Welcome to Safe Harbor Ministries!
The name came from my love for lighthouses which I acquired years ago when I performed my brother’s wedding in Duluth, Minnesota. Before then, I had never seen the big ships on the large bodies of water. So, it was a joy to stand on the shores of Lake Superior and to see the ships in the distance. And when we went to the harbor to see them entering, I was amazed at their size and being so close, I felt like I could reach out and touch them. Then, there was the lighthouse that as I looked at it, I was reminded of what is said in Psalm 27:1, “The Lord is my light and my salvation, so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble?”-NLT
When I googled for a simple definition of a harbor, the response read, ‘a part of a body of water (as a sea or lake) so protected as to be a place of safety for ships…it is a place of safety and comfort’. What I desire for Safe Harbor Ministries is to be a place where people can come and find a safe place to be real with the struggles they are having. So many people who come for counseling have no idea what their issues are. Some people will come in and say they are depressed but usually they have no idea why they are depressed or what has caused their depression. Some people come in and they have no idea they are angry, but the profile shows they are. My desire is to be a safe, listening ear to be able to help people identify the emotional pain in their lives whether it be abandonment, neglect, rejection, humiliation, being despised, betrayed or drained emotionally or others. Then, there are the spiritual issues that we do to cope with the pain, like pride, bitterness, rebellion. moral failure to name a few that need to be brought before Jesus.
I want to help you resolve these issues at a heart level, and we do that through the Lord Jesus Christ being invited into the counseling room. Jesus is the One that actually changes a person’s life. I can’t! I want to be a safe and comfortable place where Jesus shines His light into your heart to help you understand what your issues are and help you understand why you are experiencing what you are experiencing and what the cause of the problem is. All these get resolved in your heart!
Someone gave me a great description of what I do as a counselor. I am an ambulance driver who knows how to get you to the hospital where the chief surgeon is waiting patiently to bring healing to your wounds. I like that, and you should to!!
Jesus understands you and I so well. In his lifetime He went through all the emotional pain that we go through. “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are-yet was without sin”-Hebrews 7:15. So, don’t run away from the pain you are experiencing emotionally. Run to Jesus. He understands, cares and heals. “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need”-Hebrews 7:16.
God has gifted me for this ministry. The ambulance is running!
Kevin