The Invitation and Impact of Prison Ministry: How your church can make a difference

The Invitation 

“I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.”

Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?”

The King will reply, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”

—Matthew 25:35-40

2,310,984

The number of prisoners held in federal or state prisons or in local jails as of June 30, 2008.

—U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics

5.1 million+

The number of adult men and women in the community who were supervised on probation or parole as of the end of 2007.

—U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics

1 in 31

One out of every 31 adults in the United States is under some form of correctional supervision—prison, jail, probation or parole.

—The Pew Center on the States 

$52 billion+

The total amount states are estimated to have spent on corrections in the 2008 fiscal year.

—The Pew Center on the States

5% & 25%

The United States has approximately 5 percent of the world’s overall population, but accounts for almost 25 percent of the world’s prison population.

—International Centre for Prison Studies

How to Make a Difference

Prison Fellowship

PrisonFellowship.org

Ministry Opportunities: Founded 33 years ago, Prison Fellowship provides many ways for churches and individuals to share the Gospel with and minister to inmates, parolees and their families. They include:

• Leading a Bible study inside a prison facility.
• Conducting a one-time, in-prison seminar for inmates to devote more time to a specific topic.
• Becoming a mentor for an inmate. Model behavior for a prisoner and help him or her develop a strong relationship and relational skills. Mentoring also helps prisoners as they face challenges after their release.
• Participating in evangelistic events in prison yards through Operation Starting Line.
• Becoming part of a network of churches and other local organizations called a Community of Care that is dedicated to serving prisoners and their families.
• Providing Christmas gifts to children on behalf of their incarcerated parents through the Angel Tree ministry. Sharing the love and hope of Christ with these kids can become a year-round ministry for your church as well.
• Teaching a pre-release or re-entry class to help inmates adjust to life outside prison walls and avoid returning to custody through the InnerChange Freedom Initiative.
• Being a Bridge Church that helps former inmates re-enter society.
• Giving financially.
• Praying.

Crossroad Bible Institute

CrossroadBible.org

Ministry Opportunities: Through its distance-education program, Crossroad Bible Institute disciples tens of thousands of inmates and parolees. Prisoners who enroll receive Bible study lessons to complete. Volunteers then correct them and send them back to the student with personal letters to encourage and disciple them. To help:

• Become an instructor. Correct Bible study lessons and write letters to people in prisons nationwide.
• Enroll an inmate. If you know someone in prison, get him or her started in the Crossroads Bible Institute program.
• Encourage inmates in the program to also seek help through Crossroads’ re-entry ministry when they are released.
• Give financially.
• Pray.

Koinonia House National Ministries

KoinoniaHouse.org

Ministry Opportunities: Koinonia House conducts evangelism and discipleship ministries inside jails and prisons, but focuses on working with churches and other Christian groups to help Christians coming out of prison make the transition back to society by meeting spiritual and basic, practical needs. Ways to help include:

• Visiting an inmate before his or her scheduled release.
• Writing personal letters to inmates, who often are lonely.
• Meeting a Christian inmate at the prison gate upon his or her release and providing for his or her immediate needs, such as clothing, a meal, a ride and friendship.
• Helping a released Christian inmate find short- or long-term housing.
• As a church or working with multiple churches, providing a post-prison ministry home for one to four people, using the Koinonia House National Ministries model.
• Giving financially.
• Praying.

Here’s Life Inner City Prison Ministry

HLIC.org/Prison.htm

Ministry Opportunities: Affiliated with Campus Crusade for Christ International, Here’s Life Inner City Prison Ministry partners with local churches and other organizations to provide resources in evangelism and discipleship, life-skills training, career development and youth development to inmates. Your church can participate or you can give financially or pray for the ministry.

Kairos Prison Ministry International, Inc.

KairosPrisonMinistry.org

Ministry Opportunities: Through organized, established programs, Kairos reaches out to adult prison inmates, youth 24 and younger incarcerated in youth detention facilities, and the families and friends of those behind bars. Weekend programs and mentoring for youth are among the help Kairos provides. Here are a few ways to support Kairos:

• Volunteer to serve on a ministry team. Receive training to participate in a ministry like Kairos Inside, described as a three-day short-course in Christianity. A prison chaplain chooses inmates to attend, and Kairos has a program to follow up with attendees.
• Mentor youth. The Kairos Torch program is a two-day event to introduce young offenders to Christian principles they can use to make better decisions. Participants receive six months of mentoring after the Torch weekend.
• Make meals or cookies. Support volunteers provide meals and thousands of homemade cookies to make the Kairos programs possible throughout the year.
• Give financially.
• Pray. 

Ken Cooper Prison Ministry

KenCooperPrisonMinistry.org

Ministry Opportunities: In addition to fielding evangelistic teams, the ministry provides educational, life-skills and mentoring opportunities for inmates, as well as short-term after-care for recovering addicts through independently operated halfway houses in Jacksonville, Gainesville and Tallahassee. KCPM also offers limited long-term transition services.

• Participate in prison evangelistic and discipleship visitation teams.
• Take advantage of consultation and training to launch new prison ministries and transition programs.
• Provide clothing and other needs for inmates in transition.
• Give financially.
• Pray.

MORE INFORMATION

The Nov/Dec 09 issue of Outreach magazine includes the story of grace in the experience of serial bank robber Ken Cooper. For more information about single-copy sales, contact Outreach magazine.

HOW HAS YOUR CHURCH BEEN INVOLVED?

What is your church doing to express the love of God to those who are incarcerated? Post a comment or Sign In to submit your story.