‘I was wrongly imprisoned for over a year and a half, but in that time I was able to help so many other inmates with filling out forms, learning what their rights were, and just sharing God’s love with them, I knew that on my release I had to find away to carry on going in to the prison. I thank God for showing me the way’.
‘After many years of visiting my uncle in prison and wanting to serve the other inmates, I am so glad that God has given me the opportunity to go into the prison regularly and do what I can to show them God’s love’.
Testimonies from two of the prison chaplains who are part of the Good News Jail and Prison Ministry teams in Africa, and whom I have been spending the past week with. I didn’t know a lot about the wider ministry before this week, although I have met with some chaplains from Kenya and Rwanda in the past. But hearing the wider team talk about their work, the challenges that they overcome, and their passion for serving the sector of society that is trapped behind bars, and who are forgotten and spurned by so many – well, I have been so totally humbled, inspired and privileged in equal measure.
It was so wonderful to be able to share with the chaplains about my 360Life materials, and to help them understand more about trauma, mental health and wellbeing – issues that they are up against in the prisons, day after day, both with regard to the inmates, but also the prison officers. Being able to add to their knowledge in even a small way was a wonderful gift to be able to impart.
GNJPM serves in 23 nations and this past week I reached 7 of them – almost 1/3. There was a real hunger for more training, and I look forward to being able to train up trainers who can multiply the knowledge and transfer it into their own cultural contexts. Exciting to see where God takes all this, and what unfolds.
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