Christian Horse-lover's Club

SPRING 2010 What a wonderful spring we have had this year!   We finished the WHITE HORSE Unit this last winter. The horse emphasis of the WHITE HORSE Unit was learning about horse colors and markings,about the color breeds and about breeds that must be a certain color to be registered.   The girls learned the difference between a true white horse and a horse that looks white, but is considered a gray. The girls each chose a different horse color breed to do a written report.  The girls have memorized 1 Thessalonians 4:16,17 which clearly speaks of the return of Christ, who calls His own to meet Him in the air, known as the rapture of the Church.  Since it is quite a long passage, each girl made their own “graphic” scripture page.  They have also memorized Revelation 19:11 “I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse whose Rider is called Faithful and True.  With justice He judges and makes war.” NIV  We studied the end time events and second coming of Christ.  We all learned a lot and it is amazing to see many signs of the times already fullfilled!
We have really enjoyed this nice warm spring!  We are working on the COMMUNICATION & CUES Unit and are learning about how horses communicate with each other, how we can learn to read their communication and how to communicate to horses.   The devotions taught us about how God desires to communicate with the people He created.  We briefly discussed the religious system the Lord set up in the Old Testament times and then studied how Jesus opened the way for us to communicate by praying in His name.  The girls memorized John 3:16 and John 14:26 “ But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”NIV  Each girl is keeping a prayer journal to record prayer requests and praise reports when their prayers are answered!   We’ve studied what prayer is…conversation with the Lord.  The girls are also reading the book of John and Numbers.  For one of the horse Projects, each girl is learning how to round pen and lunge a horse with purpose –not just to tire him out!  Our horses have cooperated nicely with the round penning and lunging exercises.   We even used our rescued mustang Dakota, who is still quite nervous around people.  Dakota allowed Lesleigh and Mikeala to pet him and Ashley even groomed him, so they all felt a real sense of accomplishment.  We plan to make a DVD of some of the things we’ve done in this unit and make it available for viewing on our website.  
This is one of my favorite units to teach, it’s a wonderful way to relate our communication with the Lord with our communication with horses.   So often we toss our heads and want to go our own way, but the Master truly knows best and turns us back in the right direction!   How sensitive are we to His divine directions, do we keep our spiritual ear turned toward Him all the time or are we too busy with what we want to do to pay attention?
This summer we will be working on the IN TRAINING UNIT.  This Unit touches on the basic doctrine of the Christian faith; knowing who you are in Christ, what is the sin nature, what is sanctification and more.  Then we will learn basic exercises that will improve the strength, balance and endurance of both the horse and rider.   We will plan a fun camp out which will give us extra time to “play” with horses!   A CHClub is a great way to touch the lives of horse-crazy girls or boys for Christ!

The CHC Units have all been written and are now in the editing process. There are 21 Units.   The first Unit is the Truth Unit, a short introductory Unit that gives a clear presentation of the Gospel. There are 19 regular Units. Each one would take about 3 months to complete, meeting just one time a week.  The last unit is the Leadership Unit that a Junior leader would complete at his/her own pace. It is a leadership training course and a devotional by John Maxwell.
Units Now Available:  TRUTH UNIT, CARING UNIT, COMMUNICATIONS & CUES UNIT, BITS & BRIDLES UNIT and RIDING CUES UNIT are ready for new CHClub use and the IN TRAINING UNIT, CHOICES UNIT, CHARACTER OF GOD UNIT, DESIGN UNIT and the WALKING UNIT will be ready soon.  See the ABOUT CHC page for a short Unit summary.
 BEGINNINGS When I originally started CHC, it was to reach out to our local community in a unique way. The LORD gave me the complete idea for CHC Unit studies that combined my love for horses with my love for Jesus and His Word. I was a horse-crazy girl and I knew from working with girls in church ministries for 15 years that there are very many horse-crazy girls that would love a chance to learn about the animals they love.
Our Purpose and Vison is to help facilitate other Christian horse owners to reach out to youth in their communities for Christ by starting a Christian Horse-lover's Club using the CHC curriculum.  In addition, I want to reach the lost as well as disciple and mentor youth to grow in the Lord.
Our vision is to see Chartered Christian Horse-lover's Clubs across the United States and even around the world! 
We are excited to announce that there are CHClubs in:  Wisconsin, California, Indiana, Ohio, and New Jersey!  Many more people have shown interest. 

ATTENTION:  A real easy way you can help CHC Inc. is to make your purchases online using Christian Value Network.  There are many different stores that will automatically donate a small percentage to CHC Inc. when you place an order using the Christian Value Network.  There are many well-known stores, such as:  Walmart, Target, Sears, Payless Shoes, Office Depot, Office Max, Comp USA and many more; even a Christian store with great prices called Parable.  Just go to www.cvn.org and choose to donate to Christian Horse-lover's Club Inc.
Please check out Christian Value Network and donate today, THANK YOU!!!

The CHC Inc. club in California has done some fun things with its club!!!

• To help the students learn the parts of a horse, they wrote the parts of a horse on 50 sticky labels.  They had a nice calm little Arabian horse that stood still while students placed each label on the correct horse part and the other students filled in their worksheet.
• In the CARING UNIT devotion they took a Psalm 23 activity and turned it into a game show: "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?"  The boys loved it.
• The students heard an inspiring message about integrity from 1st Sgt. Miller of the USMC.
• They visited Secret Valley Farm to observe a beautiful “horse/master relationship” demonstrated by Jerry Heitzler
• They served and labored in love at a local horse rescue.
• They even learned to take a horse's temperature…and not in the mouth…LOL!  (The CARING UNIT addresses basic horse health.)

"I am so PLEASED with the Communication & Cues Unit!  I love the layout... the curriculum is very clear and I love the interactive diagrams & drawings...so creative.
I am finding the kids love worksheet style...It is FUN!"   Aimee Palmer,  a CHC leader at  A Ranch of Light.

The CHC Inc. club in California is "A Ranch of Light" [link]

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PRAYERS!!!!

September 2009.  My it has been too long since I have updated the progress of my healing.  I am continuing to gain more deep muscle feeling and gaining strength.  It is very slow, but it is progressing, God is working in me.  Robin has continued to faithfully take me to the pool on Fridays to do the exercises we learned in Calif. last summer.  My hip flexers are much stronger and so are my core muscles.  I now have a new back on my chair so I can sit up straighter.
With the help of a small "Functional electrical stimulation" machine my core and back muscles have really begun to "wake-up."  I started riding in Therapeutic Riding in Feb. and through the spring and summer session too.  Not only is it my favorite exercise, my instructor has really seen tremendous improvement.  I sit up straighter and have learned the different ways to ride as a para.  The horse I ride is "Spot," she is very well trained.  She Western reins and really listens to my seat cues.  Looking where I plan to go is vital for a para rider!  I am riding independently, but people still walk along side, for if Spot would suddenly turn sharp I do not have enough core muscles to follow that quick of a movement. 
In July my instructor noticed that my foot moved as I cued Spot to go forward.  We all celebrated.  I do isometric squeezes every night and can now see my leg move inward slightly.  For a while in the pool I would "pretend walk" -swing my legs forward and set them down while holding on to a noodle.  So in August I started putting on my leg braces and really walking in the pool while holding on to the side of the pool and Robin for support.  I swing my legs forward and put them down.  We even videotaped it and showed it to my Dr.  He is very willing to write to the insurance company to get help with some physical therapy help (besides riding).
I have been able to ride my horses a few times, but I don't like to bug people to walk with me.  It takes three people besides Robin to put me on the horse.  The Lord keeps encouraging me when I need it, with songs on the radio and when I wake up in the morning, reading scripture upholds my strength and CHC keeps me ridiculously busy.  But we are excited that there are now clubs in: Calif., Indiana, Ohio and New Jersey.  Wow look what God is doing! 
Thank you for all your prayers and please continue.

October 2008.  It has been over two years since the accident occurred that originally left me paralyzed from the waist down.  Much has happened since my last report.  In April, I was doing my isometric squeezing of the muscles I felt: my lower back, back-end and my thighs.  I decided to "test" them.  As I was laying down flat, I pulled up my knee with my hands and held it from falling side-to-side.  I worked hard to push down my leg, using only those thigh muscles I "felt."  After 5 or 6 very hard tries, I was finally able to push hard enough to make my foot slide forward and leg collapse.  I did it!   Next I did it with the other leg.  I showed Robin (my husband) and we were both excited that I actually could do "something" with my legs!  I started doing this on the nights after I swam, for I was not so stiff and spastic.   We told my Dr. and he said that was nice.  I kept working on it and in July, Robin insisted I show the Dr. what I could do.  Dr. Orr was impressed enough to write me a prescription for physical therapy. PTL!  The physical therapy was to  include functional electronic stimulation.  That is what Robin was praying and pushing for.
NEXT:  In Aug. we took a trip to visit my brother and his family in CA.  My sister-in-law Carol spent a lot of time lining up some special things.  One was a special physical therapy session in a pool at a Santa Barbara clinic.  This wonderful therapist did her best to show me more than 20 exercises that I can work on in the pool.  I'm so thankful my brother taped it, for I wouldn't have been able to remember them all.  She was excited about the strength in my core and back.  The most exciting thing is that she showed me ways I could move that I did not know about!  As I floated, I moved my legs out and in a few inches and bended at the knees.  I could move my feet up and down a bit.  In one exercise I floated with a neck float and was able to push myself away from her and pull myself in to her using my hip-flexers.  WOW and Praise the Lord!!!  I have connection..... my core, back, hip flexers and thighs ARE listening to my brain!   I am able to move in the pool because of the buoyancy of the water.   Robin and Gini (a friend from our church-New Life A/G) are both helping me to work on these exercises every week. 
So PLEASE CONTINUE YOUR PRAYERS....GOD IS HEALING ME!  It is a healing work in progress!
Some days it seems so slow, but I remind myself of  how far I have come and that the timing of my complete healing is in God's hands!
Carol also set up a therapeutic horse riding session which went quite well.  I rode a thinner horse than Honey that had a real side-to-side sway to his walk.  But I did great, so great that they encouraged me to completely let go and do the "airplane" with my arms.  I was quite nervous, but she told me to trust my walkers.  I did it just fine, all I needed to do was trust and let go.  Hmmm, I think there is a spiritual application!  I was also able to actually western rein the horse and that felt good!
Our fund money is used up so now I will not be able to ride more than 1 time a month unless my husband is able to finish the ramp he has started with the help of some friends, Jerry T. and Mike C.  Thanks, guys!  I can't wait, but I must.  The girls who help me have been training the horses to walk through the ramp, stand and allow mounting.  Horses Foxy and Sequoia have been doing great.  I truly believe riding had a huge part in bringing back recovery to my hip flexors and core muscles.
Robin has remained a steady help and support in this ordeal.  It is an ordeal for him as much as for me.  He is very protective, always looking out for me.  Pray for him.
Thank You for your prayers and please continue to remember me.  Pray for less pain.  As I get recovery there is a lot of nerve pain in the paralysis band area.
              
                                           Alive in Christ for His service,
                                         
                                           Kim Shanks


May. '08  Five more months have passed.  I am gaining strength in my stomach and core muscles.  I try to exercise everyday, swim on Fridays, and ride a horse in physical therapy on Wed. at SMILES.  I am waiting for the day I can ride our own horses here at the ranch.  Robin plans to build a ramp by our outdoor arena.  I try to remember to use my core muscles more, for I am so used to depending on my arms.   There has been more improvement, but it is little by little.  Please keep praying for the healing of the spinal chord nerves to GET CONNECTED! 
                                    Thank You,

                                    Kim

[DEC. '07 I have been riding in horse physical therapy for several weeks now and I keep getting a stronger core and better balance each time and A LOT of sensations during and afterwords. Last Wed. I even got to hold the reins and "kind of " steer the horse. I ride a Belgian/Morgan cross.... a Belgian? Her name is "Honey" and she is sweet, nice and wide. That first time I rode I could not believe how weak my core was... the centrifugal force of the turn at a slow steady walk made me lose my balance! Reminds me to be thoughtful of those beginning riders in lessons who can't seem to use those core muscles. As with all, this time of year is a busy one, but do remember:THE REASON FOR THE SEASON IS JESUS and enjoy that fact! Merry Christmas to all! b]November update: [/b] It has been over a year since the horse accident. In many ways the year has gone by quickly.... maybe because I slept half the year away. I need a good 10 hours of sleep even now. The Lord has encouraged me along the way with His Word, both logos and rhema. (written and repeated or whispered by the Holy Spirit).  My list of scriptures to read and review has grown. I am learning to speak spiritually correctly about my healing. I am continuing to improve in strength and in attaining some more feeling sensations in deep muscle areas. I can do isometric squeezes in my thighs, calves, even my toes, but as yet I can not move anything. In my pool workout I can now do 80 sit-ups and .65 of a mile and other exercises. One time I was able to move my lower leg a little with the added buoyancy of the water to help. We are finally set up with a place to begin Hippo therapy. We found out SMILES will work with adult paras. I am excited to finally get back up on a horse. I wish they just called it horse therapy! My husband plans to build me a mounting station at home so I can ride my own horses! I have been blessed to continue giving lessons. And with help of 2 young friends (CHC girls), I've continued with the training of both Josiah, a 2 1/2 year old Moresian and our new Moresian filly - Jhenhi. Josiah is the CHC mascot and Jhenhi is for sale. Both horses are very friendly, people horses and are doing very well! June update: I continue to get stronger. In our pool therapy exercises I can do 40 sit ups and 24 laps, plus we've added other exercises. I do have more feeling in the deep muscles of both my legs, but am not able to move my legs YET. I have great confidence and hope in my healing and recovery. Many times God has repeated hope in different ways, including a "word" that came from the folks praying on the 700 club. God answers prayers! I am waiting expectantly with much hope!  I have been amazed by the prayers going up for my healing from around the nation and even beyond. The care pages were a beautiful encouragement for me while I was in the hospital for those 5 weeks. This has been a difficult mt. to climb; at times, it almost seemed like a bad dream so I just need to awaken, but it is reality. The LORD has been with me in so many ways. He has strengthened me, comforted me, given me peace when I needed it. I have kept myself in His Word, and it has sustained me. The Holy Spirit has reminded me of scripture verses; they have come up in my spirit when I needed it most (rhema). For the verses that have helped go to About Kim I am going through one of the most difficult transitions of my life, but He is giving me the strength each day. My husband, Robin is going through this transition with me.  He has been an amazing care taker. God is working in both our lives. My spinal cord is not severed or even stretched, it's just bruised, but those nerves are very, very delicate. CHANGES: In Oct. before I came home I began to feel my upper abs working. PTL! The first month when I came home, I noticed I could "feel" more in my back, which did mean I felt more pain, but that's what pain pills are for. The next month, Jan. 2007, I noticed the paralysis band, which is like a very tight girdle or girth strap always tight around my ribs, actually expanded down to my hips. At first I was annoyed, for it is not very comfortable, but my physical therapist reminded me that I could "feel" it .... Oh yea, feeling is a good thing! Now in Feb. I have control of a very small group of muscles below my hips that I did not have before, so that is a very good improvement! So, the healing is in progress, so please keep praying for us. April update: Changes are happening, but they are very small. Unfortunately I have had more pain issues, but some say that it may mean my nerves are really working to connect . I hope and pray that is true. Robin and I have seen improvement each time we go do some pool exercises; the water's buoyancy helps. I can do 25 sit-ups at the pool's edge, I've swimmed 6 lapsand do a lot of core exercises to build strength. I was even able to show Robin I have a slight bit of action at the back of my thighs: with the buoyancy of the water to help, I could lift my thighs up just a bit. Small, yet big changes compared to last Oct. SO PLEASE KEEP PRAYING! Love in Christ for the praying family of God, Kim Shanks

Winter '09-10 We finished working on the CARING UNIT in Dec. and I asked the girls how they liked it.  Autumn learned how a Farrier trimmed the frog area of the hoof and said, "It is was amazing!" Mikaela said, "Brushing the Belgian was cool!" Keira said, "I learned how to worm a horse...It was weird!" and Lesleigh said, "I liked the pulse test."  Well, it sounds like the girls learned a few things!

We started the WHITE HORSE UNIT!  This unit explores the color breeds, the breeds with certain color criteria and they will learn the different horse coat colors and markings.  We take an especially close look at the true white horse.  We learn that you must look closely and be discerning to identify a true white horse and not a gray horse that looks white. 
The Bible study will simplify the book of Revelation and the end-time events as much as possible.  The girls will be reading Revelation as well as, some of the minor prophets that talk of the end-time events, like Joel, Amos, Micah, Zechariah and more.  We will fill in a time-line to help visualize the events.
We hope to visit a ranch in our area, SE Wisconsin, that has a true white horse.  If you know of one please e-mail us. 
The girls will memorize 1 Thessalonians 4:16,17 and Revelation 19:11 "I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True [Jesus].  With justice He judges and makes war."
First He came as a baby, the Lamb of God who took the sins of mankind on Himself.  At His second coming He will come as the conquering King of Kings! 
Yes, Jesus is coming back again and Bible prophecy is coming true right before our eyes.  The continual upheaval in the Middle East is prophesied about in the Bible.
Are you ready for Jesus?  Will you recognize the real Jesus Christ, who is Faithful and True or be deceived by the anti-christ?  You can have a real relationship with Jesus by praying with a sincere heart and ask Him to forgive you of your sins and be "alpha" in your every day life.  We just watched the "Left Behind" movies 1 & 2, that sure helped the girls think of good questions!

Summer of 2009 our CHClub completed the RIDING CUES UNIT.  The girls really enjoyed learning the proper way to ride a horse; how and where to give the horse cues.  We had great weather for our camp out, which provided extra riding time for each girl to practice using the correct riding cues.  Each girl rode a pattern chosen for their level of riding ability.  Our Devotions were topical studies that related to the different riding aids. The girls memorized Psalm 119:9-11 and Hebrews 12:2; read the book of Luke, Romans and 1 & 2 Thessalonians. 
Summer "galloped" by SO FAST!  We are planning a riding demonstration and awards ceremony on a Tuesday evening for the parents to see how much they have learned and improved as a rider.
Autumn of 2009, we did the CARING UNIT, because we had so many new girls that recently joined.  We will learned how to properly groom a horse, do the hooves, do a quick health check and more.  We saw a farrier demonstration and learned to pick  hooves safely.  We studied about how much God cares for us and Jesus as our Good Shepherd.  The verses they memorized are I Peter 5:7 and I Peter 3:8.  They read the Book of Mark and several of Paul's epistles, plus Hosea of the Old Testament.  We brought across the great message:  that God loves and cares for His children.  Have you experienced the love of God for yourself?  Pray and ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins and ask Him to come into your heart and commit to following Him with your all. 

We are about to begin the WISDOM UNIT,  an indoor unit for this winter of 2009. 
The WISDOM UNIT teaches that the source of all true wisdom is God and His Word –the Bible.  We will study how it is the inspired and authoritative written Word of God.  We will look at how the Bible is organized and how to study it. Members will learn about and use isagogics and exegesis to get the most from His Word.  This is a serious and deep study.  Scripture has power to work in a teachable human heart.  We will learn about the many promises in the Bible that help us in everyday life.  Our hope is to instill a deep love for the Bible.
Members will memorize:  2 Timothy 2:15, 2 Peter 1:21 and Hebrews 4:12.  They will read Deuteronomy and Ecclesiastes.  For one project/activity they will mark verses in the book of Proverbs that teach about wisdom or folly.  A wise person accepts advice and searches for answers for every need, including the subject of horses.  The horse activity is to find and record resources for different horse subjects, from horse communication to training to health questions.

In Spring we did the PRAISE & THANKS UNIT.  Each girl worked on a training project with a horse and were to really praise the horse every time it did the exercise correctly.  Then each girl was assigned to another club member to help her with a project and really praise her when she did things correctly.  The principle being, that each one of us needs to practice praising, encouraging and building up others.  We studied the 7 ways of praise that are recorded in scripture; why we need to praise and thank the Lord and how we need to praise God in all circumstance, having an attitude of gratitude.  The girls memorized I Thessalonians 5:16-18 and Philippians 4:8 and have read the book of Psalms.

Autumn '08 brings us beautiful colors and a good time to work on the HORSE KEEPING Unit.  We are learning about how boundaries keep us and horses safe.  The girls are experiencing the practical work behind having a horse.  We had a work day to learn how to put up and repair fences (they loved it).  We hiked the property to identify poisonous plants that we must keep out of the horse pastures. 
We use fences for certain training exercises.   We will be teaching them how to properly shovel, haul and spread those horse apples!! 
Our Devotions cover the 10 Commandments as 10 promises!  When we live within the boundaries of God's Word we will receive blessings, safety and protection. 
We will study how Jesus fulfilled all the laws perfectly as we study the book of Galations to see how He helps us to live to please God.  We hope the weather will cooperate for our "Tabernacle" demonstration that will help us better understand the Old Testament sacrificial system.  They will learn the importance of being a faithful manager, able to care for horses in rain, sleet, snow or heat!
They are reading Exodus, Leviticus and Galations.  The memory work is:
Psalm 91:1; Psalm 26:2,3 and I Corinthians 4:2.  The Project/Activities are to do a "Fencing Chart," a horse training project, and research and design a horse stable they would like to set up someday -- Lord willing.  We pray the LORD will bless us as we study what it takes to keep a horse.

The SHOWING UNIT was completed the Summer of '08. This is a good unit to do in the summer for it gives us more time to practice and many opportunities to watch and even do some showing. We will introduce showmanship and walk/trot basics to the newest members. We will practice some equitation patterns with some of the more experienced riders. We plan to show Josiah, our CHC mascot, for his first time. He did great!  Trotted right in and set up.  Josiah took a 4th place!
The SHOWING UNIT devotions will also teach us how to "show" the fruit of the Spirit everyday.     We want to live a life that will be a pleasant fragrance to the LORD and to others as well as exemplify good sportsmanship, unselfishness and kindness even in the world of competition. Members will memorize Acts 1:8 and Gal. 22-25 and read the book of Acts and Ezekiel. They will learn how to present the "Gospel" to someone and write down their own testimony of coming to know Jesus as their Savior.
We hope to have a CHC alumnus return to help us with showmanship and equitation.  We went to the SMILES benefit show in July.  We had a great time, learned a lot and even came home with some awards.  We had an over-night camp-out as a work time.  They experienced how much work it is to show a horse.  They practiced, bathed, trimmed, loaded a trailer, packed a hay-bag and even cleaned their tack.  But we had a lot of fun too!  The closing event was a  CHC Horse Show here at Hidden Falls Ranch and the girls asked to do a camp-out here to have a "practice" weekend. May the LORD help us get it all done!!!! May the LORD bless you and your summer too!!

We have finished up the CHARACTER OF GOD UNIT Spring of '08. We took our time with this Unit to let the girls get caught up and finish all their work so they will earn all their charms. We went to the Mid-West Horse Fair and met some people who were willing to fill out our Horse Questionnaires. We also had field trips that included a paint horse show and a quarter horse farm in Palmyra called "Cornerstone Reining Horses," where Marianne gave us a wonderful talk about quality quarter horses and also told the girls to really seek the Lord for direction in their lives. She was a true blessing.

Fall of '07:  We are working on the CREATION UNIT.  This Unit takes a look at God's creation and the factual evidence for special creation. The Devotions study the two belief systems of our beginnings -Theory of Evolution or Scientific Creationism, as well as the fossil record, the falsities of the supposed "horse evolution," flood geology, the geologic clocks that show a young earth and the missing evidence for the supposed "evolution" of man. God created man in His own image and there is no real evidence to the contrary! We will review many of the creation scriptures that give glory to our Creator God. The girls have to fill in worksheets on horse, skeletal, muscle and organ systems. They are to learn about and practice some horse massage methods and horse stretching exercises for our "hands on" projects. They are memorizing Genesis 1:1, Colossians 1:15-17, as well as a praise & worship song that has to do with our creator God. They will be reading the book of Genesis. It is a unit that answers a lot of questions youth have about our beginnings and gives them solid facts that refute the evolution taught in our society. We are all looking forward to our annual Autumn horseback ride. The girls usually choose to go to their favorite place, Fantasy Hills Farm! Pray for a fun & safe ride!