Missionary Gospel Fellowship, PO Box 1535, Turlock, CA (2026)

11/20/2025

We'd like to take this time to thank Jay Hyatt for his many years of dedicated service as our General Director. His leadership has been a blessing to the MGF Family, and we are eternally grateful to him and his lovely wife, LuAnn. As they step into their new chapter of life and into retirement, we wish them all the best.

We'd also like to introduce you to our new General Director, Richard Murdock, and ask for your prayers for him and his lovely wife, Michelle, as they seek God's wisdom in this ministry He's called them to. Below is Richard's introductory letter to you.
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Greetings MGF Family!

I’m truly honored and blessed to receive the hand-off from Jay Hyatt as the new General Director for MGF. Jay and Luann have faithfully served the Lord in their roles at MGF and many of you have been blessed by their time here. I know the relationships they have developed with you will be long lasting. I’m so grateful to expand upon the work Jay has established and I look forward to what the Lord has in store for us as we serve Him.

I wanted to give you a quick glimpse into my life and introduce myself and my family. We’ve been fortunate to serve the Lord in places where He has planted us. I’ve always believed that we are to “blossom where He has planted” regardless of a secular environment or a full-time ministry, we are to serve Him and others the best we can where He has planted us. My administrative experience stems over the past 30 years with experience planting and overseeing a church in Turlock and then serving as the Executive Director of a multi-county Emergency Medical Services Agency and then retiring in March 2024 as the Chief/Fire Warden of Emergency Services in Stanislaus County. In all my 30+ years I strongly desired to serve the Lord and others wherever the Lord assigned me.

Jesus Christ was introduced to me at a young age, however my seriousness about Christ didn’t develop until my early adult years when Michelle and I were married and started a family. Michelle came out of a catholic background and was introduced to the Lord as her Savior about the time of our marriage. Michelle discovered that she could have a personal living relationship with the Lord through grace without all the traditions and rules of the catholic church. What an experience to discover God’s grace, mercy and Love He has for us personally! Michelle and I are blessed to have three children, Justin (wife Brittney), Ashley, and Maci (husband Albert). My children have blessed Michelle and I with 6 grandchildren, Ryker (12), Ellie (11), Braxxen (10), Madisyn (9), Hazelyn (8) and Ayvie (7). We have been married for 37+ years and have been together for almost 40 years. Michelle is an amazing God-fearing wife, mother and nana! We have walked together with the Lord through many ministry mountain tops as well as many low times for over 37 years! We are confident in the hope and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and rely on His Spirit to lead us through our journey this side of Glory.

As mentioned briefly earlier, our ministry experience started at the beginning of our marriage when we became serious about our relationship with Christ. Michelle and I both served in several ministries at Calvary Chapel Modesto (CCM). We continue to serve at CCM and truly enjoy it. Michelle and I were fortunate to be used by the Lord to plant a church in the city of Turlock in 2000, Calvary Chapel Turlock (CCT). I pastored CCT and Michelle led ladies’ study, children’s ministry and special events for approximately 10 years until the Lord called us out to another assignment. During my time at CCT I was involved in several short-term missionary opportunities to Russia, Mexico and Israel. As well as teaching Homiletics, Hermeneutics, and Church History at Calvary Chapel Modesto’s School of Ministry.

The past year as a Board member has provided me a great opportunity to learn a lot about MGF. The decision to apply for the position of General Director didn’t come very easy. In fact, I repeatedly ran from the thought of it. Often, the Lord has allowed me to be in a situation where there is a spiritual need, which encompasses the gifts His Spirit has gifted me to use for encouraging and edifying the body of believers. I prayed about the opportunity to be used by God to address the needs of MGF to find a replacement for Jay and it was during my prayer that God impressed upon my heart to apply, however, I still struggled with moving forward, which reminded me of Jonah.

My strong conviction was that if I don’t step forward and apply then I would be disobedient to His call. After I surrendered to the struggles of “fleeing” and “I don’t want to do this” He graciously instructed me again to apply. I felt like Jonah who fled from the Lord’s call on his life to preach to the Ninevites and instead, Jonah fled to Tarshish on a ship. God created a typhoon of a storm to which Jonah was thrown overboard thus calming the sea as the Lord prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. After Jonah sought the Lord from the belly of the fish and was vomited onto the shore God commanded him again to go to Nineveh. This time – Jonah obeyed. I obeyed the second time too, which followed a storm in my personal life. Thankfully I wasn’t swallowed by some land mammal and then eventually vomited onto land.

My heart is to see the missionaries spiritually grow in their ministries and for more people to come to the knowledge of salvation through Jesus Christ. Since my time on the board, there’s been a unity of heart that the Lord is preparing us for an increase in missionaries with MGF. To be ready for growth we, MGF administration, must prepare for the next chapter. When I think of “preparation” as used in God’s Word I’m reminded that it means both spiritual readiness for God’s will and practical steps to face life’s challenges, often with a focus on future events like Jesus’ return or the needs of the mission. My desire is for MGF to always be prepared to share the message of Salvation. The practical preparation is to equip, edify and encourage those of you serving on the front line as missionaries. As we anticipate future growth, we need to have thoughtful strategic planning to accommodate growth in the Lord’s timing. And, as many of you know, we must be ready for adversity so that we are not caught off guard by distractions.

I earnestly pray for discerning God’s guidance for minimizing distractions to better recognize and respond to the Holy Spirit’s leading.

I look forward to meeting every single one of you and hearing your heart and hearing about your ministry for serving the Lord and others. May God richly bless you, protect you and fill you with His Spirit, His love and His passion for the lost.

I appreciate prayer for me, my family, and the MGF staff. We will be praying for you, your families, and the ministry God has called you to.

I look forward to hearing from you either via email, video conference call or phone call and I’ll do my best to be responsive.

In Christ,
Richard Murdock
Proverbs 3:5,6

06/10/2024

From our General Director:

June! Graduations, Weddings, vacations… They call graduations ‘Commencement Exercises.’ This reflects the reality that school is a specialized environment and experience. It’s not “real life”. Real life starts after school, after graduation, so the commencement ceremony marks the transition from a sheltered, in some ways hidden, environment into the world where a person will use the knowledge, skills and habits cultivated through their studies to accomplish work that benefits other people, and provides for him, or herself.

Weddings mark a great life transition. Two individuals become a couple, a family, and that family usually grows over time.

June, here in Central California, is the time of the early harvest. Winter wheat, particularly, is harvested around this month. Although California is known for producing many other crops besides wheat, and the harvests continue from May through October, wheat is one of the crops that we share with the agriculture of Israel in the First Century. The kind of Harvest that Jesus talked about.

Each of these things picture something different, but connected, about our hope in Jesus Christ. June, with its change of schedules for many people, is a good time to stop and reflect on what these show us about our relationship to the Lord of Love and Life.

Image by LuidmilaKot from Pixabay

05/01/2024

From our General Director:

In western society we’ve been told, “Follow the science.” But, that is used in ways that are very unscientific. A lot of people think that faith in God is opposed to science. That’s just not true. Faith in God, particularly the God of the Bible, is a reliable foundation for genuine scientific inquiry. Faith and science only conflict when science becomes a religion: Scientism. (Scientology is a whole different thing.)

When people put their hope in Science, their behavior, attitudes and opinions mirror what we expect from the worst of religious behavior. Aside from the hostility that such attitudes provoke, this leads to a flawed expectation from technological progress. They attribute improvements in technology and medical care to unlimited human potential directed by Science. This leads to assuming that all progress is good, and ignores the drawbacks of new technologies. This belief system also blinds people to God’s ongoing role in human history.

A pet conjecture of mine is that God has actually inspired many scientific advances for the sake of people who trustingly pray for relief from a physical problem, and God provides help through some researcher who may not even be a believer. In this case, God will not get the credit, except from the one who has prayed for relief. I look forward to seeing and hearing from Jesus how people were helped by His invisible hand guiding human efforts.

Image by Memed_Nurrohmad from Pixabay

04/19/2024

Ronald Johnson

February 11, 1935 - December 17, 2023

Ronald Johnson was born on February 11, 1935, to William and Margaret Johnson of Oxford, New Jersey. Three years later, after the death of Ron's mother, her sister, Bertha Babcock, visited the family. Finding Ron ill, Bertha took Ron home to Paterson, N.J., to temporarily care for him.

Soon, Ronald Johnson became a legal member of the recently married George and Bertha Babcock family. Over the years, Ron gained new brothers Brian Babcock, in 1944, and Bryce Babcock in 1947.

Ron graduated from Eastside High in Paterson, NJ and enlisted in the Air Force where he was trained in electronics. In 1958, Ron returned home and worked in the electronics field until 1960.

While attending Mountain View Gospel Church, Ron was called to Christian ministry and enrolled at Moody Bible Institute in 1959.

At Moody, Ron caught the attention of fellow student, Bonnie Hiegel of Tacoma, WA. After Bonnie graduated, Ron and Bonnie married on June 17, 1961. Their daughter Debra was born in September of 1962.

Upon graduation from Moody, Ron enrolled at Trinity Evangelical College, of Chicago, to complete a bachelor's degree.

Ron and Bonnie returned to Washington where Ron pastored Olalla Bible Church (1965-1971) and Carbonado Community Church (1971-80). Son Rick joined the family in July of 1968; daughter Rebecca in 1976. Ron completed an MA degree at Northwest Baptist Seminary (1971).

In 1980, Ron and Bonnie were accepted by The Evangelical Alliance Mission and served in the church planting ministries on the islands of Trinidad, Aruba, and Curacao from 1982-2000.

In 2000, the Johnsons set up residence in Yelm, Washington. They Joined Missionary Gospel Fellowship and supported the chaplains at Joint Base Lewis-McChord and worked with International Students.

Ron's hobbies included watching all sports, fishing, walking, and teaching adult Sunday school class.

In the presence of Bonnie and daughter Debra, Ron passed into paradise on December 17th, 2023, to be with Jesus.

He is survived by his beloved wife, Bonnie, his three children, his two brothers, eight grandchildren, and a great granddaughter.

Ron's services were held at Sunset Community Church on March 28th, 2024.

04/09/2024

The variable spring weather we’ve been experiencing—cold winter-like storms followed by warm sunny days, and back again—reminds me that we are not in control of what actually happens to us. It is evident that wise behavior increases the chances for prosperity and peaceful living, but it’s also true that circumstances beyond our control can change everything for us in the blink of an eye. How can we live with joy in the face of uncertainty, hope in the midst of pain? We can, and do, live this way by our faith in Jesus Christ and the hope we have in Him. This hope is shown to be true by the love that His Spirit pours into our hearts (Romans 5:1-5).

03/28/2024

Good Morning!

In observance of Good Friday, Missionary Gospel Fellowship will be closed on Friday, March 29th, 2024.

The story of Easter serves as a reminder of God's unconditional love, sacrifice, and forgiveness, reminding believers of the transformative power of faith and the boundless mercy found in Jesus Christ. It is also the promise of salvation, and the hope of new life both in this world and the world to come.

We encourage everyone to take this opportunity for reflection, prayer, and spending time with loved ones.

Wishing you all a blessed Good Friday and a peaceful Easter weekend.

With Love,
Missionary Gospel Fellowship

Thank you for all that you do to advance God's kingdom!

03/18/2024

Dear family,
Johnson would like to extend an invitation to her husband, Ron's, celebration of life service, which is detailed here.
Event: Ron Johnson's Celebration of Life Service
Date: March 28th, 2024 (Thursday)
Time: 11:00 AM
Place: Sunset Community Church
Address: 1032 Edmonds Ave., NE Renton, WA 98056
Please let Bonnie know if you plan to attend, so she can get a head count for the reception.

03/08/2024

From our General Director:

March is the month of the vernal equinox, when day and night are equal, marking the transition from winter to spring. March is supposed to come in like a lion and go out like a lamb. It’s funny how both of those animals represent Jesus Christ, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, and the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world. This year we celebrate Easter, or Resurrection Day, on the last day of March. This day commemorates God’s invasion of this dark and fallen world with the glory of our Risen Savior, bringing life and healing of hurts… and justice in His train.

02/01/2024

From our General Director:

February is the month you see hearts everywhere. Right in the middle of the month is the day set aside to celebrate love, specifically romantic, or erotic love: The love between a man and a woman that can bring new life. Fruitful multiplication is so important to God, that He hardwired the desire that leads to human reproduction so firmly into our bodies that most people try to satisfy that desire in selfish and destructive ways. Strange, isn’t it? That the kind intention of the God Who Is Love so often leads to such disappointment and human misery. It definitely does, as well, yield, joy, delight, beautiful self-sacrifice, and new human lives. The difference is in us. Are we controlled by our selfish fixation on the built-in urge designed by God for human flourishing? Or are we controlled by His Holy Spirit, yielding even our most poignant, seemingly overwhelming, desires to His timing and provision?

If we put Him in control, we find we have self-control, and along with it, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness and faithfulness. Yielding to God, by trusting in Jesus Christ is what changes us from brute beasts walking on two legs into fully human beings giving and receiving all the forms of love that have nothing to do with s*x. And, strangely, perhaps, limiting our s*xual expression and activity to only one person to whom we commit all of ourselves in marriage before God, transforms the burning destroyer of unrestrained s*xual appetite into a desire that draws two people into a unity of soul-deep comfort and pleasure.

May you find that the Eternal Lover of your soul breaks the power of all lesser loves to twist, torment or destroy you.

01/04/2024

From our General Director:

When’s the last time you felt a deep, glowing satisfaction with life? Was it when you shared a gathering over food and drink with friends and/or family? Wasn’t that sweet to your soul? Did it make you think or feel, “why can’t life be like this all the time?” Or at least, why can’t life be a lot more like this? We all want the sweet life, and that’s actually good. We are made by our Creator to desire the satisfaction of our physical needs in a place of rich relational harmony.

Advertisers recognize this basic feature of humanity and try to take advantage of it by linking their product or service to such occasions, so that the longing of our hearts might be associated with what they’re selling. The success they have in making this connection show that it’s a powerful element in human decision making.

Not all of our gatherings give us this warm feeling. Our broken relationships sometimes make such gatherings contentious or frustrating, very far from the ideal that is ingrained upon our hearts. Dealing with other people’s expectations of us, or our own unmet expectations of those we should be able to trust and depend on, can make us shy away into isolation, even though something inside us is starving for the rich connection of unconditional love, acceptance and mutual nourishment.

There’s a part of an old Bible story that tells us in powerful symbols how to find the sweet life we long for in unexpected places. It’s found in Exodus 15:22-27. The Children of Israel have just passed through the Red Sea, and into the wilderness of Shur, where they find no water. When they come to a place where there is water, they can’t drink it because it’s bitter; probably alkaline, so that it was unhealthy, as well as distasteful. They called the place “Marah”, which means bitter. The people grumble against Moses: “What shall we drink?” Moses cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a tree. When Moses threw the tree into the water, the water became sweet, wholesome. The people were saved.

So far, so good. The story goes on: There the LORD made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, saying, "If you will diligently listen to the voice of the LORD your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, your healer.” (Exodus 15:25b-26 ESV)

Does the tree that healed the water of Marah remind you of anything else in the Bible? Maybe the Cross of Jesus Christ? Notice what God says to the Israelites: “I am your healer.” This tree, which is a symbol of the Cross, heals the waters of bitterness. God Himself heals the bitterness of those who trust in Him. When we long for the sweet life, and our present experience is anything but, we have an opportunity to receive again the Cross of Jesus Christ, to remember His sacrifice for us, to surrender to the Father’s will in like manner and to be healed on the inside in a way that makes streams of living water flow from us to the people around us.

May you lay hold of that old rugged Cross and find that it leaches the bitterness from your soul; that seeing again the love of Jesus Christ toward you would free you to love others exuberantly, and find that this makes your own life sweet.

12/22/2023

It’s easy to be distracted during this season, wether it’s by gifts, or food, or all the ministry events going on, but l pray that each of you continue to glorify Him through it all and are able to take rest in what Jesus did for us✨

Missionary Gospel Fellowship

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