And the King shall answer and say unto them,
Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one
of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto Me.
Matthew 25:40
I am now fully settled back in my old cell...
Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one
of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto Me.
Matthew 25:40
I am now fully settled back in my old cell...
And even though I had only been living at the Special Needs Unit (SNU) for five days, moving to E-South only because there happened to be a vacant cell available until the construction work was finished, my days in SNU were very rewarding.
While these men are officially labeled as having an assortment of disabilities, to me these are decent guys who've gotten bad breaks in life. Some, I'm sure, were born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Their mothers were abusers of alcohol. And others had mothers who were on drugs. These men came into the world damaged and addicted, with underdeveloped brains.
Over the years, as I'd gotten to know many of them, they'd share their histories with me. They've come from an array of backgrounds, too, while a number confessed to being homeless even as teenagers. The Special Needs Unit has a litany of sad tales.
Yet there are also men in E-South who are my brothers in Christ. In spite of their individual learning disabilities and mental problems, they're some of the most avid attenders of the prison's chapel services and Bible studies. Their low reading levels may slow them down, but they're quite enthusiastic when it comes to studying the Bible and learning about Jesus Christ.
One man I was able to sit down at a table in the E-South day room and talk at length with was Rick. He's from the island of Jamaica in the Caribbean Ocean. Now about thirty years old, when he was a child, he told me, his mother used to take him to church. "All the kids in my family went," Rick said, "With no exceptions." But Rick told me he liked going. Church was a way of life for his family on that tropical island. Yet as he got older, however, the gangs lured him away. When he was still a young boy, Rick said he'd escaped death when a terrible explosion occurred inside the home of another family member. Something had gone awry with the propane tank that was being used for cooking and heating. Rick's convinced that God protected him. No one died. But his body is badly scarred as a result.
As he and I were sitting at the table, Rick got up, lifted his shirt, and showed me a big burn mark across his stomach and along much of his left side. His hands and face have scarring too.
Rick told me that he prays a lot and often read his Bible. He's been to the prison's chapel a few times, but Rick is very shy and reserved, and he doesn't want to make a commitment. I told Rick that I will be praying for him. He's one of many spiritually needy men inside the SNU.
D.B.
While these men are officially labeled as having an assortment of disabilities, to me these are decent guys who've gotten bad breaks in life. Some, I'm sure, were born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Their mothers were abusers of alcohol. And others had mothers who were on drugs. These men came into the world damaged and addicted, with underdeveloped brains.
Over the years, as I'd gotten to know many of them, they'd share their histories with me. They've come from an array of backgrounds, too, while a number confessed to being homeless even as teenagers. The Special Needs Unit has a litany of sad tales.
Yet there are also men in E-South who are my brothers in Christ. In spite of their individual learning disabilities and mental problems, they're some of the most avid attenders of the prison's chapel services and Bible studies. Their low reading levels may slow them down, but they're quite enthusiastic when it comes to studying the Bible and learning about Jesus Christ.
One man I was able to sit down at a table in the E-South day room and talk at length with was Rick. He's from the island of Jamaica in the Caribbean Ocean. Now about thirty years old, when he was a child, he told me, his mother used to take him to church. "All the kids in my family went," Rick said, "With no exceptions." But Rick told me he liked going. Church was a way of life for his family on that tropical island. Yet as he got older, however, the gangs lured him away. When he was still a young boy, Rick said he'd escaped death when a terrible explosion occurred inside the home of another family member. Something had gone awry with the propane tank that was being used for cooking and heating. Rick's convinced that God protected him. No one died. But his body is badly scarred as a result.
As he and I were sitting at the table, Rick got up, lifted his shirt, and showed me a big burn mark across his stomach and along much of his left side. His hands and face have scarring too.
Rick told me that he prays a lot and often read his Bible. He's been to the prison's chapel a few times, but Rick is very shy and reserved, and he doesn't want to make a commitment. I told Rick that I will be praying for him. He's one of many spiritually needy men inside the SNU.
D.B.
