The Downtown Rescue Mission is a nonprofit organization serving the homeless living throughout northern Alabama and southern Tennessee. For more than 30 years, we have saved numerous lives and have had a profound impact on thousands of others by providing Christ-filled, enriched and compassionate services to those in desperate need.

From the President/CEO: The Gift

The Gift

I once heard a story about a wealthy Christian man’s son who had earned a full scholarship to study business at an Ivy League School. The son worked hard and graduated with honors.  For weeks before his graduation the son would hint to his father that he wanted the shiny new BMW that sat in the car dealer’s show room near their home as a graduation gift.  Graduation day came and the son was filled with excitement to get home to see if his dad came through with his gift.  The father called the son into his study and gave his son a beautifully rapped gift box.  He unwrapped the gift to find a new Bible with his name engraved on it.  The son was devastated that his father had only gotten him a new Bible and in total disappointment slammed it down on his dad’s desk and said, “This is all I get for all my hard work”.  He stormed out and never contacted his father again.

Through the years the son did well and built his own thriving business.  His bitterness towards his father faded through the years and he thought about going back to surprise his dad and mend their relationship.  As he was planning his trip he received a call from an estate lawyer telling him that his dad had passed away and left him everything.  With great sadness he went back to his father’s home to sort everything out.  When he arrived he went to his father’s study and surprisingly found the Bible in the same place on the desk where he had slammed it many years before.  With tears in his eyes he opened it and out slipped a key with a BMW logo and a note saying paid in full.

Just like the son in this story sometimes we miss out on the gifts that God has in-store for us.  At DRM we consider every person who comes through our doors a gift from God.  Our goal is to share with each of them the greatest gift of all, which is salvation through Jesus Christ.  God loved us so much that he sent his son to die and be a payment for our sins.  Jesus died for all of our sins and rose again so that anyone can receive his perfect gift.

Please keep the Downtown Rescue Mission in your prayers as we continue to minister to the needy folks of our community everyday.  The last few months have been more difficult as we have been having for more men, women and children coming to us for help and at the same time our donations have slowed way down.  Please consider what you might do to help us continue to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Thank you!

Keith Overholt, MBA
President/CEO