Ants

This is what happens if you leave a pile of wheat on the ground.  It starts dancing!

The race for the ghecko

This is our National-Geographic worthy picture of the chicks chasing their sister to snatch of a piece of gecko meat.

Ode to Ashley

 Ashley's first picture we her mother.  The first one out of the egg.  She's dry and fluffy and the others are still trying to crack their eggs.

And her first picture with me.

 She always would run up to us and want us to pick her up and pet her.

 Yesterday a dog came and grabbed her in his mouth and ran off with her.  She had puppies to feed, but we were very sad.  This is the second Ashley that we've lost.  We prayed that God would send us joy that day and while I was sitting outside this little one came running up to me!  Not sure what we're going to do with it but we fed it outside and played with it.  It had some fun scaring the chickens.

The Lord is my Shepherd

The shepherds bring their sheep to graze in the fields next to our house ever so often and as I said before, living in a place like this, closer to the land, is such a great chance to experience God's Word.

Everytime I saw how the sheep follow their shepherd and would be lost without him, I think of Psalm 23. 

Last week the shepherds accidentally left behind a baby lamb in our field.  We heard it bleating at dark and brought it into our yard and tried to give it some milk with a bottle.  It wasn't too fond of cow's milk but what it really wanted was to be held in someone's arms, warm and safe.

 I thought about that story in 2 Samuel that the prophet Nathan tells David.  There was a poor man who had one lamb that he had raised with his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.  And then the rich man who had thousands of sheep, stole that man's lamb, killed it, and fed it to his guests.  As I held this sweet little lamb, I thought about the distress of that poor man, thinking of those guests eating his precious daughter.  I can see why David got so angry.  And yet he had done the same thing-stolen something so precious to someone else, that could not be returned.  And yet, God forgave him.  That's unbelievable, huge grace.

And I thought about how they used to have to kill lambs for sins and for passover.  I thought about putting my hand on this little one's head, confessing my sin, and then having to kill it.  And I thought about how they had to take care of the Passover lamb, and then kill and eat it, knowing that it's death was providing protection for them.  Incredible saddening, taking an innocent life.  I thank Jesus that He ended that once and for all by being the ultimate sacrifice!

 "He tends his flock like a shepherd:
    He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;

he gently leads those that have young." Isaiah 44:11

For the one day that it stayed with us, I carried this little guy every where I went.  And I held it's warm, soft head close to my heart and I thought about how Jesus scoops us up like that and carries us.  Every time I would leave the room, it would start bleating.  It was amazing how quickly it got attached to me.   It didn't ever want to be left alone and was always just looking at me with innocent, completely dependent eyes.

Well, in the end we took it back to it's mother, and she was pretty glad to see her little one again.  But I sure do miss it.

Learning about soil

We began learning first-hand about the different kinds of soil.  First it must be turned up and softened, otherwise, just like in the parable, nothing will grow.  

The Path

We tilled this whole section of field but we have one row that we decided to use as a path and the soil there has gotten packed down as we walk on it.  Now nothing can be planted in that row.  Sometimes people's hearts are like that: it's not that the soil is bad, it's just that they have been walked over so many times that they've become hardened.  But even hard ground like that can be turned into something plant-able with a little elbow-grease!  Nothing is beyond our Lord.

The Rocky Soil

Actually, they told us not to take the rocks out because they feed the plants with minerals, but the parable is talking about soil that has rock under shallow soil.  Before planting we dig down by hand to prepare the spot for the seedling.  Next to our well we hit cement and had to plant somewhere else.  The soil would not have been deep enough there to support the root.

The Thorny Soil

Every time I water our garden I take the opportunity to pull out the weeds around the plants while the soil is wet.  When it's wet it's easier to pull them out, especially if I get them when they're small.  Otherwise you just end up pulling off the leaves and the same weed is back in a few days.  I've seen how these weeds can grow up with your plants and literally choke them.  I caught one that had wrapped its tendrils around my tomato plant and was using it to reach the sun.  The cares of this world are just like that: it's much easier to get them out of your life before they get big and when you are soaked in the water of the Spirit and His Word.  And if you don't, then they will wrap you up and you won't be able to grow.

The Good Soil

Our soil seems to be pretty good here and we are expecting and good crop.  When you first plant things they look like they almost aren't going to make it.  Sometimes the wind blows and soil gets rock hard on the top and the sun beats down on those tiny leaves for days and you think, "how is that little thing ever going to grow enough to be able to give something back." 

God grows us like that.  

 

What starts as just a simple belief in the sacrifice of His Son, and feeble steps to try to do something right, He grows our faith and our impact and we produce fruit for Him.  Only He sees the harvest that is going to come from that little, struggling plant.  So, if your are feeling like a near-scorched seedling, just remember that all fruitful plants started out like that.

Thoughts about God from the chickens:

   Coming to a place more in the country here has helped me to understand God's Word better.  Jesus was a carpenter who lived among people who farmed and kept animals.  He probably did those things too, just as most people who live in the fertile areas of the world work the land to help provide for the needs of their family.  Having our own garden and chickens who lay eggs feels at least one step closer to the kind of life that Jesus and his disciples were used to.

Watching animals and nature gives lots of silent insight about life. 

Psalm 148:7-10

"Praise the Lord from the earth,

    you great sea creatures and all ocean depths, 

 lightning and hail, snow and clouds,

    stormy winds that do his bidding, 

 you mountains and all hills,

    fruit trees and all cedars, 

 wild animals and all cattle,

    small creatures and flying birds"

"He will cover you with his feathers,
    and under his wings you will find refuge;
    his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart." Psalm 91:4

  This mother protected her chicks to the point of attacking us and biting us every day when we fed her.  And watching her fit 12 chicks under her wings was amazing.  And they would all crawl under so eagerly and look out at the world from that place of warm and security with sleepy, content eyes.

Look at all these verses about God protecting us under His wings: Deuteronomy 32:11; Psalm 17:8; Psalm 36:7; Psalm 57:1; Psalm 61:4; Psalm 63:7

Psalms 17:8

Deuteronomy 32:11

 

Our chicken likes to lay her eggs in our kitchen

This is Oliver with her morning routine at 8 am.  She asks to come into the kitchen and then wants us to empty out our slipper basket and put in on the couch so that she can get comfortable and lay her egg.