Upon inquiry to three inmates that we recently baptized of starting a Bible study in the barracks, they said they can’t do that. We asked why? They replied, “The Muslims.” I asked, “What’s the deal with the Muslims?” In this facility, everything is common area. They explained that if you are sitting reading your Bible, they will come up to you and start contending against what the scriptures say. The last thing an inmate wants is an incident, and such contention can quickly lead to an incident. So, the general atmosphere in the facility is to not be reading a Bible. In this facility of about 336 inmates, we have been having 20 to 30 to attend the meetings we hold twice a month. Last meeting we held, there were only 10 men. In the meeting, I asked why such low attendance? They said people were just “being pulled away” from the things of God. I’m getting a picture of what is going on. There are spiritual forces in every arena of life, in prison and out of prison, that are working to “pull you away” from the things of God and stop the work of God. Make no mistake about it, or as the Bible says, “Be not deceived” (Galatians 6:7). These spiritual forces will use your own thoughts and will use people to stop the pursuit of the fullness of God in your life. As our discussion continued, we came up with two things that needed to be done: prayer, and walking in all meekness with the truth. Paul told Timothy to not strive with people, but to be gentle, in meekness, instructing those that are in opposition. By doing this, perhaps they can find repentance toward God to the acknowledging of the truth. If they do, they can recover themselves from the snare of the devil (2 Timothy 2:24-26). We can’t change each other, but the truth can be presented in such a way that if a person will be changed, God can work with them to change them. Contention with the truth only brings “an incident.” Inmates who are involved in “an incident” can be sent to solitary confinement and lose all the privileges they have worked for and gained, or, be sent to another facility with time extended. In life outside the prison, similar consequences occur. From “an incident” people can be bound in an attitude that will rob them of their joy and destroy relationships. Sometimes bitterness and malice set in (like being “septic” in the physical/medical realm), and other people are affected in a very negative way. The same negative attitude operating in one can be passed on to others. So, a worthy goal for us all in the coming New Year is more prayer and more reliance on Christ with all meekness. We can remember the acronym ROCK—Reliance On Christ’s Kindness. It is by His kindness shown toward us through His Son Jesus Christ that we are not consumed. Lamentations 3:22-26