Begin With The End In Mind

On Wednesday, September 1 we started harvesting. It was beautiful weather. The equipment was clean, greased, and ready to go. Eddyville was asking for corn. We had several acres to go.

Being in the custom work business we had others' acres to do as well. About a third of our workload is helping folks. We rented out our smaller combine on a couple of occasions to help young folks harvest as a family.

Malaki helped his father Karl finish some odds and ends yesterday with our grandkids combine. Malaki is in first grade. Thanks for the picture Karl.

We've had a few distractions this fall. Another this past Monday was a final drive failure. Thanks Kristin for driving to western Iowa for parts. Thanks Dean for getting us going. Thanks Karl for the picture.

On Thursday BJ picked up a log in his cornhead north of Galesburg. It bent a row unit 8 inches wide and it looked unusable. BJ, Karl, and I wanted to find a way to finish so we hooked Karl's pickup to each side of the row unit and pulled the unit back together. Obviously a temporary fix.

We've had a number of guests help with harvest this fall. Mark is from St. Louis and was coming back from pheasant hunting with friends up north. So he stopped by the field Thursday afternoon. Mark is an executive business consulting leadership coach. He works with companies and farm businesses. He has written a book called Active Transformation. Mark and I met when he was helping Monsanto. We worked together a couple of years back and became friends. Thanks for the visit Mark.

Back in early September we had a number of goals. There was a detour or two along the way. However one of our main goals early on was to finish harvest. We planned, focused, prayed, and worked toward that goal. Three months and 600 hours per combine later we accomplished our goal. We finished harvest yesterday around noon on one of the most beautiful Indian summer days one could ask for.

Now we move on to the next goals. We'll continue trucking, tillage, NH3, dirtwork, and hog honey hauling. Another goal is to continue working on farm drainage by installing tile. BJ traded for a different tile plow and is looking forward to putting it to work.

Tiling helps during fieldwork trips. It helps control erosion. It is one of the most important investments toward improved yields. Tiling is customwork and income when helping others. However the most important and end goal is improving the land and leaving it better than we found it for the next generations.

Children are a gift from God. In the Bible, Psalm 127 says "That man is blessed who's quiver is full of them". It goes on to say that parents are the bow from which children are sent out as living arrows. The direction parents send their kids determine where those children will end up in life.

This past Friday evening several of us attended and participated in Oskaloosa Christian School's Fall music program. A parent has the responsibility of teaching their children to teach their children. It was a blessing to have several grandkids in this program singing praises like they meant it.

Education doesn't only happen in school. Monday was a teacher day so 7th grader Elijah ran graincart while his cousin, 4th grader Natilie, rode along.

Acts of kindness have an end goal of showing folks they are appreciated. This past Friday morning our seed advisor from Becks brought Jan her favorite loaves of homemade bread from an Amish bakery, and the harvest crew a still warm peach pie. Yes, we work together in the seed business helping farmers succeed. However the end result is relationships. Thanks Matt. Our family enjoys the friendship.

So, as far as our culture today, how do we keep the end in mind as our Godless leaders continue to seem to win as they fight to take away more and more of our freedoms and values every day? I am convinced there is still a moral majority in this country that acknowledges God and has a patriotic desire to continue this democracy for our grandchildren. We need to be bold and courageous on the one hand and tender, helpful, and kind on the other as we look to serve God and each other.

This picture has no relevance other than it is a neat farmstead just west of Galesburg.

 

Most all of us have busy lives here on earth as we go about our responsibilities doing good things. However keep the "end in mind", doing good things doesn't cover us for when we leave earth. And we all eventually leave. On this Thanksgiving week, be thankful for family, friends, occupations, country, and relationships with others. And as we move toward the (Christ)mas holidays we remember Christ coming to earth to cover and pay for our wrongs. Be sure you also have a relationship with Christ and have accepted His gift. I want to spend eternity with you someday. Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by.