A Woman’s Words
The Bible, a book recorded in antiquity, has great regard for women. So much so, it records the words of women. Whole sermons, in fact.
Guess who.
Comment away. And don’t use your concordance!You make me strong and happy, LORD.
You rescued me.
Now I can be glad and laugh at my enemies.
No other god is like you. We’re safer with you than on a high mountain.
I can tell those proud people,
“Stop your boasting! Nothing is hidden from the LORD, and he judges what we do.”
Our LORD, you break the bows of warriors, but you give strength to everyone who stumbles.
People who once had plenty to eat must now hire themselves out for only a piece of bread.
But you give the hungry more than enough to eat.
A woman did not have a child, and you gave her seven, but a woman who had many was left with none.
You take away life, and you give life.
You send people down to the world of the dead and bring them back again.
Our LORD, you are the one who makes us rich or poor.
You put some in high positions and bring disgrace on others.
You lift the poor and homeless out of the garbage dump and give them places of honor in royal palaces.
You set the world on foundations, and they belong to you.
You protect your loyal people, but everyone who is evil will die in darkness.
We cannot win a victory by our own strength.
Our LORD, those who attack you will be broken in pieces when you fight back with thunder from heaven.
You will judge the whole earth and give power and strength to your chosen king.
Favoritism in the church?
Our church has a Meal’s for Mom’s ministry where we take food to families that just had a baby. Its a super help, and I appreciated it when Henry was born. It helped keep us sane with an insane baby! The ladies who run it do a terrific job getting volunteers and continuing the service uninterrupted despite the natural discouragement of working with volunteers. My question is…
Why is it that they have a hard time getting volunteers for folks that people don’t know well? I always feel obligated to help on the lesser-known couples, because I know they will struggle to fill the spots. But, of course, when its someone in leadership who needs the meals, the spots fill quicker than you can spit! What is up with that? Are we Christians are WHAT? Why are we showing preference?
My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism! Because Jesus himself said, “If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Matthew 5:46-48
Please, go out of your way to help those that it is hard to help. Those you don’t know. Those you won’t get any credit for helping. Those who aren’t your favorites.
Pen and Paper
It is a rare bird who likes to write things out. I don’t. This blog is a daily discipline for me…or spanking if I put it off. (Lots of those!) But, in an age where culture highlights emotion and restrains reasoning, putting your thoughts into something you can read and evaluate is invaluable.
In my counseling ministry, I give homework. Most of it requires a good deal of writing. The woman who applies herself to the task, witnesses change. The one who shirks the papers, usually persists in her bad habits with little change. Making a record of your life, thoughts, circumstances, insights and desires helps you apply truth to your days in concrete ways.
Know thyself!
One of the hardest things to do, if you are an emotional person, is to keep a thought journal. Not a feeling journal, but a on-going record of what is “unconsciously” and comfortably happening up there in your brain. Every 30 minutes, write down, “What was I just thinking?” Nothing is too trivial. Nothing is too mundane. Nothing is too shameful. You will discover your thinking habits with time; what your brain automatically reverts to imagining when you shut off the active thinking centers. Those thoughts are what is forming the core of your character. They need to be examined in light of the gospel. To read a bit about what God says our thoughts should be, click here.
Harried Schedule
Feel like you aren’t getting everything done that you should? One way to find out how you spend your time and if there are more hours in your day than you realize, is to record your weekly schedule. For a few weeks, jot down what you did in every hour of the day. Then, evaluate where you can “redeem” the time for a more profitable or important activity. Plan out a new weekly schedule, based on your evaluated and corrected time, that you can follow to get everything done that needs to be done. Remember, 8 hours of sleep is a non-negotiable! Really. Don’t cut back on sleep to get it all done.
In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat… Psalm 127:2
Troubled Spirits
Thoughts are often at the root of our moods. Where our thoughts go, our emotion follows. The bible says that war rages in this non-physical realm of our thoughts. It is here that we win or lose battles for our soul.
I was recently shocked to discover that for some, this notion of writing down thoughts is a complete mystery! I’m afraid I gave poor instructions because I didn’t realize it was a skill. I thought everyone could recall their thoughts! But, for so long this lady had lived by her feelings, she had no idea how to turn her feelings into a concrete statement. Simply teaching her this skill went a long way to solving her emotional problems.
Making Decisions
When worried about a course of action, the only way to go is to write it out! Not only does it give you a record of your thought-process for later when you need to evaluate your decision, it helps you not overlook vital arguments. A simple way to start is with three columns: Pros, Cons, I need more information on this…
Bible Disciplines
Another great time to put pen to paper is when reading the Bible and praying.Transferring what you read into your own words (even straight copying is beneficial!) involves visual, mental and bodily action; three different senses are involved, making the chances for recall much greater than reading alone! Asking yourself a few questions about the verse ups the recall factor even more. What does this verse say? What does it teach me about myself? What does it teach me about God? How can I respond?
A prayer journal is a great conerstone of faith. I have a terrible memory. Writing down what to pray for and how each prayer was answered helps me remember how God moves in my life. It is what keeps me praying. It is what proves prayer works.
If you are struggling in any of these areas, why don’t you go the next step and being to write?
Don’t Steal my Joy!
I taught middle schoolers for a while. And while I loved the experience, there were days that I spent hours complaining after class about their juvenile behavior. I must have let them really get me down, because one day I had a friend look me in the eye and say, “Don’t let them steal your joy.”
What an eye opener that statement was! My student’s bad behavior WAS robbing me of my core satisfaction with teaching. And I was allowing the theft to bleed into all areas of my life.
People influence people … for good or for evil.
Joy Thief
I must confess that I too, am a joy thief. My words and behavior affect my husband’s attitude for the worse. I can flip a happy moment into a heated argument with a silent sneer. I can swat joyful celebration dead with a flip of my tongue. I realize that even my friends choose not to share good news with me because I dampen the mood with critiques and challenges to do even better next time.
Joy can be stolen with gossip, an unkind word, a careless look, a deaf ear, a dead-pan expression. This behavior isn’t an intentional harm, but acted without thought. A joy thief is a vacuous hole of selfish thoughts that suck the joy from those around her.
Giving Joy
To change from a joy thief to a joy giver is a conscious choice to flip the switch on the vacuum of self from suck to blow! It is focusing your actions and words on the other instead of yourself. The Bible says an encouraging word, a cheerful expression, even a bottle of perfume will bring joy.
Wisdom, which is knowing the right thing to do then doing it, is joy wrapped with ease. Have you ever had a friend that was easy to be around? They don’t rub you the wrong way. They don’t react to your annoying quirks. They make it easy for you to enjoy life. You feel happier with them. Chances are, you have a wise friend; someone who makes good choices and influences you to live in the right way. They give you joy!
Musicians and comedians give joy. The death of Michael Jackson devastated the world. Why? Because we loved him for giving us joyful song. When the Bible speaks of joy, it is usually in context with music and laughter. A life without either is a joyless life.
Animated people spark joy. Shouting, jumping, dancing, leaping and arms raised are all movements the Bible pairs with enjoyment. You can gift joy with peppy enthusiasm for the activity at hand.
Joy Multiplies
Jesus was the ultimate joy giver. He said*, “I’ve told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy. And that your joy would be full.” What “things” was he talking about? Right living and being loved by God, His Father. Jesus enjoyed pleasing God! And He knew we would too. Jesus understood that His joy would not be complete until it was shared with those He loved.
The best thing about becoming a joy giver is that joy is never given away, it is shared. It is multiplied. Our rejoicing becomes even greater in the giving. Joy begets enjoyment!
*John 15:10-12
Stumble It!
