With so many men and women in our prisons wanting to be free from the life of crime in which they feel trapped, there are enormous opportunities for the gospel. And, of course, there are many pastoral needs, too, not only amongst those serving a prison sentence but also within their families.
Those who wish to pray daily through the month may like to follow the monthly plan below and perhaps also pray specifically for one or two prisons.
| 448 | 1st | for those in custody for the first time and frightened, that staff will show compassion and help them to feel safe. |
| 449 | 2nd | for vulnerable women due for release in the coming weeks, that effective support will be put in place for them. |
| 450 | 3rd | for sex offenders, many of whom are overwhelmed with guilt, that they might come to recognise that they are not beyond God’s forgiveness. |
| 451 | 4th | for those who are desperately lonely, without any contact from outside and feeling isolated within the prison. Pray that chaplains, officers and other inmates would make time for them. |
| 452 | 5th | for those who are at the start of a life, or very lengthy, sentence, that they will cry out to God and find strength, through faith in Jesus, to sustain them through their time in prison. |
| 453 | 6th | for those desperate to be free from drug and alcohol addictions, that they will receive appropriate support both in prison and on release, especially through ‘rehabs’. |
| 454 | 7th | for the men and women grieving the loss of custody of their children – and probably feeling guilty for failing them – that they might turn to God for comfort. Pray for the children. |
| 455 | 8th | for all officers who are recovering from an assault. Pray for their physical and emotional healing. |
| 456 | 9th | for the protection of officers who regularly encounter outbreaks of violence on their landings. |
| 457 | 10th | give thanks to God for the healthcare staff. Pray that the Lord will sustain them with all the demands upon them. Pray especially for the Christians, that they might display Christ’s love to those in their care and to their colleagues. |
| 458 | 11th | for the men and women recently released and now in a rehab, that they will commit to the regime and gain freedom from their addiction. |
| 459 | 12th | for the men and women recently released to an Approved Premises (probation hostel), that it will be a positive step to their full reintegration into society. Pray for the staff as they support the residents in what can be a difficult environment. Pray for their protection. |
| 460 | 13th | for the Lord’s help to volunteers engaged in letter writing, that their letters will bring comfort and encouragement to the men and women to whom they write. |
| 461 | 14th | for families grieving the death of a family member while in custody. Pray that they might seek, and find comfort, from the God of all comfort. |
| 462 | 15th | for chaplains and volunteers who lead Bible Study groups. Pray that believers might grow in their faith and unbelievers might commit their lives to Christ. |
| 463 | 16th | for those overcome with guilt and shame for their crimes, that they might turn to Christ and know that they are forgiven and cleansed by His sacrificial death. |
| 464 | 17th | for the chaplains and pastors in the several African countries following the recent delivery of further quantities of BeaconLight books for their prisons. Pray for them as they lead groups and work with individuals. |
| 465 | 18th | for partners, grandparents and others caring for children in the absence of parents in prison. |
| 466 | 19th | for all believers who are witnessing to Christ, that the Lord will grant them wisdom and boldness. |
| 467 | 20th | for those who have come to faith while in prison: give thanks to God and pray that they will grow in their faith with support from other Christians. |
| 468 | 21st | for the prisons who are using BeaconLight’s Study Guide to Making Sense of Forgiveness. Pray for those who are struggling to forgive others who will undertake the studies over the coming weeks. |
| 469 | 22nd | for believers who have ‘backslidden’, that there will be those who will affirm afresh their commitment to Jesus and restore fellowship with Him. |
| 470 | 23rd | that God’s Word will be faithfully proclaimed in chapel services today and that the Holy Spirit will cause many to repent of their sin. |
| 471 | 24th | for the Lord’s wisdom for chaplains as they provide pastoral support to the residents and to staff too, especially those who are deeply troubled, e.g., by anxiety, guilt, shame and grief. |
| 472 | 25th | for believers with a strong faith, that the Lord will sustain them and use them to encourage other Christians and as a witness to other residents and to staff. |
| 473 | 26th | for those who spend extended periods in segregation because they are a threat to others. Pray for healing of the causes of their aggressive and threatening behaviour. Pray that, in their isolation, they might cry out to the Lord. |
| 474 | 27th | for the men and women who once followed Christ, that, now in prison, they will turn back to God, experience His welcoming embrace and become firmly rooted in His love. |
| 475 | 28th | that the Lord will use for His glory the biographies which BeaconLight is currently distributing. Pray that many men and women will turn to Him, repent of their sin and will themselves begin a new life in Christ. |
| 476 | 29th | for recent victims of violent crime, that they will find the support they need to help their physical and emotional healing. Pray, too, for their families and friends as they give time to support them. |
| 477 | 30th | for those feeling the shame of a crime committed by a family member and consider themselves victims (and perhaps ostracised in their community). Pray that they will find support from Christians and be enabled to forgive their family member. |
| 478 | 31st | for victims, and families of victims, who cannot forgive, that they would be enabled to put aside their anger and their bitterness and move on with their life. |