Category Archives: Friendship

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Celebrate! One year’s journey and counting

 

join in this spiritual journey wildernesspreacher.com

Join in this spiritual journey.     wildernesspreacher.com

Let’s Celebrate! wildernesspreacher has been blogging over a year (4 months of that with the beard!). Some of you have been on this journey from day one.  Many of you, well, you just joined in this month.  Welcome to all.  Lots of highlights from the past year.  Take time if you will to click on the favorites(scroll down and to the right), to see what people have enjoyed the most.  Take the time each week to continue to get refreshed on this, your spiritual journey as well.

Your friendship is important to me.  We may only be sharing a story over coffee, or having a brief time of devotion or prayer together.  Sharing is what this blog is all about.  When you my friends read this and you get a refreshing thought, that’s when you yourself need to share with others on their journeys.

Proverbs 27:9 New International Version (NIV)  Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart, and the pleasantness of a friend springs from their heartfelt advice.

The goal of this wilderness preacher is not to tell you what to do.  (You got enough people in your life doing that.)  My goal is to tell you not what to do, but what to BE!  So like the scripture says, here is my friend to friend advice.  It’s truly from the heart.  Be what God has created you to be.  Do you not know fully what He has created you to be?  That is the beauty, the mystery, the challenge, and yes sometimes the disappointment that you will face every day on your spiritual journey.  The disappointment?  Realizing that you must use your eyes and not God’s eyes just yet to see and understand.  The challenge? Facing each and every day what this world throws at you to make you stumble.  The mystery?  Realizing that this awesome Living and Loving God wants to have a deepening relationship with little ole you.  The beauty?  Realizing that no matter what you do, or how you look, (even a beard), or how many times you fail, or how many times you @**# up…….realizing that God has created you to be His child.  God has created you to be in a loving relationship with Him.  What else my friend has God created you to BE?

See Ya!!

Saddle up and lets travel together

Saddle up and lets travel spiritually together

 

 

 

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Growing your garden of Faith

Growing your garden of Faith

That’s a picture of the corn I’ve planted in my garden.  Every morning I check my garden and work it.  The grass and weeds need hoeing.  I check for damage from the crows, coons and deer.  Some potato beetles are showing up.  Some days it’s too wet.  Some days it’s too dry, too hot, or well, …… you get the picture.  It’s never a perfect day seems like in the garden.  Pests, weather, plain ole bad luck, why bother with a garden you say?  Well, it’s the hope of a crop of good home grown fruits and vegetables.  I’m an optimistic person.  There’s lots of potential.  Even with all the pests.  I’ll grow enough that they can have their share with plenty left over for me as well as others.

Speaking of sharing, that’s the main reason of growing this garden.  Sharing.  Two different ways of sharing.  There is a joy I get from sharing the food from my garden with neighbors.  I get a “kick” out of calling them up and saying “corns ready, or taters are ready, come get you a big ole mess”.  I’ll even carry some food to some folks unable to pick their own.  The idea of sharing good food seems a part of my being.  It’s in my blood.  It’s a reason to grow my garden.

My other reason for sharing is more on a personal level.  My earthly father gets a “kick” out of seeing how my garden is growing.  He’s 85 now.  It’s past his time for hoeing, plowing, pulling weeds, throwing out fertilize.  But it’s not past time for him to get out every day, drive his beat up white Chevrolet pickup to the garden, inspect and supervise how it’s growing.  Usually, we go together to see how things are going.  We both get a “kick” out of this.  He’s there every day.  If it’s raining, or too dry, too hot, or well you get the picture.  He’s always there.

1 Corinthians 13:12-13New International Version (NIV)12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

So, let me encourage you to grow your spiritual garden.  Why bother you say?  With all the spiritual “pests”, worldly forces, evil in this world, plain ole bad luck, what’s the use.  There are two BIG reasons.  Two different ways of sharing.  There is a joy you get from sharing your spiritual food with friends and neighbors.  A harsh reality is this though.  In the spiritual world people sometimes won’t grow their own garden.  Share with them from yours.  Even then, some will use it. Some will abuse it.  Some will refuse it, some will choose it.  No matter their choice, you continue to grow.  Grow your spiritual garden.  Rows of “faith” and “hope” and have a half acre of “LOVE”.  and share…..

The 2nd reason?   Your Heavenly Father gets a “kick” out of watching you grow your garden.  I’m not sure if he drives up everyday in a beat up Chevrolet pickup, but He’s there every day.

My friend, if you don’t feel God’s presence around your everyday life, maybe you’re neglecting your “garden”.  I sense His presence everyday.  How?   By looking, listening, waiting expectantly to hear and see Him.  Shucks, you can even join me in my earthly garden so that we can grow our spiritual garden at the same time.  Bring a hoe.

See Ya!  Dan Ainsworth  wilderness preacher

Spiritual garden rows of Faith ,hope, and acres of Love

Spiritual garden – rows of Faith ,hope, and acres of Love

 

 

 

 

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Riding Horses Gives a Different Point of View

a different point of view

Instead of hiking, I’m riding horses with Zach and Jay.  This is a journey with a new way of thinking and a completely different point of view.  Why?  Because I’m riding a new horse.  Ruby, is not even 3 yrs old! Also Ruby is new to me, I’ve never ridden her.  It’s going to take me a little time to see how she responds to me.  Also, it’s going to take a little time to see how I respond to her.  We’ve got to develop a little trust for each other.

This trail is the one that I hike in the early mornings for exercise, for clearing my mind, for being in nature, for time alone with God.  I immediately can tell things are different from all the times I’ve walked on my own feet.  The main difference is that I have a different point of view.  I’m seeing things differently from a few feet higher off the ground, sitting on top of Ruby.  I am aware that there will be no movement in any direction unless Ruby takes me there.

I haven’t ridden a horse in a while.  I wanted to get “back in the saddle” to get the feel again.  (I’m possibly going to be an extra in a movie that may require my riding a horse.  Shhh……. if I make it into the movie you guys will be the first to know.  To be an extra in a movie has been on my bucket list.  I’ll let ya know if it happens.  Now you know why I’m having to grow my beard!)

I’m having a great time with the guys. We are all enjoying the outdoors and the horseback riding.  We do the “guy talk” with each other, you know, gruntin’ about work, hunting, fishing, the ladies, (as if any of us know what we’re talking about). But also I’ve got to admit that I’m nervous.  Well, just my legs and rear end. The legs are clamped on like vice grips.  It’s as if my rear end is covered in Gorilla Glue.  I’m not going to let go!  Seems like I can’t get relaxed because I’m holding on too tight.  I don’t know why.  The horse is acting great.  It’s just me thinking about all those what ifs.  What if she spooks….what if I do something stupid, it makes her jump…. what if…….. well you never know.  I’m not on my own two feet, I’m trusting Ruby’s four feet!

We’ve probably been riding for over an hour when it happened.  No, I didn’t fall off,…… I relaxed.  Just out of the blue Ruby and I became a team.  She was probably glad I took the “clamps” off her rib cage.  I could sense her movements and almost tell what she was thinking.  I was enjoying the view.  It was like I felt her say, “Enjoy the view and the ride, I’ll be carrying you all the way”.

Isaiah 46:4The Message (MSG)3-4 “I’ve been carrying you on my back
    from the day you were born,And I’ll keep on carrying you when you’re old.
    I’ll be there, bearing you when you’re old and gray.
    I’ve done it and will keep on doing it, carrying you on my back, saving you.

My horse is carrying me all the way.  We come to the creek where I usually have to go around when I’m walking on my two feet, and cross a log to get to the other side.  Not with Ruby.  She is carrying me over this water.  The other guys are also carried across.  Just like our Lord and Saviour who promises to carry us on His back. We just need to “Let go and Let God”.  Maybe in our spiritual journey we “hang on like vice grips and Gorilla glue”. I guess you are like me and get nervous when you are not on your own two feet, but instead you are letting God carry you.  That’s what was becoming clear to me on this adventure.  My different point of view?  I’m trusting my horse instead of myself!  You see things different when you are being carried by a horse.  Things definitely look different when you are being carried by God.

Jay gave some words of wisdom when he said, “So, if you make it back home without falling off, it’s been a good ride!”  I took a spiritual meaning from that.  When God is carrying you on this journey, stay in touch with Him so that you won’t fall off.

Zach gave me some encouraging words.  “Let’s ride again next week!!”   Sounds good to me.  Let God carry you on lots of spiritual journeys.  Go for it.  Keep riding, letting God carry you.   You’ll see things in a different way.  Ride on!

See Ya!!   Dan Ainsworth  wildernesspreacher