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eReceipts Now Available
Electronic receipts will come to those who request them as
soon as that system is in place. You may receive another paper receipt or two,
but hopefully no more than that. The receipt will contain the same information
as the paper receipt, but will represent a significant cost savings to the
Rescue Mission. Currently the cost of producing and mailing a paper receipt is
82 cents each. The cost of each e-Receipt is 10 cents. Our desire is to be the
best possible stewards of the resources God provides to us through you.
If you wish to begin receiving e-Receipts for your donations,
simply email the following information to
alan@prm.info.
- Account Number (a 3 or 4 digit number that can be found on
any of your PRM paper receipts)
- First Name, Last Name, Full Address
- Email address where the e-Receipt should be sent
If you wish to continue receiving paper receipts then you do
not need to do anything.
Please call 380.6909 if there are any questions.
Summer Job Opportunity
The Peninsula Rescue Mission is seeking a summer employee (up
to 12 weeks) whose primary task would be grant writing. Must possess or be
(currently) pursuing a college degree. Good writing skills are also required.
Contact Lindsay or Alan for details (757-380-6909).
Anniversary Appreciation Banquet
Liberty Baptist Church
Friday, November 5
Time & Theme to be Announced
The Anniversary Appreciation Banquet is always a time of great fellowship and
provides PRM an opportunity to share aspects of our outreach to the
disadvantaged.
Attention! Attention!!
We’ve recently been made aware of at least one man walking
door to door through Peninsula neighborhoods asking for donations on behalf of
the Peninsula Rescue Mission. These individuals are
NOT affiliated with us in any way!!! If
you are approached by someone asking for donations for the Peninsula Rescue
Mission, please call our office immediately at 380.6909. Thank you!!!
Cover Article
“What Matters Most"
To ask such a question is often to handcuff the one
asked. Better to ask this, “What do you consider to be some of the most
important things?” Even then the question demands a very difficult answer. Okay,
“In the ministry of the Peninsula Rescue Mission, what do you consider to be
some of the most important things?” Now the query has been narrowed enough (and
broadened sufficiently) to elicit an easier response. Let’s examine several
ministry tracks in an effort to answer the question.
As we work with families who are not homeless, but who still have great needs,
we might do any number of things. We could provide a supply of groceries, or pay
a utility or rent payment; or we might even share some furniture or appliance
items. Sometimes we give a family a car someone has shared with us (we always
pay the title fee, buy the tags, and fill the tank with gas). So now a family
has transportation, they can stay in their home with the electricity and water
on, and they can eat better for a time, perhaps even resting at night on bedding
received from us. Those are all good things - things that matter a lot - but are
they the most important things?
We take a needy child to summer camp for a week. There they have a most
memorable experience, including swimming daily, eating well, and living in a
serene and safe environment. They make some new friends, including an adult
counselor who might maintain contact with them over the years. They win some
ribbons in team and individual competition, helping their self-esteem. During
daily free time they have more fun than one could imagine - and the fun is
wholesome, not destructive activity. We have really provided some good things
for the child - but are they the most important things?
A homeless man makes his way into our shelter. He resides with us for anywhere
from a week to a month - or even longer. He starts to look, smell, and feel
human again - for the first time in a long time. We help him get a birth
certificate, social security card, and even a picture I.D. to help him in
obtaining employment. He enjoys the comradery of a group of men in related
circumstances. He cultivates good hygiene and eating habits, as well as learning
to help take care of his residence environment. When he leaves us, it is with
gainful employment, new direction, and enough resources to get a place of his
own. What steps forward he has taken as these things all became part of his life
- but are they the most important things?
You who have been our friends for very long know where this is headed. Our newer
friends may have also figured it out already, as well. To quote one of my
mentors, “The spiritual is always infinitely more important than the physical.”
That family needs more than a physical address, lights, water, and food. They
need to be pointed to Him Who can give them a home in heaven, light for the
journey, and the bread and water of life. They need a relationship with God
through His Son, Jesus. That child needs a Savior - One Who can take away his
sins and give him safety and peace forever! That is so much more important than
a free week at a good Christian camp. That homeless man will only have that
which is most important when he has Christ! Jobs, beds, showers, and meals are
all temporary - Christ and what He gives are eternal. If I may paraphrase my
mentor, “The eternal is always infinitely more important than the temporal.” Now
you know what we consider to be some of the most important things.
Superintendent's
Corner
"Heavenly Reunions"
April, May, June - Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day!
Jesus, Mom, Dad - three who influenced my life so very much, all remembered with
holidays, now all together in heaven. So many thoughts fly around in my thinking
concerning these three, and concerning reunions in heaven. A starting point is
hard to find, but here goes! How privileged I was to be born into the Poteat
family. The privilege was not of the “blue blood” type, but rather one of
practical and spiritual benefit. Ours was a typical 40’s, 50’s, and 60,s home -
a working Dad, a stay-at-home Mom. Three girls and two boys made up the children
of the Poteat home. There were school, church, chores, lots of fun, and lots of
love. Mom and Dad have left for heaven, and the five of us remain here -
working, worshiping, and awaiting God’s call to join them.
It was a still greater privilege to be born into the family of God. Somehow it
seemed very natural to trust Him Who had so blessed us in our earthly family.
And yet it was anything but natural - it was clearly supernatural. God conquered
my sinful heart with the blood of Calvary, the love of His own great heart, and
the wooing power of the Holy Spirit. My dead spirit was made alive by
regeneration; my great sins were forgiven. A slave was set free, and a dead man
was made alive! What a blessed privilege to become a child of the King! And so
many wonderful brothers and sisters in this family - a number that also now
includes my earthly siblings.
I hardly noticed as my parents grew old, even though a comparison of pictures
from their young adulthood and later life suggest I wasn’t paying attention to
the aging process. I looked this morning in the mirror at a man with crow’s feet
by his eyes, sagging skin in various places, hair that is now almost completely
gray. Guess what - I hardly noticed someone else getting old. Perhaps once again
I wasn’t paying attention. The downside of that includes decreasing stamina, an
increasing waistline, and not a few aches and pains along the way. The upside
includes children, grandchildren, more opportunities for ministry, and a
wonderful lady growing older with me (though I notice she is lagging behind
quite a bit).
Another upside is that I am “nearer home than I was yesterday.” O, the reunions
that are to come! Before the glad meetings with parents, grandparents, cousins,
pastors, and others, will come the all-important face-to-face encounter with Him
Whom I have only yet seen by faith through His Word and lived out in the lives
of His children. As Fanny Crosby wrote, “I want to see my Savior first of all.”
And then all those wonderful “heavenly reunions” will follow.
A Note From Alan
"Free, But Fearful"
If you spend much time around the downtown Newport News area,
you easily learn to pick out men who have just been released from prison – khaki
shirt, khaki pants, brown shoes – all very plain. That was the uniform Mr.
Rodriguez (I’ve changed his name for this article) wore on the morning I met
him. He had been released the night before and had been directed to PRM.
The 50 year-old man who sat across from me was genuinely
scared. As he shared his story I found out why – this was his first full day of
freedom in 18 years. For over 6500 days someone told him when to wake up, when
to eat, when to shower, and what to do each day. Today he would make those
decisions for himself.
We made plans to assist him in getting the basic forms of
identification needed to find employment. We also provided him with clothes, but
it was several days before he stopped wearing his prison uniform. It was all he
had worn for 18 years, and he was uncomfortable wearing anything else. He
laughed at how things had changed in 18 years. He was most shocked to find out
that these little black boxes pressed against the ear of almost everyone he met
were, in fact, telephones. They were practically non-existent when he was locked
up. Now, everyone had them. He just shook his head in disbelief.
Mr. Rodriguez now has all of his identification. He wears
normal street clothes. He is employed, and housing for him is in the works. He
has been with us now for just over a month. He has sat in chapel many times,
hearing the truth of God’s Word. However, at this time we are not sure if he has
responded to God’s plan of salvation. Please pray for him as his time with us
nears an end – that he would meet his Savior before heading out on his own. He
is now free from prison bars, but we long for true freedom for him – freedom
found only in Christ!!!
Thank you for equipping us to meet the physical and spiritual needs of men like
Mr. Rodriguez!!
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