by Emily Andrews
by Emily Andrews
In a place that seems dark, the Grammy winner sang of joy and freedom.
Everyone on the prison yard was thinking the same thing: This wasn’t part of the plan.
A slate gray sky threatened rain over Eddie Warrior Correctional Center (EWCC) in Oklahoma as Prison Fellowship® staff and volunteers were processed through security. Hundreds of women there had long awaited this special day—more women than would normally be allowed in the gym at one time for a Hope Event®.
A Prison Fellowship Hope Event is a one-day evangelistic event with guest musicians and speakers, designed to present the Good News of Jesus Christ to men and women behind bars. At EWCC Hope Events, dozens of women gather indoors, while others participate via livestream in the yard.
Light rain began escaping the clouds like a mist. Blue event banners and two decorated Christmas trees stood proud against pallid walls. A few dozen women in orange state-issued uniforms gathered in the gym and murmured about what might come next. Across from them, on a makeshift stage, minimal instruments lay dormant beneath wall-to-wall windows as if waiting for their turn.
Senior Prison Ministry Manager Teresa Stanfield stood in a black Prison Fellowship-branded polo. She too had been eagerly anticipating the Hope Event at EWCC, where not so long ago she was dressed in a state prison uniform. After years of addiction and incarceration, she surrendered her life to Christ, and He redeemed her story.
“God rescued me right here in this prison,” she said.
Desiring such redemption for everyone, Teresa was overwhelmed with joy when the warden made an announcement: Due to the rain, more women would be welcome to join the event inside. Then women began streaming in until more than 300 filled the room.
THE JOY OF LAUREN DAIGLE
It was just like Lauren Daigle to enter the prison gym with a skip in her step, head to toe in a gradient of pastels, and beaming. The room erupted in cheers. Lauren cheered right back as if trying to outdo their enthusiasm.
“Yes, yes, yes!” Lauren shouted, as though she wanted to say, Don’t get it backwards. I’m here for you.
“You know what a holy roar sounds like,” she added. “People always ask me, ‘Where’s your favorite place to perform?’ And I always say, ‘Places you’d never know—prison.’”
Distinct among the claps and cheers, someone shouted “Amen!” Another said, “Yes, praise Jesus!”
Lauren’s soulful timbre brought each song to life. Her lyrics rang personal and profound with simple, piano-driven melodies. The women seemed to know each one by heart. Those with INMATE stamped on their backs sang in unison, some raising their hands, others wiping tears. A woman near the back used sign language.
Hold on to me when it’s too dark to see You / When I am sure I have reached the end / Hold on to me when I forget I need You / When I let go, hold me again
Lift your eyes to the hills / Remember where your help comes from / Lift your eyes to the hills / You'll never face a valley alone
The only thing that matters now is everything You think of me / In You I find my worth, in You I find my identity
WHAT HOPE SOUNDS LIKE
The women’s voices soared loudest during Rescue, like the words of a loving Father to His daughter:
You are not hidden / There's never been a moment you were forgotten / You are not hopeless / Though you have been broken, your innocence stolen …
I will send out an army to find you / In the middle of the darkest night / It's true, I will rescue you
Between songs, Lauren opened a Bible and read from Jeremiah 31, sharing about God’s faithfulness to rescue and restore His children:
“This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel
after that time,” declares the LORD.
“I will put my law in their minds
and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be My people.
No longer will they teach their neighbor,
or say to one another, ‘Know the LORD,’
because they will all know Me,
from the least of them to the greatest,”
declares the LORD.
“For I will forgive their wickedness
and will remember their sins no more.” —Jeremiah 31:33-34
The crowd continued singing in one voice, envisioning a future of hope that only God could make possible.
FREE ON THE INSIDE
“If we don’t have hope, we don’t have anything,” said Christy, a resident who attended the event.
“It was a blessing to be able to experience this. My heart was touched,” said Devonae, another incarcerated woman. She noted how women from EWCC’s drug treatment program and general population—groups that are normally housed apart—had the opportunity to attend the event together. It created a rare sense of unity.
Another attendee, Jenny, said, “It was a different experience for me because I haven’t been to a concert … usually it’s chaotic in here. It’s a different environment. Getting to listen to Christian music in here brought peace to my soul.”
Jenny added, “It made me feel free on the inside.”
As a former resident of EWCC herself, Teresa Stanfield knows how a simple one-day event behind bars can have a long-term impact.
“I honestly think the Lord had it rain so that they would all be in the gym together and get to experience that today,” said Teresa. “It was a reminder that God is faithful, if we will just seek Him.”
Song credits:
Lauren Daigle, Hold On to Me
Lauren Daigle, Be Okay
Lauren Daigle, Rescue
Lauren Daigle, You Say
“People always ask me, ‘Where’s your favorite place to perform?’ And I always say, ‘Places you’d never know—prison.’”
—Lauren Daigle
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