Journal

England: We Love You

Author: June 3, 2017

Dearly Beloved: May God’s peace, prosperity, joy and love be ever upon you. We would like to send our deepest and sincerest condolences to the people of England and all those who are suffering world wide, especially all the young children who were hurt in Manchester. May God bless you all. How does one make sense of such senseless acts of violence? How do we forgive those who employ such savagery on the innocent? We are tempted to feel hopelessness and fear. Despair and sorrow seem so deep within us that we are like shipwrecked sailors floating in a vast ocean with no land in sight. It is during these times that we must seek God.

I would like to share with you some heartfelt words from Dr. Martin Luther King:
“Having to live under the threat of death every day, sometimes I feel discouraged. Having to take so much abuse and criticism, sometimes from my own people, sometimes I feel discouraged. Having to go to bed so often frustrated with the chilly winds of adversity about to stagger me, sometimes I feel discouraged and feel my work’s in vain.  But then the Holy Spirit revives my soul again.”  [click to read source]   (more…)

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The Shadow Of Death

Author: May 1, 2017

Psalm 23:4  “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”

Dearly Beloved:  May God’s grace, peace, love, joy and will to live be ever upon you.  As many of my loyal readers know, I am currently housed at the max prison here in Massachusetts.  Recently, former New England Patriot, Aaron Hernandez, took his own life.  I never met Aaron.  We were housed in different areas, but his reputation preceded him.  He was a larger than life character with a magnetic personality.  He was well known for his generosity and his faith in God.  He was referred to by those who knew him as “Double A”.  Even though I never met Aaron, his death had a profound affect on me.  Like Aaron, I am serving a life sentence.  Thoughts of ending my own life used to loom in my mind as well.  My love for my children and family kept me sane and helped me to realize how much pain it would cause them.  Most importantly, though, my faith in Jesus has led me to realize that I still have purpose.  God has plans for me.  Still, I can’t help but feel Aaron’s pain.  I can’t help but understand his decision.  I don’t know whether or not Aaron was guilty or innocent.  It is not my place to judge him nor is it right to believe the media hype.  Being a man serving a life sentence for crimes that I did not commit has both humbled me and opened my eyes.  I am no longer so quick to judge.   (more…)

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Great Expectations!

Author: April 13, 2017

Luke 12:48-49  “But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more.  “I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!”

Dearly Beloved:  May God’s grace, peace, love and understanding be ever upon you and may His wisdom guide your heart.  We here in America are very blessed. God has been great to us.  Those blessings are not ours alone. For to whom much is given, much is expected in return.  We and our allies have been blessed abundantly and in turn we must share those blessings with the less fortunate people in this world.  We are strong and thus we must protect the weak.  For the LORD has commanded us to love our neighbors as we love ourselves.  More than once we have been called into service to fight the evil tyrants who rear their ugly heads.  My beloved, we are being called once again.  The devil is thriving in North Korea and in Syria.  This world is being threatened by demonic dictators who lust for power.  These tyrants are unmerciful and vicious.  Their hearts are so cold that they starve and poison their own people.  They are ruthless and beyond reason.  These men are the very personification of evil.  They must be stopped at all cost. (more…)

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A Light In The Darkness

Author: March 16, 2017

Dearly Beloved:  May GOD’s love, mercy, peace, grace and light be ever upon you.  Let me start by offering an apology to all of our loyal readers.  You may have noticed that my writings have not been posted as regularly as they used to be.  My dear friend, Terry, is in charge of posting all the content on this site and maintaining the site’s upkeep.  For the past year, Terry’s husband, my dear brother and pastor, Tom Shuford, has been suffering kidney failure and as a result he has been placed on dialysis.  My dear sister, Terry, has been doing the dialysis treatments for Tom at home five days a week.  She has also been providing round the clock care for my dear Brother Tom tending to his every need.  Tom has been in and out of the hospital and he has numerous doctor’s appointments.  Terry has a full time job caring for Tom.  She is his chauffeur, chef, doctor, nurse, secretary and maid.  Then, to top it all off, she takes what precious little time she has and takes care of this site.  I am so grateful to GOD for her.  Tom and I are both in dark places in our lives, but GOD has provided a light in the darkness in the form of Terry.  She never complains nor does she seem too tired to fulfill the mission that our LORD has entrusted her with.   (more…)

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Worldly Pollution!

Author: March 15, 2017

Philippians 4:8  “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.”

Dearly Beloved:  May GOD’s grace, love, peace, joy and cleansing power be ever upon you.  I want to talk to you about all of the mental and spiritual pollution that exists in this corrupted world.  Now, I am not talking about greenhouse gasses or smog.  I am talking about things like pornography, violence, drugs, alcohol and the like.  Now, a lot of us are influenced by the environment that we put ourselves in, the people we are around and the places that we frequent.  And, let us not forget the content that we view.  All of those things infect our minds.  And, in time we begin to reflect what it is we surround ourselves with.  And when our surroundings are negative and sinful, we become polluted by them.  Poison seeps into our bodies and brings out our sinful nature.  That’s right, I said sinful nature; because as humans we are inherently sinful.  We are born sinners by our very nature.  We are sinners from the alpha and we will continue to sin until the omega; that is to say – from the beginning until the end of our earthly existence.  Since Adam and Eve fell in the garden, we have been inherently sinful and that will never change in this world.   (more…)

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We All Struggle

Author: February 26, 2017

Dearly Beloved:
May God’s grace, peace, mercy and joy be ever upon you.
We all struggle. That’s a fact.  Lord knows that I have my share – especially as of late.  I am in a place where there are no fellow believers to converse with (at least not in the cell block I am in).  As a Christian, it is very lonely here.  I am surrounded by hatred and violence.  Just today I saw five members of a gang savagely beat one of their own over a phone.  One has to be constantly vigilant here.  You can be attacked at any moment without warning and with little if any provocation.  I am not a gang member which makes me an easy target.  All of this has hurt my spirit.  It is hard to stay positive and upbeat in this kind of environment.  I haven’t been myself lately.  Sometimes being in this harsh and unforgiving place, it seems that I cannot fight anymore.  For 4+ years, I have been fighting for my freedom.  Sometimes this struggle weighs on me and I get so tired.

I know that you can relate on some level; For we all have our struggles.  I am here to tell you some great news.  GOD can lift us up when we are low.  Yes sir, He can.  I have been praying fervently.  I have been reading the Word faithfully and I have been praising the LORD daily.  I can feel Him working on me.  I know that I will overcome my struggles.  For my GOD is greater than all of them.  Hallelujah!  Thank you, mighty Jesus!  It is hard to be a Christian.  Ours is the path of most resistance, not the least.  The path we are on is meant to strengthen and temper us.   (more…)

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Maintaining Your Faith

Author: February 25, 2017

Philippians 4:8-9  “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.  The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.”

Dearly beloved: May GOD‘s love, joy, peace and wisdom be ever upon you.  A lot of Christians maintain their homes, cars, bank accounts and bills, but sometimes we forget to maintain our faith.  Faith is our most important asset.  It is faith which makes us whole and complete.  Jesus is the cornerstone of our faith.  Thus, we must stay in touch and in tune with Him.  Well, how do we do that?  By staying in the Bible as much as possible and praying as much as possible.  We all have times when we lose touch with our LORD.  I went through that myself recently.  I found myself studying less.  For 4+ years I have done my best to immerse myself in my faith through prayer, meditation and Bible studies.  This harsh environment has caused me to be discouraged.  I love discussing the bible with others, but for some reason, I have not been allowed to go to church.  I am in the midst of taking legal action to fight for my right to go to church.  The lack of conversation with fellow believers as well as the lack of interest in my housing unit has caused me great distress.  It has affected my life and my spirituality.  Even my posts on this site have been affected.  My mood, attitude and drive have all been affected.   (more…)

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Count Every Blessing

Author: February 3, 2017

2nd Thessalonians 1:3  “We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other”

Dearly beloved: May GOD’s grace, peace, love and joy be ever upon you.  WOW!  Lots going on here in America.  A lot of civil unrest over the election of Donald Trump.  It is sad.  I, for one, am waiting and watching.  It is too early to say if Trump will be good for us, but I can tell you that I like some of what I see.  I am hope-full.  Well, it has been a very busy time for me. I got a job working in the prison kitchen.  I load trays.  It is menial work, but it is fulfilling none-the-less.  I am not in my cell too much because I work six and a half hours, six days a week.  The downside is, I have to wake up at 4:30am.  It will take getting used to.  Other than that, I gotta tell you that I very much enjoy working.  It feels good to work an honest job.  Plus, it has given me access to more prisoners.  That means more opportunities to spread the gospel.  Please pray for me.  The other day I debated with a fellow who claims he is a satanist.  He has “satan’s minion” tattooed on his face.  I found myself defending my faith in our Lord.  I stood my ground and I may have even planted a few seeds. (more…)

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Confusion And Illusion!

Author: January 10, 2017

Dear Readers:  May God’s grace, peace, love, joy and ultimate truth be ever upon you.  I would like to start by giving my condolences to the families and victims of the mass shooting which took place at the Fort Lauderdale, Florida airport.  My thoughts and prayers are with you as well as the shooter and his family. GOD loves all and hates not one.  We are meant to emulate the LORD.  Though I find that man’s actions disgusting, deplorable and dastardly, I must also show God’s compassion.  Living through what I have lived through causes great pain.  Every time I see or hear about another mass shooting, it hits home for me. As a wrongfully convicted survivor of gun violence, I am deeply affected by senseless and heartless violence. When one witnesses such, it never leaves your mind. I am plagued by nightmares caused by PTSD.  Thus, I can empathize with others who have had deeply traumatic experiences.  I can tell you that faith in GOD is what drives me and helps me function.  I suggest that any survivors out there submerse themselves in the Word of God.  Without the Lord, I would have lost my sanity long ago.  Trust in Him and someday you will find peace. (more…)

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Joy To The World

Author: December 24, 2016

https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-of-hand-holding-heart-shape-with-text-253208/Luke 2:10-11  “Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

Dearly Beloved:  May God’s grace, peace, love, salvation, truth, righteousness, protection, glory and light be ever upon you!  Merry Christmas and happy new year!  You know, I think it is so fitting to celebrate the new year right after we celebrate the birth of our MIGHTY SAVIOR.  When we get saved, we start fresh with a clean slate.  Isn’t that what we are taught to do in every new year?  This time of year is all about new beginnings.  That’s also what JESUS is all about.  That’s what His wonderful salvation does for us when we accept Him.  He washes us clean and we get a fresh start.  That is why it is called being “Born Again”.  Our first birth is a physical one; while our second birth is spiritual.  Now that may seem tough for some of you to grasp.  It is kind of like a caterpillar becoming a butterfly.  For Christians, our cocoon is the word of GOD.  We must wrap it around us.  We must let it envelope our entire being.  Most importantly, we must remain in our spiritual cocoon until our physical life ends.  On that day, we will be released from our cocoon and fly away home into the loving arms of the LORD.  None of that would be possible if it weren’t for the birth of Jesus.  HIS is the most important birth in the history of mankind.  Praise His mighty name!  Shout hallelujah!  His birth changed the world forever.  Not even the atheist can deny that.  We need to focus on the meaning of the birth of Christ – Liberty!  Freedom from the darkness of sin! (more…)

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Missed Opportunity

Author: December 14, 2016

https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-person-school-head-455/Acts 13:47  “For so the Lord has commanded us:  ‘I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, That you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.’”

Dearly Beloved:  May GOD’s grace, peace, courage, strength and LOVE be ever upon you.  This is a very sad time for me.  My eldest brother passed away on November 19th.  I did not find out until two days ago.  He had been estranged from the family.  I loved him very much, though I did not show it enough.  I deeply regret not getting to know him better.  We did not grow up together.  He was nearly twenty years older than I. In his youth, my father immigrated to Africa in search of a better life for his brothers and sisters.  His parents had both died, leaving him as the eldest sibling, to raise his brothers and sister.  It was there in Senegal, Africa where my eldest brother was born.  My brother was the spitting image of my father.  My father sired a large family in Africa before immigrating to America where myself and my two younger siblings were born.  My mother is a Caucasian-American.  My father worked very hard and saved his money.  Eventually, he earned enough to bring his African born children to America.  I remember meeting my older brothers for the first time.  I was five years old at the time.  I had stared at their pictures before they came.  Father told me lots of heart-warming stories about them.  They were like rock stars to me.  And when the day came where I finally got to meet them, I was so excited.  I remember teaching them English and playing with them for hours on end.  They were all musical prodigies.  They had been performing since they were knee high to a grasshopper.  I loved watching them perform.  They would practice for shows at my Dad’s house.  Those were great times. (more…)

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Focus On God

Author: December 7, 2016

https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-sincerely-praying-in-focus-photography-192555/Mark 14:38  “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Dearly Beloved:  May God’s grace, peace, joy and love be ever upon you.  There are a lot of distractions in this world.  Things like sex, drugs, money, lust, toys and gambling.  My biggest distraction has always been women.  In the four years that I have been incarcerated, I have sworn off women.  I haven’t even considered them.  For the most part, I’ve kept my focus on God.  I have never been good at choosing the right women.  Thus, after becoming a Christian, I made up my mind to remain single.  Besides, what woman would want to marry a lifer?  I am broke and I can’t take care of her physical needs.  All I have to offer is love, devotion, loyalty and support.  Without my physical presence, that is not enough for most women.  Over the years, a few have reached out to me, but I just brushed them off – not wanting to take a chance of being hurt.  I am a man and GOD gives me strength, but I still have feelings just like almost everyone else.  (I have met some in my time who are truly heartless.)

Some months back I began corresponding with a very beautiful woman.  I was in a very depressed and vulnerable state at the time.  I kept her at arms length at first.  I intended only to be a friend to her.  Well, after several months of getting to know her I became smitten with her.  She had been through a lot and like me, she’s a survivor.  Her story touched me deeply and (more…)

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