Living Your Legacy

Dale and Brenda: God’s impact through The Navigators and Glen Eyrie

Brenda and Dale found their way back to faith through The Navigators 2:7 study. Their involvement in this program as well as in The Navigators’ retreat center, Glen Eyrie, also led them to make a very special gift. Read the story in Dale’s own words.

“We both grew up in the church and drifted away. We met in Denver as we were coming back into the church. We realized we were not grounded in our faith. In our early married life a friend recommended we join a Bible Study, it was The Navigators 2:7. Through that study we were able to strengthen our walk with the Lord in Bible study, daily quiet time, Scripture memory and sharing our testimony. We were involved with this study for two years and in a mentoring relationship with Clyde & Marie, who were preparing for ministry with The Navigators. We would come down to the Glen for retreats.

Because of a study on Lordship and prayers, unknown to us, our minds were changed about having children. The Lord blessed us with a daughter who became a youth leader and married a Pastor. We went on to lead 2:7 groups at our church, and have continued to see the need for small groups over our 45 year marriage.

After retirement we moved to Colorado Springs and had the opportunity to become involved with Glen Eyrie on a volunteer basis. Brenda gives weekly Castle tours, we have been resident Castle hosts, and we have continued to volunteer for various events over the past few years. We have seen how the Lord has worked through the Castle and grounds and the effect it can have on guests. After spending time on the grounds, we could see the need for continued maintenance and upkeep. So we looked into the Legacy Gift program and selected the Sanny Fund for our future gift.

Our hope is that the Castle and grounds continue to be open to the public and to fulfill The Navigators motto, “’To know Christ, make Him known, and help others do the same^®.’”

Saying “Yes” to God

Albina moved to Lithuania in 2016 at age 17 to attend LCC International University. There, she participated in various Bible studies, including one with Gretchen Ketner, who had been coordinating all English language programs at LCC for eight years and was the only U.S. Navigators staff member in the Baltic region.

After Albina’s freshman year, Christianity became more than a hobby when a passage in the Bible struck her heart. God asked to be either hot or cold toward Him, but not neutral. “I got so scared,” she says. “I understood that what God wants from me is a clear yes or no.”

And her answer?  “Yes, I want this, I want You in my life.”

Immediately, she reached out to Gretchen to mentor her and study the book, The Ways of the Alongsider. Her heart softened toward becoming a disciple of Jesus and by her last year, she was discipling young women from Ukraine who attended LCC.

Upon graduation, Albina worked for a year at LCC before moving to Ukraine to join an NGO that helps prevent sexual exploitation of children.

Who Do You Want to Invest In?

Hearing rumors of a Russian attack on Victory Day, May 9, Albina’s father insisted that she return to her family, but by June, Albina was saying to God, “If I can do more in Ukraine, send me.”

Now, in Kyiv, still serving with an NGO, she helps a large local church with its food kitchen and coordinating buses for refugees evacuating to the west. “Even in the midst of all this,” Albina says, “and especially in the midst of all this, God can give so many opportunities.”

Her mentor, Gretchen, stays in touch and prays for Albina who was once a distracted college freshman. “She’s this warrior woman,” Gretchen says. “In The Navigators we talk about, ‘Who do you want to invest in?’”

We know that believers in Ukraine are offering physical help and spiritual nourishment. All because someone invested in them.

Pray for Albina’s safety and faithful witness, and for an end to the war.

Discipleship Tip: 

Is there someone in your circle of influence going through a crisis that could use your help? Pray and watch to see how meeting someone’s practical needs could provide an opportunity for you both to grow in your faith, together.

Steve Bryant: A calling to give back

Steve was born and raised in Seattle. His mother, Jeanene, was a very strong Christian, and a prayer warrior “whose ministry was spent on her knees.” When Steve was a freshman at the University of Washington, a friend took him to a Navigator Bible study. He said, “After a few months, I realized that although I believed in God, I had never accepted Christ as both Savior and Lord. That year I gave my whole life to Christ and learned the importance of a daily quiet time, Bible study, Scripture memory, Life-to-Life® discipleship, and evangelism.”

Unexpectedly, his parents both died of undiagnosed cancer within eight months of each other and Steve received an inheritance from the sale of their home. Steve shared, “I felt led to honor God by giving away a portion of my inheritance for His glory and to advance His Kingdom. God spoke to me through Proverbs 3:9-10, verses that I had memorized back in college.”

Shortly thereafter, he read about the Navigators Charitable Gift Annuity which allowed him to remember his mom while helping others to know Christ. The annuity enabled Steve to give back to the ministry that gave him his Christian foundation, while receiving an income tax deduction and fixed payments for his lifetime. “The fixed payments I am receiving are allowing me to further my passion, which is to provide funding for humanitarian aid and discipleship resources for children living in poverty in Latin America.”

Disciplemakers for Life: From Collegiate Roots to Continued Growth

As Micah made the transition from high school to college, he felt like his life in high school hadn’t reflected his faith in Christ. He wanted to make different choices in college and learn how to walk in his faith.

His freshman year, Micah built his faith foundation through a Navigators Summer Training Program (STP), a discipleship program where college students are employed for the summer in a specific location. By his sophomore year, he was connected with Parker for ongoing discipleship.

Parker was in veterinary school and had a passion to be engaged in collegiate ministry. He knew from his own experience of growth through Navigators Collegiate at University of Wyoming that God could use the college years for significant spiritual growth.

As they spent time together, Micah was able to observe the lifestyle of disciplemaking in Parker’s everyday choices.

“Parker was an example to me of how to stay connected to God and filled by God so you can pour out into others,” says Micah. “I know he was spent at the end of each day—he was married, in vet school, and on associate staff—and still he invested in me and pointed me toward Jesus in every decision I faced.”

Now that he is almost four years past his college years, Micah reflects on the difference in growth opportunities while in college and now in the workplace. “Navigators Collegiate did a good job of preparing us for continued growth. Especially in my senior year, they emphasized the importance of finding a church community and continuing to reach out to people in everyday life. College can be a hot-house growth experience and once we are out in our careers, the pace of Christian growth seems slower. Sometimes I wish I had community right next to me like I did in college. I could call someone and get together in 10 minutes.”

Micah also notes, “One of the perks of The Navigators community is that in most any city, we can find some alumni, or friends of friends, and connect with other people who share our values and passion for disciplemaking.”

Thank you for supporting programs like these for disciples around the world.

In 2019, The Navigators’ leadership community launched a 2030 God-sized aspiration to reach and equip 1 million multiplying disciplemakers in the next 10 years.

This National Strategy and God-sized goal is not about boasting in numbers, but about joining God in His purposes for us as Navigators. We desire to see His glory spread to more of the lost and broken hearts in need of redemption all over the world!

“Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities.” (Isaiah 54:2-3)

Let’s continue to pray for power and depend on the Holy Spirit as we build relationships in communities and neighborhoods across the globe. As we engage heart-to-heart with Jesus and one another, we are building our capacity for the growth we are trusting Him to bring in the next seven years—all by His power and for His glory!