Merry Christmas from SafeHouse Ministries!

A special Christmas episode.  Merry Christmas!

Transcript

Phil Shuler: 0:00

HellO, and welcome to Renew, Restore, Rejoice, the Safe House Ministries podcast, where we share stories of the power of God to change lives through Safe House Ministries. Safe House Ministries is based out of Columbus, Georgia, and we are a ministry that exists to love and serve people who have been affected by addiction, homelessness, and incarceration. I'm your host, Phil Shuler, the Director of Development for Safe House Ministries here in Columbus, Georgia. Safe House serves

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several hundred,

Phil Shuler: 0:26

people each month as they transition back into our community. Safe House provides an abundance of services

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Including 184.

Phil Shuler: 0:34

beds for homeless individuals and families, case management for obtaining job skills and long term employment. Over 300 hot meals every day, free clothing, and so much more. One of the most incredible services that Safe House provides is our free 9 12 month intensive outpatient substance abuse program, which is state licensed, CARF accredited, and has no wait list. Almost 100 percent of individuals staying in our shelters who follow our three phase program become fully employed within a few months. And 68 percent of individuals who stay at least one night with us End up finding work and moving into their own home. Thank you for being with us today and listening to our podcast. We hope you enjoy this week's episode.

1:13

Hello, and thank you for being with us today, and Merry Christmas to you. Thanks for joining us here this Christmas week for the Safe House Ministries podcast. This is a wonderful and a joyous week, and we are so excited that we are able to serve the Lord and help so many people during this. Wonderful time of year. It is a time for joy, a time for hope, a time for miracles, but it is also a time that is the most difficult time for so many of our clients at Safe House Ministries. Those who are struggling with addiction, especially who are struggling with homelessness and who are affected by things that have just plagued them and Held them in bondage for so long. This is a time of year when they are reminded that for many of them, their families have written them off. Uh, their behavior as a result of their addiction has caused walls to go up, has caused families to often say that we don't want you around anymore. And that includes not coming around for the holiday season. So there is a great increase in depression and discouragement and A time of loneliness for so many people and we're glad that we can be a source of joy and hope and help to those who are affected by these things during this time of year. This is such a blessed time for Safe House Ministries. Many of you have given gifts and done some wonderful things for the holidays, particularly for the children and mothers who are in our women's shelter and in our family shelter. Thank you for that. Thank you to all of you who have had a part in giving us, lunches or dinners, providing. holiday meals. Thank you to those of you who have given gifts, who have done so many kind things and sent notes and holiday wishes, and just been an encouragement to our clients that are just having a rough time this year. Thank you for that. Of course, this time of year we at Safe House Ministries. Celebrate the reason. Why we exist in the first place. And that is because God sent his son Jesus to be born as a baby so that he could live and one day die for our sins and give us the ultimate victory. The ultimate victory over all bondage, all addiction, all struggle, all sin. and I'd like to take a minute to read the account of our Savior's birth from the Book of Luke in the Bible chapter two. And it came to pass in those days that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. And this taxing was first made when SIUs was governor of Syria and all went to be taxed everyone into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee. Out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, into the city of David, which is called Bethlehem because he was of the house and lineage of David to be taxed with Mary, his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was that while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger. Because there was no room for them in the end. And there were in the same country, shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them and the glory of the Lord shone, roundabout them, and they were sore, afraid. And the angel said unto them, fear not for behold. I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people for unto you is born this day in the city of David, a savior. Which is Christ the Lord. That is a wonderful passage that reminds us that no matter how great the struggle is that we face, no matter how dark the darkness around us is, no matter how deep the depths of despair we have fallen into. Jesus is here to give us hope, and Jesus is a source of hope for so many of our men and women and children who are with us in our shelters for so many others who may not be in our shelters, but Who are being helped by our case managers with getting into housing of their own, with being able to get off the streets and get stability and victory back in their lives. And it's a wonderful time of year where we can smile and we can remember the reason that we have hope at all. The reason that we have joy at all. The reason that we have the ability to overcome any struggle. Is because God sent his son Jesus to be born as a baby, to live and die for our sins. So. I hope that that reminder is an encouragement to you. I hope that you take some time to reflect on the blessing of Advent, on the blessing of the miracle of our Savior's birth, and especially on the purpose for which he came, which was to die for us, so that we could have victory over sin and death to one day be with him forever in heaven. So thank you again to all our supporters. Thank you to. All of you who have given so much already this year, thank you for your willingness to continue to support the work that Safe House Ministries does this year and every year. Merry Christmas to you. Merry Christmas to your family, and we wish you a wonderfully happy New Year next week as well. God bless you, and we'll be back next week

06-21-23 SAFEHOUSE-CH2: 7:13

We look forward to being with you again next week as we share another testimony about the power and the goodness of God to change lives through Safe House Ministries. if you are someone listening to this podcast that loves to hear these stories of the great things that God is doing in changing people's lives for the better, and if you would like to be a part of that work, please reach out to us You can reach us at 2101 Hamilton Road, Columbus, Georgia, 31,904. You can call us at seven oh six three two two. 3 7, 7 3, or you can email us at info@safehouse-ministries.com.

Microphone (Samson Q2U Microphone)-2: 7:50

Thank you so much for being with us this week for the renew restore and rejoice podcast of safe house ministries, we pray that God will bless you this week. And we look forward to having you back with us again next week for a new episode.