The hand of God was upon Ezekiel for him to separate himself. What does that mean for you? 521-1 - 2-3

Years ago I was employed at an aerospace company during a time of employee cutbacks. While I was not in danger of losing my job I saw a number of good people laid off and I often became ill in advance of the weekly layoffs. I asked for a voluntary layoff and my manager told me to think about it. I still wanted out.

Several years before I had worked week-end in real estate so I moved up to the Arizona high desert and sold real estate. The office politics were even worse there so I dropped out and bought a house off the power grid and nearly 25 miles off paved roads. It was located on 20 acres of God’s country on the edge of Black Canyon. For about $5,000.00 I bought enough solar with a backup generator to run both the house and my workshop.

This was a very creative and spiritual period in my life. I would stand on the edge of Black Canyon and take in the magnificent creation of God. The isolation was healing and I stayed there for two wonderful years. After two years I sold my off-the-power grid home and moved back on the power grid and have been on it ever since. However, I couldn’t completely break the spell of that high desert area and bought five acres on the other side of the canyon. I can close my eyes and visualize standing on the edge of the canyon and being transported there in my eye’s mind.

Now I’ve lived in Quartzsite, AZ for more than a decade interrupted by being a part-time care-giver for my mom in Southern California. I have two close BAC friends who hold a winter Bible study here in the desert in Arizona in a tent. I’m feeling a call to add to their work with “A Dinner and a Movie” evening meeting; first a meal followed by a commentary possibly by CM or Ray Vander Laam and then having a follow-up discussion.

The Lord has laid on my heart for a couple of years to retreat again to the desert where somehow I feel so much closer to Him. So along with a call to be more proactive in sharing His Word, I’m drawn to spending next season living on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land here in Arizona. I have a very comfortable RV with some solar, a generator and large storage tanks and the goodies that go along with decent RV. While I'm not ready to once again go totally off the power grid I'm thinking of keeping my trailer in town and buying a season membership in the BLM. This way I can spend time living off-the-grid in the desert while having a backup when I wish to get back to the grid for a few days. Perhaps another year I will feel that I'm ready to once again make the complete transition to living off the grid.