How going to prison for against the law I didn’t commit modified my life – for the higher

When I walk right into a prison now, it’s by alternative — and by calling. I’m the founder and Executive Director of Prison Outreach Support Zimbabwe, also generally known as Prison Fellowship Zimbabwe, and my team and I lead programmes which are transforming the lives of prisoners and their families across our country. But over a decade ago, I walked into prison as an inmate — convicted of against the law I didn’t commit.

In 2005, I used to be studying at Bible college and leading the kids’s ministry at my local church. I loved it. But my relationship with one other staff member became difficult. I received more financial support than they did, and that caused resentment and jealousy. They became determined to disqualify me from ministry and take away me from the church. They created a lie and accused me of against the law I didn’t commit.  

The police got here to my college and arrested me in front of all the opposite students, a deeply humiliating and frightening experience. They questioned me and took an announcement, but I had no idea tips on how to defend myself. This was the primary time something like this had happened to me.

The trial process dragged on for 3 years, but thankfully, I used to be granted bail and capable of proceed my studies while waiting for the final result. I graduated from college on 3 April 2008. The very next day I used to be convicted and sent to prison.

It was like I graduated for prison.

I served six months in prison. I knew I used to be innocent, and I held onto God during this time. In the midst of the confusion and hardship, I used to be so convinced that God have to be doing something positive in my life.

Some of my college tutors prayed for me while I used to be in prison, and it was then that I met Prison Fellowship Zimbabwe and steadily began to see, and, experience for myself, the impact of their life-changing work.

At that point, the work was led by Peter Mandianike. He preached to us, and I started to become involved and help out. We taught other prisoners the principles of the Bible, tips on how to understand it and tips on how to apply it to their lives.

I used to be so lively within the group that a number of the prison officers began to say, “I do not think you might be here for no reason. I believe God is attempting to send you a message.” And that is after I began to know that God could also be calling me to work in prisons.  

After six months behind bars, my appeal was successful. I used to be exonerated and freed.

Since then, I’ve given my life to prison ministry. Today, we run Prison Fellowship International programmes resembling The Prisoner’s Journey, reaching prisoners in greater than 30 prisons, and PromisePath serving the families of nearly 400 children of prisoners. We also train volunteers, partner with churches and advocate for justice and restoration nationally.

For me, this isn’t only a job. It’s personal. I’ve seen God’s power to bring purpose out of pain. 

One story I’ll always remember is of dual girls I met after they were just six years old. As their father was in prison, we enrolled them into PromisePath and provided them with school fees, mentorship and reference to a neighborhood church. Now, they’re thriving. One of them is studying urban science at university and the opposite is at technical college studying food science.

That’s what restoration looks like. It’s why I do what I do.

We still face challenges — government policies shift, resources are limited  and provinces operate otherwise. But we keep going because we’ve seen what’s possible.

Not way back, children in Zimbabwe weren’t allowed to go to their incarcerated parents. But through our advocacy, the federal government introduced “Prison Family Week,” a probability for families to come back together, perhaps for the primary time in years, to speak and rebuild their relationships. It is changing lives.

For me, being a prisoner modified how I see the Bible, too. I now realise that the Bible is a book about prisoners and their release. It’s the story of God reaching out to revive individuals who have sinned, who’re broken and who’ve lost their way. Jesus himself was arrested. He was tried, mocked and imprisoned. He died a criminal’s death. 

Going to prison broke me. But it also built me as much as be the person I’m now. And by God’s grace, it’s constructing others too.

Wilson Femayi is Executive Director of the Prison Fellowship Zimbabwe. To learn more about Prison Fellowship International’s global network of National Ministries, like Prison Fellowship Zimbabwe, and the programs they run internationally, like The Prisoner’s Journey and PromisePath, visit: https://pfi.org/.