Hello everyone .  Hope all is well and that you are finding yourself blessed in the Lord Jesus Christ.  I have a few prayer requests that I would like for you to remember.  

1. Pray for our upcoming seminar (November 8): good attendance, people to be set free by the power of the Holy Spirit, knowledge of God's Word to abound. 
2. Finances: since the down turn of the economy, the ministry has seen a slight drop in donations. God is ultimately in control of all things and we are trusting Him for provision.  
3. Clients: our clients are in need of continued healing from their SSA.
4. NEW Support Group for WOMEN: We are in the planning stages of starting a new group.  We need God's wisdom in placement of leadership as well as member participation.  
5. The Journeymen Support Group: our group for men is going well.  Continue to lift up our members needs for emotional healing and wholeness to the Lord.

We were all saddened to hear about Ray Boltz "coming out" of the closet after many years of fighting his SSA.  I've included a brief direct quote from Ray concerning this issue:

“I’d denied it ever since I was a kid," Boltz, 55, told the magazine. "I became a Christian, I thought that was the way to deal with this and I prayed hard and tried for 30-some years and then at the end, I was just going, ‘I’m still gay. I know I am.’ And I just got to the place where I couldn’t take it anymore … when I was going through all this darkness, I thought, ‘Just end this.’”

So sad to read his statement concerning why he decided to come out of the closet.  I can relate to the struggle Ray is describing in the above statement.  I too have experienced the intense struggle and pull that SSA desires have. 

Ray now says he is living: “a normal gay life”.  Frankly, there is NOTHING "normal" about living a gay life.  

Ray goes on to give us an insight into some of his thinking concerning his decision to "come out" after all these years.
 
“If you were to hold up the rule book and go, ‘Here are all the rules Christians must live by,’ did I follow every one of those rules all that time? Not at all, you know, because I kind of rejected a lot of things, but I’ve grown some even since then. I guess I felt that the church, that they had it wrong about how I felt with being gay all these years, so maybe they had it wrong about a lot of other things.”

I think perhaps a mistake Ray is making here (in his statement above) is that he "felt" that being gay was okay and that it was in conflict with his faith.  Personally in my walk with the Lord, He is teaching me NOT to be governed by the way I am feeling.  Instead, He reminds me to ultimately be governed by the Holy Spirit of God and allow His power to work in and through me to bring me victory in my SSA.  We are to be governed by the Word of God and what the Word says about the way we should live our lives.  It doesn't matter what the organized church says about homosexuality.  What matters is what Scripture says about this behavior.  Homosexual behavior is condemned in scripture.  However, their is absolutely NO judgement for those who struggle with homosexual attractions.

My point in all this is to say, there is a distinct difference between a person's feelings and the behaviors in which they act upon.  If you are a Christian, then you are commanded to strive for a life of righteousness.  It is not our works that make us good but it is the blood of Jesus Christ and the payment He made on the cross of Calvary.  However, with this said, Christ commands us to "live in the truth and light of His Word" and to partner with the Holy Spirit to work toward becoming victorious in all things - through FAITH.  Healing from SSA is a long, hard journey but I believe one can obtain complete freedom from this issue.  I don't believe God will not deliver a person from SSA if that is their hearts desire.  God NEVER does something half-way.  It is due to our own limitations and lack of confidence in our Creator ability to do as He has promised that hinders us from walking in total freedom from any life controlling issue. 

I don't judge Ray for his decision to come out.  The only person who has the right to judge you is Christ Himself.  I am simply stating my view concerning this issue and the decision he has made to live an openly gay lifestyle.  I promise, that Ray will find at the end of himself and all gay relationships; a loving and merciful Father who desires to embrace him in his brokenness and to bring total deliverance to him in the area of his SSA.  Let's all pray for our brother Ray.

Hello everyone.  It's been a while since I've posted my thoughts.  I hope that everyone is well.  A lot is going on within the ministry.  I just finished conducting a training with a local 24 hr. Crisis hot-line organization's volunteers.  The purpose of my training was to help equip their volunteers with how to effectively minister to the needs of men and women who struggle with SSA.  It was a good training and well received.