A Pig Chase and a Prayer

Don’t you just love a good pig chase? Bahahaha!

Hold.

The.

Phone. (I haven't a clue what that expression even means. Hold the phone…eh…moving on.)

Did I just write that? A good pig chase?! Oy, how my life is different than I ever pictured it. Not worse…just very different. Haha!

Growing up, the number of times I was ever at a farm or even near farm animals could’ve been counted by holding up my ten fingers. (Super interesting, random and funny fact of the day…my husband’s parents were the ones that gave me most of my interaction with farm animals when I was a child. Every year they would bring their horses to the AWANA fair so that all the kids could sit on their backs and be led around the parking lot.)

The fact that I live on a farm now has presented me with many challenges. (Like trying to bottle feed four calves with only ONE bottle. Patience my little cow friends. Your turn will come!)

Some of those challenges resulted in fear.  (Like when the bee keeper told us the queen had 'left' and the bees would not return. Do you see bees? Cause I saw and heard LOTS of bees in the side of my barn the two years after he said they had ‘left’.)

Some pain. (All six of us have been attacked by a rooster at least once!)

Some challenges...okay most of them bring some degree of frustration. Some spark a prayer session. But my favorites are when they result in laughter.

And pig chases…are all inclusive.

A couple of nights ago, my husband returned home from work and requested my assistance in the barn. Our pig was due to go to the butcher shop…and that meant only one thing. We were going on a pig chase! Have you ever seen a pig chase on a movie? I happen to have just watched “The Man in the Iron Mask” this past weekend. It includes a pig chase…complete with an adorable little piglet and a jewel prize for whomever was to catch it. Ours…was nothing like that. Much more manure was involved. Much louder squealing. Much huffing and puffing from chasing and pulling. And cold…it was so cold! Oh…and absolutely no prize jewel, just an angry pig.

I tried to be a competent helper. I really did! My job sounded so simple…just “pull this bucket over the pig’s head,” said my husband. He would “take care of the rest”. After several failed attempts he, surprisingly, calmly asked me to call his father. *Insert a sigh of relief here* I could tell that he was trying to not show his frustration through his heavy breaths from wrestling with a 400-lb pig.

I quickly left the barn to make the phone call that I thought should’ve been made in the first place. I left Aiden (age 7 1/2) alone with Eric and Daisy (the pig). Aiden’s job was to guard the only opening that the pig could’ve squeezed through to get to the open world. I was scared for him because although there was a ‘blockade’ in between the two of them, his only weapon of defense was a plastic bat. I offered him a pitch fork…but he opted for the bat. He did not appear to have fear at all. Do not, on the other hand, ask him to battle a rooster. He has great fear. Much screaming is involved…and maybe a throwing of both of his barn boots in an attempt to scare away the above pictured rooster. ;)

Anywhoooo, Eric’s dad arrived quickly and I watched as they chased the pig around our barn. After several more failed attempts to get Daisy into the trailer I decided to go for a new game plan. The very hilarious “coax her down the isle way with pieces of plywood then grab her tail and attempt to cover her head with a bucket so you can hoist her into the trailer” technique was so not working. I went with the ever powerful…Prayer. Why not?! God cares about everything right? I believe that…and so I quietly prayed for favor and ease.

The guys coaxed the pig down the length of the barn one more time and Daisy walked right into the trailer. SHE. WALKED. RIGHT. INTO. THE. TRAILER!!! That never happens! I laughed out loud. Eric’s dad looked right at me…pointed…and said with tears in his eyes and a quiver in his voice, “You prayed didn’t you?” *Huge grin here!* God didn’t have to ‘show up and show off’…but oh how glad we were that he did! It just gives us a little boost of confidence. If He cared enough to answer that silly request…how much more does he care about the health of my children. Or the restoration of my husband. He hears. He really listens! I have proof…and she will soon be in the freezer of my pastors. =)

Why is it that we don’t take the small things to God? Why do we suffer when we have access to the Almighty? We wait until things seem huge…and then we pray. We get frustrated with daily struggles without a thought as to what God could offer. It won’t always be an immediate answer, but maybe it is our attitude that he will change. Maybe it is our patience that will grow stronger. Maybe it is our outlook that will gain fresh perspective. ;)

I’m sure most of you have heard it said, “We serve a crock pot God in a microwave world”. I can say that I always, not-so-secretly, want to have microwave results. But I am sure that I would grow to be unappreciative of those immediate answers as well. *Eeesch…the truth hurts!* Those are the ones that help to strengthen our faith little bits at a time.

How about those crock pot answers though? You know, the ones that you pray for months or years maybe even decades. What enormous strides of faith are gained when we see God prove that he is forever faithful to our constant prayers? When we finally see that God had us through every prayer. He was working while we were sleeping. He was molding while we were busy living our day to day. He was preparing us for what was to come…while we were still concerned with what was.

Our God does not slumber. He does not forget us. He is always working on our behalf. Trusting in His timing is one of the most freeing steps we can take in our Christian walk. It frees us from doubt. From fear. From worry. From anger.

What reason have you for not trusting? Think hard. If you are able to come up with a reason…find scripture that will cover over that lie. Find a prayer partner who can help pray you through this hurdle. Because once you are on the other side…you will have JOY. Unexplainable joy! It won’t make sense…and you won’t care.

Whatever it is that we are to learn. Whether it is to pray without ceasing, or to talk to God about all things big or small, or to trust God’s time. Let’s just try to do this one thing first. Let’s put God back on His throne. Let’s not put Him in the same group as the people that surround us. There are people in our lives that just don’t care. They don’t want to be bothered to pray for our headaches and sniffles. Or for our stubbed toes. Or for our success to chase a pig into a trailer. But God is unlike ‘us’. He is flat out A-mazing! He is always waiting, anticipating the next time He will hear our voice.

I leave you with the beauty of our Maker. He orchestrated this sunset for me us to enjoy last night. (He knows I’m a lover of these colors!) I took several pictures over a span of about 15 minutes. And each one was different than the one before. Meaning that the sky was rapidly changing from sun set to night fall. I marvel at His handiwork. I was so excited to capture it so that I will not forget what He taught me last night.


Prayers are forever beautiful just like pictures. They are unique and beautiful. (All the more reason to write them as well as speak them!) God does not forget a single one…just as I do not forget each picture in which I have captured God’s Creation. Keep speaking to your King. Keep laying your requests before Him. Keep speaking of His faithfulness in His answers. Keep looking for people to pray for. Get excited to pray. Ask a table full of children who wants to pray for the meal and watch as they, without hesitation, fight over who gets to go first. WHY NOT learn from them?!

I had a powerful time of prayer in my hubby’s truck tonight. I had to run a quick errand and I decided to do some warring. God was in that truck with me. NO QUESTION! I could feel His presence. I could sense that my Spirit was talking directly to Him and hearing directly from Him. It was so so so fun! I laughed. I cried. I screamed a bit…just making sure the enemy knows that I do not watch my spiritual family or actual family suffer without getting involved. I put him in his place. Beneath!

Do you remember a few posts ago when I wrote about God breaking my heart for what broke His? (Click here if you want to gain understanding into your emotional reactions to what may seem to be a simple prayer request from a friend/stranger.) At the end of that post I asked for requests. I wanted to be used as a prayer warrior for you. Whoever you may be.

To my surprise I actually got a few responses. Yipee!! Each time a new person called or texted, I knew it was them that I had been praying for God to send to me. They would give me their circumstance…and I could not help but smile. When you see the hand of God orchestrating something powerful, you just have to get excited! I get to talk to God. I get to pray passionately for the healing and restoration of these women that God has sent to me. Haha…I am excited! I can’t wait to see how God uses these things in their testimony. I believe because I have no reason not to. The God that I talk to…He is the same one that rose from the dead. He is the same one that parted the sea. He can handle this! I have no doubt!

Keep them coming. Keep sending me your requests. I don’t have to know you to pray for you. I don’t have to know details to speak life into your circumstance. This thing you battle…it is no surprise to God. He knew it was coming. Let’s ask Him what He wants to do with it! Let’s trust Him…and let’s become over comers.

You want to pray for me? I would absolutely LOVE that!!! Pray for healing and restoration in this house. Completeness. Pray for softness. Pray for supernatural understanding and grace.



How about you? How can I pray for you? It is my delight. It is my honor. It is my privilege. It is my joy to pray. Make a girl’s day would ya? =)

Break My Heart for What Breaks Yours-ALIVE 2009

Raise of hands if you were at the Christian music festival…Alive ‘09? If you were…you probably heard the same message and worship that I did. One night in particular a woman spoke words that I had forgotten until recently. She was telling us about how she prayed these words to well-known worship song…”Break my heart for what breaks yours.” (<=Click on the link if you'd like to hear it.) She warned us that it was the most dangerous prayer she had ever prayed because God heard. He really listened to her request. And He answered. She didn’t know what to expect, but she got what she asked for. She challenged us to pray it if we felt the Spirit’s leading…but only if we really meant it. Only if we were ready for whatever might follow.

Sheepishly, and timidly I prayed. Then I too quickly forgot. Fast forward to 2012. Lately I have been whining complaining having some heated discussions with God about some past and present events that I did NOT agree with. I was just letting Him know, and asking Him to reveal to me what He was thinking!! I wanted to know the purpose. I wanted to know His thoughts about what He was taking me through. I KNEW it had to make sense to someone…but I was growing weary in my ability to see His hand in it all. I trusted it was there…but I wanted to SEE it. Have you been there? Come on…it can’t just be me!?!

God’s response made me laugh and cry all at the same time. (Yes…I can do that. As I have said before, it is a special gift. Oh na-tur-all!  Haha!) His answer to my “WHY?!”…

“I am breaking your heart for what breaks mine! You asked me to remember? I’ve been answering that request for over 3 years now, and you have forgotten that you ever asked. You have screamed at Me. You have cried to Me. You have asked me to stop. But Vanesa, I know what is best. I knew that when you chose to ask AND LISTEN for my response…that you would understand nothing was for loss but for gain. I am making you stronger. I am proving that your prayers are not only heard, but that they are vital to those I am sending to you. I am teaching you how to be a more powerful and effective warrior for My Kingdom. I am showing you how to have compassion like your Father. I am teaching you how to love without condition. And I am asking you to go be my hands and feet to these people I am revealing to you. The time is now. You have been preparing for this. And I got cho (your) back!” –God

Did you cry while reading that? I definitely cried while I wrote it. To see the plan of God unfold is overwhelming…in a good way. It always makes me simultaneously laugh and cry! It makes all of the labor pains that we've had to endure…worth the birth of something greater than us. God’s response to my question was life changing. I pray that I am never the same as I was before!

So, you might be asking…what does that mean? How did God break your heart for what breaks His? Good question! I knew you’d ask! =) It was simple really. A phone call. A text. A conversation over coffee. And in those conversations came a simple request. Please pray for me. Friends of mine ask me often. I love that they view me as someone who can be trusted to do as they say they will.

What would happen next though was the part that I kept screaming demanding asking God to take from me. I would get to see first hand what these people were experiencing. One asked for prayer for a toothache…with in the next day or two my tooth would began to throb. One had a screaming headache…my head would began to pound. One was arguing with her husband...you guessed it...I was soon annoyed by the trash on the counter right above the GARBAGE CAN! One told me about how her husband was no longer in love with her…and soon I felt that with my own marriage. It wasn’t immediate. If it had been I think I would’ve put the pieces together a lot more quickly. (I hope. *grins a bit embarrassed*) It didn't last long. Just a short season so that I could say I "feel your pain sister!" With each trial that came I really truly honestly got to feel what they had been facing. For real. I promise it was neither imagined nor made up. It was real pain and aching in my heart. I felt hurt. I got angry. I whined for God to just make “one thing go right” some days.

And those examples listed above are all within the last few months. This has been happening…literally…for over 3 years now. *Smacks hand on forehead!* I felt like I was going crazy. The enemy told me I was a hypochondriac. He told me that I was just seeking attention. Or that I was just ‘making it up’. Because, you see, the longer he could delay me from searching for truth to cover his lies…the more frustrated I would become. If he could keep me in that state…maybe I would even stop praying!?

Ahhh…but our God is stronger than that. He knows what the enemy tries to use against us, only makes us stronger.

So bring it on. I want prayer requests. No matter their nature. I want to see God move in a mighty way. I want to be used because it makes my faith grow stronger. I will not fear things of this world. I trust my Father. I know Him. And I know that He is forming me to be a powerhouse of prayer for those that He sends my way. There is a spiritual war going on…and I will war with you my friend. 



Send me your requests. I am ready for a fight! =)

Daisy...Oh Daisy

Ever feel like your every move is being watched?!? I feel like that every time I enter my barn. All the animals are planning their attack...I'm sure of it. Lol! (Chickens tend to freak me out the most. I would call myself scared cautious...mainly because my legs are longer than theirs. And I can flail and kick with the best of them.)

Did you ever walk into your barn...only to realize that your 500 lb pig is loose and waiting for you to leave the door open? Wait, what?! Is that a 'No' I heard? Huh...surprising! ;) Well that was my afternoon yesterday. First it was the discovery of a loose pig. (Don't let them fool you...they are strong. She has more strength in her snout to neck area...than I have confidence in my ability to deal with her.)



She's a sloppy eater! Pig! Bahaha!

Next was the issue of how to get her lured back into her pen...all by my lonesome. I decided I'd try to coax her with some yummy food. *!!Note to readers with a 500 lb loose pig...they are not impressed with carrots or celery. If they were...they might not be 500lbs.!!* ;) I did find some garlic bread that I had put in the fridge a few days (or 5) ago that clearly none of us liked...and boy was I relieved that that was all it took!

Last, was the whole "if she got loose once...she will do it again" problem. I figured my work was done...*shines nails on shirt here*. It was my husband's problem...right?

I then proudly proceeded to text my husband while he was at swim practice with my son...to tell him of my afternoon adventure. I thought he too would be pleased with my effort. (I very quickly regretted that decision.) His response back...was for ME to secure the door of the pen with a slab of plywood. He made it sound so simple.

That was so NOT the case! I can assure you it was anything BUT simple. The plywood chunks were either too large or too small. (I try to stay away from running electric saws and so forth. It is in everyone best interest if I do.) The 2x4's I decided to use already had nails in them...and proved to be another challenge. The only other nails I could find were 12 inches long. Okay...they were probably 2 1/2 to 3 inches...but it seemed like 12 while my arms were getting tired of hammering. I would get them to a certain point and they would bend. Again. And Again. And again.

At which point I reached my level  of frustration...that I became very intense, purposeful and surprisingly strong. Sucess! It was not at all pretty or "quality craftmanship"...but I had reached my goal. Pig secured.

I can make anything into a blog post right? Yep! That's my style.                                This => is NOT my style. Haha!

Have you ever gone through a rough patch in life? (If you say no I will beat you with... just scream I will not believe you!) You will get to the point of extreme frustration and you will have a choice. Choose to blow up and give up. (Been there. Done that. The pleasure of quitting soon fades...and harsh reality sets in.) OR you can choose to become intense to find God in your storm. You can be purposeful in each step and decision you make...always confiding in God as your Counsel. And guess what will happen...






STRENGTH that you didn't know you could muster up. Not by your might...but HIS! It is amazing. It will give you reason to sing when you feel the things around you crumble. It will give you a new fire for the Word of God. The passions that God has put in you will be awakened and alive again.

That is how my weeks have been. Full of song. Full of God. And gaining strength each day. I have chosen NOT to blow up and give up. How about you? Can I pray for you in your storm? If you can't see God in it...become intense. Look for Him in every situation. Every conversation. Every blessing. And then praise HIM! He deserves to be praised...and longs to hear your praise...and He loves you whether you do it or not. It is for YOUR benefit...and those around you. You might spark hope in someone else.


I want to be a sparkler for Jesus. Yes, I just said that. Corny...absolutely! But I am done holding back for the fear of being judged. I'm not writing for you (you know what I mean)...I'm writing for Him. If you are blessed...praise God that He cares enough about YOU to let you experience joy amidst pain. Start sparkling beloved. You are an heir to the Throne of Grace. Be proud of who your Daddy is!! =)