I spent two days last week at work with prisoners in a Texas State Jail. These are non-violent offenders. Most are on schedule for early release. They sit up and pay attention in our class work. They do the things we need to place them.

And I wonder how they live long enough to leave a Texas state jail or prison.

Over 70% of our Texas state jails and prisons have no air conditioning. When I ask the men how I should pray for them, they tell me, “Our pod is on the west wall of the building. Pray we do not have heat stroke or a heart attack.”

They are not kidding. They pray not to die from heat exhaustion in their cells.

I know. If you cannot do the time, do not do the crime. Just say No. Be good or be gone. I know. You should go with me trying to raise money to house seven guys in a decent setting. There is just not much sympathy for them.

That said, it is inhumane to incarcerate men in a cage where they may die just from the exertion of drawing breath. We do this in Texas. I love Texas. I am a native Texan; the soil is sacred. I am happy to own an acre of Texas soil, free and clear.

We are wrong to put men and women in a stifling hot cell day after day. We are just wrong.

What can you and I do about it?

Call your State Representative and your State Senator. Call the Lieutenant Governor’s Office, where the political power resides. Certainly, let Governor Abbot know how you feel about baking prisoners.

Beloved, we ought to rehabilitate our prison population. Most of them will get out one day. They will be our neighbors. If for no other reason that enlightened self-interest we should show them kindness in hopes they learn kindness from us.

Let’s make a change in our state jails and prisons.

One of my five favorite sermons is from I Samuel Some of the places I preached it in the past invite me back from time to time to preach it again. Others just steal it and I live with that fact. I just hope they do a bettter job with it.

I actually put it up at length over at rickddavis.com, but that site is now gone forever. One day before long I may put it back up on this site for preachers to use when things just do not click one week, but you are still expected to preach and it is Saturday night, and what are you supposed to do? Steal my stuff, if you wish. I just have not ever been able to plagiarize another preacher. If it isn’t my stuff, I probably just will not use it. You do what your conscience allows.

So, I have about ten sermons I really like to preach. Two of them are from I Samuel. I am looking for another one.

Why?

I want to get something new, again and again. I need to receive a word from God that resonates with me. I still get excited when a message leaps off the page. I still get excited when congregants show a happy response to what they hear.

Much of the public speaking I hear in church these days (old codger speaking) seems to be mostly self help kind of stuff flavored with some pop-psychology. Thwew are worse things than being a poor preacher. I have a hard time living with accepting being a bad preacher. You can study, read, do your language work, pray, listen to others; something ought to come to you.

The Book of Books (the Bible) is filled with vivid literature. The prose soars, rather than flop along. There is humor, there is drama, there is music, there are sections at least R-Rated. The poignancy lifts the reader, the tension pulls us up like a thermal breeze takes a paraglides off a cliff three thousand feet above a lush, green valley.

I noticed this reading through I Samuel again. In various places the text has this fellow or that fellow wanting a sign from God. On the occasions when a character actually asks for a sign from God, there is often a choice for them between doing something easy or difficult in order to know what God approves. The character who chooses the more difficult act more often receives a word from God. The explanation appears to be this; God answers exertion, or, at least, one’s willingness to show effort.

For instance, in I Samuel 14, Jonathan leads his army of one against the perpetual enemy of Israel, the Philistines. To reach their camp, Jonathan and is armor bearer must climb down a cliff, cross a valley, wade a creek, hike a trail and reach another cliff. Jonathan suggests they call out to the Philistines. If the Philistines threaten to come down against them, they will withdraw. If the Philistines order Jonathan too climb the cliff before the fight, then Jonathan will know God has delivered the Philistines garrison into his hands.

Jonathan does. The Philistines do. Jonathan and his friend climb the cliff and wear out the enemy so thoroughly the rest of the Philistine army runs for its life.

Exertion, effort, the expenditure of energy; to risk all is to climb into the hand of God and see the enemy routed.

Jesus would walk fifteen minute miles all day on a spiny ridge in the land of promise. He rose before the rest of the band in the morning in order to pray, He climbed mountains, prayed all night and got a word from the Father.

Hit a lick, dear friend. Jonathan did. Jesus does.

Monday ran hot and strong for me today. A really great thing happened in our family today.

Our grandson decided to receive Jesus as his Savior. In addition, he asked his Dad, our sons, to baptize him in the lake near their vacation home in Wisconsin. It looked more than a bit cool up there as most of our family (and not a few friends) Face Timed the event.

Yes, it was wonderful. Tears and smiles were abundant, as you might imagine, I really want you all to know about this great event.

……to let you know what condition my condition is in.

Or words to that effect…

After decades of posting daily at ainstobad and then at Rick Davis, I got ready to take some time away. While I rested, Rick Davis got hacked. really hacked and then some more. I actually sort of believed hacking was just something people used as an excuse when objectionable content showed up on their site. Then my site became a Chinese Language betting parlor for the World Cup. After several attempts to get it back together, we just gave in and started over with this new site, www.pastorsprose.com.

Why bother? I am nearly 70 years old and no longer have the following I once enjoyed. I imagine I will not have 3,000 hits a day as I once saw.

Why bother?

I am not through thinking. I get to preach three to five times each week in our Chains of Grace ministry. I am not through preaching. I am not through pointing out what I see.

So, I am BACK. And it may be awhile before I go away again.

Just when you thought it was safe to go back to the World Wide Web.