Matthew 13:31-21
"The are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season without fail. Their leaves never wither,and
in all they do, they prosper."
On one hand,
we strive to give all of our participants the skills they need in order to start the journey of living to their fullest potential,
so that they will 'bear fruit' each season of their life and never wither. On the other hand we strive to show our
participants the love of Christ so that their lives may truly be healed through True forgiveness.
"God is such the obvious common factor at 4STEP. His presence
is absolutely everywhere, which contributes to the success the program, the staff and the accomplishments of the riders."
~Heather K.
God evidences Himself through creation.
An Equine-Assisted session “is a very difficult experience to
put into words, just like most experiences with God. You cannot see with your eyes always, what you experience
with your heart in the midst of a session. However, I have witnessed even the most spiritually resistant
people open their mind and heart in a moment of wonder and awe and begin to really consider that God may
exist and love them as a result of experiencing the horses’ interaction with them” in an Equine-Assisted
Session. “I believe that God speaks through each of us to carry His message on earth to others, and
I also believe He has equipped animals to do the same.
Often, the animals are even more effective than people because they do not bring
up the defenses that people do in a hurting heart. So, it’s as if God uses the tenderness and unconditional
love of the animals to sneak in the back door of a wounded soul. I know that God’s truest
desire is to love us and for us to feel loved by Him, so that we will desire to obey Him and bring glory to His kingdom
with our lives. God has once again, so creatively found another way to express His love and character to
his wounded ones (and not-so wounded ones too) through the use of horses.” Here at 4STEP we see Equine-Assisted
services as one of His gifts to help us heal, to become more like Him, and to spread His kingdom to the far ends of the earth.
Paraphrased
from: K. Brady (personal communications, June 3, 2004)
Introduction to Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy, p43
