped into another world.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Pain]]>Sun, 10 Aug 2008 01:44:38 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/painIn all this Job sinned not,
nor charged God foolishly. 
Job 1:22

For the past three days, I've been confined to my cell because of a medical restriction...
I'm in horrific, teeth-grinding pain. And I've spent these days mostly resting on my bunk. My right knee swelled up. It looks hideous as well. I've had knee injuries before, but never like this.

On the morning of August 7th I reported for sick call because by this time I could barely walk. The nurse took one look at my right leg, immediately put a handful of anti-inflammatory painkiller pills into my hands, and promptly filled out a medical restriction form. No work, confinement to my cell except for a daily shower, and I'm to stay off my feet as much as possible.

Coincidently, in my journal for August 15th, I wrote that various parts of my body had begun to protest my new job in the kitchen. And my right leg is protesting now with a deep and gnawing pain that makes sleep difficult and walking nearly impossible. But I won't blame God for this. My body needs to get used to hard work.

D.B.
]]><![CDATA[Three Shifts]]>Wed, 06 Aug 2008 01:42:59 GMThttps://www.ariseandshine.org/august-2008/three-shiftsRight now, I'm on my morning break... 
I finished my AM shift at 10 o'clock and was allowed to return to my cell. At 12 noon, however, I must report back to work and will get off between two and 2:30. Then I return to the kitchen for my third and final shift, which is from 4 o'clock to 7:30.

And it so happens that my legs and lower back are very much aware of my work schedule and what my job entails. They're not in approval of this at all. Neither do my kneecaps like the work. In fact, my right kneecap has begun to protest loudly. I awoke this morning to find it swollen and in pain.

Of course, my body's parts could protest and complain and ache all they want. I just pray none of them decide to quit on me.

D.B.
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