But that’s ok, u-turn and we’re back on the road.  And no, we didn’t go into Jordan, but it was right there, fence with barbed wire and all.  We did, however, run into a few soldiers with guns…sorry, it was a little over the top so we had to take pictures!

We drove to the Jesus Boat on the south end of the Sea of Galilee and heard the story of a 2,000 year old boat that was dug up and preserved for all to come and see. What an amazing story.  Just think, they didn’t find it until they had the technology to carefully dig it out and then to preserve it, once it hit the air.  We could  imagine Jesus sitting in the boat by the fishermen.  Standing on the sea shore, asking Peter to walk to Him, so amazing.

In the gift store, we had fun looking at all the horns and shofars, as to what one was the best.  The salesman said “Would you like me to go outside and test them out?” Sure!  We happily responded.  So out he went to show us and talk about chills!  he was amazing!  Afterward Shelly felt like she was to tell him that he shifted atmosphere’s when he blew his horn and that God was really pleased with him.  She gave him a key which she said was from God, and he lit up and said ” welcome home”   What a beautiful exchange and a fun part to our day.

We found a few more wrong turns, and then suddenly, there it was, the mount of Beatitudes, and the Sea of Galilee, all for our imaginations to run wild.  We read the story of Jesus as he walked along the shore healing all who where there, how he went away and prayed on the mountain and how he went out in the boat to teach.  So amazing to be where He was again.

We dreamily walked back to our car (not before we girls got reprimanded on the microphone by sister tell who’s not wearing appropriate clothing! and got a little huffy), but after prayer and forgiveness…we were happy again:)  We walked back to our car and Shelly noticed a flat tire!  After many calls, it appeared the rental company was sending out a car but several hours later.  I kept saying  ”I’m just sure God will turn this into something good” in a forced, not too spiritual voice.  All the guests had left and Sileas was left cleaning up.  He began to chat with us about our car and then we discovered this Arab Greek Orthodox Catholic working at the mount of beatitudes was full of memorized scipture!  He toured us around and we met Mother Superior who knew 16 languages, but he had no idea that he was clean after he repented and that he could be born again!

Well, just leave it to four mommas with sons about his age and we began to pray over him (he told us we could!) and eventually we could see his face start to soften and tears in his eyes, and then his friend Damur received prayer.  Just after we finished praying (for at least an hour…our car didn’t show up), we walked outside and a huge truck arrived with a brand new van for us.  I know, it was a flat tire! but there it was all shiny and white!  We told Sileas that car represented his clean heart!  we found out that the first van they sent got in an accident(no on was injured praise God) and took an additional hour and gave us the time with Sileas and his friend.  Isn’t God wonderful?

That night we arrived in Carmel and visited with Rita Tsukahira at a ministry she and her husband have grown.  more on that tomorrow. But we did get to sleep by a zoo! During the night the lion of Judah roared.  Ok, it was the lion in the zoo, but still.  Here we are in Israel.

Love,

Robbie and the Golden ones

p.s. the strangest thing is I want to have communion every day.  What a beautiul symbol of Jesus.  I love it.

Each time I come to Israel I get weepy.  Sorry, it just is so hard to explain until you come here, so I guess you’re all just going to have to come.  First of all, the miracle of me driving in Jerusalem is astounding all by itself, but there is so much to tell already.

On the way down to the airport we stopped off to see our friends Myles and Katharine Weiss in Novato who have just returned from their latest adventure in the filming and touring for Lola lovitt and leading tours in Israel.  Myles had passed out upon their return so their are doing tests to make sure nothing is wrong and we thought it was the perfect beginning for our journey to go and bring love and encouragement to them.

From there we stopped at the Brodeur’s son Christopher’s house and his lovely wife Claudia.  Christopher was so inspiring he left us all feeling like “would you pray for us?!”  He had such a sweet heart and we all surrounded him and prayed that a miracle would happen with his foot.  He is now home with many pins and scars and able only to stay seated on his couch and receive visitors.  We prayed that God would do a creative miracle and heal every broken place.

From there we stayed in San Francisco and flew out the next morning.  We were blessed to be able to stay in an apartment close to the old city and drive over each day to explore and find all the treasures God has for us.

Yesterday we were caught in a swarm of thousands of muslim men as they headed home from prayer.  They all gather at the temple on Friday and leave at 1:00 p.m.  Of course we didn’t know this and were caught in a massive jam of shouting and squeezing together as they made their way home.  Diane filmed a small clip and they motioned for us to be on our way.  Film at 11:)

We then ended up at St. Anne’s church where we were able to enjoy the acoustics as we sat in a pew and sang some songs that sounded heavenly!  This church was right beside the Pool of Bethesda and we smelled a sweet smell of incense as we walked over and looked around and saw that no one was there!  We believed it was incense from the Lord, receiving his pleasure at how much fun we were having worshipping Him and being in the place where many miracles happened.

Today I was able to read out loud the story of Peter in John 21  seeing Jesus come out to Tiberias when they were fishing.  The girls and I  were standing right by the spot they say was the Upper Room where they prayed and the Holy Spirit came.  For some reason the tears came as I read about Peter jumping out of the boat to see Jesus.  My heart was so touched by the passion with which Peter jumped toward Jesus.  I thought in my heart, he was so happy to see HIm. Yes, He really did rise from the dead, just like he said.  As if… it’s true!  He is here!  I loved the way Peter just jumped out of the boat he was so happy to see HIm

I just want to be that way too.  Not holding anything back when it comes to Jesus.  Jump in the water, don’t wait.

Well, we were able to spend our meal tonight with Jan Cameaux and her husband Gregory.  They have been here 5 years and have been ministering to the Palentinian families in many ways, and are here as tour guides as well.  What amazing stories they have.  Can’t wait to share.  As a matter of fact, we have been thinking we’d love to have a time of sharing when we get back.   We’ll have to pick a night when we can gather.

If you think of us, please pray for divine appointments and for bringing back impartations for our friends.

love and hugs,

Robbie and the Jets

It was quite an adventure, from visiting the healing rooms of Charles Parham in Topeka, to seeing family in Omaha, to speaking in two places in Nebraska, and being overwhelmed with how far the Lord has taken us on our journey; including the many hearts He has touched through the life of our little Lexie.  Tears of gratefulness came often.

Charles Parham Healing Home

I sent out a small update on our experience in this place and will continue to speak about and seek God for answers on what happened there. As some of you know, we spent a few hours there and there were many healings and miracles that occured.  Mike stood up and said “I think I could run!” Our daughter in law Britt had all of her pain from her back and knees disappear and for Christian, Dustin and I, we received healing in many other areas.  We were so excited until we left the home, and all of the pain came back for Mike.  After many discussions and prayer, I believe that the Lord is showing us what He has for us, and I will continue to pray, learn and experience the “more” as I grow in my spiritual understanding of His word.

The next morning Mike’s pain was so great he didn’t know if he could travel back to Omaha so Britt got him in to the chiropractor we featured in one of our marketplace miracles.  He was able to pinpoint a lot of damage that has happened to Mike’s back due to old injuries and was able to provide some relief.  He even believed Mike’s shingles were caused from this great pain in his back, and he will now need to tend to the many problems it now has, but that there is hope.  We will receive the help from the chiropractor, whom God gifted with the ability to help backs, while we continue to learn and increase our belief in God’s word.  Help us Lord!

Our friend Roberta Hramos was so beautiful to help us connect with the healing home, was also encouraging on her journey with God and how we need to continue to believe God’s word over our own bodies.  At the age of 16 she was in a coma and came out of it saying “Plead the blood of Jesus over my body!”  Her family prayed and she was instantly healed!  since that time sickness has not come upon her.  Now that’s the kind of person I want to follow around!  Her faith soared and mine along with it!  I pray I will have faith like hers some day.

Speaking in Nebraska

Our original request from Nebraska was to speak at a CBMC prayer breakfast, so I was thinking it would be a small group and turned out to be two large groups!  The beautiful gift of CBMC is to bring other people that don’t know the Lord to the breakfast and then to allow them to see and hear what has happened in other business peoples lives because of Jesus.  Beautiful.

At these two breakfasts there were 500 and 1000 people!  How in the world God arranged that, I don’t know, but I do know that it was so beautiful to be able to thank these amazing people that loved on us during Lexie’s life. From Bible study teachers, new friends, churches, doctors, dentists, pharmacists, people we built an inner city ministry the Hope Center with, someone to help us with our marriage, people from the House of Prayer in Kansas that came alongside of us, a woman that met me at my mailbox and became my mentor for years!  She and her husband spent countless hours counseling and praying for us.  I’m so thankful!  How God had already prepared all of these amazing people  to be in our lives at just the right moment and all I had to do was ask was nothing short of a miracle.  What I hope to convey to all of you is that God is just waiting for you to turn your face to Him and ask for help.  He knows the desires of your heart and He is ready to meet you just where you need Him.

During Lexie’s life, I had no idea how supernatural all of this was, but now 11 years later looking back, it was a miracle!  how I met each one, and how they impacted my walk with Jesus and my family.  Now I can say with confidence and boldness that Jesus is alive!  and I met Him through all of these people in Nebraska and Kansas.  He will never leave me or forsake me!  And He will never leave you.

Israel

I leave for Israel next week to go and listen to what God has to say to us in Redding.  It’s quite an unusual trip for me. Usually I’m following along with a tour, group, or my husband and quite happy to listen and follow.  But for some reason when we were there last year and Mike was sick, I felt like I was supposed to bring women back and just sit in that prayer room.  So, off we go on an adventure.  Don’t you love that I can be 58 and still going on adventures?!

I look forward to sending you the words from Israel direct to Redding.  Please pray for us!  Shelly Wade, Melody Hickerson and I will be leaving April 18-30.  Mike will be in charge back home, so he and Christian will need your prayers too!

I hope and pray this week is over the top for you and your family and your business!

We will continue to meet on Fridays at noon at the Celebration! center on 1950 Market.  Thanks again to the Baker family for sharing their facility with us.  Hope to see you there!

Love,

Robbie

This week we have a beautiful story about a new business by the name of Celebration Dance-Swim-Fitness-Music-Events!  Peggy and Jason Baker and their children put their heads together and decided to buy a building and start a community center.

There were many ups and downs in their journey of trying to purchase the building, when do we quit our day jobs, and will we be able to make this work so we can actually have an income?!

What a delightful beginning to what I think is going to be a household word for many in Redding.  Let’s go to Celebration!  They’ve got dance classes, exercise, swimming, piano, rent their facility for an event, and soooo much more.

But the best result of this adventure according to me, is the beautiful time their family now has together.  I hope you’ll take a peek at the latest Marketplace Miracle and enjoy the journey!

Celebration Gym from Mike Frank Consulting on Vimeo.

If you are reading this in an email, click here to see the video.

Now, I don’t know about you, but I was pretty angry with this stupid guy.  But I saw many prayers go up to not only forgive the man, but to go and visit him and see if he was ok.  They also forgave the bus company and there were no lawsuits.  I was deeply impacted by this group of people that so loved God that they were willing to forgive someone who obviously had some real problems.  I tried to follow their lead, but it wasn’t until 4 years later that someone confronted me with my anger.

We had moved back to the midwest from Agoura Hills California and were attending a small evangelical church in Omaha Nebraska.  I had been a christian for a few years but had thankfully escaped having to deal with this forgiveness issue, because no one had ever explained it to me.  Amazing, huh?  Here I was 42 years old and really had no idea how to do it.  I mean I ‘d heard about it, but that’s saved for people who intended to hurt you wasn’t it?

Growing up on a farm, you just learned to “shake it off” when someone made you mad.  And really, growing up with 3 sisters, the worst it ever got was when I saw my sister wearing my new sweater in school without asking.  Don’t get me wrong, I was steaming mad at her:), but we had the peace talks (mom laid down the law) at home and got it straightened out.

My cousin Mike took my train.

Even asking Jesus into my heart during a service at church one day, they must have left that part out, because I don’t remember it.  So imagine my dismay when my new friend Linda Reid, called by some the Human Probe, (she will not let you go by her without her asking you very scary personal questions…and you find yourself answering them!), was listening to me complain about my latest dilemma that made me mad.  I went on and on about a meeting at our new church, where some man stood up and put my husband down because he didn’t think he had the qualifications to be an executive pastor.  Ha!  He was so right.  Mike had only been reading the bible for a year or so, and since the company he worked for had sold, he was trying to help out at the church.  Our new pastor adored Mike with his corporate experience and the new wealth we had acquired didn’t hurt either; but the way  this other man had talked about my husband in front of all the members was hurtful and embarassing.

Well, I thought, who does he think he is?  As I walked out of the meeting my new friend Kristi was in the back and I immediately purged all of my anger out about this man, knowing that she and I were friends and I could tell her anything.  I went on for quite a while feeling quite justified and later stopped by my friend Linda’s house to report on the “jerk” at our church.  I guess I wasn’t done getting all the junk out yet.  What is it about us that needs to have someone confirm our bad behavior?  Is it so we feel justified?  Linda listened in her patient way and smiled sympathetically until I was done regurgitating the list of how evil this man was.  She softly asked “Do you think you could forgive this man?”

Wow, she must not have been listening because this man was vile!  ”No, I don’t have to forgive him because he didn’t mean to hurt me or Mike, he was just stating what he thought was right!”  She smiled and listened again to my many reasons of why I didn’t have to forgive him and asked again…And she wanted me to say it out loud! She’s really getting irritating now.  This time she explained that no matter how small the hurt, even when someone doesn’t mean to hurt you but it goes in deep anyway, we need to forgive.

The way you can tell if you’ve forgiven is to think about that person and what kind of feelings come up.  If you can do that without getting angry, you have let go and given it up to the Lord.  If you still want to choke them, back to Jesus to talk some more.

Eventually, I ground out a sorry statement like “Lord, I forgive this jerk for what he said about my husband and for the hurt he caused”.  Linda smiled and told me I did a great job and left it at that.  But God had some more work to do in the car on the way home.  Something happened once I said the words out loud.  I really did forgive this man and knew that in a way he was right.  Mike wasn’t qualified for the job.  I even felt I had to go back to my friend Kristi and ask her forgiveness for spewing all my anger on her about this man.  She was a little embarrassed by my confession, probably thinking I had over done it a little, but I pressed on, knowing it was what God was telling me to do.

I learned something very valuable that night.  To not let things sit inside of me for a long time, and to be quick to forgive. and slow to anger.  I think I was beginning to get the meaning of that scripture.

Matthew 18:20-22   ²¹ Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” ²² Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

Yikes!  That means that if I’m just not “feelin” it, I have to keep saying it? Or, if that person does it again I have to forgive them again?  Well, there it is in black and white.  All I know is that I want to feel clean inside all the time.  Carrying anger around does not get me there.  Forgiving does. 

Matthew 18: 34-35:   In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.   ³⁵ “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

And now it’s not only say the words but do it from your heart.

Colossians 3 ¹² Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ¹³ Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

Yes, I guess that pretty much says it all, doesn’t it?  The Lord forgave me.  When I think about all the stupid stuff I did, and I’m forgiven by Him, how can I do any less for anyone else.

Hope you’re all clean and shiny from all the forgiving you’ve been doing this week.  Or maybe you need to do what one  pastor told us to do.  Get a yellow notepad and begin to write down all the people He brought to mind we needed to forgive.  Write down every word and offense and then go down and forgive each one and then throw it in the trash because it’s done!  No more to be remembered.

Please join us this week as we pray for the marketplace at Frank Consulting at noon.

Blessings,

Robbie

p.s.  Please remember to keep in prayer our sister and brother Diane and Michael Brodeur and their son Christopher and the rest of the family.  I saw them today and their son has to date undergone 40 hours of surgery and horrific skin and muscle grafts for his leg.  They are not sure that any of the nerve endings are responding in his foot, which will need to happen to allow him to use his foot.  He will be in the hospital for 3 more weeks for sure and they still have not set all the broken bones in his leg.  Oh Lord, hold this family tight and help them to remember that You are the healer.  Hold them through this time to trust in You, even when they can’t understand Your ways.

Today’s story is going to be a little different than most, but I had such an exciting day yesterday, I had to share.  Some of you will love it others may say, what?  I don’t get it.  I hope you have fun reading, nonetheless.

Last week as some of you know, Mike and I travelled to Napa, CA for a little break and had a wonderful time.  However, upon our return home I could not find my sapphire ring that Mike gave to me on our 25th wedding anniversary.  I didn’t want to tell him because I tend to lose things easily and I knew he would be upset, so I kept things quiet.

At church on Sunday I whispered my dilemma to a friend and she put her hand over mine and we prayed it would be returned.  I went back to my jewelry box 3 times in the days following, pouring out all the contents  and spreading them out on my dresser, thinking I just don’t see it, but it was not there.  Yesterday, as I was going for my walk lamenting to Ranger our golden retreiver, I took a call from a friend and just had to tell about the loss of my ring.  We prayed again and I said “I want my ring back!”

Upon my return from my walk, and no ring magically appearing,  I sadly called the Inn we had stayed at in Napa.  I knew I must have lost it there, and since they didn’t call to tell me they had found it, I dreaded their response in thinking possibly someone had taken it.  I hung up the phone and went to my jewelry box to get the rest of my jewelry and thought about how I was going to tell Mike.

My eyes could not believe it!  There was my ring!  I jumped and jumped and screamed, because I knew that ring was not there yesterday!  God was just having fun with me:)  Thank you God!

The Shift

I made it in t0 the office by 11:00 (nice job, right?) and some kind people were there to pray for Mike.  A team from the school has been so kind to come every week for the last month to pray for his healing.  Mike and I had been in a little disagreement about how he was to go about getting healing, so we were not in the best “receiving” mode.

Mike’s pain has been so great, he decided to go back on some medication that makes him very drowsy and I had other ideas of what to do:)  We began to pray and I dutifully put my head down and suddenly I had a thought.  ”His tears need to come out”.  Well, as I mentioned, not only was I not in a receiving mode, but I wasn’t in a giving mode either!  But again, I dutifully said “I think I’m supposed to pray something over you”.

As soon as I got up I could feel the weight of the prayer and God’s presence and put my hand on his hand and began to cry over him, calling forth all the tears that had been stored up and blocked, all the disappointment, all the fear, all the anger, resentment, grief; it was time to go!  Mike didn’t get up and jump up and down, but I know something happened and there has been a shift.

Later on that day we began to make our plans for Omaha, Nebraska where we have been asked to speak at 2 prayer breakfasts to share our testimony on April 5 and 6.  Omaha, of course, is where Lexie was born, and we met so many friends through her life.  In addition, a few weeks ago, a friend asked if we would be able to come and  receive prayer  in the restored healing house of Charles Parham in Topeka, Kansas.  I thought maybe we could put the two trips together and wouldn’t it be amazing and like God if the prayer happened on the 11th anniversary of our daughter Lexie going to heaven on April 2?

Healing Center in Topeka

For those of you that don’t know of Charles Parham,  Charles Parham’s Bethel Healing Home and Ministry Center opened in Topeka, Kansas  from 1898 through 1900.  It was here that he operated his heaing rooms, 200 seat chapel, Apostolic Faith Newspaper, city outreach programs, childrens orphanage, and employment agency. I’ve found out that he helped to start the pentecostal movement and thousands of people were healed.  William Seymour took his teaching to Los Angeles and started the Azusa Street Revival.  His healing home is being restored, and we are going to receive prayer through some of the people that have put this time together for us.

Again, Mike and I looked at the dates and decided it wouldn’t work time wise because Christian wasn’t out of school on those dates. Yesterday we looked again and surprise!  The dates totally line up with going to Kansas on April 2!

I know, God can do miracles even if I’m there on April 3, but isn’t that a coincidence?:)  There’s also something about the number 11. We’ve been told it means transition, our address is 11333, our office address is 1135, it’s been 11 years since Lexie went to heaven.  Come on!  I’m proclaiming it’s time for a miracle!  For our whole family.  It just so happens that Christian, Amber and Dustin are all able to come as well.

Will you join me in praying that we take back the territory that the enemy stole in our family especially regarding our health?   Let’s pray for every one of our family members to be healed!  Christian turns 16 on April 23.  Wouldn’t that be fabulous if his eyes were healed and he could get his license???  No matter what happens, God will be there with us and miracles are going to happen whether we see them immediately or not.

Thanks so much for listening this week and for those of you that are still scratching your heads and wondering, what does this have to do with the marketplace, why not just join me in the celebration and excitement that miracles are in the air, and we just might have your story in here next week!

Blessings!  See you at noon at Frank Consulting!

Robbie

Mike is reading “Napa Stories”, by Michael Chiarello at our fireside chat, so I’ll pass some of the stories on to you.    The book gives profiles of important people that started the valley and the history of why things evolved the way they did and how the whole wine industry in America was changed by a few pioneers; not only the industry, but consumption.

Up until the late 1960′s there was no significant industry here.  Americans didn’t even drink that much wine until this valley was developed.  It was not even put on their table until it was popularized by the pioneers Mondavi, Barringer Brothers and others.  During those years,  they started taking some of the best wine for this region over to a wine competition in France, and a couple of the wines beat the European wines and Napa started to develop a world wide reputation for premium wines.

Think about it.  God created this land to be extremely fruitful and provide a strong economy for the people that lived here.  Prior to the growing of grapes, this area was growing things like peaches and prunes and other fruits, but it never really created economic prosperity.  It was only after the discovery of how good the climate and soil was for growing grapes, that God’s intended economic value  was released.

There is such an appreciation here for architecture, farmlands, an appreciation for the fruit of the land, cooking, and pairing the food with the wines that come from here.  An enticing appreciation for the art of dining, not about food as fuel.  There is also an appreciation of the nuances that soil and climate create, similar to why people celebrate different coffees, and discovering how each coffee bean has its unique flavor and characteristics based upon the soil and microclimate.  Of course Michael would like to add cigars to that list (yuck!).  All three of these items depend on the character of the land.

Let’s compare it to the Redding area, and how in the past it has been all about timber, mineral and water.  What if it begs another question?  What if there is a higher use for the climate in Redding that God has in mind so that it reaches its highest potential and that people are able to prosper?  But as for Redding, God would get the glory!

Hope to see you Friday at noon for prayer at Frank Consulting.  By the way, our little office seems to be getting too full, so we’d love to ask if anyone has a bigger space where we can pray.  If we get a different location we will contact you, otherwise, just come on to suite 104!

Blessings!

Mike and Robbie

 

 

• We can ask God to decree justice.
• To give us a discerning heart to distinguish between right and wrong.
• We can ask for Wisdom from God to administer justice
• God judges the people.
• He will vindicate us according to our righteousness and integrity.
• God probes the minds and hearts of those He created.
• God is a righteous judge.
• His throne is established for judgment.
• He rules the world in righteousness.
• He judges the people with equity.
• God is known by his acts of justice.
• God loves justice and righteousness.
• His eyes examine the righteous.
• God saves the upright in heart.
• His throne is established for judgment.
• He judges people with equity.
• He is known by his acts of justice.
• God’s eyes examine everyone and he examines the righteous.
• God loves justice.
• God saves the upright in heart.
• He who forms the hearts of all considers everything we do.
• The eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him.
• The LORD foils the plans of the nations.
• He thwarts the purposes of the peoples.
• The plans of the LORD stand firm forever.
• The purposes of his heart last through all generations.
• He summons the heavens above, and the earth, that he may judge his people.
• We put our hope in Him.
• The heavens proclaim his righteousness.
• He is a God of justice.
• A scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom.
• Righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.

Ephesians 4:1 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace…

In an effort to bring more peace to our lives, Michael and I have decided to take one day a week for pleasure.  We are going to visit the many beautiful places surrounding us and enjoy the beauty of God’s creation.

Our first adventure took us to Frosty-Acres All Natural Gourmet, Grass Fed Beef in Adin, California.  Now, all of you vegetarians turn your heads as I tell you the reason for our visit.  We decided to purchase 1/4 of a cow!  Organic beef is now sitting in pretty packages in our home freezer and now we don’t have to go to the grocery store and take what is put on the shelves or pay extravagent prices for a small piece of meat.

The tricky part for me, is to understand that my beef actually comes from a cute little cow grazing out in the field.  But I thought it was important not only from the organic side, but to know the people that raised our beef!  I was delightfully surprised with the couple that met us as we pulled into the ranch.  Andy and Helen Albaugh have a small ranch (4,000 acres together with their family) and were excited to tell us all about their family and home and even gave us a tour of the original homestead, which was purchased by his parents back in 1937.

It was a glorious day and I had so much fun tromping around the ranch and touring the original barn built back in the 1800′s.  Andy shared wonderful stories of the way the barns were made back then, pointing out that there was no metal in the entire barn.  We viewed the stalls where the horses got to rest from their workday, along with the harnesses, still hanging alongside of the stall.  We walked to the center of the huge barn and saw how they drove the horses through with the hay and threw it up into the loft.  Brought back a lot of good memories of my youth and crawling around in the hayloft with my sisters.

And talk about research!  Andy was able to share with us the history of dairy cattle and why some people might even be allergic to today’s milk because of the gradual changes that have happened during breeding, trying to get higher production, which may have affected the milk!  Who knew?

When I was growing up I would hike up the hill to visit my dad with his “girls” he called them.  He had around a 100 head of milking cows, and he’d be down in the pit pushing the cows through and hooking them up to the milking equipment.  We’d shout down to him and wave and of course his happy smile to see us and wave back was always a wonderful reward.  Eventually he’d come up to check on the milk in the huge tank and dip out a pitcherful of milk to take down to mom.  The thick cream would rise to the top and she’d use that for deserts and cooking or for our cereal!  Growing up with milk around the table was a must and we happily drank glassfuls for each meal.

Not quite the same experience today.  I don’t even like the taste of milk and I’ve been told I’m allergic!  Now how could that be?  Seems it’s possible they have been changing the cows on me?!

The Albaugh’s have just recently in the last few years gotten back to the ranch with their family and are learning new ways to sell their product to the public.  Seems this is a pretty popular business right now, and they’re finding their niche but at times it’s difficult with all of the competition, especially if large corporations get in on the act.

All in all it was a glorious day of enjoying the sunshine, the company and the quiet of the beautiful outdoors.  Ranger, our golden retriever was allowed to ride along and I think he was pretty impressed with the “farm life”.   I hope you’ll visit their website and order your meat from them.  Check out the amazing facts of buying grass fed vs grain fed.  It even has Omega 3′s and less calories than grain fed.  Who knew?  If nothing else, take a day and go for a drive.  You won’t regret it!

Hope to see some of you tomorrow at Frank Consulting to pray for the marketplace!

Robbie