In 1995, graduates of DISCIPLE at Mt. Pisgah United Methodist Church in Greensboro, NC established a DISCIPLE Bible Study at Forsyth Correctional Center in Winston-Salem. This first study gave birth to the DISCIPLE Prison Ministry of North Carolina. Since 1995 the ministry has experienced tremendous growth. Since 1999, Disciple Bible Study has been taught in 70 different correctional institutions in North Carolina and more than 300 lay and clergy persons have been trained as prison volunteers.

The enormous success of this ministry is due in part to endorsements the ministry received from the Department of Corrections in Raleigh. These endorsements opened prisons doors to United Methodist congregations in North Carolina so that the vast potential of this ministry could be realized. DISCIPLE is needed to provide strong discipleship training to help inmates grow in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ. By linking inmates with local congregations, an added benefit is that a network of caring Christian friends can be established to help nurture parolees as they rediscover their place of belonging within the community.

This ministry not only benefits the inmates, but also benefits our local congregations. DISCIPLE Bible Outreach Ministries has opened the hearts of many congregations to the needs of prison ministry and missions in general. Because inmates are brought to the local churches on passes for worship and other programs, participating churches have witnessed the breaking down of many barriers, such as race, fear, and, misunderstanding, that divide God's people.