prison ministry
At one of the prisons I minister in, the prisoners gave me the nickname "wild man". When the Spirit of God is moving in the worship services it gets intense. Whenever we "press in" and worship God with all our hearts an incredible anointing is released. I have learned that through prayer and fasting before we do prison ministry, we can open ourselves up to even more to the move of the Spirit. Something about our voluntary weakness makes Him even stronger.
You've probably heard the phrase, "when you've got nothing, you've got nothing to lose". The inmates typically aren't thinking about the mutual funds, their golf game, or which restaurant they are going to after the service. Most of the guys realize they are broken and in need of salvation. Whether we're behind bars or caught up in a comfortable life style in suburbia, beneath it all we are all broken and we need a savior. Our busy lifestyles and countless hours of recreation and entertainment can blind us to a bigger reality. I think that's one of the reasons Scripture tells us that it is difficult for the rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. When we operate out of our own strength, abilities and riches, we don't really think we need God.
One of the reasons I love doing prison ministry so much is that the inmates are already humble. I don't have to break through a lot of "pride" and "religous" spirits. It's just so easy to be real with them, because they are so desperate and open to us. I think it was a miracle and a divine appointment that I met my friend Mark and "fell into" going to prisons with him. I had no idea until 5 short years ago that prison ministry was my other area of gifting and calling (music being the first) God has blessed me good!!!!