There are times in life when it may feel like you have so much going on right now and you feel overwhelmed by what’s going on in your life, you have classes, work, things to do at home that it can feel like an endless list of things taking up your time.
Read MoreI wasn't doing something right or enough! Years later - got married, my Pastor husband was saved at his brother’s church during his first revival.
Read MoreWe are all on the go, busy, have hectic schedules, need to see, do and say many things! We want our opinions expressed and we want to be heard. Many are bold, boisterous and speak more than listen.
Read MoreAs the wife of an evangelist, most evenings I find myself sitting in a church service somewhere in this wonderful country of ours. I often tease that the Lord let me marry my husband because He knew that I needed to be in church every night! Because we’re in church so often, I’ll tell you a preacher’s wife’s secret; sometimes my mind wanders. (Insert gasp here!) It was one such evening, that the thing that caused my mind to wander was a word--fervent! I’m not even sure why I gave the word a second glance, but later that night, I grabbed my concordance app to see how many times the word was mentioned in Scripture. The answer is seven. Seven times the word fervent is mentioned in God’s Word--fervent in spirit, fervent mind, fervent prayer, fervent heat, fervent charity. It’s such a descriptive word, it just evoked a mental picture to me, so I looked up the dictionary definition.
Read More. KEEP YOUR MIND IN CONTROL… verse 6a – In other words, don’t be too worried or
dedicated to the problem or situation. Paul was reminding us to not worry about
anything. Yes, nothing at all! I know this can be really hard to do, especially when it
involves marital and family problems, sickness, and problems at church which can often
be difficult to ignore. I, myself, have had the tendency to rethink things too much. I put
too much focus on the problem or on the person creating the problem. I often have to
be reminded to not get too emotionally attached to the problem or to someone that I
feel has offended me. We cannot allow these problems or thoughts to take over our
minds and reside deep in our hearts. If we do, we will soon find ourselves having to deal
with the issue of anxiety.
Read MoreAs the 3 of us were out there floating together, we all were holding onto each other’s float. I am not sure if it was because there was no one for miles, or if it was because I had never been to this beach before. Perhaps it was because we had our daughter with us, or because my husband had us all scared of sharks; but I caught myself starting to worry anytime I was facing the ocean instead of the shoreline. When I was facing the shore, I could see our mountain-high pile of beach things, and I would realize we were not far from the shore at all. I was comforted because I knew we were not drifting away. However, when I would turn and face the ocean, my fear would really kick in. I was worried about everything: were we too far out? What if we saw a shark? Would we be able to get back fast enough if something happened? Had we drifted from our spot? It was then that the Lord brought this thought to my mind:
Read MoreSometimes it rains big rains that make us want to curl up and hide from everything, or sometimes little rains that throw a wrench into our life plans. We all know that we have a big God who can do anything and if we are doing things the right way, we go straight to Him and ask Him to change or fix our storm. But the truth is, sometimes there isn’t a quick answer. Sometimes it even feels as though God has gone silent. We know He isn’t a heartless Father; but for more reasons than we can possibly know, sometimes the rain continues and no end seems to be in sight.
Read MoreSo, we know the areas in which God does not give us strict guidelines. But what about the areas He does give specific instructions? Like fellowship with God, prayer, church attendance, tithing, soul winning, faithfulness, purity, godliness? Are these things important to us? In the last few years, I've had multiple conversations with people who told me that God would understand why they chose not to tithe to a local church, or go to church because we now have livestream (a great tool when there are no other options or because of sickness, but not a substitute for fellowship with other believers, Hebrews 10:25), or that soul winning wasn't something for them because they are shy, or that Bible reading and prayer is too time consuming and God would rather that they were doing something more “meaningful”, or that watching an R-rated movie was okay because it was with their spouse and they skipped all the bad parts, etc. These weren't people “of the world”. They were born again Christians. People in churches of like-faith. According to the Bible they are playing a dangerous game. Isaiah 33:31b says, “...for with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness.”
Read MoreJesus is in the middle of His famous sermon, “The Sermon on the Mount.” The verses here are so well known that you may have them memorized. As a missionary’s wife I think of this topic very regularly. I often ask myself “Am I showing the light of Christ to those around me?”
Read MoreEvery day when you wake up, get ready and are about to leave your home for the day. Do a heart check, if your heart is right with the Lord, you will know if your outfit that day is modest and pleasing to the Lord or not. Also, ask the Lord to guide your words for the day and your thoughts.
Read MoreSoil is the place where these truths develop roots and get the nourishment they need to become the plant intended it to be. This is a crucial part of growth in our life! It may require that we remove some things that are not good for tender plants. Sin is an obvious thing we should move. But what about those things that hold us back? Excuses and bad time management. It requires we add things that our plant needs. We may have to increase our faith, patience, love or longsuffering. But will cost us things time, treasure and talents. You will have to watch for weeds and pests that will kill your Secret Garden.
Read MoreFor a few days, God tried to get me to rest and He tried to give me peace, but I didn't want to accept it. I was heartbroken, angry and I just plain didn't understand what He was doing and why??? Hadn't I prayed almost constantly, plus fasted? Had I not asked many others to pray along with us for the situation? But it still didn't work out the way I wanted it to. To be honest, I still don't understand why things happened the way they did, but I do know there have been some lessons He wants me to learn through this.
Read MoreDo you find yourself discouraged in the way today? Take a lesson from the Israelites today and don’t follow their progression! Already started the murmuring? Get it right, there is healing! God loves you, friend!
When people close to you think of you, do you think they see the fullness of God? When I’m not in my Bible, soaking up His word and allowing Him to dwell in me, I get so focused on feeding the flesh. Sometimes that looks like pride, jealousy, discontentment, bitterness, covetousness.
Read MoreUpon crossing over they stopped to build an alter for reflection, and reembrace. Joshua 22:34 And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad called the altar Ed: for it shall be a witness between us that the LORD is God.
Read MoreWhat a wonderful account of faith and dedication here in this passage. This could be so applicable to we as women today. Think about it. It appears that this woman is hurrying along with a crowd of people who were also trying to see this One called Jesus. It spoke of the multitudes and of a whole city coming out to see Him just a few verses earlier.
Read MoreOver and over in the Bible we are reminded that God is with us, and that He hasn’t given us the spirit of fear. However, there is a difference between having head knowledge of something and heart knowledge. As Christian ladies many times we know exactly what we need to do to encourage ourselves in The Lord, but we like to wallow in our own little pity party. We can give the best advice to others about how to handle the same situation, but we just don’t want to take our own advice. It’s easier to give the advice than to follow it.
Read MoreParts of me want to scream and say No! You can't leave me, but then God reminds me she has a whole life that she needs to live. I think, what if something happens to her, but then God reminds me, nothing happens without his approval, and He loves her more than I do. I think what if people are mean to her, but then God reminds me, they WILL be mean to her! There will be people all throughout her life that will be mean to her, They were mean to the nicest person to walk this earth! (Jesus) but He will comfort her and get her through it all. I think, but I will miss her, but then God reminds me, she was never mine to keep! I think, did I prepare her enough, but then God reminds me, you've done all that you can, it's between Me and her now. I think, then what should i do, but then God reminds me just pray for her and trust Me! So, that's what I'm doing! When I start to worry or get sad about my daughters all growing up and hitting these new chapters in their lives, I will just stay focused on the Lord and remember all the things God reminds me of!
Read MoreI'm a planner! I want my day planned out, my week planned out, the next month planned out, even this year! So, not knowing what may get thrown into my lap tomorrow strikes a tinge of anxiety in my heart. I guess I want a crystal ball I can rub every morning that flashes what will happen in my day before it comes. God's GPS doesn't work like that. Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."
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