One Thing…

 Here’s a run down from the week…

One place I went this week- AWANAS. While my aunt is gone, I’m filling in for some lessons at AWANAS. 

One thing I ate this week- Leftover corn maze pizza.

One thing I finished reading - Technically, I listened to it, but I finished the book Tactics, by Gregory Koukl. It was a GREAT book, very thought provoking, and if you have any interest in having answers for the world’s questions, or any desire to improve your own ability to ask good questions, this is a must read. Apologetics and evangelism go hand in hand! 

One thing I wrote - A card at a baby shower.

One strange thing I saw… a cow playing Tricky Triangle! 

One thing I watched - Arsenic and Old Lace with Cary Grant. It is a totally bizarre movie, but no one does dramatics like Cary Grant! 

One thing I bought - An old Ed Ames record. 

One thing I learned - You can buy a license to hunt unicorns in Michigan! But there are rules. 

One thing I read in my Bible - Revelation 12:11 “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”

So, how are you doing at overcoming Satan? Are you using the power of Jesus’ blood, and your testimony? And are you ready to die for Christ? 

Opportunities in Outings

 During the maze season, getting away isn’t easy! So we make the most of the little things. A trip to Thief River to pick up supplies for the weekend can be a lot of fun! 

The looks you get when you buy 200 hotdogs… 

Or the looks you get when you load two carts with pop! 

Then, when you get a free minute… why not get a hair dye while you’re out!?! 

I’m always amazed at how many opportunities there are in a normal day to share Christ. The Dollar Tree worker who has adult children that won’t speak to her… the lady in the next chair at the salon who had a rough night at the bar… the opportunities are everywhere! So, my challenge for today, is be intentional. Don’t let the opportunities slip by. 

That’s How Sin Starts!

I had a great weekend getting to see family and friends from out of town, as well as attending a cousin’s wedding and getting a picture with all 3 of my sisters!

We decided to go in age order, which I agreed to, then promptly got in the wrong place! How hard is it to find the end of the line!?!?! 

And if you think Hosanna looks very pregnant? She had her baby 3 days later! A beautiful baby girl! 

Then, on Wednesday, we had to run to Thief River Falls for some maze supplies, and while waiting outside TSC, I couldn’t help but admire this sweet bike. The size was right. The color was right. But I was just looking.

Then, an employee came out, and asked if we were interested. I was going to politely decline, but my mom piped up and said I was looking at it. 

I hemmed and hawed a bit, and before I knew it, he’d gotten the keys and I was talked into taking a spin. 

It was a sweet ride!!! But in the end, I knew it wasn’t the wisest financial decision, and I already have a car, and I don’t have a license to drive it, and I’d have to get the insurance, and I didn’t have a way to get it home, and the list could go on.

But the salesman was very good at his job. Every reason I gave, he had some combatting argument. Being a nice Minnesotan, I hate telling people ‘no’ right out, but after a fun back and forth pros vs. cons discussion, I had to be blunt. “I’m not buying today.” Had I not been firm, I’d probably still be there talking, or maybe he’d have talked me into buying…

After I left, I got thinking about what a great analogy that was for how sin starts! No, I’m not saying buying a bike would be sin, but the road to getting there was similar to the sin journey.

First, I was just looking at the bike. Not planning on touching. Just looking,

Then, I started touching, and admiring.

Then I was discussing. Then I was engaged and riding, and had I not forcefully said no and walked away, I’d have bought it.

In the same way, we often start by looking at sin. We’re not planning on getting too close but… then we’re handling, and admiring, then we’re talked into just giving it a try… then we buy, and are stuck with the results unless we can say bluntly say no.

No, looking at a bike isn’t a sin, but it’s a great example of how dangerous it is to look at and admire sin. It’s a slippery slope. Especially, if you have family or friends telling you to give it a try! 

The moral to the story is, stay away from sin. Don’t look at it, don’t touch it. Don’t let people talk you into being interested! But if you get a chance to test drive a bike… go for it! Because that was awesome! 

Fall Happenings…

Sometimes, I get surprised by my own writing! The other day I got an Unlocked magazine with one of my teen devotions in it. I’d already forgotten that I’d written it for them so it was a fun surprise! 

Then, we’ve been having some gorgeous northern lights lately. My phone doesn’t capture the full color and beauty that many cameras do, but I’ve sure enjoyed getting to see them even if I can’t fully capture them on camera. 

Being fall, it’s harvest time! But when you have a field of oat bales needing to be picked up, and it’s raining, and your usual crew is all busy, what do you do? 

Dad stopped in the house to see if anyone was available to drive tractor, and naturally, my sister volunteered me. 

It had been a long time since I’d driven tractor, but I enjoyed being able to step away from the news, and just enjoy being a part of harvest. 

I had the easy job, just driving a straight line, while Dad had the running around picking up bales and stacking them job.

And of course, as the world continues its battle against Christ, I’ve been challenged to remember why I’m here as a Christian. And Charlie said it best, “God, use me…”

What Can I Do?

 If your social media feed is anything like mine, than 90% of what you've been seeing and reading yesterday and today, has been about Charlie Kirk. Encouraging challenges, the call to stand united, and the call to not turn back.

But how does that look to you personally? It's all grand to join a cause online, but what does it look like in your personal life? Is there anything you can do?

Here are a few things that I've thought of. Not because I think they're what you need to hear today, but because they're what I need to hear today.

1. KNOW your Bible. I hope we as Christians all read our Bible on a regular basis, but how well do you know your Bible? If a random person asks you what the Bible has to say about the LGBTQ community, or what the Bible says about racial issues, would you have an answer?

This has been convicting me lately as I watch my niece studying for the National Bible Bee, and I remember how hard I used to study my Bible, and how often I used to have actual Bible verses to answer topics instead of just "Well, the Bible says somewhere . . ."

How can we defend our faith if we don't have faith? Romans 10:17 says Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. If you don't have the Word, you can't have faith.

2. Keep inviting people to know God. I know how it is. I have unsaved co-workers, and after a few conversations about God, and they don't show interest, it's easy to just drop it, and stop even mentioning it. 

But if they can bring up their video games every week, because it's important to them, then we can bring up church, and God, because it should be that important to us. Keep inviting people to church. Inviting them to ask questions and to see Christ in you. Keep sharing your faith.

3. Invite hard questions. It's incredibly humbling to have someone ask you a question about your faith, and not be able to answer it, and our pride makes us want to avoid those questions, but James 4:6 says that God resists the proud, and gives grace to the humble.

A few years ago, at camp, I ended up working with a gal who would ask me questions all the time. They weren't all difficult questions, but many of them, I had to say, "I don't have an answer to that, but I'll get back to you after I research it." It was humbling to have to admit I didn't know, but when I got alone with my Bible to study out her questions, I learned more than I'd ever learned when just reading through my daily routine.

Be humble, and invite people to ask you difficult questions even if you're not ready to answer them. Humility is a reflection of Christ, and if you can answer with humility, they may see Christ in you even if you don't have an answer. Then, go get the answer, and come back! 

It's far to easy in life, to start making soft choices, and avoid conflict, but if we can't stand up for our faith, we will never be remembered for our faith. I have no doubt that Charlie Kirk will always be remembered for his boldness to proclaim his faith. Because that was the most important thing in his life. If you died tomorrow, would people remember you as the nice-coworker? Or would they remember you as a person of faith, and be challenged by your life?

It’s Corn Maze Season!!

 This time of year, I live and breathe fall as I work at my family’s corn maze. 

Normally, as the full time food manager in the Pitchfork, I don’t get to walk around much, or see the outside world. So, when we I had the chance to leave the place in the capable hands of a friend, I took advantage of it and slipped out to snap some pictures. 

Mom’s “little people” are everywhere. 

Sadly, a heavy frost last night took out most of my flowers, but I did get a picture of the zinnias before the frost hit. 

In the expanded store building, Dad mounted my shelf and added a table for my book display. 

And I just love the new counter he built! Especially as it has a bottle opener on the side, and we sell glass soda bottles in there that give some added atmosphere. 

I promise I’m innocent! I was framed. 

I’m loving the new photo ops around the place! 

Since our theme is a “Thanks for serving” theme with a tribute to the 250 year anniversary of the military and some branches, we’re giving out military ducks to all the kids who finish their game card in the mini maze. 

And in my food world, there’s always something new! This year, you can get a single or a double of our Caramel Apple Donut Sundae made with a warm donut, apple pie filling, ice cream, caramel, and cinnamon sugar, and if you come by on Fried Friday, you can get the regular funnel cakes, plus deep fried Oreos! 

And that’s my week in a nutshell.

The Cat Caper

 The other day, my grandma called, and said that I missed out on the most exciting thing that had happened in town.

It started on a normal day, Grandma was home in her apartment in the Senior Living Center, doing normal things, when a knock sounded at her door. Another resident asked her to go down to the garage because there was a cat in her car!

It turns out it wasn’t her car, but there was a cat under the hood of someone’s car. So, they went to work trying to get the cat to leave it’s hiding spot under the hood of another resident’s car.

They opened the garage door, so when it got out from under the hood, it would leave. The only problem is, when it left that hood, it went to the next car, and climbed under that hood. If you happened to walk by the open garage door, and didn’t know about the cat, you may have been concerned to see a few elderly women sneaking around from one car to the next, messing with everyone’s hoods!

They opened the hood to the next car, and managed to get it out, and it ran to the next car. They knew this car belonged to Sunny, so they called her down, and they opened her hood, and gave it another try to send this cat on it’s way.

The problem was, it took off, and headed for Grandma’s car! Before the ladies could stop it, it had crawled under her hood.

Now, this kind of excitement drew the attention of a few elderly gentlemen in wheelchairs who joined the chase to send the cat home! And together, they surrounded the car, attempting to scare the cat out of the garage, but no matter what they tried, and how much their wheelchairs squeaked, that cat refused to leave grandma’s car.

One of the gentlemen had a brilliant idea to call 911, so the call went in. The dispatcher was informed that it was not a human emergency, but a cat emergency, as a cat was hiding in the hood of my grandma’s car, and wouldn’t leave.

The local rookie cop was sent to aid the elderly in extracting the cat, but even after all his cat rescuing skills were put to the test, the cat remained under the hood hidden out of reach.

So, he recommended Grandma move her car outside, so that when the cat decided to leave, it could just run off. My grandma informed the officer that her granddaughter writes for the Trading Post, and there could be an article about his heroism! So, naturally, I had to write one.

But, that’s not the end.

The next morning, Grandma went out to her car, and low and behold, the cat was still there! After talking with some staff, they realized different people had been trying to get the cat out of the garage for three days! Bribing it with milk, and I was told they even tried bribing it with a fish, but the cat wouldn’t leave.

Since Grandma wanted to take her car up town, the fight to remove the cat continued. Following it’s apparent habit, the cat did eventually leave her car, only to run and climb under the hood of yet another car.

With broom sticks they attempted to remove the cat from this new car, and that’s when the chief of police drove by and saw some elderly women with broom sticks poking around a car that happened to belong to his mom, so, once again, the police got involved.

The cat was extracted from the car, and one of the staff took it home so it wouldn’t cause anymore chaos to the residents with vehicles.

So, there you have it, one of the most exciting things that has happened in the Senior Living Center this year. And, if you happen to live in that area, and are missing a cat, your cat may very well be the one causing all the excitement!

Random Snippets

The petunias in town are nicer this year than they’ve been for a while, and I love getting to weed alongside my nieces! 

Okay, so maybe I’m not quite this bad… then again… I can’t deny it either… 

Someone sent me this picture from my Mexico trip! So, a strange Mexican man who didn’t speak English came up and offered me a sip of his pineapple drink, and I took a sip! To be fair, he wasn’t a total stranger… he was the pastor at the church we were working with, so I felt like I knew him, even though we didn’t speak the same language. And that pineapple was amazing! 

Last week, Miriam and I attended a friend’s wedding.

The wedding was an outdoor wedding, but after it started raining during the ceremony, we moved it inside. It was still a beautiful wedding, and one I won’t forget soon. 

At the maze, we’re busy checking off lists to get us ready for open next weekend. One of my favorite jobs, is taking the Waxy Willow Trail. It’s always so peaceful in the woods, and looks great when it’s raked! 

And another random picture from Mexico someone sent me. I’m not sure what’s going on here… but I guess I was having fun! 

 

Canada!

Less than a week after leaving Mexico, I ended up heading up to Canada to do some camp cooking for Camp Haven North. 

The camp was located on a pretty big lake with no other people using it, so it was remote and SO peaceful. Unlike Mexico, there was plenty of water! 

 

Mexico!

 So, in July, I spent a few weeks in Mexico!

I was working with the Service Adventure program through ACE global ministries to minister to Christian schools in need around the world.

The first week, we were all together in a big group learning building skills, and working on our ministry presentations, and then the second week, we split up as teams, and went to six different areas of Mexico!

Some of the teams worked with orphans, or the elderly, but my school had a focus on helping single moms.

So, here are a ton of photos, and a whole bunch of random facts from my trip.

The second week, my team got to help out with a couple of different church services, and we did a special program for the kids with songs, a group Bible speaking event, and a puppet show. 

Our home base, was more desert like, but the mountains were so beautiful!

As we drove on the ten hour bus drive to our second base, we began to see a lot more green, and were told that the hurricanes had caused a lot of rain in the region, so we were going into a nearly tropical like area!

I have owned a ukulele for a little while, but hadn't really learned to play, so when the team sent out the songs, I ignored them at first, I mean I don't really play! But then, I decided to give it a try, and I spent a few weeks learning the songs we'd be using on the missions trip. It ended up being one of my highlights! Especially when I got to play in the Spanish Rondalla. 

I didn't recognize the fresh figs, since I'd never had one, but they were amazing!

Fresh figs, are nothing like the dried ones! There's nothing like being on a farm in Mexico, watching them prepare a lamb for supper, and eating fresh figs that you picked.

And when I say I watched them prepare the lamb, we did the whole process, right down to cleaning the intestines. Yes, I did try some of them, and how they were cooked, the flavor was great! But the texture was a bit strange . . . 

The farm had all kinds of cool stuff to see!

We built twenty-one desks, and a scoring station for a Christian school that second week. It was a lot of work, but also a TON of fun!

By the time we were done, we had it down to a science and worked like a well oiled machine.

Before we left, we got to design and decorate a few bulletin boards, and put up the charts the students will use, so it looked all ready to go when we were done. 

I wasn't expecting the second week to be in such a beautiful place, but I fell in love with that area of Mexico!

So, that sheep we ate? They cooked it in a hole in the ground over hot rocks wrapped in cactus leaves. When it came time to eat it, we didn't put it on a table, we all just gathered around with tortillas and grabbed a chunk. The pastor and his family were so amazing, and let us be a part of the whole process.

We did find time to hit a street market late one evening after a full day of work, and grabbed some supper.

When we joined back up at the home base at the end of the mission trip, we got to do a final mission event in the host family's town. They invited the whole town, and every team got to do something from wordless book, to singing, to puppet shows.

And of course, if you're going to Mexico, you need the real Mexican music experience too!

This was my team at our school the second week when we'd just finished the project. We took a few minutes, and each went around to pray over the desks we'd built, and it was really neat thinking down the road at all the students who could be changed forever sitting at those desks. We even had a girl on our team who'd gotten saved while sitting at her desk in an ACE school!

Marking, cutting, sanding, varnishing, assembling . . . we got it down!

Our host family did take us to some hot spring caves at one point, and that was incredible!

It was hard working with the kids, because all of it is in Spanish, and my Spanish is almost non-existent. Since most of my team was bilingual, they were great about translating for me, but when it came to working with the kids, I got to stand back, and hold backdrops, and do the behind the scenes serving. It was great in the moment, but at the end, when all the kids want to talk to you, it was hard not being able to communicate better.

 

The hot spring caves fed all the mountain pools as well, and it was one of the most beautiful places I've ever been.

The emphasis of the trip, was on being a willing servant for God. The servant talked about in Luke who did everything asked of him, and at the end, didn't expect thanks, because they were unprofitable, just doing what was expected. It's a great attitude, as a servant of God, when you can sit back, do your job, and not be seeking praise.

It was also neat, because I got to hear the testimony of a young man who is living for God today, who got saved because of a Service Adventure team ten years ago. It was encouraging seeing the fruit, and knowing that I got to be a part of this incredible ministry!

All in all, it was a great experience, I learned a lot, I tried dozens of different foods I'd never had before, and I made lots of friends from around the world. But I was very thankful to come home to our shower and tap water! :)