A Bible lesson about a man imprisoned for his faith has become a real-life gift of hope for people behind bars in Allen County.
After learning about the Apostle Paul’s imprisonment during a joint Vacation Bible School, children from four Colony churches raised money for the Pregnancy & Family Center’s jail ministry.
Their efforts, combined with matching gifts from local church groups, resulted in a $2,100 donation to purchase Life Recovery Bibles for inmates at the Allen County Jail.
The center, 1 S. Jefferson Ave. on the downtown Iola square, estimates the donation will provide 80 Bibles for the ministry.
The project grew out of Vacation Bible School hosted by Cowboy Church, Colony Christian Church, United Methodist Church of Colony and Colony Community Church. As children learned how Paul continued preaching the Gospel and sharing God’s love while imprisoned, they acted out the story and chose to collect donations to support inmates in Allen County.
THE CHILDREN raised more than $500. The donation was then matched by the churches and the United Methodist Women and the Faithful Servants, bringing the total gift to nearly $2,100.
Angela Johnson, director of the center, said the children immediately connected the Bible story to the center’s jail ministry. “They were ecstatic about this jail ministry,” she said.
The ministry provides each inmate with a Life Recovery Bible they can keep after leaving jail.
Theresia Turner, the center’s co-director, said the large-print study Bibles include devotional material and practical guidance for people dealing with many types of addiction.
The jail ministry itself began after the center received a letter signed by seven female inmates asking for help.
“We need some Jesus. Would you come over here?” Turner recalled the letter saying.
The request quickly became a weekly ministry. Johnson and Turner now serve as chaplains for the women’s pods every Friday, while Pastor Dave Sturgeon and several others oversee the men’s ministry after taking over for longtime volunteer Jim Tholen, who died last August.
“We’re there every Friday,” Turner said. “We take a Bible lesson, and it’s just been amazing. We have baptized nine female inmates since we’ve been there.”
Their work does not end when an inmate is released.
The center continues working with many former inmates by helping them find housing, food, clothing, counseling and recovery resources.
Women who have been incarcerated are invited back every Thursday evening for dinner and fellowship, while volunteers work with community partners to meet practical needs as they arise.
