James Bishop
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...
David, 31, spent half his life homeless. At the age of 14, he was taken from his family home due to a domestic violence incident. After that, he jumped from group homes to shelters to rehab programs to the streets to jail and back to the streets.
Today, David said he is extremely thankful that Jesus never gave up on him. “I tried to hide. I tried to give up. I overdosed.” But somehow God always intervened. “I’d go hide in a corner of an alley somewhere and some lady would tap me on the shoulder. ‘Here, do you want a sandwich? Jesus loves you!’”
Here at UGM, we, too, are grateful that Jesus pursued David, grateful that he came to UGM, that he committed to 18 months in pursuit of life transformation and that he allowed us to walk alongside him.
“I know that I can be more than I was able to be as a teenager,” David said. “I didn’t have support…or motivation, for that matter. I didn’t believe in myself. Now I can see a future. I have a support network. I’ve been clean and sober for 20 months. I’m actually saving money. I quit smoking cigarettes.”
David has a relationship with God, with his son, with his brothers in the program and the people at his church. He’s looking forward to cashing his first paycheck and paying his first month’s rent.
“I was gonna be the next guy they scraped off the sidewalk.”
Instead, David is a God-dependent, contributing member of society, and we are grateful.
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...
4 min read
World Homeless Day
Every year on October 10, people around the world take a day to acknowledge the needs of those in their communities facing homelessness, and we...
Mental Health and Homelessness
Union Gospel Mission : December 1, 2013
Holly Simons, a psychiatric nurse, worked in the prison system for 10 years and first visited UGM while researching safe places for an inmate to go...
Healing from Addiction: Shanena's written testimony
Genevieve Gromlich, former Content and Communications Manager : November 9, 2022
Shanena (pronounced Shane-na) completed UGM Women's LIFE Recovery at the Center for Women and Children in Spring 2022 and recently reached out to...
Women's Recovery: Reflecting the God Who Sees
Lynn Yount, UGM Volunteer : July 23, 2020
As UGM's Women's Lead LIFE Recovery Counselor, Jana Ross helps dozens of women and children every week who are suffering from the effects of trauma,...