A few weeks ago Brendan and I attended a day seminar in Angaston, conducted by Joel Salatin, his son and daughter-in-law from the Shenandoah Valley in America. The topic of the seminar was the future of family farming and it was a worthwhile investment of a day.
Joel and his family have created a sustainable, dynamic and profitable enterprise on their family farm and shared briefly some of their experiences and lessons learnt.
Joel and his family have created a sustainable, dynamic and profitable enterprise on their family farm and shared briefly some of their experiences and lessons learnt.
Brendan recorded the whole day so if anyone's interested in listening to all or some of the sessions just drop him an email. Some of the topics covered were:
- increasing income, not acreage
- integration of new family members
- utilising youthful energy and elder wisdom
- remaining passionate
Days like this serve to inspire me and renew motivation to see Hebron continue to develop and consider the possibilities for income making potential. YHVH has so kindly drawn us and enabled us to acquire this property and I have no doubt that He will continue to make provision for its development.
A few years ago I heard someone make the comment that this property was dead and YHVH had sent us here to test us and prove that only He was able. That comment incensed me then and still to this day I shake my head at the blindness and lack of discernment at the root of it. I continue to be surprised at how much life this property has and how quickly it responds to loving attention and a drop of rain.
Even with the prospect of an El Nino drought forming this year I am confident that Hebron will continue to prosper according to His wisdom and ways. When we submit ourselves to seeking Him in all things He pours out His wisdom, enabling us to traverse whatever this world and environment brings to bear.
If I'm organised and motivated I'll share another update on the weekend with photos of what's occurred here at Hebron over the last few weeks. In the meantime, may Yeshua our Messiah continue to go before you ...
Shalom
God gave us a mandate to spread out over the earth, bring it under dominion, be fruitful and multiply. Though the original mandate was given before the fall, when Adam was being commanded to expand the garden of Eden over the whole face of the earth, God is His grace repeated that mandate after the fall to Noah and to the patriarchs.
ReplyDeletePerhaps it is no longer possible (for us, in this age) to toil by the sweat of our face and produce a paradise in every part of this world, but it certainly is possible to improve and bring some order to the chaos. You guys keep doing just that over at Hebron!
It is true that only God is able to supply all our needs. But I believe your group's goal and the heart attitude of those I've met is to be obedient and dependent on Him and Him alone for the increase. Living on the land like we do, we can't help but be blessed by living in a manner directly dependent on our heavenly Father, without the buffer zone of man's own attempts at cleverness, a.k.a our so called industrial consumer culture. Keep it up!
Thanks for the encouragement Nathan and likewise for Zarephath!
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