By  Gary Priour

If I were to wish for anything, I should not wish for wealth and power, but for the eye which sees the possible
– Soren Kierkegaard

Taking care of 90 children at a time keeps us on our toes – constantly.  Our only hope of success with each individual child is that someone among the staff or extended family (Board, Auxiliary, Mentors) has contact with the child in at least one moment that genuinely affirms the child’s sense of value, and the potential of his or her life.  It is by seeing value and potential in himself that an otherwise traumatized child might be inspired to reach for what he is capable of becoming.  All else depends on such moments.

The organization and its community of caregivers depends on the same kind of encouragement.  And the potential of the program itself must be kept in clear view as the realities of daily emotional crises among the children are dealt with, one after the other.

Back in the 1960s, songwriter Bob Dylan wrote a line, “he not busy being born is busy dying.”  The way to unlock the potential of this or any ministry is for its personnel to keep one eye (at least) on the way the program needs to grow, and take steps in that direction on a daily basis.

Sometimes, if God so directs, this means taking huge steps, as in the case of accepting the 1996 gift of Oma Bell Perry’s ranch to build a second campus 50 miles away from our current campus.  Or undertaking the opening of a Charter School to go with the childcare program. We took those steps in faith that God would not leave us alone with these daunting tasks.  Sure enough, partners have come to join us.

On a daily basis, in ways both subtle and dramatic, events take place through which God sends encouragement and help.  It might be an unexpected gift, or it might come through a person taking a tour, or someone coming to volunteer.  We are always on the road to Emmaus, accompanied by Helpers in disguise.

Inspiration often comes from one in our own midst, as we share the tasks of a growing ministry.  Our Director of Operations, Douglas Smith, noticed, when he took that key post a year ago, that adults in roles of constant crisis management needed reminding about “washing one another’s feet” and treating one another with intentional and deep respect during and after the fray of their daily work.  He has focused on this as a top priority, and does something every day to lead us toward a culture of heightened respect.

Every day, we find in staff and friends the offering of such help – opening us to a shared vision of excellence and possibility.  The core of this vision is an eye for the potential all around us, and this is also the core of our work.  Every day, a child becomes a miracle of healing and growth in front of our eyes – if we have the eyes to see.

As we model such hopefulness among ourselves, a light shines outward from us.  Right now, for example, with a state childcare system in total disarray, the Ranch is offering our counterparts in state government the encouragement that there is a way to care for children that makes all of us proud.