Beyond Prison

As a homemaker, my number one area of ministry is to my family. Yet, the Bible says we are to spread the gospel and tell others about the salvation of the Lord. "And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15 Being at home and raising children, it is sometimes difficult to actually "go out" into the world and tell others of the love of Jesus. As I was meditating one day and spending quiet time with my Lord, I began to question the Lord. I was feeling so blessed and thankful for all that God has given me. I felt a tremendous burden for souls. Souls that were crying out and hurting. Souls that were empty because they did not have a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. I knew that only God could put the burden I had in my heart and He would soon reveal to me what to do with this burden. The following Sunday, we attended the p.m. service at church and a guest speaker was introduced. He was a Christian prison warden and came to preach to the congregation about prison ministry. My heart was so touched by the experiences he shared as a prison warden and about prison life and prison ministry. I began to see the empty, broken hearts and lives of those that were in prison. I saw the families of those in prison torn up and broken-hearted over the fact that their loved one had committed possible horrendous crimes. I saw the victims and their families angry and bitter that were wanting the inmates to "pay" in some way for the crimes they had committed. Each soul I saw was empty and hurting; whether it was the criminal, the victim, or the families of each. Then I saw Jesus hanging on the Cross, blood spilled out , paying the penalty for it all. The Lord began to show me how He had died on the Cross and paid the penalty even for the murderer. I no longer saw those in prison as mere "criminals" who deserved to be punished for their crimes. I saw them through the Cross of Christ. Those in prison were not only in prison physically, but were in a deeper prison within themselves. They were in bondage to Satan and his darkness. I could see Jesus standing with open arms, calling them and loving them, despite what they had done. I finally began to understand what the Lord was trying to show me. The burden I had was for those empty and hurting souls locked in prison, but not only a physical prison; a prison within themselves in bondage to the forces of darkness of this world. I left the service that night and with my natural mind began to wonder why God had placed this burden on me. After all, what could I do for these souls? I was a homeschool wife and mother and my husband and I have only one vehicle. How could I possibly minister to souls in prison? A few weeks went by and one night I decided to research the internet for ministries that offered Bible studies. I came across a ministry which had a link to Prison Fellowship Ministry. On this website, was a link which read Pen Pal Program. Instantly a warmth came over me and the Lord began to remind me of my talent and desire for writing. Then it finally dawned on me that the Lord was clearly in control of my research and I was amazed how I had been led to a link educating me on writing to prisoners. I am now set up with two pen pal programs and currently are corresponding with two prison inmates. I plan to write to as many as the Lord would have me to do. When I wrote my first letters, I prayed and asked God to guide my heart. Although I thought that God would use me to bring encouragement to them, and He has, I never dreamed the effects it would have on me and how it would change my heart and life forever. After receiving my first correspondence, I was quite surprised to find that I, too, was being encouraged as well. As I am getting to know my pen pals, I am learning new things and my life and outlook on those in prison will never be the same. I am seeing how empty and unloved they feel inside. That is why most end up in prison. They are hungry for love or an encouraging word. They label themselves as losers and sad to say, the world labels them, also. Deep down inside they want to be changed and most are full of anger and bitterness. Most have no hope and were brought up to feel that way. They have no sense of self-worth and because of this have very hard hearts. They are locked up in prison as a punishment for their crimes and are released without a transformed heart. Only Jesus can truly change a person. A prison bar cannot change a heart full of anger and pain from a lost childhood, or maybe even abuse as a child. They are let out of prison to enter a world that has now rejected them more than ever. They now carry a bigger "label" as an outcast. Crimes are repeated and we wonder why this is so. Yet, can we say that in some way, we as Christians, help contribute to this unending cycle by our own neglect for lost souls? Who can point them to the one that brings hope to the hopeless? Who can point them to the one that loves unconditionally and never rejects? Who can point them to the only one that can transform and regenerate hearts and lives? It is only we Christians that are willing to do the work of God and love through the eyes of the Lord. Anyone who can write a letter can minister to those in prison. We are without excuse. A letter of encouragement or a word of the Lord can be the very thing that God will use to save a soul in prison from hell and set them free from their "real" prison. Are you willing to give them that encouragement? May the Lord give you a willing heart and a burden for a lost and dying world.
...I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
		*Matthew 25:36b*

Here are links to various prison websites that I have found to be both educating and inspiring. Just click on the cross next to the titles. If you have a prison website that you would like to share or if you are interested in encouraging an inmate through writing, please feel free to email me and share your heart. May God Bless You...