The BIG Dream

          So, if you have followed any of my blog posts (not that there have been that many – I admit my blogging has been very inconsistent, to say the least!), you know that I have talked a lot about my BIG dream. Until now, I have not really been comfortable sharing my dream with more than just a handful of people. I think the biggest reason I have been reluctant to share it is because I tend to try to keep my distance from negative influences in my life. A friend of mine posted this quote on Facebook today, and it really sums up how I have been feeling: “We need to hang around people who pour water on the fires of our fears, and throw gasoline on the passions of our dreams.” ~ Kris Vallotton

          There have definitely been a few people in my life who have done just that. I will not name names. I am sure they know who they are. I will say that without them and their positive encouragement along the way, I would have never made it this far. I am truly grateful for the people God has placed in my path who have helped me to not give up.

          My dream has been brewing in my mind for many years, long before I even thought to really pursue it in any way. The one thing I know for sure is that God put the dream inside my heart. The Bible says in Jeremiah 1:5, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you...” Wow! A whole sermon could be preached on that one verse, but for now, I will just say that God knows each of us so intimately. In that passage of scripture he was speaking to Jeremiah, but God is no respecter of persons. He has put dreams, talents, and passions in each of us for a purpose. So few, if any of us, really ever tap into the calling God has on our lives. One thing I know for sure, though, it that it is never too late to try to do what you think you were destined to do!

So, in case you haven’t figured it out by now, my dream has been to start my own MLM company. Actually, I don’t actually see my business as multi-level exactly, but definitely direct marketing. If you know anything at all about multi-level marketing, you know that this is a BIG dream! I am still far from accomplishing that goal, but I am close enough now that I feel comfortable sharing my vision with you and how it came to pass. Life is like a puzzle ~ full of strange little pieces that sometimes don’t seem to fit. Sometimes pieces go missing for a long time, and they show up when you least expect them to. For me, journaling has helped me to find some of those missing pieces.

As a matter of fact, about 10 years ago, a prophet came to our church. She told me what seemed like the strangest thing in the world at the time. She said that I needed to journal. She also said that I would be leading and speaking in front of many people, important people, someday. (That still hasn’t happened, but I like to imagine myself addressing a crowd of consultants at an Udderly Delightful convention!) I have not kept a regular journal, although I wish I had. Life gets really busy, so there is not always time. But, I will say, that as I read back over the journal entries I have made over the years, they all contain little pieces of the puzzle. I know that through journaling, I have been able to see the dream more clearly.

Although I know it really started in my childhood, the first time I ever had thoughts of my own MLM company was shortly after I became a Pampered Chef consultant (almost 20 years ago). I loved the whole idea of the format of home parties. I have never considered myself a salesperson (because I am not!), but I loved gathering with people, meeting new friends, and sharing what I love to do. When I read the book, “Come to the Table” by Doris Christopher (the founder of the Pampered Chef), a very small part of me knew I wanted to follow in her footsteps. Again, I am not a salesperson, so I was not terribly successful as a PC consultant. However, that was a very important part of my journey because I learned so much from my time with that company.

Fast forward many years later to when we bought our little farm, and more importantly, our first cow. Esther. She was born on Easter Sunday, so her first owner named her Easter. I have never liked the pagan roots associated with the name Easter (we call it Resurrection Day), so we wanted to change her name. Long story short, we renamed her Esther after one of my favorite Bible characters. One of my favorite Bible verses is Esther 4:14, “And who knows but that you have come to a royal position for such a time as this?”

Through our little journey with Esther and our new way of living, we learned a lot. We learned about milk and how it is processed, and processed, and processed…That led us to look at the other foods we were eating. We started to make small changes in the foods we were eating which led to big changes in our overall health. I am not a health food fanatic by any means! However, I try very hard to avoid overly processed foods and artificial ingredients. It was through this journey with food and learning to make things from scratch that the idea for Udderly Delightful was born. The name came to just came to me one day when we were brainstorming ideas for what we thought was going to be a homemade cheese business. I originally liked Udderly Delicious, but that name was taken. My all-time favorite Bible verse has always been, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4. So, the word Delightful came from that verse. The desire of my heart for many years has been to have my own business. So, when people tell me that my business name doesn’t seem to fit some of my products, I tell them it would make perfect sense if you knew my story.

I won’t bore you with all of the details because I know my blog posts tend to be long. I will just say that little by little, the details started to come together. We started with cheese kits out of my desire to teach others how to make cheese (which is really cool, by the way, if you’ve never done it!) Then we moved on to seasoning mixes. That started because I was looking for a recipe to make my own taco seasoning. Have you ever read the label on that stuff?? That led to my first “Tasting Party” where we made cheese and tasted lots of yummy dips!

At this point, I knew that I wanted to grow Udderly Delightful into a new MLM company, but I didn’t have enough products to support that dream. Slowly I started to add more products – expanding into soaps and skin care because what you put on your skin ends up in your body – just like food does! (It makes sense now, doesn’t it?!) Then about 2 years ago, I was introduced to essential oils. That was when the last missing piece of the puzzle finally came into place. As I was thinking about all the chemicals in our food and skin care items, I began to notice how we as a nation have become obsessed with medications. Yes, I do take medicine from time to time, but what has more artificial junk in it than medicine?? I can’t think of anything, can you?

So, as I was finishing up my new product catalog last night, I had an overwhelming sense of accomplishment. Seeing all the products and plans come together in one booklet was something I can only describe as pure joy! I could hear all the voices of the people who told me it would never happen, and the people who didn’t understand why I had such a seemingly eclectic group of products. I know at times it must have looked like I was going off in all kinds of different directions at once. I could hear them all say, “What is she thinking?” Well, hopefully, it makes more sense now. All along I have been trying to build a foundation for a company that would lend itself to direct marketing.

I have had a plan all along. It has taken a very long time to get to this point. I still have some little projects to do (okay, a lot of little projects!), but I have the framework in place to make this dream start to become a reality. It is going to take a lot of work, and I don’t know where this path will lead, but I know that it is God’s plan for my life. I want to see this company grow because I truly want to help others. I am exceedingly grateful that God has always allowed our family to have our needs met. However, now I believing for this little dream to grow so that we will have not just our needs met, but an abundance of resources so that we can help others make their dreams come true, too. There is nothing that would give me greater joy than to be able to give to those in need, as the Lord lays it on my heart.

I still don’t know if my dream will come to pass. Only time will tell. All I know is that if you have a dream, it is never too late to try to make it happen. There will always be people in your path who will tell you can’t do it, but hopefully, there will be more people who will tell you that you can. “Sometimes life is about risking everything for a dream no one can see but you.” (author unknown)

Seek First the Kingdom of God

     Once again I find myself drawn back to this original blog. God has instructed me to begin to blog regularly on my business website (www.udderlydelightful.net). I have had some issues being able to share the blog on social media, so today I felt led to simply copy and paste this blog onto my website as well as share it here. God is speaking to me as never before, and I have to believe that the message He gives me will be seen by the right person or people. So, if you feel led at any time to share one of these posts, I encourage you to do so. With that said, here is what the Lord laid on my heart this morning:

     The last few weeks I have tried to be obedient to the Lord when He asked me to take some time off from my business and just use the time to seek Him. For anyone in business, that may seem like the dumbest decision you could ever make. Who takes time off during the busiest sales month of the year?

     I know now beyond a shadow of a doubt that God intended me to get back to the place where I hear His voice and put Him first in my life above everything else. He has given me new vision. He told me, "I have given you this dream. I have given it to you as a platform for you to use to declare my grace, mercy, power, and provision. You will be able to speak to those who need to hear My voice who wouldn't have been able to hear it any other way." Praise the Lord! That literally just came to me as I was writing. I still don't know how God is going to do it, but He is telling me to trust Him. He is telling me, "I will prepare the way when there seems to be no way. I will go before you and open doors that you could never begin to open for yourself because it seemed like they were sealed shut. Those doors are easy for me to open, and when I open them, I want you to walk through them. I need you to trust me.".

     Today is my last day off from my break from school. God instructed me this morning to just once again take some time to spend with Him and listen to His voice. (It is now 1:20, and I have been praying and seeking Him since 8:00 am.) Truthfully, my mood was not great this morning. I was feeling a little discouraged with some of the things going on around me, but God reminded that it was simply the enemy trying to gain a foothold. In Ephesians 4:27 it says, "Do not give the enemy a foothold."

     I pray that you will go on this new journey with me. God has instructed me to faithfully write what He lays on my heart. It may be daily; it may be weekly. I don't know, but I will be obedient this time. It may seem unconventional to write these things on my business page, but I am going to go where the Lord leads me. I have begun to see my business as a ministry. I know that is what God intended it to be all along, but somehow I didn't see it myself until very recently. I plan to share with you in the coming blog posts some of the dreams and visions I have had about this business and how they began to take shape over time. I have such a strong feeling that God wants to unlock the doors that have been holding me back from accomplishing the dream He has given me. I feel like 2016 is the year that everything changes. Please understand that when I speak of "my" dreams, God wants you to envision your dreams, too. He is no respecter of persons. I feel like the purpose of sharing these posts with you is so that I can awaken something in you and give you hope and encouragement. When the Lord speaks to me, He is speaking to all who will listen. If ever the Lord speaks to you through these posts, please feel free to comment. I would love to hear from you. Be blessed, and be a blessing.

Very Challenging Year

This has by far been the most challenging year homeschooling. Even though Steven was taking all his classes at the college, he still needed help now and then. Mostly with him it was just making sure we were getting all the necessary things done so he could graduate. Then throw in countless hours spent researching, visiting and applying to various colleges...

With David, we made the decision to switch virtual schools 10 weeks into the first semester. He was able to kind of "skip" the 8th grade and go into 9th, but it has required him going back and doing all the 9th grade curriculum. I am very proud of him for making the decision to challenge himself instead of spending the year being bored. It may have been a bit more challenging than he expected, but he has continued to maintain an A average, so I know it was the right decision for him. He still has 2 weeks of school left to finish (and lots of assignments still to do), but we are trying to keep our eye on the prize. We will have some serious celebrating to do when he gets done!!

As if that wasn’t enough to keep me busy, just throw in my decision to go back to school myself full time. This has been a life changing decision for me that I do not regret, but it has definitely been challenging, to say the least. Going back to school has opened up new opportunities for my business (more on that later), and it has also allowed me to be able to set and reach some personal goals for myself. I guess you could say that illusive diploma has always been on my bucket list!

 Steven and I start back to summer school on Monday. (He wants to get his Associate of Science degree from ABAC before starting Mercer University in the fall). It was really just a personal goal, and I am very proud that he is going to have something to show for his time spent there. David is considering going to what we homeschoolers like to call a “brick and mortar” school in the fall. That decision has yet to be made. We are also looking into possibly letting him take a class or two at the college through dual enrollment.

Maybe I should change my first sentence of this post to say, this has been the most challenging year, period. Where am I going with all of this? Change is in the air….LOTS of change. I am sure there is lots more change ahead as my husband is also hoping to find different employment or a promotion in his current job. Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention in the midst of all the chaos of school, we are finally getting down to doing some home renovations, too! Between that and the whole family going off in new directions, it can be a little overwhelming, and a little scary. The one thing that keeps me (all of us, really) grounded is our uncompromising faith in God. When the winds of change are blowing, I adhere myself firmly to the rock of my salvation, Jesus Christ. Without Him, I would not be able to keep it all together, but with Him, “ALL things are possible.”

Testimony coming soon

     For some reason I felt compelled to return back to my blog today after a very long absence.  I think part of me thought that I would never come back to this blog, but that part of me was wrong.  This morning I spent my usual quiet time reading old posts that I had written. Then I spent an equal, if not greater amount of time, thanking God for his goodness and asking him to forgive me for allowing seeds of doubt to enter my mind.  It is so amazing to see how God works.  He sees the whole picture from beginning to end while we are here trying to muddle through life one day at a time.
     I have spent the last few weeks and days filled with all different kinds of emotions.  There have been days that I have been filled with fear and dispair over what the future will hold.  Then I am reminded of the goodness of God and all of His promises.  I am once again filled with hope and joy of the future. 
     As I may have mentioned before, my husband and I have spent our entire married life trusting in God for provision.  Except for the first few years when I was working "a real job", we have relied on God to provide for our needs.  We have had good times and bad times financially, and God has been there every step of the way.
     We have recently come to one of those times in our lives where we just have to let go, and let God.  (There is the title of my book again sneaking its way into my thoughts...Yes, God, I am listening!)  Anyway, when you come to a crossroad in life and things seem impossible in the natural, I have found that if you put your trust in Him...the one who created the heavens and the earth, the one who sent his only son to die for us, the one who numbers the hairs on our heads and the grains of sand on the earth...He will never let you down!  I am at such a point in my life right now.  I am making a full surrender to Him because I know that I can not do this on my own, but I can do ALL things through Christ who gives me strength.
     I have never felt such hope and joy for the future as I do right now.  If you knew some of the circumstances going on in our life right now, you would know just how ridiculous that statement sounds, but it is true.  Even Jesus cried out to God when he was on the cross and said, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Matt. 15:34).  I think God allowed that to happen so that Jesus would be able to experience the same feelings that we have from time to time.  However, as we all know, God was there all the time.  He sees us struggling, and I believe it pains him.  But I also believe that He allows us to experience some things in life so that we can learn to really trust Him.
     That is where I am right now.  I am trusting Him.  I am not afraid of the future or what it may hold.  I am excited to see what God has in store next.  I KNOW it is good.
     Thank you for reading.  I don't know if this if for any of you, or just for me, but I felt compelled to write - even though I have a million other things I could or should be doing.  If this post spoke to you in any way, please let me know.  If it did, please stay tuned.  I believe there is a really big testimony coming soon....you don't want to miss it!

Without a vision people perish

Once again, I have taken a rather long sabatical from writing this blog.  And once again, I feel the tugging of the Holy Spirit that says, "You are supposed to do this!"  Have you ever had the experience where you hear from God, but politely try to ignore him?  When you can feel God speaking to you, but you answer back, "That doesn't make sense!  Why would you tell me to do or say such a strange thing?"   I should know by now that a lot of the things God says to me do not make sense at the time, but they always make sense in the long run.

So, just to catch up with you, at my last post we were just getting ready to start school.  Let me just say that this year has been a lot harder than any year in the past because of all the transition.  Steven started a new virtual school, and I attempted to homeschool Jesse for the first several weeks of school.  Consequently, everyone got off to a slow start, and we have been playing catch up ever since.  Jesse went home a few weeks ago, and we have been working like crazy to be on pace.  This week is the end of our first quarter, and I can finally say that we should be on target for the first time since school started by the end of this week.  Praise God!!

I actually wrote a blog post several weeks ago that I never had time to get onto this blog.  This morning during my quiet time with the Lord, I could feel an urgency to post it.  So, I do not know who this is for, but please know that if it speaks to you in any way, it is the Lord speaking to you.  Most of the words from this post are not my own, but they came straight from the lips of Clarice Fluitt during the ladies beach retreat (advance) that I attended back in June.  I think I posted before that she had spoken a word over me.  This is from the sermon she gave, and the words that God spoke over me through her:

You need to believe in the power of God and a positive confession.  The Lord has a plan for your life and for mine. He knows what is deposited in you.  He knows your substance because he put it in there.  We are co-regents with God.  The God that made the moon, sun, stars and galaxies...the God that knows everything - every hair on your head, lives in you!  You are a co-regent with the living God, and that God knows what is deposited in you.  He knows your substance because He put it in there in you.  If you will hold your confession, if you will hold those words that God says, "whatsoever things you desire, when you pray...If you believe and not doubt,"  I'm telling you that God answers prayer, and he knows your heart.

Immediately after saying those words (out of nowhere in the middle of her sermon), she points to me and says,"Stand up!"  These are the words that she spoke over me:

"Shyness and timidity - it must bow - because the Lord says you must become as bold as a lion because there are things that I have in you.  For I say unto you there is gold.  There is gold.  There is the divine nature.  Yea, sayeth God, It is not you that chose me, but I the Lord God chose you.  I know what is in you.  I know the deposit that has been made.  Yea, sayeth the Lord...there is healing in your touch.  There is healing sayeth God.  There is deliverance.  There is a prophetic voice inside of you."

"You are a treasure, and I come to you with spiritual WD-40, and I am beginning to spray on those hinges.  The Lord says, 'I am opening my box.  I am opening my treasure box, and you are going to say, "Oh!!  Dear God!!"  I wash away the grief and the sorrow.  I wash away those disappointments sayeth God, and I remind you:  Did not Peter say, "There is no disappointment in Jesus."  Nothing has the power to bring disappointment to you except things that you believed that someone other than I could fulfill."

"I am your lover. I am your husband. I am your brother, your sister, your mother, your aunt, and I am your friend.  I am closer than the breath you breathe, and I shall never turn you loose.  My hand is upon you to do exploits.  I will melt you.  I will melt you sayeth God.  I will cause your substance to run.  Provisions and signs and wonders...You are NOT ordinary!!  You are extraordinary..for this is the voice of God.  Praise the Lord!"

Then she said, "The wonderful thing about the prophetic voice of God - it is like the rain.  When God looks at us, he sees us individually, but he also sees us as one.  So when you hear a word like this and you think, "Oh God!  I'd like a word like that!" Take it!  When the rain falls, you just say, "That is mine!"

A Tribute to Sadie

I don't really know where to start except to say that yesterday was one of the saddest days of my life.  I had no idea until she was gone just how much that dog really meant to me and my family.  I don't remember when or if I have ever cried that much.  The hardest part was watching David go through the same pain I was feeling.

Sadie was actually David's dog.  She was a gift to him on his 10th birthday.  (He will be 12 on Sept. 14th).  Our family had never owned a dog.  We were always cat people.  David begged us for a dog for years and years.  My husband finally gave in when we moved to the farm.  We always liked big dogs, and I don't like the idea of dogs in the house, so we never really had the space for one.

We looked online for several days searching for the perfect dog.  I still remember the first time I saw our little Sadie.  Her sweet face just jumped off the page at me.  I knew she was the one.  She was pictured with 2 other puppies.  One looked just like her, and the other one was black.  When we called the person with the ad she said, "One of the puppies has already been adopted, but there are still 2 left."  I was sad because I was just sure that Sadie was the one the other family had taken.  She was just so cute!  Well, surprisingly to me, the black one was gone.

The lady on the phone explained to us that the 3 puppies had been found together abandoned on the side of the road.  She told us the two puppies that were left were extremely close to each other, and would we consider taking both of them?  She even offered to waive the adoption fee on the second puppy.  My first thought was, "It has taken me 20 years to talk my husband into a dog.  Now she wants us to take two?  No way is he going to go for that!"

Well, after some discussion, John actually thought it was a good idea.  He said that way they would have some company, and Steven could have a dog too.  So we made arrangements to go meet the puppies.  They were in a doggie foster care.  They were in a pretty small pen in what almost seemed like an abandoned lot.  There was a house on the property, but it was pretty far away.  The dogs had an automatic feeder.  (I had never heard of that for dogs).  Basically, they received very little attention.  They were VERY excited to see us!!  However, Katy was quite scared.  (She still to this day is very cautious of strangers).

So, each boy picked out his dog.  I was amazed that for once they didn't fight over it!  A few days later we brought them home.  Since that day, those two dogs were completely inseparable.  They did everything together.  Their favorite thing to do was run to the pond to swim.  They would come home completely filthy!!  I think the thing I will miss most will be watching them run and play together every morning.  They loved each other so much, and they would have so much fun!  They were like twins.  They looked almost the same except that Sadie had a short tail, and she was a bit smaller.  They were definitely sisters from the same litter.

I don't want to go into too much detail about yesterday because it is just too painful to talk about.  But we did go get Sadie's body so we could bury her.  Katy had been hiding under the house all day.  I'm not sure if she knew what had happened.  She may just have known that Sadie was missing.  She was clearly sad and not acting like herself.  However, when we brought her over to see Sadie and say goodbye, it was truly the most heart wrenching thing I have ever witnessed.  Katy actually started to cry.  She knew in that moment that her best friend was gone.  Words cannot express what that was like to watch.

After that we put her away.  Then Steven, David and Jesse helped me bury her.  Steven did the most touching thing.  He suggested we take Sadie's collar and put it on Katy.  (She wasn't wearing her collar when she got hit by the car.)  We buried Katy's collar with Sadie.  He said, "That way, they will still have a part of each other."  What more can I say?  I am blessed to have two amazing sons, and I was blessed to have a really great dog.  Life is precious.  Never take it for granted. 

21 Day Attitude Fast

It has been a while since my last post.  We have been going through a lot of changes in our family dynamic, and I guess I just haven't had the desire to write.  After listening to some awesome worship music by Kari Jobe this morning, I was inspired again.

I really feel like this summer has been a huge time of transition.  My husband has started a new job.  He is home every night now, but he is working crazy hours, so we almost see him less than when he was in Florida every week.  I have been praying and fasting for several weeks now about the situation.  I guess what I am really seeking is peace that this is the right job for him, or that God will send him something better.  I haven't seen evidence of either of those things yet, but I know that God is faithful.  So I will keep praying and keep believing.

School is starting back next week.  I guess I am ready.  I have tried to make the most of my time off.  I didn't get everything done that I set out to do, but I can say that it was a productive summer.  I spent a lot of time in prayer and reflection, and a lot of time in my garden.  I wish that there had been more time for both.  We didn't have the extra money for a vacation this summer, but the boys got to spend lots of time with their friends.  We have also had the pleasure to spend time with Jesse this summer.  He has been staying with us since late June.  I feel blessed to still have him in our life, and I will truly miss him when he goes home.

In addition to my regular fast, I have been doing Clarice Fluitt's "21 Day Attitude Fast" that I happened to find on her website.  I will include it here if anyone would like to join me.  It has been challenging, but just what I think I needed at this time in my life.

AN ATTITUDE FAST - 21 Days January 2010
Dear Ones:
In obedience to what the Lord is speaking to us at this time we invite you to join with us in a 21- Day Attitude Fast. In Isaiah 58 God speaks of a "chosen fast"; a fast that is pleasing and acceptable to Him. It is not a fasting of food so much as it is a fasting of attitudes. As we refrain or fast from certain mindsets and attitudes, then blessings will overtake us. Specifically, the promises that He declares in Isaiah 58:6-14.
Wonderful things such as: ●Your health springing forth ●His righteousness making the way before you ●Continual guidance by His Spirit ●And the ability to build and create in the midst of what seems to appear as utter chaos.
Just to name a few.

I submit to you the terms of this fast and ask that you prayerfully consider joining with us in this
21-Day Attitude Fast. We are beginning a New Year. There’s never a better time than this than to consider and put in practice a "Lifestyle" change. We will observe this fast during the weekdays of January 2010 with the goal of incorporating it into our lives throughout the entire year.
AN ATTITUDE FAST - 21 Days – January 2010
Week #1 – Read these scriptures: Ezekiel 28; Isaiah 14; and Zachariah 3 & 4 ASK THE LORD THE FOLLOWING:
1. Show me what wealth has been hidden from me!
2. What is the Sound of Deliverance that is within me?
Stand up in the midst of your situation and say, "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!"
Make a list of everything that is hindering you.
SHOUT "GRACE" 8 (eight) times to every hindrance and DECLARE that you will see the portion of your wealth in God that has been hidden. Week #2 – Read these scriptures: Psalm 16; Isaiah 60; Eph 4:25 – 5:21 1. Get up and encourage yourself by singing or chanting a spiritual song. See yourself putting on garments of Glory – take off sadness, depression, and downcast thoughts with your mouth and put on Glory! Sing it! Sing it on yourself!
2. Memorize two key scriptures in Ephesians.
3. Say and ask the Lord "Lord show me my new portion that you have for me", then write it down. 21-Day Attitude Fast- Dr. Clarice Fluitt  Week #3 – Read these scriptures: Numbers 23 (especially verse 21) SHOUT 7 (seven) times against false altars that have been built against your life and watch the blessings of the Lord open up over you.
Begin to say:
1. You are highly favored
2. People love you – see God in you – want to be a part of what you are doing. Read: Matthew 21; Mark 11:10; John 12:13 Then SING UNTO THE LORD "I know you have gone before me and I am delivered! Read these scriptures:
John 14:12 (NIV) I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. Mark 16:17-18 (NIV) And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;
They will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well." 1 John 4:4 (NIV) You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. Philippians 4:13 I can do everything through him who gives me strength. John 14:14 (NIV) You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. 1 Corinthians 2:15 (NIV) The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment: Romans 8:9 (NIV) You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ Matthew 16:19 (NIV) I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." Here is an opportunity for us to come into the unity of His Spirit and to raise up a standard internationally in the midst of this present world condition. God is clearly speaking that we, His People, have the ability and power to change the world.
God bless you
Dr. Clarice

Fear God 7-2-12

I had an encounter with God this past weekend that was unlike any I had ever experienced before.  I'm not really sure that I can put it into words.  I hope that I was able to explain it a little in the last few posts.  I think what I most came away from the ladies advance was that most Christians (myself included) do not begin to utilize the power of God in their lives.  We have put God in this small little box and placed him on a shelf.  We take out the box and talk to him when we have a problem or a need, but otherwise just leave him there inside that little box.  We need to be reminded of the awesome POWER of God.  The God we serve is the same God that placed the stars in the sky, knows the numbers of the hairs on our head and created this vast universe and everything in it!

He is the same God that wants us to be financially secure and healthy.  He does not want us to be poor and sick.  We are His children.  We need to really think about what that means.  If you are a parent, you already know that you want the absolute best for your children.  And when they are sick, all you want is for them to be well.  I am reminded of the words of a song that we used to sing in our quartet at church..."Your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost!  You are not your own.  You are bought with a price!  The precious blood of the lamb!  You are a king's kid!!"  We need to learn to tap into that power!  We need to start acting like children of a king instead of thinking, "poor, pitiful, me..."  Am I speaking to anyone right now?  Am I stepping on some toes?  I hope so!

Do you want to know the main reason we no longer attend "church"?  There are lots of reasons, but the main one is that most pastors are afraid to preach a hard message that people don't want (but desperately need) to hear.  They are afraid if they preach that kind of message, the people will leave and go somewhere else...and take their money with them.  Matthew 5:13 says, "You are the salt of the earth.  But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?  It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men."

The most refreshing part of the teaching I received this weekend from Clarice Fluitt was about the awesome power of God.  She is so annointed, and so blessed by God because she listens and obeys.  She has allowed herself to be completely surrendered to God to do what He tells her to do.  One of my favorite CD's that I purchased from her this weekend was called, "Fear God."  She says, "That which you fear will come upon you!"  Do you fear sickness?  Disease?  Poverty?  That which you fear will come upon you.  Fear God!!  The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.  When you begin to fear God, He will be able to work through you and use you in ways you never thought possible.

Clarice is an amazing woman.  She has some of the best testimonies I have ever heard.  She doesn't just have a testimony, she has lots of them!!  Since we know that God is no respector of persons, we know that he can give us all testimonies like hers that will change lives.  People need to hear that the God we serve is a God of power!!

I don't know about you, but I am ready to be used by God in an amazing way.  I am ready to have testimonies that will blow your socks off!  I want the kind of testimonies that when people hear them, they say, "That cannot possibly be true!"

Father God, I am ready to be used in a mighty way.  I want the words of my testimony to change people's lives.  I want people to say, I want to serve the God that woman serves!  I want to change lives through the power of my testimony.  I promise to always give you all the glory!  In Jesus mighty name I pray.  Amen.

Psalms 37:4 6-27-12

One of my favorite scriptures is Ps. 37:4.  It is the scripture that is the foundation for my new business Udderly Delightful.  (I will expound more upon that later.  God is still helping me work out the details, but I am very excited about what is coming!)

Psalms 37:4 says, "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart."  Sometimes those desires are big, and sometimes they are small.  When you realize that God cares even for the small stuff, you can begin to envision God taking care of the big stuff.

Here is just a little story about what happened to us today.  Yesterday I said to John that I would love to have some watermelon.  I said, "That would taste soooooo good right now!"  BTW, we have a huge watermelon vine growing in the cow's pen in front of the house.  It just grew there on its own, and it has about 12 watermelon growing on it right now.  If that is not crazy enough, the cow's are completely leaving it alone.  They are not eating the vine or walking on it, even though they LOVE watermelon!

So anyway, I said to John, "I wish those watermelon were ripe so we could eat them!"  He said, "I'm afraid that I have gotten very spoiled for seedless watermelon."  He is assuming they will be the seeded kind - if they are even any good.

Two days ago David said, "Mom, I wish we had some apple juice.  I LOVE apple juice, and I haven't had any in a long time.  Will you buy some the next time you go to the store?" 

Then today I was sitting here working on my notes for my business and listening to one of the CD's I bought at the ladies conference this weekend.  I was thinking, "I sure would like a sandwich.  I really should get up and fix one."

The next thing you know, John comes walking in the door carrying a big box.  He had taken our calf Robbie to the YMCA day camp in Tifton where he was part of a petting zoo they were having for the kids.  Anyway, he says, "Who is going to eat all this food?"  In the box was about 10 sandwiches, cheese sticks, applesauce, and a whole bunch of apple juice drink boxes.  Then John said, "You know how you were just saying last night that you were in the mood for watermelon?"  About that time, David comes walking in the kitchen with a large seedless watermelon!  (It was leftovers from lunch at the day camp.)

Isn't God good?  He cares about the little things, and he cares about the big things too!  Some of you know the details of an ugly land dispute we are having with a neighbor.  We have decided to just put it in God's hands because it is clearly too big for us to handle on our own.  I challenge you right now to go find your Bible and read all of Psalms 37.  God has it all under control.  All we have to do is trust him.  By the way, I CANNOT WAIT to give the testimony of how God took care of this problem for us!

When God speaks will you listen and obey? 6-24-12

After having an amazing experience the past few days at the ladies retreat (advance), John and I were able to have some time alone to celebrate our 22nd wedding anniversary.  My sister Judy graciously offered to take the kids for the night, and we got to spend some rare time alone, and even go on a date!  :)  We had a wonderful time and were able to catch up on some of the things that we both experienced while I was away.

This morning we attended church services with some friends at a local Baptist church.  I had promised my friend that I would come and give a healing testimony.  I need to first back up and tell the story of what happened:

About a month ago, I got some kind of insect bite on my hand.  It really didn't bother me other than it left this ugly red mark on my hand.  It would occasionally itch, but other than that, it didn't really bother me.  I had made remarks about it several times over the last few weeks about how I wish it would just go away.  Well, about a week ago, I started to feel sick.  I had a fever, chills, body aches, and my lymph node under my right arm was very swollen.  (The insect bite was on my right hand.)  Then I started to notice a red line coming from the insect bite towards my arm.  At this point I was a bit alarmed that it was some kind of poisonous spider bite.

We were having our weekly Bible study at our home that night, and I was not feeling well at all.  I told our friends that I needed prayer.  They said, "You really should have a doctor look at that.  It could be a brown recluse bite, or it could be a staff infection."   I said, "I don't have a problem with doctors, but I just believe that God is going to heal whatever it is.  I don't need to know what it is.  God knows, and I believe He will take care of it."  So, we got together and they prayed for healing.  Immediately after the prayer, the red line was gone.  He said, "If that thing is gone tomorrow, you need to come to church and give a healing testimony."

I did start to feel better the next day, but it wasn't completely gone, so we decided we would go the following week.  This brings me to today.  John and I went to church, and I was prepared to give my testimony if the opportunity presented itself.  Sure enough, shortly after the worship music ended, one of the church members stood up and gave a testimony about how God had delivered her from cigarettes.  John nudged me in the side and said, "Now is your chance!!"  (Most Baptist churches that I have attended in the past do not usually have healing and deliverence testimonies, so I knew this was God!)

Okay, so I have just been told that I am no longer timid and shy.  I have been given boldness from on high!  (Be careful what you pray for people!!)  I go walking down the center aisle of the church and ask the pastor if I can give a testimony.  He says, "Of course you can little lady!"  I said, "Do you have a mike?"  (Boldness!)  So, I give the testimony of the healing just like I told you.  Well, these 2 testimonies started a wave of testimonies throughout the church.  Isn't God awesome?

The pastor went on to give a very good sermon from John 13:8-17 about the time that Jesus washed the disciple's feet.  When he was done, one of his deacons stood up and said, "What about the verse about how we should wash one another's feet?  You skipped over that verse."  The pastor replied, "I said all that I God told me to say."  Well, apparently this particular deacon has been attending church services at this church under this same pastor for the past 30 years.  And for the past 30 years, he has been telling the pastor that they should have a foot washing service.  The pastor didn't really believe in foot washing, and he had said many times that he would NEVER have a foot washing service in his church.

After this, someone else sang a song.  When she was done, the pastor came back up and said, "The Lord has spoken to me this morning.  I need someone to go get me a basin of water and some towels, and I am going to wash ---'s feet.  (I don't know his name.)  It was a very moving and touching experience to watch.

When the service was coming to a close, the pastor said, "I would never of had the privilege of what I did this morning if I did not listen and obey."  I thought that was awesome because that was the title of my blog post from 2 days earlier.

So, are you ready to be used miraculously by God?  What is God telling you to do today?  Today is the day of obedience.  Go and do what He is telling you to do.

A Prophetic Word 6-22-12 (pm)

Tonight during our teaching session with Dr. Clarice Fluitt, I received a prophetic word from the Lord.  During the middle of the teaching, she stopped, pointed at me, and said to stand up.  She began to pray and speak over me a confirmation of what I have been praying for.  I came open and prepared to hear from Him - a vessel ready to be moved by God.

I don't remember exactly what was said, probably because I was sobbing through most of it.  As soon as I get a copy of the CD, I will write down word for word what she said.  Basically, she said God was calling me away from being timid and shy, and giving me boldness.  She said I had the gift of healing and prophesy.  She said something about no longer being disappointed.  Then she said, "You are not ordinary.  You are extraordinary!!"  This was particularly funny to me because in the book I am reading called, The Dream Giver, the main character's name in Ordinary.  It is the story of leaving the "Land of the Familiar" to pursue "The Big Dream."

Listen and obey 6-22-12 (am)

I want to share with you some of what I have received at the retreat.  First of all, the speaker (Clarice Fluitt) started off her session last night with these words:  "This is not a retreat.  This is an ADVANCE!  We did not come here to move backward, but to go forward."  As I was busy trying to write that down, she looked right at me and said, "Do not try to take notes.  I am going to move too fast for that.  I need you to listen."  And so I did.

We had breakout sessions this morning in 5 different areas:  prayer, worship, God's word, listening, and soaking.  Previous to the lessons I asked God to reveal to me what he wanted me to hear.  I also prayed for boldness and for a manifestation of the gifts He had for me.  I asked God to pour out of me the double portion of prophesy that was prophesied over me many years ago.  I said, "I am ready for the manifestation of the double portion."

What I found throughout the morning was a theme of prayer, listening for God's voice, and then obeying what He says.

First, at the prayer session we were each given a gift.  The leader of the session said that she had prayed over them, and she believed that everyone was going to get the one God wanted them to have.  Each one was unique in some way.  We were given a prayer shawl.  First of all, I have always wanted a prayer shawl.  Secondly, it was my favorite color.  It is the same color as the eyes on my cow for my logo for my new business.  :)

Next we went to a session on studying God's word.  Again, we were given individual unique gifts.  My gift was a book about prayer.  I was also able to give a testimony about gratefulness.  Some time ago someone posted on facebook a status update that said, "What if you woke up tomorrow morning, and all you had was what you thanked God for yesterday?"  That was one of the most profound statements I have ever heard, and I believe it changed my life.

Next, we went to a session on listening.  I was reminded of the many times I have listened and heard the voice of God.  I was also reminded of how important it is to obey that voice when you hear it.  Just to name a few times that I have heard from God:

1.  He told me to move to FL.  I remember it like it was yesterday.  I was working as a bank teller at the time, and I was at work running the drive-through window on a Saturday morning.  I just heard God speak to me.  I am not sure if it was an audible voice, or just through my spirit, but I remember what he said.  He said, "I want you to move to FL and live with your parents."  I remember telling one of the other tellers, "I am going to move to FL."  She looked at me like I had 6 heads!   Now, let me just tell you that that came out of nowhere.  I had no plans to move to FL.  All I know is that on Monday morning I gave my 2 week's notice, and I was on my way to FL.  (BTW, I met my husband the 2nd day I was there at my parent's church, and we were engaged less than 6 months later.)

2.  He told me we were going to move to the country and buy a farm.  This happened while we were on a camping trip with some friends from our old church, Beit Yeshua.  I am not sure if I even told anyone other than my husband.  It was several years later before it actually happened, but it did happen.

3.  I also heard from God when He told us we were to buy a cow.  That is a whole story of it's own, so I will save that one for another day.  I think I have made my point ~ at least I hope so.

The last session for our small group was on soaking.  We listened to a beautiful song about how much God loves us.  Then we laid down on mattresses on the floor and closed our eyes.  We just relaxed and meditated on what God had for us.  We were told that if God spoke to us, we were to write it down.

The only thing I heard was "1Thesselonians 5:17."  It just kept coming to me over and over.  I questioned whether is was just my mind, or was I really hearing from God?  This was not a verse that I had committed to memory.  I had no idea what it said.  After the soaking time, I looked it up, and it said, "Pray continually."  It goes on to say in verses 18-24:  "Gve thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.  Do not put out the Spirit's fire;  do not treat prophecies with contempt.  Test everything.  Hold on to the good.  Avoid every kind of evil.  May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through.  May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it."

Is there a theme here?  Yes, God.  I hear you.  Pray, listen, seek your face, and when you speak to me, obey.  And through it all have joy and remember to give thanks.

Thank you Lord for speaking to me today.  I pray that these words will speak to you as well.

Are you persuing your dream? 6-21-12

I just wanted to start out by saying that I wrote this (and the next several other blog posts) several days ago in my journal.  It has just taken me some time to finally get them on the computer.  So, the date next to the title is the date the post was written.

My sister Cindy recently gave me a book called, The Dream Giver by Bruce Wilkinson.  Like many other things in my life, I put off reading it.  Not because I didn't have the time ~ we all make the time for the things we really want to do.  I put it off because she told me it would be life changing.  I knew from the title of the book that it would cause me to not only think about my dreams, but make some real changes to make them happen.

On p. 20 of the book, he writes: 

~"The Dream Giver gave me a Big Dream before I was even born.  I just finally woke up to it!"

~"My dream is what I do best and what I most love to do.  How could I have missed it for so long?"

~"I had to sacrifice and make big changes to persue my dream.  But it will be worth it."

~"It makes me sad to think that so many Nobodies are missing something so Big."


The book is already resonating with me, and I am only on the 1st chapter.  I have a dream.  I have a dream of owning my own business, a dream of writing a book, but most of all a dream of becoming successful doing something that I love to do.

As I am writing this, I am sitting outside by the pool of a ladies beach retreat.  It is early in the morning, and the birds are singing.  The praise and worship leaders are preparing to minister.  I know God has something special for me today.  Lord, I am open to what you have for me.  Please speak to me today.

In everything give thanks

I have been contemplating about what to write about all day.  I am enjoying some solitude - which is somewhat rare for me.  John and the boys went to Duffy's farm to help him harvest some corn, and then the boys are going to VBS with some friends tonight.  We may even get some alone time tonight - something that is extremely rare!

Anyway, I sat down for a few minutes to have some prayer time with the Lord.  I have been feeling a bit anxious the last few weeks about finances, and I know that God wants us to be anxious for nothing.  As I was praying and asking God to help me overcome my anxiety, he brought several scriptures to my mind.  Be anxious for nothing...take no thought for tomorrow...(Matthew 6:25-34)  In everything give thanks:  for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.  (1Thessalonians 5:18)... Be still and know that I am God.  (Psalm 46:10)

Needless to say, I am feeling much better.  I was reminded how important it is to be grateful.  Whether you have a little or a lot, it is so important to be thankful for what you do have.  I truly believe that is not only the key to happiness, but also the key that unlocks the kingdom of heaven for blessings to be able to flow.  I am often guilty of forgetting that, and those are the times that I find myself struggling with fear of not having enough.

I really should know better.  The last few years of our life have been filled with massive amounts of change, yet God has been with us through it all.  I know that without Him, we would never be where we are today.  We went from a very typical middle class suburban neighborhood close to lots of shops and restaurants to living on a 5 acre farm in the country, 20 minutes away from the nearest "regular" grocery store and nearly an hour away from any large retail stores or shopping malls.  That in itself was a huge culture shock for me and my family.  Then add to it that my husband continued to travel back and forth to Florida almost every week for several days at a time.  We were so blessed to have John's brother and sister-in-law to allow him to stay there when he came to Florida.  (If either of you are reading this, I thank you from the bottom of my heart!)

Recently, we went through another round of radical change when my husband decided to stay here in GA and basically give up his painting business in FL.  We are used to living on faith, because for the last 20 years of our marriage, John has been self employed.  While we never got rich (at least by American standards), we always had enough.  John relied on his reputation and the Lord to keep his business going.  He did very little advertising, and yet week after week the phone would continue to ring with new business.  So you can see how difficult it was for him to let go and let God take over.  (Coincidentally, that will be the title of my first book someday...Let Go and Let God.)

I just need to stop and say that just a minute ago (while I was writing this), my phone rang.  It was one of my cheese customers calling to place another order!  Praise the Lord!  Isn't it amazing how when you release your fears to God and ask him to take over, He is so quick to answer your prayers?  We serve a BIG God people!!

Anyway, back to the story about my husband.  He has been steady busy with work since he made the decision to stay in GA.  This past week he has been home.  He has been doing a few small home improvement projects and he has been helping me do some gardening.  He is currently working on plans to make a chicken coop for someone (and hopefully one for us too!)  He is busy trying to find things he can do or sell from home, and we are praying for God to help expand our vision to see what He has in store for us next.  Stay tuned, because I am sure God has something wonderful planned, and I can't wait to tell you all about it!

All bacon is NOT created equal

Let me first say that if you are kosher or vegetarian, you may not want to read this post.  But, if you love bacon, this one is for you!  Today I had the most delicious bacon I have ever put in my mouth.  Please forgive me if it sounds like I am bragging.  That is not my intent!  My intent is simply to say that I have now had to opportunity to taste some of our first pork that we have raised here on the farm.  It is delicious!  I have heard over and over again that any meat that you raise yourself will taste much better than anything you can buy in the store, and let me just tell you firsthand it is true!!

This morning my husband prepared the most delicious breakfast of pancakes, bacon and sausage.  Yes, we had to taste the sausage too.  :)  The pancakes were made with fresh buttermilk that I made myself.  They were light, fluffy and dripping with maple syrup.  Yum!!  The sausage looked different than any I had seen from the store.  It had just the right amount of spice and flavor.  Although it was marbled with fat, it left very little drippings in the pan.  But the bacon, ohhhhhh the bacon!  It was simply mouthwatering!  It was thick sliced, and it was sweet and smokey.  It fried up beautifully in the pan, and it was tender with just a slight amount of chewiness.  Is that a word?  LOL!  Anyway, the bacon was outstanding!  It made all the waiting of raising the pigs and sending them to the butcher worthwhile.

As for the raising of the pigs, they were very easy.  I had no idea what to expect, and I had heard horror stories about them.  We had a very good experience with our little piggies.  When my husband brought them home, the two of them fit in a large cat carrier.  We fed them for about 4 1/2 months, and they grew very quickly.  Sometimes it almost felt like you could watch them grow.  They were always happy to get fed, and they would happily gobble up anything you gave them.  We fed them table scraps (no pork), milk and whey, and hog feed. They didn't have much grass, but they would root around and dig up whatever they could find.  They were very tame, and loved it when you scratched them on the head.

After they were gone, I discovered just how wonderful pig manure is as a fertilizer for my garden.  I had a manure pile close to the pig pen, and now I have some of the prettiest tomato plants growing there.  The best part is that they grew there all on their own!  I also have some of the strangest looking plants that I thought for the longest time were peppers.  It turns out they are tomatilla plants.  They are huge and covered with blossoms.  (We had fed some to the pigs once.  Haha!)

So, will we grow pigs again?  YES, YES, YES!!!  We now have a freezer full of pork.  320 pounds of it to be exact.  The pigs weighed in at 240 pounds and 275 pounds, and they dressed out at 145 and 175 respectively.  We figure it cost us about $1.75 a pound overall from start to finish.  So far we have only tried the sausage, bacon and pork steaks.  They were all fantastic.  I can hardly wait to try the other stuff in my freezer.  :)  John and I just planted about 300 corn plants in their old pen.  After we harvest it, we will buy a couple more piggies and throw them in with the old corn stalks.  They will love it!  Well, I've rambled a bit too long as usual, and my timer for my next batch of cheddar cheese is going off.  I gotta go!

Our first paying customer!

Today was another busy day.  The house was full of  rambunctious boys.  Steven and David each had a friend over to play.  It was a welcome break for me to know they were being entertained so I could get some work done.  Summer has officially begun! 

John made a price list brochure for our dairy products while I made a couple of batches of cheese.  Today I made a raw milk mozzarella that was really good, and another batch that was not so good.  I have decided that making mozzarella with more than one gallon of milk just doesn't work right.  The consistency is just too mushy.  It kind of turns out like a mozzarella version of Velveeta.  I much prefer it when it is firm and has a stronger flavor.  I am anxious to hear how my new customers like the samples I gave them today.  He bought some of my farmer's cheddar, and I gave him a sample of the raw milk mozzarella and some of the jalapeno and ranch cheese spread.  The gentleman told me that the cheese I gave them last week was the most delicious he had ever tasted.  That was just the kind of encouragement I needed to hear.  They also drive all the way from Tifton just to buy my cheese.  Pretty cool!

We had a very welcome rain tonight.  We needed it so badly.  Now John has to make good on his promise to plant corn in the old pigpen. :)  We figure that after we harvest the corn we will be ready for new pigs, and they will enjoy eating the corn stalks.  I love how nothing goes to waste on the farm.  I am missing the little piggies because I used to give them all the scraps and leftover whey from cheesemaking.  Now my garden gets the whey.  It makes a great organic fertilizer, and I save the food scraps for my friend's pig.

It's been a long day, and I am tired.  I'm hoping tomorrow to finally get caught up on some laundry,  finish packing up the kid's school books and get some gardening done.  Goodnight!

Just another day on the farm

Normally we have something fun lined up to do on Memorial Day, but this year we had no plans.  Since this was our first official day of no school, I tried to check off as many things on my summer to do list as possible.  Coincidentally, posting on my blog each day during the summer is one of those things.  We'll see how long that lasts.  :)  I am still trying to listen to the "still small voice", and lately it has practically screaming at me that I need to journal each day.  I really believe that something awesome is coming into our lives, and I am going to want to be able to look back at these entries to read again how it all unfolded.

That being said, today was a very busy (and probably boring to read about) day.  It didn't start out too well.  This morning looked like rain was coming, so I was trying to clean out the calves little shelter so they would have somewhere to go and stay dry.  Little did I know that there was a wasp's nest in there!  The little buggers stung me twice.  Once on the arm and once on my stomach.  Needless to say, I freaked out, and went running inside to take some benadryl and pray that I didn't have an allergic reaction like the last time I got stung.  Praise God, I did not!

So, I sat down with a cup of coffee and thought about how I was going to spend my day.  I had already decided I was not going to make cheese today because I didn't feel like it.  I've been a little frustrated and confused as to what to do with all the milk we have been getting lately. I've been making cheese like it's going out of style and giving it away to everyone I see in hopes that I will be able to sell it.  (Legally, I cannot sell my milk or dairy products because of ridiculous governmental regulations that I will not get into right now.  However, I have decided that I am not going to let that stop me from doing what I feel like I am supposed to be doing with all this milk.)

I decided I would make some blackberry jelly.  I have been wanting to make it for a while, and I am trying to clean out the freezer as much as possible to make room for the butchered pigs we will be getting back this week.  Let me just say that straining out all those little seeds is a major pain.  It is unlikely that I will be making blackberry jelly again anytime soon!  Then I decided that as long as I had all the canning stuff out, I might as well make some strawberry jam too.  I already had the strawberries ready to go in the freezer.  It was a big project, but I now have 4 pints of each sitting on my counter.  And boy did my kitchen smell good this afternoon!

While I was making jam, I got a phone call from a lady I had sold some raw milk to (for her dog of course!) who wanted to get some more.  Yeah!!  I had all but given up on hearing from her again, not to mention the thought of never seeing my gallon jars again.  Anyway, she asked me if I had any cheese to sell.  She said, "That cheese you gave me was delicious!!"  I was delighted to tell her that yes, I did have some cheese she could buy.  My very first cheese customer.  It was a monumental moment for me.  I got off the phone and told my husband, "I guess I will be making some more cheese today after all."

So, long story short, I spent the entire day in the kitchen.  I made blackberry jelly, strawberry jam, a batch of farmer's cheese (which is a quick version of cheddar that ages only about a week instead of several days), a batch of brownies and some homemade croutons out of some old bread.  John cooked some chicken on the grill while I made some pasta and fried squash from the garden.  I also cooked some of the green beans I canned last week.  They were delicious!  Right now John is making a batch of homemade ice cream that we will have tomorrow.  Yum.....just another day on the farm!

Robbie's new little brother

What a crazy day it has been!  Actually, the last few days have been some of the busiest I can remember in a long time.  We have had quite the education in calf rearing, that is for sure!  Farming is not for sissies!!  I think maybe, just maybe we finally have it figured out with these calves.

As some of you may know, our first little calf (Sam 4...Sammy Sirloin) did not make it.  I am sure that he had the scours, and I am very sure that he was already sick when we got him.  We had a terrible time trying to get him to eat, and in the end his little body just wasn't strong enough.  He died on Monday night in John's arms while he was trying to feed him.  I have to honestly say that I never got attached to him - probably because deep down I wasn't really sure he was going to make it.  David took it pretty hard though.

I wasn't really sure that I wanted to bother with another one, but John convinced me that we should try again.  We were planning to get one this weekend, but Duffy called last night to tell us he had a replacement for little Robbie.  He arrived last night just before we were leaving to go to basketball practice.  Right away we could tell that he was a lot stronger.

So, at 5:00 this morning - long before the sun came up, little Sam 5 started to moo.  Oh, btw, this cow's tag also says "Sam 5"!  Anyway, he mooed and mooed and mooed.  I finally got up and started my morning routine of coffee, prayer and Bible study.  I was determined not to give in that early lest we start a routine that we could never break.  I woke David up around 7:00 and told him we were going to have to feed the calves a little early because poor Sam 5 was about to moo himself silly.  I figured this was going to be a walk in the park.  He is so hungry, we will never have trouble getting him to take the bottle.  Boy was I wrong!!!

We tried everything.  We chased him around, held him down, pried open his mouth, you name it.  That calf was not having any part of that bottle!  Finally I sent David in to get Steven about 7:45.  (I had originally told him he needed to be ready to feed animals by 8 am.)  The 3 of us all struggled to get that calf to take the bottle.  One of us was holding him down, one holding his mouth open, and the other one squirting the milk into his mouth.  Still no use.  He wanted no part of that bottle.  In the meantime, he is still mooing his head off because he is hungry.  I was beginning to get frustrated!  I was ready to shove him in the back of my minivan and take his little butt back to the dairy farm.  I even nicknamed him "Stupid A-- Moron"  aka SAM.  I think you get the idea.  Then I called Duffy about 8:30 to see if he had any advice.  He said try giving it to him in a bucket.  We tried that too.  No deal!

By that time it was getting late, and we had to get the other animals fed.  I fed his bottle of milk to the pigs who lapped it up in about 15 seconds.  Then I decided to milk Esther and try again with a fresh bottle of warm milk right from the cow.  I figured if he didn't drink that, then I would surrender.  It is just not in my nature to give up though.  So I called the local feed store to see if they had any advice.  They said to force feed him.  (We kind of already tried that, I thought!)  They said to put the nipple in his mouth and hold his mouth closed until he started to suck.  Well, low and behold, it worked!!  By 9:30 he finally had a full belly and stopped mooing.  Hallelujah!!

I figure somewhere in this story there is a lesson.  Persistance?  Patience?  I am not sure.  I do know that my prayer time this morning was spent praising God and thanking Him for all our wonderful blessings.  Despite how difficult it may be at times, I am extremely grateful for the life I have.  I truly wouldn't trade it for anything.  God is good - all the time!

Oh, one more thing....Sam 5 will from now on be called "Sam I Am."  That is a name I had been thinking about for a while when we had the other calf because the two of them reminded me of Dr. Suess.  Today's experience with the bottle was very much like the story, "Green Eggs and Ham."  "I do not like them Sam I Am!" ..... "I will not drink it from a bottle, I will not drink it from a bucket.  I will not drink it with the dogs.  I will not drink it with the hogs..."  (I could go on and on, but it is now11:30, and we have not started school yet.  It is going to be another one of those days...or what I am learning is just a typical day on a very busy farm.)

New additions to the farm

Wow!  What a busy and exciting weekend this has been for us.  It started on Friday night when we were having our regular Bible study with some good friends.  Duffy is a dairy farmer and has become a very close personal friend to our family.  He and my husband John have become bff's and he has become somewhat of a surrogate grandpa to my kids.  Anyway, during dinner at our Bible study, he told my son David that he had a present for him.  This he said with a big smile on his face.

Knowing Duffy to be a big practical joker, I was concerned.  :)  He said he was going to bring it to the house on Saturday morning.  He later told us what the surprise was when David left the room to make sure we were okay with it.  Then when David came back in, Duffy asked him if he wanted one present or two.  Of course, he said two!!  When he told David that he wanted to give him a little calf of his own, David was so excited! Then he asked Steven if he wanted one too.  Of course he also said yes.  So, long story short we are now the proud owners of two adorable baby steer.

The boys agreed that they would be the ones taking care of them.  Little did any of us know how much work would be involved to bottle feed two little calves!  Not only does it take a long time for them to drink their 1/2 gallon bottle of milk, you have to prepare the formula, wash the bottles... It is much like having a newborn (except they only have to eat twice a day).  One of the little calves is still having some trouble taking to the bottle, and we are concerned that he may have the scours.  Duffy is going to come over tomorrow to check on him.

Meanwhile, John got busy building them a new pen and shelter.  He converted part of the dog's pen.  They will live there for the next few weeks until they get a little bigger and we can put them with Esther and Annabelle.  Then I hope to convert it into a chicken coop.  The dogs were very curious about the new calves, and were not at all happy about being temporarily kicked out of their pen.  It was really quite funny.  When they are in the pen, they want out.  Then when they are out, they want back in!  Since Katy can't be trusted not to jump the fence, she had to spend the night tied to the pole barn while Sadie was able to run free.  They were both very happy to be back in their pen tonight.

So, the big question everyone is asking is, "Will you be able to butcher them?"  Only time will tell!!  It will be at least 18 months before we have to do that.  Their names are Robbie Ribeye and Sammy Sirloin.  :)  Robbie is David's new best friend, so we will just have to see.  I do know that they will be the tamest steer you ever want to be around if he keeps hugging them and letting them sleep in his lap.  LOL!

Happy New Year

Wow!  This past year has brought so many changes to my life.  I hardly know where to start.  Let me first say, I am trying more than ever to listen to the "still small voice,"  and lately it has been telling me in more of a roar than a whisper that I need to blog daily.  So, I suppose you could call it a New Year's resolution, but I am going to think of it as more of a response to a calling from God.  Again, I have no idea if what I am writing down will ever be read by anyone other than myself.  But, if it helps me somehow in this journey of life it will be worth it.  However, my deepest prayer is that something I say in this blog will profoundly change another person in their life in someway.  My deepest goal is to share the love of Jesus and to minister to others as to how to have a more personal relationship with Him.

I have experienced a lot of personal growth this past year - especially since my last post.  Breaking my ankle was one of the most painful experiences I have ever gone through.  I would not wish it on my worst enemy.  It did however teach me many valuable life lessons that I may not have learned otherwise.  I do not say that to say that I believe God was responsible.  I believe that the enemy (Satan) was responsible, but I allowed myself to be used by God through the situation.  I believe my family became closer.  I believe my husband and children learned a greater respect for how much I do for them.  At the same time, I appreciate them more too.  I learned to be a little less of a control freak.  Most of all I learned how much I appreciate the ability to walk.  I have such great empathy for people who do not enjoy that freedom, and such respect for our armed service men and women who have lost that ability while trying to protect our freedom.

The best thing to come out of that situation was it gave me time to just sit and do nothing and think and pray.  I had time to read, write in my journal and just reflect on life.  I had time to visualize what I want for my life, and just as I can picture my home all finished, I am beginning to picture our farm and business take shape.  It also seemed that as I was beginning to have these visions, I was discovering articles about "finding your vision".  I even wrote down the following quote in my journal after watching an episode of Oprah:  "You become what you believe.  To find your purpose, pay attention to the life you are leading now."  So once again, the "still small voice" was speaking to me.

I also believe wisdom is where you find it.  Again, after watching an episode of Oprah, I wrote this quote down:  "Your life doesn't have to be what everyone else thinks it should be."  That resonated with me because I think some people - friends and family - probably thought we were crazy for making the lifestyle changes we have made.  It is not easy or glamorous to own a farm.  We are still far from the vision we have for this place, but the vision is still there.  I am committed to working each day to make our dreams a reality.  We have also left the conventional church in order to pursue a more personal relationship with Jesus.  I know that for most people reading this, that sounds like an oxymoron.  However, since "leaving the church,"  we have grown spiritually by leaps and bounds.  I'll have to expand more on that later.

As we move into a new year, I would also like to share something Sid Roth said on his program, "It's Supernatural" a few months ago.  He said, "Do not be like Lot's wife.  Do not look back to the old.  It's time for the new."  Then one of his guests said, "The key to breakthrough is a determined spirit that refuses to take no for an answer."  That is kind of how I feel about this process of trying to sell milk and cheese (which is illegal unless you have a huge expensive operation).  I know that with God all things are possible, and I am just pressing on with the vision.  I am ready to start classes on cheese making soon, and I believe God will work it all out.

I pray that all of you reading have a very blessed New Year.  I welcome any comments.