Bittersweet Farm

Bittersweet Farm

A Tribute to Lois

Filed Under: Current Thoughts, Faith and Family

Lois with Camera

Sunday morning our furnace burbled to life and faithfully warmed the house for the first time since late last spring. The floor is warm when I make my coffee and oatmeal in the morning. I have a sense of warm well-being as I putter almost prayerfully about my morning routines. Last night the temperatures were in the mid-forties here. On the way home last night I sipped a hot carmel-apple cider and watched the moon rise full in the east. Today the sun will climb up over the lip of the world into a cloudless blue October day. I’m going to try to make room in my schedule for a quiet walk along the Lower Huron today. It will be good for my body and soul. Tonight I will speak to the faithful mid-week group at Evangel and we will gather into little clusters of prayer to close the day.

Last week I wrote a tribute to Lois, my wife of thirty-five years. It was very well received. I am sending it along to you so you all can enjoy it too.
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A Tribute to Lois
by Ken Pierpont

For thirty-five years of ministry and life Lois has been the anchor of our home and a blessing to hundreds and hundreds of people over the years as a Pastor’s wife. She was not raised in a Pastor’s home. She learned how to be a Pastor’s wife by trial and error.

She is a person of resolute conviction.
She is a person of unimpeachable integrity.
She is a person of unswerving loyalty.
She is without guile.
She loves Jesus.
She listens to people.
She is willing to challenge her husband-pastor and say what needs to be said, but in rough water there is no-one in the world that I would rather depend on.

In order for us to be in ministry she has worked tirelessly to help pay the bills. She bore four sons and four daughters and taught each of them at home all the way to graduation. She has followed me wherever God has led us including being willing to sacrifice over and over again so we could be a blessing to people.
She has a tender conscience and she is truly a God-fearing woman. She has done exactly what I have asked her to do as a Pastor’s wife.

Many, many people have shown her great kindness and respect, but when we have been mistreated she has had Kentucky-girl tenacity and will not be intimidated by bullies.

In all this she maintains a child-like love for life. She is content with simple things and has been willing to be patient with my weaknesses and areas where I am not gifted.

I am so proud of her and I love her and respect her more every day.

Stop today and take time to think deeply about the people God has placed in your life. Maybe it would be good for you to take some time to express your thoughts about them… while they are still alive to hear them.

Ken Pierpont
Granville Cottage
Riverview, Michigan
October 8, 2014

Persistence vs. Pressure

Filed Under: Gospel Conversations

Joey CochranI surfed into this helpful article about gospel conversation this morning. The author, Joey Cochran, used a helpful analogy that might be just what you need today as you persistently try to influence people in your world toward Christ:

Walk the tight-rope between persistence and pressure. You don’t want people to feel uncomfortable or pressured. You want to be respectful. However, there is a difference between pressuring and persistence. Maybe you need to let it go and then return to the concept later. Perhaps you haven’t asked permission. Perhaps the person found your conversation to be too pushy.

When a pilot knows he is not coming in for a sound landing, what does he do? If possible, he circles around and tries a new approach. He waits for calm weather or better winds. Persistence is when you circle around and try a new approach or waiting for a fitting time to return to discussing gospel matters. However, persistence can often be seen as pressure, so be mindful of their response.

You can read the whole article here. Here is a link to his worth-while site.

Beautiful On The Mountain

Filed Under: Village Parson, What I'm Reading

Graves Mill Chapel

Beautiful On The Mountain is a delightful read. I love the honest simplicity of the book. It doesn’t over-reach itself. It is a simple telling of how God used a woman to be a help and blessing for Christ to those around her–where God had placed her. She had to overcome her own failure, the prejudice and mis-understanding of others, and the hardships of life in a fallen world to accomplish something of value in this world and the next.

Ministry and Christian work without heart and soul is a contradiction in terms. I have always believed that in ministry one’s first order of business is to keep the romance alive. This book has helped me to do that, for which I am grateful.

Beautiful On The Mountain

Photo Credit-Delbridge Photograpy

Just Walk Across the Room

Filed Under: Current Thoughts, Gospel Conversations, Past Ministry, What I'm Reading

Just Walk

Since I was a kid I have been fascinated with evangelism. My Dad taught me a simple gospel outline called “The Romans Road” when I was about ten years old and I used it to explain the gospel to friends and strangers alike. In high school I used my study hall to read books about the Christian life, pastoral work, the Bible and evangelism. I especially love to read stories of how people came to faith. I never tire of hearing stories like that.

A few years ago I discovered Bill Hybels’ book: Just Walk Across the Room: Simple Steps Pointing People to Faith. It is filled with stories of people coming to faith and stories of believers who are engaging people in gospel conversations. I bought it and read it immediately. Yesterday I began my second reading of the book. It’s hard to put down.

Years ago I adopted a goal in life:
“Every Day Nudge Everyone You Meet Just A Little Closer to Jesus.”

I want to make a difference in this world that lasts. If you want to make an eternal difference during your short years on this planet, this book will be a powerful and practical help.

Here is a talk by Bill Hybels on the subject:

Welcome Back, Autumn (Guest Post)

Filed Under: Current Thoughts, Pondering His Creation

Red Jacket RJCC-04

Our son, Chuk is a true Michigander with the heart of a poet. He lives in Grand Rapids, and, along with his day-job is pioneering a candle-making business called Red Jacket Candle Company. I have invited him to contribute a guest post today.

My breath hung in the air as if it were being played back in slow motion. The cold air pinched my cheeks as I walked to the car. I turned the key in the ignition and the engine spins then roars. I turned the heater knob from its summer resting place in the blue and flopped it over midway through the red. I turned to head home beneath the trees half green half fire engine red. In front of the hardware store the pallets of mulch are replaced by colorful mountains of mums. At the coffee shop the folks have moved from the shade of the umbrellas inside to the “comfy” chairs. The conversations have turned from the vacations of summer, back to school and work.

When I was young I lived at the end of a dead end road. It wasn’t always a dead end. There was once a bridge but that had been washed away years ago. The result was our very own hiking trail that ran back about a half mile to a river. I used to run and play on that abandoned road with my older brother. One year about the time the leaves started turning and the air was too, my dad took us for a walk. We walked back that road till we saw a gap in the trees. Standing high above corn fields that ran out into what seemed like eternity my dad stopped. “You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance” he said. I assumed it was a bible verse, but didn’t know which. My dad chuckled with gratitude and we walked on but my mind stayed there. Even now my mind goes back.

The smell of pumpkin hugs me as I open the door, soft music plays in my sisters room. It seems I am not alone when I say “Welcome back Autumn we missed you”.

If you enjoyed Chuk’s piece leave a comment for him below. He’s a social guy.

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