I was talking with some friends several weeks ago about the children's ranch. Another friend of theirs overheard us talking and now wants to sign on staff, as a cook and master block mason...... God has him in a holding pattern for the moment, just building a spiritual foundation there, so it will be awhile before he moves onsite, but the desire is there. I/we prayed for a cook, and someone who could build/fix cinderblock buildings, and God answered both prayers in one man *soft smile*. God is very cool.

Anyone want to buy a piece of rental real estate in Emmett (2bed/2bath/2car garage/1100sqft) that the owner has committed to forwarding the profit from, to helping me pay off personal debts so I can transition to the ranch? Call me at 794-3792 or 392-6723 if interested.

Last weekend I was up at the ranch with my daughter Vanya, and I specifically asked God to send one of the neighbors up my way so that I could meet the guy. He has built his own little chapel/sanctuary on the road just below the ranch, and I wanted to meet him. As I was leaving Monday morning, someone comes walking up our driveway. He caught my attention because he had a guitar slung across his back, a smile on his face, was comfortably well dressed - and barefoot, had a wiener dog and a sheep dog with him, and was leading 5 or 6 sheep and 2 angora goats. It was indeed the man who built the chapel *chuckle*. Talked with him for maybe a half hour. Interesting guy. I do not know at what level we will interact, but his goal in building the chapel was to provide a place for people to get away and pray/meditate/heal/recharge. And he specifically mentioned at-risk kids, before I had even opened my mouth about our own goals with the children's ranch..... I guess I should stop being surprised at the way God is bringing people together and giving them a similar vision and goal, but it still caught me by surprise and left me praising God, and praying for this man Rusty, who just also happens to be the president of the homeowners association for the area, AND the fire-chief of the volunteer firefighting association. God sure knew what He was doing when He arranged that divine appointment *chuckle*.

Several different individuals and families continue to supply my daily food needs so that I can focus on other things. They are also a true blessing from God that I am daily thankful for *smile*.

We are holding our first bonfire prayer meeting up there this weekend with myself and several of my closest partners in prayer, and tentatively am planning for an open house, bonfire, and prayer service open to anyone/everyone else interested sometime on one of the next several weekends that you would be invited to as well. I will send out an official email invitation a week ahead of time as soon as I have a time and date nailed down.

Myself right now, I'm trying to wrap up loose ends of my life so I can make a clean transition to the ranch and working up there. In all honesty, to finish making the transition to the ranch, I need to earn or be supported/gifted with $2000 immediately. I don't like talking about money, much less asking for it, but God quite pointedly hit me with the simple fact that if people don't know about a need, how can they help?

It was kinda sad last week though. I have already had 4 families cross my path, one of which approached me directly already asking for help, that have children in less than good situations where we could benefit them. FOUR shattered families with children needing Christian homes to recover and heal and find God. And the one family (am friends already with the family) that actually asked me to help, I had to pray about it, but simply tell them I couldn't accept the child yet because I myself was not yet on stable footing, much less the ranch. That HURT! To have to turn them away! Can I share that? I expected 2 years before accepting kids, but I think the reality is much sooner than that.... I am asking for your help in this. I was not expecting to have families approaching me already, asking for intervention and help. And to have to turn them away.... it simply hurt. More than I ever expected. It actually brought tears to my eyes because it hurt so bad to say "no, not yet". Can I be honest about that?

Pray for me please. Lift me up to the Father. The logistics of everything that needs to happen here can be overwhelming when I take my eyes off God. Like I said before, God is behind this, and is opening many many doors, but I cannot do this alone. This is more than just about me. People need our help. I supported missions and people going out for many years, and now it is my turn to go out, and I am asking for your help now. My own personal budget is between $1500 and $2000 a month. I am single, and don't need much to live on, but I do need to pay my expenses, pay for gas traveling places to talk about the ranch, and provide a basic budget to start repairs on the ranch. I have several people who are good at finding deals on construction materials that have offered to help me, so that's cool. And several people who have offered their labor to help me. And I have a whole handful of staff people in holding patterns just waiting to move onsite as soon as we can get quarters set up for them, support or jobs in place for them as well, and a foundation built for this project. But the reality is this. Once I myself finish moving, I can either start working on the ranch full-time (more than full-time in reality) if people will come together and support me, or I will have to go get a full-time job and continue to split my focus, and I do NOT relish that thought. I am asking for your financial support as well now too. I do not yet have a non-profit status set up yet, and as such, cannot give you a tax deductible receipt (but yes a simple receipt for the money if needed - and in reality, is a tithe that lowers what you pay in taxes really even a true tithe?) I am being honest. I need your support, first in prayer, then also in financial ways.

I have been doing a lot of praying about several other things lately too, one of them being just my own personal integrity. I am working through past personal and business dealings, and I know I have let different people down in my past. If I have done so to you, and have not contacted you yet, if I need to make amends with you in some way, please let me know so that I can do so. Scripture quite pointedly says that if I have something against a brother, or a brother has something against me, I need to make try to make amends before I approach God. I want God. I need God. I want to honor Him with my daily walk. I want to walk in purity and integrity. It's hard sometimes, but I need Him, and the peace and confidence that comes from knowing that I can hold my head up because my Father in heaven is proud of me. I can't do so if I have unfinished or unmended dealings with brothers or sisters. I want Him to be pleased with me. I want Him to use me. Last week, He asked me what cost I was willing to pay to follow Him, even if it included death or imprisonment. Death I had already dealt with and told Him that if He could reach more people with my death than my life, I would accept, but the imprisonment thing caught me by surprise, and wasn't so easy for me to accept. Can I say that? It could happen though someday *shrug*. But it all ties together. Counting the cost. Walking in honor and integrity. Pleasing God. Letting Him use me. It all ties together. But please let me know that I need to address making amends with you if I need to do so.

So this newsletter and update is to both encourage you, and to make my own basic needs known so that I(WE) can pursue/obey God in what He has called me(US) to do. This is more than just about me. This is about US partnering together across church boundaries in Christ, to reach children and adults that are hurting and need God's touch. This ranch and conference center is the "Big" project that God has me working on for the moment, to say nothing of a growing personal ministry with different individuals all over the place. But I am only one man.