"I was in prison and you visited me."

Had you told me ten years ago that some of my most fulfilling moments would be spent behind razor wire, I would have said that you were out of your mind. However, for me that is now a truthful statement. Since October of 2001, I have found amazing joy and fulfillment, as a prison volunteer.

In Matthew 25:36, Jesus said, "I was in prison and you visited me." I had read that scripture many times without understanding what he meant, then I went "to prison" and his message in that verse became clear.

I remember the day I drove up to the gates of a minimum security Women's Camp at a Federal Prison in Florida to serve as a volunteer for the first time. My heart was pounding as this very official looking officer came out of the gate house to compare my face with the face on my driver's license. It was one month after the 9-11 attacks and the institution was on red alert. My car was examined thoroughly. A large mirror on a pole was even used to examine the undercarriage. It was all a little intimidating, but I and my car were deemed safe by the officer and allowed to pass through the gate. My journey into prison as a volunteer had begun.

That day I was part of a team of women conducting a Kairos 3 1/2 day weekend retreat which began on Thursday afternoon and ended on Sunday afternoon. I thought I was going there to bless the inmates, little did I know that I would be on the receiving end of one of the most amazing blessings of my entire life.

With some anxiety, I wondered how we would be received by these inmates that the seasoned volunteers called "ladies". I was clueless as to what to expect, but it certainly wasn't "ladies". We were met by a smiling, radiant group of inmates who were past graduates of the Kairos program. They were going to be part of our team serving their fellow inmates who would be attending Kairos for the first time. We called them our "Inside Angels" and believe me the name fit..................................(more tomorrow) Shalom, Bebe