Jeremiah Prison Ministry Newsletter
JPM is an outreach of Martinsburg Christian Center, Martinsburg, WV
FEBRURAY 2016
Revs. Tom & Monica
OUR MISSION & VISION
Our Mission – to help men in
prison reach their fullest in the
Lord.
What we do – Ministering to their
spirit, soul and body, though one
on one mentoring as their spiritual
advisor and friend.
How we began – Jeremiah Prison
Ministry began on November 30,
1999, which was birth out of a
bond for a young man that made a
wrong choice in life.
Our Vision –It hasn’t changed but
security has and won’t allow us to
go into the Chapels. So we
continue to do one on one to God
Be The Glory!
92 men have been released in 16
years. We still are ministering to
58 inmates in 4 states.
Celebrated 16 years of Prison Ministry in 2015
I WAS IN PRISON AND YOU VISITED ME – MATT. 25:36B
We are serving Him by serving them! His mercy endures forever. Psalm 106:1
VOLUME 16, ISSUE 03
WE SURVIVED 36 IN OF SNOW JANUARY, FEBURARY ICY, SNOW….
Wow what a storm that came through, was enough for us for the year. We
had snow drifts as high as 4 feet. I did our deck twice it had about 8 inches
on it and thank God we have an awning over it, there was at least 30 inches
on it. I tried to get the snow off the cars and got nauseated and had to quit
half way through one car, I was wading through 3 feet of snow. Tom focused
on the carport and got very tired; I had to have him help me back in the
house. I said, “We’re done, we will wait for our help, I can’t do anymore.”
They came in the afternoon, did the driveway, cars, and around the sunroom
to the shed. Our snow removal budget is gone for this year already.
We were able to get to the prisons, which was totally awesome! Tom went to
the county prison the week after the snow storm but they were still digging
out and were closed. The county prison is near Fort Letterkenny.
Our ministry schedule is made for the year and naturally there are times we
have to adjust it, do to personal appointments and family.
Have we told you lately we love what we do! Thank you for sending us!
PRISON CHANGES FOR JUVENILE LIFERS
In a 6 to 3 decision the SCOTUS ruled in favor of Juvenile Lifers Without
Parole Retroactive Resentencing Case on January 25, 2016. If you go to our
website on our homepage you can read the whole article there.
It’s been a long wait for so many over 1000+ in the US. PA has 479+ juvenile
lifers and each case will be reviewed by merit, behavior, and substance of the
crime. It doesn’t mean all juvenile lifers will walk out the door and be given
parole.
The juvenile lifers we deal with (are now adult men) their intentions were
never to murder anyone but one second changed their life forever because
of poor judgement, ignorance and stupidity. They know now they are
accountable for their behavior and the crime.
As this moves forward the victims of the families that lost loved ones will
revisit the pain of the incident. No one is a winner its deep pain all around
and leaves deep scars with deep memories. Please pray for all the families
involved for peace and healing.
We thank you for your support and prayers for these sustain us!
Page 2
Keeping you informed
SCOTUS in a 6 -3 decision
rules in favor of
retroactive resentencing
on January 25, 2016.
Praise the Lord!
PRAYER CORNER
~Pray for Jeremiah & Val, Chris,
Harvey, Kevin, Mike, & Richard that
God continues to bless them
spiritually & financially.
~Pray for Larry, Ricky, Lewis, Corey,
Bob, Greg, Eric, Dan & Nathan to
receive favor for commutation, retrials
& parole.
~Pray for continued healing for Bob &
Larry. God is moving!
~Pray for Harvey’s complete
recovery.
~Pray for our granddaughter, Leah,
as she comes off meds. Leah
remains CANCER FREE! PTL
~Pray for Andy, our grandson finds a
better job. His heart is music.
~Pray for Dale our son-in-law, surgery
went well. PTL
~Pray for all our families- spiritually,
physically and financially.
~Pray for my brother, Norman
Pray for Tom’s mother, Virginia.
~Pray for the salvation of the world.
Pray for inmates and their families,
our Nation, our leaders, our military
and their families.
~Pray for prison reform in our nation.
~Pray for Bill our dear friend & his
wife Rose for good health.
~Pray for Dotty & her husband Stan
for good health.
~Pray for us for strength and wisdom
in all we do, that we remain cancer
free and healthy to do God’s work, for
our cars to be mechanically sound.
You are an Extended Hand and
a vital part of this ministry.
Together we are making a
difference with Jesus Christ,
taking life to a dark place! We
go because you send us.
Thank You so much!
We traveled 12,585 miles for the
ministry in 2015! Praise the Lord!
Jeremiah Prison Ministry
Revs. Tom & Monica Cohee
223 Cameo Dr.
Fayetteville, PA 17222
717-352-0080 (o) (f)
info@jeremiahprisonministry.com
We’re on the Web!
www.jeremiahprisonministry.com
Your Editor: Rev. Monica Cohee
PASTOR TOM’S PREACHING CORNER
THE POWER OF FORGIVENESS
Matthew 16:18-19 NKJV And I also say to you that you are Peter, and
on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not
prevail against it. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of
heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and
whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
Forgiveness is giving up the desire to see someone punished for the things they
did to you.
As we grow up in Christ we learn to let things go and trust in the Lord.
When you truly forgive, you give up the desire to see someone punished for the
things they’ve done to you. When you truly forgive, you pardon people and cancel
the debt they
owe against you.
Jesus said if you don’t forgive others for the things they’ve done to you, then your
heavenly Father won’t forgive you of the wrongs you’ve done.
Jesus said, “Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven. Whatever you
loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Whatever you hold against others on earth is held against you in heaven.
There are some prayers that God cannot answer…
Until you release people from the things they’ve done to you. Until you let go of the
bitterness. Until you let situations go.
Some think that if you forgive people that have hurt you it’s a sign of weakness.
It takes tremendous spiritual strength to forgive someone that doesn’t deserve it.
When you use the weapon of forgiveness your enemies will be defeated.
Jesus told us to pray for our enemies and put everything in God’s hands.
The Bible says to give no place to the devil.
When you hold on to unforgiveness, you are giving the enemy a place in your life.
Unforgiveness will cause you to fail faster than anything you can do.
There are some things…
Not worth hanging on to. Not worth losing sleep over.
Not worth losing your family over. Not worth going to hell over.
Don’t let the enemy trick you into being bitter or trying to get even.
Whatever you give out is exactly what you get back. Give and it shall be given back
to you.
Jesus said, “By the standard of measure you give to others, it will come back to
you.”
If you forgive a little bit, then you are forgiven a little bit. If you forgive a lot, then
you will be forgiven a lot.
The Bible says that unless you pursue peace with all men, you cannot walk in
holiness.
Without holiness you cannot see God. Holiness is about how you treat others.
No mountains will move until you forgive those who have come against you.
If you are continually obsessed with the things that people have done to you, then
you haven’t let it go.
Sometimes you need to face your past, so you can give it to the Lord.
When you truly let go of your past and forgive, God will bring a new joy into your
life.
When you release people from the things they have done, you will see mountains
move like never before. That’s the power in forgiveness.