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Welcome to Sling N Stones Recovery Ministry website Bolivar, Mo.

2020 year end newsletter

Looking In Hindsight @ 2020

Sling n Stones Ministries (SNS)

January 1, 2021

Who knew what 2020 would hold a year ago? Our place of worship was destroyed by fire last year and we thought that would be as bad as it could get, then came the Rona. After a few months of not being able to have church we realized that if we had still been renting a place we may have been in a financial crisis.

We started using a space at the Open Hearts United Methodist Church for the first nine months of the year and have now settled into a more permanent location at the First Christian Church on Broadway in Bolivar Mo. This new location far exceeds our needs and is so suited to what we do and for the growth that we will be experiencing in the future.

Over this last year where many businesses and churches have been hard hit by the pandemic Sling N Stones Ministries has decreased in size, but has grown in our ability to serve those in need. We have become better established in the community and we believe this is a result of the fire, as well as the graduate of the first student from Slingin’ Acres Recovery Farm. We now have three local churches that support our ministry each month and are speaking to others as well. This past year the outpouring of love, prayers and donations has been more than we could have imagined. We live in such a great community. During COVID people have brought us so much food and toilet paper we were able to bless people who could not find those items in the stores.

I almost have to laugh at how God used so many things that could have had bad outcomes and turned those into blessings. Before writing this letter, I strolled around the farm with my dog Adrian thinking of the planning and prayer that led to this point, remembering when this was all just a vision. So weird to look back as I walk around and see the many blessings that we have seen and experienced over this last year. We were able to buy two calves for $100 each, an Angus (Blacky) and a Brangus(Red). We had a family come help us build a greenhouse and then brought us chickens and a chicken coop. We had a friend donate material for an addition onto a cabin so we could park all of our equipment. We had a new friend, who is now family, come and show us how to build the addition. Then we were able to build our own chicken coop additions and a loafing shed for our steers from the knowledge we learned. We had an amazing garden that filled our freezers. We made our own salsas and pickles and we were able to take produce to church and mail some sweet potatoes to some of our favorite pastors for a Christmas pie.

In October we had our first Graduate form the discipleship program. Samuel Case is now working full time in Bolivar, has his own house and is active in church and recovery. We now have three other men. Dan, Todd and Daniel are doing well and trying to get things worked out so that they can be back in their children’s lives. The men spent time at their families for Thanksgiving and Christmas. We were able to bless these men with a nice Christmas where they received what they wanted for Christmas and then some.

Over the last year our men have learned that a life based on the Bible is the only real way to succeed in life. They have started every day with Bible study and prayer. Every week we go to different meetings, bible studies and Church services. Men come to the farm to teach and study with the guys. Aside from all of these things the men are learning real world skills that will help them be able to provide a good living for their families. We have been able to have them learn many things such as carpentry, plumbing, electrical, tree trimming, landscaping, butchering, and gardening, through work here on the farm or at many of our sister organizations.

This past spring, we read the parable of the sower, the farmer scattering seeds which some fell on a path, some rocky soil, some on good soil. After that we looked at clay, rocks, and good soil. Then we went to our compost pile we maintain and got compost, mixed it with peat moss, perlite and vermiculite making our own good potting soil. Then we planted seeds indoors, these seeds were transplanted outside. Our men made the soil, planted the seeds, watered, weeded, harvested, and ate the plants they started. But first we took the firstfruits of those to our pastors and our partners because we want to teach these men the principles of firstfruits and tithing along with stewardship, patience, and God’s provision. As you can see, we are not a drug rehab, we are a Christ centered discipleship program designed to help men in crisis become men in Christ.

As we wrap up a crazy, but victorious year and say hello to 2021 my wife Cindy, myself, our board of directors as well as our SNS family and SNA students would like to thank you for your continued prayers and love as well as your financial support. None of this would be possible without the many people who donate $1, $5, $100, and sometimes much more than that. We thank each of you from the bottom of our hearts.

Of course, there is no way we could ever tell of all the many miracles and blessings we see every day all year long but these are a few of the thousands of things God has done in the midst of a chaotic year.

Our needs for 2021 are:

Ø More monthly donors in any amount. (You can set up recurring payments at www.slingnstones.org)

Ø A bigger van with a side door that actually opens.

Ø Finances to pay a salary for Pastor Tom (currently working for free for over a year)

Ø More Godly men to come teach classes at farm (we have a curriculum)

After we have these needs met, we will be ready to start planning how to add more beds so we can help more men.

As always, we would love to invite you here to the farm for a tour or dinner, just give us a call.

Thank you and blessings in Christ,

Tom Johnson

Pastor / Sling n Stones Ministries

Director / Slingin’ Acres Recovery Farms

Bolivar, Mo 65613

417 599 9405 |tom@slingnstones.org www.singnstones.org

What we do at Sling N Stones

There is a serious drug & alcohol problem in our community.

We love Bolivar Missouri. It's a great place to call home.

But we can not hide from the fact that there is a growing drug problem.

We started Sling N Stones November 1, 2014, in order to give people who needed a way to get free from drugs and alcohol a safe place to come and be loved, while learning how to live without those things in their lives.

While we have witnessed many lives dramatically changed, there is more work to do now than ever before.

Each Saturday night we have a free dinner followed by praise and worship. After that we have a word from the Bible in the SNS sanctuary, and the children go to their class.

We also have evening classes to get you through the week they are called A.A.A. All Addicts Anonymous, on Wednesday nights, which is a Christ centered 12 step type fellowship.

What are donations used for at Sling N Stones ?

First of all, helping broken people become grounded in the word of God.

One thing that sets us apart from most "addiction treatment" type of groups is our belief in the finished work of Christ as being sufficient to help people achieve a new life free from drugs or alcohol.

So the first thing we give new people is a Bible of their very own.

Other things that help our people are various literature and books they might need to help them on this new part of their life.

The rest goes to daily operations and supporting other ministries

The first 10% of every donation we receive is donated to other like minded ministries.

The rest of our donations go to run the ministry, which included, food for our meals, rent, electricity, insurance, on the churches and vehicles, postage, office supplies, internet, advertising and etc.

Any money donated to Slingin' Acres goes straight to the

expenses of running the farm.

All financials are always available to the public.

Next is helping them with the most basic of needs you and I take for granted

As people begin to rebuild their lives there are things, they might need help with. This could include part of a deposit for their electric, maybe a bed or some furniture

Many people we deal with are homeless, so we may have to get them a hotel for a night until we get them into a bed at one of our sister ministries. Between the time we get them off the streets and into treatment we may have to buy them food, clothes, hotel and sometimes part of their up front costs.

We also help with food, fuel, and other emergency type provisions on rare occasions. We believe in giving people a hand up but never a hand out.