The Exciting Work of Ministry!

Catchy title don't you think? okay, maybe not so much but I am starting to get really excited thinking about where all of this hard work is leading! For all of us that are involved in this venture it's the culmination of the dreams, prayers and purpose's in each of our lives. I believe that we've all been uniquely prepared to fulfill this aspect of the Lord's plan, and that it's not only for us but for many others as well!

It's been a very long journey for me, wandering through the desert for the last forty years. If you've ever been lost you know what I mean, you think your heading in the right direction but with very little confirmation it's cause for anxiety. When you see a sign that tells you how much further it is or you recognize something that you were told to watch out for a sense of peace replaces the panic. Ironically, in my current circumstances most of the things I've been told to watch out for are not good but I'm happy to see them because it means I must be on track!

More exciting ministry work!

^{Acts 20:24} But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.

Speaking of being "on track", in the last week we've got a phone, designed and printed some brochures and cards, done some clean up work, and Lord willing we'll have electricity later this week! Tonight my partner Gerald told me that they're delivering some carpeting and a little bit of furniture which includes a desk, next I'm looking for about twenty or thirty chairs, enough to have meetings with. We're currently working on a newsletter, and I'm looking into various signage options for our front glass. I'm also starting to work with our website http://www.thevineyardministry.org/ So yeah, it is busy but it's fun and exciting!

Based on what I've just described I can already tell that this ministry is going to stretch my boundaries and allow me to wear many different hats, some that I've kind of worn before, like in the area of public relations. Others, like being involved with drug and alcohol cessation meetings and one on one counseling are more familiar to me.

Earlier I mentioned being lost in the desert for forty years which you may of taken as a metaphor but it's truer than you could know. I was saved at age nine and I'm forty nine now. To me it's an interesting similarity, so now am I ready to cross the Jordan into the promised land? I've stepped out in faith, and based on what the Lord's done for me in the last forty years I know that all of His promises to me are real and that He'll continue to abide in me as I abide in Him now even more than ever! He continues to give me a vision of what He wants to accomplish through this work and of how to go about it. For me thats as good as it gets, it really is exciting to be a part of !

"I love my life" (Thank You God!)

Theres something about the month of May, it's kind of the not summer yet but not used to it being spring month...normally here we go from winter to summer but this year WOW! we've probably had 30'' of rain! It's like Spring on steroids...I took these pictures today, I did a small logging job on this rather large farm (over 4000 acres) where there are HUGE tree's. We were mainly just cleaning up some trees that had fallen over a fence and some that had been washed out by the flood.

whattaya think of this bridge? well, luckily we did'nt have to cross it loaded!

most of these are white oak's, which are sometimes used to make "staves" or slats for barrels that they age whiskey in. If you smell white oak when it's being cut it reminds you of where the "flavor" comes from!

This photo did'nt come out very well, the horse was camers shy! but LOOK at that hay field back behind him, A sea of grass, waist high, a windy day... mesmerizing to watch its undulations and flow. This is the part where I get all philosophical and talk about how life is like that too, and how we can't really "see" the wind, but we see the effects of it...which is also an answer I give to people who say "I've never seen God, so how do I know that he exists"? (slick huh?) LOL...

And lastly, this photo of a cow trying to do the "limbo" under the electric fence...

well, good luck with that one! and to you as well, God Loves You!

What we value is the health,contentment,and independence we earn...not the money we are missing

I was born and raised in the city. In a suburban setting that taught me to value work over health, striving for more over contentment, and a superficial sense of control over simple independence. As I became older, I understood that I was "living to work" instead of the opposite. Keeping up with the Jones' will keep you chasing the happiness there in your tail. There are few things worse than the realization that you control.. ZIP...NADA...nothing! (absolutely that is) the proof of which comes precisly when it would've been the handiest to have had it. Don't even get me started on money! Have you ever looked into your over-stuffed wallet and felt mocked? As if your money laughs at you? Because you were fool enough to trade the only thing of value you had for the hapiness it did'nt buy.
In the 47 years I've been alive I think that I've really "lived" perhaps two. Two years of feeling as if I belonged somewhere, that I had a connection with "something" that was more than worthy of all I could invest. All things are a process and so am I ...but am I finally in a place where that can happen? It's a little bit like spending your whole life looking for a restroom. Your body tells you "i need to go" so you seek out a place where you feel safe or have some privacy and you"go". I looked for a lot of years because my mind was telling me I had to "grow". That I had to find a place where I could find "rest." and thats what I did...these are my stories, my blog is called "seeking the kingdom" because its Gods kingdom I'm seeking, and his blessings that i've found.