August Birthdays

 Posted by Amanda Silvey

      The month of August was filled with birthdays for us: John’s was on the 1^st, Grace’s was the 22^nd, Will’s was the 24^th, and Jacob’s was the 26^th.  

Needles to say, by the end of that last week we were pretty much tired of cake. (Well, at least some of us were.) J  

Happy Birthday Will, John, Jacob, and Grace!                                                                                                          

Will #22  ~  John #17  ~  Jacob #15  ~  Grace #8

"Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD,

 the fruit of the womb is a reward.  Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth.  

Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; they shall not be ashamed, but shall speak with their enemies in the gate."

Psalm 127: 3-5

When God Changes Your Plans . . .

Have you ever had a time when you felt like everything was under control and then it all was pulled out from under you like a carpet?  That happened to me this past week . . . .

Saturday afternoon I prepared for our Sunday meal so my Sunday morning would not be so hectic.  I slept in a little Sunday morning because many of my meal preparations were complete.  That morning I pulled out a large glass bowl from the refrigerator that held the potatoes, carrots, green beans, corn, and turkey I had prepared on Saturday for our Turkey Pot Pie.  I picked up the bowl to move it over to the next counter and it slipped out of my hands.  The bowl hit the counter and broke in pieces cutting up my hands as I tried to save it from hitting the floor.  I stood there looking at our Sunday lunch on the floor and my bleeding hands.

My first thought was, “I worked so hard Saturday preparing all this food and now it is all gone.  I have nothing else to fix for today.”  The only other meal I could have pulled out of the freezer was ham and beans; not a meal I could put together in the 40 minutes I had left before going to church.

At other times, I would have been anxious, thinking, “What am I going to feed my family now?”  I actually felt calm and had a sense of peace about the whole situation.  Just prior to this event happening I had been in the living room praying and reading God’s Word.  I believe this made the difference in my not falling apart.  God’s word is so powerful and so much needed during the difficulties of life. 

As you see in the picture above we ended up having a table full of food, mostly vegetables we grew in our garden and Amanda came to the rescue with her homemade rolls.  When I thought there was nothing else to fix, we ended up with a great meal full of good family fellowship.  The meal we ate was not what I had planned for that day, but what God planned.  Yes, it was a lot more work to get everything ready when we got home from church, but one of the verses I read that morning was Philippians 2:14,”Do all things without complaining and disputing.”

So . . . remember the importance of being in God’s Word on a daily basis because you never know when the carpet is going to be pulled out from underneath you and you will need God’s strength to carry on.

~Dana

The Blessing of a Praying Mother

Posted by Dana Silvey
It was a blessing to celebrate Mother's Day this past Sunday.  Mark taught on Hannah's prayer from I Samuel during our teaching time at church.  Hannah prayed a prayer and it was fulfilled in a very specific way in the life of her son.  This prayer renewed in me my privilege as a mother to pray for my children.  

A verse that I have used in praying for my children is from Colossians 1:9-11.  I pray that they would:   
be filled with the knowledge of His (God’s) will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, that they would walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.

I pray this also for my husband as he leads our family.  Praying God’s word back to Him is very powerful.  I want to encourage all mothers to be praying daily for their children.  You can also pray for the future spouses of your children.  Let’s be praying mothers and grandmothers! 

Sarah's 12th Birthday

We are a little late in getting this post out, but Sarah celebrated her 12th birthday on March 18.  At age 12 we begin the specific time of training for becoming a young lady or young man.  We will focus on the Bible's call for a young lady to be one who fears the Lord and follows Jesus, values God's plan of being a wife and mother, serves in and through the home, and practices modest dress and character.  

For her birthday dinner Sarah chose Homemade Hamburger Helper with all the fixins. 

When our girls turn 12 years old, Mark presents them with a ring to mark this time in their training.  Sarah's ring had a heart with her birthstone in the middle to picture her devoting her heart to God's ways as a young lady.    

Mark said a prayer of blessing for Sarah that she would follow God's ways in her life in the days ahead.

Opening presents!  This is a doll dress that Grace made for Sarah's doll.

An apron made by Mom.

Amanda made Sarah's cake.

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“Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,

But a woman who fears the LORD ,

She shall be praised. "

Proverbs 31:30

Should We Celebrate Easter?

Do you celebrate "Easter"?  The resurrection of Jesus is a very important celebration for us as Christians. But does the name "Easter" have anything to do with the resurrection?  Why do eggs and rabbits appear at this time of the year?

Where did the name "Easter" come from?  Eostre was the Teutonic goddess of spring and a festival was held every spring called Eostur.  They celebrated this pagan goddess and the new life that came from the earth.

So how did we as Christians come to celebrate "Easter"?  In the early centuries, the Roman Catholics began using the pagan name of "Easter" in the celebration of the resurrection.  In Deuteronomy 12:1-4, God tells the Israelites that they were not to use any of the pagan objects from the lands they conquered in their worship of Him.  They also were told to destroy their names from their places.  We also should not use objects or names from pagan festivals in our worship to God.  The use of the name "Easter", eggs, and rabbits (a pagan symbol for fertility) all have pagan roots, yet every year Christian churches have these as part of  their celebration of the resurrection of Christ.

The name "Easter" does not have anything to do with the resurrection of Jesus.  We cannot take these objects that are linked to pagan practices and attach Christian meanings to them.  This is only paganism dressed up in Christian clothes!  Everything about our Christian life pivots around the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  He delights when we keep our focus on Him in the celebration of His works.

You may say, “But the word Easter is in my Bible.”  Our English Bibles are translations of the Hebrew and Greek languages.  The Greek word that was translated “Easter” in the King James Bible is the word “pasca” or “Passover.”  During the time of the translation of the King James Version the Christians had started using the name "Easter" for their religious celebration.  This is why they translated the word Passover as “Easter.”

"Easter" has long been known as a pagan festival and the American founders knew this.  When the Puritans came over to North America, they regarded the celebration of "Easter" with suspicion!  It was not until after the Civil War that Americans even began to celebrate "Easter."

Do your own research on this and let us honor our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ by taking the name "Easter" out of our celebration of His resurrection.  Instead of saying we are celebrating "Easter", let's say we are celebrating Resurrection Day.  We really celebrate Resurrection Day every Sunday, but it is good to have a special focus during this time of the year.

We hope your family has a happy Resurrection Day!

~The Silveys 

Snow on the Farm

Yesterday afternoon it started sleeting and then it began to snow! The kids were so excited and of course they had to get out in it right away .=) They played until it was time for dinner and then they were right back out in it the next morning. The girls made a cute little snowman and since Jacob wasn't feeling well they boxed it up and put it away in the freezer for him. =) The animals went crazy with the snow and had a blast playing in it. 

By the afternoon of the next day most of it had melted, leaving a few patches here and there. We didn't get a whole lot, but we sure enjoyed it while it was here! =) 

Mr. Snowman

Our neighbor's puppy from up the road has become a frequent 

         visitor at our house and she has fallen in love with John. =)            

This was the ducks' first snow and they didn't know what to do with it.

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"God thunders marvelously with His voice; He does great things which we cannot comprehend. For He says to the snow, 'Fall on the earth'; likewise to the gentle rain and the heavy rain of His strength."

                                                                     Job 37:5,6 

Amanda's 20th-Womanhood Ceremony

Last week we celebrated Amanda's 20th birthday and her graduating into womanhood. This was a special time of acknowledging this point in her life.  It has been a joy as her parents to watch her grow into the woman that she is.  We look forward to what God has planned for her future. 

On Friday night we had a special birthday dinner at William's Tavern Restaurant 

in the historic town of Old Washington. 

Mom made this scrapbook that documented Amanda's whole life.

This quilt was made with many loving hands. Mom wrote to all of Amanda's  

friends and family asking each of them to send some material. She was so surprised!  The first words out of her mouth when she opened it up were, "Where did you get all this material?"

(A big thanks to all who contributed to Amanda's quilt.  I had fun putting all the pieces together.  It was just a simple quilt, but all the different pieces worked beautifully together.  --Mrs. Silvey) 

After we ate we had a time of sharing stories and Scripture with Amanda. 

Each of the grandfathers told the story about coming through the ice storm to see Amanda when she was born, and the grandmothers both shared Proverbs 3:5,6 (which was not planned.J).   

On Saturday we had a Womanhood Ceremony and reception at the Bodcaw Baptist Church. 

Thanks Mrs. Sunny for decorating the fellowship hall so nicely!

Will and Amanda playing "What Child is This?"

Amanda playing a few classical pieces: "Moonlight Sonata" and "For Elise" by Beethoven.

 We were really wanting to be able to have a baby grand piano for this and to our surprise the church had just gotten one last year!

Amanda was presented with a ring which was in the shape of a princess tiara, 

going along with the theme for that day: "A Daughter of the King".

At the end of the service we had a blessing prayer by the father and grandfathers.

 Since Grandpa Hellwig wasn't able to make it due to a death in the family,

 Uncle David acted as his representative. 

Mrs. Tammy Baldwin did a beautiful job on the cake. Thank you so much!

Thank you Mrs. Laura and Mrs. Amanda  for all your help with serving the food!

                                      

                            The royal daughter is all glorious within the palace,                                      Her clothing is woven with gold.

    She shall be brought to the King in robes of many colors; 
The virgins, her companions who follow her, shall be brought to You.

                                  With gladness and rejoicing they shall be brought,                                      They shall enter the King’s palace.

Psalm 45:13-15