Newsletter — February 2023
February – April 2023 Newsletter
“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4:3-4
From the keyboard of Dr. Ross Jutsum
(Featured image above: Ross and Tammy lead worship in December at Grace Communion Church in Big Sandy, Texas)
Dear family, friends and ministry partners:
We wish for you and yours a very happy and blessed New Year! I so enjoyed having Tammy join me for the 3rd Sunday of Advent for a Zoom worship service with our dear brothers and sisters in Bellflower, California. Even though, like many of you, we have some experience with the virtual technology that has become so prevalent and useful during the Pandemic, there were some challenges with integrating Powerpoint slides and making sure the audio levels of live vocals, piano and pre-recorded tracks were properly set up. With only seconds to spare, assistance from long-time friend Frank Fish, Pastor Reuben AND of course, God’s help, we managed to get it all together!
The following weekend we traveled to East Texas and had the joy and pleasure of leading a worship service for the 4th Sunday of Advent, live and in person, with some 70 brothers and sisters at Grace Communion in Big Sandy, Texas. Our hosts Pastor Jerome and Helen Ellard were so wonderful and gracious and it was such a delight to catch up with so many long-time friends from this part of East Texas where we spent 8 years from 1990 to 1998. It was great to catch up with Tom Crabb, Marty and Jane Yale, Rick and Lois Peterson and so many others. Rick was my right hand during more than 20 years of service at Ambassador College and needless to say, Rick and his son James spoiled us with the best audio, lighting and projection I can remember in 26 years of this ministry!
On a personal note, I was overjoyed to have Tammy joining me on this ministry visit. She has such a wonderful alto voice and I realized that accompaniment recordings done for the various best-loved Christmas carols 25 years ago were no longer in keys comfortable for me, but were absolutely perfect for Tammy! And it was a real joy for both of us to renew friendships and worship together with dear friends we had not seen in many years!
In other news, we are so happy that our 2 treasured daughters, Heidi and Lisa, and amazing sons-in-law Ryan and Jonathan were able to be all together this past week in Guinea, West Africa, along with all 7 of our precious grand-children.
Though we could not be together with the rest of our family for their new year’s gathering, we have thoroughly enjoyed their reunion vicariously through great pictures and videos. Though modern technology can often frustrate us (older folks!) we are so grateful that it brings us together with our family (and friends) from the other side of the world!
We are looking forward to new special opportunities for our ministry in this new year. We are already committed to a ministry trip to Nebraska in early April and anticipate many more as the dust settles after what has been, for all of us, a very long and trying three years!
As always, we thank you so much for your prayers for our family and ministry and also for your support. Please know that Tammy and I regularly pray for you and yours.
With gratitude, love and blessings,
Ross and Tammy