Maybe the best way to describe it is this: Have you ever heard the saying, “I felt like a BB in a barrel”? Well, that’s just how Jamie and I felt every time God led us to move into a bigger facility. It seemed like we would never use all the space, but within a few years, we have always found ourselves wall to wall with staff and equipment. This time, however, it’s different.

Before I explain, let me give you a short review of what God has done. The first building we owned was given to us by a businessman in 1980. It was a 3,000-square-foot, Alamo-

looking hotel located in Manitou Springs, Colorado. It seemed huge at the time, but by 1992, with over twenty people on staff, there was hardly room to walk through the halls.

The people’s response to the message had caused the ministry to grow to the point that we needed more space. The next step was a 14,600-square-foot building on Robinson Street in Colorado Springs. That also seemed huge, but it was while we were there that God led me to launch Charis Bible College (CBC) and the Gospel Truth television program.

Then, in 2002, God “rang my bell,” telling me I had been limiting Him by my small thinking. I determined to change, and within weeks, the ministry began to explode. It was obvious that the Robinson Street building could no longer meet the need. In fact, we were so crowded with staff and students that we had to place portable toilets outside for the men.

In 2003 God led me to purchase our current facility on Elkton Drive. It was 110,000 square feet, with only the front 10,000 completed. The rest was a big, empty warehouse. To make a long story short, I went to our friends and partners and asked them to help me complete the facility. Fourteen months and $3.2 million later, the building was complete, debt free.

Since then, thanks to our faithful partners, we have expanded the Phone Center to accommodate 140 customer care and prayer ministers, and we’ve maxed out every square foot of available space for CBC. We currently have over 350 students and are expecting another 65 in November. At our present rate of growth, we will not be able to accommodate the school and the ministry staff beyond three or four years.

My staff and I have known for some time that we once again need to prepare for the future. But this time, the next step would have to be huge. After considering many options, nothing felt right until the end of June when the Lord opened a door that would have seemed impossible only a year earlier.

I say all of that to say that God has used this recession to provide us with a piece of property that will meet the needs of the ministry for decades. We have just purchased 157 acres of pristine mountain property within the city limits of Woodland Park, Colorado, fifteen miles west of Colorado Springs and only thirty minutes from the Colorado Springs airport.

One year ago, the property was priced at over $10 million. We closed on the property September 21, 2009 for $4 million. As a special bonus, there is an 8,200-square-foot lodge that by itself is worth over $2 million, not to mention the three ponds, the barn and other outbuildings, and the fact that it backs up to the Pike National Forest. This purchase would not have happened in a strong economy.

Only God could have arranged this timing. It’s an absolute miracle. We don’t have a specific plan on how this will be built out as of yet. But over the next few months, we will plan and begin development to meet the needs of Andrew Wommack Ministries (AWM) and CBC.

At this point, I am seeking God on how to best use the property. Please be in prayer with Jamie and me for God’s supernatural wisdom on this project. I hope to have much more to share with you on the overall plan in the spring of 2010.

I’m writing because I knew you would want to hear the awesome blessing the Lord has given us in acquiring this property, and I wanted you to know that none of this would have been possible without your faithful support. You are the ones who have given so generously, allowing us to make this offer and buy this property.

It’s also important to understand that the land and the buildings that will stand there one day are not the goal; they are simply tools to facilitate our mission and vision. But they are essential tools for accomplishing God’s will. Again, please be praying for Jamie and me and our staff as we seek to follow God’s guidance for the development and use of this property.