Raymond C. Ortlund Sr. (July 9, 1923 – July 22, 2007) and Anne Ortlund (December 3, 1923 – November 4, 2013) were American evangelical speakers and authors. Ray was a pastor, author, broadcast host, and Christian speaker who was heard by millions across the nation on the radio program The Haven of Rest. Anne was an organist, author, and hymn composer. Together they founded Renewal Ministries, and wrote numerous books over their years of ministry, including Three Priorities for a Strong Local Church and Up with Worship.
Education
Anne graduated from the University of Redlands, majoring in music. Ray attended North Park University in Chicago, the University of Redlands, and the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington. While attending, he was captain of two football teams and also was an assistant pastor at four churches. Ray graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1950, and was ordained a Presbyterian minister. At Princeton Seminary, one of his key mentors was Donald Grey Barnhouse.
Ministry
Raymond C. Ortlund Sr.'s first work as a pastor was in Christiana, Pennsylvania, and, following that, at East Glenville Community Church, Glenville, New York. He was part of a two-month pastor exchange program in 1959, when he worked in England. Returning from England, Ray served as senior pastor at Lake Avenue Congregational Church in Pasadena, California, from September 1959 to the late 1970s. The Sunday morning services at Lake Avenue Congregational Church were broadcast over radio station KRLA. After 20 years at Lake Avenue, Ray and Anne founded Renewal Ministries, and they traveled around the world teaching about renewal and revival among God's churches. As a special speaker, Ray was a key part of the revival movement at Wheaton College in 1970. He also served as a teaching pastor at Mariner's Church in Newport Beach, California, in the 1980s. For a number of years, Ortlund wrote a weekly column for the Pasadena Star-News called Out of a Pastor's Study.
Anne was the organist for the Old Fashioned Revival Hour radio broadcast with Charles E. Fuller and The Joyful Sound program. In addition to her many books, she wrote a number of hymns, including "Macedonia", which was selected as the theme hymn for Billy Graham's World Congress on Evangelism in Berlin in 1966.
Ray hosted the Haven of Rest radio broadcast (now called Haven Today) from 1989–2000. The National Religious Broadcasters Hall of Fame inducted Ray in 2008 for his years of hosting the program.
Personal
Ray was born in Des Moines, Iowa, to Swedish American parents, and was the youngest of five children. He served in the US Navy in World War II for three and a half years. Ray and Anne met at a prayer group at the University of Redlands in 1944, during a home stay between deployments. After the war, they were married at the Fourth Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C., and honeymooned in the Shenandoah Valley. Anne was the daughter of U.S. Brigadier General Joseph B. Sweet. Their son Raymond C. Ortlund Jr. took over Renewal Ministries and serves as president of the organization, and served as the founding pastor of Immanuel Church in Nashville, Tennessee. Raymond Ortlund Jr.'s youngest son Gavin Ortlund runs a YouTube apologetics channel called TruthUnites.
Death
Ray died on July 22, 2007, after a long battle with pulmonary fibrosis, a lung disease. Two memorial services were held; one at Saint Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach on July 27, 2007, and the second at Lake Avenue Congregational Church on July 28, 2007. Anne died in 2013 following several years with kidney disease and bone cancer.
Books
- Lord, Make My Life a Miracle – 1995 (by Ray & Anne)
- You Don't Have To Quit – 1994 (by Ray & Anne)
- In His Presence – 1995 – 3 editions (by Ray & Anne)
- Confident in Christ: Discover Who You Are as a Believer – 1989 (by Ray & Anne)
- Three Priorities for a Strong Local Church – 1988 – 2 editions (by Ray & Anne)
- A Fresh Start for Your Friendships – 2001 (by Ray & Anne)
- Staying Power: How You Can Win In Life's Tough Situations – 1986 (by Ray & Anne)
- A Man and His Loves – 1994 (by Ray & Anne)
- The Best Half of Life: For You at Age 35–And Older: With Built-In Study Guide − 1988 (by Ray & Anne)
- Renewal – 1989 (by Ray & Anne)
- How Great Our Joy – 2000 (by Ray & Anne)
- Love me with tough love: Disciplines for living together in the Body of Christ – 1979 (by Anne)
- Building a great marriage – 1985 (by Anne)
- Discipling One Another – 1983 (by Anne)
- Disciplines of the Home– 1990 (by Anne)
- I Want to See You, Lord – 1998 (by Anne)
- The acts of Joanna – 1982 (by Anne)
- Disciplines of a Beautiful Woman – 1984 (by Anne)
- Disciplines of the Heart: Tuning Your Inner Life to God – 1989 (by Anne)
- Children are Wet Cement – 1981 (by Anne)
- The Gentle Ways of the Beautiful Woman – 1996 (by Anne)
- My Sacrifice His Fire: Weekday Readings for Women – 2001 (by Anne)
- Love Me with Stubborn Love: The Why's and How's of Small Groups – 2000 (by Anne)
- Fix Your Eyes on Jesus – 1991 (by Anne)
- Up with Worship: How to Quit Playing Church – 2001 (by Anne)
Magazines
- "Rx for unfulfilled mothers" (Anne Ortlund), Christian Herald Association, Inc., Feb. 1982
Essays
- "How To Begin Again”, on Ephesians 4:17–32, December 29, 1974
Articles
- Out of a Pastor's Study, a weekly column for the Pasadena Star-News
References
- "Books by Raymond C. Ortlund Sr". Goodreads. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
- Ortlund, Dane (2007-07-23). "Raymond C. Ortlund, Sr.: 1923-2007". Strawberry-Rhubarb Theology. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
- "Anne Ortlund, books". Archived from the original on 2016-11-15. Retrieved 2016-11-15.
- Ortlund, Ray (June 14, 2014). "Stories of my dad". The Gospel Coalition. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
- Ellis, Mark (Nov 26, 2013). "Ortlund service overflows with loving tributes". Assist News. Archived from the original on 2016-11-15. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
- Ortlund, Ray (Nov 5, 2013). "Anne Sweet Ortlund, 1923-2013". The Gospel Coalition. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
- "Ray Ortlund, Prominent Pastor and Radio Broadcaster, Passes Away". Chat With God. July 23, 2007. Archived from the original on November 5, 2016. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
- Independent Star-News from Pasadena, California, Page 58, Raymond C. Ortlund, April 22, 1962
- "Alumni Notes". The Princeton Seminary Bulletin. Vol. 47. Princeton Theological Seminary Library. . 1953. p. 42.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: others (link) - Independent Star-News from Pasadena, California, Page 4, May 24, 1959
- Independent Star-News from Pasadena, California, Page 118, April 3, 1960
- Armerding, Hudson T. (2004). "The Moving of the Holy Spirit". Recollections. Buswell Library Special Collections, Wheaton College. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
- ^ "Anne Ortlund Passed Away at 90, Reunited with Jesus and Her Beloved Ray". Archived from the original on 2016-11-15. Retrieved 2016-11-15.
- "About: Our Hosts". Haven Today. Haven Ministries. 15 October 2015. Retrieved 2024-07-03.
- Olson, David (2014-12-29). "'Haven Today': Bringing the gospel to the masses for 80 years". The Orange County Register. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
- "Celebrating 80 Years of Haven Today". Haven Today. March 26, 2014. Archived from the original on November 15, 2016. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
- "The National Religious Broadcasters Hall of Fame induction Ray in 2008". Archived from the original on 2015-11-06. Retrieved 2016-11-15.
- "Anne Ortlund's valentine remembrance: moonlit horseback ride led to divine romance, February 11, 2013". Archived from the original on November 15, 2016. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
- "Elizabeth Anne Sweet Ortlund 1923–2013". The Cyber Hymnal. Retrieved 2024-06-26.
- Building a Great Marriage, page 114, By Elizabeth A. Ortlund
- ^ Zylstra, Sarah Eekhoff (2018-01-24). "How Ray Ortlund Became Foster Father to a Generation of Church Planters". The Gospel Coalition. Retrieved 2024-10-16.
- "The untold story of Pastor Ray Ortlund's beautiful home-going, September 12, 2012". Archived from the original on November 13, 2016. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
- Mission Network, Pastor and radio broadcaster dies, PUBLISHED ON 25 July, 2007 BY David Vranish
- Soul Shepherding, In memory of Ray Ortlund Sr., Be Devoted to Christ like Ray Ortlund Sr.
- Revive Our Hearts, Recognizing Widowhood as a Gift, Series: A Conversation with Anne Ortlund
- ""How To Begin Again", December 29, 1974, ortlund.net" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-11-15. Retrieved 2016-11-15.
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