Standing in the Gap for Oregon

Rinehart Building, Vale, OR The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them, And the  desert  shall rejoice and  blossom  as the rose;  Isaiah 35:1 Malheur County, also part of the Oregon Outback, is a large county geographically with a population of about 31,000. The county seat is Vale, although the largest town is Ontario. “Malheur” is French for misfortune or tragedy, which I thought was apt in my youth when I could not see much to recommend the wide-open spaces filled with heavily alkaline soil, sagebrush, and locust trees. It took a while for me to appreciate the subtle beauty of the high Oregon desert. Malheur County is 94% rangeland, according to their official website. Malheur County is bordered by the Snake River, which separates it from Idaho, and is touched by several Idaho counties, including Washington, Payette, Canyon, and Owyhee to the east. Owyhee County, Idaho is also known for its isolation and rugged features, as is Humboldt County, Nevada, to the south of

Mud Lake, Harney County, Oregon Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority , James 2:1 Harney County, the largest by size in the state and the 6 th smallest by population, is part of the Oregon Outback. Home to Steens Mountain, The Alvord Dessert, and the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, it is a vast place (over 10,000 square miles) populated by 7500 people, 60% of them living in the Burns-Hines area. The rest are scattered throughout the county on about 500 ranches and farms. Burns is the county seat. Those ranches and farms produce cattle, dairy products, and hay. This is one of those counties where it’s literally true the cattle outnumber the people. With the wide-open spaces and high desert climate, it is an important place ecologically and for recreation. It is home to the largest Ponderosa Pine Forest in the nation. Burns annually hosts the John Scharff Migrator

Lake County, Oregon The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord; Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” Isaiah 40:3 Having spent many years on the green, wet “west side,” of Oregon, just reading about Lake County is like exploring another country, much less part of the same state…a fascinating section of the state, the south-central high desert of Oregon. It is named for its abundance of lakes. Lake County was established in 1874 from portions of Wasco and Jackson Counties. The town of Lakeview is the county seat.   Ancient history is everywhere. It was home to the Northern Paiute and Modoc. Famously, ancient sandals over 10,000 years old were found near Fort Rock in the northern part of the county, revolutionizing the scientific view on how long the Native Americans resided here. Ancient petroglyphs near the town of Paisley and other archeological sites make this a rich area for research. 1832 saw the first white explorers when HBC trap

 " Crater Lake, Oregon For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now I will arise," says the Lord; I will set him in the safety for which he yearns." Psalm 12:5 We are moving from the Southern Coast region to the South Central region of Oregon which only includes two counties, Klamath and Lake. While only two counties, this is a very large area, stretching from Jackson County east to Harney, bordered by California and Nevada to the south. Klamath County is over 6,000 square miles with a population of 69,000. It includes Crater Lake at the northwest corner of the county with the county seat, Klamath Falls, in the south-central portion. This was the home of the Klamath Indians, as well as the Modoc, who were just across the state line in California. We often mention the homeless situation as a crisis in many counties, and a point of prayer. On a brighter note, a ministry has existed in Klamath Falls for many years to help low-income and homeless.