Dear Partner in ministry,

There is something missing from this month’s letter to you from It Is Written.

Fingerprints.

Of course, if you were to dust the envelope you’d find fingerprints. Perhaps those of the person who delivers your mail, or those of the printer, or of someone in our office. But one set of fingerprints will be notably missing.

On April 8 of this year, It Is Written suffered a terrible loss when one of our treasured ministry team members passed away. Jocelyn Anderson, our associate development director, had been a part of the It Is Written family since we relocated to Tennessee in 2014. She was one of the very first people hired after our move east. The moment I met her I knew she would be perfect. Bubbly, positive, energetic, and someone who loved people, Jocelyn immediately became a vital member of our team, not only appreciated but loved.

Responsible for seeing to it that our monthly letters were created and mailed, Jocelyn had a heart for ministry and a love for souls. She wanted people to know Jesus and be saved, which is why her role at It Is Written mattered so much to her. The monthly letters we mail are a major part of advancing the soul-winning ministry of It Is Written.

Jocelyn was also the face of our annual Partnership events. If you attended Partnership, you met Jocelyn. She registered everyone who attended and worked out any details necessary for a person or family to have a comfortable and enjoyable experience. Jocelyn loved people, she loved what she did at It Is Written, and she loved God.

And we loved her. For now, we wait to see her again when Jesus returns. But we do more than wait.

In the parable Jesus taught, a nobleman “went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return” (Luke 19:12). He gave his servants solemn instructions. “Occupy til I come,” they were told. They did not know when the nobleman would return. They were simply to be about their master’s business until that day came.

As the day of the return of Jesus has not yet come, we are to “occupy” until he returns. It Is Written is committed to being about our Father’s business.

Pastor Robert Costa has just returned from completing It Is Written evangelistic meetings in Colombia. The meetings, conducted in the city of Cali, were streamed to thousands of small groups around Colombia, with some even meeting in the jungle. While we do not yet have final numbers, we are aware of at least 3,360 people who have been baptized. Many more will follow in the weeks to come.

Twenty-four years before this It Is Written initiative began, one couple began watching and listening to our Spanish-language program, Escrito Está. For nearly a quarter of a century, the Word of God burned in their hearts. When they saw Pastor Costa was going to be near them, in person, they knew they had to attend. They heard the messages he presented, surrendered their hearts to Jesus, and were baptized. It took many years, but the initial seeds of the gospel grew to a harvest for the Lord. We are occupying until Jesus returns.

Our recently completed evangelistic program in Alaska, which involved numerous evangelistic series and two major health outreaches, saw many people come to faith in Christ. When I met Sarah, she wanted to tell me right away how It Is Written had changed her life. “That’s where I learned the truth about God!” a beaming Sarah said. Sarah had been a lifelong Buddhist! God led her to watch our channel, It Is Written TV, and her heart and mind changed. We are occupying until Jesus returns.

This past weekend I met a lady at a local church who made a point of telling me how It Is Written impacted her life. “I watched It Is Written,” she told me, “I called for the free offer, and some ladies from the church came to my home and offered me Bible studies. We completed the studies, and I was baptized.” We are occupying until Jesus returns.

As you read this letter, please take a moment to pray that God will guide your response. We are completely dependent on God moving on the hearts of people to enable us to share Jesus. Your support this month will keep us on the front lines of ministry and ensure that more people at home and abroad, It Is Written and Escrito Está viewers, Christians and non-Christians watching our channel, come to faith in Jesus.

Just a few days before she passed away, Jocelyn prayed about how to reach certain people she wanted to see come to Jesus. She sent each person several books and a letter and appealed to them to read the books and surrender to the God to whom they pointed. As difficult as it has been for our team to lose Jocelyn, it did our hearts great good to know that one of the very last things she did on this earth was appeal to others to give their lives to Jesus. Jocelyn was occupying in the hope of the return of Jesus!

Your support of It Is Written this month allows us to reach more people around the world with the gospel. This world has to know, has to hear about, and must be confronted with the love of God and the claims of the gospel.

Thank you for occupying until Jesus returns. As we partner together, the light of the gospel will shine brighter and brighter, and more people will be won to a saving relationship with Jesus.

Sincerely,
Pastor John Bradshaw
President, It Is Written

Download the Letter as a PDF