8 Days and Counting

Ok the time is here. We are packing our final bags, checking for our passports and eating at every favorite place one last time before we head out. I want to thank you for your prayers. Starting next week we will have a brand new look to our website and our newsletter and blog will all be on our site. I am so excited. Not only will I have a blog but Carla and the kids will too. I know you must get tired of hearing just from me. We will also try to blog at least every other day to keep you up to date on things.

This week has been great. We have made a great connection with Compassion and already have a few parties and puppets booked with them. The really cool part is one of the churches is just down the street from Casa. They ask me if i could help them with outreach. Are you kidding me!!! God is so awesome! Please pray for the First Baptist Seymour team as they are going down with us. They will be helping us move in and I must say they have already blessed our socks off. They are providing a complete sound system for our block parties and adding some nice speakers to the worship center. They are also donating instruments for the praise band at Casa. God is already doing some amazing things at Casa with the teenagers and I can not wait to start working with them.

This week has also been tough on us financially. We have had some things come up that have drained us. Satan is pulling out all of the stops to get us to stay in Tennessee. Please pray for us that satan would be bound and could not get to us. Our container has been delayed by two weeks and over $6000 in taxes had to be paid. We had some goofy stuff come up that cost us extra and then somethings to finish the house. We also found out that we will have to buy new plane tickets to travel home because of extreme fee's.So please also pray for our fiances that they would replenish before we go. We also have to sell our van here so that we can buy a vehicle in Guatemala. So this picture is our van we have for sale. It is $4000.00. That is what we paid for it with taxes and fee's. So please pass this to anyone that you know that may need a van. Finally on the wining front we still need 16 families to meet our budget.

You know with all of the attacks and all of the problems there is one thing I know for sure. We are meant to be in Guatemala. God is so awesome and has provided every need that we have had. He has done that through you and folks like you. So thank you so much for your willingness to serve God through this ministry.

We have a ministry plan that we would love to share with some churches and business owners. If you would like a copy to share with someone please email me at mike@clubhouseguatemala.com and I will get it to you to share. Please make sure to check out the website next week for some really cool changes.

Financial Needs

1. $1300 for tile for our house.

2. $2000 for vehicle in Guatemala

3. $2500 for taxes on container

4. 16 monthly sponsors

Prayer Needs

1. Carla's Dad and his cancer.

2. Our final week.

3. The hearts of those we will encounter

4. Our boys as I know next week is going to be big for them.

5. Our parents as we leave next week.

Praises

1. Carla's dad got a great report from his lung doctor that things are improving.

2. God continues to add folks to our clubhouse.

3. Genesis is doing amazing!!!

4. Needs are being met.

The Time is Now!!!

When I try to think of titles sometimes it can be hard. But for this post it was easy because our time is here. We leave in 2 weeks to start a new chapter of our lives and we are so excited. It is hard to believe that after months of planning that it is time.

As we started our week this week we took the family to see Narnia. I must tell you I went into the movie excited to see a movie but left after a meeting with God. Now I don't want to spoil the movie for you but I have to tell you about one part. There is a scene when Lucy meets up with Aslan. Now she has seen him thought the movie but never went to him. Finally when they have their face to face meeting Lucy shares that she knew that He was there. Then Aslan with a very sad and hurt look on his face ask her "then why did you not come to me?". At this moment I began to cry and Zach looked at me and ask what was wrong. I told him we would talk after the movie. After the movie I explained to him that I had a new understanding of God. That God was so hurt when we did not come to Him with our problems, our struggles, or our victories. God doesn't just want us to come to Him he expects us too. It was ironic that the we saw the movie right after I started a new book called "In a Pit, With a Lion, On a Snowy Day". This book has transformed my thinking of how we are to follow God. If you get a chance get this book.

We have an immediate need we need to share with you. We still need 18 families to meet our basic budget. We leave in 2 weeks and we really need to have that finished before then. So please pray about that with us and share our ministry with everyone you know. If you would like more information about partnering with us please email me at mike@clubhouseguatemala.com.

Prayer Request

1. Carla and her Dad (Not doing well)

2. Our Budget that needs will be met

3. Teams that are coming down this summer.

4. Hearts of the people we will be working with.

5. Property next door to Casa (That Casa could raise the funds to buy it)

Financial needs

1. 18 families @ $30.00 per month

2. $1300 for Tile Floors

3. $700 for Taxes on Container

4. Airline Tickets for return home in December ($2500.00- $3000.00) 6 Tickets!!! (The Boys are coming home for Christmas)

5. Computer for Radio Station $800.00

Thank you to all who are praying and supporting our ministry. It is because of your faith and prayers that we are able to go to Guatemala and share the gospel. You are awesome people that are truly going to help change the country of Guatemala one child at a time.

His Servant,

Mike

Packing up is hard to do!!!

I am sorry it has bee a few days but after you read about our last week I know you will understand. We started last week packing up our house. Thank you so much for all of those who came to help. We then had to move everything over to a Warehouse to store it for the container to pick it up. Then Tuesday the we got the fun job of loading not only our stuff but an entire truck load of stuff from folks all over the south that love the kids at Casa. I must tell you that right now I am very tired. We had 3 hours to load our entire container and with the help of a lot of awesome people we got it done. The picture you see to the right was taken as we closed the door. That thing was so packed that those doors will be spring loaded when they open. But we got it done and all of our stuff and a lot of things for the kids are on the way to Guatemala.

On top of all that excitement we also had a tough week with Carla's dad. He was rushed to the hospital on Saturday morning with a lot of pain in his lower chest. After many test and treatments we have learned that the Chemo is not working. The cancer has grown a lot in size and it is causing him a lot of pain. The doctor told him he had 3 options. He could try another form of Chemo that would make him very sick, he could take a pill form of Chemo that has an 11% rate of success or do nothing and enjoy his life as long as God chooses for him to be here. So please pray for him, his name is Carl Gann. I just got a call from Carla's mom and they are sending him home. Please pray that God would give us all the wisdom on how to handle this. Please pray for Carla as this has really taken it's toll on her. We know God has called us to Guatemala but it is hard to know what to do and when to do it.

Now I am going to switch gears and encourage you for a minute. I had the most amazing things happen this week. We were still short on our container and we had someone come forward and pay the remaining balance. I want to say a big thank you to that person. You will never know how much that meant to us. Then on shipping day we went to Wal-Mart to look at Basketball goals for our upward program. While we were there we made the decision to go ahead and buy 5, the only thing was we did not really have the money. I told Zach, "lets get them so we can send them and hope that God will provide. I was standing in the checkout line to pay for them when a great friend called and told me they wanted to buy our goals!!!!!! God is so amazing. I can not tell you how many times during this move that we have felt the walls closing in and God has knocked them down. Know that what ever the need big or small that God can fix them all. I should be a rapper huh.(HAHAHA)

Our Prayer Needs and Other Needs are below.

Prayer

1. Carla's Dad Carl.

2. Transition of our move.

3. Finances of our ministry.

4. Genesis as she continues to recover.

5. Our house as it is finished.

Needs

1. 18 Families at $30.00 per month.

2. Extra funds for Travel for Carla

3. 4 More church partnerships

4. Funds for a Vehicle in Guatemala. ( We can not take ours because of Taxes) We found a van there for $2500.00

5. Our house that the deal will finalize.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support. Know that when you read this and pray over these needs that you are a vital part of this ministry!

Please pass this on to your friends and help "Grow the Clubhouse"!!