Dan and Discipleship

Randy’s November, 2013 Update:

Dan’s Identity Shift:
“Filled with misguided passion, angst, and an unshakable sense that my value was directly related to my productivity and how I portrayed myself, I wrestled with the frustration of feeling “stuck”.  Perhaps much of my frustration came from envisioning what I wanted, and then growing angry when God didn’t deliver.  Often I would become weary and frustrated waiting, too paralyzed by fear and anger to see the opportunities I may be missing.

“I secretly craved adventure, significance, fulfillment and life, but only felt lost, confused, and fully aware that all of these things that I was supposed to be experiencing in Christ, were hit or miss in my life.

“Through intentional shepherding with Randy, God has been shifting my focus from finding my identity in the purpose of my life, to knowing my identity through intimacy with Christ, as the Beloved.  It is in being His Beloved that my true identity and life purpose stems and flows.

“Whether the context is teaching in my high school classroom, casual conversations with friends, or being involved at Mission Church, my desire is to support and challenge others to deepen their intimacy with God and to faithfully follow the audacious call to follow Christ.

Dan and Discipleship:
“One way in which God has provided direction and fruitful labor in my life is through Discipleship.

“Randy challenged me to live the Gospel I read about.  This shifted my experience from reading about moments of life-change to being a part of the life-change movement.

“I felt challenged to reproduce the discipleship experience I’ve had with Randy.  This stretched me to invest in the life of a now good friend, Jacob.

“I can now say with conviction that intentional discipleship is God’s plan for His Church.

“The impact these relationships have had on me have brought life and breath to the pages of Scripture.  It is within this God-given context of Discipleship that all the adventure, relational connection, love, and transformation that I was awaiting, takes place.

“In addition to one-on-one Discipleship, God has blessed me with the opportunity to help others engage and cultivate their faith through writing curriculum for Mission Groups at Mission Church, as well as the opportunity to teach from time to time at Mission Students.

Step After Faithful Step:
“It was a huge step for me to turn the desire for something greater into activity to become greater.

“I never realized how much energy and effort it takes to be frustrated and stuck; I would argue that it takes more energy and effort than is required to take a faithful next step!

“And so I am now using my best energy to take step after faithful step.  Although the destination isn’t totally clear, I desire to live a life of full surrender.  This for me means to say “yes” to where God is leading, and not first aligning it to my previously set expectations.

“Saying “yes” over the past two years has led my wife Grace and I to: move to Roselle, help start and build a local church, bring restoration to local schools in our neighborhood, experience individuals in our neighborhood accept Christ, and be awed by the present movement of God in other’s lives as well as my own.

There is a Place for Me and You:
“Living as His Beloved definitely brings adventure, purpose, and an increasing desire for deeper intimacy with Him.  I have not arrived, and never will on this earth, but in accepting grace and love, there is life abundant.  Grace and love break the fear that prevents me from actively pursuing what God might be doing in my life.  There is grace, there is love, there is purpose, and there is a place for me in the Kingdom of God!

“God isn’t looking for the perfect ones; He’s looking for the faithful ones.  May we all be faithful with the opportunities in our lives, both big and small, to say “yes” as the Spirit leads.  The Kingdom is here, and it is now.

“Whatever you might find yourself in the middle of, God desires greater intimacy with you.  How can you faithfully and audaciously follow today?  There is grace, freedom, adventure, purpose and a place for you in His Kingdom!” – Dan Ruta.

Randy’s Random Reflections:
Dan touched on three transformational goals of this ministry – to help each young leader experience deeper intimacy with God, embrace their identity as a deeply loved child of God, and (flowing out of intimacy and identity) discover their unique redemptive purpose in this world.  Much of what I do involves helping people identify and remove the blocks that keep them from experiencing more fully these three things: intimacy, identity, and purpose.

Dan, who is 27 years old, is still sorting out his ultimate purpose.  Along the way, he is gaining clarity through being actively involved in bringing more of God’s love through discipleship at Mission Church, a church plant where they desire to create a movement, not just build a church.  They are investing in their neighborhoods, not just in themselves.  They are not perfect (no church is), but many wonderful things are happening.

 In the brief two years the church has been going, 62 people have been baptized, regular attendance has grown to 450 people weekly, and this year they received the Most Generous Organization Award from the mayor of their town for their compassionate efforts to aide and restore their community.  The previous winner was a large corporation.  This fall, they rallied the community to provide over 1400 backpacks filled with school supplies to children who would otherwise go without.  They’ve distributed hundreds of Thanksgiving meals, and offered Christmas gifts at $2 each so parents could afford them (with the proceeds going to two schools in the area), and have 18 volunteers at Kid’s Hope mentoring program.  Currently, over seventy people are going through a six-week training class on how to live more purposefully.  Sounds like a pretty good start to a movement!

I’ve had the honor and privilege of mentoring many of the staff and key leaders.  I am so proud of them for who they are and for how they are living out their unique redemptive purposes in our world.

Next Faithful Step for You:
An investment in a difference maker like Dan is an investment that will pay dividends far into the future.

If you feel the Spirit leading, please take a faithful step and join my financial support team and join me in praying regularly for these young leaders.  There is a place for you in this Kingdom work.

Would you prayerfully consider giving a monthly, quarterly, or annual contribution?  If so, please contact me at randy@legacyshepherding.org.  You are needed.

Contributions are tax deductible.

In His Love,
Randy