37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Luke 6:37-38
Jesus demonstrated how to relate to others with kindness and generosity. He taught us about the quality of relationships we can have, if we establish them upon serving, accepting, and forgiving one another.
We thank God for the bonds of friendship that form between us and our inmate students that write to us every week. These men and women are on a path to know God in a more intimate way through prayer and Bible study. It is our joy and privilege to bring God’s Word to them in a relatable way as they reflect on their lives, and how God is at work to redeem them from the penalty and power of sin through Jesus.
Since our connection with inmates happens most often through the mail, postage has always been an expense for both us and for them. At the end of last year the team here had this simple thought, “What if we raise funding to pay for inmate postage?” It seemed like such an obvious thought, and yet it hadn’t been done before. That heavenly prompting resulted in a fundraising effort that raised $15,000 for postage, releasing the inmates from the burden of having to pay to write to us. We celebrated and planned the implementation of this blessing, but we certainly weren’t ready for what would happen next.
Beginning in 2021 we began paying the return postage for our students, so that they could participate in our Bibles study courses at completely no cost! Though it was a small barrier for someone to pay for their own return postage, it was a barrier that kept many from enrolling in our program. As a result of this new effort more inmates have enrolled in our Bible studies.
But that’s not all that’s happened. Over the years, financial support to CLI has regularly come from inmates and their families. However, since introducing our new postage paid lessons, we’ve seen a huge uptick in the number of donations coming from our inmate students. Some are even making recurring gifts each month! For example, in April we received this letter from a mother of one of our students,
Dear CLI,
This donation is from my son J* who is currently assigned to the Pendleton Indiana Correctional Facility. He has been HUGELY blessed and helped by receiving the Bibles you have made available at that facility!!! He received a ‘stimulus check’ and wanted to pay tithes and give offerings as commanded. We are praying for the CLI Ministry.
Because of the generosity of donors who enable us to pay postage, this inmate was both blessed by our ministry and led to give back. As the days and weeks passed since offering free postage, we have seen more and more inmate donations begin to roll in. Generosity yields generosity. It is encouraging to see how God provides and is using his whole church to make the whole gospel known in the whole world.
