Blame Game

Another hot, sticky day on the tier. Very relaxing Saturday though and I was able to finish the beautiful book of Psalms. King David’s level of praise was completely out of this world. I often wonder if we can ever live up to that kind of faith. I highlighted so many passages to review later. One that really hit me was Psalm 118:8: “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put your confidence in man.” This is something that is done so often in prison, placing one’s confidence in man, lawyers, judges, para-legals, other inmates, gangs… The list is endless, but a reality.
Many eat themselves up worrying about what their lawyer can do for them or who can help get them out of this place. So we find ourselves placing all of our trust in man, continuing to stress over it, and then in the end, being let down anyway, causing our stress to turn into heartache and sometimes depression.
I know that relying on other people is a part of living and I’m guilty of doing so myself. But the moment I placed my ultimate trust in the Lord, I quickly learned that God will not let me down. The five and a half years I was sentenced to was not given to me by the judge, and wasn’t because of my lawyer. Now I was confident with my lawyer, but even I made it clear to him at the onset, that my trust was in the Lord and that nothing that would happen from Sentencing Day on would be outside God’s good and perfect will.
In prison, people blame their lawyers or others for them being here. And after they find they have been let down, they only place their trust in themselves. In an environment like this, they eventually find out that they will let themselves down, and when you realize you can’t even be confident in yourself, what do you do? Many turn to drugs, alcohol, etc. and some even try to take other people’s confidence, attempting to make themselves feel better. In the end of this vicious cycle, individuals still find a void. This emptiness can only be filled by placing complete trust in the Lord. Easier said than done? I don’t think so, try it. After all, the Lord is on my side, what can man do to me? Tomorrow Ryan and Fila are visiting and it’s also Father’s Day.
Blessed to have a father of integrity who loves the Lord.