In Costa Rica, one of the ministries that my host family participates in is a women’s prison ministry. I was fortunate enough to accompany my host mom, Beth, to the prison and it was one of my BEST days on the World Race thus far!
The women I met were from all walks of life: old, young, black, mixed, white, educated, stree smart, rich, poor…. it was so amazing to see how the barbed wire and prison guards completely obliterate social statuses. When you’re on the outside of those prison walls, all of the shallow labels we use to describe each other matter; our education level, our income, the brand of our clothes, the style of our hair, the type of phone we have…. prison makes all of that insignificant and irrelevant. None of it matters.
And, surprisingly, you wanna know what else doesn’t matter? Innocent or guilt. On the inside of that prison, innonce doesn’t matter at all because, whether you “did it” or not, you’re still on the inside. You still can’t leave. You still have no privacy. You’re still no better than the person sitting next to you or sleeping above you or showering across from you.
As I sat with our small group of women, discussing the Grace of Jesus and the Freedom that comes from having a relationship with Him, I was struck by the simplicity of it all: We’re all criminals, liars, murderers, thieves and frauds. In the eyes of God, we all deserve to be locked up. But in His Love and Goodness, He sacrificed Jesus on the Cross so that we might be free, blameless, clean and guilt-free.
I went to prison because for my whole life, I read in the Bible that I should care for widows and orphans and visit those in prison. I didn’t realize that I’m encouraged to do these things LESS for the person I’m helping or caring for, and MORE so that I can be reminded of my own depravity and need for Jesus. Because I’m no better than those women in that prison.
They may never find freedom in the worldy sense, but I’m so thankful that they know Jesus and have tasted and seen the goodness of the Lord and know that they are free in Him. And thanks to my day at prison with Beth, I’m now aware that I’m a prisoner too; and my freedom doesn’t come from a judge or jury but from the one Who sacrificed His life so that I might find freedom and life eternal.
“But the Scriptures declare that we are all prisoners of sin, so we receive God’s promise of freedom only by believing in Jesus Christ.”
– Galations 3:22 (NLT)
