Category: Newsletter

Newsletter — February-April 2022

February-April 2022 Newsletter

“I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love.” Romans 8:31

Featured Image: Our five older grand-children all very happy together for the New Year in the Middle East — Heidi’s children (Grace, 8 and Gabriel, 5) on outside in grey — Lisa’s three oldest (5-year-old twins Evelyne and Isaiah in pink and blue and 3-year-old Solomon in dark blue)

 From the keyboard of Dr. Ross Jutsum                                                                                                                              rfjutsum@aol.com                                                                                                                                                 

Dear family, friends and ministry partners:

Tammy and I wish you a very happy New Year.  We have some really BIG news to share!  We recently sold our home for the past 22 years here in Southern California and are planning to move out of state.  We don’t know where exactly as yet, but, for a couple of months, are renting a place near the Palm Coast area in Florida (on the Atlantic coast about half-way between Daytona Beach and St. Augustine) and we will check out various areas before deciding where to settle.

Down-sizing is something our girls have wanted us to do for some time and we finally did it!  Going through 43 and ½ years of things we have accumulated during our married life, not to mention all of the girls’ things and many belongings of Tammy’s mother from when she lived with us — it is all rather daunting!  However, we have finished all of the sorting and tossing and deciding what little to keep and are having an estate sale.  Then we are off on our new adventure.

Of course, I do not plan to retire from ministry and we plan on keeping our non-profit 501C3, State of the Heart Ministries, in California, where one of our Directors will still be living.  We will be keeping our P.O. Box 56 in Sierra Madre as the ministry mailing address.  Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have been forced to scale back on ministry travel and that will no doubt still be the case.  However, we plan to use the ministry funds more to support our daughters and their families’ ministry efforts and outreach.  And of course, we will continue to serve and share in whatever place God leads us to land!

We plan to continue our quarterly newsletters with family and ministry news, along with our ministry web site.  Wherever doors open in churches, retirement communities and other venues, we plan to walk through them and through music and worship, let our lights shine with the love of God and the good news of salvation through Jesus and the gospel message.

As you can see from the picture on the first page, our daughters and sons-in-law have had a wonderful time together with all seven of our grand-children in the Middle East for the past couple of weeks.  (Almost two-year-old twin boys, Aaron and Noah, were not close by for this photo.)  With our potential re-location to the East Coast, we will be closer to Heidi and her family in Connecticut and also several hours closer to Lisa and her family overseas.  We hope to have the flexibility to visit our kids and grand-kids more often.

In a few months we will be entering the 26^th year of “State of the Heart Ministries.”  It has been quite an incredible journey thus far and we are trusting our loving and wonderful Lord to guide us in this transition and show us the ways He wants us to continue to be His hands and feet, His lips and eyes as we go forward.

As always, we so appreciate your prayers for our family and our ministry and are so grateful for your financial support also.  We continue to lift up you and yours to our loving God in prayer also.

With gratitude, love and blessings,

Ross and Tammy

Newsletter – November-January 2021

Last quarter, I asked for your prayers for my dear sister Robyn in Australia.  Sadly, Robyn passed away a few weeks ago after a valiant battle with pancreatic cancer for more than 2 and ½ years.  Tammy and I had the precious privilege of talking with Robyn a week before her passing and she was ready and even told us of the planned Celebration of Life service a few weeks ahead.  I suggested to Robyn that I would like to compose a special song for that occasion and she said “Oh Ross!  Would you please?”  I was able to complete the lyrics in a day or two and Robyn’s amazing husband, Ian, read them aloud to her when she was awake and able to comprehend that it was from her “little brother.” 

Newsletter – August-October 2021

Thank you all so very much for your prayers for my dear sister Robyn in Australia.  More than two  years after her diagnosis with pancreatic cancer, Robyn continues to amaze doctors, and to inspire all of her family with her positive outlook, certainly due to her strong faith, and the True Hope we all have in Jesus. 

Newsletter – May-July 2021

Featured Images:  Ross gives first 2021 Driveway Concert; Our Connecticut family all dressed up for church; Ross has a Zoom video editing session with his editor in Pennsylvania

“I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.”  Romans 8:38 (New Living)

Dear family, friends and ministry partners:

Tammy and I hope that this finds you and yours safe and healthy.  Needless to say, we have made no ministry trips in the past 15 months and are doing what we can to serve our neighbors, family and friends.  I just started up another series of Saturday evening “driveway concerts” this past weekend.  About 40 folks spread up and down our cul-de-sac and seemed to thoroughly enjoy the 90-minute program.  We offered 20 of these concerts in 2020 but put them on hold during the cooler weather and when I needed time for my back to heal.

I have been using this time to complete a number of ministry projects that I have neglected when I was traveling so much.  One is the creation of music videos for more of my original worship songs.  These will not only be incorporated into live future worship services, but I plan to share them at no charge on the Internet and via e-mail. If “a picture is worth a thousand words” then perhaps a song is worth ten thousand, especially when accompanied by pictures or videos!  Perhaps now more than ever before in human history has this world needed to hear the message of hope and peace and true joy that is declared in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Our Connecticut family, Heidi, Ryan, Grace (7), and Gabriel (5) are looking forward to a summer visit to California after a year and a half at home in Connecticut.  Heidi’s work has been busier than ever as her team responds to the dual economic and health crises that the pandemic has triggered in the most vulnerable parts of the world. She has most recently been working tirelessly helping policymakers and organizations throughout South Asia respond to the COVID-19 surge.  Ryan is writing two books and is wrapping up his first all-Zoom semester of teaching “Life Worth Living” at Yale.  Grace is a budding poet and environmental activist. She enjoys knitting in her rocking chair while listening to audio versions of the Little House books. Gabriel is excited to start kindergarten in the fall. He knows more about dinosaurs than you do!  All have been loving joining their church for masked outdoor services on the New Haven Green.

Wonderful Dad Jonathan and Mom Lisa plus 5 in the Middle East; Almost five-year old twins Isaiah and Evelyne holding one-year-old twins Aaron & Noah, with three-year old Solo in the middle

Our family in the Middle East is growing fast!  The twin grand-boys just turned one-year-old and sadly, we haven’t met them yet.  We hope to rectify that situation later this year.  The three older children, twins Evelyne and Isaiah, and middle child Solomon (“Solo”) are really great with the twin boys, entertaining them and gladly playing with them. Lisa texted us yesterday to let us know that their country has just gone into a three-week nationwide lock-down due to the Covid19 surge.  It is challenging enough to have five young children but not to be able to take them outside to play in the park or at the sea for three weeks is very disconcerting. Please continue to pray for Lisa and Jonathan and their children for their safety and sanity. They are continuing to do wonderful work from home even though movements have been severely limited.

We have been sorry to learn of the passing of a number of our long-time ministry partners this past year.  We greatly miss Suzy Crowell, George Cassat, Don Persyn, Lee Pettijohn, Nick Leaver and Pastor Sammy O’Dell.  We long for the time we can be reunited with all our family and friends forever!  In the meantime, we pray for you and yours and want you know that our hearts are full of gratitude for your prayers for our family and ministry, and for generous support over these many years, especially in this past challenging one.

With gratitude, love and blessings,

Ross and Tammy

May – July 2019 Newsletter

Our whole family was delighted to participate in the Dedication of baby Solomon Paul on December 23rd.  Pastor Roger Van Spronsen, of Life Christian Fellowship in Pasadena, California, conducted the service. 

Newsletter — February 2019-April 2019

Our whole family was delighted to participate in the Dedication of baby Solomon Paul on December 23rd.  Pastor Roger Van Spronsen, of Life Christian Fellowship in Pasadena, California, conducted the service. 

Newsletter — November 2018-January 2019

Baby Solomon will soon turn six months and the twins, Evelyne and Isaiah, are almost two and half.  We are so delighted to have had this time with Lisa and Jonathan and their family close by here in Southern California.  We treasure our walks to the nearby parks and having Isaiah and Evelyne visit “Grammy Tammy and Grandpa’s house!” The family’s next adventure will take them in the early Spring to serve God’s precious children in the Middle East.   Please pray for the family as they make preparations for yet another amazing overseas outreach serving God’s precious children, and please pray that they would succeed in raising the necessary funds to make their important ministry possible.

Newsletter — August-October 2018

Just six weeks after Lisa and Jonathan and family returned from Central Asia, on May 22nd, they welcomed Solomon Paul, little brother to grand-twins Evelyne and Isaiah.  We are thrilled to have them close by, at least for the next 10 months or so, before the family moves on to another overseas assignment.  It was a delight to have the twins sleep over for 3 nights prior to Solomon’s arrival.  Heidi and Ryan, Grace and Gabriel were also able to join us to meet their new nephew and cousin.  Heidi and her wonderful family just returned from 3 weeks in Lima, Peru where Heidi was busy with important work for the Innovations for Poverty Action organization where she is Director of Policy and Communications.  Heidi is currently in Accra, Ghana, working with their government to improve the lives of many!

Newsletter — May-July 2018

Perhaps one of the quickest and most inspiring international ministry trips took place the last weekend in January.  I was invited to visit the United Kingdom, and in particular churches in the cities of Cardiff and Llanelli, Wales, by my dear friends Pastor Gary and Deborah Glenister. A very warm Welsh welcome was extended by the two  Grace Communion congregations, the Llanelli (hardest word to properly pronounce in the English/Welsh languages!) Salvation Army and at the Soup Station wonderfully sponsored each Sunday evening by the Llanelli house church, enthusiastically being the hands, lips and eyes of Jesus to so many – a small body of believers with a really big heart!