Mike and Susan Phillips have a long history of involvement in missions.
Through years of local and international mission trips, the Arkansas couple has built friendships with many of the missionaries they have met. They learned that several of these families struggled with finding housing when they came back to the United States on stateside assignment. Either there were no houses available, or the housing they found was in poor condition. One family reported staying in a house where the beds provided were in such poor shape that the family chose to sleep on the floor instead.
Burdened by this need, the Phillipses began to ask God to show them a way to assist these furloughed missionaries.
They originally thought they might be able to find a house to purchase that they could offer to missionaries rent free. So, in the summer and fall of 2019, they looked for a house to purchase but they were unable to find anything to meet their needs.
Provision in a vision
On Sunday Jan. 25, 2020, as Mike was sitting in the worship service at Cross Church Pinnacle Hills in Rogers, he had what he called a combination between a Nehemiah and Noah moment. Phillips says he didn’t hear a single word of the sermon that day as God spoke to him and gave him a clear and specific vision.
“God said one house isn’t enough. He said, ‘You are going to build 10 houses over 10 years, and you are going to do it debt free,’” said Phillips, who recalled how the Lord gave him many details that Sunday on how the plan would be completed. Among them, Phillips recalled, “He told me that there was a land developer in the church who would be our partner and help develop the land. He also said He would put people in our lives in the order in which we need them to complete the project.”
Mike couldn’t wait to talk to Susan after church and share what God had revealed to him. As it turns out, Susan had also received a message from God during her recent quiet times.
Susan shared that she heard God repeating three words — “stream, mountain and community” — but she had no idea what it all meant. Mike told her that he knew what it meant and then revealed to his wife all that God had shared with him that day.
The couple immediately went to work shopping for land.
They knew this task would not be easy due to the continued growth and development in Northwest Arkansas. They were looking for 3,070 acres with natural beauty, ravines, hollows and of course, a stream. And they needed it to be located within a reasonable driving distance of Rogers.
Becoming a reality
They eventually found 40 acres of land for a price that seemed too good to be true. The Phillipses discovered that the land had been abandoned for decades. There was a creek that ran through the property as well as a large hill with a big plateau.
In order to make the land accessible, a bridge would have to be constructed and a road put in to allow houses to be built on top of the ridge. The terrain and the cost for the bridge and road meant the property was useless for a large subdivision or other development, but it was exactly what God had directed them to look for. They had found the mountain and stream, and with God’s continued provision, there soon would be a community.
They purchased the land on April 13, 2020, and God’s plan soon became a reality.
Hiding Place Hollow was started as a non-profit with its own board. The first thing they did was to raise the funds to build the bridge. Then a strategy map was laid out to show where each house would be located. Arkansas Baptist Disaster Relief teams, along with many other volunteers, came to help clear the land and prepare the home sites.
The charity was able to purchase a neighbor’s house along with an additional five acres.
The home was originally used to house disaster relief volunteers as well as serving as a temporary community building. This house now serves as the caretakers’ residence. The location of the house, appropriately named Faith Home by the couple serving as caretakers, is no coincidence. According the to the strategy map, this section of land is located in the area where they had originally planned to put the fifth house, which was exactly what God had shared with Phillips in his vision back in 2020. The caretakers serve on the board of Hiding Place Hollow and per God’s original direction, they receive no salary. In addition, they do not pay rent, but they are responsible for their own utilities.
Love, Joy, Peace and Hope
A second house, Love Home, has been completed and is open and occupied. Phillips says that Cross Church of Northwest Arkansas provided the funding for most of Love Home. He says that a third house, Joy Home will open in early August.
A member of Grand Avenue Baptist Church of Fort Smith funded most of the Joy Home. This house will be occupied upon completion by missionaries who were forced to flee Ukraine. Both houses are currently booked through 2024.
Two weeks ago, a group of 130 volunteers representing seven states and serving with the Alabama Baptist Builders spent 10 days framing up the fourth and fifth homes called, Peace and Hope. These homes, Phillips noted, are not yet fully funded.
Close to $2 million in money and materials has been donated to this point which has been used to build the five houses, bridge, prayer garden, and 1,200 feet of road going up to the plateau. In addition, water and electric lines have been laid throughout the property. Of the nearly $2 million that God has provided so far, $375,000 of that has come in gifts of $2000 or less.
Five more houses are planned, as well as a chapel and a community center with a one-bedroom apartment that will be used to house those missionaries who are single. Phillips points out that the infrastructure is in place, and everything is ready to go whenever the funding comes in. The total cost estimated to complete the project is $4.5 million plus on-going operating expenses.
Click here to read full story. To learn more about Hiding Place Hollow, go to www.hidingplacehollow.org or email Mike or Susan Phillips at hidingplacehollow@gmail.com.
EDITOR’S NOTE – This story was originally written by Travis McCormick and published by Arkansas Baptist News.
