Why we are here...
Susie and I (Dean) both come from non Christian backgrounds. I was raised by good parents that didn't drink much, worked hard, stayed married and gave a lot. I am grateful for my parents and I miss them a lot. They were a little older when I was born and although they loved me very much, they didn't put a lot of time into me. At least that's what it seems to me. Perhaps that's one of the reasons I strayed when I was young. I began drinking, partying when I was in my teens. Smoking to be cool and doing drugs as the party life grew. I continued this until the age of 22 when it all came crashing down. It is then a Christian sat with me in my parents front yard and told me about Jesus. I didn't accept it all then but it stuck with me. As my party life led to heart ache and mental depression, I asked the Lord to help me. He did... I began reading the Bible immediately and read the New Testament completely through. It really spoke to me. I continued reading and studying sporadically for a few years until Susie and I attended a Calvary Chapel service. We had been invited by a couple, friends we had known for years that had recently given their lives to Jesus. It was at that Sunday morning service Susie gave her life to Jesus and I got serious.
Susie is from a divorced family. As many of you know it can be devastating to young children when their parents divorce. With a mom that was trying desperately to survive and a father hundreds of miles away, Susie began to party, drink and do drugs at the young age of 9. Her mother remarried to a wonderful man named Fred. Through a hard chance of fate, Fred's ex-wife dropped off their 3 kids for the day and never came back. So with Susie and her 2 siblings and Fred's 3 youngsters there was now 6 mouths to feed plus mom and Dad. The stress in managing all these relationships drove Susie to party more, become promiscuous at a young age and eventually she felt so alone she attempted suicide.
At the age of 15 I met Susie, I was then 23. Although I had a relationship with Jesus, that relationship was not yet strong. And Susie was not yet a Christian. Both of us were getting pretty sick of the party lifestyle but still very young.
Over the next 3 years we would date, live together, break up for almost a year until God convicted me to do it right and marry Susie. In July of 1982 we were married. By August of 1983 our first child was born, followed by our second in 1985 and number three in 1990.
Although Susie and I had truly committed their lives to Jesus, we had a lot of baggage they were carrying. Our marriage was rough at first. Susie was afraid yet forceful because that was what it took to survive in a family of 8. I was used to being alone and getting my way. So we had a hard time relating. I was abusive at times, both verbally and physically. We were not very strong in God's Word, relationships and how it all worked practically. We loved each other deeply, we were committed to the marriage and would never use the "D" word. (divorce) Yet we desperately needed help in knowing how to love each other. This began the gift God would use for years to come.
We began seeking counsel at one of their pastor's advise. We went to the "Christian Counselor", the "$80 an hour psychologist" and others. Each taught us some tools and some communication skills. But none of these dealt with the real issues. By God's design and in His timing our new pastor, Chris Johnson, began learning Biblical Counseling through the Biblical Counseling Foundation. I began sessions with Chris, serious about improving things at home. In 8 short weeks I had learned more than in all the other counseling sessions combined. I wanted to really take responsibility and get right with God. As I drew closer to the Lord, Susie saw a difference. Hope became a reality again. She began to seek the Lord also. Soon things began to line up with God's design.
This began what God had designed from the beginning. Susie and I went on to study more and more in Biblical Counseling and other successful methods. God used us more and more to help others in the body. We taught the Biblical Counseling method, combined with other information several times at Calvary Chapel of the Pass under Pastor Chris' leadership. For years we counseled for Calvary Chapel of the Pass until God led me to form The Love Never Fails Foundation, dedicated to assisting the body of Christ as a whole in many ways, including free counseling to whomever asks. Why? Because we want to let everyone know that...
Love Never Fails...
