Make me a blessing,
Make me a blessing,
Out of my life
out of my life
May Jesus shine;
Make me a blessing, O savior, I pray,
I pray Thee, my Savior,
Make me a blessing to someone today.

Out in the highways and byways of life,
many are weary and sad;
are weary and sad
Carry the sunshine where darkness is rife
making the sorrowing glad.

Tell the sweet story of Christ and His love;
Tell of His pow’r to forgive;
His pow’r to forgive.
Others will trust Him if only you prove
true ev’ry moment you live.

Give as ’twas given to you in your need;
Love as the Master loved you;
Be to the helpless a helper indeed;
Unto your mission be true.

 
Earlier this month the Lord gave us an opportunity to go and serve one who has blessed our family in so many ways throughout the years.   

Uncle Bill had over 20,000 Shepherded Guides (a Christian phone/contact book) to mail and deliver. He had only two days to complete this task due to having surgery later on that week. When it was brought to our attention regarding this need, with joy, we piled in the car and headed to Maryland to help.

With many hands, a ton of enthusiasm, and joy, the job was completed in record time. The Lord truly oversaw the work of our hands. We were able to deliver and mail all the guides in two days!

Praise the Lord for opportunities to be a blessing!

_______________________________________________

May the love of Christ continue to abound richly in us all towards our fellow man. May His love empower us to go out and do His work.

A couple more pictures from our time together.

At the beginning of each new year we love to take a couple days to go and revisit the vision God has placed on our family. Then talk about how it will look in the coming year.

There are so many exciting things on the horizon for us to be involved in, coupled with continuing to build upon those things we started in the past.

Grandpa and Grandma Wilkes graciously offered us their cottage on the water. A perfect place it was to plan, relax, and enjoy one another.

As we look forward into the future, we realize it will not be a bed of rose petals. For the beauty and fragrance of a rose comes with thorns in it’s side.

It’s a given that there will  be hardships and challenges to walk through.

Unknowns to face.

Times of perplexity.

Times of waiting.

Failure to respond to challenges correctly.

Sin to repent of.

People to forgive and release emotionally.

Opportunities to respond  in faith or react in fear to.

We, as the children of the Most High God, will be tested and tired but it is a promise we shall come forth as gold! God is in the process of taking us broken and needy people and molding us into His very own image. The plans He has for us this year are of good and not of evil to bring us to an expected end.

The key to peace and joy lies not in striving but in submitting to the direction of our All-Knowing Heavenly Father.

Job 23:10 says, "But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold."

2012 – Here we come!

Having a little fun….practicing our Juggling skills…..:-)

Another Christmas gift exchange!

Back around Thanksgiving we picked names and each person was to make a special gift for the person they picked. We decided to open them during our family planning trip. As always it was so special to see what each person made.

You can’t help but enjoy the many fun things Grandpa and Grandma have at their cottage. One being the stuffed sea creatures.

Some fun family moments!

 Behold, the LORD thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged.

Deuteronomy 1:21

  And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

Galatians 6:9

But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing.

2 Thessalonians 3:13

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

Hebrews 4:16

For most the answer is no but for a few solitary individuals the answer is yes.

Yes, they would love to see the heifers, the steers, the cows, the calves, and the glorious old bull, grazing a field of pasture and be able to say: Those are gifts of God placed in the sphere of my stewardship.

Yes, they want to produce good healthy beef and be a benefit to American consumerism.

Yes, they want to see the heaven like result of bringing renovating practices to worn out farm land.

Yes, they dream of observing rejuvenation, vitality, and life breaking out of once depleted soil. 

But as it is with any endeavor there are the necessary prerequisites of both resources and information. It takes serious analysis, prayerful consideration, available factors of input, and detailed planning, to make this agricultural enterprise sustainable, enjoyable, and profitable.

Such thoughts have traveled through the minds of certain Wilkes Team members. Especially after last week, when one the members had opportunity to attend two conference with topics closely associated to cattle farming. The first conference, Virginia Hay & Pasture Summit, occurred on Wednesday. The guest speakers were Dr. Don Ball, and Dr. Garry Lacefield, two out of three co-authors of the world famous book: Southern Forages.

Some of the highlights of the conference were the following:

- Understanding Fescue toxicity (a serious problem for most the U.S. farmers) and how to minimize it’s effect on livestock.

- The importance of legumes and the biodiversity they can bring to the landscape.

- Explanation of legumes and warm and cool season grasses such as, orchardgrass, fescue (K-31 endophyte, endophyte free, and novel endophyte,), bermuda, red and white clover, alfalfa, and a few others.

- Grazing techniques to increase and enhance forage growth and vitality (continuous, mob grazing, rotational, semi-rotational etc.)

The 2nd conference was put on by VFGC (Virginia Forage & Grassland Council) and, though it had one guest speaker from out of state, the rest of the speakers were from this grand Old Dominion.  Some of the topics were the following:

- How to get your cattle to eat weeds. The methods described were quite unique and we’ll say creative!

- Soil fertility and weed control – using certain techniques to down play the need for both fertilizers and herbicides and pesticides – quite educational to say the least.

- The highlight of this conference was listening to a Culpeper farmer (lives only a few minutes away) describe his organic dairy operations and the land healing, forage building, practices he’s using to make the need for grain consumption obsolete – absolutely fascinating!

In response to these conferences and the information gained, there are few first steps that have become clear as preparations are made for cattle:

1. Gather soil from future pastures and send it into VA Tech for soil test

2. Identify grass varieties on fields

3. Decide if legumes are necessary to provide additional supplement for a healthy animal diet.

4. Research affordable but practical water systems

5. Decide on fencing systems which will be most conducive for the operations we will be having in the near future as well as in the next four to five years (most likely a combination of permanent and temporary fences).

Here concludes some random thoughts on two insightful conferences. It was joy to learn at them and maybe some day, if God deems it best, we will enjoy the fruit of this learning by seeing cattle grazing in the fields of Honey Brook Farms!

Some helpful resources:

Southern Forages – Very helpful on grass identification and understanding what cattle need for proper performance.

Grass Fed to Finish – By Allan Nation, a highly respected cattle farmer. The thought processes in this book have become the backbone behind the grass finished beef industry.

Polyface Farm – A Virginian Farm using innovative grazing practices to produce healthy beef. This website provides info about the farm, books written by Joel Salatin, and stories of those who have begun similar agricultural enterprises.

An unexpected and joyous visit from our dear friends the Neelys fulfilled that desire!

God is so good to bring His children unexpected blessings at just the right time. So thank you Neely Team for blessing the Wilkes Team once again!

What a fun filled 24 hours!!! We had a delicious dinner together prepared by our incredible mother, we decorated Christmas cookies, sang the 12 days of Christmas , played games, and of course talked and laughed all evening and into the morning!

At 11:30 p.m. Dad led us all in a time of prayer. We cried out to God for our families, the church, and our nation. We asked for mercy and wisdom to respond to the challenges and situations that will come across our path this year. We then submitted ourselves to God and resolved to proceed forward. We prayed right into the new year! It was a wonderful way to start off 2012!

Happy New Year!

Christmas at the barn! This truly was an awaited day! Ten years ago we bought this land and hoped and dreamed of building many wonderful family memories here. God has been so gracious to us.

We all had such a wonderful day rejoicing in God’s goodness, enjoying one another, singing, and giving special things to each other.

It was incredible! We are already looking forward to going again next year!

The Hallelujah Chorus:

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
The kingdom of this world is become
the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and of His Christ;
and He shall reign for ever and ever
and He shall reign for ever and ever
and He shall reign for ever and ever
and He shall reign for ever and ever
King of Kings,
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
and Lord of Lords,
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
King of Kings,
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
and Lord of Lords,
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
King of Kings,
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
and Lord of Lords,
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
King of Kings, and Lord of Lords,
and He shall reign for ever and ever
and He shall reign for ever and ever
King of Kings
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
and He shall reign for ever and ever,
for ever and ever,
King of Kings,
and Lord of Lords,
King of Kings,
and Lord of Lords,
and He shall reign for ever and ever,
King of Kings,
and Lord of Lords.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

Merry Christmas!!!

May we not forget the greatest gift of all – Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior! 

” For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” ~ Isaiah 9:6

This was a Christmas party that will be in our memory for years to come!

Our exciting adventure began at the home of Joshua and Lisa. We all enjoyed a tasty array of festive hors’dourves and drinks. While there, each family was given a box to decorate and prepare to fill for a family or individual in ministry. What a wonderful time of the year to let other’s know that you are praying for them and are blessed by their service to our Lord Jesus. Praise the Lord for those who He has called to serve the Lord in full-time ministry.

Our next stop was at the home of Joel and Sarah Potter. Here we partook in a scrumptious family style Christmas dinner and enjoyed more wholesome fellowship. Each person was given the opportunity to write a short note to their ‘ministry family.’

The last stop of the Christmas Dinner was the Barn where awaited a fine spread of desserts and Christmas goodies.

Here we filled our boxes with little gifts, goodies, and words of encouragement. 

A time of talking, laughing, and fellowship over the delicious desserts were enjoyed by all. As well as a memorable gift exchange.

We had the joy of hosting the Snively Reunion at the barn during this wonderful time of the year! Words can’t truly express the blessing it was.

There was many wonderful activities, food, and fellowship to enjoy. But the sweetest time was when we all gathered together for a time of prayer and praise to our Lord. The presence of the Lord was truly there! I was left in awe as I heard the passion, fervency, gratefulness, and longing to be all that Christ would have us be.

As we concluded the evening there was a tighter bond between us all. The desire to spend more time together was evident. Praise the Lord for family!

There is a ‘Cut Your Own Christmas Tree Farm’ about ten minutes from the barn, which offers a great assortment of fir trees to pick from.

When we heard about it we thought it would be a great memory if we all went and cut down our Christmas tree this year. We all cheered at the idea and anticipated the evening together.

We made some fun family memories that night! O, the joys of doing things together!

As we go through these last 9 days before Christmas may we take the time to make family memories. Enjoy one another!

• As our dear friends the Neely’s would say, “Sit long – Talk much -Laugh often.”
• Make cookies and Christmas goodies together for your neighbors.
• Invite a couple families over and go Christmas caroling! Hand out cookies and a Christmas track. The candy cane story is a great track to give out!
• Send a ‘Box of Blessings’ to a missionary, or a family that is in need.
• Look for people that you can bless through your words, time,  a note, or gift.
• Be available! Sometimes we miss those opportunities to bless others because we are so wrapped up in what we are doing! Evaluate what is truly important? How does the Lord want me to be spending my time, energy, and gifting’s?
• But most of all, don’t let the days slip by without taking the time to truly bask in the greatest gift that we have been given- Eternal life through Jesus Christ!