Fire in our hearts - Jesus Army

FIRE IN OUR HEARTS
CITY ON A HILL
A tractor hurtled towards us and screeched to a halt. Pete
‘Valiant’ edged our minibus past it up the drive at New Creation
Farm and waved at Steve ‘Stalwart’, who was straightening
out the railings from a previous encounter! A few sheep
turned their heads as Pete changed gear. Passing the gooseberry
bushes and apple trees on the right, he parked outside
the farm shop.
‘Right! Everybody out!’ said Pete.
‘Hello there!’ A lean beekeeper sauntered by and lifted the
net from off his face. It was Dave Lants. ‘Welcome to the farm.
You will have to excuse the smell of pigs!’
As we chatted, an older man stepped out of the farmhouse,
dressed in a tatty sports jacket and cap. He beamed benignly
and slapped me on the shoulders, ‘Bless you, “Overcomer”!
All right?’ But before I could answer he had gone.
‘Who’s that?’ enquired Henk, ‘The farm manager?’
‘Yes,’ I said, ‘he’s also our senior pastor!’
‘Really?’ said Henk, as we walked into the pig shed.
‘Yes,’ I shouted above the squeal of piglets, ‘I don’t know
how he does it all.’
“Ow do!’ the pig-man nodded, sipping tea from a tin mug.
‘Ian “Honest”!’ I said. Tell us a bit about these pigs.’ Ian stood
chatting to us all for a while, and Anneke, a town girl, was
fascinated.
‘Hey chaps!’ said Pete, ‘let’s keep moving! There’s lots to
see’.
‘Mind the puddle, bro!’ he said, as we walked past the muckheap
towards the chicken huts. After visiting the egg-grading
shed and the honey room, we walked through the orchard
and then piled back into the minibus.
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