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Don't Count Me Out!!! 8/20/24 Joshua Drucker
WOW. I just received this and I HAD to send this out IMMEDIATELY!!!
Much thanks to Ms. Erin Hines for the typing and format-GREAT JOB TO BOTH!!!!
Proverbs 15:23 (KJV)
23 A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!
Don’t Count Me Out
Written By: Joshua Drucker (JD)
1 Corinthians 4:5 (NKJV)
Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.
Please allow me to reintroduce myself for the people that don’t know me. My name is Joshua Drucker (a.k.a. JD). I am a prisoner housed at Macon State Prison in Oglethorpe, GA. I have been incarcerated for over 20 years. I was originally given the sentence of death by lethal injection; however, God had other plans and miraculously delivered me from Georgia Death Row at the end of 2018.
It’s 11:00 p.m. as I pen these words on a notepad using a pen. Does anyone in the world still write with pen and paper? (smile) Once this sermon is composed, I will then mail it to my friend to be typed up and posted on facebook. I do have a word from the Holy Spirit and I prayerfully hope this is a “timely” word for your situation.
1 Corinthians 4:5 (NKJV)
Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.
After being released from death row, I was transferred to Hays State Prison. There, I endured six tumultuous years as I adapted to the norm of prison life. Finally, after six years, on my birthday (8-1-24), the Holy Spirit blew on my life again and I was transferred to Macon State Prison. The prison is considered to be the most violent prison in the state of Georgia right now, but by God’s grace, I will not only survive but THRIVE in these conditions.
When I arrived at this prison, I discovered that one of my best friends during my incarceration was also housed here. We began our time together in Cobb County Jail over 20 years ago. We both were facing the death penalty; but ended up with two different outcomes. He received a life sentence and I received death. However; about 15 years later, we were reunited as we were placed in dormitories right next to each other.
The next day after arriving here, I was able to go to his dormitory and speak with him. We spent about 30 minutes speaking about the past and the good years we shared together at Cobb County Jail. During the nostalgic conversation he made the comment- “you always believed that you were going home”. He made this statement with a chuckle in his voice; but I know it was spoken out of love mingled with jest. Being as close as we were, he knew I was a man of faith in Jesus Christ and himself always questioning the existence of a God. Even though our beliefs differed, it never deterred me from building a strong bond with my friend.
1 Corinthians 4:5 (NKJV)
Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.
His comment (I felt) meant to say- “yo JD: it looks like your faith didn’t work.” I smiled after the comment but quickly shot back with a rebuttal. I said to him- “wait, the game isn’t over yet. There is still time on the clock. In fact, I have the ball in my hand right now dribbling down the court”.
When I got back to my cell later that day, the words “Therefore judge nothing before the time” sprung into my spirit. It was like living water springing from my heart according to John 7:38.
John 7:38 (NKJV)
He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.
I have known the words “judge nothing before the time” for many years. It was given to me by a Godly woman that was sitting in court one day as I filed multiple motions before going to trial. During the motion hearings, the outcome looked bleak as the prosecution built a strong case against me. However, during the hearing, the Holy Spirit told her to “judge nothing before the time.” In other words- “don’t pay attention to what the situation LOOKS LIKE. The game isn’t over yet. It may LOOK LIKE you are losing; but God isn’t finished with you yet.”
1 Corinthians 4:5 (NKJV)
Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.
The above verse states; “Judge nothing before the time, UNTIL THE LORD COMES.” In other words; “don’t judge the outcome of your situation until the Lord Jesus comes on the scene.”
In the Webster’s Dictionary, the word “judge” means: to form an estimate or evaluation about something: to conclude. The devil’s main job is to get us to “judge” the situation before the Holy Spirit finishes His work in our lives. He keeps us so focused on our current state in life as he whispers the words- “it’s over. Your life is over. God didn’t show up for you. He didn’t answer your prayers. His promises failed. It must be the sin in your life. His miracles are past. You didn’t have enough faith. Serving Christ doesn’t work. You should have tried to save yourself through fleshly means. Your dependance on Christ failed. IT’S OVER! IT’S OVER! IT'S OVER!”
Then, there are the friends and family that say- “His/her faith failed. The Gospel you believed in couldn’t save you.” Did not our Lord Jesus suffer the same mockery as He hung on a cross with blood pouring from His body?
Matthew 27:39-44 (NKJV)
39 And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads 40 and saying, "You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross." 41 Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, 42 "He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him. 43 He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, 'I am the Son of God.' " 44 Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing.
The unimaginable pain that the heart endures in the midst of a trial. The darkness that surrounds us when the child dies. When the death sentence is handed down. When cancer is spotted in your body. When the marriage looks to be headed to divorce court. When the eviction notice on your home is served. When everything in the natural yells- “YOUR LIFE IS OVER. YOU WILL NEVER RECOVER.”
I received my death sentence by a Georgia jury on October 20, 2011. It was a devastating blow. I felt darkness descend in the courtroom as the devil and a horde of demons rejoiced in the spirit realm.
Within days, I was shipped to Georgia’s death row and placed in a one man cell as I awaited the appeal process to run its course. It was difficult at times but I REFUSED to accept that I would ever die on a gurney with a needle in my arm.
There were times when other inmates spoke together about their “last meal” (in Georgia, the condemned man gets to order anything he wants from a restaurant 24 hours before his execution). I, myself, never indulged in these conversations. I REFUSED to “judge the outcome before the time. Before the Lord came.”
Please don’t think that I am a great man of faith or someone that has the “gift of faith.” There are times I think to myself- “there is NO WAY OUT!” Many times I have been so full of fear in my stomach that I have thrown up. However, it is during these times when I have to remind myself to “judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes”. I have to tell myself- “JD, you may be down right now but the game isn’t over. Don’t give up the faith. Finish the game.There is still time left on the clock.”
You, dear reader, may be facing an impossible situation as you read these words. The doctor says there’s no hope or you may have lost your job and are on the brink of losing everything. Some are staring at a mate that used to be your best friend but now you can’t stand to be in the same room as them and divorce seems to be the only way out. A wayward child strung out on drugs or a child facing a long prison sentence or a child that despises the name of Christ and your prayers seem to fall on deaf ears.
For others, the situation is so bleak that it’s impossible to find the words to articulate your pain. The darkness is so thick that it can be “felt”. For some, you have no idea what I’m describing because you’ve never “walked through the valley of the shadow of death.” But for those of us who have; we know what it feels like to be on the brink of despair.
1 Corinthians 4:5 (NKJV)
Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.
The above word is YOUR WORD today. This is the word you are going to need to fight this battle in life. DO NOT, DO NOT judge your situation before the time. DO NOT judge. DO NOT say “it’s over” before the Lord comes. DO NOT quit and throw in the towel before the game is over. There is still time left on the clock.
Encourage yourself today. Remind yourself of the past trials that you “thought” would destroy you but you made it through. Tell the devil that you are not giving up and that you won't waver in your faith. And that you REFUSE to doubt the promises of God. Dig into the Word and allow the Holy Spirit to speak to you.
For those of you facing cancer- “judge nothing before the time.” For the ones facing financial fears- “judge nothing before the time.” For the ones living in a broken home- “judge nothing before the time.” For the ones who are questioning your faith and wondering if the Bible really is God’s Word- “judge nothing before the time.” For the ones that are alone and feel forsaken by man and God- “judge nothing before the time.”
Take your eyes off of the disaster you are looking at and focus on Jesus and the promises in God’s Word. It is now 1:41 a.m. as I finish this sermon. I am serving a life sentence and everything in the natural is yelling- “you will NEVER get out. You will die in prison.” I refuse to accept it. I refuse to judge the outcome before the appointed time. Until the Lord comes and finishes the work.
Habakkuk 2:2-4 (NKJV)
4 Then the Lord answered me and said: "Write the vision And make it plain on tablets, That he may run who reads it. 3 For the vision is yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; Because it will surely come, It will not tarry. 4 Behold the proud, His soul is not upright in him; But the just shall live by his faith.
God Bless,
Joshua Drucker
8-6-24
Pastor Doug
Please feel free to contact me anytime at DOUGGHC@AOL.COM, or by phone:
404-295-5644 or
CHURCH ADDRESS:
70 Stone Rd.
McDonough, GA. 30253
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Thank You and God Bless You!!!
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