A Cry for Help from the Jail
In the midst of so many incarcerated men housed at the Forsyth County Detention Center, it is easy to forget the women who are there as well. One of the routines in serving at the jail is to gather request forms completed by inmates who ask for various things, but mainly the requests are for Bibles and reading material. Every now and then a request will be to speak with a chaplain. On this particular day, I noticed a request to speak to a chaplain and it was from a young woman who was in jail. I entered the women’s housing dorm to see who I will call Jamie in the multipurpose room, which is a room where inmates see various other personnel for various reasons, such as the nurse, barber or classification officer. In the multipurpose room I met Jamie for the first time. She was a little young lady around 22 years old who, right away, I could see was very distressed.
After a brief introduction, Jamie began to share how she felt her life had no purpose or meaning and that she did not want to return to the environment which was a large reason for her incarceration. As the Scriptures tell us, “Bad company ruins good morals” (1 Cor. 15:33). I spoke with her to encourage her in a walk with the Lord Jesus Christ, Who alone can give true purpose and meaning to life. I also prayed for her and gave her a Bible and some other reading material to begin her walk with the Lord. During a follow up meeting with Jamie, she had a spark of hope as she began a new journey with Christ and expressed how much she appreciated our time in helping her.
Jeff Carter, FJPM Chaplain
