Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Last night may have been not-so-great news for Phillies fans, but there was plenty of GOOD NEWS proclaimed in the Prison chapel for those who came out. It can be so rewarding to hear the heartfelt appreciation for us coming out each week, and the depth of sharing by some of the men during testimony time is incredible. What an honor to be used by our Lord in this way at this time for the benefit of these men. When we get home after 10pm on Monday nights, it’s encouraging to know that we made a difference simply by being obedient to the Lord’s call.
Erwin’s message reminded us that we were all created by God, but not all are children of God. Being a child of God only happens for those who accept Christ – “Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12). Erwin further stressed to the men we all have a choice – to follow God or not – and our choice has some serious consequences. The results of either choice were spelled out in detail, with the obvious conclusion “Who wouldn’t choose God?”
Each week the Gospel is preached and men are encouraged to make the best choice ever in this life. We get a small glimpse of where their hearts are by hearing what they’d like prayer for. Our prayer time last night began with these verses from Psalm 28:
Praise the Lord!
For he has heard my cry for mercy.
The Lord is my strength, my shield from every danger.
I trust him with all my heart.
He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy.
I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.
The Lord protects his people
and gives victory to his anointed king.
Save your people!
Bless Israel, your special possession!
Lead them like a shepherd,
and carry them in your arms forever. (Psalm 28:6-9)
The last verse seemed poignant considering the current conditions in the Middle East. Let us all continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem as well as the other prayer requests spoken by the men across both services. Again my thanks for your support of this ministry through prayer and other means. Together we are a light in a pretty dark place. Thanks for your partnership. Be blessed this week.
Grace and peace,
Rick
Inmate Prayer Requests from Medium Security (7:00pm service):
- Angel– for my brother’s health (needs a kidney), my family’s health, and the health of the men in here. Thanks be to God for changing my life through reading the Bible every day, I pray for strength and to be able to give 100% of my life to God. Also pray for my lady that she’s going to be OK. Pray that prison would rehabilitate us with some programs- we need some programs while we wait so long to even see a judge. Also pray for Stephanie who has drug problem.
- Ross– for 2 men back on the block. Bernard still has much back pain and now a lump in his left side, praying it’s not cancer. And for Cody that he doesn’t have diabetes.
- Shaun– for all the inmates in here that God would be with them. And for my sister, my kids, and my grandkids.
- Dave– for everyone in here, for my buddy mark, for my kids and my girlfriend, and for judges to figure out what to do with me, I’ve been here for over 300 days.
- Dios– for all to go well with my court date tomorrow (Tue), and that I could be released. And for all our families.
- Joel– for my mother’s health- she is very sick and can’t move. I pray too that she can be on path to Jesus. And please make my faith stronger.
- Andy L– for my neighbor who is dying of kidney disease and probably won’t get a new kidney since none available. May they trust in the Lord.
Inmate Prayer Requests from Minimum Security (8:30pm service)
- Maurice– my Aunt had a stroke. I pray for my little cousins who lost their Mom last year and Grandmother also died.
- Martin– for my family, my 97-year-old grandmother, for a good outcome of my case, and for strength to overcome my drug addiction permanently and put that part of my life behind me.
- Corey– for everyone in the room, for my family (brother and parents on road trip), that we can stay healthy, and for my girlfriend.
- Jacob– for healing in many ways- my grandfather had a bad fall and now has covid in the hospital, lots of guys on the block have stuff going on, and please heal our hearts- so much bad stuff happening in the world.
- Jeremiah– our families, and for humility of all the lawyers and judges in our cases – God is the only true judge.
- Dan T– for the peace of Jerusalem as our time here seems to be getting very short. I pray we are all ready for Jesus’ return.
- Andy D– my family and I are all grieving the recent loss of my Mom.
Prayers from Onesimus Ministries
Praise God for our 15 table sponsors for the Annual Banquet for Onesimus Ministries this Friday. We pray that attendees will have a great night of fellowship and praise for what God is doing through this ministry.
God bless chaplains Heinrich and Rhonda as they serve each week in the prison ministering to many inmates, staff members, and their families. Travelling mercies for Rhonda and husband Mike as they return from an overseas trip.
For additional laborers in the field – God provides and we are waiting on Him. He knows our need for more volunteers to come into the prison with us on Monday nights.
Pray for prison staff forced to do more with less as they experience staff shortages. Families are impacted by the longer hours and many shifts.
Please continue to pray for the various aftercare ministries across Chester County, helping men and women recently released from prison to cope better with the outside, and rebuild their lives on a firm foundation of Christ. May these ministries be fruitful and have all the resources they need to operate effectively.
If you’d like to find out more about mentoring and discipling a man or woman coming out of prison, drop us a note at outreach@onesimusministries.org.
These weekly prayer requests are also posted on our website – https://onesimusministries.org/category/weekly-prayer-requests/
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