Matthew & Marisa Hungerford
Matthew Hungerford grew up at the Ranch, where he spent many of his summers working as a Wrangler and as a counselor. After graduating high school, Matthew attended Ethnos Bible Institute (New Tribes Bible Institute), where he received his associates in Biblical Studies. He came on staff in 2019 and serves in our Barn assisting our Equine Director with everyday work projects, horse training, and student education. Marisa graduated from the School of Discipleship in 2019 and there went on to graduate with her BSN in Nursing in 2022. She helps with retreats and will be working in town as a nurse this winter.
In the life of the Hungerford
December 2024
Marisa, Lucy, and I are doing well. Marisa is loving being a stay at home mom and taking care of Lucy! This summer she was able to help out in the nurses station and mentor several summer staff girls, and this winter she got to be a part of the Christmas choir for the community Christmas party. For thanksgiving we were able to go visit my (Matthew’s) mom and dad in Tennessee, which was so much fun! Family time is always the best!
Lucy is now 8 months old and is crawling everywhere and she loves pulling herself to standing on everything, especially the couches. She loves “riding” horses (sitting on them and that’s about it) and she seems to enjoy the snow. She just popped her third tooth and is overall a pretty happy baby.
This summer I was able to do the Sunday night messages for the kids. This is the first message they hear when they come to camp. So, I had the job of introducing the theme for the week and to share the word of God, on the back of a horse. I also did my first away message, where I loaded up the animals in a trailer and did a message at the Warren County Fair. I have definitely grown in how I do my messages from the mount and am excited to grow in my speaking abilities. Summer and fall were very busy seasons for me, as I was working on updating the fences around the ranch. This includes putting in new posts, clearing the fence lines from trees that have overgrown it, tearing down old fence lines, and putting up new ones. In addition I have been working on improving Livery, the trail barn which I am responsible for. This summer we added a Livery new camp, pack camp, where we camped out in the woods and used horses and a mule to transport our supplies. I was responsible to make sure that it went well and thankfully it was a huge success! Pat, pat, pat, that’s me patting myself on the back. No, in reality it did go well and we are hoping to see it grow this next summer. If you know any horsey boys from the age of 12-17 you please let them know.
Marisa and I have our own adviser group this year, which is a first for us. Last year we were with another family. We are very excited to help mentor these girls and to see what God has in store for them, and how He will grow us in the process.
Recently I have been learning to find my strength in God and not in myself. This year has been very busy and I don’t feel like I have the time or the energy to do all the things that are on my plate. I try to do it on my own and make excuses for why things don’t get done or, I just get mad that I didn’t get done what I wanted. Through it all God has been teaching me to rely on him for my strength. John 15.
Marisa here, God has really been re-enforcing the fact that He is in control of everything and I am not. Too often I try to control everything in my life and then get overwhelmed and discouraged when it does not go how I planned. Recently Lucy has been fighting a cold in addition to getting her third tooth, for two full days all she wanted was to be held. So much got left undone and I felt discouraged that I could not keep up, until Matthew softly reminded me that these moments with Lucy are the ones that have eternal value, the house can wait.
Please be praying for continued wisdom as we parent Lucy and desire to show her God’s love. For Cindy and Mira, our students, that they would rely on the Lord this year and allow Him to stretch them in His timing. For me (Matthew) that he would continue to daily seek God for his strength. For Marisa that she would remember that God is in control, and His plan is best.
Merry Christmas,
Matthew, Marisa, and Lucy
All staff members at Miracle Mountain Ranch live on mission support. As we look forward to what the future holds for our family, our financial needs are changing. We are currently seeking individuals and Churches who are interested in joining in our ministry at the Ranch through financial support. We are asking that you would prayerfully consider coming alongside us in this ministry.
For more information, you can contact us at or you can give online directly by clicking the button below.