Sometimes in life, we get stuck.  We get stuck in the same job, same routine, same lack of doing the things we swear we will get to.  Why is that?  Why is it so difficult to move forward sometimes?
For me, a lot of times, its fear.  Fear of the unknown.  Fear of failure.  Fear of judgement and criticism (trust me, I have had my fill of both in the last 8 years).  Fear of not being qualified or capable.  Just fear.  Something I have tried to overcome and maybe at times have conquered but can't completely seem to kick.  I'm sure there are many bible verses and songs that can be thrown at me telling me not to fear and to just trust.  I have seen God do amazing things when I am able to trust Him in my fear.  Yet, it resurfaces.

We challenged our teams that came to Haiti to not only serve while in Haiti but to allow that time to open their eyes, minds, and hearts to the dream God had for their lives.  We believe everyone was created with a gift to share with the world and it is our desire for people to discover that gift and be open to how it can be shared with others.   It really was through encouraging teams to seek this for themselves that I began to discover my gifts more and really be open to allowing God to bring my gifts and the things I am passionate about together.  In 2012, before we even moved back from Haiti, I began to think through; what if horses and at risk kids & teens could do something together.
What if...

My husband being the visionary that he is took these initial ideas and has been awesome in creating buildings and space for this to happen.  I have to admit though, fear has crept in.  It sometimes just paralyzes me to the point of being stuck.  "What if I don't know enough? What if I'm not prepared?  What if I fail?  What if my experience isn't enough?"  These are the thoughts that sometimes make it easy to make excuses to stay where I am, on the safety of the shore.
Pastor, speaker, author, Erwin McManus in his book, The Last Arrow,  challenges people to leave nothing undone in this life, to live without fear and regret.   Erwin has put a challenge out to be battle ready and to never surrender or settle.
So here we are 5 years later on this amazing property we have been so blessed with. We have done a ton of work and we still have a ton to do.   But, had we started with an established property or a blank slate, it wouldn't be representative of the brokenness and rebuilding that we know we will journey through with people of all walks of life if we allow God to use our gifts and offer them to Him, for His glory. Its up to me to not allow fear and doubt to keep me where I am, but to lay it all out there and step off the safety of the shore.  I want to leave this life with no regrets.  I want to leave nothing undone.