Missionaries of Grace Ministries

Dedicated to Helping Change Lives

by Providing Spiritual and Personal Development, Inspiration, and Healing
In the Hearts of Incarcerated Women & Men Across America

A Message From Our Founder/Director

To imprison a woman is to remove her voice from the world, but many women have been
silenced long before the transport van carries them from the courthouse to the correctional
facility. The statistics are alarming: seventy percent of incarcerated women have been victims of
incest and sexual abuse. Some have landed in prison for single acts of violence committed after
yearslifetimes, in many casesof horrific and predatory abuses. Others were incarcerated for
having numbed the pain and become addicted in the process.
My personal experience in prison was life-changing. I was told when to rise, what to wear,
when to shower, when I could use the restroom, when to eat, when to use the telephone, and when
to go to bed. I might share an 8 X 10 cell with someone who was violent, vindictive, or mentally
unstable. But, when I looked past the violence, degradation and mental instability what I saw
underneath the misery was some of the most compassionate acts of kindness. My cell could be
searched by officers at any time for an unstated reason, my personal belongings dumped onto the
floor or seized. My mail could be read, censored, or confiscated. An institutional lock down
could abort my classes, my workday, or a planned visit with my family. If the visit goes on as
planned, my interactions with my family was monitored by corrections officers and surveillance
camera. After my visitors left, I was obliged to a strip search, during which my vaginal and anal
cavities might be examined for contraband. There are justifiable reasons for all the above. A
maximum-security prison must be safe guarded for the good inmates, staff, and general public.
And yes, its true I was blessed with religious services, some educational and vocational
opportunities and a library. But, the fact is it is not fun to be in prison, and the person who
likens it to a country club is either ignorant or cynical.
Prisoners, like everyone else on this earth, are in the process of changing. They are in the
process of becoming more wounded or growing, learning and healing both spiritually and
personally. When we look beyond our pre-judgments and see the potential for growth and healing
in others, we have to let go of our static images and assume a more responsible attitude to the way
we treat that person or group. Seeing prisoners as people-in-process challenges us as a society to
respond to prisoners in a more humane and intelligent way. Quite honestly, some of the most
thoughtful, mature, compassionate people I have ever met are people in prison doing life and
long-term sentences. Some have murdered. They have committed their crimes many years ago
and have used their time to grapple with their actions, the impact of their actions, their feelings
and their profound and appropriate guilt and remorse. Out of a difficult past, they have
recreated themselves as humans of great depth and compassion.
Missionaries of Grace Ministries
Janett Little-Edge, Director - 509 Third Street - Shenandoah, VA 22974
Telephone 540.652.8926

There is a healthy potential and creative power in them that we need in our society. But
first inmates need to be guided, as we all need to be guided, beyond the psychic prison of
misguided judgments, limiting definitions and closed hearts to see the tremendous human
potential lying dormant within them. Only then will they be able to recognize and choose
positive, constructive, healing options. I am confident that if Christians work together with
patience, openness and courage to bring the Word of God, inspiration and healing programs,
books and videos to prisons that inmates will find that prisons can and will be a place of healing.
Christian based programs will help prisoners experience Gods unconditional love, salvation,
forgiveness, power, peace, and eternal life. When Christians work together to display Gods love,
the Gospel will shine more brightly and attract more people to Jesusthe Light of the world.
Becoming a part of the healing community at Fluvanna Correctional Center for Women in
Troy, Virginia as a missionary/inmate and having the opportunity to serve Christ and others has
been a genuine life-changing experience. I am blessed to be a part of a group where, amid the
chaos and insanity, I hear some of the most heartfelt, insightful, and sincere testimonies to the
devastation that addiction, abuse, and mental instability inflicts on individuals and their families.
I am grateful for this experience and to help others go through the healing process.
If you share in the vision of Missionaries of Grace Ministries for incarcerated women and
men, and feel a burning desire in your heart right now, you are one of those people God has
chosen to help. The current needs of this ministry are:
Prayer Partners
Volunteers
Bibles: Life Application Study Bible (NLT) ISBN #978-1-4143-0258-4
Daily Devotionals: Jesus Calling ISBN #978-1-4041-7464-1
Many people, praying for this ministry and volunteering their help, enable us to reach
incarcerated women and men in prisons, jails, detention centers and rehabilitation centers. We
are grateful for the support given by those who share our mission and enable us to reach inmates
with the life-changing experience of Gods love, mercy, and perfect forgiveness. If you would like
to contact Missionaries of Grace Ministries for additional information and/or to volunteer please
e-mail us at mgm.grace@hotmail.com or call /write 540.652.8926 - Janet Little-Edge, Director,
509 Third Street - Shenandoah, Virginia 22849.
In Christian Love,
Janett Little-Edge
Missionaries of Grace Ministries

Grace is living by Gods principles and having the integrity, courage and conviction to do so.