Crossroads Prison Ministries and London based New Life Prison Ministries have in essence the same mission and vision: to come alongside incarcerated women and men, helping them grow in faith through Bible correspondence courses with personalized replies.

The legal entity currently known as “Crossroads Prison Ministries Canada” will lay down its name and close its office in Burlington.  Following this, Crossroads Prison Ministries Canada will be wound up in due course.  Our operations will transfer to the offices of New Life Prison Ministries who will continue to operate out of their existing location in Arva, ON, north of London. Interested volunteers from Crossroads Canada will have the opportunity to transfer and serve under the New Life Prison Ministries banner in future. This transfer will not include any of our current branding or lesson material, which will remain under proprietary ownership by the US entity.

“This is a good news story. This exciting opportunity allows improved stewardship so that 100% of our donor resources will remain in Canada,” remarks René Kooistra, Chair of Crossroads Canada.

“Our coming together is a demonstration of the unity in the Body that the Lord Jesus prayed for,” comments Peter Bolton, Chair of New Life.

As New Life is committed to continuously serving the inmate population effectively, planning is in place to transition interested Crossroads mentors to becoming New Life instructors. Stay tuned for more information regarding this exciting venture.

Name of Press Contact: Martie van Niekerk
Phone: 289-861-1369
Email: info@cpministries.ca

In the last year, we served 2,852 prisoners seeking to learn more about Jesus in 100 prisons across Canada. We celebrated 1,262 graduates from our program. Even better: 1,080 new prisoners joined our program for the first time!

We also purchased and shipped 3,134 Bibles, and 5,155 Bible Manga Books.

But here’s the best part: we facilitated the exchange of 13,697 letters between prisoners and mentors in the past year. That averages to about 37 letters a day, 365 days a year. That’s 1-2 letters every hour, non, stop, for an entire year.

That’s a lot of growth for us. In fact, if this level of growth continues, we’ll reach 10-15% of the entire prison population in Canada in 2020.

That’s a pretty sensational year.

None of this would be possible without the work of our donors and our mentors. To God, we owe everything, but we wouldn’t have a ministry to be grateful for if it weren’t for the continued support of donors and mentors.

For that, we thank all of you.

We’re looking forward to an exciting 2020, but in the meantime, we want to thank God and give Him all the glory for our 2019. And thank you for coming alongside us on this mission, and doing the work of the Lord in prisons all over Canada.

Photo by Miguel Bruna on Unsplash

During the summit, each of the five countries were able to give praise for the work God is doing in their country, and we had specific opportunities to lift each other up in prayer. Cynthia Williams, Crossroads’ International Director, updated us on what’s happening globally with Crossroads.

These rare opportunities to connect with leaders from all over the world always remind me of how blessed we are to have such dedicated leaders. These leaders, in Canada and abroad, have a deep desire to see more students come to know Christ more fully through engagement in discipling relationships with more mentors, completing more lessons and inviting more prisoners to do the same.

This ministry has an abundance of leadership, for which I am grateful.

I was also extremely grateful for the opportunity to enjoy fellowship and prayer with other leaders as brothers and sisters in Christ. As we sat down during our meals, it was good to experience a glimpse of heaven: a place where different languages, cultures, and ethnic groups are able to come together as we serve our Lord and Saviour.

And for a brief moment, I remembered that heaven will also include all the prisoners the Lord saves along the way. Very often, it’s easy to think about the earthly ramifications of our goals as we focus on the restoring of prisoner’s lives and the redemption of their hearts, but let us remember that one day, each one of us will spend time in heaven with the students we mentor here on earth.

This ministry is not just about the immediate saving of prisoners, but about the eternal life and hope they have in Jesus. It’s about how, one day, we are all united as family. We will not be separated by prison walls. There will be no crime. We will be together in heaven praising our Lord and Saviour.

And what a glorious day that will be.

I recently visited with my son in Toronto, and joined him and his new wife at their church in the morning. Their church celebrated their five-year anniversary that morning, so their pastor spoke about birthdays and other similar milestones.

For his daughters’ birthdays, the pastor and his wife would give their children a word of encouragement (a blessing) and a challenge for their next year.

The blessing is an area where he and his wife have noticed growth in their children. It’s an area they can encourage their children in.

The challenge is an area where they feel there is room to grow. The challenge is not a scorn or a rebuke, but rather an encouragement to grow.

This summer, we also celebrated an anniversary. Our fiscal year came to a close. Crossroads Prison Ministries is now a year older, and with that, I wanted to take the opportunity to bless you and challenge you.

As somebody who is deeply involved in our ministry, our joys are your joys. This ministry couldn’t function without you. So every time we have something to celebrate, we have an occasion to celebrate together.

With that in mind, let me first say this: we have seen incredible transformations in our students this year. Every mentor is doing exceptional work, and every financial gift multiples many times over.

I recently got a note in the mail from Scott, one of our students. He told me his girlfriend wants to give her life to Jesus, and is ready to live a happier, more beautiful life in the presence of the Lord. She wanted to join him and take our courses, and she also wanted us to send her a Bible.

Every time a student’s heart is filled with the love of Christ, it becomes infectious. Because of that, our ministry is naturally growing in prisons. God is changing the hearts of prisoners all over our country, and Crossroads is a pivotal part of His plan for these men and women.

Over the past year, you’ve heard many other stories about our students. Their testimonies are all over our blog, newsletters, appeal letters, and monthly email updates. There is an outpouring of God’s love in prisons happening right now, and you and everybody involved with this ministry are directly responsible for that.

The hard work so many of you put into this ministry is paying off. For that, I bless you and thank God for you.

Let me also challenge you. We have more students than Crossroads Prison Ministries has had at any point in its history. Jesus is changing hearts and minds within prison walls, and He is working quickly.

Over the next year, I want us grow the ministry in equal measure outside the prison walls. I would love to see more mentors get involved, and more donors financially contributing.

You already do so much for this ministry. But let me challenge you to share the powerful work you are doing. Jesus says in Matthew 10:27, “What I whisper in your ear, shout from the housetops for all to hear!”

God is doing incredible work. You are doing incredible work. Without your incredible contributions, none of this would be possible.

This year, let’s spend more time sharing what God is doing with this ministry.

— Martie van Niekerk, President, Crossroads Prison Ministries Canada

Artwork by D, one of our students in Ontario.

Cody’s journey is astonishing: after his initial interaction with drugs, he dedicated his life to chasing the highs of addiction. By 16 years old, he was in jail. And that was when he joined a gang.

After his release, Cody moved up the criminal ladder and was eventually arrested for the murder of a rival gang member. He was placed in a maximum security prison.

But it wasn’t until after he left prison, built a cocaine empire, and became suicidal that he had an encounter with the living Jesus.

Cody saw 8-year-old Akiane Kramarik’s painting of Jesus and knew that he was staring at the living God. Five months later, in the middle of a suicide attempt, God intervened and spoke to Cody. And Cody knew he was loved.

From that moment on, Cody’s life was radically changed.

Today, Cody is an evangelist. His cocaine addiction disappeared overnight. He’s gone to Bible college. He spends his days witnessing, sharing the Good News, and encouraging people to develop their faith.

Cody Bates will be joining us at our Christmas fundraiser this year to share his powerful story of transformation.

When Cody met Jesus, everything changed. We hope his story impacts you the way that it impacted us.

Purchase your tickets to our Christmas fundraiser here.

We appreciate every dollar that we get, and an opportunity at $10,000 doesn’t come along very often.

We often say that a gift of $50, $100, or $250 will begin a prisoner on a life-changing journey with Jesus. So what can $10,000 do?

$10,000 can start 200 prisoners on a journey with Jesus.

Every dollar you donate is a chance for your donation to make a huge impact on not just Crossroads, but also in the lives of prisoners all over Canada. But this content only runs until June 30th, so don’t wait! Make a donation today.

In this contest, every dollar truly makes a difference.

Donate now.

Photo by Antonio Lainez on Unsplash