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Farnell Family Newsletter
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May 12, 2007 - The trip started out with Dad and I wondering where Ben was. He was supposed to meet us at the Clover Valley Church, but he didn't show up. We decided that maybe he had driven up to Jacks to meet us there, so we left a note at the church and headed for Jacks. It turns out that Ben had gotten busy working and lost track of time. Eventually he saw that he had a message on his cell phone - it was from my Mom - letting him know we were waiting for him. Luckily, he found our note at the church and met us at Jacks a while later.
Little Red River is a gated cave, so we picked up the permit and gate key and headed for the mountain. The sky was cloudy, but we did catch some glimpses of the mountain on the drive up.
As we neared the cave, there was a gate on the road that was half open, but there was a sign that said, "Winter Recreation Area - Road Closed to Wheeled Vehicles." It was obvious that lots of cars had been driving through, but Dad didn't want to risk getting a ticket, so we parked here and started walking. As we hiked toward the cave, we passed the time chatting about different things. As we climbed, we began seeing signs of snow until there was snow on the road itself.
The trail through the woods was a bit of a challenge to navigate with lots of down trees over the trail. Snow depth varied from 4 feet to patches of bare ground throughout the woods.
Ben had never been to Little Red River Cave before, so this trip was mainly for him. He had tried to visit the cave twice before, but always ran into something that ruined the trip. His first attempt was about 12 years ago with some of his friends, but when they reached the trail they met a party coming out who told them the cave was gated. They did not have a key, so turned around knowing they wouldn't be able to enter the cave.
His second attempt to visit the cave was with me a year-and-a-half ago. This time we had a permit and key in hand, but when we arrived at the cave the gate locks were missing! The cave was unlocked. The permit specifically says to stay out of the cave if the gate has been tampered with, so we were not able to explore the cave that day either. We reported the missing locks to the Forest Service and they replaced them within a few days. So this was Ben's third attempt to visit this cave, and we were hoping for good luck this time! 
We soon saw the open lava flow ahead and emerged from the trees near the cave entrance. After putting on our cave gear and unlocking the gate, we entered the cave. We took the side passage around the big drop and worked our way back dropping down 8 feet and then 10 feet using a rope. The cave was quite dry compared to when I visited last November!
We were soon in a large room with lots of red, baked dirt. There was quite a display of sand castle type formations from all the dripping water hitting the dirt. Off to the right, we found a tree mold of a stump in the ceiling, and then a mold of a log down the side of the cave.
Ben was quite impressed with the cave, and every few moments we would hear him say, "Wow! Beautiful…"
We continued on, walking through nice-sized passages with sandy-pumice floors. Cave slime was on the walls, and we noted where people had written names and dates of when they had visited. It sure takes a long time for the slime to regrow over that graffiti!
 We came to a large room where I boosted Ben up into an upper level in the ceiling on the side of the cave and then he crawled over and poked his head out over the main passage, maybe 20 feet above us! Kim L. had showed me this a couple years ago on my first trip.
After helping Ben down to the main passage, we continued on finding the first lava fall shortly. The two lava falls in this cave are two of my favorite features! Basically, the lava tube just noze-dives downwards for about 30 feet, levels off for a little ways, and then dives again for another 40 feet. The falls can be climbed without ropes due to cauliflower AA lava. This area is very cool with some neat formations on the sides of the passage.
 We climbed over some breakdown and found what I think was a Grylloblattid (cockroach-cricket, according to Caves of Mt. St. Helens). I snapped a few pictures of him and we continued on.
We soon reached the red river that the cave is named for. It is more like a small stream, but it is definitely red! The water seeps in through the wall in various places, and has stained the wall and floor with bright, orange-red stripes.
We soon reached the end of the cave, where there is a shallow lake and the cave is filled with water and sediment. Who knows how far it goes under all that!
On the way back to the entrance, we stopped in the area where the wall is stained red and I played with my camera and slave flash trying to get some cool pictures. Dad and Ben were soon bored, and Ben was saying he was hungry, so I finished taking pictures and we started the long uphill hike out.
We wasted no time and were soon outside and headed back for the road. We hitched a ride on the back of a snowmobile trailer and saved ourselves about a mile of hiking back to the car.
We had a great day in one of Mt. St. Helens best caves!
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Posted in Caving, Photography by McFarnell (Matthew Farnell) at 11:45 pm
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May the beauty of salvation embrace you, may your need for Christ capture you, and may the power of the Cross overwhelm you. For information on the authorship of “The Room” please click here. To download PDF, click here.
In that place between wakefulness and dreams, I found myself in the room. There were no distinguishing features save for the mysterious array of black filing cabinets. They were like the ones in libraries that list titles by author or subject in alphabetical order. But these files, which stretched from floor to ceiling and seemingly endlessly in either direction, had very different headings. As I drew near the wall of files, the first to catch my attention was one that read “Girls I Have Liked.” I opened it and began flipping through the cards. I quickly shut it, shocked to realize that I recognized the names written on each one.
And then without being told, I knew exactly where I was. This lifeless room with its small files was a crude catalog system for my life. Here were written the actions of my every moment, big and small, in a detail my memory couldn’t match.
 A sense of wonder and curiosity, coupled with horror, stirred within me as I began randomly opening files and exploring their content. Some brought joy and sweet memories; others a sense of shame and regret so intense that I would look over my shoulder to see if anyone was watching. A file named “Friends” was next to one marked “Friends I Have Betrayed.”
The titles ranged from the mundane to the outright weird. “Books I Have Read,” “Lies I Have Told,” “Comfort I Have Given,” “Jokes I Have Laughed At.” Some were almost hilarious in their exactness: “Things I’ve Yelled at My Brothers.” Others I couldn’t laugh at: “Things I Have Done in My Anger,” “Things I Have Muttered Under My Breath at My Parents.” I never ceased to be surprised by the contents. Often there were many more cards than I expected. Sometimes fewer than I hoped.
 I was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the life I had lived. Could it be possible that I had the time in my 20 years to write each of these thousands or even millions of cards? But each card confirmed this truth. Each was written in my own handwriting. Each signed with my signature.
When I pulled out the file marked “Songs I Have Listened To,” I realized the files grew to contain their contents. The cards were packed tightly, and yet after two or three yards, I hadn’t found the end of the file. I shut it, shamed, not so much by the quality of music, but more by the vast amount of time I knew that file represented.
 When I came to a file marked “Lust,” I felt a chill run through my body. I pulled the file out only an inch, not willing to test its size, and drew out a card. I shuddered at its detailed content. I felt sick to think that such a moment had been recorded.
An almost animal rage broke on me. One thought dominated my mind: “No one must ever see these cards! No one must ever see this room! I have to destroy them!” In an insane frenzy I yanked the file out. Its size didn’t matter now. I had to empty it and burn the cards. But as I took it at one end and began pounding it on the floor, I could not dislodge a single card. I became desperate and pulled out a card, only to find it as strong as steel when I tried to tear it
 Defeated and utterly helpless, I returned the file to its slot. Leaning my forehead against the wall, I let out a long, self-pitying sigh. And then I saw it. The title bore “People I Have Shared the Gospel With.” The handle was brighter than those around it, newer, almost unused. I pulled on its handle and a small box not more than three inches long fell into my hands. I could count the cards it contained on one hand.
And then the tears came. I began to weep. Sobs so deep that they hurt started in my stomach and shook through me. I fell on my knees and cried. I cried out of shame, from the overwhelming shame of it all. The rows of file shelves swirled in my tear-filled eyes. No one must ever, ever know of this room. I must lock it up and hide the key.
 But then as I pushed away the tears, I saw Him. No, please not Him. Not here. Oh, anyone but Jesus.
I watched helplessly as He began to open the files and read the cards. I couldn’t bear to watch His response. And in the moments I could bring myself to look at His face, I saw a sorrow deeper than my own. He seemed to intuitively go to the worst boxes. Why did He have to read every one?
 Finally He turned and looked at me from across the room. He looked at me with pity in His eyes. But this was a pity that didn’t anger me. I dropped my head, covered my face with my hands and began to cry again. He walked over and put His arm around me. He could have said so many things. But He didn’t say a word. He just cried with me.
Then He got up and walked back to the wall of files. Starting at one end of the room, He took out a file and, one by one, began to sign His name over mine on each card.
 “No!” I shouted rushing to Him. All I could find to say was “No, no,” as I pulled the card from Him. His name shouldn’t be on these cards. But there it was, written in red so rich, so dark, so alive. The name of Jesus covered mine. It was written with His blood.
He gently took the card back. He smiled a sad smile and began to sign the cards. I don’t think I’ll ever understand how He did it so quickly, but the next instant it seemed I heard Him close the last file and walk back to my side. He placed His hand on my shoulder and said, “It is finished.”
I stood up, and He led me out of the room. There was no lock on its door. There were still cards to be written.
By Joshua Harris. Orginally published in New Attitude Magazine © Copyright New Attitude 1995. You have permission to reprint this in any form. We only ask that you include the appropriate copyright byline. To download PDF version, click here.
Posted in Church by McFarnell (Matthew Farnell) at 10:43 am
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This past weekend I had the opportunity to attend the Men's Retreat hosted by Ocean Park Community Church. Pastor Marty asked me to help out with music by playing piano, so that was a privilege and enjoyable as well!
I've attended this retreat for about 13 years (??) or so, only missing twice in that time I believe. This year we had western author Stephen Bly as one of the main speakers. Before each session, Mr. Bly would read us a couple of his Cowboy Poems, which were quite funny and made sure everyone was awake. He spoke on seeking God first, what Jesus' servants would do, and repentance.
The other speaker was Vern Wilkinson, the NW District representative for Village Missions . He spoke about Biblical manhood. He also shared about Village Missions and his vision for expanding their ministry in Alaska.
 The weather was some of the best I ever remember at a Men's Retreat, with sunny blue sky on the beach! Several of us went clamming, and everyone caught their limit.
Jeff, Dad, and I did a harmonica/jaw harp trio as a special feature during talent time, which was fun. We played When the Roll, I'm Gonna Sing, and Swing Low. The food was great, although we didn't get much fresh fruit. Cookies were available all the time.
Friday night Pastor Marty showed the movie "Facing the Giants " which I had never seen before. It is a very well done movie with a strong Biblical message in it. All the actors in this movie were volunteers, unpaid, and from the same church!
All in all, it was a great weekend!
 
Great Food - Stephen Bly
Walking Back to the Cars After Getting 75 Clams!
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Posted in Church, Missions, Music, Outdoors, Photography by McFarnell (Matthew Farnell) at 6:30 pm
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Once again, on January 26th, we went down for Mt. Bachelor's annual "ski free day," which is a canned food drive where each skier donates three cans of food in exchange for a free lift ticket. This year we had a total of 16 people in our group - nine from our church and seven other Christian friends from the area. We car pooled in two vehicles. Thanks to Jon and Christina for driving.
We left the park-and-ride at 3:30 a.m. for the 4 to 5 hour drive down to central Oregon. Conversations on the trip down helped the ride go faster. The day dawned bright and clear, the perfect day for skiing! We arrived at the mountain at 8:30, greeted by bright, white snow contrasting beautifully with the amazingly blue sky. Lifts were scheduled to open at 9 a.m., so we scrambled to get everyone ready to "shred Mt. Bachelor." 16 people is a lot to get organized with skis, boots, poles, snowboards, coats, snow pants, goggles, helmets, gloves,  canned food, cameras, and more everywhere.
We all had a wonderful day of skiing/boarding with awesome views of the surrounding mountains and countryside. We had one first-time skier and several second-time skiers, who were all doing awesome. I did go over a big jump a little TOO fast and busted my goggles from the resulting face-plant, but nobody had any serious accidents. There were some comments from other skiers about the "crazy-hat-guy" and the"skier in a skirt." 
We arrived back at the park-and-ride at 9:30 p.m. and all headed our separate ways. It was an awesome trip once again. You all should join us next year!
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Posted in Outdoors, Skiing by McFarnell (Matthew Farnell) at 11:00 pm
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Well, the house is pretty quiet now with Christina off to Teen Missions and Suzanne at Masterworks. But, we have been staying plenty busy.
40th Anniversary Party
 A couple weeks ago was Dad and Mom’s 40th anniversary. We had a surprise party for them with 47 people total at our house. (I was quite nervous about how the parking would work!!). It turned out really well. Suzanne’s graduation party was in the afternoon the same day, so Mom and Dad just thought we were cleaning up for that, when really we had two parties in mind! Their party followed in the evening, to their surprise. I think they had some suspicions, but never imagined 47 people! Click here for more pictures.
Woodland Planter’s Day Fireworks
 Woodland Planter’s Day festival was a great success and the weather was very nice. The festival started Thursday with a few different events and then a Fireworks show at Horseshoe Lake. I went down to practice taking pictures of Fireworks and got a few nice pictures: Click here for more pictures.
Woodland Planter’s Day Parade
 Saturday was the big parade and I rode my unicycle through while Dad rode his big wheel bike. Rebekah did us a big favor by riding the Irish Mill through the parade for us (Suzanne decided to ride with Sarah this year). The picture of Dad shown here is courtesy of Ruth. Click here for more pictures.
Vertical Cave Practice
 Two Saturdays ago, several of us from the Oregon Grotto (caving club) did a vertical practice at Breakdown Cave on Mt. St. Helens. The next weekend was a trip to Dynamited Cave, which requires vertical work, so we wanted to brush up on our skills. Breakdown Cave has a 35 foot drop into the entrance pit, with an undercut lip, which is just what we needed. Vertical caving is done on static rope with mechanical ascenders and descenders. It is quite fun, but a little scary when you consider the possible consequences of a mistake. The weather was perfect with some great views of the mountain. After a few practice climbs and rappels, we visited some other caves in the area. Click here for more pictures.
Rachel’s Dedication
 We were invited to David and Michelle’s church for Rachel’s dedication two Sundays ago. It was a nice service. Click here for more pictures.
Goat Marsh
 Last Tuesday we went on a hike to Goat Marsh near Mt. St. Helens with the Mattilas. The weather was great for pictures and the mountain was reflecting in the lake nicely. It was a fun trip. Click here for more pictures.
Haying
 Wednesday we put 210 bales of hay in the barn for the llamas and goats. Thanks to Jon, his truck, and his children, we only had to make three loads (two trailer loads and Jon’s truck)! Click here for more pictures.
Dynamited Cave
 This last Saturday I had the opportunity to go to Dynamited Cave with the Cascade and Oregon Grottos (caving clubs). This is a vertical cave, which means you need a lot of vertical gear (harnesses, ascenders, descenders, ropes, etc) in order to explore the cave. It was a really fun trip. There were 10 of us in the cave for 8 hours, 45 minutes. We saw sand castles, lava falls (up to 40 feet!), and lots of other formations and colors. I did four drops, up and down - a 15 foot undercut drop, and 40 foot lava fall, a 55 foot pit, and a 25 foot undercut drop. The scariest part of the trip was "traversing" the 55 foot pit. That is to say, the 55 foot pit was right in the middle of the cave, and we needed to get across it in order to coninue exploration. One person free-climbed along the wall to the other side with a rope, and then the rests of us attached our harnesses to the rope for safety while we climbed across. Footholds and handholds were somtimes hard to find, but I made it both ways! One lady did fall, but her safety "cowstail" caught her safely after a few inches. Still, it was quite scary traversing over 55 feet of space. Anyway, I hope to write a detailed trip report about it soon. The picture of me shown here is courtesy of Jansen Cardy. Click here for more pictures.
Ape Cave (Horizon Air Magazine)
 Next time you fly Horizon Air, be sure to check out the magazine in your seatback pocket. The August 2006 issue is going to have an article covering NW caves, and it may have one or two of my pictures in it!!! Last Tuesday I got a call from Horizon Air Magazine. My mom answered the phone, so when I heard who it was I assumed it must be a telemarketer, and I even considered having her tell them I wasn’t interested….good thing I didn’t. Turns out it was the magazine’s Art Director inquiring about a certain cave photo of mine. The photo she was interested in was taken a few years ago at Ape Cave, and I didn’t have a camera with high enough resolution for magazine printing. However, she is still interested and yesterday I went up to Ape Cave to duplicate that picture and to take some new pictures for possible publication. She is also interested in pictures of Horne Lake Caves, on Vancouver Island, which I also have. The article will be covering about 12 caves, but those are the only two I’ve been to. Anyway, this is very exciting. It would be sooooo awesome to have a picture printed in Horizon Air’s magazine. Wouldn’t it be fun to be a professional photographer? There’s no gaurantee they’ll use my pictures, but it is still exciting. Anyway, my new pictures of Ape Cave are here: Click here for more pictures.
Well, that’s all for now. God bless, and have a great summer!
Posted in Caving, Family, Uncategorized by McFarnell (Matthew Farnell) at 8:21 pm
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June 6, Reprinted from World Net Daily:
Despite WND’s repeated attempts, the Secret Service did not respond to a request for comment on agents’ seizure of a Christian ministry’s gospel tracts designed as "million-dollar bills."
As WorldNetDaily reported, the controversy began Friday when the agents visited the Great News Network in Denton, Texas, and threatened to arrest staffer Tim Crawford for hiding evidence in a counterfeiting investigation. The agents took 8,300 tracts and left their business cards and a receipt.
The Christian group argues, however, that "million-dollar" bills can’t be counterfeited because they don’t exist, and the tracts – which include a "not legal tender" disclaimer on the front – present the Christian salvation message on the opposite side.
The gospel tracts are produced by evangelist Ray Comfort, who told WND yesterday his Living Waters Ministry in Southern California has no plans to stop selling them….read more.
June 6, Check out the TV News Item on this page.
More News Items:
http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/6/52006h.asp
http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=50497
http://www.worldmagblog.com/blog/archives/024829.html
Reprinted from The Great News Network:
Official Statement: The Million Dollar Question - Is it real or is it counterfeit? As you may have heard, Friday afternoon, 3 US Secret Service (USSS) Agents crashed in our Christian ministry Friday around 1Pm to seize all our million dollar bill gospel tracts. I know it sounds odd, weird and difficult to believe but trust me, this is no joke and they were deadly serious. According to the Secret Service, the Million Dollar gospel tract produced by Ray Comfort ( www.livingwaters.com) and distributed by The Great News Network and thousands of other Christians all around the World is counterfeit…. read more. June 7, this story has been picked up by the Associated Press and news agencies across the country. Please keep these ministries in prayer.
June 22, Wheelchair-bound man claims Secret Service said, ‘You’re passing out counterfeit money’
June 23, Judge: Secret Service can seize tracts
Posted in Missions by McFarnell (Matthew Farnell) at 10:05 pm
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