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

Chapter 16

Proverbs 16:24, Pleasant words are as a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and health to the bones.

Ted and Julie Blake and their four foster girls, Lily, Violet, Iris, and Rose, who are all in the ninth grade, at the high school, had just finished cleaning things up after lunch.

Their birth father still came every weekend to visit and ride horses with them. He mentioned, “You girls are growing up so fast! I have a hard time believing that you are already in high school.”

“It was hard for us at first too,” agreed Rose. “But now that we’ve been in high school for over five months, I think we’re used to it.”

“Yes, you’re all good students as I’ve seen from your report cards, and you all adapt well to new situations,” he complimented. Then he added, “And besides that, all of you are becoming beautiful young ladies!”

They all thanked him and Iris asked, “How is your job going?”

He answered, “It’s going very well and it keeps me very busy, so I’m glad I at least get to see you one day of each weekend.”

“We’re glad too,” stated Violet, “and it’s almost time for our turn to ride horses.”

Lily explained, “This is a special day for us, because we just got the list of horses we girls are allowed to ride, and several of the newest horses are on the list.”

“Great!” Let’s get going and maybe I’ll choose one of the newest ones also,” he said.

Since everybody was already dressed for riding, they were soon on their way to the pasture. Rose chose Chili Powder and Iris chose Paprika. They both are a beautiful reddish brown color. Lily chose Lollipop, and Violet chose Flame, and both of these horses are also reddish brown. Their father chose Dapplie, the horse with the dark gray dappled color. Ted chose Goldenrod, and Julie chose Marigold. Both are splendid palominos.

They all started out in the riding ring so he and the girls could get used to the horses they hadn’t ridden before. They did fine and soon they were out of the ring, riding by Mercy Stream. It was a cloudy day, so the sun didn’t make them feel as hot as on other summer days. So they all had a very pleasant time preparing for the ride, during the ride and taking care of the horses and tack afterward.

Alex and Mike had their nineteenth birthdays close to the same time and found a one bedroom apartment where they would continue to be roommates in Pine City. They also had bought a car they could share.

Kate and Bonnie had also moved to Pine City on their nineteenth birthdays into a one bedroom apartment, where they continued to be roommates. A city bus would drop them off close to their jobs, so they only had about a block to walk. And they would be together so it was safer for them. Soon after they told him they were ready, Pastor Don put all four of these young people into a small group in progress that had enough room to add four new members.

 

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When they went to the first meeting, the facilitator had them introduce themselves and they met the other members. It was a nice group of encouraging people.

The group sang the songs at the same time as the teaching time and scripture verses that week. The facilitator asked for those who wanted to share a song and the scriptures that would go with it to spend a few minutes looking up the song in the hymnal and the scripture to go with it. They could give a summary of the lyrics, or the group could sing the song together. The following are what the members shared.

“Come Into the Holy of Holies.” This chorus starts out with the title of the song. A summary of the lyrics is that we enter by Jesus’ blood. We sing as we come to his presence and worship at God’s throne. We worship Jesus, the King of kings. It goes with Hebrews 10:19, personalized, We have boldness to enter the holy of holies by the blood of Jesus.

“For the Lord Is Marching On” also starts with the title and has some words from the scripture that goes with it. It’s a song about our victory being sure in Jesus. Zechariah 10:5, tells about Mighty men who tread down their enemies because the LORD is with them.

Then the whole group sang the next song, “How Firm a Foundation,” which is about Jesus being the foundation of the Church. 2 Timothy 2:19, states, Nevertheless the foundation of God stands sure, having this seal, ‘The Lord knows those who are his.’ And let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

“Christ Is Made the Sure Foundation” and “The Church’s One Foundation” both go with the next three scriptures. The whole group sang these two songs, and volunteers read the scriptures. Isaiah 28:16, … The LORD said, ‘ Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation, a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation, and he who believes shall not be dismayed.’ 1 Corinthians 3:11, No other foundation can be laid … only Jesus Christ. And therefore they go with Luke 6:48, summary, a man who built a house, dug deep and laid the foundation on a rock… and nothing could shake the house.

“Blessed Be the Rock” and I Will Call Upon the Lord” both go with the next scripture. Psalm 18:2,3,46, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, and I shall be saved from my enemies. … The LORD lives and blessed be my rock, and let the God of my salvation be exalted.

The last song was “He Who Began a Good Work In You,” which goes with Philippians 1:6, I’m confident … that he who has begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.” the group sang this song and read the scripture in unison.

Right after the meeting the facilitator had the four new members stay a few minutes and he asked them if they had read the “I Can Do” booklet. They all had read it while they were getting settled in their apartments, so he said they could be a four member team. Also while they were talking there, Alex and Mike offered to take Kate and Bonnie back to their apartment that evening and the following ones after picking them up to bring them to the meetings. It worked as well for them as it had for Denji, Gary, Sara, and Kim a few years ago.

Holly and Willow already knew Hope and Joy from times their family had ridden with the Blake family when Hope and Joy were also there. They also become friends with April and May, Tina and Lina, and with Jose and Lisa’s twins. It didn’t matter to them that they weren’t the same ages. Just being twins gave them a lot in common.

These families enjoyed doing things together and the twins liked visiting with other pairs of twins. Some of them had never had that opportunity before, since it was uncommon for them to meet other twins. So this was special for them.

After observing them together sometimes, Jeff Spencer exclaimed, “This ranch has a lot of twins right now!”

“I agree, it sure does! Maybe sometime we’ll get to have a pair of twins assigned to our home,” hoped Karen.

Jeff responded, “It sounds like fun. So from now on, every time two of our girls graduate we can request twins to replace them, if there are any available at that time.”

“Certainly,” Karen went on, “and we can ask our LORD to work it out for us if it’s his will, and then we can leave it in his hands.”

Jeff applauded, “Perfect, and either way will be just fine, because our Father always knows what is best!”

“I’m so glad he does, because if it were left up to me, I’d make a lot of mistakes,” admitted Karen.

 

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Felix and Sunny Lucero, with their new boys Harold and Ken and Keith and Rand were getting ready to go the Mercy Valley Ranch for their weekend field trip.

Sunny instructed, “Put on your oldest work clothes that are already dirty from working outside, and wear your oldest tennis shoes.”

“OK,” said Ken, “but can you tell us why?”

Harold added, “Yeah, We usually put on horseback riding clothes to go to the ranch.”

“Oh no,” Rand realized, “does this mean we don’t get to ride today?”

Keith made a wild guess, “Maybe they want us to work in their community garden today.”

Felix was laughing so hard he couldn't talk right away. When he settled down he stated, “Thanks, guys. I needed a good laugh! You’re right, Rand, today we won’t ride horses, but you will learn how to do something you might think is just as fun.”

“I think it’s fun,” declared Sunny, “and I learned how to do it when I was even younger than you guys are. Do you remember the lake on the ranch? They call it Wild Mint Lake and they have flat-bottomed boats there. Today you get to learn how to launch them and how to row them.”

Ken acknowledged, “This explains why we need old dirty work clothes and our oldest tennis shoes. And it does sound like fun.”

“Oh boy!” Rand exclaimed, “We might need to wade in the lake to get the boats going!”

Keith suggested, “Or the boat might tip over and dump us in the lake!”

“What a good way to cool off on this hot day!” Harold declared.

This time it was Sunny who dissolved into laughter, and Felix thought, “These guys are a lot of fun!” And then he explained, “Actually the goal is to learn how to launch the boats without getting our feet wet, and then learn to row, making them go where you want them to go without tipping them over.”

Sunny was remembering a time when she and her best friend Esther had worked hard at getting one to tip over, but she wisely didn’t say anything about it. However she did say, “Hurry and go get ready, it’s almost time for us to leave.”

They all politely said “Yes, Mom,” and quickly did as she had bidden.

When they reached the lake, they listened carefully and watched as Felix gave the directions and then demonstrated how to launch the boat, and then how to beach them and get out with dry feet. Then Sunny repeated all that Felix had said and done.

Next they had two boys get into each boat. Each parent launched a boat and then taught and showed how to row correctly. Each boy took a turn rowing with the parent so they would know how to row with each other when they went with just the two of them. After that they rowed back to the shore and the parents got out and one boy moved to that seat so they could both practice rowing.

Later, Felix called for them to come back to the shore to practice beaching the boat and getting out with dry feet. That was easy. But then they had to remember how to launch the boat.

Rand requested. “Dad, would you please show me again. I’d like to be able to do it right without getting my feet wet.”

“Same here, Ditto, The same applies to me,” stated the others.

“Sure, I’d be glad to,” answered Felix. And he went through all the directions and even a few tips and demonstrated it again.

Each boy took a turn and managed to do it correctly, so one of each pair got into the boat and the other boy launched it. They rowed across the lake and back, beached the boats and got out of them.”

Sunny applauded. “Great job you guys!”

The boys felt good about what they had learned that day.

Riley and Amelia were at the park for a couple’s ministry time while his parents were caring for their four children. Riley and Amelia were wearing their treasure T shirts. A man made fun of the idea and said that money was the only treasure he would look for, because if he had enough money, he could get everything he needed or wanted.

Riley asked him, “Who do you think made all the things you need or want?

The man shrugged and answered, “I don’t know.”

Amelia requested, “Please listen to Acts 17:24a, God made the world and all the things in it. He is the Lord of heaven and earth.”

“But I’ve heard that the world just happened,” said the man.

Riley continued, “Some people think so. This summary of verses 25b-28a says that God gives life, breath and other things to men, … and that he determines where they live … so that men would seek him and find him. He is not far from us, because we live and move and have our being in him. Just think for a moment about the air you breathe. Did you have to pay money for that air?

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“No, I didn’t,” he replied.

Amelia asked, “Did you pay money to anyone for the life you have?”

He shook his head and Riley went on, “This summary of Psalm 139:13,14a states You, LORD made me in my mother. I will praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are marvelous.”

“You’re right,” admitted the man, “birth is a marvelous thing.”

Amelia added, “Part of Isaiah 43:7 says, the LORD created people for his glory.”

Riley stated, “Therefore, Matthew 6:33 tells us to seek God’s kingdom and his righteousness and he will give you the things you need. But this doesn’t mean you never have to work and pay for what you need. But it does mean that you don’t depend on money like you said you do. It means that we depend on God instead.”

Then Riley and Amelia explained the Good News to the man and helped him to understand what he needed to do next. He wasn’t ready yet, so they gave him a pamphlet explaining it more detail and wrote their phone number on it so he could call and ask questions.

The man read the pamphlet and called Riley to get his questions answered. Then he did accept Jesus and agreed to meet Riley and Amelia at church the next weekend. He was soon in a small group learning how to live for Jesus instead of for money.

The rest of the seniors we have met from this year’s high school graduation, Gina and Helen, Lois and Vicky, Sylvie and Kendra, Edna and Libby, on the ranch, and Warren, from the farm, were ready to move when they turned nineteen. They had gotten good jobs in Pine City, and had saved their money to buy what they would need when they moved, and pay the first of the rent for an apartment. Their jobs would provide for the months after that.

Since his roommate had gotten married already, Warren decided to live alone in a studio apartment. He wasn’t in a hurry to get married now.

The girls from the ranch found apartments with one bedroom and stayed with the same roommate they had had on the ranch. They weren’t in a hurry to get married either and would wait until January to see if they would be in a small group with young men their ages. Since there were so many of the girls and so few boys from the farm, it might take more time. But they had heard their parents say that there were also families in the city raising foster boys who might be their ages. The girls decided to trust the Lord to lead them.

Several of the girls were still praying for guidance about staying single or getting married. The eight girls named above had been good friends while they were on the ranch, so they met together once a week for the rest of the year as a support group. They made time for singing hymns and looking at some scriptures before they would visit and pray for each other. This was an adventure for them and they were glad to have others to encourage them.

Lois and Vicky and Sylvie and Kendra were very serious in their prayers and since they had heard about several other girls going into the army or another branch of the service, they went as a group to see Kosuke and Aneko to get their questions answered. Then they prayed some more called their foster parents and prayed with them also. They felt led to become chaplains in whatever branch of the armed services where Jesus would put them. So in January they started on that adventure.

The other seniors were put into the new small groups that started in January. These groups would become support groups for them. Some of them requested to be in a small group with two believing young men so they could get better acquainted.

The Fosters were still enjoying being a foster family on the ranch, even though it was a lot more work than they had just being their old, small family in the city. However, the rewards were great, especially since all the girls had accepted Jesus and he was restoring them, and they were learning how to live for him.

In the early spring, Vera had told Sherry about the wildflower scrapbooks she and her girls had made. When Sherry told her new girls, they were dubious about the idea. They had made the following comments.

April mentioned, “This might be a great way to learn about the wildflowers on this ranch.”

“For sure,” agreed May, “but how do you put wildflowers into a scrapbook?”

Tina protested, “I would think doing that would squash them!”

“Right,” agreed Lina, “or else it would make a very thick book, or it would not have room for very many flowers.”

Hope remembered, “One day when we came to ride horses with the quadruplets, they showed us the wildflower scrapbooks they had made. The wildflowers were squashed, but it didn’t hurt their beauty.”

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“Correct,” and Joy went on, “and the books are a little thicker than other scrapbooks I’ve seen. But I hope we will get to make one apiece because it think it would make a good keepsake.”

Then the new girls agreed and as a result, Roy had shopped for the needed supplies on the day he did the grocery shopping for the family. The girls got into the recycle bin and took out all the empty cereal boxes and cut pieces of cardboard to the right size to use under the bottom newsprint to absorb the moisture. And then Vera, Emma, and Nan had all helped to teach these girls and their mom how to press the flowers.

The Fosters had to borrow the heavy encyclopedias from the game room library, because they didn’t have any of their own. They used these books to press the flowers between pages of clean newsprint from a tablet the right size while they dried for four weeks under the encyclopedias. They also checked out the books about wildflowers so they could identify the flowers and use the books to write summaries on the pages of the scrapbook for each flower.

So by this time of the summer, Sherry and the girls had all started their own scrapbook of the wildflowers that could be found on the ranch. Each day of the weekend they would go as soon as the dew had dried from the flowers and gather enough different flowers to fit on one page of the newsprint. As they picked them, they wrote the name of each one in their notebook so they could write information about the flowers on one page each in the scrapbook. This way it would be ready when the flower was pressed and dry enough to attach it to the page.

The girls also decided to include green tree leaves in the summer, leaving enough room on each page for the matching colored one in the fall. This project took a lot of planning, carefulness and time, but the end result would be well worth it. So they all kept at it.

For this Fourth of July RV trip, the Jones and Warners went to a different mountain area with a forest service campground called One Mile Campground. It has 25 sites so they could have ministry areas in both ends of it. They had reserved their sites in the early spring so they would be sure to get the ones they chose.

It was located on the beautiful Taylor River where many people like to fish, so Frank figured that the rest of the campground was likely to be full during their stay. The Jones and Warners had gotten together one evening before reserving their sites.

Vern had stated, “We need to find some four-wheel drive roads we could explore during the daytime and still get back to have evening campsite meetings.”

“Absolutely, since the four of us don’t like to fish,” agreed Frank.

Becky nodded, “Yes, we would much rather go exploring.”

“Let’s look for some waterfalls and small lakes in the area while we’re at it.” suggested Lora.

Becky responded, “Yes let’s do that. Also, we’ve gotten a screen tent like you two have, so we can have pest free meetings.”

“Wonderful,” declared Vern. “It will make it much nicer for you and everyone who comes to your meetings.”

For this trip they chose the following patriotic songs and found scripture verses to use after them.

“America” (My Country ‘Tis of Thee), “The Star Spangled Banner,” “America the Beautiful,” “God Bless America,” and “Let There Be Peace on Earth.”

The Scripture verses they chose were as follows.

John 8:32, Jesus said, And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

2 Corinthians 3:17, Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

Galatians 5:1, Stand fast therefore in the liberty with which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

Titus 3:1-5, Remind people to be subject to (the laws), to obey officials, to be ready to do every good work, to speak evil of no man, to not be brawlers, but be gentle, … for (some people are) foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another. But after the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared, he saved us according to his mercy, … not by works of righteousness which we have done.

Then they included some of the other well known Good News verses especially when answering questions these four scriptures generated. If the people were leaving the next day, they gave them pamphlets that explained the Good News again and their phone number was written on the back in case someone wanted to call with more questions or to get help in praying.

For the ones who came back the second night, there was more time for answering questions, and inviting the people to accept Jesus.

 

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If there were other believers there, they asked them to stay after the meeting and included a time of prayer for the United States of America.

Seth and Christi moved into the upstairs of the fifth house on the ranch soon after they got word that it was completed and cleaned. They had done most of the same things the other couples had done before they moved to the ranch, so they were very ready.

Also, they had studied with Ned and Hanna, had completed the training for raising abused foster kids, and had gotten their licenses. With the help of Ned and Hanna, they got their things moved into the house on the ranch and started to get settled there.

The next weekend Seth and Christi helped Ned and Hanna, who were able to move into a furnished house on the farm. An older couple there, had moved back to Pine City with their senior boys, who wished to go to night school at the trade school. This way they wouldn’t have so far to drive. And the older couple had decided to find work that would be easier than the farm work.

Jeff and Karen and Oscar and Vera came to pray God’s blessing on Seth and Christi and to dedicate the house to the Lord. Jeff and Karen were very pleased with their first four girls and what they were doing on the farm and the ranch. They would also be happy to see the progress their new girls would be making.

Karen also said “There will be a new Bible Study Group starting soon after all four of your girls have been assigned and have a chance to feel settled. We’ll get together with Roger and Liz to work out how one of you can help me with the group while the other one does something fun with my new girls in the same room. And then alternate with the other couple the next time.”

“We’ll look forward to it, Mom,” replied Christi, “thank you!”

All the new couples had done as Candy and Evan had done to learn from their own foster parents during their courtship and also during their first two weeks on the farm or ranch. Plus they had plenty of help from the other people living on the ranch or farm.

As the five new houses were being completed and filled with families, the school district had needed to revise the number of buses needed for that rural area.

Girls who had already been living on the ranch sat with the new ones on the school bus and they became friends who could be silent or verbal witnesses to the new ones.

The bus driver who had become a believer a few years before was totally pleased when her bus only had to go to the ranch to pick up students for middle and high school because all those students were very well behaved.

When all the houses on the ranch were finished, there were eighty-two high school teenage girls minus the four girls in the Hopkins family, because they rode with their parents to and from school. When Felix and Sunny moved to the main farm house and Hugo and Ellie move into their former house, the farm had 52 boys of various ages. The school district would probably need two large buses to accommodate just the farm and the ranch. Some of the senior girls would need to ride on the bus for the farm.

Social services would probably have a waiting list for girls to be assigned to the ranch because of the therapy the horses can provide or because parents or social workers decide the ranch would be the best place for a girl or even for a girl who has heard about the ranch and wants to live there instead of in her own abusive house.

The farm might also have a waiting list for boys who need the rural setting and jobs to do so they feel useful.

Ben didn’t have to be looking for possibilities for a building project to follow the completion of the game and library room on Mercy Valley Farm. People with a project came looking for him when they heard that he was finished with the houses he had built for the former Yardley Dude Ranch.

These people had a ranch in the same Mercy Stream valley. It was a short drive from downtown Pine City, and was situated in the quiet valley just ten miles downstream from Mercy Valley Farm. So it was on the same stream that joined the Mercy River farther down the valley.

They had known Oscar and Vera for years, but weren’t as old as they were. Their names were Stuart and Doris Baker. They had become believers several years ago and attended Grace ‘n’ Faith Church #4. They had visited with Oscar and Vera many times since then. Theirs was one of the dude ranches that had been converted into Caring Foster Homes for abused girls when they heard about the idea from the church list. They had named it Compassion Ranch in Mercy Valley.

Many of the visits they had made were to get encouragement and guidance from Oscar and Vera as they changed their dude ranch into a community of Caring Foster Homes for abused girls. Later, they had observed and looked at the new houses being built and were very impressed.

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Therefore, they asked Oscar and Vera to introduce them to Ben and Mindy. After getting acquainted, they made an appointment for after supper the next day to meet with Ben in the lower game room of the original big house. They brought photographs of the ranch and the valley and of the existing buildings, plus sketches of the houses they wanted him to build.

Ben went to their ranch the following morning to check things out there, and to find out how long it would take for Evan and his two foremen, Denji and Jeff to drive from the Mercy Valley Ranch every day to continue working with him. It only took him about ten minutes, and it would be a closer drive for the rest of the workers who came from Pine City daily. Therefore he called all the workers of both crews together that afternoon and told them all the details of the next possible project and asked how many would be willing to continue working for The Master’s Builders construction company to do this project for another five years. All of them said they’d be very happy to do it.

Ben was pleased with the layout and the people he would be working for. They desired to use the same floor plans for building the two-story houses on the hillside behind the existing houses. And this would include the first one being bigger with game rooms and a nice lawn. It would almost be a twin ranch!

On top of those good things, there was an RV pad where he could park the four-season travel trailer he and Mindy were calling home. The rent and utilities would cost nothing, just like when he was building for Oscar and Vera. Plus this time he had asked them if he could take just enough time off working to give him and the workers one week in the spring, or summer, or fall for a vacation each year, and they said, “Yes!”

Ben quickly got all the preliminary work done, moved their trailer to Compassion Ranch and had one crew go to there to get the first house started, while the other crew was finishing the game and library room on the farm. Ben went back and forth to supervise and help wherever he was needed. This way he hoped they would be able to get the lower and upper stories closed in by winter and be able to continue working like they had before.

The Clays and their foster girl, Tanya, were visiting with Patrick and Glenda O’Connor and they talked about a song they had sung on the weekend in the church service.

After supper and clean-up were done, Tanya remarked, “The song, ‘Heavenly Sunshine,’ sure is a pretty one. The words had some wonderful promises.”

“I agree,” Connie replied, “and I like the melody of the song also.

Ernest suggested, “Since we all like this song, how would it be to look up some scriptures that would go with the lyrics?”

Glenda responded, “What a great idea and it will make a good Bible study for us this evening.”

Tanya was first with Matthew 28:20b, “After giving the great commission Jesus said, ‘ I am with you always even to the end of the world…’ I think this is a positive way of saying Jesus will never forsake us.”

“I really like that verse,” then Patrick found and read, Deuteronomy 31:8, And the LORD … goes before you, he will be with you, he will not fail you, neither forsake you, so fear not, neither be dismayed. This is what God said to Joshua when he was to take over Moses’ job.

“Those are great verses,” Connie applauded, “and Hebrews 13:5b, also goes with that promise, … and be content with the things you have, for he has said, ‘I will never leave you, nor forsake you.

Glenda went on, “Yes, indeed, and in the second stanza it talks about Jesus being light with no darkness. It goes well with 1 John 1:5, This then is the message which we heard of him and declare to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

“What a great verse!” Ernest exclaimed. “Also I really like John 8:12, where Jesus said, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

“Same here,” and Connie mentioned, “2 Corinthians 4:6 is one of my favorite scriptures. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, has shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

“And speaking about favorites,” Tanya went on, “I really like Psalm 119:105, Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path. This verse could go with sunlight and Jesus as light.

“I think so too,” Patrick declared. “For the stanza that talks about walking by Jesus’ side, I found Amos 3:3, Can two walk together, except they be agreed? It would make more sense to me to say, In order to walk together, two need to be agreed.”

Glenda concurred, “Right, Honey, and another good one about walking is Colossians 2:6, As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him… “

Connie said, “Very good, and I like the rejoicing in the song. It goes with Philippians 4:4, Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say, Rejoice.”

 

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Tanya stated, “I found another very short one for rejoice. 1 Thessalonians 5:16 says, Rejoice evermore.

“Perfect,” and Ernest finished with, “Psalm 5:11a, … Let all those who put their trust in you rejoice.”

Mindy and Julie continued being friends after Ben and Mindy moved to the other ranch, even though they no longer took turns driving to their teaching jobs at the church school. It would have added extra time for both of them. So they tried to find time one day a week to eat lunch together and get caught up on the news of both ranches and their family life and how things were going in their classrooms.

Plus they still went grocery shopping one day a week together after school and had also started to use it for a two by two ministry time. They would walk through the store with one cart for the two of them to use. They prayed for the people they saw in the store and started conversations whenever they had the chance. Each one would put their things in a separate part of the cart and pay for them separately at the check out area.

Ben and Mindy also nurtured their friendships with the other people on Mercy Valley Ranch by going to ride horses with the families on some evenings and weekends. Furthermore they both still thought it was fun and good exercise.

They also had permission to ride the horses on Compassion Ranch either as a couple or with a family. Or they could invite their parents, Ernest and Connie and / or the Vern and Lora, to come riding with them.

Every week Ben and Mindy went to Pine City to spend time with each set of their parents. They did this in conjunction with their weekly ministry time as a couple, which included times when they had practiced songs with Mindy accompanying them on her autoharp. It also included times when they were going to go on a fun date with each other.

For one of those fun dates they went to visit the zoo. While they were there, Mindy remembered a time she, her dad, and Lora had gone there, so she asked, “Ben which animals do you like best?”

Ben answered, “I like seeing the wolf pack, because they remind me of German shepherd dogs. Those dogs are so intelligent they can be trained to help handicap people, especially those like the ones that become seeing eye dogs.”

“I agree,” Mindy stated, “let's go there first then, so we'll be sure to see them. After that we can just go from group to group of animals until we run out of time.”

“Great idea, my love,” Ben responded. “You have lots of good ideas!”

Mindy replied honestly, “Well, it wasn’t really my idea. When Lora asked me that question a long time ago when we went to the zoo, my dad said, ‘That's a very good idea. It's almost like eating dessert first!’ It’s a fun memory for me.”

They both had a happy laugh about her memory as they walked over to where the wolves were.

Oscar had found time to ask Nan and Emma separately about the job offer. He asked each one to write the answer and why, put it in the envelope he gave her and push it under the door into his and Mom’s room. The next day he and Vera found the two letters.

Nan’s letter said, “Thank you for giving me this job offer. I think it is something

I could do, because Mom has taught me so well, and I’ll need all those skills

if God does send me a man to marry who has the same desire as I have, which

is to raise abused foster girls here on this ranch if there would be a place here

for us to live.

Having said all that, I need to be honest and say that I would like to try

my wings and see if I can get a job and live in Pine City for a while before

moving back to the ranch. Even so, if you can’t find another person to do this

job, I will do it.

Sincerely, Nan”

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Emma’s letter said, ““““T T Th T h h ha a a an n nk n k k k yyyyo o o ou u u u,,,, D D Da D a a ad d d d,,,, ffffo o o orrrr tttte ee elllllllliiiin n n ng g g m g m me m ee e a a ab a b bo b o ou o u u utttt tttth h h hiiiissss o o o op p p pp p p po o o orrrrttttu u u un n n niiiittttyyyy tttto o o o

c cc co o o on n nttttiiiin n n nu n u u ue ee e lllliiiivvvviiiin n n ng g g h g h he h ee errrre ee e iiiin n tttth h h hiiiissss h h ho h o o om m m me ee e,,,, w w wh w h h hiiiicccch h h IIII llllo h o o ovvvve ee e sssso o o m o m m mu u u uc cc ch h h h,,,, a a a an n nd n d d d e ee evvvve ee en n n b n b b be ee e a a ab a b b blllle ee e

tttto o o h o h h he ee ellllp p p p M M M Mo o o om m m m.... D D Do D o o oe ee essss ssssh h h he ee e k k kn k n n no o ow o w w a w a a an n n nd d d d a a a ag g g grrrre ee ee ee e w w w wiiiitttth h h h yyyyo o o ou u u urrrr p p plllla p a a an n n n???? IIIIffff sssso o o o,,,, IIII w w w wo o ou o u ulllld u d d d rrrre ee ea a a allllllllyyyy

lllliiiik k k ke ee e tttto o o o h h ha h a a avvvve ee e tttth hiiiissss jjjjo o o ob b b,,,, b b b be b ee ec cc ca a a au u usssse u ee e IIII a a a allllrrrre ee ea a ad a d d dy yy y k k kn k n n no o ow o w w h w h h ho o o ow w w tttto w o o o d d do d o o a o a a allllllll tttth h h ho o o osssse ee e tttth h h hiiiin n n ng g gssss,,,, g

ssssiiiin n nc n cc ce ee e ssssh h he h ee e h ha a a assss tttta a a au u ug u g gh g h htttt a h a a allllllll o o o offff u u ussss g u g giiiirrrrllllssss h g h h ho o o ow w w tttto w o o d o d do d o o iiiitttt.... o

B B B Bu u u utttt ssssh h h he ee e w w w wo o o ou u ulllld u d d d n n n ne ee ee ee ed d d tttto d o o d o d d de ee ec cc ciiiid d d de ee e iiiiffff IIII cccco o ou o u ulllld u d d d d d d do o o o tttth h he h ee em m m w m w w we ee ellllllll e ee en n n no o o ou u ug u g g gh h h tttto h o o b o b b be ee e h hiiiirrrre ee ed d d d....

IIIIffff ssssh h h he ee e d d d do o o oe ee essssn n n’’’’tttt tttth n h h hiiiin n nk n k k k sssso o o,,,, m o m m ma a ay a yy yb b b be ee e yyyyo o o ou u u u cccco o o ou u ulllld u d d d ffffiiiin n n nd d d d sssso o o om m m me ee eo o on o n n ne ee e b b b be ee etttttttte ee errrr.... H H Ha H a a avvvve ee e yyyyo o ou o u u u

c cc co o o on n nssssiiiid n d d de ee errrre ee ed d d d a a a assssk k k kiiiin n n ng g g N g N N Na a an a n n n???? SSSSh h h he ee e m m miiiig m g gh g h htttt b h b b be ee e b b be b ee etttttttte ee errrr q q q qu u ua u a a alllliiiiffffiiiie ee ed d d d tttth h h ha a a an n n n IIII w w wo w o o ou u ulllld u d d d b b b be ee e....

IIIIffff,,,, h h ho h o o ow w w we ee evvvve ee errrr M M M Mo o o om m m m tttth h hiiiin h n n nk k kssss IIII w k w wo w o o ou u u ulllld d d d d d do d o o w o w w we ee ellllllll e ee en n no n o o ou u u ug g g gh h h h,,,, tttth h h hiiiissss w w wo w o o ou u ulllld u d d b d b b be ee e a a an a n n iiiid n d de d ee ea a a allll

jjjjo o o ob b b b ffffo o orrrr m o m m me ee e,,,, ssssiiiin nc cc ce ee e IIII rrrre ee ea a allllllllyyyy d a d d do o o o d d de d ee essssiiiirrrre ee e tttto o o o b b b be ee e a a ab a b b blllle ee e tttto o o rrrra o a aiiiisssse a ee e a a a ab b b bu u u usssse ee ed d d ffffo d o o osssstttte ee errrr g g g giiiirrrrllllssss h h h he ee errrre ee e

o o o on n n n tttth h hiiiissss rrrra h a an a n n nc cc ch h h.... A h A A An n nd n d d iiiiffff JJJJe d ee essssu u u ussss sssse ee en n n nd d dssss m d m m me ee e jjjju u u usssstttt tttth h he h ee e rrrriiiig g g gh h h htttt m m ma m a a an n n tttto n o o b o b b be ee e tttth h h he ee eiiiirrrr d d d da a a ad d d,,,, d

m m m ma a a ay yy yb b be b ee e w w w we ee e cccco o o ou u u ulllld d d d tttta a a allllk k k tttth k h h he ee e ttttw w w wo o o o o o o offff yyyyo o o ou u u iiiin u n ntttto n o o o sssstttta a ay a yy yiiiin n ng n g g h g h he h ee errrre ee e iiiin n tttth h hiiiissss h h h ho h o o om m m me ee e iiiin n tttth h h he ee e

e ee ex x x xttttrrrra a a b a b b be ee ed d d drrrro o o oo o o om m m.... P m P P Po o o ossssssssiiiib b bllllyyyy yyyyo b o ou o u u u cccco o o ou u u ulllld d d b d b be b ee e lllliiiik k ke k ee e g g grrrra g a a an n nd n d d dp p p pa a a arrrre ee en nttttssss tttto o o o tttth h h he ee e g g g giiiirrrrllllssss.... T T Th T h he h ee en n n n

m m m my yy y h hu u u ussssb b ba b a an a n n nd d d a d a a an n n nd d d IIII cccco d o o ou u u ulllld d d lllliiiivvvve d ee e h h h he ee errrre ee e a a a an n n nd d d d w w w we ee e cccco o o ou u u ulllld d d b d b be b ee e tttth h he h ee e ffffo osssstttte ee errrr p p p pa a a arrrre ee en n nttttssss.... D n D D Do o o o

y yy yo o o ou u u tttth u h hiiiin h n n nk k k k iiiitttt m m m miiiig g g gh h htttt w h w w wo o orrrrk o k k???? IIII p k p p prrrra a a ay yy y tttth h ha h a a atttt JJJJe ee essssu u u ussss w w w wiiiillllllll p p p prrrro o ovvvviiiid o d d de ee e yyyyo o o ou u u u w w w wiiiitttth h h h tttth h he h ee e b b be b ee esssstttt

p p p pe ee errrrsssso o on o n n n....

SSSSiiiin n n nc cc ce ee errrre ee ellllyyyy,,,, E E Em E m mm m m m ma a a”””” a

After reading both letters, Vera had tears of joy in her eyes. “We have the best girls I can imagine. They’re both humble, honest, and capable. I think Emma would be the better one for the position and I’m glad Nan would rather go live in the city for a while anyway. It makes it much easier to choose!”

“I agree with you, one hundred percent!” Oscar declared. “It was nice of Nan to say she would do it if we can’t find someone else. But Emma will fit right into our plan. And we can count on Jesus to send her just the right man to be her husband and dad to the new girls.”

Vera nodded and smiled. “Plus she even wants to talk us into staying here in this home, which is exactly what we desire too!”

Oscar and Vera did a little victory dance around their room and then he found time to talk to each daughter separately again, thank them for the letters they wrote, answer Emma’s questions, and hire her for the job which would start as soon as she graduated from high school. She could continue in the same room with the new roommate she had been helping since Liz left. Nan and the roommate she was helping since Stella left would also continue as they were doing.

Then after the graduation / going-away party, as each girl turned nineteen, she would move to Pine City, except for Emma, who would stay where she was, continuing her new job of doing Vera’s work. After her wedding Emma and her new husband would move into the mom and dad bedroom. Oscar and Vera would have moved into the extra room already, and both of them were looking forward to this change in their lifestyle.

That same day, the older couple went to see Oscar and Vera. He said, “our new ministry will be to help the two girls who were with us the longest get the schooling they need to be counselors in nursing homes.”

“Yes,” the woman continued, “they can live with us as they work days at the department store and take night classes and pay us reduced room and board. Maybe one or both of them will decide to stay with us and take care of us when we get to the point that we would need care.”

Vera commented, “I think it sounds like a great idea.”

Shortly after their spring RV trip, Vern, Lora, Frank and Becky had also gotten together another spring evening after supper and planned for their Labor Day RV ministry trip. They needed to decide on places to go and some other new songs and scriptures.

Frank had suggested, “I'd like to go to the higher mountain areas in Colorado, and go over some of the mountain passes that need our four-wheel drive vehicles. All the snow should be melted off the passes by then, unless we get an early fall snow.”

“Great idea!” Vern declared. “We should also be able to see some early fall colors in the aspen trees and Gambel oak trees as we go up in elevation.”

 

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Becky mentioned, “This book names some mountain passes we haven’t gone over yet. Many of them are easy and moderate, with only four of them listed as difficult. We should have plenty of ones that are not difficult to choose from for the week we’re in that area.”

Looking at the same book, Lora added, “Yes, and there are some forest service campgrounds close to the area. Plus there are some dispersed camping places mentioned on the web.”

Frank suggested going to one of the dispersed places for this trip and the others agreed.

Next they chose songs and scriptures to use in their evening campsite meetings. Lora stated, “Of course we’ll start with ‘One Day,’ using the chart to teach the people how to sing songs in the hymnal.”

“For sure,” agreed Becky. After that Let’s sing ‘Majestic Sweetness Sits Enthroned.’ It’s a good follow-up song for ‘One Day,’ because it praises Jesus’ glory and grace. He is better than all other humans and more than that, he saw our sinful state and came to save us by dying on the cross. Many blessings are ours because of him and it ends by expressing that if I had a thousand hearts to give, I’d give them all to him. Part of Luke 4:22 goes well with it, because it says, people wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth…”

“It sounds like a very good song,” and then Frank suggested, “the next song could be ‘Join All the Glorious Names.’ The lyrics say that if we could put all the known names of wisdom, love, and power or angels together, they’d be too poor to tell of Jesus worth or show who he is. The rest of the stanzas tell how he died to atone for sins and bring peace, and how he is Shepherd, counselor, pattern, and guide. Ephesians 1:20b,21 go well with this song. God raised Jesus from the dead and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come…”

Vern declared, “I really like that song and the scriptures! The last song we sing could be ‘His Way with Thee.’ This song says that if you desire to live for Jesus, be pure and good, walk with him, have him bear your burden, … save you, … then, let him have his way with you, because his power, blood, and love will show you that it’s the best thing to do. Psalm 18:30-32 go with this song. As for God, his way is perfect. The word of the LORD is tried and he is a shield to all those who trust in him. For who is God except the LORD? Who is a rock except our God? It is God who girds me with strength and makes my way perfect.”

“I think all our songs and scriptures are extra special for the trip that’s coming up in the fall!” Lora exclaimed.

They did have an extra special trip, and the songs and scriptures generated many questions they could answer at the campsite meetings. By the end of their stay several people had accepted Jesus as their Savior. Others took a pamphlet home with them and promised to call with more questions.

During the first year when Ted and Julie had moved to Pine City, Julie had started teaching third grade in the church school. The same year, Ron Miller, one of the boys in her first third grade class in Pine City had written a note to her saying he desired to become an airplane pilot. He had come back to see her almost every year since then, to tell her of his progress toward his goal. She had kept Ted, her husband, up to date, because he was interested. Some years later as a young man Ron dropped in again at school dressed in his pilot’s uniform.

Julie exclaimed, “Congratulations! I’m so pleased that you were able to become a pilot. What are your plans now?”

He informed her, “I desire to be a pilot to help missionaries. I just stopped by in Pine City to visit my parents and you, my favorite teacher, today as I was on my way to one of the best missionary aviation organizations to learn more about my desired career.”

A few weeks after he arrived at that organization, Ron met Stella preparing to do the same thing he was, and they worked together on some projects. Sometimes they talked about their plans, including that neither wanted to marry because of the dangers involved with their chosen profession.

But they learned a lot about the career and about each other. Both of them were believers and were from Pine City. They had both attended Church #4 as they were growing up. They had both desired to become a pilot when they were pretty young and had carried through with their plans. They both desired to use being a pilot as a way to serve Jesus.

There were several books they were studying. One of them said it was not a good idea to be the only pilot in an airplane for various reasons. They considered what the book said about it being safer to have a backup pilot along for each trip. They prayed a lot about it and asked themselves and their parents and the counselor in the organization if a marriage would be possible and if so, could they work together? The answers were yes, so they started going on double dates and ministry times with another couple who were in the small group they attended.

 

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Stella had brought the list of things to check for in a possible spouse, so she started checking them off and was pleased to find that he passed them all with flying colors. When Stella told him about her background and her wonderful foster parents and growing up on the ranch, he finally understood why they had never met before. She also had the list of issues and showed it to him. He made a copy of it and they wrote essays about their opinions. When they read the other one, they both felt like they had found kindred spirits in each other and they would definitely be compatible.

Ron soon introduced Stella to his parents on the phone and they visited many times that way. During the same time period, Stella introduced Ron to her foster dad and mom on the phone and they spent several more calls getting better acquainted. The last time he called he asked for their daughter’s hand in marriage, and they agreed.

So Ron proposed to Stella soon after that, and since she said “Yes,” they started making plans. They would both like to be married in the Grace ‘n’ Faith Church with Pastor Don officiating. They called and asked him to choose whatever scriptures and songs and hymns he wanted to be sung by the congregation, and teach whatever he desired as part of the ceremony.

Ron and Stella would each have three of their friends as attendants. Stella knew she would choose her foster sisters, Liz Emma, and Nan. He would choose three close friends from his class at school. Everyone in the wedding party would just wear their favorite church clothes.

When he asked what she’d like to do for a honeymoon, she remembered seeing his eyes light up when she had told him about the things she had seen and done on Mercy Valley Ranch. So she suggested, “The ranch where I lived used to be a dude ranch, and the Visitor’s Cabin used to be called the Honeymoon Cottage. Maybe we could rent it and spend our honeymoon there doing as many as we can of the fun things I told you about.”

Ron’s eyes lit up again and he rapidly agreed, “Perfect for me, if you are sure it would be what you desire, my darling.”

“I am very sure, Honey,” she replied, “I’ve missed all of it, and to be able to share the things I enjoy with the man I love, would be perfect for me also!”

So he called Oscar and Vera and made arrangements to rent the Visitor’s Cabin for the week after their wedding. They flew in the Friday afternoon of the wedding, changed into good church clothes at his family home and were driven in separate cars to the church so he could use one of the cars to drive them to the ranch after the wedding.

Their wedding was very nice and meaningful. They did not have a reception or gifts, since they already had the items needed for an apartment. They both thoroughly enjoyed their honeymoon week on the ranch, especially the wedding night and other times of learning how to show intimate love to each other. Much of their other time was spent with just the two of them, but they also did things with Ron’s family in Pine City and Stella’s family on the ranch.

Vera and Unice had gone grocery shopping together to get what they needed for their own homes and also bought enough for Stella to be able to prepare meals in the Visitor’s Cabin for the week of their honeymoon. Ron and Stella had sent money to pay for the groceries. Vera knew what Stella had learned to cook and she left recipes and groceries in the cabin for her to use. It was good practice for Stella as she started getting used to being married that week.

Just the same, Stella was pleasantly surprised when Ron offered, “Honey, I’d like to help you with the cooking and housework. Since we’re going to share our pilot jobs, we could also share jobs for housekeeping. My mom taught me a lot, and you can teach me more. The rest we can learn together.”

“What a wonderful idea!” Stella exclaimed. “Thank you Dearest!”

One evening during supper, Don, Anita, Timothy, and Mary enjoyed remembering Ron and Stella’s wedding. Don began, “This was another surprise wedding for us, since Stella had moved away and Vera had told us she had decided to stay single because of the dangers involved in being a pilot.”

“Right,” Anita continued, “but then she met Ron at the missionary aviation organization, and we knew nothing about their courtship until they called and told you about it.”

Timothy mentioned, “I think it was a good idea for them to ask you to choose scriptures, what to sing, and what to teach, since they were so far away from here.”

“Yes,” and Mary added, “I especially liked hearing the hymn, ‘Immortal, Invisible’ as the wedding party came down the isle to meet you and the groom and his groom’s men standing at the front of the sanctuary. And it was a very good idea for the men to all say 1 Timothy 1:17 together. It says, Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen. I liked the idea of giving God praise and honor at the beginning of the ceremony.”

 

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“Indeed,” agreed Anita, “and I enjoyed seeing Stella’s sisters come down the isle like models in a fashion show with the pretty, church dresses they had made themselves. It was special that she chose them to be her attendants. Then I liked to see Oscar smile as he escorted his first foster daughter down the isle.”

“I agree,” said Timothy, “and I liked seeing you, Dad, and all the men in their nice suits without ties to choke them. I’m glad so many people choose to do that at their weddings.”

“Thank you, Timothy,” responded Don, “and I’m glad too. The first song I had the congregation sing was ‘My Tribute’ and it seemed so fitting to go with the story they told me, about themselves. I liked to summarize and tell the congregation of their journeys from childhood through salvation and their work to become pilots God could use in his missionary service. And they gave him all the glory. Then I read Psalm 115:1, Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name give glory, for your mercy and for your truth’s sake.”

“It was perfect, Honey,” stated Anita, “and I’m glad you chose so many good verses for your teaching time about the importance and permanence of marriage. And then you ended your teaching by having the congregation sing ‘May the Grace of Christ, Our Savior,’ as their prayer for the couple. The stanzas are just right and it goes well with 2 Corinthians 9:8, God is able to make all grace abound toward you, so that you will always have all sufficiency in all things and may abound to every good work.”

“Absolutely,” and then Don went on, “when I was choosing the songs, I had fun reading the lyrics to Eternal Father, Strong to Save.” but I laughed when I realized it was mostly for safety on the sea. Nevertheless I found ‘Lord Guard and Guide the Men who Fly,’ by Mary C. D. Hamilton, which is also known as the ‘United States Air Force Hymn,’ and since I didn’t have music on an SD card for that one, I made a summary of the title with parts of the stanzas. Then I used it as my prayer for them putting their names in place of the word ‘men,”at the end of the teaching time.”

Mary commented, “I liked the way you prayed that with your hands on their heads, and then pronounced them husband and wife. And of course, I always like to watch them kiss after you tell the man he may kiss his bride.”

“So do I,” and then Timothy admitted, “but I have no idea how it must feel, and I won’t know for a long time either.”

Anita laughed with them and then declared, “I think the song you chose for the recessional was also one of my favorites. ‘Be Exalted, O God’ gives thanks and praise for God’s love and exalts him. I like how well it goes with Psalm 57:9-11, which says, I will praise you, O Lord, among the people. I will sing to you among the nations. For your mercy is great unto the heavens and your truth unto the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let your glory be above all the earth. I think their wedding was wonderful and very special because you did such a good job.”

“Thank you, Dearest,” Don responded. “I hope Ron and Stella will have many fond memories of it as they go through life together serving their Lord Jesus. Plus I’m glad Ron's mother took a video of the entire ceremony, and will give it to the couple.”

Brad and Irene and their girls developed a good friendship with the Fosters and their big family. The foundation had been laid when they were in the small group Brad had joined when he had moved to Pine City after completing his story about Mercy Valley Ranch.

Therefore, very soon after he and Irene had moved into the house on the ranch, and before any girls had been assigned to them he took Irene and introduced her to Roy, Sherry, Hope and Joy, and the other four girls in the big family. They had all gone into the upstairs game room to talk since there was more room there. In a little while, the six girls went to play a Bible Board game while the adults visited.

Brad and Irene told Roy and Sherry how they had met and what their plans were. Since the Fosters had been on the ranch longer they volunteered to hike with Brad and Irene and their girls during the summer to Lavender Falls. This would give their new girls a chance to meet and talk to the others. They all got along well in spite of the many different ages.

Later, whenever it worked out, the two families and all ten girls went horseback riding together. The girls liked going with a different partner each time and so they had some more chances to talk to the other girls.

Brad and Irene also enjoyed introducing their girls to Jose and Lisa’s girls as well as Seth and Christi’s girls and Roger and Liz’s girls. They liked getting together on the lawn by the new big house so they could play lawn games or just sit and visit in pairs.

Also, Brad and Irene made time to teach their girls and any other high school girls the editing skills he had taught as a way to thank families on the ranch at the beginning of this story. The girls were pleased to see their grades improving as they used these skills.

 

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All the newer families had joined existing small groups when they had gotten settled, so the adults got acquainted in their groups, and the girls got to know the other girls during the separate meetings they had at the same time.

All of these activities helped to build unity and a sense of community for the new people on the ranch along with ways they could get help when they might need it. Of course it also helped the youngest foster mothers that they had grown up on the ranch and were friends with each other. Their own foster parents were also a huge help to them.

Bruce remarked, now that it’s October, the main harvest time for the truck farm fruits and vegetables is just about over, and now the pumpkins are starting to get ripe.”

“Right,” agreed Ryan, “and we have to watch them closely because they ripen best when they’re attached to the vines.”

“Yeah,” said Leo, “we learned it’s the same as for strawberries, grapes and watermelons.”

Tyler added, “I like the things we’ve learned about farming since we came here to live.”

Their foster dad, Gary, inserted, “It was the same way for me, when I came to this farm to live in a foster family. I was fascinated with the whole idea of farming and even better than that, was learning about Jesus and accepting him as my Savior.

“Terrific, and I’m still amazed when I look at the seeds before they’re planted and then see them sprout and come up to be the same as the plant they came from the year before,” stated Kim, their foster mom.

Tyler exclaimed, “Only a very wise creator could make each different kind of plant make seeds that would do be able to make new plants just like them!”

“Absolutely!” Leo declared. “I like to remember the story we heard about Bryan Buckwheat when I see those little pyramid shaped seeds covered with a hard black shell.”

Ryan nodded, “It’s hard enough to plant them, let alone get those shells off if we want to cook the seeds and eat them like rice.”

“I enjoy eating them that way, and don’t we usually buy them with the shells already removed?” Bruce asked.

Kim answered, “Yes, since many times the whole crop is good enough to sell, or else they plow the whole plant under to improve the soil so another kind of crop can grow where they were.”

“From what I’ve read, not many farms take the time and effort to improve the soil naturally like this one does,” commented Gary.

Ryan remarked, “This is a very special farm. I’m pretty sure there aren’t very many farms that have houses for foster families where boys can live and learn about farming and the Bible and Jesus.”

“Well,” stated Leo, “I for one, am very thankful for this one, and that the four of us boys and many in the other houses get to live here.”

Bruce emphasized, “For sure, because it’s awful to think about where I would have ended up if I had to continue going the way I was, before I was assigned to this family on this farm!”

“Thank you so much Dad and Mom, for being willing to let us come live in this family!” Tyler exclaimed, and the other boys agreed.

“You are all very welcome,” Gary responded, “it’s definitely our pleasure and privilege. We both know how much foster families helped us when we were assigned to them.”

Kim smiled and nodded emphatically.

On the ranch Nathan called to their girls, “It’s time to have a Bible study.”

And Esther continued, “So bring your Bibles and let’s meet in the living room.”

Nathan explained, “Today we are going to read a lot of verses out of the first letter Paul wrote to the church in Thessalonica. And we can all make comments or ask questions. I’ll hand out the verses we will read.”

“Oh, Good,” and Holly asked, “May I read the greeting? I like the way people back then started their letters with who it was from and who was to get it.”

Nathan nodded as he handed her the paper with that reference, so Holly read,”1 Thessalonians 1:1, Paul (and others) to the church of the Thessalonians, which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

“Yes,” agreed Willow, “and I like the way so many of them prayed for something like grace and peace to the people. And now I’ll read the next two verses. We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers. We always remember your work of faith and labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of God our Father. It’s also nice that they often prayed for the people.”

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“Right,” added Val, “and now we skip over to 1 Thessalonians 3:12,13, where he prayed, May the Lord make you increase and abound in love toward each other and to all men… so that he may establish your hearts without blame in holiness before God our Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints.

Lucia went on, “Then in parts of 1 Thessalonians 4:1,9,11,12, Paul had some things for them to do. Furthermore, we urge you to … walk to please God … and love one another, … study to be quiet, to do your own business, and to work with your owns hands, … and walk honestly toward unbelievers.”

“Those are good things for us to do also,” Esther concurred, “and now I’ll read parts of 1 Thessalonians 5:2,5a,13-18. It has some more good things to do. You know that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. … You are children of light and the children of the day. Esteem (those who are over you,) … and be at peace among yourselves. Warn the unruly, comfort the feeble-minded, support the weak, be patient toward all men, … do not render evil for evil, but follow that which is good, … Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. …”

“Wow!” Nathan exclaimed, “What a lot of verses and a lot to remember to do! Now I’ll read the closing of this letter and it’s just as nice as the greeting and prayer. 1 Thessalonians 5:23,24,28 says, May the God of peace sanctify you wholly, and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he who calls you, who also will do it. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.”

“This was a nice and encouraging Bible study time this evening, Honey,” stated Esther. “Thank you for choosing those scriptures for us to read.”

The girls added their thanks and he told them he had enjoyed choosing them and listening to his family.

On the farm during supper, Hugo and Ellie asked their four boys, “How is school going for you now?

“Now that I’m used to the school, it’s a lot better than when I first came here to the farm.”

“The school work is a lot easier now, since both of you help us when we get stuck.”

“Yeah, I like school better now too.”

“I'm glad you told us how important school is. Now I like to do my best so I can learn all I need to know.”

Hugo exclaimed, “Thank you all for your good positive statements! We are glad to know school is going better for you now.”

After supper Ellie commended, “I’m very pleased with how well all you boys help with your chores now. It’s wonderful to be able to work together as a family to keep our home a pleasant place to live.

Hugo continued, “The same goes for your outside chores and the jobs you have here on the farm. All of you have learned how to do the work and you do it well. Since we are finished early today, and it’s still pretty warm outside, what fun game would you like to play outside right now?”

They all decided they’d like to divide into two teams of three and play basketball on the driveway since Hugo had lowered the hoop so it was easier to make baskets now.

Ellie was pleased to be included in the game, now that she had learned the rules and had been practicing. They all had an enjoyable time on this late fall afternoon.

One day during the week of Thanksgiving, Mindy (Mrs. Clay) instructed, “Children, write on a small piece of paper right now something you are thankful for because of this school.” Don’t worry about spelling this time. You will be the only one to see this, because you will bring it to sharing time today to tell the class and Penny Penguin.

The first boy stated, “I’m very thankful that the school gave each of us second grade students a Bible that we get to keep as our own.”

All the other students nodded and did a thumb up, and they continued to do it whenever they agreed with another one.

A girl declared, “I’m very thankful our teacher, Mrs. Clay, in this school taught us how to read, so we can read the Bible!”

Another girl exclaimed, “I feel the same way about being able to read and sing from the hymnal while Mrs. Clay plays her autoharp!”

A second boy shared, “I’m thankful we have such a nice playground and that when it’s too cold outside we get to play in the big room where the church meets.”

The third boy admitted, “That’s the same as mine, see?” And he showed the boy next to him, who nodded when he read it.

The fourth boy went on, “I’m thankful for all I’ve learned about the Bible in this school.”

“And about creation,” inserted the fifth boy.

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The third girl said, “I’m thankful for the nice counters in this room where we can stand up and do science experiments and art projects.”

“And I’m thankful for our desks, and that Mrs. Clay taught us how to keep them always clean and orderly,” the sixth boy tacked on.

“I’m thankful for the nice lunchroom where we can eat the lunches we bring and talk to the kids sitting next to us,” added the fourth girl.

The seventh boy remarked, “Mine is the same as yours.”

The fifth girl continued, “I’m thankful that I learned about Jesus and how to accept him as my Savior in this school.”

“Plus that we get to learn how to be missionaries next year in the third grade, so we can tell others how,” declared the sixth girl.

The seventh girl agreed, “Mine echoes yours.”

After the rest of the students had shared theirs it was time to get ready to go home.

The next day Mrs Clay had a writing project for them to do at their desks. “Today I want you to think of things you can thank your parents for about them and your family and your home. First we’ll make a rough draft and during handwriting you can copy it neatly over on a clean paper as a thank-you note to them. I’ll help with spelling this time since you will want them to read it.”

She stood at the chalkboard and wrote the words they needed as they asked her how to spell them. They were pleased to be able to take a nicely hand printed copy of it to their home that evening. The next day was Thanksgiving and the parents read them to the family after their big meal or at some other time during the day.

For this Thanksgiving, Fiona had roasted the largest turkey she could find, since there would be twenty-two people! Amelia's, Glenda’s, Betty’s, Connie’s, Lora’s, and Mindy’s families had all brought two prearranged, prepared dishes for the big meal. The ladies were all in the kitchen talking as they put the finishing touches on the big dinner for the day and got it ready to go into the dining room..

Mindy remarked, “I’m glad Ben and I get to be included in this big gathering, where we are all in God’s family and some of us are related in other ways.”

“Same here,” agreed Lora, “we were the last ones to be able to join this group since our Mindy married Connie’s Ben.”

“Right,” Connie went on, “and we get to be here because our Amelia married Glenda’s Riley.”

Glenda continued, “And our Riley is the brother of our Fiona who married Matt, and this is their house, because it’s the only one big enough to hold all these people at once!

And Betty finished, “We get to be included because we adopted Matt and Fiona in our hearts, and their children as our grandchildren.”

By that time they had everything ready and they sang “Into His Presence,” together as they carried the food out the put it on the buffet. Then they called the men and children to come and eat.

Since Walt and Patrick were the oldest men there that day, each of them said a prayer of thanks before the meal.

After dinner and clean-up, while the younger children were napping, they all sang the song they had heard sung by the Cathedrals, called “Into His Presence.” After singing it, they looked up scriptures that would go with some of the song lyrics. Some of the lyrics tell about Jesus glory and power and the blessings he gives, and that he will take your burdens and still the storm, and give you victory and peace. Johnny got to join the adults this time.

Matt commented, “I think that ‘Into His Presence,’ goes with much of Psalm 100, which is a very good Psalm for Thanksgiving. In fact the chorus is very similar to verses 2 and 4.”

Then he read all five verses of Psalm 100.

1. Make a joyful noise to the LORD all you lands.

2. Serve the LORD with gladness. Come before his presence with singing. 3. Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and not we ourselves. We are his people and the sheep of his pasture.

4. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise. Be thankful to him and bless his name,

5. For the LORD is good, his mercy is everlasting, and his truth endures to all generations.

Johnny asked, “What does into his gates mean?”

Fiona answered, “I think it means into his presence, just like it says in the song by that title.”

Walt suggested, “Let’s find more scriptures that cross-reference with Psalm 100, especially ones about being thankful, since today is Thanksgiving.”

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Everyone agreed and busily started looking and the following scriptures were found.

Psalm 107:1 says, O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good. His mercy endures forever.

2 Corinthians 2:14a, Now thanks be to God, who always causes us to triumph in Christ…

Ephesians 5:20, Giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ…

Hebrews 13:15, … let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually … by the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to his name.

Psalm 95:2, Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.

They finished that activity with each one by saying something they thanked God for, or that gave praise to God.

On the ranch, Jose and Lisa got together with Brad and Irene in the lower game room of the first new two-story house. The girls were busy with Bible board games so the adults had a chance to visit.

Lisa responded, “At first it felt strange for me to be living in the same house where I grew up here on the ranch, but it didn’t take long for me to find out how nice it is to be the mom in that house. I had learned so much from my foster mom, that it was easy to do things like she had done them. And of course it’s much nicer to be able to share a bathroom with my husband instead of with three other girls.”

Lisa and Irene had a good quiet laugh together and Irene continued, “Moving into the upstairs home was different enough for me that I was able to adjust quickly, but I agree with the other things you just mentioned.”

Brad smiled at his dear wife and remarked, “I think it took me longer to adjust after moving from our studio apartment into such a large house. Of course, after our four girls were assigned, the house seemed much smaller, just as we thought it would.”

Smiles and more quiet laughter came after that statement. Jose added, “My adjustment was more like Lisa and Irene’s. As far as being a dad here, I’m able to copy a lot of the things my good dad did on the farm, except to alter them so they work for the girls.”

Lisa went on, “I’m very thankful to God for providing me a godly husband who is being a good dad for these girls. They don’t seem to notice how young we are, and it’s no problem for them to call us Dad and Mom.”

“Same here,” agreed Irene, “and since I was able to tell them about my first days on the ranch as a fifteen-year-old abused girl, they were able to relate to me better because they knew I would understand how they felt.”

“How wonderful,” and then Jose changed the subject, “I’m very happy with the used console piano we were able to buy with part of the inheritance my dear grandmother left for me. So far our girls enjoy listening to me play or sing along with hymns in the hymnal.”

Brad asked, “are you going to teach them how to play the piano?”

“I keep hoping they will show an interest in learning,” answered Jose, “but if they don’t, maybe they’re too shy and I will need to ask them each separately.”

Lisa remarked, “Good idea, Honey, because they won’t feel pressured by us or each other.” Then she asked, “How are your kittens doing, Brad and Irene?”

“They grew up into cats very rapidly,” replied Irene, “and they make very good pets. The girls are all doing their share of caring for them, even the unpleasant parts. We’ve all learned to be very sure they stay inside the house when any of us goes out the doors.”

Brad commented, “I’ve enjoyed this time of visiting. It looks like our girls are putting things away so it’s time for us to go home.”

In early December, the church’s small groups all encouraged families or even just couples who could sing, to take the prepared SD cards of Christmas carols, practice them, memorize or read the scriptures and hand printed ones out as they would go to nursing homes in Pine City. This could also work for travelers during the holidays. They could go caroling in the rooms where the people sit during the day, and down the hallways to each room that has bedridden patients. If the people wish to talk, take time to stay and visit, ask and answer questions and share the Good News with them, or rejoice with the ones who are already believers.

The carols chosen were: “Hark the Herald Angels Sing,” “For Unto Us a Child Is Born,” “Good Christian Men, Rejoice,” and ended with “Come and Praise the Lord Our King.” They would sing any of them over again if someone requested it. These songs were chosen because they tell the story of Jesus and

 

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introduce the scriptures that move into telling the Good News. The scriptures they used were the following.

Luke 2:11,12, For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign for you, you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

Isaiah 9:6, For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.

Romans 3:23, For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. And Romans 6:23, For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Hebrews 2:3a, How shall we escape if we neglect this great salvation?

Titus 3:5a, It is not by works of righteousness we have done, but according to God’s mercy he saved us…

Acts 16:31, … Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved…

And John 3:36a, He who believes on (Jesus,) the Son, has everlasting life.

In Pine City, Frank and Becky Warner went with Vern and Lora Jones several times and had good success. It was easy for them, because they didn’t have children who might not cooperate. Many other families in the churches, even ones with children who liked to sing and minister together as a family, followed the suggestion and also did very well.

Ian and Yolanda Hopkins got together with the other parents who had already started with their third set of four girls. The Hopkins and their neighbors would be on their third set and had seen two sets graduate already.

Yolanda mentioned, “I’m so pleased with our first set of girls. Sara and Kim are here on the ranch, Kim is on the farm and they’ve been very successful with their first set of foster children. June is happily serving God at the equine therapy center. Our second set are all now in Pine City with good jobs and they’re seeking God’s will for their lives and are patiently waiting for his answers. I can’t help but wonder how the time can go so fast.”

Ian remarked, “Yes, but it is gratifying to know that all of the graduates are doing so well out in the world, or here on the ranch or farm. Plus our third set of four girls is doing well here in our family.

Their neighbors agreed and she added, “Our Jana and Carlos from the farm really like being foster parents on the cattle ranch. And the rest of that first set have good jobs and are either married or single with good ministries. The second set is in the process. I was pleased with the girl who called Karen and told her of her bad dating experience. And I’m sure it helped the girls here on the ranch to hear about it.”

“Indeed, our girls were convinced,” William agreed. “Anna and I are extra pleased with our first set of boys, since three of them decided to be foster dads, and the other one is busy helping people at the equine therapy center.”

“Yes,” Anna continued, “and I certainly agree with you, Yolanda. Time seems to go so fast, especially as we get older. Plus I’ll add to what William said, we had two seniors who are now chaplains in the army. Now we have had another set of girls on the ranch who have all graduated and are actively getting settled into their lives in Pine City. We have a good start on our third set of four girls.”

Ian reasoned, “We three families all started with older children and we can see how well they’ve done, so I think it was a good idea for all the people on the ranch to replace each pair of girls with ones who are fourteen years old.”

“I think so also,” and William went on, “we certainly can minister to more abused girls this way, since they’re only here for about five years before they’re ready to go out and make their own livings in the world. I think they’re motivated to do their best.”

“Yes,” and Yolanda added, “I just realized that two other families are already on their second set, including Sara and Denji, and Afta and Hana. Then next year Evan and Candy will be starting on theirs. Gary and Kim decided to start with younger boys on the farm, and it has worked well for them.”

“Absolutely!” Anna exclaimed. “I like the way the Lord has been able to help all of us and these other families as we serve him. I’m very grateful to him.”

Once in a while some of the ladies on the farm had a chance to visit. This time Hanna asked, “Ellie did you make copies of those two short books we got when we graduated?

Ellie answered, “I sure did, and it has helped me so much. It’s almost like being back in Mom’s class again.”

“Exactly,” added Hanna, “and it reminds me of things I need to do, plus it’s fun to be reading along and suddenly see our names there in print.”

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Ellie laughed, “Yeah, and sometimes we said some pretty profound things for our ages.”

“Indeed,” agreed Hanna, “those were good Bible studies and it was a blessing that we got to learn so much as we grew up there.”

Ellie stated, “I think so too, and it’s good to know that our foster boys are learning the same things here on the farm with Gary Beckett as their Bible Study Group teacher.

“Right, and I remember seeing his name in the lessons in those two short books,” mentioned Hanna.

Ellie nodded. “Same here, and I heard that he learned a lot from his dad and was able to take over the groups when his dad moved to the ranch.”

It was now time for another December graduation for the school of evangelism. Pedro and Luis would graduate this year, so Felix, Sunny and their new boys, Harold, Ken, Keith and Rand, attended and so did Jose with Lisa and their girls, and Hugo with Ellie and their boys, because they all knew Pedro and Luis. Many others also attended especially if they knew a graduate.

The service began with everyone singing “So Send I You – by Grace Made Strong.” Here is a summary of the first two stanzas. Jesus sends you, made strong to triumph in His name, to win the victory in his name. He sends you to free those in bondage and bring the lost to him.

Then one of the Instructors gave an encouraging speech including that these graduates had all learned what they needed to know in order to go where Jesus would send them to labor in his name. He would give them success as they followed his leading and relied on his power.

He closed his speech by reading Romans 10:12b-15, The same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon him. For whoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed, and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? As it is written, How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

One of the pastors spoke about how God had chosen Joshua to take over Moses’ leadership and for him to not fear. Then he included the following two verses. 1 Corinthians 15:57,… thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 6:10, Finally, my brothers, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

Near the end of the service, a pastor read John 20:21, Jesus said to them, … Peace be unto you. As my Father has sent me, even so, send I you. Then all the pastors of churches with graduates, gathered around them and placed their hands on them as the first pastor led in a prayer of empowerment and dedication.

A few days later, Pedro and Luis made visits to Felix and Sunny, Hugo and Ellie, and Jose and Lisa before they would leave for their first tour of duty.

Next it was time for the December High school graduation! We know Oscar and Vera’s Emma and Nan, Evan and Candy’s Flora and Reba, Roy and Sherry’s April and May. On the cattle ranch Carlos and Jana’s Eric and Lane would also graduate. There are others we haven’t met on the ranch and the farm who would graduate.

The graduation was attended by all their friends and families, and most of them had special parties in their homes later. Then those young people would get busy looking for jobs they could start while they were waiting for their nineteenth birthdays, so they could save up a nest egg of money to help them get going when they moved to Pine City and continued the same job. There would be no two week vacation for them.

They’d also be busy learning the rest of the things they would need to know before moving. Each of them also read the two PDF copies they had received of the two short books, “Become Honorable People” and “Choose Your Examples.” Many of them paid to get printed copies made so they would be able to continue reading them after they moved but didn’t have a computer yet.

However right after the graduation, the two week vacation began for all the school age children. It was the longest vacation for these children who had year round school, so it seemed extra special to them. Besides, it was in the winter, and many of them were hoping for good snowfall but that it would not be too cold to go outside and enjoy it. Although, most of the girls on Mercy Valley Ranch were hoping for not too much snow and warm enough temperatures to be to able ride horses more often, at least in the big building.

This year everyone got their wishes for part of the time, because the vacation started out with nice enough weather for horseback riding. The night before Christmas there was a nice big snow, so after dinner the next day, when the big meal and clean-up many went out to enjoy fun times in the snow. It had also been cold enough for the pond and the lake to be frozen hard enough for ice skating after the snow

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had been cleared off the ice. Then when enough of the snow had been cleared away, some of the families went and got the horses prepared for riding in the big building.

Toward the end of that vacation, many families were thinking and planning for the next school year with all the children that we know, in new grade levels. Naoki Suehiro, Yuki Makino, and Mark and Luke O'Connor would be starting kindergarten. Joshua would be in first grade. Barnabas, Faith and Grace would be in second grade. Patrick would be in Mrs. Blake’s third grade class, and Johnny would be in the fourth grade in a public school.

For the others we know about in this story, Mary and Timothy and the quadruplets and Joy and Hope would be in the tenth grade of the high school. Mary really enjoyed being in the same classes as some of her older friends and she was glad she didn’t feel left out and so much younger any longer.

Levi, would be in eleventh grade. Lucia, Val, and the twins, Holly and Willow, would also be in eleventh grade. Kevin and Daniel would be seniors this year.

Later in January, Yoshi and Sakura had time for a Bible study together while their three boys, Naoki, Haru, and Haruto, were taking a nap one morning. The homework for their new small group was to find some scripture verses about the topic, ‘God is in control.”

Yoshi stated, “This is a very good topic. Maybe I’ll find a verse or two I should memorize.”

“Good idea, Dear,” and Sakura added, “and I’ll look for the same for myself, so that when I hear about bad news, I can repeat one and be at peace again.”

In a couple minutes Yoshi found and read “Proverbs 19:21, which says, “ There are many plans in a man’s heart, nevertheless the counsel of the LORD shall stand. To me this means that even if I think some plan I have is good, the LORD knows better, and can make his plan happen.”

“I agree,” and then Sakura mentioned, “I found Isaiah 14:24, and it is a wonderful promise. The LORD of hosts has sworn saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass, and as I have purposed, so it shall stand. It also goes well with the one you just read.”

Yoshi nodded. “Yes it does, Honey. Now I’ll read Psalm 115:3, Our God is in the heavens. He does whatever he has pleased. I like this one. He has the power to do his will. This is a good verse for me to memorize.”

“Definitely, and I’m sure glad to know that he has all the power!” Sakura exclaimed. “This next verse really shows who is in control. Proverbs 21:1, The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water. He turns it wherever he wills.”

Yoshi remarked, “Absolutely, and Mark 4:39 shows that Jesus had power over things in nature. When the disciples woke him in fear of the storm on the sea, Jesus arose and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Peace, be still.’ And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.”

“What a good verse!” Sakura declared. “And I’ll be sure to memorize this next verse. 1 Chronicles 29:11, Yours, O LORD is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty. For all that is in the heaven and the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all.”

Yoshi agreed, “Exactly! I’ll be sure to memorize it also. I like the way it praises the only God who is in control. This has been a very uplifting and helpful Bible study. I think we have enough verses to be ready for the next small group meeting.”