Prison Fellowship

  • DONATE
    • One-Time
    • Monthly
    • Angel Tree
    • Other Ways to Give
  • GET INVOLVED
    • All Options
    • Subscribe
    • Angel Tree Christmas
    • Start a Fundraiser
    • Pray With Us
    • Justice Action Center
    • Share on Social
Search
  • STORIES
    • Stories
    • Blog
    • Videos
    • The Restoration Series [Videos]
  • WHAT WE DO
    • Why Help Prisoners?
    • What We Do
    • In-Prison
      • Prison Fellowship Academy
      • In-Prison Programs
      • Hope Events
      • Inside Journal
      • Women’s Ministry
      • Create: New Beginnings
    • Angel Tree
      • Register your church or group for Angel Tree
      • Prison Fellowship Angel Tree
      • Angel Tree Christmas
      • Angel Tree Camping
      • Angel Tree Sports Camp
    • Justice Reform
      • Justice Reform
      • Second Chance Month
      • News & Updates
      • Sign the Justice Declaration
      • Get a Copy of Outrageous Justice
    • Warden Exchange
    • Church Partners
    • Corporate Partnerships
    • Preparing Prisoners for Reentry
    • Research and Evaluation
      • Good Citizenship Model®
  • RESOURCES
    • Subscribe to Our Email
    • Support for Friends and Family of Prisoners
      • Resources for Friends and Family of Prisoners
      • Coping with Incarceration
      • Resources for Prisoners
      • Resources for Children of Prisoners
      • Supporting Successful Prisoner Reentry
      • Subscribe To The Hope Connection
    • Resources for Churches and Volunteers
      • Resources for Churches and Volunteers
      • In-Prison Ministry
      • Reentry Ministry
      • Family Ministry
      • Justice Reform
      • Mentoring Ministry
    • Angel Tree Coordinator Training
    • Resources for Chaplains
    • Resources for D.O.C.
    • Justice Reform Resources
    • Create: New Beginnings Book
    • Share on Social
  • ABOUT US
    • Our Beliefs
    • Mission & Vision
    • Financials
      • Financials
      • 2024 Annual Report
    • Employment
    • Contact Us
    • In The News
    • Leadership
    • Chuck Colson
      • About Chuck Colson
      • The Charles Colson Hope Awards

Inside Journal® Shines Light in Dark Places

March 13, 2013 by Alyson R. Quinn

Inside_Journal_250pxPrison can be a dark place, full of dangerous personalities and corrosive influences. Inmates who want to follow Christ must fight against a tide that threatens to push them back into old behaviors and thought patterns. Other inmates might be curious about Jesus, but, cynical about the value of “religion,” they balk at the idea of attending a chapel service. A third group – including inmates in lock-down or solitary confinement – may simply have no access to chapel services or Bible studies. Prison Fellowship created Inside Journal in 1991 to speak to all three groups, meeting them at their point of need through uplifting content that clearly communicates the Gospel.

Generous donors allow Prison Fellowship to circulate 122,000 copies of Inside Journal to more than 575 state, federal, county, and community corrections facilities four times a year. Having recently expanded into Delaware, it now reaches all 50 states.

Each edition contains true stories of former inmates whose lives have been transformed by Christ, and who are now agents of God’s grace in their communities. Inside Journal also carries timely news articles and biblical advice about topics relevant to inmates’ lives, like overcoming anger, recovering from sexual abuse, and parenting from behind bars. Most importantly, every single copy contains a fresh, relevant presentation of the Gospel message in language that inmates can understand – plus connections to correspondence Bible studies and other resources that will help inmates grow in their faith.

Inside Journal is popular with prison chaplains and prison ministry volunteers, who can sign up to receive bulk shipments to pass out to inmates at the correctional facilities where they serve. “It is such a wonderful ministry tool,” wrote Chaplain Mark Menhinick of Western Youth Institution. “Many inmates who would never read a Bible will read the Inside Journal … I would love to be able to give every inmate in segregation a copy.”

Because Inside Journal is printed and shipped in bulk, it costs only 10 cents per copy. A one-hundred dollar gift, for example, puts this evangelistic newspaper into the hands of 250 inmates for an entire year, where God uses it to change lives behind bars every day.

Recently two young women incarcerated in New York City wrote letters to Inside Journal using the front and back sides of a single sheet of paper – the only piece of paper they had between them! One wrote, “Recently I started to go to church here on Rikers Island and I received a copy of the summer 2012 Inside Journal … I realized that ultimately God is the judge and my undetermined amount of time here has felt that less of a burden. I read the [sinner’s] prayer in the section ‘Eternity or Bust’ and this is why I’m writing to you now. I have asked God back into my life and I want to get to know Him better.”

In response, the staff of Inside Journal sent both young women Bibles and the forms they needed to enroll in a correspondence Bible study for inmates, supporting them in their new-found faith journey.

To find out more about Inside Journal, or to read some previous Inside Journal issues, click here.

Filed Under: Inside Journal, Prison & Prisoners, Prison Fellowship News & Updates

SELECT A TOPIC

  • Advocacy & Reentry
  • Angel Tree
  • Families of Prisoners
  • Feature Stories
  • From the CEO
  • Hope Events
  • Inside Journal
  • Press Releases
  • Prison & Prisoners
  • Prison Fellowship Academy
  • Prison Fellowship International
  • Prison Fellowship News & Updates
  • Reentry
  • Second Chance Month
  • Uncategorized
  • Video
  • Warden Exchange

MOST POPULAR

The California Prison Where Hope is Alive and Well

April 9, 2025

My Story: Tynecia

April 9, 2025

The Pastor Who Got a Second Chance

April 2, 2025

LATEST VIDEOS

WATCH ALL VIDEOS

Join our online community

Facebook Facebook X (Twitter) X (Twitter) Instagram Instagram YouTube YouTube LinkedIn LinkedIn
PF®
PFM®

RECOMMENDED LINKS

  • Ways to Donate
  • Inspirational Stories
  • Angel Tree
  • Prison Fellowship Academy
  • Justice Reform

RESOURCES

  • For Families & Friends of Prisoners
  • For Churches & Angel Tree Volunteers
  • Warden Exchange

JOIN RESTORATION PARTNERS AND WITNESS GOD RESTORE LIVES

Restoration Partners give monthly to bring life-changing prison ministry programs to incarcerated men and women across the country.

 

JOIN NOW
  • CONTACT US
  • EMPLOYMENT
  • PRIVACY
  • FINANCIALS
© 2025 PRISON FELLOWSHIP®

Angel Tree®, Angel Tree Camping®, Angel Tree Sports CampTM, and Warden Exchange® are programs of Prison Fellowship®.