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Ministry and Leadership in Justice Reform
Troy Rienstra has spent more than two decades working at the intersection of faith, justice reform, and community restoration. Through ministry leadership, education initiatives, and public advocacy, his work has brought together faith leaders, educators, public officials, and justice-impacted individuals to confront violence, strengthen communities, and expand opportunities for transformation.
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Among the most influential initiatives emerging from this work is the Life Change Group, a leadership forum that welcomed mayors, business leaders, professional athletes, and government officials into the prison environment to engage incarcerated men in sustained dialogue about responsibility, leadership, and civic life. These gatherings regularly brought together more than one hundred participants and helped cultivate a culture of education, accountability, and personal development.
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Troy's commitment to intellectual and spiritual formation also produced a long-standing prison book club that continues today, guiding participants through more than one hundred and fifty works exploring leadership, faith, philosophy, and social responsibility. Additionally, his efforts surrounding education further developed into the successful operation of a five-year bachelor’s degree program with Calvin University within Michigan's Richard Hanlon Correctional Facility; expanding access to higher learning and leadership development for incarcerated students.
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Ministry leadership has remained central throughout this work. Troy founded Prisoners in Christ, connected with Church of the Servant in Grand Rapids, which helped cultivate Christian fellowship and discipleship within prison communities. That ministry later expanded through the introduction of Celebration Fellowship, establishing one of Michigan’s first inside-outside church communities where incarcerated believers and members of the free church could worship and learn together. Troy was able to bring this together while working with his father, Rev Rich Rienstra.
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Beyond ministry and education, Troy's work has also influenced statewide justice reform efforts. Leadership within the Michigan’s Clean Slate legislation campaign, that helped expand access to record expungement and second chances for thousands of residents. Additionally, his work leading the voters right campaign ensured individuals held in jail retain their constitutional right to vote.
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Today this work continues through the leadership of CODA's ongoing engagement with universities and faith communities, and collaborative reform efforts across Michigan. In recognition of this bridge-building work between communities and the justice system, Rienstra has been deputized by Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson, where he now serves his second four-year term as Ambassador Deputy.
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Troy's work is a consistent conviction that communities flourish when justice is joined with restoration and when individuals are given the opportunity to rebuild their lives within environments that foster accountability, dignity, and support.
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A central focus of this ministry has been the recognition that cycles of violence and incarceration are deeply connected to unresolved trauma. Through ongoing engagement with trauma research and trauma-informed practices, this work seeks to address the underlying wounds that often shape both victimization and offending.
By integrating spiritual formation, mentorship, and trauma healing, Troy encourages individuals and communities to confront the deeper realities that perpetuate harm while also cultivating the conditions necessary for renewal.
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This perspective frames violence prevention, reentry, and community stability not simply as matters of criminal justice policy, but as broader questions of moral responsibility shared by families, institutions, faith communities, and civic leaders. Healing trauma, restoring dignity, and rebuilding trust therefore become essential components in the work of strengthening communities.
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Through public speaking, ministry leadership, and collaborative initiatives, Troy's work continues to invite leaders and communities into a deeper conversation about how justice systems, faith institutions, and local communities can work together to cultivate environments where restoration, responsibility, and reconciliation are possible.
My life hasn’t been the product of traditional means, gains or even a well thought out grand plan. I made it difficult, uncomfortable and even lonely as a result of my decisions. Yet, through trial and error, Grace and the knowing something bigger was out there to be had...
I woke up one day and decided to view those results as a motivator for opportunity and the catalyst for change.
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An opportunity to transform chaos, uncertainty and trauma into a more productive outcome. To choose every day to do something, say something, behave in some way that would continue to move me towards a better feeling. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was cultivating a strategy to inspire anyone to become enthusiastic about change, to find their power of resilience during turbulent times.
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