Many Christians who are incarcerated in the United States have that same goal, wanting to serve God, but they have different obstacles. Perhaps distractions and busyness are less of a barrier, but what about access to traditional seminary programs? What about their eligibility for accredited programs, which require a high school diploma or GED? What about library access? Tutoring help? Discussion groups?

This gap between prison inmates and Christian higher education is one that Prisoners for Christ (PFC) and other ministries like it have gladly stepped into. Because of their work, Christians incarcerated in certain United States prisons can pursue seminary right where they are. Here’s a closer look. 

Equipping “the inside church”

Dee Peterson with Washington state-based Prisoners for Christ explains that their team of staff and volunteers serves in connection with The Urban Ministry Institute (TUMI). 

“The goal of TUMI in the prison environment is to provide the quality, seminary-level coursework to equip and strengthen Christian ministry leaders for the inside church and also the community as a returning citizen,” Peterson says. She uses the term “inside church” to refer to Christians living within prison walls as the Body of Christ. 

For incarcerated Christians, their fellow inmates are their mission field.

(Stock photo courtesy Pixabay)

“I really think that [building up of leaders for the inside church] is where our focus needs to be, because they, as ‘indigenous’ leaders, really [have] a connection to that prison culture, to be able to relate and know the social systems and the behaviors and values [there],” says Peterson. 

TUMI’s capstone curriculum covers four core areas: biblical studies, theology and ethics, Christian ministry, and urban mission. It can take up to four years to complete the 16 modules, depending on the prison. 

Peterson also notes that TUMI is not an accredited program — deliberately. This fact removes another barrier for many inmates.

“Education is such an important factor to consider when someone is affected by incarceration and what their future is going to look like,” she says. “On average, of all the federal and state inmates, only 41% have earned a high school diploma or GED. So it is a prevalent issue.” 

One inmate’s story 

Not only do seminary-level courses help inmates better understand and teach faith in Christ, but it also helps them prepare for life after their prison sentence is over.

(Stock photo of Mongolian man courtesy of IMB)

“Since 90% of all state and federal incarcerated individuals will eventually be released, this program is vital,” Peterson says.

One U.S. inmate that the Prisoners for Christ team served actually came from Mongolia. His studies while incarcerated changed his life. After he was released in 2017, he returned to his home country, where PFC president Greg Von Tobel says, “He has turned into a godly Christian leader within the communities of Mongolia. He’s been recognized for his leadership.” 

He stayed in contact with one of his TUMI mentors from Prisoners for Christ through Facebook. Later, he reached out to the PFC team to thank God: 

“I have been thinking and praying, and I really feel like I need to be part of PFC. Just looking back at my life and what I’ve been through humbles me. It humbles me that I have grown so much and I have learned so much, especially through TUMI. Before TUMI, I was just a Christian — like, just the basics. But through TUMI, God has stretched my faith, matured me, and made me an active follower for Christ. I still have all of the TUMI books, and often read my ministry project papers I did for all of the TUMI modules. I still have everything, and reading through it, I can see my growth in the Lord. I can’t thank God enough for your ministry and how it has affected me and helped shape me into the person that I am today.”

Find your place in the story 

Seminary training for prison inmates doesn’t happen without people and resources. At Prisoners for Christ, TUMI courses and other outreach programs are facilitated by volunteers just like you.

(Photo courtesy of Hannah Busing via Unsplash)

“There’s 1200-1500 prisons all across our country, and there’s only a small percentage of those that have [adopted] the TUMI culture and schooling within their system of education,” says Von Tobel. “There is a whole mission field yet to be tapped with regards to TUMI.”

If you have a heart to help equip fellow Christians in prison, would you consider getting involved? Prisoners for Christ is one ministry that offers support each step of the way. Even if Washington State isn’t your home, there are other ways to serve with PFC, such as being pen pals. (More on that here.)

“We never send in anyone without being trained and equipped to know what to do or what to expect,” says Peterson.

Connect with PFC through their volunteer application at prisonersforchrist.org where you’ll also find resources for chaplains, inmates, and inmates’ families. 

Header photo courtesy of Ben White via Unsplash. 

Pastors and leaders gathered for a three-day training.

Though these pastors have no biblical training, they are eager to answer the call of the Lord and learn more about serving their congregations.

Greg Yoder with Christian World Outreach says the trainings go back to the Bible, asking, “‘What does the Bible really say?’ and teaching them how to read the Bible and how to present it to the people that they are ministering to.”

Training changes depending on the needs of the groups of leaders that the trainers are working with, as pastors deal with different issues in different areas and churches.

“God has called these people into a ministry and called them as they become Christians. He puts that desire into their hearts to share the gospel to become a pastor, a lay leader, or whatever it might be,” Yoder says.

“They don’t have a lot of resources to be able to get that training that we have available here, but they seek it,” Yoder says. “Anytime they hear about any kind of training, they’re willing to do whatever they can to get that training.”

As Zimbabwean pastors’ needs are met, they are excited and beg for training programs to come back.

“We try to go back to the same areas, (but) sometimes it’s not always available,” Yoder says. “Our time doesn’t always warrant that, but our goal is to keep discipling and keep in touch with those pastors anyway we can. One thing that we do is give them Bibles so they do have a Bible in their language, Shona.”

Please pray for workers to join CWO in the harvest and for continued opportunities for discipleship with these pastors.

Pray also that God will supply the needed resources and give safe travels so that people are able to lead these trainings. Pray that congregations will be blessed by the ministry.

To learn more about Christian World Outreach’s work in Zimbabwe and donate to their leadership trainings, click here.

Header Photo Provided by Christian World Outreach

Earlier this year, the ministry sent another shipping container to landlocked Malawi in southern Africa. (More on that update here.) The Bibles and Christian books in that container are now getting into peoples’ hands! 

Jason Woolford, the president of Mission Cry, says of their local partner in Malawi: “They do three things, and do it very well: minister to orphanages, [engage in] prison ministry, and then they have a mobile library.”

This bookmobile is a truck loaded with potential to reach anyone with the gospel.

“We stop, we put out signs, start distributing and then move on to the next town,” Woolford says. “So we’re able to get into some of these areas where someone may not be in prison or in the orphanage, [they] might not be in church, but they’re willing to take a book and read about our Lord and Savior.” 

You can play a part in this story! Is there a Christian book on your shelf you think someone in another country could benefit from? Consider donating it to Mission Cry! Visit Mission Cry’s website to learn how to send books.

Woolford says these books could be “any Bibles, Christian-authored books, seminary materials — and what I mean by seminary materials would be Bible commentaries, Bible dictionaries, study Bibles, etc — and then Christian education [materials].”

(Photo of Malawi courtesy of Mission Cry)

If you don’t have books but want to sponsor this Malawi shipment, Mission Cry invites you to join them. Because of the generosity of partners to date, they have been able to ship more than 480 million dollars’ worth of Bibles and Christian resources to 278 countries.

“[Malawi] is a regular place that we send to when we get the containers funded,” says Woolford. It usually costs $11,000 to send a shipping container with half a million dollar’s worth of Christian materials.

“Malawi is double that cost because it’s landlocked and it’s very difficult to get to those areas. We sent this on faith,” he explains. “If those that are listening [or reading] want to partner with us in supporting this container, we would appreciate that.”

Header photo of Malawi courtesy of Mission Cry.

That mixed message might be the result of two sides of the Church: registered and unregistered. Only some congregations are officially recognized by the Chinese government. Erik Burklin, CEO of China Partner, has a close relationship with this registered Church in China.

“They have what they call a relative freedom,” he says. “They don’t have all the freedoms that we enjoy, but many of the pastors in the registered church tell us and remind us, ‘Hey, we’re thankful for what God has given us. It’s not like it used to be under Mao Zedong.’”

Not long ago, it was illegal to hold or practice most religions in China. While the government does maintain oversight over most religious organizations and gatherings, they still allow worship according to each person’s own personal beliefs. This not only allows gathering for congregational worship, but teaching and training in seminaries and Bible schools.

“Of course, there are still examples where pastors get arrested or warned or fined, and usually what I’ve learned when that happens is those are the individuals that maybe are a little bit more outspoken against the regime,” Burklin says. “The consequences of that are very dire. By far the majority of the pastors don’t get into politics.”

One pastor challenged authorities when officials began to remove crosses from church buildings. His efforts earned him a six-month prison sentence from which he has now been released. In other words, “as soon as you speak out against the regime, against the system, that’s when you get into trouble. That’s been my experience.”

The strategy most congregations employ is to focus on the Gospel. “They just share the Lord, share the gospel, and minister to their congregations. Usually, those are the churches that operate quite normally and quite freely in China,” Burklin says. “

If you just stay true to the preaching of the Word and minister to the people, most likely you’ll be fine as a Christian leader and as a church.”

Burklin reports that when it comes to the registered and unregistered Church in China, one thing is true of both; they’re growing.

“It’s really exciting when you meet with these brothers and sisters in China – they just really focus number one on Scripture. They preach the word, they memorize it, they pray it, and then they just love Jesus. Their love for Jesus is so overwhelming that it spills over to their neighbors and to their family members.”

If you want to support China Partner directly, you can do so with the link right here.

Header photo courtesy of Unsplash.

Dave McIntyre with Set Free Global, a division of Set Free, says of the general Christian population, “We are very ignorant about how spiritual warfare is conducted in a biblical way.”

McIntyre says believers’ and church leaders’ understanding of spiritual warfare typically falls into two camps. “One side has a very unbiblical worldview [and] believes that Satan is a spiritual concept of moral evil,” he explains.

“People are entrenched in a very secular, nonbiblical worldview that believes the spiritual realm is some far-off place; it’s kind of ethereal and unreal. Then, there’s the other side, which goes hog wild into all kinds of unbiblical teaching regarding spiritual warfare.”

(Graphic courtesy of Set Free)

For example, in many African nations, “They’ve been steeped in witchcraft for generations; it is their worldview, and they are deathly afraid of the enemy,” McIntyre says.

“They don’t know how to fight, and the pastors are the first ones to call for help.”

Unfortunately, the pastors don’t always know how to fight either. That’s where Set Free Global steps in to help. McIntyre is developing a virtual training program that will lead to in-person workshops. Pray the program can be completed and implemented quickly.

“That is what I’m all about this year: trying to get everything we do and teach in an electronic format that I can send anywhere in the world,” McIntyre says. “Pray that the enemy will not be able to interfere with this training process.”

Header image depicts armor used in physical warfare. Ephesians 6:10-20 describes the armor needed for spiritual warfare. (Photo courtesy of awsloley/Pixabay)

“Pastors are seeing the devastation firsthand, and they’ll ask us, ‘How does this work? What do I need to teach? How should we focus our ministry to lead people in[to] spiritual freedom and fight in the spiritual battle?’” McIntyre says.

“Often, these principles are not being taught in the seminary.”

McIntyre speaks from personal experience. “I went through seminary. They didn’t prepare me at all for spiritual warfare; many seminaries don’t, and that’s where it needs to be done,” he says.

“Missions agencies need to prepare their candidates for the field where the spiritual battle is very real.”

An African pastor speaks to his congregation.
(Photo courtesy of Set Free)

That’s why McIntyre wants to present Set Free’s biblical material in seminaries and the pastors’ conferences that frequently request Set Free speakers. Learn more about Set Free’s approach here.

Every principle outlined in Set Free’s spiritual warfare manifesto comes directly from Scripture.

“We’re talking straightforward stuff: repenting of the sin that we have in our lives, forgiving the people who have wronged us, understanding humility before the Lord,” McIntyre says.

James 4:7 is an overlooked yet critical key to victory. “‘Submit yourself therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.’ – That’s not something we’re supposed to know. It’s something we’re supposed to do,” McIntyre says.

Pray that doors will open in seminaries worldwide so Set Free Global can teach Christian leaders about spiritual warfare.

“Satan has invested an awful lot worldwide to destroy people and to destroy the Church. This is a time for us to take back ground,” McIntyre says.

Header image is a representative photo depicting a small church in eastern Africa. Photo courtesy of Rohan Reddy/Unsplash.

Haddad will be stepping down from his role as ABTS President in September 2025.

Elie Haddad, President of Arab Baptist Theological Seminary. (Photo courtesy of ABTS)

Previously, Haddad and his wife Mireille lived in Canada before coming to Lebanon in 2005. After Haddad departs ABTS, they plan to continue serving with Canadian Baptist Ministries in the MENA region.

Haddad shares what he’s learned from his tenure at the helm of ABTS:

“Probably the most important thing is not to be too attached to what we think we should be doing. Because number one, the situation might change, realities might change, and we’d have to respond accordingly. Number two, God may be wanting to do something a bit different than what we anticipate.”

ABTS is no stranger to change. In fact, it practically comes with the territory in Lebanon.

“We’ve been through so many major changes since I started,” says Haddad. “The war in 2006 between Israel and Hezbollah, then followed [in 2011] by the war in Syria and the influx of refugees into Lebanon and that humanitarian crisis. Then we had our own economic and financial meltdown in Lebanon in 2019, then COVID, the Beirut explosion, and layers and layers of crises and changes.”

Haddad says, “There is not one season for change. It’s a very highly volatile…region for ministry. To be effective, we need to respond differently to change.”

With God’s help, ABTS has survived the storms of change in Lebanon and the Middle East. More than that, Haddad says, “We’ve thrived — and this is a God thing!

“It seems that every crisis is an opportunity for the Gospel and God is opening up new doors for us.”

A thriving seminary in Lebanon is critical for equipping the Church in the MENA region.

ABTS staff worshipping together. (Photo courtesy of ABTS)

ABTS’s vision is “to see God glorified, people reconciled, and communities restored through the Church in the Arab world.” Despite volatility in the region and various ministry changes and challenges, ABTS continues this vision to raise up Christian leaders.

Pray for a smooth leadership transition at ABTS, and for joy in Haddad’s next chapter.

“The ministry is not based on one person,” says Haddad. “We have a very capable leadership team at ABTS.

“I do pray that God will raise the right person that will continue in the same direction with the same ethos and values, working with the leadership team that’s already in place.”

Learn more about ABTS.

Header photo of Elie Haddad, President of Arab Baptist Theological Seminary, at the 2015 graduation. (Photo courtesy of ABTS)

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is campaigning for a third consecutive, five-year term. Voters will also elect lower parliament house members.

The outcome of this election will impact India’s politics, culture, and Christian ministries. Unfortunately, Christian persecution in India has risen over the last several years under the current political system.

No matter the election’s outcome, Rev. Jason Woolford, President of Mission Cry, says Indian Christians will remain faithful to the Gospel.

“We’re thankful for partnerships that we have there – partnerships where they’re willing to risk their livelihood and even possibly imprisonment by understanding the importance of the Word of God because it’s the only thing that’s going to deliver.”

Mission Cry shipment of Bibles and Christian books to India. (Photo courtesy of Mission Cry)

In fact, you can pray for a Mission Cry shipment currently en route to resource a seminary in eastern India.

Woolford says, “This new seminary will be filled with Bibles and Christian books – seminary materials – instantly after the shipment that will be arriving over the next couple of months.”

Pray for a growing Gospel impact in India. You can help by supporting the Mission Cry container headed there now!

“For us to send a container filled with half a million dollars worth of free Bibles and Christian books, it cost us $11,000,” says Woolford. “That’s all it costs to send half a million dollars worth of free Bibles and Christian books where they’re freely distributed and given to our Mission Cry partners on the other end.”

Click here to donate to Mission Cry.

Also, ask the Lord to grant Indians wisdom as they head to the polls over the next several weeks.

Header photo of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Last November we shared a story of a surprise encounter between Mission Cry and a music ministry. They discovered they could partner to bring the gospel to Liberia through two very different means: books and musical instruments. That story left off with a Mission Cry shipping container packed full of these resources, waiting to be sponsored and shipped.

Photo of Liberia shipment distribution courtesy of Mission Cry.

Jason Woolford with Mission Cry shares the good news that the container has arrived safely with no delays in port. 

“Now, not only do people have medical equipment, not only do they have musical instruments, but they have the only thing that doesn’t return void, and that is the word of God,” Woolford says.

You can watch the video of kids and families receiving the musical instruments by clicking here: “Thank You Mission Cry.” Woolford says distribution of the Mission Cry Bibles and books has already started to churches, prisons, and Bible schools.

Pray for protection for the Mission Cry team, their families, and on-the-ground partners. Their work spreading God’s Word comes under direct spiritual warfare. 

“The very real devil hates what we’re doing. We’re sending the Word of God, God Himself through the Bible, to people around the world who could have never got one or afforded it,” Woolford says.

In some places around the world, distributing Bibles can cost a person their life, their business, their safety. (Read one story from Pakistan last year.)

Finally, consider partnering with Mission Cry in this critical work. Woolford shares that they have three containers ready to go, fully packed. All they need are sponsors to send them overseas. 

“We can send a container filled with half a million dollars’ worth of free Bibles and Christian books for $11,000,” Woolford says. 

Click to learn how you can prayerfully partner with Mission Cry to equip the Church around the world. 

Header photo of Liberia shipment distribution courtesy of Mission Cry.

Thank You Mission Cry

At a recent pastors’ gathering, Mission Cry’s president, Rev. Jason Woolford, met a pastor’s wife who teaches music to students in Liberia over Zoom. She was trying to send new instruments to them, but the plans kept falling through.

It just so happened that Mission Cry was preparing a shipping container full of Bibles and Christian books to be sent to a seminary in Liberia.

(Photo courtesy Mission Cry)

“Well, you know, Liberia is a pretty big country,” Woolford said to her. He was amazed when they discovered that the two ministries are just miles away from each other.

To the glory of God, Mission Cry’s container now has several pallets of brand-new cellos and violins. It is scheduled to ship in late November. 

“Talk about the Lord ordering the footsteps of the righteous,” says Woolford. “[Us] being at this event, sitting in front of these pastors, all so God could get the Word and these musical instruments to our brothers and sisters in Monrovia. That’s so great.”

You can play a part in this God-story by supporting Mission Cry here. It costs $11,000 to send containers like this one that are packed full of Bibles and Christian books worth that amount many times over.

“[Donations] would help the ministry as we do things in faith and trust God to prompt and prick the right hearts at the right time to make a difference in people’s lives in sending these containers,” says Woolford.

Also, join in praying that there would be no delays or extra fees from officials once the container arrives in port.

“In 70 years of ministry, it’s only happened to us twice. So I know it’s because God’s people are praying for the security and the distribution of it.”

Click here to read about Mission Cry’s recent ministry in Liberia.

 

 

Header photo courtesy of Mission Cry.