Faith Family Farm
Showing posts with label Birthdays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Birthdays. Show all posts

Celebrate!

Birthdays!  I LOVE birthdays!  
We celebrate and decorate and have presents and sometimes pull off a BIG surprise!!!
So, to celebrate our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ's birthday, 
we hold nothing back!
Yes, we know, the 25th is most likely NOT the actual day of His birth, but we choose to observe and acknowledge His birth on this day because He means everything to us!

He IS our reason for living

He IS our reason for loving

He IS our reason for giving

He IS our reason for obeying

He IS our reason for surrendering

He IS our reason for trusting

He IS our reason for serving

He IS our reason for singing

He IS our reason for worshiping

HE IS OUR REASON!!! 

We could not NOT celebrate!

Here are a few pics of our decorations, welcoming Jesus into our home.
Our wreath as you enter with greenery, berries and red for the blood He shed on our behalf.

The mantel with greenery and trees for life, red ribbon for His shed blood, lights representing our Lord as the Light of the World, and Jenny's original painting of the nail in the hand, titled, "Accepting the Call."

A village of families in homes where we worship daily and the Church at the center to worship collectively as His body.

I Love Christmas!
Celebrating His birth should mean so much more than any other birthday we celebrate.
Why would we celebrate our childrens' birthdays if we never acknowledge the birth of The One who actually gave us life, and health, and breath, and all things good!

Thank You, my Lord and Savior!
Happy Birthday to You this day, 
this season, and all year through!
I Love You, Jesus!!!

"Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, 
and she will call His name Immanuel."
Isaiah 7:14b  NASB

"For unto us a child is born, 
unto us a son is given: 
and the government shall be upon His shoulder: 
and his name shall be called 
Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, 
The everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace."
Isaiah 9:6 KJV

"And she brought forth her firstborn son; 
and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, 
and laid Him in a manger;
because there was no room for them in the inn."
Luke 2:7 KJV

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESUS!!!!

(Archived from postings)

Always Experiencing Him,
Jody

Sarah - 22!!!

HAPPY 22nd BIRTHDAY
SARAH!!!

Wednesday was Sarah Elizabeth's 22nd birthday.  Wow!  How did that happen?!?  I was just in the hospital room having my first baby, my first daughter...yes, 22 years ago!!!  Oh my, how time flies!

What memories we have had, the fun, struggles, laughs, discussions, all making the wonderful memories of 22 years.  God has showed us so much through the years and Sarah, the firstborn, of course, had to endure all that comes with first-time parenting.  :)  She may not have had to endure it all, as her twin sisters, Jenny and Julia, came only 16 months later..and Jamin, only 2 years after that!   It has been exhilarating, exhausting, but oh, so worth every single moment.  What a joy of watching whom your children become! 

Jenny made her a strawberry cake with cream cheese icing decorated with cute polka dots.  It was delicious.  We had hamburgers for lunch, and then she opened her gifts.  We had a special time celebrating the beautiful, Godly, young woman she has become.  We are very proud of her, and continue to pray daily as she listens for God's will and how He will direct her path.















Her other surprise was at our Bible study group on Thursday evening, when we celebrated again with friends and family.  She didn't know we were going to do that, and her good friend made her another special strawberry cake with strawberries cut into pretty roses.  So sweet and so good!

How another year goes by, I do not know, but time keeps slipping by, seemingly unnoticed.  Time doesn't give warnings, it just keeps going, and we must be conscious of that, or we will let it go, and miss many opportunities which were before us.  Take this day, the Lord's day to be reminded that time is in His hands. Spend time being still, soaking in His good graces, and then take extra time with your family this day.  Play, laugh, read, sit, and be, together; don't miss another missed opportunity.  Take the time today...


"But as for me, I trust in You, O Lord,
I say, 'You are my God.'
My times are in Your hand."
Psalm 31:14-15a

You are very special Sarah, and we love you very much!  God has much in store for you, and we wait patiently for Him to direct us and you.  We are so proud of the lovely young woman you are.

Go here and check out her blog and here to all 3 of our girls' blog.

Always Experiencing Him,
Jody

1st Birthday of 2013

Jamin Marshall Dake
Happy 17th Birthday!!!

"How blessed is the MAN who does not walk 
in the counsel of the wicked,
Nor stand in the path of sinners,
Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
Psalm 1:1

Tuesday was Jamin's 17th birthday, so I went back and picked a few pictures of this boy-child who is quickly becoming a man.  How does a mother let go???  So few years ago he was this boy-child running, frolicking, playing, learning, and now, he is this man whom a mother has to step back a bit and set free.  How does she do this?  I have seen how when a mother holds too tightly to sons how this affects them.  When older sons need so much affection from their mothers, they only see potential wives as their mother, making for problems from the very beginning of a marriage.  Sons must depend and look at, lean on, learn from, talk to their fathers.  This is not to say they step totally away from their mothers, no, just closer to the men, preferably their father in the process of manhood.  

Mothers must step away a bit, it hurts, but when they don't, if they choose to marry, the sons will have a much more difficult time leaving and cleaving, and Scripture clearly states the man will leave his father and mother and will cleave to his wife, but how can he if he is so strongly held onto, or holding on to his mother.  I am learning.this.slowly.  Yes, we have a way to go, but I want to make it easy for him then, so now.slowly.letting.go.  

When boys are small they need their mothers much more than we think; a father is so very important, but the nurturing, growing, tending, pruning, teaching, cultivating, discipling, disciplining, in the early years needs to come from the mother.  The father always, always is to lead in the midst of all the training.  If the mother has no real role, you can see boys who do not listen, are more rowdy, unruly, sneaky, disrespectful, and not very responsible.  The early years are when these are taught, and most men do not think about the nurturing process.  God didn't give all men, most men, the innate discernment to see the trickiness or manipulativeness of wee ones.  God didn't make them that way, that is why He gave us different roles in the raising of our children.  Dads main role (he always has an important role, but much more so later) in their sons lives come later when they have achieved respectfulness and responsibility.  This sets the stage for the son to become the man God will have him to be.  Some may disagree but I have seen this over and over and over again in boys lives, so moms, love them now, early, and then slowly, watch him be a man, God's man.

Here is my boy-child, from about 5 years ago becoming a Godly young man.  I am so very proud of him.  Last year, on his 16th birthday, we held a ceremony called the "Rite of Passage into Biblical Manhood," and he received letters from Godly men who surround him, a charge from his father, and received a sword, representing the "Sword of the Spirit."  It was a wonderful ceremony and he can still read the encouraging words from the men for him to "Continue On."  Go here and here to see what we did.  

Jamin's life verse is Psalm 27:1
"The Lord is my light and my salvation
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?" 





OK, Hello Kitty is NOT very manly, it was his sister's guitar strap and he was just playing the bass.  Normally, he DOES change the straps if he plays.  I just had to clarify... :)




Love this!  Father and Son...yes.




Birthday Boy!  Not too much on smiling, it's a man thing...


Just seeing the box brought a smile though!





My father and My husband and MY son, 3 Godly generations.
I am so blessed!


We made a new ice cream cake I found on Pinterest, I am beginning to think it is evil - takes waaaaay too much of my time - but great ideas...
Layer a 9x13 with 12 ice cream sandwiches, you may need to cut a bit off.


Spread 1/2 a tub of cool whip...we just used an 8 oz. tub.


Pour 1/2 a jar of caramel topping and chop up your choice of candy.  We used Hershey's chocolate bars, 2 here.  The recipe showed Reese's cups.

Place ANOTHER layer of 12 ice cream sandwiches!

Yes, the rest of the cool whip...


The caramel topping and chopped candy, we used 4 bars on top!

OH, he was happy!  There's the smile!  Dimples and all!  He doesn't like us talking bout those...so cute!  Sorry, Jamin, my blog.

Already reading a book on "How to Make Whips."  He loves learning how to do and make things.

And, his big gift the Dad picked out, a 12 gauge shotgun.  He was very happy.





The cautious man at work; 1st thing you do is clean it after making sure it is NOT loaded.  
Truly, a man's man.


His sisters got him throwing knives, books, money and shotgun shells from grandparents with some green stuff too...the kind you can spend...

I believe he had a wonderful birthday!  We ended it with a trip to The Outback Restaurant in Cleveland.  Mmmmm, mmmmmmm, good.  Meant to get a pic there, but the food was just too good, I forgot, plus it was kind of dark.  We came home and, of course, ate more Birthday ice cream cake!  What a way to end the day!

He is a very special young man and I am so proud of my man!

"When I was a child, I used to speak like a child,
think like a child, reason like a child;
when I became a man, 
I did away with childish things."
1 Cor. 13:11

Too many men do not put away childish things, they try to stay a child, and we have an entire generation of childish men, playing, tricking, teasing, irresponsible, disrespectful, non-working men-boys never wanting to grow up.  

We need a new generation of Real Men, Godly Men, not Childish Men.  Raise them up Moms and Dads!  Step up to the plate! 

Brian Free and Assurance
"I Want to Be That Man"



Always Experiencing Him,
Jody