PRISON MINISTRY
Charlotte Chambers
Pastor of Involvement
951-737-4664 x 3071
Charlotte@CrossroadsChurch.com
Arnold Carraway
Prison Ministry Chaplain
310-350-8188
onewhey@aol.com
OUR MINISTRY
Thank you for your interest in the Prison Ministry. We have been blessed with the "opportunity" to join forces with Prison Fellowship Ministry (PFM) which is an organization founded by Chuck Colson and is a nation-wide organization dedicated to ministering to the over 2 million inmates housed in institutions throughout the United States.
The Crossroads’ Prison Ministry is committed to ministering to C.I.W. (Chino Institution for Women) which is a state institution, Victorville Federal Institution and both the Men's prisons located in Chino and Norco.
Ultimately, we want every person to come to a personal knowledge of Christ as Savior.
CHARARCTERISTICS OF MANY INMATES:
- LONELY: To an inmate isolated from family, friends, and the outside world, time drags.
- USELESS: Being incarcerated devastates a person’s self-esteem.
- BITTER: Inmates may harbor bitterness toward those in authority, toward those who testified against them, toward family who did not “bail them out”,” or toward society in general.
- AIMLESS: Life in prison is dramatically different from life on the outside. Inmates have a difficulty adjusting to the present or planning realistically for the future.
- SUSPICIOUS: Many inmates have never had positive relationships.
IN-PRISON VOLUNTEERS
Volunteers are involved in weekly bible studies, seminars and workshops. The level of commitment depends on each individual and the time they can allot to the ministry.
We require a 5 hour training for those volunteers who wish to do in-prison ministry through Prison Fellowship as well as a mandatory four 4 hour orientation training offered by the California Department of Correction and Rehabilitation.
In addition, we have collaborated with PFM and are presently presenting a “Re-entry/ Discipleship” program which involves coaching and mentoring men and women who will be released from the prison system. This offers volunteers the opportunity to establish a relationship with an inmate and be a part of their transformed life. Volunteers are required to attend an initial 8 hour training and commit to a once a month one-on-one visit with the inmate. We currently have over 50 inmates actively attending this program.
PEN-PAL PROGRAM
This is an opportunity to get involved with the ministry without the full blown commitment of going inside the prison. More than 2 million men and women are desperate for contact with the outside world. Many have been forsaken by their families, have lost touch with daily life, and literally have no hope.
Guidelines to Becoming a Pen-Pal:
- A pen pal is someone who is stable, emotionally and spiritually. The volatile environment of prisons means that inmates often have roller-coaster emotions and experiences. The pen pal needs to be able to ride above these emotions and experiences and stick to the purpose of spiritual encouragement.
- A pen pal must be motivated for ministry. There is little public glory attached to this ministry but there is great personal reward and treasures in heaven.
- Follow-through is vital. It is emotionally devastating for an inmate to take the risk of writing and then not to hear back, or be rejected without good reason or cause. Some pen pal relationships continue for a decade or more, and some volunteers write to many inmates simultaneously. This is a long-term friendship and discipleship ministry, not a short-range or “one-time ministry.
- Buoyancy is required. Do not be easily be discouraged. There may be months when the inmate doesn’t respond. Gifts may return unopened or just disappear. You may be disappointed—inmates often relapse or tire if their personal agendas are not being filled. You may be assigned two or three inmates before finding one who results in a satisfying relationship. Stay at it. Do not be discouraged.
The pen-pal relationship is a wonderful way to introduce a nonbeliever to Christ and His Word. Whether or not redemptive work takes place [in a relationship like this] is up to the Holy Spirit and how open an inmate is to change.
10 Tips for writing a Pen-Pal:
- Offer encouragement. Let them know there is such a thing as a new beginning. Jesus forgives everyone of every sin.
- Try to understand the inmates’ situation and feelings
- Acknowledge that their pain is real. Using words like “I imagine you must have felt…” help to validate feelings.
- Speak God’s Word, but don’t preach.
- Don’t violate prison or Crossroad Church/Prison Fellowship guidelines.
- Inmates have experienced rejection. Relate to Jesus’ rejection by family, friends, and the world.
- Romantic overtures are common. Let the inmate know immediately that Crossroads Church and Prison Fellowship rules prohibit romantic involvement and that you will stop writing if a “friendship” can’t be maintained.
- Never betray your pen pal’s trust. Most inmates have very few friends to rely on.
- Humor heals
- Don’t ask what the pen-pal did to end up in prison. If they want share; let them see you through the eyes of salvation
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