It was mid-August 1968 in one of my Basic Training classes. The class was composed of two training groups of 50 young men each, Flight 217 & 218. We had our next assignment and with only weeks away from graduation, we thought we knew life in the military. Then, a stone-faced Sergeant walked into the …
Basic Facts of the Farm
God's orchestrating ability never ceases to amaze me. One Sunday morning in August before Covid, I was greeting at church with a man I only knew as Bob. I knew Bob was a farmer, so I said, “Bob, I guess you are getting your combines in the shop preparing them for harvest…replacing the beater bars …
Puppies & People
It dawned on me as I stood in the rain with our new dachshund puppy, Lizzy-Farrar, how much I have in common with her. In short week we have had her, she is still learning to mess (pee & poop) in the yard & not in the house, that gnawing on the electrical cord cannot …
Feeling Forgotten & Alone?
It can happen in a crowd, at work, at a party or sitting alone on your couch. Being forgotten hurts. Good news, God tells us He has not, nor will He ever forget us. “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she …
New Ground…The Process
Much of the beautiful farmland in Arkansas was once forest. When it was cleared, we called it “New Ground”. I remember the process. The first stage, the huge D8 Caterpillar bulldozers, came to cut & pile the trees to burn. That took a few weeks. It may have looked like the field was cleared but …
What To Do With the Elephant in the Room?
After I retired, I provided leadership training & consulting to non-profits that serve people with developmental disabilities. Before I started with a small group, I always interviewed each participant to determine the needs of the organization. Each person’s response was recorded in a spreadsheet that functioned much like an MRI highlighting the points of need. …
Who Do You Imitate?
When I was a young boy, I wanted to be like Gene Autry. I had two of his 45 rpm records I played almost every day. When I went outside, I would ride my stick horse “Champion” everywhere, singing, “Back in the saddle again.” A cowboy with a great smile that took care of the …
A Life Choice, Imprisoned by the Past or Free for the Future?
It was my first job off the farm during the summer of my sophomore year of college. I was a “helper” on a Coca-Cola delivery truck in Shreveport, LA. I was assigned special duty to work at a busy grocery store that was running a big sale on Coca-Cola. It was at this store I …
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The Rice Shovel
There is nothing more basic to a rice farmer than his shovel. It goes where he goes. If it’s not over his shoulder as he walks across the field, it’s in his pickup. He uses it to open the levies to flood the field, to repair broken levies, to drain the field, and to kill …
Do You See Value?
I believe we are in God School until we take our last breath. I remember this particular God Lab Lesson. I will call it, “Do You See Value?” It was a mid-morning Friday in 2000 at Civitan Services, where we provided habilitation & therapeutic service for men, women and children with developmental disabilities. I was …
Today's Good News 