Nigeria (MNN) — Nigeria’s prisons are becoming unlikely centers of revival. Through Prisoners For Christ’s (PFC) International Bible Institute, inmates across Nigeria are not only finding faith in Jesus but also becoming Christian leaders who disciple others.
“It’s a Bible college inside the prison for inmates,” explains Don Szolomayer, Director of International Affairs at PFC. “There are 143 total lessons in the whole course. So it takes about three to four years, depending. But the goal is once they go through all of that, those who graduate from it now become what we call an inmate chaplain.”
These inmate chaplains are trained to evangelize, teach, and disciple others through Scripture. The impact of this ministry is spreading.
Recently, Nigeria’s prison chaplains took their training to a new level. “About three or four weeks ago, they held a crusade with all of their inmate chaplains that have graduated,” says Szolomayer.
“They got permission from the officer in charge to go cell-by-cell evangelizing. Then on top of that, they had a full crusade out in the yard. This all went on for over a week and a half!
(Photo courtesy of Prisoners for Christ)
“So here is this group of men in this prison who’ve gone through this course, and now they’re putting feet to what they learned. They’re taking it actually step-by-step out into that prison — not just holding it to themselves — but actually going out and evangelizing and discipling.”
Szolomayer says prison staff are even noticing the change. “Something that we hear very often when we go into the prisons and the jails in other countries is, ‘How soon are you coming back?’ Because the officers see the difference that it’s making in their prison.”
Greg Von Tobel, President of PFC, emphasizes that this vision extends beyond Nigeria: “Our primary focus is to share the love of Christ and to save unrepentant sinners and move them to a situation where they’re now saved and can disciple other people.”
Yet, growth depends on resources. “If we had more volunteers that were qualified to go into prisons, we could cover more countries,” says Von Tobel. “Last year, we had 2.1 million inmates that attended our services. Out of that, as best as we can determine, 73,000 men, women, and children said yes to Jesus for the very first time.”
Learn more about PFC at their website and find ways to get involved.
Pray for more inmate chaplains to step up, and that prison officers would continue welcoming Gospel transformation inside. Ask God to multiply discipleship through Nigeria’s prison churches, that they may know Christ!
Header photo courtesy of Mirza Mustofa/Unsplash.
