Big News from Icthus Ministries

Icthus News September 2007  

Greetings & blessings from the beautiful Smoky Mountains of North Carolina! It is amazing how quickly September arrived… it seems that only a moment ago we were looking at January and the start of 2007. Now we are almost three quarters through the “new year”! It must be a sign of age that time is gaining momentum in my life.For whatever reason, September has been a month of significant change for me over the years. In September 1990 I became director of Icthus Ministries. On September 3, 1994 Edith & I were married. In September 1999 we purchased the original twenty-four acres that are part of the Haven. AND on September 20, 2007 our first son, David Gabriel Dingle was born! Please rejoice with us as we remember and celebrate these milestones in our life and ministry.David Gabriel arrived two weeks early yesterday at 3:39 PM. He weighed 8 lbs. 3oz and was 20.5 inches long. He & Edith came home this afternoon and are doing well. Emma, Reah, & Lydia are excited to have a new little brother. I am overwhelmed at the goodness of our God!This month, I fully expected to be reporting to you that we had sold the old retreat center and had received a large grant for the new retreat center at the Haven. Such is not the case as we neither received our grant nor sold the center. Unless our current financial situation changes dramatically, our leading is to continue hosting groups at the old facility in the coming year and construct the new facility in stages as funds materials manpower become available. We have remained debt free in ministry and personally since 1994 and believe that we are to operate in that way as we serve our King.

Want to help? Here’s how:

 PRAY, PRAY, PRAY…

a. For God’s protection, provision, direction.

b. For favor with all people

c. For God’s role for you personally in Icthus Ministries

Thank you for taking the time to read this. Next time I’ll share some things we saw The Lord do this summer. Please pass this on to anyone that you think may be interested. Blessings!!!!!

Trusting JESUS,

                    Bill

                    Prov.3:5-6

                    www.icthusministries.com

–
Trusting JESUS,
Bill
Prov.3:5-6

Greetings in the name of our Lord & Savior, Jesus Christ! Summer is winding down, so I wanted to give you a quick update of what we’ve been up to & how you can pray for us. I am just getting my computer back on line, so forgive me for being out of the loop these last few weeks. I’d appreciate your response if you’re interested in continuing to receive our newsletter. We have DSL now, so I’m trying to learn to “drive” again. Please bear with me in the coming weeks as this techno illiterate learns a new tool!

People, Places, & Things
So far this year we’ve hosted 16 groups from as far away as Brighton, MI to the north and Port Orange, FL to the south, and from as close as our own back yard. This is very good news as we only had 17 groups all last year! Many of the 400+ youth & adults that have visited us so far this year have made commitments to walk closer to Jesus and go deeper in their devotion to Him! It makes all the late nights/early mornings well worth the effort. After each group leaves, Lonnie, Pat, & I spend some time praying for & discussing what we saw God do over the course of their visit with us. The consensus is that each week God kicks it up another notch! It seems that the more we proclaim God’s word, give testimony to what HE has done & is doing, and acknowledge HIM in all our ways, the more HE shows up! I want more of HIM, how about you?

Pray for those that have made decisions this summer to continue to pursue a deeper relationship with HIM as they return to their homes.

Changing Seasons
Summer is not the only season that is changing at Icthus. The Lord has without a doubt used what I’ve called “God’s postage stamp”, our current facility, over the last 17 years. I suspect, however, that this will be our last year in the old retreat center. We are talking with others about the possibility of selling the current facility to another ministry, taking a year off to build, and moving everything down to the Haven. On the positive side, the sale will provide seed money for foundation work and construction materials. It will also allow us to focus solely on getting the new center built. On the down side, we won’t have the opportunity to minister to any outside groups until the new place is completed.

Please pray for people, finances, and materials to finish the project in a timely manner. I am especially asking the Lord to raise up a project manager and for favor with the grant committee at the Janirive Foundation.

Lonnie Grimes will be leaving us in a few weeks to get married, move to Redding, CA, and start school at Bethel Church School of Ministry. For the last year he has been a dear brother, co-laborer, and fellow servant in the Lord. We will miss him greatly and bless him as he begins this new season in his life!

Pray for perfection, protection, and provision for Lonnie & Nikki as they begin this journey of following Jesus as husband & wife.

Pat Kelly has also blessed us in many ways since his arrival last March, and we bless him for his desire to serve others. Groups consistently comment on his willingness to help in any way, whether hanging out with the kids, cleaning up, or taking someone to the ER…again!

Pray for God’s direction for Pat as we close out the season and determine staff needs/opportunities for the future.

The Dingles
Edith continues the task of growing flowers, vegetables, and a human! Our little boy is due October 4. Over all she is doing well except for a persistent skin issue and pressure on the veins in her legs. She is prettier than ever as are Emma, Reah, & Lydia. The girls are growing up fast… on August 14 we will officially be known as the 6, 4, 2, 0 (the children’s ages) family. There seems to be a pattern developing here! The milestones for the girls this summer have been Emma’s & Reah’s first camp out (two nights in a tent w/Daddy), Emma learning to ride her bike w/o training wheels, and Lydia trying her best to say and do everything her big sisters are doing!

Pray for Edith to experience total healing in her legs and with this skin disorder TODAY! Pray that I would love my wife as Christ loves the church, laying down HIS life for her. Pray for us to have great wisdom and discernment in training our children up in the way that they should go so that when they are old, they will not depart from it.

The Calendar
We still have some openings for late summer & the fall if your group or someone you know is looking for a place to come apart & meet with God, give us a call or drop us a line! Blessings!!!!!!

Trusting JESUS,
Bill Dingle
Prov.3:5-6
www.icthusministries.com

“Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains.” James 5:7

It’s spring at Icthus! Trees are budding, flowers are blooming, and yesterday (3/27/07) was the last day of snow skiing at Cataloochee ski area! A new season is upon us! It’s interesting that almost every time the season of “Spring” is mentioned in scripture, it is accompanied with the word “rains.” We generally tend to think of rain in a negative sense, but scripture generally associates blessing with rain. The only way increase can come in the land is with rain. I hope you can take a few minutes and let me share some of the rain we have experienced, and some “showers” we see on the horizon.

The Past…
Joel 2:23 “So rejoice, O sons of Zion, And be glad in the LORD your God; For He has given you the early rain for your vindication. And He has poured down for you the rain, The early and latter rain as before.”

We hosted 17 groups at the retreat center last year:

- 8 Jr/Sr High groups
- 1 Children’s group
- 3 College groups
- 2 Mission groups
- 2 Singles groups
- 1 Men’s group

We also hosted four over-night groups and two events at the Haven. One of the groups, 40 high school students and chaperones, arrived in six RV’s as a part of their “Road Rules” camp. They spent a week traveling to a new place each night. Our two “events” consisted of our seventh annual Praise Festival that we host as a Christian alternative to Halloween. Approximately 500 local people participated! Our other event was called a “Fun Day.” About 150 people from four local churches participated in the Fun Day. The day began with breakfast and preaching, then progressed to a co-ed softball/horseshoe tournament, with games/activities for small children. Then a cookout for lunch, more preaching, softball/horseshoes, games/activities. Basically it was a Fun Day!

The red house, also known as the redemption house, at the Haven was used to host a total of 47 people free of cost. Most of those were ministers and their families. Our desire is to continue this type of ministry.

During the late fall we were able to:

- construct a ten foot high fence around the basketball court
- complete some major road repair/construction
- hydroseed road/excavation sites
- excavate a site for a maintenance shed
- cut seventy logs into lumber for the maintenance shed
- work on a design for the new retreat center
- put a deposit down on the new retreat center
-take our family and staff for a week of training on “Family” at the Christian Training Center Int. in Franklin, NC

The Present…
Deuteronomy 32:2 Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants.

There is much going on at the present! (Isn’t there always?) We just hosted our first group of the season, the Family Worship Center, from Port Orange, FL. Their theme was “Extreme,” so we did some extreme things like team building, going through a high ropes course, snow skiing, white water rafting, and an extreme adventure. I’d tell you what the adventure was, but I’d have to kill you and that’s a bit extreme, don’t you think? Throughout all the activity there was worship, prayer, praise, discussion, and focus on what the Lord was/is teaching through the experience. Our desire is that everyone who comes here would walk away with a greater understanding that the Lord Jesus is calling us to follow Him in an up-close, personal relationship, everyday, 24/7!

We are blessed to have two wonderful brothers in the Lord serving with us at present. Lonnie Grimes II of Phenix City, AL, has been on staff with us since last summer, and will be with us until the middle of August. He then plans to go out to Redding, CA and enter the School of Ministry at Bethel Church. Pat Kelly, also of Phenix City, just joined us a few weeks ago and is blessing everyone around with his servant attitude, pies, and ninja weed-eating skills. Both Lonnie & Pat had a significant encounter with Jesus on their first visit to Icthus a few years ago. It is such a blessing to have these guys not only labor with us, but also break bread around our table and share the Word which is life!

We are diligently working on the design/plans for a new 100 bed retreat center at the Haven. We will be constructing a two story, 4,000 sq. ft. “kit” built by Deltec Homes (www.deltecthomes.com) of Asheville, NC. The materials are scheduled to be delivered at the end of this September. The Deltec kit will house a kitchen/dining/meeting area on each floor, and will be connected to a two-story dorm on either side. The whole structure will be close to 9800 sq. feet. It is very exciting (and sometimes exhausting) praying/working through the details!

As exciting as the new plans, the new season, our new staff, etc. is, our most exciting news is that we are expecting a new baby on October 4th!!! At this point we don’t know if it is a boy or a girl - only that it is definitely a baby (not a bird dog or a beagle.) Each day I wake up with four of the most beautiful girls in the world, and I am reminded of how extravagantly good our heavenly Father is. Imagine, an old dude like me getting to be a daddy again. Praise God!

The Future…
Isaiah 55:9-11 “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

What does the Lord have for Icthus Ministries in the near future? Of course HE knows completely, precisely, exactly
what HE wants to do. The word I am hearing for this year is “increase.” I believe the Lord is bringing the increase across the board. Edith and I are experiencing a greater hunger than ever before for more of God’s presence. We want to see God do things in/through us that only HE can do. Obviously, we’re seeing the “increase” in our family with the imminent arrival of our little one. We are seeing “increase” in our staff with Pat & Lonnie laboring along side us in great unity. We are seeing it in the number of groups we have already scheduled for this year (13 so far, as opposed to 17 all year last year!) We are seeing “increase” in the area of local ministry to the community through our “Praise Festival” & “Fun Day” events as well as everyday use of the rec. area by local youth & adults. All of this and more is evidence of God’s rain that is bringing the “increase.” I am also expecting to see a greater measure of protection, direction, and provision. I’d be very grateful if you’d pray with us in these areas.

Protection: We are well aware that there is an enemy. He is not pleased that there is territory being taken in our county (Swain) that is advancing the Kingdom of God. As the territory has “increased” through changed lives as well as physical land, so has opposition from the enemy. Although we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against powers, rulers, and authorities in high places, it is often “flesh and blood” that he (satan) uses to bring the conflict. Some of the persecution has come from neighbors, some from professing believers. Regardless of the source, we are encouraged by Jesus’ statement in Mat. 5:10-12: “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” I am believing God to rain down HIS protection from every attack from within and without.

Pray for:
- favor with neighbors and local officials.
- health/safety of us/ family/staff/guests

Direction: The scripture clearly says: “Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain” Ps. 127:1. From the very first day the Lord spoke to me about overseeing Icthus Ministries, I have earnestly sought HIS will, HIS way, HIS direction through prayer, fasting, scripture, and Godly counsel. I have clearly seen God rain down HIS guidance over the last sixteen and one half years as HE has directed me, among other things, to come here, marry Edith, purchase the Haven property, and now to build a new retreat center. Two of the main ways the Lord has always confirmed HIS direction have been through HIS peace and HIS provision. We are in communication with a ministry that is interested in purchasing the old retreat center and are seeking the Lord’s direction/timing in this matter.

Pray for clear direction for the present retreat center.

Provision: I have continually experienced the Lord’s provision since inviting HIM to rule & rein in my life in 1974, but especially so since coming to Icthus. I’ve seen HIM wipe out a twenty year mortgage on the current retreat center within three years and three months of moving here. HE has provided me with a wife waaaaaaaaaaay out of my league and children with their Mama’s intelligence and looks (Praise God!!!). By HIS provision, the original Haven property and every tract added (38 acres so far) thereafter have been purchased in cash, including a two bedroom house! HE has provided groups/individuals to labor with us from hours to years. HE has provided materials, tools and equipment to do the work. By HIS provision we have been debt-free, both personally (without a salary from 1991 to present) and in the ministry since 1994. We have never lacked for anything we needed. As Acts 14:17 says: “Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.”

One thing I have learned is that God’s math is much different than the world’s math! The world looks at the resources and says, “You only have enough for one lunch.” Jesus says, “Give me your lunch,” then He feeds well over 5,000 people with twelve baskets full of leftovers! I believe the Lord has said to ask HIM (not you) for three million dollars. I have no idea how HE will bring the provision, but I’m asking HIM to take my lunch (resources) and multiply them like only He can do.

Pray for God’s provision of:
- three million dollars for new center, infrastructure, staff housing
- a manager to handle all phases of construction
- laborers, skilled & unskilled to do the work
- financial support for all staff
- heavy equipment; particularly a backhoe, small bulldozer, small dump truck

Want to Help???
1. Pray for us often.
2. Forward this letter to others that will pray with us (after you check your couch for an extra 3 mil. Better yet, check Bill Gates’ couch).
3. If you know of groups that are looking for a place for a spring/fall retreat or a summer camp, send to our web site: www.icthusministries.com . We currently have June 1-3 & 9-12 open, and all of July except 9-13.
4. If God gives you a word for us, let us know.
5. If you have construction skills, come build a 30′ X 60′ maintenance shed for us.
6. If you have block laying skills, come finish our chimney at the pavilion.

Conclusion…
Often times before the rain comes, you can smell it, hear it, or see it in the distance. When it arrives you can also feel it and taste it. I pray in your own walk you are experiencing the Lord’s rain; I pray that it is producing increase in your life and those around you. It looks like rain around here. Let it pour, Lord, let it pour. Blessings!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Trusting JESUS,
Bill
Prov.3:5-6
828-488-0553

Greetings in the name or the Lord Jesus Christ!

I got a letter from a dear brother a few weeks ago with this statement: “Bill, it’s time for another news letter.”… Translation (my translation), what in the world are you doing??? Good question. I hope you’ll have time to read on and catch up. So sorry it has been so long since our last communication with you — please forgive me. I will try to do better in the future. To misquote Nehemiah: “I’m doing a great work and I can’t sit down.” (Nem. 6:3). I hope you’ll be blessed as you read on and be motivated to stand with us in prayer.

Details, details, details…
We are definitely in a season of details in the Dingle house. It is amazing the change in the “group dynamic” that the birth of Lydia brought to our house. To borrow from my brother Eric, we’ve had to shift from “man to man” to “zone.” In this season we no longer have the option to get up, throw on some clothes, wolf down breakfast, get in the car, & go. Now, it’s get up, change the young’uns, dress the young’uns, feed the young’uns, clean the young’uns, try to get something to eat, clean up the throw up, change a dirty diaper, try to get some clothes on, get the car seats in the car, get the young’uns in the car, get sippy cups, snacks, extra clothes & diapers, go change clothes with fresh throw up on them, go back out to the car, and go. And so goes the day (and night). I am not complaining. In the midst of all the details I am constantly reminded of how intimately aware our heavenly Father is aware of and involved in the details of our lives. Psalm 139 starts out by saying; “Oh Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.” I am indeed a blessed man in the midst of all the details, and am passionate about training up my children in the way they should go.

The Dingles (littlest to the biggest)…
Lydia is ten months old. She is walking (for about a month now!), and eating everything in sight with her four teeth. She is generally happy, especially when Mama is holding her. She has a great smile, and like all the Dingles, loves being outside. Now that she is weaned from breast milk, I can help with the feedings at 12:30 & 4:30 AM. Edith is now able to get more than 2-3 hours sleep at night (sometimes), PRAISE GOD!!!! People say that Lydia looks like me, but I disagree, especially after we got the beard off of her.
Reah turned three on May 1. She is our blonde -haired, blue- eyed beauty. Like all of my beauties (except Edith), she loves anything to do with dirt, rocks, and/or water. So far she has learned a Bible verse for every letter of the alphabet and most of the references. Last winter she got to go snow skiing for the first time and had a blast! At two and a half she was as good as most skiers on the hill… I’ll never tell if she was that good or if everyone else was that bad (lol).

Emma will be five on August 11. She has become quite the prayer warrior, especially in the area of healing. Any time she sees me wearing a neck tie she prays, “Lord Jesus, help Daddy to preach good. In Jesus name, amen.” She also has learned 26+ Bible verses and knows most of the main bible characters. Her favorite video is a hunting video she calls “shoot the deer.” I think her favorite verse is going to be Acts 10:13, which says, “Arise Peter, kill and eat.”

Edith will be… fourteen years younger than me all her life. She is now beginning to regain her strength after birthing a baby and experiencing nearly a year of very little sleep! She continued playing the piano for all of the special programs at Grace Christian Academy this past school year, in addition to taking care of our three gorgeous girls and laboring along side me as we minister to groups and neighbors. It is such a joy to come into the wonderful home Edith has made of our house! Edith still enjoys painting, playing music, and baking breads. Two highlights for her this past year were selling two of her paintings and recording some solo piano compositions in a professional studio.
I turned fifty on May 23 and am having as much fun as two twenty-five year olds (And hopefully have more sense, but we won’t go there!). One of the highlights so far this year (besides waking up in a house with four of the prettiest girls in the world), has been the opportunity to minister with Edith at a church in Alabama and to counsel together. The Lord is opening a door for ministry to several of our neighbors that are experiencing various illnesses/diseases. We are praying specifically for the Lord’s will to be done. Jesus taught his disciples to pray “…your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven…” (Mat. 6:10). We believe since there is no illness/disease in heaven, that it is His will there be none on earth. It’s not rocket science, but I’ve decided to start taking God at His word.

Staff…
The Smiths and the Sorgs ended their service to Icthus in May. Lynn is working full time with our neighbor building houses, and Dan has applied for a pilot’s position with a company in TN. We are grateful for all the good things they accomplished over the last two years. We wish them blessings, peace, joy, and health in their new endeavors.
Lonnie Grimes of Phenix City, AL has joined our staff for the summer. He is helping with maintenance, landscaping, cleaning, counseling, teaching, hosting, intercession, encouragement, plumbing, and whatever else we can talk him into (lol). Lonnie has a true servant’s heart and is ready and willing to do whatever he can to advance the Kingdom of God. He has just finished a five month internship with Auburn Heights Baptist in Phenix City and was on their volunteer staff for about two years before that. In the fall he plans to continue his education in Columbus, GA, but right now he is listening for what Father God has for him. We are grateful to have this young man labor with us and hope you have the opportunity to meet him this summer.

Eric & Ashley Brendle were blessed with their third son, Caleb Isaac, on June 3, two weeks early. Their oldest son, Jesse, prayed the night before that his new brother would be able to share his birthday with him. When Ashley woke up the next morning her water broke… the prayers of a child. Ashley & Caleb are doing well. Please pray for her continued recovery and strength as they too shift from “man to man” to “zone”. We are considering calling them the “June Bugs” since Jesse & Caleb’s birthdays are June 3rd and Samuel’s birthday is June 9th… maybe not. The Brendles will be serving with us through the end of July. In September they will be moving to Redding, CA where Eric will be entering the School of Ministry at Bethel Church. We hate to see this dear family go, but we know that the Lord has great things in store for them.

Winter…
Even though we have been closing down the retreat center the last few years during the winter months, we continue to be about our Father’s business with Bible Club in the middle school, preaching, and maintaining/improving the grounds and facilities. One of the highlights this winter was speaking at Pawley’s Island youth ministries’ ski retreat in West Virginia. Several of the students and leaders from Pawley’s Island, SC, had been to Icthus in the past and honored me by inviting me to join them on their ski trip (ok, so I begged them to let me go!) in WV. We had a great time in the Word, hanging out together, and can you believe it, skiing! I even got to share a table with Willie Nelson in the lodge… well, he looked like Willie… sorta.

Spring…
This spring we hosted three groups: Sigma Alpha Omega sorority from Western Carolina University, Cornerstone Community Church Jr/Sr high from Orangeburg, SC, and First Baptist Sr High all the way from Bryson City, NC. It’s the first time that we’ve hosted a local church for more than a day event, and it truly was a blessed time! The focus was on the power of our testimony from Revelations 12:11: “They overcame him by the blood of the lamb and the word of their testimony…”. We’re learning to defeat Satan by speaking to each other about what God has done, is doing, and is going to do in our lives. Sigma Alpha Omega had such a great time that they have already scheduled another retreat for this fall. This spring I also had the opportunity to preach a revival at Cornerstone Wesleyan Church here in Bryson City, and at the homecoming service at Baynes Baptist in Burlington, NC.

Summer…
So far this is the busiest, slowest summer we’ve experienced since coming to Icthus. How can that be? Well, as God continues to bless us with land/facilities it takes quite a bit of labor to keep everything in good order. But as far as groups go, this is the least attended summer since God called me here in 1990. Our first two groups ended up cancelling at the last minute, so as of yesterday we just completed our first week of summer camp with 22 middle school students and adults from Peace Presbyterian in Cary, NC. They are the only group we will host in June. July is a little better; from the 6th -22nd, we will have folks here everyday from Alabama, North Carolina, and Florida, four groups in all. Still, to have an open week at the beginning and end of July is unusual. Also, we only have one group scheduled for August (Bethany Baptist, Aug.2-5). Typically by the end of February we are booked solid through the summer and are starting a waiting list. We don’t know all of the factors that have played into such a “light” summer schedule, but we are confident that the Lord is well aware of our situation and will bring ministry and provision where, when, and how He wants to.

The Haven…
You may or may not be aware that since September of 1999 we have purchased thirty-eight acres and a small house about three miles from the current retreat center. The vision is to build a new lodge and move the current operation, located on one acre, to the new site. The original purchase of twenty-four acres was the remainder of a cattle farm. To differentiate between the two locations we’ve always referred to the latter as “the farm”… until now. As we get closer to building a new facility, we believe that “The Haven” more accurately describes what the Lord wants the new place to be. It is indeed our prayer that it will be a “safe place”; a “refuge”; a “Haven”, for all who come in the future. Officially it will be referred to as “Icthus at the Haven” or simply, “The Haven”. Please join with us in praying for God’s plan to bring this vision into reality. His plan is absolutely the most important thing, because when we have His plan, He brings everything we need exceedingly, abundantly, more than we can dream or imagine, according to Ephesians 3:20.

What’s next???
Cut grass, cut grass, cut some more grass; that’s a given (we have a lot of grass at Icthus!), but the two major projects that have been on the plate for a while are to build a maintenance/equipment shed and renovate the barn. The barn has been a chapel, shop, storage, junk place for waaaaaaaaaaaay too long, and we want to make it strictly a people place. THEN….

After nearly six years of looking at different designs, buildings, camps, etc., I believe we’ve found the basic design that we’re looking for in a retreat center. It was in our back yard the whole time (Go figure!), and is called Deltec Homes. The company is located in Asheville, NC. You can look at their website at: www.deltechomes.com if you’re interested. Now it is a matter of sitting down at the drawing board, working out the details on paper, and waiting on God’s provision.

Want to help?…
We always have chores/projects that we are working on and would be glad to have your help. Some projects are low skill level and only require a strong back and a godly attitude. Other projects definitely have a high skill level, but still need a godly attitude. We have eight full hook up RV sites at the Haven if you want to “camp,” and we only require that you work half a day (twelve hours is a half day), eight days a week, or something like that. Some of the chores/projects are:

- Cut grass
- weed flower beds
- trim shrubs
- clear brush
- clean rooms
- paint barn roof
- repair/service mowers, vehicles, etc.
- finish laying block on pavilion chimney
- rock work on pavilion chimney
- rock post/rail fence around rec. field
- build maintenance/equipment shed
- renovate barn/chapel

We are also trying to get a small bulldozer from Phenix City, AL to the Haven. We have a goose neck trailer to haul it on, but nothing reliable enough to pull for that distance. In addition we are looking for a backhoe and small dump truck in good condition, Cheap!

Thanks…
Thank you for taking the time to read this rather lengthy epistle. I hope you are feeling a little more connected with us now. We appreciate all your prayers, calls, cards, visits, and chocolate! I am in the process of switching e-mail accounts and if you’re interested in staying in touch, please do me a huge favor by responding to b.e.dingle@gmail.com. Just say something like “put me on the newsletter list” or whatever and I won’t have to type in your address. Finally, please, please, PLEASE, only send personal notes. I get forwarded a lot of junk “if you love Jesus you’ll send this to at least 10 people” mail as well as “luck” & lots of hoax mail. It just saves a lot of time deleting all that stuff from 400 + people. Thank you again for your interest in this ministry! Blessings!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Trusting JESUS,
Bill
Prov.3:5-6
www.icthusministries.com
828-488-6664