Sewell Family Newsletter 2010
We are so blessed to announce that the Lord has shown favor on us once more, and I am now in the second trimester! This is our eighth pregnancy, and we couldn’t be more thrilled and humbled by yet another opportunity to care for and raise another arrow (Psalm 127:3-5) for the glory of the Lord. As of today I can feel the baby moving as he or she is a very active little one. The baby’s heart rate is a healthy 150bpm, and by all accounts everything is going well with this pregnancy.
We have changed hospitals and providers in an effort to help me have the natural birth I have always wanted. I am really happy with the midwife that I have been seeing. We recently learned that our medical insurance will cover 80% of a homebirth. This came as great news for us because we have been hoping for a homebirth for a long time. We are scheduling a meeting with the homebirth midwife soon, and if the ultrasound at 20 weeks goes well, then we are hoping to switch over and prepare ourselves for a homebirth! Either way, I will not see an OBGYN unless complications arise, which as of now none are foreseen. I have only gained 3 pounds so far, and that could be from the change in diet we made shortly before Malachi was laid off back in March. We are now eating only organic or all natural foods, and we have cut back dramatically on the meat that we eat. We are only consuming grass-fed beef, and we’re all taking an organic multivitamin and Vitamin D3 supplement to boost our immune systems.
Sofia is now 4 years old and Charlotte is 2 years old. Time seems to be passing us by at lightning speed. They are the best of friends, and yet at times the worst of enemies. We are diligent to praise them for godly character and discipline for disobedience. We have family worship every night, which includes singing some old hymns, scripture reading, and prayers. Obviously because Sofia is older, she grasps the concepts we are teaching them and can articulate very well her understanding of what she has learned. Homeschool is going well. The past few weeks we’ve been taking a break in the midst of my fatigue, but training is 24/7, 365 days a year (Deut. 11:19). We are so blessed that the Lord convicted us early on in our marriage before having children that homeschooling is the only option for our family in the midst of the secular humanism being taught in public schools. We earnestly pray each day that the Lord would guide us through His word on instilling a Biblical worldview into our children. We want our children to not only know what they believe, but why they believe and be fully equipped to defend their faith when the day comes that it is challenged (1 Peter 3:15). Jesus tells us in Luke 6:40 that “A pupil is not above his teacher, but everyone, after being fully trained will be like his teacher”; this is paramount to the decision of us homeschooling our children.
The holidays are quickly approaching, even if the weather gives no indication of it. Malachi is now working at Best Buy again, and just recently was promoted to doing “in-home” services. This means that he is yet again driving the Geek Squad car. As we all know, the world of retail gets extremely busy during the holidays, and we are not sure that Malachi will be permitted to travel for Thanksgiving. The plan as of now is that we will be staying at home for Thanksgiving, and I will be making a small supper for us all. The day after Thanksgiving, known as “Black Friday” starts the retail madness. December will mark the beginning of my third trimester and that means travel is even more out of the question.
In regards to the month of December, we know that it means many will begin to decorate and prepare for Christmas, however, our family will not. Since Malachi and I were married we have been seeking to honor the Lord with everything we do, even the traditions we incorporate into our family. When we first were married the one thing that we did not do during Christmas was set up a “Christmas Tree”. For me personally, the Christmas tree had always been a symbol of where Santa Clause left gifts, and once becoming a Christian in 2004, this just struck me as something that didn’t fit into what Christmas was about. Over the years, since having children, we began to feel the pressure to incorporate the Christmas tree into our tradition for our children’s sake. We have heard various arguments for why Santa Clause is harmless, and how we are depriving our children of a tradition that is fun for them. Because Malachi and I evaluate everything in light of scripture, the past year or so, we have begun to, once again reevaluate why we do what we do. Christmas is one of the holidays that we not only investigated its origins, but went to God’s word to find out if it is consistent with all of the other things we are teaching our children. After much prayer and searching God’s word, we have come to the conclusion that Christmas is not a holiday that we want to incorporate into our family’s traditions. We realize this may come as a shock and many will be a bit bewildered at how a Christian family could possibly throw out “Christmas”. Let me explain.
First, December 25th, before it was deemed “Christmas” was celebrated as the pagan holiday Saturnalia. When Constantine arrived on the scene and started the Roman Catholic Church, in an effort to rid the pagan origins and some of the less than desirable celebrations of the holiday he claimed the day as a Christian holiday called “Christ Mass”, which is now known as Christmas. While his efforts, to some may seem honorable, it began a tradition that we don’t see recorded in scripture, nor do we see the early Church celebrating. I think many know that Christ was not born in December, and that three wise men did not visit Christ upon His birth.
Second, as time went on, different traditions of the pagan holiday were just transformed into something more appealing and acceptable to the Roman Catholic Church. The Christmas tree is one of those things, as is caroling, and the giving of gifts. All of these things were created in an effort to cover up the pagan celebrations that took place on December 25th.
Third, later on the story of what we know as “Santa Clause” began as a legend of St. Nicolas, who in reality, we feel would be appalled at how he is being portrayed today. The modern day Santa is an invention of the Coca Cola Company in an effort to boost sales of their product. The image of an obese old man, who has been given attributes similar to that of the Lord, who sneaks into the houses of families across the world, flying through the air being pulled by flying reindeer, is what most children identify Christmas with, not Jesus Christ. So it appears that we have come full circle. December 25th began as a pagan holiday, “Christianized” by Constantine, and is now pagan once again. This should not surprise anyone. The Bible never calls us to “Christianize” paganism in order to make it fit into our lives.
We are called to be a people set apart for the Lord (Romans 1:1 and John 17:14-19) and to be a “peculiar people” (Deut. 14:2) that do not conform to the world (Romans 12:2). Malachi and I take the Word of the Lord very seriously, and that is why all that we believe, all that we do, and the traditions we incorporate into our family need to be based on scripture alone (Sola Scriptura) when they deal with religious themes. We don’t want to perpetuate a tradition without being able to point our children to scripture as a defense for why we do what we do. So this year, and for the years to come, we have chosen to not incorporate Christmas into our family’s traditions. We won’t be giving or receiving any gifts, and we won’t be decorating our home. December 25th will be a day like all other days, and we will use it, like all other days for the glory of the Lord. We don’t need to set aside special days in order to give honor to the Lord, and we understand that this issue falls in the category of Christian liberty. So, what we are NOT saying is that we feel those who incorporate Christmas as a way to celebrate the birth of Christ are sinning. What we are saying is that for our family, and what our end goal is for our family, Christmas is not consistent with what we see in scripture as a means to achieve that goal (Romans 14). The only celebrations or times of remembrances that we found in scripture that we are commanded to observe are the Lord’s Supper (See the Gospels) and believer’s baptism (Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38-39, and Acts 19:4).
We respectfully ask that no one send any Christmas gifts, and please do not be offended by the lack of gifts received from us. We are using this time to reflect on the Lord and His word and what He is doing in our family. This will be a time of sober reflection and evaluation of our lives and how to honor the Lord alone. We are open to questions and welcome respectful conversation about our decision, with the understanding that we are appealing to scripture alone (Sola Scriptura) for our decision and not emotion or tradition. We also encourage researching the origins of “Christmas” and not just take our word for it. The internet is full of information and there are several articles written by theologians about this particular subject. We are a Reformed Protestant family, and Christmas is traditionally a Roman Catholic holiday; which is just another reason we are choosing to abstain from celebrating it. These are our personal convictions, and we understand that they may seem odd; however, we have a desire to do everything for the glory of the Lord, and never do anything that would bring shame to His name.
We pray that whether or not you choose to celebrate Christmas that you will use each day to seek the Lord and His will according to scripture. We are so excited about all the things the Lord has done in our lives and all that He continues to do. We are honored that He would give us the children He has, and we pray that we will honor Him by bringing them up in the fear and admonition of the Lord. Soli Deo Gloria! – ‘Glory to God alone’
By His Grace,
The Sewell Family <><
P.S. Miss Jasmine Baucham, in my humble opinion, has articulated the Christmas thing better than I can, so I am including the link to the Newsletter she contributed to through Voddie Baucham Ministries: http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs026/1102459509708/archive/1102807115791.html
