Randy’s November, 2023 Update
Louis Launched a Discipleship House and Is Featured in a Documentary
Louis served 15 years in prison. He became a Christian while incarcerated. He currently runs a ministry he founded named Philemon House, that has four major focuses: leading weekly Bible studies at Cook County Jail, providing Bible study correspondence courses to men in prisons in Illinois and Missouri, leading weekly Bible Studies at a youth prison and, most recently, running a Discipleship House.
The goal of the Discipleship House is to provide housing for young men coming out of prison, and provide a family environment where these young men can learn skills that could help them assimilate back into society, breaking the cycle of recidivism. (Note: 86% of youth released from prison are rearrested withing 3 years.) Louis and his wife, Julie, started with two young men who were on parole, housing them in their own home.
This year they received some exciting news. They have been approved to house incarcerated youth, who will serve their time at the Discipleship House in place of prison! Louis and Julie are currently looking for a house to use for this purpose. It’s unbelievable the doors that God has opened in Louis’ life, since getting out of prison.
And that’s not all! Several years ago, someone invited Louis to share part of his story on video for Alpha. The video ended up being submitted to a series of film award competitions. And guess what? It won! In fact, the short form documentary featuring Louis Dooley’s Story won 2 Telly awards in 2023! I encourage you to watch the video at philemonhouse.org. From the dropdown menu at the top, go to About Us, then Our Story.
Chris Led a Team to the Dominican Republic
About 12 years ago, Chris (a Legacy Shepherding alum) went on a mission trip to an orphanage in the Dominican Republic (DR). He was so moved by the experience that he has been taking teams down there ever since, including groups with non-Christians who have also had life-changing experiences. Chris has been to the Dominican Republic over 50 times, bringing hundreds of people on serving trips over the years.
In late September, Chris took two Legacy Shepherding alums* and one current mentee** to the DR to explore ways their church (Renewal Church) can partner with orphanages and organizations there. Chris headed up the expedition and introduced them to some of the connections he has made over the years.
Chris is currently in the process of transitioning out of his job with a large investment advisory firm to allow himself more time to serve the Lord in the ways he feels called. This includes the work he’s doing with a school, orphanage, baseball ministry, and a chocolate company (Inaru.com) in the DR, helping to pull children and farmers out of poverty. Chris is also active with startup companies and not-for-profits, helping company founders with vision casting and startup needs. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for Philemon House mentioned previously in Louis’ update. Chris also mentors a young Dominican man, named Wilber, who he met through the DR baseball ministry. Wilber is currently attending college here in the States, studying criminal justice.
Kristin Sauer Went to Heaven in June
I’ve been very saddened by the loss of my dear friend, Kristin, who died in June from cancer at age 52. Kristin was one of the first people to go through Legacy Shepherding Ministries spiritual mentoring. Over the course of our time together, we became friends. We both loved Spiritual Formation and were always up for trying new things and learning. Whenever one of us would hear about a new training class, we would let the other know and do it together. She was my go-to partner. We got trained together in Immanuel Prayer (a healing prayer method that I am still involved in), we co-led a small group that went for many years, we took dance lessons together, led Authentic Relating Games, attended some listening circle events, and even went on vacation together.
Kristin was so full of life. She loved the Lord and served Him faithfully until the end. She had a huge impact on people. I’m proud to say she was a Legacy Shepherding alum, and I’m even more proud to say she was my friend.
You Can Make a Difference
This year we intentionally invested in 31 influential leaders. I believe each one of them will have an impact that will carry on after this mentoring experience.
None of this impact happens without you. You can make a difference.
If you haven’t already, would you be willing to partner with me by making a contribution for this year or by making an on-going commitment to support the impactful work of this ministry?
Contributions are tax deductible and life changing. Thanks so much for your prayers and support.
Every penny will help!
Happy Thanksgiving! Randy
Leave a Reply