Family Musings

We now return to our regularly scheduled programming. Kind of. I dove back into Lies Women Believe and am glad I did. It always amazes me (even though it shouldn't) how God's timing is perfect. The first lie I addressed this week was "I have my rights" (pg 73.) This is definitely a lie I believe. I believed that "if any of [my] rights are violated, [I] have a right to protest." That is kind of what happened with my recent church situation. I believed that my right to be heard out was violated. Saying this doesn't make my opinion less valid or that the pastor shouldn't have been willing to talk to me. But it does mean that I went about sharing my opinion in the wrong way. I was like Jonah and Ninevah. My "emotions were controlled by whether or not [I] thought [my] rights were being fulfilled." That is how Satan got me to lose focus on my study for two weeks. Now though, I have let go of the situation. I prayed that God would give me a peace ...

I found myself floating through Chapter 2 last week without experiencing much conviction. If DeMoss titles the book "Lies Women Believe," then I must believe these lies, right? Well, maybe. Or maybe not. I know that over the last couple of years, God has been working in me to show me more about his character. He has used articles like this one to help me understand his sovereignty over everything that happens, the good and the evil. My prayer right now though, is that God will show me if I am being prideful in saying I don't believe these lies. I also wonder, if I were faced with a major catastrophe, would my faith hold up like Joy's ? (click over to find a link to Joy's awesome testimony!) Lie # 1 - God is not really good. If he were, he would... [fill in the blank]. God is either good or he isn't. We can't have it both ways. He is good in the bad times and in the good times. If you didn't click on the link I mentioned earlier, then go read it now . T...

I will admit right now, I didn't get through all of the lessons last week. I had one left when I went to the women's meeting on Friday morning. But that didn't stop me from going. I squashed the perfectionist in me and went anyway, knowing I would be blessed by the fellowship of so many godly women (there are around 15 who have committed to attend weekly). And I was right. Each of these women has a story behind her face and some have years of studying the scriptures to share with me. I am so grateful that we found Random Baptist Church in time for me to join this study. Our first week of study focused on "laying the foundation" of Truth. We have to recognize that truth must be absolute. The world doesn't work right when we all have individual truths. In fact, that is an oxymoron. Demoss writes, "A fatal flaw that is embraced by our culture is to spurn the notion of absolute truth and so leave every issue in life open for negotiation." I was reminded ...

Here it is... week 1 of our meditations on Lies Women Believe. I had my first meeting with the women's Bible study on Friday and will start my homework tomorrow morning (we went out of town this past weekend). During the first meeting, a wonderful woman named Pat, introduced us to both the book and the companion guide. I am excited to read this, but have to be honest, I don't have anything to meditate on yet because I haven't got started. I'll try to post something a little later today once I've done the first days homework! If you have read this book before, would you share what you learned?

After a busy, food-filled weekend, I have another verse about our bodies. Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual worship. Romans 12.1 ( HCSB ) How can my body to pleasing to God? It has a lot of extra fat, my heart and lungs aren't as efficient as they were designed to be, and it partakes of lots of unholy eating. All in all, I don't think it is pleasing to God the way it is. Sure, I can still, in faith, do things with my body that please God, like make a meal for a sick friend or rock my baby gently to sleep. But I should do more. I should treat my body as the temple God created it to be. First Corinthians 6.19-20 says: Do you not know that your body is a sanctuary of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body. ( HCSB ) Would I go into a church and smear trash all ov...

Have you ever had one of those days when you felt like a complete failure? You know, nothing seems to go right, no matter how hard you try? Ever had one of those weeks? Yeah, me too. I recently had a day like that and at the end of it, all I could do is cry. I knew deep in my hard that my problems that day had been caused by my prideful heart. I didn't want to repent. I didn't want to ask for forgiveness. I wanted so badly to be right, for the people I had wronged to come to me and accept responsibility for my actions towards them. You know what? It didn't happen. You know why? Because I was the one that was wrong. Did they have their own sin? Possibly. But it wasn't for me to deal with or confront. I had to look into my mirror and suck it up and own up to my negative attitude, my unkind words, and my hasty reactions. I had planned to meditate on John 3.17 this week. The church we have been attending has used this as their adult memory verse for the month so I've be...

Last week, I started making a more deliberate effort to "teach" Charlotte. It isn't anything formal, I mean, she's only been 1 for a week! But I needed something to focus my energies and this site , shared with me by an old friend, helped. Each 2-week lesson includes a Bible verse to recite for Charlotte. I don't expect she will learn too much from this right now, but as I mentioned previously , it is my job to be an example to her. The verse I meditated on last week, and will again spend time considering this coming week is Proverbs 1.5. "A wise man will listen and increase his learning, and a discerning man will obtain guidance." There are lots of things that I am good at. I can cook a pretty tender chicken, changing a diaper is no problem (now), and I'm pretty good at keeping up my e-mail correspondence. One thing however, that I am very NOT good at is listening. Ask my dad. We can be talking on the phone and all of a sudden he'll ask me if I...

This week I will have had the honor of being Charlotte Moon's mom for an entire year. As with any anniversary, it has given me cause to reflect on my job as a mother. And since her birthday is about her, I'll make this week's meditation about me. This post could also be named - A Call to Motherhood. Let's start with a text that is most often read during the Christmas season, Luke 1.26-38 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel ( A ) was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, ( B ) to a virgin engaged ( C ) to a man named Joseph, of the house of David. ( D ) The virgin's name was Mary. And [the angel] came to her and said, "Rejoice, favored woman! The Lord is with you." [ a ] But she was deeply troubled ( E ) by this statement, wondering what kind of greeting this could be. Then the angel told her: Do not be afraid, Mary, ( F ) for you have found favor with God. Now listen: You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will call...

For the past week, every time I found my brain slipping into my habit of thinking obsessing about the next meal, I remembered the verse I shared with you last week. It was such a blessing for me to have Jesus' words as an anchor when I began to get myself into mental trouble over food. For this week's meditation, I wanted to think more about how God abundantly provides for the needs of those called by him. I remembered the story of Jesus feeding the 5000 and decided to read it again, with fresh eyes.  Here are verses 12-14, which is what I want to concentrate on for this meditation. When they were full, He told His disciples, "Collect the leftovers so that nothing is wasted." So they collected them and filled 12 baskets with the pieces from the five barley loaves that were left over by those who had eaten. When the people saw the sign He had done, they said, "This really is the Prophet who was to come into the world!" Therefore, when Jesus knew that ...

I've decided to begin a new series of posts in which I will share my meditations on certain passages of Scripture. Specifically, I want to start by looking at passages that deal with our bodies and how God tells us to care for them. Since I as a teenager, I've had issues with controlling my weight, mostly because I have not been able to control my eating habits. I shared with my husband this morning that I am often planning when, what, and where the next meal will be. It is taking mental energy away from higher pursuits and I need to get this part of my thought life under control. That is why I have chosen this passage for Week #1: "This is why I tell you: Don't worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn't life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the sky: they don't sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren't you worth mor...