The following passages are excerpts from a number of my sermons where I share examples and stories of my experiences as a flower farmer to explain my faith in God and how God works. A few of my listeners pointed out to me that they appreciated when I would share my faith through my experience and examples on the farm, so I went back and collected the ones I could recall from the sermons I’ve done so far.
I hope they speak to you and your heart for God too.
~ Lane
Is the soil analogy that Jesus used, in the parable of the sower, descriptive of people? Or does it depict the state of mind affecting our hearts? The distinction between those two is very relevant.
Because if we are predestined, like the plot of land with either good soil or rocky soil. Since soil cannot change itself, is there any hope for the hardened, rocky, and thorny soil? Are these destined to be unproductive forever? Then the premise would be, that mankind cannot change. On the other hand if the distinction is, that people’s hearts can be affected. Then, there is hope for all people. Let me illustrate this with following example.
In Willow Creek we started a farm, on an abandoned pasture field, along the Trinity River, and it had several terraces with different types of soil, and one corner of the field had mostly river rock, the type of rocky soil that Jesus described in his parable. Nothing would grow in that corner. First thing we did, we brought in the tractor from Arcata, with a land leveler and moved arounds thousands of yards of soil, and created a gently sloping field, with a sufficient layer of topsoil, that even the rocky corner would grow good crops.
So it is, with the hearts of people that can be cultivated and hardened souls can be softened with Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Sermon 23
All the Tulips and Oriental lilies (Stargazer) are grown in crates filled with soil. We use composted bark as the core ingredient for the soil that grows these beautiful tulips. Many tulips across the world, are grown in just water nowadays, but nothing can rival the quality, of Tulips that are grown in soil, particularly the composted bark that we use in Arcata, it is so full of nutrients and microbes, from the continuous composting process, that no chemicals are needed to control root diseases. No matter what the underlying soil in the greenhouse may be, like pure sand or gravel with zero nutrients it doesn’t matter, it is the soil inside the crates that is important, it is this soil that is good soil.
When we plant, Tulips or Lilies, or if the sower, would sow his seeds in it, the end result is the same. Beautiful plants will grow from it, resulting in a bountiful harvest. It like that with our faith, it will grow increasingly strong, when we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Sermon 23
The sower scatters his seed carelessly, recklessly, seemingly wasting much of the seed on ground, that holds little promise for a fruitful harvest.
For the last 3 months we have put flowers out in the community here in Blue Lake, with a flyer attached to each bunch, about the church service on the third Sunday of the month. Some folks have questioned why we keep doing this. We have seen great turnouts each time we are here, but attendance from the surrounding neighborhood so far has been sparse.I am determined, to keep doing what we are doing, because just like the sower sows his seeds, no matter where it seems to be falling, the word of the Lord, will find itself in the right place, at the right time, particularly when a patch of good soil is cleared, for the seed to grow. Sermon 23
Jesus believed that the Jewish people were ripe and ready for the Gospel, ready for the Kingdom. The time was ready. The time was ripe.
In Willow Creek we grow a crop called Ilex verticilata, the red berries for Christmas, but in order to have a plentiful harvest of beautiful berries in the fall and winter, three things are important. 1)blooming female plants, 2)male plants blooming at exactly the same time, and 3)bees, for pollination. In May and June, there are tens of millions of these little flowers blooming in the field in Willow Creek. The flowers are plentiful but the work of pollinating needs to be done by bees. Depending on the temperature, an individual flower may only be blooming for a day or two, so once they start blooming; these bees literally are “busy bees”.
For years we had an abundance of bees in our field, they came from a beekeeper in the area. Then one year at blooming time, we spotted only a few wild bees, but the bees of years past were absent, a plentiful harvest but few workers. By the time we figured out that this beekeeper no longer was around, and we quickly brought in bees from a beekeeper in Fortuna, but valuable time had passed and many flowers had not pollinated. That year we had a poor Ilex crop and we learned a hard lesson. Since then, we call the beekeeper well ahead of time to bring his beehives.
It is like that with folks that have a hunger and thirst of the soul, the Gospel message at the right time can make the difference between a flower that wilts away in days or a flower that is pollinated and grows into a nice branch with beautiful berries and branch full of fruit Jesus said in Matthew 7:15 you will know them by their fruit. There are people all around us that are ripe and ready for Jesus to enter their lives. The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. Sermon 22
It is Paul’s sense of purpose, his sense of meaning in life that drives him, no matter what adversity he faces. Because he knows Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life and that there is no salvation without Jesus Christ. That knowledge is the core of his passion for souls.
Let’s me illustrate with an example how knowledge drives passion. We grow an Iris variety called Telstar; this variety is unique because it completely opens. There are other Iris varieties in the market that are easier to grow, but they do not open as well, the flower comes about half way and then shrivels up. Those varieties are the mean reason for the negative perception that Iris doesn’t last and will not open. We have grown Telstar for 30 years, and I know and that Telstar will guarantee to open. I get very passionate talking about this because I have seen the disappointment with the other Iris and want to tell the story of the great attributes of Telstar, and how it provides a better experience for the consumer.
Paul spoke with passion, because had encountered the Lord at his conversion and he was filled with the power. He had a passion to spread the message of Jesus Christ to hungry souls. And while in prison he continued reaching to believers in Philippi, Corinth, Thessalonica and Rome.
Friday night, I went through the neighborhood here in Blue Lake and left some bunches of lilies with a sermon flyer at porches and front doors. At 11.20 pm, I received an email saying…..I found a large bunch of lilies on my porch Friday night. Obviously, they are meant for someone else who may have lived here before. If that is the case, I will leave them outside, so you can come and get them on Saturday.
My response was: these lilies are for you. They are a gift. Enjoy them.
It is like that with the message of Jesus Christ, and the promise of eternal life, it is a gift, and it is free. But just like with that bunch of lilies, we have a choice: put them in a vase of water and we will cherish them, and be filled with joy, but on the other hand, if we do not, they will dry up and wither and die.
Ask Jesus to come into your life as your Lord and Savior. Sermon #21
Eventually we all go through dark periods, rough spots, through trouble in our lives. In the rollercoaster of life we occasionally find ourselves at the bottom of the ride. From our limited perspective, we don’t see what comes next; depending on how dark it gets, we experience it as the equivalent of the cross, in our lives. There are times when we don’t see the light anymore. If we do not believe we ultimately give up, fall into despair, and then, it gets even harder to climb out of the hole.
If we no longer believe, it’s the end, just like Jesus on the cross was perceived by Mary, Peter, John and the disciples. They were in despair, in a state of hopelessness, but three days later our Lord Jesus proved to the World, that indeed, he was the son of God, when he rose from the grave.
Think of those Daffodils we picked in Holland just in time for Easter. They were planted in the fall, outside. These bulbs were covered with soil, it got dark, and then storms dumped rain and these bulbs endured cold freezing temperatures and snow. But after the bulbs received enough cooling, they broke dormancy and when that greenhouse was rolled over the field, the bulbs started sprouting and soon poked their heads out of the ground as a harbinger of spring, like a new beginning.
In our own lives, it is not much different, we may endure adversity, pain, and darkness, meeting Christ at the cross, but when we persist and believe, the period of adversity shapes us, and when the sun rises in the morning, we are filled with joy, ready to share the good news. Sermon #20
In John 7:37, Jesus is back in Jerusalem attending a festival of the booth (equivalent of Thanksgiving), and while he is there, he cries out: Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and let the one who believes in me, drink, As the scripture have said: Out of the believer’s heart shall flow, rivers of living water. Isn’t this interesting, we move from a gushing spring in John 4 to rivers of living water in John 7.
17 years ago we started growing in Willow creek, crops like Ilex, Rosehips, Cotinus and Snowball Viburnum. The farm had a small spring, but inadequate to provide water for plants getting thirsty with 90+ degree conditions in summer. We tried drilling a well, as we went deeper we got into bedrock and at one point even encountered some natural gas, but very little water , at least not enough to support a 20 acre farm. The prospects for water were not good.
Then someone pointed to the Trinity River flowing right through the property. We got a riparian permit from the State and have been blessed to grow some of the most beautiful crops at this ranch ever since. While the spring didn’t suffice, the river of water giving life to those plants did.
See these beautiful Iris here this morning. Iris love water, I tell the agronomists all the time, Iris are water plants. If we don’t give Iris enough water, the plant looks the same but inside the bud dries up and they will not bloom. But with ample water, they grow into these beautiful flowers, like fruits of a well-nourished soul.
So it is with us, if we don’t ask or seek we will not receive, but when we open our hearts to the Lord, he will drench us with living water. Sermon #19
Here is the moral of the story: There is nothing we can do ourselves, to earn heaven, nothing in the eyes of the Lord will be good enough. But there also no longer is a need for doves or lambs to be offered as sacrifice.
Let me give an illustration, as a fourth generation flower farmer, I have been around Tulips my whole life. As a child I remember my father planting tulips outside in wooden boxes covered with sand and straw to protect them from freezing and during the winter these tulips would be carried into the greenhouse, with a wheelbarrow, box by box, this is how I learned growing tulips. After 3 weeks those tulips would start flowering, we picked them and then the next batch went in the Greenhouse. Once the outside temperature rose in the spring the season came to an end, typically beginning of April, before the field tulips came into production.
This all changed when tulips were planted in plastic crates and are now grown in coolers up to 20 layers high. These tulips could be held in this condition for up to 10 months, hence the introduction of year round tulips. Just thinking back on how it was done in the old days, it is hard to imagine anymore.
The old days where the Israelites would bring a lamb or two doves to the temple in Jerusalem as a sacrifice for their sins are gone forever. The lambs have been silent ever since. It all ended with the destruction of the temple in 70 AD. Jesus predicted that this would happen in Luke 19, when he wept as he came down the Mount of Olives, he told his disciples: this temple will be destroyed.
Ladies and Gentlemen, just like that old way of growing tulips, we have come full circle from doves to lambs to Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior
The old way is gone because there is a new way, a better way. Jesus said I am the way the truth and the life nobody comes to the father but through me. He is the light of the world Sermon #18
1) Story As I said earlier I have been in the flower business my whole life, it is not an easy business, competition from South America, rising cost, and big supermarket customers hammering down the price we try to get for the flowers, but despite all that it is a great business. Every day I am reminded of what it is that we produce besides the actual flower……. it is Joy. (hand someone a Bouquet) Every time someone receives flowers it elicits Joy. Have you ever seen a person receiving flowers and not being happy?
Think of this joy that overcame the crowd when this Holy spirt came to dwell among them. (Sermon#1)
2) Parable Being a flower farmer, we plant bulbs and seeds and grow them into flowers. We also grow flowers from shrubs, sometimes these shrubs need to be grafted, use the root stock from of one species that has strong growing characteristics and graft another variety on top of this root stock that has more desirable color or shapes of flowers.
We grow rosehips in Willow creek planted some at Canada farm in Ontario, and local farmer advised us to graft them on cold weather root stock.
Paul in his letter to the Romans uses the beautiful analogy of the olive tree. The gentiles are the branch of a wild Olive tree that is grafted on the cultivated olive tree that depicts the Jewish people the people of God.
It is like a grafted branch that draws its water and nutrients through the roots and the trunk of the cultivated tree and get its strength from this tree, the tree of God. Sermon #1
4) Parable Earlier this week I visited our farm in Ontario Canada, on the way back while in the Toronto airport I noticed all these blond haired folks boarding my flight to LA, upon takeoff the pilot came on the air and welcomed Team Denmark with players, coaches and fans that filled most of the plane travelling to the special Olympics held in LA this week. Denmark is an interesting case study of a Country that has seen much prosperity. Denmark is ranked 6th in the world in terms of GDP per capita clearly making this one of the most prosperous countries on earth. Yet Denmark also ranks in the top 3 in the world in terms of atheist and agnostics rates. God is quickly forgotten when things go well, and we feel he is no longer needed.
So it went with David, he had it all; a palace built in the middle of Jerusalem, tremendous wealth, several wives with many children. God had truly blessed him, but guess what it wasn’t enough. Sermon#2
6) Story Years ago my wife and I bought one of those Thomas Home Center Barn building kits. In the spirit of American dream this was our very first own home and we lived in for nearly a decade. A good portion of the construction we did our selves with the help of some contractors, such as the concrete contractor doing the foundation.
We had bought a lot on a fairly steep hill site, consequently the foundation at the back of the house was a ground level while in the front it was 12 ft in the air. The contractors did a great job. This foundation was tested a few times, it withstood the earthquake of 1992 and many fierce south winds pounding the house on this south facing slope during many of the strong winter storms of the nineties. Remember those years? That is when we still had rain.
The foundation may be the least appeling section of a house but yet it is the most important part. The nicest house with all the amenities but without a strong foundation will not stand.
So it is with our faith in Jesus Christ, our Lord, our redeemer. The Foundation lays in the Old Testament from Genesis to Malachi, covering more than 2000 years of history. Sermon #3
7) parable We grow flowers in Arcata, Willow creek, Oxnard Ca and St Catherine Canada.
At these farms we grow mostly Iris, Tulips and Lilies.
In order to provide a great assortment to our customers, we grow numerous varieties. Through the years these varieties have evolved from generation to generation and new ones surpass the qualities of their predecessors.
40 years there was an Iris variety called professor Blauw, a blue variety and in the seventies this was the main variety, today 80% of the blue iris sold in America is a variety called Telstar, a prolific performer with the best vase life of any Iris, a definite upgrade from that Professor Blauw from 40 years ago.
The tulip world in the 70’s was dominated by two cultivars: Apeldoorn and Golden Apeldoorn, these two varieties led the chart for more than a decade. Today the leading tulip variety is called Strong Gold, there are more bulbs grown of this variety than any other Tulip and it is the best yellow in the market with an amazing vase life far surpassing that of Golden Apeldoorn.
40 years ago, the leading Lily varieties were Enchantment and Rubrum, today these varieties are gone. The variety with largest acreage in the World today is called Siberia, a strong White Oriental lily with millions of bulbs shipped all over the World particularly into China.
Generations come and generations go, so it went with David and Solomon. David reigned for 40 years .7 years in Hebron and 33 years in Jerusalem. David’s dream and quest was to build a house to hold the Ark of the Covenant. Sermon#4
8) story In those days Solomon’s wisdom was universally known throughout the Middle East and well into Africa. As a matter of fact the queen of Sheba (now a days Ethiopia) was so curious she paid him a visit.
As the story goes it developed into a bit more than just a visit and she returned home bearing a child that was conceived by the king.
Since the inception of the state of Israel in 1948 Jews from all over the world have immigrated back to their ancestral home land.
Particularly after the fall of the USSR a huge influx of Russian Jews were absorbed into Israeli society including learning Hebrew, the official Jewish language.
Last year I was talking to one of our Israeli bulb suppliers and he told me about a sizable community of Jews living in Ethiopia that traced their roots back to King Solomon. Most of these Solomon descendants have come back home to Israel.(Sermon#3)
9) story Sam Walton describes in autobiography “Made in America” that when he decided to find a site for a new store in a town that he had targeted, he would not drive around in that town to find the site. He had learned that it was far more effective to look from above, so he would climb in his Cessna 414 and scope out that town from the air. It gave him a much better perspective. To understand Jewish history and how the Old Testament (the foundation) is such an integral part of our believe in Jesus Christ and the pathway to Salvation, I invite you to come along on a quick flight to survey the history of Jewish people. Sermon#3
11) At Sun Valley we organize a company wide meeting once every 4 weeks; this is where the entire team comes together in one location. We hold these meetings in Arcata, Oxnard and St Catherine’s usually after enjoyment of a company provided lunch. We call this “the farm meeting”. In these meetings we share production numbers of the previous period, we report on safety, productivity, introduce our team of the period and the highlight of the meeting is the introduction of the team member of the period.
These meetings conclude with a closing thought, usually a quote from a President, or a Coach or an athlete or words from scripture. Sometimes we may even sing, like the National Anthem.
But no matter what happens, we always start the meeting by collectively pronouncing one of Sun Valley’s 10 guiding principles.
These principles include: treating neighbors the way you want to be treated, to foster a team culture, to always remain humble and gracious, to inspire others and always keep learning, or to be the best that you can be.
These farm meetings also include a short message to reflect on any one of the guiding principles.
A few years ago while preparing a narrative for guiding principle #4; treating team members with respect, I came across this letter from James, and in particular the passage relating to the power of the tongue.
This is a very relevant in a place where hundreds of people work together every day, people from different cultures, with different interests, with different back grounds.
Walking around the farm daily, you could hear some pretty interesting words rolling of the tongues of some folks.
Now let’s take a moment and read the third chapter of the letter of James verses 1-12 this can be found in your pew bible on page… Sermon#4
12) In his letter James asks: can from the same mouth come a blessing and a curse. Or can a spring give fresh and brackish water. It is like a few sick plants can spoil things for all the healthy good plants around it.In Oxnard we grow a crop called Matsomoto Aster. It grows well in Southern California in the sandy soils of the Oxnard plane.
A few years ago we had a great crop heading into Valentine’s Day but we noticed a few plants on the end of the rows that didn’t look too happy.
We learned that Asters can be affected by a disease called tomato spotted wilt virus. This name says it all, once infected by the virus, a plant wilts in a matter of days. By mid-January hot Santa Anna winds gusting up to 50 miles an hour came from the east and with it a wave of Thrips.
This is a small insect that drills little holes in every plant that they come across and with every hole it spread this lethal virus like a wild fire through the entire crop.
In a matter of days this beautiful crop wilted away and died. It started with a handful of plants just like a few nasty words coming from the tongue but it took out the crop, like words causing a stir with dire consequences.
Since this incident we now inject garlic extract every time we irrigate the crop. The plants breathe this garlic smell and the Thrips are not too eager to settle on our crop.
It is like resisting letting certain words take control of our lives, prevent them from becoming part of our vocabulary.
The past example is what could happen when words are used that hurt or pierce, but the opposite it true as well, we have a choice which words we use, offensive words likely create nasty reactions but words of love and grace can do wonders in terms of healing and helping others. Sermon#4
13) So in other words, little things can have huge consequences or make a big difference or turn something small into a being good or bad.
See this little seed that flows through the air blowing around in the wind, this is the seed of a thistle, they are floating around everywhere right now.
See how small the seed is, just tiny as can be, but after the rains start these little seeds will settle on the ground and with enough moisture start germinating and turn into the huge weed by next summer.
Then we have a small bulb of a Lily called Sumatra and see what this little bulbs turns into after 12 weeks in rich soil? Look at this beautiful stems with huge red flowers.
In other words we have a choice to make. Do we plant and grow weeds like this thistle by spitting poison, hurting others by the things we say or do.
Or we plant these lily bulbs and cultivate them and foster them by helping others and by being silent at the right moment and speak with words of grace, words of love and compassion, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones. Sermon#4
14) Billy graham once said: you can inherit your religion but you can’t inherit your faith. Growing up, my faith in God had slowly faded away, but 12 years ago it came back, with help from the Holy Spirit. Ironically enough this rebirth came in December 2003 right there in this church while attending a funeral service, celebrating the life of Violet Hansen. I had known the Hansen’s through Rotary and Jerry Hansen was my CPA. His mother Violet was a wonderful lady.
This funeral service had a lasting impact on me. In one of the eulogies Violet was described as a believer and while on her deathbed having an amazing peace and joy and delight as she described seeing Jesus while she passed away.
This made such an impression on me, it penetrated my heart. The Holy Spirit started working within, and it invoked a hunger of the soul and a search for the love and peace of Jesus Christ. It led to become inquisitive and seek nourishment of the soul.
After the funeral I went through that door and have walked with the Lord ever since. That very next Sunday I started attending church and never looked back again. Sermon#5
15) Let there be no misunderstanding I am a flower farmer at heart. The flower business is not an easy business these days with competition from South America and ever increasing cost of labor and materials putting pressures on the business.
But as a famer it is gratifying to see crops grow from cuttings, seeds or from bulbs, and 12 weeks later turn into beautiful flowers, marvels of God’s creation. There is a direct correlation of how well plants grow with the development of its root system. As farmers we find ourselves with our hands in the soil to make sure the roots are happy because the roots are the foundation of a good and healthy crop.
So it is with the word of God, it starts with the foundation and the root of Christianity is found in the books of the Old Testament. Sermon#5
16) Naomi and Ruth returned to Bethlehem and Ruth goes out to glean in a grain field after the reapers. Pick up the scraps of what is left over in the field.
The first time I heard the word gleaning was 30 years ago when I started at Sun Valley in the days of daffodil bulbs being dug in the summer. There were always some bulbs that were left after the diggers went through and we would go to through the field one last time to glean these bulbs still lying in the field. These leftovers are still good to use. Earlier this week, I visited the Humboldt Redwood mill in Scotia, to look at woodchips we use as amendments in our soil mix for growing Lilies and Tulips. It is amazing to see the scraps coming out of the mill; one could build a deck or a fence from those scraps.
Ruth went out into the field to glean and this is where she meets Boaz for the first time. She stayed there until the end of the season of barley and wheat harvests and this brings us to today’s reading of Ruth 3 1-5 and Ruth 4 ’13-17 Sermon#6
17) This made me think of a story I heard on the radio this week about a professor who surprised his students with a midterm test. The professor handed out the question paper with text facing down as usual. He asked the students to turn the page and gave them an hour to finish the test. To everyone’s surprise there were no questions, just a blank page with one black dot in the right hand corner of the page.
He instructed the students, I want you to write down what you see. After an hour the professor took the papers and started reading them aloud. All of the students had taken great length to describe the black dot in every possible way.
Not one student had written about the white part of the paper the blank portion with countless opportunities
This is what happened to Naomi as she was in despair and focused on the dark spot in her life, she missed the blessing that God had put in her path. Ruth is more analogues with the white part of the piece of paper. Nowhere in the story do we read about her lamenting about the situation she had found herself or being in despair. Ruth seems to have calmly acquiesced in the divine will as she put her faith in God. She did not focus on the dark spot; to the contrary the story of Ruth could fill the whole page about the good that came into her life and Israel as a whole and through the messianic line it ultimately brings us to Jesus Christ 1100 years later. Sermon#6
18) In the last few weeks, several folks asked when the next sermon was coming up, and which scripture that sermon was based on. When I said “Zephaniah”, the reply was: Zephe who, most people have never heard of Zephaniah.
19) Once a month I travel to the farm in Ontario Canada. Typically departing Monday night to take the red eye fight to Toronto arriving early in the morning than the drive to the farm in st Catherine’s an hour away, after spending the day inspecting crops and meeting with the team, drive back to Toronto to take the 6.00 pm flight to LA.
Next morning before driving north to visit the Oxnard farm a quick visit to the LA flower market at 5.00 am, try to back in the car by 6.00 am. For two reasons 1) the traffic at that hour isn’t too bad yet, the other reason at 6.00 am on the local station KKLA one of my favorite programs with J. Vernon McGee comes on the radio for 30 minutes with “through the bible” a 5 year bible journey cover to cover. What a blessing!
As pastor of a congregation of up to 3000 people Dr. McGee’s once asked before preaching, if any one had ever heard a sermon on Zephaniah, of the 3000 in attendance only 2 people raised their hands. Sermon#7
20) Ladies and gentlemen, this passage is so beautiful; it is like a flower that pops out of the ground after a long cold winter and starts blooming in the spring.
Like this bunch of red tulips, these tulips went through a dark and cold period in order for them to bloom as beautifully as they do here today. Without the cold they would not have flowered at all or even if they did they would have been short and ugly.
Or like this bunch of chrysanthemums in front of us here. Did you know that these chrysanthemums would not have flowered, had it not been for a period of darkness?
We grow Chrysanthemums in Oxnard and these plants under long day conditions (summer) will continue to grow and not flower. Hence we darken the greenhouses with black plastic during the summer months in order for these plants to initiate the flower so we can enjoy them today.
The Israelites went through a very dark period when the temple was leveled to the ground, Jerusalem was destroyed and many perished or were taken into captivity to Babylon.
But ultimately the Messiah arrived as foretold in Zephaniah: bringing Love, Peace and Joy to the world. Sermon#7
21) But Zephaniah 3:17 it is most likely underrated, deserves better: For the Lord your God is living among you, he is mighty savior, he will take delight in you, with gladness, with his LOVE, he will calm all your fears, he will rejoice over you with joyful songs.
Can you imagine joyful songs from our Lord? I have been a choir member for years, wow I can’t wait to see that happen. (Sermon#7)
22) Friday we had a farm meeting and as closing thought I used a quote from Henry Van Dyke, an American author and clergyman.
In the 1920’s he wrote a poem called: There is a better thing than the observance of Christmas day, and that is, keeping Christmas.
He concludes the poem with: “Are you willing to believe that Love is the strongest thing in the world – stronger than hate, stronger than evil, stronger than death – and that the blessed life which began in Bethlehem 2000 years ago is the image and brightness of the Eternal Love?
When we are willing to believe that, then we can keep Christmas.”
And if we can keep Christmas for ONE day, why not always?….Sermon#7
23) With the BCS championship game tomorrow night between Clemson and Alabama and NFL playoffs games this weekend, America is still in the spirit of football. Speaking of football one of the key positions is the running back, but this star player carrying the ball, depends heavily on a skilled and strong full back.
The full back as the lead blocker, with his amazing strength, clears the way, and makes a clean path for the running back. So it was with John the Baptist who was the one clearing the way for our Lord Jesus, as had been predicted in Malachi 3:1: and the Lord whom you seek, will suddenly come to his temple and the message of the Covenant, in whom you delight, behold he is coming. Sermon#8
24) In verse 17 it said 17His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
The wheat and the chaff or not neatly separated in distinct piles the Lord with his winnowing fork does the separating.
Picking the good from the bad is something flower farmers are used to. The Latin name of these pink flowers in front of us is: Matthiola incana, most people call it “Stock”. These flowers are directly seeded in the field and 50% of the plants come up giving single flowers with are worthless, the other 50% are these double, beautiful ones you see in the vase here.
The flower farmer only picks the stems with double flowers and leaves the others in the field and they become compost green feed for the next crop that is planted, so it is with the wheat in the field. He will gather the wheat in the grain shed, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire. This sounds like the ultimate vivid description of hell. And he will gather his believers and prepare them for the Kingdom of heaven, the promise of eternal life. Sermon#8
25) The other bunch of flowers is on the table here is Ornithogalum dubium, some people call them Star of Bethlehem. They come in white, yellow and Orange. Most of the production of bulbs and flowers take place in Israel and they exported all over the world. We grow this flower at our farm in Oxnard and we purchase the bulbs from Israel.
A few years ago my wife and I had the great fortune to visit the bulb supplier in Israel and check out the bulb production see some of the latest varieties. We then took a few days for some site seeing, including a trip to the northern part of Israel to Mt Tabor, Nazareth, the site of the wedding of Cana, Capernaum and the Sea of Galilee. It is called the Sea of Galilee but is truly a midsize lake, which drains into the river Jordan. Then the tour bus took us to a site at the river Jordan where people are being baptized today.
What I sight to witness that Jordan River, the river that is so deeply rooted in Jewish history from Genesis to Deuteronomy, Joshua and Micah, there are so many references in the bible to this river, the eastern border of the Promised Land, the river where Jesus was baptized, the place where history changed forever. Sermon#8
26) Usually at four in the morning I eat breakfast, by 11.30 we are ready for lunch and the stomach is growling. It is hard to imagine not eating for 40 days. The scripture said: Jesus was full of the spirit and that is how he was able to rebuke the temptation of Satan despite extreme hunger. Without the help of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit we are vulnerable to the deceptions of the devil. Temptations come in many ways; one very destructive temptation is the abuse of drugs and alcohol. Sermon#9
27) Before the busy holiday season our HR director reached out and connected with a group called Teen Challenge, and developed a collaborative program where the students get work experience at the farm. Honestly I had not heard of this organization.
Since November teen challenge students are working part-time at the farm. After a monthly farm meeting discussing SV guiding principles a student asked if I would talk to their group. This prompted me to check out what Teen challenge is all about.
A few weeks ago I visited their facilities in Eureka including club 5:17 a coffee shop and bookstore 2 blocks from Target. Inside the bookstore is a huge sign with 2Corinthians 5:17. This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! Wow what a blessing to have this great Christ centered organization, this beacon of hope in our midst. Sermon#9
28) The other day John MacArthur talked about 1 Corinthians 13, the chapter describing Love. The first 12 chapters of that letter define all the shortcomings of the believers in Corinth. He called it the dirt, all the things they did wrong, but out of that dirt grows this beautiful flower in chapter 13 depicting the 12 ways of Love.
It made me think about temptations and sins committed by all of us every day, it like this bag of dirt, composted bark, if you stick your hands in it the dirt gets in your skin and it is hard to wash out, the composted wood will put splinters in your fingers and as it is still composting, it smells nasty. But yet this same dirt is what helps produce these beautiful tulips and Iris all over the sanctuary here today.
This dirt provides the fertile soil that Jesus talks about in Mark 4:8 still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they sprouted, grew, and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” Sermon#9
29) Imagine for moment having some folks over for dinner, not at your house but actually inside a greenhouse, where guests are seated on one long table. As a matter of fact, this happened last night 152 people from as far away as San Jose to Seattle dined at a 150 ft long table hosted by the American grown field to vase movement in the middle of our greenhouse surrounded by millions of tulips growing, and ready to be harvested for the upcoming Easter holiday.
What a joy to see these happy faces treasuring the beauty of the flowers and the comradery of people gathered together. These millions of tulips are grown in soil with composted bark as it core ingredient. Even though composted bark is dirty and nasty and smelly it makes for a great environment to make good, strong, healthy, roots.
Roots that are strong and grow deep make for great plants with beautiful long-lasting flowers. This week I checked with to Dr Gus de Hertogh retired professor from NC State U an authority in bulb research in America in the 1960’s he did trials with special long pots for growing tulips. They grew up to 40 inches long. In other words tulips have deep roots.
Roots are the foundation, so it is with today’s message as we go back to the roots of Christianity that are found in the Old Testament or the Jewish Tanakh. Sermon#10
30) Restore our fortunes O God, like the water courses in the Negev…. Despite it desert nature, today the Negev provides Israel with productive farm land and abundant crops. And watercourses indeed,,,, they come through tiny little channels called drip tape.
The tulips that surrounded that dinner table last night are irrigated with drip tape. More than a hundred miles of drip tape in that tulip house alone, feeding the crops with water and nutrients at ground level.
But did you know that drip tape was invented in the Negev desert in Israel in 1960’s. So in a way the water courses in the Negev WERE restored and this irrigation method is used on vast amounts of land producing prolific crops. Sermon#10
31) To use the analogy of the deep rooted tulip, the soil and the roots and the plant gave us this beautiful flower, but in the end, we throw the root and the bulb and part of the plant away, it is all rubbish in the words of Paul, it will all become compost, the thing that is important is the flower itself, the pearl, the treasure, the lamb of God, described in the manifestation of Jesus Christ.
Paul wrote in 2Corinthians 5:17. This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! Sermon#10
32) A few days ago driving to work early in the morning I was listening to the radio program “Family Life Today” with Dennis Rainey and Bob Lepine, and the subject was honoring your father and your mother.
Dennis Rainey gave a tribute to his dad who passed away years earlier. This made me think of the hymn “The Holy City”, a song that holds a special place in my heart. Let me tell you why: in the summer of 2013 my father had passed away.
Less than a week before he died we had talked about the Holy City. At his funeral I gave a eulogy and as a tribute I also sang this timeless hymn in this ancient church in the town my father grew up in Holland.
His whole life my father had longed to visit Jerusalem but never made it there.
The hymn the Holy City provides a beautiful depiction of life, death and the promise of salvation. I wasn’t too familiar with the song at the time and only knew part of the melody.
Without music and being far away from home, I listened to U-tube to familiarize myself with the whole song.
One of the recordings was by gospel singer Bill Shaw a former member of the “Blackwood Brothers Quartet” during 50’s and 60s.In this U-tube clip, before singing “The Holy City” he quoted from Revelation 21:2 : Then I John, saw the Holy City the new Jerusalem coming down from heaven prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
This led me to explore this book more extensively. It starts as the Revelation of Jesus Christ made known by sending an angel to his servant John. But who is John??……..Sermon#11
33) Last week a motivational speaker and best-selling author came to Arcata to coach and train our management and sales team, his name is Barry Gotlieb he published a number of books including “Every day is a gift” and “TGIT”.
Among the many nuggets of wisdom he shared, was the concept of alpha and beta waves of the brain and how 30 minutes after waking and just before going to bed the brain is in alpha mode and the information entering the brain is virtually unfiltered and it is not a good idea to watch news or the like since 80% of it is negative and these negatrons affect how we think and act the rest of the day. Once our mind is in full swing the beta waves set in and so does the filter.
Last Sunday after sleeping in a bit and determined to put my new learnings to work, I first read a book and purposely did not turn on the news while eating breakfast and instead turned the dial to the Trinity Broadcasting Channel. Low and behold, David Jeremy in his program “Turning Point” starts talking about the book of Revelation. The book that is more than about signs and wonders but about things to come found in the beginning of the book with 7 letters to 7 churches of early Christians. Sermon#11
34) During the summer we grow Iris in the fields in Arcata and preferably on virgin soil, meaning fields that have never seen an iris before, this makes for some of the best quality iris, one can imagine and at the same time it is a sustainable farming practice that minimizes the need for chemicals.
For this crop rotation we are always on the lookout for new ground. This year we are growing our Iris on a sheep farmer field. Talking to him last summer he explained how vulnerable sheep are to predators, like coyotes, mountain lions but also dogs. A sheep has no natural defense mechanism and especially lambs are even more vulnerable.
Lambs are mentioned quite frequently in the bible, 155 times in the OT of which the majority (109) in the Torah the first 5 books of the bible that Moses wrote.
Almost all references to lambs in the NT can be found in the book of revelation (29) Sermon#11
35) One of these listeners in Europe sent me an email last month and wrote: it is amazing at which speed you prepare and write these sermons.
I thought about this for a while and answered, Thank you very much but I certainly cannot take any of the credit, as it is the Holy Spirit that brings thoughts and ideas and put things in my path while preparing, particularly as Sunday draws near.
Here is an illustration; a month ago on April 16 a devastating 7.8 earthquake hit Muisne Ecuador only 55 miles from Esmeraldas the location of that 1906 quake. On the same day I met a nice young fellow and like the main character in John Bunyan book “Pilgrims Progress” this kid was named Christian.
He formerly grew up in Eureka but had since moved to Redding. He also recently had accepted Christ, and was full with the spirit, describing that he had been baptized that previous week in the Bethel Church in Redding.
He shared that on that particular weekend, church attendance was low, because many members of that congregation had left for the Azusa. I did not know what he meant with that. I knew of Azusa Pacific University in Los Angeles. But what Azusa was this guy talking about?
He described it as a spirit filled event in Southern California. I couldn’t help but find out more, what this was all about.
As it turns out the event was called “Azusa Now” and was held on April 9th to commemorate and celebrate the 110 year anniversary of the Azusa street revival of 1906.
The celebration was held in the Los Angeles Coliseum, the same place where Billy Graham drew a record attendance of 134,000 people in 1963. Sermon#12
36) Now fast forward to this week. The Congressional club in Washington DC was founded in 1908 and is comprised of spouses of members of congress, Supreme Court justices and cabinet members.
This week they held their annual “First ladies luncheon honoring Michele Obama in the ball room of Washington Hilton. This invitation only event has been held for 104 years raising money at 25,000.- per table for charitable causes.
This year American flower farmers donated the flowers for this event. And in return for this in kind donation where given a free table. I was invited to join other flower farmers to attend this special occasion. Not having much time available I took the red eye Wednesday night to Washington, arrived early in the morning, attended the luncheon and came right back home same day.
I would not have wanted to miss this event despite the time pressures. The event was memorable to say the least. This private event included the singing of the National Anthem, the honor guard and when the First Lady was introduced an elevated energy and liveliness filled the room.
For a moment it made me think about that upper room in Jerusalem when the Holy Spirit came down and the crowd was bewildered and amazed and perplexed.
The first lady gave an inspiring speech calling for a middle ground in a very polarized Washington and plea to those in attendance to encourage their spouses for a more conciliatory approach to the issues facing our Nation.
After the meal there was entertainment and a number of Grammy award winning musicians entered the stage, starting with Tasha Cobbs, who in her deep booming voice started singing: THERE IS POWER IN THE NAME OF JESUS, THERE IS POWER IN THE NAME OF JESUS BREAK EVERY CHAIN X3.
At this point the crowd just went ballistic, it was like the Holy Spirit entered the room and gave this Gospel singer from Georgia the incredible gift of expressing power in the name of Jesus, the power to break every chain.
The chains are breaking and the people are freed from whatever has held them down.
It was so moving it brought tears to my eyes. As I was sitting in the crowd, it suddenly made the 28 hour roundtrip worth every minute. Here is a crowd of 1500 singing along with this gospel song in the heart of our Nation’s Capital.
The power of the Holy Spirit that brought this room to tears and joy,
The same spirit that came down at the Azusa street revival in 1906,
The spirit of the Great Awakening,
The spirit that came down on the disciples on that Pentecost day, filling the room of the 120,
The spirit that came upon that fisherman called Peter. Who with the power of the Holy spirt was emboldened and empowered to give the most touching and convincing most powerful sermon of his life, and by that end of that first day 3000 people were saved.
For a moment consider where we are today?
Are conditions ripe for another Great Awakening, for a new revival?
We ask For the Holy Spirit to come and dwell among the people and heal our souls and lead us to the path of eternal life. Sermon#12
37) Last week we visited Holland, looking at newest varieties of lilies and researching some of the latest technologies that are used in the Dutch flower industry. One day we grabbed some lunch in Medemblik, a City that was incorporated back in 1289 and some buildings dating back are still there.
Later that day we had dinner in area called Wieringen. Prior to 1924 this was an island before all the water around it had been pumped out and turned into land. On this former island there was a church, built in the 1100’s using prehistoric rock.
Even though this church had been restored several times the original rock was still on parts of this church. Seeing buildings that were built in 1100’s brings a new perspective to what we consider historic in Humboldt.
Now let’s go back even farther in time to 900 BC in the land of Israel, which brings us to the story of Elijah, recorded in 1Kings and it continues into its sequel, 2 Kings. Sermon#13
38) Five years ago my wife and I visited Israel. We toured the northern part one day; the bus took us through the fertile Jezreel Valley. On the east side of this valley the tour guide pointed to Mt Taboor as he called it, the site of the transfiguration of Jesus.
Not knowing what that meant at the time, but based on its apparent significance, I snapped some pictures. After the trip reading the Gospel accounts of the transfiguration in Mark, Matthew and Luke and the second letter of Peter, it became clear that this was an important event in history.
This was the mountain where Peter, John and James had fallen asleep and by the time they woke up, Jesus was shining with bright rays of light. Then Moses and Elijah appeared next to him and were talking with Jesus.
Isn’t this interesting, here we have Moses who was frustrated with his countryman, the unbelieving Israelites, after coming down from Mt Horeb they had made a Golden Calf.
God forbid him and his people to enter the Promised Land and they spent the next 40 years in the wilderness.
600 years later Elijah was frustrated and depressed with the Israelites and their King and Queen during HIS life time and he was in despair and darkness and traveled 40 day to the same mount Horeb, back to the roots of the law, the Mountain where Moses received the 10 commandments.
Moses died and was buried in the land east of the Jordan river, Elijah was taken up to heaven by a whirlwind and chariots of fire after he had crossed the Jordan east of Jericho as described in 2Kings. The Jewish people are still awaiting his return to this day as prophesied in Malachi.
Here Moses, Elijah and Jesus are together and they are talking in a manifestation of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Moses and Elijah were messengers; God had spoken directly to them at Horeb. But Jesus the son of God, brings a completely new dimension. A cloud came over the mountain and a voice came out saying: this is my son, my chosen, listen to him.
Ironically, those pictures I snapped that day on the tour, show a cloud hanging over this mountain on an otherwise sunny day.
The voice said: this is my son, listen to him. Moses and Elijah were recipients of the power of God. Jesus on the other hand IS the power.
He is the gift to humankind.
Here is the good news; we can receive this gift of Jesus Christ. We do not need to be lonely in a broken world. Sermon#13
39) In 1967 the Beatles released the song “All you need is love”, it became a hit, number one in countries around the world. The message was simple: all you need is Love, Love is all you need.
Watching the news this week tells a different story, the complete opposite of love. It is downright troubling to witness the hate that is penetrating the fabric of our great Nation. Polarization and hard divisions on political views, on social issues, race, immigration, and the list goes on. But there is a way out, as we will soon find out. Sermon#14
40) Let’s think back for a moment to our childhood, and we probably can still remember our favorite teacher, that teacher with these great anecdotes as we hung on every word rolling of their tongue. Best teachers have in common an amazing ability to tell stories to make the message stick. A website called: “reach every child.com” lists storytelling as an important trait of great teachers.
Jesus, was a master at storytelling; He painted vivid pictures with stories to dramatize his teachings. Jesus told them in such a way that they were easy to visualize, and therefore to remember.The stories he told were simple but yet with a deep meaning. In the bible they are called parables.
The word parable comes from the Greek word “parabolee” para, meaning to come along side and ballo literally means to throw or see with. There are 39 parables recorded in the Gospels of Matthew, Luke and Mark, 28 in the gospel of Luke alone. (Sermon#14)
41) Although the bible doesn’t mention it verbatim the command is commonly referred to as “The Golden Rule”
The Golden rule is universally applied through our society.
For instance, of the ten guiding principles of our company two of them find their origin in the Golden rule: treat neighbors like you want to be treated and treat team members with respect.
Renditions of this core principal are found throughout history:
Confucius said: never impose on others, what you would not choose for yourself.
Socrates wrote: do not do to others, that which angers you, when they do it, to you.
Buddha said: Hurt not others, with that which pains yourself.
These writings date back between 400 and 500BC, but the root of the “Golden Rule” goes back to the days of Moses coming down from Horeb, receiving the 10 commandments. Moses wrote in Leviticus 19:18 do not seek revenge or bear grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself.
What is fascinating is that all these earlier writings instruct to not do something. In an interesting twist of the “Golden Rule Jesus’ emphasizes on a positive command, to be proactive, and to do, to love your Neighbor. Sermon#14
42) Earlier we listened to some very moving testimonies from Teen Challenge students. What a blessing, to see these men who went through many difficulties, witnessed the pits of the darkness of life, persisted in their journeys and prayers, and have turned their lives to Christ and now walk, in the shining light of Jesus. What a blessing.
Years ago I listened to an audio book of Napoleon Hill called: “The keys to success”, 17 principles of personal achievement. In one chapter, Hill tells the story of his son Blair, being born without ears, a condition called: bilateral microtia.
He describes, that the doctors diagnosed that his son would be deaf for the rest of his life. Through prayer and sheer determination and desire and the power of Faith his son ultimately was able to hear and function as any other member of society.
His son in turn, was determined that his lifelong mission would be to serve others, and to bring hope, and practical relief to thousands of deafened people who, without his help, would have been doomed forever to deafness”
When we pray, do we just follow a routine, do we pray and the Father, the man in the house, just ignores us? Or at least is that what it feels like? How strong is our faith when we pray? Do we pray a halfhearted prayer? Or do we cry out, to our Heavenly Father in desperation, over and over again.
Scripture says: Then the Lord promises, I will listen, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. 10For everyone who asks, receives, and everyone who searches, find, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Sermon#15
43) After the last sermon on “Strength in faith”, I received a call from a listener in Fort Lauderdale Florida who shared, that at age 25 he was diagnosed with metastasized melanoma, a very rapid form of cancer.
The doctor told him there was really nothing they could do about that type of cancer. Once it gets into the blood system, it is just a matter of time before it attacks the major organs.
Then on top of it, one day his dog was hit by a semi-truck and died, he was very upset and cried out to God, why do you do this to me, I have terminal cancer, soon going to die, and now my dog is dead. He went to bed angry and crying.
Next morning, still in a sad, mental state, the phone rang and it was the nurse at the doctor’s office, what do you want? Stop bothering me, I am dying, leave me alone.
The nurse said, but sir, the doctor needs to talk to you.
Then the oncologist got on the line and told him that something miraculous had happened, based on the test that was done earlier in the week, the cancer had disappeared, and he was cancer free, the doctor could not explain how this miracle possibly could have occurred.
This happened 43 years ago and this listener in Fort Lauderdale Florida is cancer free to this day as he told me this story a few weeks ago. Sermon#16
44) Anyone heard of DeKalb corn from DeKalb Illinois? That’s where my in-laws are from, and years ago while visiting there on a family vacation, I decided to take a 7 hour drive to Canton Ohio with my son and a nephew to see the NFL hall of fame. Mixing in some business, we first stopped in Cleveland to see a customer. Cleveland is a fascinating city, located on Lake Erie, home of the NBA champion Cavaliers.
It is also home of the “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame”. We then drove to Canton Ohio. For two boys playing high school football at the time, the NFL Hall of fame was like going to Heaven. Seeing the statues of all the NFL great was truly impressive.
Just this last weekend, eight big names in American football were enshrined in the NFL hall of fame. Including quarterback Brett Favre, coach Tony Dungy, wide receiver Marvin Harrison and former 49r owner Eddie DeBartolo. Brett Favre gave a passionate and emotional speech last Saturday. He opened with: Thank you Canton, Thank you “Hall of Fame” and Thank you, Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior, followed by a thundering wave of applause.
The remarkable speech was full of emotion and anecdotes of faith, the faith his father had in him while he was in high school. He shared a story about his father, who as his high school football coach, after a disappointing game, told the other coaches that his son would do better the next game, because he had it in him. Brett overheard the conversation, didn’t tell anyone. But the faith his father showed, at that moment inspired him, he spend the rest of his career trying to redeem himself, making his father proud, it lead him to become the best quarterback of all time……..
Halls of fame can be found in nearly every aspect of life. The rock and Roll Hall of fame in Cleveland, NCAA in Indianapolis, basketball in Springfield, Nascar in Charlotte, Baseball in Cooperstown. Hollywood has a walk of fame; Even the flower industry in America has a floriculture hall of fame in Alexandria Virginia.
The term “Hall of Fame” was popularized in America by the Hall of Fame for great Americans by Bronx community college in New York City in 1900.
Inspiration for this concept came from Munich Germany with the Walhalla Memorial, dating back to the 1807 where notable people in German history, going back centuries are recognized and enshrined.
But the script for the “Ultimate Hall of Fame”, recognizing those for their Faith in God, what is commonly referred to as the “Faith Hall of fame” was written almost 2000 years ago by an anonymous author who wrote a letter, to the Hebrews. This brings us to our text of today: Sermon#16
45) Last week I went to Holland for a few days, visit some bulbs suppliers and attend a wedding for one of my nieces.
We also took a little time to visit the Corrie ten Boom House in Haarlem and saw that room with the hiding place. What an incredible experience.
In the living room hang an embroidered picture made by Corrie ten Boom herself, but it was facing the back side, and all you could see was this mess of embroidery, knots and threads tied together and going all different directions, a confusing mess, then the tour guide turned it around and on the other side was a beautiful embroidery depicting the crown of the kingdom of God.
Next to it was a poem called “the weaver” by Grant Colfax Tullar.
My life is but a weaving
Between my God and me.
I cannot choose the colors
He weaveth steadily.Oft’ times He weaveth sorrow;
And I in foolish pride
Forget He sees the upper
And I the underside.Not ’til the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly
Will God unroll the canvas
And reveal the reason why.The dark threads are as needful
In the weaver’s skillful hand
As the threads of gold and silver
In the pattern He has plannedHe knows, He loves, He cares;
Nothing this truth can dim.
He gives the very best to those
Who leave the choice to Him.I thought about this for a while and what a great analogy to our daily lives. Sometimes it feels like whatever happens, none of it makes sense, like the listener in Fort Lauderdale Florida, we feel God is not with us, we feel alone and confused. (He gives the very best to those, who leave the choice to Him). What a profound statement of Faith. With that type of faith in the Lord, he will ultimately show us, when turning the picture around, what the true meaning of life is all about. That listener in Florida has since written a number of bestselling inspirational books, and he coaches others in business and personal advice…….
Here is the question, do we live in doubt or do we have faith, faith in God, faith in our Lord Jesus, to lead us, and guide us. Can we draw inspiration from the folks in Hebrews 11, the “Faith Hall of Fame”, how faith persevered, and how it lead them into the kingdom? Sermon#16
46) God loves all his sheep, the righteous and the sinners. The sheep that remain in field and the one that has strayed, God makes no distinction, he loves all. When lost he seeks us out.
Yesterday I was talking to a sheep rancher, who described how sheep easily get lost, they see the green pasture on the other side of the fence, and do anything to get there. Once they get through the fence they don’t know how to get back, and then they start to wonder.( sounds familiar)
The rancher goes on the lookout for his lost sheep and he is filled with joy every time he retrieves a lost sheep. Jesus said: And when the shepherd finds the sheep he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Sermon#17
47) And the woman who finds that lost coin calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin'”
Earlier this year I lost my cell phone in the Denver airport, after looking for it for 30 minutes we went to a lost and found counter. They had some phones. The person asked that we dial the number to check it was mine. I knew my phone was down to less than 1% battery power. It still had enough power to ring and got phone back, what a joy. Sermon#17