Hello family!
Photo and Design Courtesy of Ashley Flores
Can you believe we are a mere 4 months away from the New Year?! Does anyone else feel like time is flying?
God has been bringing to us some amazing new friends and connections that will greatly impact the future of All Nations and the advancement of the vision God has given us to fulfill. For those who aren’t aware, we have a desire to build a village, the Village for All Nations. The Village will serve as a place where individuals can be trained in and for the environment they will be sent to or coming from. It will also serve as a place of rest and refreshment for visitors. The Village will consist of several cabins where individuals or groups will stay for their training. Each cabin will have a different theme and environment that will reflect various countries and their culture. Also in the Village will be a multipurpose building for conferences and gatherings, as well as a house that can accommodate a pastor and his family.
We have been contending for this project to move forward, and now it seems that the appointed time for the vision has come. One thing that has frozen this project was the fact that for construction to proceed, there would need to be a secondary water tank on the property. We are happy to report that in August that requirement no longer stands and we are able to pursue the plans for the Village with the existing tank on the property. Praise God!!!
Now cost is something that plays a major factor in any building project. Just one house can cost a good amount of money, so imagine a village! Sometimes in life, however, one has to think outside of the box in order for something to be accomplished. After much praying and research, Teresa came across a form of building that truly is outside the box. Think, circular. No, not geodesic domes, but Monolithic Domes! Monolithic means “formed of a single large block of stone”.
Photo from Monolithic.com. Due Sorelle — Built on a 2-foot-high stemwall, Due Sorelle has a diameter of 32 feet and includes 2 bedrooms, bath, living/dining area and kitchen.
The domes come in many floor plans and styles, but the most attractive feature of the domes is the cost, energy and time of building! One dome can be constructed and ready in just two weeks! An important aspect of the vision for the Village, is a Village that demonstrates green living. Monolithic Domes are a fantastic example of green energy! A Dome uses only 1/3 of the energy a regular home, because of the thickness of the insulation. Sometimes all that is needed to cool off a home would be a simple air conditioning window unit, depending on the dimensions. Imagine each home running off of a solar panel? Talk about green living! Maintenance is minimum, sometimes as little as a fresh coat of paint every 20 years or so. That means that Village wouldn’t require an extensive maintenance crew. Monolithic Domes, the company that has patent the design, describes the building’s safety: “The Federal Emergency Management Agency [FEMA] rates Monolithic Domes as having “near-absolute protection” from F5 tornadoes and Category 5 hurricanes. They have withstood wildfires in Arizona and California and survived direct hits from Hurricane Katrina and tornadoes in Oklahoma and Texas.” This past week, we have met with a dome Contractor builder here in Southern California that is interested in working with us on the Village. We are so grateful to how God is divinely bringing connections to us. Isn’t He just wonderful?
Another area we thankful for are friends, new and old! God has been bringing us new friends that have a like-mind and heart for His work and are wanting to stand and work alongside of us. There are two couples who love the Lord and feel Him calling them to join us, whose skills would be a tremendous asset to our continuing work. We know that as the Lord continues to move us into this next season of expansion, we will need the personnel and co-laborers to do the work. As we here gain more coworkers to help us, it will release those like Teresa, Gordon and Annella to fulfill the call of God on their lives, to spread the Gospel to all nations. We couldn’t be more excited, or more thankful for the new people in our lives.
We are also grateful for old friends we are able to strengthen our relationships with, such as Tony and Vicki Isip. Teresa, Gordon and Ashley spent time with Tony and Vicki and some other friends, for a time of fellowship and worship. They expressed their desire to continue to work with us and be involved in what He is doing here. We’re grateful for them and their heart.
As hard as we pray to God for the needs and future of this ministry, we want to stop and thank Him just as hard when He brings the provision for those needs, many times above and beyond what we can comprehend! We thank each of you for standing with us, praying with and for us, and joining us in the demonstration of God’s love to the Nations.
Family, remember to pray for our brothers and sisters in Iraq and across the globe suffering for the name of Christ. Hebrews 13:3 says “Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies.” Join us as we lift up our family in the body of Christ.
We love you.
Your family at All Nations
