September 5, 2008

Posted by Paula White - Fri, September 05, 2008 at 03:05 AM

One of Paula White Ministry’s missions close to my heart is ministering at prisons. I have found, over the years, that people who are incarcerated for doing a crime often hunger for the restoration they can find in the Word.

Last weekend I ministered at Gatesville Women’s Prison in Texas. When I meet women who are incarcerated, I am always struck by the fact that they are not that different from you or me. But at one point in their lives they made a bad decision, took a wrong turn, and now they must pay for their crime.

And yet, for those who seek comfort in the Lord, the time they spend has a purpose. If they haven’t known the Bible before, they can find spiritual sustenance in it. The Bible is where we find the promise of everlasting life and the gospel of our salvation.

Last weekend I was able to go into one of the prison dorms and minister one-on-one with a group of the women. When I walked into the dorm a group of five women were having Bible study—were they surprised to see me! I took some time to sit and talk for a while, then prayed with them.

When I minister in prisons, I often think in particular of Psalm 108, because no matter what their trials and tribulations, whatever their circumstances, prayer is their refuge—as it is ours:

My heart is steadfast, O God; I will sing and make music with all my soul. Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn. I will praise you, O LORD, among the nations;

I will sing of you among the peoples. For great is your love, higher than the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and let your glory be over all the earth . . .

Give us aid against the enemy, for the help of man is worthless. With God we will gain the victory, and he will trample down our enemies.

Even prison can be a place of restoration if you know the Lord.

And anyone, anyplace can give God glory, can appreciate the gifts HE has given us, because one of God’s greatest blessings is that he arms us with strength, as Psalm 18:32 says.

As I said to some of the women at Gatesville, faith doesn’t prevent life, it gets us through it. And those of us who know the Lord understand this very well. In the darkest times, God can shed light on our lives and help us triumph.

The subhead to my new book, Move On, Move Up, says it all: Turn Yesterday’s Trials into Today’s Triumphs. As I say in the book:

One of the things I have come to see clearly and with certainty is that God creates out of chaos. We often think that creativity happens when all things are in perfect order; however, the opposite is true. The entire cosmos was produced out of a watery, smothering, dark, chaotic nothingness. An empty wasteland.

No matter how chaotic your life may be, you are precisely in the right position for God to do a creative work!

God speaks His Word to you.
He sheds His light on your situation.
He gives you freedom to breathe in His inspiration and He sets your feet on the solid footing of His truth. He secures you during instability.
He establishes order and rhythm in your life.
He gives you opportunity to become fruitful and to fully embrace and become involved with all things that are for your benefit and fulfillment.
What a Creator!

From there, I was off to preach in Atlanta. The flight attendant recognized me, so I invited her to attend service—and she did! Ministering at New Birth just blew my mind—the congregation was so supportive of my message on how to stay in line and respect the office of the father of the house. I have always loved to minister and when I feel the anointing so clearly, as I did at New Birth, it reinforces how blessed I am to be living out God’s plan for me.

Please pray for the women at Gatesville and others who are incarcerated. And I hope you will give glory to God in all you do this week.

September 5, 2008

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