SOCPM Newsletter | December 4 2021

Greetings,

A busy week in the office, but more on that in On the Home Front. With finding one is busy comes a review of time management. In reviewing my time management, I saw I spend a significant amount of time writing the weekly SOCPM Newsletter.

A good chunk of time writing the newsletter includes correcting my typos, missed commas, passive voice, poor sentence structure, etc. How I regret now listening to my 2nd grade English teacher Miss St. Germain.

One reader suggested I use speech-to-text. My use of speech to text in the past made it clear I don't enunciate my words clearly and end up with some weird word and then have to try to recall what word I was trying to say. But the text to speech technology has improved, so I'm trying text to speech with this newsletter. I still have to deal with my poor grammar, but fewer typos will help.

Nonetheless, the SOCPM Newsletter will be a bi-weekly newsletter, or is it a bi-monthly newsletter? 🤷🏻‍♂️

For those of you who, with bated breath, look forward to the weekly SOCPM weekly newsletter, I'm sorry, but I need to be a good steward of the time God has blessed me.

SOCPM Inside the Prison Gate: I've been given a return date, January 14th, 2022! Praise God!

SOCPM Outside the Prison Gate: Seeking God's will of ministry programs outside the gate in 2022

On the Home Front: I was given a return date, is it possible I will son have a garage storage project accomplished date?

On the Prayer Front - A new year, a look at praying for God's will in all things, including prayer life.

These are the topics for this week's SOCPM Newsletter. I hope you enjoy it, despite my lack of an editor.

To Him be the glory in ALL things and Him alone,

Scott Kalas
Soldiers of Christ Prison Ministries

SOCPM Inside the Prison Gate

Praise God! The chaplain has scheduled me to return on January 14. Your course will be some new policies and limitations that I will have to obey. One of them is that we will no longer meet in the conference room. Instead, we will have to meet in the chapel. The decision for a limit of 24 was that there are 24 pews in the chapel. It will be one student per pew. It will be different having students spread. One of the things that worked well in past classes was an ambiance of togetherness. This one student per pew will not have the feeling of togetherness.

As much as I am not happy with the class size limitation of 24 students versus the previous 40 students and the one student per pew versus the old three students per table, God brought me to Hebrews 10:24–25, 'And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.' Twenty-four students per class, one student per pew, is better than no students per no classroom.

Would you please pray I adjust well to the new policies at Sheridan and will glorify God in my being present at Sheridan?

Last week's disappointment was this week's joy, with Henry attending the discipleship and the Malachi Dads classes. I intentionally let Henry know I missed him and was glad to see him back.  

This week's Discipleship class was session seven of "What Does Revelation Teach?,' based upon my church's teaching on the book of Revelation. The topic was, Guard the Truth. Pilate's question to Jesus 'What is truth?' is debated in today's world. 

Once again, we had some excellent classroom discussion; I've decided to take a break from 'What Does Revelation Teach?' next week. Instead, we will delve into the subject of truth and open class time for other questions. It times well in my attending Cross of Christ's Coffee and Conversation where the topic will be 'What is Truth? How do we find it out?'

In SOCPM's Christian Living class, Malachi Dads, the topic was on sin. One of my students, Michael, is always quick to ask questions that come across as questions to trip me up. Michael is not the first, nor will he be the last student to challenge me. It is part of the territory in prison ministry.

Would you please pray I will be obedient to 2 Timothy 2:24-26 towards Michael and all my students?

Sheridan Correctional Center Lockdown 89 Weeks 🥺🙏

SOCPM Outside the Prison Gate

Administration, including time management, is not my gift. Over the next several weeks, I will be dedicating a good amount of time towards administration and will need good time management.

I am working with Jeff, one of Redeemer Fellowship's elders, and Lora, a Redeemer Fellowship member, strategizing SOCPM's 2022 ministry plan.

One of my first tasks before 2022 is contacting current and past donors to share how God is using SOPCM to bring the Gospel to Dixon and Sheridan and how we hope God will use a SOCPM in 2022 to further SOCPM's Gospel sharing mission field.

Keeping SOCPM's gracious donors updated in a more personal manner as opposed to a weekly newsletter is another objective of SOCPM in 2022.

Would you please pray that I look to the Holy Spirit for guidance and trust in SOCPM's fundraising and not focus on my shortcomings that only increase my anxieties?

Would you please keep my brother in Christ, David, who does prison ministry in Uganda, in prayer as he faces challenges in bringing the Gospel to prions in Uganda?

On The Home Front

It is quite feasible with the next SOCPM newsletter; the garage storage dilemma will only be a memory. Charles, our handyman, is coming Tuesday to give us a quote on some handyman jobs. One of those jobs is installing a hanging shelf in the garage. If what I envision is doable, it will be an answer to prayer.

If you require an excellent, reliable, and trustworthy handyperson, I can highly recommend Charles, owner of Napracnik Construction based in Batavia, IL.

Though there is always more, I don't have any more worthy of my spending time on sharing other on the homefront stuff.

On the Prayer Front

Cameron - I talked to Cameron last night, Friday. He is still in rehab but is looking to leave next Friday. He told me the rehab facility is in Tuscon, and he is planning to move into a sober-living home in Tuscon.  Though it is a step forward, and he shared his short and long-term plans, I have my concerns. I won't detail them, but please pray first and foremost for Cameron's salvation. Would you please also pray the job he has lined up doesn't fall through? Also, pray for his sobriety, Christian fellowship, getting connected to a solid Bible teaching church in Tuscon.

Michelle (aka my lovely bride) - I need to remember to ask my lovely bride Michelle her prayer requests on Friday evenings. Unfortunately, she's a night owl, and I'm an up before dawn person, so the timing of asking her for her prayer requests when I'm writing the SOCPM Newsletter does not align well. So, for now, I'll just repeat her prayer request from the past couple of weeks.

Continued diligence at work. Would you also continue to pray God will open the doors for her to see Pops, possibly next August? Finally, heavy on both Michelle's and my heart is the salvation of many family members, but the heaviest on our hearts is Pops and her brother Darren. Both are solid in their worldviews without a need for Jesus. Yet, Michelle and I foresee them taking their strong willingness of why they don't need Christ to them to use their opinions for God's glory.

Self - Thank you for your prayers in my diligence in reading 'More God Less Crime.' I'm reading some eye-opening stuff on troubled and incarcerated youth. I've also been doing my study on 1 Peter on alternating days. I stated some of my most urgent prayer requests above. I will only add I have more zeal for my diet and exercise.

Citations

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

Scripture

SOCPM - All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

CHS - Unless indicated otherwise, all Scripture quotations are from Clarke, Roy H, editor. The Treasury of David: Spurgeon's Great Commentary on Psalms, by C. H. Spurgeon, 3rd ed., vol. 1, T. Nelson Publishers , 1997 are from the New Geneva Study Bible published by Thomas Nelson, Inc., using the New King James Version of the Bible, ©1979, 1980, 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Publishers.

FDK Unless indicated otherwise, all Scripture quotations are from Derek Kidner, Psalms 1–72: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 15, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1973) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society.

JMB - Unless indicated otherwise, all Scripture quotations are from James Montgomery Boice, Psalms 1–41: An Expositional Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2005) is taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc.TM

WAV - Unless indicated otherwise, all Scripture quotations are from VanGemeren, Willem A. “Book 1 Psalms 1 - 41.” The Expositor's Bible Commentary Psalms, by Tremper Longman III and David E. Garland, Revised ed., vol. 5, Zondervan, 2008 is taken from is taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society.

WSP Unless indicated otherwise, all Scripture quotations are from “Psalm 1.” Psalms: A Critical and Expository Commentary with Doctrinal and Practical Remarks, by William S. Plumer, Banner of Truth Trust, 1975 is taken from the Holy Bible King James Version.

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