North Carolina FEW Conference

Huzzah! Huzzah! Huzzah! The first Family Encouragement Weekend of the year was a smashing success. However, the enemy’s opposition was evident. We did have a “few” interruptions, unexpected medical complications, and other spiritual warfare, but “greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world.” Once again good overcame evil! Each family left inspired to apply the truths of Scripture to every-day family life, and encouraged that we are not alone in the battle. Thank you Neely and Wilkes Teams for your labor of love and desire to share with others what God has done in your lives!

A full parking lotWe met many new families.All the young people put together a fabulous orchestra, complete  with penny-whistlesOne family traveled over 14 hours to make it for the weekend!How can life be the same after that message?A testimony from the heart reaches the heart."How good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!"An encouraging reminder to see all circumstances from God's perspective.Question and Answer sessionA fun family song :-)"...With my song will I praise Him"Full analysis and commentary on the aesthetic values of Donald's chalk work by Adam Wilkes. :-)The audio visual support teamNever a dull moment with 34 people in one house!Big chef, little chef: Discipleship Hotdogs!Mom's bed was already occupied... :-/Welcoming the latecomersThat must have been a good one!"Dutch Blitz, anyone?"Happy Birthday, Mom!You should have tasted those cakes...Practicing our group song togetherBehind the scenes...God's ways work!

 

 

 

 

 

Guilty face by the cookie table...Teaching by Analogy

“If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” – Colossians 3:1-2

The whole team!

One Special Evening

Last Friday the single staff here at Headquarters hosted an elaborate and truly spectacular Valentine Valentine Banquet 2011Banquet to honor the training center directors and other special guests. I was asked to help organize the servers for the banquet, and this position allowed me to see firsthand the exhaustive attention to detail, flawless teamwork, and Christ-like character which made it possible to pull off this monumental undertaking with stress-free efficiency and expertise!

It was so neat to see God put together all the details. That very morning I happened to read Matthew 20:27 which talks about being a “servant” of all. The Lord also brought my attention to the section a couple verses earlier in the chapter, where the sons of Zebedee with their mother approached Jesus and asked for “special seating arrangements.” What was his answer? This “is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father.” (Matt. 20:23).

HQ Valentines Banquet 2011 from Chad … on Vimeo.

The night before we had been rearranging the tables to accommodate the new number of guests that were expected for the banquet, but we came up one chair too short – and we had already packed the seats in as tight as possible! At that very moment we received a call from one of the couples saying the wife would not be able to attend. How often do problems get solved that easily?

Then, during the evening of the banquet, soon after we had begun seating each couple, one couple came up to us with a special request to be seated at one of the far tables. Scrambling through our charts, we VB-2011worked out a last-second switch to accommodate them. In the middle of getting this all worked out, two other guests asked to be seated early. I thought all our careful plans to seat the guests table by table were being totally thrown off, but the Lord gave me a peace that this had all been “prepared of my Father.” It was then that I suddenly realized where these two guests were supposed to sit: directly across from the first couple at the far table! Everything could not have worked out more perfectly.

This was just one of the many ways that we saw the Lord pour out his blessing on the entire event. There is joy in serving Jesus!

Just Released: “The $100,000 Word”!

05-15-10_7588-EditI did not want to write the book. When would I have the time? What would I write about? How would we get it published? We had never done anything of the sort before, and I honestly had a hard time catching the vision. I had always kind of dreamed about being an author some day, but not until I was 80 or 90 or so.

An ordinary book about an extraordinary GodHowever, my brother Robert had a different opinion. And if you know Robert, he defended his opinion passionately, of course. “Daniel, you should write a book!” he said. “This is a fleeting opportunity you have to encourage future Bible Bee contestants and countless others to develop a love for Scripture.” And the more I thought about it, prayed about it, and discussed it with the rest of the family, the more I was convinced that he was right. It couldn’t do any harm just telling the story of how God taught me the value of His Word through the whole Bible Bee experience. So Robert won. I wrote a book. The vision Robert had back at the very beginning carried me all the way through to completion, until that startling day when I held in my hands for the first time a printed copy of the finished project.

Robert’s vision and the support and encouragement of countless others is truly what turned the book from a dream into a reality. My brother James is responsible for the masterful layout and design of the book, and the rest of the family (especially Donald and Esther) spent hours critiquing every word. Mrs. Rees rendered her professional editing Portraitservices completely free of charge. Dr. Gothard offered words of rich wisdom and insight. I am also grateful to Barak Lundberg, Mr. Ondrovic, Tony Oliverio, Steve Mugglin, and perhaps most of all my parents, without whom the book never would have been completed. And, to tell you the truth, the only thing I had to write about was what my Heavenly Father did in my life through the Bible Bee. To Him be the ultimate glory!

The book is available on the IBLP Store. We hope to also have it here on our family site in the near future. Enjoy! I hope you have as much fun reading it as I had writing it.

New Years at the Neely’s

A full house! But they couldn't have made us more comfortable. I don’t think our family has ever had a more exciting New Years celebration! Nearing the end of our Florida trip, December 31 found us at the Neely household – experienced hosts indeed! You should have been there. We fit everything you can think of into that all-too-short two-night stay: Dutch Blitz, Settlers of Catan, Kings and Peasants, Occupations, pruning trees, transplanting blueberries, jumping on the trampoline, singing and making music together, and taking the infamous ride down their front hill in the “Red Mule.” Even Duck Duck Goose! We also had a great time laughing around their dinner table, sharing life’s most embarrassing moments :) , and enjoying their constant supply of delectable food.

One ore for two brick? They caught onto Settlers very quickly! Who will get there first?!

The "beauty shop" quartet :-) Playing the handbells Good morning Titus!

Experimenting with a Mountain Dew bottleWe caught the entire process on video.Perhaps the most memorable event of all was blowing up their gingerbread house. Wild? Maybe. But a blast none the less! Preparing the concoction...The pyrotechnicians in the family had discovered that you could create quite an explosion by combining balls  of foil with a Let's see if it works on a gingerbread house...special cleaning agent in a plastic bottle. All we had to do was take the experiment one step farther – why not place the bottle inside the gingerbread house! (It was no longer edible anyway. Otherwise it James caught the house in mid-explosion!probably would have met a different fate… :) ) I personally was rather skeptical, thinking it would probably give a little pop and roll over. No way! It shot gingerbread, icing, and candy over 10 feet away!

Sweet fellowship in Christ!:-)Enjoying it... We won! The picture of the day!Preparing for the gunshots to usher in the new decadeHaving fun yet?Like father, like son

Are you mephithob... meshiboph... Mephibosheth?Needless to say, we thoroughly enjoyed every moment of our visit. Thank you Neely Team for opening up your home and taking the time out of your full schedule to  encourage us with your gracious southern hospitality! You launched 2010 off to a thrilling beginning!

12-31-09_4238We all left with great anticipation of seeing them again!

Swimming on Christmas Day??

This was the first time our entire family had been to the beach in years!You know something’s wrong when everyone walking to the beach has their hands in their pockets wishing they had umbrellas. It was also a little disconcerting when we suddenly realized we were the only ones headed TO the beach – everyone else was going the opposite way! (We passed one lady wearing shorts, a  t-shirt, and a scarf!) But determined we were. Finally we got to the almost-vacant beach, only to find out a Nurse Shark (the kind that bite and suck) had been spotted just a few feet out from the shore! After a good laugh at ourselves, Dad suggested trying a different beach. :)

Riding the waves was one of the highlights of the whole Florida trip.The lonely path to the beach... :-)Overcoming our shivers, we eventually overcame our fears and tested the waters...We were amazed at both the beauty and power of water.

Later we saw how God was working it all out for good. Because we began swimming after it had started to sprinkle, we had the beach pretty much to ourselves. Then the sun came out, we had a blast riding the waves, and we were ready to head home just as all the crowds started pouring onto the  beach. And now we can all say we went swimming—on Christmas Day!

We also visited the beach to watch the sunset on Christmas Eve.A once-in-a-lifetime experience...Picturesque it was!"And they 'wode' off into the sunset."

"Look what I found!"Ready? Set...JUMP IT!

Sanibel is world-renowned for its shells.We found literally hundreds of shells along the shore.A time together we will never forget

Time stands still...The colors intensified as the evening progressed.Life...

Merry Christmas! :)

A Few Good Links:

Creation Museum
An unforgetable experience for the entire family!
The Wilkes Team
You’ll enjoy getting to know this talented, God-fearing, fun-loving family from Northern Virginia.

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