ENN: The Giant Snowman

We were quite tickled this morning to learn from Josh Hayden that Andrew's first (real) ENN is up on Vision Forum's Website.

Click here to watch it! : )

Winter Time at our Abode

The Earthly Abode of the Serven Clan

We finally decided we should update our "Abode" page, so here is an official wintery picture of our home. Peter took it from the east side of our property in the little stretch of woods. There is a creek running on the east and south parts of the 3 acres we call home. It's been running high a lot over this past month with all the ice and snow.


Thelma Lou

We have 3 cats who acquiesce to grace us with their presence: Barney, Thelma Lou and Aunt Bea. [Editor's Note: Bet you can't figure out what inspired the names!? : ) Actually, that makes 2 "Barney"s at The Serven Clan as we also named one of our refrigerators the same moniker.] The cats do their job well of keeping mice and rodents away from our house and we exchange that for their room and board. Ben and Lydia feed them faithfully morning and evening as the mice population is significantly diminished since the feline's arrive.



Living in Missouri has brought many new weather experiences. Frost is a regular occurrence . . .



. . . but the amount of ice we received a few weeks ago was classified as "unusual" by the locals. The ice encased every tree branch, withered leaf, and blade of grass . . . and the ice stayed for a week or more! Very uncommon for middle Missouri. The sound of ice crunching under ones feet on a cold winter walk is very comforting to the ears. I think one could grow quite fond of it.


The mailboxes up near the road were even a little chilly!

This Morning's Weather Report: 6 degrees Fahrenheit (with the windchill it feels like -2 degrees!).

Even with all that nippy weather, Peter is still out this morning running across the fields. What a faithful guy! My exercise tends to be inside unless I have someone to walk with out-of-doors. Dad has asked us Serven ladies to just take laps around the house, not walking down the road or over the hills unless we have company. So, most mornings I will just jog/jump-rope in place in the house. To keep track of how long I've been moving about, I'll sing hymns (in my head as to not wake everyone up). This morning was short--only three verses, but other days I've been up to six or seven. Ah, the humorous ruminations of one Rebecca Serven. : )

Curious to see what our home looks like when the trees are green? Click here.

Winter Fun

Distinctions in Obedience

The challenge for men is to strive to show an active obedience to God--making things happen, courageously leading, being faithful to accomplish things for the Kingdom.

The challenge for women is to strive to show a resting obedience to God--resting in His goodness, submitting joyfully to His direction, watching His hand guide her steps for His glory.

From the Field: Pendragon Project

Off we go to the bitter cold . . .

The past few days I had the privilege to spend some time with the Burns in their Pendragon Project, a full length film telling a tale of early Britan. We headed up to Detroit to meet with the other Burns family (their cousins) and gather all the great minds to collaborate on the next phase of the filming.

This entailed shooting in sub freezing temperatures (ok, 35*), baptizing the shotgun mic in the creek (don't worry--it was only partial immersion : ), and enjoying a few rousing discussions. Check out the Burns site here. If you hurry, you can even sponsor a character . . . : )

-Peter


Nick Burns, director.


Chad Burns, actor.


Jason Wall, lighting consultant.


Applying makeup.


All the costumes are meticulously created by the sewing duet, Shannon and Marilyn Burns.


Preparing the monk's hermitage.

"Arctos" (a.k.a. Aaron) applying charcoal for an authentic look.


Cooking "dinner".


Film crew (a.k.a. cousins, friends and other underpaid individuals : ) helping out with the lighting.


Warming chilly appendages.


"The Monk".

Off to the Duplicators . . .

That's right, Hymns for Kith and Kin was dropped in the mail yesterday to the duplicators. We hope to have it in stock by early March. . .

But, we have a very special announcement to make. We are quite pleased to tell you we are holding an exclusive pre-sale for our friends and blog readers. If you pre-order your copy of Hymns for Kith and Kin, you can save 20% on the price! We will raise the praise up to retail of $15.00 as soon as it arrives in stock (probably March 2007) so there is only a limited time that this sale will be offered.

We have created a secret page on our website where you can access the information on Hymns for Kith and Kin . . . so you won't be able to access it off of www.genevanfoundation.com only by clicking this very special link. You are welcome to tell your friends and acquaintances, but just remember the sale only lasts as long as this project is at the duplicators . . .

Important Addendum: 11:00 AM 1/26/2007
We can not tell you exactly how long this sale will last. As soon as we receive the package in our home back from the duplicators, the secret page will come off the website and our new regular page will be up (at full price). The CDs could come back from the duplicators as early as a week or two weeks from now, or it could be longer into March. If we hear wind of our duplicators shipping the CDs before they arrive, we'll be sure to notify you . . . But there is no way of telling . . . so place your order now while you can!

Arranger and Performer: Rebecca Serven
Producer: Peter Serven and The Genevan Foundation for Cultural Renewal
Format: Audio CD, 55 minutes.

Hymns for Kith and Kin provides rich piano accompaniment supporting you in your daily family worship. Listen to the musical introductions played on a Steinway grand piano, then join in singing each verse with accompaniment styled to the text of the hymn. Perfect for listening to as background music or singing along in your daily worship, Hymns for Kith and Kin will equip your family to sing praises to our God. All 18 selections coordinate with the Trinity Hymnal plus many match to hymns found in The Family Worship Book. 55 minutes. Buy now for 20% off regular price! Ships March 2007.

Songs Contained on Hymns for Kith and Kin:
A Mighty Fortress is Our God; Amazing Grace; And Can it Be; Be Thou My Vision; Come Thou Almighty King; Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing; Doxology; For All the Saints; Great is Thy Faithfulness; Hallelujah Praise Jehovah, O My Soul; Holy, Holy, Holy; How Great Thou Art; Immortal, Invisible; Jesus, What a Friend for Sinners; O the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus; Praise to the Lord, The Almighty; Soul Adorn Yourself with Gladness; When Peace Like a River.

Click here to see pictures of the recording process.

Trusting the Expert

Living ones life under the shadow of the infamous "experts" is difficult. You open yourself up for all kinds of advice--the good, the bad, and the ugly.

So called friends and acquaintances will pass along well meaning tidbits of knowledge they once gleaned; the Babylon Box will impose it's world view with steady purposefulness; the experts filling the sacred halls of our nations highest learning centers and the medical community with it's "Yes, Doctor" attitude, expect you to bow to them; the civil magistrate even crosses jurisdictional lines to tell you why you should eat a certain amount of broccoli each day.

Its all around us. The mentality of implicitly trusting the experts lies rampant in our society.

What freedom it brings to know that the only expert we have to put our trust in is the only true Expert--God Almighty, as he reveals himself in his word the Scripture. Our confidence in the Bible can be implicit. His word is truth. Every thing that comes up in our life should be run through the grid of Scripture.

The idea of the "Desert Island Challenge" is quite profound when you think of it. Imagine yourself on a desert island with no past experience, preconceived notions, friends, or experts. How would you make your decisions wholly based off of the patterns, precepts and principles contained in God's word? This must be our ultimate test for all questions.

God also places us in families, churches and towns where He sovereignly puts people around us who He uses as instruments in our life. The Lord does not call us to be Lone Ranger Christians. We are commanded to be in community with others, under the authority, teaching, and discipleship of godly older saints who base their whole world off of the truth in Scripture.

Seeking wise council from people the Lord brings across our path is a necessity to growth in the Christian life. Be watchful if they truly "fear Jehovah, walking ever in His ways", then rejoice! Developing honest relationships with those you grow to know inside and out is imperative to each of our sanctification. The friendship with those saints can grow to a deep and rich trust. We should embrace our ties to a covenant community, dear family, and properly enacted magistrate.

The problem comes when people put their trust in the ubiquitous "they". You know, "They say it will snow next Tuesday", "But Susy, to have a really successful marriage you must follow these 10 Steps!", and "As I've heard it, giving children 3 servings of milk a day will boost their calcium by 73%". Uh huh. And did you know that 95% of all statistics are made up on the spot?

Sometimes a person makes it their personal mission in life to be a "fixer": a proclaimer of all facts that will someday save your life. These modern day meddlers will squeeze their way into your family, church and community seeking to shed the light on your life situation. They will spout statistics, anecdotes, and evidences until the cows come home. But unless their view of the world is governed by the grid of Scripture it's all hog wash.

None of us can truly know anything apart from God's grace. All things are derivative in nature. We can't ever claim to be the expert on a subject. Because, only our God know all the facts. He is the only Expert.

"For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart."

"Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

"For consider your calling brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom and our righteousness and sanctification and redemption. Therefore, as it is written, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord"
1 Corinthians 1:18-31 (Emphasis added)

What a relief to know the spoutings of the latest and greatest tele-evangelist, can't bring themselves to bear on the status of your salvation.

What a comfort to trust God that the newest Christian-woman's-issues-author does not have a prior claim on your attention.

And what a joy to believe and rejoice that by God's grace, Scripture is our final authority for all or faith and life, revealed to us in his Word by the only true Expert.

Hymn of the Day

We learned this stirring hymn during our New Years celebration. Surrounded by family and friends as we sang the majestic tune, we were reminded that each year is lived totally and completely resting upon God's unfathomable grace. May the Lord be pleased to extend His mercy to us today and always.

By Grace I'm Saved, Grace Free and Boundless

By grace I'm saved, grace free and boundless; my soul, believe and doubt it not.
Why stagger at this word of promise? Has Scripture ever falsehood taught?
No; then this word must true remain: by grace you too shall heav'n obtain.

By grace! None dare lay claim to merit; our works and conduct have no worth.
God in his love sent our Redeemer, Christ Jesus to this sinful earth;
His death did for our sins atone, and we are saved by grace alone.

By grace! O mark this word of promise when you are by your sins oppressed,
When Satan plagues your troubled conscience, and when your heart is seeking rest.
What reason cannot comprehend God by his grace to you will send.

By grace! This ground of faith is certain; so long as God is true, it stands.
What saints have penned by inspiration, what in his Word our God commands,
What our whole faith must rest upon, is grace along, grace in his Son.

Words: Christian L. Scheidt, 1742, cento. Alt. 1990, mod.
Tune: MENTZER 9.8.9.8.8.8., Johann B. Konig's Harmonischer Leiderschatz, 1738.

P. S. After typing out the words to this beautiful hymn, I recollected that there is a site that has words to hymns and tune samples . . . thought you might enjoy hearing the melody. Our speakers are not set up currently, so I can't preview the sound, but I'm sure it gives a general idea of the tune.

Lumberjack Joel

What a dear brother the Lord has blessed us with.

Register Now for the Men's Leadership Advance!

The Joys & Duties of the Family Shepherd and Delighting in the Sabbath Day

Our church, Covenant Family Church, is hosting a Men's Leadership Advance with Pastor Kevin Swanson and our dad and pastor, Marcus Serven. This two day conference will be held north of St. Louis, Missouri.

Sign up now! Space is limited.

Gossip

The Sins of the Tongue: The Whisperer

October 15, 2006 sermon by Pastor Marcus Serven. Thanks to Covenant Family Church for the link.

The Ten Days of Feasting

Caroling of God's amazing grace.

The last while has been glorious. Every year, The Ten Days of Feasting grow richer and deeper. We are overwhelmed with God's mercies manifested toward us.

What thanksgiving can we offer that would match His inestimable worth? It is all of His praise and glorious grace. We can only cry "unworthy" and marvel continually.

---

You may have noticed, we decided to change the name of this time of rejoicing. We liked the sound of "The Ten Days of Feasting" better than the previous nine days, and we realized that we had forgotten to count the "Hanging 'O the Greens" as one of the celebration. How could we have overlooked that?! So, the official count is 1 anniversary, Hanging 'O the Greens, 4 birthdays, Christmas Eve and Day, and New Years Eve and Day which makes 10 special occasions.


Bringing in the tree! [Editors Note: Notice the new paint scheme.]


Our dear parents.

Dad and Mom were united in marriage on December 14th. Since Christmas was so close to their wedding day, while they were on their honeymoon they decided to get a little tree for their cabin. Unfortunately, they did not have any ornaments for the tree. That would not stop the celebration of God's glorious gift of His Son! They decided to place their wedding corsage and boutonniere on the tree as a reminder of their gratefulness to God for each other. And as a matter of practicality, they created additional ornaments from the last night's pizza box. : )

Through the years Dad and Mom have saved those first precious flower "ornaments" (don't worry--they threw away the pizza box ones) and placed them on the tree every year. It is a wonderful reminder to all of us of God's faithfulness.


Mom's corsage.


Adorning the tree.


All Smiles.

Each of the children have their own small collection of ornaments that they have acquired through the years. Mom wanted to make sure that the phenomena of wedding corsages and pizza boxes would not repeat itself in the coming generations. : )


Stitching up the tree's new dress.

Making Popcorn and Cranberry strings for the tree is an important ingredient to a properly dressed tree. Sarah and Lydia spearheaded the effort and the results are quite charming.


The Family Tradition--lying under the tree gazing up at all the lights.

This tradition started when Rebecca was a baby. Dad and Mom brought her home from the hospital on Christmas Eve. Being a new pastor and having been married only a year and a week, monetary considerations were heightened. But Dad and Mom knew what the gift really was--a precious new baby girl from the Lord. They put a bow on Rebecca and placed her in a little baby seat under the tree.

Since that first year, we have continued the tradition of lying under the Christmas tree and remembering the true gifts of how our merciful God has showered His blessings upon us in relationships with Himself and His precious children.

We are so grateful to our Father for the giving of the Gift of Jesus Christ as a Kinsman Redeemer for His people and for the efficacious application of His grace in our life by the Holy Spirit. It is all of Him and none of us.