CoVid-19, Thinking Outside the Box, and Stewardship

Well friends. 

 I started writing a Facebook post and realized that it was really more of a blog post than a simple FB post. 

 I started this blog over 8 years ago, and with little ones underfoot it didn't last long. 7 posts and 9 drafts to be exact. 

 So let me take just a couple of moments and give you a little background as to why I'm even writing this post. In case you didn't know, we spent a few of our first years of marriage pretty deeply immersed in "prepping." FYI- Google defines prepping as "the practice of making active preparations for a possible catastrophic disaster or emergency, typically by stockpiling food, ammunition, and other supplies." 

We felt that it was our duty to be prepared for whatever may come- including catastrophic events, and even something like CoVid-19- not just for ourselves, but so that we could love our neighbors and be prepared to share generously. We learned how to garden, can, purify water, hunt and butcher on the kitchen table, dehydrate and store food, live on less, and know how to survive "off-grid" WSHTF (that's prepper lingo for "When Shit Hits The Fan"). We often felt like people thought we were at best a little silly, maybe a little crazy, at worst fearful and not trusting God for the future. 

 We have lots of verses in the Bible that tell us to be prepared. The verse from which I took the name for this blog is a great one. And Proverbs 31 tells us all about the Wife of Noble Character: 

11 Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. 

12 She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.

13 She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands. 

14 She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar. 

15 She gets up while it is still dark; she provides food for her family and portions for her servant girls. 

16 She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard. 

17 She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. 

18 She sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night. 19 In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers. 

20 She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy. 

21 When it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet. 

22 She makes coverings for her bed; she is clothed in fine linen and purple. 

23 Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land. 

24 She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies the merchants with sashes. 

25 She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. 

26 She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. 

27 She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. 

 Proverbs 31:11-27 

     Let me stop right here, and say that I have never taken this passage in Proverbs to mean that we all need to be preppers and learn every skill known to manor woman. Nor do I look down on friends who, for whatever reason, life path, or choice find themselves at a loss when it comes to "old fashioned" skills that some of us take for granted- cooking, sewing, canning, whatever. If you've never had the need or training for those skills, or the time or inclination to improve upon them- that is OKAY. I would definitely not consider myself an expert at any of those things. Alright, cooking maybe, but the others I would say "passable." 

      But as a Stay At Home Mom of two kids who had yet to start homeschooling, I took these things to heart, and felt that I should use my free time to learn as many skills as possible, whether they would be used to provide for my family and neighbors, or on the eventual mission field. It was always with the intention of helping others however possible (never with the intent of being out of community with others) and with the expectation that we would willingly and gratefully receive help from them as well. 

      Over time we moved away from that life style. Maybe we were trusting God more, or maybe we felt like we had enough and got tired of trying to keep up with our rotation of stuff to be used- FIFO (first in first out) style. Whatever the cause, we kept most of our stuff, but gave up our one time dream of living on a hobby farm in favor of living in town where we could be in community with people. 

    These days we definitely don't count ourselves as preppers, but we still carry with us the lessons we've learned. I count myself a steward of the skills I have, not so that I can keep them to myself and hole up in case of emergency, but so that I can serve Jesus and my community- my people. 

If you've read this far, that means you. 

    I pray that this whole Coronavirus thing blows over quickly, but my instincts tell me it might not be as easy as we all hope. So, for the time being, since I find myself with considerably more free time on my hands (I'm not working till my restaurant opens again,) I'll be sharing with you some of the things I've learned and some possible solutions to the practical concerns people are sharing. I'm not here just to show you how much I know. Of course there are holes in my knowledge- I readily admit that. But if I can help any of you in a practical way, I will count the hours invested in learning as being worth it. Please stay tuned over the next few days. I'll hopefully be posting at least once a day- maybe more. 

Blessings and health to you all, 

 Jennie

Happy Reformation Day!

"What's that?" you say.  Reformation Day? Never Heard of it! Until  a few years ago, neither had I.
Growing up, I always loved going trick-or-treating and dressing up, but as I got older and began to understand the roots of the holiday, I found myself generally shunning the day. Don't get me wrong, I love a good costume as much as you (I'm sure you love costumes, don't you?  how could you not?!), And I don't think that everyone who celebrates is evil, but I just didn't feel right about the rest of it.  Even the "Christian" version of celebrating saints didn't really make it feel much better.
Fast forward to 2009 and our first autumn in Billings at our wonderful Rocky Mountain Community Church. Their October 31st festivities are in celebration of the day the great Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the Wittenberg church- the singular event that is credited with beginning the Protestant Reformation. There is always a brief message on the Reformation and dinner is provided for everyone. (Almost) everyone dresses up and there are costume contests as well as plenty of games, candy and a cake walk. It's a great time of enjoying the lighter-hearted aspects of the evening with something that is actually meaningful and worthy of celebration.

Just a few reasons to celebrate the Reformation:

1. The Gospel of salvation by grace through faith for Christ's sake was recovered!
2. If you are able to read, there is (more than likely) a Bible translated into your language.
3. When you go to church, the sermon is in a language other than Latin.

There are many many more reasons than I have time to post here, but if you would like to read an excellent but brief explanation of the significance of Reformation Day from Monergism.com go here. The link also includes a great selection of free MP3 downloads on the subject.

If you would like to listen to a fantastic sermon from this past Sunday at our church on the importance of the Reformation you can click here and click on the sermon from 10/28/2012.

And, if you have children and would like some fun ways to celebrate the Reformation with them, Janna over at MustardSeeds.com has some wonderfully fun ideas!

Have fun!  And Happy Reformation day!

Get some, give some

So, what are we up to these days around our house?

I believe the grand total here was 270 pounds of organic gala apples, 125 pounds of freestone peaches, and 60 pounds of very ripe pears.

We're up to our eyeballs in fruit!  That's what!  Ever year toward the end of September, Andrew's grandfather makes the trek from Omak, Washington to Billings to bring our family all kind of wonderful fruit from the apple harvest over there. At one time Grandpa Strong owned a nine acre orchard and, while he no longer owns the orchard, he still has friends who own them, and has access to some of the finest apples you can find anywhere. This year, since Grandpa is getting into his upper 80's Andrew and his mom made the 10 hour trip out to see Grandpa and to pick apples. As you can see, they went a little nuts!

So many to choose from!

I believe the grand total here was 270 pounds of (FREE!) organic gala apples, 125 pounds of freestone peaches ($12/25#, 60 pounds of (free!) very ripe pears, 5+ pounds of organic tomatoes, and I still have no idea how much zucchini there is. By Sunday night we had canned 8 quarts of pear sauce and 7 quarts of yummy pear juice, and had put 12 quarts of pear sauce into the slow cookers to cook down for pear butter.  after slow cooking for about 45 hours, they canned up 6 half pints and  8 quarter pints of both gingered and spiced pear butters.
By last night (Wednesday night) we had canned 55 quarts of unbelievably delicious sliced peaches in light honey syrup, with two casualties (I just hate the dull, watery thud of a jar of beautiful fruit exploding in the canning pot...<sniff>), as well as 35 quarts of amazing applesauce.

deliciously unsweetened pear juice.  yum!

Last fall, Andrew's mom graciously gifted us with an unbelievable 120 pounds of local raw honey, or as I like to call it, "liquid gold." Unlike the cooked, dead, brown stuff you buy in the store, raw honey has a beautiful golden or amber color, depending on what kind of nectar the bees had access too, and the flavor is beyond superior to that of the grocery store stuff. To be honest, I've only recently become a honey snob. Never in my life did I enjoy honey. I grew up with it always in the house, but it was always the pasteurized variety that just had that funky aftertaste to it that never wanted to go away. And then a few years ago my horizons were broadened, my palate was enlightened, and I had my first taste of the unbelievably delicate sweetness that is Raw Honey. I have not looked back. While I still can't bring myself to use it in coffee, I have worked to substitute it for sugar as much as possible whenever it will not drastically affect the taste of whatever I'm making.  Now, do not be deceived, raw honey is quite expensive, and is something I would never be able to afford much of if not for my wonderful and generous MIL.  If you are not aware of the many amazing qualities of raw honey, please visit benefits-of-honey.com. Of course, I always take sites like this one with a grain of salt, but I am sure that many of their facts are right on.

Food mills are amazing things.  Note the skins on the left,
and the strained pears in the middle.  Beautiful!

I'm pretty sure that I started that ode to honey with a purpose, and... uh... yes, I did. It was to say that this year we have committed ourselves to canning exclusively with honey rather than sugar. There has always seemed to me, something inherently wrong with canning up beautiful jars of the finest healthiest produce and then filling it full of processed white sugar. So, armed with a 4 to 1 ratio of water and honey, we've done 48 quarts of pears, as well as the 55 53 quarts of peaches as well as some of the applesauce. This year, I will have no guilt about serving up canned goods to my little lovelies and then letting them drink the juice!

Apple Fairies

Speaking of the lovelies, since we have copious amounts of apples, we thought it might be nice to spread the love around the neighborhood. So, with much fanfare my little Apple Fairies flitted to the small apartment building across the street to brighten the evening of 8 older ladies who live alone, as well as the neighbors on both sides of us. A great time was had by all, we met a few neighbors we didn't already know, and we got to bless some sweet elderly ladies who spend their days mostly alone.

 So, what do we have left?

We went from this, to...

...this.

Now we get to finish off the rest of the apples, and wait for hunting season to commence! At least I have a few weeks before meat processing and canning begins.  :)
Thank God.

School Daze

Well, it's been almost a whole year since my last post, and what a busy year it has been! 

First day of Co-Op. They couldn't get there fast  enough!
Note A's sweet crown that she made for a friend.

A few weeks ago we officially started homeschooling. And with that comes the opportunity to hang out with some wonderful ladies and children from our church at our weekly home school co-op. This year we're trying to focus on Bible Memory, Catechism, Phonics, Reading/Writing, and Math, with a smattering of science thrown in here and there. 
Surely, there has to be a point where I'll eventually find a balance for the day.  I just know it. Perhaps I should be praying about that.

Why I Prepare: Part 1

Well, I started this post over a month ago, and I'm just finally getting around to posting it. I'm sure there are more to follow along the same vein.

Thank you Ellen for suggesting a topic!


Over the past few years I have eased into preparedness slowly. When my husband first started telling me about all the steps his father and grandfather had taken to prepare their homes for the unforeseen, I completely blew him off. I'm sure I tried to be polite, but in my head I was thinking "Oh man.  I married into a bunch of militia member wannabes".  I had never really been introduced to the "preparedness community". To me it just sounded like a bunch of weirdos in the mountains who stockpiled guns and I wanted nothing to do with it. But the more I learned about it, the more I came to realize that the things the people in this community are doing are the same things my grandparents were doing when I was a kid.  Frugality. Living off the land (to one extent or another). Preserving the harvest. Re-purposing items. Helping neighbors. Caring for family. While many in the preparedness community (as many like to refer to themselves) are non religious, there are a great many people who are and see their choosing to be prepared as a way to minister and reach-out to their neighbors.

I have to stop here and clarify something that I was recently made aware of. I think that oftentimes when people hear the phrase "Christian Preparedness" the image that comes to their minds is that of some sort of sect preparing for the Tribulation. Please let me clarify that this is in no way what I mean when I say Christian Preparedness. The reason I put those two words together is because as a Christian I see the logical wisdom behind being prepared for unforeseen events such as floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, job loss, or any other catastrophic event. I really came to the conclusion that it was wise to prepare before I came to the realization that it was biblical as well. I had been talking to my cousin about the need to prepare for the potential of economic collapse. (Which, by the way, I do think is not impossible in this day and age.) She told me that she felt that God would take care of her and that she should just trust God. I highly respect her willingness and desire to trust God- this is something I strive for in my own life.  However, I have to respectfully disagree with her line of reasoning. It rather reminds me of the man in the middle of the flood who was stuck his roof waiting for God to save him. After turning down help from two passing boats, and even a helicopter, he went to heaven and questioned God as to why God did not save him from the raging flood. As the worn out punchline goes- "I sent you two boats and a helicopter. What more did you want?" God has given us the ability to help ourselves and our neighbors and be (even the slightest bit) prepared, and the vast majority of us choose to gamble with our safety and ability to help our neighbor in times of need and then question "Where was God, why didn't he keep us safe?!"

Here's a simple analogy. Do you wear your seat belt? Do you put your kids in car seats? Do you call the power company before you dig holes in your yard?  If you have little kids, do you put covers on your electrical outlets? Do you have car insurance? Life, medical, dental, vision insurance? These are just a few of the many ways that we prepare every day to keep ourselves and our families safe.

While I have not examined the entire website I've referenced below, and cannot give it a full recommendation, the author manages to present a brief yet interesting list of biblical examples of preparedness as well as a good list of physical reasons to prepare.


Below I have included a great excerpt from Mark12ministries.com
Outline: Here is a proposed outline for the study of Christian Preparedness/ Survivalism-
I. A Biblical Study of Preparedness
1. Bible passages that teach preparing for the future and for disaster (Noah in Gen.6-9 is a good case study)
2. Spiritual themes like Keeping our eyes on Jesus, not on building bigger barns for the wrong reasons.
3. When to flee (Lot leaving Sodom) and when to fight (Esther)
4. A biblical case for hoarding and defending from the book of Judges?
5. Working hard, providing for your family and saving for the future, a biblical view.
6. Why did Jesus’ disciples carry swords?
7. Eschatology and Christian Preparedness- will we be raptured outta here prior to things getting “really bad”? Or will we be like Israel, Judah and 2000 yrs. of church history and go through a time of great suffering?
II. Types of Disasters To Prepare For at the personal, family, church and neighborhood level

1. Small Inconvenient Disasters- flat tires, cell phone dies, weather changes, etc. From common sense to witnessing opportunities, practicing the Golden Rule and 2nd Greatest Commandment.
2. Medical Emergencies- First Aid and CPR Training, First Aid kits, calling 911.
3. “Normal” minor disasters- power outages due to storms, water pipes freezing, house and car fires.
4. Major Natural Disasters- Tornadoes, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes
5. Self-defense issues
6. Civil disturbances- crime prevention to riots
7. Political Oppression and Persecution (It’s coming to America!)
8. The End Of The World As We Know It scenarios (TEOTWAWKI)- Electrical Grid total failure, EMP blast, Nuclear War, Plague, Asteroid strike, Mega Volcano, etc.

It is currently a quarter till *really late*. I have several other thoughts buzzing around my head ( I know that is desperately hard for some of you to imagine) but I've found that falling asleep with one's forehead on the keyboard is not generally the best way to type a coherent sentence.
I'll try to finish tomorrow...  good night!

Is canning season over yet?

So, my best of intentions had been to post on here often.  Obviously that didn't work out so well for me. We did so much canning in the past month and a half that I have no clue just how much we actually put up. Sufficed to say, Andrew had to build me a new shelf to hold it all. Yay for the need of a new shelf, and yay for my handy husband!  And now that the veggie/fruit canning is almost over,  get to prepare for hunting season! The plan this year is for me to go hunting for the first time and bring back a deer.  We shall see. I have no real problem with shooting  the thing, it's just the gutting it out that brings my gag reflex. I'm just trying to envision how cool I'll look in camo and blue latex gloves.  hmmm... I wonder if they make camo latex... I digress. For most people the hunting process ends when they drop the animal off for processing, but that's not so much the case in the Strong home.  For some reason we process our own. However, I'm hoping that this year we will take the burger to be processed. The steaks, roasts, and chops I don't mind handling.  And after that we plan to can a lot of burger and stew meat.  yum.  Hopefully this means I'll have less cooking to do in the winter.  :) Until that time, however, I plan to relax a bit and enjoy the "not canning" vibe floating through my house. 

Hopefully tomorrow will be a productive day for me and I'll be able to post something a little more pertinent. Especially in light of the unrest growing around us.

Peace to you all, in Jesus.

Shopping for Time

So, thanks to Ellen for suggesting the topics of preparedness and relationships. I started writing, and realized I have a TON to say!  It's gotten me rather bogged down and I was waiting to post something until I was finished with what I was working on.  Sorry.  It's probably going to be a two parter, and I'll just have to keep plodding along on it.

In the mean time, I wanted to share with you a book that I just finished called Shopping for Time: How to Do It All and Not Be Overwhelmed, by Carolyn Mahaney (wife of pastor/author C. J. Mahaney) and her three daughters. This book is significant in that, these days I rarely find time to finish a book.  I have quite a number of  wonderful and edifying books started, even half finished, but it's sadly unusual for me to actually finish a book at this stage of my life. But this book is different.  At just 94 pages, I decided I could push on through.  And has it ever been encouraging and instructive!

I realize that with a subtitle like How to Do It All and Not Be Overwhelmed, it might sound like a self-help book.  Rest assured, it's not so simple. With only six chapters and five main points, two of which being specifically focused on rising early and spending time in prayer, the guiding theme of the book is based on Ephesians 5:15-16- "Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil."

While I often fail miserable at it, a personal goal of mine is to put relationships before tasks. Relationships is the secondary focus of this little rich little book.  Specifically, the authors (you never know just which one is writing when) suggest tools to help prioritize your relationships, God, husband, children, family, friendships, etc. and how to work at being intentional within each of those relationships so that you sow and reap the most from each.

While these relationships are to be our priority, it is easy to find the laundry creeping in the way of playing with my kids or calling a friend. Who wants to make dinner when you can plan Candy Land (again)? On their surface the mundane tasks of organizing the fridge, cleaning the bathroom, or vacuuming the living room for the second or third time in one day are not really tasks that inspire me to grow in godliness.  However, as is not unusual, a quote from C. S. Lewis was quite encouraging to me. "The great thing, if one can, is to stop regarding all the unpleasant things as interruptions of one's "own" or "real" life. The truth is of course that what one calls the interruptions are precisely one's real life-- the life God is sending one day by day: what one calls one's "real life" is a phantom of one's own imagination. This at least is what I see at moments of insight: but it's hard to remember it all the time."  Ahhh. So true.  Should I not be thankful that I have a refrigerator full of (mostly) healthy food, indoor plumbing (unlike much of the developing world), and the blessing of children who just happen to crumb up the carpet?

I would be remiss if I did not mention perhaps the most indulgent and downright exciting suggestion the authors make: taking a personal retreat.  Ahhhh.  How glorious does that sound? A Personal. Retreat. I truly love to be with people, but my goodness, do I enjoy being alone! I fairly often have times when my husband and children are all out of the house, but this is the time when I run around trying to clean, or organize, or do any number of other busy works that scream for my attention. The Mahaneys actually suggest leaving your home for a 24 hour retreat to a hotel, or at least a few hours to a coffee shop (a few hourse just isn't long enough in my opinion) where you can first focus on prayer and reading, and then on prioritizing and organizing your life. I love it. The example they present is that of Jesus who often went away to pray and to be refreshed before he went back into ministry. It's not a matter of escaping life, it's a matter of being recharged and prepared for your life and ministry to your home and the people in it.  Oh how joyous! My husband has graciously agreed that this should happen, and I cannot wait till it can be arranged!

I will close with some of the Mahaney ladies' closing words. "In light of this wonderous gospel, the following exhortation from Philippians 1:27 is truly amazing. Here we are told to 'let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ.' Isn't it mind-boggling... to consider that we who were once condemned sinners can now, by the grace of God, live a life worthy of the gospel? We don't evaluate our priorities, consider relationships, and simplify tasks merely to avoid being overwhelmed. We do it so that our manner of life would be worthy of the gospel. We do it because, by God's amazing grace, we can live a life worthy of the gospel."

Be encouraged today, as you seek to live a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called!