Studying the pilgrims for personal and political growth

Posted October 30, 2008 @ 5:48 am | No Comments |

The family theme for this season is understanding the impact of suffering on our lives. As I have sought God’s guidance in home schooling and shaping these very impressionable minds, I have noticed a remarkable answer from God. All the literature I have been lead to deals with the theme of suffering, perseverance, and triumph. But it doesn’t stop there.  Triumph in and of itself is not the end.  Triumph leads to impact, influence, and world change. 

The Hobbit taught us how an unlikely little person was chosen for a special job which would involve suffering. The Tinker’s armor chronicled the suffering of John Bunyan from birth to death in a fictional book while Piper’s book the Hidden smile of God gave us an instructive informative look at the suffering of great men including Bunyan. I marvel at the continuity I see in the literary selections God lead me to read to the children. One month ago we began reading a great book called Pilgrim stories for children by Margaret Pumphrey. This book is a contemporary to the life and times of John Bunyan. Truly God is showing us common themes in common times.

The children enjoy hearing of the faith of the men and women who left England to endure hardship and death to have the freedom to worship with a clear conscience. Consider Dr. Mark Fakkema’s conclusions about the faith of our forefathers as they traversed difficulties to worship in truth. Read this excerpt carefully as it is quite powerful.

“…the primary concern of our Founding Fathers was not financial gain or more adventure. Like their counter-parts of the first century of Christianity, they would rather die than lose their faith. They were ready to endure every hardship, even death itself, rather than lose their faith for future generations. Even though 52 of their number died the first year, they were unperturbed. When their ship the “Mayflower”, returned to England, NOT ONE WENT BACK. What a testimony; what a manifestation of Christian Character, Christian self-government, christian economics, christian education, and biblical Christian unity!”

We are nearly half way through the pilgrim stories. The above excerpt comes from a book that we are getting ready to read. The pilgrim stories is a wonderful apetizer for our next study which will involve reading the book called Teaching and learning American Christian History.

The thrust of our family reading time is to come to terms with the impact of suffering on our family identity, on our individual identity, and to prepare a garden ready for cultivating productive fruits as a result of such suffering. I have challenged my children to think about how God is using the hard times to prepare them for a great work in their life.

As we put all of our study and family reading into context, we are now gearing up to impact those outside our family by studying Christian self-government. I am learning that our future government begins right here in my own home by teaching young ones to govern themselves by biblical principles. I marvel as we prepare for this study. Our forefathers knew affliction well. Yet, they stood strong and laid a foundation for future generations. Again, God is showing us how heroic suffering that lead to amazing influence. Studying the pilgrims adds another great dimension to training and equipping these warriors for the Lord.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

How to help your children through suffering with family reading time

Posted October 29, 2008 @ 5:44 am | No Comments |

Pain, suffering, and agony. We have experienced it as a family. It has been our life for the last year. Well, it was a part of our life before that, but it came to a real head over the last year. It is no wonder that when I petitioned God for leading my home schooling this year that I sought out ways to help the children understand human suffering through our home school studies.Some may decry such a curriculum for home schooling, but let me challenge you. Think about the definition of education. A friend recently wrote me with this insightful information regarding the definition of education:

The definition of education is from Webster’s American Dictionary of the English Language, 1828. I have found this book vital for the study of American Christian History, as it sites the Bible for the definition of words.

Education, all that series of instruction and discipline which enlightens the mind (my word. should be: understanding), corrects the temper, forms the manners and habits of youth, and fits them for usefullness in their future station (I add: in life.)

This has been a lifesaver for me. When I have been, or am in doubt, for whatever reason, this definition has been and still is my anchor. When would you not be doing one aspect of this definition if our education is Holy Spirit led? No condemnation from God when we can’t get all the “deskwork” done because it is only a part of education!


Petitioning the Lord to lead home schooling is a powerful and rewarding endeavor. I delight in seeing how God brings resources to my attention. I am especially in awe of how one subject intertwines with another with the Holy Spirit’s guidance.My children have long been fans of Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan. We have read the book a few times. Every now and then, they request a rereading of the book. Zachary requested reading it after we first moved. I had my sights set on other books so I ignored his request and purchased a copy of the DVD instead.

I found myself in the local Christian book store and stumbled across an excellent book by Jobn Piper called Hidden smile of God. I bought it for myself. I had no intention of reading it to my children, however, one of the children asked, “Why, I mean, I don’t understand why God is letting us go through such hard times?”. I knew the answer to this question lie in Piper’s book. Since they had a familiarity with John Bunyan, I decided to dive in. The book is quite heady and theological, but I felt it would work by taking it slower and paraphrasing. We began reading the Hidden smile of God. When discussing our reading list one day a friend lent me the book  Tinker’s armor. It is a children’s book about John Bunyan. The book captivated the children and furthered their interest in how God used Bunyan’s afflictions to produce a fruit that touched generations for hundreds of years.

Piper outlines how affliction produced fruit in great theologians impacting generations of believers. While Piper’s book is advanced for my children, the Tinker’s armor brought the story of John Bunyan more alive and made it more digestable. My goal in selecting books is to therapeutically guide the children through our family suffering to equip them for service for God.

To learn more about the 1828 Webster’s dictionary click here.  To order a copy of the dictionary check here.

Stay tuned for more great books that will transform the heart of the family.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

Family reading for influence and impact

Posted October 28, 2008 @ 5:32 am | No Comments |

Books, books, books. They are everywhere in our home. There are big ones, little ones, fiction stories, non-fiction readers, reference books and encyclopedieas scattered just about every where. Books are important to home schoolers and my family is no different from the rest.

My children are your typical farm kids. The love the great outdoors, but when it comes to winter, even the boldest sheds the insulated overalls and curls up with a good book. I enjoy winter for this reason. We get to catch up on reading together as a family. I read to all my children and plan to continue to have family reading time until they leave the home. It is a ritual that bonds hearts together.

As a former social worker, I would often use children’s stories to reach troubled youth to work therapeutically through books. Metaphors abound in great literature and with a little forethought one can take a story and talk about tough topics affecting a child’s life. I often, use this approach with reading to my children as well. What we read transforms our family.

I thought I would share what we are reading over the next few entries in hopes of encouraging others during these fall and winter months.

We just completed the Hobbit by J. R.R. Tolkien. It is a delightful adventure and worthy of family reading. My children range in age from 18 to four years old. Engaging children of all ages can be challenging but it is not impossible. I read to all the children knowing that the youngest children may not understand all we are reading. When the story describes actions, I will have the little ones provide sound effects. It keeps them interested and ensures a giggle or two. If there are words that involve complex ideas, I will stop and ask questions to emphasize reading comprehension. Of course, we have a cyclical nature to our home school meaning we will return to some of these great classics when the younger ones get older too.

We also purchased the study guide for the Hobbit by Progeny Press. It is a fantastic way to fortify a good literary learning experience. I enjoy this study guide because it includes a biblical examination of the book. For example, this study guide includes these questions in the digging deeper section:

When Gloin challenges Gandalf ’s choice of Bilbo, Gandalf replies, “There is a

lot more in him than you guess, and a deal more than he has any idea of himself.”

Gandalf sees potential in Bilbo that others do not.

A recurring theme in the Bible is God’s choice of unlikely people to do

God’s will. Read, for example, these passages: 1 Samuel 16:1–13; Amos

7:10–15; Mark 2:13–17; 1 Corinthians 1:26–31. Why might the people in

these texts be considered unlikely candidates for serving God? Why do you

think God chooses them anyway?

This study guide targets grades 8-12 so I pick and choose the questions based on my children’s ability to understand and complete the work. These study guides take a work of literature and use the bible to transform the understanding of the readers. It was incredibly therapuetic and inspirational for my children to read this book. The reading of the Hobbit gave us much to think about and apply to our own lives. We learned that God uses the most unlikely, small, and sometimes unsuspecting people to complete his work. We also understood the violent ill-temper of Smaug the greed stricken dragon as we reflected on our personal circumstances. At one point in the story, Smaug is destroyed, but he leaves behind the smell of a dragon which wafts through the air in and around the treasure. It affects the dwarf and the greed then distorts his reasoning abilities. The children learned the impact of sin on one person and another. We had many hours of great discussion when we read this book together.

Join me tomorrow for more on the power and influence of family reading.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

Training godly sons and daughters

Posted October 26, 2008 @ 5:23 am | No Comments |

Visiting the older order Mennonite maret was a real delight.  There were no lights in the builiding. Rather than hearing loud noisy cars drive by, I heard buggies and horses drive to and from. It was a sight to behold.  I shopped mainly for produce.  Further, I was on a mission to network and establish a resource for fresh milk for my family dring my fallow time of dairy farming.

Along with produce, I found some great books at the market. If there is one weakness that gets me every time, it is a weakness for good books. In fact, our U-haul truck consisted mostly of books during our recent move. I live upstairs in an apartment, so when helpers unloaded us there were a few grimaces. Tub after tub of heavy books were lugged upstairs. Some remarked about the vast number of tubs. I shrugged, blushed, and commented, “Uh…we are a home school family. What can I say? Books are our life.“ We will be moving soon to our permant farming location and I dare say I have added to my book collection since we arrived.

The books I purchased are on training young men and training daughters. They are by Rod and Staff publishers.

Young Man, Be Strong addresses issues pertinent to boys turning of age. My oldest is reading it out loud to the other boys. There is a respect and awe for the position my oldest child holds. The little boys long to be older like him. I captilize on this desire by encouraging him to share his reading with the younger boys.  I like this book as it is simple to read.  It has a great conversational style and is inspiring in tone.

The second book is called Dear Princess. It is written for girls. Many girls enjoy the concept of princesses and fairy tales. But the truth of the matter is that our daughters do not have to enlist in fantasy play to acknowledge their status as princesses. We are daughters of the King of kings and the Lord of lords. My girls are enjoying cuddle time and they tenderly call it “girl time”.

 

Autumn and winter are enjoyable times of year for our family..well..give or take the difficulties of farming in winter. Summer keeps us busy on the farm and our reading and school work focuses more on farming. During the winter months, we curl up with good books and enjoy some great family time. Join me tomorrow for a brief review of good books that have touch our family and transformed our lives.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

Seasonal dairying, fall, fritters and maters

Posted October 24, 2008 @ 5:07 am | No Comments |

The cows are dried up for the winter, I am taking a break from twice daily milkings. The alarm goes off and I hit the snooze a few more times than normal. It is a good feeling to pull the blanket over my head and stay in dreamland a little longer than I would when I am milking the girls.

There is a chilly edge to the air now in the morning. Fall is definitely here. Leaves are beautiful hues of golds and oranges. Some of the trees look less clothed. It is time for rest for our herbaceous friends.

After being a diehard grain based dairy farmer, it feels odd to be seasonal. I grapple with feelings of being a fraud until I walk outside and the cold air grabs hold of me. It is a short-lived guilt trip. But, I put in my fair share of work in the cold and I think surviving the ice storm of 07 means I did my time. Though I miss the delicious rich milk the ladies give.

Recently, I located old order Mennonites close at hand. Fresh milk will be available with a few more arrangements. Last weekend, I enjoyed time at their market stocking up on a couple of bushels of apples, tomatoes, and sweet potatoes.

My attempts at gardening were pathetic at best. I was just too busy trying to get the girls moved and settling into our new location. We enjoyed a few tomatoes, loads of corn, and I froze a fair amount of green beans. However, I just did not have time to garden whole heartedly. It was a real delight to find the Mennonite market nearby.

 This week I processed tomatoes for sauce that we so often use in cooking. I processed tomatoes by cutting them up and cooking them down in a large roaster.  I included onion, bell peppers, and jalapenos peppers in my concoction.  I cooked them down to reduce the amount of liquid.  Once the tomatoes were cool, I put them in ziploc bags and froze them for later use.  Normally, I scald the tomatoes to take the skins off.  Follow this link for instructions on how to scald tomatoes as well as how to can tomatoes.  I cheated  and froze them to save time.    The children enjoyed peeling and coring apples. They made some delicious apple fritters. Here is a fun recipe for readers to try.  It is similar to the one the children used.  It is good to see them take initiative and use the cook books to create their own concoctions.

Along with produce, I found some great books at the Mennonite market. Join me tomorrow for the first in a series of articles on how family reading transforms and heals families.

 

Udderly His,

 

The Kansas Milkmaid

 

 

 

Loosening media’s grip and revolutionizing your life

Posted October 20, 2008 @ 11:41 am | No Comments |

Current events often pass me by. We no longer have a television. I do not subscribe to the local newspaper.  My only access to news is through conversations with friends and logging onto the internet. My current location is the slowest dial up in the world, so logging onto the internet has long lost its appeal. Living without the heavy influence of media has substantial benefits with minimal drawbacks. I began to set aside media influence over eleven years ago. My life was in a tailspin. I struggled to understand what it meant to be a Christian. Simply, I was living with one foot in Christianity and one foot in the world. The circumstances in my life were embarrassing if not disasterous. It is there in the midst of heartache when God reaches outt and grabs us profoundly.I remember the day clearly. I knelt beside the couch weeping, feeling all the shame of bad decisions I made. It was there I uttered a simple prayer, “Whatever it takes Lord, I will do. I am tired of playing the Christian game. I want to be fully completely yours. Whatever you ask of me, I will give.”

My life is completely different now. Back then, I was a career woman. I had one child, fed on the latest sitcoms, listened to pop music, had a membership to the local fitness club, read “Cosmopolitan”, subscribed to the local newspaper and kept up with all the latest information. I had my one child in public school and he was involved in a few recreation league activities.

You may wonder what kind of impact withdrawing from media had on my life. Let me tell you. I didn’t just shut out media, I shifted my focus. I changed my career making my family my career. I took up the career of home educator, home maker and supporting the work of the leader of my household.  Pragramatically speaking, my family grew in size, I taught the children at home, I learned a variety of home making skills including making much of our food from scratch. The biggest change was I became a milkmaid. Our farmstead ministry began. The difference in my life was like night and day.
I trace this difference back to releasing the grip media and culture had on me through the media. I no longer had to live by the dictates and definitions of the culture as defined by the media. I was free to think for myself and I began to redefine my world. It was a freeing life adventure. Being a Christian meant that most of what I began to read and focus on related to God’s word.

Instead of listening to pop music, I replaced it with Christian talk radio or sermon tapes. Instead of letting my mind aimlessly wander as I worked, I memorized scripture. I read the bible daily and any book I read involved a Christian perspective. Perhaps, the most stunning consequence of this lifestyle change was the absence of all the negativity and anxiety. A whole new world perspective opened up to me.

Yes, my life changed dramatically. Instead of worrying about wrinkles, dying my hair, unwanted weight gain, and how to climb to the top in my career, I began to devote myself to changing the world, impacting my community through my children and the farmstead ministry.

As I look back on the career days of old and all that I gave up, it seems so aimless and meaningless. The difference I am making in the lives of my children and the lives of the people we come in contact with is beyond temporal, it is eternal.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

 

 

Milkmaid explores alternative energy: Part III-Visiting a family who lives off the grid

Posted October 15, 2008 @ 5:28 am | 2 Comments |

I remember the day the electricity came back on. My children and I whooped and hollared like there was no tomorrow. We did jigs and sang praises to God. We all knelt at the couch and prayed. It was a sight to see all seven of us on bended knee thanking God for something we took for granted.“Never again”, I told myself. “Never again would I find myself in such a helpless moronic position.” As a city girl, I should have turned on my heels and run. The words, “ I will never marry a farmer haunted me”. I heard many people emphatically state farming is a life of poverty and misfortune. Was I really a glutton for punishment? Why would I allow myself in this day and age to endure such unnecessary hardships? This love for farming was a bit overboard. However, I couldn’t deny the mark farming left on my children this past year. I couldn’t ignore the research of psychologists who noted the downfall of our once great nation was because we used to be a rural economy and have forsaken it.

 Evidence pointed time and time again to the benefits of rural living. And, guess what? I lived out those benefits. Yes, I was poor. Yes, I was hurting. This was a small price to pay for the impact farming had on the lives of my children, my friends and my community. I couldn’t ignore the hellish turmoil of the last year. I watched my children thrive through it all because of the farm. (Note: I am also making the forgone conclusion that they thrived because of their relationship with God). They knew without them, I couldn’t do it. Each one of them mattered. Simply, selling out was not an option.

When Mary Steward-of-Jesus sent me an email describing her friends in Missouri, I was elated. We were planning to move to Missouri upon the conclusion of the divorce. My hope was to link up with Charlie and Teresa Steward if possible. Days turned into weeks and soon many months passed since the December ice storm. I was preoccupied with the divorce and contested move out of the state. While all of the details of my life cluttered my mind, I still never forgot the hardship we endured with no power. I looked for opportunity to visit the Steward family, but nothing seemed to work. I was able to move to Missouri but not before my mini-van bit the dust. Most of my energy was focused on rebuilding a new farm business. The hope of meeting Charlie and Teresa seemed dismal. Then it happened. The cows were dried up for the winter and moved to pasture. God providentially organized a grand opportunity for me. A friend offered to take my family to meet the Stewards. And it gets better! John and Mary were planning a trip to the Stewards as well. They were coming with 27 people and several were former customers and blessed brothers and sisters in Christ.

Driving to the Steward’s home was a real treat. They live in a hilly area of the state. It was a scenic delight. Since I did not have to drive we indulged in reading great stories. The children reminded me of the woes of traveling. There were many requests to make the beloved pit stops. And, there were countless questions including the familiar, “Are we there yet?”. All and all we survived.

I was entranced as we drove through the gate on the Steward homestead. It was a long winding driveway. There was not a power line in sight. Soon we found ourselves in front of an tidy 5,000 square foot house with a 2,500 square foot work shop. Again, there were no power lines in sight. Charlie and Teresa were gracious hosts. They welcomed our family and gave us the grand tour. The most intriguing thing about our visit was the notion that this family knew nothing when they started building their hoome. They were complete novices when they moved on their land. They built everything themselves and researched all they needed to know to live completely off the grid. Their home was pleasing to the eye, filled with love, warmth and hospitality. The Stewards were a great encouragement to me. I found they had all the same modern conveniences I have. They simply made their own electricity through solar panels, a desiel generator and golf cart batteries.

One of the biggest barriers to alternative energy is the myth that it can’t be done without spending extravagant amounts of money. The Stewards are a frugal family and demonstrate that living off the grid is not impossible, it is achievable! Despite, carefully sharing the facts of their testimony, they have had their fair share of criticism. It doesn’t matter how factual you are and how much evidence you show people, some still refuse to believe that living off the grid means spending lots of money or living like the Amish.

Charlie and Teresa have worked hard to live debt free and to labor for the Lord using their own two hands. As with many agrarians out there, they testify that the work is never done. Their home is still being completed to this day as they are able to complete it. For our have it all right now society,this may make some uncomfortable. But , I was incredibly impressed with the state I found their home in. Perhaps, what amazed me the most is the willingness of Charlie and Teresa to host such a large group of people glorifying God with what they have even though their home was completed to the degree they would have liked it to be completed. Don’t get me wrong, their house looked like a spacious mansion to me. They decorated it beautifully. It had a real charm and warmth.

My trip was productive and enlightening. It was good to see our friends John and Mary. The Roper family, whom I have mentioned on this blog before also visited. It was a real treat to see familiar faces and to reminisce about the farmstead ministry we had in Kansas. Since we had dried up our cows, I had few dairy products to bring and share, but several went home with wheels of Gouda cheese and farm fresh butter from our farming efforts here in MO.

If you are interested in learning more about alternative power, please check out the Steward’s website. They have a DVD available. I recently watched the DVD and intend to go alternative as soon as possible. I am thankful for the fine example of Charlie and Teresa Steward. My aim is to put into practice all I have learned from them and Lord willing, I will never endure another ice storm like I endured in December of 2007.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

Milkmaid explores alternative energy: Part II- The ice storm of December 07

Posted October 14, 2008 @ 11:48 am | 2 Comments |

Exactly two days after the well pump went out, the worst ice storm I have ever experienced hit Kansas. Calls came into the farm while we still had electricity reporting power outages everywhere. I was sweating it as I did not have a generator in my new barn. I had thirteen cows to milk and it was our peak season. To make matters worse the jury would be seated December 17, 2007 and would hear charges filed against my children’s father for child abuse and domestic violence I endured. Getting trials scheduled is a real challenge. I fretted the notion that this could be rescheduled due to the bad weather.

 The ice hit us hard. Limbs crashed against the house tearing off the guttering. The lights flickered once and came back on. Five minutes later they went off and would not be back on for the next eleven days. I was already beat down from the personal struggles I faced. Essentially, I felt numb.

 

This was not true for my children. They enjoyed helping milk the cows by hand. They had milk fights squirting each other to endure the boredom and helped themselves to squirting the milk straight from the udder into their mouths.  They would not be defeated and certainly would not be prevented from enjoying raw milk. They amused themselves by roasting mini marshmellows in the candle light through out the week.  

 

We hand milked the cows and let it go down the drain. I had no hot water to clean equipment and I did not have a back up generator. Our already bad financial situation worsened as we lost our business during that eleven days. The cows never did recover from the stress and our inability to milk them out quickly and fully. I remember agonizing over the loss and the weeks it took to get back on track. I had to sell more cows to pay for the loss of revenue and the feed bills.

 

The ice storm was devastating. After several days of no power at all, my church offered me the use of a generator. The only problem was no one knew how to tie it into our electric pole. I watched them and a few of the neighbors work on assembling the generator in vain. The next day a man showed up at my door. He towered over me at 6’2’. I had never seen him before. Word got out that I was a single mom running a dairy and had no power. I had a generator but needed an electrical expert to tie the generator into the pole. He announced that he had the expertise and was here to help. He worked for a few hours and we were finally able to use the generator. It was a gasoline generator that would cost nearly three hundred dollars to run the house. It was not large enough to run our commercial dairy pump. We called our local dairy supply and they loaned us a portable pump to milk out the girls.

 

The aftermath of the ice storm left the landscape looking like a tornado hit the place. I often felt great humiliation as I analyzed my plight. My ancestors would have rolled over in their grave if they knew my dependence on the grid was so heavy that I could not produce usable milk during an ice storm. For thousands of years people have milked cows and yet I found myself helpless because I relied so heavily on the power company.

 

I vowed after that week to begin working on a plan to never endure this kind of experience again. Since I am a hopelessly in love with brown cows, I didn’t think the solution involved a sell out. The real answer was to look into alternative energy of some sort. God is so good to answer prayers. I didn’t have a chance to utter a prayer about alternative energy. Besides, I was in survival mode. How could I find the time or figure out how to go off the grid? A few weeks after the ice storm fiasco, I received a simple, quiet and encouraging email from my friend Mary Steward-of-Jesus. Long time readers of this blog may remember I have featured links to John Steward-of-Jesus’s website. Mary and John are dear to me and have been a great source of solace and encouragement even in recent months.

 

Join me soon for the story of a reunion with John and Mary and how my prayers were answered to begin working on going off the grid.

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

Milkmaid explores alternative energy: Part I -the background events

Posted October 9, 2008 @ 11:00 am | 1 Comment |

December 2007 will go down in history as one of the toughest months of my life. It was Sunday, December 9th to be exact. We woke up to milk the cows as usual. We looked forward to going to church and woke up with more enthusiasm then normal. It was a freezing cold day with snow still on the ground. We turned on the water to start sanitizing the milk equipment. No water flowed. For a dairy farmer this is a devastating experience. Running hot water is critical to a functional dairy farm. I groaned as my son went through a checklist to determine the source of the problem. I thought it was frozen or broken water pipes. No. It was worse.

I had already dealt with so many major break downs on the farm. I was financially destitute. During the previous nine months I had replaced a hot water heater in the house, an air conditioner, dealt with two electrical fires, replaced a broken down washer, dealt with plumbing problems to our lagoon, refilled a leaky empty propane tank and more. I was driving the old farm truck with leaky gas tanks because my mini van’s intake manifold gaskets were bad. The van was undrivable. The minivan repairs alone cost 1400.00.

I endured these financial hardships with the help of my church and some friends including blog readers but the break downs continued without mercy. 

The criminal trial was just a mere week away. The words, “the well pump is broken” hit me hard. I had 300.00 in my checking account. A well pump cost 800.00. I stared out the bay window at the cows who were gathered around the watering tank bellowing. They were thirsty and I could do nothing. I cried out to God. “You gave me these cows to steward. Lord why are you allowing circumstances to prevent me from caring for them?”

 

My friends had extended themselves time and time again to help me through the devastation. The agony and despair gripped my body and I collapsed into a chair sobbing. It was Sunday, no less. Who could I call to repair my well pump?  I called my best friend who lived outside the area and just wept. We prayed together. I remember my friend’s counsel,“ I wish I could help. I am too far away. I feel helpless. But God’s word shows he will not fail you today. Stand back and watch and see how your God will provide.“ The words provided me theoretical comfort, but what about the practical? I needed help and I needed it now. My girls were cold, thirsty and had udders full of milk.

While I was on the phone despairing, praying and receiving comfort from my friend, God had already moved into action. He worked through my son. I did not realize my son was manning the cell phone moving a group of farmer friends he had met into action. Several months prior, I rebuked him for taking so long to get hay. He was so social. He would stop and talk to every old timer along the way. I felt badly for rebuking him. It was because he socialized and made friends that he knew exactly who to call.

My pity party was so intense, I nearly missed the tractor with a watering tank pulling in the driveway along with four cars following behind. I called all the children to the window to soak up how God rescued us once again. We stood in front of the window and sang the doxology. This became our theme song along with “Amazing Grace” during that harrowing year. (Hint: we still sing these songs, but with a different context now that we are through the Red Sea and in the wilderness phase of our lives)

Neighbors and friends worked the full day to install a new well pump. I remember a precious friend standing in the kitchen. She mentioned that she and her husband felt lead to purchase the pump for me and I could pay them back when I got on my feet. My tears of despair turned to tears of gratefulness. Since the divorce and criminal trial began, I faced one challenge after another and yet God continually provided through amazing means. I witnessed that provision before this and yet, I doubted there was any solution. We milked the cows that night with tremendous gratitude. The ladies were full because they missed morning milking. We knew their production would go down because they did not get the water they needed. It didn’t matter that Christmas sales were upon us, we were happy to have water again. We didn’t know what was in store for us the next week. Well, we knew the criminal trial was forthcoming, but we did not know we would face devastation two days later.

Stay tuned for the life altering events that lead me to develop a keen interest in alternative energy.

 

Udderly His,

The Kansas Milkmaid

 

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