What do you expect?

Whispering Pines Ranch.  Can you even believe it?  I woke up the next morning and thought I would have to pinch myself.  And every morning since that day, I've felt like I'm waking up  inside a dream!

I want to share with you about that whole "desires of your heart" thing I've spoken about before.  When I was a little girl we lived on a small farm outside of our little home town.  My parents were young and they raised me and my younger sister, Beth, outside!  We loved being outside and spent hours exploring the trees, the grass, the barns and all the animals.  We had cows, chickens, dogs, of course, and horses.  

Winston Churchill once said, "There's something about the outside of a horse that does something to the inside of a man."  You know, I believe him.

Being raised on a farm, around the horses, is a very big part of what made me who I am.  My parents allowed us to live out truth and consequences on that farm.  Learning to be responsible starts early when you are around animals.  Daddy taught us about making sure that gates always stayed closed... and that lesson was for a reason.  There are safety zones around all horses and they must be respected.

Time passed on, my parents divorced when I was a young teenager, so we all went our separate ways... but the love for those amazing creatures was so deeply imbedded in my spirit that I never fully escaped the pull they've had in my life.  Although I've never really voiced a prayer to God to "please let me have a pony", our God knows us better than even we know ourselves.  So only God would find this place for us and lead my heart right back to my first true love... horses!

I will confess that there are only about a million people in this world who "know" more about horses than me!  You won't see me writing a 'horses for dummies' book anytime soon.  And honestly, the very best horsemen I know are the humble ones who admit that you never truly have them completely figured out.  Because they are thinking, feeling individuals with very distinct personalities there's no set order about the way to "handle" them!  In my very limited experience with these precious treasures, building relationship with each and every one of them seems to be the best method I have for working productively with them.  

So, in relationship is where we are.  A stronger relationship with each other, a stronger relationship with our family, a stronger relationship with our friends, and stronger relationships with our God.  Those were the desires of my heart... some that were close to the surface and that had occupied my prayers, others that were lying deep within me.  Desires that only God remembered. 

Since the night we gave our farm back to God, we've seen Him do the most amazing things with this place.  We've also discovered one miracle after another that had to happen for us to be able to be at Whispering Pines.

We found out after we had moved in that there was another couple that had been leasing the property and keeping it up for Russell.  The 'deal' originally was that they would go ahead and move into the house and then sell their own house before actually buying this property.  They lived here for a couple of years and because of the terrible housing market, they were unable to sell their home.  Russell and the couple finally decided that the original deal they made just wasn't going to work out for them because their house wasn't going to ever sell, so they chose to just move out of the farm and back into their old house.  Exactly two weeks later the couple's house sold!  Russell contacted them and was excited because now that their money was freed up to buy this place, the couple could return and their first deal would kick back in.  Oddly enough, the couple informed Russell that they had changed their mind and were no longer interested in the Slade Road property.  This happened at the end of May 2011!  (Just a week or 2 before Russell ran into Tammy at the gas station.)

Another interesting phone call came from a lady living in Florida.  Over the past few years, while the farm was up for sale, there was another lady who had shown an interest in buying the place.  The lady in Florida had a horse rescue operation there.  Horses who had been mistreated, were left alone or abandoned, horses that could no longer remain with their owners for whatever reason... she would provide a safe place for them to rehabilitate, recover and then help find new owners for them.

She called Sally often and had even come to look over the place.  Her interest in buying it suddenly changed and she called Sally one last time to tell her that for some reason, she really felt like there was another "purpose" for this place, she just didn't know what it was.  This phone call took place during the time Russell and Sally were praying about what they should do about selling the place to Paul and me!

Our work was cut out for us.  We clearly understood that God had made a way and had a plan in place for this Whispering Pines Ranch.  We knew that we were here for a reason but we still really didn't have a very clear understanding of the details.  The really good thing was that because God had already proven Himself faithful to take care of so many details, and because He had gone to so many extravagant lengths to get us to this place, He was a God who could be trusted again!  We would just keep working and waiting on God to show us His plan!

With fences to fix, grass to mow, a swimming pool to repair, and a barn to begin to fill up with people who were interested in boarding their horses again at the farm, we got to work.  Hours of time, gallons of sweat and the sweetest fellowship alongside my husband were how we loved to spend our days!  We haven't spent just a whole lot of time sitting on the tea sipping Juleps!  We are workers and that's just what we do.  We figured that if we're here to be stewards of this place of God's, we just better do the best job we can do.

The fall for the catering business is usually pretty busy, and the fall of 2011 wasn't much different.  On top of catering, we were in the thick of Ryan's senior year at South Jones High School.   We also were in the first couple of months of our son, Caleb's, first deployment to Afghanistan.  Our hearts and our minds were full... trusting God to care for your children is about the greatest exercise of faith a parent can muster. 

Christmas came and we were able to celebrate it this year like the dreams I'd had for my family Christmas' all my life.  We decorated the house and had the best time with the kids.  Catering for other people during the holidays was good and finally it call came to an end.  We were ready to celebrate our first New Year at Whispering Pines.

Soon after 2012 had made its entrance, some more of the puzzle pieces began to show themselves... God was at work again at the farm.  It was Upward Basketball season at church and Sam was playing on a team.  We would get ready on Friday night for our Saturday morning games.  We had made our plans to go to see Sam play basketball and then as soon as he was finished we were going to head up to the monthly horse sale.  

But God needed to talk.  Remember that He knows me even better than I know myself?  So to get a word in edgewise God had to keep me up all night sharing His "plan" with me.  And He made it crystal clear.  Even though I didn't know what in the world He was thinking... I knew that all the pieces were falling into place.

The next morning we hit the ground a' runnin'.  Paul was going to hook up a trailer and found a flat tire.  Sam and I were getting ready for the ball game.  The new and improved plan was that Paul was going to go get the tire fixed and Sam and I were going to head to the church.  If the tire thing worked out for Paul, he'd just meet us there.  If not, we would all just have to meet at the horse sale.  And if you have a flat tire demon at your house, you know already how that worked out!

My head was reeling with all the planning and dreaming that had gone on just a few hours earlier with God.  I was excited and confused.  Scared, a little, and feeling totally ill-equipped to do the job that I felt like He was calling me to do.  But more than anything, just anxious to see how this was all going to play out.

Sam's game was great!  We ran and got in the car and headed to the sale barn.  On the way, I called Paul and told him we'd be right there.  There was a lot of background noise and he told us that the sale was about to start and it was pretty crowded in there.  I started to tell him about the "plan", but he said he couldn't hear me very well... we'd just have to talk about it later.

Sam and I made our way into the sale barn and found that Paul had saved us a couple of seats up near the front.  The sale barn was unusually crowded that day.  I guess it was a little too chilly and wet to do anything else, so everyone that had a pick up truck decided to go look at the horses!  We hadn't been in there for five minutes before Paul elbowed me and told me I just had to see this big horse he'd found.  And no sooner did the punch and whisper take place than he punched me again and said, "there he is".

A young girl rode into the sale barn on this really big sorrel gelding.  He wasn't a draft horse, but I bet you just about anything there's at least one in his pedigree somewhere!  He was a big old boy.  The young lady rode him back and forth, and before I knew it the auctioneer slammed his gavel down and yelled, "Sold!  Number 362."  Paul looked at me with a sheepish grin and showed me his number.  You guessed it, "Number 362"!  Crazy man... just bought us another horse!!!

So after he'd gone crazy and flashed his handy number again to that auctioneer, we had to get out of there!  We weren't going to have any room on that farm for paying customers to board their frazzling horses if he kept buying!  We moved on out to the holding pen outside the sale barn to look at the new additions to our family.  I climbed up on the fence and the big guy came right over to me.  He had a flaxen colored mane and tail and the biggest head ever!  His bottom lip, though, had to be the silliest thing I've ever seen.  When a horse is completely relaxed, sometimes their bottom lip will droop a little bit.  Almost like someone's grandpa who's just fallen asleep sitting up in church!  Well, that was the lower lip of this big red horse.

Paul made his way over to me and started to tell me the 'story' about this horse.  I stopped him, of course, in mid-sentence and told him that God really did have a plan for this place and for us!  He looked at me, curious to hear the rest of the story.  So I told him how God had kept me up the night before, showing me how He wanted to use that farm and some horses to help hurting kids.   He showed me how the intuitive nature of horses was unique and that you could teach kids about body language and communication using them.  He told me about how horses will tend to mirror the emotions of the people around them.  For example, if someone comes to a horse with a spirit of fear, the horse will show that same emotion of fear.  Those who come to a horse and are very shy, will see the horse mirror that emotion and reach out gently to the child.  For those who try to use anger to force a horse to do their bidding, they will be met with fierce resistance from their new four-legged challenger.

As I was telling Paul about the words I'd heard from God there was the sweetest look in his eye.  He never took his gaze off of me while I was explaining God's plan.  And then with a remarkable, deliberate tone, Paul said, "Rhonda.  God really does have a plan for us and for that place."

I said, "Of course He does!  He wants us to use the horses to help people.  Do you think we can do this?"

And with the glisten of a tear in his eye, my sweet husband told me the story about the big sorrel gelding we now call Hank.  He said, "Doll, you are not going to believe what they used this horse for!  They used him in the Special Olympics so that little kids with special needs could ride on him!"

Can I just tell you that we are still amazed at how meticulous our God is with the details of this place we know as home?  When I say over and over again that He has gone to some pretty extravagant lengths to make His will for us known, and that He has accomplished some impossible feats to make all this happen, I'm not just playing!  I guess that's why I'm writing every night, so that we can get caught up to the current events and not ever forget the faithfulness of our amazing God!

Needless to say, Hank came home and we are going to be using him some more to carry out his part of God's plan for kids, for people, that are hurting or afraid, angry or alone, shy or suffering.

This is our Hank back in February when we got him home.  Along with Hank, we have Marshall and Blaze, the two horses that we kept when we got the place from Russell and Sally.  They are pictured below...

Since that time in February we have added more members to our family... our boarding family and our own horse family!  That man and that number-on-a-card thing is dangerous!!!  I'm kidding, I'm as bad as he is about wanting to bring home every beautiful thing I see.

So the plan of God's is really beginning to take shape.  We accepted our marching orders and we are doing as much research as we possibly can to make sure we can pull this off.  We know exactly enough to be dangerous, but we are desperately wanting to learn more than that so that God will be proud of the efforts we give Him.

Then from out of nowhere comes an email.  My precious friend, Marguerite, shoots over an email to me.  Contained within the email is a link to an interview that was held on Focus on the Family radio.  I clicked on the link and discovered that God was at it again, this time through my friend, Marguerite!

The interview was with Troy and Kim Meeder, of Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch in Bend, Oregon.  I listened to this interview and tears literally flooded my eyes again.  Kim was the story-teller and her husband was the more 'strong, silent type'.  Kim told a story of her tragic childhood and how her relationship with horses began.  She was nine years old when she was called out of her classroom at school and to the principal's office.  Her grandmother was there and picked her up.  Without saying so much as a word, her grandmother drove her all the way out to their home.  Kim recalled looking out of the car window and seeing the entire yard full of other cars. There were people everywhere!  In the yard, on the porch, in the house, and almost everyone was crying.  She remembers wanting to run away, at that point, because she had a terrible sense that something was horribly wrong. 

As she walked beside her grandmother through the house, Kim was met face to face by a strange lady.  She was crying uncontrollably and holding onto Kim with all her might.   Kim recalls that she heard the lady saying over and over, "I'm sorry.  I'm sorry.  I'm so very sorry."  And while her mind really wanted to understand what the lady was so sorry for, Kim's heart knew that something unimaginable was wrong and she wanted to run away.

Finally, the crying lady blurted out, "I'm so sorry that your dad has murdered your mother and then killed himself."

The fear and the shock raced through Kim's body and pushed her out the front door.  Kim began to run away from that house and from the tears and from all those people.  She ran into a pasture and fell onto the ground.  She could hear her own cries but said that she couldn't even recognize her own voice.  As she cried, she called out to God to help her... and He did.  She recalled that at that very moment, although the pain of what she was going through took years to heal, she knew that Jesus was right there with her in the terrible moment, and that He was never, ever going to leave her.

Kim talked with the interviewer about meeting her husband, Troy, and how God had used the terrible tragedy in her life to mold her and give her an extra measure of grace for kids that are hurting.  She told story after story about the horses they rescue at Crystal Peaks and how they allow hurting kids to come to their ranch to just be with people who care about them and to be with horses that have been hurt before, too.

I listened in awe that God had already accomplished His plan using horses to minister to hurting people for the past 15 years in one of  the most liberal states in our country!  I heard about a woman who loved horses and a husband who believed in her and supported her whole-heartedly.  The next natural step for me was to send them an email, explaining our situation and coveting their prayers as we began to explore the options available to us in South Mississippi.

In a few short days, I received an email back from the folks at Crystal Peaks, letting me know that for one week out of the year, in May, they host an informational clinic for those who are interested in starting a Similar Ministry IN THEIR AREA.  Well, duh?!  So, could I even deny that God had already made a way for me to have all my questions answered?  I booked the clinic and then prayed like crazy that my precious husband would understand why I had to go.

I like saving the best for last....

Jesus said, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.  Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?  If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him!"  Matthew 7:7-11

If you've been around teenagers very much (not counting when you were one yourself) you know what I mean when I say, "they don't know what they don't know".  Does that make sense?  They appear to know absolutely everything about everything.  They are so desperate to have the answers to all of life's problems in a neat little box.  But they, sadly, just don't know what they don't know.  To me, this verse addresses that same pride issue with all of us.  Just ask... you don't have all the answers yet.  Just seek... you haven't come even close to finding all that's out there yet.  Just knock... there's more than the life you see in front of you!  God is standing on the other side of that door with His ear pressed right up against it.  He's listening to see if you know He's there.  God is so very eager to hear you cry out to Him to help you.... just like that little girl who's world crashed down around her in one afternoon.

I'd like to encourage you tonight to try something for me.....

Trust God.  When you ask Him for something, ask Him with your whole heart.  If there's something missing in your life, run after God with everything in you and SEEK!  Don't stop until you are sure that you've found exactly what God had for you to find.  And wake up every morning of your life looking for the next door!  God has doors everywhere!!  But next time you see one, don't look down at your feet and shuffle up the door with doubt in your heart.  Hit the floor at a dead run and slide up to the door.  Don't push on the doorbell or leave a note... bang on that door with everything in you.  You're going to find your God grinning from ear to ear on the other side.  YOU are His child... YOU belong to Him!  

ASK expecting.  SEEK expecting.  KNOCK expecting.  

That's faith.