hands for the soil

In this month's mission focus I am excited to share about my very special friends Pat and Cheryl serving in Haiti. Pat ran a successful, and award-winning, nursery and landscaping company here in the States. He is very gifted at working the soil, and plants seems to thrive under his care. Cheryl is a nurse with such a loving heart, and is the type of lady you want to run and hug every time you see her. When God called them to Haiti, they were not certain exactly for what purpose, but they knew to simply be obedient.

Pat and Cheryl moved to their home in Haiti and started being themselves: Cheryl caring for the needs of the people around them, and Pat started working the land. Everytime I read an email from them or a blog post, I see how much the Lord is using them on their mountain in Haiti. When God calls someone to a new area of ministry, he doesn't change their gifts: He uses the ones He has already given them.

Pat working the ground soon after they arrived in Haiti.

When they first moved to Haiti, Pat was working the ground where black beans has been planted all over near their home. Now, he has his own garden and puts his hands to do what the Lord has naturally gifted him to do: work the soil and make things grow. Just as a note, to get water to the garden, it has to be put in a bucket lower on the mountain and carried by hand up to their garden. It truly is a lot of work! Following is a bit from his latest post:

This "jarden" just keeps growing, both in size and the plants are growing too.  The onions especially get everyone's attention. They can't believe they are filling out.  They think the soil here is not good enough to grow onions.  I always thought you could grow onions in the driveway!  All I've done different is water them. Today I added another row of carrots.  Seems we can eat them faster than we can grow them.  A local farmer showed me the banana leaf trick.  Plant your seeds and the banana leaves serve as a temporary shade structure until they are big enough to mulch.  The sun is so intense here everything needs some protection until it is established.  And a thick layer of mulch helps keep the soil cooler and moist.  The little nursery is ready for the rain to come too!  I got lots of little trees to plant in the erosion control ridges I've dug across the field behind the house.  Trees for food, animal forage, nitrogen fixers, shade, firewood, leaf mulch and eventually a start on reforesting this barren place.  I have my plans for growing things here, and really believe that this is part of what we've been called here to do.  But the bigger part is just doing it and letting people notice that it can be done and it's not really that hard or expensive. We are starting to get  opportunities to teach how others can grow their own produce plus some for sale without investing a lot more than time and energy. 

The "jarden" with banana leaves.

Another view of the garden.

I just love these people dearly. They truly have a heart to follow the Lord and reach the people around them. Pat and Cheryl are not only teaching their people in Haiti about Jesus, but they are teaching them a better, more sustainable way of life.

farm country

It was harvest time at redpepper farms this past weekend, and it sure was fun. The kids loved riding in the machinery - combine, tractor, and semi - and even helped walk the fields to pick up corn that fell off the combine. Jeremy had a really nice planting of corn and we were blessed with the produce this year. How great was the feeling to fall into bed each night exhausted knowing you had done a hard days work.

Combine filling grain hopper

Tractor and grain hopper pulling up to semi

Blake driving tractor with helper Frederick

Next rows to run

Jeremy carrying Elauna to ride in combine

Grain hopper filling trailer on semi

Claire gets a kiss from dad while waiting at the elevator

Blake carrying Frederick to the tractor

Jeremy and Blake

Drink station

"The LORD will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest." Psalm 85:12

"Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness."   2 Corinthians 9:10

"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."   Galatians 6:9

Knee High... and a miracle

Each year I take a photo of my children in front of the field. This year I took the picture on the 4th, because corn is to be "knee high by the 4th of July."

Jeremy took a risk this year and planted early and was able to get his crop started when there was still good weather. We had a neat story that happened last week. It had been very dry here in Ohio for awhile and Jeremy was home working on his semi. I walked out to see him and asked him what he was doing - he said he was praying for rain. I went back in the house and had my two oldest children gather with me to pray for rain. I prayed for a drenching rain, and the kids prayed for thunder too. :-) By the time we were done praying, dark clouds were over our house and it started to rain. There had been a zero percent chance of rain that day. The rain drenched the ground! People 5 miles away did not get a drop. It truly was a miracle!!! I was glad Jeremy led us to pray, that my children could see the hand of God on our family, and that he chose to bless us that day.