DAVID'S pov
It started with a letter.
One evening, after a prayer session, I was sitting in the dimly lit chapel when an officer, Officer Kalu, brought me an envelope. The handwriting on the front was familiar—though it had been years since I'd seen it.
It was from Peter.
Inside, Peter wrote:
David, my brother in Christ,
I hope this letter finds you in good health and strength. It's been a few months since I left the walls of that place, but I have not forgotten the seeds we planted together. God has been doing mighty things here, just as He is in your life. You won't believe what's happening in the prison I'm visiting now. I've been going around from one prison to the next, sharing testimonies, spreading the Word of God. And David, it's like a wildfire. I met a brother from your prison, someone who was there when you gave your life to Christ.
I believe God is calling us to do more. We need to send letters, testimonies, and even care packages to inmates. We can't just let our experiences be confined to that prison. There are so many lost souls in the world—souls that can be saved through what we've gone through.
Let's work together. Reach out to those who are still behind bars. Even from the outside, we can be vessels of God's message.
Yours in Christ,
Peter
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As I finished reading the letter, a deep sense of purpose filled me. I folded it slowly, placing it carefully in my Bible. I had never expected to hear from Peter again, but God was calling us both to continue the work.
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The First Letter
I wrote my first letter to a nearby maximum-security prison. I didn't know if it would reach anyone or if it would be received well, but I poured my heart into it. I shared my story—the story of a man who was once a thief and a killer, lost in darkness, but now found by the grace of God. I spoke of the peace that Christ had given me, the hope I had found in His Word, and how, even in the darkest moments of my life, He had never left me.
A few weeks later, I received a response. It was from an inmate named Emeka. He wrote:
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David,
Your words reached me. I have been in this prison for five years, and every day feels like an eternity. I've never known peace. But reading your letter, I felt a flicker of hope. For the first time, I saw that there's more to life than this cage. Your story is my story only I haven't found the way out yet.
Can you help me? Can you show me the path to the peace you found?
Emeka
I knew, at that moment, that I had to do more. I couldn't stop at just one letter.
The Chain Reaction
I began writing more letters, sharing my testimony and sending them to prisons all over the country. Every time I wrote, I shared about the transformative power of Christ and how He was at work in my life. Slowly, but surely, the responses started pouring in.
Emeka wrote again, telling me how his cellmates were gathering to read the Bible and pray together. A few weeks later, I received another letter this one from Chuka, my old friend from the streets,before the day we went to kidnap the girl. He had been arrested months before and was now in prison. He had heard about the letters and wanted to know if I could help him too.
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David, I never thought I'd see the day when I'd be asking for help. But here I am. I've been in this place for 7 years, and for the first time, I don't feel lost. I've been reading your letters and asking God to show me the way out of this darkness. I want to change. But I need you, David. Please. Help me find the way out of this hell.
I sent Chuka a Bible and a letter of encouragement. In my response, I reminded him that his past didn't define him, that God could still redeem him no matter what he had done.
A Movement of Hope
The letters spread like wildfire. Soon, the officers began noticing a shift in the atmosphere. The prisoners were no longer fighting as much, and there was a growing sense of peace in the air. Those who were touched by the letters started gathering in groups to pray and study the Bible together.
A few months later, a group of inmates from another prison sent a letter to me. They called themselves "The Redeemed," and they were eager to begin their own prison ministry. They wanted to know how to start spreading the Word to other inmates and share their testimonies.
I was overwhelmed. What had started as a simple act of obedience had turned into a movement a revival spreading to prisons far beyond the one I had known. God was using us, even behind bars, to reach the lost and bring them to Christ.
A New Mission
With every letter I received, every story of redemption, I felt more strongly that God had called me to do something bigger. I began writing a newsletter—"Chains of Grace"—which I sent to prisons across the country. It was filled with testimonies from former inmates who had found Christ, stories of miraculous transformations, and scripture that encouraged those still behind bars to hold on to hope.
The inmates who received the newsletter started sharing it with others, and soon, prisoners from all over were writing to me, telling me how the letters had impacted their lives. They began praying for one another, encouraging each other to stand strong in their faith, and some even began preaching to their fellow inmates.
A Nationwide Revival
The letters kept coming. The ministry grew beyond what I had ever imagined. We had prayer groups in prisons, Bible studies, and even small chapel services led by inmates who had been transformed by the power of God. It was no longer just a few of us it was an entire movement of prisoners, once lost in darkness, now spreading the light of Christ.
And as I sat in my cell one evening, reflecting on how far the ministry had come, I realized something. This was never about me. It had never been about David, the man who had walked through darkness and into light. It had always been about Him the One who had set me free, the One who had called me to go into the world and make disciples.
And now, through letters and testimonies, I was doing just that.