A Letter from Prison

Another letter came from my friend in prison in East Texas last week. We corresponded regularly during the long period he was incarcerated locally awaiting trial, and then continued to do so after he was sentenced to life in prison in the spring of 2010.

I came to know him when our associate minister befriended him and brought him to our Tuesday morning men’s prayer breakfast. He was in the process of getting into the Word and giving his life to Christ. As he surrendered his life to the Savior, his conscience was quickened and motivated him to confess that fourteen years before, he had killed his wife. He then surrendered to the authorities, pled guilty, and awaited punishment for his crime.

The ugliness of his crime was the centerpiece of his trial, and he prepared himself to accept whatever verdict was handed down. Through it all, it troubled me that there seemed to be an absolutely harsh rejection of any consideration that this was not the same man who had done the heinous crime. Yes, he needed to be punished, he expected to be punished, but it seemed to me so very cruel not to mention that the reason he had come forward and confessed his wrong was his rejection of his lifestyle of the past.

True to his newfound commitment to Christ, he took the verdict without a whimper. That commitment has remained strong as he has adjusted to prison life. He is resigned to be a witness for the Savior in the harsh environment.

His letters are liberally laced with Scripture. He loves to write of his freedom in Christ. He fusses at himself when he is inclined to whine, seeks prayer and encouragement when the going gets tough. Here is an excerpt from this last letter detailing his latest "challenge" (as he put it).

"Here is a picture of my current situation here in prison. I have a new ‘celly’ (roomy). We live two men in a cell. All types of men live and work here. My room is a Christian room, a Christian environment. Christ lives in me and the Holy Spirit is welcome in this place. I have not as yet led a man to Christ, but I am a field worker. Seeds are planted, watered, weeded, prayed over. The #1 fruit, love, is lived out daily (but not perfectly). The man I now have as a ‘celly’ is challenging the limits of my heart. He is here for raping/murdering an old woman. . . He has no remorse. He has no social skills, manners, respect for persons, space or property. He wants his ‘rights’ and all else be damned. He is dirty, does not clean or help clean, etc. He is a passive bully.

"Yet I continue to show him respect, treat him in a way I’m sure he is not used to, with patience and long-suffering. Now, I’m not patting myself on the back. This is spiritual fruit budding in my life and that is to God’s glory and honor. I am being what Christ is doing in me, for me through me. He is (has) given me the honor of seeing through His eyes, hearing with His ears, feeling with His heart; still I’m tired. I’m not sleeping much. I’m constantly hungry. It’s hard to rest (relax) in my cell because he never leaves, never shares the cell. I’m not complaining, but . . . "

He went on to appeal for communication with me and others for words of encouragement.

Here is a fellow who is incarcerated, yet his redemption in Christ brings freedom and joy in serving the Lord where he is. He is very much alive with faith, hope, and love. He has been made "free indeed" by Christ Jesus (John 8:36).

He can teach us much. His letter continues: "For so many years I did not sow good seed in good soil. Now, these past years I can say I have. The Lord is faithful to His Word, His promises. He is not an automatic dispenser—giving on command of the proper buttons being pushed. No, He is God Almighty, Sovereign in all things and ways. He is over every molecule in existence. He created them. He created us. He is the loving Father that most people never knew. They find it hard to trust Him to be that perfect loving Father, yet He is and knows how to reach His children."

He included this scripture: "By the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not without effect" 1 Cor. 15:10.

"I was in prison and you came to Me." – Matt. 25:36

Joe Baisden

Belton, Texas

Vengeance is Mine

Paul ends chapter 12 of Romans with these words. “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Evil is such a blunt word. I prefer a softer word like ‘bad’. Evil conjures up all sorts of dark images…like holocaust, murder, perversion and the sort. What surprises me is the context of this passage. Paul is talking about conceit and vengeance. He even says in verse 17 ‘repay no one evil for evil.’ This idea of getting along and being noble is a good idea in a perfect world but what about this world? Could Paul actually say you shouldn’t get even?


This takes us back to David when he is in the cave with Saul. Saul is committing all kinds of evil against David…even trying to kill him. David can kill Saul with one blow and the evil Saul will be stopped. David’s problems will be solved. So why doesn’t he kill Saul? The truth is, if he kills Saul, Saul will be dead but David will now be like Saul. Saul’s sin, evil, was not trusting God. Saul took matters into his own hands. Saul, not God, ruled his life. The moment David kills Saul, he becomes like Saul. Evil will overcome him. So, ‘do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.’


Dear God, You know everything. You are everywhere and you are always good. I would not know what good is if it were not for you. Please forgive my haughtiness, my conceit and my arrogance. When I think I know best. When I seek to set things straight. When I refuse to trust you to do right. This is such an awful sin. I’m so ashamed! Please forgive me. I know more about evil than I should. Help me to do good and over come evil. Give me wisdom to know the difference.
In the name of Your Son who overcame the world. Amen


Paul Shero
San Angelo, Texas

The Real Me

I have grown up in a society that teaches me to not show my weaknesses nor admit to them, to pick myself up by my bootstraps and soldier on, to be strong, to play through pain, to keep people off-guard and above all else, to be wary of who I trust. Trust has been a difficult issue for me and for many I know.

People, friends even, talk about us behind our back, tell things about us that aren’t true, or worse, are true and we hoped no one would ever know. The people closest to us hurt us, our parents, our children, our spouses and then want us to trust them. Some even expect it, trust to follow the pain they caused. And what about our sin? We can’t go forward at church because people are going to want to know what we did and, if the sin is big enough, may not want to be around us much or will treat us like damaged goods. We can’t tell our spouse because they may realize we have a problem that affects the marriage. We can’t tell our friend because they won’t let us teach class or think of us as a leader in the church. We don’t trust people because we would be so vulnerable.

1 John 1:8-9 says, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” Confess. That takes trust but that makes me nervous, even with Jesus. You see, I’ve sinned so much that I know he’s bound to get tired of forgiving me and I’ve sinned so much that I’ve started to believe that is who I am, a sinner beyond help. On the other hand, I know Jesus knows me and isn’t surprised so I can pray to him, tell him what I did and ask for forgiveness and I’ll be okay. Right? James 5:16 says, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” Say what? Tell someone else? TRUST them with my darkest, stinkiest, nastiest secrets?

Jesus wants us to live in trust. Not a cautious, wary trust but a wide-open, bold trust. The trust Jesus has given me is the trust he wants me to give others. Over the last few years, I’ve often wondered what it would be like if Jesus extended trust to me like I have so often extended it to others, the old “fool me once, shame on you but fool me twice and I’ll write you off” type of trust giving. If Jesus uses my old methods, I’m lost...but he doesn’t. Jesus boldly extends trust to me.

There’s a parable that I call the parable of the incredibly loving father because Jesus tells a story of a son who took off to live a life of wild parties and good time and ends up coming home willing to be a slave but the father won’t hear of it. Instead, the father throws the best party the kid has ever seen because the father loves the son so deeply. The father doesn’t say, be my servant for awhile and if I find you trustworthy I’ll give you a little more. No, the father throws a huge party. How often have I done that for others. Even worse, how often have I thought that God won’t treat me that way. I’m worse than that guy was. My sins are more horrific. My failures are too oft-repeated. God can’t love me that way. Can he?

In the past I have been nervous about confessing my sins to God. In the past, I have been mortified about confessing my sins to other people. In the past, I couldn’t imagine that God would ever trust me again. Hallelujah, today I know differently and I hope you do to. There is power in confession and there is certainly healing. I have story after story of the strongest bonds with God and people I have ever known gained through confession. Today, I trust God completely because I understand he will continue to trust me and I am learning more and more to give trust to others as God has given it to me. I believe trust is given, never earned, because that is how our Creator, our Savior, our Lord trusts.

Jeff Jones
Decatur, Texas

Radical is Normal

The word “radical” is so frequently thrown around in Christian communities today. You’ve probably heard it: “Live radically for the kingdom! We are called to a radical way of life!” I think it’s kind of a hyperbole. “Really? An elephant is big? Oh. Wow! Thank you for pointing that out for me. I don’t know how I hadn’t noticed.” That’s the analogy that my mind immediately makes when I think of the word “radical” as it pertains to the Jesus-Mission: “Really? The Jesus-Mission is radical? Oh. Wow! Thank you for pointing that out for me. I don’t know how I hadn’t noticed.”

Perhaps this is true for those who know nothing of the Jesus-Mission, that is, picking up your cross as you die daily to the desires of the flesh and choose to live the way Jesus did, instead.

The Jesus-Mission is radical and the Jesus-Mission is normal. It’s both. But the question applies to both sides of that coin: Compared to what? If we’re going by the standard set by Jesus Himself, the way our current definition of “radical” calls us to live is actually pretty normal. In the context of our calling, we’re mediocre at best. So, what about in the context of our culture? Well, that requires an even more specific contextualization. All these things that we think are radical—choosing to worship out in the dirt under the trees instead of in a glitzy building, spending minimally on food and clothing and toys, living simply and focusing on delving into true community because it’s all we have to cling to—are everyday life in some other cultures, and not even by choice. In Christian communities outside of middle-class America, “radical” is just normal. In those contexts, you look foolish for commending yourself for your lifestyle, because you’re just…normal.

I don’t really care what we call it, honestly, radical or normal, but we should just shut up and strive for it. You think Christians in rural Africa or Mexico or even the most impoverished areas of the United States walk around talking about how “radical” they are? No way. Paul didn’t walk around bragging about walking worthy of the calling set before him (because that’s the point of being radical in the first place, right?). Nope. He walked it and invited other people to walk with him. He also said that if he does decide to boast, it’ll only be in the Lord, not in his own radical lifestyle. Besides, if we’re really living in a way that is radical within our own cultural context, two things will likely happen. The people within that context who do not know Jesus will think we are insane and will probably treat us like social outcasts. The people who do know Jesus will feel extremely uncomfortable, because in seeing how radically we live, they will not be able to stand their own consciences.

If we haven’t experienced either of these, we shouldn’t be talking so much about living radically, because we aren’t. It’s not about trying to be marginalized; it’s just the nature of our calling. The gospels and Acts aren’t really suggestions or entertaining anecdotes about the kind of lifestyle we should pursue. Our culture today isn’t any less brutal (albeit in a different way) than the one we read about in the New Testament. If they were persecuted, we should expect the same treatment. Because if we’re truly living out the Jesus-Mission, it’s inevitable.

I’m not radical. I’m pretty normal. But, hey, I’m trying, and grace abounds for my weakness and selfishness that calls me back into the former way of things. It abounds for yours, too. So, we can pick up our crosses side by side and keep walking, in hope and joy. Before “being radical,” there was the Jesus-Mission. It’s of first importance.

"Sometimes I would like to ask God why He allows poverty, suffering, and injustice when He could do something about it."

"Well, why don't you ask Him?"

"Because I'm afraid He would ask me the same question."

I Corinthians 4:6-17

Father,

Teach us to pursue purpose, not just passion, love in deed, not just word, and lives that look more like the ones that we read about in Your holy scriptures. Give us a greater understand of what it means to take up our crosses, so that when we throw around words with heavy weight, we will not throw them around in vain. Thank you for loving us when we are arrogant and misguided. We want to love you more.

Through Jesus, the one who created the mission that we cling to,
Amen.

Erin E. Daugherty, Abilene Christian University