Inaugural Ministry Announcement

Thank you for visiting our website. Our organization has been created to share the good news of Jesus Christ to all who need hope. Please read our inaugural newsletter below:

It is with great joy that I write this inaugural newsletter for my new ministry, All The King’s Horses Ministry Inc. (a Nonprofit, registered 501(c)3 corporation), and to let you know about my book entitled, All The King’s Horses (subtitle: Finding Purpose and Hope in Brokenness and Impossibility), due to be released the second quarter of 2015.

First, allow me to update you about some very joyful family matters.

In 2009, Janelle left our home to begin life with her wonderful husband Miguel, and in 2013 Tim married a sensational gal named Emily. They are all serving the Lord with their lives, making this Dad very grateful and proud. I am truly a wealthy man.

Bryson is twenty-eight (believe it or not) and he has also made me proud. Since he was a baby, he has experienced more sustained suffering than anyone I have ever personally observed, and his life as a brain-injured individual remains as challenging as ever. Many of you know of his perseverance to conquer the impossible, such as speaking, and walking at ten years old, etc.

As an “adult” he continues to suffer brutal injuries. In recent years he has chipped a tooth, broken a tooth, wrecked his knee (requiring months of therapy to regain his ability to walk), broken his ribs, injured his shoulder (from falls due to cerebral palsy), and broken his leg (badly). This required six months of therapy to learn to walk (again) after I carried him through the house for six months (it was a non-weight bearing injury – and with his CP, he couldn’t utilize crutches).

To this day, it remains my privilege to bind up these wounds (rarely a day goes by without a bump or bruise), tie his shoes, cut up his food and provide him with unending daily care. Far more difficult is providing for his emotional and spiritual needs. Ever childlike, this time of year we watch “Charlie Brown Christmas” and read Golden Books about Santa’s sleigh. At the same time, he wants to date Mila Kunis (Help me Lord!). No, I haven’t lost my sense of humor.

Jesus taught us: “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends” (Jn. 15:13). The Lord never wastes the sacrifices we make in obedience to Him. As it has been my privilege to serve my family through many severely difficult years, it will now be my privilege to follow the Lord into full time ministry, so that my (our family) pain will bless and help others.

People who suffer in this world (that would be all of us) deserve honesty. I’ve written a book which is brutally honest, even as God’s Book, the Bible, is brutally honest. Below is an excerpt:

“There’s hardly a chapter in this long family story in which I didn’t find myself in desperate circumstances of one sort or another. At long last, though I couldn’t have planned it this way (nor would I ever have wanted to), I must conclude this book facing one of the most difficult seasons of my life, battling financial insolvency even as I battle for my life and health, devoid of the resources I need to adequately care for my physically and mentally impaired son. That is this author’s version of hopelessness and impossibility. What is yours?” (From All The King’s Horses Epilogue)

In the quote above, I alluded to battles for my life and health. In recent years these battles have included liver disease, a blood disease and three major collapses, replete with severe concussions. This year, a difficult to treat auto-immune disease has been diagnosed, and post-concussion trauma is now under consideration along with the confluence of factors that exacerbate low energy levels (chronic fatigue) and my ability to function neurologically.

That same quote alluded to financial challenges. More than a decade as a single father and sole caregiver for a brain-injured son has required me to remain close to home, and “under-employed” in order to provide his daily care. This situation, along with very high expenses, has taken a heavy toll. A fortune that took a lifetime to build has been lost, including the loss of our family home (Bryson and I are now renting).

My aim in revealing these things here (and in my book) is not to seek pity. I am thankful to be alive, and I have no doubt that the God who wastes nothing has a purpose in mind in allowing these challenges. Furthermore I am very confident of victory as I follow the path the Lord has laid out for me as I begin this new ministry.

If King Jesus is as great as we believe Him to be at All The King’s Horses Ministry, than one would expect His definition of “victory” to be different than the shallow depiction of victory this materialistic world offers us. Indeed, perhaps it is our faith in the midst of sorrow and pain which honors Him most during our very brief time in this world.

Perhaps it is also true that genuine hope and lasting joy can be found only on the narrow path of Jesus. Indeed, you are reading a letter from a very content man, as Paul defined contentment:

“And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Cor. 12:9-10

Many authors boast of “platforms” with blogs and “tweets” sent out to thousands, fancy websites and polished You Tube videos. You won’t be seeing any slick marketing at All The King’s Horses Ministry Inc. My platform is my son’s life of torturous pain, and my life of anguish and difficulty as I have cared for him. I acknowledge this “platform” to be weak and foolish. Yet King Jesus changes hearts and transforms lives in a very weak and “foolish” manner.

“If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God.” 1 Cor. 3:18-19

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God
for salvation to everyone who believes …” Romans 1:16

I marvel at God’s wisdom. He tests our hearts through suffering and pain, and even through broken dreams, yet He always has a purpose in mind. The Lord has prepared me to proclaim the Gospel, and the message of total reliance upon God in the manner in which Paul proclaimed it:

“For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life; indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves, so that we might not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us.” 2 Corinthians 1:8-10

The Lord will use my book to open doors through which the Gospel will be proclaimed. As I proceed through these doors, I can look anyone in the eye and tell them that while all the king’s horses and all his men wouldn’t have the slightest prayer of picking up the shattered pieces of their broken lives (nor of mine), there is indeed a King who is the Answer to every human problem.

The Apostle Paul made it clear that “we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus’ sake” (2 Cor. 2:5). Everything we do at All The King’s Horses Ministry will be to lift the eyes of men and women to see Jesus as the majestic King He truly is. Jesus is the only One who can transform hearts, lives and families, and yes, He can restore broken dreams. He can even make up for the years the locust has eaten (Joel 2:25).

As we lift Him up to be seen in His splendor and majesty, He will draw all men to Himself, just as He said:

“And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” John 12:32

WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP THIS NEW MINSTRY?

I am not going into full-time ministry to re-create earthly wealth (I hope you just laughed). Jesus had no place to lay His head in this world (Mt. 8:20). I am trusting Him to provide for me and Bryson as I follow Him, and I am asking others to come alongside and participate with me.

As we pay for start-up costs (legal, technical for our non-slick website, accounting, office furniture, etc.), I am currently funding everything out-of-pocket. As noted above, my finances are running on empty. As for the book, some very generous men have provided funding for a major portion of the publishing costs, but approximately $7,000 in publishing and licensing costs are coming due near year-end. As of this date, I cannot afford to pay these costs.

The members of my Board and I are grateful that All The King’s Horses Ministry Inc., a New Jersey nonprofit corporation, has recently received 501(c)3 tax-exempt status. Any support you provide will be treated as a fully tax-exempt charitable donation by the IRS.

Our bylaws have been established for the dual purpose of proclaiming the good news of Christ (through written, spoken, and all other media methods), and to provide support for the housing and living expenses of Bryson as a brain-injured individual, and for me as I care for him.

Bryson and I will not be permitted to stay much longer in the home we are currently renting, and we are dreaming a very big (Ephesians 3:20) dream for funds to purchase a modest townhouse, significantly reducing our high monthly expenses. It is also my prayer (and dream) to be able to construct a special-needs bathroom/shower facility in our permanent home that will be far safer for Bryson to use as he is trained to care more for himself. The truth is, “Dad” won’t always be with him in this world. He needs to become more independent before the time I am taken home.

Thank you for reading about us, and for considering a contribution to help us as we take on the goals and challenges of our new ministry. I realize that most of you are not in a position to provide financial support. However, simply “Liking” and “Sharing” this post, and “Liking” our new “All The King’s Horses” Facebook page will be a big help. Most of all, we will be very grateful for your prayers behind us.

If you feel led to give, please send a check made payable to “All The Kings Horses Ministry Inc.” c/o Barry Milazzo, 39-09 Brookside Ave, Fair Lawn, NJ 07410. If you would prefer to give online, please find the “Donate” button on the homepage. All donations are fully tax deductible.

While you are at the Website, you will see the front cover of my book, and also be able to read more about it. For those who have not received this post directly (if it was forwarded or “shared” with you) you can sign up at the Website to receive it directly via email in future months.

Thank you and God bless you. I wish you a blessed Christmas.

A grateful follower of Christ, Barry Milazzo