A kind word goes a long way to help somebody out [Proverbs 16:24], but, sometimes, it's about as useful as a stiff wind on a cold day, especially to those in need, or in dire straits [James 2:16-17]. The difference is action (or lack thereof), and, that is borne of time and money. You can spend your time and money any way you please; but, the God-fearing, seeing an opportunity in the expenditure of those two commodities, choose to serve and please God with them wherever the opportunity presents itself.
Hence, today's spending of the $50 I technically can't afford to spend (but had available) with GTL, the phone carrier that relays calls between inmates in the state of California and the outside world. It's not a collect call in the traditional sense; you have to establish an account, and then deposit funds prior to receiving any calls. You cannot initiate calls; but, you can screen them prior to acceptance. Generally, the minimum deposit is $100; that will probably buy you 30 minutes of talk-time, give or take.
Nonetheless, as unattractive of a purchase as I made it out to be, I'm not unhappy to have made it; after all, I eased the pain of isolation for at least two persons that have demonstrated a readiness and willingness to pursue a life as a Christian—two persons who also have, to a large and nearly complete degree, accomplished this.
More on that in my latest letter to Jose Jorge Andrade:
At the end, I request information on assisting Jose with restitution, per his request. The first believers made no bones about their awareness of the necessity of being a consequential help to would-be members of their church. It was never used as a lure, but as a way to fulfill the Great Commandment, and to form a bond with persons with which you expected to know for an eternity. My motivation and intentions are the same.
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| Letter from Jose Jorge Andrade, which follows mine in Abandoned by family for a life behind bars |
Hence, today's spending of the $50 I technically can't afford to spend (but had available) with GTL, the phone carrier that relays calls between inmates in the state of California and the outside world. It's not a collect call in the traditional sense; you have to establish an account, and then deposit funds prior to receiving any calls. You cannot initiate calls; but, you can screen them prior to acceptance. Generally, the minimum deposit is $100; that will probably buy you 30 minutes of talk-time, give or take.
Nonetheless, as unattractive of a purchase as I made it out to be, I'm not unhappy to have made it; after all, I eased the pain of isolation for at least two persons that have demonstrated a readiness and willingness to pursue a life as a Christian—two persons who also have, to a large and nearly complete degree, accomplished this.
More on that in my latest letter to Jose Jorge Andrade:
At the end, I request information on assisting Jose with restitution, per his request. The first believers made no bones about their awareness of the necessity of being a consequential help to would-be members of their church. It was never used as a lure, but as a way to fulfill the Great Commandment, and to form a bond with persons with which you expected to know for an eternity. My motivation and intentions are the same.