Praise the Lord we finally have our computer back! I have decided to take this week to accomplish all those projects that just can't wait and I hope to be back blogging next week. I can't wait!
God bless you all as you continue to seek Him and His will!
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
An Unexpected Break
Shortly after posting the last blog, our family computer decided to succumb to a volley of viruses. So until we have it back, I will have to postpone our devotional on Titus 2. I'm not sure if this is the Lord telling me I need to wait or our enemy trying to keep me from talking, but I will take the time I have to search that out and I hope to be back with you all very soon!
In the meantime, God's blessings on you all and keep reading His word and seeking to apply all that He will teach you!
In the meantime, God's blessings on you all and keep reading His word and seeking to apply all that He will teach you!
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Spring Cleaning Has Sprung!
In addition to caring for my two little girls, being pregnant with the third child and my husband being busy with tax season, it is spring cleaning time here.
In a way, I am very excited, since this is my first year of spring cleaning. This is the first time we have not moved more than once in the previous year, thereby cleaning and weeding through junk more than once. But I must admit that spring cleaning can be daunting. So, even though it is recommended that you commit the few days in a row to getting it all done at once, I find it impossible to do that with where I am in life. But after two weeks of working at it bit by bit, here's is what I have done:
~Mopped the kitchen and dining room floor by hand
~Clean all the fronts and bottoms of the kitchen cabinets
~Wiped down the stove, including underneath the burners and stove top. I still have to clean the oven...which in my opinion is the worst spring cleaning chore.
~Cleaned out the coat closet and the linen closet
~Wiped down the washer and dryer to clean up all the lint and spills that happen when washing laundry in a hurry!
~Cleaned our my 2 year old's drawers and replaced the size 3's with size 4's. Hopefully she will slow down soon so we can make it through a season with just one size!
And currently I am working my way through our boxes of books, weeding out books I didn't like, haven't read and probably won't read, or books that we have more than one copy of. And of course the inevitable stash of old college textbooks you keep thinking that you may need again someday...as if they weren't already obsolete before you graduated!
My most dreaded chore, besides the aforementioned oven cleaning, is washing the outside windows, which I will be tackling just as soon as we have a nice day... on a weekend... where my husband is home to help watch the little ones. No, I'm not stalling! :D
I had planned to post pictures of my adventures but I forgot to take the before pictures so you can't see what great progress I've made. Bummer... Oh, well. I have plenty of chores left to photograph!
In a way, I am very excited, since this is my first year of spring cleaning. This is the first time we have not moved more than once in the previous year, thereby cleaning and weeding through junk more than once. But I must admit that spring cleaning can be daunting. So, even though it is recommended that you commit the few days in a row to getting it all done at once, I find it impossible to do that with where I am in life. But after two weeks of working at it bit by bit, here's is what I have done:
~Mopped the kitchen and dining room floor by hand
~Clean all the fronts and bottoms of the kitchen cabinets
~Wiped down the stove, including underneath the burners and stove top. I still have to clean the oven...which in my opinion is the worst spring cleaning chore.
~Cleaned out the coat closet and the linen closet
~Wiped down the washer and dryer to clean up all the lint and spills that happen when washing laundry in a hurry!
~Cleaned our my 2 year old's drawers and replaced the size 3's with size 4's. Hopefully she will slow down soon so we can make it through a season with just one size!
And currently I am working my way through our boxes of books, weeding out books I didn't like, haven't read and probably won't read, or books that we have more than one copy of. And of course the inevitable stash of old college textbooks you keep thinking that you may need again someday...as if they weren't already obsolete before you graduated!
My most dreaded chore, besides the aforementioned oven cleaning, is washing the outside windows, which I will be tackling just as soon as we have a nice day... on a weekend... where my husband is home to help watch the little ones. No, I'm not stalling! :D
I had planned to post pictures of my adventures but I forgot to take the before pictures so you can't see what great progress I've made. Bummer... Oh, well. I have plenty of chores left to photograph!
The aged women likewise...
“The aged women likewise…”
I thought I would be good to give us a running start on our study by talking about what the likewise means.
Likewise simply means in the same way or the same manner, so just as the old men were charged with being sober (to stay away from wine or at least the excessive use of it), grave (honorable or venerated for character), temperate (curbing one's desires and impulses, self-controlled, temperate), sound in faith (solid in their belief in the Word), in charity (God’s love), in patience (a man who is not swerved from his deliberate purpose and his loyalty to faith and piety by even the greatest trials and sufferings), so the women are to be likewise, or in the same manner.
As we read that list and think of just what it means to be all those things, it’s a long and daunting one, for sure. But I am also sure that is why God makes it clear that these things are expected of the old men and women. These are the ones who have had a lifetime to learn self-control and patience and are now charged with showing us how it’s done. We will see that that does not get us young women off the hook, but it does put a lot of responsibility on the shoulders of the older women.
The hard part in the times in which we live, is that there are very few older women we can turn to. Some of us grew up with Godly mothers who modeled this for us, most did not. And for those of us who did, most of our mothers did not have Godly mothers. So we are in a sense all still learning. That doesn’t erase their responsibility; it just makes it more important for each of them to make the time needed to teach and to train us younger women to follow in God's footsteps.
This is the very reason I find it so sad that so many older women go to work once they have raised their own children. They often feel like they have served their purpose in their homes and since their children no long need them, they should start being "productive". How horribly wrong we are! Yes, their children may be fine, though I would argue that even those of us who grow up with Godly mothers still need their encouragement and wisdom at least on occasion. But what about the other young wives and mothers in the church who didn’t have Godly mothers or grandmothers to turn to growing up? Now they are caring for their own homes and children without any “motherly” guidance. This is a vital and necessary area of service that only an older woman can do with the wisdom and grace needed to help these young ones succeed as homemakers. I can give advice from my very limited experience but I can’t give the kind of lifetime scope that my mom or mother-in-law can. I can guide the young unmarried girls in pursuing a Godly use of their time, talents and energy, because I have lived those lessons, sometimes the hard way. Since I have been a wife and mother for such a little time, I can only tell other mothers what I have learned and commiserate with them, I can't train them with what I have lived. As an older woman, there is a store of knowledge that comes from experience which someone with my limited experience can’t draw from.
So I would encourage those of you who are “old women”; don’t look for ways to be young again or for worldly "productivity". Find ways to help us benefit from your experience and knowledge of the word in a practical way. We don’t need more women in the workforce, fighting for our rights and higher wages; we need you in the trenches with us, helping us to raise our sons to be strong and courageous warriors and daughters to be loving and patient mothers for the next generation. I urge you to find young wives and mothers who want Godly encouragement and mentor and disciple them in the word. And on their behalf, thank you!
I thought I would be good to give us a running start on our study by talking about what the likewise means.
Likewise simply means in the same way or the same manner, so just as the old men were charged with being sober (to stay away from wine or at least the excessive use of it), grave (honorable or venerated for character), temperate (curbing one's desires and impulses, self-controlled, temperate), sound in faith (solid in their belief in the Word), in charity (God’s love), in patience (a man who is not swerved from his deliberate purpose and his loyalty to faith and piety by even the greatest trials and sufferings), so the women are to be likewise, or in the same manner.
As we read that list and think of just what it means to be all those things, it’s a long and daunting one, for sure. But I am also sure that is why God makes it clear that these things are expected of the old men and women. These are the ones who have had a lifetime to learn self-control and patience and are now charged with showing us how it’s done. We will see that that does not get us young women off the hook, but it does put a lot of responsibility on the shoulders of the older women.
The hard part in the times in which we live, is that there are very few older women we can turn to. Some of us grew up with Godly mothers who modeled this for us, most did not. And for those of us who did, most of our mothers did not have Godly mothers. So we are in a sense all still learning. That doesn’t erase their responsibility; it just makes it more important for each of them to make the time needed to teach and to train us younger women to follow in God's footsteps.
This is the very reason I find it so sad that so many older women go to work once they have raised their own children. They often feel like they have served their purpose in their homes and since their children no long need them, they should start being "productive". How horribly wrong we are! Yes, their children may be fine, though I would argue that even those of us who grow up with Godly mothers still need their encouragement and wisdom at least on occasion. But what about the other young wives and mothers in the church who didn’t have Godly mothers or grandmothers to turn to growing up? Now they are caring for their own homes and children without any “motherly” guidance. This is a vital and necessary area of service that only an older woman can do with the wisdom and grace needed to help these young ones succeed as homemakers. I can give advice from my very limited experience but I can’t give the kind of lifetime scope that my mom or mother-in-law can. I can guide the young unmarried girls in pursuing a Godly use of their time, talents and energy, because I have lived those lessons, sometimes the hard way. Since I have been a wife and mother for such a little time, I can only tell other mothers what I have learned and commiserate with them, I can't train them with what I have lived. As an older woman, there is a store of knowledge that comes from experience which someone with my limited experience can’t draw from.
So I would encourage those of you who are “old women”; don’t look for ways to be young again or for worldly "productivity". Find ways to help us benefit from your experience and knowledge of the word in a practical way. We don’t need more women in the workforce, fighting for our rights and higher wages; we need you in the trenches with us, helping us to raise our sons to be strong and courageous warriors and daughters to be loving and patient mothers for the next generation. I urge you to find young wives and mothers who want Godly encouragement and mentor and disciple them in the word. And on their behalf, thank you!
Monday, April 12, 2010
Titus 2: Day 1
"The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; that they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed." Titus 2:3-5
Starting today, we are going to be working our way through Titus 2:3-5. My plan as it stands now is to post Monday, Wednesday and Friday. How long it takes us to get through the devotions depends on how much God gives me to say!
I thought I would start our devotions by asking all of you to read the verses we will be covering and see what God will show you. I know He has plenty of things to show each of us just with a simple reading.
So enjoy and see you back here on Wednesday!
Starting today, we are going to be working our way through Titus 2:3-5. My plan as it stands now is to post Monday, Wednesday and Friday. How long it takes us to get through the devotions depends on how much God gives me to say!
I thought I would start our devotions by asking all of you to read the verses we will be covering and see what God will show you. I know He has plenty of things to show each of us just with a simple reading.
So enjoy and see you back here on Wednesday!
Monday, April 5, 2010
More Details
I had planned to start a devotion taking us through Titus 2 this week but due to a death in the family, I will be postponing it until next week. Sorry to all, but I'm sure you will understand.
If you think of our family this week, we would appreciate your prayers.
God bless you all!
If you think of our family this week, we would appreciate your prayers.
God bless you all!
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Just Details
Yesterday we finished Proverbs 31 here. If any one wants or needs to catch up on old posts, they are linked on the side bar. Thanks to all of you who blessed me with their comments and encouragment and to all who read the devotions. I was truly blessed by the study and I even made some new friends in the process.
I have a few fun posts planned for the rest of this week. I finally finished my first granny square blanket so I will be posting pictures of that. And I made birthday dresses for both my girls that I want to share pictures of those too. Then next week, according to my plans, I'd like to start a weekly devotion on Titus 2:3-5. The format will be a bit different, there probably won't a devotion every day but we can talk more about that later.
So, in preparation for that, I'll leave you with Titus 2:3-5.
"The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed."
God bless you all!
I have a few fun posts planned for the rest of this week. I finally finished my first granny square blanket so I will be posting pictures of that. And I made birthday dresses for both my girls that I want to share pictures of those too. Then next week, according to my plans, I'd like to start a weekly devotion on Titus 2:3-5. The format will be a bit different, there probably won't a devotion every day but we can talk more about that later.
So, in preparation for that, I'll leave you with Titus 2:3-5.
"The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed."
God bless you all!
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Final Thoughts On Proverbs 31
I woke up this morning sad that our time of studying Proverbs 31 together is over. In writing out these devotions every day, I have learned many things, some of them completely unexpected, that I haven’t really shared, mostly because I hadn’t digested them yet. I thought I would take this last day and tell you about some of them.
As I think I have mentioned before, I’ve been getting up early so I can write before my girls wake up. I had developed a bad habit of sleeping in since my oldest daughter often does not wake up until 8 or 9 am. But in the last month, I have realized that I don’t really miss my extra few hours of sleep most days, and I have enjoyed the peace and quiet of the morning hours before the hustle and bustle of the day. Having just a little bit of quiet in the morning has helped me to be more patient the rest of my day. I find that I have fewer times where I am frustrated or angry. All because I’m getting less sleep every day. Honestly, it has more to do with the fact that I am spending more time in the word, not just reading it but studying it. There is a depth to my devotion time that I was missing and it has allowed God to show me more of what I need to be focused on and what I need to work on in my life. I don’t expect that this time will last, especially since I am expecting again, but I will gladly take this season and use it to learn all I can.
I have also learned that it is really hard to write about something that I wasn’t doing myself. There were days when I was talking to the Lord saying, I can’t write that! I’m horrible at organization! (Just ask my mom or my college roommate, they can tell you just how unorganized I can be.) And yet that is what God gave me to write for the day. So then I was convicted by my own writing and forced to face my own failings. When I write it, it sounds like such a bad thing. But it has been one of the biggest blessings to me in this whole process. My life is much more in order than it ever has been before and more than that, I am enjoying being organized! I feel like by being faithful to write what God gave me to write each day, He is blessing me with the ability to do something that has always been so hard for me. It’s nothing short of a miracle that my laundry is getting wash, folded and put away every week. I have never been good at keeping up with it. And I’m sure it is a blessing to my husband, who doesn’t have to go basket diving to find socks and shirts each morning! :D
And I have had to learn again that my best laid plans are not always God’s plans. I have had plenty of times in my life where I thought I knew where I was going and when God finally got through to me, His path was a different direction than mine. There were many days where I would start to write and end up in a totally different place than where I was planning on going for the day. I ended up where God had wanted me all the time. And it left me so thankful that God is able to guide me where He wants me to go, even though I had determined different path for myself.
So I want to encourage each of you who have read these devotions, to share something that God has taught you this month. It doesn’t have to be a long, wordy piece, just a quick note about the lesson or lessons that God has used Proverbs 31 to teach you. I know most of you probably don’t have a lot of time to write volumes, although I’m sure some could, but in sharing stories of what God has done in our lives, we are able to remind each other of His wondrous works. And that is something we should celebrate together. Let us praise Him for all He has done and live our lives to give Him the glory and honor due His name!
As I think I have mentioned before, I’ve been getting up early so I can write before my girls wake up. I had developed a bad habit of sleeping in since my oldest daughter often does not wake up until 8 or 9 am. But in the last month, I have realized that I don’t really miss my extra few hours of sleep most days, and I have enjoyed the peace and quiet of the morning hours before the hustle and bustle of the day. Having just a little bit of quiet in the morning has helped me to be more patient the rest of my day. I find that I have fewer times where I am frustrated or angry. All because I’m getting less sleep every day. Honestly, it has more to do with the fact that I am spending more time in the word, not just reading it but studying it. There is a depth to my devotion time that I was missing and it has allowed God to show me more of what I need to be focused on and what I need to work on in my life. I don’t expect that this time will last, especially since I am expecting again, but I will gladly take this season and use it to learn all I can.
I have also learned that it is really hard to write about something that I wasn’t doing myself. There were days when I was talking to the Lord saying, I can’t write that! I’m horrible at organization! (Just ask my mom or my college roommate, they can tell you just how unorganized I can be.) And yet that is what God gave me to write for the day. So then I was convicted by my own writing and forced to face my own failings. When I write it, it sounds like such a bad thing. But it has been one of the biggest blessings to me in this whole process. My life is much more in order than it ever has been before and more than that, I am enjoying being organized! I feel like by being faithful to write what God gave me to write each day, He is blessing me with the ability to do something that has always been so hard for me. It’s nothing short of a miracle that my laundry is getting wash, folded and put away every week. I have never been good at keeping up with it. And I’m sure it is a blessing to my husband, who doesn’t have to go basket diving to find socks and shirts each morning! :D
And I have had to learn again that my best laid plans are not always God’s plans. I have had plenty of times in my life where I thought I knew where I was going and when God finally got through to me, His path was a different direction than mine. There were many days where I would start to write and end up in a totally different place than where I was planning on going for the day. I ended up where God had wanted me all the time. And it left me so thankful that God is able to guide me where He wants me to go, even though I had determined different path for myself.
So I want to encourage each of you who have read these devotions, to share something that God has taught you this month. It doesn’t have to be a long, wordy piece, just a quick note about the lesson or lessons that God has used Proverbs 31 to teach you. I know most of you probably don’t have a lot of time to write volumes, although I’m sure some could, but in sharing stories of what God has done in our lives, we are able to remind each other of His wondrous works. And that is something we should celebrate together. Let us praise Him for all He has done and live our lives to give Him the glory and honor due His name!
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
An Apology
Some days just don't go the way you have planned. Today was one of those days for me. But, although I didn't get a blog written or published for you, I did take care of my family, which is as we all know, job #1. I'm sorry to have missed a day with all of you but I trust that He blessed your day anyway. :D
I had plans of what I was going to write this last week, but it seems that God's plans were different and I am resting in the fact that His will is perfect and there is a great reason for Him changing my plans.
Don't forget to join us tomorrow for our last day with the Proverbs 31 woman.
Until then, God bless you all!
I had plans of what I was going to write this last week, but it seems that God's plans were different and I am resting in the fact that His will is perfect and there is a great reason for Him changing my plans.
Don't forget to join us tomorrow for our last day with the Proverbs 31 woman.
Until then, God bless you all!
Monday, March 29, 2010
The Working Woman
As it often happens in my life, I was planning on writing today about "Christian" literature’s view of the Proverbs 31 woman, but as I prayed this weekend, I felt God laying on my heart that I needed to address a related issue today. This one is also a misinterpretation of what Proverbs 31 teaches us about Godly womanhood but it seems to come more from misunderstandings by the church in general rather than just a few books on the shelves. I'm sure all of you have heard it at one time or another; "Well, the Proverbs 31 woman was a working woman!" Or "She bought and sold things, that means she worked outside her home too!" The problem with most of these arguments is that they are more concerned about finding ways to justify one's own actions rather than they are about taking what the scriptures say and adapting our lives to fit what God says we should be doing.
Now before you all start writing emails telling me how your situation is different, why I’m wrong, etc…hear me out. If at the end you still want to write me, I’d be glad to talk to you.
There can be no denying that the Proverbs 31 woman is a working woman. Almost all women work in one way or another. Our problem is that we don’t feel like we are working unless we leave our homes, drive to an office or some other building outside our own 4 walls, work an 8 or 12 hours shift and get that paycheck at the end of the week. If you are a wife, you have a job! If you are a mother, you have a job! If you are both a wife and a mother, wow, do you have a job! Taking care of people is work, whether it is your children or someone else’s. I always chuckle inwardly when moms start daycares in their homes and then they feel like they are finally working. To them, it is only work if the children belong to someone else. Or they work as a secretary, taking phone calls and messages for their boss, picking up his dry cleaning or managing his schedule and they call that work. But if they are at home doing those same things, only this time it is for their husband, suddenly it’s not work anymore. A lot of us think that it can’t be work unless you get paid. But you are getting paid. Every tear you dry, every load of laundry you wash, every errand you run, God will be paying you for. Whether it is here on earth or once you get to heaven, you will be paid for all the work you do for God and for your family. And if you think somehow that is not enough incentive to do the work of a home alone, read Matthew 6:19-21. We are working for heavenly wages and you can’t put an earthly price on that.
The work that the Proverbs 31 woman does is in addition to her care for her husband and her children, not instead of it. Her husband would not have been allowed to sit in the gates if she was not caring for her home properly. Any man who could not lead his own home, had no place ruling and judging others and still doesn’t. (1 Tim. 3:5) It is also not her ambition for prestige or power that makes her work; it is to bless her family. It is not because she needs the money, at least part of which she uses it to care for the poor. I do realize that some have husbands who can’t work because of illness or disability. But we have to ask ourselves, where is the church? Those who are sick need to be cared for by their brothers and sisters until they get well. If there is a disability that will not allow certain work, then those issues should be addressed by the body. Our work as wives and mothers is a calling. It is what we as women are called to do. If one part of the body is not able to fulfill its calling, in our case, caring for a home as well as training and caring for the children, then the whole body suffers. If there is no work to be found for a husband, retraining might be necessary but there is nowhere in the scripture that excuses a man from work because he can’t find it in his field. There is always work to be done. I remember my dad losing his job when I was younger and he took on a paper route and any odd jobs he could find, all the while spending up to 10 hours a day looking for work. There is never an excuse for not taking care of your family, man or woman. God gave you a job to do and it must be done by you.
I hope that this will help clear up any discrepancies of thought between God’s word and what you have been taught. It is a rather simple process of God setting up the rules and all of us living by them. What a blessing that we are free to serve Him by serving our families! What a privilege that we are free from sin and bondage to self and the ways of the world. But we must remember regardless of how little we may like it, we are not free to set our own rules. He is God and He is in charge.
May God bless you all as you serve Him each and everyday!
Now before you all start writing emails telling me how your situation is different, why I’m wrong, etc…hear me out. If at the end you still want to write me, I’d be glad to talk to you.
There can be no denying that the Proverbs 31 woman is a working woman. Almost all women work in one way or another. Our problem is that we don’t feel like we are working unless we leave our homes, drive to an office or some other building outside our own 4 walls, work an 8 or 12 hours shift and get that paycheck at the end of the week. If you are a wife, you have a job! If you are a mother, you have a job! If you are both a wife and a mother, wow, do you have a job! Taking care of people is work, whether it is your children or someone else’s. I always chuckle inwardly when moms start daycares in their homes and then they feel like they are finally working. To them, it is only work if the children belong to someone else. Or they work as a secretary, taking phone calls and messages for their boss, picking up his dry cleaning or managing his schedule and they call that work. But if they are at home doing those same things, only this time it is for their husband, suddenly it’s not work anymore. A lot of us think that it can’t be work unless you get paid. But you are getting paid. Every tear you dry, every load of laundry you wash, every errand you run, God will be paying you for. Whether it is here on earth or once you get to heaven, you will be paid for all the work you do for God and for your family. And if you think somehow that is not enough incentive to do the work of a home alone, read Matthew 6:19-21. We are working for heavenly wages and you can’t put an earthly price on that.
The work that the Proverbs 31 woman does is in addition to her care for her husband and her children, not instead of it. Her husband would not have been allowed to sit in the gates if she was not caring for her home properly. Any man who could not lead his own home, had no place ruling and judging others and still doesn’t. (1 Tim. 3:5) It is also not her ambition for prestige or power that makes her work; it is to bless her family. It is not because she needs the money, at least part of which she uses it to care for the poor. I do realize that some have husbands who can’t work because of illness or disability. But we have to ask ourselves, where is the church? Those who are sick need to be cared for by their brothers and sisters until they get well. If there is a disability that will not allow certain work, then those issues should be addressed by the body. Our work as wives and mothers is a calling. It is what we as women are called to do. If one part of the body is not able to fulfill its calling, in our case, caring for a home as well as training and caring for the children, then the whole body suffers. If there is no work to be found for a husband, retraining might be necessary but there is nowhere in the scripture that excuses a man from work because he can’t find it in his field. There is always work to be done. I remember my dad losing his job when I was younger and he took on a paper route and any odd jobs he could find, all the while spending up to 10 hours a day looking for work. There is never an excuse for not taking care of your family, man or woman. God gave you a job to do and it must be done by you.
I hope that this will help clear up any discrepancies of thought between God’s word and what you have been taught. It is a rather simple process of God setting up the rules and all of us living by them. What a blessing that we are free to serve Him by serving our families! What a privilege that we are free from sin and bondage to self and the ways of the world. But we must remember regardless of how little we may like it, we are not free to set our own rules. He is God and He is in charge.
May God bless you all as you serve Him each and everyday!
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