Abiding
"If you abide in me and my words abide in you..."
God is an abundant God. There is no end to the beauty He will pour into our marriages when we learn to walk with Him and hear His voice.
Agreement
"Where there is unity, God commands a blessing..."
Agreement unleashes great power in the Kingdom. When God commands a blessing, He surrounds us with His peace, provision and protection.
Authority
"Let Your Kingdom come and your will be done on earth..."
When the authority of the Kingdom of God flows to us and through us, all of heaven is unleashed on earth. Wherever we go, we carry the Kingdom with us.
2004 was when John first received a vision to find a villa, vineyard and olive grove in Tuscany to operate as a retreat center. Sitting near the Pantheon with his friend Bryan Taylor, he shared the vision. Bryan's response was classic. He said, "Let's go find the property!"
It was in 2007, when John was on a trip to introduce "il foro" to influencers and artists in Milan, that God spoke to John and said, "Write the plan for the retreat center." Shortly thereafter, John and Michelle began to experience some serious difficulties in their marriage and finances. With everything crumbling, they were embittered and close to divorce.
For the last seven years, John and Michelle have been teaching couples how to abide in Christ (John 15) and live in God's blessing of unity (Psalm 133). As, John's good friend, Scott Davis, began to hear the stories of marriages being transformed, he urged John to write the plan to come to Italy. In the summer of 2013, John wrote the plan, but still did not have a call to come to Italy full time.
In the winter of 2016, Anthony and Nikki Testa, invited John and Michelle to lead a marriage retreat just outside of Torino. After seeing great results at the villa God provided for them, both heard from God that they were supposed to start learning Italian. By January of 2017, both John and Michelle heard God's call to Italy.
In the summer of 2001, Michelle and John took their first family trip to Italy. It was love at first site. Upon returning from the trip, John received Psalm 34:7 from the Father, "Delight yourself in the LORD, and I will give you the desires of your heart." For one year, he prayed for the nation of Italy.
In 2003, John met Gaetano Sottile in Rome. Their hearts were knit together. Both men shared a vision of reaching influencers and unleashing them to use their time, talent and treasure to build the Kingdom of God. Within six months, John joined Gaetano in supporting "il foro" in Roma, a gathering of influencers. Shortly thereafter, John joined the board of Italy for Christ and began several years of ministry with his new brother.
But God is faithful. He had surrounded John and Michelle with people to help them through this difficult time. Rich and Linda Case become their marriage mentors, shared their own story, prayed for them, taught them to abide, and walked by their side on the journey toward the restoration of their marriage.
In 2009, on a retreat near Arezzo in Tuscany, it was clear that God had restored John and Michelle's marriage. When they returned home to Colorado, they began to invite everyone they knew to join them for retreats with the Case's. By 2011, they began to realize that God was calling them to give away what had been given to them, the message of abiding, agreement and authority.
To confirm the call, John and Michelle were invited back for another Italian retreat, this time in Eggberge, Switzerland. Over two weeks, they lead two retreats on the authority of the Kingdom of God. They hosted Italians from Torino, Portuguese from Luxembourg, and a young woman who joined from Switzerland after hearing about the retreat just two days before it started.
The Spirit of God was poured out upon the entire gathering. People were healed emotionally and physically. Marriages were restored. Hope rained down where there was no one left untouched by God. Several people were called into ministry and to use their newfound gifts of the Spirit. As happened so often in Acts, the Spirit is poured out to signify a new work of God.
We are now pursuing our call to Italy. And from our hearts, "We are thankful for the men and woman who have walked by our side for the past two decades, encouraging us and gently guiding us toward our vision to see marriages, influencers and artists in Italy transformed by the Kingdom of God."
For more, read, The Rest of the Story.
We see couples joining us from all over Italy, and beyond, to experience relaxation, restoration, and the revitalization of their marriages.
We see these same couples going back to their communities and being a light to marriages all around them.
We see business leaders and entrepreneurs meeting together in cities all over Italy to build Kingdom businesses that change the world.
We see these same influencers gathering with us to turn vision into victory, and ordinary men and women into game-changers.
We see artists from all over Italy, and beyond, coming together to discover the freedom and power of co-creation with God.
We see these same artists multiplying their influence with lives that are transformed and a new voice from God.
The Opportunity!
Join Us
Prayer
Approaching the Throne
The Kingdom of God is fueled by prayer, and we know that our Italian adventure will flourish as people like you join us and pray. We would love to find individual and communities of people who have a passion for reaching Italy or reaching the nations. Contact us at john@ferraroconsulting.com to join our prayer team.
Participation
Joining Us in Italy
Whether you are already in Italy, in Europe, or anywhere in the world, we would love to have you enjoy some time with us on one of our couples retreats, influencer retreats, artist retreats, or one of our gatherings in Roma, Milano, Torino, or Firenze. Ask us about our influencer-in-residence and artist-in-residence programs, as well.
Provision
Funding the Kingdom
If you would like to support the Kingdom of God in Italy, you can give to make our retreats affordable for Italian and European couples. At this point, God has provided for Michy and I and for all of our needs. If you are interested in giving toward our project here in Italy, send an email to john@ferraroconsulting. We are currently in the process of setting up the means to receive funds.
Partnership
Joining the Effort
We know that we cannot reach Italy for Christ alone. We are looking for a few investors who would like to join us, using their time, talent and treasure to help purchase and operate a retreat property in Tuscany. We are also looking for partners to join us for short term trips to share their stories or use their talent to make our Tuscan property better reflect the abundance of the Kingdom of God.
Who We Are
John and Michelle Santaferraro
John and Michelle have been married for 40 years. Their passion and mission is to journey together with couples, unleash influencers to build the Kingdom, and bless artists as co-creators with God. Their story is one "beauty from ashes." John and Michelle have three children and enjoy chasing their two grandsons.
Michelle graduated from Colorado Christian University with a degree in youth ministry, raised her children, and founded Organomics®, a productivity consulting company. With 28 years of experience as a productivity coach and trainer, Michelle has developed the principles of Organomics to help organize her clients based on their personality, preference, and work style. In her recreational time, Michelle enjoys running, hiking 14ers, snowboarding, and creating comfortable spaces for people to connect in her home. Having grown up in Colorado, she is most at home in the mountains, on a trail, and on the move.
John graduated from Denver Seminar with a Master of Divinity degree, spent 7 years as a youth pastor, then joined as the third person in a venture-backed software company with his worship leader. He is currently the CEO and founder of Ferraro Consulting, a strategic and digital marketing consultancy. He has 29 years of experience as an executive in the big data analytics industry, having held executive positions at HP, Compaq, Tandem, Actian, and ParAccel. Along with his passion for marriage, John also had the privilege of spending several years working with men of influence in Denver, Rome, and Milan. In his spare time, John loves to cook gourmet, entertain, travel, and meet people wherever he goes on his journeys. As a native Californian, he is most at home on the beach, in the sun, and in the ocean.
