Healthy and Strong

I am very guilty of not having this next quality I wish to talk about! Those of you who know me know that I'm the LAST person who should be giving this advice...but the advice I give isn't coming from me, but from God's word. I just insert little thoughts I have on God's advice...take God's words as truth...take mine as human reasoning with possible errors...and that goes for all my posts, not just this one!  Proverbs 31: 17 says that the virtuous woman "girdeth her loins with strength, and strengtheneth her arms." What!? She exercises!? lol...There's a reason we exercise (and eat healthy)...It makes us healthy, and believe it or not, happier, too!

Mayo Clinic (stated here: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/exercise/HQ01676) says "No matter what your current weight, being active boosts high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or "good," cholesterol and decreases unhealthy triglycerides. This one-two punch keeps your blood flowing smoothly, which decreases your risk of cardiovascular diseases. In fact, regular physical activity can help you prevent or manage a wide range of health problems and concerns, including stroke, metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, depression, certain types of cancer, arthritis and falls." They also stated, "Physical activity stimulates various brain chemicals that may leave you feeling happier and more relaxed. You may also feel better about your appearance and yourself when you exercise regularly, which can boost your confidence and improve your self-esteem."

Some verses that have really helped me when I'm struggling with not being active enough of eating poorly:
1 Corinthians 10:31 "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God."
Romans 14:17 "For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost."
Micah 6:8 "He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?"
Phil 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."
I Cor. 6:19-20 "What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's."

Sometimes the reason I want to eat is just to make me feel better or fill up my time or keep my hands busy or whatever, but if instead I turn to God to make me feel better or read His word to fill up time or keep my hands busy for HIM....that will help that a lot...when I want to eat something that's not good for me I need to remind myself "My body is a gift from God, do I want to ruin a gift from God by clogging my arteries or putting on weight which makes it hard for me to do things that I need to do for Him?"

Here's some websites I found that help me:
http://www.caloriesperhour.com/ -tells you how many calories you should eat in a day to obtain your goal...
http://www.mybodygallery.com/index.html - shows you what REAL people look like at your weight and height and shape and stuff...I used it (and the site below) to see the difference between my weight now and my goal weight....which after looking I determined to be about 155...
http://howmuchshouldiweigh.org/ - tells you your ideal healthy weight...and gives you a good range that's considered still healthy.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ - a network for weight loss support and tools such as calorie counting.

So what if you fail one day? Start again the next! II Cor. 4:16 says,  "For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day." Lamentations 3:22-23 says, "It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness."

Is it hard? YES! very much so sometimes, but I can do it, with Christ's help and trying to remember that yes in a way I'm doing this for me, but mainly I'm doing it for God so I can be better used for Him!

They that wait upon the Lord

Okay, so first of all, I would like to apologize for not being faithful to you readers, myself, but mainly to God, for not keeping up with this blog I felt led to write...I know it helps me to keep my eyes focused where they need to be and keeps me moving in the right direction...toward being that virtuous woman. Will I ever get there 100%? No, I'm a sinner! But I refuse to quit trying! I may stumble ... More than I should ... But I don't ever want to quit this journey! So, I'm back! Today patience is big on my mind...so that's the topic of this post!

I am waiting for something in my life that I have desired since I was a child. It doesn't matter what it is, because I want you to think of what you desire. I'm not talking about a worldly lust such as a new t.v. I'm talking about a spiritual desire or a desire that could make a difference for God's kingdom. Well, the past few months, I thought I might have been finally gifted that desire, but it just hasn't happened yet. This morning, it was once again clear that I would have to wait longer. Well, I was kind of down, and so I grumbled getting ready for work and headed out the door.  I got in my car and the song on the radio was very fitting... It says... 

"Whatever you're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos somehow there's peace
It's hard to surrender to what I can't see
but I'm giving in to something heavenly"

That's when I took a deep breath and said "okay, Gods will is better and perfect...my will is selfish and impatient...I can patiently wait for Gods perfect timing...or I can be unhappy and throw a fit...either way I have to wait....so I might as well just sit back and let the experienced driver drive"....so hard to do sometimes, but it always results in satisfaction! Proverb 13:12 says "Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life." Isn't it great! God knows what we need, when we need it! Sometimes we think we NEED it now, but if we got everything immediately, we wouldn't be so grateful. And we can only see what is immediate, God can see the whole picture. That is why it is so important to trust that God knows what He is doing, always, always, always! Our job is to pray, and to walk with God in everything we do, and all will work out! Philippians 4:6 says, "be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."  I Corinthians 10:31 says, "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all too the glory of God." Romans 8:28 says, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose." 



So, I leave you with this thought. Will you wait for God's perfect will, and serve Him while you wait? Or will you move ahead selfishly and unhappily live with your imperfect will? Isaiah 40:31 says, "But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint."

Decided this post needs a song with it:

Aid to the poor and needy

I am reminded of several scriptures to help the poor and needy today. The other day as my husband and I were walking across the parking lot from the church to our home, a middle-aged man on a bicycle stopped and asked us if we were with the church. We said yes. He introduced himself and asked if we could spare him any food and water. I was immediately reminded of the verse Mark 9:41 which says, "For whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in my name, because ye belong to Christ, verily I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward." Immediately we said "sure, let us go see what we can find for you!" Then immediately horrible thoughts entered my human brain. "We don't have much money either, I hope he doesn't get into the habit and come by and ask us every day, as we can barely afford food for ourselves right now. Then I remembered Proverb 31:20, "She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy." I thought to myself, "okay, the Lord is using us to reach out to this man, who needs our help. We have plenty, and are obviously not starving. It's a way of ministering to him and we can invite him to church too." Well I filled up a gallon jug with water, Adam heated up some biscuits and gravy we had made that morning for breakfast, we picked a banana. We also had an extra loaf of bread that we were not going to use (it was buy one get one free this week at the grocery store.) We took it over to him and he asked if we had any soda because his blood sugar was low. I said "No, sorry." He asked if we could spare him 75 cents for a soda. We said "Okay." and started to come inside. He hollered at us and asked if my husband had an extra shirt he could give him because the one he was wearing was pretty worn out. My husband said he would check. Well, at this point, I was thinking, "what else is he going to....WAIT....we are ministering to him...nothing we have is our own anyway...it all belongs to God....and He provides us with more than we really need." So we managed to scrounge up a dollar for him from our change bucket, which is often empty as we dont' use cash much. We weren't able to come up with a shirt for him, simply because my husband only has a few T-shirts to begin with and his white shirts were all in the washing machine. He was wearing the only other one he has, and the rest of his shirts are long sleeve dress shirts that that man would've swam in. (Sorry, Adam if you're reading this...I'm not meaning that you're fat, honey love!..lol) The man was grateful for what we had given him. He gave us the loaf of bread back because he didn't want to waste it. We insisted that we would probably just waste it too because we had another loaf inside. He still wanted us to keep it. He asked if there were any work he could do for us in exchange for the stuff we'd given. We said no, talked to him a minute about church and invited him, and told him if there was anything he needed, to let us know. We didn't do this for our glory, we did it to turn someone else's focus to God for a moment in hopes that he would catch a glimpse of our Provider and Savior. God provides for us. Philippians 4:19 states, "But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus." and sometimes uses us to provide for others. Matthew 6:31-32 says, "Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? For after all these things do the Gentiles seek: for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things."

I was also just reminded of the bible story in I Kings 17 about Elijah and the widow woman. God chose a widow woman to take care of Elijah's needs. Not a rich man (although, anyone who has Christ as Savior is already rich..we have all we ever need...and..we even have a deed to a mansion in Heaven...how neat is that?) She gave ALL she had, but God blessed her and provided for her and showed her AND Elijah His greatness! Here is the scriptures of the story I just mentioned about Elijah and the widow woman. Think about it, and remember to seek opportunities that God may use you in this way to reach people with His light!

I Kings 17
" 1And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
 2And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
 3Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
 4And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.
 5So he went and did according unto the word of the LORD: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
 6And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.
 7And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land.
 8And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
 9Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.
 10So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.
 11And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand.
 12And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.
 13And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son.
 14For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth.
 15And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.
 16And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah.
 17And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him.
 18And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?
 19And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed.
 20And he cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?
 21And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul come into him again.
 22And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.
 23And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, thy son liveth.
 24And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth."

Content....just...content

Lately I've found myself saying "I wish I had ..." or "I would like to have..." quite a bit. But, really, what more do I need? I'm saved by the grace of God! I'm blessed to have a family and a husband who love me very much! I have a place to live. I have food to eat (often more than I need, even if I go to the fridge and it's semi-full and then I think to myself "there's nothing in here to eat!") I have a church to go to that preaches and teaches from God's word. I have clothes to wear. I Timothy 6:6-8 states, "But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content." Philippians 4:11 says, "Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content." God doesn't owe us an anything, not even an answer to why we don't have exactly what we want. We shouldn't want for anything. He is in control. He will take care of us! We should be content with all that God has blessed us with. And this does NOT mean we cannot ask Him for prayer requests or things we think we need. But we should be content with His answer to our prayers, and we should be SO super thankful when He shows us grace and mercy and gives us things we desire but do not deserve. He wants us to bring our requests before Him. God knows the desires of our hearts and will give us what we need when we need it. "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?" as stated in Matthew 7:11. Philippians 4:6-7 says, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Matthew 7:7 says, "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:" We should be content with what we have, and thankful for those blessings we often take for granted. And what a sweet, sweet moment it is when we desire something, are content with what we have, give that desire to God, and He answers by letting that desire be fulfilled. Proverb13:12 says, "Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life." God is SO good!!!

I also wanted to share a couple of songs via youtube links I heard today that lead me to this blog post:

Prov. 31:26

"She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness."

"She openeth her mouth with wisdom"
This is one I truly desire to be true of me (not that they all aren't, but this one is tricky.) I pray for wisdom all the time. It's such an important thing to have. I can't say I love the gray hairs that come along with it though! Haha. However, that doesn't matter much in the grand scheme of things anyway! A lot of people think I'm quiet or shy, but a lot of times I keep my mouth shut in fear of saying something foolish. It's happened plenty of times before. Sometimes, even when I know what I'm saying, it comes out completely the wrong way. I try to do a lot of thinking before I open my mouth. If I don't, I often regret what I say, or wish I'd said it differently. Proverb 17:28 states, "Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding." But when I have something important and that needs to be said (such as witnessing or standing up for what is right), it's just as bad not to speak up. However, we need wisdom to handle such things appropriately. Scripture says more than I ever could on wisdom in chapter 4 of Proverbs. It's a fairly short chapter, so I want to share it all today. It says:

"¹Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.
²For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law.
³For I was my father's son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother.
⁴He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live.
⁵Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth.
⁶Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee.
⁷Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.
⁸Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her.
⁹She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee.
¹⁰Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many.
¹¹I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths.
¹²When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.
¹³Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life.
¹⁴Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men.
¹⁵Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.
¹⁶For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall.
¹⁷For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.
¹⁸But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.
¹⁹The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.
²⁰My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings.
²¹Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.
²²For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.
²³Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
²⁴Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee.
²⁵Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.
²⁶Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.
²⁷Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil."

"and in her tongue is the law of kindness"

James 3:10 says, "Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be." We've all been there. We've told someone something nice to their face and then complained about them behind their backs. Those are the times we need to bridle our tongues. When the devil is tugging at your weak spots, this is the time to be silent and resist the temptation to say something hurtful. (Also, the perfect time to pray for wisdom and strength!) Psalm 39:1 says, "I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle, while the wicked is before me." The tongue can get you in trouble faster than anything, and I know, because I've been there. It's deffinately not something that I am proud to admit. It's a struggle I still face.  Just as our tongue can be a HUGE stumbling block, it can be a great blessing as well. Have you ever had someone tell you just the right thing in a loving way to make you realize what you're doing is wrong, or to make you feel good about a decision you've made. I wish that everything I said to everyone came out that way, instead of saying something I shouldn't. We need to pray for wisdom in what to speak and what not to speak. There's a great verse in the bible that states how we should treat others: Ephesians 4:32 states, "And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." May we all learn to use our mouths for wise, important, and kind things rather than hurtful, untrue, and evil things.

Help meet not Hurt meet

Proverb 31:11-12 "The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil. She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life."

I've heard time and time again that the best way to tear down your husband is to talk badly about him in front of other people. It breaks that trust between you and your spouse. I admit, sometimes I let complaints about my husband slip to my friends or family. Not only does it make me avoid talking through my issues with my husband, it gives them a bad picture of him. He really is a great man and a great husband for me. If I have issues with my husband, I need to talk them out with him, not with the first random friend/family member I talk to. Honesty builds trust. Be honest with each other. Why is it so hard? Communication is the key component to a healthy relationship. It is very hard to get started, but the more I talk with my husband about things, the easier it gets to communicate about ANYTHING and EVERYTHING with him. It's much better than holding in evil thoughts and spreading those evil thoughts to other people. I'm his wife to be his helpmeet as it states in Genesis 2:18 "And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him." HELP....not hurt or hinder. Build him up instead. Tell those family members and friends something nice your husband did for you that day, when you feel like venting...save the vent talk for when you get the next chance to speak to your husband. It will help you not to spread evil thoughts about your husband and saying something nice about them helps you to remember, he really loves you, even though he makes mistakes. What human doesn't make mistakes....everyone does...Then when you're able to get alone time with your husband (please dont do this in front of others or your children), tell him KINDLY what's bothering you. Don't do it in an angry and ugly way. Proverb 21:19 states, "It is better to dwell in the wilderness, than with a contentious and an angry woman." Think together of something that could be done to avoid such things next time. Then end with telling them something you love about them. Treat your man well. He is a gift from God and should be respected and loved.

Prov. 31:30

I know I'm kind of skipping around, but some things take longer to research and pray about. I'd like to start the virtuous woman chapter with Prov. 31:30. It says:

"Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised."

"Favour is deceitful and beauty is vain"
   You've heard the phrase "Beauty is only skin deep," right? Well this is true when talking about outer beauty. "For the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart." This quote found in I Samuel 16:7 is from when Samuel was looking at Jesse's sons to see who would be the king. Looking at little David, noone expected him to be the one chosen of God, Jesse didn't even call him to be present while Samuel was looking. David, however, was the one God wanted. God saw the inner beauty that David had, and that inner beauty is FAR greater than the outward appearance. God made us who we are and He thinks we're all beautiful, as we are His creations and His children! How exciting is that? Now, if our Heavanly Father thinks we're beautiful, should it matter what ANYONE else thinks? ...I think not! Psalm 139:14 is the attitude we should have. It says, "I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well." I Peter 3:3-4 says, "Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price." There's another well known saying that is true. "It's what's on the inside that counts." I'm not saying it's wrong to make yourself look presentable. I'm saying it's wrong to present your outward beauty more than you present your inward beauty. Are you more interested in making your face shine than your inner light? The outward beauty is on a downward spiral as we get older, get gray hairs, and the wrinkles start to show. We age outwardly day by day, and aging is generally not considered "beautiful." However, if we seek God, ask Him to guide us and grow in us wisdom, and live for Him, we become even more beautiful as we age. 2 Corinthians 4:16 says "For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day."

"A woman that feareth the LORD"
   The Scriptures say a lot about fearing the LORD. Psalm 112:1 says, "Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments." Psalm 128:1 promises, "Blessed is every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways." Proverbs 14:2 states, "He that walketh in his uprightness feareth the LORD: but he that is perverse in his ways despiseth him." These scriptures all describe that you are blessed (or happy) if you fear Him, and they all talk about obeying His commands. Okay, but what does fearing God mean? Let me give you a picture of what I believe it means to fear the LORD. First of all, I do not believe it means that we must be afraid to apporach our Father in heaven, or that we should run off and hide from Him because we're so scared of Him. I believe it means we should have such a GRAND respect for Him, that we should fear disappointing Him. We should not only fear because He chastenes those He loves, but we should fear because we love Him so incredibly much that we don't ever want to disappoint Him. How do we do this? In Matthew 22:36, a lawyer was questioning Jesus and asked him this question: "Master, which [is] the great commandment in the law? " Jesus answered him in verse 37 and 38 by saying "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment." How do we show our love for God? I John 5:3 says, "For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous." I think of it as a child who desperately love their parent, and acting on their parent's commands because: 1. they're fearful of the consequences of not doing what they're suppose to; 2. they don't want to see their parent be disappointed when they find out they didn't do as they were told. To me, number 2 was the worst feeling when I was growing up, and still when I dissapoint my parents, actually. But how much more should I fear disappointing my Heavenly Father?

"She shall be praised."
   Sure, being a godly woman may get some praise and recognition from other people, but hopefully the other people will praise God, and not me. My praise will hopefully come when I get to heaven. All I want to hear is "Well done, thou good and faithful servant." That's when I shall know I didn't disappoint my Father after all, and what a wonderful feeling that would be! I only pray that I can become a more dedicated and faithful servant!

Our Future Children's Rules:

I typed up these rules with verses for each one. Each rule has a biblical basis, and these simple rules cover most everything you can imagine. Even spoken rules are covered under "Obey your parents"...I want my children to know there's a reason for them being punished, and that that reason is because we love them and want the best for them. I also did a little outline of why we have these rules at the bottom so they know we're not just doing it for the reason every child thinks they're getting punished..."You hate me!" is one I've heard over and over again. I will be printing these up and framing them for the wall somewhere in the house...probably in our family meeting place.

Here's what the rules are:

·         Obey God’s Commands – John 14:23 – “Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”

·         Don’t use God’s name in vain – Deut. 5:11 – “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain: for the LORD will not hold [him] guiltless that taketh his name in vain.”

·         Don’t put anything or anyone before God – Deut 5:8 – “Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth:”

·         Obey Your Parents – Eph. 6:1 “Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.”

·         Don’t take things that do not belong to you – Deut. 5:19 “Neither shalt thou steal.”

·         Don’t lie – Deut 5:20 “Neither shalt thou bear false witness against thy neighbour.”

·         Don’t complain about having to do something you’re told to do – Phil 2:14 “Do all things without murmurings and disputings:”

·         Be Happy With what you have and don’t want for worldly things you can’t have – Phil 4:11 “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.”, Deut. 5:21 “Neither shalt thou desire…any thing that is thy neighbour's.”, I John 2:16 “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”, Matthew 16:26 “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”

·         Be Kind to others and forgive them – Eph. 4:32 “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.”

            We understand you are not perfect (Romans 3:23), but we desire for you to be as Christ-like as possible (Phil 2:5.) We are commanded, as your parents, to: 1. chastize out of love (Proverbs 13:24); 2. not spare the rod (Proverbs 23:13); 3. Train up our children in the way they should go (Proverbs 22:6.) And remember, even if we don’t see you or “catch” you, God sees you, cares for you, and will chastise you for doing wrong because He loves you. (I Peter 3:12-17 and Proverbs 3:12.)

·         Romans 3:23 – “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God”

·         Phil 2:5 – “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:”

·         Proverbs 13:24 – He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes.

·         Proverbs 23:13 - Withhold not correction from the child: for [if] thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.

·         Proverbs 22:6 – “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

·         I Peter 3:12-17 – “For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil. And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good? But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled; But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ. For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.”

·         Proverbs 3:12 – “For whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.”

We're preparing for a battle!

I was watching Chopped on the food channel last night as I was winding down for bed. There was a man on there who had been a soldier and had also battled cancer. He said, "If you want peace, prepare for a battle." It got me thinking. Being closer to God brings peace, so if I'm going to be seeking for the virtuous woman side of me, I'm going to have a battle ahead! Who am I going to battle against? The devil is one we're fighting the war against. I Peter 5:8 says "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:" People can be another battle "If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you." I will also battle myself. "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." is stated in Matthew 26:41.

So, we are fighting with the devil, worldly people, and our flesh. Wow, that sounds like a hard battle to fight, right? It's a good thing God is on our side! What are we going to need for this battle? ARMOR! No, please don't go out and buy a suit of metal from the medieval store. You have all you need with you according to Ephesians 6:10-18. It says, "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. ¹¹Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ¹²For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. ¹³Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. ¹⁴Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; ¹⁵And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; ¹⁶Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. ¹⁷And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: ¹⁸Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;"  I encourage you to research more into the specific pieces on your own, as I also will in my devotion time, but let's briefly take a look at the pieces of the armor. I found these descriptions on a sunday school lesson site for children when I was researching the individual pieces. I thought they were brief and to the point and easy to understand. I inserted bible verses I think go along well.

The site they are from is: http://www.kidssundayschool.com/Gradeschool/Lessons/9armor01.php
"The Belt of Truth: The belt worn by a roman soldier was important because it firmly secured the soldier's weapons needed to fight. If we are to stand up to evil, we must be firmly secured by the truth that is found only in Jesus. [John 14:6 "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."]

The Breastplate of Righteousness: The typical Roman soldier wore a protective covering to cover the vital organs, like the heart, the lungs, liver, etc. If any of these were injured, the life of the soldier would be in serious jeopardy. If we try to do battle over Satan's enemies with only our own righteousness, we will never win. We need a righteousness that comes from our Savior. [Deut. 6:25 "And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the LORD our God, as he hath commanded us."]

Feet with the Gospel of Peace: To do battle, a soldier must be prepared to go, and good strong sandals were absolutely necessary. Likewise, before we can do battle, we must be prepared, but our preparation comes from the Gospel. The Gospel is the good news about Jesus, and through it we can tell others how they can have peace with God. [Mark 8:35-36 "For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?]

 The Shield of Faith: The shield protected the Roman soldier from arrows and sword blows. Our spiritual enemies are constantly throwing arrows and thrusting swords towards us. The best way to deflect these blows is with the shield of faith. When we hold on to our shield, when we hold firm to our faith in Jesus, we can go forth boldly. [Matthew 17:20b "...If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you."]

The Helmet of Salvation: An essential item for a soldier's survival. The helmet protects the head of the soldier, where there is the mind and spirit. Our salvation comes from Jesus, and it is a lasting protection until the day we are with Him in heaven. [John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."]

The Sword of Truth: The Roman sword was short and lightweight so they could use it easily. At close range, it was a deadly weapon. The sword of truth represent[s] the Word of God. The Word of God is truth. It is a powerful weapon when use under the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit. [Heb. 4:12 "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."]"

Dont forget the prayer too, and remember Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

Purpose of My Blog

Hello, everyone! My name is Shelby. I am 25 years old. I recieved Christ as my Savior in June of 1998, but still find myself constantly having to reevaluate my life and ask myself if I am living for myself or for my God? Am I applying Philippians 1:21 to my life, which states  "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."? I so desire to be a woman of God, and to make it second nature (my first nature was a sinful human, but Christ died on the cross for me to cover my sins.) Also, to make my second nature prominent over my old nature. I also desire to be a godly wife to my wonderful husband, Adam, who is a messenger for God as the pastor a church. We have been married for a little over a year now, and I still have MUCH to learn. I wish to be a godly example to the women in the church. I desire Proverbs 31:28 to be true of me. It says,"Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her." I wish this not becasue I want to be praised or to be calle blessed, but so that I can know I'm doing things God's way instead of my own, and know that Christ is showing through my life. Proverbs 31:10 says, "Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies." This is where I draw my inspiration from. I am seeking to find the virtuous woman within me, and hope to inspire some other women to do the same. I hope to fill this blog with all kinds of things such as devotionals on scriptures of how a woman of God should be, pictures of blessings in my life, Christian humor, money saving tidbits I find, ways of implimenting Christianity into everyday life, children advice (although I'm not a mother, the scriptures tell me much of how to be, and I do work with children a lot and research about them often), and whatever else I think will help find the virtue of the virtuous woman. I hope you all enjoy reading this blog. Let me know if you have any good advice to share with others as well! May God help me (He knows I need Him to do ANYTHING) and whoever else decides to seek virtue along with me.