Prison Ministry
Prison Ministry Team
Lillian Hertzler, Helen/Lewis Burkholder
"Thank you God for waking me this morning." This is a prayer that often comes from the lips of inmates. The majority of inmates have lost all earthly possessions by the time they enter the State Prison System. This process usually begins when a person goes to jail and because of no income, bills and payments, soon become delinquent. The the process of repossession begins to take their house, cars and other assets. Often at this point the wife files for divorce and the children no longer are a part of the inmate’s life. If the inmate is single, often times the family does keep contact with the person.This is not the picture of all inmates. There are some families who keep contact and offer encouragement while their family member is incarcerated. However, most inmates have suffered great financial and material loss as well as loss of family. Life is all many of them have as even the clothes on their backs belong to the State, so it is understandable to hear them pray, "Thank you God for waking me this morning."
Ministering to prisoners is rewarding when we see lives being changed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Curtis, the son of a minister and a man with a family, speaks of his past life as being that of a hypocrite. He went to church and pretended that he was a Christian. After church he went out and served the Devil. When he became incarcerated, he began to look seriously at the life he had been living and where it was taking him. He confessed his sins and received Jesus as his Savior. Now he carries a card in his shirt pocket with Romans 10: 9-10, which reads:
"That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes into righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."
Omar was raised in a Muslim home and tried faithfully to follow the teachings of the Koran. Soon after he was incarcerated he became deathly sick. The doctor could not diagnose his illness. He became weaker by the day. The day came when he thought he was going to die. The chaplain came by his cell and he told the chaplain that he had been calling on Allah to heal him but to no avail. As the chaplain turned to leave, he suggested, "Why don’t you try Jesus." Omar said he reasoned, what have I to lose. He then called on Jesus to heal him and immediately he began to get his strength back. His testimony . . . now I read my Bible and pray to Jesus!
These and many other conversions make prison ministry a continual challenge. Truly the Gospel of Christ is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes.
What a privilege to be a part of this ministry.
By Lewis Burkholder