Current Events
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Most Recent Articles First ***********************************************************************************
Great and Glorious Days at Promise Land When the winter gave way to spring, in late March, 2006, the Promise Land Men move from the motel to a 200 acre campground and camped through the beautiful spring, summer heat, heavy rains, thunder storms, hail and wind with floated tents and wet beds. No electricity, battery powered lights, no refrigeration, and cooking over an open fire. Getting up at 4:30 A. M., cooking breakfast, eating, getting in the vans, traveling to the church for First Fruits Bible Study. After first fruits all would go to work, working all day without pay serving the brotherhood and the community of Ellijay. The daily chores range from house keeping, cooking and cleaning, laundry room, grounds keeping, logging and working the saw mill, mechanic shop, maintenance, recycle store that help the community’s needy, out reach ministries, food pantry feeding and ministering to the hungry, helping the seniors in the community that can’t help themselves, and so much more. At the end of the day they have dinner together and then coming together for evening Bible study or church, then loading on the vans and traveling back to the woods where the day is closed out with fellowship around the camp fire. Day after day the men grow in Spirit and in Love one for another, the senior men discipline the junior. Praying for one another and encouraging each other as they discovered the inexpressible, glorious joy of the Lord. One day in late November the county officials show up at the camp site taking pictures and making notes. Having to move ten times before we recognized the signs of the times and knew a move was close at hand. Sure enough the landlord received a notice that his land was zone agricultural and camping was not allowed. The notice also stated the camping had to cease within ten days. With no place to move, we continued to trust God that He had a plan and for sure He did. As the ten days come to an end a local Baptist Pastor , James Holt, stepped up and set it up with the Baptist Association to use the Mountain Town Camp Ground as an interim place to stay legally. Mountain Town Camp Ground had all the amenities of home with electricity that provide heat and lights in the tents, bathrooms, and showers with hot water, a working kitchen and a flowing river. But it was not long before the county officials showed up with their cameras and note pads. The eviction notice followed shortly there after. In the mean time, while all the evictions and moving was going on, the Spirit turned the public opinion to Promise Land’s favor. God also assemble a group of God fearing men consisting of two Baptist Pastors, James Holt and Steve Fields, an attorney, Rev. Michael Parham, and a County Commissioner, Ken Bailey, to make a realistic evaluation, a plan and to offer a helping hand to bring Promise Land in to complete compliance with all codes and ordinances, primarily the five requirements of the court order.
2) Permit the well as a Non- Community Public Water System. 3) Food Service Permit for church kitchen. 4) Permit the septic systems for the number of people being served. 5) Submit to the Department of Human Resources (DHR), for (DHR) to determine if this church (Promise Land) should be licensed by the State. The forth item, septic system, of the above requirements was installed and approved for 35 occupants in the church and 8 in the staff quarters on November 27, 2007. Yes, our Lord overcome every obstacle providing the means and way to install a very large church septic system. Efforts to bring the public water to Promise Land were exhausted. One of the three neighbors denied the easement needed for the affordable routing of public water. To meet the requirements for routing along the county road was simply unaffordable. Gilmer County Fire Services, Fire Chief, Travis Worthington and Fire Prevention Captain, Tommy Long conducted a courtesy fire inspection of the existing structures. They inspected the church, laundry room, kitchen and staff quarters all the deficiencies have been addressed and all but one have been corrected. The one remaining deficiency is a fire alarm system which is in the planning stage, as soon as the plan is ready it will be submitted to the Fire Chief for approval. When the approval is received the system will be installed. The installation of the approved fire alarm system would qualify the church for an occupancy classification to allow sleeping accommodation up to 35 persons and a Gilmer County emergency shelter. The targeted timing on the approval and installation of the fire alarm system is ten days or by February 16, 2007. When all is complete a re-inspection will be requested. On Saturday 1-27-07 after a community meeting to rally church pastors together against drugs our attorney, Rob Ray, call and told us to bring the Promise Land Men home out of the cold and in to the warmth of the church sanctuary. And oooh the over whelming joy and tears of joy and praise to God by God’s people all over Georgia, north to Chicago and west to California were glorious and inexpressible. The return to the church property had two known stipulations. One, they can not drink the water until the well is approved by the DNR as a non community public water system. Two, they can not use the kitchen to prepare food until a food service permit is in place. The food service permit will not be issued by the Gilmer Health Department until an approved DNR well is drilled and the water system installed and permitted. Since that great and glorious home coming day many have provided bottle water for drinking and many have provided dinner for the men to eat. Lunch does not seem to be a problem, however, breakfast is a little on the skimpy side. But the men are doing fine and are glad to be home out of the cold with a roof over their heads. Kathy Wilcox and two other ladies, from the DHR (Department of Human Resources), came to investigate a complaint against Promise Land Thursday, February 2, 2007. As I conclude from the final conversation, Ms. Wilcox will be writing an investigation report stating no violation found, Promise Land is not operating an unlicensed Drug Abuse Treatment and Education Program, but instead a Men’s Regeneration Ministry. We are presently waiting for a copy of Ms. Wilcox’s report. Drilling of the DNR well was completed today, Friday afternoon, 2-3-07, and the steel casing set deep into bedrock. The well is 245 feet deep with a production of 70+ gallons of water per minute. The driller, Richard of Southern Drilling, said he has never drilled a well with such a high yield. Praise God! The electrical, plumbing stub-up and pad is to be completed Monday, 2-12-07. The well head will be completed shortly there after and the next step toward permitting will take place. The nest step is flow testing the well and testing of the water. The water system plan and specifications will to be ready the first part of the following week. Ray King, District Director Environmental Health, came to visit Promise Land today, Friday 2-2-07. Mr. King brought a box of helps – thermometer, test strips, training videos, posters, food service regulations, handouts, etc.. Mr. King also conducted a general ungraded inspection resulting in sixteen items that need to be accomplished to meet food service regulations. The sixteen items are presently being worked so as to have the kitchen ready for inspection when the well permit is issued. Updates on the above will follow as they happen. TO GOD BE ALL THE GLORY!
**************************************************************************** MOTORCYCLE RALLY On Saturday March 25th Promise Land Ministries and The Brotherhood of Jesus Christ enjoyed their first co-sponsored Motorcycle Rally. While the day was unseasonably cold curbing the expected attendance, the Lord was there in full glory!
On the outdoor stage live worship was inspirationally led by Mike Coronet of World Harvest and also by Promise Land’s own worship team.
Many businesses in the Ellijay community generously contributed food, supplies and gift certificates to enable Promise Land’s success. The attending community voted on the best motorcycles. Trophies awarded went to Larry Brooks for Peoples Choice, Ronnie Baker for 1st place Cruiser. Larry Brooks for 2nd Place Cruiser, Ronnie Baker for 1st Place Custom and, Larry Brooks for 2nd Place Custom.
There was much fellowship, swapping of stories and sharing what the Lord has done between the Promise Land congregation, the members of the Brotherhood of Jesus Christ and the community. On Sunday, pastor Ken King, Founder of the Brotherhood of Jesus Christ, shared a morning message. He compared the historical tradition of a Jewish betrothal and wedding to the New Covenant Church. For those of us who were in attendance, we left with more than we came with. Glory be to God! **************************************************************************** Video - Sunday Morning Service with Pastor Ken King - Click Here ***************************************************************************** *Camping Again!The continuing story,
written about Promise Land, left off with the men moving out of the cold (18
degree) into a double wide mobile home provided by Mr. Charlie Clup on December
18, 2003, six days before Christmas. Well, since that time
Promise Land was raided again in the summer of 2004. The raid was order by Judge
Bradley as recommended by County Attorney Cliff Lansey, who has since been
replaced. Because of food stored in the Promise Land freezers Sandra and Al
Plume were charged with contempt of court. The food stored there was and is used
to feed the needy in the local community. Promise Land has jump
through 199 hoops as required by the county with one left to go. The last three
and the one left to go has and is done under protest. The kitchen was remodeled
even thou it was previously licensed and past all interim inspection by the
health department. The well was re-drilled, re-cased and all the instruments and
equipment installed to qualify it for a public water system. Promise Land
submitted the church’s men’s ministry to the DHR to determine if a licensed
will be required to operate the men’ ministry. And now the last one to go is
the septic system, which was designed, permitted and approved by the county
health inspector. Promise Land is in the process of raising $10,000.00 to put in
the new septic system required by the county, which is supposedly the last hoop
to jump through before the Promise Land men can live on their own property. But mean while,
starting back in November of 2005 one of the Promise Land staff members found a
house big enough to house the Promise Land men comfortably. A means for paying
for the new location was work out through Faith, Hope and Charity Recycle Store
here in Ellijay. The lease was negotiated and sign with the landlord. Then
December 1st, 2005, the move in date, we move everything in and that
very day before Promise Land spent one night there the county officials showed
up and condemned the landlord’s house and threaten the landlord with a
$1000.00 / day fine for every day he allowed Promise Land to stay. To this very
day the house stands condemned, no one can live in it, just because the landlord
was willing to rent to Promise Land. Promise Land called
the previous landlord and ask if we could cancel the 30 day notice? Mr. Clup
agreed and Promise Land move back to the doublewide mobile home that very night.
About a week later the county officials showed up at the doublewide, condemned
it, turn off the power and threaten the landlord Mr. Clup with a $1000.00 / day
fine for every day Promise Land stayed there. Renting become very
difficult seeing that Promise Land had to tell all perspective landlords what
had happen to the last two landlords who had rented to Promise Land. Members of the Promise
Land congregation, Ed and Sally Jeffery, step up and extended an invitation for
the men to move in to their home. By keeping it a secret the men were able to
stay at the Jeffery’s through Christmas and New Years, what a joy for all the
men and the Jeffery’s. But approaching mid-January you’ll never guess who
showed up at 10:00 at night, yep the county officials. The officials told Ed and
Sally that the men had to leave immediately or they would be fined $1000.00 per
day that they stayed including that night, a very cold and windy night. Promise Land called
Michael Parham, an attorney and a friend of the ministry. Mr. Parham said he
would call his pastor, Steve Fields, Pastor of East Ellijay Baptist Church, and
see if there was something they could do. Promise Land also called, Commissioner
Ken Bailey, who was the only county official that ever said he wanted to help
the ministry. Ken Bailey said he know it was coming down and there was nothing
he could do. Pastor Steve Fields
called and said that he had been teaching on Matthew 25:31-46 and that this fit
right in. He said that he and his church did not have any facilities for housing
the men but they were willing to put the men up for the night at the Ellijay
Motel. Pastor Steve Fields met Pastors Al and Sandra Plume, Ed Jeffery and the
Promise Land men at the motel paid for 5 rooms, prayed with us, and told us if
we needed another night that he and his church were willing to pay for it and
they did. Praise God! Promise Land kept the
men in the motel though January, February and most of March, until the weather
broke and it started to warm up. Thank God again! Another friend of the
ministry, who hates injustice, stepped up and donated the use of 200 acres for
the Promise Land men to camp on. With the aid of the community Promise Land has
tents, sleeping bags, cooking facilities and port-a-johns. Thank you Lord, thank
you community and thank all of you who help with your support! Promise Land will be
camping all summer while raising funds to pay off the back log of bills incurred
during the motel stay. Also raising the funds to install the septic system
required to get the men back on the Promise Land property where they belong. All in all the
experience has been good because it has built faith, character, a brotherhood
and a spiritual growth be on that - that can be expressed by words. The back ground story
can be found under the side link (Promise
Land Story) or click here
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