Iron Rose Sister Ministries

Written by Michelle J. Goff, Founder and Executive Director of Iron Rose Sister Ministries

Second Timothy 2:2 is illustrated in the numerals of the upcoming year, 2022.
“And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.”

2—What you have learned…
0—It’s not about you.
2—Teach it to others…
2—Who will teach it to others.

2022 is a reminder of 2x2x2.

When Jesus sent out the 12 (Matt. 10)…
When Jesus sent out the 72 (Luke 10)…
When Jesus sent out all His disciples through the Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20)…
Jesus modeled and taught what He asked them to model and teach, even today and in 2022.

2—What Jesus heard from His Father…
0—It wasn’t even about Him (John 12:49).
2—Jesus taught to others…
2—Who would teach others…

Because of Jesus’ teaching and His pattern of teaching to teach to teach, we are coworkers in His kingdom today.

As a ministry, Christ’s pattern of organic multiplication in teaching and Paul’s mentoring example, specifically in 2 Timothy 2:2, have been our model. What we plant, you water, and God brings the growth (1 Cor. 3:4-9). As such, we are “coworkers in God’s service.” And we are EXTREMELY GRATEFUL for your partnership as co-laborers in His vineyard.

We celebrate the growth that God has brought about in 2020 and 2021. In no way did God stop working during the pandemic! The growth He had planned for Iron Rose Sister Ministries has been fruitful in ways that give Him all the glory. The God-stories are infectiously told, bringing delight to our eyes and joy to our hearts… YOU have helped make them possible. Thank you!

As we move forward in 2022, may you also see the year number as a visual reminder of our mission and our vision. We invite you to partner with us in prayer and financially, whether a one-time donation of $22 or a pledge of $22/month. We value equally those who can contribute $2022 or $202, $2.22 or $202/month. We are content and we know that God will provide, as He has done in the past. However, we would love for your partnership with us to be “credited to your account” (Phil. 4:17).

In preparation for 2022 plans, just as Jesus sent out the 12, we have a goal of $12,000 for Giving Tuesday, November 30th. However, stay tuned… The way God multiplies our efforts, it will not take us fifty years (until 2072) to reach a Giving Tuesday goal of $72,000!

Blessings and thanks!
M.

Written by Tiffany Jacox, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Bellevue, NE

Last summer my husband started really getting into gardening and I wasn’t all that into it. So this year he decided to go much bigger and I was not at all excited about this. That being said, once the time came to start getting the garden area ready I was out in the yard helping him pull weeds and prepare the space. This is when I found the time to be still. “Be still, and know that I am God” (Ps. 46:10a, NKJV). I found I could let go of the stress of work, the news, social media, and all the distractions. It didn’t take me long to begin appreciating the time outdoors and this special time with not only my husband but with creation, and with God. I began to long for that time in the yard. I felt so close to God there.

As we began planting the seeds and learning how to care for our natural, organic, chemical free garden we began to imagine what life was like for Adam after the fall. This gave my husband and me time to talk about what the garden may have been like and gave us greater appreciation for the punishment God gave man (Gen. 3:17-19,23, NASB) and the toil of cultivating the land through each generation. It gave us lessons in patience and encouraged us to be students of our ecosystem. It drew us closer to God. Each and every day was new and exciting to see what He had blessed us with! Even when the insects had their small victories.

This garden started out as a small hobby for my husband last year and a way to grow fresh vegetables for his family and friends. It turned into a huge lesson, mission, and blessing from God this year. It helped grow our marriage as we spent more time together working in the garden and just being outside enjoying our hard work and God’s beautiful bountiful blessings as we continually added to the garden. It helped us to grow in our appreciation of God’s amazing power and love in creation. It helped us to bless many people by providing and sharing in the food that we were able to grow. We were able to share our garden journey and the knowledge we learned both through social media and in person with others.

It redefined us in gratitude to be thankful for God and what He blesses us with. Each and every day was a beautiful gift I was able to open. Redefined in gratitude by the gift of a new day; by the gift of a beautiful new flower fully bloomed; by vegetables ready to be picked; by the gift of being able to get up close and personal to see His creation and the function of birds, bees, butterflies, grasshoppers, praying mantis, ladybugs, and so many more!

I found myself running to the window every morning to see my husband sitting outside in the garden to spend his time before work with God and the sunrise. I’d go out at lunch time and visit the plants and soak up the sunshine and talk with God. Every evening my husband and I would tend to the garden and care for it and harvest the blessings and then sit and admire God’s work in abundant gratitude.

In this season of giving thanks, what has God done to redefine you through gratitude?

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thess. 5:18, NASB)

Written by Kat Bittner, volunteer and Board member for Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Colorado

Genuine Christianity is best lived out by the gratitude we display!

I find gratitude to be a lost art. Today’s culture and society have become so consumed with the castigation of the past that an appreciation for the good things is waffling. We’ve become more mindful of the troublesome parts of life. Our focus often drifts toward the imminent burdens we bear in our body (physical) or mind (emotional) when we ought to be focused more on the divine (spiritual) matters for which we should be abundantly grateful. We who are in Christ have been gifted by God through the Holy Spirit to withstand a whole lot of affliction and come out the other side intact.

It behooves us then to be appreciative, knowing that we are perfected by God (James 1:2-3). It does our body and mind better to be preoccupied with Godly things instead of the contrary things of life. I don’t know one believer who has been tormented by thinking on divine and holy things. But I’ve known plenty, myself included, who have been overwhelmed with suffering by fixating on worldly matters. These matters are temporary items for we who are temporary occupants in this world. And abiding in the temporary demonstrates ingratitude for the eternal.

“Dear friends, I warn you as “temporary residents and foreigners” to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls.” (1 Pet. 2:11, NLT)

If we are to be of any influence on unbelievers or if we are to be true ambassadors for Christ, we must be grateful for what He has done (Eph 1:7). We must be grateful for who He is (1 John 4:14). We must be grateful for how He works (Heb 13:21). And we should be audibly demonstrating our gratitude.

“Then I will thank you in front of the great assembly. I will praise you before all the people.” (Ps 35:18)

The message of hope and God’s love can be spread to the unbelieving by our own gratitude for Jesus. What better way for the world to know Him than by our own proclamation of thanks?

“Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim His greatness. Let the whole world know what He has done.” (Ps. 105:1)

For gratitude to truly emerge in the world, we must emulate gratitude. We need to be “doers of the word” (James 1:22) and reveal Jesus to the world (Heb. 1:3). If we can convey to the world the hope of Jesus, the world is more likely to live in the good rather than reside in the bad.

“For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.” (Titus 2:11-12, NIV)

God has blessed us beyond measure. Beyond what we merit. That in and of itself is enough for which we should be thankful. How will your gratitude be visible and thereby testify of Jesus?

Written by Jocelynn Goff, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Arkansas

Have you ever felt like you were living under a dark cloud? Or maybe it was so dark you actually felt as if you were not just under it but even in the middle of it.

A few years ago, I was emotionally walking with a friend through an extremely difficult and tragic part of her life. Since she wanted to be confidential, I was the only one she was sharing with. She had me, but I had no one else to share this with. I felt a tremendous weight with this responsibility—a responsibility I fully accepted to help my friend but a heavy weight none the less. In other words, I felt both under and in a dark cloud. This weight felt hard to overcome in my day-to-day responsibilities. I found myself sinking into a state of depression. I knew I had a ready listening Heavenly Father, so I was definitely praying. However, no lifting of the dark cloud. In addition, I was fasting and praying. And yet, no lifting of the dark cloud. I began singing especially on my walks around the neighborhood. Still no dark cloud lifting. I cried out, “God what am I missing?” I felt a still small voice say, “thanksgiving.”

OH, yes, Father this is a missing element in my prayer and petition to you. As you remind me.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” (Phil. 4:6)

So, I pulled out my Thankful Journal and began reminding myself of the too-numerous-to-count times of thanksgiving blessings God had given me. As I read each blessing out loud, I felt the dark cloud slowly begin to lift. Hope began permeating my mind, spirit, body, and soul. Thank You, God! And now I had another entry for my Thankful Journal! God had already supplied me with the answer, “Present my requests to Him with thanksgiving.”

My Thankful Journal was the result of another friend’s recommendation of Ann Voskamp’s book, One Thousand Gifts. The author invites the reader to live the concept of “Eucharisteo always precedes the miracle,” and encourages a Thankful Journal.

I was challenged to start my own Thankful Journal and began with the goal of 1,000 gift entries. I am now at 6,851 Thankful Journal entries. It’s nearly impossible to keep up with writing down all of God’s blessings. Still, it is pure delight to be reminded and record God’s gifts in my life. When I am feeling the weight of life on many different levels, I am prompted much earlier in my dark cloud moments to choose thankfulness. I am also reminded in His Word:

“give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thes. 5:18)
“let us be thankful and so worship God” (Heb. 12:28b)

I encourage you to choose thankfulness as a significant part of your everyday walk and especially for those dark cloud moments. I also encourage you to read One Thousand Gifts and begin your own Thankful Journal.

Why is grass inviting for rolling down a hill, while a rock invites a climb?
Why did God give sunrises and sunsets glorious displays of shifting color variations?
Does a centipede need all 100 legs?
Would a lion roar as loudly without his impressive mane?
Why does a fish have many small scales instead of one or two big ones? Or would two big scales on a sea creature just be a clam?
Did God always intend for there to be fish large enough to swallow a rebellious person?
Have you thought about how the feathers of a bird facilitate its flight? Beyond the functional necessity of the feathers, their myriad of colors and head-shapes are not out of necessity, but rather out of God’s extravagant design.

Gratuitous extravagance.

Gratuitous… a big word that encompasses and even bigger meaning. If something is gratuitous, it means that it is above and beyond what is expected or deserved. Louisiana natives may compare it to “lagniappe,” which means a little something extra, like the 13th donut of the baker’s dozen.

Extravagance… the gratuitous beauty with which God created the world is beyond what we might’ve expected or imagined. It is most definitely more than we deserve. The lavish splendor of creation points to a loving Creator who delights in the art of His handiwork.

Gratuitous extravagance.

James, the brother of Jesus, uses two contrasting facets of nature to describe the Father from whom all good gifts originate.

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17).

God’s gifts are good. His gifts are sacrificial. His gifts can never be repaid. Many of His gifts are unnecessary, but all His gifts inspire gratitude. And His greatest gift? His love.

Paul attempts to describe God’s love in Ephesians using words like “glorious riches” and “how long and high and deep is the love… that surpasses knowledge.” Some of my favorite verses are at the conclusion of that inept description. They are a benediction and call to action.

 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,  to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. (Eph. 3:20-21)

 There is no way that we can repay God for His extravagant gifts. Rather, His gratuitous beauty serves as an invitation to thank and praise Him.

God’s gifts are an invitation, not an obligation.

Do I have to delight in the question of why a giraffe has so many spots? Nope. But I am invited to chuckle along with God, who creatively and carefully designed and delighted in each animal’s unique beauty, each blade of grass, every fish in the sea and myriad of birds of the air.

And when we take a moment to celebrate and express our gratefulness for His gratuitous extravagance, we are redefined by our gratitude and transformed by His beauty and love.

P.S. Special thanks to the Creative Response Sunday morning Bible class at Downtown and to Makoto Fujimura’s book, Art and Faith, for some of the inspiration and vocabulary for this blog post.