Prison Ministries Experience
Freedom. Something we all desire in some capacity. What is true freedom? Is it the right to move freely, speak without consequences, or is it a spiritual knowing that your soul is saved by the God that created you?
Here I am, Send ME
I’ve been doing ministry work since 2020 and this is by far the most interesting experience I’ve ever had. Here I am shaking hands with sex offenders. Hugging on men with 25-year sentences. And sharing my testimony with men desiring freedom at every breath of every day.
Me and brother Charlie Owens
I went there to minister to them, and many of them ended up ministering to me. I’ve never experienced compassion like this before. The stories I heard on the 90-minute drive there with brother Charlie Owens is a conversation I’ll never forget. Let’s just say, “Put yourself in someone else’s shoes” became more than an analogy in that car ride.
It became a reality as my hardened heart towards those who hurt people, realized those same abusers were once hurt and abused themselves. A vicious cycle seems to occur, especially when the solution involves throwing a man in a cage and stripping away his hope.
I don’t know what the answer is to punishment for crimes but I know what the answer is to those who have committed them. It’s not years away from society, alone in a cage, it’s an introduction to Jesus Christ and disciplining them into the faith.
This was Church
This Saturday, I saw broken men, like me, praising the Lord. They were all wearing the same color outfit, the only difference about them was their shoes and the crosses on their necks or lack thereof.
We worshipped, we prayed, we heard testimonies, and the word of God was boldly preached by an almost 70-year-old firecracker from New York. Her accent was strong and her faith in Christ was stronger.
I admired how she connected with every inmate, preaching to their hearts, and ministering truth over them. Many of these men are fathers waiting for a letter to be written back. Fathers who severely disappointed their families. Men who have vanished dreams and ounces of hope, you can’t muster up much to say, but that’s why talking Jesus is so effective. I didn’t drive an hour and a half on a Saturday to tell you about me, I came here to tell you about HE! He is the chain breaker, the miracle worker, the great physician, and the one who came to restore the broken and deliver the one who needs him most. I came to be the ears, hands, and feet of Jesus while doing what was required to minister to the hearts of every inmate God put in front of me.
The first one that came my way looked like my beloved best friend who passed away, Armani. This gentleman had Armani’s smile, eyes, and mannerisms. It was bizarre but that’s God for you. The 27-year-old was named Reyes and had a one-year-old daughter back home. He was praying to God to be released early in April and was eager to be back at his church playing drums and keys. His pops was a pastor.
Speaking of pastors, the next one that rolled up to me was a gentleman named Mr. Brown. This brother used to be a preacher but relied on his own strength rather than Gods and found himself doing a 25-year sentence because of it. Heavy stuff, but God was using Mr. Brown in mighty ways in this prison. He was leading a discipleship group and teaching at a super high level. This old man was hitting me with scripture on top of scripture and connecting it with everything the world is experiencing today. He preached to the one in front of him (me) and I was being filled up by this brother’s knowledge of the word. I was fist-bumping him and getting hyped up every few minutes as he blew my mind with the deeper things of God.
There were a few others that really touched me that night but the big takeaway is how hungry these inmates were for Jesus! They wanted more and craved the truth! It was refreshing to see. This was church, without offering plates, announcements, lights, a timer in the back, and many of the other things we’ve added to how we do church. There were no agendas of the ministry team except MINISTERING TO THE ONE IN FRONT OF THEM! No phones, no distractions, man it was special.
An inmate gave his life to Christ.
When the worship team started playing, he got up and grabbed a tambourine. I wasn’t sure if he was genuinely trying to participate or if he wanted attention. Based on the situation, it appeared like the latter. He then sat down and once the preaching started, he got HIT with the Holy Ghost! His whole face started changing, he was drawn into every word, and at the end of the night, he was the one and only brother who stepped forward to accept Christ.
PRAISE GOD!
My ministry mission of “Do it for the One” shined bright all night. People in that gymnasium grew in God. Both inmates and ministry workers. And the greatest moment happened when hell lost another one and that one inmate was FREE!
There’s Ultimate Freedom in Jesus. Thank You God for sending me.
