How To Set Up And Run A prison Ministry
By Dr. James. A McBean D.Th., MCC
Copyright © 2008 Library of Congress
Washington.D.C.20559
I believe and know that prisoners can change. Christians workers can make a lot of difference in those people life. I volunteers in the prison system for some four years. Every now and then I came upon somebody who remember me and whose life been change. Many of them is reintroducing into society and are doing well. That makes me feel real good on the inside that I was there to give a helping hand.
YOU MUST BELIEVE THAT GOD WANT TO CHANGE PRISONERS AND THAT HE CAN CHANGE THEM.
Ezekiel 33:11 (KJV) Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?
Ezekiel 18:32 (KJV) For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.
Psalm 34:8 (KJV) O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.
Ephes. 2:8 (KJV) For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Ephes. 2:9 (KJV) Not of works, lest any man should boast.
IMPORTANT THINGS YOU NEED TO BE AWARE OF.
God will begin the change in prisoner's life, but you and I have work to do also.
Philip. 1:6 (Living Bible) And I am sure that God who began the good work within you will keep right on helping you grow in his grace until his task within you is finally finished on that day when Jesus Christ returns.
Telling a person to accept Jesus and every thing will be all right is one of the biggest lies you and I could ever told from the pulpits. To give a prisoner religions especially, religion like Islam and Christianity. You have to also give the prisoner the basic knowledge of surviving in prison with these new religions.
Taming a wild cat, then turn that cat loose back into the wild without giving that cat some kind of hunting training; you have doomed that animal to starvation. Bear in mind that People hate born again Christians. People do not like when others are different from them. You made them feel condemn. That new change that Christianity produces in people life, only cause others to hate them. Lead the person to the cross and do not help them to live the life will only cause them to be stuck at the cross.
You do not need to mentor the person. Mentoring people is the work of the Holy Spirit; nevertheless you and I have a responsibility to such a person. We will talk about this later.
WORKING HAND IN HAND WITH THE PRISON AUTHORITY.
The prison AUTHORITY is dealing with safety, security and the serenity of the prison system. The first thing you will need to know is to learn the policy of the facility and work along with it. Do not go in there and setting up your own rule. You will be under two body of authority once you are in there. The prison authority and the chaplaincy. You and I are just a volunteer. You will need to listen to the chaplain and listen to the prison guards.
There will be an official chaplain and assistant chaplain that you will have to work under. If you think that the chaplain do not like you for some reason leave. God has other workers that he can send in the prison system. Remember where you are, you are not in king's house but in prison.
You will need to preach and listen to the over head intercoms. Sometime they are paging a prisoner that is in the church service. Sometime the nurse want that prisoner for medication. Sometime they might need to close down the service for head count, do not take that personally. Prison guards are sometime scared, and are under stress; do not take their attitudes personally.
BEFORE YOU GO INTO THE PRISON SYSTEM THE PRISON SYSTEM WILL GIVE YOU A FOUR-HOUR CLASS.
They will do a background check on you. Make sure there is no warrant out for your arrest, or they will wait until you came in for the class then harassed you. You should be save, and have the word of God in your spirit. If you are a Muslim, Jew Or Christian you must be prepared to work with people of other religion. Do not malice each other. I am not asking you to go to bed but at least talk a little. Let the prisoners see you talking and a not arguing. You do not have to talk about religion to each other. But find something to talk about for at least two minutes.
For Christians who believing in the Holy Spirit. You must also be filled with the Holy Spirit. I am not talking about the jumping up and making noise kind of spirit. The more knowledge you have of the Bible its is the more you will be able to help. Do not speak in tongues in prison, it only confuses the prisoners.
1 Cor. 14:23 (KJV) If therefore the whole church be come together into one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in those that are unlearned, or unbelievers, will they not say that ye are mad?
1 Cor. 14:22-23 (Living Bible) So you see that being able to "speak in tongues" is not a sign to God's children concerning his power, but is a sign to the unsaved. However, prophecy (preaching the deep truths of God) is what the Christians need, and unbelievers aren't yet ready for it. [23] Even so, if an unsaved person, or someone who doesn't have these gifts, comes to church and hears you all talking in other languages, he is likely to think you are crazy.
If people fall down when you lay hand on them, do not lay hand on any body in the prison system and make them fall. If the person hit the ground it became a security issue. You and I want them fall down but after they left the service and went off to their rooms.
CONTRABAND
Prisoner are the most igneous people you will ever saw, they can use any thing to make a weapon. Prisoner will melt down plastic bag and wrap news paper in that meltdown stuff and use it to make a weapon.
You must never give any thing to prisoner. Teeth brush, pencil, pens and Razors. The simplest thing can be made into a weapon. A bar of soap can be put into a sacks and use like a club to kill another prisoner. Do not make your kindness put the life of prison guards in danger, and do not give the authority the excuse they wanted to close down the chaplaincy. The authority have their own brutal ways of dealing with prisoners and do not believe that preachers can change prisoners. They think we preachers are only wasting out time. The prison authority saw prisoners who claimed to get religion throwing their bibles in the trash cans when they were released to go home. "if religion did help you, why are you throwing your bibles in the trash cans.?"
PRISONERS HAVE THEIR OWN RELIGIONS BEFORE THEY GOT THERE.
Do not make bad remarks about Islam, Jehovah Witness and Catholic. Just preach Jesus. Do not go in there and preach against homosexuality and push your morality. Just preach Jesus.
OTHER RELIGIOUS GROUP ARE ALSO WORKING IN THE PRISON SYSTEM.
If you do not believe that other religious groups has the same right as you to spread their gospel, the prison ministry is a not place for you. You and I need to learn tolerance. Muslims love to come to Christian's service, do not say and do thing which hurt people feelings.
PLEASE DO NOT QUOTE THIS VERSE IN THE PRISON.
The verse did not say people who are out of God and Christ are dogs. It say those who are out of the city. Do not use the Bible to insult people. I hate when preachers do this.
Rev. 22:14 (KJV)Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. Rev. 22:15 (KJV) For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
Rev. 22:14-15 (Living Bible) Blessed forever are all who are washing their robes, to have the right to enter in through the gates of the city and to eat the fruit from the Tree of Life. [15] "Outside the city are those who have strayed away from God, and the sorcerers and the immoral and murderers and idolaters, and all who love to lie, and do so.
DO NOT TAKE PRISON GUARD ATTITUDE PERSONALLY.
Like I said before. "Prison authority" do not believe prisoners can change; they have seen it all and heard it all. They saw prisoners profess to be saved and when the prisoners were release they throw their Bibles in the trash can.
You will come across all kind of church materials in the prison chapel left there by other religious groups, do not throw out any, just because it disagree with your religious teaching. Remember that you disagree with their teaching as well...
CHURCH PEOPLE BEHAVE THE SAME EVERY WHERE THEY GO.
If the prisoners seem to like a certain preacher and the preacher been making a name. Because he/she know the Bible. Other voluntaries will spread rumors, and turn the chaplain spirit against such. If the chaplain is accustom to listen to gossips. There are gossip mongers among the faithful. Volunteer job pays no money all, and you would be surprise that so much cut throating goes on among them. The prisoners are not the problem; it is the fake workers who are in it for popularity and a name. The people who rule the prison are the one that rule the city. You do not want those people to be hearing bad things about you. Once again if you sense that the chaplain that are over you do not like you, base on what they heard and believe, get out fast.
HOW AND WHAT TO PREACH.
Your main job is to try to prepare the prisoner to be reintroduced into society. You are going to do the job that the prisoners parents did not do for them when they were young.
Now that the prisoner has a record attached to his or her backside, getting and keeping a job is going to be harder than before. The hulk of your job now is to teach the prisoners how to deal with authority. How to deal with domestic problems. How to get and keep a job. How to stay off illegal substances and how to come out of debts.
For woman prisoners, you need to teach them how to care for their children, how to love their husband and how to hold down and keep a marriage.
Titus 2:4-5 (Living Bible) These older women must train the younger women to live quietly, to love their husbands and their children, [5] and to be sensible and clean minded, spending their time in their own homes, being kind and obedient to their husbands so that the Christian faith can't be spoken against by those who know them.
Titus 2:3-5 (KJV) The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; [4] That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, [5] To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.
Once you begin to fix these broken down walls of the prisoner's life, from a Bible prospect, they came to like the Bible, they will not see the Bible as a book to be afraid of.
Now! do not set out to convert the prisoners. I sound stupid right? The concept that if a person accept Jesus every thing will be okay for the person from that time on word is not true.
2 Tim. 3:12 (KJV) Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
Just get the prisoner to understand the principle of Salvation. How a person become a Christians. How does one get save?
WHAT IS IT THAT GET MANY PEOPLE IN TROUBLE?
Domestic violence, drugs abuse and prostitutions. Also, hate crime, stealing and defiance for the law. You need to start out giving the people information how to deal with these things, and back it up with the scriptures.
FOR EXAMPLE.
Prisoners need to know how to get and keep a job. Prisoner need to know how to set up and maintained a relationship. Prisoners need to know how to relate to delegated authority such as supervisors, managers and employers and a whole. Then you need to show them what the bible has to say about these things. Now you are preparing them for the job market, at the same time opening their eyes that the Bible has the answers that deal with their problems.
Preparing Prisoners To Survive In A Church Home.
As prisoner worker, you will need to prepare prisoners who accept Jesus to service in the job market upon their release, and how to survive in a church home upon release. They must not give any fancy testimony to the church body that they were homosexual in prison. That information will be use against that prisoner. Getting job training, while being in prison is prime most important. Upon release from prison. A prisoner that cannot support himself or herself is doomed to a life of crime. Not even myself will want the responsibility to baby sit a prisoner. I will give he or she food and closing and a bus fare. However, not every day.
MALE PREACHERS SHOULD GO TO MALE PRISON. AND WOMEN PREACHERS GO TO WOMEN PRISON.
When women prisoners saw a handsome man coming in preaching the gospel of love. All those hard up females start to wet their pants. Then each one begin to spread rumors that they had him when they were prostitutes. "Ho My God the sex that man give to me in that hotel is still on my mind, he turn me inside out, I scream, I spit, I throw up bull frog legs and chicken gut"Good lord when he turn me back way, my two eyes came out "Then before you know it your stupid Chaplain hears about it and fall for it. And do not know that it is just hard up women talking, and wish it had been. Men prisoners do the same thing when they saw women preachers came along. One man told me that when had the Christians lady, he do her till she spoke in tongues.
St Matthew 25:34-AV Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: Matthew 25:35-AV For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Matthew 25:36-AV Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Matthew 25:37-AV Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed [thee]? or thirsty, and gave [thee] drink? Matthew 25:38-AV When saw we thee a stranger, and took [thee] in? or naked, and clothed [thee]? Matthew 25:39-AV Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? Matthew 25:40-AV And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done [it] unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done [it] unto me.
Jeremiah 23:28-AV The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What [is] the chaff to the wheat? saith the LORD. Jeremiah 23:29-AV [Is] not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer [that] breaketh the rock in pieces? Jeremiah 23:30-AV Therefore, behold, I [am] against the prophets, saith the LORD, that steal my words every one from his neighbour. Jeremiah 23:31-AV Behold, I [am] against the prophets, saith the LORD, that use their tongues, and say, He saith.
(4) DO NOT MENTOR PRISONER
If you give them the word of God properly like how I outlined it in this article, you do not need to do any mentor of prisoners. To mentor prisoners could be dangerous. Many of them just fake to be save, to get out. One minister and his wife was raped and killed, by a prisoner that they were mentor. In all my years of ministry, I never had a backslider, never had a member who marriage broken up, and never council any body. My strategy is, I summed up all the known causes that I know, that causes people to backslidden, and touched those arias with my sermons. I have books and articles for all those problem arias.
YOUR SERMONS MUST HAVE FOUR AIMS
Teaching the prisoner how to deal with authority. How to deal with domestic problems. How to get and keep a job. How to stay off illegal substances. How to come out of debts. And how to be prepared to be reintroduce back into society. Now that the prisoner has a record attached to his or her backside, getting and keeping a job is going to be harder than before.
But the base of this information must come from the Bible. The Bible must be the back up for all these in formations.
(1) You are giving them information that will keep them out of trouble. Becoming a Christians does not solve our problem. You and I still need to know how to manage our money, how to live with our wives and husband, how to train up our children. So do not be deceived that all you need to do is to get them save and Jesus will take care of the rest.
DO NOT GIVE PRISONERS FALSE HOPE
No body can bear a grudge like a prisoner; do not give them false hope. Do not give them a wrong perception of Christianity. Christians have away to act and talk, which give people the wrong impressions of the truth. Becoming a Christian will not take your sex drive. God do not want a person to lose their sex drive. Christians can laugh, get angry, feel pain, and sin just like any body else. Becoming a Christians will not take away your sinful desires. I have seen Christians talk and act like they become angel over night, then they are caught in the act of sodomy. One Christian saw me doing Karate and condemn me, them her daughter caught her having sex doggie style with another man, that is not her husband. Do not boast off your self. "By grace are ye save" "When we think we standeth we fall"" When we think we are sweet, we stink"
The Bearer's Of The "Mind Sword"
