GIVING THANKS:

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.           Colossians 3:15-17

This time of year is truly my favorite. The falling leaves, the changing colors, and the colder weather always excite me. As the warm long summer days turn into shorter cool ones, I find myself getting more and more excited for my two favorite holidays of the year. Thanksgiving and Christmas have always been my two favorites. As a child, Christmas always was number one with the long break from school and the excitement of wrapped presents under the Christmas tree. As I grew, the excitement of Christmas was joined by the gratefulness I experienced for all the blessings in my life. Thanksgiving has now replaced Christmas as my favorite holiday and I truly enjoy this special time of year where we can join with friends and family in expressing our thanks for all that God has blessed us with. I have noticed though that Thanksgiving is now being crowed out by the increasing materialism that starts before Halloween and lasts into the New Year. I believe it is important for us to remember to thank God for all His wonderful gifts He has bestowed upon us, not only during Thanksgiving, but daily throughout the year. In this update I would like to reflect on some of the countless blessings our family has experienced over the past year, and I trust that you too will set aside some time to thank God for all He does for us even though we do not deserve His gifts.

GIVING THANKS FOR FAMILY:

I would first like to thank God for the wonderful family He has blessed me with. My beautiful wife Mam is such a wonderful gift from God and not a day goes by that I am not humbled by her beauty and heart for God. Gracie, Joy, and Hope are so precious and I am so thankful for the gift of such special daughters. Then there is little Kyle, my son and a constant provider of excitement and humor for our family. Our family has been blessed with health and time to spend together as a family. There are days when the noisy kids and a messy house begin to weigh on my patience, but I would never trade those days for a quiet and spotless home. God has blessed me with a wonderful wife and four amazing kids, and for them I am thankful.

GIVING THANKS FOR AMERICA:

The kids enjoying riding in Papa's cool car!

I would like to thank God for the past year and half that He has blessed our family with here in America. America is truly a great country and we as Americans are blessed with so many wonderful things that sometimes we forget how good life truly is here in America. Our family is grateful for the time we have been able to live here and experience some of the wonders of this great country. We knew that financially we would not be able to provide for our living expenses during our time here unless God worked mightily in providing for our needs. Thankfully since April 2011 all of our financial needs have been met and we have been blessed with opportunities to enjoy some of the fun activities America has to offer. Our family has enjoyed the time spent here in America and we would like to stay longer, but we are also excited for the chance to return to Thailand in April 2013 and continue our missionary work there. We are thankful for these two years spent in America and also for everyone who we have been able to fellowship with during our time here.

GIVING THANKS FOR SCHOOLING:

            I am extremely thankful for the chance to further my education and also enhance my ability to minister to the Thai people when our family returns in April. My classes have been very informational and also very challenging, but I am thankful for the truths I am learning and the time I have to study for my classes. I just completed my first 12 credits in the pursuit of a Masters in Biblical Counseling and I am looking forward to the remaining 28 credits I will be taking over the next two years. During the past few months there have been many long nights and early mornings, but by God’s grace I was able to finish all my reading, papers, and tests and still have time to minister to my family, my church, and the international students at Idaho State University. For the next four months I am only taking one 2 credit class and so that means I am going to have more time to spend with my family and in ministry before we move back to Thailand. In March I will register for my next 9 credits and will continue my studies from Thailand.

GIVING THANKS FOR MINISTRY:        

Some international students our family took to Scout Mt.to see the sights of fall.

I am so thankful for the chance our family has had to minister during our time here in the States. When we moved back to America we had three ways we wanted to spend our time during our stay. We wanted to spend time with family, we wanted to spend time studying and equipping ourselves for future ministry, and we wanted to spend our time serving our church and ministering to others in Pocatello. By God’s grace we have been able to spend time growing as a family and reuniting with my parents and siblings. We have also been blessed to be able to equip ourselves for ministry through my studies and other ministry opportunities at our church. Our family has been blessed with the opportunity to minister not only the international students  at ISU, but also serve others in the church through leading Bible studies and helping out in Awana’s and serving in the nursery. God has blessed us with countless ministry opportunities and we are so thankful for all we have been able to do during the short time we have been here in the States. By far one of the main highlights has been the ministry opportunities we have had with international students. We have been blessed to be able to serve them by providing transportation for grocery shopping, assisting them in their English learning, helping them get settled to life in America, and even providing them a place to come and enjoy some warm rice and spicy food similar to what they miss from back home. Currently we have around 15 international students that we are weekly involved with in ministering to them. This has been an amazing opportunity to serve with our church, and I am thankful that God has blessed our family with a chance to minister internationally even while we are here in the States.

GIVING THANKS FOR SUPPORTERS:

Some good friends and supporters our kids love to visit in Boise.

Our family has been so blessed and is thankful for so many things, but one thing we constantly are thanking God for is the wonderful friends and supporters who have prayed for us and given financially to help us continue in full-time ministry. We are so humbled that God has given us an opportunity to serve Him full-time, but also that others would give of their finances to help provide for all our living expenses. If you have given to help support our family, please know that we are eternally thankful for all of your prayers and financial gifts. Your faithfulness in praying and giving has enabled us to spend the past year and half serving God full-time here in Pocatello, Idaho. We are also thankful for your support which has helped me pursue my masters in Biblical Counseling and help our family become better equipped to minister to the families in Thailand once we return there in the spring of 2013.  We have been blessed by the willingness to give by our supporters and are thankful for the chance to partner with you as we seek to serve God together through His redeeming love.    

GIVING THANKS THROUGH CHRIST:

            There are so many things we are thankful for and it is important that we do take time to thank God for His countless blessings, but we must remember that our offerings of thanks can only be possible through Christ. Christ is the gift that enables us to find peace with God and freely receive the hope He brings. As we start this holiday season, let us not forget to offer thanks for the perfect gift which God gave the world over 2000 years ago in that lowly manger in Bethlehem.  Jesus Christ is God’s gift to the world and only through His willing sacrifice on the Cross and the shedding of His blood can we freely receive His gift of forgiveness which He is offering to all mankind.  Let us remember to give thanks for Christ and the countless blessings we experience through Him not only during this special time of year, but in whatever we do in word or deed seeking to bring glory to His name.

            Thank you again for taking the time to read this update and I pray that you and your loved ones enjoy a wonderful holiday season. I know our family is looking forward to spending our last Thanksgiving and Christmas in America for a while and we are praying that the holidays bring lots of snow and times of fellowship with family and friends. Thank you again for all of your prayers and financial gifts which you have blessed us with during our time in ministry. Our family would not be able to serve without the faithful support of so many wonderful supporters. We ask that as the end of the year is approaching for you to consider giving a special one-time gift to help provide for our family. We are preparing to return to Thailand on April 3^rd, 2013 and are in need of raising some extra money to pay for our airline tickets and other moving expenses. By faith we purchased our airline tickets last week and now we trust that the $3458 needed to cover those tickets will come in before we have to fly back. If you would like to give a special onetime gift to help cover our airfare or moving costs then please email me at dan.rutledge@universitybible.org . If you would like to hear more about joining our support team on monthly bases or about the ministry we will be serving in once we return to Thailand, then please also email us at the above address or call me at (208) 242-6300.  We would love to hear from you. If you would like to give financially then please make your checks out to UBC Worldwide Ministries and mail them to:

UBCWorldwideMinistries  

4700 N. Philbin Rd.

Chubbuck, ID. 83202.

All gifts are tax deductible and help to enable our family to continue to serve in full-time ministry.

May you and your loved ones enjoy a festive holiday season, and do remember that truth of James 1:17 which says, “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.” God is so merciful towards us and we must not forget giving Him the thanks He deserves. We look forward to updating you on some exciting changes coming our family’s way in the next few weeks and we will continue to remember you in our prayers daily, thanking God for your faithfulness in giving to help provide for our family’s needs. Have a happy Thanksgiving and a blessed holiday season.

 

 

Your fellow servants in Christ:

Dan, Mam, Gracie, Joy, Hope, and Kyle Rutledge

Titus 2:11-15

A Trip to the Treasure Valley

A Trip to the Treasure Valley:

Our family is planning a trip to the Boise area from the 4^th to the 7^th of October. During our short visit to the area we would like to meet with as many friends and supporters as possible. We want to take time to update you about the ministry work that our family is currently involved with during our time here in Pocatello and also share with you the plans we have for using biblical counseling to minister to families and the church upon our return to Thailand in April 2013. We know that it is impossible to meet with everyone during the four days we will be there, and so we are in need of your help. In order to meet with as many people as possible our goal is to schedule some open house meetings to which we can invite 10 to 15 people to come and hear us at one time. Ideally we would like to set up this meet and greet opportunity around desert and coffee and so we are asking for people who would be willing to help host such an event in their homes. I also need to know how many people would want to meet with us and what days and times work best for them. We will be arriving on Thursday afternoon and will have to leave Sunday late afternoon. The time is short, but if you want to meet with us, then we will do our best to schedule a time during our visit. If it does not work out this trip to get together, do not worry because we will be trying to schedule other times to visit from now until April when we return to Thailand. This is what our family needs from you.

            First we need to know if you would like to meet with us. If so please email me at dan.rutledge@universitybible.org or call me at 208-242-6300 and let me know a time and a place that you are free for us to visit.

            Second we need people who would be willing host an open house meeting that we could invite others to attend. This will involve opening your house and working with me to provide some small deserts and possible drinks. If you have friends who you would like to invite, then please do. Also I need to know a day, time, and location of the open house meeting so that I can invite others. I know this is a huge request but I also know that many of you are always looking for a chance to minister to others and this would be a great opportunity. If you would like to open your house for a small get together, then please email me or call me ASAP so that we can get some invites out.

            Third we are always looking for opportunities to partner with local churches as we seek to provide a way for the local body to be actively involved in ministering internationally. This can be through financial support, short term mission trips, or both. If you or your church would be open to talking more about partnering with our family then please email me or call.

            Fourth we ask you to please continue to pray for our family as we continue our ministry here with international students through University Bible Church and also as we prepare for the upcoming move across the ocean and the start of our biblical counseling ministry in Thailand come April 2013.

I look forward to hearing back from you and I pray that we get a chance to visit together during our time in the treasure valley. God bless and have a great day.

Dan, Mam, Gracie, Joy, Hope, and Kyle Rutledge

Colossians 1:28-29.

For I am confident of this.......

Many of you know that our family is serving God full time as missionaries and that our finances are 100% dependent on God and the giving of our supporters. During the past year and a half in the States we have had some tight months, but always by the end of the month we have been able to have enough support come in to cover all of our expenses. September is a little different in that usually our concern is that we might not have enough money in our account to make it to the end of the month, but when I asked our church treasure how much money was in our account for the month of September, he informed me that the balance was considerably low and that there was only 40% of the needed about to cover our monthly needs. Basically on the 1^st of every month he deposits $2,000 into my account from the donations received. Then again on the 15^th he will deposit $1,000 into my account. We do it this way because at the start of the month almost all of our bills are due. As of August 31^st, only $1,223 had come in from our supporters. That means that he could only deposit $1,000 into our account instead of the normal $2,000 and that leaves us with $223 for the deposit on the 15^th. So as you can see we are in need of raising more support before the end of the month.

The problem lies in that I do not know who else to ask and it is going to require me taking time off from ministry to go and visit more possible supporters. That is the problem our family is facing but we are finding comfort in the promises of God and the continued faithfulness He has displayed towards our family through the years. NEVER have we not seen ALL our monthly needs meet, and we trust that yet again God will provide for all or our needs and grant us peace of mind in God and guard our hearts in Christ Jesus. In one of my classes I have been doing a study in Philippians and on the trials Paul faced and how he responded to those trials. It has been such a blessing to again reflect on the truths that God is in control and that just as Philippians 2:13 says, “it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” God is working in and through our family during this trying time, and we take great comfort in knowing that He is doing it for His glory and also our good.

I ask you to please join with us as we come to God presenting our needs before Him, trusting that He will work in ways that will bring glory to His name and also strengthen our faith in Him. If you would like to join our support team, please let me know. I will be glad to call you and share with you more details of how our family is serving here in Pocatello and what our plans are for ministering once we return to Thailand in April 2013. You can also email me at dan.rutledge@universitybible.org.  If you are currently a part of our support team, please know that we are eternally grateful for your faithfulness in giving and there is no way we would be able to continue our service in full time ministry apart from you. Thank you for your gifts, your prayers, and your friendship throughout the years of our ministry. May God continue to bless and work in and through you for His glory?

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter and please continue to pray for our family during this trial we are going through. We know God is able to provide for all of our needs and we are asking for your prayers to help us remain steady in the trust which we have placed in the faithful promises of God.

Your fellow servants of Christ Jesus who is our Lord and present help in trouble:

Dan, Mam, Gracie, Joy, Hope, and Kyle Rutledge

Colossians 1:28-29

Campgrounds, Classrooms, and Cultural Fairs.

“But as for me, the nearness of God is my goal; I have made the Lord God my refuge, That I may tell of all Your works.”  Psalm 73:28

Greetings in the name of our wonderful Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we trust that you are doing well and our family is blessed that you have taken the time to read our latest update. Since the last update, our family has been busy enjoying the countless gifts of God and especially the wonderful gift of the fellowship with believers. We are grateful for all that our family has been able to enjoy during our times in the US.  We have been so blessed with the gifts of your faithful prayers and financial support which makes it possible for us to live and serve in fulltime ministry as a family. Moving from Thailand back to the States proved to be a huge step of faith for our family, and we are humbly amazed to see how God has continued to provide for all of our needs through the faithful giving of fellow believers. Over the past few months our family has been enjoying as many wonderful summer activities as possible since this will be the last summer spent in the States prior to our moving back to Thailand in 2013.  Our family has enjoyed this time in the States and especially the chance to fellowship with so many wonderful people within the body of Christ. I have been amazed at how so many people have opened their heart and their homes to our family. I am also humbled at the amazing opportunity I have been given to further my education and I am excited to use the truths I have been learning and to the opportunity of teaching them to those we minister to when we return to Thailand. We serve an awesome God, and here are some exciting highlights of what God has been doing in and through our family over the past few months. 

 

Campgrounds and Critters:

As I mentioned earlier, this is our last summer in America for a while as our family is planning on moving back to Thailand in April 2013. Our plan was to live in the States for about two years and spend time with family, visit supporters, reconnect with our church, and work on my Master’s degree in biblical counseling with the desire to return to Thailand refreshed and better equipped to enhance our ministry among the Thai people. They say that when you are having fun, time flies by and I guess that is what happened because we are quickly approaching the 2 year mark and there is still so much our family would like to do before we fly back to Thailand. Many of the things which our family wanted to experience while here in the States we were able to accomplish during the past two months. I really wanted to take Mam and the kids camping up by the places I used to go camping as a kid with my family. Mam and the kids also really wanted to go fishing and visit Yellowstone national park. In July and August we were able to go camping in the Sawtooths, catch lots of fish, and enjoy the beauty of Yellowstone with my parents and my sister’s family. We are so blessed to be able to live in a State with such natural beauty and to also know personally the God who created that beauty. There still are many more things we would like to do before we head back to Thailand, but I am thankful for the things we have already experienced and the opportunity to spend time as a family enjoying the creation of our King.

Classrooms and California:

If taking exciting road trips with my family was not enough to keep me busy, work for my classes and the international student’s ministry with our church has kept me occupied. In July I traveled to California and spent two full weeks doing the in class portion of my classes which consisted of studying from 8:30 till 5:30 five to six days a week. The material was very informative and the professors were very encouraging. It was a great two weeks of studying God’s Word, meeting and fellowshipping with other students from all over the world, and being challenged in my personal walk with Christ. It was hard being away from my family during those two weeks, and the traffic in California reminded me how blessed we have it here in Idaho, but I am looking forward to going back again next July for my next 6 classes.

Enjoying the 4th of July with two international students from Nepal.

Cross-cultural Contacts:
Our family has also been blessed to be ministering to international students here at ISU, and have really enjoyed spending time getting to know students from all over the world. We are hoping to try and schedule one more camping trip before the fall and want to bring along some of the students from Nepal with us. I will be traveling to Salt Lake on Saturday to pick some students up at the airport, and we have been working hard helping getting the new students set up with things they need to start their schooling next week. Last week we held an international student free giveaway, where we were able to give items which were donated from people in our church for free to international students who needed things for their apartments and dorm rooms. We gave away two beds, three couches, a lot of plates, cups, pots and pans, and many other useful items for international students. It has been a blessing working with international students during our time here in Pocatello, and we are excited for the ministry of International Crossroads to continue when we return to Thailand in the spring of next year. Please continue to pray that we will have meaningful contacts with international students over the next few weeks and also that I will be diligent to complete all the homework assignments for my current classes which finish in October. Also pray for time to spend as a family enjoying the wonderful recreational activates Idaho has to offer.

Challenges and Change:

God has been really good to our family, and we are thankful for all of you who pray and support our family as we serve Him fulltime. We are in the process of making preparations for the fall and also for our return to Thailand in April 2013. One thing that is a must is the need for new supporters to join with us as we minister in Thailand. Our family’s goal is to raise $3,000 in monthly support. Last month we received $1,800 in financial donations, which means that we are still $1,200 from our goal. We ask to prayerfully consider joining our support team and help our family continue in full-time ministry. September is going to be a challenging month financially because we have back to school expenses for our two oldest daughters ($60), we have to reapply for Mam’s visa extension ($290), we have some repairs on the suburban we use to transport our family and international students ($120), plane tickets and conference fees for a counseling conference Mam and I would like to attend in October ($700), plus the day to day expenses our families faces.  Please email me at dan.rutledge@universitybible.org if you would like to join our support team by giving a monthly gift of $25, $50, or $100 or a one-time gift to help cover some of the above mentioned needs.

Your prayers are also greatly needed, as we begin making plans for our return to Thailand in 8 months. We are looking at different ministry needs and opportunities and are looking forward to sharing with you next time where we will be ministering when we head back in April 2013.

Thank you for taking the time to read this update and please know that our family is eternally grateful for everyone who offers prayers and financial support which enables us to serve full-time for the Kingdom.

Have a great day and God bless.

Your fellow servants in Christ:

Dan, Mam, Gracie, Joy, Hope, and Kyle Rutledge