How Is Success Measured

Ten weeks ago today we went to brother Doug and Ginger's for lunch after church. On their yard was their annual Labor Day camping group. Back home our combines were clean, serviced, and ready to harvest a crop folks weren't sure about. It had been such a dry summer. During harvest folks were asking where all the bushels were coming from. "My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. He alone has the power and the will to assist me". Psalms 121:2

We wrapped up harvest this past week. On Monday little Tatum and his Mom helped Karl run the combine for an afternoon. Thanks for the picture Kristin.

Since the weather isn't going to stay this nice much longer, we took a day, cleaned up the grain carts, and stored them away for the year. I've mentioned before this is our 50th crop. Around 50 years ago Kinze came out with a new innovation for a neighbor. A 400 bushel buggy to get bushels from the combine to the truck on a muddy year (the one on the right). Today's carts easily hold a semi load and more.

It's that time already. Jim unhooked his hopper bottom, hooked up the seed trailer, and started hauling next year's seed home from the Becks Seed processing plant in Beaman, Iowa.

Jim was able to unload the different soybean varieties in neat rows thanks to Papa Jon who headed up getting the shed cleaned up, organized, and ready for seed.

BJ literally jumped from the combine to the tile plow. And is finishing a pattern tiling project west of Beacon.

Mark and Stacy's Elijah helped yesterday clean up fields by mowing field edges, terraces, and waterways. In southern Iowa weeds and trees start growing in unattended areas if not cleaned up.

Becky and Brian's Ezra jumped in the JD 9560 and ran the Kinze high speed disc over bottom ground going to corn next year.

BJ and Dean have been working on tractors, getting in the different technology for the equipment they are pulling. These tractors were on grain carts using I-pads to measure bushels. Now they are using Ag Leader monitors to measure hog honey gallons and NH3 units.  Karl has been hauling hog manure. Fertilizer for next year's crop.

Kurt hooked up a second anhydrous applicator and is helping Alex apply nitrogen for next year's corn crop.

Matt and Jacob unhooked a grain hopper bottom and hooked up a tanker to custom haul hog honey from the shed to the wagon in the field yesterday helping Jake and Ben. Next week Papa Jon will custom haul with a second tanker.

I was privileged to have lunch with and meet Florida's governor this past Friday. The Governor was in Iowa campaigning for president. Below, Steve and Todd, who have a daily show on The Blaze, Steve's daughter Anna, and I had a conversation after lunch. Governor Ron is successful at what he does by putting service ahead of self, and solving ahead of status.

Yesterday was Veteran's Day. 25 years ago our oldest son Mike was in the Marines. Thanks for the picture Mike and Suzanne. And thanks for yours and all the other veterans service to our country. Mike is busy building terraces as daylight allows.

It's amazing what can get accomplished when folks don't care who gets the credit. Success is not measured by trophies and ribbons. Or points scored. Or bushels per acre. Or bright shiny equipment. Or status and prominence. Or achievements. Our potential for success is measured by relationships. With God. Family. Friends. And folks we interact with everyday. How we treated others will be remembered much longer than how big our stack of stuff was.

One more thing. No one of us knows when we will experience our last sunset. The dash between our birth date and death date is small compared to eternity. When we meet Christ upon leaving this earth, ultimate success will be hearing, "Well done, good and faithful servant". It's a gift we celebrate next month. And it's free. Don't miss it. See you next week.