It’s cliché to say that I learned more from them than what they probably learned from me, but it’s true.
As I sat and listened to a prison inmate weep as she shared her story of how she came to know Jesus, my perception of God’s love shifted.
She was a Jesus follower before she got arrested, which reminded me that what we have done wrong does not discount us from the grace and love of God.
“For there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1
LITERALLY going to prison cannot separate you from the love of God. Isn’t that crazy? Like I knew this concept but quite honestly, my mind can be easily skewed into thinking that I have to be good in order for God to love me.
But that’s not true.
Nothing can separate us from His love because it is deep and it is wide. So that means that no matter how far you have fallen from Christ, His love reaches you all the way down there. And no matter how far you have strayed away from Christ, His love reaches you all the way over there too.
“Nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:39
And it’s not what I have done that discounts me or even what I can do well that earns me His love.
It’s not good people who go to heaven and bad people who go to hell, it’s forgiven people that go to heaven.
At the prison we got to hear the women’s stories and encourage them with Scripture and with our own stories. We worshiped and prayed over them and it was absolutely one of my favorite days of ministry.
On a less serious note..my teammates and I had a photo shoot of what our mug shots would look like. You’re welcome, mom and dad.
