“So yes, God is full of surprises. Every single one of us should walk around all the time laughing hilariously, because God has put so much surprising goodness in our lives by His grace, faithfulness, and love!”
Those were the final words of my lesson at the Monday morning jail worship service.
For most people familiar with it, talk of Prison Fellowship’s Angel Tree program brings to mind images of Christmas presents and seasonal parties with cookies and carols playing in the background. So you might be surprised to know that summer is a very busy time for Angel Tree and its mission to meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of the families of prisoners.
In celebration of Prison Fellowship’s 40 years of ministering to prisoners and their families, we will be taking a look back at the early days of the ministry and remembering the people and the stories that have helped to make Prison Fellowship the nation’s largest prison outreach.
Having retired following 18 years as a corrections officer at several facilities in Michigan, Billy Stewart is once again returning to prison—this time as a volunteer with Prison Fellowship. Denise Harris, Prison Fellowship’s field director for the Detroit area, asks Billy to share his thoughts about his perspective of prisoners as an officer, and what is taking him back behind bars.