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

Chapter 15

1 Timothy 4:12, Do not let anyone despise your youth,

but be an example of the believers,

in word, in conversation, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.

Greg explained, “This next part of the short book is not a lesson, instead it’s song lyrics written for the book, ‘Choose Your Examples.’ I wish I knew the melody for it.

William had asked Ruth to write song lyrics to accompany the short book. The following is what she wrote, with the help of the accounts in the Bible and a rhyming dictionary.

The title is “Be Like Jesus Most of All.”

1. If you could be like some Bible person, who would you choose?

Who might be a good example for the life you will live?

If you would choose Jesus, there’s simply no way you could lose.

Virtues of other noble folks are also constructive.

(The Chorus is to be sung between verses.)

We should aim to be like Jesus, even when we’re alone.

Since Jesus is our Lord and God, he is the one we serve.

One way we can serve him, is to make his Good News known.

Jesus, you’re the perfect example. We praise you as you deserve.

2. We can also choose to be like Joseph, pure and used by God.

He could have had them punished, but he forgave his brothers.

Because he knew God’s plan, he didn’t even need a prod.

God used him to preserve life. He sold food to them and others.

3. We can choose to be like Ruth was, hardworking and humble.

She gave up her country’s gods to go worship the true One.

All the while she was gleaning, she did not even grumble.

Boaz wed Ruth. They were Jesus’ ancestors through their son.

4. Or be like Daniel, who steered clear of the king’s meat and wine. He and friends flourished with legumes and water on which to dine.

Another king signed a law forbidding prayers to anyone but him. Daniel still prayed to God and from the lions God delivered him.

5. We can be like Esther, who followed Mordecai's advice,

“You might have come to the kingdom for such a time as this.”

“Yes, if I perish, I perish. My life I might sacrifice.”

She went to the king without his call and showed no cowardice.

When Greg finished reading he stated, “This is the end of the song and of the book. I’d like you boys to find some songs about Jesus or of desiring to be like Jesus and scriptures to go with the chorus of this song.”

Kevin was first, “I found ‘More About Jesus,’ and it goes with 2 Peter 3:18, But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever. Amen. I especially like stanzas one, two, and three.’

Levi was next, “I like ‘May the Mind of Christ, My Savior.’ It goes well with Philippians 2:5, Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus… Stanzas one, four, five, and six are very good.’

Max declared, “The song, ‘I Want to Be Like Jesus,’ is a favorite of mine, and it goes with Ephesians 5:2a, Walk in love, as Christ also loved us… I like stanzas one and two.”

Cory smiled as he said, “I like ‘O to Be Like Thee!’ because it went well with my speech. It goes with 1 John 2:6, He who says he abides in Jesus ought to walk as he walked. Stanzas one and two are good.”

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Daniel finished, “I found ‘To Be Like Jesus,’ and its scripture is 1 Corinthians 11:1, Be followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. It’s just a short chorus, but the words are good.”

Oralie complimented them, “Those are excellent songs and scriptures. How would it be for us to practice them and use them in our ministry times with our guitars?”

The boys all cheered and Greg agreed, “I think it’s a brilliant idea my dear wife, and I’m glad you boys chose such good songs!”

Then Greg handed out three-ring notebooks with those two short books printed and installed. He explained, “Since you boys made such good comments and notes in your other notebooks, and started each lesson on a new page, you could cut the pages out of your notebooks and put them in place for each lesson in these three-ring notebooks.”

They all cheered, and that was the boys next project.

During the rest of the rides, while Liz talked to Roger, Stella talked to her parents as she rode between them. One cold winter day as they rode in the big heated building she explained, “I still want to be a pilot, but like I said some time ago, not a crop duster.”

“I’m glad you changed that part, since their job is very dangerous!” Vera said with relief.

“I agree,” added Oscar. “I suggest that we look on the web for some ideas after supper today.”

After much talking and research Stella decided, “I would rather be a pilot for missionaries and in this way I’d be able to help them spread the Good News.”

“I think this idea would be a very good way to serve the LORD, Stella,” encouraged Vera.

Another day while they were riding Oscar mentioned, “I know you had decided to remain single because of the dangers and all the traveling involved in this career. That might be the best thing to do. But if God has other plans, you might need to keep yourself open to the possibilities he may have in mind for you. I don’t say this because of what happened with Warren. I think you did just the right thing about him, because of the way he was acting.”

“Thank you, Dad,” Stella responded, “and I’ll add your suggestion to my prayers.”

Vera remarked, “Good, Stella, and I like the way you’ve studied using the computer, and have learned a lot already.”

“Yes I have,” agreed Stella, “and even though I didn’t know her very well, when my maternal grandmother passed away, she left me an inheritance, while I was a senior.”

Oscar exclaimed, “That was amazing! The timing was perfect for you to use part of it to buy what we all decided was the best flight simulator available at that time.”

“Certainly,” added Vera, “You spent a lot of your discretionary time learning all you could from it. And you still keep practicing, which is why I encouraged you to keep riding horses with the family for the exercise.”

“I’m glad you did, because I know you were right,” Stella stressed. “So before I turn nineteen, let’s do some more research and find what we consider to be the best missionary aviation organization.”

Oscar agreed, “By all means, and we can find out what it will take to get you living there to learn and get your pilot’s license.”

“Definitely,” Stella went on, “and I can use some more of my inheritance money to pay my expenses until I can start earning my own living. Plus I’m very thankful that you taught all of us girls how to drive a car and how to take care of one, and that we all got our driver’s licenses when we were seventeen.”

In the meantime, Roger kept coming to the ranch using Cory’s bicycle until he obtained his driver’s license. Then he borrowed the family car to come talk to Liz, as he saved money to buy a six-passenger van that he and Liz could use for their ministry on Mercy Valley Ranch and to drive to their jobs in the city.

Roger and Liz spent their time like the other couples had while they were getting better acquainted, using their checklists and talking about issues. They told each other more about their jobs in Pine City and decided they would be good ones to keep.

Nan and Emma watched them with interest when they were riding together behind the couple. They also got busy planning for their own high school graduation and going-away party, because both of them also desired to be foster mothers on the ranch even though there would not be any new houses for them. Maybe God would provide places for them, if it was his will. They prayed together about it often, and also with their dad and mom, Oscar and Vera.

At the beginning of one of their evening Bible study times Sherry suggested, since we all have a hymnal and a Bible let’s each look up a song and a verse to go with it that we could use in another family ministry time at one of the parks.”

 

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“Good idea,’ stated May, “and we could use part of them one time and the other part another time since there are eight of us and three or four songs each time would be a good number.”

Everybody nodded and started looking. When they were ready Lina shared first, “I like the melody and the message of ‘Pass It On.’ It might get people to listen and ask how they can have the love the song talks about. It goes well with John 3:16, which many people already know or have heard many times.

Tina agreed and added, “Another song that goes well with that verse is ‘I Love to Tell the Story.’ The first stanza might also get people to ask about Jesus’ love. 1 John 4:19 says, We love him, because he first loved us.

“Good idea,” and Hope went on, “I think the first stanza of ‘Blessed Assurance’ would also be a good one to start people asking questions. The lyrics tell of being an heir of salvation and being purchased by God. We could sing it twice, but skip the chorus because they might not like the idea of praising all the day long. We could use Titus 3:7, We are justified by Jesus’ grace and are made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Roy mentioned, “I’ve been looking for a song that would go with those three, and I found ‘Give me Jesus.’ A summary of the lyrics is that Jesus is worth more than the whole world because of his love and mercy and the redemption and everlasting life he gives. Mark 8:36 goes with it. It says, For what would it profit a man, if he would gain the whole world and lose his own soul?”

Sherry remarked, “Now that we have four songs that go together, we can find the next group.”

They nodded and kept looking. Pretty soon April wondered, “How would it be to use ‘Since Jesus Came Into My Heart.’ It would be good to use as my testimony, and then I could tell them why I agree with the song. A summary of the lyrics is that Jesus changed my life when he came into my heart and washed away all my sins. Now I’m happy as I go, knowing I will go to Heaven. We could use John 3:36a, He who believes on the Son, which means Jesus, has everlasting life…

“I like your idea,” stated May, “and we could follow your song and verse with “I’d Rather Have Jesus’ because it’s my testimony now. The lyrics say how he is much better than silver or gold or other riches, or praise, or any thing else in the world. The verse that goes well with it, is Philippians 3:7 as I paraphrase it. But what things I thought were gain for me, I considered to be loss, compared to Jesus.

Sherry continued, “For my testimony we could sing the chorus, ‘Something Beautiful,’ because it tells how Jesus took my messed up life and made it into something beautiful. Colossians 3:9b,10 go well with this chorus, because since we accepted Jesus we have, put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him who created us.”

“Those are three great choices and since the first two are long ones,” Joy said, “I make a motion that we just go with three for this group of songs and scriptures for this ministry time. Everyone in favor, raise your hand.”

They all agreed with Joy, and now they had two more good ideas for ministry times as a big family and they all liked doing it.

A new believers small group had just finished working their way through the book associated with this novel. It’s title is “Be Like a Tree Planted by the Water In the Sunshine.” So the facilitator asked them to share how it had worked for them.

One member remarked, “I like the way our group has done this, because it works really well to receive one booklet or short book at a time.”

“Yeah,” agreed the second one, “it’s not as overwhelming as it would be to get them all at once in one volume.”

The third one observed, “Right, this way we can make prints of the PDF file and put the pages into a three-ring notebook with extra pages for notes we make and comments others make, plus added scriptures we might look up.”

“For sure,” stated the fourth one, “we need the extra pages, because there isn’t room to write all those things on the pages that contain the text of the booklet or short book.”

The fifth one commented, “I liked the suggestion someone made about printing each page one-sided, and then putting the text page on the left with the blank side of the next page on the right in the notebook.”

“Yes, it was brilliant!” The sixth one exclaimed. “This way it puts the notes, comments and extra scriptures all on the page next to the text of the booklet or short book.”

The seventh one went on, “Plus, doing it this way keeps the pages all together in the notebook in the right order.”

The eighth one suggested, “Maybe they could make a printed copy of one volume that would be arranged that way.”

 

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“It would be nice.” acknowledged the ninth one. “I’ve heard that a printed copy is available from a print on demand company with a web site called thebookpatch.com, but I don’t think the authors arranged it that way, because the buyer would be paying double for the printing costs with all those extra blank pages!”

“I agree,” responded the tenth one, “but in a way that’s what I did by getting one-sided copies, except that it’s much cheaper to have them printed at home or church and put them into a three-ring notebook. This way we didn’t have to pay for the professional printing, binding, and cover, with the taxes, shipping and handling on top of that.”

The fourth one, who had spoken before inserted, “I like the sound of your ideas, but I noticed that the lessons are not all the same length and they wouldn’t fit on one page each.”

“Yeah,” agreed the third one, who had also spoken before, “so I just inserted a piece of three-ring notebook paper between the pages, and therefore I had plenty of room for all the extra notes I made. Besides it was much less expensive for me.”

“Indeed,” the eleventh one tacked on, “and I had fun making my own cover for my notebook. I found a magazine picture of a fruit tree growing by a river, so it went with the title of the book. Then I put it in one of those clear protective covers and taped it to the notebook.”

Number twelve expressed, “It sounds pretty, and most importantly, I like having all of them together in one place so I can go back and review, especially the scriptures often.”

“Absolutely,” inserted the thirteenth one. “I even put markers made from those sticky notes. I bought some in several different colors and have color coded scriptures to memorize, ideas to practice, and interesting comments.”

Number fourteen mentioned, “Neat idea. I’ve heard that the book gives permission to make PDF files of it and give it to people who need the information so they can learn and grow. But the files are not to be sold.”

“Besides that,” added the fifteenth one, “I’m glad the short books by William, Karen, and others, are included in the one volume we now have in our notebooks. They’ve given us many teachings about how to continue to learn and grow.”

“Plus,” the facilitator’s wife noted, “I like the Idea List, which is kind of like another little booklet with annotations to expand and explain how to do some of them.”

The facilitator applauded and complimented the members of the small group for their positive comments and the way every one of them had been faithful in coming to all the small group meetings.

Then he concluded, “And I’m praying that all of you will continue attending this small group, because there are many more things for us to learn about living for Jesus!”

On the farm, Gary had one of the groups of new foster boys on the farm read Psalm 1 together and make comments on it. Their comments come after the verses. 1. Blessed is the person who does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sit in the seat of the scornful.

“Don’t go with the wrong crowd like I used to when I belonged to that gang.”

“Yeah, that was before we came to the farm, and believed in Jesus.” 2. But his delight is in the law of he LORD, and in his law he meditates day and night.

“Verse two tells what to do instead of doing the bad things in verse one.” 3. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in season. Its leaf shall not wither, and whatever it does shall prosper.

“Exactly correct, because trees need lots of water to keep living. The water to them is like the Bible is to us.”

4. The ungodly are like the chaff which the wind drives away.

“We’ve seen how the wind blows away the husks and straw here on this farm.” 5. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

“For sure, because they’ve been blown away and are gone.” 6. For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

“The whole Psalm is like that lesson Karen taught using Proverbs and Tony Robbins’ idea about getting rid of bad habits.”

Another boy said, “I agree, and verse 3 goes with the song, ‘I Shall Not Be Moved.’ A summary of the lyrics for this song is that Jesus keeps us forever, he never forsakes, and we can depend on his strength as we defend his cause. He enfolds us in his love and upholds us by his grace. He is our friend and we live for his glory and we know his goodness. We stand by his truth and do his commands. And the song keeps repeating this sentence. Just like a tree that’s planted by the water, I shall not be moved.”

 

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Then Gary gave them cross-references to go well with the verses in Psalm 1, and the boys read them aloud.

Verse 1 with Proverbs 4:14,15, Do not enter into the path of the wicked, and do not go in the way of evil men. Avoid it, don’t go near it, turn away from it… Psalm 26:5, A man prayed, I have hated the congregation of evil doers, and I will not sit with the wicked. Verse 2 with Psalm 119:97, O how I love your law! It is my meditation all day. Verse 3 with Jeremiah 17:7,8, Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, and whose hope is the LORD. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, that spreads out its roots by the river, and shall not care when heat comes. But its leaf shall be green, and it will not be troubled in the year of drought, and will not cease from yielding fruit.

Verse 4, with Psalm 9:5a You, (LORD), have rebuked the heathen and you have destroyed the wicked... Verse 5 with Psalm 9:7,8, But the LORD shall endure forever. He has prepared his throne for judgment, and he shall judge the world in righteousness. He shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness. Verse 6 with 2Timothy 2:19, … the foundation of God stands sure, having this seal, The Lord knows those who are his. Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

While they were still living on the ranch before their nineteenth birthdays, Liz, Stella, Christi, and Hanna met together after their jobs in Pine City, and after Stella’s day of study and practice for being a pilot. They all liked to play table tennis in pairs for some exercise and then three of them talked about how their ‘courtships’ were going, and Stella listened.

One day Liz mentioned, “Roger is a very nice person and we have a lot of things in common. I was so pleased to hear his testimony and how Jesus had healed his legs when Cory and his parents prayed for him. We’ll be able to use our testimonies with the girls we are going to raise here. I think he might be getting ready to propose.”

“Super!” Christi exclaimed. “Just Sunday afternoon as our family was walking beside Mercy Stream we all found places to sit on rocks, and then as if it had been choreographed, Seth came and knelt in front of me…”

“And,” Hanna inserted, “Ned came and knelt in front of me… and they both proposed loudly enough for the rest of the family to hear.”

Christi went on, “Of course our ‘Yes!’ was also loud, and we are so happy!”

“Perfect!” Stella applauded. “And I’m very happy for all of you and I thank Jesus for answering our prayers.”

“Same here,” stated Liz, and it’s such fun to be able to share our news with our long time friends here on the ranch.”

Hanna declared, “Yes, it’s extra nice now that the party is over and we have permission to be courted and talk about it together.”

“And I’m glad I get to be in on your talking, even though I plan to stay single,” Stella shared.

“We are too, Stella, because we’ve all been friends for a long time here on this wonderful ranch,” concluded Christi.

The next day, Liz shared her happy news, and now that each couple was engaged, Christi and Liz went to ask Oscar and Vera to put them on the waiting list for the fifth new house. Vera was happy to tell them that they were at the top of the list.

Later they talked about wedding plans and about living in Pine City until houses would be available on the ranch and farm.

One day Stella asked, “What are your wedding plans, Liz?”

“Both of our birthdays are in two weeks,” answered Liz, “so we have decided on a small wedding in my family home here on the ranch. And I would like to have you be my maid of honor. Will you please?”

“Of course!” Stella declared. “It will be a pleasure for me.”

“Thank you,” and then Liz informed Stella, “We can both use the new dresses we just finished sewing for ourselves, and we’ll only ask our families and our closest friends and their families. Of course we’ll ask Pastor Don to officiate and his family can come also. All the guests can come dressed the way they usually do for church.”

“This sounds like a good plan,” stated Hanna. “Will you have a reception with gifts?”

Liz replied, “No gifts, but a small reception in the game room where we can have a small wedding cake and apple juice. Roger and I have all the things we’ve been buying to use in an apartment, so we won’t need any presents.”

 

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Christi remarked, “We have similar plans, and like the other girls who have already gotten married, we won’t need gifts either. We’ll all have time to save money for the things we will need to supply our houses on the ranch or for Hanna it will be the farm.”

“However,” answered Hanna, “both of our intendeds desire to have a double wedding in the church on a Friday evening. We brides got to choose to have our own Pastor Don officiate the double wedding. They don’t care about having a reception, but would rather go directly on our short honeymoons in a nice hotel before we start living in our studio apartments and continue working at our jobs.”

Liz added, “Roger and I will also have a studio apartment, since Irene told us how much money it saved them to be able to buy the things they needed for the ranch for cash. Except, they had to buy the six-passenger van with a loan.”

“Maybe you can find used vans and not have to get such a large loan,” suggested Stella. Then she asked, “When will your weddings be, Hanna and Christi?”

Christi replied, “All four of us have birthdays in early April, so we will plan on the Friday that’s closest to the last birthday.”

“Good,” responded Stella, “Easter / Resurrection Day is later in April this year. And this way I’ll still be here for all your weddings, since I’m the youngest of the four of us.”

The weddings were all special for these special people. Liz and Roger were first, and Liz especially enjoyed making this memory in the family home she had spent so many happy years in the great family with her foster parents, Oscar and Vera Yardley. Then they liked going to their friends’ double wedding at the church where more of the people from the farm and ranch could also attend. This made good memories for Christi and Seth, and Hanna and Ned.

After their weddings, all six of these young people thoroughly enjoyed their honeymoons where they used what they had read in the books their parents had given them and started to learn how to show their love to each other. They easily got moved and settled into their little apartments, where they would get used to being married and they could save as much money as possible to buy the things they would need for their homes on the farm or the ranch.

All three couples took the training and got their licenses for raising abused girls or boys, so they were ready when the time came. They were thankful for some extra time of being married before the houses would be ready for them. They had extra time because their weddings were earlier than for some of the ones who had done this similar plan on the farm and ranch.

Pastor Don challenged his family, “For times when we are talking to others about God as creator instead of evolution, do you think you can find some proof scriptures we haven’t used before? I was looking just now and found 2 Kings 19:15, … Hezekiah prayed, O LORD God of Israel, … you are the God, even you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.”

“What a good one, Honey,” Anita applauded, “I know we haven’t used it before. I found Nehemiah 9:5b,6…, Stand up and bless the LORD your God forever and ever. Blessed be your glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise. You are LORD alone. You have made heaven, … the earth and all things in it, the seas and all that is in them. You preserve them all and the host of heaven worships you.”

“I like that one, Mom,” said Mary. “I found two in Psalms that I think we haven't used. The first one is Psalm 124:8, Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth. The second one is Psalm 148:5b, Let them (everything in the heavens) praise the LORD, for he commanded and they were created.”

Timothy stated, “Those are all good ones in the Old Testament. I found two in the New Testament that I don’t remember using before. One is 1 Corinthians 8:6, … to us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we are in him, and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things… The other one is Hebrews 1:10, … You, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.”

“Thank you all for your help!” Don declared.

One afternoon an older couple on the ranch asked, “Oscar and Vera, what is the best way we can bring our foster parenting to an end? We don’t really have the energy to do a good job of it much longer.”

Vera admitted, “We know how you feel, because we are reaching that point ourselves. We are already in our mid-seventies and our first girls, Stella and Liz, will be leaving the ranch this year, so we have decided to take two foster girls who are seventeen to replace them, so that they and our other two girls will graduate from the ranch at about the same time.”

 

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Oscar went on, “Then we could step down from being foster parents. You know William and Anna. They worked out an answer to changing from raising boys on the farm to raising girls here on this ranch. We got this idea from them.”

Vera clarified, “But we desire to stay involved with the parents and their girls on the ranch. And we are praying for just the right couple to take our place as foster parents.”

The woman responded, “I understand. And I just realized that we started with girls who were eight and ten years old. When the older ones were nineteen, we were going to replace them with two who were fourteen, but there were only two who were sixteen right then. So I think God has already provided the way for us to bring our foster parenting to an end. All four of our girls will be nineteen next year.”

“Therefore, since they will all graduate from the ranch near the same time, we can resign then,” the man realized.

Oscar replied, “I’m glad you have a good time to resign.

Later that day Vera realized, “I think that changing the dude ranch to Caring Foster Homes actually became a lifestyle ministry for us.”

“I agree, and it has been a good one!” Then Oscar suggested, “Dearest, I would like to put Nan and Emma’s names on the waiting list for available houses here at the ranch, since they both have expressed their desire to be foster mothers here.”

“I think your idea is brilliant, my dear!” Vera exclaimed. “That way if they do find young men to marry who also want to raise girls here on the ranch their names will already be there. But let’s not tell them, because they need to trust God to work it all out.”

“Right Honey,” Oscar agreed, “and God can use us to help out on that part. Besides it will help us and we can decide which couple would be the better one to be just the right couple to take our place.”

“Precisely,” Vera went on, “because the right one would also desire for us to continue living in this house with them. Of course we would use the extra room next to the game room and they would have the dad and mom bedroom.”

Oscar remarked, “By all means. I think we have some good plans so far, so we’ll keep praying for more guidance.”

“I agree,” replied Vera. “God has been so good to guide us every step of the way.”

After a couple of days Oscar suggested, “Vera, my love, what do you think of this idea? We could talk to Nan and Emma separately and offer to hire one as a full-time housekeeper, after high school graduation. She would take over your jobs of planning meals, cooking, cleaning, laundry, and whatever else you would like to add. The job would pay as much as a job she could get in Pine City.”

“I like your idea a lot!” Vera exclaimed. “Maybe you could preface the question by telling them to not answer yet. Then you could ask each of them to write whether or not she would be interested in this as a job, and why. This might give us a good way to decide who would be the better choice for the job.”

The same year when Christi, Hanna, and Liz’s families were hosting interested boys go riding with their families on the ranch, Carlos remembered what his dad, William Beckett, had told him about being able to invite a family to the farm for a meal so the older boys could meet the older girls.

So Carlos reasoned, “Maybe our family could invite one of the ranch families to the cattle ranch for a meal.”

His wife, Jana responded, “I agree, so how about asking your dad to see what he would say?”

Carlos called his dad right then and asked his question. William answered, “As far as I know, it should be alright, but I’ll go talk to Oscar and Vera to see what they think and then I’ll call you back.”

They said it would be alright, so he made a phone call. “Carlos, they agreed, and therefore I can think of no better family for you to ask than your brother Evan and his family. Just don’t let the younger ones pair off yet, since that would be against the rules of the ranch.”

The next phone call Carlos made was to his younger brother, Evan. “I have a question to ask you and your family, but I thought it would be good to call you first and see what you think about this. I think my two oldest boys, Mike and Alex, and your two oldest girls are close to the same ages, and they’ve had the same Bible training on both ranches.”

Carlos was quiet for a moment so Evan prompted, “I’m listening. What else did you want to say?”

“Well, I’m not trying to be a match maker,” Carlos continued, “but Dad asked Oscar and Vera and they said it would be alright to invite your family to the cattle ranch for a meal to see if the four of them would like to get better acquainted. So I want to know what you think about the idea.”

“It’s brilliant!” Evan exclaimed. “Candy and I have been wondering what we might do to help our girls meet boys who are believers. All the boys near their ages on the farm are busy as far as I know. I’ll go right now and ask her and turn on the speaker phone so you can hear what she says.”

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Evan motioned for Candy to come into their bedroom and then he explained what Carlos had suggested. Candy smiled and replied, “I think it’s a perfect idea, if we first tell our girls, Bonnie and Kate, that we aren’t being match makers and we are just giving them a chance to meet some nice boys in a safe environment.”

“Right,” added Carlos, “plus we need to tell the younger ones they aren’t allowed to pair off until next year!”

Evan and Candy laughed and agreed, so Carlos invited them to come for lunch on the coming Saturday. Then he asked, “Do your girls know how to ride trotting horses?”

“Yes,” answered Evan, “I taught them while they were seniors and they’ve been practicing off and on. They even know how to use neck reining because our horse trainers taught those two horses to respond to both ways. I’ll teach our younger two girls on our next ride so both families can go for a ride on your ranch if you have enough horses for us to use.”

“We do have enough,” and Carlos went on, “come dressed for riding since riding is a good icebreaker. We’ll take time to hear testimonies and going-away speeches, so have your two older girls come prepared. And let’s all be praying for God’s perfect will to be done.”

Evan came back with, “For sure, and thanks for the invitation, my brother!”

Felix asked his family to find songs and scriptures to go with them about Jesus shining or being the light. Of course he was first with an example. “The song,‘Shine, Jesus, Shine,’ has three stanzas and a chorus that tell about the way Jesus shines and asks him to shine on us and the world and show his story to the world. The song goes well with 2 Corinthians 4:6, For God commanded the light to shine out of darkness and has shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Ken was next. “I like the song, “The Light of the World is Jesus.” The title of this song is right there in John 8:12, … Jesus said, I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. And the third stanza of “I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say” repeats what Jesus said in that scripture in a poetic way. I’m glad we get to walk in his light.”

Howard found the song, “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus,” and explained, “It’s just a short chorus, but its message is clear. If we understand who Jesus is, earthly things won’t matter as much. I think it goes well with Hebrews 1:3a, God’s Son is the brightness of his glory and the express image of his person and he upholds all things by the word of his power.

Rand sang part of “Jesus is the Lighthouse,” and then he remarked, “I like the part of this song where it says that Jesus is the light that helps us see, and also safely leads us home. Isaiah 9:2 says, the people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. They who dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them the light has shined.”

Keith said, “There are several thoughts in the song, “Heavenly Sunlight,” that I like. Wherever we go, Jesus will never forsake us. Shadows and darkness cannot hide him from us. We keep walking and singing his praises for his salvation. Since all of us are Gentiles, it goes well with Isaiah 49:6b, God said, … I will give you, (Jesus), as a light to the Gentiles, so that you may be my salvation unto the end of the earth.

Sunny concluded, “I especially like the chorus of ‘Keep on the Sunny Side of Life,’ because it’s so positive. The first two stanzas speak of trouble and strife, but the third one says to have a song of hope every day and trust our Savior to care for us. Then the chorus always reminds us how the sunny side of life will help us and brighten our way. Jeremiah 17:7 goes with the chorus. It says, Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD and whose hope is the LORD.”

“Thank you all for finding those good songs and scriptures.” stated Felix and then he suggested, “Maybe since your Mom is teaching you boys how to play the piano, we could find the music for them and each of you could learn how to play the song you told us about today.”

During the week, Evan and Candy and their girls had a family meeting. Evan began, “Girls, our whole family has been invited to go have lunch with a family at a working cattle ranch.”

The girls all listened quietly as he continued, “I know the dad in this family because he was my older brother on Mercy Valley Farm. He and his wife have been raising foster boys on the cattle ranch for several years and his two oldest boys just graduated from high school and will be turning nineteen this year.”

Candy added, “So they are close to your ages, Bonnie and Kate.”

Those two girls sat up straighter and listened even more carefully.

 

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Evan went on, “He invited us to come eat lunch with them and go for a horseback ride afterward. This will give you older girls a chance to meet and talk to their boys, Mike and Alex. We want you to know that we are NOT trying to be match makers. Instead we just want to give you a chance to meet some nice boys in a safe environment. They are believers with the same Bible training you’ve had.”

Candy cautioned, “We also need to remind you, Flora and Reba, that our ranch rules won’t allow you to start getting to know their younger boys, Eric and Lane, until they and you are closer to being nineteen years old.”

Those two girls nodded, since they knew the rules, and Evan added, “Their ranch has only trotting horses, so when we go riding today, I will teach you, Flora and Reba, how to post the trot on Comet and Diamond so you’ll know how for Saturday.”

“And,” Candy explained, “today I’ll ride between you, Bonnie and Kate, so you can ask me any questions you have then, instead of taking more time in this family meeting right now. So let’s all go get ready to ride now, since it’s our turn to ride.”

Flora and Reba learned quickly how to use neck reining on the horses and how to post while the horses were trotting and they practiced another two times that week.

On Saturday, Evan and Candy and their girls were all dressed in their riding clothes and they went to the cattle ranch to meet Carlos, Jana and their boys. This would be a new experience for this whole family to see a working cattle ranch, so they all had been looking forward to this time, even though the girls were a little nervous. They were extra happy that the weather had warmed up for this early spring visit.

Evan followed his dad’s directions about how to get to the ranch and how to find his brother’s house there. They were welcomed into the house and all the introductions were made in the living room, where they stayed and talked for a short time before going to eat in the dining room.

Candy and Jana remembered each other from the time they had lived as neighbors on Mercy Valley Ranch. And of course Carlos and Evan were glad to see each other again. The food was delicious and was enjoyed by all.

Jana and the younger boys, Eric and Lane, cleared the table, put away the left overs and did the clean-up while Candy, Evan and Carlos went back to the living room to listen to the young people give their testimonies and the speeches they had given at their graduation / going-away parties. This gave the young people a chance to decide who they would ride beside for the first half of the horseback ride and then they would switch partners.

After this they were all ready to go prepare the horses for a ride. Needless to say the girls weren't strong enough to lift the heavy western saddles up and put them on the horses backs, so the dads did that and cinched them up just right. They also helped with the mounting since these horses were taller than the ones they rode on their ranch, and there was no platform here to help them.

The ride was enjoyable. Candy and Jana visited as they rode and so did Carlos and Evan. Bonnie started the ride talking to Mike and later to Alex. Kate talked to Alex first and then to Mike. The younger boys rode together near the front of the group, and the younger girls rode together at the rear of the group.

After the ride the four boys demonstrated how they could rope a cow, get off their horse and check it over, before they let it go. Their audience clapped for them. Then they all rode back to the tack room where each one groomed the horse before returning it to the pasture. Next everyone cleaned up the tack they had used and put it back in its place. The girls felt comfortable doing those familiar things.

There wasn’t time for more visiting, since it took about an hour to drive back home. On the way home in the van, Flora and Reba sat in the back and worked on homework. Bonnie and Kate sat in the middle and quietly wrote what they remembered about the conversations. Then they shared what they had written about what the boys had said as they rode beside them. And they compared the notes they had written about the boys testimonies and speeches.

When they got home, everyone helped prepare a light supper and do clean-up. Then the younger girls went to finish their homework while Bonnie and Kate and their parents talked about how the day had gone for them.

Kate shared, “It was a very interesting day and I’m glad we went.”

“I agree,” Bonnie stated, “and I learned a lot, even though I was nervous at first.”

Kate said, it was helpful to know that you weren’t being match makers.”

“Right, because we knew we didn’t have to decide something right then,” added Bonnie.

Evan commented, “I liked the day also. It was fun to see where my brother Carlos and his family live and have time to talk to him.”

“Same here, concerning my friend Jana,” commented Candy. “Let’s pray about it now, together and then we can talk some more about it tomorrow.”

So they took turns praying and everyone went to bed early that night since it had been such a busy day.

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One evening after supper and clean-up time, Ted remarked to his wife, Julie, and the quadruplets, “I have a short Bible sword drill for us to do today. I’ll say a scripture reference and all of you look it up. The first one to find the first one gets to read it aloud.”

Rose was first this time. She read, “Psalm 50:10, God said, For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.”

“Good job, Rose. Now we’ll take turns with the rest, but still clap for the one who finds it first,” explained Ted.

They clapped for Iris, who was first and also got to read, “Mark 10:27b, Jesus said, with God all things are possible.”

Then everyone clapped for Rose, who was first again, but this time Lily got to read. “John 15:9, Jesus said, As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Continue in my love.”

Next they clapped for Violet being first and she read, “John 8:36, Jesus said, If the son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.”

“Good work all of you,” stated Ted, “and now I’d like your mom to read the next one, but everyone look it up.”

Julie read, “Hebrews 11:16, personalized, But now we desire a better country, that is a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called our God, for he has prepared for us a city.”

“Thank you, and now I’d like us to listen to this song that’s sung by the Cathedrals,” said Ted. “It’s called “Who Can do Anything?”

It was a new song for them and they all enjoyed listening to it. The next thing Ted did was to find the lyrics on the web and had them read them silently. Pretty soon the girls were all nodding and smiling, knowing what he had done.

Lily expressed it for them, “I like the way you had us look up the scriptures that go with the song in the order they came in the song.”

“Yes,” agreed Rose, my verse was first and went with the first stanza, which is kind of a summary of the rest.”

“And mine went with the title and the chorus that asks the question and answers that my Lord can. And Lord means Jesus!” Iris declared.

Lily added, “My verse went with the second stanza that tells about Jesus loving us and answering prayers.

“The third stanza went with my verse,” Violet went on, “Jesus made us free by dying on a tree, which means the cross.”

Julie continued, “The verse I read went with the last stanza about the home the Lord has prepared for us.”

“Very good everyone,” then Ted suggested, “I'd like for us to practice and memorize the song and the scriptures that go with it to use in our ministry time in the nursing homes or in the park.”

The four girls smiled and did thumbs up, and Julie concluded, “I think it’s a great idea, because it tells the Good News in such a happy way.”

It took them about a month to learn it but they did very well. They sang the whole song through first. Then they would sing one stanza and the girls would take turns saying the scripture that went with it. Next Ted gave a summary of the Good News and asked the people if they had any questions. After all the questions were answered, he invited them to accept Jesus as their Savior. Most of the time, at least one person did.

At the beginning of the following week, Evan stated, “We need to decide about what to do as a follow-up for the lunch and afternoon ride on the cattle ranch.”

“I’d like to get to know more about the young men,” and then Kate looked at Bonnie and asked, “What do we want to do next?”

“First,” remarked Bonnie, “I need to ask you, Kate, have you thought about which young man you might like better?”

Kate looked perplexed, but nodded.

“Good,” Bonnie went on, “then you can have first choice, Kate, because I like both of them equally so far.”

Kate exclaimed, “How nice of you! Are you sure?”

Bonnie declared, “Yes! Who do you like better?”

“I’m more impressed with Alex,” admitted Kate.

 

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“Thank you for telling me,” and Bonnie continued, “so you pursue your goal, and I’ll put my energies into studying Mike, because so far both of them are OK. But I think it would be best to not tell them yet.”

Kate responded, “I agree and thank you. I think it was a great idea our ‘uncle’ Carlos had.”

“Same here, and you’re welcome,” and then Bonnie added. “The only problem is that it’s such a long drive for us to go there, or for them to come here.”

“Yes it is,” Candy inserted, “and I think the first thing we need to do is send them a thank-you note.”

“Yes, that would be a proper response,” and then Even added, “and I suggest that we could add an invitation for them to come here to our house for lunch next Saturday and for a horseback ride and more talking afterward. We can ask them to RSVP by phone.”

So they quickly composed a note to go in the mail the same day. The note also included a suggestion that each of the four young people would come with a list of questions they would like to ask. Evan and Candy received a phone call two days later accepting the invitation. The ladies planned what to have for lunch and cleaned the house so it would look as immaculate as Jana’s house had looked when they arrived there.

On Saturday, there were many expressions of surprise from Carlos and Jana about the changes that had happened and were still in progress on the ranch. Lunch was delectable and while Candy and Flora and Reba cleaned the dining room and kitchen, the others went into the living room, where the four young people could talk in one area while the others visited in another.

Bonnie inquired, “Would it be satisfactory for us to do like we did at your ranch and ride for half of the time with each of you so we can all get better acquainted as we ride horses today?”

They both nodded in approval, so Kate added, “Then you can both ask us questions and we can do the same.”

“Great idea,” then Alex asked, “Will we be able to ride the horses that do not trot? We got to do that one day when we came here with ‘Uncle’ Gary’s family.”

Both girls nodded emphatically, and Mike went on, “It really was fun. We’re used to taller horses, if you have any that are a little over 15 hands tall.”

“Yes, of course,” Bonnie answered, “Blaze and Star are palomino Tennessee Walking Horses, 15.2 hands tall, and they’re available for our ride today.”

Kate remarked, “And Bonnie and I will ride Cumin and Ginger, two buckskin Tennessee Walking Horses, that are 15 hands tall.”

The rest of the people looked at the list to choose the horses they would ride that day and they were off to the pasture to select them. Just like on the cattle ranch the girls were happy to see that the young men followed the same procedure they did with the horses.

Mike observed, “these saddles are sure light-weight and pretty, too, and I imagine they are as comfortable as they look.”

“They sure are,” commented Kate who was going to ride beside Mike first today. Then she and Bonnie used the platform to mount the taller horses without needing help from their dad.

As they rode today, all four young people used questions about some issues to check for compatibility. They took turns asking and answering. Kate used the first half with Mike and the second half with Alex since she could find out from Bonnie what the answers were to the other half later. Bonnie did the same thing and later she and Kate shared what they had heard.

When the ride was finished and the horses and tack cared for, the group went back to visit some more in the game room of the big house. The younger people worked puzzles or played a board game at separate tables while the rest talked about what the families might do next.

First each family separately asked if the young people desired to continue getting to know the others. Since they all did want to, they met at a large table to consider options. They all agreed it was too far to drive to each other’s ranches.

Jana said, “We might meet at a park in Pine City for a picnic.”

Candy remarked, “And the young people could talk on the phone once in a while, or send emails back and forth.

“Or the young people could wait until they moved to Pine City after their birthdays, since those aren’t very far away,” mentioned Evan.

“Along with those ideas,” Carlos suggested, “We could ask our pastors to put these four into the same small group soon after they have moved to Pine City, so they can do ministry together and later do double dating if they decide to continue getting to know each other better. Doing that worked well for my wife and me.”

 

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Everyone agreed that this would be the best solution, since all four birthdays were not very far away. This would give them time to find apartments, get moved and then tell their pastors they were ready to start in the small group to which they and the other two would be assigned.

The parents of the other of the girls on the ranch, who desired to be married, also asked Pastor Don to put their girls into small groups with single young men their ages. This could be for the new year coming up, so they would have more time to meet and work in ministry teams. While they were waiting, they would share apartments with their same roommates, and do Bible studies much like Candy and June had done.

Pastor Don was getting used to doing this by now, and since there were many couples in the church who were also raising two or more teenage foster boys, who were becoming believers, there were often enough to go around.

The young ladies and men who desired to stay single got good jobs and rented apartments together in groups of three or four so they could share expenses and be in ministry teams together.

During the children’s nap time, in Pine City, the two O’Connor families were reviewing the holy days that came in the springtime.

Riley remarked, “I’m glad we sang ’All Glory, Laud, and Honor,’ on Palm Sunday, because it goes so well with Matthew 28:17, When they saw Jesus, they worshiped him, even though that verse came after the resurrection.”

“Yes,” Amelia went on, “and it was so appropriate that our small group is on Thursday this year, so it was timely to remember Jesus when we took communion together.”

“Right agreed Glenda, “and we sang ‘When I Survey the Wondrous Cross,’ as part of remembering what he did.”

Patrick continued, “In church for Easter / Resurrection Day, they used John 20:24-28, where Jesus came and showed most of the disciples he was alive. But Thomas was not with them and had said he would not believe unless he could touch the scars. Jesus graciously came again while Thomas was there and had him touch the scars.

“Right,” agreed Glenda, “and in John 20:29, Jesus said to him, Thomas, because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet have believed.”

Amelia mentioned, “I was looking at my first independent Bible study Notebook and when I read the verses about the word ‘bless’ I wondered if Jesus meant the meaning ‘happy’ in verse 29.”

“That meaning would fit very well there,” stated Riley.

Glenda added, “And I’m glad they used this song too, ‘Christ is Risen from the Dead.’ It goes well with Matthew 28:7a, Go quickly and tell Jesus’ disciples that he is risen from the dead.”

“Yes it does, and for me, Resurrection Day is my very favorite holy day of the whole year!” Patrick declared.

When they got home from their RV Ministry trip for the week before Easter / Resurrection Day, Vern and Lora told Ben and Mindy about their trip.

Ben declared, “We’re so glad you could come to our house so you can share your memories and pictures with us!”

“Yes,” agreed Mindy, “I really like seeing where you went and hearing about your trips. I’m glad you get to see places I’ve been to before also and then new places that you can see with your four-wheel drive vehicle.”

Vern explained, “We like to go with Frank and Becky Warner so we can go see those places.”

“However,” Lora went on, “they needed to go visit with their parents in another state this time, so we just went to the Moab area and visited our favorite arches in Canyonlands and Arches National Parks.”

Vern continued, “And since we already have numerous pictures of both areas, we didn’t take pictures on this trip. It was kind of different to go without taking pictures, but we focused more on staying in each area a little longer to just study and talk about them.”

“Therefore,” added Lora, “when we got home, we made a slide show of the places we saw and brought it on a USB thumb drive, so we can watch it on one of your computers and I’ll read my trip log to go along with it.”

Both Ben and Mindy thoroughly enjoyed listening to Lora and seeing pictures that had been taken on other trips. For Mindy it brought back many happy memories.

Mindy asked, “Where did you camp, and how were your ministry times?”

Vern answered, “Lately we’ve been using a dispersed camping area off a dirt road north of Moab. Other people can come camp in the same area, or in places near it, so we had some of the same people

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come several days to our meetings and new ones also. So the ministry times were very good and two couples and one family accepted Jesus.”

Praise and thanksgiving followed that statement.

Shortly after Jose’s twentieth birthday, he was surprised by a letter from a lawyer in Pine City asking him to come to his office. When he and Lisa got there, the lawyer told Jose he had received a small inheritance from his believing grandmother. The lawyer counseled him to put the money in a bank earning interest while he followed the directions in the letter his grandmother had written.

At the same time he also received her Bible with a special letter written to him before she had passed away. It said, “Dear Grandson, Jose, I had this money and my Bible put into a special trust to be given to you when you became 20 years old. It’s been earning interest in a special account.

“If you don’t already believe in Jesus, please read the Gospels in the New Testament, especially John and get to know him the way I did. Please know that I prayed for you every day while I lived. If you already do believe in Jesus, then you can know I have already rejoiced with all the angels in Heaven when you asked Jesus to be your Savior. I’ll be so happy to see you when all the believers get to heaven.

“Pray and ask Jesus where to use the money, and he will tell you how to best use it for his glory. You know I loved you very much because I told you so every day. You’re a very special person and God has a special plan for your life. Be sure to live for him.

“With love from your grandmother who loved you.”

Jose was surprised and so pleased, that he hugged the letter to himself and thanked Jesus for the special blessing he got just by reading it. He took a quick look inside the Bible and noticed many notes written in his grandmother’s careful printing. Reading the Bible and her notes would almost be like having a conversation with her about what the Bible said there.

When they left the office, they took the check to their bank and opened a special account earning interest while they prayed about how Jesus wanted them to use it.

Jose had been wishing he could teach his girls how to play the piano when they would have enough money saved to get a used one for their house. He did pray and asked Jesus what he should do with the money. He felt that Jesus would like him to use some of the money to buy a good used piano, and some of it for a special offering to a ministry of his choice, and some could be used to pay off the money they owed on the used van. The rest could be put in a savings account and certificate of deposit where it could earn interest until it would be used as Jesus directed.

All too soon, it was time for Stella’s nineteenth birthday celebration. She would leave the ranch the next day to travel by bus to the city where she would study some more and start to work with the missionary aviation organization she and her parents had chosen.

Stella was very homesick the first two weeks and called Oscar and Vera every day for a while so she could pray with them. Of course Jesus helped her. She was able to make a good friend and asked her to be her roommate. So Stella was able to adapt to her new life. Then she only called once in a while to let them know how things were going.

Emma and Nan had agreed to be roommates for, and help the new girls when they came to the ranch. When Liz had moved to the city, Nan moved in with Stella. Emma became the roommate for the new girl. And then Nan became the roommate for the other new girl when Stella had moved.

It seemed a little complicated at first, but it was good in the end, because the new girls needed a lot of help when they first arrived. Emma and Nan sat with them on the school bus and made sure they found their classes during their first week there since they had had to change high schools.

Of course Oscar and Vera helped the new girls get settled and got them interested in the horses right away. The girls were amazed and grateful for this place where they would get to live as they finished their senior year and got ready to go out on their own after their nineteenth birthdays.

With all of that kind of help and love and the daily prayers of their new parents and their roommates, both girls accepted Jesus within three months after they were assigned to the ranch. What rejoicing!

Max and Levi had outgrown their small guitars so Greg and Oralie Iverson had bought them bigger guitars, which were adult size, when both of them were in middle school. Now that it was warmer weather and they had been practicing enough, they were ready to go do ministry times in the parks. They began by playing some classical pieces and then played and sang the following songs, with the boys quoting the scriptures that went with the songs.

“It’s Not An Easy Road,” The lyrics are about the way to heaven not being easy, but since Jesus walks with us, he makes the journey brighter and the burdens lighter.

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1 Peter 4:12a, Beloved, do not think it is strange when you have a fiery trial. Romans 12:12, Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, and continue in prayer. Matthew 28:20b, Jesus said, I am with you always, even to the end of the world…

The second song began with the words, “I’m a nobody…” The lyrics humbly say the singer is a nobody but is telling every person about somebody who can save any person. That somebody is Jesus and he can make a big change in your life.

1 Timothy 1:15b,… J esus came into the world to save sinners… Mark 16:15,… Jesus said to go into all the world and preach the gospel to everybody.

The next song was “A Sinner Saved By Grace,” The lyrics say the singer was saved by a miracle of love because Jesus took his place and set him free.

Ephesians 2:4,5,…summary, God, who is rich in mercy, and in great love for us, made us alive together with Christ, by his grace you are saved.

Their last song was “Just Because He Loves Me So.” The lyrics say that Jesus came to earth to live a holy life and bring redemption, because he loved us so much. Therefore I will walk with him trust his promises, sing of his mercy and praise him in heaven.

John 15:13, Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. 1 John 4:19, We love Jesus, because he first loved us.

Many people stopped to listen. Some stayed a little while and then walked on. Others listened all the way to the end and stayed to visit or ask questions. Once in a while some of them were already believers, and this helped build up the audience, because others would see a crowd and come join it. Often the ones who stayed got to hear more about the Good News and get enough of their questions answered that they also became believers. This brought great joy and encouragement to the guitar players.

In early June, Roger and Liz got to move into the downstairs of the fifth house, since it was now finished, at the earliest time of the year, of the new houses. They were able to pack most of their personal belongings and clothes into the used van they had purchased. Roger’s family from the farm came with their pickup truck and loaded the purchases they had made to equip the new house for them and their four girls.

First the whole group walked through the house and prayed to dedicate the house and the parents to the LORD and ask for his help to bring the abused girls to Jesus for salvation and restoration. Vera had stayed home with their new girls so they wouldn’t feel awkward in a new situation that they probably wouldn’t understand.

Nan and Emma came and helped Liz to unpack and put things in their places as Roger’s family and Oscar brought them into the new house that was already cleaned to perfection by the builders.

Since Roger and Liz had washed all the linens as they bought them, and packed them into boxes they were ready to be put away or used. Therefore Liz, Emma and Nan even made all the beds in the house so they would be ready to be used. They hung towels and washcloths in the bathrooms and put the extras into the linen cabinets. The new house was looking ready for the big family it would have. Then Nan and Emma served everyone the fruit juice and cookies they had brought for a snack.

The men and boys had unloaded the things in the van into the parents bedroom and later, after the others had left, Roger and Liz decided where to put them away, so soon this room was ready for them also. And now they had two weeks to get more settled and buy the computers and sewing machine and get them set up. Then they would be ready for their girls to be assigned.

During the daytime they rode together to their jobs in the city and were able to get work hours that would coincide with leaving half an hour after the school bus picked up the girls for school, and get home a little before the girls got home. This would provide time for them to have conversation or planning or intimacy on some of the days.

They visited with Jose and Lisa to ask if they could come and unobtrusively observe what the young teens would be like. If there was time afterward, they could also ask questions and get suggestions to help them get started as foster parents.

When the owner and boss of the Mercy Valley Farm had heard about the game rooms and library at the ranch, he had asked three companies to make bids on building one for the farm. One of those companies was The Master’s Builders. It gave the best bid and came with his sister, Vera’s, good recommendation, so this would be Ben’s next contract.

Ben had already spent some of his work day at the farm where he saw the land the boss had said was not good for crops. He did the preliminary planning with Felix who was now in charge of the farm. It would be a very large room to contain the things Hugo and Jose and Felix had talked about. Ben drew up the

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blueprints and Felix took them to the boss who went to get the necessary building permit and other permits needed for the job.

Then Ben hired the same company as he had for the ranch to level the land, dig ditches for water lines natural gas and sewer pipes.

They also had excavated the trenches to put the forms in for the footings. The foundation forms would go on top of the footings.

Now since one of his crews was finished on the ranch, he had them start work on the farm while the other crew finished the upstairs of the fifth house on the ranch.

When the upstairs of the fifth house was finished, Ben and Mindy would be able to stay in their trailer on the ranch and pay rent for the space while the game and library room were being built on the farm. While he was working at the farm, Ben would also be looking for possibilities for a building project to follow the completion of this one.

Beth and Ruth and Pam reviewed how their T shirt project was going. Pam remarked, “I like your design, Ruth. It’s simple and easy to understand. It was a good idea to put a colorful treasure map on the back under the words, ‘Search and Find Real Treasure.’ Plus I think the treasure chest looks like real brown wood.”

“I like all those things too,” agreed Beth, “and I like the red velvet lining inside the chest with ‘God’ written in shiny gold letters.”

Ruth smiled. “I'm glad you both like it, and I like the way it all goes with the colors we chose for the T shirts. The design shows up well on light blue, green, yellow, and white. It gives people a choice of colors to buy.”

Beth mentioned, “I think we were blessed to find a company right here in Pine City that could mass produce them with good quality printing and keep the price affordable.”

“I agree,” stated Pam, “and you and I were able to find a lawyer in our church who helped us set up our non-profit business. He donated his time as a gift to the LORD, just like we all are doing.”

Ruth remarked, “I’m impressed by the number of sales already. When we asked Pastor Don if we could make an announcement about them at the end of a service he was gracious and let us do it.”

“Then on top of that,” added Beth, “when we talked to the pastor of church #1, he made a short video of us making the announcement and holding up the T shirts. It was shown in all twenty-four churches and the sales skyrocketed.”

Pam added, “The part I like best is to hear people tell about their positive experiences, or read about them on our web site.”

Tomo, Ami, their foster girl, and Kosuke and Aneko listened to the song, “I Answer the Call” by Steve Green.

Aneko observed, “This is a very good song especially for men, but I’d like it to be for women also, so here is a summary of part of the lyrics using “people” instead of “men.” God is calling people to be faithful to him with our lives, and in our homes, and with what we own. We can do this with the strength and help of God.”

“I like to think of it that way also,” stated Ami. “Now let’s see if we can find scriptures to go with the song. I already found Acts 13:22b, and I’ll pray it personalized: God, please make me a person after your heart so I can fulfill all your will. And I’ll put it with Luke 16:10a, since it’s so short. Make me faithful in that which is least and also faithful in much… “

“Those are good prayers,” said the foster girl. “I found 1 Samuel 12:24, Only fear the LORD and serve him in truth with all your heart, for consider how great things he has done for you.”

“I like that one,” and Aneko continued with, 1 Corinthians 15:58, Therefore, my beloved brothers (and sisters), be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

Tomo went on, “Yours is a good verse also, Aneko. The verse I found is 1 Timothy 1:12. Paul said, I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has enabled me, for he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry.”

“All those scriptures go well with that song,”Kosuke concluded, “and I think Matthew 24:45-46, is also a good one. Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord has made ruler over his household? … Happy is that servant, whom his lord shall find so doing when he comes.”

One afternoon, a man on a motorcycle asked a woman walking the other direction, “Hey, Miss, would you like a ride?”

She said, “No Thanks,” and kept walking.

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He turned his motorcycle around and followed her, asking again and again, until she left the road and went uphill to get away from him.

But he got off his motorcycle and followed her, saying, “There’s more than one way to get you.”

Before he got to her she turned around, pointed to him and stated, “In Jesus name I command you to go away, and I ask Jesus to protect me.”

He saw something that made him look scared. So he ran away and didn’t come back.

She wondered if he may have seen Jesus or one or more angels. In any case, she was very grateful and decided to never go walking alone again.

When she got back to her apartment, she told her husband about what had happened. He took her in his arms and exclaimed, “Oh my darling, I’m so sorry you had to go through that!” Then he prayed, “Jesus thank you so much for protecting my precious wife. Forgive me for not taking better care of her.” Then he added, “I’ll never let you go walking alone again. We can go together in city parks where it’s safer and much prettier besides.”

“Thank you, my love,” she responded, “I never even realized how dangerous it might be, and I’m so grateful to Jesus for keeping me safe. I agree with you. We’ll walk together. I’ll never go walking alone again!”