Unemployed? Nah, I work for the King

5/6/14 Tuesday

            Now that I am “unemployed” I don’t have enough time to do all the things that need to be done. God is great and the path He has for us is seldom easy. Wow! There is so much going on and so much I need to say but little time to even write about it. I just returned from four days of ministry with the Kairos team that went to the Lynaugh prison in Fort Stockton. It is always an honor and privilege to be allowed to serve God anywhere but going to prison is a special time for me because I once was a prisoner in Texas and wore the white uniform they are required to wear. There was a time that I would have never imagined I would be happy to “go to prison” but now it is a joy and a pleasure. There I can give back, take all the bad things I’ve done and experienced in life and use them for good. Plus having “been there and done that” gives me a special bond with the guys and an ability to minister in ways others can’t. I can relate and understand things that are hard for others to comprehend.

            Today I need to make ramps for the widow we serve. Geneva has lost the ability to walk due to a variety of medical things that all attacked her at the same time period. There was a stroke, possible heart attack, allergic reaction to medication, infections, and who knows what else. Please pray for her. She is one of the sweetest people we know and has spent a life helping others, giving of herself sacrificially. God put her in our life years ago when someone said she may have some firewood we could use. I found out she needed lots of help with things like her lawn and fix it stuff around the house, plus she was lonely and would dearly love someone to visit and talk with her. Knowing God orchestrates what seems like chance meetings I understood that He meant for us to be a part of her life.

            The pack rats have done extensive damage to the one pick up we have that still ran. It doesn’t run now and I can’t get it to start. Opened the hood to find this nest. We had put a new flywheel in it along with replacing the starter several times because the bolts holding the starter bend and break. Sounds like that happened again so I must crawl under it to see what is going on. The other two trucks have bad transmissions and my attempts to get a replacement transmission from Ohio, where they cost dramatically less, have not worked out. Seems like the enemy is always there to block our efforts and get in the way.

    

 This cute baby bunny was there at the store when I was working on painting the signs we put up. It's about the size of my hand.

       God has provided that old store on the interstate we have been praying about for seven or so years now. But it needs lots of work. I need to take a ladder down there so I can fix the roof and do some other stuff but without a truck am unable to do that. Can’t tie a ten foot ladder on the roof of a Toyota Camry. So much of the work I need to do requires a truck so we will pray for God’s provision. Fact is folks that God has placed us in a position that will require a lot of faith. We have no source of income at the moment so no way to pay the bills or buy food. But you watch and see what God does. When all is said and done we won’t be able to say “Look what we did” but will have to say “LOOK WHAT GOD DID”. It’s all about God folks and in these last days we need to better understand that. All of this petty “My idea is better than your idea” stuff needs to go. All of the pride we have needs to be thrown out with the rest of the garbage, because until we humble ourselves before the living God He is unable to use us.

            What are the plans we have for that old store? We want to create a place of ministry that reaches out to all the people who are looked down on and not accepted by the religious people who think they are better than these others. We are looking at some programs that are bible based AA types of outreach, that strive to help people get free of alcohol, drug, and other addictions. Some of them cost money and one requires that the leaders attend training classes so we will do a lot of praying and looking to figure out which will fit best. We may seek some support from area churches for that. This is all new to me, as so much of life has been since I woke from the coma. But I hope to surround myself with good people whose advice I can trust to lead and guide our efforts.

            The other thing we hope to do with that old store is turn it into a new store, a source of income that will provide for our needs as well as helping others who need to find work in a safe environment. Shoot, sitting on the interstate directly at an exit, with an entrance back on the highway a hundred or so feet away, I can make good money selling water and ice. So there is huge potential there but that will have to be another God thing. We don’t have any money or any credit, had been careful to stay debt free and pay cash for what we have. Unfortunately that now works against us because when they run a credit check it is like I am a ghost. So we are praying for God’s provision there too. We will need coolers to hold drinks and stuff in, counters, cash register, tables, shelves, and whatever else a convenience type store needs.

            Then there is the great need for housing in the area we can help with. I hope to put ten cabins on the half acre of land that goes with the store. They can bring in about $2000 a month each renting out by the day to workers that need a place to stay for a short time period. We must first level out the lot and then install underground water, sewage, and electric service for the cabins. Plus we can also provide spaces for RV’s too.

            So there is great potential in that and all these folks coming here for work need some ministry too and that is where the real value is. Got work to do so must run folks. See ya next time and please pray. If you want to be a part of this email or call me. My email address is bobcarver2@yahoo.com. I won’t post the phone number on the blog because that is not wise but you can ask me for it by email. Bye now.

bob