Calhoun25, thanks for taking your afforded time to read & digest the story that was written from God's hands to mine. Thank you for transcribing it as well. One day I may be able to pay you back for all your thoughtful volunteer work. So thank you as I know first hand that serving people can often be & more times than not is a thankless job. At times it seems unfair, everyone treats you in the total opposite of the way that you treat them. Hard being the people's punching bag. I often find myself echoing Moses' sentiments to my Heavenly Father -"The people be already to stone me!!!" I work at the chapel & am the most loved when new cards arrive on the scene. (We get 3 free ones a month). Still I'm the most hated person on campus when there is no cards or someone doesn't like the cards they received. Yikes. So...

Though I don't see all your hard work up-close & personal I thank you for it. I also truly appreciate your comments on the story, especially since writing stories isn't my strong suit. 16 years of prison has me accustomed to writing letters. Moving on, I'm overjoyed that you enjoyed it. Thanks for enjoying the comparison with Jesus. I'm learning how to see Jesus in everyday life. I now search for Him like I once searched for Waldo in a sea of cartoon faces! Feel me? My only life hope is to tell people 'bout Jesus in creative ways as using the gift of writing God chose to bestow upon me at birth. I think WE all can learn to love ourselves & be proud of our blessed gifts provided these gifts are encouraged to be used. Provided we use these gifts for the furtherance of God's kingdom. Amen. Every time I use my gifts for my own glory/name's sake they get nowhere! The only response me writing for me gets is "that was slick". But I'd rather write 'bout Jesus & get responses about how one was encouraged, inspired, & had tears in they eye, or caught that tingly feeling. So may it be so... I think we can also appreciate our gifts that are God-given as we know people with enough courage to tell us to use them & that it's OK to not be famous for everything. That it's OK to use our gifts in everyday life to help ordinary plain ole folks. Society (parents included) tend to promote the wrong gifts in their children. I was distracted by prison grocery day - let me rephrase that. What I meant was that in today's society it's easy for us to promote the gifts in our children that will lead them to fame & glory... Then in our attempts to be loving parents we'll tell lil so and so that he's good at something that he's obviously not. Think American Idol & contestants saying, "...but my mama said..." Yet it remains plain to everyone that he or she can not sing 'cause the "gift" isn't there. Yup, we spend too much time strengthening our weaknesses. We tell people you can be good at whatever if you just put your mind to it. That's so false. I'll never be Chris Brown no matter how much I put my mind to it.

Meanwhile loving ourselves is a whole process. We tend to only "love" ourselves provided others are accepting of us. So being accepted by others makes me feel like I "love" myself. I "love" me when I got $$$$$$$$$$$$$ or a whole bunch of girls or cars, a good job, etc... But most of us truly don't know who we are to love ourselves. We too busy trying to be who others want/desire us to be. Feel me? Celebrities help prove my point. They do most things they do to be accepted. Or to sell merchandise. It's like their life is a publicity stunt. Most just do what's expected of their celebrity personality (brand). Truly I would say Miley Cyrus doesn't know who she is... & that being the case she has become who others expect her to be. She still tryin' to prove who Miley Cyrus IS, still tryin' to shake the Hannah Montana image... but maybe that's who she truly is! Anyway, maybe that's who she is. I'll pray for her. That she comes to know Jesus for herself. The rest is between Him & her.

Well, I hope that you like the enclosed post. As I was moved in my spirit to do a monthly sermon to feed people's spirit. Amen. May you be blessed by it. People need to know that Jesus accepts them just how they are. Short, tall, skinny, bald, tall, fat, black, white, Mexican, mixed, blind cripple, incarcerated, poor, rich, etc...

Give me a minute to "keep up the good work", stories take a while to conceive & pen. Prison keeps me quite busy, believe it or not... God will help me think of something creative :).

Thanks to my daughter Priska for inspiring me to write stories, may there be a valuable eternal lesson in each one.

Calhoun25, you have a blessed rest of your today. Remember that your choices help you have a good day. Truthfully Jesus can give you a joy no man can take. :)

May your gifts & your smile & your heart that serves the people be ever blessed.

P.S. 1 Kings 12:6-7

Thanks for your words of encouragement - I needed that. U shall do great things (even IF they go unnoticed).