Dear John,
The signs of spring remind me of this verse from Isaiah: “I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.”
Indeed, in the midst of all that’s happening around us, God is making a way for Prison Fellowship.
As we observe Holy Week and look toward Resurrection Sunday, I want to share some encouraging updates on how, with the Lord’s help, Prison Fellowship continues to bring the hope of Jesus into prisons despite these unprecedented times.
- Easter Hope Events are an annual tradition for Prison Fellowship. Chuck and Patty Colson regularly celebrated our Lord’s resurrection with incarcerated men and women. That’s why we were heartbroken when prisons had to close. But God has made a way for us to bring a Hope Event™ into prison—virtually! We have recorded a full Easter celebration—including music, testimonies, and a beautiful altar call—partnering with several departments of corrections to broadcast inside their prisons via closed-circuit television!
- Floodlight is a new Prison Fellowship offering that will make positive inspirational and educational content available to prisons across the country. While programming is canceled, and prisoners are increasingly required to remain in their cells, Prison Fellowship has developed, with top Christian content providers, including Alpha, Celebrate Recovery, and others, this new platform that allows corrections staff to download a variety of Christian content to share on prison televisions and devices (where available).
- The Storehouse is an online store we created last year to provide free Bibles, devotionals, and other materials for distribution to incarcerated men and women. We notified chaplains last week that we had restocked the Storehouse with new books, copies of our Inside Journal newspaper, and other offerings. Within 48 hours after we sent that email, chaplains had placed over 100 orders and requested more than 5,000 Bibles—with one California prison alone requesting 1,000 Bibles for its prisoners! The Word of God is alive and well, and it is flooding into prisons across the country!
- Advocacy continues in earnest on behalf of those who are incarcerated. I posted an open letter to policymakers <[link removed]> urging them to address the public health threat to the most vulnerable among us, including the men and women in prison and those who work in corrections. We continue our outreach to federal and state legislators <[link removed]>, encouraging them to include support for the incarcerated population in relief packages and asking them to remember those in prison by taking steps for their protection and care.
We are so encouraged that God is revealing new and innovative ways to bring the Good News to prisoners everywhere! Truly, nothing is too hard for God! Would you do a brave thing and give generously now to bring that message of hope to those we serve <[link removed]>?
Our prayer team <[link removed]> continues to lift up the prisoners, families, and communities we serve. To join us, check out our guide <[link removed]> for how you can intercede during this crisis.
If you are personally affected by COVID-19, let us know how we can pray with and for you <[link removed]>. We’re praying unceasingly, trusting our Father who says, “Call to me and I will answer… .”
Happy Easter,
James J. Ackerman
President and Chief Executive Officer
PRISON FELLOWSHIP®, 44180 Riverside Parkway, Lansdowne, VA 20176
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