Some thoughts after a Prison Visit

Scripture Verses that caught my attention today: Luke 12:57-59 “And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? 58 Thus, when you go with your accuser before a magistrate, on the way make an effort to settle the case, or you may be dragged before the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer throw you in prison. 59 I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny.”

Observation: There are different degrees of freedom.

Application: Periodically in my ministry I’ve had the opportunity to visit members who are/were in prison. I did so again recently. I always find it to be a very interesting experience—humbling at times, bewildering at others. I sit in the visiting room intrigued by the interactions that other inmates have with those who visit them. In some cases it just looks like normal conversation. Sometimes children are present and I wonder what that must be like. There are the love-birds as well, which is equally intriguing. Some have been there for years and will perhaps never get out.

For those who do not get to go home when visiting hours—or the work shifts—are over, there is another life-culture in which they engage. Humans always find ways to make-do with their situations, with the limitations placed upon them whether fairly or otherwise. And so some make peace with it and learn to be content. Others take the renegade route. In that sense it’s really no different outside the prison other than having much larger parameters within which to work and live.

Jesus had some interesting views of prison. In the passage above he makes it pretty clear that it is the kind of place that one would be well-advised to avoid. On the other hand, Jesus himself would later spend a night in prison before being taken to the outdoor execution chamber. In contrast to his own advice, he was not able to “settle the case” with his accusers. Elsewhere in Scripture (esp. Matthew 25) Jesus advocates visiting those who are in prison.

I sometimes wonder if the chief reason for visiting those in prison is not what meets the eye. Not to underestimate the value of companionship and displays of mercy and the like, but I wonder if one of the key reasons for visiting people in prison is to offer experiences of normalcy. Prison can be such a different world. I wonder if maybe that’s why it’s crucial for regular contact with people from the outside world. Maybe those ‘normal-looking’ conversations I sometimes see in the visitation room are exactly what help make for a healtier life. The prison bars are a constant reminder that one has presumably done something wrong. But the visits are at least an occasional reminder that one is still human and, by the Grace of God, potentially able to do at least something right—even if only from behind the bars.

Prayer: Lord, I’ve rambled a bit today and haven’t really addressed the verses above head on, but it still feels good to finally be back in devotion mode after the crazy schedule of the past few days. Be with those who are in prison and with those of us whose parameters are much larger but still well within your realm. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

(Scripture Readings today included: Zechariah 4-6 and Luke 12)