The Reformation 500 in Boston

~The Reformation 500 Celebration conference by Vision Forum in Boston was a week of rejoicing, remembering, and rekindling friendships. From hearing historical lectures about the Protestant Reformers, to hearing speeches of challenge for reformation in our own time, it was a rich time of learning. From taking mini-tours about colonial meeting-places and Calvinist preachers with Dr. Jehle and Mr. Brown, to walking the Freedom Trail on our own, it was a grand time of exploring. From meeting with families over meals, to singing around the piano in the hotel lobby, and talking to people lingering around the vendor hall, it was a unique time of fellowship. We celebrated the Revolutionary history of Boston on July 4th, we celebrated the 500th anniversary of John Calvin's birthday, we celebrated God's works in history that led to where we stand today, and we celebrated the commonality that we had as brothers and sisters in Christ our Lord!

~Here is a sampling of pictures from our various activities:


Boston is full of beautiful churches.~
This is the Old State House.
Park Street Church.
Old State House on a different day--rainy!
Ben Franklin and the City Hall.
Boston Public Library.
From the library looking toward the John Hancock Tower.
Paul Revere and a church opposite the Old North Church.
Somewhere in Beacon Hill.
Bunker Hill Monument. Yes, we climbed the 294 steps to the top!
Friends Anna and Joy, from California and New Jersey, who were there with my mom and I.
Anna, Joy, and I at the Boston Common lagoon.
View over Boston from Bunker Hill.
George Washington in the Boston Common.
The street in front of the Park Plaza hotel.
Some of the weekend's speakers, Pastor Serven and Pastor Morecraft. (Notes from some of the lectures, coming soon...)

The Park Plaza complex at night.
Anna and I enjoying an al fresco lunch between lectures.
With some Haydens, Anna, Charmagne, and Steven before church on Sunday.
Dear Rebecca portrayed Mrs. Idelette Calvin; her sister Sarah is pictured here too, in her authentic Reformation maiden costume.
A mediocre picture of the elegant Imperial Ballroom, where the audience gathered for speeches, awards, singing, music, and Sunday worship.
The Liberty Bell replica in the foyer was rung 13 times at exactly 2 pm on Independence Day. Here, Mr. Phillips, in the lower part of the picture, has just rung it for one of the times:)
Some of the music we were treated to: fife and fiddle music.
And here, Charlie Zahm's ballads accompanied by his guitar, bohdran, and Mr. Phillips' accounting of memorable times in history, that went along with each song.
"Samuel Adams" made a single appearance, and all the children clamored for his signature!
Meeting the Reformers was an activity between all of the lectures. Young men and women reenacted figures from many countries and times of reformation, and they did so quite accurately and authentically, making the listener feel as if she was really at that place and time.
"Katharina von Bora" encourages the children to stand for truth--telling the boys what a great man her husband Martin Luther is, and telling the girls how wonderful it is to show hospitality, manage her home, and raise her children.
"Princess Renée of France" told of how relatively alone she was as a Reformed Christian among her noble friends, and of what she did to advance the Reformed cause. This princess was a recipient of John Calvin's correspondence and counsel.

Above, men and women gallantly and gracefully arriving for the costume parade around the verdant Boston Common. My friend Joy and I had costumes and greatly enjoyed marching in the parade, singing hymns as we went through the park, around the lagoon, in front of many cameras:) and finally down the streets of Boston back to the Park Plaza.

I believe there were flags for each state, and maybe the countries touched by Reformation, as well. Above, the Texas flag led the way for the group of men directly behind our group of ladies.

We were thankful to find this empty plot of grass on the Esplanade to watch the fireworks from on July 4th. 500,000 other people do exactly the same thing! Even in that crowd, we were blessed to have numerous families--friends from the conference--find us and join us for the evening. Conversation was the order of the day until darkness fell and the fireworks began. The largest fireworks show in the nation was close in front of us and practically above us, as we could feel particles falling down while gazing at the incredible, powerful display!

Below, the Charles River, above which the fireworks were set off. That was a glorious ending to a fabulous conference, and probably the most patriotic Independence Day possible--a Vision Forum event in Boston! I am so thankful to have been there, with 1,000 other attendees.

Bryce and Sarah

The wedding weekend was glorious! Such fellowship, feasting, and festivities all centered around the covenantal union of a Godly couple, my brother Bryce and new sister-in-law Sarah!

It was truly wonderful to have a week in Texas preparing for the wedding, spending time with other members of the wedding party and then with friends at the rehearsal and reception. Knowing that all these people were standing alongside of Bryce and Sarah and their families, was immensely special and made the parting less bittersweet.

I have fond memories of last-minute sewing, of a first manicure and pedicure, of a bridal luncheon with all the ladies, of dancing at the rehearsal dinner, of getting ready with the other bridesmaids, of managing one pose for the photographer outside in the peak heat of the wedding day, of standing on stage and looking happily at Bryce and then at the whole audience gathered to witness the vows, of seeing so many familiar faces at the reception and talking to all of them, of sitting on the manor's porch into the late evening and reminiscing about the momentous day, of resting and worshiping with Sarah's family and other friends on the Lord's Day, and then of leaving the great state of Texas, enriched with precious memories of a wonderful event.

As part of the wedding, I did not take any pictures myself, but here are two as a preview; and hopefully the professional photographs will be arriving soon!

Home Again!

~ I'm back home and am trying to catch up on rest and sort through photos when I have time. I just wanted to give a quick update that yes, hopefully there will photos from Texas and Boston here, very soon! ~

An Eventful Two Weeks

The next two weeks should be a busy, full, and momentous time in our family. My only sibling and dear brother, Bryce, is to be married to a wonderful young lady next Saturday! The three of us are traveling to Texas at the beginning of the week, for a week of anticipation, fellowship, and celebration with Sarah's family, the wedding party, and many other friends. I'll be a bridesmaid, which I am looking forward to with joy!

After that, our family will have to, bittersweetly, part ways for a while, as my mom and I go to the Reformation 500 Celebration with Vision Forum in Boston over Independence Day weekend, and Bryce and Sarah head far, far north for their honeymoon. Reunion will come, Lord willing, when Bryce brings his bride back to live in Montana, and I'm sure we will still see each other:)


I know being in Boston will be an incredible time. With the combination of learning about some of our most revered spiritual forebears, in the historic region of our national heritage, I trust it will be festive, inspiring, and educational. The Protestant Reformation and the American Revolution are most important for us to understand; indeed, the themes of the first strongly influenced the latter. I hope to write about some of our experiences on the blog we have used for other Vision Forum events.

My family was speaking earlier about this being a time of remembering and continuing on in the events of the last couple of Junes. In June 2007, Bryce and Sarah started courting, and I went to the Jamestown 400 Celebration where I also saw Sarah's family. On the same day as today in June 2008, we all went to Scotland for the Faith and Freedom Tour, with part of Sarah's family, and she and Bryce became engaged in Edinburgh.


Now, in June 2009, Bryce and Sarah will be covenanting in marriage, and my mom and I are going to the Reformation 500 in Boston. I'm determined not to leave Montana again next June/July, since one of our short-but-gorgeous summers has just barely begun! I don't have any more siblings to marry off, so unless Vision Forum has something as equally irresistible as they have for the last three years, that might be a possible resolution;-)

~So, I'm heading to the southern border and then the eastern seaboard, and I wish my readers a happy Fourth of July in two weeks! Check out Bryce and Sarah's website and the Reformation 500 website if you haven't already!~

~Fair Isle of Ancient Consequence~

"Your stones are binders of the centuries,

As before the onlooker’s eyes are spread

Primeval cliffs, ancient walls, princely graves,

Castles, chapels, and monuments medieval;

We remember and cherish."

~From my poem, wherein I attempted to capture my impression of the glorious truths and meaningful lessons that we learned on our journeys in the fair isle of Scotland nearly a year ago at this time. The whole composition may be viewed here, on our Journey to Scotland blog.

Peacful Pondside Evening

We've been enjoying our pond and all the wildlife around it; it is constantly changing. This is the time of year for new life: goslings, calves, and young sandhill cranes. The credit for all of these pictures goes to my mom, who has been faithful to document the beautiful things we see on our property.

One Thousand Years

Of late, I’ve been going back and listening to the recordings from the Vision Forum Scotland Faith and Freedom Tour. These messages would be a trove of wisdom for anyone, but they are especially so for those of us who were there on that romantic isle, and who remember the poignancy of our whole experience. Every word from the speakers calls up the emotion that was felt as we stood on ancient battlegrounds—whether spiritual or political battlegrounds—and remembered events of 500 and 1,000 years ago.

At the beginning of Pastor Morecraft’s talk during the closing banquet (on the last disc in the series), he related something that, when I heard it, really impressed its significance upon me.

The Protestant Reformation in the 1500s -1600s was really the “rediscovery of grace” which had been “all but lost for a thousand years.” A thousand years! Since the time of Augustine, who died in the fifth century, until the sparkings of reformation by now-equally-renowned men of God and men of the Bible, the Roman Catholic Church had obscured the truth of God’s Word by adding to it in their practice, and then essentially keeping the common people from studying the Bible for themselves.

What struck me was that this thousand years is roughly half—half!—of the scale of history between Jesus Christ’s birth and today. Two thousand years ago, He came to earth, enabling the spread of the Gospel to all nations, and giving greater clarity to the truth of His covenant of grace with His chosen people. For one thousand—half—of those years, the Gospel truth was squelched and opposed. While there were isolated groups of evangelical Christians (the Waldensians in France, for instance, or the Culdees in Scotland), the knowledge of the meaning of grace was largely concealed and distorted by the Roman church.

And then, God, in His grace, provided innumerable events of history to come together for one of the greatest revolutions in history—the “Great Christian Revolution,” in the words of Otto Scott—and arguably the most significant event in Christianity since the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Grace was rediscovered [to use the phrase from the title of a book by William Giles Robinson.] God, in His grace, provided the way for a widespread awakening to the truth of glorious, free, unmerited grace extended from a sovereign God to depraved mankind. The Reformers sought the sufficient wisdom and Scripture alone, and found out, systematically, for the first time since Augustine, the doctrine of salvation by grace alone, by faith alone, by Christ alone, to the glory of God alone.

After one thousand years of dishonor and neglect, the Reformation rediscovered grace; it has been “discovered,” then, for the past five hundred years, half of the length of time that it was lost. And yet, many Christians have again forgotten the truths of the sufficiency of Scripture and the sovereignty of God’s grace. Christendom easily slips toward the same things that the Roman church established during the fifth through fifteenth centuries: holding to man’s tradition above God’s commands; and believing in the merit of good works either as part of salvation or after salvation.

Today, we need to know the truths proclaimed by the Reformation, as much as ever. We also need to remember the providential work of Reformation five hundred years ago, so that the thousand years we are in will be more characterized by reformation than the need for reformation. One way to remember the Protestant Reformation, and learn more about applying it to our own lives, churches, and communities five centuries later, is to attend some of the many Reformation conferences and events going on this year on the anniversary of the great reformer, John Calvin.

My mom and I, and many friends, are planning to be at the Reformation 500 Celebration given by Vision Forum Ministries in Boston this July. I know it will be a time to rejoice in God’s deliverance from the thousand years where grace was all but lost, and to rejoice that we are continuing, by God’s grace, to live in the epoch begun when grace was rediscovered. How wonderful that there are those that want to remember.

Jesus Christ was born two thousand years ago. The Gospel was hidden one thousand, five hundred years ago. The Reformation brought it to light five hundred years ago, introducing the greatest age of liberty, knowledge, and expansion in history. What happens next is dependant on what God’s people believe, and how we live. What will you believe; what will you remember; how will you live? May we wholeheartedly believe in the truth, and go on to bear the Gospel torch that our mighty forefathers lighted, carried, and entrusted to their spiritual descendants.

May it be said that “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord”—the Lord who works all things in history, and all things in our salvation, but His marvelous, powerful grace.

All in a Day's Work

The assignment for a recent Saturday was cleaning out some of the irrigation ditches in our valley. Armed with shovels and pitchforks, we had a leisurely slosh through the canal for a few sunny hours. It was pleasant to converse with our friends, who were helping, as we made sure the water was clear of grass and brush.



And then, for most of us, it was one to a different activity. We hiked up to this mountain waterfall. The forest, awakening to the first warm days of the year, was full of fragrance and color.
~ Christopher and Molly.~
The view driving toward the trailhead. We all had a fun day of exercise!

Little Tait

~These are pictures of sweet Little Tait Zimmerman, whose godly parents are turning to the Christian community, rather than civil welfare, to provide for the medical bills of this premature baby's hospital stay. Please read their story and consider standing with them in their time of need.~

Beth and Jon's Wedding

The afternoon of April Eighteenth found several hundred people in this church in Missouri, awaiting the covenant celebration of the marriage of Elizabeth Serven and Jonathan Ten Dolle.

One of the verses in the program read: "So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love." 1 Corinthians 13:13





The radiant new husband and wife!

Mr. and Mrs. Serven, the parents of the bride.

The auditorium befitted for a joyous reception.

Abundant spring flowers!

Rebecca and I.

My mom and Mr. Colin Gunn.

Dancing the Grand March.

Twirling through a circle waltz.

The crowd awaits....

...Beth and Jon navigating through a shower of birdseed....

...and riding off amid showers of fireworks.


Yes, it was good to be in attendance at their wedding, and to see friends and meet new ones, but most of all it was wonderful to consider that God-honoring, reverential celebrations, that Godly, Biblical marriages, and that the gathering of God's people together, are such things as advance His kingdom.

I went away with the impression that if marriage is supposed to be a picture of Christ and the Church, and a wedding is like a forerunner of the wedding feast of the Lamb, then this event met those purposes. And, just think: the earthly joy we experience--even that heightened joy of the newlywed couple--is only a foretaste, a foreshadow, of the heavenly joy God will bestow upon His people eternally.

Journey through Missouri

My mom and I recently returned from a two-week driving trip to, and through, the beautiful state of Missouri. The purpose was to go to a wedding (see next post), and on our way, we visited a number of friends in various parts of the state.
Historic St. Charles, on the river, the starting point of Lewis and Clark's Corps of Discovery.


My mom in St. Charles.



We followed much of the length of the Missouri River on our trip. The Headwaters of the Missouri, where the Gallatin, Jefferson, and Madison rivers form this mighty river, is very near our hometown, so we were interested in seeing the change in the river as it flows across five states and joins the Mississippi. Above, the Missouri in South Dakota.

The river in central Missouri.


The beginning of the Ozarks, south of the Missouri.


It's hard to tell, but this, friends, is the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers, just north of St. Louis.

Things were blooming there, much earlier than (we are waiting for them to) in Montana.


A tulip tree.

This sign grabbed our attention...I have no idea why this little plant is called this, but our friend noticed our last name on it.

Visiting the dear couple, who moved from Montana, and who have been our pseudo-grandparents.

My cousin and her three boys after their kickball game.

More dear friends from Montana. We spent a pleasant afternoon at their home.

The farm where we stayed in southern Missouri was inviting and full of lovely things:)

My mom and I had a great time conversing with and working with our friends--yet more dear people who moved from Montana.

My mom and Angie.

John, with whom I drove a tractor, ran the rototiller, planted cabbage, corn, beans, and sunflowers, and checked on the cattle, chickens, guineas, dogs, and cats. I find that I have no pictorial evidence of my working on their farm, but I did, for several days! The weather was gorgeous for that little while--a short respite from the cold north where we came from.

One day we visited a sheep dairy and learned all about the operation.

John, Angie, and I, and lots of inquisitive lambs and friendly, furry sheepdogs.

Blooming dogwoods and occupied bluebird houses.

Their peaceful country lane.


John and his friend repairing a 55 year old thresher. They got it running, and it was fascinating to watch all its various parts in motion.

Visiting friends in Illinois.

Sunset on a lake in an Illinois state park.

(Norwegian Hardingfele, picture from National Music Museum.)

On our way home, my mom and I stopped at the National Music Museum in Vermillion, South Dakota. They had instruments from all over the world, and many eras, with many rare stringed instruments dating from the 1600's. There were many instruments we had never heard of, as well as early variations of the now-established types of orchestral instruments. Seeing early organs, harps, harpsichords, and violins was probably my favorite part of the museum. It was interesting to see that the same care taken for painting and architecture in the Baroque and Classical periods were also applied to their instruments.

We didn't have enough time to listen to the audio commentary about, and sample music from, each instrument, but what we did hear was fascinating. This museum is about ten miles from the interstate, in a small, out-of-the-way town, but their extensive musical collection seems to truly be of a "national" caliber, and it was worth the effort to get there.

(Viennese piano, c. 1815, picture from National Music Museum.)

Presidents Washington and Jefferson. For as many times as we have driven through South Dakota, we have never stopped at Mount Rushmore until now. It was well worth seeing and learning about how it was planned, designed, carved, and shared with America.

Yes, it was cold, but I am glad we finally saw this national monument!

We had a delightful trip, made so by the beauties of God's creation, the sweetness of Christian fellowship, and the providences from His hand.

Brief Update

~These are photos that I took from our yard on the first day of spring. However, it is slow in coming; as I write, it is snowing for the third or fourth time since these pictures were taken. I suppose I should accept the fact that this is spring (characterized by lots of wet snows), and that the green grass, warm sunshine, and wildflowers, will come in May, closer to the end of spring. Regardless, we are eager to have a change in weather.

The cold days give good reason to work on projects inside, though. Nothing very new has been happening around here, mostly usual things: studying, writing, sewing, business administration, and planning some summer events including the myriad of things surrounding Bryce's wedding.

My mom and Bryce have been away for a few days for a short business trip; I enjoyed the quiet time to think and pray, but otherwise I miss the company and activity! I am so thankful for the family God has given us.

The Lord is gracious and faithful; keep serving Him, wherever you are!~

Wedding Website

~Finally, Bryce and Sarah's wedding website is ready for public view! If you know either of these fine people, please take a look around, and feel free to sign the guest book: bryceandsarah.com.~

Week in Missouri

~Last week I came back from a busy and wonderful week in Missouri, where I was helping the Serven Clan with the preparations for their Men's Advance. I was supposed to be, ahem, cooking, not taking pictures:) so I didn't get very many pictures of the state, of the event, or of their family. But here are a few snippets, at least so my blog isn't so silent. You may see the Serven's blog for a full account of the weekend, if you so desire.

I thoroughly enjoyed the fellowship with the members of Covenant Family Church, as well as the gracious hospitality of the Serven family. Cooking with Elizabeth, Sarah, Rebecca, the two Melissas, and all the other helpers, will be a treasured memory--and it taught me a lot about bulk food preparation, too.~

The girls going through the breakfast serving line after the men were finished.

This picture, courtesy of Peter Serven Photography, the official photojournalist.

A crowd of 250 was treated to an Americana concert by the Lautenschlager family's band, the Heirs of Baird.

After the conference and the Lord's Day, the Servens and their other guests had an excursion to the St. Louis Gateway Arch.

On a clear, cold day, looking heavenward at this triangle of steel.

~Rebecca and I~

Part of our group after touring the Western Expansion Museum below the Arch.

My pen-friend for seven years, Lindsay, and her husband Ben, came up to visit for Sunday afternoon. It was fun to meet them and visit for a few hours! (Picture courtesy of Peter, again.)

~It is always so encouraging to be with like-minded Christian families and get to know them better. I thank God for the opportunity to visit with the Servens and to learn from their Godly examples.~