Old Friends, New Skills
“Encourage one another and build each other up.”
1 Thessalonians 5:11 (NIV)
Yesterday was perfect weather for spending the day with some old friends and learning some new skills at beautiful Selwood Farms in Alpine, Alabama. Located just 6.6 miles from Childersburg, Selwood is literally like stepping into the past. The Farm, owned by Dell and Carolyn Hill, was established in 1834.
I first met Carolyn Hill 42 years ago when Bruce and I moved to Sylacauga, Alabama for Bruce’s job promotion. I was a new mom with a 5-week old baby, a newcomer and outsider to small town life, and suddenly a stay-at-home mom with no friends or family nearby. Carolyn was just a few years ahead of me in her parenting and light-years ahead in her hospitality and willingness to open both her heart and her home. She did both so well.
Carolyn opened her home to host our family for meals so that we could meet new friends. She hosted numerous women’s Bible studies and outreach events for our struggling church plant. She even generously hosted my daughter’s 6-year old birthday party on her beautiful farm. Throughout our eight-year friendship I learned three important biblical hospitality principles from Carolyn:
Open your heart before you open your home
Use what you have and don’t worry about what you don’t have
If you feed them, they will come
Last spring, Carolyn called and asked me to speak for a women’s event co-hosted by Selwood Farm and First Baptist Church of Talladega. When I asked her to describe the event, Carolyn said that 50-60 ladies would spend the morning with hands on activities that included archery, pistols, sporting clays, fly casting, and a dog retrieving demonstration. Lunch would be catered and I should plan on speaking for 30-40 minutes. When I asked for the event topic or theme, Carolyn simply responded with, “Whatever the Lord lays on your heart!”
To be honest, I have never shot a bow, pistol, or shotgun and I have certainly never trained a dog. Those skills are not in my wheelhouse and I am much more comfortable speaking to a group than shooting clays! But I’ve missed a lot of living along the way because I was scared to try something new and risk failure.
I not only enjoyed the day, I learned a lot. Ben, our archery instructor, kept going back to the fundamentals of holding the bow correctly and keeping one’s eyes on the target. He provided constant encouragement and reinforced his teaching by saying, “You always want to begin by doing the right thing.” Ben’s archery basics sounded a lot like my parenting reminders to my children!
From our dog trainer demonstration, I learned that all dog training is based on mutual respect, trust, and relationship. Who knew that dog training has so much in common with discipleship and parenting?
Besides our outdoor activities, our day included a fabulous lunch served under the beautiful Selwood Pavilion. Kristie Harrick and I enjoyed a tour of Selwood’s Country House and admired Selwood’s lovely antiques and hand-made quilts.
Carolyn asked me to share a little bit about our parenting journey with James Bruce. That story can be found here and here. My topic yesterday was Overcoming Discouragement, last week’s Bible Bits post. After almost 19 months of the ongoing Covid pandemic, we could all use a good dose of encouragement. And “encourage one another” is the #2 mutuality command, or “one another” verses, listed in the New Testament.
Perhaps the two most important strategies for overcoming discouragement are facing our fears and holding onto hope. None of us can live without hope. It is a faith that looks forward and it is both an anchor and a lifeline (Hebrews 6:18-19). As Christians our hope is based on both the reality of the resurrection & the character of God. We have a living hope, not in ourselves or in our circumstances, but in our God. He reigns and rules and is never surprised by our suffering or circumstances.
We ended our Selwood time together with these words from Stuart Townend’s song There is a Hope:
There is a hope that lifts my weary head
A consolation strong against despair
That when the world has plunged me in its deepest pit
I find the Savior there
Through present sufferings future's fear
He whispers courage in my ear
For I am safe in everlasting arms
And they will lead me home.
Wherever you are today, may God whisper “Courage!” in your ear as you face your fears and hold onto hope.