Quarterly Newsletter | Living by Design Ministries

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Hello, Friend!

After four years of full-time ministry, I'm learning to worry less about where we are going and focus more on what God is doing.

Right now, at this very moment, God is at work in my life and yours.

Even though everything around us is shifting sand and changing tides, our Savior is the same, "yesterday, today, and forever" (Heb 13:8).

He actively loves us, guides us, and prepares us for what lies around the bend.

Several weeks ago, when I was explaining the COVID-19 pandemic to my children and communicating the many changes we would experience due to this invisible enemy, this comforting truth wrapped itself around me like a warm hug.

I reached out to my girls and pulled them close as I whispered biblical wisdom over their lives, "I know it seems like everything is changing, but I want you to know that God will never change. When there is no peace here on earth, we can always find peace with God."

Oswald Chambers once said, "Certainty is the mark of the commonsense life: gracious uncertainty is the mark of the spiritual life. When we are rightly related to God, life is full of spontaneous, joyful uncertainty and expectancy."

These past weeks have been difficult. I will not lie and tell you that all is well in my life and ministry. These are challenging times, and we are worn thin from the trials and tribulations we are currently experiencing.

But God! He faithfully goes before us, and generously prepares a way for us (when we can see no way)!

Isaiah 43:19 NIV says, "See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."

God is doing a new thing. I don't know what it is. I don't know how it's all going to come together. But I do know that He is actively, presently, and enduringly faithful.

God is my comfort, my shelter, my salvation. And He is at work in this crisis. He has not left us alone; He will not stop working in our midst until the hour He returns.

Find comfort, strength, and peace in Him, friend! Draw near to the One who has promised to respond in kind (Jm 4:8). He is the way we get through this trial; He is the rainbow on the other side of this storm.

Sarah Koontz
President, Living by Design Ministries

P.S. If you have any questions or would like more information on any of the topics discussed in this quarterly update, please don't hesitate to contact our team at info@livingbydesign.org.

It’s incredible and almost absolutely unbelievable to me that you offer all of your devotions and lessons for free! You have inspired me to be in the Word more. Finding you and Living by Design has been an answer to prayer.
- Kristen, from Connecticut

I'm writing this to show gratitude and appreciation for your wonderful work. Your free Bible studies have changed my life tremendously. And may the Great Almighty bless you and your family. Your writing is an inspiration.

- Snethemba, from South Africa

Thank you for what you do. I am amazed by how God speaks through you and am encouraged by it regularly. Thank you for your heart for ministry, your obedience to God's calling on your life, and for your transparency! It is truly a blessing to me.

- Katie, from Wyoming

During the month of May, we are partnering with Voice of the Martyrs to bring the light of God’s Word to hostile areas and restricted nations around the globe. Brave men and women from VOM are risking arrest, imprisonment, beatings and even death to get God’s Word into the hands of those who otherwise might never receive it. We are committed to giving a minimum of 10% of all funds received between May 1-31, 2020 to Voice of the Martyr’s Bible smuggling efforts. Our goal is to give enough to cover the cost of 100 Bibles (a $600 one-time donation).

Learn more about our Giving by Design Program

✔ Pray for 31 Days of Prayer Participants: We are issuing a call to prayer for our entire Living by Design Community during the month of May. God's indwelling Spirit gives Christians the spiritual power necessary to live godly lives and to look beyond their present circumstances and see God's eternal purpose. And, by faith, we will be asking God to answer our biblical requests for strength, hope, and peace in these trying times. The Bible will be our guide as we seek to faithfully intercede for our fellow believers for thirty-one days this May. Join us!

✔ Pray for our May Fundraising Efforts: During the first quarter of 2020, we experienced a whopping 22% increase in demand for our online Bible studies. This means that we are delivering several thousand more Bible studies every single day and dealing with an unprecedented need for prayer, support, and technical services within our community. During the same time-frame, our ministry also experienced a 22% decrease in giving, when compared to the first quarter of 2019. Therefore, we are launching an immediate emergency fund drive to offset the deficit we are experiencing and sustain our ministry through the next several months. Please pray that everyone who is willing and able to support us financially will step up and answer this call to action.

✔ Pray for our Bible Study Participants: We currently have 5,125 people participating in our free online Bible studies. Please pray that the Lord would draw each participant near to His heart as He speaks to them through His Word. Pray that they would receive all the study e-mails, consistently engage in the process of personal Bible study, and experience the freedom and victory that can only be found in Christ.