Our Mission

Following God's command to love our neighbor as ourselves, the Nashville Rescue Mission seeks to help the hurting of Middle Tennessee by offering food, clothing and shelter to the homeless and recovery programs to those enslaved in life degrading problems. Our goal is to help people know the saving grace of Jesus, and through Him, gain wisdom for living, find fulfillment in life and become a positive part of their community.

A Ministry Rooted in Christ

As a Christ-centered, Christ-focused ministry, our staff and Board alike agree to uphold the truths enclosed in the Constitutional Purpose, Apostles Creed, and Statement of Faith as follows:


Article 1-Constitutional Purpose

As stated in the Charter of Incorporation, the Nashville Rescue Mission, Inc. has for its purpose: Glorifying Jesus Christ by providing temporary shelter and food for homeless persons, providing spiritual and material aid to people in need, helping in their recovery, and promoting the preaching, teaching and spreading of His Gospel.

Apostles Creed

"I believe in God the Father Almighty. And in Jesus Christ His only begotten Son our Lord, who was born of the Holy Ghost and the Virgin Mary; crucified under Pontius Pilate, and buried; the
third day He rose from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father, from thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead. And in the Holy Ghost; the holy Church; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; the life everlasting."




Statement of Faith

1. We believe the Bible, both Old and New Testament, to be the infallible Word of God.

2. We believe there is one God, eternally existing as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

3. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is Deity, that He was born of a virgin, that we are redeemed by His atoning death through His shed blood, that He bodily resurrected and ascended into heaven, and that He will come again in power and great glory.

4. We believe that people are saved through a direct, personal encounter with the risen Lord, at which time they are regenerated by the Holy Spirit.

5. We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit, by Whom Christ indwells each believer enabling them to live a Godly life of obedience as they reach for maturity.

6. We believe the Holy Spirit unites all true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ and that together they from one body, the church.

Biblical Basis of Rescue Missions

The Good Samaritan

Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan to illustrate how we are to respond to those in need. The Good Samaritan only met the physical needs of the man who was in need. The application for us as staff of the Mission is that sometimes we are only initially invited to meet a physical need. We should always be ready to show compassion to a person in need regardless of the circumstances.

Our Main Purpose

To offer a cup of cold water in Jesus' Name
To offer the Living Water of Jesus Christ

These two Biblical principles are important for those working at the Mission. If we can only do one of them, we have obeyed the Bible. A Rescue Mission is a "Soul Winning Station," but it must meet the needs of both body and soul.

Our History

In 1953 Dr. Charles Fuller led a revival in Nashville's very own Ryman Auditorium. Each day he walked from his hotel to the Ryman, passing numerous homeless men; some asked him for money, all touched his heart. Seeing the state of homelessness moved Fuller in such a way that he began to incorporate it into his revival sermons.

By the end of the week, Dr. Charles Fuller, a radio preacher from California, was given a love offering for his service, which he then returned to the people of Nashville to care for the city's homeless and hurting.

Thus in 1954, with the signatures of eleven hundred Nashvillians supporting it, the Nashville Union Mission, now known city-side as the Nashville Rescue Mission, opened its doors to serve Middle Tennessee's hurting and homeless men warm beds, hot meals and Christian guidance.

Serving the physical and spiritual needs of the city's hurting and homeless has long been the commission of the Nashville Rescue Mission. Since the beginning it has desired to provide not only meals and beds, but also support and long-term treatment for men with addictions and other debilitating problems. Throughout the years, the Mission's recovery programs developed and expanded to include a specialized program for young men, called the Anchor Home.

Moreover, a little over a decade after the Nashville Union Mission opened, the ground works were laid to extend services to women and children. In 1967, a Ladies Auxiliary gathered to discuss their concern for the growing number of women and children found on the streets of Nashville.

The women worked with the Men's Ministry and in 1968, through bake sales, garage sales and the sale of homemade Christmas ornaments, a women's division opened up on the second floor of the Men's Mission.

Within a year of opening, however, it became clear that there was just not enough room on the second floor of the Men's Mission to care for the women and children. Seeking space for the children to play, and having privacy for the women as a major concern, the Women's Mission moved to a location on Demonbreun Street. Four years later, the Ladies Auxiliary was well on its way to providing food shelter, clothing and spiritual counseling to women and their children. In May 1987, this women's ministry formally evolved into the Mission's Family Life Center.

Today the Men's Mission is located at the corner of 7th Avenue and Lafayette Street in the old Sears building and the Women's Mission, which includes the Hope Center and the Family Life Center, on Rosa L. Parks Blvd.


All of the Nashville Rescue Mission's services are free of charge, therefore the Mission has relied solely on personal contributions and support from local churches and businesses to run its ministry from the very first offering collected in 1953 by Dr. Charles Fuller. While other organizations may require payment for a safe night's rest, the Mission simply asks the men for an hour of their time to attend evening chapel service. Therefore, the Mission subsists almost entirely from donated food and materials and is 100% funded by donations, 78% of which comes from individual donors, like you! Thank you for making it possible to feed, clothe and care for the least, last and lost of Middle Tennessese.
 


Serving Christ together, we will provide over 500,000 meals
and 200,000 nights of safe rest this year