The Summer of Graduations -2025

Three of our grandchildren graduated this summer. Two from high school and one from college. Graduate means to receive an academic degree or diploma.

“The two most important days of your life are when you were born and the day you find out why.” – Mark Twain

May was certainly filled with Senior Art Shows for our college graduate and her graduation, high school celebrations from the small town, small high school class to the Texas graduation of several thousand. The Farmer didn’t get to attend Willow’s graduation in Texas as he had just had knee replacement surgery. Thankfully, our daughter Esther and granddaughter met me in Wichita and we traveled to the graduation. It was a wonderful trip and it was great to celebrate Willow. Asa’s graduation from high school was especially sweet as his high school was burned in an arson fire a couple of years ago. His small town is full of overcomers. Anna is our college graduate and she is now teaching high school art in her home town and has already been recognized for her achievements. Asa is off to Kansas State University and Willow will soon be going to Boston University.

Western Kansas is green even in September and the crops growing around our yard look exceptional. We have had just enough rains to keep things growing and green. Usually by this time of the year the buffalo grass is brown so we are enjoying this extension of green and praying for an abundant harvest. Picking corn has just begun in this area. Asa and Albert, his dad, came to our farm and used the Farmer’s lift in his shop to work on a pickup. It was fun to have them around for a few days this summer while Jenny our daughter-in-love was on a mission in Guatemala. The lift helps so much to work on things.

The Farmer’s sister, Dorothy passed this summer and went to meet her Savior. She was exactly fourteen years older than the Farmer as he was born on her fourteenth birthday. She said she never forgave him for messing up her birthday J but I think she did and loved having a little baby brother to dress up in tiny dresses. Her services were in St. Louis only two weeks before our family reunion. We were able to spend some much needed time with family and reminiscing. She will certainly be missed and it leaves the Farmer’s family of seven kids to just three left now.

We were not able to go on a SOWER mission this year due to the Farmer’s knee and surgery. Our hope is to be able to go next year. Some of our favorite couples to work with at these projects have experienced great loss. Two couples have suddenly lost their spouses and are trying to navigate how the future looks for their lives. We know that God has a plan and purpose for their future.

“The darker the night, the brighter the stars, the deeper the grief, the closer is God.”- Fyodor Dostoesky

Just like your summer of 2025 ours has been full and rewarding. We’ve experienced grieving, joys and celebrations. Spending time with family and is becoming even more important as we see grandchildren grow and spread their wings. Cherishing friendships is vital to our existence and our true happiness.

“ Cherish your friends and family as if your life depends on it. Because it does.”- Ann Richards

Eclipse and Flood Watch

On April 8, North America experienced its second total solar eclipse in seven years. The moon glided over the surface of our sun, casting a shadow over a swath of Earth below. Along this path, the world turned dark as night.
A solar eclipse occurs when the moon orients itself between Earth and the sun, shielding the solar surface from our view.
In cosmic terms, it is unusual that this happens: the moon is about 400 times smaller than the sun, but it is about 400 times closer to us. That means that when these two celestial bodies are aligned, they appear to be the same size in the sky.

At Big Sandy, TX we were in the path of total eclipse and as the sky darkened and the temperature cooled we briefly got to see the total eclipse before the clouds obscured our view. One small child started to cry as it got night and declare that he was not ready to go to bed.
We are here to do a SOWER mission for the month of April at Alert Academy. This is our second time to work at this camp.
The camp ground here is hosting a family camp with the theme of “Beholding the Glory of God”. This theme was very fitting for this spectacular weekend.
We were able to hear some wonderful presentations from Spike Psarris an Astrophysicist.
For a number of years, He worked as an engineer in the U.S. military space program. He went into that career as an atheist and committed evolutionist. By the time he left, he had become a creationist and a Christian.
Our first week of work here started with three days of heavy rain. We had eight or nine inches of rain. Being from Northwest Kansas we haven’t heard a rain like that in 20 some years. It was a beautiful sound to our ears as we heard of dirt storms at home. Thankfully we had inside jobs. The women painted boards for a board fence. The men replaced almost 200 light bulbs in the administration building. It was an enlightening experience.
We are blessed to be working with two very special couples. Mike and Jackie and Tom and Glenda. These four are all from Iowa.

At the end of our workweek the farmer and I headed to Buda, TX to spend the weekend with my brother and family.

Mission Accomplished

So many times in the Word of God there is a problem solved by two words: But God! Following are some scriptures that show many times the changes that happen when God intervenes.

“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” – Psalm 73:26

And the patriarchs, jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt; but God was with him.” – Acts 7:9

But God raised him from the dead. Acts 13:30

but God shows his love for us in that while we were sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8

For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise; but God gave it to Abraham by a promise.” – Galatians 3:18

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved” – Ephesians 2:4-5

Indeed he was ill, near to death. But God had mercy on him, and not only him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow.” – Philippians 2:27

But God are two gloriously pivotal words upon which everything in life turns from death to life, sin to salvation, and hopelessness to eternal joy.

This assignment in Floyd, IA at Cedar Springs Camp was a big task for four people and we did not think it was possible for us to complete that task. But God had other plans! In His great wisdom he helped us to do something bigger than all our dreams. It was something bigger than was possible for us without Him. Of course our leaders, Jim and Cathy Fry were excellent leaders and had a good plan from day one. We were also thankful that they were younger and stronger. When my brother saw the pictures of this finished project he said, “I’m sure you saved all the high work for yourself!” Brothers!! They know us too well. He knows I don’t like ladders. But I did do ladders this month but I didn’t do the really high ones.

It was a great advantage to us and blessing that the directors here were so helpful with supplies and encouragement. Brian Goode and his sweet family moved to Texas the last weekend of our work here. He took tremendous care of us and went the extra mile. He made steaks for us, took us out to eat and gave us gift cards. We were sure treated like royalty and we would highly recommend this camp to all SOWER couples.

Jim and Cathy Fry also fed us well as we had pork nachos one night, chicken cooked in their air fryer and many nights of fires and games. We have made real friends with them and it is our desire to work with them again in the future. They’re farmers too and most importantly have ran a Home for Boys for many years. They sure knew how to make the Farmer and I tow the line! Jim always said work is spelled FUN!

Our thankful and grateful hearts are so full. But for God this project would not be completed. I’m so thankful His Word says in Philippians 1:6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Loaves and Fishes

Heart of Texas has won my heart. When we arrived they told us many SOWERS wind up just staying. Now I understand why. The whole town is so friendly, the stores still understand customer service, the cowboy church we found was an inspiration, and the camp has made a difference in the Kingdom of God since 1946. The folks there wanted to take us out for lunch our first time there. Another big plus is there is a lot of green. They said they were dry but they are not as dry as home.

The camp was having a big Senior Day celebration with a special concert by the McNeil family. Senior groups came from many churches around that area.

I was delighted to work in the kitchen again minus the chicken deboning. This time we made fruit kabobs. We had grapes, strawberries and pineapple. It made great looking fruit kabobs. We needed at least 200 of them. We had to ask the Lord to increase and multiply our pineapple. Because we were running short. We knew the Lord had experience in that from the stories of five loaves and two fish being used to feed the multitudes. We had enough and the kabobs were a hit with the Seniors. We also put together a Make Your Own Granola Bar. All the ingredients were in mason jars and was quite an attractive bar.

The McNeils put on a wonderful concert of many special songs. They are a couple with ten children who are all very musical and gifted.

It was a great finish to our month at Heart of Texas camp.

The farmer and I broke camp on Wednesday morning to pull the camper to Joplin,MO. We had planned to go to Big Sandy, TX for the 40th SOWER Reunion but I had received a phone call from my cousin who is more like my sister, with tragic news. Her 19 year old grandson was found deceased at his home,in his bed, from the onset of a sudden illness. His funeral was to be Saturday. We praise God that Clay knew and loved Jesus. He was in church every time the doors were open. This is the third time one of my dear friends has lost a grandchild in the last few months.

Earth has no sorrows that heaven can’t heal.
Thomas Moore

Grief is so difficult to navigate especially when it is a child or grandchild or a young person in the prime of life. We have hope and assurance because as lovers of Jesus we know His words are true and we will see them again.

Heart of Texas Camp

Brownwood, TX is now home to the farmer’s camper. We are being blessed by this beautiful camp and are on a new SOWER assignment for the month of March. This first week has not been normal. We left home on March 1 and overnighted in Blair, OK at a very nice city park with camper hookups. About midnight we received a call from our niece that her dad had made the transition home to heaven. This was not unexpected as we knew that he was struggling. Brother Jim was ten years older than the farmer. The farmer is the little brother of the family and now he is the only brother.

We quickly decided to get the camper moved to the campground where we could set up for the month of March and then take the pickup and head home for the funeral and family gatherings. We were grateful that we were only nine to ten hours from home. The celebration of his life was wonderful and we had a good time visiting with family. The farmer’s youngest sister really put fear in his heart though, when she told him that now he was the only brother to keep the three sisters in line. You could just see the concern on his face. However, his oldest sister informed him that he would NOT be bossing her around at all! She is the one that would dress him in little dresses when he was a baby.

Our first week at Heart of Texas was spent traveling. We arrived back Wednesday afternoon. On Thursday we went to work. The camp director asked me to help with Policy and Procedure Manuals in the office. I really enjoyed getting to do that kind of work again. The farmer worked on preparing a site for cement and made some forms.

There are two other couples working with us here. One couple stayed overnight at our place last May. We so enjoyed having a meal with them and getting acquainted and now we are delighted to get to work with them this month. They were brand new to SOWERS when they were at our house last May but now have several places of work under their belts.

The couple that are our leaders are a very nice couple and have worked here at Heart of Texas for several months. They are familiar with the camp and the wonderful staff here. It fills our hearts with joy to be able to work with such a special team in this place.

The men have several projects going on. They are remodeling one of the boys’ residence halls, putting cement at the zip-line, installing some plumbing and the list goes on. The ladies are cleaning and organizing.

Some youth groups were here this weekend raking, painting and moving bunk beds. They were a busy bunch. It almost got to 90 degrees here and they worked hard. In the afternoon I saw them with towels in hand head to the lake. They were on a dead run to plunge into that water. I don’t imagine the water was all that warm since the temperatures had been in the 50’s earlier this week. It was a delight to hear them work, laugh and play. They had a bonfire in the evening and the sounds of joy and laughter rang through the camp.

Insert pic of painting

Just up the road is a beautiful pecan grove. It is called Pecan Grove Farms and they have 1,150 acres of mature trees adjoining Lake Brownwood. They have other Pecan farms in other areas also. The trees here have not yet leafed but I’m hoping that by the end of March they might be getting close to blooming. Pecan groves fascinate me as my great uncle had a pecan grove on his farm in Oklahoma.

If planted in the correct location, you can expect nuts in eight to ten years. Be aware though that the crop yield is not the same every year. Pecan trees alternate with a heavy crop one year followed by a light year.

“What is paradise, but, a garden, an orchard of trees and herbs, full of pleasure and nothing there but delights.”
-William Lawson

That’s a recap of the first week in Brownwood, IN A NUTSHELL! Sorry, I just couldn’t resist the pun.

There is a very artisitic Camp Director, Rhonda.

Found the Pot of Gold

There are over 1000 promises in the Bible that God has made to those that believe in Him. Many of these promises are a two-way contract that we call a Covenant Promise. Some examples of this are found in the following verses.

Jer. 7:23 Obey my voice and I will be your God, and you shall be my people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you.

Matt. 11:28 Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

His believers have a part to play in all of these covenant promises.

God keeps His promises and He always does His part. He never, ever fails us. We can take His word to the bank.

Is 54:10 For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you.

There is one thing God cannot do…He cannot, will not stop loving you!!

The rainbow of seven (perfection) colors is a sign of His promise.

Genesis 9:12-16 And God said:”This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between you and Me and the earth. It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.

The rainbow is a beautiful symbol and reminder of all of God’s promises. The number of the colors and stripes in the rainbow are seven. That is the number of perfection in the Bible. Only God could put such a beautiful promise right up in the sky for us all to see.

Some people say there is a pot of gold at the bottom of the rainbow. If there is I think I found it here at Rainbow Acres. The beautiful people “ranchers” here, absolutely are pure gold. God made them so beautiful. I spent the lunch time visiting with a rancher very knowlegeable about trains and steam engines. He asked me a lot of questions that I had no answer. Study on trains is a must if I sit by John again.

At Bible study on Monday night there was some lively discussion among the ranchers on the book of Ecclesiastes. One young lady there was very knowledgeable about the Word of God and had some great answers. The joy of the Lord is so apparent on many of their faces. Some have been here since the facility opened in 1974. Jeff came at that time and his parents died shortly after he came here. This is definitely his home. He collects lanyards and had a birthday on Saturday. Since the grandkids and I love to sew lanyards, I made one for him. The smile on his face was the ultimate pot of gold.

I think the pot of gold is doing something for others and knowing without a shadow of a doubt that God keeps His promises. In the times we are living in, it is priceless to know that we have no reason to fear or even to worry. We know God is faithful, as we’ve seen it many times in our past.

These ranchers know the faithfulness of God. The covid lockdowns were very hard on them and being away from all of the other ranchers was such a strain. They have such joy in being together again. Their prayer circle in the morning is a delight, as their prayer requests are so rich. They pray for their families and their families here. They try so very hard to be kind to one another. I think they know more than the rest of us what it feels like to be treated harshly by others.

We are working on sanding cupboards in one of the group homes that is being remodeled. I think there are eight rooms in each house with a kitchen and big gathering room. A caregiver is in the home at all times. They don’t spend a lot of time there as they are busy with classes and working. One of the ranchers was so excited about her history class. The grounds are busy with bicycles and hikes and enjoying this spring time weather. Everyone greets you here. Everyone smiles and makes you feel special. Yes, I’m feeling pretty special in this place. They all are. I wish our world could be so in love with being together. Maybe, just maybe we could lay down our differences and cherish them instead.

Yes, the pot of gold is very close to Rainbow Acres. The pot of gold is seeing the love of Jesus in others. His rainbow is His creation and so are we and so are these precious ranchers. God is good all the time.

Ridge Haven Project Complete

The last three weeks have flown by and our project here is complete. Some more SOWER couples will be coming in next week and we will be departing soon. What a great team we had here and we feel like our mission was accomplished. Each couple comes with their own unique talents and giftings. It is such a delight to see how God assembles each team. Our General Leader couple were such a success in guiding this ship. Wendy planned some really fun times for the ladies and for the couples too. It was not all fun and games though as we really worked hard to do our best for the Lord and for the ministry here.

Some couples are leaving tomorrow and some on Monday and Tuesday of next week. Some are going home to check on their own livestock and some are on their way to their next project. One couple is full time in their RV and one has been on the road 16 months and will have completed their 25th project by the time they arrive home. That is the wonderful thing about SOWERS is that you can do it most any way you would like to.

The farmer and I are ready to get back to our farm and see what is happening on the home front. I have several groups of girlfriends I need to have lunch with and catch up on their last month. A neighbor needs the farmer to drive a truck. We will have cousin camp for our 13 grandchildren in a couple of weeks so we won’t be bored.

Iowa has treated us well. The weather has been beautiful, the camp staff delightful. The new friends are so very special. There is nothing like sharing work and life for a few weeks together on a mission. It is hard to leave but home is calling.

Synergy or Two Dry Land Farmers on the Lake

There is immense power when a group of people with similar interests get together to work toward the same goals. –Idowu Koyenikan

The beginning has finally begun! We have been in preparation for this for several months. Actually the Lord has probably been preparing us for this all of our lives. We are so thankful to be in this season of life and able to do all we sense God is calling us to do.

This mornings devotion was such a great way to start the day. I love Nehemiah and all that God was able to accomplish through one man dedicated to God’s purposes. His heart broke at the knowledge of the devastation of his people and of Jerusalem. His beautiful prayer asking God for favor with the King is dynamic. He prayed and fasted and sought the Lord for his next step. Nehemiah’s leadership and humility is such an inspiration.

There are four couples here with the SOWER ministry. We are so thankful for the experience we find in these couples. One couple, John and Anita have been with the SOWERS for 16 years. Anita used to be a specialty clinic manager so we can certainly relate to each other. Our general leader couple Dan and Kathleen were at this camp for three months last year so they know the staff and the area well. Ken and Barb have been in ministry all of their lives and have been with SOWERS for three years. As you can see we two newbies are in a great group.

The women are staining a deck on a cabin and will be painting the cabin and trim also. A couple will be living in it this summer when they arrive to help staff this huge camp for the summer. We ladies will also be doing some other painting and staining jobs with some new water stations that are being built. It seems that summer camp in Texas with thousands of kids playing and learning about Jesus, water stations are essential. One thing I don’t understand though is how these other gals can do this work and not have the stain all over them. Somehow I seem to really get into my work!

The men are building a large bell tower in front of the auditorium. This camp was given a huge bell that a church had in the area. One of the traditions here is that at the end of each camp those who received salvation while here at camp are to get to ring the bell! This new bell will make an even larger sound than the old one. I think they had 600 some salvations last summer!

They appreciate their power tools! More Power!

We are really enjoying our first week at Highlands Lake Camp and Conference Center in Spicewood, TX. This place has the greatest staff and the ministry here on this 200 acres on the shores of Lake Travis is inspiring.