(I know…nice shorts.  Don’t judge me.  And not a gray hair in sight!)

In 1999 Vonda and I ran our first marathon.  It was also our last.  Haha.  If you’ve ever run a marathon, you know those last few miles are MURDER!  My gout had kicked in and my wife and I walked most of miles 23, 24 and 25.  And then.  We broke through the wall and ran the final 1.2 miles.  It wasn’t pretty but we did it.  It’s something we’re both still proud of today.

Raising money to build a school in Guatemala is as close as I’ve come to running that marathon NINETEEN YEARS AGO.

Right now, December 2018, we (you and I) are staring down the last few miles of a marathon.  We’ve built an academy that gives 80+ elementary kids a hot meal and for some, their first introduction to the Word of God.  We’ve built 2 classrooms that have served 2 years of middle school kids whose first class of the day has taught them about Abraham and Jacob and Jesus.  We’ve built a computer lab that gives our 50+ middle school students a fighting chance. We’ve built a clinic that has transformed into a refuge center for severely malnourished babies under 1-year-old.  And we’ve built our home in the middle of it all.  We live above the clinic, above the computer lab and above one of the classrooms.

Unbelievably, we’ve started the LAST phase of construction (I say that with all understanding that God may have plans I know nothing about).  We’re building a second level with three middle school classrooms and a great room where we’ll have Bible study every morning.  This will give us the opportunity to expand the computer lab and to expand our elementary tutoring program.

AS FAR AS I KNOW, this is the last major construction project. The total cost to build is $76,000.

Can I just be honest?  We’ve been building and raising money to build ,for 3 1/2 years, and it’s HARD. During that time I’ve taught Bible every morning, I’ve taught English class every day, we’ve adopted four little ones, we’ve built 5 houses for families living in poverty (dirt floors), we’ve given out so many Bibles and water filters I can’t keep count and we’ve helped family upon family dig themselves out of crisis situations, with food and medical help.

$76,000???  Really???  HOW???

We held two fundraisers in October in the tiny communities of Elbert and Windsor and raised $54,000!  They were a massive success!  THANK YOU JESUS!  $22,000 remains, and I have to tell you, it’s daunting.  DAUNTING.  A marathon is 26.2 miles and right now, it feels like those final few miles.  I’m not complaining.  I’m just laying it out there.  We need your help.

 

You may have already given to this ministry, to the work God is doing in this little village.  I don’t know how to properly thank you for everything you’ve done…except to say THANK YOU.  We love you and appreciate you.  This isn’t just OUR ministry, it’s your ministry too.  THAT IS THE TRUTH.

There are two ways you can help.

1. PICK A BULB AND CLICK HERE -> https://pushpay.com/g/ordinarymissionaries to help us light the tree and star! Click “Other” and add “2018 Christmas Tree” to the memo.

2. SHARE THIS POST. ❤️