April 2015 Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Greetings! | am writing to you to give you an update on my current health status, my future, and to let you know how thankful | am for all of your cards, prayers, and support through my cancer journey! Since January 2015, thanks be to God, my doctors have declared me to be in remission from my cancer ‘Asa result, | was able to return to Kansas State University this semester to continue my studies. Before | was diagnosed with cancer, | was pursuing a degree in Industrial Engineering, and had 3-4 semesters of school left. But, through my experience with cancer, the Lord had made it clear to me that His will for my life is to do His work in this world by entering the ministry. Pryor to my diagnosis, also had been considering entering the seminary upon graduation from K-State. had even met with Rev. Lannon Martin, an admissions councilor at Concordia Theological Seminary Fort Wayne (CTSFW), about potentially doing so. But, after all that | have been through, God has given mea sense of urgency to enter the seminary as soon as | possibly can. When God called his first disciples, as recorded in Matthew chapter 4, His disciples did not hesitate to follow Jesus, but “immediately they left their nets and followed him’. | have felt the same urgency to do God's will that the disciples felt. After talking to different advisors at K-State and through much prayer, | found that | could graduate this semester if I switched my major. Currently, | am taking 24 credit hours, and while it is not easy for me, lam thankful to God that He has given a way for me to graduate with my bachelor’s degree this semester. ‘Throughout this semester, | have also worked with Rev. Randy Wurschmidt and Rev. Lannon Martin from CTSFW on the application process to be admitted to and enroll into the seminary. Thankfully, upon completing my application, | was accepted March 25", and |, with the help of God, will begin the summer Greek program this June, and will start normal seminary classes this fall. Individually, the cost for continued follow up doctor visits, and the cost of seminary are expensive, and when put together, they can be overwhelming. feel through my life experiences, and especially through my experience with cancer, the Lord has been preparing me to do His work in the ministry. We live in lost world; a world ful of sin, sorrow, and shame; a world without hope. But we do not put our hope in this world, but we put our hope in Him who loved the world, Him who suffered for the world, and Him who died for the world. We put our hope in Jesus, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him” (John 3:16-17). We have the gospel message of grace, hope, peace, and love that this fallen world desperately needs to hear. It is my hope that God will use my life to share this good news with others through working in His ministry, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”(Matt 9:37-38) In this letter, lam asking you to pray for me and to prayerfully consider supporting me through my time in the seminary as | prepare to share the message of the gospel with others. As explained in the enclosed brochure, this may be done as a congregation, by an organization or group, or as an Individual. Judes the seminary’s information, address and phone number if you have any questions. Your Brother in Christ, So et Lawson Short