by Danny B. Smith, Purple Ark Ministries

© Copyright Reserved 

"The Glass Prison"

Spiritual Poverty

Isaiah chapter 4 verses 16 thru 18. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,   “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.”

Normally you think of a prison as a place where persons are confined or retrained from the liberties of freedom, we think of prison as brick walls and cell doors.

Today my devotional message is about the prison outside of the foundation of the church and beyond the confines that we visually understand. On a Sunday evening, I call together a group of missionaries and traveled to the city of Pomona, CA. It is about 4:30 p.m., two ministries have come together to encourage a poor and broken community. It was our first outreach in this area. We shared gifts, prayed with the families and cried for deliverance and healing in Jesus name. Everything went well as far as we could see. At the end of the mission, a young lady caught my attention. I felt the anointing of the Holy Spirit move as I took notice of her affliction. She looked trapped and imprisoned as she struggled to receive the presence of God. I made a hand gesture for her to come to the front where I was speaking. Still locked in her prison, she became nervious and turned away as I begin to pray. At the end of the prayer, she walked away and eventually found her way back into the glass prison that I saw in my vision.

Even though she was receptive to the Holy Spirit, she was not ready to surrender her glass prison.

A passage in Deut.15:11 says, “Deliver me from my persecutors; for they are stronger than I. Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name. It is the intent of the evangelist to proclaim and administer the gospel of Jesus Christ. Under the direction of the Holy Spirit it our intent to lead many souls to the altar of God. As a farmer is to a field of planted seeds, we are called to pastor communities (Webster defines a pastor as a priest or minister, in spiritual and jurisdictional charge of a parish, church, congregation, or community) and soul that are lost in there affliction . The bible tells us that we must not close our eyes nor our hands to the poor .  Another passage in Proverbs 22:9 says, " we know that God has blessed us to be a blessing. It is our continued responsibility to pastor the community and care for the seeds that have been planted by the Holy Spirit.  We must constantly drink in Christ until the overflow reaches the broken souls outside of the walls of the church.

Prayer: Father, let us share the prisons of the poor, let of embrace them behind the glass walls of their spiritual poverty. How can we be free when the poor sleep outside our doors? How can we claim victory when the sick is left alone to suffer to their death. Dear God, take away the walls that keep us from reaching out the lost. Show us the souls that are hungry for salvation and thirty for the water of life.  Set the captive free, Set the captive!  In Jesus Name.  Amen

Pass This On

"Every week we have seven days to find one soul that doesn't know the love of God" Ask God to show that one soul that need to be found. Take the time to share the gift of love and fellowship. Allow your heart to embrace the suffering of others".

Send all comment to :

dan@purpleark.org