God's Will - My Desire

My wife recently asked a question that went something like this, "Is it possible that God would write His will into certain redemptive desires that just won't go away?" I would say that not only is it possible, it's probable!

God's will for a man is written into every fiber of his being -- how he is built, how he thinks, how he feels. That is not to say that a man is limited to certain work because of the way he is built, only that he is more suited to some work than to others. And that is not to say that everything a man thinks is from God, only that the way he thinks about things is primarily rooted in the life God breathed into him. And that is not to say that everything a man feels is from God, only that the way he feels indicates the will of God for a man's life -- the direction in which God has oriented his soul.

The battle of every man is to discern his purpose -- that endeavor for which his life was formed and which, ultimately, will be the most satisfying to him. In that search, there are many sounds vying for our attention -- sounds that urge us to prop up the vision of other men or sounds that tempt us to ignore the captive song of God that so longs to break forth from our heart and life. But until we sing the song that our instrument was made to declare, there will remain in our lives an emptiness that cannot be quenched by external comforts or ulterior pursuits.

Sound is vibration and all vibration is sound. In this respect, every action of mankind is enjoined either in harmony or in discord with the God-ordained purpose of a man's life. Where our actions are in harmony with this purpose, this resonance is our worship of God, the Creator who breathed life into our souls. Where our actions are discordant, this is sin -- rebellion against the redemptive purposes of God for our lives.

The goal of every man, woman, and child ought to be to intone the song in their heart that best worships God. That song is unique to the instrument for which the instrument was made. No one else can intone this song exactly as God intended it. Others can echo it and mimic it, but its melody belongs exclusively to one man or woman whose unique glory the song expresses -- a glory that reflects the glory of God like no other instrument can.

Is it possible that God would write His will into the desires of our lives? Yes! But we must also understand that what God wants most from mankind is a symphony, not a solo. Every man is formed to participate in a holy symphony that reflects the love and truth and life and character of God. We can never enjoin this symphony by quenching the sounds of other instruments. But neither can we enjoin this symphony by denying to sound the song that is uniquely ours, the song that is in our hearts.

The symphony of God on earth is intoned through vessels that are willing to worship Him together in spirit and in truth. The spirit and truth, in harmony with God's will, are always redemptive. It is only in making ample room for these redemptive desires in our personal lives and in concert with our community that we may enjoy the fullest measure of God's pleasure in the purpose for which we were created. In this, God's will is my desire.

Michael Hennen

Tyranny of Convenience

It seems the whole world is falling apart at once but that is only because one tyranny is always built upon another. If you pay for something 'manufactured', as opposed to growing or building it yourself, you pay the manufacturer a certain profit margin. What you are actually paying for is not necessarily 'value added' but convenience. You don't have to learn the process, gather the material, use the time, or put forth the effort to make it yourself. Because you're in a hurry, you've accepted the point of view that such labor is a waste of your time. Yet, if it were really a waste of time, it wouldn't be profitable to the manufacturer either.

The manufacturer is not as interested in your convenience as much as in his profit. So he cuts corners, using inferior materials or designs that require you to buy more of what is convenient sooner and more often than you'd like. The manufacturer uses propaganda to make you think his inferior product is somehow superior to all others and, therefore, exactly what you need. He tells you, "It will make you feel better" implying that if you don't buy it, you'll feel worse.

The basis of all convenience is time. We're deceived into thinking the way we use our time (our work) robs us of the better use of time. So we pay someone else to do what we could and should do ourselves so that we can use our time more efficiently. Our laborsaving devices, for which we pay so handsomely and for which we often go into debt, are supposed to give us time for recreation, time to watch TV, and time with family. But what we fail to realize is that they engender hidden liabilities.

Having someone else to 'do it for us', we lose our minds and the ability to think creatively or logically about the value of the process. Having someone else gather the material for us, we become ignorant of its source and its real value in human effort. Having someone else use their time and effort, we engorge ourselves on more sedentary 'recreational' pursuits and then handsomely pay the gym or the doctor to help us regain the fitness we could have maintained through simple manual labor. In our great industrial hurry and by our lack of effort, we allow ourselves to become fat, broke, and ignorant and then wonder why we are so consistently unhappy.

Eventually, in order to pay off our debts, to de-stress our lives, and to cover the medical bills resulting from our lack of diligence, we concede to labor longer hours for less real benefit. What we fail to realize, under the weight of the accompanying liability, is that our wisdom, our understanding, our discernment, our health, our prosperity, our relationships, and our joy all suffer.

Health depends on nutrition and exercise. Nutrition and exercise depend on agriculture. Modern agriculture depends on industry. Industry depends on profit. Profit depends on efficiency and propaganda. Efficiency, which is the timely use of resources, and propaganda depend on exploitation. Exploitation depends on ignorance. Ignorance depends on education. Education depends on government agendas. Government agendas are generally built on its lust for power. The lust for power always results in tyranny.

At its core, tyranny is always based on ignorance, deceit, greed, and force. But it is the tyranny of convenience that allows these vices entrance into our personal lives. We allow ignorance because we want a quick education. We allow deceit because we do not want to put forth the effort to research facts, evaluate truth, or exercise discernment for ourselves. We succumb to greed because we hope that it can somehow redeem our efforts, making them either more profitable or less unbearable. We tolerate force because we do not want to suffer the inconvenience of doing what is right.

Tyranny begins in the hearts of lazy men and women who do not want to earn what they gain with honest labor. It is the offspring of the convenience to which we become accustomed and eventually addicted. If we continue at this pace, when the mechanism that provides these conveniences for us becomes prohibitively expensive, mankind shall either succumb to the tyranny of slavery or to the tyranny of death.

The only alternative to the tyranny of convenience and its lethal consequences is the redemption of our work ethic and of our relationship to God and our fellow man. In my view, the best venue for such redemption is on the family farm. That is not to say that there is no room for industry or specialization, only that its responsible pursuit is more family-sized than factory-sized. Genuine community is rarely built by industry. Rather, it is built by families who have chosen to reject the tyranny of convenience in favor of the blessings of working together.

Michael Hennen

Feed Nature

As far back as I can remember nature has always fascinated me. I've watched it wander through its seasons with wonder and amazement, sometimes frightened by its roar or humbled by its gentleness. But always I've been its student, enrolled in life and captivated by the tales it tells. Though I've not always been a careful student, it has always been a patient and forgiving teacher.

I was never worried that winter would consume the hope of spring or that summer would burn away the hope of snow. Watching nighttime snowflakes dance to the ground as they swirled past the outdoor light, I understood that this white death was no death at all but nature's plan for renewal. The snow would feed the spring and help to mix the nutrients trapped in the fallen leaves of autumn into the soil that lay below.

The storms that threw down lightning on the edge of spring were not angry. They were inspired. The lightning split the clouds, commanding them with a thunderous roar to loose their moisture upon the earth. Torrents rushed into watersheds that nature had prepared to absorb them. Streams swelled with spring's joyful surplus, carrying their treasures to the bottomlands where they would enrich the valleys, lakes, and rivers that were home to the abundant fish and wildlife so dependent upon them.

When the summer sun baked the soil, one could almost hear the July corn growing in the fields. It's stalks cracked in happy stretches that gave honor to the warmth of the sun for which they were so anxious. And when it began to paint the edges of summer's growth with golden brown, one knew the sun was preparing summer's proud effort for an autumn harvest so that there would be seed and fruit again in spring.

Once again the world would need to bare itself to winter's blanket so that it could sleep a refreshing sleep till spring. Trees would flame with color, waiting for a cold and blustery wind to cast their autumn cloaks upon the ground, leaving them naked against a graying sky. Frost would dance on windowpanes and cast its spectra on fields like diamonds that danced in gentle breezes before the morning sun. Overhead, the geese would sing their plaintive song, urging their neighbors ever southward.

The first snow would fall from a November sky where every living breath hung in sacred stillness. Masterpiece upon masterpiece, the flakes would fall until their individual beauty was lost in the overwhelming brilliance of the all. Trees and grasses would bow in humble reverence to the weight of such accumulated beauty. The snow would squeak its protest against being so unjustly impacted on roads and lanes of winter life. Nature stilled her voice to listen to the cold winter lullabies carried by the wind.

Then the sun would shine again, the crocus would burst through the snow, and simple grass would ignite the song of spring in every heart that stopped to gaze upon it or stooped to welcome it from it's winter sleep. Icicles would form on eaves in crystal celebration of the sun and streams would trickle beneath the snow, popping out here and there to display their urgent rush for spring.

These are memories. But they are filled with life and knowledge because they are filled with nature. From them I have learned life's most painful lessons, 1) if you leave it alone, it will usually survive, 2) if you cultivate it, it will thrive, and 3) if you abuse it, it will usually die.

Nature is an organic collective and like all things organic, it needs food, water, and good neighbors to survive. If you feed it, it'll feed you and whatever you feed it, you will end up eating. These are wise admonitions for our treatment of the nature upon which we so desperately depend for life. The violation of nature is ultimately a violation of our selves and of all that we were meant to be. We cannot neglect it without becoming victims of our own neglect.

If we feed it poison, those poisons will poison us. If we deprive nature, we will suffer nature's deprivation. If we exploit it, sucking the life out of it for profit, it will suck the life out of us. That is nature's way of balancing our neglect. We cannot presume to reap what we have not sown. Neither can we presume to sow harm and not reap its harvest.

Nature is not a tool we exploit for profit. It's a friend. When you visit your friends, what do you do? You eat! Friends do not hesitate to offer you their best. But if you are their true friend you will not exploit their kindness. You will not eat everything they have in the cupboard or return day after day until you've impoverished their household. If you do, they will weary of your friendship. Real friends are meeker than that. If you're a true friend, you'll feed those that feed you. You'll give them the rest and encouragement and sustenance they need. You, too, will feed their friendship.

The earth is crying out for such a friend. Its convulsions are signs of its discomfort. It is not asking for much, only that we would cease to poison its friendship with our human ambition. It has meekly yielded to our every importunity. But its cupboards are growing bare. We may continue to exploit its kindness for a while longer, but in so doing we may also render it incapable of feeding those that are supposed to be its friends. If we want nature to continue feeding us, we must learn how to feed nature.

Returning to life's most painful lessons, some things are best left wild, some things need to be cultivated, and any seed of abuse or neglect will produce a harvest after its own kind. Nature needs mankind to stand up to its friendship responsibility. Nature needs man to recognize what must be left alone, what needs to be cultivated, and what abuse must end. Nature needs mankind to replenish, not exploit the soil, to purify, not pollute the waters, and to act more like its neighbor than its master. The earth is a meek friend and only the meek shall inherit the earth. All others will destroy it.

"For yet a little while, and the evildoers will be no more; though you look with care where they used to be, they will not be found. But the meek [in the end] shall inherit the earth and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace." (Psalm 37:9-10, AMP)

Michael Hennen

Natural Blessing

Nature is inherently fruitful. Barrenness is unnatural. Sterility and barrenness are perversions of nature. That is not to say that all barrenness is the result of perversion. Rather, perversions of nature are inherently sterile. Wherever barrenness and sterility prevail, a violation of nature has probably taken place. One organism can impose that violation of nature upon another, or the violation of nature can be a mutual choice. But wherever this trespass has occurred, nature wars against its perpetuation.

There are distinctions of kind in nature that prevent unwholesome and unhealthy imbalances. These distinctions prevent one kind of animal from regenerating offspring with another. They also prevent animals of the same gender from regenerating. Thus, mules cannot reproduce with one another any more than females can reproduce without males or males without females. Such relationships represent a perversion of nature.

Nature tends toward harmony and balance. Anything that threatens to compromise this harmony and balance is unnatural. Whatever is unnatural depends on what is natural to sate its appetite. But, though the unnatural can sustain itself with the nature that surrounds it, it does not and cannot contribute to the collective resource value of nature through regeneration. Rather, it siphons off nature's resources to satisfy its own short-lived narcissistic imbalance. The unnatural can destroy the local balance of nature, but it cannot regenerate that ability in others. Praise God! At some point, when it has consumed all available resources, without the ability to reproduce, the unnatural will invariably perish.

But, lest you think that such unnatural perversions and the resulting sterility are limited to the animal kingdom, consider the genetic barriers that prevent plants of one kind from crossbreeding with another kind. Apples and oranges, except when engineered by the most rigorous imposition of perverse and unnatural processes, cannot regenerate 'appanges' or 'orpples'. And when such perversions of nature are forced upon it, we often find that fauna dependent on flora for its daily sustenance, when given the choice, will prefer the unadulterated varieties to these engineering marvels. Thus, beef cattle prefer natural corn to genetically engineered varieties.

Wherever the preference for unnatural food does prevail, it is usually because flavor enhancers have been engineered into the product, not because the engineered variety is necessarily better for us. We can fool our preferences into consuming poison but not without devastating effects. Eventually, because nature strives toward balance and harmony, the detrimental effects of the perversion of nature will manifest in barrenness and death.

By contrast, nature is inherently reproductive. It regenerates itself by the most efficient means possible. It seeks out the environment that provides it with the best venue for regenerating resourcefulness. Thus, certain seeds prefer and flourish in certain climates and soils and certain animals prefer and flourish in certain climates at certain seasons. By the same virtue, certain animals gather in herds, others in prides, packs, swarms, schools, or flocks, and humans gather in families and neighborhoods.

It is only natural that organisms of one kind should gather to perpetuate their natural preference. It is also only natural that barrenness and death should limit unhealthy, unnatural preferences. When the viability of an organism is threatened, nature intervenes to nullify that threat. That such conflicts occur within nature should not surprise us. Far more remarkable is the genius that gave nature that ability.

There is a natural blessing cast upon all of creation. It is a blessing from God that perpetuates the balance and harmony of His design. Wherever the violation of that balance and harmony is threatened, barrenness and death inevitably seek to sterilize such unnatural preferences. All of nature conspires to oppose what is unnatural.

Thus, seed that is unsuitable to a certain soil or environment will either cross with more suitable seed of its kind or eventually deplete what it needs to regenerate and survive. Where, certain animals have become overpopulated, the nutritive resources that sustain them dwindle to regulate their population. Where human preference wars against healthy families, the families that sustain a neighborhood, community or nation are decimated through barrenness, poverty, disease and war.

God's blessing is upon whatever He considers natural and His curse is upon our destructive, unnatural processes and preferences. He has designed nature to be a blessing. Whatever resists or opposes the perpetuation of that natural blessing is eventually consumed or destroyed by it. War will never generate peace, sterility will never produce fertility, greed will never reproduce generosity, selfishness will never reproduce love, and exploitation will never reproduce conservation.

Nature is both meek and tenacious. When threatened, it takes the meekest possible road. When left alone its tenacity erodes even the most durable of human monuments. Though it is so delicate in the hands of men, yet, nature will prevail long after time has erased the last footprint of mankind from the earth. Ultimately, nature is inescapable.

To enjoy natural, regenerative blessings here on earth, mankind must cooperate with nature and yield to nature's God. No amount of defiance or human engineering will ever erase God's natural blessing. Nature is a reflection of the meek and the indomitable character of the Creator. Nature is bigger than man's pride and presumption. The sooner we come to this realization, the sooner we'll be able to return to living in harmony and balance with God's nature.

Michael Hennen

Recovering Heritage

This article is, first of all, about restoring our relationships with our fathers. I say fathers in the plural sense because, while we all have only one biological father, there are various other fatherly influences in our lives. For instance, God is also our Father -- our spiritual Father. There are also those fatherly influences indicated in the New Testament when Paul calls Timothy "my son." And there are always those mentoring influences (Galatians 6:6) where men of wisdom have led us to maturity. Certainly these mentors have also played a fatherly role in our lives. We ought to honor all these fathering relationships. And yet, recovering heritage is about more than just fathers.

While it is true that fathers are responsible for passing on their heritage, heritage is about more than the dynamics of this paternal relationship. A heritage is a tangible thing. It is either tangible in terms of the character displayed by the one receiving the heritage or it is tangible in some form of material inheritance. Sometimes it is even apparent in our beliefs. Beyond our genes and relationships, our character, reputation, inheritance, beliefs, and more can all be a part of our heritage.

When we talk about recovering our heritage, we are not just talking about restoring our relationship with our father and our family. We are also talking about recovering the original purpose God had in mind when he created our forefathers. It is an undeniable fact that bodies and brains are made distinct from one another and that some are more apt for some work than others. There is no shame in recognizing this distinction and no shame in using a tool well for the purpose for which it was crafted. In fact, there is a certain wisdom and satisfaction in using our minds and our bodies efficiently. This too is part of the heritage we should endeavor to recover.

There is a dynamic thread of aptitude running through our ancestry that is also woven into our bodies and sometimes, through stories, into our memories. Our forefathers found nobility in doing well what they were made to do best. In that activity, there was no comparison, only the merit earned as they became masters of their respective crafts. Whether they were builders or simple carpenters, their satisfaction came not so much from the money they earned as much as from the masterpieces and reputations they built.

Sometimes, these masterpieces were songs or stories or poems. At other times they were fields and flocks. And sometimes they were also boats and buildings, tools and trades, and any other craft man could put his hands to. But more than this, these masterpieces were the communities built around skills, around the pursuit of excellence, and around the exercise of integrity. The real masterpieces were not made of wood and stone, but of flesh and blood. They were relationships and communities of relationships whose corporate expressions of excellence and compassion reflected the excellence and compassion of God.

This is the heritage I am seeking to recover -- a comprehensive heritage that encompasses everything Jesus died to redeem. Whether it is honor or riches or talent, I want it all applied to the glory of God. This is the richest heritage -- that man might join nature in acclaiming the glory of God in every action, every word, and with every breath. This is the heritage that I claim -- that God is my Father, that He is glorious, and that reflecting His glory is the most suitable and honorable occupation for mankind and our most noble pursuit.

Michael Hennen

Medicinal Herb Course

I just received my copy of the Medicinal Herb Course offered by Cheri Shelnutt of Sweet Hollow Farm in Tennessee. It is full of information on growing and using herbs. I am pleased by the clarity of the presentation and the simplicity of the instructions. This is a valuable tool, and I recommend it to anyone interested in herbal remedies. There is so much to learn about God's creation, and the uses of various herbs is just one of the many delights He has waiting for us if we take the time to learn. If you want to try this course, contact Cheri at www.tnfarmgirl.christianagrarian.com

Since I live in Cyprus, I am adapting what I am learning in this course to our present location. Many of the basic culinary herbs are found growing naturally here in the Mediterranean area. It is easy to grow them here in their own habitat. We are also graced with many varieties of fruit and vegetables. The main challenge is the lack of year round water, so irrigation is a must. The medicinal herbs that Cheri teaches about can be grown here too. Some of the local medicinal herbs include ironwort (sideritis), hyssop, lavender, fennel, chamomile and dandelion. Of course the regular culinary herbs like basil, rosemary, chives, oregano and thyme are easy to grow here as well, and many of them have medicinal uses as well. When we think of all the side effects of many synthetic drugs, perhaps the gentle art of herbal medicine deserves to be revisited.

The climate and weather of Cyprus is similar to that of Israel, so many of the herbs mentioned in Scripture grow here as well as there. Hyssop, mallow, chicory, myrrh, wormwood, mint, dill, cumin, mustard, rue and coriander are other herbs well known in Cyprus and that grow well here.

Herbs are a fascinating branch of botany. It makes an interesting science study for home school, and the practical uses of herbs make them important in any home garden.

Summer Move

It is time to post again, now that summer has slowed down a bit for us. We started in May to look for a house near the coast. Our time in the mountains was coming to a close. Although we dearly love our friends and community in the mountains, it seemed that it was a wise move to get closer to my husband's director for the work in the Middle East. We looked for a for some months and we were just about to give up!

One day, driving around and seeing so many houses for sale, we pulled up in front of a likely one and in spite of the for sale sign we called and asked if the house might be for rent. It was not, we were informed, but the lady had another house in a village, would we like to see it? We spent a lovely afternoon in the village with her, hearing the whole story of a wonderful revival that took place in the 50's when her uncle went to the States and received the Lord Jesus and was filled with the Holy Spirit. He came back and preached to the village, and many responded positively to his message. It was the beginning of a denomination here on the island of Cyprus. We were excited that we had made a random phone call, and stumbled upon the history of the gospel in Cyprus.

She changed her mind a couple of weeks later and called us back, offering us the original house for rent. We told her our limitations, since we are on a missionary budget, and she graciously agreed to our price. So we moved in the hottest time of the year, right at the beginning of July.

It was hard to part with our mountain home and our friends, but we are near the airport and so expect to see many of them on their journeys into and out of the country. We enjoy a good sea breeze most days, although we are having to cope with high humidity. At least this house has air conditioners for those days when it's just not comfortable and sweat is pouring down our faces. Of course, there is the nearby beach where we can go soak in the water until sundown and cool off.

The back yard of our new home is completely unlandscaped. It brought to mind the Dervais' in Pasadena, California, and the way they transformed their back yard into a garden producing over 6,000 pounds of food in a year. Wow, can we do that here? To some extent perhaps. The house and lot are not ours, we are renting, so that is a limitation, but we have been told we can plant anything and landscape to our hearts' content. I am already envisioning lemon trees, bay laurel, palms, frangipane, and perennial herbs to name a few ideas.

Behind our house are fields. In the mornings, we can see a goatherd who comes to take his goats out for a walk in the cool dawn. There are irrigated fields and greenhouses, or polytunnels as some call them. We are right between two stone Orthodox churches so we hear bells frequently. It is quiet and breezy and we are sure we are right where we need to be for the time being.

We are still dreaming of our land in Missouri. That day will come. In the meantime, we continue to be faithful in all that the Lord has for us in this assignment.