Rhymes for Doing Time: A Daily Devotion for Prisoners and Parolees with Poems for all Occasions

By James Perkins

Rhymes for Doing Time provides a unique opportunity to use real-life situations that come up every day in prison or upon release--to help a prisoner develop a closer walk with God and to make their time easier, knowing that they may be just an inmate to the guards or even to the world, but they are or can become a child of the Most High God!

The book has a page for every day and is formatted so that it describes a situation that happened to a prisoner, describing how he or she reacted to different situations that came up. Then it shows a situation that happened to a person or persons in the Bible, and then it draws a practical or a spiritual application between the two.

It gives people a chance to realize that the Bible is living and practical, and it shows them that the same God back in Bible times hasn't changed one bit!

The book also has inspirational poems that were written by the author to uplift his friends. They are perfect for prisoners to send to their families in cards and letters for everything from birthdays to holidays.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Covenant Books, Inc.
• Release date: Oct 11, 2023
• ISBN: 9798888514313

Book preview

Table of Contents

Title

Copyright

January 1st

January 2nd

January 3rd

January 4th

January 5th

January 6

January 7th

January 8th

January 9th

January 10th

January 11th

January 12th

January 13th

January 14th

I Have a Dream

January 15th

January 16th

January 17th

January 18th

January 19th

January 20th

January 21st

January 22nd

January 23rd

January 24th

January 25th

January 26th

January 27th

January 28th

January 29th

January 30th

January 31st

Ode to Love

February 1st

February 2nd

February 3rd

February 4th

February 5th

February 6th

February 7th

February 8th

February 9th

February 10th

February 11th

February 12th

February 13th

February 14th

February 15th

February 16th

February 17th

February 18th

February 18th

February 19th

February 20th

February 21st

February 22nd

February 23rd

February 24th

February 25th

February 26th

February 27th

February 28th

March 1st

March 2nd

March 3rd

March 4th

March 5th

March 6th

March 7th

March 8th

March 9th

March 10th

March 11th

March 12th

March 13th

March 14th

March 15th

March 16th

March 17th

March 18th

March 19th

March 20th

March 21st

March 22nd

March 23rd

March 24th

March 25th

March 26th

March 27th

March 28th

March 29th

March 30th

He Lives

March 31st

April 1st

April 2nd

April 3rd

April 4th

April 5th

April 6th

April 7th

April 8th

April 9th

April 10th

April 11th

April 12th

April 13th

April 14th

EASTER HOPE

April 15th

April 16th

April 17th

April 18th

April 19th

April 20th

April 21st

April 22nd

April 23rd

April 24th

April 25th

April 26th

April 27th

April 28th

April 29th

April 30th

May 1st

May 2nd

May 3rd

May 4th

May 5th

May 6th

May 7th

May 8th

May 9th

May 10th

May 11th

May 12th

May 13th

May 14th

May 15th

May 16th

May 17th

May 18th

May 19th

May 20th

May 21st

May 22nd

May 23rd

May 24th

May 25th

May 26th

May 27th

May 28th

May 29th

May 30th

May 31st

June 1st

June 2nd

June 3rd

June 4th

June 5th

June 6th

June 7th

June 8th

June 9th

June 10th

June 11th

June 12th

June 13th

June 14th

June 15th

June 16th

June 17th

June 18th

June 19th

June 20th

June 21st

June 22nd

June 23rd

June 24th

June 25th

June 26th

June 27th

June 28th

June 29th

June 30th

July 1st

July 2nd

July 3rd

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

July 4th

July 5th

July 6th

July 7th

July 8th

July 9th

July 10th

July 11th

July 12th

July 13th

July 14th

July 15th

July 16th

July 17th

July 18th

July 19th

July 20th

July 21st

July 22nd

July 23rd

July 24th

July 25th

July 26th

July 27th

July 28th

July 29th

July 30th

July 31st

August 1st

August 2nd

August 3rd

August 4th

August 5th

August 6th

August 7th

August 8th

August 9th

August 10th

August 11th

August 12th

August 13th

August 14th

August 15th

August 16th

August 17th

August 18th

August 19th

August 20th

August 21st

August 22nd

August 23rd

August 24th

August 25th

August 26th

August 27th

August 28th

August 29th

August 30th

August 31st

September 1st

September 2nd

September 3rd

September 4th

September 5th

September 6th

September 7th

September 8th

September 9th

September 10th

September 11th

September 12th

September 13th

September 14th

September 15th

September 16th

September 17th

September 18th

September 19th

September 20th

September 21st

September 22nd

September 23rd

September 24th

September 25th

September 26th

September 27th

September 28th

September 29th

September 30th

October 1st

October 2nd

October 3rd

October 4th

October 5th

October 6th

October 7th

October 8th

October 9th

October 10th

October 11th

October 12th

October 13th

October 14th

October 15th

October 16th

October 17th

October 18th

October 19th

October 20th

October 21st

October 22nd

October 23rd

October 24th

October 25th

October 26th

October 27th

October 28th

October 29th

October 30th

October 31st

November 1st

November 2nd

November 3rd

November 4th

November 5th

November 6th

November 7th

November 8th

November 9th

November 10th

November 11th

November 12th

November 13th

November 14th

November 15th

November 16th

November 17th

November 18th

November 19th

November 20th

November 21st

November 22nd

November 23rd

November 24th

November 25th

November 26th

November 27th

November 28th

November 29th

November 30th

December 1st

December 2nd

December 3rd

December 4th

December 5th

December 6th

December 7th

December 8th

December 9th

December 10th

December 11th

December 12th

December 13th

December 14th

December 15th

December 16th

December 17th

December 18th

December 19th

December 20th

December 21st

December 22nd

December 23rd

December 24th

December 25th

December 26th

December 27th

December 28th

December 29th

December 30th

December 31st

Poems

One King

What's My Name?

It's Mine!

A Free Prisoner's Prayer

PEACE

What I'm Not

The Feds

To the BOP

Happy Birthday

My New Life

Due Time

He's Worthy

Mother's Day

Father's Day

A True Friend

What Judge Are You Listening To?

Making the Most

Doing time for God

Doing Fine

For My Daughter

Girlfriend's Birthday

More than Luck

Blessed Life

Mom's Birthday

Rage

Christmas Friend

Blessings on Christmas

Together for Christmas

My Love

Your Hands

Be Somebody

My Valentine

Mom's Valentine

To My Daughter on Valentine's Day

It's All about Me!

New Friends

Not Why but WHO

Change What or Who?

Ode to Mom

Birthday Girl Sweet 16

Mother's Day Prayer

A Wise Investment

My Father's Hands

Irony

CHRISTMAS

I and F

Christmas Presence

THE IRONY OF IT ALL…

Happy Anniversary

You Don't Know What You've Got 'Til It's Gone

Mom's Birthday

Birthday Girl

Six Feet Apart

DO SOMETHING

A SAINT OR AN AIN'T

THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE

WINNER

About the Author

cover.jpg

Rhymes for Doing Time

A Daily Devotion for Prisoners and Parolees with Poems for all Occasions

James Perkins

ISBN 979-8-88851-430-6 (Paperback)

ISBN 979-8-88851-431-3 (Digital)

Copyright © 2023 James Perkins

All rights reserved

First Edition

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Covenant Books

11661 Hwy 707

Murrells Inlet, SC 29576

www.covenantbooks.com

Dear reader,

I had been a believer for quite some time before I discovered the practical daily application of the Word of God. I cannot take all the credit for this because at the prison camp where I was at, we had a weekly volunteer who asked this question every time he came: How can we use what was written thousands of years ago to help us in our daily walk? In other words, how can we put ourselves in the story? I started to realize while reading the Word of God that there is not only a spiritual application but a practical application as well.

Believe me, as a Christian in prison, people will be looking at you and judging you for every move you make. The first time you get out of character in the TV room, they will accuse you of having jailhouse religion, and it's sad to say, from my experience, they continue to do so long after you get out! But don't worry—there's help! People back in Bible days were no different from people are today, and I found out as I read about what they did—both right and wrong—that I could copy what they did right and avoid what they did wrong. After all, what God hated thousands of years ago, he still hates today, and what God blessed years ago, he still blesses today!

I believe as you start to apply these principles that the Bible will no longer be just some ancient book, but instead, it will be a road map to help you find your way out of any situation that you may encounter and move you toward all the blessings that God has in store for you.

January 1st

Genesis 1:1 says, In the beginning God created the heavens and the Earth. You'll notice that the Bible doesn't waste any time trying to prove that God made everything! The same God that spoke the world into existence put this Bible together for us to use! Instead of making shallow, frivolous New Year's resolutions, I'll challenge you to make one that will affect you for all eternity. Challenge yourself to read the Bible each day and ask yourself how you can apply it to your daily life. Also challenge yourself to memorize at least one verse from every book of the Bible—starting with Genesis—so that as you walk the track or lie in your bunk, you can read them over and over. Repetition is the mother of all learning, and you can do it!

In prison, it's easy for a routine to turn into a rut! Try setting some long-term and short-term goals for yourself. Don't overdo it! If you do a little each day or even each week, that's progress. It's been said that the only difference between you now and you a year from now is the books you read and the people you meet, but I say it's what you do with the knowledge you gained and the relationships you form that counts!

Lord, I pray that you inspire the reader of this book with seeds of greatness. Bless them so that they can be a blessing to others.

January 2nd

Even though Crosby was a Christian, he still worried a lot. He was getting out this year and wondering what job to get and how to provide for his family and knew that God was concerned about his soul and his spiritual life, but was God really concerned about where he would work or the minute details of his life?

As Crosby read the Bible, he came across a verse that changed the way he thought about God. He read that God actually gives us all things that pertain to life—oh, from the colors that we wear to the people we come in contact with. When we let the Holy Spirit give us peace and guide us, oftentimes it's through open and closed doors that we find out the will of God and where we need to be.

So the next time the devil tries to get you to worry about what the future holds for you, remind him that you know Who holds your future!

Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our lord, as his divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by glory and virtue. (2 Peter 1:2–3)

He brought them out of Darkness and the shadow of death, and broke their chains in pieces. (Psalm 107:14)

Lord, thank you that I am free even while I'm in this place. I know that you care about every detail of my life, and I entrust it to you. Amen.

January 3rd

When Joe first got to the prison, he rededicated his life to God and made a commitment to serve him any way that he could. He attended all the Bible studies, joined the choir, and always helped set up chairs for the meetings or anything that was needed. But some of his so-called friends started calling him soft for going to church. Lately he had been missing church to watch football, hanging out with the guys at the gambling table, and he hardly ever witnessed to the others in the compound. He started out hot but quickly went lukewarm!

Jesus told a parable about seeds being scattered on stony ground. They sprang up for a while, but the roots weren't deep enough to support them when the sun beat down on them. In the same way, if we don't put our roots deep enough in the Word of God, the pressures of life will beat down on us. Don't be like the seeds spread on the stony ground, but let the Word of God get deep into your heart!

These likewise are the ones sold on Stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word sake, immediately they stumble. (Mark 4:16–17)

I know your works oh, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth. (Revelation 3:15–16)

Lord, help me to put you first in my life and not to worry about other people's opinions that don't matter anyway. Give me a heavenly perspective today! Amen!

January 4th

Archie was starting a new year in prison, and he had decided that this year, he was going to be closer than ever to Jesus. He made a resolution to quit looking lustfully at pictures and women in magazines and on TV. He started every day by asking God to change the desires of his heart. He knew that in his own power, he could not control his flesh, so he prayed that the Holy Spirit would take control of every aspect of his life. Now his desires have gotten less lustful, and when he does see a woman on TV with barely anything on, he starts to see her as someone that Jesus died on the cross for.

God will never take away our free will. He loves us too much! When you ask God to change what you desire, you're saying that he is the Lord of your life. Don't be surprised when the Holy Spirit leads you to new heights and to places you have never been!

But you have not so line and Christ, if indeed you have heard him and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus; that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lust, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness. (Ephesians 4:20–24)

Lord, I give you the authority to change my desires to bring them more in alignment with your will for my life. Amen.

January 5th

Derrick woke up hearing a group of guys joking and talking loud on a Saturday morning. He got up and stormed around the unit, complaining loudly about how disrespectful those guys were for waking him up. His friend came up to him and told him that he was doing the same thing that he said he hated.

King David had many wives and concubines, but that didn't stop him from taking the only wife his neighbor had. To make matters worse, he tried to cover up the matter by having the man killed and taking his wife for his own. The prophet Nathan told David a story of a rich man who had plenty of sheep, but instead of killing one of his own sheep, he took his neighbor's one little lamb that was like a child to him and killed it. King David was furious. He demanded that the rich man pay back four times what he had taken. King David demanded to know who this man was that treated his neighbor that way. Nathan told him, You are the man!

Then Nathan said to David, you are the man! Thus says the Lord God of Israel; I anointed you King over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. I gave you your master's house and your master's wives into your keeping, and gave you the house of Israel and Judah and if that had been too little, I also would have given you much more! Why have you despised the commandments of the Lord, to do evil in his sight! You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon. (2 Samuel 12:7–9)

Every way of a man is right in his own eyes; but the Lord weighs the heart. (Proverbs 21:2)

Lord, help me to be thankful for what I have and never to covet what someone else has. Amen.

January 6

When Vinny got to prison, he was pretty healthy; but since then, he has had some pretty serious health problems. What makes matters worse is that the problems most likely could have been prevented or nearly as severe had Vinny been on the outside. He started feeling sorry for himself until he read about another prisoner a long time ago named Daniel.

Daniel's country was overthrown, and many of its inhabitants were taken into captivity. To make matters worse, Daniel was put under the charge of the master of eunuchs. In all probability, they made Daniel a eunuch too! It would have been easy for Daniel to be depressed and to turn his back on God, but that's not what happened at all! Daniel made the best of his situation, and even in captivity, he served God and moved to the top of the political ladder in Babylon!

Then he started to feel a lot better about his situation. He knew that God would bring him safely through this and give him a bright future!

Then the king instructed Ashpenaz, the master of his eunuchs, to bring some of the children of Israel and some of the king's descendants and some of the nobles. (Daniel 1:3)

And in all matters of wisdom and understanding about which the king examined them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers who were in all his realm. (Daniel 1:20)

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

Lord, thank you, for giving me the assurance that you are in control of everything that happens to me and that you love me and care for me. Amen.

January 7th

Daryl knew he was headed to prison for nine years. His wife said she would stick it out with him through thick and thin, but after six months, he got a letter in the mail saying she wanted to divorce. To make matters worse, his friends quit writing to him, and his own brother wouldn't put any money on his books! He got so depressed, and he'd thought about taking his own life, but one of his friends on his cellblock came and told Daryl about a friend who sticks closer than a brother. Now Daryl is back in prison, but this time he's doing prison ministry with his new wife!

Likewise, Elijah was also in a deserted place and very depressed. He even told God that he wanted to die! God sent an angel twice in the wilderness to strengthen him, and when Elijah thought he was the only one left, God showed him that he had some help!

We never know what an encouraging word can do for someone. Why don't you be on the lookout for someone you can help today?

Yet I have reserved 7,000 in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every Mouth that has not kissed him. (1 Kings 19:18)

For He himself has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. (Hebrews 13:5)

A man who has friends must himself be friendly. But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. (Proverbs 18:24)

Lord, help me to realize that you will always be there with me and that you will provide a way when the journey seems more than I can bear. Amen.

January 8th

Carlos had been in prison for a long time. He lost everything over the time that he had been down, and at forty-five years of age, he was going to have to start over with nothing, with a felony on his record at that. Everyone told him that it would take him several years to rebuild his life, working long hours at dead-end jobs. Imagine the surprise of his friends when they saw Carlos come back into prison only one year later as a guest speaker! He told them that God had not only blessed him with a good job that left him time for ministry, but he had also given him and his wife a new house!

When a Shunammite woman got back home after seven years in exile, she had the faith in God to ask the king for her and back. When she told the king how Elijah had brought her son back to life, he granted her request for her land and the proceeds from the land since the day she left! Don't be surprised when God restores things for you in a speed you never thought possible!

And when the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king appointed a certain officer for her, saying, Restore all that was hers, and all the proceeds of the field from the day that she left the land until now. (2 Kings 8:6)

I will restore to you the years that the swarming Locust has eaten. (Joel 2:25)

Dear Lord, help me to keep my trust in you for I know that you will restore everything that you want me to have. Amen.

January 9th

It was Nate's first day in prison. He had accepted Christ in the county jail while he was awaiting sentencing. He had made a vow that he would share his faith with anyone who would listen from then on. He believed God would protect him, but now that he got here, he started to really have some doubts. A lot of these guys were huge, tattooed, and mean looking! Would God not only protect him but give him the strength to be bold enough to carry out the Great Commission and witness to them? In the same way, the children of Israel didn't want to go in and possess the land that God had given them even though God promised to drive the people out before them with hornets and they wouldn't have had to lift a sword! The people went by what they saw and not by what God had said. They had already seen God part the Red Sea yet didn't have the faith to believe he would bring them into the land! Only Joshua and Caleb had the faith to trust in God and not listen to the crowd (Numbers 13:32–33, 14:6–9).

And they gave the children of Israel a bad report about the land which they had spied out, saying,

The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw lying it our men of great stature. There we saw the Giants and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.

Joshua and Caleb said to them,

The land we passed through just to spy out is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord delights in us, then he will bring us into this land and give it to us. A land which and which flows with milk and honey. Only do not rebel against the Lord nor fear the people of the land. They are our bread. Their protection has departed from them, and the Lord is with us. Do not fear them.

You shall not be terrified of them oh, for the Lord your God the great and awesome God is with you. (Deuteronomy 7:21)

For we walk by faith not by sight. (2 Corinthians 5:7)

Lord, give me the strength to witness to others even when I'm scared, and make me courageous enough to take back all that you have given me. Amen.

January 10th

When John got to prison, he noticed how each group of people hung out with their own race. He was told to stay in his car. But when he got into a camp, he had the freedom to hang out with anyone he chose. He decided to do just that! When some of his old friends from the last prison got off the bus, they gave him a lot of flak. John told them that now he hung around all people as long as they were a positive influence.

Like John, Peter was also comfortable with hanging around his own race, but God had other plans. He told Peter to go to a Gentile's house and witness to them. As Peter got more comfortable with them, naturally he started spending more time with them and, I'm sure, got invited to supper quite a few times. All was well until some of Peter's Jewish friends came to visit from Jerusalem. Peter quickly withdrew from his new Gentile friends for fear of what his Jewish friends would say:

Now when Peter had come to Antioch, I wasted him to his face oh, because he was to be blamed; for before certain men came from James; he would eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision and the rest of the Jews also played the hypocrite with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away in their hypocrisy. (Galatians 2:11–12)

Then Peter opened his mouth and said, In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation whosoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him. (Acts 10:34–35)

Lord, I know that you created man in your image and that you don't make junk! All people are precious in your sight. Help me to love them as you love me. Amen.

January 11th

Shane's friend had filed a motion with the courts and got time to cut off his sentence. Shane filed the exact same motion to his judge and anxiously awaited the news of his immediate release, but when he got the news that his motion had been denied, he was crushed. Didn't God want him home with his family? After all, Shane was the chapel orderly and read the Bible and prayed every day!

It's easy to get discouraged when things like this happen, but we must remember that God has a plan and things will work out! When Joseph was in prison, he foretold a dream for Pharaoh's butler. Joseph then asked the butler to remember him when it went well with him and get the Pharaoh to let him out. I imagine Joseph could have gotten pretty discouraged and even given up when the butler forgot all about him, but Joseph pressed forward, kept doing the right thing, and was eventually put in charge of the whole land!

But remember me when it is well with you, and please show kindness to me; make mention of me to pharaoh, and get me out of this house. For indeed I was stolen away from the land of the Hebrews; and also I have done nothing here that they should put me into the dungeon. (Genesis 40:14–15)

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind me and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13–14)

Lord, when bad things happen to me, help me never to question your love for me or that you're using it to strengthen my faith. My breakthrough may be just around the corner! Amen.

January 12th

Cedric was in a discussion with some of the people on the rec yard. He wanted to share the Gospel with them so that they could experience the same joy that he felt. The problem was, they made fun of him, calling him a Bible thumper, and said that any idiot knew that modern science disputed the Word of God as being false.

It was no different in Paul's day. When he was preaching the Gospel in Athens, the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers called him a babbler. They looked down their noses at this foreigner who spoke of the unknown God at Mars Hill. The funny thing is all of their names are long forgotten, and Paul has a monument declaring his contribution to Christianity right there on the very spot where they called him names!

Then certain epicurean and stoic philosophers encountered him. and some said, what does this Babler want to say? Others said he seems to be a proclaimer of foreign Gods, because he preached to them Jesus and the resurrection. Then Paul stood in the midst of the areopagus and sad, man of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with the inscription To the Unknown God. Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you. (Acts 17:18, 22–23)

But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Corinthians 2:14)

But avoid foolish disputes, genealogies, contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and useless. (Titus 3:9)

Lord, give me the spiritual discernment to know when to speak or when to walk away, for I know that if some people didn't listen to the apostle Paul, they won't listen to me. Amen.

January 13th

Calvin read his Bible about tithing, but he figured he would start when he got home. After all, he only made a few dollars a month at his job, and his mom already paid her tithes before she sent him money this month. Calvin rationalized that he helped people out every now and then when he had extra, but after a while, the Holy Spirit convicted him, and he decided to take out 10 percent of the little money that he got first and bought hygiene products to put in the chapel for new inmates getting in the compound. Calvin has noticed that his locker has been overflowing ever since!

The priests in Israel justified offering lame and sick animals for sacrifices to God in the temple, yet they would never dream of offering those same animals at a feast to their governor or an important political figure. God is not interested in leftovers. He