It would be so easy. . .

It would be so easy to just quit. . .

• quit homeschooling because this is hard.
• quit cleaning the house because I never seem to get anywhere.
• quit trying to teach my children right from wrong and just give them whatever they wanted.
• quit submitting to my husband and stand up for myself.
• quit trusting anyone.
• quit loving my neighbor.
• quit pushing through the physical pain and just lay down to sleep.
• quit, quit, quit, quit.

It would be so easy to just crawl into bed and pull the covers over my head.

I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14

I will press on, and trust in My Abba, who I know has my back.

Thankful Thursday

1. I'm thankful that someday Jesus is coming back to set up His kingdom.
2. I'm thankful that we serve a God who wants a relationship with us.
3. I'm thankful that the Bible is the literal word of God.
4. I'm thankful that He pours His perfect Love into our imperfect hearts
5. I'm thankful that the kitchen is finally painted.

I am overwhelmed!!!

We had a financial emergency this afternoon. A large check that was supposed to be here didn't come and they said that it would be next week before it was processed. This threw us into an unimaginable tail spin. I put out an email requesting prayer. Within in one hour our short term needs were met. The God we serve is AWESOME. Don't get me wrong. Even if He hadn't provided for my short term needs, He is still AWESOME!! I can't imagine life without the Lover of my Soul.

Show and Tell

"Welcome to Show and Tell Friday!" Do you have a something special to share with us? It could be a trinket from grade school, a piece of jewelry, an antique find. Your show and tell can be old or new. Use your imagination and dig through those old boxes in your closet if you have to! Feel free to share pictures and if there's a story behind your special something, that's even better!

If you wanna join the fun go over to http://www.kellishouse.blogspot.com/.

I'm not very original today, but here goes. . . . I'm getting ready to paint my kitchen, cabinets and all so here is . . .

My show and tell today . . . this book. I was doing another Beth Moore study and this one caught my eye. I have always been drawn to the book of Daniel, as a matter of fact I even named my daughter Danielle. It is a very good study and I am really learning a bunch. I am also on the look out for a really good study of Isaiah. I just love digging into the word.

With this study you can download the video and audio sessions from www.lifeway/women

or you can download the audio sessions on your iPod from the iTunes store for $3.99 a session, that's what I did and it works out quite well. Wow I sound like an infomercial. Gotta go clean and paint. Have a great day.

Christian Service Ideas

Say Thank You to Someone who has ministered to you. Pray. Listen. Visit a sick friend. Visit someone in the hospital who has no family. Pray. Clean a neighbor's walk. Mow a single Mom's lawn. Open a door. Send an anonymous gift. Give a gift certificate from a grocery store. Pray. Tip generously. Help someone learn a new skill. Babysit someone's children for free. Share a smile. Pray. Show up on sick friend's doorstep and clean their bathroom. Read to a child. Help carry a load. Share a smile. Buy yarn for a single person who knits or crochets. Invite someone to Sunday School. Pray. Get a group together and do a mini makeover of someone's yard. Take a boy hunting. Visit a nursing home. Financial Counseling. Tell the truth in Love. Pray. Buy a cashier a soft drink. Write a letter to someone overseas in prision for their Christianity. Sponsor a child. Host a yard sale and donate the profits. Take tapes of worship services to the elderly or shut-ins who can't attend worship. PRAY!!! Adopt a missionary. Come along side a busy mother. PRAY!!!!!!!!!!!

Love. . .

My Bible Study has been doing the Beth Moore study, Loving Well. It has got me thinking about what love really is.

Webster's Dictionary defines the kind of love I am talking about as - an unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another: as (1) : the fatherly concern of God for humankind (2) : brotherly concern for others b : a person's adoration of God.

Is Love really an emotion? If it is an emotion is it somehow different from all other emotions?

I cannot sustain many emotions long term. I can be angry, but only for while, then the anger dissipates. I can be sad, but only for a season then the saddness mellows.

If Love is an emotion how can we be commanded to Love? Love must be something more than a chemical reaction, more than just a gut feeling. Love must be a choice. A choice we must make with the help of God.

Count it ALL Joy.

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

James 1:2-7 NIV

Last night at Bible Study so many of my friends had so many burdens. My heart was very heavy for them. I spent a fitful night of concern for them. Perhaps it is because I have been there, in great pain and need. I know the feeling of struggle. I also know that I would not trade my struggles for all the money in the world. They have made me who I am, what I am. The season of pain and heartache may seem long, but oh, it is so beautiful on the other side. To have a heart that has been refined by the fire, to NEVER be the same again. No, I would not trade that for anything.

Don't misunderstand me. I am sinful and my heart is not pure or perfect, but it is softer than when my journey began. My faith is stronger than it used to be.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: "My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son." Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. "Make level paths for your feet," so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.

Hebrews 12:1-12 NIV

No, trials are not easy. They are not meant to be. My giants haven't always been laundry and dishes. There used to be a saying in strength training, "No pain, no gain." Well without pain our souls cannot gain either. It is not for "no reason" Jesus is called the perfecter of our faith.

I have learned this though, the sooner you recognize the trial and the sooner you put yourself on your face before God, the sooner He comes along side of you and helps you in the trial. Notice I did not say the sooner He removes the trial, which sometimes He does, I said the sooner He helps you in the trial.

Who would you rather have helping you? God? Or yourself?

I do NOT have all the answers, but I serve a God who does.

Hebrews 12:11 says, No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

It produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. This is so true.

Thankful Thursday

I am Thankful for. . . .

The fact that once God starts chasing you there is no getting away from Him.

http://www2.bc.edu/~anderso/sr/ft.html. The poem "The Hound of Heaven".

Loving Well

We started our Women's Bible Study tonight. I have never done a Beth Moore study. I'm must say that I wasn't sure what to expect. Now after having gone I'm very excited. Then when I got home my sister-in-law was on the phone and I asked her if she would like to go and she said yes. I've never really invited anybody to a Bible Study before, I'm very excited.

Kim and the Giants.

Well the Lord and I knocked down a couple of those little giants today. I wouldn't have been able to do it except for Him. So many times I wanted to sit down and "rest". But I remembered something I read here. http://www.cmomb.com/the-sin-of-sloth/.

James 4:17 - Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.

I know the good I ought to do. And if I don't do it simply out of laziness or being overwhelmed then I am sinning.

I was also inspired by Claudia O. at http://teenytinycabin.blogspot.com/who commented on my blog entry. Thank you so much for your encouragement.

So with the Lord's help I knocked out all the laundry, and cleaned my own bedroom (I am forever griping at the kids to keep theirs clean, time to practice what I preach.) and I cleaned the bathroom. And He motivated me to fix dinner for tonight, since I'm going to fellowship night with some ladies from ABF class.

Maybe just maybe I can get the Living Room done before I leave.

Blessing to all of you from the One who gives us strength.

Off to slay more little giants.

There are Giants in the land.

Today in ABF we studied about the children of Israel coming at last to the promised land. God was reminding them of why they had to wander for 40 years. Partially because they kept looking back to Egypt, partially because they were unfaithful to Him and partially because they were afraid, and didn't trust Him.

What giants do I face that keep me from entering my promised land? Mountains of laundry, more clutter than should be allowed by law, whining children, overweight exhaustion. My giants seem insurmountable to me, as I write this my 6 year old daughter is whining in my ear. I'm tired.

Isn't it funny that no matter how many time we trust Him in the big things, it's sometimes the little things that pile up to make our giants.

Matthew 18:15 - 20

"If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that 'every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.' If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector. "I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
"Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."

Jennifer Gill says that the Matthew 18 model ". . . is meant to be a tool to rebuke and call fellow brothers and sisters in Christ to repent and come back to the fold."

I personally am convinced that the church would suffer from much less "hypocrisy" if we practiced this model of conflict resolution. Notice that the first step is to go directly to the person who has wronged you. It doesn't say tell everybody what happened and make sure they are all on your side before you go to the person.

Just 5 Things I have learned.

First, God is Holy. I don't mean holy by our standards, I mean He is exalted or worthy of complete devotion as one perfect in goodness and righteousness. He is by His nature the very definition of a Holy God.

Second, there is no vacancy in the Trinity. Try as I might I cannot control others. I am not God.

Third, prayer isn't just about my wants and needs. Prayer is first about coming before a Holy God and worshiping him, second submitting my will to His, and admitting that I cannot do anything without Him and then asking for help with what burdens my heart.

Fourth, no person can fill all my needs, wants or desires. Only God can fill that "God-shaped hole" which Pascal once referred to. To place that burden on my husband or children is an abomination. I know that abomination is a strong word but I can think of no other word to describe how horrible and destructive this burden can be to those we love.

Fifth, sex was created by God. It is not dirty. It is not shameful. It is not displeasing to God, the God who created it, as long as it is practiced within the limits He set for us. Try this and see if it doesn't radically change your sex life with your spouse. Get down on your knees beside your marriage bed and pray. Pray "God let all that happens in this bed bring glory to you." If you will take a servant's heart into your sex life, you will honor marriage. Give your spouse more honor than you want and it will radically change not just your sex life but your entire relationship.

Submission

I've been thinking alot about what the Bible says about submission of a woman to her husband. It doesn't really fit our modern world does it? We fear that if we submit to our husbands we will somehow "lose" ourselves. That he will dominate us and somehow hurt us. But is this really the case? I fought submission for most of my 38 years. That is until about a year ago. I was always afraid that if I did submit to my husband that he would not love me the way I wanted to be loved. That I had to demand love and respect. That I had to be "fulfilled". I hated the Proverbs 31 woman. She overwhelmed me and just reading about her made me tired.

But a year ago something happened that radically altered my philosophy of life. I had to make changes or lose my husband forever. So I fell on my face before God and asked Him to change me. Now I see that submission to my husband is a good thing. It takes a lot of strain off of both of us, and the Lord has blessed me for it.

The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 11:7b-10
the woman is the glory of man. For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. For this reason, and because of the angels, the woman ought to have a sign of authority on her head.

John MacArthur points out that in this verse that even the angels are watching for a woman to be subject to her husband.

Now I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 1 Corinthians 11:3.

The Bible lays out a command structure here. We, as married women are to submit to our husbands. I know this is an unpopular idea. We think that somehow we are going to lose ourselves by submission, but I have found that through submission I have gained so much more than I have lost. I have also seen that when I try to "overrule" my husband it causes stife in my home and we get stuck. If 2 people are trying to steer a ship and they want to go in 2 different directions where to they end up going? Nowhere.

The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down. Proverbs 14:1

Better to live in a desert than with a quarrelsome and ill-tempered wife. Proverbs 21:19

Proverbs repeats this next verse 2 times.

Better to live on a corner of the roof than share a house with a quarrelsome wife. Proverbs 21:9
Better to live on a corner of the roof than share a house with a quarrelsome wife. Proverbs 25:24

If God repeated the same verse 2 times I think we better listen. If you insist on your own way and put up a fight and refuse to submit then you are being Quarrelsome?. . . I think the answer to that is yes.

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. Proverbs 31:30

If we fear him then we should do what He says.

Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband (Ephesians 5:33).

...submitting to one another in the fear of God. Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, as also Christ is Head of the Church; and He is the Saviour of the Body. Therefore, just as the Church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the Church and gave Himself for it.... So husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself.(Ephesians 5:21-25,28).

Yes, your husband is supposed to love you as Christ loved the church, but you are not responsible for his actions, only your own. I used to say "Well when he loves me like Christ loved the church then I'll submit." But perhaps he was waiting for me to submit to love me as Christ loved the church. Look at the next scripture.

"Likewise you wives, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the Word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct of their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear. Do not let your beauty be that outward adorning of arranging the hair, of wearing gold, or of putting on fine apparel; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible ornament of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God" (1 Peter 3:1-4).

Won without a word. Simply by your submission.

When the divine order of submission is followed, relationships improve and are set right. Rebellion ceases and harmony follows.

This may not make sense to us in our human understanding but remember: But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 1 Corinthians 1:27

Submit first to God, then to your husband. Through submission to your husband you are bringing glory to God.

Tell me this, what good does glory and honor do me in this world? What good does it do for me to make a name for myself here? This place isn't my "True Home". My treasure isn't here. My treasure is in heaven. I don't know about you but I wanna lay up treasure there where it's gonna do me a lot more good than here.

Don't get me wrong I blow it more times than I get it right. However with the Lord's help I wanna get it right.

Just remember, neither you nor I can be a Proverbs 31 woman without the help of God. I am totally helpless to become the woman God wants me to be without surrendering totally to Him and allowing Him to make me what He wants me.

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