In The Starting Blocks

However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace. -Acts 20:24

We are so excited that this past Thursday we were given the “green light” to make arrangements to join World Impact.  It has been quite a journey the last two months, an emotional roll coaster that we weren't expecting.   The thrill of a new ministry, frustration of not having enough support, excitement of new people joining our ministry team to exhaustion of moving from place to place can be so draining.  As always, there are the many lessons that God has been teaching us and new relationships started that will be huge assets for His kingdom.   We are ready and willing to continue the race that God has set out for us in this next chapter and…did we mention that we are pretty excited as well?  Here is the latest update on where we are at financially and the time line for our ministry.

We have been blessed to have spent the last several months meeting old friends and making new ones on the fundraising trail.  We are currently at 82% of our needed monthly support to be fully funded.   What does the other 18% represent?  It is $740 per month.  We have a reserve of “one time donations” that we have received that we can draw monies from to make up our monthly short fall. We don’t want to continue to draw from that reserve fund as we have those monies set aside for ministry projects. These are funds that Sunshine & I can use to improve camp activities, men’s & women’s ministry, outreach and so much more.  We are continuing to meet and share what God has laid on our hearts.  If you want to or know anyone who is interested in missions please send them our way.  We also started the 81=Impact project has gotten some traction over the last several weeks and we are expecting a long term results from that.  Will YOU sacrifice $10 a month to help us reach our financial goal so that we can continue to do ministry next year?

On the fundraising side of things you can help us out three ways.

1.       Become a financial partner of our ministry.  Push the “Click Here” button on the right hand side to sign up today.

2.       Be willing to introduce us to your Church or small group.  We have found that without a personal introduction it is extremely difficult to open some doors.  Will you be our opener?

3.       Kroger, Bakers, Dillons, King Supers, Loaf N Jug, City Market & Quick Shop cards!  By putting your gas, grocery & pharmacy purchases on the gift card you can help us earn 4% of everything you purchase.  We have had 9 faithful users so far and it produces $200 every other month.  Could you impact 50 faithful users?  You already shop, why not use it?

This week will be a busy one for us as we are getting everything out of storage from 4 different locations.  On October 12^th we will be picking up the rental truck and trailer.  The game plan is to load the truck and get to Morning Star Ranch in Florence, KS on Monday October 15^th.  Both Sunshine and I are eager to start with training and learning.  We will be at Morning Star Ranch until August of next year at which point we will be moving to Deer Creek Christian Camp in Bailey, CO.    While in Kansas we will also be spending time at the Wichita ministry hub of World Impact for training and building relationships with the staff and families there.  We have a lot to learn from Church planting to computer systems so it will keep us busy.   We will be jumping in with both feet as one of the largest retreats of the year at the Ranch is the last weekend of October.  This will give us a great opportunity to experience camp life first hand and to learn from the Wichita camp staff who are already there.

As always we covet your prayers for our family and ministry.  For the next month here are some specific prayer requests.   Thank you again for all your love and support!

1.       For the move to Kansas. Patience, safety and ease of travel.

2.       The men’s retreat at the end of October.  That God prepares their hearts for an incredible weekend and that we listen and serve.

3.       That Colton will once again adjust well and that we find a toddlers group for him to continue to interaction with other children. 

4.       Sunshine finding the balance in setting up our home, learning new ministry tasks, and being a good wife and mother.

5.       For Me as I learn new ministry tasks, conferences, and for me to be a good husband and dad in  balance with everything else going on around me.