Sister series: for my sisters in prison

Weekly, I have the absolute honor to sit knee to knee with women who are currently incarcerated. Our small group of 20-40 women all come together to read scripture, ask tough questions, and listen to each other’s stories.

For three consecutive years, I wrote a poem inspired by women in my life. Last year, after grieving the loss of one of my dear friends, I paused. But as I was thinking of my lovely sisters that are behind bars, I thought I’d share this poem with them. And with their permission, I share it with you.

For my sisters in prison

Liberated, 
in her mind but not her body; 
society may remember her past sins
but the Lord thinks of them no more. 

She’s generous, giving away her
prized possessions of Little Debbie snacks. 
“A sister will never go in need here”, they tell me. 

She’s you and she’s me–stumbled in the past
but the past is not her present. She 
may be serving time, but she’s also serving grace. 

I’ve never seen such sisterly love. Such sisterly
support. She stands in the gap and prays for 
her sisters. She writes prayers for others on an 
index card because she speaks directly to God for 
her needs. 

She studies scripture intently, and lights up the 
room with her bright smile. She proudly shows
her scars, to show how God has been faithful 
though the pain, though He was not the one 
that caused it. 

She asks questions I don’t know how to answer
and humbles me with how much scripture she knows. 
As the prison walls went up, she let the walls of her 
heart come down. 

She knows her time here is not wasted, and 
she doesn’t waste her time. For she knows
today is only a sliver of space in contrast 
to the vastness of eternity.

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Photos in prison are tricky (read: illegal in most cases 😅). So the photo above is snagged from the WAV Life Stories series, which I recommend checking out, esp if you’ve never heard stories of those behind bars who are pursuing healing. <3