Mission & Ministry: Criminal Justice & Mercy Ministries

“I was in prison, and you visited me.” (Matt 25:37)

These are words that Criminal Justice & Mercy Ministries takes to heart. With Oklahoma being the state with the highest incarceration rate in the world, we feel our time is now to step up and do something.

The mission of CJAMM is to break generational cycles of prison, addiction, and criminogenic behavior by nurturing healthy Christian relationships with prison inmates and their families, targeting specific reentry needs, providing care for the children of incarcerated parents, and advocacy. CJAMM volunteers serve in almost every prison in the state of Oklahoma.

CJAMM helps former inmates find employment and housing, reunify families, and support them with transportation and other needs. We do this through our New Day Camp, Exodus House, and Redemption Missions ministries.

The focus of CJAMM in the year to come is to educate not only our districts but our individual churches as well. We are getting people out of the walls of prison, and with your help, giving them the opportunity to see that they are forgiven and accepted by not only God but also by his disciples. We will be traveling to each district to educate churches on how to make disciples of people coming out of prison and their families. Our programs are thriving with a 1.7% recidivism rate meaning 98.3 % of our graduates do not return to prison.

To learn more or find out how you can get involved, call 800-231-4166 or email Executive Director Kristen Harlin at kharlin@okumc.org.