I intend to keep everyone up to date as much as possible on the logistics and planning for City Reach. This post is an attempt to do that. I appreciate all the interest.
I mentioned in our Summary of City Reach Wichita that we learned several things during that first campaign. We actually learned that we got a few things right. That was refreshing.
One of the things we got right was adding another team member to City Reach. Bro. Jimmie Radcliffe has been planning to travel with us during City Reach next year and City Reach Wichita was a trial run. Bro. Jimmie is an excellent worker and has a heart to serve. God has used him to minister effectively to the lost and troubled in society and it seems he is especially gifted to reach those that have been hurt and cast aside.
Bro. Jimmie is the founder of Salvage Life Restorations, a ministry to men and women that have been damaged by adversity and the misfortunes of life. He reaches for the suffering, the addicts, the homeless, the abused, the used and the grief stricken. For City Reach we have half jokingly but appropriately named him Director of Tent Transportation and Onsite Operations. During City Reach Wichita Bro. Jimmie dealt with all things related to keeping the tent in the air and helping everything run smoothly. But just as I hoped, he was very instrumental in reaching many people for Christ both one on one and in the altar services.
We are thrilled to have Bro. Jimmie on board for City Reach and we are looking forward to what God is going to do through him. This is a huge step for us financially and a huge step for Bro. Jimmie as well. It is exciting to see God's hand at work in such a large leap of faith!
One of the things we have been working on for quite a while is living quarters for Bro. Jimmie next year. We knew we needed some way to combine his living quarters with a vehicle to haul the tent, chairs and other equipment. We have considered totorhomes, motorhomes, box trucks (think Uhaul type) and various types of trailers. Bro. Jimmie has spent countless hours looking online and in person.
We all wanted to get this purchase right because the needs of City Reach are so specific but it also needed to suit Bro. Jimmie's long term needs. He determined that a goose-neck cargo trailer would work best for him and he scoured the internet to find the right one at the right price.
He finally found a trailer in super great shape and bought it at a fair price too. This trailer has so many extras and several obvious and hidden stuctural advantages. It really is a great trailer. Here are a few pictures of the exterior.
Bro. Jimmie will live in the front part. The tent, chairs and other equipment will ride in the back. We should be able to park the trailer onsite during most tent revivals as we have other tent trailers. If so, we can load the sound equipment in at night and Bro. Jimmie can stay right onsite.
Boggs Family Ministries purchased the trailer but it actually belongs to Bro. Jimmie. The purchase price is part of his wages for the time he spends with us working in City Reach next year. This is possible because folks have shared our burden for City Reach and we are very thankful.
There will be more expense before the trailer is completely ready to go. It will need an RV fridge, a roof air, holding tanks, bathroom fixtures, bed, cabinets and other items. One brother wants to help him with the cabinets IF he can spare the time. That will be a huge blessing if it comes through.
It will also need new tires all they way around and good load range G tires are not on special at Walmart! Bro. Jimmie can do most of the work (He is super duper handy, that is one reason he is on our team.) and he hopes to have it ready to go shortly after the first of the year.
Bro. Jimmie has an older Dodge truck that is in great shape with a Cummins engine. He is confident it can do the job but we do have our eyes open for a truck that might be even better suited for this particular task. He is mainly looking at single axle 2-ton type trucks, with the dream being a Freightliner Sport Chassis. I know that the right truck at the right price is out there.
Thank you very much for helping us pray for City Reach. Our ultimate goal is to be in the right place, at the right time, with the right message, for the right person. However, to do that there are a thousand little decisions that need to be made correctly and that job is much bigger than my ability. I am trusting God to help.
Thanks for reading. If you have any questions or suggestions, get in touch with us.
Davy
