This April we had the pleasure of welcoming new intern Olivia Stafford. Olivia is from Schoolcraft, MI and first heard about the internship through the Biblical Counseling Training Conference held by Faith in 2018. Olivia then heard about the internship again at the same conference in 2020 and decided to apply.  When asked why she chose to become an intern, Olivia shared, “What drew me to the internship was the fact that I would be able to come alongside ladies who are hurting and encourage them in Christ, as the Lord has given me a heart for mentoring and discipleship. I was also drawn to the internship at Vision of Hope when I found out that I can complete my ACBC Biblical Counseling Certification while I am here.” Olivia has completed her exams and teaching portions of certification and plans to begin her supervised counseling hours at Vision of Hope in the next couple of months.

Olivia loves being in nature and enjoys gardening, hiking, and kayaking. She also shared that she loves spending time studying God’s Word, reading, playing board games, and getting to know people. “It makes my heart happy to hear how God is working in people’s lives and what He is teaching them,” she shared. One of her favorite verses is Psalm 107:9 which says, “For He satisfies the longing soul and the hungry soul He fills with good things.” This reminds her, ” that it is God alone who satisfies me fully, and nothing else can fill this God-sized whole in my heart. Therefore, I need to make it my aim to put Him first in every area of my life and seek to let Him fill me and the deepest longings of my heart.”

When asked what she is hoping to gain from the internship, Olivia stated that she is hoping to learn “how to counsel Biblically, in a Christ-centered way, as well as learning how to love God better by learning to love others well, die to myself more, and how to accurately represent Christ to those around me, as I am called to reflect Him to those around me and be His ambassador here on earth.” Olivia has jumped right in to serving sacrificially, not only on her scheduled intern shifts, but also through taking residents to appointments and pitching in when staff need an extra helping hand. Olivia stated that she is unsure of any future plans just yet, but that she knows she would like to be working in a ministry setting of some kind.

We are so excited to have Olivia serving with us and cannot wait to see what God does in and through her during her time with us. If you are interested in interning with us, you can email voh@faithlafayette.org for more information.

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Elizabeth Kinlaw started serving as an intern at Vision of Hope in 2015. She grew up in Raleigh, NC, and graduated from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington with an education degree. After being involved in ministry for high school girls, she realized that she loved to teach. She ended up teaching elementary school for six years after graduating. In her free time, Elizabeth loves spending time with her family, watching college basketball, and studying the Bible. Her favorite Bible passage is 1 Peter 5:10. She loves 1 Peter because it was the first book she ever studied as a believer, and it is full of hope for suffering people.

Elizabeth was led to Vision of Hope after she had been teaching elementary school. She did informal counseling with the kids she taught and felt very ill-equipped to help them. Eventually, a good friend of hers took her to a biblical counseling conference in 2012. She comments, “That conference changed the course of my life. I remember being so amazed at how the Bible had answers to life’s problems! I was amazed at how they used the Scriptures to minster to my heart and I was hooked.” She had been working with a group of girls that had deep issues and she did not know how to help them. She states, “I remember thinking to myself, I wish I could just buy a big house and have them come live with me so I can help them understand who God is and how following Him could truly set them free. An hour a week just wasn’t enough time to walk alongside and help them.” The conference she went to had a session that mentioned Vision of Hope and she knew that that was what she wanted to do. She started her ACBC certification process, and eventually she was considering buying a house and asked the Lord if this was what He wanted her to do. A few days later, a friend mentioned the Vision of Hope internship to her again and she knew that God was directing her to the internship instead. In February of 2015, she applied and within a couple of weeks she was accepted and on her wayto Vision of Hope. In 2016, she became part-time weekend staff and in 2017 she was hired on as full-time shift supervisor and counselor. She also took over running and planning fundraising events.

Vision of Hope, since she began working in 2015, has changed Elizabeth’s life in many ways. She states, “The internship was one of the hardest things I have ever done but also one of the most rewarding things I have ever done. My heart was being exposed in new ways and I was trying to help others as their hearts were being exposed. . .The biggest thing I learned is my utter dependence on God alone. I was put in situations where I had no idea what to do—it was uncomfortable to say the least. But I learned that when I entrust myself and whatever I am doing to the Lord, He will establish the work of my hands (Psalm 90:17).” As a counselor, she pours her heart and soul into each lady and loves to see them progress through the program and graduate.

Elizabeth is super thankful to be part of the life-changing hope that the ladies find in Christ at Vision of Hope. If you would like to be part of the change as well, Elizabeth strongly urges you to consider getting involved with our Race for Hope and make a contribution to our ministry today!

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Jessica Freeland started serving as a Vision of Hope intern in January of 2021. She is originally from Durham, Ontario. Her favorite Bible passage is Psalm 27 because it reminds us of God’s presence, that He is her light and why we don’t have to be fearful. In her free time, Jessica loves baking, arts and crafts, and knitting. She has an undergraduate degree in Bible and Theology and is currently pursuing her master’s degree in biblical counseling through Faith Seminary.

Jessica started her master’s degree knowing she wanted to understand more practically the process of bib

lical counseling and change. She saw a graduate testimony through VOH’s Facebook page on how VOH has transformed that graduate’s life. After watching it, Jessica realized it would be beneficial to watch the process of biblical counseling and serve in a ministry that she was passionate about.

Jessica decided to become an intern because she knew that everyone experiences suffering and struggles with sin. She became passionate about biblical counseling because she wants to help people have the resources to deal with their suffering and sin in a biblical manner. She comments, “I’m passionate about that because it has changed how I see my own experiences, and I want to be part of other people living with hope too.” She knows that God has given us the resources we need for living well to His glory, and she desires to help others recognize that too.

From the internship, Jessica hopes to gain practical skills in biblical counseling. She seeks to be able to apply what she has learned so far in her education in the way she serves and interacts with the residents of VOH. She is excited for the opportunities to observe live counseling sessions and learn from the staff team that serves at VOH.

After the internship, Jessica plans to return to Canada and apply what she has learned to her relationships with others and begin to serve in the local church. She desires to serve others better by using what she has learned.

Vision of Hope is excited to have Jessica as an intern and can’t wait to see how the Lord works throughher during her time here!

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Marie Essex started serving as a Vision of Hope intern in January of 2021. She lived in Washington, Illinois. She enjoys playing the cello, being creative, spending time with her grandkids and family, and working with people of all different ages and struggles. She has worked with public school kids as well as homeschooled kids and children’s ministries. Her favorite Bible passage is Isaiah 41:10 because it reminds her that God is the one who holds her and strengthens her.

Marie heard about Vision of Hope through a friend’s daughter that was a resident. The daughter had tried several treatment centers, but it wasn’t until Vision of Hope that there was real and lasting change inside of her. VOH addressed her heart issues, and that is what ultimately brought about her transformation. Since knowing her friend’s daughter, Marie has had a lot of exposure to VOH in numerous ways and has grown to love the ministry.

It has been on Marie’s heart to be an intern for a long time. When looking at how God has used His Word and people to work in her life, she knew she wanted to be a part of doing the same for others. She also wanted to learn practical training and how to effectively use God’s word to help broken people.

Through the internship, she hopes to gain practical tools and skills to become an ACBC certified biblical counselor. She is currently pursuing her certification. She desires to learn more about using God’s word to help others through their struggles and sin issues while helping them grow in their relationship with the Lord. She is also looking forward to growing in her own relationship with Christ and to learning how to better counsel herself and apply truth to her own heart.  After VOH, Marie’s goal is to become a biblical counselor and counsel women of all ages who have gone through tremendous suffering.

Marie is thankful for this internship opportunity and the growth that it will bring. She comments, “God can use what he has brought me through to encourage others, and at the same time, be in a place of learning and growing from people who are in the same journey. I’m just really excited about it.”

Vision of Hope is excited to have Marie as a part of the team and can’t wait to see what God has in store for her!

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Today intern Abby shares what she has been learning about what it means to delight in the Lord and seek to build His kingdom instead of her own.

The residents on New Year’s Day were participating in a “Word for the Year” activity. They each made a plaque of a word they wanted to focus on and grow in over the next year—something they want 2021 to represent in a way. Interns who were on shift were also invited to do this—that included me.

Originally, I was going to do the word “peace.” But as I sat down to actually start making the plaque, the word “delight” went off in my brain like a lightbulb. I don’t know why exactly it happened, but it started to dawn on me that maybe I didn’t fully know what it meant to delight in the Lord.

I had learned a lot in 2020, my relationship with God had finally gotten to a point where it was actually a relationship. But was I delighting in God?

I started to look up Psalms on delighting in God. I found a few that I wanted to use on my plaque, but one stood out to me as what my main verse would be:

Psalm 37:4. Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires.

He will give you your heart’s desires. So-what does that mean? He’ll give me whatever I want? That doesn’t seem right.

As I started to draw on my plaque and write out the verse, it occurred to me that maybe it’s not about God giving me my heart’s desires, but it’s about God changing my heart to desire what He desires. So, what is it that you desire, God? How do I pursue that?

I started researching what it meant to have God’s desires. I concluded that what I needed to do was seek God’s kingdom instead of trying to build my own. But how did I seek God’s kingdom?

I suppose that started with focusing on truth more than the lies I tell myself. It starts with redirecting my thoughts and heart to focus on good instead of evil. It starts with putting off my old self and focusing on the new creation that I am in Christ.

I wrote a short prayer along the border of my plaque. As I wrote, words flowed, and I didn’t need to stop to think about them.

This is my prayer for delighting in God in 2021, and for the rest of my life.

This year, I pray that my delight will be in the Lord. Not in myself, not in my family, not in my friends or relationships, but solely in God. I pray I will find peace and contentment as I find my delight in You. Let my desire be to glorify you and delight in you more than I desire to have my next breath. Please change my heart’s desires to be your desires, Lord.

Amen.

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Annie Martin started serving as an intern at Vision of Hope in July of 2014 and became our Intern Coordinator in June of 2016. After serving for six and a half years, Annie will soon be returning home to Tennessee to be with her family. We have loved having Annie serve with us!

Annie grew up in a Christian home where her father regularly did devotions with her and her siblings, and one day he taught them about how Christ died for their sin. Annie states, “It hit me that day that Christ didn’t just die for the whole world, he died specifically for me.” She started to cry, and her dad discussed with her how knowing the message of the gospel requires a response: to accept or reject—and Annie chose to accept. Since then, she has learned a lot about her sin and forgiveness in Christ.

Annie completed her bachelor’s degree in interior design at Tennessee Tech University. While she was there, a love for hurting people was enflamed as she connected with people that were hurting and suffering. She knew that she could share the gospel with them, but when it came to dealing with issues like suicide, self-harm, and drugs, she did not know how to give them practical help. Because she wanted to gain more knowledge about this area, she decided to become a Vision of Hope intern in the summer of 2014.

Annie chose Vision of Hope because of its sole focus on using the word of God for counseling. Because her dad was a pastor and biblical counselor, she got to see first-hand how Scripture transforms lives. Growing up, Annie knew she had gifts in serving others and she wanted to use them, but she needed more training. When looking at residential centers, she knew from the beginning that she wanted to work with a ministry that counseled solely based on the Bible. She commented, “I knew there were other places that are residential counseling centers, but they weren’t strictly a biblical counseling center. I knew that if I was going to be serving in a place and getting training, I wanted it to be firmly grounded in God’s word.”

Quickly, Annie fell in love with the way she saw God’s word transforming lives and how exciting it was to be a part of it. She states, “When I was offered the intern coordinator position, it was one of the easiest decisions I’ve had to make. Being able to stay at VOH and continue helping transform lives was very exciting. I’m very thankful to have worked here for as long as I could.”

Annie’s favorite thing about Vision of Hope has been the people she has worked with. She has loved getting to have fellowship and community with everyone, and also be able to share burdens with her fellow staff. They’re able to exhort and encourage one another when need be, but also enjoy each other’s presence and share a lot of laughter. She is very thankful to have worked with a team that loves the Lord so much.

Annie learned a lot during her time at Vision of Hope. Something that stands out the most to her was the realization of mass suffering in the world. She comments, “There’s more suffering in this world than I ever imagined, and God and his word are more sufficient to address that suffering than I ever knew. . .seeing God transform lives that have been so wrecked by sin has been amazing.”

Annie plans on continuing counseling women and also wishes to join the wedding planning industry. She has had a big impact on our staff, interns, and residents, and we can’t wait to see where the Lord guides her next.

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As we introduced you all yo our wonderful team of interns, we realized it’s been a while since we introduced you to our staff team! Over the coming weeks you’ll have the chance to meet our dedicated staff members and learn a bit about them. First up is the newest member of our team, Emily Bray.

Em started serving as the Vision of Hope secretary at the end of September 2020. She is originally from St. Paul, Minnesota, and in 2019 married her husband Jordan. Em has served in ministry in multiple areas, including being a small group leader, serving on missions trips, and participating in the worship team at Faith. Her favorite Bible verse is Matthew 6:28-30 because it reminds her that the Lord will provide everything she needs. She also loves Psalm 73 and how she sees David’s war within himself, but he still went into his sanctuary and remembered God.

Before Vision of Hope, Em had gotten a degree in paralegal studies and worked as a paralegal for four years. She specialized in family criminal law and that is where her passion for struggling people enflamed. She specifically has a heart for girls in high school that appear “normal” but are actually struggling, because that is a part of her own past as well.

Em was born into a family of unbelievers, but her parents eventually were saved later in life. Watching the transformation of her parents impacted Em greatly, and she herself became saved at a young age with the gospel becoming more and more clear. She comments, “From that, I’ve developed a realization that the gospel is for every age and everyone.” God has taught Em that despite how she is a sinner and may struggle, she can rest in the fact that God knows everything and chooses to love her anyway.

Em became connected with Vision of Hope after the COVID-19 pandemic started, although she originally heard about VOH from the 2014 BCTC. She had wanted to come serve as an intern, but it was not God’s timing for her. Down the road, God opened up the secretary position at Vision of Hope and Em was able to start serving.

Since becoming a secretary at VOH, Em considers her position to be “one of the best seats in the house.” She comments, “I get to see the Lord actively working in the residents, day in and day out. I love what Vision of Hope stands for. I know that the Bible is what changes people, so to be in a place where that is key is amazing.” Em’s favorite thing about Vision of Hope are the residents and staff. She loves interacting and checking in with the residents and getting to watch them grow. Em says that the “staff are incredible—just the way that they interact with each other. I can’t explain how different it is compared to the world’s way. . .It’s so clear the Holy Spirit is there.”

So far, Em has learned in her time at Vision of Hope that loving someone well doesn’t mean making sure they are happy, stating, “sometimes the most loving thing for someone is to point out their sin yet help them through it. What’s loving is when you walk beside them in that.” As she works at Vision of Hope, Em is also pursuing her ACBC certification so she can counsel people as well.

Vision of Hope is grateful for the service Em has provided and the impact she has had on the ministry thus far! They cannot wait to see how she progresses in the ministry and where God leads her during her time at VOH.

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Tricia Rogers started serving as an intern at Vision of Hope in April of 2020. From a small town in New Hampshire, she loves to crochet and is passionate about God’s word. Her favorite Bible verse is 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 because she knows that the suffering and affliction she has experienced on earth will be used by God to minister to others.

Tricia heard about VOH in 2016 from a friend who was interning at the time. This friend saw Tricia’s struggles and asked Tricia if she thought it might be a good fit for her. With a lot of wise counsel and prayer, Tricia decided to pursue this door that God had opened and entered Vision of Hope’s program as a resident in 2017.

Tricia was a resident for two years, and after graduation in 2019, she knew she wanted to return to serve as an intern. Tricia is grateful for the help she received and wants to serve women who struggle in the same ways that she did. As she continues to grow in sharing the comfort she has received through her internship, she would also like to pursue her biblical counseling certification.

While she is an intern, Tricia hopes to gain a better understanding of who God is and how He can change someone’s heart. She comments that she would like to learn more about humility and ways to practically grow in this area: “I don’t know it all and I need God to help me—I need to rely on Him for understanding.” She would also like to form deep relationships with her fellow interns and learn to love and serve them in unique ways.

Tricia has been able to learn and grow in many ways during her years at Vision of Hope as a resident and intern. She shares that “Knowing that God’s grace is sufficient every day; that I am going to mess up—but it’s with His grace that I see victory” and helping others to learn to walk in this grace and victory has been a highlight of her internship so far. Tricia spent two years as a resident, learning to surrender her desires to the Lord and fight for God’s glory as she battles sin. Moving Forward as an intern she wants to help the girls learn to do the same.

After VOH, Tricia prayerfully sees herself at Bob Jones University, pursuing her bachelor’s degree in biblical counseling. Long term, she would like to work with women who have been trafficked and to share God’s love and healing with them. She is grateful for the impact VOH has had on her life and is excited to continue her journey as an intern.

If you are interested in interning at Vision of Hope like Tricia, please contact our intern coordinator, Annie Martin, at amartin@faithlafayette.org. 

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On today’s blog, we will hear from Rachel, one of our wonderful interns, as she shares the ways God has been leading her to humbly see and confess her idolatry and to wonder at the Lord’s graciousness towards us all.

What have I learned so far as a Vision of Hope intern? My mind is spinning by the countless lessons I have learned in my short 3 months of being here so far!

A one sentence summary would be, “I thought I knew something, but I actually know nothing.” Boiled down to one word: humility.

I think all the staff, interns, and residents at Vision of Hope would agree on the fact that being here exposes your idols. Is it comfortable? Absolutely not! But it is so healthy!

Living in such close proximity to fellow sinners in the sanctification process gives us the opportunity to live out Hebrews 3:12-14:

“Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ.”

You see, each of us, on our own cannot see our own sin. That is why we need each other! That’s part of why God’s design for relationships is so beautiful and important!

Idols have no place to hide when one lives in close relationship with others. My desires for control, comfort, acceptance, approval, (and many others!) lay bare, naked, and exposed before myself, everyone, and God. It is SO good to live in this environment where there is no choice but to lay aside my pride, admit my flaws, and repent!

It causes me to cry out to God saying, “Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me!” (Psalm 51:10). Open exposure to my sin causes me to marvel all the more at our wonderful, merciful Savior. The sacrifice God desires is a broken spirit and a humble heart (Psalm 51:17). By God graciously daily exposing my sin, I am all the more in awe that He would choose me in Him to be holy and blameless before Him even though He knows my desperately wicked heart that exists apart from Him.

God is teaching me to be satisfied in Him alone as my refuge and fortress.

“Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”  Psalm 73:25-26

If you are interested in loving and serving hurting women, growing in ministering God’s Word to others, and having the Lord grow you in ways like what Rachel has shared, please contact our intern coordinator, Annie Martin, at amartin@faithlafayette.org for more information.

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II Corinthians 1: 3-4 says, ” Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”

Today, we have the privilege of hearing from Amanda Barton, one of our current interns. Amanda is in the unique position of having received the comfort of the Lord as she walked through deep waters as a resident at Vision of Hope and now having the opportunity to share that comfort with residents as an intern. 

Amanda Barton came as a resident to Vision of Hope (VOH) in 2015 and began serving as an intern in 2020. Amanda came to VOH because she had been diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder I and had been admitted into a mental hospital twice. She was put on medication that helped her remain stable, but she knew that living life reliant on these medications alone for help was not enough. Her pastor’s wife found VOH online and thought it would help her. Amanda states, “I flew out by myself to a place where I didn’t know anyone, and a church I had only seen online, people I had only talked to on the phone. No family, no friends, no one, except hope that God would change me and help me.”

Amanda comments that the hardest part of VOH was changing her mindset of what her actual struggle was. She had a fear of wanting to sin and a fear of what she might do to herself and others, and this fear was at the center of her struggle, not rebellion. Amanda says, “I thought that I had to be strong enough, I had to be smart enough, I had to trust my own judgement because no one else was trustworthy.” She did not realize at the time that Christ was trustworthy.

The best part of VOH for Amanda was finding answers to questions about God that she was always afraid to share. She found freedom in Christ instead of the tormenting she was facing daily. She learned that she can trust Christ, and to an extent, other people as well. She realized that Bipolar Disorder did not have to define her and that she could find hope and freedom in Christ.

The overwhelming love staff had for her impacted her greatly. They loved her despite the sin she had committed and despite the awful things that had happened to her, and she saw them love each resident like this no matter who they were. She states, “They never changed their countenance when they heard the things I’d done or the things that had been done to me. They just. . .loved me anyway.”

Amanda became an intern because she wanted to give back to VOH, serve the residents, and eventually become a biblical counselor. She says that the best part of becoming an intern after having been a resident was being able to understand the residents and the progressive sanctification that occurs. She is still every day applying the things she has learned to be a strong follower of Christ. God has been her anchor and that His perfect love is casting out her fears. She comments:

“So, in 2020 the year of years… I am an intern at Vision of Hope, facing innumerable “extra” challenges; along with the incredible team of Interns that I have the privilege to serve these precious broken souls with.

I am a handmaiden of the Lord and so whatever challenges we face during these uncertain times; I want to say with Mary the mother of Jesus; when speaking to the Angel Gabriel in the Book of Luke 1 :38. In response to the news that she would be the mother of the Messiah,  “Behold I am the servant of the Lord; let it be according to your word.” That is the most exciting thing about being a graduate of Vision of Hope, now Intern of Vision of Hope. I get to be trained by the very same people that as the hands and feet of Jesus lead me though the darkest and most turbulent days of my life, into true and lasting victory over sin and into the arms of my Savior.”

God is continuously working in Amanda’s life and she is thankful to be an intern at VOH and for the opportunity to serve and give back to the program that changed her life.

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