We want to share with you, our readers, an in depth report about the farm which is operating on the land surrounding the Living Word Omega Message Church, here in Mahomet, Illinois. I have had the privilege of living here for the last 12 1/2 years and witnessing the change from a piece of ground to a building and a working produce farm. I remember when the only thing out in all that dirt was a gravel road, some equipment and a concrete slab. The work continued and the structure appeared that we call, "the building." This project began because God provided the land - 30 acres of it - and He also gave direction in the form of the prophetic word. God’s word was very clear, that this place would have three main aspects: a place of fellowship, a place of learning and a place of refuge. It was obvious that since the Lord had provided land, that farming was to be an integral part of His plan for this place.
The vision from the beginning was that food could be grown and used in the future for people needing refuge. So, at the leading of the Lord, the Asbill family took up the responsibility, both in time and money, for starting up the farm and beginning the business that we know as First Fruits Produce Company. I have personally spent many, many hours over the years working alongside Brother Burt and Sister Nancy, as well as many others involved in and working on the farm. Their commitment to First Fruits has been incredible and an example of Colossians 3:23, And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men.
One Sunday at the end of March, my dad, Wayne Wickboldt, got up at the end of the meeting and began to share with the congregation that the management and financial responsibility of the farm was going to be changing. God had been speaking to Brother Burt and others in the Body of Christ that he needed to be freed up from the responsibility of things that tie him here so that God could use him on the mission field and fulfill the calling on his life. So, the Mahomet Fellowship, technically known as Living Word/Omega Message Church, was now assuming responsibility for running the farm.
Since that initial Sunday, I have interviewed Dad and found out more information that is very interesting. He shared with me that he and the other elders of our local fellowship here have been praying about and discussing this since January. There were many questions before them: Do we, as a church, have the ability to run a farm? Can we come up with money to essentially buy the farm from the Asbill family, thus releasing them? Can we also come up with money for the short term needs to keep the farm going this year, such as seeds, greenhouse equipment and repairs? Is God going to raise up people? How should we proceed? As they began to explore ways to free up Brother Burt, they realized that the Mahomet Fellowship had to take over management of the farm and trust God to raise up the various people who would run the operation.
Hanging baskets in the greenhouse
I am so glad and appreciative of the elders in our fellowship. It must have been quite some discussions that they had! But somehow they worked through and pressed on and they came up with a plan. As they began to move and trust God, He started to fill in the gaps and things began to come together! Dad told me that a board of five people has been selected to manage the ongoing day to day operation of the farm and to co-ordinate the work. This was a big first step and the Lord supplied the people. Decisions were then made regarding how much to plant and what to plant. Dad said that we are planting about one and a half acres of land, which is smaller than in the past. We are focusing on things that sell well and are less labor intensive. The rest of the fields would be sown in alfalfa, oats and buckwheat. The farming has begun in a timely manner. We are continuing to sell produce at the First Fruits Store and Café in Mahomet, which Brother Burt and Sister Nancy are continuing to operate. As in the past, we are selling at the Farmer’s Market in Urbana, which is every Saturday morning, starting May 2nd. We are also selling to restaurants in the area, which is a continuation of previous years, also. We are continuing to raise chickens for meat and egg laying.
The upper greenhouse
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