Shalom Aleichem!
These were the words of our risen Messiah when He entered the room ~ Peace Be Unto You!
My name is Hannah; I am the eldest daughter of Tom and Annie Washburn. I was born in 1990, and I have six younger siblings; two brothers and four sisters. I feel very blessed to have what would be considered “so many” siblings, and am thankful to my parents for their efforts to raise us in righteousness.
We are currently living in rural Tennessee. My father is a carpenter, specializing in restoration projects. He is also a tree-trimmer/handyman, and as my mother says, “He can fix anything”. My mother is a homemaker; but my father says that she works harder than he does. My siblings and I are home-schooled, and always have been.
Some of my interests include the Scriptures, reading, writing, history, geography, photography, web design, housekeeping, praise music, praise dancing, sewing, cooking, and on and on … !! I help to run Happy Hill Pups, which is our family’s dog-breeding business. We raise four different breeds of puppies, and I love being a part of that. I also started a small home-business venture known as Happy Heels by Hannah, where my sisters and I sew specialized baby blankets.
We believe in the Bible, and try to follow it as best as we can. We believe that we should walk in obedience to our Heavenly Fathers instructions/commandments; those found in the Tanach, (Old Covenant), as well as the Brit Chadasha (New Covenant). We observe the Biblical feasts spoken of in Leviticus 23, the dietary laws of Leviticus 11, and the seventh-day Sabbath. We also prefer to use the Hebrew Names – YHWH, Yeshua, and Ruach HaKodesh. We do not believe it is a sin to use God, LORD, Jesus, and Holy Spirit, but have made the family decision to use the Hebrew Names.
Romans 11:17-24 and Ephesians 2:11-13, amongst others, speak of those who were gentiles, and have now become born again. These new creatures have been grafted into the olive tree of Israel, and are instructed to no longer live as gentiles. Jeremiah 31:31-34 defines what the New Covenant is; one of the main points being that our Heavenly Father does not do away with His commandments, but He writes them on our hearts. This is reiterated in the 8th chapter of Hebrews. Because of these Scriptures, we came to the understanding that we are part of Israel, and should be following the Almighty’s commands/instructions/teachings to Israel.
With our minds being transformed, (and our hearts being changed), “keeping the law” is no longer a burden, but a joy and delight. It is not that we have to do this in order to gain salvation, (there is nothing we can do except to receive His gift), but it is something that we do because our loving Heavenly Father has provided salvation to us. Simply put, we have found that it is how a child should walk in obedience to their Father. Because He first loved us, it is the way that we show that we love Him. As my father has said, “It is no longer a mindset of that I HAVE TO … but that I GET TO”.
Each of us desire to see other people walking in the ways of the Father. Personally, I feel a calling to encourage other young ladies to walk in Biblical womanhood, as opposed to what our culture views as normal. 1 Peter 2:9 says that we are “a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that you should show forth the praises of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light”. It’s time for us to stop being afraid of what others may think, and start acting like a chosen generation, and royal priesthood, a holy nation, and a peculiar people.
Serving YHWH, hearing His voice, and being sure that we are in His will … these are the only things that matters in this life. That is our desire as a family, and we encourage others to press toward that goal as well.
~ Hannah Washburn
