Ron Hutchcraft Ministries - February 2009 Prayer Update

Dear Friend,

I'm a city boy. The Bible's full of farm stuff - fields, harvesting, livestock. So I need some help. Thankfully, my country girl wife and some farm-world experiences have helped me understand a whole lot more about what God is saying through those examples.

Just before Christmas, I helped a friend pick up some lambs that were destined to be a Christmas gift. Watching city boy carrying lambs from a truck to a barn could have qualified for that "funniest videos" show on TV. Two of the three were safely in their stall. Suddenly, the third one jumped four feet into the air and took off across the countryside. We knew if we didn't fi nd her, the local dogs or coyotes would tear her apart.

Six of us searched for three hours on a very cold day. Try as we did, we could not catch her. He disappeared into a thicket. She hasn't been seen since.

But as I searched for that one lost sheep that day, I felt as if I touched my Savior's heart - or He touched mine. The Savior who "will leave the ninety-nine...and go to look for the one that wandered off" (Matthew 18:12 ). Who said He "came to seek and to save what was lost" (Luke 19:10 ). I didn't think much about those lambs who were "in the fold" and safe. My heart ached for the one who was lost - as the heart of my Jesus does.

People who cared, joined together that day to go after the lost sheep. Just as you've joined us in RHM's mission of doing whatever it takes to bring them home. Because leaving them lost is forfeiting them to an unthinkable destiny.

I cannot thank you enough for having a heart for those who've never known our Shepherd. Christianity Today reports that "The Median annual giving for an American Christian is actually $200." Recent research on how American Christians give to ministry indicates that not many do. And what happens to what is given? "The money given by the people in the pews...is largely spent on the people in the pews. Only about 3 percent of money donated to churches and ministries went to aiding or ministering to non-Christians" (Christianity Today, December 2008).

Three-percent of all the money Christians give goes to reach those for whom Jesus gave 100 percent. The broken heart of God, expressed through the Prophet Ezekiel, cries out in our day: "My sheep wandered over all the mountains...and no one looked for them" (Ezekiel 34:6 ). That's why we thank God for a heart like yours. You wouldn't be a partner with RHM if you didn't care about the lost. Because rescuing them is what this ministry is about, all day, every day. And, whether you realize it or not, you are on a sadly short, but deeply appreciated list - people who live and pray and give to bring the lost ones home.

Because these are tough times financially for so many of RHM's friends, this is a very tough time for us. We are doing everything we can with what God provides to pursue the lost with an urgent laser focus. We are more committed than ever to making each dollar count. So, when you give - as I pray you may be able to do this month - know that your gift is very important to us...and to some who are wandering into great danger without Him.

I have you in the mental picture that's indelible in my mind since that day of searching for a lost sheep. You're out there with us, determined to help bring the lost ones home. But we're not alone. A Shepherd named Jesus is out there in front of us.

Because He is the Way, the Truth and the Life,

Ron Hutchcraft

P.S. - With your heart for spiritual rescue, I believe our new A Life That Matters group curriculum is a tool you could use effectively. This 13-week video experience can give your family or small group the motivation and equipping they need to help people be in heaven with them. Because we all know someone who's lost and whose only hope is a rescue. www.ALifeThatMatters.org.