Wondrous Hope
Bible School
LAMB (Love A Mother's Baby)
Provides a tangible, intimate way for incarcerated mothers to reconnect and mend broken relationships with their young children by sending them a handmade fleece blanket, a matching pillow, a stuffed animal, a Bible story book, and writing them a personal note. In addition, we share God’s love and provide spiritual encouragement materials for the moms. Tabitha said, “It is not possible for me to put into words how much it means to me and to my girls to be able to send them this package. . . When you prayed with me, that is the first time anyone has taken the time to pray for me and my children . . . Today reminded me of what I have to live for, myself and my children, you gave me that reminder, and filled me with hope that I had lost.”
Knitting Hearts Together with Jesus
gives us the privilege of teaching 40 to 50 women to crochet and knit, and studying the Bible in small groups, mentoring, and encouraging them. The women are allowed to crochet in their living quarters, and their faces radiate joy and pride when they come to class carrying their blankets, stuffed animals, booties, scarves, hats, headbands, etc. and excitedly exclaim “Look what I made!” For the first time in their lives, many are told, “Great job! What you made is beautiful!” and they tell us repeatedly, “Each stitch I make brings healing to my soul.”
Their lovely, hand-crafted items are donated to local hospitals (Labor & Delivery, Neonatal Intensive Care, Pediatrics, etc.), senior citizens’ homes, and victims of abuse and disaster. Giving back to the community has enabled many women to move away from, “Me, me, me” to the joy that comes from helping other hurting people.
Sabbath Church Service
is simple: songs of praise and worship, prayer, personal testimonies, object lessons from nature or everyday life, and small group Bible studies. It is exciting to see women, many of whom have reached “rock bottom”, grasp Jesus’ love for them personally as we discuss the Bible in a way that makes the verses understandable, personal and applicable in their lives. Their brokenness, heartache, and sadness are replaced with joy and peace. Many offenders tell us, “Going to prison has been the worst thing in my life—a horribly difficult experience; and yet it has been the best thing that has happened because I have learned to know Jesus as my personal Friend and Savior and that has changed my life forever.”
Bags of Hope
Prison is tough. Many prisoners are filled with despair, guilt, and hopelessness and a high percentage are indigent with no support from family, often resulting in a lack of basic hygiene items. Our 2021 (Covid inspired) New Year’s Bags of Hope—containing shampoo, conditioner, soap, body lotion, Chapstick; warm socks; handwritten notes of encouragement; spiritual books and materials; prayer/Bible study request forms; and food treats—brought many tears of gratitude, deep, heartfelt thank you’s, and heart-rending stories which made us realize that the Bags of Hope were opening the hearts and minds of the incarcerated women and the staff to God’s tender love and care for them, even in the midst of their despair and heartaches. This inspired us to make Bags of Hope a permanent part of our ministry three times a year—New Year’s/Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, and Thanksgiving.
We receive hundreds of prayer and Bible study requests as a direct result of the Bags of Hope, but perhaps even more powerful are the many “intangible” blessings. On Mother’s Day a heartbroken woman shared, “My only child, my 11-year-old son, died unexpectedly four days ago and I can’t even attend his funeral. Your Bag of Hope gave me courage and faith that life would be good again.” Another time, fifty new prisoners arrived at the Coleman Unit, and the Bags of Hope transformed their fear-filled faces with visible peace and gave them courage and optimism.
Stitching Love
provides an opportunity for incarcerated women to learn to sew. In addition to making the fleece blankets and pillows for our LAMB program, they can also make a variety of items such as custom designed quilts, simple clothing, table clothes and placemats, curtains, purses, diaper bags, stuffed animals, aprons, facemasks, etc. Learning about fabrics, color, and design, as well as sewing and quilting skills, enhances their self-esteem and gives them useful, marketable life skills. Their beautiful hand-crafted items are donated to help struggling people, thus teaching important lessons of blessing other people. Small group Bible studies are a part of this class.
Our purpose extends far beyond the programs we provide to the much greater blessings of loving, listening, talking heart-to-heart, mentoring, praying with the women and helping them find Jesus as their personal Friend and Savior. We are often told, “I wouldn’t have gone to a church service or Bible study, but I wanted the blanket for my child/I wanted to learn to crochet or sew” and I’ve seen God’s love in you!” “You have changed my life forever!”
It is thrilling to witnessed life-transforming miracles: hopeless, helpless incarcerated women and men transformed by the grace of God into committed, loving Christians. Each person won for Jesus starts a “ripple effect” with family and friends and the miracles of transformed lives goes on and on. Our deepest desire is to meet these people in Heaven someday and spend eternity praising God for saving ALL of us from sin.
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Repeatedly prisoners have said the “Light 4 Learners” Bible studies we use are the “Best of the best!” and many Bible study requests are generated by “word of mouth” among prisoners. Personal notes and letters help make the offenders feel valued and loved and often promotes healthy relationships and successful re-entry into the “free world.”