Thank You Letter

(I wrote this to my church at the end of the year. I'll post it here, as well.)

Thank you.

I would like to thank everyone for their overwhelming support this past year. It has been an amazing year of ministry at Joppa, Joppa North and YATEC MN. Your support allows me to chase after young adults.

Some of you may not be familiar with what Joppa is, so much of this letter is a refresher or introduction. Joppa was a bustling port city in the Bible, located about thirty-five miles west of Jerusalem on the vital International Coastal Highway that followed the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. It is referenced in Jonah, and in Acts 9 & 10. The significance of the name for our ministry is that the young adult is constantly having to make important choices that influence which direction they go. It is my hope that our ministry can help them make the right choices.

Right now Joppa is in the middle of its winter schedule. A typical Tuesday night sees young adults (post high school through early 30’s) from West Central Minnesota gather together at Epik, behind the Willmar Assembly of God church. Our Tuesday meetings involve fellowship, worship, a guest speaker who gives a brief message that ranges from specific portions of Scripture to other topics that are relevant in the lives of young adults, such as relationships, boundaries, self-image, community or any variety of important issues.

After the speaker is done, Joppa splits up into small groups and discusses what was presented. Leaders facilitate and try to answer questions or provide spiritual guidance to the small groups. After a little bit of extra discussion, the people of the group pray for one another.

Since I started coming to Joppa, we’ve grown from 12-15 people meeting weekly, to having up to 130 people in attendance on any given week. A typical week will see around 70 young adults attend. We celebrate what God has done with that growth. However, it’s also come to my attention that there are more than 70 young adults in the Willmar area. I have made it my commitment to pursue them. I do this because God pursued me first.

I’ve been doing this for over eight years now. My hands get dirty doing this. My heart gets broken. My sleep gets interrupted. My finances dwindle. My calendar is no longer my own. I celebrate. I laugh. I get frustrated. I get encouraged. I see progress. I see regression. I see God at work in a generation, impacting it through it all. I see new creations being formed.

I would like to thank you all for walking with me through all of this and supporting me on some level, whether financially or via prayer. If you’re praying for me, please don’t stop. I am swimming upstream on the mission I’ve been called to, and I covet your prayers. Thank you.

Gratefully,

Jeff Schmitz
Joppa Young Adult Ministry
JoppaOnline.org
No Time To Be Cool