You may be asking yourself, what is a Glimmer?
A Glimmer is a way that God demonstrates His love toward us, in small or special ways. God may use you to encourage someone or He may send someone along to encourage you. Over this last year, we have seen beacons of light and moments of these Glimmers at Portland Rescue Mission. Here are just a few moments that our team has been able to catch:
“A TriMet security guard came to the yellow door saying a man was OD’ing on the Skidmore MAX platform and needed Narcan. I grabbed three doses of Narcan and went with a Connect participant to respond. When we arrived, the man was face down on the ground with only faint signs of life. He appeared to be at death’s door, and with two doses of Narcan in him and very little change, I looked up to see my surroundings. There were people all around observing from far off, and I noticed several people extending their hands toward the man in prayer. I administered the third dose of Narcan, uttered ‘Lord Jesus, ’ and the man’s eyes opened, and he began breathing again. Our help is in the name of the Lord. Thanks be to God.”
-Rev. Andrew, Assistant Burnside Director
“A community house participant has always wanted to be a nurse. Her path changed for a bit when she began struggling with addiction. After finding healing at Shepherd’s Door, she was able to enroll again in school. She is enjoying her classes, has earned a scholarship, and is in the top 10% of her class! While school is challenging, she acknowledges that this hard work will continue to help her meet the goals she has for her life.”
-Taylor, Transition Specialist
“An individual donated two turkeys to us yesterday, and in the process of the donation, asked, ‘Is Patrick there? Dominic? Tim?’ I came up, and He said, ‘Remember me?’ He was a Connect graduate from around 5 years ago! He shared that he was clean for all these recent years and working for Kaiser Health and brought these Turkeys as a point of gratitude. He said, ‘You guys saved my life, thank you for what you do.’ These points of Thanksgiving are all the more real this season.”
-Timothy, Director of Burnside Services
“On one of the coldest nights of the winter so far, a guest came up to me during dinner and asked, ‘Wanna know how good God is?’ I agreed enthusiastically. And then he dangled a set of keys in front of me, ‘These are mine. I moved in today.’ He smiled, we high-fived, and he went off to eat dinner, which I assume tasted better than ever. God is good. All the time.”
-Rev. Andrew, Assistant Burnside Director
“Volunteer Bill and I were manning the Guest Relations Office this morning, and a man in the Connect program came up to greet us. He said, ‘You know, just 60 days ago, I was barefoot, I had no ID, I was homeless, and I hadn’t showered in six months. Now I have my ID, a job, a place to stay, and I shower TWICE A DAY thanks to this program!’ I told him, ‘You know, that is all because God loves you.’ ‘Yes,’ he said, ‘And God loves PRM!”
-Erin, Director of Staff Ministries
“I was privileged yesterday to be working in the yard at Shepherd’s Door with men from The Harbor. Most stayed next door in the garden, but I brought two into the courtyard to prune roses. A female participant from Shepherd’s Door saw these two, came outside where they were, and approached because the three of them were old friends before they each came into the program. When they saw her, they hugged, and both men cried because they had no idea what had happened to their friend. She shared with them, ‘I’ve got a year clean and sober, and Shepherd’s Door saved my life.’ They were so happy to see the obvious change in her life. After she left, they each said, ‘If she can do it, so can I.’ I believe God allowed this chance encounter to bless all 3 of them!
-Holly, Partnership Specialist
Praise God!