Prison Ministry
Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
— Matthew 28:19
We are grateful to God for every door He has opened for this ministry and for every life touched by His Word.
Since 1994, Christian House has been actively involved in prison ministry and evangelism in correctional facilities in Ukraine.
Even before 1994 the Center was formally established, God placed on the heart of its founder, Alexei Nikitovich Veresotsky, and those who served alongside him a sincere desire to reach people serving sentences and living through difficult circumstances. Under God’s guidance, they began this ministry not simply to provide assistance, but to help people discover the love, mercy, and forgiveness of Jesus Christ.
Bringing the Hope of Christ Behind Prison Walls
Through regular visits, worship services, prayer, Bible teaching, Christian literature, music, personal conversations, and practical support, Christian House has sought to bring the message of the Gospel to people behind prison walls.
We believe that a person’s past does not have to determine their future. Through faith in Jesus Christ, a person can find forgiveness, hope, a new direction, and the strength to begin a different life.
Women’s Prison Ministry
One of the first and most significant areas of Christian House’s ministry was work among women serving sentences at the Chernihiv correctional facility.
When the Center began its work there, many of the women were facing serious personal, social, and spiritual difficulties. Some struggled with addiction, broken families, loneliness, and the consequences of destructive choices. Others had lost hope that their lives could ever be different. Christian House began visiting the facility regularly, holding worship services, sharing the Gospel, praying with the women, and providing Christian literature.
A prayer room became an important part of the ministry. It provided a place where women could come to pray, listen to God’s Word, sing spiritual songs, read Christian literature, and speak personally with members of the ministry team.
The ministry also sought to identify women who were willing to grow in their faith and help others. Over time, a community of believers developed within the facility, and the women themselves became involved in supporting the spiritual work.
The Power of God’s Word
Many women who initially came simply to listen eventually began reading the Bible, praying, attending services, and seriously considering the direction of their lives.
The historical records of Christian House preserve numerous testimonies of women who encountered Christ while serving their sentences. Their stories describe repentance, prayer, water baptism, forgiveness, and a new understanding of life. Some women who had struggled with addiction and other destructive circumstances found hope through the Gospel. Others learned to forgive, rebuild relationships, and take responsibility for their lives.
Мore than 1,700 women changed their lives during the ministry’s work in correctional institutions.
One woman described how, after years of addiction and several prison sentences, she began attending the prayer room, listening to worship services, and reading the Gospel. She described the experience as the beginning of a gradual awakening and a new understanding of her life.
Another woman, after encountering Christ in prison, later returned to her community, became involved in church ministry through music, married, and started a family.
There were many such testimonies.
For Christian House, these numbers represent much more than statistics. Each number represents a person, a story, a family, and a life that God touched through His Word.
From Prison to a New Life
One of the greatest encouragements of the women’s ministry has been seeing what happened after women were released.
Some returned to their families. Some found employment, married, raised children, became members of Christian churches, and continued growing in their faith.
The transformation that began behind prison walls often continued after release.
The testimonies preserved by the Center describe women who learned to live differently, forgive others, take responsibility for their past, and begin building a new future with Christ.
These stories remind us that a prison sentence does not have to be the final chapter of a person’s life.
Men’s Prison Ministry
As the ministry among women developed, Christian House expanded its work to men’s correctional facilities.
One of the main places where this ministry was established was the correctional facility in Makoshino in the Chernihiv region. Later, the ministry also expanded to prisoners in Domnytsia in the same region.
Although the distance meant that visits were less frequent than at the Chernihiv women’s facility, the ministry continued through worship services, preaching, prayer, Christian literature, music, and personal conversations.
Many prisoners became interested in the Bible and Christian teaching. They listened to sermons, read Christian literature, and began reconsidering their lives, their decisions, and their previous beliefs.
Changed Lives Behind Prison Walls
For some, the Gospel became the beginning of a profound change in their understanding of themselves, their past, and their relationship with God.
The historical records of the men’s ministry contain powerful testimonies from prisoners whose lives were changed after encountering the Gospel.
One of them was Taras Babich, a former police officer who was serving a long prison sentence. In his testimony, he described how he began searching for God while behind bars. Through prayer and the Word of Christ, he came to understand that true freedom was not simply being outside prison walls, but living in Christ and following His teachings.
Another prisoner, E. Avramov, had previously worked as a political officer in the Soviet-era Ministry of Internal Affairs and had professed atheism. While in prison, he began reading the Bible and learning to pray.
His testimony describes a gradual spiritual awakening and a growing desire to live according to the commandments of Christ. He eventually described his former life as a path from which God had brought him into a new and meaningful spiritual life. These testimonies show that the Gospel can reach people from very different backgrounds and lead them to reconsider the direction of their lives.
A Growing Christian Community
The ministry in the men’s correctional facilities developed into more than regular visits. A group of believers and active participants was formed among the prisoners and became a support for the spiritual work within the facility.
Music also became an important part of the ministry. Valeriy Averyanov, a musician by profession, organized an ensemble and choir that performed Christian songs and spiritual music.
The Center’s historical record reports that more than 400 men received water baptism, while even more responded to the Gospel and repented. Thanks God!
Beginning in 2002, under God’s guidance and through the sincere desire of the Center’s founder, Alexei Nikitovich Veresotsky, to carry the Word of God to those in need, the ministry expanded to another group of prisoners in Domnytsia in the Chernihiv region.
These men came from different backgrounds and nationalities, but they shared a common need for hope, forgiveness, and a new direction in life with Jesus Christ.
More Than Words
Along with preaching the Gospel and providing spiritual support, the Center has helped prisoners with practical needs whenever possible.
This assistance has included clothing, food, medicine, personal hygiene items, Christian literature, and other necessities.
For someone living behind prison walls and separated from family and society, even a simple act of kindness can communicate dignity, respect, and care.
We seek to serve people with compassion and patience while sharing the hope we have found in Jesus Christ.
Our practical assistance is not separate from our Christian ministry. It is one of the ways we demonstrate genuine care for the people we meet and create opportunities to share the Gospel.