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Longshadow Farms

We are a small, family farm located in the Finger Lakes area of NY state. Rodney is a State Police Investigator but wants to be a farmer when he grows up. Daphne is the nearly-insane chief cook, bottle washer and operations manager for the farm and "MOM" to just about everything in sight. The kids are great helpers most of the time, especially when it comes to the critters. Below are some quotes, stories and thoughts that we would like to pass along.

An excerpt from "Horn of the Hunter" by Robert Ruark:

People who are clean all the time and who take two showers a day are apt to forget the tremendous adventure of removing a couple pounds of topsoil from the body at the end of a man-killing day.

Old Birds Are Priceless (source unknown)

There once was a man named George Thomas, pastor in a small New England town. One Easter Sunday morning he came to the Church carrying a rusty, bent, old bird cage, and set it by the pulpit. Eyebrows were raised and, as if in response, Pastor Thomas began to speak.

"I was walking through town yesterday when I saw a young boy coming toward me swinging this bird cage. On the bottom of the cage were three little wild birds, shivering with cold and fright. I stopped the lad and asked, "What you got there, son?"
"Just some old birds," came the reply.
"What are you gonna do with them?" I asked.
"Take 'em home and have fun with 'em," he answered.
"I'm gonna tease 'em and pull out their feathers to make 'em fight.
I'm gonna have a real good time."
"But you'll get tired of those birds sooner or later. What will you do?"
"Oh, I got some cats," said the little boy. "They like birds. I'll take 'em to them."

The pastor was silent for a moment. "How much do you want for those birds, son?"
"Huh?? !!! Why, you don't want them birds, mister. They're just plain old field birds. They don't sing. They ain't even pretty!"
"How much?" the pastor asked again.
The boy sized up the pastor as if he were crazy and said, "$20?"
The pastor reached in his pocket and took out a twenty dollar bill. He placed it in the boy's hand. In a flash, the boy was gone.

The pastor picked up the cage and gently carried it to the end of the alley where there was a tree and a grassy spot. Setting the cage down, he opened the door, and by softly tapping the bars persuaded the birds out, setting them free.

Well, that explained the empty bird cage on the pulpit, and then the pastor began to tell this story. One day Satan and Jesus were having a conversation. Satan had just come from the Garden of Eden, and he was gloating and boasting. "Yes, sir, I just caught the world full of people down there. Set me a trap, used bait I knew they couldn't resist. Got 'em all!"
"What are you going to do with them?" Jesus asked.
Satan replied, "Oh, I'm gonna have fun!
I'm gonna teach them how to marry and divorce each other,
how to hate and abuse each other, how to drink and smoke and curse.
I'm gonna teach them how to invent guns and bombs and kill each other.
I'm really gonna have fun!"
"And what will you do when you get done with them?" Jesus asked.
"Oh, I'll kill 'em," Satan glared proudly.
"How much do you want for them?" Jesus asked.
"Oh, you don't want those people. They ain't no good.
Why, you'll take them and they'll just hate you.
They'll spit on you, curse you and kill you.
You don't want those people!!"
"How much? He asked again.
Satan looked at Jesus and sneered, "All your blood, tears and your life."
Jesus said, "DONE!" Then He paid the price. The pastor picked up the cage he opened the door and he walked from the pulpit.

Why did Jesus do such a thing? Why did he suffer an awful death for people who did not want it or deserve it? The answer, I believe is Love. Jesus loved us and wanted us to be with Him and to be with the Father in Heaven. Many people have the idea that Jesus was a somber, serious person but I think the Bible is FULL of references which indicate that there was much more to Him than that. People were attracted to Jesus and followed Him all over the place. Why? I believe He was a JOYFUL, LOVING, CARING person with an incredible sense of humor. Check out the following picture - it comes from The Visual Bible: The Gospel of Matthew.

I think that picture captures part of the essence of Jesus. He was JOYFUL. If you read through the Bible looking for joy, I think it will overwhelm you with how much joy you will find there. That is one of the keys to what it means to have a relationship with Jesus Christ which is what being a Christian is all about. The more time we spend with Him, getting to know Him, relying on Him, the more we will be like Him. This doesn't mean we will be perfect immediately (I know I have a long way to go!) but it does mean that we can have joy and forgiveness along the way. Here are a couple of passages that talk about joy: I John 1:1-4 1"That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched--this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4We write this to make your joy complete." I Peter 1:3-9 3"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade--kept in heaven for you, 5who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7These have come so that your faith--of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire--may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls."

If you don't have a Bible yourself, you can read one on-line at: Gospel Communication's Bible Gateway. For more information on how you can have a relationship with Jesus, you can visit needhim.org. Please also feel free to write us with any questions or comments you may have. God promises in Jeremiah 29:13 "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."

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