Inmate Blueprint

BLUEPRINT FOR PRISON INMATES

A New Life

A. The Stepping Stones

  1. Accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior.
  2. Ask Him to forgive your sins.
  3. Ask Him to be the Lord of your life.
  4. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you and help you become like Jesus.
  5. Surrender your life and follow him.
  6. Read and study God’s Word, the Bible.

B. Get a Plan

  1. Get a list of transitional halfway houses/Christian homes.
  2. Have at least one place to go as soon as you are released.
  3. Choose faith, no fear.
  4. Let go of pride.
  5. Prisoners/inmates: follow the rules.

C. Family and Friends

Dismiss ALL old friends or family members who are a bad influence on you.

D. Establish New Relationships

  1. Find a good Bible-teaching church.
  2. Join a Bible study group and a prayer group.
  3. Participate in a support group for drug and alcohol addiction.
  4. Find an accountability and prayer partner.

E. Employment

  1. Look for job information in the newspapers and on the internet.
  2. Register at the unemployment office.
  3. Network among friends and in your church or other organizations.
  4. Embrace new skills – get your GED if you didn’t finish high school.
  5. Enroll in college or a trade school.
  6. Don’t give up; keep trying.
  7. Don’t let your pride stop you from asking for help.

F. Keep a journal/prayer partner notebook

Keep track of your thoughts and your failures and successes. This can be a vehicle that will help you look back and see that life was not all bad all the time… at least no as bas as you thought it was.

G. Facts about those who make it after they get out of jail or prison

  1. Parolees have others in their lives to help.
  2. They found a church, which gave them support.
  3. The support the church gave was both spiritual and financial.
  4. The help provided by the church was freely given and for as long as needed.
  5. Each person employed lots of self-discipline in turning himself/herself around.
  6. Each parolee exerted a lot of patience.
  7. It was not easy.

H. Facts about those who didn’t make it after they got out of jail/prison

  1. Parolees failed to avoid situations that would lead them into trouble.
  2. They had no job or trade.
  3. They were under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
  4. They had no one to talk to.
  5. They had no friends or family, no community support or encouragement.

I. Stinking thinking

  1. I must have a job at the top.
    • Be willing to start at the bottom and work to the top.
    • Follow orders to demonstrate a willingness to learn.
  2. I deserve the best.
    • Learn to think before buying anything.
    • Find someone to teach how to live on a budget.
    • Be disciplined and learn to live within a budget.
  3. Nobody’s going to tell me what to do.
    • Learn to accept advice and instructions.
    • Be self-disciplined as taught within the regimented prison atmosphere.
    • Go the extra mile.