Tag: Southern Roots

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Thanks Giving

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:17‬ ‭NIV‬‬

This week, we celebrated the Thanksgiving holiday. What’s sad is few people actually celebrate the holiday for what it was originally intended.

The “first” thanksgiving was a celebratory events that brought together God fearing believers with non God fearing people to celebrate a great harvest, a sharing of knowledge, friendship, and fellowship. Everything was provided by God to all at that “first” thanksgiving.

It was not the “first” thanksgiving in history. The Bible tells us that from the beginning of our planet by God, thanksgiving has taken place. In the beginning, God provided for us with plants, animals, and knowledge, all for us to survive, thrive, and worship. Worship by the way we fellowship and by the way we live each and every day.

Here on the farm, we are shown each and every day how God gives and provides for us. God’s giving comes in many different ways, even ways that we often don’t see as good or as a way to give thanks for. But every day, we should give thanks to God. He allowed you to wake up, to eat, to work, to learn, to grow, to fellowship, to give to others, and the list goes on and on. So in every moment give thanks to God, not just at special events or on special days.

As with every day, today we, here at Serenity Acres Farm, give thanks to God for all that he provides us and that he provides you, our friends. Thank you visiting and welcome to Serenity.

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The first sign

“Then the Lord said, “If they do not believe you or pay attention to the first sign, they may believe the second.”
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭4:8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

As a beekeeper, I am asked all the time about getting stung or being afraid to get stung. I always repeat the statement that my instructor at my first beekeeping class said. “If you are afraid to get stung, then you don’t need to be a beekeeper.” Being stung is part of the hobby or the profession.

I can tell you that every time I have been stung was because I did something wrong. Just like with most animals, bees will give you a first warning or sign. I even have a warning sign for all visitors just outside my bee fields.

Bees change the sounds they emit as a warning to their mood or level of comfort. That’s why a beekeeper has to stay calm and collective. He or she has to control movements and slow down. If a hive gets irritated, then it’s time to give them space and time to calm down. A common myth is that smoke calms bees. Smoke actually causes the bees to focus on other issues. They believe the hive is on fire and start hive fire duties — protecting the queen, the food supply, and the young.

As with things in our lives, God gives us warning signs, but most of us ignore the first sign, the Holy Bible. He has warned us of all the dangers we will face and how to handle them, but we ignore them and get ourselves into so much trouble. We ask for signs but ignore them; we beg for signs and ignore them. Why? Because we are so focused on what we want or what we think things should be that we ignore the simple first sign. We ask God why even though we know the answer.

I don’t ask a bee why it stung me. I know why immediately. It is simple, I did something wrong. It’s the same with other animals on the farm, why did a hen peck my hand? Because I was to close to her eggs or chicks. Why did a cow get between me and the calf? Because she is protecting her calf. These are first signs and on a farm you learn to read those signs.

In this world, signs are everywhere. We choose to ignore them whether they are our first or second sign, but in the end we pay a price for our choice of choosing to ignore them. So from us here at Serenity Acres, let’s start paying attention to these signs and have better lives.

Thank you for visiting and #welcome2serenity.

Life Tip: When you are around bees, don’t wear perfume or cologne, don’t wear dark colors, and don’t swipe or fan a bee away from you just walk away as calmly as you can.

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Directions

“… in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭3:6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

One thing that we give and use is direction. Direction is as much a part of our lives as anything else. In every process or task, we use directions. From washing hair to tying shoes, fertilizing plants to feeding and caring for livestock, directions are followed.

When I was a child, people were always stopping at my grandparents’ house on the farm and asking for directions. I remember my grandfather would always say the famous line, “You can’t get there from here.” No matter where the person needed to go, that was my grandfather’s response. He then proceeded directions with, “You are going to start out by pulling out of my driveway, and …,” in his best Southern terms.

Not knowing our final destination is sometimes the biggest problem. Just as my grandfather would say to lost travelers, you have to first pull out of your current situation and move to reach your destination. God has a destination for you. Every part of our lives has been a step in the direction to the destination God wants from us. When we get off the path to that destination, God provides us with someone or something to get us back on track. God does not say, “You can’t get there from here.” He says, “I have you and I will get you there, just have faith.”

At the farm, we are often brought back on track after deviating from the path. For example, you cannot feed livestock from the bucket. You start by filling the bucket with feed first, and then by emptying the bucket into the feed trough. Otherwise, you will risk leading livestock off the path and changing the destination to you. We have to stop and get new directions, ask for forgiveness, and start the new set of directions. Directions for life are no different. Yes, they may not be simple directions, but they will get you to that final destination.

In the end, we are to get the directions, start the journey from where we are, follow the directions, stay on track, and reach the final destination for the glory of God. There have been many times on the farm where we have contemplated if we were ever going to reach the destination. But, by faith, we stayed the path and followed the directions toward the final destination.

If you are not sure of what your final destination is or what you directions are, then stop and start praying. God will give you both and when he does, take action. Life is a great journey and we are loving the trip through it. We hope you are enjoying yours. Thank you for visiting and #welcome2serenity.

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The Dam

For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

Matthew 11:30

One thing about a farm, any size farm, is the To-Do List. It never gets shorter and always grows, even when other things on the farm will not. The list can, at times, get so overwhelming that it becomes a burden creating a mental and emotional dam. A dam that seems to hold back progress, success, and project completion. It keeps in the stress, fear of failure, and emotional depression.

For years, my family battled beaver dams that blocked creeks, streams, and drainage around crop land and cattle grazing land. The dams would cause flooding and destruction costing the family financial woes and physical maintenance woes. My family, over the years, used many different ways to clear the dams out and release the trapped water. One method was using a large grappling hook that my grandfather forged. We would place the hook, either via launching or climbing down, behind the dam and using a truck or tractor to pull the hook moving the materials holding the dam together. It was a constant battle for several years. Remove one dam and another one would get built, over and over pressure was released to be caught and built up again.

That’s the way it is on the farm. You remove one dam to have another build up or develop. In life, we have the same thing happen. We let our burdens build up creating a dam until we either breakup the dam or the dam floods our life with depression, dread, and fear. I still battle with this on the farm and in my own life. The great thing is God has already given us a way to deal with burdens, turn them all over to him. When you feel overwhelmed and your dam is flooding your life, turn it over to God.

There is no feeling like the feeling of release when all your burdens are gone. The farm reminds me of this over and over again. It’s not just my serenity but my church, where what I learn from the Bible is reinforced. Thanks for visiting and #welcome2serenity.

If you would like to see a photo of the grappling hook, then go to our photo of the week page. It is this week’s photo. https://welcome2serenity.com/photo-of-the-week/

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The protector

“The righteous who walks in his integrity— blessed are his children after him!”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭20:7‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Being a father of two daughters, I understand the duties and responsibilities of protecting and providing for my children. Your children become your world and your purpose for living. Their happiness becomes your happiness and their sadness becomes your sadness. Protection of our children becomes our top priority.

I have many stories from years on the farm, but one story reminds me of a protective father.

The story took place when I was 13 or 14 years old. My family raised cattle on the farm at this time and it was time to take weaned calves to the market to be sold. My dad, my granddad, and I started the day sorting the calves that we wanted to sell from the rest of the herd. As we worked on sorting the calves, the bull and father to the calves watched us intensely all morning. Once the sorting was completed and the calves to be sold were loaded onto the livestock trailer, we prepared to pull the trailer to my grandparents’ house before leaving for the livestock market. I drove the pickup pulling the trailer. As I pulled up to the main gate, the bull that had been watching us was blocking the gate. I honked the horn and yelled for him to move but he stayed put. I got out of the pickup and moved toward him to get him to move, he turned and looked at me but never moved. I walked back to the pickup to honk the horn again and move the pickup a little closer to him. While I was walking back to the pickup, the bull moved to the left side of the livestock trailer and with his body pushed on the trailer. He then went to the other side and did the same. As he was doing this, I ran to open the gate. By the time I got back to the pickup, he had returned to block the gate opening. He continued the back and forth blocking the gate and rocking the trailer for ten minutes until my dad came and helped me get him to move. For the next two days, the bull stayed by the main gate waiting, he was never the same after that.

That’s the way it is with dads, we want to protect our children from all of the suffering, the pain, and the disappointments of the world but we can’t. With each event in our children’s lives that cause pain, suffering, worry, stress, and disappointment, it changes us because it changes our children and we are never the same. Dads work hard to protect and to provide, knowing all along the impossibility to fully achieve. Yet, we do it anyway.

On this Father’s Day, tell your dad that you love him and thank him for all that he does for you, but mostly thank him for loving you more than he often loves himself because he blames himself for all of your shortcomings.

To all the dads out there, thank you for all you do and Happy Father’s Day from us here at #welcome2serenity. Thank you for visiting.

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Generations

“A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever.”
‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭1:4‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Next to the driveway for the farm is a Southern Red Oak tree. This oak tree is one of the oldest trees on the farm. It has survived storms, droughts, pests, and damage to its trunk and limbs.

I remember playing under and in this tree as a child. My granddad worked under this tree on farm projects and equipment repairs. It served as the afternoon shade during hot Mississippi summer days.

For generations this tree has been here, just like my family. For generations my family has owned, worked, and lived on this farm. Through bad times and good times, we have survived and thrived. Sacrifices were made and compromises found so our family and this farm land would continue to exist.

This Memorial Day, we think about those who sacrificed everything so we can live in a free country. For generations, this country has survived and thrived as the free country it is. By the grace of God and the sacrifices of generations, we are free. So this Memorial Day, let’s remember those who gave all for us so we can thrive. Thank you from #welcome2serenity and may God bless you all.

To view our photo of the week, go to https://welcome2serenity.com/photo-of-the-week/