"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.  For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.  So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. " 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Dear Friends and Family,

Everyone is a Theologian.  Not everyone is a professional Theologian, or is even doing Theology all that well, but everyone does Theology is some shape or form.  Even the most outspoken, hostile, angry, atheist is doing Theology, albeit poorly.  What we believe about God is Theology and has serious and impacting ramifications on how we understand the world (paradigm) and how we function within it.

Now let's consider the reality of pain and suffering.  Suffering is a part of living in a sin-fallen world.  Everyone who is living in this world suffers, yes, even Christians.  "For man is born for trouble, as sparks fly upward" Job 5:7. Don't we wish that our regeneration in Christ was a "get out of suffering free" card?  That doesn't happen with regeneration, but it does happen with glorification...immediately following physical death!  As a matter of fact, in many ways, the Call to Christ is a Calling by God to suffer hardship and pain for the sake of the Gospel.  Listen to Paul's plea to his understudy Timothy, and to God's please to us in 2nd Timothy 2:3..."Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus."

Suffering takes many different forms:  Shattered relationships, life-dominating sins, cancer, addictions, eating disorders, rebellious children, headaches, arthritis, gout, growing old, and the death of  loved ones all have this one thing in common...they bring with them pain and suffering.  Suffering can often bring with it questions as well.  The suffering that can take place within the questioning mind can often supercede the original pain.  Questions of:  "Why do I have to go through this?  What happened to our marriage?  Why did he have to die?  Why did she have to suffer so?  Why me?"  The list is almost endless.  For us here at TFR, the problem of pain and suffering in Biblical counseling is very much linked to the problem of evil in Biblical apologetics.

Because suffering is such an eventual and dependable state of existence for us all, it is especially important that we as Christians know how to respond Biblically to suffering, (ours or someone else's), and know how we are to think and respond to suffering in the context of our relationship with God.

The first, and possibly the most important, Biblical truth to consider is that suffering is never a random or capricious act in the life of a believer in Christ.  It always has the specific intent, design, orchestration, and purpose of a loving God who never wastes pain in the lives of His children.  Romans 8:28 tells us that:  God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." Did you get that?  Everything works together for our good.  That includes our pain and suffering. What is this "good" that He is causing for us?  It is our sanctification.  That we would become more and more like Christ.  A truly Biblical theology of suffering will always lead the theologian/Christian towards an acknowledgment of God's Sovereignty and Providence in that suffering.  God is using suffering to achieve His sovereign purposes in the life of the sufferer and those around them.  Without this first and vitally important theological Truth, the Christian is destined to experience increased pain and suffering.  Biblical thinking matters!

Secondly, suffering, pain, and evil itself are all sin-induced defects within God's perfect creation.  Mankind helped to propagate these painful realities, and we can continue to propagate them if we do not come to terms with our own personal sin.  Suffering is not always the result of one's personal sin.  However, there are times when it is.  When suffering and pain are the result of our personal sin, we would do well to take responsibility for it by confessing it, repenting of it quickly and thoroughly, and offering restitution if appropriate.  God does still chasten (discipline) those He loves and He does use suffering to do it.  When we do not respond well, our sin (and subsequent correlating suffering) becomes compounded and enlarged.  Like a big yellow onion grown in Eastern Washington, it will grow layer upon layer until the size of the onion (sin) is so large that the core or root of the sin is a distant memory as we are overcome by the symptoms and layers of our sin.

Lastly, there are many times when suffering and pain does not come as a direct result from our sin.  Our response is just as important during these times.  We need to understand that the Lord brings suffering for good and Godly purposes such as the development of endurance, wisdom, humility, and witnessing.  We need to understand that final answers to life's pain and suffering are not offered by the life we are living now but only by the life that is yet to come.  I must respectfully disagree with Mr. Joel Osteen...your best life (is not) NOW...it is yet to come!  Hope, help and relief from this momentary and temporary suffering is found on the other side of the river.  God's Word will help us focus in on the celestial shores of eternity that await us, instead of on the bog of discouragement and pain that we may find ourselves currently in.  This peace and comfort will only be found by those who have divested themselves from the pleasures of this life, and immersed themselves in the hope of the one yet to come.  Therefore, you can see why Mr. Osteen's theology is so destructive.  Rather, lets listen to another theologian named John Owen.  He said:  "It is impossible to have a lively hope in another life, and yet be deeply immersed in the enjoyments of this."

If we, by faith, embrace our suffering as the intentful and deliberate actions that come directly from the hands of a loving Heavenly Father, despite how we feel, we will function much differently within it.  We will be able to avoid the bitterness, anger, doubt, despair and self-pity that so often accompanies it and instead experience a peace and a super-natural ability to bear fruit.  May He give us all the grace to do so.

Ministry News: The Father’s Ranch was recently visited by an energetic and productive group of collegians from the University of Washington. These men and women gave up their spring break to come to TFR and serve wholeheartedly. A couple of TFR’s board members came on over with them and were the project leaders. What a fruitful time that was! These UW men and women remodeled our pig pen, dug out a road culvert, smoothed TFR’s interior roads, cleaned our barns, picked rocks from a field that has since been planted, built a new fire pit, and dug endless holes for all the new spring plantings. I’m sure I’m missing something there, but the point is that these young men and women worked hard for TFR, and we are very grateful for their sacrificial service. They have expressed a desire to come back at the end of summer before school starts again, and we are going to do our best to accommodate them. What a blessing!

Another student has graduated and left TFR to begin a new life in Christ! Belinda, whose testimony was included in TFR’s last newsletter, was offered a teaching position back in her home state of Mississippi. (She had been a fourth-grade teacher before her eating disorder sidelined her.) The original plan was for her was to stay at TFR for a six-month commitment. Well, she ended up staying a little longer than seven months, but she is now looking forward to resuming her teaching career as a new creation in Christ and much healthier physically, emotionally, and spiritually. What the Lord begins, He finishes, and we look forward to many good reports and much fruit from this wonderful gal.

Scope Expansion: As we are all aware, times are tough financially. The current economic conditions have had their effect on the Christian counseling arena that we live and function in as well. We are constantly referring people to other programs, and other programs refer people to us. Through the years, we have become pretty well acquainted with other people and programs. Many of the programs that we used to refer applicants to are simply no longer around! One such program, called Hope Ranch—Montana, was the premiere Christian facility for teenage girls who were in trouble with drugs or alcohol, eating disorders, or other sinful behaviors. In February of this year, Hope Ranch unfortunately succumbed to the financial strains of the economy and had to shut its doors. This left a large need in the Christian/Biblical-counseling arena for teenage gals, one that TFR is now going to try to fill...at least in part. Starting in the summer of 2010, TFR is officially adding a female “Teen Program” to its residential program repertoire. This means that girls between the ages of 13 and 18 who are in trouble will be able to come to The Father’s Ranch and receive help for a 6-to-18-month period. We are not abandoning our women’s program, not in the least! It will continue to function and serve as it always has; we are simply expanding our ministry scope to accommodate teenage girls as well. While these two programs will be running concurrently on the same 101-acre ranch, they will be two distinct programs including separate housing, separate schedules (teenagers have schooling needs that most women don’t), and separate staffing.

We are currently changing and adding to our website to reflect our program expansion. When this is completed, hopefully by mid-July or so, and word gets out that TFR is now accepting juveniles, we expect a strong response. We want to be ready if and when this happens. Therefore, if you or someone you know has a desire to work with wounded and hurting teenage gals, we are in need of additional interns and staffing! “So, what does a qualified intern or staff member look like?” Glad you asked! A qualified intern or staff member will be female, single, between the ages of 21 and 90—a maturing, teachable, Biblically-minded, born-again Christian who loves the Lord and has a humble heart to serve the wounded, downcast, and unlovely. She must be healthy physically, without lots of allergies or food “issues.” The rest can be learned. If you believe the Lord may be calling you to this service opportunity as a domestic missionary, please give us a call or an e-mail for more information. Thanks!

Finances: We are pleased to report that our mortgage balance is down to just $18,500.00 or so. We really are trying hard to pay this debt off quickly so we can begin the plans for ministry expansion. We have been turning applicants away at a rate like never before. This is simply because we do not have the housing, space, or staffing for them. If we were able to add just one more home onsite at TFR, the domino effect would be tremendous! First, we would be able to increase our capacity for women and teens up to 20 beds. Next, we would be able to free up housing for an additional staff family to serve at TFR. Finally and most importantly, the overall depth and health of the ministry would increase and richen as the Christian community at TFR grows. “Community” is a vital component of healing that should not be overlooked or minimized. As technology advances and the ease of communication increases, it seems the superficiality of relationships also increases. Meaningful conversations and relationships are becoming increasingly rare. While I enjoy receiving e-mails just as much as the next guy, they do not compare to a face-to-face visit, sitting on the front porch, and looking into the eyes. Would you please pray for TFR’s ability to pay our debt in full and increase our ministry impact?

Here is some more exciting news: A very generous man from one of TFR’s supporting churches recently wrote TFR to let us know that he and his church body wanted to pay for a new van for TFR. Praise the Lord! This twelve-passenger, 2009 Ford van has only 10,000 miles on it! It is a one-ton van with lots of whistles and bells to boot! Bickford Ford in North Seattle offered this van to TFR for about half of its blue book value.  This is a generous gift, especially considering the economic times we are living in. We pray this vehicle will serve TFR’s needs for many years to come. Thank you to all who prayed for this wonderful provision.

Where Are They Now?

This segment has quickly become my favorite part of TFR’s newsletter. It is my opportunity to share with you the many ways that the Lord is bringing beauty from ashes, radically changing lives, and doing a mighty work for His own Glory.

Patty Habbick (now Siegmund) came to TFR in the fall of 2004. Wounded by an alcohol addiction, drug problem, deceptive patterns, and a “bi-polar” diagnosis that brought with it a plethora of psychotropic medications, she saw her life come crashing down around her in September of 2004. Patty was kicked out of college, buried in financial debt, and suicidal. Having already burned most of her relational bridges, she called TFR from a psych-ward bed in New Hampshire. She had run the gamut of sin and lost badly. She arrived at TFR hurting, wounded in pretty much every way a human can be, and near death.

But God had different plans for Patty than death. He caused her to bow her knee to His authority in her life as He clearly showed her a need for the Savior. Christ came in! She was now a new creation in Christ...old things were passing away; behold, new things were coming! What the Lord starts, He finishes. Here is what has gone on in her life since leaving TFR in her own words:

The past five years I have worked as a nanny for a family in south Seattle. I never knew when I started that job that God would use that family to provide for my future family. I met my husband Daniel in church, and we were married April 4, 2009. This past year especially has been a whirlwind! God supplied our need for a home, and we moved in October of 2009—into the house Daniel grew up in! Our first son, Stephen Calvin, was born March 29, 2010! The birth of our son has been one of the best experiences we have ever had, and we have seen God’s faithful hand of provision in spectacular ways. God used the family I nannied for to supply us with bags and bags of clothes, car seats, strollers, and all sorts of baby gear. I was able to “retire” and become a stay-at-home mom because of a part-time, work-from-home job God supplied out of the blue the same week I stopped nannying! Our church has come alongside us in tremendous ways, and God has supplied my personal need for family through this wonderful body.  We are members of SeaTac Bible Church in Auburn, Washington. My husband is the music leader at the church, and I run the nursery and sometimes play bass with the music team. We love serving in that body of believers. Daniel works in downtown Seattle at an investment company. Saturday mornings we host a small group in our home where Daniel is leading us through the required thirty hours of training to become NANC certified. We have been able to use the home God gave us to host all sorts of people and just recently had a home full of guests for a friend’s wedding. It is amazing to me that our Lord has been so gracious in blessing my life in this way. Please pray for us that we would continue to grow and trust God and be faithful stewards of God’s provisions.

Amazing Grace indeed.  Please pray for them, and for TFR as well.  May the Lord bless and keep you.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Craig Lofthus