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posted by Robert on 04/14/07

The Spirit of the Lord is here! Powerful testimonies were flowing freely for almost three hours this evening as the Dad’s Conference began to draw to a close. Right now it is 11:30 at night and the lobby of the Indianapolis Training Center is buzzing with the fellowship of fathers openly sharing their hearts with each other, building up and edifying one another.

Yesterday, with insightful, convicting messages from Bill Gothard, Doug Small, and others, the Spirit of God fell on the assembly. Men were on their faces weeping. Men were praying for each other in genuine humility. The time of communion afterwards was exceptionally sweet and the singing gained a whole new level of power. Afterwards Mr. Gothard joyful reported, “Now We’re in One Accord!”

There is no place on earth that compares to a place filled with men full of the Holy Spirit. God is good!

4 Comments » | posted in Ministry Reports

posted by Daniel on 04/11/07

Since our family was planning to take a vacation to Virginia the weekend of Donald’s and my birthdays, we decided to celebrate them a week early. Throughout the day that we celebrated my birthday, a late and heavy snow drifted down outside, which added to the cozy atmosphere inside. Every one took time out of their normal routine to make the evening a special one - especially Donald, who put his art skills to work and produced a beautiful icing picture of a coyote.

Relatives and family were very generous, and I received several gifts. David and Donald had worked together making a homemade placemat with original art work on it, and an uncle sent an elaborate marble chess set. I was given a chess timer to go along with it, and we’re all looking to hours of strategy and excitement playing together. One of the funnest gifts was juggling clubs! I’ve got a little practice so far, but still have a long way to go. Jonathan and David are also catching on, and we can’t wait to work on a few tricks together.

Saturday night we all looked at albums after Donald’s party, and it was an excellent time to reminesce of past events and times together as a family. We all rejoiced at how God has continued to deepen our valuable relationships with him and each other over the years, and anticipate what he will accomplish through us in the upcoming year!

2 Comments » | posted in Art Work, Family News

posted by James on 04/5/07

Maple sap is really amazing stuff. It is one of the only natural sources of truly pure drinking water. With a sugar content of between 2% and 3%, the sap is very useful in at least three different ways.

First, we found that sap is an excellent drink just strait from the tree. We call it “sweet-water”. Bringing it in from outside, we strained out any dirt or bark, stuck it in the refrigerator, and served it for the next meal. It is not only cool and refreshing but healthy and sweet!

A second way we used it was for cooking. We just boiled 1 gallon of sap down to two quarts to make “sap-concentrate”. The sugar content is much higher so it is too sweet for drinking but perfect for replacing the water when cooking oatmeal or wheat-berries. No other sweetener like honey or brown-sugar is needed.

Then we made real maple syrup! Using three large pans on the stove, we kept the fire on all day, boiling down 2 gallons of sap per hour. By the end of the day, we had boiled down about 15 gallons of sap to 2 quarts of syrup. We did this on several different days and canned a total of two gallons of syrup. It took a lot of patience and diligence but with everyone tapping in to help and volunteering to watch the boiling sap for awhile, we can look forward to enjoying this sweet delicacy for months to come!

Proverbs 12:17 rang true in our household as we labored away: “The slothful man roasteth not that which he took in hunting: but the substance of a diligent man is precious.”

5 Comments » | posted in Possessing the Land, Recipes