Not to Resist an Evil Person

Since its founding, Lighthouse Publishing has been operated by churches and staff who share the Anabaptist theological perspective. The more well-known churches in this framework are typically the Amish, Mennonites, Hutterites, or Church of the Brethren. Sometimes, these sorts of churches are known as the “peace churches.”

Although Loaves & Fishes is intended to be of help to a broad range of faith traditions within Christianity, sometimes our unique perspective may be evident to a discerning reader. Our next issue is about one of the teachings of Jesus that have come to define the Anabaptist position.

Jesus taught that not only should one not resist an evil person, but that evil should be repaid with doing good. It is an idea that can be very difficult to put into practice, and there are many opinions about what this means for Christians living in a world filled with evil. 

Regardless of your exact views about how we should treat those who would do harm to us or others, I hope you will see the clear benefit of encouraging Christians in prison to live in peace with others. In an environment that is often characterized by selfishness, manipulation, and strife, Christians have a unique opportunity to love their enemies and respond unselfishly and kindly to anger, hatred, and violence.

The willingness of Jesus to lay down His own will and ultimately His life is the supreme example of the power of good over evil. In issue 52, it is our goal to point our readers to this sacrifice and call them to follow Jesus’ example of love and peace.

Challenges We Face

It is nothing unusual to face challenges in non-profit work, and we typically make our donors and others aware of our needs. So, we want to make you all aware of developments that are affecting our ability to ship Loaves & Fishes into some facilities. Some prisons apparently are now choosing to disallow the receipt of paper publications, including books and magazines.

Some of our longtime distributors are contacting us to let us know of this change and the need to discontinue their subscriptions. This has a negative effect on our circulation, and I want to invite all of you to pray with us that the opportunity to ship our magazines into prisons would remain open in as many facilities as possible.

In addition to praying with us, we invite those of you who distribute Loaves & Fishes to spread the word to colleagues, friends, and acquaintances who may benefit from receiving the magazine. In our last newsletter, we informed our distributors about the availability of back issues, and many of you responded with requests for extra magazines. We were delighted to fill those requests. Thanks for helping us to put our inventory to good use.

Since we have been unusually blessed with financial support recently, we are currently able to publish Loaves & Fishes on a quarterly schedule, a goal of our organization for many years. We gratefully receive the gifts our donors provide, and on behalf of the thousands who read and distribute our materials, thank you so much.

Issue 52 Status

Our next issue is expected to ship in late June to early July. The cost is fully funded. Pray with us that the thousands of packages that are shipped would reach those in need at just the right time, and for energy and inspiration for our editorial staff. Thank you again for your support.

Distributor Feedback

The Spiritual Care Team at Eastern State Hospital are so grateful for your generous donations. The Loaves & Fishes Bible study publications are a great blessing to all our patients as they are being reminded of the importance of their faith and the amazing love of God. Thank you to all at Lighthouse Publishing for all that you do.

—Rev. Ana Rivera-Georgescu/ Religious Coordinator, Eastern State Hospital, Washington State Department of Social and Health Services

Reader Feedback

It is nice that people always think about people in jail. We always experience abandonment from our loved ones. But God is always at our side. Thank you! Keep up the good work.

—Margentina Panilla, Prince George’s County Correctional Center, Upper Marlboro, MD

Thank you for the awesome publication. It really helps us and inspires us prisoners and lets us know we are not alone.

—Christopher Brenner, FMC Fort Worth, Fort Worth, TX

 Springtime!

The time of year when many living things turn from brown to green is my favorite season. I love to see the emergence of buds and the spring cultivation of fields and gardens.

In my day job, I manage a grocery store, and in my business, we pay a lot of attention to what is growing in warmer regions. This is because those areas are our sources for produce during the colder seasons.

I have the privilege of observing strawberry pickers in North Carolina, and I am fascinated by their skill, teamwork, and work ethic. A hundred pickers will begin at one end of a field, and in an hour’s time, they can harvest an entire massive field and bring in a truckload of beautiful fresh fruit.

As each pail of berries comes in from the field, supervisors check them for quality, pack them in retail flats, and scan the picker’s cards to ensure each picker is paid for his or her work.

Currently, we ship Loaves & Fishes to about 350 bulk subscribers. I envision this group of people working in God’s fields every day, bringing in a beautiful harvest.

The addition of souls to the kingdom of God is the first goal we seek, but further than that, we want to see them cultivated and developed in the same way we would care for fruit-bearing plants. We hope to see the harvest enhanced by character growth, increase of knowledge, and spiritual formation.

Finally, we know that at the end of the day, as we individually bring in the fruit we have harvested, God waits with a reward of blessing. He will not forget our labor of love.

“And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ” (Col. 3:23,24).

—Mike Fisher, Operations Manager

Need Extra Magazines?

If you distribute Loaves & Fishes, be aware that we currently have an abundance of inventory of certain back issues. Each time we publish, we order from 5,000-10,000 extra copies so we have the ability to immediately fill new subscriptions that come in.

At this time, we have plenty of inventory of the following issues: 51, 50, 49, 48, 47, 46, 45, and 40. We have lesser quantities of the following issues as well: 34, 33, 32, 31, 30, 28, 27, 26, 25, and 24.

If you can use any of these in your work, please let us know how many you can use, and we would be delighted to send them to you, as always free of charge. All we ask is that you put them into the hands of prison inmates who might find them a blessing.

Issue 51 Shipped

Issue 51 was shipped in mid-March. We ordered 69,150 copies of the magazine, with a circulation of 62,215 at the time of mailing. The cost of printing and shipping this issue was  $26,881.13, for a cost of 40¢ per printed piece.

This issue was published and shipped one month of schedule, and represents the first time we have been able to publish on a three-month interval. It has long been our goal to publish quarterly. Thanks to our donors who generously supported this project.

Issue 52 Update

Our team is currently working on producing issue 52. The theme of the issue is “Nonresistance,” or the idea of suffering love taught and exemplified by Jesus and His followers.

In prison, fighting and retribution are normal life, and are often considered necessary for survival. We hope to point our readers to the example of Jesus, who laid down His life so others could benefit, and think about what this might mean for prison life.

As of this writing, our funds on hand are around $19,000. We have a goal of shipping the next issue in mid-June. In the intervening time, we hope to raise a minimum of $12,000-15,000 to cover the cost of printing issue 52 and cover overhead expenses.

Donors to this ministry are deeply appreciated as an integral part of our work. May God richly bless those of you who give as you are able.

Distributor Feedback

I have a friend in Fresno California who is a street preacher. He reaches the worst of the worst. I sometimes send him boxes of tracts and small Bibles to pass out. I was recently given a whole box of  Loaves and Fishes magazines and I wanted to let you know that I'm sending them out there. So, from Pennsylvania to Tennessee then out to California this message of Jesus Christ will go. The impact you're making has not gone unnoticed. Thank you!

—Elizabeth Spivey

I am the Chaplain at Halawa Correctional Facility, the main facility in Hawaii. The Chapel is not funded by the State, and everything we have is by donation to make available for the inmate population. Your Loaves & Fishes Magazine is a blessing to the men here in Halawa. We have approximately 200-250 inmates attending chapel services on a weekly basis. We serve a prison population of over 850 inmates. 

With Warmest Aloha, 

—Chaplain Alan Leigh, Aiea, Hawaii 

Reader Feedback

Thank you all for this amazing booklet. I enjoy everything inside it all the time! Especially all the great stories and testimonies from different walks and persons. God Bless.

—Sergio Rojas Lara, CCI, Tehachapi, CA

Thank you for your magazine! It's very uplifting and touches on things we will need in the real world as well as things we can use while incarcerated. The Bible studies help give me a direction to go when I'm swamped with verses to read.Thanks for helping to bring hope where it feels hard to come by sometimes.

—Brittany Barnes, BJC, Texarkana, TX

Issue 51 Update

Our team is currently working on editing Loaves & Fishes issue 51. We expect to be print-ready by mid-February. Based on our current schedule of three issues per year, this issue would normally ship in April. However, because of your generous support,
I am glad to say that funding is available to print the next issue earlier than expected.

We are hoping to be able to ship issue 51 in March, one month ahead of schedule. The long-term goal of Lighthouse Publishing has been to publish Loaves & Fishes quarterly, and with God’s help and your support, we know that all things are possible!

It is energizing to observe the Lord sustaining our work by providing staff, volunteers, supporters, and funding, not to mention the hundreds of you who distribute Loaves & Fishes in prison. Thank you!

—Mike Fisher, Manager of Operations

2023 Cost to Publish & Distribute Each Issue of Loaves & Fishes (based on expenses): 62¢