Sixteen Allegheny County Jail inmates listened intently to Glenn Lester's sermon in the jail's chapel Friday morning, some nodding emphatically and others posing questions.

"I was saved once – I don't know if I'm meant to be saved again," one inmate said to Lester, of Cornerstone Church in Hopewell.

Another inmate answered: "He didn't bring you here today to let you go."

The Protestant Good Friday service was one of several of varying denominations between Thursday and Easter Sunday at the jail.

Lester said holding services in the jail is sobering, but a good opportunity.

An inmate at the Allegheny County Jail prays during one of the Good Friday Services held at the Allegheny County Chapel, Friday, April 14, 2017. The service led by volunteers from Cornerstone Church in Hopewell.

This inmate said the calling of the Lord brought him to the 8 a.m. service Friday morning. "It's a powerful feeling," he said. "It's just knowing someone cares about you enough to take time out of their day to come speak to you in a positive manner."

"I just had to get out (of the cell)," Devon Mathis said. "I have to get my life together – I've got a 2-year-old daughter at home." He called being prayed over a powerful feeling. "I had chills," he said.

Don Stidham, of the Berean Fellowship Church in Scott, has been holding services at the jail at least once a month since 1999, he said. "A lot of people think these guys... are not religious or spiritual," he said. "A lot are very, very open to it. This stuff's an important part of their lives."

An inmate at the Allegheny County Jail prays over a photo of his family.

David Silk, of Cornerstone, said he's often been asked why he does services at the jail, because the perception is, "they're all bad dudes," he said. "No, they're not," he said. "They're not bad dudes. We all make choices – some bad choices, some real bad choices."

David Ryan of Cornerstone Church in Hopewell prays with a group of inmates at the Allegheny County Jail during one of the Good Friday Services held at the Allegheny County Chapel.

An inmate at the Allegheny County Jail prays during one of the Good Friday Services held at the Allegheny County Chapel.

George Poe of Faith Bible Baptist Church leads a Good Friday service at the Allegheny County Jail's gymnasium.

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