5 min read
Holiday Ways To Give
The holiday season is a time for giving, and what better way to spread some cheer than by helping those in need? Homeless and low-income individuals...
“Hold on to instruction, do not let it go; guard it well, for it is your life.” (Proverbs 4:13)
It’s hard to think long term. In today’s culture of instant gratification, creating a long-term plan– whether that be toward financial investments, retiring debt free, or investing spiritually in the next generation—is like swimming upstream. It takes wisdom, hard work, and sacrifice. For Caryl and myself, we were challenged early on with owning our own home before retirement. If we hadn’t made a plan and committed to it long-term, it would never have happened.
“Nearly anyone can control their behavior
for a set time, but unless there is healing at the
heart level, old behaviors will resurface.”
This principle holds true on the journey to recovery. It’s easy to say you’ll quit drinking or using, but without a solid plan, the chances of long-term success are slim. This is evidenced in short-term treatment programs that focus on the symptoms of addiction rather than healing the underlying causes. Nearly anyone can control their behavior for a set time, but unless there is healing at the heart level, old behaviors will resurface. For many, that means relapse.
What you’re doing when you partner with Union Gospel Mission is giving people the vision, tools, and resources necessary to create a long-term plan for themselves and their children. That’s our goal, and that’s what I see happening every day. Through faith-based guidance, wise instruction, and the opportunity to practice new behaviors within a safe, healing community, our residents are able to set a new course…for life.
The Mission is more than emergency food and shelter. We’re addressing issues of the soul, issues of the heart, and offering hope for a new life. As you read the stories in this newsletter, I want you to see how your partnership is an investment in the future. The healing that the Lord is working in hearts and minds every day will have a life-long impact on our guests, their children, and their children’s children.
5 min read
Gratitude in Recovery
One of UGM’s core values is Thankfulness, and this month we reflect on the pursuit of gratitude in our day-to-day lives and in the work of healing...
3 min read
A Pathfinder Responding to the Call from God
by Daniel Dailey, UGM volunteer I used to think, “If I’m going to be involved with anything like UGM, it needs to be effective.” The Holy Spirit...
1 min read
Heart to Heart: The Heart has Eyes
Phil Altmeyer, Executive Director : September 16, 2016
Sometimes we are blind. The problem (for most of us) isn’t with the function of our actual eyeballs, the cornea or the retina or the optical nerve....
As a Mother Loves Her Child: A heart-to-heart message from Phil Altmeyer
Phil Altmeyer, Executive Director : December 7, 2022
“As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you.” (Isaiah 66:13) For the past ten years, I’ve been teaching the UGM women’s Bible study. I...
Gratitude In Action: A heart-to-heart message from Phil Altmeyer
Phil Altmeyer, Executive Director : June 19, 2024
Give thanks in everything; for this is God’s will for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:18) I’ve always marveled that one of the things God wills for our life...