Dear Friends, November – December 2017
Merry Christmas to you and yours from the Ruckman Family. We hope and pray this letter finds you prospering in the will of God. It is hard to believe that 2017 is almost history. This has been a tremendous year for our family. If I were to put a title on this year’s chapter of our family story, it would be “Mercy”. God has been so merciful to our family. I am incredibly thankful that He is “rich in mercy”.
We started full time deputation on January 4th and are happy to report that our support level is at 58%. Thank you for partnering with us to reach West Africans with the Gospel. We have presented our ministry in one hundred churches across twenty-seven states this year. We have traveled in three different countries preaching Missions Conferences, church services, three Revival Meetings, and a Pastor’s Conference. He has also blessed with the commencement of our West Africa Baptist Bible Institute in September. As we near the end of the year, we praise the Lord for His Presence, Power, Provision, and Protection upon our home and ministry.
God continues to bless our family both spiritually and physically. Jimmy is doing well as he continues pursuing his Bible education at Harriman Baptist Bible Institute in Harriman, TN. God has called him to be a missionary, and he is praying for God’s direction in his life. Jesse’s grades show that he is studying hard in his senior year of high school. He is looking forward to getting a job at the end of deputation. Micaiah is a junior this year and continues to do well in his schooling. We are thankful that all three of our boys continue to demonstrate a tenderness toward the things of God. Angie continues to keep the wheels of our home turning smoothly as we travel back and forth across the country. Although we are in a different place almost every night, she never complains. I am a blessed man!
As we move into the New Year, we are excitedly anticipating concluding deputation on May 9th. Lord willing, I will travel to Togo and Ghana the end of May for a Pastor’s Conference. There are now over one hundred national pastors scheduled to be in that meeting. We are raising $5,000 to help cover the costs of our airfare as well as providing ½ of the cost of meals, lodging, and transportation for the pastors who will travel to the meeting.
In our last letter, we reported that the Lord had brought in $2,100 toward Pastor Salif’s church building in Burkina Faso. We are very pleased to report that the Lord has now brought in $5,455.22 toward that $15,000. The foundation has been laid and the walls are being built. We praise the Lord for His provision toward this project. That church is being built in Muslim country for the glory of God and the gates of Hell cannot prevail against it! The advance of radical Islam can be stopped through the advance of the church of the living God!
God is also possibly opening the door for me to travel with some other missionary pioneers into a closed African nation to “spy out the land” in order to find a “creative access” way of introducing the gospel to a country that is 99.9% Muslim. We need fasting and prayers on our behalf toward this project.
In closing, we thank God for your faithful support of our ministry. We are grateful for each new supporter and thankful for the Christmas cards and gifts. We continue to pray for you regularly. Merry Christmas and may God’s richest blessings be upon your church in the New Year.
Your Missionaries,
The Ruckman Family