Called to Serve
Called to Serve
Embedded Files
Welcome!
God creatively brought me to be employed by First Stone Ministries in June of 1998. Administrators fill important roles in jobs, and mine is not much different.
My hope is that although I'm not fully funded by the organization, you'll see our mission's worth and give to my work in supporting that mission.
Thank you in advance,
C. Joseph Thiessen
About First Stone Ministries
About First Stone Ministries
"Let him who is without sin cast the First Stone." And Jesus also said, "Go and sin no more." John 8
A ministry of sexual redemption through the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Our Mission
Offering hope to individuals struggling with sexual and relational sin, and those who love them, through effective, compassionate, and biblically steadfast ministry.
Our Vision
We empower and equip people to escape isolation and flourish in their personal lives and families by offering biblical guidance and tools for healthy relationships. We specialize in ministering to those with unwanted same-sex attraction, sexual behaviors, and identities.
Our Work
While others on staff focus their work on ministry to individuals through Biblical Discipleship/Pastoral Care for men and women caught in a struggle between God's will for them and their own ideas about human sexuality, my work overarches the whole of the ministry.
Why it's important
Those who are willing to lead one struggling with same-sex attraction or other sexual and relational sins to the cross of Christ and walk with them on the journey of denying self are becoming scarcer. We agree with Jesus' words that all are sinners, and we strive to obey his words to go and sin no more.
There are many in the Body of Christ who struggle with their sexuality, with past and present effects of abuse, with sexual addiction or pornography addiction. There are many forms of brokenness here. FSM is uniquely equipped to walk with these people.
What we offer
FSM provides one-on-one Biblical discipleship, Support Group ministry for those struggling with the aforementioned brokennesses as well as for Parents, Family and Friends of these people.
Our Parent's, Family and Friends group meets twice monthly. This group experiences shock when their loved one comes to them to admit they are gay. Each parent goes through a process of denial, grief and anger and through it all grows in their understanding of God's ways and learns how to hold Truth in one hand and be Loving in another. It's a dance that is difficult but rewarding to those who embrace the process.
Our other groups meet weekly. We usually offer worship and teaching, but the bulk of the time is reserved for processing our experiences using Scripture, confession of sin and encountering the Holy Spirit through soaking prayer. We desire to teach each person to engage the Throne of God boldly for themselves.
Basic Stats
Our small staff ministers to individuals and families on a weekly basis.
We offer these regular groups:
Living Free - A 20-plus week biblical discipleship program under active development by First Stone Ministries.
Summer Group - varied topics and small group discussion
Be Steadfast Parents Group - meets twice monthly (online & in-person)
FSM is sought out by those who desire freedom from shame, isolation, and longstanding sexual and relational troubles.
Those We Have Served
Those We Have Served
Kim laughingly remembers thinking that she was “scratched a little, but not broken,” when she originally visited First Stone Ministries. It wasn’t until several years later, broken-hearted by grief, that she realized her overwhelming need for Christ. The all-encompassing loving compassion of Christ ministered to her heart through that difficult time and drew her into a more intimate relationship with the Father. As He continued to pursue, Kim realized her long-standing habits of judging others as both better and worse than herself, of engaging in relationships that seemed to fulfill her desire to be important, and of worrying about doing all the ‘right’ Christian things, revealed a hidden archive of hurts and secret sin, and a distorted view of herself and the One who was pursuing her. Today, Kim is walking in a more balanced view of herself as wounded and healing, sinful and being perfected, and “seeing in a glass darkly” and truth being revealed.
As a youngster, Joseph played around his family’s farm exploring the creeks, hills and every nook and cranny he could find. The youngest of four siblings, God created a need for friendship by making those near Joseph to be difficult to reach by age and circumstance. There was no great abuse but rather an intense need for companionship. Joseph grew into a broken self-identity not knowing how to relate well to those around him. Early on, the Holy Spirit helped Joseph to find friendship in Jesus. Jesus has helped Joseph to grow in his capacity to love himself as Jesus made him; and Jesus has helped Joseph to speak up and communicate his needs, fears and joys with the Body of Christ. Joseph says, “They are my brothers and sisters and through messy spirituality we are growing up together.”
Being one month premature in 1959 and surviving was a miracle, yet the isolation that established itself in the first month of Linda’s life set her up for a non-relational lifestyle. It also left her craving affection that left Linda vulnerable to be sexually molested from the age of 8 until 16.
Linda said, “After struggling with various sexual addictions for my entire life, having First Stone Ministries available was a Godsend. It became a safe haven speak out - to tell of the woundings - and the pain - to release it safely into the hands others and press it into the Father Heart of God. Living Waters has been a program that has allowed me to become relational in a healthy way to others... and as a speaker said this year... ‘Grace is immediate - healing takes time.’ No truer words were spoken to me. Thank you, First Stone - Thank you Living Waters.”
Fear and shame were my playmates, loneliness and confusion my companions—once. I was in my own world, left to those who are sexually abused as children. “What happened didn’t happen”, “what you know, you don’t know...”, so I was told. “Pretend everything’s alright, or else...” It was how I learned to keep secrets. Lost and wanting a way out, Jesus had mercy on me. Free of lies, it’s all just history. Thanks for this ministry.
The Essential Administrator
The Essential Administrator
Of the many resources our ministry provides, I'm responsible for making it user-friendly. Testimonies, Articles and Newsletters all find their way online or in the mail with my direct input.
I'm the Bookkeeper
When it comes to donations, deposits, paying bills, accounts receivable, payroll and reporting to our board of directors, I'm that guy.
I'm the Tech Geek
When a hard drive fails, the Internet or email stops working, I'm the guy who gets it back in order. How about making sure one computer talks to all other PCs? That's my job!
I'm the Replenishment Guy
From books we offer to our clients to supplies for our support groups and office needs, I'm the guy the staff calls upon to get it done.
I'm the Event Manager
Because of my expertise on all the areas I've mentioned already, I am well-versed on making sure an event runs smoothly. FSM hosts conferences and seminars and is invited to speaking engagements and Q&A panels. Many of these events give us the opportunity to provide the printed resources I've helped create.
Support the Mission
Support the Mission
Due to the necessity of my work, FSM pays me a small salary. However, it is my duty to raise funds for the majority of my ministry work.* Because of the latter, my income can vary month to month based on the donations that come in. The fluctuation can vary widely depending on the season. For this reason, I need donors to shore up my monthly income.
Quite frankly, being an Introvert has made support raising difficult. If you know of someone who you think might support my work at First Stone Ministries, please invite them to this page.
My monthly pre-income-tax goal is $4000. I am $1900 away from that goal. One-time gifts are also needed to fund my travel fund which is used for personal retreats and trips to related ministry events.
To reach this goal, I need any of the following additional pledges:
24 donors giving $80/semi-monthly
12 donors giving $160/month.
To support this administrator, please click the Donate button. *
* If tax-benefit and a receipt of giving isn't important to you, you may give directly to me using Apple Cash, Cash App, Venmo, or PayPal; however, as a matter of practice, I give 10% from these gifts to FSM recognizing them as the reason for my service to the Lord.
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