Participants: Greg Morikone (Host), David Obermiller, Darren Greenfield
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY017021A
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00:01 I want to spend my life
00:07 Mending broken people 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:18 Removing pain 00:23 Lord, let my word 00:29 Heal a heart that hurts 00:34 I want to spend my life 00:40 Mending broken people 00:45 I want to spend my life 00:51 Mending broken people 01:06 Hello, and welcome to another 3ABN Today program. 01:09 Thank you so very much for joining us today. 01:12 Jill, my wife is not able to join us, 01:14 but I'm so glad that you are able to join with us 01:18 as you do each and every day. 01:20 You know, we do appreciate 01:21 your support of the ministry of 3ABN. 01:23 Thank you for your prayers too that is, 01:26 mean so very much to us. 01:28 And I know sometimes we get to meet you 01:30 maybe face to face at camp meetings 01:32 or maybe when we are out traveling, 01:34 we always like to meet you face to face. 01:36 But if not some day, we won't have this glass 01:40 and we're coming through the cameras, 01:41 through the TV, we'll be able to meet 01:43 face to face in the earth made new. 01:46 Now today we have a program talking about agriculture. 01:50 You may say, agriculture, I live in the city, 01:53 I might as well not tune in today 01:55 and let me just flip the channel 01:56 or wait until this Today program is done. 01:59 I wanna encourage you, don't do that 02:01 because the guests that we have today, 02:04 they were talking about agriculture, 02:05 and farming, and the spiritual benefits, 02:07 and how God ordained that way back in the Garden of Eden. 02:11 There are ways even you that are maybe in a city 02:14 or an apartment can be involved in agriculture in some way, 02:18 so make sure that you stay tuned. 02:19 I want to introduce you who we have with us today, 02:23 we have David... 02:25 I'm gonna see and make sure I say your last name 02:26 correctly Obermiller with us. That's correct. 02:28 And you come from where, David? 02:30 So I'm farm manager of Harvest Fields Organic Farm, 02:33 which is on the campus 02:34 of Fresno Adventist Academy in California. 02:36 Okay, so California, all the way from California. 02:38 A little warmer that too. That's true. 02:41 And with you, sitting next to you 02:43 is Darren Greenfield. 02:44 Welcome, Darren we're glad that 02:45 you're here joining us today and where are you from? 02:47 Weimar, California. 02:49 So both of you are from California. 02:51 And you do what? 02:52 I'm the farm manager there, I teach agriculture. 02:54 And you've been there how long? 02:56 Nine years. Nine years? 02:58 Wow. 02:59 And then, David, how long for you with Fresno? 03:01 We moved there and started the farm 03:03 in 2014 January, so just over three years. 03:06 Wow, yeah, that's great. 03:07 And I know that we want to get to know them 03:09 a little bit better too 03:11 but I wanted to just turn to Genesis, 03:17 you know, all throughout the Bible 03:18 there's a lot of references to won't say gardening 03:22 but to, you know, you think about John 03:23 and John 15 talks about the vine. 03:25 There's a lot of texts on reaping, 03:28 and sowing, harvesting. 03:31 There is references in the Bible too, 03:33 you know, seed must die 03:34 in order to bring forth much fruit. 03:37 I go all the way back to Genesis 2 03:42 and let's look at verse 8. 03:47 And it says, "And the Lord God planted a garden..." 03:51 Did you catch that? He planted a garden. 03:54 "Eastward in Eden and there He put who, 03:57 the man and the woman." 04:01 And you think about that. 04:03 God actually didn't put Adam and then, of course, 04:06 Eve in a big city or anything like that, 04:09 He put them in a garden 04:10 and there's a reason and a purpose for that. 04:12 So we're gonna talk about Weimar and their gardening. 04:16 We're gonna talk about Fresno Academy and their farm. 04:18 But we're also going to look into the spiritual aspect 04:22 and the tremendous benefits there is 04:23 that God has ordained with working with the soil 04:26 and what He originally intended for us. 04:29 And of course this earth and this world is full of sin 04:31 and sickness and there's a lot of toiling 04:33 because I should know that... 04:35 Well, I like to garden here in Southern Illinois 04:39 and there's a lot of weeds. 04:41 So there is a lot of toiling when I plant my green beans, 04:45 and my tomatoes. 04:47 Boy, it doesn't take long until it seems like 04:49 the weeds are growing almost faster 04:50 than the things that I've planted, 04:52 so there is toiling and stuff here in this earth 04:53 but there's still a lot of fun 04:55 and there's a lot of benefits to that. 04:56 But we look forward to heaven and the earth made new, 04:59 I know that we'll be able to work with the plants 05:01 and all the wonderful things of heaven 05:03 and the earth made new. 05:04 But before we get into today's program any further, 05:07 we want to go to some music 05:09 and we always appreciate ET Everett, 05:11 she is our sound center general manager 05:14 and she was in our studio not long ago 05:17 and she played a couple of piano pieces, 05:19 so the one we selected for today 05:20 is "Holy, Holy, Holy". 10:58 Thank you, ET. 10:59 Wow, what a powerful song, Holy, Holy, Holy. 11:02 Thank you, ET, always for using your talents 11:04 for the Lord Jesus Christ. 11:06 You know, He has given us all talents 11:07 and it's up to us to use them for His honor and glory. 11:12 In case you're just joining us, 11:14 we're talking today about farming. 11:16 You say, "What on 3ABN you're talking about farming?" 11:19 Yes, we are but our guests today 11:22 are gonna be tying in the spiritual aspects 11:24 of working with the soil 11:26 but also about the different ministries 11:28 that they're involved with. 11:29 We have with us David Obermiller, 11:31 who is the president 11:33 of Harvest Field Farms, Organic Farms. 11:36 Harvest Fields Organic Farm. Okay. 11:37 In Fresno, California there at the academy. 11:39 Yes. 11:41 And we have Darren Greenfield 11:42 and you're the farm manager at Weimar College. 11:44 Yes. Yes. 11:46 So, and you guys have been 11:47 in your positions a number of years. 11:49 But, David, tell us a little about your background, 11:51 have you always been interested in farming? 11:55 Or it's just been like a passion all your life? 11:57 Or it's just something you just got 11:59 interested in recently? 12:00 That's a great question. 12:02 And no I was not thinking that I was gonna be a farmer 12:07 if you would have asked me when I was a kid. 12:09 I actually wasn't raised a Christian 12:10 so my journey kind of began 12:12 with becoming Christian back in 1997. 12:16 And I studied theology at Union College 12:19 that was I gonna be a pastor. 12:20 Wow, to be a minister. Yes, that's what I thought. 12:22 And I actually got into ministry 12:25 after leaving Union, 12:26 but as I was studying the Bible, 12:28 studying the Spirit of Prophecy, 12:30 I became really convicted about the information on gardening, 12:34 or farming, or agriculture, which by the way for me 12:37 those words are so interchangeable. 12:38 That's a good point. 12:40 You think of farming is something professional 12:42 and gardening is something like hobbyist. 12:45 Like kind of what I do. I do gardening. 12:47 So that's good point, I think that is gardening. 12:48 But really no matter which word you're using, 12:51 it's the act of growing food or something, 12:54 flowers maybe or herbs. 12:55 That's true. Good point. 12:56 And we're really talking about growing things 12:58 not your vocation or... 13:00 So as I was studying the Bible, and you mentioned this earlier, 13:03 you start to run in all the object lessons 13:05 that Jesus used, 13:06 the parable of vine or vineyard, 13:09 or the mustard seed, 13:10 or all these different object lessons 13:12 that extend all through the Bible, 13:14 Genesis to Revelation. 13:16 And, of course, the writings of Ellen White, 13:17 she talks a lot about agriculture 13:19 in the context of education, families, and all this. 13:22 I was very, very convicted about it. 13:25 So in 2010 my wife and I made the decision 13:28 to leave ministry 13:29 and we went to work on a friend's farm in Arizona 13:32 for four years. 13:33 My real passion was to be... 13:35 My real burden was to be back 13:38 in a ministry setting with a farm. 13:41 And I didn't know this but about the same time 13:44 Fresno Adventist Academy was going through 13:47 a sort of philosophical shift about 13:50 what their school was about? 13:52 And what they were there for? 13:53 And what they were offering to their young people? 13:56 And they had decided that they were interested 13:57 in starting a farm on their campus. 14:00 And it was through sort of a providential meeting of sorts 14:04 that we connected and they found out 14:06 that I was on a farm, 14:08 and I found out they were interested in having a farm, 14:10 and so they brought me on in 2014 to start a farm 14:14 on the campus of Fresno Adventist Academy. 14:16 Wow, you know, that's amazing because really when you think 14:18 about gardening, agriculture, farming is sort of seems... 14:23 I mean, I know there are always gonna be food, 14:24 there's always gonna be professional, 14:26 you know, you think of these massive tractors 14:27 where it seems like 20 wheels on them 14:29 or we know massive pieces of equipment. 14:32 And so we will always know there is those out there 14:34 because we need food. 14:36 But when we think about schools in agriculture, 14:38 it almost seems to be would be dying. 14:41 I mean, I don't necessarily think of schools like, 14:43 "Okay, let's bring farming back 14:45 or start a new program in agriculture." 14:47 You know, it's interesting, probably a lot of people 14:49 listening today are thinking something very similar, 14:52 but what we're finding in America 14:54 is that people are becoming 14:55 more and more interested in reconnecting, 14:58 hands on learning, particularly through nature, 15:00 and through farming with our educational model. 15:03 And that's certainly what happened 15:05 at Fresno Adventist Academy. 15:07 We live in the most prolific agricultural 15:10 valley in the world in the San Joaquin Valley, 15:12 lot of farming in the community. 15:14 Much of America's food comes from our part of California. 15:18 And I think the school board realizes 15:20 they look back... 15:22 And many of the school board members realize 15:24 that type of education they had growing up 15:27 as a kid was very hands on and they look back 15:30 and see the value that hands on learning 15:33 provides to young people and they wanted to offer that 15:36 to their kids today. 15:38 Very good. 15:39 And I came to that same conclusion 15:41 kind of separately so I studied education, 15:44 not only Adventist education but education on America 15:47 and more and more universities, 15:49 more and more people in general coming to the conclusion 15:52 that hands on learning, specifically tied to nature 15:56 improves academic performance, GPA, 15:58 as kids stay in the school longer, 16:01 they get better scholarships, less disciplinary issues. 16:04 There are lot of things that the people are realizing, 16:06 so maybe we're seeing a renaissance of sort 16:10 of reintegration of farming and education today, 16:13 or gardening and education. 16:15 Sure. Yeah, okay. 16:16 So we'll find out how it's going then in Fresno 16:18 but I wanna to go you, Darren, so tell me little bit about 16:20 how you got into farming, or gardening, 16:23 or agriculture did... 16:24 Were you a little kid 16:26 and enjoyed hoeing in the garden, 16:27 and pulling weeds, 16:28 and picking flowers and vegetables? 16:30 Actually the opposite when I was a kid, 16:31 I didn't really enjoy that part of farming. 16:34 Even though my father and family 16:37 had 1,000 acre farm with sheep and cattle 16:40 and kiwi fruit in New Zealand where I was born. 16:42 Okay, I was gonna say, well was, 16:43 had been in another country. 16:45 Yeah. Okay. 16:47 So I enjoyed riding the horses, rounding up sheep and cattle, 16:50 and working with the animals 16:52 but I didn't really enjoy the growing part side of it. 16:54 But as I grew up I was an unconverted young man. 16:59 I wanted to farm that was something 17:01 I had a dream to be a farmer. 17:03 My parents said to me when I wanted to leave school 17:05 and farm, they said, 17:07 "Well, there's no money in farming, 17:09 you need to go and learn a trade 17:10 or something like that." 17:11 They knew that I liked working with my hands. 17:13 So I went on apprenticeship 17:15 at the Sanitarium Health Food Company, 17:17 which is an Adventist owned food manufacturing facility 17:21 in New Zealand and Australia. 17:23 So I did an apprenticeship there as a fitter 17:25 and a machinist working with food manufacturing equipment 17:28 and that's become very valuable actually. 17:31 And a lot of counsel we're given 17:33 in the Spirit of Prophecy for education 17:35 is to teach our young people trades, 17:37 which I'm really excited that Weimar offers 17:40 that opportunity in the academy. 17:42 And so... 17:44 How did you get call to Weimar to take on the farming manager? 17:47 Yeah. It's an interesting track. 17:49 After my conversion actually I went to Weimar College 17:54 and studied theology. 17:56 I wasn't planning to be a pastor, 17:58 but I wanted to learn how to win souls 18:00 and that seemed to be the closest thing to it. 18:02 So then after studying there for four year, 18:06 I was then hired as the work education director, 18:09 worked there for two years, 18:10 then I went to Mission College of Evangelism to get some more, 18:16 you know, soul winning training. 18:17 And I got a call to Mission Conference 18:20 and work there for seven year as a pastor. 18:24 But while I was there, I kind of saw that 18:26 we were losing our young people. 18:28 I was concerned, you know, with what was happening, 18:31 and I remembered reading about the benefits of agriculture 18:35 and, you know, manual training 18:37 and how there's a actual spiritual component that 18:42 Ellen White actually says, 18:43 "Many souls will be saved in the kingdom." 18:44 And perhaps we'll share that, you know, later that quote. 18:48 But that sort of resonated in my heart 18:50 and that was really deepened 18:53 when I went on a mission trip to South America 18:55 where I went to a school that had a work study program 18:58 and I was doing a Week of Prayer. 19:00 So during the day I went out and worked with the kids 19:02 while they were working and it really showed me 19:06 how that worked with the students, 19:08 you bond with them in a way 19:10 that you can't in any other activity. 19:12 And so while I was doing that, I was able to talk to them 19:16 about their spiritual condition, 19:18 and as a result there was a number of them 19:21 there that had never given their lives to Christ, 19:23 never been baptized, 19:24 they were actually non-Adventist kids. 19:26 Yes. 19:27 And as a result of that connection 19:29 in the Week of Prayer, 19:30 they made decisions for baptism, all of them, 19:32 and I was really excited to see that. 19:34 So I went home and I prayed, I said, 19:36 "Lord, I really enjoy this type of work. 19:38 If you want me to go back into this, 19:40 I would love to do it and if you open the way." 19:43 So two years went by and meanwhile 19:46 while I was pastoring in Michigan, 19:48 one of the churches had a school 19:50 attached to the church 19:52 and just we had 14 kids in the school. 19:56 So I decided to put in a garden with the school, 19:59 and I worked with the kids there, 20:00 and the kids really loved it, they just had a ball, 20:03 the teacher came out worked with them. 20:05 And I, again I experienced the, 20:07 you know, the bonding that goes on 20:09 when you're working with the students 20:11 and talking to them. 20:12 I played games with them, 20:13 I've done all kinds of things to try to connect with them 20:15 that connected me with them so deeper 20:17 and you could talk to them about the spiritual things. 20:20 And so the church loved it, they saw what was happening, 20:23 it was just a big hit. 20:24 Parents were saying to me, "This is amazing, you know, 20:28 I've got, my kids don't like eating anything green. 20:32 But, you know, they bring home the stuff 20:34 that they've been growing and they say, 20:35 "Mom, can you cook this?" 20:37 Because they want to eat with... 20:38 And they got excited 20:39 because now the kids wanted to eat 20:41 something healthful and, of course, 20:42 it tasted better than what you can buy in the store. 20:44 So, you know, that led to 20:47 when I was given a call to go to Weimar Institute 20:51 about nine years ago... 20:53 So that was two years after you said, 20:54 "Lord, open up the door for me." 20:56 And two years, you waited two years 20:58 and then, wow, you get this called to Weimar. 21:00 Yes. Amazing. 21:02 And then after being there for a few years, 21:03 I was asked to be the farm manager. 21:05 Now, I'd had no commercial experience 21:07 as a farmer. 21:08 But there's a promise in Isaiah 28, 21:11 it's actually God talking about 21:13 how He gives wisdom to the farmer. 21:15 So I claim that as a personal promise 21:17 and I said, "Lord, I don't know how to do this, 21:18 I like to grow but I know so little, 21:20 will You teach me and give me wisdom?" 21:23 And so it was amazing to see 21:25 how He just brought people into my life 21:27 to mentor me and to give me 21:29 the basic knowledge to get started. 21:33 And I think the biggest thing was soil fertility 21:35 because that's, you know, where it starts. 21:37 And what was really powerful about that is that, 21:40 you know, the model that we follow is really close 21:43 to the creation model because when we were created, 21:46 we were created from the dust of the ground 21:48 and all the trees that provided food for us 21:50 came out of the same ground. 21:52 And so when the soil chemistry is added, it's ideal balance, 21:57 it's really close to what we're made of. 21:58 Yeah. Amen. 21:59 So the plants flourish 22:02 and I experience the power of that witness, 22:04 I'm just sharing that with customers 22:06 and with people 22:08 because we would go to the stores, 22:11 try to get it in their store to sell the produce. 22:15 And we had an interesting experience 22:16 where one store they had a malfunction 22:18 in their display where everything froze, 22:21 the computer played up and the manager 22:24 when I brought the next delivery said to me, 22:28 "There's something different about your produce." 22:31 He said, "We lost $5,000 worth of produce 22:34 but none of your produce perished." 22:37 There's something, he said tell me about it, 22:39 so I was able to tell him about, 22:40 you know, this foundation of growing 22:43 with minerals and so it was powerful to... 22:47 You have an opportunity actually to witness and... 22:49 Yeah. Yeah, that's amazing. 22:50 You know, David, there is a benefit, 22:52 isn't it to work with young people? 22:53 Yes. You know, my dad.. 22:55 You know, when I was a young person we had a... 22:57 To me it seemed massive because the rows 22:58 that I had to hoe and pull weeds seems so long. 23:02 And I was like, 23:03 "Dad, you've got to be kidding me, 23:04 I've got to weed that row?" 23:06 But really as I look back some of the best memories 23:08 because my father and I built a good relationship doing that. 23:13 You know, we're out there in the garden together, 23:14 he worked full time job but we'd work the weekends, 23:17 you know, go to church on Sabbath obviously Saturday. 23:19 But still we work together in the field 23:22 and then you have some great conversations. 23:23 Right. 23:24 And so with the school at Fresno same thing, right? 23:27 Parents are excited about this project 23:29 where the kids are learning, eating the food. 23:31 Definitely, so, I mean, we wouldn't have the farm 23:34 if it wasn't for the parents and the teachers, 23:36 administrators at the school. 23:37 And like Dan was talking about to, you know... 23:39 When you have... You take kale for example. 23:42 I don't know if kids naturally like kale or not, 23:45 but when kids are participated in growing something, 23:48 then they're gonna have 23:50 a different relationship to that thing. 23:51 Of course. 23:53 And, you know, you talked about weeds 23:55 and that's actually one thing as far as possible 23:57 we're trying to avoid have the kids do 23:59 and that's pulling weeds. 24:01 On our farm we have 13 acres. 24:03 Okay. You got a great farm. 24:04 Got an acre of table grapes, four acres of citrus, 24:07 our greenhouses are on the screen 24:09 for the audience at home, friends at home. 24:12 Those are some nice greenhouses. 24:14 How many are those four? 24:16 There is four greenhouses there, 24:17 30 feet by 100 basically. 24:19 We're growing tomatoes inside, 24:21 cucumbers, peppers, and we grow year around. 24:23 And that's really important for us 24:25 because it's during the school year, 24:26 you know, when kids are in school. 24:28 And the objective of Fresno Adventist Academy 24:31 as well as Harvest Fields Organic Farm 24:33 is to provide kids a wide variety 24:35 of learning opportunities. 24:37 So some of the kids helped build the greenhouses... 24:40 We have chickens also and some of the kids help 24:42 with the chickens, they help us to pick oranges, 24:44 and then when they... 24:46 Here's a picture of kids with potatoes, 24:48 that's an elementary school group there. 24:49 Well, those are some long rows. 24:51 Two hundred fifty feet long. Okay. 24:53 That picture there on the screen 24:55 with the oranges was a really valuable 24:56 learning opportunity for the kids 24:58 because it took them about seven times as long 25:01 to pick the bin of oranges. 25:04 Not that picture on the screen there, 25:05 but a bin of oranges is about 1,000 pounds. 25:07 Oh, my... 25:08 And it took them much longer to do that 25:10 than I would have done it 25:11 or my crew would have done that works on the farm. 25:14 And so then we talked to them about business and finance 25:17 and how much wages cost, 25:18 and how much it really cost 25:20 based on their time to pick the oranges, 25:22 and then the time that it takes to pack 25:25 and to size and to grade the oranges. 25:26 And we showed them on paper that actually at the rate 25:29 that they were picking oranges, they would have lost money. 25:32 And so the next time they came out, 25:35 they actually improved their time 25:38 to where they were picking at the same speed 25:40 as me as an adult 25:42 because once they could see the information on paper 25:44 and they had lived that experience, 25:47 they could connect it to the value of money 25:50 and the idea of losing money versus making money. 25:53 And it only took one conversation 25:55 the first time to the second time 25:56 they picked oranges 25:57 it was radically different experience for them. 25:59 And we wanted in the school... 26:01 When I say we, the farm and the school, 26:03 it's a partnership between the two of us. 26:05 We wanna not just get the kids out into the farm, 26:08 we actually wanna pull the farm into the classroom. 26:12 So the school's objective is to take every subject taught 26:15 at the elementary school and high school 26:18 and pull real world hands on learning illustrations 26:21 into that classroom. 26:23 All the things you can teach about math from the farm, 26:25 all the science, the biology, the chemistry, the botany, 26:29 all of that's there to be pulled into the classroom 26:31 to make learning very real. 26:34 Teaching business, or finance, 26:36 or just money management in general to the kids. 26:38 And the more we can get kids away from, 26:41 you know, just pulling weeds and that's, 26:43 you know, certainly something has to be done. 26:44 Oh, yes. 26:46 But to really broaden their perspective 26:48 on all those things 26:50 makes learning very interesting for them 26:51 and the kids go home, many of them having had fun, 26:55 but also having learned something from the farm 26:57 or the classroom there. 26:59 Yeah. Go head. 27:00 It's interesting also that 27:02 farming or agricultural work of weeding 27:04 is kind of considered to be something to avoid. 27:09 Yeah. Sort of meaning tasks. 27:11 I had a well meaning dean one time called me up and said, 27:15 "I've some boys I need to give some punishment, 27:19 can you give them some hard work on the farm?" 27:21 And I said, "No, 27:23 it's a privilege to work on the farm. 27:25 You know, I didn't want them to have that kind of mindset 27:28 that this is something you do when you're punished 27:31 because as one of my students 27:32 actually said to another student 27:34 who was kind of, 27:35 they were dialoguing and one of them was grumbling 27:37 about the hard work and she said, 27:39 "It's a privilege to work on a farm, 27:40 it's a blessing." 27:42 You know, and so we wanna convey 27:43 that kind of sentiment to the students. 27:46 And actually that really is. 27:47 I remember one student, 27:49 she had transferred from another school 27:51 and I asked her, "How do you like it here?" 27:52 And she said, 27:53 "Well, it was a little bit harder to adjust." 27:55 But she said, "I really feel alive." 27:57 I said, "How come you feel alive?" 27:59 She said, "Well, I'm working out 28:00 in the fresh air and..." 28:02 She said, "I really feel good." 28:03 So after they get used to it 28:06 the initial adjustment to the work, 28:09 they really appreciate it a lot. 28:11 You know, if I can add something, 28:13 one of the other components to what we're trying to do 28:17 is to teach kids 28:19 that we are here to serve the community. 28:20 Amen. 28:21 And farming is a powerful way to connect with communities 28:24 and maybe you wanna say do evangelism or service 28:28 through the nontraditional means of that. 28:30 Evangelism, you know, because a lot of times 28:32 we think evangelism is somebody standing up 28:34 as an evangelist and doing a revelation seminar 28:36 or something along those lines. 28:38 But what you're saying is associating farming, 28:42 agriculture with evangelism. 28:44 That's powerful. 28:45 And I particularly like the word service. 28:47 Good. 28:49 There is a number of things that we've been doing, 28:50 you know, I mentioned earlier that we pick oranges 28:52 and sell oranges through the farm. 28:54 But we took about 30, 40 of the kids 28:57 from the high school about a month ago 29:00 and they helped us pick oranges, 29:02 they packed those oranges into ten pound bags, 29:05 and then we took 300 bags... 29:07 Wow. 29:09 Three hundred 10 pound bags of oranges 29:11 and gave them away for free 29:13 to people in the community around the school, 29:15 so the kids got to connect with the community. 29:17 Our farms also connected with other elementary schools, 29:21 public schools, charter schools in Fresno 29:24 like we had 120 kindergartners from a local elementary school 29:28 back last fall, 29:29 and some of the kids from our school 29:32 helped to lead the groups 29:33 of elementary kids around the farm, 29:35 and give farm tours, 29:37 and we connected with that school 29:38 and created an annual event out of that. 29:41 And I think that there's a relationship 29:43 that we can build with people in our community 29:45 around food and the act of growing food 29:49 that allows us access to people 29:51 that we wouldn't really have access 29:52 through other means of outreach. 29:54 One story that really impressed me early on, 29:57 we were approached by a group from Sacramento 30:01 that takes policy makers and leaves them 30:04 on these bus tours to educate them 30:06 about environmental issues in California. 30:09 One of the biggest environmental issues 30:11 in California is the large amount of pesticides 30:14 used in proximity to schools 30:16 because we got rural agricultural region school 30:19 out in that community. 30:20 So this group approached us, 30:22 and they asked if they could tour our farm 30:24 because they wanted to model a school 30:27 that was chemical free 30:29 that wasn't exposing the kids to all these pesticides. 30:31 So you are organic. We are certified organic. 30:34 Wow, at Fresno Adventist Academy. 30:35 That's correct. Yeah. That's incredible. 30:37 So they brought about 80 people from department of pesticide 30:40 regulation, EPA, policymakers from Sacramento, 30:43 and they toured the farm 30:44 and it was a great experience by itself. 30:48 Couple of months later I got a phone call from a lady, 30:50 her name was Maria and she said, 30:52 "Hey, you know, you probably don't remember me 30:54 but I was on this tour of your farm 30:56 and your facility. 30:57 And I work with a guy 30:59 who has his kids in a school in Sacramento 31:03 and they're doing this summit, they called it, 31:06 on food and learning and education. 31:10 And we were wondering 31:11 if you would be willing to speak at this school 31:14 and talk about farming in the context of education." 31:16 I said, "Wow, of course." 31:18 Yeah. What an opportunity. Yeah. 31:19 It was great opportunity. Yeah, for sure. 31:20 So we went through this conversation 31:22 and she never told me the name of the school 31:23 that was kind of funny. 31:25 So at the end I asked, I said, "Well, what school is this?" 31:27 And she's, "Well, 31:29 it's the Jesuit High School in Sacramento." 31:30 Wow. 31:31 And here's that that you say the word Jesuit. 31:34 Opportunity there for you. 31:35 Right, a whole group of people 31:38 that we would never connect with 31:40 through our traditional means of outreach 31:42 and evangelism, theology, Bible study. 31:45 But I had the opportunity 31:47 to stand in a Jesuit run school in Sacramento, 31:50 talk to 300 high school-aged boys. 31:53 And I entitled my talk educating the whole man, 31:56 mind, body, and soul. 31:59 And talked about the farms impact 32:01 upon educating the mind, the body, 32:04 and the impact that physical exercise 32:06 does on the body. 32:07 But I asked the administrator at the school, 32:09 I said, "I know you're religious school, 32:11 would you mind if I shared 32:13 from the Bible and it was spiritual?" 32:15 She says, "Please we would love it." 32:17 And so the last part of my talk, 32:19 I talked about how we can learn about God 32:22 and the spiritual world through farming. 32:25 An opportunity to share the gospel 32:26 with a group of people 32:28 that I can't think of any other way 32:30 I would have ever connected to that group. 32:32 You know, I've done Bible work and other types of evangelism, 32:35 I would've never connected with these people. 32:37 And so we wanna our kids to learn 32:38 that through the farm and food 32:40 is an opportunity to connect with their community 32:43 the people they associate with locally and to serve them. 32:46 You know, I think because all of us 32:48 we all need to eat. 32:49 I know I love to eat, I enjoy food, 32:51 you know, so that's something that all of us 32:53 as human beings as a world population 32:56 food is very important, you know, to us. 32:59 And it's sad that, I mean, a big part of the world 33:01 is actually in hunger, 33:02 they don't have enough food to eat. 33:04 I know that you're, I think board chair 33:07 of an Adventist Agricultural Association. 33:11 So tell me about that 33:13 because that's not just with Weimar, 33:14 this is actually an association 33:15 of Adventist agricultural people, 33:17 people interested in it. 33:18 Right. 33:20 So it basically grew out of people 33:21 like David and myself, and others who... 33:25 God was bringing back to being involved 33:28 with agriculture with schools and families and so forth. 33:31 And so I know God had put on my heart 33:35 there's a need for an association 33:36 so we can network and share information 33:38 and things like that. 33:39 That's great. 33:41 And so I called a few farmers that I knew and they were busy 33:44 and, you know, we tried to share some ideas. 33:47 But then there was a conference that was held at Uchee Pines, 33:50 Bob Jorgensen held it 33:52 and it was agriculture and education 33:55 was the title of it. 33:56 And in the advertising 33:58 the e-mail that went out it said, 33:59 we gonna talk about forming an association. 34:02 So I was interested so I went and there was a bunch of us 34:07 that got together afterwards and formed the association. 34:10 And it was such an amazing experience 34:12 because God was there, 34:14 it was such a spiritual need that was there. 34:19 And so we started this association, 34:21 we came up with some mission statement 34:23 and some objectives to kind of steer us, 34:26 and out of that we've had annual conferences, 34:29 we've had three now, and every year we have more. 34:34 And each year it's been growing almost doubling in attendance. 34:38 Wow. 34:40 So in the most recent one how many people attended, 34:42 do you think attended this conference? 34:43 Close to 800 people. Eight hundred. 34:45 Yeah. 34:46 And this will be people from around the world 34:48 or from just the North America? 34:49 We had international people there as far away as Australia 34:53 and South America 34:55 and some of the Caribbean islands. 34:57 So, yes, we had people 34:59 but a lot of even school teachers, principals, 35:03 even a couple of conference presidents came 35:05 because they want to see something happened 35:07 in their schools with agriculture. 35:08 So there is an interest, a growing interest, 35:11 you know, part of the plan but in this, 35:14 you know, field and... 35:16 And so the conference has become 35:17 an excellent place for networking a lot of schools 35:21 or institutions looking for farmers come there 35:23 and they're looking 35:24 and there is a shortage of Adventist farmers. 35:27 You know, we're going to actually put up 35:29 some contact information you maybe see 35:31 some lower thirds pop up during this program 35:33 but at the end we always go to our address break, 35:35 so make sure that you get a pencil and pen 35:38 ready that you can get down 35:39 when maybe the next seminar is gonna be held or conference, 35:43 I think you called it for agriculture, 35:45 in case you're interested in it. 35:46 But I wanna ask you this question, 35:48 why, because God has reasons and purposes, 35:51 you know, had purpose for putting Adam in a garden. 35:55 I mean, I know you, guys... 35:56 I'm sure there's scientific reasons, 35:58 there are spiritual reasons, 36:00 talk to me little about the scientific reasons. 36:02 Why is it important that God put man 36:06 in a garden to work the soil, to till the soil, 36:09 to put our hands in the soil? 36:11 I mean, we know it's good to breath fresh air 36:12 but I'm sure there's some scientific reasons 36:14 why God did this? 36:16 It's interesting, you know, this bacteria in the soil 36:19 called mycobacterium vaccae is very prevalent. 36:21 Well, that sounds bad. 36:23 It sounds bacteria, when I think of bacteria, 36:24 I think of something horrible. 36:25 But actually there's a lot of good bacteria. 36:27 Yes, that's right. There is good and bad. 36:28 But the good have a lot of benefits 36:30 and this particular bacteria 36:32 actually raises our serotonin level 36:34 so we feel happier. 36:36 Oh, wow. 36:37 So it's actually an antidepressant. 36:40 To put my hands in the soil? In the soil. Yes. 36:42 Wow, that's incredible. 36:43 And there's something about the green environment. 36:47 Hospitals now 36:49 that are being built up putting in a garden 36:50 because it's recognized that there is actual benefit 36:54 to speeding up the healing process, 36:57 just being in a green environment. 36:59 And patients need less pain medication 37:02 so it's being scientifically recognized now 37:05 that these benefits from just being 37:07 without even putting your hands in the soil, 37:08 just seeing and looking at the plants 37:10 and so on, and there's a discipline 37:13 or a therapy called horticulture therapy 37:17 that someone can actually go and get training in to do 37:21 kind of PT type of work with patients 37:24 and find out what the patients' 37:27 limitations are by design and activity 37:30 that helps them reap those benefits. 37:32 You know, I think, Greg, 37:35 we recognize that even non-Christians recognize 37:38 there's physical benefits to gardening, 37:40 that the quality of food 37:42 that you can have growing in your own backyard as opposed 37:44 to what's available, 37:45 and certainly the educational value 37:47 of gardening I mentioned earlier 37:49 in the context of the school. 37:51 I think really the big reason is that spiritual component. 37:54 Yeah, why God placed Adam in the garden. 37:55 That's right. 37:57 And, you know, we talked about 37:58 this early at Fresno Adventist Academy 38:01 that there are a lot of young people 38:03 that are leaving our church. 38:05 The statistics available conservative numbers 38:08 is that 50% of Adventist youth leave the church immediately 38:12 after graduating from high school. 38:14 And that was the trend that the school board 38:17 as well as myself were really burden to reverse. 38:21 And there is no place where you can meet God 38:24 more clearly than in nature. 38:27 The contact with nature provides an opportunity 38:31 to see the existence of God in ways 38:34 that no other thing really does. 38:36 It's why Jesus used so many illustrations 38:39 from nature in the Bible. 38:41 And interesting thing about Genesis 2, 38:43 if we recall our minds back to that story it says, 38:46 "God planted a garden in Eden." 38:50 You know, God had the ability to speak everything 38:52 into existence, He did that for six days 38:55 but He didn't on two things, 38:58 He formed man with His own hands 39:00 or the dust of the ground. 39:01 Yes, He did. 39:02 And secondly with His own hand God planted a garden in Eden. 39:07 So instead of just creating the garden by His word, 39:11 He provided man's occupation, 39:14 man's habitat with His own hands, 39:17 the same hands that He had used to form Adam 39:21 out of the dust of the earth, 39:22 He used to create Adam and Eves, 39:25 really mankind's occupation and habitat. 39:29 Because there's a connection with him there 39:32 that we don't have in another vocations, 39:34 and I'm not saying other vocations are bad. 39:35 No. 39:37 But there's something there about nature. 39:39 There's a quote in the writings of Ellen White 39:42 that has really struck me 39:46 as she talks about 39:48 our young people in agriculture in the context of our schools. 39:51 And I'll read you this line here. 39:52 Yeah. Go ahead. 39:53 She says, "Many who graduated from institutions 39:57 that had agricultural components 40:00 and other industries as well 40:02 would come forth with stability of character." 40:06 She goes on, she says, "They would have perseverance, 40:09 fortitude, courage to overcome obstacles 40:13 and such principles that they would not be swayed 40:16 by wrong influences regardless of the popularity." 40:20 It's tremendous. It's amazing. 40:21 What we see today is young people who, 40:23 you know, largely buckle 40:25 under the peer pressure of society 40:27 but through an integration of agriculture 40:30 and hands on learning with education, 40:32 we can develop character in young people 40:35 that will allow them to resist temptation 40:38 regardless of the popularity attached to the temptation. 40:41 And that's a powerful thing to do in our... 40:43 The most valuable asset we have in our church 40:45 is our young people. 40:47 Yeah. Amen. 40:48 You know, I think about there's, 40:50 you know, we have viewers from around the world 40:51 and some are in high rise apartments buildings, 40:54 so they could be viewing today 40:55 and you may be viewing at home and saying, 40:58 "That's rather discouraging. 41:00 I know there's benefits to putting my hands 41:01 in the soil I don't... 41:02 I mean, I'm in an apartment building." 41:04 And what options do they have for being, 41:07 let's say in an apartment building 41:09 in an urban area that you can't have 41:11 acres and acres of a big garden. 41:14 This may seem perhaps unexpected 41:16 but our farm and the school is in the middle of Fresno, 41:20 we're right below the airport. 41:22 And so, yeah, we have a little bit of land, 41:24 but most of the student interaction 41:26 is in little gardens, little boxes, 41:28 you know, 12 feet by 3 feet long 41:31 or 15 feet by 4 feet long at little boxes. 41:34 There's things you can do in your backyard, 41:36 on your windowsill, and... 41:38 On your windowsill? 41:40 Wow, so you think of agriculture 41:41 on your windowsill. 41:42 That's right. 41:44 In the little spaces typically between houses on the sidewalk, 41:47 you know, in little steps where you can plant flowers 41:49 and things around your house. 41:50 You don't have to have lots of land, 41:52 you can do a lot on a very small space 41:54 or ground even in an urban area. 41:56 Even vertical gardening. 41:58 There's vertical garden panels that have pockets in them 42:00 and you can grow vegetables in those pockets. 42:03 So there's different ways for city dwellers 42:06 to be able to grow food 42:07 and the more you become 42:12 in tune with nature and loving the activity of it, 42:15 the more you want. 42:17 And I think that ultimately God is leading people 42:19 to a deeper experience with Him 42:21 through nature because nature has a way 42:23 of just unlocking the mysteries of the Bible 42:26 and just making them real because they're God's thoughts. 42:30 You know, creation is His thoughts revealed. 42:31 And so as we look at His creation 42:34 and see how seeds grow from that miracle, 42:37 that little seed just planted and just see it germinate 42:39 Oh, yeah. 42:41 It's like Jesus breaking the loaves and fishes 42:43 and it's happening in slow motion, 42:44 but it's still a miracle. 42:47 Yeah, absolutely, you know, it's neat because... 42:48 My dad, he's a pastor 42:52 but he also oversees because he's pastor 42:54 of a Seventh-day Adventist church, 42:56 several churches actually in West Virginia. 42:58 And one of the churches has a school 43:01 and so my dad has helped the school build a greenhouse 43:06 and thinking about what you're mentioning, 43:07 all the kids, they're so excited to go out there 43:10 and plant those little bitty seeds. 43:12 And, of course, it's like they can't wait, 43:13 you know, almost every hour, 43:15 you know, you almost want to go out there 43:16 and say what's happened to that seed. 43:17 Once they start to grow, oh, my word, 43:19 it's like, "Wow, this is so exciting." 43:20 And then when you get to eat 43:22 the fruit of your labor so to speak, 43:24 and then to recognize that God is the one 43:27 that gives life to that seed to grow into the plant, 43:30 it's truly amazing. 43:31 We've had the same experience with the kids 43:33 that they love getting outside, 43:34 they love getting their hands in the dirt, 43:36 especially some of them more than others 43:37 but, yeah, same experience. 43:38 It's powerful. 43:40 What spiritual lessons, 43:41 you know, one can learn from that? 43:43 So what are the spiritual lessons 43:44 or things can be gained from agriculture? 43:45 Oh, great question. You got one. 43:48 Well, I think there's a lot that come to my mind. 43:51 These illustrations 43:52 as there's so many symbiotic relationships in nature 43:55 that show that, you know, God didn't create anything 43:58 to just live on its own to itself, 44:00 everything benefits something else, 44:01 you know, in a relationship. Well, that's a great point. 44:04 And so the same for us. 44:06 But I think one picture of God 44:08 that really impacted my heart was, 44:10 we had put up bluebird boxes 44:12 because bluebirds go and eat bugs 44:14 and they'll eat a lot of bugs, 44:16 so we put these boxes up over the farm. 44:18 And one morning I came out early. 44:20 It was just the sun hadn't even come up 44:22 and I was getting ready to work 44:24 in the cool of the day in the summer, 44:25 and I looked up at this blue bird box 44:27 and I saw this what looked to me 44:29 like a wasp nest in the opening and I thought, 44:33 "Oh, no, I don't want a wasp nest blocking the way 44:35 for the birds to get in inside." 44:36 I got the handle of a rake or something 44:39 and I was trying to break that wasp nest off 44:41 and it wouldn't break off. 44:43 And meanwhile the sun was just coming enough 44:46 that I could start seeing then I realized 44:48 it was the belly of the father bird 44:50 was actually closing off that hole into the nest. 44:54 And while I'm poking 44:56 it was just clinging on for dear life, 44:58 protecting its little babies there, 45:00 and I thought, "Wow, that's a beautiful picture 45:02 of God's care for us." 45:03 You know, that He has put 45:04 in His creatures that He created. 45:08 So that was one that really impacted me. 45:09 And there's many others, maybe David has some... 45:14 You know, what I was wondering too, 45:15 you know, we're talking about, 45:16 you know, it's gardening, you know, spiritual aspect, 45:19 and being able to use it as evangelism 45:21 What about even churches like local churches could, 45:24 if they had some land, 45:25 could they do community gardening? 45:28 I don't know what you all think 45:29 of the community gardening aspects of things 45:30 but then that could be just people from your community. 45:33 Yeah, you know, our farm as I mentioned... 45:35 I don't know if I mentioned, 45:36 our farms a nonprofit organization. 45:38 Okay. No, you didn't. 45:39 Not only do we work with Fresno Adventist Academy, 45:42 but it's part of our program to work with any other church 45:45 or any other school Christian or not 45:47 who want to develop garden programs. 45:50 We're working with three other Adventists school 45:52 in the Central Valley of California, 45:53 plus we're working 45:55 with Tehachapi Seventh-day Adventist church 45:57 in Southern California to build a community garden. 45:59 Oh, that's great. 46:01 And that's part of our program 46:03 as a whole is to assist other churches and schools 46:06 and developing programs of their own 46:07 so they can connect with their community. 46:09 That's good. 46:11 So for us, you know, this comes back for me 46:13 to the mission of our church. 46:15 Our mission as a church is to take the gospel 46:18 to the whole world 46:19 whether that's Matthew 24:14 or Revelation 14 46:23 is to carry that gospel message to the whole world. 46:26 And there's this interesting verse in Revelation, 46:27 we probably most of us are familiar with it. 46:30 That in the last days 46:31 there will be these certain persecutions and pressures, 46:34 and it says, you won't be able to buy or sell. 46:37 Now the first thing I think of is, 46:38 "Well, how am I gonna eat?" 46:40 And a lot of people ask that same question. 46:41 Sure. 46:42 And I think we often view farming or growing food 46:47 in the context of the last days as an act of self preservation. 46:52 But really that's not true 46:55 because as long as probation is still open, 46:58 then people can still make the decision 47:00 to give their heart to Christ. 47:02 That's correct. 47:03 And Revelation 13's no buy, no sell 47:07 is really a call for us to grow food 47:10 to sustain ourselves. 47:12 Or as Ellen White would say 47:13 because the problem of buying and selling 47:15 will be a serious one 47:17 but so that we can preserve our mission as a church, 47:20 whether it's a school like Fresno Adventist Academy, 47:23 or a church building, a community garden, 47:26 or one of our hospitals, 47:28 or other institutions that puts in a garden or farm. 47:31 It's so that at that last moment 47:33 that we can preserve the mission of our church 47:36 at a time where economic pressure is being applied 47:39 to prevent us from sharing the gospel. 47:42 Revelation 13 is really just an old-fashioned classic siege. 47:47 You surround the city with your army, 47:49 prevent the food from going in, going out, 47:52 and lead the people 47:55 you're attacking into emotional submission. 47:58 And I think that, that appeal there in Revelation 13 48:01 is really rooted in the preservation 48:03 of our mission as a church, 48:06 as schools, as other institutions 48:08 to be able to reach out to people 48:10 and connect with them 48:11 on the most basic of human necessities... 48:13 Wow, amen. And that's food. 48:14 Yeah, that's incredible. 48:16 I know with the association 48:17 the Adventist Agriculture Association 48:19 that website for that is AdventisAg.org. 48:24 Okay, so AdventistAg.org 48:28 and there will be more information 48:29 on there about the conferences and the association 48:33 that you with agricultural people 48:34 from around the world. 48:35 Yes, that's correct, Greg. 48:37 The conference information will be there, 48:39 registration when it is up 48:40 will be available to register on the site, 48:42 and information about the classes. 48:45 We've many classes like 48:47 Lynn Holweg teaching how to plant trees 48:50 the way Ellen White would show and envision... 48:52 Oh, fantastic. Very popular class. 48:55 And classes for beginners, advanced farmers, 48:58 for people who are schooling, educating, 49:00 how to integrate it into the classroom. 49:02 So you can attend even if you know 49:04 nothing about agriculture, but just interested in it. 49:06 Yes. And go there to learn. 49:07 And, Greg, I wanted to share just one short experience 49:10 that is really powerful 49:11 and I think it illustrates what's being talked about 49:14 the potential for the church to harness reaching people. 49:19 So our college students went out 49:21 one day just door knocking 49:23 and they've done that many times. 49:24 And, you know, you get a lot of people close their doors, 49:26 they're not interested, and it's a hard experience 49:29 to have doors closed 49:30 and people get upset with you coming to their door. 49:32 So I gave them excess produce we had and said, 49:35 "Why don't you give this away 49:36 when, you know, you go door to door." 49:38 Free of charge. Yeah. 49:39 Wow, that's great. 49:40 So they went to the doors and some people came out angry, 49:42 you know, and they said, 49:44 "Well, we're just here to share some of our farm produce." 49:46 And that anger turn to a smile and, you know, 49:51 one particular lady was so grateful that she opened up 49:53 they were ready to do the service. 49:55 And when that students came back they said, 49:56 "You know what this was really powerful 49:59 because not one person turned us away, 50:01 every single person talked to us and was interested 50:04 because we gave them some of the farm produce." 50:07 So look at the potential for a church 50:10 or a school to reach communities 50:12 just through sharing these blessings. 50:13 The doors of opportunity opened wide that's for sure. 50:16 Just like Jesus feeding the multitude 50:18 and their response to Him. 50:20 Yeah. Amen. 50:21 I know here that we're running out of time, 50:22 but there's a book here David called the Greenprint, 50:25 and I know there's a website for that. 50:27 What is the website? 50:28 And tell us a little bit about this book. 50:29 It's harvestfields.farm/greenprint. 50:33 That's our farm website. One more time. 50:35 Harvestfields.farm/greenprint. 50:38 Okay. And what is the book? 50:40 So over the course of about seven years 50:42 I've been studying the Bible and the writings of Ellen White 50:45 on regard to agriculture and that book is a compilation 50:49 of everything that Ellen White spoke 50:52 on the subject of agriculture. 50:53 Everything she wrote about agriculture, 50:55 gardening, farming, growing food 50:57 is in that book there, 50:59 and you can get that off our website 51:00 and send it to you in the mail. 51:02 This book sounds like an excellent resource material 51:04 to have on hand. 51:07 This time has flown by, this hour, that's for sure. 51:10 What I wanna do right now 51:11 is actually go to our address roll, 51:13 which will provide the contact information 51:15 for a Harvest Fields, which is Fresno 51:17 and then also the Adventist Agriculture Association, 51:20 so let's go to that contact information right now. 51:24 If you would like to know more about this ministry, 51:26 then you can write to Harvest Fields Organic Farm 51:30 5397, East Olive Avenue, 51:32 Fresno, California 93727. 51:35 That's Harvest Fields Organic Farm 51:38 5397, East Olive Avenue, 51:41 Fresno, California 93727. 51:44 You can visit them online at HarvestFields.farm. 51:48 That's HarvestFields.farm. 51:51 You can also email them at info@harvestfields.farm. 51:56 That's info@harvestfields.farm. 52:00 If you would like to contact 52:01 the Adventist Agricultural Association, 52:03 you can do so by writing to 52:05 Adventist Agricultural Association 52:07 654, Dry Prong Road, 52:10 Williamsport, Tennessee 38487. 52:13 That's Adventist Agricultural Association 52:16 654, Dry Prong Road, 52:19 Williamsport, Tennessee 38487. |
Revised 2017-06-29