And?
Submitted by Forgiven on 2002-11-12 14:37:15, Tuesday
In reply to i pray to God every night submitted by boylover75 on 2002-11-12 02:46:35, Tuesday
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Jesus told this parable: Luke 18 v10"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11The Pharisee stood up and prayed about[1] himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men--robbers, evildoers, adulterers--or even like this tax collector. 12I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' 13"But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.' 14"I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." And to make the point even more clearly, to repeat a modern parable: Two men found themselves sitting in a prison cell together. As they struck up a conversation, they discovered they were both facing the death sentence for several henious crimes they'd each committed. "How much time you lookin' at?" the first man asked. "The prosecutor wants to give me the electric chair. They have a good case against me. Solid evidence. DNA... fingerprints... even a couple of witnesses," sighed the second man. "Same here," nodded the first man, smiling, "They told me I haven't got a chance. My case goes before the judge next week." "Mine's in five days. I haven't got a chance. How can you smile? Don't you care if they fry you?!" the second man asked disgustedly. "Oh, haven't you heard?" asked the first man, "...about my lawyer?" The second man was suddenly interested, "Is he good? You think he could actually convince a jury you're innocent?...even with all the evidence?" The first man laughed, "Well.. not exactly. The evidence is overwhelming... but I've got a wildcard in my deck...." the man looked around to make sure no one was listening, "...my lawyer is the judge's son," he winked. "What?!" he sat up in his narrow bunk, "His son? Is that even legal? Isn't that considered favoritism?? Conflict of interest? Nepo..nepa..." The first man laughed again, "Nepotism. That's the way this county runs. It's been that way for years. A real ol' boys' network, you know? Word has it, my lawyer just walks into court, and his dad will dismiss the case right then-and-there. He won't even hear the evidence!" "I want your lawyer!" replied the second man hopefully, "Is he expensive?" "Well... he's free, actually. I just had to promise him that I'd do my best to stay out of trouble. He really just asked me to trust him, and to agree to work on changing my life around." "Free?? Now I know you're full of it," the second man waved off the first man, and lit a cigarette. "No.. seriously, man. He doesn't charge anything. You just have to agree to trust him and take him on as your lawyer. It's a trust-thing," the first man explained, "See that phone in the dayroom, on the wall? All you have to do is pick it up. It rings directly to his office!" The second man rolled over in his bunk and took a long drag off his cigarette. He seemed to be considering all he'd heard, "You know? You almost had me for a second. Free lawyers? Dad is the judge... sheesh. I'm so desperate to save my butt from that electric chair, I almost bought it." "Listen... all you have to do is pick up the phone and you'll see I'm telling the truth. Don't throw your life away just because you don't trust me." "I stopped trusting people a long time ago, " retorted the man, "I'm not going to make a fool out of myself picking up that phone, just so you can have a laugh at my expense. Besides that... even if it were true... I'm not going to be able to change. I've been a loser my whole life, and as soon as I get out, I'd break my promise to that 'lawyer' to be good, and end up right back in the chair." "He doesn't expect anyone to change overnight, man. Once the case is dismissed, you won't even be on probation! You just have to try. He just wants you to appreciate the second chance you've been given, and to become a citizen for once in your life." The man took a last deep drag off the cigarette and closed his eyes, "I'm tired. I'm going to sleep. I don't want to hear another word about your lawyer. I don't trust no one but myself. Besides, who knows? Maybe the governor will grant me a pardon on execution night. I've seen that happen in movies. Or maybe the Supreme Court will overturn my sentence..." he mumbled his last words as he drifted off into a fitfull asleep. The first man shook his head in frustration. He was getting used to it, though. In the past week he'd had over a dozen cell mates, and only four had bothered to make the phone call. They were all free now, and working on rebuilding their lives as new citizens. In another week, he'd be free too. He smiled and closed his eyes, as a peaceful sleep overtook him. |
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