Restoration Farm

Greetings.

For the past five years I have been asking God to show me a ministry that my wife, Kat, and I can do together. At first I thought it might be an inner city ministry, then I thought it might be as traveling hosts and fill in ministers but neither of those panned out.

What God finally showed me through my wife exactly as I asked Him to was that we would purchase and develop a small farm. You can read about it at The Restoration Farm. In a nut shell it will be a small farm of 10-20 acres and we will grow crops that have been grown chemical free. We will also raise chickens and goats and give them only feeds that have been grown organically. We will produce cheese and soap from the milk that we get from our goats. We will sell eggs laid by our chickens, ducks and guineas. A key part of the farm will be one or two cabins, the Restoration Cabins, that we will invite missionaries and ministers to come and stay in when they need to be restored from the battles that they are fighting.

Our plan is to make enough income from the farm and other income producing endeavors to fund the two small cabins or RV Trailers that will be used for the Restoration Cabins.

What I want to share in this post is something I have struggled with for years. It has to do with funding for the ministry I believe God is calling me to. What I struggled with was the idea of asking people to fund my dream or to contribute on a monthly basis to that dream or calling. For the longest time I struggled with this funding concept but on the trip that Kat and I took this month to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary I came to grips with the struggle.

I thought the struggle had to do with pride or having to depend upon someone else but on the trip it came to me that it really had to do with expecting other people to fund my dream instead of me earning what it would take to make it come true.

When I was growing up my dad provided me the example by working hard for what he had and spending only what he could afford. He was not a flashy man and he did not need to be the one everyone looked at as an expert.

While traveling to a small farm outside Tulsa, OK I began to realize no one but me can fund my dream. You see my dream is to live on a small farm with Kat and to do what God has made us for. We were made to serve others and the Restoration Farm will provide us with the opportunity to do exactly that. Most of all I came to realize that if someone else was funding my dream I would also be tied to what they wanted for my dream and I would not be free to pursue it from the heart.

I invite you to come read about the Restoration Farm and if you do I hope God will reveal the dream He has for your life.

25th Anniversary

On October 14th my wife, Kat, and I will celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. It is truly an achievement for us for the following reasons:

1. We are both products of multiple marriages that failed.
2. We both battled emotional difficulties resulting from events we experienced during our childhood.
3. Because of the above two things the expectation was that our marriage would fail.

During the past 25 years we have experienced many road blocks and difficulties that could have destroyed our marriage. These experiences would have destroyed most marriages but because of the following we survived:

1. We are committed to each other.
2. We rely on the Holy Spirit to provide the strength we need.
3. We refused to give up on each other.

Here is why I am writing this post:

1. There are people who are struggling with the affects of having experienced a divorce and are in need of encouragement.
2. People need to know that there is hope after divorce.
3. I am proud of what God has done in our lives and want to share it with others.

I could write a lot more and go deeper but you can read my past posts and get information on my life.

I want to encourage you not to give up and have hope that God can provide a mate for you. Be willing to commit to the other person and to allow God to guide your marriage. Always remember that even though you do those two things you will still face difficulties because you are in relationship with another human being who is subject to the influences of this world.