New ASL (Sign Language)-Interpreted Videos + Some Hard News from Our Family …

 

Dear friends,

Thank you for all of the kind and encouraging words you have shared with me over the years—and for the brave and vulnerable words you shared with me, too. Did you know that I still have every single prayer card that you gave me at your events? Twenty years’ worth! Tens of thousands of cards. Millions of words. So much pain—and so much hope. I cherish each one and I continue to pray for you.

Since I met so many of you when I served in the PCA, I feel it is important that I let you know that our family is no longer in the PCA. Please know that this is not what we would have chosen, but it is the life situation that God has provided for us. Thankfully, the Lord is redeeming our suffering and keeping us close to himself and extremely close to one another in marriage and as a family. For this, we are beyond-words grateful.

Another life change for us is that I am currently accepting very few speaking events and conciliation cases because I have brought my license to practice law back into active status, and I am working again in high net-worth (charitable) estate planning. I will be returning to China next year, however, and tonight (Tuesday, August 21), I will be teaching and answering questions during a Revive Our Hearts Online Bible Study on “Abigail: Living with Difficult People in Your Life.” I hope that you will consider joining us at 7:00PM Eastern. In addition to the study, we will be sharing some wonderful giveaways, too.

Our last two announcements have to do with resources:

1. We have a new video series that has been ASL (Sign Language)-interpreted. If you know of any ministries that would benefit from this study, our family would love to give it away to them for no cost. Please just contact us.
2. Since our family is no longer associated with Peacemaker Ministries (did you know that Ken Sande left Peacemaker Ministries and founded a ministry called RelationalWisdom360?), we are not going to be reproducing new copies of the DVDs for my first video series, Living the Gospel in Relationships. Instead, we are currently having a rip-roaring sale on the DVDs and when they are gone, we will only sell the video series via online downloads.

I think that catches you up on the Barthels! Oh. One more update … please accept my sincere thanks for your prayers and your notes of care re: my 2014 sexual assault. By God’s grace, and through the ministry of biblical/trauma counselors and authentic, faithful friends, I am experiencing greater and greater peace and wholeness with each passing day. May God be praised!

With that, I will sign off for now by thanking you again for the joy of pursuing “the unity of the Spirit through the bonds of peace” together (Ephesians 4:3)—

In Christ our Hope,
Tara Barthel (& Fred, Sophia, and Ella)