12/1/2000 - Entertaining Angels

by Julie Linn

A program called Angel Tree will put smiles on a lot of kids’ faces this Christmas.

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it. Hebrews 13:2

Photo credit: Comstock

The Christmas season is a time to celebrate the birth and life of Christ, and I can think of no better way to do so than to minister to those in need. It is often asserted that the best approach to ministry is to show the Gospel through actions before relaying it with words, as we witness Jesus doing throughout the gospels. Angel Tree, a ministry of the Prison Fellowship, does just that by delivering gifts to the children of prisoners, thus opening the door for presenting the Gospel of Christ to that family and to the parent in prison.

The inception of the Angel Tree ministry is a miracle in itself. What began with a dramatic change in one of the South’s most colorful criminals, Mary Kay Beard, has turned into a Christmas tradition that ministers to more than 500,000 children and their families each year.

Mary Kay and her male partner in crime had earned the nickname "the Bonnie and Clyde of Alabama" due to their extended criminal spree across the state. While awaiting sentencing in jail, Mary Kay was deeply moved by the compassion of the women volunteers who rose before dawn to attend the jail church services. When she asked an elderly woman what led her to offer her time to criminals, the lady responded with the message of the Gospel. Mary Kay’s restless heart was led to a saving faith, and upon her release from prison she found her way to Prison Fellowship, eventually becoming director of the PF chapter in the state she once ravaged.

Reflecting on ways she could minister to the women she had left behind, Mary Kay was reminded of Christmas in prison. Often she and the other women would receive small toiletries as gifts from church volunteers. Many of the women, instead of using the toiletries themselves, would save them and wrap them in scraps of paper or cloth and present them to their children as Christmas gifts. The children’s gratefulness in receiving a gift from their imprisoned parent left an eternal mark on Mary Kay’s heart. That memory became the seed that now nurtures the Prison Fellowship’s Angel Tree ministry.

Participants in the Angel Tree ministry annually fulfill thousands of Christmas wishes the parents cannot fulfill. Prison Fellowship works with local churches to distribute names and Christmas wishes of children to the congregation. The gifts are bought and given to the child in the names of the absent parent and of Jesus. A Gospel presentation is also made at the time of delivery, as volunteers tell the Christmas story to the Angel Tree child.

Angel Tree testimonies from past Christmas seasons have demonstrated Angel Tree’s power to open hearts to receive the most important gift, the gift of salvation. It has also introduced many prisoners’ families to their local churches, allowing the congregations to provide year-round ministry. One North Carolina church has extended its Angel Tree ministry to include annual Valentine’s Day, Easter, and back-to-school projects. United Presbyterian Church in Seattle incorporates a Christmas party each year for the "angels," their families, and the church volunteers. Santa is there for photos, along with Christmas gifts, cookies, and free Bibles for each child. And Ebenezer AME Church in Maryland held an Angel Tree party last year in which 10 people accepted Christ, including an ex-offender.

A truly rich Christmas tradition has begun through Angel Tree that ministers to the children’s physical needs and offers healing for their hurts. For more information on the Angel Tree ministry, and to find out how you can get involved, visit its Web site at www.christianity.com/angeltree. May your charitable actions be truly Christ-like this Christmas.

Julie Linn is a Witherspoon Fellow at the Family Research Council.

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