ZionMagazine-Final

entered my marriage. It was there I was knocked off
the mountaintop. It was there I fled to the country
to wander.
God, why did you bring me to the wilderness?
That’s what I would ask God over and over under
my juniper tree. I was broken. Alone. I wanted
to die. All I could do was cry and blame God for
bringing me here. I had nothing to do but mow
several acres shaded by trees, so that’s what I did
until there was no more grass to mow.
God, what am I supposed to do now? Buy some
chicks...buy some what? Yep, He told me to buy
some chicks. We had no chicken coop, but I went
to the feed store anyways. I went with the intention
of buying 5 and came home with 30. I spent my
winter raising chicks in my living room. It wasn’t
until I caught the flu that my husband saw his
window of opportunity to move them to the garage.
A place where women could
come and find healing.
And, it would all be free.
Who comes home with 30 chicks and no coop...
AND no money to buy or make a coop? Me and
my husband. Before we know it, God is providing
everything we need to build the coop. I think when
it was all said and done we spent less than a $100.
The next thing I knew we had a chicken mansion.
You read that right...it’s not a coop but a mansion!
Now what, God? Plant a garden...plant a what?
This girl couldn’t keep a house plant alive in the
city and now God is telling me to plant a garden.
Okay, Lord. A friend from church bought us some
seeds, my dad tilled the ground, and me and the
kids sowed the seeds. Day after day, I’d work in
my garden. AND day after day, God would meet
me there. I remember the first time He spoke to
me...”this is where life begins.”
Where life begins. He reminded me that life begins
with Him. I continued to work in my garden and
care for my chickens while I sought God in my farm
house kitchen. I began to hear God speak more
clearly.
In the spring, God woke me up in the middle of the
night. He began to talk and I could see my future.
I would now minister to women. I would host a
free retreat for women come October. I remember
God telling me that these women will come broken
but they will leave restored. That same night He
promised me that He was going to give me land. A
place where women could come and find healing.
And, it would all be free.
Okay, Lord, I’m listening. Share my love through
your garden...but how? That summer I had summer
nights on my front porch. God brought women
to help my heart heal. They would pick from the
garden with their children, and we would share
some tang. I also hosted three ‘Big’ Backyard Bible
Clubs. Women in my community joined me in
helping teach God’s children about Him and His
creation. Everything seemed right. By the end of
summer, I was finding myself getting out from under
my juniper tree.
October 2015 came. Over fifty women attended
my first retreat. I was so nervous. I had no money,
yet here I was hosting a FREE retreat. There was one
lady, Lisa, who donated a $100. She was a woman I
had just met through another friend, Julie. So many
men and women in the community provided food...
but there was one person that stood out to me
that weekend. My neighbor, Harold. He gave me
money. I tried to give it back, but he insisted. He
said he loved what I was doing here on the farm. I
remember it like yesterday...”I have a camp on my
property if you ever need to use it,” he said.
Come winter, God told me to write a devotional
book, Seasons of My Heart. As I began to read
my past blogs and prayer entries, I could see
God’s divine hand over me. I could see the bigger
picture. In 1996 I began to earnestly seek God’s
purpose and calling for my life. I honestly thought
my mountaintop in the city was it...but, no. He
was only preparing me for what was to come.
Prayer after prayer in my book has been or is being
answered.
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