Recently I received a
strange request from my son. With limited interaction with the free world, he
has begun to notice God in action in his prison surroundings. I see this as a
major step in his rehabilitation. He presented me with a strange question from
a fellow inmate. Apparently, in describing his family to his work-out buddy, he
mentioned our church. The inmate asked Matt to inquire as to why I go to
church. After some deep consideration and self-reflection, I came to the
following summation for answers to his question. My email read as follows:
Dear Matt,
Tell your buddy there are several reasons I go to
church. The first is a commandment from God: Remember the Sabbath and keep it
holy. I do not believe that it has to be a Sunday, but I do believe that we are
called to worship The Lord. Worship is a way to show God the respect we have
for him. It's all about God and not about us.
I also believe there are scriptures that encourage
corporate worship, By corporate worship I mean going to church with other
Christians. Colossians 3:16 says" Let the word of Christ dwell in you
richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and
hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God."
We are to encourage fellow Christians and where
better to do that than at church. Hebrews 10:25 "Not neglecting to meet
together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the
more as you see the Day drawing near."
There are many other verses. Hebrews 12:28-29 “Therefore
let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let
us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a
consuming fire”. Matthew 18:20 says, “For
where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
The book of Acts talks about the church in the
early days. After Pentecost and the Holy Spirit coming down, early Christians
met together to encourage one another. It talks about the different spiritual
gifts given to each person by God. They are supposed to work together to be the
Body of Christ. You can't do that staying at home away from other believers.
This is just a few, but I hope you can see my
point. Plus, your Dad and I would have had a much harder time with your trials
if it had not been for our church.
Love you bunches, Mom!
Prison is a strange place
in many aspects. My son has survived because he is quiet, smart, and stands
over six feet five inches tall. He has learned to watch his steps and always
consider the possibilities of what could happen. He has had to defend himself
once which cost him several days in the SHU, Special Housing Unit.
When I asked him why he
did not attend church at the prison, he was very clear. He did not want to
associate with any specific group. Due to our Christian nature of forgiving and
loving others, those who cannot fit in with any prison group find themselves
welcome in the Christian community. To
some this can be perceived as a weakness, and being weak is not a positive
trait in the prison population.
Whether he attends a
corporate worship service or not, I can tell by his words and actions that he
feels the presence of the Lord. Why else would he even bother to ask me about church? I know one thing: he is prayed for each and
every day by many different people. I
tell him often that God has a purpose for leaving him here since he has
narrowly escaped death countless times.
My only hope is that one day he will share his story of God’s grace in
his life.
.
