Summer in the Vineyard

Here in the vineyard of my Lord,

I love to live and labor. 

And be obedient to my God 

until my dying hour. 

I love to see the lilies grow,

and view them all a-standing

 in the right in the place while here below,

just as the Lord commanded.

This song sums up the feelings I've had this past summer. It's one of my favorites.

Many of you know this already, but church is a big part of my life.

Our church is simple, we try to follow as closely to the Bible as possible.  The weekly assembly of Christians at that old wooden building just on the edge of Hinton ...the gathering together of people you care for, people who have the same essential beliefs as you, people who look at the world more or less the same way you do.

It means so much to me.

(Free internet pictures are great!)

I love to see lilies grow---all of them, young and old, maybe at different stages in their Christian maturity. But standing in the right place, worshiping God as he designed, never-mind what has been in their past or what is going on in their life.

It's interesting, I've heard jokes about "being the preacher's kid" and all that...but I think it gives me insight that no one else has. Insight into the importance of truth...and I'm so thankful. So extremely grateful that the Lord has seen fit to put me into a place in life that I can learn and grow and see things from this point of view.

Church is one of the few places that I feel completely safe and loved. And not just my local church, Rocky Fork. I have felt many of the same feelings at the churches we have visited over the years---there's a connection, a brotherly love in all those places, even though I don't know half of them. Being with others who share important beliefs and desire to worship the Lord warms my heart.

I mentioned in the last post how my summers have taken on a whole new light; and this is how. Our summers are filled with traveling to church meetings, some only an hour or two away, some nine or ten. Dad's an Elder, and when other sister churches invite him to preach for him, we normally go. We pack up half of our stuff in order to stay at someone's house, worship with them on the weekend, and drive back home in time to meet with our local church. It's amazing. I love it.

We've been to eleven states in all, I think. I have so many friends, old and young, all over the place. My closest friends (besides my siblings) are those in the faith, as well as my mentors, and quite possibly my future husband. :) The only down side to it all is having to say goodbye...

We oft-times meet both night and day,

a faithful band of soldiers.

We read, we sing, we preach and pray,

and find the Lord most precious.

But while we sing this song of love,

our hearts are deeply wounded...

Perhaps we all may meet no more, 

Here as a congregation.

This song is so bitter-sweet, and it practically reads my mind. I love singing it with my church family, both local and abroad.

But if on earth we meet no more,

we hope to meet in heaven.

Where congregations never break up, 

but dwell in sweet communion.

Where all the ransomed church of God 

shall meet no more to sever, 

With not a sorrow, sin, nor tear

But shout His praise forever. 

It is a blessing to know the Lord and his truth, because he first loved us.  We should never forget that.

Thoughtfully,
Lindsey

Looking Back A Little

Okay, you guys, summer is great. I'm sure you already know that. But my summers, in particular, have taken on a whole new light. I'll tell you more about that in the next post, but for now here's some pictures.

Sisters :)

Jonas with walkie-talkie

"Agent 5, this is Agent One-Year-Old. Break left."

(The story behind those last two pictures happened a week or two ago There was an air balloon event not far from here and they were flying right by our house. One guy came really close and shouted down to Dad, asking if he could land in our field. Dad shouted back yes. Very cool! None of us have been so close to one before.)

I've been enjoying life lately. Of course, there's great days and okay days and not-so-good days, but for the most part, I've been very thankful and happy. God is so good.

This year, like every year, has been busy with church meetings, school work, house & outdoor work,  and family fun. 2017 has also featured some life lessons and new experiences and a vision for the future.  It's exciting, yet a little scary, to think about what life could look like in a few years and can be overwhelming to think about the list of things I need to accomplish before then.

(I have like five posts in my head, but, like my stories, can't seem to find the time or the will to actually write them all down.)

See you next post!

~Lindsey

The Fire Within

(Author's note: Here's a post that I worked on a long time ago but never finished. At the moment I am typing up another post about more of my recent thoughts, but in the meantime here's this. Sorry for being absent for so long, but hey, my summer was great!)

Originally written: March 2017

I was thinking some deep thoughts about fire the other day...probably brought on by the campfire we had a few weeks ago. It was a lot of fun, of course, to crowd around it and snack on s'mores, shivering whenever the cold wind blew...but we always had to be careful to not get too close or else we'd be burned.

That thought set me thinking about other kinds of fire. Do you have a passion? A wish for the future? A hobby? A particular book or movie that you really like? I do, and most of the time those are good things have. But at this point I have learned that those kind of things can burn us just as much as a physical, roaring flame.

I spoke about chapters in life a few blog posts ago. I have named some of my chapters, including the one which I am about to relate. It is titled "The Fiction Obsession".

You see, about three or four years ago, I had a serious problem with writing. I've always loved to make up stories, and I still do, but at this particular episode in life, it had consumed me.

The story that I was writing at the time was all I ever thought about. I was always in a different world, always having conversations going on in my head, always rushing through the day so I could write. It messed with my schoolwork, my chores, and my family life. When I wasn't writing, I was reading a fiction book or wishing for a good movie. (Granted, our movie selection is rather small even with filtering.) 

 I'm sorry to say that I wasted a whole summer doing this. While my family spent the evenings outside, watering our gardens or playing ball, I was inside sitting at a computer, my fingers getting sore from typing.

And what do you know? In the end, I grew frustrated with discontentment and restlessness, and blaming it on the story's dullness, I trashed it. Just like the millions of others.

What I wouldn't give to have all that time back. (Not the story back...it was actually awful.) Think of it---a whole summer of learning, of growing, of loving! It was all my fault---all because I let a hobby, an ultimately useless thing, become too important. My parents had warned me of this, but I had completely pushed away their advice. 

************

Annnnnd then they put me on a fiction fast. Both reading it and writing it. Needless to say, I wasn't very happy about that at the time. But guess what, it helped! 

Of course, over the years I have had to work on not falling back into it again, and learning what times are the right times to enjoy my hobbies. But for the most part, I've gotten much better at it. 

That's why you've got to involve your parents in your life, I've learned. Even if they do something you don't really like, it can really help you in the long run and give you perspective when you're older.

God wants us to have a plan for the future (Proverbs 28:19), and not waste our time in the present. It's a hard thing to balance sometimes, because we're also not suppose to always be thinking about what happens tomorrow. There's a "happy medium" as my Dad says, and it's our job---each one of us individually---to find it.  And making sure our true fire within is the Lord, guiding us in all we do.   

************

Younglings

Jonas, the silly little munchkin, is starting to scoot and crawl his way across the house. And you know what that means.

Jonas and Aaron

It means we have to start worrying a little bit more about the legos, popcorn, and dirt that might, on occasion, be left behind in the clean up process. 

But even that isn't enough....

They caught me....

Our books, papers, and pens aren't safe either. He is quite pleased with himself, it seems. Sweet boy! :)

Sweet baby goats, too. These kids were born a few days ago. It was really cold the morning we found them, and they were really weak, but thankfully we were able to nurse them back to health. Their mama, Nyla, helped too of course. :)

"Oh give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever."

 Happy Weekend! 

~ Lindsey 

Driving, Babysitting, and Riding

"...and beginning in her sixteenth year, she..." - Future history book.

Well, not that I'll be in a future history book, but if I was, what would it say?

I was looking back at some the other posts I made on the blog and I had to laugh. It's like looking at pictures of yourself as a toddler or at an old story you wrote. I feel like I've matured a lot since then---hopefully I have. There's a few things in particular that I have gotten better at.

For example, instead of merely mowing the grass as driving practice, I have been driving to and fro on our gravel roads for some time now. In fact, a few days ago I drove on the highway for the first time---fun, but nerve wrecking. :)

I am not quite ready to get my driver's license, obviously, so I won't be doing that right away. But other things are keeping me busy.

I have been helping out our neighbors, the Pelcs, by babysitting their children---mostly on Friday mornings, but also whenever they need me. They have four little children, three girls and a boy, and I have grown so fond of them! Sometimes I refer to them as mine, lol.

The Pelcs are one of the sweetest families I know. I have really gotten along with Mrs. Pelc...she is so sweet and we have a lot in common...and for a while now I have considered her a good roll model. Both she and Mr.Pelc are home school graduates, and all together they are a good, christian family. Sadly, they are going to have to move at the end of the month. I'll really miss getting to see them, but I plan to keep in touch. I'm going to send the children birthday cards. :)

After they are gone, I have few other mini-job opportunities that may come to fruition. We'll see. :)

One thing I have been doing for fun in my spare time is writing. Well, let me correct that. I have been doing a BUNCH of research in preparation for writing. Just recently have all the pieces began to fall into place. The time period I am trying to write about is really complicated---it's the 1400s, or more specifically, the Wars of the Roses.

It's a lot of fun, but challenging. I won't be finished with it anytime soon. I also have to be careful how much time I spend on it, because I don't want to become obsessed. There was one time in my life when I was so fixed on writing a story (that I ended trashing, mind you,) that I wasted a whole summer thinking about it all the time. I don't want to do that again.

So, despite the fact that my WotR (Wars of the Roses) story is very historical, it is also partly fiction, so I am only doing it in my afternoon free time.

There was something I did a week or so ago that would (sort of) count as research.

As a birthday surprise, Mom and Dad had arranged for Chloe and I to ride horses for the first time! 

Some of our other neighbors own horses, and they were kind enough to let us come over to learn about and ride them. Mrs. Sabrina taught us a lot: how to lead a horse, how to brush, halter, and saddle them, and of course how to ride.  

My horse's name was Star. They call her sorrel because of her reddish-brown color---my favorite color horse. She was so beautiful, and the whole experience was amazing (and good for WotR research, though I wasn't thinking about that at the time, lol).

When we first got there, I was a little nervous but remembered to keep my self calm because horses, like some other animals, can sense your feelings. But I got over it quick enough. It was so much fun! I was able to mount and dismount all by myself. It was just like I had imaged it to be.

Chloe and her horse, Lyst.

I love this picture.

By the time we left, I was so in love with Star that I didn't know what to do with myself. I knew I would like horses...I had imaged talking to them, riding them, and leading them so many times before that when I actually did it, it felt something like a distant memory.

I hope to go back sometime. Maybe do some work in exchange for spending time with Star.

Well, for now, I've got to go. Work to do, lessons to learn, people to love and encourage...and "The hand of the diligent shall bear rule, but the slothful shall be under tribute." See you later!

~ Lindsey

The Next Chapter

Isn't it interesting when you finally realize that your life is in chapters? Looking back, you can see your own character development, the coming and going of ideas, and the changes in the world around you.

You said goodbye to friends, and said hello to others.

You had some internal struggles, and overcame them.

You had a few hidden sins, and finally begged forgiveness for them.

You wasted time without thinking about it, but suddenly saw the bigger picture.

And thanks to God's grace, you realize things. You see the truth, like a flash of lightning. All those decisions and beliefs that you said you hold to...you see that they're so much more important than you had thought. Every single detail.

Another strike of light, and you glimpse what would be your future if you continued on in the same way. And you know you have a choice. So you choose. Granted, it's after a while of sitting on the fence (and scolding yourself for it), but finally...

And the chapter closes. A new one opens. You look back and see it all like a distant dream, but remember not to look too close or you'll fall in again. "Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall".

And then you suddenly find yourself free...every thing seems fresh, new, happy, optimistic.You look forward now, and not so much at the computer screen or your new favorite fantasy. There are struggles ahead and you see them, but you have a plan for each one.

You may still have to say goodbye to people.

You may have to conquer your nervousness.

You will have doubts.

You will sometimes feel like you're good for nothing.

(And you know you still have to conquer math.)

But isn't it worth it? Because a clear plan of the future will guild your step, like a lantern shining bright on the dark forest path. "Where there is no vision, the people perish; but he that keepeth he law, happy is he".

All that is me. Thank the Lord for his mercy.

*************

I haven't written since September of  2016! Well, that's not completely true...I have written, just not for a blog post. The fact that six months have passed since my last post kind of surprised me. I hadn't really meant to abandon my blog, it just happened. Sorry! :)

Here's some pictures to show what we've been up to.

Jonas is such a big boy now! He is seven months old and
is starting to move all over the place. 

This is Aaron with cousin Jaden. They are
close in age and really enjoy playing together. 

Our grandparents gave us a punching bag, which is now
hanging in the garage. It's a fun way to exercise.

Our sheep had lambs! This is Catalina and her twin girls.

Some of our other sheep. 

We have three ewes and one ram (not pictured). The mamas are Tess the Friendly, Catalina the Cautious, and Dot the Scaredy Sheep. Seriously, though---the most she will do is sniff the tips of our fingers.

Tess had the only boy lamb. We'll probably butcher him eventually. The other ewes each had twin girls, and we'll probably keep them to grown our flock. 

One of our goats had kids too, and still other is expecting soon.

These naughty goat kids are being good for
once and posing for a picture. 

Throwback: This is one of our puppies from
Beulah's first litter. We called him Haelix.

This is him now. We gave him to some friends at church and they
named him Canaan.

Some of my brother Noah's ducks. He takes great care of
them and they are so much fun to watch. If I had a favorite animal
on the farm, the ducks would probably hold first place most of the time. 

These are Muscovy ducks. Unlike the others, they are able to fly. 
Sometimes they come over the fence and visit us in the front yard. :)

Today is the second day of March, meaning my sixteenth birthday is only a few days away. Sometime soon I'll update a picture of myself. :)  My little brother Seth will be turning seven. He and I share a birthday---March 6th.

I would write more, but this post is getting really long. Maybe I'll post again later this weekend. See you then! :)

Blessings,
Lindsey

...All the days of my life

Saturday: The day you make a productive daily schedule and resolve to follow it.

Sunday: The day you go to church, worship with family and friends, then set your alarm for the next morning. 

Monday: The day you follow your schedule (almost) exactly, have a great day, and the future is all hopes and roses.

Tuesday: The day you get up a tad late and have a good day (but your productivity has decreased by thirty percent compared to yesterday and you're not sure why).

Wednesday: The day something happens to throw you all off, like going to town, etc.

Thursday: The day you lament and mope and your schedule is no longer interesting.

Friday: The day you try to pick yourself up by your bootstraps and start over (but it's the end of the week and Monday seems so much better....)

Saturday: The day you realize you can do better than this and start working on a plan for the next week...

Of course, it is not always like this, (and sometimes Wednesday is interchangeable) but after a while, you do see a pattern in life. :)

I have been working, reading, doing school, chatting with friends, reading, and gardening a little. My days---I have been using that word too much, so---my twenty four hour periods have blended together into something called a week, and I can't tell them apart at the moment. 

Oh! and I have been helping take care of my baby brother, Jonas. Musn't forget about him.

Seth and Jonas

OH! and I had my first time practice driving around the yard with my Dad. It wasn't much harder than the riding lawn mower---different, and much bigger, and maybe a little nerve wrecking...but not much harder. :D

 God bless! 

~Lindsey

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Psalm 23:6