Next Step L.A. (Bethel OPC): Day 3: Working at the Union Rescue Mission Thrift Store

Today we went to the thrift shop that is run by URM (Union Rescue Mission). All of the profits made there goes directly to the mission and all of the expenses of the shelter and Hope Gardens.
I was very surprised by the work atmosphere, all of the people who worked there always were having fun and had smiles on there faces and made work fun. They were also working very hard while they had fun with there job. They get many donations and have many things to sort through to see if they work and price them. It is very impressive that they keep up with everything because they have a small staff and the store itself is huge. The mission of URM is very amazing and the thrift store is vital to keeping the mission running.

~ Tanner Hendrikse

Today, after we got back to Hope Gardens we had a lot of free time to do various things. During this time I went the main lawn area and played with some of the many kids here. I also found time to sit down and have a very deep conversation with a Next Step Ministries staff member named Lauren. We sat in the grass talking for a good while and by the time we wrapped up our conversation it was time to circle up to pray for dinner. One of the little girls who lives here decided she was going to say the blessing, but she also prayed for her Mom's cancer to never return and that her family would never be poor again. When she said those things my heart cried out for her because no one should ever have to deal with those problems especially at such a young age. After dinner we had worship. This time is personally my favorite part of the day because I get to sing praises to my Savior, I always feel so close to him when I sing. After worship we always have church time were we talk about the lesson we had at the end of worship. The lesson was about who we think God is to us, not what out parents think, not what our church thinks, not who our friends think he is, but us. This lesson was very interesting to me and I really got a lot out of it. I never really thought about who I thought God was in this way before, but I'm glad that I have and now I see God in a different light.

~ Angie Wieskamp