When RITAN closed down in June 2017 I was very sad. I would not comment often, so I'm sure most of you likely don't remember me. I would come and read your lovely posts when I felt alone in my faith and needed encouragement. I felt a connection to a lot of you as I have never met a group of people who have had the same views about God and the rapture and how close we are to the end. After RITAN was gone I wasn't sure how I would get by without it. I have no other Christians in my life. The churches where I am are all dead. There was one that seemed promising, but by the time I was ready to attend it had ceased to exist. So during this time every thing I read and every video I watched seem to be screaming at me to stop and really immerse myself in the word of God. I read my Bible from time to time and did Bible study on specific topics, but I never actually sat down and read it cover to cover. So while you were gone this amazing thing happened. I read my entire Bible over the course of 1 year! Every night I would read at least one chapter or more if I had the time and energy. I feel like I have grown so much and maybe now I'm ready to come out of my shell a little bit. I'm hoping that is why God brought us back together! I'm so glad to see you all here again! :rose: vto I can relate with you, sister. I’m stuck in an area where there are no decent churches and no close friends. All those who I was close to have died early deaths and I often wonder why I’m still here. Since 2011 - present I spent all the holidays pretty much by myself (was taking care of my dad who suffered from dementia and passed away in 2015 but he didn’t want any part of celebrating anything). My other saved relatives are scattered across the U.S. but I’m afraid to travel by airplane to visit because I tend to meet all the crazy people at the airport or on the flights. So thankful for the internet so I can keep in touch with my Christian cyber friends and read the forum boards and watch youtubes. To me this is my church. Hang in there ... soon, very soon we shall see the King! Isn't it wonderful when the Lord provides either through others, His Spirit, or His Word! But it's the preciousness of his saints that really enhances our life experience. I feel so blessed by those who post here. And though we shall probably never meet in this realm, we can grow in our sense of familiarity and love with one another. Looking forward to the group hug! :yes: :yahoo: TR RITAN is blessed, . . a ministry of prophetic significance for us watchers, as well, a 'churching' together ~~ til the rapture ~~ we await our Lord's hug and to each other, too ~~ I've visited other online church communities and none of them made me feel at home except this one. I was thrilled when I saw it was being launched again. Funny thing was, I don't do much facebook and it just so happened that the day I checked in was the day that Watching & Waiting announced this site was about to go live. Our Lord knows how much this place means to so many of us and the obstacles that ended up causing the old site to go down are not present here. I truly hope Ritan is a source of comfort and a community for many of our brothers and sisters. Truly the Lord has blessed this site! I shall forever be grateful to the four women who started this site. And for all who have kept RITA/RITAN available (Mods)! But for Donna in particular. I love her spirit, the depth of scripture in her soul, and I will always view her as God's cheerleader! There are so many here now and in the past who have enlarged me personally. RITAN is not a sacred cow which is more glorious than any other website, God forbid. But it truly brings a warmth to the Lord's heart for how real we can be with each other here! Rules of engagement aside, it's all about getting to know one another, IMHO! I just wish that with the times we live in and us ever growing closer to the Rapture, that more members would post more frequently. Seems to me that this site should be highly more active. Again, not for the purpose of being right in our calculations, or for the latest and greatest of timelines. Let us then be known here and Heaven for our love for one another! This is why I am on RITAN! Love & blessings...Tender Reed That's beautiful vtwinomega! :heart: You found a new depth with God in His Word, you grew in Him and are coming out of shyness to participate in fellowship here. I never have liked Hillary Clinton, but I do believe it takes at least a community sharing together to make our site a bigger blessing. I hope your experience will encourage other lurkers to come join us often. Bless you and thank you! :rose:
