Ok, so I am living my dream- Ranching at 8,800 feet on the top of a mountain, horses, killer views, awesome Christian community, Ministering to couples & individuals in beautiful Colorado, partner with 2 of my closest friends in an outfitting company where I get to guide men & women on the big game hunts of their dreams (a life long dream of mine)-not to mention getting to do it & minister to them while we are hunting. By the way God handed that one to me, I mean placed it right in my lap! I also get to see elk any day I want if I try, I have 3 unbelievably awesome/Jesus loving children, married to an awesome/beautiful/respectful wife. And the list goes on & on!

By the way, the above list is not in order. To most, it might seem by  all that I wrote about above like, “WOW, HE REALLY DOES SEEM TO BE LIVING HIS DREAM”.  I’m not kidding, God has truly blessed us & this ministry. I haven’t even begun to list all the financial provision & the miracles that have happened in this non-profit. He IS the King of Kings!

However, we have gone through times of stress, trial, refining, & even tragedy. When we lost everything in the fire on November 8th, 2008, we wondered if we had followed God’s leading out to Colorado to obey & build a marriage ministry. Questions rolled around in our heads for some time after that, but God continued to remind us of His presence despite whatever circumstance we were going through at the time.

HE IS A LOVING GOD! No matter what you are going through today, remember that it is OK to cry out to God in your time of need! Tell Him how you are feeling, not because He doesn’t know already, but because He longs for an authentic relationship with real conversation with us. He is even OK with us questioning Him. I ask Him questions EVERY day, & I feel His love even more EVERY day! I didn’t say that He loves me more every day, but that my relationship with Him is becoming more awesome daily and His Powerful, AGAPE love is being revealed more & more as I draw near to Him. Never be afraid to draw near to your Father!

Blessings,

January 22st, 2012 Blog Post-OUR NEXT RADIO INTERVIEW

Hey all, Chris and I will be doing an hour long radio show on OUTREACH TODAY RADIO in Mesa, Arizona @ 11:00 am MT on Wednesday January 25th, 2012. I believe you will be able to listen live by going to the link below, but if not the latest shows are posted on their site. If you do listen, please make sure and let Chris and I know how we are doing with feedback.
Blessings,

www.voiceamerica.com

January 21st, 2012 Blog Post-Healthy Communication

Building a healthy/Godly marriage does not happen overnight. Any honest, happily married couples will tell you that it took much sacrifice and hard work over many years to cultivate a marriage that they feel is blissful, and still conflict arises from time to time. The difference in their conflict is in the way they communicate.

Effective communication is one of the most foundational tools in that is used to generate  a marriage where conflict happens in a Godly way. Chris and I are continuing to sharpen each other in this area EVERYDAY of our lives. Praise God that we are becoming more aware of the communication pitfalls that could cause us to fall back into our old ways that where some of the basis for our divorce after 8 years of very destructive communication. When God reconciled our covenant with Him, we believe that He also gave us a gift of communication that helped our new marriage (in 1999) grow in a way that greatly helped us deal so much better with the hurts in each of our pasts. Let me remind you, we do not always obey the Holy Spirit and communicate the way we know to, but over the years God has continued to show us how to do the opposite when we feel like being selfish in our communication.

Couples, please take the time to communicate daily in a genuine, sacrificial way, and watch your marital hurts of the past be healed before your eyes.  EXAMPLE: ask God to cause you to notice your spouse more, especially when they need your attention. When you sense that your spouse is burdened by a stressful day, go to them, grab their hand and communicate that you notice where they are at and then pray for them in the moment.

Blessings,

January 17th, 2012 BLOG POST-PRAYER IS YOUR FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE!

Pray 1st for about situations you are going through. Try to resolve with your human intelligence as a last choice. This should be natural to Jesus followers, but we so often forget and go into HUMAN mode. When counseling couples this is the very first and most important tool we offer couples. It works and a praying family is a force to be reckoned with! Try it and see how God moves in your marriage.

Blessings,

January 16th, 2012 BLOG POST-IS YOUR SPOUSE AN IDOL

Chris and I are ministering to more and more couples that never learned to not idolize each other before they got married, but instead keep God at the center of their relationship. When you Idolize your spouse, for instance depending on them for your happiness, you are bound to be let down. You will see them as of course flawed, but God will NEVER let us down! Please take the time to analyze how you view your spouse. Are they a team mate, or do you rely on them to get your happiness?

Blessings,

January 15th, 2012 BLOG POST-POST FROM JIM DALY-FOCUS ON THE FAMILY

Awesome Post on Focus on the Family by Jim Daly

‎”Offering family advice is not enough. To make a real difference, we have to introduce people to the Author of family.” —Jim Daly

This is so true. We can teach people all day long how to work on their marriages, but communicating the basic gospel message can be integrated into all of our ministry with people.

Blessings,

January 14th, 2012 BLOG POST-

I am very sad about the numbers of couples out there considering divorce right now, and many feel that their kids would be better if they were not together, because then the fighting would stop in the house. Please don’t be deceived by this lie! You are right that your kids don’t deserve to be amongst the fighting, so get Godly help and change. Your kids need your covenant example more than anything in the world besides GOD!!

Your marriage is the most effective example your children have of how Jesus loves us, His bride. When you really catch that vision and understand this, you will then see why God hates divorce. He does not hate the people, He hates the ripple effect that happens when a divorce occurs. Kids in pain, parents usually act hateful, the original plan for their marriage to be a display of Christ’s love for His bride seems not true, or conditional. Jesus NEVER leaves His bride.

Please understand that Chris & I were divorced for a year and have a real tangible divorce certificate. We do not judge divorced people, but are called to give couples the tools to keep their current marriage healthy. We are still feeling some consequences of our divorce, and they cause us to change and with Jesus’ help be different in our renewed marriage. If your are remarried, do the best in this marriage and give your kids the example of forgiveness by showing your ex-spouse the forgiveness they deserve no matter the circumstances. That doesn’t mean not having boundaries in your certain situation, just forgive them the way Jesus does you.

Blessings,

ALL OF THE PICTURES IN OUR HEADERS WHERE TAKEN BY US

God's Country

This is what a lot of winter mornings look like at the Mountain Haven Ranch