Infancy of an idea

God didn't start with babies. He began with adults. They were created already capable of comprehending His character; hearing His voice; following His directions; knowing His love. This ability to know Him without upbringing is divine.

In our Sunday school lesson last week we were studying the creation of Man. God created Man: male and female He created them.

I was suddenly accosted by an idea I had never entertained before. Those who know me best will tell you that I give huge parties to entertain ideas. If you have never attended one; consider this an invitation!

God created Man (male and female) as adults. They were fully grown (past puberty) and they (like most of the creatures they were naming) were told to procreate and fill the earth with others of their kind; in their case Man Kind.

God could have done things entirely differently. In fact, He did. There are examples, even in His creation, of alternative means of reproduction. There are organisms that simply divide; they make more of themselves from themselves. That seems efficient. And so simple! No conflict. No arguing over who is in charge. Then, there are creatures that reproduce asexually. Even occasionally, a critter is male and female in one body. So, it isn't actually essential that there be two separate "parents" to have "offspring". Perhaps the point of parents is nurture? Well, what about animals that hatch out of eggs or come out of cocoons and never know their parents: turtles, butterflies, fish, flies, spiders?

Wait, some spiders DO know their parents.

I think I'm getting a bit off topic here. So, populating the earth could have been done without a need for males and females that merge and then produce a baby which must be nurtured if it is to survive.

Why did He do it this way? Ahah! There's the rub! Ponder that. Pause to contemplate what existence would be like without babies. I'll give you a moment to get the wolf spider out of your mind.

Scroll on down. What aspects of our relationship with God would be lost if there were no babies?

What purpose DO babies serve?
I know, you will say they are cute and cuddly and irresistible, but that assessment, in itself is odd when you actually look at it. What makes them cute, cuddly and worthy of self-sacrifice? How do they earn our devotion and attention? Babies are actually the most selfish creatures in existence. Yet, just by being so utterly helpless, they twang at our heartstrings. Why is that? I'm not being silly here. We don't feel the same pull at our core when we see snakes or lizards or turtles or flies newly born.

You'll say that those are not humans; that it would be unnatural to be inclined to care for them. True, but puppies, kittens, bunnies, lambs...aren't human either, but they are still considered cuddly, cute and irresistible. Why lambs and kids, but not wasps or toads?

Creatures which come into this world helpless and totally dependent on their parents fulfill an ordained purpose just being born. Unlike Adam and Eve, we enter this existence clueless. So much of what we come to realize about God is explained, illustrated, experienced and passed along in the progression from birth to new birth.

As with God's faithfulness, maternal devotion preserves the relationship even when other commitments change. Children exemplify an ongoing plea for emotional comfort and security: the need for a safe haven.
Babies have to be shown where to go for nourishment. As do we, spiritually. They model total dependency.
They are given opportunities to learn to learn in the minute details, a task at a time.
In route, they are given hands on instruction in how to design things, build things, fix things...
They are emboldened to touch other lives; to share their existence; to seek companionship.
First physically, then mentally, then SPIRITUALLY...

They learn the importance of having SOMEONE at your back when you face the unknown.
SOMEONE to hold you up so you have a whole new perspective.
SOMEONE willing to get dirty to keep you clean.
SOMEONE to show you how to walk in step and when to follow.
SOMEONE who seemingly leaves you unattended, but is actually keeping a close eye on you at all times.
SOMEONE who allows you to make mistakes, knowing you'll end up wiser for the experience.
SOMEONE that shields you from predators.
SOMEONE who watches as you explore dimensions, heights, depths...



SOMEONE who cares who you reflect.
SOMEONE who shows you that you must be born again!
SOMEONE who celebrates when you grow up to begin the parental cycle again! Knowing His Love, knowing how to love as He does, we are ready to bring forth a child!
This is His way of revealing Himself to us. He came as a babe into our realm so that we could perceive Him as a parent!

Cause to Celebrate

After months of severe drought, and 68 days of temperatures over 100F, we got 2.5 inches of rain last week, in several installments. We went from brown and crispy to


green and luscious in just a few days! It continues to amaze us how a good rainy week cheers everything on: grass, trees, critters, us...!

And although it may be dreary for a few hours; showers of blessing are well worth weathering!

Our pond is almost brimming again.

Our beasties are getting their greens.





And we finally got back to Square Dancing last night (we had been absent for more than two months). It seemed a "fit" way to celebrate the prospect of fall!

Top of the season to ya'll!

New camera

I carry my camera everywhere; I drop it and bump it and expose it to the elements. It has been faithful and by having it with me like an appendage, I've learned to use it in adverse conditions. I've also begun to wear it out. Because we have two big events coming up, we purchased a new camera. Our previous lenses fit it. The picture of the moon was taken with the new camera and our old lens. We've taken moonshots before and this one is far superior. Although it looks like I took it at night, it was actually taken before dark. Then the background was darkened and the dog was added. I wanted it to look like she was howling, but she doesn't howl. Ever. She was just grinning. We have much to learn about the new camera soon! But, this picture encouraged us to practice!

On our way home Saturday from a horse show, we saw that many of our neighbors were burning their brush piles! We found out that we'd gotten almost 7 inches of rain! Enough to fill the main pond to overflowing (and it was down to half full) and fill the lower swampy pond completely (it had been dry as a bone; the cows were down there grazing last week!)



Due to the rain, and grass growth, we've been letting the cows in the pasture now during the day. God is good! Even the bovines have some clue about His mercy. They certainly know we open the gate for them! Here they are galloping to come through! Another analogy for you to chew!


By the way, (click to see the picture larger) that's Rosa in the lead, April four lengths behind, then Lucy, and Dillon bringing up the rear. Where's Blessing? Don't know, but she did come in.

Beth and the heifers

Months ago we determined that we would sell off some of our cows to pay for the wedding coming up. We discussed which cows to sell and which to keep and harder still, which to process (put in the freezer). We decided to sell our mother cows this year and their heifers from last year. And the bull calf. But, Blessing lost her calf, so, as painful as it is to say this, due to demand for beef among our family members and co-workers, Blessing and her calf from two years ago, April, get to go to Gonzales. We won't tell them why. It is humanely done for those of you who are squeamish. That's why we take them that far (there are several places closer). We are keeping my two favorite cows (and one of those is Kevin's favorite, too). Rosa and Lucy get to stay. And Dillon for the time being. But, that meant we needed to sell the two heifers and Beth. Beth is due to calf within a month. It is actually easier on the calf to be born after the cow is moved. If we were to sell them as a pair, we'd need to wait a minimum of a month from birth before transporting them. Even so, moving a young calf has its risks. So, I decided to advertise Beth too. I prayed that the LORD would make it possible to sell the cows for near market value without us having to actually run them through an auction. Auctions are hard on cows. Very. So, I took pictures of the heifers, Dixie and Dorrie, and of Beth. I wanted them to be current photos. I posted an ad on Craig's list. Within an hour of posting the ad, I got a call on my cellphone from a fellow close to 100 miles away who said he wanted the cows and he'd come get them right then! I explained that it would be Sunday afternoon before we'd be home at a time that would allow loading them. So, we set up a time (3:00) and I was ecstatic! The LORD had answered my prayer so specifically! The folks wanted the cows to baby and to have babies. Just as we had. After he'd already agreed to buy them (without haggling at all about the price); I got four more guys saying they wanted them if the first one backed out. I took their contact information. If we'd had a dozen heifers, we could have sold them all in one day! Of course I had waited until we'd gotten rain and there was more predicted so that people would know they would have pasture. Lots of folks sold off their cattle last year because of the drought; we kept ours because I didn't want them to end up in a feedlot. I made it clear in my ad that we'd gone to considerable expense to keep them grass/hay fed and save them from a life in a feedlot. All of those that responded to the ad understood our concern. Yesterday afternoon the couple came and got Beth, Dorrie and Dixie. They seemed satisfied when they saw them. The cows were extremely cooperative and walked right into their trailer! I led them in with a bucket of cubes. The buyers were relieved to see the cows were tame; they'd been eager to buy them because I had described them as gentle, easy to move and accustomed to hot wire.

What struck me today, is that we're selling Beth to pay for her namesake's wedding! And I still have the picture above of Beth as a calf with Kevin's soon-to-be-wed daughter. The other picture is of Beth last week and of the three of them in the trailer which took them to their new home. Not very roomy. Kevin says cattle travel better packed together. The couple that bought them called us when they got them home and into their pasture to say they were settling in well. That was so nice of them!

I am exceedingly grateful for the LORD making the downsizing as painless as possible for all concerned! He took care of every concern I raised to Him!