It is the heart and passion of the ranch here to reach out to wounded youth. To that end, a man that has been helping out with ranch stuff, serving as a liaison of sorts between different groups interested in and wanting to use the ranch, is going to Mexico with his wife and 2 small children for the winter to oversee the construction of an orphanage for homeless and foster children in the state of Chihuahua, Mexico. They are going on simple faith, and asking for sponsors to help them go. If God places it on your heart to help them out financially so that they can go, please call 8-392-9602 and talk to Carl, or talk to me. I respect this man's walk with God, and without him and the way God has used him to make ranch connections for us, it would not be where it is today. Pray for them in any case. Carl and Marisella, and their 2 small daughters. They are doing this completely on faith, and need our covering and support, in both prayer and finances. I personally plan to support them myself with what I can, but they need a lot more than what either I or the ranch can currently provide. Can you help them?

Wow.... so where to start, where to start. That seems to be one of my problems with these newsletters, that there is always so much happening! Which is kinda cool, actually. I am exactly where God wants me, and I wouldn't trade it for anything, in spite of dealing with constant battle.

So I guess the big stuff started over 3 weeks ago. In past newsletters, I have mentioned all the hundreds of hours of work I have put into grant paperwork and everything too. It all started when I finished all the paperwork and submitted it for approval (several hundred pages).

First I heard nothing. Then I heard that we had lost our membership to the grant consulting firm that was going to (I thought) review the paperwork that I had submitted. So then I had a meeting with someone about this and thought the membership was reinstated. Then I heard nothing. The weeks went by. When I pushed the issue, I found out that the membership was a lost cause. I would not be getting it back. So the paperwork grant process was/is effectively dead in the water until I can find another $1500 for a membership exclusively for the ranch, or get on the ball and get our two volunteer grant writers and myself to start tracking down grants on our own *ugh!*.

The same week I finally found this out, through conversation with the woman that I had asked earlier this year to marry me, who has in many ways also been my best friend, I kinda realized that she was not very interested in moving/living here (she lives quite some distance away) either to help build the ranch, or to raise her children here. She had actually asked that I move to her location instead, but God told me to build a ranch here, so I am not going to leave (cannot and dare not) . So I finally let go of my dreams of raising a family with her. That was hard. I do not know what will happen with her/me/us now.

Then also the same week, the owner of the ranch informed me that because of my missed rental payments from last spring when I was sick and out of work, and because I still had no firm plans to show him how I was going to pay for the ranch, he was going to start showing it to other interested buyers (one of which has already shown up to see the place).

Then I got sick with that bad urinary track infection and giardia. All in the same week. I got sick. Major sick. The urinary tract infection just knocked me down. At the same time, I also came down with a bad case of giardia, that little parasite that lives in surface water all over the world (causes bloating, diarrhea, horrible cramping, fatigue, etc).

But wait! It gets even better! *chuckle*.

So everything came to a head one fateful weekend 2 weeks ago. Everything about my life and the ranch was touch and go. It was one of those moments in time where the direction of life hangs in the balance, and it could swing ANY direction. And I knew it too. But I kept reminding myself that God was in control, that HE knew what was happening, and that I just couldn't worry about it. It was all HIS problem. I was too sick to deal with any of it anyway.

Friday night, as I was first really starting to get sick, I picked up a load of firewood in Boise, and then my daughter Vanya who was to spend the weekend with me. Am glad she did. She helped out allot over the weekend while I was down. And several people were praying for me as well, knowing that I was getting sick and dealing with lots of stuff.

Late Saturday night, still running high fever, I had a knock on my door, and was served with papers by 2 Boise County sheriffs who had in their hands, a signed court order giving them permission to seize ALL personal assets (everything here at the ranch) to sell to pay off a debt that my ex had agreed to pay as part of the divorce 2 years ago, then declared bankruptcy over, leaving me holding the bag, and it had slipped through the cracks and I had lost track of it (my bad). I accepted the paperwork and promised to follow up on it. They said ok, could see that I was very sick, and left without seizing anything. It was interesting to me, as a side note, that I am not angry anymore with my ex over this debt. She couldn't help it. I have forgiven her.

Sunday I missed church, and just laid in bed most of the day here. I was starting to feel a little better, and the urinary tract infection fever broke that night. Then Monday, the giardia infection hit full force and I spent the morning crawling to the restroom every little while, then the afternoon slowly moving around, feeling a little bit better finally, dealing with meetings both here and in Boise.

First thing was that I was able to work out a payment plan with the collection agency who held the court order to seize my/ranch possessions. Everything that has been donated and given to the ranch is safe, for the moment. And God gave me the work I needed to pay the first payment of nearly $400 dollars. Total answer to prayer.

Second thing was a meeting with a Spanish pastor who represents part of the Spanish Pastor's association of Treasure Valley. He came up and toured the property and was very excited about it. He said that he was going to go home and pray about it, but that if God was leading Him to (and he thought that maybe God was), he would personally help fund getting the ranch in order to have access to it for camping programs for all the Spanish youth and churches in the greater Boise area. Another total answer to prayer. Pray for him and his ability/desire to help out.

Third thing was a meeting between myself, a real estate agent, and the ranch owners, to hear a proposition put together over the weekend by this real estate agent friend of mine (a Christian lady who once personally saw God raise someone from the dead in response to prayer), whereas, as part of a million plus dollar real estate deal that she could make happen for the owners, they would donate the ranch to us, free and clear. That meeting went well. And they are continuing to explore this option. Be praying about this, please! She also got very sick immediately after this while trying to have meetings with the owners. She is now coming under attack too, and needs our prayer covering. Satan does not want this ranch to become a reality, and is pulling some really low blows to stop it from happening. But thank goodness, God is bigger than Satan is *whew!* I know who I serve! (Do you?)

Fourth victory came in the form of a church in Arkansas agreeing to fund all the paperwork filing fees and permit fees that we need to make this place legal, non-profit, and operational. A church in Arkansas, where a friend of mine goes, met that night and decided to give the ranch $00 to be used for these fees. (I had only asked for a $1000, and only remembered later that there were more fees than what I had detailed to them, but God had already prompted them to make it $00 instead of just $1000, thus covering the fees I had forgotten about. Isn't that cool?).

So I would like to say that I have been totally on the ball, all the paperwork has been filed, and everything is hunky dory, but guess what. I am still sick with that giardia thing. Man oh man did it knock me down. Am taking something for it now, but am hoping it takes care of the problem and gets me back on my feet ASAP. I was able to get some basic, minor, desperately needed construction work done around here on some of my good afternoons when I wasn't feeling horrible, so that is good. Got a new roof put over the firewood stacking area (still don't have as much wood cut as I need for the winter - been too sick), and I got the end of one of the donated trailer cabins framed in and protected from the weather, also urgently needed (but still have to do the same thing to the other donated trailer cabin immediately too). I still need to go back though all the paperwork one more time ( I first filled it out over a year ago), and double-check to make sure everything is still correct and reflects the current state of affairs. I hope to get to that over this Thanksgiving break, as well as finish up some projects I have promised people, and track down all my other debts too that may have fallen through cracks in my system.....

Other God fingerprints have included the way in which He was real to me, and talked to me, while I was sick. I got some attitude areas of my life cleaned up with His help, and I feel like I am coming out of this much stronger in who I am and what I am doing here. I am so thankful that He invites us to ask Him for forgiveness for our screwups and then invites us to let Him take over our lives to make them better and more fulfilling. He knows my needs better than I do anyway..... I wouldn't trade this walk I have with Him now for anything. I am where He wants me, and He gives me peace about it, that He will take care of me and my needs if I just continue to let Him lead my life. And that peace, no amount of money can buy. I am SO fulfilled, working on the ranch here. The battles only add to the excitement usually *chuckle*, though they do get to me sometimes. But I still stand true to what I know, and to who God is, and to what He has asked of me.

When I prayed the Sunday night in bed when I was so sick, the day after dealing with the above mentioned bad attitudes, I just asked God for a specific word from Scripture for me, and then I opened up my Bible. The very first verse I read, I kid you not, (in Ezekiel around chapter 36 I think it was), said something to the effect, "on the day that I cleanse you from your sin, sayeth the Lord, I will repopulate your deserted cities and REBUILD THE RUINS (the ranch?)." I just had to laugh, and it gave me opportunity to just praise God even more and expect victory for the following day (Monday when God did everything). I went to sleep in peace. And He came through the next day. God so enjoys snatching victory from the jaws of defeat for those that love and honor Him.... *soft grin*.

Another fingerprint happened in the midst of this, where something I had written last summer that brought glory to God and the way He created things to be and work, made it to publication in a venue where typically God is not talked about or acknowledged in any way. Apparently it caused quite a stir, and invoked a lot of pondering and questioning, as I heard through later feedback. So I was thankful for that too. God is good *soft chuckle*.

The weather here has been beautiful too, with the sun shining every day for over 2 weeks. It's been downright COLD, but to look out at the sun, or to take short little walks in the bright afternoon winter sunlight, really helped when I was feeling so miserable.

God has also brought on board a number of new ranch prayer warriors, that I am enjoying getting to know and talk and pray with. Truly, God is giving me new family to replace the one I lost in the divorce, a new family of brothers and sisters to stand firm together.

I am meeting with a missionary family from Honduras sometime in the next several weeks, who are also building a youth ranch, orphanage, and camp/conference center in the mountains of Honduras (how ironic is that, that we would independently be building almost identical ranches, half a hemisphere apart - must be a God thing *chuckle*). They are coming to spend the night sometime in the next week or two. It is very exciting :-). I plan to pick their brains while they are here, and find out all I can, as they are farther down the road to a functioning ranch than we are.

The Boise County commissioner that is a total prayer warrior and has prayed together with me many times about the ranch here, he and his wife were in a rollover accident 35 or 40 miles from here (off the edge of a high mountain road and down a short mountainside) in late October. God totally protected them, and they are both home now, with no super major injuries, but they are under attack too. He believes God has placed him in power to bring change, and to help prepare the way for a major move of God in Boise County and the whole area (and I happen to agree). Please pray for them. Paul and Margie. She suffers from fibromyalgia (sp?) and is in a lot of pain anyway, and I know she would appreciate your prayers. I haven't had a chance to go see them myself yet since I found out about the accident (been sick), but I intend to, and to pray for/over them while there. Anyone want to go with me?

It is kinda interesting to me also, that all this time, everyone thought, myself included, that grants were going to pay for the ranch. But I had also been praying that God would make the ranch happen in a way that is obviously Him, and not me. I wanted no one to be able to say that TIM built the ranch, but I wanted everyone to say that GOD built this youth ranch and conference center. It just makes me smile to see that all the grant work that I TIM had done, is in the end, not making ANY contribution to procuring the ranch.God is using other methods, that suddenly "fell out of the sky", to procure the ranch, after the thing I had been doing (grants) got shot down. I guess maybe that is one reason that when we lost the grant membership, I was not too worried, because I knew what I had prayed, and I knew how God wanted EVERYONE to know that this is HIS ranch, and not Tim's or anyone else's. So I just have to laugh and smile at His sense of humor and irony. God is pretty dang cool. The paperwork had to be done anyway (and I have always hated paperwork), so now we can move forward in other ways with it as well.