Life – 3rd Culture Living

For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. – Colossians 3:3

“Every livestock is also a deadstock!” Have you heard of this saying before? I had never heard of it before we moved to the country. It is a statement of reality, not to shatter your homesteading dream, but to keep your feet on the earth without idealizing the country. After all, this is a broken world, so the life and death cycle is unavoidable. When we first started homesteading about three years ago, we heard of experienced farmers losing scores of chickens in one night from predator attacks. We heard sad stories of losing animals for unknown reasons, or after just a short period of the farmer’s absence. Those losses didn’t make the successful farmers bitter, but they can talk about their stories of losses as a necessary part of their life.

We were just starting out, losing that much was unthinkable and unbearable for a beginner’s mindset. I tucked the information and stories away, quietly praying that kind of tragedy would not come to us, at least not too soon. Not long after we had our first flock of backyard chickens, we did face our first reality lesson. Raccoons attacked our coop at night and killed many of our chickens. The after-attack scene was bloody, messy, and plainly heart-breaking. The dead bodies just laid there, left behind instead of being eaten or carried away. It seemed like the raccoons were just killing for killing’s fun. Apparently, it was the spring season, when raccoon mamas would teach little raccoons how to kill the birds. We secured our enclosures, fences and later, added a Livestock Guardian Dog. Thankfully, we have not suffered losses of chickens due to predators since then.

Now into the third year of our homesteading adventure, we are slowly tapping into trying different things, getting into more projects. For example, instead of continuing with the popular choice of Cornish Cross for meat birds, we tried Pioneer Broilers this year. At the beginning, we were a bit hesitant since Cornish worked fine for us in the past. But the fact that Cornish can’t reproduce bothers our sustainable goal. I am so glad we calculated the risks and gave it a try! The Pioneer Broilers are just a little bit smaller, but better at foraging (needing less feed), more resilient, less stinky, and easier to butcher and defeather during the process. Their meat is also a bit tougher and tastes better (in our opinion), or “more like chicken” as was said at the table. We kept a few after butcher day to see how many eggs the hens can lay and how they reproduce next year. Since they can live longer lives, unlike Cornish which get overweight and may start to have issues after about 8 weeks, we don’t have the time pressure to have to harvest them before health concerns come up. The whole thing seems more natural to us than Cornish.

A few of our Pioneer Broilers, who are identifiable by their featherless necks.

Staying away from human intervention as much as we can is one of our homesteading goals. Our desire is to learn to steward the land and everything on it with a natural harmony. However, it is always a balancing art between nature and nurture. Things don’t always turn out as we had hoped. The husbandry skills take years to develop and refine, especially when dealing with regenerative farming instead of chemical-infused industrial farming. On one hand, free-range animals are, theoretically, supposed to be happier, healthier and stronger. On the other hand, you have to use your judgment and take various elements, like climate, environment, breed, etc., into consideration and make adjustments for optimal natural outcome. When animals are roaming around, they face more predator risks. In modern society, many animals have had their survival genetics and instincts bred out of them to increase commercial performance for more meat, eggs or milk. Some animals are simply not ready for the harsh nature to survive, not to mention to thrive.

It takes diligent learning, practice, patience and time to work with the land and animals to find that harmony. So far, we have not used shots, vaccines, or any medicine on our animals, and we still have much to learn about natural remedies to prevent or cure diseases. This holistic healing principle also applies to us humans. Part of the learning process is to embrace our mistakes and losses as the imperfection of the earthly life hits us. Half way into 2026, I am rethinking the word laid on my heart at the beginning of the year, “LIFE”! I think the vision I had then was a bit different. In a practical sense, I was anticipating more multiplication of our farm animals. While also hoping to regain some family life rhythm back. I didn’t know how this year would unfold but I know for sure the Holy Spirit WILL bring us closer to a deeper understanding of eternal life. I wondered how the Lord would teach me the “LIFE” lesson this year.

Honestly, I almost did not write this post due to the lack of time, energy or desire to go deeper with the true meaning of “life”, after we faced losses after losses of animlas. As a small homestead, we don’t have many animals so the losses can’t be compared to other commercial farmers, but it is still a hit emotionally and financially, especially when it is hit after hit. Just this week, two boys rushed into the house, fighting to be the first to report to me, “Bad news! Two sheep died!” At this point, the death report does not shock me any more. I guess the boys didn’t get the dramatic effect they expected. I simply took a deep breath, slowly taking all the facts in, trying to figure out what could have gone wrong.

As far as I understand, the sheep died because of bloating after eating too much spring lush greens! Yes, you can have too many good things if your body is not strong enough to take it all in or if you simply don’t have the self-control to stop when satisfied. No wonder some people say sheep can find creative ways to die and we learned one! We have added baking soda into their treats to help with digestion. So far so good for the remaining sheep. I was actually more concerned about how to teach my children to appropriately share bad news in life. When life happens, we learn as we go, don’t we?

Processing our sheep who suddenly died to see if she had worms or other issues.

To have a cuter sheep picture with more “LIFE”, here is our daughter with the little lambs. :o)

Each loss or unexpected breakdown of vehicles, communications, or any earthly items pushed me to set my mind on things above, not on temporary things we can see or touch. When Sunday sermons these days are on Colossians 3, I know it is time for me to pause and to remember “life” before the next “death” steals away my attention, time, and joy. The enemy is not very creative. All the devil can do to us is to whisper lies to us when we strive to live for the Kingdom above, to lure us to dwell on the fleshly pleasures we can experience, to distract us through adversaries, or to bring harm, even death, to us or our loved ones.

However, for those who are in Christ, the enemy really can’t take away anything valuable. But God can even use hard times, temptations, and trials, to take away our earthly desires, impurity, lust, greed, pride, and to sanctify us for His glorious use! Our Father in heaven is always good and faithful, despite the harsh circumstances we can be allowed to endure. He sees all things, will never leave us or forsake us as we live for Him by faith wherever we are, and whatever we do. The Holy Spirit will carry us through and will guide us to take great delight in the LORD Himself alone on this side of Heaven. Therefore, it makes sense to discover many wonderful hymns, like “It is Well with My Soul”, were written during or after severe losses or tragedies on earth. Many martyrs throughout history genuinely considered themselves blessed and privileged, for the suffering they had to bear for the sake of righteousness and the glorious Gospel they were entrusted to.

How about you? Do you feel the pain unbearable, either physically or emotionally, due to health, relational or financial struggles ? Or you might be having a very smooth week without much struggle or motivation in life? Let me ask you a very important question: Are you hidden with Christ? Hidden with Christ Himself! Not just routines, church membership, religious practices, or even good deeds. If you are sure you are hidden with Christ, has your old self died? Is your new self growing? By God’s grace, what else do you need to put to death today or this week? In order to have more “life”, we have to die to our old self. Dying is not easy, but the glory of new life gives us hope and strength for new growth.

Perhaps, if you have been a believer for a while, it is tempting to take “hidden with Christ” for granted without much thought of dying? Is your devotion becoming more half-hearted or lukewarm? You need Christ for your eternal security whether you are homesteading or not. You need Christ for your identity as you navigate this earthly life with purpose. You need Christ to reveal who you truly are, not by past sins or success, but by dying to your old self, gaining your new self in your new relationship with Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit! He has clothed His children with garments of salvation and a robe of righteouness. Do you know this Savior as your Lord? Is He your Lord and Master in life? He is worthy of our whole-hearted worship all of our lives! Truly, we lack nothing because we are hidden with Christ in God!

So, my friend, what are things in your life right now pushing you to set your hearts on things above? If you are homesteading, I don’t wish any loss or crop failure on you. We have tasted the pain and agony of losses this year. My heart is with you if you have to endure this kind of affliction. It’s certainly not that you don’t get to experience disappointment in other aspects of life. Many people are undergoing much much more intense misfortunes in life. I can only take comfort in knowing Who is in charge of every detail in life, even when I don’t understand. For us personally, the death toll on our homestead this year definitely has served an eternal purpose to push me to think about spiritual “life” again and again. I write those reflections down to remind myself of those lessons I don’t want to miss.

Our children are not sheltered from those precious lessons. As a homeschool family, we see homesteading has its way to train our children not only with practical life skills, but also has the value to develop their character through real life experiences and meaningful work. Our children have learned the realities of life in its most natural and ever changing setting. In some way, they adjust to the cruelty of life much better and faster than us! The talks from other farmers have become our version of country living stories. Our life is richer because of the ups and downs in stewarding this little piece of land by God’s grace. That being said, we gain much more despite the losses. It’s fun to count our blessings, watching little chicks following their mother hen, little goats or lambs hopping around happily even after their moms died, harvesting potatoes right off our own garden, picking various berries and making popsicles. And so much more!!

Clementine, our Jersey cow who had a still born calf. That was a hard day, and resulted in a LOT of time milking and financial loss. On the upside we had an abundance of milk to use and share. (Note: Unlike beef cattle, it is normal, and healthy, for Jersey, and other dairy breeds, to be more boney.)

It’s true that where there is livestock, there is also deadstock. However, it is crucial to know that we are not like animals. Every human soul is eternal. Death is not the end for us humans. We are either eternally hidden and protected with Christ in God or eternally separated from God if we have not died to our old self, breaking away from sin and its penalty. As Christians, we have Christ in us! He will and is renewing us in knowledge in the image of our Creator! I can’t wait to see my Lord face to face and discover more hidden glories as He revealed Himself and His people more fully one day!

He knows your pain, loss, disappointment. He knows this is not your home. He is calling you to Himself. He knows my circumstances and He is fully aware of yours. Let us give thanks in ALL circumstances by faith, rejoice in Him. Thank you for taking the time to reflect on “life” together with me in the mid-year mark of 2026. If you are moved to drop us a note, please do not hesitate to share, we would love to hear from you and know ways to pray with you.

As America’s 250th birthday is coming up this week, it is interesting to notice the first word for the American dream is “Life”! Without life, we can not experience liberty or pursue happiness. What about if all you want in this life is chasing your American dream? Are you content? This life, no matter how good it is, does not last forever. 250 years of history is a long time, but knowing even a little bit of world history reveals that this does not guarantee much longer, much less an eternal Kingdom.

We thank God for a free country, compared to many, to allow us to build meaningful lives, exercise our liberty in our personal pursuit of happiness. We need to guard this liberty and practice our rights for us and generations to come. More importantly, we need to pass on our faith to our children to serve the King of kings for the eternal and glorious Kingdom above!

Let us give thanks to our God for everything He has allowed to push us to set our hearts on things above! Death has no hold on Jesus. God raised his Son, Jesus, from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death (Acts 2:24). If you put your trust in Jesus, the sting of death has no power over you. We can have victory over sin, over death, through our Lord Jesus Christ! We can have true abundant eternal life, real freedom in His will, and everlasting joy along with all His people!

Cheers, my friend, for eternal life! Long live King Jesus and His Kingdom forever and ever!!

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