About Us

Equestrians with Christ is a collaboration of equestrians who share both a passion for God and a love of horses. We have come together for the purpose of sharing, with fellow equestrians, God's message of salvation and redemption through His Son, Jesus Christ.

Because we have a passion for horses and Jesus has a passion for us, we believe that our shared experiences of working with horses is a way to learn from and grow in our relationship with the Lord.

We invite and encourage you to join us in this journey to bring God's word to our friends and colleagues in the horse world. We hope to be an encouragement to each other in the difficult times we all face, and to help each other to grow in faith towards a deeper understanding of God's purpose for our lives both individually and collectively.

Meet the Team

Please scroll down and read a little more about each of us.

Susan Buchanan

I loved horses before I loved God. Aside from my family, horses were my very first love. That passion for them has never diminished. It has remained unchanged through a long career centered around horses. I believe it is one of God’s greatest gifts to me and I am eternally grateful to Him for it.

God knocked on my door in college when I began to search for greater meaning and purpose for my life. I was driven by a strong need to know the answers to where I came from, why I am here and where I am going. Lots of spiritual exploration ensued…transcendental meditation, Buddhism, Mormonism, and North American Indian spiritualism to name a few. Strangely, even though I had been raised in the Christian faith, Jesus Christ was the last place I looked. Once I turned to Him, all the other options paled and faded away. Yet even with welcoming Jesus as my Lord and Savior, it has taken me years to allow Him to reign fully in my life (a process that is ongoing to this day). My life has at times been a complete dumpster fire…three marriages, two divorces, and countless poor decisions based on selfish or misguided needs and desires…but through it all, Jesus was there for me, somehow making the best of my mess.

He gave me miracles when things were the darkest…years of infertility that led to the adoption of my amazing (now adult) children,

the strength to leave an abusive marriage that left me emotionally shattered and financially devastated, meeting and marrying my very best friend in life who then overcame an aggressive and deadly cancer, the rescue of our miracle pony who survived a brutal, nearly fatal assault and is now a cherished member of our family. Through it all, Jesus has been my ever present source of peace, healing and guidance, often using the horses to give my life direction and comfort when I needed it most.

The idea for Equestrians With Christ came to me more than 20 years ago. I was judging a dressage show somewhere in Georgia and before the competition began, they had a pastor give a short, but Spirit-filled prayer over all involved with the show. With that, God moved my heart to think about those involved with horses in a different way. Who was reaching out to these people who shared my passion for horses? Did horses and spirituality have to be mutually exclusive? Fast forward 20 plus years and I can finally say that no, they are not. It has taken me a long time to reach the place where I feel prepared to bring this mission forward. God has used all my life experiences, the good, the bad and everything in between, to bring me to a place where my faith in Him is my prevailing guide. I know now that God does things in His own good timing, both with us individually and communally. Our country as well as the rest of the world, are at a pivotal point regarding peoples’ relationship with one another and more importantly, with God. I believe now is a critical time in history for people of faith to come together. Most specifically those of us who believe that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life for all of mankind. Through Him, we have the privilege of investing our lives in a project of unimaginable worth. The horse world is full of temptations that speak to our passion but can often lead us away from God’s plan for our lives. We make choices every day that will either last because they fit God’s plan or land in the cosmic trash bin because they don’t. Communicating with Him and seeking His voice daily is needed for us to have His wisdom and discernment. I believe that horse people can help each other to be a part of His magnificent journey for us and that the horses themselves can lead us to a greater understanding of how God works in our lives. To that end, it is my fervent prayer that the Lord will use Equestrians With Christ for His good and eternal purposes. To Him belongs the glory!

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Lisa El-Ramey

I can’t recall a time in my life without horses or the church. I say "the church" since my parents attended Sunday services while my siblings and I attended Sunday school. When my family relocated to a more rural area, my brothers and I were enrolled in a Christian school. My experience in the Christian school did little for my spiritual life. To this day, I can recite the books of the Bible. When it comes to verses, I don’t recall one that I was required to memorize for recital in front of class. I felt the people there; teachers, students, parents were “out of touch”. I went to a college preparatory school in my Junior year and onto a state university for my higher education.

I rarely sought the opinion of, or assistance from, God in my life. I dabbled in spirituality with tarot cards, crystals, etc. My favorite yoga instructor speaks in Sanskrit, “prays”, and ends class with a chant of "OM". While some of the rituals I performed over the years have brought temporary relief from my suffering, it was generally short lived.

It wasn’t until my world was completely crushed by my divorce that I hit the lowest point of my life. I was lost, depressed, and alone. Those that have gone through an unexpected breakup or loss know the deep pain it causes and the shock of betrayal and abandonment. Not only from those closest to you, but from many who claimed to be your friend.

I finally decided to find a church. I wanted one that spoke to me. I don’t need, or want, stroking and I can’t stand the often, squishy, milk toast people I had generally encountered at past churches. After attending a few area churches, I was blessed to find a small congregation led by a truly called leader. While finding a church was important, it is my personal relationship with Christ and God that has filled my heart and life with all I need. In addition to my daily prayers, when I feel lonely, hurt, confused, or need divine guidance, I turn to God. I have been truly blessed in my life and the final "piece" has been my acceptance of Christ. The Peace that choice brought has been like no other. The life of Christ is all one has to look toward for inspiration, wisdom, and love. I am one who gains strength through perspective. Christ's life helps me to keep my experiences in the context and balance they require. I believe the original sin is, we came to believe we are separate from God. Each of us at the moment of creation is filled with a soul that is part of God. Much like a small whirlpool is part of a great river, distinct, but still inextricably linked to the whole. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ and his vanquishment of death is proof that we are eternal. We need only to believe to be delivered home to God in Heaven.

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Liz Carney

I am so grateful to share my testimony of how God transformed my life, while using horses to help guide the process. I was raised in a Christian home. I had wonderful parents who taught me all about faith. Who, by example, lived what they believed. I was happy at home always feeling safe and secure. I also began riding at a young age. I somehow convinced my parents that I needed a horse and by age ten they bought me my first one. I rode him everywhere. Through the woods and up the road, took him swimming and even tied him to a tree while I skated. Everyday was an adventure and life seemed so good then.

However, not long after that time, my mother was diagnosed with cancer. I was reassured she would be fine, even as I watched her undergo hospital visits, surgery, and multiple treatments. At times she seemed fine, but then the cancer returned and we were told there was nothing more the doctors could do. She went back to the hospital for what I thought would be a few days, but then she died. Our family was devastated. I was just 14 at the time and had no idea how to handle what had just happened.

Shortly after my mother’s passing, I developed an eating disorder. I guess I was trying to find some comfort and control in my life and turned to food and regulating my weight. I would either starve myself completely or binge and purge uncontrollably. This viscous cycle lasted for years and consumed my life. I had no peace, no joy, and almost no reason to live. I tried to get help. I had counselors, therapy, hospital stays, etc., but nothing worked long term. Finally, one day in desperation, I did something I hadn’t done in a long time. I prayed and cried out to God. Miraculously, that next day I was able to make it through the day without the routine abuse of my body. One day turned into another, then another, and another, until I was finally free from years of torment.

I was still very vulnerable at the time, because I didn’t know how to live normally anymore. I felt a nudging, I now know was heaven sent, to go back and do what had given me the most joy in my life. Horses. I found a job cleaning stalls at the same barn I grew up in. There, my journey to complete recovery began. I used that time to reconnect with God and He used those horses to teach me responsibility and many other life lessons. Far too many to recount.

I wish I could say that all my problems vanished at once and I never had another test or trial. That would not be true, but I had learned what I needed to make it through them. The more I prayed, searched the Word of God for answers, and sought others for support, the better my life became. I live this consistently now. God has been so faithful and I continue to grow.

The Bible says that God is no respecter of persons. That means, what He does for one He will do for another. He shows no partiality or favoritism. So no matter what you have done, where you have been, or how far you have fallen from His grace, He can restore you. He can set you free. He may even use horses to help you along the way. Just call upon Him today. He will hear you. I promise!!!

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Crystal Little

Over 20 years ago, God opened my eyes to a belief so lovingly personal and wonderfully nurturing that I decided to outwardly proclaim my love for my Creator by baptism. I thought a sacrificial mission, like a "leave all your material things behind and follow me" kind of life is where I was called to be, I was mistaken. Unbeknownst to me, my called mission field was not going to be in a small European village helping to erect orphanages, but at the door steps of my childhood home. Over many years, God has shown me that He will use my life in whatever way He wants to nourish and flourish His kingdom. Whether I submit to His calling in that moment or not or admit that I need him and everyone, LITERALLY EVERYONE, needs Him. The wealthy even more so than the poor, the healthy even more so than the sick, the "upright" even more so than the "down and out". I now know, go where I am called, speak the truth when it is most difficult, and "love anyways".

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Riley Buchanan

While watching a movie about Jesus’s life, when I was about five years old, I declared that Jesus was my Lord and Savior with God and my mom as witnesses. I grew up in a Christ-loving household, going to church, and CCD (Confraternity of Christian Doctrine). Around the same age of my proclamation, I began horseback riding. My faith and riding experiences were similar in the sense that each had a pivotal point where I became all in. For my faith, it was my first Steubenville East Conference where I memorably experienced feeling the presence of God; for riding, it was adopting Molson, a rescue thoroughbred from the MSPCA. Each has taught me so much about myself, community, patience, love, and grace, and I am excited to be a part of a mission where those two worlds intertwine.

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Robin Hall

I grew up in a family that was tied to religion as part of the community. Our small church – Ballard Vale United Church – was the central point of the small Ballard Vale community in Andover MA (1 square mile). My Grandfather and Father built the church building, and my brothers Boy Scout Eagle project was making the building handicap accessible – every square inch of the building holds a memory for someone in our family. With about 200 in our congregation and split denomination between United Church of Christ and United Methodist, we made our own rules and paved our own way. We were one of the first Open and Affirming Church’s in New England and early on decided to be a church centered around benevolence and giving. I was active in my church from a young age, I loved my church family. We had our “spot” 4th pew back on the right, and we were there every single week. As I got older and my life unfolded before me - I started to fall away from the church and my church family. I was a single mother at 19, raising my daughter completely on my own. I felt at the time that I no longer had a place in the community I had loved so much – I felt that I was missing something. This feeling grew over the coming years, I felt isolated and without direction. My grandmother urged me to go back to God, find Jesus again – “They are your community, they are your family. You are loved and have love to give” she told me. We made a plan to go back to Church and sit quietly with my daughter in the 4th pew back on the right. I was so nervous, so worried that I would not feel welcome and that I would feel like I was less than everyone else (which had become an all too familiar feeling when trying to raise a child alone in an affluent town). All I can say about that day is that as soon as I walked through the doors you could feel that this Christian community was doing the Lord’s work, embracing anyone and everyone, meeting everyone exactly where they were that day, and lifting the word of God in ways I had been missing for years. Each week my young daughter and I sat with my Grandparents in the 4th pew back on the right – I was home. I learned quickly though that life continues, and changes happen – being at church on Sundays in person faded away with Covid. Many Sundays now the “4th pew back on the right” is my spot-on horseback, often I attend church via zoom while taking care of my horse and enjoying my farm family. I see my church community often and am thankful that I now feel welcome and loved as exactly who I am – regardless of how I got there. I have learned from my church community how to bring God and Jesus to everyday life, and I have learned to give myself the same grace and love that the Lord gives me. I feel that I am called to show others that they too are worthy of not only each other’s grace and love, but also God’s. I try to follow Jesus’s example of seeking to bring all to accept this love, forgiveness, and grace, and affirm that I need to proceed compassionately and justly with others. I am looking forward to continuing to invite others to join me in the 4th pew back on the right – physically and or spiritually.

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Dana Nause

When I was little, I woke up to horses in my backyard (they had escaped from the neighbors house). I was so infatuated with them I wanted one!! I had horse posters all over my room and I had horse books that I red constantly.
I started riding horses when I was seven years old, and since then, they have been an integral part of my life. Growing up I felt like I didn’t really fit in at school…..I was quiet, I did not have many friends and I felt like an outcast…But I had horses! My Parents bought my first horse when I was in eighth grade. If it wasn’t for that, I don’t know how I would have gotten through that time in my life. It was really the only thing that kept me going.

I started out riding the hunter jumpers and when I turned 18, my trainer introduced me to Dressage and I was hooked!

I grew up in a Christian home and I always believed in God but I didn’t understand what it looked like or what it meant to walk with Jesus and LIVE the Christian life.

I was married for 11 years and it ended in divorce. It was NOT how I envisioned things would go at all. Afterwards, I struggled with anxiety and depression. I did have friends to talk to, and I was in counseling which helped but it was only temporary.

A friend invited me to a new church and I joined the ladies group. One of the wise leaders of the group was so kind to me when I was going through this challenging time and we became friends. Together in a smaller group, we went though a study about relationships. It was through that study I learned. I learned about forgiveness and Grace. I found God and true healing, hope and peace! God took away the anxiety and depression and totally changed my life!
I now know that Gods way is really the ONLY Way!!

My horse Dhelmonico is a dream come true!! I bought him as a 2 year old out of the field from the breeder. He was not always an easy horse. He was large, fast, stubborn and some people said he was dangerous. My trainer (the talented Rebecca) took a chance on us and with her help we have trained him to the Intermediate 1 level! It has been a long road but such a rewarding experience!

It’s amazing what God can do. God has redeemed most of my story and I’m so excited about what he’s going to do next in my life. I believe he has big things and I am holding onto my hat!

God showed me that we have a deep connection with our horses just as God wants to have with us.
We dance with our horses, and I see that as dancing for the Lord. Dancing is a sign that God has indeed set us free and it is an expression of joy, celebration, abundance, and praise!

Psalms‬ ‭149‬:‭3‬-‭4
“Praise his name with dancing, accompanied by tambourine and harp. For the Lord delights in his people; he crowns the humble with victory.”

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