Our History
Many years ago, a Christian family designated 100 acres of property called Bethany Farms to be a site for evangelical Christian ministry. In 2005 the family gifted Bethany Farms to Faith Church to carry out this same goal and purpose.
Since that time, Bethany Farms has been used to serve missionary families on furlough. Families serving in Africa and Europe have found Bethany Farms to be a perfect setting to relax and rejuvenate for ministry.
In addition, over the past decade, Faith Bible Seminary students lived at Bethany Farms. As men and their families moved to Lafayette from other parts of the country to serve and learn, they found Bethany Farms to be a wonderful place to live and think about our glorious Lord. It has been a joy using the property for the purpose it was given.
Another part of evangelical Christian ministry is using the farm as a discipleship tool. It is a place to work, grow living things, and care for a beautiful property. The donors wanted all 100 acres to be used for Christian ministry and we are excited about some additional ministry that can occur here!
Restoration is overseen by Faith Biblical Counseling Ministries (FBCM), which exists to help men and women know and understand that God’s Word has help and answers for every area of life and every problem. However, sometimes the model of a single, one-hour counseling session per week isn’t sufficient to help individuals struggling with various life challenges. Our conviction is that God’s Word and Jesus Christ still have the answers and power to free someone from life-dominating difficulties, but the model needs to be different.
The Restoration treatment model allows men to get out of the environment and pressures they are experiencing for a period of time to focus simply on changing through the power of God’s Word, and to have more accountability through this difficult season of change.
Men who desire to address their problems through God's Word
Candidates must always be willing to come to Restoration—men who do not personally desire to be in the program will not be considered. Restoration is committed to providing the necessary tools for long-term change, but apart from willingness by the men in the program, those tools will remain unused.
Adult men who will do whatever it takes to change
He must be ready to forsake their past ways of handling life. Honesty with the staff and counselors is crucial, as is openness to a completely new way of processing life. Holding onto old thinking will lead to the same old results and consequences that have ultimately lead to men to needing a ministry like Restoration.
Single or married men
We know that it may be especially challenging for married men to consider stepping away from their family for 12 months, but those 12 months could be what the Lord uses to not only transform his life, but also the lives of his spouse and children.
Healthy men in relatively good physical health
Because of the nature of the work and the rigor of the schedule, the best candidates are those who are capable of doing manual labor, able to move and do activities without any physical assistance, and generally need limited medical attention. Restoration may not be suitable to men who need direct medical oversight (e.g. daily medications, feeding tubes, fragile diabetics, etc.).
Since Restoration is not a medical center, men who are seeking help for alcohol addiction, drug and substance abuse, or any other similar addiction may be required to go through a medically supervised detox program prior to acceptance.