Something we hear over and over again from participants in our Prison Fellowship Academy is that prison saved their lives. To anyone who hasn’t been a part of prison ministry, that statement is confounding. But in Jesus’ upside-down Kingdom, it makes perfect sense. This is how Jen, one of our Academy graduates in Minnesota, describes it:
I never thought I was going to grow up and go to prison and that was what was going to make my life better. That's what was going to make my life into something beautiful, but Prison Fellowship molded me. It was a combination of me, Prison Fellowship, and God that made me who I am right now.
Keith, an Academy graduate from Florida, also shared how prison—and especially his participation in the Academy—changed the trajectory of his life. In the depths of his destructive addiction, he had struggled with suicidal thoughts. But once in prison, he began to cry out to God, and the Lord started working in his life. Keith shares:
Eventually God's Word began to move within me, man, and actually applying it to my life … things began to change radically. And I started feeling better. I started doing AA meetings and NA meetings and sharing and getting this stuff out. And it was a transformation. And every day, [I] try to do better than the last. And Prison Fellowship has really given me an opportunity to grow, like I said, in an environment that's conducive to it because it's not like that in other dorms.
People and the communities they are part of constantly change. Every day, you and I experience the way our closest relationships and influences shape who we are becoming. This is just as true in prison, a community like any other. Left unaddressed, the broken prison culture that leads to criminality will mold people behind bars for the worse.
But doing time doesn’t have to be this way. We believe it can be a life-changing journey. The path of transformation is steep but worth it. The Prison Fellowship Academy helps participants find their way and equips those making the climb.
What’s even more exciting is that the Academy is not only changing lives, but also generations.
Ryan, a new Academy participant in Texas, recently shared that his father, Robert, graduated from the Academy at another prison in the state. Now out of prison, Robert visited his son’s Academy site to share his testimony at one of their community meetings. Dressed in a new suit he bought just for this occasion, Robert talked about his own journey of transformation through the program and gave advice to the men as they take their first steps in a new way of life. Robert's parting words to the men were: "It all starts right here. You start building your community right here. You start being accountable right here."
Through their participation in the Academy, Robert and Ryan are turning a painful generational cycle into a new story of hope and good citizenship!
These transformations only happen through the faithful prayers and support of those committed to breaking these strongholds of hopelessness and crime. Lives and families are changing every day, and prisons are becoming places of redemption. Will you join us on the journey of bringing hope and transformation to prisons across the nation?
Seeking Him,
JAMES J. ACKERMAN President and Chief Executive Officer
P.S. To continue receiving these ministry updates in your inbox, please add prison_fellowship@email.prisonfellowship.org to your address book or safe list. Learn how here.
