Hawkins Prison Worship

"It's where they belong". "They got what they deserve." "If you commit the crime, you've got to do the time". And so the comments go when it pertains to the justifiably incarcerated.

However, Jesus shared these words with us: "I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me" Mt 25:36

Pleasant Valley congregation has a unique opportunity to serve by invitation of the Arkansas Department of Correction at the Hawkins Unit for Women (part of the Wrightsville Prison complex) in 2011. We have been asked to hold worship services for the women every 3rd Sunday of the month in the evening. We have accepted the invitation. On Sunday, February 20th, Stuart Cash and twenty four others from among us will be praising our God in worship with the women of Hawkins. You could be one of them.

Hawkins is a minimum security prison facility. The 200 women are housed in 4-50 women units. They come from the four corners of Arkansas; some from other states. They represent many belief systems including, but not limited to, Jewish, Muslin, Jehovah Witness, and Mormons. Some are self-admitted atheists, some are seeking, and many are Bible-believing Christians like you and me.

The women inmates at Hawkins come from varied family backgrounds. Sadly, they haven't always experienced a loving family background. Sometimes it's just the opposite. For some , prison may be the first place they have received loving care. It's not any different than us when we find the love we had been missing in our lives when we become a part of the body of Christ. This will be a slow-growing, patient ministry, offering the ladies hope of a different life when they are released.

We at Pleasant Valley have 12 opportunites this year to Share the Love of Christ by worshipping with these ladies and begin to build relationships with them. Like all Believers they crave fellowship with their God and their brothers and sisters in Christ. They want to hear the Word preached, receive communion, and raise their voices in praise.

So how can you participate? You can pray that as a congregation we rise to this occasion to serve as the ambassadors and sweet aroma of Christ. You can preach, lead songs or read scriptures if these are one of your gifts at one of the worship services. You can attend one of the worship services during the year. We are allowed to have 25 members from PV attend at any given service. Sometimes it takes a whole village; this time it takes a whole congregation.

Society has deemed them unworthy, unloveable, unreachable; we as the Body of Christ should deem them as worthy because He made each of us worthy of His love. Lets' reach out from our comfort zones and put His Living Word into action.