Devotional from Texas

I believe I have told you about Bubba, the young man in the Developmentally Disabled unit of a prison in Texas with whom I have had a correspondence for five years. Bubba loves the Lord with an uncommon passion, and he once wondered aloud to his chaplain why the Lord had not made him smarter so that he could be useful. His chaplain told him that God knew exactly what he was doing.

In the light of this, it was funny when, a few years ago, Bubba tried to write a letter to my son in another prison, and it was blocked because of prison rules. On an impulse, I typed Bubba's letter into a file and then hit the word count key and it was exactly 700 words (what I am supposed to achieve for my magazine columns but never do).

I went ahead and sent the letter to WORLD, which published it in the magazine so that my son-and every other inmate in the country who receives WORLD-was able to read it. The young man who had lamented that he was not fit to be used by God was read by many thousands. And I can tell you that I got more response to Bubba's letter than anything else I've submitted to the magazine.

With that introduction, I pass along excerpts of today's mailbox offering. (He gives me blanket permission, always.) I will supply the punctuation, since he doesn't. But I will not tamper with the rest:

". . . I would like too share with you a word from our Lord, Ephesians 3:18. Three words: "Width" (his arms stretch far and wide). "Length" (he was always obeying, all the way too death). "Depth" (took God's wrath that was for us and placing it on Him self even too hell). "Height" (he asended too to the right hand above every thron our kingdom for our righteousness). [Here Bubba draws me a cross, with arrows indicating width, length, depth, height.]

"All this resamble the cross. We have limits. God through Jesus had none. That is what He will do for us. There is no width too long for us of His love, there is no length He wont go fo us. Your never to low depth for Him too reach. Height beyond our understandin is too high.

"Aint it so amazing those words. While we were still dead, Ephesians 2:1, He died for us. He will go all the way, so faithful. You can never mess up enough cause His length His depth is beyond us. That is why the aposel said the love of Christ compels me. That word 'compe' means it amazes him, it stirs him. We need it too and then we will be able too understand. Your love for me compels me, it drives me too go on. Christ love must compel us if we could focus more on His love, His Ephesians 3:18, we too will drive on too love others. When a person loaded down with sin and is forgiven much, he love and Christ love for him brings mercy to others.

"It just dawn on me your reason for thinking 'follow the light.' Stop holding back, let go. It all roots from Christ love tawrds you. You are comvinsed, moved buy the Lord. God's word say the Lord draws us so me and you are being drawn buy the Father too Jesus. Is the verry reason for your desires. So far as I can see it we is on the right road. Well I leave you with that. Take care and rember some on in TX loves you. Bubba."

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