Being Refined

 "The crucible is for silver, 

and the furnace is for gold, 

and the LORD tests hearts."  

Proverbs 17:3 

This has been an October like never before! As I continue working at the Orchard for their busy season, Sam and I have enjoyed breaking many records:

--480lbs of fudge made in a single week 

(doubled last year's record)

--nearly 80 batches of donuts in a week 

(between 4500-5000 donuts)

--more work hours than I care to tell...but we beat Tyler's record, and that's all that mattered. ;)

Now record-making is fun...but it sure is tiring! And when you're tired and working an often stressful job...natural cheerfulness and strength wear very very thin. Our prayers were (and are still!) for His endurance, strength, patience, and peace in the middle of what certainly does NOT naturally produce those things! And He has proved Himself faithful over and over.

But it got me thinking.

It's so easy to believe that the attitudes of our hearts are caused by the circumstances we're in. Or that "I wouldn't be this way if ______"

However, as I thought about it...

Circumstances don't produce attitudes--they only reveal what is already deep inside the heart. 

"...out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks." 

Matt. 12:34

It can be so easy to blame things like

sickness,

a hard job,

lack of sleep,

unfairness in other people,

hormones,

the weather.

And YES these things contribute. But not to the forming or creation of the bad attitude. Only to the revealing of it. There are already issues--deeper issues than a rainy day--that result in poor responses to the less-than-perfect circumstances. As the verse above says, "out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks," and what comes out in trying moments is often

impatience,

anger,

whining,

complaints,

arguments,

self pity.

How quickly I need to recognize that these responses (even if I only feel them in my heart and never express them) aren't the only thing that needs repenting of. Usually there is either pride or selfishness at the root. Bad attitudes never come from "nowhere" and aren't excusable in any way. For if I have been given everything in Christ, and have the power that raised Christ from the dead available to me in the day-to-day, there just aren't any excuses left.

It's not that you'll never be tempted...

or never feel depressed...

or never have physical issues...

or never be discouraged...

It's that you have the ability in Christ to respond in godly ways to those feelings, whether you take hold of it or not.

 

There's something really beautiful about all this though.

 "My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the LORD reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights."

Proverbs 3:11-12

  Our Father loves us far too much to allow the sin in our hearts to remain buried. He sends us the hard circumstances which cause the more deeply entrenched sin to surface--sin we wouldn't even realize the depths of if it weren't stirred up--that we might recognize it, repent of it, and root it out as we run to Him for forgiveness and cleansing.

"And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call upon my name, and I will answer them. I will say, 'They are my people'; and they will say, 'The LORD is my God.'"  

Zechariah 13:9

So these "hard places" are part of Christ's love for us, desiring that we should be more holy and Christ-like at the deepest levels; levels that often take some hard-core affliction to get to. 

Don't be afraid of it.

Let it do its work!

Oh, to be so deeply formed by Christ that the sharpest pain and the deepest anguish bring forth worship and praise to the One who so lovingly ordained it. To have such perfect trust and faith in His love and providence.

"But He knows the way that I take; when He has tried me, I shall come out as gold. My foot has held fast to his steps; I have kept His way and have not turned aside." 

Job 23:10-11 

And oh to be so deeply formed by Christ that I can live and act and speak faithfully in the day-to-day trials and rubs, singing out His praise even when my shoulders ache, or hurtful things are said, or everyone around me has a "drag-you-down" attitude.

"Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me"

Psalm 51:10

I Wonder as I Wander

I wonder as I wander out under the sky,

How Jesus the Savior did come for to die.

For poor on'ry people like you and like I...

I wonder as I wander out under the sky.

When Mary birthed Jesus 'twas in a cow's stall,

With wise men and farmers and shepherds and all.

But high from God's heaven a star's light did fall,

And the promise of ages it then did recall.

If Jesus had wanted for any wee thing,

A star in the sky, or a bird on the wing,

Or all of God's angels in heav'n for to sing,

He surely could have it, 'cause he was the King.

-----

"I Wonder as I Wander"

an Appalachian Christmas carol

by John Niles

 based on fragments he heard a North Carolina mountain girl sing in 1933.

And just for your information, all these pictures were taken on the same evening at Evan's Orchard, in 15 degree temperatures with the wind blowing. :) I wondered, as I wandered, what could have possessed Tyler and I to go out...but the sunset was gorgeous!

Orchard update

Another year at the Orchard is drawing to a close!

It's really hard to believe this has been my 3rd year there. But...here we are in November, after the biggest year ever. The trees are picked out. The crowds and school tours have vanished. The corn maze is demolished. The preserves are running out. And I'm DONE making fudge!!!

Speaking of which...

So last year (see post here), you will see I made 675 lbs of fudge during the month of October.

This year, I rounded out the month with

1020 lbs.

That number is half the amount I made during the entire 2009 season, smashed into one month.

Let's just say that...if anyone wants fudge this Christmas, they're making it themselves!!!! :)



Wonderful Daddy

Ahhh...second day back to work.

Guess what Tyler and I got to do?!? Get up at 5am, so we can be at work by 6 to fry pies and donuts! Wuhoooo!! Actually, moaning and groaning aside, it was something kind of out of the ordinary, and we were both looking forward to it.  :)

Except...we were expecting 3-6 inches of snow during the night and early morning. And if you're planning to be driving to work bright and early...hmmm.  My car is NOT all-wheel or 4-wheel drive.  Sturdy and reliable. But I'd never driven it on snow before.

We really did have to be at work...and we really did wake up to a LOT of snow on the ground, and more falling! 

Nervousness!!!!

 We decided to check it out after our breakfast, to see if my car would be able to make it. 

BUT...

my dear and wonderful Daddy beat us to it.

In fact...

he scraped off the snow from both our car and his...

then got into his truck, at that early hour, and told us to follow him on to the Orchard. I was SO glad it no longer rested on my judgement!  It's much easier just to be told to follow. ;) 

The roads were really slushy, and it took us twice as long to get there. But whereas before, on my own, I'd have been stiff with tension...my Daddy was right up ahead. What's to be afraid of?  Slow down when he slows down. Take all the turns carefully. Trust that he won't go keep going if he knows it's not safe...and that if I get stuck, he'd be there in a minute to get me out.

So though He doesn't always keep me safe and cozy at home. And doesn't always drive for me. Or change the weather so I don't have to face something difficult... He's always there, right up ahead. What's to be afraid of?  My Father knows where He's going, and what I can handle.  And if I get stuck? He's right there, ready to pull me out of my drift...

An early-morning illustration of my heavenly Father's loving care and wisdom.

"Make me to know your ways, O LORD;

teach me your paths.

Lead me in your truth and teach me,

for you are the God of my salvation;

for you I wait all the day long."

Psalm 25:4-5

Love you, Daddy...you really don't know how much "driving" us to work this morning meant to me. Thanks for watching out for your li'l girl. :)

Back to the Grind

I don't know if I should be labeling this post "happy thoughts" or not... For you see, after a LOVELY two-month break, I'm going back to work on Friday.  Tomorrow!!  Maybe just a half day. I'm undecided.  It's been a pretty productive couple of months.  December, of course, was spent Christmasing, but this past month I finished a couple books and got caught up on a bunch of projects (sewing, embroidery, art things, etc.) as well as emails. Plus I did more baking and cooking at home. :)  It's been wonderful!!

Vacation just spoils one. :)  But back to pies and preserves I go!  Three months of stocking up before they open for their 2010 season.  Okay, I'm getting a little more excited.  I just LOVE seeing spring come to the Orchard.  The warm days before they open, when I can sit way up in the playground eating my lunch...the baby leaves and flowers on the apple and peach trees...the smell of freshly mown grass...

I think I've got a mild case of spring fever. :)  We had quite a bit of rain a few weeks back, and warmer-than-usual weather, and our daffodils started poking up!  A very small promise of what will start coming in another month or so. :)  That said, though, I love snow, and would be happy to have more before spring gets here! 

So to the Orchard I go again! For my third year. 

"Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ."

Colossians 3:23-24

.....drumroll.....

675

Yes indeed, folks.

Grand total.

The number you see at the top of the post...

is how many

pounds

of

fudge

I made during the month of October.

Over 1/3 of what we made

TOTAL

last year.

Crazy, no?

Donut update

Okay, so I told you Tyler started making donuts? And maybe you remember this post from last year, where my record number of batches was 35? Oh man...did he ever destroy THAT record!!! A couple weeks ago, the grand total batches for one week was.....

65 batches!!!

Which comes to about 4875 donuts, or 406 dozen. :)

And yes, they all sold.

Needless to say, the very word "donut" now makes Tyler turn a bit pale. Or maybe a sickly green. The difficulties that accompany doing something well...poor fellow.

And here are some other records, if only for my own sake, to compare to last year.

--Fudge: 300lbs made over 2 weeks (60 9x13 pans)

--Pies fried/sold in one day: 900+ (and this was just a Sunday afternoon!)

--Sandwiches sold in one day: 800+ (during the Apple Festival)

--Caramel apples: no idea...lots :)

--Hot apple cider: had its big day during the "Steps for Pets", which took place on a 40 degree, drizzly morning. We couldn't keep our 2 3-gallon and 2 2-gallon warmers full!

--Apple bread: sorry, no time to make it, hence no sales ;)

--Cider: Mr. Ciderman doesn't know because he's been making donuts...but they're constantly making and selling it!

I think the Orchard is catching on!! Hee hee. Even last Saturday, when it was rainy and cold and we didn't expect anyone, we still had a steady stream of business! I told Jenny they must have under-estimated the popularity of their own Orchard. A good thing! Mr. Evans and Jenny work harder than anyone I know to make it a success. It's pretty inspiring!

Orchard Update

We are just now getting into "busy season" at the Orchard! And the weather is helping it feel like October already...in the 60s all day. It doesn't sound all that cold until you're damp from washing a pile of dishes and step outside into the breeze! Then it's definitely nippy!

An interesting thing happened last night at the Orchard though. The neighbor's cows got onto the Evans' property some how...and decided to check out the mums, pick some apples (roughly 1/2 bushel per tree on one row), and...take on the challenge of the corn maze. I think they must have gotten frustrated in the maze though...they gave up following the pathways and just busted through the whole thing. Eeek! So that was a different kind of happening...and one I'm sure Mr. Evans would rather not be repeated! No more cows seeking amusement, please!

And what else do we do this time of year besides holding cow parties? Well, for starters, we start making apple butter again! Even after stocking up as much as we could over the winter, we still need more for the harvest festival! Same with the strawberry preserves. They just fly off shelves. And the pies are STILL being made daily, the fudge is still being cranked out, breads and dumplings, cider and slushies, apples and pears, lunches and ice cream are still finding their happy way into peoples homes and stomachs. :) But in ever-increasing amounts as we hit the zenith of the Orchard's year.

OH! (and this has made me happy!) guess who learned to make donuts? My brother Tyler! And he does a lovely job. Today I was cutting up bananas (??? at an apple orchard ???) for the dehydrator while he made donuts. Okay, ordinary enough. Not with Tyler. He had to get a chunk of banana and toss it in the fryer "to see how it would turn out". Black. That's how it turned out. Then he had to coat another piece of banana with leftover batter to see "how it would taste". Gross. That's how it tasted. "I've never really liked cooked bananas" he says. Somehow I'm kind of glad donuts is the only thing he does in the kitchen just now. ;)

So into October we go! With school tours during the week (hundreds of kids!), weekend-long festivals (thousands of people!), and I'm feeling in my bones that my non-stop-fudge days are just around the corner...fun fun fun!!

A week at the Orchard

For those who are curious how much fudge, donuts, pies, etc. a little apple orchard goes through in the time of a week, here's an estimate 0f what we made and sold this week:


--24 9x13 pans of fudge, (120 pounds, I believe)


--35 batches of donuts (that would be roughly 210 dozen...and yes, we sell out every week)


--THOUSANDS of fried pies (turnover size...we can barely keep up with the demand! They're what this orchard is famous for)


--Dozens upon sticky dozens of caramel apples


--I don't know how many gallons of cider (Tyler would know...he has spent almost every minute at the orchard this past week making and bottling cider!!)
*NOTE: I was just informed by Mr. Ciderman himself that they make, bottle and sell 2600-3500 gallons of cider weekly!!!!


--Lots and lots of apple butter, pumpkin butter, jams, jellies, and preserves! This is what they make all winter with all the extra fruits!


--I can't imagine how many apples, pumpkins, squashes, etc, they sell. But really I'm not surprised...their apples are gorgeous and the most delicious things ever!! How am I going to go back to grocery store apples after this?!?! I don't even want to think about it right now. :)


Obviously I don't know all the numbers, but it really is pretty amazing how busy they are this time of year!! I love it!! Today I spent most of my time in the back kitchen making donuts...77 dozen. Love those greasy racks. :P But to make up for it, I got to help jar apple butter, which is the most wonderful job because it smells so amazing!!! Hopefully I'll get some pictures of my workplace and all that fudge soon, but here's a link for the present:
http://www.evansorchard.com/Index.html


The Lord has definitely blessed Tyler and me with a great job. We love the people we work for...and most of the people we work with. ;) It's always busy and sometimes crazy, but has brought so many opportunities to share the gospel and reach out in love to hurting people who need Jesus!! Has been a growing experience for us both, for sure. Ha ha. That just struck me as funny after writing about all the fudge and donuts I make. *grin* Never mind.

(picture from www.evansorchard.com)