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Manna in the Chihuahuan Desert

Last November, Cheryl and I hosted the first retreat at our cabin for the men from the Manna House. This Christ-centered residential recovery ministry for men addicted to alcohol and drugs is located in the small town of Brookshire. The year long program is designed to lead men to be set free, set apart and set on fire.


The Manna House guys arrived early Thursday afternoon. I rode my electric mini-bike to Little Burro Country Store at the intersection of Highway 118 and Legions Road to meet and escort them the final three miles to the cabin. I have sure enjoyed riding my mini-bike along the dirt roads around the cabin. So much fun!


The guys wasted no time in setting up their tents and getting situated. In the meantime, James and his sous-chefs, Doug and Chris, started meal prep. Prior to their arrival, my friend Kyle and I built a special table for Dutch oven cooking. James is a master of Dutch oven meals so I wanted to improve our outdoor cooking area for him to work his culinary magic.


As in the previous year, we gave each of the men a hydration backpack along with all sorts of miscellaneous gear for day-hikes: first aid kit, emergency whistle, space blanket, caribeners, flashlight and headlamp, compass, paracord bracelet, and more. We sat around the campfire that first evening talking about hiking and preparation for wilderness survival.


The guys enjoyed several hikes on the two days they visited Big Bend National Park. Each night we sat around the campfire for a debrief on the day. So much fun to hear about how much they enjoyed the park. And, of course, the guys lingered around the campfire until the stars and the Milky Way filled the night sky.


The best part of our time out west was the day Raul and Timothy were baptized in the Rio Grande River. Having a relationship with Jesus is essential to their recovery and to taking that first step to be set free, set apart, and set on fire. Having all of the guys witness their baptism made it all the more special.


I am grateful for the Manna House and their commitment to help men in recovery. Over the past twenty years I have met so many men at the Manna House whose lives were changed for the better, who arrived in a state of despair and desperation and left with a new hope and a new future.


Cheryl and I consider it a blessing to host these men at Dos Arbolitos, our little slice of heaven in the Chihuahuan Desert. Our prayer is that God would bless us with many more years of good health to continuing hosting outdoor adventures for boys and for men and helping them to connect with the One who created the beauty of Big Bend.

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A Chihuahuan Desert New Year

It’s hard to believe that another year has come and gone. Time seems to fly by faster and faster the older I get. I told a friend that at my age I can’t afford to kill time because time is killing me. I have to make the most of every day.

Once again, Cheryl and I celebrated — or rather slept through — the transition to the New Year out at our off-grid cabin. With a waning moon, the stars were definitely big and bright deep in the heart of Texas. And the nights were cold out in the Chihuahuan Desert where the creosote offers little protection from the north winds.

We headed to the cabin after spending a couple of days with my 95 year-old Dad down in South Texas. Still in great health and with a mind as sharp as ever, Dad is my hero and inspiration. He is an eternal optimist and has remained curious about the world — although he is now resigned to exploring new places by way of his favorite travel shows.

We were excited to meet the Perry family, friends from church, staying at our guest cabin. This was their first visit to Big Bend National Park and they had some fun days planned for their girls. We had the opportunity to share a pleasant night around the campfire before they headed back to Katy.

As always, we had a list of projects, a truck full of materials, and only a few days to make a little more progress on our off-grid paradise. So, we wasted no time.


The first thing on my list was to start on the outdoor cooking area under the solar porch at our guest cabin. The plan is to build half walls clad in corrugated tin to serve as a wind block. I built a cooking counter out of recycled lumber and coated it with spare urethane. I will complete the half-walls on our next visit and then lay pavers to cut down on the dust.


I recently created a shadow box to display my Cub Scout knot board. I made this knot display on March 27, 1967 when I was a member of Pack 60 in McAllen. I recently found it in a box of stuff up in the attic and thought it would be a fun addition to the guest cabin.


I also replenished our firewood supply at the cabin. A couple of weeks ago, my friends Mike and Jeff invited me to join them at Jeff’s father-in-law’s ranch in Navasota where a big, old pecan tree had crashed to the ground and was destined for the burn pile. The three of us spent a morning cutting and gathering firewood for the cabin.


Cheryl tried something new on our little Blackstone grill. Since we don’t have an oven at the cabin, she used the grill as a makeshift oven and baked some really delicious cookies — lots and lots of cookies. We were so encouraged by the success of this experiment that Cheryl will try her hand at making pizza on the Blackstone on our next visit. I am absolutely ready for that!


The rest of our time was spent catching up on a lot of general maintenance items. I installed new light fixtures and added shelves to our (former solar equipment) closet in the main cabin. I also serviced our propane heaters, mouse-proofed our outdoor toilet and shower area, and completed a few others miscellaneous things on the list. Always something on the list.


The weather was amazing. Pleasant days, amazing sunsets, really dark and cold nights, and the soothing and therapeutic silence of the desert. This is a gift — a wonderful gift from God. We are excited about the the year ahead and the opportunity to spend many more days in the embrace of the Chihuahuan Desert and vast Big Bend skies.

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Trailer Parks, Motels and Prison

When we purchased our Big Bend property six years ago, Cheryl and I dreamed of developing a place where we could escape to relax and enjoy the outdoors. We also wanted to have a place where boys and fathers and families could visit to connect with God in the magnificence of His creation.

For the past three years we have hosted a Big Bend adventure for boys from Brookshire — a community with the highest concentration of fatherless homes in the greater Houston area. We have offered this retreat in collaboration with The Hangar Unity Center, a Christian non-profit in Brookshire that exists to mentor and disciple at-risk youth and their families.


Last week, we hosted men from The Manna House in Brookshire. Manna House is a residential recovery program for men addicted to alcohol and drugs. Their year long program is built around three objectives: to lead men to be set free, set apart and set on fire. My friend Ryan Orbin, the new executive director of The Manna House, and I have been dreaming about this adventure for the last year.


The Manna House guys arrived on Thursday afternoon. That evening, we sat around the campfire and gave all of the men their very own outdoor gear, including hydration backpack, first aid kit, compass, whistle, emergency blanket, flashlight, headlamp, and more. We talked about the importance of shared adventure with other men and why alone is dangerous.


Most of the men in the group grew up in tough circumstances and never enjoyed outdoor adventures. So, they were both anxious and excited about going to Big Bend National Park to hike and to enjoy the magnificent views of the Chihuahuan Desert and the Chisos Mountains.


The guys hiked the Lost Mine Trail and the Window Trail at the park and later visited Santa Elena Canyon and the Hot Springs Trail. For many of the men who had never hiked, the trails were challenging. Every man, however, pushed through and completed each hike.


As we enjoyed a meal around the campfire while the sun dropped below the mountains and mesas to our west, one of the guys said that this adventure had exceeded his expectations. He said that his eyes were opened to all he had been missing. “All I have ever known,” he said, “is trailer parks, motels and prison.” And then he remarked that he wanted to stay close to God and finally start living. What a testimony to how God used this shared adventure in his life.


While the Manna guys were on the trail, my neighbors Joe and Lisa spent a couple of days working on the solar infrastructure for our guest cabin. They erected the iron framing that will hold the solar panels in front of our guest cabin. They also added three Lithium batteries that will power the guest cabin and our main cabin as well.


My friends Selim and Rafa, along with a couple of the Manna guys, dug a 150-foot trench between the cabins where we buried the power cables that will connect all of the structures on the property. These solar power upgrades will ensure that we have enough power to carry us through even on days that are overcast.


We concluded our time by inviting our neighbors to join us for a meal followed by a star party led by my friend Yogi — the local guru of Big Bend night skies. He is better than Google and is passionate about sharing his love for the night skies out here in this wide part of Texas.


One reason I enjoy working hard on projects every time we visit the cabin is knowing that what I do will bless the family, friends, and guests who will visit in the future. We are stewards of our little place only for a short while. We want for our short while to make a difference by blessing others. We are thrilled that the Manna House men had the opportunity to experience and enjoy the magnificance of Big Bend.