How I Became Involved in Prison Ministry
by Todd Layton
I never imagined that I would ever end up doing prison ministry as a young man – perhaps in prison but never prison ministry. Actually, I never really imagined myself being involved in any kind of ministry or the church. I didn’t truly become a Christian until I was an adult. After becoming a Christian, I believed that we are all called into Christian service in one form or the other. As someone who had experienced serious illness in my life, I naturally gravitated to that ministry. While living in Charlotte, NC, I was involved in working with the very sick and their families. After several years of doing that, I moved to Georgia where I also became involved in working with the sick. But soon after arriving, I began to believe that God wanted me to do something else. I really wasn’t sure what. I had a friend tell me about a prison ministry program and he invited me to participate. I went and never really had intention of becoming deeply involved. It seems like a Godly ministry and also a “manly” ministry but I didn’t know if it was my ministry. As a matter of fact, even after being involved in prison ministry for a few weeks, I wasn’t totally certain. That is, until an incarcerated young man put his hand on my shoulder and thanked me for coming to tell him about Jesus. Then I was certain – how could I not go when the needs were so great? What excuse did I have that would cause me to not go tell others about Jesus?
Todd Layton may be contacted at Todd.Layton(at)Eclipsys.com
Read the Prison Ministry F.A.Q. here