How do you measure the impact of God's grace?

Lives are changed. Families are transformed.

Congregations are renewed. Communities are rebuilt.

The Women’s Jail Ministry reaches out to women inmates in the Putnam County Jail in Greencastle, Indiana. Volunteers gather outside the jail on Tuesday evenings to pray, and are then welcomed into the facility to meet, pray with, listen to and share the Good News in small groups.

WHY PRISON MINISTRY?

Why are we concerned about prison ministry? Because. . .

1. Prison ministry has a Scriptural mandate (Matthew 25:31-40). Throughout the Bible are examples, descriptions, and commandments about prisons, prisoners, bondage, captivity, and slavery. The Bible mentions prison, prisoners, or imprisonment more than 130 times.

2. We should follow the example Christ set by ministering to prisoners.

3. Prisons meet the criteria of any mission field: Lost people and a need for laborers.

4. God is not willing that any should perish and loves all people (2 Peter 3:9) (1 Timothy 1:15).

5. Pastors and chaplains cannot minister and do all of the necessary work themselves due to time limits. Lay people are also called to ministry.

6. Many jails and prisons have no professional chaplains and many have no religious services at all.

7. For every person incarcerated, there are three to five other people affected: Mates, children, parents, friends. Inmates and their families represent a large segment of society in any culture.

GOALS OF PRISON MINISTRY

The spiritual goals of jail and prison ministry may include one, some, or all of the following:

1. To share the unconditional love of God.

2. To present the Gospel of Jesus Christ in such a way that inmates will embrace it and receive Christ as Savior.

3. To disciple new believers in the Word and teach them how to study the Bible.

4. To demonstrate the power of prayer and teach them to pray.

5. To lead inmates to experience the life-changing power of God that can free them from guilt, shame, negative emotions, and addictions.

The social goals of jail and prison ministry are:

1. To help the inmate function more positively within their environment.

2. To provide a link between the community and persons confined in the county jail.

3.To prepare residents for re-entry into society (physically, mentally, morally and spiritually).

4. To provide post-prison assistance in practical ways.

For more information contact beloved@gobinumc.org.

ISAIAH 61:1-3

“The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.”