Dear friends,
Well I have been promising everyone a status letter soon, so
here it is :-)
The status of Tim's life and the project he is working on,
namely the new
children's ranch and conference/retreat
center....
But first, The Passion:
I went to see this movie, not
once, but twice. First time with friends who
invited me and paid my way,
and the second time with a friend who wanted to
see it, and I paid their
way. We stayed up till after midnight discussing it
afterwards. And both
times, the movie hit me quite hard. Just found myself
weeping silently,
both times, and just uttering the words "I'm sorry Jesus,
I'm so sorry"
repeatedly, words that came unbidden to my lips from the
depths of my soul.
Was pretty intense. Lots to think about for sure. It's not
a movie that I
"enjoyed" per se, but I did appreciate the responses it elicited
from me:
horror, shame, revulsion, repentance.....
Second, Tim's life:
The custody battle in the divorce
that my wife had been asking for drags
on..... This is a source of much
heartache for me, and a chapter of my life
that I wish could be closed so
that I could move forward with other things.
Pray for my daughter Vanya (4
years old), who is caught in the middle of the
maelstrom. I do not have a
lawyer, can't afford one, and we are at the mercy
of the court in many
ways. I just received a call though from a local
mediation firm that told
me that my ex has agreed to mediation on
the whole case on
March17 at 10am. If this falls through, trial has been set
for April. You
might say a prayer concerning this whole process.... This has
not been a
fun thing/time in my life, can I say that? But it HAS been
refining, so
even there, I can see God working behind the scenes.
The past 6 months that I have lived here in Emmett since
moving away from my
old life in Star, have been both very good, and very
painful. Financially,
it has been very hard, and I have, in all honesty,
not done well. It's been
rough in many areas of my life actually. But
anyway, this is another chapter
of my life (the finances) that needs to be
wrapped up so that I can move
forward. But I have been very thankful for my
time here too, as much healing
in my soul has occurred, and many new dear
Christian friends have been made,
including several that are interested in
helping make the new
children's ranch a reality. It has been a time of
picking up the pieces,
grieving, and then moving forward. It has been a
time of ministry in several
areas of life, with several people, and at one
main church. It has actually been
a more fruitful time, now that I
think about it, than I ever thought that it would or
could be. But
this Emmett stop was, in all reality, still intended to only be for a
short while anyway, as a step in the direction of the new children's
ranch. And
to that end, keep reading.... :-)
Third: Children's Ranch:
There are so many things
beginning to happen here that it just boggles my
mind sometimes! *happy
chuckle*. I don't know where to even start....
So a brief recap for those of you new to this newsletter,
and then I'll tell
you some of the new stuff happening. Almost 2 years ago
now, God placed in
my heart the dream/vision of a youth home/ranch, a place
where kids without
homes of their own could come, be loved, be trained, and
when adults be sent
forth again as active Christians themselves, working to
change the world for
Christ, with His true love in their hearts flowing
through them to touch people.
So I began to work on this idea then, but God
said "wait". And then about 7
months ago, He gave me the green light again,
and started opening some
amazing doors for this dream and vision to become
a reality. At the same
time, He also broadened the vision to include
establishing one house/home
for crisis pregnancy teenage mothers, and to
include building as one arm of
the ministry, a conference and retreat
center available to the churches of
Treasure Valley, in a location much
closer to Boise than many of the other
retreat centers currently available.
This includes youth retreats and camps,
post abortive stress/guilt healing
retreats, pastor burnout prevention
retreats, bereaved parents healing
retreats, and more (these are just some
of the ones that we have talked to
people about and that there is interest
in doing and working with us to
accomplish).
But to give you an idea of the need, I began to volunteer at
another
children's home in the area over a year ago, just learning the
ropes and
getting familiar with the in's and out's of a project such as
this. And they
tell me that they often have to turn down between 5 and 7
applications a
week, because they have no room, no house-parents, or the
child does not fit
the profile of someone their home can adequately help.
That's 5 to 7
children a week in desperate enough living situations that
someone believes
they could be cared for better in a Christian orphanage
or group home
setting. That's between 250 and 350 kids A YEAR!!!!
There is a HUGE
need.
So here's where things are at.....
We have found 88
incredible acres of timber with some facilities already on
it, up near
Idaho City (maps and pics on my www.timbenedict.com website
below).
The owner is interested in giving us a lease option to buy on the
place,
at $400/mo until the option is exercised, for a sale price of $500,000
if
he carries a 5 to 10 year note on the place himself for us. If we pay cash,
he
would consider less. The property has not been occupied in a number
of years,
so it needs a LOT of work to be made operational, but in all
honesty, we
could start running retreats and conferences on a limited basis
there this
very summer, based on what I feel we can accomplish this spring
between
ourselves and several work retreats that I would love to have
someone offer
to do for us :-). The place even has a pool....... *chuckle*
The place has
SOOOOO much potential! Check out the pics on my website and
see for
yourself! *Big grin*
As for staff, we have myself, a certified medical assistant
(moving in from
out of state), and another couple that will be working
directly with the
conferences and retreats (also moving back in from out of
state - in Bible
training at the moment), solidly on board and committed to
moving onsite
this spring and summer. We have another family already in the
valley that is
solidly interested (but no commitment yet) in being our
spiritual staff
advisors/shepherds, focused primarily on, and responsible
for, the spiritual
needs of our other staff, as an onsite chaplain, mentor,
and family role
model. Another certified medical assistant interested in
being onstaff
onsite. Another couple interested in maybe being
house-parents. Another man
interested in doing onsite maintenance and
ministry.... The list goes on and
on *chuckle*. A retired police
officer/school resource officer to be on the
advisory board, and another
man with experience in raising funds for
orphanages also that has agreed to
sit on the board. Another man with
construction experience has agreed to
serve in an advisory role. Actually, 2
separate men have agreed to that
role, one an electrician, the other a
framer. A church that has expressed
preliminary interest in being our
primary sponsoring church. Another lady
interested in helping out with
clothing needs. A lady interested in helping
in the kitchen... The Christian
church operated children's ranch in Eagle
(near here - where I currently
volunteer time) has committed to be an
advice resource on all things
orphanage related. Another church already
interested in helping out...
Another group of Christian ministry investors
asking questions about
possible involvement. Four or five prayer
warriors that now weekly call me
and ask about what kinds of things are
happening and what the current
prayer needs are. Another lady that has
offered the use of her unfinished
basement apartment (if we'll finish it
for her) as a landing pad for staff
moving into the area and getting their
new homes onsite in order (she
only lives a few miles from the ranch site).
There is a young lady that
wants to be our secretary. And there's many
more, including some that I
am sure I am forgetting.... How long do
you want me to go on?*thankful
smile*. But in summary, right now, in short,
we have 4 people who have
dedicated and committed their lives to making
this place a reality, for
at least the foreseeable future. Who are leaving
their former lives
behind and moving onsite to dedicate themselves to
serving God
through this project. We need more. True Christians that are
honestly
seeking to know God/Jesus better and be like Him, that want to
partner
with us in this dream and vision, to make it a reality. That are
willing to
reach out together with us in genuine love to people that need
our help.
As for budgetary plans, we have sought the advice of a
Christian financial
planner who has agreed to work with us. We have a
mortgage officer that has
agreed to work with us to seek out corporate
donors and donations. And the
basic thought is to seek out enough corporate
gifts, church and individual
supporters, investors, and the like to buy the
property outright and then
build up an endowment fund which will provide
interest money to operate some
of the basic budget from. Additionally, the
conference and retreat center
will be income generating, with money that
can be put into the budget for
running the over all facility. Individual
staff people will likely raise
some of their own support among churches and
individuals, and also receive a
very basic stipend as part of their service
to the project. I also procured
my real estate license so that I would have
eventually an income to fall
back on (I'm not very good at it yet though),
along with some of my thus far
very limited internet income (see my www.timbenedict.com website), as
we
build the place.
Long term, our goal is to get onsite immediately, and get it
fixed up enough to
start running conferences, retreats, and camps through
the place on a limited
basis later this summer, while continuing
renovations on the rest of the place,
fixing up individual cabins and
getting staff housing in place. We honestly don't
expect to start building
and adding actual children's houses with houseparents
in them until the
following summer at least, unless people and staff and
materials to build
them with suddenly flow forth. This summer and first year are
all about
building foundations. Establishing a staff presence. Securing the
property
in our name. Basic renovations on the place. Publicity. Limited
retreats
and conferences. Establishing cash flow and a budget. And yes, we
want to
make the facilities available each year throughout the winter months
as
well, for retreats, conferences, and camps. The second year will be
about
establishing our first children's house with houseparents, and
getting that
branch of the project established and in place. Maybe get a
horse or two and
some other animals (goats? rabbits? chickens?) as part of
the whole
experience for the children, teaching responsibility. The
following years will be
about slow and steady expansion of both branches
of the project. I hope that
we can add the home for crisis pregnancy
teenage mothers sometime within
the second or third year... there is such a
need for one in this area, as very
limited resources are currently
available for young ladies in this situation.
Better this by far, than
letting them be pushed into killing their offspring. They
need our help
too.
But just this week, there was another exciting new
development as well! Part
of the whole deal with moving to Emmett was that
the house I moved into, I
would renovate and sell after 6 months, and the
profit would be put towards
getting me to the ranch, and the ranch
established. Just this week, when
things were seeming so bleak and at a
standstill again financially (this
next thing is an answer to another
prayer), I took a little afternoon field
trip across the street. Across the
street, a private foundation that works
hand in hand with the state (and is
state funded) to house and provide
treatment programs for juvenile boys in
need of a home, has bought an old
warehouse and is renovating it for use in
their program to house/treat up to
50 boys in a dorm-like facility. I said
a prayer about hoping the right
people would be there to talk to, and
headed on over with 3 purposes in
mind: to find out more about them, to
establish rapport and future
networking/referral foundations, and offer to
sell them this house I
currently am in, for their staff. When I
walked in, both the owner and the
manager (a solid Christian himself) were
there. Answer to prayer. But I
accomplished all three goals, and they DO
have staff moving in that need to
buy a place to live. So they are coming
to me about possibly buying this
house as soon as they get here. BIG answer
to prayer. I just need to finish
the renovations now! (anyone have a spare
32" shower stall, a toilet, a used
double car garage door, carpet, central
heat furnace, or bags of cement
that they wouldn't mind donating? -
yes lots of work remaining.... :-) )
Next steps?
I am starting to try to get paperwork
together (FINALLY! but been trying to
do so for several months now too) to
get a nonprofit structure and 501c3 set
up, and a board firmly in
place. I need to finish renovations on this house
here in Emmett and
sell it. I need to start moving up to the ranch site. My
divorce and
custody issues concerning my daughter need to be wrapped
up. I am just
about ready to start scheduling presentations to interested
churches,
groups, and individuals. I need to wrap up loose project ends
that I owe
several people. And I need serious prayer backing and support
as I am
feeling just a little overwhelmed right now with everything that needs
to
happen! *chuckle*
So where's that leave things right now?
We need prayer
concerning all things ranch related. I need prayer that my
focus on God
remains true as I walk through personal trials, allowing Him to
put
fractured pieces of my life back together. I need to either find
enough
odd jobs immediately to pay off bills and some debts and finish
renovating
this house to sell and move, or find some other way to
accomplish this,
whether through a loan from someone (repayable upon sale
of this house
here) or by gift. I just simply need a way financially
to get moved up to the
ranch, onsite, immediately, if camps and retreats
are to be a reality this
summer (already started packing my stuff). I
already have staff people
planning to move in from out of state starting
April 1st too, and I need to
have a place either onsite or nearby, ready
for them to move into, at least
temporarily. And we WILL need more staff
as the place phases over from
renovation to being
operational.
Also in preparation, I have put in job applications at
several places down
in the North end of Boise within easy driving distance
of the ranch, to
help tide myself through financially until the ranch
is self-sufficient, but in
all honesty, my focus in life has felt so split
up till now, even in some of the
web income stuff, that in all honesty, I
am praying/hoping that someone,
or a group of someones, will step forward
and take on some monthly
support for me, at least temporarily while we get
the ranch established,
so that I can focus 100% of my energy on the ranch
for the moment. I
mean, I'm even trying to sell my rather large
electronics books library, if
that tells you anything, because it is an
aspect of my life that is not
laying up treasures in heaven, and it is
splitting my focus away from God's
current marching orders for me! My
desire is to use the web income and
my real estate as a way to supplement
my own and ranch income now and
in the long run, and to train people in a
career, just totally letting it be a
hands-on way to teach ranch children
how to themselves be self-sufficient
in a way that allows them time to
also devote to ministry later themselves...
It isn't easy for me to share
my financial needs with people (can I say
that?), and in myself, I am not
worthy of the help, but this ministry that God
is leading me into IS
worthy of our time, and thus I feel more comfortable
letting my needs be
known and letting people help me out. Does this
make sense?
Oh, we also need a gasoline powered generator or something
at least
temporarily. There are no power lines up into the valley where the
ranch
property is located, though the place IS wired (the current owner
has his
own generator that he used to use whenever they needed power
there).
We are exploring alternate energy options such as solar and hydro
and
generator stuff, but until that is in place, we need the use of one or
more
small gasoline powered units.
You know what's neat? God gave me this vision and
dream almost two
years ago. Now it is starting to take on a life of its
own finally, as people are
coming together in partnership to make it all a
reality. It's becoming more
than just about me, Tim. And I am understanding
the truth and reality behind
those verses about "I must decrease, He must
increase," in a much more
deeply personal way, on a level I never
understood before. It's kinda neat.
It's neat to see God working here, both
in my life, and in this new ranch
and conference center.
The mission statement of my life is this: to train and raise
up the next
generation of Christian leaders from today's youth. I am
thankful that God
has given me this goal and mission, and is using me
already in this way, and
is opening the doors to a new project that will
accomplish this goal in such
a neat and more powerful way than anything I
could do on my own without
Him.
If you feel like you want to personally help out in some way
to help us make
this a reality, or have questions, I would love to hear
from you and talk to
you about it.
Sincerely in Christ,
:-)
Tim Benedict