It’s been a busy time with all the trip preparation, Christmas shopping, visiting friends, etc. etc. I am not sure if any of that is a valid excuse for not writing in a while, but hopefully this entry will make it up to you!
Supplies:
Cathy and I have about 90% of our supplies now, which we were able to purchase with the help of a donation from a good friend in Texas. We picked up some sleeping bags, sleeping pads, a tent, and some new water bottles. When the items arrived, we set them up in the basement and camped out for the night! It wasn’t quite as cold down there as it will be during our trip, but our gear kept us very warm. 🙂 It’s some really neat equipment, it sets up in a few minutes, is super light weight, and breaks down to some very small sizes. We still need to purchase some clothing and some small miscellaneous things, but that’s it.
Fundraising:
Our funding is still a little on the low side. We had a huge rummage sale this last weekend where we tried to sell just about all of our things. We kept the things we will need when we get back, but everything else was for sale! We also had some items donated from church members that we were able to sell. We’ve currently made about $850, which is pretty good considering that we had some days with poor weather. People were very generous and rarely asked us to come down on our prices. Our items are still set up in the church, and we’re going to try to have the sale again some time soon.
My fundraising thermometer does not show this total yet, nor does it show the donations we have received from the church. With these totals, we have approximately $5350 in our account. Adding to this the pledges we’ve received, our total is approximately $8500. The problem is that we need $16,560 in our account before January 1 to be able to go on the trip! Nothing will stop us from going, but we’re still a little over $10,000 away from this goal. Pledges and donations while we are gone will help us reach our final goal of $28,000. We are praying and believing in the Lord for this funding.
Upcoming Events:
This Friday, December 12 at 5:00PM, we are having a dinner and worship night at Lakeside Family Church. We’ll be serving (and eating) a free dinner from 5-7, and at 7 we’ll be kicking off a night of music. There will be an intermission where Cathy and I will share about what we’ll be doing this next year, and we’ll finish the night with more music. If you’re in the area, come out and hear us play! (Cathy is a great singer, by the way!)
On Sunday, December 21 at 6:00PM, Lakeside Family Church will be doing a Christmas program. We’re titled it “It’s a Wonderful Life with Christ”. it’s based loosely off the famous movie, but has a modern twist. Cathy and I will be acting as the Bailey family. Come out and see us then as well!
A Final Word:
We are leaving in less than four weeks, and the excitement level is rising. Life is so stressful with preparations and planning that I am looking forward to getting out into the world and focusing only on God. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time and I got a taste of it at Training Camp. This time, I want the main course. As always, you all are an important part of our ministry. Whether you know it or not, your monetary donations and your prayers are what will keep us going out there. Once we leave, our goal is to make a new entry at least once a week, so be sure to check in often. Please leave comments or send an email and let us know what is going on back home. We will hold onto every word. God bless you all!
Philippians 4:6-7: Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
