Patrick Glynn Marley - a tribute to his life and an awesome God

This blog post is a tribute to Patrick Marley, a former Rescue Mission resident and staff member whose life was truly changed. Patrick worked in our food service department and came to know Jesus while in the program. As he grew in his faith, he also took on a new life and identity.

Patrick Glynn Marley, age 35, passed away unexpectedly on July 18, 2009. One way to see this sudden death is "well, you never know." And we don't. None of us are promised tomorrow.

Even so, what's great about Patrick is that when he came to the mission for help, he left with a new life and the hope of heaven. That's why our mission statement reads that we "assess and meet" peoples' needs - including (especially) their spiritual needs. And as it turns out, Patrick was not the only one affected by this.

This is Patrick getting baptized in 2006

(that's right, it's a swimming pool!)

This is Patrick getting a hug after his baptism - a happy man!

As I went to the funeral home earlier this week, I was greeted like a family member by a family I had never met. Those who were close to Patrick knew that the Mission played a role in changing his life, and they were clearly grateful for that. They knew that Patrick was ready to go to heaven, although no one anticipated it would be this soon.

"O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (I Corinthians 15:56-57).

May God grant grace, comfort and peace to Patrick's family and friends, with the assurance that we can have hope of seeing him again because of the free gift of eternal life offered by Jesus to anyone who comes to Him in faith. This is the "Mission" of the Rescue Mission - that people come to get temporary shelter and leave knowing they have an eternal home.