Using a small -holding to maximize your productivity

Of late I have been putting a lot of thought into what a fellow can do to maximize his stewardship. The simple fact is that many of us do not own, or have use of, enough land to build an ideal hobby farm. We simply don't have the square footage available to make our own bread AND wine! So what are we to do?

Are we to simply give up the fight for better stewardship and turn our attention to increasing revenue production, in the hopes that we will outpace the inflation/deflation cycle of the Federal Reserve?

I have been in that rat race for too long! No thanks.



While there is some truth in the old adage that, "it takes money to make money", I do not want to spend the rest of my life slaving for a dream that I will be to old to build upon when I finally get there! I want to start now! By God's grace, I want to do everything that I can to maximize my stewardship of the trifle that I have been given.



Not so that I can amass more and then 'buy out' the neighbors...that is only falling back into the same old trap of modern 'gimme-gimme' anti-Christianity. There is no lasting hope or peace there. As Paul told Timothy when counseling him , "But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out." 1Tim 6:6-7

No, I am not interested in stirring up the covetousness of this world in my children. I am not interested in teaching them to stop craving new sports cars and designer clothes, only to replace that with the sin of craving more land and cattle than we can have reasonable use for.



Not that there is anything wrong with a large estate. I pray that God may be pleased to train and equip me for the right use of one some day. It is the place and station of some to have all these things and more. And it is their responsibility to realize that they have it for the relief of the brethren... It is fitting that God has given much to some men, that the needs of the Church might be met. " But by an equality, that now at this time of your abundance may be a supply for their want,..."2 Corinthians 8:14 . That is really a great passage to think on some time. It clears up the whole debate over how we can best minister to one another without becoming communists, or envious of a wealthier brother. The false teachers today have misused this passage greatly to scam the flock and this has hurt us all. If you look up these verses, you will see that the 4 or 5 verses before it, teach that a man is never to be so charitable that he enriches a man into being a gluttonous bum while making his own family destitute! Good stuff in that old book.



The thing that I am seeking is not so much 'more', for the sake of more. But, stewardship in all that I have been given. Becoming a profitable servant, both spiritually and physically, by utilizing what God has given to the absolute best end that I am able and equipped for. This is an extremely important issue that has been twisted and nearly lost with most today. Redeeming the time has a lot to do with it. Not just because bad days are upon us, but because God exhorts us to this lifestyle at all times throughout history. I want to be a frugal, wise, charitable, and diligent servant, along with becoming a holy father and husband!



It is with this in mind, that I am starting a series on Small Holdings . This will be a rambling series of what we have done in our little place to try and maximize our potential. They will be rather 'raw', in that I am by no means an expert on all things agrarian! There will be sad looking pictures of crudely built animal houses and an ever- present back drop of junk in the yard! Sorry. It's not from a lack of concern for our animals, or from laziness. It's just really hard to build stuff with no carpentry skills, left- over scraps, and 9 children running to and fro with all my hand tools scattered between them;) Add to that the fact that we never really had the foresight to plan ahead for exactly when, or if the Lord would supply some additional material, and you have a kind of build as you go approach that utilizes stuff as it comes!



I hope that some of it will be informative. Some through my trials, and much through my errors...