This month we are doing a myriad of different ministries, two of which have been visiting inmates in prisons and visiting patients in a hospital.
The first night we did prison ministry, I was shell-shocked. I had never set foot in a prison before, let alone one with 60 men crammed into one small cell. But once I got over my initial astonishment, something else struck me. A group of girls from our teams gathered outside the women’s cell and started singing worship songs, and the women sang along in Spanish. There was one older woman in particular whom I noticed singing praises to God and beaming. She lives her life stuck behind bars, sharing one cold hard floor with 5 other women. She is someone’s grandmother, mother, friend, and sister. The men in the cell next to hers were so hungry to receive the Word and began booming with “Amen!” as one of the men from the church preached to them. Hardened criminals hit their knees in prayer and wept. I was blown away. They could be angry and blame God for the circumstances of their lives and the injustices they face. But instead, they praise Him and hunger after more.
The next day, I went to the children’s ward of a local hospital, prepared to be brokenhearted. And yes, the conditions of the hospital there shocked me as well. But what surprised me more were the attitudes of the kids there. Here are kids that have to spend days, weeks, even months confined to a bed and sharing a room with up to 20 other children. Yet as we visited them, we were greeted with smiles. When I asked them how they were, they replied with “good.” Their parents were so open to have us come and talk with them, share with them about God, and pray over them. They trusted that God can do the impossible and heal their children. It convicted me that if I were in their situation, would I do the same?
My life is so blessed in comparison with many, and I have no right to complain about the little inconveniences I face. One of the lessons I learned in Africa and am being reminded of again is to choose joy.
Matthew 25:35-36
35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
