What does it really mean to live with purpose?
For Chase Burns, purpose ties deeply into faith, family, and the land he works each day. In this episode of Every Acre Tells a Story™, Chase invites viewers into his daily life. His family lives on a working homestead, where values are reflected in every chore, sunrise, and decision.
Faith as a Foundation
Chase lives with intention. For him, life is not just about landownership. It is about honoring God’s purpose for his life and using the land to glorify that calling.
“Living with purpose to me is living for God’s purpose for my life. Being a person of faith, we have a guiding light, and how we use our land is just daily asking for what His will is and looking for opportunities to glorify Him.”
Each act of stewardship, from planting to tending animals, is part of his faith. He sees the land as a gift that requires action, care, and gratitude every day.
The Homestead Life
Homesteading, for the Burns family, is about more than rural living. In fact, it is a lifestyle rooted in connection. They care for animals, raise food, maintain an orchard, and pass these rhythms on to their children.
“It’s not just getting up to make your bed or brush your teeth. It’s collecting eggs, feeding the horses, or moving hay for the cows. That teaches a lot of responsibility.”
These daily tasks are not simply chores. Instead, they are character-shaping experiences. The children are learning discipline, work ethic, and appreciation for where their food comes from. These values are passed down every morning and evening, through action and example.
Life on the homestead follows the rhythm of the land. Each season brings new work and new lessons. Spring means preparing garden beds and helping calves take their first steps. Summer is filled with weeding, harvesting, and watching the orchard come alive. In fall, the family puts up food, splits wood, and finishes projects before the cold sets in. Winter slows things down, but there are still animals to care for and plans to make for the next growing season.
For the Burns family, this is not about doing things the easy way. They intentionally choose a lifestyle that requires them to be hands-on and present. Whether they are making homemade jelly, stacking hay, or gathering eggs before school, every task builds a sense of ownership and pride in their children. Their home is not just where they live. It is where they grow, work, and belong together.
Building Community Through the Mercantile
In addition to their farm life, Chase and his wife, Jackie, restored a 112-year-old building in Viola, Illinois. Their goal was to create a small-town mercantile filled with local goods and a sense of connection.
“Jackie had this idea of a sort of country store selling locally sourced products…beef, honey, chicken, eggs, produce. It just kept growing. We became that somebody who brought it to life.”
Today, Prairie Roads Mercantile features many items that come directly from their farm. For example, the beef is raised just eight miles down the road. The eggs are often collected that morning, and the honey is bottled from a nearby beekeeper. Customers can ask where an item came from and hear, “This came from our place this morning.”
The Mercantile was never just a business. Instead, it became a space where neighbors reconnect, producers feel valued, and children learn that what they grow has meaning. The building may be old, but its mission feels entirely new, reminding people that local food and community still matter.
A Legacy That Lasts
Chase grew up exploring the woods, running wild with a BB gun, and playing in creeks. He harvested his first deer on his grandmother’s farm. Now, he sees that same joy in his sons as they build forts, tend animals, and create memories outdoors.
“Just as dear to me as my first deer is the memory of both of my boys harvesting their first deer here on this farm. It’s a bond between people and the land that is hard to explain if you have not experienced it.”
This connection, Chase says, is what he hopes his children carry forward. Whether they own land someday or not, he wants them to value care, stewardship, and long-term vision.
“It is not ours, it is just our turn. While you are a landowner, you are the caretaker. You are the person who is going to leave it better than you found it.”
That belief guides not just how they farm. It also shapes how they raise their kids, run a business, and build a legacy rooted in place and purpose.
Final Thoughts
Living with purpose on the land is not about perfection. Rather, it is about alignment. It is about waking up each day with clarity and a desire to leave things better than you found them.
Chase Burns reminds us that the land tells a story, if we are willing to listen. And often, it tells us a little more about who we are in the process.
