For instance:
- collecting eggs literally as soon as the hen lays them so the egg does not freeze
- breaking ice from the doors
- breaking ice from every bucket
- breaking ice from anything containing liquid
- making sure every pen has extra straw so the animals stay warm
- making sure every animal is warm
- making sure all heat lamps work
- hauling the hose downstairs after every use so it does not freeze
- hauling the hose back up the stairs
- and if the water pump is frozen, we have to carry buckets from the house to the barn...multiple buckets
Winter can be a tough time for Farmers but especially for animals. Today, we had snow flurries and temperatures were freezing! Weather like this can be hard on our small animals, like our chickens. I went out to do chores and discovered a limp, frozen chicken lying in the middle of the pen. She wasn't even 1. As sad as it is, losses like these are not uncommon in the winter. But all we can do is move on.
But most of all, winter can be hard on a Farmer spiritually. My fathers job is seasonal, meaning he works whenever the weather permits him too. He's a carpenter/bridge builder, so winter brings no work. We constantly worry about weather we'll be able to feed our animals or run a heat lamp to keep them warm. Running a farm can be difficult at times like this.
But in the Book of Luke chapter 12, verses 22-26, we find guidance and hope in our lives during hard times.
Then Jesus said to his disciples: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? Luke 12:22-26
Even though we may be living through a stressful point in our lives, God wants us to turn to him for guidance. He doesn't want us to worry or reap about house payments, or feed bills or electrical bills (you farmers know what I mean) We learn to praise God for what he has given us. Even though the winter brings lots of hassles, at the end of the day, I couldn't be happier for what God has blessed me with. Through the countless number of times we break ice away from the doors to the countless number of times we worry about our feed bills, we always pull through by the work of God. Besides, who ever said farming was easy?
