John Mundy

Hi! 👋
My name is John Mundy, and I am one of the preachers working with the StoneRidge Church of Christ in Jonesboro, AR. Please allow me to tell you a little bit about myself…

I was blessed to be given a spiritual head start in life. My parents, Doug & Jane Mundy, raised me and my sister in the kind of home that is described in the New Testament as God’s ideal for the family. Our parents didn’t just “take us to church” they taught us what it means to be a child of God. Now, as an empty-nester myself who becomes nostalgic quite often these days, I can see clearly that I owe my physical, and ESPECIALLY my spiritual wellbeing to my parents.

My very first memories of assembling with the church are at the 10^th Street Church of Christ in Columbus, IN. In 1975 I began crying nearly every time an invitation to be obedient to God was offered at the public assemblies of the church. I had many discussions with my parents concerning my responsibility to God. At first Mom & Dad thought I was too young to truly understand the gravity of sin, sacrifice, and the entire salvation story. However, as I kept insisting on more discussions and displayed to my parents an unusually deep understanding (for my age) of God and His plan for man, they eventually told me to do as my conscience orders me. The next Sunday morning, when the invitation was given and a song of encouragement was sung, I made my way to the aisle and up to the front to speak with Gary Ruddell, the preacher. He was aware of my situation and did not have to talk to me long to realize my ambition to become a Christian. Before the crowd assembled that day I said in a trembling voice, “I believe that Jesus Christ is The Son of God.” Brother Ruddell baptized me in Jesus’ name and my sins were forgiven. Praise God!

I wish (OH HOW I WISH!!) I could say that I have striven to live a life pleasing to God ever since the day of my obedience. But such is not the case. Despite having friends at church that remained faithful to the Lord, I gave in to the temptations of the devil during my formative teenage years. I played the hypocrite by appearing to be living the life of a Christian while privately allowing myself to indulge all the pleasures of the flesh. I did not fool Mom & Dad. This was agonizing for my parents who had done all they possibly could do to bring me up giving me all the discipline and instruction that comes from The Lord (Eph. 6:4). To look back now and remember their heartache is too much to bear.

When I graduated from Columbus North High School I got a surprise. My mother had secretly been in contact with a preacher in Tampa, FL and had arranged for me to begin working at one of his businesses. Del Wininger is the first preacher I can remember listening to as a child. He had a big, deep voice and he knew how to use the microphone very effectively. Del was a great Bible student and had continued to preach after leaving Columbus. After living other places, the Wininger’s had settled down in Tampa where Del currently had a business that had grown into several locations all over Florida. Mom probably didn’t realize at the time the profound effect she was about to make in my life, but it’s safe to say she saved my soul from ruin and may very well have saved my life. I refused at that time to possess the character to say, “NO!” to evil influences and to keep myself from evil companions. The only solution was a drastic change of venue! This is exactly what my precious mother did for me.

Not only did I work for Del, but I also lived with the Wininger’s for a few months until I could get out on my own. This entire family (Del & Ruth, 4 daughters and 2 sons) was wholly dedicated to serving the Lord and they immediately put me on a drastic spiritual course correction. Del preached at the 58^th Street congregation and these brethren took me in and made me part of the family. They put me to work praying, giving invitational talks, leading singing, helping to serve the Lord’s supper, teaching and preaching. I grew in leaps and bounds! Additionally, there were so many congregations of The Lord’s church all over Tampa and the surrounding areas that I was constantly going to Gospel Meetings, Singings, Special classes, and other events. This gave rise to many opportunities to preach and help in other ways at various congregations. Also, I was privileged to be around many Bible scholars associated with Florida College in Temple Terrace as well as a multitude of very knowledgeable brothers and sisters in Christ who took me under their wings and nurtured me spiritually.

During this time I met a lovely young lady, and we began dating and worshiping together. A little while later DeAnne agreed to be my wife and our life together began. In a couple of years we had our first child, a daughter named Chelsea. We were worshiping at the Fletcher Ave. congregation in Tampa at the time, and I had many opportunities to teach and preach and grow spiritually. After preaching a lesson one day at Fletcher Ave. the preacher, Everett Hardin, came and talked to me. He told me that I really had the ability to preach full-time and asked if I had ever considered it. I told him that I had but didn’t know if I was ready. Everett assured me that I was and said he was associated with a church in the Appalachian Mountains of Kentucky who was in need of a preacher. He said he thought it would be a good fit for me and for them.

To make a long story short, the brethren in Kentucky asked me and DeAnne to come work with them and so in 1992 we moved from Tampa to Harlan, KY. This was a congregation of about 130 people in the middle of the mountains, and they were just some of the very best people you could ever be around. It was the perfect place for a young fellow to begin preaching as they were supportive, encouraging, patient, and loving. Our second child, a son named Owen, was born there in Kentucky and all the members of the church became family to our family. After preaching, teaching, and personally working with the people in the Harlan area for three years, I developed a deep love for souls and a burning desire to share the good news of salvation with all who would listen.

In 1995 we moved to Sarasota, FL and I preached for the Osprey Church of Christ for four years. This also got us within 70 miles of DeAnne’s folks in Tampa. It was nice for our kids to get to know their Mema & Papa a lot better. While in Sarasota, one of my greatest spiritual fathers, Bob Owen, told me that he had been holding meetings for a church in Missouri for decades and that they were in need of a preacher and a stabilizing influence. He said he thought that me and my family would be the perfect fit. Apparently, we were because upon their request we moved to Steele, MO in 1999 and began working with the congregation there. Our kids were 4 and 10 at the time. Little did we know we would spend the next 23 years working with this group. It was a wonderful experience being part of the Lord’s body in Steele. There was rejoicing, agonizing, tears of joy and tears of sorrow. We became deeply invested in the church and in the community.

Fast forward to 2018. Our son completed his service in the US Coastguard and he and his wife moved to Jonesboro, AR. This was about an hour from us in Steele, MO so we spent a lot of time driving back and forth to see them. Then, in 2020, DeAnne’s folks decided they needed to be closer to family and wanted to move to Jonesboro as well. A friend and I flew to Tampa, loaded all of my in-law’s possessions into a U-Haul and drove them to Brookland, AR (Jonesboro suburb). Now we were making even more trips from Steele to Jonesboro.

In 2022 the elders from the StoneRidge church in Jonesboro made contact with me. The preacher, Dick Blackford (a man I knew and respected), felt like he needed to begin the process of cutting back and kind of semi-retiring. The elders wanted to know if I would be interested in working with the church there. This seemed like more than a coincidence to us. We were deeply entrenched in Steele and moving would be difficult. However, it looked like the move to Jonesboro was the right course of action. We tearfully told the brethren in Steele goodbye and made the move to Jonesboro in August of 2022. What a delight it has been to be associated with these good brethren! The church is strong, forward-looking, growing, and has a wonderful mix of ages and ethnicities. The members are constantly planning and executing various programs intended to help and encourage every member and every age group. It has been somewhat of a revival for us to come to StoneRidge. The congregation has some of the most talented teachers and preachers I have been around, and I receive teaching and encouragement every time we are together. There is virtually nothing that this congregation lacks and I expect it to continue to do great work in the kingdom of Christ for years to come, The Lord willing. I thank God for making this opportunity available for DeAnne and I and we want to show our appreciation by working for and growing with this wonderful group of God’s children for as long as we possibly can. May God receive the glory as together we share the good news and tender souls respond to The Lord in obedience. 💖

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Travis Moody

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Dick Blackford

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