One of my heroes in history is Theodore Roosevelt. He is one of those individuals who went through adversity and life’s reproofs and then came out the other side stronger and wiser. Whether it was being the U.S. president, leading his wife and family of six children, or Calvary fighting in the War against Mexico, he was a man of principle, of character, and resolve. The following Roosevelt quote captures the essence of who this man was:

“It is not the critic who counts, nor the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena: whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood: who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again: who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotion and spends himself in a worthy cause: who, at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement: and who, at the worst, if he fails at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”

Now take this bold persevering spirit of Roosevelt and unite it with the response of another man from another time. His name is William Bradford. Bradford was one of two governors who led the Plymouth settlement during its beginning years. When traveling with the rest of the pilgrims on their initial journey across the Atlantic, he recorded several near death experiences. Once, the main mast of their ship cracked in the midst of a serious storm. At another time, waves would be crashing on the ship’s deck nearly sinking the boat. During this sea voyage, Bradford documented the response the travelers made to the trying circumstances facing them: “So they (the pilgrims) committed themselves to God and resolved to proceed”

Let it be declared that Bradford’s response must be ours as well. Christ said, “Come unto me all ye that are heavily laden and l will give you rest.” This beckoning from our Master and the resulting promise doesn’t mean that by us coming to Christ we won’t have to suffer, labor, and courageously act. Rather it means we can have confidence and stability in Christ while pressing through the challenges of life. In other words, after committing ourselves to God we may step with resolution into the drama of life and still have eternal inner tranquility. Those dragons of life will come. The behemoths of trials will arise. Yet they will also be slain. Not by our prowess or ability but by God using them to forge and form us into the glorious likeness of His dear Son.

Some day we’ll be looking back at our lives. The future will be short, our past quite long, and the present faster then ever. Only time will tell what perspective each of us will have. Our prayer should be that it will consist of Roosevelt’s perseverance, our Pilgrim fathers’ commitment to God, and a resting in the lasting tranquility of our Dear Redeemer; so that our “…place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”

The service was initiated with the color guard and harp music playing in the background. Next, a series of introductory remarks were given, including gratefulness to our civil leaders (many of whom were present), a reading of the VA Governor’s Thanksgiving proclamation, and most importantly, praise and adulations to the Giver of all things, our God and Creator.

Then Rev. Black came forward and preached a sound, biblically based, and practical message on the importance of Thanksgiving. During his message, he alluded to experiences from his life relating to Thanksgiving. He shared how rough his beginning was of living in the hood of Washington DC and growing up in a single parent home. He also spoke of his mother instructing him in the scriptures and challenging him to memorize scripture. One day his mother brought him a recording of a Sermon preached by former Senate Chaplain Peter Marshall. Young eight year old Black listened to this message. Liking it so much, he listened to it again, again, and again. Then finally, he had memorized the sermon word for word. This young boy was inspired by this message not knowing in the least how God would place him in the exact same position as the Reverend who gave the message. These stories he shared with a true sense of gratefulness in how God had worked in his life. Another aspect of his message, which inspired the whole Wilkes team, was his Scripture memory. Verse after verse flowed from the man’s lips, verses that had been internalized and applied.

We are so thankful to have had the opportunity of attending this Thanksgiving service. It is an event we will remember for many years to come. We also are abundantly grateful for both church and civil leaders of the City of Culpeper who put this event  together, and their understanding of what Thanksgiving is truly all about.

In today’s American culture, entrepreneurship is slowly becoming a lost art. The modern education system doesn’t teach it. The corporate world purposes to have it extinguished. Even the federal and state governments often wield their regulatory power against it. Nevertheless, though it is attacked from many different fronts, Mr. Stelzl  passionately proclaimed that entrepreneurship is still alive and well in the United States. The potential opportunities are just waiting to be harnessed. So often, the only factor missing is the entrepreneur!

A primary focus of the conference was the Christian family.  Mr. Stelzl shared that Christ-centered families are so necessary.  They are the ones willing to bank upon the providence of God and use the gifts God has given them to meet needs through business. The family also is a prime environment for, handling failures, practicing innovation, and building businesses on the unchanging principles of God’s word.

    Exhorting – Encouraging – Brainstorming – Fellowshipping occurred all weekend!

Meal times!

  I don’t believe one attendee went away from the conference with out hope and vision for what the future could hold. Ideas were bouncing around the room, which led to thought provoking questions, and ended with good solid answers. It was a glorious time to consider how God would have us handle that wonderful and necessary activity called working for profit.

If you’re interested in gathering  further information about these Raising Entrepreneurs Workshops please visit the Stelzl family blog, Mr. David Stelzl’s blog, and also www.RaisingEntrepreneurs.net.

Last week was an example of this slow increase in understanding. I began the week full throttle with a busy work load in front me. I was pretty confident in accomplishing everything. It had been done in the past so why would this week be different? My truck was pulling well, the trailer carried as it always had , and my mowers were running fine. Herein was my state of affairs on Monday morning. By Monday evening my trailer was broken down an hour from home with a damaged axle plus lost wheel bearings. Fast forward a few days to Friday morning and I sat in my Diesel truck next to a fuel pump, having just filled it with 24 gallons of unleaded gas!

My only truck and trailer – my means of traveling to work were both unavailable in the same exact week. What was I to do now? There were clients with expectations. I had responsibilities to fulfill. The natural response is to worry and fret. In our human minds we don’t see how things can turn out correctly. What must be remembered during these times is God loves to do his masterful work. He will cause our plans to fail so then he can show himself strong on our behalf.

This is exactly what God did last week. On Tuesday, I was going to use my trailer for hauling tree limbs to the county dump. That was my plan! The Lord redirected by having a damaged trailer and then gave the idea of renting a wood chipper. Because of the wood chipper, Tuesday ended up being more productive then if we would of had the trailer. Then some good friends of ours, the Johnson Family, let me borrow their trailer till mine returns to operation.

On Friday morning, my truck parked at a gas station was useless for driving. With vim and vigor my family rushed to help.  I assumed days would be needed to rectify the situation but 8 hours later the truck was hauling rock to our barn for a work project. The problem was solved! I did not expect in the least such a fast turn around.

When the week was complete my plans were frustrated time and time again but God’s plan was fulfilled. Amazement flooded in as I realized all my obligations were still met or maneuvered to be met in the near future. God allowed my testimony with my clients to remain free from reproach.  How is this possible? Didn’t too many things go wrong for such a conclusion to occur? Not so when the faithfulness of God is involved. He knows what we need, tries us to show us our need, and then establishes us through meeting that need far beyond our expectations. It might not come in our timing nor in line with our preconceived notions. But he is faithful!  For “…eye hath not seen nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man what God hath prepared for them that love him.” (1Co 2:9)

Love him, dear reader! He is all you will ever need! He is so wondrously faithful!

After Grandma had taken us to different places and the homes of various friends, Grandpa’s turn came to share his part of the story. It began with visiting Lone Tree, the town he grew up in till going to college. Before entering Lone Tree, Grandpa warned us to keep our eyes opened. He told us if you blink at the wrong time you might completely miss the wonderful opportunity of observing the old town of Lone Tree. Lone Tree was a very small town in the past and today it’s even smaller. Actually and unfortunately, all that remains of this small town is an old broken down church building. Driving through town doesn’t take more then a few seconds!

This broken down church building was the church Grandpa attended while living in Lone Tree. Being aware of this fact, all of us understood the necessity of stopping at the old place and investigating. Upon arriving at Lone tree, we went to it’s last standing edifice.  After finding a means of entrance, we gathered in in the sanctuary. Surprisingly, the sanctuary was still in pretty good shape. While inside, Dad gave the grand idea of singing in the church. It was quite a wonderful moment to sing in a church that had been closed for so many years and which our Grandpa had sung in when he was young.

Grandpa also took us to different places he had lived, each usually being a mile or two from the previous. For most of them, he’d point to a corner where two roads met or a portion of a cornfield and describe the house which was no longer there. One of the places, however, still stands. It’s a beautiful old Farm house owned by one of his relatives.

These are just a few highlights of our tour with Grandpa. We so appreciated his eagerness to share about his past. He told us about the farm machinery he drove, the animals he took care of, and the family God placed him in. It was truly a wonderful gift to receive.

Thank you Grandpa for filling the important role of passing down the Wilkes’ heritage to the generations following in your footsteps.

Grandpa and Grandma have given us precious gifts in the past but recently we received from them a gift which has no price tag. The value is priceless! The gift came during our recent North Dakota trip when both Grandpa and Grandma shared the rich history of their growing up years and the family members they knew and had relationships with. It was a wonderful time to learn what took place in the lives of those who have gone before us.  

The gift giving spanned over a  three day adventure, with Grandma sharing her history for the first day and half and Grandpa the other day and half. There is a great difficulty in trying to capture with only two short posts all that occurred during those three days. But hopefully a few highlights will at least hint at the wonderful time we had in the prairie lands of North Dakota.

For the first day and half, Grandma took us to the home she was born in, the home she lived in during her childhood, and numerous other places. Near the end of the first day, she directed us down some long lonely gravel roads. Surrounding us were fields of such magnitude that they seemed to compete with sky in size. Doubt entered many of our minds, as we followed Grandma’s directions. We all began to wonder where we would end up in this depopulated expanse. Then way off in the distance Grandma pointed out a house. “That is the house my Grandfather built when he homesteaded his 160 acres.” We drove towards the house, carefully walked towards, and then into the old house. It was wind beaten, sagging, and in serious disrepair but it was still there. Grandma showed us where her Grandpa McAlmond would sit when reading the family bible. We trudged over to the barn he built which only had foundation walls still standing to prove it’s existence. Hearing about these places is wonderful but when your standing in or near them it adds another whole dimension of understanding. 

Grandma also took us to the grave sites of many of her relatives, told us stories about them, and described what they were like. A most precious experience was when she rehearsed how her parents died (our great grandparents). I don’t believe there was a dry eye in the group as we heard about their leaving of this temporal life to enter their eternal home.

Grandma – thank you for your love towards us and desire to pass on a goodly and godly heritage. We were inspired by the incredible and priceless gift you so freely gave in those wide beautiful prairie lands of North Dakota.

The Town of Des Lacs

 "Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the LORD: look unto the rock whence ye are hewn…."(Isa 51:1)

THE BATTLE!!!!! 

It was Friday morning at the farmhouse. The weather was crispy cool and the landscape sparkled with the sun’s dancing rays. Being surrounded with such settings was awesome and peaceful. Yet a certain happenstance occurred around 8:00am which caused some foreboding thoughts. It all started outside the farmhouse, where stood a group of individuals enjoying delightful conversation. Then Kenan made an outburst and pointed at a wild animal running across a cornfield a 1/4 mile away. Before anyone else saw the animal it disappeared behind a hill.

A white tail deer then shot over the hill… ah, what a sight! “Is that what you saw, Kenan?” “No,” he says, “not even  close!”  “But what else could it of been?” WAIT, HOLD ON! What was coming behind the deer? What was the black lanky creature parading the field as if it owned it? The spectators quickly realized it was nothing less then a black bear! It continued coming our way; our neighbor’s cows noticed it and stampeded off. Binoculars zeroed in on the bear keeping the creature in focus till it changed directions and then soon after disappeared.

Bears don’t live around us – at least we thought. Since this certain happenstance our thoughts are forever changed. They do live near by! There are other big black creatures in Culpeper besides the Angus cows.

What an important discovery! An assumed thought (about bears) was proven false. A presumed mental creation was broken and destroyed. It is a good thing that black bears were the subject of thought for such subjects die easily. I’ve found others that won’t! Other subjects, having been created and then placed center stage on the theater of presumption, die hard deaths. Yes, they’ve been purposefully retracted, disannulled, refused, and forsaken, yet they somehow linger.  Lingering and waiting for that moment to return and be received. Once received they begin again where they left off by taking the thought creator further from truth, further from reality, further from relationships that would stand the test of time.

Assuming and presuming are dangerous companions. To be kept from them, God’s truth must be loved and hidden deep within. Of course, assuming and presuming will purpose to linger, hoping for a chance to return. However, this returning will be impossible when the continuous choice is made to love the truth and sell it not; choosing to let it become the greatest friend, sole spiritual sustenance, and only guide. The person that does this, his state will be sure and stable. He will be at rest with the situations God places him in and God will "…after [he has] suffered a while… perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle [him]. (1Peter 5)

So, whether faced with a charging bear or trying relationship, a physical problem or spiritual battle, don’t mentally create on assumption or presumption but build a thought life on the truths and promises of God’s word. Herein is true and lasting security.

Yet may I ask thee, my friend, do ye know what it means to rest content?

The good Lord commands ye and me to do so. It is not a preference, suggestion, or passing thought, but wholly a command. The writer of the excellent book, Hebrews, clearly lays out the view ye and me should take of contentment:

“Be content with such things as ye have: for he (God) hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”

There’s not a hole to be found to wriggle away from this clear truth. It’s straightforward and pronounced! We are commanded to be content.

If ye are like me,  this command often ends up suppressed by the many urgent tasks, priority items, egotistical thoughts, conformity to others opinions, and so on, that whirl around our lives. We know this is not right nor good but it happens time after time.

Because of this oft suppression, the decision was made to write this post so then it could be declared, quite plainly,  don’t ever give up! Just because ye and me don’t have the ideal shouldn’t mean we stop pursuing it. God will bless us in his most precise and wonderful way. Purpose to remember, pray to God that he will lead each of us to remember, that he is right beside us, ready to lead, guide, and empower. Aye, he will bring ye and me into the wonderful rest called contentment. Aye, my friend, I do believe so. Ye know why I believe? Well, let me tell ye one last thing: Because He is faithful!

The place: Chattanooga Tennessee

The event: Southern States Agriculture Groups (SSAWG) conference.

The end result – Synergy developed merging into energy which desperately needs a practical outlet.

The three, Joshua, Daniel, and I, with also our good friend Jon Hynes, were amazed at the amount of information that can be packed into three short days. Daniel and I went on a farm tour to Circle S Farm located in Georgia on the first day. At the same time, Joshua listened to a session on marketing your produce and keeping good records. In the evening, there were eight or so DVD interviews to watch of different farming production, ranging from cheese making, cattle managing, chickens, turkeys, vegetables, and flowers.

The diversity of sessions grew over the next two days. We purposed to divide and conquer as much as possible with the goal of making the most of our time at the Southern SAWG. A fascinating aspect of the conference was that experts were not only the conf. speakers. We found that the audience, the man you talked with in the hall, or the individual you sat with on the bus, were just as prepared to share what they learned from their enterprises. We talked with a chicken farmer processing 10,000 birds a year and learned a wealth of information from him; also the CPA turned Gardener producing food for restaurants; the Auto mechanic/Welder/Farmer/Farmer’s Market President who enjoyed incredible diversity on his farm ranging from chickens, turkeys, fish, 10 acre garden and cattle. He also has compost piles that are so large he’s planning to employ earth movers to turn them for him.

In the end we came away slightly bewildered by the wealth of information but as we’ve started sorting things out a plan has begun to develop. It still needs some further conversations and considerations but were excited about what the future holds.

The way our culture is heading brings us, as a family, to the conclusion of needing to get back to the basics. We need to know how to grow vegetables in a garden, produce fruit, meat, and eggs in a healthy sustainable way. Going to the SSAWG conference helped solidify this conclusion even more and mushroomed an enthusiasm to tackle the first steps and initiate the beginnings of Honey Brook Farms.

I would be remiss without mentioning the additional joy had at the Neely’s home in NC and then also with the Cleator Family in GA. The former before and after the conference. While the latter during the conference. The Cleator family was a joy to meet and get to know. It’s truly wonderful to meet perfect strangers but in a matter of minutes be able to feel like you’ve known them for quite a long time because of the unifying factor of being children in the Family of God. This is how it was with the Cleator family and all four of us were grateful for their wonderful hospitality. The Neely Family also abounded in hospitality and blessed us immensely.

Now the Weekend of Agricultural Synergy Development has become an historical event. Yet it is definitely one we’ll remember and build upon. For in reality, that’s all we can do as the future is engulfed by the present, the present  metamorphoses into the past, and the past quickly grows in proportions.