By Messiah Community Member Carole Waldvogel

    The Oklahoma Jail and Prison Ministries (OJPM) is a nonprofit, non-denominational, evangelical Christian outreach organization providing chaplains, personnel and resources to bring the good news of Jesus Christ   to those incarcerated and to equip them for life and service.  It functions with three paid staff members and approximately 130 volunteer chaplains to meet the spiritual needs of the inmates of 7 county jails, including the Oklahoma County Detention Center, the largest incarceration facility in the state. 

  The Oklahoma County Detention Center is the home base fror OJPM with additional satellite ministries in the jails of Payne County, Muskigee County, Garfield County , Canadian County, Rogers County and Midwest City. Staff consists of Rev. Don Duncan, Senior Chaplain, Rev. Jorge A. Vara, Sr., Assistant Chaplain and Rosetta Clifton, Seretary and Women’s Ministry Coordinator.  Chaplain Duncan also serves as Chaplain of the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office,oversees the work of OJPM, recruits volunteers and provides help in raising financial support for the ministries’ operations.  He is the Founder of Destination Character Discipleship which is a discipleship process to assist the believer in understanding how God transforms the believer into the image of Christ.  He also teaches Character First classes to Detention Center staff and is responsible for initiating the character trait of the month. 

  OJPM Assistant Chaplain Jorge Vara coordinates volunteer chaplains counseling activities for male inmates in the Oklahoma County Detention Center. He assists Chaplain Duncan in handling emergency notifications of deaths or serious illnes in inmate families, facilitates the work of male volunteer chaplains and assists in overseeing the work of the female volunteer chaplains.  His ability to speak Spanish is an asset to the ministry. 

  Rosetta Clifton coordinates women’s volunteer chaplains counseling activities.  She preares monthly reports and other office functions. 

OJPM coordinates  the activities of 130 volunteer chaplains weekly.  Volunteers may spend anywhere from 1-8 hours at the jail, with some volunteers coming more than one day a week.  The men and women ministries are conducted in separate rooms, with  volunteers in the men’s area able to minister to six male inmates at a time and the women’s area able to minister to four female inmates at one time.  Each volunteer has a small cubicle where he/she can conduct “in-person, face-to-face, one-on-one” quality encounters with male and female inmates of all races.  There are sheriff deputies present in the room during the counseling sessions so one feels safe during the encounters. Encounters with each inmate are approximately 20-60minutes in length. Volunteers also receive training several times at year that teaches how to deal with the inmates.  

I usually begin a session with an inmate by inquiring about their relationship to Jesus, asking them if they know Jesus and believe in the Triune God.  I always ask how long they have been incarcerated for that can make a big difference in their attitude and willingness to listen.

  Many of the women have attended church in their youth but many have fallen away, there are some who have belonged and participated in a church just prior to their being incarcerated.  For the most part, they accept the fact that they are in jail because they have done something wrong. If they are not Christian or if they have fallen away, I tell them about God and what Jesus has done for them and ask if they would like to commit or recommit their lives to Christ.  Many do so.  The ministry provides  some helpful pamphlets that aid in describing this.  The women also like to talk about their families and the effect their incarceration on the family.  I use different parts of the Bible to help them in their need and also like to use The Bible Promise Book to find relevant verses. I always ask the inmates if they have any particular prayer requests and then pray with them to end the session. 

The ministy  has individual Bible lessons each inmate can take to their cells to study and complete.  The lessons begin with the book of John.  Each willing to work on the lessons is given a New Testament.  When the series of   Bible lessons is completed (24 units/8lessons each), the inmate may receive Blackaby and King’s Experiencing God for their study, followed by The Search for Significance by Robert McGee, Disciples Prayer Life: Walking Fellowship with God and The Mind of Christ, if they are in the jail for an extended period. Other Christian books and novels are available for checkout, such as The Purpose Driven Life and Mentor The Kid and The CEO.  Inmates may also receive the monthly devotional Our Daily Bread. 

OJPM chaplains see an average of 1632 inmates per month withapproximately 1475 hours of volunteer counseling  provided at the Oklahoma County Detention Center alone.  The ministy recently celebrated its twenty year anniversary and is thankful to Sheriff John Whetsel for the priviledge of having this ministry at the Oklahoma County Detention center. 

I started volunteering in the jail ministry about eight years ago.  It was the voice of the Holy Spirit that drew me.  I was seeking a word from God about what work/service I should be doing and He spoke to me one night telling me that jail ministry was where I needed to be.  That was a real shock and one I did not expect.  I followed that call, inquired about places to serve and was led to OJPM. OJPM gives me the opportunity to share the showering of blessings God gives me every day and speak of His faithfulness to those who trust in Him.  We can depend on Him to be there for us if we are in relationship with Him.  He is always there whether we are at a mountain peak or down in the valley.  Since the women I see are usually in a valley, I am given the opportunity to tell them about the love of Jesus, His sacrifice for us, the forgiveness of all of our sins by His death and resurrection and the hope we all have for eternal life if we trust and believe His Word.  On some occasions, I am also rewarded with and inmate’s testimony to me – telling me of her love for Jesus and what He has done in her life.  Instead of my ministering to her, her words minister to me and lift me up reminding me again of our great God.  The ministry continues to be a blessing to me.

This entry was posted on Friday, January 20th, 2012 at 4:54 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.