Staff and Students Reach Out at La Vista Women’s Prison

Angel Rodriguez Sturgill, our Prison Ministry Lead here at the Ministry, also helps co-lead a prison ministry program at La Vista Correctional Women’s Prison in Pueblo, Colorado. On Saturday, December 20^th, Angel was joined by numerous staff members and students as they hosted a very special Christmas Party for the inmates!

After serving there for her service hours last year in Year 3 Ministry school, Angel is now the lead over Fulfill Your Destiny ministry at La Vista Women’s Prison in her free time. Every Wednesday, she is joined by two other ministry leads and Leadership School graduates as they lead Bible studies for the inmates. Through a series of God-orchestrated events, the Holy Spirit nudged her to ask the prison if they could hold a Christmas event for the inmates. It was approved, and Angel shares that she was excited, but had no idea what the event would look like.

The next day, she ran into a current Ministry School student she knows and asked if he would be willing to bring his guitar and play a song at the Christmas event. He agreed, and she then ran into another friend, who then talked to Candice Owen. Within only hours, Candice reached out and asked if she and Matt could bring their creative team to perform. Very quickly, dozens of volunteers were completing background checks, and a team of 35 staff and students was formed!

On the day of the event, seven volunteers from Charis Worship, two from AVL, and 18 with the Owens outreach team joined together at La Vista with excitement in the air. The event flowed so smoothly, with each team just doing what they do best. Angel testifies that it was amazing to watch it all play out before her. The worship team had a 30-minute set, a Ministry School student shared a 10-minute testimony, Melissa Vasquez delivered her 26-minute performance from Women Arise, and the Outreach team presented a 48-minute condensed version of The Heart of Christmas. The gymnasium was packed with 159 inmates and several prison staff. The Holy Spirit had so much more planned than any of them could come up with on their own!

Although she didn’t know ahead of time what songs would be sung or performances would be showcased, Angel’s closing message, guided by the Holy Spirit, was the perfect endcap for the event. Using Matthew 16:15, she encouraged the ladies to ask God who He is and who He says they are. Angel wrapped her message with an altar call, and 154 of the 159 inmates stood to receive Salvation and the Baptism of the Holy Spirit! Encouraging them in their next steps to understand who they are in Jesus, each of them flocked to receive a copy of Andrew’s book, The New You and the Holy Spirit. Even some of the guards and prison staff took books, and a total of 170 copies were distributed, thanks to the generosity of Andrew and Jamie. We believe it will help them greatly as they begin their walk with the Lord.

Angel shares that it was awesome to hear God’s direction, step out in obedience, and see a result that was exponentially greater than any of them could have imagined. It was the greatest gift and the biggest blessing to be a part of it. It was amazing to watch the people she saw every week come to Bible studies, and to observe their faces at the Christmas event from the moment they walked in, during worship, during performances, and during the message. They were laughing, crying, singing, and getting up to cheer. It was like a concert! She shares that she has never seen this much positive response from people in prison. It was amazing to watch them come to life for the first time as, bit by bit, their hearts began to open. Different elements of the event touched different people, and she believes that’s why God organized it the way He did.

As soon as they left, the volunteer coordinator at the prison gave our team an open invitation to return. They were so impressed with how we did the event and shared that it had never been like this with anyone else. He also offered to help get our teams into even more prisons!

Our team of volunteers was also so moved by the event and can’t wait until the next opportunity. It was a beautiful time of watching God work and being a part of it.

Angel shares that the event couldn’t have gone any better – it was truly awesome! “I got to watch it all play out in front of me, just as God showed me,” she shares. She extends her heartfelt thanks to all our staff and students who volunteered their time to reach out to these women. Thank you for being obedient to the call of God to be a part of this outreach opportunity – it wouldn’t have happened without you!

Enjoy the pictures below from this special event!