Check out this great Western Horseman article we found about hats.  Do you have a favorite hat that you like to wear?  We love hats, so don't forget to wear yours when you come to visit.  Leave a picture of your favorite hat in the comments section so we can see what your hat looks like.

What an amazing breakthrough I had today with one of the fillies I have been working with! I have been working this filly for a few days and she has been extremely reactive. Every time I got on, she either bucked or spun around and never really relaxed the entire time. I knew I had to make some changes in my training program for her. I finally decided that although I had done a lot of ground work, that I had just not spent the time "bonding" with her like I should have in the beginning. I was trying to rush her along and she just wasn't quite ready to accept and trust me like the other two colts. After about an hour "bonding" with her, she finally relaxed and began to trust me! She walked across scary tarps, let me lay them on her, and willingly let me saddle her without a hater. This was a HUGE step for her. In the end, I rode her all over the ranch like she was an old seasoned horse. Today was her first ride outside the round pen and she did great after a little "bonding" time. She never flinched or balked at anything and did exactly what I asked her to do.

Working with this filly has made me think about our relationship with God. Are we spending enough time "bonding" with Him by reading His word, studying, and praying daily so He can communicate with us clearly through the Holy Spirit? Most importantly, are we trusting in Him to guide us? If you haven't been taking time for God, I want to encourage you to set some time aside each day and spend it with Him by praying and reading His word. I promise, this trail ride we call life will be so much easier when you spend some time to "bond" with Him each day. - Kim Hornsby

Proverbs 3:5-6 says "Trust in the Lord with all thy heart and lean not on thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He will make straight thy paths."

At the ranch we spend quite a bit of time in the barn either cleaning horses, tacks, or even stalls. Sounds kind of crazy but a majority of the time it leads to testimonies and devotions from others with us about God's grace and miracles all around us.

Last night I was telling two of the wranglers about my senior year in college when I was diagnosed with an AVM in my brain (all of the details would be more than anyone would want to read in a blog). The thing that I mentioned was that as soon as I had walked into the ER at the hospital, I lost my sight. I can tell you that was an odd feeling but honestly with the other things going on it was the last thing on my mind. I regained my sight after the surgery but immediately realized that I was blind to the right.

My perception had changed with this newfound darkness on the right side of my field of vision. I was blessed to be able to see but concentration was definitely a struggle when looking at the world with half light and half darkness.

This helped me to gain a fresh appreciation for what Jesus meant when He said, “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” (Matthew 6:22, 23). You see, our world is filled with things that can cause spiritual eye injuries. TV shows, movies, magazines, video games—our culture in general—are filled with dark imagery that can blind our souls to the good things of God.

While an agriculture student at Eastern Ky University, I had the opportunity to have Mike Judge as a professor. Mike was also the Director of Farms at EKU at that time, he would hire a student to work with him at his office and the farm. I was lucky enough to work with Mike for my last few years at EKU and blessed to be able to call him friend. Mike was color blind and while it is hard to believe someone would poke fun, we would often make comments concerning his wardrobe that would make him question what color tie he had chosen for that day. You see, he would have to memorize patterns and the colors that others told him the ties were so he would know which shirt to wear them with. Honestly, he never forgot the correct patterns to wear but we did often have some fun making his sweat.

Mike told me a story once about his sight issue and how it resulted in a traffic ticket. You see most stop lights are vertical with the red on the top and green on the bottom. For Mike he knew what to do based on the location of the light, not the color. Soon he found himself in a small town where they had decided to turn their lights horizontal. Of course he had to make a decision and being a math whiz, he knew he had a 50/50 shot at it and there was no traffic on the road. He knew how his guess went as the policeman pulled him over.

Mike recently passed away and I am blessed to have been taught so much by him as a teacher, employer, mentor, and friend. His sight, along with my own has helped me to better undertand when Jesus said.

" Then Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth. While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light. These things spake Jesus, and departed, and did hide himself from them." (‭John‬ ‭12‬:‭35-36‬ KJV)

Mike and I had sight but both had issues that changed the perspective that could result in us making the wrong choices. For me the darkenss was forever there and took away from the light. It's hard to explain but in some ways it made me want to avoid the light. But the light is what keeps me on the right path so I had to learn to always concentrate on that portion instead of the darkness. Soon I realized that I no longer even noticed the darkness.

Our world is full of this darkness. Like the town with the stoplight turned sideways, the world may also change the position of some of these things so we will still notice and possibly make the wrong choice. I'm going to follow Jesus words and choose to walk in the light and not let the darkness overtake me. I hope you do the same.

Brad Hornsby

Triple R Ranch 
606-305-6343

brad@triple-r-ranch.org 
www.triple-r-ranch.org 

By DeeDee Hampton

As the crazy weather fronts have pelted the area in extremes, I was reminded of a message that my friend preached about Noah and the Ark that Noah built.  He pointed out that the ark was no ordinary boat that was to be floated about from place to place.  Instead of being a fishing boat or a traveling boat, the boat that Noah was instructed by God to build was a huge ship to weather the storm. 
                                                                                                           
That Ark wasn’t even designed with basic boating functions!  It had no way to navigate it, no steering, and no way to manipulate its path through the storm.  God had designed the ark’s blueprints with one purpose in mind, to keep safe those believers and animals who were inside during the storm. 

Sometimes as humans we get so distracted by the small details that we miss the big picture.  We are so worried about how bad the storm is or is going to be that we miss how awesomely God provides for us and our safety!  Lord may we take a deep breath, relax, and allow you to be you.  May you guide us, steer us, and move us safely through whatever storm rages in our lives!  Help us God to recognize your hand of charity (your impartial love, your material help, your provision of help) in our world!

Psalm 62: 1-2 (MSG)

God, the one and only--

    I’ll wait as long as he says.

Everything I need comes from him,

    so why not?

He’s solid rock under my feet,

    breathing room for my soul,

An impregnable castle:

    I’m set for life.

by DeeDee Hampton

by Cliff Smith

Did you ever wonder what the "Triple R" in Triple R Ranch meant. Those R's are more than just a catchy name that rolls off your tongue seamlessly.  Those R's represent the spirit of something far greater.  They are the spirit of who we are, why we are , where we are, and what we are.  God annointed the ministries that take place on the grounds of the beautiful rolling hills, green pastures, and picturesque sunsets for a much bigger reason than its  charming beauty. He was aware of the purpose that stirred in the hearts of those that would one day be involved day to day in the many facets of ministry. A purpose to provide REFUGE from LIFE's STORMs. A purpose to provide REST for the WEARY. A purpose to exercise the most fundamental concept we are charged with as followers of Christ, REVEAL GOD's LOVE.

                Refuge from Life's Storms! Facing life's storms can at times be a daunting challenge. I won't begin to assume my storms are bigger or more devastating than any other persons, but I know personally, I have faced some that did me in, and I created a lot of those that I was facing. A little problem is only a little problem until you don't address it. Then it can lead to a big storm. That was my walk for years. My storms raged and caused damage both to me and many others I knew.  There was a point that these storms seemed to take on a life of their own, where I didn't have to add to them. They were strong enough not only to keep going on their own, but in many instances get worse.  Until I sought and found Refuge from these storms, I was tormented in a perpetual state of chaos. Of course this was not the last step, it was just the beginning. So why would the answer to finding relief from my storms be to take refuge and instead of dealing with them head on? Great question!

                Rest for the Weary!  I remember waking up one day and looking around wondering how I got where I was, how am I gonna get back to where i needed to be, and who was going to help me. I WAS TIRED!!!!! WORN OUT!!!!! WEARY!!!!! If anybody ever tells you they are tired, you can tell them they will be ok. It's a while to Weary. While I am joking of course, Here is how weary felt to me.....Physically I could not function to the level I was used to because I could not recuperate enough between battles to manage. Mentally I was drained to the point that simple decisions could become overwhelming often causing me to make poor choices compounding the storms in my already trouble riddled life. Spiritually I was a dry well where no comforting could be found and no peace could be harnessed.  In this condition, I could not conceive of a way out, because I could not see, think, or act clearly.  So how did taking refuge from my storms and resting help me get to a better place?  I thought you would never ask. It allowed me to see the Love of God that was being revealed to me.

                Reveal Gods' Love! I have "loved" a lot of things in my life. Everything from food to tv and movies and music, to a girl or maybe a lot of girls. I've ran the gammit on Love. What I never fully realized was that I never possessed a single ounce of Love within me. Sure I called a lot of things Love but there never was any because I never had any to give. Love comes from God! He is Love and is the source of all our Love. When I found that Love, I found what I have been craving for my entire life. You see we are created to yearn for that Love. Nothing will ever fill that void except Gods' Love. When I was exposed to this Love in other people, it was only a matter of time until I wanted to feel that for myself.

                The first glimpse of Gods' Love is all it takes to know this is no ordinary thing.  People spend more money and time and resourses looking for the one thing that God gave us and promised He will never take back. If you are over burdended by life's storms and too weary to see God's Love then it will be nearly impossible to experience it. You see, God's Love is an action. Not a word that is interchangeable with how we feel about a song or our favorite food. We are created to need this Love, but our chaos prevents us from ever being able to receive it.  We know that it is imperative to see God's Love.  That is why here at Triple R Ranch we are committed to providing a Refuge from whatever storms you may be facing, so you can focus on getting the Rest from your weariness, allowing Gods' Love to be revealed to you in his Perfect Time.  Then and only then will you be ready to accept it! God Bless!!!!!

-Cliff Smith