As you know, our team has worked hard to provide Bibles and other resources for those who are living in prison and looking to grow in their relationship with Jesus.
One of our most enduring and popular resources is Inside Journal, our quarterly in-prison newspaper. In the past few years, these printed resources became a lifeline for people in prison who were on lockdown due to COVID-19 restrictions. During that time, we expanded Inside Journal from four to eight pages, and each quarter we continue to make men’s, women’s, and Spanish-language versions available to provide encouragement, information, and inspiration.
Each issue contains stories of people who have left prison and are making a difference on the outside. Inside Journal offers practical advice for thriving in prison, recipes using ingredients available behind bars, fresh, relevant presentations of the Gospel, and fun pastimes like crossword puzzles and sudoku. We also have instructions for readers to order their very own Inside Journal Life Recovery Bible in either English or Spanish.
Inside Journal is a life-changing resource, and last year, thanks to your support, we distributed more than a million copies! We regularly receive notes of appreciation from both the prison chaplains who distribute the newspaper and readers who love its content. Here’s one I thought you would enjoy:
I have been locked up for about a year and the Inside Journal has been a great gift and blessing in my life. Reading others’ testimonies, I feel I can overcome my situation as well. God is working through me, and I’m so glad He allowed me this time so I can read Inside Journal …. Thank y’all for everything y’all doing for inmates around the world. – Tommy, Mississippi
What a blessing it is to know that the Lord continues to reach through prison bars and bring His Good News to all who need it. Praise Jesus!
Resources like these can be especially helpful during the holidays, when people in prison are struggling with the pain of separation from their loved ones. Another resource that helps during the coming Christmas season is Prison Fellowship Angel Tree, which provides a gift, the Gospel, and a personal message to children in the name of their incarcerated parent.
We know that Angel Tree Christmas is often the first step in reconnecting incarcerated parents and their children. It also provides an opportunity for churches to meet felt needs in their communities. Has your church or organization signed up for Angel Tree
yet this year? For parents in the process of changing their lives, it’s about more than just a Christmas gift. It’s one more way to show their children that they are sincere in their process of transformation. Recently Benedict, a Prison Fellowship Academy participant in North Dakota, told us:
For me, I like to send them gifts. I did before when I was incarcerated. My kids loved it, the gifts that they received from me, but it's... My kids look at me and they see a different dad. They see me different now. Like, ‘Dad, wow, you're doing better.’ … It's a struggle every day, but it's getting easier and easier and easier every day because I got God behind me. God gave me hope in the future. I didn't believe in God before. Now I do and I know He's there.
As we approach Christmas, could we ask you to join us in praying for the Lord to touch the families that will be served, bringing a sense of His love for them and healing for those who are struggling?
Thank you for your faithfulness in caring for all of God’s people, including those impacted by crime and incarceration. We are grateful for your partnership.
In 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.
Prison Fellowship P.O. Box 1550, Merrifield, VA, 22116-1550 US
