Testimonies from PAL

“The Lord hears the needy and does not despise his own people who are prisoners. Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and everything that moves in them.” – Psalm 69:33-34

If there is one thing I have learned while I have been in PAL, it is the oneness that I have in Christ! I was taught to live in the reality of my second birth (my spiritual birth) instead of my first birth (my flesh birth). I have learned that I have a choice: I can believe what I see and feel, or, I can believe what God tells me. I really can’t express in words the freedom that I now have in Christ! - Irene, PAL Graduate

Before coming to prison, I never felt like I was forgiven of my past sins, much less those present and future sins. I was saved when I was twelve years old, but I was never obedient or submissive to the Lord. I was told that if I had really been saved, I would not have strayed, but something in my heart told me differently. However, I kept on living like I wanted, and never realized what God’s plan of salvation had given me; therefore, I did not feel God’s forgiveness.

I arrived at the McPherson Unit and the PAL program with a 10-year sentence for a negligent homicide conviction. I really felt like God could never forgive me for this. But God loved me so much that I was able to come to prison to learn that the salvation I had accepted when I was a child was not dependent upon anything I had not done or ever could do. I experienced a breath-taking freedom (in prison!) when I realized that Jesus Christ had already done on the cross of Calvary everything that would ever need to be done for my eternal life. - Pamela, PAL Graduate

I served a little over two years at the McPherson Unit. While there I attended the PAL program for eight weeks in which the Lord deeply worked in my life. Since being released from prison I graduated with a degree in Journalism, African-American Studies with a minor in Social Work. The university picked me to be in “Who’s Who in American Colleges.” I have also just been accepted into law school at Oklahoma Christian University School of Law and offered a large yearly scholarship. Without the PAL training, I would not have had these opportunities. - Michelle, PAL Graduate