Christmas

My name is Mathew Sims, and I am married to a wonderful wife and faithful friend, LeAnn Sims. We were married in May 2005 in Greenville, SC. She has been patient with me so far, and God has been gracious in teaching us many things about each other and, most of all, about Him.

We come from different backgrounds. Her family is from Kansas. She grew up in a small town and has lived in the same house her entire life. My family is from CA; however, my dad was in the Navy, so I have lived in a variety of places from California to Guam to Connecticut to South Carolina.

We both attended Bob Jones University. I graduated with a B.A. in English and a minor in Creative Writing in 2005, and she graduated with a degree in Interior Design and a minor in Psychology/Counseling in 2006. We were actually set up by a mutual friend in the fall of 2002 and continued to date until we were married.

by John C. Whitcomb, Th.D

The second Person of the Triune God added a human nature to His divine nature a little more than 2,000 years ago! This stupendous and miraculous event was revealed to God’s people from the beginning of the world. God announced to Satan (in Gen. 3:15) not long after the creation of Adam and Eve (which occurred “at the beginning,” Matt. 19:4, KJV): “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed (the unbelieving community of mankind) and her seed [all true believers represented by their Savior]; [He] shall bruise thy head [a fatal, judicial blow delivered to Satan at the cross—John 12:31], and thou shalt bruise His heel [the crucifixion of Christ]” (KJV).

Especially noteworthy is the emphasis on “the woman” (rather than “the man” or even “the man and the woman”). If Adam was the responsible head of that family unit (“by one man sin entered into the world,” Rom. 5:12, KJV; and “by man came death,” 1 Cor. 15:21, KJV), what function was Eve to have, in the light of this prophetic announcement? Adam perceived that his wife, though instrumental in the fall (1 Tim. 2:14), would, by the amazing grace of God, be instrumental in bringing their Savior into the world. Therefore he named her “Eve” (i.e., “life” or “living”), “because she was the mother of all living” (Gen. 3:20, KJV).

Like most parents, Kim and I cherish the memories of the births of each of our children. When we celebrate their birthdays, we tell them about some of the circumstances surrounding their entrance into the world. When Daniel was born, there was an ice storm. All of our children were born near the times of church services. I could go on and on. Our birthday celebrations would be incomplete if we spent all of our time remembering their entrance into the world and neglected to celebrate where they are presently in life. These things should also be true as we celebrate the birth of our Blessed Savior. (Right: Joe, Kim, Daniel, Naomi, and Kyla Roof)

The circumstances of Christ’s birth were precious. They indicated that many prophecies were being fulfilled. God sent His Son into the world to be our Savior. Hallelujah! The Christ child grew, lived a sinless life, suffered and died on the cross of Calvary, rose from the grave three days later, and ascended to heaven. The Bible makes it clear that He is coming again, that the world we live in now will one day burn completely up, and a new heaven and a new earth will come down from God where the redeemed will dwell with the Savior for all eternity.

Most of you probably don’t know who I am, but that’s okay. I work behind the scenes here at SI and count it a privilege to serve in several capacities. I manage the author calendar for front-page articles, remind (and sometimes nag) authors about deadlines, post ads and send invoices to advertisers, and edit and post articles as I have time. I began serving SI last May after a big change in my life. (Left: Crisp Point Lighthouse, Lake Superior)

My family and I will remember 2006 as the year of colossal changes and challenges for us. The year began with a bang on Friday, January 13, when I learned about my May layoff from Northland Ministries (Dunbar, WI) due to financial pressures. (By the way, I still love and recommend Northland.) I’d served at Northland since 1995 by editing various publications for both the college and camp and by managing the college website.

For some, this “newsletter” will be an introduction to my life and family. For others, it will just be a bit of catching up after yet another busy year. Either way, we have to begin by praising the Lord for His grace and blessings on us during 2006.

As a family, this has been a year of transition and growth. Nathan (18) graduated from Northside Christian Academy in May and is now a freshman at Liberty University. We were quite surprised that Nathan ended up at LU as I had been pushing Cedarville University, and he had been leaning toward the architectural program at University of NC/Charlotte. After a campus visit early last summer during which we met some wonderful, godly professors and received a taste of the college campus atmosphere (which was quite different than what we had expected – in a positive way), we agreed that he’d be joining a couple dozen of his classmates and friends at LU in the fall. I will admit that the “dropping off” experience caught me off-guard and ended up being rather emotional for me for a few days, but seeing Nate flourish and enjoy campus life so much helped us with the transition. He’s found a sound, smaller church that is quite conservative to call “home” but makes it back to Charlotte every few weeks as well. He’s very active in intramural sports and found a job in Lynchburg as well.