August 2001

"I, the Lord, have called You in righteousness and will hold Your hand; I will keep you and give you as a covenant to the people, as a light to the Gentiles, to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the prison, those who sit in darkness from the prison house..." (Isaiah 42:6-7)

"I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to me." (Matthew 25:36) Yeshua explained these words of His by telling His followers that whenever they visited one of the least of His brothers in prison, they were visiting Him (Matthew 25:40). Would you like to visit Yeshua in prison? Would you be blessed to be able to minister life and blessing to those behind prison walls? Would you rejoice at being able to bring spiritual light and joy to men and women who, unlike most of us, will have no "vacation" this summer? Through Jewish Jewels you are doing all of the above. Our partners make it possible for us to help those in prison. Together, we are visiting Yeshua in His suffering. Together, we even helped James, a prisoner in Santa Fe, New Mexico get a Master’s degree.

"Baruch haShem! Enclosed you will find a copy of my final grade in Advanced Hebrew I. So far I am at a 4.0 GPA for the three courses in Hebrew. I have one more course after this one, then I will begin the 24 credit hours of study in Biblical Counseling. I again want to thank everyone at Love Song for their support that has made it possible for me to accomplish the completion of this Master’s program. I pray that the Lord, Blessed be His Name, will richly and abundantly reward you all for your kindness to me and your faithfulness to Him in your walk. I know that I have told you in the past, but I really can’t say it enough, your program brings a little bit of Israel into my life every week. It ministers to me in my cultural needs, and teaches my spirit the real value of our people in G-d’s eternal plan. Shalom, James."

"Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; who keeps truth forever, who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry. The Lord gives freedom to the prisoners." (Psalm 146:5-7) A letter from George in Florence, Arizona is a testimony to the freedom that Messiah gives, even behind prison bars:

"Dear Neil & Jamie,

I’m not sure if you both will actually be reading this, what with the size of the ministry and all. But I want to say how much you guys minister the love of Jesus Christ to me very Friday evening. Thank you for your sincere love, for the in depth truth you bring forth. Father God has opened my eyes in understanding the scriptures, the Old Testament practices and the fulfillments in Jesus our Saviour.

I tell other believers in here to watch your show. We get it on Friday evenings 8:30 on INSP.

As you can see by my return address I’m currently in prison. Please excuse me, see my addictions were strong I had no power over them, no way of escape, that is until the Lord made me lie down in the pastures of His choosing. I put myself in here, but He the Great Holy Awesome One used it to bring me to my senses. Now in Christ, even though in prison, I’m free, I’m delivered by His Holy Spirit, by daily being in His Word, Prayer and fellowship.

I want you guys to know in all seriousness I see His love, His heart in you and what you are doing. Thank you, I even love watching Rose with her cooking and sharing. Way to go guys."

"Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee..." (Psalm 79:11)

Prison walls cannot keep prayers from reaching the ears of our Father in Heaven. He sees all. He knows all. He even hears the cry of the heart. And hearing, He answers. Bruce, incarcerated in Michigan City, Indiana wrote to us about this wonderful truth: "I was watching the television yesterday and saw your program! Up until now I’ve been very much alone here at the Indiana State Prison. I feel so much better knowing where I can write to other Jews who believe Jesus is the Messiah!"

"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound..." (Isaiah 61:1)

"I have just received the good news!! Or should I say - more good news. The head of the Chaplaincy Department here at SCI Waynesburg has notified me that the box of donated items you sent has arrived. I can assure you that all of this material will be used by all interested inmates. You have certainly helped us on our journey to seek the Jewish roots of our faith. It is ministries like yours who truly practice and reveal the love of G-d. We are all abundantly blessed because of your ministry. We can’t thank you enough. The newsletters that I regularly receive from you are being passed throughout the community and are blessing so many people as well. Your ministry is touching so many people. G-d is using you to reshape the lives of broken men behind these prison fences. You are feeding us the spiritual nourishment that we crave."

"Listen my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the Kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?" We have been humbled over the years by the loving ministry we have received from prisoners around the country. It all began years ago with Jerry L., who has sent us many hand painted cards for our birthdays. Jonathan, who turned 16 on July 9, 2001 is holding birthday cards from Jerry that he and Jamie received a few years ago. Jamie is holding two dozen silk roses that she received from Al, a precious brother in Auburn, NY who also regularly sends us exhortations and words of encouragement. We have found great faith behind prison walls! We even have Prayer Roses there, who intercede for us, our staff and your unsaved loved ones!

"My life was once so miserably hopeless. My heart had become so hardened by the lies and ugliness I saw in this world, as well as the ugliness and hypocrisy of my own life. In March of 1988, I was restricted to a barracks room at Cherry Point, NC while awaiting my court martial. It was then that the God of Abraham whispered in my heart. It was then that he revealed to me just how real He really is in a most beautiful way. I praise the Lord for the miracle He performed in my heart. I watch His wonderful treasures that you share each week on "Jewish Jewels." Your program has been such a blessing to me. So many times your ministry has put a song in my heart and helped me lift my weary hands."

"The Ruach HaKodesh has filled my heart with such a longing and a zeal for the Jewish people and their feasts and traditions. The Lord has revealed to me that what was written in His Word in the Old Testament is still very relevant today. I believe He is calling me to go back to my "Jewish roots," although I was never a Jew culturally, only spiritually."

"In my previous letters to you, I had testified that I am currently incarcerated and have been for over four years. However, this is not an unfortunate circumstance. Surely, I have to be punished for breaking the law and willfully accept this sentence. But God has used this opportunity to get my attention. He has opened my eyes and has let His Light shine through the darkness of what had been a dismal life. Thanks be to God for His free gift!! Furthermore, He has caused a hunger and thirst to develop within me to rediscover the Hebraic roots of my faith. I feel drawn to seek that which seems to have been lost through many years of gentile influence."

"I make twenty-four dollars a month. I am able to give Jewish Jewels six dollars a month because I believe what you are doing is established in love, oh, and don’t worry, mom and dad send me a little bit weekly to help me out, but the money that I will share has been worked hard for by me in here."

"How wonderful it is to have the love of the Master! How I appreciate your gift to us, women in prison. May God repay you for your kindness to us. The Bible says that such things that are done to those who are in need or in a "lower state," come to Him as a sweet savour, a sweet aroma. Praise the Name of Jesus! B. McDonald"

"Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise Your name; the righteous shall surround me; for You shall deal bountifully with me." (Psalm 142:7)

"I apologize. I am sorry. See I was a Skin Head... I was planning on getting out and doing some harm to blacks and jews. I grew up in foster homes and juvenile institutions and I learned to fit in where I had to... Not only am I now a believer in Jesus Christ and a practicing Christian, but I found out something ironic. Since I started to get to know my real father he tells me I have Jewish relatives...

Bernie who has ministered to fellow prisoners for many years behind bars in New Mexico, often speaks of the true freedom that comes with knowing the Prince of Peace: "I see Him touch the hearts of many as they hear of His love... of His forgiveness if they will but turn to Him and I see the tears turn to hope as the Gospel is spoken... even through programs such as yours!!! Keep smiling and letting your light shine...remembering that one day soon He will be coming back to take us all Home...where there is never a lack of love or joy!!!"

"I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women..." (Acts 22:4) These words were spoken by Saul of Tarsus, the Apostle Paul, who was instrumental in having many believers imprisoned for their faith in Yeshua. This same Saul was later imprisoned many times himself for this same faith and called himself "a prisoner of Yeshua Ha Mashiach." Even today, thousands of believers are in prison for no other crime than being followers of Jesus, the Jewish Messiah. They suffer daily. They are tortured for their faith. Many, such as the late Richard Wurmbrand, perfect love behind prison walls. Richard Wurmbrand, a Romanian Jewish believer, was sustained by the mercy, grace and presence of His loving Messiah during fourteen years of imprisonment in Romania, including three years of solitary confinement. He and his wife Sabina, also imprisoned for her faith, were great examples of the power of love over evil in the worst of circumstances. They taught us that Yeshua can be very near to His children, especially in prison. If you’ve never read any of Richard Wurmbrand’s books (He wrote many!) we highly recommend them! We’d like to suggest one to you this month: 100 Prison Meditations. Short, easy reading. Simple. Powerful. "These reflections conceived in silence and nurtured in pain will enable you to delve more profoundly into truth, in order to know the Truth."

Blessings,

Neil and Jamie