ALBUQUERQUE, NM – The Ranches is a Christian organization that is dedicated to “Rekindling Hope in Today’s Youth.” Missions Box News typically features faith-based organizations that operate in distant and even remote parts of the world. Sometimes, we need to be reminded that there are families and children right here in America who face similar hopeless circumstances as those in faraway places. The Ranches in Albuquerque offers services “for young people and families in pursuit of a brighter tomorrow.”

The trained staff at The Ranches understands the struggles many children face from day to day in dysfunctional homes. Children who live amid poverty, abuse, immorality, and addiction view that life as normal. Not pleasing. Not enviable. Normal.

Children learn how to adapt to whatever is their normal. More often than not, their futures will be as filled with the same desperation as their present condition because their perception of normal is so horribly skewed. Without intervention, some will accept the unacceptable as their own standard. Others will be frightened, but unable to find a better way that leads to a fruitful, peaceful life.

The Ranches offers a spectrum of services that allow children from hopeless backgrounds “to acquire the tools and values they need to become competent, productive, happy and well-adjusted adults.”

Children who come to The Ranches are not looking for advice. They are looking for help. They need a safe place and help to overcome their particular challenges. The children who arrive at The Ranches are hurting.

Their bruises run deep into their souls, where they need to have healing for their self-image and worth. They need healing. A wound can be closed in reasonably short order, but healing takes much longer. The overall scope of the programs at The Ranches helps the young people experience healing through which they can begin to understand their value as a person uniquely created by God for a purpose. The children are provided with positive childhood experiences that will, in the future, become cherished memories. Ones that will outshine the obstacles they had to endure previously.

The cottages at The Ranches house 10 children of the same gender supervised by a dedicated married couple who help to create a family-style approach in which the kids can grow into mature young adults. Resident children generally attend school on the campus until they have reached the grade level appropriate for their age. They must also have demonstrated the capability to interact appropriately with leadership and their peers.

Hiking, camping, animal care, and chores are among the many activities available. Of course, you can’t have a ranch without horses, so becoming familiar with horses and riding plays a role in the healing process.

The third and final element of The Ranches’ program is hope. While the kids are being educated and learning the value of honesty, integrity, a strong work ethic, teamwork, and compassion for others, they are introduced to the hope that can only come through an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. Church services and age-appropriate Bible studies are available on campus.

Pray for The Ranches as they begin their 76^th year of providing help, healing, and hope.

Pray that the Lord will open the heart and mind of every child who enters the gates of The Ranches.

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