Your word is a lamp to my
feet and a light to my path.
Psalm 119:105
The chapel had fifty-three men in attendance this morning...
feet and a light to my path.
Psalm 119:105
The chapel had fifty-three men in attendance this morning...
I know that, whether it is a Sunday, or any other day, many prisoners live with overwhelming dejection.
Their guilt-ridden hearts long for things that, due to their current circumstances, are not possible. For many of them, former relationships have ended. Family members have died or moved on with their lives. Appeals in the courts have been denied. And with the passing of time, it is easy for a man to gradually lose hope.
In such an environment, it is common for prisoners to carry a lot of negative baggage with them. One's pain can be very real, even if it is primarily emotional in nature. Yet on this particular day, for whatever reasons, the men who gathered this morning for worship seemed to be more lively than usual. There seemed to be an unusual energy in the air. The typical number of gloomy or blank faces that one would normally see were few in number. I was of course happy to see this.
Certainly the chapel, and the friendly fellowship we have, is not a cure-all for the deep hurts these men carry with them. But our being able to gather together for worship and prayer, and to learn more about God, helps us to better cope with incarceration. In addition, God's word, by its very power, can be an effective ointment for a wounded soul or a broken heart.
Indeed, as King David penned in the one hundred and nineteenth psalm, God's word is a trustworthy guide for one's life. It is a light for his path. Besides, when a person has Jesus Christ as his Savior and Lord, he will never walk alone.
D.B.
Their guilt-ridden hearts long for things that, due to their current circumstances, are not possible. For many of them, former relationships have ended. Family members have died or moved on with their lives. Appeals in the courts have been denied. And with the passing of time, it is easy for a man to gradually lose hope.
In such an environment, it is common for prisoners to carry a lot of negative baggage with them. One's pain can be very real, even if it is primarily emotional in nature. Yet on this particular day, for whatever reasons, the men who gathered this morning for worship seemed to be more lively than usual. There seemed to be an unusual energy in the air. The typical number of gloomy or blank faces that one would normally see were few in number. I was of course happy to see this.
Certainly the chapel, and the friendly fellowship we have, is not a cure-all for the deep hurts these men carry with them. But our being able to gather together for worship and prayer, and to learn more about God, helps us to better cope with incarceration. In addition, God's word, by its very power, can be an effective ointment for a wounded soul or a broken heart.
Indeed, as King David penned in the one hundred and nineteenth psalm, God's word is a trustworthy guide for one's life. It is a light for his path. Besides, when a person has Jesus Christ as his Savior and Lord, he will never walk alone.
D.B.
RSS Feed