40acts: The Lent Generosity Challengeናሙና

It’s easy for us to feel guarded towards people who have committed crimes. Prisoners, however, are exactly the type of people who Jesus came to save, as He says, ‘It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners...’

Behind bars for good reason or not, people in prison are often locked out of experiencing basic human kindnesses – the simple joys of community life. 

When I was in prison, many years ago, one of my greatest fears was that people would forget about me. An incredible sense of isolation comes with incarceration: contact with the outside world is minimal and time to think is ample. In prison your mind can become the devil’s playground. He takes your fears, anxieties, regrets, desires, lusts and dreams and spins them out of control.

There were a number of things that could stop this spinning cycle of inward turmoil. The first was visitors: every time someone came to see me, they grounded me. They slowed the spinning and reminded me that the world was still out there, that people cared and that I wasn’t forgotten. 

The second thing was letters – I know this is almost a lost art. One of the things prisoners can’t receive is emails, but they can receive letters. My friend Sally wrote me letters and put little brightly coloured spots on them with the message ‘a bright spot for your day’. And believe me, they were bright spots. They shone into my cell and gave me something else to hold on to. 

Finally, the third thing: prayer. People prayed long and hard for me, and at my darkest moments I often felt comforted or helped by some unseen force. I would receive an unexpected good night’s sleep or feel better and brighter than usual; moments of hope arose in me that I can only put down to prayer. People prayed, and I knew that I wasn’t forgotten.

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 In letters, visits or prayer we can help prisoners to know Jesus cares for them as we also remember that famous saying: ‘There but for the grace of God, go I.’

 Find more about today’s 40acts challenge on our blog:   

https://40acts.org.uk/act-38-behind-bars/