January 2012

A NEW ERA!

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Well, the time has finally come. We have talked about the possibility of starting our own non-profit for years and this January we actually did it. We are excited to announce that "Stand For Truth" is the new official ministry of the Pentons and the Hollidays!

So why the change?  Over the past couple years, our parent organization, The Fellowship of Christian Athletes, has become more and more focused on reaching primarily student-athletes and coaches.  At the same time, our specific ministry within FCA has become more and more committed to reaching all types of teens with the gospel.  The difference in focus isn’t a major problem, but we have begun to feel that working as official FCA representatives probably isn’t the best fit.  So after much thought, prayer and counsel we decided to transition out of FCA and into our new non-profit ministry, Stand For Truth.  

The mission of our ministry has not changed at all.  We will continue to reach unchurched teens with the Gospel of Jesus through school assemblies and outreach events across the nation.  We will also continue to work closely with the local FCA staff and partner with FCA groups around the country.  The only change will be organizational but it should enable us to be more efficient and effective at reaching teens.

January was Joel's last month on staff with FCA.  He served for exactly five years to the day. We are so grateful to FCA for all their support over the years, and freedom to achieve our own ministry goals.  Please pray for us an we begin this new phase of life and ministry.

Until Next Month,

Bethany

Message From Joel

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Friends,

The transition into the new ministry is very exciting but it is also a bit challenging.  We are in the midst of a pretty busy travel schedule which doesn't leave a lot of extra time for getting a new non-profit up and running.  I thank God that Bethany and Ryan's wife, Emily, are so committed to the ministry.  They are bearing much of the administrative burden of this transition.  Please pray for them to have the time and energy necessary for this task while also caring for young children at home.

Perhaps the greatest challenge right now is transitioning all our financial supporters over to the new ministry.  We have many supporters who donate through automatic monthly donations and it is difficult to get in touch with so many people in such a short period of time to get their donations switched from FCA to Stand For Truth.  We are also seeing a trend of some people taking this change as an opportunity to reevaluate their decision to support us at all. Please pray that our emails, letters and phone calls will get through right away and that our supporters will remain committed to our ministry so we can continue our work of reaching teens with the Gospel. 

Thank you so much for your prayers and support!

God Bless,
Joel