The Forgotten Mission Field + A Little R & R Wednesdays - a link up party #18

Hebrews 13:3
Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners...

In 2009, I felt that God wanted me to go to the local prison in our city. I cried. I did not want to go. Our local prisons are so crowded. Made to house just 800 detainees, the Quezon City Jail currently holds a little less than 3,000 men. It is so full that inmates sleep on the floors, on the stairs, crowded in little corners, and even holes in the ceiling!  Big, strong men fear to go in there. Prisoners are not placed in jail cells. When you visit, you mingle with them.  My mother saw me crying, and she asked why. When I told her, she said, “You have to go. If no one goes with you, I will go.”
This started when the son of one of the members of our community was imprisoned due to drug charges. He was just 23 years old. We would visit him occasionally, bringing food and Christian books for him to read. Then an old lady, Sister Betty, who had been ministering to the prisoners for 13 years, asked us to fill a time slot for religious instruction that had opened up when a group of seminarians decided to give up. That was when God spoke to me clearly. 2009 was also the year the Word for our covenant community, Ligaya ng Panginoon (The Joy of the Lord), was “An Open Door! Walk Through It!” We decided to walk through bravely!
We were the unlikeliest bunch ever! We did not even speak the local dialect fluently! After the teaching, we would lead small groups where we would share and ask questions. The prisoners were very honest. An inmate would say that he was there because he stole something, raped someone, or killed someone! Most of the men were heavily tattooed, and weighed down with problems. 
Here is what my sister Peggy wrote at that time, “But God can use even the most unlikely person, and the more I go to the jail, the more I grow in love and compassion for the inmates. So now, I am comfortable to sit among a small group of inmates. Many of them are very young, young enough to be my sons. Many of them are innocent and waiting for their hearings, waiting in such distressing surroundings.
But, in spite of this, in the midst of the many men who are there, I have seen men wanting to accept Jesus and asking me how; I have seen teary eyed inmates listening to me share, and men who are just so glad to have someone - anyone, visit them there. I have heard them share how light and happy they felt after forgiving those who caused them to be in jail unjustly.

Indeed, it is a joy to see God working through this ministry and to visit Jesus in (what Mother Teresa calls) His distressing disguise. "I was in prison and you came to visit me." Matthew 25:36 


For Christmas 2009, we were asked by the prison coordinator to give a party for 100 inmates and provide 250 gift bags. At first I was quite overwhelmed thinking about where we would get the funds for this. However God provided that too! Many were willing to help.
For the party, we had hotdog sandwiches, fruit salad, pancit (noodles) and water.  Our gift packs for 260 inmates included a pair of shorts, a bar of detergent, a towel, soap, toothpaste, shampoo, crackers, cookies, 3 packs of noodles, a chocolate bar, coffee, and a gospel tract. One inmate said that our gift packs were good enough for two! They were as happy as children to receive it and we could see them looking through their loot and waving to us and saying thank you. We were also able to give token gift packs to the guards and rehab office workers which included gospel tracts also.  
Every Christmas thereafter, we would prepare for 300 prisoners. Once, an eye doctor came to give out reading glasses because we found out that some inmates couldn’t read their Bibles. Another time we brought lots of toys of different kinds for the inmates to give as Christmas gifts to their children. We would source plastic pails that inmates use as their “lockers”.  We asked for funds to provide chairs for their chapel.  We collected long sleeved shirts for the inmates to wear to their hearings. We gave out Bibles until we found out that Gideons International donated Bibles regularly.

Sometimes community members decide to spend their birthdays with the inmates. Roy Racela shared after his celebration, “In my small group were two suspected thieves, one suspect for aggravated murder, one for murder, one for rape-kidnapping-murder and one for rape of his grandchild!  Yes, these are indeed difficult people to minister to. The message I gave was for them not to lose hope, that God is a merciful God and that they should never stop praying no matter how hopeless the situation may look like. And that there are people who continue to pray for their welfare and will provide them some measure of comfort by spending time with them and to listen to their stories. And the only way this message will get through to them is by continuing this ministry with everyone's support.”When God calls you to do something, He also gives you companions. My husband, my sisters, my sisters’ husbands, members of my community came. I remember that when my sister asked her husband if he wanted to go, Charlie exclaimed, “Are you crazy?!!!”  But now, my brother-in-law Charlie, is the most faithful, visiting the prisoners every week, even if no one goes with him, preaching the Word of God to them.
And lastly, here in Charlie’s own words: “We take advantage of the fact that we have a captive audience for 2 hours. There is no escape from us. We start out with worship supported by an inmate music ministry group. Then as the Spirit leads, we give teachings, exhortations and personal testimonies. Every week we provide a simple snack and give basic necessities, such as soap and other toiletries.
Little did I realize how God had been working in us and using us for His mission, until one Thursday, I received a letter scribbled on cigarette wrappers:“…Nawa’y huwag kayong magsawa sa pag-tulong at panga-ngaral sa katulad naming kapos palad at nakalimot kay Lord. Pero unti-unti akong nahuhubog sa mga aral at pag-intindi sa mga salita ng Diyos. Dito ko nalalaman ang katotohanan, ang tungkol sa mga salita ng bibliya na dapat sundin ng mga taong tulad ko, na naligaw ng landas…” (I hope you will not tire of helping and teaching us who are underprivileged and who have forgotten the Lord. Little by little I have been formed by the teachings and understanding the Word of God. I learn the truth here, about the Bible verses that we who have lost our way, should obey...)
We have learned firsthand that indeed God will empower us beyond our limitations and use us to do His work. And in doing so, we have experienced many delightful moments in this ministry:We have heard inmates share how prison life became better for them when they started reading the Bible.We have heard them share the joy they felt after forgiving those who put them in jail.We have seen men wanting to accept Jesus and asking us how.We have experienced the joy in leading them to Jesus.They have so appreciated what we have shared with them that, believe it or not, there have been some inmates who have approached me, asking me how they can join our community, Ligaya, after they get out of prison.”

Patsy Paterno is a member of a Covenant Christian Community,Ang Ligaya ng Panginoon (The Joy of the Lord ) in the Philippines.She has been serving in the local prison ministry since the year 2009.Her blog, HeARTworks, is her faith journal.





****





And now for the party!!!
Featured Post!!   Cameron from Follower of Christ had the most views last week on her post "What Makes Gossip"

The Specs! Link up as many posts on any subject you desire (except giveaways)

Link up those posts that you wish would have gotten more attention Come on - you know what I'm talking about.  I'll be linking up a few of my own, too.  
Link back to A Little R & R with the button or a link
Visit the post just before yours 
Invite your friends to join the party

The party runs from Wednesday through Saturday
 
So link up and have fun!

**************




Receive more articles like this from A Little R & R right in your mailbox!

Enter your email address:


Delivered by FeedBurner

#mc_embed_signup{background:#fff; clear:left; font:14px Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; } /* Add your own MailChimp form style overrides in your site stylesheet or in this style block. We recommend moving this block and the preceding CSS link to the HEAD of your HTML file. */
Receive blog posts via MailChimp!* indicates requiredEmail Address * Email Format
htmltextmobile '+msg+'


Linking up with some these blogs:
M: Motivation Monday, Gracelaced Mondays, Playdates at the Wellspring, Mom's the Word; Matrimonial Mondays, Momma Notes  T: Titus2 Tuesdays, Women Helping Women, Mercy Ink, Character Corner W: Women Living Well, Wisdom Wednesday, Wholehearted Wednesdays, A Wise Woman Builds Her Home, Deep Roots at Home, My Daily Walk In His Grace Th: Thrive at Home, Serving Joyfully, I Choose Joy F: Faith Filled Friday, TGIF Fridays, Faithful Fridays, Free to talk Fridays Click HERE to find out how you can receive a copy of my book 14 Days of Agape for free and purchase Worship the Father and Discovering True Identity .