Miracle Behind Prison Walls
It was a typical Sunday morning at church.
Friends gathered, people talked, we greeted
visitors, and eventually went into the sanctuary
for the morning’s message.
One of the members of our church got up
and talked about a prison ministry that he’s
involved with and invited others to come
visit those in prison. I didn’t think much about
it at the time because I kept thinking,
“No way, No how would I ever walk into
a place filled with people that had raped,
stolen from others, or worse –
killed another human being.”
Several weeks later I was reading my Bible
and came across the passage in
Hebrews 13:1-3 that said,
“Keep on loving each other as brothers,
do not forget to entertain strangers, for by
so doing some people have entertained angels
without knowing it.
Remember those in prison” (what? I was
just reading about angels not prisoners)
“
as if you were fellow prisoners and
those
who are mistreated as if you
yourselves
were suffering.”
The passage stirred up a whirlwind of emotion
in my mind. I read it again and again until
finally I had to see how this passage could in
any way apply to me. I didn’t know anyone
in prison and have done all that I can in my
lifetime to stay out of places like that.
But nonetheless it kept haunting me.
“Remember those in prison.”
I talked to my husband about my dilemma
and we both decided to find out more about
the ministry. We were told that volunteers
from numerous churches go into the prison,
meet with the residents, and fellowship with
them over a 3-day period. At the end of the
3 days others are invited to attend as a visitor
to listen to the personal witness of
each of these prisoners.
Well, this sounded easy enough and before
long my husband and I were on the list of
those attending a Sunday visit to the prison.
I guess I signed up to go thinking that this
would take care of the
“Remember those in prison”
obligation mentioned in the Bible.
This is in my arrogance, that I would be
doing these guys a favor by me being there
for them. A kind of saintly thing to do and
it would certainly look good in God's eyes
(my spiritual resume). Silly me to think that
God would leave me alone and let me
think that way forever.
I hope I can put into words
what I found that day.
The prisoners didn’t need to be taught about
the Bible because most of them could recite it–
some have had a lifetime to memorize it.
The problem is the prisoners have never
experienced the love described in the Bible–
Agape love – Unconditional love – the love
that can only be found through
the blood of Jesus.
One by one the inmates approached the
podium and talked about how God had
transformed them, changed their lives, and
broken down the racial, gang, and offense
barriers within the group.
One man talked about a sign that was
posted in the meeting room.
It simply said,
“Forgive”
He mentioned that was the first day he saw
the word “Forgive” and so he made a list
of all the people that he needed to forgive.
The second day he saw the word,
“Forgiven”
and so he wrote down the
names of all those who he would
want to forgive him.
The third day he finally saw the word,
“Forgiveness”
That’s when he knew that the grace of
God had been showered upon him through
the power of the Holy Spirit and the
sacrificed blood of Jesus Christ.
Forgive...Forgiven...Forgiveness
After each inmate had an opportunity to
share their weekend with the community,
we were invited to mingle, shake hands and
converse with them. That’s when I realized
that the passage in the Bible does instruct us
to entertain strangers, even if they are
within prison walls.
I left humbled beyond description.
The prisoners welcomed me as their sister
in Christ. I feel even more humbled today
knowing that I can hug my spouse and hold
my children and grandchildren physically in
my arms... a simple task that they cannot
experience where they are. I can choose what
to wear, what to eat, and what song to listen
to on my way to work. I can choose who to
associate with, what battles to fight, and
more importantly what church to attend.
I close my eyes and I see the faces of men
hungry for love, hungry for Jesus, and now
changed forever. And I have to think to
myself, is there really a difference between
them and me?
The surroundings are different, as are the
circumstances, we all have walls,
some are physical and some are emotional;
but walls nonetheless.
Walls that keep us separated from Jesus.
I can't stop hearing the personal witness
of the man who spoke of the
“Forgiveness” sign.
Forgive…Forgiven…Forgiveness
There are angels amongst us and I learned
the true meaning of forgiveness by a very
special angel dressed in green.
Thank you
Brenda Bates
for sharing this testimony.
Kairos Prison Ministry
is the prison ministry
mentioned in this testimony.
Kairos means "God's Special Time"
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