Those that wait upon the Lord...

"Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable. He gives strength to the weary, and to him who lacks might He increases power. Though youths grow weary and tired, and vigorous young men stumble badly, yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary." Isaiah 40:28-31


The Lord has told us to wait... and so we will wait on Him. He is in control of King's Ranch and when He decides to move, we will move with Him. He's also told us to continue the ministry He has given us, so while we wait we will continue with what He has given us at this time, a house and a capability to give a home to three children.

After the defeat we experienced at court, we felt we needed to go back and determine if somewhere we had gotten off track. Maybe somehow we had heard Him wrong. But after going back through all the ways that God has led us and spoken to us through His word, we believe that we have obeyed God and followed His lead to this point. He has shown us over and over again since the trial that a victory was actually won on March 26th. A victory that initially we could not see. He told us to do something and we did it and to Him that is victory...obedience! He also gave us Philippians 1:12 "Now I want you to know, brethren, that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel." and also 1 Peter 2:19-20 "For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly. But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God."

We will be interviewing a very promising couple for the houseparent position in June. We are waiting on Him to bring the houseparents He has chosen. When they come we will know that it is then time to wait for Him to bring the 3 children He has chosen to come to the ranch. We will wait until the time God sees fit to give us the conditional use permit we'll need to have additional children. But until that time, we will watch God perform miracles in at least 3 priceless lives.

Praise God that even through this difficult time, He has provided for every financial need that the ranch has had. After losing in court, our fear was that our support would dwindle. Support has actually increased! He gave us almost exactly the amount needed to cover this months costs even after the court ruling. Just another confirmation that this is His thing and not ours! He keeps it going - not us! Believe me, if it was up to us, we would have quit a long time ago! He never ceases to amaze us at how He leads us, how He speaks to us! He really speaks to His children!! There is no doubt! Isn't it thrilling to experience hearing His voice?! He truly is the Everlasting God who gives strength to His weary children! Waiting on Him gives new strength. Strength to run and not get tired and to walk and not become weary!

A song by John Waller has been especially meaningful to us during this time. These words are our prayer...

I'm waiting, I'm waiting on you Lord,
and I am hopeful, I'm waiting on you Lord,
though it is painful. But patiently I will wait.

I'm waiting, I'm waiting on you Lord,
and I am peaceful, I'm waiting on you Lord,
though it's not easy. But faithfully I will wait.


I will move ahead, bold and confident
taking every step in obedience.
While I am waiting,
I will serve you.
While I am waiting,
I will worship.
While I am waiting,
I will not faint.
I'll be running the race, even while I wait...


Please pray that God will continue to increase our faith and give us wisdom and discernment to remain in His perfect will. Also, that He will teach us to be mighty warriors for Him!

For His glory,

Eddie and Lee

"Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin,"
Zechariah 4:10 (NLT)

Emily

The first time I saw her, she was laying in a hospital bed scared to death. She had been in a car accident and was about to undergo an operation to fix her injuries. I walked into her room to pray with her before she left for the holding room and it became very obvious that Someone had been there before me! The Holy Spirit had prepared her heart and she couldn't wait to accept Jesus as her Savior and Lord! All I had to do was tell her how! I'll call her Emily, and I had the great privilege of seeing Emily become a child of the King that day! Over the last several months I've been able to get to know Emily better. One of the very first things I noticed about her is that she never made eye contact, she was very shy, saying very few words and looking down at the floor when spoken to. I wondered why? On the long drives back and forth to her house, her story unfolded. Something about staring at the road ahead as we drove broke down her wall, and she opened up and began to talk. She began to tell me of her traumatic childhood. She told me of the abuse that she had endured as a young child beginning at 4 years of age. She told me about the bloody noses and the hours locked in the bathroom. She told me about her mother who could not protect her for she was abused as well. She told me about being told that she was ugly and worthless and that she was a mistake and should have never been born. She told me that after you hear that long enough, you believe it. That's why Emily never looks up. She doesn't feel worthy enough to.

Several weeks ago, I took Emily to a bible study with me. We sat down in the back and a few minutes later a friend of mine arrived. Emily sat on one side of me and my friend sat on the other. This friend was also born into an abusive home. She was removed from that abusive home, however, and placed in a loving home with Godly parents. She has grown up to be one of the kindest, sweetest, most loving people I know. She is confident. She has a husband and children. She has a successful career. She loves Jesus! As we were sitting there, I felt the Lord impress upon my heart the stark contrast between the two women sitting on either side of me. On one side was Emily, so broken, so lonely, so deeply wounded. No one stepped into Emily's life as a child and rescued her out of the abuse. She carries the scars. And then my friend on the other side, so complete in Christ, so filled with joy, so successful in her marriage, family, and career. Someone somewhere heard Jesus' voice and obeyed. Someone stepped into her life and rescued her out of the abuse and look at the difference it has made for generations!

It is for the little Emily's out there that we are fighting this battle for King's Ranch. God has asked this of us and we want to obey Him. He has asked us to step into the lives of abused and neglected kids and let Him heal them, for only He can!

As for Emily, she is growing in her relationship with Jesus! She is learning that she is a child of the King and she is of GREAT worth to Him. He loved her so very much that He chose to die for her. She is learning that she is complete in Christ. And little by little, He is binding up her broken heart and healing her deepest wounds. She laughs now and there are times I can see joy on her face! We are trusting Him to bring her complete restoration!

These next few weeks are important ones for King's Ranch. We will go before the circuit court on March 25th and 26th to ask again for the permit we need to proceed. Please pray that the permit would be granted, but most of all, pray that the name of Jesus would be lifted high and that He would be glorified!

" I have heard them crying out,...and I am concerned about their suffering,... so I have come down to rescue them." Exodus 3: 7-8

For the One who binds up the broken hearts,

Lee

Ice Storm!

As many of you, we are still busy cleaning up after the ice storm that hit Jonesboro earlier this month! It was an interesting and trying time for all us but also a time where we saw God working in amazing ways! King's Ranch was so blessed to have the opportunity to minister to a foster family who was displaced from their home. They had a 6 month old little girl, a 2 year old little boy, a 3 year old little girl, and a 16 year old girl, and had been staying in a shelter for five days. Needless to say they were extremely exhausted by the time they got to King's Ranch! They were able to stay in the home until their electricity was restored a week later. What a precious family and sweet kids! We were so glad to get to be a small part of blessing the lives of these children.

We were the recipients of blessing when a crew of volunteers showed up to help with the clean up at the home! There were several trees down and a large limb on top of the house. Fortunately there was no permanent damage and the limb was removed. Thank you to our wonderful volunteers! We cannot thank you enough for giving of your time!