Remember Childen of Prison Inmates This Christmas

Last Sunday, my church had an “Angel Tree” outside the sanctuary. Hanging from it were cards, each representing a child with a parent was serving time in a prison. While we were asked to take a child’s card from the tree and purchase a gift for the child, the child would never know our participation. This was because the gift was to be tagged so that from the child’s point of view, the gift came from their incarcerated parent. The card gave the child’s name, age, gender, clothes sizes, and a gift suggestion. The guidance was to spend $20 or less.

I had never done this kind of thing before, and I felt led to do something special for a child who might not get anything for Christmas. I also felt, that no matter what the parent may have done, the child should get at least something from their parent.

My “angel” was a 12-year old girl who wanted a portable CD-player. I ran by Walmart and picked up a CD player that also had an FM radio. (It came with headphones, too.) I felt like the radio might would come in handy, not knowing how many CDs the child owned. It was just under $20 before tax. I noticed it did not come with the 2 AA batteries required. I decided to “splurge” on a 10-pack of AA batteries to go with it. I blew the $$ limit I guess.

God, tonight I offer a prayer for the innocent children separated from a parent because the parent is in prison. I know that when any of us does something against the law, we must suffer the consequences. Some of those suffering the consequences have children and their children suffer from the separation too. It saddens my heart God because these children don’t deserve what life has dealt them. So I ask Your special blessing on those innocent children. Make them resilient and provide for their physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. Work in the lives of people like me who can spare a few dollars and make a difference in a child's life. Show the children how to succeed in life and how not to follow in their parent’s footsteps to prison. Grow them up into productive citizens. Send the Holy Spirit to work in their life. Draw them close to You and bring them to a saving knowledge of Your Son Jesus. Be also with the parents in prison. Work in their lives also and draw them close to Yourself. Use their time in prison to mold them into the kind of person You need them to be. Where there is pain and broken relationships in their young lives, I pray You bring healing and reconciliation. Amen.