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to people with life-disrupting problems |
Prayer Letter
January 2007
Praying for Crisis Centre Ministries,
its work, staff
and clients
in the context of Bristol's inner city areas.
Dear people,
Last week, I prepared a news update for the Christ Church prayer meeting. It has just been pointed out to me that the members of the wider CCM prayer list would probably appreciate it as well. The first part already went out as our thank-you message for praying about and helping at the Christmas Party; here is the second part. Please note that the Strategy Day mentioned below is tomorrow... well, today now.
Thank you for your continued support.
Every blessing,
Paul.
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I received several individual messages about the party:
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As a novice of Crisis Centre Parties I was very impressed with how well organised everything was and the great co-operation between CCM, Elim and the volunteers.
I think 60 plates of food were initially made up and consumed, there were also some extra plates handed out when the first batch were eaten and towards the end there must have been at least five extra people arrived for whom there was only cake and biscuits available. With that in mind I would think about 70 clients attended.
I was very surprised by how many presents and boxes we had available to give out at the beginning and how very little we had left at the end. It was interesting to see the different sub-groups even within the main client group. There were those who were truly grateful and bewildered by what was happening. I thought that was really sad and impressing at the same time. There were the regulars who keep up the brave face and come along with resignation. There were the LITE course members who really looked like they had a sense of belonging and appeared 'on the way up'. And of course there were the die-hard ones who came for what they could get with a large group of friends and then shared out their goodies on the pavement in a Dickensian huddle, tossing unwanted items into the local gardens.
Thanks for a great welcome and introduction to the Crisis Centre so far.
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The first man through the door was shivering in a very thin jacket, and was immediately fitted out with a new, very warm one from the clothes table, which he put on straight away on top of the old one, absolutely delighted.
Towards the end of the party when everything but a few ladies' parcels had been given out, a young man came in - shaven head, hands blue with cold - asking for a hat and gloves. Didn't want food or presents, nothing to do but try opening a wrapped "Lady's" present praying that it would contain what he needed - it did! A super warm navy hat and a pair of black knitted gloves - put on immediately with a huge smile and many thanks.
Jon's magic trick with a story about pieces of coal, which turned into diamonds, was listened to with rapt attention by many of the clients, and the analogy was clear. If Jon comes another time, we must remember to make sure to keep an eye on anything left at the table by a client who goes up to take part on the stage - someone nicked the girl's gift! But we had a replacement for her. (She had received her parcel as she was going to leave, but then decided to stay and watch the magic show).
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As for current needs...
There are the three ongoing needs of prayer, volunteers and money.
- We are in a spiritual battle, and whatever else we do, broken lives will not be restored without prayer. Please pray too for the staff and volunteers, as they seek to show God's love and provide practical help to people who are in the middle of addiction, mental health problems, family conflicts, court cases, and much more. It is a privilege to be able to help, but it is often quite draining, both emotionally and spiritually.
- We are struggling to keep the coffee shop open during the daytimes, so daytime volunteers are especially appreciated. At present, we are open on five evenings, but only two and a half daytimes.
- We need many more people to give us financial support on a regular monthly basis. At present, two thirds of our support comes as one-off gifts, which makes planning a nightmare. Also, the gifts tend to come in around Christmas (and we are most grateful for all the gifts that have come in recently!), but very few come in over the Summer, so year after year we find ourselves failing to pay the staff their salaries as we should in July, August and September.
Other needs that spring to mind:
- Pray for Claire, our new Office Manager, as she settles in to the job and copes with a challenging and often chaotic environment.
- We are applying for some money to enable Andy to take the LITE Course students on a week (five days) away at an 'Outward Bound' type centre on Dartmoor. We have done these in the past, and they have frequently proved to be life-changing for folk who have grown up in the city and never experienced God's creation in this way. Also, overcoming the physical challenges they are set does wonders for their self esteem.
- The staff and trustees are meeting for a 'Strategy Day' on Wednesday 10 January, to review the work, seek God's guidance, and make plans for the future.
- We believe we need to take active steps towards finding more suitable premises for the coffee shop. There are also several problems we need to address with our current building. We are struggling to make the progress we need in these areas with the current staff and volunteers, and would really appreciate one or two volunteers who know about properties and building maintenance, who could help us move forward with these pieces of work.
- We are still looking for someone who could takes notes at the BCAN Homeless Forum (a Thursday evening, once every two months) and types them up afterwards.
- I would really appreciate a volunteer who could take over the web site maintenance and development: this is increasingly important, and I can't give it the time that is needed.
- One of our trustees has just had to step down due to pressures of work and family commitments. We are looking for at least one new trustee to replace her. They have to be a committed Christian, but apart from that, there are several areas where we could do with strengthening the trustees, so if anyone might be interested, please contact me and I'll be happy to talk further.
- Please pray that the churches in Bristol recognise that caring for the poor, the weak and the vulnerable is not an optional extra: it is the essence of the gospel message. As Christians we are called to demonstrate God's love in the way we live, as well as telling people about the God of love.
- A reminder that anyone is welcome to come to the 'Helping Vulnerable People' training we provide each month. This month (7:30 pm Wednesday 10 at CCM, or 9:45 am Saturday 13 at Trinity Tabernacle) we are looking at homelessness. More details on the BCAN web site (www.bcan.org.uk) - it is an easy way for anyone who is interested to find out more.
- The BCAN Homeless Forum is meeting this Thursday 11 January, 7:30 pm at the Caring at Christmas office, Julian House. Everyone interested in homelessness in Bristol is very welcome.
- Finally, please give thanks for yourselves and for all the other individuals and churches who pray for us and support us through volunteering and giving, and who make it all possible.
Thank you again for your support and encouragement.
Every blessing,
Paul.