Faithful Servants

He rises early every morning to faithfully milk eight cows.
He starts the morning off with some warm, delicious bone broth.
He is encouraged to know the health benefits of drinking it on a regular basis.

  Have you ever observed someone and been amazed at how they can be so faithfully committed to a goal, dream or business?

She teaches faithfully. She homeschools her children. It can be a exasperating process for her and very normal to get the "I don't know!" exclamation. Things are tight but you would never know it by her cheerful countenance. Her trust in God is admirable. The devil is striving to make her fail. Her faith in a God she cannot physically see renders the devil incapable of making things to hard to handle.

He studies. He has his nose in the Scriptures daily. Learning, growing, guiding. He finds deep intellectual conversation inspiring. He has a regular routine of devotions and leads his family in worship to the Lord.

She expands her horizons when she is challenged to cook differently then cultural norm. She is faithful to provide simple, delicious & healthy meals for her family. She runs out of ideas at times and gets discouraged, but you would never know it because of her thankfulness expressed in the food she serves.

   These are the people who can inspire those of us who desire to be faithful to something as well. Their influence in our life is powerful. We see how they stay committed, even when its hard, challenging or discouraging at times. They are by no means perfect but the gift of faithfulness has been given to them.

All of us can be faithful to something, but the true test comes when trials start. "Commitment  means staying loyal to what you said you were going to do long AFTER the mood you said it in has left you."

What is something you want to be faithful to? What do you know God is calling you to do but hesitate because it is a big commitment?  Proverbs 16:3

"Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established."

I want to encourage you to take that step of faith! If it is of God, you can rest assured He gives no bad gifts. Whether it be learning to budge your money, a healthy lifestyle change, an attitude change, new job, or a new adventure, with Christ all things are possible!

Now, if you've taken that step, I want you to know things will in no way, now become easier. "Things will get worse before they get better."

Generally, you have to work hard, endure pain and maybe even hate it before you begin to see the good in everything. 

And this would be where encouragement comes in. 

You see those faithful people on a regular basis, so find something to say to uplift them. You will never know how much they will appreciate being noticed for their hard efforts.  Proverbs 16:24

"Gracious words are like honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body."

Milking with Peter

Cool, crisp morning at Bartlett Farms, Bottineau, ND

I wake up at 6 and head downstairs to start some coffee. 

I glance out the window at a beautiful lit sky, the sun is just beginning to rise.

I'm here for a couple weeks to do the milking while Peter takes a recharge vacation!

I began shadowing him last night for the evening milking and was a little intimidated by the many steps and procedures to milking 8 Jersey cows. (with some part Angus and Brown Swiss in there too)

But I believe this to be a great challenge and possibly be a way to get out of my comfort zone (cows have been a little scary to me due to their large size and some with attitude 😉)

Peter begins with cleaning & sterilizing the milking equipment and shows me how. I am learning to jump in quickly so to hopefully, catch on more quickly to the routine of things.

We then trudge down to the barn and I get things set up while Peter gets the 1st group of cows to milk. He made a handy step-by-step picture guide for the duties in the barn regarding the milking procedure. Hopefully, I don't forget any of the steps 😉

I am learning and trying to memorize each cow and her favorite stanchion in the milking parlor.

After finishing the 1st group, Peter leaves to haul the milk up to the milk room. While he's gone I try figuring out how my system will work for milking. I run each different procedure and step over in my mind trying to make sure I don't forget any important steps. 

When Peter gets back, he helps me finish up. Giving me tips and telling me what to do in whatever the case may be. I listen all the more intently because aside from some slight previous background with cows I don't know a thing about cows or cattle. 

The cold has awakened my reality of the harsh conditions the Bartletts have to work in and care for milk cows in the winter months. Life sure is not easy peasy in the winter!

Our breath, along with the cows comes out like a steam engine! Peter comments to me, "You can tell how cold it is by how far you can see your breath in the air!"

As we're in the milking parlor together Peter tells me, "I should write a book about artctic cow care."

"You should!" I tell him. What someone else could gain from his experience and wisdom when it comes to the daily routine of milking and caring for cows in the winter would be invaulable!

Its' mind boggling for sure, but amazing to know. Its been a goal of mine to learn and be confident in knowing how to care for and milk cows. I'm glad for this oppurtunity to do so. 

Eat Real, Eat Healthy! :)