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Last Sunday, a representative from Gideons International visited my church. While he talked to the congregation, he frequently displayed different versions of bibles that his organization was supplying free to different places around the world. -Then he picked up a small brown new testament... and my mind drifted back to 1993.
I had only been locked up for about three months when a Gideon representative came to my little transfer unit and handed me a little brown new testament. I already had a regular size bible, but we were not allowed to carry them in the hall, so that little brown new testament quickly became my "pocket sword." I highlighted with colored pencil scriptures that had special meaning to me, and made notes in the margins of thoughts I had concerning the scriptures on that page. I had that little sword in my pocket when I was transferred to a maximum-security unit eight months later.
Arriving at the French Robertson Unit at Abilene, Texas, in October of 1994, I had only been incarcerated for about a year and a half. I felt very much like Daniel in the Lions Den (Daniel 6) as I moved through the noisy hallways and into a two-man cell with an older inmate. This inmate, upon spying my bible was quick to tell me that he wasnt going to be listening to any of that "bible thumping" from any hypocrite in prison trying to tell him how to live. Having only been a Christian at this point for about two years, I was properly intimidated by the man, which of course, was his point. I did my bible study outside the cell, and tried to pray when he was not around. I still carried my little new testament with me everywhere. In fact, I carried it so much that the writing was being rubbed off the cover. A fellow Christian who happened to work in leather in the craft shop noted that, and one day, presented me with a small leather cover for my pocket sword. I was reading my big bible one day when my cellmate came in and saw my little brown new testament laying open on the small desk in our cell. He scowled when he saw all the colored marked scriptures and notes in the margins. He said to me, "You shouldnt be writing in a bible like that." I explained what the marked verses meant to me, and why I made notes in the margins. (The notes have always helped me find the page for particular verses faster, and highlighting the scriptures identified them quickly) Nothing more was said, but several times I caught him glancing through my little brown new testament looking at highlighted scriptures. Three months later, I was told that I was being moved again out to the trustee dorms. When I came in to pack my belongings, I left my little sword for him with a note. I told him to just hold onto it, it would give him something to read during security lockdowns. Seven months later I was transferred to another maximum-security unit in south Texas.
In May of 2002, at the McConnell Unit at Beeville, Texas, our Kairos Community has just finished another Kairos Walk, and added forty-two new brothers to our community. Our Kairos Community had what was known as a Reunion once a month. It lasted approximately four hours, and during this reunion different inmate brothers would give a talk about where they were at in their walk, and what Kairos had done for them. At this particular Reunion, one of the new Kairos members had volunteered to be a speaker. Just before his turn to speak, he asked me if I would mind being up by the stage when he spoke. I was curious why he felt that he needed me to be there, but as one of the older Kairos members, I felt I should do whatever I could to make him comfortable while he gave his testimony.
He started off by giving his witness. He told how another inmate on another unit had been so patient with him, and showed him what he needed to do to become a Christian. On the day he was baptized, this inmate gave him a small leather-bound new testament that he said that another brother had given him when he was baptized. He said he had been carrying this little new testament for over two years and was looking forward to passing it on to another new Christian. Then to my surprise, he turned to me. He said, I ask brother Nethery to be up front this morning because I wanted him to know what his gift of one "pocket sword" has meant to five other men. He then showed me his little brown new testament. On the front page was listed five names... the first mine, and the last his. One little sword...
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