Thankful Thursday

During the hot parts of the day we roam the woods of this property we are purchasing.  Blackberry bushes are scattered everywhere.  Bravely we reach past thorny leaves and stems to pick the ripe berries.  On the inside label of the fruit pectin is a recipe for no-cook freezer jam.  The fruit is mashed, measured, and mixed before being spooned into jars. 

Most of the boys gather for a work day.  It is time to get a chicken yard and coop made for these growing chickens.  During a recent storm one of our chicken tractors was blown a bit releasing chickens to wander.  These boys becoming men dig holes and stretch fencing to enclose an area by the garden.  Bracing an old tree house they move it to the new chicken yard.  The tree house will be recycled to become a chicken coop. 

Days and weeks fill up with work.   A few vegetables begin to bloom and grow.  Anticipation for their tasty goodness also grows as we look forward to harvesting what we have been spending our days weeding and watering.  

Daily the sun rises and sets and the Lord grants rain for watering our little garden.  I take along a hammock and Bible to rest and cool down between weeding the garden rows.  Lifting my eyes to the sky I am reminded that God is all grace and gives strong bodies to work and success to our plans.  Exhaling slowly I breathe a prayer, Father, this week I am thankful for…

“You care for the land and water it; you enrich it abundantly.  The streams of God are filled with water to provide the people with grain, for that is how you prepared the land.”  Psalm 65:9

Your wisdom in preparing the land to grow such provision

Blackberry jam

Homegrown vegetable stir-fry

Safety of wandering chickens

Precious husband and boys working together

Strong, sweaty bodies

Chicken yard

Recycling something old into something useful

Time with girlfriends

Warrior women praying together

___________________________________________________

Rolling up the tent flaps…

Morning breaks softly over the hill behind the farmhouse, light streams in through the open window.   Two youngest and I greet the morning and then the chickens.  We move the tractors to fresh grass then take them feed and water.  Back inside I prepare a cup of coffee and we pour three bowls of stale cereal after which we all shower and dress for service. 

We are all in good spirits because we know we will worship with and see friendly faces this morning.  Moving to a new place is challenging, finding a new place of worship, meeting new people.  It is time to take a break and worship with those where there is a history of fellowship.  So we drive a little over an hour to where we have worshipped pretty much the last 10 years.

After service the three youngest spend the afternoon with Precious husband while I am blessed to have lunch, visit, and pray with girlfriends.  We have been praying together as a group now for over six years.  These prayer warrior friends have watched my back seeking the Father through financial hardships, challenges with my children, and requests to keep my marriage strong.  I have felt their caring and seen the answers to their prayers.  There have been answers to prayers I have been privileged to pray on their behalf as well.  

Late in the day children and I hug Precious husband and head home.  A thunderstorm has blown by while we were all visiting.  One of our chicken tractors has been blown around the yard and the chickens are roaming free.  They quickly come to meet us as we get out of the vehicle.  We reposition their mobile home and they willingly go in.  The storm had our golden retriever girl so scared she broke a screen window to get in the house.   Fun son fixes the screen and takes care of the scaredy-cat dog while Princess daughter and I walk up to the pasture to check the fence lines and horses as the sun is setting. 

Sitting down on the bed the phone rings and it is another sweet friend calling to see how things are going.  We chat pleasantly catching up from the last several weeks of not seeing each other at service.  Hanging up the phone I tell Princess daughter, “This has been a great day.”  Time well spent in worship and God’s Word, spending time visiting and praying with Godly friends, hugs from Precious husband, and even in the caring of stressed animals.  The Spirit of God has been sweet from beginning to end of this day. 

I think of the children of Israel as they were traveling in the desert.  There were days where they traveled and life was busy with the tasks of packing and moving and setting up the tents again.  Then there were those days when they were camping, situated around the Tabernacle, hearing and watching what they could of the priests carrying out their tasks so that atonement was made.  Perhaps they spent those days enjoying the camaraderie that comes for shared experience, sitting with their tent flaps rolled up gazing on the presence of the Lord among them in the form of the Tabernacle. 

The Father has given another oasis in the midst of the desert wanderings.   The tent flaps of the soul have been rolled up in the presence of the Father and friends.  Just as the rain over the last several days has watered the garden and caused the plants to shoot up, I feel refreshed, watered from a day soaking in God’s presence and the presence of His saints.   

Thankful Thursday

The washing machine would not drain, the dryer will not heat up to dry the clothes, and now the whole laundry room electricity is out.  All this while Precious husband is working long hours at the fire station.   Moving into a different house is fraught with learning the quirks. 

I call Precious husband and he walks me through finding the correct breaker box and getting the laundry room electricity running again.  The dryer still won’t dry but we can take a warm shower and hang clean clothes on the line.  Adjustments are made to deal with the quirks. 

As we adjust the hot weeks of summer scorch by.  In the mornings we take care of chickens and weed the garden.  Midday is spent in the woods searching for a cool place to hang a hammock and read a book.  Late afternoon is time to water the garden and train the horse.  The sun sets as Fun Sun puts away saddle and blanket. 

Many more adjustments will be made to our new environment as we learn more about having a barnyard in our backyard and raising a few garden crops.   The one thing that stays the same is the search for God’s blessings and my grateful heart.

Father – I am thankful for…

Darling daughter teaching how to trim goat hooves

Sensitive son learning to trim goat hooves

Two week old goat kids cuddling under my chin

Rain

Vegetables growing

Precious husband providing water for garden

Fun Son training horse

Horse growing more trusting and affectionate

Friends who invite two youngest to day camp for the week

Blackberries

____________________________________________________

Thursday’s I give thanks in this spot on the web.  Here I am seeing more clearly how God graces my life with a voice to sing His glory.  There are others who raise their voices in thanksgiving as well.  Check them out here…

A Neighbor, A Newspaper, and Prayer

Our neighbor walks across the lawn this steamy summer afternoon and brings me the local newspaper.  She opens to page two and points to an article entitled “Worth a few minutes of your time to read”.  She invites me to enjoy the article when I have a few minutes and then encourages me to take plums from their tree which is loaded with the luscious fruit. 

After she leaves I open the page and settle in front of a box fan to read the article which is a reprint of a speech given by a valedictorian from a school here in the county.  It begins in the way most speeches do for high school graduations and then the young man gets to the heart of his speech based from the theme “Uncertain but Certain.”  He understands our nation stands in the midst of uncertainty while encouraging his fellow students:

“… to look beyond the present towards reshaping our nation to what it can be and to what it once was…we can make a difference.  … How, you might ask?  Simply put: prayer. …God never changes; so if he provides internal and eternal stability, why not let him be the leader as you progress through life’s journey?  Prayer provides a wonderful communication channel to God.  He is the only benchmark and cornerstone for morality, as well as a consistent direction for leadership and an unwavering foundation. …The world is full of uncertainty; but God is steadfast. …” 

Princess daughter goes out and plucks five juicy plums from the tree.  I bite into the sweet juicy flesh.  God’s loving call to prayer during the month of May echoes into June and I listen intently.  The neighbor’s fruit tree bore abundant fruit last year and has again this year.  Through my neighbor sharing the newspaper article God speaks, he answers my desire to hear His voice. 

God is steadfast. I trust him to be the leader.  Daily I read through passages in Psalms.  Today Psalm 62 is part of the reading…

“Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to Him, for God is our refuge.”  Psalm 62:8

__________________________________________

The link above, “Uncertain but Certain", will take you to the full speech.  It is worth a few minutes of your time to read.

Scripture Only Sunday

 

“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness.  We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.  And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.”  Romans 8:26-27

Thankful Thursday

A friend, whose family Precious husband has known since elementary school, called and issued an invitation to her parent’s 50th wedding anniversary.  They talked for a while and she asks if we would like to come out and spend the afternoon at the farm she and her husband are developing about an hour from our farm.

We load kids in the van and head over to their place.  She brings BBQ and coleslaw and we sit in rocking chairs on their front porch.  They have “hairy cows” (Scottish Highland breed) and we enjoy watching the calves chase each other.  Our children play cards together and Princess daughter shows their youngest daughter how to chase and catch chickens.   Most of us were not raised around farm animals and they still have a house in the city. 

It is a relaxing afternoon and husband absorbs all the ideas her husband has used over the last three years of working their farm when he is not working his regular job.  I think this encourages Precious husband as he is working at the fire station and the farm.   Perhaps in three years our place will be as efficient as theirs.  We will continue to enjoy their company and learn how those of us not raised on a farm can start a small family farm.  A place to grow a garden, raise chickens, have a few goats, cows, and horses for our own personal use and pleasure.

Father - Rocking on her porch I think of how blessed we are to have known this family for so long.  Thank you for their influence in our lives.  Thank you for the time to visit their farm.  I am also thankful for…

Rocking chairs

Friends Precious husband has brought into my life

A park play date and the possibility of new friends

Summer swimming after Vacation Bible School

Water slides

Craft day with Gold-hearted mom and Darling daughter

Sewing machine given to Darling daughter

Playing with Little One

Children playing new games

Art attempts (Princess daughter calls attempt an animated version of Little One)

Fun son capturing and riding our wild little pony

Precious husband hauling water for garden

Neighbor’s thoughtful sharing newspaper and

Tasty plums

Helpful son and his church boys group safety during Appalachian Trail hike

Cool shower after working in garden

Small evening rain shower (Father, we could use more, thank you)

___________________________________________

Thursday’s I give thanks in this spot on the web.  Here I am seeing more clearly how God graces my life with a voice to sing His glory.  There are others who raise their voices in thanksgiving as well.  Check them out here…

Scripture Only Sunday

O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!  Psalm 8:1

Thankful Thursday

Precious husband calls them useless animals even though we all think they are beautiful.  They have been left to roam the farm for the last year since we have lived too far to consistently work with them.  Now that we are here on a daily basis they are getting regular workouts.  I usually get a small lump of fear in my throat as they are such large animals – I am working on that fear thing. 

We are learning about living a simplified life one step at a time.  When we moved to the farm we gave up the cable TV and instant internet service.  The little farmhouse has no central heating or air conditioning so we are making use of shade trees and box fans.  We have planted a garden for the third year and I am hoping for a better harvest this year.  Our chickens are getting large and it is almost time to cull the flock and put a few in the freezer – too many roosters.  Butchering our first chicken should be a “fun” learning experience. 


In all these things I find myself moving a little more slowly.   Along the desert paths and with the slowing down comes a heart enlarged with gratitude…

Father God – In this moment I am thankful for…

cool evenings to work horses
overcoming fears
less
wild blackberries and flowers
towering shade trees
wrought iron table situated under trees
windows open
fan stirring breeze across sheets
Vacation Bible Schools – those who minister to our children
finishing report cards for the year
sun tea
ice cold water

Precious husband taking us to…
a place to swim
sweet Lady chasing sticks in the water
waterfalls
a phone call to Precious husband from a life-long friend, a time to rejoice
seasonal salad – spinach, strawberries, feta cheese and Greek vinaigrette
help hauling water from creek to garden
camera to capture all the blessings God gives

________________________________

“For all things sing to you, at times we just hear them more clearly.” –Rilke

Thursday’s I give thanks in this spot on the web.  Here I am seeing more clearly how God graces my life with a voice to sing His glory.  There are others who raise their voices in thanksgiving as well.  Check them out here…

Desert Worship

I had stared at the Facebook icon for weeks, May – Month of Prayer.   I desire to grow in the area of prayer, but for some reason anxiety about pursuing the subject rises in my throat.  Perhaps the disappointment over unanswered prayers or answers that were the opposite to what I prayed  is what had me tiptoeing around a monthly focus on prayer.  The hesitation is what finally convinced me that perhaps this was the very subject needed for study. 

At the library, Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference? by Phillip Yancey is checked out along with Drawing Near by John Bevere.  An online friend recommends A Praying Life: Connecting with God in a Distracting World by Paul Miller.  Psalm 107 and the Lord’s Prayer become Scriptures that lead.  Slowly I have been seeking, striving to grow in this area. 

Yet I have felt empty, a soul wandering in a desert of quiet.  Silence has become a cloud between heaven and my heart.  The summer heat has matched my desert wanderings – hot.  Lethargy creeps and the energy to pray is nowhere to be found.  Amazingly in the oasis of Psalm 107 the words,  “He led them” keep a repeating refrain. 

I wonder how the children of Israel dealt with the heat of the desert as the Lord led them?  The image of the cloud that covered the tent of meeting and signaled when they should move and when they should camp keeps coming to mind.  How did the Israelites handle the days, weeks, months when the Lord stopped in one hot, dusty place?

Turning to Exodus 33:10 I read…

“Whenever the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance to the tent, they all stood and worshipped, each at the entrance to his tent.”

I’ve been wandering in the desert this past month focusing on prayer, seeking the consuming cloud of a fiery God.  The Israelites wandered in the desert with the visible presence of a this burning God. 

I read from Yancey’s book:

“I have learned to see prayer not as my way of establishing God’s presence, rather as my way of responding to God’s presence that is a fact whether or not I can detect it.”

God’s presence is all around me I simply need to respond.  I read in Yancey’s book about a man that had been married 65 years.  He compares his marriage relationship with the relationship he has with Father God. 

“Romance starts as a blazing bonfire…after a few decades it settles…like a heap of glowing coals…coals are good…you can roast marshmallows or warm your feet.  A different kind of companionship opens up.  ..in prayer…most of the time I persist because I value the relationship with God, just as I value my marriage.  I gratefully warm my feet by the fire.”

The heat continues to rise and I yield in faith waiting on the cloud to move.  I respond like the children of Israel when they see the cloud for my stop at the oasis of Psalm 107 has led me into Psalm 108:1.  I will stand here and worship until the cloud of His presence moves to the next place of worship. 

“My heart is steadfast, O God;

I will sing and make music with all my soul.”

Scripture Only Sunday

“Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men.”  Psalm 107:31

Thankful Thursday

Two-thirty in the am rolls around and the flashing of police lights wakes me.  It is an exciting wake up, the second floor of our house has had a police escort on its way to our farm.  It has been a four month process since things started rolling (much longer if you include our waiting time).   Now we wait for it to be moved from the driveway to the house site.

Too excited to go back to sleep I lie in bed and thank God for the house finally making it to our property.  My mind turns back over the week and I find other things to thank God for as well.

Father, you continue to give blessings and I am grateful.  Keep my eyes open to see the graces from your heart.  Thank you for…

Second floor of house arriving

Lots of baby goats (three boys and three girls)

Safe delivery for all three goat mamas

Barbeque and coleslaw

Sharing hammocks under the trees

A water hole to cool off in

Green shoots coming up in garden

Creek beside garden to draw water from

Box fans on hot summer day

Compliments for Fun sun from zoo volunteer coordinator