Toward reaching fellow inmates...and beyond
There are two facilities in Monroe County where inmates are held. One is Monroe County Jail (MCJ) located in downtown Rochester. It's a four-minute walk over an expressway from my office at the church. MCJ is a pre-trial detention facility that houses over 1000 men, women and minor youth. This is where I typically go to minister to inmates. The other facility, Monroe Correctional Facility (MCF) located in the suburb of Brighton, houses about 500 sentenced inmates. This is where my friend Dave goes. (The Jail Bureau also operates a regional forensic unit at the Rochester Psychiatric Center. Neither of us currently goes there.)
Dave was at MCF yesterday talking and praying with "Marco" and "William." (I had previously met Marco in MCJ.) The three of them were discussing how they all could be more effective witnesses for Christ among the other inmates. Other inmates began to "eavesdrop" on their conversations about the Lord--which is exactly what they hoped would happen.
Out of their prayer and discussion, some specific ideas came up for how Marco and William could spread the gospel to their fellow inmates. Marco has been entrusted with some responsibilities at the jail. That in itself is a great privilege. The plan is for Dave and I to, at some point, meet with Marco, William and other inmates at MCF to talk about their outreach ideas.
Praise God for these inmates that want to be used by the Lord while they're in jail! Pray that the Lord would guide and direct us as we discuss outreach plans. Pray for open hearts among the inmates.
When I was at MCJ the other day, I seemed to sense the Lord saying, "Empty this place." What I got out of that "impression" was that God wanted all these men and women saved and their lives so transformed that the jail would be empty. Wouldn't it be great if there was no longer a need for a jail? Wouldn't it be awesome if the Holy Spirit fell upon the jail and revival broke out? My Bible reads that God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).
"Let it come, Lord! Send a great revival among the inmates in Rochester. Let them all turn to You. And send them out onto the streets of Rochester--not as repeat offenders, but as transformed people, empowered by the Holy Spirit to bring the gospel to the city!"
Dave was at MCF yesterday talking and praying with "Marco" and "William." (I had previously met Marco in MCJ.) The three of them were discussing how they all could be more effective witnesses for Christ among the other inmates. Other inmates began to "eavesdrop" on their conversations about the Lord--which is exactly what they hoped would happen.
Out of their prayer and discussion, some specific ideas came up for how Marco and William could spread the gospel to their fellow inmates. Marco has been entrusted with some responsibilities at the jail. That in itself is a great privilege. The plan is for Dave and I to, at some point, meet with Marco, William and other inmates at MCF to talk about their outreach ideas.
Praise God for these inmates that want to be used by the Lord while they're in jail! Pray that the Lord would guide and direct us as we discuss outreach plans. Pray for open hearts among the inmates.
When I was at MCJ the other day, I seemed to sense the Lord saying, "Empty this place." What I got out of that "impression" was that God wanted all these men and women saved and their lives so transformed that the jail would be empty. Wouldn't it be great if there was no longer a need for a jail? Wouldn't it be awesome if the Holy Spirit fell upon the jail and revival broke out? My Bible reads that God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).
"Let it come, Lord! Send a great revival among the inmates in Rochester. Let them all turn to You. And send them out onto the streets of Rochester--not as repeat offenders, but as transformed people, empowered by the Holy Spirit to bring the gospel to the city!"
posted by Brian at 9:27 AM
1 Comments:
Hey Brian, yes that would be pretty cool if at some point the jails were empty and the men, women and youth were on fire for God and serving him daily.
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