RELAUNCH 2 0 2 1 Ye a r E n d R e p o r t
THE WIND IS BLOWING! During a worship night in Visalia back in April, we sensed God saying that it was time to “Relaunch”, and since then we have felt as if the Winds of the Spirit were beginning to pick up with a fresh vigor. From the very start of Full Sail Ministries in 1999, we believed God was calling us to “Get our sails up!” We sensed Him saying, “You don’t have to figure out where you are going or empower yourselves to get there. All I am asking you to do is raise your sails to the Wind of my Spirit and I will do the rest!” Once again, we are seeing the fulfillment of this word to our hearts. How refreshing to hear His encouragement to relaunch after the “pause” of COVID. From that moment, we began preparing our hearts – through brainstorming meetings together, prayer times, abandoned worship, journaling, listening - getting our sails hoisted high! And sure enough, the Wind began to blow! We are literally in awe of what has transpired since then and are so excited to tell you about it!We hope you enjoy the stories and highlights as much as we are enjoying living them out firsthand!
FOREST, OHIO SEPTEMBER 17-18
ARCHBOLD, OHIO SEPTEMBER 24-25
OASIS RETREATS We had an amazing time at the 2 Ohio Oasis Retreats in Andy and Darlene Wilson’s barn (Forest) and Corey and Honour Ruffer’s barn (Archbold) in September. About a hundred people set aside a portion of their day to slow down and receive much-needed refreshment from Jesus. The heartbeat behind Oasis Retreats is an invitation to press the pause button on the busyness of life and to come away to meet with God in unrushed time. Jesus gave a similar invitation to His weary disciples in Mark 6:31: “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” We love setting a beautiful space with a variety of elements that aid in “coming away”: corporate worship times, devotional thoughts, Communion, Reflective Stations, Reflection on the Word, one on one prayer times, and loads of unstructured quiet time. It can be challenging to enter into that kind of time away, but the benefits are massive and we are seeing in our own lives as well as in the lives of many others, that it produces real rest and abundant fruit.
THEME: “DRAW ” Draw:“to cause to come by attracting”. John 6:44 says: “The only way people come to me is by the Father who sent me—He pulls on their hearts to embrace me. And those who are drawn to me, I will certainly raise them up in the last day.”
“ THE HEART OF GOD WAS DRAWING US ALL TO HIMSELF – PULLING US CLOSE TO HIS HEART AGAIN.” As we thought about the 2 Ohio Oasis Retreats, we had the deep impression that the heart of God was drawing us all to Himself – pulling us close to His heart again, like a homing beacon. Back to relationship, back to refreshment, back to peace, back to hope, back to connection with our Source. But we were also impressed with the thought that our own need, brokenness, and longing draws Him to us. Psalm 18:6 records David’s desperate cry to God and God’s precious response to that deep need: “I cried out to you in my distress, the delivering God, and from Your temple-throne You heard my troubled cry. My sobs came right into Your heart and You turned Your face to rescue me.” Oh what a gracious and responsive Father we have! Our Father is moved with compassion by our need and it draws Him to respond to us. No wonder, then, the writer of Hebrews says: “Since we have a great priest over the house of God (Jesus), let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings…” (Hebrews 10:21-22)
OASIS REFLECTIVE STATIONS “Reflective Stations: a stopping place for deep thought”. We had 17 of these Ref lective Stations available at our September Oasis Retreats, ie: Straight Lines, Living Words, Tea and Thought, Collaborative Art, Ref lection Pool, Footwashing…Each station contained the elements for the hands-on activity, a booklet with devotional thoughts, Scriptures and quotes for ref lection, and ending with a journaling prompt to help press further meaning into what the Lord might be personally saying to each heart. We were full of gratitude at how readily people engaged with God at these stations.
“OPEN MY EYES AND MY HEART TO MORE OF YOUR COLORS …TO EMBRACE AND CELEBRATE THE HUES , THE DIFFERENCES. SHOW ME THE COLORS YOU’ VE MADE ME TO CARRY. (COLLABORATIVE ART STATION)
JOURNAL ENTRY QUOTES FROM REFLECTIVE STATIONS “God, My everlasting faithful Father. Here. You are here. Here with me. Here in the midst of my pity party. Here reminding me of Who You are. Here reminding me that You see, You know. Here knowing the ugly parts of my life. Here, not afraid of getting dirty to be with me. Here in Your holiness. Here in Your perfection. Here in Your perfect sovereignty. Here, using the imperfect to showcase You. Here with me. Here. Take me – All of me. Make whatever You want of what is here.” (Poetry Station) “Papa, thank you for my brokenness and that it draws me closer to You! I feel so broken as a wife and a mother that I am striving and doing all on my own. Forgive me for not leaning into You and trusting You with it all. I invite You into the brokenness of my life and to make it beautiful because I know I am beautiful to You. I love You!” (Brokenness Mosaic Station) “God, I have often said, ‘Don’t cry’ and told myself the same – holding in tears and emotion, (thinking) it would feel better to keep it in – but You (want the) complete release of all we are – our pain, our fear, our sadness, our joy, our everything…Our tears that spill as a result of extreme emotions. You will wipe every single one with loving hands and assure us You love us and desire us to feel and know and RECEIVE Your joy and peace and comfort! Thank You Father!” (Bowl of Tears Station) “Colors…so many beautiful colors blending, accenting, f lowing, undergirding. You are the Creator of color. You are the Master Painter. Open my eyes and my heart to more of Your colors…to embrace and celebrate the hues, the differences. Show me the colors You’ve made me to carry…the Color of Joy! (Yellow paint smudge) The Color of Love! (Red paint smudge) The Color of Peace! (Blue paint smudge)” (Collaborative Art Station)
You allo ws me to “Lo rd, rai sin g my han ds to , you are fill ing me fee l tha t You tak e joy in me can let go of the up . I fee l the for giv ene ss and th my han ds up , I can sha me I felt in kne elin g. Wi joy and allo win g me fee l You ref illi ng me wit h bet ter rec eiv e all tha t to let go of the fea r. I can pea ce, joy …E mp ty me You hav e to giv e me : lov e, n har bor ing in my of all the thi ngs tha t I’ve bee eiv e the tru th abo ut hea rt so I can hea r and rec han ds = op en hea rt.” wh at You say is tru e. Op en (Po stu res Sta tio n) “Pu rity in my hea rt It’s wh at You ma de me for se the doo r To kno w You r lov e, not clo des ire Tak e my pri de, my sel fish h You r fire . wit m the n Tak e the m, bur Set my hea rt to res t r che st, Let me lay my hea d up on You thm . rhy t fec per You r bre ath ing is a anx iou s sou l. my es iev It draws my hea rt, it rel Ge ntl e, like a bre eze . Pea cef ul. Lik e the mo rni ng. Ho ly Spi rit hav e You r wa y. Co nvi ct my hea rt. Res tor e my lov e.” (Po etr y Sta tio n)
ARCHBOLD OASIS TEAM
W I T H J I L L’ S B R O T H E R A N D Y A N D W I F E , DA R L E N E , AT OA S I S I N FO R E ST, O H
IN THEIR OWN WORDS “This wasn’t just an Oasis for me. It was a rescue. I was going under.” (Oasis Attendee) “I was apprehensive about attending the Oasis Retreat, but all those fears were quickly squelched as the retreat was inviting and seemed custom-made just for me. From the worship time to the testimonials to the ref lective stations, God used each component to draw me closer to Himself, reminding me of lessons from long ago and teaching me some new ones along the way. Oasis was a time of ref lection, renewal, and respite – what a blessing it was to attend!” (Oasis Attendee) “Oasis on the road! As soon as I heard the idea, it resonated deeply in my heart! Bringing the heart of God to the heart of His children - to my town - to my friends - to my family! Yes!! Our good and loving Father so graciously and so lavishly came to us through the Oasis event in a barn near us. He spoke individually and corporately as we worshiped together and met with Him privately at the stations. Each activity is designed to uniquely prompt our hearts to open up and connect with our Maker. What a thrill to see that happening all around me to the very young and very old, to men and women of all walks of life. Thank you Father for allowing your heart to be displayed to us through Oasis! Thank you Geoff and Jill for being the welcome and platform. Let’s do it again soon!” (Oasis Attendee)
“ THIS WASN’ T JUST AN OASIS FOR ME. IT WAS A RESCUE.” (OASIS ATTENDEE)
HUMAN REFLECTIVE STATIONS About two years ago, we started adding a new version of our Ref lective Stations. Instead of reading the devotional thoughts from a station booklet, an actual person, a human, “becomes” the booklet. In these brief talks, various team members share from their own personal journeys with God. The time is concluded with a journaling prompt and an opportunity for personal prayer, if desired.
“I was reminded again of God’s immense love for us at Oasis Retreats this fall. What a privilege to be able to serve alongside Geoff and Jill at the foot washing station to be a conduit for His love and His grace to meet people where they are at and affirm God’s love to them. I noticed a lady that was pursuing all of the stations but I didn’t know if she would come to the foot washing station or not, so I just began to pray for her as I observed her feet at the stations nearest mine. God said to pray for her family to be restored and for joy to be hers. She did end up at the end of the day at the foot washing station. As I prayed over her again while washing her feet I prayed that her family would be restored. She confirmed through tears that this had been her prayer for the last few years. She left encouraged and with faith rising in her again that God would see to His promise and wanting more than ever to walk out what God was directing in her. God is so GOOD! And I am ever grateful to Him for His lavish grace, unfailing love, and His pursuit of us to bring us to the very heart of the Father.“ (Oasis Team Member) “At Oasis, I reconnected with God. It started during the team prayer time. As we prayed, I could feel the walls around my heart melt away. I didn’t have to pray and ask the Lord to remove them because I didn’t even know they were there. I didn’t realize how weighed down I was until He freed me of the heavy things I was carrying. And that was just the start of the Oasis Day! From the worship to the stations to the individual prayer time, I heard the Father whisper to me an invitation to come into His embrace.” (Oasis Team Member)
GEOFF’S HUMAN REFLECTIVE STATION This is Geoff’s Human Reflective Station from our September Oasis Retreats: A few years ago, I woke up in the middle of the night, unable to get back to sleep. I was feeling the weight of responsibility on my shoulders for many things. My anxious thoughts left me restless and I felt disconnected from God. Fear began to nag me with accusations, and I felt loneliness creep over me. An hour went by as I struggled to turn off the thoughts of doubt and fear. Have you ever felt this way? Maybe not in the middle of the night, but a moment when you were overwhelmed by your circumstances, lack, or anxiety? Here’s an entry I made on social media on one such night. After reading it, feel free to follow the prompt and invite Jesus to give you His perspective on your moment. “Woke up again. It’s the middle of the night and I’m lying here trying to go back to sleep, but my brain won’t let me. So much to do. So many needs. How can I solve the problems I face? I feel overworked and probably haven’t gotten the regular food, exercise or sleep I need. I imagine such is the life and times, at times, for people who lead or ‘run’ things. We carry the weight of responsibility for the decisions we must make. That must be why I awaken so often in the middle of the night. That’s what I tell myself anyway. I get up. I decide to ‘get some work done’. Get to my laptop and pull up the latest newsletter project that’s long overdue to try to knock something incredibly creative out. Got nothin’. Then jump online. I open Facebook and read my last entry. Then try to go to my favorite scripture reading website, but the link won’t load.
I spend several minutes trying other websites and all I get is that I’ve lost my connection. No matter what I try, same response. I’ve lost my connection. My enemy starts his incessant whispering. ‘You don’t have it. You can’t... you won’t... you don’t... You aren’t enough. You can’t believe. You shouldn’t trust. Shoot, you can’t even operate a computer properly!’, and the list goes on. Fear’s not in the house yet, but his car just pulled up. I begin to feel isolated. Alone. ‘No one else has this list’. ‘No one sees’. ‘No one knows’. Then it occurs to me that that is impossible. That these are the moments of reality we all face. These are the moments, though slightly different in life context, that likely most humans come up against most days. That this is actually where real life meets real faith. Where real trust faces his fear. Where I watch love sit on the porch in the dead of night with his shotgun, staring fear down ‘til he gets back in his car. This is actually when and where I meet my God face to face, heart to heart... and I unload. Every burden I hand off. Every weight is lifted. He puts a much lighter load on me and adjusts it so that its weight is distributed evenly. ‘Easy there’, He says. ‘Steady’. Nah, nothing perceptible has changed for me... my circumstances, not yet anyway. But my heart is lighter. I have a restored confidence, in Him and in myself, for that matter. I’m gonna let peace guide me today. I’m gonna sacrifice and work hard and love lavishly and give away everything. Follow His lead. Connection’s back. Here we go...”
ila r ex pe rie nc e, he n yo u ha d a sim w e tim a of k in m ay be a ve ry P R O M P T : Th m yo ur Fa th er. It fro ct ne on sc di a as sig ni fic an t fo r w he n yo u fe lt in e, bu t ev er y bi t m m fro ce an st ie t, al lo w Hi m di ffe re nt ci rc um an d th en , in th e qu lt fe ly al re u yo hu rr y. Li st en yo u. Te ll Hi m ho w er e’s no ne ed to Th e. tim ur yo ke e. Ta in g. Jo ur na l th e to m ee t yo u th er rt , ne ar ne ss , he al fo m co n, io at m af fir m in d. fo r Hi s w or ds of th at co m e to yo ur ns sio es pr im d an th ou gh ts ith you. “Don’t panic. I’m w d. fear for I’m your Go to ed There’s no ne u. h. I’ll help yo I’ll give you strengt on you.” y, keep a firm grip I’ll hold you stead – ISAIAH 41:10
JR. HIGH GIRLS IN VISALIA, CA In mid-August, Jill had the tremendous privilege of sharing her testimony with a group of Junior High girls in Visalia, CA. 20-30 girls and youth leaders drew in close as she started from the beginning – sharing her story of pain, brokenness, and shame from being born with birth defects. But the story didn’t end there - Father God, in profound and rescuing love, reached into her heart when she was 16 years old and spoke His Truth into her soul – that she was seen, known, and completely loved by Him! It changed EVERYTHING!! Psalm 118:5,7 says it so well: “Out of my deep anguish and pain I prayed, and God, you helped me as a Father. You came to my rescue and broke open the way into a beautiful and broad place…You stand beside me as my hero who rescues me.” What a joy it was to pray with those precious Jr. High girls to hear the Father’s Voice for themselves, asking that He would speak His words of truth into their souls. There were many tender tears and open hearts; two girls even gave their hearts to Jesus for the very first time! What an evening to remember.
WILD CHILD IN KANSAS CITY, MO A dear friend in Kansas City, Jordanne Fulcher, started up a little gathering called “Wild Child” where young women are invited to experiment with ways to worship God through beauty and creativity – music, painting, dance, color - becoming childlike again and reveling in the pleasure and delight of Father God for them. Since we were driving to Ohio for Oasis, Jordanne asked us to stop by and speak for their little group of 12 on the Sunday night we were passing through. Oh my, what an amazing evening it was. After a very sweet worship time, we shared our Full Sail story - how God called us to “Display His heart through the arts”. And then we got to pray over these precious young women as they step out into fresh new ways of worshipping Him and displaying His heart to the world around them through their creative giftings and unique personalities.
HARDIN NORTHERN HIGH SCHOOL FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES CLUB IN DOLA, OHIO On a foggy, NW Ohio morning, Jr High and High School students and sponsors gathered to munch on doughnuts and muffins and listen to us speak. Talking about how to maintain a connected relationship with God when life gets really busy and distractions are plentiful, we encouraged the students that experiencing God’s Presence in our lives involves time in His Word, prayer, and Christian fellowship. But the key that undergirds all of that involves actually engaging our hearts with Him all the time. Allowing Him to be a part of our everyday lives. That He sent Jesus to die on the cross for that kind of connected relationship with Him. At the end of our time together, we invited them to pray with us in offering our hearts to Jesus again and we were deeply touched by the students’ collective “Yes” to Him. An unexpected but wonderful side blessing to our time that morning, was that several attended Oasis that weekend as a result.
CASTING ALL YOUR ANXIETIES ON HIM, BECAUSE HE CARES FOR YOU. (1 PETER 5:7)
KENTON CHRISTIAN MISSIONARY ALLIANCE CHURCH IN KENTON, OH After hosting Oasis in a barn near Kenton, Ohio, we had the privilege of speaking for the Sunday morning service at Jill’s brother, Andy Wilson’s, church. Starting with God’s promise of faithfulness in Lamentations 3:22-23 (“His compassions never fail. They are new every morning”), we shared our belief that pain in all its forms – sadness, loss, fear, anxiety, dryness, feeling stuck or overwhelmed - can be the perfect grounds for an encounter with God, receiving daily His new mercies. That His agenda for pain and discomfort is an invitation into deeper relationship, intimacy and hearing His Voice. Then we led the congregation through one of our favorite Ref lective Stations from Oasis called “The Hands Station”. This Station involves calling to mind the stresses, cares, burdens, and pain we’re carrying in seemingly clenched fists and, in exchange, asking the Father to slide His hands under ours, slowly releasing the weight of our pain and burden to Him. He is the One Who cares so affectionately and watchfully for us. (I Peter 5:7) The comforting Presence of God bore many burdens that day, as corporately we released our cares to Him.
“TO ARCHBOLD WITH LOVE” We’ll never forget the first time we led a team of worshippers to the country of Thailand, back in 2005. We had such vision and stirring of heart to bring the Love of Jesus in tangible and authentic ways, not just to the Thai people, but also to the missionaries themselves who were sponsoring us. These full-time workers were pouring out of their lives and energies day in and day out without much respite. We sensed God giving us such tenderness and compassion for them, and we were eager to come alongside them in real friendship and Spirit-led prayer. Our hearts seemed to expand in size as the Lord poured His extravagant love inside us for them. The love was so prevalent, that we decided to call our ministry trip: “To Thailand with Love”. Subsequently there have been 11 “To Thailand with Love” outreaches, along with many others: “To India with Love”, “To Malaysia with Love”, “To Paraguay with Love”, “To Cambodia with Love”, “To Mexico with Love”. Out of the blue, in July we got a call from an Elder Board member of the church Jill grew up in – Archbold Evangelical Church (AEC) – asking if we (Full Sail Ministries) would consider staying in Ohio after our Oasis retreats to serve for a few months as Interim Worship Directors. The church was in the midst of a fairly unexpected transition and was looking for someone to step in to rebuild a team of worshipers and be available for any other ministry opportunities that arose.
This church has been a supporting church for many years and has closely followed our heart, vision, ministry, and outreach. They know us and what we carry. It was uncanny! As the conversation f lowed, we began to feel a familiar feeling: that unique expansion of love happening inside us. A love and tenderness and deep compassion welling up for the leaders and individuals who make up AEC. That love has continued to grow daily since. As we took time to pray and consider this, we began to see that we could quite easily base our ministry operations out of NW Ohio for these months, just as we do out of Visalia. We sensed God showing us that some of the brand new ministry ops we’d begun dreaming up in the last few months could quite easily and beautifully be developed there. So, after much conversation with our family and our FSM Board of Directors, we said yes to the Elder Boards’ invitation – yes to an outreach to Archbold Ohio! We’ve fondly begun to call this eight-month open door “To Archbold with Love”. As always, our only agenda is to open wide our eyes and ears to see and hear what God is doing and to join Him in it – be that in worship services, prayer times, one on one coffee dates, small groups, or brand-new retreat-type opportunities.…We are humbled and honored to be “all in” for this very special invitation from God.
“ O U R O N LY A G E N D A IS TO OPEN WIDE OUR EYES AND EARS TO SEE AND HEAR WHAT GOD IS DOING AND TO JOIN HIM IN IT.”
O U R F I R ST WO R S H I P T E A M AT A EC
GIVE: AN INVITATION We are so grateful for you, our supporters who have been able to continue with us faithfully over this last year and a half of COVID. So many have felt the financial stress of employment changes, loss of income, or overcoming illness. Like many other ministries, it has been a time for us to tighten our belts and conserve resources. In the last eighteen months, depending on the month, we have seen a decrease of up to 20% in our monthly support.That said God has sustained and provided for us in beautiful and miraculous ways. However, as we sense new doors opening and the Wind blowing strong, we are confidently trusting God for every single resource needed. We are praying that God would grow our Support Team in three different areas. We are praying for additional... + Team Members with the gifts and call that match each unique ministry opportunity opening before us + Team Members who will cover us in bold and believing prayer + Team Members who will stand with us financially through regular gifts (20-30 new monthly sponsors) and/or through one-time year-end gifts We love the way our Father equips us for each new ministry moment. We love the way He anticipates our need and prompts someone to pray. We love how He knows what will be required to walk through the door He is opening and sends funds from a place we couldn’t even have imagined. To each of you who have been a part of His miraculous provision and joined us in these ways over so many years and in such generous proportions, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. “And God is able to bless you abundantly so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” (II Corinthians 9:8)
LOOKING AHEAD
NEEDS FOR SUPPORT TEAM:
Please pray with us for direction and discernment for 3 potential ministry opportunities before us in the next several months: + Small Team Outreach to the Dominican Republic + 2 More Oasis Day Retreats in NW Ohio + A brand-new retreat opportunity in development called “Home for the Weekend”
Please pray with us for additional provision in these areas: + Team Members with the gifts and call that match each unique ministry opportunity opening before us + Team Members who will cover us in bold and believing prayer + Team Members who will stand with us financially through regular gifts (20-30 new monthly sponsors) and/ or through one-time year-end gifts
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
If you want to be a part of what God is doing through Full Sail Ministries, please use the enclosed envelope or visit www.fullsail.org/give to make a monthly or one time financial gift. If you’d like to give a gift in kind, please email Geoff at Geoff@FullSail.org or call us at 559-627-8202. We are grateful for your support.
GEOFF + JILL LUDLOW
FULL SAIL MINISTRIES c/o Tulare County Outreach, Inc. PO Box 1772 Visalia, CA 93279-1772
AS WE LOOK TO A NEW YEAR… A PRAYER “Lord, please bless… Our eyes to see as you see. Give us Your perspective. Help us to see our world, our families and friends, even ourselves, the way You do. Our ears to hear beyond the words people use to what they really mean to say, the cry of their hearts. Our tongues to speak with words laced with kindness and grace. Not merely our own words but Yours, because You always know just what to say to communicate Your heart, Your Love. Our feet, the parts of us that touch the ground – the way we truly live. Lead us by Your Spirit along the path you’ve laid out for us. Our hands to touch with tenderness and love, as we care for our loved ones and our world. Our hearts to beat only for You, the Lover of our souls. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.”