A Shepherd's Garden

About the Garden

"The LORD will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones; You shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. Those from among you shall build the old waste places; You shall raise up the foundations of many generations; And you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach, the Restorer of Streets to Dwell in." Isaiah 59:11-12
Stepping Stones:
|:Faithwalker Ministries:| |:Tinidril's Art of the Spirit:| |:The Ancient Path:| |:Eagle's Wings:| |:Awakening1s:|

This Season

Aug. 27th, 2008 @ 05:02 pm Growing

        There is a Proverb that says, that there are many plans in the heart of a man but the Lord orders his steps. Yvan and I had a desire in our hearts to return to ministry and our hearts were drawn to the poor and the needy. It has always been that way, in all of our 33 years of marriage, and so it is no great wonder that our hearts should once again be drawn to that path once more, given the state of the economy and all that includes.
   So currently we have found a fledgling church, whose principal parishioners are the poor and the homeless. Kind of along the lines of Issiah 60. The age range is from teens to 70s. Some are pensioners who live in the area and are just able to afford a room, some are those who struggle with mental issues and yes there are some who are dealing with drugs and alcohol but they are a minority. A goodly number of the teens are wanna be gutter punks who like to dress up and play the role but are really not and live in the burbs and attend nice schools and eat regularly but there are a few real genuine Gutter punks and they are hungry for love and encouragement and for their spirit to be fed and of course the fact that we serve a hot meal at the end of the service doesn't hurt either. So that is our current path.
   However, last Sunday I met a young vet fresh from the Iraq war who wouldn't come in because he was sure that God was angry with him for violating the commandment about killing someone. The revelation that he had the scripture wrong unleashed a torrent of long pent up hurt and fear as he sobbed for the better part of a half hour. The revelation that I shared with him was that the commandment does not say though shall not kill,l it says though shall not commit murder. That murder was the taking of time to plot the death of another, and that I seriously didn't think that when he was engaged in a firefight that he was taking the time to plot out the death of the ones he was shooting at. In the end he was, as is stated in Issiah 60, healed of the broken heart and as a captive set free and the proof of it was the Joy in his heart which was spilling out through the grin on his face.
As I shared this with some fellow clergymen at our weekly prayer meeting we wondered how many others were held captive in their hearts and what is more how could we set them free. It was then that I another Pastor had a revelation simultaneously, that we could reach into the lives of both the Veteran and their Families and so we have started the process of acquiring the information of how many Vets are in the area and who all is involved already that we might be able join or stylize our project after. After all there is no sense in reinventing the wheel so to speak. So we need your prayers most of all and we need you to intercede for Wisdom and Discernment. Then as things begin to unfold I will be keeping you appraised.
Pob Bendith (which is old Gaelic for Every Blessing)
jeff

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Aug. 11th, 2008 @ 05:13 pm the journey begins

The Sunday before last at the Prince of Peace Fellowship there was a man named Daniel who had come to visit. Yvan(Tinidril) was talking to him after the service and through him we were introduced to a Brother whose name is Steve Kimes. Steve pastors a church on Sunday afternoon whose members are for the most part homeless and some suffer from mild retardation and others from different physical maladies.
We were invited to come to the service to observe and then to talk with Steve and his wife. So we did. The church is in a Basketball gymnasium. So it kind of echoes when you talk.
So the mission for us was to see if there was a place where we could join forces. There resources are limited, primarily because of the folks they are ministering to. Their out reach to the Christian Community for assistance is also somewhat limited. That being said our out reach, that is Faithwalker Ministries is, very broad, and I being the shy and introverted fellow that I am, ( I heard that giggle) have found a place to extend our gifts to their benefit.
So Steve is creating a wish list and will be sending it out to me and then I will be passing it on with the sincere hope that there is actually some one who is reading this posting. Though this will not be the only site for the posting.
Pob Bendith
which is old gaelic for Every Blessing
jeff

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Aug. 3rd, 2008 @ 07:48 am A New Chapter

Well it has been a while since I last posted. Many things have happened. The last big adventure was providing Christmas for 12 kids in Utah. That went extremely well. We had folks and ministries from all over the United States and abroad who send funds; and Christmas was provided. This family of diverse cultures and races is doing well, all things considered. Two of the boys, Ian and Israel, were recently baptized into the faith at the ripe old age of 9. Please put them on your prayer lists.

Our newest chapter is that Yvan is no longer working for the YMCA. It was kind of a forced retirement situation. But there was a silver lining to this in that the director who was in a backslidden state was encouraged by Yvan's example of daily holy living and rededicated her life back to Christ and wrote a testimonial to that affect which I will have Yvan post.

Yvan and I have long desired to operate in the field of ministry full time as a team. Something that has not happened since we were Overseers at Thanksgiving House for the Prince of Peace Fellowship in the early 80's. The community house concept went into a state of dormancy for about 20 years but like the Phoenix of old it rises out of the ash to be reborn again in all its flaming glory. And there is this, that the city government is pushing the poor, the near-homeless, and homeless segment of society into our neck of the woods so to speak, but all the standard outlets for help are located downtown. So the fields that are white for harvest for the kingdom are starting to get whiter (more crowded).

I have never been good at asking for money, but if we are to operate as a team in this great harvest, full time, we need financial help. Our best guess currently is about $1600 per month. If you would like to help support our ministry, you can send checks made out to the Prince of Peace Fellowship and earmark it for Faithwalker and it will be directed to us.

The address is:

Faithwalker Ministries
c/o Prince of Peace Fellowship
P. O. Box 83445
Portland, OR 97283

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Oct. 23rd, 2007 @ 06:28 am Christmas Project

Well it has been a while since the last posting.
Some of you might remember my adventure through 5 states meeting with various families and brethren. One Family was in Utah. They had about a dozen kids from all over the world with varying types of disabilities. Well the father of this crew turned out to be a wolf in sheep's clothing and was caught abusing some of the kids and is also involved in the kiddy porn realm. The mom and the children are living in a house provided by their church but since Dad is in the prison system there is no financial support from him and the story goes downhill from there.
So the kids range in age from 15 to 5 . Seven boys and six girls.
So this is my plan, I have talk to and gained the support of my church to act as a bank so to speak. I am putting out the call for cash donations to be turned into a really big Christmas present for Mom and the kids. Unfortunately right at this very moment I am having one of my senior moments and can't remember where I put the church's address so I will post it later. Checks should be made out to the Prince of Peace Fellowship and in the memo spot ear mark it for Faithwalker Ministries. All, like 100%, of the money collected goes to them. It has been my experience that My Father in Heaven tends to get testy when they don't and the last thing any cleric needs is for his Boss to get testy. Especially when he is the creator of heaven and earth. Well that's the plan if you have questions you can contact me at jeff_faithwalker@yahoo.com . At the very least you can pray for them. The Mom's name is Dee and the kid's are Cheyene, Marie, Joy, Kasey,Ian, Elizabeth,Emile, Shaila, Isreal, Issac, Isaiah, Annaneya, and last but not least Ira.

Pob Bendith
jeff

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Apr. 18th, 2007 @ 07:15 pm Pakistan

Heart's condition: : contemplative

A couple of weeks ago I got a Posting that said Greetings from Pakistan. Now I have friends who are Pastors and Priest from Third world countries who contact me for fellowship and for answers to doctrinal / Bible questions . They are located in countries that are not on the top 10 favorites of our Government. So when I received this posting I wasn't all that surprised or suspicious. After all computers come with the majic button called Delete. So here is a letter from a Pastor/ Bishop and his name is Shamas Pervaiz and he is looking for fellowship. He tells me how he came to the Lord how and where he received is traing for Pastoring and how he was chosen by the National Council of Churches of Pakistan's Bishopry to become a Bishop and now has over sight of 34 churches. How like the Apostle Paul he is self supporting and has a wife and three kids, 34 Pastors and a whole bunch of new Christians in a country that boast that 97% of the population is Muslim about 1% are Shikism ( India religion) and the rest are Christians. That the average reading level for most of the Pakistanis is the equivalant of a third grader in the US. Now in the U.S. there are lots of groups who claim they are treated as second class citizens, but in Paskistan if you are not Muslim you are veiwed as a Dhog. Pronunced Dog. You are only eligible for the most mienial of jobs. The average Christian is paid 60cents per 12 hours of labor per day. No medical, no dental, no vacation, lots of verbal abuse lots of phsical abuse no police protection, etc. etc.
I wonder how many Christians in this country would cling to their faith if subjected to the same treatment. I wonder about my self. And yet here is a part of the family of God who has received the vision of the gift of Salvation and are willing to endure hardship and even torture and death. And here is a young Man,well younger than Me who wants fellowship and wants the insights of and older Brother in the Lord and has Invited me to come and teach his people. As I have been praying about that......I have come to the conclusion I might be able to broden their perspective on the Kingdom. I might be able to show them a aspect of the Holy Spirit that they seem hungry for. But likely as not the truth is it would be I who is the pupil and it would be the Holy Spirit that would be teaching me . Though they may be persecuted for being Christians, I would be not only a Christian but a Western Cleric. Dangerous? Yes but when has being a Christian ever been safe?
There are many things to consider, many reasons to not go, many reasons to go. And so I pray and as a friend of mine once told me, "babysteps jeff". Not to stop jsut take it slow until all things are in order! Then run with it. So I am Praying and I seek your prayers and wisdom.
Pob Bendith
jeff

This Planting

3 comments
Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Apr. 4th, 2007 @ 06:26 am Trapped

I was driving home from St. Johns, yesterday afternoon. The city had a number of projects going on the main arterials, so I was using many of the backroads to navigate around them. I found myself on NE 28th heading south and approaching Sandy Blvd. . As I came to the intersection I spotted and elderly couple standing on and a cement Island surrounded by a river of unyeilding commuters. What caught my eye was that they were hugging each other and that there was a look of desperation on both their faces. I found a place to park and then taking my life into my hands made a few drivers angry as I forced them to stop for me to get to the Island. The old man's name is Dave and the woman was his wife Frieta. Frieta has Alzhiemers. Somehow she had wandered from their home and on to this Island. Dave is 86 Frieta is 82. Frieta was in a state of near panic, Dave wasn't hugging her he was trying to restrain her from running into traffic. Now the really sad thing was that across the street was a Portland Motorcycle cop who was preoccupied with his radar gun and though Dave had called to him for help several times he could hear them over the roar of the traffic and through his space age electronically equipted helmet. It took me bouncing a rock off his cycle to get his attention. So then he activates his lights and comes over with the Idea of arresting me for throwing a rock at him. But that didn't happen and soon Dave and Frieta were off the Island and I walked them both to their home a couple of blocks away. As we walked Dave told me how his wife of 58 years really needs to be in a home but that their medicare won't cover it and that he would have to sell their home. Dave said that he hoped God would take his wife home real soon because he didn't know how much longer he could hold up. Then we came to the house a modest two bedroom and I helped Dave get his wife into the home. I asked Dave where he went to Church and he said they were Catholics but that they stopped attending Mass when Frieta started getting worse. Iasked if he had talked to any of the Priest about a place for frieta and he said "OH I wouldn't know who to talk to." I asked Dave if he would mind if I made some inquiries for him and he said No he would mind at all. Then Dave asked if I were Catholic? I said Sort of. Some of my friends refer to me as and undercover Jessuit. He chuckled at that and he thanked me again for helping him and we parted.
So today I will be poking around the Arch Diocese and seeing what I can do for Dave and Frieta. But I wonder, how many Daves and Frietas are out there trapped on and Island waiting for help with the help sitting within sight but to caught up in their technology.
Kinda like what the Prophet Issiah said," Having eyes but they cannot see and having Ears but they cannot hear"...

This Planting

3 comments
Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Jan. 24th, 2007 @ 08:03 pm In the Spirit realms

Heart's condition: : hopeful

We are living in perilous times and there is no denying that. That being said, I have been watching our leaders, be they Local or County or State or Federal, sowing the seeds of Fear. Not just concerning Terrorism, but in the day to day nuts and bolts of life. Like in fiances or health or whatever and the seeds are finding fertile ground. Not only in the hearts of the Adult community but in the hearts of our children. When I am on the streets and about town and look into the eyes of the people, there is the pallor of hopelessness.
In the book of Issiah in the 60 chapter it says that a gross darkness covers the earth and a gross darkness the people. This darkness is the result of not having a Vison. In Proverbs, it says that people with out a vision, Perish. The Darkness though comes from another source also. It comes from Unforgiveness. Unforgiveness, be it for whatever reason, a great offense or a small offense can fester and the bi product is Bitterness and Hatered. Left untreated will kill the one infected.
So, how do we deal with this darkness? Well, we can start by Forgiving one another, or asking for Forgiveness. We can build each other up. In the letter to the Roman Curch in the 15th chapter the Apostle Paul says, that we who are strong need to bear with the weakness ( or scruples) of those who are weaker than ourselves. Not for our edification, but for theirs, that they may become stronger. We can realize that the warfare that is attacking this country on all levels, is not a Physical warfare but it is a Spiritual War. That we have weapons to deal with these attacks and that it is probably a good idea to start reading the instruction Manual on how to utilize these weapons.
Many folks, especially Christians, have fallen into the deception of Religion. We like the legalistic and in the box specifics that religion offers. But Religion is relying on the interpation of doctrines devised by humans and not having a personal chat with the Holy Spirit for the individual situations facing us as Individuals.
So, if I maybe so bold, as to suggest,( not dictate ) that instead of reciting a memorized prayer or mantras or lighting candles and all the religious stuff that we think, God wants us to do before talking to Him, that we try to find a quiet place, turn off all the gadgets(ie cellphones)that tend to distract us and have a conversation with Dad! Get some first hand directions( a vision ) get all the screw ups dealt with ( Forgiveness ) forgive all the folks who have screwed us,(Forgiving ) and then take a deep breathe and move on.
The benifit is this according to the scripture( 2 Timothy 1:7 ) Peace, Power, and a Sound mind. Now that sounds pretty good doesn't it?
Faithwalker

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Jan. 24th, 2007 @ 07:20 pm 2007

Heart's condition: : contemplative

Well, 2007 started off on a good note. A life long dream was fullfilled. Since my youth I have always wanted to be a Grandfather. It was a seed planted by my Grandfather. My Grandpa Smith, my mother's Father, was a man that was family oriented. He not only invested much in his Children but then continued by investing his wisdom in his Grandchildren. He found fertile ground in my heart and with his love for farming and fishing passed a great deal of himself into to me. After my Grandpa retired from Farming, he took up selling Watkin's Products and many of his customers were rural Share Cropers. On our forays into the backroads of the Sacramento sleughs he would stop with his Rambler Stationwagon. In the back were catalogs and various sundries and a box filled with Hard candies. As he would spend time talking to the Husband and Wife about the latest stuff Watkins was offering he would give a handful of candy to their children. Back then that was a real treat for the kids who lived far from any convience store. Back then there weren't a lot of 7/11s or Plaid Pantries or Minit Marts and the people he dealt with didn't have a lot of spare income for frills such as Candy. So when Grandpa showed up, it was a special time for all concerned. Back then there weren't any Computers, gameboys, Ipods, cellphones, or any of the electronic gadgetry that kids have access to today. It was a quieter time. Many folks, outside the city limits, did not have TV and Radio was limited to AM mostly. If you had a FM radio and were able to actually pick up a station you were someone special. TV was limited to 3 channels. ABC, CBS, NBC. Then you had to have and ariel that was up high enough to pick up the stations. So it wasn't unusual to see and Areil mounted to the top of a Windmill pump out by the Barn some 40 feet off the ground. Ed Sullivan was the most watched show and that was on Saturday Night. Most TVs in the rural houses that could afford one were black and white and it was nothing for five or six families to come together for a Bar B Q at the person who owned the TV for the express purpose of Watching the Ed Sullivan Show and maybe the News to. This was the history of day to day life that my Grandfather share and showed me on our Fishing Excurssions.
Now it is my turn to pass on my legacy to my Grandson. Yes, he's only a couple weeks old and so my journey with him won't start in earnest for a couple of years, but it has begun and I like my Grandfather will invest my heart and wisdom gathered into him and plant a seed of desire for him to want to become a Grandfather.
Grandpa Jeff

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Oct. 3rd, 2006 @ 03:48 pm catching up

Heart's condition: : content

Well it has been awhile since I last posted. I have been busy.

Where to begin.....well I have covered a lot of ground this summer all told about some 9000 miles.
Covering some six states. Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Colorado, Wyoming and Hawaii. Five by truck. Would have been six but that Ford Ranger just doesn't float well.lol
I have met many folks from many different back grounds. Most were good to great and I won't dwell on the rest.
I was invited last month to come to Gahna in East Africa to speak to a confrence of new churches and Pastors. But after finding out that the cost of getting there and back would exceed the $12000 mark I decide to decline. Not just because it cost twelve thosand dollars, but........because I felt a check in my spirit about going. Turns out that the confrence has been postponed indefinitely do to some political unrest and some skirmishes between the local tribes and warlords. But who knows maybe later. Tommrow I get to go pull jury duty. Not something I am looking forward to. I mean, I am not real big in slinging out judgement. Now if it were to promote forgiveness and to slather it in Grace and Mercy then......hey that would be cool!
Currently:
Currently I am flying under the Radar screen. Or at least I am trying to.
Personally: I have been having a strange experience lately. I have been having dreams about different situations, and then having the dreams come to pass. Nothing cataclysmic mind you....something along the lines of having a conversation with and individual in a dream and then having the same conversation with the person in the dream while being awake......kinda hard to explain. One time and it is coincidence.......8 times and counting and it becomes more than a coincidence. I talk to a Pastor friend of mine and he said it is a gifting and that what I am currently experiencing is God's way of training me how to walk in it. But gifting or no it is a wierd experience none the less and down right unnerving at times!
Any way that pretty much brings me up to the present.
Be blessed
jeff

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Aug. 4th, 2006 @ 03:58 pm (fallow ground)

Heart's condition: : contemplative

Well as usaul, the journey had some unexpected and unlooked for side roads. For starters was the fellowship with Christian Truckers. I would be listening to some conversation looking for and inroad when a Trucker would come from behind see my Faithwalker sign on the back of the truck and then see that I had and CB antenna on the roof and ask if I had my ears on and then the the conversation would ensue leading to a bible study of sorts and prayer request and prayers said. Then I would feel the nudge of a full Bladder and head for rest stop and come out and find 5 or 6 Truckers milling around my truck wanting to meet the preacher in person. That was pretty cool! The folks and families outside of Springville were great and the kids.........have you ever gotten up in the morning and have twelve kids of various ages come up give you a hug and say good morning to you or ask have them ask you to pray with them at night before they go to sleep. My son is grown and married and and my grandchild will be borne in january, but having the experience I did with Kelly(the dad) and Dee(the mom) brought back fond rememberances of what being a Dad is all about. I went there to share and became the reciepent on unconditional love.........it was a blessing unlooked for or expected and a gift of great worth....to me.
Colorado was.........hot and in more ways than one but I have not the liberty to speak of it.
I ventured home by way of Wyoming. If any one from Verizon reads this then your service doesn't extend there and your "Can you hear me now", guy would perish. I doubt that even Rattlesnakes live in that section of Wyoming. Due to some technial difficulties my travel account went dry for a couple of days and so the truck's gas tank got into the periless range of empty as I entered into Rawlings Wyoming. Yet God was already on the job and I was led to a small Assemblies of God fellowship who open there doors and lives wide to me. They put me up in a local motel and then the following day filled my tank with Gas and fed me lunch and sped me on my way with and anointing and prayers of good will. I made it into Utah when the glitch in the account disappeared and funds were available again. The following day I landed on my son's door step and the day after that home.
All in all it was a great journey and I learned much which is the ultimate point of all Journies for they broaden the hieght depth and breadth of your perspective of the Kingdom of God.
Bilbo was right when he said,"It is a dangerous thing to step outside ones door for you never know where you will be swept off to." I know in my heart of hearts, that there will be another journey. Last year it was Eastern Oregon this year I have traveled 5 states and two of them were revisited on the return trip. So will next year bring 10......or another country.......
Does any one out there know which country is having the greatest awakening to the gospel of Christ with in its borders? It may surprise you because if you listen to the media or our government you would not think so......It is Iran. In particular those thirty and younger......they are hungry and outside evangelist are few and far between......Hmmmmmmmmm, anyone know Farsi well enough to teach a radical Christian cleric?
Faithwalker

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Jun. 26th, 2006 @ 07:03 am the journey

Heart's condition: : peaceful

Well the date of my upcoming Journey to the wilds of Roggen Colorado is July 10th.
I am figuring the cost will be about $600 dollars. I have about $250 of that in the bank right now and am trusting that the Lord will provide the rest in short order.
The purpose of this journey is to gather information and pictures of the families that I am trying to establish some financial support for. That is the primary purpose anyway. The secondary reasons are to;
1.) Meet with the board of directors of Preston Ministries.
They are the ones who have the ranch that are constructing Homes for Large Christian Adoptive Families and allowing the families to live in the homes rent Free.
2.) To meet with the eldership of Christ Community Church for they are shepperdless and it seems that my intervention with the Anderson family has caught there attention.
3.) To make a pit stop in the state of Utah to meet another family that I played a small part in providing some provision for her dying son's Family. They are the ones who directed the Anderson family to me.(Jeannie Anderson is the widow with 20 adopted children.)
Now some are wondering why not just fly and rent a car? Well the round trip tickets alone to Denver Co. with a three day lay over in Utah would cover the gas for the road trip. Not to mention that I would have to rent vehicles in both Utah and Colorado and put several hundred miles on each vehicle. The family in Utah lives about 250 miles from any major airport the one in Colorado is about a 100 plus one way so driving becomes more economical.
So just pray for God's provision and grace and mercy in all of this for it is Faithwalking on a whole new level for me.
Faithwalker

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Jun. 9th, 2006 @ 12:59 pm the journey continues

Heart's condition: : contemplative

It is one thing to get Pastors and Ministry Leaders excited but then there is the Board of Directors.

I have discovered that Orcs come in a variety of flavors. They like to sit in the seats of power and though they come in a variety of flavors (Denominations) they all have a common thread. The Dollar Sign. They all love graphs and charts and cost effectiveness statistical information.
The last one I was in front of, wanted to know how their money HAD been spent. I told them that they hadn't spent any money yet. Seems they were looking at the wrong information packet. But it had alerted me in my spirit what type of folks I was dealing with and so I borrowed a tactic used by Prince Caspian in the book "Voyage of the Dawn Treader" by C.S. Lewis. ( for those out there who aren't totally familiar with Lewis' writtings this is a part of the Chronicles of Narnia, series.)
I told them that they were under some misunderstanding. That they seemed to think, that I am there to beg some kind of financial boone from them. I told them, if that was their thinking, that they were completely mistaken. I continued to tell them that my purpose there was to offer them the chance to join and on going Kingdom Project and that they had before them and opportunity to work along side the Creator Himself.
They began to roll their eyes and let loose with sighs and low whistles, when I then stood up and sorta jerked the rug out from under them by saying, BUT! After hearing your hearts, I may have been mistaken in comming here, for I do not think that you are worthy of this opportunity, nor mature enough to be able to participate. I began to gather my materials up and prepare to leave and that brought some confusion within their ranks and then some lame excuses about their rude behavior and asking if they could have a little more time to consider. I gave them three days. The leader tried for 3 weeks, but when she saw that I was ready to pull the plug on them altogether and that she suddenly was loosing the support of the other members she withdrew the request.
Now it is my turn to wait.
I find it amazing that a portion of a children's book would possess such wisdom and that it actually worked on 9 adults who considered themselves wise in the realms of stewardship. As I was leaving I turned to the group and said, you know, it would hurt for you to review Matthew 25 before making your decison. I then went through the door and outside where the sun was shinning and there was a gentle breeze and the air was more wholesome. I was thinking to myself that this was the difference between the air in Moria and the air outside. One habors life and the other contains the staleness of death.
Jeff

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

May. 25th, 2006 @ 12:29 am The journey continues.........

Heart's condition: : cheerful

In my last Post I told you about Jeannie Anderson and her 20 Children. Well I have been busy talking to several Pastors around Portland. I am in the process of assembling some supplies and support and will in mid July be embarking on a Journey to Roggen Colorado. The big things they need is school supplies, the kids are home schooled, Personal Hygene items, and clothes. They are from a very strict Southern Baptist Conservative background and the clothing represents that. For example, No Jeans, especially hip huggers. The girls wear dresses and skirts whose hem lines are below the knee. No sleevless blouses and the yoke cuts are taboo. Shorts are okay, as long as they are at the knee. Etc. Think parocial school attire. So it kinda makes it hard. The family is comprised of 16 girls and four boys. The boys have it easier in the clothing gig. Their only ban is on the hip hop baggy Jeans and over size shirts and sweats and what is printed on them. But that is okay for that style is not conducive in farm country anyway. The boys are all 15 and 16. Now the girls range from 5 up to 17......
So anybody or group of bodies that would like to asist in this endeavor can contact me by a response here and then we can communicate privately. Oh by the way ........
My old truck blew up in the drive way a week after getting it fixed. But, if tinni hasn't already told you, a benefactor who wishes to remain anonymous sent me a check for 10,000 dollars to replace it less than a week after the truck blew. So Portland Rescue got the truck and I got a 2000 Ford Ranger. So God is good and I have retired from being a mechanic....lol!!!!
So if any are interested drop me a line or two.
Blessings
jeff

This Planting

1 comment
Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

May. 5th, 2006 @ 01:38 am the little ol' lady who lived in a shoe

Heart's condition: : drained

I am sure all remember the nursery ryme about the little old lady that lived in a shoe and had so many kids she didn't know what to do.
Well I have met her and her name is Jeannie Anderson.

Jeannie and her late husband are Christians. They raised several children of their own and then were introduced by a friend to a situation involving adopted children from overseas. We have all heard about someone or somebody adopting a child or a sibling group of orphans from some other country. The parents are hailed as humanitarians for rescuing the waifs from orphanages that are poorly staffed and equiped and are for the most part state run warehouses for children. But what is not said is that not all of these adoptions have "Happily ever after" endings. Children who are deleivered from a totalitarian state of authority and abuse are time bombs set to explode at some point and time. When they do, the adoptive parents attempt to use modern theraputic counseling and/or drugs perscribed by their Doctors to subdue the children's rage and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. So after trying everything and the parents are so frustrated that they themselves need counseling and medication end up disolving the adoption. Now the Children do not become wards of the State they are living in they become wards of the Fedral Government. They are either reinstutionalized or they become apart of a family who has the approval of the feds to raise these kids. Jeannie and her husband were two such people. Before her husband died of a heart attack 11 years ago on the job he was working they had aquired 20 children. When Jeannies husband died Jeannie could have cashed in her chips and the kids would have been put back into the system. But Jeannie and her husband had made commitments to these children and Jeannie feels that since God has not abandoned and forsaken her that she couldn't do that to the kids.
Now having said all that......remember all those cut backs the President pushed through well one of them cut funding of these kids and the families. So Jeannie is attempting to take care of the needs of 20 children on her $1000 a month social security check and the $700 dollars that she receives from her husband's pension.
Now ther is a ministry called Preston Ranch Ministries that provides homes to families who adopt in large numbers troubled youth. They have and are currently providing Jeannie with a house to live in. Jeannie lives in a small town called Roggen in Colorado. the closes big city is Denver which is only 76.45 miles NE of them. They attend a small church called Christ Community Church. They don't have a full time Pastor they don't even have a partime pastor. A local Bible college sends and intern up on sunday to hone his skills in the art of preaching. As one of the Board members puts it "sometimes they send a really good one, but most times as not they is rather poor in their ability to preach."
So what's my part in all this? Jeannie was reffered to me because I helped some one else. So what I am endeavoring to do is to see if I can gather some churches to band together and help Jeannie and two other families in this small community with some finaces and supplies. What kind of supplies? Oh you know, stuff like school supplies, for Jeannie is home schooling the kids, clothing, personal hygene items, the gender break down in Jeannies family is 4 boys and 16 girls ranging from 7 to 17years old. And while we are on the age thing, Jeannie just turned 70 in April. She has been a Christian now for 37 years come May 10th and She has been a Widow for the last 11 years. So I am collecting information about the church anf the house ministry and it was mailed to me yesterday so however long it takes the post office to get it to me. So expect some more post. I am not ashamed to ask for help from any and all who read this posting when it comes to Children and Widows and so if anyone here wants more info or wants to jump on this wagon you can email me at jeff_faithwalker@yahoo.com and will go from there.
Thanks for letting me vent a bit.
Faithwalker

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Mar. 28th, 2006 @ 05:01 pm A new angle on fatherhood

Heart's condition: : Pooped out

About a week ago our kitty gave birth to a litter of six. But after the birth the knowing about what to do with the kids just wasn't in her genetic make up. Hence four died.And Yvan and I are now the Momma and Daddy. That equates out to six feedings per 24 hour period of time. When it was my son, it was just poking Yvan to go nurse the kid.(sorry girls I know that sounds cold but God didn't equip us for that venue.)BUT with the kittens its a whole new ball game. Dad goes out prepares the formula and Dad feeds the little buggars and all the other stuff that the mother cat does for the kids. Like what? Well kittens cant pee and poo on their own until they are about 3 or 4 weeks old they must be stimulated. Mother cats use their tounges........... we use a warm damp wash cloth. Then there is the fun part of holding them and carressing them. For those that don't know kittens are blind for the first three or four weeks. Basically they eat and sleep and pee and poo and squirm. Lots of squirming. Both of our kittens are boys, which is good because now there is a balance of Power again in the house four boys and four girls. I need a cheap Vetanarian. One who likes to do bulk work for low prices. I need 4 spays and two nuetors before I end up with a really full house. The feline version of Noah's Ark.
So anyone got any suggestions on cool names. They are both Black. One is Charcaol Black and the other is more of a Sooty black. One is large and one is small one is loud and the other is quiet. So let me here some really cool and majestic cat names from all you cat lovers out there and don't confine yourselves to just the movies.
Faithwalker

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Mar. 11th, 2006 @ 07:49 pm your testimony

Heart's condition: : thoughtful

In the book of Revelation it says that we overcome the enemy by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony and not loving our lives even if it means our death.
What is our testimony? To some it is how we became a Christian. That in and of itself is a definite part, but it is not the whole. The how we came to be a Christian is only the beginning of the story, the intorduction if you will. The real story, is all that has happened since and is currently happening right now. Our testimony is a living book. It is not only made of words. It is made of deeds. Both preformed and in what is being preformed right now. The audience is the world around us, both the saved and the unsaved. It is how we live our lives, how we reflect the power of the kingdom and the leadership of the Holy Spirit in our lives, on a moment by moment basis. One never knows who is tuned in to your station and listening and watching. Who is identifying themselves by your example. Not unlike how we identify ourselves with some hero or character in a story being unfolded before us on the screen or in a book.
Our testimony, can give the foundation for anothers desire, to be in a place to experience the Power of the Living God for themselves and we would be none the wiser. I have found that those who oppose my Faith in God are the ones who watch me most closely and it is they who most often ask why I talk the way I do. There was a young man who asked me why I answer questions with hyper spiritual answers? I asked what he meant by Hyper spiritual answers? He said well you always use scriptures in your answers. I said the reason I use scriptures in my answers is that my heart is filled with scriptures and it is a truth that what ever fills your heart will show up in your speech. So if your heart is filled with anger then there will be anger underlying your speech. He said you just did it again! I said your right, I can't help it, any more than you can mask the sarcasm in your voice, for that is what is in your heart.
So I will conclude this with a few questions. What fills your heart? Is it tainting the vitality of your testimony? Are you willing to change your diet if it is?
Faithwalker

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Mar. 8th, 2006 @ 12:49 pm a new perspective

Heart's condition: : excited

Yesterday I was out and about gathering the last doodads needed for the rebuilding of my trucks motor.
At the intersection, where Powell Blvd. and Foster Rd. and 50th Avenue converge, there is a concrete Island that stands 10 inches above the street. The Island is a Bus Stop. There I was waiting for a bus to whisk me to a Parts store for the last things on my list. As the Bus drew near a small figure was scurrying across the street in and attempt to catch the bus. The person was a Dwarf woman and when she reached the Island the Bus blocked the wheel chair access ramp and she was unable to lift her leg up high enough to mount the Island. I told the driver to wait a moment and went to the Dwarf woman and extended a hand to her and helped her up. We then both got on the Bus and away we went.
Her name is Christine, and I noticed that she was carrying a Bible. So I asked her if she was a "Beleiver" and she said she was. I asked her where she went to church at and she said she didn't. Not because she and her husband didn't want to but because they couldn't usually get in because they couldn't reach the door handles. I asked her if she had ever heard of House Churches. She hadn't and so for the remaining 15 minutes of our time together I explained what a House church was and how it functioned. She asked me if I would be willing to come to her house and explain it to a group of her friends and I told her I would be more than happy to do that.
I found out that there is a whole Dwarven community here in Portland and that they are reclusive because of the way they are treated by us Big Folk. So next Wensday afternoon I will be meeting with some of this community. Where it goes from there God knows. But I count myself blessed to have been invited. From what Christine has told me that their community numbers at around 65 to 70 and that about 50% are Christians. So it should be interesting.
Faithwalker

This Planting

3 comments
Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Feb. 22nd, 2006 @ 01:16 pm the journey part 2

Heart's condition: : contemplative

Well I started off today meeting with a group of Pastors,Evangelist, Ministry Leaders who have been gathering together for the last twenty plus years to pray and interceed for the Metro and out lying areas. We meet and pray for a couple of hours every Wensday Morning. Then I went to do some errands. One of which was to get my hair pruned back, so that when I put on a hat I didn't ressemble Bozo the clown.
So, my Barber is a Christian and he decorates his shop with all the doodads that make his position clear. So we greet each other and go through all the genral prefunctional comments when to friends meet and I take my seat and he begins the ritual of covering me with the aporn and wrapping the seal around the neck, when in walks this older gentleman whom I do not know but the Barber does. The Barber leans forward and says very reverently this guy is a Prophet. The Prophet comes and stands before me and stands and we lock eyes and stare at each other for about 90 seconds. Now 90 seconds doesn't sound like a lot of time but stand infront of a mirror and stare into your own eyes or your spouse's eyes for any amount of time and you will find that it is a very long time and the individual under scruitny will become quite uncomfortable. Finally, I knew that this Prophet was just itching to tell me something and so I said, "Okay tell me what is on your heart! What is it that God is speaking to you about? Without florish, without loudness, (which I have found that those who claim to be prophets and aren't exercise a lot of florish and yell a lot) leans forward and deleivers the message that God has given you something to do and you have been waiting for a conformation. Then he says, you were told to go out and down the road and you will. You are not to worry about provisions for the Lord will provide as the needs arise. That I am to begin to prepare for the journey will soon begin. That my mouth has been anointed to speak a difficult message to His people but that they will hear it.
Then the Prophet turns has a few words with the Barber and leaves. The shop now has about 3 other customers, all older men and they sit there smiling. When the door closes and a silence begins to flood the shop one of the customers looks up at me and says, sounds like you have your work cut out for you. I paid the bill and left.
Now my truck finally gave up the ghost last week and the Head Gasket seems to be the culprate so I am in the process of a mighty adventure of repairing it myself. I say that so you will understand why I was walking home from the Barbershop. It is not often that I get confronted by a Prophet, lots of other spiritual enities seem to cross my path, but it has been a few years since I have had dealings with a Prophet. Leastwise not one on one and where we were talking about me. How do I know he was a Prophet? Well...... there is the lack of florish and loudness for one thing, but I could feel the presence of the Holy Spirit emenating from him. Dark spirits can fake Light but there is a yukyness about them, they feel unclean and this was not present with him. There is also the witness of the barber and the customer and the scripture says that in the witness of two or three a thing is established. And finally I don't know the guy and yet he confirmed all that I all ready knew and he didn't stick around to emblelish the message. So the preperations begin!
Faithwalker

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Feb. 7th, 2006 @ 02:31 pm ketchup, er, catchup........

Heart's condition: : frinkledinkerd

Well it has been a while since I have posted so I thought I should put something in here so that you all know that I haven't been raptured and you were left behind.LOL
Tini and I are kinda mentoring a young church community called the Helix. I say kinda because a couple of the leadership types have come and asked if we could help them from time to time. The average age here is mid twentysomethings to early thirty somethings with and average spiritual age of ten years in the Lord. There are some older folks there but they are recent converts and we hold the status of senior veterans since Tini and I are knocking on the door of 34 years in the faith. Now that along with 2 dollars will get you a cup of coffee almost anywhere in town. So I have been busy with that, and I am working with another ministry in Susanville California called Desert River Ministries. They have a prison ministry to women and in this facility they do not have a library. So we are creating one. Now the average reading level of these ladies is about 3rd grade so we are searching for some phonic teaching material and some easy to read faith building paperback stories and bible studies. So if you would like to help out there send me and email and we'll go from there. Currently I have a young married couple who met in a YWAM facility(thats youth with a mission.)They have been married for a total of 9 months and God told them to move here and so they packed up there stuff and away they went. Now they don't have Jobs but God has provided them with and appartment and a car and now they just need food and drink and (this is my thinking that Candice the wife will have other requirements being a woman) So again I am contacting my sources to try and put a care package together for them. Now all this is great but the workside for me has been a little bleak so I'm walking in faith from day today and just trying to be obiedient to what God is putting on my plate to do.
However that isn't the way I want to have it! I want the bank account to be overflowing so "I" can appear as this great and generous guy, dontcha know.LOL God is great and I know that he has this great sense of humor and I often wonder how he manages to not fall off the throne while he is laughing hard at my antics. So there you have it in a nut shell and I will try to eek out some more time for more post. Oh yes one more thing the walk is still on! I have been invited to speak at a small church in Susanville and another in San Ramon Ca. So I got get some new boots cause I've just about walked the souls off the ones I got. So you can Pray aout the walk and how God is going to pay for it. Oh yeah that is why they call it a Faithwalk.
Be Blessed
jeff

This Planting

Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

Jan. 12th, 2006 @ 11:20 am surrendering

Heart's condition: : spent

I was at one of my local haunts, nursing a cup of the Elixer of God, (coffee) and listening to a young man in his twenty somethings, whine to any and all who would give him their ear for a moment. Apparently the gist of his complaint was that after he got home from work, his wife wanted him to take care of the kids for and hour or two while she could go out and jog. Then on the weekends when he wanted to go skiing with his friends from, work she would throw a snit. So that seemed as good a place to jump in to this as any.
So I asked him, why he didn't just take his family with him? His answer was, because they're no fun any more!!!I asked him how long he had been married and he said 4 years and I asked how old were the kids and he said 1 and 3. So then I asked him what he considered his responsibilities were as a Father? His response was, to provide housing and food and clothing. I said well, that covers the first 1/10 of one percent. What else? He said, what do you mean what else? I said what about Love, compassion, teaching them stuff, for the kids and then being there for your wife. He looked at me with and honest blank stare that told me he had no clue about what I was talking about. So I just asked if he had ever gone to church, read the Bible and was he Christian. He said his mom use to drag him to the mass on sunday and he never under- stood any of it and then when his parents divorced she (mom) stop goin'. He didn't think he was a christian(honest response)and he tried to read the Bible a couple of times, but it was in a funny dialect of english, so he quit trying. Since had been open to what I had said so far, I pushed ahead. I bought him a refill and we talked about Dadhood. We talked about 2 1/2 hours. Well, I talked and he would ask questions and I would answer them. Then in came the wife, and she was a little upset, because he had evaporated on her while she was doing grocery shopping with the munchkins in tow. Sometimes the fastest way for silencing crying children is to have them meet a stranger. I introduced my self to mom and said to her, We are going to leave the munchkins with Dad here, while you and I are going over on the otherside of the coffee house to chat. Mom liked the sound of that, especially when I sweeten the deal with the drink of her choice. So then we sat down and then I revealed my other side,(clergy) and then asked her about the Bible and Church and she is a Christian and reads the Bible and prays alot to God. I asked her what she prayed about most to God? She said, that my husband would learn what being a Father and Husband was all about. I said, well God has begun answering your prayers because for the last 2 1/2 hours I have been giving him a crash course in Dadhood 101. So then I gave her my card, and I told her she could call me or email me or my wife and we would be more than happy to invest our vast knowelege(lol) of parenting and husband/wife relationship. She said, well we don't have a lot of money, I said don't let that be a factor in your calling. That's why I'm called Faithwalker, God seems to provide the most when the need is greatest. Then I asked her if she had a Bible that wasn't in the King James Version and she said she did and I said give it to your hubby.
Then we rejoined Dad who was having a great time with his kids, to the amazement of his wife and I bid my farwells and Dad came out to the truck and thanked me for "setting him straight". I told him he was welcome and that his wife has my card and if the need arises to call me and he said he would. I told him his wife had a Bible in contemporary english and to start with the four gospels in the New Testement. He said he'd do that and we parted.
Surrendering isn't about giving up, it is the first step twoards a new begining!
Be blessed
Faithwalker

This Planting

2 comments
Leave a comment
Transplant this seedling

New Seedlings \| Root Cellar \| Friends \| The Gardener \| Previous 20 \| Top

A Shepherd's Garden

Gardener of the Heart

Advertisement

Advertisement