Shelter in the Storm

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Recently appointed as new Cadence missionaries, Duncan and Suzanne have a wonderful story of God using Cadence in Duncan’s life as a young man serving in the Army. Cadence missionaries, Brad and Debbie Ellgen, were there for Duncan at a key moment in his life. Here is his story:

“In January of 1985 after graduating boot camp, I was sent to Schweinfurt, West Germany to my first duty station. I was young, just 18, traveling by myself for the first time to a foreign country. I didn’t speak the language. I had no idea what to expect. I was scared, nervous, and a bit overwhelmed. I felt adrift in a big ocean. I was a Christian, having chosen to follow Christ about two years earlier in high school. Already life in the Army had been a difficult path for me. In just the first few months, I had witnessed an abundance of depravity the like of which I hadn’t seen before in my short life.

Upon reaching my unit and getting settled in, I met another young soldier who had just arrived there the week before. He invited me to join him at this place he just discovered called a Hospitality House. It was run by an American couple. So I went, and then kept going back every chance I could.

Brad and Debbie were a home away from home. They were a shelter in the storm. They were a beacon of light in the darkness. They did way more than simply provide me with a warm home-cooked meal or a Bible study. They showed me through their lives what it meant to love God and others. Brad, with his quick and inquiring mind, asked me questions and taught me to think and helped me to discover how to read Scripture and find answers. Debbie, with her kindness and willingness to serve, taught me about grace, mercy, and self-sacrifice.

And the men and women I spent time with there became true friends, honestly sharing their struggles and joys as we grew in faith together.”

Duncan’s story is a beautiful and familiar one to Cadence. We seek to be a “shelter in the storm” for young, impressionable, and searching young people. We provide a safe community where they can “grow in faith together.”

The impact is unquestionably powerful. Thank you for partnering with Cadence in this ministry!

David Schroeder
President