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| IHF is Restoring Hope in the Hurting Home: One Family at a Time
Every week, parents reach out to our office in crisis! “My teenager has been indoctrinated! My child has been abused! They have been deceived into this sexual ‘lifestyle’ or that gender ‘ideology’ … and I don’t understand! How could this happen? We took them to church every week. My spouse and I read all of the ‘positive parenting’ books about how to raise boys the right way! How can he possibly be gay? My daughter was such an outgoing, cheerful little girl that loved princesses! But after she went through puberty, she started going onto websites like Discord and came out as transgender. How could this happen to our family? We did all the right things! Is God punishing us? Why is our child coming out as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT)?”
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| In 2024, I will have been practicing fifteen years as a licensed mental health provider. Over this time, I have worked with hundreds of men and women experiencing sexual and gender identity conflicts and countless families…mothers and fathers, seeking understanding, insight, and healing for their family. One of the most common phrases I hear from parents are the “external influences” they believe have impacted their son or daughter’s sexual or gender identity. Mothers search the internet, looking for answers in the vast sea of theories about the development of homosexuality. Fathers lose sleep at night, obsessing about how they didn’t monitor their child’s internet activity that may have exposed her to bad influences. Or worse…maybe their child was sexually abused and they didn’t even know it! These questions plague the families coming to IHF for help. They are confused, and they want answers NOW, but what I tell parents is often a hard pill to swallow.
It’s not the internet. Your child wasn’t talked into this. It’s not abuse (in most cases). Your child was probably not touched inappropriately (although there are some cases of abuse, in my experience, it’s becoming less of a factor). It’s also not rebellion. Yes, your child is a sinner like the rest of us. But she’s not simply choosing an LGBT lifestyle to rebel against God or your family’s values. This is not simply a “pray for the prodigal son” situation. The reality is, the problem is closer than they ever imagined!
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| We have met the enemy! In the War of 1812, Master Commander Oliver Perry wrote to Major General William Henry Harrison (who would later become the President of the United States, and by the way, is a relative of yours truly) during the Battle of Lake Erie: “We have met the enemy and they are ours!” This simple but revealing phrase perfectly illustrates the problems I see every day in my office. We have only ourselves to blame, because we are all broken and emotionally wounded! During the first conversation with parents, I tell them: “I could counsel your child once a week for five years, but I cannot possibly have the type of influence over them as you can and do in your own home!” That is why our work at the Institute for Healthy Families is focused on the whole family. We do this by working with each member of the family, one family at a time!
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| | Parent education is most important! The first thing I say to mom and dad when they sit down with me in my office is the following: “Your teen was not hurt overnight. It took many years for them to develop the emotional wounds they are now experiencing, and it’s going to be a journey of healing that will take a while. It’s going to take you one year just to understand how this has happened to your child and family.” After one year of “head work,” as I call it, in our online parents course (see flyer on page one), parents are prepared for the “heart” work when they attend our Key to Your Child’s Heart healing retreats for mothers and fathers. At these powerful weekends, moms learn how to heal their inner child and dads develop the tools to better lead their families! Both parents leave with a better understanding of how to regain influence in their child’s life and become a coach! Finally, after parents develop more compassion and empathy for their child’s struggle, we engage in a two-day, Healing the Family intensive where families work on breaking down the walls of detachment and healing deep emotional and relational wounds. One father said this after family therapy:
The family sessions were very “emotionally” clearing for me. I had the chance to work with each of my family members to share my feelings towards them. I felt such deep compassion and love for them. I am very grateful for Christopher’s deep insight and desire to help our family heal from our wounds and trauma.
Please partner with IHF to help fulfill our mission: Restoring Hope in the Hurting Home! This year, we served dozens of sons and daughters, fathers and mothers. But many of our clients and families cannot afford the full registration fee to attend our retreats. This Summer, over twenty men attended our Break-Free Your Inner Child healing retreat at Lake Anna, Virginia and thanks to your generous donations, we were able to provide every man in financial-need a scholarship! We were also blessed to provide financial assistance to parents who attended our Key to Your Child’s Heart retreats in Maryland this Spring and Autumn! In 2024, we hope to be able to provide even more scholarships to families that attend our healing retreats. But we can’t do it without your generous support!
On this #GivingTuesday, we thank you for partnering with us, and may God bless you and your family!
Sincerely,
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| | | | | | | SAVE THE DATE
Break Free Your Inner Child Healing Retreat for Men
Lake Anna, Virginia
July 31-August 4, 2024
Our annual inner child healing retreat is a place where you can connect with other men and work toward discovering and healing childhood wounds. Working with other men, you have a chance to discover your true self and overcome those things that hold you back from really flourishing.
The group will work through:
- Discovering and healing childhood wounds
- Learning how your inner child adapted from his true self
- Learning how to get authentic needs met
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| | | | Institute for Healthy Families In the News |
| | Christopher Doyle on the Sandy Rios Show
IHF Executive Director Christopher Doyle, LPC, CCTP was recently interviewed on American Family Radio's The Sandy Rios Show where he discussed why Pastor Andy Stanley is wrong and gives, practical, loving examples of how parents and the Christian church should respond when a child comes out as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT).
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| | Education Over Misinformation
IFTCC News – Licensed Psychotherapist, Christopher Doyle, Attends IFTCC Conference
Christopher Doyle is a licensed psychotherapist and author of The War on Psychotherapy: When Sexual Politics, Gender Ideology and Mental Health Collide. In this interview, Christopher Doyle talks about his observations of the clients he meets, especially in terms of the in-congruency between their faith and their feelings. He talks about how the Institute for Healthy Families helps its clients discover who they are as people in the eyes of God and in their self-view, whilst helping them understand both the fluidity of sexuality, and the factors which can influence the development of sexuality in a climate where major psychological bodies are seeing this as a taboo topic. Click here to watch the interview with the Christopher Doyle at IFTCC's 8th annual conference in Hungary. |
| | | | | Family of 'non-binary' ex-Biden official: Torture 'never happened'
Brinton's sister says family was 'slandered,' never sent him to get 'conversion therapy'
The family of Sam Brinton — former high-level Biden nuclear-waste appointee, alleged luggage-stealer and self-described "gender-fluid bisexual" — is finally speaking out publicly to debunk what they say are lies he told about them.
"Former Biden Department of Energy official Sam Brinton claims to have been beaten by their [his] father, who held a gun to their [his] head and forced them [him] into [ex-gay] conversion therapy — but their [his] family insist it is all lies," reported the New York Post Feb. 19, using Brinton's "preferred pronouns" of "they/them."
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| | Ex-gays respond to Andy Stanley’s claim that LGBT people have ‘more faith than a lot of you’
Christians who once identified as homosexual have mixed opinions about recent remarks made by Pastor Andy Stanley, in which the megachurch leader said that LGBT individuals who go to church have “more faith than a lot of you.”
Christopher Doyle, a professional counselor and executive director of the Institute for Healthy Families, told The Christian Post that, because the full sermon is not easily accessible online, Stanley’s “words leave me with more questions than answers.” “I appreciate Pastor Stanley's compassion for Christians struggling with sexual and gender identity. As a young man, I experienced unwanted same-sex attractions and having a safe place surrounded by loving, embracing Christians would have really helped me on my healing journey,” said Doyle. Click here to read more at The Christian Post. |
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Institute for Healthy Families (IHF) specializes in counseling solutions for individuals, couples, families, therapists, and ministry leaders. IHF is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit therapeutic organization located in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. As a Judeo-Christian organization, IHF believes that the family is the foundation for healthy individuals, relationships, communities, and places of worship. While IHF is non-sectarian, we believe that God reveals His truth in both the Bible and Creation and that we can use this wisdom to help facilitate healing. IHF believes that through this synthesis of science and faith, we can help our clients form and maintain healthy families that will be able to help their children become the best versions of themselves and fulfill God’s will for their lives. For more information, visit our website at: www.InstituteforHealthyFamilies.org. |
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