Foundation Of Trust

Every year about this time as the planters are filling with seed for the upcoming crop, there is a foundation of trust in a farmer that believes and relies on God to take a dead seed and turn it into a bountiful harvest.

Happy Birthday Malaki.

Last week we visited about Passion Week when Jesus was arrested, abandoned by friends, falsely accused, convicted by both church and government, and headed for Calvary where He was crucified, died, and buried in a borrowed tomb on what we call Good Friday. Thanks for the picture Collin.

However what we remember and celebrate today changed everything. Early, on a Sunday morning, Jesus conquered death. He came back to life, shocked those guarding his grave, left the tomb, and explained to folks how He had to die to pay for our wrongs. This Resurrection is the foundation of our trust that when we leave this earth we will spend eternity with Christ in heaven if we simply accept this gift. God's spiritual harvest is providing for us both here on earth and later in Heaven.

Clarissa accepted that gift and she and her families foundation of trust is that God provides both in this life and the next. Clarissa and her husband Gerald raised their family on a rented farm in Wright. They lived just across the road from where Jan and her family lived. Jan and Kathy came to be best friends. Gerald and Clarissa had five boys and one girl. Their son Alan died as a child. One of my many special connections with this family is that God has blessed Jan and I with six children as well, five boys and one girl. God chose to take Clarissa home to Heaven this past week. She spent 100 years here on earth. Blessings to Calvin, Norman, Kathy, Ken, Dave, and their families.

I've shared with you before I read westerns to put my mind in neutral. In these stories the main character uses his horse to make things happen. In my current book the character's horse is strong, fast, courageous, and blind. Yes, blind. The horse has total trust in the one he belongs to. On one occasion the bad guys use a crisis at night when folk's guard is down and stampede a ladies cattle herd toward a cliff. The main character and his blind horse race to the rescue and slowly turn the running cattle into a pinwheel effect to stop the stampede and save the ladies cattle. I've read enough of these to anticipate the ending. The gal becomes the main character's bride.

In real life Godless leaders have used crisis while folks guard is down, either because of fear or apathy, to try and stampede our country over a cliff. A stampede is hard to stop.

You and I should do our best to be strong, fast, and courageous. However we are not the main characters in these current events. We are the blind horse who totally trust the One we belong to. God chooses to use us to make things happen. He will eventually turn the stampede, save the herd, punish the bad guys, and marry His bride, the church.

In the meantime we need to continue to trust, love life, and be productive. Jayden is helping his Dad check closing wheel pressure after loading the planter for the next field.

We are experimenting with a new style disc opener this spring. It's serrated edges help with residue as well as sidewall compaction.

Kurt and BJ have started planting corn and Alex is planting soybeans, however we are not at full speed as we wait for soil and weather conditions to improve in some areas.

We have also done some seeding projects. Below Kasey is cultipacking our new pond dike across the road. Oats and grassseed take a firm seedbed for germination and packing the soil after seeding improves emergence and stand.

Kurt used some wetter days to continue to fix tile holes. Below, Kurt and Emily's son Jackson is operating the backhoe. Kurt is a trusting Dad if he's taking this picture from the tile hole. I'm trying to remember, I think Jackson is in 2nd grade at Pella Christian Grade School. Thanks for the picture Kurt.

A tile hole happens when tile either breaks from age, get a hole eaten in them from a varmint, or get hit while farming. The break sucks dirt causing the hole in the field. Below Kurt found some problems with old clay tile. Farmers and contractors quit using clay and cement tile in the late 60s and early 70s and started using plastic. When my father-in-law tiled his roles were from 150 to 300 feet. Today, the rolls BJ uses are 3400 feet long. Thanks for the picture Kurt.

The plastic tile company BJ uses today uses a green resin in it's plastic. BJ did more tiling than planting this past week. I think he was on four or five different jobs for folks.

I pray for and thank God for family every day. These kids below are blessed to come from solid homes where their foundation of trust is in God and His Son, the gift we celebrate today. However there are so many kids that are not as fortunate. Social media does not give them the belonging they desperately need. They are told they don't need to work because the government will take care of them. Our culture tells them they need to question their gender. And that family is just an old outdated tradition. Because of being so bombarded with these lies, kids these days don't trust, feel no purpose, are in despair, and don't believe in themselves. It's a stampede not easily stopped.

So do we just wring our hands, shake our heads, and watch what is happening? Last evening was a full moon. As I got up I saw our pond reflecting the moonlight, which was reflecting the sunlight from the other side of the world where it is day time. Others need to see God's light reflect through our lives. None of us are perfect. It's the cracks in our lives that God's light shines through. We are not the main character. We are the blind horse in the story. And we have the foundation of trust that God will use us to help stop the stampede. Thanks for stopping by. Blessings to you on this Easter.