2015 in Review This year we enjoyed our first real family
vacation in over 4 years, visited family,
and simply enjoyed life together in Utah.
In May we drove back to the Midwest for two family weddings:
Nicoles sister,
Abby, and cousin, Brandon. We also were able to visit some of
our partner churches for fund raising and updates
on our ministry efforts in Utah.
In August we took a much-needed family vacation to California to
visit family, go to the beach, and enjoy
taking Jonathan to Disneyland for the first time.
We enjoy regular date nights and finally mustered up the courage
to do a
cooking class together and loved it! We learned how to make
homemade ravioli and not only was it delicious, but we really
enjoyed the process as well.
Jonathan is in preschool this year and loves it. He goes three
days a week for three hours a day. He has learned the
alphabet quickly and we love watching him learn new things, make
new friends, and enjoy the process of learning. Hell
attend Kindergarten next year and loves all things super
heroes.
Brett started taking online classes at Golden Gate Baptist
Theological
Seminary and is pursuing a Master of Theological Studies degree.
While a lot
of work, God is using it to grow him tremendously and he works
diligently to
apply everything hes learning to his pastoral ministry at
Redeeming Life.
We sincerely want to thank you for your faithfulness in
partnering with us in prayer and in finances. We couldnt do this
without you. We are confident that God will continue to do amazing
things here to redeem Salt Lake City by the power of the gospel,
all for His glory, and its an honor to have you and your family on
board with us in this endeavor.
[email protected] // www.DisplayTheGospel.com
Dear Ministry Partners, This past year has been an incredible
year for our family! I came on staff as an intern for the Redeeming
Life Church in January of 2015 hoping that God would provide a more
stable ministry position with the church. God has been growing and
developing me tremendously in the area of my personal and pastoral
calling, and by Gods grace, I am now the full time Pastor of
Discipleship at Redeeming Life Church! I couldnt be more grateful
and honored to serve God and His Church in this way in this city.
My first task was to begin building a worship team for our church.
We started with about three people and now we have ten. In addition
to building this team and leading every week, Ive been training our
next worship leader and will handing the baton to him in the next
month or so. Every Tuesday evening I lead a House Fellowship group
in our home that averages 12 adults and 10 kids. We pray together,
share a meal, study the Text, and discuss how to apply it to our
daily lives. Ive also been training and equipping some men in
leading fellowship groups, and in January 2016, I will launch two
young men out of my House Fellowship in order to start another one
in another part of the city. In addition to all this, I preach
about once a month and meet weekly with multiple guys for
discipleship, accountability, and ministry training. I have also
begun training and leading small teams to do street evangelism and
outreach on the streets of North Temple where we interact with,
pray for, and minister to prostitutes, drug dealers, and the
homeless. On of the most exciting things about planting this church
is that we have the opportunity to create a new normal in terms of
what means to be the church. Thats why were so serious about
prayer, evangelism, discipleship, and teaching and training every
believer to live on mission for Jesus everyday, no matter where God
has already placed them. Were seeing this new normal taking place
and theres nothing more exciting than seeing the Church be the
Church living on mission everyday for the sake of the gospel.
Praise God! To give you an idea how serious we are about these
things, since May of 2015 we have. . .
. . . given away 354 Bibles to people who did not previously own
a Bible
. . . distributed 1,476 gospel tracts
. . . distributed and hung just over 8,000 gospel door
hangers
. . . counted 90 different lost people we have prayed with
. . . shared the gospel at least 247 times
. . . witnessed 13 professions of faith
. . . baptized 9 people (since September 2014)
. . . had over 25 known lost people visit our church on a Sunday
morning
. . . started 15 one-on-one discipleship groups or slightly
larger small groups God has used your faithful financial
partnership to do some remarkable things, for His glory! The
ministry my family and I are currently doing wouldnt be possible
without you, as my paycheck is 100% dependent on your faithful
donations. As we look to 2016 in great expectation that God will
continue to redeem Salt Lake City by the power of the gospel we
would like to ask you to continue to partner with us as you feel
led. Would you prayerfully consider making a special year-end
donation in partnership with us for the sake of gospel advancement
here in Salt Lake City? Your gift of $25, $200, $500 or more will
greatly help us stay funded and on mission as we are making
disciples and growing this new church, all for His glory. Please
make checks out "Redeeming Life Church". Memo line: Missionary
Support Fund and mail to:
901 Nocturne Drive Salt Lake City, Utah 84116
Donations can be made online at:
https://RedeemingLife.OnTheCity.org/give (Please select Missionary
Support Fund from the dropdown menu). *All donations are
tax-deductible as charitable gifts. Thank you!