Newsletter – November 2024
November 2024 Newsletter
The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them…for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Isaiah 11:6,9 NIV
From the keyboard of Dr. Ross Jutsum
Dear family and friends:
Greetings from Florida on a very warm and sunny fall (autumn) day!
The above picture was taken in August this year in Woodbridge CT. Grammy Tammy and Grandpa Rossy were so delighted to spend two weeks with our daughter Lisa and Jon, on the left side of the photo, and their five children (4-year-old twin boys Aaron and Noah being held by their parents) and 8-year-old twins Isaiah and Evelyne, and 6-year-old Solomon in front of Tammy and me. On the right of the picture is older daughter Heidi and Ryan and their two children, 11-year-old Grace and 8-year-old Gabriel.
As you read this newsletter, Tammy and I will be in The Villages here in Florida, about a 2- hour drive from us. The occasion is the 50th anniversary of the closing of the beloved campus of Ambassador College near London, England. At this Reunion, we will be joined by about 70 of our classmates and fellow students from those years from 1971 to 1974. Among the various activities, I will be leading a concert/singalong. On the very day of the announcement of the campus closure, we were all very sad and somewhat shocked.
I was on security duty in the main library building, Memorial Hall, and I looked over at the handles on the massive doors and saw a beautiful rendition of a lion, a lamb and a little child, reflecting the image evoked in the above-mentioned scripture in Isaiah 11:6. The college’s founder had chosen this as the symbol for the college, inspired by a late 18th century painting by the American artist, Edward Hicks, entitled “The Peaceable Kingdom.” After about 20 minutes of reflection and prayer, I completed one of my very first musical compositions, “It Won’t Be Long Now.” This song has been recorded and shared all around the world and I will be closing my program with it at the Reunion.
In late October we returned once again to Destin FL where I gave a Concert of Praise and led worship at a church conference. I shared with the children 0ne of my songs based on the story of Shadrach, Meschach and Abednego, who were thrown into the fiery furnace by King Nebuchadnezzar and miraculously survived.
I have a prayer request… our 8-year-old grandson, Isaiah, who lives in Guinea in West Africa with his missionary mother Lisa and missionary pilot father Jonathan and 4 siblings, recently suffered a clogged tear duct. The doctors thought that the procedure to correct it was a little risky to perform over there. Isaiah and his dad traveled to the US and, thanks to our Heidi and Ryan’s contacts at Yale University, Isaiah was able to get it taken care of in New Haven, CT. Ryan is the Associate Director of Yale’s Center for Faith and Culture, and Heidi had previously worked in Yale’s International Center. Isaiah is doing well and is back at home in Guinea. We ask for continued prayers for Isaiah and this amazing family who are doing such important work over there in an incredibly dangerous, challenging situation.
Meanwhile, daughter Lisa just returned from a conference for Mission Aviation Fellowship in Thailand, and daughter Heidi was recently in Istanbul Turkey, Philippines and Brazil!
We continue to pray for you and yours and really appreciate your prayers and support of our ministries and our family. With heartfelt gratitude, love and prayers for God’s richest blessings, Ross and Tammy.