“If I pray to God, will He let me out of jail?”

Ortie was meeting with a young man who is incarcerated in the Juvenile Detention Center, showing up consistently, opening Scripture with him, and helping him see that his current circumstances do not have to define his future. 

That day, she shared Jeremiah 29:11 and showed him that God has a plan for him, even while he is incarcerated. She encouraged him to read the verse and insert his own name into it to personalize and internalize that truth. Then she brought out index cards and asked him to write, “God has a plan for [his name].”

“If I pray to God, will He let me out of jail?” the boy asked. Fair question. Ortie explained how God is good to everyone, incarcerated or not, and you can walk into the good plan of God even behind bars. 

As the young man got up to take the card to his room, he paused and asked a deeper question that many teenagers wrestle with: “But do you think God hears me?” It’s one thing to acknowledge the truth of an all-powerful Creator. But it’s quite another thing for that God to care about you personally. 

“Yes, God hears you,” Ortie reminded him. “But not only does he hear you, but you can learn to open your ears and hear Him, because God speaks to us too!” This was a pivotal moment. Ortie wanted the boy to know that God not only cared to hear his prayers, but that God wanted to speak into his life and future.

Now it was time for both of them to leave, but right before Ortie walked through the door, someone changed the channel on the TV in the room. And for just a brief moment, a voice was heard on the TV saying, “God is a father to the fatherless.” Ortie froze and called the young man back because she knew that this young man had lost both of his parents at a young age. He came around the corner, and having also heard the TV, the boy pointed to his ears and said, “I’m listening.”

Moments after being taught that God speaks, he heard a true word about God as Father. God was speaking to the deepest need of this boy, an answer to the question behind his questions. 

This is how we share the love of Christ with kids. Just like Ortie, we show it through consistency, patient listening, and loving encouragement from scripture. Through these Christ-sharing conversations, God helps kids take life-changing steps closer to trusting Him.

You can help kids know God as Father. Here’s how. Do you have an hour to give during lunchtime at a Campus Life site? How about joining with a few friends and mentoring a small group of kids living in a group home? 

Sign up to visit a ministry site with YFC. After checking it out, you can decide if you want to be cleared and trained as a volunteer. To see more, click here.

For Every Kid,

Jameson White

P.S. Golf and Run for youth at YFC’s great upcoming community events! See more on our events page and spur on the work of the gospel in this generation.