Upon her departure, Sharon says, “I’ve been thankful for the Ranch community through the different seasons. I’m thankful to still be in the area and that that community isn’t ending.”
While I was growing in these areas, I neglected to grow in the area that brought me to the Ranch in the first place, and that was the desire to live in the dark. Once again, it got me in trouble multiple times. But the Ranch helped me back on my feet and gave me more grace than was deserved and we continued life. My love for the Ranch grew and what started off as an original 11-month stay turned into a two-year journey.... Thank you for helping me discover my purpose and encouraging me to seek the Lord in the good times and bad.
Left: Sophie makes a public proclamation of faith through baptism on Graduation Sunday. Right: Student families and the Ranch community gather to celebrate the year's accomplishments.
 Front row (L to R): Finn Sheehan (San Jose, CA), Bethany Trull (Salem, OR), Tyler Alexander (Dayton, NV), Danika Young (Winchester, CA). Back row (L to R): Angel Sanchez (Merced, CA), Elliot Barnhill (Portland, OR), Brandon Parrish (Carmichael, CA), Cassie Peters (Elk River, MN).
In my time here at the Ranch, it took me about a month to realize that this wasn’t just a simple program I could get through, but really an aid on helping me grow as a person. I came here to help better myself, but really didn’t know exactly how much help I would be getting. From the mentors that have helped me through my rough moments, to the group around me showing me love I can’t thank them enough. I can see the growth in not only myself, but in frankly everyone around me. Through the hilarious moments and hardships we’ve all gone through, I couldn’t be more grateful. So I’m up here, saying thank you, to my family, friends, and authority figures who have made it possible for me to be here today.
The obstacles and the hardships were just a stepping stone that He placed before me just to show me that He’s got me through it all. He wanted to see me overcome, and I did, I really did. And with that I will always put my worries on Him because I know that He will always get me through.
The notion of summer camp quickly faded into the background. Prior to coming, Joseph had been on six medications. He was misdiagnosed as having intermittent explosive disorder. Joseph’s violent outbursts had been happening with greater frequency. At the Ranch, Joseph was adjusting to life without medication, and the sadness and anger resurfaced.
Despite this, Joseph’s tender nature and care for others was made apparent at the Agony Ride, where he manned his post faithfully at the Beckwourth SAG, never missing a bike that came into the station. A month later, Joseph persevered through the 15-day backpacking trip in Tahoe National Forest and even jumped off a 40 ft dam with his teammates. Through it all, Joseph was hearing the Gospel message and watching it lived out every day through his interns. But life had embittered him, and he continued to resist. “I kept toughening up against them, constantly doing my own thing, punching concrete, trees, plywood….” In November, Joseph was standing in the Ranch living room, surrounded by the people he had spent the last four months with, faced with the consequences of his decisions. He was to be suspended from the program for two weeks. As Joseph looked around the circle, his face wet with tears, he saw his own grief mirrored in the faces of his peers, of his interns, of the staff. Nate Boyd, Executive Director Over the past two years we’ve been tackling big infrastructure projects that will expand and strengthen the mission of Christian Encounter. These are long-term investments, but they’re already making a difference in day-to-day ministry.
The costs add up to about $930K, which is a huge undertaking for us. But compared to what we’ve received, this figure is almost inconceivably low. Major discounts from friends, massive volunteer efforts, and other forms of help have all driven the costs down and been affirmations and avenues of God’s grace. Almost all this work is already finished or fully funded! But we still need $60K to complete the full set of projects. We want to do this work “right the first time” in order for these investments to last long into the future. The future of this ministry is worth the expense. Teen statistics about school absenteeism, drug use, mental health, etc. are grim. In February, CDC.gov reported that nearly one in three teen girls has seriously considered attempting suicide.* This leads me to the conclusion that our teens are one of the most in-need populations in the world. Yesterday one of our students–with a smile covering her face–asked me if she could be baptized. She’s the third this month. The need is terrible. At Christian Encounter, we get to do something about it. Help us expand and strengthen–for today and the long-term! *https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2023/p0213-yrbs. html
 The Girls’ House first started back in 1999, but due to ministry-wide financial challenges, the house was closed in 2014.
In late 2021, a former intern offered to sell his house far below the listing price to meet this need. Thanks to his generosity, we were able to make a long-term housing investment. As the ministry moved toward reopening the house, intern Grace Bunn was recognizing the need for a safe place for our students upon finishing at the Ranch. The transition house is a blend of fellowship, fun, hard work, and discipleship. House residents, which can include former interns, can continue to grow in health, strength, and maturity in a known, safe community while maintaining continuity in counseling and discipleship. Upon completion of her internship, Grace (pictured far right) joined our staff as the Girls’ House Leader. Grace is from Greensboro, AL and studied Criminal Justice at Mississippi College.  As a Christian leader, my heart breaks when I encounter a young person who has been harmed by a Christian leader. If someone tells you God loves you, but then harms you, what do you come to believe about God? He is not trustworthy or good. He is dangerous, and his love is an epithet. It’s common, and in some ways even good, to develop anger against “God” in a situation like this. But this anger is really toward a false image–not the true God. The path to the true God requires first dismantling wrong beliefs. This dismantling can be lonely and disorienting, and it takes time. Reality is shaking; in some sense you are broken loose from your foundation. But, if this is happening to you or someone you love, have hope! God understands, He has not abandoned you, and He is at work. Hebrews 12:26-27 gives us a glimpse of what He is accomplishing: “At that time His voice shook the earth, but now He has promised, ‘Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.’ The words ‘once more’ indicate the removing of what can be shaken–that is, created things– so that what cannot be shaken may remain.” A day is coming when God will, once and for all, remove all that is impermanent so that only the eternal remains. But until that day, God continually does this on a smaller scale in our lives–not just in those who’ve been traumatized, but in every one of us. We often build on sand instead of rock. We often build on sand instead of rock. Sometimes this even happens when we think we are building on His Word! Because He loves us, God brings shaking into our lives to remove our impermanent work. Sometimes the impermanent work is in the area of Christian service or ministry. Sometimes it is in the area of a faith we have constructed for ourselves. I thought God would _______. All this must be shaken, fall, and be removed so that a new work–something permanent–can be built in its place.
The shaking and falling can be terrifying. But underneath the rubble will be the potential for something far better. Don’t run from the shaking! Don’t abandon the rubble! Dig deeper and find the true bedrock, and begin to build again. God’s love can carry us through, all the way to the final, complete result. May He be glorified. Nate Boyd, Executive Director
 Levi’s first day at Christian Encounter was the last day of a family trip with his parents and sister, Lily. They had flown from Georgia and had some time to explore the area together before dropping Levi off. Just the day before, Levi and Lily had the opportunity to meet their paternal grandparents for the first time. Their biological father had passed away in 2013. Making this connection would hopefully give Levi and Lily an opportunity to ask hard questions. As a child, Levi struggled to integrate into the social and academic environment of public school. A heavier kid, he was often targeted on the playground. As he moved into middle school, things didn’t get easier, and he began to take an offensive stance, initiating fights on the blacktop. To gain acceptance, he would starve himself to try to lose weight. As he transitioned into high school, Levi was introduced to vaping and began dabbling in other forms of drugs and alcohol. Levi would meet up with friends to skate near a vape and smoke shop where things quickly escalated. Levi’s choices began to impact his siblings, as much as he tried to hide his addictions from his family. He had dropped out of school and had been asked to keep his distance from his church community for a time. He had broken trust with his own family and his spiritual family. He was in counseling, but he needed more support. Levi had been living with his maternal grandparents when his dad set up a time for Levi to meet near his home in Atlanta with two former students from Christian Encounter. They shared about the opportunity the Ranch had given them. When Levi arrived, he felt the weight and sadness of the separation from his family. He felt like the bad apple that was being thrown out. But this time he was hundreds of miles away from home, where he couldn’t cause any more damage. Levi had an initial honeymoon phase at the Ranch that ended quickly when he started to feel walled in by the rules and structure. He saw the interns as rulekeepers and gatekeepers, and everywhere he turned he was boxed in. Consequently, Levi’s behavior resulted in him being suspended from the program twice in his first five months. In between these disciplinary measures Levi experienced the Agony Ride. He got to serve with the staff and interns and help those who were there to help him. He was able to give back, to serve. He felt alive that weekend. At the end of the summer, he embarked on the annual 15-day backpacking trip. Upon his return, there was a noticeable shift in his attitude and demeanor. Out on the trails and on top of mountains, Levi’s heart and mind roamed free. His relationships deepened, and for the first time he realized that the interns weren’t the bad guys.  James and interns David and Alec with Levi on the backpacking trip. “I’ve been given this chance to fix the things I’ve done. I’ve grown in ways I wouldn’t have been able to outside of here because of the environment I was in.
“When I got here I didn’t want anything to do with God because I was mad at Him. (Interns) Alec and David were great examples of God’s love and showed me a lot of who God is.” As Levi began to bring things to God in prayer, he began witnessing little things that were undeniably the work of His hand. He saw the Lord provide for him through a Ranch church member buying flights for his sister Lily to come visit him for Thanksgiving - something he had longed for but thought was impossible. Levi has continued to build on the newfound relationship with his paternal grandparents, grateful to have the support of family nearby. He is on track to graduate high school here in June and complete the program. “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9 Zoya Lee Foreman Aaron Pellerino worked with a team of volunteers spearheaded by Dave Russo to see this renovation to completion. We are so grateful for the addition of two staff housing units on our property!  intern voices
I feel that God is calling me to love in that way. To bring the key realities in my life from heaven and down to earth; to live them out in whatever season or wilderness trail or dorm room He’s called me to. I’ve missed this call for a long time, and I will continue to struggle and fail, but I know that God’s grace and the power of the cross will sustain me.”
 Do you love Jesus, care about at-risk youth, and value financial stewardship? We are looking for a high-integrity, high-skills individual to run our business office and manage the resources God had given us. Come use your accounting and financial skills to expand the Kingdom of God through a unique ministry!
Salary range: Full-time Base pay: $16.50-$21.00 Either free on-campus housing or a monthly housing allowance (on top of base pay) are included, as well as an additional benefit package. If you or someone you know may be interested, please contact Nate Boyd at 530-268-0877 or [email protected].  Melanie describes the weeks leading up to arriving at Christian Encounter, “I was really disconnected from the world. I would spend all day at the house… A lot of the time I would have panic attacks at home when I was by myself. I got a service dog and that helped a lot. But the panic attacks didn’t fully stop, they just slowed down.”
Melanie had been attending court hearings and meetings with CPS. In this process, it was recommended that Melanie seek therapy in a residential type setting. She had completed her sophomore year at Forest Lake Christian School, but upon this recommendation, decided to transfer to Christian Encounter where she could continue to work toward her high school diploma. Melanie arrived at the Ranch with the sole intent of finishing her junior year. Melanie had been exposed to different types of spirituality throughout her life and was leery of a Christian program offering her any kind of actual help. In fact, she was intent on proving that the Christian lifestyle “didn’t work.” Each new student is paired with a discipler upon arrival, and for the first time, Melanie met someone who had walked through similar life experiences, someone who could empathize with her. In those first few months, Melanie wrote a song and started learning the guitar. When her Bible class introduced her to the book of Ecclesiastes, Melanie resonated deeply with the writer’s cry, “Everything is meaningless!” Although Melanie had walked in Christian circles, she had never actually read the Bible until now. Naturally inquisitive, Melanie began engaging more deeply with scripture. “Growing up with the religious experiences I had, I felt that God was out to get me…. In a lot of my experiences, I just barely skimmed death…. I watched a lot of people in my life deteriorate.” As the year progressed, Melanie began experiencing God in deeply personal ways, reckoning with His intimate knowledge and care for her interests and desires. At the Agony Ride in July, Melanie saw an entire community of people come together to help teens they had never met. On the wilderness backpacking trip in August, when Melanie had sustained an ankle injury, she witnessed her own community sacrifice on her behalf. “Is He a God of love or a God of punishment?” The evidence for the former was growing. Melanie stayed at Christian Encounter beyond her initially projected timeline, completing her senior year of high school, earning straight A’s in her final quarter. Melanie is the first to graduate high school in her family. She finished the program in December and plans to pursue a path in forensic biology. Zoya Lee As we approach the end of 2022, I’d like to recount again some of the incredible things God has done on our behalf. As I reflect on the year, many big projects and tangible achievements come to mind, but the deepest victories happened in hearts and minds and are hard to include on a list like this. These are the moments when a hurting heart decides to receive the love being offered, when a life-dominating lie is finally exposed to the truth and banished, and when someone chooses to forgive an old transgression. As you read this list, celebrate with me both the items included below and the long list of invisible decisions that are at the heart of it all! January We started the year off right with a beautiful wedding on January 1, celebrating staff member Salena Berger’s marriage to Josh Unitt. Two weeks later the intern team grew to ten members, making for a large and talented team willing to invest daily in the lives of the students. A few days later we celebrated a student graduating from high school and presented him with his diploma. February We closed the purchase of a local house that was sold to the Ranch at a discounted price (pictured below). It has met a critical need for staff housing this year and will soon become the Girls’ House for students finishing the program at the Ranch. Speaking of the girls, 15 young women braved unusually cold and icy weather on the annual igloo trip. Due to a tremendous team effort, they built three igloos despite difficult building conditions.
March The Ranch Family celebrated a baptism and enjoyed a day of cross-country skiing together. Reports vary about which was colder! Then, during the break between school quarters, we set academic pursuits aside to dedicate a week to a series of sessions on the theme “Deeper,” pursuing closer relationship with the Lord as individuals and as a church family. April A local church group blessed the Ranch Family by preparing an Easter gift basket for each of our students. The weather was perfect for our annual Rescue Run, and it was a great joy to invite guests on property for a beautiful trail run and to experience the Ranch community. May May brought an increase in opportunities to communicate about the Ranch which continued through the summer, including invitations to churches, community events, and radio stations such as K-Love, Air1, KFBK, and KNCO. Meanwhile, generous community members continued to invest in building out the Angels’ Meadow venue, including installing a shed and refrigeration at the outdoor kitchen…
 “Young leaders tend to overestimate what they can accomplish in five years, and underestimate what they can accomplish in ten.” I was told this shortly after the Board appointed me to be Executive Director five years ago on Oct. 7, 2017. Perhaps this is because it’s difficult to see how much foundational work is needed, including establishing core components like culture, values, and mission.
We all know foundations are important; we rarely understand ahead of time how much work it takes to create a good foundation. For example, the bigger and more complex the building, the more work the foundation takes. At the Ranch we’ve seen this in real time as we’ve rebuilt the duplex. Designing, planning, calculating, and lengthy consultations with the County Building Department finally turned to site prep, excavation, forming, gravel, and rebar. Only then could we pour concrete for the foundation. But once the foundation was done, walls went up quickly. Five years does mark a good interval to zoom out and consider the big picture. We’ve had some difficult seasons over these five years, but I’m excited about how much has been done. This was possible because so much of the foundation was already established. As I wrote in my first Director’s View five years ago: “The four [previous Ranch directors] are humble, servant-hearted, sacrificial leaders, and they’ve built these values into the heritage of the Ranch. This is a beautiful thing, and unfortunately it is rare in our world.” A lot can be built on a foundation like that. We have accomplished a great deal in five years, and there are many plans in the works. “We” includes staff, interns, volunteers, prayer partners, donors, Agony riders and saggers, and more. Unfortunately, foundations never seem to be perfect. Problems always appear down the road, whether with a house, an organization, or our personal life foundations. If I were an interior designer examining a house to renovate and re-style, I would try to identify all the flaws of the house and figure out how to conceal them. But the real master designers don’t just conceal; somehow they incorporate those imperfections into a new creation. The result is unique, partly due to those very imperfections. Thanks be to God, this is what He is doing constantly. He is the redeemer. May He do this with the Ranch ministry, with our lives, and with every young person who comes here. Nate Boyd, Executive Director
The second visit to Africa was when James was 14. By this time, James’s adoptive family had grown to include three more adopted siblings. The family of eight made the overseas trek together. Up until this time, James had been under the impression that his biological father had passed away years ago. In conversation with his biological mother, he learned that his biological father was still living and that arrangements could be made for them to meet.
When his biological father arrived at the compound where they were staying, he extended his hand in greeting to his son, with three other kids in tow. It was their only point of contact in his ten-day visit. Back in New York, life resumed as usual. James’s family had moved to a larger property with more acreage when the family had expanded. James helped tend to the animals and continued in his hobbies of baking and playing piano. His family’s house church began to get together with another house church in the area on a monthly basis and his community continued to grow. In his high school years, James began to look for new ways of self-expression, and he started to test the boundaries his parents had set in place. Conflict arose between James and his parents. As their communication began to break down, James began making choices that ultimately broke their bond of trust. James’s parents started looking for out-of-home placement for their son and presented Christian Encounter to James one evening. In the face of flying to the other side of the country, James promised he would give counseling another try. His parents were unwavering in their decision. In a matter of days James and his father were on a plane to California.  To kick off the 40th anniversary ride, three of the original six Agony riders from 1982 led the pack: John Yates (on the recumbent), Bob Walsh (on the tandem with his wife Julie), and Mike Boon (far left), the only rider to have ridden in all 40 Agony Rides.
 Thank You To Our 40th Agony Corporate Sponsors! $374,504 raised in gifts and pledges
40th Agony Ride Stats
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