We have an exciting opportunity for you to participate in ministry to the incarcerated. Jesus said when you care for prisoners, you care for Jesus himself (Mt. 25:36). Our colleagues at Crossroads Prison Ministries’ offers dozens of Bible studies for prisoners by pairing them with people like you, mentors who review their lessons by mail. When students complete one of these courses, they are sometimes given a graduation gift that fits the content of what they just studied. After Crossroads reviewed our book, Climbing Up, they thought it would be a good reward for the completion of their study, ”All Work is God’s Work: Developing a Christian Work Ethic,” which equips prisoners to see that all vocations are important in the Kingdom of God.
This course is part of their Life Skills track, which helps them adjust to civilian life. It’s been our observation that prisoners often go back to prison upon release because they haven’t been adequately prepared to face life in the outside world.
This should not be surprising, because someone who is an effective minister of the gospel in the culture of Indonesia would obviously have a hard time adjusting to a new life in Bolivia or Kenya. In the same way, someone who is a fruitful leader in a prison culture would naturally have difficulty translating those skills in the culture of civilian life. Climbing Up explains how to make this transition, even beginning the process while they are still incarcerated.
Crossroads asked us to provide them with a one-year supply of Climbing Up in English and Spanish, for those who will graduate from this course. The cost for this is $1908, of which we have already received $875. So we need another $1033 in one-time gifts to offer this book as a graduation gift. If you would like to help with this, please indicate “Crossroads Award” in the description of your online gift, or with a note if you give by check, so we can keep track of this separately.
We are excited about the prospect of wider distribution of Climbing Up, not just for prisoners, but also for their friends and family members. They are essential in helping former prisoners make the cultural adjustment they need to be fruitful workers for the Great Commission on the outside.
