Dear Forever Family,      

     To be honest with y ou, I am finding this letter very difficult to write. The past few months have been extremely hard, some of the most challenging I have experienced since beginning this ministry o ver 10 years ago. Because of the nature of this kind of work and confidentiality issues, there is very little I can share with you, but know that I am extremely grateful for your prayers and other forms  of support! They have kept me going during these dark and difficult days. 

     Having said that, I am more committed than ever to this calling, and it is indeed a calling. No one (in their right mind) voluntarily signs up for this kind of thing. Sometimes though it takes going through a serious storm to realize that you are still supposed to be in the boat. As the song lyric goes, "Jesus does not always calm the storm but will always calm his child...if they will allow Him." Sometimes that is the hardest part--surrendering to His care, however as I have, He has revealed His love in fresh ways, calmed this child's heart and reiterated that I am exactly where I am supposed to be. 

Even so, it is pretty confusing when circumstances do not support this knowledge. Everything around me says that it is crazy to pursue this kind of ministry work. More and more laws are passed that make this work harder. More and more law suits are filed against similar kinds of ministries, making the work harder still. Fewer churches and individuals are willing to support this kind of ministry, which can be quite disheartening. We are down in financial support by over 1/3 from the past several years. All these circumstances are no doubt...DISCOURAGING! 

I realize though that I and others like me, face similar circumstances to those of Jesus's first disciples. I in no way, consider myself in their league but still feel a kinship with them nonetheless. They too faced public scrutiny, rejection and scorn from both those in the outside world as well as from fellow Jews. They too had to make do with few resources. The difference is that they experienced true persecution and even death for their cause. I wonder sometimes if I could be that brave if our climate becomes that extreme. This question keeps me humble. 

But just as the disciples were able to have a front row seat to the salvation of God's people, the spiritual growth and development of those same converts, and the eventual replicative service of these new believers, we too are blessed to sit at center court as we witness many who have struggled (sometimes for decades) with same-sex attraction and/or gender identity disorder come to surrender their sexuality to Jesus. Rick and I are working with about 30 folks a month and calls come in weekly. We have taken 2 new clients just in the past couple of weeks and will walk hand in hand with these strugglers as they move from struggling to overcoming. And we are blessed to watch many of them grow to the point of becoming valuable contributors to God's Kingdom. I also have the honor of walking, the sometimes long and arduous journey, with parents and family members as they themselves grow in faith as they wait for God's deliverance for their gay, lesbian or transgender family members. 

So while this work can be daunting and discouraging at times from a worldly perspective, from an eternal one, it is worth every minute of sacrifice and pain.

Living Loved,

Meleah