Recently, we had the joy of seeing three young ladies in our church baptized. We invited friends and family to join us, and it was a delight to witness these three girls’ hearts for Jesus. All three young ladies had placed their faith in Jesus. These girls were “not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord” (2 Timothy 1:8) and declared to others they belonged to Jesus!
Prior to the baptism, we sang three songs picked by the girls. Next Dad preached, and then Joseph, Anna, Jesse, and Mary sang Holy, Holy, Holy. It was a perfect way to prepare for such a special moment. Nathan baptized Abby, and after that Bethany. The other dad baptized his daughter.
Afterward, almost everyone went out for a treat at a frozen custard place. It was a great way to fellowship and end the evening.
Love, Sarah
Dad preparing Before the service began, Dad and the dads had a little meeting going over the basics.
Look at that smile! For those who may be curious, the water was nice and warm: no shock there.
She had such joy coming up!
Bethany asked Jesus into her heart last fall. She also wanted to join her sister in baptism. I now baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.
What a sweet testimony!
This young lady radiates Jesus too.
Afterward, we fellowshipped.
“Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” Romans 6:4
It’s been awhile since we’ve done an official baby update. Anna Marie is due soon. Her pregnancy had an interesting twist this time, as her varicose veins became quite severe. Believe me, she tried tons of things to help, and while they all probably did help, her left ankle was quite painful at times and had to be regularly elevated. Thankfully, starting a few weeks ago, the pain has been significantly better. For those who know Anna Marie, she does not complain–she just doesn’t. She had such a sweet spirit despite the pain. Now that the veins have improved, she’s feeling quite good. The baby is extremely active and seems to be right on track growth wise. As it stands now, we anticipate the baby arriving in the first two weeks of March, but you know, babies do come on their own time, so we shall see!
Christopher and Anna Marie are grateful for your prayers as they prepare to welcome another child into this world. They decided not to find out the gender, so we’ll all be surprised. It’s funny; I’ve given up guessing on what someone will have. After all, it’s going to be a 50/50 chance.
Love, Sarah
“Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.” Psalm 128:3
Recently, Nathan and Abby went on a quick, unexpected trip together to a funeral which left the rest of the crew at home. I knew that Bethany and Christina would be missing their roommate, Abby, so I offered to sleep in their room in Abby’s bed. Of course, they both were very excited.
Four-year-old Bethany quickly filled me in on all the scoop of how the bedroom runs. She showed me how to climb up into Abby’s upper bunk, told me what time they went to bed, and what time they could wake up. She demonstrated how Abby’s bed light worked. Then she informed me that she and Abby wake up earlier than Tina and use their bunk lights so they can have their quiet time reading the Bible. She also told me about prayer rounds. It was so sweet, because one of them came up with the idea of having a prayer time before they go to bed.
Sure enough, we had just crawled into our beds and settled when it was time for prayer rounds. Bethany told me that they pray for a specific person’s family each night, and they each take turns praying. Tonight the prayers would be for Uncle Christopher and Aunt Anna Marie’s family, who were recovering from a stomach bug.
Betsy and Tina’s prayers were so sweet. I wish you could hear the recording of their little voices.
Betsy started, “Lord God, I pray for Joshie, that the flu would be all gone from him, and that he would just get all better.”
Two-year-old Tina was next. “Dear God, I pray that the baby would be healthy and strong, Amen!”
Then B continued, “Lord God, I pray in the family that is Uncle Christopher’s, that they would be just healthy and strong, and the baby would be healthy and strong, and that Joshua would get better in the night, and that he would never get sick… and please just help their family go to Uncle John’s birthday party *(side cute note: we had celebrated John’s birthday late and the party already happened)* and all the birthday parties and that he would never get sick again.”
Tina prayed even more, “Help their baby to be healthy and strong, and help nobody to get sick, Amen.”
I prayed between them, and we kept going until it was time to go to sleep. I am looking forward to sometime joining them when Abby is there. I love their hearts for praying. They have such tender spirits and are often quick to ask to stop and pray for someone when they hear of a need!
Serving Jesus, Anna
Bethany Christina Christina and I Abby is an amazing big sister.
“Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer.” Romans 12:12
The flat tundra in the photo below is where Joseph recorded. This was only part way down the mountain–we were still above the tree line.
If you remember in the previous post, Joseph descended faster than some of us. Actually, Jesse and the other brothers did too. At a certain point in our descent, we could hear Joseph singing. It was stunning. To hear praise for Jesus, out in God’s Creation, with natural amplification, was amazing. Joseph’s voice echoed off the mountain walls, singing praise to the only One worthy of our praise.
Jesse used iPhones to record the video. He was very patient, taking many clips in different locations. In addition, they used a practice track as they recorded for Joseph to keep timing.
Christopher’s forte is lighting, so he helped with that aspect. You have to realize we were out for a hike, not a video session, so our resources were limited and improvised. Christopher asked around for something white to use as a reflector. We examined what we had and came up with a mostly white windbreaker. In addition, we needed extra light. We produced two flashlights. Jesse used a hiking pole with an iPhone mounted to it for a mobile monopod. We had a real production team going.
It was a sweet sight to see so many of my siblings involved with helping Joseph on his special project. They all knew what joy this would bring Elissa.
I don’t believe you could have gotten a prettier day. It was picture-perfect. Notice some are even in their short-sleeves, and we’re at altitude.
A very special thank you goes to Jesse. He invested a lot of time and effort into post-production.
Love, Sarah
“And my tongue shall speak of thy righteousness and of thy praise all the day long.” Psalm 35:28
We are excited to share with you a very special video that Joseph recorded for Elissa, August 21st, while we were in Colorado. It had been on his heart to sing her favorite song, and after summiting Mount Huron, he hurried back to the perfect location. The video is informal, and the background music was just practice music and spliced in. Joseph sent Elissa the music from Colorado. She was delighted! We’ll be sharing the behind-the-scenes pictures in a separate post.
May we each be a channel for Jesus. I hope this ministers to your heart today!
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20
Andrew is now 7 months old and growing so much! He loves his big sisters–in fact, if they leave the room he’s in, it gets cloudy very quickly. We are so blessed that he’s such a healthy baby!
Love, Sarah
“Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.” Psalms 127:3
The Maxwell family and ministry blog of Titus2.com.
