USA (MNN) – As a prison sentence begins, many inmates face hopelessness. However, Yard Out, a publication of Prisoners for Christ, offers testimonies and hope from prisoners for prisoners.
Peyton Burkhart with Prisoners for Christ says, “The first few issues, I was doing interviews with ex-cons who were sharing their testimonies, and I was writing an article for it. But after they [the newspapers] started getting into the prisons, we had inmates send their stories to us to use. We found that that was a really great way to connect with the prisoner.”
A Wide-Reaching Impact
Now after around 30 years of producing Yard Out, the publication is in 1160 prisons across the country with a print run of about 51,000 as well as online copies. There are three issues a year, one of which includes a special art contest for prisoners. Each issue clearly presents the Gospel with Scripture references and then shares testimonies, poetry and letters to the editor from prisoners. This powerful publication is spread through inmates and chaplains.
(Image courtesy of Prisoners for Christ)
Burkhart says time and time again they’ve heard stories of how Yard Out has impacted incarcerated men and women. “There’s so much drama and conflict in their lives. They’re broken and lost. It’s just amazing how God reaches into that circumstance and touches them. And we get letters from inmates who are gang members. They’re tough men covered with tattoos, and they go into a chapel service, or they find a Yard Out under their mattress in the solitary confinement, or some expression where God reaches out to them. And they’re just broken by the discovery of grace and forgiveness. They may be in front of their old gang members who they used to fight with and do drugs with, and they’re just shamelessly crying for Christ, touched by the presence of God in their life. So it’s very transforming for them.”
Encountering Miracles
Many stories stand out to Burkhart after years with the publication, but one of his favorites is from a prisoner who planned to kill himself with a shiv he’d made. He was hopeless and around two in the morning one night he was ready to end his life.
(Image courtesy of Ron Lach on Pexels)
Burkhart says, “Suddenly there was a guard, a prison guard at his door. He asked him, ‘Do you believe the Bible?’ And he replied, ‘Yes, I do.’ And the guard asked him, ‘Why don’t you do what it says?’ And he quoted a verse out of Leviticus. It says, ‘Do not cut yourself.’ So the inmate looked that up and he described it as a neon sign that was flashing off the page at him, ‘Do not cut yourself’.
“So he realized God reached out to him. He asked about that officer the next morning and wondered where the tall thin black officer that was on duty the night before. They said, ‘Well, we don’t have a tall, thin, black officer who works here.’ He realized that he had seen an angel who had intervened to keep him from taking his life, and he consequently committed himself to Christ.”
Get Involved
The ministry continues to share the Gospel and see men and women commit their lives to Christ. However, they are not working in a vacuum. They need prayer and support from the Church.
Greg Von Tobel also with Prisoners for Christ says, “We pray for everything in this ministry, everything from just the normal everyday needs of the ministry all the way up to major gifts to continue to financially support this ministry. So we’re always looking for new supporters. We’re always looking for new volunteers. We’re always looking for how we can creatively get in front of the inmate population with the Word of God.”
Consider joining Prisoners for Christ as they present the Gospel to incarcerated men and women. Learn more on their website at prisonersforchrist.com or request a copy of Yard Out here.
Image courtesy of RDNE Stock Project on Pexels.
