Gospel Rescue Mission

I DESERVED REJECTION… BUT HE GAVE ME ACCEPTANCE.

So many times, I hear people say, “God could never accept me. I’ve done too many bad things.”

We beat ourselves up over our past, forgetting that sin was natural to us because we were born with a sinful nature.

Thank God we don’t have to clean ourselves up before He accepts us.

Jesus came to take our filthy rags and make us righteous. No matter what we’ve done, He accepts us, cleanses us, and calls us His child.

In Luke 19, we read about a man named Zacchaeus.

Zacchaeus wanted to see Jesus, but no one believed he was worthy enough. People pushed him aside and treated him like an outcast.

So Zacchaeus ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree just to catch a glimpse of Him.

When Jesus reached that spot, He looked up and called Zacchaeus by name.

He saw him… truly saw him.

Jesus told him to come down because He was going to his house that night.

In the eyes of the world, Zacchaeus was one of the worst sinners. People believed he didn’t deserve to be near Jesus.

Yet Jesus accepted him, changed his heart, and called him His own.

No matter what you think about yourself right now… you are not hopeless.

Jesus sees you.

Jesus loves you.

And His grace is still enough.

🎉👏 We’re proud to celebrate the graduates of the Pima Basic Construction Training Cohort at the Job Training Center at Gospel Rescue Mission!

Through our partnership with Pima Community College’s Building & Construction Technology program, these students successfully completed their training, earned their National Center for Construction Education and Research core credential, and received the equivalent of 6 college credits — creating a stronger and faster pathway into careers in the construction industry. 🛠️🎓

This accomplishment represents hard work, perseverance, and the determination to build a better future. We are incredibly proud of every graduate and all they have achieved.

One family member shared, “I’m so proud of him, and I would not miss this.”

Another graduate said, “It feels good to be certified anywhere I go.”

And another shared, “Now I have the experience to get into an entry-level career. This was worth the credit — it’s amazing.”

Programs like this do more than provide training — they open doors to opportunity, stability, and long-term transformation.

Congratulations to the entire cohort! Your future is bright, and we can’t wait to see where these new skills and opportunities take you next. 💙

What an incredible evening at our Leave a Legacy of Hope Dinner. ❤️

Thank you to everyone who joined us for a night filled with encouragement, meaningful conversation, and heartfelt fellowship. The turnout was incredible, and it was inspiring to see so many people gathered together with a shared desire to create lasting impact in the lives of those experiencing homelessness in Tucson.

A special thank you to Peter Wong for sharing his family’s powerful story of generosity, faith, and vision. His testimony was a moving reminder that God can use faithful stewardship to change lives for generations to come.

We are also deeply grateful to Bill Stevens and Trey Andrew of Generous Wealth Advisors for providing practical, easy-to-understand guidance on planned giving, donor-advised funds, tax-efficient charitable strategies, estate planning, and other ways individuals and families can maximize their Kingdom impact while supporting causes they care deeply about.

☕ We’re excited to continue these important conversations through our upcoming quarterly Coffee and Conversation gatherings at GRM’s Opportunity Coffee and Cafe, beginning in August. These smaller, relaxed gatherings will give attendees the opportunity to explore topics from the evening in greater detail, ask questions, and learn more about intentional stewardship, planned giving, and leaving a lasting legacy of hope.

More details coming soon.

Thank you for helping bring hope, shelter, and transformation to our community and for helping move people from Homeless to Wholeness every single day.

For more information on giving options, visit:
www.grmtucson.com/leave-a-legacy
or consult your personal wealth advisor.

Duane’s story is one of running, breaking, and finally finding a second chance at Gospel Rescue Mission.

He grew up in Michigan with a strict Southern Baptist dad and a more lenient mom. After leaving home and losing his dad, Duane says “I just ran wild for like a very long time, coast to coast… doing basically stupid stuff getting in trouble.” He talks about “a lot of dope,” “a couple of busted marriages,” and years he can barely remember. “I was always high.”

The deepest regret is his daughter. When his ex‑wife called at 5:30 a.m. in labor, he didn’t sober up—“I did three shots of Jack before I went to the hospital.” His addiction and choices shattered his family, “I made mistakes, and I've paid for them enormously. But that's not who I am now. That's gone.”

After years of rehabs, dope houses, and “running the streets,” Duane finally hit a point where he’d had enough. “I just had enough. I couldn't run the streets no more. I'm not a young man.” He landed in a medical respite, and there a friend told him about Gospel Rescue Mission.

GRM became the doorway God used to pull him out of the life that was killing him. He started working in the kitchen and joined the culinary class. What he found at GRM was grace, “God knows I make mistakes—but they didn't hold it against me, didn't judge me at all.”

He’s convinced: “I'd probably be dead right now if it wasn't for GRM.”

GRM has also become the closest thing he has to family. “I don't trust people a lot,” but here, that’s slowly changing. “I trust the people here, because they're looking out for my well‑being… they don't just let me flounder.”

As he nears the end of his internship in the Opportunity Coffee & Cafe, he’s doing things the old Duane never would have: finishing what he started, planning ahead, saving money.

Duane’s story teaches us that there comes a point when you just can’t live the same destructive way anymore, and that with one step at a time, you can decide who you want to be today.

1 Corinthians 13:7
“Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.”

The ultimate example of love is the sacrificial love of Jesus. He never gives up on us.

When we take a moment to reflect on our lives, many of us can remember times when people gave up on us — and even times when we gave up on ourselves. We often become consumed by our mistakes and convinced that what we’ve done is unforgivable.

Yet even in those moments, when everyone else may walk away, Jesus still loves us. He still has hope for us. He still cheers us on. He never loses faith in us.

Usually, when we think about faith, we think of our faith in God — believing in Him and trusting Him. But have you ever considered that God believes in you? He trusts you. No matter how far you feel you’ve fallen, God never loses faith in you.

He is always hopeful and endured every circumstance imaginable to bring us into a relationship with Him.

Romans 5:8
“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

When we look at Jesus, we see what love truly is.