Urban Report

Prison Ministries

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

Program transcript

Participants: Yvonne Lewis (Host), Richard Bland

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Series Code: UBR

Program Code: UBR000127A


00:01 Stay tuned to meet a man
00:02 who looks forward to going into prison.
00:04 My name is Yvonne Lewis and you're watching
00:07 Urban Report.
00:30 Hello and welcome to Urban Report.
00:32 My guest today is Richard Bland, President and Founder
00:36 of the United Prison Ministries.
00:37 Welcome back to Urban Report Brother Richard.
00:40 So happy to be right with you again, Yvonne.
00:42 So, tell us a little bit about United Prison Ministries,
00:47 just give us a little bit of history on it.
00:50 Well, number one, we came from California to Alabama
00:54 to open up a health restaurant,
00:56 that was the purpose of coming there,
00:57 the Lord closed the door on that when I say that because
01:01 as we got there things changed
01:03 from what we were told it was going to be like.
01:05 In the meantime, we were invited to go down to prison
01:08 with an inter-racial denominational group of people,
01:11 so we went down there, but as my custom has always been
01:15 I take things with me to share, so I took with me about
01:18 200 Bibles, Steps to Christ, Desire of Ages
01:21 and books of that nature with me,
01:23 and I left them at the prison, so, about 2 or 3 weeks later,
01:27 the Chaplain... well I asked the Chaplain that day
01:30 could the men have some cassette tapes
01:33 because Elder C.D. Brooks, a friend of mine,
01:36 had done a tremendous job of 32-Set tapes
01:39 about the Word of God, it didn't talk about a church
01:43 but it talked about what the Bible says,
01:44 and I thought that that was way excellent.
01:46 So, when I gave him the tapes, the Chaplain said to me,
01:51 you know, those books you brought...
01:53 I said, "What books?" he said,
01:55 "those books of E.G. White" that was what he said,
01:58 he said, "I'd like to have 1,000 of them"
01:59 I said, "A 1,000 of these?" he said, "Yes"
02:01 so the next day my wife and I, we drove to the prison
02:04 and before we got to the prison, we opened up every box
02:08 and put an Enrollment Card in there,
02:09 and the reason why I do that is because
02:11 when I fish, I don't want to fish with the...
02:13 I fish with the hook, so I catch the bait...
02:15 Come on, come on, come on now...
02:17 now the reason for that is that...
02:18 when people... I give them something,
02:20 I say, "Tell me what you think about it
02:21 in a week or two" or something like that,
02:22 well, since I'm not going to see these prisoners anymore,
02:25 I put an Enrollment Card in there so they can
02:27 enroll into a free Bible Course of that nature,
02:30 so, when I did that, we got to the prison,
02:32 some prisoners took the boxes out,
02:35 and the Chaplain said,
02:36 "Come on in and meet the Officers"
02:38 so I went into the prison,
02:39 and he introduced us to the Officers,
02:41 he said, "This is Mr. and Mrs. Bland,
02:43 they're going to start a Bible Course here"
02:45 which shocked both of us, we looked at each other,
02:47 and said, "What are you talking about?"
02:49 because we had already been told...
02:51 we weren't interested in that, even though from a child,
02:54 since I was 12 years old,
02:55 we had been going to jails and prisons
02:58 from our church, of that nature,
02:59 we called this, "A Sunshine Band Approach"
03:02 you know, you go there and sing and you leave,
03:04 but this particular time, after getting involved,
03:08 we decided that we wanted to share the Word of God
03:12 with the men, on a permanent basis,
03:15 so, in order to do that,
03:16 seeing that they were having 200 to 300 men at one time,
03:19 we said, "Every other week let's have about 10 men"
03:22 and the reason for that... so that we can teach them
03:25 because we recognized that the information that we had
03:28 out of the Bible, sometimes
03:30 other people don't care about it
03:32 and they feel... they want to fight what we have to say,
03:34 but if we teach them what the Bible says...
03:36 we didn't write the Bible, we just believe the Bible,
03:39 and we teach the inmates that... we have found out
03:42 that they will share exactly what the Bible is saying
03:45 so instead of starting out with 10 Bible students,
03:48 I actually ended up with 15, so from those 15 though,
03:52 we taught them what the Bible had to say,
03:54 and we said, "Stay with the Bible"
03:56 because, see...
03:57 you will never find a prisoner saying
04:00 the laws are done away with,
04:01 I've discovered...
04:03 I only hear church people say that,
04:04 "the laws have been done away with"
04:06 prisoners know there is a law
04:08 because that's why they're locked up in prison,
04:10 Right... and so we give them
04:11 what the laws of God are, which are the 10 Commandments,
04:14 and then we started out,
04:15 with the key item, I think was this...
04:17 I said, "What commandment do you think
04:19 every prisoner has committed?"
04:21 and they got to thinking, and they said, you know,
04:23 "All of us steal, one time or another. "
04:24 So I said, "That's right. "
04:27 I said, "Now this is what we're going to do. "
04:29 I said, "Everything you learn out of what we're teaching you
04:33 out of the Bible, you have to share with everybody
04:36 because Mark 16 verse 15 says,
04:37 "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel
04:39 to every person. "
04:40 So I said, "Where is your world?"
04:42 they said, "wherever I am... "
04:43 so I said, "Okay, now, if you do not give it to everybody,
04:48 which commandment have you broken?"
04:50 they said, "8th Commandment, because I have stolen from them,
04:52 because you gave it to me to give them,"
04:53 such as, "If I give you a dollar to give everybody here,
04:56 and you don't give somebody a dollar, you've stolen. "
04:58 So they got the concept... that's there... you got it.
05:01 So, from those 15 Bible students
05:03 we decided to have some lessons that we drew up,
05:08 and in the lessons we drew up,
05:10 before they get their certificate,
05:12 they have to enroll 3 other people,
05:14 we thought that it was going to slow them down,
05:16 but we forgot we told them that they're supposed to give
05:18 to everybody that they come in contact with,
05:22 so in 6 months' time, we started out with 15,
05:24 we were giving about 18,000 Bible Studies,
05:27 just from those...
05:28 In 6 months? In 6 months' time...
05:30 from the 15? from the 15...
05:31 because they started sharing with their people,
05:33 and their people started sharing...
05:34 and they were telling the officers
05:36 and other inmates the same thing.
05:37 "If you don't want to steal now, what we shared with you,
05:40 you must share with somebody else. "
05:41 And then they shared with their families, and so it went on.
05:43 So from that, it locked us in...
05:46 to doing this, now at that time
05:48 for the first three years,
05:50 my wife and I have said before,
05:51 we funded the money for this,
05:53 but after three years, we ran into a different story,
05:55 so therefore, we incorporated, and now we let people all over
05:59 who love the Lord, to be involved.
06:01 And that's... first of all, it's a phenomenal
06:05 effort on your part, and we praise the Lord,
06:08 we know that the Holy Spirit impressed you to do this,
06:11 because, no other ministry
06:14 is doing... what you're doing,
06:15 is that correct? That's correct.
06:17 Tell us a bit about that... the niche that God has given you
06:23 to pass out all of this literature.
06:25 Well, we found out this, Yvonne, let me put it this way,
06:28 when you go to a prison and talk to them,
06:32 it's like... them smelling food, it makes them feel good,
06:36 but when you leave the "food"
06:39 such as the Word of God for them to study,
06:40 then they're eating the food, so they get the strength
06:43 so we wanted to plant seeds, and it says,
06:46 I think in Luke 8 and verse 11, "The seed is the word of God. "
06:49 So, we want to plant that seed, 24/7 they can pick up the Bible
06:53 because it's the seed of the Word of God.
06:55 So we start furnishing the Bible,
06:56 then they can pick up courses like the Bible
06:59 "Questions Answered" book that we've designed
07:01 where they can have answers, so, from that,
07:03 they had something that they can feed on
07:05 continually, now from that,
07:08 that's why it has grown so much because
07:11 when those prisoners start studying the Word of God,
07:13 then they are getting strong,
07:15 then they start sharing the Word of God,
07:17 now the key to the whole thing is this,
07:19 every prisoner is looking for peace of mind,
07:22 every person is looking for peace of mind.
07:24 That's right.
07:25 Well, only Christ can give you peace of mind.
07:26 See... That's right...
07:28 I mean... only Christ... see...
07:30 the devil can give you money, he'll give you fun,
07:34 Christ can give you money, He can give you fun,
07:36 but only Christ can give you peace of mind,
07:38 and they're all looking for that.
07:39 And I've discovered this, that I can see why
07:42 the devil does not want us to minister
07:46 to men and women in prison, why?
07:49 Number one, they got the time to really study the Bible,
07:52 Hmmm... And the devil wants them
07:54 to study more crime, Hmmm...
07:55 Hmmm... you see, because
07:57 there are two things you study in prison
07:58 it's either "crime" or "Christ," remember that,
08:02 if you meet anybody that's been in prison,
08:03 they'll tell you, we only do one of two things,
08:05 we either are going to talk about more crime,
08:08 or we get hooked on studying about... more Christ.
08:10 Now, what about the increasing impact of Islam in the prisons,
08:17 how is the Word of God kind of offsetting that?
08:22 Well, let's see...
08:24 the Word of God makes everybody love one another,
08:27 this is why the devil is using these other methods
08:30 see... the methods that... that people use in prison
08:34 to talk to prisoners telling them,
08:35 "the laws are done away with"
08:37 that makes them open to other things,
08:38 they see... you see... so they see that,
08:41 "Why do I need to get involved " then too...
08:43 people get in groups for protection,
08:45 remember I told you "it's either crime or Christ,"
08:47 so if you went to prison,
08:48 and there are a bunch of guys here
08:50 of your category, or your neighborhood,
08:54 whether you have the Ku Klux Klan
08:57 or whether you... whatever case may be,
09:00 you want to hook up with them for protection,
09:01 you see what I mean, so they do that for protection,
09:04 it's not so much... so when you have that protection
09:07 well why not? Because somebody could stab you
09:09 or somebody can beat you up,
09:11 so therefore, that's why you see them getting in gangs
09:13 and they try to hook up with other people
09:16 so, that's why they'll start more crime,
09:17 in the prison
09:19 as well as when they get out of prison
09:21 because they're going to have somebody to hook to,
09:23 because most people who call themselves Christians
09:24 when you go to prison,
09:26 they want nothing to do with you it's sad to say...
09:27 So, you mean, you mean... when you come out,
09:32 Or even when you're there. Hmmm...
09:34 Christian people... it's amazing...
09:37 people who claim themselves to be Christians,
09:39 and I hate to tell you that, as a rule,
09:40 they won't go and visit,
09:42 because Number one, they'll say,
09:44 "Well, you did wrong, you deserve that"
09:46 but they deserve Christ, it's not so much
09:48 they deserve where they go, it's that they deserve Christ.
09:50 And most Christian people don't.
09:52 To be honest with you... since you asked me the question,
09:56 we've seen guys and women get out of prison...
09:58 sit in a church...
10:01 once they find they've been to prison
10:02 people in church begin to move away from them
10:05 and all that stuff...
10:06 so we're the opposite
10:07 of a prisoner... a prisoner, he says,
10:09 "Man, you've been in prison, come on man,
10:10 come on, let's get together. "
10:11 You will never find a prisoner drinking alone,
10:14 if he sees someone, he'll say,
10:15 "Come on, have a drink with me. "
10:17 You find a Christian, they'll eat alone,
10:19 they slip away, and they'll eat by themselves.
10:20 If you find a prisoner who is smoking,
10:22 he'll say, "Hey, have a draw" you see what I mean,
10:24 and Christians don't do that.
10:25 The devil uses God's methods and gives it to prisoners,
10:29 which makes them more loving, and kind,
10:32 as far as they're concerned, it makes them more welcoming,
10:33 you know what I mean?
10:35 That's really a good point, Brother Richard,
10:37 because when you think about gangs,
10:39 and what gangs provide, they provide...
10:42 it's a counterfeit, really,
10:44 they provide the "family" kind of situation,
10:47 they provide the protection,
10:48 That's exactly right.
10:49 they provide that sense of belonging,
10:52 and as Christians, we should be providing
10:55 that sense of "family," that sense of protection,
10:58 not so much physically but,
11:00 letting them know that they have divine protection
11:02 and being there to rally around them,
11:06 so, I really agree with what you're saying,
11:09 that it is... it's the counterfeit,
11:12 Oh yeah, it's a counterfeit, Satan's counterfeit...
11:13 it's a counterfeit... Hmmm... hmmm...
11:15 you see, because... see...
11:16 a prisoner says, "we are family"
11:17 Hmmm... hmmm... see the Mafia...
11:19 you've heard about the Mafia, they're family,
11:21 if you brought them up... you are family.
11:23 You see what I mean? Yes.
11:24 Now, it is true, true Christians are family too.
11:28 Hmmm... hmmm... You see, the reason why
11:31 a non-Christian doesn't believe,
11:33 because they know the people that believe
11:35 don't believe what they say they believe...
11:37 Did you hear what I said?
11:39 Say it again, say it again.
11:40 The reason why non-Christians don't believe,
11:43 because the people who are Christians
11:45 don't believe what they say they believe.
11:46 Oh... and they know that...
11:48 Hmmm... hmmm... you see what I mean?
11:49 Because they can spot hypocrisy.
11:50 Oh yes, they spot it all the time.
11:52 Guess who the thieves sell their goods to?
11:54 They sell it to Christian people when they've stolen goods
11:56 they come to them, they think they got a good deal.
11:58 They know they're buying stolen goods,
12:00 you see what I mean? Hmmm... hmmm...
12:01 but the thing about it is this,
12:03 I found out... if you really want to be like Jesus,
12:08 and really want to prosper,
12:09 provide for the material that we need
12:12 and people are looking for that material,
12:14 people are wanting the material,
12:16 people want Bibles,
12:17 we get requests, we can't fulfill them now,
12:20 because... people are not participating.
12:22 There are 3 things we ask the public to do,
12:24 Pray... number one...
12:27 two... send some of God's money that God has given them
12:32 to buy material... for every dollar you send,
12:35 we can witness to Christ, for every dollar.
12:38 That is... this... you have this
12:40 "One Dollar A Day Club for Jesus"
12:43 this sounds like an amazing opportunity for Christians
12:48 to get in and do something,
12:50 even if they're not going into the prisons themselves,
12:53 they can do something to get the word into the prisons
12:56 let's talk about this "Dollar A Day Club"
12:58 because this is really important.
13:00 Well, The Dollar A Day Club"
13:01 we put it together so people can know
13:03 it's very simple, number one is this,
13:05 we are authorized by the American Correction Association
13:11 to send material of this nature,
13:13 they don't check our material out
13:14 because they know our material has been certified.
13:17 Number two, the material... every book that we send,
13:21 a life can be changed,
13:24 so if you want 500 souls to come to Christ next month,
13:28 send us $500, we will assure you that
13:30 500 people are going to get the Word of God.
13:32 It's just a dollar a soul, you can't miss that
13:34 you see, and I was praying about it one day and the Lord said,
13:38 "I want every Christian to participate"
13:40 because Christians will grow other Christians,
13:43 the Mafia people
13:45 that are in prison,
13:47 like you're talking about the ISIL
13:49 they provide for those people,
13:51 they give them everything they need,
13:52 the Christian people... we have to beg for that...
13:55 but I don't anymore, because I said,
13:57 "Lord, I'm talking to Christian people on your Program... "
14:00 that's what I like about your Program
14:02 because you're reaching people who want to help.
14:03 That's one thing about the Urban Program that you have,
14:06 is reaching the heart of people,
14:08 and remember this,
14:10 if you want to reach the inner city,
14:12 reach the prison, because all the State prisons,
14:16 men and women come out of the inner city,
14:18 so that's where you can reach them, with the Word of God,
14:21 and the Word of God doesn't change,
14:22 remember this...
14:25 "A prisoner is looking for peace of mind"
14:28 that's what he wants.
14:30 And we can provide for... okay...
14:35 let's just look at a dollar, we can... you can...
14:40 a dollar is like... you can give that away,
14:43 you can just blow it, which you shouldn't,
14:45 but you can blow a dollar a day,
14:48 I mean, that is nothing,
14:49 and to know that we can help to get souls
14:52 for the Kingdom,
14:53 for a dollar! That's what I'm trying to say.
14:55 Thirty dollars a month, let's say...
14:57 We got some people who now started off with a dollar a day,
14:59 they give 200 dollars a month now,
15:01 some give 500... because they say...
15:03 "I want to win 500 souls this month. "
15:04 Some people want to win a 1,000 dollars this month
15:06 some people want to win 5,000 souls,
15:09 it works... we know it works
15:10 because they are not wasting their money,
15:12 we give them something they can study
15:14 and the average prisoner will share with somebody else
15:16 because remember this, prisoners share,
15:18 people who call themselves "Christians"... don't share...
15:22 so if you want to make sure you share,
15:24 give it to a prisoner, and the devil knew this.
15:27 Oh yes, oh yes, and doesn't want this to be successful.
15:31 Satan does not want this to be successful.
15:35 We know that...
15:37 We can reach people, the people in prison...
15:40 it's an investment,
15:41 it's an investment not only in their souls but
15:44 in Society as well, because when they come out,
15:47 they're either going to get deeper into crime,
15:49 because they can't survive,
15:52 or they're going to get deeper into Christ,
15:54 it's one or the other. Exactly right.
15:57 It's one or the other and so we shouldn't sit back and complain
16:00 that "Oh, people are coming out,
16:03 and they're just coming out and going back in and coming out,"
16:05 let's see what we can do to stop the recidivism
16:09 and how can we do that? By introducing them to Christ.
16:12 Yes. And how can we do that?
16:15 One Dollar A Day, that's it.
16:17 They can go through our website.
16:19 That's it, let's put the website up for you now.
16:22 Let's have the website put up so that...
16:24 just say it and it's going to be on the screen.
16:27 They can go to our website, upmi. org
16:30 or United Prison Ministries International
16:34 and "like" us on Facebook,
16:36 Right.
16:38 go to "like" on Facebook,
16:39 "like" us on Facebook.
16:40 So you are: upmi. org and then...
16:44 you're also on Facebook,
16:45 and you want them to click "like"
16:47 just click "like" on Facebook, for upmi.
16:49 That's right.
16:50 And make a difference, we can make a difference,
16:52 we are in the last days,
16:56 and what I see, Brother Richard
16:59 is that God is shining the light in the inner cities
17:04 through upmi, through Dare to Dream,
17:07 through all kinds of methods, getting the word out
17:11 because Jesus is coming back, so, we can either sit back
17:14 and do nothing, Hmmm... hmmm...
17:16 and say, "That's for somebody else to do. "
17:18 Hmmm... hmmm... or, we can say,
17:20 "Let me give a dollar a day to something like this
17:24 and get a prisoner used to reading the Word
17:28 and let them get the Word.
17:30 Remember, they got the time,
17:32 remember they're looking for peace of mind
17:34 that's what we got, see, I'll tell them, I say,
17:36 "You tried everything else, try that... "
17:38 this is the same thing,
17:39 look, Moses tried everything else
17:41 he had murdered somebody, the Lord said,
17:43 "Okay, now, I'm going to put you out here
17:44 so that you can study my Word" you see what I mean?
17:46 Paul was going around killing people,
17:48 the Lord said, "I'm going to fix it
17:49 so you can work for me. "
17:50 You see what I mean? So, all of these things,
17:52 it's very important that we understand what is happening.
17:57 Yes. And it's not the idea
18:00 that you're helping somebody out...
18:01 you're doing what Jesus said to do, He says,
18:03 "You're doing it unto them, you're doing it unto me. "
18:05 Now if you love Jesus, I want to tell you this,
18:08 anybody that loves Jesus that hears this
18:10 will go and participate, I will assure you that.
18:14 If they love the Lord, and I tell them all the time,
18:17 if you love the Lord, you'll do what God said to do,
18:20 God said, "I was in prison... " and you did what to me?
18:23 Visited me.
18:25 You know how you visit Him? By the Bible...
18:27 you visit Him by the Word of God that's how you do it,
18:29 He is coming. If I send you a letter
18:31 haven't I visited you? Hmmm...
18:33 Well, Jesus said, "This is the letter to you. "
18:34 Yes. "This is the letter to you. "
18:36 And He wants everyone to have that letter.
18:39 Absolutely, and we can give with a dollar a day,
18:43 people can get the Word of God,
18:45 that's what you're telling us.
18:48 That's what I know!
18:49 and how do I know?
18:50 Because we've been doing it for years
18:52 so we know what happens.
18:53 Well you can say, "Well how can you do it for a dollar?"
18:54 Because the average prisoner, number one,
18:56 shares it with 8 or 10 other people,
18:58 now I will tell you this,
18:59 we used to mail this Bible for 12 cents
19:01 since a lot of people now-a-days,
19:04 don't use the Post Office,
19:06 it costs us $3.17 now to mail this same book to a prisoner,
19:10 did you know that? No, I didn't.
19:11 Because the devil knows how to try to stop it,
19:13 he said, "Listen, I can't stop the e-mail... "
19:16 but I know prisoners can't get e- mail,
19:18 but I can do it in such a way
19:20 so the Post Office has to survive so they raised the price
19:22 we're now paying 5 times more to mail this book
19:26 than this book costs us, right here,
19:27 5 times more,
19:29 so, this is not going to stop them...
19:31 because God's people are going to hear this Program
19:32 and I'm so glad that
19:34 God gave you the name, "Dare to Dream"
19:36 because the dream is coming true today.
19:38 Amen.
19:40 Now, you're talking to me... the dream is coming true
19:41 what is the dream? That Jesus is coming back again
19:43 and He's coming back because of this.
19:45 Because of His Word, and we know that.
19:47 Absolutely, tell us about some lives that have been changed
19:51 as a result of this Program.
19:54 I was just... just today...
19:56 just today... I did another Program
19:59 and I was thinking about this young lady who...
20:05 her mother and father...
20:06 in fact, her grandfather was a minister of the Church,
20:10 she went off to college, and by being in college,
20:14 another friend of hers, gave her some Marijuana
20:18 to start out with,
20:21 and then she started buying some Heroin at $10,
20:23 her habit got up to be $2,000 a day
20:26 so she stole from everybody and everything,
20:29 so she ends up in prison, and she did it again, 3 times,
20:33 but when she came into the prison the last time,
20:35 she said, "I've tried everything,
20:37 peace of mind... when she came across our Bible classes,
20:40 and started going there... it changed her life,
20:42 she said, "I'm so glad I came to prison
20:44 because now I found Jesus. " Because, remember,
20:48 who else has 8 to 10 hours
20:50 to study the Word of God but a prisoner?
20:52 and see, once they get hooked, they're on to it.
20:55 Can you study the Word of God 8 to 10 hours a day?
20:58 No... You see... but they do!
20:59 Yeah. Because they don't have to
21:01 pay for the food, they don't have to pay
21:02 for the light bill, their clothes, so they can spend
21:05 and that's what they're doing, they're studying the Word of God
21:07 then another young lady, I mean, I can tell you,
21:10 just coming there, she said,
21:11 "You know, I was on the street, trying to make a living
21:14 by prostitution and so forth and so on...
21:17 and now... and I couldn't make it,
21:20 but now, I'm so glad I came here because I found Jesus... "
21:22 remember, it's going to be either crime or Christ.
21:25 Now, how do we get them to go for Christ,
21:27 because we say, "Hey, do you have peace of mind?"
21:29 they say, "No," well then, "Try this. "
21:31 This is very simple,
21:32 then they say, "Well, the Bible is old... "
21:35 I say, "Look, just read the first two chapters of the Bible,
21:37 the first two chapters of the Bible will tell you things,
21:39 it's the foundation, just like this building here,
21:42 the first two chapters of the Bible
21:43 will tell you where you came from,
21:45 will tell you what to eat, will tell you who to marry,
21:48 and tell you when to worship,
21:49 all that's in the first 2 chapters,
21:51 where there's no sin. "
21:52 You see what I mean? so you got it all together.
21:54 Right. That's the foundation,
21:56 and so... people are looking for it,
21:58 just a night before last in prison,
22:00 a guy got up, he said, "My family thinks I'm nuts,"
22:02 he said, "because I'm so happy now,"
22:05 they said, "How can you be happy in prison?"
22:07 He said, "because I found God. "
22:08 He said, I was out there in the streets,
22:10 with you mom and dad, I couldn't find no God,"
22:11 he said, "I got it, I got the secret,
22:13 I can trust God because God is worthy to be trusted,
22:18 he gave me my breath, so I can trust Him,
22:21 and now I'm at peace, I got happiness,"
22:24 they said, "What?"
22:25 he said, "Maybe mom needs to go to prison too. "
22:29 Really, because people down here are frustrated.
22:33 Yes. They're angry,
22:35 People need the Lord, they need the Lord.
22:38 More than ever.
22:39 No matter... whether you're incarcerated or you're free,
22:43 you need Jesus, that's the bottom line.
22:45 Okay now, only twice in their person's life
22:47 that they actually have time, that they take time,
22:51 when they're in the hospital,
22:52 they got the time and not the mind,
22:54 and when they're in prison,
22:55 but in prison... they got the time and their mind
22:57 so let's feed these two and half million people.
23:01 What I've seen, Yvonne,
23:02 I'll take any prisoners that I've been studying with,
23:05 and put them against any theologian that you find,
23:08 and I'll say, the prisoner I will do,
23:10 because they got their mind
23:11 and they understand the Word of God.
23:12 A young man in prison that I've just been visiting...
23:15 what's today? on Monday, just two days ago,
23:18 he'd been there 42 years,
23:21 since he was 16 years old
23:23 because he was put there for a crime he didn't know,
23:26 but that's beside of the game line,
23:28 he said, I'm so happy I'm here because of what I can do now...
23:31 he brought over 20,000 people to Christ through our material
23:34 because he studied the Word, he gave them what the Bible says
23:37 because they're looking for it.
23:38 He's brought over 20,000? 20,000 people... that's right
23:41 according to the officials in prison, the wardens,
23:44 and how do I know it? Because the fact is,
23:46 he's given them the peace of mind.
23:48 They're changing... you see what I mean?
23:51 Yes... yes... and he's been there 42 years,
23:54 and guess what?
23:56 He says, "When you come in here, all I want you to do,
24:00 Brother Bland is furnish me the material. "
24:02 But we can't furnish him the material...
24:04 I got a letter in my pocket right now,
24:07 from the Chaplain, here... in fact...
24:10 I think from the Chaplain, in Rikers Island
24:14 and I will now tell, we gave him 28,000...
24:16 he just sent us a letter here saying,
24:18 he wants 600 books every week
24:19 because he got... 600 a week?
24:21 every week! right here... now...
24:23 right here... and the reason for it...
24:25 because he has 14,000 cells here that men will turn in every week
24:28 about 600... we can't...
24:31 we need the people's help, that's just one prison,
24:34 right here now,
24:35 he said, "On behalf of them... 14,000 Rikers Island here
24:39 many of our readers" and so forth, I would say this,
24:42 he said, one inmate...
24:43 Rabbi Lebokwitz,
24:46 a well-known religious leader in our State,
24:49 after reading the book, "Desire of Ages"
24:51 said, "I now believe in Jesus. "
24:52 Right here... here it is... right here...
24:54 A Rabbi?
24:55 A Rabbi... here it's written right here...
24:57 see right here... My! my...
24:58 see right there... he just wrote me that.
25:00 Wow! So I can go on and on,
25:02 and not only in this Country,
25:03 I can read it from other Countries, in Africa,
25:05 we get them from all over, Yes... yes.
25:07 I'm just looking here right now,
25:08 here's the man that told us right here...
25:10 he says... and this is very interesting
25:12 this happened 20-some years ago,
25:14 he said, his brother was in prison,
25:17 then he came to a meeting
25:18 just because his brother was in prison,
25:20 and he said that he learned something there
25:22 that he'll never forget, when you read the Word of God,
25:25 to put his name there, the Bible became alive for him,
25:29 see... the Bible... it's not a foreign book to them,
25:31 we say the Bible is like your insurance policy,
25:34 so, how is it an insurance policy?
25:36 If you want to collect, you put your name there,
25:38 "For God so loved Richard Bland
25:40 that He gave His only begotten son. "
25:41 You see what I mean? Hmmm... hmmm...
25:42 So, it became alive to them.
25:44 It personalized it.
25:45 That's right, then they found out,
25:46 let me tell you what else they found out, real quick...
25:48 they found out that when they went to church,
25:50 the Preacher lied to them,
25:52 their grandmother is not in heaven,
25:53 the Bible says, their grandmother is in the ground.
25:55 They found out that what they were eating...
25:57 the Bible said, "Don't eat that stuff. "
25:58 They found out that when they were worshipping,
26:00 they were going on the wrong day.
26:02 The Bible said that, and they tell you this all the time,
26:04 they say, "I'm so happy that I can now help my parents
26:07 who believe in a lie," because he said,
26:09 "You know mom, when did Jesus arise from the grace?
26:12 she said, "on Easter Sunday morning"
26:15 he said, "The Bible says Mark 16:9...
26:18 now that was the first day of the week. "
26:19 She said, "That's right. "
26:21 He said, "How can the 1st day and the 7th day be the same?"
26:23 She said, "We never thought about it. "
26:24 He said, "Well, mom, I'm glad I was in prison,
26:25 to help you out, I found that for you. "
26:27 You see what I mean? So, they finding truth.
26:29 Yes. They are studying the truth
26:31 so with us, we give them what the Bible says
26:33 we don't tell them...
26:34 we don't try to explain it to them,
26:36 we say, the Holy Spirit will do that.
26:37 That's what makes the difference.
26:39 That's phenomenal.
26:40 And so, we want to be asking our friends out here,
26:43 "Participate... go to our website,
26:45 look it up, listen to what they have to say. "
26:47 Let's put your website back up
26:49 so that people can go to that website and donate.
26:51 You know that God would have you
26:55 to support this effort,
26:58 this is about getting the Word of God
27:00 to people who need it most,
27:02 which is going to make a difference for all of us.
27:05 It makes a difference for everyone.
27:08 Everybody. For everyone.
27:09 ...but the crooks...
27:11 but the people who are making money off of prisons.
27:14 Now, prison is a money-maker,
27:15 but I want to tell you this before I forget,
27:17 My daughter Carol said to make sure I said,
27:19 "Like" us on Facebook.
27:21 I know, we said it before, but we got it covered.
27:23 "Like" us on Facebook... because I'm not used to that term.
27:25 Thank you so much.
27:26 God bless you. God bless you.
27:28 It's so good to have you back again.
27:29 In Matthew 25 verses 34 to 36 Jesus said,
27:34 "Then shall the king say unto them on his right hand,
27:37 Come ye blessed of my Father,
27:38 inherit the kingdom prepared for you
27:40 from the foundation of the world:
27:42 For I was hungry, and you gave me meat:
27:44 I was thirsty, and you gave me drink:
27:46 I was a stranger, and you took me in:
27:48 Naked, and you clothed me: I was sick, and you visited me:
27:51 and I was in prison, and you came unto me. "
27:54 Will the Lord be able to say that to you?
27:57 I pray that one day we'll hear, "Well done. "
27:59 Thanks so much for joining us,
28:01 join us next time... because you know what?
28:03 It wouldn't be the same without you.


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Revised 2015-09-01