Homesteading: A Woman's Journey

Self Reliant???

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding." Proverbs 3:5 (King James Version)

I remember learning that verse years ago when I was a child.  The older that I am, the more I realise the depth of meaning the verse has.  Living on a homestead, one of the goals that we have is to live as self reliant as possible.  We are working towards raising all of our food, alternative energy options to be able to not depend on the public utilities, and be able to earn an income from the homestead.  Many refer to this as being self-reliant, but is it really?

Self reliance invokes thoughts of being able to depend on oneself to meet the needs of the family.  The longer you homestead, the more you realise that a "self reliant" life is in fact a "God reliant" life.  It is only through God's blessings and grace that we are able to grow the crops we need, raise the animals necessary to meet the needs of the family, or have the income needed to financially meet the responsibilities.

What good is a wind powered energy system for your home if the Lord doesn't send the wind?  Why plant a vegetable garden if the Lord doesn't provide the warmth and rains that the plants need to grow and produce the food for your family?  Each time you plant a seed in your garden, you are trusting in the Lord to do whatever is necessary to aid in your garden's success. 

When we trust in the Lord with all our heart, having complete faith in Him, he blesses us greatly.  The blessings may not come in the manner we would have chosen.  There may be obstacles in our path that we need to overcome.  These obstacles are not always a trial, but given the right attitude can be an opportunity to learn and grow.  They only become a hinderance if we do not look for the lesson in them. 

With each lesson learned, we can develop a stronger relationship with our Lord.  As we begin to lean on the Lord more - and on ourselves less - our family is blessed with the abundant blessings from our Lord.

I pray that we each learn to become more God reliant and less "self" reliant.

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06:01, Friday, May 30, 2008 .. Posted by gokings13

Wise words well spoken.

Anything that has the word "Self" in front of it is scary!!
Self-help
Self-reliant
Self-Open Heart Surgery

Laura!

Untitled Comment

06:05, Friday, May 30, 2008 .. Posted by gokings13

I forgot the big one......

Self-Preservation

Laura

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08:57, Friday, May 30, 2008 .. Posted by morningsunshine

very good point. I need to ponder this a bit more. because for me self-reliant means "NOT man-reliant" - ie, grocery stores, trucking, government, gas prices, etc. but you cannot be self-reliant without God.

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06:40, Friday, May 30, 2008 .. Posted by Schatzi

Great post....Amen.

Blessings,

Connie