You may want your finger on your volume control. Sorry, I produced it just a bit too loud.
| nov_newsletter.pdf |
Our Story....
The Ritz Family is on the cusp of some exciting changes and most of our energy has gone into gathering information to make important decisions, making those decisions, and then putting the wheels in motion to carry out those decisions. Drum roll please... Sometime in the near future (Goal Date: Oct. 15th) our family will become Mission Service Corps missionaries serving in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania!!!!! This may seem like a huge leap of faith to you, but what I've learned along the way is that leaps of faith are actually made up of several babysteps of obedience. The first babystep happened two years ago when Jason started taking seminary classes - working toward a Master's of Divinity. The next came about a year ago when we contacted the North American Mission Board and asked to be considered as applicants to be career missionaries in the area of Collegiate Ministry somewhere in the United States. Over the next 9 months we would connect with some great old friends (John & Anna Ramirez), talk with folks from New York to Nevada about ministry opportunities, attend a collegiate ministry summit, and little-by-little learn that there are very few fully-funded collegiate ministry positions available outside of the Bible belt. The next babystep was a 12 hour drive from Nashville to Lock Haven, PA to visit the folks at Big Woods Bible Church and the New Life Ministry on the campus of Lock Haven University. This was probably the biggest "babystep" of faith of all for me. By visiting this location I was opening the door to the possibility that we may very well end up in a position where it would be necessary to raise support - which, in my mind, was synonymous with begging for money... I have a hard enough time asking someone to babysit my kid - let alone to give me $50 a month!!!! But, everything we heard about the school and the community in Lock Haven seemed tailor-made for us, so we bit the bullet and took the trip up north. That trip sealed the deal. After meeting the people, seeing the area, and some heartfelt conversations, the questions changed from "do we really want to raise support," to "how will we go about raising support." We are so excited about this new adventure. Raising support is still a bit scary, but we are confident that God doesn't order what he can't pay for, so we are setting out to find ministry partners who will help us get the resources together that we need to do the work of the ministry there, knowing that God already has a plan and that we will be blessed as we seek it out!! PRAY FOR US!!!!!!!! The next babystep is a big one. We need to start meeting with folks and seeking out those who will become our ministry partners, and we need to do so with unwaivering faith, trusting God to meet our needs. May God bless you the rest of this summer and help you to take the babysteps of obedience that will lead you into your next big adventure!
