Just as Christ’s earthly life began in the humblest of settings, the Tara Beeney Blessing Room (TBBR) started out very simply. Its ministry to reach out to those in need of the basic necessities of life was one conducted in the church basement at New Life Fellowship Church. “As the ministry grew, we began to run out of room to house it all. So, we looked for a place to expand,” recalls Pastor Mark Utech. “The church prayed about what to do next as the building next door became available.”

What transpired next was an act of providence. A request was made for someone from the church to visit an ailing family member in the hospital — a woman named Tara Beeney. Tara was an East Peoria police officer who had been diagnosed with a terminal brain tumor and was given a prognosis of only six months.

Pastor Mark picks up the story: “She accepted Christ’s invitation to new life and started coming to New Life Fellowship. When she found out about the Blessing Room in the basement she immediately volunteered. She loved helping even when she was weak from cancer treatment.”

Tara’s six-months ended up extending to a year plus a day when she was finally called back home on June 4, 2010. Just a few weeks later, Tara’s father asked to meet the pastor for lunch. “Unknown to the church, Tara had changed her will and left $10,000 to the church as a down payment for the new building!” Pastor Mark exclaims. “The building was dedicated in her honor, and we named it after her — The Tara Beeney Blessing Room.”

There are any number of reasons why someone may be in dire need of food, clothes, or household items. Regardless of cause, the volunteers at the TBBR do not judge, nor do they ask for financial status or identification. “We are here in Pekin to minister to anyone that has a need,” Pastor Mark says. “In the past few years, we have ministered to many of the homeless in the Pekin area. We give coats and blankets in the winter months and food and water throughout the year.”

Filling temporal needs is only half of what they do. “Wherever possible, we share the good news of Jesus Christ, because He is the way of finding lasting peace, forgiveness of sin, freedom from any addiction, guilt and shame, and eternal life,” shares the pastor. “Faith in Christ is the result of His action in us and is therefore our action in response.”

Christ’s message of this faith in action is perhaps best exemplified through His words in Matthew 25:35-36, 40. “I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in. I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me. Assuredly, I say to you, since you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.” 

Real life instances of this faith-in-action do occur. A few years ago, during Christmas, a woman and her two children, fleeing from an abusive home in Florida, arrived at the Blessing Room in tears with nothing but the clothes on their backs. The TBBR was able to provide. “Her children not only got something to wear but something for Christmas, too,” Pastor Mark says. “We were all crying. I prayed for them, hugged them goodbye, and never saw them again. Truly, this is what the Blessing Room is all about.”

Pastor Mark’s work is largely to provide all the volunteers need to do the work of the ministry — starting with prayer. “Prayer in any endeavor is the bedrock of going forward so I lift them up to the Lord daily,” he says. “We are blessed to have so many wonderful, dedicated people that give so much of their time and energy to reach those in need. These saints are the ones that deserve the credit for the wonderful work that goes on in the Blessing Room.”

The community of Pekin can help as well, through volunteering, financial donations, by letting others know the Blessing Room is there for them in their time of need, and of course through prayer.

While some may scoff at the power of prayer, when prayers are answered, derision is left without a foundation. When the TBBR required costly renovations that would cost more than could be afforded or that the building was even worth, it was relegated to being used as a storehouse only while volunteers set up tables outside and continued to serve.

“We knew what we were doing was a mission given to us from the Lord but wondered how we could continue to go on,” Pastor Mark admits. “When the CCO director retired we were contacted by the Pekin Outreach Initiative letting us know that the building was available if we were interested. It was an answer to our prayers! We learned that with God all things are possible; just wait on Him! After two years of prayer and waiting, He made a way for a new place for TBBR that is better suited to the ministry and blessed us with a great financial arrangement. God gave us a double portion!”

Pastor Mark concludes: “The answers to our prayers were more than anything we prayed for or imagined for the Blessing Room. We have experienced the blessing of the Lord in a way that let us all know how gracious and wonderful our Jesus is!”

To see how you can help the TBBR’s mission, visit them on Facebook or at their website at www.newlifepekin.com.