The LOCK Ministry: Newsletter Issue 4

The LOCK Ministry: Newsletter Issue 4 (1/2021)

The LOCK Ministry / Potter’s Hands Prison Ministries

Blessings Through Covid-19

COVID-19 changed the world. Prison/jail ministries were no exception. Since March 14, 2020, all California prisons/jails banned inmate visitations. COVID-19 vaccines are finally available, and yet it is not clear when visitations will be allowed again. It is reported still that COVID-19 patients and death counts have been breaking records almost every day. Our ministry team has been meeting only through Zoom meetings and telephone conversations. Many inmates that we have been caring for were diagnosed positive with COVID-19 and suffered a great deal due to constant quarantines.

Not to mention the face-to-face visitations, all ministries administrated by external organizations including vocational training, college courses, GED preparation courses, and even Sunday worship services were halted.

There was, however, one ministry which has not been affected by COVID -19. It is the P1 PROJECT. The P1 PROJECT was launched in late 2019 to promote the Scripture to inmates. P1 stands for Psalm chapter 1 where the blessed man is described as the one who meditates on the Word of God day and night. We pay $1 for each chapter the participant writes. We add $40 as a starting bonus. P1 PROJECT is performed through the mail and has not been affected by the COVID-19 crisis. As a matter of fact, the P1 PROJECT flourished more as the COVID-19 became more prevalent. We have over 120 participants in the P1 PROJECT. They were able to devote more time for the P1 PROJECT since most of the other activities became dormant. This is a true blessing that the P1 PROJECT participants received during the COVID-19 period.

Inside this issue

Blessings through COVID-19....................1
LOVE Ministry.....................................................2
Jail/Prison Visitations....................................2
LEARN Ministry.................................................2
P1 PROJECT.........................................................2
Mt. Zion School of Theology....................4
LIVE Ministry.......................................................4
BAM Project........................................................4
The LOCK Community.................................4
The Potter's House..........................................6
GOGI Project........................................................6

LOVE Ministry - Love Of Christ’s Kingdom

Jail/Prison Visitations

There were no face-toface visitations to prison/jail inmates during the last 6 months. The only fellowship we had with them was through regular mail correspondence. We have, however, paid visits to the Theo Lacy Facility in the city of Orange. The purpose was not to visit inmates, but to distribute money to the P1 PROJECT participants. We use an on-line service called JPay to send money to the P1 PROJECT participants in California prisons. We need to either send money orders through the sheriff’s office or direct deposit to the participant’s accounts using the cashier’s window at jail facilities for Los Angeles County and Orange County jails.

In normal times, family members of jail inmates in the LA and Orange County jails were allowed to visit their loved ones 4 days a week. The lobbies of the jail facilities were always filled with families who were waiting for their turns to meet the inmates. But when we visited the jail facilities to deposit money for the P1 PROJECT participants, the lobby was completely empty except for one or two people who come to visit the casher window. We feel compassion for the family members who have been longing to see their loved ones for so long. We were told that some video visitations are now available in a limited fashion for prison inmates. We have been providing Bibles and devotional materials to inmates in need. We have sent out 90 copies of “Today” and 102 copies of “Living Life” over the last 6 months.

LEARN Ministry- Learn on Christ’s Kingdom

P1 PROJECT

The P1 PROJECT experienced tremendous growth during the last 6 months. We currently have over 120 participants from Norco Prison, Susanville Prison, Avenal Prison, San Diego Prison, Vacaville Prison, North Kern Prison, Pleasant Valley Prison, Corcoran Prison, Ironwood Prison, Calipatria Prison and LA, Orange County jails.

The P1 PROJECT instructions have been evolving also. In the early days, we allowed the participant to choose any book of the Bible. We also paid a starting bonus for all participants. Obviously there were a few who have not even finished one book after getting the $40 starting bonus. Many prefer the book of Psalms since there are many chapters in the book of Psalms which are 8 verses or less. The instructions have been revised to help the participants to improve their time with the Lord.

First, they need to stay in the New Testament until they finish all books from Matthew to Romans. Then, they are allowed to choose either to continue with the New Testament or go to the Old Testament. Second, the starting bonus of $40 was divided into two bonuses of $20. The first $20 will be paid when the participant finishes the book of Matthew, and another $20 will be paid after he finishes the book of Romans. Third, the participants are required to write reflections and applications (R&A) for every 10 chapters and when a book is completed. This is to avoid some people doing mechanical writings of the Scripture without any meditation on the Word.

Many were not trained initially in writing R&A, and some showed difficulties in adjusting. They now write their wonderful reflections from their meditations on the Word, and they apply what they learned to their daily lives. We received many heartfelt testimonies through their R&A exercises.

P1 PROJECT Volunteers

We have a P.O. Box at the Brea post office, and we pick up mail from P1 PROJECT participants three times a week (Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday). As the number of P1 PROJECT participants increased, so did the mail volume. We once received 42 pieces of P1 PROJECT related mail in one day. When we receive P1 PROJECT mail, we take a picture of the participant’s work to keep as a record (as shown in photo). We verify if the participant has done a good job and check for errors and omissions. They use many different Bible translations such as NKJV, NIV, ESV, KJV; their chosen translation needs to be clearly indicated on the first page of their P1 PROJECT. The New World Translation (Jehovah’s Witness Bible) is not allowed.

We read their R&A to understand the quality of their time with the Lord. The last piece of mail we read is the letter from the participant, in which they write about their daily lives in prison/ jails, their family situations and prayer requests. The next step is putting the money into their account based on their works. We use mostly the JPay for online money transfer, but sometimes we send money to their family members on their request. And then we start writing a response letter to the participant.

The response letter plays a very important role in building a long term relationship with the participants. We praise their works and also comfort and encourage them. Letter writing takes up a lot of time and effort. Recently four volunteer workers joined us to help write letters and build relationships with the participants. We would like to show our appreciation to Messrs. David Kim, Jonathan Lai, George Wiriadinata, and Nick Kang. They spend many hours of their valuable time to become friends and mentors to P1 PROJECT participants. Their dedication and prayer support are essential to the success of our P1 PROJECT.

California Rehabilitation Center (Norco Prison)

Norco Prison (California Rehabilitation Center) has the biggest number of P1 PROEJCT participants. The C.R.C. is a level 2 prison. The security level is relatively low and most of the inmates are housed in a dormitory setting. Each dorm has many bunk beds and can house dozens of people. The capacity of the C.R.C. is approx. 2,400 inmates, but it currently houses more than 4,200. It is our understanding that the C.R.C. experienced the most COVID-19 infections among 35 California prisons. A majority of P1 PROJECT participants at the C.R.C. were found COVID-19 positive and they went through many quarantine moves. Sometimes the delivery of P1 PROJECT correspondence was delayed due to frequent changes of the participants’ housing. Nevertheless, it has been reported that many dorms have been extremely quiet because many P1 PROJECT participants were busy doing the P1 PROJECT. There are only a few desks available in each dorm, which made many P1 PROJECT participants write the Scripture in their beds.

We pray that other California prisons may experience the P1 PROJECT surge as the C.R.C. did. Brother A is 31 years old, and has spent 10 years in incarceration. He has spent the golden years of his life being locked up because of seemingly small mistakes he made along with his friends. While he has been in prison, however, he was able to finish an associate degree, and his faith in the Lord grew significantly. He wrote a novella called “Come, Lord Jesus, Come”; he created the plot using the life of Christ in modern context. As he commenced the P1 PROJECT, he excelled in not only Scripture writings, but on the reflections and applications (R&A). We loved reading his R&A, and he did not fail us in inspiring many people with his true dependency in the Lord. He was released last month (earlier than expected), and he is now preparing to attend a regular university starting next semester. Brother D was also a notable P1 PROJECT participant. He not only did the P1 PROJECT more than most P1 PROJECT participants in the C.R.C., but he was also instrumental in spreading the P1 PROJECT within the C.R.C., which we believe led to the popularity of the P1 PROJECT at the C.R.C. He was released in the latter part of 2020, and has been adjusting to society by working and staying at the sober home.

Orange County Jails

For the last 6 months, the number of participants of the P1 PROJECT at Orange County jails has grown significantly. Brother J is the leading participant in the P1 PROJECT in all California prisons and jails. The Bible has 1,189 chapters and he has completed almost 1,100 chapters; he should be able to complete the Bible very soon. He has written over 1,300 pages as shown in the picture. He asked us to send the money from the P1 PROJECT to his daughter, and we have sent close to $1,100 as of today. Recently we have recommended Brother J’s three children to receive scholarships from the Korean Chamber of Commerce of Los Angeles. Brother J’s wife experienced a panic disorder and could not work. We have been praying for his early release as there was a report that Orange County may release up to 1,800 inmates early due to COVID-19. We believe Brother J is ready to join his family as he went through an extensive healing process thanks to the power of the Word of God.

Mt. Zion School of Theology

Mt. Zion School of Theology was to be open in Fall semester, 2020. We had to, however, postpone the opening of the school due to COVID-19. Now we have enough trained instructors to serve at the Mt. Zion School of Theology. We pray that the Mt. Zion School of Theology may be open to students in prisons and also at the church as well. We are certified by the Gateway Seminary in Ontario, CA.

LIVE Ministry - Live Out Christ’s Kingdom

BAM Project

Over 600,000 people are released from incarceration every year in America. The record shows that over 67% of them are arrested again within 3 years. There are 3 main reasons for this high recidivism. First is the lack of safe housing and decent jobs for returning prisoners. The second reason is failure to rehabilitate addictions. Recent statistics indicate that over 80% of incarcerated people suffer from addictions to illegal drugs, alcohol, and/or gambling. The third reason is a lack of mentors. When people out of incarceration have respectable mentors around them, their recidivism can be reduced drastically. We believe the church in general should be able to provide proper mentorship to them. The most critical need is providing decent job opportunities.

The purpose of the BAM (Business As Mission) Project is to provide vocational training and job opportunities for people returning to society out of incarceration. The custom embroidery and garment printing business does not require heavy investment, and can be operated in a home environment. We have selected the embroidery business as the first BAM Project. Recently, we have purchased a Ricoma MT-1502 embroidery machine. It has double heads. Each head has 15 needles and can handle 1,000 stiches per minute.

The BAM Project will be operated in conjunction with the P1 PROJECT. When a P1 PROJECT participant who has proved to be faithful in his work is released, we should be able to train and hire the individual without any further vetting process. We are able to verify the character, faithfulness, and obedience of the P1 PROJECT participant through their Scripture writings. The BAM Project in turn can be used as an incentive for the P1 PROJECT participants to be more passionate for the Word of God.

We have been praying for a space to operate the BAM Project, and God has provided the perfect place for us. It is flex space located in Brea, California. Flex space is different from regular office space, since we would be allowed to operate light manufacturing activity. It has 1,060 square feet of space and is divided into four separate office spaces. We can utilize the space not only to run the BAM Project but also to gather for ministry meetings and counseling meetings for people transitioning out of incarceration and their families. As the embroidery business becomes well established, we also plan to extend to the “Direct To Garment” printing business in the near future.

We will be moving into the new space on February 1, 2021. We expect the embroidery machine to arrive in the same week. We are targeting the provision of custom embroidery on caps, towels, and shirts. We should be able to attract customers from churches first, and later we plan to expand to the on-line sales. As we operate the embroidery business well, we should be able to become financially independent, becoming not only self sustaining but also adding income to the ministry. The most important objective, however, of the BAM Project is to provide ample opportunities of vocational training and job opportunity for people coming out of incarceration. With the P1 PROJECT and the BAM Project working together, we should be able to provide another good reason to stay out of trouble for the people coming out of incarceration.

The LOCK Community

The LOCK Community is made up of people we care for and with whom we have fellowship regularly. Most of them are out of incarceration or getting out of addictions. There are 17 people in the LOCK Community at this time. We share the encouraging Word of God every morning. There are 6 people in the LOCK Community who have been contributing financially toward our ministry.

Brother S was at the Los Angeles County jail and was released in July 2020. He initially had a difficult time in adjusting to the society, but he is getting settled down slowly and steadily. He is now playing an important role in our ministry as an encouraging force to us and also as a new member of the Lock Community. He resells used furniture and enjoys his reconciliation with his family.

Brother J had experiences in jails, and some addictions as well. He, however, successfully freed himself from all bad habits and now attends a Bible college. He has donated 10% of his income to our ministry last year. He has been a model case for many people under the influence of bad habits and the wrong crowd. He has been a true encouragement and reward to our ministry.

Brother D has been engaged in a delivery business. He has been sober more than one and a half years now. He showed a consistent faithfulness to God and to others around him. He became a contributing member and also his family joined as a contributor after witnessing his changed life.

Brother R and brother H have been involved in a construction and trucking business. They have become trustworthy contributing members showing great examples of how the new life in Christ can be changed. We pray that someday the LOCK Community may become the biggest contributing group for The LOCK Ministry.

The Potter’s House

We have been preparing the opening of the Potter’s House from day one of our ministry launch. God, however, opened the BAM Project first. Provision of the job opportunities may be more crucial than the need for housings for the people just out of incarceration. We will concentrate our effort and energy into the BAM Project for now and will watch how God may prepare the door for the Potter’s House. We trust that God may provide the best timing and best facility for the Potter’s House.

GOGI Project

Brother D was released from the Norco Prison (C.R.C.) in August 2020 after performing the P1 PROJECT exemplarily well. He told us that he received two special blessings when he was getting released from the prison. The first one is the P1 PROJECT. The second is GOGI. GOGI stands for “Getting Out by Going In.” While Coach Taylor was a psychology student in college, she started visiting San Quentin Prison in Northern California. She learned that some inmates enjoyed freedom more than she did even though they were incarcerated. While meeting many inmates and practicing certain principles together, she came up with 12 basic techniques anyone can practice to become truly free no matter what circumstances they might be in. These 12 simple and easy to learn techniques can be applied to any one who is willing to experience true freedom. We have talked with Coach Taylor and agreed to translate her books into Korean. We have been overloaded with the P1 PROJECT, but we are praying that we my finish the Korean version of GOGI books by the end of 2021.

Prayer Requests

1. We pray for the successful launch of the BAM Project and sufficient customer base to support the BAM Project.

2. We pray that the P1 PROJECT may touch many souls in incarceration to redirect the course of their lives to a new beginning.

3. We pray for the expansion of the LOCK Community and that we may witness many changed lives.

4. We pray for the timely launch of the Mt. Zion School of Theology.

5. We pray that the GOGI-Korean version may be published soon.