Being Yoked and Enthusiasm
Tonight we had a bunch of regular attendees, plus a return inmate we'll call "Burt" (not his real name). "Burt" had been a group member last year, then got out of jail for 3 months and is now back in jail. He talked about how he felt, having gotten back into alcohol and trouble so quickly, and how he had sent God out of his life once he got released from prison.
Having prisoners return to jail is a difficult part of prison ministry. It can bring a sense of failure for both the inmate and the volunteers. Of course, both groups hope that an ex-con stays close to God and obeys the law upon their return to society and freedom.
We read a chapter from the book of Proverbs. I explained that many people read a proverb a day for every day of their lives. There are 30 chapters of Proverbs, so it's easy to get a system going to read the whole book of Proverbs each month.
Then, we went to Matthew 11 verse 28
We talked about how one person can or cannot influence another person, for good or bad. We all give opinions and ideas. I raised the idea of a skin rash, how it can be spread around (or a cold), to show that we do indeed have the ability to influence other people. I asked the group to think about who they have been "Yoked" to in their lives.
I used my husband and I as an example of a good match. We both benefit from our marriage and relationship. We talked about good yokes and bad yokes. We talked about the importance of being connected or "yoked" with other believers for the good and bad times in life. In this town, there is an Aftercare group that meets once a week.
Wouldn't it be great if each inmate who wanted it was "yoked" to or adopted by a church so that when they were released members of the church would help the ex-con stay well and on track with God and the community?
Having prisoners return to jail is a difficult part of prison ministry. It can bring a sense of failure for both the inmate and the volunteers. Of course, both groups hope that an ex-con stays close to God and obeys the law upon their return to society and freedom.
We read a chapter from the book of Proverbs. I explained that many people read a proverb a day for every day of their lives. There are 30 chapters of Proverbs, so it's easy to get a system going to read the whole book of Proverbs each month.
Then, we went to Matthew 11 verse 28
We talked about how one person can or cannot influence another person, for good or bad. We all give opinions and ideas. I raised the idea of a skin rash, how it can be spread around (or a cold), to show that we do indeed have the ability to influence other people. I asked the group to think about who they have been "Yoked" to in their lives.
I used my husband and I as an example of a good match. We both benefit from our marriage and relationship. We talked about good yokes and bad yokes. We talked about the importance of being connected or "yoked" with other believers for the good and bad times in life. In this town, there is an Aftercare group that meets once a week.
Wouldn't it be great if each inmate who wanted it was "yoked" to or adopted by a church so that when they were released members of the church would help the ex-con stay well and on track with God and the community?
posted by Kathy Kolb | 10:30 PM
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