Give us this day our daily bread… againLast Month, I wrote that “Give us this day our daily bread” in some way or another, is a prayer that has been echoed in our kitchens on many a morning. Well, this past month a new member of the cooking staff was taught this idea by one of our men in the Graduate Services Program. The Chef wanted to be able to make Chicken Alfredo pasta for lunch the next day. She told the GSP student that she needed parmesan cheese to make the sauce. The student told our new Chef that he would go look for it. He checked the pantry, dry storage and the refrigerators for this needed ingredient. He could not find it anywhere, so the Chef asked if we could purchase it. Because the GSP student already knows we are on a very tight budget, he simply told her, “Pray for it”. She took his advice, and as has happened on so many previous occasions, the Lord provided through a donation. Not only did He provide parmesan, but he provided fresh parmesan and enough for a least 2 other meals.

God knows what you need before you even ask

God’s provision will never cease to amaze me. Last month I discussed how there is no prayer too big or too small for Him. There is never anything that He doesn’t care about in our lives. He is such a loving provider that even when we forget or just don’t even think about praying for a need, He still takes care of it.We live on a very tight budget here at the Mission, not only for food, but for equipment purchases and repairs. If our Chefs want a food item or spice that doesn’t fit the food budget, we can’t purchase it. If we need a new piece of equipment for the kitchen, we seek to place it in the yearly budget and hope that it makes the budget cuts. With so many programs, older buildings and worn-n down equipment, the list of needs is much larger than what the money can supply.

To say that some of our equipment is old would be a serious understatement. We have ovens, refrigerators, and prep tables that are well over 30 years old. Because we don’t have the funds to replace some of this equipment, we often have basic repairs that need to be done. As a matter of fact, we have certain maintenance companies that know us by our voice, we call so often. Many of them are kind enough to give us a break on the costs, but sometimes the equipment is past it’s “band aide-ability” to be repaired. A couple months ago our ice machine stopped functioning properly. The repair company, who has been kind enough to get the ice machine to limp along, for the last couple years, told us that there was “no more limp left.”Although I did not have the budget for a new ice machine, I had to bite the bullet and purchase one. I realized I would have to cut something from the budget in order to make up the money. It was a tough thing to consider, but we had no other choice. It’s not possible to run a kitchen without an ice machine. I ordered the ice machine that week from a company that gave us a really good deal. That exact day, the kitchen received a check for half the amount of the ice machine, and the attached memo read “kitchen equipment needs”. Before the ice machine was delivered we received a second check for the other half of the ice machine. God knew our needs and provided for them.

God provides more than we could ever imagine

For the last two years, we have decided that we needed to purchase new chairs for the dining room. The first year the chairs were torn and ratty looking. The second year they were just plain starting to fall apart! We tried to place them on this year’s budget, but the Mission just had too many other, greater needs. We had to make the decision to hold off the chairs for another year, and to try fix the ones we had.The facilities and maintenance team came in and worked with the chefs to repair as many chairs as possible. The team did a great job, but they were only able to keep about 3 quarters of the chairs. The rest had to be thrown out. The 20-25 chairs that were deemed unsalvageable were just too flimsy, and we were not willing to take the chance that one of our guests might fall and get hurt trying to sit in a damaged chair.We decided that this would suffice for now, and that when we planned next year’s budget the chairs would be a top priority.

This was not God’s plan.

Last month, we received a call from a large organization stating that they had over 100 chairs that they were going to get rid of, and asked if we wanted them. My first thought was, “why would I want another set of broken down chairs?” I then realized that this very well could be a provision that would solve our chair concerns. We sent a driver to pick up the chairs and they are phenomenal. These chairs are in great shape - not to mention they are industrial and will last us for years. God knew that these chairs were going to be available, and He wanted to bless us with them. He did this without the Mission spending a dime on a purchase that probably would have cost us over $10,000.00.God’s Provision is a constant in the little things and in the big ones. All you have to do is look. If you would like to be a part of helping serve those that are less fortunate and see all the great things He is doing, please come on down. We have opportunities for people to partner with us in many ways.