God's Promises Despite Challenging Lambing Season

This lambing season has been the most challenging lambing season Kendall and I have ever experienced in our eight years of doing this.  Our very first ewe to lamb had triplets.  Only one has survived.  I believe if we would not have tubed him for ten days, we would have lost him too.  The triplets were born premature and did not know how to suck.  It took Kaleb ten days before he began to suck on his own taking a bottle.  This was exhausting because he could only handle two ounces of milk at a time every two hours.  The next ewe had a healthy lamb that took right off sucking.  The third ewe had twins.  They were very tiny, but they were very aggressive.  They have done well except for one of the lambs was born with an eyelid condition called entropin.  The lambs eyelid turned inward which was penetrating the cornea of the eye irritating it.  I had to have the vet out to staple its eyelid back into correct position hoping that it will stay once the staples are removed.  The fourth ewe who we were most excited about, she was in labor and pushed for two hours before having her lambs.  They were huge lambs and this was her first year.  Because the lambs were so big, she ended up having a rectal and vaginal prolapse.  I missed this within the first 24 hours of her giving birth.  When I left the farm that evening, the babies were up sucking just fine.  When I went up to feed the next morning, one of the twins was already dead and the other one very weak.  Kendall and I tubed it, then we rushed it to the vet knowing we did not have much time.  That evening the other twin passed away.  Our most recent ewe delivered twins.  They were both very tiny and premature.  The one was so weak, that it died with in 30 minutes of delivery.  The next lamb, the mom would not accept, which also could not suck. It also died. 

The next day, Saturday morning I was at the farm at 5:30 am because I was a part of Every Soul Women's Conference in Broadway where 600 women were going to be in attendance. To my surprise, when I went to feed Channel, she was lying dead with a complete prolapse.  I was devastated and began to cry wondering why all of these bad things were happening.  I had hoped that she did not suffer.  It crossed my mind to not go to the Women's Conference, but then I thought, "No, I am not going to let the enemy have authority over me."  I decided to go to the Women's Conference and expose the enemy's lies, deceit and tactics.  Once at the Conference, my prayer partners prayed over me and anointed a cloth for me to tie on my arm.  As they were praying for me, I began to weep because God revealed to me that the loss of the ewe was not for nothing.  God said that the ewe was a sacrifice for deliverance for the women that would be in attendance at the Conference.  I was so humbled and could only say, "Yes, Lord let it be so as you have said and done.  Your ways are higher and greater than what I can understand or comprehend."   What was sobering was that earlier in the week I dreamed that Channel had died.  God was preparing me for this even though at that time I was in denial about the dream. 

With so much loss in a short period of time, I was reflecting and asking God the meaning and purpose of the premature lambs that didn't know how to suck.  God revealed that it is all a part of my preparation in learning how to teach the spiritually immature how to suck spiritual milk so that they may be strengthened and taught for the spiritual battles that are about to intensify as we enter into the days of Noah.

God has given me recurring dreams of devastation and chaos that is about to come where unrepentant sinners will be lost who have not heeded the warnings and urgency of devastation that is to come. As these things begin to unfold, God revealed that there will be masses coming for spiritual milk.   As they come, God is increasing my capacity to shepherd to the masses while teaching me how to depend on God to provide all that is needed.  Even though the work will be endless, God is showing me how remain in Him so that I am fully refreshed and empowered by the authority of the Holy Spirit regardless of what is happening and going on around me.

My prayer is that the Churches and individuals wake up to the warnings turn to God professing Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior while there is time.

   

The Joy and Sorrow This Lambing Season - The Same with Our Faith

Mine and Kendall's lambing season has been joyful and sorrowful so far this season. To date we had a set of triplets with only one surviving that I had to tube feed for 10 days  before it learned to suck on its own. We then had a very health girl, another set of feisty twins and then last evening another set of twins where we knew one was weak. My entire family helped me and worked with both lambs until we had them both sucking and they were up and about. These were large lambs so when I left the farm at 11 pm I was not concerned for their health.

 

However, when I got to the farm first thing this morning to feed, to my surprise I found the first born twin dead. The other one looked very weak. While I carried the dead lamb to be buried, I was waiting for Kendall to bring me colostrum so that we could tube nutrients directly into her stomach.

 

As I carried the dead lamb to be buried, I felt a sense of such deep sorrow and grief. In the Bible God always uses us, His children as a metaphor as His Sheep and Him as the Shepherd. I found myself wondering if this is how God must feel when He loses one of his children who is not saved. Just as God said, "He does not want to lose even one of His sheep."  I too had been diligent, nurturing and persistent in trying to save all of our lambs because I too do not want to lose even one. I thought how God must grieve for the lost, broken souls. It was also a realization that even though God is constantly working in believers and non-believers lives, not all will be saved.

 

Kendall arrived so we tubed the other lamb. She still was very weak so we took her to the vet for a steroid and other shots to hopefully boost her energy. We took her home to get her warm,  and we tubed her again. I knew her survival was bleak, but we kept rubbing her, wrapped her in a towel, had a heater blowing on her trying to give her hope and a will to live. Kendall and I watched her slowly slip away. I reflected again how sorrowful God must be when non-believers and believers do not recognize when God is with us, protecting us, wooing us in and nurturing us. He is always pursuing us even when we are spiritually dead, rebellious or oblivious to His presence.

 

This reflection on the loss of these two lambs and feeling deep sorrow perhaps was just a glimpse of how God must feel for His lost sheep who have wondered away or are dry bones. My grief was not only for the loss of our lambs,  or the ewe mothers as I watched them too grieve as I took their dead lambs away, but also for how far humanity has strayed from God and are walking through life spiritually dead and in blatant sin.

 

I reached out to a sister in Christ and lamented to her my deep sorrow asking if humanity has gone to far away from God wondering if there is hope, and if in fact I am making an impact in others lives. Of course I know that there is hope because of what Jesus did on the cross, but there are times when I question what I am doing and if it is all in vain. My sister shared great wisdom stating, "It is Yeshua's mighty heart and hand to deal with mortal's and their disobedience...we are planters of the word ... Matt. 13.... the sower. Yes, we love unconditionally and the pain within our physical and spiritual selves hurts deeply. Yeshua does not want His righteous sheep to totally take all of the pain.... lay it down at His feet with the tears...Sister...He knows."  Then I reflected that it must be how Jesus felt in the Garden of Gethsemane when he was overcome with despair knowing what He was being called to do for all of broken humanity    She then shared, "Yes, it is a lot like the garden....Hope was crucified for all. The difference may not and most likely will not be seen here on earth by mortal eyes and hearts but only by the heavenly eyes. We take on that sorrow but we do have to hand it over. We are not immortal we are flesh.... and the flesh was weak in Eden."

 

As I was sitting on a round bale in the bank barn spending time with God when I wrote this reflection,  what I noticed was Faith sitting in my lap.  Faith is a stray cat that showed up a couple of months ago that I began to feed twice a day who has become our barn cat.  Faith was sitting in my lap with love, contentment and peace.  The very thing that I was questioning about my life, humanity and if the work that God has called me to do was making a difference, right there in my lap was the answer.....in the midst of all the joy and sorrow I must always have FAITH continuing to look at Jesus knowing that His promises are irrevocable; knowing that what He has begun, He will complete to fruition; knowing that it is all a part of God's plan and that He is the Alpha and Omega in control of each and everything.  After rubbing Faith as she laid in my lap, I did just release all of my sorrows, doubts and grief to God by taking the time to be still and to lament to God. 
 
Friends, we are not promised the next day.  Do you know if you were to pass in the next hour, day or year,  is Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior?  Do you know without a doubt that you will spend eternity with God?  Remember, you are God's beloved and He does not want to lose even one of His sheep.  An interesting fact is that with our small flock of eleven, our sheep know our voice and follow us when we call them.  Do you know the voice of God who is calling you to follow Him?  If you are uncertain how to know or discern this, please message me so that I can share more with you.  In God's grip and FAITH!