Spreading the Word

I just had to post this video after Dr. Orrick was telling the story behind it on several Sundays ago during church. He was using this video as an example of guerrilla evangelism in his sermon.
I don't remember if this is exactly how it went but I'll try to tell it as accurately as I can.
He told us how he first shared the video with one of his classes then someone from that class posted it on u tube. Now you can search for this video on the Internet and find it on a series of different websites. Surprisingly, Dr.Orrick wasn't aware of this until the Dean of Boyce college told him about it and how he had shared it with his class. Now everyone from this fellow Professors class has memorized it and was showing it to their friends. "This is a great example of guerrilla advertisement!" He told Dr. Orrick. But Dr. Orrick compared it to guerrilla evangelism.
In case you don't know what guerrilla evangelism is Dr. Orrick explained it this way to all of us, guerrilla evangelism is when the leader creates something (in his case) and then the people that he shared it with go out and spread it to their friends and it keeps being shared and takes on a life of it's own. During this time the leader has hardly done anything, all the publicity has been done by the followers.
I've seen this happen with so many different things. It's so wonderful to see different people within their own circle collaborating together and in the end completing something big together! The excitement of one person telling another person about something is contagious. How have you worked together with someone and completed something that was to large to do one your own?

-Victoria

Origins of Mother's Day

I thought it would be a good idea to on the day after Mother's Day to tell you a little history of how it originated. The only problem with that idea was I myself don't know anything about how it originated! So I went to the online wikipedia and here is what I found:

Different countries celebrate Mother's Day on various days of the year because the day has a number of different origins.

One school of thought claims this day emerged from a custom of mother worship in ancient Greece, which kept a festival to Cybele, a great mother of Greek gods. This festival was held around the Vernal Equinox around Asia Minor and eventually in Rome itself from the Ides of March (15 March) to 18 March.

The ancient Romans also had another holiday, Matronalia, that was dedicated to Juno, though mothers were usually given gifts on this day.

In some countries Mother's Day began not as a celebration for individual mothers but rather for Christians.

- Here I'm going to skip over the part about how it originated in England and Ireland and skip to how it originated in the U.S. but if you want to read the whole article click here.

The United States celebrates Mother's Day on the second Sunday in May. In the United States, Mother's Day was loosely inspired by the British day and was imported by social activist Julia Ward Howe after the American Civil War. However, it was intended as a call to unite women against war. In 1870, she wrote the Mother's Day Proclamation as a call for peace and disarmament. Howe failed in her attempt to get formal recognition of a Mother's Day for Peace.

Her idea was influenced by Ann Jarvis, a young Appalachian homemaker who, starting in 1858, had attempted to improve sanitation through what she called Mothers' Work Days. She organized women throughout the Civil War to work for better sanitary conditions for both sides, and in 1868 she began work to reconcile Union and Confederate neighbors.

When Jarvis died in 1905, her daughter, named Anna Jarvis, started the crusade to found a memorial day for women. In 1907, she passed out 500 white carnations at her mother’s church, St. Andrew’s Methodist Episcopal Church in Grafton, West Virginia—one for each mother in the congregation. The first Mother's Day service was celebrated on 10 May 1908, in the same church, where the elder Ann Jarvis had taught Sunday School. Anna chose Sunday to be Mother's Day because she intended the day to be commemorated and treated as a Holy Day. Later commercial and other exploitations of the use of Mother's Day infuriated Anna and she made her criticisms explicitly known throughout her time ^[2].

Originally the Andrew's Methodist Episcopal Church, the site of the original Mother's Day commemoration, where Anna handed out carnations, this building is now the International Mother's Day Shrine (a National Historic Landmark). From there, the custom caught on—spreading eventually to 46 states. The holiday was declared officially by some states beginning in 1912, beginning with West Virginia. In 1914 President Woodrow Wilson declared the first national Mother's Day, as a day for American citizens to show the flag in honor of those mothers whose sons had died in war.

Nine years after the first official Mother's Day, commercialization of the U.S. holiday became so rampant that Anna Jarvis herself became a major opponent of what the holiday had become. Mother's Day continues to this day to be one of the most commercially successful U.S. occasions. According to the National Restaurant Association, Mother's Day is now the most popular day of the year to dine out at a restaurant in the United States.

For example, according to IBISWorld, a publisher of business research, Americans will spend approximately $2.6 billion on flowers, $1.53 billion on pampering gifts — like spa treatments — and another $68 million on greeting cards ^[3].

Mother's Day will generate about 7.8% of the US jewelry industry's annual revenue in 2008. Americans are expected to spend close to $3.51 billion in 2008 on dining out for Mother's Day, with brunch and dinner being the most popular dining out options ^[4].

-Spencer

Happy Mother's Day!

This post is dedicated to my Mom. Mother's Day is a special day when our heart and minds are turned to our Mothers. I am so blessed to have the Mom that I have! Ever since I can remember she has encouraged me to share every hope, love, and passion with her. She is the first person I want to tell when something exciting or disappointing happens to me! I can just look around me when I'm outside my home and see how great my Mom is. She is a true example to me of selflessness, one example of this is that she chooses to homeschool me and my siblings. She teaches us herself and for that I am truly thankful! My Mom has taught me how to love the home and the small everyday things I do in the home. Now I truly enjoy being able to help her by taking on some of the chores that she has taught me how to do. So many times Mommy has kindly pointed out to me how I can do better in my Christian walk. Since she probably knows me better then anyone in my life right now she also knows my shortcomings better then anyone else. At the time I usually don't see her corrections as kind and helpful but as I look back through my life I can now see that I am a much better person because of my Mom and the insight that she has given me. I have seen my Mom interact with her friends and even people that just enter her life for a moment. One thing that has struck me is that she is always so encouraging and friendly! I consider it really stepping outside of my comfort zone to introduce myself to people and carry on a conversation with them so I love to watch how my Mom does it and imitate her. Thanks for being such a great example to me, Mommy! -Victoria

Mommy, I want you to know that I really appreciate all the sacrifices you have made to raise me into a godly man. You have always been there for me in my Christian walk and have, many a time, put me back on track when I have strayed. Though I might have not liked it then I now look back on it as a learning experience I would have been sorry to miss. Your grateful son, Spencer

I love my Mommy! She teaches me schoolwork and she reads to me.

-Andrew

We all hope you have a wonderful, happy Mother's day, Mommy! We love you lots! From, Victoria, Spencer and Andrew

Do Hard Things

A week ago tomorrow our Do Hard Things Arrived in the mail. We pre-ordered our copies in the book bomb on Amazon.com. (Look at the side bar.)
After reading a post on the Rebelution we realized it has been a little more then a year since Alex and Brett first announced they'd be writing a book. You couldn't imagine our excitment when we found a box of books on our doorstep. After hearing the updates and praying for the book and it's message through the writing process it was so cool to see Do Hard Things on the shelf in Barns and Noble!
Do Hard Things contains a message that needs to be spread. The book is a challenge to go against what our culture defines as normal. Through the chapters we are encouraged to do things that are outside of our comfort zones, collaborate with other people to accomplish ideas that are too big for just us, do small hard things that don't pay off immediately like chores, and stand up for what we believe in even if it means going against the crowd. We are told throughout the book that our teen years are the launching pad for the rest of our life and we meet tons of other teens who have done hard things.

This is the Official Book Description:
The next generation stands on the brink of a "rebelution." With over 16 million hits to their website TheRebelution.com, Alex and Brett Harris are leading the charge in a growing movement of Christian young people who are rebelling against the low expectations of their culture by choosing to "do hard things" for the glory of God. Written when they were 18 years old, Do Hard Things is the Harris twins' revolutionary message in its purest and most compelling form, giving readers a tangible glimpse of what is possible for teens who actively resist cultural lies that limit their potential. Combating the idea of adolescence as a vacation from responsibility, the authors weave together biblical insights, history, and modern examples to redefine the teen years as the launching pad of life and map a clear trajectory for long-term fulfillment and eternal impact. Written by teens for teens, Do Hard Things is packed with humorous personal anecdotes, practical examples, and stories of real-life rebelutionaries in action. This rallying cry from the heart of revolution already in progress challenges the next generation to lay claim to a brighter future, starting today.

Even though this book is written "for teens by teens" I think anyone could learn from the lessons put forth in this book.
One of the reason I love Do Hard Things so much is because it introduces me to so many real life people that are going against our cultures norm. I am encouraged to do things that might seem hard but I know I'm not alone there are many more people...brothers and sisters in Christ!
So go and purchase yourself or someone you know a copy. You won't be disappointed.
-Victoria

Good Times With Good Friends

Yesterday we had the opportunity to go up to Indianapolis for a very special event...we got to see a good friend of ours Joshua Williams be baptized!
We all really missed not being able to see everyone at our church but this was a unique occasion. We got to meet a lot of new people and see the Williams again. To my disappointment none of the pictures from the baptism worked out since the sanctuary was so dark!
Also Hannah (Joshua's older sister) sang a song that she had written herself.
Joshua is 11 years old and he was baptized by his Dad, Jimmy Williams after accepting Christ. It was wonderful to see him following Christ in obedience in baptism! Mr. Jimmy and Mrs. Gina Williams have 5 kids
Hannah (12), Joshua (11), Rachel (10) , Micah (8) and

Elisabeth who is only a few months old.
So we got to spend most of the day with them.

(Above is an older picture of all
of us last December.)

Then on the way home we stopped at iHop right across the river from Louisville and to our surprise our friends the Dicks where there eating also! What providence since they live about a half an hour from Louisville! So we got to eat a yummy dinner with them and talk with and get to know all of them better. Yesterday we got to have lots of fun and lots of fellowship with friends!



(The manager kindly took this
picture so that everyone could be
in it.)

-Victoria

An Article That Inspired Us

Alex and Brett Harris just wrote an awesome post for Focus on the Family's Boundless Webzine. It is so encouraging to read! I think this article is a shortened and condensed version of everything the movement, the website, and the conferences are all about. Here's an excerpt:

And while it may sound more appealing to sign up for a less extreme version of the Christian life. Maybe instead of the platinum "do hard things" membership, we can tackle something more along the lines of the bronze "go-to-church-every-week" membership. Less benefits for less effort. Sounds good, right?

Unfortunately (or again, fortunately), God doesn't leave that option open to us.

Writes C.S. Lewis: "It is hard; but the sort of compromise we're hankering after is harder — in fact, it is impossible.... We are like eggs at present. And we cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad."

In other words, we can't just go on being ordinary, decent Christians, giving God part of our lives while holding back the rest. Either we are hatched and learn to fly or we are a dud that will soon start to stink. The ironic thing here is that although the hardest thing — the almost impossible thing — is to hand over our whole selves to Christ, it is far easier than what we are trying to do instead.

So now that you've read some of the article go check out the rest!

-Victoria and Spencer

Examples

Whenever I was little I wanted a sister so bad! I wanted someone I could play dolls with and have tea parties with. As I grew older I realized God had given me brothers not sisters and I needed to be as much of an example to my brothers as I wanted to be to a sister.
I need to be an example of femininity and of patience and submission. (The last two I haven't quit conquered.)
After watching a very good documentary, The Return of the Daughters it occurred to me that I am helping to train up the next generation of men. One of the girls said something very good. I can't remember her exact wording but she said something like, "Whenever your talking to your brothers about men that you admire, either from the past or present. They will be looking to those men as examples. So you can study up on men of the faith and give them wonderful examples."
So I had to ask myself, what examples am I giving to my brothers? Do I have characteristics that they are looking at and will want in a future wife?
Before I came to Christ I had a hard time accepting it when Spencer knew something that I didn't know yet. I would put him down because he was 3 years younger then me. But I eventually realized that I was not in the least encouraging him in his masculinity and manliness by the way I was acting. So now I try to encourage my brothers in every way I can. It's hard sometimes but then I realize...Andrew wants to be the President! Hey, I could be helping to train up one of our future Presidents!
So what are you ladies doing to help raise up the next godly generation of men? I would love to hear anyone's insight and advice!

-Victoria

Quote from John Calvin

"God is pleased to hide all
future events from us, in
order that we should resist
them as doubtful, and
not cease to oppose them
with ready remedies,
until they are either
overcome or pass beyond
all care...God's providence
does not always meet us in
it's naked form, but God in

a sense clothes it with the
means employed."
-John Calvin

-Victoria

Braces

It has now officially been a week since I got my braces put on and I think it's high time I show you some pictures:

Before After

~Spencer

The White's Have a New White Van!

A few of our friends have requested pictures of our new van. It is so amazing how God provided this vehicle for us nearly two weeks ago when earlier in March our other van suddenly died. It was so amazing to see God take care of everything from the finances to leading us to a car lot that was christian owned and operated. May God have all the glory!


-Victoria