"Seeking Jesus" - June '21 Mission Moments

JUNE 2021

Jesus

SEEKING

HIS LOVING ARMS

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KEITH OVERHOLT, MBA President/CEO

“JUST AS A FATHER HAS COMPASSION ON HIS CHILDREN, SO THE LORD HAS COMPASSION ON THOSE WHO FEAR HIM.” PSALM 103:13

eing a father is one of the greatest joys of my life. God truly blessed me with two wonderful girls who are both the apple of their Daddy’s eye.

There is not anything I would not do to keep them safe and healthy.

However, there is one thing I can’t do for them that has to be their own decision, and that is to receive Jesus as their personal Savior and live their life for Him. I am so thankful that both of my daughters have already made that decision.

Thinking of Father’s Day always reminds me of the parable of the Prodigal Son. The son asked to leave his father and take his portion of his inheritance and even though the father loved him dearly, he did as his son asked. During the son’s travels, he wasted all of his inheritance on foolish things. He eventually ended up eating with the pigs in the pigsty.

The son finally humbled himself and traveled back to his father to ask to be one of his servants. When the father

saw the son walking towards him, he greeted him with great joy! His wayward son had returned and the father threw him a big party.

Here at the Mission, we see many folks who have gone astray from their Heavenly Father. They have chosen paths that I am sure have saddened God. In fact, we have all at one point in our lives chosen incorrect paths. The wonderful thing about our Heavenly Father is that He will always accept us back into His loving arms.

It is an amazing thing to see the people who come to the Mission turn their lives back to God or accept the gift of salvation for the first time.

Just as I find great delight in my own daughters, I know that God our Heavenly Father is overjoyed when someone turns from the worldly lifestyle and comes back home to Him.

Jesus

SEEKING

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“I HAVE FOUND A PEACE THAT I PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT WAS LOST TO ME. I BELIEVE IN MYSELF AGAIN FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY MANY YEARS. I AM ONE WHO THE SON HAS SET FREE, AND I AM FREE INDEED!”

I dabbled in harder drugs and alcohol. I eventually

was born into a Christian family in St. Barnes

had substituted Jesus for floating pleasurers and highs.

Hospital in St. Louis, MO. My loving parents

I found myself broken, lost, and incarcerated.

lost myself entirely to the grasp of my addictive nature when I began using methamphetamine. I got to the point where I simply did not want to function without it and would do nearly anything to have it. This led to me losing everything that I had worked so hard for. I

desired for me to grow into a happy and healthy

Even when I was released from jail, trouble found

follower of Christ. Though their marriage came to

me as if it were lurking in the shadows waiting to

an end when I was very young, they both imparted

pounce at my weakest moment. It was at this point in

core principles to me that have shaped the man I try

time that I realized that I needed change. I wanted to

to be daily. I say this because interpersonal growth is

escape. I ended up at the bus stop. I had fallen asleep

ongoing. We should always seek to grow more, love

and woke up to the driver asking where it was that I

more, and achieve more.

needed to go. I remember saying, “I don’t know.” The

Though my mother and father groomed me for a

driver took me to the Downtown Rescue Mission.

proper walk in faith by attending church weekly, I still

Ever since that day, I have put my best effort towards

found myself gravitating to the wrong crowd. I am a

seeking and mirroring the heart and mind of Jesus. I

personable guy who enjoys being around other people.

have found a peace that I previously thought was lost

However, being around these people led me down a

to me. I believe in myself again for the first time in my

very dark path. I started socially smoking marijuana

many years. I am one who the Son has set free, and I

and eventually ended up living with a DJ who

am free indeed!

introduced me to the underground party scene wherein donate.downtownrescuemission.org

-Cedric W.

MI S S ION IN M Y WOR DS

TIM CUMMINGS

L

eading a discipleship group (D-group) at this stage of my life is entirely appropriate. My wife and I have completed raising our four children. We’ve worshipped with those children in superb churches along the way.

Older men and woman poured into us as younger believers.

Now that our commitment to our kid’s school, sports, and other activities is in the rear view, it’s the right time to invest spiritually in the lives of others.

Men at the Mission typically have drifted from their commitment to the Lord. Some have been walking in inward and outward rebellion towards Him. Other men have never known the Lord. The temptations faced by us men on this earth are very common. The root sin is this: seeking to replace Jesus Christ, who supplies for all our needs abundantly, with a cheap, unfulfilling substitute (e.g. drugs, alcohol, pornography, etc.). Satan’s wiles have never changed since the Garden of Eden when he asked Eve, “Did God really say?”

Our current D-Group of four men has been meeting consistently on Sunday evening for 18 months. We’ve had about six members who left the D-Group (and the DRM), but the three men who have remained are truly

committed to learning about and following the Lord.

They’re committed to the accountability of their D-Group brothers. Each week to prepare, we read superb Christian books along with our Bibles guided by a set of questions.

“TO KNOW THAT BROTHERS ARE PRAYING FOR ME EACH DAY AS I PRAY FOR THEM IS BOTH COMFORTING AND INSPIRING.” When we meet, we discuss our morning worship service sermon, our current struggles, and our spiritual achievements. We then discuss the lesson for the week with each man highlighting how the Lord spoke to him.

We finish by reviewing the previous week’s prayer requests and praise Him for His faithfulness in answering prayer.

We then make prayer requests for the upcoming week.

I look forward each week to our time together (about 2 hours) and trust that the other men do as well (they always return, on time, and fully prepared). To know that brothers are praying for me each day as I pray for them is both comforting and inspiring.

MISSIONMOMENTS | June 2021

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FATHER LEAVES A LEGACY OF HOPE

his past April, Dr. Darwin “Doc” Overholt celebrated his 25th Anniversary of serving those in our care here at Downtown Rescue Mission. When he arrived at the Mission in 1996, it was in great need in all areas from finance to buildings and personnel. DRM had four employees and one part-time driver for work therapy. The biggest need, though, was to equip our residents to live a changed life through the work of the Holy Spirit by Jesus Christ becoming their Savior and Lord.

“I HAVE ALWAYS FELT THAT WHEN YOU SEE A CHANGED LIFE, YOU CAN ONLY IMAGINE HOW MANY OTHERS ARE EFFECTED BY THAT CHANGE. I WILL HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL HEAVEN TO REALLY KNOW THAT ANSWER.” By the grace of God, one year later the Mission had a brand-new kitchen worth nearly $350,000 for the total cost of $69,000. That was only the beginning of God performing many miracles at the Mission. By the second year, the Mission had doubled to eight staff members who were now receiving Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance. The Mission’s budget had also nearly doubled. While God was blessing DRM with physical growth, the people in its care were also growing spiritually. DRM has seen more lives changed every year right up to the present.

One of his greatest memories is of Henry. When Doc first saw him, he looked like he was either stepping into the grave or out of it. As he stayed at the Mission, he began to change physically and spiritually. He looked healthier and seemed to be happier and more content. Christmas rolled around and the Mission received several hundred

winter coats to give to the men. He disappeared for a couple of hours after he had received his Christmas coat.

When Henry returned, he had bought a gift for the office staff. Doc still has his gift on his desk at the Mission and believes he had not received a gift for many years. Henry’s heart was so touched by the generosity of that Christmas coat that he wanted to say thank you.

Over the years, Doc’s greatest joy has been to see changed lives. “I have always felt that when you see a changed life, you can only imagine how many others are effected by that change. I will have to wait until heaven to really know that answer,” says Doc. His son, Keith, took over as the Mission’s President/CEO in 2008. Not only has Doc left a legacy of hope for his son, but on the hearts of the hundreds of lives he has blessed and served throughout northern Alabama and southern Tennessee.

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