Smiling Faces
Jericho Road for us is “smiling faces”. Every time we run into Kevin, or Matt (Matthieu to us) or Amy, or Doug, and others, the warmth of their smile kindles a smile on us as well. Check out the “Our People” section of Jericho Road (https://www.jerichoroad.ca/ourpeople) to enjoy a smile.
In the very early days of Jericho Road, we heard Ray Desmarais share his vision and passion for reaching men who were addicted and broken. Then in 2009, Jon Ruby brought a group of residents from the Discipleship program to a Tres Dias weekend (a Christian ministry that revitalizes Christian men and women in their walk with Christ). From that time, many men attended the weekends and on occasion their wives or friends attended the women’s weekend. As we got closer to the participants from Jericho Road and shared our lives, we felt we were a small part of the recovery process.
In subsequent years, staff and former residents joined the Tres Dias team to organize and serve on weekends. The more we got to closer to them the more we marvelled at the changes that had taken place in their lives.
A few years later, we made arrangements for a man who was homeless and deeply depressed to enter Jericho Road. Keith experienced radical changes in his life. We cheered and celebrated as he drew closer to God, made efforts to reconcile with his children, and returned to productive employment. Jericho Road provided the loving environment filled with God’s grace and mercy.
Our decision to donate monthly to Jericho Road was based on witnessing the impact the ministry had on his life and the lives of others who travelled the Jericho Road.
Jesus does not call us by what we have done. No matter what we’ve done in our lives, that is not our identity. We are all created in the image and likeness of God. Each of us is a child of God. We are very precious and very special to God. Jericho Road is also precious and special in the lives of many.
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