Bring Others Into the Sunshine of God's Good News by Linda L. Linn - HTML preview

Chapter 12

Romans 12:15,16, Rejoice with those who rejoice and weep

with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another.

Soon it was close to the time for the first girl to be assigned to Jose and Lisa on the ranch and they were feeling settled and ready.

One day when Vera and Unice were in town walking in a park for their ministry time, they talked to a distressed couple about their daughter and the problems she was having in their home. She had accused them of abusing her. After listening carefully, Unice told them about the opportunities for the girls in the Caring Foster Homes on Mercy Valley Ranch.

So the couple went to social services to see if their girl could be placed there because they were afraid she was going to run away from home soon or get them in trouble for what she considered abuse. Social services agreed that she needed to be in a foster home and had a place she could move the next day. It worked out very well for that family.

That girl was the first fifteen-year-old girl who was assigned to Jose and Lisa. Since she was there by herself, Lisa was able to spend quality time with her during the first two weeks. She came with clothing and personal items from her other home, so there was no need to take her shopping. Instead they spent some time talking about the family rules and other topics, like the fact that three other girls would be coming to join the family. They did some gardening, and spent time with the horses.

For the first topic Lisa asked, “What are some things you like to do when you have free time?”

The girl answered, “I like to read good fiction books with happy endings, play video games, and go for walks in the park.”

“In that case,” Lisa declared, “I think the first thing we should do, is walk over to the big house and you can check out a book to read here when you have some free time. The walk over there will be almost as good as in a park, because this ranch is in such a beautiful place.”

When they got there, it didn’t take long for her to find and check out a book. Then Lisa showed her all the fun things to do in the game room before they walked back to the house.

“You were right,” the girl stated as they were walking, “this is every bit as good as a park. In fact it’s even better because I get to live here.” Just then she saw the horses in the pasture and gasped, “Oh my! Those horses are all so beautiful. Are they always there in the pasture? Do they belong to this ranch? Might I get to ride one?”

Lisa smiled at her and thanked Jesus that the horses would be so good for this girl. Then she responded, “Yes, the horses belong to this ranch. No, they’re not always in the pasture, because many times people are riding them. And yes, you will get to ride one if you will learn first how to take care of it before and after the ride and also promise to follow the ranch’s rules about riding.”

“I’ll do it!” She exclaimed. “I promise I’ll follow your family rules, like I had to promise the social worker, and the ranch’s rules for riding. I don’t know what they are yet, but I’ll do my best to follow them so I can ride one of those horses. I’ve always wanted to ride a horse. I even thought about running away from home and joining a circus if I could find one where I could ride a horse.”

“Lisa smiled at her again and declared, “I like your enthusiasm and your motivation. You’ll be happy to know that your very first lesson with a horse will be today right after supper and tasks are finished. Your new dad will be here to help me teach you everything you will need to know.”

“Oh, thank you! I think I’m really going to like living here on this ranch,” she proclaimed.

Since she was such a motivated girl, she learned quickly and said the rules would be easy for her to follow. Lisa asked Christi and Hanna to help the girl during the first few days at the high school, which was new to her. After her first two weeks on the ranch she had settled in very well and was able to help the next girls, who were assigned to the family.

The rest of Jose and Lisa’s girls are unusual, because the older one was 15 and her younger sisters are twins, who were 14 years old. Those three were all assigned at the same time in order to keep the family

181

together. The other fifteen-year-old, who was already there was not related to them, but she liked to be thought of as their foster sister. She enthusiastically helped them to learn how to do their tasks, to memorize the rules, and how to care for and ride horses.

Fiona was grateful she was able to be home every Wednesday to get caught up on her homemaking. After supper and clean-up, Matt and Fiona were helping Johnny, who was in second grade and Patrick, who was in first grade, with verses they were memorizing for the church school. Faith and Grace, who were in kindergarten, were listening and knew they needed to be quiet so their brothers could think better.

Johnny mentioned, “This week I need to review one that we learned with the song. But I need to do it without singing, and then I will know it both ways. Please see if I get it right. Psalm 8:1, O LORD our Lord, how excellent your name is in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens, Psalm 8:1.”

“Good job, Johnny,” stated Matt, “you got it right and used good expression, too. I like listening to you guys say or sing your memory verses.”

Patrick was next, “I get to sing my verse. It’s Acts 16:31, Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved… We don’t say the reference at the end of singing.”

“You did a good job too, Patrick,” Fiona declared. “I get to hear the whole class singing memory verses. It makes them much easier to remember. I heard Faith and Grace singing in their kindergarten classes and even though they didn’t call it memorizing they all knew the words to ‘Give Thanks to the LORD’ and sang it well. It goes with Psalm 118:1, Give thanks to the LORD for he is good. His mercy endures forever. Lets sing it together now as a family.”

After they sang it Matt remarked, “We sound good singing together. And now it’s my turn to say a memory verse. I like Psalm 119:105, Your word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path, Psalm 119:105. Plus Deuteronomy 31:6, Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them. For the LORD your God, goes with you. He will not fail you, nor forsake you, Deuteronomy 31:6. I like the way both verses go with the song ‘Thy Word.’ So let’s sing that song together now.”

When they finished singing, Fiona who had been checking Matt in her Bible encouraged, “Good job on your verses, Honey. For my turn, I like Psalm 89:11,12a, which is about creation. The heavens are yours; the earth also is yours. As for the world and the fullness of it, you have founded them. You created the north and the south, Psalm 89:11,12a.”

“You did a good job too, Dear,” Matt stressed. “It’s good for us to do scripture memory together, and next year, when the two of you are in first grade, Grace and Faith, you will have some memory verses to practice with us too.”

“Goody, goody,” said Faith, “we’ll be older and bigger by then.”

Grace continued, “Yeah. I like kindergarten and I know first and second grade will be good too.”

“We both know that, because we hear what Johnny and Patrick say about them,” Faith went on.

“Yes,” Fiona inserted, “and I’m so happy I get to volunteer in each classroom for one day each week, because it helps me keep up with what all of you are learning, and I get to know your teachers this way too.”

Johnny smiled and added, “I especially like my teacher this year because she’s our special friend, Mindy. At school I call her Mrs. Clay. She is a very good teacher!”

Matt reasoned, “I’m sure all the teachers in the church school are very good, and I agree that it’s very nice that your could be in her class this year, because you knew her from all the years she helped our family in the afternoons after school and for part of one day on the weekends.

“I like her too,” agreed Patrick, “I hope I’ll get to be in her class next year when I’m in second grade!”

Hope and Rose were still email pals with a girl who moved often but had accepted Jesus through their ministry while she was in their class in Pine City for a little while. Sometimes Hope would go visit Rose at her house on the ranch and the two of them would share how the girl was doing.

One time Hope mentioned, I got an email from our email pal yesterday. She had good news, saying that her dad had gotten a new job, and they wouldn’t have to move as often.”

“I got one like that too,” replied Rose, “and I’m so glad for her. She always thanks me for introducing her to Jesus who is still her best friend.”

“Ditto,” said Hope. “I think we probably get identical emails unless one of us asked a specific question and then she answers it.”

Rose nodded. “I agree. She wrote that Jesus is helping her to make one friend in the new class.”

“Yes,” and Hope went on, “and she wants us to pray that she will be able to tell her about Jesus and then invite her to accept him.”

 

182

So the two of them prayed for her right then and agreed to send an email right back with all they could remember from their third grade class about being missionaries in the public school. Then they encouraged her to buy a New Testament like they had with the diagram of the bridge in the back so she would be ready to use it with her new friend when she felt her friend would be ready to listen.

In about two weeks, Rose and Hope got identical emails causing them to rejoice. Their pal’s friend had accepted Jesus, and when she learned enough, they could be a team at school.

Hope told her mom and she gave Hope the PDF files for the first five Little Booklets for new believers so she could send them to her pal to give to her friend.

June often came from the equine therapy ranch to visit her parents or Candy or Sara or her friend Mindy. June and her roommate on the therapy ranch enjoyed having the used car they had bought to share. Each one paid for half the price of the car, license plates, insurance, fuel and maintenance. They used the car mostly for grocery shopping, which included their ministry time, and also for visiting their families and friends on Mercy Valley Ranch. It was nice to not have to depend on Sam or bother him to bring them to the ranch.

This evening Ben was outside cleaning and arranging his tools for his next day at work. As June visited with Mindy she explained, “The parts of my job at the equine therapy center that I like the best are getting to be outside and to work with horses along with working with the children who need therapy on a horse.”

“I remember that you always liked being outside doing anything with the horses,” Mindy commented.

June nodded and continued, “I really like getting the horses ready to be ridden and taking care of them afterwards. Now I even get paid for it. I’m happy when I can see that the children are improving as they come for more sessions. My roommate and I walk on either side of the child to steady the child or help them to not be afraid. They usually lose their fear by the end of their first ride. We get to sing scripture songs to them and they learn them and sing with us. Sometimes we get to witness to their parents.

“It sounds like the perfect job for you, June,” stated Mindy. “I'm happy for you.”

“Thank you, Mindy,” responded June. “Now please tell me about the parts of teaching you enjoy.”

“My pleasure,” said Mindy, “the best part is that I get to teach the second graders how to read. They’re motivated learners and I think they enjoy it as much as I do. Not one of them feels like a failure like so many in the public schools do, because of beginning too early, before their eyes were ready to focus on little things like letters and words. If one or more of them is not ready or has trouble they just get extra help from the parent volunteer, and nobody fails but moves on with their class each year. They get enough extra help that they’re able to catch up and feel good about themselves.”

June remarked, “I understand what you mean, because I saw it happen to some of the kids in my same grade at school.”

“Same here,” and Mindy concluded, “so I'm very glad I chose teaching second graders to be my life’s career, especially in the church school. I enjoy working with children, especially these who are so eager to learn.”

June declared, “I’m glad to hear that you like it so well. I know you worked extra hard all those years getting ready to do it. It’s time for me to go now, but it’s always fun to visit with you.”

“I agree. Thanks for coming here, June.” replied Mindy.

Riley and Amelia had asked both sets of grandparents to come for a pot luck lunch on Sunday. They had planned to have each family provide one main dish and a vegetable dish. Two families would also bring a salad and Amelia would provide a dessert that would be easy to serve to Mark and Luke who are four years old now, and for the twins, Phoebe and Lydia, who are three years old.

The grandparents and Tanya came early enough so there was time for each couple to play with the children for a while before switching places to help Amelia set the food out on the buffet by the dining room table. Everything smelled so good that the children lost interest in playing and got in the way trying to see what there was to eat. So the grandfathers picked up Mark and Luke and Riley held the twin girls up so they could see also.

Then it was time to eat. They were seated so that each of the grandfathers had Mark or Luke beside them on a booster chair. Connie was seated next to Lydia’s booster chair, and Glenda was beside Phoebe’s booster chair. They were all happy to be able to assist a grandchild, and the parents got a rest today. Tanya enjoyed the meal and watching the children.

After the delicious meal the men took the children outside to play on the swings while the ladies made short work of putting away leftovers after telling Amelia to keep them. Then all the dishes were ready to take home empty and clean or were clean and ready to stay in this house. By then it was nap time for the

 

183

children, so the adults had time to visit and share verses from their independent Bible study times. Tanya used this time to finish her homework.

Connie stated, “Amelia I’m so glad you and Riley showed us your notebooks several months ago. Ernest and I have brought ours today and we're ready to share some verses from First Corinthians, like we planned when you invited us for this meal. Since I get to be first, I choose to read verse three and then verse 2. This is such a nice greeting that I wish it for all of you. Grace and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ to the church…, who are those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, and are called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord… “

“I like the way you changed the order of the verses, Dear,” then Ernest explained, “I chose parts of verses 4,5,9,10 to make a personalized prayer. Thank you God for your grace given to us by Jesus to enrich us in speech and knowledge. … And that you are faithful, who called us into the fellowship of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Thank you that by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, we in this family and in the church, all speak the same thing, so there are no divisions among us, but that we are perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.”

“Those verses make an excellent prayer!” Patrick exclaimed. “I’m very thankful for unity. Glenda and I brought our notebooks also and I will read 1 Corinthians 1:24,25, To us who are called, … Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. This helps us know how much bigger God is than men are.”

“Those are good verses to remember,” Glenda agreed, “I’ll read verses 30,31, made personal also. But we are in Jesus, who by God is made wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption, … so that each person would only glory in the Lord.”

“Yes, and those verses help us know how great Jesus is,” and then Amelia continued, “I’ll read some verses from chapter two including 5,7,9. I chose these because I like the way they tell about God’s wisdom. Your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. … We speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world to our glory … it is written, Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love him.” Many people stop there, but Riley will read what comes next.”

“Right,” agreed Riley, “verses 10 and12 tell how the Holy Spirit makes things known. But God has revealed them to us by his Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. … We have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is of God, so that we might know the things that are freely given to us by God. Thank you all for what you shared. This made a good Bible study for us this afternoon.”

By the first week of August the upstairs of the fourth house was finished and ready for Brad and Irene to move in, get settled, and have their four girls assigned.

Brad and Irene had planned well and had been buying all the linens they would need for the kitchen, bathrooms, and bedrooms. Irene’s good memory enabled them to buy enough of each item along with some extras to put in the storage areas in case something was needed before a load of laundry could be done.

Irene also remembered how many cooking pans and utensils would be needed, plus she and Brad picked out a pretty pattern for the unbreakable dishes they would be using daily. As they were looking for silverware to use on the table, they had an interesting conversation.

Irene mentioned, “I was just thinking about some stories I used to read about old-fashioned families who were very rich. They had maids for various jobs and a housekeeper to oversee and make sure everything got done. One of the jobs was to polish the silverware at least once a week because it was made from real silver and would get tarnished.”

Brad chuckled, “I’m sure glad we can buy the stainless steel kind and not have to worry about something like was in those stories!”

“Same here,” agreed Irene. “I’m sure none of the girls would enjoy the task of polishing real silverware. But we can still call it by that name because tableware sounds strange.”

“My feelings exactly, Honey,” stated Brad. “How do you like the looks and feel of this set?”

Irene responded, “I like it a lot, Dear. It’s design is very pretty and the weight of each item is just right. Could we buy two sets just in case some of the pieces gets lost over time.”

“By all means,” he concurred, “I know how hard it can be to find another set of something that matches what I bought a year or more ago.”

As they bought the items, they washed them and packed them in clean boxes to take with them when they were ready to move. They decided to wait and buy the computers and sewing machine after moving into the ranch house. The same thing went for extra groceries, plus they would wait until near the end of

184

the second week on the ranch to buy more food items for them and the first girl, and just get what was needed for each week.

The week before they moved they found a good used van they could afford to buy with the money they had saved. They also made arrangements with their employers to continue working for them, but to do it from home on the computers they already had. They would be able to have as many hours of work for each of them to edit for the company and still have at least one of them available for the girls when they were home from school.

Brad and Irene had been going to the ranch a couple times every week to ride horses with Irene’s family or others who had invited them to come ride with them. Therefore they had both remained in good physical condition for riding. When they had gotten moved and a little bit settled they rode as often as they could make time.

The day after they moved in, they got to pray with Oscar and Vera to dedicate themselves and the new house to serving God on Mercy Valley Ranch. After prayers like others in this story Brad declared, “Now we get to start living the dream we’ve been preparing for all these months!”

Irene echoed, “I'm so pleased and thankful to God for making all the details work out for us to be able to do this!”

“So are we!” Oscar exclaimed. “And we are glad you both are still enthusiastic and prepared to keep going.”

Vera added, “Definitely, because it’s great to have energetic young people who believe in this mission of mercy and are willing to commit themselves to carry it on.”

“Yes, it’s perfect,” stated Oscar. “We now have four young couples with one spouse who has lived here on this ranch, and who therefore already knows a lot about what needs to be done for the girls. Their husbands either grew up on the farm or have worked hard like you did, Brad, to get prepared to be a good husband and foster father.”

Irene went on, “I agree, and it’s wonderful that we have my parents, Sara and Denji, plus Sara’s parents and Denji’s parents, so we can go to or call with questions as they happen.”

“Indeed,” Brad concurred, “We are very blessed.”

Karen went upstairs to visit in a couple days and said, “I will need one parent to volunteer on a rotating basis to help me during Bible Study Group times.”

“I remember how that works,” stated Irene. “I can explain it to Brad and we can decide how we desire to work it out.”

Their girls were assigned one at a time at the end of their first two weeks on the ranch. Each one got settled for two weeks and then helped the next girl who came. They promised the last girl that she could help the first girl who came after one of the fifteen-year-old girls turned nineteen and left the ranch.

But she exclaimed, “I don’t want to think that far ahead! I just would like to enjoy every day of living on this amazing, beautiful, and delightful ranch!”

Soon after Irene’s four girls were assigned, Karen and her two new girls, Lisa and her four girls and Sherry and her four new girls met with them on the lawn of the new big house where the girls could get acquainted better. It was such a fun time for them that they decided to continue it once or twice a week, so they could play games, or talk about books they had read from the library in the big house, or brainstorm ideas for making tasks fun, or how to share one bathroom with four girls.

Greg read the next part of “Choose Your Examples” to the boys while they were eating supper to add variety one evening.

William did a Bible study lesson on the farm about Jesus being like the Father, or as Jesus had said something like, “to see him is to see the Father.” William started with some verses in John and added others. He handed a slip of paper to some of the boys with a scripture reference on it.

He instructed, “I’ll give you a few minutes to find, practice and think about the verse or verses. Be ready to read and make a comment if you have one, but also be able to listen to each other.”

Sam was first, “John 8:19b says, if you had known me, you would have known my Father also. Jesus said this to the Pharisees who were already against him even this early in John’s story.”

A boy said, “Right, and the next one was also said to the Jews who were going to stone him because he said in John 10:30, I and my Father are one.”

“Yes,” and Evan remarked, “when Jesus told the Jews plainly who he was, they either wouldn’t believe him or tried to kill him because of what he said. This first verse I’ll read is like the one Sam read, but this time it was said to his disciples. John 14:7,9b,11a, If you had known me, you would have known my Father also, and from now on you know him and have seen him. … he that has seen me has seen the Father. … Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me…”

185

“I agree,” another boy said, “then in John 17:11b, Jesus prayed asking the Father, that they may be one as we are. He was praying for the disciples.”

Carlos nodded, “A small part of 2 Corinthians 4:4 states, Christ is the image of God. Paul wrote this about people who had been blinded by the god of this world and wouldn’t see who Jesus was.”

“How sad,” commented a different boy who then read, “Colossians 1:15a says, Jesus is the image of the invisible God. This was written to people who believed in Jesus.”

“I like that verse,” then Gary continued, “it took me three times of reading these next verses to find how they fit with the others. It was hidden part way through. Hebrews 1:2-3a says, God has in these last days spoken to us by his Son, whom he has appointed to be heir of all things, and by whom also he made the worlds. His son is the brightness of his glory and is the express image of his person, and upholds all things by the word of his power… I think it is this phrase, who is the express image of his person, and if so, it means Jesus is the image of God. So that makes him equal to God.”

William responded, “I think the same thing, Gary. All you boys did a very good job today. These verses all help to prove that Jesus is who he said he was.”

The girls on the ranch had a similar lesson with Karen.

Greg finished reading at almost the same time as the boys finished eating their supper. They he ate his supper while they completed writing comments about the lesson in their notebooks and shared what they had written.

“This lesson goes well with the one about Jesus being the Son of God,” stated Daniel.

Levi agreed, “Right, and I just don’t know how anyone could read the Bible with an open mind and not agree with those lessons.”

“So,” Kevin decided, “I think I’ll put some of these verses with some from the other lesson and see if they would make a sensible presentation to some person who doesn’t believe that Jesus is who he says he is.”

“Good plan,” said Max. and I hope you will share it with us.”

“Yes, please do, Kevin,” Cory encouraged.

Ernest and Connie Clay and Tanya were visiting Ben and Mindy one evening on the ranch, after they had all enjoyed a long horseback ride. Ernest remarked “I would imagine that you, Ben, and your two crews are busily working on the last two-story house to be built on the ranch.”

“I can hardly believe it, but yes we are!” Ben exclaimed. “The time has gone so fast the last four years and now the end is in sight already.”

Mindy inserted, “This has become a way of life for us, and it will seem strange when the last one is finished.”

“Yes it will, and as I remember,” stated Connie, “each year you’ve finished whichever house you were doing, a little sooner than the last one.”

“Right,” agreed Ben, “we got so we worked faster together and since each house is the same as the one before we knew just what to do without a lot of planning.”

Ernest continued, “Besides that, it has helped to not have to wait for subcontractors to do the work that some of the men on your crews became licensed to do for you.”

“Exactly,” Ben went on, “even our suppliers have improved about getting good quality materials in the right amounts, so we don’t have to send back inferior ones or wait for some more if we run out.”

Mindy stated, “I have enjoyed watching the progress. It seems to go so fast at the beginning, when they’re putting down the subfloor, then framing the outside walls and raising them up from the floor and connecting them together.”

“Precisely,” Ben concurred. “After the sheeting is put on the outside, it hides the work going on inside. But at least you get to go with me on the weekends and I can explain what has been done.”

Mindy nodded and smiled, and Connie declared, “The part I like best is the tour you give us after you and your crew have finished the house and have completely cleaned up the inside of the house even much better than some cleaning company might do.”

“I use everything you taught me at home, Mom, explained Ben. “The families appreciate the cleanliness so much that it gives us great pleasure to do a good job on that part also,”

Tanya remarked, “She’s teaching me the same things and I’m grateful because I came from a house that was always dirty and messy. Thank you, Mom.”

“You’re welcome, Tanya, and I’m glad you are such a willing helper. I enjoy working with you,” Connie responded.

 

186

Some single women in the singles exercise group talked of the possibility of staying single but adopting a baby. After the meeting Beth and the leaders, Ruth and Pam, stayed and talked about the ramifications of adopting and about other possibilities, like being a single foster parent.

In conclusion Ruth stated, “Even though there might be some good outcomes for those possibilities, I would not consider it for myself. I have had, and still have plenty of contact with children when I went to the farm and now when I still go to the ranch and when I visit my nephews at my brother's home. I especially like being able to go home to the peace and quiet of my own condominium.”

Pam declared, “Neither adopting nor having foster children would work for me, since I would rather stay in my apartment where the landlords want only a quiet single woman.”

Beth contemplated, “Well, I might consider caring for one teen girl. I certainly wouldn’t want a baby because then I’d have to put it in daycare. Since I have a two bedroom condominium, I would have room for two teens, but that seems like too many. Even just one would have to go to an After School Place, like maybe Glenda’s or Betty’s, until I could go pick her up. I’ll have to pray about it and think about any possible problems doing it could cause.”

“You’re right,” agreed Ruth. “If God wants you to do it, he will work out all the details and give you the desire to do it.”

“After pondering for a moment Beth admitted, “I just realized I have no idea how to raise a teenage girl. I’m much more used to working with primary age children at the school. Besides, I think those girls would do better with a dad and a mom, preferably ones who have already successfully raised a teenage girl.”

Pam applauded, “Very well said, Beth.”

Oralie read the next part of “Choose Your Examples.” First she explained, “The next several lessons in this short book are from happenings near the end of Jesus, life on the earth.”

Karen and William used verses in John 13, to teach about Jesus as a servant. Karen instructed, “Today we will go on with the study of the Gospel of John. Chapters 13-17 took place just before Jesus’ trial, crucifixion, and resurrection. Please find John chapter 13 and we’ll look at some things that happened at The Last Supper. Listen to John 13:4,5, At the supper, Jesus rose, laid aside his garments, girded himself with a towel, poured water into a basin and washed the disciples feet, wiping them with the towel…

She had the girls read verses 6-13 silently so they’d know what came between these two sets of verses and how Peter had responded to Jesus.

Candy mentioned, “Peter seemed to say a lot of things that either got him into trouble or weren’t the right thing, just like I do at times.”

“Right, Candy,” Karen agreed, “and it’s just like the rest of us also do at times. Now let’s read John 13:14-16 together out loud. Since I, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. Truly I say to you, the servant is not greater than his lord, neither is he who is sent greater than he who sent him.”

One of the girls wondered, “Do we really need to wash each other’s feet?”

Karen answered, “I think this custom was something that needed to be done in that culture, so it’s hard for us to relate it to ourselves. In Jesus time it was the lowliest of servants who had this job, because the feet wearing sandals on dirty streets or paths got very dirty and needed to be washed often. Nobody had washed any feet before this Last Supper, so Jesus did it himself to teach the disciples they needed to be willing to serve each other by doing even the dirtiest and lowest of jobs.”

“Wow!” Sara exclaimed, “I can understand this so much better now. Thank you for explaining it for us.”

“You're very welcome,” replied Karen. “Now John 13:17 should also make more sense to you. If you know these things and do them, you are happy.

Kim reasoned, “Yes it does, because we can know when we do the hardest jobs for someone because Jesus has said to do it, it can give us joy.”

“Exactly,” Karen responded, “and now we’ll skip to John 13:34,35, where Jesus said, “A new commandment I give you. Love one another as I have loved you. … By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.

June mentioned, “Yes, I think if we can show the world that we love our fellow believers they might want to know the same master.”

“Precisely,” stated Karen, “and now listen to these two verses from other books in the New Testament and notice how different Jesus was from other teachers of his time. Luke 22:27, For which one is greater, he who sits at a meal or he who serves? It is he who sits at the meal, but I (Jesus) am among you as he who serves. And

Philippians 2:5,7, Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, … He made himself have no reputation, and took on the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of man.

187

One of the other girls mentioned, “Jesus was totally different, because he served all his life and gave his life to save us. The other teachers just wanted people to think how great they were.”

“Yes,” Karen agreed, “and that’s what this summary of Mark 10:43b-45 says, Whoever of you desires to be great or foremost among you, should be your minister … or your servant. For even the Son of man did not come to be ministered to, but to minister and to give his life a ransom for many. Let’s sing the song that goes with those verses. It’s called “Servant of All,” and its tune and words might help us remember this lesson.”

The girls nodded their agreement, sang the song, and thanked Karen as they left since the time was up for today.

At the end of this lesson, Oralie said, “That’s all for this one.”

Cory stated, “I’ll have to admit that it’s hard for me to want to be a servant, especially doing dirty jobs. Jesus was so gracious the way he washed their dirty feet. I’ll need to pray that he will help me.”

“Same here,” and then Daniel suggested, “I guess that doing those kinds of things for people would show them we love them.”

“I agree,” and Levi went on, “and I think loving like Jesus did is even harder than being a servant. His love went all the way to his death on the cross.”

Kevin observed, “Yes, these verses would all be good for me to read just before we take communion in our small group.”

“Perfect!” Max declared, “I’ll put a marker in this place of my notebook so I can find some of them the next time.”

The Labor Day RV ministry trip was planned enough months in advance to get reserved sites in the Capitol Reef National Park campground. This trip included Tomo, Ami, and their foster girl, Frank and Becky, and Vern and Lora. It’s a big enough campground that the three families spread out and covered most of it for ministry times. Most of the sites are roomy and there’s good shade at many of them also.

Since they all left early in the morning they got there in time to have a meeting the first evening and teach the people to sing using a hymnal and to present the Good News. Plus that evening there were lots of deer and wild turkeys in the campground.

The next day was spent in the park, seeing things they had missed other times. They drove back down to the trailhead for the Grand Wash and walked part way up to the narrows. The high point of that walk besides the beauty, was seeing and getting pictures of a mother big horn sheep and her young one. Those two had stayed in the area for a long time eating and they didn’t even seem afraid of the people watching them.

The travelers ate lunch in a shady spot there, and then drove on the Scenic Road to the trailhead for Capitol Gorge, which was where the historic pioneer road was. They hiked part way down it but it was pretty hot so they chose instead to load everyone into the two four-wheel drive vehicles and drive down the Pleasant Creek Road. It’s a scenic ride to another historic farm by Pleasant Creek. They returned to their campsites in time for supper and another ministry meeting. The same people returned, enjoyed singing and got their questions answered. Several people made the Lord their choice!”

The next day everyone loaded into the four-wheel drive vehicles and found the Fremont River Ford, crossed the river, which is low this time of year. They went up the southwest road into the Cathedral Valley area. The Bentonite Hills along the lower part of the road are very colorful and photogenic. It worked well for the passengers to take pictures out of the side windows. Sometimes the driver would stop and take pictures out of his side window.

Since this is a long drive it was best to go out through the Thousand Lake Mountain area, through Torrey and then to the campground. They ate late suppers and had not planned for another meeting that night or the next in order to see as much of the Cathedral Valley area as possible that day and the next.

So the next day they got up early and rode together again. They went through Cainville, took the Cainville Wash Road, which is the main Road in Cathedral Valley. Some of the scenery was like yesterday’s was, and it was an excellent idea to start at the bottom because the sunlight was perfect on the banded colors in the formations. They took pictures like they had the day before. About half way through they took a side trip to see the cathedrals called Temple of the Sun, Temple of the Moon, and a smaller place called Glass Mountain. They were all spectacular! Other formations along the road were also special. Everyone was overwhelmed and amazed at the variety of the Great Creator.

At the upper end of the valley there were more cathedral type formations. The road wasn’t too rough, but not good enough for normal vehicles. Tomo’s family was thrilled that they got to see it, even though they had no time again for a meeting. Tomo’s family stayed in the campground for two more nights and they got to have meetings then.

188

The Jones family and Warners left the next morning to go see the fall colors on the Scenic Byway to Fish Lake and Johnson Valley Reservoir where they ate lunch with a view of the lake and lots of aspen trees in green, yellow, orange and gold. They took lots of pictures.

Then they drove to highway 89 and up that colorful canyon to a little town called Junction, and drove on road 153 to a free forest service campground. They found two campsites side by side where they could have a combined meeting since the campground was small. They set up and left the trailers and drove to a pretty little waterfall by the roadside.

After taking pictures they went on to Puffer Lake. The aspen on the way there had colors that were overwhelmingly beautiful. During the meeting at the campsite that evening, all the people talked about how the colors were extra special this year. Becky exclaimed, “I feel so privileged to be able to drive and see God’s marvelous creation!”

Her comment opened the door for some of the people to argue that it was all because of evolution. To avoid a debate they handed out a pamphlet for them to read. Then they taught the people how to sing with the hymnal. They invited the people to come back the next evening after reading the pamphlet.

The next day was spent exploring some more of the beautiful areas near the campground. In the evening one of the families did not return for the meeting but the other two did. They had some questions about the pamphlet they had read and were given sensible answers from the Bible. One family prayed to accept Jesus and live for him. The other one wanted some more time, but promised to call Frank or Vern with more questions during the next week after everyone got home.

Greg was glad that it was his turn to read the next part of “Choose Your Examples,” because he enjoyed doing it and hearing his boys comments afterward.

William started his next lesson by having them all review John 13:34,35 by reading it aloud. Jesus said, “ A new commandment I give to you. Love one another as I have loved you. … By this all men shall know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.

Jose exclaimed, “This is a really good commandment, but I think it’s very hard to do!”

“Right,” agreed William, “but we can do it with Jesus help. Today I'd like us to use the center reference area and our concordances so we can find more verses about loving one another. Take some time right now to write the references you see that go with these two verses in your notebooks. Then look some of them up and keep bookmarks in the places that you wish to share. Write more references from those verses, and so forth. Then you can check the concordance for any that were missed.”

They all worked busily for about 20 minutes and then one boy read, “Leviticus 19:18b, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Another boy said, “Matthew 19:19b, repeats that commandment.”

Luis commented, “Mark 12:31 also repeats the Leviticus commandment, and so does the last part of Luke 10:27.”

A different boy stated, “Ditto for Romans 13:9.”

Hugo agreed, “And the same goes for the last part of Galatians 5:14, which repeats the same commandment. That commandment is repeated six times in the Bible so far as we have found today, so it must be very important!”

“I agree,” and then Pedro read, “John 15:12,13,17 says, This is my commandment, that you love one another, as if have loved you. Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. … I command that you love one another. And in John 10:11 Jesus said, I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep. His love for all the people in the world was greater than any other love I’ve ever heard about.”

“Absolutely!” and then Jose shared, “Those verses go with Romans 5:6b,7,8, At the right time, Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die, yet possibly for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commended his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. To me this says God’s love is just like Jesus also had.”

“Right, Jose,” and then Luis mentioned, “The concordance listed several that go with loving one another, like 1 John 3:11, For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.”

Another boy agreed and read 1 John 4:7, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God, and every one who loves is born of God and knows God.

“Yes,” continued Hugo, “and 1 John 4:21 says, This is the commandment we have from him, that since we love God, we should love our brother also.”

Then Pedro concluded with, “2 John 1:5b states, … we have this commandment from the beginning, that we love one another.”

189

William complimented them, “Good job, boys. This was a very good and important lesson. It would be a good idea for all of us to read these verses once in a while and then pray for Jesus to help us do what they say to do. Time’s up for today, so I’ll see you next time.”

Karen did a similar lesson with the girls on the ranch.

When Greg finished this part the stated, “I agree with William. This was a very important lesson.”

“Yes,” and then Daniel echoed, “and I agree with Jose that loving like Jesus did is very hard to do.”

“Without a doubt,” agreed Kevin, “And Jesus said it in more than one place so it’s very important.”

Levi added, “There were many other verses telling us to love one another, and even that is hard for me to do.”

“Same here,” admitted Max. “so I’m glad William reminded us that we can do it with Jesus to help us.”

“Absolutely!” Cory exclaimed. “So that’s why I need to do what he suggested, and pray asking for Jesus’ help, after reading these verses over once in a while.”

Greg agreed and added, “I found a cross reference for Matthew 19:19b in Matthew 22:36-39. A lawyer asked Jesus, What is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all you heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. It was a good reminder for me to love God with even more fervor than we do ourselves or our neighbor.”

Karen's former coworker finished the book she had started writing a few years ago, and she drove from the city to Mercy Valley Ranch to see Karen, after calling to find out a good time. She visited for a time and then took a gift bag out of her big purse and handed it to Karen. It was a printed copy of her finished book.

Karen exclaimed, “This is beautiful! The cover is so well done and the binding is very good.” She opened it and looked inside. “Oh, how nice! I like the note you wrote to me. I’ll treasure this book. I can hardly wait until I get to read it. The font you chose is easy to read, and the printer did a good job. Thank you so much!”

“You’re very welcome!” her coworker responded, “and thank you for all your kind words. I hope you’ll enjoy reading the story. It did take me a long time to write it because I had to do a lot of research. But I learned so much in the process.”

“I'm sure you did. How’s you job going?” Karen asked and then added, “I assume you are still working at Subs are Great.”

She answered, “Definitely, and it’s still a good place to work. How do you like you job here on the ranch?”

“I like it a lot,” Karen responded, “we just recently moved into this newly built house on the hillside, and my job has changed. I was teaching girls about the Bible, plus doing flower and vegetable gardening. Now I’m only teaching since there are so many more girls on the ranch now.”

She inquired, “Who is going to do the gardening now?”

Karen replied, “Lisa, one of my older foster girls recently graduated from the ranch, got married, and has taken over my gardening job. She and her husband moved into my former house and are also raising four foster girls here on the ranch. The other girl, Ellie, is now on the farm where she and her husband are both working as employees of the farm and are raising four foster boys. I’ll have to admit that I’m very pleased with both of them!”

Her coworker exclaimed, “What good news! I’m glad for you. It’s like you ministry will be multiplied through them.”

Next they prayed together about the coworkers problems in her situation with an unbelieving husband. Then they visited for a while longer and Karen thanked her again for the book as she was leaving.

The next time Karen called her former coworker she had finished reading the novel. She complimented the lady on the good job she had done and encouraged her to keep writing novels.

Oralie called to the boys, “Come listen as I read the next part of ‘Choose Your Examples.’ It’s a good one.”

Karen began a Bible Study with the girls on the ranch by reading John 14:6 as they followed along. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to the Father except by me.”

Liz commented, “I remember you saying that verse when we were talking about some of the names of Jesus in John 1 where it says he’s the Word.”

“Right,” replied Karen, “in this case the words aren't used as his name, so they aren't capitalized. Jesus said those words to answer the question Thomas asked in verse 5. Before that Jesus had been encouraging them. Let’s read John 14:1-3, together. Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in

190

God, believe also in me. In my Fathers’ house are many rooms. It it were not so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you, and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself, so that you also may be where I am.”

Stella remembered, “The disciples were always sad when Jesus told them he would have to suffer and die, so those words should have reassured them.”

“Yes,” agreed Karen, “but many of the things he said just caused them to have more questions, like the one Thomas asked. Now read verses 7 and 8 to yourselves and find the next request.

Lisa stated, “Philip asked Jesus to show them the Father even though Jesus had just said they had seen the Father just by seeing Jesus.”

“Right,” Karen continued, “so Jesus patiently explained it again to him and told him to believe. Next, in verses 12-14 Jesus gave them a very precious promise. Who’d like to read it?

Christi raised her hand and read, “ Truly I say to you, he who believes on me shall also do the works that I do, … and whatever you shall ask in my name, I will do it so the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in my name, I will do it.”

Nan mentioned, “We got to see that happen when Sara and Candy prayed for Liz and Jesus healed her hand and wrist!”

“Definitely,” Karen concurred, “and it was so wonderful. Then in verses 16 and 17a, Jesus gave them another promise. Who’d like to read it?”

Emma volunteered, “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, so he may abide with you forever. He is the Spirit of truth.”

Hanna observed, “That verse has two other names for the Holy Spirit, and we have him too.”

“Indeed,” Karen nodded, “and that’s why this is such a precious promise for us. There’s more about this promise in verse 26.”

Ellie volunteered to read it. “ The Comforter, who is the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, shall teach you all things, and remind you of whatever I have said to you. Wow, this verse adds a lot to the promise!”

“Yes it does,” agreed Karen, “and the other important thing in this chapter is in verses 15 and 21. Let’s read them together in closing. If you love me, keep my commandments. He who has my commandments and keeps them is the one who loves me. He who loves me shall be loved by my Father, and I will love him, and will show myself to him.”

“The end of this section,” finished Oralie.

Kevin mentioned, “Jesus said a lot in chapter 14, most of this chapter is in red letters.”

“He sure did,” agreed Levi, “and he made a lot of promises in this chapter also.”

Cory added, “Yes, and I especially like the promise in verse 27, Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you, not as the world gives … Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid.”

“I like it also,” stated Daniel. “I also like the verses in this chapter about the Holy Spirit.”

Max declared, “Same here, and I really like his name, Comforter.”

Later that evening Cory was looking at that lesson in the book and he wrote in his notebook some things about what the girls had said. And he thought, “I'm beginning to know a few things about them.”

On the way home from a bike ride, Tony and Maria stopped at the home of their friends Matt and Fiona and their four children, who were all out in their backyard. It faces the park where Tony and Maria had been riding. Matt opened the gate and invited them inside. So they parked their bikes by the fence and went in.

“It’s a beautiful evening for a bike ride and also a time for the children to play outside,” commented Tony.

Matt responded, “Yes, we are all enjoying this time outside now that the weather is cooling down sooner in the evenings.”

“Yes, I like the autumn,” stated Fiona. “Some of the trees in the park have vibrant colors.”

Tony inserted, “Exactly, it’s really nice that both our families live on this same street with good views of the mountains and this park and we get to see all the colors of the changing seasons!”

Maria agreed, “Indeed, they are so beautiful, and they remind me of the pretty dresses some of the ladies wore to the last square dance. It’s so nice to be able to see you two at the square dances again, since your twins have been old enough for your parents to take care of them and the boys at your house while you are gone.”

“We enjoy seeing the two of you there also,” stated Fiona. “It works well for one set or the other of grandparents to come to our house and enjoy their grandchildren for a while before they put them to bed for the night.”

191

Matt added, “For sure, and I’m glad they enjoy doing it for us. We enjoy square dancing and the time to visit with friends, like you and others while we are there. It’s good exercise for the body and mind.”

They continued with other topics and played with the children for a while until Tony and Maria went to their home.

Jason and his family got to visit with Sam the next time they were all at the ranch at the same time on a weekend to visit William and Anna and their new foster girls. They had planned their visit carefully and got there in time for a horseback ride. Sam quickly prepared Roanie, the bay roan, for the ride. Then he went to entertain Barnabas and Danny while Jason and Dorcas got Arrow and Stripe ready. They are two bay horses with white marks on their faces to match their names. The two little boys had grown enough to be able to ride in front of a parent instead of in backpacks on their backs. They always looked forward to a horseback ride.

William and Anna had chosen to ride Cumin and Ginger, the beautiful buckskin horses. And their girls were riding Lollipop and Flame, two reddish brown horses, and Prince and the new Princess. Both of those horses are black.

Today they had enough time to ride up to the end of the ranch and go through the gate onto public land, where they chose the trail that went up the right side this time. It had a nice level smooth part where the whole group could canter their horses. On the way back they walked their horses all the way to make sure they were cooled off enough when they reached the tack room.

After grooming the horses they returned them to the pasture with thanks for a nice ride. Then they went and cleaned up the tack and visited some more before putting it in its place. They had all enjoyed their time together.

Greg read the next part of “Choose your Example” to the boys in his family on the farm.

William began a Bible study on John 15, “As we learned earlier, John 13 -17 happened just before Jesus trial, crucifixion, and resurrection. Let’s start by reading John 15:1-8 aloud together. I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes clean so it can bear more fruit. You are now clean through the word I have spoken to you. Abide in me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. The one who abides in me and I in him will bring forth much fruit, for without me you can do nothing. If a man does not abide in me, he is thrown away like a branch and is withered. Men gather them and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. My Father is glorified if you bear much fruit, proving to be my disciples.

“You boys remember working in the vineyard here on the farm and have seen the branches pruned or some of them cut off, so this part is very clear to you. And all of you realize that the only way a branch can stay alive and bear fruit is if it stays on the vine. Jesus disciples had also seen the same process, so this was a very clear illustration for them also.”

All the boys nodded in understanding.

William continued, “John 15:9-11 explain how to abide in Jesus. who’d like to read it?”

One of the boys volunteered, “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Continue in my love. If you keep my commandments, you shall abide in my love, even as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have spoken these things to you so my joy might remain in you and your joy might be full.”

Sam commented, “Those verses make it clear how to abide in Jesus, and I like the promise of joy that goes with it.”

“So do I,” William agreed, “read verses 12-14 aloud with me to see if it’s easy to do. This is my commandment, that you love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends, if you do whatever I command you.”

“No way is that easy!” another boy exclaimed, and the others nodded in agreement.

“I agree,” and William also nodded, “but we can do it with the help Jesus gives to us. Skip down to verses 18-20. Who’d like to read these to us?”

Carlos read them, “ If the world hates you, you know that it hated me before it hated you. If you belonged to the world it would love you as its own. It hates you because you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. Remember the word I said to you, the servant is not greater than his master. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they have obeyed my saying, they will obey yours also.”

Gary observed, “This isn’t easy for us either, but these verses are good to remember when others make fun of us or make our lives difficult because of what we believe and share with them.”

192

Again the boys and William nodded, and he said, “In verses 21-25, Jesus explained that the unbelief and hatred of the people fulfilled the prophecy ‘they hated me without a cause,’ as it says in parts of Psalms 38:19 and 69:4.”

Evan remarked, “I guess there have always been people who were persecuted by others for what they believed, like the Old Testament prophets, Jesus himself, and his followers in the New Testament. We can’t expect it to be any better today.”

“For sure,” William concurred, “and we can count it a privilege just like Jesus’ followers did. Chapter 15 closes with verses 26,27. Let’s read them together. But when the comforter comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, who is the Spirit of truth, who comes from the Father, he shall testify of me, and you also shall testify, because you have been with me from the beginning.”

When the boys left, they thanked William for another good lesson, and Karen also taught this lesson to the girls on the ranch.

When Greg finished reading he instructed, Look up and read Matthew 5:10-12. Then he had three boys read a different verse.

Max read verse 10, “ Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Then Levi read verse 11, “ You are blessed when men shall revile you and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.”

And last Kevin read verse 12, “ Rejoice and be very glad, for great is your reward in heaven. For they also persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

“Those verses go very well with the part of this lesson about being persecuted,” remarked Cory.

Daniel added, “Yes they do. This lesson contained some very hard things for us to do. But we already knew it wouldn’t be easy.”

Pam was out walking with Beth and Ruth in the park during their ministry team time. She saw a faded T shirt that was not easily read.

“Beth and Ruth,” Pam said quietly, “look at that T shirt over there and tell me what you think.”

Ruth looked and described it. “It has faded black letters on a gray shirt and says, ‘Find the Treasure!’ Then it has a faded black treasure chest with gold coins spilling out of it. Very interesting but hard to read.”

“I definitely do not like the color,” added Beth, “But it does grab a person’s attention and someone might want to ask how to find it.”

“You’re right,” said Pam. “I think it needs to be redesigned using a light colored T shirt and wider dark black letters and more color in the design. But I think it should say ‘Search and Find Real Treasure.’ The treasure chest could be brown with the lid open and God written in shiny gold letters.”

“But,” countered Ruth, “It would take weeks to get a design ready.”

“Does that mean you’ll help design it?” asked Pam. “You are good at making drawings, Ruth.”

Ruth nodded, even though she was thinking she didn’t really want to take the time away from writing lyrics for hymns.

Beth asked, “Would it have the same thing on the front and back?”

“I think they should be different,” stated Ruth. “The back could get people interested and they would have to go around and see the front so they’d know more and maybe start a conversation.”

Beth explained, “I’ve seen pictures of the T-shirts worn by Jews for Jesus people as they hand out pamphlets on the streets. The shirts proclaim who they are and prepare the viewers to take a pamphlet or to have a conversation. Many people cross over and walk on the other side of the street to avoid them, but some stop to take a pamphlet or talk.”

“I've seen those too,” and then Pam suggested, “maybe when we have a good design, we could have them mass produced on T-shirts of many sizes and sell them for only as much as they cost, to church members who want to attract attention as they do their ministry teams. They might also be good for former church school kids to wear during fourth grade on up through high school.”

Beth commented, “I agree, and it could work for adult ministry teams and people doing RV travel ministries. It sure would put the attention on them and they would need to be ready to tell the Good News and / or to have people make fun of them.”

“Right,” agreed Ruth, “and we would need to find a place to mass produce them. Plus, we’d have to learn how to run a non-profit business and advertise them for sale.”

“Correct, but Beth and I can work on that part.” Then Pam mentioned, “The idea goes with Matthew 13:44,… the kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. A man found it and hid it again. Then he went and sold all he had and bought the field.”

 

193

“And,” added Beth, “it also goes with Matthew 6:19-21, Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust corrupt, and thieves break through and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Ruth suggested, “I’ll see what I can come up with for a design to show you at our next ministry time. This idea does have the possibility of becoming a good ministry for our team.”

Oralie wondered, “How would it be to go sit in the back yard while I read the next part of ‘Choose Your Examples’ this evening?”

This idea brought cheers as the boys hurried to get their Bibles, pens, and notebooks and join her outside.

Karen and William did a Bible study in John 16. Karen began, “In the first six verses of John 16, Jesus continued to explain things to his disciples about his departure and how the world would treat them. In verse 7 he said, Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is expedient for you that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Comforter will not come to you, but if I depart, I will send him to you. Verse 8 tells what the Comforter would do. Who’d like to read it.”

One of the girls volunteered, “ And when he comes he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.

“Thank you,” then Karen went on, “That verse and 9-11 tell what he will do in the world. Then verses 13,14 tell what he will do in believers. Read them aloud with me. … When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth, for he shall not speak of himself, but whatever he shall hear is what he shall speak. And he will show you things to come. He shall glorify me, for he shall receive of mine, and shall show it to you.”

One girl commented, “I remember hearing in some of the other teaching times that the Holy Spirit helps us to understand God’s word as we read it.”

“Yes,” June continued, “and we’ve learned in these classes that he can also speak to us or to others, through somebody in a word of knowledge or wisdom.”

Candy remembered, “Plus, there’s a verse where Jesus says to not worry about what you’ll say in certain situations, because the Holy Spirit will give you the words to say.”

“Right,” another girl agreed, “Luke 12:12 is a verse like that.”

Karen commended them, “Good comments, girls. Next read verses 16-32, and notice how well Jesus understood his disciples.”

When they were finished, Karen instructed, “Now look at verse 33. I want you to listen to it as if Jesus is speaking to you personally. These things I have spoken to you, that in me you might have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation. But be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world.”

Sara prayed, “Thank you, Jesus for this precious promise. It’s especially good for us girls who are going to leave the ranch soon.”

“I agree, Lord, “Kim went on, “we know the world is not as nice as this wonderful ranch, so we will have hope in this promise.”

A different girl added, “Jesus, your peace and knowing that you’ve overcome the world will be a great comfort.”

“Definitely,” the other girl stated, “we thank you for all we’ve learned from our parents here on the ranch and from Karen.”

Karen concluded, “Plus I thank you, Jesus, that these girls are such good learners that they are prepared to go live for you in the world and tell others about the Good News also. We all pray in Jesus precious name.”

And they all said, “Amen.”

Oralie stated, “We’ve heard that those girls are definitely doing a good job ‘out in the world’ and Jesus is helping them. In fact you all know that the Kim in this lesson is now living right here on this farm as Gary’s wife and they are raising four foster boys.”

“Right,” agreed Cory, “and I heard that Sara and Candy are foster mothers on the ranch now also. Our Evan is Candy’s husband. June is working on an equine therapy ranch to help people with various problems, and so is our Sam. Both of them remained single.

Kevin went on, “All those people are doing a good job of living for Jesus, along with Jose who is now on the ranch, married to Lisa and already have four girls assigned to them. Hugo married Ellie from the ranch and they are living on the farm with four foster boys to raise.”

“Right,” and Daniel added, “Pedro and Luis will soon be chaplains, and I haven’t heard about the others from the ranch and the farm, but I would imagine they are doing well also,” he reasoned.

194

“I agree,” and then Levi commented, “I think this lesson was a very helpful one about the Holy Spirit.”

“Same here,” and Max added, I’m grateful we have the Holy Spirit living in us and we have all of Jesus’ promises.”