BLESSED IS THE MAN
Blessed Is The Man“Blessed is the man who walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, norstandeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in His law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”Psalm 1; 1-3
As a Christian inmate currently working on his 30th year of incarceration, I think women and men like myself have an unfair advantage over those Christians who have never done any time in prison: We have nothing but time...Time to worship, praise, fellowship and change not only our own lives, but the lives of those people who come in contact with us. We have nothing but time to mediate on HisWord day and night.
I don't know your situation, but with the exception of the couple of years Iattended that private Christian school in 1978, 1979 and 1980, my mother and my grandmother were the only two Christians I was in close contact with until I came to prison. I was always in situations where there were few, if any people who believed in Jesus Christ. Be it at regular school, work, the military or just day-to-day social interactions...there was no one to fellowship with. In freedom, it is obvious to me that you have to put that much more effort into staying connected with fellow Christians, church, etc... than you have to in jail or prison.
It makes me laugh when I hear Christian inmates get accused of being stereotypical inmates; That is, that we all come to prison, pump iron, and find Jesus. One could only hope. But in that critique is the insinuation that we are in sincere Christians, or somehow "lesser-than..."
What people fail to sometimes realize is that for some folks, prison is rockbottom. (And strangely enough for some people, it is not.) Rock bottom is cold.Rock bottom is hard and ungiving. However, for many of us here, it represented the firm foundation on which to regain our footing on. At rock bottom, you have two choices: lay there and die...or stand up. You can wallow in the misery of your existence, or reach for the hand of Jesus Christ.
I've never been around more devout Christians, Muslims, and Jews in my life than am right now. At face value, everyone is involved. As Christians, in thisInsideChurch, we are dedicated to building and maintaining our community. In Centralia, each dorm has about 90 inmates. 10of us are regular church goingChristians....there are 13 other dorms just like mine.
So, it is easy to see why there are three church services on Sundays...it is easy to understand how there are 15 or 16 men in the choir.Something is happening in our church all day, every day. And everyone knows everyone, so if you are missing inaction too many times, someone will ask about you. If it seems like you are struggling, someone will come to your aid. Even back at the dorm, during the week, there are still enough Christians to have a nice, tight bubble of support. After all, prison is prison, and no matter how posh it seems, prisons are still the armpits of the world. Prisons can be the worst elements of this world concentrated on a few acres of land, making the need for true fellowship that much more vital. It is easy to get caught up in the nonsense and politics of day-to-day prison life. That is why it is a must to always don the full armour of God when you are behind bars...and there is no better time to pump iron, either. (Smile!)
The Blood of Jesus Christ washes away all of our sins, but not all of our problems. So, if you dealt with anger, addiction, or any other issues before you accepted Jesus Christ, when you do become saved, you are a Christian with the exact same issues that need to be dealt with head on.
For most people who struggle with addiction or other demons from the past, the descent to rock bottom started slow, and was continual...even gradual. Then we wake up one day out of control. However, the descent to rock bottom is usually the same for everyone, especially when it comes to substance abuse.
"Walketh...Standeth...Sitteth."
"Blessed is the man who walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly..."A lot of us were told to stay away from certain people, places or things when we were children, just like Adam and Eve were told to stay away from the Tree ofKnowledge. We had the whole world at our disposal, and still we found ways to"walk" (or drive) past those places we were told not to go near.Instead of taking a detour, we walk past, getting an audio/visual aroma, even if we don't stop to talk.Our friends, and people we grew up with, have a profound influence on us. Even asChristians, we like to be liked by all. The invitation to temptation can be great. The sights, sounds, women, men... Seems like a lot of fun looking from the outside looking in, even if you are just walking by
".... Nor standeth in the way of sinners....
"If you keep going by, you will eventually find a reason to stop, and stand there in the midst of temptation, even if you STILL don't partake in it.Your intent may initially be to spread the Word...But you didn't stop them…
They stopped you. It's not like they were walking past the church so you could callout to them: "Come on in so I can share the good news with you.". It was us, walking past the bar, or the "spot" and they waved us in without caring anything about us being Christians. Their indifference to our walk will make you indifferent to God's will, because when you stand around long enough with them, you'll soon find yourself sitting with them, and slowly indulging in everything they do…
"...Nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful..."
There are only two directions to go from here...Rock bottom...or you can stand up. The longer that you sit in the seat of the scornful and those who are indifferent to your faith, the more you deprive yourself of that stream of spiritual nourishment that true fellowship provides. We take root in His Word, and those roots feed off of the river of God's Word. However, the only way your roots can remain nourished is if you stand in God's Word.
Stand up. Stand firm in God's Word because it is the by-product of a truly devoted life, an endurance that grows out of commitment to Jesus Christ. "...Not that we have dominion over your faith, but are fellow workers for your joy; for by faith you stand." 2nd Corinthians 1:24. Jesus knew we would be persecuted by those who hate what we stand for, but times of trial serve to weed out true Christians from weekend warriors. Stand up.
Stand up. Stand up and show God that you are truly committed to JesusChrist. Stand up, walk away from the counsel of the ungodly, sinners and seat of the scornful and receive the embrace of the ones who love you because you area man or woman of God: "Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand the evil day, and having done all, to stand." Ephesians6:13.
Stand up. Stand up because Jesus Stood for you, in your place, and died for your sins: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My Throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His Throne." Revelation 3:21-22.Stand up. Overcome. Stand up.