February 2024

Dear Friends of God’s Resort,

Thank you for being with us in your support and prayers, as we are with people who desperately need love and healing! Only God can and will reward your kindness!

Mary grew up in a good family, but she became known as the “rebellious child.”  That began a lifetime of struggle that took her through things she shouldn’t have survived and several failed relationships that gave her three children. Life as a single mom was hard. Then she met a Christian man that she thought was her “knight in shining armor,”  but he wasn’t.  After years of more struggle that turned to bitterness, she even lost her relationship with her children. It was near Christmas when she realized, having lived with no communication with her husband, that he had not made house payments for so long that their house was repossessed and sold. She now faced homelessness.

God sent her preacher’s wife to check on her at her work, and she asked Mary how she was doing.  Finally, being honest, she poured out her heart. They suggested she come to God’s Resort. At first, she resisted the idea, but God said to her, “You need to go to God’s Resort!”  She now sees God was in the middle of her brokenness, and her rebellious spirit began to break! “I was blinded and walking in that darkness until I came to this community of the light of God’s love! My eyes have been opened, and I am learning more than I ever have  how to do life in Christ and how to love and be loved! I have always done life alone but now I realize I need Him more than ever!”  God has begun restoring her relationship with her children!

Mary says God’s Resort has become another family for her! “People here are not judgmental because we are all broken, and this is a place where we are all healing!” Along with spiritual healing, she just had major surgery and has been blessed by all the love she has experienced in her recovery.  They even brought the Super Bowl party to her apartment!

Mary is full of joy these days and told me she knows for the first time in her life that  God is with her, and she knows He will never leave her!!  Thank you for making a home where even lonely senior citizens can choose freedom from their past and reach their potential as a child of God!

New Team Members!

God has always been faithful to send the right people at the right time to His Resort. He has done it again! This January we were blessed to add two new team members, both upcoming graduates of Ozark Christian College.

Kyleigh Wayman came on staff as our Next Gen Coordinator. This is a new position that we are super excited about! Kyleigh will focus her time on investing directly into our children and teens, and also helping recruit, train, and coordinate volunteers who will invest in them. One specific facet of this is that she will serve as a Life Transition Coordinator to our teen girls. Kyleigh’s heart is to “sit with people in their mess.” We all know how valuable that is, as each one of us needs that at certain times in our lives. God is going to do GREAT things with Kyleigh. She also says that her “hope through serving at God’s Resort is to see children empowered as they walk in their identity as heirs in God’s Kingdom.” Yay! We’re grateful to have you, Kyleigh!

We are also excited to have MacKenzie Richars as an intern this winter and spring! Mackenzie is not new to God’s Resort, as she has been volunteering here for almost five years! She will be serving in various capacities, getting a holistic view of how God’s Resort operates. Mackenzie says that her heart is to see the residents at God’s Resort “grow in their relationships with God and others,” and find “the transformational healing that is only found in Christ.” We are so glad to have Mackenzie in this more involved role with us! She’s going to be a great blessing to us and will walk away with a deeper understanding of non-profit ministry.

Galentine Brunch Success!

Our annual Galentine Brunch is always a special blessing to our ladies! As you can see from the pictures, it was a meaningful time of fellowship, smiles, laughter, and as always, good food! What a beautiful bunch of ladies – inside and out. A special thank you to Brenna Morey, USA National Miss Missouri Teen, who shared some encouraging words with the ladies and read from a book she wrote. She has made multiple visits to God’s Resort with her family and blessed us in many ways. Thank you to everyone who showed up and to our volunteers who helped put it together! We couldn’t provide these awesome opportunities without your partnership in the Kingdom!

Supplies Needed for New Residents

One of our favorite moments is welcoming our new family members to God’s Resort! You can play a part in that by helping us stock what is needed for their homes, as we are short on some supplies. Here is a list of what’s needed. Items can be dropped off at God’s Resort (1501 S. Pearl, Joplin) during office hours (M-Th, 9-4, Fri, 9-noon – closed M-Th 12-1 for lunch). Thank you for helping if you can!