WORKING FOR THE “LEAST OF THESE … ”

Anton Kapusi – Pueblo, Colorado … Jesus spoke of prisoners as those who appear to be the least of importance. Yet, he called them the kings, the Lord’s brothers, His flesh and blood. In the Parable of the Judgment (Matthew 25:31-46), he highlighted that visiting prisoners in prison and jail is like visiting the Lord and doing it to Him (Matthew 25:40).

Pueblo First Seventh-day Adventist Church has a long history of caring for and serving prisoners in the Pueblo County Jail and several state and county prisons in the Pueblo area. In 1996, the late Dean Higgins of Pueblo First Church started ministering to the prisoners. Several years later, Dave Walker, Anid Almeida, and Steve Schaffner joined the group of faithful prison ministry workers.

In 2015, Delbert Haidan joined the ministry and became the ministry leader. They ministered under the faithful, watchful, and helpful eyes of Pastor Ted Williams the Rocky Mountain Conference prison ministry coordinator. As a result of the work of the prison ministry team in a nearby prison, they each had served in the biweekly Bible study to about one hundred inmates. This resulted in twenty-four baptisms just before COVID-19 hit.

During the COVID pandemic, prisons were out of reach for all volunteer ministries due to state restrictions. As limitations lessened, the call to resume religious and Bible services grew. On April 22, Pueblo First Church organized a prison ministry training session with Pastor Williams for six new volunteers.

This two-hour training gave sufficient insight into the different aspects of prison ministry and introduced the RMC prison ministry’s official program entitled Christ-Centered Living. As Pastor Williams explained, this program has four parts: 1. Who is Jesus? 2. Who am I? 3. Who am I to Jesus? 4. Who is Jesus to me? This program is recognized by the Colorado Department of Correction (CDOC).

There are a lot of opportunities to serve. Pueblo First Church chose to serve without recognition as did those in the parable of Jesus, serving “the least of these.”

—Anton Kapusi is lead pastor of First Pueblo Seventh-day Adventist Church. Photo supplied.