The Fall Happenings

It's been a while since we shared with you all what we have been doing these last few weeks. The LORD has been so gracious and good to me, showing me amazing truths in His Word, teaching me new lessons, delighting my heart with His Word and blessing me with wonderful fellowship with my family and some special friends. I just praise the LORD for all the blessings He has poured on our family. There are some verses and quotes I want to share throughout the pictures. This is a long post, but I wanted to show you some of the ways we've been blessed!

This is a picture Hannah took on our last family vacation, but we didn't get to share it. Family is a gift from God. Make the most of every moment you have with each precious life you share your time with! Time goes so fast... don't let it slip away.
Mr. H. took this picture of us before we started our last day of harvest. We were his harvest crew!

We girls were blessed to join our friends with carrot harvest this year. They grow about 1/2 an acre of organic carrots yearly, and we have been able to help out there almost every year for the last 6-8 years. We were there several days this fall, and each held special encouragement as we were exhorted in the Word, sang songs and hymns to the LORD in the carrot patch and at the cutting table together, and refreshing fellowship! It was extra special to be there the last day as we got to help finish the wonderful year of carrots.
These were the last 2 buckets of carrots. We had such fun gathering the last of the harvest.
There was laughing and racing toward the end, to see who could get the last carrot. We decided also to pick the last row - just for fun, even though we could have used his carrot harvester. We were all glad we did as it held some special memories and right as we pulled the last carrot out, we bowed our hands and on our hands and knees, we thanked the LORD for the amazing harvest!
Look at the amazing sized carrots! I think the biggest carrot weighed 1.7 pounds!!
This was our very last little batch of carrots that we had left to process. Usually the table gets filled. :) This was kind of a hard time for me because I would really miss the times of fellowship in the field and just the whole carrot process. We ended our afternoon with a hymn of praise to the LORD! That was really special.

A couple days ago, we were blessed to visit the S. home. They have a new little one we got to meet! Greg is such a wonderful brother and SO good with children!
At every chance Hannah gets, she will take any baby and carry them around! She will be a wonderful mother some day! The LORD is training her in many ways and Hannah is such a responsible mature young lady. Her love for the LORD is growing by leaps and bounds which is a great encouragement to me! I am so thankful for Hannah and her sweet spirit.
Hannah with a sweet little girl from church! They were partners for a lot of the afternoon.
These two lovely little ladies are a special blessing to our church. Hannah wanted to take some pictures.

This little young man has had many special afternoons with Hannah. She is practicing for motherhood.
This is our very first parachute party that our group from Bible Study all gathered to help with. Our dear friends, the H. family felt led to send 100 parachutes that will carry Bibles and Christian literature to a man in Colombia. There, he flies over gorilla camps, dropping the small parachutes with the Bibles attached down into the jungle. This is his ministry, and we got to be a part of helping send the gospel to another part of the world! It was such a special evening, everyone working together to assemble the parachutes. Even the little ones got to help decorate the parachutes with pictures It was a really neat project, full of fellowship and a refreshing time with believers!
This is the top of one of the parachutes. We either glued or sewed the ribbon on the muslin fabric. Everything was amazingly provided for project. We even were blessed to have a man from Voice of the Martyrs come out and talk a little
The ladies sewing
We also prayed for specific people who might receive the parachutes and blessed those receiving the gospel message! It was SO neat!!


Everyone was working together to finish the project! What a blessing to work with like-minded believers.
Everyone enjoyed the evening. What a refreshing and special evening.
Earlier last month, we were asked to play music for a yearly event in an old schoolhouse. It was a neat opportunity to share the gospel through song. We are all getting excited for our upcoming trip to Arizona this winter. This is good practice for our time of ministry down there.

Our dear friend and fellow musician, Mr. K. had his birthday on the night of our concert, so in all our matching attire, we stopped for some ice cream, a treat for everyone! That was fun.

Because of the expected frost, we went out to harvest the plentifully loaded apple trees we have, and we picked boxes and boxes of fruit. We've made tons of applesauce, made apple crisps, tapioca apples... any other apple recipes you all enjoy? We would love some suggestions! Sam was a great help. He even climbed the tree part way and passed out apples to us. :)
Samuel and Rebekah are working up a piano duet for our concerts in Arizona. EVERY DAY, they have been faithfully practicing this duet!! It is really cute.
Before one concert we did close to our hometown, we all went out to take some band pictures. Greg took some really nice ones that he is working on. :) This one, Hannah took.
For our Grandpa's birthday, we 4 (Greg did come) went over and played them a little concert after eating dinner.
Sweet Bekah and her kitty. She has such a tender heart for all animals. Cats are her favorite though!
Emily has made the home beautiful by her creative decorating for fall. What a blessing she is to our family!
Samuel and Rebekah had a special birthday. I never knew how much fun twins would be. I am so thankful for my dear sweet siblings!

Bekah, about to help pick apples.
We girls love working together - whether making applesauce, organizing a room, packing a trailer for an upcoming trip or rearranging a room. Sisters are one of the greatest blessings in life!!
Leah was organizing the canning jars in neat rows. :) She loves to put on her apron and help in the kitchen every once in a while.
And our latest news... our old faithful trailer which we all have spent so many special memories in... has now been traded in for a slightly bigger fifth wheel. We are all pretty excited about that.
Dad and Greg brought this home the other day, and yesterday we got it partly prepared for our upcoming trip.


This morning, as I was spending time with the LORD, I was reading in a difficult passage, and I just prayed that He would speak to me and show me something new to meditate on today - that would refresh me... and He refreshed me immensely! I was bubbling over with joy and excitement as the LORD showed me this passage of Scripture. I was so excited I had to share it with my dear father right away and he was excited too. It was extremely refreshing and neat! Here is the passage
He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young. (Isaiah 40:11)

This just speaks so much to me of the character of God- his gentleness for His children, His deep love and desire to lead His children. He is our Redeemer and He longs to have that intimate fellowship with us, but we have to come to Him empty of ourselves, humble and willing to follow His leading. Those are the servants He is looking for!

Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth. Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the LORD, and my judgment is passed over from my God? Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah 40:26-31)

Some of these verses are familiar, but some we don't hear as much. This was a great encouragement to me, basically an invitation from the LORD to come draw from HIS strength! His well of life-giving water NEVER runs dry and He will NEVER fail us! In His strength we are renewed and given the endurance we need to finish the race we are called to in victory!

Anyways, I had to share those verses with you as the LORD used them to draw me nearer to Himself and give me more hunger for His life-giving Word! I encourage you to daily sit at the feet of Jesus, seeking His face and following hard after Him. He will NEVER disappoint you!

Blessings to you,
~Dani