In April 2021, the provincial prison in our Asian country moved into a new facility. We have served in the prison since 2003, but this new facility caused our staff much stress as it was double the distance to travel. One staff person, an older woman, found riding her moto to the prison daily caused her body aches from the bumpy road, headaches from the heavy helmet, breathing troubles from road construction dust, and danger from the fast-moving trucks.

However, it was never really a question of continuing our programme or not. Our staff are eager to show the love of God to the prisoners, who often feel that no one loves, remembers, or cares for them. Prisoners cry out: “Who will show us some good?” We are the hands and feet that the Lord uses to answer their prayer of: “Lift up the light of your face upon us, O Lord!” (Ps. 4:6) We assist the medical clinic at the prison, and MMN has been supplying the medication since 2021.

We also teach a class on Biblical relationship skills called Peace Builders. When we deliver our quarterly report to the provincial government office, one official there continually asks why we do the prison work. To him, prisoners are people that will never change. But we think God, who sends sun and rain on the good and the evil, can change anyone.

Inmates face many barriers to good health. The prison was built for 1,000 prisoners and now houses 1,400: cramped rooms make it easy to get sick from each other. Due to the overcrowding and the need to take shifts guarding during the night (against suicide or escape), inmates do not get enough sleep. Many do not have family to visit and bring them money, so they cannot afford to buy medicine and extra food (above the two meals a day). In addition, our country is just implementing a tax system, but the prison officials do not yet have enough government funds to buy sufficient medicine. Even so, prison officials try their best to care for the prisoners. The head of the health department is eager to cooperate with us, and his deputy is a believer. Together they seek out extra medication and equipment from the local health centres and from the district health office. However, it is just not enough.

Last December, a Peace Builder student in his thirties developed a boil on his arm. At that time, he asked his roommate to help open the boil and squeeze out all the pus, but because the inmates cannot wash their hands sufficiently, the arm got more infected. He asked for medicine from roommates, but received only three paracetamol. The prisoner did not want to go the medical clinic because he was hungry to learn at our class

during the same hours. One day during class, we saw that his arm was worsening. It was red and swollen with visible pus inside. So right away, even though it was class time, we took him to the medical clinic. He received cloxa, amoxicillin, and paradol, which he took for five days. He recovered! He is very happy and thanked us many times. Now, in Peace Builders, he has the chance to hear more of the God that healed him.

During the past couple of years, the prison has asked us to address two other problems affecting health. We were able to assist the prison by installing a water filter, since the wastewater was seeping into the well. Then there was a major campaign against scabies, treating the entire prison twice! The scabies is not completely gone, but the inmate’s health has greatly improved. Now the prison health officials are on alert to scabies and treat them promptly. MMN’s gifts purchased the scabies soap and the ivermectin for the scabies treatment.

James 2:15-17 says: “If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,’ yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?” As we have the two programmes at the prison, inmates have a chance to have both their body and their soul cared for. Every prisoner knows that Christians saved them from the scabies scourge, which affected nearly everyone. Every prisoner has experienced God’s love. Pray with us that this love bears its fruit.

(Pictured healing from scabies)